It was clear that Wei Qing Huan had been avoiding Ji Yuan, yet in the photos, Ji Yuan was gazing at her tenderly. Even if the photos were taken without Ji Yuan’s involvement, he had definitely guided this situation.
“I’m going to take care of that dog Ji Yuan right now!”
However, Lin Xiao Man had personally seen Wei Qing Huan take down a 1.85-meter muscular man, and she knew that Ji Yuan, who couldn’t even withstand the wind, would not survive her over-the-shoulder throw.
To prevent them from trending again, Lin Xiao Man advised: “Calm down first.”
“Dealing with him will make me calm.” Wei Qing Huan prepared to leave. “He dared to use me for exposure! I’ll show him he’s messed with the wrong person!”
“Wouldn’t that be exactly what he wants?”
“
“Should I just let him stick to me like a Band-Aid and disgust me? No way, I can’t let this go! Don’t try to stop me. If you’re worried, come with me and you can call an ambulance for him.”
Lin Xiao Man, seeing she couldn’t be persuaded, didn’t try to stop her and waved her hand: “I can’t stand bloody scenes, so I won’t go.”
“Right, don’t scare you. You stay here.”
Wei Qing Huan’s hand was on the doorknob when Lin Xiao Man spoke again: “Let me look at you properly.”
“I’ll be back soon, look at me later.”
“Probably will be waiting a long time.” Lin Xiao Man blinked, looking innocent and sweet. “I’ll miss you.”
Her voice was soft and sweet. Wei Qing Huan’s anger immediately dissipated: “Don’t worry, I’ll beat him up quickly.”
“You think you can easily come back after beating up Ji Yuan?” Lin Xiao Man took out her phone and read word by word: “According to Article 43 of the Public Security Administration Punishment Law: Those who beat others, or intentionally harm others’ bodies, will be detained for five to ten days and fined between 200 and 500 yuan…”
Wei Qing Huan’s hand stopped turning the doorknob. She looked at Lin Xiao Man, feeling both aggrieved and angry: “So I just have to swallow this humiliation? There’s no way to teach this dog of a man a lesson?”
“There’s more than one way to teach someone a lesson.” Lin Xiao Man looked up at her, smiling like a cunning little fox.
“You have a plan?”
“How about you invite him out for a chat?”
Wei Qing Huan called Ji Yuan. He was happy seeing the trending topic and, thinking he could create more publicity, readily agreed to meet.
Wei Qing Huan booked a high-end Japanese restaurant in B City, where each private room was isolated and couldn’t be photographed. Wei Qing Huan hosted Ji Yuan.
After the meal, Ji Yuan rushed to pay, and Wei Qing Huan didn’t argue. After leaving the restaurant, Wei Qing Huan refused Ji Yuan’s offer to take her back to the hotel and waited for Lin Xiao Man at the agreed location.
Back at the hotel, Lin Xiao Man posted a pre-edited Weibo: “Only food and beauty should not be wasted.”
The image used was a food photo from the Japanese restaurant, with one picture showing their hands in the frame, but no faces visible.
Wei Qing Huan was still somewhat worried: “Do you think this will really work?”
“Zhang Liang?”
“It used to refer to Zhang Liang, but now I’m talking about myself.” Lin Xiaoman peeled off the mask, her delicate face as smooth as an egg, and with her sparkling bright eyes, Wei Qinghuan was momentarily stunned.
“I’m going to check in on your super topic!”
“
Lin Xiaoman: ……
What kind of operation is this?
“You’re coming too, we definitely can’t lose!”
Actually, Lin Xiaoman didn’t know who she was supposed to win against.
Early the next morning, when Lin Xiaoman was woken up by Wei Qinghuan, she saw the Weibo hot search: Ji Yuan and Wei Qinghuan eating together.
Marketing accounts began reposting their affectionate GIFs from their MV shooting, combined with their solo dinner the night before, suggesting they were dating. The situation gradually escalated, and Ji Yuan’s response at noon brought things to a climax.
“This shameless dog, saying things that cause misunderstandings!” Wei Qinghuan’s ten fingers cracked, looking fierce.
“This is good.” Lin Xiaoman looked at Ji Yuan’s post “We just had a meal together, hope everyone doesn’t misunderstand” and smiled slightly.
Ji Yuan did not disappoint her.
She knew Ji Yuan would not miss this opportunity to generate buzz, and she had already prepared a countermeasure, posting a Weibo about eating with Wei Qinghuan the previous night.
Lin Xiaoman reposted her previous Weibo and tagged Wei Qinghuan, “Huanhuan, weren’t you the one who had dinner with me last night?”
Wei Qinghuan also reposted, sending a heart emoji, “Of course it was with my baby.”
Melon-eating netizens sprang into action.
On one side, Ji Yuan said he had dinner with Wei Qinghuan; on the other side, Lin Xiaoman and Wei Qinghuan said they had dinner together.
What was the truth?
Attentive netizens noticed that Lin Xiaoman’s Weibo was posted the previous day, and in the photo, one of the hands wore a bracelet that belonged to Wei Qinghuan. The reflection in the spoon also showed that the other person was indeed Wei Qinghuan.
With Lin Xiaoman’s help, Wei Qinghuan quickly posted another Weibo: What the eyes see cannot be trusted; what the heart relies on is also insufficient. Disciples, remember: understanding a person is not easy!
After fans interpreted it through their filter, it meant: What you saw of me and Ji Yuan is fake. Oh my, I can’t believe it! A person is much more terrifying than they appear. Ji Yuan is so cunning, trying to ride on my popularity! I’m speechless!
Wei Qinghuan’s fans were highly combative, digging out Ji Yuan’s history of creating buzz with whoever he was photographed with. Suddenly, online criticism of Ji Yuan was everywhere.
Ji Yuan, on the other hand, made no explanation, probably knowing there was no way to explain, quickly deleted the Weibo and pretended nothing happened.
“So satisfying!” Wei Qinghuan happily pounded the table.
“He should be quiet for a while,” Lin Xiaoman scrolled through Weibo, feeling relieved that Ji Yuan would be subdued for some time.
Lin Xiaoman smiled slightly: “Please take good care of me, Manager Qiao.”
After leaving the company, Lin Xiaoman went to the supermarket to buy ingredients and return home.
She had been thinking about treating Ji Zhiyan to a meal to thank him for his long-standing care, but considering that their appearance together might be photographed by reporters, she decided to cook at home.
She was not good at cooking, but Ji Zhiyan loved steak, which was simple to learn.
Lin Xiaoman decided to practice cooking at home a few times first. Once her skills were decent, she would casually cook for Ji Zhiyan and express her gratitude.
However, when she actually started frying, she realized that turning on the fire and flipping was difficult. Despite following the video, her results were strange – either burnt or half-cooked.
She wanted to do everything perfectly, so she tried another piece after each failed attempt.
It was only when the sound of a car engine stopping came from outside that Lin Xiaoman realized Ji Zhiyan had returned.
The kitchen, usually clean, now looked like a battlefield where millions of troops had fought.
★ Chapter Twenty-Eight: Secret Love
Ji Zhiyan had been very busy recently, with several projects requiring him to go abroad for negotiations.
A few days ago, after arriving overseas, he saw the news of Lin Xiaoman trending and immediately had someone handle it. When he finally saw Lin Xiaoman’s text message, it was already past 3 AM in China, too late to reply.
But that cold girl didn’t even ask another question.
Ji Zhihan looked at the short message in the chat box, feeling inexplicably irritated. He remembered the sad face he had seen on the plane.
What could make her show such an expression?
