Chapter 6

In the days that followed, Evan Thorn went into overdrive mode. By day, he worked tirelessly at the company. At night, he returned to his rented apartment and continued to work on the computer until late. He drank cup after cup of coffee, and dark circles formed under his eyes. His hair became messy as well.

Fortunately, with Wu Na’s help, whenever she encountered unfamiliar technical terms, Wu Na would patiently explain them to her. Sometimes, she would even help check the translated content, saving Justin Bloom a lot of time. Justin Bloom would also stop by from time to time, bringing her snacks and sharing some company gossip, thereby helping to relieve her stress.

Hard work pays off. On the last day set by Zhang Yan, Evan Thorn finally completed that lengthy bid document on time. She rubbed her sore neck and stared at the screen, filled with dense translation text. She let out a long sigh of relief. As for the quality of the work, she couldn’t guarantee it, but at least she hadn’t missed the deadline.

Early the next morning, Evan Thorn entered Zhang Yan’s office, holding the printed tender documents in his hands, feeling nervous. She lowered her head, placed the tender documents on the table, and said softly, “Minister Zhang, I’ve translated the tender documents. Please take a look.”

Zhang Yan raised his head, pushed his glasses with the golden frame aside, and picked up the tender document to read. His movements were slow, and his expression serious. Evan Thorn stood nearby, not daring to breathe loudly. His palms were sweaty as he prayed silently: Please, don’t let anything go wrong. Please, don’t let anything go wrong!

A few minutes later, Zhang Yan put down the tender document. His face showed no expression, and his tone was calm: “Hmm, I understand. You may leave now.”

Evan Thorn paused for a moment, then asked tentatively, “Minister Zhang, um… how was the translation? Were there any problems?”

Zhang Yan raised his eyes and glanced at her. A faint smile seemed to appear on his lips, so brief it was almost impossible to detect: “Not bad. No major problems. Keep up the good work.”

After saying that, he lowered his head again and continued working.

Evan Thorn immediately felt relieved, his face breaking into a bright smile. He quickly bowed and said, “Thank you, Minister Zhang! I’ll definitely work hard!”

Leaving the office, she couldn’t help but jump for joy. The weight off her heart meant that her chances of getting a permanent position had increased once again!

Finally, the weekend had arrived. With no work pressure to deal with, Evan Thorn planned to sleep until noon and make up for all the lost sleep from the past few days. But as soon as 10 a.m. came, her phone kept ringing non-stop, driving her crazy with annoyance.

She answered the phone in a daze. Immediately, her best friend Nash Hampton’s loud voice came through the receiver: “Evan! Get up already! Come shopping with me! If you don’t get out of bed, I’ll storm into your apartment and drag you off the bed!”

Evan Thorn rubbed his eyes and said weakly, “Nash Hampton, I’m exhausted. Can I just sleep in? Can we go shopping another time?”

“No!” Nash Hampton’s tone was firm. “I need to see you urgently. You have to come with me! Just for one day, please?”

Hearing Nash Hampton’s coquettish tone, Evan Thorne simply couldn’t bring herself to refuse. The two of them were high school classmates, and their bond was truly remarkable. They had little interaction during freshman and sophomore years, but in the second half of their senior year, they ended up sitting next to each other in class. From then on, they became best friends who shared everything with each other.

Nash Hampton is the daughter of a real estate developer, yet she doesn’t act like a rich girl at all. She’s carefree, innocent, and adorable. In high school, they would sneak snacks during class, skip lessons to go skating, watch the sunset together on the hill behind school, and talk about their dreams for the future. Although they went to different universities after graduation, their pure friendship has continued to this day.

Today, Nash Hampton works at her father’s company. She earns a good salary, lives in a luxurious apartment, and drives an expensive car. Evan Thorn, on the other hand, is just an ordinary office worker. Yet, there’s never been any strain between them due to these differences in material wealth. They’re still as close as ever, talking about everything together.

“Alright, alright. Can’t I just get up then?” Evan Thorn sighed helplessly. “We agreed on one day only. After I’m done shopping, I’ll have to go back to bed.”

“Yay! That’s great!” Nash Hampton exclaimed excitedly. “I’ll be waiting for you at the coffee shop downstairs from your apartment. Hurry up!”

After hanging up the phone, Evan Thorn resigned himself to getting out of bed under the warm covers. He quickly washed up, changed his clothes, grabbed his bag, and rushed downstairs.

From a distance, she saw Nash Hampton sitting by the window of the café, staring blankly at his coffee, with his brows tightly furrowed and a worried expression on his face. Evan Thorn smiled and quickened his pace toward him.

“What are you daydreaming about? Why do you look so worried?” Evan Thorn took off his coat, sat down across from Nash Hampton, and joked.

