Oops, I’m the Scumbag Ex in Her Storyline - Chapter 60

After Li Jingshu’s reminder, Bei Lanlan spent a long time pondering whether she should tell Xin Yan about the company plans in advance.

Her partner, Liu Danxing, upon hearing her worries, rolled her eyes openly. “You two haven’t divorced, right?”

Bei Lanlan frowned at the word. “Of course not.”

“Then why are you acting like you’re about to grab the money and run? You’ve been talking nonstop about how perfect your relationship is—I thought you were going to ask her to invest!”

Bei Lanlan fell silent. Liu Danxing studied her for a moment before stepping closer. “So, about the investment…”

“Don’t even think about it. I’m not asking her for money.”

Hearing that, Liu Danxing immediately got up and left. If she had time to spare, she might as well look for other reliable investors.

In truth, they both had funds, but their collaboration had gone so smoothly that they felt they could expand further. Bigger scale meant more money was needed—and it had to be liquid capital. Bei Lanlan, as a soon-to-graduate college student, had only earned her small savings through her own hard work. Xin Yan didn’t give her pocket money; she just gave her a card to use as she pleased.

Liu Danxing, on the other hand, had access to a family trust fund—but she couldn’t touch it. If she did, her relatives would find out. Starting a business wasn’t the issue; if anyone suspected she had designs on family assets, they’d move like crazy to crush her outside the business.

Although she wasn’t easy to intimidate, and Bei Lanlan alone was sharp enough to match them all, plus Xin Yan would always have their backs… Liu Danxing didn’t want her family to complicate their startup journey.

So, they still needed an investor.

There were very few people who could provide such a large amount immediately. Liu Danxing couldn’t understand why Bei Lanlan refused to use Xin Yan—who was perfect, knew them inside out, and could provide unlimited funds without risk—and insisted on looking elsewhere.

But Bei Lanlan didn’t care what Liu Danxing thought. She was an outsider who only saw the advantages. Matters of the heart belonged to Bei Lanlan and Xin Yan. She had other considerations.

Even if she guaranteed the company’s profitability, an external investor’s money wouldn’t be wasted. But if it was Xin Yan, she’d worry—she feared disappointing her, and feared falling short.

On the day they had agreed to go for a spring outing, Bei Lanlan thought long and hard before finally telling Xin Yan about it on the lawn. Xin Yan was stunned.

“You mean… you and Prof. Liu have been working together all this time?”

Bei Lanlan: “Not all the time.”

Xin Yan: “Not all the time… so, it hadn’t been long before she wanted to partner with you?!”

Xin Yan’s expression said, “You’ve been conned!” Bei Lanlan quickly explained, “Actually, it’s been quite a while.”

Xin Yan asked suspiciously, “When exactly did it start?”

Bei Lanlan recalled, “The second… or maybe third time I met her.”

Xin Yan: “…Not all the time?!”

Wasn’t that already more than half a year ago?!

Xin Yan, dumbfounded, said, “So every time you went to see her, you were lying to me. You weren’t really doing experiments.”

Seeing her expression, Bei Lanlan suddenly panicked. “No! At first, I just wanted to earn money. I wanted to pay you back everything.”

Xin Yan was shocked. “You wanted to cut ties with me?!”

Bei Lanlan: “No!!!”

Nearby children were startled by her sudden shout, even dropping a ball.

“Listen, when you went on that business trip, I saw the divorce papers the lawyer delivered. I knew you wanted to leave me, but I didn’t want that. I couldn’t think of a good way to stop you. Given the gap between us, if you insisted on divorce, there was nothing I could do. So I thought, if I could earn money too, if I could be like you… back then, I wasn’t thinking much—I just wanted to pay back everything you had spent on me. At least then, I wouldn’t owe you. Maybe then, you could see me as an equal. Maybe you’d change your mind and stay by my side.”

Xin Yan became increasingly dazed. Bei Lanlan had even known about the agreement, yet acted as if nothing was amiss. In contrast, Xin Yan was the one completely in the dark, thinking her secrecy was clever.

She exhaled. “Is that all? Are there other things you’ve hidden from me?”

