My Virtual Girlfriend-Chapter 432: You Smell Like Another Woman (6000 words)

Chapter 432: Chapter 432: You Smell Like Another Woman (6000 words)

Upon hearing Lu Man’s words, Chen Yan’s heart skipped a beat.

"Women’s scent?"

He had spent the entire night with He Mengxue. Even at the end, He Mengxue had secretly snuck into his arms.

So, it was inevitable that he would carry He Mengxue’s scent on him.

However... Chen Yan had already noticed this.

He knew that he had a meeting today and would see Lu Man, so to avoid being detected by the astute Lu Man, he deliberately took a shower and used shower gel to wash away any scent from his body.

He thought he had been very careful!

How could he have still been caught?

Chen Yan felt something wasn’t quite right.

He always felt like he was missing something...

While thinking, Chen Yan put on a calm front and then said, "How could there be a woman’s scent? Are you perhaps mistaken?"

Lu Man looked at Chen Yan suspiciously, took another sniff around him, then closed her eyes and thought carefully, murmuring, "It’s not just any woman’s scent, but also... it’s very familiar."

Her brows were almost squeezed together.

After a moment, she opened her eyes, looked towards Mei Li and said, "Sis, come and smell Chen Yan. Does he carry the scent of another woman?!"

"And it’s a very familiar person’s, too!"

The always quiet Mei Li, who was standing behind them and attentively checking if anyone was noticing, broke into a cold sweat.

She tugged at Lu Man and said softly, "Grandma Xiao, don’t make a scene out here."

"Let’s talk about it when we get back."

"There are so many people coming and going in the company; if someone takes a picture of you and Chen Yan being so intimate, what will you do?"

After being reminded by Mei Li, Lu Man also stopped making a scene.

However, she still pouted at Chen Yan with a look of "I am very unhappy," then finally pushed open the office door and walked in first.

After she had gone in, Mei Li gave Chen Yan a complex look and gestured with her hand.

Chen Yan nodded at Mei Li and followed Lu Man in.

Entering the meeting room, Yang Rou and Song Chuang were already waiting there.

After receiving the message last night, Song Chuang, as one of the highest-level executives in the company, had rushed back to Qin Island overnight to attend the meeting.

Seeing Chen Yan, both of them stood up to greet him.

Chen Yan pressed his hands down, gesturing for them to sit, then took the main seat.

To his left was Yang Rou, and to his right was Lu Man, "still contemplating whose woman’s scent that was."

Chen Yan knew that with Lu Man’s temperament, she wouldn’t let go until she figured this out.

So, while chairing the meeting, he also put his brain to work, thinking about what had possibly given him away...

As he pondered, he suddenly had a moment of clarity and realized the reason.

He thought he was really a fool! How could he overlook such a silly mistake?

It couldn’t even be considered a mistake, but rather a blunder!

Having found the reason, the solution followed soon after, coming to Chen Yan’s mind.

However, he thought... with his "ability," it seemed like he couldn’t really fix this. He needed to make some other preparations.

Thinking this, Chen Yan took the opportunity, while going to fetch water, to secretly take an "Energy Pill."

After taking the "Energy Pill," Chen Yan suddenly felt that everything in front of him became much clearer, his thinking more fluid.

He returned to the main seat and started to listen to everyone’s statements while recalling every detail from the morning like rewinding a film, completing his plan...

After recollecting for a while, Chen Yan, while the others were not paying attention, picked up his phone and sent a WeChat message...

...

This meeting had a simple goal: to discuss the Xu brothers’ press conference and the subsequent competition it brought.

After some discussion, the situation in the meeting room became clear: there were two factions.

One faction was the pessimistic group, led by Lu Man, with Mei Li and Song Chuang as her deputies.

They believed that the Xu brothers’ several projects were very dangerous, especially since so many top actors and actresses, kings and queens of the industry were involved. The competitive pressure facing the company was immense.

