Nearly Exposed

Chapter 312

The next morning, sunlight filtered through the curtain gaps into the room.

Gu Ran, adhering to the principle of "the early bird catches the worm," carefully lifted the covers and got out of bed.

He tiptoed back to his own room through the secret door to continue setting up the proposal scene.

A pile of balloons still needed inflating on the floor, and the custom photo album had to be checked once more.

There were also some loose photos that had to be placed in the right spots, tied with string and hung from the ceiling.

After working hard for most of the day, he glanced at the time.

"Not bad. According to routine, she's probably still asleep," he thought.

With that, he locked his bedroom door, walked to the living room, and pushed open the secret door, intending to scout the situation.

As the saying goes, "You can't always walk by the river without getting your feet wet."

He looked up and ran straight into Ye Zhenzhen, who had gotten up to pour herself a drink of water.

The two locked eyes across the half-open door, and the air instantly fell silent.

Ye Zhenzhen stood there with a glass in her hand, frozen mid-sip, her eyes wide as saucers.

Gu Ran kept a death grip on the secret door handle, not knowing whether to advance or retreat.

Ye Zhenzhen stared at Gu Ran, who had emerged like a ghost from the supposed locked door, completely dumbfounded.

"What are you doing in the storeroom this early in the morning?"

The next second, her brain kicked into high gear.

She followed the half-closed door gap and saw what was on the other side.

Wasn’t that the room he had booked next door?

This wasn’t a storeroom!

The door wasn’t even locked—it was Gu Ran, that jerk, who had locked it from the other side last night!

Their rooms were connected again!

Ye Zhenzhen bristled with anger, slamming her water glass heavily onto the table with a bang.

"Gu Ran! Explain yourself! What’s going on here?"

That jerk was addicted to staying in rooms with secret doors, wasn’t he!

Watching this, Gu Ran’s mind scrolled through bold text like a barrage of comments:

This is screwed!

He let out a dry laugh, trying to salvage the situation.

"You’re seeing things. You probably haven’t sobered up yet. There’s no door here..."

Ye Zhenzhen reacted quickly, dropping her glass and charging straight over.

"Sober up, my foot! If you don’t explain yourself today, you’re not getting away!"

Seeing the situation turning sour, Gu Ran hurriedly retreated into his room and tried to shut the door.

But Ye Zhenzhen timely stuck her foot in, firmly wedging the gap.

She narrowed her eyes, her gaze sharp.

"Gu Ran, you’re up to something! Running away when you see me—you definitely have a guilty conscience!"

If she had only suspected before, now she was one hundred percent sure.

Gu Ran blocked the girl's probing gaze, his back filled with half-deflated balloons and a large pair of wings on the couch.

A bunch of props that weren’t tidied up kept hidden; if these were discovered...

Just thinking about it made cold sweat drip down him.

If she barged in, the proposal surprise would be completely ruined!

Using one foot, he braced firmly against the doorframe, pushing the door shut with all his might.

"Sis, how do you have the strength of an ox? Have you been lifting weights behind my back?"

Ye Zhenzhen clenched her teeth on the other side, putting on a relentless push with her foot.

"Save your nonsense! I don’t care what you say; I’m getting in there to see what you’re up to!"

She dug her fingers into the door crack, trying to pull it open.

"Are you hiding another woman in there? Is that why you don’t want me to see?"

Gu Ran was amused by her bizarre train of thought.

"Hiding another woman? Dealing with one tigress like you is already enough!"

"If you don’t let go, I’m going to yell harassment!"

Ye Zhenzhen responded with a cold laugh, her villainous lines flowing freely.

"Go ahead! Scream all you want; no one’s coming to save you! That door is going down today!"

The two engaged in an intense tug-of-war across the door.

Gu Ran watched helplessly as the gap widened, Ye Zhenzhen’s furious little face becoming more visible.

He fought with all his might, refusing to give an inch.

"Ye Zhenzhen! How can a girl like you force your way into an innocent young man’s room? What kind of decency is that?"

Ye Zhenzhen snorted in rebuttal.

"Shameless! An innocent young man sneaking into my room early in the morning—is that decency?!"

She quit buying his act and snorted coldly.

"Stop trying to fool me with that nonsense. The more you stall, the guiltier you look! Open up!"

Gu Ran held the last line of defense, drenched in sweat.

"No can do! It’s a mess in here; a guy’s boudoir isn’t fit for a girl’s tour!"

Ye Zhenzhen pushed harder, pressing her advantage.

"I want to see it! What shady thing are you hiding in there?"

Realizing his defenses were about to crumble, Gu Ran had a sudden flash of inspiration.

He abruptly let go with one hand, his gaze shifting past Ye Zhenzhen’s shoulder.

Putting on his most serious face, he unleashed his acting skills.

"Aunt Ye? Is that you?"

Faced with the instinctive fear of parental authority, Ye Zhenzhen whipped her head around on reflex.

"Mom! Let me explain! We didn’t do anything!"

But behind her was empty air, not even a shadow.

Wait a minute—Mom is on the first floor. Why would she be here?

Before her brain could catch up, a dull slam echoed in her ears.

Followed by the crisp click of a lock.

Ye Zhenzhen whipped her head back, staring at the closed secret door, veins practically bulging in her forehead.

She ground her back teeth.

"GU! RAN! You tricked me?!"

She pounded furiously on the door.

"Get out here! Don’t think hiding in there is safe!"

Getting no response, Ye Zhezhen took a few deep breaths to calm herself, then pulled out her phone and dialed his number.

As soon as the call connected, she gritted her teeth and threatened.

"I suggest you open the door right now, or I’m going to the front desk to get the key card!"

Leaning against the door, savoring his narrow escape, Gu Ran’s tone was infuriatingly smug.

"Go for it. But I wouldn’t recommend it."

"I’m thinking about your reputation here, sis. You’d better cool down."

"If you go to the front desk and run into Aunt Ye, wouldn’t that look bad? Wouldn’t it?"

Ye Zhenzhen stomped her foot in frustration.

"Don’t you dare use my mom against me. You open up, or you’re dead meat today. Not even Jesus can save you. I said so!"

Unflustered, knowing the secret was safe for now, Gu Ran comforted her over the phone.

"Okay, okay, calm down. I’ll take you out for something good to eat later. There’s a buffet upstairs."

He then swiftly hung up.

Leaving Ye Zhenzhen hopping mad in the living room, silently cursing him to hell and back a thousand times.

The secret door was bolted shut.

The lure of good food couldn’t quell her curiosity now. The more he kept it from her, the more she had to know.

Greatly irritated, Ye Zhenzhen had completely forgotten her earlier guess about a "proposal."

The girl pursed her lips, scheming how to sneak into the neighboring room without being noticed.

She would find out what that jerk was up to!

Gu Ran let out a long sigh.

He looked at the sea of unfinished romantic arrangements in the room.

"Sigh..."

The price of this proposal was not small.

But as long as the outcome in two days was good, it would all be worth it.

He picked up the hand pump from the floor, resigned to continuing inflating the balloons.

From outside the door came the sound of Ye Zhenzhen’s futile, furious knocks.

“Gu Ran! You just wait. I’m writing down today’s little scam in my little black book!”

Gu Ran acted as if he hadn’t heard, the corners of his mouth twitching upward as he focused on preparing his surprise.

...