After sending the message, she kept her phone away and continued to watch Lin Xinyan on the stage. The smile she had on was cunning.
Lin Xinyan finished her speech and the lights and music came on. The model walked out with the highlight of the day.
It was a wedding dress designed by Mrs. William.
Mrs. William had not designed for a long time. This design was intended for LEO’s opening today.
The wedding dress was of the purest color—snow white. The dress had many layers of veils and was covered with satin-woven roses and gems. Under the light, the entire dress shone with luxury and elegance. The crowd looked at it with amazement in their eyes.
Lin Xinyan fell into a trance looking at it below the stage.
Wedding dress represented the hope of love and the dream of happiness.
Although she was married, she had never worn a wedding dress. Nor did she have a wedding or a ceremony. She had no wedding dress. Even her marriage registration was not done with her husband.
“Ms. Lin.” Qin Ya walked over and handed her phone to her. “Your phone.”
Qin Ya had been holding onto her phone while she was on stage.
Lin Xinyan took her phone and Qin Ya said, “It seemed like you have a message.”
Lin Xinyan unlocked her phone with a slide and clicked onto the message. Her face turned pale after looking at the contents of the message. She could hear the thunderous beats of her heart in her ears. Her heart squeezed and she trembled without control.
“Ms. Lin, what’s wrong?” Qin Ya realized that there was something wrong with her and she hurriedly held onto Lin Xinyan’s trembling body. “Are you not feeling well?”
Lin Xinyan shook her head. “I’m fine.”
She held her phone tightly as she retreated away from the loud crowd.
Looking at her panic retreat, He Ruilin smiled mockingly.
It was all thanks to Lin Xinyan that she had this photo with her. Back then, she had asked He Ruize to investigate in Country A and this was a photo from the video footage he found.
If anything, she would want to thank Lin Xinyan personally.
Would Lin Xinyan be terrified to find out the origin of this photo?
He Ruilin sneered.
Lin Xinyan went upstairs alone.
Here, it was quiet and away from the crowd.
Her legs turned weak and she sat in a slump on the floor.
The scene of that night kept replaying in her mind as if it was a movie that she could not stop.
She lowered her head and clicked on the photo again. Her face was clear in the image. It was as clear as her memory from that night.
She had once fantasized having her first night with a man she loved. And yet—
Splash.
Her tears fell onto the screen.
Her heart had also fallen to the unending depths.
She had lost her ability to react and think as she fell into the void of terror and fear.
She did not want to recall this incident, but it was right in front of her and reminding her that this was a stain on her. This was the nightmare of her life.
She rarely cried and she cried even less after having her children. She was a mother; she was a daughter. She had the responsibility of raising her children and taking care of her mother. She could not cry and she could not be weak.
However, she could not hold back her tears at this moment. Her heart hurts. It hurt terribly and the pain suffocated her.
The light shining on the floor was covered away and she drowned in its darkness.
“You’re crying?”
Lin Xinyan hurriedly wiped away the tears on her face and turned the phone around to face its screen towards the floor. “No. I’m— I’m not crying.”
Zong Jinghao looked at her from above.
He had sensed that there was something wrong with her when he saw her retreating away from the crowd. The event was reaching an end, and after Su Zhan and Shen Peichuan had left, he had come upstairs to look for her.
Then he saw her crying. Her face was covered in tears and yet she said she was not crying. Did she think that he was blind?
He crouched down and turned her head to face him. “What happened to you?”
The corner of her eyes was damp and there were warm tear tracks on her face.
As if her eyes were veiled, she could not see his expression clearly. She felt disassociated, as if her flesh and blood had been separated and all that was left were her lifeless bones.
Zong Jinghao wiped her tears away with his thumb. He tenderly caressed her cheek. Her look worried him greatly. “Tell me, what happened?”
Lin Xinyan hugged him and buried her face into his chest. “I saw Lin Guoan today and I thought about the time he had abandoned me and my mom…”
She lied. She tried to hide her upset.
