After Flirting with the Wrong Stand-in, I Overturned (GL) - Chapter 24

“The privacy here is insufficient,” Ren Xuan said. “Move into our house for a while. Once this storm settles, it won’t be too late to move back.”

“Besides,” Ren Xuan added a reason Lin Shuyan couldn’t possibly refuse, “Xiao Ke goes to see Ren Ke every week. Don’t you want to see her?”

Of course she did.

Lin Shuyan’s heart screamed in agreement, and her resolve wavered. It had been a long time since she had spoken to Xiao Ke. She’d had no opportunity while filming, and since returning, she had only watched Xiao Ke from a distance.

The couple who adopted Xiao Ke were poor but treated her well. They didn’t mind that Xiao Ke stayed in touch with her “sister” from the orphanage. Often, when children from orphanages are adopted, the adoptive parents worry that the child hasn’t accepted them as a real family if they maintain ties to the past; it serves as a constant reminder that the child isn’t biological. Although Xiao Ke’s foster parents didn’t feel this way, Lin Shuyan still tried her best to avoid meeting them.

With the start of the spring semester, the school required parents to pick up and drop off children personally, which meant their agreed-upon weekly meetings had ceased.

“I have quite a lot of things,” Lin Shuyan said bashfully.

“This is your home, you don’t need to move everything,” Ren Xuan laughed. “Just bring the things you use daily. Everything is provided over there.”

“Oh.” Lin Shuyan nodded obediently but stood frozen in place, showing no sign of moving. Ren Xuan looked at her, her eyes asking: Not packing yet?

“I’ll go right now.” Lin Shuyan immediately began packing. Ren Xuan watched quietly as she bustled about, occasionally chiming in with a suggestion.

“The bunny plush?” Lin Shuyan held up a stuffed animal from the bed, its pink ears drooping long and low. She shook the rabbit and asked expectantly, “What about this?”

That timid, probing question seemed especially endearing to Ren Xuan. With a hidden smile in her eyes, she asked, “Who gave it to you?”

“Xiao Ke.” Lin Shuyan clutched the large rabbit with both hands, looking as if she were loath to part with it, as if Ren Xuan were truly going to separate her from the toy.

Ren Xuan found it funny. “If you like it, bring it along.” Lin Shuyan’s eyes lit up instantly, and she joyfully stuffed the plushie into her bag.

“It sounds like someone is knocking.” Ren Xuan turned her head toward the door.

“I’ll check. You keep packing.”

Lin Shuyan did as she was told. The apartment didn’t have a peephole, so Ren Xuan asked through the door, “Who is it?”

“Courier,” the man outside urged.

“Leave it at the door.” Ren Xuan didn’t open it.

“Fine,” the courier said, the sound of the box hitting the floor clear. Before leaving, he added, “Consider it delivered. I’ve recorded it. Don’t come looking for me if the package goes missing.”

Ren Xuan waited until the footsteps faded and the stairwell grew quiet before pushing the door open to pick up the box. It wasn’t large and felt light. As she stepped back inside, she turned to the side. “Lin Shuyan, have you bought anything recently?”

“No,” Lin Shuyan denied. Ren Xuan checked the label; the name written was indeed Lin Shuyan. She shook the box; something rattled inside.

Realizing something was wrong, Lin Shuyan checked her recent tracking numbers—she definitely hadn’t ordered anything. That meant someone else had sent it. Lin Shuyan didn’t know many people; if someone were sending her a gift, they would have told her in advance.

“Do you have scissors?” Ren Xuan wanted to see who was playing tricks.

“Yes.” Lin Shuyan ran to grab them. Ren Xuan snipped the tape. As soon as a small crack opened, a foul odor wafted out.

It was the smell of blood!

Ren Xuan partially shielded the opening as she pried it wider. A bloody silk scarf appeared, and next to it was a note. In the dim light, she could just make out the word “Death.”

“What is it?” Lin Shuyan tried to look. Ren Xuan slammed the lid shut and pressed the original tape back down. “Nothing. Don’t look.”

Lin Shuyan understood instantly. “It’s alright, really.” It wasn’t the first time she’d received such things, though this time the situation was more serious; last time they had sent things to the company. To go through the trouble of digging up her home address just to curse her—they really had put in the effort.

“Until this media storm blows over,” Ren Xuan said, “do not go out for the time being.”

Knowing Ren Xuan had her best interests at heart, Lin Shuyan usually stayed in anyway when she wasn’t working. “I need to go to the company tomorrow.”

“I’ll have Feng Tao drive you tomorrow.”

Lin Shuyan didn’t argue. Disturbed by the package, both of their moods grew somber. Although moving was meant to prevent such situations, seeing it actually happen was still a heavy blow.

An hour later, Lin Shuyan stood uneasily before the Ren estate. She knew the location from the card Ren Xuan had given her, but this was her first time here.

“Eldest Miss.” Butler Wang had received word from the driver. After waiting at the gate for a few minutes, he saw a beautiful woman appearing alongside his employer.

“Uncle Wang, please have someone bring the suitcases from the trunk.”

“Of course.”

