Did the Tsundere Miss Get Slapped in the Face Again Today? - Chapter 59

Chapter 59: “I’m afraid you’ll leave me.”

At 3:00 AM, Lin Anran snuck back into the Lin residence. She walked on her tiptoes, taking one step and looking three ways, acting utterly suspicious.

The living room was pitch black, and the lights in the study were off. It seemed her eldest sister was already asleep. Lin Anran felt the weight lift from her heart. If I’m not caught, I won’t get scolded, she thought, swaying her head playfully, starting to feel smug.

Her triumph didn’t last a second before a “click” sounded, and the living room lights flooded the space.

Lin Anran raised her hand to shield her eyes from the piercing glare. Once adjusted, she saw Lin Han sitting upright on the sofa. She was wearing a crisp white suit, her expression extremely cold.

Startled, Lin Anran stumbled back two steps.

“So, you finally decided to come back,” Lin Han said, her lips curving into a faint, mirthless smile.

“Big sister, what are you doing?” Lin Anran started with a guilty conscience but quickly switched to a tone of righteous indignation. “You’re going to scare someone to death! What are you doing sitting here in the middle of the night without the lights on, not saying a word?”

Lin Han stared at her expressionlessly.

Lin Anran: “I’m tired. I’m done talking to you; I’m going up to sleep.”

With that, she pretended as if nothing was wrong and headed for the stairs. Just as her hand touched the railing, she locked eyes with Lin Yishu, who was poking her head out from the second floor.

Lin Anran gestured silently: What is Big Sister doing? Sitting there in the middle of the night… she couldn’t be waiting specifically to trap me, could she?

Lin Yishu massaged her temples, giving her a “you’re on your own” look.

Lin Anran twitched her lips. It seemed she really was being cornered. This person who is usually too busy to care about me, why is she so free today…

“Come here,” Lin Han’s voice, which always lacked warmth, rang out from behind her.

“Oh.” Lin Anran retracted her hand from the railing and turned around.

The person on the sofa sat perfectly straight, fingers resting on the armrest, eyes closed as if resting. Lin Anran reluctantly and slowly shuffled over, standing beside the sofa.

Lin Han didn’t speak or even open her eyes. From the side, her facial lines looked hard and cold. Just by sitting there with her eyes closed, she exerted a massive, invisible pressure.

Lin Anran bit her lip and spoke up first: “I know, I know! It’s not that big of a deal. You’re overreacting. I know I shouldn’t have run out on New Year’s Eve. At most, I won’t do it again.”

Lin Han’s eyelashes flickered, and she opened her eyes. That simple action carried a chilling, imposing aura. Lin Anran’s chatter died instantly.

Lin Han tilted her chin: “Sit.”

Lin Anran puffed out her cheeks and sat down unwillingly.

“Look at the photos I prepared for you on the table,” Lin Han gestured.

Following her direction, Lin Anran saw several photos piled on the coffee table. She picked them up, puzzled. “What photos?”

There were three photos in total. Lacking patience, Lin Anran flipped through them casually. “What are these? Why are you showing me their pictures?”

The three people in the photos weren’t exactly strangers. Lin Anran often attended business galas, and these three were all business partners who had worked with the Lin family. She wouldn’t say she “knew” them, but she knew their names and family backgrounds.

“You’ve met all three of them. Whether it’s status, looks, or temperament, they are all top-tier. Which one do you like more?” Lin Han’s gaze landed on her. It sounded like a question, but it didn’t feel like one.

Lin Anran’s delicate brows knitted into a tight knot. “What do you mean ‘which one do I like more’? Why should I like them? What do their status, looks, or temperament have to do with me?”

Lin Han: “It doesn’t have to be them. If you don’t like these, I can pick others for you. There are many choices.”

Lin Anran’s frown deepened. “If I’m not mistaken, are you setting me up on blind dates?”

Lin Han’s expression remained indifferent. “You could interpret it that way.”

Lin Anran’s face fell instantly. She stood up abruptly. “I have a girlfriend.”

Lin Han’s expression remained unchanged.

“You clearly know I have a girlfriend, yet you’re arranging blind dates for me?”

“It doesn’t interfere. Dating is dating; marriage is marriage.”

Lin Anran was fuming. She slammed the photos onto the floor with a “clatter.”

Seeing things take a turn for the worse from the second floor, Lin Yishu rushed downstairs to stand between them as a peacemaker.

“It’s a small thing, a small thing! Let’s not fight! It’s the New Year, let’s talk things through properly.”

Lin Anran kicked the sofa temperamentally. “What is there to talk about with her? I won’t talk properly! Anyway, it’s impossible for me to go on blind dates.”

Lin Han stood up, towering over both Lin Anran and Lin Yishu. Her height alone added to her imposing aura. Lin Yishu stood in the middle, feeling a massive headache coming on.

Her younger sister was a reckless, hot-headed person, and their eldest sister was no better—the house had always been her “one-woman rule.” Lin Han usually seemed to spoil Lin Anran, letting her have her way, but once there was a disagreement, Lin Han’s word was final. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have frozen Lin Anran’s cards before and sent her to intern at a subsidiary magazine. (Though in the end, it turned out to be a misunderstanding caused by a servant’s gossip).

“I will not go on blind dates!”

“There’s no need to be so worked up. I’m just letting you interact with potential marriage partners. You can continue your relationship as you wish.”

Lin Yishu, caught in the middle, was speechless. She didn’t know why her eldest sister’s logic was so bizarre.

Lin Anran said word by word: “I. Am not. Going.”

