My Youth Began With Him

”Ahem…we’re not dating, so we’re still friends.” Gao Ran was a little embarrassed.

The girl smiled shyly and introduced herself, ”Hi, I’m Lin Xuejiao. I work as an archives manager at the third bureau.”

”Oh, you guys both work at the bureau.” Huo Mian understood what was going on.

”My job is so boring, I don’t get the chance to meet people, so those at the bureau are good enough for me.”

”A belle of the po-po station isn’t bad, you’re lucky.” Huo Mian smiled.

Qin Chu wasn’t a big talker, so he didn’t interact much with Gao Ran’s date. He only made small talk with Gao Ran.

Lin Xuejiao shuffled up beside Huo Mian and talked to her here and there.

”I heard you guys are good friends with Captain Gao.”

”Um… yeah, we were high school classmates and have known each other for years.”

”That’s really cool! Your husband is really good looking, are you guys childhood sweethearts?”

”You can say that.” Huo Mian felt a little awkward.

”I heard Captain Gao’s parents are all high-level officials, have you been to his home?” the girl batted her eyes innocently and asked her.

”No, and I’m not sure what his parents do. We usually just have dinner and hang out, and we don’t really talk about that stuff,” Huo Mian said as she realized that this girl was there to get information from her. How pragmatic was she to ask about Gao Ran’s family background as soon as she opened her mouth? Did she mistake Huo Mian for someone who didn’t know when to keep her mouth shut?

”Oh, I see. I’m the only child and my parents spoiled me, so they don’t want me to date someone poor because they don’t want me to live a hard life. Truth be told, Captain Gao’s really nice and good looking. But the nature of his profession is dangerous, so we didn’t start dating yet. This is something that I’m taking into consideration.”

Huo Mian looked at her, bewildered, ”You’re young, but you seem to consider things thoroughly. However, shouldn’t you find someone you like? Do other factors really matter? If you date him because of his other factors, does that count as liking someone?”

”I like him, but the other factors are just as important, and I have to keep my eyes open. After all, love can’t replace bread, am I right?” Lin Xuejiao batted her innocent eyes, but each word she spoke reeked of reality.

”Not everyone is born rich. The rich to the poor proportion in China is 2 to 8, so not all of us can marry into a rich family. However, we can make sure that we find a man who has potential and takes responsibilities for his actions. Humans create their own futures. But if a man’s moral standing is lacking, it doesn’t matter how great his other factors are, he’ll fail all the same.”

”You have a point, but even if those with billions go bankrupt, they will still have millions. However, do you know how long I would have to wait if I marry someone with nothing to begin with? Ten years, twenty years? Us girls aren’t forever young; who has the time to wait for a poor man to become rich?”

Huo Mian was shocked at what the girl said…

She was around her age, but her maturity was on par with a woman who was in her thirties or forties. It wasn’t wrong for her parents to raise her up to be so realistic, but she was still young and was at an age when she was supposed to fall madly in love. It was a shame that she was so tied up by material things and reality…

Just then, the girl seemed to be thirsty, so she picked up a bottle of Evian. After pretending to try twisting it open, she furrowed her eyebrows.

”It’s so hard to open… I’m not strong enough.” Lin Xuejiao complained coquettishly.

Then, Huo Mian said, out of nowhere, ”Let me.”

She took the bottle of water from the girl and twisted it right open.

Gao Ran and Qin Chu looked over at the same time…