Chapter 22: Round Up

Translator: 549690339

Chen Yueyue and Ye Bingtong were still talking.

Ye Bolin had no desire to listen any further.

Having been manipulated to this extent, he had nothing left to say.

This marriage was definitely off.

But the Ye Family and the Chen Family were generational friends, and it had been him who pursued Chen Yueyue back in the day.

Now that both families’ parents knew about Chen Yueyue’s pregnancy, they were likely to rush the wedding preparations.

Under such circumstances.

If he were to abruptly call off the wedding without reason, that would certainly be improper.

Ye Bolin’s expression was cold.

The best thing…

Would be for Chen Yueyue to call off the engagement herself.

If she was unwilling, then he would have no choice but to reveal this scandal!

Yes, having a child by another man would be a huge embarrassment for him.

But it was better than wearing a cuckold’s green hat for life.

This recording was now his best evidence.

Ye Bolin put away the sound box.

He glanced at Gu Yan and asked, “How old are you this year?”

Gu Yan was baffled by the question and looked at him questioningly.

Ye Bolin snorted coldly, “Let me remind you, you’re already 28! Almost thirty, which rounds up to fifty, and if you think about it, what’s the difference from being six feet under?”

Gu Yan: “???”

No, wait!

He was just eavesdropping on some gossip! What kind of deep feud or grudge did he have with Ye Bolin!

What happened to their years of friendship?

Was there any need to insult him like this!

Besides, didn’t Ye Bolin also listen to the gossip about his own younger brother?

[Oh no! These two men have something going on!]

Ye Xiao had already perked up her ears, her eyes filled with the gleam of gossip.

She thought she was going to hear some fresh juicy news.

But then Ye Bolin snorted coldly again and turned to look at her.

Ye Bolin pushed his glasses up, looking utterly serious.

Ye Xiao felt as though she was facing the school disciplinarian from her student days, and subconsciously sat up straight.

“And you, Xiaoxiao,” Ye Bolin spoke slowly, “do you realize that old men are the most cunning and scheming? They especially like to target young, cute, ignorant girls. Today, he managed to lure you out for afternoon tea. Tomorrow, he might harbor other desires!”

As he talked about old men, Ye Bolin cast a meaningful glance at Gu Yan.

Gu Yan suddenly felt as if he had taken an arrow to the knee.

Him?

An old man?

“Ye Bolin.” Gu Yan gritted his teeth, “Don’t forget, you are about the same age as me.”

Ye Bolin let out a cold laugh, “I haven’t deceived any young girls. Xiaoxiao, remember this, if you ever encounter such old men, stay away from them.”

Ha, although they were good friends!

But still.

If anyone thought about taking his sister away, it was pure wishful thinking.

Ye Xiao looked from one to the other, blinking her eyes.

[To be honest, I can’t really consider Gu Yan an old man. As for his appearance, he is quite my type.]

Gu Yan, who had been straight-faced, couldn’t help but crack a slight smile upon hearing this.

Apparently, Ye Xiao understood.

Ye Bolin’s face, on the other hand, turned sour in an instant.

[However.]

Ye Xiao made a turn in her thoughts, her face showing a trace of disdain.

[To come for afternoon tea and still wear a formal suit—like an old cadre. And he even has a fountain pen in his suit pocket. Can you believe it? We young people shouldn’t follow such a style.]

Ye Xiao vented her feelings.

Ye Bolin immediately felt amused.

Gu Yan’s face darkened as he silently took out the fountain pen.

Very well.

From now on, his suit pocket was never again housing a fountain pen.

[Eh? He’s taken the pen out? That pen looks pretty expensive…]

“This pen is for you as a gift. You’re still in school, you can use it,” Gu Yan said calmly as he passed the pen over.

Ye Bolin instantly took it, “Xiaoxiao doesn’t need your gift. Since you don’t want this fountain pen, give it to me.”

Gu Yan snorted, saying nothing more.

He was still immersed in offense.

He was only 28!

Was he really not young anymore???

[What a pity.] Ye Xiao looked at the pen, feeling somewhat reluctant to part with it.

Ye Bolin felt both irritated and sympathetic.

Xiaoxiao hadn’t had it easy growing up outside.

It’s just a pen, right?

You can’t accept a pen from an old man.

But you can take one from your brother anytime.

He’d buy a whole box of fountain pens when he got back.

