The Person I Love Who Has Been Missing For Three Years - Chapter 30

Chapter 30: She is Your Biological Sister (1k…)

Ming Jin drifted into a fitful sleep. In her dream, the persistent scent of roses clung to her, a sticky sweetness pressing into her embrace, intertwining, kissing, closely hugging.

Then, she slowly woke up, checking the time. Only forty minutes had passed.

Xu Zhiyan was absent. She propped herself up on the bed. The feeling of being lightheaded and cloudy persisted, and her body temperature seemed to have risen again.

Her mind was too foggy, though, and the desire to sleep was gone.

She didn’t call anyone or interrupt Xu Zhiyan’s meeting. She simply got up on her own.

She got out of bed, dragged the wheelchair closer, and then used her arms to maneuver herself back into the chair. This small action, however, almost completely drained her strength.

Slightly breathless, she leaned against the wheelchair to rest for a while, suppressing the dizzying, cloudy sensation before positioning her legs properly.

Her gaze lingered on her legs. She seemed to briefly close her eyes, unwilling to face them.

In the surrounding silence, when no one was around, she didn’t need to maintain her superficial dignity. The sense of weariness and melancholy pressed down densely.

She seemed to hear, beside her ear, the screech of sharp brakes.

A huge black shadow slammed down. All that remained in her ears was a piercing scream, mixed with footsteps, a chaotic blur.

Why? Why her, specifically? The oil tanker’s tire blew out at precisely that moment, causing it to overturn, followed by a crashing sound.

The grim expression on Ming Jin’s face faltered for a second, then vanished, replaced by her usual calm composure and indifferent look.

“You’re awake.” Lin Rong opened the door, then turned on the bedside lamp with a click.

“The young lady was so anxious, she rushed me seven or eight times on the road, practically wanting to grab my collar and drag me here.”

“I was terrified, thinking something major had happened.”

She moved closer, looking at Ming Jin’s face, and her lips curled up: “You look fine, though.”

She quickly opened her medical kit and took Ming Jin’s blood pressure and temperature.

“It’s less than $38^{circ}C$. A low-grade fever…” She put away the thermometer. “I don’t recommend medication.”

She was always cautious about prescribing medication to Ming Jin. Her heart wasn’t strong, and she couldn’t take many painkillers. The most she could do was physical cooling.

“Thank you for coming all this way,” Ming Jin said flatly.

“I was free anyway. Think of it as a half-day tour of Ming Corporation,” Lin Rong raised her eyebrows playfully. “I just came to watch the show.”

“What show?” Ming Jin was slightly confused.

“A lovesick woman waiting desperately for her sweetheart. A rare good show,” Lin Rong clicked her tongue. “President Ming, why are you keeping her outside like this?”

Ming Jin instantly understood. She was talking about Song Xiangwan.

Lin Rong continued: “President Ming, she keeps reaching out, and you keep pushing her away. Even the warmest heart will turn cold eventually.”

If it could turn cold, that would be for the best. Ming Jin’s fingers paused slightly. A cold heart was the result she desired.

Ming Jin didn’t reply. Lin Rong didn’t mind, just chuckled softly: “If it were me…”

She mused, “If it were me, I’d pull the person I love into my arms. We’d die together…”

“You can die, but don’t drag A-Yan down with you,” Ming Jin interrupted her.

“When did I ever say I liked her? Don’t frame me,” Lin Rong instinctively retorted.

“Isn’t it for her?” Ming Jin looked up at Lin Rong and said slowly, “The sole heir of the Lin family shouldn’t be here serving people just for a bit of money.”

Lin Rong’s smile faded slightly, and her eyelashes lowered: “How do you know?”

“Don’t be nervous,” Ming Jin adjusted the thin blanket on her lap and said slowly, “I’m not some feudal patriarch obsessed with continuing the bloodline.”

“I won’t interfere whether A-Yan likes men or women. As long as she’s happy and likes someone, everything is fine.”

“She has put a lot of thought into me, never considering herself.”

“If someone can be by her side to take care of her, I’d be very happy.”

