Chapter 32: Old Chen, Do You Want a Wife?

Chapter 32: Chapter 32: Old Chen, Do You Want a Wife?

Liang City looked helpless. "Do me a favor. Whether it works out is another story."

Chen Jingle’s eyes went wide. "What kind of favor is this? Is this something I can just casually help with?"

Smacking his lips, Liang City said, "I’m just asking you to add her on WeChat, not marry her right this second. Besides, I’m not setting you up for failure. Her younger sister is quite the beauty. She received plenty of love letters in high school, though Teacher Zhong confiscated them all."

"I know what you mean, but hasn’t she not even graduated from college yet?" Chen Jingle was on the verge of losing his composure.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that everyone around him was acting bizarre lately. According to the usual script, shouldn’t they be introducing him to older single women in their thirties, or divorcees with kids so he could become a ready-made father? Why was everyone rushing to introduce him to young female college students? Had anyone stopped to consider the students’ feelings? They wouldn’t necessarily want to date a thirty-year-old geezer!

Liang City patted Chen Jingle’s shoulder. "She’s a senior. She has to start looking for a job in the second half of the year. Plus, she’s majoring in the humanities. You and I were both liberal arts students; we know exactly how little that degree is worth these days. Considering the increasingly difficult economic situation ahead, Teacher Zhong thinks you’re the most reliable option, so she wants to play matchmaker for you two. She doesn’t have any other requirements—just make sure her sister doesn’t starve to death."

"But she still hasn’t graduated," Chen Jingle grumbled. "Isn’t it a bit ridiculous to arrange a blind date for her now? We have such a huge age gap. Will she even be interested in me?"

"How do you know she won’t be? If she wasn’t, would Teacher Zhong have agreed to this?" Liang City tilted his head, giving him a long look. "Seriously, bro, do you have some sort of misunderstanding about yourself? How would you rate your own qualifications?"

"Average."

Hearing this, Liang City completely lost it. "Could you not act so pretentious?" he said through gritted teeth.

"Pretentious? How am I being pretentious?"

"The word ’average’ is pretentious enough! You’re damn near tall, rich, and handsome, yet you sit there calling yourself average? If my wife’s sister doesn’t make a move now, will she even have a chance later?" Liang City looked like he wanted to grab him by the collar and spit in his face.

Chen Jingle frowned. "Aren’t you overestimating me? How am I tall, rich, and handsome?"

At best, he had just escaped the category of being poor, ugly, short, and pathetic. He was a little handsome, sure, but he was still a long way from his ultimate goal. He couldn’t let it get to his head now.

Liang City was exasperated, genuinely wanting to kick the guy. "The ’tall’ part is up for debate, but you’re definitely not short, and your proportions are way better than mine. As for ’rich’, don’t you know your own income level? You’re absolutely among the high-income earners in our city, as long as you aren’t comparing yourself to trust fund babies and real estate heirs. And ’handsome’ is completely indisputable, even if you fall slightly short of me."

Chen Jingle silently rolled his eyes, selectively ignoring that last sentence. After a two-second pause, he said, "According to you, I’m indeed not bad, but I’m still far from being Mr. Perfect."

"That’s exactly why Teacher Zhong couldn’t wait to play matchmaker for her sister," Liang City snapped. "If a woman wants to marry a general, she has to marry a soldier first, then accompany him through all the thorns and thistles until she finally becomes the general’s wife. She needs to secure her spot before you strike it rich, otherwise it’ll be too late."

In a way, finding a partner was like an investment; it all depended on personal foresight. He and Teacher Zhong had discussed it many times, and both agreed that even if Chen Jingle never became a millionaire, he could easily maintain a comfortable middle-class lifestyle. For an ordinary person, that was already enough. If he showed a bit of ambition in this era that valued specialized skills, riding the wave of the internet wouldn’t necessarily be effortless, but he would certainly have a huge advantage over the average person.

