“I don’t know what it is. The guard said that there is an express parcel for you. I saw your name on it so I brought it here.”
Qin Ya checked and found no sender’s name or address. The content was contained in a folder. “Is it a document?”
“It’s better you open it and take a look,” Qin Ya handed the parcel to her.
Lin Xinyan tore open the seal. It was not a document, but a stack of photos.
Her curiosity was piqued and she took them out. All the photos were obscene.
That was not the point. What made it a serious matter was the people in the photographs.
Her face turned pale and her hands shook, but she managed to look at each photo. They were all equally explicit.
Sensing from her expression that something was wrong, Qin Ya leaned over to peep at them. “What is it…”
Before Qin Ya could make out what it was, Lin Xinyan quickly put the photos back into the folder and resealed it, looking like she was afraid someone would see the content within. She then pretended as if nothing had happened. “It’s nothing much.”
Qin Ya frowned. “But I saw something was wrong in your expression.”
Again, Lin Xinyan said it was nothing, but her face told a different story. Obviously, it was something.
Qin Ya stared at the envelope in Lin Xinyan’s hands wondering what was inside that could change the look on her face in an instant.
“I am just too tired, Qin Ya, leave me alone for a while.” Lin Xinyan then turned around with her back facing Qin Ya.
I need to be calm.
Qin Ya obliged. She’s not talking. Perhaps she doesn’t want to tell me about it. I just hope that if there is something wrong, she won’t bear it alone and will let me share her burden after she has calmed down.
After all, two heads are better than one.
After Qin Ya left, Lin Xinyan sat down on a chair. After calming herself down, she took out the photographs again. This time, while she was prepared, she still felt a psychological impact. After all, the subject in the photos was someone she cared about.
They were many explicit photos of Zong Jinghao and a woman together in bed; their faces in every photo were clearly shown.
No matter how hard she tried, she could not see any flaws to show the photos had been doctored.
Deep inside, she told herself that they must be fakes and must have been sent to her on purpose.
Nevertheless, there was a dull ad painful feeling in her heart.
She forced herself to be calm, since being emotional would not help to solve problems.
The express mail sent to her had no signature and no return address; it was obvious that the sender wanted to remain anonymous. This also meant that the sender must have a motive.
But she was uncertain of the sender’s intention.
Maybe someone was upset with Zong Jinghao? Does the sender know about my relationship with Zong Jinghao? Is that why he or she gave me these photos?
She really could not figure it out.
This was not a problem she could solve. After thinking it over, she took out a new document holder, placed the photos inside, and sealed it.
When she came out of her office she did not bother Qin Ya, who was busy serving a customer.
Shao Yun came in carrying a basket of grapes and said to Lin Xinyan with a smile, “This is what I picked from the vineyard when I passed by Tang Xian. It’s fresh. Let me give you some to try.”
Lin Xinyan was preoccupied and did not feel like eating anything at all. Still, seeing Shao Yun’s kind gesture, she smiled and replied, “Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it. I’ll get them washed.” Shao Yun brought the basket inside. It was not long before he came out with a plate of washed green grapes. They were not very big but looked fresh and clear. He passed them to her saying, “Try it.”
Lin Xinyan took one. It was tasteless in her mouth, especially since her mind was preoccupied with the photos.
She looked at Shao Yun and asked, “Tell me, is it possible for two totally unrelated people to appear together in one photograph?
Shao Yun spat out the skin of a grape from his mouth, glanced at her, and queried, “Why do you ask this out of the blue?”
Deep inside her, Lin Xinyan trusted Zong Jinghao but there was some doubt. Seeing Shao Yun, she wanted to hear some words to console herself that the images could be superimposed.
She could then convince herself that the photographs she saw were fake, which would make her feel better.
She curled her lips in reply, “Just a random question.”
“Of course it’s possible. Today’s technology is so advanced, anything can be faked! Even humans can be altered, not to mention photographs.” People nowadays can change their faces with surgery, and those who are not wealthy can use their mobile phones to edit their pictures before sharing with friends.
Unbelievably fake.
Then he pointed at the grapes and asked, “These are such sweet grapes. Why don’t you have some?”
“I just had a meal. I can’t eat anything now.” She just made an excuse because she really did not feel like eating at all. Nevertheless, Shao Yun’s words made her feel much better.
