Original subtitles

[Love Between Lines]

[Episode 25]

Ms. Xiao, I need to go now.

Mr. Xiao, I'm here to get my laptop.

Sorry for the intrusion.

I haven't formally introduced you to each other yet.

I've already introduced myself to Ms. Xiao.

Let me make a proper introduction.

This is my mother,

Xiao Wanyue.

Mom.

This is Hu Xiu,

the woman I love.

Mom.

This is Hu Xiu,

the woman I love.

He definitely did that on purpose.

Mom.

What brings you here all of a sudden?

I was worried about you.

I saw that statement.

You shouldn't have admitted it.

By doing this,

you've left yourself no room to maneuver.

People will gossip about you.

I am Qin Yuze's son.

I don't feel ashamed to admit it.

It's just a fact.

I'm just worried that dredging up the past

might upset you.

It does.

I lost someone very important to me.

Was it because of that girl just now?

Did she turn you down

because of your father's situation?

How about I go explain things to her?

The only way to get her back

is to end all of this as soon as possible.

Mom.

Have you ever been involved in Forma's operations,

even just as a figurehead

or through financial transactions?

Why do you ask?

No particular reason—

just asking.

Hello, Mr. Xiao.

How can I help you?

I'd like to arrange

a premium annuity insurance plan for my family—

one with high cash value, and it has to be irrevocable.

No problem.

We'll just need you to

provide the client's information,

bank account details and proof of assets.

Okay.

Why...

Why is it you?

Mr. Huang,

you seem surprised to see me.

Mr. Xu here told me

someone wanted to discuss business with me.

I just didn't expect

it would be you.

You know me?

Mr. Xiao from D Studio.

Who in this industry doesn't know you?

But strangely,

I

have never had any dealings

with your studio whatsoever,

so how did you end up coming to me?

We actually had a chance to work together.

Unfortunately,

your company's name

didn't appear on

the supplier list provided by Forma.

That's right.

I stopped working with Forma a long time ago.

So there isn't really

any business for us to discuss, either.

How about this? You two carry on.

I'll take my leave.

You can leave,

but

I won't help you a second time.

After all, it's not just loan sharks

who are after you out there.

I recognize this car.

It belongs to Pei Kanghua's men.

I didn't expect them

to track me down there.

But

you weren't their target.

I really shouldn't have

told him I had those things.

What things?

Nothing.

It's just you really shouldn't

borrow money casually.

If you can't pay it back,

they hunt you down everywhere.

It's such a pain.

So annoying.

That makes sense.

They can't even plug their own holes.

Why would they spare any money on you?

What do you mean by that, Mr. Xiao?

I mean

Pei Kanghua is like a cornered beast putting up a desperate fight.

He's already running out of steam.

How could that be?

Because

I'll make sure Pei Kanghua

is completely ruined.

You...

Mr. Huang, you know this already.

I'm not just Xiao Zhiyu—

I'm also Qin Yuze's son.

Mr. Huang, what you probably don't know

is that I already met you in America

20 years ago.

Twenty years ago?

You were very decisive and bold back then,

Mr. Huang,

going all the way to America to confront Pei Kanghua

and securing a path to wealth for yourself with just a few words.

The price, however,

was my father's life.

No, no, no.

Mr. Xiao.

I swear

I

have nothing to do with your father's death.

It was all Pei Kanghua...

I'm not here to bring charges against you.

I came today to make a deal.

And why do you think

I'd do a deal with you?

Because I have all the time in the world to wear you down.

If I can get Forma placed under financial investigation today,

I can just as easily leave you with no way back tomorrow.

Tell me—

if Pei Kanghua finds out I've tracked you down,

given his nature,

do you think he'll trust you as he always has,

or eliminate you without hesitation?

Don't be so nervous.

Tell me—

what is the evidence

that you've hidden away?

Luckily, Huang Yide was shrewd enough

to photograph the evidence back then.

It's just

he's still wary of us,

refusing to reveal where he hid the memory card.

Should we

think of a way

to make him talk?

Being too aggressive would only backfire.

This place is quite secluded.

Let him stay in that room for now.

He won't dare go out casually anytime soon anyway.

Uncle Xu.

Come with me to a place tomorrow.

Where to?

Huang Yide?

Is this why he wanted me to move in here?

[Pei Kanghua]

[Qin Yuze]

[Acceptance of accident liability (quick settlement)]

[Huang Yide]

Huang Yide...

This set of supplier information is incomplete.

I need the full list of Forma's partner manufacturers.

It's like

he never really planned to

work with Forma in the first place.

His cooperation with Forma

was only to narrow down and find this factory.

What's so special about this factory?

