Lin Zhaojiang was also taken aback, but he didn't show it.

He simply gave a perfunctory greeting.

Rachel took Linna to familiarize herself with the work environment, while Lin Zhaojiang pulled Xiao Liran aside and asked her what was going on.

Xiao Liran smiled somewhat awkwardly: "She came to apply for a management position, but I saw that her writing skills were very good and she had previous experience as an editor, so I asked her to temporarily act as an editor while also working as an agent... I'm short-staffed here!"

"That's not what I meant!" Lin Zhaojiang glanced at her. "Why did you bring her here?"

"Oh..." Xiao Liran scratched her head, "I only found out a couple of days ago after I finished my background check that she's your sister..."

"Xiao Liran?" Lin Zhaojiang's eyes widened in disbelief. "We were husband and wife for a time... You've never seen her at our house before?!"

"Hey, hey, hey, Lin Zhaojiang!" Xiao Liran hurriedly retorted, "Don't talk nonsense like that! I'm not afraid that Song Wan will misunderstand, but you are! We've been living separately since we got married. When have I ever lived in your house before?"

"I've never stayed there, but you always attend when there are banquets at home!"

"Brother, that's a banquet! I have face blindness and can't recognize people... I've never seen your young lady before!"

Lin Zhaojiang paused for a moment.

Indeed, Lin Na has little presence. Not to mention Xiao Liran, even he sometimes feels that Lin Na's appearance is vague.

In the entire Lin family, there's probably no one who truly cares about Lin Na.

It's quite sad to be someone else's adopted daughter, especially an adopted daughter from a large family.

Lin Zhaojiang pursed his lips helplessly and was about to leave Xiao Liran's office when she called him back.

"Why are you reacting so strongly? What grudge do you have against her?"

“It’s not that…” Lin Zhaojiang paused, “It’s just that I feel she has never been compatible with our family. To be honest, I don’t know her very well, so you should be careful and not let your guard down just because she’s family.”

"You don't need to worry about that," Xiao Liran chuckled. "I'm not stupid!"

Lin Zhaojiang nodded, walked out, and bumped into Lin Na at the corner of the company.

Just then, she and Rachel walked around the entire company, tidied up their workstations, and moved the manuscripts they needed to read over.

"Big brother," Lin Na said with her usual kind and sincere smile, "do you have time to chat for a bit?"

Lin Zhaojiang had the same idea.

The two went downstairs to a coffee shop. Linna looked at the menu and ordered only a free glass of water.

"Don't you like these drinks?" Lin Zhaojiang asked casually. "If you don't like this place, we can go somewhere else."

“No.” Linna forced a smile. “These… are too expensive. A cup of coffee costs more than forty yuan.”

Lin Zhaojiang was stunned for a moment.

Even if she's an adopted daughter, she's still the daughter of the prestigious Lin family. Surely she can afford a cup of coffee.

He looked the younger sister up and down. She was dressed very plainly, without makeup or dressing up. The white-collar workers in those office buildings were all beautiful and charming, but she lived like an outlier.

With her ordinary looks and ordinary clothes, she had no presence at all, not only in the Lin family home but also in this office building.

"It's alright, it's on you." Lin Zhaojiang glanced at her. "Drink whatever you want."

"Really, it's not necessary." Lin Na smiled gently. "Big brother, you might be wondering why I can't even afford a cup of coffee... Actually, this is the kind of life I live at home. On the surface, it's glamorous, I'm the daughter of the Lin family, but only I know the bitterness behind it. My parents don't really care about me, and my younger siblings try every means to ostracize me. I have a car to ride in and food to eat when I come home, but none of that belongs to me. The only things that have truly belonged to me over the years are my few jobs."

Linna looked somewhat sad, and this was the first time she had spoken so much to him.

"Brother, I...I'm a little sorry." She stammered, "I came to Mr. Xiao's place using your name. She's your ex-wife, so I..."

"It's alright, it's just a job," Lin Zhaojiang said casually. "It's a good thing that Xiao Liran can help you."

"So, brother, you don't mind?"

"Why should I care?"

"Brother, don't worry." Lin Na bit her lip. "I will definitely work hard with President Xiao and won't let you down."

Lin Zhaojiang nodded. He was quite at ease with Lin Na. She was reliable and meticulous in her work, and her work ability was second to none in the Lin family.

If she weren't an adopted daughter, perhaps she could have been entrusted with important responsibilities within the company.

"By the way, brother, there's something else I've been thinking about and I think I should tell you."

"What's up?"

Lin Na hesitated for a moment, then said softly, "That day, I ran into Song Huai. You remember Song Huai, right? He's Song Wan's brother..."

Lin Zhaojiang was somewhat surprised.

Before he could say anything, she brought it up herself.

“This is what happened…” Lin Na said, “That day I went out to buy some things for my mother, so I asked the driver to take the family car. I didn’t expect to run into Song Huai on that street after I finished buying the things. He came to ask me for money.”

"You want money?"

“Yes.” Linna looked at him. “He said he lost a bet and wanted some money from me.”

Lin Zhaojiang's eyes darkened. "Why would he ask you for money?"

“Maybe he saw that the car belonged to the Lin family,” Lin Na shrugged. “The Lin family’s cars have easier-to-recognize license plates, and his sister was with you…”

Lin Zhaojiang remained silent.

“Brother, I ignored him,” Lin Na continued. “I had heard before that he was a bad person, so when he came to ask for money, I just pretended not to know him. I guess he was desperate this time, otherwise he would never have come to me.”

Her words were somewhat similar to what her assistant had discovered during the investigation.

Could it be... that Lin Na's meeting with Song Huai was really just a coincidence?

"Big brother, did I do the right thing?" Lin Na nervously gripped the glass with both hands. "After all... he's Song Wan's brother, but I ignored him. Wasn't that a bit..."

"Yes, you did the right thing," Lin Zhaojiang said in a deep voice. "You don't need to worry about this anymore. From now on, I will handle everything related to Song Huai."

"Okay!" Linna finally smiled, like a nervous student finally receiving the teacher's approval.

"But speaking of which, it's quite a pity for Song Wan..." she mentioned, seemingly intentionally or unintentionally, "It's really unfortunate to have a brother like that. How much trouble a brother like that must cause her! And once he gets into trouble, you, eldest brother, will definitely have to step in, right?"

Lin Zhaojiang turned his gaze to her, narrowing his eyes, "What exactly are you trying to say?"