They suggested postponing the unfinished projects, retaining only those they were currently handling, so as not to spread themselves too thin and run into sudden issues that could affect company cash flow.

On the other side was Yang Rou, alone.

She analyzed the Xu brothers’ projects, based on her stature as a gold-medal producer.

She believed these projects were like Frankenstein creations, stitching together top actors, big IPs, famous directors without any consideration for their chemistry.

Such projects were likely to fail and there was no need to worry.

The company’s growth was at a critical juncture and couldn’t afford to slow down. Moreover, they should take advantage of the times when other companies were occupied with their own projects and could not attend to other medium and small projects in the industry, capturing those opportunities.

As for Chen Yan, although he tended to agree with Yang Rou, he kept quiet and just listened while the others argued and debated.

It wasn’t that he took pleasure in their dispute, but rather he was inspired by what He Mengxue told him: Different perspectives see things differently.

Hearing only one side is misleading; hearing all sides is enlightening.

He was the company’s big boss, and once a direction was decided, it was difficult for others to speak up.

So, he waited until everyone had shared their opinions before slowly starting to speak.

He said, "Honestly, based just on these projects’ cast and preparation, my thoughts align with President Rou."

"Although very luxurious, they seem to be hodgepodges, which are hard to turn into good dishes."

Seeing Lu Man, Mei Li, and the others frowning, Chen Yan slightly raised his hand to calm them down.

Then he continued, "However."

"Our ’Sunrise Plan’ was also not favored in the beginning, but haven’t we come this far?"

"The Xu brothers have more than twenty years of experience over us and have had their ups and downs in the industry for many years. We all know their strength."

"If we can create miracles, can’t they create miracles too?"

"That’s why we shouldn’t relax our guard against them just because we look down on their projects."

"On the contrary, we should be even more cautious of their potential to create a miracle."

Chen Yan looked around at everyone and said, "After all, given the terrifying degree of their line-up, if they truly generate a chemical reaction, those projects will definitely be overwhelming hits."

"They won’t give us any chance."

Hearing Chen Yan’s words, the executives present began to think deeply.

Seeing that everyone was taking it in, Chen Yan took a sip of water and then slowly began to lay out tasks, "So, we mustn’t let them intimidate us, but we must also go all out in responding to this crisis."

"I believe in the success rate and return on our projects. Therefore, we’re increasing all project budgets by 30%, and all props and machines will be the best available."

"All actors, crew members will be treated with the highest standard."

"We’re not afraid to spend money; we’re afraid that the Xu brothers’ side-steps will poach our project participants."

Chen Yan looked at Yang Rou, Song Chuang, and Mei Li and continued, "Also, you all should leverage your networks to try and get the Xu brothers’ project plans. We don’t need fully detailed ones, but at least a general list of personnel and related project plans."

"I want to personally review their projects to see what they are doing."

"And then, make targeted adjustments to our subsequent strategies."

He said, "If the Xu brothers’ projects are indeed good, then we won’t clash with them but focus on our own. After all, we have time, money, and projects; we could potentially wear them down by dragging things out."

"If their projects are average, then we’ll take aim and defeat them head-on."

Chen Yan’s eyes turned to Yang Rou, "Hold off playing the trump card in President Rou’s hand."

"Use it at a critical moment when needed."

"Perhaps, we can sweep clean all the opposing forces in the entertainment industry in one fell swoop."

He then looked at Mei Li, "Don’t slow down on Mei Li’s plan, continue to carry it out systematically."

"When the time comes, we can quickly fill the void left by our enemies."

"Only if our plans go smoothly, I believe it won’t be long before the entire entertainment industry is at our command!"

It was supposed to be a meeting to deal with a crisis, but under Chen Yan’s speech, those present were stimulated by the bright future he painted and became inexplicably excited.

Even Lu Man, who had been a bit unhappy earlier, was a little stirred as she looked at Chen Yan.

Obviously, if the plan could really proceed as Chen Yan said, she, the nominal head of the company, would benefit the most and might even... become the true queen of the entertainment industry!

