The news about Jiang Shuchen’s affair and marital crisis had clearly been suppressed by Jiang Yu.
But somehow, it resurfaced on the hot search list within just two days.
Originally, Jiang Yu only managed the pharmaceutical research and development projects in the laboratory.
Public relations matters should have been handled by Jiang Shuchen.
But this time, Jiang Yu stepped in personally again.
At the headquarters of Lin Jiang Group, the towering fifty-story building stood majestically.
Public Relations Department.
After discussing matters with the chief public relations officer, Jiang Yu specifically instructed:
“Old Zhang, regarding the media, all photos of Lin Ting must be taken down.”
“If they can’t be removed, they must be pixelated. Especially, do not let the media expose photos of Xiao Youzi.”
“Don’t let it affect the lives of the mother and daughter later.”
Old Zhang was the chief public relations officer of Lin Jiang Pharmaceutical Group.
In his forties, overweight, balding, with an absolutely friendly smiling face, his public relations skills were also top-notch.
There was nothing he couldn’t suppress.
But this time, something was off; someone must be pulling strings behind the scenes.
The big-bellied, bald Old Zhang scratched his head, unsure of what to say to Jiang Yu.
Sighing, Old Zhang added:
“President Jiang, five years ago, the incident involving Lin Ting and Zhou Ziheng was also suppressed by you to prevent it from being exposed.”
“You even used connections behind the scenes to get Lin Ting released from prison early.”
“But since she keeps trying to scheme against you time and again, why bother considering her?”
Jiang Yu’s face showed a pained expression, but he ultimately convinced himself, “I just feel sorry for the child, not because of her. Old Zhang, be diligent and handle this now.”
Although Jiang Yu claimed that Lin Ting’s death had nothing to do with him, he still cherished their past friendship.
Even if Xiao Youzi was Zhou Ziheng’s illegitimate child, she was still just a child.
Children are always innocent.
The big-bellied, bald Old Zhang walked out of the public relations department meeting room and coincidentally ran into Lin Weiwei.
Lin Weiwei, who usually worked tirelessly day and night in the pharmaceutical laboratory, was surprisingly free today, which even Old Zhang found curious.
“Professor Lin, you’re not in the lab today?”
Lin Weiwei: “I came to discuss something with Jiang Yu.”
Old Zhang: “I heard President Jiang and Professor Lin’s wedding has been moved up to May 1st. Professor Lin will soon be a beautiful bride—congratulations!”
Lin Weiwei smiled brightly: “Thank you, Director Zhang.”
Seeing Jiang Yu emerge from the public relations department meeting room, Lin Weiwei approached him.
Jiang Yu frowned slightly, “Weiwei, why are you here?”
Lin Weiwei’s smile faded, “There’s some bad news. The specific anticancer drug may be delayed in entering the clinical trial phase. The latest data shows that the drug’s properties are highly unstable. Its side effects not only kill cancer cells but also damage normal bodily functions, so…”
This news left Jiang Yu at a loss.
Two generations of the Lin Jiang Pharmaceutical Group, with nearly twenty years of effort, always seemed to hit a wall at the final hurdle, unable to make a breakthrough.
Lin Weiwei asked again, “How is the mentor doing?”
Jiang Yu had visited the oncology ward at the hospital just two days ago to see his mentor.
The mentor’s condition made him frown even more deeply, and he said gravely, “Vomiting blood several times a day, bleeding profusely… not much time left…”
Lin Weiwei gently patted his arm, comforting him for a long time.
Around four in the afternoon.
The clear weather in Pengcheng suddenly turned gloomy.
Dark clouds filled the sky, and a heavy rainstorm began abruptly.
Lin Ting, wearing a raincoat, rode her electric scooter to the kindergarten.
Teacher Li, who liked to wear her hair in braids, was in the kindergarten’s front hall and informed her that someone was waiting for her in Youzi’s classroom.
Lin Ting, still in her raincoat, was somewhat puzzled. “Teacher Li, who is looking for me?”
If it was Jiang Shuchen, she wouldn’t see him again.
But Teacher Li told her, “It’s Youzi’s father. He wants to take Youzi away, but last time you instructed that unless you come to pick her up, Youzi cannot leave with anyone.”
Lin Ting was grateful. “Thank you, Teacher Li.”
Teacher Li said, “Youzi’s mother, please talk things over with Youzi’s father. I hope he can acknowledge Youzi and support her in the future.”
Lin Ting felt a surge of complicated emotions.
When she arrived at Youzi’s classroom, Youzi was thoughtfully building with blocks in front of a pile of toys.
Jiang Yu was watching nearby.
Lin Ting took off her raincoat and walked in.
Who was it that told her not to appear in front of him?
Yet who was the one frequently showing up in front of her?
“Why has Mr. Jiang come again?”
There were some things Jiang Yu didn’t want to say in front of the child.
He stood up from the small chair beside Youzi. “Let’s talk outside.”
Then, he turned to look at Xiao Youzi behind him. “Youzi, play here in the classroom. Your mom and I will step out for a moment.”
