Blazing Sun~Chapter 22

 

Chapter 22

The taxi had been driving for quite some time before the nagging feeling finally subsided.

My phone rang with a text message from Xiao Dai asking where I was. "Want to come over for dinner?"

I replied briefly, "I'll arrange it myself."

Back home, I changed clothes, showered, dried my hair, and sat on the sofa for a long time before sending a message to Lin Yusen.

"Is it convenient for you to take a call now?"

"Just a moment."

About ten minutes later, Lin Yusen called. I calmly told him, "I've gotten myself into some trouble."

Lin Yusen's voice was steady. "What kind of trouble? You demolished someone's lab?"

"...It's not that big. Didn't your grandfather contact you?"

"No, is it related to the Sheng family?"

"Yes." I explained the situation in detail, pausing slightly when I mentioned Zhuang Xu's appearance.

Lin Yusen seemed completely unconcerned, immediately saying after listening, "Your classmate acted unconventionally, but this won't affect us. Don't worry or blame yourself."

I don't know how to describe my feelings at that moment. On the way home, and after arriving home, I went over everything several times, thinking I could handle it. But no matter how much I told Ye Rong I didn't care, I couldn't help feeling worried.

Hearing him say this to me now, I finally relaxed.

Only then did the hurt and sadness dare to well up inside me.

Then Lin Yusen said his second sentence: "Besides, whether you told her or not, once she finds out, she can use you to mislead Sheng Xingjie. This has no necessary connection to your previous actions."

I was completely stunned, holding my phone. If his previous words were just comforting, this one completely absolved me of responsibility.

"Lin Yusen, don't be like this."

"What about me?" He asked casually, even smiling slightly.

“That's biased and unfair. I admit I didn't do a perfect job.”

“What did you mean by not doing a perfect job? If you just stood by and watched your classmate get cheated, you wouldn't be the Nie Xiguang I know.”

“I didn't consider many things. Would it involve you? And Sheng Xingjie not only cheated Ye Rong, but he also cheated another girl…”

“Xiguang.” Lin Yusen suddenly interrupted me seriously.

I stopped.

Lin Yusen said, “Sheng Xingjie is the one who made the mistake. Why are you demanding perfection from yourself?”

I held my breath, and after a long while, I gently exhaled, my eyes stinging. “Lin Yusen.”

“I’m here.”

I want to see you. I want to see you right now.

I said in my heart.

I paused for a long time, then made a wish to him: "Sheng Xingjie will be in trouble, right?"

"Yes."

"Could it be really bad luck?"

"The Zhou family has a powerful background, and they only have one daughter this generation, whom they cherish dearly. The Sheng family will definitely have to give an explanation." Lin Yusen calmly analyzed, "Actually, Grandpa might know about Sheng Xingjie's actions. He doesn't care about these things, but he will care about how Sheng Xingjie handles it."

And Sheng Xingjie is clearly unfit—I understood Lin Yusen's unspoken meaning.

"I'll put in some effort." Lin Yusen's tone suddenly turned cold. "He's really gotten carried away, making baseless accusations like this."

"Huh?" I was taken aback, unsure what to say. "...Then be careful?"

He suddenly smiled again, his tone instantly softening. "Okay, I'll definitely be careful."

A burst of noisy voices came from the other end of the phone. Lin Yusen seemed to cover the receiver and say to someone else, "Right away."

"Are you busy?"

"Just a break in the meeting."

"Then you should go back to the meeting."

"Okay, I'll fly to Shanghai after the meeting."

I was surprised, "It's resolved so quickly?"

"No, I'll take the early flight tomorrow."

"That won't do!" I quickly stopped him, "No, no, I'm done. You can come back after you finish your business."

Lin Yusen didn't say anything. I emphasized, "Don't come back, do you hear me?"

He was silent for a while, seemingly weighing his options, and finally said, "Okay, I'll call you tonight. How about I give you a task?"

He seemed to be saying this as he walked, "When you have time, think about where we should go for the May Day holiday? Didn't you say you covered for your colleague's monthly bill last month, so you can take leave this month?"

"Yes, yes, I'll think of something right away. Don't come back!" I repeatedly reminded him, "Go back to work, I'm hanging up."

I hung up first, checking the call time—less than ten minutes. The time was unexpectedly short, but my mood was completely turned upside down.

I rallied my spirits and decided to find something to do, like cleaning the house. But just as I found a rag, my father called. My heart skipped a beat—had the Sheng family finally come looking for us? I answered, and sure enough, it was them.

However, he spoke very cautiously, "Xiguang, there's something I need to ask you about."

I hummed in agreement, and he continued, "Sheng Bokai called me, saying you took some photos to complain to Grandpa Sheng about Sheng Xingjie. Dad trusts you completely, so I want to know if there's some misunderstanding involved?"

I thought for a few seconds and asked, "What photos?"

He explained in detail, but I didn't bother pretending to be angry or surprised, so I said directly, "His ex-girlfriend is my roommate, and we've never gotten along. I don't know what they're up to; it has nothing to do with me."

Dad visibly relaxed. "That's good. It's best not to get involved in this. Grandpa Sheng was so upset he was hospitalized. It's best if it has nothing to do with us. I'll explain when I visit him later."

"Grandpa Sheng is hospitalized?" I asked, my heart pounding. "Is it serious?"

"Judging from Sheng Bokai's tone, it shouldn't be serious. He's probably just putting on an act to show the Zhou family. If it's true, then it's a sign of a lack of successors," Dad said sarcastically.

After hanging up, I immediately messaged Lin Yusen to tell him about Grandpa Sheng's hospitalization. About ten minutes later, I received a reply: "I just asked Grandpa's doctor, and it's nothing serious. He just needs some rest, don't worry too much."

