Seduced Me into a Deep Fall - Chapter 35.2

Ling Xi looked up, her eyes filled with unmistakable surprise.

“I called her. You looked like you were about to die of fright. Couldn’t just leave you like this,” Shi Xinyu explained.

Then she turned to Song Yi. “What’s going on?”

Song Yi ignored her and went straight to Ling Xi, embracing her. “Was it that person sending gifts again?”

Ling Xi gave a small nod. “I’m fine,” she said, her voice barely a whisper.

“You didn’t have to trouble yourself. I just needed a little rest.”

But despite her words, Ling Xi obediently reached out and hugged Song Yi back.

Song Yi could feel her body still trembling slightly.

“Don’t force yourself. You’re terrified. I… I was worried about you,” Song Yi murmured, stroking Ling Xi’s hair.

Ling Xi inhaled the familiar cool fragrance, and a sense of calm slowly settled over her.

“Just having you here is enough. But your work—”

“It only took me ten minutes to get here. Won’t take long to go back. No big deal.”

Song Yi noticed that Ling Xi was gradually calming down now that she was here, and a small sense of satisfaction bloomed in her chest.

“That’s good.” Ling Xi buried her face in Song Yi’s embrace.

Shi Xinyu, forced to witness the entire display of affection from the sidelines, was thoroughly exasperated.

“Are you still working today? I can write you a leave slip if you want to go home,” she said, sitting across from them and pouring herself some tea.

“Yes,” Ling Xi answered decisively.

“Are you sure?” Song Yi’s eyes were filled with clear disapproval.

Ling Xi shook her head. “It’s fine. She’s not even in the office building. I just started a few days ago—can’t keep taking leave.”

Shi Xinyu shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. You can just work from home. The design industry relies on inspiration anyway—work hours can be flexible. Last year, we hired someone for customer service. Their attendance was barely in the double digits, but they got all their work done from home. As long as the job’s done, it doesn’t matter if you’re in the office or not.”

“Hey, isn’t there someone in your department who wanted to try being a night owl? Lately, they’ve been finishing work at night, handing it over in the morning, and sleeping during the day.”

It took Ling Xi a moment to realize who Shi Xinyu was referring to.

“I think I can manage. Besides, I have something to ask Sister Ni.”

Shi Xinyu gave Song Yi a helpless look.

She’d done all she could to persuade her. If the kid wouldn’t listen, there was nothing more she could do.

Song Yi sighed inwardly. “Then I’ll come pick you up this afternoon.”

Ling Xi nodded. “Thank you.”

Then she glanced at the spot she’d kissed that morning, her ears turning slightly pink.

Noticing her gaze, Song Yi grabbed a nearby cushion and blocked Shi Xinyu’s line of sight.

“…” Shi Xinyu obediently closed her eyes, completely done with this.

Now Ling Xi couldn’t take back the kiss she wanted to give.

She could only lower her head obediently and press her lips to Song Yi’s cheek.

Song Yi cupped the back of her head, stroking gently but firmly, not letting Ling Xi pull away too quickly.

After the kiss, Song Yi put down the pillow and finally turned to look at Shi Xinyu. “Where’s my manuscript?”

“I can’t draw it right now,” Shi Xinyu waved her hand. “Give me a couple of days. It’s not like you two are getting married next month.”

“…Fine. Yun Fengzhi will probably bring some people over to investigate later. Make sure your receptionist cooperates.”

Song Yi gave an extra reminder before reluctantly preparing to leave.

Ling Xi’s arms, which had been wrapped around her, slowly slid down from her waist.

Ling Xi looked up at her.

“See you after work, sweetheart,” Song Yi patted Ling Xi’s head.

“Okay, see you after work,” Ling Xi had completely calmed down now.

After Song Yi left, Shi Xinyu tilted her chin. “That commotion on the street yesterday afternoon—was that also related to you?”

Ling Xi frowned. “Sort of?”

“Who did you piss off that they’re so persistent? They must really like you.”

“…She did say she likes me. But I despise her.” Since this was Song Yi’s friend, Ling Xi decided to be honest. “It’s Mu Xie. Officer Yun is coming to investigate her whereabouts.”

“Isn’t Mu Xie Song Yi’s niece? Now that you mention it, I did hear recently that Mu Xie held some sham of an engagement party. Even Grandma Song, who always supported her, didn’t attend. After that, Mu Xie was kicked out of the Song family. The whole circle’s been buzzing about it.”

Shi Xinyu wasn’t entirely part of that circle, just close with Song Yi since their university days.

