Chapter 343

Lingxunzhang eyed Ling Yan suspiciously as she barged in, wondering if she could possibly answer the question he had racked his brains over.

Ling Yan kept her eyes down, not daring to look at her cousin's face, and softly explained: "It's my fault; I had someone post the negative stuff about Xia Xi online." Her voice choked with tears, she said, "Big brother, I'm sorry—I never expected Xu Yanfeng to react like this."

Xu Yanfeng had openly sided with Xia Xi against the Ling Clan, and only then did she realize her momentary spite had caused a major disaster; thinking there might still be a chance to fix things, she hurried to the office to find Lingxunzhang.

Lingxunzhang stared in disbelief; he had heard from his subordinates that Xu Yanfeng and a woman were trending online, and at the time he thought Xu Yanfeng was being ridiculous—passing up the well-born Ling Yan for an ordinary woman.

Being ordinary was bad enough, but she wasn't even innocent.

Those bed photos were everywhere—where could Xu Yanfeng save face…

He never imagined that the scandal blowing up online was the handiwork of this cousin of his, and now it had dragged the Ling Clan down as well.

A sudden rush of footsteps came from behind; Ling Yan turned, but before she could see who it was, a slap landed on her face, throwing her head to the side, her ears ringing, half her head numb.

Never having been hit before in her life, Ling Yan covered her face in disbelief, looked up at a furious face, and her lips trembled: "... Dad."

"Don't call me Dad—I don't have a daughter like you!" her father shouted, pointing at her nose, "Jealousy and spite have made the whole family pay for your willfulness—do you even deserve the Ling name?!"

Ling Yan could no longer hold back; tears streamed down as she shook her head helplessly, "I never thought it would turn out like this, Dad—I was wrong."

"What good does it do to know you're wrong now?" her father rasped, after shouting the sentence he pressed a hand to his chest and coughed incessantly.

"Dad! Dad!" Ling Yan cried in terror.

Lingxunzhang ordered the secretary to bring hot water, helped his father onto the sofa, and said, "Uncle, what brings you here? Aunt said you were ill and have been resting at the suburban villa lately."

His father glared at his only daughter, eyes practically shooting fire: "With such a huge problem at the company, how could I not come?"

Lingxunzhang was also furious, but more helpless; he sighed deeply: "It's come to this—beating my little sister won't change anything..."

The secretary brought a cup of hot water; his father took two sips, barely suppressing his raging anger, and pointed at Ling Yan as he instructed Lingxunzhang: "No delay—I'll hold down the company; you take her right now to apologize to the Xu family and his girlfriend."

Upon hearing that, Ling Yan's face filled with resistance: "Dad, I don't want to—I had someone post the facts, not slander!"

Making her apologize to Xia Xi would be better off letting her die.

"Ling Yan! How long is this going to go on before you repent?" her father slammed the cup onto the coffee table, sending water splashing halfway out, "I'm not asking you—I'm ordering you! You caused this mess yourself, and yet you expect me to put on an old face and apologize to a junior?"

"I... I..."

Ling Yan could find no words to defend herself, only tears streaming down.

His father, vexed, pointed toward the door without even glancing at her: "The longer you drag this out, the worse it gets—who knows what else that Xu fellow has on you? Get out there and apologize now."

Lingxunzhang had been wavering, but hearing this, his resolve hardened; he no longer considered Ling Yan's wishes, dragged her out of the office, and left with, "I'll leave the company in your hands, Uncle."

Ling Yan pried at his fingers, pleading through tears: "Brother, I don't want to go."

Assistants and secretaries passing in the hallway glanced at the brother and sister, wondering what had happened.

Lingxunzhang's attitude turned cold and firm: "I've never objected to your antics before, but this time you must obey your father—no discussion."

Ling Yan felt utter despair, almost being dragged into the elevator.

The car drove into the underground parking lot of the Xu Clan Group headquarters building and slowly came to a stop.

Lingxunzhang had given prior notice; Guan He was waiting at the elevator entrance.

Ling Yan had stopped crying, but her eyes remained reddened and wouldn't fade for a while, half her face burning with pain. Feeling utterly low, she didn't bother touching up her makeup, stepping out of the car with a blotchy visage and following Lingxunzhang up in the elevator straight to the floor where the CEO's office was.

Guan He led the two of them into a spacious reception room: "Please wait a moment; General Manager Xu is busy."

