“Knock knock knock～”
The knocking sound at night was especially clear in the corridor.
Su Man opened the door and saw Qi Xiaoyuan.
She was not surprised. In fact, she had been waiting for Qi Xiaoyuan to come to her.
“Come in and sit.”
Qi Xiaoyuan froze for a moment, then followed her into the room, though he deliberately left the door wide open.
Su Man noticed this detail and understood that he was considering her reputation, so she said nothing. She turned around, poured him a cup of hot water, and then sat down by the bed.
Qi Xiaoyuan couldn’t help but look around the room. It was clearly a standard guesthouse room, one he had stayed in before, yet it now felt different.
The bedsheets and quilt cover were no longer the uniform blue-striped ones. Instead, they had light, fresh floral patterns. The only red wooden table in the room had originally been somewhat worn, its paint chipped from age, but now it was covered with a beige tablecloth. If one listened closely, a faint fragrance drifted in the air.
These were things Su Man had taken out from her space to decorate the room. The Original Owner’s father had doted on the Original Owner, and he had used his cloth ration tickets to buy many clothes, bedsheets, and quilts for her. Su Man had selected some she liked and brought them along.
To avoid drawing attention, Su Man had placed all of these into the wardrobe in the room.
She did not know how long it would take before she could rent a place, but even if she was only staying here temporarily, Su Man still wanted to live more comfortably.
“We can cancel the engagement.”
Qi Xiaoyuan was sitting on the chair Su Man had pulled out for him, still looking around, when he was startled by those words. He blurted out: “Why?”
This was clearly the very reason Qi Xiaoyuan had come to talk to Su Man about today, yet hearing it now, he felt an inexplicable heaviness in his chest. There was not the slightest trace of happiness.
Su Man had not expected his first question to be this. “It’s a new era now. No one likes arranged marriages, so I’m willing to cooperate with you and cancel the engagement.”
Qi Xiaoyuan looked at her serious expression and suddenly thought of their first meeting at the military unit, when she had smiled at him shyly.
His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but his throat felt like it was blocked by cotton.
Whether Su Man disliked arranged marriages or simply did not think highly of him, this was not the right time to reveal the truth.
Rumors in the military unit had already spread everywhere. They could not drag Changming into it again. It would be better to follow what the old man said and keep it hidden—just treat it as the engagement between him, Qi Xiaoyuan, and Su Man.
Qi Xiaoyuan asked: “Then what are your plans now?”
It seemed he agreed with what she had just said. Su Man quietly breathed a sigh of relief and immediately took the opportunity to tell him what Su Ercheng’s family had done to her.
As she spoke, her eyes were already filled with tears. She sniffed and said: “I had no choice but to come find you.”
In truth, Su Man was not truly sad. She did not consider Su Ercheng’s family real relatives, nor had she suffered any loss. But as she spoke, her tears still came uncontrollably, as if the emotions accumulated in the Original Owner’s body were erupting all at once.
Still, this made her look more pitiful.
Qi Xiaoyuan was already furious. He had heard from the old man about Su Man’s father’s character, but he had not expected Su Man’s uncle to be so shameless.
With Changming having run away and even changed the name on the letters, the Qi Family was already in the wrong. Now he felt even more ashamed. “I didn’t know you went through this. Don’t worry, if you ever need help in the future, just come to me.”
Su Man’s eyes lit up. “Then… can you help me introduce someone?”
Qi Xiaoyuan could not believe what he had just heard. When he confirmed that she was serious, he felt an inexplicable irritation. “You’re that eager to get married?” Then why don’t you consider me?
He caught himself in time, and the second half of the sentence was not spoken.
But even the first half sounded like mockery.
Sure enough, Su Man’s expression turned somewhat unpleasant.
The atmosphere froze.
Qi Xiaoyuan felt a bit annoyed. “That’s not what I meant.”
Su Man smiled. “I understand.”
Although she was smiling, Qi Xiaoyuan felt she might actually be angry.
By the time he was politely “seen off” by Su Man and stood outside the closed door, he became even more certain of it.
Lying on the bed, Su Man felt a bit speechless. Suggesting to cancel the engagement was only a delaying tactic, and asking him to introduce someone was just a test.
Qi Xiaoyuan was indeed difficult to read. It was said that men who were the male lead were always special in some way.
Su Man did not know exactly how he was described in the book. She had only read the side story about the Original Owner, which briefly mentioned the male lead and the Original Owner’s marriage in just a few sentences.
But she had not expected this man to be so consistently cold and rigid. It frustrated her enough that she did not feel like continuing the act.
Now that Qi Xiaoyuan was somewhat resistant toward her, pushing further would only backfire. It was better to take a step back first, which might even make him feel guilty. After that, she only needed to wait for the Qi Family old man to step in, and she would be able to marry according to the original plot.
Su Man carefully recalled the book’s description of this male lead, no matter how she thought about it…
Qi Xiaoyuan had already walked out of the guesthouse, but then came back. He first went to the front desk and paid for Su Man’s accommodation for the past few days, and also prepaid a week in advance.
“Tomorrow, refund the money she previously paid to Su Man.”
Ignoring Ye Aihua’s gaze, Qi Xiaoyuan walked toward Su Man’s room.
After thinking for a long time just now, he suddenly felt he could understand Su Man’s desire to get married. She could not return to the Su Family, and if she wanted to stay in Ha City, marriage was the best option.
So Qi Xiaoyuan wrote a note: “Sorry, I was wrong. I can help you stay here—whether it’s housing or finding a job, I will help you. There’s no need to rush into marriage. I hope you will consider this seriously.”
He signed his name at the end.
Seeing that Su Man’s room light was off, Qi Xiaoyuan slipped the note under the door crack.
That way, she should see it when she woke up the next morning.
The next day, Su Man still woke up early as usual. She was not used to sleeping in, and in this era there was no phone to play with, so she naturally went to bed early.
She opened the door, took her basin and toothbrush, and went to the public washroom, not noticing anything on the ground at all.
As the door closed, the wind it created blew the note down the corridor.
Just as Su Man turned around, the cleaning lady began sweeping that section of the corridor, treating the note as trash and sweeping it away.
By the time Su Man finished washing up and returned, the area in front of her door was completely clean—nothing was left behind.
Qi Xiaoyuan had just returned to the dorm after leaving the guesthouse when his roommate Xie Wei came over. “Old Qi, you really don’t like Su Man, right?”
Qi Xiaoyuan frowned slightly, confused.
Xie Wei bumped his shoulder. “Just tell me the truth, bro. Everyone knows you two have an arranged engagement. If you don’t like her, just introduce her to me.”
Qi Xiaoyuan had already decided to keep the secret, so he did not deny it further. “You?”
“What’s wrong with me? I’m not bad-looking, my personality is way more likable than yours, and plenty of girls like me. Maybe Su Man will like someone like me.” Xie Wei said unconvinced.
Qi Xiaoyuan knew what Xie Wei said was true, except that this guy had high standards, which was why he still wasn’t married.
He glanced at Xie Wei lightly. “Lights out. Sleep.”
In the pitch dark, Xie Wei still muttered unwillingly, until his bed was kicked. “Shut up!”