The Sickly Beauty Gives Up Struggling [Rebirth] Chapter 119

But why had Jiang Weide lied so blatantly in front of everyone? Why claim that Li Qingli’s thesis was published by the Hongsuo Research Institute?

Now that the truth was exposed, Jiang Weide’s reputation had suffered somewhat. Did he originally believe he could silence everyone and prevent the truth from spreading?

Li Rong desperately wanted to storm into the Hongsuo Research Institute and demand answers from Jiang Weide. What exactly did he know? Why had the Hongsuo Research Institute shown no reaction to the murder of his parents?

But he couldn’t.

Currently, Jiang Weide had no lingering ties of mentorship with him and was unlikely to divulge any details.

Li Rong paced the dormitory hallway for a while until he gradually calmed down.

He couldn’t pin his hopes on Jiang Weide voluntarily revealing anything. He needed leverage, something to force Jiang Weide to talk.

But finding dirt on Jiang Weide was a daunting task. As far as Li Rong could tell, Jiang Weide was an exceptionally qualified mentor and professor. Although he had a quick temper, he was genuinely devoted to academic advancement. In the two years Li Rong had worked with him, he’d never seen Jiang Weide indulge in extravagance, nor did he seem overly concerned about money.

The biggest conflict between Jiang Weide and Li Qingli was Jiang Weide’s disdain for professors at the Hongsuo Research Institute running businesses on the side, which he felt compromised academic purity and focus.

As for himself, Jiang Weide adhered strictly to his academic responsibilities without branching into any secondary ventures.

Because Li Qingli managed the Nongan Medical Devices company, he had naturally stepped out of the competition for the Hongsuo Research Institute director role. It was widely assumed that when the current director retired, Jiang Weide would take over.

Yet, by the time Li Rong had died, Jiang Weide still hadn’t become the director.

The elderly director’s reluctance to step down—despite being in his seventies—had kept Jiang Weide waiting for years.

Back at his apartment, Li Rong mentioned Jiang Weide having asked Song He to monitor him to Cen Xiao, who was equally puzzled.

However, Cen Xiao held no animosity toward Jiang Weide, unlike the disdain he felt for Du Mingli.

Li Rong knew that, at least based on Cen Xiao’s investigations, Jiang Weide had no connection to his death.

Back then, Cen Xiao had been solely focused on uncovering the cause of Li Rong’s death, so the perpetrator was likely only Du Mingli, who had no reason or means to control Jiang Weide.

For now, Jiang Weide didn’t appear to harbor any harmful intentions, so Li Rong decided to put the matter aside. His immediate goal was to bring down Suhe Biotech.

To do so, he needed more evidence.

***

On New Year’s Day, the weather was pleasant. The snow had been cleared, leaving no trace, and the midday sun brought a rare touch of warmth.

In District Three’s office building, Cen Qing paced back and forth by the floor-to-ceiling windows while Xu Feng awkwardly stood nearby, observing him.

After a while, Cen Qing stopped abruptly, raised his head, and asked, “How long has it been since Cen Xiao stayed at home?”

Xu Feng forced a slightly unnatural smile and replied, “Cen Xiao’s an adult now. I can’t keep tabs on him all the time. Why don’t you ask Madam?”

Cen Qing rolled his eyes at Xu Feng and grunted in frustration. “Forget it. After eighteen, it’s like they’ve left for good.”

Xu Feng couldn’t help but laugh. “He’s been busy with District Nine and it’s exam season. It’s normal for him not to come home. Besides, his handling of the Meijiang Pharmaceuticals case was impressive—better than I expected.”

Xu Feng had kept a close eye on Cen Xiao’s flight information. Upon learning that Cen Xiao had gone to Yangshi with only a few people, he quickly sought Cen Qing’s approval and caught the next flight there.

Though Xu Feng had prepared several contingency plans, none had been necessary.

Not only did Cen Xiao return unscathed, but he also persuaded He Dayong to turn himself in.

Taking a deep breath, Cen Qing furrowed his brows and idly gestured in the air. “How… How do you think he convinced He Dayong to surrender?”

Xu Feng shook his head lightly. “I don’t know. Although District Nine reported it was because of discrepancies in Qingrui’s data discovered during inspections, at that time, He Dayong still seemed intent on bribing Cen Xiao. As for what they discussed later in the office, only He Dayong, Cen Xiao, and… that Li Rong would know.”

“Li Rong,” Cen Qing muttered the name softly. He had already gathered information about the events at Meijiang Pharmaceuticals’ Qingrui production plant.

While others might see Li Rong as merely a staff member from District Nine, Cen Qing knew better.

“Is this Li Rong truly that capable? He found a loophole even Li Baishou couldn’t,” Cen Qing murmured to himself.

Xu Feng added, “Indeed. I wouldn’t have expected it either. He’s only nineteen this year.”

Cen Qing’s pupils constricted slightly, and his eyes narrowed as he gazed out the window. “Then could it be that Li Qingli’s thesis wasn’t authored by Xu Wei, but instead by his son? Is that possible?”

Xu Feng was startled. “That seems unlikely. I’m no expert, but a submission that passed peer review and was published in From Zero must be at a doctoral level at least.”

Massaging his temples, Cen Qing sighed, “Suhe Biotech wants to give me shares in a racing club. Find an excuse to decline it for me.”

