Trending Again – Chapter 23

She’s jealous, the kind that’s not easy to pacify

Si Meng finally managed to coax Lin Hanyue to sleep, only to discover a faint shadow on the sofa in the living room. In the moonlight, it outlined the silhouette of a woman.

“Si Meng, you called me over so late. Your wife won’t misunderstand, will she?” The woman affectedly said, her fox-like eyes with a touch of red at the corners, below which was an attractive beauty mark.

“You intentionally chose to come at this time, didn’t you?” Si Meng didn’t have a pleasant expression towards her.

“Tsk tsk, how can you be so fierce? I even held you when you were little!” The woman took advantage of the situation, proudly displaying her ample bosom as she walked straight towards Si Meng.

“Si Teng, have you had enough fun? If not, just leave. There’s nothing between us.” Si Meng avoided Si Teng’s reaching hand, unwilling to have any physical contact with her.

“Is it really so indifferent? Once used, is it meant to be discarded? Only seeing the smiles of newcomers, but not the tears of old friends.” Si Teng raised Si Meng’s attractive chin but found her gaze extremely indifferent, instantly losing any teasing mood.

“It’s really not fun. Clearly, the way you look at Lin Hanyue is not like this,” Si Teng said with melancholy.

Si Meng slapped her hand away, got up, and opened a drawer in the living room, revealing something resembling a menu inside.

“These are the names of those people. Go and confirm for me, to avoid any scapegoats slipping through.” Si Meng had been investigating the events of that year these days. She wouldn’t let any of these people off the hook. After the personnel confirmation, she would secretly gather evidence to ensure that these individuals faced the legal consequences they deserved.

Si Teng took the list and couldn’t help but advise, “Understood. You better be careful, so your brother won’t worry about you banging into things again. It might affect my monthly allowance, you know.”

Si Meng felt like this person was treating her like a child. Just as she was about to retort, she saw Si Teng leap off the fourth floor and disappear into the darkness.

Leaving Si Meng with a complex expression, Si Teng, who could be considered either her brother’s hired help or a surveillance camera watching her every move, had just made a move. It seemed that Si Meng might find herself somewhat restricted in her future actions.

The next day, Si Meng, following her usual routine of early rising, found herself up and about. Since she had developed the habit of going to bed and waking up early, she paid no mind to the fact that it was a weekend, and Lin Hanyue was still enjoying a lazy sleep-in with no alarm to disturb her.

It wasn’t until half past ten in the morning that Lin Hanyue was awakened by a phone call. Groping for her phone, she discovered that the missed call was from her mother. Why would her mother be calling at this hour?

She dialed back and activated the speakerphone, “Hello, Mom, what’s up?”

“You still ask me what’s wrong? We agreed that you’d bring a partner home this year, but there’s not even a shadow of anyone.” Mother Lin shouted angrily at the old phone, looking quite furious.

“Mom, matters of the heart can’t be rushed, I…”

“I don’t care. Wait, can’t be rushed? Does that mean you’ve already set your eyes on someone?” Like mother, like daughter, Mother Lin suspected.

“Mom, what are you talking about? I’m busy with work every day, where would I find time for a partner?” Lin Hanyue lied with a straight face. She didn’t want her mom meddling in her affairs.

“Your grandmother will be 70 years old next week. You must bring a partner, I don’t care if it’s a boy or a girl, but I don’t want to see you coming alone.” Mother Lin insisted, clearly concerned about her daughter’s future.

“Also, I’ve arranged a blind date for you today. You must go, or else I’ll arrange a shotgun wedding for you!” Mother Lin said earnestly, everything carefully planned.

Lin Hanyue angrily tossed the cat plushie directly off the bed and grabbed a Shiba Inu plushie, aggressively hammering it. Meanwhile, Si Meng, standing outside the door, was contemplating whether or not to go in. The person inside seemed to be in a bad mood, and she didn’t want to be the target of that anger.

“Come in, why are you standing outside?” Lin Hanyue caught a glimpse of Si Meng standing at the door. Hopefully, she didn’t hear everything.

“Uh, I just brought you breakfast. I didn’t hear your mom talking about marriage, and I didn’t know you were so averse to it. I…” Si Meng stopped herself from saying more as she glanced at the fierce Lin Hanyue.

