Chapter 20

Friday, evening.

When Qijie got home, it was already almost seven o'clock as usual.

She opened the door and went in, not even changing her shoes. Her mother, Qijie's mom, came out anxiously and said, "Why are you back so late again? Xiaoliang called and said your phone was off?"

Qijie was taken aback. She had turned off her phone to listen to music, fearing a sudden call.

So she took out her phone, turned it on while saying, "I turned it off during class and forgot to turn it back on." She then asked, "Did Lu Liang call me? What did he want?"

Qijie's mother shook her head, "He didn't say. You should call him back quickly. I could tell Xiaoliang was quite worried, maybe it's something urgent!"

Just as her phone finished turning on, she found Lu Liang's number and dialed it.

When the call connected, Lu Liang's voice was indeed urgent, "Why did you turn off your phone? My uncle and aunt came over for dinner tonight, and I couldn't find you!"

Qijie was taken aback again and had to explain, "I stayed after school to grade homework. I turned off my phone before class and forgot to turn it back on."

On the other end, Lu Liang's voice was deliberately lowered, but the anger in his words was still evident, "You have a phone so people can contact you easily. What's the point if it's off? ... Alright, I won't argue with you about this now. Come over quickly, to my place!"

Qijie opened her mouth to say it was already seven and she wouldn't go, but before she could speak, Lu Liang added, "By the way, dress up a bit before you come. My uncle is the deputy director of the city government's personnel bureau, a deputy section-level official..."

His voice wasn't exactly low, and Qijie's mother, standing nearby, heard everything clearly. Seeing Qijie's displeased expression, she whispered, "Go, go!"

Qijie frowned, opened her mouth, and finally nodded, "Okay, I know, I'll come over right away."

...

Lu Liang's so-called aunt and uncle were actually distant relatives. However, since the Lu family was in business, they tried to curry favor with any official they could. Moreover, with some twists and turns, the two families could trace a very distant and ancient connection.

The dinner went very well.

Lu Liang's uncle was very formal and spoke with authority, while the Lu family father and son were cautious and flattering. Naturally, they hit it off, becoming increasingly close.

Before going, Qijie applied a bit of light makeup and changed into a white dress, looking bright but not showy. Upon arrival, she apologized repeatedly. Fortunately, dinner hadn't started yet, and Lu Liang's mother helped smooth things over. With guests present, Lu Liang had no chance to vent his frustration.

Then, Qijie obediently helped Lu Liang's mother in the kitchen, served dishes, and toasted with Lu Liang, saying a few flattering words... In short, she played her role as a supporting character in the family gathering very well.

When they heard that Lu Liang and Qijie were getting married next year, the guests praised them as a perfect match and said they would definitely send an invitation for their wedding, so they could come and celebrate.

The aunt and uncle were very happy. After a satisfying meal, Qijie served tea, and they drank for a while before leaving with satisfied smiles.

Lu Liang's parents were very happy. For them, connecting with the uncle meant more opportunities in the future. For businessmen, connections were the key to success.

Lu Liang... was not very happy.

Although he thought Qijie's performance was decent, not only did she look like a lotus in her appearance, elegant and refined, but also when entertaining guests, she showed a mix of enthusiasm and a bit of reserve, and the shy look she gave him made him feel a sense of accomplishment, as if he had regained some face in front of his aunt and uncle.

But even so, Qijie's phone being off and her being late still made him furious when he thought about it.

After the guests left, Qijie helped in the kitchen with Lu Liang's mother. When everything was cleaned up and she was about to leave, Lu Liang finally couldn't hold back and said, "Do you know how important this dinner was? Do you know how close you came to ruining it?"

Lu Liang's mother quickly intervened, not letting Qijie speak, "What are you saying? Qijie had no choice but to turn off her phone during class. Who knew your father would suddenly invite people over for dinner! It's all over now, don't pick on her!"

With these words, Lu Liang couldn't say anything more and just sat there, breathing heavily. Qijie, who wanted to say something, also felt it wasn't appropriate to speak in front of Lu Liang's mother.

