Chapter 276

4 hours until erasure.

Qiao Suisui stared at him, and seeing Han Chen clap his hands twice, the glass directly in front of Qiao Suisui suddenly turned transparent.

But this glass was one-way; she could clearly see Ye Xi's situation, but Ye Xi couldn't see what was happening on her side.

Han Chen dialed his assistant's number, then put it on speakerphone and placed it in front of Qiao Suisui.

A malicious smile was on his face.

"How about we make a bet? What do you think Ye Xi will choose between protecting you and protecting herself?"

Han Chen saw Qiao Suisui clenching her fists, her expression somewhat stiff, her eyes fixed on Ye Xi's figure. He couldn't help but chuckle, leisurely pacing behind her and resting his arms on her chair.

"Don't be nervous, the answer will be revealed soon."

On the other end of the phone, Han Chen's assistant said coldly to Ye Xi, "Miss Ye, I don't think I need to introduce myself anymore."

Ye Xi looked at the other person coldly, and after a long while, said, "I know you, you're a dog by Han Chen's side."

The assistant wasn't angry; instead, he smiled slightly.

He threw a stack of documents on the table, and several photos flew out from the scattered papers.

The protagonist of every photo was Ye Xi and an elderly woman.

Ye Xi's expression changed drastically, and she looked up sharply: "Investigate me if you want, but don't bother my grandmother!"

She and her grandmother had depended on each other since she was young, and her first computer was bought with money her grandmother had saved by scrimping and saving. At first, the grandmother and granddaughter lived on welfare in a 30-square-meter bungalow. The grandmother would usually collect recyclables and sell starch sausages, balloons, and small snacks for 50 cents a bag at the school gate, but she never went to the school gate where Ye Xi studied because she was afraid of embarrassing her granddaughter.

Ye Xi had a great talent for mathematics since she was a child. At first, to make her grandmother happy, she would get first place in her class every time and bring her report card home. But one time, the head teacher came to their door and told the grandmother that Ye Xi was a prodigy and shouldn't have her education delayed, and that she should participate in an Olympiad math competition. The teacher was willing to pay the registration fee, but they had to cover the travel expenses themselves.

She had never left this small town since she was a child, let alone know how much it would cost to stay in a hotel, travel, and eat in a big city, but in little Ye Xi's eyes, that was very, very expensive.

The grandmother didn't say anything, just kept bowing to the teacher, thanking her. Afterward, she began leaving early and returning late.

To save up travel money for her granddaughter, the grandmother went to wash dishes for people but was looked down upon for being slow, and went to do cleaning but was looked down upon for being too old. An old lady who had long since retired couldn't find any livelihood in society. In the end, the grandmother spent the night picking up bottles and recyclables along the street, carefully checking every trash can, dragging her worn-out snakeskin bag for a very, very long way.

That morning at 4:30, it was 4:30 that Ye Xi would never forget.

She woke up and found her grandmother wasn't sleeping beside her. She waited and waited but didn't see her, so she rushed out in her slippers to look for her, knocking on every door, asking everyone she met: "Have you seen my grandmother?" "Have you seen my grandmother?"

Finally, as the sun rose, the grandmother walked back slowly, carrying a bulging snakeskin bag. She walked against the morning sun, her back hunched, her hands full of dry wrinkles tightly gripping the mouth of the snakeskin bag.

The grandmother saw Ye Xi sitting on the steps and revealed a kind smile.

"Xiao Xi, the travel money is here."

From that day on, Ye Xi no longer showed her talent to the outside world. She cut her hair short, put on dull black-rimmed glasses, and didn't talk much to her peers. She didn't go to the big city to participate in the competition, but instead used the money at home, along with what she borrowed from neighbors, to buy a computer.

She began to deliberately maintain mediocre grades, teaching herself computer science during breaks, and within half a year, she was able to take on private work using the code she wrote. Adolescent Ye Xi took on the burden of supporting the family.

Fortunately, her grandmother's health remained good, and the days of the grandmother and granddaughter got better day by day under Ye Xi's efforts.

After finishing middle school, Ye Xi decided to drop out because she had more important things to do, which was to never let her grandmother pick up bottles again.

Qiao Suisui saw that Ye Xi became very agitated after seeing the photos, and the assistant's voice continued to come from the phone—

"Miss Ye, I hope you think it through carefully. Since you terminated your contract with INF Company, you no longer possess any authorization related to this game. Your repeated actions have completely crossed the red line and belong to leaking trade secrets. Our company reserves the right to pursue your legal responsibility."

The assistant changed the subject and said, "However, if you sign this agreement, we will no longer pursue it."

He took out an agreement. Ye Xi couldn't read it at all, only seeing a line of bold text, and looked at the other person with hatred, saying, "You want me to commit perjury?"

"So what? As long as you attribute all of today's actions to being instigated by your friend, the follow-up to this matter will have nothing to do with you. You can still continue your old profession and provide for your grandmother's retirement."

Ye Xi gritted her teeth and shouted, "But this game was my idea in the first place! I designed everything! I was just taken advantage of by you because I didn't understand the law, and you tricked me into selling the copyright!"

A ridiculous expression appeared on the assistant's face. "Without INF's technology and financial support, you have a prototype, can you achieve this scale today? Besides, those players are all empty, hungry female losers like you. We spent a lot of money to make this game to fill their hearts, and you're still talking about self-worth in the live-stream, ridiculous."

Seeing Ye Xi speechless, the assistant picked up a pen and handed it to her, saying, "Sign it, why struggle? As long as you sign it, your friend will bear the responsibility, and it will have nothing to do with you. And President Han, considering your contribution to the company, will give you an extra million."

On this side, Han Chen looked at the solemn expression on Qiao Suisui's face, and his smile deepened: "How about it? What do you think Ye Xi will choose?"

Han Chen's eyes were full of provocation.

Qiao Suisui looked at Ye Xi, separated by a wall, and said, "I believe in her. No matter what she chooses, we are friends."

Han Chen smiled, appearing somewhat disdainful: "Naivety is good, but going too far is stupidity."

Ye Xi in the other conference room slowly took the pen, and the assistant smiled in triumph.

Ye Xi's hand began to tremble. At first, it was very slight, but the amplitude of the trembling grew larger and larger, and even her shoulders began to shake.

The assistant saw the girl in front of him who had been keeping her head down, thinking she was too sad and crying, and was just about to say something, but saw Ye Xi raise her head, a pair of eyes behind the black-rimmed glasses shining amazingly.

"You—"

"Puhahahaha, that's enough, I can't keep acting anymore." Ye Xi laughed, holding her stomach, and wiped the physiological tears from the corners of her eyes with her fingers.

Han Chen's expression changed slightly, and he looked at Qiao Suisui.

She was sitting upright in her chair, completely devoid of the solemnity and despair from just a moment ago.

The assistant was clearly surprised by Ye Xi's reaction: "What on earth are you talking about?"

(End of chapter)