Chapter 78: The Routine

Song Yuqing shook her head. Lu Ziyi had only sent her a message when he was at the police station, only hurriedly saying that he was looking for connections, but without explaining the reason.

Jiang Ran lowered her eyes and sneered, "He kidnapped Si Zuochen."

"So what?" Song Yuqing frowned slightly. "So what?"

Seeing Song Yuqing's self-righteous attitude, Jiang Ran suppressed her anger, afraid that she might lose control and punch her a couple of times.

I really don't know if this woman is genuinely stupid or just pretending; she can't tell who's close and who's distant.

They're taking themselves way too seriously.

Suppressing the urge to curse, Jiang Ran frowned and scoffed, "You make it sound so easy. He's my son, so what?"

“But…” Song Yuqing was about to mention the friendship between Lu Ziyi and her.

Then Jiang Ranfu spoke coldly again: "And you've probably forgotten that his father is Si Yanxiao, and behind him is the Si family. You dare to make a move on him? You're courting death."

Seeing her tone becoming increasingly sharp, Song Yuqing realized the seriousness of the situation.

She was ignorant and only noticed Jiang Ran's dislike for the children, forgetting that they were of the Si family bloodline. Even if Jiang Ran didn't pursue the matter, Old Master Si would not let them off the hook.

Thinking of this, her expression changed, and she quickly said, "But the problem is that it has already happened. Ranran, you can't just watch Ziyi stay locked up in jail forever, can you?"

"Ziyi is deeply in love with you, how can you bear to see him with a criminal record?"

Deeply in love?

Jiang Ran couldn't help but laugh out loud as she listened to her words, wondering who that "phoenix man" was truly in love with.

How dare you ramble on about this nonsense with yourself here?

Moral blackmail?

That's the kind of thing she doesn't buy into the most.

Seeing that Jiang Ran remained silent, Song Yuqing thought her words had worked and quickly pressed her advantage, saying, "Ranran, I've heard there are many fights in the prison cells. Ziyi is defenseless; what if he gets beaten up..."

She deliberately spoke ambiguously, intending to provoke Jiang Ran's imagination and make her worry.

Jiang Ran suddenly looked at her, a hint of mockery flashing in her eyes, and asked, "Why do you care about him so much? You're even more worried than me?"

"Could it be that there's some kind of relationship between the two of you?"

Song Yuqing was startled when her thoughts were exposed, but she forced a stiff smile and replied.

"How...how could this be? What are you thinking?"

"That's your boyfriend. What could I possibly have to do with him? We're just close friends, and I couldn't bear to see him suffer."

"Oh?" Jiang Ran raised her voice slightly at the end, her eyes filled with a hint of mockery. Song Yuqing quickly avoided her gaze, afraid that she would see through her.

Little did they know that this was precisely what made it most obvious.

Jiang Ran acted as if she hadn't seen anything, and then said, "Also, he's not my boyfriend, so please be careful what you say in the future! The rumors circulating outside are really damaging to my reputation."

She genuinely wanted to distance herself from the situation, but Song Yuqing interpreted it differently.

I thought she was worried about the rumors going around and feared that her attempt to help would be met with criticism.

He quickly replied, "Okay, I understand."

Jiang Ran smiled slightly as she looked at her flustered appearance and said softly, "There is a way to get him out."

"What method?" Song Yuqing asked quickly.

“To save lives, you need to smooth things over, but smoothing things over requires money. As you know, I’ve recently invested all my money in stocks, so I really don’t have any extra funds.”

"I can use connections, but the money..."

As she spoke, she looked at Song Yuqing, her expression full of implications.

But the person who was just busy and anxious was now timid. She knew that the Si family would definitely put pressure on her from the inside, and the amount of money she would have to pay would definitely be a lot.

Seeing the hesitation on Song Yuqing's face, Jiang Ran sneered inwardly.

Are you expecting her to provide both financial and personal services?

Do you really think she's a sucker?

When it comes to themselves, they start to back down. Humans are indeed selfish.

Song Yuqing stood aside without saying a word, and Jiang Ran also found it somewhat of an eyesore.

He then spoke up to smooth things over: "Why don't you check on his situation first, and then we can decide?"

“Okay,” Song Yuqing replied hastily.

