But why had Lin Xiawan suddenly brought up that scumbag? Could it be...
Lin Tingyue grabbed Lin Xiawan's arm and shook it hard.
[Lin Xiawan, snap out of it! Will this get the water out of your brain?]
Lin Tingyue glanced at Lin Xiawan's head, feeling a little timid.
[I don't dare hold Lin Xiawan's head and shake it.]
[Does she need to stand on her head?]
Lin Xiawan: ...
She took a deep breath and said, "Cheng Xuan might be going to prison."
[So juggling several lovers lands you in prison?]
"Cheng Xuan wasn't just involved with lots of people. He's also suspected of fraud involving a huge sum of money. That's why he was taken in."
Lin Xiawan had intended to use Cheng Xuan's fate to show Lin Tingyue that men weren't reliable at all. Who knew Lin Tingyue would only shake her harder, her face turning red from the effort?
[Sis, that's a man who eats prison food! Sis, you can't just eat anything, sis!!!]
[Sis, did you spend any money on him?! Sis!!! Spending money on men will bring you a lifetime of bad luck!!!]
Lin Xiawan felt as though she was going deaf. She held Lin Tingyue by the shoulders, looked her in the eyes, and said seriously, "Don't date before you're old enough."
[Dating too young? What's that? Is it edible?]
Lin Tingyue looked at Lin Xiawan's serious expression and suddenly understood.
[Is Lin Xiawan trying to use this to warn me?]
[She's worrying too much. I'm so upright it borders on wickedness, and my heart belongs to Hua Country. Ordinary men can't shake me at all, except...]
Lin Xiawan cupped Lin Tingyue's head and shook it.
Lin Tingyue: ...
Huh, what had she been thinking about?
Forget it. She couldn't remember. Lin Tingyue suggested, "Why don't we watch TV?"
Lin Rusong and Bai Yaxin came over just then. At her words, Lin Rusong looked troubled. "Watch TV?"
"What's wrong, Dad? Don't you want to watch TV?"
Lin Rusong shook his head.
He wanted to watch TV in peace, not watch it while listening to Lin Tingyue's commentary. Among the people she commented on, there might well be faces Lin Rusong knew.
He really couldn't look those people in the eye anymore!
Lin Xiawan picked up the remote and said expressionlessly, "Let's watch an animated movie.
"I know a new animated film that came out recently. It's pretty good."
An animated movie... Surely there couldn't be any juicy gossip in that?
Lin Rusong and Bai Yaxin cast approving looks at Lin Xiawan.
Lin Tingyue had no objections. She could watch anything. The TV was mainly background noise while she played on her phone. But animation?
[Makka Pakka...]
[Young hero...]
[Eyes as wide as...]
To Bai Yaxin and Lin Rusong, it was demonic music ringing in their ears.
But to Lin Xiawan, who had listened to The Little Girl Picking Mushrooms dozens of times, it was rather refreshing. At least it wasn't the same song over and over.
After Lin Tingyue had hummed who knew how many songs, Lin Yuhuan returned.
The moment Lin Yuhuan stepped through the door, his body stiffened briefly. No matter how much time passed, he couldn't get used to hearing Lin Tingyue's thoughts.
Lin Yuhuan walked over and sat down by the sofa. Seeing that everyone was there, Mama Zhang brought out the sweet soup.
Bai Yaxin asked Lin Yuhuan, "Why are you home so late today?"
Lin Yuhuan said, "An unexpected problem came up with one of the company's investment projects."
The word "investment" caught Lin Tingyue's interest. She asked, "What problem?"
"The company invested in a TV drama last year, and filming started recently. The male lead's reputation collapsed today. He's now a disgraced celebrity, so we can't use him anymore."
Why did this plot sound so familiar? Lin Tingyue asked, "The male lead wouldn't happen to be Xie Junnian, would he?"
Lin Yuhuan, who had been pinching the bridge of his nose, looked at Lin Tingyue. "How did you know?"
Lin Tingyue chuckled twice. "I was right there. Big Brother, you have no idea..."
Lin Tingyue gave a vivid account of the spectacular scene when Xie Junnian's reputation collapsed. Apparently, Wu Shanshan had later joined forces with Zhu Miaoshuang to post on Weibo, hammering the final nails into Xie Junnian's coffin.
Bai Yaxin listened with a frown the entire time. Once Lin Tingyue finished, she nodded. "Good thing it came to light early. You really can't keep using someone like that."
"Yes, Mom," Lin Yuhuan said.
On hearing that Lin Tingyue also wanted to invest, Lin Yuhuan instinctively asked, "Is your allowance not enough?"
Lin Tingyue hastily denied it. "No, no."
[Who would ever complain about having too much money?]
That was true. Lin Tingyue and Lin Xiawan were both about to graduate. Getting some early exposure to investing wasn't a bad thing.
Lin Yuhuan asked Lin Tingyue what areas interested her so he could make recommendations.
[Hmm... first of all, not the entertainment industry.]
