9 – Blind Date
Jiang Zhe sighed, his face a mix of surprise and restraint.
He rubbed his brow, head aching, and explained helplessly, “So you really do care about that guy. What did I even say to get you this worked up? All I said was that his profession isn’t right for you. It’s not that I look down on firefighters—it’s that the job is dangerous, and the hours aren’t free or under his own control. If you date someone like that, it’ll be very hard on you.”
Jiang Wanning shot back, ”And dating anyone else wouldn’t be hard? What about the police, the heroes who protect our homes and country—should they not deserve to find a girl, fall in love, get married, and have kids just because of their jobs? Bro, without these people, where would our peace and stability come from? I think they’re far better than those sanctimonious hypocrites—mouths full of profit, mouths full of money, saying they care about me, then turning around and using ‘busy with work’ as an excuse to go fawn over other women.”
Jiang Zhe pinched the bridge of his nose.
His head hurt even more.
Fine. He couldn’t win an argument against Jiang Wanning. He’d say one sentence, and she’d fire back a dozen.
Besides, Jiang Wanning had clearly twisted his meaning.
Not lingering on that topic, Jiang Zhe changed the subject. “Tell me about the day you were trapped in your car in the rainstorm. Why did you pass out midway and lose consciousness? Do you have any suspects? Who did you offend that they’d target you and want you dead?”
When he’d heard about the incident from their uncle—Jiang Wanning’s father—Jiang Zhe’s face had gone cold and ugly.
The little princess their family doted on most had been subjected to something so vicious and despicable.
If she hadn’t met a kind-hearted person who saved her, Jiang Wanning might have died that night in the rainstorm.
In truth, Jiang Zhe already had someone in mind, but without evidence, without a single thread to follow, the two of them wouldn’t act rashly or reveal anything.
First, he’d ask Jiang Wanning.
Jiang Wanning’s expression turned cold. She stared at the lemon water on the table, the scene of being trapped in the car, unable to escape, flashing before her eyes. Her voice was slightly chilly as she said, “I don’t know who swapped the water in my car. It was after drinking that bottle of water that I passed out and lost consciousness. The doctor examined me later too, but didn’t find any residue. But I’m certain—I did pass out after drinking that bottle of tampered water.”
“And the car door—no matter how hard I pushed, it wouldn’t open, as if something was blocking it from outside.”
At the mention of this, Jiang Wanning suddenly remembered something important—she’d forgotten to ask Fu Yan about what happened that day.
She’d been so busy flirting with the man, wanting to win over the man who had saved her, whose eyes held a galaxy that made her heart flutter, that she’d completely forgotten the important matters.
Pig brain!
Jiang Wanning smacked her own forehead.
She’d been so bewitched by a pretty face that she’d lost her mind, hadn’t she?
Unbelievable!
“I’ll ask Captain Fu about the details. He’s the one you say is unsuitable for me—he’s the one who saved me. If I hadn’t run into him that night, I’d be dead.”
“So, Bro, since he saved me, our family can’t just pretend nothing happened just because he did a good deed without leaving his name. We should at least show some basic gratitude, shouldn’t we?”
Judging by her instincts, Fu Yan wasn’t the kind of person who coveted money—otherwise, he wouldn’t have quietly slipped away after taking her to the hospital.
“So your way of showing gratitude is to chase after him and date him?”
“No, I’ll offer myself to him in marriage.”
Jiang Zhe: “…”
What he wanted to do right now was kick Jiang Wanning out the door, just so he wouldn’t get angry looking at her smug face.
“By the way, bro, help me look into whether Du Shiqin has been in contact with anyone suspicious lately—especially anyone who could get their hands on something dirty.”
“If anyone wants to hurt me, hates me, has a grudge against me, and least wants to see me alive and kicking, I’d say it’s Du Shiqin, and only Du Shiqin. She stole what was mine, stole my dad, stole my mom’s man, and destroyed my originally happy family. I’ve targeted her plenty over the years. If she’s harboring a grudge and wants to stage an ‘accident’ to get rid of me, that’s possible too.”
Jiang Wanning’s thoughts coincided exactly with Jiang Zhe’s.
