Watching the scene, the heaviness in Tang Li’s heart faded away.
She couldn’t help but curve her lips into a smile.
What had happened in her past life stayed in her past life; this life was different.
At least the person she liked now was no longer Han Jifeng.
Tang Li picked up her bag and went downstairs, where she saw a middle-aged man holding a Tibetan Mastiff and wiping its paws at the entryway.
Seeing the Tibetan Mastiff sprawling there and enjoying itself, Tang Li remembered her bra that had been taken by it last night. She walked closer, keeping a safe distance of two meters, squatted down, and asked, "What’s its name?"
The middle-aged man was Yunqi Villa’s butler—Uncle Tan.
Suddenly hearing a woman’s voice, he turned his head to look.
At the sight of Tang Li, Uncle Tan was slightly taken aback; he hadn’t expected a woman to have stayed overnight at the villa. He then answered kindly, "It’s named Ah Xi."
"Ah Xi?" Tang Li repeated the name.
Then, she pursed her lips in a smile: "The dog I used to have was also called Ah Xi."
Tang Li glanced around and not seeing Song Baiyan, she asked the middle-aged man, "Do you know where Mr. Song is?" After saying this, she felt the need to clarify: "I have things to attend to this morning and need to leave now, but I wanted to say goodbye to him before I go."
Uncle Tan pointed outside the house: "Mr. Song is still outside."
After thanking him, Tang Li got up and went out.
Just as she stepped out the door, she saw Song Baiyan not far away.
Song Baiyan was standing under a tree with his hands behind his back. Tang Li checked the time on her cellphone, didn’t delay any further, and jogged over to say goodbye. As she approached, she heard another male voice: "Xia Zhengguo has been anonymously reported for accepting a huge bribe. The report was found early this morning at the doorstep of the Anti-Corruption Bureau Director."
Hearing this, Tang Li stopped in her tracks.
Uncertain whether to proceed or to retreat.
Some things weren’t meant for her ears.
Song Baiyan stood beside a large tree that would take three people to encircle, and so Tang Li hadn’t noticed someone else was behind the tree. The man continued, "The Anti-Corruption Bureau has already started action, the disturbance is quite significant. If the contents of the report are true, it’s very likely that Xia Zhengguo is going down this time."
Xia Zhengguo’s bribes and corruption didn’t come to light until several years later in her previous life.
Yet, in this life, it had come out early.
Han Jifeng was implicated by Xia Zhengguo back then.
Xia Zhengguo was Han Jifeng’s direct superior, and as the talent personally promoted by Xia Zhengguo, Han Jifeng couldn’t avoid being investigated and possibly detained.
Just as Tang Li was about to leave quietly, she heard Song Baiyan’s voice: "Do you know who made the report?"
"Xia Zhengguo’s secretary, Han Jifeng."
This answer made Tang Li’s turning motion pause.
... How could it be Han Jifeng?
At this time, Han Jifeng shouldn’t have been aware of Xia Zhengguo’s bribe-taking.
If he had been aware, the Anti-Corruption Bureau wouldn’t have let him go in her past life, even if he hadn’t taken bribes himself, he would have been regarded as an accomplice for not reporting it.
"Yo, where did this little lady come from?"
A frivolous male voice suddenly rang out behind her.
Tang Li had to turn back around.
She looked at the man standing with Song Baiyan, who was the very "Director Bai" mentioned by Ji Ming before, now looking at her with a smile.
Bai Yiqian then turned to look at Song Baiyan: "Seems I arrived at an inconvenient time?"
There seemed to be a deeper meaning hidden in his words.
Noticing the almost-smiling curve of Bai Yiqian’s mouth, Tang Li turned her gaze to Song Baiyan, temporarily suppressing the strange emotions in her heart, and took the initiative to say: "I have to go to the set this morning, I just came to say goodbye."
The implication being, I didn’t intentionally overhear your work conversation.
Song Baiyan’s expression remained normal, not altered by Bai Yiqian’s banter.