Rejected by the Campus Belle, I Find My True Love

Recalling how Lin Xi acted around them, Lin Zhenhai felt a sense of relief. The Lin Corporation had reached a point where it no longer needed to sacrifice a daughter’s happiness for financing or other benefits. His daughter just needed to live a happy life. As long as she didn’t go down the wrong path, the Lin Family’s wealth was more than enough to provide for generations to come. He had only recently come to terms with this. He had pushed Lin Xi far too hard before, which was why she had run away from home.

"Mr. Lin, sorry to keep you waiting," Xue Yuanqing said, emerging promptly after changing his clothes.

"Not at all. I’m the one imposing on you," Lin Zhenhai replied.

"Don’t say that, Mr. Lin. You’re too kind."

Xue Yuanqing took out the tea leaves provided by the hotel, boiled a kettle of water, and began preparing tea. As someone who often had tea with his friends, his skills were naturally refined.

"Mr. Lin, please have some tea."

"Thank you."

Just as Lin Zhenhai finished his cup, Lin Xi came out in fresh clothes. She paused when she saw him having tea with Xue Yuanqing and subconsciously blurted out, "Dad, what are you doing up here?"

Realizing her slip of the tongue, she quickly tried to remedy it. "I mean, I was just about to come down and find you."

Lin Zhenhai hmphed. "You’d better have been."

Lin Xi sat beside him and affectionately hugged his arm, cooing, "Daddy, of course I was! You have to believe me, okay?"

Lin Zhenhai sighed, helpless against her charms. Still, her affection made him very happy. He had half-expected her to be angry with him for missing important events like her college entrance exam and her acceptance into Yanbei University.

"The ginger tea’s ready. Xiao Xi, come drink it while it’s hot," Zhong Hailan said, bringing over two bowls.

"Thank you, Auntie Zhong."

"This bowl is for Xue Yang. Give it to him when he comes out."

"Okay."

Just then, Xue Yang also emerged from his room, having changed his clothes.

"Mom, Dad, Uncle Lin."

Xue Yang greeted each of them before sitting down next to Lin Xi.

"Xiao Yang, hurry and drink the ginger tea," Lin Xi said, passing him a bowl. "Auntie Zhong made it."

Xue Yang took the bowl and drank the ginger tea in one gulp.

Xue Yuanqing stood up. "Xiao Xi, Mr. Lin, you two chat for a bit. I’ll go ask the hotel manager to help prepare the seafood. We can cook it for lunch and all eat together."

"Okay, Uncle," Lin Xi replied.

Lin Zhenhai remained silent, giving a tacit nod of agreement.

Although he doesn’t talk much, he radiates an air of authority. But he doesn’t seem like a difficult person. You can tell just by looking at Xiao Xi. If he were really like the rich people you see on TV, he never would have raised such an adorable and well-behaved daughter. It’s just...

Zhong Hailan followed her husband out of the room.

"Dear," she began, "Xiao Xi’s father... he doesn’t seem like an ordinary rich man." This was something she had felt from the moment she first saw him, though it hadn’t been appropriate to say it out loud then.

"Besides, all those people at the hotel were obviously there to welcome him. I also saw the banner at the entrance. I don’t recognize many characters, but I could make out the words ’Lin Corporation’."

If Zhong Hailan had seen it, then Xue Yuanqing naturally had as well.

"The first time I saw Xiao Xi, I knew she wasn’t from an ordinary family," he said. "I just never imagined she would be... the Eldest Miss of the Lin Corporation."

The gap in their status is just too immense. Will Chairman Lin really let Xiao Xi marry our Xiao Yang?

Xue Yuanqing shared his wife’s worries. To be honest, if the roles were reversed and he were Chairman Lin with only one daughter, he wouldn’t want to marry her to a poor boy either. Compared to the Lin Corporation, no matter how promising Xue Yang seemed to them, he was still just a poor boy in their eyes. That’s just the reality of it.

"Don’t overthink it," he said aloud. "We’re just ordinary people hoping our son will be successful, get married, have children, and live a happy life. As the saying goes, ’The younger generation will make its own way.’ If they truly aren’t fated to be together, then there’s nothing we can do."

Zhong Hailan opened her mouth to speak but ultimately said nothing.

She truly adored that girl, Lin Xi. She had never had a daughter of her own, and whenever she imagined having Lin Xi as her future daughter-in-law, it felt as if the sole regret of her life would vanish. But now...

Xue Yuanqing patted her shoulder, urging her not to worry. "Our son isn’t so bad either," he said comfortingly. "Maybe Chairman Lin will be satisfied with him."

Zhong Hailan was confident about their son’s prospects with anyone else, but when it came to the Lin Corporation, she had no confidence whatsoever.

***

After Xue Yuanqing and Zhong Hailan left, Xue Yang found himself alone, facing Lin Xi’s father.

He had known this day would come sooner or later, so he wasn’t overly nervous.

"I never expected we would meet again under these circumstances," Lin Zhenhai said, breaking the silence.

Xue Yang knew he was referring to the job fair at Yanbei University, where he had declined Lin Zhenhai’s offer.

He offered a slight apology. "Uncle Lin, I’m sorry. I didn’t know then that Xiao Xi was your daughter."

Seeing this, Lin Xi quickly jumped to his defense. "Dad, it’s true! I didn’t tell him my real identity at first, so he had no idea."

Lin Zhenhai silenced his daughter with a sharp glance before turning his attention back to Xue Yang.

"Xue Yang, let me ask you this," he said. "If you had known back then that Xiao Xi was my daughter, would you have joined the Lin Corporation?"

Xue Yang shook his head and answered honestly, "I’m sorry, Uncle Lin, but no, I wouldn’t have."

Lin Zhenhai’s eyebrow rose in intrigue. "Oh? And why is that?"

Xue Yang straightened his posture, meeting Lin Zhenhai’s gaze directly. "Uncle Lin, joining the Lin Corporation is a dream for most people. I used to feel the same way. But then... I met Xiao Xi. At that point, my only goal was to make money quickly. I needed to earn enough to provide for her."

"But you can earn money at the Lin Corporation, can’t you? In fact, you can make far more there than most people ever could striking out on their own." Lin Zhenhai seemed determined to press him for a satisfactory answer.

"To me, the Lin Corporation is like a boundless ocean. It’s true that it has abundant resources and far more opportunities than anywhere else. But just as mountains have their overlords, the sea also has its own master. I would just be a single drop of water flowing into that vast expanse.

"I might have a chance to shine, but that chance is incredibly slim. I’m not willing to gamble my entire future on such a slim chance. I would rather carve out my own river and be its master."

Hearing this, Lin Zhenhai fell silent.

He was clearly not satisfied with Xue Yang’s answer.