Curious, she pressed Ling Xi for more gossip.

“Sham?” Ling Xi frowned at the term.

An engagement party should have elders present. But her own elders were either gone or had been indirectly or directly removed by Mu Xie.

As for Mu Xie’s side… it seemed no one had shown up either.

She remembered Mu Xie’s grandmother had opposed their relationship.

That Mu Xie was truly deranged. Even after her family objected, she still insisted on clinging to her.

Ling Xi thought of that glass cup and shuddered.

Mu Xie really had some skills, finding out where she worked despite being investigated.

Ling Xi sighed inwardly. She couldn’t lose control like that again.

That was all in the past life. In this one, her friends had returned.

She’d met Yun Fengzhi who worked in the unit. Her sister had come back too.

Most importantly, she had Song Yi.

No matter what, she wouldn’t end up in that same desperate situation again.

She could afford to relax a little now.

Not long after Ling Xi returned to work, Yun Fengzhi indeed arrived with a team.

They took the surveillance footage, took statements from the receptionist, and questioned Shi Xinyu.

Of course, Ling Xi was also called in for questioning.

Seeing Yun Fengzhi and Tan Nijun in formal attire with notepads was somewhat ridiculous.

“At what time did you notice any suspicious individuals?” Yun Fengzhi asked with forced professionalism, struggling to keep a straight face.

“7:53 AM. I’d just arrived at the office, tidied my workstation, checked the time, and was about to get water before organizing yesterday’s work when I saw a furtive figure by the door.”

Ahem. “Describe the item you received. Why did you break it?” Tan Nijun also fought to maintain a serious expression.

Yun Fengzhi subtly poked her.

“Officer Yun. This is work time. Three-point deduction.” Tan Nijun shot her a glance and mercilessly docked her performance points.

Yun Fengzhi immediately became as quiet as a mouse, not daring to make a sound.

“I received a glass… the same model Mu Xie once gave me. You probably know what she did to me. When memories came flooding back, I was so terrified that I accidentally dropped it.”

“Let’s keep this professional. Miss Ling Xi, we’ll need you to briefly explain your relationship with the suspect.”

Hearing these words come from Tan Nijun’s mouth, Ling Xi’s lips twitched.

Yun Fengzhi turned his head to hide a chuckle.

“Miss Tan, here’s the thing…” Ling Xi retaliated on the spot, succinctly recounting her history with Mu Xie.

By the end, Yun Fengzhi was covering his face as he finished taking notes.

“Thank you for your cooperation.” Tan Nijun remained perfectly composed, as if nothing had just happened.

She secretly slipped something into Ling Xi’s hand. “If you encounter her again, throw this at her.”

“Understood.” Ling Xi discreetly pocketed the item.

What Ling Xi didn’t anticipate was how soon Tan Nijun’s gift would come in handy.

At lunch, Song Yi said she couldn’t make it due to a meeting. Ling Xi reassured her they’d dine together in the evening and wandered around the office building alone.

Too afraid to venture outside, she figured security would be tighter indoors.

After using the restroom, Ling Xi was washing her hands when someone tapped her shoulder.

“I never knew you could draw.” A voice as haunting as a vengeful spirit floated eerily from behind.

Hearing this once-familiar yet most unwelcome voice, Ling Xi’s legs nearly gave way.

She braced herself against the sink to keep from collapsing.

“Wh-what do you want?” Cold sweat broke out across her body.

When she reached for her phone, Mu Xie seized her wrist.

“Don’t touch me!” The contact somehow gave Ling Xi strength. Shaking free, she turned to flee but found herself cornered, forced to retreat step by step.

In her panic, Ling Xi grabbed a nearby broom, holding it defensively between them.

“You know what I want. Little Xi, come back with me, won’t you? I can’t live without you.”

Mu Xie’s heart twisted at her guarded posture.

“Little Xi… I’m begging you. Everyone out here wants to hurt you. Only I truly love you.”

“Shut up! You call this love? After everything you did last time? How could you possibly hurt someone you claim to love!”

Trembling violently, Ling Xi fumbled three times before finally reaching into her pocket.

“But Ling Xi, I never meant you harm. If only you’d stay with me willingly… Little Xi… That was our past life. I’ve changed now. I genuinely want to be with you.” Mu Xie eyed her movements warily.

She advanced, attempting to grab Ling Xi’s hand again.

Ling Xi swung the broom at her face.

When it struck Mu Xie’s eye, she recoiled in pain.

Seizing the moment, Ling Xi hurled Tan Nijun’s device at her.

