After Being Kicked Out, Seven Sisters Turned Against the Family One After Another

Chapter 44: Self-Directed and Self-Acted:

The explosion at Sihai Restaurant spread like wildfire, shaking Hangzhou and even the entire eastern Zhejiang Province. Speculations ran rampant online, fueled by the silence of official announcements. Internet celebrities offered their interpretations of the event, while the public debated the possible causes.

Some believed it was a gas explosion, while others suspected a terrorist attack. Another popular rumor claimed that during a wedding, the bride had not fully severed ties with her ex-boyfriend. Allegedly, she had accepted hundreds of thousands of yuan in gifts from him before marrying her current groom and refusing to return the money. Enraged, the ex-boyfriend supposedly carried explosives to the wedding, leading to a tragic conclusion.

Amid the chaos, Lin Shengnan, who held critical insights into the incident, appeared at a pawn shop. She had been removed from the Sihai Restaurant case and reassigned to a theft case at the pawn shop, tasked with apprehending the thief. Frustrated, she made her dissatisfaction clear at the pawn shop before promptly taking a leave of absence.

Coincidentally, she planned to move out of her hotel and find an apartment near the police station. That afternoon, she discovered a well-furnished two-bedroom apartment in Hengda Garden. The place was originally intended as a bridal home, but the bride had eloped with her male best friend, leaving the property vacant.

Despite her wealth, which could easily afford several houses, Lin Shengnan preferred to keep a low profile. 

Deep down, she still held some hope for reconciliation with the Lin family. Purchasing a property would feel like outright betrayal, something akin to following Lin You’s rebellious path.

After settling into the apartment, she transformed the living room into a makeshift case analysis room. She hung a large whiteboard on the wall and wrote “Dingcheng Group” in bold letters at its center. From there, she began organizing all the information related to the group.

She noted key events:

April 28: Representatives from Dingcheng Group were seen on Xiangcheng Street, coinciding with the Sihai Restaurant explosion.

After the explosion, both Lin Shiyan and Lin You were spotted at the scene. Lin You’s timely intervention had saved them both.

One year ago: Lin Yuan negotiated with Dingcheng Group to develop land in the western suburbs. Dingcheng would handle property development, while the Lin family planned to build a Class A hospital.

During negotiations, a major shareholder from Dingcheng approached Lin Yuan with a proposal to break away from the group and collaborate directly. The condition was that the Lin family invest 20 billion yuan to establish a new real estate company with the shareholder, competing with Dingcheng Group for the project.

This created internal strife within the Dingcheng Group, sparking betrayal and intrigue.

Lin Yuan estimated potential profits of 5 to 10 billion yuan if the project succeeded. More importantly, it was an opportunity for the Lin family to enter the lucrative real estate industry. However, the plan was thwarted by Lin You.

Lin You had exposed the internal conflicts and poaching within Dingcheng Group, effectively undermining the deal. His actions disrupted the scheme and enraged Lin Yuan, who even considered paying 10 million yuan to punish the whistleblower—only to discover that the culprit was his own son.

This betrayal escalated beyond family rivalry, threatening the survival and growth of the Lin family. Despite his fury, Lin Yuan refrained from harsh punishment, likely because Lin You was his biological son. But Lin You’s actions raised a question: Was he deliberately severing ties with his family?

Recently, Lin Shengnan visited the land in the western suburbs and discovered startling information. The land, though ideally located, remained undeveloped due to environmental concerns. Tests revealed high levels of soil toxicity and underground radioactivity, remnants of a pesticide factory that had operated there for decades.

A nearby hill, included in Dingcheng’s development plans, was also contaminated with radioactive materials, rendering the entire site unsuitable for commercial projects.

Digging deeper, Lin Shengnan realized the infighting within the Dingcheng Group was nothing more than an elaborate ploy. When Dingcheng acquired the land, they had failed to inspect it properly and now found themselves stuck with a toxic liability. To offload the burden, they targeted the Lin family, exploiting their eagerness to enter the real estate market.

Without Lin You’s intervention, the Lin family would have suffered severe financial losses, jeopardizing their pharmaceutical ventures and plans to launch new medical beauty products. The fallout would have been catastrophic.

But how had Lin You uncovered the scam? 

As a mere high school student, he had no access to family strategies or business discussions. This mystery puzzled Lin Shengnan.

Erasing “Dingcheng Group” from the whiteboard, she wrote “Lin You” instead. She decided to investigate him thoroughly, gathering all available information.

Recent events revealed Lin You had saved her and Lin Shiyan during the Sihai Restaurant chaos. While Lin Shiyan believed Lin You’s presence was incidental, merely to resolve a classmate dispute, Lin Shengnan wasn’t convinced.

Determined to uncover the truth, she decided to bring Lin Shiyan in for a conversation.