Chapter 22: And Yet, He Still Managed to Benefit From It

Hearing this, Shen Yan let out a low laugh, casting a meaningful glance at Ye Yao.

“All right, as you wish. I’ll be sure to dote on her well.”

He put particular emphasis on the word “dote,” sending a shiver down Ye Yao’s spine.

After Shen Yan escorted the security guard out, Ye Yao sat down on the sofa, arms folded, eyeing him coldly.

This little apartment was hers—of course she wasn’t going anywhere.

“Go take a shower?”

“What on earth are you trying to do?” Ye Yao wished she could crack open Shen Yan’s head and see what bizarre thoughts lay inside.

“I told you, I’m here to repay you for taking care of me recently.”

“Your hand was injured because of me—taking care of you was only right,” Ye Yao replied quickly, afraid that if she spoke any slower, Shen Yan would pretend not to hear.

But she underestimated Shen Yan’s shamelessness.

Without a hint of embarrassment, Shen Yan said, “With your skills, you could’ve dodged easily. I got hurt on purpose. So no matter how you look at it, you don’t owe me anything. But since you still looked after me, in the end, I’m the one in your debt.”

Ye Yao was nearly infuriated into laughter. For his goals, it seemed Shen Yan would say absolutely anything.

“It’s fine, I’m magnanimous enough to overlook your petty behavior. I won’t hold a grudge. You can go now.”

“I can’t leave. I need to serve you.”

“I said you don’t have to.”

Without another word, Shen Yan bent down and scooped her up in his arms.

Ye Yao truly wanted a fight to the death with him, but she knew Shen Yan was relentless when he set his mind on something. All she could do was compromise.

She kept her eyes tightly shut, playing dead—as long as Shen Yan kept his behavior in check, she could tolerate it.

Fortunately, Shen Yan was sensible enough to keep his hands proper.

He laid her gently on the bed, and just when Ye Yao thought he would leave, he instead leaned in close.

Ye Yao pressed a hand to his shoulder. “What are you doing?”

Shen Yan’s hand stroked her abdomen gently. “Did it hurt back then?”

The words made Ye Yao’s heart clench painfully. She knew exactly what he was referring to—the miscarriage.

But what use was there in bringing it up now?

It was all in the past.

“Shen Yan, do you really think this will move me?” Ye Yao’s eyes turned cold as she pushed him away. “I gave you a chance, and you didn’t cherish it. Since that’s how it is, there’s no need for your belated affection.”

She yanked the blanket over herself, wrapping up tightly. “The door’s right there. I won’t see you out.”

Ye Yao felt Shen Yan’s gaze linger on her for a long time before he finally turned and went into the bathroom.

She frowned, unable to understand why Shen Yan had suddenly changed like this. Her hand unconsciously moved to her lower abdomen, her expression dazed. When she thought of the child she had lost, the pain had once shattered her heart, but now that she thought about it, perhaps leaving was a better choice.

Yet tears slid helplessly down her cheeks. She rolled over, burying herself in the pillow. The tension that had wound her tight for so long suddenly unraveled, and in her exhaustion, she drifted off to sleep—only to wake and find that Shen Yan had stayed the night.

Rolling over and finding his body beside her, she lifted her leg and, without the slightest hesitation, kicked him out of bed.

With a dull thud, Ye Yao smiled with satisfaction. “Shen Yan, you really have no shame.”

Shen Yan sat on the floor, looking up at her.

But Ye Yao ignored him completely. She got dressed, went to wash up, and when she came out, Shen Yan was gone. The bedding was perfectly tidied, not a trace of him left behind.

Ye Yao stared at the pristine sheets for a long time before finally turning and heading out.

Yu Wanjing was quick and efficient—she soon managed to spread the matter all over the internet.

As soon as the news broke, the few fans Qin Miao had immediately rushed out to defend her.

“Even though our Miao Miao is just a small-time star, she’d never do something so self-destructive.”

“My god, capital is truly terrifying. I heard that Ye Yao got into bed with the heir of the Ye family, and now she’s tangled up with Miao Miao’s boyfriend. Is she trying to ruin Miao Miao completely? And the Ye family’s young master must be so open-minded—not even bothered by the green hat he’s wearing.”

Of course, there were also neutral comments from passersby: “Qin Miao? I heard she tried to cozy up to Zhao Heyue at a previous party and got rejected. Judging by her looks, I don’t think she’s a good person. I’ll just wait and see what happens.”

…

News quickly reached both the Shen family matriarch and Qin Miao.

Since Qin Miao still wanted to stay in the entertainment industry, she couldn’t let things spiral out of her control, so she hired online trolls to guide public opinion, claiming Ye Yao was framing her.

She certainly couldn’t admit to having been assaulted—otherwise she’d become a laughingstock.

The Shen family matriarch pulled strings behind the scenes; she simply couldn’t stand that little upstart Ye Yao, and wanted her to suffer a little.

What did it matter if everyone involved knew the truth? Without irrefutable evidence, as long as they didn’t confess, nothing could touch them.

As for Shen Yan, this concerned the Shen family’s reputation, so he naturally wouldn’t act recklessly.

Since Ye Yao wanted to blow things up, she must have absolute confidence.

She was in no hurry, just waiting for Qin Miao and the Shen family matriarch to make the situation bigger and bigger.

Yu Wanjing monitored the trending topics in real time. “Yao Yao, the topic’s hit over 500 million views.”

“No rush, let’s wait a bit longer.”

With popularity this high, how could a celebrity like Qin Miao not take advantage of it?

Sure enough, soon enough, Qin Miao posted a video.

In the video, Qin Miao’s face was bruised and swollen, her eyes red with grievance, making viewers feel sympathetic.

“Hello everyone, I’m Qin Miao, the innocent victim of this online storm. I just don’t understand, why would someone slander me for something I didn’t do?”

“My parents heard about this and, without distinguishing right from wrong, beat me up like this. They said if I harbored such filthy thoughts, they wouldn’t acknowledge me as their daughter!”

“Let me ask you, with such kind-hearted parents, how could they possibly raise a malicious daughter? I truly am innocent. I hope all of you will open your eyes and judge fairly, so that no innocent person is wronged.”

“As for Ye Yao, I don’t understand why you’re doing this. A-Yan and I are in the past now—why can’t you let go? You and the Ye family’s young master have both moved on, so why can’t you let others do the same?”

“I know you grew up in an orphanage, exposed to all kinds of people from a young age. Perhaps your environment wasn’t so pure, but surely you wouldn’t go this far?”

“I feel so powerless. I just hope justice will come for me soon.”

At the end of the video, Qin Miao didn’t forget to throw more mud at Ye Yao.

Especially that part about their backgrounds—it was an obvious hint to everyone that Ye Yao had already gone astray, and for someone raised in an orphanage to get entangled with both the Shen and Ye families, she must be something else entirely.

Yu Wanjing, after watching, slammed her keyboard in fury. “That fake innocent act is infuriating!”

Ye Yao, however, remained calm—she’d seen Qin Miao’s tricks before.

Playing the victim came as naturally to her as breathing.

“Stay calm. Let’s wait a little longer. Once the video’s influence peaks, we’ll slap her back hard.”

After Qin Miao’s sob story went live, her follower count shot past ten million. The comments were full of comfort for her and insults directed at Ye Yao, with waves of popularity surging.

At this rate, Qin Miao’s fame in the industry would skyrocket.

She hadn’t expected that she could actually benefit from this—truly, fate was on her side!

Ye Yao must be fuming with rage by now.