Chapter 151: You're not just anyone

At the moment Xia Xi fell into the water, her hair spread out, swaying like seaweed in the blue pool water; her skirt also flared, the light purple gauze soaked through, becoming slightly translucent—now she truly looked like a glowing jellyfish.

She gave up struggling, letting her body continuously sink.

A shout rose from the shore: "Someone fell in the water!"

The male competitors in the pool popped their heads up, and indeed saw someone had fallen into the water; judging by the skirt's color and style, it seemed to be Xia Xi, and they hurriedly pushed aside the waves and swam toward her.

Xu Yanfeng threw down his highball glass, about to jump in to rescue Xia Xi, when he suddenly remembered she could swim.

They first met at the swimming pool, and they had run into each other there since.

But in an instant he doubted himself—perhaps she merely knew how to swim, but not well; wasn't their first encounter at the pool precisely because she had accidentally drowned, with no one around, and he had jumped in to save her?

These thoughts only swirled in his mind for a brief two seconds; Xu Yanfeng pressed his arms together, like a silver-white fish, and dove into the pool.

Ling Yan's face changed; she accidentally knocked over her red wine, but she dodged in time, so none splashed on her—only a few drops landed on the back of her hand. She didn't bother to grab a napkin, her eyes widened as she stared at the white figure in the water, gradually moving toward that bluish-purple silhouette.

Xu Yanfeng actually went to rescue Xia Xi?

With so many guys in the pool, when would it be his turn to rescue!

Many onshore were shocked by Xu Yanfeng's jump to save Xia Xi, but not as much as Ling Yan's reaction; they thought, if something happened to Xia Xi at Xu Yanfeng's villa, as the host he should bear some responsibility.

Compared to those guys, Xu Yanfeng was closer to the shore; a couple of strokes and he touched her body, one hand gripping her arm, the other lifting her slender waist. It wasn't a standard rescue pose, but it would be more comfortable for her.

Compared to his rough rescue of her the first time at the pool, this time his movements were clearly gentler and more patient.

Xia Xi opened her eyes underwater; the surrounding blue water was like a mirror, reflecting Xu Yanfeng's handsome face. She knew she had guessed right, the corner of her mouth curled, she exerted a little force and broke free from his hold on her arm.

Xu Yanfeng was bewildered by her behavior; the next second, she wrapped herself around him, hands climbing onto his shoulders, clasping behind his neck, tightly embracing his neck, legs hooked around his waist, clinging like an octopus, pressed closely against him.

With that much strength, who would think she was drowning?

Looking back, when she fell in just now she didn't even flail once, letting herself sink straight down. Even someone who can't swim would struggle a bit when hitting the water, not just give up—let alone someone who has learned to swim.

Xu Yanfeng belatedly realized he might have been tricked.

Knowing full well that Xia Xi had eight hundred little schemes… he still fell for it.

Since it's come to this, he couldn't just leave her; he had to hold her waist tightly, one arm stroking to bring both bodies to the surface.

Xia Xi had held her breath a bit long, her chest faintly aching; the moment her head broke the surface she coughed twice, opened her mouth and gulped fresh air. Her face was drenched, but her makeup hadn't smudged at all, still perfectly in place; pressed close to Xu Yanfeng, it was quite intimate—onlookers might have thought they were filming a couples' ad.

Her wet lashes fluttered; before Xia Xi could clearly see Xu Yanfeng's face, she heard him say in a low tone, "I knew you were faking it."

Having been seen through, Xia Xi didn't show an ounce of guilt; instead she smiled brightly and blew air into his ear: "You knew and still jumped in—are you just flustered because you care?"

When the group of guys swam over, they saw Xia Xi already rescued by Xu Yanfeng, felt a bit awkward; someone did a flip in place, splashing water, and others followed suit, starting to horse around.

Xia Xi and Xu Yanfeng got splashed, but since they were already soaked, a little more wetness didn't matter.

