Chapter 195 - 193: I Only Have One Request

Chapter 195: Chapter 193: I Only Have One Request

"You should just start going on dates," Zhang Zhe told the woman, a bit exasperated. "Men who are looking for a stepmother for their child have different requirements than the average guy."

"You need to get a feel for it first, see if you can accept the conditions they put forward."

"Oh, I get it." The woman nodded emphatically.

Then, right in front of Zhang Zhe, she jumped onto a stool and, before he could reach out to stop her, yelled:

"Any single, divorced men with kids looking for a stepmother? I was born in ’91, I own a home in Qing City, never been married, no children. Anyone interested?"

*Damn, she’s really yelling it out loud?*

*Holy shit, what a badass. She’s doing all the girls in the stream proud.*

*Niiiice!*

*Go get your happiness, girl! I’m rooting for you!*

Zhang Zhe had wanted to stop her—it wasn’t exactly a classy move, after all—but since she’d already yelled it out, he decided to just let it go.

Among the 120 single men present, there were bound to be some who were divorced with kids. The woman’s method of precisely targeting her demographic was the most popular and efficient strategy these days.

Before long, seven men were standing beside Zhang Zhe.

There wasn’t enough time to talk to them one by one, so he could only give this fan a quick rundown of her options.

After weeding out two men who were evasive about the reasons for their divorce and seemed like they might have been the ones who cheated, the woman ended up adding five of them on WeChat.

Zhang Zhe told her to go talk to each of them to get a feel for things. If she really couldn’t decide, she could find him on his stream for advice.

They might live in different corners of Qing City, but there was no distance on the internet.

With that last unorthodox move, Zhang Zhe had undoubtedly become the most impactful Matchmaker of the event.

But when it came time to give out the awards, he still didn’t get one.

It turned out a divorced couple had come to the event, ran into each other, and after some encouragement from another matchmaker, had actually decided to get remarried.

Utterly ridiculous.

"PFFT—" When Zhang Zhe heard the story, he did a spit-take. This was even more absurd than the prize being rigged; it seemed more like the two of them had planned it all along just to win.

They’d even produced their divorce certificate. What more was there to say? Zhang Zhe cast his own vote for them without a second thought.

After casting his vote, Zhang Zhe had just stepped out of the voting area when Xia Yi, standing under a nearby patio umbrella, waved him over.

Beside Miss Xia sat a man with salt-and-pepper hair, wearing a navy-blue casual jacket. He was staring intently at Zhang Zhe, his face completely devoid of a smile.

This had to be Xia Yi’s father.

Xia Yi had shown Zhang Zhe a photo of him in advance to prevent any mix-ups, since there were a lot of officials at the event.

Father Xia’s face shape was somewhat similar to Xia Yi’s, but Miss Xia’s features clearly took after her mother. The lines of her face were much softer, not as strong and broad as her father’s.

The old man himself was here. Even though Zhang Zhe, the "hooligan" dating his daughter, wasn’t riding a flashy moped, he had to bite the bullet and go over.

"Hello, Uncle Xia."

Zhang Zhe proactively offered a handshake, and Father Xia immediately seized his hand.

The old man seemed to be taking out some frustration on him; his grip was powerful. "Hello there, Zhang Zhe."

"Thank you for helping Xia Yi find a boyfriend..."

"You’re too kind, Uncle Xia," Zhang Zhe said, his hand being crushed, though his expression remained perfectly serene.

The old man had a powerful grip. Fortunately, Zhang Zhe’s body had been mostly reinforced by the system’s elixirs. If this had happened right after he’d returned from Shencheng City, his face would probably be contorted into a mask of agony right now.

"Okay, okay, what are you two doing, holding hands like this?" Xia Yi sensed something was off and quickly reached out to separate them.

"Zhang Zhe, I told my dad everything about us. He said he has something he wants to talk to you about."

"I’ll be going now, okay?"

"Go on, go on. Didn’t you say you were going to let us talk alone?" Father Xia urged impatiently.

"I know, I know. Why are you in such a hurry? Well, Zhang Zhe, I’m really leaving now." Xia Yi said, backing away. Once she was out of her dad’s line of sight, she secretly made a finger heart at him.

Zhang Zhe returned the gesture with his eyes.

It wouldn’t be wise to return the gesture in front of the old man; it might look like a provocation.

"Xiaozhang, have a seat?"

"No, thank you. I’ve been sitting for a while, it feels good to stand," Zhang Zhe replied with a smile.

’There wasn’t even a chair nearby. Where was he supposed to sit? On the ground? On the old man’s lap?’

"Fine. I have two questions for you."

"You and Xia Yi met online. She said you’re a streamer, and she contacted you for marital advice, which is how you ended up adding each other on WeChat... Looking at how things turned out, it seems you introduced yourself to her as a potential match."

"Can you explain that? Is that how a Matchmaker is supposed to operate?"

"I can’t speak for other Matchmakers, Uncle Xia. But I felt that Xia Yi and I were a good match, so I suggested we go on a date. There’s nothing fundamentally wrong with that."

"I’ll admit, I did it because I thought Xia Yi was classy and just my type. But in the beginning, it was just a normal date."

"That’s how dating works. If you’re a good fit, you keep seeing each other. If not, you go your separate ways. The fact that we’ve been talking for this long proves we’re pretty compatible."

Zhang Zhe was completely frank, mainly because he had no ulterior motives. In truth, he didn’t really care what position Father Xia held.

Perhaps he could leverage some connections, but since he wasn’t a civil servant, he wouldn’t be able to enjoy any significant perks.

In fact, this was one reason Father Xia wasn’t completely opposed to Zhang Zhe. If some Matchmaker had introduced Xia Yi to a man from within the civil service, he would have investigated the man’s background from top to bottom before even considering a meeting.

"Alright. Your answer has clarified a few things for me."

Father Xia nodded after hearing Zhang Zhe’s response.

"Second question: when do you plan on introducing Xia Yi to your parents?"

"..." Zhang Zhe honestly hadn’t considered that. He was only meeting Father Xia for the first time today; the future was still very much up in the air.

"My plan right now is to introduce Xia Yi to my parents after I’ve earned your and her mother’s approval."

"Why wait so long?" A faint smile touched Father Xia’s lips. He was clearly pleased with the answer. "Why not do it at the same time we meet you?"

"I keep my parents updated on the general situation, including my meeting with you today. But ultimately, my parents have said they will completely respect my decision."

"Why is that? They don’t get involved?"

"Probably because I’m getting a little old. My mom feels that as long as I can get married, I’m already a good son in her eyes."

"Haha." Father Xia couldn’t help but laugh.

He actually wanted to say that he felt the same way about Xia Yi.

His daughter was 27 and had never been in a serious relationship, having rejected every match he’d ever found for her. He had been about to give up hope.

But saying that so bluntly might give Zhang Zhe the wrong idea. So, in the end, Father Xia adopted a formal tone and said, "Such is the heart of a parent!"

After a brief silence, Father Xia brushed off his clothes, stood up, and said:

"Xiaozhang, I have no other demands. Just one thing: you two should take your time dating."

"Don’t rush into marriage. Get to know each other for at least three months. It won’t be too late to consider marriage after that."

"Neither of you is young anymore. Your margin for error in marriage is small, so you must be sure."

"You’re not perfect, and my daughter isn’t perfect either."

"I won’t say any more. You’re a Matchmaker yourself; you shouldn’t need me to remind you of these things."