Being a gentleman, he gave her a chance to admit it: “Actually, I called my friend.”
“Yes, I was quite surprised to receive Teacher Ji’s call,” Wei Qinghuan suddenly appeared in the frame, displaying Lin Xiaoman’s phone showing “Teacher Ji” with a call time of 12:10 PM.
Ji Yuan’s face turned pale, not expecting them to have exchanged phones.
“Teacher Ji has been quite sincere, feeling guilty about the previous dining mishap,” Wei Qinghuan repeated Lin Xiaoman’s prepared script. “I know it was a staff mistake and haven’t taken it to heart. But Teacher Ji has been feeling embarrassed and insisted on coming to apologize in person.”
Ji Yuan’s expression worsened, remaining silent.
Reporters eagerly asked: “Is this true? Are you here because of the previous Weibo incident?”
Ji Yuan had no chance to deny it, only managing a forced smile and nod: “Although it was a staff error, I’m not entirely blameless. I definitely need to apologize properly.”
He was afraid that any contact would cause her more distress, which has been weighing on him. So everyone, considering Teacher Ji’s guilt, please don’t believe any rumors.”
She not only embarrassed Ji Yuan but also simultaneously clarified the situation between Lin Xiaoman and Ji Yuan.
On the other end of the phone, Zhang Chengxu was dumbfounded, exclaiming, “Wei Qinghuan is amazing.”
“Hmm?” A cold voice came from above.
Zhang Chengxu looked up to see Ji Zhixuan and Yan Yi emerging from the meeting room, with Ji Zhixuan staring at the video in his hand. He quickly handed over his phone and explained the situation.
“This way, Xiaoman can distance herself from Ji Yuan,” Zhang Chengxu sighed in relief. “Wei Qinghuan is truly incredible.”
“Do you think she’s telling the truth?” Ji Zhixuan smiled slightly.
How could Ji Yuan possibly go looking for Wei Qinghuan when he’s creating rumors with Lin Xiaoman?
Ji Zhixuan had met Wei Qinghuan, and her straightforward personality wasn’t capable of such a scheme. It must have been Lin Xiaoman.
“You mean she’s lying?” Zhang Chengxu looked confused.
The video switched back to Ji Yuan, who was now smiling and handing flowers to Wei Qinghuan.
“This person…” Yan Yi suddenly said, “I think I’ve seen him somewhere before.”
Zhang Chengxu laughed and explained: “He often creates rumors with female celebrities and frequently trends online.”
The video ended, and Ji Zhixian withdrew her gaze, instructing, “Book an afternoon flight, we’re going back today.”
“So soon?” Yan Yu came to her senses, “Didn’t we agree on three days?”
“If I don’t go back, the cat at home will turn everything upside down,” Ji Zhixian said casually.
“Can you have dinner with me before leaving?” he asked carefully, “I’ve already booked the restaurant, the one I told you about before. Senior brother, you must try it.”
Ji Zhixian looked at his expectant eyes, paused for a moment, and nodded, instructing Zhang Chengxu, “Book an evening flight.”
★ Chapter Thirty-Six: Framing
Ji Yuan had suffered a loss and didn’t stay long at the signing event. He gave the flowers to Wei Qinghuan, said a few flattering words, and quickly left. He had driven here and left directly after leaving the venue.
After a while, he finally reacted, growing angrier and driving faster.
Suddenly, police sirens sounded behind him. Ji Yuan panicked, pressing the accelerator harder, and the car sped away like a flying arrow.
When Lin Xiaoman saw Ji Yuan’s speeding hot search, the signing event had already ended. Passersby happened to see Ji Yuan being questioned, took photos, and posted them online. Ji Yuan became a Weibo celebrity, with #JiYuanSpeeding trending that afternoon.
“His desired golden age has finally arrived,” Xiao Bai said sarcastically.
Lin Xiaoman didn’t care. Ji Yuan’s downfall was inevitable; if he hadn’t met her, it might have just happened a bit later.
Returning to the hotel and entering her room, Lin Xiaoman noticed that the small unlocked suitcase seemed to have been tampered with. Opening it, she found a plastic bag full of white powder.
Lin Xiaoman opened and sniffed it, and her heart suddenly began to race. These were drugs.
She was very clear about this.
But who had placed this here? Who wanted to harm her?
Xiao Bai, seeing her expression gradually darken, though not knowing what she was holding, became inexplicably afraid: “Xiaoman, what happened?
Lin Xiaoman tried to stay calm: “Go ask the front desk who came to my room and retrieve the afternoon surveillance footage.”
“What’s wrong?” Xiao Bai became more anxious.
“Someone wants to harm me,” Lin Xiaoman said seriously, placing the item back in the suitcase. “Go ask quickly and call me immediately if you get any results.”
Xiao Bai rushed out, leaving Lin Xiaoman alone in the room.
Lin Xiaoman carefully examined the room. There were no signs of forced entry, so the person must have used a room key to enter. Her room was arranged by the company. If someone requested a key card in the company’s name, they could probably obtain it. So was it someone from the company?
The phone rang.
“Xiaoman, it was someone from the company who got the key card, but the front desk doesn’t know who. There’s also an issue with the surveillance room – the afternoon video seems to have gone missing,” Xiao Bai said, then asked worriedly, “Xiaoman, what’s going on?”
“It’s nothing,” Lin Xiaoman reassured, hanging up the phone.
The person had come prepared.
Fortunately, she had discovered the anomaly. The drugs were now in her possession, and she just needed to destroy them to be safe.
Lin Xiaoman was at a loss.
She thought of Ji Zhixian – if it were him, he would definitely have a way to handle this. Realizing she was thinking this way, Lin Xiaoman was startled.
But now was not the time to be stubborn. The person who wanted to harm her not only had dangerous substances like drugs but also had connections with the company. With her current capabilities, she might not be able to handle this.
Lin Xiaoman picked up her phone, about to make a call, when Xiao Bai suddenly rushed in: “Xiaoman, something’s wrong.”
Before he could finish speaking, several people in police uniforms entered. The lead officer said, “Miss Lin, someone has reported you for drug possession. Please cooperate with the investigation.”
“This is slander,” Lin Xiaoman immediately retorted.
“Please cooperate with the investigation,” the police officer repeated.
Lin Xiaoman calmly stepped aside: “I will cooperate with the investigation and hope you can restore my reputation.”
Xiao Bai looked at her anxiously. Remembering the bag of drugs, he became panicked.
A female officer conducted a drug test on Lin Xiaoman, while others searched the room. The final result proved that Lin Xiaoman had not used drugs, and no suspicious items were found. After apologizing for the disturbance, they left. Once they were gone, Lin Xiaoman collapsed into a chair as if drained.
“Xiaoman, what exactly happened?” Xiao Bai asked anxiously.
“What about the thing from earlier?”
“I flushed it down the toilet,” she replied.
Lin Xiaoman did not dare to leave anything behind, as if anyone discovered it, she would have no way to explain.
“Who exactly did this?” Xiaobai guessed from Lin Xiaoman’s actions that someone was framing her. “Could it be the company? But what good would it do the company to have a drug-using artist?”
“Go contact the company and see who requested the room card to my room,” Lin Xiaoman tried to calm herself down, because everything was just beginning.
If someone wanted to harm her, if this attempt failed, there would surely be another move.
Xiaobai had just taken out his phone to make a call when he saw a trending news pop up on the screen, his face turning pale: “Xiaoman, you’re in the news.”
