007: Encounter and Blind Date

In the days that followed, everything seemed to return to its usual calm, although there were some changes—one of which was that Xu Lin, who had always gone to school alone, now had a companion. His homework had also been successfully excused, though the homeroom teacher made sure no other students found out. After all, if word got out, others might try to imitate him, and other classes might have objections. So, the class monitor collected everyone’s homework, reported to the teachers that Xu Lin hadn’t turned his in, and then the homeroom teacher would quietly suppress the issue.

Though he walked to and from school with Ji Yun every day, inside the school they still didn’t interact much. Her favorability toward him had crept up from twenty-three to twenty-five and then stalled there, but Xu Lin wasn’t worried. From the start, he’d never intended to rely completely on the system. Life is called life for a reason—one must walk their own path for it to truly be called living.

At last, Saturday afternoon arrived, and the atmosphere in the classroom became distinctly more lively. After all, the weekend had finally come, even if it was only two days. This time, classes were canceled on Monday as well, since most of the teachers were to attend a conference together. For the students, this meant a rare two-day stretch of rest as Sunday and Monday blended into a little holiday.

Many boarders lived far from school, so they left early during the second-to-last class of the afternoon. The final period was turned into a self-study session for the day students. In truth, that simply meant homework time, as the homeroom teacher was away at the school meeting, and the class monitors managed things.

Ji Yun sat at the lectern, her pen never pausing, occasionally glancing up at the class. No one noticed that her gaze invariably swept past Xu Lin each time. Some students chatted below, but she didn’t intervene—being a good class monitor required a sense of balance; being too rigid would only make things harder for herself. If things ever got too noisy, she would step in.

But what exactly was Xu Lin doing, since he wasn’t writing homework like everyone else? Xu Lin, in fact, wasn’t suddenly struck by a desire to do homework. Instead, he was jotting down ideas swirling in his mind, compiling them into a rough outline. Yes, he was planning to branch out into a new venture: writing online fiction. Not for the sake of getting rich, but because he wanted to spare his family the trouble of supporting him when the neighborhood’s demolition came in a few years. He wanted to earn his college expenses in advance, and since he couldn’t remember all the details of future bestsellers, he’d have to rely on his own creativity.

Fortunately, he’d written web novels as a side job during university, earning two or three thousand yuan a month in royalties back then. Now, with that experience and a plan to write in the popular genres of the future, he figured even if he didn’t become a sensation, he could at least make enough for living expenses.

So, he bent over his notes and slipped into the flow of creation, only stopping when the bell rang.

“Xu Lin, let’s go! You’re not getting away this time—you promised to help me reach Gold today!” As soon as school was out, Ma Zhiyu and Li Bin flanked him, watching as he packed his bag.

“I…” Xu Lin found himself at a loss for excuses. He couldn’t claim he had homework—these two knew full well he hadn’t been doing any lately. He couldn’t think of any other reason on the spot.

“Fine, I’ll go. But I haven’t played in ages—my skills are rusty.”

“Weren’t you Platinum One?”

“Believe it or not, it’s true. But I’ll try to help you hit Gold.”

“Alright! If you get me to Gold, I’ll treat you to dinner.” Li Bin, who was famously stingy, actually offering to treat them, made both Xu Lin and Ma Zhiyu’s eyes light up.

“What could you possibly treat us to—at most some spicy hotpot skewers.”

“Is my vision that limited? Tonight, I’ll treat you both to hotpot!”

“Can you really manage that?”

“Sure!”

That evening, a little after eight, Xu Lin managed to get Li Bin’s account to Gold, relying on his old Platinum instincts, though how long it would last was anyone’s guess. Then the three of them left the internet café and headed out for hotpot.

When they arrived at their destination, they saw Li Bin pull out three coupons for a 30% discount at the hotpot buffet. The other two could only shake their heads with a wry smile. “Our clever friend is still as frugal as ever!” Still, once inside, Xu Lin and Ma Zhiyu found the experience quite enjoyable. Though it was buffet style, the quality was good, the seafood wasn’t rationed, and since it was newly opened, the place was crowded.

Despite how good the food was, Xu Lin couldn’t eat much—he had a bad habit of drinking too many sodas. Normally that was fine, but at a buffet, indulging in soft drinks was a surefire way to lose your appetite.

