Chapter 48 "You, obediently submit to Yun..."
The shocking scandal that "Ye Jinyan is not of the Ye family bloodline" was suppressed by Old Master Ye using various means.
However, there are no real secrets in high society.
Although no one dared to discuss it openly, the story of how Old Master Ye was treated like a cuckold and had been raised as someone else's son for over twenty years still quietly spread within the circle.
For Ye Jinyan, however, the pain of falling from the clouds to the mud had only just begun.
Accustomed to spending money like water and being surrounded by entourage, Ye, the young master, suddenly lost all his sources of income and, in just a few days, experienced what it meant to be "strangled by a penny."
The cash in his pocket wouldn't last long, so he had to swallow his pride and ask his old cronies for help.
These people used to fawn over him, calling him "Young Master Ye" affectionately. Whether it was drinking or having fun, he always made the decisions.
Ye Jinyan felt that even if he lost power, he should be able to borrow some money to tide him over, based on past relationships.
However, after making several calls, the other end either said they were "in a meeting" or had "bad signal," or even blocked him.
In just a few days, Ye Jinyan had experienced the harsh realities of life.
It turns out that those who usually fawned over him and flattered him were only doing so because of the aura of "Young Master Ye".
At this moment, the only person Ye Jinyan could think of was Meng Xian.
He and Meng Xian were true love who reunited after going through many hardships. Even if the whole world abandoned him, Meng Xian should still stay by his side, right?
Clinging to this last hope, Ye Jinyan arrived outside the Meng family villa.
The first time, the maid politely told him through the ornate iron gate, "I'm sorry, Mr. Ye, Miss is in a bad mood and has gone out for a walk to clear her head. Her return date is uncertain."
Ye Jinyan's heart sank, but he still forced a smile and said, "When will she come back? I'll come again then."
Two days later, he visited again. This time, a different maid came out, but the explanation was similar: "Miss has gone to a health retreat and is not available to receive guests."
The third time, Ye Jinyan didn't even get to see Meng Xian's parents. The servant relayed the message: "The master and madam have told Mr. Ye not to come again, lest he cause gossip."
Three times in a row, I was turned away from the door for various reasons.
Even if Ye Jinyan is stupid, he should understand by now.
All these excuses—getting away for a while, taking a relaxing break, or going on a health retreat—are just that.
A surge of betrayal and anger welled up inside Ye Jinyan, and he immediately sent Meng Xian a message:
[Are you avoiding me?]
Shortly after the message was sent, Meng Xian replied: "Since you've found out, I'll be frank. We're breaking up."
Ye Jinyan's pupils constricted in disbelief: "Meng Xian, are you going to sever ties with me just because I'm no longer the eldest son of the Ye family? We've had so many years together, you think you can just break up with me like that?"
Meng Xian's reply was blunt: "Feelings are feelings, and reality is reality. We've both grown up; it's not like high school romances where everything was just about fleeting pleasures. Without the aura of being the eldest son of the Ye family, I don't think you're that charming, worth me risking everything for."
Ye Jinyan was so angry that his vision blurred, and he wished he could reach through the phone and strangle the other person: [Meng Xian, have you forgotten who helped you make connections when you first returned to the country and had no resources? Have you forgotten who used their connections to help you smear your rival when you didn't like them?]
"I haven't forgotten, thank you for everything you've done for me." Meng Xian's reply remained calm. "But things are different now, we need to face reality. You can't give me the future I want, and I can't waste any more time on you."
Ye Jinyan laughed in extreme anger.
He finally understood.
What first love, what white moonlight, what true love that's been mended after a broken relationship? Meng Xian is nothing but a thoroughly selfish, opportunistic, and despicable woman!
The last bit of filter shattered completely.
Extreme anger and a sense of betrayal consumed his last shred of reason. He stared at his phone and typed, word by word: "Meng Xian, you're heartless, don't blame me for being ruthless."
Meng Xian didn't seem too worried, her reply even carrying a hint of contempt: "Young Master Ye, you have nothing left. What threat can you pose to me? Save your energy and think about how you'll survive."
The unpleasant conversation came to a complete end.
Ye Jinyan paced back and forth in his cheap hotel room like a cornered beast.
Since Meng Xian abandoned him without any mercy and trampled on his last bit of dignity, he would never let her get away with it!
He gritted his teeth, logged into his main account, and began editing his Weibo post.
From how Meng Xian bribed casting directors and suppressed newcomers in her early career to the systematic tax evasion record of her team in recent years;
Recordings of Meng Xian's private, insulting remarks to fans and business partners...
Then there's the operational path and suspected accounts of Meng family-owned companies involved in illegal fundraising and money laundering...
Each one is more explosive than the last, each one more deadly than the last.
Although Ye Jinyan's main account has long been infamous because of the love triangle, countless netizens still come to check in every day, cursing the scumbag in various ways, and the traffic remains high.
