Chapter 35

**Chapter 35**

"Aghhh, she's about to walk in any second now. Doesn’t that mean she’ll catch her husband and that woman *in the act*...?"

What?

An art exhibition turning into an *infidelity drama*? Everyone was instantly riveted.

It was such a coincidence—the exhibition hall was massive, divided into east and west wings—but Song Yu and Yan Fei, who stood beside him, just happened to be admiring a painting directly across from the entrance.

Even more coincidental was that as the elegantly dressed *actual wife*, Yang Man, stepped through the door, Song Yu had just turned around—arm in arm with Yan Fei—to look for a staff member to discuss purchasing the painting. Their gazes locked with Yang Man’s.

The three stood frozen, eyes locked, the entire hall seemingly holding its breath in that moment.

"Holy—did they just use up a lifetime’s worth of coincidences at once?!"

But contrary to everyone’s expectations of a dramatic scene—*a wife kicking her husband and clawing at the other woman*—the atmosphere remained *strangely civil*.

Yang Man even greeted Song Yu and Yan Fei warmly, "What a coincidence! You two came to see the exhibition too?"

Song Yu nodded. "Yeah, had I known you were coming, I’d have bought three tickets."

Yang Man shot him a *mock-stern look*. "Even without you giving me a ticket, I still made it here. So, having a ticket or not doesn’t really matter."

Song Yu’s gaze softened, *his gaze clinging to Yang Man like molasses*. "Got it. Next time, I’ll remember to buy three."

"Are they seriously flirting right now???"

"I don’t even—"

"My god, are they planning some *three-way arrangement*? Am I hearing things, or has the world really gotten this wild?"

Lin Tingyue lowered her head to scroll through her phone, while Yan Fei *pressed up against* Song Yu and said, "Not three—four tickets."

"Four, huh..." Song Yu *feigned reluctance*.

"Come on," Yan Fei *coaxed*, "just say yes already. If you think it’s unfair, my husband can pay for the next round, okay?"

"It’s *chump change*. Why would I mind? The important thing is everyone’s happy."

"Hold up—husband??"

"No way, you both have spouses and you’re pulling this in public...?"

"Did their marriages fall apart, so now they’re *putting on a front* while dating others?"

Lin Tingyue and the onlookers could only speculate this far, but the *real bombshell* was yet to come.

"Hey," Yan Fei’s eyes lit up as she waved at a man in a suit walking in, "my husband’s here."

"Took you long enough," Yang Man *complained* while taking Xiao Liang’s hand. She glanced at Yan Fei and added, "Today, he’s my husband. Isn’t yours already holding your hand?"

Meeting Song Yu’s jealous stare, Yan Fei *hastily amended*, "Right, right."

Song Yu *gave her arm a warning squeeze*. "I’ll deal with you later."

*The threat hung in the air.*

"The hell—?"

"Looks like I'm the target of this drama, huh."

"Finally figured it out. It's not cheating—they're trading partners. If Yan Fei gets tired of Xiao Liang, she'd ask Yang Man to lend Song Yu to her for a few days..."

"Aren't they just swapping? They’ve got nerve—four people sharing lives without a hint of awkwardness."

The onlookers were equally stunned. They’d only heard about stuff like this online before. Never thought it’d happen in real life—and so brazenly too.

Some joked they needed eye bleach. That gossip hit harder than expected.

Lin Tingyue was shook too. She wasted no time calling the cops, only to find out the show wasn’t over yet.

Back then, Yang Man and her fling had gone to the west wing, while Yan Fei and hers went east—avoiding each other completely. But Yang Man ran into Song Yu’s parents in the west wing… right in the middle of a steamy makeout session.

"I’ll teach you shameless cheaters a lesson!"

Song Hai immediately swung his cane, smacking both Yang Man and Xiao Liang. As they clutched their sore spots, tears welling up, Song Yu’s mother Cao Ya slapped them both across the face.

The loud *smack* turned heads all over the west wing.

Most of the crowd had just finished watching the earlier scene at the entrance. Seeing the two again, they muttered, "Oh great, these two again?"

The Lin family was also in the west wing because Lin Xiawan was there.

Standing beside her was Lin Tingyue, eyes lit up like a kid in a candy store.

"Talk about a soap opera twist."

Lin Xiawan had already accepted it—wherever Lin Tingyue was, drama followed.

Yang Man peeked through her hands, finally recognizing who hit her. Her heart dropped when she saw the cane strike Xiao Liang again. Panicking, she blurted, "Dad, you hit him—that means I’m off the hook!"

"Why shouldn’t I hit you? After everything my son’s done for you, you go behind his back like this? So openly, too!"

Song Hai was so furious he couldn’t breathe properly, clutching his chest. Cao Ya rushed over to calm him down. "Calm down, Song—they’re not worth it."

Spotting Xiao Liang trying to sneak off, she grabbed him by the collar. "Oh no you don’t, you snake! You better wait till my son gets here!"

