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“Once your heart is moved, there’s no going back. Even if you don’t find someone you’re a hundred percent in love with, you should still give it a try because love truly is the most beautiful thing in the world.”
“Meimei, I’m setting you as my emergency contact.”
“Don’t you have a husband?”
“My husband is already the emergency contact for ride-hailing apps. Do you want every move of mine to be discovered by him? Spare me the trouble of explaining why I’m not driving when I go out on dates. The safest way to protect myself is to use public transportation.”
“Can I refuse?”
“Absolutely not.”
Yu Zhimei stared at her vibrating phone; the message ended with an adorable emoji. Since He Jie started casually dating around, every time she changed her emoji pack, it meant she had a new boyfriend. Following Shi Rui’s lead, He Jie also bound Yu Zhimei as her emergency contact, leaving Yu feeling an immense sense of responsibility. After turning off her phone, Xing Zong was writing the new quarterly plan on the whiteboard. Without romantic entanglements, Yu Zhimei returned to being the top performer who brought in advertising revenue. Whenever Xing Zong saw her, he couldn’t help but throw flirtatious glances her way—it was his version of praise.
“Talk About Cars” had aired three episodes, and the audience feedback was surprisingly positive. Perhaps it was because the first three cars chosen were highly topical—Mazda MX-5, BMW Z4, and GTR—all rare sports cars suitable for urban environments, full of nostalgia and charm that appealed to both men and women. While the topic was still hot, Yu Zhimei wanted to feature a Toyota 86 to fully capture the essence of sports car classics. Sports cars were everywhere, but finding an 86 was difficult, especially one with pop-up headlights and the “Fujiwara Tofu Shop” logo—likely only the movie prop car existed. Monkey and Xiaolong were thrilled with their acting roles and urged Yu Zhimei to hurry up with the script. As for the complex task of finding the car, they took charge of it. Yu Zhimei didn’t know why the first three episodes happened to focus on sports cars. If they didn’t include practical Japanese cars within ten episodes, the audience might feel disconnected from reality—after all, pleasing everyone was impossible.
Yu Zhimei wasn’t just excelling in the new column; she was also smoothly guiding her apprentices in planning advertising videos. The only downside was that her computer kept crashing daily. Having fully achieved her monthly performance goals, she let out a long sigh of relief in the office after consecutive late-night overtime shifts. Her emptied liquor cabinet hadn’t been replenished yet. At 10:30 PM, after clocking out and craving a drink, Yu Zhimei turned into Miaolin Dessert Shop right after leaving the company, only to see Xiao Ma Ge drinking inside.
Under the dim red lights, Xiao Ma Ge was spinning his phone—a habit that always made Yu Zhimei think he might drop it at any moment. Xiao Ma Ge did this whenever he was anxious. The shop played Japanese jazz from the Showa era, and there weren’t many customers. He Jie was chatting with other friends. After exchanging pleasantries, Yu learned that Xiao Ma Ge’s two blind dates that day had also failed, and he was now worried about remaining single. Yu Zhimei couldn’t help but wonder why directly taking blind dates to coffee shops, finishing their drinks, and ending the conversation counted as sincerity.
“This is called not wasting time. Everyone is busy these days. A cup of coffee and forty minutes are enough to gather all the necessary information.”
“Being so efficient on the first meeting will leave a bad impression on the girl, and you won’t get a second chance.”
“If everyone treats me to dinner, how much冤枉钱 (unjustified money) would I waste? The cost would be too high. When I meet my destined one, I’ll spend my money wisely then, wouldn’t that be better?”
“People won’t even see your knife, let alone use it effectively.”
Xiao Ma Ge wasn’t listening and was busy changing strategies: “Maybe I should go straight to a matchmaker.”
“Do matchmakers really work? It sounds so old-fashioned.” Shi Rui had gotten used to chiming in on topics.
“Of course they do. Matchmakers are like scales, balancing both sides perfectly. Their goal is to quickly pair people up, which is far more efficient than stumbling through blind dates.” Yu Zhimei said this almost with her eyes closed.
Xiao Ma Ge clapped enthusiastically: “I think my conditions are pretty good. Going to a matchmaker should get me better options.”
