Count On Me, My Sweetie

The cold, autumn rain was falling, making the air damp and chilly.

Finally, it trickled to a stop, leaving a thick layer of dark clouds hanging ominously in the sky over J City.

Standing under the shade of a maple tree, Zoe Xu folded her umbrella and tucked it under her arm. Then she took a deep breath, scratched her afro wig, and dashed across the road to the cafe.

She pushed open the door and the shell wind chime jingled, announcing her arrival. As Zoe Xu took in the place, she realized that the interior decoration was simple but elegant. The linen sofa and the white floor was shining. Everything was posh and understated, unlike her water-stained sneakers.

Nancy Li was right. 'You can't buy class and style with money.'

Zoe Xu shook her head and adjusted her uncomfortable push-up bra. She scanned the cafe and found her blind date sitting at a small table near the window, just as Nancy Li had described.

The man had his back to her. He wore a simple white shirt and he looked elegant. A copy of the latest financial newspaper was in his hand and he looked around from time to time. It was clear that he was waiting for someone.

Zoe Xu took a deep breath and strode over to him with an ingratiating smile plastered on her face. She tried her best to look annoying.

"Hello, sir. I'm Nancy Li,"

announced Zoe Xu, stretching out her fair hand to the man, who slowly raised his head from the newspaper to look at her. His eyes were as clear as a mountain stream.

He looked at her up and down, but there was no sign of creepiness in his eyes.

His gaze was natural and magnificent.

Zoe Xu instantly liked him. A moment later, she wished she could find a hole in the floor in which to bury herself!

'Wade Su?

Didn't Nancy Li say that the date her family had arranged for her was a nouveau riche, who pretend to be a painter?' she wondered. How could it be Wade Su, the legendary student who had graduated from her school?

If Zoe Xu had known that her friend's blind date was Wade Su, she would have never agreed to go on the blind date on behalf of Nancy Li even if she threatened to kill her!

Zoe Xu had especially bought a wig, a fat gold chain, and painted an ugly mole on the corner of her mouth to wreck this date.

She couldn't believe she was standing there in her crazy disguise in front of this man, who used to be the school hunk.

She was in a daze for a long time.

She pouted, looking like she was about to burst into tears, but fortunately, her heavy, smoky makeup and foundation covered her emotions, only revealing a fake smile and her white teeth.

"Miss Li, have a seat,"

said Wade Su politely. There was only a momentary flicker of surprise in his eyes, exposing his true emotions for a second before his face returned to the calm and composed expression he held before.

There seemed to be nothing in the world that could move him.

The same couldn't be said for Zoe Xu.

Who was Wade Su? He was like a god in her school.

It was said that Wade Xu was could achieve anything he set his mind to.

What was most impressive about him was that he was probably the only student to have received so many job offers from major enterprises before graduation. However, he chose to go a different way and established his own construction company.

Three years had passed and he had achieved so much in the professional world. He had acquired a merger with the most famous real estate enterprise in J City and was about to develop land in a suburb.

On the outside, he looked pleasant and harmless, but it was hard to tell what new schemes were going on inside his head.

Zoe Xu gathered up the courage to reach out and shake his hand. She was mortified about having to go through this date with him but she pacified herself thinking they would never meet again in the future. Today, she was here on a mission. According to the agreement, she needed to frighten him away.

"Mr. Su, have you been waiting for a long time? I was stuck in a traffic jam on the way here."

Wade Su stared at Zoe Xu with his dark eyes as if he wanted to see through her soul.

He had been sitting here for twenty minutes, and had noticed that this girl, with the freaky appearance, had been hesitating outside the cafe for a long time. Now she was giving him funny excuses.

"No hurry."

But he didn't expose her. The simple two words seemed to declare a judgment.

Zoe Xu was stunned. He didn't run away despite her horrible appearance. No wonder he was the school hunk, he could maintain his cool in any situation.

'But even though I appreciate you, I must scare you away today. I'm sorry, ' she thought to herself.

Zoe Xu took a deep breath and called the waitress.

"Hello!" A young waitress handed the menu to Zoe Xu with a smile. "What would you like to drink?"

Zoe Xu swallowed and trembled with nervousness. She patted the waitress on the buttock and smiled weirdly, "Wow, you are so fair. Can I have your phone number?"

On the other side, Wade Su calmly regarded Zoe Xu.

He was a good audience.

The waitress had faced this situation many times and wasn't unnerved. She glanced at Zoe Xu and said, "I'm sorry. This is a cafe. The bar you need won't open until six o'clock in the afternoon. Turn left at the street corner."

"Oh, thank you, thank you..."

Her first way to ruin the blind date was to pretend to be gay, but to no avail.

The waitress didn't react as Zoe Xu expected, leaving her disappointed. She tugged at her short skirt feeling embarrassed and said bluntly, "Then give me the most expensive drink here. I want the really fancy cold drink with edible gold leaves in it like on TV!"

As she spoke, she glanced at Wade Su meaningfully.

This was her second way to ruin the blind date; she would pretend to be a gold digger.

The waitress looked at Zoe Xu up and down as if she was looking at an idiot.

"How about a strawberry pie?"

Wade Su continued to speak in English. He spoke so fast that Zoe Xu didn't catch half of it.

The waitress nodded and left.

Zoe Xu was confused for a while. Seeing that both her attempts failed, she scratched her forehead with her index finger thinking of another strategy. When Wade Su was not paying attention, she lifted up her dress, revealing the note on her leg.

The third way was to be fussy.

Faking a cough, she drew his attention. "I know you are from a good family. After marriage, not only should my name be written on your villa's property ownership certificate, but also my parents' names, and my uncle's and aunt's names. Although I am headstrong, you are a male chauvinist if you can't accept it. Although I am not beautiful, you're shallow for judging people by their appearance if you refuse me!"

Zoe Xu was reading from the speech she had written down from the Internet this morning and carried with her. After her spirited monologue, all Wade Su replied was with an indifferent "Oh."

He even didn't object.

Zoe Xu was speechless! None of her tricks were working on him.

The next move!

She pretended to hold her forehead with her hand and lifted up her dress again to consult her note for more ideas.

She thought her movements were covert, but they had been seen by him.

He had only agreed to this blind date to get it over with, but he didn't expect the girl to react like this.

A cordial farewell was on the tip of his tongue. He even stood up slightly, but when she was peeping at her note, he slowly sat back down.

The two of them didn't seem to agree with this blind date. That was just perfect! He didn't need to say anything and he could watch the fun for free.

Why not?

Wade Su picked up his coffee and took a sip. The mellow bitterness spread on his tongue.

There was a smile on his face, which was more sincere than before.

"How old are you, Miss Li?"

"Twenty-one." Zoe Xu didn't notice the subtle change in his expression as she didn't raise her head.

"So you are going to graduate."

"Yes, you are right. I have been busy with my internship recently, and I have to help with the blind... Umm...never mind. Let's talk about your sexual orientation!"

"Please go ahead."

"You are the most eligible bachelor of J City, but you have been single for so many years. Are you gay?"