Jiang Lingye tilted his head back.
His palm flipped over and covered his face.
Blocking the light about to fall on his head, and also hiding the depth in his eyes… and the gloom.
What did he even have?
She was only his “fake sister”—once the show ended, she would naturally leave.
She might not even wait until the end.
Just like all those fans in the past who said they liked him—one by one, hadn’t they believed, and then drifted away?
It wasn’t those people’s fault.
It was that he wasn’t good enough, just like his family. Maybe he had never deserved anyone’s affection in the first place.
And besides—
A real man doesn’t cry!
…
The guests dispersed, each starting their own tasks.
Qin Chaoyue saw Jiang Lingye’s gesture from afar.
So he really was a Little Crybaby.
Compared to that fake younger brother who only stirred up trouble and hurt people the moment he made a move, this one was clearly the party being “provoked.”
From the standpoint of helping clean up messes…
Little Crybaby it is, then.
Someone who only sniffled to himself didn’t get in anyone’s way—and honestly, a Little Crybaby seemed rather more endearing.
Besides, this genuine younger brother was good-looking, after all.
As for the rest…
A heart’s illness needs heart’s medicine.
No rush.
“About earlier—thank you.”
Qin Chaoyue looked up. It was Cen Xuyi who had come to find her, because of the identity card swap earlier.
She had lovely features, a neat short haircut, dressed crisply and efficiently—the kind of person Qin Chaoyue liked…
…as an employee.
Qin Chaoyue was very accepting; she could appreciate all kinds of beauties.
“No need to thank me,” she explained. “I didn’t speak up for your sake.”
Cen Xuyi smiled. “Either way, I did receive a favor.”
Suddenly.
Cen Xuyi’s smile faded, and she said, somewhat seriously, “Xu Mucheng and Luo Zibai both have powerful backing—especially Xu Mucheng.”
“And Jiang Lingye’s current reputation—I doubt it fermented naturally.”
There was a hidden hand behind it.
When Qin Chaoyue returned, she’d had someone dig up everything on Jiang Lingye from childhood to now.
Those files were sitting on her desk right now, so of course she knew.
But Cen Xuyi offering her this favor meant something different—and that point she’d mentioned earlier…
“Thank you.”
Qin Chaoyue accepted the goodwill, then said, “And how do you know my own backing is simple?”
Cen Xuyi froze. “It seems I’ve meddled where I shouldn’t.”
“You haven’t.” Qin Chaoyue’s voice seemed a touch softer than before. “Your information is very important to me.”
“By the way, when you’re doing deliveries, plan your route in advance, take orders along that road, don’t accept too many at once, and watch your time limits…”
Cen Xuyi’s gaze stayed fixed on Qin Chaoyue’s face, not moving for a long while.
Who knew how much of it she actually took in.
Qin Chaoyue felt like a dungeon boss—no sooner had Cen Xuyi left than Zhuo Xi arrived.
The livestream cameras hadn’t followed them for even a moment on the way over.
Upon arriving, Zhuo Xi first apologized for the earlier “mix-up,” then apologized on Jiang Lingye’s behalf.
And in roundabout ways, in front of someone he barely knew, he used his status as an old teammate to cement the impression of Jiang Lingye’s terrible temper.
Finally came the main event.
Zhuo Xi wore an expression of pure innocence and shyness, and when he smiled, two little tiger teeth showed at just the right moment.
Sweet, with a faint, almost imperceptible aggressiveness.
The standard puppy-dog little brother persona.
“The identity cards we drew are both sales-type professions, so we have quite a bit in common. I think we can chat on the way—maybe we’ll come up with some good ideas.”
Qin Chaoyue was President Qin, a businesswoman.
Having dealt with all sorts of people over the years, she had naturally noticed that ever since they first appeared—even while just speaking—the two men surnamed Zhuo kept letting their gazes drift over her, deliberately or not.
They weren’t just looking at her; they were sizing up her outfit and appearance, assessing exactly how much she was worth.
Now, Qin Chaoyue appraised the other party with the very same kind of gaze—only hers was even colder.
Her focus settled on the other’s face—
“No wonder you needed to take up so much of the makeup artist’s time. It really is… not easy. You have my sympathies.”
Every word that spilled from those vivid red lips was a knife to the heart, proving that earlier, Qin Chaoyue had indeed just been toying with the idiot little brother for fun.
Zhuo Xi’s face darkened instantly, and the puppy-dog smile he’d been using to charm rich older women completely fell apart.
After leaving, he found a spot out of the cameras’ view and made a call, his face gloomy.
“Where’s Jiang Lingye’s sister?”
