Xing Zheng also became serious, following her lead. "What is it?" As he spoke, he rose and walked to Jiang Chubai's side.
The two sat on the sofa together. Jiang Chubai took out her phone, found the photos she had taken, and showed them to Xing Zheng. "I've been at Zhao Jianghe's place these past two days. He got drunk last night, and when I went to the study to get something, I happened to see this photo."
At this moment, Xing Zheng was staring intently at the photo. His gaze was dark. The woman in the photo was none other than a young Xie Qin Jia.
And the man beside her was not Xing Sha, but a stranger he had never seen before. He appeared to be a few years older than Xie Qin Jia at the time. He had his arm around Xie Qin Jia, and she was leaning into him as if she were a small bird. Judging solely from the photo, their relationship was extremely close.
"Do you recognize the man in this photo?" Jiang Chubai, having no memory of the man in the photo herself, asked Xing Zheng.
"No, I don't," Xing Zheng replied negatively.
"It looks like Aunt Xie was only in her early twenties in the photo. Had she met Uncle Xing then?"
Xing Zheng certainly couldn't answer this question. He didn't know the details of Xing Sha and Xie Qin Jia's courtship and marriage.
Xing Sha was a man of few words and wouldn't chat about such topics with him. Xie Qin Jia's focus was always on Xing Yan. If she spoke about it, she would only speak to Xing Yan.
Xing Zheng only knew that Xie Qin Jia was barely twenty-four when she gave birth to Xing Yan and twenty-seven when she gave birth to him. The Xie Qin Jia in this photo was definitely younger than twenty-four.
"Perhaps it was her ex-boyfriend," Jiang Chubai had concluded when she saw the photo. "But don't you find it strange that this kind of photo would be in Zhao Jianghe's possession?"
Xing Zheng had already considered this question without Jiang Chubai needing to remind him. To find the answer, they would likely need to thoroughly investigate Zhao family's network of connections.
Someone like Zhao Jianghe would never casually carry photos of unrelated people around. His constant fawning over Xie Qin Jia was likely related to the person in the photo. "We'll investigate after this is over."
"You could ask Uncle Xing," Jiang Chubai agreed to postpone the investigation. This was a critical juncture, and rashly investigating the Zhao family's connections would only make Zhao Jianghe suspicious again. "Perhaps Aunt Xie's former boyfriend is related to Zhao Jianghe."
However, the man in the photo had never been seen in the Zhao family, so he was likely a distant relative from a collateral branch.
Jiang Chubai sat and chatted with Xing Zheng for a while. She couldn't help but notice a red mark on his neck. She initially thought it was a hickey, but upon closer inspection, she realized it wasn't. It looked more like a blister. Jiang Chubai asked curiously, "What happened to your neck?"
This question reminded Xing Zheng of his visit to the Xing family villa yesterday. His expression became even more somber than before. "You should go now."
"No, I'm not busy this morning. Let's go to your company's cafeteria for lunch," Jiang Chubai said with a smile. "It's been a while since I've eaten there, and I kind of miss the taste."
At this moment, they needed to show as much affection as possible. Jiang Chubai had only been at Zhao Jianghe's place over the weekend. Given Zhao Jianghe's personality, he would likely be extremely smug and self-satisfied upon seeing Xing Zheng "picking up" what he had "left behind." They both understood this implicitly.
During lunch, Jiang Chubai appeared at the cafeteria with Xing Zheng, her arm linked through his. Their intimate actions caused many employees to secretly take photos. Before long, these photos would appear on social media platforms, adding fuel to their public display of affection as an almost-couple.
While Xing Zheng and Jiang Chubai were having lunch, Gu Song called. "Xu Ying's matter has been handled. The news should be out by now."
Xing Zheng: "Oh, I see."
Gu Song: "I made some inquiries. They said he recently got a girlfriend and is in an older-woman-younger-man relationship. Could it really be your woman?"
Xing Zheng hung up directly.
Just as Xing Zheng was talking to Gu Song, a news alert popped up on Jiang Chubai's phone. The headline read: "Famous Genius Racer Xu Ying Banned for Suspected Use of Performance-Enhancing Drugs."
The news stated that Xu Ying's urine test results after a race that morning were positive, resulting not only in the disqualification of his championship title but also a ban. Xu Ying would be unable to compete until the official investigation results were released, and when those "official investigation results" would be released was anyone's guess.
Jiang Chubai smiled at Xing Zheng and teased him, "You're really fast."
He had investigated Xu Ying's information just the night before, and today, Xu Ying had been dealt with. If Xu Ying knew he had offended Xing Zheng, he would never have dared to approach Lin Mei.
Xing Zheng did not respond to Jiang Chubai's teasing. He continued eating his meal, offering no further explanation on the matter.
Lin Mei also saw the news about Xu Ying during lunch. She immediately messaged Xu Ying to ask about his situation. However, Xu Ying seemed to be busy, and he hadn't replied to her message for nearly an hour.
Lin Mei grew increasingly worried. Even though she wasn't part of that circle, she understood how serious it was for a racer to be accused of "using banned substances."
But based on her understanding of Xu Ying, how could someone with such a clear mind take such a risk for a competition that wasn't even that significant?
There had to be something fishy going on.
When she got off work, Lin Mei finally received a call from Xu Ying. She anxiously asked, "How are you?"
"I'm fine, don't worry about me. I was cooperating with the organizers for the investigation, that's why I just saw your message." Xu Ying had excellent psychological resilience, and his tone was much the same as usual.
Lin Mei was still worried. "What did the organizers say? Could the drug test be a false positive? How long will you be suspended?"
Before Lin Mei could finish her question, she suddenly heard a voice from the other end of the line, coming closer. "Holy crap, Xu Shen, I just heard the boss say that a big shot from Ling Sheng Capital wants to mess with you. How did you offend these capitalists..."
"Shush," Xu Ying interrupted the person. The person had likely seen Xu Ying on the phone, so they fell silent. Xu Ying continued speaking to Lin Mei, "The clear will clear itself. I believe the arbitration tribunal will give me justice."
After Lin Mei finished her call with Xu Ying, the voice that had inadvertently intruded still echoed in her ears. The person's tone was indignant, clearly having stumbled upon a major secret.
The boss of Ling Sheng Capital he mentioned was none other than Gu Song. When had Xu Ying offended Gu Song?
Lin Mei knew the power of capital best. If Gu Song didn't relent, Xu Ying would never get a fair outcome, and his career would be ruined. Since they were friends and someone happened to have connections, Lin Mei couldn't stand by and do nothing.
She had previously added Gu Song on WeChat. After finding his number, Lin Mei sent him a message: "Mr. Gu, are you busy? There's something I'd like to ask you."
At this moment, Gu Song was having dinner with Xing Zheng and Shen Su. His WeChat notification rang, and he smiled at Xing Zheng, saying, "As expected, she's asking. You understand her best." With that, he handed his phone to Xing Zheng.