Next One Is a Babe
Chapter 1623

Hazel sighed wearily and added, "I'm not asking you to break up with lan now, but you could at least take a look at the other man and see if you like him before making a decision."

Cindy couldn't help but sputter this time, amused by her mother's persistent efforts. "So, you're basically asking me to go on a blind date behind my boyfriend's back, is that it?"

The blunt question made Hazel wince in embarrassment. She went on to deny Cindy's accusation vehemently, but when she tried to further defend her intentions, words deserted her.

On the other hand, Cindy merely leaned against the headboard as she drawled, "Didn't you tell the three old women that I already have a boyfriend?"

Hazel licked her lips and said nothing. Judging from this reaction alone, Cindy knew exactly what had transpired in the living room after she left. If she's here trying to get me to consider marriage, then she probably withheld the truth from those three old ladies.

Frustration brewed within her heart. There were times when she could hardly believe that Hazel was her mother when Hazel never once saw things from her point of view.

Their conversation came to an end. Cindy was looking more aggravated by the minute and when push came to shove, Hazel's pestering would only lead to another fight between them.

While fighting with her daughter was nothing new to Hazel, she would rather not upset Cindy now that the girl was the sole breadwinner of the family.

As such, Hazel decidedly left to start on lunch whereas Cindy remained in bed. She was a homebody, so there really was nothing much for her to do around here. She had more free time now than she did when she stayed with lan.

Hazel called for Cindy to join her after she was done cooking, but she did not insist when Cindy refused. Instead, Hazel finished her lunch and went out again, probably for another round of poker.

Cindy waited until she heard the front door close shut before she emerged from her bedroom. She had told her mother that she wasn't hungry, and indeed, she could barely stomach the idea of food right now.

She merely stood at the doorway and stared at the scene outside before she turned to grab her coat to head out of the house.

It had been such a long time ago that she couldn't remember the last time she was back, so she ran into plenty of unfamiliar faces as she made her way around town. After having walked through the streets without any purpose, she finally stood under the shade of a tree and took out her phone.

She scrolled through her contacts, but at that moment, she didn't know who to call. She wanted someone to talk to, but no one came to mind. She wasn't particularly chummy with any of her colleagues and she didn't have any close friends other than Naomi.

As Cindy had been thrifty in college, she hardly ever hung out with the others in the dormitory. Besides, she had a reputation for borrowing money and plenty of those around her had grown so wary of her that they refused to pick up her calls.

At the thought of all these, she sighed and made to keep her phone, but a split second later, her ringtone pierced the silence. Then, she glanced at the caller ID and saw that it was Hannah. She picked up the call hastily with a straight posture and greeted, "Hannah?"

Hannah's speech was rapid-fire as she asked on the other line, "Cindy, where are you? Are you home?"

Cindy answered in the affirmative, then added, "I've been home for a few days now and I told lan as soon as I arrived."

Hannah hummed in response. "There's something I need to tell you. Right now, we're planning to throw the media off with news about you and lan, but we need the both of you to work together for us to pull off this smokescreen. I was hoping that maybe you two could meet up; you could go over to his place, or he could go over to yours, and at the end of the day, what we need is a video of the both of you interacting."

"Is that necessary?" Cindy frowned at this. "Can't we just make a statement together?"

"That seems too formal and it might backfire on us," Hannah pointed out with a small sigh. "I've already talked to lan about it, so maybe the both of you could work out the details together and make a decision on who should travel to whose place."

Cindy pressed her lips into a thin line. I can't say no if I really need to work together with lan to pull off something like this.

However, Hannah added that she had talked to lan about this, and that he would call Cindy on his own after this.

Upon hearing this, Cindy agreed and hung up. She wrapped her arms around herself and heaved a sigh as she leaned against the tree trunk. I suppose it's not a bad thing if I really have to head over to lan's place. She wasn't sure how the people in her little hometown would take it if lan were to come over.

She might not have mingled with her neighbors for a while now, but she knew what they were like. They were scarily persistent and now that she had shown no interest in their proposition for a blind date, they would not rest until they had persuaded her otherwise.