Shang Xinglu never expected that Lin Heng had secretly listened to her voice message.

But even if she had known about it in her dreams, she wouldn’t have been afraid.

Because she was doing a good deed.

A good deed, understand?

And after getting used to the various tricks of the Huanlong family, Shang Xinglu felt that Xiao Zai’s phrase could essentially be ignored as “Okay, see you tomorrow.”

But Lin Heng was different.

When Lin Heng heard it, he felt something was off.

After thinking about it, he still felt that something wasn’t right.

Then, connecting the dots with Louise running away from him recently and pulling out some weird “popular Diamond Sutra” reasoning, it made even less sense!

So, Lin Heng patiently waited a bit.

He wanted to hear how Shang Xinglu would reply.

However, after waiting, waiting, and waiting some more, Shang Xinglu remained silent.

Even Lin Heng, faced with this situation where the hat was being dyed, couldn’t pretend to be asleep anymore.

Lin Heng opened his eyes. The room was dim, with only a small nightlight on the far wall. All the other lights had been turned off.

Just as he was about to turn his head to check on Shang Xinglu’s condition…

Smack!

Shang Xinglu’s hand, without any courtesy, stretched out and slapped him across the face.

Lin Heng flinched first, startled, and then furrowed his brow.

Lin Heng: “………….”

Lin Heng pushed her hand away and propped himself up.

Shang Xinglu had actually fallen asleep…

Asleep…

Asleep…

Lin Heng couldn’t believe it.

He almost wanted to say, “Your message still hasn’t been replied to?”

However, when he thought about Xiao Zai’s face and the rare look of inquiry she occasionally showed…

Lin Heng adjusted her hand and decided to go to sleep himself.

Well, maybe it’s better if she doesn’t reply.

…

The next day, Shang Xinglu really did meet Xiao Zai.

They were still at the same café near the company, at the same table, and even ordered the same dishes as yesterday.

After some careful thought, Shang Xinglu had decided to hand over the video she had.

Although it might not be useful, and could possibly play a role in turning public opinion in some key moment, regardless of how Xiao Zai used it, it wasn’t her concern anymore.

What mattered was that she had one decision to make: to choose sides.

The main business of the Xiao family did overlap with Yunshi’s in some areas.

From what Shang Xinglu knew, Yunshi bought its LEDs from the Xiao family. If there was a big shift in the Xiao family, it would also affect Yunshi.

But since the change was inevitable, she was just choosing to maximize her interests.

That was the respectable reason.

On a personal level, Shang Xinglu didn’t want Xiao Zai to be kicked out by his stepmother.

Who would want the Cinderella in a fairy tale to have a bad ending? Everyone hoped for a happy ever after!

Shang Xinglu also wished for Xiao Zai to have a happy ever after!

Though, she felt that this troubled young man, with his exhausted thoughts and character, would never be able to achieve that.

But if he could at least have a rich-ever-after, or even a filthy-rich-ever-after, that would be fine too!

When Xiao Zai arrived, Shang Xinglu didn’t say much. She directly sent him the video from her phone.

Though it was part of a surveillance recording, the technology behind the cameras nowadays was quite advanced.

And the video wasn’t some copy or pirated version; it was the original footage. Xiao Zai’s stepmother’s face was clearly visible, as well as the face of the man involved, Xiao Zai’s distant cousin.

This was no longer just a matter of whether or not Mr. Xiao had a green hat on. If this video was made public, it would be a scandal.

The video didn’t show any explicit actions, but the implication was clear.

The stepmother and the man were dining together, flirting, and even disgustingly feeding each other.

Xiao Zai silently watched the video before looking up.

The young man politely said, “Louise, thank you. The lawyer is collecting similar evidence. This will be very useful.”

Although he said that, Shang Xinglu vaguely felt that Xiao Zai’s tone didn’t quite match the words…

She knew that Xiao Zai was very good at hiding his emotions…

But was he hiding it too well?

A thought flashed through Shang Xinglu’s mind. She didn’t think about it too much and suddenly asked, “Are you… actually already in possession of this?”

Xiao Zai smiled. “How could that be? I don’t have such great powers.”

But in that moment, Shang Xinglu was certain—whether he had it or not, he had seen it before, or at least had heard about it.

He was unwilling to expose the fact that he already had evidence of his stepmother’s wrongdoing, and Shang Xinglu could understand that.

However, understanding was one thing, but feeling a sense of coldness was another.

Shang Xinglu stirred her coffee, the aroma wafting through the air, but she had lost all desire to drink it.

She stood up and said, “Since I’ve given you the stuff, I’ll be going now.”

At that moment, Xiao Zai’s expression showed the slightest crack.

The pristine, flawless mask he wore began to split with a “crack” from the forehead, forming a winding tear.

In his eyes, a brief flash of irritation appeared, disappearing almost immediately.

As Shang Xinglu passed by Xiao Zai, he grabbed her hand. He pulled her back for a moment before quickly letting go.

Xiao Zai looked up and said earnestly, “Sister, I…”

Shang Xinglu raised an eyebrow.

With no care in the world, she said, “Huh? You’re not calling me Louise now? You know to call me ‘sister’ at this time?”

Xiao Zai fell silent again.

Shang Xinglu tapped his head and smirked, “You’re so rude.”

