Xie Linhui began investigating the Yu Xiang Investments report, closely examining Xu Delin’s notes. She noticed the notes were sparse and seemed hastily written in a single day, prompting her to request the audio recordings. Xu Delin, clearly uneasy, tried to maintain his composure, but Xie Linhui detected something amiss.
At the same time, Yu Shi arrived at Yu Xiang Investments with a legal team to address the crisis and respond to the unfolding situation. Xie Linhui’s copy of the audio file became corrupted and unplayable before she could finish listening to it. She confronted Xu Delin for the original recording device, only to find that the recorder had mysteriously broken. Without saying much, Xie Linhui left, already piecing together the events in her mind.
Realizing the severity of the situation, Lu Jian decided to break his silence. He approached Xie Linhui to gauge her stance and express his willingness to take full responsibility if someone needed to be held accountable. However, Xie Linhui was uninterested in assigning blame and focused instead on uncovering the truth. She had been giving Xu Delin opportunities to prove his innocence, but he consistently failed to provide any credible evidence.
Anomalies in the Reported Data
Xie Linhui’s sharp instincts for numbers made her recall discrepancies between the data she approved and what was published. However, Lu Jian dismissed her concerns, claiming she must have misremembered due to being distracted by personal matters at the time. Determined to verify the facts, Xie Linhui had Jingjing retrieve all pre-publication drafts of the article, only to discover that they, too, had been replaced.
Jiang Yidi Faces Consequences
Jiang Yidi was suspended from her job. When she tried to speak with HR, she realized they were aligned with the company’s interests, scapegoating her for the scandal. Director Ding also distanced himself, claiming ignorance and pointing out that he hadn’t signed off on Jiang Yidi’s earlier invoices. Ding suggested that her suspension was already a lenient response from the company.
Frustrated but undeterred, Jiang Yidi insisted on meeting the new boss, Yu Shi, to explain the situation. However, Ding admitted he had intentionally made it difficult to contact Yu Shi, fearing that a meeting between the two would expose his wrongdoings.
Collateral Damage
The fallout from the report severely impacted Zhang Hongda’s company, complicating their latest round of fundraising. This prompted Zhang to approach Xie Linhui directly, which surprised her. She initially thought the report would only affect Wu Yueting but realized its reach was far greater. Seeking solutions, Xie Linhui visited Zhou Hang to discuss potential investments. However, Zhou’s company, which had backed Yuanshen Technology—a competitor of Zhang’s Hua Ke Vision—was unlikely to invest. Zhou Hang acknowledged that competitors could sometimes collaborate but emphasized that the timing needed to be right. Understanding the pragmatic nature of business, Xie Linhui refrained from pushing further.
Later, Xie Linhui visited Zhang Hongda’s company to support her old friend. She was shocked to find the factory shut down due to defective components and the building dimly lit, with Zhang being the only one present. She learned that Zhang had mortgaged his home to keep the company afloat, deepening her guilt. Despite her personal feelings, Xie Linhui, as a journalist, was committed to objective reporting and refused to compromise her integrity. This principle was something Zhang himself had once taught her.
With few close friends, Zhang and his wife were among the few people Xie Linhui truly valued. Unwilling to lose them, she spent her journey home contacting every investor she could to seek help for Zhang’s company.
Exposing the Scandal
Yu Shi obtained Jiang Yidi’s personnel file from HR and was surprised to recognize her as the girl he had seen at the fencing club. Intrigued, he asked HR to keep trying to reach her, as he wanted to speak with her personally.
Meanwhile, Jiang Yidi went to Today Video, planning to expose Zhongshang Langchao’s data fraud. Coincidentally, Bai Lu overheard her and decided to report the issue on her program, inviting Jiang Yidi as a guest. Though Jiang appeared anonymously with her identity obscured, Xie Linhui recognized her from the video.
Yu Shi also saw the program and immediately forwarded it to his legal team, deciding to file a lawsuit against Zhongshang Langchao the next morning.
