Jiang Lingye: “No need.”
[Ahhh, he even turned his head away—is the little brother shy?]
[He definitely is!! He doesn’t dare look at all, because one more glance and he’d fall for her completely]
[Waaah, with such a gorgeous older sister standing right in front of him, he must be using every ounce of strength just to hold himself together]
[The veins on his hand are bulging—he must be suffering so badly holding it in. This off-the-charts sexual tension, I’m absolutely feral]
[What’s this couple’s ship name? Give me a fan tag, I want to ship them so bad]
Xu Mucheng looked frightened, but she didn’t back down.
“You don’t have to feel embarrassed. I did a lot, and Sister Qin can join us too…”
[What brand of little angel is Mumu? Where can I get one, please?]
[Jiang Lingye, don’t be shy—just go for it bravely!!]
[Has the world gone mad? Xu Mucheng and Jiang Lingye?? Isn’t Jiang Lingye both controversial AND a minor?!]
[Where are Jiang Lingye’s haters? Still not up? Aren’t you going to come out and drag Xu Mucheng down with him?]
[Just ship it, ship it! Ship freedom!]
[After last night, did Xu Mucheng’s team change their plan? Are they hiring paid posters to stir things up again?]
Xu Mucheng kept pestering him, and finally Jiang Lingye’s gaze landed on her.
Today he didn’t have the makeup artist’s magic touch, and yesterday he’d done physical labor all day, then had to rack his brain over problems when he got back.
He was utterly exhausted.
Even in an unfamiliar environment, even sharing a room with Zhuo Xi, he’d fallen asleep the moment his head hit the pillow and slept straight through till dawn.
Youth really is wonderful~
The situation was completely different from Luo Zibai’s side.
A night of good sleep.
The dark shadows under the boy’s eyes had faded. He was already exquisitely good-looking, and now, with no makeup at all, just a simple wash, his features were strikingly defined.
His deep black eyes, when looking at someone, gave the illusion of being pulled in by him.
Jiang Lingye spoke: “I said, move aside.”
Tears welled up in Xu Mucheng’s eyes again. She lowered her head to hide them and took two steps back.
“…Oh, o… okay…”
Anyone could hear the disappointment in her voice.
[Treating his wife like this… Jiang Lingye, you’ll regret it one day!]
[Abuse the wife for a moment’s pleasure, then grovel at the wife’s crematorium!!]
Luo Zibai had felt rather sour watching Xu Mucheng approach Jiang Lingye on her own.
He was jealous.
There had always been a pecking order in the entertainment industry.
Actors looked down on idols.
But at the height of Jiang Lingye’s fame, as a top-tier star, he had been far more popular than Luo Zibai’s current “traffic idol” status—even Luo Zibai had to yield to him. Even judging by looks alone, in a completely bare-faced state, Luo Zibai couldn’t compare.
Now, seeing Xu Mucheng in tears, Luo Zibai threw everything else out of his mind. Old grudges and new grievances piled together, and he vented it all at Jiang Lingye.
“Mumu was being kind. Why do you have to be so foul-tempered?”
Luo Zibai hadn’t rested well, and now with his anger, his face looked frighteningly gloomy.
“You’re truly a dog biting Lü Dongbin—unable to tell a good person from a bad one!”
Jiang Lingye glanced at him.
The boy had an aloof, unapproachable air, black eyes and black hair, and somehow looked nine parts identical to his sister, Qin Chaoyue.
“Is that the only line you know how to say?”
“Brother Zibai, forget it, forget it.”
Xu Mucheng went up and pulled him back too. As she bowed her head, tears fell in a scatter onto Luo Zibai’s arm, scalding the man’s heart with pity.
Her voice carried suppressed sobs. “It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have…”
“Sister Qin already had a bias against me. Xiao Ye is her younger brother—wherever he heard some things… it was only natural. I just made everything out to be simpler than it was.”
“Xiao Ye probably didn’t mean it either. He’s young. When he heard his sister say those things, he…”
[Even now, Xu Mucheng is still speaking up for Jiang Lingye. Waaah, girls, who else gets it? Xin-Cheng-Ze-Ling is just SO shippable]
[Qin Chaoyue!!]