So, in the end, it was Lu Liang's mother who insisted on seeing Qijie out, and the two of them sent her off.

Before leaving, Lu Liang's father specifically said, "Qijie, tell your father that after this busy period, I'll invite him for a drink. We old friends should get together more often, or we might end up in our coffins before we know it."

Qijie naturally smiled and agreed—she knew that Lu Liang's father and her own father had a deep friendship, having known each other since they were young, and had gone to elementary school, middle school, high school, and even college together in the same city.

As Qijie was about to go down the stairs, her mother suddenly said, "By the way, it's Saturday tomorrow. You two should go out and do some shopping, you're young!"

She then turned to Lu Liang, "Xiaoliang, you go pick up Qijie tomorrow morning, and you two can go shopping, buy her some clothes, and maybe watch a movie... Got it?"

Although she didn't really like going shopping with Lu Liang, Qijie instinctively looked up at him.

After a moment, Lu Liang said with an indifferent expression, "Got it."

Qijie couldn't help but sigh again.

At that moment, Lu Liang looked at Qijie expressionlessly and said, "Nine o'clock tomorrow morning, I'll come pick you up."

In front of Lu Liang's mother, Qijie smiled gently and said, "Okay."

...

When she left the Lu family, Qijie was still smiling, but as soon as the car was out of sight of Lu Liang's mother, her shoulders slumped, and she felt a kind of hysterical fatigue all over her body.

At that moment, she didn't want to do anything, just go home, take a shower, and throw herself on the bed to sleep until the world turned upside down.

...

The next day was Saturday.

In the morning, Wang Jinglu was practicing the piano when her phone suddenly rang.

She got up and picked up the phone from the coffee table.

It was Zhao Yumin.

Although she hadn't saved his number, Wang Jinglu remembered it clearly.

What should she do?

She knew she couldn't avoid this and had to face it. Li Qian couldn't really help her with this, and everything had to be done on her own.

But hurting someone... was really hard.

She pressed the end call button with force.

There was a moment of silence in the room, and then her phone rang again.

After hesitating, she pressed the answer button.

"Hello."

"Wang Jinglu, it's me, Zhao Yumin. Um... would you like to have dinner with me tonight?"

Wang Jinglu took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and said, "I'm sorry, I have a boyfriend."

There was a moment of silence on the other end, and Wang Jinglu even heard the other person's breathing pause.

Then, he said, "I'm sorry, I didn't know. I must have caused you some trouble, right?"

Wang Jinglu opened her eyes and didn't say anything.

He paused and continued, "I don't know who your boyfriend is, but I believe I'm not worse than him. I will treat you better, so... give me a chance to compete with him, okay?"

After a moment of silence, Wang Jinglu bit her lip and said, "I'm sorry, I have a boyfriend."

He was silent again, then he sighed slowly.

"I understand. I'm sorry for causing you trouble. But... well, I don't think we're enemies, right? If we meet in the future... you know, our companies have a lot of connections, so if we meet, we can still chat like ordinary friends, right?"

Wang Jinglu thought for a moment, nodded slightly, and said, "Mm-hmm."

He definitely heard it.

He paused and said, "Don't worry, your uncle won't get any information from me."

He was really considerate! And... so smart!

So, "Thank you!" Wang Jinglu said.

He "mm-hmm"ed, and the call seemed to be over, but he didn't hang up.

After another pause, he said, "If, I mean if, if one day you're not satisfied with him, then please give me a chance, because I really like you... Thank you!"

After saying this, he hung up.

Wang Jinglu suddenly felt like crying.

Her nose felt stuffy.

She stood in front of the coffee table for a moment, sniffed, and called Wang Jingsnow.

"Hello, Wang Jinglu, is there something?"

"Sister, he asked me to have dinner, I refused, and I told him I have a boyfriend."

Wang Jingsnow was silent for a moment and said, "It's a clumsy but effective method. So... is that what you wanted to tell me?"

"I feel like I hurt someone, and I suddenly feel very sad."

