CHAPTER 83: CHAPTER 83 CONTINUE TO DO

"You, get back here immediately! No, wait. Right now, you film an apology video for me. Admit that you were behind the rumors about so-and-so, and that other person. Ask them for forgiveness."

Lei Na was stunned.

"Why?"

"Why? You ask why, you stupid bitch! Do you know who you’ve offended? Ninth Master! Li Consortium’s Ninth Master!"

Lei Na still didn’t understand.

"When did I offend Ninth Master Li?"

"Are you blind? In a moment, Wang Fang will point out to you who Ninth Master Li is! Start filming the apology video right now! Once you’re done, get over to the hotel and kneel in front of Ninth Master’s door!"

Lei Na was incredibly hurt; she was Daddy’s little princess.

Daddy had said that no one in this world should make her feel aggrieved, and now, just because of this, he was scolding her!

Liar!

Lei Na started crying.

At that moment, Wang Fang also came in, head hanging.

"Miss, the man who has been silent all this time is Ninth Master Li!"

Him?

Lei Na remembered. She had found him handsome and had even wanted to make a good impression on him. But then, she was provoked by the An Duxuan siblings and never paid attention to that man again!

She’d never imagined he was the true reason her father had berated her!

「Online.」

Netizens were having a field day with the juicy gossip.

Less than twenty minutes after Little Princess Lei’s scandal broke, several other celebrities had been caught up in disasters of their own.

Some with ambiguous relationships with fans, some who pressured girlfriends into abortions, some whose illegitimate children were exposed...

Just as everyone was relishing the drama, another piece of news shot up.

The Little Princess, pale-faced, was apologizing on camera:

"I’m sorry, An Duxuan. I’m sorry, Director Lai. It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have spread rumors about you two having a relationship just because I couldn’t win An Duxuan’s affection! Please forgive me!"

After speaking, she genuinely bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle!

[What happened? The Little Princess is actually apologizing?]

[I thought tonight’s excitement was the Little Princess trying to divert attention, but no, she actually apologized.]

[Will An Duxuan forgive her?]

[...]

After An Duxuan finished talking with An Yaoluo, he went to a meeting with Director Lai and the others. During the discussion, everyone’s phones started to ring non-stop.

"Axuan, Lei Na has made a public apology!"

Someone stared at their phone in disbelief.

Several others also exclaimed in shock:

"What happened to her?"

An Duxuan took the phone a girl passed to him, equally baffled.

He had only released the recording and video to pressure Lei Na into doing everything she could to suppress the trending topics. The more she tried to suppress it, the more people would realize something was wrong.

The best-case scenario was that she might even implicate a few other celebrities.

If she implicated others, would those celebrities be willing to take the loss?

A counterattack was certain.

As long as someone leaked that Lei Na was operating behind the scenes, An Duxuan wouldn’t need to clear his own name.

From beginning to end, he had never considered making Lei Na come out and apologize because he thought it was absolutely impossible.

"Axuan, your big brother must have done it, right?"

An Yaoluo had said that he would handle the Lei Family’s affairs and that An Duxuan needn’t worry, a statement everyone had heard.

But An Duxuan knew it wasn’t him.

He understood An Yaoluo’s capabilities to some extent.

So, there was only one possibility left: Li Tianyao!

And the reason Li Tianyao would intervene in his affairs must be for Yanyan’s sake.

So annoying, that guy’s managed to show off again!

"Axuan, what exactly does your family do?" Lai Hao was extremely curious.

An Duxuan responded with a cold expression,

"They just own a company, that’s all."

Everyone looked at him, their faces clearly conveying they felt he had just shown off.

"So, Axuan is actually one of those rich heirs who, if he doesn’t take acting seriously, has to go home and inherit a family fortune?"

"No, my family has my elder brother to inherit; they don’t need me!"

"Stop talking!" Director Lai held up a hand. "Let me have some peace!"

Lai Hao took a sip of Calm Heart Tea.

"Axuan, what does your sister’s boyfriend do? Is this a marriage alliance between wealthy families?"

Everyone pricked up their ears.

An Yan’s boyfriend’s presence was just too strong.

An Yaoluo was the type that, unless he spoke up, nobody would realize he was a big shot.

But that future brother-in-law—he didn’t even need to speak for everyone to sense he was a big shot!

An Duxuan’s expression visibly soured.

"What marriage alliance? He’s just her boyfriend. If he makes my sister unhappy, she’ll dump him just the same."

Everyone was visibly shocked.

"Having that kind of backing really makes a difference."

"I need to work hard and earn money. Only when you have your own foundation can you interact with your partner on equal terms!"

"Exactly, exactly! If we’re happy together, we’ll stay together. If not, you can leave! I’m going to shine on my own! Haha..."

A few of the girls laughed and giggled.

The men instantly felt immense pressure.

It’s getting harder and harder to find a wife! We have to work hard! The stronger a man is, the more he attracts female attention!

With newfound motivation, everyone focused once again.

Li Tianyao, who was passing by the window, looked toward An Yan with deep eyes.

"You’re thinking of dumping me?"

"How could I? If anyone’s doing the dumping, it would be you dumping me!"

"I won’t."

A smile played on An Yan’s lips.

Well, that wasn’t necessarily true.

「The nights in the village were tranquil and relaxed.」

An Yan was wrapped in Li Tianyao’s black cashmere coat, with Li Tianyao’s black scarf around her neck.

Hand in hand with Li Tianyao, who was clad in a thin black suit, she walked along the cobblestone path.

The gurgling sound of the stream beside them was not only unobtrusive but made the surroundings feel even more serene.

The village lights were cleverly arranged, creating a hazy atmosphere without being glaring.

A small breeze blew by, and An Yan narrowed her eyes, grinning at Li Tianyao.

"Aren’t you cold?"

Li Tianyao gave her a sidelong glance. "As long as you’re not cold, that’s all that matters."

The little minx came out on purpose without a coat; he saw right through her intentions!

"Then let’s walk a bit longer!"

An Yan was in high spirits, hell-bent on making Li Tianyao catch a cold!

To keep the walk from being dull, she even took it upon herself to find topics of conversation.

"Li Tianyao, what do you think of this place?"

"It’s alright!"

"Actually, I don’t think it’s that great."

An Yan’s voice was soft.

"I’ve lived in the mountains since I was little, so I know this so-called ’Ancient Village’ is just something designed by city folks. Real villages don’t look like this."

"But I still wanted to show you. I even thought about taking you to see where I lived."

"A small Taoist temple, with the founder enshrined in the main hall. My grandfather and I each lived in a side hall. Sometimes, in the middle of the night, you could hear little animals scratching at the door!"

"After a wolf got into the temple once, my grandfather decided to build a wall around it. He even fenced off a piece of land."

"At first, the land was used to grow vegetables and things like that, but later, I started to cultivate medicinal herbs there!"

"The aunties from down the mountain would come to the temple to offer incense. They often brought lots of food: some was offered to the founder, and some was given to my grandfather and me to eat. Sometimes, they would even bring us eggs..."

An Yan casually recounted stories from her childhood—almost all of them warm and happy memories.

She seemed to have lived in a utopia, without strife or scheming, rising with the sun and resting at sunset!

"If you like countryside life so much, why did you come back to the city?" Li Tianyao asked.