[Fine, fine, fine. So you’re breaking up my ship, huh? Just you wait!!]
[The ship already has a name? Xin-Cheng-Ze-Ling, hahaha, that’s such a good name. As expected of someone who ships the same CP as me. Real taste!]
[Luo-Ri-Cheng-Xi: ? Excuse me, you all??]
Luo Zibai also recalled how Qin Chaoyue and Jiang Lingye had gotten together yesterday, whispering about who knows what.
So he snarled viciously, “Qin Chaoyue! Like a lingering ghost! Why is she everywhere?!”
“Black-hearted on the outside, blacker on the inside—just like that sister of yours!”
If Jiang Lingye’s expression before had merely been his usual coldness, the moment Qin Chaoyue was mentioned, it turned completely frigid, almost vicious.
“We’re talking about us right now. My… sister isn’t even here. Why are you bringing her up again?”
“Not just her.”
Jiang Lingye glanced at Luo Zibai, then shifted his gaze to Xu Mucheng.
Only this time, there were several more layers of disgust in his eyes.
“You too.”
The moment their eyes met, Xu Mucheng flinched like a startled deer, shrinking back two steps until she was behind Luo Zibai.
Jiang Lingye said coldly:
“Tears every single time. I’m sick of watching it.”
“Whatever my sister said to me yesterday, the livestream cameras recorded it clearly. You don’t get to stand here and speculate with your vague insinuations.”
“And you’re honestly an idiot. No brain at all.”
Jiang Lingye turned his gaze back to Luo Zibai. “Every time she says a couple of words, you charge to the front and draw all the fire onto yourself.”
“What, you don’t care about your own reputation anymore?”
“Then congratulations—your rivals must be thrilled watching this show.”
“Mumu would never hurt me!” Luo Zibai said, jaw set stubbornly.
Jiang Lingye tugged the corner of his handsome mouth into a mocking smirk.
“Heh.”
[Jiang Lingye personally tearing down the CP with his own hands! So satisfying!!]
[Where are all the Xin-Cheng-Ze-Ling shippers now? Say something! Still shipping or not?]
[I said ages ago that Xu Mucheng is a green tea bitch. And Luo Zibai is such a sucker—doing all the dirty work for her, and in the end she’ll still go crawling back to Jiang Lingye. Heh]
[No house for simps!!]
[I was wondering why those people were acting so weird today—not only not bashing Jiang Lingye, but actually shipping him with someone completely unrelated. Turns out Xu Mucheng’s company hired a wave of paid posters]
[And then when they saw Jiang Lingye wasn’t buying it, they started talking trash about my wife instead]
[Qin Chaoyue: ?]
[My Sister Qin just attracts too much hate]
[Wife: I wasn’t even there, yet the legends of me still roam the jianghu—drenched in blood and storm]
[I thought Jiang Lingye was the quiet, taciturn type. Turns out when he opens his mouth, that tongue is just as vicious]
[Confirmed: he and Qin Chaoyue have to be full siblings! That’s my brother-in-law, destined by fate!!]
[And here I thought, given how black-and-red Jiang Lingye’s reputation is these days, he’d keep a lower profile on the show]
【This is the courage Sister gives you!】
【Jiang Lingye: She’s already shipping herself with a minor like me—why would I keep indulging her?】
On Xu Mucheng’s side, things were left at that.
Luo Zibai had just been cursed out by an illiterate—even though his own first-round test score was lower than Jiang Lingye’s, he was still thoroughly displeased.
His eyes were full of scrutiny and wariness as he looked at Jiang Lingye: “What are you up so early for?”
Jiang Lingye had finally made his way past the obstacles to the stove. He didn’t turn his head.
“Making breakfast.”
Luo Zibai said smugly, “After all that talk, in the end you’re still going to eat Mumu’s cooking, aren’t you?”
“If you apologize to Mumu right now, I might still…”
The young man frowned, looking impatient.
“If your ears are really ringing that badly, you can tilt your head to the side and pour the seawater out of your skull before you speak again.”
“You—!”
Xu Mucheng’s soft, delicate voice rang out once more, “Ah… so early in the morning. Did Sister Qin send you to make her breakfast?”