If The Persona Is Wrong, Everything Else Is In Vain - Chapter 12

Zhou Wan leaned back in his wheelchair, looking at the vexed and humiliated Lin Luo. He teased, “Weren’t you planning how to pursue me last night? Are you shy already?”

“I…” Lin Luo was reminded of the embarrassment of talking about someone behind their back with Gu Ning last night, only for the actual person to be right there on the spot.

Instantly overwhelmed with shame, he glanced around to make sure no one was watching them. Lowering his voice, he said, “Didn’t we already make things clear last night?”

After sending Gu Ning away last night, Lin Luo had returned to the bedside full of anxiety, so embarrassed that he wished he could find a crack in the floor to crawl into. Facing Zhou Wan’s “interrogation,” he had gritted his teeth and bluntly apologized first.

He had intended to use a “courtesy before force” strategy.

Who would have thought that Zhou Wan wouldn’t buy into that at all. Lying there like a grand deity, he said, “Why apologize? I don’t want to hear that.”

Lin Luo replied, “Don’t pay attention to Gu Ning, he was talking nonsense. You just need to follow the contract and put on a good show of being in a business relationship with me for three years.”

“No way,” Zhou Wan’s smile was full of cunning. “Can a real couple be the same as a fake business relationship?”

“What if we get exposed? Whose fault will it be?”

Lin Luo hesitated for a long while before stammering, “It… it will be mine, alright? If we get found out then, you can just dump all the blame on me.”

“No,” Zhou Wan said again.

“Then what do you want?” Lin Luo asked.

“Just like President Gu said,” he pointed at Lin Luo, then at himself. “You pursue me.”

Those beautiful eyes looked exceptionally bright under the light, but they made Lin Luo’s heart panic. He heard Zhou Wan let out a soft chuckle. “I shouldn’t need to teach you how to pursue someone, right? After all, you have experience.” The corners of his lips curved up, his eyes crinkling with amusement.

Zhou Wan’s expression turned stern, his displeasure vanishing in an instant as he smiled without warmth. “You’re only seven years older than me, not even thirty yet. Is your memory really that bad?”

“I don’t recall our meaning of ‘making things clear’ being to cut ties. And,” he raised an eyebrow slightly, “we are far from clear.”

He immediately sat up straight, pulled out his phone, and opened a social media app. “Thanks to your boss, news of the two of us having an affair is spreading like wildfire outside right now. You can’t deny it even if you want to.”

“You have to take responsibility for me, Bro Luo.”

“Or rather, compared to an open and official announcement, do you prefer… ” He paused for a moment, letting out a malicious smile. Lowering his voice, his thumb gently rubbed against Lin Luo’s waist through the linen fabric, and he continued, ” the thrill of an illicit affair?”

“Have you no shame!”

Zhou Wan shrugged, utterly indifferent. “Compared to you being forced into this, Bro Luo, I’m nowhere near that level.”

“You…”

He could have just refused directly. When he was “conspiring” with Gu Ning, Zhou Wan had been listening right beside them. If Young Master Zhou had resisted to the death, no one could have done anything to him. Lin Luo had no idea what kind of act he was putting on today.

Lin Luo lowered his head and fell silent for a moment, truly unable to figure out what Zhou Wan’s goal was in making him perform a pursuit.

“Since you have no interest in me, and I’ve already explained it to you, why do you keep holding onto this?”

“Hey,” Zhou Wan raised his hand to interrupt, “you’re wrong about that.”

“I am very interested in you.” He slowed down his speech, his voice trailing up at the end.

Lin Luo froze. “What did you say?”

What on earth had changed Zhou Wan? Was it the kick from last night? Just because his leg was accidentally broken last night, he became a pervert?

Lin Luo scanned Zhou Wan from head to toe, his expression gradually becoming complex.

“Stop it, I’m not a masochist.” Zhou Wan seemed to see right through his inner thoughts.

He jerked his chin toward a bag on the nearby table. “Take it and eat it yourself.”

