Chapter 51
Lin Xiaoyu dragged Shi Ye to the Japanese restaurant she had been longing for and they ate heartily. While eating, she excitedly reviewed the details of the negotiation they had just had, and praised Qi Jin from head to toe, from his looks to his abilities, from his thoughtfulness to his aura. The central idea was only one: Sister Shi Ye, if you don't hurry up and grab this kind of senior, it will be an injustice!
Shi Ye remained silent throughout, focusing intently on the salmon sashimi in front of her, pretending to be an emotionless eating machine. But her ears still couldn't help but feel a little hot, especially when Lin Xiaoyu vividly described how Qi Jin "inadvertently" helped her out of a predicament and how he pointed out the commercial value of her design with "plain but sharp" words. She felt that even the salmon in her mouth had a strange, sweet and sour taste.
After dinner, Lin Xiaoyu dragged Shi Ye for a stroll in the nearby shopping street, ostensibly to "digest our food and look for design inspiration," but in reality, her eyes scanned the shops like radar, muttering, "This shirt would definitely look good on you, senior... This brooch goes with your gray cardigan... Ah, this scarf! Shi Ye, do you think it matches your moon necklace?"
Shi Ye was driven crazy by her nagging, and finally, when Lin Xiaoyu tried to let her try on a silk scarf in the same color as the moon necklace, the price tag of which shocked her, she could no longer bear it and dragged her away.
She checked the time; it was almost time. She sent Qi Jin a message: "Finished eating. At the south gate of XX shopping mall."
The reply came almost instantly: "Five minutes."
Five minutes later, the familiar black sedan stopped precisely at the side of the road. The window rolled down, and Qi Jin was still dressed the same as that morning, looking like he had just finished a meeting. There was a hint of fatigue in his expression, but his eyes were still bright.
"Get in the car," she said succinctly.
This time, Lin Xiaoyu very consciously opened the back door and thoughtfully shielded Shi Ye from the roof (which she couldn't actually touch), then quickly climbed in herself, leaving the seat next to Shi Ye open, and blinked her big eyes while mouthing, "Get in, get in!"
Shi Ye gritted his teeth, opened the passenger door, and got in.
The familiar cool scent of cedar mixed with the leather smell in the car instantly enveloped her. Qi Jin turned to the side and helped her pull the seatbelt over and fasten it. His movements were smooth and natural, and his fingertips inevitably brushed against her side, bringing a slight electric current.
Shi Ye's body stiffened for a moment.
"Hold on tight." Qi Jin didn't look at her, sat up straight, and started the car.
Soft music filled the carriage, masking the subtle awkwardness. Lin Xiaoyu was unusually quiet in the back seat, only occasionally letting out a suppressed, suspicious "hehe" laugh, or secretly taking pictures (?) of the backs of the two people in front of her with her phone (Shi Ye saw it in the rearview mirror!).
Shi Ye looked at the street scene rushing past the window, trying to appear calm. But the necklace around her neck, Qi Jin beside her, Lin Xiaoyu in the back seat who was "obsessed with shipping" her, and the [Forced Association Progress: 92%] that kept popping up in her mind to remind her of its presence... all of this made it hard for her to remain calm.
By the time the car arrived at the building where Shi Ye lived, it was already getting dark.
Lin Xiaoyu was the first to jump out of the car and waved to Shi Ye: "Sister Shi Ye, I'm going up first! Thank you for today, senior! Love you!" After saying that, without waiting for Shi Ye's reaction, she flew into the apartment building like a happy little bird, leaving Shi Ye and Qi Jin alone in the car.
The atmosphere... became even more subtle.
"Today..." Shi Ye tried to start a conversation, "Thank you for your help. Xiaoyu is very happy."
“Of course.” Qi Jin looked ahead, his tone calm. “She has great potential and deserves this opportunity.”
Then, she paused, turned her head, and looked at Shi Ye: "Tomorrow night, my grandfather is hosting a small family dinner at home, as a way of... celebrating my safety. He wants to see you."
Shi Ye's heart skipped a beat.
A family dinner? Qi Jin's grandfather? To see her?
This...isn't this moving a bit too fast? What exactly is their relationship now? Ex-fiancée? Forced relationship partner? Or...something else?
"I..." Shi Ye opened his mouth, wanting to find an excuse to refuse.
"Don't be nervous." Qi Jin seemed to sense her hesitation. "It's just a meal. My grandfather... is very open-minded. He's always wanted to meet you."
Enlightened? Want to see her? Shi Ye remembered Qi Jin mentioning that her grandfather supported her pursuing true love. So... this means she's about to formally meet the parents? And all this while she hasn't even figured out what she wants to do, and both the task progress bar and the forced association progress bar are a complete mess?
“If you don’t want to go, you can refuse,” Qi Jin added, his voice devoid of emotion.
Looking at her calm profile, Shi Ye felt inexplicably... unwilling to refuse.
It wasn't because of the task, it wasn't because of the system, and it wasn't even because of that damn forced association.
It was simply because... she wanted to know more about Qi Jin. Her family, her past, and another side of her life besides her calm and assertive nature.
The thought popped up clearly and abruptly, startling even herself.
“…I’ll go.” She heard herself say, her voice not loud, but very clear.
Qi Jin turned his head and gave her a deep look. Something seemed to flash across those usually calm and unwavering eyes, so fast that it was impossible to grasp.
"Okay." She nodded. "I'll pick you up at six o'clock tomorrow afternoon."
"Um."
Shi Ye unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the car door. A cool evening breeze blew in.
"Shi Ye," Qi Jin called out to her again.
He turned back when he visited.
