Chapter 297 - 197: Lu Fan: I Am Yixia’s Partner, an Official Announcement?

Chapter 297: Chapter 197: Lu Fan: I Am Yixia’s Partner, an Official Announcement?

Qiu Zai snickered suggestively. "Stop pretending. We all saw it. You two came in together, one right after the other. You were obviously together."

Brother Ming leaned in, smiling. "Exactly! Fess up, what were you two up to last night?"

Sifan grew flustered and explained in a hushed voice, "We were working overtime balancing the books last night. We stayed so late the dorms were locked, so we had to get a hotel room."

"But we got two rooms!"

While trying to clear things up, Sifan intentionally told a small lie.

After all, if he told them they had only gotten one room and that nothing had happened, who the hell would believe him?

Gao Lao laughed. "Two rooms? I don’t believe you. You two definitely stayed in one."

Qiu Zai gave him a knowing look. "Sifan, we’re all men here. We get it. You can stop pretending."

Sifan’s face turned even redder.

He was just about to say something.

Gao Lao patted his shoulder, speaking like a seasoned veteran. "Bro, just stop explaining. You’re only making it worse."

Sifan was on the verge of tears. "I really didn’t..."

Qiu Zai smiled suggestively. "Alright, alright, we’ll drop it. Anyway, us brothers get it. Wen Wan is a great girl. If you two really get together, we’ll all wish you the best."

Sifan grew frantic. "No, you guys have really misunderstood..."

Before he could finish, the teacher came in and started the class.

Sifan could only keep his mouth shut, but he was seething with frustration.

He secretly glanced at the front row. Wen Wan had her head down, her ears bright red. He had no idea what she was thinking.

He sighed. ’This time, not even a dip in the Yellow River could wash me clean,’ he thought.

He didn’t really care about being the subject of rumors. After all, guys are thick-skinned.

He was just afraid it would affect Wen Wan’s reputation.

He knew it was useless no matter how much he explained, so he opened his textbook and tried to focus.

But his mind was still a mess, filled with images from the morning.

...

「Meanwhile, in Jinmei District.」

When Lu Fan came out of the bathroom after washing up, Jiang Yixia had already changed and was standing in front of the mirror, fixing her hair.

She saw him in the mirror and asked coolly, "Are you ready?"

Lu Fan walked over with a smile, stood behind her, and looked at the two of them in the mirror. "Ready," he said with a grin. "Let’s go."

Jiang Yixia felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze and turned to walk out.

Lu Fan followed, and the two went downstairs one after the other.

The district was quiet in the early morning. A few elderly people were taking a walk, and several middle-aged women with grocery baskets were heading toward the market.

Jiang Yixia walked in front, with Lu Fan beside her.

Just as they reached the entrance of the district, an auntie with a grocery basket walked toward them. Seeing Jiang Yixia, she broke into a smile. "Oh, Xiaojiang! Heading out so early?"

Jiang Yixia stopped and greeted her with a smile, "Morning, Aunt Zhang. Off to buy groceries?"

Aunt Zhang nodded, her gaze falling on Lu Fan next to Jiang Yixia, and her eyes instantly lit up.

She looked Lu Fan up and down, then looked back at Jiang Yixia, her smile turning suggestive. "Xiaojiang, is this... your boyfriend?"

Jiang Yixia froze for a moment, her face turning slightly red, and was just about to explain.

But Lu Fan had already cut in with a smile. "Hello, Auntie. I’m Yixia’s boyfriend."

He said it with natural confidence, a pleasant smile on his face.

Jiang Yixia shot him a glare, but Lu Fan didn’t even look at her, his attention completely on Aunt Zhang.

Hearing this, Aunt Zhang’s eyes grew even brighter. She sized up Lu Fan again and said with a laugh, "My, my, Xiaojiang, you’ve been keeping secrets! You have a boyfriend and you didn’t even tell your Auntie."

Jiang Yixia blushed, wanting to explain but not knowing how.

Lu Fan, however, was a natural at this. He smiled and said, "Auntie, we only made things official a little while ago. We haven’t had a chance to tell everyone yet."

