The next day.
Most room cameras had already been activated, with only one remaining dark.
【I came early to wait, only to find the camera still off. Do you even value us premium viewers?】
【What exactly happened last night after the cameras went off? I’ve been restless all night, unable to sleep.】
【Turn the camera on now!】
Downstairs, most guests had already woken up and were chatting together.
Yu Xiayue scanned the surroundings and spoke to Xie Shiyuan: “Shiyuan, Wanwan…”
She paused mid-sentence, remembering Xie Shiyuan’s words from yesterday, then pursed her lips and timidly changed her address: “Yu Wan.”
“Yu Wan doesn’t seem to have come down yet.”
Xie Shiyuan noticed her hesitation and observed Yu Xiayue’s cautious expression, feeling a momentary softening in his heart.
Had he hurt her feelings yesterday by asking her to change how she addressed Yu Wan?
After all, she meant well.
Previously, Yu Wan had constantly given her trouble, yet she never held grudges.
But…
“Xiayue, I’m sorry about asking you to change how you address her yesterday,” Xie Shiyuan said with guilt.
“You know Wanwan’s temperament – she dislikes that form of address. I was worried…” Xie Shiyuan hesitated.
【So that’s why he wanted her to change how she addresses Yu Wan. Just how domineering is Yu Wan normally to make people so cautious about even saying her name?】
Yu Xiayue curved her lips into a smile and grasped Xie Shiyuan’s hand, speaking considerately: “I understand, you did it for my benefit.”
Beneath her calm demeanor, dark thoughts swirled. During her transmigration into the novel, it was clearly stated that she was the female lead, while Yu Wan was merely a cannon fodder character.
Even if Yu Wan had changed now, so what? She was the one who knew the plot, and she would definitely be the one laughing in the end.
Xie Shiyuan: “Mm.”
Seeing that Yu Xiayue didn’t seem truly angry, Xie Shiyuan breathed a sigh of relief.
“Xiayue, you’re so understanding.”
【Our Xiayue is both beautiful and kind-hearted!】
“By the way, what were you going to say about Wanwan earlier?”
Hearing his affectionate address for Yu Wan, Yu Xiayue sneered inwardly while maintaining a gentle expression.
“I was saying that Yu Wan hasn’t come down yet. Did she stay up too late last night and oversleep?”
She particularly emphasized the word “late” with hesitation.
Xie Shiyuan’s expression immediately darkened.
【Yu Wan was late on the first day, and now late again on the second day. If she’s so pampered, why join this show? She should just go home and be the young mistress.】
【Shut up, Yu Xiayue’s lackeys. Since when do you get to dictate when people wake up?】
【But speaking of waking up, I’m really curious about what they did last night. Did they get tired from… you know?】
【Just looking at Xie Mingyan, you can tell he’s very capable. It’s normal if the young mistress got tired.】
【Wait, you naughty girl, your ‘capable’ is definitely a verb here.】
In the room, Yu Wan was still drowsy.
Her stretching movement was once again restricted.
“Awake?” Xie Mingyan’s deep voice came through.
She turned her head and indeed, their hands were still linked. She had grown accustomed to this by now.
“Mmm~”
Fresh from sleep, Yu Wan’s speech carried a soft, trailing tone, like a lazy kitten.
She yawned and prepared to get out of bed.
As she extended her foot, her ankle was captured by a large hand.
Xie Mingyan knelt on one knee, Yu Wan’s smooth ankle firmly held in his grasp. His lowered gaze darkened slightly, concealing his expression.
Yu Wan trembled slightly, as if something had entangled her ankle, icy fingers slowly creeping up her fair skin.
Just as Yu Wan was about to lose patience and kick the person away, Xie Mingyan leisurely released her.
Yu Wan: “…”
Watching Xie Mingyan’s composed expression, it seemed as though he had merely done something utterly ordinary.
Could it be that she was oversensitive to such skin contact? There was really nothing to make a fuss about.
Yu Wan had nearly developed a habit: the first thing she did upon waking each day was check the countdown on her wrist.
She raised her hand, huh?
It had increased significantly again?
A deep confusion clouded her brows.
But last night, she had only held hands. If she remembered correctly, hand-holding should maintain a normal flow rate.
Then what about this extra increase?
