The Game of Life

By the time Jiang Feng emerged from the bathroom, before Wang Hao had a chance to thoroughly interrogate him, Jiang Feng had already taken the initiative to ask, “What’s a good activity for a first date with someone?” This question hit the mark, and Wang Hao instantly forgot the million questions he had been pondering earlier. He drew on his expertise as a seasoned lover, having had a girlfriend since his first year at UAL University, and began to analyze the situation for Jiang Feng.

He didn’t reply to Zhenzhen’s messages for now, simply texting her, “My roommate needs me for something, well talk tomorrow, my dear muah, go to sleep early, goodnight.” Wang Hao then resumed his role as the adviser, formulating a dating strategy for Jiang Feng’s date the next day.

Helping others with their romance was much more fun than being in a relationship himself.

‘First off, Feng, you’ve got to dress to impress, bring out an energy like never before, aim for a refreshing transformation. Be sure to arrive early, and bring a cup of milk tea for your sister-in-law-no, scratch that, milk tea’s calorie count is too high and could backfire, bring her some juice instead. Feng, do you know what kind of juice she likes?” Mr. Wang’s dating masterclass was in session.

“Lemon red tea, I’ve seen her drink it a few times,” Jiang Feng diligently took notes.

“Lemon red tea is a great choice, lower in calories than milk tea, let’s go with that, get it warm. Where are you meeting her?”

“At the shop.”

“What’s the weather like tomorrow?”

Sunny turns to partly cloudy, 7 to 16 degrees Celsius, with a level 2 westerly wind.”

Girls tend to sacrifice warmth for fashion on first dates, so she will definitely be a bit cold when she meets you tomorrow morning. You need to buy a warm cup of red tea and hand it to her at the right moment, casually mentioning that you bought it especially for her.”

Jiang Feng nodded, suddenly enlightened.

“Feng, do you and your sister-in-law have anything planned for tomorrow? Watching a movie, going to an amusement park, or an aquarium?” Wang Hao continued to inquire.

“Watching a movie, a romance film. It was my mom’s idea.”

“Romance films are good, when the movie gets to the lovey-dovey part, it’s the perfect time for you guys to, hmm, cough cough, Feng, you’ll have to gauge this for yourself,” Wang Hao’s smirk grew increasingly sly.

Jiang Feng:…

He was already wondering where his water cup was.

“Seriously though, does your sister-in-law eat popcorn?” Wang Hao swiftly turned serious.

“No.” Jiang Feng was quite familiar with Wu Minqi’s tastes, “But she will eat snacks like preserved plums.”

“Then don’t bother with popcorn, go buy her some small snacks to have on hand. Present them during the movie for a pleasant surprise. And things like wet wipes, napkins, an umbrella-you’ve got to be ready for anything.” “Also, when it comes to conversation topics, you should subtly lead with a hint of guidance…”

Compared to the dating minefield manual summarized by Wang Xiulian from her 20-year-old love experiences from a female perspective during the car ride earlier, Wang Hao’s adviser suggestions were more comprehensive, more specific, more practical, and more aligned with the times.

Jiang Feng, who had taken several pages of notes, climbed into bed with a mixture of nervousness and freshly minted pointers.

From today onwards, Jiang Feng too was evolving from a single dog into a couple dog, a higher breed of canine!

A dreamless night.

The next morning, Jiang Feng awoke early. Wang Hao even skipped his morning run and only sent a quick “Good morning” to his dear Zhenzhen, as he continued to fulfil his duties as the adviser, strategizing Jiang Feng’s outfit for the day.

Although Wang Hao wasn’t reliable in many aspects, his Talent Skills in romance were truly maxed out. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have managed to stand out among all the engineering guys and succeed in snatching one of the few girls at UAL University, especially within the male-dominated and highly competitive Department of Physics.

Even though the outcome wasn’t as hoped for, the beginning and journey were quite exceptional.

With Wang Hao’s help, Jiang Feng, carrying a cross-body bag generously sponsored by Wang Hao, filled with all kinds of contingency supplies, set off glowing and reborn.