So when his Weibo post was published, all netizens were shocked:
[My God... this is so much information! Even TV dramas wouldn't dare to portray it like this!]
Just when you think Meng Xian has reached the bottom, she manages to reach a new level of collapse.
[Tax evasion? Illegal fundraising? If this is true, it's not as simple as just leaving the entertainment industry, it's like going to be sent to work as a sewing machine!]
[Tsk tsk tsk, I just don't understand. Weren't Ye Jinyan and Meng Xian truly in love? How did they suddenly turn into dogs?]
As public opinion continued to escalate, the few remaining brand partners quickly terminated their contracts with Meng Xian.
Immediately afterwards, the stock price of Mengjia Holdings' listed company plummeted at the opening, continuing its sharp decline until it triggered the circuit breaker mechanism, resulting in a staggering loss of market value.
Meng Xian was so anxious at home that she was pacing around in circles, and her hair was falling out in clumps.
She never expected that Ye Jinyan, the man who had once been so obedient to her and claimed to love her more than anything, would have secretly pulled such a trick up his sleeve.
In desperation, Meng Xian quickly retaliated.
The next day, she posted a message on her personal account addressed Ye Jinyan: "Heh, you think you're clean? @YeJinyan."
Evidence was then released showing that Ye Jinyan had engaged in malicious competition, owed huge gambling debts to the casino, and participated in gray-area transactions.
The internet was in an uproar once again, and onlookers were overwhelmed with excitement.
Good heavens! I'm exclaiming, "Good heavens!" Is this a suicide mission?
[Birds of a feather flock together, these two are equally bad, neither should complain about the other's shortcomings.]
[Relevant departments, wake up! We've got work to do! @TaxBureau @PingAnYunCity]
Meng Xian's counterattack caused the already heated public opinion to spiral out of control.
But Ye Jinyan, who had nothing left, had nothing to fear and didn't take Meng Xian's counterattack seriously at all.
He then posted a second Weibo post, releasing more concrete evidence of the Meng family's involvement in economic crimes.
In just three days, the Meng family plummeted from its zenith to the mire. The Meng Group's stock price crashed, its cash flow dried up, several of its subsidiaries were seized, and Meng's parents were barred from leaving the country and placed under investigation.
Meng Xian herself not only faced a boycott from the entire internet, but also lost all her endorsement contracts and film and television resources. She was also taken away by the police for questioning on suspicion of being involved in a crime.
Ironically, Ye Jinyan was also taken away by the police on the same day due to his involvement in illicit activities and other issues.
According to paparazzi reports from the scene, the couple, after just meeting, started hurling insults at each other in the street, their vulgarity leaving onlookers stunned.
However, this dramatic and tumultuous dog-biting drama did not affect Yun Qingqing and Gu Mingyan.
"Something's wrong with you."
Gu Mingyan took a sip of coffee and observed Yun Qingqing's face.
Yun Qingqing was sipping her hot cocoa when she heard this, she paused, her eyes darting around: "...What's wrong?"
"Ever since you ran into that kid Gu Xubai on the first day of school, you've been constantly distracted. Last time I asked you to come to my house, you ran away faster than a rabbit after hearing his voice." Gu Mingyan said seriously, "Yun Qingqing, tell me honestly, what's going on between you and Gu Xubai?"
"Actually, it's nothing..." Yun said calmly, "It was just a little misunderstanding before."
"A little misunderstanding?" Gu Mingyan narrowed her eyes suspiciously, looking her up and down at her reddened ear tips, not believing it at all. "Don't try to fool me. The way you two looked at each other when your eyes met, how could it be a little misunderstanding? Tell me quickly, or I'll personally interrogate Gu Xubai."
Forced into a corner by her, Yun Qingqing had no choice but to bite the bullet and recount the farcical events of that night at the night market in a haphazard manner.
As soon as she finished speaking, Gu Mingyan slammed her hand on the table with a "smack," making the cups and saucers rattle softly.
"I knew it!" The young lady's eyebrows shot up, and she gritted her teeth. "That bastard Gu Xubai! He always pretends to be a respectable and abstinent person, but he actually dares to covet my best friend!"
"Hey, don't..." Yun Qingqing quickly pulled her back. "Actually, this is mainly my fault. Some of my actions were too easy for people to misunderstand."
"That's no excuse for him to have ulterior motives!" Gu Mingyan, siding with her family regardless of the truth, launched a full-scale attack. "I think he has impure intentions and has been plotting against you for a long time! I'm going to settle accounts with him when I get back!"
"No, no, no!" Yun Qingqing was overwhelmed and quickly pressed her down. "It's really not his fault, it's my fault for not handling it well. Besides, even though he's young, he's always taken good care of me. When we met on the first day of school, he even gave me some cold medicine..."