"Striking it rich is an exaggeration, but the problem is I just don’t have that kind of thought right now," Chen Jingle said, shaking his head.

Liang City threw his hands up. "I’m not asking for a guaranteed success. Can’t you at least give her a chance to line up? Just give her priority under equal conditions."

"Are you treating this like a business transaction?" Chen Jingle asked, speechless.

"It sounds harsh, but it’s the truth." Liang City rubbed his forehead and sighed. "Men fear entering the wrong profession, and women fear marrying the wrong man. Teacher Zhong has a cousin who married poorly and is living a miserable life now. She’s just terrified her sister will have poor judgment and get fooled by some outsider."

"I don’t even have a proper job right now."

"Stop acting like an old woman and just add her! Are you secretly impotent or something?"

"Screw you, you’re the impotent one!"

Speechless, Chen Jingle silently pulled out his phone. Inwardly, however, he wasn’t optimistic. The age gap between them was too large. Without shared interests, it would be difficult to hold a conversation. In all likelihood, she would just sit on his contacts list and gather dust.

Liang City, having finally completed the task assigned by Teacher Zhong, was thrilled.

Meanwhile.

Zhong Qing had returned to her dorm room, only to face an interrogation from her roommates. She had originally wanted to run, but Li Yuting spotted her intentions, arresting and forcibly detaining her on the spot.

"What’s the situation?"

"Hurry up and spill!"

"Spill what? I don’t know what you’re talking about," Zhong Qing replied, choosing to play dumb.

Li Yuting let out a villainous cackle. "Fine, fine. Girls, get her!"

Two girls acting as her lackeys immediately cracked their knuckles.

"No, no, no! I was wrong, I was wrong! I’ll confess, I’ll confess!" Seeing that she was heavily outnumbered, Zhong Qing hastily surrendered.

"Too late to confess now!"

"Ah! Stop! I really know I was wrong!"

"No, you only know you’re about to be judged!"

Following a ruthless tickling of her armpits and soles, all that remained were three cackling female warriors and a thoroughly tormented Zhong Qing.

At that moment, WeChat let out a sharp DING. Zhong Qing picked up her phone to check.

"Oh? A new contact?" Li Yuting, sharp-eyed as ever, saw it instantly. "Did that guy send a friend request? Hurry up and accept it!"

Suddenly, several little heads crowded around Zhong Qing.

"Ah, don’t get so close, it’s hot," Zhong Qing said, her ears turning completely red.

"Bullshit. The dorm’s AC is set to twenty-four degrees. How is it hot? You’re clearly just feeling guilty!"

"Cut the crap and hurry up!"

Zhong Qing tapped open the friend request. The other party’s nickname was "Don’t Want To Move Every Day," and his profile picture was a fat tabby cat lying flat on its back with all four paws in the air. The request note read: "Hello, I am Chen Jingle. Introduced by Liang City and Teacher Zhong."

Zhong Qing quickly accepted the request. She typed out a "Hello" and was just about to hit send when Li Yuting stopped her.

"Hey, hey, hey! Who greets people like that?"

"Then, what should I do?"

Advisor Li waved her hand grandly. "No rush. Let’s check his Friends Circle first."

Zhong Qing clicked it open and took a look.

Chen Jingle’s Friends Circle didn’t have any time restrictions set, but there was only one post from last February: "Stop looking, there’s nothing in my Friends Circle." The accompanying picture showed two pandas, one large and one small, hanging from a tree.

Uh...

Zhong Qing and her three roommates exchanged bewildered glances. Li Yuting was also dumbfounded. What kind of person was this? Why wasn’t he playing by the rules?

"Well, don’t you have his photo? Let’s see it," another girl urged.

Zhong Qing somewhat reluctantly pulled up his photo.

The girls collectively gasped.

"Good heavens! Zhong Qing, you’re secretly feasting this well behind our backs?!"

"No wonder you were hiding it!"