Chapter Forty Explanation

The lifeguard performed emergency resuscitation on Ning Xiaoruan. Fortunately, Ning Xiaoruan hadn't been underwater for long and quickly vomited out the water and woke up.

"He's awake! He's awake!"

Sheng Jiaoyang finally relaxed, gently rubbing Xiongzai's head to hide her anxiety.

Upon waking up and seeing so many people watching, Ning Xiaoruan was immediately embarrassed. He was supposed to be a gentleman; how could he expose his most disheveled state to so many people? It was too damaging to his image.

"Where's that brat Xu Jiaojiao?" The main issue was that he hadn't seen the culprit who had directly caused him to fall into the water. Shouldn't that brat be by his side?

The crowd immediately parted to make way, revealing the person behind him calmly cuddling a large dog.

At a time like this, he still had the leisure to play with a dog; he was indeed inferior to a dog… ugh! Ning Xiaoruan was amused and annoyed.

"Hey, look—" someone spotted the approaching luxury yacht.

The yacht was already within fifty meters; everyone's eyes weren't blind, so they naturally saw it.

Still seething with anger, Ning Xiaoruan shuddered at the sight of the yacht, forgetting all his rage and wishing he could hide somewhere. He'd made himself look so pathetic; it wouldn't be so bad if his cousin saw him, but if his cousin saw him, it meant his parents would find out, and they'd definitely tell his cousin to treat him even more severely…

He could already foresee how miserable he'd be.

It was all that brat's fault!

Ning Xiaoruan turned to look at her resentfully, only to be instantly dumbfounded. Where was she? The person who was just so calmly hugging the teddy bear was gone!

"Ning Xiaoruan," the devilish voice rang in his ears.

Ning Xiaoruan obediently stood up, no longer caring about the expressions of those around him. All he wanted now was to return to Italy as soon as possible, so he could still be the handsome and gentlemanly Peter Ning, not some damned Ning Xiaoruan!

"Have you finished writing your plan?" Shen Zhining sat in his chair, looking at his disheveled cousin from afar.

Ning Xiaoruan shook his head. He subconsciously reached for his glasses, only to realize they were gone; he knew they must have fallen into the sea.

"Then what are you doing here?" Shen Zhining raised an eyebrow. "Waiting for me?"

Ning Xiaoruan was speechless. If he dared say he was out having fun, he'd be in deep trouble.

He looked at Jing Weinan standing next to his cousin, trying to plead with his eyes for Jing Weinan to say a few good words for him, but was ignored.

Shen Zhining's patience with this dim-witted cousin had run out. He raised his hand and called to the black dog wagging its tail, "Bear Cub, come here."

Hearing the call, Bear Cub excitedly twitched and leaped across the nearly meter-wide gap between the two yachts, rushing to its owner's side.

Shen Zhining leaned forward and ruffled Bear Cub's hair. Raising a cousin was worse than raising a dog.

"Tell me, how did you fall into the water?" No matter how upset his cousin was, he was still family. Besides, Ning Xiaoruan wasn't a good swimmer; he couldn't have jumped in on his own. Anyone who dared to bully him would have to see if he would stand up for himself!

Zhuo Yiyan's heart skipped a beat, thinking: Here it comes.

"Hello, this is the recording site of the 'Supermodel for All' program. We sincerely apologize for Mr. Ning's fall into the water due to our momentary negligence!"

Zhuo Yiyan said humbly. "What kind of momentary negligence?" Shen Zhining asked casually.

Zhuo Yiyan looked troubled.

Ning Xiaoruan was about to speak when Shen Zhining's cold glare silenced her.

"It was clearly Xu Jiaojiao who pushed him, why should Teacher Zhuo apologize!" a contestant muttered softly.

Zhuo Yiyan frowned slightly. Putting aside the fact that the truth hadn't been investigated yet, he wasn't the kind of person who would push others into the mess whenever something happened.

"It's me." Sheng Jiaoyang, who had already changed his clothes, came out.

Shen Zhining stared at Sheng Jiaoyang for a few seconds, then suddenly smiled, a smile that held no meaning.

