Li Qingzi laughed brightly and radiantly upon hearing those words.
Jiang Su's expression collapsed instantly. He stomped his feet at her and cried out, "Sis! I'm the one on your side here!"
Seeing Li Qingzi stand up and begin to head toward him, Jiang Su turned on his heel without a second thought, sprinting back the way he came.
Even as he fled, he didn't forget to holler back at Jiang Xuxu, "Sis! Don't forget my Anti-Villain Talisman! I'll come get it from you later!"
Li Qingzi had only intended to tease him. Seeing him run, she picked up her bag, ready to take her leave.
"I'll thank you for the talisman in advance. If it actually works, I'll head back and introduce some 'business' to you." She spoke with a deliberate wink at Jiang Xuxu.
Her face showed not even a hint of disdain for the fact that Jiang Xuxu charged a fee for her mystic arts.
Jiang Xuxu offered a small smile and, in a rare gesture, gave her a tip. "The Peach Blossom Talisman only works if it's kept close to the person. It's best to place it in something she carries every single day."
For instance, a phone case.
Li Qingzi understood immediately. She gave a quick wink, turned, and strode away in her high heels. Her posture was haughty and bold, reminiscent of a proud peacock.
Jiang Xuxu only found out later that this seemingly confident and flamboyant eldest miss of the Li Family was originally an only child. However, after her biological mother died in an accident, her father had remarried within six months.
When the new wife entered the household, she brought along a step-sister only a year younger than Qingzi. More absurdly, that step-sister was also her father's biological child.
Once the step-mother and step-sister moved in, her biological father might as well have become a step-father. Everything that originally belonged to Li Qingzi was snatched away, bit by bit.
Everyone had assumed she would grow up to be a timid, pathetic creature. To their surprise, after being sent to her maternal grandmother's home in a rural county for a year, she returned and moved high-profile among the various elite families, using public opinion to seize the initiative for herself.
From then on, if anyone dared to give her even a moment of grief, she would turn the household upside down, completely unconcerned about the embarrassment.
The most infamous incident occurred when she ran to the police station to report her biological father for domestic violence. She live-streamed the entire event to the internet, even tagging uncles and elders from various prominent families to come and watch the spectacle.
Utterly humiliated, Li Shigao finally compromised. Since then, he had provided for her every need, not daring to neglect her in the slightest, while also forbidding the step-mother and step-sister from provoking her.
One could say that Li Qingzi enjoyed everything a young mistress of the Li Family was entitled toeverything except a father's love.
But Jiang Xuxu suspected that Li Qingzi didn't need that sort of thing anyway.
Despite such a wretched family environment, she had done her absolute best to live as the finest version of herself.
That evening, Jiang Su stood before Jiang Yucheng and his own parents, once again showing off the jade plaque he had received from Jiang Xuxu.
He held it as if it were a certified medal of honor, leaving the Jiang Family elders speechless.
None of them could forget how Jiang Su used to find fault with everything Xuxu did. Now, not only was he calling her "Sis," he had even managed to get a "token of affection" from her?
While Jiang Yutong and his wife were relieved, they also felt a pang of jealousy. They didn't even have a jade plaque carved by their niece's own hand.
When Xuxu had only given them to her biological father and brother, no one thought much of it. But now that that brat Jiang Su had one, they couldn't help but feel they were being treated differently.
Under the watchful eyes of Jiang Yutong and his wife, Jiang Xuxu silently brought out two more Protective Jade Plaques.
Just as she was handing them over, Jiang Han returned from the hospital. He watched the exchange with utter indifference.
"I don't usually wear jade," Jiang Han remarked dismissively. "After all, when it comes to the craftsmanship of jade carving, Master Rusheng is the only one who truly matters. Since you have this little hobby, you should try to learn from a real master."
As he spoke, he begrudgingly held out a hand toward her.
In front of his eldest uncle, he wouldn't intentionally slight her. If she insisted on giving him a gift, he would treat it as a trivial trinket and toss it into a corner when he got back to his room.
