Lin Leyao turned and left the company.
Xin Ying was already waiting in the underground parking lot; the two of them would go back to the Ji residence for dinner together that night.
Lin Leyao got into the car, fastened her seatbelt, and said, "We're going to Nancheng to buy sesame oil chicken and water chestnut cake for Grandpa."
"Okay." Xin Ying started the car and drove towards the south of the city.
On the way, Xin Ying noticed the constant stream of messages popping up on Lin Leyao's silent phone screen and asked, "Did I act presumptuously by forwarding that paparazzi's Weibo post today? Did it affect you?"
Lin Leyao shook her head with a smile: "I didn't expect you to be so decisive. That paparazzi was so scared that he deleted the video."
Xin Ying sneered and said coldly, "She should have thought about the consequences of making money by spreading rumors like this."
Lin Leyao put her phone aside without even looking at it. She looked at the scenery ahead and said, "You and Fourth Brother have had a hard time lately, always worrying about me."
"What's wrong with that?" Xin Ying laughed. "You're my wife, and Fourth Brother's sister. What we're doing is only natural!"
Lin Leyao suddenly spoke up: "Let's go public."
A moment of silence fell over the car. Although Xin Ying's expression remained unchanged, her grip on the steering wheel tightened instantly.
After a while, Xin Ying calmly replied, "Let's wait a while."
"Okay," Lin Leyao replied without asking why.
Lin Leyao quickly bought sesame oil chicken and water chestnut cake in Nancheng, and the two headed towards the Ji residence.
Throughout the journey, Lin Leyao showed no unusual behavior, but Xin Ying's heart was in turmoil and her emotions were uncertain after Lin Leyao said "go public".
She returned to the Ji residence in this state.
The old man was already waiting in the yard, and he waved as soon as he saw the car drive in.
As soon as Lin Leyao got out of the car, she ran towards Ji Hongchen and called out softly, "Grandpa!"
Ji Hongchen patted her head and smiled, "Are you hungry? Let's go inside and eat!"
Today, after seeing Lin Leyao reveal her identity, Ji Rong took Lin Shujun and Lin Zhipei back to the Ji family home.
Upon hearing that Lin Leyao's recent rumors were all orchestrated by Xie Kai's mother, she was shocked, her eyes widening in disbelief, followed by immense anger.
Xie Kai's behavior at the last birthday party had given her a bad impression of the family. After she and Le Yao knocked Xie Kai unconscious, Xin Ying handled the aftermath.
She was standing behind Xie Kai at the time, so Xie Kai didn't see her face. Xin Ying also appeared after he fell into a coma, so the only culprit he remembered was Lin Leyao.
Since Xin Ying had used a method to prevent her son from being released, Xie Kai's mother turned her anger towards Lin Leyao.
Thinking about all this, Ji Rong was furious. Her son had laid a hand on her daughter at her birthday party, and she hadn't even settled the score with him yet. Now he was actually bullying them!
After hearing Ji Rong's account of everything, Old Master Ji criticized her for handling the matter so casually.
This guy tried to take advantage of Le Yao and just let her get away with it after beating her up. He should have been taught a lesson.
Ji Rong felt extremely embarrassed by what was said. Her own daughter was almost taken advantage of at her birthday party and suffered injustice because of it. She, as a mother, seemed particularly useless.
Ji Rong's face flushed red and then turned pale. As she thought about it, she became furious and wanted to find someone to settle scores with.
Ji Hongchen stopped her and told Ji Rong to go with him to see the Xie family patriarch the next day to seek justice for Lin Leyao.
After talking with Ji Hongchen, Ji Rong kept cursing the Xie family to Lin Zhipei.
Lin Zhipeng saw all the negative trending topics about Lin Leyao online today, but even with so many rumors and slanders, she remained unmoved. She knew that the Ji family's little princess wouldn't be affected by such things.
Even Ji Rong, no matter how much she used to argue with Lin Leyao or how much she said Lin Leyao was disobedient, now that she hears that Lin Leyao has been bullied, she still angrily curses and defends her daughter.
