Luo Qiao turned a bright scarlet and said, "That's enough, you…"
"Why don't we get a ruler and measure it out, hm? Big Brother Siran will let you do that."
"Ming Siran!" Luo Qiao shouted as she glared at him, her face flushed like the bloom of a red rose. "For heaven's sake!"
He stared at her for a while and then said, "Are you going to do that again?"
"…"
Silence.
The man raised an eyebrow and leaned towards her, "Luo Qiao?"
Immediately she felt her eyelids twitch as she said, "No I won't, just stay away from me…"
Ming Siran paused for some time before he straightened and stood back up. Sliding a hand into his trouser pocket, he said, "You've given your word, so don't ever let me hear you say that again."
He reached out to lightly stroke her face and smirked, "Otherwise I'll make you call me Big Brother Siran a hundred times a day."
Like a cat that had been picked up by the scruff of its neck, Luo Qiao kept still. She felt a tingle through her spine, like the ticklishness caused by a receding wave after it had crashed onto the shore. Especially where he touched her face… Suddenly, she felt her cheeks burning. As her mind went blank, she grabbed his hand and viciously bit down on it.
The man's hands had prominent joints, his fingers were long and slim, his nails immaculately clean. There was a flash of surprise in his eyes but he did not withdraw his hand, nor did he make a noise. There was a sliver of amusement in his eyes as he looked down at her, and even, the slightest hint of gentle affection.
Instantly, Luo Qiao knew that she had lost.
With a swing of her hand, she flung his hand off as her heart thumped loudly.
"Shameless," she cursed angrily under her breath as her ears turned a bright scarlet. Then she snatched her cell phone and quickly ran away.
As he watched the back view of the embarrassed girl disappear, he looked down at the circular bite mark on his hand. Laughing lightly, he ran the tip of his tongue over his posterior molar.
…
Back in her own room, Luo Qiao's heart would not stop pounding.
The young woman looking back at her from within the mirror was clearly flushed, radiant like the burst of flowers in the beginning of spring.
She slowly drew in a breath and shut her eyes.
It was almost as though there was something about her old flame that she could not leave behind.
No, she mustn't.
She couldn't.
She picked up her phone with a stone-cold expression and dialed her father's number.
Luo Qianheng picked up the call, "Hello, my dear daughter?"
"Dad, just how old am I this year."
Luo Qianheng was slightly surprised, "…Aren't you 23?"
"Well then, don't you think it's time you arranged a blind date for me? Or do some kind of matchmaking?"
Luo Qianheng: ???
"My dear daughter, has something gone wrong for you to be thinking this?"
Luo Qiao said with a blank expression, "Our family business needs strategic ties, we need a strong partner to take us to new heights."
"…We have enough wealth and don't need any more. If you want more wealth, I think the Ming family is not too bad. How about Siran? This child is an excellent man, yー"
"Dad, I've told you quite clearly, we've broken up. It's impossible for us to be together again."
Silence followed her declaration, followed by a sigh. "Qiao Qiao, why did you break up back then? Siran said you merely had an argument. But which couple doesn't argue? All these years he's been waiting for you, he doesn't go near other women, it's not that you don't know this. Why can't you just give him some serious consideration? Why not give him another chance?"
Luo Qiao remained silent.
Just as Luo Qianheng was about to speak further, Luo Qiao interrupted, "There doesn't need to be a reason for the breakup, but I just don't like him anymore. So we broke up over an argument."
"You…" Luo Qianheng was speechless for the longest time before he continued, "Why do you sound like such an unwholesome woman who takes her relationships so frivolously?"
Luo Qiao: "…Arrange a blind date."
"No!"
"Well then, I'll do it myself," with that, Luo Qiao hung up the call.
She dropped back on her bed and looked at the light overhead. Luo Qianheng's words were still echoing in her ears.
Why did you break up back then?
Biting her lip, she turned around and buried her face into the pillow.