Did the Tsundere Miss Get Slapped in the Face Again Today? - Chapter 60

Chapter 60: “Jiang Zhi and Lin Han Meet.”

Logically, Jiang Zhi should have been the one worried about being abandoned or discarded, yet the unease and panic in Lin Anran’s eyes were so stark and undeniable.

It was as if, in Lin Anran’s eyes, Jiang Zhi was someone extraordinary—a rare and precious treasure.

But Jiang Zhi knew she had nothing; she was ordinary and impoverished. Only someone as “blind” as Lin Anran would pick up a common stone, treat it like a diamond, and worry every day that the stone might roll away.

Jiang Zhi promised repeatedly that she wouldn’t leave, but it did little to soothe Lin Anran’s anxiety.

Lin Anran pulled back from the hug and looked up at her, eyes unblinking.

Jiang Zhi chuckled. “Are you afraid that if you look away for a second, I’ll disappear?”

“You…” Lin Anran’s eyes narrowed slightly. “You’re a money-grubber. Are you really not going to leave me for money? I don’t believe it. Your eyes glow green the moment you see cash.”

Jiang Zhi: “…”

While her love for money was a fact, it wasn’t that exaggerated.

“What if she offered you a hundred million?”

Jiang Zhi sucked in a sharp breath.

“See!” Lin Anran’s voice went up an octave, her excitement rising. “You’re wavering before we’ve even started!”

Jiang Zhi: “I am not.”

Lin Anran: “You are, you definitely are. And even if you aren’t, if a hundred million can’t move you, she’ll just keep adding to it. You only stay because you think the price isn’t high enough. Your heart and soul are full of nothing but money…”

Blah blah, chirp chirp. Jiang Zhi didn’t even have a chance to interject.

Finally, Jiang Zhi simply took off the glasses resting on the bridge of her nose, tossed them onto the sofa, pulled the girl closer, and leaned down to kiss her. Since there was no way to get a word in edgewise, she used this method to make her stop.

Lin Anran’s eyes widened. She froze for a moment, offered a token few seconds of struggle, and then softly returned the kiss.

The encounter ended with Lin Anran biting the corner of Jiang Zhi’s lip.

Jiang Zhi touched the bitten spot. She was bitten so often she was used to it; this time wasn’t too heavy—at least there was no blood.

“I’m talking to you about serious business. Have some attitude. Don’t just go around kissing people; I don’t like it,” Lin Anran said, her lips reddened from the kiss.

Jiang Zhi’s gaze landed on those lips, her eyes darkening.

As Jiang Zhi leaned in again, Lin Anran covered her mouth. “No more kissing.”

Jiang Zhi’s voice was husky. “You’re right. I do love money, and I am vulgar. I never thought a person as shallow as me would ever be interested in something other than money.”

Money used to be Jiang Zhi’s only source of security. But she didn’t know when it happened—her entire sense of safety had shifted onto the person in front of her.

Lin Anran was her source of security. Of course, while she was the source of security, she was also the source of Jiang Zhi’s deepest insecurity. Such is love: one is grateful to have found it, yet terrified of losing it. A constant state of fretful uncertainty.

“As long as you don’t get tired of me, as long as you don’t want to go, I won’t leave—no matter what temptation your sister throws out,” Jiang Zhi cupped her face. “I’m not lying to you. Trust me.”

Emotions surged in Lin Anran’s eyes. She leaned forward and took the initiative to kiss her back.

Outside, the sounds of firecrackers and fireworks were endless; inside, there was only the loud, rhythmic thumping of their hearts as they kissed.

With their foreheads pressed together and breaths mingling, Jiang Zhi asked, “Aren’t you afraid?”

Lin Anran: “Afraid of what?”

“If you don’t listen to your sister, she’ll likely freeze your cards again—just like before, or maybe even worse. She might cut you off entirely. Aren’t you scared?”

“Why should I be? Is it a scary thing for her to stop looking after me? I have you, don’t I? You’ll just have to support me.”

Jiang Zhi smiled, her forehead rubbing against Anran’s. “You really think highly of me. Do you even know how much I have in savings? You’d probably be disgusted if I told you.”

Lin Anran bumped her forehead against Jiang Zhi’s. “I know. Three hundred and nine thousand yuan. Is there anything in your room I haven’t rummaged through? I went through everything. I saw your bank deposit slip a long time ago. You’re a total pauper.”

Jiang Zhi: “…”

Lin Anran certainly didn’t have the habit of respecting other people’s privacy, nor did she possess any sense of boundaries. During her time in Jiang Zhi’s small rental, she had practically turned the place upside down. She had to check everything, see everything—including the bank balance.

“And you think that savings can support you?”

“Yes.”

Jiang Zhi tapped the space between Anran’s brows. “Like hell it can. It can’t even buy a house. Don’t answer so fast; think it over carefully.”

Lin Anran’s eyebrows shot up. “What are you making me think about? I see. You’re just stingy! You don’t want to spend money on me! You don’t want to support me!”

“I’ll support you. I definitely will. How could I leave my own cat outside?”

“You’re the cat. No, you’re a pig.”

Jiang Zhi pinched her cheek. “Alright, stop the name-calling. What I want you to consider is that if your sister really cuts off your allowance, life will become very tight. You won’t be able to go shopping every day, and you won’t be able to collect those bags you like.”

“Then I won’t collect them.”

“There won’t be a driver to pick you up.”

“Then I’ll ride on your little electric scooter.”

“You won’t be able to live in a big house like this anymore. You’d have to move back to our tiny rental…”

“Are you done? Why so much nonsense? I don’t need any of that.”

I only need you.

