TL: Hua
The 68,000 membership fee wasn’t a small amount, but thankfully the money wasn’t wasted. The agency’s efficiency was high.
Yu Qingtang received a call from the matchmaker before he even woke up. A blind date had been arranged for that evening.
Yu Qingtang had the day off, so he snoozed until ten, ignoring his phone. He was finally woken by a call from Liu Siyan.
“Big shot anchor Yu, our department has a new batch of interns. Could you do us a favor and come to their motivational meeting tonight? You know, a lot of these kids are here because of you. One word from you could keep them excited for their whole internship.”
Liu Siyan was a friend Yu Qingtang had known since college—wavy hair, bright and elegant, an older sister type, and one of his best friends.
After graduation, both were assigned to the provincial station. Liu Siyan was the director of the lifestyle channel at a branch station, while Yu Qingtang was an anchor for the news channel at the main station.
Yu Qingtang held his phone between his shoulder and ear, pulled a sandwich from the fridge, and tore open the packaging, putting it straight into his mouth. “I can’t today.”
“Auntie called you home?”
“No.” Yu Qingtang pulled out four oranges. “Blind date.”
Liu Siyan clicked her tongue. “Did you finally come to your senses, or did Auntie just nag you enough?”
Yu Qingtang tossed the sliced oranges into the juicer. “You know the answer.”
“Who set you up?”
“A dating website.”
“Is it reliable? Blind date agencies are pretty shady these days.”
“Don’t know. Anyway, I paid a 68,000 membership fee.”
“How much?!” Liu Siyan shouted. “Are you crazy?”
Yu Qingtang thought back; it was a bit impulsive. “It’s done now; there’s nothing I can do.”
“I think the station director would be more reliable.”
Yu Qingtang sipped his orange juice. “Don’t mention him.”
“Are you really not considering the director?” Liu Siyan said, “Rumor has it he got divorced mostly because of you.”
“That’s his business, nothing to do with me.”
Liu Siyan knew Yu Qingtang wasn’t someone who cared about a person’s marital history, so she asked casually, “It can’t be because you think his voice is just average, can it?”
“No.” Yu Qingtang admitted he had a preference for voices, but he just didn’t feel anything for the director. Plus, he disliked office romances, especially with someone in such a high position.
Liu Siyan asked, “So, what are the conditions for this blind date?”
“A returned overseas student, a doctor with a Ph.D. He’s a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner. The matchmaker said he’s quite accomplished and authoritative in his field.”
“An overseas student? And a TCM doctor?” Liu Siyan sounded increasingly skeptical. “How old is he?”
“Didn’t ask for specifics.” Or maybe it was mentioned, but Yu Qingtang wasn’t fully awake to hear it. “He shouldn’t be younger than me.”
He had specifically mentioned wanting someone mature and stable.
“It’s not about him being younger than you now,” Liu Siyan emphasized. “It’s about him being older than you!”
“Older than me is fine. I really can’t handle someone too young.”
Yu Qingtang had been involved in the online voice acting community for over ten years, a place where young people were abundant. They were lively, optimistic, and energetic, but also prone to being clingy. Yu Qingtang was busy with work and didn’t have much time for relationships. He hoped to find someone mature and independent, who could give each other space and be understanding.
“What if he’s not one or two years older, or even seven or eight years older, but twenty-eight, thirty-eight, or even forty-eight years older? What then?”
Yu Qingtang: “…”
He really hadn’t considered that.
“It shouldn’t be that bad, right?”
“Do you remember his profession?”
“TCM doctor, why?”
“Are you sure he’s just a TCM doctor and not an old TCM doctor?”
Yu Qingtang: “…”
Liu Siyan: “According to you, a Ph.D., a really accomplished and authoritative TCM doctor—how young could he be? Most people graduate with a Ph.D. close to thirty. TCM is the most demanding; you have to train for twenty or thirty years to make a name for yourself!”
“What if he could call your grandpa ‘brother’? Would you be okay with that?”
Yu Qingtang: “…”
Putting aside his own feelings, if he really showed up with a “grandpa,” it might give his mother, Ms. Chen, high blood pressure.
Yu Qingtang: “Let’s see when we meet. He might not even be interested in me.” Being more mature always had its advantages; if it didn’t work out, it would be easier to part ways amicably.
“Alright, well, I hope you encounter a deep-voiced, handsome guy.” Liu Siyan was like a worm in his stomach. “The kind of handsome guy with gold-rimmed glasses and a dark suit.”
Yu Qingtang: “As long as he’s not older than my dad, I’ll be satisfied.”
—
The meeting was set for 7:30 PM at a location chosen by Yu Qingtang.
Meeting at a coffee shop at that time seemed unusual, but it was intentional. He’d eat dinner beforehand, and if it didn’t feel right, he wouldn’t have to waste time having another meal with the person.
Yu Qingtang didn’t believe in love at first sight, but he also didn’t want to continue interacting with someone he immediately felt was unsuitable. Time was tight, the task was heavy, and he had no interest in deep exploration.
Yu Qingtang changed into a clean shirt, and since it had rained earlier, he put on a light grey jacket before heading out.
The coffee shop was right next to his residential complex. Yu Qingtang arrived twenty minutes early.
