I Treat You as My Sister, But You Want to be My Wife?!
Chapter 614: Admitting a Mistake

Chapter 614: Chapter 614: Admitting a Mistake

Shi Jia couldn’t deny it any longer, no matter how much she may have wanted to. If only she could have muddled through, but unfortunately, that wasn’t an option. He told her to lift her head, so she decided it was inevitable and lifted her head to face the reality—only to discover a very unfamiliar face.

After turning her gaze, she realized it was the same person who had taken Lin Kai away that day. This man seemed cunning and acted with a swift decisiveness. It was probably him who had arranged for her to be brought back today.

But for the life of her, she couldn’t figure out how they had found out that she sold the project proposal to someone else. However, now wasn’t the time for a confrontation, so she decided to start with a softer approach.

"Mr. Zhang... I didn’t mean for things to happen this way," Shi Jia said, her eyes brimming with wretchedness as if to stress that she had never intended for this to happen.

Zhang Tao sighed and said, "You don’t have to spit out such pitiful words to me. I brought you up step by step out of pity in the beginning. Little did I know you’d betray me. Just tell me straight whether you did this or not. If you did, just admit it. It’s not up to me now; it’s Mr. Shen who will handle this. Talk to Mr. Shen."

Having said that, Zhang Tao passed the buck to Shen Dong. Shen Dong raised an eyebrow, ready to deal with the situation that others couldn’t handle himself.

"Looking to others is useless; you might as well tell me what you were thinking. Who knows, maybe I’ll go soft and let you off."

Shen Dong said this intentionally, although he knew very well that letting her off wasn’t a possibility. Such crimes couldn’t be taken lightly; if they were, what’s to stop others from intentionally committing them? There was a simple rule for avoiding physical punishment: pay up. The more money offered, the softer his heart became.

"I have nothing more to say; I did it. I was blinded by stupidity. It was completely wrong to even contemplate targeting the project proposal, and in a fleeting moment, I did feel remorse, but my reason didn’t prevail, so I went through with it. It’s my fault, and I’m willing to accept any punishment.

However, could you consider the fact that I’m admitting my mistake proactively to mitigate the punishment somewhat? I promise to turn over a new leaf and not commit such sly acts again."

As she spoke, her voice trembled slightly with fear, considering the severe impact this incident had on her life—this was the best she could do.

"Now you remember to admit your mistake, but when you were mediating with the project proposal, did you even think of the consequences? Did you consider how it would affect our team after you took it? You weren’t thinking about anyone else but yourself. Back then, you could have restarted work with us.

But now, you have to face the punishment alone. Don’t say I haven’t shown you any leniency; what you did was too severe. Keeping you here would only lead you to feel lucky, so I must enforce your punishment," Shen Dong concluded, then signaled his subordinates with a glance meaning to take her straight to the police station. Let the police decide her fate. Zhang Tao opened his mouth as if to say something, but Shen Dong pulled him aside.

He indicated that it was no use talking further. In the end, Zhang Tao closed his mouth; it wasn’t his place to intercede for Shi Jia, as it wouldn’t be fair to others.

The colleagues had been throwing curious glances all this while. If initially, Shi Jia only felt ashamed and terrified that others might discover she stole the project proposal, now she was scared of going to prison.

The police, called by Shen Dong’s group, arrived exceptionally quickly; the call was made one second, and the next second, they were already on the task. Shi Jia, seeing the real possibility of an arrest, was horror-stricken at the thought of adding years to her life. She hoped she hadn’t caused the company any substantial damage and wondered if she would get a heavy sentence.

Thinking this way, but still unable to suppress her fear, she finally asked, "Boss, I know you’re the kindest-hearted person. You surely can’t bear to watch a colleague who’s worked closely with you just get sent into prison. I believe you have a way to deal with this matter. If you can, please help me out. I promise never to do anything like this again.

You have to believe me. You know how hard things are at home and how hard it was for me to get here. I’ve been working earnestly all this time. It was just a moment of madness. Boss, please save me. I don’t want to spend my next life in prison. I still have a family; if something like this happens, they’ll kill me, boss."

When Shi Jia felt she was out of options, she thickened her skin and started to plead desperately, though she knew it was immoral and shameless. But it was better than being locked up for years and losing everything, only to be released without knowing the world had moved on—that was the scariest part.

The colleagues began to crowd around, curious to see how the situation would unfold. Shi Jia looked at them as if latching onto a lifeline, throwing herself at their feet and begging:

"I know all of you are the best. You’re my colleagues, and I really want to keep working with you. I did something unethical because of certain circumstances, not out of my true intentions. Please believe me and save me. If I go to jail, it will tarnish your reputation too. Isn’t that right?

We’ve shared so many moments together; could you really let all that go?" Shi Jia was now playing the morality card, shocking her colleagues who weren’t sure how to react. They came over and were suddenly confronted with someone kneeling before them, binding them morally.

They were stunned and at a loss. Finally, one clear-headed person quickly helped her up. No matter what, they couldn’t let Shi Jia kneel to them; that would be a life-damaging affair.