Jiang Xuxu gave him a strange look and calmly spread her hands. "I didn't make many jade plaques. There are none left."
Jiang Han froze.
"After all," Jiang Xuxu continued, "it's just an amateur hobby. I don't do this professionally."
Jiang Han was at a loss for words.
She was absolutely doing this on purpose.
Fine! If she didn't have any, it was just as wellhe didn't want it anyway!
Jiang Han stomped off in a huff, and Jiang Xuxu ignored him. She had never intended to give one to everyone in the family to begin with. She wasn't foolish enough to make the same mistake twice.
Besides, the two she had just given away were indeed the last ones.
Jiang Xuxu mused that she would have to go out and scavenge for some new materials to prepare a few more backups later. Just as she stepped upstairs, her phone chimed with the sound of a notification.
She opened it and stared, stunned.
[Jiang Yucheng has transferred 10,000,000 yuan to you.]
Jiang Xuxu turned to find that Jiang Yucheng had followed her upstairs at some point. He was looking at her, his eyes filled with a subtle, hidden ache.
"Your Uncle Song told me everything."
Jiang Xuxu was confused. What exactly did Song Yongming tell you?
"He said you didn't charge the Song Family for treating their daughter because you claimed I had already paid you ten million."
Jiang Yucheng spoke with a touch of helplessness. "Xuxu, you're a sensible child, but that previous ten million was meant to pay back the Guan Family and serve as your allowance."
Jiang Yucheng had indeed planned to compensate the Song Family, but he hadn't expected Xuxu to beat him to it. Not only had she cured Song Yuli, she had proactively preserved the Jiang Family's prestige.
"You maintained our relationship with the Song Family for the sake of this household, but the family cannot let you suffer a loss." Jiang Yucheng continued, "Consider this ten million as the payment we are making to you on behalf of the Song Family. Keep it. If it's not enough, just come to me."
Jiang Xuxu was silent. Ever since I got away from Guan Ruirui, money has become surprisingly easy to earn…
Though she felt there was nothing wrong with representing the Jiang Family and waiving the Song Family's fee, she wasn't about to turn down money delivered to her doorstep.
"Thank you, Dad."
Jiang Xuxu smiled slightly, her coldness melting into a well-behaved and sensible demeanor.
Looking at her, Jiang Yucheng felt a sudden, inexplicable urge to pat her head. He had seen Jiang Huai do it before.
His hand, resting at his side, twitched slightly. He hesitated, cautiously beginning to raise it. But before he could, Jiang Xuxu gave him a nod and turned back into her room.
The hand he had just lifted fell back down, as if all strength had drained from it.
His expression remained unchanged. Silently, Jiang Yucheng turned and returned to his study.
Meanwhile, at the hospital.
In the VIP ward, Lu Xuexi lay on the bed with her eyes closed. Her pale face was buried in the snowy white pillows, making her appear fragile and helpless.
Jiang Cheng stood by her side, watching her for a long time, his eyes overflowing with pity and heartache.
After a long while, he couldn't help but reach out, wanting to gently touch the girl's jade-like skin.
His fingertips trembled, but just as he was about to make contact, the person on the bed stirred. Her eyelashes fluttered, and she woke.
Jiang Cheng jerked his hand back and adjusted the corner of her blanket instead.
Lu Xuexi looked at him, her eyes wide with confusion. "Brother Jiang Cheng, what time is it? Why are you still here?"
"You're in the hospital alone; I wasn't at ease," Jiang Cheng said softly. "I'll stay here and watch over you."
"Thank you, Brother Jiang Cheng." Lu Xuexi looked overjoyed, then lowered her eyes again. "Brother Jiang Cheng, I want some water."
Hearing this, Jiang Cheng immediately nodded and turned to pour her a glass.
He did not see that in the moment his back was turned, the gentle, smiling girl on the bed suddenly had eyes as cold as ice.
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