Xu Feng chuckled bitterly. “Suhe Biotech certainly moves quickly. They’re likely hoping you’ll dissuade Cen Xiao from opposing them.”

Cen Qing sneered, “Suhe Biotech’s money is tainted. Sooner or later, Cen Xiao will bring them down.”

Xu Feng nodded. “Understood. I’ll think of a reason to turn them down.”

With that, Xu Feng turned and left the room.

Once Xu Feng had gone, Cen Qing stood by his desk, staring at the phone for a long moment.

Finally, he picked up the receiver and dialed a number.

After a few seconds, Jian Changli’s voice came from the other end of the line.

“Old Cen? Why are you calling me from a landline?”

Cen Qing held the phone in one hand, his gaze falling on the stock prospectus for Suhe Biotech spread across his desk. He glanced at it briefly before looking away, a smile forming on his face.

“Old Jian, it’s been a while since we’ve had a chance to catch up. Don’t you love racing? How about we relax this weekend and go?”

Jian Changli: “… I just enjoy watching races. At my age, I’d probably give myself a heart attack trying to drive one.”

Cen Qing chuckled. “Ah… I see. Watching is fine too. Doesn’t Qingtai Mountain host races every weekend?”

Jian Changli was silent for a moment before letting out a low laugh. “Alright, drop the act. Suhe Biotech offered you a share in their racing club, didn’t they? Why are you pretending?”

Cen Qing didn’t feel awkward about being exposed. He had no illusions about deceiving someone as sharp as Jian Changli. He simply nodded to himself and let out a drawn-out “Oh.”

“Well, since you already know what I want to ask, how about giving me a straight answer?”

Jian Changli sounded slightly annoyed. “Can’t you guess my answer? What else can I do? If it weren’t for your son dragging mine into this mess, I wouldn’t even dare to touch those shares.”

Cen Qing smirked. “Let’s not pretend here. With your knack for walking the middle ground, it’s not because of your son. You’re just aware that Suhe Biotech is dirty and don’t want to get burned.”

Jian Changli retorted defensively, “Regardless, my son was corrupted by yours!”

Cen Qing didn’t bother arguing further and got straight to the point. “If they ever need something from District 1, remember to keep one eye open and one eye closed.”

Jian Changli huffed. “It’s not just one eye. I might as well keep both closed and hand all the authority cards to Jian Fu. We in District 1, pristine and detached from the world, have been dragged into this mess and forced to take sides. I’m suffering here!”

Despite his usual indifferent demeanor, Jian Changli was fully aware of recent events.

When he received Suhe Biotech’s gift, he immediately understood that they were positioning him as part of the opposition. Returning the gift would make it impossible to remain neutral, as Suhe Biotech would see him as an enemy.

If any subordinate had caused this, Jian Changli would have kicked them out of District 1 in a heartbeat. 

But since the culprit was his son, Jian Fu, he had no choice but to tolerate it.

Cen Qing, “Suffer away. Goodbye.”

Jian Changli was taken aback. “Wait, weren’t we planning to relax this weekend?”

Cen Qing, cold and merciless, responded, “You figured it out didn’t you; I was just testing you.”

Jian Changli: “…”

If only he could throw his son out!

***

The first weekend after New Year’s Day marked the second recording session for Lin Zhen’s talent show.

Before the recording, Lin Zhen posted in the group chat.

[Lin Zhen: Class Rep, are you guys coming to watch the recording of the talent show? It’s like a mashup concert. The judges are all pretty famous. The production team said contestants could save tickets for family and friends]

With the results of A University’s final exams not yet released, everyone had time on their hands. Li Rong decided to go.

[Li Rong: Sure, do I need to bring glow sticks to cheer for you?]

[Lin Zhen: No need, just focus on watching the singing. Most of the audience are fans of the judges, so you won’t see much even with glow sticks.]

[Jian Fu: Tsk, that’s pitiful. Bro, let me hire a fan club outside the studio to cheer for you. Don’t worry, I’ll cover the cost!]

[Lin Zhen: … No, spare me. The production team strictly forbids that.]

[Li Rong: Once the show airs, you’ll have fans.]

[Jian Fu: They’ll be called Hazelnut Pastry! I came up with the fan name!]

[Li Rong: Huh?]

[Lin Zhen: … One person suggested it, one voted for it, and one finalized it. That’s how the name was decided.]

[Ji Xiaochuan: Hazelnut Pastry sounds nice. I can’t believe Brother Jian Fu came up with it.]

[Jian Fu: What do you mean? I’m a literary youth with a sky-high 60 points in the college entrance exam for Chinese!]

[Cen Xiao: It’s already a thoughtful name. Think about his pets named Tea Egg, Green Armored Warrior, and Goose Goose Goose.]

[Lin Zhen: … Thank you very much.]

[Jian Fu: Those were childhood names, okay? Who names their pets Wuwangwo like your family?]

[Cen Xiao: That was my mom’s idea.]

[Jian Fu: Tch, you like it well enough. You even use the cat as your profile picture.]

[Cen Xiao: Only because I can’t use a person.]

Since he didn’t want to reveal his relationship with Li Rong yet, he couldn’t openly switch the profile picture to a person.]

[Jian Fu: Huh? Which person?]

[Li Rong: Take a guess.]