He placed the box in Jiang Ling's hand and said earnestly, "Even if you can't be my granddaughter-in-law, in my heart, I still consider you my granddaughter. Think of it as a dowry from your grandfather."
Jiang Ling refused to accept it, but Elder Shen insisted she take it.
Unable to refuse, Jiang Ling finally accepted it.
In this world, coincidences and unexpected turns of events are common.
Elder Shen would never have imagined that this string of jade beads, which he insisted on giving away, would play a significant role in the future.
Later, the two grandchildren of the Shen family, Shen Mingjue and Shen Minghuang, turned against each other and fought fiercely. Outsiders then took advantage of their discord, leading to the dissipation of their family fortune.
Shen Mingjue and An Qiuyan, locked in a love-hate battle, perished together. Shen Minghuang, resentful of his brother's perceived favoritism, disregarded him.
Elder Shen, burdened by poverty and regret, found that this string of jade beads, valued at over a hundred million, secured his livelihood, preventing him from a desolate old age, and also preserved a sliver of hope for the Shen family.
Of course, all of this is a story for another time.
Leaving the tea room, Jiang Ling gazed at the string of jade beads in her hand, her heart feeling heavy.
Judging by Elder Shen's tone, he could no longer suppress An Qiuyan.
It was understandable. An Qiuyan had the advantage of rebirth. According to her, Shen Mingjue had abandoned her only after she had aged and lost her looks.
Wealthy individuals place great importance on maintaining their appearance. Reaching a state of aged and faded looks would at least be after forty years old.
This meant she had been married to Shen Mingjue for at least twenty years.
Having been a Shen family daughter-in-law for over twenty years, she should have known many of the Shen family's secrets.
With such leverage in her hands, even an astute elder like Elder Shen couldn't do anything about An Qiuyan.
It was good that Elder Shen couldn't control Shen Mingjue and An Qiuyan.
After all, as the saying goes, a slut and a dog are a perfect match, meant to be together forever.
A scumbag man and a bitchy woman, paired together, fighting until death, saved them from harming others.
Thinking this, Jiang Ling found another bank and securely locked the string of jade beads in a safe deposit box.
Afterward, she bought a plane ticket to return.
...
Back at the Hengdian film crew, Jian Zhou was still working around the clock.
Upon seeing Jiang Ling return, Jian Zhou eagerly asked, "Where have you been these past two days?"
Jiang Ling replied, "Where else could I have gone? I was back in Modu to handle some matters."
"Then why couldn't I get through to you?"
Seeing his expression like a jealous husband catching his wife, Jiang Ling said irritably, "Bad luck. Yesterday, I took a piece of jewelry to the bank to deposit it. When I came out, I was bumped into by a naughty child. The screen was smashed to pieces, so I had to buy a new phone. When you called me at that time, naturally, no one answered."
"Oh, is that so!"
"What else?"
Jian Zhou coughed lightly, "Well... let's get back to filming!"
Returning to the set, Jiang Ling quickly got into work mode.
After filming several scenes, Jiang Ling was as exhausted as a beaten dog.
Normally, in such situations, Jiang Ling would fall asleep as soon as she hit the bed, without a second thought, and sleep until dawn.
However, that night, Jiang Ling had a dream.
The dream was colorful, fantastic, and hazy, somewhat like a fairytale world.
She saw herself acting like a lovesick woman who hadn't seen a man in years, chasing Jian Zhou, who was dressed in magnificent robes and wearing a crown, looking like a prince, and desperately trying to kiss him.
He fled, she pursued, neither able to escape the other.
When she finally caught up and their lips met, Jian Zhou suddenly transformed into a giant frog.
She was so scared she fled madly, but she couldn't escape his grasp.
In the end, she was actually kissed to death by this frog! My goodness, how terrifying!