Upon hearing the name "Ye Linchen," Meng Zihan jumped up immediately.

"I knew it! I knew Ye Linchen was behind it all, she was trying to sow discord!"

Meng Zihan stared intently at Meng Xueyun with bloodshot eyes, as if the person standing in front of her was not the aunt who had raised her for more than ten years, but an irreconcilable enemy.

"Auntie! It's me, Xiaohan! Your own niece! How could you believe her and not me? How could you help her bully me!"

Her act of turning the tables made Meng Xueyun tremble with anger.

"How did I help her bully you?"

Meng Xueyun's voice was so shrill it cracked.

“Meng Zihan, you need to have a conscience! You did something wrong, so you should bear the consequences! Instead of dragging us down with you!”

Meng Zihan was speechless after being scolded, her eyes immediately reddened, and tears streamed down her face in large drops, making her look as if she had suffered a great injustice.

"How could I not take responsibility? Why did I end up like this? It's all because my family is poor! It's all because of my gambling-addicted father!" She cried hoarsely, "I have to live, I have no other choice! I worked so hard to earn that little bit of money, and he gambled it all away! If I don't give in to those rich bosses, what will I eat? What will I wear? How will I survive!"

This was her usual method whenever she made a mistake.

As long as she sheds tears and tells her about her hardships, Meng Xueyun will forgive her, no matter how big her mistake is.

Therefore, she probably made these words sound pitiful and aggrieved, as if she was forced to become a mistress and get involved with illicit money, and that it was a great sacrifice she made for survival.

Ye Zhenghua, who was sitting on the balcony, couldn't listen anymore.

He mumbled incoherently, "No matter how well you live your life... you can't... go and launder money!"

He spoke slowly and deliberately, with great difficulty, saliva drooling from the corner of his mouth, "That...that's illegal! You'll...you'll go to jail!"

Her uncle's words were like a bucket of cold water poured over Meng Zihan's head.

Instead of regaining her senses, she seemed to be provoked and became even more agitated.

She turned around abruptly and shouted at Ye Zhenghua, "I told you I didn't know! I was unaware! I thought they genuinely liked me and truly wanted to help me! If my parents hadn't been away since I was little, if I hadn't been without parental love and felt completely insecure, how could I have fallen for those men's tricks so easily!"

As she shouted, she suddenly turned her anger towards Meng Xueyun and Ye Zhenghua, her eyes filled with resentment and accusation.

"In the end, it's all your fault! You're the ones who ruined me!"

Meng Xueyun could hardly believe her ears.

She stared wide-eyed at her seemingly insane niece, her lips trembling with anger.

She never expected that at this point, Meng Zihan not only showed no remorse whatsoever, but also wanted to throw all the blame on them!

"Meng Zihan, do you have any conscience?" Meng Xueyun's heart ached. "Your parents aren't by your side, but how have your uncle and I ever mistreated you? We've treated you like our own daughter! You've had everything that Xiao Nan and Xiao Bei have. We'd rather suffer ourselves and Xiao Chen than let you suffer even the slightest grievance!"

At this point, Meng Xueyun's voice choked with emotion, and the grievances and resentment that had been building up for years finally erupted.

“We treat you better than our own daughter! Now you've done something shameful and made a huge mess, and instead of trying to make amends, you want to blame me and your uncle? Let me tell you, no way!”

She pointed to the door and issued an ultimatum: "If you have even a shred of conscience left, if you still acknowledge me as your aunt and uncle, then go to the police station and turn yourself in right now! Don't drag our whole family down with you and make us go to jail!"

"Confess?"

Meng Zihan felt as if she had heard the biggest joke in the world. She stopped crying and a mocking smile appeared on her lips.

“Auntie, you make it sound so easy. If I turn myself in, my company will be finished! Everything I’ve worked so hard to build will be gone! All the money I’ve earned will have to be returned! What will I do without my company and my money?”

She looked around the dilapidated and cramped room, her eyes filled with undisguised disgust.

"Given my current situation, my reputation is ruined, and I definitely won't be able to get married in the future. I've lost my company, I don't have a diploma, and I can't even find a decent job. How am I supposed to live? Do you expect me to support you for the rest of my life?"

Without a second thought, Meng Xueyun uttered three words decisively: "Impossible!"

She looked at Meng Zihan with eyes that were icy cold and devoid of any warmth.

"We've raised you to adulthood, we've done everything we could! Now all that money you have is embezzled, you have to hand it all over, and you still owe our family severance pay, how could we possibly continue to support you!"

That cold, hard "impossible" was like an ice-cold knife, piercing Meng Zihan's heart.

She froze, standing there blankly, the color draining from her face at a visible speed.

she……

She never considered turning herself in.

Her original intention in returning to Jiangcheng was to ask Ye Linchen for help in giving Director Zhang a warning and threatening so that he would continue to give her money to start a company, but would stop her from getting involved in those dirty dealings.

She had also considered the worst-case scenario: if things were exposed, she would return to Jiangcheng and go back to her aunt's side.

In her heart, no matter how big a mistake she made, her aunt would always be her last harbor and way out.

In both her past and present lives, whenever she shed tears or showed weakness, her aunt Meng Xueyun would feel extremely sorry for her, hold her in her arms, and grant her any request.

She thought this time would be the same.

She thought that after Meng Xueyun finished scolding her, she would eventually cry and hug her.

"Xiaohan, you can't make the same mistake again. If you do, we'll correct it. Come back. Even if the sky falls, your aunt is here. Your aunt will take care of you, she'll take care of you for the rest of your life."

But what did she hear now?

"impossible."

"He has done everything in his power to be benevolent and righteous."

"You still owe our family money."

Every word was like a resounding slap across her face, shattering all her fantasies and dependencies!

What exactly happened during the year or so that she was away from Jiangcheng?

How did things turn out this way?

Even her aunt, who loves her the most, is going to abandon her like she's getting rid of a burden?