Arriving an hour early at the Healthy Stir-fry Restaurant, Wang Xiulian and Jiang Jiankang were ready at a moment’s notice, stuffing Jiang Feng with two buns and beginning their final admonishments.

‘You mustn’t let the girl pay a cent on the first date, be nimble on your feet and sweet with your words, and also…”

“Right, have you booked your ride?” Wang Xiulian babbled on for nearly half an hour before getting to the key question.

“Booked it, I reserved it last night. Mom, I’m going to buy Qiqi a cup of red tea,” Jiang Feng said, checking his phone and seeing that there were still 20 minutes till the agreed time.

Wu Minqi arrived early, wearing a tea-colored thin sweater, a black knee-length skirt, leggings, small leather shoes, with her bangs and hair ends curled.

“Am I late? How long have you been here?” Wu Minqi was a bit nervous.

“No, I just got here. I bought you lemon red tea, it’s still warm,” Jiang Feng handed over the lemon red tea that he’d kept warm for not too long, to avoid burning her.

“That’s good.”

Jiang Feng pretended to be nonchalant as he took Wu Minqi’s hand, “Let’s go.”

“When does the movie start?”

“We still have time, an hour to go.”

Jiang Jiankang watched the young couple walk away from inside the store, his face filled with content, “Wife, I told you it would be fine. Our son is all grown up now, and dating is just a little thing. Boys will be boys.”

“Are you sure?” Wang Xiulian looked at Jiang Jiankang, reminded of many unpleasant memories from her first date.

“Cough cough, ah, I still haven’t prepped the vegetables for today, I’ll go to the kitchen and chop them up,” hurried away Jiang Jiankang.

The movie started on time at 10:30. Since it was a morning session, there weren’t many people in the theater. There were only two girls sitting in the row in front of Jiang Feng.

The hour and a half long movie ended right at noon, lunchtime. The theater was on the top floor of the mall, so one could simply head downstairs to eat. After eating, one could continue to stroll through the mall, and right next to the mall was an aquarium. Wang Xiulian’s careful planning of all this could be described as perfect.

This theater had been recommended to Wang Xiulian by Mrs. Wu while they were shopping some time ago.

As the movie started, Jiang Feng silently took out a packet of dried plums and offered them to Wu Minqi, “Want some?”

Wu Minqi took the dried plums.

The movie played on, and the male and female lead moved in together.

Jiang Feng: ???

Progressing this fast?

He stealthily glanced at Wu Minqi. She was engrossed in watching the movie.

The movie played on, they were cohabiting but not dating.

Jiang Feng: ???

What’s this new trend?

The movie continued, and the male lead contracted a terminal illness and was about to die, so he told the female lead to find a good man. The female lead really went out and found a handsome, wealthy man who had been cheated on by his girlfriend without his knowledge.

The two started a relationship, got engaged, and were about to marry.

The female lead still lived with the original male lead, and the handsome, wealthy man who had been cheated on and was now aware, very naturally accepted the complicated relationship between the male and female leads.

The two got married.

Jiang Feng: ???

Wait, who’s the actual male lead in this movie?

In the end, the truth came out. The male lead died, and the female lead died of a broken heart.

Jiang Feng:…

Wu Minqi:…

This twist…

The two girls in the row before them, one was crying a river, the other was laughing like she was watching a comedy.

It highlighted the rich diversity of the movie.

So now the question arises, what did the second male lead do wrong? Jiang Feng thought about it, recalling the reviews he had searched for the night before, praising it as this year’s best, heart-wrenchingly touching, a romance film not to be missed this year… he felt…

“Cough cough, this movie, I… let’s go eat!” Jiand Feng’s plan and the strategy he had prepared the night before didn’t include that today’s movie would have this plot.

He had checked reviews all night and listed several good restaurants with various cuisines, ready to meet whatever Wu Minqi was in the mood for at the time.

“Are you hungry?” Wu Minqi asked.

“Not hungry.”

“Then let’s not go eat for now, I’ll take you to a place..”