The Female Lead is Quite Unusual - Episode 19

Lunchtime soon arrived.

Li Pei, keen on making an impression, had hired a renowned chef from a high-end restaurant to prepare the dishes. The banquet spread was lavish, and Lin Wan, eager to learn from the experience, sampled many of the dishes.

The food was exceptionally delicious, and Lin Wan couldn’t stop eating, nearly stuffing herself to the point of discomfort.

Bai Yin, however, remained as picky as ever. After sipping some soup, she set down her chopsticks, eating even less than she usually did at home.

Lin Wan noticed this and made a mental note. She grabbed a few fruits from the banquet table and, after the luncheon ended and they returned to their guest room to rest, coaxed Bai Yin into eating half an apple after much persuasion.

Li Pei had arranged a twin-bed guest room for Lin Wan near the elevator. The room was soundproofed, spacious, and impeccably clean, making it especially convenient for wheelchair access.

“Aunt Li has really put thought into this.”

Bai Yin observed the room while slowly nibbling on the apple, sighing to Lin Wan.

“As long as you like it! But since we’re close to the elevator and stairwell, there might be people with ill intentions around. It’s better to be safe than sorry.”

Lin Wan was already accustomed to Bai Yin’s tendency to see the best in people.

Since Bai Yin didn’t suspect Li Pei, Lin Wan stopped trying to convince her otherwise. Instead, she used an infrared detector she had bought online to scan the room for any hidden devices and secured the door from the inside with a door stopper.

With such precautions in place, it was clear Lin Wan had no intention of taking Bai Yin out.

“I thought you might want to take me out to explore.”

Bai Yin glanced up at Lin Wan, her tone casual, as if merely making conversation.

This little ancestor’s moods were unpredictable, and fearing she might suddenly take a whim to go out, Lin Wan quickly placated her: “The crowd here is a mixed bag, and we don’t know most of them. We’re also unfamiliar with the place. The hot spring area is full of pot-bellied uncles. I doubt you’d enjoy walking around there.”

“Is that so?”

Bai Yin chuckled at her description, then gave her another look. “Shen Shen is there too. You stared at him for so long earlier. Don’t you want to see him in swimwear?”

“What’s there to see?”

The mention of Shen Shen immediately set off alarm bells in Lin Wan’s mind. She narrowed her eyes and retorted, “He might not be pot-bellied, but he’s so skinny. If he took his clothes off, he’d just look like a scrawny chicken. Nothing worth looking at.”

“But I actually kind of want to visit the hot springs,” Bai Yin laughed again before sighing regretfully. “It’s been so long since I last soaked in one. The hot spring area has private baths, no one would disturb us.”

Lin Wan thought to herself that private baths would make it even easier for Bai Ru and her accomplices to strike. But she couldn’t explain the real reason. Her gaze fell on the large bathtub in the room, and an idea struck her.

“Miss, why don’t you just soak in the bathtub here? It’s also fed by hot spring water, and the tub is quite spacious.”

“We can come back another time when there are fewer people.”

She nervously watched Bai Yin’s reaction. Bai Yin rested her chin in her hands, seemingly considering the suggestion seriously. Then, for some reason, she suddenly let out a soft laugh, giving Lin Wan an inscrutable look before nodding.

To keep up appearances, Lin Wan had brought swimsuits for both of them.

She dug them out from the luggage, only to belatedly realize the predicament she was in.

Bai Yin wanted to take a hot spring bath, which meant she would have to wear a swimsuit. The problem was, at home, Bai Yin had professional equipment to assist her with changing clothes, but the hotel clearly didn’t offer such convenient conditions.

And Bai Yin seemed extremely concerned about her pride. She probably wouldn’t let Lin Wan help her change.

Just as Lin Wan was agonizing over whether to bring it up herself, she heard Bai Yin speak softly, “You go change first.”

“Do I need to change too?” Lin Wan asked, puzzled.

“I’ll need your help to get into the bath later, and I don’t want your clothes to get wet.”

Bai Yin looked at her with innocent, bright eyes.

After some thought, Lin Wan found Bai Yin’s reasoning sound and went into the bathroom first to change.

Most of the clothes left behind by the original owner were simple T-shirts and jeans, which Lin Wan was used to wearing. Since arriving in this world, this was the first time she had worn such a form-fitting outfit.

Having stayed in the villa all this time, her skin had grown much fairer. Even though the swimsuit was a relatively conservative style, the strappy design still accentuated Lin Wan’s curvaceous figure.

