While Du Yuanzhe and his brother were still welcoming guests, Xia Ningmi found a secluded corner and sat down, avoiding greeting others.
"Mr. Xia."
After sitting for a while, Wang Lianxuan came over.
Xia Ning raised her eyes and asked, "Wang Lianxuan?"
Wang Lianxuan smiled and said, "It's rare that President Xia still remembers an old classmate of mine. I remember when President Xia transferred to our school in high school, he caused a sensation in the whole school. Boys from other classes would always pretend to pass by our class casually, but no one dared to talk to President Xia."
Xia Ningmi and Wang Linxuan were classmates for two years. When Xia Ningmi was in her second year of high school, Zhou Heng was found to have cheated on her. Xia Yiyao then sent her to the old house and she transferred to the same school as Wang Linxuan and Jiang Chelin.
So, the three of them are of the same age, along with Du Yuanzhe and Wei Lingling.
The setting of this novel is very interesting, as if it foreshadows the entanglement between the five of them from the very beginning.
Xia Ning asked: "What's wrong?"
Wang Lianxuan sat on the sofa next to her: "Mr. Xia is still so cold. I have been your classmate for two years, and I have never seen any other expression on your face. It's as if you are warning us that we are not worthy of being your friends."
"Just like Che Lin, is that why you two got engaged?"
At this point, her tone changed.
Xia Ningmi: "You came to me just to say this nonsense?"
Wang Lianxuan smiled ridiculously: "You actually think this is nonsense? The original engagement between you and Che Lin was just a verbal agreement. Now that old General Xia has passed away, Grandpa Jiang prefers me to be his granddaughter-in-law. There is no possibility for you and Che Lin."
Xia Ning looked at her calmly: "These have nothing to do with me."
Wang Lianxuan frowned: "Mr. Xia is indeed a well-known figure in the business world. His energy cultivation skills are really amazing. Until now, you still refuse to admit that you like Che Lin."
Apart from Du Yuanzhe, Wang Linxuan was the second person who thought she liked Jiang Chelin, and her tone was very firm.
Xia Ningmi thought for a moment and said calmly, "Are you testing me?"
When Wang Lianxuan heard this, she thought that Xia Ningmu's thoughts were exposed by her, and said with a little pride: "Please don't underestimate me, Mr. Xia. I know a lot of things that Mr. Xia thinks everyone knows."
"Tell me your purpose."
Wang Lianxuan said, "Whether it's President Xia or me, we can't get Che Lin now because he has someone else in his heart. We can only get Che Lin back if we get rid of her."
Xia Ningmi's eyes turned slightly cold: "Do you think I would compete with others for a man?"
Wang Lianxuan smiled: "I told you I know a lot of things. Why do you have to pretend in front of me, President Xia? You care about Che Lin much more than I do."
These words...sound familiar.
Could it be that she knows the plot of this world just like Yuanzhe?
Xia Ning asked: "What do you want to do?"
Wang Lianxuan said: "I said we have to deal with the person in Che Lin's heart. We can cooperate before we deal with that person."
"Who are you talking about?"
"Wei Lingling!"
Wang Lianxuan gnashed her teeth and said, "She was the one who shamelessly seduced Che Lin. Che Lin still hasn't seen her true colors. Instead, he protects her everywhere. Even if Master Jiang is not satisfied with Wei Lingling, Che Lin is unwilling to give up her."
"My abilities are limited, and with Che Lin protecting me, I can't deal with Wei Lingling, but President Xia can. With President Xia's abilities, he is more than capable of dealing with a little star."
"Boss Xia doesn't even need to do anything extra. He only needs to change the heroine of 'Yun Miao' to strike a blow to Wei Lingling."
"Yunmiao" is produced by Qianying Entertainment Investment, so it would be easy for Xia Ningmi to replace Wei Lingling.
Wang Linxuan and her system still haven't given up on destroying the heroine's career.
Xia Ningmi heard this with a cold look in her eyes: "Do I look like someone you can use at will?"
Wang Lianxuan's words clearly meant that she hoped Xia Ningmi would deal with Wei Lingling, which would inevitably offend Jiang Chelin. She would be able to hide behind and wait to reap the benefits.
