“You claim she’s your biological sister, but where’s the proof? Without proof, you’ll be detained for three days.”
Jiang Xing had no way to produce any proof. He had only brought his ID card and a phone, along with a few changes of clothes.
Besides, even if he had brought the household registration booklet, Xiao Li had never been registered in their household, so it would not prove that he was her biological brother.
“All right, stop arguing. You were bitten by a venomous snake, and she saved you despite your past grievances. You should be grateful. Spend three days in detention reflecting on and repenting for your actions. Don’t engage in this kind of petty theft again.”
“You’re not bad-looking, and you have perfectly good hands and feet. Why become a thief?”
Qin Yulian, who had overheard everything, hurried inside. “Who are you calling a thief? How could my son possibly be a thief? Don’t slander him!”
“Do you know who my son is? He’s the Jiang family’s eldest son from the wealthy circles of the capital. Why would he be interested in anything from this godforsaken place, let alone steal it?”
The officers turned to look at Qin Yulian. She was covered in mud and looked filthy all over. They frowned and reprimanded her, “Ma’am, are you his mother? This kind of indulgent parenting is unacceptable. When your son is released from detention, you need to educate him properly. He shouldn’t think too highly of himself or fantasize about being some wealthy heir. He should focus on doing honest work.”
Qin Yulian was furious. “My son is a wealthy heir! That’s not a fantasy!”
The officers looked at Qin Yulian with an expression that seemed to say, “No wonder he turned out this way.”
Jiang Xing suddenly felt deeply embarrassed and said impatiently, “Mom, stop it!”
Now that they had been driven out of the Jiang family, everyone in the capital was watching them make fools of themselves. In a place like this, who would even recognize the Jiang family from the capital?
“Just lock me up. I admit that I went into someone else’s medicinal herb garden and stole things. I’m willing to reflect on my actions.” Jiang Xing truly did not want to listen to his mother nagging anymore.
He had come here precisely to avoid his parents’ constant lectures. Who would have thought his mother would actually chase him all the way here?
Qin Yulian’s eyes widened. “Xing’er, why are you admitting to it? That was your sister’s medicinal herb garden! What’s wrong with going in to help her take care of it?”
“You won’t detain him? Otherwise, I’ll report you for abusing your authority!”
“Xing’er, come back to the capital with me right now. I’ve had enough of this poor, remote backwater!”
As she spoke, Qin Yulian tried to drag her son away. She truly did not want to remain there for another moment.
The officers shouted sternly, “Ma’am, if you continue causing trouble, we’ll detain you as well for obstructing law enforcement!”
Qin Yulian glared at them. “You wouldn’t dare!”
“That’s enough! Mom, you’re really embarrassing me now!” Jiang Xing forcefully shook off Qin Yulian’s hand and yelled angrily.
Qin Yulian was stunned by her son’s reaction.
She saw genuine disgust and irritation in Jiang Xing’s eyes and on his face.
“Xing’er, you think I’m annoying? You think I’m embarrassing you?” Qin Yulian asked, her voice choking with emotion.
“Isn’t it embarrassing? Look at the state you’re in. You don’t look anything like a wealthy lady from the capital’s elite circles. How do you expect people to believe that I’m the young master of a wealthy family?” Jiang Xing gestured at Qin Yulian from head to toe.
Qin Yulian said aggrievedly, “Do you think I ended up like this for no reason? I heard you were in the village and was afraid you’d suffer, so I rushed here to bring you home. Who knew I’d fall down? And now, instead of caring about me, you’re actually blaming me for embarrassing you.”
“How old am I? Do I still need you to worry about me?” Jiang Xing said. “Stop making yourself the center of attention! And then you went to Starlight Entertainment to cause trouble for Xiao Li. How could you do that? Don’t you know how much Xiao Li hates and resents us now? Why can’t you understand plain words? Why do you insist on making yourself unwelcome? I’m sick of seeing you!”
“You... you...” Qin Yulian clutched her chest, feeling as though she could hardly breathe.
The officers interrupted her. “All right, stop arguing about family matters here.”
“I’ll make it back for Xiao Li’s birthday party,” Jiang Xing said. “Until then, don’t bother me anymore.”
With that, he turned around and followed the officers toward the detention center.
Qin Yulian watched her son’s resolute back as he walked away. She felt that all her kindness had been repaid with ingratitude.
It could be said that Jiang Xing had always been the child she loved most. As for Jiang Zhao, she and her husband had perhaps spoiled and indulged him, but when it came to Jiang Xing, they had placed great hopes on him, just as they had on themselves.
Yet what had her son become now?
Not only had he lost his ambition and drive, he had even lost his filial respect for his mother!
The more she thought about it, the deeper her resentment toward her biological daughter, Jiang Youli, became.
The angrier she grew, the more Qin Yulian took out her phone and found the number she had obtained in advance for Jiang Youli. She typed out a long message filled with criticism and complaints, then sent it to the daughter who had ruined her life.
After sending the message, Qin Yulian did not rush back to the capital overnight. Instead, she found a hotel in town and checked in.
Before leaving, she had promised her husband, Jiang Yangxu, that she would definitely bring their son Jiang Xing back with her. If she returned in her current state, her husband would inevitably be disappointed in her—and even more disappointed in Jiang Xing.
Therefore, she could not go back!
…
The next morning.
When Jiang Youli woke up, she picked up her phone and saw a message from an unfamiliar number.
[Youli, your older brother Jiang Xing has been detained at the local police station. The villagers are calling him a thief! Hurry back to Jianshan Village and testify that Jiang Xing is your biological brother. He only went into the medicinal herb garden to take care of your herbs; he isn’t a thief at all! He genuinely wants to earn your forgiveness now. He won’t even listen to a word his own mother says anymore! So as long as you come and testify in person, he’ll definitely be willing to return to the capital with us. Your birthday is coming up. If you don’t want people to keep criticizing you and the Jiang family behind our backs, then stop throwing a tantrum. Make peace with us before your birthday, and the whole family will celebrate properly with you. That will not only make you look good in front of everyone, it will also make your grandfather happy. Don’t you agree?]
As Jiang Youli read the message, filled with criticism and accusations that she had ruined her own life as well as Jiang Xing’s, she simply thought:
Oh.
So it was from Qin Yulian.
The sheer length of the message made it obvious how angry Qin Yulian was.
Clearly, Qin Yulian had gone to Jianshan Village to find Jiang Xing and had been rebuffed by him, so she was taking her anger out on Jiang Youli.
Jiang Youli immediately blocked Qin Yulian’s number to prevent any more harassing messages.
What terrible luck!
…
Qi Corporation.
Qi Huan had just finished a morning meeting and returned to his office when the phone on his desk lit up.
He glanced down and saw that the message was from the capital’s largest parent-child DNA testing center. He immediately picked up the phone.
The testing center had sent him the DNA test report.
