Chapter 33 Are You Pimps or Something?

Chapter 33: Are You Running a Dating Service?

The words themselves carried a teasing tone—“This guy’s quite the player”—but upon clearly seeing the object of his serenade, they instantly shifted to gleeful approval: “This guy’s got guts.”

“Ling Jue, someone’s strutting around like a peacock out there—wanna take a look?”

Ling Jue, who’d been drinking alone, shot him a bored glance and said nothing.

Yet Xie Muchen seemed to sense something and moved closer to the window.

A young, passionate, spirited lead singer; an aloofly beautiful female listener with a gentle expression—no wonder the surrounding onlookers were so excited.

To an uninformed observer, this looked like the prelude to a romance.

A faint smile flickered across his lips. “Might as well take a look. Even though she’s your ex, now that she’s got a new suitor, you—as her former boyfriend—can finally breathe easy, right?”

The next second, another tall figure joined him at the window.

The lighting was hazy, the crowd dense—but among hundreds of people, he instantly locked onto her profile, bathed in a single beam of light.

The cascade of black hair he loved running his fingers through; the almond-shaped eyes he’d kissed, slightly upturned; her red lips parted just a fraction, betraying mild surprise. The fair skin of her shoulders shimmered with a pearly luster, accentuating the vibrant hue of her dress.

In mere seconds, Ling Jue keenly registered dozens of lingering gazes from all directions fixed on her—and a violent wave of irritation surged within him.

The man onstage kept singing his corny, dreadful song, playing it cool, while the crowd’s cheers struck him as foolish and ugly.

The glass in his hand shattered.

Ji Xiuhang and Xie Muchen turned to look at him.

He glanced expressionlessly at the shards. “A man who can’t even focus on his own job—what reliability could he possibly have?”

Hearing the unmistakable jealousy dripping from that remark, Ji Xiuhang couldn’t help but chuckle. “The lead singer doesn’t work for your company—he doesn’t need to be so rigid. Besides, I heard the owner paid top dollar to book this band. He’s got plenty of female fans.”

Xie Muchen promptly poured oil on the fire. “The song’s not bad—he’s got talent. Not bad-looking either. Bonus points for romantic flair.”

Listening to their commentary—one after another, as if trying to set them up on the spot—Ling Jue let out a cold laugh.

“Are you running a dating service?”

Ji Xiuhang wasn’t offended. “Still better than being a jealous type.”

Xie Muchen clapped his friend on the shoulder. “You do know what breaking up means—terminating the relationship, cutting off contact. Today it’s just an admirer. Tomorrow, there’ll be proper boyfriends, a husband, the father of her children, standing by her side. If you don’t marry her, her life won’t stop because of it. Jue, you need to get used to it.”

Get used to it?

A ridiculous tide of gloom and frustration welled up in Ling Jue’s chest. Get used to what? To her walking toward other men, kissing and embracing them, bearing their children?

Yet he remembered the level, unflinching look she’d given him and Tao Wangxi during their chance encounter at the restaurant—and the utterly indifferent “Okay” still sitting unread in his WeChat chat.

It was over.

Ling Jue told himself.

He no longer had the right—as her boyfriend—to shoo away the flies.

He withdrew his gaze and retreated to his original spot.

“None of my business,” he heard himself say, coldly.

Ji Xiuhang and Xie Muchen exchanged a glance, sighed, and closed the window.

…

To spare her discomfort, the lighting technician had already retracted the spotlight at the lead singer’s signal. Yet the moment darkness fell, Qin Shuyi seemed to sense something—and turned her face toward the private booth.

All she saw was a window that had just been shut.

Light and shadow danced across her long lashes; she pursed her lips.

The song onstage ended. The lead singer’s ears flushed crimson—and he made no further move.

But shortly after Qin Shuyi returned to her seat in the booth, a waitress delivered a bouquet of roses.

The attached card bore a phone number and the words: “Wishing you happiness.”