[I've said Xia Ningmi is a man of deep scheming, and not someone you can take advantage of]
The Luck Plundering System was almost pissed off at Wang Lianxuan. This idiot relied on the fact that she knew some of the plot and tried to use Xia Ningmi to do things for her. It was really stupid.
In the novel, even Jiang Chelin couldn't do anything to Xia Ningmi. If Xia Ningmi hadn't died in a car accident, the hero and heroine wouldn't have been able to be together so smoothly, let alone annex the Xia family.
In this world, Xia Ningmi is one of the most feared people in the Luck Plundering System.
As a result, this stupid woman Wang Lianxuan actually wanted to take advantage of her!
Wang Lianxuan's heart shuddered when Xia Ningmu looked at her. She was completely suppressed by her aura and felt a little uneasy for some reason. She hurriedly explained, "I have no intention of taking advantage of President Xia. I just hate Wei Lingling so much that I made a slip of the tongue. Please forgive me, President Xia. I am living in the old house now and can get a lot of information about Che Lin. I came to see President Xia today just to cooperate with him."
Now she can only cooperate with Xia Ningmi according to what the system said before.
Xia Ningmi's eyes were still cold.
Wang Lianxuan continued, "No matter what, Wei Lingling is now our biggest enemy. As long as Che Lin is not disappointed in her, we will have no chance. Please think about it carefully, President Xia. It is not me that President Xia has to deal with now, and I will not do anything to harm President Xia."
Xia Ningmi's expression was rather calm.
Wang Lianxuan was delighted and said, "I have confirmed that someone is helping Wei Lingling behind the scenes. This person is in Qianying Entertainment. Please ask President Xia to investigate."
"What do you mean?"
"Wei Lingling originally missed the audition for the female lead in "Yun Miao" due to a car accident, but later on, for some reason, she auditioned again. Someone must have recommended her to Director Zuo, and this person must be her helper."
Xia Ningmi said calmly: "It's me."
Wang Lianxuan was stunned: "What?"
Xia Ning said, "It was me who asked Director Zuo to audition Wei Lingling."
Wang Lianxuan was stunned: "Why?"
This shouldn't happen!
Xia Ning said: "Jiang Chelin called me."
She threw the blame on Jiang Chelin without hesitation.
"That's not right, I tried Che Lin...he lied to me!"
Wang Lianxuan's expression suddenly turned a little grim.
[Jiang Chelin has been on guard against you. He deliberately lied to you so that you would spend more time investigating the person behind the scenes and have no time to deal with Wei Lingling. He is indeed the male protagonist, and his methods are really amazing! ]
The Luck Plundering System thought it had figured out Jiang Chelin's plan.
Wang Lianxuan sighed, and her tone was filled with complaints: "Boss Xia, don't you think about why Che Lin asked you to help a female star?"
If Xia Ning hadn't intervened, their plan would not have failed.
Xia Ning glanced at her coldly.
Wang Lianxuan shuddered, realizing that she had said something wrong again: "I don't mean to blame President Xia. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed that Che Lin would like an actor."
Xia Ningmi's coldness suddenly deepened: "Get lost if you have nothing else to do!"
She also insulted Du Yuanzhe with her words.
Wang Lianxuan's face froze, and she felt resentment towards Xia Ningmi in her heart, but she could do nothing to Xia Ningmi and could only stand up dejectedly.
[You know she won't live long, don't let your emotions affect our plans]
Wang Lianxuan felt relieved when she thought about the fate of Xia Ningmi dying in a car accident. She thought to herself, "Now that we know that Xia Ningmi is the one helping Wei Lingling, what should we do next?"
[Given Wei Lingling's personality, she would never ask Jiang Chelin for help under normal circumstances. Someone around her must have told her the importance of this play, so she asked Jiang Chelin for help.]
The Luck Plundering System still felt that his old rival had arrived. Since Qianying Entertainment had already investigated the matter clearly, the problem could only be with Wei Lingling.
As for why he was sure that the problem was not with Jiang Chelin, it was mainly because he knew Jiang Chelin. If someone had reminded Jiang Chelin implicitly, with Jiang Chelin's intelligence he would definitely have noticed that there was something wrong with Wei Lingling's car accident, and he would definitely have investigated it again in detail.
But Jiang Chelin did not take any action, which means Jiang Chelin did not know.