As they walked in, Lin Shuyan realized just how large this estate was. She had been to Auntie Lin An’s house, and that backyard was the largest she had seen, but this place could be called a manor. From the main gate to the residence, the black-and-white Bugatti drove slowly for five minutes.

“Eldest Miss, and this lady is…?”

“I am Lin Shuyan.” Before Ren Xuan could introduce her, Lin Shuyan greeted him proactively.

“Miss Lin,” Butler Wang said with a beam.

“Uncle Wang, Shuyan will be staying with us for a while. Please arrange a room for her.”

“Miss Lin,” Butler Wang said without hesitation. Noticing the way the Eldest Miss addressed the guest, he gave a knowing smile and quickly made up his mind. “The Ren house has many guest rooms, but no one has stayed in them for months, so our cleaning has been… a bit lapsed.”

Butler Wang spoke vaguely before changing the subject. “If Miss Lin doesn’t mind, there is a room right next to the Eldest Miss’s. What do you think?”

“Thank you, that would be fine,” Lin Shuyan answered innocently.

“Eldest Miss, Miss Lin, would you like to sit in the garden? The kitchen is preparing dinner.”

Ren Xuan consulted Lin Shuyan, and after getting her agreement, they walked toward the garden. It was vast, maintained almost entirely by professional staff. Ren Xuan had no interest in gardening herself, but she didn’t mind the view. There weren’t many flowers in bloom right now, but the fresh grass sprouting new buds brought a crispness to the air that was worth seeing.

With so much trouble on her mind, Lin Shuyan wasn’t in the best of moods, but as Ren Xuan led her along the pebble paths past various plants, her state of mind began to shift.

“Sister! Sister! I’m back! I heard Sister Yan is here too, where is she?” From far away, Ren Ke’s boisterous voice rang out.

“Ren Ke!” Ren Xuan called back. Having found her direction, Ren Ke’s little legs carried her quickly to them.

“Sister Yan!” Ren Ke pounced toward Lin Shuyan enthusiastically. “The butler told me you’re staying for a while, is it true, Sister Yan? Great! Finally someone to play with me!” Ren Ke’s mouth moved non-stop, giving Lin Shuyan no chance to get a word in.

“Ren Ke,” Ren Xuan called out with a frown. Those who knew Ren Xuan’s temper knew she was annoyed. Ren Ke immediately stood at attention, hanging her head. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have been so loud.”

Ren Xuan remained silent. Lin Shuyan watched the sisters in their standoff, wanting to say something but not knowing where to start. Fortunately, Butler Wang called out, “Eldest Miss, there’s a phone call for you.”

“I’ll go check.” Ren Xuan gave a quick instruction and hurried into the house.

“Do you… want to sit for a bit?” Once Ren Xuan was gone, Lin Shuyan said, “Your sister isn’t actually mad at you. She just thinks I’m in a bad mood.”

“Are you in a bad mood, Sister Yan?” Ren Ke asked, looking up.

“A little bit,” Lin Shuyan said. “But I feel much better now, especially after seeing you.”

Ren Ke and Xiao Ke were girls with completely different temperaments, but they were equally cute.

“I have lots of toys! Do you want to play with me, Sister Yan? I’m always happy when I play with them.” Without giving Lin Shuyan a chance to refuse, Ren Ke ran off. She returned quickly, hauling a pile of toys and dumping them grandly in front of Lin Shuyan. “Sister Yan, these aren’t childish at all. Lots of college students play with these!”

“College students?” Lin Shuyan chuckled. Why the emphasis on students?

“Because…” Ren Ke had just said it offhandedly and now found herself stuck. “Because there are so many college students! If they like them, maybe you will too, Sister Yan.”

Just as Ren Xuan expected, the call was from Ning Yinman. They talked for a long while. After hanging up, Ren Xuan hurried back to the garden.

“This part should be installed like this.” “No, no, you’re looking at it wrong!” “But it goes like this, right?” “…It seems so.”

What are they doing? Ren Xuan slowed her pace and walked over quietly. Following the sounds, she found the two of them half-squatting on the ground inside the wisteria pavilion. Large and small, their heads were pressed together as they puzzled over how the various components of a model fit together.

“Miss Ren.” “Sister.”

Despite her slow steps, Ren Xuan was caught by the two “children.”

“Sister, come quick! Neither Sister Yan nor I can figure this out.”

“Let me see.” Ren Xuan crouched down to join them; suddenly, there was a third child in the backyard.

“Wow, Sister, you’re so amazing!” Watching the large model gradually take shape, Ren Ke’s gaze was full of unshakeable idolization. She was huddled next to Ren Xuan, and as she turned her head, she gave Ren Xuan a quick kiss.

“So if I couldn’t put it together, I wouldn’t be an amazing sister?”

“Mmm…” Ren Ke hummed, shaking her head playfully. “Sister Yan, I’m going back inside now.”

Ren Xuan didn’t stop her, thinking with approval that the kid was quite perceptive.

“Miss Ren, did something happen?” Seeing the joy on the face of the woman who had just returned, Lin Shuyan asked curiously.

“Good news.”

“It’s about you,” Ren Xuan said with a smile. “Curious about what I had people look into?”