Wu Xiufang had her own ideas and said, "You deal with the person holding the video first. As for how to deal with Qin Tianyi, let me think about it."
"Yes, Miss, I know what to do," Old Shi said, hanging up the phone.
Wu Xiufang put down her phone. She hadn't expected that after so many years, Qin Tianyi would tell her that Zhu Qin and her son were still alive and were investigating the Wu family's affairs.
Who was he, could he be Zhu Qin's son?
But that was impossible! Qin Tianyi had a great reputation in Lancheng, and it was certain that he was a descendant of the Qin family.
If Zhu Qin and her son were still alive, where were they now, and why would they ask Qin Tianyi to do these things for them?
That's right, even if they were alive, it would only prove that she had impersonated Zhu Qin back then. But the Wu family no longer existed, and they had no evidence for anything else, so they couldn't convict her.
Revealing that she had impersonated Zhu Qin back then would at most ruin her reputation and make her a trending topic for a few days. With her current influence, she could find someone to suppress such news.
But if Qin Tianyi found other evidence and brought all those matters to light, then everything would be over.
To deal with Qin Tianyi, to make him stop investigating forever, perhaps taking his life was the best solution.
She needed to come up with a foolproof plan.
...
Hong Jiaxi arrived at the Huangfu family's mansion. He looked around but didn't see Wu Xiufang. He asked the servants.
He knew Mengyao was in her room, so he went to her room himself. He found the door unlocked and gently pushed it open. He saw Mengyao leaning against the bed, holding a photo album, asleep.
Jiaxi didn't wake her. He walked to the bedside, took the photo album from her hand, and carefully tucked the thin blanket around her.
He gazed at her sleeping form, listening to her shallow breaths. He felt pity for her and realized that he had spoken to her with the wrong tone and attitude last night because he was in a bad mood.
When Jiaxi went to Lili for comfort and satisfaction today, he still couldn't calm down when he thought of Mengyao's wronged and resentful expression.
Now, seeing her sleeping, his mood improved slightly.
He knew that the person he loved was Mengyao, and his feelings for Lili were far less than his love for Mengyao.
Jiaxi just wanted to find some feelings from Lili that Mengyao couldn't give him, but that wasn't true love.
As he put down Mengyao's photo album, he accidentally flipped it open to a page and found a group photo of her and Song Jiaping when they were volunteer doctors.
Although there were other people in the group photo, Mengyao and Song Jiaping were standing together, smiling at each other.
Jiaxi's originally gentle expression froze. The photo album in his hand felt like a hot potato, and he threw it out forcefully. It fell to the ground with a sound.
Mengyao woke up at the sound. She saw Jiaxi in the room, rubbed her eyes, and asked, "You're here, where's my mom?"
"I didn't see your mother when I arrived. She should be in her room," Jiaxi asked, pretending to be casual, "Are you still angry?"
Mengyao looked at him and shook her head, smiling. "I'm not angry. I just wanted to come back for a change of pace. I know your mother means well. Are you tired from a busy day?"
"I'm not tired," Jiaxi said. "It's good that you're not angry. Let's go back after dinner, so my parents and grandfather don't worry."
"Okay," Mengyao said, then she noticed the photo album on the floor. She said dismissively, "Oh, I was just flipping through the album out of boredom and fell asleep, and it fell to the floor."
Jiaxi forced a smile and helped her pick it up. "If you want to sleep, sleep a little longer. I'll go see if the food is ready in the kitchen."
Mengyao hummed. After Jiaxi left, she put the photo album away. She was a little strange, though. Her mother had said she was going to the kitchen just now, but now she was nowhere to be seen. It must be something at the charity foundation that needed her mother's attention.
Tonight, Huangfu Sisong was not back for dinner due to an engagement. Only Mengyao and Jiaxi accompanied Wu Xiufang for dinner.
During dinner, Jiaxi was particularly attentive, caring and considerate towards Mengyao. This made Wu Xiufang no longer worry about Mengyao, and she felt her judgment was correct. It was just a small argument between the young couple.
Mengyao had only been married for a short time and hadn't fully adapted to married life.
Besides, the Hong family had married into their family, so she didn't think they would dare to treat Mengyao badly.
On their way back to the Hong family, Mengyao found that Jiaxi had changed into a different person as soon as he left her house. His face was cold, and he seemed to be focused on driving the whole way, not saying a word.
She didn't understand what was wrong with him. He had been fine at dinner just now. Had her mother said something that upset him?
Mengyao didn't ask him, fearing it might affect his driving.
But she recalled the scene at dinner. Her mother had been advising them not to argue and hoping they would get along. There wasn't a single word directed at Jiaxi.
When they returned to the Hong family, Jiaxi's mother already knew they had dinner at Mengyao's house. She only asked a few questions and then left them alone, not bothering to see if they had gone to their respective rooms.
Seeing this, Mengyao thought Jiaxi must have said something to his mother, and her mood improved considerably.
Jiaxi didn't return to the guest room but went back to their own room with her.
As soon as they entered the room, Mengyao asked, "What's wrong? Why are you unhappy again? Did my mother say something that upset you?"
Jiaxi shook his head and looked at her, asking, "Are you thinking about that person again?"
"What person?" Mengyao didn't react for a moment.
Jiaxi said unhappily, "Stop pretending. You know who I'm talking about."
Mengyao then understood and said inexplicably, "No, I've forgotten that person long ago. What's wrong with you?"
"Forgotten?" Jiaxi sneered. "Are you afraid you'll really forget what he looks like, so you went to look at the photo album? Isn't there a photo of him in that album?"
Mengyao understood. Jiaxi was angry about the group photo in the album. She said with a laugh, "What kind of jealousy is this? That album only has a group photo of all of us, not a solo photo of him, or a photo of just you and him. Besides, I didn't even see that photo. I just suddenly missed my second brother and wanted to see his photo..."
"Who would believe you saying that," Jiaxi interrupted her, grabbing her arm. "Yesterday, my mother just made you drink soup you didn't want to drink, and you felt a little wronged, so you want to leave me and go find him again!"
"Jiaxi, are you sick? I never thought that." Mengyao found his expression at this moment frightening.
Jiaxi suddenly hated the woman in front of him. He pushed her against the wall and roared, "After all these years, you've never truly loved me! What do you take me for? A clown you can call and dismiss at will!"
He hated her for always making him feel defeated, for always hurting him, for making him want to possess her, yet always feeling like he could never grasp her!