Chapter 17. Romantic Game
Saying "I love you" is easy for people who believe in love, but for her, it is as difficult as climbing to the sky.
Ruan Tang felt strange. In the past few years, there had never been a shortage of men around her, but it seemed like she hadn't heard the formal expression "in love" for a long time.
They talk about money, sex, marriage, and at most "feelings". For most adults, love often only exists in words.
Ruan Tang smiled: Okay, how do we talk about it?
Zhang Haoyu was a little anxious, and regardless of the presence of Xu Wei as a bystander, he wanted to show his sincerity right there and then: I am serious.
Ruan Tang asked again: Okay, considering this gift, how do you want to talk?
He was silent for a long time, then said, "I'll prove it to you." Then he left without looking back.
Ruan Tang sighed. Xu Wei picked up the dinner plate on the table and looked at it carefully. She looked up at Ruan Tang, blinked, and joked: It seems that this liar is very dedicated in all aspects.
"It's just a kid. Hand me the receipt. I have to keep it safe in case his parents come knocking on our door in a few days."
Xu Wei asked with a smile: When did you become so cautious?
"The last time a man was generous to me was when he invested money to let me open this store. And then, you know what happened, right?" Ruan Tang smiled bitterly.
"I don't think he's that complicated. Aren't wolfhounds very popular now?"
Ruan Tang put the precious porcelain into a box and said: I'm not a domineering female CEO, it's okay but not necessary.
Xu Wei said that she had just received a message from her agency, asking her to take time out to do a live broadcast as a benefit for her five million fans, and she was considering broadcasting it here.
"That's great." Ruan Tang immediately smiled and placed the large Hermès boxes on the top of the display cabinet, sighing: I hope his family won't come too early, so that they can be placed here to support the show while you are live streaming.
The livestream was scheduled for three in the afternoon two days later. Ruan Tang looked even more like someone who was about to appear on camera than Xu Wei did. She wore a pale pink, fitted V-neck knit top paired with a black, short skirt. Her long, slightly curly hair cascaded down her shoulders, covering her cleavage as she bent over, creating a striking contrast between sexiness and sweetness. Add to that the Cartier baby's breath on her finger, and she had a distinctly ethereal air.
In order to facilitate Xu Wei's live broadcast, Ruan Tang originally planned to close the store, but she didn't expect that many fans would come early to wait.
After making the last cup of coffee, the store was already full and Ruan Tang could only watch Xu Wei's live broadcast from behind the counter.
In the past, she hadn't really been interested in Xu Wei's ways. But once, she spent an hour reading Xu Wei's private messages. There were about a dozen asking, "What should I do if my husband/boyfriend cheated on me?" Over twenty asking, "Although this man isn't great, he treats me well. Should I stay with him?" Countless others asking, "We're in this relationship now. Should I break up/divorce?"
TV dramas from more than a decade ago told us that we can enjoy love, but don’t believe in love.
Ruan Tang couldn't understand why there were still so many people today who clearly had the answer in their hearts, but still tried to get some illusory hope through a few words from others. This was tantamount to drinking poison to quench thirst and drawing a circle to imprison themselves.
On the one hand, Ruan Tang felt that she could also be an emotional blogger, and on the other hand, she particularly admired Xu Wei, whose views on love could change according to the situation.
When people heard she and Xu Wei were good friends, they would suddenly sigh: No wonder you're so popular with the opposite sex, you actually have such a strong think tank. Ruan Tang would just smile every time.
Xu Wei encouraged everyone on Weibo to bravely pursue love and believe in love, but privately she often said that true love is a low-probability event and the foundation of true love is altruism, which determines that true love must go against human nature.
The strategy of conquering the heart in the name of love is nothing but a self-entertainment, because love is originally like Jiang Taigong fishing, those who are willing to take the bait will be caught. Those who think they have mastered the remote control after learning some tricks, and think they use tricks to make the other party fall into their love trap, do not know that the other party has already examined the length, width and height of your pit, and has planned a hundred retreat plans in their minds.
Ruan Tang felt that true love probably required the kind of passion that comes from a moth flying into a flame, but the self-protection consciousness formed during her long growth process made it impossible for her to ignite this kind of passion again.
Her habit of never discussing love with men only fueled some men's desire to conquer her. Ruan Tang suddenly remembered a time when she was 22 and had a boyfriend who was a startup founder and always liked to ask her if she loved him. Ruan Tang would always coquettishly reply, "I love you if you buy me a bag, transfer money to me, I love you..."
If she had answered sincerely at that time: "I love you", would she have achieved class independence and lived a happy life as a rich wife?
Ruan Tang once self-deprecatingly called herself a sober gold digger, and Xu Wei, as usual, poured cold water on her, saying: As long as you don’t use a bamboo basket, it’s fine.
But unfortunately, saying "I love you" is easy for people who believe in love, but for her, it is as difficult as climbing to the sky.
She kept dozing off while listening, when suddenly she received a private message on Xiaohongshu's backend about an order, saying that they wanted all the coffee on the menu to be ordered and sent to the World Trade Center Place, and asked the boss to deliver it personally.
