"Lingling, you can't just run away from home like that anymore, okay?"

"My poor Lingling, do you know how much suffering you endured going out? It's so much better to stay at home. You can't run around like that anymore, understand?"

Early in the morning, Qiao Xia was awakened by her aunt's shrill voice.

Tang Ling buried her head pitifully in her aunt's arms and whispered, "I... I didn't want to leave home either, it was my cousin..."

Tang Ling looked at Qiao Xia with a hesitant expression, but Qiao Xia opened her eyes at that moment.

She looked at her with a half-smile. Tang Ling hadn't expected her to be awake at this moment, so she stiffly shut her mouth and turned her head away.

"Qiao Xia, I knew that girl was up to no good. I heard she even tricked you out of the jade bracelet your grandmother left behind? She really is a merchant's daughter, reeking of money, only good at chasing after cash."

"Mom~" Tang Ling awkwardly tugged at her sleeve.

Wang Youyi poked her head in annoyance, "How could I have such a useless daughter like you? Even at a time like this, you're still defending her. Did I say something wrong? I would say the same thing even to her face!"

Qiao Xia simply pulled the curtain between the two of them open even wider, "My aunt doesn't reek of money, but every single word she utters is still about money, isn't it?"

Wang Youyi turned her head stiffly. She came from a traditional opera background and later switched to popular music. A few days ago, she took her students on a performance abroad. This morning, she received the news and rushed over.

I didn't notice when I entered, and I didn't know that Qiao Xia and Tang Ling had been arranged to share a ward.

"Why are the two of you living together? Don't you have enough money at home?"

Because Wang Youyi always intentionally compared Qiao Xia and Tang Ling, and was afraid that she would get angry, Tang Ling deliberately didn't tell her about the Qiao family's affairs, so Wang Youyi's words were deliberately sarcastic.

Unfortunately, it had zero effect on Qiao Xia.

"I arranged for them to stay together, do you have a problem with that?" Old Master Tang, who happened to be at the door and heard this, said with an unfriendly expression.

“Dad.” Wang Youyi quickly stood up and forced a stiff smile. “I’m overjoyed that these two children can keep each other company.”

“It’s just…” Wang Youyi glanced at Qiao Xia awkwardly, then quickly lowered her head.

"Just say what you have to say. What kind of behavior is this, stammering like that?" This was the thing that Old Master Tang was most dissatisfied with about his daughter-in-law. She always spoke in a roundabout way and was never straightforward.

"Alright, I'll just say what I have to say." Wang Youyi said in a deliberately cheerful tone, "I just feel that Qiao Xia doesn't like me very much. Before you came, she said that all I ever talk about is money."

"It's also my fault. My family is a drag on the family and we're not a good match for the Tang family. No wonder even the younger generation looks down on me."

After saying that, she pretended to be understanding and said, "Xiaxia, your aunt said these things in front of your grandfather, so don't blame your aunt. We're all relatives. It's always better to talk things out than to keep them bottled up inside, isn't it?"

Here we go again. Qiao Xia was so angry she almost laughed.

I don't know where this aunt's hostility towards her comes from. She has been subtly trying to sow discord between her and her grandfather since she was little.

Whenever you say a word to her, she can always twist it into another meaning with her superb language skills.

Qiao Xia was young at the time, and couldn't speak fluently or refute others. She only remembered that she would avoid her when she saw her, and dared to open her mouth in front of her.

As a result, she told her grandfather that Qiao Xia didn't say a word to her because she looked down on her because of her family background, which made her grandfather scold both Qiao Xia and Tang Xining.

This time was no exception. As soon as he heard this, Old Master Tang looked over with an unfriendly expression. "Your aunt talks about money all the time. Did you say that?"

"I said it, but..."

Before she could explain, Old Master Tang slammed his cane heavily on the ground. "Who gave you permission to speak to your elders like that? Apologize to your aunt right now!"

Qiao Xia struggled to sit up straight. "Can you let me finish what I have to say? I..."

Seeing this, Wang Youyi interrupted, "We're all family, it's good to talk things out. I'm not going to hold it against her, why are you being so serious?"

"There's something else I need to say to you, Auntie. Lingling has always been timid. How could you encourage her to run away from home like you did?"

Grandpa Tang frowned upon hearing this. "What? You instigated Lingling to run away from home?"

Before Qiao Xia could even speak, Wang Youyi's tears streamed down her face, but this time they seemed much more genuine.

"Dad, you have no idea how scared I was when the police called me. My hands were shaking."

Wang Youyi pulled out two tissues and stuffed them into her nose. "Lingling grew up by my side since she was little. I personally took care of her when she went to university. I can't bear to let her suffer at all."

"Lingling really liked Xiaxia, her older sister. With just a few words from Xiaxia, Lingling rejected such a good marriage offer from the Shen family and even threatened to run away from home. And what happened? She was kidnapped by human traffickers."

"Dad, I only have one daughter. How can I live if something happens to her?"

Old Master Tang shakily picked up the teacup on the table and put two pills in his mouth. "Is it you who caused Lingling to be kidnapped by human traffickers?"

Qiao Xia felt a throbbing pain in her head from being hit by the ship. "Grandpa, she's all grown up now. She has her own ideas. You can't make others take the blame for everything that happens to her, can you?"

Wang Youyi immediately hugged Tang Ling in his arms. "Dad, as you know, Lingling has never had her own opinions since she was little. She would never dare to make a decision on her own without someone else giving her advice."

Hearing Wang Youyi say such things about her in front of Qiao Xia made her feel embarrassed, but over the years she had become accustomed to remaining silent in such situations.

Wang Youyi continued, "Lingling is not young anymore. It's strange that she would encounter human traffickers and be sold onto a ship while traveling far away. I heard that Xiaxia was also on the ship when the incident happened. That's quite a coincidence."

After saying that, Wang Youyi looked at Qiao Xia with a wary gaze, her suspicion evident in her expression.

What chilled her even more was that Old Master Tang's gaze towards her had become scrutinizing.

Qiao Xia chuckled and shook her head. "In your eyes, what deep-seated hatred do I have for Tang Ling that I would go to the trouble of having her kidnapped? What is it about her that I would covet?"

Wang Youyi hugged Tang Ling even tighter, adopting the posture of a victim. "You said those words yourself. The Qiao family was once the richest family. You looked down on me since I was a child because of my family background, and you also disliked Lingling because of it."

"Now that the Qiao family is bankrupt and Lingling has taken Shuoyan away, it's understandable that you're resentful and want to take revenge on her. But she's still your sister, and she's always loved you the most since childhood. How could you be so heartless?"