Chapter 031: We’re Trending Again

Lu Jingshan didn’t have any of her personal items at his place, so after a quick tidy-up, Fang Yimeng returned to unit 1902 to grab her own things. She spent nearly an hour in the bathroom before finally coming out with a shower cap still on her head.

Seeing all the large and small suitcases cluttering the living room, she resigned herself to unpacking.

By the time she had everything laid out and put away, it was already noon.

After last night’s activities and a whole morning of nonstop organizing, Fang Yimeng collapsed onto the couch, her eyes blankly staring at the ceiling, questioning her life choices.

She hadn’t even had a chance to sink fully into her existential crisis when the doorbell rang.

Supporting her lower back, she shuffled to the door. When she opened it, she saw Lu Jingshan standing there in a gray hoodie and black sweatpants—a sharp contrast to his usual suit-and-tie look.

He was busy replying to messages on his phone, one hand tapping the screen. Without even looking up, he asked, “Want to grab lunch together?”

“I don’t want to go out. I’ll skip lunch,” she muttered, rubbing her wet towel-draped hair as she turned back inside.

Units 1901 and 1902 were across from each other and had identical layouts. The only difference was that 1902 had more personal touches and daily necessities.

Fang Yimeng loved scents. So ever since she moved out to live alone, half of her luggage was filled with perfumes and aromatherapy products—placed by the entryway, in the living room, the kitchen… Wherever she walked, a different fragrance surrounded her.

Lu Jingshan had expected her to say no. Seeing the door wide open, he didn’t wait for an invitation. He stepped right in, changed into indoor slippers, and smoothly closed the door behind him.

Hearing the sound at the door, Fang Yimeng didn’t even need to turn around to know he had let himself in.

“Is your company this relaxed? Don’t you have any meetings or work to attend to on a weekday?”

Lu Jingshan made himself comfortable on the couch, a slight curve forming on his thin lips. “The new product launch strategy is finalized. Nothing else needs my attention.”

Fang Yimeng had zero interest in company updates. She responded with a disinterested “Oh,” then pulled out a hairdryer and plugged it in to dry her hair.

The spacious living room filled with the loud whooshing of the dryer.

Not long after, Lu Jingshan walked over holding Fang Yimeng’s phone.

“What?” The hairdryer noise was too loud for her to hear clearly, but she saw him extend her phone toward her.

Clicking his tongue lightly, he took the dryer from her hand. “It’s your agent calling.”

She took the phone. The moment the call connected—before she could even put it to her ear—Meng Qing’s voice shouted from the other end, “Did you see the trending topic on Weibo this morning?”

“What trending topic?” Fang Yimeng was completely lost.

“I figured you’d still be sleeping after that little rendezvous with your boy toy yesterday. So tell me, were you the one who got this morning’s trending topic suppressed?”

Trending topic? This morning?

Her brows furrowed tightly. Meanwhile, Lu Jingshan’s lips still carried a faint smile as his elegant hand combed through her hair while drying it with the warm air.

“Wasn’t Liao Ran recently exposed for staging her own smear campaign? She’s been getting dragged online for the past three or four days. Then this morning, around five or six, a new trending topic suddenly popped up accusing you of frequenting bars and hooking up with the CEO of Hualing Corporation. Are you saying you didn’t get it taken down?”

From her confused tone, Meng Qing could tell Fang Yimeng truly didn’t know. So she explained the whole situation in detail.

“What was the public’s reaction?” Fang Yimeng blinked, still absorbing the shock, but she didn’t forget to ask about netizens’ response.

Meng Qing laughed in exasperation. “Nothing. The post went up so early, most people were still asleep.”

Fang Yimeng: ???

She was speechless. “Which competitor decided to release dirt on me that early in the morning?”

“Exactly! I’d like to ask Qingyue Media that too—why post blackmail material at 5 or 6 a.m.? It was already suppressed by 7 or 8. A few early birds took screenshots and it spread a little, but because it disappeared so fast, no one really believed it.”

Meng Qing was clearly exhausted by all this. Realizing Fang Yimeng genuinely had no clue, she decided not to harp on it.

“Anyway, just rest for now. We’ll investigate the trending topic on our end. You should prepare for your upcoming livestream show. The crew from 11:30 AM will be coming by to interview you this afternoon. I already gave them the go-ahead.”

Just as Meng Qing was about to hang up, the sound of the hairdryer abruptly stopped.

A moment later, a man’s cool voice came through the receiver.

“What do you want for lunch?”

Meng Qing’s hand paused mid-air. As an adult, she immediately understood what kind of situation was unfolding on the other side. She laughed suggestively and hung up.

Back in the apartment, Fang Yimeng was still trying to wrap her head around what tricks Li Jinchen was up to. Then she heard Lu Jingshan ask about lunch—and Meng Qing’s teasing snort—just before the call ended. She hadn’t even had time to explain, and the other side already misunderstood.

“…”

Oh well, it wasn’t the first time she’d been misunderstood. They were all adults, after all.

She tossed her phone on the table and turned to look at the man behind her holding the hairdryer, a faint smile on his handsome face.

“Were you the one who had the trending topic suppressed?” she asked, piecing things together quickly.

Her gaze locked on Lu Jingshan.

He didn’t deny it—just nodded with calm ease.

“It was bad for your reputation,” he said simply.

Fang Yimeng let out a snort, brushed past him, and sank into the plush velvet sofa, her gaze still fixed on him.

He sat beside her, completely at ease.

“Looks like I should have Meng Qing learn a thing or two from you about PR. Every time you step in, I start questioning my agency’s competence,” she said half-jokingly, half-seriously.

He raised his eyebrows slightly, his expression relaxed and cheerful. The smile in his deep eyes grew more obvious.

“I hired an entire PR team just to manage your public image.”

He said it as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“Why?” she asked.

That one question made her unconsciously sit up straighter and lean toward him.

Her bright eyes reflected the depth of his gaze.

“Because…” his voice suddenly turned low and magnetic, eyes as deep as the sea as he looked into hers, “we’re business partners. If your reputation tanks, it’ll have a major impact on our product launch.”

Fang Yimeng: …This brat! One night together and now he’s acting like this?!