Youzi completely ignored him.
She didn’t respond.
Seeing Xiao Youzi treat him this way, Jiang Yu felt deeply hurt.
He had never cared about Xiao Youzi’s background and had always been gentle with the child. Why did Xiao Youzi dislike him so much?
Jiang Yu’s heart felt tightly clenched, almost suffocating.
When Youzi’s long, delicate eyelashes lifted slightly, she looked at her mother with concern. “Mom, did you get caught in the rain on your way here?”
She noticed the hem of her mother’s pants was wet.
The hair at the front was also slightly damp.
Youzi took a sweat towel from her backpack, walked over, and pulled her mother down to squat. She gently wiped the raindrops from her mother’s face.
“Mom, don’t catch a cold again.”
“Mom, you two go talk. I’ll stay here and build with blocks while I wait for you.”
Lin Ting patted her daughter’s head. “Okay.”
After stepping outside with Jiang Yu, Lin Ting turned away, not giving him a direct look. “Mr. Jiang, please keep it brief.”
Jiang Yu asked, “Every time Youzi sees me, she doesn’t smile. Does she hate me?”
Hah! Lin Ting almost laughed in anger. How could this man be so lacking in self-awareness? “Mr. Jiang, what have you done to Youzi? Don’t you know?”
Jiang Yu frowned. “Lin Ting, you used the child to scheme against me, causing Youzi to misunderstand. Clearly, it’s you as the mother who is despicable and dirty. Why don’t you reflect on yourself? Youzi is pitiful to have a mother like you.”
Lin Ting turned slightly, glaring directly at Jiang Yu. “I told you, you have no right to judge me.”
Hatred surged within Lin Ting, and within Jiang Yu as well.
They both despised each other deeply.
With a cold expression, Jiang Yu asked again, “Lin Ting, I had Jiang Shuchen give you two million yuan, and you’ve already accepted it. The Zhou Group also gave you a lot of money. Why haven’t you bought a car for transportation? Don’t you know how unsafe it is to ride an electric scooter to pick up and drop off the child on rainy days? Do you want the child to get soaked in the rain, fall sick, and end up in the hospital with no one to care for her?”
The only time Youzi was hospitalized due to illness, Lin Ting couldn’t be there because she had fallen ill herself.
That illness felt like a massive weight pressing down on her.
It nearly crushed Lin Ting.
Her body on the verge of breaking, Lin Ting replied in a cold voice, “It’s none of Mr. Jiang’s concern.”
Jiang Yu’s resentment grew stronger, and his tone naturally couldn’t be friendly. “Lin Ting, do you think I would care about someone as despicable and shameless as you? I’m only reminding you for the child’s sake. Since you’ve taken the money, spend more effort on the child instead of scheming. No matter how vile and filthy Youzi’s parents are, she is innocent. How can you take care of her so carelessly? Doesn’t your conscience ache?”
Conscience?
Did Jiang Yu even have one?
Lin Ting was filled with hatred toward Jiang Yu.
“Mr. Jiang, whether I treat the child well or not is not for you to judge.”
“My affairs are none of your business.”
In this world, the person least qualified to judge her was Jiang Yu.
She hated Jiang Yu, hated him to the core.
The hatred in her heart surged like a tidal wave, but she forcefully suppressed it in the end.
She didn’t want to say another word to Jiang Yu.
Yet every slander, every venomous word from him turned into sharp blades, killing her over and over again.
For Xiao Youzi’s sake, she had been holding on with strength.
What weighed her down was never cancer or illness, but the cold and heartless man before her.
What right did he have to say these things to her?
Her eyes held only cold, sharp hatred. “Mr. Jiang, please have some shame and stop appearing before me. You were the one who told me not to bother you anymore. I ask you, too, to never appear before me again. You find me unpleasant, but I find you utterly disgusting and repulsive.”
The words she spoke made Jiang Yu clench his teeth tightly.
Hatred erupted within him even more fiercely.
That unpleasant feeling was like a raging beast. “Lin Ting, after failing to scheme in front of me, you’re not even pretending anymore? Just a few days ago, you were begging, looking pitiful and humble. What, now that you’ve set your sights on Jiang Shuchen, you can’t even bother pretending for me?”
Lin Ting: “I have nothing to say to you, Mr. Jiang.”
With that, she tried to leave.
Jiang Yu grabbed her arm and pulled her back.
Only then did he see that although she was wearing makeup today, her complexion didn’t seem as good as it had been a few days earlier.
Perhaps it was because she had been caught in the rain.
In his mind, she was nothing but a scheming woman—heartless, immoral, despicable, and shameless. What did it matter to him whether she looked well or not?
He said bitterly, “Lin Ting, you’ve stirred up Jiang Shuchen’s marital troubles and made it onto the trending searches. I’m giving you two choices. First, leave Pengcheng on your own and never scheme against anyone again. Stop thinking about the research secrets of Linjiang Pharmaceuticals…”
Lin Ting interrupted him mockingly, “What’s the second? You’ll use your social connections to drive me and my daughter out of Pengcheng?”