[Advance Notice of Administrative Penalty]

[Shanghai Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau]

You think

this is where Huang Yide

hid the memory card?

Huang Yide didn't seem surprised

that Pei Kanghua was looking for him everywhere.

But yesterday, when he learned

that someone had discovered this place,

he seemed particularly panicked.

He's been dodging his debts and hasn't even dared go home,

yet he came to the factory once.

There must be a reason.

This place is huge.

Where could he have hidden it?

It's like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Let's split up and look around.

Okay.

Who's there?

Why are you here?

I could ask you the same.

Hu Xiu.

I know everything now.

You're investigating Huang Yide,

this factory,

and Pei Kanghua as well.

Pei Kanghua had worked with Huang Yide for so many years,

yet when you asked for the supplier information,

they hastily terminated their contract.

It was because Pei Kanghua was worried you'd investigate him, right?

Are they connected to that accident—

to what happened to your father?

Whatever it is, it has nothing to do with you.

If what you're investigating is that accident from back then,

then it involves my father,

which means it involves me too.

I have the right to know.

So you took matters into your own hands

and came here all by yourself?

Do you know Huang Yide is in trouble?

What if the person you ran into today wasn't me,

but a debt collector

or someone working for Pei Kanghua?

What then?

But the person I ran into was you,

Xiao Zhiyu!

I'm standing right here in front of you,

and I've asked you so many questions,

but you haven't answered any of them!

Hu Xiu.

I don't have any answers for you right now.

But the way you're acting right now—

you're just making things harder for me...

I'll drive you home.

This place is remote.

I can't let you leave by yourself.

I'll get a taxi.

Save you the trouble.

Since you refuse to tell me anything,

then why are you grabbing me?

Let go.

Let go of me.

I won't.

On what grounds?

You've kept so many secrets from me.

Why are you acting all torn up now?

I only kept things from you

because I didn't want to drag you into this.

If anything were to happen...

You always have so many excuses.

So I'm just supposed to accept everything, right?

Xiao Zhiyu.

Do you know what the most ridiculous part is?

Right here.

This place is filled with secrets and hatred.

And yet you lied to me, telling me

that what was in there was me.

No, please...

You think

you're protecting me?

No.

This is the cruelest kind of betrayal.

You're making me feel like a complete fool.

I

thought there were no secrets between us.

But in the end,

I don't even know who the one I'm in love with is

or what he's really trying to do.

I...

Xiao Zhiyu.

As far as you and I are concerned, I can say I have a clear conscience.

But you—

no matter how you say you like me,

you still make me feel like

I'm only getting your castoffs.

♪ It's true ♪

♪ I miss you ♪

♪ Hope the night brings me to you ♪

♪ And I also know ♪

♪ The night will pass and I have to part with you ♪

That's not true.

♪ It's hard to accept but true ♪

Don't think of me that way.

Prove it to me then.

Either tell me everything,

or

let me go.

♪ Hope the dream brings me to you ♪

♪ And I also know ♪

♪ The dreams are false and I should forget you ♪

♪ It's hard to accept but true ♪

I've already told you

everything you want to know.

Is what you're doing now

dangerous?

Do you remember

what you said to me

during Spring Festival?

What about you?

Is there anything you're determined to accomplish this year?

I want to

find that answer.

Don't torment yourself.

I believe you'll find it.

I'll definitely find it.

No wonder

he's held on so tightly to Qin Xiaoyi,

and to his father.

Will you be home tomorrow?

Gong Huaicong and I are planning to come visit you.

So,

isn't this place nice?

We found this place when we were checking out cafés a couple of days ago.

We figured we'd bring you here to relax.

You two went checking cafés out together?

Yes.

That's right.

Ms. Zhao and I just clicked.

We both want to open a new place

and keep the partnership going.

Might as well make money together, right?

So you two are business buddies now.

Uncle Hu has recovered,

so what's with the gloomy face?

Have something sweet.

Try this, it's their specialty. It's really good.

Come on.

By the way,

once you're both free in the next couple of days,

my club's new instance dungeon should be ready.

Come join the internal playtest.

Think of it as a way to relax,

and you can give me some feedback while you're at it.

A new instance dungeon?

That's right.

The story of Rongcheng needs some new changes.

I'll be going on a business trip in a few days.

I'll start working on it as soon as I come back.

So,

will the characters change as well?

I didn't want to change them

at first,

but Xiao told me

he didn't want to play Qin Xiaoyi anymore.

With the key character gone,

there's no point keeping the rest.

You and Xiao still haven't made up yet?

Save that gossiping brain of yours

for designing the new instance dungeon.

Xiu.

How about changing it from snow to rain?

Snow is way prettier,

and rain would leave the players soaking wet.

