Chapter 1396: Chapter 1396: The Beauty Trap (4)

Lin Zhi’s response further confirmed Ye Shiqing’s suspicion: perhaps from the very beginning, they had been mistaken. There were two forces targeting Ye Qilan and the Ye Family, one of which was Lin Zhi, while the other force had yet to surface.

None of them had noticed this key point, and they attributed all the misfortunes of the past year to Lin Zhi.

“Sister-in-law, there’s one more thing I’d like to ask you. Have you been in contact with Wen Beibei?” Ye Shiqing asked again.

“No,” Lin Zhi replied with certainty.

“Then the person who sent the photos of me and Xiaoqiao to the old master—was that you?” Ye Shiqing’s mind suddenly lit up as he recalled the incident. This was crucial because they had confirmed it was Lin Zhi who sent the photos to Old Ye, which was why everything had been blamed on her.

But perhaps this was a deliberate frame-up by someone else, meant to make them believe that Lin Zhi was the true mastermind behind all these events.

“The photos were given to me by someone, so of course I decided to make good use of them. When the time was right, I sent them to Old Ye,” Lin Zhi said, slightly breathless after speaking.

Her health was deteriorating by the day, and she refused to seek medical treatment, fully aware that she did not have much time left.

Ye Shiqing observed Lin Zhi’s poor condition and didn’t stay long. He stood up and said, “Sister-in-law, please take good care of yourself. I’ll find another opportunity to visit you soon.”

Summoning her strength, Lin Zhi escorted Ye Shiqing to the elevator, saying, “Don’t come again. I don’t have much time left; who knows which day will be my last. But in the end, dying in my homeland is enough for me—no regrets. Only, after I’m gone, there will be Ye Zheng left by himself. Shiqing, I hope you can let go of past resentments and spend more time with Ye Zheng when you can.”

Lin Zhi said a lot more, and Ye Shiqing agreed to each of her requests.

This trip was not in vain. At the very least, Ye Shiqing had confirmed one thing: in addition to Lin Zhi, another force was orchestrating everything from behind the scenes. The other party had cleverly utilized Lin Zhi, making them believe that she was responsible for it all.

From start to finish, two forces were manipulating everything in the shadows.

And the one directing Wen Beibei to frame him and Qiao Qiao was the true culprit behind Wen Baobao’s kidnapping.

After getting into his car, Ye Shiqing called Wen Beibei to inform her that Lin Zhi was not the one who orchestrated Wen Baobao’s kidnapping.

“How can that be? Didn’t they say she planned it all? Could Lin Zhi be lying?” Wen Beibei asked incredulously.

She had thought that Ye Shiqing’s involvement would lead to Wen Baobao being safely rescued, but now she realized it was all in vain.

“She’s gravely ill and has little time left. People say that one’s words can be trusted when they’re near death. Besides, she’s not inherently evil and held no personal grudge against Baobao; there’s no reason for her to lie to me,” Ye Shiqing replied calmly.

Wen Beibei’s expression fell. “Then what do we do? My sister has been kidnapped for days now. Could she…”

“No, she’ll be fine. Blessings come to the righteous. I’ll keep investigating this and will someday uncover Baobao’s whereabouts,” Ye Shiqing responded, ending the call.

After considering the situation, he started his car and headed toward Jufeng Group. He felt this matter should be discussed with Ye Qilan.

Ye Qilan was highly shrewd—perhaps he could uncover some clues from him.

When Ye Qilan heard that Ye Shiqing wanted to meet him, he likely understood that it was urgent—otherwise, Ye Shiqing wouldn’t have sought him out at Jufeng Group.

When Ye Shiqing entered the office, he saw Ye Qilan buried in his work.

He approached slowly and lightly knocked on Ye Qilan’s desk. “I just met Lin Zhi and chatted with her for a while.”