Xiao Liang was actually tall and strong, but after that beating, he was too dazed to resist. With phones recording everywhere, he felt even more humiliated. "Wait, Auntie—it’s not like that!"

"'Manman' now, huh? Since when are you so cozy? Do you call your coworkers like that at work? Don’t you know 'friend’s wife, hands off'? Just wait."

Cao Ya snapped at Song Hai, "Call our son. Let him see what his wife and best friend are up to behind his back!"

"Auntie, no!" Yang Man and Xiao Liang cried together. Right now, it was just an affair—but if Song Yu showed up, their little partner-swap would blow up.

"Oh *now* you’ve got morals?"

Song Hai dialed Song Yu while Cao Ya clamped down like a vice on the pair.

"Left holding a leash, right gripping a hawk—Auntie’s *owning* this!!!"

Lin Chengyan blinked. *Since when does that idiom apply here?*

But seeing them trapped like that, he grudgingly admitted—it kind of fit.

"Can't even imagine how devastated these two elders would be if they knew the truth. There’d be a floor littered with broken 'Want Want' ice pops in no time."

"Snort."

Lin Chengyan let out a short laugh, then lazily said to Lin Tingyue, "I just thought of something amusing."

Lin Tingyue: "..."

"You actually expect me to believe that?"

"Second Brother probably wasn’t thinking about Cheng Jinshuang, or else he wouldn’t be laughing."

Lin Chengyan: "?"

Lin Tingyue, you're really pushing it—how could you say something like that to me? Lin Chengyan clenched his fists but relaxed them under the stern gaze of his parents.

Tch!

Meanwhile, Lin Yuhuan stared at the ground, his usual commanding presence subdued as he silently wondered where those 'Want Want' ice pops had gone.

"Strange, why does it feel like the ringtone is coming from right in front of me?"

Song Hai, who was still on the phone, looked up and saw Song Yu finishing up in the east wing and walking into the west side, with Yan Fei clinging to his arm.

With a thud, Song Hai's phone hit the floor.

"See? The poor old man is so furious he can't even hold his phone anymore. And surprise, surprise—they’re here to enjoy the spectacle."

"Guess you didn’t see it coming—your own family falling apart."

The drama itself wasn’t funny, but the way it unfolded was almost comical. Everyone nearby tried hard to suppress their laughter.

"Song Yu, you—"

Song Hai slammed his cane onto the ground. "You’ve been acting behind our backs too?"

Hearing the commotion, Cao Ya turned around and stared in shock. A few seconds later, she shouted furiously, "Song Yu, get over here *right now*!"

Afraid of making his parents even angrier, Song Yu walked over. "Mom, Dad, please just hear me out—"

Song Hai cut him off coldly, "What’s there to explain? I have eyes. I saw everything."

"Holy crap—is this your partner's wife?" Cao Ya screamed, letting go of Xiao Liang’s hand.

"Go ahead, run back to your real wife."

Xiao Liang squeaked out, "Wife."

Yan Fei, who was about to flee, suddenly found herself at the center of attention.

"You shameless brats!"

Sharp-eyed and street-smart, Cao Ya quickly figured everything out. She released Yang Man, lunged forward, and slapped both Song Yu and Yan Fei across the face.

"Let’s crown her the Slap Queen—aim and strike, so satisfying!!!"

"Though I wonder if slapping sounds could work as ASMR? It’s super satisfying to hear, but definitely not calming, huh?"

(*Footnote: “Want Want” is a popular Chinese brand known for its frozen treats like the “Crushed Ice Pop”.)

Everyone: "..."

Slaps as sleep aids—what a bizarre thought! Classic coming from the one dragging us into this mess!

"Mom..." Song Yu covered his face, looking at Cao Ya in disbelief. "You hit me?"

"Ah Yu..."

Seeing Song Yu's reddened face, Cao Ya's heart ached. In a daze, she reached for him. "I didn’t mean to—I just lost my temper."

"I don’t want to hear it!" Song Yu took a step back. "Mom, didn’t you and Dad always say you loved me the most? Why are you coming down so hard on me for just messing around?"

"Have some fun???"

"This is downright depraved!"

Cao Ya murmured, "I wasn’t thinking straight—I was just so mad. If you’re into... this kind of stuff... you could’ve at least clued us in, right? If you’d just married Xiaowen like we told you, none of this would’ve happened."

Cao Ya was kicking herself now—she never should have agreed when her son wanted to marry Yang Man.

"So a heads-up makes it fine?"

"And who is Xiaowen?"

"Hold up—is there another layer to this trainwreck?"

The ball’s in your court for a plot twist.

The crowd hung on Lin Tingyue’s every word, and Lin Xiawan also turned her head to glance at Lin Tingyue’s face.

"No freaking way... Xiaowen’s his *sister*?"

What the—??

"So the parents are seriously pushing their son to marry his *sister*?"