Chapter 571 - 586: I Have Surveillance

After the banquet, An Ning and Jiang Xia left together. Jiang Xia was driving.

On the drive back, a silence fell between them, wrapped in an invisible layer of awkwardness.

"So—"

"I was going to say—"

They both spoke at the same time, then looked at each other, smiled, and said in unison, "You first!"

Those two words, "You first," made them both swallow whatever they had been about to say.

"Well, I was going to say we should get a late-night snack. I’m hungry."

"What a coincidence. I was thinking the same thing."

Jiang Xia, chickening out once again, cursed himself inwardly. An Ning, on the other hand, was wondering, ’Is the reason no men pursue me because I’m too capable?’

Capable people often give off an intimidating vibe.

An Ning felt like she had discovered the truth. Deep down, she thought she should make some changes. Perhaps if Jiang Xia saw her softer side, he wouldn’t be so resistant.

With a preliminary plan forming in her mind, An Ning went for a late-night snack with Jiang Xia, feeling at ease.

After their late-night snack, An Ning returned to her small courtyard home, opened her computer, and did a flurry of searches, both domestic and international, on how to be in a relationship.

She decided it was time to go on the offensive!

’If I don’t make a move on the guy right under my nose, what if he up and runs off?’

It was better to strike first and gain the upper hand.

In her quest to win over the guy next door, An Ning even sent a message to the interstellar network, seeking help from the masters of love.

The next morning, a tremor in her spiritual power made her think something major had happened in the interstellar network.

It wasn’t until she opened what the interstellar network had sent that she realized she had misunderstood.

Actually, it wasn’t a complete misunderstanding. An Ning wanting to be in a relationship was, in fact, a very important matter to the interstellar network.

Upon receiving An Ning’s message, they had held an emergency overnight meeting. Renowned love experts, happy married couples, and passionately dating boyfriends and girlfriends were all pulled in to provide comparative analysis from positive and negative perspectives. A detailed file was then transmitted to An Ning.

Along with it came a large quantity of Ancient Earth jewelry, gold, and the like. According to the interstellar network’s way of thinking, if all else failed, they could just use brute force!

An Ning read the compiled "Manual for Pursuing a Partner" from beginning to end three times.

’So, I need to be good to him. So good that I become indispensable.’

An Ning grew thoughtful. Referencing the list of action items at the end of the pursuit manual, she decided to pick one to start with.

Her finger scrolled down the list and stopped at one particular item.

"This is it!"

The manual read: "Pick them up from work with a small, surprise gift."

An Ning changed her clothes, prepared a gift, and headed out.

Jiang Xia’s company was a bit far, so An Ning chose to drive.

The smooth, traffic-free journey lifted An Ning’s spirits.

An Ning stopped at a red light three intersections away from Jiang Xia’s company.

"Hey, hey—what are you doing!"

An Ning watched as the car in front of her started rolling backward. She had nowhere to retreat. With a THUD, the car hit her bumper.

The impact pushed An Ning’s car back. If she hadn’t been stomping on the brake, she would have definitely hit the car behind her.

’It’s fine, just a little accident. No big deal.’

An Ning got out of the car, comforting herself. She was just about to speak with a smile when the man who got out of the car in front pointed at her and started cursing.

"Are you fucking blind?! How could you run into me? Fucking bad luck, running into a woman driver!"

With just a few words, the man successfully made An Ning’s anger flare up.

"Your car rolled back. You hit me. Don’t think you’re right just because you’re loud."

An Ning’s rebuttal made the man sneer and shout even louder, "Well, I’ll be damned. The world is full of wonders. You were behind me, and you’re trying to blame me for it! You clearly rear-ended me, and you think you’re in the right?"

"My car was stopped perfectly fine right here! This road is completely flat, not even a slight incline. How could my car roll? How?!"

The man’s argument won the agreement of many onlookers who had gotten out of their cars to watch the commotion.

After all, An Ning was a female driver, and the other party was a male driver. The probability of a rear-end collision seemed higher on her part.

"Just pay up already. You’re blocking the road, and I’ve got places to be."

"Right? Just pay the compensation and let’s get going."

As the surrounding drivers chimed in, the man in front became even more arrogant.

"Look, since you’re a woman, I don’t want to argue with you. Just pay up and don’t hold everyone up."

"I’m not paying. I did nothing wrong. Your car rolled back. There are traffic cameras here; we can check the footage."

An Ning pointed at the traffic light pole, not showing the slightest bit of fear or hesitation.

In comparison, the man seemed magnanimous, while An Ning came off as petty.

The number of "helpful" people in the heckling crowd grew, and An Ning felt her good mood completely evaporate.

She suddenly hoisted herself up onto her car, her gaze as sharp as a knife as she looked at the crowd of people who were blaming her.

"You, did you see what happened? You keep saying it’s my fault, but did you actually see it?"

"If you didn’t see anything, then what the hell are you yapping about!"

"What’s wrong with being a woman driver? Did I hit your family’s ancestral grave? Did all your ancestors form a committee to protest? No? Then all of you can shut the fuck up!"

"And you!"

An Ning spun around, her finger jabbing toward the man at the center of the incident, and let out a cold snort.

"How about you zip up your fly before you run your mouth! And while you’re at it, do you dare let the woman in your passenger seat get out? Or better yet, do you dare call home and have your wife come over!"

An Ning dropped the bombshell, and everyone’s gaze instantly shot toward the man, who frantically zipped up his pants.

"I just forgot!"

The man’s lame excuse added a scandalous new color to the situation.

"She is my wife! What nonsense are you spouting!"

An Ning scoffed. "She’s your wife? A bald, beer-bellied man in his fifties like you is old enough to be her father twice over. Besides, the photo on your dashboard says otherwise!"

"Could a wife in her twenties possibly have a teenage child? If that’s really the case, then as a good citizen, I’d have to report you for coercion—"

"Shut up!"

The man finally flew into a rage and lunged forward, reaching to grab An Ning’s wrist.

’I was just waiting for you to make a move!’ An Ning’s eyes glinted with mockery.

This whole incident had ruined her good mood and was completely derailing her progress in winning over the guy next door!

’He deserves a beating!’

The man grabbed, and An Ning kicked.

"AARGH—" The man howled, clutching his wrist. The woman in the passenger seat could no longer stay in the car and got out, rushing to comfort him.

"The traffic police are here!"

"Make way, make way!"

The traffic officer came to the center of the incident to get an understanding of the situation.

But both parties stuck to their own stories. At An Ning’s suggestion, the officer used his radio to contact the traffic monitoring center.

"Actually, I have a recording too."

An Ning jumped down from her car, retrieved a miniature recording device from inside, and handed it to the officer. "You can review it anytime."

"You—you had a recording! Why didn’t you say so earlier?!"

The man who caused the accident pointed at An Ning furiously. An Ning spread her hands innocently and said, "Why would I tell you? Besides, did you ever give me a chance to speak? Weren’t you the one who insisted it was my fault from the very beginning?"