Nash Hampton looked up at her, as if he’d seen a savior. He grabbed her hand and sighed loudly, “Evan, I’m so fed up! My mom has arranged another blind date for me!”

Evan Thorn took the milk tea that the waiter had just brought over, stirred it around, and said nonchalantly, “It’s just a blind date anyway. It’s not your first time at all. Why make such a big deal out of it?”

Nash Hampton was notoriously bad at going on blind dates. He always just went through with them out of duty. Evan Thorn had long since gotten used to it.

“This time is different!” Nash Hampton scratched his short hair, looking exasperated. “My dad said that the person I’m going on a blind date with is a rich second-generation heir. Their family is on par with ours. Today is also his birthday. He told me to prepare properly and not to mess things up!”

At this point, she tightly grasped Evan Thorne’s hand, her gaze firm. “Evan, no matter what you say today, you must not run away. Stay with me and hold your position until the end. Otherwise, I’ll break off all ties with you!”

Watching Nash Hampton act so stubbornly, Evan Thorn couldn’t help but laugh. “Alright, alright. I’ll go with you then. But how are you going to thank me?”

“I’ll treat you to a steak!” Nash Hampton said immediately, his eyes shining.

“No.” Evan Thorn shook his head, his eyes shining. “We haven’t had hot pot this winter yet. I’m going to ‘Smiling Faces’ to eat ice cream hot pot!”

Although the ice cream hot pot was a bit pricey, Nash Hampton didn’t hesitate at all. “Sure! No problem! But you better keep your word and stay with me until the end. No running away halfway!”

“Don’t worry, I keep my word,” Evan Thorn said with a smile, nodding. He asked curiously, “By the way, who exactly is this person you’re going on a blind date with? Why do you take it so seriously, to the point of bringing me along as a ‘back-up’?”

“I don’t know either. My dad just said he’s some rich second-generation heir. He didn’t say anything else.” Nash Hampton shrugged nonchalantly. “But my dad said that I was supposed to attend his birthday party today. He said we’d meet up later. I guess he didn’t want it to be too formal.”

Evan Thorn glanced at the sportswear the two of them were wearing and was instantly speechless. “You’re saying we’re going to a birthday party? dressed like this? Are you sure we’re not going to ruin the event?”

She’s seen people wear sportswear to eat Western food and drink coffee in it, but she’s never seen anyone wear sportswear to a birthday party for a blind date!

Nash Hampton smirked slyly. “I did it on purpose! Since he insisted on arranging this blind date for me, I certainly wasn’t going to go along with his wishes!”

Watching Nash Hampton’s mischievous behavior, Evan Thorn suddenly came up with an idea. He leaned in close to her ear and whispered, “Since we’re going to ruin this plan anyway, let’s go all the way! Let’s move the blind date to evening. We’ll meet at ‘Smiling Faces’. We’ll eat hot pot while dating. After that, we’ll be covered in the smell of hot pot. Then let’s see if he still dares to give my Nash Hampton any orders!”

“Haha, that’s a great idea! I love it!” Nash Hampton immediately perked up, slapping the table and saying, “Let’s do it! We’ll eat and have fun at the same time. Let’s see what he can do to us!”

The two women exchanged smiles, their eyes filled with playful anticipation. They had no idea that this seemingly absurd decision would lead Evan Thorn to encounter once again the person who gave him so much trouble.

At this moment, Sela Wash stood at the entrance of the “Smiling Face” hot pot restaurant. Frowning at the noisy crowd and the mixed smells inside, her face looked so dark it seemed like water could drip from it.

He had no interest in blind dates whatsoever. At thirty years old, it was time to live freely and without constraints. He certainly didn’t want to get trapped in marriage and become tied down by someone else. But his mother, who was bored to death, kept arranging blind dates for him every day. From well-bred ladies to charming young women, whenever she thought someone was suitable, she would arrange meetings between them without his consent.

This time, his mother said she had found him a wealthy young woman from a suitable family—a daughter of an old friend. She insisted he meet her. She also mentioned that today was his birthday and that she would be attending his birthday party. He agreed reluctantly. But as soon as he left home in the morning, he received a text message saying that she wouldn’t be coming to the birthday party. Instead, they would meet at “Smiling Faces” that evening.

Sela Wash, who had just left the bar with Xing Gang, followed the address in the text message and asked the driver to take him there. But when he saw this noisy and shabby hot pot restaurant, he immediately wanted to turn around and leave. Who would go to a place like this for a blind date at 1 a.m.?

With patience, he asked the receptionist for directions. Following the waiter’s lead, he made his way toward the private room. He was prepared to leave as soon as he finished what he needed to do. But what he never expected was that the person sitting in the room was none other than that annoying woman who made him so angry.