Chapter 357: 357 Behind the Curtain
Chapter 357
Wang Yue found out the next day that Pei Shuangshuang had been arrested and taken to the police station. Ever since Lu Keqin had moved into the house, Wang Yue had applied for a dorm room and often did not go back home to sleep.
Wang Yue was so angry that her lungs almost exploded. She hurriedly went to find Pei Yong, only to find out that Pei Yong already knew about this but had not taken any measures. This made her yell and scream even more.
The noise of their argument allowed Zhi Xia to hear everything clearly. However, she did not have peace for long before Wang Yue found her way here, barging in and shouting, "Zhi Xia An, the child is ignorant and you are ignorant too! As an auntie, do you have to be so petty with a child? If you have something to say, can't you say it nicely? It's just a small matter yet you called the cops. What kind of elder behaves like this? It's good her grandfather passed away early. If the old man knew you sent his granddaughter to the police station, be careful or he might come back in the middle of the night to find you..."
Zhi Xia looked at the ceaselessly clamoring Wang Yue, knowing clearly in her heart that arguing with this kind of person would be useless.
If Wang Yue could be reasonable, she would not have domineered like this for so many years, completely losing her family without realizing her mistakes, never thinking she did anything wrong.
Today was Sunday. Fortunately, the kids had just run out earlier so there were only her and Sister Zhang at home.
Zhi Xia calmly told Sister Zhang, "Sister Zhang, go call the police and tell them there is someone causing trouble."
Sister Zhang hesitated for a moment, unable to discern whether Zhi Xia was serious or just scaring her. Seeing the determination in Zhi Xia's eyes, she responded and walked outside.
"Stop right there, you are not allowed to go!" Wang Yue hurriedly went to obstruct her. Then she turned and cursed at Zhi Xia.
Zhi Xia said, "If you dare curse one more time, I will have you and your daughter locked up together. You said I don't act like an elder, so today I really won't keep up this act. Wang Yue, we are all adults. Think carefully before you act. Did you come here to argue or to save your daughter?"
Wang Yue was overwhelmed by anger and on top of that got no concessions from Pei Yong. With Zhi Xia's reminder, she instantly calmed down, breaking out in cold sweat.
However, she could not bring herself to apologize.
Pursed her lips and looking again at Zhi Xia's arrogant manner, she was even more embarrassed.
"Zhi Xia An, no matter what, Shuangshuang called you auntie for years. There is a saying that family ugliness should not be aired publicly. She was wrong but were you right to directly call the cops?"
"Let's not say meaningless things. I'm not elder brother or the old master who can indulge your pestering. She called me auntie for a few times, we'll leave that aside, but she came to my place to cause trouble and damage property, that is a fact."
"But must you be so petty with a child?" Wang Yue could not bring herself to offer compensation. She had not gone there herself but heard from others around her about Yao Yan. She knew a set of skincare products cost at least a few tens, expensive ones even over a hundred. Knocking over two shelves must have cost a significant amount.
In previous years she had already paid quite a sum to Guo Momo because of Pei Shuangshuang. And in recent years Lu Keqin had also taken some money from her. What she had left now was what she planned to use for her retirement.
If she had to compensate again this time, she would truly become an empty shell.
"A 27 year old child?" Zhi Xia raised her brows, her words full of sarcasm.
"Only twenty-seven." Wang Yue corrected.
In previous years she exaggerated Pei Shuangshuang's age but now she understated it since an unmarried 27 or 28 year old would be somewhat embarrassing to mention.
Those unaware might even think there was something wrong with her.
Wang Yue did not want to compensate but also wanted to get Pei Shuangshuang out. Yet Zhi Xia had her bottom line - either pay up or serve time in prison to repay the debt. Zhi Xia would not indulge her.
After the incident happened for 3 days, the shop had been tidied up and returned to normal. The damaged products were also totaled up, amounting to over 1700 yuan, not including products with damaged packaging.
Xu Jiamei told Zhi Xia, "Sister An, although these bottles have some nicks and scratches, it does not affect the usage inside. The products for the performing troupe will be delivered again soon. I think we could just mix these in."
In her perspective, exterior packaging damage did not affect the usage inside. As long as the skincare products worked well inside, it was fine.
But Zhi Xia firmly rejected this, "No, defective products absolutely cannot get circulated, even at discounted prices. Only the good ones can be given to the performing troupe."
