Chapter 9: Seeking a Boyfriend Online

Chapter 9: Recruiting a Boyfriend Online

Rong Fenghua remained silent, waiting until Wei Lichuan had finished teasing him before replying, “Old Wei, I trust you with this. I know you have a lot of connections and know plenty of outstanding young men. Please keep an eye out for me—I’m counting on you!”

Wei Lichuan sighed on the phone. “Fenghua, you’re really giving me a hard time. Your requirements are so high, it’s like setting imperial standards for picking a royal consort in ancient times. But for Xiaoyao, that girl I’ve watched grow up, I’ll pay extra attention these next few days. Whether she’ll like the person, I can’t guarantee. Your Xiaoyao has always had a mind of her own!”

Hearing that Wei Lichuan was willing to help find a match for Fan Xiaoyao, Rong Fenghua replied cheerfully, “Don’t be so modest! Back in school, you were the matchmaker in our group. If it’s Xiaoyao, you’re sure to succeed!”

Wei Lichuan rubbed his forehead, accepting Rong Fenghua’s extravagant praise. “Alright, stop piling on the compliments. Don’t get your hopes up too high—I’ll give it a try.”

After Rong Fenghua hung up, Wu Jing deliberately scrutinized him. “Fenghua, you just told Wei Lichuan all of Xiaoyao’s standards for a husband. How come I never thought of using those standards on you?”

Rong Fenghua saw his wife joking and quickly took her hand, kissing it, flattering her with an unblushing, steady heart. “Honey, those standards I told Lichuan were all tailored to your husband’s qualities. Aren’t you happy your husband is so outstanding?”

Seeing Rong Fenghua’s thick-skinned manner, Wu Jing couldn’t help but tease, “Don’t flatter yourself. Back in the day, you’d be called a ‘phoenix boy’ in modern terms. Still have the nerve to claim you’re a model husband? How shameless…”

Rong Fenghua, hearing Wu Jing mention his past embarrassments, retorted, “What’s wrong with being a phoenix boy? With hard work, a phoenix boy can become a rich, handsome man. Wu Jing, you used to envy the domineering CEOs in novels, didn’t you? Take a good look—your husband is now a bona fide CEO.”

With that, Rong Fenghua kissed Wu Jing’s cheek. Wu Jing blushed and pushed him away, scolding, “Watch the road! You’re always so improper!”

“My dear, it’s a red light. What’s wrong with a legitimate kiss for my wife?” Rong Fenghua leaned in again, and Wu Jing instantly put on a stern face. “Rong Fenghua, stop the car!”

Rong Fenghua actually stopped the car in the middle of the street, resulting in a barrage of honking from behind. Wu Jing rubbed her forehead, annoyed, and shot Rong Fenghua a glance. “I can’t stand you. Drive!”

Elsewhere, after returning to Kangcheng, Fan Xiaoyao went back to the company dorm she shared with Feng Youru. She turned on her computer, first opening Tencent Book City, logging into her account, and uploading the BL novel drafts she’d saved on her phone over the past couple of days.

Once the upload was finished, Fan Xiaoyao sat idly at her desk, opening several forums. Finding the topics uninteresting, she closed them again.

The words “married within a year” circled endlessly in her mind, leaving her with a bitter feeling. There were nearly six hundred million men in the entire country, but only about three hundred million were of marriageable age. Even with so many unmarried men, finding the one who loves her and whom she loves in return among the vast sea of people was truly harder than searching for a needle in the ocean.

Fan Xiaoyao grew a little pessimistic, but she didn’t want her marriage dictated by the adults. She bit her lip, and an idea took shape in her mind.

Her fingers flew over the keyboard, typing out a few lines: “Seeking a Five-Heart Boyfriend: I, AMAY, hereby seek a five-heart boyfriend from the entire forum. He must possess filial piety, responsibility, warmth, patience, and ambition—these are the ‘five hearts.’

First, filial piety: He must respect and care for his parents and elders, and cherish his family.

Second, responsibility: He must be willing and able to take responsibility for both family and career. Only a man with family and social responsibility is trustworthy.

Third, warmth: He must care for his family, help when possible; be loyal and affectionate to friends; and, when conditions permit, offer reasonable help to strangers and those in need.

Fourth, patience: Only patient people have high emotional intelligence and the perseverance to strive for success. A patient man can be a good father.

Fifth, ambition: A man without ambition is contemptible. Ambition reflects a positive attitude toward life and the willingness to work for the happiness of his family and loved ones.

If you possess these five hearts, take my hand and join me!”

Looking at the finished words on the screen, Fan Xiaoyao’s lips curled up slightly. After carefully checking for typos and hesitating for a long time, she finally posted her boyfriend recruitment message.

Soon, replies started piling up.

Fan Xiaoyao grabbed her freshly-made instant noodles, eating as she read the comments.

“Beauty, are you crazy? Did you come from outer space? The kind of man you’re describing would have to be custom-made in the womb. Probably nonexistent in this world!”

“Girl, did you just come down from a tower? How many men do you think have responsibility in this world?”

“Sis, go wash up and sleep. This kind of man doesn’t exist!”

“Sis, this is pure self-torture. Maybe you’re just desperate for a man!”

“Kiddo, are you recruiting a boyfriend or a national protected species? Such a stellar guy must be a cultural relic by now. I advise you to check the museum—you might find one there!”

…

Fan Xiaoyao wasn’t upset by these comments; instead, she laughed even more, patiently clicking through each with her mouse.

Until she reached the bottom of the page and saw a message: “If you treat me sincerely, I’ll never leave. Let fate decide. I have the five hearts—do you believe it?”

Fan Xiaoyao stared at the screen for nearly three minutes.

“If you treat me sincerely, I’ll never leave. Let fate decide. I have the five hearts.”

She looked at the ID, which displayed a boy’s avatar, but quickly mocked herself, “Who knows if there’s a dog sitting on the other side of the internet?”

Fan Xiaoyao got up and stretched, thinking her impulsive online boyfriend recruitment was a little rebellious, even absurd. She muttered quietly, then quickly closed the forum.

After shutting down the computer, she threw herself onto the bed, and before long, her soft snores filled the room.