The car was quiet for a while before Xin Ying finally spoke slowly: "There's no reason."
Perhaps feeling that her reason was worthless, Xin Ying spoke much softer than usual. Fortunately, Lin Leyao was watching Xin Ying closely and heard every word she said.
A fire had been burning inside her since yesterday, simmering within her until today. Everyone says actors should be skilled at acting and concealing their true feelings, but this time Lin Leyao seemed to have no choice but to ask, "Is it because of responsibility? You're doing all this because of the arranged marriage; you have to take responsibility as the other half."
Without responding to the topic, Xin Ying turned the car around and drove onto a wide avenue, saying, "There's nothing wrong with an arranged marriage. I can guarantee that I will treat you as well as ever after marriage, and I will never cheat on you, so don't worry."
Xin Ying thought that Lin Leyao asked these questions today because she was worried about how the two of them would get along after the marriage.
Lin Leyao looked dejected and didn't press the matter further.
These questions felt like they were being ripped from her very core; once they were spoken, her whole body went limp.
Lin Leyao leaned back in her chair, closed her eyes, and looked tired.
She said softly, "Please take me back to my apartment, thank you."
Xin Ying: "Okay."
--------------------
Author's Note:
The game will be available for purchase tomorrow, with three chapters updated at midnight. Thank you all for your support!
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 00:00:00 and 23:30:00 on February 9, 2022!
Thank you to the little angels who threw landmines: 55157345 and Night Owl Xuan (1 each);
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Genius Girl 007, Mo Han is my wife, and 34747353 for 1 bottle;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 20
On the way back to Lin Leyao's apartment, the two did not speak again, and Xin Ying silently returned to her villa.
The black Pagani was parked in the yard, and Xin Ying sat in the car with a frown, not getting out.
After an unknown amount of time, she suddenly took out her phone and made a call.
"Hey, Shadow—"
Xu Hong had barely opened her mouth when Xin Ying interrupted her: "Mo Yao Bar, come over here quickly."
After hanging up the phone, Xin Ying immediately started the car, turned it around, and drove off.
In a corner booth at Moyao Bar.
Xu Hong dismissed a man who tried to flirt with Xin Ying and asked, "So what are you thinking? I thought you were keeping a beautiful woman hidden away at home, but it turns out it's an arranged marriage between you two!"
Xin Ying pursed her lips, remained silent for a while, and then honestly said, "It was I who took the initiative to propose a marriage alliance with the Ji family to my father."
"Huh?" Xu Hong opened her mouth wide, seemingly not expecting that it was her own sister who took the initiative to want to marry him.
"What's with that expression on your face? You look like someone just died. What's wrong? Don't you want to get married anymore?"
Xin Ying slapped Xu Hong's arm hard and said coldly, "You're the one who doesn't want to get married."
Unable to fathom her thoughts, Xu Hong leaned closer to Xin Ying, her face full of curiosity: "I want to ask you, why do you want to marry the youngest granddaughter of the Ji family? It can't be for her family's wealth, can it?"
Without hiding the fact that she was her childhood friend, Xin Ying said, "I've known her since we were little."
Xin Ying asked, "Do you remember when I was hospitalized when I was sixteen?"
Xu Hong replied, "Of course I remember. Didn't we get to know each other at the hospital around that time? Besides, with something so serious happening, and you looking like that, who could forget?"
Xin Ying lowered her eyes and slowly said, "I met Lin Leyao around that time. She saved my life back then."
Xu Hong's eyes widened: "You mean..."
“Yes.” Xin Ying nodded. “During the months I was missing, those people drugged me every day, and my health deteriorated until I couldn’t even leave my room. Later, because I became so thin that I looked like a ghost, they were worried about something happening to me, so they sent me for a checkup, and that’s when they found out I had leukemia. At that time, my health was already very poor due to the long-term use of drugs, and with the addition of leukemia, it was very difficult to cure me.”
Xin Ying paused for a moment, then added, "Later, my father found out about me and brought me home from abroad. Lin Leyao was the one who matched my bone marrow at that time."
At this point, Xu Hong understood everything.
“Lin Leyao saved my life. At that time, she had not yet returned to the Ji family. She was brought to the hospital by her father. Both she and her father were bone marrow matches, but only she was successful. Just half a month after our bone marrow transplant surgery, her father died in a car accident. I only found out later that Lin Leyao had returned to the Ji family. Seeing that she was living a good life, I didn’t bother her.”
"Then what?"
"Then this year, because Huanling Group had problems with its cash flow, I wanted to help the Ji family and repay the life-saving grace from back then."
Xu Hong asked in surprise, "So you chose the method of marriage alliance?"
"Yes, they can trust me to help them. Besides, I'm already thirty, it's time for me to get married. I know Lin Leyao, she's a good match for me."
“Miss,” Xu Hong sighed helplessly, “You can help Huanling Group through its difficulties by any means necessary! There’s no need for a marriage alliance! Besides, you used the word ‘suitable.’ Suitable doesn’t mean liking or loving! If neither of you has feelings for the other, that’s fine. But if as you spend more time together, one of you develops deeper feelings while the other remains stagnant, then the one who will be heartbroken will be you or her!”
Xin Ying fell silent.
Xu Hong opened her mouth and mumbled a long string of principles about love and marriage.
As she spoke, she downed several glasses of wine. After a while, she hooked her arm around Xin Ying's neck and said drunkenly, "Sister, if you die, I think you might have a really tough time in the future!"
