⸻ CHAPTER 71 — The Scandal That Should Have Stayed Buried
The storm did not begin with thunder.
It began with a whisper.
A single anonymous post on a small gossip page:
"Does anyone remember the Qin family investigation from 12 years ago?
Someone tried to bury it. But I still have screenshots."
No names.
No details.
No proof.
Just bait.
But in an industry built on curiosity and destruction, bait was all it took.
Within minutes, the post spread.
Within hours, it spread faster than the rumors about Shi Yunxi.
And by the next morning—
It was everywhere.
On every platform.
Every trending list.
Every entertainment blog.
Every anonymous forum that loved tearing powerful families apart.
At first, the public could not believe it.
The Qin family?
The immaculate family known for philanthropy and charity?
The wealthy household that built an empire from the ground up?
A scandal?
Hidden?
Covered up 12 years ago?
Impossible.
But then—
More posts appeared.
Anonymous users claiming they "remembered something."
Screenshots.
Old newspaper clippings.
Statements from former employees.
And worst of all—
A corrupted audio recording, grainy yet horrifying:
A woman crying.
A voice yelling.
A thud.
Then silence.
The caption attached to the audio was enough to send the world into chaos:
"The Qin family paid to erase this incident after the daughter-in-law died under suspicious circumstances."
That was the match.
The explosion was instant.
And the fallout was nuclear.
The Qin Family Headquarters — Pandemonium
The Qin family mansion, usually a symbol of calm wealth and immaculate order, now shook under the strain of the crisis.
Servants rushed through hallways.
Relatives filled the rooms, shouting in panic.
Phones rang endlessly — from reporters, business partners, terrified investors.
Qin Yuhan arrived in a rush, barely stepping through the marble threshold before his father threw a newspaper at him.
The headline:
"QIN FAMILY LINKED TO COVER-UP OF MYSTERIOUS DEATH."
His father's face was red with fury.
"What did you do!?" he roared. "Why is this surfacing NOW?"
Yuhan's voice was thin. "I—I don't know. I didn't do anything."
His mother stood to the side, trembling.
"Someone planned this," she whispered. "Someone waited years to pull this out."
And someone had.
Roulan.
But he did not say it.
Could not.
The scandal from twelve years ago was something the Qin family never spoke of. A hushed tragedy involving a distant relative, a violent argument, and blood spilled on polished marble floors.
A tragedy that destroyed a woman's life.
A tragedy buried with money, lawyers, and threats.
And someone had just dug up the corpse.
"Fix it!" his father yelled. "Before the board forces us to resign!"
"Before the shareholders pull out!"
"Before the Qin Corporation collapses!"
But Yuhan already knew—
It was too late.
The story had momentum.
And scandals with momentum were impossible to stop.
Business Fallout — Immediate and Brutal
The Qin Corporation stock plummeted by 19% in the first hour.
By noon, it was 31%.
By evening—
42%.
News tabloids called it "The Fastest Falling Giant in the Country."
Investors demanded emergency meetings.
Contracts were paused.
A major international partner publicly announced they were reconsidering all cooperation with the Qin family.
"We can't attach ourselves to a company that hides violent crimes," they said.
And still—
More evidence surfaced.
Financial records.
Strange transfers of money.
Deleted police reports.
Erased medical files.
Someone was leaking everything.
And they were doing it slowly.
Painfully.
Precisely.
With every reveal, the internet screamed louder:
"The Qin family must pay!"
"Justice for the woman who died!"
"Protect her memory!"
"Reopen the case!"
It was not just a scandal anymore.
It was a movement.
And in the middle of the fire — Qin Yuhan broke.
Everywhere he turned was accusation.
Every call brought new threats.
Even in his own home, the servants watched him with suspicion.
Reporters camped at his gate.
His mother cried nonstop.
His father yelled nonstop.
And through it all—
One truth haunted him:
Roulan had done this.
He could feel her fingerprints all over the scheme.
She was ruthless enough.
Smart enough.
Desperate enough.
She would burn his life to ashes just to control him.
And now—
She had succeeded.
The Shi Family — Collapse from the Impact
The Shi family had always depended on the Qin family for stability.
Their cooperation ran deep — financially, politically, socially.
So when the Qin family fell—
The Shi family went down with them.
The shock hit them within hours.
Investors withdrew.
The board panicked.
The company stock froze.
Directors resigned.
The Shi patriarch collapsed in his study.
The second son smashed a vase.
The household erupted into pure chaos.
And worst of all—
The entire internet connected the dots.
"The Shi and Qin families are linked. Did the Shi family help bury the case too?"
"What role did Shi Roulan's family play in covering up the truth?"
"This is bigger than expected."
It was over.
For both families.
A scandal buried for twelve years had resurfaced at the worst possible time—
Right when Shi Yunxi was rising.
Right when Mu Lingchen was about to expose the truth.
Right when Roulan thought she had the upper hand.
And now—
Everything was falling apart.
Everything except Shi Yunxi.
Who watched the destruction quietly…
And finally understood:
Someone was clearing a path for her.
Someone wanted the Qin and Shi families destroyed.
Someone who wasn't Roulan.
Someone far more dangerous.
But the world wasn't done burning yet.
Because Roulan had more to lose than anyone.
And her fall…
Was about to begin.