5 Please Come to My House for Dinner 05

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Su Ran saw Ye Qiao off at the door. His friend was already waiting downstairs. “Have fun and relax,” he said.

Ye Qiao looked at him, hesitating by the door. Just as Su Ran was about to turn away, Ye Qiao suddenly said, “Ranran, why don’t you come with us?”

Su Ran was momentarily surprised; he hadn’t expected Ye Qiao to invite him so suddenly. He instinctively felt he wouldn’t fit into Ye Qiao’s circle — everyone there was younger, mostly wealthy heirs who had studied abroad. If he went along, he’d probably just stand awkwardly on the sidelines.

Besides, the system had warned him that a new mission was about to appear, so he shouldn’t wander off.

“No, you guys go ahead and have fun,” Su Ran said, also maintaining his persona. “I still have to cook for your brother.”

Hearing this, Ye Qiao’s artistically cold face stiffened, then softened with a faint, regretful smile. “Alright, Ranran, you’re just too virtuous.”

When Su Ran heard the keyword “virtuous” associated with his persona, he couldn’t help but feel a pang inside. It was actually a good word, but when applied to him, it felt a bit ironic. If Ye Qiao’s expression hadn’t been so normal, Su Ran would have thought he was mocking him.

“Ranran, I want a wife like you someday,” Ye Qiao half-joked.

Su Ran smiled shyly. He had to admit, Ye Qiao was good at giving people emotional value. But he wouldn’t have a virtuous wife like Ye Qiao imagined; he’d be more like Jiang Yi, a husband.

“That day will come,” Su Ran replied.

Ye Qiao turned and pulled his suitcase away. The smile on his face faded bit by bit. Jiang Yi wasn’t worthy of him.

Would he ever have a wife like Su Ran? Actually, he wasn’t interested at all. But if it was Su Ran himself, he seemed somewhat intrigued.

He had always been honest with himself. Earlier in the room, the image that flashed through his mind was of having sex with Su Ran.

After closing the door, Su Ran went into the kitchen to prepare some breakfast for himself.

He didn’t take meals lightly, even when eating alone. After pondering what to make, he began. Just as he took the small flower rolls out of the fridge, he heard the sound of the keypad lock. Su Ran looked toward the door from the kitchen island.

He thought Jiang Yi must be back to retrieve some documents, but to his surprise, Jiang Yi’s male secretary came in first. The secretary’s delicate features made him somewhat effeminate. Upon seeing Su Ran, he immediately smiled and greeted, “Hello, little housekeeper.”

Hearing that nickname, Su Ran instantly lost his appetite. Although he was accustomed to Jiang Yi’s coldness, being called “little housekeeper” was hard to accept.

Jiang Yi maintained a single status at the company, which Su Ran knew. According to Jiang Yi, it was to focus better on work, though Su Ran didn’t understand how that connected.

Jiang Yi had agreed to marry Su Ran under parental pressure. The Jiang family elders saw he had no one to care for him and, at thirty, worried he might miss his chance. Living in a small town, they couldn’t reach the city’s resources. Then they found Su Ran — a dependable and honest choice for a wife — and pushed for the match.

Jiang Yi was annoyed but had no choice, so he agreed. He told Su Ran upfront: they could marry, but there’d be no wedding ceremony or marriage certificate — just to appease the parents.

Su Ran had accepted without any demands, shocking Jiang Yi at the time. Su Ran still remembered Jiang Yi’s stunned expression.

Su Ran knew Jiang Yi’s reluctance. Though the conditions hurt, they weren’t unbearable.

As Jiang Yi said, they were merely dealing with the parents. Afterward, they’d still live together. Su Ran had one real condition: Jiang Yi must live properly with him. If that became impossible, they could separate later, but at least without regrets.

He wanted to be a good husband, believing the day Jiang Yi would officially marry him and hold their wedding would come. Jiang Yi would announce to everyone that Su Ran was his husband.

But before that day arrived, “little housekeeper” was the name that came first. It started when Jiang Yi got drunk at a social event and was sent home by the secretary. The secretary was surprised to see Su Ran and asked Jiang Yi, “Who’s this?”

Jiang Yi coldly glanced and said, “Our housekeeper.”

Then Jiang Yi was helped into the bedroom. Su Ran followed but stayed by the door, stunned by the “housekeeper” label, feeling like an outsider.