Ruan Tang subconsciously thought of Zhang Haoyu.
But the phone number left by the other party was not the one Zhang Haoyu had called before. Ruan Tang sneered, called the number in the private message and said: Have you had enough fun?
Unexpectedly, the voice on the other end was a woman's: Excuse me, who are you?
Ruan Tang was startled and her tone changed as she replied softly: I'm sorry, I didn't notice the call was connected. I told my son, was it you who sent a private message to my account ordering twenty-three cups of coffee?
The other party was also very polite: Yes, we are a second-hand store. I saw your store on Xiaohongshu and found it very interesting. I would like to support it and would like to ask you to deliver it to me in person to see if there is any opportunity for cooperation.
"Okay, okay, I'll be there in a minute. Could you please send me the store address?"
The other party hesitated for two seconds and said: We are in the alley opposite the World Trade Center, so it may be difficult to locate us. Please contact me when you arrive and I will pick you up.
Ruan Tang's suspicions had been mostly dispelled, but after hearing what the other party said, she suddenly guessed the direction of the story. She still smiled and reminded: By the way, this number is my Alipay account. The total is 782 yuan, and I will pay for the delivery fee myself.
Sure enough, about a minute after I hung up the phone, 1,000 yuan was deposited into my Alipay account.
When Ruan Tang was carrying two large bags of coffee out, Feng Xue happened to come back and wait for the wholesale market owner to deliver the goods. Seeing that she was struggling, she asked if he wanted to give her a ride.
She thought about it, and suddenly an idea came to her, and she said: Then you can help me deliver it. Just call this number when you arrive at the World Trade Center. I will stay in the store to help you wait for the goods.
Later, Feng Xue said that just as he arrived at the World Trade Center and made that phone call, he suddenly heard a burst of "Wow" exclamations all around him, and groups of people rushed past him and gathered under the sky to look up.
He also looked up with everyone's gaze, and suddenly saw Ruan Tang's photo covering the entire sky, with exaggerated and old-fashioned special effects and artistic words.
When Feng Xue looked away, he saw the "All Beijing Look Up" sign at the entrance of the World Trade Center, and a familiar figure was standing next to it.
After hearing what he said, Ruan Tang curled up in a chair holding a beer bottle and laughed uncontrollably. Xu Wei, who had been live streaming for three hours, looked a little tired. She still struggled to sit up, poked her forehead and said: Don’t you have a heart?
"What does this have to do with whether I have a heart or not? I don't have much youth left to play this kind of love game with him." She poked Feng Xue's arm and said, "I don't know why, even though you and he are the protagonists in this scene, I inexplicably find it quite romantic."
Feng Xue frowned and said: If you don’t like someone, you should tell them clearly as soon as possible.
Ruan Tang curled her lips, leaned back in her chair and said: I made it clear, but he didn't listen. No one in this world has the obligation to be responsible for another person's sincerity. This is a common problem among you men, always talking to yourself.
Seeing Feng Xue's expression darken, Ruan Tang realized that she seemed to have touched his sore spot again. She smiled awkwardly and raised the bottle of wine in her arms: Let's not talk about that anymore. Come, let's toast to the coffee shop's first daily turnover exceeding 3,000.
She took a long sip of beer, then quickly picked up her phone as if remembering something. "I'm sure a lot of people are talking about this online today, right? I need to come out and claim it, and use this opportunity to build some buzz for the coffee shop."
Xu Wei nodded and praised: You really have the demeanor of a businessman now, but aren’t you afraid that your potential targets will find out?
Ruan Tang disagreed: "So what if I know? It only proves that I'm still popular and in demand."
"Who is Ruan Tang?" A delivery boy came in holding a huge Gi box.
Ruan Tang shrugged at Feng Xue: See, I rejected you so obviously today, and now you’re doing it again?
After signing for it, she placed the box on an empty table beside her. After opening it, she screamed and fell into the chair.
Feng Xue and Xu Wei rushed over upon hearing the sound and found that something seemed to be moving in the box. Feng Xue stepped forward to uncover Gi's cloth and saw a small fragrant pig twisting its body and nudging left and right with its nose. The hair on the pig's back was shaved into various big-brand logo patterns.
Ruan Tang took a deep breath and called Zhang Haoyu.
Before she could say anything, the other person asked, "Did you get it?" I saw on your account that you wanted to turn the coffee shop into a luxurious dressing room for girls, and I thought there should be pets there, right? My aunt has several cats and dogs that accompany her when she puts on makeup and changes clothes.
Ruan Tang asked: Are you done yet?
Zhang Haoyu said: I know you think I am just in a whim, but I will not give up. I gave you the musk pig just to say that I am determined to get you.
Ruan Tang suddenly smiled brightly, stood up and looked at the pig in the box, and continued to ask: The pig is so cute, do you think it is suitable for roasting or braising?
"Hello……"
Before Zhang Haoyu finished speaking, she hung up the phone, rubbed her eyebrows and sighed: What is the structure of the brain of the post-00s that can have such amazing brain circuits?
