The Alpha’s Hidden Marriage, Public Obsession - Chapter 62

Both their faces were slightly swollen, but Lin Yulan’s was visibly worse, with lingering reddish-purple marks that refused to fade not severe, but still a significant injury.

Jiang Xue had spoken harshly, but deep down, she still felt uncomfortable. In her mind, Lin Yulan’s face was the only thing left of any use to her, and now it had been injured. What if it really got disfigured? Where else was she supposed to look?!

Xia Yin clearly hadn’t expected Jiang Xue to show up either. She wanted to ask a few questions, but the moment she noticed Lin Yulan standing nearby, the words died in her throat. Instead, she could only echo Lin Yulan’s unspoken discomfort and ask, “Xiaoxue, you why are you here?”

Jiang Xue hadn’t forgiven Xia Yin for what happened before, and with the recent project incident, whatever little goodwill she had left for Xia Yin had completely evaporated. She replied irritably, “Since Xia Ran is here, I assume you already know about our relationship, right? Xiao Lin and I are married. I’m her Omega. So why I’m standing here, do you really not know, or are you pretending not to?”

The moment those words left her mouth, Lin Yulan froze, looking up at Jiang Xue in disbelief. Her heart swelled with joy and excitement, and she nearly rushed over to hug and kiss her right then and there.

But with Xia Yin present and Xia Ran acting as an unwelcome third wheel Lin Yulan held back. Even if she wanted to kiss Jiang Xue, she’d have to get rid of these two glaring obstacles first. Otherwise, given how thin-skinned Jiang Xue was, doing so in front of her former college classmate and a persistent suitor would probably land them straight in the divorce office.

Suppressing the urge with great effort, Lin Yulan slowly moved to Jiang Xue’s side, putting on the most pitiful expression she could muster as if to say, “Darling, it was her who bullied me. You have to stand up for me.”

It made Jiang Xue want to slap her on the spot. She had never imagined Lin Yulan would be the type to act spoiled so easily. Had she been like this with Qu Mengxin too?

The thought inexplicably soured Jiang Xue’s mood. She even considered just walking away. So what if her face was injured? If it got disfigured, so be it. Plastic surgery was advanced these days she could just get it fixed and have it look exactly the way she liked.

Xia Yin’s expression remained unreadable. Whether she was upset, angry, or disappointed was impossible to tell. After all, she had never expected the Omega she liked to already be married and to the very Alpha who had sworn up and down that she would never fall for this Omega. For any Alpha in the midst of pursuing someone, this was an unbearable blow.

“Xiaoxue, you never answered my question before. It wasn’t that you couldn’t forget her, it was because you were already married, and you were struggling with that, right?” Xia Yin’s voice carried unmistakable disappointment.

But it wasn’t disappointment in herself. It was disappointment in Jiang Xue.

Jiang Xue said, “President Xia, I’ve already refused many times before and made myself very clear. Even if I weren’t married to Lin Yulan, you still wouldn’t be my type.”

Xia Ran stood nearby, unsure of what to say. On one side was her own sister, and on the other was the Omega her sister liked who also happened to be her college classmate. The most frustrating part was that the partner of the Omega her sister liked was none other than her own best friend. This situation would make anyone sigh and think, the world is too chaotic; I need a moment to myself.

“I understand,” Xia Yin said with a bitter smile. “So it was just my wishful thinking.”

Jiang Xue didn’t respond. She took Lin Yulan’s hand and walked away without even giving Xia Yin a final glance.

Only after the two had left did Xia Ran finally speak up. “Sis, you!”

Before she could finish, Xia Yin’s laughter cut her off. The sound made Xia Ran uncomfortable. She had intended to offer some comfort, but then Xia Yin said, “From now on, you’re not allowed to have any contact with her, understand?”

Xia Ran was confused. “Why?”

“No reason.”

“Sis, just because you can’t win Jiang Xue over doesn’t mean you should take it out on me!”

Xia Yin glared at her. “Don’t you know that Xia Corporation and Lin Corporation are rivals? Don’t forget which side you’re on.”

Xia Ran didn’t know how to argue back. It was as if she was seeing Xia Yin for the first time strange and irrational.

“I know I’m part of Xia Corporation, but my relationship with Lin Yulan has nothing to do with that. You don’t have to worry about me betraying the company, I only help out occasionally. But you, even if you’re my sister, you still need to be reasonable.” Xia Ran glanced at Xia Yin and finally added with concern, “You should really get that injury on your face checked at the hospital.”

With that, Xia Ran closed the door and left.

The room was now empty except for Xia Yin, who stood there with downcast eyes, her expression dark and unreadable.

Jiang Xue held Lin Yulan’s hand all the way to the hotel lobby before finally letting go. Under the bright lights, the injuries on Lin Yulan’s face became even more apparent more swollen and bruised than they had seemed in the room, now tinged with shades of purple.

Perhaps when Jiang Xue had first seen them, the fight had just ended, and the marks weren’t as obvious. But now, after some time had passed, they had fully surfaced.

