Lin Xiaoxue: "..." I'm so angry. My second sister is such a fool. She blindly trusts my eldest sister. My eldest sister is cunning. Be careful she doesn't sell me out one day and then help her count the money.
Hmph, there's no way to communicate; no one in this family is on her side.
In the president's office of Songbai Group, Assistant Liu finished reporting on work matters but did not leave immediately, appearing hesitant to speak.
"Just say what you have to say. When did you become so hesitant?" Bai Junbai said without looking up as he signed the document.
"Young Master Bai, the Lin family has arrived in the capital."
Bai Junbai stopped what he was doing, looked up at him, and asked, "Oh, when did this happen? Why haven't they come to the house?"
"I only found out by chance when I went to the hospital to visit a friend yesterday." Last night, Assistant Liu went to the hospital to visit a friend. On his way back, he saw a person's profile at the hospital entrance that looked familiar, but he couldn't figure out who it was at the time.
This morning while brushing my teeth, I suddenly remembered who that person resembled. Three years ago, Lin Xiazhu was only fifteen years old, with a very childish face. Three years have passed, and she has grown taller, her features have fully matured, and her temperament has become more composed.
Out of curiosity, he asked around and learned from a friend who was hospitalized that the other party was from the south, consisting of four sisters who spoke with a strong local accent. They had brought their mother to Beijing to see a patient.
But their mother passed away the next morning. Her death was quite sudden. After being kept in the morgue for a day and a night, she was sent to the hospital for cremation.
Assistant Liu had a bad feeling at the time, as if he had missed something, so he immediately sent someone to investigate, and the results were also puzzling.
"They arrived in Beijing four days ago. Lin Xiazhu's mother passed away three days ago. She was cremated yesterday, and they flew back today." They never thought of contacting the Bai family. They came in a hurry and left quietly, as if they had never been there.
Bai Junbai: "..." He stood up with a somewhat solemn expression, frowned, and walked to the French window to ponder.
After a long silence, he finally spoke, "Zhao Xiaolian passed away? What illness did she have? Why have we never heard them mention it?"
Before Xiao An went abroad, he kept telling him to take good care of the Lin family, and he agreed. However, nothing happened to the Lin family in the past two years, and Lin Xiazhu did not ask for any help.
"I thought that as long as people paid attention to their daily lives and no one bothered them, they could live a peaceful and stable life with their own money, and everything would be fine. But I never expected Zhao Xiaolian to be so seriously ill and pass away." Bai Junbai muttered to himself, and finally sighed heavily.
How should he explain things to Xiao An when she calls again? The old man's condition isn't good either, so maybe it's best to keep it from him for now.
Xiao An never mentioned Zhao Xiaolian's illness during their phone calls, which suggests that the Lin family was keeping it from him and didn't want him to worry.
But what's Lin Xiazhu doing? Why is she coming to the capital so secretly, without contacting the Bai family? It's like she's hiding something.
Although he hadn't spent much time with her, Bai Junbai believed he was quite good at judging people. Lin Xiazhu wasn't the type to be coy. If she needed help, she wouldn't refuse to say anything. She wasn't one to be polite unless she intentionally wanted to hide something.
Bai Junbai's mind raced. He was always good at guessing what others were thinking, but the secret between Lin Xiazhu and Yan Xin touched on his blind spot. No matter how clever he was, he couldn't figure it out.
Timed it perfectly, and just as Lin Xiazhu and her group had disembarked, Bai Junbai called. Lin Xiazhu had just turned on her mobile phone when it rang.
"Hello, who is this?" She didn't have Bai Junbai's private number, so she didn't recognize the number.
"Lin Xiazhu, this is Bai Junbai. I heard you came to Beijing. Why didn't you contact me?" Bai Junbai rubbed his temples, feeling a bit of a headache.
Lin Xiazhu paused for a moment. She wasn't surprised that Bai Junbai had discovered that her family had been to the capital. After all, the Bai family was powerful and had many connections, so it was difficult to keep anything from them.
“I don’t think it’s necessary. My mother passed away, and our family is too busy grieving to have time to reconnect with you. As for the rest, I can handle it myself and don’t want to bother others. We were in a hurry to come back for the funeral, so we came back.”
The implication is that you're just an outsider, and it's not like you're meddling too much. How I handle my family matters is none of your business.
Hearing Lin Xiazhu's calm and emotionless words, Bai Junbai choked for a moment, feeling quite uncomfortable. It seemed that Lin Xiazhu was deliberately distancing herself from the Bai family.
After the last few Ganoderma lucidum mushrooms were sold and the money was transferred to her account, she never contacted him again, nor did she ever call the Bai family. Apart from occasionally making a phone call with Xiao An in private, there was nothing else.
At eighteen, Lin Xiazhu was just coming of age. She was more mature, composed, and independent than before. Before adulthood, she couldn't do many things on her own, so she would lower herself to please others. But she grew up quickly, and when she was capable, she never bothered others.
She is also very perceptive and can read people's expressions. No matter how well you try to hide it, she can see right through you.
Bai Junbai sighed deeply. For the past three years, he had intentionally or unintentionally prevented Xiao An from contacting her, because he was afraid that Xiao An would become too dependent on her and develop other feelings for her.
She pretended to know nothing, as if she hadn't noticed anything, but in reality, she saw through everything. Without anyone saying anything, she took the initiative to distance herself, in every aspect.
Last night, she and her three younger sisters spent the night on the floor of her villa, refusing to come to him. Her stubbornness was so heartbreaking.
"If Lin Xiazhu needs any help, please don't hesitate to ask," Bai Junbai said, softening his tone.
Lin Xiazhu calmly declined, "Thank you, but I can handle it myself. I'll hang up if there's nothing else."
Then she hung up immediately, expressionless, and walked out of the airport carrying the urn. Lin Shanfu and Zhang Yu just got out of the taxi and saw them.
“Xiaozhu, Chacha…” Lin Shanfu walked over quickly, “Are you alright?” His voice was a little choked up.
"Uncle, we're fine. Let's go back first and talk about it later." They still needed to go to the station to catch a bus back to the county town.
Seeing their exhausted faces, Lin Shanfu wanted to advise them to find a place to eat and rest before going back, but when he saw the urn in Lin Xiazhu's arms, he ultimately said nothing.
Zhang Yu didn't say anything, but hailed a taxi, and the group went to the station to catch their train.
The next two days were for the funeral, which was held in the county town. Zhao Xiaolian's ashes were not brought back to Linjia Village. She had always dreamed of leaving the countryside and living in the city. After her death, let her ashes be buried in the county town as she wished.
Three days later, on the morning of the same day, Zhao Xiaolian was taken up the mountain for burial with great fanfare. Lin Xiazhu paid for a very respectable tomb to be built for her, which was a fitting tribute to Zhao Xiaolian.
According to local custom, when someone in the family passes away, relatives are expected to visit the following day. The Zhao family came at the funeral and arrived early the day after the burial.
However, they came with a purpose, and even revealed their intentions too soon.
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