Yao Yan had just developed some scale with great difficulty. They could not fail over these small details.
"Then what should we do with these?" It would be quite a waste to just throw them away.
"Let's use them ourselves. You can help distribute them to everyone as employee benefits." Zhi Xia said, "Also, set aside two sets for me."
Zhi Xia brought the items home and gave them to Sister Zhang and Mrs. Zhou next door, explaining the situation to them. This made the two women beam with joy.
Pei Shuangshuang was usually extravagant. Although she had worked for many years, the money she saved was very limited.
Wang Yue was still hesitating, mostly coming to coerce Pei Yong. The situation was at a standstill here.
Zhi Xia was already surprised that Pei Yong came by every few days.
She only wanted to teach Pei Shuangshuang a lesson and did not intend to really put her in prison.
If the Pei family produced a convict, it would still impact the children's reputations to some extent. If not for this, Wang Yue would not dare persist in this stalemate.
"Elder brother also hopes I'll let her off?"
Seeing Pei Yong's awkward expression, Zhi Xia directly asked.
"No no no..." Pei Yong quickly waved his hands. "That's not what I meant. Shuangshuang did something wrong and should be punished, but I am still her father. I can't truly watch her unable to turn back. Zhi Xia, I hope you can give her another chance. I'm not telling you to just let her off completely, just don't leave a mark on her record." As for compensation, this is the punishment she should take and I will persuade her to compensate you."
"I'm not doing this purely for the compensation. Whether it's Pei Jianguo or Pei Shuangshuang, whenever they did something wrong in the past, someone was always there to cover for them. That's why they became unscrupulous. Elder brother, I can give you some face but you also need to be prudent about this matter. It's in my hands this time and you can still plead for her, but what if one day it falls into someone else's hands and you can't cover for her? What will you do then?"
Pei Yong understood everything Zhi Xia said. Otherwise, he would have come earlier, as soon as he found out Pei Shuangshuang was detained.
Letting her stay at the police station these past few days was also to teach her a lesson.
Pei Yong went with his daughter to the police station but not to bring Pei Shuangshuang back. He went to negotiate.
He wanted her to learn a lesson so the compensation had to come from her own pocket.
When Pei Yong came, he expected Pei Shuangshuang would be unhappy but did not expect she would reach this point yet still refuse to reflect on her mistakes, instead blaming him for lacking ability as a father.
Leaving the police station, Pei Yong only felt chilled throughout his body, dizzy and nauseous, with a bloody sweetness rising in his throat.
On Zhi Xia's side, the shop had resumed normal operations. After two years of development, this street had also become prosperous, no longer desolate like before. All kinds of shops lined both sides of the street, selling different things.
She had been looking for a location recently. Over the past two years Yao Yan had accumulated many customers and the factory in Shenzhen was also on the right track. At the end of last year, under the premise of ensuring normal factory operations, they had obtained the first dividend payout.
The money Zhi Xia received was a full sixty thousand plus. With overseas sales channels this year, she believed it would be even better.
The situation persisted for 7 days until Wang Yue sent over the compensation amount and Pei Shuangshuang formally apologized at the police station.
But upon leaving the police station, the obscure emotions in Pei Shuangshuang's eyes gave Zhi Xia an ominous feeling.
"Think more about the consequences before you act in the future. Not everyone has the obligation to tolerate you." This could be considered a warning, hoping that after this lesson she would become wiser next time.
After Zhi Xia left, Wang Yue had a new realization for the first time. "Shuangshuang, it's not the same Pei family as before. You can't rely on your dad either. Listen to me, don't provoke that woman in the future. If we can't afford to offend her then we'll avoid her. I want to see how well she can do in the future!"
The Riverside Hotel was a leisure venue that combined dining, relaxing and entertainment all in one. It occupied a very large area.
In the evening, in a private room.
Wang Yue intimately held Gao Second Sister's hand, smiling so widely that wrinkles showed on her face, "Shuangshuang, this time you'd better properly thank your sister-in-law. It was all thanks to her helping to raise money, otherwise you wouldn't have been able to get out."
"What are you saying, auntie. JianGuo and I have known each other for so long, this is what I should do." As she spoke, a hint of shyness showed on her face, "But Shuangshuang, you should still call me sister, after all, JianGuo and I..."
