Are you still in France?

The voice on the phone was Ji Jianshen's gentle tone. Ye Xinning couldn't help but think of how Ji Jianshen always appeared so gentle and refined whenever they met. His health hadn't been very good over the years. But the illness hadn't diminished his good temper; instead, it had given him a sense of tranquility and contentment.

"Yes, it's still here." She said, her voice filled with helplessness, perhaps because she had just experienced a kidnapping.

Sensing something amiss in her tone, Ji Jian asked, "What happened?"

"I've been kidnapped; something unexpected happened."

Upon hearing that she had been kidnapped, Ji Jian asked with concern, "How were you kidnapped? Were you injured?"

"I'm not injured." Only Shen Lin was injured.

Of course, Ye Xinning didn't say the second half of the sentence. Ji Jianshen and Shen Lin had no connection, so she didn't need to explain anything further.

"That's good. Have you found out who it was?"

"Qin Xiang," Ye Xinning said softly, "There's no need to investigate; he was right there. By the way, do you know Qin Xiang?"

"I know, but I'm not familiar with it."

"So you've known all along about my father's life in France?"

Ji Jianshen was silent for a moment, probably not expecting her to ask that question.

"He doesn't want to tell you because he's afraid of dragging you into this family feud. Even if you had told him in advance that you were going to France on a business trip, he probably would have tried everything to make you cancel."

That makes sense, Ji Jianshen knows her father, so how could she not know about her father's affairs in France?

She was careless.

Ji Jianshen, a man with absolute power in the charity industry, is so obedient to his father, always listening to him without question.

Then how could her father be an ordinary person?

It's her fault; she should have been the first to notice this.

"I understand," she replied softly.

Ji Jian knew that she was feeling complicated at the moment. "Don't think too much. No one in this world loves you more than your Uncle Song."

"Yes, I know that Dad did all this for my own good."

She just didn't like the feeling of being deceived.

"Don't worry, Uncle Song will handle anything that happens to you in France."

"Um."

"I'm glad you're alright. I'll hang up now. Be careful over there."

"good."

After hanging up the phone with Ji Jianshen, Ye Xinning let out a long sigh.

She had initially thought her father was just running a small business in France, but now it seemed she had been careless.

...

On the other side, in a villa district in France.

Looking at Ji Jianshen, who had been standing silently in front of the French windows since hanging up the phone, Zhou Yun hesitated for a few moments before cautiously asking, "Sir, are you really not going to go look for Miss?"

"I'm not going."

“But you’re already in France, and this has happened to Miss. She’ll definitely be happy to see you there.”

"She's with that guy from the Shen family, and the house is even under his name. How can I go there?"

"But……"

Zhou Yun wanted to say something, but before she could speak, Ji Jianshen interrupted her.

"Alright, that's enough."

Zhou Yun's gaze was complicated. Ji Jianshen did not turn around and continued to look into the distance. "She's come to France. There are many people eyeing her covetously. Find a few people to protect her secretly. Don't let the Shen family find out, and don't let Uncle Song notice either."

"Yes, sir, I will arrange it."

"Also, since Qin Xiang is so audacious as to do such a thing, let him suffer a bit. Isn't he eyeing the market in Nans? Find a way to slip something into his goods."

"good."

...

When Ye Xinning returned to the bedroom, the doctor had already treated Shen Lin's wounds and given him some instructions. After the doctor left, Gu Shilin said, "You've just woken up, so don't overdo it. Just rest well."

Shen Lin remained silent, his gaze fixed on Ye Xinning's direction, his eyes filled with a gentle light.

Ye Xinning lowered her head to avoid his gaze. Gu Shilin noticed the shifting light in their eyes and shook his head helplessly.

"Alright, let's talk about it after you've recovered. Staring at your sister-in-law like that will scare her away."

"Get out," Shen Lin said, looking at Gu Shilin.

Gu Shilin was amused by his act of betraying his benefactor. "I'm not leaving. I don't know who begged me to find someone to investigate my second sister-in-law before. Now that she's back, they're turning their backs on me? No way."

"Begging you?" Ye Xinning, who had been silent all along, looked up at Gu Shilin upon hearing this, completely disbelieving that someone as proud and domineering as Shen Lin would do something like begging.

Gu Shilin nodded and described to Ye Xinning with great interest, "Second sister-in-law, you don't know how worried my second brother was about you. After he found out you disappeared, he couldn't sit still for a moment. He asked me to mobilize everyone I could to look for news about you. Also, Qin Nuo was someone my second brother thought of. Speaking of which, it's fortunate that my second brother thought of Qin Nuo, otherwise we might not have been able to get Qin Xiang to release her."

Ye Xinning turned her gaze to Shen Lin, and for a moment she didn't know what to say. Shen Lin held an unforgettable place in her heart.

"go out."

Shen Lin spoke again, saying nothing else but to tell Gu Shilin to leave.

Gu Shilin rolled his eyes helplessly. "You really are turning your back on me. Okay, I'm going out now. If you reopen the wound, don't ask me to call a doctor this time. You'll just have to suffer on your own."

Having said all that, Shen Lin was even less inclined to see Gu Shilin. Gu Shilin, not wanting to make a fool of himself by standing there, opened the door and left.

Only Ye Xinning and Shen Lin remained in the bedroom. Neither of them spoke first, and the atmosphere in the bedroom was strange. Ye Xinning didn't not speak because she didn't want to talk to Shen Lin; she was just thinking about what she would be like if Shen Lin hadn't appeared.

She wasn't made of stone; her heart was warm. From the moment she met Shen Lin until now, whether it was five years ago, before in Beicheng, or this time, Shen Lin had always done everything he could to save her.

Although she harbored resentment because of what had happened before, she was genuinely grateful to Shen Lin. Even now, thinking back on what happened yesterday still terrified her. She had to admit, even if she didn't want to, that Shen Lin gave her a sense of security that no one else could provide.

"Ningning." Shen Lin spoke as Ye Xinning was lost in thought due to her complicated emotions.

Ye Xinning looked up at him and saw that Shen Lin was trying to sit up. Ye Xinning quickly stepped forward to help him up. "Do you want to sit up?"