Chapter 10: Falling into the Water

The poolside in the back garden shimmered with rippling water.
A DJ spun tracks, the atmosphere electric.
Boys sported colorful swim trunks, while girls wore sweet, fresh swimsuits or eye-catching bikinis.
They gathered in small groups by the pool, chatting.
A buffet table nearby overflowed with delicate desserts.
At its center stood a massive three-tiered fruit and cream cake.

Xu Yin arrived late, her casual attire clashing with the girls’ swimwear.
Gao Minglang’s eyes lit up when he saw her, gushing endlessly about how much he loved the portrait.
“Gao Minglang, I’d like to change first.”
Xu Yin didn’t want the boys’ diving splashes to wet her skirt.
Gao Minglang pointed toward the stairs.
“Second floor, first room on the left is the changing room. Hurry and change so you can join the fun!”
“Mm.” Xu Yin headed straight upstairs.

Gao Minglang watched her leave, then wandered back to the gift pile, his gaze glued to the portrait.
Lingering satisfaction swelled in his chest.
What a great day! He was the happiest guy in the world.
A few boys sauntered in, arms around each other’s shoulders, greeting him.
Gao Minglang responded absently, barely glancing at them as they laughed and headed upstairs.

Suddenly, it hit him.
He leapt up and bolted to the second floor.
Oh no, oh no, oh no!
His brain had short-circuited—he’d sent Xu Yin to the boys’ changing room!
Blood rushed to his head.
Gao Minglang felt his soul leave his body.

Scrambling upstairs, he flung open the door to the first room on the left—
Inside, several boys were already half-undressed, their lean backs bare, pants hanging low on their hips.
Startled by the commotion, they turned in unison.
“Damn it, Gao Minglang, what’s wrong with you?!”
“Close the door, man! I’m not even dressed!”

Gao Minglang ignored them, rushing in like a headless fly, searching frantically.
“You… you didn’t see anything, right?”
“See what?” The boys were baffled. “It’s just us here.”
Xu Yin, it seemed, wasn’t there.
Gao Minglang scratched his head, confused, and stepped out, closing the door.
Where was she?

Inside a cramped wardrobe compartment, it was suffocatingly tight.
Xu Yin’s back pressed against Duan Sili’s chest, his heartbeat almost audible.
The scene earlier had been… completely unplanned.
She’d just slipped off her dress when Duan Sili pushed through the door, his calm yet unsettled black eyes meeting hers.
Xu Yin’s mind went blank for a few seconds.

The next moment, the sound of boys’ laughter echoed down the hallway.
There was no time to lock the door.
Duan Sili reacted swiftly, sweeping her into the cramped wardrobe like a whirlwind.
Now, the boys had entered, changing into swim trunks, laughing and joking, their conversation inevitably turning to girls’ figures.
“You’d never guess Su Wan’an’s got that kind of body.”
“No kidding, Pu Jing’s uniforms wrap you up like a dumpling. What can you even see?”
“I’m curious about the new transfer student, haha.”
“That face is pure. Even our school belle looks a bit lacking next to her.”

Xu Yin’s full attention was on the outside, ears perked, terrified of being discovered.
So focused on the “danger” beyond, she completely overlooked the far more lethal “threat” right beside her.
Duan Sili’s gaze lowered.
Even in the dim wardrobe, he could make out the elegant curve of her collarbone, her skin flawless like polished jade.
Further down, the delicate lace of her bra intertwined.
His eyes lingered, then flicked away.
A moment later, they returned.
His breathing grew heavier.
Each breath, slow and deliberate, brushed against the sensitive skin at the nape of Xu Yin’s neck.

Xu Yin finally noticed.
The “wall” behind her had changed—scorching, unyielding, like a red-hot iron pressed against her.
Duan Sili’s invasive, commanding heat.
She looked up at him, a flicker of fear in her eyes.
Duan Sili raised a slender finger to his lips, signaling silence.
It seemed he was even more unwilling to be found than she was.