Lin Rong remained silent, but Ming Jin continued, “A-Yan is stubborn, but she has a good heart.”

“She didn’t grow up in a happy family, so she’s a bit sensitive and sometimes overreacts…”

“President Ming,” Lin Rong interrupted Ming Jin, observing her expression seriously. “Are you giving me your last wishes?”

Silence lasted for about a minute. Ming Jin’s voice was extremely soft and faint: “Consider it that way.”

If she were to meet an unexpected end, Xu Zhiyan would have no family left to rely on, leaving her isolated and vulnerable.

“Stop it, don’t say another word,” Lin Rong said playfully. “If the young lady heard this, wouldn’t she jump up and bite me?”

“She doesn’t belong to the canine species,” Ming Jin said helplessly.

“Doesn’t she?” Lin Rong widened her eyes. “She’s exactly like a puppy. Look, this big bite mark.”

She showed her wrist to Ming Jin. Below the green crystal bead bracelet, there was a faint white scar, not very obvious, but it looked several years old.

Ming Jin: “…” She hadn’t realized that Lin Rong’s “biting” was a literal, physical act.

“Alright, alright, stop with all your nonsense. My senior sister is the most talented person in my lineage, aside from me.”

“It was just a surgical procedure. Stop having such morbid thoughts.”

“Don’t tell the young lady any of this nonsense, or she really will bite me.”

After a pause, Lin Rong continued, “Also, don’t tell her about my situation either.”

“Which situation?” Ming Jin asked.

“Since you investigated me, you must know… that incident…” Lin Rong was evasive.

Her face, usually bearing a faint smile, was unusually serious and stern. Her fingers, resting at her side, clenched, and her entire hand seemed to be trembling slightly.

“Mhm, I won’t say anything,” Ming Jin nodded, not pressing the issue.

The genius doctor ruined by a medical accident… these old memories were scars on Lin Rong’s heart.

“Except…” Ming Jin added, “You will have to face it someday.”

“If you want to take your relationship with A-Yan further, she will find out eventually.”

“Not now…” Lin Rong’s tone was low.

“I won’t say anything,” Ming Jin repeated, reassuring her.

Ming Jin wasn’t an inexperienced girl. She knew exactly what it felt like to love someone. The moment she sensed Lin Rong’s feelings, she had secretly investigated her.

The investigation results shocked her.

Lin Rong, surprisingly, had such an identity.

But her concealment seemed to stem from some difficulty.

Ming Jin wouldn’t obstruct her relationship with Xu Zhiyan or actively push them together. She believed things would happen naturally, flowing into place over time.

“It’s lunchtime,” Ming Jin smoothly changed the subject.

“So, you’re ready to let me go eat?” Lin Rong’s eyebrows arched, instantly returning to her former lazy, casual, and unrestrained style.

“No,” Ming Jin pushed her wheelchair behind the office desk and pulled open the second drawer on the left.

The item was still there, in its usual spot… She took out an employee card and handed it to Lin Rong: “My employee card. Go eat in the cafeteria.”

Lin Rong’s brow instantly furrowed with disgust: “President Ming, I came all this way just to eat cafeteria food?”

“I’m not asking for exotic delicacies, but at least some abalone, sea cucumber, and shark fin soup.”

“I haven’t even gone to brag to the young lady yet…”

“I’ll put in a good word for you. I’ll say you rushed over, frantic with worry, broke out in a cold sweat from the urgency, and diligently came to examine me.”

Lin Rong: “…” After a moment of silence, she said, “You are setting me up.”

That didn’t sound like something she would do. Xu Zhiyan wouldn’t believe a word of it.

“Alright, go eat. I’ll compensate you with a meal of abalone, sea cucumber, and shark fin soup next time,” Ming Jin tossed the employee card over, and Lin Rong caught it securely.

“Ming Corporation’s cafeteria is quite good,” Ming Jin said, adding casually, “Take the one at the main entrance with you.”

“Oh, so you weren’t worried I was hungry after all,” Lin Rong lightly tapped the card in her palm. “I thought you were worried I hadn’t eaten.”

