42: Chapter 42 Water World Swimsuit Critical Hit

The bullet comments were still flooding with that line from Li Li: "I believe you."

[Brother Li's choice to take sides here is so hardcore!]

[But seriously, that apology from Su Wantang makes me feel nauseous just looking at it...]

[+1 to the user above. What does "emotional breakdown wasn't intentional" even mean? You can still whitewash taking things out of context?]

Director Pei Zhao clapped his hands, interrupting the whispers in the restaurant.

"Alright, stop scrolling through your phones."

He held up a tablet, and the projector displayed a promotional image on the wall—azure water, towering slides, and models wearing bikinis.

"Today's first activity: Atlantis Water World. The Production Team has booked it for half a day, so you can play to your hearts' content."

He paused for a beat and scanned the female guests.

"Bring your own swimwear. If you didn't bring any, buy some at the hotel mall."

Shen Jue's fork froze in mid-air, a piece of bacon still hanging from his lips.

"W-Water World?"

Cen Ye had a cigarette dangling from his mouth, his canine tooth showing.

"Nice."

Han Xubai pushed up his glasses and took a sip of coffee without saying a word—though the temple of his glasses was crooked.

Gu Zeyan deliberated for three seconds.

"That's great, everyone can relax a bit."

The bullet comments exploded.

[The male guests' eyes gave everything away, hahahaha!]

[Cen Ye, can you wipe that look off your face!]

[Han Xubai, your glasses are crooked, stop pretending!]

The vibe on the female guests' side was completely different.

Yin Ruoying held her coffee cup, scanned the group, and finally her gaze landed on Jiang Rumu.

"Teacher Jiang, you must have a great figure, right? You'll have to let us see for ourselves later."

Jiang Rumu didn't look up, continuing to cut the fried egg on her plate.

"It's alright."

Fang Ruowei smiled gently.

"I'm actually a bit nervous, after all, there are so many cameras..."

Wen Zhuotang kept her head down, her fingers twisting the hem of her skirt.

"I-I don't really know how to swim..."

Li Li was sitting to Jiang Rumu's left, drinking coffee.

Jiang Rumu reached over and pinched his thigh with her fingernails.

It wasn't hard, but it was precise.

Li Li nearly spat out his coffee and turned to look at her.

Jiang Rumu was looking down, scrolling through her tablet, her ears turning bright red.

"What are you looking at?"

Her voice was very low.

Li Li withdrew his gaze and continued drinking his coffee.

The bullet comments went wild.

[Jiang Rumu, why did you pinch him?!]

[Brother Li, where did your eyes wander just now? You got caught red-handed!]

[These two have something going on! Definitely something going on!]

Director Pei Zhao clapped his hands.

"We leave at 9:30. Go get ready now."

---

Room 2005.

Li Li pushed open the door, and Jiang Rumu followed him in.

She tossed her tablet onto the sofa and turned to go into the bedroom.

Three minutes later, she came out carrying a shopping bag with the LV logo.

She sat down on the sofa and pulled a swimsuit out of the bag.

It was red, a one-piece, with a neckline that wasn't too low, but it had cut-out designs on the sides of the waist.

Li Li glanced at it and looked away.

"When did you buy that?"

Jiang Rumu was taken aback.

"I'm the brand ambassador, didn't you know? The sponsor sent it."

Jiang Rumu stuffed the swimsuit back into the bag, held her tablet, scrolled a few times, and then stopped.

"Su Wantang posted again."

Li Li took out his phone.

Third on the trending list—#Su Wantang Apologizes Late at Night#

He clicked on it; the Weibo post was made at 3 AM, and the caption was very long.

The gist was admitting that the screenshots were taken out of context, but emphasizing that she had an emotional breakdown at the time, it wasn't intentional, hoping everyone would forgive her, and also hoping Li Li could understand her difficulties.

The last sentence— "We were both wrong, but I did love him."

It had 230,000 retweets, and the comment section was divided into two camps: one scolding her for playing the victim, and the other feeling sorry for her being cyberbullied.

Li Li locked his screen.

"Her agency has made a move."

Jiang Rumu nodded.

"I know Company's PR tactics too well. First, let her apologize to cool things down, then use 'emotional breakdown' to whitewash it, and finally use 'I loved him' to gain sympathy."