Ye Bolin pocketed the pen and glared at Gu Yan, “Xiaoxiao and I are heading home. Please, enjoy the rest of your day. By the way, thanks for inviting Xiaoxiao out for afternoon tea as a senior. Remember to settle the bill later.”

Ye Bolin emphasized: as a senior.

Gu Yan’s face darkened immediately.

Only then did Ye Bolin’s mood brighten a bit, and he left first with Ye Xiao.

Gu Yan didn’t linger for too long either; he didn’t want to run into Chen Yueyue and Ye Bingtong and left shortly after.

It’s just that…

Gu Yan was becoming more and more interested in Ye Xiao.

Naturally, it wasn’t the kind of interest between a man and a woman.

It’s just that.

The secret heart voices of Ye Xiao seemed to be audible only when he was near her.

If he wanted to change his destiny, to know more details, he had to get close to Ye Xiao.

Gu Yan guessed.

Gu Cheng.

Ye Bolin.

These two could also hear those secret heart voices.

Chen Yueyue and Ye Bingtong, however, could not hear them.

He didn’t know exactly how this worked.

Could it be related to words often found in Ye Xiao’s secret heart voices, such as “male lead,” “male supporting,” “female lead,” “female supporting”?

Gu Yan smiled slightly.

He had struck up a conversation last time.

This time, he shared a meal with her.

Next time, he was certain to get Ye Xiao’s contact information.

Ye Family.

As soon as Ye Xiao and Ye Bolin entered the house, Ye Mingcheng and Du Yaru turned to look at them, unable to hide their gossipy expressions.

They looked around but didn’t see Gu Yan, which prompted puzzled looks.

Ye Bolin couldn’t help but keep a straight face: “Dad! Mom! Did you know that Xiaoxiao went out with Gu Yan today?”

The expressions on Ye Mingcheng and Du Yaru’s faces changed slightly.

Done for!

They had a bad feeling!

A moment later.

Ye Bolin hung up his coat and sat down sternly opposite them: “What you’ve done is wrong on nine counts. First… second…”

Ye Bolin’s tone was steady and measured, as he used various references to point out their inappropriate actions.

After listening for a while, Ye Xiao started to feel sleepy.

Seeing that Ye Bolin wasn’t paying attention to her, she quickly slipped away.

This big brother!

He is just like a long-winded monk!

Ye Mingcheng and Du Yaru watched Ye Xiao’s retreating figure with reluctance, wishing they could escape too, but they couldn’t.

Where was this an eldest son, they had essentially raised a father for themselves.

Ye Bolin talked for two hours before he stopped.

He took a sip of tea, looked at them, and asked, “Do you understand now?”

Ye Mingcheng and Du Yaru nodded at the same time.

Being very cautious, Du Yaru said, “Bolin, we understand what you’re saying, but our two families had a marriage agreement. Now that Gu Cheng and Bingtong can’t be together, then…”

There was a flash of cold light from Ye Bolin’s glasses as he pushed them up and began to speak slowly: “Mother, this line of thought of yours is inappropriate. The inappropriate parts total ten points, first of all…”

Ye Mingcheng looked at Du Yaru in pain.

Why did you provoke him?

Du Yaru was also filled with regret.

Why did she have to speak carelessly!

Ye Xiao went upstairs and checked the plot again.

Initially.

It was just the collapse of one book.

In the book where Ye Bingtong was the female lead, apart from the last chapter, the middle parts had nearly all vanished, and the system only updated the story a day or a half-day ahead in a stingy manner.

The scene where Pei Yue suddenly attacked her this morning, the system updated the plot just a few minutes in advance.

The plot had been modified to such an extent.

The system was starting to lose control over the storyline.

This was both good and bad for Ye Xiao.

The good part was that the more the plot changed, the greater the chance of her, as the supporting female character, to break free from her destiny.

The bad part was that she was losing her ability to foresee the plot.

Originally it was just the destruction of one book.

But with how things were today, it seemed that her brother’s book had also completely changed, hadn’t it?

Ye Xiao opened the book and saw.

Indeed, there were now large blank spaces, with “Inputting” displayed on the blank pages.

Clearly, the system was frantically refreshing the story.

The only consistent part was the last chapter of that book, which still existed as it was.

Apparently, this change was still not enough to alter the ending.

But now.

Ye Xiao realized that apart from herself, others seemed to be making efforts to change their destinies as well.

To her, this was good news.

At least, she wasn’t fighting alone.

So, keep striving!

After today!

She would be able to save up another word count to modify, and this time, she must hold on to it!