Chapter 5: I'm Not on a Blind Date, Just on the Way to One

  Five days later, Ruan Ruan returned to work in the city. Her colleagues thought she had lost some weight after not seeing her for a few days, and looked even more ethereal than before. No one knew that something had left her forever just a few days ago.

  Zheng Wei later received several calls from Zhao Shi Yong, who frantically asked about Ruan Ruan's whereabouts and her new phone number. Zheng Wei only had one sentence for his belated remorse: "I am ashamed that you and I are both human beings."

  Perhaps Zhao Shi Yong did have some affection for Ruan Ruan, as during that period of time, his phone calls almost every day would drain one grid of Zheng Wei's mobile phone battery. However, what's the use of love? The things he loved were not just Ruan Ruan, but many many more. Zheng Wei repeatedly rejected him, and he repeatedly called her, until eventually, the phone calls became less frequent, and finally ceased, just like our hearts, which once burned passionately in our chests, scorching hot and unable to be contained, eagerly seeking someone to share this warmth with, never thinking that it would one day cool down, cooling to the point where we can only hold ourselves tightly, carefully, fearing that even this last bit of warmth would escape.

  In the third year of Zheng Wei's arrival at Zhong Jian, she was twenty-five years old. A twenty-five-year-old woman with a stable job, good looks, and physical and mental health without a man by her side is not considered strange by Zheng Wei, but almost everyone around her thinks so. The union's Li Auntie repeatedly called her to her office to talk heart-to-heart, the implication being that you're no longer young, it's time to settle down. Even Zhou Qu would often half-jokingly say to her, what kind of person are you looking for? If you don't like any of these outstanding young men, then forget about it, but there are so many options - 1/2, 1/3... 1/14, government agencies, the third industry, design institutes... Zhong Jian has five thousand bachelors, fat and thin, take your pick, there must be one that suits you, don't just drift along like this.

  On one hand, I'm playing hard to get, there are countless good men in the world, and I can choose whoever I want; on the other hand, I'm defending myself, there are many 25-year-old single women out there, why do I have to make a choice?

  Your answer is, I feel uncomfortable just looking at you.

  Everyone says, Zheng Wei, I feel uncomfortable seeing you alone like this.

  Many times, when we get used to something, we don't know it's bitter. Just like a poor person who has never seen prosperity in his life and doesn't know he is poor until death. Zheng Wei was always alone, she ate alone, strolled alone, watched movies alone, sometimes followed a group of people to go wild and drunk, but eventually returned home alone, slept alone. She didn't think there was anything wrong with this, only occasionally feeling lonely when others were celebrating the holidays together. The tree-lined path from the office building to the single apartment in the unit's courtyard, she had walked through countless times by herself, every mango tree she knew, one of them had particularly sour fruit, and another one hadn't borne fruit in three years. She was always smiling, wasn't life just like this? Until she saw too many sympathetic eyes cast towards her, they all felt sorry for her, only then did she suddenly realize that she was actually pitiful.

  When did she start to strongly and truly feel this way? It seemed like it was on an ordinary summer day, when she returned from shopping at the supermarket alone, stood in a crowded bus, encountered a pedestrian who suddenly crossed the road, the bus driver slammed on the brakes, and her body leaned forward violently. At that moment, she saw a girl next to her who was also thin, swaying slightly before being firmly held in her boyfriend's arms. Zheng Wei's hands were always quick and agile, so she immediately grabbed the handrail beside her, steadied herself, and didn't let herself fall awkwardly in front of others. However, when she tightly grasped the metal handrail with a hint of coolness, she inexplicably felt like crying. She even looked at the girl next to her with a bit of malice, thinking: Is she not as beautiful as me? Is she not as smart, brave, and kind as me? But she was not as lucky as her.

  It was just such an ordinary thing that made Zheng Wei feel she couldn't be alone anymore. Where did Wang Baobao come from, she had never thought of waiting for someone in the cold kiln, but before she believed in intuition, thinking that intuition would bring her to the person she wanted by her side, and when intuition would appear, maybe tomorrow, or maybe it would never appear again - even if it appeared, it might not be an illusion.