That's why biological children are different.
After Lin Leyao returned, everyone quickly started eating.
Perhaps because all the bad things had been resolved, or perhaps because Lin Leyao had revealed her identity, the atmosphere at the dinner table was very good today, and the old man was very happy.
Ji Hongchen served food to several younger relatives.
The old man placed a piece of sesame oil chicken into Lin Zhipeng's bowl, and Lin Zhipeng politely thanked him, saying, "Thank you, Grandpa."
Ji Hongchen was in a good mood today and, unusually, he spoke more than a few words with Lin Zhipei.
"Have you made all the preparations for going abroad?"
"Preparations are almost complete."
"Visit your mother at the nursing home more often before you go abroad, because you won't see her for a long time this time."
Lin Zhipei was stunned when she heard the old man say that. It was the first time she had heard Ji Hongchen mention his biological mother.
She nodded and replied, "Okay."
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Author's Note:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 16:43:56 on May 15, 2022 and 20:44:29 on May 16, 2022!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: 55157345 and 3148375 (1 bottle each);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 106
Meanwhile, in another city far from City S, there is City N.
Since secretly leaving S City's airport and arriving in N City, Xin Hailan has been staying here for many days, living in the apartment arranged by Liu Ai.
In the initial period after arriving, she didn't want the Xin family to find her immediately, so she stayed in the apartment all day and didn't go out.
After the first few days, she gradually began to relax after contacting her parents and grandmother in Australia.
During this period, she stopped hiding and started going out with Liu Ai regularly.
She's been in N City for a month now. Even though Liu Ai has used her sister's connections to cover up her whereabouts very well, the Xin family should have found her by now, after so much time.
During this time, apart from her grandmother who would occasionally call her, the other relatives in the Xin family had not made any contact, not even her grandfather.
The entire Xin family acted as if they didn't see her sudden disappearance. It was as if, in the eyes of these Xin family members, Xin Hailan had already boarded a plane from S City to Australia as arranged by her elders, and that she was now studying peacefully at a school in Australia.
Xin Hailan didn't believe that her relatives didn't know where she was, but their indifference and even apathy towards her current situation dealt her a heavy blow.
Indeed, her decision to leave the airport was tantamount to a threat; she wanted to demonstrate her stance through her actions and persuade her grandfather to allow her to stay. Unfortunately, things did not unfold as she predicted.
In the first few days after fleeing the airport, she was filled with fear and anticipation, waiting for her grandfather to find her and take her back to the Xin residence.
But things didn't go as she wished. During the month-long wait, Xin Hailan's mood gradually became depressed.
Lately, she hasn't spoken much, spending her days in her apartment staring blankly at the trees below.
Liu Ai would visit her at the apartment every few days. These past few days, when Liu Ai asked her to go out and play, Xin Hailan had lost her usual enthusiasm.
That evening, the apartment doorbell rang, but no one answered. The person outside entered the password and came in.
Liu Ai turned on the living room light and was startled to see Xin Hailan sitting motionless on the sofa.
"Hailan, so you're home! I rang the doorbell earlier, why didn't you answer?"
Xin Hailan looked up at Liu Ai and gave a dejected "Mmm".
Liu Ai noticed that something was wrong with her and walked closer to ask, "What's wrong?"
Xin Hailan shook her head to indicate that she was fine, and then asked with a spirited expression, "Why are you here so late?"
Liu Ai glanced at Xin Hailan several times. The sense of loneliness that Xin Hailan had when she entered the room seemed to be an illusion and had now disappeared.
Liu Ai slowly withdrew her gaze and said, "I saw your aunt was trending on social media during the day, so I sent you a WeChat message, but you haven't replied. I was worried that something might have happened to you while you were home alone, so I came to check on you."
Hearing Liu Ai's words, Xin Hailan tugged at the corners of her mouth and said with a faint smile, "I'm fine."
Liu Ai nodded and sat down next to Xin Hailan. After hesitating for a long time, she asked, "Hailan, have you contacted your family recently?"
