"Especially Jing Yi, she went after you because she was worried about you."
Jing Zeqian remained silent. He knew Jing Yi was concerned about him, but he didn't understand exactly what she was worried about.
Wen Qingyan hesitated for a moment. "There's something I'd like to tell Mr. Jing." He informed Jing Zeqian that his agent had discovered Jiang Miaomiao had invited some reporters to this banquet.
"Although I don't know what her purpose is, the invitations were supposed to be confidential. You should be careful," Wen Qingyan said before leaving.
While Jing Zeqian was still deep in thought, Jing Zeyou called to say that Jing Yi and the others had gone to the hospital.
"Hospital?!" Jing Zeqian panicked, thinking something had happened to them.
Jing Zeyou explained they went to test the contents of the wine glasses.
Standing in the hospital waiting room, Jing Zeqian felt conflicted. He didn't even know what result would be better.
If there was nothing, what would Jing Yi do?
If there was something, what should he do?
Jing Zeqian looked up at Jing Yi, who was resting against Jing Zejun with her back to him. He couldn't hear any of her thoughts...
The doctor knocked and entered. Jing Zeqian's eyes were visibly flustered.
Seeing this, Jing Zeyou stepped forward.
The doctor's expression was far from relaxed. He handed the test report to Jing Zeyou, saying, "We did indeed find traces of illegal substances in the liquid."
Jing Zeqian suddenly looked up at the doctor, frozen in place. When he came to his senses, he quickly walked over to Jing Zeyou and took the report.
His eyes were fixed on the results, his fingers trembling slightly as he held the paper.
Seeing Jing Zeqian's reaction, Jing Zeyou frowned, his expression complex and difficult to read. He understood all too well what Jiang Miaomiao meant to Jing Zeqian.
Or rather, what that time of shared glory meant to Jing Zeqian.
However, no amount of concern for his brother could outweigh his worry for Jing Yi. A flash of cold sternness passed through Jing Zeyou's eyes. Now was not the time for questioning.
Jing Yi only opened her eyes after hearing the results.
[Thank goodness, I've saved my knees. No need to kowtow and apologize to anyone.]
"Jun Jun, let's go home. I'm a bit hungry," Jing Yi said. Because of the banquet incident, she and Jing Zejun hadn't had a chance to eat anything yet.
Jing Zejun took Jing Yi's outstretched hand and stood up, walking with her towards the door.
Jing Zeqian snapped back to reality, standing at the doorway looking uneasy and anxious.
Jing Yi said to Jing Zeyou, "Big brother, we're heading home now." Jing Zeqian was still standing there.
Jing Yi looked at him calmly and said in a level voice, "I didn't tamper with the sample after it was taken. Jun Jun can vouch for me. If you still don't believe me, you can ask big brother to check if I've bought any illegal substances recently."
As Jing Zeqian frantically tried to explain, Jing Yi continued, "After you've thoroughly investigated this, you can look into Jiang Miaomiao if you want to."
Jing Zeyou's gaze towards Jing Zeqian held a hint of displeasure. What on earth had he said to Jing Yi to make her so angry?
Before Jing Zeqian could respond, Jing Yi had already walked past him with Jing Zejun.
Sensing the tense atmosphere, the doctor left after speaking, leaving only the two brothers in the room.
Jing Zeyou saw Jing Zeqian still holding the report, his eyes filled with desolation, lost in thought.
"What do you plan to do?" Jing Zeyou asked.
Jing Zeqian's shoulders slumped as he mumbled, "Brother, she was the first person I brought into Startrack. After all these years, why would she do this?" His hand tightly gripped the report.
Jing Zeyou sighed, "Instead of guessing here, why don't you investigate it yourself? Or should I do it?"
Jing Zeqian hesitated for a moment, then shook his head, refusing firmly, "I'll do it." He had hurt his caring sister to get this result; he should at least look into it himself.
Jing Zeyou stepped forward and patted his shoulder, "This isn't a trivial matter. Do what needs to be done." He didn't want Jing Zeqian to let the other party off lightly because of his relationship with Jiang Miaomiao.
Especially since it involved Jing Yi.
Jing Zeqian nodded, looking dejected, but Jing Zeyou didn't let him off the hook.
"Also, did you say something very hurtful to Jing Yi?" Jing Zeqian gave a bitter smile, "Yes, I said she was being unreasonable; that she was presumptuous; and even if she would harm me, Jiang Miaomiao wouldn't..."
Jing Zeyou's face tensed, his brows furrowed as he stared at Jing Zeqian with disapproval.
...
At the Jing family's dinner table, it was quieter than usual.
Lin Ruiqing had no appetite. She looked up at Jing Yi, who seemed no different from usual, eating with gusto, but very quietly. Lin Ruiqing didn't hear any of her usual comments about the food.
On the other side, Jing Zeqian also seemed off. Not only did he have no appetite, but why was he staring at Jing Yi with such a pained expression?
Could they be having a tiff?
As soon as dinner ended, Lin Ruiqing pulled Jing Zeyou to the study, with Jing Beicheng following close behind.
"What did you say? Illegal substances?!" The situation was much more serious than Lin Ruiqing had imagined. She turned to exchange a glance with Jing Beicheng, seeing the gravity in his eyes.
Jing Beicheng spoke up, "Have you found out who's behind this?" It couldn't just be Jiang Miaomiao alone going to such lengths.
For what purpose?
She was already Startrack's most resourceful and accomplished artist. What was the point of bringing down Jing Zeqian and Startrack now?
Jing Zeyou shook his head, "Zeqian wants to investigate it himself."
Jing Beicheng frowned slightly, his expression serious, but he approved of Jing Zeqian investigating on his own. He was already the head of a company; he couldn't always hide behind the Jing family.
Lin Ruiqing turned to ask, "What does this have to do with Jing Yi?" Jing Zeyou explained Jing Yi's series of actions that day.
Lin Ruiqing seemed to recall something, "No wonder Jing Yi was so hostile towards that Jiang Miaomiao!" She believed it was Jing Yi's intuition that had led her to uncover this incident.
However, Lin Ruiqing wasn't worried about Jing Zeqian's close call. After all, he was sitting safely at the dinner table, so nothing serious had happened.
She was more concerned about Jing Yi's situation. "Did that boy say something to make Jing Yi so angry?" Jing Yi hadn't seemed as happy as usual during dinner.
Before he could even mention what Jing Zeqian had said to Jing Yi, Lin Ruiqing was already getting angry. If he told her, would his brother even be able to eat his meals in peace?
Jing Zeyou didn't hesitate at all and recounted word for word what Jing Zeqian had said to Jing Yi.
As expected, Lin Ruiqing was furious. Jing Beicheng, standing beside her, also darkened his expression.
"What does he mean by 'even if Jing Yi would harm him, Jiang Miaomiao wouldn't'?! That's his sister! If it weren't for Jing Yi, Jing Zeqian would have been in jail by now!"
She even used his full name. His brother was probably in big trouble now...
