Chapter 197
Because Qin Xian had always maintained an image of someone who wouldn't lie or deceive others, and since six or seven years had passed, who would remember what happened back then?
Moreover, Qin Xian had just exposed the rumors and clarified the situation, which had repeatedly embarrassed Yu Zhi and Zhu Lingling.
So even though it was bombshell news, everyone immediately believed Qin Xian and turned to look at the person in question, shocked.
"What does that mean?" Luo Fei was the first to react, "Was the illness fake?"
Qin Xian calmly looked at Yu Zhi.
Yu Zhi was already panicking, wanting to shake her head, but the voices around her were so overwhelming that she could barely breathe.
"It was fake?"
"Come to think of it, we never heard about her being sick. Even if it was well-hidden, there should have been some news."
"I only knew she went abroad, and heard she continued her studies. Their Yu family's business moved overseas at that time too, and they've focused on international markets since then."
"That's what I heard too."
"Oh my god, I can't believe the school beauty was so dramatic. Looking back now, serious illness, breakup, going abroad - isn't this straight out of a TV drama?"
"Too bad our Prince Qin wouldn't play along with her act."
"So why did she break up and go abroad back then, acting like she had no choice?"
"I have a feeling that now that this lie has been exposed, we might learn the truth soon."
The onlookers were excited like they were waiting for a grand finale, all eyes fixed on their table.
Ji Fei hadn't expected that she wouldn't even need to make an appearance - Qin Xian was carrying the whole show. Hearing his words, Ji Fei was stunned.
[So he knew all along! I was wondering why he had no reaction before - turns out he was just pretending not to see what was happening!]
Qin Xian could only say that he had originally planned to ignore it since there was no evidence, and whether she had been sick or not was irrelevant to him - she could make up whatever she wanted. But Yu Zhi had tried to use her supposed serious illness to manipulate others morally.
This was karma.
"What's really going on here? Yu Zhi, have you been lying to us?" Bai Xiaoxi couldn't help but ask. Being as innocent as she was, she had genuinely felt sorry earlier and even felt guilty for not keeping in touch with Yu Zhi afterward.
Now being told it was all fake, Bai Xiaoxi was truly angry.
And Cen Ting, who hadn't participated much in the discussion, couldn't help but angrily say: "Yu Zhi, how could you joke about something like this?"
Xuan Yi frowned, and although he agreed with Qin Xian's statement, he still couldn't help but suggest: "Yu Zhi, could this be a misunderstanding? Didn't Zhu Lingling say you were staying in a sanatorium?"
Zhu Lingling, who had already been devastated by the collapse of her shipped couple, suddenly grabbed Yu Zhi's arm like a betrayed fan and demanded: "Your illness was real, right? You left because you loved Qin Xian too much, because you couldn't bear to leave him, and now you've recovered, so you've come back to find him, right?!"
It was as if as long as there was this tragic ending, Zhu Lingling could still see hope for Qin Xian and Yu Zhi to be together.
That way, she could always stay by their side.
Yu Zhi knew she couldn't admit to this. The previous rumors could be explained away as intentional shows of affection, but if the illness was a lie, her image would be completely ruined.
"Of course it was real. How could I possibly lie about being sick? If it weren't for the illness, why would I have initiated breaking up with Qin Xian?" After saying this, Yu Zhi quickly got back into character, looking at Qin Xian with heart-wrenching grief.
"I don't remember the school physical examination, but I had a checkup with my family and discovered the problem. Then I had several follow-up diagnoses. During that time, I often took leave and was in a bad mood - if anyone remembers, they would know. Perhaps... perhaps there was a mistake with the school physical." Yu Zhi seemed to grow more confident as she spoke. "And I did stay in a sanatorium for several years. All of this can be verified, it's just that patient privacy can't be disclosed."
Zhu Lingling seemed to finally catch her breath at this point, then turned to Qin Xian, "Qin Xian, you heard that. I knew you must have misunderstood Yu Zhi, thinking she was lying, that's why you've been treating her this way today. If you don't believe it, you can check if Yu Zhi stayed at the sanatorium!"
Zhu Lingling was absolutely certain about this point, as she had been studying in that country at the time.
This rebuttal immediately made everyone uncertain. Could it really be a misunderstanding?
Had Qin Xian misunderstood? Was that why he had been so harsh with Yu Zhi today?
[She can even turn this around at the last moment, fighting for survival?! Although it's quite forced, I have to say Yu Zhi's ability to handle pressure is really impressive!]
Qin Xian slightly frowned, not expecting Yu Zhi to be so thick-skinned, still insisting even at this point.
Although there were ways to expose her lies again, it would be very troublesome and impossible to accomplish tonight.
[It seems there's no other way except forcing her to get a medical examination now. After all, that sanatorium is indeed very private, only serving old money nobility in that country. Even Qin Xian can't investigate what goes on inside. Yu Zhi only stayed there so long because she was almost engaged and was trying to curry favor by taking care of that family's elderly patient. But this engagement plan was also kept very secret to prevent interference, so people only knew Yu Zhi had stayed at the sanatorium. But from a normal person's perspective, who would stay at a sanatorium without being sick? They'd naturally assume she was ill!]
Yu Zhi was indeed very clever, just not using it for good purposes. Her actions left almost no loopholes - she only ran into trouble tonight because of running into the anomaly that was Ji Fei.
[Looks like this is as far as it goes...]
Ji Fei felt a bit disappointed, like watching a drama with an unsatisfying ending.
Everyone else was also uncertain about what the truth really was.
Seeing that Qin Xian had stopped speaking, Yu Zhi finally breathed a sigh of relief. She wondered if perhaps he really had seen some medical examination results that made him think she was lying, which explained his attitude tonight - maybe he hadn't stopped caring about her after all.
Yu Zhi still held onto her fantasy, so she couldn't help but look at Qin Xian pitifully again, "Regardless of everything else, at least I broke up with you because I loved you. I... I'm not the type who uses love as an excuse to restrict and possess others..."
Everyone's expressions changed slightly.
[Oh, trying to take a shot at me, are we?! Looks like she thinks she's won and is trying to bite back now?! Want to bet whether I'll have you rushed to the hospital for an examination right now?!]
But before Yu Zhi could start playing the victim and stirring up emotions to salvage her image, she saw Qin Xian looking at her with ice-cold eyes.
He took out his phone and made a call.
His assistant answered quickly.
Qin Xian said directly: "Contact the XX Sanatorium in Country A for me."