Lin Han: “It is not up to you.”

“What? If I don’t listen, are you going to freeze my cards again and send me away to be ‘tempered’?” Lin Anran sneered. “Whatever. I don’t care. It’s not the first time anyway. Once bitten, twice shy? I’m not afraid at all.”

Not wanting to say more, Lin Anran turned to leave.

“I am not demanding you break up. But if you insist on being defiant, I don’t mind making your girlfriend leave of her own accord.”

Lin Anran froze. She turned back, her chest heaving with rage. “She won’t leave!”

“Who knows?” Lin Han raised an eyebrow slightly. Without another word, she turned and headed upstairs.

Lin Yishu looked at Lin Han going up, then at Lin Anran storming off, and sighed. She knew this would happen. When Lin Anran started dating, she had a hunch. She thought that since Lin Han didn’t oppose it, everything would be fine. She never expected her eldest sister’s logic to be so strange—this “dating is dating, marriage is marriage” theory. Who could have seen that coming?

A perfectly good New Year’s Eve ended in a bitter fallout.

A warm yellow lamp glowed by the bedside. Jiang Zhi sat on the bed, leaning against the headboard, her eyes fixed on her phone.

She had sent a text to Lin Anran half an hour ago, asking if she had made it home safely. Usually, Lin Anran would reply in seconds, but there had been no response. Jiang Zhi wondered if she just hadn’t seen it. She felt worried—what if something happened on the road?

A terrible image flashed through her mind: a car crash, Lin Anran trapped under a vehicle… Jiang Zhi shook her head. No, no, don’t overthink it.

After hesitating, she picked up her phone and dialed the number.

“I’m sorry, the number you have dialed is currently unavailable…” the mechanical voice prompted.

Jiang Zhi bit her lip and tried again. Still no answer. She couldn’t sit still. She got out of bed, clutching her phone, and paced around the room.

She suddenly realized that if Lin Anran didn’t reply or answer her calls, she had no way of finding her. She and Lin Anran had no mutual friends, and she didn’t have the contact information for Lin Anran’s family. The only link was the phone.

Beep beep.

Just as Jiang Zhi was consumed by anxiety, the sound of the digital lock being pressed came from downstairs. Her pacing stopped instantly, and she pricked up her ears. After the beeping came the creak of the door opening.

Jiang Zhi ran out of her room and looked down from the second floor. The lights downstairs were off, leaving the place in darkness save for a few stray beams of moonlight. A figure stood at the entrance.

Jiang Zhi wasn’t sure, so she called out tentatively, “Lin Kitty?”

The figure didn’t move or respond. It just stood there, motionless. Jiang Zhi’s guard went up. She instinctively grabbed a broom nearby and hit the light switch.

The crystal chandelier lit up, illuminating the figure at the door. Seeing who it was, Jiang Zhi breathed a sigh of relief and dropped the broom. “Why are you back? You didn’t answer your phone or respond when I called. I thought a thief broke in, you scared me.”

She talked as she headed downstairs. When she reached the door, she realized Lin Anran’s expression was off. Her head was hanging, and she looked completely withered.

Jiang Zhi: “What happened?”

Lin Anran didn’t speak. She just looked at her, her expression shifting from drained to aggrieved.

“Did you fight with your family?” Jiang Zhi asked patiently and gently. She took her hand and led her to the sofa.

Seeing that she was still unwilling to speak, Jiang Zhi didn’t press her. She simply held her hand tightly, waiting for her to be ready to talk.

After a long time, Lin Anran finally spoke: “You won’t leave, right?”

Jiang Zhi didn’t know why she was asking, but she gave a firm answer. She nodded and said, “I’m your girlfriend. Where would you have me go? I’m not going anywhere. I’ll stay right by your side.”

Lin Anran seemed to have suddenly lost all sense of security, asking for confirmation again: “You really won’t leave?”

Jiang Zhi stroked her head. “I won’t. Absolutely won’t.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

Lin Anran’s tension slowly began to relax.

“So, can you tell me what happened?” Jiang Zhi asked softly.

“My big sister… she’s not a good person,” Lin Anran pouted.

Jiang Zhi was stunned. She had met Lin Anran’s eldest sister once before on the street stalls; Lin Han had come to pick Lin Anran up. Jiang Zhi had a strong impression of Lin Han. Firstly, because she looked quite similar to Lin Anran; secondly, because her aura was too cold; and thirdly, because she controlled such a massive enterprise as the Lin Group at such a young age—she carried a legendary air about her.

Jiang Zhi: “Why do you say that? Did she catch you sneaking out and scold you?”

Lin Anran shook and then nodded her head.

“My sister wants me to go on blind dates. She’s acting like a psychopath. It’s so annoying! I said I wouldn’t go, and she said she would make you leave of your own accord. I…” Lin Anran grabbed her sleeve. “You’re not allowed to leave.”

Jiang Zhi’s expression stiffened slightly as she processed the information. Honestly, it wasn’t surprising. With her own background, it would be a miracle if Lin Anran’s sister approved of her. She certainly wouldn’t accept the relationship. It just happened a bit too fast, catching her off guard. Jiang Zhi wasn’t fully mentally prepared.

Getting no response, Lin Anran tugged her sleeve again. “Don’t leave. My sister is incredibly wicked. I don’t like her; she’s so annoying. She’ll definitely try to tempt you with money. You aren’t allowed to leave me for money.”

Her eyes were filled with the insecurity of being abandoned.

Jiang Zhi felt a pang in her heart, both sour and painful. She pulled her into a hug. “I won’t leave. I promise.”

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