“No, I I didn’t…”
Bai Zhiran’s face flushed red, and she almost bit her tongue.
By the time she managed to compose herself to explain, the man had already let out a cold snort and walked straight into the restaurant.
She lowered her eyes, as if all her energy had been drained in an instant. Yet she still forced herself to perk up, gazing almost obsessively at his retreating figure.
This was Jiang Shijing.
In outsiders’ eyes, he was gentle and affectionate. In reality, he was warm on the outside but cold within like a block of ice that could never be warmed.
No one knew what thoughts hid beneath his playful smile. No one knew which words would make him care or make him angry.
But thankfully, she had once thought Lin Xiangwan was someone who had warmed his heart. Now it seemed she had merely been a target of Jiang Shijing’s revenge.
There might be no place for her in Jiang Shijing’s heart but there absolutely couldn’t be anyone else either.
…
The Lin residence.
Lin Xiangwan hadn’t planned to come.
But there was an inexplicable fire burning inside her, desperate for release.
When she entered, she didn’t let the servants alert the family of three.
Standing outside the living room, she heard Lin Xijun’s anxious voice.
“Dad, why exactly does Zhou Yan want to cooperate with her? Isn’t he afraid Jiang Shijing will find out?”
Then came Xiang Keqing’s voice, gnashing her teeth. “Jiang Shijing definitely knows Lin Xiangwan is back, yet he hasn’t reacted immediately. That little vixen how did she manage it?”
Lin Xiangwan stepped inside, letting out a light scoff as she looked at Xiang Keqing sitting stiffly in the living room.
“How did I manage it? Shouldn’t you, you old vixen, know better? I learned from you, Aunt Xiang.”
All three of their expressions changed after the initial shock came a stormy gloom.
Now that all pretense had been torn away, Xiang Keqing didn’t bother keeping up appearances.
“You keep calling me a mistress and saying I wronged your mother. If you despise us so much, then don’t come back!”
“I didn’t plan to come back. Seeing your despicable faces makes me sick. But there’s something here that I haven’t taken yet.”
Lin Xiangwan crossed her arms, her expression calm and proud.
Lin Mu tightened his grip on his teacup, resisting the urge to smash it at her.
“You’re not welcome here. There’s nothing of yours. Get out!”
“Mr. Lin, your memory is terrible. Have you forgotten? Grandpa left this house to me. The place you’re living in now is my house. I’m here to inform you to pack up and leave.”
She brushed aside a strand of hair and strolled to the sofa, snatching the teacup from Lin Mu’s hand.
“This set of purple clay tea ware was also left in this house by Grandpa. Legally, it’s my inheritance. Without my permission, you can’t use it.”
She lifted her wrist to check the time and smiled faintly under their disbelieving gazes. “You have half an hour. If you can’t finish packing, my people will help you.”
“Lin Xiangwan, you’ve gone too far! Grandpa never personally said this house was for you. As his descendants, we all have rights to it!”
Lin Xijun struggled to suppress his fury, glaring at her as if he wanted to pierce through her.
From the time he could remember, Xiang Keqing had repeatedly told him to curry favor with Grandpa once they moved into the Lin family.
Yet for years, the old man had been indifferent to him, while doting endlessly on a granddaughter who would eventually marry out.
The company, the properties anything valuable had been passed to Lin Xiangwan, even skipping over his own biological son.
He simply couldn’t understand what was so special about her that even in death, the old man left everything to her?
“The property deed has my name and Grandpa’s on it. When my mother gave birth to me, Grandpa clearly stated this house was a gift to the two of us. You moved in and lived here, and now you won’t even acknowledge me as the landlord?”
Lin Xiangwan sneered, raising an eyebrow at Xiang Keqing. “There’s a saying for this, isn’t there? Oh right biting the hand that feeds you.”
Xiang Keqing’s pupils shrank. Her chest heaved violently as she stood up and lunged to scratch Lin Xiangwan’s face.
Suddenly, a group of men in black rushed in through the door, surrounding the three of them.
They looked like hardened enforcers each one fierce enough to make people avoid eye contact.
Xiang Keqing immediately faltered, shrinking beside Lin Mu, trembling.
Lin Mu swallowed hard, equally shaken, but forced himself to ask, “What are you trying to do?”
“You’re taking too long.”
There wasn’t a trace of a smile on Lin Xiangwan’s face now. She said coldly, “I’ll have them help you pack.”
As soon as she finished speaking, several men turned and went upstairs.
Soon, the sounds of smashing and rummaging filled the rooms. Belongings were stuffed haphazardly into suitcases and carried downstairs, dumped at the entrance.
Lin Xiangwan sat on the sofa, crossing her legs, her long fair calf swinging lightly.
“You can leave now.”
Lin Mu’s face turned livid.
As if she didn’t see his impending outburst, Lin Xiangwan lifted the lid of the teapot, smelled the Tieguanyin she disliked most, and poured it straight into the trash.
“These men will stay to guard the house. If I’m not living here, no one else steps inside. If you have objections, reason with their fists.”
At her words, the men in black glared even more fiercely at Lin Mu and Lin Xijun, their muscles taut with strength, impossible to confront.
The family of three left in humiliation.
Lin Xiangwan curled into the sofa, rubbing her temples, a trace of lonely fatigue appearing at the corner of her eyes.
Back then, her mother had stayed here during pregnancy and given birth to her. And now, there wasn’t a single trace left of her mother.
The leader of the men in black walked over, took off his jacket, and draped it over her.
Lin Xiangwan opened her eyes to see a handsome, resolute face.
Unlike Jiang Shijing’s almost devilishly charming features, the man before her looked upright and principled, as if he wouldn’t tolerate even a grain of sand in his eyes.
Pulling the jacket around herself, she asked curiously, “Why are you doing this?”
“It’s my duty.” The man quickly glanced at her calf, now covered by the sleeve of the jacket.
He withdrew his gaze.
Lin Xiangwan stood and tossed the jacket back to him, removing the earrings that had begun to ache from wearing them too long. “I don’t need unnecessary concern.”
“Mm. I overstepped. I thought you looked fragile just now. My apologies, Miss Lin.” He kept his head lowered, no longer crossing the line.
Her heart jolted.
Fragile?
She had just won a battle. How could anyone think she looked fragile?
A trace of confusion flickered in her eyes. When she came back to her senses, she had already dialed Wen Qian.
“I need a bodyguard.”
Wen Qian chuckled knowingly on the other end. “Which one? Is he handsome? Even if you want him, he has to be willing to go with you.”
Lin Xiangwan curled her lips and raised an eyebrow at the man. “Your name?”
“Qin Ou.”
“Oh, Mr. Qin would you be willing to switch jobs and be my bodyguard?”
Qin Ou’s gaze did not waver in the slightest. “I would.”