Yu Wan suddenly recalled that after holding Xie Mingyan’s hand while sleeping on the first night, it had multiplied too.
And the only thing that could accelerate the time flow was…
Intimate contact!
Yu Wan abruptly turned her head, her clear eyes fixed unblinkingly on Xie Mingyan, fierce and accusing.
Xie Mingyan remained calm throughout, even tilting his head to ask: “What’s wrong?”
How dare you ask!
Don’t you know exactly what’s wrong!
The countdown’s increase pattern doesn’t lie. How could he dare!
Yu Wan glared at him fiercely, gritting her teeth as she demanded: “Xie Mingyan, did you take advantage of me while I was asleep!”
Xie Mingyan’s fingers, which had been picking out clothes, suddenly stilled!
Beneath lowered eyelids, dark waves surged in his eyes.
Discovered?
No, impossible.
Xie Mingyan almost immediately denied it. He was certain she had been asleep.
His actions had been restrained throughout; there was no way she could have noticed.
Then why? Why would she ask such a question?
When he looked up again, all extra emotion had vanished from his eyes, replaced by complete composure.
“No,” Xie Mingyan denied softly, a trace of confusion appearing between his brows. “Why would you ask that?”
Yu Wan stared intently at Xie Mingyan’s eyes, not missing a single detail, trying to find any hint of guilt.
But there was none. Not even a trace.
His expression was utterly composed.
Yu Wan: “?”
Could she really have been mistaken?
“But why did my fingers hurt when I woke up that day? And,” she said, raising her wrist, “why was there some redness here?”
“Can you honestly say these have nothing to do with you?”
Xie Mingyan’s eyes lowered slightly, his apology coming swiftly: “I’m sorry, that was my fault.”
Yu Wan thought: Just as I suspected.
She knew the countdown change had to be suspicious. This time I’ve caught you.
“You were holding too tightly, it hurt a bit,” Xie Mingyan lowered his head as if admitting his mistake. “I wanted you to loosen your grip, so I held your wrist, perhaps with too much force.”
Yu Wan: “…”
Yu Wan: “?”
Was her hand-holding grip really that strong? She hadn’t realized.
“Did it hurt?” Xie Mingyan looked up to ask her.
Yu Wan: “…”
No, is pain the main point?!
The main point is the abnormal increase in the countdown.
This explanation clearly didn’t convince her. She looked at Xie Mingyan suspiciously: “Are you sure there was nothing else besides this?”
A dark light flickered in Xie Mingyan’s eyes before he looked up at Yu Wan and confessed: “There was more.”
Yu Wan’s eyes lit up. Just as she thought.
Now let’s see what else he could possibly say.
“You don’t sleep very well at night,” Xie Mingyan seemed to hesitate before saying, “You like to hug something while sleeping.”
Yu Wan had already anticipated what he was going to say and thought to herself, oh no!
“So you held onto me and kept hugging my arm.” Xie Mingyan looked at her and spoke very sincerely.
“When I got up in the morning, I was afraid you’d be upset if you found out we weren’t holding hands, so I pulled my arm out and held your hand again.”
Yu Wan: “…”
She did have this habit, but she usually hugged stuffed toys, never a person!
Yu Wan’s expression was no longer under her control: “I…” didn’t!
The denial twisted on the tip of her tongue.
After all, she really was capable of doing such a thing.
“If I was hugging your arm, how did you sleep?”
He was still sleeping on the floor beside the bed. Although the bed wasn’t high, that position must have been terribly uncomfortable.
“I leaned against the bedside.” As he spoke, he gently lowered his eyes.
Yu Wan: “…”
Why did he look so pitiful like this, as if she had been bullying him.
It made Yu Wan feel that her suspicions toward him were somewhat excessive.
He had already endured so much grievance, and here she was suspecting him of taking advantage.
But this also explained why the countdown had been increasing faster.
Hugging his arm definitely involved more contact, so it made sense that it would be faster.
Yu Wan coughed lightly in embarrassment: “Next time, just wake me up. It makes me look like I’m bullying you.”
Xie Mingyan stared at her and slowly said: “Okay.”
[PS: Whether that “okay” is genuine or not, Xie Mingyan, don’t you know in your heart!
Waking her up is impossible, absolutely impossible!]