It ended with a cute smiley-face emoji.

Qian Youyou leaned over, tsking admiringly. “Smooth, huh?”

Jiang Yuzhou retorted,不服气地反驳, “Too many tricks. Who knows how many girls he’s flirted with? If Sister Shuyi likes musicians, I can introduce you to some handsome guys from our school’s music department later—guaranteed wholesome and sincere.”

Qian Youyou perked up. “How handsome? Compared to *him*?”

Jiang Yuzhou gave her a speechless look.

How could some naive, innocent college boy compare to *that* guy?

Forget Ling Jue’s cultivated aura of command, honed since childhood—just his face alone… His mother, Qi Manjun, and his father, Ling Mufeng, were both famously good-looking in their youth, and Ling Jue inherited the best of both lineages.

Push it further—even if the Ling family ever declined, Ling Jue could still earn a living solely on his looks.

If *he* was the standard, Sister Shuyi might end up alone for life.

Realizing she’d spoken foolishly, Qian Youyou pouted. “Fine. But our future brother-in-law absolutely *cannot* be ugly.”

There were no ugly people in their family. As someone who cared deeply about appearances, she wouldn’t allow a single black duck to waddle into a flock of swans.

“Speaking of which, sis—when you were dating that guy, was it *just* because you liked his looks?” It suddenly dawned on her.

Qin Shuyi curved her lips into a faint smile. “Ling Jue *is* indeed good-looking.”

Had he not matched her aesthetic, she definitely wouldn’t have forced herself.

At Qin Shuyi’s tacit admission—her initial attraction rooted purely in appearance—Jiang Yuzhou’s expression grew even more complicated.

He felt strangely as if the intimidating Master Jue had been… taken advantage of.

He realized it now: the women in this family. Qian Youyou was openly appearance-obsessed; Qin Shuyi was covertly appearance-obsessed; and even Zhou Tinglan—he suspected her ability to marry his dad the second time around owed much to Lao Jiang’s good looks, which hadn’t dragged him down.

A sudden sense of crisis arose. He’d have to urge Lao Jiang to maintain his physique later.

Otherwise, when Qin Yuan and Zhou Yunhe returned for the next family gathering—wouldn’t it be a family of seven, with only him and his dad left looking the least attractive?

He wouldn’t allow it!

For the first time in his life feeling insecure about his own looks, Jiang Yuzhou unconsciously drank several more glasses.

By the way—where *had* Sister Shuyi learned to mix drinks? They were actually quite tasty.

It was so good he started seeing things.

Jiang Yuzhou rubbed his eyes. Who was that person lying on the ground? And who was that guy built like a bear hugging his sister and getting fresh? Was that his brother-in-law?

Hold on?!

Brother-in-law?!

Damn!!! It’s the ex-brother-in-law!!!

The wind in the parking lot cut right through his buzz from the bar.

Jiang Yuzhou’s head was spinning. He bolted forward in a single stride to pull Ling Jue away, but someone grabbed him even faster.

Ji Xiuhang clamped a hand over Jiang Yuzhou’s struggling mouth. “Wait, wait, wait. If you’re going to fight, you can’t do it now.”

At least let him finish watching the show before throwing punches.

Jiang Yuzhou’s heart sank as he quickly scanned the scene.

Aside from Ji Xiuhang and Xie Muchen, who were holding him back, and Ling Jue and Qin Shuyi, who were wrapped up in each other…

He spotted Qian Youyou sitting on the ground, leaning against the car, drunk, vomiting and grinning like an idiot behind their family car.

Their family driver had been pinned by Ling Jue’s bodyguards, sitting in the driver’s seat with a worried and helpless expression.

There were also familiar faces—the band’s lead singer lying on the ground with his guitar on his back, and beside him, the band members huddled together like frightened quails, terrified by the scene.

Jiang Yuzhou’s temples throbbed with pain as fragmented memories flashed through his mind.

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