Meng Jingwei followed her into the ward. Lin Meng, who had been asleep, woke up. Upon seeing her, she couldn't help but ask, "Ms. Meng, why are you here?"
Meng Jingwei placed the gifts in her hands on the floor and walked to the companion chair by the bed to sit down. She tilted her head and looked at Lin Meng, saying with concern, "I'm sorry, I never expected something like this to happen. I apologize for the hardship you've endured."
Her willow-leaf eyebrows furrowed slightly. She glanced at the child in the old woman's arms and said with deep shame, "Fortunately, you and the baby are safe. Otherwise, I truly wouldn't know how to face you."
"It's fine."
Lin Meng sat up and leaned against the headboard. "I was just accidentally pushed and fell."
"Hmph, 'accidentally'? Thank goodness the baby is alright, otherwise, I couldn't live with you anymore," Jiang Quan said indignantly. "I told you to stay home and have the baby, but you insisted on going to work. Shouldn't women just stay home and serve their husbands and raise their children!"
Jiang Quan's words were harsh. Perhaps because Meng Jingwei was present, Lin Meng gave Meng Jingwei an embarrassed smile and then spoke kindly to Jiang Quan, "As long as the baby is okay, that's the most important thing. Don't be angry."
"That... you are my daughter-in-law's boss, right? You said earlier you would compensate. How much do you plan to compensate?" the old woman Jiang asked, tilting her head and looking at Meng Jingwei with a shrewd glint in her eyes.
Meng Jingwei, having grown up in the countryside, was well aware of such women's thoughts.
She offered a polite smile. "I'll need to discuss this with Lin Meng."
"Ms. Meng, there's no need for compensation. Ran Ran told me that you gave every employee three months' salary upon dismissal. You've already done very well by doing that."
Lin Meng knew that Meng Jingwei's wedding company was no longer viable. It hadn't been profitable to begin with, and now it had lost everything. Moreover, Meng Jingwei had always treated her well, and Lin Meng couldn't bear to have Meng Jingwei pay compensation.
"What do you mean 'no need'? You were injured, and my son almost died. He should at least receive compensation of one million. Otherwise, I won't let this matter go!"
Jiang Quan made an exorbitant demand.
The old woman Jiang nodded. "Quan'er is right."
Hearing their words, Lin Meng's slightly haggard face flushed instantly. She shook her head repeatedly, "Ms. Meng, don't listen to them. There's no need to compensate, truly no need. I'm alright, aren't I? If you give me three months' salary according to normal regulations, that's already a lot."
"You stupid woman, shut up!"
Jiang Quan berated her angrily, pointing at Meng Jingwei with a ferocious expression. "You must pay one million today, or you won't leave, not one cent less."
Thus, Meng Jingwei suddenly realized that she was being blackmailed. It was no wonder Lin Meng insisted on working even when she was pregnant. It seemed her in-laws treated her poorly.
"Compensation is naturally expected, but one million..." Meng Jingwei smiled faintly. "Is absolutely impossible."
Since the establishment of the wedding company, Lin Meng had helped her a great deal, which was why she had deliberately come today to see Lin Meng and discuss compensation matters. She had not expected Lin Meng's husband to be such a character.
"Ms. Meng, you should go first. We'll talk about this later," Lin Meng said, extremely embarrassed, feeling utterly mortified by her mother-in-law and husband.
Meng Jingwei took a bank card out of her pocket and slipped it into Lin Meng's hand. "There's twenty thousand in here. Take it for now. We'll discuss other matters later."
"Ms. Meng, you don't have to..."
"Rest well. I'm leaving now."
Meng Jingwei got up and started to walk out. Jiang Quan, unwilling to let it go, rushed in front of Meng Jingwei. "Try walking out if you dare."
Seeing this, the old woman Jiang placed the sleeping child in her arms into the cradle and walked over unsteadily, blocking Meng Jingwei's path. "You won't leave today without compensation."
"Mom, Jiang Quan, what are you doing?" Lin Meng called out towards the door.
Although her child was born naturally, her labor had been slow, and she had labored for a long time before giving birth. She had also bled a lot during delivery, which was why she was so weak. Therefore, her voice was very soft, so soft that the people there could naturally ignore her words.
Meng Jingwei's expression darkened slightly as she looked at the two people in front of her and said coldly, "Move aside!"
"We won't let you pass if you don't pay!"
The two were extremely stubborn, and with the old woman Jiang blocking the way, Meng Jingwei was indeed in a passive position. However, at that moment, Jiang Quan's phone chimed. He glanced at the phone screen and instinctively looked outside. The next moment, he shoved the old woman Jiang to the ground.
"Mom? Mom, are you alright? Look at what you've done! I told you to come and discuss compensation, how could you hit someone?" Jiang Quan pointed at her and roared.
Just then, the ward door was suddenly pushed open, and a group of reporters with cameras and microphones rushed in, bombarding Meng Jingwei with flashes. They had arrived... at just the right moment.
Meng Jingwei observed everything, her fair cheeks flushing with a hint of anger.
"Miss Meng, how could you lay hands on an elder?"
"We heard you were here to discuss compensation today, so how could you resort to violence?"
"Look quickly, this woman caused my wife to be injured and nearly die in childbirth on the operating table. She came to discuss compensation, and she actually hit my elderly mother."
"Relying on being the god-granddaughter of the Qing family, she disregards the law."
"Miss Meng, what is your response to today's events?"
...
The reporters blocked Meng Jingwei's path, preventing her from leaving. Instead, they thrust their microphones in front of her, relentlessly filming.
"Jiang Quan, can you stop this nonsense!"
Lin Meng, lying on the hospital bed, forced herself to stand up, leaning on the wall and slowly shuffling over. She pointed at the fallen old woman Jiang and said, "Can you two stop being so excessive? Ms. Meng is here today specifically to discuss compensation. You're demanding a million dollars, and now you're throwing a tantrum and slandering her. Isn't this overacting!"
Everyone's gaze turned sharply towards Lin Meng. Meng Jingwei also turned her head, and listening to Lin Meng's words, she couldn't help but feel a sense of relief. Fortunately, justice resided in people's hearts. However, things never seemed to progress in a good direction.
The next moment, Jiang Quan got up and lunged at Lin Meng, grabbing her hair and slapping her hard across the face. He wasn't finished and intended to hit Lin Meng again. However, this slap didn't land on Lin Meng's face. Meng Jingwei stepped forward, pulled Jiang Quan away, and pushed him aside. Seeing this, Jiang Quan lunged at Meng Jingwei. Meng Jingwei could only defend herself, not daring to retaliate.
Finally, it was Lin Meng who called the police, thus bringing an end to the farce. However, within the next half hour, the incident had already spread online.
"Encounter at Wedding Company: Employee Injured, Demanding Compensation, Beaten by Female Boss," "Meng Elder's God-Granddaughter Assaults Someone," "Meng Jingwei Beats Innocent Injured Person."
The news content, paired with the reporters' malicious edits, made it appear that Meng Jingwei had pushed the old woman Jiang to the ground, Jiang Quan was protesting, and she had hit Jiang Quan. Once the negative news was released, it quickly climbed to the top of the trending list.