"Oh, that's only a matter of time." Wang Yue went on to admonish Pei JianGuo, "JianGuo, your mother is telling you, you must treat Qingcheng well in the future. If you dare to mistreat her, your mother here won't let you off."
Pei JianGuo looked at Gao Second Sister affectionately and said, "Mom, I will."
This was the life he wanted, a gentle and beautiful wife, and a good relationship with his mother too.
Pei JianGuo made up his mind in his heart that he must marry Gao Second Sister home as soon as possible.
Once he had this thought in mind, he became restless, wishing he could marry her immediately.
After the dinner, Pei JianGuo sent Gao Second Sister home, and the two of them walked hand in hand on the shady path.
Pei JianGuo had divorced Lu Keqin for over a month now. At this time, holding a woman's soft hand inevitably made him feel somewhat restless.
Despite there being a wide boulevard, he pulled her to walk on a dark alley instead.
Suppressed voices came from the dark woods.
"Qingcheng, let's get married. I like you so much, I like you so, so much..." Pei JianGuo panted, his eyes full of chaos.
His hot tongue touched her earlobe, making Gao Second Sister shiver instantly, and the amorous look on her face also sobered up slightly.
She pushed his chest and panted, "JianGuo, didn't we agree to wait a little longer? You just got divorced not long ago. That woman Lu Keqin is trying to catch you making mistakes everywhere. If we get together now, wouldn't we be handing her a handle? What if she slanders that we were together before your divorce? Then we would have no defense."
"But I can't wait any longer. I want you, I want to be with you, I want to see you every morning when I wake up."
"Wait a little longer, JianGuo. I don't want you to look down on me. When we get married, I'll give myself completely to you. Just wait a little more..." Gao Second Sister lightly bit his chest with her teeth, and her hand slid down his waist and lower abdomen, "I know it's hard on you. Let me help you, and you help me too..."
They'd had this kind of intimacy before. They just hadn't broken through the final barrier.
She just wanted to take advantage of Pei JianGuo. She also thought he was handsome, so she wanted to enjoy it along the way. Of course she wouldn't completely give herself to him.
After all, she was a person, an adult, and would have the needs of an adult.
She didn't understand these desires before, nor longed for them so much. But Pei JianGuo had given her a different experience, making her feel something she couldn't grasp for the first time.
She thought that after things were over with Pei JianGuo, she should seriously find a man for herself.
Pei JianGuo wouldn't work.
This man was handsome and good at pleasuring people, but his family was a mess, and he had a son and two failed marriages with his wives. She didn't want to get stuck in the quagmire.
It was pitch black in the small woods, and no one knew what was going on inside.
Gao Second Sister returned home disheveled. Of course she couldn't hide it from Gao Dalin's eyes.
He stopped her leaving footsteps, staring wide-eyed at the dark red marks on her neck, "Second sister, didn't you say you wanted to take advantage of Pei JianGuo? You didn't really give yourself to him, did you?"
Even he looked down on Pei JianGuo. Although his family was quite well-off, Pei had no say at home. From his understanding, Pei couldn't offer any help to him either.
Marrying into the Pei family meant she wouldn't need to worry about food and drink, but with what she and her siblings had accumulated over the years, she didn't just want to not worry about food and drink.
"What are you thinking? Could I be interested in him?" Gao Second Sister said disdainfully.
Although Pei JianGuo's service did make her very comfortable. He was indeed an experienced man.
"Then you..."
"Stop minding my business and focus on yourself!" Gao Second Sister looked warily upstairs and warned, "Use your brains where they should be useful, don't let that two inches of meat between your legs shake and reveal everything. You should know, the only reason you have such a pretty wife is because you have money. Without money you're nothing."
"Don't worry about that. Apart from sleeping with her, I haven't revealed anything we're doing to her at all. I told her they were all legitimate businesses."
"As long as you know." Gao Second Sister wearily went upstairs, her legs still weak from the intense stimulation.
Pei Shuangshuang was also useless. She provoked her to make trouble for An Zhiya, but didn't expect her to be so stupid as to attack her directly without really harming her, and got herself in trouble instead. She really didn't know what to say about her.
If not for her unwillingness to let An Zhiya ruin her plans to go to college, she really wanted to stay far away from her, and they could have minded their own business.
Since she insisted on opposing her, then don't blame her for being ruthless.
Marrying Pei JianGuo was out of the question. She needed to think carefully about where to utilize this next move.