IMGH Chapter 23 (2)

The Underdog Strikes Back

Jiang Mingxuan looked at the table full of exquisite dishes, chewing on the end of her chopsticks, and said, “Big bro, you’re really something. Whoever marries you is going to be blissfully happy. It’s such a pity that you’re just so… mmm…”

Jiang Yi picked up a piece of sweet and sour spare ribs and stuffed it into Jiang Mingxuan’s mouth before she could finish.

“Xuan Xuan, what were you saying is a pity?” Xiao Wenya asked, puzzled.

Under the pressure of Jiang Yi’s murderous glare, Jiang Mingxuan struggled to swallow the food in her mouth and said with an awkward smile, “Auntie, I was saying it’s a pity that those women don’t know a good thing when they see it. My big bro is the very definition of a perfect man.”

Hearing her own son praised so warmly, Xiao Wenya felt a surge of pride and smiled as she picked up some food for Jiang Mingxuan. “Xuan Xuan, here, have some fish. If you come across any suitable girls at your company, remember to keep an eye out for your big brother.”

In the past, Jiang Yi would feel a dread deep in his heart the moment he heard the words “blind date.” But now that he had come to terms with his feelings for Qiu Rui, his heart had no room for anyone else, and he resisted the idea of blind dates even more than before.

Seeing his mother fussing over his marriage again, Jiang Yi quickly cut in. “Mom, the girls at Xuan Xuan’s company are too young — it wouldn’t work!”

Xiao Wenya showed her displeasure. “What do you mean it wouldn’t work? How do you know it wouldn’t work if you haven’t even met them?”

“Mom, a big age gap tends to create a communication barrier.” As he spoke, Jiang Yi picked up some dishes and placed them in the empty bowl beside him, signaling for Qiu Rui to eat.

Xiao Wenya glared at Jiang Yi. “Don’t make excuses for me. A big age gap leads to a communication barrier? Then what do you make of international marriages?”

“How many international marriages actually last? Just take that singer XXX, and that woman XXX who was once the lady of a top elite family — didn’t they all end in divorce in the end? That just goes to show how important it is for a marriage to have a shared background and comparable circumstances,” Jiang Yi said with great conviction.

Xiao Wenya said, “Then you tell me — what exactly counts as a shared background and comparable circumstances? I’ll go find someone for you based on exactly those standards.”

Jiang Yi was completely stumped, and fell silent for a long while.

Shared background, comparable circumstances — if he truly went by those standards, wasn’t his feelings for Qiu Rui just a toad lusting after a swan, nothing but a fool’s fantasy?

Qiu Rui was an internationally renowned entrepreneur — young and wealthy. He, Jiang Yi, was just a writer — older, and not even famous.

One was tall, rich, and handsome. The other was a broke nobody.

The gap between them was no small thing.

Xiao Wenya looked triumphantly at her son’s deflated expression and smiled. “Jiang Yi, your whole theory doesn’t hold up at all. Tall, rich, and handsome men don’t usually end up with beautiful, wealthy women. Beautiful, wealthy women often end up with short, unattractive, poor men. In any marriage, there’s always one person who’s exceptional and one who’s relatively less so — that’s what creates balance, and what keeps a marriage going in the long run.”

In an instant, it all became clear to Jiang Yi. That’s right! Who says a broke nobody can’t turn the tables on someone tall, rich, and handsome?

He raised an eyebrow and flashed a smile at Qiu Rui, who was eating beside him, his eyes full of unmistakable determination.

Qiu Rui gave a slight frown and tossed him a cold look that said, “You’re so childish.”

Having successfully imparted her matrimonial wisdom to her son, Xiao Wenya turned her attention toward Jiang Mingxuan, who had been quietly burying herself in her food. “Now Xuan Xuan, you’re not young anymore either — how come you still don’t have a boyfriend? Would you like Auntie to introduce someone to you?”

Jiang Mingxuan hadn’t expected the focus to shift to her, and a mouthful of food got stuck in her throat. It took quite a while before she finally managed to swallow. “Cough, cough — Auntie, I’m still young, there’s no rush, no rush!”

“You’re already 25 — still young?” Xiao Wenya said earnestly. “When we were your age, our children were already old enough to run errands.”

“The son of Sister Li next door just came back from abroad — shall I introduce him to you, Xuan Xuan?”

Jiang Mingxuan looked to Jiang Yi with a pained expression, pleading for help. Jiang Yi shrugged helplessly. Jiang Mingxuan shot him a fierce glare and whispered, “If you don’t help me, I’ll spill everything about you — hmph!”