Fan Mei looked at her brother’s message with narrowed eyes. “‘How about meeting up for dinner? You, me, Xiao Jin, and a friend maybe?’ What exactly does he mean with that?” Maybe it really was an occupational disease but she had trouble taking things at face value. If somebody said something, there was certainly another layer to it. And she saw it as her task in life to unveil that layer. Right now, intuition told her that the layer beneath this was a thick one. Well, she wouldn’t be able to find out anything if she didn’t go to have a look. Thus, after thinking for a moment, she finally replied.

Fan Mei: [Sure thing! Just tell me the time and place. You pay!]

Si Shi Qi looked at the reply he had just gotten from his sister and his lips twitched. This woman! She was really taking advantage of him. But, well, the money for this wouldn’t come out of his own pocket for sure but out of the funds of the Si clan. So this time, he might as well splurge on it.

Looking at the list of restaurants that he had already chosen, he just picked the first one. This was a high-end restaurant that was really well-known in this city. Going there would give their master an impression of just how well food could be. Well, not that he should have any doubt about that after eating Si Shi Wu’s food all these years.

You could say what you wanted, but the Si clan really didn’t live cheaply when it came to these things. Usually, in every generation, there would be talents of different walks of life, making it so that they always had somebody at hand whatever it was that they needed. Furthermore, there were still most members of the previous generation around save for the ones who had died together with Si Jin’s father. So even when it came to things that the current generation of ninjas wasn’t as good at, there would usually be somebody among the older one who was. And even if not, they were rich. What couldn’t money buy?

Thus, Si Shi Qi placed the reservation, feeling lucky that they had a wide network that allowed them to just go the very same day. Ah, it really was great being part of the Si clan.

Having organized everything, he sent a message to both his sister and his wife, and then also to Si Yi.

Si Yi glanced at his phone and nodded to himself before he informed Si Shi Wu and their master.

Meanwhile, Si Shi Qi continued planning their itinerary for the next few weeks, making sure that there were several meals arranged for the next week especially. The other restaurants wouldn’t be as important to take a look at and could be arranged however they wanted in the following weeks if it was still necessary. But if there was something else that Si Shi Wu deemed necessary for their master to do so he could excel further in the culinary arts, then they needed to leave enough time for that to be fit in.

Soon enough, this task was finished and he went to get ready for today’s dinner.

At the same time, Si Yi also decided that it was time to get ready for this outing and Si Shi Wu couldn’t help but glance at the clock.

Seeing the time, he sighed. “Well, I should also get ready. I sure hope that this blind date will turn out well.”

Si Yi looked at him when Si Shi Wu said so, faintly raising his brows. “That matter with Mister Yu’s granddaughter? I thought that was supposed to be tomorrow.”

Si Shi Wu sighed at that. “Precisely that one and you are right that it was supposed to be tomorrow. I’m afraid that Mister Yu couldn’t wait any longer though so he asked if today would be alright as well. What was I supposed to say? I still fear that he might try to convince Young Master Xiao if things don’t work out with me. So I really hope that we will at least make it through two or three dates before we have to call it quits.”

Si Yi gave a hum. “Don’t force yourself. If you like her, it’s good. If not, as long as you go out a few times, it will be enough. In any case, the show will only be running for two months. How long will Mister Yu be able to bother Young Master Xiao about this?”

Si Shi Wu’s expression was a little difficult though. “The show might only be running for two months but … won’t they stay in touch? In any case, Young Master Xiao and Mister Yu will be working together closely in these weeks. There won’t only be the official episodes but also some behind-the-scenes and promotional matters. They will see each other quite often. So I’m afraid that if the opportunity is there and there isn’t another prospect in sight, he would still try.”

Si Yi’s expression also turned grim at that. “But Young Master Xiao already admitted that he isn’t into women. Would Mister Yu really go forward with it?”

“Well, I’m not quite sure. Even though he seemed alright with it at that moment, he is still rather old. A lot of people in their generation will be stuck in their ways. He might think that he is able to talk Young Master Xiao into it.

“And if he does that long enough, who knows if he won’t be unable to refuse? He clearly looked put on the spot at the time when Mister Yu brought it up for the first time. Saying that he didn’t like women was probably hard for him to admit. So even if he doesn’t like the thought, he might feel unable to reject it. Especially so when it is coming from Mister Yu.

“In the end, he might give it a try and if they aren’t completely hostile to each other, he might just give it a go. In any case, in our society, it is still much easier to just pretend and marry a woman than to live as yourself and deal with the fallout. Especially so for somebody who is in the public eye like him.”

Si Yi nodded faintly. “Well, especially so since there isn’t a suitable partner for him in sight yet. After he meets Master more often and they have their date, things might be different. And if they truly get together, he won’t have to worry anymore. The Si clan can shield him from anything.”

Si Shi Wu nodded. “Yes, the plan would be to at least keep her away from him for as long as that hasn’t happened yet. I don’t mind even if I have to start a relationship with her. No matter what, it can always be broken up later on. We just need to get over this period of time.”

