Chapter 110: One Good News, One Bad News

Jing Xi ate her bun and said, “I never worried that you wouldn’t pay me.”

Long Yue Zhi ate with refined manners, glancing at her indifferently. “Why did you suddenly decide to start making buns? Weren’t you planning to go back to school to study?”

Huh?

How did he know that?

Jing Xi bit into her bun, her eyes fixed on the bowl of millet porridge in front of her.

She didn’t recall ever mentioning this to Xiao Jie or Liang Chen.

The only person she had talked to about it was Xie Aiguo.

Could it be that Xie Aiguo had been gossiping too?

Damn it, was she living under Long Yue Zhi’s surveillance or something?

“You really do know everything.”

It wasn’t a question—it was a statement.

Long Yue Zhi continued eating without responding.

The truth was, he didn’t actually know everything. For instance, her background was still a complete mystery to him.

He had been investigating for a while now, but there were no useful leads.

Even after Xiao Jie and Liang Chen got close to her, they hadn’t managed to dig up anything either.

But just looking at her face—it wasn’t simply a resemblance to Xu Jin.

In fact, she looked even more like that person…

The similarity was uncanny.

A ninety percent resemblance, right down to her height.

After breakfast, both of them were lost in their own thoughts.

Jing Xi had many unanswered questions too—like why Long Yue Zhi always seemed to use her to provoke Xu Jin.

And… could she actually be related to Xu Jin?

Was that why they looked so much alike?

She was almost tempted to do a DNA test with Xu Jin.

But how could she even get Xu Jin’s blood?

And… was it even possible to do a DNA test in this era?

Even though they were both preoccupied with their thoughts, neither could fully ignore what was happening at the mine.

By noon, they finally received some good news.

The collapse at Shaft No. 4 had been completely contained. A preliminary risk assessment had been conducted, and there was no immediate threat of further collapse.

Meanwhile, coal extraction at Shaft No. 3 had reached eighty percent completion.

In just a few more hours, they would finally know whether the people trapped inside Shaft No. 4 were dead or alive.

The atmosphere in the mine was tense and delicate.

The families waiting outside were in agony—unable to eat or drink, their minds consumed by worry for their loved ones underground.

Even those who usually didn’t believe in gods were now desperately praying to every deity they could think of.

Some families, who had been crying non-stop, finally saw a glimmer of hope upon hearing that a rescue operation was underway—like seeing a rainbow in the middle of a storm.

After lunch, Jing Xi followed Long Yue Zhi around as he checked on the situation.

She overheard all kinds of voices.

Some family members were blaming the mining company for their inaction.

Some were cursing the mine’s management.

Some were venting their anger at the city officials.

Others were cursing everyone in frustration, just trying to relieve their anxiety.

A few even specifically called out the Quan family, the Xu family, and the Long family, openly cursing them by name.

Jing Xi found their words chilling.

But when she looked at Long Yue Zhi, he remained completely unshaken.

Calm as ever.

His mental fortitude was impressive.

When they reached a quieter spot, Jing Xi quickened her pace to catch up with him.

“Long Yue Zhi, those people were cursing at you. Doesn’t that make you angry?”

The man beside her shook his head, his tone as composed as ever. “If it were my family trapped down there, I’d be cursing even worse.”

Jing Xi’s admiration for him grew a little more.

“Long Yue Zhi, can you explain to me what’s going on with this mine? I thought it belonged to the Quan family—how are you involved?”

She was dying of curiosity.

Long Yue Zhi glanced at her. “Do you really want to know?”

Jing Xi nodded enthusiastically.

“Call me ‘Fourth Master’ first.”

“…Fourth Master.”

Long Yue Zhi looked around and said, “You don’t need to follow me. We just need to have a private conversation.”

The people behind him, including Yu Er, stepped back and went for a smoke.

Long Yue Zhi then led Jing Xi to the pavilion behind the building.

“This mine is jointly owned by my Long family, the Xu family, and the Quan family. The Xu and Quan families each hold 30% of the shares, while I own 40%, making me the largest shareholder.”

“But three years ago, this mine was actually mine alone. Later, for some reasons, I sold part of it to the Quan and Xu families.”

Jing Xi asked, “What reasons?”

Long Yue Zhi paused. “That’s a secret.”

“Oh…”

Jing Xi was curious. “But if you sold it to the couple, then together they now own 60% of the shares. If they manipulate things behind the scenes, wouldn’t they be able to push you out and become the largest shareholders? After all, you only have 40% now.”

Long Yue Zhi glanced at her. “You think pretty fast. But when I sold it to them, they weren’t married yet.”

Jing Xi: “So you didn’t expect them to get married?”

Long Yue Zhi nodded. “I really didn’t, but it wasn’t exactly shocking either.”

Jing Xi blurted out without thinking, “Wait, did you think Xu Jin would marry you? Did she like you? Did you like her? Were you childhood sweethearts or something?”

Long Yue Zhi laughed, a bright and cheerful laugh.

The curiosity in her eyes was obvious, but more than curiosity, there was a slight hint of jealousy in her tone.

“Xu Jin? Liking me? You’re overthinking it. Xu Jin and I will never get married.”

Jing Xi tugged at the corner of her lips.

Still, he never answered whether he liked Xu Jin or not.

“I asked if you liked Xu Jin.”

Long Yue Zhi noticed her impatience and replied, “I don’t know. Maybe not?”

Hesitation meant yes.

“So you do like her. So when she married into the Quan family, it was like a betrayal to you, wasn’t it? I can tell that Xu Jin likes you.”

Long Yue Zhi didn’t want to dwell on the topic of whether he liked Xu Jin or not.

Even if he denied it, she wouldn’t believe him, and he didn’t feel like explaining.

“Alright, let’s go back upstairs. It’s too hot here. I’ve answered everything I needed to.”

Long Yue Zhi turned to leave, and Jing Xi quickly followed.

He really didn’t take her height or shorter legs into consideration.

Just thinking about how he avoided the topic of Xu Jin made her mind unconsciously fill with dramatic soap opera scenarios.

Why did he sell the mine in the first place?

=====

Not long after they went upstairs, they saw the area around Shaft No. 3 being cleared of onlookers.

A large open space was created.

Even the police cars and ambulances had moved closer, with medical personnel standing by.

Jing Xi was so nervous that she twisted the hem of her white T-shirt into a knot, standing stiffly by the window.

Anyone could tell she was extremely tense.

After finishing his conversation with Yu Er, Long Yue Zhi walked over to her. “A survivor has been brought up from the mine. He brought both good news and bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?”

Jing Xi hated making choices.

“The bad news.”

Long Yue Zhi looked out the window and took a deep breath.

“Three people were crushed to death. More than a dozen are injured.”

Jing Xi also took a deep breath. “And the good news?”

“The rest are alive.”

Jing Xi: “Is this the best possible outcome? How do you plan to compensate the victims’ families?”

Long Yue Zhi’s gaze turned cold. “The compensation will be paid in full, not a cent less. I’ll also personally contribute from my own pocket to support the victims’ families.”

But as for whoever was behind this incident—he would never let them get away with it.

The Xu family? The Quan family?

Trying to set him up?

They were too clever for their own good.

Jing Xi didn’t understand why his attitude suddenly changed, but she only felt confused for a few seconds.

Because the moment she saw the first injured person being carried out of the shaft, she immediately ran out of the room to find Wang Zhen.

Wang Qi, you have to be alive!