Aside from a little too much soy sauce, he was genuinely shocked she could cook this well on her first try. He closed his laptop, picked up his chopsticks, and popped a piece of stir-fried pork into his mouth.
It was delicious—tender, with a hint of chili.
To achieve this flavor on her first try was truly impressive.
"Hmm, 90 points!"
Hearing Xiao Ran’s approval, the girl beamed, her eyes and brows brimming with a joy she couldn’t hide.
"See? I told you I have a talent for cooking. If you like it, I can cook for you more often!"
After speaking, the girl picked up her chopsticks, grabbed a piece of the stir-fried pork, and popped it into her mouth.
"So, what are your plans now?" she asked as she ate.
Xiao Ran shoveled a mouthful of rice. "No plans for now. It’s just a divorce, not a death sentence. What’s there to plan?"
’He didn’t mention wanting to move. She’s just a kid; she wouldn’t understand even if I told her.’
Seeing his bowl was empty, the girl thoughtfully placed a large piece of meat into it.
Blinking her big eyes, she asked cautiously, "So... do you still love my sister?"
Xiao Ran thought about it. It was hard to say.
All he could say was that it felt like he had just woken up from a dream, with a lingering sense of wistful loss.
’Did I love her? Of course I did.’
’It would be ridiculous to get married without love.’
But he knew better than anyone else that it was all over.
’My life is still long.’
As if struck by a thought, Xiao Ran spoke with great sincerity. "Life is like a trip. You never know if the scenery along the way will be good or bad. If you like it, you stay a while. If you don’t, you just keep going. Since I’ve already chosen to leave, I won’t look back. What’s important is living in the moment."
Hearing this, the girl, who was biting her chopsticks, nodded seriously. He had a point.
"Then... do you hate my sister?" she asked timidly.
’If it were me, I think I would hate her. After all, he’s been so good to my sister all these years.’
Xiao Ran shook his head. "The past is in the past. Besides, your sister just fell out of love. She didn’t do anything wrong. I don’t hate her."
He truly didn’t hate her.
The girl was taken aback.
’I can’t believe he could still say something like that after how my sister treated him.’
’That’s true magnanimity.’
’My brother-in-law really is a true gentleman!’
The girl blinked and said with a serious expression, "You’re such a good person. My sister was blind to let you go. Don’t lose heart. You have a long life ahead of you. There’s an old saying: The hardships you suffer now will light the way for your future!"
Xiao Ran didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
’She’s just a kid, and she’s lecturing me? I’ve eaten more salt than she’s eaten rice.’
"Instead of worrying about me, you should focus on your interviews and which company you want to join." Although that’s what he said, Xiao Ran was actually very grateful to his little sister-in-law.
At least she didn’t see him as a loser like her sister did. On the contrary, she was worried about him.
"I have something to do after this, so I need to head out. I’ll be back late tonight," Xiao Ran said, then lowered his head and shoveled in another mouthful of rice.
Hearing that he had plans, Yan Xici didn’t press him. She just added more food to his bowl and said with a smile, "Then you should eat up!"
By the time they finished lunch, it was already one o’clock. Xiao Ran quickly cleaned up and headed to his appointment.
He was a very punctual person and would never be late for a scheduled meeting.
He arrived at Starbucks at 1:40 PM, twenty minutes early for his meeting. Xiao Ran ordered a coffee and found a seat in the corner.
While he waited, he opened his fan group chat.
Youran Zide: Guys, two announcements.
As soon as the message appeared, the group chat blew up.
Craving Lychees: You show up ten times, and nine of them are to announce a hiatus. Can’t you learn from the guy in the next channel over?
Yi Gege: A hiatus is fine, but you better have a reason that’ll blow my mind.
Accelerator: The author next door said he saw his hot neighbor and her dog get rushed to the hospital together. He was too shocked to type.
Xiao Ran: ...
’Is that really the kind of person they think I am?’
In fact, Xiao Ran considered himself quite dedicated. Aside from housework, cooking, and his day job, he spent almost all his remaining time writing. It was mostly writing, of course; being a librarian was hardly a demanding job.
Youran Zide: I wanted to say... I got divorced.
That single message threw the chat into an uproar.
