Chapter 30 Don't drag your relationship into this...

Chapter 30

Jin Ran was stunned for a moment, and after regaining her senses, she couldn't help but sigh, "This world is really small."

In the novel, the original owner of this body and the female protagonist first meet at a banquet. At that time, the original owner has already become a pitied abandoned woman in the wealthy circle. After hearing her plight, the kind-hearted female protagonist feels a pang of pity and, reflecting on her own relationship with the male protagonist, suddenly realizes the truth. It can be said that the original owner is merely an insignificant tool to advance the relationship between the male and female protagonists.

Jin Ran recalled some descriptions of the banquet and felt that it shouldn't be this one.

This left her quite disappointed, as she wouldn't be able to see the famous scene of their passionate kiss under the moon from the book.

To the others, Jin Ran appeared to be so heartbroken that she couldn't even speak.

The ladies exchanged glances and couldn't help but offer words of comfort: "Men are all about fleeting novelty. This little star is nothing to worry about. In time, we can easily blacklist her with a few simple tricks."

"Yes, Jinmei, please don't take it to heart. We women should also learn to enjoy ourselves. Let's go to my place for afternoon tea another day."

Jin Ran snapped out of her daze and felt a pang of embarrassment upon hearing the wives' words of comfort.

Did she deliberately provoke the female lead because she felt she didn't have enough time left to live?

Besides, while others were unaware of the inside story, she knew that her marriage to Jiang Mingxu was merely a business arrangement. She had no reason, nor did she care to pry into his private life.

However… “Afternoon tea is fine, but Sister Lin, please don’t find me annoying then.”

Jin Ran smiled easily and contentedly.

Seeing her like this, the ladies all breathed a sigh of relief.

At least I wasn't so heartbroken that I lost my mind.

In fact, Jin Ran was more relaxed than they had imagined.

Having made up her mind not to get involved in the female lead's affairs, she even had the leisure to gossip about it.

In addition to the male protagonist, the female protagonist in the novel also knows more than a dozen male confidants, all of whom are outstanding individuals in their respective fields.

When she first met Jiang Mingxu, she mistook him for a male supporting character. After realizing she had mistaken him for someone else, Jin Ran wondered why such an outstanding man wasn't paired with the female lead. She thought it was because the two of them didn't have any interaction, but now it seems that's not the case.

While she was completely absorbed in gossip, Jiang Xuli, who had rushed over, was in a heavy mood.

As a son, he didn't really know much about his father's private life. When he was little, people around him would jokingly suggest finding him a stepmother. Young Jiang Xuli was afraid that someone would take his father away and was very jealous. Whenever they mentioned it, he would cry.

Now that he's grown up, he's long past the age where he needs his father's love all to himself. Even if his father really did marry a stepmother for him, he wouldn't feel much emotionally affected.

But Jin Ran is different. Everyone can see how much she cares about her father. If she suddenly witnesses such a scene, she will definitely be angry and sad.

At that moment, a surge of anger inexplicably rose in Jiang Xuli's heart—anger towards his father.

He may be a good businessman and a good boss, but he is definitely not a good father or a good husband!

Jiang Xuli clenched and unclenched his fist, glanced at the "heartbroken" Jin Ran, and felt a pang of empathy. After hesitating for a while, he turned and headed in a certain direction.

Just think of it as him disliking his dad!

"...Thanks to your son for helping my brother, I learned that he was often bullied at school. I have always wanted to thank you in person, but I have never been able to find a suitable opportunity."

Jiang Mingxu listened to Wei Ya's thanks without any change in expression.

After a moment, he nodded and said, "I understand. If you want to express your gratitude, he is here today as well."

Upon hearing this, Wei Ya was overjoyed: "Really? That's wonderful!"

Then she saw the water stains on Jiang Mingxu's body and felt extremely embarrassed. She quickly took out a handkerchief to help him wipe it off, but he subtly took a half step back and avoided her hand.

Wei Ya was a perceptive girl. Sensing the man's resistance, she immediately stopped and said, "I'm sorry, I was being presumptuous. Or... could you wipe it yourself?"

Jiang Mingxu initially intended to refuse, but a fleeting glance at the crowd around him revealed Jiang Xuli glaring at him: "..."

If he hadn't been stopped, Jiang Mingxu had no doubt that his stupid son would have rushed up.

He hasn't improved at all.

He felt a headache coming on. Then, as if struck by a thought, he looked in a certain direction and, sure enough, spotted Jin Ran sitting in the middle of the banquet, secretly watching him.