“…” Ming Jin reached out her hand. “If you won’t eat, give it back. I’ll find someone else to go. You can find your own food.”

Xu Zhiyan had a reason for being impatient with this person.

“Fine, I’ll eat,” Lin Rong tucked the card into her pocket. “Why not take advantage of a discount?”

“And don’t forget the abalone, sea cucumber, and shark fin soup,” she emphasized, turning back before leaving.

Lin Rong’s second encounter with the “mushroom.”

The “mushroom” was sitting on the curbstone, looking dusty. Fortunately, she was wearing a baseball cap and a mask, so no one had recognized her.

Lin Rong walked over and patted Song Xiangwan’s shoulder: “Miss Song, is this performance art?”

Song Xiangwan recognized Lin Rong, frowned slightly: “Why are you here?”

“If you can be here, why can’t I? Technically, I’m an employee of Ming Corporation,” Lin Rong chuckled. “Is this curb your property?”

No… Song Xiangwan didn’t mean that. She meant, why would a doctor come to the company?

Had something happened to Ming Jin?

But it didn’t seem so. Ming Corporation seemed perfectly calm.

“Come on, let me treat you to a meal.” Lin Rong raised her hand to shield her eyes from the sun. “This weather is awful. Why is it so hot before summer even begins?”

“You go. I won’t,” Song Xiangwan refused her invitation.

“You’re guarding here, but if she doesn’t want to see you, she won’t see you. What’s the point of this stubborn vigil?” Lin Rong laughed softly. “She could easily take another car and leave without you noticing.”

She spoke the truth, and Song Xiangwan’s eyes couldn’t help but dim.

She was staying here to show her stance, but Ming Jin hadn’t acknowledged her at all.

“You’re not planning to starve yourself unconscious here and then be dragged away, are you?” Lin Rong patted her shoulder. “Come on, let’s eat.”

She walked towards the company entrance, and Song Xiangwan’s expression twisted for a moment. She ran a few steps and followed her.

For a moment, she had considered starving herself unconscious here.

A while ago, when she was sick, Ming Jin had treated her kindly, so she only wanted to get sicker.

But she was also afraid that if she truly made herself ill and Ming Jin showed no reaction, she wouldn’t know what to do.

Ming Corporation’s cafeteria was on the first floor of Building A4, with dozens of food stalls lined up, much like a university cafeteria, but the food quality was better, and the prices weren’t high.

“What should I eat…” Lin Rong fiddled with the employee card, facing the overwhelming array of choices, experiencing decision fatigue.

“Roasted duck rice,” Lin Rong saw one stall.

Song Xiangwan said, “It’s greasy and tastes awful. How has this stall survived for years?”

“Claypot rice,” Lin Rong saw another one.

“Pre-cooked. Tastes like leftovers,” Song Xiangwan offered her critique.

“It seems you know this place well,” Lin Rong tossed the card over. “You lead the way. Find something good.”

Song Xiangwan had been to Ming Corporation many times. Sometimes, she would use Ming Jin’s employee card for a quick meal. In three years, some stalls had changed, but others remained the same.

“That stir-fry place isn’t bad…” Song Xiangwan pointed to the leftmost stall.

“Alright, I’ll follow your lead. I’m not picky,” Lin Rong nodded and followed Song Xiangwan.

It was early, not yet peak lunch hour, so the cafeteria wasn’t crowded, and there was no line for the stir-fry.

They ordered three dishes and took a number. Song Xiangwan lifted the card to swipe it and immediately saw Ming Jin’s photo and name on it.

“I’m done swiping. Give it to me,” Lin Rong reached out her hand.

Song Xiangwan handed it over mechanically, watching Lin Rong tuck it into her jacket pocket.

“You better keep this safe. This card can access all the access points and elevators in Ming Corporation…” Lin Rong muttered softly. “If someone steals it, President Ming won’t blame me, will she?”

Then she took off her jacket and handed it to Song Xiangwan: “I’m going to the restroom. Hold my jacket for me.”