A few days later, Xiao Ma Ge stormed into the dessert shop fuming: “The matchmakers must have a roster of rural residents—they either introduce locals or girls with low education levels. What’s wrong with me? I have four or five properties in Xintiandi, graduated from a prestigious university, and I’m just a bit short. Why are they introducing me to duds?”
Yu Zhimei and He Jie didn’t dare say anything. Xiao Ma Ge continued to beat his chest: “I need to buy a car quickly. My blind date prospects are terrible. Hearing that I came by subway, their attitude immediately worsened. Yu Zhimei, recommend a car for me. Damn it, how can matchmakers do this!”
People tend to beautify themselves, but matchmakers don’t. If you want to see your true standing in life, look at the matches matchmakers pick for you, the salary HR offers you, and the prescriptions doctors write for you. Xiao Ma Ge had four properties, but they were all from local demolitions. Xiao Ma Ge was a bachelor’s degree holder, and the girls with lower education levels had family garment factories, making it a perfect balance. Yu Zhimei, of course, didn’t say this aloud but instead flipped through her phone to show Xiao Ma Ge some car options. As Xiao Ma Ge got closer, he suddenly spoke up when they were heading home: “Yu Zhimei, since Jian Zhaowen isn’t coming back, how about we start dating?”
“Huh?”
“Just now, sitting close to you, I smelled your perfume. I suddenly realized you have great taste, you’re not ugly, and I don’t mind that you’re a few years older.”
“Huh?”
“What do you mean ‘huh’? Don’t you like me?”
“In my mind, you’re more like a cousin, nephew, or younger brother, understand?” Yu Zhimei laughed awkwardly: “Let’s pretend this conversation never happened, okay?”
Xiao Ma Ge looked crestfallen on the stairs: “Auntie, have you ever failed at blind dates? I’m so upset right now!”
Yu Zhimei felt like she was under a curse, unable to bear it any longer. She stopped and looked at Xiao Ma Ge: “I’ve been on blind dates and failed many times. As someone who’s been through it, I suggest you don’t approach blind dates with high expectations for love. Otherwise, after meeting so many people, when you finally meet someone you like, you won’t have much genuine affection left to give.”
Dou Yu was indeed more interesting than expected. He genuinely spent 18,000 yuan to attend a racing school in Jiading and even paid 10,000 yuan for Yu Zhimei to accompany him. Dou Yu, with his abysmal driving skills, listened to an hour of incomprehensible jargon from a professional racing instructor. In the end, it was Yu Zhimei who put on the helmet and hit the track, reaching speeds of 250 km/h. Porsche race cars were incredibly smooth, delivering pure linear performance and looking stylish, but the joy of driving a BMW was bottomless. After getting used to the M2C, she still preferred that kind of unpredictably thrilling car. When Yu Zhimei got out of the car, she pretended her legs were weak and sat silently in the car for a few more seconds, thinking to herself that this was her chance to enjoy the 991 while Dou Yu was splurging.
The iron rooster, who never missed an opportunity to get a bargain, spent lavishly to bring Yu Zhimei to the suburbs to drive a Porsche, clearly pursuing her. Yu Zhimei, having freeloaded an 18,000-yuan drifting lesson, naturally had to treat him to dinner. Dou Yu smiled and replied, “I’m not in a rush. There’s plenty of time in the future for you to repay me—whether at a restaurant or at your place, I haven’t seen your cat yet.”
This statement made Yu Zhimei a bit uneasy. The last person who entered her home was Jian Zhaowen, and that romance ended without fruition. This time, Dou Yu, whom she had met fewer than three times, was already suggesting eating at her place. Jian Zhaowen’s departure seemed to have opened her up, exuding a desire for romance, and Dou Yu was drawn to it. On the weekend, Dou Yu took Yu Zhimei to a class. Exiting from Exit 5 of Zhongshan Park, they went up to the fifth floor of the mall. A long queue awaited at the classroom door. Beautiful young girls greeted Dou Yu from afar: “Teacher Xiaoyu, are you bringing your girlfriend to class? We’re so heartbroken!”
The queue was packed with over seventy people, cramming into the classroom to form ten rows—it was like dumplings boiling in a pot. Yu Zhimei felt a bit awkward: “So many students are waiting for you. I don’t know how to dance; I’ll go downstairs and have a coffee while I wait.”
