Chapter 10 Ronan's Arranged Marriage

Alice hadn't had dinner, and she was starving, her stomach growling. The rest of the family had already eaten, so she rummaged through the kitchen cabinets and found a pack of instant noodles. She boiled some water in a small pot to cook the noodles.

"Why didn't you eat after the blind date? Didn't you meet at a Western restaurant?" Jane, who didn't know the whole story, rolled up her sleeves and pulled Alice aside. "It's unhealthy to eat instant noodles so late at night. Let me cook something else for you."

"No need to trouble yourself."

Alice glanced at the pot. The water had boiled, so she tore open the noodle packet, dropped the noodle cake into the water, cracked an egg, added some luncheon meat, and tossed in a handful of fresh vegetables. It looked quite hearty.

Jane asked, "Tell me what happened tonight?"

Alice tore open a few seasoning packets and stirred the noodles. She couldn't even begin to complain about what happened earlier. She took out her phone, opened the voice recording, and handed it to Jane. "Listen to this, and you'll understand what kind of guy he is."

Jane went to the side with the phone to listen.

Alice took out a bowl, rinsed it under the faucet, and then fished the noodles out of the pot.

The smell wafted over, and the two little ones immediately stopped watching TV, scurrying over. Hanna tiptoed to peek into the bowl, swallowing her saliva and asking knowingly, "Mom, what are you eating?"

Aaron blinked his eyes, clearly meaning, "I want some too."

No child can resist the temptation of instant noodles. Alice placed the bowl on the island counter. "Didn't you two eat dinner?"

Their grandmother, overhearing, laughed. "They each ate a big bowl of rice, half a bowl of soup, and gnawed on a plate of lamb chops."

"Such an appetite? Then don't steal my dinner. I haven't eaten anything all evening," Alice said as she sat on a high stool and patted both of their heads. "Instant noodles aren't healthy for kids."

"Mom~" Hanna dragged out her voice and playfully raised one finger. "Just one bite, okay?"

Aaron rarely asked for things, but when he gave you his big deer eyes, it was hard to say no.

Alice sighed, unable to resist, and went to fetch two smaller bowls. She put one bite of noodles in each bowl, along with a piece of luncheon meat. "Just one bite," she said firmly.

"Yay! Long live Mom!"

The two kids grinned widely and started eating happily.

Jane, still fuming from what she heard, walked over, shaking her finger at the phone. "Is this guy a scoundrel?"

Alice slurped some noodles and vaguely replied, "Probably."

Jane looked at her with concern. "Did he do anything to you?" She regretted listening to Jane's suggestion to arrange tonight's blind date. "If I had known he was like this, I would never have let you go. What kind of person is this? Calling him a beast is too kind!"

Alice didn't doubt her mother's love for her. She took a sip of soup and smiled up at her. "I'm fine. There were plenty of people at the restaurant, and a kind stranger helped out. He didn't take advantage."

"Ugh, so frustrating," Jane grumbled, getting angrier by the second. "I'm calling that Mr. Su. I'll ask him what kind of person he's recommending to my daughter. What is he trying to do?"

Jane set Alice's phone down, grabbed her own, and started calling Jane. Her voice fluctuated between loud and soft, as though she was arguing with the person on the other end.

After eating, Alice spent time with the kids watching TV, took a shower, and went to bed.

It was still early, and she wasn't tired. She opened her phone and browsed through various social media apps.

The class group chat, which had been silent for a long time, suddenly became lively. She had set "Do Not Disturb" for the messages, but when she clicked in, she saw over a hundred new messages.

She scrolled up and found they were discussing a class reunion.

"Class leader, can we bring a plus one?"

"Just asking ahead-what is everyone doing? I want to know who's coming so I don't feel embarrassed showing up if I'm doing worse than others."

"Come on, we're all working like crazy. Why compare?"

"Don't do that comparing stuff. A class reunion is about reconnecting. If we can help each other out, that's even better."

"I agree, no need for the fake stuff. It's meaningless."

