Became a National Couple with My Ex Chapter 28: #Sweetness Overload with Bian Xu and Liang Yixuan Again#

Maybe because that whole exchange was too clear and complete, there wasn’t even room for a white lie to smooth things over.

Before Liang Yixuan could say anything, Bian Xu had already recovered his calm after just a brief flicker of emotion.

He turned on his heel like a boss who had just scolded an employee, striding confidently into the entranceway— making a tactical retreat without a hint of awkwardness.

Liang Yixuan followed him into the house.

From the living room all the way to the second-floor bedroom, she didn’t catch even a glimpse of him.

She couldn’t help wondering: Does Bian Xu actually feel guilty sometimes?

Shortly after she got back to her room, she noticed a new trending topic suddenly shooting up on Weibo— #Sweetness Overload with Bian Xu and Liang Yixuan Again#.

"..."

Guilty or not, clearly his thick skin was completely unaffected.

Everyone already knew about the shady, behind-the-scenes dealings between the production team and Bian Xu, but this was the first time Liang Yixuan had caught them red-handed.

Even Liu Peng seemed embarrassed— he didn’t rush her to come home early to film more material for the next two days.

That Wednesday night, as usual, Liang Yixuan stayed late at the dance center for extra practice.

Most of the lead performers had gone out of town for shows, so the big rehearsal hall was basically empty at night.

Liang Yixuan made good use of the space to practice alone.

She had just finished dancing one of the group’s regular pieces when she suddenly heard a knock — tap tap tap — on the glass door.

Turning off the music and looking back, she saw Qin He coming in, taking off her shoes as she entered.

"Teacher Qin, you’re still here?" Liang Yixuan was a little surprised.

"With students working this hard, how could the teacher slack off?" Qin He smiled as she walked over.

"I was watching you from the door just now. Your condition has really improved lately."

"I haven’t danced a full piece in a long time. I still feel kind of stiff," Liang Yixuan said, shaking her head.

Qin He waved it off: "That’s a minor issue. With your solid foundation, you’ll be back to your pre-injury level in no time. What I mean is, your expressiveness has improved a lot. Didn’t you notice when you looked in the mirror? Your emotional expression is way more open than before."

Liang Yixuan looked at the wall mirror, deep in thought.

"When you’re in the middle of it, it’s hard to notice," Qin He patted her shoulder.

"Next time, have someone record a video for you. Compare it with your older videos — you’ll figure it out."

"Okay," Liang Yixuan nodded.

Qin He looked at her and laughed lightly: "It’s funny. We worked on this for years with little progress, and now you suddenly get it on your own. Could it really be because of that reality show you’re filming?"

Since Qin He was a senior, Liang Yixuan felt a little awkward remembering her own behavior on the show.

"Don’t be embarrassed. I didn’t watch the show myself. It’s just that the other day, my daughter mentioned it, saying ‘Sister Yixuan has gotten so much more lively on the show.’ Didn’t I always tell you? Your life was too closed off before. Getting out there and socializing a bit would actually help your stage presence. Now I finally have something positive to report to your mom."

Liang Yixuan paused: "My mom... contacted you?"

"She called me the day before yesterday, asking how you’ve been doing with your assessments. Looks like you two haven’t been in touch for a while, right? I don’t think she even knows about your Achilles injury — I didn’t bring it up, either."

Liang Yixuan lowered her gaze: "I didn’t tell her."

"You didn’t mention filming the reality show either?"

"No," Liang Yixuan nodded. "She probably wouldn’t have supported it."

Qin He thought for a moment and said, "She must have just found out recently and called me to ask around. Don’t worry. If she has any complaints, you can just blame it on me. Tell her it was my decision. Your mom’s a ballet teacher too— once she sees your improvement on stage, she’ll understand."

The ballet world in China was small. Liang Yixuan always knew that sooner or later, her mom would hear about her doing a romance show. She had expected a confrontation.

But now, knowing her mom had known for two days and hadn’t called— the silence was even more suffocating.

After chatting with Qin He, Liang Yixuan figured it was time to head back to the villa in the northern suburbs.

Lost in thought as she entered the house, she almost didn’t hear Bian Xu calling her.

When she finally snapped out of it, she saw him sitting on the sofa, wearing thin-framed glasses and flipping through a book.

He looked her up and down: "I’ve been calling you — didn’t hear me? What’s got you so distracted?"

"It’s something that has nothing to do with you," she said, adjusting her bag and heading for the stairs.

Not a trace of the "sweet couple vibes" from #Sweetness Overload with Bian Xu and Liang Yixuan Again# there.

Watching her distracted figure going upstairs, Bian Xu thought for a second, took off his glasses, and followed her.

"Liang Yixuan."

"What?" she asked, forcing herself to be patient and turning back.

"Would I call you if there was nothing?"

"Then just say what you want."

Bian Xu had wanted to ask if she was feeling down, but her bluntness completely threw him off.

No wonder Lu Yuan always said he wasn’t good at conversations — he just left people with nothing to reply to.

Bian Xu raised an eyebrow, opened his mouth, then closed it again.

Seeing Liang Yixuan waiting for him to speak, he casually said: "I’m hungry."