It was late at night. Zhou Luo seemed reluctant to leave, whispering into Jiang Yi’s ear. Though drunk, Jiang Yi was still conscious and eventually let Zhou Luo stay in the vacant room.

The next morning, Su Ran saw Zhou Luo coming out of Jiang Yi’s room.

Zhou Luo was surprised to see him but quickly smiled, adopting a host’s tone, “Little housekeeper, are you making breakfast?”

At that moment, Su Ran felt a strange unease. Zhou Luo’s words hovered like dark clouds above his head.

“Little housekeeper, are you cooking breakfast?” Zhou Luo asked with a grin.

Su Ran replied coldly, “Mm.” No matter how dense he was, he wasn’t a fool. He sensed Zhou Luo’s hostility and something off between him and Jiang Yi but dared not question Jiang Yi.

Just then, Jiang Yi came out and stood beside Zhou Luo, bending to change his shoes before going back to get documents.

Su Ran abandoned making breakfast, leaning against the counter. Zhou Luo didn’t come inside but stood at the entrance, clearly wanting to cross the threshold of Su Ran’s home without reason.

“555, when will the romance progress? Jiang Yi and this Zhou Luo seem pretty stable,” the system lamented.

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He brought his secretary lover openly into the house. When would Jiang Yi pay attention to Ye Qiao? Ye Qiao had left not long ago, and Jiang Yi returned. They might have run into each other.

“Don’t worry. Now that Ye Qiao has moved in, the romance plot will start soon,” the system said.

Su Ran sighed helplessly. “Having a green head is really tormenting.”

Just then, Jiang Yi came out of the room. He looked at Su Ran, as if wanting to speak but unsure what to say.

After hesitating, he said, “I ran into Ye Qiao earlier. He said he might be out for a few days.”

“Oh...” Su Ran replied softly, instinctively uneasy about Zhou Luo. His mood sank.

At that moment, an alarm rang in Su Ran’s mind. “They really met! If Ye Qiao finds out about Jiang Yi and Zhou Luo, their romance line will become much more difficult…”

The system reassured, “Don’t panic. He probably can’t tell. Would they be intimate in public? No, probably not... But look at Zhou Luo — he seems reckless, always wanting to prove he’s the main partner.”

Su Ran was speechless for a long while before coming up with a reasonable explanation. “As expected, romance novels have no logic.”

Otherwise, how could a young man like Ye Qiao fall for a playboy like Jiang Yi, especially since he’s supposedly married?

The system pondered, “That’s right. I’ve seen top systems explain in our group chat that characters in such novels act on desire without boundaries, so there’s no logic. Love and lust themselves are illogical. Although it’s based on the host’s words, the systems in our group all find it impressive but confusing.”

Su Ran replied, “Alright then.”

Although he didn’t understand it fully, it sounded philosophical.

Maybe it was stimulating... but he was stuck in the middle getting triggered.

Previously, Zhou Luo had spent a night in Jiang Yi’s room. Now Ye Qiao stayed there. And poor Su Ran always played a part in their games.

That made sense — Jiang Yi clearly enjoyed this kind of game.

At this moment, Jiang Yi walked up to Su Ran. “I have a favor to ask.”

Su Ran looked at him curiously. Jiang Yi had never asked so seriously before. The earlier chat had been just a prelude; now came the real request, albeit casually. “What favor?”

“I want you to invite Lu Jin to our home for a meal under the pretext of launching new pastries,” Jiang Yi said.

The system immediately said, “Yes! This is the new mission: invite Lu Jin home for dinner.”

Su Ran understood at once. The system updated missions based on the story. Unknowingly, he had planted the pastry seed.

“Invite Lu Jin? How could I? We’re not close...” Su Ran’s head drooped, lacking confidence.

Jiang Yi placed a hand on Su Ran’s shoulder. “You’re inviting him to try your new pastries. Didn’t he and Lu Wan like your cakes? I think you can do it.”

Su Ran looked into Jiang Yi’s eyes and saw determination and trust. At the same time, Jiang Yi’s gaze was gentle and smiling.

“Alright... when should I invite him?” Su Ran nodded. He couldn’t refuse Jiang Yi’s requests, especially since Jiang Yi rarely asked anything. He had no reason to say no now.

Jiang Yi’s smile broadened as he ruffled Su Ran’s soft hair, eyes full of confident control. “If possible, start today. Lu Jin is hard to schedule. Even if he agrees, we don’t know when he’ll be free.”