And so, the meeting ended.

The people who were a bit anxious relaxed a lot because of Chen Yan’s composure.

As it was rare for the film and television department’s executives to be all together, Chen Yan suggested treating everyone to a meal next door.

After the meeting, they all took an elevator downstairs and headed for the Twin Towers Hotel next door.

On the way, Lu Man wore sunglasses, a mask, a hat, and concealed herself thoroughly. However, because of this, she could walk beside Chen Yan in plain sight.

Mei Li remained by her side to prevent anyone from recognizing Lu Man, covering for her.

Protected by Mei Li, the two of them chatted casually.

Even though the meeting had ended, Lu Man was still fixated on the scent on Chen Yan.

Like a little puppy, she would lean close to Chen Yan now and then to sniff and contemplate, making Chen Yan extremely embarrassed.

The third time she did this, Chen Yan gently knocked on her head, saying, "What are you doing? Can’t you stop already?"

Lu Man, covering her head, went to complain to Mei Li, "Sis, look, Chen Yan hit me. He’s abusive."

Mei Li, immune to the couple’s daily display of affection, kept scanning the surroundings while saying nonchalantly, "Please call the police for domestic abuse."

Lu Man hmphed softly.

She bared her small canine teeth and said to Chen Yan in a milky tone, "Have the police arrest you."

Chen Yan laughed, "If anyone’s being arrested, it should be you. After all, you’ve been bothering me all morning. You haven’t stopped sniffing me."

Lu Man rolled her eyes at Chen Yan, "If it weren’t for that woman’s scent on you practically oozing out, I wouldn’t bother sniffing."

Angrily, she said, "Cheating and not even knowing to wipe your mouth clean. Embarrassing."

Chen Yan: .....

Truth be told, Lu Man’s words, coupled with her cute gestures, were very endearing. The only problem was, she covered herself too well, and Chen Yan couldn’t see anything.

So, Chen Yan could only feel deeply resigned...

He just hoped that his preparation could handle this matter...

In this way, amidst their playful banter, the group arrived at the Chinese restaurant’s private room in the Twin Towers Hotel.

Lu Man and Chen Yan, with Sister Mei Li leading the way, fell behind Yang Rou and Song Chuang.

And just as Chen Yan and Lu Man had stepped into the private room, Lu Man suddenly froze on the spot.

Chen Yan, with one foot already in the room, saw her blocking the doorway in a daze and looked at her curiously, wondering what she was up to.

Then, at that moment, the smile faded from Lu Man’s face as she looked at Chen Yan with a complex expression and said, "Chen Yan, I know why the scent on you is so familiar."

Chen Yan turned to look at Lu Man.

Lu Man frowned deeply and said, "The scent on you, it’s He Mengxue’s!"

She looked at Chen Yan and continued, "Last night when I called you, there was also a woman’s voice beside you; that was He Mengxue, wasn’t it..."

Her words instantly quieted the room.

Sister Mei Li, who had heard this shocking secret, changed her expression.

She quickly backed out of the room and signaled with her eyes to Song Chuang and Yang Rou.

Song Chuang and Yang Rou, being sly themselves, had already noticed something was off between Chen Yan and Lu Man.

So now, seeing Sister Mei Li signal to them, both hesitated in their steps and did not continue towards the private room.

Meanwhile, inside the room, upon hearing Lu Man finally guessing the truth, Chen Yan sighed quietly to himself.

What was expected finally arrived.

Whether or not this could be overcome depended on how prepared he was.

With that thought, Chen Yan’s acting burst forth; he sniffed his arm and feigned confusion as he asked, "He Mengxue’s scent?"

"How could I have He Mengxue’s scent on me?"

Seeing Chen Yan still play dumb up to now, Lu Man felt even more wronged.

Her eyes brimming with tears, she bit her lip while staring at Chen Yan.

Obviously, having to share Chen Yan’s love with Yu Qiao Qiao had already made her feel wronged.

