Marriage First, True Love Later - Chapter 7：Do you Want to Marry Me?

While Su Yicheng was waiting for Secretary Zheng, his mother called and told him to come home for dinner. He knew that it was definitely not something as simple as dinner. She was probably going to mention the same things and say the same words. She probably wanted to force him to go on a blind date. Just as he was thinking of a way to fool her, someone sat down in front of him. He thought that Secretary Zheng had returned, so he didn’t expect to see a woman when he lifted his head. He felt that this woman looked familiar. After some contemplation, he remembered that he had definitely seen this woman before, more than once!

“Cheng, did you hear me?!” On the other side of the phone, Mrs. Su did not hear her son’s response for a long time and asked, somewhat unsatisfied.

Su Yicheng returned to his senses and he said into the phone, “Mom, I still have some things to take care of. I’ll call you back later.”

“Stop trying to find excuses to dodge me. Are you coming back tonight?” Because her son had done this too many times in the past, naturally, Mrs. Gu did not believe him. “Although your father and grandfather don’t say anything, they still miss you. Look at yourself. When you moved out, I didn’t have any objections. You should at least return once a month. You say that you are busy every day. How busy can a special assistant be? Old Zhang seems to be very free. He is always coming back to chat with and play chess with your father and grandfather. Does he, as the municipal committee secretary, have less work than you? I think that you are just finding excuses not to come home.”

Su Yicheng was really defeated by his mother. He apologetically smiled at Anran, and then he compromised into the phone, “All right, all right, I got it. I’ll return at night. Is that okay?”

“That’s better.” Mrs. Su was finally satisfied, and then she exhorted a couple of times before ending the call.

Su Yicheng ended the call. Just as he was about to ask Anran what she needed from him, Anran unexpectedly spoke first.

“I’m Gu Anran. Are you Mr. Mu? I’m the one Lin Li–no, I should say, your colleague, Chengxiang, introduced you to. Hello.” As she spoke, Anran reached out her hand toward him. Lin Li had mentioned to her before that he was quite handsome and forgot to mention anything else to her. Therefore, she only knew that his name was Mufeng and that he was Chengxiang’s colleague and worked at a security company. She didn’t know anything else about him.

Su Yicheng reached out his hand in shock and shook her hand. However, he was very confused by her words. What Gu Anran? What Mr. Mu? What Lin Li? What Chengxiang? What is this? What on Earth is going on?

“Miss Gu, actually, I–” Just as he was about to open his mouth, the phone on the table once again rang. Su Yicheng smiled at Anran apologetically, and he picked up the phone and answered it. It was from Secretary Zheng, calling to say that he was caught in the afternoon rush, and that he was caught in traffic in Sihuai, and that it will probably take him around half an hour to get there. He was afraid that he would be waiting, so he called to inform him of it first.

When he placed down the phone, just as he was about to speak, the phone rang again. It was from the municipal committee, calling to inform him that the meeting for the city construction development had been delayed to Monday morning.

When he placed down his phone, before he opened his mouth, Anran, who was in front of him, laughed and said, “You look like you’re very busy.” From the time she arrived until then, his phone had not stopped ringing.

Su Yicheng smiled. He didn’t want to speak too much in response to that question.

“I’ll tell you my basic circumstances first.” Anran straightened herself and said to him, “I’m currently 28 years old and have a pretty good job. I am economically independent, and my parents are still alive. My father is a high school teacher, and my mother works as an accountant in a nationalized industry. I’m a single child. I am healthy and do not have any inherited illnesses.”

Su Yicheng now seemed to somewhat understand her words. With such an opening, she was probably here on a blind date. He leaned back in the chair, his mouth slowly turning into a faintly discernible smile. He had seen this woman three times. This was probably the fourth time, but it was the third time he had seen her on a blind date. And the only time he had not seen her on a blind date was when she and that blind date partner were getting closer to each other. However, the result wasn’t so great. But what was sorrowful this time was that she seemed to have recognized the wrong partner. He picked up the coffee mug from the table and sipped on it, continuing to listen to her talk.

When she saw that he wasn’t saying anything, Anran continued. “Technically speaking, at this age, for mature men and women like us, our reason for going to blind dates is very clear. We just want someone to accompany us for the rest of our lives. As for love, we have already passed the age that we can be crazy over someone. Therefore, if suitable, do you want to marry me?” She was a bit tired. She no longer wanted to wait and see if they were a match. If their conclusion at the end was marriage, then they might as well just get married. She didn’t want the process any longer.

Su Yicheng choked at her words and looked at her with a red face, his eyes in disbelief.

Anran handed him a napkin and asked, “You–are you okay?”

Su Yicheng took it, shook his head, and looked at her. “What did you just say?” Because he choked, his voice was somewhat weird.

Anran looked at him and said, “Because I am economically independent, I don’t need to rely on you to support me. I can take care of some of the chores at home, such as washing clothes and cooking. I don’t need a grand ceremony. You don’t even need to hold a wedding banquet. If we can, we can register for marriage tomorrow.”

Su Yicheng looked at her. At first, his forehead was tightly furrowed, and then he slowly released it. He shook his head, laughing lightly, and said, “I’m not free tomorrow.”

Anran was shocked, but she quickly nodded in understanding. “I understand.” As she spoke, she got up to leave. It made sense just thinking about it. This is the first time they had met, and she already asked the person to marry her. Who would have agreed?

“Miss Gu.” When he saw that she was leaving, Su Yicheng also stood up and halted her, saying, “This is the first time we’ve met, and we don’t understand each other at all. Isn’t a marriage like this too careless?”

Anran turned around to look at him and said, “What counts as understanding? Some people intentionally keep others in the dark. Even if it is for a couple of years or even your entire life, you might not know a person’s nature or understand his temperament. Therefore, understanding someone is not a matter of time. Also, for some things, the clearer it is, the uglier it becomes. Sometimes, when you look at things when they are blurry, then they are simply hazily beautiful.”

The two stood there, looking at each other for a while. Su Yicheng looked at her as if considering something. Since he was not saying anything, Anran turned around and prepared to leave.

Suddenly, a somewhat magnetic voice drifted from behind her. “I’m free this afternoon.”

The foot that she had stepped out with suddenly froze. Anran turned around in shock and looked at his smiling, yet unsmiling eyes, and then saw him open his mouth and say, “Can you eat with me now?”

After being shocked for a while, Anran finally reacted. She turned around and returned to her seat.