“Xu Lin, what’s going on between you and Ji Yun?” Ma Zhiyu asked.

“Nothing. She really doesn’t want to date, so I’m not going to push her.”

“Yeah, there are plenty of pretty girls out there—no need to fixate on just one.”

“By the way, when we came in, I spotted a cute girl over there—didn’t see her face, though.”

“You might be disappointed if you look.”

“Do you want to check?”

“Where?”

Li Bin put down his chopsticks and followed Ma Zhiyu’s gaze—sure enough, about seven or eight meters away, there was an attractive figure, slim-waisted with long, straight black hair.

“Such a tiny waist—and that hair! But she probably has a boyfriend already.”

“As if not having a boyfriend would make her interested in a couple of silly kids like us.”

“Ma Zhiyu, if a fight breaks out when her boyfriend comes back, should we help Xu Lin?”

“Uh… maybe we should just make a run for it.”

In reality, as soon as Xu Lin glanced over, he felt that the silhouette looked familiar, so he decided to go check. When he got close, he realized who it was and sat down beside her. It was, in fact, the teacher he had once shared stolen ice cream with—Ms. Su.

“You startled me! You’re here for dinner too—are you with your parents?”

“No, just some classmates from our class.”

“Did you let your family know? It’s already after eight.” Even outside school, Su Qingwan was still a responsible teacher.

“I told them. Dropped my bag at home and changed clothes on the way.”

“Invite your friends over as well—it’ll be lively.”

“That wouldn’t be proper. Aren’t you here for dinner with your boyfriend?”

“He’s not my boyfriend, just a blind date.” She lowered her voice. “Honestly, I didn’t really want to come—my family…” She was about to complain, but suddenly realized she was talking to a student, a kid after all. What was she doing sharing this with him?

“Sorry, you go enjoy your meal.”

“No worries. But who invites someone to a buffet for a blind date? Your date has a funny way of doing things.”

He didn’t care as a guy, but even he, as a straight man, knew that buffets weren’t exactly ideal for blind dates.

“I don’t really mind; I’d rather not be wasteful.”

“It’s not about the money—blind dates are private, and the setting matters.”

“You sure know a lot. Looks like my impression of you as an honest kid needs to be updated,” Su Qingwan said with a smile, feeling some of her frustration dissipate. The repeated matchmaking had begun to wear on her.

“Speaking of which, you’re only twenty-three, why is your family pushing you into blind dates?”

She fell silent at that, and he didn’t press further. Instead, he reached out and placed his hand gently over hers. Su Qingwan jumped, staring at him in disbelief, wanting to pull away, but paused when she saw the roguish grin on his face.

At that moment, the square-faced man with glasses who’d been sitting across from her returned, looking awkward. He took a deep breath and asked, “Is this your brother, Miss Su?”

“No, I’m her boyfriend,” Xu Lin replied casually, waving to a server. “A case of beer, please. Bro, let’s have a drink.”

“…”

“Xu Lin!” Su Qingwan didn’t shout, but under the table her fingernails dug hard into his flesh.

Xu Lin, however, acted as if he didn’t feel it at all, smiling calmly at the man, who narrowed his eyes in irritation behind his black frames.

“Qingwan, what’s the meaning of this? Your parents said you didn’t have a boyfriend.”

“Hey, man, you’re here on a blind date, not as her boyfriend. Watch your tone.”

“Are you really her boyfriend?” The man eyed him with suspicion.

“Yes, but her parents don’t know.”

“Fine… fine, then I won’t interfere!” With that, he stood up, straightened his collar with exaggerated composure, and strode quickly out the door.

As the man disappeared, a slap came flying at Xu Lin, who dodged. Su Qingwan faced him, her expression icy.

“Xu Lin, I don’t need you making decisions for me.”

“I just wanted to help.”

“I don’t need that kind of help. I’m leaving.” She closed her eyes, lips trembling, picked up her bag, and walked past him.

As the surrounding diners turned to look, Xu Lin stood up without a trace of embarrassment and walked to the counter. “Cancel the beer, please.”

“Certainly. However, your two companions haven’t paid yet. What would you like to do?”

“…”