Aunt Zhang nodded, grinning from ear to ear. "Not bad, not bad. The young man looks very sharp."

Lu Fan smiled. "Auntie, you’re the one who looks full of life. You look like you’re in your early forties at most. Practically our age."

Aunt Zhang was stunned for a moment, then laughed so hard she slapped her thigh. "Oh my, young man, you’re such a sweet-talker! I’ve been retired for years, and you’re telling me I look like I’m in my early forties?"

Lu Fan explained with a serious face, "It’s true. When I first saw you, I thought you were someone’s older sister. Your skin, your aura... people would believe you if you said you were forty."

Aunt Zhang smiled so much her eyes narrowed into slits. She looked Lu Fan up and down again, growing more and more pleased with him.

She took Jiang Yixia’s hand and said in a low voice, "Xiaojiang, you did well finding this one. He’s handsome, a smooth talker... You’ve got good taste!"

Jiang Yixia’s face turned even redder, and she stammered, not knowing what to say.

Aunt Zhang looked at Lu Fan again and nodded in satisfaction. "Alright, alright, I won’t hold you two up. I’m off to the market. Xiaojiang, bring your boyfriend over to visit sometime."

Jiang Yixia could only reply, "Okay. Take care, Aunt Zhang."

Aunt Zhang left with her grocery basket. After a few steps, she even glanced back at them with a satisfied smile on her face.

Once Aunt Zhang was far enough away, Jiang Yixia turned her head, glared at Lu Fan, and said helplessly, "Why did you say all that?"

"Say what?" Lu Fan asked with an innocent look.

Jiang Yixia lowered her voice, afraid of being overheard. "What do you mean, ’boyfriend’? Since when am I your girlfriend?"

"Am I not your boyfriend?" Lu Fan started laughing.

Jiang Yixia was struck speechless by his words, her face blushing again. She glared at him and said, "You... how can you be so thick-skinned?"

Lu Fan chuckled. "But it’s true. Even if you don’t admit it yet, in my heart, you’re my girlfriend."

Jiang Yixia was speechless. Too tired to argue with him, she turned and walked away.

"Besides, wasn’t I just helping you out of a jam? Did you see the look in Aunt Zhang’s eyes? If I hadn’t said that, she would have interrogated us for ages. How would you have explained it then? By saying I’m your ex-husband? That would have been even harder to explain," Lu Fan said with a smile, catching up to walk beside her.

Jiang Yixia’s steps faltered. In her heart, she knew he had a point, but she still wouldn’t admit it out loud. "You still shouldn’t have just made that up. How am I supposed to face people in the neighborhood now?"

Lu Fan chuckled. "What do you mean, you can’t face them? Finding a handsome boyfriend like me makes you look good."

Jiang Yixia glanced at him. "Handsome? You?"

"What? Didn’t Aunt Zhang just say I was handsome?" Lu Fan puffed out his chest, showing off his charm.

Jiang Yixia was amused by him and teased, "She was just being polite. You actually took it seriously?"

"Even if they’re just polite words, I still love to hear them," Lu Fan said shamelessly.

Jiang Yixia couldn’t be bothered with him and continued walking.

But as she walked, she suddenly recalled the way Aunt Zhang had looked at Lu Fan, that satisfied expression, and her words: "You’ve got good taste!"

A small sense of pride suddenly welled up in her heart.

Although she didn’t want to admit it, Lu Fan was indeed dressed respectably today and looked sharp. He cut an impressive figure just standing there.

And the things he’d said to Aunt Zhang, though glib, were certainly pleasant to hear.

She stole a glance at Lu Fan. He was walking beside her with a beaming smile. In profile, he did look a bit like a TV star.

’I guess my taste back then wasn’t so bad after all. Otherwise, a guy like him would never have caught my eye.’

But after a moment, Jiang Yixia quickly averted her gaze and cursed herself inwardly. ’Jiang Yixia, what are you thinking? You can’t let yourself be swayed by his looks! This is exactly how he tricked you in the first place!’

But she had to admit it—sometimes, a woman’s aesthetic taste is something that never changes in a lifetime.

Once you fall for a certain type, you’re unlikely to ever switch to another.