Gu Mingyan's cursing stopped abruptly.
As if she had suddenly discovered a new continent, she leaned closer and stared intently at Yun Qingqing's slightly flushed cheeks, her tone suddenly becoming playful: "Yun, Qing, Qing."
"W-What are you doing?"
"Something's not right with you," Gu Mingyan drawled, her eyes gleaming with insight. "Do you also have a bit of a crush on that kid Gu Xubai?"
"What nonsense are you talking about!" Yun Qingqing's face flushed red instantly, and she reached out to push Gu Mingyan away. "I didn't! I just feel sorry for her, for causing such a big misunderstanding..."
"Come on!" Gu Mingyan easily brushed her hand away. At this moment, both her IQ and EQ were online, and she analyzed the situation in a very logical way. "If you really have no feelings for him at all, why bother with whether he misunderstands or not? Just be straightforward and make things clear, right? Why are you avoiding him? Why do you blush and your heart race when you mention him?"
"I……"
"When you rejected him, I think it was just a sudden thing. You didn't quite understand yourself and didn't realize what was wrong with you!"
Yun Qingqing was stunned by Gu Mingyan's words, and her heart suddenly started beating erratically.
Does she like Gu Xubai...?
Yun Qingqing wanted to refute, but realized that Gu Mingyan might not be wrong.
She has a typical avoidant personality. In all her life, Yun Qingqing has never been in a relationship. When faced with advances from men, her first reaction is never to confront them directly, but to frantically run away.
Just like that misunderstanding at the night market, the reason she ran so fast was less because she was embarrassed by the misunderstanding, and more because she was startled and at a loss by the sudden ambiguous atmosphere.
But does she really not like Gu Xubai?
Yun Qingqing couldn't help but ask herself this question.
Gu Xubai is handsome, calm, intelligent, and capable. He is already able to stand on his own at a young age. It's hard not to like someone like that, right?
The unfamiliar emotions made Yun Qingqing even more flustered, and her little face unconsciously scrunched up.
Gu Mingyan idly admired the troubled, hesitant expression on her face for a while, then stopped pressing her for answers and leisurely started sending messages on her phone.
Yun Qingqing had a feeling that she was up to something, and asked warily, "What are you doing?"
"Nothing much," Gu Mingyan said without looking up, "just sent a message to Gu Xubai to come over."
"What?!" Yun Qingqing almost jumped up from her chair, grabbing Gu Mingyan's arm nervously. "Why did you call him over?"
She seriously doubted that Gu Mingyan, being so straightforward, might just shout something like, "Gu Xubai, don't be ungrateful, just obediently submit to Yun Qingqing," right in front of her and Gu Xubai.
Just thinking about it made Yun Qingqing feel like she was going to die.
Gu Mingyan was amused by her excited reaction: "What's the panic? Didn't you notice it's raining? I'll call Gu Xubai over to bring an umbrella, otherwise how are we going to get back later?"
Yun followed her gaze and looked outside. Sure enough, she saw fine rain falling obliquely and hitting the glass window.
"..." Her tense body instantly relaxed, she awkwardly uttered an "oh," and slowly sat back down in her seat.
The waiting time felt exceptionally long.
The rain outside the window pattered against the glass, and also against Yun's gently troubled heart.
She sipped the slightly chilled cocoa, but couldn't taste anything.
Not long after, the door to the café was pushed open, and the wind chimes on the door made a crisp sound.
Gu Xubai walked in.
A few raindrops clung to his shoulders, and his hair was slightly damp, which made his dark, clear eyes stand out even more. The boy's gaze swept across the room, landing precisely on their table.
"You came pretty quickly." Gu Mingyan got up lazily.
"Mm," Gu Xubai replied.
Gu Mingyan took a long-handled black umbrella from his hand, opened it quickly, looked at it, and nodded in satisfaction.
Then, she took the umbrella and gently raised an eyebrow at Yun.
Yun Qingqing: "..."
I suddenly have a feeling that I'm about to be scammed.
"This umbrella is the perfect size; I can easily hold it all by myself." She grinned. "You two can squeeze into the other one. I'm leaving now."
After saying that, without waiting for the two to react, she waved her hand casually, turned around, pushed open the glass door, and left!
"Hey, Mingyan!!" Yun Qingqing reached out her hand to her retreating figure.
Don't leave her alone with Gu Xubai!
However, Gu Mingyan didn't even turn her head and left so decisively.
At the entrance of the small coffee shop, only Yun Qingqing and Gu Xubai remained, along with the increasingly dense sound of rain.
The air suddenly seemed a bit stuffy.
Yun turned her head stiffly to look at Gu Xubai beside her.
At almost the same moment, Gu Xubai also looked down at her.
Their eyes met again.
The sound of raindrops pattering against the eaves and glass became the only background noise at that moment.
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