Zong Jinghao smoothed her back as he consoled her. “It’s alright, I’m here from now on. Don’t be scared.”
Lin Xinyan had calmed herself down but when she heard his words, her tears renewed.
It used to be her who took care of her brother and her mother. After she had her children, she had taken care of her children too. No one had ever told her to not be scared and that they were there for her.
This was not a pick-up line. These were not fancy words. These were not unforgettable words. These were simple and sincere words that crawled its way into the softest parts of her heart.
“Ms. Lin.” Qin Ya’s voice came from the stairs. Perhaps she had been missing for too long, that was why Qin Ya had come to look for her.
He wiped Lin Xinyan’s tears away and smoothened her messy hair. “Don’t cry. You won’t look good.”
“Okay.” She moved out of Zong Jinghao’s arms and sniffed. She took a glance at the time. “It should have ended. You can go home first. I should be busy today.”
“I’ll come for you tonight.”
“Alright.”
“Ms. Lin.” Qin Ya walked up. Lin Xinyan had calmed down by then. When Qin Ya saw that there were only Lin Xinyan and Zong Jinghao upstairs, she wondered if she had interrupted them with her presence.
“Mrs.— Mrs. William is leaving.” Qin Ya stumbled with her words.
“So early? Have all the guests left?” Lin Xinyan walked over. “Let’s go down and take a look.”
She turned around to look at Zong Jinghao. He was taking a call and he did not seem happy.
“What’s wrong?” Lin Xinyan asked.
“I understand.” Zong Jinghao ended the call and looked at Lin Xinyan with an intense gaze.
The call was from Shen Peichuan. He had called to tell him that Shen Xiuqing had committed suicide and that he was now investigating it.
It was evident that this was not going to be a simple matter and someone was targeting Lin Xinyan.
However, he did not want Lin Xinyan to worry about it. He would investigate and resolve it by himself. “It’s some matter in the company. I’ll leave first.”
“Okay.” Lin Xinyan did not think beyond his words.
Qin Ya rarely inquired about Lin Xinyan’s private affairs but Zong Jinghao’s appearance made her sense that his relationship with Lin Xinyan was not simple.
He looked at Zong Jinghao’s tall figure and asked, “Ms. Lin, he’s the father of Xichen and Ruixi, right? I realized that they looked alike, especially the eyes and the forehead. No wonder the children were good looking. It was because they had inherited good genes.”
Lin Xinyan’s expression changed.
She did not want to mention this because Xichen and Ruixi were not related to Zong Jinghao.
“Are there still people downstairs?” She deliberately changed the topic.
“Mrs. William had already sent off some clients and I’ve sent the rest off. There should not be many people downstairs other than the cleaners. Mrs. William is waiting for you there.”
Qin Ya sensed that Lin Xinyan was not comfortable with the subject, so she did not insist on the previous conversation.
“Okay.” Lin Xinyan answered quietly.
The lower floor was empty and the lounge was in a mess. There were remains of the desserts and drinks that littered over the table.
“It’s been tiring today but it has been a good day. The clothing on the catwalk was all sold out, including Mrs. William’s wedding dress. Do you want to take a guess as to how much it was sold for?”
“How much was it?” Lin Xinyan was not interested, but Qin Ya had asked her and so she had no choice but to respond.
Qin Ya lifted three fingers. “Three million.”
Lin Xinyan was not surprised. There were other designs by Mrs. William that sold for even higher prices, so this wedding dress had not been expensive.
Although, she was curious as to who had bought it. “Who bought it?”
“He Ruilin from the He family. She said she was buying it for her future marriage.”
Lin Xinyan turned to look at Qin Ya. “He Ruilin?”
“Yes.” Qin Ya did not know about their relationship. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” She just felt odd. He Ruilin’s engagement with Zong Jinghao had just been broken off recently. She had not heard about any upcoming marriage nor any boyfriends she had.
She was wearing it for her wedding?
With who?