“You go be my shield.”

“No way, childish!” Si Meng left after uttering these words.

At noon, Lin Hanyue dressed up, wearing a light blue floral dress, with her hair coiled into a flower-shaped crown. Her delicate eyes revealed a hint of gentleness, and she applied light makeup on her exquisite face, enhancing her already beautiful natural look.

Si Meng felt a bit uneasy. Lin Hanyue dressed up so nicely for the blind date, but at home, she was content with a plain face.

Lin Hanyue instructed the butler, then got into a Mercedes and left. Meanwhile, Si Meng lay on the balcony, watching Lin Hanyue’s departing figure with a gloomy expression.

“If you like her, why don’t you go and chase her back?” suddenly said Butler Wang from behind.

Si Meng turned around, thinking someone was talking to her. Instead, she saw Butler Wang advising one of the male servants. Butler Wang was exerting effort to counsel him, saying, “Your first love is about to get married. If you don’t act bravely, she’ll become someone else’s bride. Are you willing to accept that?”

Butler Wang’s words echoed in Si Meng’s ears, like the persuasive pitch of a marketing scheme, inadvertently touching the heart.

Determined, Si Meng decided to stop Lin Hanyue from going on the blind date. She hurriedly ran downstairs, chasing after Lin Hanyue.

Butler Wang leaned on the balcony, tilting his head at a 45-degree angle, sighing, “Ah, youth is wonderful. Miss, Butler Wang has done his part for you.”

At the Moonlight Café

Lin Hanyue was lazily listening to this mama’s boy blabbering on. His information card read: Owns a house and a car, lives with parents, has a stable job, cute appearance, 27 years old, caring and considerate.

The man across the table shook his phone, and Lin Hanyue only snapped back to reality then. The man said, “Miss Lin, you know, when I get married, I have to live with my parents. Besides, once a woman gets married, she should stay at home and take care of house chores.”

Seeing Lin Hanyue frown slightly, the man continued confidently, “Even if you have a higher salary, you’re a woman. The most important thing for a woman is to serve her husband and in-laws, right? What’s the use of earning money?”

Lin Hanyue was about to refute him when Si Meng walked in with a displeased look.

“Go eat sh*t, you mama’s boy. Earning money is great. Women don’t need to rely on men,” Si Meng slammed the table, drawing attention from onlookers. Other spectators also expressed agreement with Si Meng.

Nowadays, with gender equality, talking about the old-fashioned principles like “three obediences and four virtues” seems like utter nonsense.

“What are you, you troublesome woman, talking about?” The mama’s boy still wanted to argue but was silenced by Lin Hanyue.

“Sir, it seems we have no need to continue this conversation. Please leave.”

The mama’s boy looked incredulous. With his excellent qualifications, he couldn’t believe this woman dared to reject him.

After seeing off the mama’s boy, Lin Hanyue shifted her gaze to Si Meng, gradually assessing her. Today, Si Meng had applied light makeup. Although her makeup skills weren’t very sophisticated, Si Meng’s face looked truly stunning. It was like high-quality rice paper – with just a touch of color, a beautiful picture could be created.

“Um, is there something on my face?” Si Meng felt a bit awkward; why was this person staring at her like that?

Lin Hanyue chuckled and teased, “You messed up my blind date; you have to take responsibility.”

Si Meng felt like she had been tricked. She hadn’t realized it earlier because she was caught up in the moment, but now she was fully aware.

“Alright, take responsibility for what?”

“Next week is my grandmother’s 70th birthday, and my mom wants me to bring a partner.” Lin Hanyue said casually.

“Oh, that’s easy. With your qualifications, you can easily find several partners.” Si Meng said in a naive manner.

Lin Hanyue really wanted to pry open her head and check if there was water inside.

“What I mean is, you pretend to be my partner. It’s easy for others to be exposed, but you know me better.” Lin Hanyue, like a sly fox enticing a naive rabbit, coaxed and persuaded.

After some hesitation, Si Meng agreed to Lin Hanyue’s proposal. It wasn’t until Lin Hanyue led her to the Civil Affairs Bureau that Si Meng realized something was not quite right!