“I brought you here so you’d know I’m not a bad guy. Otherwise, you’d always think I had ulterior motives after just three meetings.” Dou Yu took Yu Zhimei’s hand: “Don’t worry about not having a spot. We’ll enter through the teacher’s entrance—you’ll have VIP front-row privileges.”
Under the bright daylight, Yu Zhimei stood in the front row. For someone who had never danced before, standing in this position in a dance studio was akin to public execution. Despite so-called girlfriend privileges, she stumbled over her own feet and was watched by nearly a hundred people as she awkwardly mimicked movements on the floor, thoroughly losing face. Dou Yu didn’t care; he had seen many beginners. During the group dance, he singled her out for a solo performance, and near the end, he lifted Yu Zhimei and spun her around in the middle of the classroom. Yu Zhimei’s nose collided painfully with a boy’s teasing hand, bringing tears to her eyes.
“How’s that? Do you still think I’m a stranger? I’m quite popular.”
“You dance teachers really like to tease girls, huh?”
“How else would we attract so many students? Don’t you think dancers have a certain ‘energy’?” Dou Yu grinned: “Just kidding. But if I didn’t dance well or wasn’t charming enough, how could I be a star teacher and keep the class atmosphere lively?”
Dou Yu remained endlessly cheerful and optimistic, and Yu Zhimei couldn’t help but be smitten. If this continued, she would really forget Jian Zhaowen. Yu Zhimei thought to herself: focus on work, reply to messages less, and be a proper independent urban woman.
But business began to intertwine with ad agencies. Xing Ge wanted to secure a major ad for the company’s account. Dou Yu’s biggest client was Volvo. Through introductions, the account received an additional 800,000 yuan in ad fees. Xing Ge was ecstatic: “Yu Zhimei, you’re the company’s Goddess of Fortune. We’ve never worked with any of Volvo’s models, and their marketing department is notoriously difficult to crack. How did you manage it?”
BD was so angry that he didn’t reply to Yu Zhimei’s work messages for three days. Dou Yu, of course, remained nonchalant: “Don’t take it to heart. This is a win-win-win situation. Volvo wanted quarterly ads—two million yuan for three months of online marketing. I found precise channels to target KOLs. With this deal, I’ve secured the company’s annual KPI. In the end, I owe it all to you. This drifting experience was worth every penny—you’re probably my lucky star.”
The phrase “lucky star” gave Yu Zhimei goosebumps. Not having time to drink at Miaolin, she called He Jie. He Jie’s voice revealed she had just finished a secret rendezvous; her tone was still hazy:
“Jian Zhaowen won’t be back. Feel free to date others. If someone treats you well and you like them, of course, you can date.”
“Yes.” Yu Zhimei twirled Lulu’s tail: “He rejected my confession saying he had something to do, then disappeared after going to Beijing.”
“So stop waiting for him. It’s not like you’re married. Are you trying to stay chaste?” He Jie sighed over the phone: “Once your heart is moved, there’s no going back. Even if you don’t find someone you’re a hundred percent in love with, you should still give it a try because love truly is the most beautiful thing in the world.”
“Have you ever met someone who was a hundred percent perfect for you?”
“Of course not.”
“Jian Zhaowen wasn’t that great either—picky and stubborn. Dou Yu is very considerate, and most importantly, his affection for you is written all over his face, even spoken aloud. No one could resist that.”
“So, Yu Zhimei, weigh them both on the scale and think carefully. Jian Zhaowen spent half a year with you and was indeed your ideal type, but he’s already gone. Dou Yu is right beside you, offering you solid stability.” Not hearing a response from Yu Zhimei, He Jie sighed: “This shouldn’t even require deliberation. Both are young, passionate men—no difference. Whether you chase Jian Zhaowen to Beijing to confess or accept Dou Yu’s pursuit, neither choice is bad. It’s up to you. Please, why does this multiple-choice question fall to someone like me, who’s married with no sex life and has to seek pleasure through affairs—you’re shooting arrows at my heart.”
PS: If you enjoyed reading this, please vote for me. The author stays up until 1:30 AM every day working… Adding this to your bookshelf, voting, and leaving comments are all greatly appreciated. Your support is my motivation!
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