The car drove away from Shuangbai Village and headed towards the city center of Nan'ai.

Lu Yu hugged Jiao Yuyin's waist tightly, refusing to let go. Unable to hold back her tears, they soaked his shoulder, leaving a dark stain on his shirt.

Why are you crying?

His words were gentle and soft, without the anxiety of searching for answers or the helplessness of confusion.

Lu Yu thought of Jiao Yuyin, who had just appeared in Sister Ou's thoughts. There were fragmented moments of him there, fleeting yet filled with helplessness.

"I want to go back to when you were little... to attend your parent-teacher conference." The nasal congestion from her crying hadn't yet subsided, but Lu Yu's voice was like a feather, brushing against my heart.

The truth from twenty years ago slowly emerged in the cramped space inside the vehicle.

The development of Yuhua Group has not been smooth sailing.

During the Jiao family's lowest point, Wen Tangli fell in love with Jiao Cheng, who persevered through his difficult times. Even though Jiao Cheng had remarried several times, his gentle and refined nature still captivated Wen Tangli.

The chairman of the Wen Group believed that Jiaocheng, which had been supported by the Wen family all along, would become the Wen Group's future safe haven and the strongest protection for Wen Tangli, the only daughter of the Wen family.

Jiao Cheng lived up to expectations, revitalizing Yuhua within three years and further expanding the Wen family's influence. At that time, the Wen and Jiao families were at the height of their power and influence.

No matter how glorious they are, Jiao Cheng and his children will always be labeled as relying on the Wen family.

Jiao Yuyin was the apple of everyone's eye in both the Jiao and Wen families. Born with a silver spoon in his mouth, Jiao Yuyin had his father's love and his mother's support. It seemed that from the moment the third son of the Jiao family was born, he was destined to become the future head of both the Wen and Jiao families.

Until—some members of the Jiao family could no longer hold back and began to take the risk of making a move.

Jiao Yushen arranged for Tao Peng to anonymously report the Wen family for maliciously manipulating the stock market. During the investigation of the Wen family, the Jiao family did not offer any assistance. This incident caused further discord between Jiao Cheng and Wen Tangli, leading to a breakdown in their relationship.

Taking advantage of the fact that Wen Tangli was locked in the Jiao family's old house by Jiao Cheng, Jiao Hua'an secretly put depressing drugs in Wen Tangli's food.

...

Lu Yu spoke haltingly, and before they knew it, the car had arrived at a five-star hotel in downtown Nan'ai.

Jiao Yuyin and Lu Yu stepped into the room.

"So back then, Sister Ou discovered that Jiao Hua'an had harmed my mother, but she kept quiet because she didn't want to cause trouble. Since my mother's surname is Wen, not Jiao, and it wasn't Jiao Hua'an who raised her, she continued to serve my mother food laced with medicine every day, right?" Jiao Yuyin sat on the sofa, his arms resting on his legs, trembling.

Lu Yu nodded slightly and said, "Later, my mother's health deteriorated..." Lu Yu paused noticeably, carefully choosing her words.

"Jiao Cheng's affair further provoked my mother, didn't it?" Jiao Yuyin said, expressing his guess and calling Jiao Cheng by his name.

“Hmm…” Lu Yu lowered her tongue to the roof of her mouth and forced herself to continue, “On the day Mom passed away, Jiao Yuchen showed her evidence of your father’s infidelity and his taking the opportunity to annex the Wen Group… Sister Ou saw it.”

Lu Yu leaned on Jiao Yuyin's shoulder, took Jiao Yuyin's hand, and their fingers intertwined.

“Until my second sister, Jiao Huachang, became pregnant, she suffered a miscarriage due to the struggle for the title of eldest grandson and the succession to the Jiao family's power. It was then that my sister Ou connected this to what Jiao Huaan had done years ago. After telling my second sister everything, she investigated further and discovered that Jiao Huaan had indeed used the same trick again, adding a blood-activating drug to my second sister's food, which caused the miscarriage. It was also around that time that my second sister discovered Tao Peng's pharmaceutical factory.” Lu Yu's hand involuntarily tightened its grip before continuing, “My second sister took the evidence she found to your father, but she never expected…”

"Jiao Cheng's reply is probably just that old matters won't be pursued, huh... How can we let people dig up the Jiao family's scandals..." Jiao Yuyin closed his eyes and said mockingly, "Was it Jiao Cheng who instructed his children to assassinate my mother?"

With just two sentences, Jiao Yuyin clearly distinguished between the Jiao family and the Wen family. At that moment, the Jiao family was completely removed from Jiao Yuyin's list of family members.

Lu Yu said, "It shouldn't be. From what I heard from Sister Ou, your father probably only found out the truth after your mother passed away. At least that's what your father told your second sister. After your second sister learned of his attitude, she was heartbroken and wanted to take the evidence to the police."

"Jiao Cheng would not allow anyone to fight him to the death..." Jiao Yuyin said, "So afterwards, my second sister was locked up in a mental hospital by Jiao Cheng, right?"

"Well, I don't know if Second Sister sensed something, but before she went to find Jiao Cheng, she told Sister Ou and Xin Chao, and even gave Xin Chao the backup evidence she had taken on the spot. As long as the two of them have the evidence, at least their lives can be guaranteed to be safe," Lu Yu repeated, half-understanding.

"The evidence might only be fragmented information, not forming a complete chain of evidence, but it's enough to threaten Jiao Cheng," Jiao Yuyin explained to Lu Yu. "As long as Xin Chao and Sister Ou both keep the secret, they're each other's lifeline. Where is Xin Chao now? Do you hear me?"

“I only heard it was in Istanbul,” Lu Yu replied.

"Looks like I'll have to start preparing for my Turkish visa soon." Jiao Yuyin narrowed his eyes.

"Huh? You want to find someone in Istanbul? That's like looking for a needle in a haystack," Lu Yu said in surprise.

“We still have to try to salvage it. Now is the time to race against time. Before Jiao Cheng finds it, we should arrange for people to search as much as possible. We should have a time advantage…” Jiao Yuyin’s voice grew softer and softer. “Xin Chao has his and Sister Ou’s bargaining chips for self-rescue. We’ll only feel at ease if we have them in our hands.”

...

In Shuangbai Village, an overseas phone call was made from Sister Ou's cell phone.

"Jiao Yuyin came to see me. Be careful during this time."

"Understood. Nothing seems amiss on my end. Jiao Cheng doesn't know my location, so you should be careful while you're in the country."