Xin Hailan did not reply immediately; the air froze for a few seconds.
After a while, Xin Hailan slowly nodded and said, "Yes."
Hearing her answer, Liu Ai was a little surprised, and then Xin Hailan said, "I have been in contact with my grandmother recently."
These past few days, knowing that her family hadn't seemed worried despite her running away from home for a month, Liu Ai had been quite concerned. Now, seeing that Xin Hailan's expression didn't seem feigned, and that she had indeed contacted her family, Liu Ai breathed a sigh of relief. She said, "It's good that you've contacted your family. Actually, whatever your needs are, you should just explain them to them. There was no need to run away from home. You've been gone for over a month now; if you continued, your family would be worried. Since you've already contacted your grandmother, your family will probably come to pick you up soon. Your attitude this time was so firm; knowing how unwilling you are to study in Australia, they should seriously consider your feelings."
After listening to Liu Ai's long words of comfort, Xin Hailan felt no relief whatsoever. She forced a smile and said, "I hope so."
As soon as she finished speaking, Xin Hailan continued, "Sister Xiao Ai, thank you for taking care of me during this time. I asked you for help because I didn't have any other friends here. I'm sure I've caused you a lot of trouble during this time, and I hope I haven't had a bad impact on you and your sister. Sister Xiao Ai, I'm planning to leave now."
Hearing Xin Hailan's words, Liu Ai was stunned. After a moment, she asked, "Are you going home?"
Xin Hailan's gaze involuntarily shifted to the large floor-to-ceiling window in the living room. Looking at the desolate night outside, she gave a soft "hmm".
Hearing Xin Hailan's answer, Liu Ai breathed a sigh of relief.
When Xin Hailan asked Liu Ai to help her run away from home as a friend, Liu Ai couldn't refuse. However, Xin Hailan was still young, and Liu Ai was very worried that she might encounter some danger while she was with her.
She knew that the Xin family was a very powerful and influential family. Although she had asked her sister to help hide Xin Hailan's whereabouts for a while, she knew that the Xin family would soon find out where Xin Hailan was.
She thought Xin Hailan would be picked up by the Xin family after staying in N City for a week, but she didn't expect to wait for a whole month.
With no word from the Xin family, Liu Ai began to worry, especially since Xin Hailan's mood had been very strange these past few days. She was afraid that Xin Hailan might do something to harm herself.
Fortunately, Xin Hailan is finally going home, and the weight that has been pressing on Liu Ai's heart has finally been lifted.
The two chatted in the apartment for a while, and then Liu Ai left.
The room, which had been bustling for a while, fell silent again. Xin Hailan sat on the sofa, frozen for a long time, before slowly taking out her phone and making a call.
"Grandma, I want to go back to Australia—"
Dai Jiaozhi had just finished dinner when she saw her granddaughter's call and hurried back to her room.
Upon hearing Xin Hailan's words, Dai Jiaozhi quickly asked, "What's wrong, girl? Have you been wronged?"
"Since Grandpa is so determined, I think I should go back to Australia. Without Grandma, I'll just have to go back to Australia."
“No!” Dai Jiaozhi immediately objected. “It’s only a matter of time before your grandfather agrees to let you stay. Even if he insists, I have ways to make you stay!”
"Is there a way to make me stay?" Xin Hailan had heard Dai Jiaozhi mention this question more than once. After hearing it so many times, she shouldn't have reacted to it anymore, but she still couldn't help but be tempted.
“Yes!” Dai Jiaozhi said decisively. “Girl, since you’re unhappy staying there, come back to S City tomorrow. Grandma will arrange a place for you to stay. Just wait patiently, and you’ll be able to study in China soon.”
After making the call, it took Xin Hailan a long time to process what Dai Jiaozhi meant. Xin Hailan, who had been like a stiff robot that had been wound up, suddenly seemed to be injected with a tremendous amount of life force. She stood up from the sofa and started packing her luggage as if she had been injected with chicken blood.