Neither it nor its old rival can choose the hero or heroine as its host, so the only ones who will have problems are the people around the heroine.
[You should focus on investigating the people around Wei Lingling to see who she has been close to recently, or check all the people close to her to see whose words and deeds are different from before.]
Wang Lianxuan nodded. Investigating Wei Lingling would be much easier than investigating Qianying Entertainment.
......
After the birthday banquet officially started, the Du brothers returned to the banquet. Du Yuanwen continued to greet his partners, while Du Yongliang talked to some old friends. Although Du Yongliang has not completely retired and is still the president of the company, he rarely mentions the mall anymore. He just chats with old friends about chess or exchanges fishing experiences.
Because Du Yongliang has been obsessed with fishing in recent years, Du Yuanzhe prepared a customized fishing rod as a birthday gift for him. The fishing rod was very beautifully made. When he gave the fishing rod to Du Yongliang, he joked, "From now on, half of the credit for every fish Dad catches will go to me."
Du Yongliang liked this gift very much. He touched the fishing rod and said generously, "When we catch some fish, I'll give you a few."
Chen Rongshan couldn't help laughing and said, "You're the only fish that can eat a whole one in one bite?"
Du Yongliang frowned: "I have also caught big fish."
"Only a few times. You can count them on one hand."
In the end, it was Du Yuanzhe who changed the subject in time to prevent Du Yongliang from losing face.
Thinking of the gift-giving incident before, Du Yuanzhe couldn't help shaking his head. The old couple were in good health and had bad tempers. They would argue with each other every few days and always liked to pour cold water on each other.
If it weren't for the fact that their quarrels never lasted overnight, Du Yuanzhe would have really worried about his parents' relationship problems. After seeing it many times, he understood that this was the way they got along with each other.