As their eyes met, Jiang Mingxu suddenly changed his mind and reached out to take the handkerchief.

"No need to apologize, it's just that I'm not used to being touched."

Wei Ya was startled.

Jin Ran, who was happily enjoying her melon in the self-service dessert area, suddenly saw Jiang Mingxu turn around and his gaze precisely locked onto her location.

Jin Ran: ? ? ?

Wait, why is he walking towards me?

She couldn't help but scream wildly in her heart, but no one heard her. The pastry crust of the egg yolk pastry broke apart, and her palms unconsciously tightened, causing egg flowers to fall in a soft rustling sound. She sat there, watching helplessly as Jiang Mingxu walked closer and closer, then stopped in front of her and handed her the handkerchief in his hand.

"Help me."

Jin Ran heard another gasp, even louder than before.

For some reason, she felt like laughing, but she held it back.

She heard the ladies behind her say in a tone of sudden realization, "So, the reason for taking the handkerchief was to have his wife help him wipe it clean!"

"Oh my, President Jiang is still the same self-disciplined President Jiang."

"Xiao Ran is beautiful and young. If men aren't blind, they'll definitely like her!"

Amidst everyone's praise, Jin Ran paused for only 0.03 seconds before naturally taking the handkerchief.

Regardless of the truth, in the eyes of outsiders, she was his nominal spouse.

She didn't care about being a divorced woman, but she wouldn't mind doing things that could improve her reputation.

The two stood and sat at just the right distance. Jin Ran tilted her head back slightly, her slender fingers gently wiping her face with a silk handkerchief, her movements so practiced as if she had done it countless times before.

This drew another wave of praise for their deep affection.

Unfortunately, the juice seeped in too quickly, and this haute couture suit is most susceptible to water damage. Jin Ran managed to wipe off the fruit residue, and when Jin Deguo, who had come upon hearing the news, saw this scene, his heart sank. But what was done was done, and he could only apologize repeatedly.

Then he asked Jiang Mingxu to go to the lounge to change his clothes and said he would kick out the troublemakers.

"Wait a moment."

Jin Ran called out to her uncle with a smile, not caring at all about his livid face. Pointing at the nervous Wei Ya, she said, "I just saw someone push her, so it shouldn't be an accident, but a deliberate frame-up. Uncle, you must investigate this carefully, so that others don't think our Jin family is easy to bully."

As she said this, Jin Ran deliberately raised her voice to make sure that the surrounding guests could hear her. Although the female lead always managed to turn misfortune into good fortune, now that she had seen the truth, she couldn't ignore it.

On the other side, Wei Ya also recognized Jin Ran's identity.

My first thought was that she was Mrs. Jiang, so the two people she met were probably not siblings, but mother and son.

Hearing her speak up for him again, his eyes welled up with tears.

It turns out there are still people in this world who are willing to believe in you unconditionally.

She suddenly felt that the things weighing on her heart were insignificant, and the road ahead was wide open and bright.

/

The Jin family went to check the surveillance footage, and Jin Ran and Jiang Mingxu and his son, who had changed their clothes, also went over.

The banquet hall was quite large, and there were as many as seven cameras installed. By checking them one by one from the closest to the furthest distance, the footage from that time was quickly found.

"It's him."

Jin Ran pointed at the man in the picture and said with certainty, "I saw him push Wei Ya, and from this angle, both of his arms were raised. It was obviously intentional."

She was so focused on finding the culprit that she didn't notice the moment of shock Jiang Xuli felt when she saw the person on the surveillance camera.

The boy immediately looked at Jiang Mingxu, but the man's expression remained unchanged as he calmly said, "Since the evidence is conclusive, let's hand it over to the police."

Jin Deguo felt a chill run down his spine. He hadn't expected Jiang Mingxu to be even more cold-blooded and ruthless than he had imagined, even...

He stopped himself from thinking: "President Jiang, rest assured, this time it was our fault for not doing a good job in security and letting unauthorized personnel break in. We will definitely deal with it seriously!"

Back in the banquet hall, the young master of Changpei Entertainment also brought Wei Ya over to express his gratitude.

"President Jiang, my artists have caused you trouble."

Upon hearing this, Wei Ya stepped forward, her face full of shame, and apologized once again, also expressing her gratitude to Jiang Xuli: "Thank you for helping my brother."

The boy looked cool and said, "Just doing it on the spur of the moment."

He didn't do it out of gratitude.

Even so, Wei Ya still expressed her gratitude in a solemn manner.

