Gently bite the jasmine

Chapter 145 The bridge leads back to the bridge, the road leads back to the road

Lin Xi and Duan Yiheng's gazes met briefly in mid-air before quickly separating.

When Duan Yiheng saw Chen Liangyi, his scalp tingled, and an unprecedentedly terrible sixth sense gripped him.

He suddenly looked at the old man: "Grandpa—"

"This is an employee of Yinfan Technology's business department, a subordinate of Director Zheng, and holds a higher position than Manager Jiang Hulin. He can be considered Director Zheng's confidant." At the old man's behest, the secretary directly interrupted Duan Yiheng.

Chen Jingyi was not intimidated at all; having already taken this step, she was ready to go all out.

She glanced at Zheng Jizhong and thought: "Every man for himself, so please don't blame me, Director Zheng."

She placed a stack of documents on the conference table, personally connected the projector, and said:

“I have evidence that Mr. Duan and Ms. Lin have no intimate relationship. It’s all because Director Zheng is holding a grudge.”

Lin Xi's head buzzed. Had her relationship with Duan Mingxuan been exposed?

Chen Jingyi's words struck her ears one by one, leaving her stunned for a long time, unable to understand why Chen Jingyi would speak up for her.

"All the photos are composites, and—"

"You bastard, how dare you betray me?" Zheng Jizhong's eyes were murderous. "I never told you about the relationship between Duan Yiheng and Lin Xi. The photos I took are real, there is absolutely no trace of them being photoshopped."

He knew that the chips were all unique, so he didn't tell Chen Jingyi.

Chen Jingyi sneered, then turned around and gestured for everyone to look at the big screen, where a series of technical analysis reports immediately appeared.

"These are the most authoritative image analysis reports, which have undergone special professional processing from pixel distribution to light angle and shadow position. At that time, Mr. Duan and Ms. Lin may have really been together, but there was absolutely no intimate behavior as seen in the emails of the directors."

"Director Zheng slandered others' reputations for his own selfish reasons. Such behavior is despicable. I also have evidence from my colleagues' reports, which can prove Director Zheng's illegal and irregular behavior."

Zheng Jizhong wanted to say something, but the bodyguard accompanying the old man pressed him down to sit.

Lin Xi's palms were sweating, and his face was deathly pale.

Faced with so many stern and questioning gazes, she almost swayed. Although she had eaten breakfast, her stomach was cramping and she felt terrible.

Duan Yiheng's gaze was fixed on her, and when he saw her like this, his heart clenched.

"Xiao Xi." The old man called her name, and Lin Xi turned her gaze mechanically, like a robot that had suddenly been powered on and connected to the internet.

“You should tell me about your relationship with Yi Heng yourself.”

Each gaze felt like a mountain pressing down on Lin Xi, making it hard for her to breathe if she lingered even a second longer. Duan Yiheng couldn't take it anymore and went over to take her away.

"Don't move." Lin Xi's voice broke through her throat, sounding sharp and crisp. "Don't come any closer."

Only Duan Yiheng knew that she was deeply afraid.

Her gaze was resolute and unwavering, and Duan Yiheng was taken aback; she had never looked at him like that before.

“It’s alright.” Lin Xi took a step back, concealing her gaze. “We…have no relation whatsoever. He’s just my older brother.”

"You're lying!" Duan Yiheng gritted his teeth and stepped forward, only to be subtly blocked by his secretary.

Chen Jingyi suddenly laughed: "Miss Lin is not lying. She and you are indeed just siblings, because she and Young Master Duan are recognized as childhood sweethearts."

Lin Xi subconsciously looked at Chen Jingyi: "Me and Duan Mingxuan—"

“You and Duan Mingxuan are truly a match made in heaven,” Chen Jingyi chuckled. “If any of you directors don’t believe me, you can take a look at the screen.”

Everyone looked up and saw a huge screen displaying photos of Duan Mingxuan and Lin Xi.

The first picture shows Lin Xi getting into Duan Mingxuan's car, which is located on the street opposite the company building.

Another example is the scene at the entrance of an entertainment venue, where Lin Xi is seen holding Duan Mingxuan.

Every angle in the photo is extremely ambiguous.

Duan Zheng was the first to react, and smiled gently and harmlessly at Lin Xi: "Xiao Xi is sensible and filial, I am very satisfied."

"But Duan Mingxuan and I—"

“I know Mingxuan wasn’t good before.” Duan Zheng pressed down on her shoulder. “But he’s changed his bad habits recently. He’ll come to the company with me tomorrow to learn. He’ll get better and better. After we go back, we’ll discuss your marriage with Mingxuan.”

Before Lin Xi could say anything more, the meeting room was filled with a peaceful atmosphere as everyone began to congratulate Old Master Duan Zhenghe.

They didn't care about Lin Xi and Duan Mingxuan; they only knew that she couldn't be with Duan Yiheng because it would affect the company's interests and image.

"I'm not feeling well," Lin Xi said to the old man, clutching her stomach. "I'll be going now."

Chen Jingyi completed her task and rushed to the door.

She called out to Lin Xi at the bathroom door.

Lin Xi ignored her and went to stand by the pool, looking at her ghostly pale face in the mirror.

"Did Grandpa ask you to do this?" Lin Xi looked at Chen Liangyi.

Chen Jingyi nodded: "So you're the adopted daughter of the Duan family. You're really lucky."

Thankfully, she didn't act impulsively and has kept the photos of Lin Xi and Duan Mingxuan to this day.

Lin Xi stared intently at her: "You've already achieved your goal of saving yourself, so why are you still slandering me and Duan Mingxuan?"

Chen Liangyi chuckled: "Because I know you don't like him. Lin Xi, you like President Duan, right?"

Lin Xi bit her lip tightly, and before she could say anything, Duan Yiheng's voice rang out from the bathroom door: "Lin Xi, come out."

Chen Jingyi turned to leave, but Lin Xi stopped her, saying, "Shut up from now on, and I'll grant your wish."

Chen Jingyi raised an eyebrow.

Lin Xi tidied herself up in front of the mirror before leaving the bathroom.

Before Duan Yiheng could speak, she said coldly, "I don't know why you chased after me. Don't you understand yet?"

“I didn’t tell you last night that I was coming here today. I came directly from Tiandu Yuxi this morning.”

"No matter what happened between us in the past, we will have no connection now or in the future. I hope you understand that."

"What about Duan Mingxuan?" Duan Yiheng's eyes blazed with anger. "You admitted in front of so many people that you and Duan Mingxuan are getting married soon? Is that true too?"

“It’s true.” Lin Xi looked into his eyes.

Duan Yiheng refused to believe it: "You're lying to me."

"I didn't lie to you." Lin Xi pinched his tiger's mouth hard. "Please recognize yourself and me from now on. I regretted it a long time ago, I regretted getting involved with you."

Duan Yiheng's body was tense, and no one noticed that his hands, hanging at his sides, were trembling slightly.

“But you are my older brother after all, we live under the same roof, and it’s the New Year period, so I made my refusal tactful.”

"I hope you can back down when faced with difficulties, and not lose your self-respect. From this moment on, let's go our separate ways."

"Duan Yiheng, I wish you a bright future and all the best."

"Alright, I've finished my task for today, I'm off now."

After saying that, Lin Xi left without looking back.

Duan Yiheng stood there for a long time, a startling dark glint flashing in his eyes, before turning and returning to the conference room.