“What’s this?” Lin Luo asked as he unpacked the insulated container.

The moment the lid was lifted, a familiar aroma wafted out, making his eyes light up instantly.

“Did you make this specially for me?” Lin Luo had originally wanted to refuse directly, but no one could turn down a bowl of stir-fried pork with green peppers.

Especially when it was stir-fried by Zhou Wan. Back when he lived at Zhou Wan’s house, he had been amazed by this young master’s culinary skills. He had originally thought Zhou Wan didn’t know the first thing about housework, but after moving out, he had been missing that taste constantly.

There was no guarantee what kind of training wealthy young masters and ladies underwent to be groomed into all-around geniuses.

Zhou Wan averted his gaze. “Don’t flatter yourself. I needed to eat too. I was too lazy to throw away the leftovers, so I’m letting you have it cheap.”

Lin Luo couldn’t wait to take a bite. He glanced at Zhou Wan’s still casted leg, suppressing a smile at the corner of his lips.

“Holy crap, what is this stuff? Is it even fit for human consumption?” Gu Ning walked over carrying a box lunch, poking through it with his chopsticks and being thoroughly picky, with two more boxes hanging from his wrist.

As soon as he looked up, he saw Lin Luo already eating, and the food looked much better than what was in his own bowl. He swore, “You heartless guy, you actually started eating by yourself! To think I was still thinking about bringing food for the two of you!”

Lin Luo spread his hands. “Can’t help it. It’s my destiny to have food; I don’t even have to lift a finger.”

“Fck…” Before Gu Ning could finish cursing, Ming Songqin also walked over, holding an insulated container in his hand.

When an identical dish of stir-fried pork with green peppers was brought out, Gu Ning genuinely gave Lin Luo a thumbs-up.

Ming Songqin froze for a moment, pointing at Zhou Wan’s leg. “You’re really injured?”

“Otherwise?”

Ming Songqin nodded. “I thought you found another excuse to sneak out and mess around.”

“But this is good too.” He spread out the food containers one by one.

Zhou Wan: “?”

Only after stuffing Lin Luo’s bowl to the brim did Ming Songqin continue, “This way, Chairman Zhou won’t have to worry about you running around wildly anymore, and you won’t have to worry about your old man breaking your leg for going out to mess around.”

It had to be said that Ming Songqin possessed a bit of natural dark humor.

He suggested, “Since you’re injured, go home and get some good rest. I’ll give you a month off.”

“No way!” Gu Ning and Zhou Wan said in unison.

Gu Ning secretly nudged Lin Luo, shooting him a look.

Lin Luo was enjoying the show when he was suddenly dragged into the drama. Catching Gu Ning’s hint, he said vaguely, “Right, you can’t give him time off.”

Ming Songqin lowered his eyes and unhurriedly poured him a cup of tea. “Why?”

“Look… look here, we agreed before that the Lin-Zhou CP would do business together. It wouldn’t be good if he suddenly backs out.”

“The morning recording only has three guests, it won’t affect it,” Ming Songqin said.

Lin Luo added, “Hasn’t the show’s official account already announced the guest lineup online? It’s not good to suddenly withdraw, rumors will start spreading.”

“When that time comes, it will cause unpredictable losses to both companies,” Lin Luo said without blushing or his heart skipping a beat.

He didn’t know if Qinchao would be affected, but as the only signed artist of Fanxing, he was the “hope of the whole village.”

Ming Songqin fell silent for a moment, his gaze sweeping across the three of them before finally stopping on Lin Luo’s face, smiling gently. “Our Xiao Luo has really grown up; you’re actually considering so many factors now.”

“However, is this your intention?”

Lin Luo didn’t understand what he meant, his face full of question marks.

When the official announcement post of his and Zhou Wan’s relationship appeared before his eyes online, Lin Luo almost spat out the tea in his mouth.

He glanced at the sending time, twenty minutes ago.

