After a moment of silence, Yang Qiaoqiao dialed Jiang Yongchang's number.

A short while later, Jiang Yongchang called her back.

She recounted the incident to Jiang Yongchang over the phone.

On the other end of the phone, Jiang Yongchang remained silent for a moment.

"Qiaoqiao, please find a place to settle them down first. I'll ask the army for leave to go to Beicheng now."

"Okay, second brother, don't worry, I'll take care of everything."

After Yang Qiaoqiao agreed, she took Peng Cuiying and the Qilin family to a nearby hotel and booked a room.

Then she gave Peng Cuiying twenty yuan and said, "This money is what my second brother asked me to give you."

"You stay here and rest well. We'll come to find you when your second brother arrives."

Peng Cuiying nodded repeatedly, "Okay, okay."

After settling them in, Yang Qiaoqiao prepared to leave.

Peng Cuiying called out to her from behind, "Qiaoqiao, Mom is truly repenting this time."

Mom knows I wasn't good to you and your second brother before, it was my fault, can you please...?

Before Peng Cuiying could even speak, her eyes were already red, and tears were welling up in her eyes.

This was the first time Yang Qiaoqiao had seen genuine remorse and guilt on Peng Cuiying's face without any trace of acting.

"No." Yang Qiaoqiao refused firmly without even thinking before Peng Cuiying could finish speaking.

Peng Cuiying had longed for maternal love in her past life, but that was a thing of the past.

For her, belated affection is worth less than grass, and she will never forgive it.

Peng Cuiying, holding Qilin's hand, smiled bitterly, "Qiaoqiao, Mom knows. It's all my own fault. From now on, Mom won't bother you anymore."

Yang Qiaoqiao has been very busy these past few days since the business opened.

A grand opening ceremony, coupled with the prestigious brand of Yiren Apparel, which has been featured on the Spring Festival Gala.

These past few days, people have been flocking to Yiren Embroidery Shop to order clothes.

Yang Qiaoqiao was busy in the store helping customers choose fabrics, discuss styles, and select matching embroidery patterns.

When she got busy, she almost completely forgot about Peng Cuiying and Qilin.

Until I heard people talking about the He family.

I heard that He Zhengguo has been arrested.

After his arrest, it was discovered that he had accepted bribes totaling more than 30 million yuan.

People on the street couldn't help but gasp when they heard about this number.

Although there are more and more people with 10,000 yuan in assets nowadays, tens of millions are still a legendary figure.

After He Zhengguo was arrested, the Jiang family, who had been in cahoots with him, were also investigated and brought to light.

All the house repair projects currently under the Jiang family's control have been suspended.

The people on the street were all delighted when they talked about it.

The crowd was abuzz with discussion, wishing they could personally kill those socialist parasites like He Zhengguo and Jiang Guozhi.

The only regrettable thing is that He Zhengguo had already sensed something was wrong before his arrest, so he sent his second wife and daughter abroad.

When Yang Qiaoqiao heard about these things, she felt that it was expected.

Because she had long anticipated that He Zhengguo, having infiltrated the He family for so many years, must have collected a great deal of evidence against him.

Now that he's in trouble, He Zhengguo not only doesn't help her, but also kicks her when she's down. Under these circumstances, Jiang Yongxian can no longer tolerate it.

He will definitely expose He Zhengguo.

With He Zhengguo in jail, the Jiang family's protective umbrella is gone.

Like pulling up a radish and bringing out the mud, the Jiang family's corrupt relationship with He Zhengguo was exposed, leading to the Jiang family's collapse.

When Jiang Yongchang arrived in Beicheng, he couldn't get a plane ticket, so he took the train three days later.

Upon seeing Yang Qiaoqiao, he smiled apologetically, "Qiaoqiao, I'm sorry for causing you trouble these past few days."

He knew that Yang Qiaoqiao was different from him.

After Peng Cuiying gave birth to him, she at least raised him until he was sixteen years old, and he had to repay her kindness in giving him life and raising him.

He also had an obligation to support Peng Cuiying, but Yang Qiaoqiao did not.

Even if we disregard the fact that Peng Cuiying never raised Yang Qiaoqiao, Yang Qiaoqiao should have repaid that debt of gratitude after working like a slave in the Jiang family for two years.

Moreover, when Jiang Jiahua was around, they took the initiative to sever ties with Yang Qiaoqiao.

If it weren't for his sake, Yang Qiaoqiao could have completely ignored Peng Cuiying.

Yang Qiaoqiao smiled and said, "Second brother, you don't need to be so polite with me."

I've arranged for them to stay at a hotel; let me take you there first!

Yang Qiaoqiao brought Jiang Yongchang to the hotel. When she knocked on the door and saw Peng Cuiying in front of her, she was startled.

In just three short days, Peng Cuiying has become so thin that she is practically skin and bones, and even her eye sockets have sunken in.

Upon seeing Jiang Yongchang and Yang Qiaoqiao, she no longer had her previous harsh demeanor, but instead smiled kindly, "Second brother, Qiaoqiao, you've arrived."

As she spoke, she pulled Jiang Yongxian's son over and said, "Qilin, come and greet your second uncle and aunt. After Grandma is gone, Qilin, you must listen to your second uncle and aunt, understand?" Jiang Yongchang frowned when he heard Peng Cuiying's words.

He directly blocked Yang Qiaoqiao behind him and said to Peng Cuiying in a deep voice, "Mom, Qiaoqiao has nothing to do with our family. Don't teach Qilin to make up relatives randomly."

"Qiaoqiao, thank you for these past few days. You should go back now," Jiang Yongchang said, turning to Yang Qiaoqiao.

Peng Cuiying's lips moved slightly, but in the end she said nothing.

Yang Qiaoqiao naturally wouldn't stay on her own initiative. "Second brother, I'll be going now. If you need any help, just contact me."

Jiang Yongchang nodded, watched her leave, and then closed the door.

After leaving the hotel, Yang Qiaoqiao did not go to the embroidery shop, but went directly to Grandma Tong's house.

At Grandma Tong's warm invitation, not only are she and Huo Beixiao living here now, but Lin Xiaohui and her children An'an and Lele are also staying here.

Lin Xiaohui was already preparing dinner when she saw Qiaoqiao return. She quickly asked, "Qiaoqiao, is Yongchang coming over for dinner tonight?"

Although Jiang Yongchang didn't mention it, he definitely couldn't leave today. Since he was going to stay in Beicheng for the night, he would probably come over.

Yang Qiaoqiao then asked Lin Xiaohui to cook for one more person.

"Qiaoqiao, has Yongchang said how he plans to settle the man surnamed Peng and that child?"

When Yang Qiaoqiao helped Lin Xiaohui make dinner, Lin Xiaohui couldn't help but ask.

Yang Qiaoqiao shook her head.

Jiang Yongchang's ties with the Jiang family are much deeper than hers, and she understands very well how painful it must be for Jiang Yongchang in this situation.

Lin Xiaohui also sighed, "Speaking of which, although that Peng guy is hateful, he's actually quite pitiful now."

And the child—adults may make a thousand mistakes, but the child is never wrong.

Yongchang is in a real dilemma right now. After all, they are his own mother and nephew; he can't just ignore them, but he can't exactly help them either…”

If Peng Cuiying has truly changed this time, that would be better.

If she's just a theatrical performer, once Jiang Yongchang takes her back, her true colors will be revealed, and she'll likely cause chaos in Jiang Yongchang's household.

Moreover, by then, it will be easy for Jiang Yongchang to invite the god but difficult to send him away, so it will probably be impossible for him to send Peng Cuiying away again.