novelraw Chapter 125 : Blind Date in Progress 2
Chapter 125 : Blind Date in Progress 2
Chapter 125: Blind Date in Progress 2
At the restaurant entrance, the smile on Zhang Wei’s face looked a little forced.
“These are my two friends, they came with me today, you don’t mind, do you?”
The woman standing in front of Zhang Wei spoke. Although she asked whether he minded, her tone carried no sense of courtesy at all. She hadn’t even apologized for being late.
“No problem, I don’t mind,” Zhang Wei replied. Even if a man had no emotional intelligence, in such a situation, he couldn’t possibly say he minded.
And taking a step back—even if he did say he minded, would the two of them just disappear?
“Hello, welcome, welcome. Let’s not stand here, let’s go inside,” Zhang Wei greeted the two women beside her.
“Hello, but honestly this place seems pretty average. Considering this is your first time meeting Yao Yao, I know a good restaurant just on the next street. Why don’t we go there instead?” one of the women said, clearly implying that the place Zhang Wei had chosen was low-class.
Three women stood there—two plump and one thin. Their looks were average at best; they definitely weren’t the kind of beauties who made people’s eyes light up.
The one who spoke was the slimmest of the three, though still only of average standard. Her appearance was somewhat better than the other two, that was all.
As for the “Yao Yao” she mentioned, that was Zhang Wei’s blind date for the day. Her full name was Wang Mengyao. She was about 1.6 meters tall and, by estimation, weighed over 130 jin. Her figure was a bit on the plump side, but not overly so. At least Zhang Wei found it acceptable.
Hearing this, Wang Mengyao frowned slightly, glanced at Zhang Wei, and then asked with some interest, “What do you think?”
At this moment, Zhang Wei never expected that he would run into such a problem right after meeting her. What he needed now was a strategist at his side.
Although he was displeased with the woman who had spoken, this wasn’t the time to lose his temper.
“I’ve already reserved a table here. If we change locations last minute, who knows when we’ll actually get to eat. How about next time we go to the place you suggested?” Zhang Wei scratched his head and explained with an awkward smile.
Hearing that, Wang Mengyao seemed somewhat disappointed: “Forget it, let’s just stay here then.”
And so, Zhang Wei led the three of them into the restaurant, seating them at a table not far from Lin Mo and Yuan Meng.
Zhang Wei handed the menu over to the women, letting them order first to appear gentlemanly.
The two who were secretly observing nodded to themselves.
“Not bad, Zhang Wei. One blind date turned into meeting three girls at once. Bit of pressure though, one against three, not easy,” Lin Mo whispered while glancing over.
At this, Miss Yuan pouted: “What do you think he is, a professional player? One against three? Even handling one is already tough for him.
Just watch, it won’t be long before Ah Wei cries for backup. With people who lack manners and boundaries all gathered together, if he can endure it, then I’d be surprised.”
As they chatted, the dishes they had ordered began to arrive one after another. Whatever was happening over there, they still had to eat first. Otherwise, if a fight broke out later, they wouldn’t even have the strength to help.
Meanwhile, Zhang Wei learned through casual conversation that the slimmer one was named Dong Yanan, and the other was Sun Lili. The three weren’t just colleagues but also roommates who rented together.
When they found out that their roommate’s family had introduced her to a blind date, and that she was meeting him tonight, they decided to tag along—under the banner of “being good girlfriends and screening the guy.” Just in case he turned out to be a scumbag, they could help give advice. Of course, they wanted to ensure their friend ended up with a man who at least matched her conditions.
Wang Mengyao thought it made sense and readily agreed without even informing Zhang Wei beforehand.
During ordering, the three women showed no restraint. They ordered the restaurant’s signature grilled fish, five stir-fried dishes, and one cold dish. Without even asking Zhang Wei if he wanted to add anything, they directly handed the menu to the waiter.
“By the way, your name is Zhang Wei, right? Yao Yao said her family introduced you to her, and that you two are from the same hometown. Do you plan on staying in Jiangning to work or moving back home?” Dong Yanan asked.
Zhang Wei was stunned: “Huh?”
“Yao Yao definitely wants to stay here. You’ve been working a few years now. Do you have plans to buy a house?” Dong Yanan pressed further.
