Crazy (Lily ABO) - Chapter 40

That evening, the charity auction became a trending topic. This was seen as the follow-up gossip to the “Xin Corporation Marriage Alliance Incident,” and discussions online were absolutely fervent.

The topic “Xinhai Pharmaceuticals” quietly climbed the trending list. Its ranking wasn’t high, but it was enough to catch the attention of casual observers. Some netizens dug up information, revealing that Teng Lin’s father had worked at Xinhai Pharmaceuticals, and that Xinhai Pharmaceuticals had been inspected by government drug regulatory authorities before the incident occurred.

Several long conspiracy theory articles appeared online, all speculating that Teng Lin’s father’s incident was related to Xinhai Pharmaceuticals, and even suggested that Teng Lin’s return to the country was for revenge against the Xin family.

The trending topic was quickly removed. Although these articles didn’t cause much of a stir, as long as they garnered attention, their goal was achieved. Their actions, besides provoking Xin Deming, had another purpose: to draw public attention to the sealing of Xinhai Pharmaceuticals back then. If successful, they might even find some overlooked clues with the help of the media and the public. And with Zhou Zixuan’s help, they certainly wouldn’t lose to Xin Corporation’s PR department in the battle of public opinion.

This first overt confrontation with Xin Deming resulted in a small victory for them.

However, an unexpected piece of news shattered their current joy. The Vice Chairman of Xin Corporation was critically ill and admitted to the hospital—this news suddenly spread within the industry.

Upon receiving the news, Xin Ruofan immediately rushed home. The vast villa only held the butler and a few servants; her mother, Xin De’en, was not home.

“The day before yesterday, Chairman Xin sent someone to pick up Madam for a physical examination at the hospital. There has been no news of Madam until today. Just now, Madam also rushed out, saying she was going to the hospital to check on the situation.”

After learning the situation from the butler, Xin Ruofan immediately called Zhou Zixuan.

“I’m at the hospital, but they won’t let me see De’en, nor will they disclose the floor of De’en’s ward.” Zhou Zixuan’s cool voice came from the phone, accompanied by the hurried click of high heels on the floor. Unable to confirm Xin De’en’s condition, Zhou Zixuan was equally anxious. “I’m going to find the vice president now to inquire about the situation. If De’en is truly imprisoned here, I’ll ask them to help look after her.”

Xin Ruofan gripped her phone tightly. Her anxious heart settled slightly upon hearing those words. “Aunt Xuan, thank you for your trouble.” Although she had anticipated that one day Xin Deming would threaten her with her mother’s safety, when actually faced with it, she still trembled with fear.

After ending the call, Xin Ruofan found that Teng Lin was not beside her. Looking out through the living room window, Teng Lin was standing in the front garden. Xin Ruofan paused, her eyes slowly becoming damp. She remembered: the Xin family did not allow Teng Lin to step foot inside this house.

••••

The day Xin Ruofan had her emotional breakdown, Teng Lin brought her home, and on her behalf, told the Xin family elders her desire not to paint. She couldn’t remember what Teng Lin said, only that Xin Deming suddenly flew into a rage, roughly pulling Teng Lin and driving her out of the house, then cursing at her. Xin Ruofan cried uncontrollably, her tear-blurred vision seeing Teng Lin pressed against the window, her face full of anxiety and worry. Only her thin lips moved, silently mouthing word by word: “Don’t be afraid, it’s okay.”

Later, Xin De’en went out and talked with Teng Lin for a long time. She didn’t know what they discussed, but in the end, Teng Lin simply bowed slightly to Xin De’en, a smile finally appearing on her face. From that day on, Xin Ruofan no longer had to be forced to attend those boring and uninteresting art classes. However, Teng Lin was forbidden by Xin Deming from entering her home. Every time she came home from school, Teng Lin could only walk her to the front garden of her house, watching her slowly enter the house before riding her bicycle away.

••••

“Sister Lin.”

Xin Ruofan walked over to Teng Lin, took her hand, separated her fingers, and intertwined their hands, their fingers tightly clasped. “What did you say to my mother back then that made her change her mind and stop forcing me to attend those art classes?”

Teng Lin paused for half a second, not expecting Xin Ruofan to ask that suddenly. She gently raised the corners of her lips, softly saying, “I said… I hoped she could respect and listen to your wishes.”

••••

“Ruofan has been silently enduring this because she’s worried Auntie will be blamed. She said that in this family, you are the most important person to her, and she doesn’t want her willfulness to make you feel embarrassed.”

“Are you criticizing my parenting methods?” Xin De’en looked expressionlessly at the humble Teng Lin.

“No offense intended. But, isn’t Ruofan very important to you, Auntie?” Teng Lin smiled faintly at her. “Perhaps, Auntie, you think Ruofan is still young and foolish, but in fact, she’s very perceptive. She knows that sometimes when you look at her, you’re looking through her at someone else.”

“That person must be very important to you. Since Ruofan… is your child, that person surely wouldn’t want Ruofan to be so unhappy.”

Xin De’en lowered her gaze thoughtfully after hearing this, a hint of pain and struggle appearing on her face. She was silent for a while, then quietly said, “I will seriously consider it.”

••••

Xin Ruofan buried her face in Teng Lin’s neck, tears welling in her eyes and slowly falling onto her clothes. She clutched at the fabric, crying silently. “Do you think… Mom loves me, right?”

Teng Lin gently rubbed Xin Ruofan’s hair with her chin, hugging the Omega in her arms tightly. “Auntie has always cared about you.”

“Actually, I guessed that Zhou Zixuan was the person she arranged to help us… But why can’t she just look at me properly?” Xin Ruofan’s voice choked as she spoke. Ever since she was old enough to understand, she had never felt an ounce of doting love from her mother, nor had she ever heard her family members speak of her Omega mother, as if her other mother had never existed in this home. Only when she occasionally glimpsed a shared photo in her mother’s room would she feel a tiny bit of reality—that she had a close relationship with this Omega mother.

As she grew older, Xin Ruofan’s appearance and personality became increasingly similar to her Omega mother. She was surprised to find that her mother finally looked at her directly, but this joy dissipated before she could truly savor it. She understood: her mother was looking through her at another person far away.

It wasn’t until she met Teng Lin that she truly felt the tenderness of being cherished. Teng Lin would look at her dotingly, gently hold her in her arms, tolerate her willfulness, and even deeply adore everything about her. It was her Sister Lin, and hers alone…

Her phone suddenly vibrated. Xin Ruofan raised a hand to wipe away the tears from her eyes, quickly composing herself. When she saw the content on her phone, her brows furrowed slightly, and the question in her heart blurted out: “Aunt Xuan… what does this mean?”

••••

“Ms. Zhou, a car has been following us for twenty minutes.”

Zhou Zixuan frowned, glanced in the rearview mirror, and sent the car model and license plate number to her secretary via phone. Then, she solemnly told the driver, “Be extra careful.” She pondered for a moment, then tapped her screen again, fiddling with her phone.

Suddenly, the car spun violently, and a fierce impact came from behind.

An hour later, Xin Ruofan received news that Zhou Zixuan had been in a car accident.

At the same moment, Teng Lin received a notification from the embassy: her sister, Teng Fei, was missing.