Staring at her long legs and fair skin in the mirror, Lin Wan felt somewhat unaccustomed to her reflection.

At least the only other person in the room was Bai Yin.

Lin Wan neatly packed away her clothes, cleaned the bathtub, filled it with water, and then pushed open the bathroom door.

Bai Yin was waiting outside, idly scrolling through her phone. At the sound of the door opening, she turned off the screen and looked up.

Bai Yin narrowed her eyes.

Her expression suddenly turned extremely odd as her gaze traveled up from Lin Wan’s slender, pale legs, past her delicate waist.

Lin Wan couldn’t decipher Bai Yin’s thoughts, but her legs instinctively tensed, and she sucked in her stomach slightly.

“Bai Yin?”

Lin Wan didn’t know why, but she called out nervously.

Her voice completely shattered the strange atmosphere.

Bai Yin closed her eyes briefly, and when she opened them again, her usual gentle, harmless smile had returned. “Lin Wan, you look really beautiful in that.”

“Thank you, Miss.”

Lin Wan was taken aback, then couldn’t help but blush, her lips curling into a smile. Being complimented by a stunning beauty like Bai Yin was both embarrassing and exhilarating.

She took a step forward, about to ask if Bai Yin needed help, but Bai Yin had already pushed her wheelchair forward. “Wait for me a few minutes.”

Lin Wan felt uneasy, but upon reflection, Bai Yin had insisted on handling her own hygiene all this time.

Only now did it dawn on Lin Wan perhaps Bai Yin had never truly accepted her inability to walk and was stubbornly doing everything herself to prove she could.

As for the awkwardness she felt under Bai Yin’s earlier gaze, Lin Wan chalked it up to her own nervousness, making her hyperaware of being watched.

Thankfully, Bai Yin was the only one here. If others had been present, she probably would’ve felt even more self-conscious.

Lin Wan waited outside, torn between sympathy for Bai Yin’s struggles and worry that she might face difficulties alone. Afraid of missing any sounds from inside, she lingered by the door, not daring to leave.

But as luck would have it, the very thing she feared happened. A loud thud suddenly came from the bathroom.

“Bai Yin, what happened?”

Lin Wan called out several times but heard no response. Biting her lip, she hesitated before finally gripping the doorknob.

The door wasn’t locked.

Lin Wan pushed open the door and instantly widened her eyes, Bai Yin was half-dressed, unconscious, and slumped by the bathtub, her head already submerged in the water!

The position was far too dangerous. If left like this, Bai Yin could very well drown!

Lin Wan hurried forward, pulling Bai Yin out of the water. Ignoring Bai Yin’s usual boundaries, she frantically patted her back.

When Bai Yin showed no response, Lin Wan grew increasingly frantic. Just as she pulled out her phone to call a doctor, Bai Yin coughed weakly and finally stirred awake.

Lin Wan let out a sigh of relief, only then realizing her entire body was trembling.

Even though she knew some words might be too hasty that speaking them could overstep and strain their relationship. Seeing Bai Yin so fragile, Lin Wan couldn’t hold back.

“Bai Yin, can you let me help you from now on?”

Lin Wan took a deep breath, steadying her panicked emotions as she carefully chose her words: “Believe me, I swear! I’ll never look down on you because of your legs, nor will I ever betray you. I’ll protect you with all my heart, valuing you more than my own life. Could you try to rely on me?”

Lin Wan lowered her gaze, still shaken by what had just happened. “If I hadn’t heard the noise, you might have.”

After saying this, she clenched her lips tightly.

She expected Bai Yin to be angry. After all, even a gentle soul like Bai Yin, when pushed to a sore spot, might lash out like a cornered rabbit.

……

Silence stretched endlessly in the room. With each passing second, Lin Wan’s heart sank further. Sometimes, silence spoke volumes about a person’s stance.

Then, without warning, a hand gently touched Lin Wan’s cheek.

Startled, Lin Wan looked up to meet Bai Yin’s smiling eyes.

“Don’t frown!”

“I can’t fully accept you right away. I need time.”

Bai Yin gazed into Lin Wan’s eyes and spoke softly, “But I’ll think about what you said and give you an answer by tomorrow night.”

Then, after another glance at Lin Wan, she lowered her lashes, resting a hand on Lin Wan’s arm. A faint blush spread across her cheeks as her voice dropped even lower.

“For now, could you help me zip up my dress?”