Lin Xi's gaze was jolted by a slap, landing on the meticulously tended golden moss. It gleamed faintly in the light of the ground lamp, its surrounding leaves blending into the darkness.
"I'm asking you, who did you tell what I told you last night?" Lin Xi slowly turned her head, her eyes red, tears stubbornly welling up.
"I didn't tell him," Lin Xi said hoarsely.
"You didn't?" Chen Baiwei was furious. "How would the old man know if you didn't? He even called me and your Uncle Duan over and gave us a good scolding." She really hadn't told…
Wait, she saw Duan Yiheng last night.
Lin Xi recalled that she seemed to have inadvertently revealed some crucial information. She said she didn't want her grandfather's inheritance.
Could it be that Duan Yiheng extracted from her few words that Chen Baiwei was wary of her inheriting the estate?
Although she was raised in the Duan family, her household registration wasn't here. It was true that she wouldn't inherit her grandfather's estate. Duan Yiheng must have told her grandfather this.
But could she tell Chen Baiwei this? She couldn't. If the two sides confronted each other, it would likely lead to a major conflict.
Lin Xi didn't want to implicate Duan Yiheng, so she could only swallow this bitter pill; it was Duan Yiheng who had leaked the information in the first place.
Seeing her lowered head in acquiescence, Chen Baiwei coldly snorted, "Don't play the victim with me. I'm not Mingxuan. Do you know why I've always opposed you being with Mingxuan?"
Lin Xi raised her head. Wasn't it because of her status as an orphan? "Because in my eyes, you don't deserve it!"
A dull pain shot through her heart. Chen Baiwei's indifference and dissatisfaction were like sharp arrows, piercing her heart every second.
"Haven't you had a single feeling for me all these years?" Lin Xi's eyes reddened further, and tears streamed down her face.
"At first, I did feel pity for you, but the old man saw how well you and Mingxuan got along and started playing matchmaker."
"Why didn't she marry you to his precious grandson?"
"Should my Mingxuan marry a woman who lost her parents and offers him no help whatsoever?"
"Your parents easily traded a meager little company for your lifelong wealth and luxury, and the old man even gave you 8% of the group's shares, while Mingxuan and I got nothing."
"You think you're a rich heiress just because you have these shares? To the Duan family, what you've given them is nothing but a drop in the ocean."
"If you're obedient, you'll listen to me obediently and do whatever I tell you to do."
"If you're not obedient, I also have ways to make you leave."
"Enough!" Lin Xi shouted.
Chen Baiwei gave her a contemptuous smile.
"I grew up beside you," Lin Xi laughed self-deprecatingly. "I've respected you for many years, yet you've never spoken kindly to me. Even when you did, it was mostly for your own purposes."
"From today onwards, I'm telling you clearly, I will not marry Duan Mingxuan, not in this lifetime."
"You, an orphan…where are you going? Stop right there…you've gone too far…" Lin Xi ran away crying, wanting to get as far away from the east building as possible.
Chen Baiwei sneered, ignoring her plight, and turned to go upstairs. Duan Yiheng's Maybach entered through the west door, a beam of bright light sweeping across the east building. Lin Xi's room was dark. He slightly raised an eyebrow. Was she not there? Or was she already asleep?
Duan Yiheng got out of the car and called Lin Xi's driver, asking, "Is Lin Xi back?" Driver: "Yes, she's back. I brought her back after get off work."
"She hasn't gone out again?" Duan Yiheng confirmed again.
The driver, knowing Duan Yiheng was blind, shook his head vigorously, "Absolutely not. Didn't you instruct that Miss needs a car? I have to accompany her for a while; she's not familiar with the roads yet."
Duan Yiheng hung up the phone and unconsciously glanced at the east building.
It's not even seven o'clock yet; surely she can't be sleeping? Why is it so dark upstairs? Duan Yiheng was worried, so he called Lin Xi as he walked into the house. It rang countless times before she finally answered.
"Hello." Lin Xi didn't want to answer, afraid he'd recognize her voice, but she was Duan Yiheng's secretary now, and her phone had to be on for him 24/7.
She was afraid Duan Yiheng might need to contact her, so she had no choice but to answer.
"Aren't you home?" Duan Yiheng asked.
Lin Xi didn't answer but asked instead, "Mr. Duan, is something the matter?" Duan Yiheng paused, took off his suit jacket and tossed it to the housekeeper, gesturing for a glass of water, and asked, "Your voice sounds off. Have you caught a cold?"
Lin Xi quickly replied, "Yes." Luckily, she'd shown signs of a cold during the day, which served as an excuse.
"So you were asleep?" Duan Yiheng's voice sounded incredibly gentle through the phone, "No wonder the lights upstairs were off."
Lin Xi's heart stirred slightly; she took it as him showing concern. This thought eased her heart considerably, and the pain in her fingertips lessened somewhat.
There were still people in this family who cared about her. Actually, the old man was very good to her, but it was mostly material.
For minor squabbles, Lin Xi would seek comfort in the north courtyard; but for something as serious as today, she could only lick her wounds alone. She didn't want to cause any resentment among anyone in this villa because of her. That would only make her feel more ashamed.
Duan Yiheng returned after dinner. After drinking half a glass of water, he went upstairs to take a shower.
Just as he reached the corner of the stairs, he heard Sister Mei hurriedly ask a maid, "Where is the young master?" Hearing the urgency in her voice, Duan Yiheng turned and went downstairs.
"Here he is. What is it?" Sister Mei, holding a walkie-talkie, rushed to meet him and said, "The security room says Madam slapped Miss, and Miss ran to the garden to hide."
Duan Yiheng didn't have time to put on clothes or change his shoes.
He ran out of the west building wearing only a thin white shirt and slippers. Sister Mei chased after him.
Duan Yiheng said sharply, "Don't follow her. Call the doctor; she might have a cold. Prepare some food." Sister Mei had no choice but to stop.
It was already November in B City, and there was still a temperature difference between day and night. Duan Yiheng didn't feel the cold; all he wanted now was to see Lin Xi. His suit trousers swept past the flower-lined path, winding and turning until Duan Yiheng stopped. Not far away, under a swing set, Lin Xi was curled up in a ball.
Duan Yiheng let out a long breath, calling out before he even reached her, "Lin Xi." Lin Xi, her eyes brimming with tears, saw that it was Duan Yiheng who had found her and couldn't hold back any longer: "Big Brother!" She tried to stand up, but her legs were numb.
Duan Yiheng reached her, half-kneeling, and reached out his hand to her. Lin Xi, still crying and stunned, frantically threw herself into his arms, clinging tightly to his waist.
Duan Yiheng patted her back, comforting her: "I'm here." Lin Xi, like a whimpering, wounded animal, stammered, "Could you hug me? I just need a little warmth, a little comfort."
Duan Yiheng hugged her back, tightly.