Chapter 324 Lin Zhixin's Image Collapses

Upon hearing that Lin Zhixin was trending on social media, Jiang Shiyuan immediately lost all interest in looking at her phone and continued burying herself in revising the design drafts.

"What's so interesting? Either she gets photographed on a date with Xie Jinghuai, or she takes out some gift Xie Jinghuai gave her and flaunts it. It's boring."

"No, this time it's negative!"

Yin Meng quickly placed her phone under her eyes, a gleeful smile spreading across her face. "I don't know which extraordinary person posted photos of Lin Zhixin smoking and drinking in private online. In those photos, she looks like a female gangster! The filter of her former high-class, elegant goddess image has been shattered! It has blinded so many of her brainless fans!"

"Hiss...Isn't she in poor health? Like a paper-thin Lin Daiyu, she'd blow away in the wind. But in the video, she was smoking quite heavily and drinking quite a bit; she didn't look sick at all."

“Because she’s not sick at all,” Jiang Shiyuan said calmly.

Yin Meng was shocked. "What? She's not sick?! Then why does she look so sickly... could it be an act for President Xie?!"

Jiang Shiyuan smiled but remained silent.

"Good heavens... they really went all out with their act."

Yin Meng frowned in puzzlement, "But, all these years, hasn't she given herself away to President Xie? You can pretend to be sick for a while, but if you pretend for so long, won't you be exposed as soon as you go to the hospital?"

"She has a brilliant method that never fails."

Jiang Shiyuan's beautiful eyes curved into crescents. Whether it was because Lin Zhixin was trending on social media or because she had caught the mastermind behind the plot against Xi'er, she was in a good mood. "I'll tell you when I'm done with my work."

...

Lin Zhixin's disgraceful behavior of smoking and drinking quickly spread throughout Beijing, causing quite a stir.

The internet exploded with discussion:

[Holy crap! Is that Lin Zhixin in the photo? She's so outgoing in private!]

[Completely different in public! Such a pretentious act!]

"Isn't she in poor health? She seems to be drinking a lot, and the way she smokes, she's obviously a heavy smoker, probably with a smoking history comparable to my dad's."

Is she sick or not? I really don't understand.

[Sigh, these days, everyone's just trying to create a persona. Lin Zhixin's probably trying to portray Lin Daiyu. Being delicate and frail is exactly what makes President Xie feel sorry for her, isn't it?]

Inside the president's office of the Xie Group.

Xie Jinghuai scrolled through the comments about Lin Zhixin on his phone, a heavy, gloomy look settling over his handsome face.

"Mr. Xie, what's going on here?"

Seeing Lin Zhixin stumble, Han Xu was secretly delighted. Suppressing his pleasure, he asked, "Miss Lin, wasn't your health always poor? And when you took her to see the doctor before, the doctor said she absolutely couldn't smoke or drink, as it would worsen her condition. At the time, she also said she wouldn't smoke, let alone drink. In this photo, I see that Miss Lin has an excellent alcohol tolerance, and her smoking posture is quite skillful. That's quite surprising."

His tea-like manner is quite unlike his usual style.

However, when dealing with a green tea like Lin Zhixin, this is the trick you have to use: magic countermeasure!

Sure enough, Xie Jinghuai's face became even more ashen, turning as black as an ancient coal mine.

With a thud, he threw his phone on the table, his brows furrowed in frustration, his temples throbbing so hard that his forehead was covered in cold sweat.

Yes, Zhixin's body is so fragile.

How could she smoke and drink?

Isn't this a waste of all the effort he put into treating her body?

Also, when did she learn to smoke? He had no idea.

Xie Jinghuai was feeling annoyed when his assistant's respectful voice came from outside the door:

"Mr. Xie, Director Lin is here and wants to see you."

Xie Jinghuai half-closed his phoenix eyes, his gaze deep and unfathomable.

Seeing the president's displeasure, Han Xu thought to himself, "This time, I'll finally teach that wicked woman, Lin Zhixin, a lesson she won't forget."

Unexpectedly, the next second, Xie Jinghuai opened his lips in a cold voice:

"Let her in."

Han Xu: "…………"

You're so spineless! Mr. Xie, how could you be so spineless!

Lin Zhixin pushed open the office door and walked in. As soon as she entered, tears streamed down her face, her eyes red and swollen.

"Brother Jinghuai..."

Han Xu silently spat in his heart: You're just a liar! Let's see how you act this time!

What are you doing here?

Xie Jinghuai glanced at Lin Zhixin, then lowered his long eyelashes and looked back at the documents on the table. His attitude was noticeably less gentle than before. "Next Friday is the day of the new car launch. You should be in the R&D department right now, making final adjustments to the new car and leading everyone to focus all their energy on the new product. You shouldn't be in front of me at this time."

Completely, this refers to the attitude of a superior towards their subordinates.

"Brother Jinghuai... are you angry with me?"

Lin Zhixin walked up to the man, tears clinging to her wet eyelashes, which fluttered down with each blink. "Those photos..."

Are those photos real?

Xie Jinghuai's voice was so cold it made her heart race, and she didn't even lift her eyelids.

Lin Zhixin knew she couldn't hide it anymore, and Jing Huai would think she was a fool, so she had no choice but to bite the bullet and admit it:

"yes……"

"Zhixin, do you know how much effort and energy I've spent on your health over the years? By not taking care of yourself like this, you're letting down all the care I've given you."