"Agreed+1"

"I switched to PR, and now I'm busy as hell."

"We in advertising work even harder. Up before the rooster, asleep after the dog, and eat worse than pigs."

"Hahaha."

"I work in investment banking, it's going okay. At least I'm making a living."

"I'm in real estate. The market is down, everything's shrinking. Everyone wants to go back to their old jobs."

"I work in a building materials company. It's dirty and tiring."

"David, stop being modest. Last time I saw you, there were a whole bunch of people greeting you, calling you 'President David.' And now you're saying you're 'just getting by'? At least you became 'President'!"

"Seems like not everyone here is in construction."

The class leader chimed in and asked who would be attending the reunion, so he could finalize the guest list and book a room, also saying that plus ones were allowed.

Everyone started signing up, and Alice saw a few classmates whose industries might lead to business opportunities. She felt tempted to go, but was worried about gossip about her love life.

Her past relationship with Ronan had been so public that everyone at school knew about it.

Alice rubbed her forehead, feeling conflicted.

Once the class leader finished collecting the list, he posted an Excel sheet in the group, "Anyone else want to come? If not, this is the final list."

Alice pulled up the list. There were about twenty people in total, with only four girls from the architecture major, one of whom was her roommate Georgia.

As if on cue, Alice received a private message from Georgia.

Georgia, "Hey, did you see the class group messages?"

Alice pretended she hadn't, "What's up?"

Georgia, "I knew you hadn't seen them! The class leader's organizing a reunion on the evening of the 11th, right during the holiday. I heard you're back in town. Want to come hang out?"

Fearing Alice might refuse, Georgia quickly added, "Come on, just come for me. I'm not very close with the other three girls, and I'll feel awkward."

Alice had already been thinking about going, so she was easily convinced. "Okay."

Georgia was overjoyed and sent a voice message, "Yay! I'll tell the class leader to add your name."



The next day was a holiday, and in the evening, the Brown and Smith families gathered for a dinner.

It was the Smith family's invitation, as it had been a while since the two families had met and they decided to get together for a festive meal.

The venue was a luxury hotel under the Smith family's name.

In the luxurious private room, crystal chandeliers sparkled, and a round red lacquered wooden table was filled with exquisite dishes. The atmosphere was warm and harmonious.

Elizabeth was dressed elegantly, sitting next to Ronan. She had begged her parents to arrange this dinner, intending to finalize her marriage with Ronan.

After running into Alice at the restaurant the day before and seeing Ronan defend her, Elizabeth had been deeply shaken. She hadn't slept all night, feeling anxious and restless. She didn't want to wait any longer; she was eager for their relationship to be cemented.

She glanced at Ronan and took a sip of her juice, praying everything would go as planned.

After some casual conversation between the elders, the topic naturally shifted to their children.

Elizabeth's mother gently patted her back and smiled. "My daughter doesn't have much ambition, all she thinks about is Ronan. We're both helpless with her."

"Mom, stop saying that," Elizabeth blushed and looked at her mother reproachfully, playing the role of a shy young girl with a soft voice.

Ronan's mother, Reese, chimed in, "Elizabeth grew up in front of us. She's not unambitious; she's quite outstanding. She's a role model for many young ladies. You don't know how much I wanted a daughter like that. Sigh, my wish can't be fulfilled, but at least I can think about having such a daughter-in-law."

Ronan's father, Jack, took the opportunity to suggest, "Ronan's thirty this year, right? They say thirty is when a man should stand on his own. The two kids get along well. How about we settle the marriage this year? We may not have time to hold the wedding, but we can get engaged first."

Jack readily agreed, "I think that's a good idea."

Everything was progressing unbelievably smoothly. Elizabeth's heart soared, though her fingers trembled with excitement. She kept a composed smile on her face, maintaining the appearance of a daughter who left everything to her parents.

Reese, who had always respected Ronan's opinions, did not make any hasty decisions like Jack. She turned to Ronan, who was sitting quietly like a mountain, and softly asked, "Ronan, what do you think?"