Lin Xi followed the old man upstairs and, together with Uncle Deng, helped him sit down on the edge of the bed. The old man gave Uncle Deng a meaningful look; Uncle Deng nodded slightly, then turned and left the bedroom.
"Why the serious face?" the old man asked Lin Xi with a smile. "Are you unhappy?" "How could I dare be?" Lin Xi retorted softly. "What you've given me... isn't it a bit too much?" She already held shares in Silver Sail. The old man replied:
"The operating rights to Jinhuang Plaza—those were something Mingxuan voluntarily ceded to you." Lin Xi was stunned. "Why would he do that?" The old man explained, "I asked him, and he said it was his way of compensating you." "But he doesn't owe me anything,"
Lin Xi frowned. "If anything, this just leaves *me* indebted to *him*." The old man took her hand:
"I've never been able to rest easy regarding Mingxuan. You are the only person capable of keeping him grounded. If, in the future, he were to get himself into serious trouble—or perhaps squander the family fortune—I ask that you, for the sake of your old grandfather, step in to ensure he doesn't end up destitute.
Of course, my true hope is that, even if he achieves no great feats, he will simply live out his life in peace and stability." Lin Xi said, "Grandpa, surely it won't come to that point; he still has his parents, after all." The old man sighed:
"Your Uncle Duan's heart isn't truly with his two sons; that is precisely why I established a trust fund for Mingxuan." Lin Xi was taken aback. Could Duan Zheng really go so far as to seize the assets belonging to Duan Mingxuan and hand them over to An Qi? "You are well aware of your Uncle Duan's situation,"
the old man said, looking at Lin Xi. "I won't even mention Yiheng—he holds no affection whatsoever for Duan Zheng—but Mingxuan is a different story. I foresee that the truth about An Qi will soon be impossible to conceal. When that happens, Mingxuan surely won't be able to accept it right away; given his temperament..." The old man trailed off, hesitating to finish his thought.
"When that time comes," he continued, "I hope you will help your old grandfather comfort him." The old man gave a wry smile; he had only two grandsons, and he wished for no harm to befall either of them. Even though he knew that Duan Yiheng held little regard for Duan Mingxuan, he still entrusted this task to Lin Xi. "You two grew up together; you aren't enemies. Xiao Xi, the day will come when he finally understands. Right now, he simply can't come to terms with the fact that you've left him." "He may have hurt you in certain ways, but you know his heart—he never truly intended to cause you pain."
Lin Xi nodded. "I understand, Grandpa." The old man smiled gently. "As for that necklace—it was originally meant for Yiheng's mother. It's a family heirloom traditionally passed down to the daughter-in-law. However, after she divorced Duan Zheng, she returned it."
Lin Xi paused, taken aback. *Then why give it to me?* "I couldn't give it to Chen Baiwei," the old man said, as if reading her thoughts. "That left only you." Lin Xi went downstairs, still pondering the old man's words. Upon seeing Duan Yiheng, she said:
"Grandpa said we should make our own arrangements for lunch; he wants to rest." Duan Yiheng nodded. "Let's go out to eat." "Okay," Lin Xi replied. "Let's find a place with a bit of privacy—I have something I need to talk to you about."
Since they had to return to the office for work that afternoon, they found an upscale restaurant near the company and headed up to a private dining room—one typically reserved for couples. Catching sight of the roses on the table, Lin Xi suddenly let out a chuckle.
"Do you remember the very first time I went to Silver Sail to find you—and that restaurant you took me to that evening?" Duan Yiheng pulled out a chair for her and smiled. "I remember." Lin Xi teased:
"The walls were absolutely covered in roses! I was completely stunned. And the lighting was so—well, *suggestive*. You have no idea how badly I wanted to just turn around and walk out right then and there." "Then why didn't you?" Duan Yiheng asked. "Was it because you saw Duan Mingxuan and Zhang Mo and felt upset?" Lin Xi glared at him.
"It was only because *you* insisted on talking to me about my onboarding and department placement! I was so naive and easy to fool back then." The corners of Duan Yiheng's lips curved into a faint smile. "And what exactly did I 'fool' you about?" "You were just using that as an excuse to get me to have dinner with you," Lin Xi huffed with feigned haughtiness. "And you were putting on such an act!"