Chen Rongsan was talking to her group of sisters, and when she saw Du Yuanzhe, she immediately pulled him over.
"I haven't seen you for a year. Yuanzhe has changed a lot."
“我最近看元哲演的電視了，演得真好，你倩妹妹鬧着想要你的簽名，你一會兒可得給我簽一個。”
“元哲也不小了，還沒聽說有女朋友，要不阿姨給你介紹一個？”
“......”
杜元哲整個人都懵了，他就喊了聲“阿姨好”，緊接着就被幾位阿姨輪番轟炸，最後成功把話題拐到了交女朋友上。
他算是發現了，別管哪個階層，長輩都喜歡給小輩介紹對象。
陳蓉珊就喜歡聽別人誇自己兒子，對衆人的誇贊照單全收，但并未松口讓人給杜元哲介紹女朋友，笑道：“現在的年輕人最抵觸相親，我和他提過幾次，都被拒絕了，你們犯不着為他浪費精力。”
其中一個貴太太可惜道：“我還想給我侄女介紹呢。”
杜元哲打了冷顫，立刻找個理由遠離了她們。
真是太可怕了！
他左右看看，始終沒有找到夏凝覓，倒是看到了被數人圍着的蔣澈霖，夏凝覓身邊應該也少不了人啊，可他把整個大廳環視了好幾遍都沒看到夏凝覓。
“去哪兒了呢？”
“在找我？”
杜元哲剛嘀咕一句，夏凝覓就出現在他身後。
他被吓了一跳：“你去哪兒了，怎麽突然就出現了？”
夏凝覓指指剛才的偏僻角落：“我一直在那兒。”
杜元哲恍然：“我就說怎麽沒找到你，原來是躲清淨了。”
夏凝覓道：“不想和他們應酬。”
杜元哲眼睛轉了轉：“想不想去我房間看看？”
夏凝覓看看四周，這裏可是有不少人看着呢。
杜元哲道：“沒事，我的房間在三樓，給賓客安排的休息室也在三樓，沒人會注意到的，你先上去，我一會兒再上去。”
然後杜元哲告訴了夏凝覓他的房間在哪兒。
杜元哲都不怕被發現，夏凝覓更不會害怕。
夏凝覓表情自然地擡腳上樓，有人瞥了她一眼就收回視線。
五分鐘後，杜元哲同樣上了樓。
把這一切都看在眼裏的杜元聞眉心跳了跳，這兩人真是不怕被人發現，就不能老實一點嗎？
他第一次覺得知道太多真不是好事，杜元哲兩人什麽都不擔心，反倒是他想東想西，還想着如果有人問起需不需要替他們遮掩，真是欠了他們的。
杜元哲可不知道大哥的怨念，明明是自己住了很長時間的房間，熟悉得不能再熟悉，可越靠近房門，他心跳得越快。
進入房間後，兩人只對視一眼，杜元哲就把夏凝覓壓在房門上，兩人緊緊貼在一起，毫不猶豫地吻下去。
或許是躲着衆人的緣故，杜元哲心裏特別激動，今天尤其渴望和夏凝覓接觸。
夏凝覓摟緊他的脖子，順從地靠在他的懷裏，任由他仿佛吃人般的掠奪。
房間裏充滿兩人的喘息聲，還有接吻發出的暧昧聲音。
杜元哲一邊吻着夏凝覓，一邊摟着她後退，等後退到床邊，他轉個身就壓着夏凝覓躺在床上，身體有了着力點，兩人更加肆無忌憚。
杜元哲的襯衫領口被扯開，夏凝覓一用力翻身壓在他身上，柔軟的唇印在他喉嚨上，舌尖俏皮地在他喉結處劃動。
杜元哲喉嚨發幹，心中的沖動難以控制，他摟緊夏凝覓想要再次搶回主導地位。
咚咚咚——
“元哲？”
兩人的動作頓時一頓，激情迅速退去，只剩下略微有些粗重的喘息聲。
夏凝覓眼中泛着水霧，面色卻十分淡定，沒有絲毫慌亂的感覺。
若不是她眼底藏着對杜元哲的渴望，都看不出來兩人剛才在進行生命大和諧運動。
杜元哲坐起身，揚聲道：“嫂子怎麽了？”
外面敲門的正是趙之夢。
“壽宴剛開始你怎麽就上樓了，是不是身體不舒服？”
杜元哲看看衛生間，示意夏凝覓躲進去。
他總不能一直隔着門和趙之夢說話，這樣更讓人懷疑。
夏凝覓皺眉，他們越來越像偷。情了。
但他們兩個的關系還沒公開，只能先避着他家裏人。
夏凝覓走進衛生間，杜元哲飛快系上襯衫扣子，把床上的被子掀開，做出剛從被子出來的樣子，然後打開門道：“我沒事。主要是樓下沒幾個認識的人，我也不喜歡和他們閑聊，還不如回房間玩手機。”
趙之夢笑道：“你還是這樣，你哥還說讓你今天多認識一些人呢.....你脖子上是怎回事，過敏了？”
她注意到杜元哲脖子上的一塊紅痕。
杜元哲心裏一跳，這一刻他的演技發揮了作用，非常自然地編瞎話：“剛才覺得癢就自己撓了撓，沒什麽事，一會兒就消下去了。”
趙之夢沒有多想，道：“你既然不願意下樓，就繼續待在房間吧，餓了就下樓吃點東西，我得下樓和那些叔叔伯伯打個招呼。”
趙之夢因為懷孕不需要一直待在樓下應酬，但最起碼應該下樓打聲招呼。
“嗯，嫂子下樓小心點，要不我扶着你下去？”
趙之夢翻了白眼：“我這才五個月，還沒到需要人攙扶的時候。”
五個月的肚子可以明顯看出來懷孕，但還沒有到影響日常活動的時候。
應付走趙之夢，杜元哲關上房門後松了口氣。
夏凝覓從衛生間走出來。
杜元哲摸摸脖子，道：“七七，你剛才是不是太瘋狂了，竟然在我脖子留下痕跡，差點解釋不過去。”
夏凝覓閃過一絲不自然，她也覺得自己着急了些。
杜元哲湊到她耳邊笑道：“你是不是也覺得這有些刺激？”
夏凝覓沒理他，扭頭打量他的房間，桌上擺着幾個相框，都是他的近照，竟然還有一張洛尋的劇照。
杜元哲解釋道：“我媽給我換的，她喜歡把我的照片放在相框裏擺出來。”
書桌旁還有一個紙箱，裏面放着雜七雜八的東西，什麽東西都有。