She blinked, then quickly walked toward the restroom, leaving her jacket and the employee card with Song Xiangwan.

Song Xiangwan was stunned for a moment before realizing that this was… a hint?

Song Xiangwan was intimately familiar with Ming Corporation’s layout. Clenching the employee card, she felt a fine layer of sweat forming in her palm.

She was nervous, watching the elevator numbers climb.

The elevator stopped midway, and someone stepped in.

“Oh?” This person saw the top floor number lit up, turned to Song Xiangwan, and smiled in greeting.

The elevator settings meant the top floor was not accessible without swiping a card.

Song Xiangwan nodded in response, then quickly lowered her head, acting like a thief. She had never been so anxious when coming to Ming Corporation before.

But today, she absolutely had to see Ming Jin. There was one question she needed to ask.

Ming Jin had refused Lin Rong’s offer to bring her food; she truly had no appetite.

She was cloudy and groggy from the low-grade fever but still wanted to do something, so she picked up the documents on the desk and flipped through them.

It was the end of the quarter, so many of the documents were summarized financial reports from various departments for the last quarter.

Piles of complex numbers, but she read them very quickly, scanning them rapidly, pausing only where there were issues.

She pulled a pen from the pen holder on the desk and circled a few key figures.

Her brow furrowed slightly. In the three years she hadn’t managed things, the morale at Ming Corporation had indeed become volatile. The numbers in the financial reports clearly had problems.

Xu Zhiyan was not a business major. Her two to three years of experience were still no match for these old foxes.

Ming Jin had offered to share the company’s affairs before, but Xu Zhiyan absolutely refused, treating her like a goddess, terrified of her being hurt or troubled.

However, she truly lacked the energy. After looking through two or three documents, the words in front of her seemed to jump around as if alive, overlapping and making her dizzy.

She didn’t force herself to continue. She put down the document and pressed her fingertips to her temples, trying to suppress the dizzying sensation.

She closed her eyes and sighed slightly.

Vaguely, she heard the sound of the doorknob turning, a click.

“Is the meeting over?” Ming Jin said softly.

No knock, just entry. It must be Xu Zhiyan. She didn’t pay it much attention.

But she didn’t hear a reply. Instead, she heard light footsteps approaching her. Then, someone seemed to squat down and take her hand.

Ming Jin opened her eyes: “I’m fine. I just looked at a few documents…”

Her voice suddenly dropped. Falling into her sight was a pair of familiar phoenix eyes, with a faint red mole at the outer corner, staring at her with underlying concern.

Ming Jin’s fingers paused slightly, and she said as usual, “Why are you here?”

“You should have known I was here long ago…” Song Xiangwan said softly, her voice carrying a hint of grievance.

She had never been left waiting at the door by Ming Jin for so long.

“Lin Rong…” Ming Jin instantly understood what had happened.

“It has nothing to do with her. I stole the employee card to get here,” Song Xiangwan quickly explained for her.

“I just…” Song Xiangwan’s voice was flat, with a slight nasal tone. “A-Jin, I just wanted to see you.”

“I followed you all the way from Shancheng to Haicheng. I thought you understood what I wanted.”

“But why? Why are you pushing me away?”

“Can’t we start over?”

As she spoke, tears streamed down her face uncontrollably, like broken pearls, dropping one by one, impossible to stop.

“You clearly still care about me, don’t you?” Song Xiangwan insisted on this answer.

Just now in the elevator, she had exchanged a few words with the female employee who got in.

The employee nodded in greeting, then asked, “Going to the top floor?”

“Mhm,” Song Xiangwan nodded, not saying more.

The employee’s expression was sympathetic: “Are you being marginalized in your group, being sent up now?”

Song Xiangwan looked unfamiliar, wasn’t a senior executive, and wasn’t wearing formal attire, looking like an intern.

Song Xiangwan paused, quickly saying, “I don’t think so…”

“You don’t know?” the employee said. “The people on the top floor are in a bad mood today. They’ve already scolded several people. Didn’t you hear?”

