Zong Jinghao looked at Lin Xinyan, who was sitting on the sofa holding her daughter, and gently put her hair behind her ear. “No one can hurt my people, let alone bully and insult.”
He looked up, a faint smile tugging at his calm and serious face. “However, because you saved my wife, I won’t assess blame for this matter, to repay the favor of you saving my wife.”
After speaking, he stooped to pick up his daughter in Lin Xinyan’s arms and said, “Let’s go.”
Lin Xinyan took a breath. She didn’t expect things to turn out like this.
“Hold on.”
Bai Yinning stopped Zong Jinghao.
The usual smile on his face faded a little. “Very well played, Mr. Zong. Deliberately making such a trivial matter big to repay me for saving…” When talking about Lin Xinyan, he paused. “Saving your wife.”
Zong Jinghao didn’t deny what Bai Yinning said, because since he heard the shop assistant keep emphasizing that Chairman Bai was backing them, he had concluded that the Chairman Bai she mentioned was Bai Yinning.
That was why he deliberately made the matter big, and when Bai Yinning came forward, he gave a favor of letting things slide to repay his favor of saving Lin Xinyan.
He didn’t want Bai Yinning to keep appearing in front of Lin Xinyan because of his favor.
Zong Jinghao straightened out his daughter’s wrinkled collar and looked at her with a gentle smile, while saying to Bai Yinning, “I’m flattered, Chairman Bai. It is your people who are too weak and gave me a chance.”
Bai Yinning clenched his fists on the armrests. He had to swallow this insult, as someone was indeed taking advantage of his power to bully others.
He couldn’t refute it.
He looked at Lin Xinyan. “I’m sorry about what happened today.” When he was speaking, he looked at Lin Xinyan up and down, knowing why she came to the mall. “I own this mall. Just take whatever you need today, and I’ll bear the cost. Think of it as my compensation to you for the trouble I caused.”
“That’s very kind of you, Chairman Bai, but my wife has no habit of spending other people’s money.” Before Lin Xinyan could speak, Zong Jinghao refused first.
Lin Xinyan raised her eyes to look at Zong Jinghao’s chiseled profile. She really didn’t expect him to have this intention, and only thought it was just to tell Lin Xichen some truth. She never expected him to be so scheming, cunning, and depressed deep down.
Lin Xinyan forced a polite smile. “Thank you, but there’s no need for that.”
Bai Yinning also smiled. “Well, then just let me know if you need me in the future. I’m afraid we will have to postpone our meeting with the master.”
Lin Xinyan understood that he had to deal with the things here, so she said, “If you are free tomorrow, we can go tomorrow.”
Bai Yinning replied after thinking for a moment, “Okay, I will pick you up at the hotel then.”
“Okay.” Lin Xinyan held her son’s hand.
They didn’t go back right away. This time, Zong Jinghao followed Lin Xinyan every step of the way, for fear of her being bullied again.
Lin Xinyan complained, “You following me like this makes me look like some kind of rare animal.”
Who would go shopping with their ‘husband’, children, and a group of bodyguards in tow?
Everyone stared at her wherever she went, making her feel very uncomfortable.
Zong Jinghao said righteously, “I’m worried if you shop alone. What if you get bullied again?”
“I’m not a kid…”
“You didn’t manage it well just now.”
Speechless, Lin Xinyan actually found no words to refute him.
Compared to their ease, Bai Yinning was pissed off by this unprovoked disaster.
Yao Qingqing kept saying sorry, but this was not what Bai Yinning wanted.
The shop assistant was prevented from leaving the store by Gao Yuan. She stood by the door, and flinched to reduce her presence, hoping Yao Qingqing could plead for her.
“Qingqing…”
“Don’t call me!” Yao Qingqing was annoyed. She was originally adopted, and her adoptive parents were not kind to her, so naturally this girl wasn’t her real cousin either.
It was just that the mother of this cousin was very kind. Once she was beaten and scolded by her adoptive parents and got shut out of the house without any food. This cousin’s mother took her in and gave her food.
Remembering her kindness toward her, Yao Qingqing asked her cousin to come to help at the store when she was jobless, but she didn’t expect that she would not only steal the money from the store, but also threaten customers to buy clothes in such a manner.
