Break Up? Cry a Little

The flashing name on the screen left Li Xingqing with no time to think about what had happened to Xi Zhen. She answered Yin Shu’s call, and the anxious voice on the other end came through at once.

“Xingqing, where are you right now? Are you okay?”

“?” Li Xingqing was a little baffled, but she still answered patiently, “Aunt? I just finished seeing Mom. I’m near the hospital now. What’s wrong?”

“So you’re okay—that’s a blessing.” The other side let out a breath. “Xingqing, don’t go home yet. Find someplace to hide. Send me your location right now; a car will come pick you up immediately. Remember, you have to stay safe.” After a long rush of words, Yin Shu exhaled again, her voice trembling slightly as she said, “Something’s happened on the Li family’s side.”

Almost the next second, Li Xingqing heard a sharp blast of a horn nearby. She edged around the crowd and looked over carefully; the car she had been about to get into was now engulfed in flames.

If Li Xingqing hadn’t deliberately delayed a little in order to call Xi Zhen, she would probably no longer be alive by now.

After nearly half the night of frantic upheaval, she finally left the west coast of M Country. Li Xingqing sat in a speeding car, Yin Shu beside her.

Outside the window, the foreign city’s nightscape was blurred and indistinct; one streetlight after another swept past like things she had failed to catch in time. The car interior was frighteningly quiet, with only the low sound of tires grinding against the road.

Yin Shu’s voice broke the silence, calm yet ruthless. “Your father is critically ill and in emergency treatment. But I’m afraid he won’t make it.”

Li Xingqing’s brows moved ever so slightly. For an instant, it felt as though something had dropped heavily in her chest, then risen again. She was first shocked; even though it had been a long time since she last saw him, hearing the words “emergency treatment” still made her heart contract on instinct.

But immediately after, another emotion surged up, almost mocking her; it seemed to say that Li Taihong had brought this on himself. In life, you reap what you sow.

“So...” Li Xingqing lowered her eyes. Only when she spoke again did she realize that this was what choking up felt like.

“His will was written long ago,” Yin Shu said evenly.

“All to Li Ji?” A trace of mockery appeared at the corner of Li Xingqing’s mouth; it seemed she had already predicted that answer.

“No. Most of it was left to you.”

“Screech—” The screech of brakes shattered the stillness. Li Xingqing felt the streetlights outside stretch everything into ghastly shapes; bizarre and terrifying.

Li Xingqing: “What do you mean?”

Yin Shu: “In the will Li Taihong left behind, eighty percent of the assets are yours. As for that bastard,” Yin Shu tugged at the corner of her mouth, “it’s mostly just a few properties and parcels of land that don’t amount to much; they look impressive, but they’re all show and no substance.”

So that was the reason she had nearly been killed. Li Ji had been involved in the Li family business for so many years; naturally, he was not willing to leave so disgracefully. But since there was no way to alter Li Taihong’s will, he simply took the risk and moved directly against the heir.

Li Taihong probably never imagined that Li Ji, the son he had treasured and raised, would be so vicious in his methods. No, perhaps Li Taihong had long expected as much.

Li Xingqing: “Then what do we do now?”

Yin Shu: “Don’t worry. Li Taihong spent all those years pretending to fool the Yin family; it’s a pity his fox tail still showed in the end. As for that Li Ji, he’s nothing to fear.”

Li Xingqing nodded, then seemed to think of something else. “Li Ji is acting so aggressively; he can’t possibly have no backup plan, right?”

“Hmph.” Yin Shu’s assessment was cold. “A petty trick.”

Back then, Yin Yi had stubbornly insisted on marrying Li Taihong, that poor nobody with nothing to his name. Her parents couldn’t beat their daughter, so they simply agreed, only hoping Li Taihong would treat Yin Yi well in the future.

Sure enough, in the first few years after the wedding, Li Taihong truly did put Yin Yi on a pedestal. These gestures not only deceived Yin Yi, but also caused Yin’s father and mother to change their view of this son-in-law. The Yin family even handed over the business they had in Hua Country to their son-in-law to manage.

Unfortunately, no one can keep up an act for a lifetime. The year Xi Zhen turned fifteen, Li Taihong brought home his illegitimate son, Li Ji. And the confidence that supported him in doing all this was that he had run the Yin family’s business for more than a decade and changed its name to his own.

Yin Yi’s father was old and, after being deceived by his son-in-law, suffered a sudden illness and never made it back from emergency treatment. After her father died, her mother grew despondent and passed away a few years later as well. Betrayed by her husband, then struck again by the deaths of her parents, Yin Yi was deeply shaken and developed a mental illness; she was still recovering in the hospital to this day.

As for Yin Shu, she had already been unconventional back then and refused to follow her parents’ wishes to marry and have children. Yet no one would have expected that, in the end, Yin Shu would turn out to be the clearest-headed one of them all.

“Xingqing, your aunt doesn’t care about the matter between you and Li Taihong. But the things that left the Yin family’s hands absolutely cannot fall into someone else’s.” The car started up again, and Yin Shu took Li Xingqing back to her own home.

Li Xingqing remained silent for half the ride. In the end, she made up her mind and gave a soft “Okay.”

After the explosion on the streets of M Country that day, Li Xingqing did as Yin Shu required and threw away her original phone. She even cut off all outside contact and staged the miserable scene of dying in a car accident for real.

