CHAPTER 396: 381 DARK WILLOWS AND BRIGHT FLOWERS

A chill rose slowly from Li Qiong’er’s feet to her heart. She had indeed placed the bracelet into Tian Sangsang’s bag with her own hands and watched her the entire time. Tian Sangsang had taken out the essential oil, no doubt about it, but she absolutely hadn’t taken out the bracelet. There was no flaw in the entire process of searching the bag just now. So, how did Tian Sangsang transfer the bracelet? It was as if it had vanished into thin air!

Vanished into thin air?! And yet reappeared out of nowhere?! As she looked at Tian Sangsang, who stood poised and unperturbed among the crowd, for the first time she felt that Sangsang was truly enigmatic. And that person beside her—Guan Kunling—they were both so mysterious! Even more terrifying than Lu Chi!!

Jia Wenxiu was still unwilling to give up and wanted to say something. Ye Binyi’s face grew cold, her expression dark to the extreme: "Wenxiu, how much longer are you going to stir trouble?!"

It was over. Jia Wenxiu’s heart skipped a beat! Ye Binyi was disappointed in her! She had lost again, had failed yet again to bring Tian Sangsang down! She couldn’t even figure out how she had failed this time! Li Qiong’er—it had to be Li Qiong’er’s doing, hadn’t it?! She hadn’t placed the bracelet into Tian Sangsang’s bag, instead it was in hers! Li Qiong’er had been scheming against her!

Thus, this drama led everyone to a single conclusion: The Jiang Family’s adopted daughter and her sister-in-law did not get along. The sister-in-law deliberately stole Li Qiong’er’s bracelet to falsely accuse her, but ended up being the one to lose face! After this, Tian Sangsang’s image in the eyes of these people was completely redeemed!

**

After the birthday banquet ended, Tian Sangsang saw her two aunts approaching Ye Binyi, and she wisely chose not to follow. The crowd gradually dispersed. Jia Wenxiu, still unwilling to accept defeat, had no choice but to control her expression, not letting it show too much: "Tian Sangsang, you’re really something. By not showing me any respect today, you’ve disrespected the Jiang Family!"

"Why should I respect you?" Tian Sangsang smiled warmly. To others, she appeared to be the virtuous woman trying to mediate with her sister-in-law. "At home, I give face to Mom because she’s Jinghuai’s mother, and I’m willing to yield. But as for you, why should I give you face? Who do you think you are? You’re not Jiang Jiaqi, nor are you Jiang Jinghuai’s biological sister. In my eyes, you’re just a shameless parasite begging for favors."

This arrogant tone made Jia Wenxiu hate her to the core: "Just you wait! And don’t get cocky; even Mom won’t like you! You’re just relying on your looks to seduce my brother! Once he grows tired of you, let’s see if you can still survive in this household! Stop pretending to be so pure and innocent—your heart is so malicious and fickle! Everyone has been deceived by you!"

"You’d better worry about yourself first. Your behavior just now has probably chilled Mom’s heart. And—" Tian Sangsang’s eyes curved into a smile, but a cold glint shot through them, "If you have any sense left in you, let it go early on. Stop causing unnecessary trouble and disturbing the peace in this family. Otherwise, I won’t let you off. And I mean what I say."

Jia Wenxiu’s face turned alternately pale and flushed. She had truly underestimated Tian Sangsang—this woman was just as ruthless as she was superficially pleasant. But the more Sangsang revealed this side of herself, the more eager Jia Wenxiu was to crush her underfoot. She would never give up!

"Fourth Sister-in-law." Wearing an apricot-colored dress, Jiang Jiali walked over and looped her arm through Tian Sangsang’s, steering her to the side: "Don’t take Wenxiu’s words too seriously. She’s not the same Wenxiu she used to be."

"She’s still Jinghuai’s sister, after all," Tian Sangsang said softly.

