Chapter 526 - 524: IF Storyline: Did the Big Shot Vie for Favor Today?

Chapter 526: Chapter 524: IF Storyline: Did the Big Shot Vie for Favor Today?

Shi Lan fell silent after reading that.

Every single one of them was too clever for her. She never stood a chance.

She stared at the screen for a long moment before finally typing back, [Then what happened?]

Ye Ming: [After that, Yan Huoshui told me about the Benefactor, and that was when I found out that Fei Mo also had another soul inside her. It got me curious about the bond between humans and animals. I heard that L City University of Technology had a companion animal program related to that, so I came here specifically to study for a while.]

What Ye Ming didn’t say was that he’d assumed Fei Mo had left because he’d been such a terrible owner — and that was exactly why he’d wanted to get better, so he’d never make the same mistake again.

Still, he added, [I’m sorry. I probably didn’t take good enough care of you back then.]

Shi Lan shook her head quickly and typed back, [No, you were great. You’re honestly the best owner I ever had.]

Even though he suspected she was mostly just trying to make him feel better, Ye Ming’s smile deepened a little at those words.

Once the smile faded, he remembered something important. [Oh, right — I’m pretty sure Yan Huoshui has figured out who you are too. You’re the Benefactor, aren’t you? I think he’s already found you.]

That one actually caught Shi Lan off guard.

Ye Ming knowing made sense — she’d admitted to him herself that she’d once been a cat. But how would Yan Huoshui know?

Surely it couldn’t be that she’d attended one of his concerts and he’d just recognized her from the way she looked at him?

Perhaps noticing that she hadn’t responded for a while, Ye Ming added, [Maybe I’m overthinking it. Don’t worry too much — he won’t do anything to you.]

Shi Lan’s mind was in complete turmoil, but she reined herself in and slowly typed back, [Thanks for telling me. I got it.]

She put her phone down. Even with Ye Ming’s reassurance, she couldn’t calm herself.

She had been Yan Huoshui’s cat for over a month, after all. Thinking back on all the moves he’d been making lately, Shi Lan pressed a hand to her forehead with a groan. She was certain — absolutely certain — that Yan Huoshui had recognized her.

Because there was no way, given his personality, that a man who used to keep every woman at least three feet away would suddenly be in such constant contact with a female fan. That just wasn’t him.

On top of that, during her time as his cat, she’d seen his personal phone contacts — and the list had been pathetically short. A handful of directors, his family, his manager. Not a single one of those actresses from the entertainment world. Not one.

On set, he never chatted with women either.

Everything pointed to the same conclusion: Yan Huoshui knew she was the Benefactor.

What she couldn’t figure out was how she’d given herself away.

But as it turned out, Shi Lan had no idea that even more surprises were still waiting for her.

That evening, as He Hanshi was clearing away the wilting bouquet from her balcony, he finally said what he’d been holding back for a long time. "Shi Lan, I know. You’re Pumpkin."

Before the shock could even register on her face, he continued, "A while back, one morning, I suddenly woke up as your cat."

"I’d been desperately trying to find Pumpkin, and when I ended up next to you, I started wondering whether you and Pumpkin were connected somehow."

"Then one day downstairs outside your building, I lost my footing, and you caught me — and called me by my full name without a moment’s hesitation. That’s when I knew for sure."

Shi Lan had gone completely still the moment He Hanshi said those first words. By the time he finished, she felt utterly numb.

She was starting to wonder whether Ping’an had been acting strange lately because all of them had been taking over her cat’s body.

"How long were you my cat?"

She couldn’t help but ask.

He Hanshi thought carefully. "Not long. An hour or two, maybe."

Hearing that, Shi Lan started to put it together.

No wonder she’d occasionally felt like Ping’an was off — but it always passed so quickly. Now it made sense. He Hanshi and Ye Ming had only been in Ping’an’s body for a short time each, whereas she herself had been stuck for at least a month. She’d never thought to make the connection before.

She slumped against the doorframe with the air of someone who had given up on life.

"Why are you telling me this now? What if I said I wasn’t Pumpkin?"

She was still trying to wriggle out of it. He Hanshi looked at her with warm, indulgent eyes. "Then you’re not. You’re Shi Lan."

"I’m telling you because I like you. Not the way I liked Pumpkin — I mean the way a man likes a woman. I want to marry you."

His voice was unhurried but unwavering, his gaze tender and fixed entirely on her face.

Maybe in the beginning, Pumpkin had been the reason he’d noticed her at all. But after spending day after day with her, he’d long since realized that what he felt for Shi Lan ran far deeper.

He didn’t want to keep deceiving her.

The revelation about Pumpkin had already sent her mind spinning — but now, standing here being confessed to by He Hanshi, who had opened his mouth and gone straight to wanting to marry her, Shi Lan felt a different kind of flustered entirely, warmth creeping into her cheeks.