16 A Waste of Time

Ye Heng glanced at the door before looking at his wristwatch again. 

His lips pursed into a thin line as he wondered whether his blind date was going to show up. Fifteen minutes had passed, but Ye Heng had not seen that person yet.

After a brief hesitation, Ye Heng figured that perhaps, he should give the woman another fifteen minutes. He figured that leaving after waiting for half an hour did not sound so bad.

Anyway, he should finish his cup of coffee before leaving.

Ye Heng lowered his head to read a few emails while waiting.

Suddenly, a shadow blocked the light in front of him. 

Ye Heng pursed his lips tightly before he finally raised his head to take a look at the person who approached him.

A young woman stood in front of him with a smile on her face.

It did not take Ye Heng too long to recognize the woman as Miss Xia Meng, his blind date.

"Hello." Xia Meng had an apologetic look on her face. "Mr... Ye Heng?" The smile on her face eased up when she saw Ye Heng leaning back in his seat. "I'm Xia Meng. We are supposed to have a meal together."

Ye Heng nodded. "Yes." 

He had looked at the time before Xia Meng showed up. There were still five more minutes before it was time for him to leave. 

Before she showed up, Miss Xia did not try to send him a message to let him know that she was going to be late.

Ye Heng motioned to the empty seat across from him. "Please, have a seat."

Xia Meng heaved a breath of relief. She pulled the chair and took her seat. "I'm sorry. Something come up earlier. I did not think that it would take a lot of my time."

He observed this blind date's face for a while and decided not to pursue this matter for now. An amiable smile appeared on his face. "Miss Xia, I don't mind." He raised his hand and called a waiter over. "Miss Xia, you should order something first."

The smile on Xia Meng's face became apparent. It was clear that her impression of Ye Heng had only got better.

The waiter walked over to their table and took their order. 

Noticing that his cup was empty, Ye Heng ordered another cup of coffee.

The two of them began to talk to get to know each other. Mostly, it was Xia Meng who asked Ye Heng about himself. From the beginning, Ye Heng has always been very polite to Xia Meng.

After almost two hours, the two of them leave the cafe with Ye Heng paying for their meals.

Xia Meng stepped out of the cafe before turning to look at Ye Heng again. The pretty smile on her face stayed. "'Ye Heng, I had a good time talking to you today."

Ye Heng nodded. "Likewise."

Xia Meng gave Ye Heng a lookover. "Then, thank you for the meal today." With a nod, Xia Meng turned around and left.

Ye Heng stood in front of the cafe to watch as Xia Meng left with a driver. A long sigh escaped him once the car was no longer within his eyesight. 

Xia Meng was prettier than the photo that he had seen. She seemed gentle and educated. 

However, his impression of Xia Meng was not that good after she showed up almost half an hour late. Xia Meng had indeed apologized, but Ye Heng thought that the look on her face was not that sincere.

After talking to Xia Meng for a while, Ye Heng could feel that the two of them were not suitable. It was his instinct.

Ye Heng could not help but feel disappointed. 

It seemed that coming to this blind date was a waste of time.

After leaving the cafe, Ye Heng decided to take a walk along the street to buy some time. He did not want to return home too quickly and faced his mother's questioning session.

His steps halted when he saw a baby's clothing store across the street.

Ye Heng was suddenly reminded of his nephew. 

His nephew seemed to like anything with a dinosaur pattern recently. Ye Heng could still remember the smile on the boy's face as he dragged around the dinosaur plushy that his younger sister bought for him.

As he looked at the store, Ye Heng wondered if he should buy something for his nephew.

Without a second thought, Ye Heng decided to cross the street and headed to the store.

He was just about to step into the shop when the door was pushed from the inside. Swiftly, Ye Heng took a step back before the door would hit his head.

"I'm sorry."

The soft and gentle voice made Ye Heng look up. The light in his eyes lit up when he saw a familiar face staring back at him.

Two pairs of eyes were staring back at each other.

In the end, it was Ye Heng who broke the silence first. "Tang Shi Yi."

Her body shivered as she heard him speak her name. A smile that did not reach her eyes appeared on her lips. "Ye Heng."

"I did not expect to see you here."

"Mhm..." Tang Shi Yi tightened her grip on the paper bag in her hand. 

She was visiting the shop, wanting to buy a few things for her kids. Tang Shi Yi did not expect that she would run into Ye Heng here.

"We did not get to talk that much the last time," Ye Heng pointed out. He raised his head and realized that they were both standing in front of a baby's shop. 

His heart skipped a beat.

He had not seen Tang Shi Yi for a long time and wondered if she was married. Seeing her leaving a baby's store made his mind go wild. 

Ye Heng wanted to ask, but it seemed inappropriate to ask at this time and place. 

"Would you like to sit down and have a cup of coffee with me?" Ye Heng asked.

Tang Shi Yi was panicking. She inhaled a deep breath to calm down and smiled. "Probably next time. I'm sorry." She pointed at the building across the street. "But my family is waiting for me."

The light in his eyes gradually dimmed. "Then, next time, I guess."

Tang Shi Yi had a helpless look on her face. She knew that Ye Heng wanted to talk to her, but she wanted to avoid him for as long as she could. 

She flashed Ye Heng an apologetic smile before turning away to leave.

Ye Heng watched her retreating figure silently. He watched her cross the street and reach for an elder woman with a stroller.