The timeline had been far too tight. Not to mention what exactly had happened on Xi Zhen’s side; even on Li Xingqing’s side, she simply had no time to warn Xi Zhen in advance.

In Hua Country, Xi Zhen, who had only just realized that something might not be simple, had not yet figured out the pros and cons when she received an email from an unknown address. The contents were very simple: all photographs of her and Li Xingqing.

Unlike ordinary group photos, the two people in the images were obviously extremely intimate. Anyone with a sharp eye could tell something was wrong. In addition, the email contained one more line: arrange to meet Xi Zhen.

A malicious email, an invitation full of threat; Xi Zhen couldn’t possibly not know it was a banquet with hidden knives, but she still went.

The meeting place was set in a rather inconspicuous coffee shop. After hearing why she was there, the server led Xi Zhen to a private room in the back courtyard.

The surroundings were arranged with refinement. Xi Zhen pushed open the door and discovered someone seated behind a folding screen. She walked around it and came face-to-face with him.

It was a young man, no more than twenty-five at most. His features carried a vicious edge that was completely at odds with his youth. Xi Zhen studied him from head to toe and finally found the source of the strange feeling he gave off: his eyes.

They were obviously almond-shaped eyes; by rights, they should have made him seem kind and approachable. But the owner of those eyes was clearly no good soul, so the originally gentle, pleasant eye shape had taken on a murderous air, making people feel unsettled.

Seeing that Xi Zhen had arrived, the man stood politely. “Miss Xi, I’ve been waiting a long time.”

Xi Zhen: “May I ask your surname, sir?”

“No need for such courtesy; my surname is Li.” Li Ji straightened his cuffs and gestured for Xi Zhen to sit.

Li? That surname turned once in Xi Zhen’s mind, and very quickly she realized exactly who this person was.

Xi Zhen: “And what business do you have with me, Mr. Li?”

Li Ji: “Miss Xi, let’s speak plainly. I’m sure you’ve seen those photos. I personally have no interest in my elder sister’s love life; it’s just that I hope Miss Xi understands the principle of protecting herself first.”

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing much. I think Miss Xi also knows that the rumors online right now are not aimed at you. This is our Li family’s business; please don’t interfere too much. Otherwise, what might happen, I really can’t say.”

“You’re threatening me?”

“Not at all, not at all. It’s just that I know you care very much about your aunt? And that cousin of yours too? Miss Xi is a smart person; naturally you know what I mean, and you know what the wise choice is.” Li Ji poured Xi Zhen a cup of tea. The tea was clear and golden; it was indeed good tea, a pity Xi Zhen had no desire to drink any of it right now.

“What exactly do you want to do?”

“I don’t want to do anything. Miss Xi, there’s no need for you to throw everything away for a liar like my sister. That would be far too stupid.” Li Ji took a sip of tea and said slowly, “I hope Miss Xi isn’t a fool, since by now you should already be unable to get through to Li Xingqing’s phone, shouldn’t you?”

How would Li Ji know? What exactly was happening to Xingqing now? A string of questions hung over Xi Zhen’s head, leaving her with no room to calm down and think.

Xi Zhen said nothing, but Li Ji suddenly added in a surprisingly pleasant tone, “Miss Xi, M Country is not a peaceful place. You can investigate all you want, but I can guarantee you won’t find anything.”

“What do you want me to do?” By the time Li Ji had said this much, his harmless mask could no longer be maintained. Xi Zhen no longer had the mood to exchange meaningless pleasantries with him. Last night’s drinking party, the sudden eruption of public opinion—none of it had come out of nowhere. She didn’t know where Li Ji had started interfering.

Was it after she started dating Li Xingqing, or had he already been laying plans from the very beginning of the Seal the Heart project?

Li Ji: “Miss Xi is joking. I know Seal the Heart is your heart and soul; I’m sure you don’t want to see everything come to nothing. Even if you won’t think of yourself, your very talented director friend and your newly famous cousin should not be made into your sacrifices either.” He smiled and continued, “My request is very simple. I just need Miss Xi to help me record a short video; that will protect them, and also clear Miss Xi herself away from it all. I guarantee that once it’s done, I’ll definitely compensate Miss Xi. Take it as an apology for my sudden offense. What do you think, Miss Xi?”

The conditions Li Ji offered were extremely generous, so generous that he did not doubt Xi Zhen would accept his request. He had investigated Xi Zhen very early on; she was a woman of great resolve. More importantly, to her right now, Li Xingqing was nothing more than a romantic partner she had been dating for less than half a year. One side of the scale was already heavy enough; he was confident Xi Zhen would accept.

And indeed, after a moment of silence, Xi Zhen nodded. “Okay.”

That word of agreement happened to collide with Li Xingqing’s own; with a twelve-hour time difference, in the instant their echoes crossed, a new chasm seemed to split open out of nowhere between the two of them.

TL Note:

"banquet with hidden knives" (鸿门宴) = a trap-like meeting invitation with hostile intent; it alludes to the famous Hongmen Banquet in Chinese history.

"fox tail showed" (狐狸尾巴) = the person’s true nature or scheme was finally exposed.

"doesn’t amount to much"/"all show and no substance" (华而不实) = looks impressive on the surface but has little real value.