Standing Next To You-Chapter 236: Kneeling

Thanks to Lin Sanju’s ’token of sincerity,’ Bei Sangyun managed to gather the necessary evidence, thoughtfully provided by Lin Sanju himself.

Who would have guessed that this kid was hiding so much?

Lin Sanju gave her the gift, strategically allowing her to use it as leverage against the fourth branch for their cooperation. What a clever and ruthless tactic.

"Initially, my plan was to absorb the fourth branch into the first and, from there, dismantle the fourth branch while implicating the first. However, Lin Sanju approached me and persuaded me to give you guys a chance. So, I’ve decided to keep this information to myself, but not without a price."

Lin Ruo’s face turned ashen, and his gaze shifted as he looked at Bei Sangyun. He hadn’t taken her seriously before, but now, seeing the evidence in her hands, Lin Ruo had to reconsider.

Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, he continued, "You’ve proven your capability by obtaining this before the other two branches could. I’m at a loss. If you intended to crush our branch, you could have done so. We’re willing to make a vow to support you in the heir competition. However, how do you plan to contend with the first and second branches? If you end up losing to them, we’ll be in a predicament. We can’t afford to choose the losing side."

Bei Sangyun leaned languidly on the chair and fixed a deep, scrutinizing gaze on Lin Ruo. For a moment, he felt a bit intimidated under her scrutiny.

Suddenly, Lin Ruo snapped out of it, surprised by his own thoughts. How could he, a man in his forties, be intimidated by the gaze of an eighteen-year-old kid?

A cold smile suddenly appeared on the corner of Bei Sangyun’s lips. "I don’t understand why you still have the guts to question me. You guys have no other choice. Must I spell it out? I am threatening you with this."

Lin Sanji crumpled the paper. "W-we aren’t afraid!" She tried to speak loudly to convey her lack of fear towards Bei Sangyun, but her voice trembled.

Despite feeling nervous and afraid, she didn’t want Bei Sangyun to think they were easy to manipulate. "Y-you’re just bluffing! You can’t reveal this to the public. If you do, Grandfather wouldn’t let you go! It won’t only affect our branch; the entire Lin family, including your branch, will be implicated!"

Bei Sangyun tilted her head innocently. "Is that so? But you see, I’m not afraid of that old man, and I don’t care what happens to the third branch."

Her response left the three of them speechless. Who among them was not afraid or not tip-toeing around the old man? No one, not even Lin Bao Zhi and Lin Fang of the first and second branches, respectively.

Bei Sangyun gestured lazily at Butler Xin, "Since they don’t believe, then I think I have to show them. Send this copy to media platforms in our contacts. I’m sure they’ll love this."

"No!" A loud yell reverberated around the room. Li Mei pleaded with Bei Sangyun, "Please don’t do it. You can’t do this to us. We’re still family; please don’t destroy us."

Bei Sangyun remained unmoved and replied coldly, "If you were in my shoes, I bet you would do the same thing, or perhaps even worse. If I pleaded with you like this, would you show mercy? I don’t think so. You and your daughter are very determined to ruin my life. Have you forgotten?"

Li Mei paled. Her mind raced. What could she do to convince Bei Sangyun? A thought occurred to her. Perhaps her son was right. They should have agreed to his proposal a while ago.

Li Mei bit her lip and suddenly kneeled.

"Mom!" Lin Sunji shouted in shock. She attempted to pull Li Mei to stand up, but Li Mei pushed her hand away and stubbornly remained kneeling.

"My family is very important to me. I will do everything, including ruining my children’s rivals, just to give them a good life. I understand if you hate our branch and want to destroy us. But please, give us a chance."

Lin Ruo stared at his wife with complicated emotions. Li Mei had always been smart and more capable than him. He was a coward and had consistently been pushed back by his brothers in the family since they were young, leaving him a step behind.

His wife, however, was different. She was smart and dignified. If Li Mei had been a man or hadn’t been born into a patriarchal family, she might have been the heir or head of the family by now. Thanks to her methods and abilities, she had become one of the Madams of the Lin family.

People often said Li Mei was fortunate to marry into the great Lin family, but it was Lin Ruo who truly felt blessed to have such an amazing wife.

Seeing his intelligent wife kneeling and pleading for their family, Lin Ruo felt a wave of guilt and defeat wash over him. He sighed deeply and joined his wife in kneeling.

He said solemnly, "I can’t let my family be destroyed under my watch. My wife and my children deserve a second chance. Please, Bei Sangyun, give us that chance."

"Dad! Mom! Why are you doing this? Don’t kneel!" Lin Sunji teared up. The people she had always looked up to suddenly went down on their knees and begged someone she deeply loathed and looked down upon.

Lin Sunji felt like her world was turning upside down. She cried harder and felt a sense of hopelessness.

The sound of crying sounded in the room.

Bei Sangyun observed the drama with cold eyes. She had witnessed this scene before.

Back then, when she evicted the fourth branch and stripped them of the Lin family name, they had also begged her like this.

It was Li Mei who knelt first, and her husband followed suit. They pleaded with Bei Sangyun not to ruin Lin Sunji’s future. Lin Sanju had already left the Lin family, leaving Lin Sunji as the sole remaining child in the fourth branch. As a result, they cared about her more than ever before.

The couple implored Bei Sangyun to intensify the punishment for them instead of also penalizing their daughter. Despite the heartwarming nature of their plea, it failed to move Bei Sangyun; instead, it only intensified the chill in the air.

Their actions reminded her of the lonely life she had endured. The person who would have knelt and begged for her had departed from this world long ago. She had no one to plead for her like this.

Bei Sangyun ruthlessly crushed their hope and delivered their doom with a cold heart.

Right now, the scene was the same but the situation was different.

Bei Sangyun hadn’t lost anything of significance to her. She had someone by her side who always thought of her and loved her more than anyone in the world. She was healthier, and there were many things she looked forward to in this world.

She was no longer bitter, angry, devastated, or crazy.

The heavens had given someone like her- a villainous person- a second chance. So, why couldn’t she give others a second chance?

As she observed them while reminiscing about the past, Bei Sangyun remained silent.