  So, when Aunt Li had become accustomed to saying, "Weiwei, I'll introduce a boyfriend to you." Zheng Wei replied unusually, "Okay, when?"

  Auntie Li was thorough and meticulous in handling matters. She was surprised by Zheng Wei's change in attitude, and seriously asked about the unit where Zheng Wei's parents worked, as well as their family situation. In less than three days, she arranged Zheng Wei's first blind date.

  That time, Zheng Wei saw He Yi. Auntie Li made no effort to arrange a meeting at an ordinary Western restaurant. They exchanged a few pleasantries before she excused herself and left. It seemed that all matchmakers should be like this; Zheng Wei didn't think it was strange. She just found it unexpected that Auntie Li would throw such a big fish her way on the first try. He Yi's surname is He, and the general manager of Zhongjian Company also has the surname He. Manager He only has one son. He Yi is the youngest project manager in the second division. Actually, Zheng Wei knew her; more than two years ago, she followed Zhou Qu to a construction site, and at that time, it was He Yi who received them. Later, He Yi was sent to provide technical support for Zhongjian's project in Bangladesh for two years, so the two of them weren't close.

  After Aunt Li left, the two of them were speechless for a moment, each thinking hard about what to say. He Yi couldn't help but speak up first, "It's really weird just sitting like this, let's just talk about something casual."

  Zheng Wei nodded in agreement, at this moment she should have asked what his life pursuit career plan interests and hobbies were, even the most superficial ones, and she should have also asked about his zodiac sign and blood type. However, unexpectedly, her opening line came out as "Do you like America?"

  As soon as the words came out of her mouth, she was amused by her own nonsense and He Yi also burst into loud laughter. The two laughed for a while before Zheng Wei asked, "What are you laughing at?" He Yi said, "I'm laughing because I have no idea what you're laughing at."

  He Yi didn't like America, he liked all good things and all beautiful girls, he loved to play and would play, pursuing new and strange things, without a fixed nature. Perhaps this was why Old He was in such a hurry for him to get married. In the minds of most older generations, only men who had established their careers and families were considered mature. It seemed like a match made in heaven that He Yi's personality would click with Zheng Wei's. Soon, Young Master He moved out of his family's several houses and applied to live in a bachelor pad, coincidentally "just so happening" to move into the apartment above Zheng Wei's. The news spread like wildfire throughout Zhong Jian, with everyone saying after the fact that Zheng Wei seemed destined for greatness as a young mistress. However, Zheng Wei had actually invited He Yi over to her place on a certain weekend afternoon to play chess, but then excused herself to go buy drinks and never came back. She spent the whole evening watching some old folks play cards in a corner of the courtyard until nightfall, because she knew that Wei Shaoyi was also resting at home today.

  Even someone as careless as her could see that whenever Wei Shaoyi was at home, He Yi particularly liked to come downstairs to play chess with her. As long as Wei Shaoyi walked by, he would be like a child who was secretly excited but pretending to be calm. Zheng Wei and Wei Shaoyi no longer quarreled every day, but their relationship didn't improve either. She didn't expect Wei Shaoyi to accept her feelings, whether He Yi could get what he wanted, or whether Wei Shaoyi would fall in love, were all other people's business. She just knew very clearly that He Yi was not the one for her.

  Later, He Yi's fervent pursuit of Wei Shao became increasingly clear, and her colleagues all felt sorry for Zheng Wei. Li Auntie was even more resentful, feeling that the golden son-in-law had slipped through their fingers once again. However, she and Zhou Auntie, Wang Auntie, and Yang Auntie never gave up on their greatest hobby as married women - they continuously sent Zheng Wei young men who had passed their scrutiny. And Zheng Wei was too eager to end her single life; as long as the other party wasn't too out of the ordinary, she accepted all these arrangements without exception. She met doctors, lawyers, accountants, civil servants, small bosses... and countless elite in the construction industry. As Zhou Yu put it, during that period, Zheng Wei almost swept up all the young talents in G City with her net. Among them, some liked her but she didn't like them; some she thought were okay but they were unresponsive; and most of them simply forgot about each other after meeting.