There was another moment of silence, and then Wang Jingsnow said, "You know, I've never been good at comforting people. I can only buy you candy."

Wang Jinglu's lips twitched, wanting to laugh but couldn't.

At that moment, Wang Jingsnow suddenly asked, "Is what you told him true?"

Wang Jinglu was startled and didn't know how to answer.

Wang Jingsnow asked again, "Can you tell me who it is? Someone I know or don't know?"

After hesitating for a moment, Wang Jinglu steeled herself and said, "You know him."

There was a long silence on the other end.

Then, Wang Jingsnow suddenly sighed, "So, it's the boy next door, right?"

Wang Jinglu was full of anxiety and hesitated for a long time before saying, "Sister, they won't agree, but I know you will support me, right?"

Wang Jingsnow's voice suddenly had a hint of fatigue but was still firm, "No!"

After a moment, she added, "If it's him, I'm against it too!"

Wang Jinglu was taken aback, "Why?"

She seemed to suddenly become agitated, as if all the pressure and confusion of recent times suddenly burst out, "Why won't even you support me? You're my sister! You've always been the one who cared for me and supported me the most! Is he really that bad?"

The other end was silent, just listening to Wang Jinglu's increasingly loud questions.

"Are you going to be like Mom and Dad too? Do you think they're poor? He's not ambitious? Or... or something like he's not good enough for me?"

After saying this, Wang Jinglu stopped.

From a young age, she rarely got angry or hysterical, but at that moment, she felt she had to ask, had to know why!

Otherwise, she wouldn't accept it!

The two of them could hear each other's breathing.

Wang Jingsnow suddenly said, "I don't think an 18-year-old should be held responsible for their family's poverty. I don't think Li Qian is unambitious. Although he can be a bit wild, he's very smart, very smart from a young age. As long as someone is smart enough, they won't end up being a failure. But... he really doesn't deserve you!"

After venting, Wang Jinglu's mood gradually calmed down a bit.

And her sister's answer didn't surprise her too much.

"Can you tell me specifically why he doesn't deserve me? I don't expect him to achieve great things in the future. I'd rather live a simple life with him, is that not okay?"

The other end was silent for a moment and said, "Forget it, Wang Jinglu, let's not argue. I don't want to argue with you, and I don't want to force you to make a choice. Maybe... I hope you can be more patient. Maybe in a few years, without anyone telling you, you'll feel that he doesn't deserve you anymore!"

Wang Jinglu was silent.

Her mother had said almost the same thing.

But she couldn't accept it!

Why?

After a moment, the other end said, "Wang Jinglu, you're still young. Don't think too much for now, and don't decide your whole life right now, okay? Focus on your studies. After the final exams, I'll come back to pick you up. I still have to practice singing. If there's nothing else, I'll hang up. Remember, don't think too much, leave everything to time, okay?"

Wang Jingsnow didn't speak until the other end hung up.

Then, she silently put down her phone and walked back to the piano.

Her hands fell on the keys, and she took a deep breath, trying to suppress the bitter and sad feeling that made her want to cry. Then she suddenly stood up, walked over, and picked up her phone, entering a text message.

"He asked me to have dinner, but I refused."

After typing it, she hesitated, then added, "Don't feel too much pressure, I can wait."

The text message was sent successfully.

She could almost hear the ding from the other side, less than twenty meters away.

Then, she put down her phone and slowly fell onto the sofa, leaning to one side.

Suddenly, she felt very weak.

...

Ding.

Li Qian picked up his phone and looked at it for a moment. His finger hovered over the screen, and in the end, he put the phone back on the table.

In front of him was an open Russian textbook.

On the side, a notebook with half a page of copied Russian text.

In his left ear, a Soviet woman's beautiful high-pitched voice, mournful and powerful.

His fingers tapped the table rhythmlessly.

The big fan whirred, and the sound of someone cooking could be heard.

It was very hot.

Downstairs, children were running, laughing, falling, and getting up.

Li Qian tapped his forehead and slowly exhaled.

Then, he picked up his phone, typed a few words, and sent them.

"I'll take care of the future," he said.

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