Mr. Jiang doesn’t eat ginger: So this is your excuse for a hiatus today? Slick.
Divine Cat Liuli: Nah, let him finish his story. He said there were two things, right?
Youran Zide: The second thing is, I sold the rights to my old book.
The people in Xiao Ran’s group were mostly long-time readers. He’d started writing his freshman year of college and had written six books in seven years. These people had read nearly every single one, making them his die-hard fans.
Mr. Jiang doesn’t eat ginger: We should celebrate, but you’d better not go drinking. Every time an author drinks, a hiatus is sure to follow!
Yi Gege: Wait, are you talking about *My Wife is a CEO*?
Youran Zide: Yep. A little ironic, isn’t it?
Xiao Ran wrote fluff romance novels, which, he had to admit, was a little embarrassing.
’But you couldn’t really blame me. Someone has to write every genre, right? Besides, fluff was easy to write, especially for a married man like me. It was all based on real-life experience.’
He Is Not She: Congrats, Author! So, what’s the new book? I’m in a reading slump. Aren’t you thinking about starting a new one?
Accelerator: I second the motion!
Jin Xia: I second the motion.
After a chain of "I second the motion!" messages, a different one suddenly popped up.
Yilou Tingfengyu: Not gonna lie, bro, I wanna see a story with sisters!
And with that, the entire group descended into chaos.
Requests for everything started pouring in: two female leads, a harem, even an incest plot with a brother and sister.
Youran Zide: I’m a respectable author of urban fiction! I write respectable urban fiction!
’As an author who only writes single-female-lead stories, I just couldn’t bring myself to write a multi-lead or harem story, even though I might read one once in a while!’
He was still chatting in the group when he looked up and saw a man with a buzz cut, wearing a tracksuit, walk in.
The man looked to be in his late twenties. It was his editor, Shi Guang; he recognized him from his photo in the editor’s bio.
Behind him was a woman in her thirties dressed in professional attire, complete with black stockings and high heels. A solid 9 out of 10, he estimated.
Youran Zide: Gotta go, editor’s here.
After sending the brief reply, he put down his phone and stood up, greeting them warmly. "Brother Shi, over here!"
When Shi Guang saw Xiao Ran, a flicker of surprise crossed his face before he led the woman over.
This was Shi Guang’s first time meeting Xiao Ran in person as well; they usually communicated over QQ.
He was quite handsome and looked very young, which immediately gave Shi Guang an even better impression of him.
"So this is the author you were telling me about?" The speaker was Liu Min, a screenwriter from Ai Qi.
Just half a month ago, she had discovered Xiao Ran’s book, *My Wife is a CEO*. She found it so interesting that she binge-read the entire thing in two days.
After three meetings, the company had finally decided to buy the book’s rights and adapt it into a television series.
Xiao Ran smiled. "Yes, that’s me."
"I wouldn’t have guessed. You’re quite young, and very handsome," Liu Min said, smiling as she made small talk.
She genuinely loved Xiao Ran’s book. She felt it was relatable, funny, and surprisingly profound at times.
She never expected to meet him today and discover he was a young man of twenty-three or twenty-four, with a bright, handsome face.
This came as a pleasant surprise to Liu Min.
"What can I get you to drink? I’ll go order," Xiao Ran offered politely.
Liu Min smiled apologetically. "That’s alright, nothing for me. I’m on a tight schedule and have to leave soon."
"Let’s get right to it. Your book is exceptionally well-written, and our company is prepared to buy the rights. However, regarding the price, the absolute most we can offer is 2.9 million. Shi Guang and I have discussed this many times, but my hands are tied. We have our own internal policies. 2.9 million is the highest I can go within my authority."
Liu Min’s tone was earnest.
She wasn’t lying. The book was excellent, and she herself was a fan.
But the final price wasn’t up to her, a fact for which she felt genuinely sorry.
Her words came as a pleasant surprise to Xiao Ran.
’They’d agreed on 2.8 million, and now she was adding another 100,000. That was more than good enough.’
Xiao Ran answered readily, "No problem. 2.9 million it is."
"Great. Thank you for your understanding." Liu Min gave a sincere smile, her perfectly white teeth making her look gentle and charming. "If we have the chance to work together again, I’ll be sure to fight for a better deal for you!"