Chapter 185

Chapter 185: The Almost-Boyfriend Is a Big Fraud

Due to the need for ancestral worship and bidding farewell to the old year, Uncle Mei Lijiong’s family would usually return to Baimei County a few days before the New Year to visit their ancestors’ graves with Mei Lijun.

In previous years, they would stay at the old house in the family’s ancestral property. This year, however, there were some changes.

The area around the old house where Mei Lijun’s family’s ancestral property was located was undergoing district renovations, and the old house itself was part of the renovation. This meant that Mei Lijun would receive a compensation payment for the demolition.

Of course, this event did not align with what happened in his past life. In his previous life, after Mei Lijun failed in business, he sold his apartment in the neighborhood and returned to the old house. That area had never seen much development, so this change made it hard not to think about the current status of Director Mei.

However, Mei Lijun always took great care of his reputation. He had checked the planning process and everything was done according to regulations, so there was nothing improper.

Now that Mei Lijun’s family was financially stable, he naturally wanted to share the compensation from the old house demolition and the new housing arrangements with his older brother and younger sister.

This time, he invited his older brother Mei Lijiong over early on, wanting to discuss these matters with them and see if they had any intention of returning to live in Baimei County.

The adults worry about adult matters, while the next generation enjoys an untroubled childhood and passionate youth.

Mei Yue recently heard from Mei Ya about Mei Fang and his two young sweethearts. Curious as ever, she kept asking Mei Fang for photos. Reluctantly, Mei Fang sent her a photo taken by Xia Yuan before she left home, showing the two of them together. Mei Yue was instantly filled with girlish excitement.

“Wow, you’ve known two girls for over ten years! You’re quite something, Fangzi! Why didn’t you ever tell me about this before?”

“I wasn’t hiding anything… There just wasn’t a good opportunity to bring them up.”

Mei Yue carefully examined the photos of Xia Yuan and Lin You Xi.

“From the looks of it, both girls are beautiful in their own ways, but I personally prefer the one who’s smiling brightly.”

“You mean Yuan Yuan?”

After confirming Xia Yuan’s identity, Mei Yue nodded, “She seems more lively. Sometimes you can be too quiet, Fangzi. You need someone like her—positive, active, and cheerful. Otherwise, even if you grow up, you might still be clueless about many things.”

It seems You Xi’s composed image is indeed very deceptive…

“This doesn’t need to concern you, Yueyue. Speaking of which, I showed you those photos. What about your boyfriend?”

“Sure, I get it. Here, take a look.”

Mei Yue showed Mei Fang a photo of a young man from her phone album.

Mei Fang nodded, recognizing the man from his memory as a scoundrel. At first glance, he seemed mature and reliable, and his lifestyle photos suggested he was sophisticated, often posting selfies of him drinking coffee, scenic shots, and文艺文字 (literary text).

Of course, in 2022, such information could easily be seen as fake;

but in 2012, when the internet was not as developed, and romantic dramas were popular, girls like Mei Yue, with modest backgrounds and fresh out of school, full of passion, vitality, and innocence, could easily fall into love’s naive fantasies, unaware of the harsh realities of the world. Her first experience was a painful one.

“How long have you known him? How did you meet?”

“It’s been almost half a year. We met at a senior’s wedding.”

“At first, I didn’t give him my contact details because I thought he was a bit frivolous. But later, we met at a café near my company, and I found out he was actually a down-to-earth guy.”

As she spoke, Mei Yue’s fondness for him became apparent, “He’s really detail-oriented. Even though he’s busy with work, he often thinks of me, asking how I am. We have many common interests, like eating together, watching movies. When I’m upset, he stays up late talking with me…”

“The most important thing is that he respects me. After knowing each other for so long, he has never touched me casually. I think that’s great. Fangzi, when you’re with your two young sweethearts, don’t be too forward, okay? Most girls hate guys who are too flirty.”

Mei Fang thought to himself: My situation is the opposite; they’re the ones who are forward with me, and they want me to be forward too. I shouldn’t be considered flirty…

He then asked Mei Yue, “Have you visited his company?”

“Well… I haven’t actually gone there, but he says he works in the internet industry. He studied computer science, just like you used to enjoy computers. You know IT guys, right?”

Mei Fang shook his head, “IT guys don’t have time to look so polished. They always look haggard, with dark circles under their eyes, fixing bugs all night. He doesn’t seem like that.”

“Fangzi, that’s a stereotype… And he’s the boss, so he probably isn’t that busy, right?”

“Starting a business isn’t easy, and if the boss isn’t diligent, it’s even harder to succeed… Maybe I went a bit far.”

Mei Fang knew that such advice needed to be gradual, and he didn’t want to appear too mature, so he toned down his argument.

“I just feel like he might be a decent boyfriend, but this guy seems too laid-back compared to what I know of startup bosses.”

Mei Yue pondered, “Hmm… He always replies to my messages instantly. I asked him about it, and he said he set me as a ‘special concern.’ But maybe he’s not as busy lately? I guess internet companies aren’t always busy all year round.”

“That’s true… This guy must be a formidable IT bigwig.”

“Yeah! Not only is he a founder, but he’s also a great programmer. His tech skills are well-known in the industry.”

“Since he’s so free now, I have a programming problem. I have a piece of code that won’t compile, and I can’t find the bug. No one around me understands this. Can I send it to him?”

Mei Yue knew Mei Fang had a penchant for programming since he was young, but she didn’t think his ten years of coding experience had much value, considering it just beginner level. Naturally, she didn’t take his problem seriously.

Moreover, this cousin seemed to have a grudge against her almost-boyfriend, which was a great opportunity to build trust between them.

“Sure, I’ll send it to him. He always replies instantly, so he’ll help you fix it quickly.”

“Mm, no rush… Just tell me the solution tomorrow evening.”

Mei Fang successfully sent his old code to Mei Yue, and she eagerly awaited his response.

The next evening, she kept checking her phone.

Mei Fang strolled over to the worried Mei Yue.

“How’s it going, Yueyue? Did that guy fix the bug?”

“Well… He said he’d do it soon, but he hasn’t replied in two days. I’m getting worried.”

“Maybe he’s busier with work?” Mei Fang pretended to remind her.

“There’s no way that’s a coincidence. Do you think I’m stupid?”

Mei Yue thought for a moment, then asked Mei Fang, “Is this code really yours? Or did you make a difficult challenge for him?”

“It’s mine… Since I’m not very skilled, I wrote comments for every line. If he’s an expert in the field, he should understand the comments. Don’t you think you could search for it online to verify?”

Mei Fang played the innocent role, and Mei Yue gradually realized something was off.

“Maybe he’s really like you say, lying about his internet company… No, I need to call him and check.”

Just as Mei Yue finished speaking, her phone vibrated. She looked at the message and smiled, forwarding it to Mei Fang.

“He’s been busy with work lately, working through the night to fix bugs, so he forgot to reply. See if it’s fixed.”

Mei Fang waved his hand, sighing deeply, “Don’t bother, Yueyue.”

“Your almost-boyfriend is a complete fraud.”

I know everyone dislikes plotlines without sweetness, but Cousin is supposed to appear at this point, and it’s a brief mention that sets up future events. Three chapters? The next chapter will start with sweetness.

Today is my birthday, so please be kinder and wish me a happy birthday. Thank you all! There will be continuous updates in the next chapter.

(End of Chapter)