Chapter 373 — The First Round Is Won
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
Kang Jingming was likewise convinced that Wei Zhao was behind it all, yet without evidence he had no way to prove a thing.
If Wei Zhao had not known Li Yixun, it would have been easy enough — invent some excuse and have security haul him away. But Wei Zhao did know Li Yixun, and the two seemed to be on excellent terms.
"Wei Zhao, is it? I'll remember you." Kang Jingming fixed him with a venomous stare, then glanced at Kang Xiaoyinbo and Lan Zhi. "So you're the one speaking up for them, eh? I hope you won't live to regret it."
"Ha — some people have done things they ought to be ashamed of. I wonder whether they're regretting it now?" Wei Zhao smiled, not the least bit troubled by Kang Jingming's threat.
"Let's go!" Kang Jingming waved a hand and turned away with Zhu Xiaozhang and Wang Shubin in tow, unwilling but resigned, and headed for the banquet hall.
Kang Xiaoyinbo could have thrown up his arms and shouted "Long live!" three times over. He had expected this meeting with Kang Jingming to be a grueling affair, steeped in humiliation and helplessness. He had steeled himself for everything, for after all this was the man's own turf, and he could never have been a match for Kang Jingming. He knew well enough that an arm cannot twist a thigh.
But who would have thought that in this first exchange with Kang Jingming, his own side would come out on top, sending Kang Jingming away slinking off with a silent loss he could not even voice.
"Xiaofen, now you've seen how formidable our captain is, haven't you? With him here, we won't come out the worse." Kang Xiaoyinbo took Xiaofen's hand and spoke with conviction.
"Mm..." Xiaofen was utterly disillusioned with Kang Jingming now. Seeing that ugly face of his a moment ago, she had felt, all at once, a sense of release — she saw her haggard years for what they were worth, and her own past leap from a building for what it was: absurd.
How could she ever have fallen for such a heartless wretch? In that instant, Xiaofen truly stepped out of the shadow that had hung over her heart; from now on she could face her life with courage. Kang Jingming was not worth a thing she had given him... all those years of devotion she could only chalk up to having been blind.
Seeing the smile break across Xiaofen's face, Kang Xiaoyinbo breathed a sigh of relief, and Tang Zhi was glad for her too. "Xiaofen, have you come around?"
"Mm, I've come around. I was so foolish before..." Xiaofen shook her head in self-mockery. "A man like that... how could I have liked a man like that? I should have cherished what I had right in front of me..."
As she spoke, Xiaofen gripped Kang Xiaoyinbo's hand even tighter.
Kang Xiaoyinbo was thrown into a fever of excitement. Before this, though the two of them had shared a spark of feeling and had tacitly acknowledged their bond, he knew that a shadow had always lingered in Xiaofen's heart — and that shadow was Kang Jingming. Unless she crossed that threshold, he would forever remain a mere substitute for Kang Jingming. It had sat ill with him, and it was precisely why he had insisted on bringing Xiaofen to meet Kang Jingming.
But now Kang Xiaoyinbo knew that Xiaofen had, in her own way, confessed her feelings to him and made her heart known. How could he not be stirred?
"Young Master Lin, if there's nothing else, I'll be on my way. Call me directly if anything comes up." Seeing that he was no longer needed, Li Yixun nodded to Wei Zhao and said politely.
Wei Zhao nodded. "Sorry to trouble you, Brother Li."
Li Yixun made a gesture as if to say it was nothing, then rode off again on the electric cart.
Wei Zhao, Tang Zhi, Kang Xiaoyinbo, and Xiaofen walked into the banquet hall, and the crowd that had gathered to watch followed them in.
Some among them knew Kang Xiaoyinbo and Kang Jingming and were aware that they were cousins; the squabbles of the younger Kang generation were, to them, mere spectacle for amusement.