“Ah—!” An electric current coursed through Mu Xie’s body, drawing a piercing scream.

“Ling Xi! What have you done? Don’t you love me anymore? Is that it? No, impossible! You were always so kind, so gentle, so lovely. How could you change like this?”

Ling Xi couldn’t care less about her hysterics—she just focused on running for her life.

Clutching her phone, she dialed Song Yi without a second thought.

But the call wouldn’t go through. Remembering Song Yi was in a meeting, she tried calling Tan Nijing instead.

Before the call could connect, a hand grabbed her ankle.

She stumbled and fell to her knees.

Her phone skidded across the floor. The call had connected, but Ling Xi couldn’t even begin to explain to Tan Nijing what was happening to her right now.

Behind her was Mu Xie, her body weak and barely able to crawl forward, yet still using the last of her strength to hold Ling Xi back.

“Ling Xi… Ling Xi, I really do love you. Why can’t you just stay with me…?”

“…Get lost!” Ling Xi mustered all her strength and kicked the hand away.

She scrambled deeper into the office, desperate to find someone—anyone—still there.

And then she crashed straight into Shi Xinyu, who was just filling her cup for instant noodles.

“Call security!” Ling Xi grabbed onto this lifeline.

Shi Xinyu stared at the woman collapsed by the doorway, her noodles dropping to the floor.

She quickly grabbed her walkie-talkie and called the security team upstairs.

“Ling Xi…” Mu Xie’s body was weak, her voice trembling.

Her last sight was of the woman she loved—now looking at her with nothing but fear and disgust.

Her heart felt like it was being torn apart.

A single tear rolled down her cheek.

Ling Xi took in her pitiful state and felt nothing but revulsion.

“Mu Xie, let me make this clear. I have never—never—liked you. I despise you. I loathe you. You’re the last person I ever want to see in this world. Stop deluding yourself, and don’t ever come near me again. You know exactly what you’ve done. There’s nothing left between us.”

Before security dragged Mu Xie away, Ling Xi unleashed every bitter word she had held back for far too long—words she had nearly numbed herself into silence over.

Once they were out, she felt lighter, as if she had finally exorcised a demon.

Tan Nijing and Yun Fengzhi, who had been nearby finishing lunch after their morning investigation, rushed over after Ling Xi’s call.

They took over escorting Mu Xie away.

Ling Xi watched as handcuffs were slapped onto Mu Xie’s unresisting wrists and let out a long, shaky breath.

Her legs gave out, and she slumped to the floor.

“…Are you hurt?” Shi Xinyu asked, still stunned. She reached out a hand.

Ling Xi shook her head, declining the help. After three attempts, she finally managed to stand on her own.

“Did you tell Song Yi?” Shi Xinyu checked her phone and realized she actually had missed calls from Song Yi.

“I tried, but she was in a meeting.” Only then did Ling Xi remember her phone, still lying where it had fallen.

“She’s probably done now. Oh—another call. Here, take this one. I’ll grab your phone for you.”

“Ah, thank you.” Ling Xi took the unfamiliar number hesitantly.

“Is this Miss Shi?” The voice on the other end was unfamiliar.

“No, um—” Ling Xi was confused.

“…Miss Ling Xi?” The woman adjusted quickly.

“Yes, that’s me. Who is this?”

“I’m Chairman Song’s secretary. She’s still in a meeting and can’t step away, but she received your call and was extremely worried, so she asked me to call you back.”

Ling Xi understood immediately. “Please tell her I’m fine. There’s no need for her to worry.”

“I will. Chairman Song also said that if you encountered Mu Xie, you shouldn’t continue working this afternoon. She’ll send a car to pick you up—just stay in her office for the rest of the day.”

Ling Xi was indeed exhausted from the scare. Staying by Song Yi’s side would make her feel safer, so she didn’t decline the secretary’s invitation.

“I’ll call your private number later. Have Miss Shi escort you downstairs—she knows me, which will help confirm you’re getting into the right car.”

“Alright, thank you.” Ling Xi hung up.

She took her phone from Shi Xinyu’s hands and saw multiple missed calls from unfamiliar numbers—likely from the secretary.

“Taking leave?” Shi Xinyu had pieced together most of the conversation.

“I’ll finish what needs to be done. Consider it… working from home?” Ling Xi began packing up her workstation.

“Sure, go ahead. Luckily, Yun Fengzhi and the others didn’t go far. With Mu Xie caught, you can finally work in peace.”

“Yeah, thankfully.” Was the nightmare that had haunted her for so long really about to disappear completely?

Ling Xi felt somewhat unreal.