"Putting on an act? How?" Duan Yiheng genuinely couldn't figure out what kind of act he was supposed to have been putting on. Lin Xi cleared her throat. "Let me show you—I'll do an impression." Duan Yiheng raised an eyebrow in amusement. Lin Xi leaned back against his chair, resting one hand on the table as he deliberately lowered his voice:
"Since when am *I* your 'big brother'?" Duan Yiheng was speechless. *Is it really necessary to dig up old history like this?* "Cat got your tongue?" Lin Xi teased Duan Yiheng. "You actually intimidated me back then. I remember thinking, 'If I don't call him Big Brother, what *am* I supposed to call him? I certainly can't just use his name, can I?'"
Duan Yiheng retorted, "But you call Duan Mingxuan by his name, don't you?" "That's because he and I are the same age," Lin Xi shot back. "In any case, you definitely had some ulterior motives back then." "Same age?" Duan Yiheng chuckled. "Are you saying I'm too old for you?" "Who said you were too old?"
Lin Xi felt that, at times, the man could be utterly unreasonable. "I didn't know you well back then. You commanded authority both at home and at the company; addressing you by your first name would have been disrespectful." "But isn't Duan Mingxuan a year older than you, too?" Duan Yiheng pressed on relentlessly. Lin Xi:
"...Are you bringing up old grievances with me right now?" "No." Duan Yiheng wisely denied it, then changed the subject. "What did you talk about with Grandpa? You looked quite preoccupied when you came downstairs." The smile faded from her lips as Lin Xi turned to Duan Yiheng:
"It's all because of Duan Mingxuan. He's the one who gave up the operating rights to Jinhuang Plaza—hundreds of plazas nationwide, and he just handed them over just like that. I have no idea what he's up to, and to make matters worse, Grandpa insisted that I take them." Duan Yiheng was actually surprised; he looked up at Lin Xi:
"What else did the old man say?" Lin Xi knew she couldn't hide anything from Duan Yiheng, so she didn't try to beat around the bush: "Grandpa told me to give Duan Mingxuan a hand if he ever finds himself in trouble." "The old man really went all out this time."
Duan Yiheng chuckled. "He knows Duan Mingxuan isn't exactly reliable, but he probably understands *you* even better. Even without these assets, if something were to genuinely happen to Duan Mingxuan, there's no way you could simply stand by and do nothing." Lin Xi gave an awkward little laugh: "Is that really the kind of person I am?" Duan Yiheng replied:
"Isn't that exactly the kind of person you are?" "Fine," Lin Xi conceded. "Let's just say I'm a rather kind-hearted person." Duan Yiheng gave a noncommittal hum: "As long as it's not because of lingering romantic feelings, I'm fine with that." "How long are you going to keep being jealous of him?" Lin Xi rolled her eyes at him in exasperation.
"That depends on your behavior," Duan Yiheng said, not seeing a single thing wrong with his own jealousy. Lin Xi said, "Anyway, I've told you everything; consider this fair warning." "Silly girl."
Duan Yiheng chuckled softly. "Grandpa even gave you Grandma's necklace—didn't that give you any other ideas?" Lin Xi choked slightly, a telltale blush rising suspiciously to her cheeks. Duan Yiheng laughed softly: "Do you really think Grandpa gave it to you just so you'd help him out?
He was clearly speaking to *me*—indirectly telling *me* not to make things difficult for Duan Mingxuan. After all, he only has two grandsons in this entire lifetime." Lin Xi looked up: "I honestly hadn't thought of it that way." "You were too busy focusing on the fact that the necklace is traditionally given to a daughter-in-law, weren't you?" Duan Yiheng teased. Lin Xi: "...I'm not your daughter-in-law." "Mm." Duan Yiheng nodded. "You're his granddaughter-in-law." Lin Xi: "...Are you actually going to eat or not?" Duan Yiheng chuckled aloud: "I'm eating." "You're so annoying," Lin Xi grumbled under her breath, yet her heart was pounding wildly.
Did this mean that Grandpa had accepted her and Duan Yiheng?