Zhang Wei finally understood they were asking about his conditions: “It depends on my job situation. If I continue staying here, I’ll consider getting a mortgage for a place.”
“What? A mortgage? That means repaying for ten, twenty years. By the time you finish, half your life will be gone,” Wang Mengyao said.
Zhang Wei scratched his head: “There’s no other way. Jiangning’s housing prices aren’t as outrageous as in first-tier cities, but they’re still not cheap. My salary will increase in the future.”
“I heard from Yao Yao that you’re working in operations at a company. Your income should be decent, right? But our Yao Yao can’t suffer with you. If you two really get together, you’ll need to buy a car first!” Sun Lili chimed in.
The two roommates had already learned that Zhang Wei commuted daily by subway, which meant he didn’t own a car. Otherwise, they would have already asked how he got there today.
“Well… buying a small car just for commuting is possible,” Zhang Wei chuckled dryly, not daring to promise too much. A car costing several hundred thousand was out of reach for him, but if it was around 100,000 yuan or so, with some family support, it was doable.
“Even for a commuter car, it needs to be decent. Buying a cheap one is worse than not having one. It’d be embarrassing to sit in. And also, you’re a bit overweight—you could stand to lose some weight. Honestly, if it weren’t for the fact that you and Yao Yao are from the same hometown, she wouldn’t have even agreed to meet you,” Dong Yanan continued.
Before Zhang Wei could respond, Sun Lili added, “Exactly. If you don’t lose weight, how can you be worthy of Yao Yao? And you have to be romantic—give her little surprises now and then, know how to treat her well, and be willing to spend money on her. Yao Yao told us you’re doing okay in that regard. Even though you don’t have much money, at least you’ve been transferring money for takeout and milk tea. Keep it up, work harder, and you’ll make it official soon enough.”
The two women went back and forth, chattering endlessly. Meanwhile, the main person involved, Wang Mengyao, sat calmly, not saying a word. She only nodded occasionally when her friends spoke.
As they said, a woman who could string Zhang Wei along wasn’t without a bit of scheming. Maybe not much, but definitely not a fool.
There was no need for her to say these things herself. If she spoke too harshly and Zhang Wei stormed off, then she would lose someone who spent money on her.
In fact, in recent times, Zhang Wei had already spent bits of money on her—small things like takeout and milk tea, larger things like red envelopes and transfers. Though none of it added up to much, not even over a thousand yuan, free money was still money. Why refuse?
With her friends voicing the conditions she wanted, she got her point across without offending anyone.
And if they went too far, she could always smooth things over. Either way, she had both offense and defense covered.
If Lin Mo and Yuan Meng had overheard their conversation, they would have realized right away that this was PUA at work.
First, they undermined Zhang Wei’s conditions and appearance. Then, they claimed that only because he was from the same hometown was he given this chance, and he had better cherish it. Finally, they raised the issue of what he should give—money and effort.
They had only chatted online for a short time, and this was their very first in-person meeting. They weren’t even in a relationship yet, and already they were emphasizing what he had to spend. It was frighteningly aggressive.
At this moment, just from listening, Zhang Wei was already sweating on his forehead. He didn’t understand—what were these two women doing? Why did they have so much to say? He hadn’t even spoken a few words with Yao Yao yet.
“Uh, well…” Zhang Wei didn’t even know what to say.
Seeing this, Dong Yanan narrowed her eyes: “You’re not being stingy, are you? These days, when men pursue women, how could they not put in effort? If not, then what use are men? We girlfriends can just stay beautifully single—wouldn’t that be better, Yao Yao?”
Wang Mengyao smiled at that, looked at Zhang Wei, but said nothing. Instantly, the atmosphere at the table turned awkward.
Fortunately, just then the waiter came to serve the food, saving Zhang Wei.
The three women immediately began chattering away as they ate, leaving Zhang Wei unable to get a word in edgewise.
Of course, whenever the topic came to things like holidays, gifts, or money transfers, they would ask his opinion.
At that moment, while Zhang Wei was anxious inside, he only had one thought in his mind.
‘Snake needs backup—up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, B, A.’