The Man in the Black Sweater - 3.2: Flirting With the Wrong Person

“Miss Luo, how did you and Tang Huang meet?” The old lady rested her hand on the arm of the sofa and tilted her head at her.

“At school. We took the same class.”

“Oh? You were at the same school as Tang Huang?” The old lady seemed a little more interested.

Luo Xu couldn’t help but shatter her illusion. “No, I was working at the school library, and sometimes sat in on classes.”

The old lady’s expression withdrew as she asked, “And what do you do?”

“I used to be a lingerie model, and also worked as a yoga instructor.” Luo Xu smiled slightly, straightening her back.

“What was that?” The old lady seemed not to have heard clearly—even Pei Yan raised his eyelids to look at her.

Luo Xu said, “My parents passed away early, so I had to support myself. I’ve worked many different kinds of jobs.”

“You don’t have parents anymore?” The old lady was stunned.

“Ah, no.”

The old lady’s expression cooled. She exhaled lightly through her nose. “So it’s just you at home?”

“I have a younger sister.”

“She’s also one of those… models?”

“No, no. She was adopted by a better-off family. She should be in college now.” Luo Xu hurried to explain.

No parents, no stable profession, grew up on the streets, and now unmarried and pregnant. Even the most easygoing parents would feel displeased—some could mask it well, some simply couldn’t hide it at all.

“I more or less understand now.” The old lady nodded, her gaze flicking toward the maid standing nearby. The maid immediately said, “Miss Luo, you must be tired. Please come with me to rest for a while. The kitchen just prepared some snacks, they’re still warm.”

Luo Xu might not recognize faces, but she could read the room. She nodded politely to the old lady and followed the maid out.

Watching her disappear at the doorway, Pei Yan set down his teacup and said, “You’re not satisfied?”

“Do you mean you are?” The old lady gave a cold snort.

“Tang Huang likes her, and besides, she’s carrying a child. Even if you don’t like her, you’ll have to wait until Tang Huang comes back before saying anything.” Pei Yan replied.

The old lady curled her lips. “And how is Miss Qin any worse than this one? That stupid boy actually turned her down—he must be blind.”

“Feelings aren’t something you can control. You shouldn’t worry about it.”

“How can I not worry? How could someone like her possibly step into our family’s doors?” The old lady glared. “That stupid boy’s mother died early. That means I, his grandmother, have to decide his lifelong matters. Otherwise, any stray cat or dog could trick him.”

Pei Yan knew his dmother had been domineering all her life. When it came to Tang Huang’s marriage, she never yielded an inch—there was no room for negotiation.

But he still had to say: “She’s pregnant. Do you really want your great-grandchild to be a bastard?”

“Miss Qin already said she doesn’t mind how he fooled around before marriage. Even if the child were raised under her name, it would still be acceptable.”

Pei Yan sneered. “Miss Qin is certainly generous.”

“She’s a lady from a proper family. Do you think all of them are as narrow-minded as a needle’s eye?” the old lady scoffed, raising her brows. “In families like ours, what matters is securing the seat of the legal wife. As for the little messes on the side, you just turn a blind eye—they’re never women who can make it onto the stage anyway.”

Pei Yan was left speechless. When it came to his mother, he always thought she had a paranoid streak. Perhaps it was because she herself had lived this way and succeeded, she didn’t see those women outside as any threat.

Sometimes Pei Yan thought she was rather pitiful—he wasn’t even sure what exactly she had won.

…….

Luo Xu sat idly in the room. The middle-aged maid who had led her in left right after serving tea and snacks, clearly not treating her like a proper guest.

“You’re my brother’s girlfriend?” A clear, girlish voice sounded from the doorway, carrying a note of criticism.

Luo Xu adjusted her mood, greeted with a smile, and introduced herself again: “Hello, my name is Luo Xu.”

The girl looked about twenty, dressed in riding clothes and carrying a horsewhip, brimming with energy.

“My name is Tang Jue. Has my brother ever mentioned me to you?” She pulled out a chair and sat down, resting the horsewhip on the table.

“He did. He said you’re in college and a very kind girl.”

Tang Jue’s expression softened a little. She glanced at Luo Xu’s belly and asked, “So in there is my nephew?”

“Uh… probably…”

“What do you mean probably?” Tang Jue frowned.

“What if it’s a niece?” Luo Xu blinked innocently.

“Oh, true.” Tang Jue relaxed her brows and nodded.

Luo Xu couldn’t help but chuckle inwardly. Such a simple girl—rather cute.

“Are you really going to marry into our family? I don’t think Grandma likes you very much.”

Luo Xu’s smile stiffened. “Ha… is that so…”

“Honestly, you’ve got no sense at all. You couldn’t tell?” Tang Jue sniffed disdainfully.

Luo Xu: “Hehe.”

“What’s up with your skin color? Are you mixed Asian-African?” Tang Jue asked, staring at her wheat-colored complexion.

“No, I got tanned at the beach.”

“It lasts that long?”

“Then I also went and got a spray tan.” Luo Xu gave an awkward smile.

“Why though? Wouldn’t being paler be better?”

“It was a job requirement, hehe…” Luo Xu’s cheeks hurt from smiling.

Tang Jue looked her over like she was watching a living joke. Folding her arms, the young lady said, “If you weren’t pretty, I honestly couldn’t even talk to you.”

Luo Xu: “……”

There were three knocks at the tearoom door. Pei Yan stood there. “Time to go.”

Tang Jue darted over like a monkey. “Uncle, leaving already? Won’t you stay a bit longer?”

“I still have things to do. Be good and keep Grandma company, don’t make her upset.” Pei Yan cast a glance in Luo Xu’s direction.

Tang Jue was sharp too. She blinked mischievously. “Don’t worry. At the very least, for the sake of my unborn nephew.”

“Mm, well said.” Pei Yan smiled, handsome and refined.

Tang Jue’s eyes sparkled as she waved. “Goodbye, Uncle!”

“Goodbye.” Pei Yan turned on his heel, glanced sideways at Luo Xu, and she immediately followed.

In the car, Luo Xu couldn’t hold back and asked Pei Yan, “Did I really come across that badly just now?”

Pei Yan sat with his eyes closed, as if resting. “Were all the things you said just now true?”

“One hundred percent true, not a single embellishment.”

“Then it wasn’t bad.” Pei Yan opened his eyes, clear and bright.

Luo Xu bit her finger, understanding what he meant. If everything she’d said was true, then those were simply her experiences—there was no such thing as good or bad performance. But if she had lied, then the lie would have been so lousy, like she’d grabbed the wrong script from some cheap melodrama.

The car entered a tunnel. Luo Xu turned her head toward the window, the smooth glass reflecting his resolute profile.

He really was good. From the moment he heard about her past until now, not once had his eyes shown contempt. She just didn’t know if it was because his merchant’s cunning was too well hidden.

Luo Xu leaned her chin against the bottom edge of the window, pressing her cheek to the glass, and smiled faintly.

“Ah…”

With a sharp cry, she had bitten her tongue.

The driver apologized sheepishly, “Sorry, it’s too dark, I didn’t see the stone on the road.”

“Mmph, it’s fine, it’s fine…” Luo Xu waved her hand, eyes brimming with tears.

Pei Yan turned his head to look at her. “Didn’t you say this morning that you weren’t stupid?”

Luo Xu covered her mouth, tears welling up.

Pei Yan sighed. “Looks like you’re still not very self-aware.”

Ah, yet another way of calling her stupid.