He nodded, his expression grave.
“Understood.”
A few days later, Shu Xia flew back, and Jiang Wanning drove to the airport to pick her up. On the way back, Shu Xia suddenly stared at Jiang Wanning’s chest with a strange look on her face.
Jiang Wanning was puzzled. “What are you looking at?”
If it were a man staring at her chest so lecherously, she’d probably rip off the steering wheel and bash his head in!
Shu Xia said, “How come they look bigger? I heard from experienced married women online that when men knead them, they get bigger. Can I touch them? Just to see if it’s my imagination.”
Two seconds of silence.
Jiang Wanning gritted her teeth. “Get lost!”
She rolled her eyes and snapped, “Miss, don’t you know that a woman’s breasts get swollen and tender during her period, and can even look bigger sometimes? What does it have to do with men? Can you stop being so filthy-minded?”
Shu Xia burst out laughing, then got to business: “There’s a company boss hosting a dinner tonight. He wants to collaborate—discuss personal brand marketing for next quarter. Are you going?”
“No.”
Jiang Wanning refused without a second thought, then honestly admitted, “I’m not free tonight. I really do have plans, the kind I can’t get out of. No choice—I have to go.”
The moment Jiang Wanning spoke in that utterly dead-inside tone, Shu Xia knew exactly what was going on.
She said, “Your Empress Dowager at home is nagging you to go on a blind date again? No way. Your older brother doesn’t even have a girlfriend and isn’t married, and she’s not worried about him—why are they so anxious about you? Afraid you won’t be able to find a husband? Or do they think you’re too ugly and no one will want you?”
Jiang Wanning gave a couple of dry laughs.
Who knew.
Maybe they were afraid that with her high standards, she really would keep picking and choosing and never find a husband. Or maybe, since she’d been putting off finding a boyfriend, if Jiang Wanrou ended up finding one first, Grandma would feel she’d lost face. After all, in Grandma’s eyes, she was the most beautiful, most capable, smartest, and kindest granddaughter.
Of course, Jiang Wanning kept that self-praise to herself.
Afraid that if she said it, Shu Xia would beat her up.
For being too narcissistic, too full of herself.
She hadn’t seen Fu Yan in days—almost a week now. All the texts and WeChat messages Jiang Wanning sent Fu Yan had sunk like stones into the sea; he hadn’t replied to a single one.
She didn’t know whether he hadn’t seen them, or had seen them and simply couldn’t be bothered with her.
That evening, Jiang Wanning went to the restaurant Grandma had designated to wait for her date. She deliberately arrived very early, prepared to find every way possible to make things difficult for the guy once he showed up.
She’d already figured it out—as soon as he arrived, she’d use the excuse that he was late and had no respect for punctuality.
That way she could ruin the blind date without offending anyone.
Jiang Wanning opened her compact mirror and glanced around through it, checking whether there was anyone Grandma had sent to keep an eye on her.
Just as she was searching, a pair of long legs appeared in the mirror. Following them up over a pair of expensive dark suit trousers, a man’s deep, handsome face appeared in the mirror Jiang Wanning was holding.
Jiang Wanning had a feeling.
Perhaps this man was her blind date for tonight—a very successful businessman from an excellent family. One could say he was a perfect match for her.
Her grandmother had high standards. Every man she picked was a CEO, a professor, or a top lawyer—each one prominent, respectable, and well-established.
“Excuse me, would you happen to be Miss Jiang Wanning?”
Upon seeing Jiang Wanning’s face, the man smiled, then took a seat directly across from her with elegant, dignified manners. He removed his refined silver-rimmed glasses, fully revealing a pair of striking, sharp eyes.
He had a powerful presence, yet it wasn’t overbearing or off-putting.
“Hello, Miss Jiang. My surname is Fu. I’m Fu Chi.”
Fu Chi subtly sized up Jiang Wanning, his words polished and flawless: “I’m your blind date for tonight. Sorry, I arrived a bit early. I didn’t expect you to have gotten here even earlier than me—you’re quite special.”
Quite special?
Wait a moment—this man’s surname was Fu?