Shao Yun did not insist. “That’s okay. When you feel like eating, go ahead and try them. If you find that they are good, tell me and I’ll get some more for you.”
“Alright. How is the factory doing?” she changed the topic.
“We are already trying out the equipment. If there are no problems, we can start the production. However, I can’t take orders for the time being. The backlog of orders would last me a while. I didn’t expect you would know so much given your young age. Is this kind of fabric really so good? There is a huge demand for it.”
Qin Ya came over after she finished meeting with her customer, “You won’t know how good it is. Only those in the industry can appreciate its qualities.”
Shao Yun would get upset whenever Qin Ya said he did not belong to the industry.
“Sure, sure. You know it all.” He shoved another grape into his mouth.
Today Shao Yun wore a white T-shirt with yellow trimming on the neckline and cuffs, pair with a yellow SpongeBob SquarePants pants.
Qin Ya looked at him from top to toe and curled her lips.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Shao Yun took a look at his own clothing but did not see anything wrong.
“Nothing. I just thought you are well-dressed.” Qin Ya knew he loved to be praised. He loved fancy clothes, and that was his taste.
The moment he heard Qin Ya’s praise, he stood upright in pride.
“Uncle Er, how about you let me design some for you?” Qin Ya did not know him too well but since Lin Xinyan was close to him, Qin Ya addressed him as Uncle Er just like Lin Xinyan did. Despite the fact that he dressed fancifully, he was obviously older and it was not appropriate for Qin Ya to call him by name.
Nonetheless, after working together for two months now, their relationship grew closer.
He looked playful, but where work was concerned, he was reliable. Other than wanting to be praised for being handsome and youthful-looking, he had no other faults.
Well, actually, he had another fault, which was to dress fancifully. He felt that these clothes made him look young but his choice of fashion sometimes just rendered others speechless.
“Great! You should be able to tell which styles I like so you can design accordingly.” Shao Yun came closer and asked, “Tell me, don’t you think I have good taste?”
Qin Ya was speechless.
Not far away from them, Lin Xinyan found their exchange rather unbearable. Can this even be considered as taste?
Qin Ya corrected him, “I wouldn’t call it good taste; it’s just your preference.”
If this were considered good taste, the sun would rise in the west and everyone would be wearing gaudy colors.
“Preference is good, too.” What really matters is that it pleases him.
“Alright, I’ve some business to attend to. I’ve got to go.” Shao Yun was always busy looking after the company and helping Lin Xinyan on the side.
After Shao Yun left, Qin Ya had the opportunity to ask, “What was in the parcel just now? You seemed a little…”
“Ya,” before she could finish, Lin Xinyan spoke, “Please pass this to Zong Jinghao for me.”
Qin Ya stared at her for a moment before taking the holder, feeling surprised at the sudden mention of Zong Jinghao.
“You do keep in contact with him, don’t you?” Lin Xinyan deduced that was the case when she saw Zong Jinghao the night before.
Qin Ya had lied about taking the two kids out for baked fish yesterday when they actually had steak. So it was most probable that she met him at that time.
Otherwise, she would not have lied about the food.
Zong Jinghao likely did not want to show up, so he instructed Qin Ya to bring the kids to meet him in secret.
She just could not figure out why he asked Su Zhan to approach her. Perhaps those secret meetings with the children are not enough and he really wants to bring the kids away for a short stay in B City.
Qin Ya took a deep breath before taking the folder from Lin Xinyan. Since Su Zhan had already shown up, she must have noticed something.
“Did he give these to you?” Qin Ya asked out of curiosity. After all, the look on Lin Xinyan’s face was dreadful when she saw the items.
“No. You just pass it to him. If he asks, you may tell him some anonymous person has sent it to me with no return address. He should know who that person is.” After all, that person was targeting him.
Qin Ya replied, “I’ll contact him, then.”
“I want to leave office early today.” Lin Xinyan felt like getting away as if she were fearful of hearing news about him.
At this moment, she wanted to be alone. She was in no mood to work and her mind was troubled. Even if the photos were faked, her emotions were impacted.
Qin Ya agreed; she could see that Lin Xinyan’s feelings had been affected by some incident.
She looked down at the folder in her hand and took out her mobile phone to call Zong Jinghao.
At that time, Zong Jinghao had just arrived in Baicheng with his two children. When he saw that it was Qin Ya’s call, he answered it.
