Chapter 362 - Accidentally Exposed

“Sure,” Ye Fan said with a smile, but a bitter smile surfaced in his heart.

From the information he had gathered and the face-to-face conversation, Zhou Zhiqian was undoubtedly an excellent girl with a good family background.

There must have been at least a reinforced platoon of suitors in real life, and if it weren’t for the face of Tantai Wanrong, the deputy mayor with real power, a blind date with him would have been out of the question.

However, he was a bit worried that Zhou Zhiqian might actually take a fancy to him, as this was meant for pursuing a girlfriend or even marriage.

Of course, he had already made plans.

After tonight’s blind date, at most two more meetings and then it would be goodbye.

Then, he would take the opportunity to introduce Lu Xiaoman to Tantai Wanrong, indicating he had suddenly found a girlfriend.

Ye Fan temporarily tossed these mixed thoughts to the back of his mind and handed the microphone to Zhou Zhiqian.

Zhou Zhiqian, however, shook her head and declined the microphone, laughing, “Hehe, you only sang one song.

Sing two more.”

Then she turned her head to Tantai Wanrong and said, “Auntie Wanrong, you agree, don’t you?”

Auntie Wanrong?

Tantai Wanrong was stunned for a moment.

Just now Zhou Zhiqian had addressed her as Mayor Tantai, and in no time at all, she had followed Ye Fan in calling her Auntie Wanrong.

Zhou Zhiqian maintained her beaming smile.

Tantai Wanrong snapped back to reality and revealed an elegantly approving smile, nodding and adding, “That’s right.

Ye Fan, sing two more for us.”

Ye Fan inwardly gave a wry smile.

He only knew seven or eight songs; singing two more in a row would nearly deplete half of his repertoire, leaving him wondering what to do next.

However, at Tantai Wanrong’s command, he had to comply.

“Alright, then.

I’ll embarrass myself with one more.

I’ve been a bit feverish lately, my throat is a little tight, so I can’t sing for too long at once.

Please forgive me,” Ye Fan hastily excused himself.

And so, he went on to sing another song, “Spring Mud.”

Singing “Spring Mud” again, he did even better than the last time, naturally captivating Tantai Wanrong and Zhou Zhiqian, who listened intently with bright, sparkling eyes fixed on him.

After finishing “Spring Mud,” Ye Fan did not continue singing but passed the microphone on, while Zhou Zhiqian excused herself by saying that her throat needed a rest after singing for over ten minutes, suggesting Tantai Wanrong take her turn.

Guessing that Zhou Zhiqian probably wanted to chat privately with Ye Fan, Tantai Wanrong smilingly took the microphone.

Indeed, once she had stood up and gone to the front to sing, Ye Fan and Zhou Zhiqian began chatting together.

Seeing Ye Fan and Zhou Zhiqian sitting closely and chatting, Tantai Wanrong felt an inexplicable discomfort inside, but she immediately chided herself in her heart, shaking her head to cast away that uneasiness, and continued singing.

Tantai Wanrong sang four songs in a row before her throat began to feel tight, so she stopped and handed the microphone to Zhou Zhiqian.

After Zhou Zhiqian went up to sing, Tantai Wanrong sat next to Ye Fan and asked, “How was your chat just now?”

“Hehe, it was fine,” Ye Fan replied lightly.

Tantai Wanrong smiled and said, “That’s good.

Zhiqian is a very nice girl; you must seriously put in the effort to pursue her.

Not just as a girlfriend but also to marry.”

“Marry?” Ye Fan laughed bitterly and said, “That’s too far off, there’s not even a start to it.”

Then, finding another excuse, he said, “Besides, seeing that Mercedes sports car she drives that’s worth over 1.5 million, her family’s surely well-off.

Me, a poor guy, even if I manage to climb that high branch, life wouldn’t necessarily be pleasant afterward.”

Tantai Wanrong confidently snorted and said, “What are you afraid of?

I’ve got your back!”