She also understood Jiang Ran's meaning; if Jiang Ran hadn't brought it up herself, she really wouldn't have known how to suggest leaving first.

The next morning, Song Yuqing went to the detention center to visit Lu Ziyi.

Lu Ziyi was dressed in prison clothes, looking haggard, with bruises all over his face. Song Yuqing felt a pang of heartache seeing him like that.

He quickly asked, "What's wrong with you?"

Lu Ziyi recalled yesterday's scene, a sinister glint flashing in his eyes, his face full of annoyance.

But now is not the time to talk about that. She pursed her lips and changed the subject: "When can I go out?"

Upon hearing this, a hint of hesitation flashed across Song Yuqing's face.

Seeing this, Lu Ziyi quickly asked, "What's wrong? Did something happen? What did Jiang Ran say?"

Song Yuqing recounted the whole story of what happened at the villa last night to him, and he frowned slightly after listening.

He had placed all his hopes on Jiang Ran, but now she had said she had no money, even though the investments she mentioned were all true.

He dismissed the person with a simple "I'm willing but unable" statement.

Upon hearing this, Lu Ziyi frowned, his face showing displeasure.

Song Yuqing pursed her lips and asked casually, "So what should I do next?"

Upon hearing this, Lu Ziyi looked up at her, his eyes full of scrutiny: "Yuqing, are you willing to help me?"

Song Yuqing was taken aback for a moment, then quickly replied, "Of course!"

Lu Ziyi's expression softened slightly, and a hint of affection appeared on his face: "Now I can only rely on you..."

"I didn't expect things to get this complicated. Now that I'm locked up here, my fate is entirely up to the Si family."

"If they want to frame me, they will definitely investigate my relationship with Jiang Ran thoroughly. I'm fine, but I'm afraid of dragging you down with me."

He paused slightly, and after noticing a hint of panic on Song Yuqing's face, he continued speaking.

“As the link between us, you will definitely be affected as well. At that time, we will only be a pair of star-crossed lovers in prison.”

After saying that, he sighed softly, his tone tinged with regret.

Song Yuqing couldn't help but imagine the scene he described, and her heart skipped a beat. She quickly said, "I'll do whatever you say."

Seeing that he had achieved his goal, Lu Ziyi smiled slightly and advised, "Now the only person you can bribe is Jiang Ran. Go to her and deliberately explain the pros and cons."

"Make things sound as serious as possible, and just listen to her for the rest."

Hearing her words, Song Yuqing lowered her brows, pondered for a moment, and then slowly nodded in response, "Okay, I'll go find her now."

After saying that, he exchanged a few more pleasantries and then turned to leave.

Watching her departing figure, a cold glint flashed in Lu Ziyi's eyes. Song Yuqing's worry when she first arrived was genuine, but so was her hesitation.

She hesitated about taking a desperate gamble to get herself out of trouble.

That's why he threatened her in his words, trying to make her understand the principle that we all prosper together and suffer together.

He hadn't expected things to develop this way, and now the only person he could rely on was Jiang Ran.

He was gambling, gambling on her feelings for him...

After leaving the detention center, Song Yuqing went directly to the villa to seek advice from Jiang Ran.

When Jiang Ran heard that she had come to visit again, the corners of her lips curled up slightly, clearly as expected.

"Let her in."

"Okay." Lin Yu went out and brought Song Yuqing in, then withdrew very consciously.

"Ranran, Ziyi is injured, and the conditions inside are not good. He looks much more haggard."

Song Yuqing poured out her heart, trying to evoke her compassion.

Jiang Ran sneered inwardly, but showed no sign of it on her face, instead putting on a very anxious expression.

"There are solutions, but I might not be able to find a way to secure the funds."

Upon hearing this, Song Yuqing's expression changed, and she tried to argue: "Then what should we do? We can't get out without money to bribe someone. Why don't you think of another way?"

Jiang Ran glanced at her sideways, a hint of disdain flashing in her eyes.

These two are truly a match made in heaven. They both value money above all else, yet even at this moment, they still want to stay out of it and not contribute a single cent.

I wonder if Lu Ziyi would feel disheartened if he knew that Song Yuqing was hesitating because of money.

"We're all tied up in money, what can I do?" Jiang Ran scoffed, then looked at Song Yuqing with a glimmer of hope on her face.