Chapter 19

Yu Jiaxiao put her phone away, crossed her arms, and leaned against the door while sizing her up from head to toe. “Who are you?” 

Tan Xingchen glanced at her sideways. “Who are you?” 

Yu Jiaxiao flipped her hair. “I’m her husband.” 

“Yeah, right!” Tan Xingchen’s face vividly expressed disdain. “You? Her husband? Your name is” 

Before she could finish, a cookie was stuffed into her mouth, cutting off her words. 

Lin Yuxi: “Shut up. Go back to your room. Otherwise, no more painkillers for you.” 

For the first time in her life, Miss Tan was forced to submit because her eye pain was unbearable! Lin Yuxi said the stuff couldn’t be used too often. Each time, Tan Xingchen had to beg desperately, and only then would Lin Yuxi generously give her a single drop. 

Reluctantly, Tan Xingchen shut her mouth. “Fine, I won’t ask. But this is personal revenge!” 

Yu Jiaxiao, with nothing better to do, noticed that Xiao Cui didn’t dare touch her. She walked over to Tan Xingchen and spun her wheelchair around 180 degrees. 

“Which room is she in? I’ll help you take her back.” 

Xiao Cui was grateful. “Bed 23!” 

“Let go of me! Did you hear me?” Tan Xingchen shouted angrily as she was forcibly pushed out of the office. “If you don’t let go, I swear I’ll slap you!” 

“Go ahead, let’s see who slaps who first.” 

The two bickered all the way back to the room. Yu Jiaxiao tried to lift her onto the bed, but Tan Xingchen refused and clung tightly to the wheelchair. Yu Jiaxiao, with brute force, hoisted the half-incapacitated Tan Xingchen up with one swift motion. 

Tan Xingchen was furious. 

“I just wanted to ask why she married Zhou Yanjing! What’s wrong with that? Can’t I be curious? She’s beautiful and outstanding why didn’t she find a good man? That jerk Zhou Yanjing doesn’t deserve her!” 

Yu Jiaxiao’s rough movements halted, and she pointed at Tan Xingchen twice with her index finger, her face clearly saying, “You’ve got good taste.” 

Then, she pulled over a nearby chair and sat down. 

“Alright, let’s talk this out!” 

“Why has she been following you around so much lately?” Xiao Cui asked curiously after Tan Xingchen left. 

Lin Yuxi replied, “She’s childlike and very curious.” 

“Actually, we’re all curious about you and your husband,” another colleague chimed in. “Why so secretive?” 

Maybe it was because Zhou Yanjing had been mentioned too often, but Lin Yuxi was starting to feel annoyed and couldn’t focus on the words in the medical file. 

“Because it’s not something to be proud of.” 

The colleague was taken aback. “Not something to be proud of? Is he ugly?” 

“Yep,” Lin Yuxi said without looking up. “He’s 1.5 meters tall, bald, with a beer belly.” 

Colleague:  

When Lin Yuxi finished her work and went to find Yu Jiaxiao, the single-patient room was buzzing with conversation. 

“The Zhou family adopted Yuxi, and everyone praises them for their kindness. What kindness, my foot!” Yu Jiaxiao was practically spitting with anger. 

“After Yuxi’s parents passed away, the Zhou family didn’t care about her at all. If it hadn’t been reported by a journalist, and if they weren’t afraid of being called ungrateful, they wouldn’t have taken her back.” 

“Capitalists, huh? They don’t have a shred of conscience among them,” Tan Xingchen added with enthusiasm, as if completely forgetting her own father was also a capitalist. 

“Only his grandmother has a bit of a heart. I heard she’s a devout Buddhist, so maybe that’s why she’s kinder.” 

Yu Jiaxiao gave a knowing, mysterious shake of her head. “She may be Buddhist, but she’s no softie.” 

“Grandma’s always been kind to me, so don’t talk about her behind her back,” Lin Yuxi’s voice interrupted their gossip session. 

Both of them turned their heads at the same time. Lin Yuxi wasn’t angry, standing at the door, and called out to Yu Jiaxiao, “Had enough chit-chat? Let’s go.” 

“Hey, hey, hey, don’t go!” Tan Xingchen acted like someone who had just gotten to the good part of a TV drama only for it to cut off. “We’re not done talking yet!” 

Yu Jiaxiao was also reluctant to leave. After all, she had been fighting this battle alone for years. Now that she’d found a kindred spirit in Tan Xingchen, she was eager to recruit her. 

“Heh, I want to chat a bit more.” 

Lin Yuxi said, “Weren’t you going to eat? Not hungry anymore?” 

