Chapter 39: The Thirty-Ninth Blind Date
Amidst his mother’s endless chatter, the housemaid brought in freshly prepared food from the kitchen. After eating a simple meal, Long Yu returned to his own room. His parents were good in every way, except for the gulf in their philosophies of life—a difference so great that it unfailingly led to conflict whenever they spent time together. But Long Yu had long since grown used to it. Whenever his parents began their familiar nagging, he would hastily retreat to his room or find an excuse to go out.
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The next morning, with the sun just beginning to lighten the horizon and the world still deep in slumber, Long Yu’s mother roused him from bed.
“Mom, what is it this time?” Long Yu asked, a hint of complaint in his voice at being woken so early.
“What is it? You’re not a child anymore, but you still don’t have a girlfriend. These past few days, plenty of people have come to your father and me, wanting to introduce you to someone. Today you’ll come with me and meet them all.”
Her tone brooked no argument.
“What? I’m not going…” Long Yu was stunned. He buried his head tightly under the covers, determined not to go no matter what.
He was perfectly happy on his own—why would he need to go on blind dates?
Yet, as the saying goes, a child’s arm is no match for a parent’s will. No matter how formidable he was outside, at home Long Yu could never resist his mother. In the end, under the iron rule of his mother, he surrendered.
Indeed, no matter who you are or what you’ve accomplished, if you’re unmarried, you can never escape the terror wielded by parents eager to see you wed.
Unwillingly, Long Yu dragged himself out of bed, dawdling over washing his face, brushing his teeth, and breakfast, stretching out every moment he could.
“Why isn’t Ren Kaiming coming to see me? Doesn’t he have anything for me to do? I am, after all, the commander of the Safe Zone—even if I don’t actually do much.”
“And why is Luo Wanqing so well-behaved today, not clamoring to go out and play?”
“Could it be that after all my brilliance, I’m going to be tripped up by matchmaking in the end?”
Lost in such thoughts, Long Yu sat down at the dining table and only then noticed Luo Wanqing playing with the tiger. With a new playmate, she no longer sought his company. Growing up, she’d probably be led away by some other boy—his affection for her would be wasted.
Long Yu grumbled inwardly, “No, I can’t give up that easily.”
An idea suddenly sparked in him, and with a mischievous grin, he ran over to where Luo Wanqing was happily playing.
“Wanqing, do you want to go out and play with your big brother?”
“No,” the little one replied, not even looking up.
“Uh…” Long Yu was momentarily speechless, still confused, when Luo Wanqing added,
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“Mom says my brother is going on a blind date today, so I shouldn’t bother him. Once he gets married, I’ll get to eat lots and lots of delicious food.”
At the mention of good food, Luo Wanqing’s eyes lit up, her face full of anticipation.
So that was it—Long Yu finally understood. His mother had tricked his little sister.
“But do you know that if your brother gets a wife, he won’t be able to take you out to play every day? He won’t be able to dote on you like before,” Long Yu said slyly.
The little girl’s eyes widened at once. “If brother gets married, he can’t take me out to play?”
“No, no! I still want brother to take me to do lots of fun things! What if he doesn’t take me anymore?”
...
Shaking her head, Luo Wanqing dared not think further.
“Then can brother not go?” she asked tentatively, abandoning her games at last.
Long Yu was overjoyed. This was exactly the result he wanted, and he cheered inwardly, “Success! I’ve finally tricked this little one.”
But he kept his expression grave. “That depends on you, Wanqing.”
“You go ask Mom to let me take you out to play today. If she refuses, make a fuss. If you succeed, your brother won’t have to go on the blind date.”
“I’ll go right now—” she cried, dashing off toward their mother.
“Mom, Mom! Can you not let brother go on the blind date today? I want him to play with me!”
She shouted as she ran, tears already welling up.
“I don’t want brother to get married—”
Yue Ruixia, who was busily preparing for Long Yu’s matchmaking, understood at once what was happening: “No doubt my son is up to his usual tricks.”
When she heard Luo Wanqing say she didn’t want her brother to get married, she understood completely. The boy was using his sister again to avoid the blind date.
Amused and helpless, she could only sigh. Her son was already an adult, still single. In the past, when the family had little, matchmaking wasn’t an option. Now that they had the means, and the girls being introduced were all daughters of high officials! She simply couldn’t understand why her son was so unwilling. Everyone must marry eventually; it’s better to settle such matters sooner.
...
“No, today he’s going on that blind date, come what may. If I don’t get this settled, I’ll never be at peace, even in death!” With this in mind, Yue Ruixia felt even more resolved.
“Your brother has to go on the blind date today. You can’t want him to be single forever, can you? Be good, Wanqing. Daddy will take you out to play later. He’ll buy you tasty treats and fun things—”
While comforting her crying daughter, Yue Ruixia called out to Long Jianbang, who was idling nearby: “Are you going to do something about your son? He’s gotten his sister to make a fuss just to avoid a blind date.”
As Long Yu secretly congratulated himself on his cleverness, dread crept over him—his mother had seen through his little scheme.
...
Thus, a small family farce ended in Long Yu’s defeat.
His sister, Luo Wanqing, was taken out to play by their father, Long Jianbang. The little one, lured by the promise of treats and fun, abandoned her brother without a backward glance—no, in fact, she did look back: before leaving, she smiled sweetly and said, “Goodbye, brother, I’m going out with Dad.”
As for everything else, she’d left it far behind—what was a brother, compared to delicious food and fun?
Having given up all hope, Long Yu ceased his resistance and allowed himself to be ordered about by his mother, waiting to meet the girls she had arranged.
It was just a formality anyway—she could arrange all she liked, and he would just scare them all away.
“Fix up your hair.”
“Go change your clothes—didn’t Commissar Ren bring you a pile of new clothes yesterday?”
“What’s with that attitude? You’re about to meet someone, so smile! Be positive! Who wants to see you looking so glum?”
...
Under his mother’s urgings, Long Yu did as he was told, moving only whenever she prodded him, like a stubborn millstone.
After dozens of minutes, his mother finally deemed him presentable. Looking over the result, Yue Ruixia smiled with satisfaction.
With herself in charge this time, she was determined to find her son a good wife.
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