His gaze drifted to Gu Ning. Gu Ning met his eyes, looking equally blank, waving his hands repeatedly to signal that he didn’t do it.

Ming Songqin also glanced at Gu Ning. “Is President Gu already resorting to any means necessary just to make money?”

Gu Ning instantly flared up. “What nonsense are you talking about?”

“You know very well in your heart what I am talking about,” Ming Songqin sneered.

“Fck, make yourself clear!” Gu Ning immediately slammed the table and stood up. The fragile food containers on the table airborne for a split second before crashing back down heavily. “I, Gu Ning, act upright and straightforward. If I did it, I’d admit it. Do you dare to, you hypocrite?!”

Bad memories were renewed in his mind, adding fuel to the fire, as a raging blaze threatened to consume his rationality.

He also let out a cold laugh, mocking, “Who do you think you are? You’re not Lin Luo’s dad. Who he likes and who he dates, does it have anything to do with you?”

Ming Songqin clenched his fists tightly, his expression extraordinarily ugly.

Gu Ning wanted to continue his output but was pulled back by Lin Luo. Because the voice was too loud, it had already attracted the attention of quite a few people around them.

Lin Luo stroked Gu Ning’s back to comfort him, soothing, “Speak properly, don’t get excited.”

“How is it possible to talk properly with him,” Gu Ning crossed his arms, saying in a bizarre, sarcastic tone, “Can you play the lute to a cow? There’s a generational gap across species.”

Ming Songqin suddenly stood up, fiercely grabbing Gu Ning’s wrist and dragging him outside.

“Hey, you guys!” Lin Luo was about to chase after them, deeply afraid that they would start fighting once they got outside.

He was stopped by Zhou Wan. “Let them solve it themselves.”

“No, what if they start fighting later,” Lin Luo said, frowning.

As he spoke, he was about to head in the direction they had left.

Zhou Wan pointed not far away, saying unhurriedly, “I think you should go look over there first.”

Not far away, a group of fans holding support banners were blocked outside the cordon by staff members. Some sort of dispute seemed to have occurred, and neither side was willing to back down; they were almost about to start fighting.

Lin Luo felt a massive headache coming on. After weighing his options, he pushed Zhou Wan, wheelchair and all, toward the fans.

“On what basis are you pushing me?!” a fan shouted at the security personnel.

The security guard held his hand, which had been scratched by something sharp on someone’s body, suppressing his anger to give a final warning: “We are currently filming, please leave now.”

“I’m just not leaving, on what basis should I leave? I bought a ticket to come in!” the leader of the group continued to clamor.

Both sides had their own standpoints, as if giving in meant the other side won and they themselves would lose an invisible glory. The entanglement between two people instantly escalated into a battle between two camps, and the scene became tense for a time.

As Lin Luo walked over, the focus of the others’ argument shifted instantly, greeting the star with screams.

Zhou Wan was forced into the center of public opinion. He originally had an indifferent expression, but after being glared at by Lin Luo, he immediately put on the skin of “Zhou Wan,” greeting everyone amidst a chorus of exclamations.

Lin Luo glanced at the security guard’s still-bleeding hand, then peeked at the leader’s clothing where a strand of bright red was still hanging from a rivet, instantly figuring out who the “perpetrator” was.

That person didn’t look very old, dressed entirely in a punk rock style with ear studs, brow studs, lip studs, and so on, almost every place that could be pierced was pierced. His attire was exceptionally avant-garde, with a head of multicolored highlights and tattoos covering his exposed skin so much that no natural flesh color could be seen. He looked very consistent with his personality, high-profile and flashy.

He was practically flashier than Lin Luo during his middle school chuunibyou phase.

Lin Luo piled on a smile, patting the security guard’s shoulder from behind. He whispered something in his ear, apologized quietly, and handed him a band-aid. The man glanced at him and went toward the rest area with a grim face.

Seeing things going south, the leader of the fans tried to step forward to tangle with him again but was blocked from view by Lin Luo.

