“I get what you mean. You’re asking me to be a spy, right?”
“Yes. Of course, how you interact with him, how much contact you have, and how close you get is up to you. But once Ye Aotian starts rising, I don’t think he can be stopped.”
Jin Lan nodded. That was inevitable—after all, he was the protagonist.
“Mm, I understand. Don’t worry, I’ll follow your plan in this matter. But just because I’m listening to you doesn’t mean I’m admitting defeat.”
Cao Zijin said, “Honestly, I kind of wish you were my opponent. It would be much more fun that way. Too bad. If it weren’t for my husband, I wouldn’t even bother with you.”
Jin Lan stood up and said, “Mm, I won’t eat anything then.”
“Eat a little, there’s no rush. Chen Fan is upstairs drinking tea. You can find him on the balcony later.”
“He … won’t listen to me.”
Cao Zijin leaned in and whispered something into Jin Lan’s ear.
Jin Lan asked, “Is this really appropriate?”
“It’s accurate. My man—I know him best.”
Liu Feifei looked at the bone in her hand with a miserable expression. “What are you guys talking about? I want to know too! How about I share my bones with you, and you tell me?”
But both of them remained silent.
[Should I just go find a place to kill myself now?]
[Jin Lan, what do you want with me? My storyline has already gone off track. I’ll just reset everything if it does. I really can’t take this anymore.]
[Sigh, it’s too exhausting. Forget it, thinking about it just makes me more tired. I’ll just wait and see what happens.]
[But Jin Lan has it pretty rough too. Ye Zifeng’s confession was actually quite interesting—he prepared a huge fireworks display.]
[But Ye Aotian wasn’t about to be outdone. Though his confession was a bit stingy—he only had a small firework in his hand. The funny thing is, Jin Lan actually thought Ye Aotian’s little firework was more beautiful.]
[Damn it, this is hilarious. The author is definitely anti-rich. But then again, if they didn’t write anti-rich stories, the readers probably wouldn’t want to read it.]
[Speaking of which, who was that woman again? I remember there was supposed to be a spy appearing around this time. Sigh, my memory … whatever, it’s not my time to show up yet. I’ll worry about it when it is.]
After reading the diary, several female leads smiled helplessly.
Chen Fan really had it tough, getting stuck with so many female leads who refused to play by the rules. He was probably exhausted and just wanted to die by now.
At that moment, Jin Lan opened the door, stepped onto the balcony, and sat beside Chen Fan.
“Do you really hate me that much?”
“I don’t. It was just a misunderstanding. Now that I know it was a misunderstanding, I don’t mind anymore.”
“Oh? Really? But from the look in your eyes, it still seems like you dislike me.”
Of course, Chen Fan disliked her. She was a key character in the plot—if she messed up, he wouldn’t be able to return.
“Would you really be willing to let go?”
Actually, what Jin Lan was asking was: “Are you really willing to go back? Won’t you miss us? Won’t you miss me? Won’t you miss all of us?”
But what Chen Fan heard was: “Are you really willing to stop contacting me?”
“It’s not that I’m willing … it’s just … I already said it was a misunderstanding. I always thought you were helping Ye Aotian, but now I realize he made it on his own. I feel like I failed.”
Jin Lan said, “That doesn’t sound like you.”
Damn it. I have no lines left to continue this conversation. My script only has this much dialogue. How am I supposed to improvise? You’re not even paying me extra for this. This is hard, okay? My head hurts now. Damn.
“I was just saying … I just didn’t expect him to improve so quickly. But it’s fine. Since he’s my opponent, it wouldn’t be good if he was too weak.”
Jin Lan said, “Mm. I thought you would be worried. But I still want to know—why didn’t you trust me?”
Chen Fan was completely out of words. Every time these female leads started improvising, he had to adjust his lines accordingly. But there were too many changes, and even he couldn’t keep up.
“We’ve worked together for so long, and you don’t trust me? Do you really have so little faith in me?”
“I didn’t … I was just confused.”
Jin Lan stood up and sat directly on Chen Fan’s lap. She said, “Look at me. Don’t turn away.”
“I’m looking. I didn’t turn away.”
“Look at me with your eyes.”
“I’m looking … Why are you crying?”
Jin Lan said, “Maybe it’s because of the wind … Um … I think I like you now.”
What the hell. Don’t do this. I … I’m nervous. Please, just don’t.
“I … don’t know what to say.”
“What you say has nothing to do with me. I am who I am. I have my work, and I still need to climb higher. My dream is to advance in my career. If you want me to settle down and be a housewife, that’s impossible.”
Wait a minute, big sis, you’re getting this all wrong. Did you misunderstand something? First of all, you liking me is your business. I never said I liked you back. Are you already treating yourself as my girlfriend?
Holy sh*t. No, don’t do this. Please, just focus on dealing with me instead. Really, trust yourself. Work against me. Control me.
“You … are you serious?”
“Yes, I’m serious. Why? Ye Aotian’s development will definitely involve me. He’s already driving the city’s growth, boosting the economy, and even stabilizing the underworld. Naturally, we’ll cross paths. A lot of people are already speaking up for him.”
“Mm … And you being a spy means?”
“If I get any intel, I think I’ll tell you. But of course, how much I tell you depends on my mood.”
Now that sounds right. Damn, Chen Fan was really worried this woman would spill everything. If she did, how would he counter it?
Wait a second—I’m a dumb villain! Even if she tells me everything, so what? I just have to act accordingly.
What am I even preparing for? If I know, then I just have to follow along and act arrogant. Wouldn’t that work perfectly? The plot would still stay on track.
Holy sh*t, I’m a genius. This is flawless!
“Alright. It’s up to you.”
Jin Lan reached out, pinched Chen Fan’s face, and said, “Remember, me liking you is my business. Whether you like me or not is yours. You can reject me if you want, but it doesn’t matter. I’ll still keep my right to like you.”
Shameless. This is pure shamelessness! Wait a second—she wouldn’t say something . She absolutely wouldn’t! Jin Lan would never say something so embarrassing.
“Cao Zijin! I’m going to kill you!” Chen Fan roared. There wasn’t much guessing needed this had to be that woman’s ridiculous idea.
Jin Lan said, “Don’t bother her. This was my own decision.”