  No matter who is sitting in front of her, she always starts with that classic line: Do you like America? Some people say they do, some say they don't, and others just stare blankly. Zheng Wei thinks this is indeed a bit of a cold joke, but sometimes life is just a dark comedy.

  Perhaps it was because the net was cast too wide, and the big fish couldn't get in, while the small fish slipped away. Zheng Wei's whirlwind-like blind dating life yielded little results. She had thought to herself, "Isn't finding a man just a simple thing?" But reality cruelly proved that she just couldn't find one.

  However, although she didn't achieve her set goals, meeting a few more people wasn't a bad thing. At least after getting to know a biology teacher at the university, she found out that Napoleon wrasse fish were on the verge of extinction. At least a bald owner of a noodle shop gave her two months' worth of free meal vouchers. At least during one of her blind dates, she met a young surgeon who made her infatuated, although Dr. Ji politely sent her home saying "goodbye, Miss Liu". At least she finally understood that even if she was willing to settle, it would still be very difficult.

  During that time, Ruan Ruan called her every day. Whenever she asked "Where are you?", Zheng Wei would burst out laughing and say "Don't ask where I'm going, either I'm on a blind date or on my way to one."

  Her crazy blind dates ended with a 35-year-old office director in the municipal party and government organs of G City, who was still unmarried, had a house and a car, and Zheng Wei did not doubt that he might be a virgin. She ate bland and tasteless steak with this man wearing a black suit, black tie, and neatly combed hair parted 3:7, listening to him ramble on about how great it was for Korean and Japanese wives to kneel down and hand their husbands slippers after work, condemning premarital sex. She finally couldn't bear it anymore and changed the subject. "What do you like to do in your free time?"

  " Birds, I like raising birds. Usually after work, I don't like going out, outside is always chaotic, especially nowadays young people are even more messy, the sound of birds can calm me down. How about you? You look quite gentle, do you like any small animals? Do you like birds?"

  Zheng Wei stifled a laugh and said, "No, I like cats." She put down her utensils and said seriously, "You like to play with your birds at home after work, I like to play with Mimi, don't you think we have a lot in common?"

  She imitated Stephen Chow's voice and laughed loudly, herself amused to the point of doubling over, finally only remembering that "bird lover" was left stunned with his mouth half open.

  The serious consequence of this incident was that Aunt Li vowed to never interfere in other people's business again, and Zheng Wei almost laughed out loud on the phone with Ruan Ruan.

  Ruan Ruan also laughed and said, "You're really being ridiculous. What's wrong with them? Love can be beautiful and romantic, but blind dating is a transaction. Everyone puts their most realistic requirements on the table, if it's suitable then that's good, if not then that's okay too. Why are you so angry and want to play tricks on him?"

  After the laughter subsided, Zheng Wei said, "Forget it, maybe this way is really not suitable for me. Ruan Ruan, what's the use of having a man? Why don't you just keep me company?"

  Ruan Ruan fell silent for a moment, "Wei Wei, I think I'm getting married soon."

  Ruan Ruan is getting married. Zheng Wei was shocked at first, but then felt like it was all a dream. The person she's marrying is a surgeon at the university hospital, named Wu Jiang. They met through friends and decided to get married after only six meetings.

  "Do you love him?" Zheng Wei asked, but she already had an answer in her heart. How much can one love someone they've only met six times?

  Ruan Ruan said, "He's pretty good. In his early years, he didn't have time for emotional things because of his studies. Later, after returning to China, he was busy with work. He and I are both looking for a partner with the premise of getting married. Although we haven't known each other for long, I believe he will be a good husband. When he knelt down and proposed on our sixth date, I didn't seem to have any reason to refuse him. Maybe if I missed him, I wouldn't necessarily meet someone better. Let's just say it was finding a companion for myself, and falling in love with him probably wasn't that difficult."