No wonder she felt that business in the store had been getting worse recently.
It turned out that it was all because of her, who ruined the store’s reputation.
“I was wrong, Qingqing, I know I was wrong. Please beg Chairman Bai for mercy for me.” She would have rushed over if Gao Yuan didn’t stop her.
“You have to bear the consequences of your own doings. I can’t save you as well.” She could see that Bai Yinning was very angry. Regardless of the smile on his face, she knew that he was angry at the moment.
He has been like this since he was a child. He wouldn’t show his emotion on his face, and was always smiling, so even the dean liked him.
No one would like a child with a bitter and unpleasant look on his face all day long.
This was also why he was chosen by Bai Hongfei.
“Gao Yuan, don’t let me see this person from now on,” Bai Yinning said solemnly.
“Understood.” Gao Yuan held her back, ready to take her away.
The shop assistant panicked. “Yao Qingqing, have you forgotten that when you were beaten by your parents and were shut out of the house without any food, who took you in and kept you full? It was my mom…”
“Enough!” Yao Qingqing interrupted her sharply. “I have paid off these favors long ago!”
After she grew up, and was able to support herself, she had been helping them, and also gave her a job. But look at what she did. She made me lose face in front of Bai Yinning.
Bai Yinning waved his hand, not wanting to see this woman again. After Gao Yuan replied that he understood, he pulled the shop assistant out of the mall, ignoring her wailing.
Her voice was quickly drowned out, and the surrounding air became quiet.
“Sorry, I don’t know it was because of her, and even called you here…”
“What do you plan to do with your place here?” Bai Yinning interrupted her. With things as such, no more apologies would help, and would instead hurt their friendship.
After all, they knew each other since childhood, and had seen each other’s downfall. Moreover, they lived together in an orphanage for a few years, so there was a bond between them.
“I’ve already troubled you. This place becomes like this also because I believe people too easily.” Yao Qingqing sighed. “You have helped me a lot. If you didn’t give me this storefront, the head office would never let me open a store here. If the head office knew that this store becomes like this, I’m afraid I’ll have to pay compensation. I think I’ll close the shop on the excuse that the level of consumption here is too low.”
“Have you thought through it carefully?” Bai Yinning asked calmly.
Yao Qingqing nodded. “Yes.”
“Since you’ve thought through it carefully, I won’t dissuade you. About the mess here…”
“I can clean it up.” Yao Qingqing didn’t want to trouble him too much.
“Okay.” Bai Yinning didn’t say much. After all, they were all grown-ups with their own thoughts and ideas.
“I will see you out.” Yao Qingqing proposed.
Bai Yinning did not refuse either. There was a small step at the entrance of the store, so someone had to help him with his wheelchair.
“Can’t it really be cured?” Yao Qingqing looked down at him, with unspeakable emotion in her eyes. The fact that he was in a wheelchair upset her more than Bai Yinning himself.
His legs were sound when he was adopted, but he was now in a wheelchair, which must have been due to an accident.
Bai Yinning squinted his eyes slightly, recalling the past…
He could walk before he met with an accident.
At that time, he accompanied Bai Hongfei to inspect the factory, and there was a fire, which caused an explosion. In order to save Bai Hongfei, he got his legs injured, so he was now in a wheelchair.
“Very hard.” The expression on Bai Yinning’s face remained the same, but his emotion was stirring up deep down. After all, no one would be willing to be disabled or even unable to take care of himself completely.
“Do you know the woman just now…”
“Qingqing, I don’t like people asking me about my private matters.”
Bai Yinning interrupted her.
He knew that Yao Qingqing wanted to ask him about Lin Xinyan.
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t keep saying this.” The expression on Bai Yinning’s face became calm again.
Meanwhile, Lin Xinyan bought a few sets of clothes before returning to the hotel with Zong Jinghao.
As Lin Xinyan was going to see the master who could make tea silk, she would not return to B City for the time being, whereas Zong Jinghao also wanted to find out the whereabouts of He Ruize here.
So they reached a consensus and planned to stay here for a few more days.
After getting out of the car, they saw people waiting for them in the lobby of the hotel as soon as they walked into the hotel.
