I Helped My Best Friend with Her Romance—and Fell for the Enemy’s Strategist - Chapter 16

“What nonsense are you talking? How can you speak about your own daughter like that? What do you mean by ‘species’? Can’t you be normal for once?”

Lin Yue directly pushed away her wife, who was leaning in for affection, and shot her a glare. How could she still be this clingy in her forties?

“Is it a boy or a girl?”

Lin Shuyi snapped back to reality, realizing her mother was the more sensible one. It was no wonder she and her sister had always been closer to their mom.

“It’s a girl, and she’s very pretty.”

“Do you have a photo?”

Lin Yue managed a financial company and was a decisive, formidable CEO in the workplace. At home, she was a gentle yet somewhat strict mother.

A photo? Oh no, she hadn’t taken one earlier. From the way Fu Yanxi spoke, it seemed she had only recently developed feelings for her older sister, so Lin Shuyi hadn’t thought to take a picture. But if she mentioned the name, her mothers would probably recognize it.

“Lu Shi! Are you out of your mind?!”

Before Lin Shuyi could speak, she heard a roar from the other end of the line. It was clear her mom had upset her mother again. She’d grown used to such scenes since childhood. For a moment, she wondered if she should continue the call. Maybe it was better to hang up.

“Mom, I don’t have a photo, but I know her name is Fu Yanxi.”

Lin Yue, who was still restraining Lu Shi with one hand, froze at her daughter’s words, almost doubting her ears.

“Is she from the Fu family?”

“Yes, I think her name is Fu Yanxi.”

Lin Yue frowned. She didn’t want to jump to conclusions, after all, she had met Fu Yanxi once or twice and the girl seemed decent. Still, she wasn’t thrilled about her daughter falling for her, mainly because the Fu family was complicated. Her daughter would inevitably suffer in the long run.

While relationships were between two people, the Fu family involved far more than just two individuals.

“Alright, I understand.”

Lin Shuyi hung up the phone. Why did it feel like her mother was hinting at something and didn’t seem to like this potential future sister-in-law?

…

Even though she didn’t want her child involved with Fu Yanxi, Lin Yue didn’t call Lin Ruocheng to intervene. Some experiences had to be lived through personally, she could only offer advice. The choice of whom to walk through life with was ultimately one’s own decision.

When Lin Ruocheng returned to the dorm, she suddenly remembered her best friend. She had almost forgotten about her.

Song Wanqing hadn’t returned yet, so Lin Ruocheng was about to call her when there was a knock at the door, it was her.

The other two roommates gathered around eagerly.

“So? We heard you were going to invite Yu Qiuli to watch a movie and have dinner last night. How did it go? Was it smooth? Did she show any interest in you? Did you two take things further?”

The roommates fired off questions one after another.

Song Wanqing felt a bit overwhelmed, unsure which to answer first.

“I think… she might like me too.”

“What makes you say that?”

Song Wanqing recalled their dinner together and began describing the scene to them, a faint smile playing on her lips as she spoke.

“I took her out to eat. Knowing she doesn’t like spicy food, and afraid she’d notice how much I can actually eat, I had some snacks and drank a bottle of water before going to the restaurant. So, she probably thinks I have a small appetite. I pushed every dish that was served toward her and let her eat.”

“Then she pushed them back for me to eat… I think she cares about me. We spent half an hour pushing the dishes back and forth without eating much. If she didn’t care, she definitely wouldn’t have pushed the dishes back to me. Then, when it was about time, we headed back.”

“That’s it?”

Her roommate helplessly spread her hands, finding the whole thing utterly bland.

It really felt as tasteless as chewing on wax.

What were they even expecting?

Hoping the two of them would start going at it?

That would only happen when pigs fly.

“Chengzi, you must have met the other side’s strategist, right? How was it? Is she your type?”

Since there was nothing to get excited about with Song Wanqing, they switched targets.

Why not just focus on the strategist?

After all, the strategist is the one who knows how to handle romance.

“She’s alright. Fu Yanxi, the student representative who gave a speech on stage during our freshman year, you probably know her too. She’s the student council president. She’s average-looking, not quite my type. Besides, how many times do I have to say it? Strategists never step onto the battlefield. What’s the point of dating? Isn’t focusing on your career much better?”

Her roommate chuckled softly. Their dorm was about to become a “couples’ dorm.”

Why did it feel like the strategists were more interesting to ship?

“Chengzi, you’d better be careful not to get yourself involved. We know Fu Yanxi, she’s quite pretty, and whether it’s her demeanor or her temperament, she’s pretty good. I went to the same high school as her, and I never heard about her losing her temper with anyone. She rarely even seemed to get angry. Isn’t she just a bit of a quiet type?”

A quiet type?

A quiet type who pulled someone she’d only met twice onto her lap?

That was just ridiculous, how could that be?

She might seem proper on the surface, but in private, she’s anything but.

But it’s probably true that she’s never lost her temper.

Since freshman year, she’d heard about Fu Yanxi’s reputation.

She really never got angry and remained calm no matter what happened.

She was like a pool of still water, completely undisturbed.

It felt like she hardly had any emotional fluctuations.

“Don’t worry about me. I’ve said it before, I don’t want to get into a relationship during college. Even if I did, it wouldn’t be with someone like Fu Yanxi. I do like girls, but I care a lot about the vibe. If the vibe is right, then it’s fine. If it’s not, then it’s useless.”

Lin Ruocheng’s standard for finding a partner was all about the vibe.

If the vibe was right, she could pursue them herself.

No problem at all.

Right now, she was Song Wanqing’s strategist, helping her best friend navigate romance.

She wasn’t looking for a relationship herself.

Why were they so excited about it?

“Hey, hey, hey! You two! Chengzi is my strategist, helping me with dating. Aren’t you guys supposed to be shipping me and Yu Qiuli? What’s so interesting about the strategists?”

Song Wanqing was very dissatisfied. She was the one trying to get into a relationship here, wasn’t she?

If they weren’t going to help, fine, but now they weren’t even shipping her?

Lin Ruocheng nodded in agreement, patting her back gently.

She sighed.

“It’s not that I don’t want to ship you two, but the problem is, there’s no sweetness, you know? Even artificially manufactured saccharin has at least a hint of sweetness. But look at you and Yu Qiuli, you can spend half an hour just politely offering each other food, and then what? Any progress beyond that? Like holding hands, hugging, kissing?”

“None of that. It’s way too soon. Even if we were dating, that would be too fast, let alone now when we’re not even together. Just being able to talk to her and have her go out with me already makes me incredibly, incredibly happy. You guys wouldn’t understand, what we have is pure love.”