“I didn’t hear anything…” Song Xiangwan shook her head.

“No wonder they sent you up. They’re just sending you up to be scolded,” the employee’s tone was sympathetic. “When you get scolded, just keep your head down and don’t talk back.”

“Oh,” Song Xiangwan nodded.

“Aren’t you going to ask me why they’re angry?” The employee looked at her expectantly.

Song Xiangwan: “…”

Those eyes were practically screaming “Ask me quickly.”

Song Xiangwan tentatively said, “W-why are they angry?”

The employee leaned in closer, lowering her voice: “I’m telling you, but don’t leak it out.”

Office gossip is like this: “This is a secret, I’m only telling you,” and then it spreads throughout the entire office building.

“In the morning meeting, the former CEO—oh, you might not know—came.”

“It’s said she overruled everyone to invest in the entertainment industry.”

“Those few people seemed to have lost face directly. They can’t vent their anger upwards, so they’re taking it out on us, right?”

“Several people who went up to report were scolded for minor mistakes, left with their tails between their legs.”

“Don’t take it too hard if you get scolded. It’s not that you did anything wrong; you just hit a nerve.”

“Alright, this is my floor. I have to go.”

“Don’t tell anyone else what I told you.”

With that, she hastily exited the elevator, leaving Song Xiangwan momentarily stunned. When the elevator reached the top floor, she almost forgot to get out.

Investing in the entertainment industry? She knew about this; it was about Rongxing…

So, Ming Jin came to the company today for this matter. Was it for her? Song Xiangwan grasped at this like a life raft.

Now, Ming Jin was right in front of her, and she felt her heart rate accelerating rapidly.

But Ming Jin pushed her hand away: “It’s just concern for an artist we are about to invest in. Don’t read too much into it.”

“No, that’s not it, that’s not it…” Song Xiangwan shook her head, tears falling uncontrollably.

“You still care about me. You still like me. That’s not my imagination. It’s not.”

She was trying to convince herself.

“Shancheng, was that a coincidence?”

“The resort, was that a coincidence?”

“Now you’re re-investing in Rongxing. Is that just a coincidence too?”

“No, it’s not, it’s not…”

She was crying like a child. Ming Jin’s heart clenched slightly. Her hand twitched but she forcefully suppressed the urge to reach out.

It was her fault, all her fault. She hadn’t been able to say the cruel, decisive words before, leading to this lingering, half-finished situation now.

“Everything is over,” Ming Jin’s tone was calm, as if discussing something unrelated to herself.

“It ended a long time ago. It ended three years ago.”

“I have a new beginning, and we will both have new lives.”

“No one will bully you at Rongxing anymore. You can live your own life securely.”

“Given enough time, you will forget everything that happened before…”

“No,” Song Xiangwan’s tone was firm, her eyes fixed on Ming Jin. “Is your new beginning with President Xu?”

Ming Jin lowered her eyelashes and didn’t speak.

This was the direction she had been subtly guiding Song Xiangwan toward, and Song Xiangwan had indeed arrived at that conclusion.

“But… she is your biological sister,” Song Xiangwan sighed in relief, as if a heavy stone weighing on her chest had fallen away.

Ming Jin frowned slightly: “Who told you that?”

Her tone was filled with suppressed anger and displeasure.

Was it Lin Rong?

Was it Xu Zhiyan?

“No, no one told me,” Song Xiangwan shook her head.

“You wouldn’t wear the watch I gave you on a date with someone else, and you would never cheat, A-Jin. You are lying to me.”

She had a profound understanding of Ming Jin, and absolute trust in her.

She would never cheat.

The watch, the overlapping timeline…

The only possibility was that Xu Zhiyan was the biological sister Ming Jin had told her about, the one studying abroad.

Ming Jin had even asked her if she wanted to meet her sister, and Song Xiangwan had refused.

Biological sisters could have different surnames.

Xu Zhiyan taking over Ming Corporation, Xu Zhiyan always being by Ming Jin’s side, their intimacy… it all made sense in an instant.