Bei Lanlan thought for a moment, recalling one more thing: “Professor Xu also invested in our company. She found out a month ago—just a little earlier than you.”

“That’s it?”

Bei Lanlan hesitated but felt this was the best moment. If she didn’t say it now, Xin yan would be truly upset if she discovered it later.

So, she also mentioned how she had returned the perfume to Lu Wanqiu in person.

Xin Yan: “…Ah, no wonder you said you could handle Lu Wanqiu. So it had already been settled.”

Xin Yan showed a hint of fatigue. Bei Lanlan’s heart tightened. “Are you angry?”

Xin Yan: “No… I just feel… your mother was right. I really am too naive.”

Bei Lanlan: “…”

Covering her face, she felt both exasperated and amused, finally giving up and letting go. “Fine. Back then, circumstances were special. You hid things from me, I hid things from you. Let’s leave the past behind. But from now on, don’t hide anything, or it will break my heart.”

Bei Lanlan nodded solemnly. “I won’t. I swear.”

Xin Yan looked at her and smiled. “Then tell me about the company you plan to start. Do you need me to invest?”

Knowing she would ask that, Bei Lanlan shook her head. “I want you to watch me succeed. I’ll find the right investors. You have to trust me, okay?”

Xin Yan could only smile and nod. Bei Lanlan finally exhaled, resting on her lap to calm her racing heart. Xin Yan stroked her hair and noticed she was sweating in the early spring air—she must have been really nervous.

Xin Yan couldn’t help but smile and gently wiped her sweat away, pretending she knew nothing.

……

With Xin Yan’s reassurance, Bei Lanlan could now bring up the matter freely. Xin Yan promised to observe but never interfere, always listening quietly.

As Xin Yan’s closest employee, An Zhiyuan soon learned about the little fairy’s impending independence. Unlike Xin Yan, he quickly connected the dots with some of Bei Lanlan’s earlier odd behaviors. No wonder she wasn’t competing for his tasks anymore—she had a new goal.

An Zhiyuan congratulated Bei Lanlan in the office. He asked if Xin Yan would invest, but before Bei Lanlan could answer, Xin Yan said herself that this was Bei Lanlan’s own venture; she would monitor but not interfere.

On the surface, An Zhiyuan was supportive—but inwardly, he thought, This is interesting… very interesting.

……

In the afternoon, Bei Lanlan went to meet Liu Danxing, while Xin Yan went to entertain potential business partners. There was a new project, and many wanted to meet her in person. Assistant An filtered out unqualified candidates, leaving only those requiring Xin Yan’s personal decision.

She favored one new company. It was clear they had a wealthy backer, with so much liquid capital that even Xin Yan was impressed. She investigated and found the CEO extremely mysterious, with no traceable background.

If even Xin Yan couldn’t find anything, that said a lot.

Entering the pre-booked private room, Xin Yan saw the woman inside and smiled, shaking her hand. “Hello, President Ran.”

The woman stood promptly. Her attitude was neither overly warm nor cold, perfectly measured. “Just call me Ran Yuezhui. I hope I’m not taking up too much of your time. Next time, I’ll host and make sure you can relax without business matters.”

Xin Yan raised an eyebrow. Whether there would be a next time was uncertain.

Ran Yuezhui had come prepared. Xin Yan had intended only a casual meet-and-greet, but Ran presented a mini-report directly on the table—thorough, precise, without a word wasted. Xin Yan listened attentively, nodding occasionally.

Seeing this, Ran knew she was eighty percent successful.

Finally finishing, suppressing her excitement, Ran took a sip of water. “Do you have any questions?”

Xin Yan nodded more vigorously. “One thing—if I remember correctly, your company has been listed for two years?”

Ran Yuezhui: “Yes, and our market value has grown to 12 billion in that time.”

12 billion sounded impressive, but listed company values are usually quoted in USD. She clearly meant RMB, otherwise Xin Yan wouldn’t just be hearing her name now.

Not that it mattered.

Xin Yan nodded and asked, “So, you can start investing in others now?”

Assistant An, sitting nearby, was speechless. Guess the investment she’s talking about isn’t about their own group…