That was pretty much what Dad said, and I was completely relieved. After Lin Yusen's explanation, I certainly wouldn't take the blame myself anymore, but if something serious had really happened to the old man, I would still feel uneasy.

I put away my phone, losing all interest in doing housework. Sitting on the sofa, scattered thoughts flashed through my blank mind—where to go for the May Day holiday, what to be careful about when discussing the establishment of the joint research center tomorrow…

In this aimless wandering, an idea suddenly entered my mind.

My heart skipped a beat, and I jumped up. I thought about it for a while, and the more I thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. So, I quickly dialed Dad's number back.

As soon as the call connected, I asked, "Dad, you haven't gone to the hospital yet, have you? When are you going? I'm in Shanghai too, I'd like to go with you to visit Grandpa Sheng."

Dad's reaction to hearing that I wanted to go with him to visit Grandpa Sheng was nothing short of overjoyed. He immediately offered to send a car to pick me up.

"No need, I'll take a taxi now," I said, then added, "Could we invite Uncle Sheng along when we visit him?"

Dad looked puzzled: "Why invite him?"

"Of course, misunderstandings should be cleared up in person. How can we let him wrongly accuse me like this?" I emphasized the last few words.

So, when I arrived at a hospital in Shanghai around 5 PM to visit Grandpa Sheng, I was with Mr. Nie and Sheng Bokai. Dad probably hadn't even had a chance to say anything to Sheng Bokai; his attitude towards us was extremely cold, his face long the entire way from the hospital entrance to the ward.

In the ward, Grandpa Sheng looked quite well, sitting on the bed reading the newspaper. Seeing us arrive, he ignored Sheng Bokai and only greeted us, "Xiao Nie, Xiguang, what brings you here? Please sit."

We put down the gift bag, asked a few questions about his condition, and then sat down on the sofa. Grandpa Sheng asked me, "Yusen called and said he was away on a business trip. Xiguang works in Suzhou, so why did you come?"

"Yusen was still worried. Since Dad was coming to visit Grandpa Sheng, he asked me to come and check on him first."

Grandpa Sheng smiled with relief. "You see now, I'm perfectly fine. Tell him I'm alright, don't worry unnecessarily."

"Of course we were worried, and," I paused, "Dad called me this afternoon and said you misunderstood us, so I had to come even more."

"Misunderstood? What misunderstanding?" Grandpa Sheng asked calmly.

I deliberately spoke in a slightly jumbled way: "It was at my classmate's birthday party last time, Rongrong, you know, Ye Rong, came too. That's when I found out she's dating Sheng Xingjie. I was so happy when I got home and told Yusen, saying that classmates were now family. But today Dad told me that someone sent an email and some photos to Grandpa Sheng's inbox saying that Sheng Xingjie is two-timing, and that I was the one who sent the email. I was stunned. I have no idea what happened, and I definitely didn't do anything like that."

"You didn't take the photos? You didn't write the email?" Sheng Bokai pressed aggressively.

“Of course not. How could I have taken any photos? I don’t know Grandpa Sheng’s email address, and I’m in Suzhou, how would I know what despicable things Sheng Xingjie has done?”

Sheng Bokai’s face darkened further, but I was even angrier than him. I turned to Grandpa Sheng, “Grandpa Sheng, isn’t your company’s IT department working? Can’t you check who posted it? Why drag me into this? Sheng Xingjie is so annoying, who knows how many people dislike him.”

Dad coughed, “Xiguang.”

I calmed down a bit, still looking angry, “It could also be someone else around them who knows they’re dating. Why would Yusen and I do this? We’re all the way to Suzhou. No, Uncle Sheng, you have to give me an explanation today. I can’t let myself be wronged like this.”

Sheng Bokai clearly hadn’t expected me to turn the tables on him, and was momentarily speechless.

I looked at Grandpa Sheng and said, aggrieved, "Grandpa Sheng, there's something we haven't talked about. I just started handling company affairs and discovered a very unreasonable contract. Two years ago, when the market was declining, the company actually signed a six-year contract locking in prices and purchase volumes for auxiliary materials. The total amount was huge. I asked Yusen if he could find a way to terminate it, but Yusen said the company was owned by his aunt's brother and couldn't be touched, so we just accepted it. That's why Yusen has always been very concerned about our relationship with Uncle Sheng. We didn't say a word about such a big thing; we just accepted it silently. Why would he make a fuss about it?"

Grandpa Sheng's expression immediately changed: "What's going on with this contract?"

I felt a surge of excitement. The old man really knew how to pinpoint the key point.

On the way here, I had been silently analyzing the old man's personality. Over twenty years ago, he could send his right-hand man, his son-in-law, abroad. He must be a suspicious and decisive person, and he certainly wouldn't tolerate any underhanded dealings.

From his perspective, since we didn't play such a big card as the alleged transfer of benefits involving Sheng Bokai, we certainly wouldn't bring up Sheng Xingjie's personal misconduct.

This is the strongest evidence proving I didn't send the email.

As for the contract, it wasn't that we didn't want to talk about it before, but Lin Yusen, as someone closely connected to the Sheng family and having just acquired shares, had reservations about discussing it.

As a stakeholder, young and new to the business, it's perfectly reasonable for me to speak out against injustice. Moreover, I spoke to Sheng Bokai's face, not behind his back; it was aboveboard and beyond reproach.

I breathed a long sigh of relief.

That contract should be completely resolved.

Later, Lin Yusen can tell his grandfather about his intention to return to medicine, and things will ease again with Sheng Bokai.

Of course, it's up to him to say it.