After what felt like an eternity, the boys finished changing and left, their laughter fading.
Duan Sili pushed open the wardrobe door and shut the room’s door behind him.
Turning back, he saw Xu Yin had changed into her swimsuit inside the wardrobe.
A conservative two-piece mint-green swimsuit, it looked fresh and soft on her, like a piece of summer mint ice.
“You’re something else, coming to the boys’ side to change.” His voice carried a teasing edge.
Xu Yin, exasperated, said, “Gao Minglang nearly got me killed.”
“More accurately, you brought it on yourself.” He leaned against a table. “You’ve got him so smitten he can’t even add one plus one.”

Xu Yin glanced at her phone, Su Wan’an’s name flashing incessantly on the screen.
She said carelessly, “Turns out, it’s not just girls who turn into idiots when they’re head over heels for a guy.”
A pointed remark.
“Would you?” he asked.
“Don’t know. Maybe… you?”
Duan Sili: “Never.”
His tone was resolute.
He was accustomed to being adored, stingy with even a sliver of affection in return.
High above, like a proud lion stalking through a forest, his head never bowed for anyone.

As Duan Sili turned to leave, Xu Yin added, “Don’t tell anyone about this.”
She paused, then clarified, “Any guys.”
The crude talk among the boys still echoed in her ears.
She knew how they joked about girls when they were together.
Duan Sili looked at her, a wicked grin spreading. “About your black bra?”
“…”
He turned away, his voice lazy. “Depends on my mood.”
The door closed, and Xu Yin’s fingers clenched into a fist.
But soon, she looked at herself in the mirror, her lips curling upward again.
Keep smiling.

Descending the stairs, the playful noise by the pool quieted briefly.
Xu Yin, in her mint-green swimsuit, couldn’t hide her long, graceful legs.
Her skin gleamed like silk, damp hair tips resting on her shoulders.
Like a clear spring in summer, pure and radiant.
Almost every boy was looking at her.

In stark contrast was Su Wan’an.
Standing on the diving board, she wore a provocative bikini, swaying her hips to the DJ’s pulsing music.
Gao Minglang approached Xu Yin, worried. “You okay? I couldn’t find you earlier…”
“I changed in another room.” Xu Yin’s tone was noticeably colder, brushing him off with a few words before walking away.
Gao Minglang smacked his head, cursing himself.
So stupid!

Xu Yin approached the buffet table, picking up a glass of lemonade.
Just as she was about to drink, a sneer came from beside her.
“Even as the Su family’s young miss, she’s still trash at her core.”
Xu Yin glanced over.
The speaker was a girl with smoky makeup, her eyeliner sharply winged, her aegyo-sal exaggerated.
Noticing Xu Yin’s stare, she snapped, “What are you looking at?”
Having seen Xu Yin talking to Su Wan’an earlier, she assumed they were allies.
“You can tell Su Wan’an exactly what I said. I, Gao Lina, said it.”
“You’re Gao Minglang’s sister?” Xu Yin had heard the name.
“Yeah, so what?”
No resemblance at all.
Rumor had it his sister was still in middle school, yet she seemed so mature.
“I won’t tell her,” Xu Yin said.

Gao Lina glared at Su Wan’an, who was dancing provocatively in the pool’s center, and lowered her voice.
“I heard from my dad—if her cousin’s family hadn’t died out, and her gambling-addict father hadn’t inherited the entire Su fortune… would she even get to wear a princess dress?”
She sneered. “Now it’s clear, no matter the dress, she’s still low-class underneath.”
Xu Yin said nothing, finishing her lemonade.

Seeing Duan Sili come downstairs, Gao Lina skipped over, her earlier sharpness replaced by a sweet, coquettish tone.
“Brother Sili~”
“You’ve grown taller.” Duan Sili casually ruffled her hair. “Last time I saw you, you were a little meatball.”
His words were as blunt as ever.
Yet Gao Lina beamed, her eyes curving with delight.
She could feel the jealous stares from other girls.
Thanks to her brother, she was one of the few girls Duan Sili bothered with, and they were close.
“I’ve slimmed down a lot. Losing weight was so hard!”
Duan Sili suddenly pinched her cheek, hard enough to make the girl yelp.
“Ow! That hurts!”
“Middle schoolers losing weight?”
“I’m in my third year!”
“Are you?”
“You can’t tell how mature I am?”
Duan Sili eyed her garish makeup.
It was like a kid playing dress-up in adult clothes, trying too hard to seem grown-up.
“Brother Sili, does this look good on me?”
Duan Sili glanced at her revealing bikini and muttered, “Ugly.”
“Then what style do you like? I’ll wear it next time!”
“Black.” His gaze flicked briefly to the girl quietly eating grapes across the pool.
“Noted!”
Duan Sili ignored her, joining a group of boys, laughing as they walked off.

