Romantic Collaboration

Part 2

4

I immediately felt a headache coming on.

Bai Ze was five years younger than me, and in most situations, I was overly tolerant and doting toward him because I was older.
My friends used to complain that Bai Ze had turned out this way entirely because I had spoiled him too much.

Hot-headed, impulsive, and extreme in both good and bad.

"I remember we broke up two months ago."

"I was preparing for the F1 race back then, training at the base," Bai Ze said, clearly dissatisfied. "Who is he?"

"My fiancé," I replied coldly.

This was typical Bai Ze, completely spoiled by me. He probably hadn't taken the breakup I initiated two months ago seriously.
After all, we had reconciled once before, and he was absolutely confident in winning my favor.

"Did you cheat?" Bai Ze asked incredulously. "Are you seriously using that as an excuse just to piss me off?"

A surge of anger rose within me, and I was about to cut things off cleanly when Ji Ming Chen, who had been silent until now, spoke up.

"Excuse me, sir, you should have received at least nine years of compulsory education, so you should have a basic level of comprehension," Ji Ming Chen said as he stepped out of the car and positioned himself in front of me. "Wen Dong clearly said in the first sentence that she broke up with you two months ago."

Ji Ming Chen, standing at 187 cm with years of fitness training behind him, made Bai Ze's presence seem too weak in comparison. He stepped slightly in front of me and said, "Is accusing her of cheating how you show your upbringing?"

Bai Ze took a step back and didn't choose to confront Ji Ming Chen head-on. This was his usual display of cleverness.
He simply looked at me with red-rimmed eyes, bit his lip, and softened his tone, asking, "Sister?"

I said, "He is my fiancé. We're getting engaged next month."

5

The main reason Bai Ze and I could be in a relationship for so long was because he knew exactly how to make me happy.

In the past two years, we had never had an argument. The reason was that no matter how angry I got, Bai Ze would always smile and coax me.

This had also caused the issues between us to never be addressed, let alone resolved.

"I initiated the breakup, and we both agreed," I said. "If you don't believe me, you can check the chat history."

Bai Ze's eyes showed hurt—this was the first time I had been so heartless to him. I sighed, having to admit that I still softened at the sight of him like this.

Bai Ze gave me a deep look, choking as he tried to sound tough: "You better not regret it!"

His innate pride wouldn't allow him to cling on, so Bai Ze turned and got on his motorcycle.

The roar of the engine faded into the distance. Feeling a little embarrassed, I said to Ji Ming Chen, "Sorry you had to see that."
Ji Ming Chen shook his head, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "About relationships, maybe you've heard some things about me too."

I nodded. Compared to me, who was constantly surrounded by rumors and changed boyfriends yearly since coming of age, Ji Ming Chen had only ever been involved in one romantic scandal—about his cinnabar mole, Lin Yao.

"Do you still have any contact with her now?"

Ji Ming Chen gave a bitter smile and shook his head. "After that incident four years ago... we haven't been in touch since."

"Isn't that fine then? Every adult has at least one or two past relationships—it's not like you were promiscuous." I thought for a moment and then smiled. "But you've probably heard about my reputation. My relationship history is more than just one or two. Does that bother you?"

"Don't say it like that. There's no such thing as whether it bothers me or not." Ji Ming Chen looked at me seriously. "You've been sincere in every relationship. In fact, through work, I've had contact with some of your ex-boyfriends."

Ji Ming Chen's words were genuine: "When your name came up during casual conversations, they all spoke very highly of you. You're an interesting person. If anything, I'm worried that my being too dull might annoy you."

God. Mature men are truly terrifying.

If I'd known dating older guys was so great, why did I ever bother with my nickname as the "younger guy collection guide"?!