There was a look of deep emotion in Jiang Zhi’s eyes as she kissed Anran’s forehead. “I can’t give you a wealthy life. I’ll be pulling your standard of living down to rock bottom. Dating me is very bitter.”

Lin Anran: “You aren’t a bitter melon, how could it be bitter? You’re laundry detergent.”

Jiang Zhi: “?”

Jiang Zhi’s clothes always carried the faint, fresh scent of laundry detergent—like the smell of sunshine. Lin Anran loved it.

“I saw a quote online: ‘Love can overcome ten thousand difficulties.’ I think we can too,” Lin Anran said, poking Jiang Zhi’s chest with a sudden burst of youthful idealism.

“Love can overcome ten thousand difficulties?” Jiang Zhi murmured to herself.

She didn’t actually agree with that sentiment. Having struggled on her own to survive this far, she had long since become a realist. Love couldn’t overcome ten thousand difficulties; money could. Love was something ethereal and fragile.

But… Lin Anran was so resolute it was moving. Jiang Zhi wanted to be resolute with her, just this once. In this relationship, Jiang Zhi had already played the deserter once; she didn’t want to run again, and she couldn’t bear to. She would be selfish—even if following her meant a harder life for Anran, she selfishly wanted to keep her by her side.

However, Jiang Zhi’s worries seemed premature. Lin Han did not cut off Lin Anran’s allowance. In fact, she stopped interfering in their relationship entirely, and the topic of blind dates was never mentioned again. It was as if nothing had happened; everything passed in peace.

Lin Han even went so far as to ask Lin Anran if her allowance was enough, telling her to speak up if she needed more. This left Lin Anran, who had been geared up for a battle, feeling quite bewildered.

Looking at the notification of a ten-million-yuan deposit into her bank account, Lin Anran tilted her head in confusion. “What is that ‘bad thing’ trying to do?”

Jiang Zhi lightly patted her head. “She’s your sister. She raised you. Why call her a ‘bad thing’? Even if she doesn’t agree with us being together, you shouldn’t be so rude. If your sister heard that, she’d be heartbroken. It would turn her blood cold.”

Lin Anran curled her lip. Was it really that exaggerated? When she was angry, she’d call her a “bad thing” to her face. “So naggy.”

Jiang Zhi: “Naggy?”

Lin Anran: “Fine, I won’t call her a ‘bad thing’.”

Jiang Zhi shook her head and smiled. She’s like a rebellious child… Thinking of that, Jiang Zhi wondered if she was the “bad influence” leading the child astray. In Lin Han’s eyes, she probably was. If the roles were reversed—if Jiang Zhi were Lin Han—she would likely oppose Lin Anran dating someone like Jiang Zhi too.

As for the reason…

Jiang Zhi looked down at the “little kitty” who was fiddling with her hand and chuckled softly. “Between the two of us, who exactly is the nearsighted one?”

Lin Anran stopped playing with her hand and looked up, confused.

“I’m nearsighted. You might just be blind,” Jiang Zhi joked at her own expense.

“Are you sick?” Lin Anran pinched the back of Jiang Zhi’s hand in annoyance.

Jiang Zhi hissed in pain. “Can you be a bit gentler? You never know your own strength. Look, you pinched it red.”

Lin Anran was unmoved. “You deserved it.”

“But seriously, what do you think my sister means? She didn’t freeze my card, she’s worried I don’t have enough money, and she’s even being caring,” Lin Anran mused, continuing to play with Jiang Zhi’s hand.

“Who knows? With our ‘stupid’ brains, if we could guess what your sister is thinking, that would be the real miracle,” Jiang Zhi shook her head.

Lin Anran glared. “What do you mean? You’re stupid. I’m not.”

Jiang Zhi: “Fine, fine. I’m the only stupid one. You’re a genius.”

The two teased and played around, eventually kissing, and then heading back to the bedroom.

Lin Anran fell into a deep, exhausted sleep, but Jiang Zhi remained awake, gently stroking Anran’s face. If Lin Han had made a direct move, determined to ruin their relationship, Jiang Zhi would have felt more at ease. This silence was far more nerve-wracking. After all, they were up against the head of a massive corporation, not just some ordinary person.

One month later, Lin Han, who had been silent all this time, finally made her move.

A Café.

Lin Han sat opposite her, wearing a white suit over a nude-colored knit top—neat, sharp, and layered. She was like the moon on a cold night: distant, lonely, and proud.

Before coming to this meeting, Jiang Zhi had prepared herself thoroughly, hoping to at least leave a good impression—or at the very least, not appear too “unpresentable.” But from the moment she entered the café, sat down, and locked eyes with Lin Han—all in less than a minute—Jiang Zhi felt a sense of deep shame.

People are born different; it shows in their aura. Jiang Zhi was too timid; even when she tried to act poised, she couldn’t strip away the nervousness in her bones. Meanwhile, Lin Han sat there with a cold pride, every casual glance carrying the weight of a superior. Even the lights overhead seemed to favor Lin Han, casting a cold, white halo around her. She was born to stand on high, looking down at “ants” like Jiang Zhi.

Lin Han pushed the menu toward Jiang Zhi. “Order whatever you like, Miss Jiang.”

Jiang Zhi stared at the menu and fell silent. Before coming, she had imagined scenes from television dramas. An “evil mother-in-law” figure hurling insults, calling her a vixen, throwing a check in her face and telling her to disappear, and finally splashing her with coffee as a final humiliation. That seemed like the standard dramatic procedure.

But there was a massive chasm between imagination and reality.

Lin Han was indifferent, but she did not lack basic manners. She carried herself with impeccable breeding. It made Jiang Zhi’s previous assumptions seem narrow-minded and petty.

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