Su Ran obediently replied, “Okay, I’ll try my best.”

Jiang Yi, regardless of his character, was very capable. Coming from a small town, he fought his way up. Now rooted in the big city, his achievements were the fruit of his ambition and hard work.

He used everything around him to achieve his goals. Though ruthless, such people often succeed.

Suddenly, Zhou Luo’s voice rose, urging, “President Jiang, President He is pressing us. Let’s hurry back.”

Jiang Yi, however, seemed not to hear. Usually stingy with smiles toward Su Ran, when he truly asked for help, he could be tender.

“You always wanted a bigger oven. It should arrive tomorrow,” Jiang Yi said.

Hearing this, Su Ran’s face lit up, unable to suppress a smile. “Really?!”

“Really,” Jiang Yi confirmed.

Su Ran’s joyful expression was a delight to behold.

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After Jiang Yi left, Su Ran was alone at home. After breakfast, he lay on the sofa to relax.

He was thinking about how to complete the mission. He didn’t even have Lu Jin’s contact, so he had to reach out to Lu Wan first.

After some thought, he messaged Lu Wan: “Are you busy? The shop is giving back to regular customers. I just made some pastries. Want me to bring some over?”

At the Lu family mansion, Lu Wan came out of her room, leisurely heading to the third floor. Lu Jin was in the study handling work.

Lu Wan took a cup of hot tea to him and knocked twice. Hearing him say to come in, she entered.

Lu Jin glanced up from his computer. “What is it?”

Lu Wan placed the tea to his right and said, “Su Ran will bring some pastries later. I used to visit his shop often. He’s hard to meet, so I didn’t expect him to come to us.”

Though it might be Su Ran trying to connect because of her status, Lu Jin didn’t think so. He’d seen many people and never been fooled.

Just then, Lu Jin snorted coldly. “Jiang Yi called me a few days ago, wanting to meet. I kept refusing.”

Lu Wan understood immediately, looking disgusted. She liked Su Ran and his cakes but lost all interest when Jiang Yi was mentioned.

“Jiang Yi is really something,” she muttered, fiddling with her nails, her enthusiasm halved.

Lu Jin’s lips curled coldly. “He actually pushed his own husband out. That husband is quite bold.”

“Will you accept Su Ran’s invitation when he comes?” Lu Wan asked.

Lu Jin sneered, “Of course not.”

Outside, the sunlight filtering through the window gradually dimmed until the room was gloomy.

Lu Jin looked outside, frowning. “Is it going to rain?”

“Looks like it. The sky’s clouded over.”

Meanwhile, Su Ran was already in a taxi. He hadn’t expected the weather to change—just halfway through the trip, it suddenly started raining.

He held two bags of pastries, worried they’d get wet.

Fortunately, Lu Wan had informed the security to let the taxi in. The car drove into the Lu family estate but still had some distance to go on foot.

Su Ran tucked the pastries inside his coat and hurried out of the vehicle.

“He didn’t bring an umbrella,” Lu Wan said in surprise. “I thought he wouldn’t come in this weather.”

Upstairs on the third floor, the siblings looked down. The rain was heavy, and Su Ran was soaked just after stepping out.

His soft hair clung to his cheeks; his pale face showed under the gloomy light. Holding the pastries, his clothes were drenched.

“So foolish. He could have waited in the car. Now look at him, drenched,” Lu Wan muttered, then suddenly looked at Lu Jin. “Hey, do you think he did this on purpose? To look pitiful so you can’t refuse…”

Lu Jin’s gaze remained fixed below. His eyelashes trembled slightly before he said, “He probably thought... no one would come to meet him.”

“Huh?” Lu Wan was surprised by this perspective. “Uncle Zhang went to pick him up.”

Downstairs, Butler Zhang held a large black umbrella, slowly approaching Su Ran.

Lu Jin’s tone darkened suddenly. “In this weather, send Uncle Zhang out?”

“Yes, Uncle Zhang has rheumatism. When it rains or the weather is gloomy, his joints ache. Xiao Sun really lacks consideration. He should have let Uncle Zhang rest now,” Lu Wan said. They usually took good care of the staff; some had grown attached after working long at the house. “You’re quite thoughtful. I didn’t think of that. I’ll remind him tomorrow…”

Lu Wan trailed off, noticing Lu Jin’s gloomy, angry expression.

Was he really upset because of Xiao Sun?