Ning Ran could feel her head throbbing when she woke up.
She realized she was in a hotel room, and next to her was a restless Feng Minsheng.
“Why am I here?” Ning Ran cried out.
“You’ve had too much to drink, so I found a hotel nearby and sent you here to rest,” Feng Minsheng said.
Fragments of memory surfaced after hearing Feng Minsheng’s words.
She had indeed drunk two glasses of wine just now, but it was just two small glasses. It was baffling that she was tipsy from that to the point of stumbling on her feet.
Ning Ran looked at the clock and realized it was almost 9 p.m..
“I have to go back now. Where’s my phone?”
“It should be inside your bag. I heard it ringing just now,” Feng Minsheng replied.
Ning Ran searched her bag and found her phone inside. It had been switched to silent mode.
She had a lot of missed calls, mostly from Cheng Xiangyun.
Ning Ran returned the call and Cheng Xiangyun answered almost immediately. She started yelling at once, “Ning Ran, why are you fooling around again? Don’t you have a sense of shame? Why are you so selfish? Can’t you spare a thought for others? We’ve only had a few peaceful days and you already can’t wait to stir something up? Are you that desperate to have a man?”
Ning Ran was stupefied from her harsh words. “Can you calm down and tell me what exactly you are talking about?”
“You shameless woman, how dare you ask me what happened? Didn’t you see the screenshot I sent you on WeChat? You’re trending on the internet now. Ning Ran, seriously, do you have no shame at all? You’re playing with fire. Are you sick of living and want to drag me down with you?”
Cheng Xiangyun was very agitated and kept hurling vulgarities at the woman.
She was never a very civilized person in the first place, but she had indeed gone a little overboard with her vulgarities today. It was obvious that something serious had happened.
Ning Ran opened WeChat and saw the photos Cheng Xiangyun had sent her.
The couple in the pictures were behaving intimately. The man was on top of the woman, and the woman had wrapped her arms around his neck. It was quite a racy photo.
At first glance, Ning Ran thought that the couple looked rather familiar, and wondered where had she seen them before.
Upon closer inspection, she noticed that even the surroundings were familiar.
Wasn’t this the bed she was lying on? The color of the walls and the bedside lamp looked exactly the same as well.
Then, she suddenly realized that the woman was herself and the man was the nervous-looking Feng Minsheng!
“What have you done?” Ning Ran jumped up from the bed.
“I didn’t do anything. I helped you into the room, and was trying to place you on the bed so that you could rest. Before I could close the door, I noticed that someone was secretly snapping photos at the doorway. When I rushed outside, the man had already run off and I wasn’t able to catch him. I didn’t expect that he would upload the photos onto the internet so soon. Ran, you have to trust me! I wasn’t involved in this. I was also set up!” Feng Minsheng said pitiably.
“You were set up? Who set you up? Do you think I’m an idiot? I know something was up when I started to feel tipsy after two small glasses of wine. I know my alcohol tolerance well. You spiked my drink – you are the one who set me up!”
Ning Ran looked around and the only weapon she could find was the TV remote control. She grabbed it and hurled towards Feng Minsheng.
However, the attack was too weak and did not have any effect on the man.
“Ran, you have to believe me, I didn’t spike your drink. Maybe it’s because you were not feeling well, that’s why you got drunk easier. It’s all my fault that I didn’t close the door immediately after we came in. But I was holding you and my focus at that time was to put you down so that you can rest comfortably. I didn’t expect that someone would be following us and taking pictures! Think about it, if I wanted to set you up, I would have removed your clothes and taken advantage of you. I would even have taken a video of it…”
“Shut up!” Ning Ran stopped Feng Minsheng from talking, as his words were getting increasingly ridiculous and she did not want to listen any further.
Feng Minsheng shut his mouth, looking aggrieved.
“Who else would have known that we are at this hotel and followed us all the way here?” Ning Ran asked.
“I don’t know. You were an internet sensation a while back, so many people know you. It could be one of your fans.”
Ning Ran entertained that thought for a while, not denying the possibility immediately.
She recalled a time when she had stayed at a hotel and the front desk receptionist had recognized her. Could it really be as Feng Minsheng said?
But she quickly realized that it was not so simple. First, she got drunk. Then, someone took photos of her. Moreover, the photos were very professionally taken and did not appear to be a coincidence.
Ning Ran recounted the events of the day—their meeting at the cemetery, the meal which was booked in advance, and the wine which had already been prepared when they reached the restaurant.
All the events up until that point seemed to be planned beforehand, it was virtually impossible for it to be a coincidence.
There was definitely something fishy about Feng Minsheng.
He was the cause of the countless misunderstandings between her and the Nan brothers. Furthermore, they had always happened under mysterious circumstances and were simply waved off as ‘coincidences’. On careful thought, it seemed like those ‘coincidences’ could all be premeditated.
“And I was actually hugging your neck? I could still put my hands around your neck while being unconscious?” Ning Ran asked.
“Yeah, that was what you did.”
“And I must have also maintained the same position for a long while, right? Otherwise, that person wouldn’t have been able to take so many pictures. Moreover, the angles which he had taken these pictures from do not seem like it’s from the back; it looks more like the side instead,” Ning Ran continued.
“No. It’s really not.” Feng Minsheng seemed evasive and shifty-eyed.
“These photos are now circulating on the internet and I’m being slandered once again. Do you know what the consequences are?”
“Sorry, I was too careless. All I wanted was to be nicer to you, but I’m always getting you into trouble instead. I’m so useless,” Feng Minsheng mumbled.
Ning Ran fixed her gaze on Feng Minsheng, wondering what the man had up his sleeve.
What is his objective for doing all this?
They were not at enmity, but why was he always creating trouble for her? What did he get out of it?
If she did not get to the root of the issue, more problems would definitely arise. It might even reach a point where the situation spirals out of her control.
Confronting him directly wasn’t an option, as the sly man would never admit to it. Ning Ran did not have the ability to force a confession out of him as well, so she could only try to outwit him.
“Are you sure this has got nothing to do with you?”
“I’m very sure! Ran, I like you so much, why would I want you to get into trouble? It’s just that I’m too incompetent and keep making mistakes. I’m so sorry… “
“Forget it, I can’t blame you. It’s my fault for drinking too much. I should be more alert next time.”
“But what should we do now? Everyone is criticizing you on the internet. What can we do to rectify the damage?” Feng Minsheng asked.
“Did you check your phone? How do you know everyone is scolding me on the internet?”
“Oh… I… guessed it! You’re a celebrity. Naturally, such news would cause an outrage among netizens. So sorry, Ran. But no matter what, you have to believe that I love you and always want the best for you.”
Ning Ran took a glance at Feng Minsheng and replied, “I trust you. However, if you really love me, you should have more courage.”
“What?” Feng Minsheng looked at Ning Ran in incredulity.
“If you really love me, what you are doing now isn’t enough. You should introduce me to your family and friends, and officially inform them that we are together,” Ning Ran elaborated indifferently.
“Um…” Feng Minsheng hesitated.
“Is that difficult for you? It shows that you did not mean what you said,” Ning Ran said.
“Not at all, I-I’ll do that!” Feng Minsheng answered swiftly.