By the way,

it was Xiao who suggested snow in the first place.

I thought it was too much trouble

and kept opposing it,

but he insisted.

Sometimes,

even when the game wasn't on, he'd still come by,

do nothing,

and watch the snow

for hours.

It was snowing that day too.

It was my fault for not being thorough.

I got flustered that day—

heard a whisper of news

and rushed to tell you.

Before Lyman terminated their contract with us,

they brought in a third-party auditor to assist with the investigation.

One of them is my friend,

so I took him out for a private meal.

They have strict rules.

No matter how I tried, he wouldn't spill anything.

But he let something slip:

the one who reported us

wasn't a supplier,

but someone who's completely

mapped out our suppliers' operations.

Mr. Pei,

do you think Forma's supplier details

might have been leaked?

The one who knows everything about our suppliers...

Xiao Zhiyu?

Don't repeat the same mistake!

Dad.

The starving dog you kindly took in years ago

has turned into

an ungrateful wolf.

Here.

Dad.

Mrs. Xiao.

It's been a while since we had breakfast together.

My stomach's been acting up lately,

so I can't skip breakfast anymore.

A few days ago, Zhiyu mentioned

that my premium medical insurance is offshore

and not very convenient in China,

so he wants to arrange another policy for me domestically.

For that, I'll need to provide

all my bank account details,

proof of overseas assets,

tax records, and stuff like that.

You need this much paperwork

for an insurance policy?

They say it's to verify my financial status.

Kanghua,

help me figure out

how to get proof of my investment returns.

I'm not very clear on the process.

I'll go collect the paperwork now

before I forget again.

Xiao Zhiyu is sneaking a look at

Mrs. Xiao's accounts,

trying to see if she's involved with our company.

[Outpatient]

I'm finally

seeing daylight again.

The doctor just said

that once you get home, you need to behave and do your rehab properly.

Otherwise,

you'll have to come back.

Understand?

Mom, I'll get a taxi.

Did you get one?

The traffic's bad.

Hello, Uncle, Auntie.

My name is Gong Huaicong.

I'm Ms. Zhao's business partner

and also Hu Xiu's friend.

What's with the extra effort?

What do you mean extra effort?

I'm just here to help out.

I knew Uncle was being discharged today,

so I came specially to pick you guys up,

saving Hu Xiu the trouble of hiring a taxi.

-That's really... -Thank you.

Sorry for the trouble.

Please don't mention it, Uncle.

When I was organizing events with Ms. Zhao before,

Hu Xiu worked very hard and didn't ask for a penny.

So please,

give me this chance to return the favor.

Alright.

Thank you then.

My pleasure.

Come on, Uncle. Get in the car.

Alright, alright.

Alright.

Be careful.

Is this okay?

Yes.

Let me.

Watch your head.

Alright.

Watch your head.

Okay.

Alright, alright.

Watch your hand.

Everything's arranged so thoughtfully.

He must've been sent here by Xiao Zhiyu, don't you think?

Uncle,

feeling comfortable?

Yeah, very nice.

I've really caused you guys a lot of trouble.

During this time, due to my condition,

Xiu has been working really hard,

and it's affected Xiaorou too.

Did the business of your café

get affected?

Uncle, I've got an assistant watching over things.

Nothing was affected.

Uncle, don't worry.

The caregiver

is hired long-term.

He'll stay until you recover. Very professional.

And with this car at your disposal,

you can get around whenever you need.

This way,

Auntie won't have to exhaust herself,

Ms. Zhao won't need to keep running back and forth,

and Hu Xiu can go to work with peace of mind.

Right, Hu Xiu?

You look tired.

Have some water.

I'm not tired.

I haven't done much work.

I meant you look tired from all that talking.

Here.

Alright.

Thank you so much for your help today.

Come upstairs for a rest, will you?

No thanks, Auntie. I don't want to impose.

I'm heading back to the shop.

Please, go upstairs and get some rest.

Go back and get some rest as well.

The caregiver and I can take things from here.

Call me if you need anything.

Uncle, Auntie, we'll be going now.

Alright. Take care.

Once he's doing better,

come over for a meal, alright?

Certainly.

Please, go on upstairs.

Goodbye, Uncle.

Alright, take care.

Bye-bye.

Bye-bye.

Goodbye, Auntie.

Everything alright?

What happened in the car just now?

Did I say something wrong?

Don't tell me

that Hu Xiu's father

doesn't want her to work at the studio anymore,

just because of what happened with Xiao's father.

Let's talk on the way.

Li,

come and take a look.

The kitchen is here.

The kitchen.

Okay. Got it.

And this medicine kit

contains all our daily medications.

Everything's in here.

Okay.

And here is the bathroom.

