Chapter 750: A Million Times for You (112)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
From back when Jin Qingyan had met with the tsunami, the video of the press conference that An Xiaoning had held while she was in charge of the Jin Corporation could still be found online.
Thus, Jin Qingyan practically announced to the public that the woman he loved was still An Xiaoning.
The slip-up had caused a stir amongst the public, who was greatly concerned about the incident about An Xiaoning’s abduction. Everyone knew that the status of her life was unknown and she could very likely have already been killed by the terrorists.
Yet, Jin Qingyan was grinning widely when asked about the woman he loved. That was not how a grief-stricken man would behave while mourning the death of his beloved woman.
No one knew if his ringtone was recorded recently or when they were still married.
An Xiaoning was sitting on the couch and watching the live-stream.
When she heard his ringtone, she subconsciously turned to look at Fan s.h.i.+xin.
Fan s.h.i.+xin rubbed his nose and chuckled incessantly.
I’m doomed , she thought to herself.
She was still planning to lie low for a period of time. Yet, he had accidentally exposed her in just a few days.
However, even if my voice had been recognized, most people would probably think that the ring tone was recorded when we were still married.
She felt much more at ease after rea.s.suring herself.
After the live-stream ended, Jin Qingyan headed straight back to the office.
“Mr. Jin, everyone is guessing who the lady in your ringtone is after watching the live-stream.”
“Do you guys have a clue yet?”
“Ms. An…”
Jin Qingyan glared at him and said, “Yes.”
Dumbfounded, the secretary thought to himself in utter shock, Did he admit it? Did he just admit it so blatantly? Does this mean that the woman he loves is still An Xiaoning?
Oh gos.h.!.+
The secretary was appalled and bewildered, for Jin Qingyan had rarely talked to him about his private life.
I can’t believe he still loves her despite having divorced her twice.
Most tyc.o.o.ns and business magnates are known to be promiscuous when it comes to relations.h.i.+ps. Such loyal men were few and far in between!
The secretary had a newfound respect for Jin Qingyan.
——
“Xu Cai, has there been any progress yet?” Madam Xu asked frantically.
Shaking his head, Xu Cai answered, “No, the prison doesn’t allow us to visit Father. The higher authority are still in the midst of investigations and collecting evidence.”
Madam Xu appeared extremely haggard, for she had barely gotten any peaceful sleep recently. The gravity of her daughter’s death and her husband and son’s arrests had weighed her down, and she felt as if there was a huge rock on her chest.
“I doubt your father will survive this ordeal,” said Madam Xu.
Xu Cai also had a feeling that that would be the case.
He dared not bribe the officials involved, for fear that he would be implicated. Thus, he could only rely on his connections and find out some insider news.
Madam Xu and Xu Cai sat opposite each other with grave expressions on their faces.
“I watched an interview involving Jin Qingyan today. It seems like An Xiaoning is still alive.”
Madam Xu looked up and asked, “Really?”
“I’m not sure, but we’ll know in due time. She must detest us to the core. She’s going to bear a strong grudge against us.”
“So what if she does? Baizhi has already paid the price by losing her life. Our family has suffered such a great blow too. To be honest, I really regret my decision. If I’d known earlier that this would happen, I wouldn’t have gone to search for your sister. If we hadn’t done that, that imposter Xu Youran wouldn’t have come about and we wouldn’t have had to deal with the trouble she brought upon us. We’re indebted to them,” said Madam Xu, wiping her tears with her hand.
“It’s too late to say these now. Mother, you still have me, don’t you?”
Madam Xu let out a helpless sigh.
The butler scurried toward them frantically and said, “Madam, Young Sir, there’s someone at the door who’s waiting to see Madam. She said she’s an old acquaintance of yours.”
“An old acquaintance?” Madam Xu immediately stood up and said, “Let her in, I’d like to see who she is.”
“Alright.” The butler turned around and allowed the person to enter.
Not long after, the butler entered with a middle-aged woman who appeared to be in her forties. She was dressed in simple clothes.
Madam Xu found her to be rather familiar-looking. However, she could not recall who the woman was at all.
“You are?”
The middle-aged woman introduced herself, “I guess you don’t know who I am, Madam Xu. My name is Li Mei, and I visited your home once a few years ago. I’ve been feeling a nagging need to visit you again, but your family is wealthy and authoritative, so I didn’t dare to come by again for fear that you would exact revenge on me.”
“What do you mean?” Madam Xu asked with a frown, feeling perplexed about the woman’s words.
“I wonder if you still remember who Li Changde is, Madam?”
Madam Xu tried to recall the name she mentioned and finally thought of someone. “Li Changde? I remember him. Isn’t he…”
“Dead?” Li Mei continued her sentence. “Madam, I guessed it correctly and you were thinking of saying that, weren’t you?”
Madam Xu’s heart dropped as she asked, “You mean he’s not dead?”
“He is, but my uncle didn’t die three decades ago. He died a few years ago because of cancer.”
“What!?!” Madam Xu’s mind was sent into a whirlwind. She remembered clearly that Li Changde was executed in secret back then. How did he…
Li Mei guffawed sarcastically and said, “My uncle has always been an upright person who’s fond of upholding justice. He wanted to expose Military Commander Xu for accepting bribes, yet you guys tried to execute him in secret. I bet you didn’t expect him to have survived that execution back then! Not only did you malign him, you even stained his reputation. How atrocious! My uncle remained single for the rest of his life, all because of you!”
With a sullen expression on her face, Madam Xu retorted, “Back then, the organization was carrying out investigations on him. How could you say that I maligned him? Your uncle maligned my husband too. Did he have any evidence to claim that my husband had accepted bribes!?!”
“There’s no point in arguing with me, Madam Xu. You know clearly whether or not Military Commander Xu had accepted bribes back then. You tried to kill my uncle, but you didn’t expect him to survive, did you? My uncle was well connected and had earned the respect of all his peers. Everyone believed that he was not like what you claimed him to be. The people whom you instructed to kill him have all decided to release him because they didn’t think that he was such a person. Yet…”
Li Mei sneered and continued, “My uncle had never planned to pursue the matter or get his revenge. Military Commander Xu tried to annihilate us and drove our family into a corner, simply because he was afraid that we would expose his secret to the higher authority. Fortunately, I’ve been living with my grandmother and managed to escape the ordeal because my name wasn’t registered on the household register. I bet you didn’t expect for my uncle to have been the one who killed your nanny and abducted your daughter, did you, Madam Xu?”