Jiang Chuling nodded. “I know. Sister Xiaoqiu, you taught me that excessive malice toward others will eventually turn back on us, slowly dragging us into an abyss of evil and twisting our hearts.”
The young miss had always been clever and self-disciplined, so Qiuyun felt comfortable giving her the number. As she did so, she added, “By the way, Miss, I need to go out for a while later.”
“Hm?” Jiang Chuling saved the number, then looked up. “Did your brother come back from his tour?”
Uh…
To be honest, Qiuyun was quite busy every day and didn’t pay much attention to the entertainment industry.
She gave a light cough. “A friend asked me out to dinner.”
“Oh?” Jiang Chuling immediately grinned. “All right, all right. Give Brother Pei my regards.”
“…” Qiuyun laughed and scolded her, “You little rascal!”
After leaving Mingyue Pavilion, Qiuyun boarded the company shuttle and headed out.
She had barely exchanged a few words with the driver when she received a call from her employer. His voice was tense and urgent.
“Xiaoqiu, come to the main residence immediately. The laboratory in Switzerland has caught fire.”
Qiuyun’s expression turned grave. “All right. I’m on my way.”
It seemed Jiang Yifeng and the others were afraid that things might change if they delayed. They couldn’t even wait for the master’s people to reach Switzerland and investigate before hastily destroying the source of the evidence!
Qiuyun hurried to the main residence. After encountering her employer downstairs, she immediately asked, “How long before Assistant Wei and Secretary Zhu can arrive in Switzerland?”
“Seven hours.”
By then, there probably wouldn’t be any evidence left in Switzerland.
Qiuyun asked again, “What about Secretary Wu?”
Jiang Yihua hurried upstairs with his men. “The samples have already been sent for testing. It’ll take at least another half hour for the results.”
Judging by the other side’s conduct, the fact that they had impatiently burned down the research institute meant there was an eighty-to-ninety percent chance the biological agent was fake.
But until the test results came out, they still couldn’t reveal this trump card prematurely.
Qiuyun touched the photograph she had placed in her bag that morning.
It seemed the time had come to put it to use.
When they entered the study, everyone was standing in exactly the same positions as they had that morning.
The only difference was that Madam was no longer there.
Qiuyun followed her employer inside and immediately came face-to-face with Jiang Yifeng’s narrowed eyes and triumphant expression.
Tsk.
What an eyesore.
“Old Master, there’s something I’d like to report to you.” Ignoring etiquette, Qiuyun spoke first. She needed to steer the conversation in another direction before anything else.
As she was his lifesaver, Old Master Jiang didn’t blame her for her lack of manners. “What is it? Go ahead.”
Qiuyun took out the photographs and handed them over. “A few days ago, Miss invited several photographers to the house for her birthday. When I had the pictures developed this afternoon, I happened to find this set among them.”
Old Master Jiang took the photographs. The moment he saw the two people in them, he recognized them. He slapped the pictures down on the desk, his face darkening.
Qiuyun didn’t mention anything about their private relationship. She merely said, “That means Madam may well have been framed over the matter of calling Customs this morning. Our madam even feels sorry for the children with clubfeet at the welfare home. How could she possibly have such a vicious motive as deliberately preventing her brother-in-law from seeking medical treatment?”
Old Master Jiang’s expression was unpleasant as he cast an unkind look at his second son.
As if sensing it, Jiang Yijie stepped forward and picked up the photographs for a closer look. His heart jolted, but he immediately denied it.
“No! That isn’t me! The picture is so blurry. You can’t just claim it’s me because the person looks similar!”
Hearing his second brother’s denial, Jiang Yifeng’s heart tightened.
If the evidence were merely ambiguous, Qiuyun would never have come to stir up trouble at such a critical moment. He was about to advise his second brother to think it through when Qiuyun said, “Old Master, I have more.”
The next photograph was the one in which the focus had gone awry.
This time, the facial outlines of Jiang Yijie and Ge Furen (Mrs. Ge) were much clearer. There was no possibility of mistaking them.
Before anyone could say a word, Jiang Yifeng maneuvered his wheelchair forward.
The moment he saw the photograph on the desk, his vision went black. A nameless fury surged through his chest, yet he had no choice but to suppress it.
When had his own mother and his second brother become involved with each other?
Jiang Yijie gritted his teeth and continued to deny it. “This was definitely photoshopped! I’ve never been to this place, and I’ve never had any dealings with anyone there!”
Qiuyun ignored him and continued defending Madam. “I don’t know what kind of deal the second and fourth branches have reached behind closed doors, but their sole purpose is to use Madam to drag the first branch down with them, Old Master!”
Jiang Yijie shouted angrily, “What are you talking about? Big Brother hasn’t even said a word. Who do you think you are, a mere assistant, to spout such nonsense here?”
Jiang Yihua backed her up. “What Xiaoqiu means is exactly what I mean! Second Brother, I’ve let many of the things you did in the past slide, but of all the things you shouldn’t have done, involving my wife—your sister-in-law—was the worst. If you have the ability, why didn’t you come after me? Oh, right. You were coming after me too, weren’t you? More than a week ago, several directors took turns urging me to go to Switzerland on business. Wasn’t that exactly what you were planning?”
“Big Brother, you said it yourself. Going to Switzerland on business was the idea of several directors. What does that have to do with me?” Jiang Yijie retorted.
“Aren’t those directors your people?”
“You should investigate properly! Chairman Zhao, Chairman Sun, and the others all came from the branch office in Shangcheng. What do they have to do with me?”
“They were promoted by Third Brother before. Doesn’t that make them your people now?”
Jiang Yijie tried to wriggle out of it. “What exactly are you implying, Big Brother? Does that mean everything belonging to Third Brother belongs to me? Then why don’t you say that Third Brother was the one who caused Fourth Brother’s legs to—”
“Enough!” Old Master Jiang roared.
The barrage of information he had received throughout the day had already left his frail body exhausted. Without anyone by his side to soothe his emotions, the negativity had practically filled his entire being.
Now, several of his sons were turning against one another right in front of him. The sight was so distressing that he seemed to have aged several more years in an instant.
“Tell me what the two of you were discussing that day.” Old Master Jiang issued a warning. “Don’t lie. I’ll have Butler Lin question her now. If your stories don’t match, you know what I’m like.”
Panic appeared on Jiang Yijie’s face. “Dad!”
Old Master Jiang barked, “Speak!”
At the edge of the desk, Jiang Yifeng closed his eyes. A foul breath of air choked in his chest—he could neither exhale it nor swallow it down.
He had never imagined that one day the plot of a marital betrayal would play out on him, least of all at such a crucial moment!
During this period, he had truly felt how important it was to have a capable wife at his side, someone who could keep the rear stable for him.
He couldn’t help looking at Qiuyun. His eyes churned with the resentment of someone who wanted something he could never have.
Jiang Yijie refused to relent. “That isn’t me. I’ve never been to that place. This was definitely photoshopped to frame me!”
He turned toward his elder brother. “Big Brother, you’re really stopping at nothing to divert our attention. You’d even resort to framing me like this! Jiang Yifeng said earlier that it was definitely a misunderstanding, but now I think you were the one who set fire to the Swiss research institute! It wasn’t a misunderstanding at all!”