She handed over the tablet; the screen showed a screenshot of business registration information.

Xingcan Media—Su Wantang's agency.

Parent Company—Company Culture Group.

Company Culture Group—Jiang Rumu's former agency.

Li Li stared at that line of text for three seconds.

"So, Su Wantang smearing you was arranged by Company?"

"Eighty percent likely."

Jiang Rumu took back the tablet and held it in her arms.

"Company wants to force me to renew my contract, but black material alone isn't enough; they need a control group—someone 'more miserable than me.' Su Wantang is just right. She smears you and drags me down with her at the same time. Once the audience sees 'scumbag man paired with wicked woman,' my reputation will be completely ruined."

She looked down at the tablet.

"But they miscalculated two things. You have the complete chat logs, so I'm not afraid of being blacklisted. Su Wantang's persona has collapsed, so Company's plan has already half-failed. As for the other half—those four pieces of black material about me—as long as I produce the evidence, I can turn the tables."

"Is the evidence ready?"

"Almost. But not now. Wait until Su Wantang makes another move, then I'll expose everything at once."

She stood up, carried the shopping bag, and walked toward the bedroom. After two steps, she stopped without turning back.

"Li Li."

"Yeah."

"Thanks."

It was very soft.

Li Li didn't respond.

Jiang Rumu went into the bedroom, and the door closed.

---

Atlantis Water World, 10:00 AM, the Production Team booked the venue.

Ten guests came out of the changing rooms.

The male guests were all in board shorts and T-shirts. Shen Jue was 1.87 meters tall, with broad shoulders and long legs, wearing black board shorts and a casual T-shirt, his hair still wet.

Cen Ye was lean, with tan skin, and the mirage dragon tattoo on the side of his neck was very conspicuous in the sunlight.

Han Xubai wasn't wearing glasses; he had switched to contacts. His "refined scumbag" vibe was toned down by thirty percent, replaced with a bit of wildness.

Gu Zeyan had the most standard physique—eight-pack abs, mermaid line—but his expression was a bit stiff—his manager had sent him ten WeChat messages last night reminding him to "pay attention to camera presence."

On the female guests' side, Yin Ruoying was wearing a black bikini with a sheer chiffon cover-up over it. Her skin was cool-toned white, her figure was hot, and her aura was fully unleashed.

Fang Ruowei chose a conservative one-piece swimsuit in lotus root pink, paired with curtain bangs, looking gentle and intellectual.

Wen Zhuotang wore a white bikini with an oversized T-shirt over it, revealing a section of her legs, looking soft and cute.

Qi Wanyin wore a black one-piece swimsuit with a Morandi-colored sun-protective shirt, her long, straight black hair tied into a low ponytail, appearing cold and distant.

Jiang Rumu was the last one to come out.

A red one-piece swimsuit, the neckline wasn't low, but the sides of the waist were cut out, revealing a section of her waistline. Her long, straight black hair was let down, untied, and her skin was glowing white.

The moment she walked out of the changing room, all the male guests' gazes drifted over.

Shen Jue froze for a second and scratched his head.

"Sis... you look good..."

Cen Ye had a cigarette dangling from his mouth, his canine tooth showing, and he winked at Li Li.

Han Xubai pushed up his contact lenses—a futile gesture—his hand hung in mid-air before he awkwardly lowered it.

Gu Zeyan deliberated for three seconds.

"Teacher Jiang, you have a really great figure."

Li Li stood by the surfing pool, holding a bottle of mineral water.

Jiang Rumu walked over and stood beside him.

"Seen enough?"

Her voice was very low.

Li Li took a sip of water.

"It's alright."

Jiang Rumu's ears turned red.

"If you look again, I'll pinch you."

The bullet comments went nuclear.

[Jiang Rumu, your ears are red again!]

[Brother Li, can you restrain your gaze a little!]

[These two really have something going on! I don't believe they don't!]

Director Pei Zhao clapped his hands.

"Free time, gather in two hours."

---

Surfing pool.

Shen Jue was the first to rush in, diving into the water with a splash. He surfaced three seconds later, shaking his hair, sending water droplets flying everywhere.

"Refreshing!"

Cen Ye jumped in after him, did a few strokes of backstroke, then turned and shouted at Li Li.

"Brother Li! Come on down!"

Li Li stood by the pool, not moving.