“Where did that ugly, tacky, brother-devoted sister the company originally arranged for Jiang Lingye go?!!”
Jiang Lingye’s newly assigned job as a sanitation and greening worker was no easy task.
It was pure manual labor.
It was summer vacation now, and hauling and planting trees on scorching asphalt under the blazing sun was grueling beyond words.
Jiang Lingye had been tanned to a crisp.
Unlike the flattery others received, his livestream was forever filled with a stream of vicious, stinging abuse.
But as eighteen-year-old Jiang Lingye worked alongside those rough men in their forties and fifties, finishing the job without a single word of complaint or weariness from start to finish…
The barrage of vicious curses gradually thinned out.
Though it still contained comments like 【This is just a whitewashing stunt!】, 【May Jiang Lingye stay unlucky his whole life】, and 【Got it—you’re better at washing than a washing machine!】…
This time, far fewer people were being swept along by them.
By lunchtime, the young man’s clothes were soaked through, revealing clearly defined—not overly exaggerated—abdominal muscles.
Evenly toned from training.
It made his figure look even taller and straighter, with a sense of explosive strength.
This was the kind of physique that could only come from diligent dance practice.
His black hair was damp, yet it didn’t look sloppy.
Instead, it made his skin look porcelain-white and his pupils darker still, the smooth lines of his face growing deeper and sharper.
He was little by little shedding his boyish immaturity, transforming into a sexy, hormone-laden man.
【Haaah—】
【One must not—at the very least, one should not…】
【I know it’s a bit inappropriate to say this now, but—Jiang Lingye, please look straight at me!】
【Jiang Lingye, you’re so damn cursed!】
【You have such great conditions—can’t you just make fewer mistakes? I could even tolerate the scowling, slacking, and diva behavior, but did you have to touch the one thing you mustn’t touch?】
【His crimes are beyond counting!!】
【Just get out of the entertainment industry already—looking at that face ruins my day every time I see it, and it’s definitely not because my resolve is weak~!】
【Here comes the dish soap again (eye roll) (eye roll)】
Jiang Lingye knew nothing of the haters and arguments in the comments; he simply kept working obediently.
When the work was done, he sat down by the roadside with the other workers to eat.
They were eating boxed lunches bought from a nearby place.
Same as everyone else.
Jiang Lingye shoveled the food down, showing not the slightest hint of distaste in his expression or manner.
[He’s acting. He’s really good at acting!]
[Buddy’s in the wrong career. With acting skills that good, why be an idol? Switch to acting in idol dramas already!]
The older workers were all warm-hearted people.
For one thing, Jiang Lingye worked diligently and never complained; for another, he was young.
“Son, you look about the same age as my boy. Why are you doing this kind of work? Not going to school anymore?”
“Yeah, I’m not in school.” Jiang Lingye kept his head down over his rice, his voice low.
“You can’t skip school, you know. Otherwise you’ll end up like us, doing manual labor our whole lives. We can still manage it now, but what about when you’re old?”
“That’s why I’m sending my kid to school no matter what. If he says he’s quitting to come do hard labor like me, I’ll beat him!”
“Kid, you’ve got such good conditions these days—don’t waste them. You look soft-skinned and handsome. If you’ve had some falling-out with your family…”
A car abruptly pulled up and stopped in front of them by the roadside.
Utterly ostentatious.
As the window slowly rolled down, it revealed Qin Chaoyue’s cold, aloof, and stunningly beautiful profile.
Qin Chaoyue nodded at Jiang Lingye.
“Get in.”
Jiang Lingye: ??
The livestream chat: [??]
“Did you bribe the production team?”
Now it was Qin Chaoyue’s turn: ??
Brat.
Qin Chaoyue smiled without warmth. “If you can’t speak properly, I don’t mind having a mute around me.”
The worker uncles all stared, dumbfounded, and nudged Jiang Lingye’s arm.
“Is that your sister?”
Jiang Lingye pressed his lips together and didn’t answer.
“With a sister like that, you’re still not going to school, and you came here to plant trees with us??”
Qin Chaoyue’s gaze fell on the boxed lunch in Jiang Lingye’s hands.
Just like that—and these people had even secretly slipped him a couple of extra slices of meat while she was talking earlier.
They were worried the kid wasn’t eating well and it would stunt his growth.
Except Jiang Lingye, not yet eighteen, was already nearly six feet tall—taller than most of the people here.
And now this “sister” of his had shown up in a sedan.
Qin Chaoyue didn’t discriminate against anyone, or any profession.
She smiled at these most unpretentious of people.
“Oh, it’s nothing.”
“He’s in his rebellious phase—just loves seeking out hardship for no reason.”