Shen Youjin's slender fingers gripping the phone began to tighten. In an instant, time seemed to go back three years.
As long as he was around, she didn't have to be afraid of anything. Those rumors were nothing but feathers brushing past her ears, causing no pain at all.
Only Li Nanchuan was investigating her mother's case regardless of anything and respecting her dreams.
The rest of the so - called love was just that. They didn't want to get involved in the murder case or the darkest part of her life.
They loved her beauty, her erudition, her talents, and the way she kept a proper distance from them.
Actually, she had always known that when she first got together with Gu Zhiyuan, Fu Qingye, Jiang Zeshen, and Bai Beichen, they all thought it was a gift for her, a bastard daughter, to be with them.
After all, the resumes of the wealthy young masters should be spotless. They had already broken some rules. In their eyes, what right did she have not to love them until the last moment?
But they were wrong. If status and position could determine everything, then Apollo, the sun god in Greek mythology, wouldn't have pursued Daphne in vain. He could only touch her after she turned into a laurel tree and he made a laurel crown from its branches.
She touched her red - rimmed eyes. If Li Nanchuan hadn't had the accident back then, maybe she wouldn't have to wonder whose child was in her belly.
She would have been with him all the time. Even if there were more strange looks, she wouldn't have cared.
After an unknown amount of time, Jiang Zeshen's call came in, and she finally broke free from that mood.
"Are you okay?" The always - amorous playboy was rarely so serious. "The night view is nice tonight. Let me take you for a drive?"
Shen Youjin twitched the corner of her mouth and gave a faint smile. "No, thanks. I just want to be alone for a while."
Jiang Zeshen was silent for a few seconds. He could clearly feel Shen Youjin's resistance, but he didn't force it anymore.
After hanging up the phone, Young Master Jiang, who was always successful in love, rubbed his temples in annoyance.
He had flirted with so many women, and in this situation, no one would reject the comfort of someone they liked.
If they did, there could only be two reasons: either she didn't like him and had been acting before, or this man made her feel insecure, and she would rather heal herself alone than get close to him.
Either way was unfavorable to him. He even began to regret that he had been too fond of playing around.
Since they broke up, everything had changed. Her attitude towards him was hot and cold.
The most annoying thing was that she wasn't doing this to keep him on a leash. She was just going with the flow, which made him feel very insecure.
"Mr. Jiang, should we create a surprise for Miss Shen?"
The assistant looked at Jiang Zeshen's worried expression and said carefully.
Jiang Zeshen's fingers paused. He looked up and asked coldly, "Did you not lose enough face last time when we were reported, or do you want me to stay single forever?"
The assistant immediately fell silent. He always felt that no matter what he said now was wrong.
"Is the information about Ai Rou that I asked you to prepare before ready?" Jiang Zeshen put down his hand. "Bring it to me."
The assistant immediately responded and handed the prepared file to Jiang Zeshen.
Jiang Zeshen read these materials for the first time, even more seriously than the contract he was about to sign.
He flipped through the pages one by one and finally stopped at the three characters "Xu Jiale" marked with a red pen.
"Send someone to check on this girl named Xu Jiale. As long as she can come to Kyoto to testify for Shen Youjin, give her whatever amount of money she asks for!"
The more Shen Youjin didn't want to rely on him, the less chance he would give to others.
Just thinking that Shen Youjin might be taken advantage of at this time and completely cut off contact with him made him unable to accept it.
The next morning, the news about the Shen family had spread like wildfire, and the Shen family's stock had fallen to the bottom.
The Shen siblings didn't let her go either. Her phone was filled with threatening messages from them. She took screenshots of all of them and reported them to the police, then blocked the two of them.
After washing up, she went to the studio. As soon as she entered, she noticed that the looks in the studio had changed.
It was like a mix of pity and worry, but everything seemed the same as usual, even Ling Qiuqiu was the same.
Shen Youjin thought this was great. She actually never liked being overly concerned. She felt very at ease like this.
After work, Shen Youjin took five bodyguards and drove to the seaside.
The evening sun gilded the sea. Shen Youjin walked along the beach, and the sea breeze blew up her skirt. Her graceful figure was like an oil painting.
She turned off her phone. There was nothing she could do now. She just had to wait quietly for the fall of the Shen family.
Estimated that the Shen family must be in a complete mess now. After all, the good days of the Shen siblings were over.
But what did it matter to her? The more chaotic it was, the happier she was.
At the same time, in the Li family's old house, Li Beiyin immediately rushed up when she saw her brother who was finally called back.
"Brother, is the news about Shen Youjin true?"
Li Nanchuan nodded. "Yes! I sent someone to investigate in that hospital."
Li Beiyin's expression became a bit complicated for a moment. Shen Youjin wasn't a bastard daughter, and her mother wasn't a mistress either.
On the contrary, the couple from the Shen family were pure villains.
Netizens didn't know who Yin He was, but people in the circle all knew that she was always ruthless.
Thinking about it like this, the words she had said to Shen Youjin back then made her feel embarrassed.
Just then, Mother Li came down the stairs, supported by Father Li.
"Nanchuan, are you really going to break off the engagement with the Bai family's daughter?"
Li Nanchuan nodded. Looking at the two elders who slowly walked up to him, he said, "Yes. If it comes to that, I will resign from my current position."
Mother Li almost lost her balance. God knows how much effort they had put in to keep his position when Li Nanchuan was recuperating, which had given him the opportunity to achieve what he had now.
"Nanchuan, Shen Youjin isn't your girlfriend yet. Aren't you being too impulsive?" Father Li was still quite rational. "If you want to break off the engagement, that's fine. Your mother and I won't interfere anymore. But you have to handle the Bai family on your own."
"I will." Li Nanchuan said calmly. "I have a way with the Bai family."
Father Li didn't say anything. His son was always extremely self - controlled, but he seemed to be a different person when he met Shen Youjin.
And now that this incident about Shen Youjin had happened, he estimated that his son would pursue her even more relentlessly.
"Ni Xixi helped you a lot when you were in trouble. If you treat her like this and she spreads the news, have you thought about what others will say about you?"
"I will issue a statement. I won't let Xiaojin bear the reputation of ruining someone else's relationship." Li Nanchuan stood there straight, his voice deep. "As for me, I don't care."
Shen Youjin, a girl, had endured years of slander without caring. What did he, a grown man, have to care about?