"What kind of sister is she anyway? If she really saw herself as one, she wouldn’t have disrespected you just now!" Jiang Jiali said indignantly. "From now on, if she causes you trouble in the house again, you come to me or to my mom—we’ll stand up for you. Who would have thought she’d go out into the world and not learn anything good, but instead pick up all these vile habits of falsely accusing people? It’s only because Aunt has such a soft heart that she even allowed her to return."

Tian Sangsang nodded with a smile, reaching out to pat her hand as if to calm her. "Thank you for saying that, but I can handle it."

Jiang Jiali sighed. Her fourth sister-in-law had such a good temper, always mild and measured—it was no wonder Jia Wenxiu dared to repeatedly provoke her.

"Binyi, what did you promise us? You said Wenxiu had truly repented, and that’s the only reason we agreed to let her come back. But look at her now—what part of her seems even remotely remorseful? Instead, she’s learned all kinds of shameless behaviors. Earlier, she almost made the Jiang Family lose face!" The eldest aunt spoke earnestly.

The second aunt frowned as well: "Had it not been for her, how could Dad have passed away so soon, full of regret even in his final moments? If it weren’t for her, Dad could’ve lived a few years longer. Ever since then, we’ve stopped seeing Wenxiu as your daughter—she’s nothing more than an ungrateful wolf. Binyi, you need to see this clearly."

Ye Binyi was not oblivious either. She sighed heavily: "Don’t worry, I will discipline her properly. It’s my responsibility. If she truly has a black heart, don’t worry—you won’t need to do anything; I’ll personally drive her out!"

The eldest and second aunts hesitated to say more, only hoping she wouldn’t disappoint them again.

Exhausted in both body and mind, Ye Binyi returned home, and throughout the journey, Jia Wenxiu tried several times to talk to her but found no opportunity.

Tian Sangsang watched her calmly from a distance, hoping that Ye Binyi, even if she didn’t like her, would at least discern right from wrong and not let Jia Wenxiu deceive her.

Once upstairs, Jia Wenxiu followed Ye Binyi into her bedroom.

She stood nervously in front of the bed, head bowed, shifting uneasily, her dainty face full of pitiful charm.

"Mom." She called out mournfully, tears streaming down her face.

Though Ye Binyi’s heart was originally hardened, Jia Wenxiu’s pitiful appearance softened her stance somewhat. However, her rationality prevailed, and her expression remained stern: "Wenxiu, you’ve truly disappointed me today. I signaled to you multiple times, but you were stubborn and ignored me outright. Do you even consider me as your mother?"

Jia Wenxiu, crying, responded, "Mom, I didn’t do it on purpose! I genuinely saw Sister-in-law rummaging through the bag."

Ye Binyi’s disappointment was palpable: "You’re still lying. Do you think I don’t know you set her up deliberately?! No wonder you were so unusually confident today! Tell me, honestly, why would you deliberately try to frame Tian Sangsang? Don’t you realize she represents the Jiang Family when she’s outside? By embarrassing her, what do you think others will assume about us as a family?! Is this what I taught you? Have you completely forgotten, or did you discard all of it long ago without a second thought?"

"Mom, I haven’t forgotten, I wouldn’t dare forget—I’ve always kept it in mind. This time, it’s my fault." Jia Wenxiu’s eyes reddened further, tears cascading as she spoke with fervent emotion: "I just see how unhappy you are every day, and I wanted to make you happy. I know you don’t like Sister-in-law, so I thought giving her a lesson would help you vent your frustrations. But I didn’t think things through—I didn’t expect her to turn everything against me. I’ve caused you embarrassment today."

"Mom, if you’re angry, hit me or scold me—just don’t hurt your health. Brother would be heartbroken if something happened."

Listening to this, Ye Binyi’s heart softened slightly. So everything had been for her? No one knows a mother like her daughter—it seemed only Jia Wenxiu truly understood her distaste for Tian Sangsang.