Chapter 93: Third Brother Has Gone to Find You

“Lin Xi, I’m sorry.”

A thousand words condensed, in the end, to just these three cold syllables.

Not much time had passed between Lin Chen’s sudden death and Lin Xi’s departure overseas.

The day after Lin Chen was buried, she left.

Quietly, without a sound.

It was as if the young woman had shed every last tear in the cemetery; then, standing up, she left her homeland without a moment’s hesitation.

No one knew where she went.

He could only try to trace her through her uncle.

When he finally learned where she was, he hesitated for a long time before seeking her out.

He wanted to see her, to meet her openly and honestly.

But just as he was preparing to meet Lin Xi, her uncle discovered him by chance and arranged a time to discuss Lin Xi’s current situation.

“She’s undergoing treatment now, and there’s real hope her hearing will recover.”

Before he could feel relief, her uncle continued, “However, there’s a thorny problem: her mental state seems even worse than it was just after the accident. It’s not looking good.”

“Since moving here, she’s been especially reluctant to talk about the past. Especially about Lin Chen and you all.”

“I know some good doctors here, you can rest assured, she will get better. But I hope you’ll cooperate with me as well.”

“Until she decides to return home, don’t see her.”

“She’s chosen to start a new life in a strange city; give her the space she needs. I hope neither you nor anyone else will disturb her for now.”

“If you want updates before she comes around, you can always contact me.”

“I know you all did nothing wrong in what happened with Lin Chen. But now, she’s trapped in a cycle: in her heart, someone must take responsibility for Lin Chen.”

“As for the rest… let her figure it out herself.”

“As her elder, I’m truly sorry. But for now, you’ll have to bear this grievance.”

Lin Xi was clever enough. She probably understood that no one was truly at fault.

But at that time, she had no way out.

Someone had to bear the weight, give her a vent, something to hold her up.

And so, during that period, he would go to see her every so often, always watching from a distance.

When she first started treatment, he was always nearby, just out of her sight.

But she never knew.

—

Bai Xu had no idea what Qin Yu was thinking.

Still, he could sense that even though Qin Yu’s face was unreadable, the air around him seemed to change in that moment.

Qin Yu didn’t seem to be looking at anything in particular; dark emotion churned in his eyes, a complicated storm within.

Noticing this, Bai Xu pressed on, “As for what Aunt and Song Ning said to Lin Xi when they found her, no one really knows. But with those two, it’s unlikely to have been anything good.”

“There’s something else I learned recently. Since Third Brother has been so generous, I’ll tell you too.”

Bai Xu lounged lazily in his seat. “The reason Lin Xi hit you back then wasn’t just because Third Brother hid what happened to Big Brother.”

“Part of it was because Aunt messaged her that afternoon, saying you were busy with Song Ning and wouldn’t be in Lin City for her birthday these next few days.”

“With all that combined, I think from Lin Xi’s perspective, it looked like Third Brother’s whole heart was with Song Ning. That’s why she wasn’t told in time to see Big Brother one last time.”

He and Second Brother had both known the truth too, so why was it only Qin Yu who got slapped in the end?

That was probably the reason.

But aside from Lin Xi, no one else knew this.

He had only found out by chance recently. “My mother let it slip by accident. I haven’t verified it with Lin Xi, but Third Brother, you know my mother never lies.”

“Looking at it now, Lin Xi’s slap back then was hardly undeserved.”

“The problem started with Aunt, but Third Brother had to take the fall.”

On this matter, Bai Xu neither hid nor asked Lin Xi.

There was no need.

From Lin Xi’s perspective: the person she liked had a fiancée, was suddenly hot and cold toward her, and on top of that her brother died. Her emotions finally broke, and she fell apart.

Under those circumstances, it was impossible for her to remain rational.

So she impulsively slapped Qin Yu—it made sense.

But now, after so many years, whether it was this or the matter of hiding Big Brother’s injury, Lin Xi should have come to terms with it.

There was no need to ask again. Likely, she herself would find it awkward to revisit.

“That’s all I know. Don’t forget your promise, Third Brother.”

Having achieved his goal, Bai Xu didn’t linger. He pushed open the car door and got out.

—

When Lin Xi came out of the bathroom, she deliberately glanced downstairs.

Both Qin Yu and Bai Xu’s cars were gone.

Once she was certain they had left, she let out a long breath of relief.

Thankfully, Qin Yu had taken Bai Xu with him. Otherwise, if they had grilled her one after another, she really would have lost her temper.

Her phone on the table vibrated—it was her assistant calling.

Lin Xi tugged at her lips and answered, “It’s me.”

“Engineer Lin, did you not see the message in the group?”

“…What message?”

“I’m not sure either. The deputy general manager said he couldn’t reach you in the group, and you didn’t answer his calls. He thought you were still working late, so he called me.”

“Understood. I’ll go check.”

After hanging up, Lin Xi opened WeChat and scrolled carefully through her work groups.

She had seven or eight company group chats on her phone, big and small.

The deputy general manager: “Engineer Lin, keep tomorrow free. Huasheng called; please go to Huasheng Headquarters tomorrow.”

…No matter how she looked at it, this message seemed off. But soon she understood.

What business would require her to go to Huasheng Headquarters in person?

It had to be an arrangement by Cheng Si.

Normally, she would have refused. But now…

Bai Xu would definitely come looking for her tomorrow, and maybe other elders as well.

With that in mind, she typed two words in the chat and sent: “Received.”

She texted her assistant to help book tickets, then went to her room to pack.

It was only a short trip, a day or two at most; she didn’t need much. The important things were her documents and laptop.

As she was picking out clothes for tomorrow, Bai Xu’s call came in.

He seemed anxious, calling again and again.

Lin Xi put her phone on silent and continued to feign ignorance.

After a while, he finally gave up.

But the peace didn’t last long—her phone on the floor lit up again.

WeChat messages kept popping up—

“Third Brother is coming to find you.”

“He’s almost there.”

Seeing that, Lin Xi frowned. It had been less than an hour since Qin Yu left.

She wondered if Bai Xu had lost his mind.

Perhaps guessing her thoughts, Bai Xu sent another message:

“Third Brother knows Aunt found you back then.”

At that, Lin Xi’s pupils widened in surprise.

(To be continued)