For once, Yu Jiaxiao wasn’t keen on eating. “It’s fine, missing one meal won’t kill me.” 

“Where are you going to eat? Take me with you!” Tan Xingchen said, trying to drag her injured leg off the hospital bed. “I must hear the juicy part today!” 

“What exactly do you want to know?” Lin Yuxi asked. “Did Jiang Nan send you to spy?” 

“I swear on my left eye, this has nothing to do with Jiang Nan. We haven’t talked in ages.” Tan Xingchen held up three fingers. 

“I just want to know why you and Zhou Yanjing got married. Didn’t he like Jiang Nan? You’re technically the Zhou family’s adopted daughter, so how does an adopted daughter end up marrying the biological son?” 

Lin Yuxi stood by the door, her coat draped over her left arm, looking cold and distant. “If I satisfy your curiosity, will you stop bothering me?” 

Tan Xingchen nodded eagerly. “Yes!” 

“Fine.” Lin Yuxi closed the door, walked in, and sat down. 

“Ask whatever you want.” 

Tan Xingchen blinked, looking as obedient as a well-behaved student. “I want to know why you married Zhou Yanjing. A lot of people say that after he broke up with Jiang Nan, you got him drunk, climbed into his bed, took some intimate photos to blackmail him, and used that to climb up the ladder. Is that true?” 

Yu Jiaxiao rolled her eyes dramatically. “How could that be possible! You’re giving her too much credit. She’s not that scheming.” 

Lin Yuxi: “…Thanks, I feel slightly insulted.” 

“Then why?” Tan Xingchen pressed on. “Was it for love?” 

Definitely not. 

The truth behind Lin Yuxi and Zhou Yanjing’s marriage was like a drama series. 

Lin Yuxi knew that Ling Yaqiong didn’t like her, so after starting university, she avoided returning to the Zhou family whenever possible. But before she graduated from her master’s program, the Zhou family faced a major public relations crisis. 

Zhou Qizhen, Zhou Yanjing’s father, had a trusted subordinate who was bribed by a competitor and leaked sensitive information from Hengtai Bank. Before he could be sent to prison by the Zhou family, he committed suicide out of guilt. His wife then caused a huge scene, hanging banners and even climbing to the top of Hengtai Bank’s building, threatening to jump. 

The incident caused a huge uproar, and by then, the internet was already a powerful force. People manipulated online opinions, criticizing Zhou Qizhen for driving his subordinate to death. Some even dug up the past, speculating that Lin Yuxi’s father had also been killed by the Zhou family. 

In short, the Zhou family was in a bad spot. 

While their influence could suppress the situation to some extent, dealing with public opinion was another matter. Zhou family’s PR team came up with a brilliant idea have Lin Yuxi marry into the Zhou family. 

First, this would quash the rumors about the Zhou family being responsible for Lin Yuxi’s father’s death. Second, it would paint the Zhou family as benevolent and kind-hearted, treating the orphan of a late subordinate with such care. This move could improve their public image. 

Ling Yaqiong, Zhou Yanjing’s mother, was against the idea. 

However, around that time, Zhou’s grandmother fell gravely ill, and the hospital issued multiple critical condition notices. She consulted a well-known fortune teller. 

After visiting the Zhou family estate, the fortune teller said the grandmother wasn’t fated to die just yet, but the family’s wealth and success were tainted by lives lost along the way. The karmic retribution had now come for her, and the only way to break this curse was to marry someone whose destiny opposed that of the Zhou family’s. 

As it happened, Lin Yuxi’s birth chart was a perfect match. 

The richer the family, the more they believe in feng shui and mysticism. Ling Yaqiong didn’t want to sacrifice her son’s happiness for a superstitious remedy, but before she could voice her objection, the grandmother tearfully asked, “Do you want me to die?” 

Faced with such guilt, Ling Yaqiong had no choice but to go through with the wedding. 

Soon after, a heartwarming story about the deep, childhood romance between Zhou’s second son and his new bride went viral online, widely circulated as a beautiful love story. With the Zhou family’s influence, the public relations crisis was quickly resolved. 

The story was touching, but 99% of it was fiction. Only Lin Yuxi knew the truth: she and Zhou Yanjing were never childhood sweethearts. They were merely strangers who grew up under the same roof by chance. 

Zhou Yanjing’s true childhood sweetheart was Jiang Nan. 

Perhaps out of protection, or for other reasons, Zhou Yanjing kept Lin Yuxi’s personal details well-guarded throughout the entire process. 

Apart from a single wedding photo where her face was barely visible, Lin Yuxi’s identity has never been revealed to the public. 

The only people who knew she was the second wife of the Zhou family were close friends, family, and those within certain circles.