Chapter 459 - 399: Piss Her Off
Chapter 459: Chapter 399: Piss Her Off
No matter how thick-skinned Wu Xiaowen was, she felt she couldn’t remain in front of the Tang Mansion a moment longer after hearing Grandma Tang’s tirade. Her two children, whom she relied on for support, weren’t home—especially Hao Hao. Without them by her side, she completely lost her nerve. Under Grandma Tang’s cold, harsh gaze and merciless verbal lashing, Wu Xiaowen was so ashamed she wished she could dig a hole and hide. Ignoring Lin Aizhen’s nudges and tugs, she covered her face and bolted blindly out of the alley where the Tang Mansion was located, running toward the main street.
Lin Aizhen had no choice but to jog after her daughter. Just before leaving, she turned and shot Grandma Tang a vicious glare, the hatred in her gaze so thick it was almost tangible. A nearby security guard happened to see it and couldn’t help but frown.
Grandma Tang snorted coldly, not deigning to give her another glance. She turned, elegant and composed, and gracefully walked back into the building.
Lin Aizhen hurried and finally caught up to Wu Xiaowen, who had stopped under the shade of a tree at a street corner to wipe away her tears. Frustrated that her daughter wasn’t living up to her expectations, she struck her arm and chided, "What are you running for? Don’t you get it? Now of all times is when you can’t lose your cool! Even if it’s true, you don’t have to show you’re scared! Tang Qingyun is a thousand miles away, and you two have been living apart for ages. How do you know *he’s* been faithful? If that Fang Qinglan can slander you, why can’t you fight back? Anyone can sling mud!"
"Mom, please stop." Wu Xiaowen’s eyes were red and swollen. She sniffled, her voice thick and nasal. "Qingyun is in G Province. He doesn’t answer my calls or reach out to me. I’ve almost forgotten the sound of his voice; I have no idea what he’s up to. But I’m here in Beijing, and so is the Tang Family. I never thought they’d be watching me... Didn’t you hear what Grandma Tang said? They have photos of Lihua and me!"
"What photos? They’re probably just making a big deal out of a picture of a man and a woman together. What’s so strange about that? We’re not living in the dark ages. Is it a crime for a man and a woman to sit near each other? That old fossil! So rigid! Let her show the photos! I guarantee people will laugh their heads off. The younger generation will utterly despise her for it!"
Wu Xiaowen kept her eyes fixed on the ground, not daring to look up, feeling her expression was too wretched to be seen. She kept her voice as low as possible. "I’m just afraid... afraid those photos really are... incriminating! Grandma Tang has always been domineering, and her word is law. If she wants to take me down, she will absolutely find a way!"
"You and Lihua just go for walks and have meals together. At most, you’ve taken Xuanxuan to a couple of movies. What else could you have possibly done? How could photos like that be incriminating?"
Wu Xiaowen’s head sank even lower, a deep blush spreading from her face to her ears and neck. Seeing this, Lin Aizhen understood everything. In truth, she had already suspected as much, especially since the sisters, Wu Xiaowen and Wu Xiaorui, had been arguing over Bai Lihua. She had scolded both daughters but hadn’t paid the matter much mind. After all, Bai Lihua had been a great help to the Wu Family. Her eldest son and his wife had changed jobs several times before finally settling into positions they liked, and Bai Lihua had never shown the slightest impatience. Her youngest son’s family was returning to Beijing at the end of the year, and again, Bai Lihua had stepped in, arranging a placement for them at a renowned hospital with excellent benefits. In short, Lin Aizhen had no complaints about Bai Lihua. She considered herself an open-minded person, not some rigid, old-fashioned fossil. She believed it was fine for adults to have a little fun, as long as they knew their limits and covered their tracks.
She knew her daughters’ personalities. Wu Xiaorui was the bolder, more unconventional one, but that didn’t matter. No one in Beijing knew her past, and there was nothing wrong with a young, unmarried woman being lively and open. Wu Xiaowen, on the other hand, was a married woman and a daughter-in-law of the Tang family. Her status was different. She was so prim and aloof, so concerned with her image, that she would never mess around where people could see her—unless someone had deliberately set out to catch her in the act!
A muscle in Lin Aizhen’s eye twitched. She asked Wu Xiaowen, "Did you and Lihua... do anything in a public place where someone might have seen you?"
It took Wu Xiaowen a long moment to answer. "No. We always acted like friends. Occasionally, we’d get a hotel room just to talk, and we’ve gone on trips to tourist spots out of town a few times. When we stayed in hotels, we always got separate rooms."
"Really?"
Wu Xiaowen fell silent. ’Was she supposed to confess everything? That they’d get a room, have a few drinks, and end up losing control after getting a little tipsy? That their short trips were meant to rekindle the "pure" feelings of their past, finding them even deeper and more precious than before? That on these trips, they acted like a married couple, inseparable and intimate? Forget someone deliberately taking pictures of them—they had brought their own camera! They had asked strangers for help or used a tripod and self-timer to take countless romantic, gorgeous, passionate, and daringly intimate photos of themselves!’
That was why she had panicked and fled in disarray when Old Mrs. Tang mentioned photos that were "too indecent to be seen"!
’She and Bai Lihua, on their carefree holidays, lost in passionate embraces and kisses amidst beautiful scenery... how could they ever have imagined a day like this would come!’
Once again frustrated with her daughter’s incompetence, Lin Aizhen poked Wu Xiaowen’s forehead. "I always thought you were the reliable one, but it seems you’ve regressed with age! Where did all your cunning and brains go? You’re not even a match for Xiao Rui!"
Wu Xiaowen covered her face with her hands, sobbing. "Mom... I have no choice but to agree to the divorce!"
"Are you crazy? If you divorce Qingyun, you’ll have nothing! You’ll be a nobody! Even your two children will disown you! No, I absolutely will not allow it!"
"But the photos..."
"Are you stupid? There’s an old saying: you don’t air your dirty laundry in public. Fang Qinglan is just trying to scare you! You’re a daughter-in-law of the Tang family. What good would it do them to ruin your reputation? It would just mean Tang Qingyun, a grown man, couldn’t even keep his wife. Would he have any pride left? And what about Manman and Hao Hao, the children you gave birth to? They’re practically grown. Manman will be getting married in another two or three years, and to the Gu family’s eldest grandson, no less! If her own mother’s reputation is in tatters, how could hers be saved? Would the Gu family still want her? How desperate would Fang Qinglan have to be to show those photos to the world, only to earn the hatred of her own precious grandchildren?"
Lin Aizhen painstakingly laid out the situation for her daughter. For Wu Xiaowen, it was a moment of sudden, perfect clarity. Half-doubting and half-elated, she asked uncertainly, "Mom, will that really work? As long as I refuse to budge, Qingyun and I won’t have to get divorced?"
"Listen to your mother, and you can’t go wrong!" Lin Aizhen, the picture of calm confidence, continued to steer her daughter through the mess.
"For the time being, stop seeing Lihua. Call Qingyun more often. If the phone doesn’t connect, send a telegram or write him a letter. Send him care packages. Make him feel your affection. You two have always had such a good relationship; I can see how devoted Qingyun is to you. And he adores his children. For their sake alone, he would never want a divorce. It’s Fang Qinglan who’s being malicious and cruel! She’s held a grudge against me for years, and now she’s taking it out on you. She’s just using the fact that you two are living apart to drive a wedge between you and break you up! So, what you need to do is win Qingyun’s heart back. Be all sweet and loving with him, and it will drive her absolutely mad!"