Lin Tingyue looked at Lin Yuhuan expectantly and asked in a low voice, "Big Brother, are there any projects with low investment and high returns?"
Lin Yuhuan: ...
Much as he hated to say it...
"The entertainment industry."
[Aaaah, damn it! Just how much money have those people in the entertainment industry raked in?!]
Lin Yuhuan tried to salvage things. "If you really want to invest, I'll arrange for someone to do the background checks."
"Really, Big Brother? Wouldn't that be too much trouble, Big Brother?"
[Brother, you really are my own brother. Brother, don't turn me down, don't turn me down.]
"...It wouldn't."
Lin Yuhuan then looked at Lin Xiawan. "What about you, Xiawan?"
Lin Xiawan was seriously considering whether to compete with her eldest brother for the position. After all, in Lin Tingyue's thoughts before, the person she had been closest to besides Mom was her.
Meeting Lin Yuhuan's gaze, Lin Xiawan said, "No, thank you, Big Brother."
Lin Yuhuan: ...
He really still didn't know how to get along with his younger sisters!
They stayed in the living room until nearly nine. As everyone was heading back to their rooms, Bai Yaxin suddenly remembered something. "Auntie Wen sent me a wedding invitation today. Her eldest son is getting married in three days. You..."
Bai Yaxin glanced at them and finally asked, "Who's coming with me?"
[Auntie Wen's eldest son?]
[I wonder if there'll be any juicy gossip. I'll find out if I go.]
Lin Tingyue eagerly raised her hand. "I'll go! I'll go!"
Lin Xiawan coughed and said demurely, "Mom, I'll go too."
Since everyone was going, Lin Rusong said, "I'll go too."
With the whole family turning out, Lin Yuhuan thought it wasn't as though he couldn't go as well. But after checking his schedule, he shook his head helplessly. "I have an important meeting that day."
[It's okay, Big Brother. If there's any juicy gossip, I'll call you.]
Lin Yuhuan thought for a moment and added, "But I'll be reachable by phone. You can contact me anytime."
Lin Tingyue suspected nothing and took it as a coincidence. Her eyes curved as she agreed, "Okay."
On the day of the wedding, everyone in the Lin family attended in their finest clothes except Lin Shengyan and Lin Yuhuan, who couldn't make it.
Wen Jie and Bai Yaxin had been classmates when they were young. They were neither particularly close nor distant, so Wen Jie was surprised to see so many members of the Lin family arrive.
She greeted Bai Yaxin, and the two exchanged pleasantries, nothing more than asking how things had been lately and offering congratulations.
Wen Jie's second son came over and reminded her quietly, "Mom, it's about to start. The emcee wants you to take your place."
Wen Jie said, "The wedding is about to begin. Please take your seats. Excuse me."
After Wen Jie left, Lin Tingyue rubbed her eyes and quietly asked Lin Xiawan beside her, "Are my eyes playing tricks on me? Why did that man look exactly like the groom?"
Lin Xiawan had only recently been reunited with her family and knew nothing about these wealthy families. She guessed, "Maybe they're twins?"
Hearing them, Bai Yaxin said, "Wen Jie did give birth to twin boys."
Twins, huh...
Why did she smell juicy gossip?
Besides, it was the older brother getting married today, not him. Why was he dressed like a groom too?
Bai Yaxin and the others found the places marked with their names and sat down. Weddings among wealthy families like these weren't just ceremonies; they also provided a convenient opportunity to discuss business collaborations.
So names were put out directly, making things convenient for everyone.
Lin Tingyue had barely sat down when the wedding march began. The surroundings darkened, leaving only a single beam of light on the stage in the center of the hotel. A sea of flowers formed the backdrop, beautiful and romantic.
The emcee announced with great enthusiasm, "Please welcome our bride."
The bride appeared, linking arms with her parents. The light fell on her face, a beautiful face that also held excitement and anticipation.
At the other end of the stage stood the groom, eagerly awaiting his bride.
Everyone was swept up in the atmosphere. Only Lin Tingyue stared at the bride and groom onstage with her brows tightly furrowed.
[Good grief, is it really this messy?]
Where had that voice come from? Everyone pricked up their ears.
[The older brother by day, the younger brother by night. It looks like the older brother is getting married now, but the bride is actually marrying both of them.]
[Have you two... ever respected the bride's wishes?]
Chapter 11
At the center of the stage, the bride's face turned deathly pale, and her hands kept trembling as she held her parents' arms.
She had already found it strange that her husband's personality was completely different during the day and at night, as though he had become another person.
Now there was a reasonable explanation for everything!
The guests who had heard those words also began discussing them in hushed voices.
"The older brother by day, the younger brother by night-is that what I think it means?"
"Could they have gotten mixed up because the twins look so alike?"
"Even if people mixed them up, the younger brother can't just pass himself off as his older brother with his girlfriend, can he?"
"I knew something was strange. Look, it's clearly the older brother's wedding today, so why is the younger brother dressed like a groom too?"