Jiang Rumu was taking off her sun-protective shirt nearby, her movements very slow. She folded the shirt, placed it on a lounge chair, and turned to walk into the water.

The moment she entered the water, the cut-out design on her waist was especially conspicuous in the sunlight.

Li Li looked away and twisted his left wrist.

Blue text floated up.

[System Prompt: Host's heart rate detected to have increased by 12%]

[System Prompt: Suggestion: Host, please remain calm]

He locked the screen and entered the water.

In the surfing pool, Jiang Rumu swam two laps and stopped by the edge. Li Li swam over and stopped beside her.

"Can you swim?"

"Duh, I've known how since I was ten."

Jiang Rumu brushed her hair back, water droplets dripping down from the ends.

"What about you?"

"I can too, since twelve, organized by the orphanage."

Jiang Rumu didn't respond, and the two were quiet for a few seconds.

On the other side of the pool, Wen Zhuotang was holding a kickboard, calling out softly.

"I-I don't really know how to swim... can someone teach me?"

Gu Zeyan immediately swam over.

"I'll do it."

Han Xubai also swam over.

"I can too."

Shen Jue scratched his head and didn't move.

Cen Ye had a cigarette dangling from his mouth, floating on the water, and shouted at Li Li.

"Brother Li, aren't you going?"

Li Li ignored him.

Jiang Rumu turned her head to look at Wen Zhuotang's side.

"She doesn't know how to swim?"

"Don't know."

"Do you believe it?"

Li Li took a sip of water.

"Don't believe it."

Jiang Rumu smiled.

"Smart."

She swam to the center of the pool, did two laps of backstroke, and stopped. Li Li followed her.

"When do you plan to expose those four pieces of black material?"

"Wait a bit longer. Su Wantang will make more moves. Once she's played all her cards, I'll expose everything at once."

Jiang Rumu was floating on the water, her long, straight black hair spread out.

"When that time comes, Company has to be exposed too."

Li Li didn't respond.

Jiang Rumu turned to look at him.

"You'll help me, right?"

"I will."

"Why?"

Li Li twisted his left wrist.

"Because you've helped me."

Jiang Rumu's ears turned red again.

"Alright."

She swam away.

The bullet comments went wild.

["You'll help me, right?" "I will." — I'm dead!]

[Jiang Rumu, can you stop your ears from turning red!]

[When will these two announce their relationship! I can't wait!]

---

Lazy river, 1:00 PM.

Ten guests were lying on floats, drifting along the current.

Jiang Rumu had her eyes closed, drifting beside Li Li. The sunlight hit her face, and her eyelashes cast a shadow under her eyelids.

Li Li turned to look at her.

"Sleepy?"

"Yeah, I didn't fall asleep until after three last night."

Li Li didn't respond.

Jiang Rumu opened her eyes and turned to look at him.

"What about you?"

"Twelve."

"You went to sleep pretty early."

"It's alright."

The two were quiet for a few seconds, and Jiang Rumu closed her eyes again.

"Li Li."

"Yeah."

"Do you think... Company will make another move?"

"They will."

"When?"

"Soon, probably."

Jiang Rumu didn't respond.

The current of the lazy river was very slow, the sunlight was very warm, and as she drifted, she fell asleep.

Li Li turned to look, reached out, pulled her float over, and tied it to his.

The bullet comments exploded.

[Brother Li, what are you doing?!]

[He tied Jiang Rumu's float to himself!]

[What kind of god-tier move is this!]

[I ship it! I really ship it!]

Old Zhou was carrying the camera, filming, his lens locked tightly onto this scene—the two floats tied together, Jiang Rumu sleeping soundly, Li Li looking at her with his head turned, his bangs wet from the water, sticking to his forehead.

The bullet comments were already going wild.

[I can ship this image for a year!]

[Brother Li, just admit it! You definitely have feelings for Jiang Rumu!]

[Will Jiang Rumu flip out when she wakes up, hahahaha!]

---

3:00 PM, the Production Team gathered everyone.

Director Pei Zhao stood by the surfing pool, holding a tablet, with a standard professional smile on his face.

"Today's leisure time ends here."

He swiped the screen.

"Next, the game officially begins."

He paused for a beat and scanned the ten guests.

"The first game—Water Ejection version of Pictionary."