Liang Yixuan looked at him like she wasn’t sure she heard correctly.

She pressed her finger lightly to her ear and tilted her head: "What?"

She even imitated his earlier tone so perfectly.

After a pause, Bian Xu repeated: "I said I’m hungry. Is there anything to eat?"

"Go look in the fridge," she said.

"I don't eat refrigerated leftovers."

"Then order delivery."

"How do I do that?"

Liang Yixuan blinked in disbelief. "How have you been surviving these past few days? No one ordered meals for you?"

She was sure Bian Xu wouldn't touch the food in the villa.

Liang Yixuan was certain that, except for weekends, he had someone handling his meals every day, especially with his crazy, irregular schedule.

"It's late already. No need to make a fuss."

"So you do know you're a lot of trouble."

Bian Xu choked a little at that.

Liang Yixuan frowned and started heading upstairs, tossing over her shoulder, "There's a sandwich I made this morning in the fridge. Eat it if you want. I'm going to bed."

She said she was going to sleep, but Liang Yixuan didn't really get any rest that night.

Maybe it was her low tolerance for stress — whenever something weighed on her mind, her sleep would suffer. It had been that way since she was a teenager.

She didn’t need long-term medication, but the occasional sleepless night was still exhausting.

The bathroom in the room she shared with Cheng Nuo only had a shower, no bathtub, no candles or aromatherapy to help her relax.

Even though she had a feeling she wouldn't sleep well tonight, she hadn’t prepared anything. She lay there wide awake until about three or four in the morning before she finally felt a bit drowsy.

Just as she was half-asleep, her phone suddenly buzzed, shattering the midnight silence.

Liang Yixuan, still groggy, was startled awake and for a second thought she was dreaming.

It wasn’t until she heard Cheng Nuo stir in the neighboring bed that she realized the sound was real.

She fumbled for her phone on the nightstand and answered the call.

"Xiao Xuan? Is that you?" A panicked, elderly woman's voice came through the line.

Liang Yixuan instantly recognized her— it was her grandmother's neighbor.

A bad feeling surged in her chest. She snapped fully awake. "Auntie, it’s me."

"Xiao Xuan, listen, your grandma fainted in the bathroom! She hit her head badly and bled a lot! We just called an ambulance and they took her away..."

Her mind went blank with a loud ringing sound. She didn’t even know how she managed to get the full story, or how she got out of bed.

Cheng Nuo, awakened by the commotion, turned on the bedside lamp and asked what had happened.

It took Liang Yixuan a long moment to find her voice. "My grandma... had an accident and was taken to the hospital. I have to go now..."

"Huh?" Cheng Nuo scratched his head and glanced at the time on his phone. "Which hospital?"

"South district." Liang Yixuan hurriedly pulled on her clothes.

"That’s really far... How are you going to get there in the middle of the night?"

Cheng Nuo immediately reacted. "Don’t panic, I’ll go get someone."

He rushed out of the room ahead of her, running up to the third floor.

Peach, the dog lying in the hallway, was startled by the noise and, seeing Liang Yixuan’s anxious face, chased after Cheng Nuo upstairs.

Cheng Nuo knocked on Shen Ji’s door, but before he could explain, he saw Peach barking and pawing at Bian Xu’s door too.

Both Shen Ji and Bian Xu opened their doors at the same time, asking what was going on.

Cheng Nuo hesitated for a moment, unsure who to explain to first. In the end, he just looked left and right and quickly told them both the situation.

"I’ll be down right away."

"Tell her to wait downstairs for me."

Both Shen Ji and Bian Xu spoke at once.

"Uh," Cheng Nuo made a calming gesture at them, "either of you can go. Don’t waste time arguing. First come, first serve, maybe?"

Without a word, Bian Xu turned back into his room, got dressed in less than a minute, and came out again. As he passed Shen Ji’s door, he called out, "My car's faster."

Then he rushed downstairs without stopping.

Liang Yixuan had just gotten to the first floor when she heard hurried footsteps behind her.

She turned and saw Bian Xu. The moment she saw him, a wave of emotion surged through her, making her nose sting. "I..."

"I know. Come with me."

Bian Xu grabbed her hand and pulled her outside.

The drive from the north district to the south practically crossed the whole city.

Even though there weren’t many cars at this hour, Bian Xu pushed the speed limit, but it still took a while.

Liang Yixuan sat in the passenger seat, clutching her hands together tightly, her teeth chattering uncontrollably from nerves.

At a red light, Bian Xu reached over, gently pried open her clenched fingers, and frowned. "Why are you hurting your own hand?"

Liang Yixuan let go and stared blankly at the deep nail marks on her palm.

An elderly person fainting and hitting their head could be either minor or extremely serious.

She had heard too many tragic stories before, and now she couldn’t stop imagining the worst.

She also thought about how, after coming back from the European tour, she had visited her grandma less because she didn’t want to worry her about her Achilles injury.

Lately, with the reality show filming, she hadn't even made it over on weekends.

Hot tears quickly welled up in Liang Yixuan’s eyes.

To Bian Xu, it probably looked like she was about to cry because he had scolded her.

He paused, then gently brushed the corner of her eye with his thumb. "Okay, okay, I’ll stop talking."