"Bai Qing, which Bai Qing?" Zhang Xinyi asked subconsciously.
Hearing the name Bai Qing, she felt completely unsettled. Could the Bai Qing they were talking about be the same person she knew?
If it was the same person, then Bai Qing had been fired by Zhan Shi, and the remuneration she had promised would definitely not be honored.
Upon hearing her question, Wei Yumeng feigned surprise and asked, "What, you know Bai Qing too?"
Zhang Xinyi realized she had spoken too quickly and quickly explained, "Oh no, I have a classmate with the same name. It must be a coincidence."
"That's certainly possible. The Bai Qing I'm talking about is utterly detestable. Not only does she covet other people's boyfriends, but she's also caused trouble and grievances several times. It serves her right to be fired. Anyway, Zhan Shi doesn't need her, and no one in Pengcheng dares to hire her. Unless she leaves here, she'll never find a job again."
Wei Yumeng deliberately painted a bleak picture of Bai Qing's situation to let Zhang Xinyi know that Bai Qing couldn't possibly give her money.
As expected, upon hearing this news, Zhang Xinyi's expression turned extremely grim. However, she quickly recovered. Wei Yumeng had just offered her the position. Although she had lost that money from Bai Qing, with this job, she wouldn't have to worry about such things anymore.
After all, even the salary of a cleaner in the gilded cage of Zhan Shi was higher than the city's average, let alone other employees.
Zhang Xinyi could already see herself making a lot of money and even started planning how to spend it.
"Sister-in-law, can this position really be mine?" Although she was eager, she still put on a show. "I'm afraid I won't be able to do it well without any work experience, and I'll let you and my sister down."
Wei Yumeng waved her hand dismissively. "What's there to worry about? New employees usually don't. We'll assign someone to train you. Besides, you're a benefactor to our Zhan family and Lin Jing's sister. We'll naturally arrange a position for you that's easy and pays well."
In Zhang Xinyi's mind, such a position was real. Accustomed to effortless gains, she didn't realize that in this world, there was no such thing as an imbalance between effort and reward. She truly believed that high-ranking people in society were aloof figures commanding their subordinates while comfortably sitting in their offices, growing plump and round.
In reality, the more salary one received, the more effort they invested. Even Bai Qing, who aspired to associate with the powerful, had studied abroad and possessed certain experience and abilities at work. How could the lazy, daydreaming Zhang Xinyi possibly understand this?
She only heard Wei Yumeng paint a tempting picture for her and thought it was within her grasp, so happy she could have jumped for joy.
"Thank you, sister-in-law. You're too good to me."
Mu Linjing also said from the side, "It's only right. You saved my grandfather's life. No amount of gratitude from our family would be too much."
Zhang Xinyi was now very glad she had made that decision. After agreeing to cooperate with Bai Qing, her first priority was to find a way to contact someone from the Zhan family. Therefore, she had observed Wei Yumeng and Mu Linjing for several days. Noticing that Wei Yumeng picked up and dropped off Zhan Lin every day, she set her sights on Zhan Lin.
Finally, she seized this opportunity today. Zhan Lin had no one to pick him up. She only spent two hundred yuan to persuade a taxi driver to help her stage an accident, pretending to hit Zhan Lin, and then she would rush over to save him, creating the illusion of her heroic act.
If the car accident had been real, she would have avoided it at all costs and would never have dared to rush in to save him. It was only because she knew there was no danger that she dared to act.
She looked at the abrasions on her arm and felt it was worth it, after all, with money, she would have everything.
A moment later, Zhan Yichen also returned from work. As soon as he entered the house, he heard Cen Yuan mention what happened today. His first reaction upon hearing that Zhang Xinyi had saved someone was shock. He knew Zhang Xinyi's character all too well. Had she changed after a stint in rehab?
With a suspicious mind, he walked into the house and saw three women chatting happily on the sofa. Even Mu Linjing, who usually wore her emotions on her sleeve, was unusually warm. This made him rather confused.
"Husband, you're back?" Mu Linjing called out to him as soon as she saw him enter and told him about the day's events. "If it weren't for Xinyi, who knows what terrifying things would have happened today. We should thank her properly, don't you think?"
Zhan Yichen hadn't figured out what she was up to yet, so he nodded along with her. "Naturally. You all continue chatting. I'm going to talk to my elder brother about something."
He made an excuse and went to Zhan Mohan's study. "Brother, what's going on? What play are they putting on?"
He couldn't accept his sister-in-law, Zhang Xinyi, and didn't believe Mu Linjing would accept her cousin, who harbored feelings for her husband, because of an accident.
Zhan Mohan looked up from a pile of documents and chuckled. "Haven't you figured it out yet? They're both faking it. They're intentionally setting a trap for your little sister-in-law. As for what exactly they want to do, I don't know. Let them have their fun."
Only then did Zhan Yichen understand and didn't go out anymore. They say three women make a play, and the actors downstairs were all assembled. There was no need for him to join the crowd.
Downstairs, the three women were all putting on a good show. Zhang Xinyi's heart began to stir as soon as she saw Zhan Yichen return. After a few months apart, her brother-in-law had become even more handsome.
She increasingly felt that Mu Linjing didn't deserve Zhan Yichen. Such a good man, only she was worthy of his love.
"Sister, how has my brother-in-law been to you these past few months of your marriage?"
To this question, Mu Linjing's demeanor was one of complete assurance that everyone else was overthinking.
"Of course, he's been good to me. He listens to everything I say. I heard before we got married that marrying him was a blessing from a past life. Now I know those words are absolutely true. Don't worry, our married life is very happy."
The more she flaunted her happiness, the more Zhang Xinyi wished to replace her and claim it all for herself, her words involuntarily becoming tinged with jealousy.
"That's truly great news, sister. Your husband is such a good man, you must keep a close eye on him and not let anyone steal him away, or you'll regret it for a lifetime."
Mu Linjing thought she had more depth, but it turned out she was still so impatient. It was a waste of her and Wei Yumeng's excellent acting skills.
However, she didn't show any signs of anger. "What you said is true. A man like Yichen is one in a hundred, so naturally, many people are eager to get him."