"How long are you going to hang on me?" Xu Yanfeng furrowed his brows, reminding her, "There are steps behind you; a few steps and you'll be ashore."

Xia Xi refused to let go, her arms around his neck tightening, she whispered, "My leg's cramped, I can't walk—not even a step. If you put me down now, I can't climb the steps; I'll surely slip back into the water, and you'll have to rescue me again."

Xu Yanfeng: "Still acting?"

"Not acting." Xia Xi retorted, "Believe it or not, it's up to you."

Those onshore watched a great show; after Xu Yanfeng rescued Xia Xi, they didn't come up for a while, the two just clung together intimately, talking.

As for what they said, besides the two of them, no one could hear.

Tang Yizhou spoke up: "Xu Er, what are you messing around with, filming a Korean drama?"

Luojinnan smiled: "I'll give you a literal performance of 'falling into the river of love'."

Fu Li chuckled briefly, said nothing, her gaze unintentionally shifting and catching Ling Yan's pale face; she bit her lower lip, as if trying hard to endure.

What's the point? Xu Er already has feelings for her—they're basically a couple; too bad she can't see it.

Xu Yanfeng and Xia Xi were still deadlocked in the water; in the end Xu Yanfeng gave in, holding her as he stepped onto the stairs.

Two drenched bodies reached shore; Xia Xi's hair, strand by strand, because she was so close to Xu Yanfeng, a few strands stuck to his fair neck skin; she noticed, and the corner of her mouth twitched up slightly.

Xu Yanfeng saw it through to the end, holding her all the way to the lounge chair: "Can you let go now? If your leg's cramped, just lie down and rest a bit."

Xia Xi had no reason to keep clinging to him; she slowly released her grip around his neck, feet touching the ground, she staggered to sit on the lounge chair. Xu Yanfeng bent over, a droplet of water from his hair fell onto her face; her eyelid twitched slightly, her heart quickened, and she lifted her gaze to him.

In that instant she almost thought he was going to kiss her—the pose was too similar. But he merely picked up the white towel on the lounge chair, tossed it over her head, and covered her face completely.

"Wipe yourself." He said.

Xia Xi pulled off the towel; Xu Yanfeng had already straightened up, preparing to leave to find her clothes.

Ling Yan arrived just in time, her expression like a mask, flawlessly attentive, even her speaking volume tuned to gentle comfort: "Miss Xia, I have a spare dress in my car you can borrow; our builds should be… not too different."

Hearing that, Xu Yanfeng's steps paused, he looked to Xia Xi for her opinion.

Indeed there were no women's clothes in the villa; if she accepted Ling Yan's help, it would save a lot of trouble.

But obviously Xia Xi wasn't easy to please; she looked up at Ling Yan, first thanked her for her generosity, then politely declined: "Sorry, I'm not used to wearing other people's clothes."

Actually she wasn't that picky; she just didn't like Ling Yan speaking to her in the manner of a hostess.

Ling Yan's flawless face cracked; she forced a smile, not very natural: "It's okay, I understand. So…" Her gaze swept from bottom to top over Xia Xi's soaked dress: "What should we do with it?"

"I'll figure it out myself."

Xia Xi unfolded the towel in her hand, wrapped it around herself, got up to look for Xu Yanfeng, and whispered: "Can I borrow one of your clothes? I'll wear it for a while, then change back once my dress is dry."

Her conversation with Ling Yan, Xu Yanfeng heard every word; at this moment he glanced at her slightly puzzled and repeated her earlier remark: "You're not used to wearing other people's clothes?"

Xia Xi sneezed, rubbed her nose, then spoke, her voice tinged with a muffled nasal tone: "You're not just anyone."

Although the room had a climate control system, being completely soaked still made it easy to catch a chill; Xu Yanfeng didn't argue with her, just tossed out "Come with me," took the lead, and walked into the elevator.