Chapter 150: The Matchmaking Encounter

Matchmaking.

Fan Li was surprised by how talkative Xiang Ning was.

From her, Fan Li learned that she was the daughter and sole heiress of the Xiang Corporation.

Crucially, Xiang Ning seemed thoroughly pleased with Fan Li, eagerly hoping to begin a relationship with him.

"If we get married, once I inherit the corporation, I'll appoint you as the CEO."

"Our family's money will be more than we could ever spend; you won't have to worry about finances for the rest of your life."

"As for children, I want to have two—one taking your surname and one taking mine."

"I often wear men's clothing. You don't mind, do you?"

Fan Li was almost falling asleep listening to this.

He forced himself to stay awake and replied, "N-no, not at all. You have the freedom to dress as you please."

"Tee-hee! You really are a good person, Fan Li." Xiang Ning's cheeks flushed red. Even her neutral attire could not mask her delicate and lovely features.

Me?

A good person?

Hearing those words from Xiang Ning, Fan Li felt an inexplicable sense of awkwardness.

This didn't sound like something she would normally say.

Besides, could blind dates really go this smoothly?

Given his ordinary middle-class background and his status as a regular working stiff, how could he possibly be matched with the daughter of a major conglomerate?

Everything proceeded smoothly, and time flew by.

At 3:55 PM, exactly five minutes before the second blind date.

"I have to go," Xiang Ning said abruptly.

She stood up like a robot that had finished its task and hurried out of the coffee shop.

Fan Li was utterly bewildered, sensing that something was terribly wrong.

He sat there in a daze for a moment before hearing the sound of a woman's high heels approaching him.

"You must be Fan Li?"

A voice carrying a chilly, arrogant undertone.

Fan Li looked up, and the moment he saw the woman's face, he sprang to his feet as if struck by lightning.

His muscles tightened all over, entering a state of defense purely out of subconscious reflex.

"Holy Lord?!" Fan Li blurted out.

The woman frowned. "What Holy Lord? My name is Hanyue. I've seen your photo. You're Fan Li, right?"

Only then did Fan Li recall that his second blind date indeed had the surname Han.

"Uh... please sit." The strangeness only grew.

He instinctively glanced at Hanyue's right hand, which was holding a long-handled parasol.

Clearly, it was just an umbrella, yet Fan Li felt as though she were holding a sword sharp and frosty like snow.

After Hanyue took her seat, she maintained that same keep-everyone-at-a-distance demeanor.

"I was forced here by my family."

"I've never been one for blind dates."

"But since you arrived early at the coffee shop and still have a shred of gentlemanly decency, I suppose I'll listen to your situation."

With that, Hanyue slightly raised her chin, her gaze drifting elsewhere, only occasionally glancing sideways at Fan Li.

Fan Li was completely dumbfounded.

What a haughty and tsundere woman!

Did she really think of herself as a snow lotus on an icy peak, proudly standing alone against the cold?

Yet somehow, her mouth and her body seemed to have completely different minds.

Her words expressed reluctance, but hadn't her body brought her to the blind date anyway?

"Ahem!"

"I'm a local from N City, own a home but no car, and my current job and income..."

With a third round of blind dates scheduled at five o'clock, Fan Li simply treated this as going through the motions.

He recited his background, not expecting Hanyue to have any real interest in him.

"Hmph!"

Sure enough, Hanyue let out a soft sound through her nose.

"Such ordinary conditions."

She didn't even try to hide it, saying it directly to Fan Li's face.

He rolled his eyes internally, thinking that if she looked down on him that much, they should just part ways immediately.

Yet Hanyue did not leave; she remained seated with a composed posture.

Her gaze was still directed elsewhere, but every now and then she stole a sideways glance at Fan Li. Could she still be interested in him?

Strange.

Facing Hanyue, Fan Li inexplicably felt a sense of familiarity.

Could it be that he had known her before?