Noticing Jiang Xue’s lingering gaze, Lin Yulan instinctively covered her face. “It’s fine. It hurts a little, but it’ll fade soon.”

Jiang Xue said nothing and instead turned to open the car door. “Get in.”

Lin Yulan wasn’t sure what Jiang Xue intended but obediently took the passenger seat, calling her assistant to arrange for someone to retrieve her own car later.

Only when Jiang Xue stepped on the gas and turned onto a familiar route did Lin Yulan realize Jiang Xue was taking her back to the Lin family home.

“You’re sending me home?”

Jiang Xue remained silent, accelerating further.

Lin Yulan tentatively reached out to touch her, but before her hand could move far, Jiang Xue snapped, “If you dare put that greasy hand near me, I’ll chop it off!”

Lin Yulan quickly withdrew her hand in fright. “I won’t reach out, but can you please not ignore me?”

Jiang Xue was clearly angry, but Lin Yulan couldn’t pinpoint the exact reason. Was she upset because Lin Yulan had been hit by Xia Yin and got hurt? Or was she angry because Lin Yulan hadn’t told her that Xia Yin was Xia Ran’s biological sister, leading to this awkward situation?

“I’m sorry. It’s not that I didn’t want to tell you, I just didn’t know how to bring it up.”

“Tell me what?”

“That Xia Yin is Xia Ran’s sister.”

“Oh.”

Her tone didn’t seem to blame her for it?

So was Jiang Xue angry because she got hurt?

Lin Yulan didn’t dare to think further. The truth was, she wasn’t entirely sure about Jiang Xue’s current attitude toward her. On one hand, Jiang Xue had given her a chance, yet her words and actions still showed strong resistance to any closeness. But if Jiang Xue still cared, she wouldn’t have agreed to temporarily postpone the divorce.

“Are you angry?” Lin Yulan asked cautiously.

Jiang Xue replied, “Me? Angry? What do I have to be angry about? Don’t flatter yourself, Miss Lin, and don’t read too much into things.”

Lin Yulan stared at her profile and said bluntly, “Then why did you come looking for me? Is that me reading too much into things too?”

Then, as if realizing she might have gone too far, Lin Yulan added, “Professor Jiang, you were actually worried something might happen to me, weren’t you?”

Jiang Xue didn’t refute it, nor did she deny it. She simply acted as if she hadn’t heard, keeping her focus on driving.

Lin Yulan’s heart swelled with excitement, but she restrained herself from showing it too obviously. Instead, she said lightly, “I knew Professor Jiang wouldn’t just abandon me. Professor Jiang, it really hurts.”

Jiang Xue still showed no reaction.

Lin Yulan decided to press her hand against her injured cheek and let out a pained groan.

Finally, Jiang Xue couldn’t take it anymore. When they arrived at the Lin family villa and parked, she deliberately raised her elbow and bumped it against Lin Yulan’s face.

The injury wasn’t severe, but the pain was real. Lin Yulan hadn’t been faking earlier she had just been enduring it silently. But with Jiang Xue’s sudden jab, the pain became unbearable, and she couldn’t help but cry out.

“Ah!”

Now Jiang Xue was certain Lin Yulan wasn’t pretending her face really did hurt. But given Lin Yulan’s earlier behavior, she felt this was entirely deserved.

“Get out.”

Clutching her throbbing cheek, Lin Yulan pushed the car door open and stepped out, trailing behind Jiang Xue as they entered the villa.

The housekeeper was busy in the backyard today and wasn’t inside, so when the staff cleaning the villa saw Lin Yulan and Jiang Xue return together, they assumed they were there to see the housekeeper.

“Young Miss, Madam, the housekeeper is in the backyard. You might have to wait a bit.”

Jiang Xue greeted them politely and said, “We’re not here for the housekeeper. Where’s the first aid kit?”

One of the staff replied, “Madam, it’s in the storage room on the second floor.”

Jiang Xue thanked them, then glared at Lin Yulan, who was still lingering behind. “What are you standing there for?”

Lin Yulan immediately understood, a smirk tugging at her lips as she hurried after her.

She had known it, Jiang Xue did care about her and was going to tend to her injury.

But as it turned out, some things shouldn’t be imagined too optimistically, because you never know what’s waiting for you next.

Jiang Xue did apply the medicine for her, but the rough, no-care-if-she-lived-or-died technique made Lin Yulan think that it might actually be better if Jiang Xue didn’t worry about her at all.

“Ah!”

“Endure it!”

Lin Yulan was in so much pain that tears nearly burst from her eyes. She really wanted to say she could handle it herself, but Jiang Xue’s sharp command forced her to choke back the tears.

“Teacher Jiang, it hurts so much~”

“Endure it!”

“But Teacher Jiang, what if I can’t hold on?”

“Then keep enduring!”

Lin Yulan finally understood why people had coined the term “sweet burden” there was joy in it, but also pain. “Then, Teacher Jiang, can you give me a kiss? A kiss would make it hurt less.”

Hearing this, Jiang Xue’s hand, which had been applying the medicine, suddenly froze. The next second, she furrowed her brows and viciously jabbed at the swollen spot.

“Ah!”

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