Xin Ying lowered her eyes, her lips tightly pressed together. The dim lighting in the bar concealed most of her expression, making her inscrutable.
Xu Hong drank one cup of wine after another.
Xin Ying finally came to her senses and asked, "You and Sister Bai?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Xu Hong's previously lively expression froze, and her eyebrows and eyes drooped.
This was the first time Xin Ying had seen Xu Hong so dejected, so she couldn't help but lower her voice and ask, "What's wrong?"
Xu Hong took a sip of whiskey and said woodenly, "I'm divorced."
Xin Ying was stunned, never expecting their relationship to have developed to this point.
Xu Hong gripped the cup in her hand, and after a long while, she cursed fiercely, "Damn it!"
Leaning back on the sofa, Xu Hong covered her eyes with one forearm to hide the soreness in them.
She said in a hoarse voice, "I don't want a divorce."
Xin Ying pursed her lips, unsure how to comfort her friend. Fortunately, after a short while, Xu Hong lowered her arm, her eyes red and swollen, forced a smile, put her arm around Xin Ying's shoulder, and said with a wine glass in hand, "Didn't you come to ask me to drink? Drink!"
The two drank until late into the night before returning home.
The two had not been in contact since the last time. After receiving Xiao Yan's message, Lin Leyao drove to the company.
Inside the meeting room, Xiao Yan held up her iPad and flipped through several photos in her album.
Lin Leyao glanced at the photo and knew that she and Xin Ying had been photographed a few days ago when they went to a scenic spot in the suburbs.
Thankfully, I was so well covered up that no one could still recognize me.
Xiao Yan: "Where did you go the other day?"
Lin Leyao: "Xituo Mountain. The scenery is quite nice."
Xiao Yan asked, "Didn't you know you were being photographed?"
Lin Leyao nodded.
In the first two years after her debut, Lin Leyao was plagued by scandals, making her the female celebrity that paparazzi loved to follow the most. Everyone wanted to dig up some gossip about her.
Unfortunately, Lin Leyao is completely different from the rumors. After work, she hardly participates in any social activities in her private life. Even when she goes out, it's just to shop at the supermarket or watch a movie.
After following her for two years, the paparazzi realized they couldn't get anything out of her and gave up on photographing Lin Leyao.
Therefore, in the following years, Lin Leyao didn't have to worry about any hidden cameras pointing at her when she went out.
However, this time the photos had nothing to do with paparazzi. Xiao Yan told Lin Leyao what happened: "It was taken by a photographer who is stationed in tourist areas. Although you were wearing a mask, you had a good temperament, so he took the photos and posted them on Douyin. Then your fans recognized you in the photos and moved the video to the super topic. Later, everyone found out that you went to Xituo Mountain."
Lin Leyao asked, "Did the fans say anything?"
"Everyone's happy! Even though her face wasn't shown, she's still our own sister, so we can admire her in photos." After saying that, Xiao Yan asked, "Do you know how much your fans have missed you these past six months? Get back to work hard!"
"Okay," Lin Leyao replied earnestly.
Xiao Yan didn't change the subject. She pointed to the woman in the photo who was slightly taller and thinner than Lin Leyao and asked, "Was this the person who went with you?"
"Um."
"Okay." Xiao Yan responded without asking any further questions and went straight to the point, saying, "I called you here today to sign an endorsement contract. Take a look at this contract; the company's legal department has already reviewed it. If you think there are no problems, then sign it. You need to film this commercial before you join the production team."
Seemingly not expecting that Xiao Yan would just ask if this person was going with her, Lin Leyao seemed lost in thought, her mind not on the important matter, as Xiao Yan was very engrossed in talking to her about the contract.
After a while, she called out, "Sister Yan."
"Hmm?" Xiao Yan tilted her head and looked at her.
Lin Leyao said slowly, word by word, "I'm getting married."
As soon as she finished speaking, Xiao Yan's eyes widened.
Xiao Yan repeated: "Marriage?"
After seeing Lin Leyao nod in affirmation, Xiao Yan closed her eyes, suppressing her anger, and gritted her teeth as she asked, "Who is that person? When did you start dating? Do I know him?"
The more she talked, the more anxious Xiao Yan became.
Lin Leyao patted Xiao Yan's shoulder reassuringly and said, "You probably don't know her, but you should have heard of her. She's from the Xin family."
The Xin family. Xiao Yan suddenly remembered something and asked, "Is it Xin Si Nan? Wait, he's gay, he likes men..."
Lin Leyao spoke up, stopping Xiao Yan's wild guesses: "She is Xin Sinan's younger sister."
Hearing Lin Leyao's words, Xiao Yan had a lot to say but it all got stuck in her throat. She blinked and belatedly realized that Lin Leyao was talking about her younger sister, not her younger brother.
Xiao Yan: "You like girls?"
Lin Leyao: "Mm."
Xiao Yan murmured, "How come I never noticed?"
After saying that, she scratched her head and said helplessly, "Why did you suddenly bring up such a big thing? I wasn't prepared at all. Xin Si Nan's sister doesn't deal with the entertainment industry, so I don't know much about her, but I heard that she is now the president of Huan Ning Group and is a very capable person."
Seeing Xiao Yan muttering and seemingly provoked by her own words, Lin Leyao belatedly realized she had acted impulsively. However, she felt the impulsiveness stemmed from not laying the groundwork and telling Xiao Yan the news gradually, rather than from telling her about her upcoming marriage.
"Why did you suddenly say that?" Xiao Yan asked again.
"Yes, why did I say it out loud?" Lin Leyao asked herself.