Sheng Jiaoyang's scalp tingled. "I didn't push him, I just shook off his hand. Who knew that we'd run into a storm at that moment, and he'd fall overboard."

Ning Xiaoruan felt he should step forward at this moment. As a gentleman, how could he let a girl face Boss Shen alone? He coughed, gave Sheng Jiaoyang a reassuring look, and said, "It really has nothing to do with her. It's all a coincidence."

Shen Zhining nodded, and as Ning Xiaoruan breathed a sigh of relief, he added, "Your presence here isn't a coincidence, is it?"

"..." Ning Xiaoruan was speechless.

"Not planning to come over?" Shen Zhining leaned back in his chair, asking calmly.

Ning Xiaoruan seemed to have been released from his pressure point. He walked to the edge and looked around. There was still about a meter of space between the two yachts, and the cabin doors weren't aligned.

"I can't get over."

"I'll give you one minute. If you can't get over here, I'll send you to Qin Ye's place tomorrow," Shen Zhining said mercilessly. "

You're cruel, heartless, and unreasonable! "

Ning Xiaoruan complained inwardly, but his movements were anything but hesitant. Under immense pressure, he unleashed two hundred percent of his explosive power, climbing over the railing and leaping over the one-meter-wide gap before landing on the deck.

"Wow—" The other competitors gasped at Ning Xiaoruan's explosive jump.

Although Ning Xiaoruan was hurt from the fall, he couldn't help but feel a little smug when he heard the gasps behind him, as if he had done something incredibly cool.

"Start the boat," Shen Zhining ordered calmly.

Jing Weinan picked up the walkie-talkie and repeated the order.

Seeing the yacht begin to move, Ning Xiaoruan quickly scrambled to her feet, grabbed the handrail behind her, and shouted across the way, "Xu Jiaojiao, you still owe me a meal, remember that!" Sheng Jiaoyang,

who was heartbrokenly watching his beloved dog groveling at someone else's feet, twitched his lips upon hearing this. If time could turn back, she would definitely push this idiot into the sea herself!

"Ning Xiaoruan." The demonic voice entered her ears again.

Ning Xiaoruan shivered and turned around to face the cruel reality.

"When did you two become so close? Hmm?" Shen Zhining rested his right hand on the armrest of the chair, lightly supporting his chin, while his left hand idly stroked the back of Xiongzai's head. His gaze towards Ning Xiaoruan was deep and unpredictable.

"I'm infiltrating the enemy's ranks first, getting close to her so I can find out who she really is faster," Ning Xiaoruan said with a forced smile.

"So, do you know now?"

Ning Xiaoruan was stunned.

Jing Weinan turned his gaze away, somewhat unable to bear looking at that foolish appearance. Without the concealment of his glasses, the guy's idiocy was almost impossible to hide.

"I need to see that proposal tomorrow. If not, ha! You'll know the consequences then." Shen Zhining's tone was surprisingly gentle when he said this.

"Go change your clothes."

Having received the imperial decree, Ning Xiaoruan rushed downstairs to her room to find spare clothes.

"Boss, this Xu Jiaojiao..." Jing Weinan was a little uncertain.

"Keep her for now, let's see what she's up to. I'll have some fun with her when I'm bored." Shen Zhining's lips curled up, but there was no smile in his eyes.

Jiaoyang's fan? Such an excuse could only fool Ning Xiaoruan!

On the other side, Sheng Jiaoyang was surrounded by several contestants.

"Jiaojiao, that Mr. Ning isn't just helping people look after houses, is he?"

"What exactly is your relationship?"

"Is the one sitting in the chair the Mr. Shen you mentioned?"

Everyone asked a barrage of questions.

Sheng Jiaoyang selectively answered only one question: "Yes, that's Boss Shen."

"Wow! So young!"

"He's handsome too, and his dignified presence while sitting there is incredibly charming!"

"So young and already so rich, his family must be incredibly wealthy. He's so low-key; if he were famous, he'd be the nation's husband, and Qian Duoduo wouldn't stand a chance."

"Jiaojiao, Jiaojiao, do you know Boss Shen has a girlfriend?"

"Where is his family from, and what kind of business does he do?"

...

Sheng Jiaoyang was completely defeated.