In the orphanage.
Chen Ling bit her lip as she stared at her phone, which had just been hung up.
What was going on?
Why did Lin Xuan hang up on her?
Was he busy, or did he simply not want to answer her call?
Shaking her head at the latter thought, Chen Ling dismissed it.
After all, she and Lin Xuan had grown up together—there was no way he would ignore her call over something so trivial.
He must have accidentally ended the call or was too occupied to answer at the moment.
With that in mind, Chen Ling redialed Lin Xuan’s number.
Meanwhile, inside the car.
Lin Xuan’s phone rang again.
His gaze fell on the screen, and a vein pulsed faintly on his forehead.
Was Chen Ling not done yet?
He had just hung up on her, and here she was, calling again.
Lin Xuan glanced cautiously at Su Hua.
Relieved to see she hadn’t noticed his phone, he let out a quiet breath.
Just as he was about to decline the call, Su Hua’s voice cut through the silence.
“Is it the same person calling again?” Su Hua arched a brow.
“Yes,” Lin Xuan admitted. “I was just about to hang up.”
His finger hovered over the red button when Su Hua spoke again. “Wait.”
Lin Xuan looked up, puzzled. “What is it, Hua?”
Su Hua tilted her head. “If they’ve called twice, it must be important. Why not answer?”
Lin Xuan shook his head. “It’s nothing urgent—just someone irrelevant. No point wasting time.”
He moved to end the call once more.
Su Hua’s lips curled. “Are you avoiding it because you’re guilty?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Why would I feel guilty?” Lin Xuan rubbed his nose.
Okay, maybe he was a little guilty. He didn’t dare talk to Chen Ling in front of Su Hua.
But if he insisted on hanging up now, Su Hua would only grow more suspicious.
Bracing himself, Lin Xuan tapped the answer button.
“Xuan, why not put it on speaker?” Su Hua suggested, her tone light but edged. “I’d love to hear what’s so important.”
Speakerphone?
Lin Xuan’s heart skipped a beat.
Noticing his hesitation, Su Hua smirked. “What’s wrong? Afraid I’ll hear something I shouldn’t?”
“I have nothing to hide,” Lin Xuan retorted, forcing himself to comply.
He just prayed Chen Ling wouldn’t say anything incriminating.
His nerves couldn’t take much more.
Back at the orphanage.
Chen Ling’s heart leaped when the call finally connected.
Lin Xuan had answered!
Swallowing her excitement, she steadied her voice, letting a sob creep into her tone.
“Lin Xuan…”
Su Hua’s expression darkened at the sound of Chen Ling’s voice.
So it was her again.
This girl really wouldn’t give up on him, would she?
“What’s wrong?” Lin Xuan asked tersely.
“Nothing,” Chen Ling murmured, her eyes reddening. “I just… I keep thinking about my dad. He’s gone forever, and I can’t bear it, Lin Xuan. It hurts so much.”
“My mom died when I was one. It was always just him and me—we only had each other.”
“I don’t know how to accept that he’s just… gone.”
Lin Xuan frowned.
Was she genuinely grieving, or was this another ploy to reel him in?
In novels, scheming side characters often used sob stories to get close to the male lead.
“Lin Xuan, could you… come see me?” Chen Ling pleaded.
“You’re the closest person I have left. I’m not asking you to stay—just an hour. Just talk to me for an hour.”
Ever since Chen Hong’s passing, she hadn’t seen Lin Xuan.
Now, whenever she closed her eyes, all she saw was him.
She missed him desperately—needed him.
With her father gone, Lin Xuan had become her only anchor.
Afraid he’d reject her again, she rushed on, “Please, Lin Xuan. Just one hour. That’s all I ask.”
Lin Xuan’s jaw tightened.
Even if Su Hua weren’t sitting right there, listening, he wouldn’t agree.
He wanted nothing to do with these messy entanglements.
Stealing a glance at Su Hua, he found her smiling, her eyes glinting like polished jade.
His pulse spiked.
That smile… it felt dangerous.
“Chen Ling, I—”
Before he could refuse, Su Hua—having unbuckled her seatbelt unnoticed—leaned in and sealed his lips with hers, swallowing his words.
She kissed him deeply, hungrily.
Chen Ling’s voice, still calling for him, faded into the background.
“Lin Xuan? Are you still there?”