She paused before saying, “Taking advantage of this opportunity, Auntie wants to discuss something with you.

Auntie is planning to have you resign and become a civil servant.

With my help to open doors for you, and given your capable and savvy nature, it won’t be a problem for you to be promoted to a division chief or even a deputy department head in time.

Once you become a division chief, who would dare disrespect you?”

Ye Fan felt both touched and ashamed in his heart, understanding that Tantai Wanrong was sincerely looking out for his best interests.

He suppressed the complex emotions in his heart and smiled, “Thank you, Auntie Wanrong.

However, I’m not looking to get into the civil service too soon; I’d like to gain more experience for a few more years first.”

“That’s fine too,” Tantai Wanrong didn’t immediately urge Ye Fan to become a civil servant.

She continued with a smile, “But you shouldn’t remain uncommitted for too long.

As a retired non-commissioned officer, it would be relatively easy for you to transition to a civil servant if we smooth out some connections, but you can’t delay it for too long.”

Actually, it wasn’t that easy for non-commissioned officers to switch to civil service positions since they are not officers but soldiers without prospects for promotion.

Of course, in Tantai Wanrong’s eyes, this was undoubtedly a simple matter.

Ye Fan could only respond, “Understood.”

After Zhou Zhiqian sang two songs in a row, she didn’t continue.

She turned to Ye Fan with a smile and said, “Ye Fan, let’s do a duet.”

Upon hearing this, Tantai Wanrong thought it was a good way to enhance their rapport and immediately agreed with a smile, “That’s a great idea.”

“Sure,” Ye Fan reluctantly agreed with a forced smile.

“Then let’s sing Li Yugang’s ‘New Concubine Drunk.’ You can sing the male parts, and I will sing the female parts,” Zhou Zhiqian suggested.

Ye Fan gave a bitter smile and said, “I don’t know that song.”

“Then how about Wang Fei and Chen Yixun’s ‘Legend’?” Zhou Zhiqian quickly offered another option.

Ye Fan still shook his head, saying he didn’t know it.

Zhou Zhiqian then proposed three other popular duets, but Ye Fan could only shake his head in response.

In the end, Zhou Zhiqian got a bit angry, thinking that Ye Fan was deliberately pretending not to know, thus spurning her kindness.

Tantai Wanrong also frowned in disapproval and criticized Ye Fan, “Xiao Fan, how can you not know any of these songs?”

Ye Fan gave a wry smile and stood up, apologizing to Zhou Zhiqian, “I’m sorry for lying to you, please forgive me.”

“Hmph!” Zhou Zhiqian pouted her pretty pink lips in displeasure, turned her lovely face away from Ye Fan, believing he was referring to his claim of not knowing those songs.

Tantai Wanrong thought the same.

However, what Ye Fan said next took them both by surprise.

“Actually, singing is not really a hobby of mine,” Ye Fan said, “I haven’t sung or listened to music for many years now, so I pretty much don’t know any current pop songs.”

“Ah!” Zhou Zhiqian put her anger aside, turned her head sharply, and looked at Ye Fan with wide, astonished eyes.

Tantai Wanrong also couldn’t help but exclaim softly and stood up, looking at Ye Fan.

“You, you’re saying you truly haven’t sung for a long time?

But you clearly sing very well, and it’s obvious that you have received professional musical training,” Zhou Zhiqian couldn’t help saying.

Tantai Wanrong also looked at Ye Fan with an inquiring gaze.

Ye Fan gave a faint smile and spoke as if reflecting on the past, “Well, a few years ago on a day that was sunny and yet as dark as night, I enlisted in the military and became a soldier, both glorious and great yet small and strong…”

“Speak human language!” Tantai Wanrong couldn’t help but giggle and said, “What sunny and yet as dark as night, glorious and great yet small and strong?

Who talks with adjectives like you do?”

Zhou Zhiqian couldn’t help but “pfft” a laugh, her smile blossoming beautifully and boundlessly.