The cheerful atmosphere instantly turned ice-cold.
They both sensed the anger in Chen Jingjia’s voice, which was clearly aimed at Xu Lili.
"Jiajia, what’s wrong? I haven’t done anything to offend you, have I?"
Being called out in public like this, Xu Lili was starting to lose face.
"Alright, alright, you two calm down. We’re in public."
Zhao Dan quickly tried to mediate, getting the feeling that this meal was about to be ruined.
"This is all your fault! You were the one who kept bad-mouthing Lin Jiang and giving me terrible ideas. Otherwise, we would have never gotten a divorce!"
"What does this have to do with me? You were the one who didn’t want to marry him and asked me for advice. How can you turn around and blame me now?"
"When did I ever say I didn’t want to marry him? I was just venting a little! You were the one who kept egging me on and giving me those terrible ideas!"
"Are you out of your mind? I can’t believe you have the nerve to pin this on me."
Xu Lili grabbed her bag. "Fine, I’m not eating. You two can have your meal."
"Hey, hey, wait, don’t go. Let’s just talk this out."
Zhao Dan tried to grab Xu Lili, but she was forcefully shrugged off.
Resigned, Zhao Dan could only turn to comfort Chen Jingjia.
"Jiajia, what’s really going on?"
Zhao Dan pulled a chair over and sat down next to Chen Jingjia.
"I remember you complaining in the group chat back then. You said you didn’t want to marry Lin Jiang, but since you’d been dating for so many years, you couldn’t find a good reason to break up. So why are you blaming Xu Lili now?"
"I was just venting back then. I still loved Lin Jiang. If she hadn’t kept whispering in my ear, saying you can’t marry a man with no money, I would never have done something like that."
Zhao Dan studied Chen Jingjia. "Something seems off about you."
"What do you mean, off?"
"Back when we were chatting in the group, you definitely said you didn’t want to marry Lin Jiang anymore."
Zhao Dan said, scrolling through her phone, "And I remember after the divorce, you told us how wonderful single life was. Why the sudden change of heart?"
Chen Jingjia rested her forehead in one hand, at a loss for words.
"We’ve known each other for so many years. Don’t hide things from me."
Zhao Dan took a slim cigarette from her purse and lit it.
"Let me guess. You got a new job, found yourself surrounded by rich people, and figured you could find someone better with your looks and figure. But after all this time on the job, you realized no one suitable came along, and now you’re starting to miss Lin Jiang?"
"Yeah."
"Even if you do miss him, there has to be a reason, right? Other than being handsome, that Lin Jiang guy really didn’t have any other good qualities."
"He’s rich now."
"He’s rich now?"
Zhao Dan’s interest was suddenly piqued, her eyes widening.
"Was his family’s home demolished for redevelopment? How much was the settlement?"
"I’m not clear on the specifics. He bought a car worth several million, started a company, and my sister told me he has tens of millions in his account. Most importantly, he bought a house where I work, for 165 million."
"What?!!!"
She could just about stomach the first two things, but when Zhao Dan heard that Lin Jiang had spent 165 million on a house, she couldn’t stay seated.
"Does his family live in a Beijing courtyard mansion? They give you that much money for a buyout?"
"I don’t know how it happened. All I know is that he’s rich now. He’s not the same Lin Jiang he used to be."
"So now you regret it and want to get back together with him, right?"
"Mhm," Chen Jingjia said with a nod.
"I’ve been thinking a lot these past few days, and I’ve realized that I still love him. I can’t forget him."
"Oh, cut the crap. If he didn’t have money, I bet you would’ve already forgotten what gender he is. Just admit you’re a gold digger, it’s nothing to be ashamed of."
As always, Zhao Dan was blunt, cutting straight to the heart of the matter.
"Couldn’t you use a nicer word? ’Gold digger’ sounds so harsh."
"What’s so harsh about it? What woman doesn’t want to marry a rich man? But saying you still love him and can’t forget him... now *that’s* a load of crap."
"It’s all Xu Lili’s fault. I might have had those thoughts, but I was never determined to go through with it. She was the one who kept drilling these negative ideas into my head, saying you can’t marry a man with no money, that he wouldn’t be able to afford a car or even makeup. She said a woman should just focus on being beautiful, and if you marry a poor man, you’ll spend your whole life as his maid and nanny. I got swept up in the moment and did what I did at the wedding."
Chen Jingjia grew more agitated as she spoke. "If you’d told me beforehand that she was going to be here, I wouldn’t have come at all."
"Alright, that’s my fault," Zhao Dan said, not dwelling on it, and continued to console Chen Jingjia.
"So, your plan now is to get back together with Lin Jiang, right?"
"Yeah, I really do want to get back with Lin Jiang."
Zhao Dan flicked the ash from her cigarette, thinking for a long moment.
"No matter how you slice it, you’re not in the right here. You should take the initiative and apologize to him. You two were together for so many years and were about to get married. Maybe he’ll forgive you for old times’ sake."
"Actually, I went to see him this morning," Chen Jingjia said, crestfallen. "He wouldn’t even say a single word more than he had to."
"That’s normal. You humiliated him at the wedding. Of course he’s angry. He’s not going to welcome you back with open arms so soon."
After a moment’s thought, Zhao Dan continued.
"You work here, and he just bought a house here. You’ll have more opportunities to see each other. It’s the perfect chance for old flames to be rekindled."
"That’s true, but I’m afraid he won’t want to see me."
"Take it slow. Besides approaching him directly, you need to tackle this from other angles."
"What other angles?" Chen Jingjia asked, looking at Zhao Dan with eyes full of hope.
"His family and friends," Zhao Dan said.
"Your first target is his mom. Older people are soft-hearted. Besides, you two were officially registered, so compared to anyone else, she’ll definitely be more accepting of you. Just say a lot of nice things, apologize profusely, and sweet-talk her. Once you win over your future mother-in-law, handling Lin Jiang will be much easier."
"Besides that, what else should I do?"
"Of his relatives, who is he closest to?"
"There’s his uncle—he even lent him money for the wedding. Other than that, he’s also very close with his younger sister."
"Don’t neglect those two, either. As long as you can win these people over, your chances will be much greater."
"I understand. I’ll message them right now."

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