He took over the position of the departing security guard, completing the human cordon formed by six guards. Half-feigning anger and half-coaxing to comfort the fans, he said, “Thank you all for your support, but there are regulations during filming; you can’t get too close.”

“I’ll first apologize to everyone on behalf of our staff member’s behavior just now. I’m sorry.”

He looked up at the fierce sun overhead, the glare making it hard to open one’s eyes. “The sun is strong outside right now. Please move to the pavilion next to us to rest first, alright? I’ll treat everyone to drinks.”

Usually, this tactic worked quite well, but today it seemed to have lost its magic.

Mr. Rivet didn’t buy his act at all. Putting his hands on his hips and tilting his head to look up at him, his gaze made people very uncomfortable, carrying a sense of disdain. “Just because you apologize for him, it’s settled?”

Lin Luo froze for a moment, then smiled amiably. “Then how would you like to solve it?”

The rivet man rolled his eyes at him, seizing an opportunity to bypass Lin Luo and rush straight toward Zhou Wan, who was watching the show behind him. His face piled with smiles, looking exactly like a big bad wolf seeing a little white lamb. His eyes lit up instantly, and with quick hands, he grabbed Zhou Wan’s hand.

“Wanwan, do you still remember me? I’m Wei An, the one who always interacts with you in the very first row of your comment section!” he introduced himself excitedly. But when his gaze moved to Zhou Wan’s leg, he asked distressingly, “What happened to your leg? Why didn’t you take good care of yourself? Don’t you know my heart will ache?”

He then said, “My name was born to love you! Although I am also… also an Omega,” a sudden blush appeared, “but I am willing to have children for you!”

The truth came to light: a hardcore solo fan of Zhou Wan.

Wei An, wuian, “I love Wan”…

Back when Lin Luo used to secretly peep at the comment section of Zhou Wan’s personal account, the name Wei An did sound quite familiar, but he truly hadn’t expected it to have such a meaning…

Moreover, this was actually his real name.

Though… how could two Omegas have a child together…

It was Lin Luo’s first time eating drama from such a close distance. He forcefully suppressed the corners of his mouth, almost unable to keep a straight face.

Wei An’s emotions were freely expressed, almost entirely let out without any restraint. The speed of his emotional switching left everyone on the scene stunned.

The security personnel pulled at his waist from behind, but he resisted fiercely, his mouth chattering away with all kinds of confessions. His hands flapped wildly in the air a few times, quickly finding a saving straw as he death-gripped the wheelchair and grabbed Zhou Wan’s hand.

Zhou Wan instantly lost his point of leverage, his whole body dragged forward quite a bit by the man. At the critical point right before he was about to blow his top, Lin Luo arrived in time to press him down. He first quickly locked the wheelchair in place, then gently patted his shoulder.

Zhou Wan’s face was dark, the rage in his eyes looking ready to overflow.

“Um, Mr. Wei, is it?” Lin Luo interrupted him. “How about you let go first so we can talk things through properly?”

He stared at Zhou Wan’s hand, which was being squeezed so tightly by the man that it had lost color and turned pale. It wasn’t that he was afraid Zhou Wan would need an amputation, before that happened, he would definitely be amputated by Zhou Wan first.

It was just that with so many people watching, if Young Master Zhou threw a tantrum, it would ultimately have a bad influence, and the one affected in the end would still be himself.

“What is there to talk about? I don’t want to talk to you,” the man remained unreasonable, gripping tightly and refusing to let go, entirely failing to see the look on Zhou Wan’s face that seemed ready to draw blood.

The commotion here was getting very loud. The director, who had gone to the adjacent cafeteria for lunch, followed the sound and walked over, followed by the white-haired old guide arranged by the village. Uncle Li.

He recognized the troublemaking Wei An at a single glance and immediately barked out. “Goudanzi!”

Hearing this shout, Wei An was startled and froze for a moment. Taking advantage of his distraction, everyone finally “rescued” Zhou Wan’s hand.