Soon afterward, a secretary arrived and delivered two cups of coffee.

Lingxunzhang quietly reminded his sister: "When you see Xu Yanfeng later, remember to keep your temper in check; get past this hurdle and everything else can be discussed."

Ling Yan gave a muffled hum, her gaze vacant, like a puppet.

Lingxunzhang felt restless, frequently glancing at his watch; the agreed "short wait" had stretched to half an hour, and he still hadn't caught a glimpse of Xu Yanfeng.

During the lengthy wait, his irritation slowly turned to anger; he figured it out—this was Xu Yanfeng deliberately making things difficult for them, yet he couldn't just walk away, nor could he storm into Xu Yanfeng's office to confront him.

They had come to apologize and make amends, so they needed to lower their stance.

Lingxunzhang clenched his fists, his brow knotted like a dead knot, and muttered resentfully: "I think Xu Yanfeng has lost his mind—just to vent for his girlfriend he's turned against our family, what does he gain? At best he should guarantee the Xu Clan Group stays steady from now on, or else..."

Ling Yan, on the contrary, felt deathly calm—her heart was already dead, and she couldn't stir up any waves.

In the office, Xu Yanfeng leisurely reviewed documents, and between sips of water he asked Guan He: "How long have they been waiting?"

Guan He glanced at the clock, precise to the minute: "Thirty-six minutes."

"Hmm."

Xu Yanfeng had nothing else to say; he set down his cup and continued handling the piled-up work.

An hour passed, and Lingxunzhang cursed Xu Yanfeng countless times in his mind. When the secretary delivered the third cup of coffee, he suppressed his anger and asked: "When will General Manager Xu be done?"

"Sorry, I don't know," the secretary replied with a smile, "Please wait a moment; I'll go ask Assistant Guan."

Yet another "just wait," and Lingxunzhang's complexion couldn't hold—he looked awful in an instant.

The secretary didn't brush him off; after leaving, he genuinely went to find Guan He and inquired about General Manager Xu's schedule.

Guan He said calmly, "Let them wait a bit longer."

That wait stretched another hour.

Having received Xu Yanfeng's order, Guan He finally pushed open the reception room door slowly, his tone gentle as he apologized: "Really sorry to have kept you waiting so long; please follow me, General Manager Xu is finished."

Lingxunzhang was practically grinding his teeth; he straightened his clothes and left the reception room, with Ling Yan following in a daze.

Finally seeing Xu Yanfeng, his handsome face bore a light smile, yet one couldn't sense any warmth from him: "I just happened to be handling a tricky matter—sorry for the wait—what brings you to see me?"

Both knowing the reason, Lingxunzhang put on a smile: "My little sister says she wants to apologize to you; I'll accompany her." As he spoke, he glanced at Ling Yan standing silently beside him and gave her a look.

After sitting idle for over two hours, Ling Yan's heart died again and again; she pressed her lips together and, reciting the script she had prepared beforehand, spoke mechanically: "Sorry, I'm the one who posted the negative material about Xia Xi online; I momentarily lost my mind, couldn't control myself, and caused her harm. If possible, I'd like to apologize to her in person and seek her forgiveness."

Only heaven knows how many psychological barriers she overcame to say those words.

Xu Yanfeng gave a faint smile; he could never agree to let Ling Yan see Xia Xi, yet he didn't shy away from the issue—indeed, he had done all this precisely to force the Ling family to voluntarily push Ling Yan forward to bear the responsibility.

Mistakes must be paid for; they cannot be swept away with a light "sorry."

"Not necessary." Xu Yanfeng shook his head, his tone cold.

Ling Yan didn't want to see Xia Xi from the bottom of her heart, let alone apologize to her; Xu Yanfeng saying it wasn't necessary suited her perfectly. She concealed a hint of relief and spoke cautiously: "Well, then could you please tell Xia Xi I'm sorry on my behalf?"

She thought it was too simple. Xu Yanfeng's gaze fell on her face, lingering for two seconds, as if he were smiling, but his voice was much colder than just now: "If you want her to feel your apology, you don't necessarily have to meet her."

Ling Yan's eyes showed confusion.

"Since the matter blew up online, it should also be settled online." Xu Yanfeng said, "If you want to sincerely apologize, then record a video and post it online, publicly admit your slander against her, and clear her name."