Xu Yin sat quietly at the bar, listening, watching.
Duan Sili had a few too many drinks, his eyes slightly glazed.
Loosening his collar, he exuded a fatal, dangerous allure.
All the girls were watching him, some deliberately, some not.
But every girl who tried to approach or strike up a conversation was rebuffed.
Even half-drunk, this untouchable flower remained out of reach.

The foreign DJ, headphones on, kept the pool’s surface trembling with his beats.
Xu Yin watched the bartender skillfully mix drinks nearby.
Not far off, by the pool’s edge, Gao Lina and Su Wan’an seemed to be arguing.
The dispute grew louder.
With a “splash,” Su Wan’an fell into the pool.
“Help!”
“I can’t swim!”

Su Wan’an’s head bobbed above the water, then sank, as nearby girls saw her fall and shouted for help.
“Someone fell in!”
“It’s Su Wan’an!”
“Gao Lina pushed her!”
Gao Lina stood by the pool, face pale, frantically explaining to those around her.
“It wasn’t me! I didn’t do it! I didn’t push her!”

Duan Sili’s attention was drawn to the commotion.
Seeing Su Wan’an in the water, he didn’t hesitate, diving in.
His well-defined obliques stood out as he swam to her in seconds, pulling her from the water.
Su Wan’an clung to his shoulders, nestled in his arms.
Even her coughs were picturesque.
Girls sneaked photos, knowing this scene—Duan Sili saving Su Wan’an—would dominate campus headlines tomorrow.

Gao Lina gritted her teeth, glaring at Su Wan’an with resentment.
Su Wan’an, looking pitiful, turned to Gao Lina.
“Why would you do this? What did I ever do to you?”
Gao Lina’s body went cold, her fists clenched, lips trembling.
She was done for. Her father would kill her.
The Su family was the second most powerful in Ao Gang Wan, just behind the Duan family, and soon to be tied through marriage.
Pushing the Su family’s young miss into the pool? The consequences were unthinkable.

“You saw it, didn’t you?” Gao Lina, desperate, turned to Xu Yin at the bar.
“I didn’t touch her! Not even her sleeve! You saw it, testify for me!”
“There should be cameras. If you didn’t push her, you’ve got nothing to worry about.”
“There are no cameras here.” Gao Lina’s voice broke with a sob.
“Duan Sili doesn’t like cameras in his house. Su Wan’an can twist black into white! I’m done!”

Before she finished, a tearful cry came from the pool.
“Sili… I’m so scared…”
“I can’t swim. I never thought she’d do something like this.”
“Duan Sili, you have to help me.”

Gao Minglang ran over, looking at Su Wan’an in the water, then at Gao Lina, confused.
“Is this a misunderstanding?”
“We’ll find out soon.”
Duan Sili turned to Gao Lina. “Middle schooler, come here.”
Gao Lina gripped Xu Yin’s hand like a lifeline.
“I didn’t push her! She jumped in herself. She can vouch for me!”

All eyes turned to Xu Yin.
Chi Huanyi and Liu Hui, arms crossed, watched the drama unfold.
No matter how Xu Yin answered, she’d offend someone.
She was being roasted on a spit.

Before Xu Yin could speak, Su Wan’an pointed at her.
“She’s your sister-in-law. Of course she’ll back you up.”
At that, Gao Minglang’s ears turned red.
Duan Sili’s face darkened. He let go of Su Wan’an and stood.
“I didn’t see anything,” Xu Yin said coolly.
“Who believes that?” Chi Huanyi, eager for chaos, chimed in.
“You just don’t want to say! Protecting your little sister-in-law, huh?”

Xu Yin’s expression remained cold, not sparing a glance for the clowns.
“I didn’t see anything, but I was filming the bartender just now.”
Xu Yin looked at the bartender nearby and pulled out her phone.
“Good thing I caught it on video.”

Su Wan’an’s face paled instantly.
Xu Yin held up her phone, not showing it publicly, but handing it to Duan Sili.
He could decide.
Brother or fiancée.
Choose.