She waved her hand and left, walking out gracefully.

---

After two quiet days, Shang Xinglu felt uncomfortable due to the stillness.

She sat by her phone, waiting for Gu Wanyu’s call.

This was the same Gu Wanyu who had been so insistent on her having a child back in the U.S. back then.

Shang Xinglu had even argued with her about it.

Now, Gu Wanyu was back in the country, yet there was no word from her.

…Could it be because this was her home turf?

Shang Xinglu couldn’t figure it out.

After some thought, she decided to visit Lin Heng’s office.

She was planning to ask Lin Heng to have lunch with his mother, so she could tag along and get familiar with her face, in case she needed to take the blame.

Yes, today, the accusations that Gu Wanyu had thrown out, Shang Xinglu was ready to take them all on!

However, just as she arrived at Lin Heng’s office, where Lin Heng was diligently working, she received a call from Aunt Wang from her family.

Not from Shanhai View, but from her family’s side.

Shang Xinglu had already blocked her aunt’s number, leaving the calls from her family, including her parents, to be ignored by her brother, Shang Xingyu.

This method had kept her parents at bay for a while, but, as expected, if her aunt wanted to get in touch, she would undoubtedly find someone to do it.

Some people, like her father, had thin skin and couldn’t resist. But others, like her aunt, had no such qualms.

Shang Xinglu had eyes and ears at Yunshi and her family. As soon as something happened, they’d give her a call.

Evil would always be met with more evil.

Today, she was going to be the worst villain in this valley of villains!

Shang Xinglu hung up the phone and stormed out, when Lin Heng asked, “What’s going on?”

Shang Xinglu responded, “My aunt’s issue. My dad’s softhearted, I need to head over there.”

Lin Heng nodded, about to say a few words of advice, when the self-proclaimed “worst villain” had already run off.

Lin Heng thought for a moment, fearing that she might act impulsively, so he gave some quick instructions to his assistant and rushed after her.

Because of Shang Xinglu’s instructions, her family’s door held up under the siege of her aunt for a full thirty minutes before finally being breached.

This delay gave Shang Xinglu valuable time to arrive.

At her family home, there was no one else who could make decisions other than Shang Xinglu.

Her parents, as well as Shang Xingyu, were all caught up in Yunshi’s ongoing operations, busy as could be.

Even though it was after working hours, they hadn’t returned home yet.

However, Shang Xinglu had already called her brother.

When she entered, her aunt was already sitting in the living room, drinking tea, looking like she had no intention of leaving unless someone made her.

Shang Xinglu wasn’t angry, just said, “Aunt, good afternoon.”

“Good afternoon,” Aunt Wang dismissed the incident at the hospital like it never happened, “By the way, Lu Lu, where’s your dad? Is he still at the company?”

Shang Xinglu replied, “Yes, he’s been really busy lately. I don’t know when he’ll be back.”

Aunt Wang smiled and said, “It’s fine, I’ll wait here for him.”

Shang Xinglu couldn’t help but sneer.

“Fine?”

“Who gave you permission to wait here?”

She continued, “But this is my house, and you entered without permission. If you don’t leave, I’ll call the police for illegal entry.”

Aunt Wang ignored her, just sneering dismissively.

Shang Xinglu continued, “I’m calling you ‘Aunt’ as a courtesy. After all, my dad is soft-hearted and nostalgic, and that’s why you’re here to ask him for help, right?” She smiled mockingly, “But why go through all this trouble for Uncle’s company?”

Aunt Wang’s gaze turned cold.

“Even if Bu Zheng Finance collapses, Yunshi’s annual dividends—my dad’s temper and personality—he will never shortchange you. While there’s still money to be had, you should divorce Uncle sooner rather than later, or else you’ll be sinking even more money into this.”

“Whether you lose the money or not isn’t the issue. But does this man even deserve it? Uncle’s actions are no secret, if you look into it. He’s been seeing countless small-time celebrities and even hired escorts just to play around. But some people just choose to block their ears and don’t want to hear it.”

Aunt Wang stared at her, knowing Shang Xinglu was purposely opening old wounds, but she endured and said nothing.

Shang Xinglu estimated it was almost time, and she saw Aunt Wang giving her a signal. Shang Xinglu smirked and pulled out her trump card.

“Talking about money is pointless; it only damages relationships. But Aunt, you should really take care of your health. Some diseases have long incubation periods.”

“What do you mean?” Aunt Wang asked suspiciously.

“Have you checked for AIDS?” Shang Xinglu said with a soft smile.

“You!!!” Aunt Wang exploded, standing up abruptly, pointing at Shang Xinglu and shouting, “What do you think you are?! Looking for trouble outside, flirting around, even going to male escort clubs! Bah! Shameless! How did our family end up with someone as shameless as you…”

Smack!

At that moment, Shang Xingyu stormed in, wrapping his arms around Shang Xinglu, who had briefly fallen into a state of fake crying and victimhood.

He turned and shouted angrily, “Get out!”

Aunt Wang covered her face, in disbelief.

It wasn’t because Shang Xinglu was pretending to cry, nor was it because Shang Xingyu was yelling.

It was because the one who had just hit her was her own brother.

Shang Xuesong had finally calmed down.

He turned to the household staff and said, “Call security and get her out of here!”