Chapter 25: Have We Met Before?

Chu Miaojing only then realized that the driver was Jing Huaiyao, but she was too distraught by the presence of an outsider to care; she just wanted to pour her heart out to her friends.

"When I resisted, they cut off my credit cards and kicked me out of the house. It’s laughable, really. My parents value profit above all else—they would sell their own daughter—yet when I suggested sending Chu Miaoyi to the arranged marriage, they refused. They even slapped me, calling me vicious and selfish for not wanting to contribute to the family."

The people in the car were filled with indignation.

An Ling fumed, "Are those two old fossils insane? If we’re talking about contributing to the family, Chu Miaoyi has been occupying your identity for so long—shouldn’t she be the one to go through with the marriage? Why force you to marry an old man?"

Chu Miaojing offered a self-deprecating smile. "There’s no deep reasoning behind it. They simply love Chu Miaoyi and have no feelings for me, so they want to wring every last bit of value out of me."

Lin Qiongqiong stroked her chin thoughtfully. "Is it possible that Chu Miaoyi is your father’s illegitimate daughter?"

Chu Miaojing paused; she hadn't considered that.

An Ling chimed in, "Exactly! Didn't you say Chu Miaoyi looks like you? Based on every novel I’ve read, Chu Miaoyi is definitely related to your father by blood!"

Chu Miaojing found it absurd. "I don’t think so. My parents adopted her when they were looking for me at the orphanage; it was my mother who suggested it. Besides, my father has oligospermia. After I was born, they didn't have any other children for years, so the odds of him having an illegitimate child are slim."

As she spoke, she fell silent for a moment, lost in thought. "Compared to my father, Chu Miaoyi looks much more like my mother. If she’s an illegitimate child, it might be on her side. But it doesn’t matter now. I’ve already left that disgusting home."

"Are you really going to give up all the Chu family’s money?" Lin Qiongqiong asked.

Chu Miaojing replied, "Everything about the Chu family disgusts me."

Lin Qiongqiong was stunned; it was clear that she truly loathed the Chu family to the core.

Just then, Jing Huaiyao, who was driving, interjected, "You may not want anything from the Chu family, but that doesn't mean you should let others benefit from it."

The three people in the back seat looked up in unison.

Through the rearview mirror, they could see Jing Huaiyao’s cold, composed expression.

He met Chu Miaojing’s gaze. "Miss Chu, don’t let the people who hurt you get off easy. Leave this to me. I will help you investigate the relationship between Chu Miaoyi and your mother."

Chu Miaojing was taken aback. "Why would you help me?"

She had assumed that because she was once He Fangfeng’s fiancée, Jing Huaiyao would dislike her.

However, Jing Huaiyao’s deep eyes simply watched her calmly through the mirror, as if silently conveying something.

She couldn't help but feel dazed. "Have we... met before?"

Jing Huaiyao withdrew his gaze and a faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "Miss Chu has a poor memory. We met at the Jingyao Jewelry store just a few days ago."

Chu Miaojing frowned; that wasn't what she meant.

Jing Huaiyao added, "I’m helping you because you are a friend of our company’s chief jewelry appraiser."

"So it’s because of Qiongqiong? Regardless, thank you."

Chu Miaojing wasn't surprised, but she felt a strange sense of disappointment.

Lin Qiongqiong couldn't hold back any longer. "Wait! Young Master Jing, I only asked to borrow your car and driver. Weren't you the one who volunteered to drive the moment you heard we were picking up Miaojing?"

Jing Huaiyao’s hands on the steering wheel faltered, and he looked at Lin Qiongqiong in surprise.

He was met with her knowing, half-smirking gaze. "Don't tell me you're going to say it’s because all your family’s drivers took the Mid-Autumn Festival off a month early?"

Jing Huaiyao: "..."

Fortunately, they had arrived at Lin Qiongqiong’s place. After dropping them off at the entrance, Jing Huaiyao drove away quickly, leaving no room for further questioning.

...

Chu Miaojing’s living expenses had been cut off, and even her tuition fees were covered by Lin Qiongqiong. She wanted to find a part-time job to pay her back, but Lin Qiongqiong insisted she focus on her experiments and presentations.

Thanks to Lin Qiongqiong’s financial backing, Gu Xizhu’s laboratory had expanded from two people to fifteen.

Before they knew it, the day of the Qin Group’s bidding arrived.

Lin Qiongqiong, An Ling, and Chu Miaojing accompanied Gu Xizhu to the Qin Group’s conference hall.

While waiting for the elevator, they ran into Zhao Hanyang’s team. Cheng Ziyu and Xu Ruyin were both there.

Lin Qiongqiong was slightly surprised. She used to think Zhao Hanyang was a man of integrity with zero tolerance for academic misconduct; she hadn't expected him to protect Xu Ruyin after she plagiarized a thesis.

Zhao Hanyang spotted her and let out a scoff to mask his unease. "It seems just about anyone can participate in the Qin Group’s bidding these days!"

Lin Qiongqiong replied, "Indeed. It seems even plagiarists can join Professor Zhao’s team now."

Zhao Hanyang’s face darkened.

Xu Ruyin, far from feeling ashamed, arched her brows, as if to say, "What can you do about it?"

Cheng Ziyu said with dissatisfaction, "Lin Qiongqiong, it’s just a minor misunderstanding. Do you have to keep harping on it? Besides, your grades are enough to qualify for a guaranteed postgraduate spot under Category A. What’s the harm in losing one paper? Giving it to Ruyin helps her get a spot—isn't that a good thing?"

Lin Qiongqiong was stunned by his audacity. "I never realized you were this shameless. By your logic, you wouldn't die if you lost an eye or a kidney, so why don't you donate them to someone who needs them more?"

Cheng Ziyu choked. "You..."

An Ling, standing nearby, sneered, "Spoken so generously—it's easy to be magnanimous with someone else's achievements!"

At that moment, the elevator arrived at their floor, and everyone stepped out.

Outside the conference room, a young woman with a yellow wavy perm and wearing a pencil skirt was issuing orders to her subordinates.

Seeing her, Xu Ruyin’s face lit up, and she waved. "Sister Qin!"

Qin Zhengyu looked over at the sound of the voice, her eyebrows slightly raised, and she walked over with her bag.

Cheng Ziyu asked excitedly, "Ruyin, you really know Miss Qin?"

Xu Ruyin held her chin high with pride. "Of course. I’ve even shared a table with her at dinner."

Wei Haochen, Luo Licheng, and the others looked delighted and said to Zhao Hanyang, "Mentor, this is great! We heard Miss Qin is in charge of this bid. Bringing Ruyin along was definitely the right choice."

However, to everyone's surprise, when Qin Zhengyu reached them, she ignored Xu Ruyin entirely and tilted her head toward the person next to her. "Chu Miaojing, long time no see."

Chu Miaojing’s expression was grim.

She knew Qin Zhengyu; they were close friends with Chu Miaoyi.

Chu Miaoyi had always taken pride in her friendship with Qin Zhengyu, a fact that even the Chu parents used to praise her for.

After being ignored, Xu Ruyin noticed the questioning gazes from Cheng Ziyu and Zhao Hanyang. Embarrassed, she hurriedly tried to assert her presence in front of Qin Zhengyu. "Miss Qin, do you remember me? I am—"

"Who are you?"

Qin Zhengyu glanced at her, clearly annoyed at being interrupted.