The worry in her tone only seemed to spur Su Hua on.
Her fingers slipped beneath Lin Xuan’s shirt, tracing slow, teasing circles over his chest.
Chen Ling’s calls grew more frantic.
Why had he gone silent?
Had something happened to him?
Panic clawed at her as she paced, helpless.
Then, through the phone, a faint sound reached her ears.
She froze, straining to listen.
Was that… the sound of kissing?
Lin Xuan was drowning in sensation, but a sliver of awareness remained.
The call was still active.
Pulling back slightly, he moved the phone away, breaking the kiss.
Su Hua’s lips were swollen, glistening, her cheeks flushed.
“Hua, behave,” he murmured hoarsely. “Let me finish this call first.”
Su Hua’s hands didn’t stop.
“Which matters more?” she purred, her voice a velvet tease. “The call… or me?”
Lin Xuan exhaled. “You. Always you.”
“Then stop resisting,” she whispered against his lips.
With no choice left, Lin Xuan surrendered.
If he dared to refuse, Huabao would probably trap him in bed again for three days and nights straight.
Yanxi reminds you: Due to Tomato's request for 3 million+ daily visits causing excessive server pressure, we now recommend switching to other top-tier sources.
u Chenyuan transmigrated into a female-oriented novel about a real and fake heiress, becoming the CEO elder brother of both. Unfortunately, the entire Lu family—including himself, the CEO—were mere cannon fodder in the story. Determined to save himself, Lu Chenyuan took action. The spoiled, attention-seeking fake heiress? Thrown into the harsh realities of the working class to learn humility. The love-struck real heiress? Pushed toward academic excellence, so lofty goals would blind her to trivial romances. As for the betrayed, vengeful arranged marriage wife… the plot hadn’t even begun yet. There was still time—if he couldn’t handle her, he could at least avoid her. "CEO Lu, are you avoiding me?" Mo Qingli fixed her gaze on Lu Chenyuan. For the first time, the shrewd and calculating Lu Chenyuan felt a flicker of unease.
ither go to a cultivation world where a single sword strike can defeat ten thousand enemies. Or they travel back to historical dynasties to alter history and wield imperial power. At the very least, they'd go back a few decades to get rich using their future knowledge and build a harem. Who the hell would transmigrate here!
reezy rom-com) Good news: Jiang Liu is quite the ladies' man. Bad news: He’s lost his memory. Lying in a hospital bed, Jiang Liu listens to a parade of goddesses spouting "absurd claims," feeling like the world is one giant game of Werewolf. "Jiang Liu, I’m your first love." "Jiang Liu, you’re my boyfriend—she’s your ex." "Jiang Liu, we’re close friends who’ve shared a bed, remember?" "Jiang Liu, I want to have your baby." The now-lucid Jiang Liu is convinced this must be some elaborate scam... until someone drops the bombshell: "The day before you lost your memory, you confessed your feelings—and got into a relationship." Jiang Liu is utterly baffled. So... who the hell is his actual girlfriend?! ... Before recovering his memories, Jiang Liu must navigate this minefield of lies and sincerity, fighting to protect himself from these women’s schemes. But things spiral even further out of control as more people show up at his doorstep—each with increasingly unhinged antics. On the bright side, the memories he lost due to overwhelming trauma seem to be resurfacing. Great news, right? So why are they all panicking now?
close your eyes and open them again, only to find yourself transmigrated into the role of a villainous male supporting character. Readers familiar with urban wish-fulfillment novels know that it is only through the relentless antics of the villainous male supporting character that the plot between the male and female leads can progress. As the villainous male supporting character, Long Aotian not only has to bully the female lead, harass the second female lead, and flirt with the third female lead, but he also has to go all out to antagonize the male lead. In the end, when his body is discovered, he is still clutching half a moldy fried dough stick in his hand. Fully aware of the plot, Long Aotian is determined to change his fate, starting with the female lead! In the beginning, the female lead lacks confidence: "Big brother, I hope I didn't scare you?" In the middle, the female lead treads carefully: "Brother Long, please don't hit me, okay?" Later on, the female lead becomes coquettishly clingy: "Aotian, it's time to pay the 'public grain' tonight." Long Aotian's legs go weak, and he feels like crying: "I taught you to be thick-skinned, not shameless!"