The man's voice was filled with resentment and anger, "From now on, if you have another episode, you'll have to figure it out yourself. I don't want to help someone who goes against my ideas, doesn't take care of their own body, and acts recklessly."

"Brother Jinghuai! No... don't abandon me!"

Lin Zhixin sobbed uncontrollably, gripping Xie Jinghuai's strong arm tightly with both hands as if it were a lifeline. "I don't actually smoke... That day was the first time I ever smoked. I was in such a bad mood that day. My father hasn't spoken to my mother since, and he hasn't been home for many days... Plus, the R&D department is so busy, and I'm afraid I won't do well and will embarrass you, so I'm under so much pressure every day... I need sleeping pills to fall asleep..."

Han Xu (in his mind): Bah! I don't believe you!

However, Xie Jinghuai's tightly furrowed brows relaxed somewhat, clearly indicating that he was gradually accepting the excuse she had made up.

Lin Zhixin knelt on one knee at his feet, raising her tear-stained face. "Brother Jinghuai... I don't know who hurt me like this, but I really didn't act recklessly... I swear I only acted recklessly once!"

I'll never do it again! Just one more time... and please, never bother with me again, okay?

"I don't want it to happen again, because you saved my life, so I sincerely hope you can get better."

Xie Jinghuai bent down to help her stand up. Although his expression was cold, his tone was noticeably gentler than when she had just come in. "If you feel tired, go home and rest this afternoon."

"It's okay, Brother Jinghuai, I can do it..."

Lin Zhixin came out of the office, her eyes bloodshot with hatred. She immediately ran to the rooftop of the building and howled wildly to vent her anger.

The carefully cultivated public image she had maintained for so many years almost crumbled!

This time, Brother Jinghuai was clearly angry. If it happened again, he would definitely suspect that there was something wrong with her body. If he investigated further, he would really be unable to hide it!

Lin Zhixin was both angry and furious, and immediately called her mother:

"Mom! There's a traitor in our family! You need to check the CCTV footage from two weeks ago to see who's behind my back! I'm going to kill him when I get back!"

"Xinxin, Mom has checked, it's that maid named Xiaoqing!"

Liu Nianrou was also furious. "But she resigned last week. I asked the housekeeper to call her, but she changed her phone number. I sent someone to her house, but the landlord said she had already terminated the lease. Now we can't find her at all!"

"Damn it!" Lin Zhixin stomped her feet frantically, her craving for cigarettes kicking in again.

Not only that, she suddenly realized that her hands were trembling uncontrollably.

However, she was in a fit of anger at the moment and only thought that she was too angry, so she didn't take it seriously.

"Mom, I'm almost out of medicine. Please find me some more quickly!"

"Mom knows, Mom will go out tonight to get your medicine."

Liu Nianrou repeatedly instructed, "During this period, you must behave yourself and absolutely cannot cause any more trouble, understand?"

Although your uncle has erased all of Jiang Shiyuan's medical records at the Third Affiliated Hospital of Beijing-Tongzhou, we still cannot let our guard down and arouse Mr. Xie's suspicion.

...

In the afternoon, Lin Zhixin returned to the R&D department with a dark and gloomy face, looking extremely unlucky.

The employees didn't dare to approach her, but behind her back they were all pointing and whispering about what was trending on social media.

Everyone was used to her stealing credit or scolding them, and they had long harbored resentment towards her. Now that her public image had crumbled, everyone felt a sense of satisfaction.

Lin Zhixin returned to her office, slumped into a leather chair, closed her eyes to rest, but her mind was a mess.

Just then, there was a knock on the door, and a female employee walked in:

"Director Lin, there is a document here that needs your signature immediately."

Lin Zhixin impatiently picked up the document, then suddenly exclaimed "Ah!" and threw it on the ground.

"Ouch! What's on that? It's really pricking me!"

Sure enough, bright red blood gradually seeped from her fingertips, and the flow increased over time.

"No, I'm sorry, Director Lin, the documents are a bit thick, and the staples didn't hold them together properly! I'll fix it for you right away!" The female employee panicked and scrambled to her feet.

"Idiot! I have a first-aid kit under the coffee table, get it now!"

Soon, the female employee retrieved the first-aid kit, treated Lin Zhixin's wound, and bandaged it.

Lin Zhixin closed her eyes in annoyance. "Fine! Get out!"

"Yes, yes..."

The female employee quickly left the director's office.

But instead of returning to her workstation, she went into the restroom, locked the door after confirming that no one was inside, and made a phone call.

From that direction came Yin Meng's urgent voice:

"How's it going? Did you get it?"

"I got it! I even secretly collected a tiny blood sample, and Lin Zhixin didn't notice at all!"

The female employee finally relaxed and smiled happily. "Sister Mengmeng, I'm really happy to be able to help you and Sister Shiyuan."

"President Jiang said he would like to thank you in person when he has time, and not only that, he will also give you a big gift."

"No need, no need, it was just a small favor, nothing at all. It's Lin Zhixin who's been bullying and arrogant, acting like a complete idiot. One day she'll taste what it's like to be kicked when you're down!"

The girl chuckled, "If you really want to thank me, buy me a milk tea! Plenty of toppings!"

Yin Mengyi laughed, "I'll get you a yearly membership to the bubble tea shop, all you can eat!"