Shi Xinyu saw her off to Song Yi’s car, where Ling Xi met the secretary.

She arrived safely at Song Yi’s office. To reassure her, the secretary even took her past the meeting room where Song Yi was, letting her glimpse Song Yi reprimanding her subordinates.

Song Yi seemed furious.

Ling Xi’s mind drifted as she entered Song Yi’s office.

Five minutes of silence passed.

In those five minutes, there was only stillness. Ling Xi could hear her own breathing, her heartbeat, and even…

the sound of her own crying.

By the time she realized it, she was already sobbing uncontrollably, her face streaked with tears.

She hurriedly grabbed tissues to wipe them away, but the more she wiped, the more they fell.

“I was afraid something would happen to them, and you’d be devastated. If Mu Xie dared force you to cut ties with your friends, she’d dare target your family too. How else could she pressure you into an engagement?”

Song Yi’s heart ached at Ling Xi’s guarded posture.

“…I understand.” Ling Xi took a deep breath.

Song Yi held hers at those words.

After a long moment, she pulled Ling Xi into an embrace, resting her chin on Ling Xi’s shoulder, finally exhaling softly.

This was what she’d asked for.

And what she needed.

She couldn’t blame herself.

“I won’t leave you. I’m right here.”

Song Yi closed her eyes. Her longing for Ling Xi, woven into each breath against her ear, slowly tore through its veil, growing deeper.

Had Mu Xie been brought to justice?

From now on, would she never have to live in fear again?

Something this good… was it really happening?

Could it all just be a dream before her death in a past life?

Ling Xi couldn’t stop crying, lost in her emotions.

Then she heard the door open.

Song Yi stood at the entrance, their eyes meeting across the room.

Song Yi slammed the door shut, rushed over, and pulled her into a tight embrace.

Ling Xi hiccuped, returning the hug.

“Rest well this afternoon. I’ll take you out for something nice tonight.”

“My treat…” Ling Xi remembered yesterday’s interrupted lunch plans.

“Fine, your treat. No need to be polite with me.” Song Yi played along, helping her dry her tears.

“Be good. I still have work to do.” She ruffled Ling Xi’s hair.

Ling Xi nodded, took Song Yi’s hand, and kissed it. “You’re so good to me. I should finish my work for today too.”

Song Yi couldn’t persuade her, nor could she bring herself to tell her to rest.

As she busily typed away, Song Yi only felt how hot the back of her hand—the one Ling Xi had kissed—was, and how warm her face had become.

Song Yi let out a sigh.

She wanted to confess.

But she wasn’t ready yet.

The gift, the ceremony, testing Ling Xi’s true feelings…

And most of all, the courage to confess.

She was still that same timid, pitiful person.

The mere possibility of rejection made her shrink back, step after step.

Song Yi took a few deep breaths and threw herself back into her work.

She finished early and asked Shi Xinyu for the surveillance footage from noon. With headphones on, she watched it at double speed.

Until she saw Mu Jie emerge from the women’s omega restroom.

So Mu Jie had never actually left the office building that morning.

Frowning, Song Yi watched as Mu Jie followed Ling Xi into the women’s alpha restroom.

She turned the volume all the way up, barely making out their conversation.

Thankfully, it had been quiet at noon—otherwise, there’d have been no chance of hearing anything.

Song Yi replayed the clip five times.

Then she set down the headphones, her brow furrowed.

She had caught one phrase.

“Previous life.”

Previous life…

What was a “previous life”? Were Ling Xi’s strange fears rooted in some past existence with Mu Jie?

Could reincarnation actually be possible?

Song Yi didn’t doubt Ling Xi’s words. She was just surprised, having assumed that if Ling Xi and Mu Jie had a past life, it must have been in ancient times or the Republic era.

Before Song Yi could dwell on it further, her phone rang—Yun Fengzhi was calling.

Hearing the sound, Ling Xi looked up.

Song Yi crooked a finger, beckoning her over, then put the call on speaker.

“Song Yi? Is Ling Xi there too?” Yun Fengzhi paused for two seconds, and when no denial came, continued.

“Ugh, I can’t believe this. How many tricks does that Mu Jie have up her sleeve?”

“What happened?” Song Yi’s frown returned.

“She escaped. While we were transporting her to the station. She tried pulling the same stunt as yesterday, and we were prepared for it. But who knew she’d pull out another… Are you two okay? Still there?” Yun Fengzhi heard a loud thud on the other end of the line.

Ling Xi collapsed into Song Yi’s arms.

Only one thought circled in her mind.

Mu Xie had escaped.