242: Chapter 242 Evening Star! It's a misunderstanding! - 1

Jiang Ye made a shushing gesture towards Lin Wanxing, took a deep breath, adjusted his expression, and yanked the door open.

"Lin Wanxing! You've got some nerve! Who do you think you're messing with..."

Zhao Yumei's furious voice cut off abruptly.

She stared at Jiang Ye standing before her, bare-chested with only a towel wrapped around his waist, his hair still slightly disheveled. She froze instantly, a flash of awkwardness crossing her face, and her tone involuntarily softened:

"Ah... Son-in-law... Is Wanxing... is she okay?"

Jiang Ye remained expressionless, one hand propped against the doorframe, his tone indifferent. "She's fine. What is it?"

Zhao Yumei's gaze instinctively tried to peer past him into the room through the gap. She caught sight of Lin Wanxing standing inside, her face flushed crimson, hair slightly tousled, eyes darting away, steam practically rising from her head.

She quickly glanced back at Jiang Ye, her eyes finally landing on the fresh, still glistening bite mark on the web of his right hand, which hung by his side... Zhao Yumei's heart skipped a beat, followed immediately by a surge of wild elation rushing to her head!

Oh my!

This scene... Did the son-in-law lose control and force himself on her?!

Yes, yes, yes! That must be it!

Isn't this exactly like those 'overbearing ceo's Forced Love' scenarios in the short dramas she watches?!

The process might be a bit rough, but once the rice is cooked, it's settled!

With the son-in-law's domineering yet responsible nature, after succeeding, he'd definitely treat the silly girl twice as well, trying his hardest to compensate her!

Then wouldn't their old Lin family... In a flash, Zhao Yumei's mind conjured up an eighty-episode TV drama. The smile on her face instantly became brilliantly radiant:

"It's nothing, nothing! Son-in-law, you go ahead and... attend to your business! I... I'll just stay here and keep watch for you! I'll make sure no one disturbs you! Don't worry! Don't worry at all!"

"???"

Several question marks popped up over Jiang Ye's head.

What nonsense is this woman babbling? Disturb what? Don't worry about what?

Director! Where's the director?!

What's up with this extra villain?! This isn't in the script! How dare she add her own scenes?! Is she desperate for fame?!

He stood silently at the door for a full two seconds. His brain whirred at high speed but still couldn't figure out what the old woman was so happy about. In the end, he could only attribute it to 'human joys and sorrows do not connect.' He let out a profound and inscrutable "Hmm," and once again slammed the door shut with force.

Inside the room, the blush on Lin Wanxing's face hadn't fully receded, steam still practically rising from her head. Jiang Ye even suspected that if you cracked an egg on it right now, it'd instantly turn into a soft-boiled egg.

He walked to the single-seat sofa with a huff and plopped down heavily, legs spread wide:

"What's going on? Didn't you leave? Why are you back? What the hell is your mom up to? Telling me to 'attend to my business' while she 'keeps watch' outside... What does that mean?"

Lin Wanxing took several deep breaths in succession, barely managing to suppress her pounding heart and the heat on her face.

She turned to look at Jiang Ye, about to speak, but the next second, her eyes snapped shut again, and she squeezed out a sentence through gritted teeth:

"You... you! Close! Your! Legs!"

Jiang Ye was taken aback. He looked down at his naturally parted legs and the wide-open 'central gate.' He cleared his throat awkwardly:

"Oops, my bad, my bad..."

As he spoke, he quickly pressed his legs together and adjusted the towel. "Alright, closed. Please inspect, leader."

Only then did Lin Wanxing cautiously open one eye a slit. Confirming he wasn't exposing himself anymore, she finally breathed a sigh of relief. Feeling physically and mentally exhausted, she walked over and sat down on the small sofa by the bed, rubbing her temples:

"My mom... she probably guessed that nothing happened between us. So she's sitting outside the door to block me, afraid I'd slip away to get another room."

"Oh?"

Jiang Ye raised an eyebrow, not quite grasping the logic. "So?"

"So?!"

Seeing his indifferent attitude and recalling the suffocatingly awkward scene from earlier, a wave of nameless anger surged up in Lin Wanxing again:

"What do you mean 'so'?! She knows we're fake! All the acting you did before, the money for the rented car, the hotel, the meals, and even the actor's fees! It might all be wasted!"

Seeing she was genuinely anxious, Jiang Ye scratched his head, somewhat unable to understand her train of thought.

No physical intimacy equals a fake couple? What's the necessary connection there?

Wouldn't this kind of 'restraint' better prove his 'Platonic' respect for her, and also make Zhao Yumei and the others more anxious and competitive precisely because there's no 'substantial progress'?

He looked at Lin Wanxing's expression as if the sky had fallen, and stroked his chin.

This girl... Could she be using the critical situation as an excuse, actually trying to divert attention and cover up the awkwardness of having just bitten someone and seen everything?

Or... is she really stuck in a mental rut?

Jiang Ye blinked, then suddenly stood up forcefully, stomped his foot, instantly plastering his face with anxiety and regret:

"Oh no! You're right! Now that you mention it, the situation is indeed quite critical! It's practically a moment of life and death!"

"???"

Seeing his exaggerated acting, Lin Wanxing's mental alarm bells instantly blared at level twelve.

Her rich 'combat' experience told her a scheme was probably coming.

But she couldn't figure out what trick he had up his sleeve right away, so she simply went along, giving a faint "Hmm" and waited to see what would happen.

Jiang Ye paced back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back, frowning and muttering to himself:

"What to do... what to do... We need to think of a way to fool your mom..."

Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks, his eyes lighting up. He raised a finger as if he'd thought of a brilliant idea.

"Got it! Wanxing, have you watched 'Character name from the drama'? The web drama starring Zhang Yishan!"

Lin Wanxing was momentarily confused by the sudden shift in topic. She nodded, "Yes, I've seen it. Why?"

"Do you remember, in one episode, Character name from the drama and his superior... the one called Big Sister Chesty, right? They pretended to be a couple for a mission and also faced a test where someone eavesdropped."

Jiang Ye guided her patiently, "How did they manage to fool everyone in the end?"

Lin Wanxing frowned, trying to recall. She had no impression. "Was there such a scene? I forgot. If you have a plan, just say it. Don't keep me in suspense."

Jiang Ye made a tutting sound, his face showing the bashfulness of a 'gentleman finding something hard to say outright':

"Oh dear, this kind of thing... How can a righteous person like me say it directly?"

As he spoke, he picked up his phone, adeptly opened a browser, and started searching, mumbling, "I remember a streaming site that's pretty fast..."

Before long, he opened a video and handed the phone to Lin Wanxing. Suddenly remembering something, he earnestly warned her:

"Hey, just watch this part, okay? Don't get click-happy and go somewhere else! This site has tons of pop-up ads. If some unhealthy stuff pops up, don't blame me!"