Chapter 114: Burning the Bridge After Crossing the River

Song Yinyin, however, was getting anxious. She had originally planned to let Ling Hanyu misunderstand Song Qingtian.

Now things had backfired—she’d tried to steal a chicken only to lose the rice pot in the process.

And to think she’d even ended up isolating herself!

“Jiefu, that’s not what I meant. I was just saying that between us, everything is aboveboard.”

“So you’re saying your sister isn’t aboveboard with someone else and has been cheating on me?”

“Well… not exactly.”

“If it’s not exactly, then why did you bring all this out here for me to see? What are you up to? You can leave now. I’ll settle accounts with you another day for instigating others to hurt Nuonuo. And I won’t forget the time you called to have Song Qingtian committed to a mental hospital either. For now, it’s best if you stay far away from me, lest you meet an untimely end without even knowing how.”

With that, Ling Hanyu got back into the car.

Outside, Song Yinyin was struck dumb, completely stunned.

As the car door closed, Ling Hanyu glanced over at Song Qingtian, still fast asleep in the passenger seat—truly capable of sleeping through anything.

In fact, Song Qingtian had already woken up; as soon as Ling Hanyu stepped out, she opened her eyes.

But what Song Yinyin had said wasn’t entirely untrue.

She’d been afraid Ling Hanyu would hold her accountable for it, which was precisely why she’d pretended to be asleep.

Ling Hanyu sat in the car for a while, but Song Qingtian simply couldn’t keep up the act any longer. Finally, she opened her eyes, feigning wakefulness.

Yet the moment she did, Ling Hanyu immediately got out of the car.

Song Qingtian knew he’d seen right through her little charade.

Still, no matter how thin the paper may be, as long as it hasn’t been pierced, it’s no big deal.

As long as she kept quiet, Ling Hanyu wouldn’t go around slapping himself with a green hat.

Once inside the office, Ling Hanyu went off to attend to business, and Song Qingtian had planned to wait for him in the office. But Ling Hanyu called her along instead, heading straight for the conference room.

Song Qingtian wasn’t exactly thrilled about it, but Secretary Yang insisted, practically dragging her along. She didn’t want to be the center of attention, like a giant panda, so she reluctantly followed him into the conference room.

Her seat was right beside Ling Hanyu—not in front, but tucked off to one side.

Her presence there drew everyone’s gaze, something Song Qingtian herself felt was unprecedented.

Ling Hanyu stared at the documents, clearly impatient.

Song Qingtian hadn’t done a thing, yet when Ling Hanyu turned to look at her, she was startled.

Song Qingtian instinctively glanced at the others before meeting Ling Hanyu’s gaze again.

Her eyes, dark and bright, were as clear and cool as ever—like the crystal-clear waters of a serene pond.

Perhaps it was enough to make Ling Hanyu’s heart grow hot, longing to dive in headfirst.

Maybe it was precisely that look that could soothe the heat burning within him.

Their eyes locked, and Ling Hanyu casually tossed the file in his hand to Song Qingtian: “Take a look.”

Song Qingtian froze for a moment, then bent down to examine the document.

She flipped through the folder and studied it carefully.

After all, she’d spent half a year working under a top executive at a major corporation, serving as a tea-serving assistant.

Strictly speaking, she was a full-fledged secretary, handling more matters than even the general manager.

And that boss was a seventy-year-old elder.

It was by sheer chance that she happened to lend a helping hand to an elderly man who was virtually invisible in the crowd—and from that moment on, he took a special interest in her.

He claimed he wanted her to serve tea as a token of gratitude.

But she only later learned that the “gratitude” came with some rather unusual conditions.

When she left, not only was she allowed to review documents, but she even got to make decisions.

As the saying goes, “A strong general never has weak soldiers”—and this was exactly the case.

The past flowed by like water, and Song Qingtian couldn’t help but reflect on those former glories, feeling as though they’d all been nothing more than a grand dream.

Yet she still couldn’t figure out whether the original female supporting character was simply ignorant and clueless, or whether Ling Hanyu was just being capricious and trying to make life difficult for her—or perhaps he was testing her in some way.

To make matters worse, the document itself seemed a bit odd.

Song Qingtian’s brow twitched as she looked up at Ling Hanyu: “Is the company you’re partnering with Qin Group?”

“Is there a problem?”

Ling Hanyu’s expression grew icy cold. What on earth was this woman thinking?

“No.”

Bowing her head, Song Qingtian quickly flipped through the pages. What was going on? Ling Hanyu had explicitly said he and Qin Xiaotian were at odds, yet here they were collaborating on such a large-scale project. Why then, when Qin Xiaotian showed up today…

Let’s put that aside for now—it wasn’t the right time to bring it up. Song Qingtian was merely concerned about the development plan before her. According to what was written there, it seemed to be pushing all welfare institutions out of the picture.

So all the efforts made so far had been for naught?

Although she’d decided to step back, she never imagined Qin Xiaotian would really burn the bridge after crossing it. That’s why Song Qingtian was momentarily taken aback.

If she’d known it would turn out like this, she might as well have stayed out of it from the start.

By the time she finished reading, Song Qingtian’s face had gone pale. She looked up at Ling Hanyu, who was staring right back at her.

All her emotions were written plainly on her face—though she insisted otherwise, neither Ling Hanyu nor anyone else would believe her.

End of Chapter 114: Burning the Bridge After Crossing the River