Being with Chen Yan, she always felt very insecure, as if she could be driven away or abandoned at any moment.

It wasn’t until Chen Yan promised to resolve this abnormal relationship that her heart gradually settled somewhat.

Now, without resolving anything, a new "sister" appeared?!

How could Lu Man stand this?

Just as she was thinking this, Chen Yan, after sniffing his own scent, suddenly showed an expression of sudden realization.

He exclaimed, "Ah, I know what’s going on now!"

"This isn’t He Mengxue’s scent at all."

"It’s the smell of shower gel!"

Hearing Chen Yan’s words, Lu Man was momentarily stunned, then gave him a "go on, keep making it up" look.

Chen Yan saw she didn’t believe him and quickly explained, "I ran out of shower gel at home not long ago, and the previous one was no good, so I asked He Mengxue for a recommendation."

"And who knew, she enthusiastically brought me a bottle the next day."

"This morning, when I took a shower, I used that shower gel, probably... what you smelled was this scent."

Lu Man was not fooled by Chen Yan’s few words.

Hearing him say this, she immediately asked, "What brand is that shower gel?"

While Chen Yan and Lu Man were quietly arguing, Sister Mei Li, who had sent Yang Rou and Song Chuang away, also returned to the room.

Hearing Lu Man’s aggressive questioning, she couldn’t help but tug at Lu Man’s clothes and whispered persuasively, "Man Man, President Rou and Director Song are waiting out there."

"Why don’t we finish eating, then we can talk about this slowly when we get back, alright?"

"Besides, who remembers the brand of shower gel?"

Sister Mei Li was actually very good to Lu Man.

She didn’t believe Chen Yan at all, but she knew that Lu Man couldn’t leave Chen Yan now, no matter what Chen Yan did.

If Lu Man truly didn’t want to be with Chen Yan anymore, she needed to first calm down and give up on Chen Yan before they could part ways.

Thus, arguing now wouldn’t yield any results. It was better to step down gracefully and plan for the long term.

However, what she didn’t expect was that just after she spoke, Chen Yan waved his hand to interrupt her.

He stated, "Sister Mei Li, no need to persuade. A man with a clear conscience does not fear a crooked shadow."

He continued, "I indeed do not remember the brand of the shower gel because it was in English. He Mengxue’s choice is probably foreign."

Chen Yan thought for a moment, then said, "I roughly remember some letters: there were b, a, e, t, y, something like that."

"Also, it was in a yellow bottle. Looked to be about 500ml."

Hearing Chen Yan’s words, Lu Man pouted in grievance, took out her phone, and began to search.

In a moment, she actually found the brand of shower gel Chen Yan mentioned: beauty.

Indeed, this shower gel had a yellow version. 450ml. It was jasmine scented.

Thinking this, Lu Man once again approached Chen Yan and took a light sniff.

She had felt this scent was familiar earlier.

Later, she just recalled that it seemed to be the scent on He Mengxue.

But now, upon smelling it again, she realized... it truly was jasmine!

Seeing Lu Man finally seemed to believe his words somewhat,

Chen Yan pulled Lu Man close to him, then turned around, his back facing Sister Mei Li, he unbuttoned his shirt, pulled open the inside garment, pressed Lu Man’s head to his chest, and said, "Smell again."

"Isn’t the scent on my body even more fragrant than on the clothes?"

"This shows that I’m not just tainted with the scent. It’s the shower gel that has permeated."

Lu Man obediently sniffed as Chen Yan instructed; indeed, the fragrance on the skin was much stronger than on the clothes.

Lu Man believed Chen Yan’s explanation.

And when she believed him, and thought about how she had misunderstood Chen Yan, Lu Man suddenly panicked.

She glanced at Sister Mei Li, then while buttoning up Chen Yan’s shirt, she quietly apologized, "Chen Yan, I’m sorry. I misunderstood you..."

Seeing Lu Man back down, it was as if Chen Yan heard a voice in his ear: it’s time to show off!