Feng Xue was silent for a while and asked: What should we do with this pig?
Ruan Tang sighed, opened the new friend list on WeChat, and found that Zhang Haoyu's friend request had expired. She thought about it and sent a text message to Zhang Haoyu, asking him to meet at the store at noon tomorrow.
Starting at 11 o'clock in the morning the next day, Ruan Tang began to receive takeouts one after another. When Zhang Haoyu arrived, the takeout he ordered had already filled two tables.
Zhang Haoyu was still smiling and said that he was worried that Ruan Tang would hurt her skin if she cooked herself, and he didn't know what she liked to eat, so he ordered everything.
From roast duck to Western food to crayfish, it was arranged like a full banquet.
Ruan Tang said: I was originally just planning to have a cup of coffee with you.
Zhang Haoyu quickly responded: "Great! I haven't tasted your coffee yet. That day at the World Trade Center, I was so upset that I gave your coffee away to passersby."
"It doesn't matter. You've paid for it anyway, so you can pour it out as you like." Ruan Tang pointed to the little pig in the box in the corner of the store and said with a smile: Since your aunt likes small animals to accompany her, why not give this to her? Women are more maternal when they get older, and they should be able to take better care of you than I do.
"Ah? But my aunt is only 25 years old." Zhang Haoyu walked to the corner and squatted in front of the box to tease the pig.
???
Ruan Tang almost vomited blood: It seems that I have no choice but to stew it.
Zhang Haoyu returned and sat down opposite Ruan Tang, with a look of undisguised disappointment on his face, and asked: Do you hate me so much?
Ruan Tang smiled: If I were five years younger, I might like you, but the reality is that I am two years older than your aunt.
He lowered his eyes and was silent for a while, then suddenly asked: Do you have any wine?
Ruan Tang laughed: "What? You want to be brave? I don't think you're a coward at all."
Despite saying that, Ruan Tang still gave him a bottle of beer. Zhang Haoyu took a big sip and began to introduce himself to her, starting from his age and family, and even including the fact that the aunt he mentioned was born to his great-aunt.
"You don't have to tell me this."
"You're rejecting me without even understanding me?"
"We are not from the same world." The complexity of his family made Ruan Tang feel that it was more difficult to deal with than if he was a liar.
"But don't we breathe the same air?" He was already twenty-one years old, but his words sounded somewhat childish.
"It's like we're sitting face to face right now, but there's an invisible, unbridgeable gap between us."
"I just want to know if you like me?"
Like? Dislike? Ruan Tang lowered her head, thinking that this was the least important question for her.
"Ever since I saw you mumbling to an apple in the hospital, I thought you were cute, and you were the first girl who said my single eyelids looked good. I can't give too many reasons, I just know that now I often think of you and want to see you more often." He said a lot of things in a rambling and illogical manner.
Ruan Tang forced a smile: What if I like your money?
"Of course it doesn't matter. I'm after your beauty anyway. If my money can make you happy, that's fine too."
Zhang Haoyu leaned back, looked at Ruan Tang, but seemed not to be looking at her, and continued: And I think you are different from others. When you pulled me to take pictures secretly in the hospital that day, you were like a private detective, very interesting.
Ruan Tang crossed her arms: You may have misunderstood. Actually, I am a materialistic and boring woman. Look, all the things in this room were looted from various men.
"That's because you've been hiding the interesting part of you! You deserve better, and I want to give it to you."
Ruan Tang couldn't help but be shocked. Even though she was as determined as she was, it was hard not to be moved by such words.
She shook her head and smiled: You will say this to many women in the future.
Zhang Haoyu said firmly: No, I have never had this experience before, and I probably won’t have it again in the future.
He looked at her firmly, his eyes burning, his nose high and straight from the bridge of his nose, and the beige pullover sweatshirt he was wearing made him look even more youthful.
Ruan Tang seemed to have no reason to refuse, but she still shook her head: Your sincerity and love are used in the wrong place. When you grow up a little, you won't say such childish words.
Zhang Haoyu suddenly stood up, walked straight to Ruan Tang, bent down, put one hand on the armrest of her chair and moved closer to her, leaving only a dozen centimeters between the two of them.
"What will it take for you to treat me as a man?"
Ruan Tang took a deep breath, and the faint scent of Zhang Haoyu's perfume was carried into her nostrils by the air. She wanted to calm down, but her heartbeat suddenly skipped a beat.
She put a finger on his chest and pushed him away, saying: Wait until you act like a man.
These words sounded like a challenge to Zhang Haoyu, and he seemed to be encouraged. Before standing up, he looked at her deeply, picked up the backpack beside him and said: You said you would wait for me.
Ruan Tang was too lazy to continue arguing with him and spread her hands: Goodbye, I won’t see you off, but remember to pay for the beer.
Zhang Haoyu originally took a few steps away, then turned back and said: Then remember to go through my WeChat. It doesn’t matter if you don’t, I will keep sending you requests.
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