For the First Time… I Knew What I Wanted

How did he know about that?

“How did you find out…”

“Heh, treating him differently, huh? Interesting… But this is what I wanted to see.”

The way he looked at me turned cold and detached, as if he were looking at an object. The same way they looked at me.

“Enough small talk. I don’t want to waste time on pleasantries with you. Let’s get straight to the point. You know who I am, don’t you?”

“Mr. Li Enhe…”

“That’s right. And I’m also the one who messaged you this morning. Ming Qi’s friend.”

“Friend… ah…!”

I remembered the message from that morning.

I had sent Ming Qi a greeting, but the reply I received wasn’t from him.

I knew it wasn’t him because the message said exactly this:

[I’m Ming Qi’s friend. Let me be blunt. I don’t trust you.]

[Send a selfie right now.]

[If you don’t, I’ll convince him as a friend to stay away from you.]

[If you do, he’ll be happy. That is all.]

So I took a selfie and sent it. Then I received a long string of replies from Ming Qi.

The gist of it was that his friend had sent those messages, and he hoped I wouldn’t think too much of it.

And I truly didn’t mind. I just thought Ming Qi had a very good friend…

But I never imagined that friend would be the man standing in front of me…

“Remember now? Just like I said in that message, I still don’t trust you.”

“I see…”

“I tested you a few times to see if you had ulterior motives. After all, I couldn’t rule out the possibility that you were sent to get close to my brother because of me.”

“No! That’s absolutely not why!”

That could never be the reason I…!

He suddenly raised a hand to stop me, his voice cold. “No need to explain. I wouldn’t believe you anyway.”

“The one thing I trust least in this world is the words of a woman.”

“Hah…”

Hearing that, I felt a strange sense of relief.

That my blind date turned out to be Ming Qi’s friend was completely unexpected. But this was good…

Really good.

“Huh? You actually look relieved.”

“Because you came here out of concern for your friend, Mr. Li Enhe. That means you see Ming Qi as a very important friend.”

“That’s right. He’s my brother… Heh, you’re interesting. Though I can’t tell if it’s an act. Women are born actresses, after all.”

“You can think whatever you like of me. It doesn’t matter.”

“It really doesn’t.”

He set down his spoon, picked up his coffee cup, and took a sip.

“What matters is that I’m here to help you.”

“You… want to help me?”

“Yes. Like how the bodhisattva was summoned by Sun Wukong to save Tang Sanzang. I’m the bodhisattva.” He pointed a finger at me. “And you’re Tang Sanzang.”

“Did Ming Qi ask you to come help me?”

“More or less.”

“Then I don’t need your help. Please, go back.”

Hearing that, Li Enhe let out a cold snort and muttered quietly.

“…Hmph, I knew you wouldn’t agree. That guy said you had a mind of your own…”

Then he shook his head and continued.

“I’ll ask you anyway. Are you okay with how things are?”

“What do you mean?”

“Your situation after this blind date fails.”

“…”

“Once it fails, your family will find you another match, won’t they? Or was this already their ‘final notice’?”

“After all, showing up with that inappropriate white hair is going to lower your value.”

“Since they can’t sell you at the highest price anymore, they’ll cut their losses and sell you to someone second-rate. If your parents are smart, they’ll find some rich but brainless nouveau riche, sell you for the highest price they can, and slowly bleed him dry. And what awaits you is life as a living doll. Then, in a year or two, they’ll throw you away for some flimsy reason.”

“Are you okay with that?”

I had already thought about all of this.

And I had already prepared myself to accept those consequences.

This was my own decision.

I tried to say that, but his next words caught in my throat.

“Oh, you might be okay with it. But my brother wouldn’t.”

“…!”

“That guy has a serious virgin complex. He hates NTR. Do you know what NTR means?”

“In plain terms, he hates used goods. Because my brother is a virgin too.”

“So, if another man gets to you first, do you really think he’ll still like you?”

“Ugh…!”

No matter what happened to me after this, I thought I could accept it…

—In other words, you like them, so you want to get to know them, and the more you know, the more you like them.

I didn’t want the person he got to know to be a tainted version of me… That version, he would absolutely hate…

Ming Qi might say on the surface that it didn’t matter, but it would matter…

He would definitely hate me…

The one thing I couldn’t bear was to see him look at me with disappointment…

—I’m confident I can like you that way. Because that was a ‘like’ that blurted out naturally.

But I don’t deserve… to be liked that way…

I don’t even have anything for him to get to know…

But he gave me my first thought of my own. So surely, little by little, I can build myself up. I can gain the confidence to be liked that way…

And then I can…

Can…?

Is this my own thought?

Is this my wish?

…I see.

I looked up at Li Enhe.

He met my gaze and nodded.

“Then I’ll ask you again. I’m here to help you.”

“What method will you use to help me? I… don’t even belong to myself.”

“That’s simple enough. Your parents just want to sell you for a ‘good price.’ They’ve ‘invested’ so much in you, they want to recoup it with interest. I can give them enough profit to shut them up.”

“Meaning, you want to buy me, then give me to Ming Qi?”

“That’s exactly what I was thinking. And I still think it’s the best way.”

He said this.

“After all, he likes you. So as his brother, I wanted to give you to him as a gift… But he’s not that kind of person. He’s never accepted a gift from me.”

“Then what do you plan to do?”

“So it depends on what you want. Whatever you want me to do, I’ll do.”

“Huh? What I want?”

“He asked me to come and find out. What do you want?”

Li Enhe looked at me, puzzled.

“But do you even want anything? I doubt it. I’ve seen plenty of women like you. I don’t think there’s anything special about you. The only unique thing is your white hair… but that’s just appearance. On the inside, you’ve never had a mind of your own, have you?”

“You’ve lived your whole life like a puppet. You don’t just suddenly develop a will of your own. Even Pinocchio had to go through trials to gain a human heart… Hah…”

“I don’t see the point of this, but he came to me for the first time because of it… Anyway, since my brother said so, I’m asking you. Take your time thinking. However long you need.”

“…”

That person… he already anticipated that I would have ‘this kind of thought’…

We only met once. We don’t really know each other yet…

And yet he already knew what I would think.

I’m so happy…

I’m so happy!

“Can I really have whatever I want?”

“Huh? So you really do have a thought of your own?”

He studied my face, then his smile faded.

I must look very serious right now.

“Yes. And I told you, I’m the bodhisattva Sun Wukong summoned. Bodhisattvas are ‘all-powerful.’ There’s always a way.”

“Then I want…”