The Real Heiress Has an Appraisal System

’Is this karma?’

Jin Ran was starting to question his life choices.

By now, Yang Jiao was no longer sleepy, and she couldn’t even clearly remember what had just happened.

Her head just felt stuffy, and a wave of irritation mixed with drowsiness washed over her as she looked at Jin Ran.

She grabbed a handful of Jin Ran’s hair, messing up his handsome hairstyle completely. Yang Jiao demanded, "Where are you taking me?"

"I’m taking you home!" Jin Ran roared. "I saved you! How can you be so vicious? I was doing this for my sister-in-law—"

Before he could finish, Yang Jiao pulled a spare strap from her purse, restrained Jin Ran with it, and pinned him against the seat.

It was the first time Jin Ran had ever been beaten and pinned down like this, and by a young woman, no less.

This Yang Jiao was too formidable; he really couldn’t beat her.

Yang Jiao used nothing but skillful techniques, and while she was closing in, Jin Ran was too busy making a fuss and trying to explain.

So in the end... he was completely tied up.

Jin Ran’s body may have been bound, but his mouth wasn’t!

He said, "I really don’t get you! I’m not a bad guy! Gu Shengsheng is my sister-in-law, and I was just trying to take you home!"

Yang Jiao sneered. "Do bad guys have it written on their faces? Plenty of people claim to be Shengsheng’s friend. Why should I believe you?"

"A spoiled heir like you. If I don’t teach you a lesson, someone else will sooner or later!"

Then she opened the partition.

She said to the driver, "Get your Mr. Jin out of the car. I’m driving."

Jin Ran was speechless. "Shouldn’t you be the one getting out? Why are my sister-in-law’s friends so domineering? This is my car!"

"Lu Shijing and I are friends! I was being nice and trying to help you! Why are you like this?"

Yang Jiao said, "Out here, anyone can claim to be anybody. I trust Lu Shijing’s character, but why should I trust you?"

"Get out!"

With that, the driver helped the hog-tied Jin Ran out of the car.

The driver said, "Let’s go, Mr. Jin. Stop struggling."

After watching them get out, Yang Jiao quickly moved to the driver’s seat and handed the driver a few hundred yuan.

She said, "Use this to get a taxi for your young master. I don’t want any trouble. I’ll return the car later."

’She just couldn’t bring herself to trust any strange man.’

After speaking, Yang Jiao drove off without a backward glance.

Watching the car’s taillights disappear, Jin Ran sighed, "You know, she looks pretty cool when she drives. It’s just... you can’t drink and drive."

"Should I call the cops and report her?"

"..." The driver had just been thinking his boss had fallen for her, but the next sentence made him realize the man had zero emotional intelligence.

"You should call Miss Gu. She hasn’t been driving long; if she pulls over right away, it’ll be fine."

Jin Ran had the driver untie him. "You’ve got a point," he said.

"But if I could... start by being friends with her... who knows... If I told her I fell for her at first sight over something like this, she’d definitely think I’m unreliable."

"Yes, you’ve certainly never been reliable," the driver agreed wholeheartedly.

"What did you say!" Jin Ran glared at him angrily. "I’m on the same team as Lu Shijing! He’s so reliable, so I must be even better than him! That was a slip of the tongue, right?" He was willing to give the driver a second chance.

The driver just shook his head sincerely. "No. You’re frivolous, and you’re not as capable as Boss Lu. At best, you’re just a spoiled heir. I think I can really understand Miss Yang Jiao. Nothing good can come from being around you."

Jin Ran was completely shocked. "Is my reputation really that bad?"

"Yes. You didn’t know?" The driver was also stunned. ’So Mr. Jin has no clear perception of himself,’ he thought.

The driver was exasperated. "You and Boss Lu were always messing around together back in the day, and you never dated anyone. People who didn’t know better thought you weren’t into girls. When the Old Master found out, he was terribly upset and even had Grandma Lu try to find a wife for you."

"Then weren’t you hanging out at nightclubs all the time? The Old Master thought you were just deceiving yourself, so he made me your driver! He wanted me to see if you were dating any girls, but you still haven’t found anyone."

"Now that you’ve finally taken a liking to Miss Yang Jiao, the Old Master will be thrilled."

The uncle-like driver had a gratified expression.

Jin Ran put his head in his hand. "Who said I like her? You think this is ’liking’ someone? Let me tell you, don’t go blabbing about this when you get back. If this blows up, who knows what will happen!"

Just then, a new driver pulled up in a car. The man said, "I’m the designated driver Miss Gu called for."

Jin Ran nodded. "Yeah. My sister-in-law is fast. I just mentioned it, and he’s already here."

After he got in the car, a notification popped up: a friend request from Yang Jiao.

At that moment, Jin Ran finally understood. No wonder Lu Shijing was so happy whenever Gu Shengsheng messaged him. ’So this is what it feels like,’ he thought.

Trying to act cool and aloof, he didn’t accept it right away. He waited a little while before approving the request and didn’t send a message.

A message came from Yang Jiao: "My apologies, Mr. Jin Ran. I was driving for a bit when I remembered I’d been drinking. Luckily, Shengsheng found someone to help. After she explained the situation, I realized you aren’t a bad person. I’m very sorry for my attitude toward you."

Jin Ran touched his stinging cheek where he’d been hit. "It’s fine. As long as you didn’t drive drunk."

’This Yang Jiao will definitely offer to treat me to a meal!’ Jin Ran thought. ’I need to think of what I like to eat to seem special.’

Then came another message from Yang Jiao: "Although I’m very sorry, I’d probably do the same thing if it happened again. We won’t have any contact in the future, so let’s just delete each other."

Jin Ran sent a "?" back, only to see a red exclamation mark appear.

"You are not friends. Please add the other party as a friend to send messages."

Jin Ran: "..." ’How did my first love end before it even began...’

He was about to fall apart.

「Meanwhile.」

After Gu Shengsheng received the call and sorted things out, she told Lu Shijing about it.

"Sister Yang Jiao was at a business meeting today and almost got into trouble. Jin Ran helped her, but she didn’t dare trust anyone at the time, so she slapped Jin Ran. And tied him up."

"But I’ve already arranged for a car to pick them up. If any compensation is needed later, Yang Jiao will cooperate. As for your end..."

Lu Shijing understood before she could finish. "Mm, he won’t take it to heart. Don’t worry. He probably even finds Yang Jiao special."

Because Lu Shijing knew that Jin Ran didn’t usually help anyone.

Gu Shengsheng: "..." ’Fine,’ she thought. ’That Jin Ran kid seems like a bit of an airhead anyway.’

Since it wasn’t often that Gu Shengsheng called, Lu Shijing wanted to talk a little longer. "Are you asleep?" he asked.

"No. It’s so late. What’s up?"

"Are you used to the new house yet?" he asked.

Gu Shengsheng replied, "Mhm, I like it a lot. And I’m used to it."

Just as Lu Shijing was trying to find something else to say, Gu Shengsheng hung up.

She came out of her room and saw Grandma Lu and Linnin sitting in the living room watching TV.

"I’m going to bed now, Grandma," she said.

Grandma Lu nodded. "Alright, you get some sleep. Your grandma is coming over tomorrow."

"We’ll go pick her up together tomorrow morning."

After that, Gu Shengsheng went to bed. The next morning, Gu Shengsheng, Grandma Lu, and Linnin waited at the high-speed rail station for an hour, but there was no sign of her.

Grandma Lu was puzzled. "I checked the ticket. This is the right train."

Gu Shengsheng added, "Grandma sent it to me, too. It’s this train."

Then Grandma Lu added, bewildered, "And her phone isn’t connecting."