杜元哲道：“這是他之前的東西，我都收在那個箱子裏，這裏面的很多東西都和衛菱菱有關，只可惜我不能幫他交給衛菱菱。”
陳蓉珊能發現原主喜歡衛菱菱，都是多虧了這些東西。
夏凝覓目光閃了閃，如果按照她的想法，會一把火燒了這些東西，她在乎的只有杜元哲。
但杜元哲肯定不同意，她便沒有把這個想法說出口。
“之前汪憐萱來找我了。”
杜元哲一愣，正色道：“她和你說什麽？”
夏凝覓道：“她和你之前一樣，認為我喜歡蔣澈霖。”
感受到她目光中的深意，杜元哲果斷坦白道：“她和我一樣都知道小說劇情。只是我們兩個人的目的不一樣，我是為了維持劇情發展，她是為了破壞劇情，主要是破壞女主的劇情。”
“這就是你必須對付她的理由？”
杜元哲點頭：“汪憐萱所做的事危害很大，一旦被她成功，受到影響的不只是衛菱菱一個人，還包括我們所有人。”
夏凝覓凝眸看他：“你這是想救世？”
杜元哲苦笑：“我沒那麽偉大，如果可以我也不想摻和進去，但我沒有選擇，我只是想保護你，保護我身邊的人。”
夏凝覓：“有人在威脅你？”
這是她一直懷疑的，她很了解杜元哲，他不是願意承擔那麽大責任的人。
杜元哲沉默片刻，道：“你想多了，沒人威脅我。”
他總覺得系統對他沒有惡意，雖然它用的辦法不太好，還隐瞞了他一些事，但他始終覺得系統不會傷害他。
這是一種來自在他心底的直覺。
夏凝覓沒有繼續追問，道：“汪憐萱想要和我合作對付衛菱菱。”
杜元哲突然有些幻滅：“她和你合作？”
那汪憐萱今後的威脅就會小很多啊，她越倚仗夏凝覓，他們就越不用擔心。
夏凝覓點頭：“她深信自己知道的劇情，一開始想利用我，被我戳破心思後改為合作，她想讓我調查是誰幫衛菱菱得到試鏡機會，我告訴她是蔣澈霖讓我做的。”
杜元哲臉色古怪：“這鍋甩得很好。”
男主本來就會保護女主，汪憐萱估計不會懷疑什麽。
杜元哲道：“這樣挺好，今後汪憐萱要是有什麽動作，我們也能提前知道。”
夏凝覓問道：“像你們這樣知道劇情的人多嗎？”
杜元哲搖頭：“就我們兩個......但如果汪憐萱發生什麽意外，可能會有其他人知道。”
氣運掠奪系統每換一個宿主，肯定就會多一個知道劇情的人。
夏凝覓若有所思。
.......
一樓大廳
趙之夢雖然說着沒什麽，但她下樓的時候很小心，一直扶着樓梯扶手。
杜元聞一直注意着樓梯口，看到趙之夢下來立刻過去扶住她。
“怎麽不喊個人扶着你？”
趙之夢道：“我沒事，元哲之前還說要扶着我來着，我拒絕了。”
杜元聞古怪地看她：“你剛才見到元哲了？”
趙之夢點頭：“我之前就打算下樓，出門後卻發現忘了拿手機，正要回房的時候剛好看到元哲上樓。”
"I even went to ask him if he was feeling unwell, but he just wanted to be lazy. You couldn't get him to meet more people."
Du Yuanwen's expression became more and more strange: "Did you knock on his door?"
Zhao Zhimeng was confused: "Yes, what's wrong?"
Du Yuanwen: "Did you find anything wrong?"
Zhao Zhimeng shook his head: "No."
Du Yuanwen wanted to say something but stopped.
Zhao Zhimeng pushed him and said, "Don't keep me in suspense. Tell me what happened."
Du Yuanwen thought that Zhao Zhimeng knew about the relationship between Du Yuanzhe and Xia Ningmi anyway, so there was no need to hide it from her, so he whispered a few words in her ear.
Zhao Zhimeng's eyes widened, and then a blush appeared on his face: "I may have interrupted their fun."
Now that he thought about it, the red marks on Du Yuanzhe's neck were not caused by him at all. Xia Ningmi was such a cold person, but she would actually do such a thing as leaving marks on Du Yuanzhe's body.
It is true that you cannot judge a book by its cover.
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