Jiang Hua had been lying at home all day, constantly interrupted by visiting relatives.
These weren't like his eldest uncle's family; they were frequent visitors, and Jiang Hua was repeatedly called to entertain them.
His face was stiff from smiling. Whether you're an official or a celebrity, you're still a junior in front of your parents' relatives.
"Uncle, take care. Come visit often!"
"Alright, alright, Little Jiang. You should come back to the old village more often too. Our village is doing well now, we're about to develop tourism."
"Sure, Uncle. I'll come when I have time."
Jiang Hua saw off another relative from his hometown.
He collapsed on the sofa, not wanting to move at all.
His mother kicked him lightly and threw a suit at him.
She had found it in Jiang Hua's suitcase.
She was annoyed - look at the clothes in his suitcase, all flashy and gaudy.
This was the only suit, and it didn't even have a brand name, though the fabric was quite good. She had ironed it this morning, sure that Jiang Hua would look smart in it.
She believed in her son's looks, certain he could win over Xiao Han.
"Quick, change into this. We're meeting an auntie tonight."
Jiang Hua sighed, "Mom, can you let me rest? Please, I have an event tomorrow night."
"Stop talking nonsense. Are you going to wear it or not?"
Jiang Hua had no choice but to comply. The suit was custom-made for a Great Wall advertisement shoot. He didn't like wearing suits.
But his mother was about to lose her temper, so Jiang Hua had to obey.
After he put on the clothes, his mother circled him a few times. He looked handsome, but something seemed missing.
He looked listless.
"Oh, right, I forgot. There's a tie in your suitcase too."
This was the last straw for Jiang Hua. He already felt suffocated, and now a tie?
"Mom, please spare me. I can't breathe."
"Be good, son. Would a mother harm her child? Put it on, you look so handsome."
What followed was a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth. In mothers' eyes, are their sons just Barbie dolls?
They always like to dress them up according to their own aesthetics, regardless of whether their sons like it or not.
....
At the Qianzhou Grand Hotel.
Jiang Hua reluctantly followed his mother, looking dejected.
His mother was still nagging him.
"Why are you wearing sunglasses at night? Take them off quickly, it's impolite when meeting people."
Jiang Hua tugged at the bowtie around his neck.
This was his last act of defiance. He had managed to avoid the tie, but couldn't escape the bowtie.
"Mom, if I take off my glasses and get surrounded by people, I won't be responsible."
His mother thought for a moment. Her son was now a public figure, likely to be recognized by many.
"Fine, keep them on then. But when you meet people, you better be sweet-tongued. This is my good friend."
They arrived at the lobby and asked a waiter.
Then they went to the reserved private room.
Jiang Hua sat down in a chair, not wanting to get up.
"Perk up a bit. I'm going to the restroom to make a call. If you dare ruin this today, see how I'll deal with you when we get home."
With that, she left for the restroom without waiting for Jiang Hua's response.
A little while later, the door to the private room opened.
The waiter led two people in, and Jiang Hua immediately stood up.
"Hello, Auntie."
The woman in the lead looked at Jiang Hua and frowned. Wearing sunglasses at night, this kid was very impolite.
The young girl behind her was quite curious. So this was Auntie Wang's son? He was very tall.
Just couldn't see his face, wearing sunglasses to look cool, just like her students who always thought it was cool.
Actually, men just need to look clean and refreshing.
She had always heard Auntie Wang boast about how excellent and handsome her son was. Now that she saw him, he didn't leave a particularly good or bad impression.
His bowtie was crooked, but the suit fit him well. Overall, he was unremarkable.
Jiang Hua invited the two to sit down, forgetting to take off his sunglasses. This was his mother's best friend, he didn't dare to be careless.
"Auntie, please have a seat. My mother will be back soon."
Jiang Hua awkwardly invited them to sit and asked the waiter to bring two cups of tea.
Although he was mentally much older, he still felt bewildered in this blind date situation.
He had too many unpleasant memories of blind dates from his previous life.
Why hadn't his mother come back yet?
The three sat awkwardly in the private room, not speaking.
The young woman across from him felt bored and started to quietly scroll through Douyin on her phone.
Jiang Hua sat properly in his seat.
"Hey, Xiao Jiang, is there something wrong with your eyes? Why are you wearing sunglasses at night?"
Auntie Wang finally lost her patience, her tone not very friendly.
Jiang Hua came to his senses and said, "No, nothing's wrong. I recently had corrective surgery, and my eyes are sensitive to strong light."
He was just going through the motions. The young woman across from him was pretty by ordinary standards.
But not that pretty. Perhaps he had seen too many beautiful women.
From his experienced perspective, this girl didn't seem as quiet as she appeared on the surface.
The young woman felt Jiang Hua's gaze appraising her.
She glared back at him.
"Ah, Xiao Min, you're here! I was just about to call you, thinking of going downstairs to meet you."
Jiang Hua's mother came out of the restroom, smiling.
Auntie Xiao Min saw her best friend and smiled. Her son might not be reliable, but her friendship with her best friend was genuine.
Five years of friendship was no small matter, though she rarely mentioned her own son, only knowing he worked in another province.
"Hello, Auntie Wang. Long time no see, you've become more beautiful."
Jiang Hua's mother beamed with joy: "Xiao Han is always so good with words, unlike my son, who's such a blockhead."
"Hehe." Xiao Han covered her mouth and laughed.
"Jiang Hua, there are no strangers here now, why are you still wearing your sunglasses?"
Fine, let it all go to hell. This blind date was just a formality anyway, so he didn't care if they recognized him.
Jiang Hua took off his sunglasses, and Miss Xiao Han was stunned for a moment, pointing at him.
"You... you... you're Jiang Hua, that Jiang Hua from Xiao Baihua?"
At first, when she heard the name Jiang Hua, she was just a bit puzzled.
After all, there must be at least half a million people named Jiang Hua in the country, if not a million.
There were dozens in their small county alone, and she had several classmates named Jiang Hua.
But this was the real Jiang Hua.
With his sword-like eyebrows and star-like eyes, dressed in a suit, that crooked bowtie gave him a unique touch of rakishness.
Very attractive.
Jiang Hua's lips curled slightly upward: "Hello, I'm Jiang Hua."
"Ah, Jiang Hua." Xiao Han immediately covered her mouth. This was Jiang Hua, the Best Crossover Singer, the Free Guru.
"Hello, Jiang Hua. I'm Chen Shuhan."
Auntie Wang was also a bit dazed. Her best friend's son turned out to be someone she often saw on Douyin.
He had a permanent job and did a bit of part-time work, with no financial pressure.
It all made sense now. No wonder he wore sunglasses at night.
He was afraid of being recognized.
"Ah, since everyone knows each other now, that's great. Why don't you two exchange WeChat contacts and chat slowly?"
Jiang Hua's mother immediately tried to ease the atmosphere.
Jiang Hua rubbed his nose and took out his phone.
"I'll scan yours."
Xiao Han walked over to Jiang Hua, preparing to scan his WeChat code.
Suddenly, a WeChat message popped up, making the situation a bit awkward.
Chen Lijun: "Jiang Hua, sister is so bored. Yunxiao is ignoring me."
...