Jin Ran, who had nothing to do, began to look at the group of people with curiosity after learning their identities, focusing her attention on the young master of the entertainment industry.

He was very young, probably in his early twenties, with gentle and mild features, and a somewhat masculine appearance.

She knew that he was also one of the male supporting characters, the selfless protector type, willing to be the man behind the scenes for the female lead. Even when the male and female leads got together in the end, he never revealed his feelings and chose to quietly leave the scene.

Thinking of this, Jin Ran couldn't help but feel a little sympathy when she looked at the other person. Jiang Mingxu noticed this and lowered his brows.

Then, without making a sound, he moved forward half a step and stood between the two.

"If there's nothing else, we'll head out first."

For some reason, the young master suddenly felt pressure from the gaze. Facing this elder who sat alongside his father, he dared not be presumptuous: "Alright, alright, Mr. Jiang and Mrs. Jiang, take care."

As Jin Ran left the birthday banquet, she was still reflecting on the complex emotional relationships in the original book.

She wasn't one to keep her mouth shut, and after hesitating for a while, she couldn't help but ask Jiang Mingxu, "Why did you make me wipe it for you just now?"

Jiang Mingxu: "To outsiders, we are husband and wife."

That's true, but she said, "Actually, you can also have Wei Ya wipe it for you. I'm not the kind of woman who's jealous."

Jiang Mingxu paused, then turned to look at her: "Why did I let her wipe it?"

Even Jiang Xuli, who had been unusually silent since getting on the bus, looked up in surprise.

Jin Ran's eyes darted around, her movements as lively and beautiful as a deer in the forest: "Exactly, don't you think she's exceptionally beautiful, exceptionally innocent, exceptionally kind, like a pure white flower emerging from the mud, making people want to protect her at first glance!"

If she were a man, she would definitely fall for him.

Jiang Mingxu replied expressionlessly, "No."

The answer was firm and resolute.

Jin Ran stared wide-eyed, trying to find clues on the man's face that suggested he was lying, but found none!

He really doesn't like the female lead!

This surprised her slightly; in a novel where the female lead was a heartthrob, there were actually men who didn't like her. She couldn't help but recall her previous guess: could it really be because of her age, and that she was impotent?

Jiang Xuli, who was in the passenger seat, suddenly started coughing violently.

He was coughing so badly that he almost coughed up his lungs. Jin Ran was startled and looked up, only to meet Jiang Mingxu's dark complexion.

Only then did she realize that she had inadvertently revealed her true feelings.

"..."

The atmosphere suddenly became awkward. Xiao Sun and Jiang Xuli in the front row didn't dare to breathe, wondering if they could hear such private matters.

Having already listened, I can only cower like a quail.

Jin Ran was so regretful that she wanted to crawl into a hole and disappear. Why couldn't she control her mouth? Just as she was racking her brains for a way to salvage the embarrassing situation, she heard Jiang Mingxu next to her ask, "You want me to like her?"

"...Cough, of course not!"

Jin Ran quickly realized what was going on and made an excuse for herself: "I just heard that a lot of boys like her, and I'm curious about your taste."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Mingxu narrowed his eyes.

He had observed her for so long that he thought he knew her habits inside and out.

For example, when she's nervous, she'll unconsciously pick at her nails like she is now.

She seemed to pay close attention to that girl named Wei Ya...

“Everyone has different aesthetic tastes,” Jiang Mingxu replied in the end.

"So what is your aesthetic sense?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Jin Ran regretted it... Why was she so curious about him? The amber glass reflected the man's dark eyes, and when their eyes met, her heart skipped a beat.

She paused for a moment, then looked away, feigning disinterest: "Forget it, I have no interest in listening to the tastes of a married man like you. By the way, Xiao Li, do you have a girl you like at school?"

Jiang Xuli, who was suddenly mentioned: ?

Although I long to be noticed, I don't really want to be seen right now.

"You're still a high school student. Even if you have a girl you like, you should prioritize your studies first," Jin Ran earnestly advised.

Jiang Xuli held back for a moment, but finally couldn't hold it in any longer: "Seriously, can you two please not drag me, a minor, into your relationship?"

He doesn't want to be a third wheel!

Jin Ran: "..."

Jiang Mingxu: "..."

For the rest of the journey, the car was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. As soon as they entered the villa, Jin Ran couldn't wait to get out of the car and run home. She had never encountered such an embarrassing situation in her life, and if she stayed any longer, her toes would cramp up!

Behind him, watching the woman flee as if she were about to escape, a faint smile flickered in Jiang Mingxu's eyes.