Fan Li even began to think that her arrogance—or rather, her tsundere attitude—was simply a personality trait cultivated since childhood.

Was her heart actually in the right place?

"You're done talking? Then let me introduce my situation as well."

Fan Li was startled.

His guess had been right!

Hanyue didn't cut the blind date short just because Fan Li was utterly unremarkable.

The cliché trope of looking down on the poor and currying favor with the rich hadn't appeared; she was actually continuing with the matchmaking process?

"I have studied abroad and currently work as a young lecturer at the N City University Conservatory of Music."

"I specialize in piano, vocal music, and ballet, and I've won two awards in international competitions."

"My father is a retired university professor, and my mother is a bank manager."

"I have six figures in savings, no house yet, but I bought a small car for getting around..."

When Hanyue finished, her gaze finally lingered on Fan Li for several seconds, a proud smile curving the corner of her lips.

Her smile seemed to say: Well? Aren't I exceptional?

Fan Li had to admit it.

Given Hanyue's family background and personal achievements—though not quite on the level of a corporate heiress like Xiang Ning—she certainly deserved to be called outstanding.

"The basic situation is covered. Tell me about your hobbies," Hanyue continued.

Fan Li had no choice but to nod and cooperate with the question-and-answer routine.

Unexpectedly, the second round of blind dates went just as smoothly.

When the clock struck 4:55 PM, Hanyue suddenly stood up and, much like Xiang Ning, hurried away.

Fan Li frowned.

He felt like a marionette whose every move had been pre-arranged.

So, the third blind date was about to take place?

As expected.

Right as the five-minute mark hit, a short-haired woman with a scholarly aura and round-framed glasses walked into the coffee shop.

"You must be Miss Lu? The blind date introduced by Auntie Chen?"

Fan Li stood up, wanting to appear as gentlemanly as possible.

Instead, the short-haired woman rushed over anxiously, crying out, "Ah! I've finally found you!"

She dashed up to Fan Li and grabbed him by the arm.

"Fan Li! Snap out of it!"

"I am Lü Fubao, the daughter of Lü Chunqiu!"

"Everything you see right now is fake! We are still deep within Mount Yunmeng!"

"I was worried you'd be trapped by the illusion array, so I forced my way into your illusion... Ah... No! Am I going to be repelled?!"

In the blink of an eye, Lü Fubao vanished into thin air!

Fan Li stood frozen in utter astonishment.

He looked around left and right, truly unable to find a single trace of Lü Fubao anymore.

What illusion?

What Mount Yunmeng?

He was just on the verge of remembering something when his train of thought was interrupted by a cell phone ringtone.

The caller ID read: Mom.

"Hello, Mom?" Fan Li thought for a moment and said, "It's almost 5 o'clock. Why hasn't the third blind date arrived yet?"

From the phone came the sound of his mother's scolding voice.

"You brat, what nonsense are you babbling about?"

"Auntie Chen only introduced two blind dates. Did a third one crawl out of your dreams?"

Only two people?

Fan Li frowned, feeling that something was amiss.

His mother continued, "Your Auntie Chen said that Xiao Xiang and Xiao Han both have wonderful backgrounds. Marrying either of them would be your lifelong blessing..."

His mother chattered on about many things over the phone.

Even Fan Li began to feel in a daze that perhaps it was true?

One was a noble maiden born to immense wealth; the other was a graceful lady from an intellectual family.

By conventional standards of marriage, whichever one he married would bring both honor and substance.

Yet Fan Li still felt that something was strangely off.

Just as his thoughts were wandering, his phone chimed again—a WeChat notification.

Xiang Ning: "Are you free tomorrow? Can you accompany me to the newly opened amusement park?"

Along with the text, she sent a cute 'Please' sticker.

The message from Hanyue was much simpler.

Consisting of only ten characters, it radiated a cold and tsundere vibe, leaving Fan Li no room for refusal.

"I have a day off tomorrow. Come out."