So, he gently brushed Lu Man’s hand away, then while buttoning up his shirt with an unhappy expression, he coldly said, "This is not a misunderstanding."

"This is distrust."

Seeing Chen Yan seemingly really angry, Lu Man became even more panicked.

She looked up at him, her big eyes filled with tears and looking pitiful, and said, "I didn’t mean it."

"I just, just overthought."

Chen Yan snorted coldly and said, "Overthought? Isn’t that the same as distrust?"

Seeing Chen Yan in such anger and Lu Man more wronged,

If there were not outsiders present, she might have cried on the spot.

And seeing the two suddenly switch roles, with Lu Man appearing wronged, Sister Mei Li also became a bit anxious.

She walked over, then while holding onto Lu Man, she whispered to Chen Yan, "Director Chen, President Rou and Director Song are waiting outside. How about..."

Chen Yan straightened his clothes and nodded, "Let’s have dinner first."

After speaking, Chen Yan continued with a stern face to the head seat.

This time, Lu Man didn’t have the arrogance as before; she followed Chen Yan like a little wife, seated next to him.

After sitting down, she still stretched out her hand to gently tug on the corner of Chen Yan’s clothes, looking pitiful.

And as the two made small actions towards each other, Yang Rou and Song Chuang also entered.

The two who were signaled by Sister Mei Li not to enter just now, after entering, their gaze naturally lingered a moment on Chen Yan and Lu Man.

Realizing the state Chen Yan and Lu Man were in, they instantly knew that this secret couple probably had an argument.

With a glance that lasted but a second, Song Chuang pulled back his gaze, wanting no part in his boss’s family affairs.

However, Yang Rou’s gaze lingered a little longer on the two, her cool face showing a meaningful smirk.

Chen Yan looked up, locking eyes with Yang Rou.

Yang Rou withdrew her gaze and then seated herself next to Chen Yan.

Once seated, Yang Rou sniffed as though she smelled something; then, with a cool tone, she inquired, "Director Chen, did you use the beauty brand shower gel that Director He gave you?"

Hearing Yang Rou’s words, several people present couldn’t help but look towards her, wondering why Yang Rou suddenly brought up this topic.

Only Lu Man, who knew the details, couldn’t help but look at Yang Rou.

She didn’t know how Yang Rou knew about this.

Could there be other information inside...

And when Chen Yan nodded, Yang Rou poured herself a glass of water and coldly added, "It smells pretty good."

"I haven’t used the one Director He gave me at home."

"If I had known it smelled this nice, I would have used it."

——————

And as the two subtly interacted, Yang Rou and Song Chuang came in as well.

The two who had been signaled by Sister Mei Li not to enter, upon entering, their gaze naturally lingered a moment on Chen Yan and Lu Man.

Seeing the state of Chen Yan and Lu Man, they knew right away that this secret couple probably had a fight.

With a glance that lasted but a second, Song Chuang pulled back his gaze, not wanting to meddle in his boss’s family affairs.

However, Yang Rou’s gaze stayed a bit longer on the two, revealing a meaningful smirk on her cool face.

Chen Yan looked up, meeting Yang Rou’s gaze.

Yang Rou looked away, then seated herself next to Chen Yan.

Once sat down, Yang Rou, as if she had smelled something, sniffed towards Chen Yan and then with a cool tone, she asked, "Director Chen, did you use the beauty brand shower gel that Director He gave you?"

Hearing Yang Rou’s words, several people present couldn’t help but look towards her, not knowing why Yang Rou suddenly mentioned this topic.

Only Lu Man, who was privy to the situation, couldn’t help but look at Yang Rou.

She didn’t know how Yang Rou was aware of this matter.

Could it be... there was more to this?

And when Chen Yan nodded, Yang Rou, while pouring herself a glass of water, casually remarked, "It smells quite nice."

"Director He gave me a bottle too, and I haven’t used it at home yet."

"Had I known it smelled this good, I would have used it."