"Just wear something comfortable," Qi Jin said, his gaze falling on the necklace around her neck, pausing for a second, "Necklace... wear it."
Shi Ye subconsciously raised his hand and touched the small moon pendant. "...Okay."
She closed the car door and watched Qi Jin's car slowly drive away, its taillights drawing two red arcs in the deepening night.
The stagnant water in my heart seemed to have been boiled over, bubbling and churning, hot and chaotic.
She turned and went upstairs, her mind already racing with uncontrollable thoughts: What should she wear to the family dinner…? Qi Jin said comfort was fine, but it's the Qi family's dinner! Will there be a lot of people? Will Qi Jin's parents be there? What kind of person is her grandfather? Will he be very serious? What if she says the wrong thing? And…
She suddenly stopped in her tracks.
Also, if Lin Xiaoyu, that big mouth, knew that she was going to Qi Jin's house for a family banquet tomorrow, would she faint from excitement? And then immediately conjure up an 800,000-word melodramatic plot of "meeting the parents of a wealthy family, good things are about to happen"?
Thinking about Lin Xiaoyu's possible reaction, Shi Ye felt his head ache even more.
Sure enough, as soon as she entered, Lin Xiaoyu sidled up to her like a cat that had smelled fish, her eyes scanning her face: "Sister Shi, what did you whisper to me? Why did you talk for so long? I saw your car had been parked there for a while!"
Shi Ye took a deep breath and decided to be honest to avoid Lin Xiaoyu coming up with even more outrageous scenarios. "Her grandfather is hosting a family banquet tomorrow night and wants me to go."
Lin Xiaoyu: "..."
She was stunned for a full five seconds.
Then--
"Aaaaaaaahh ...
Shi Ye was so dizzy from her glare that he saw stars: "Calm down! It's just a meal!"
"A meal?! Is that just a regular meal?! It's a family dinner! A family dinner!" Lin Xiaoyu's eyes lit up like a thousand-watt light bulb. "Your senior's grandfather! The patriarch of the Qi family! He wants to see you! What does that mean? It means that your senior is serious! Very serious! She has officially put your (non-existent) relationship on the family agenda! My God! This is more significant than any engagement ceremony!"
Shi Ye: "..." She felt that Lin Xiaoyu's ability to fill in the blanks was good enough to write a screenplay, which would definitely be a bestseller.
"No, no! Sister Shi Ye! What are you going to wear tomorrow?! You have to dress up nicely! You can't embarrass your senior! And you can't let our family down!" Lin Xiaoyu had already entered "battle mode," rushing into Shi Ye's bedroom like a whirlwind. "I'll help you choose! Those black, white, and gray clothes in your closet are definitely not good! They're too dull! What about the clothes your senior gave you? Get them out now!"
Shi Ye was pushed into the bedroom and pressed against the bed. She watched as Lin Xiaoyu opened her wardrobe like a whirlwind, took out the off-white, light gray, and oatmeal-colored clothes that Qi Jin had sent, and held them up against her while muttering something under her breath.
"This cardigan is too casual... This shirt is alright, but not formal enough... These pants are nice, how about pairing them with this off-white cashmere cardigan? Oh no, the cardigan seems too casual..."
Watching her bustling about, Shi Ye felt a strange sense of unease about going to an unfamiliar environment. At least... there was still Lin Xiaoyu, that lively character.
Finally, at Lin Xiaoyu's strong suggestion (and Shi Ye's limited cooperation), a light apricot-colored, soft, knee-length dress was initially chosen. The style was simple and elegant, and the neckline design would just reveal a bit of the moon necklace chain. A thin knitted cardigan in the same color family could be worn over it, which would be neither too casual nor too formal.
"I'll wear the flats my senior gave me! They're comfortable and look good!" Lin Xiaoyu decided. "Bags... you don't seem to have any decent bags? Should we borrow one from my senior? But never mind, it's my first time visiting, so I'll keep it simple and just bring a small handbag!"
Shi Ye looked at her with such solemnity, as if she were "giving away her daughter," and couldn't help but laugh and cry: "It's just a meal, there's no need to be so dramatic, is there?"
"You have to exaggerate!" Lin Xiaoyu said, hands on her hips. "This is your first official appearance at the Qi family! You have to make a good impression! Oh, and remember to wear some light makeup tomorrow! Make sure you look healthy! Also, when you meet Grandpa Qi, be sweet-talking! Old people like well-behaved and cute girls!"
Shi Ye: "..." Well-behaved and cute? What do those four words have to do with her?
After fussing around until midnight, Lin Xiaoyu finally cuddled her "Anxin Rabbit" pillow (she had stubbornly insisted on staying overnight, claiming she needed to know the battle situation as soon as possible tomorrow) and fell into a deep sleep in the guest room, a satisfied, dreamy smile on her lips, as if she were going to meet her parents the next day.
Shi Ye lay on his bed, but couldn't fall asleep.
The moonlight outside the window was beautiful; its silvery glow filtered through the gaps in the curtains, casting hazy patches of light on the floor.
She raised her hand, and in the moonlight, the moon necklace around her neck shone with a warm and gentle luster.
Qi Jin's family banquet...
Qi Jin's grandfather...
The tangled mess in her mind seemed to have been somewhat eased by Lin Xiaoyu's antics...
Even more so, a faint glimmer of expectation arose within her... a expectation that she herself was unwilling to delve into.
She turned over and buried her face in the pillow.
In her mind, the system was so quiet it was as if it didn't exist, except for the [Forced Association Progress: 92%] which burned silently like a small flame deep within her consciousness.
Will tomorrow go smoothly?
She didn't know.
All she knew was that once you embarked on some paths, it seemed like you couldn't stop.
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