Come take a look.

This is the master bedroom.

Alright.

And this is Xiu's room.

Okay, I got it.

Alright.

Xiu.

How are things arranged

with your work?

Xiu?

Hu.

She can't just walk out like that.

The handover will take at least a month.

I mean... I want you to...

Xiu.

As for your work arrangements,

there's no rush.

We need to

see things through properly.

I'll give you time

to sort things out properly.

No wonder Xiao told me

not to bring him up in front of Hu Xiu's parents

or tell them he was the one who arranged the car and the caregiver.

Because only this way

could Xiu's parents

accept his kindness without feeling uneasy.

The problem between him and Hu Xiu

is just impossible to solve.

My Poor Xiu.

She finally found happiness,

but it has to be like sugar coated with shards of glass.

Xiao is pitiful too.

The person he's determined to love is the very person he can't.

How painful that must be.

Mom, I'm home.

You guys get some rest early too.

There's an emergency.

Hu Xiu?

Aren't you still on leave today?

I came to talk to Mr. Xiao about something.

Is he here?

He just went upstairs.

Xiao Zhiyu.

Why are you here?

Thank you for taking care of the arrangements

after my dad's discharge.

It's the least I could do.

If he hadn't seen the news online,

he wouldn't have gone out that late at night.

I came to talk to you about this.

Pei Zhen came to see me at the hospital.

I think it was him

who released the news.

And these documents

were likely sent to my parents by him as well.

[Xincheng Stadium Under Construction Collapses]

[Killing 3 and Injuring 6; Lead Architect Takes Own Life]

Besides Pei Kanghua,

keep an eye on Pei Zhen too.

Who knows what his next move will be.

Mr. Xiao.

Investigators from the Market Supervision Bureau are here.

They're right downstairs.

What happened?

Forma's supplier information has been leaked online.

It involves the leak of many confidential internal quotes

with our studio's watermark on them.

Forma, along with the suppliers, lodged a complaint against us.

There's no way that information could have leaked from our side.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Mr. Xiao, right?

Ms. Zhou.

This time,

all employees who have handled Forma's supplier list

must cooperate with the investigation.

I understand.

I was the one who handled the Forma project.

My work computer has been at the office the whole time.

It hasn't been touched.

Understood.

During the investigation,

we'll keep this computer in our custody temporarily.

Mr. Xiao,

you'll need to come with us separately.

Besides the complaint about

supplier information leakage,

Mr. Xiao, you're also suspected of privately investigating

supplier data

and other infringement issues.

So you'll need to cooperate with us.

Mr. Xiao.

No problem.

The innocent have nothing to fear.

Go home

once the investigators leave.

I'll inform you of any updates.

How did this even happen?

It just got out.

If they slap a leak-of-confidential-info charge on him...

Like father, like son.

People out there will definitely make a big deal out of this.

Both he and our studio will be in trouble.

I see.

Why are you here?

You're not welcome here now.

Are you out of your mind?

You could've just come after me.

But instead, you caused her father's accident

and got her suspected of leaking info.

Is that your idea of protecting her?

I didn't cause her father's accident.

You were right.

Everything I've done...

Is because of you!

If you hadn't shown up,

she wouldn't have been dragged into this.

I never expected that, Xiao Zhiyu,

after all these years,

the first time I see you lose control

would be over a woman.

No.

It's to teach you

that there are lines you cannot cross.

Cross them, and I won't spare you either.

You? Teach me?

On what grounds!

Your miserable past?

Xiao Zhiyu,

listen carefully.

I've never done you wrong.

You're the one who owes me!

From the moment you came into our family,

my life was completely ruined.

As long as you're around,

no one ever sees me.

No matter how hard I try,

I'll never measure up to you in others' eyes.

Even Hu Xiu is the same.

She knows exactly who you are

and still takes your side.

Why?

You should've spent your life keeping your head down.

You wouldn't be who you are today without the Pei family.

And what did you do?

You repaid kindness with betrayal.

You sold out the Pei family.

The one who's been crossing lines

has always been you.

Look at yourself,

shamelessly flipping the truth on its head.

You really do look like Pei Kanghua.

How did I ever forget

that you and him

share the same blood?

Zhiyu!

Is what he said true?

Was it you who reported Forma?

You asked for my bank account information

just to take revenge on Kanghua and Forma?

Zhiyu.

It's been 20 years.

I thought

you just didn't want to be close to us,

but I never imagined

you've been harboring this kind of hatred all along.

You don't have to accept the decision I made back then,

and you can even condemn me for being weak and cowardly.

But do you

really have to make me

lose my family all over again

before you're satisfied?

Mom.

The "family" you just mentioned—

did that include me?