Oops, I’m the Scumbag Ex in Her Storyline - Chapter 23

Before and after marriage, almost no one knew that the original Xin Yan had a girl named Bei Lanlan by her side.

She had done an exceptional job keeping it a secret. For all these years, only Assistant An, who was closest to Xin Yan, knew she was married. But even he had never seen what Bei Lanlan looked like until Xin Yan brought her to the company. Occasionally, when he dropped Xin Yan off at Lin Yin Road, he’d hear gossip that Bei Lanlan bore an uncanny resemblance to Jing Chu.

Since it hadn’t been disclosed for the past four years, it certainly shouldn’t be revealed now.

Xin Yan’s imposing aura faltered, her throat tightening with hesitation.

No matter how she responded, it would likely lead to endless trouble for both her and Bei Lanlan.

After a moment of speechlessness, faced with Song Xizi’s pointed question, Xin Yan snapped back harshly,

“What’s it to you? Mind your own business!”

With that, she grabbed Bei Lanlan’s hand and quickly pulled her away.

Song Xizi stared in stunned silence as they walked off, her gaze lingering on their clasped hands. She scoffed and sneered,

“Idiot.”
________________________________________

Thank goodness Xin Yan didn’t hear that—otherwise, she probably would’ve turned around and stormed back.

On the way home, Xin Yan’s mind was spinning with worries. Song Xizi was no saint. If she found out about this, at best, she would dig into Bei Lanlan’s background, find a weak spot, and leak it to Xin Yan’s shareholders. At worst… Xin Yan didn’t even want to imagine it.

When it came to others, Song Xizi always acted based on profit—if there was no benefit, she wouldn’t lift a finger. But Xin Yan was the exception. Their grudge was so deep and convoluted, it would take three whole days to sort out. Even if she gained nothing and lost something instead, if it meant Xin Yan would suffer, Song Xizi would happily go for it.

If push came to shove, Xin Yan might have to strike first.

She was still mentally flipping through Song Xizi’s blackmail-worthy dirt, trying to figure out which one she could use to defend herself, when the previously silent Bei Lanlan suddenly asked:
“That woman just now… does she like you?”

Screech— Xin Yan nearly crashed the multimillion-dollar sports car into a tree.

After narrowly steering back onto the road, she didn’t even wipe her sweat before whipping her head around in shock.
“Why would you think that?”

Bei Lanlan replied calmly,
“She didn’t seem happy that you’re married.”

Xin Yan steadied her racing heartbeat and gave a pause before answering,
“It’s not what you think. That’s Song Xizi—the one I told you about. She’s my competitor. She wants to know everything about me—down to what I eat. Her control freak tendencies are out of this world. Now she suddenly finds out I’ve been married for years and she didn’t even know? Of course she’s losing it.”

Bei Lanlan frowned slightly.
“How does she know so much about you?”

Xin Yan shrugged, almost casually:
“She has moles in my company.”

Bei Lanlan’s eyes widened.
“You know this, and you still let them stay?”

“I know, but I don’t know who they are. Over the years, she has planted more than a dozen. Fire one, and another one pops up.”

Bei Lanlan:
“…And you don’t mind?”

Xin Yan blinked innocently.
“Not really. I’ve also planted over a dozen in her company by now.”

Bei Lanlan: “…”

She was speechless, vaguely irritated, and more than a little uncomfortable.

Xin Yan always spoke about Song Xizi as if she were the devil incarnate. But when Bei Lanlan met her, she saw a very charismatic woman. And their relationship wasn’t quite the life-or-death enmity Xin Yan had described.

Suppressing her complicated emotions, Bei Lanlan murmured,
“You two seem… pretty close.”

Xin Yan was baffled.
“Close? Are you serious? We’re anything but close.”

After a pause, afraid Bei Lanlan would misunderstand, she added,
“She definitely doesn’t like me. No one does.”

Saying that, she smiled gently at Bei Lanlan before turning her head back to focus on the road.

Bei Lanlan stared at her profile in silence, her heart stirring.

Judging by Xin Yan’s past, Bei Lanlan had always thought that statement rang true—no one in this world would like Xin Yan.

But the past was slowly fading. The Xin Yan she remembered most clearly now was the recent one.

And hearing those words from this version of Xin Yan made Bei Lanlan feel… oddly uncomfortable.

It was like the softest part of her heart had been squeezed—not painful, but deeply unsettling.

The rest of the ride was silent. When they got home, Xin Yan was eager to shower and crash into bed. Just as she was about to step into her room, Bei Lanlan called out to her.

Xin Yan turned around, puzzled.
“What’s up?”

A few seconds passed before Bei Lanlan finally spoke:
“Last night…”

Xin Yan froze like she was under siege.

She had thought Bei Lanlan wouldn’t bring it up again—but it was happening.

Her brain raced to come up with an explanation. Across from her, Bei Lanlan finished her sentence:
“The things you said last night… were they all true?”

The mental gears screeched to a halt. Xin Yan paused, trying to recall exactly what she had said the night before.

Running through her memory quickly, she realized everything she had said was pretty safe—except for the ambiguous “I like you.” But even that had been explained later. Bei Lanlan didn’t misunderstand last night, so she probably wouldn’t today either.

With that reassurance, Xin Yan calmed down. She pressed her lips together and nodded,
“Every word was true.”

Bei Lanlan lowered her head slightly and turned to walk toward her room. Just as she was about to step in, she paused and looked back.
“Thank you. Good night.”

The door closed.

Xin Yan stood frozen in place.

She held her breath, even the voice in her head careful and quiet:
Lanlan said thank you.
Lanlan said good night.
Lanlan… Lanlan is…
…starting to see me differently?!