Chapter 16: If You Can’t Speak, Then Don’t Speak
Help! Help! My good bro is about to trick me into going home with him to be his wife… no, his girlfriend! What should I do?
Right now, sitting in Mo Ziyang’s car, Lin Muxi was regretting it so much she couldn’t even describe it. She really had no idea why she had said those words earlier. Now she had ended up shooting herself in the foot.
Couldn’t someone please come and save her? If she really went there, not only might she fail to hide her identity, but even her innocence might be in danger.
Beside her, Mo Ziyang looked at Lin Muxi’s expression like she was going to her death, and couldn’t understand. It’s just going to his house for a meal, was there really any reason to be this scared?
“I really don’t get what you’re afraid of. If there’s a misunderstanding, can’t you just explain and prove it yourself?”
“Yes, yes… just prove it yourself…”
Hearing her good bro say it so lightly, Lin Muxi felt like crying but had no tears.
You say “just prove it” like it’s so easy? She would need something that could prove it! But right now, she didn’t have any ID or documents with her, how was she supposed to prove anything?
Just like that, as the car drove into the huge estate again, Lin Muxi’s heart leapt to her throat. She sat in her seat stiff as a wooden board, not moving at all.
What to do? What to do? She was going to die!
No matter how hard Lin Muxi tried to think, she couldn’t find any workable plan.
The car stopped, the engine turned off. Standing in front of the sports car along with a few maids was Mo Ziyang’s grandfather, Mo Chengling.
At this point, Lin Muxi could only treat a dead horse as if it were alive. She braced herself and got out of the car with Mo Ziyang, standing nervously beside him in front of Mo Chengling.
“Grandpa, why did you come out here?”
Clearly, Mo Ziyang was also surprised that his grandfather had personally come to the door to welcome him.
“If I didn’t come out, would I just wait for you and her to match your stories?”
After saying this to his grandson, Mo Chengling fixed his eyes on the uneasy Lin Muxi.
The cold glint in his eyes made Lin Muxi shiver. It was as if no secret could be hidden from Mo Ziyang’s grandfather. This was also the first time she had ever seen this side of Mo Chengling.
“Your name is Lin Muyu, right?”
“Huh?”
When she heard that name, Lin Muxi almost didn’t react. Wasn’t that the name she had used at the comic convention? Why on earth would Mo Ziyang’s grandfather know it?
“Your name sounds a lot like one of Mo Ziyang’s friends. I wonder if you’re Lin Muxi’s younger sister?”
“Um… I…”
Before Lin Muxi could answer, Mo Ziyang quickly cut in, as if afraid his grandfather would really mistake her for his girlfriend.
“Grandpa, she’s Lin Muxi. You’re the third person to get it wrong today.”
“Shut up. Did I ask you?”
After glaring at Mo Ziyang, Mo Chengling continued questioning Lin Muxi.
“Has he bullied you? If he has, tell me. I’ll make sure he gets a few lashes with the belt today.”
Looking at the old man in front of her, Lin Muxi wanted to cry again. All she could think about was going home as soon as possible.
“Grandpa Mo, I really am Lin Muxi… Didn’t you once pull me along to play chess before?”
Seeing Lin Muxi’s calm face, which didn’t look like she was lying at all, Mo Chengling suddenly started to doubt his own judgment again.
But just like before, when his gaze swept over Lin Muxi’s small frame, he still came to the same conclusion. No matter how he looked at it, this Lin Muxi didn’t seem like a boy.
“So you say that? Then how can you prove you’re Lin Muxi? And it’s obvious you’re a girl.”
When she heard this, Lin Muxi froze in place as if her heart had stopped beating, her small eyes full of fear.
Of course, none of this escaped Mo Chengling’s sharp eyes. He was always good at reading people, and he could naturally sense her nervousness and fear.
But… why? This was what he couldn’t figure out. Why did his grandson keep saying she was a boy, yet the moment this was brought up, she became so scared?
Could it be that… In an instant, a strange thought popped into Mo Chengling’s mind.
Could his grandson really not know she was a girl? But looking at Lin Muxi’s outfit, it didn’t seem like Mo Ziyang was unaware.
“Grandpa, that’s a wig. Just take it off and you’ll see. She really is Lin Muxi.”
Seeing both his grandfather and Lin Muxi frozen in place, Mo Ziyang thought his grandfather hadn’t noticed, so he stepped in to help, even reaching out to tug at Lin Muxi’s hair.
Damn it! If you can’t speak, then don’t speak, no one’s treating you like you’re dead.
Lin Muxi was almost driven mad by Mo Ziyang’s “help.”
She slapped his hand away, but in front of Mo Chengling, a trace of panic still flashed across her face.
It was over… There was no way to explain now. Her hair was the real thing. She had only told Mo Ziyang it was fake to fool him.
And seeing this, Mo Chengling became even more certain of his guess. So it turned out his grandson really didn’t know she was a girl.
Since this Lin Muxi clearly didn’t want to reveal the truth, Mo Chengling quickly sent his grandson away.
“You go inside first and wait for me at the dining table.”
He pointed toward the nearby open door.
“But… Grandpa…”
“I told you to go, so go. Why so much nonsense?”
Mo Ziyang, who still wanted to argue, instantly lost his fight and followed the maids into the house, looking dejected.
Now only Lin Muxi and Mo Chengling were left outside, staring at each other.
Under the silent and intimidating gaze of the old man, Lin Muxi was the first to give in. She spoke cautiously.
“Um… can you let me go?”
“Before that, don’t you want to tell me what exactly is going on between you and my grandson?”
Mo Chengling smiled and looked at her with a meaningful gaze.
“I… I’m not his girlfriend. Back then, he was bullying me, and I only said that to get back at him…”
Her voice grew smaller and smaller, her eyes filled with guilt and fear as she looked at the old man.
Because deep down, Lin Muxi knew this still didn’t explain why, at the comic convention, their actions had looked so close.
“I can tell, you two have actually known each other for a long time, right?”
Lin Muxi didn’t answer and stayed silent. Strictly speaking, that wasn’t wrong, but… using it here felt a bit strange.
Seeing her silent, Mo Chengling continued:
“You say you’re Lin Muxi, but tell me, how can a boy who’s nearly an adult not have an Adam’s apple?”
When she heard that, Lin Muxi’s face became even more panicked… She suddenly thought, could it be that Mo Ziyang’s grandfather had already seen through her disguise as a girl?
“I… Grandpa Mo, you already knew, didn’t you?”
With a testing tone, she asked.
“Yes. And you do look very much like Lin Muxi. Even your behavior and the way you address me are exactly the same.”
Then, Mo Chengling suddenly changed the topic and asked.
“But I’m very curious, how did you manage to make Mo Ziyang completely unaware that you’re a girl?”