Chapter 424 - 152: To Be One’s Own Undoing
"Let’s go take a look too," Qin Mei said to Jie Jingchen. "They’ve already called Lin Yaru’s father in, so they must be dressed by now."
"We can see just as well from here." Jie Jingchen still wouldn’t let her get any closer.
"My eyesight is bad. I can’t see clearly," Qin Mei said, wanting a closer look.
"If you can’t see clearly, then just listen." Jie Jingchen stood up and moved behind Qin Mei, his large hands landing on her shoulders. "I’ll give you a shoulder massage."
The corner of Qin Mei’s mouth twitched, but she didn’t insist. She was thoroughly enjoying Jie Jingchen’s shoulder massage; it felt amazing.
Mr. Lin entered the main hall, his eyes blazing with fury as he stared directly at Jie Jingwei.
Stricken with guilt, Jie Jingwei didn’t dare meet Mr. Lin’s gaze, but he blurted out, "I was drugged."
Mr. Lin already knew the truth. ’He just didn’t understand why Jing Er was the one who got drugged when the poison was meant for Jing Si.’ Still, at a time like this, he had to feign ignorance. "Who drugged you?" he asked coldly.
Jie Jingwei was struck speechless. ’The only people home were Jing Si, Xiao You, and Teacher Lin,’ he thought. ’Setting Xiao You aside, that just leaves Jing Si and Teacher Lin. Jing Si wouldn’t stoop to something as despicable as drugging someone, which means it must have been Teacher Lin. But if I say it was her, will anyone believe me?’
"It was Jing Si," Xu Chunyan said urgently, having regained her composure. Right now, all she wanted was to pin the whole thing on Jing Si. If he was the culprit, he would have to take responsibility. And if Jing Si was responsible, Lin Yaru and her parents would have no objections.
"Bullshit!" Mrs. Xie cursed, her gaze on Xu Chunyan turning icy. "Jing Si drugging Jing Er? Is he insane?"
Xu Chunyan’s eyebrow twitched. With her father-in-law absent, she saw no need to hide her animosity toward Qiao Yanqiu. "Jing Si wasn’t trying to drug Jing Er. He was trying to drug Yaru."
Xu Chunyan’s words were aimed at Mrs. Xie, but they also served as a signal for the Lin family to play along.
Mrs. Xie was so angered by Xu Chunyan’s words that she laughed. "You’re so certain it was Jing Si who drugged Lin Yaru? Were you there? Did you see him do it with your own eyes?"
"I wasn’t there; I was at the hospital taking care of my mother. But it was Jing Si who drugged Yaru." Xu Chunyan shot Lin Yaru a meaningful look.
Lin Yaru snapped back to her senses. Her reputation had been destroyed by Jie Jingwei, making it nearly impossible to get Jing Si to divorce his wife and marry her. ’But even if he won’t marry me, I have to pin this on him,’ she resolved. "Yes," she declared. "It was Jing Si who drugged me."
Seeing Lin Yaru play along, Xu Chunyan breathed a sigh of relief.
"That bastard Jing Si! To ruin my daughter like this!" Liu Axiu chimed in, directing her fury at Qiao Yanqiu. "You owe the Lin Family an explanation!"
Mr. Lin froze. ’Could there still be a way to turn this around?’ he wondered.
"Jing Si drugged Yaru, but Jing Er accidentally ingested it when he returned from his business trip," Xu Chunyan added, making sure to absolve her husband of any blame.
Jie Jingwei remained silent. He had indeed been drugged, and so had Lin Yaru. ’But what motive would Jing Si have for drugging both of us?’ he wondered.
Mrs. Xie let out a cold sneer. "And why would Jing Si need to drug Lin Yaru?" she demanded icily.
"To get his hands on Yaru, of course," Xu Chunyan shot back without a hint of fear. Ever since marrying into the Jie Family, she had never been afraid of Qiao Yanqiu.
"Jing Er’s wife," Second Aunt couldn’t help but interject. "We all know perfectly well how Teacher Lin feels about Jing Si. If he wanted to be with her, would he really need to resort to drugs? All Jing Si has to do is lift a finger, and Teacher Lin would come running gleefully..."
"Second Sister!" Liu Axiu cut Second Aunt off, glaring fiercely at her. "You watched Jing Si grow up, and you watched Yaru grow up too. How can you play favorites and make my Yaru sound so... so..."