“Well, you know what to do. I’m not worried about that. Now, I’d better leave. Si Shi Qi didn’t say so but I’m afraid there will be a surprise for us today.”

His expression didn’t look good and Si Shi Wu didn’t dare to ask. He merely inclined his head and then went to freshen up, making sure that he looked well. For blind dates such as this, it was still best to give it some thought beforehand. At least, he needed to take up a few weeks of her time and make Mister Yu believe that there was a possible future to be had between him and his granddaughter. As for everything after that, he’d leave that up to fate.

At the same time, Si Yi also went to get ready and then accompanied Si Jin to the car where Si Shi Qi was already waiting.

Si Yi glanced at him while he opened the door for his master, his gaze a little disdainful. “Do you want to confess what exactly you’ve planned for today now or do you want to wait until we are at the restaurant and make things uncomfortable?”

Si Shi Qi faintly cleared his throat. Si Yi really was too sharp! Just one look and he had already known that something was up. Well, it seemed that he wouldn’t be able to talk his way out of this. So he could only give it to him straight. “Well, I invited my wife and my sister. In any case, my sister previously had a bad impression of master. I think that this might in part also be because she only ever saw his activities online. After meeting him, she might have a different impression.”

Si Yi looked at him. “Because master has such a charming personality.” Saying so, he turned around and got into the car, starting the engine without waiting for Si Shi Qi. In any case, it wouldn’t do to arrive together in the same car. That would just make Si Shi Qi’s sister more suspicious.

For some time, the two of them drove in silence. Halfway there, Si Yi decided to still give his master a heads-up. While he didn’t think that he would need it, it was still best to prepare a little. “The people we are going to eat with are Si Shi Qi’s wife and his sister. You probably remember the former. The latter is the one who instigated people online against Young master Xiao. Si Shi Qi hopes that meeting her face-to-face will give her a better impression so that she will not pursue the matter further in the future. In regard to this, maybe it would be good if you said a few more words to her.”

To be honest, he knew that this was asking a bit too much. That sentence about his master’s charming personality … he knew that while it didn’t sound nice, it was the truth. Their master really had perfected his poker face. Unfortunately, this kind of facial paralysis just alienated most people. And the fact that he hardly talked didn’t make it any better.

It would be hard enough to make Young Master Xiao fall in love with him but there was still a chance because they had interacted online where their master wasn’t cherishing his words as much. And maybe they would actually be witnesses of a miracle when their master and Young Master Xiao got closer and their master suddenly started talking like crazy. As for this woman, he didn’t think that he would do her the favor but it couldn’t hurt to remind him that it might be beneficial to their current mission.

Si Jin gave an unenthusiastic hum, clearly not intending to really follow through with it. Just remembering the things that he had seen her write about Xiao Ming made him feel predisposed to disliking her. Why would he show her a good face? If he had to say more than usual, then he would cherish these words and say them to Xiao Ming. That woman could count herself lucky that they were living in the 21st century when it wasn’t customary anymore to just kill off whoever you didn’t like. Otherwise, she probably wouldn’t have lived until now.

Si Yi gave his master a look through the rearview mirror and then couldn’t help but remind him of her identity. “Don’t forget that she is Si Shi Wu’s sister. Even though she isn’t in the know about the Si clan, she is still the daughter of a member of the previous generation. Her father would be inconsolable if something happened to her. So it probably wouldn’t do to be too hard on her.”

This time, Si Jin actually turned to look at Si Yi, silently asking just who was more important.

Si Yi sighed. While he would always be on his master’s side, it was sometimes difficult to serve him. “Please don’t question my loyalty. I am merely thinking in your own interest here. As an enemy, she could be troublesome.

“Si Er sent me the list of contestants for ‘Golden Spoon’ and she is on there. So we will have to interact more with her in the future. If she continues to try and find things against Young Master Xiao, that would trouble him greatly. She might even try to interfere in your relationship with him. That isn’t something that we want.

“Also, the more time she can spend with all of us, the more likely it is for her to find some kind of detail that we have accidentally exposed which might lead her to do more than just suspect us. All of that is something that would not be in your interest, master. I’m just trying to caution you against aggravating her even further. While we would be able to deal with her, the fallout might not be worth it.”

Even though the Si clan came first for all of them and even before their other family members, that didn’t mean that there weren’t any attachments.

Just look at Si Shi Qi and his family: While he had originally approached his wife because of the Si clan, he did love her dearly. As for his father, while he had put the Si clan first and not told his daughter about them when he realized just how she had turned out, that didn’t mean that he loved her any less.

If they did anything to her to make sure that she couldn’t expose them, it would break the old man’s heart. And that in turn would weaken his connection to the Si clan, exposing a weakness that they better shouldn’t have. He didn’t want to risk that. And he didn’t think that his master wanted to do that either.

Si Jin turned back around and finally gave a curt nod. He really didn’t want to make nice to that woman but he would do so for Xiao Ming. In any case, there were some things that were worth taking a step back on if it benefited the people you loved.