The staff led him to table number three by the window. Not many people were at the coffee shop at this hour, though there was a couple on a date on a corner sofa.
Yu Qingtang said he was waiting for someone and only ordered two glasses of water.
A moment later, a text came in.
Liu Siyan: [Did you get there?]
[Yep.]
Liu Siyan: [How is it? /smirk]
[He’s not here yet.]
Liu Siyan: [Old TCM doctors are different; they’re so composed. /bow]
[I just got here early.]
Liu Siyan: [I’m going to the intern motivational meeting now, talk later tonight. I’ll keep praying for you: deep voice, handsome, black suit, gold-rimmed glasses! /heart eyes]
[I’ll take your good wishes.]
Yu Qingtang didn’t dare to hope; the chances were even slimmer than winning the lottery.
—
TCM Clinic Outpatient Room 3, 6pm.
Xu Baizhang took off his disposable gloves and washed his hands again.
He was changing when someone knocked on the door.
Dr. Zhang paused on his white shirt for half a second and said, “Director Xu, are you busy? I have a relative whose leg keeps hurting. He just got an X-ray upstairs. Since you’re still here, I was hoping you could take a look.”
Xu Baizhang glanced at his watch. “Sorry, another day.”
“No problem, he’s not in a hurry; you go ahead.” Doctor Zhang noticed his carefully styled hair and the jacket he was holding, about to put on. “Got a date?”
“Mm.” Xu Baizhang slipped on his suit, saying unhurriedly, “Blind date.”
“Oh!” Doctor Zhang’s eyelid twitched. “Alright, I won’t bother you then. Good luck.”
Doctor Zhang, who had started to leave, returned and looked him up and down again. “Director Xu, you look really good today!”
Footsteps faded away. Xu Baizhang looked at himself in the mirror, pulled out a pair of glasses, and closed the changing room door.
The TCM department was on the west side of the fourth floor of the outpatient building. Xu Baizhang rarely took the elevator. From there to the exit, he needed to go down four floors and then through the first-floor corridor.
The outpatient building was bustling with people around 6 PM, patients collecting reports, and busy doctors and nurses constantly moving about.
The soles of his leather shoes made a sound on the marble. The slim-fit suit felt restrictive, making his shoulders and back instinctively tense and straight.
Xu Baizhang rarely initiated greetings and paid no attention to the stares and exclamations around him.
But it was a hospital, and they were really loud.
“Is that Director Xu?”
“Am I seeing things, or did he transform?”
“Where are his training clothes?”
“Help! Is he getting married?”
“Oh my god, the glasses suit him so well!”
“He looks like one of those hot and refined villains, ah! Director Xu is so handsome!”
“Has the ascetic monk come down the mountain and rejoined secular life?”
“Wow, Director Xu is killing it!”
Xu Baizhang didn’t have a habit of using transportation; he usually jogged or walked to and from work.
The meeting location was about a half-hour run away. With an hour and ten minutes until the agreed time, to be safe, Xu Baizhang hailed a cab.
Unfortunately, luck wasn’t on his side that day. The usually clear road was severely jammed due to a multi-car pile-up, and traffic police were checking passenger information in each car.
Xu Baizhang sat in the passenger seat, looking down at his watch. “Driver, how much longer will this take?”
“It’s so blocked up ahead, how should I know!” The driver was equally ill-tempered. “I’m really unlucky today, taking on a job like yours. How many things have I been delayed from?”
Xu Baizhang: “How much?”
The driver turned to him. “Huh?”
“How much? I’m getting out.”
The driver pressed down on his seatbelt buckle, preventing him from unbuckling. “Hey, hey, you can’t do that. You just say you’re getting off? Who’s going to pay for the gas while I’m stuck in this traffic?”
The setting sun dipped below the horizon, and the crowded street was bathed in the evening light. Through the car window, a running figure faded into the distance.
The driver happily counted the red bills. This fare was worth it.
—
Yu Qingtang didn’t expect his blind date to be so composed.
At 7:27 PM, the matchmaker called. “Mr. Yu, I apologize. Dr. Xu just contacted me and said there was a situation on the way. He’ll be there very soon. Could you please wait a bit longer?”
“Okay, no problem.”
Accidents happen, Yu Qingtang understood, but being late for a first meeting certainly didn’t leave a good impression.
The matchmaker probably thought the same. “I’m really sorry. If you have time in the next few days, we can arrange other male guests. We have corporate executives, university professors, and engineers, all quite good.”
Yu Qingtang didn’t want to waste too much time on this. “Could you please help me ask if they’re available tomorrow? I’d like to meet one each for lunch, afternoon, and evening…”
Behind him, the glass door opened with a sound. A damp current of air stirred the wind chimes, and a faint herbal scent permeated the air.
Yu Qingtang instinctively looked up. The man’s figure and scent entered his perception simultaneously.
The man wore a white, stiff-collared shirt and a black suit. He was very tall, and his breathing was a little strained, as if he had rushed to get there.
His features were sharp, and he had little expression, which instead made him seem calm and composed.
And…
Yu Qingtang’s eyebrows twitched.
He was also wearing glasses—gold-rimmed, thin-framed glasses.
Seeing Yu Qingtang hang up the phone, the man sat down opposite him, polite and courteous. “Hello, I’m Xu Baizhang.”
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