Director Xu, hearing the address, understood the situation. With so many tall bodyguards surrounding her, Lin Mei had no other choice but to go with them.
Lin Mei hesitated for a moment, then handed her car keys to the leading bodyguard. "Thank you, please help me drive the car." She still needed to drive away after the conversation.
Lin Mei was taken to a villa. It was a high-end Chinese-style new development in the city center, with a shockingly high price. Xu Helie lived in the most exclusive detached house. Lin Mei was led into the villa by the bodyguard and saw Xu Helie sitting in the courtyard, sipping tea. The bodyguard reported to Xu Helie and then withdrew.
Xu Helie put down his teacup, looked at Lin Mei, and gestured to an empty seat. "Miss Lin, please sit."
He already knew her surname was Lin, so he must have investigated her background. Lin Mei calmly walked over and sat down. Xu Helie personally poured her a cup of tea, and Lin Mei politely said, "Thank you."
Xu Helie smiled faintly. "Miss Lin, you don't need to be so polite. Please try it. This is this year's new tea."
After Lin Mei took a sip, Xu Helie asked her, "How do you find it, Miss Lin?"
"Clear water from high peaks, rising mist and clouds, brewed by temple monks, imbued with mountain air, bathed in the essence of sun and moon, kissed by the haze of dawn and dusk, capable of curing all ailments." Lin Zhengde loved tea, and Lin Mei, having been influenced since childhood, knew a little. "This is Anxi Tieguanyin, isn't it?"
Xu Helie was a deep tea enthusiast. Lin Mei had casually recited the ancient description of Anxi Tieguanyin, which greatly surprised him. "Miss Lin, you know about tea?"
"Just the superficial aspects. My father likes it, so I've picked up a little," Lin Mei replied modestly.
Xu Helie said, "Miss Lin is indeed from a scholarly family." Upon hearing this, Lin Mei became even more certain that Xu Helie had thoroughly investigated her background. She smiled faintly, waiting for Xu Helie to finish his preamble and get to the main point.
Soon, Xu Helie asked, "How did you and Xu Ying meet?"
"A friend introduced us," Lin Mei told Xu Helie. "If you have something to say, please say it directly." The conversation was filled with unspoken intentions, and every extra minute felt agonizing.
"Miss Lin is a smart person. You must already know why I asked you here," Xu Helie said, fiddling with the teapot. His tone was casual yet sharp. "Break up with Xu Ying."
Without even saying "you are not suitable," he issued such a command. This attitude immediately reminded Lin Mei of Xing Zheng. Xu Helie seemed to admire Xing Zheng, and they were indeed similar in nature.
Lin Mei smiled, not answering whether she had or not.
This attitude naturally displeased Xu Helie. "Miss Lin, what are your thoughts?"
"You asked me here because Xu Ying didn't agree to your request that day," Lin Mei calmly stated his motive. "Because he doesn't rely on the Xu family for his living now, you have no leverage to threaten him, so you came to threaten me."
Although Xu Helie did indeed have this intention and motive, Lin Mei stating it so directly made him lose face. "Even an ordinary family would find Miss Lin's 'glorious deeds' unacceptable. Xu Ying has been simple-minded since childhood and is easily deceived. As parents, we cannot just stand by and do nothing."
The "glorious deeds" Xu Helie referred to were undoubtedly the news that had been reported by the media. Lin Mei felt no guilt about her relationship with Xing Zheng; she had loved and been hurt, and had acted with integrity. It was Xing Zheng and Jiang Chubi who had conspired to push her into the spotlight. "You are experienced, you should know that the media loves to take things out of context."
"But I also know that there's no smoke without fire," Xu Helie seemed to have anticipated her defense and played his trump card. "Moreover, I'm not referring to the news, but to Miss Lin's miscarriage."
Lin Mei's lips suddenly pressed together tightly, forming a straight line. Her body tensed, and her blood seemed to surge upwards, making her face deathly pale.
No matter how hard she tried to think, she never imagined that Xu Helie would know about her miscarriage!
She hadn't even recovered from the trauma of the miscarriage, how could she defend herself to him?
Xu Helie continued to speak to Lin Mei. "Miss Lin, have you done such outrageous things, are you worthy of your upbringing? Do your parents know?"
"You have three days," Xu Helie gave Lin Mei an ultimatum. "The consequences are yours to bear." With that, he stood up to leave.
Lin Mei finally found her voice. "Wait!"
Xu Helie asked, "Miss Lin, do you still want to defend yourself?"
"Who told you?" Only a few friends close to her knew about the miscarriage, and the surgical records had been thoroughly disposed of. How could Xu Helie have found out?
Xu Helie laughed, thinking Lin Mei was making excuses. He then produced the surgical certificate and medical records, tossing them before Lin Mei. Lin Mei picked them up and saw the records; they were indeed her surgical information from Anning Hospital!
"If you don't want anyone to know, don't do it," Xu Helie stood up, looking down at Lin Mei's pale face, flushed with agitation. "Three days. Take care of yourself."
Lin Mei walked out of the villa with the surgical forms and medical records. She sat in the driver's seat, her limbs feeling cold. Every word on the papers felt like a knife, slicing deeply into her still-healing wounds, leaving her covered in scars.
Lin Mei called Lan Lan. "Who handled the matter of me having surgery in Anning City?"
Lin Mei hadn't paid attention to this matter before. After she woke up, Lan Lan and Feng Feng told her that the surgical records had been dealt with, so she hadn't inquired further. She had also checked with her social security card afterward, and there were no related records.
"Why do you suddenly remember to ask this?" Lan Lan asked, bewildered, but still answered, "That scoundrel Xing Zheng handled it."
That day, Lan Lan and Feng Feng rushed to Anning City and happened to meet Xing Zheng as he was finishing the matter. He told them, "The surgical records have been wiped clean, no one will know."
After finishing the call with Lan Lan, Lin Mei gripped the steering wheel, her fingers trembling slightly.
She understood now, she understood everything. Besides Xing Zheng, no one else could have obtained her surgical information and then passed it on to Xu Helie.
When she met Xu Helie that day, he had reminded her that Xu Helie would never accept someone like her as a daughter-in-law. At the time, she had dismissed it as his mockery, but now she realized that he had already planned to give this information to Xu Helie then!
Lin Mei became even more enraged, her eyes flashing with intense hatred. What did Xing Zheng want?
He didn't want her anymore. She had been humiliated by him and had withdrawn from his world. Now, she was finally living a peaceful life with Xu Ying, and he was coming to disrupt it again!
Did he just hate to see her live a stable life?
Lin Mei looked at the surgical forms and medical records discarded beside her, her anger surging, burning away her reason.
She was going to confront him directly, to ask him why he couldn't stand to see her do well, and she even wanted to hit him!
On impulse, Lin Mei stepped on the accelerator and drove towards the direction of Zhuhua Villa.