On the main street of the county town, Lu Jiaojiao, dressed in fine silk and satin and adorned with pearls and jade, walked with an air of arrogance.
Lu Jin had already become the son-in-law of the Jiang family, but now he had become Lu Jiaojiao's "follower" in the Jiang family.
Seeing Shen Qingtang approaching with Pei Nian'an from afar, Lu Jiaojiao immediately broke free from Jiang Yuwen's leg, swayed her hips, and stepped forward, her chin held high, her tone full of boasting: "Shen Qingtang, look how well I'm doing now! I wear gold and silver, and I have no worries about food or clothing. Unlike you, you still have to work hard to run a shabby restaurant!"
She deliberately shook the gold bracelet on her wrist, making a crisp sound: "This is a gift from the Jiang family to me, much more valuable than your junk!"
Shen Qingtang's eyes turned cold, and before Lu Jiaojiao could finish speaking, she raised her hand and slapped her across the face.
"Smack!"
The crisp sound of the slap was particularly loud on the street. Lu Jiaojiao staggered a couple of steps after being hit, and half of her face swelled up instantly.
"You dare hit me?!" Lu Jiaojiao covered her face, both shocked and furious, tears welling up instantly. "I'm a member of the Jiang family now! I'll soon be the young lady of the Jiang family, managing the Jiang family's businesses! You wait, you'll regret this!"
Shen Qingtang sneered, her gaze sweeping over Jiang Yuwen, who was about to step forward to "mediate the fight" not far away. "Miss Jiang, are you sure you want this kind of trash to be your child?"
Jiang Yuwen immediately adopted a weak and innocent demeanor, and sighed, "Shen Qingtang, Jiaojiao is young and doesn't know any better. Please don't take it to heart. Our Jiang family..."
"Stop pretending." Shen Qingtang interrupted him directly, her tone icy. "Do you think I don't know what you're thinking? You let Lu Jin marry into the family only because you saw that he still had some use. You're nice to Lu Jiaojiao only because you want to use the Jiang family's name to win over those forces that depend on the Jiang family."
She paused, then turned her gaze to Lin Peirou, who was hiding behind Jiang Yuwen.
At this moment, Lin Peirou looked uneasy, her eyes darting away, not daring to look at Shen Qingtang.
“And you,” Shen Qingtang’s voice suddenly rose, making sure that everyone watching the commotion could hear it clearly, “Don’t you know that Lu Jiaojiao next to you is their illegitimate daughter?”
These words immediately caused an uproar among those around them.
"What? An illegitimate daughter?"
"My God! What a joke the Jiang family has made!"
Lu Jiaojiao's face turned deathly pale, and she pointed at Shen Qingtang, screaming, "You're talking nonsense! You're slandering me!"
Lin Peirou was so frightened that she trembled all over and almost collapsed to the ground.
Jiang Yuwen's face also turned ugly. She didn't expect Shen Qingtang to know so much and even say it in public.
Feigning composure, he roared, "Shen Qingtang! Don't spread rumors and cause trouble here! I'll sue you for defamation!"
"Spreading rumors?" Shen Qingtang took out a jade pendant, which she had found on Lu Jin earlier, and it was engraved with Lu Jiaojiao's name.
"This jade pendant was a token of love that Lin Peirou gave to Lu Jin. Would the Jiang family head like to take a look? Also, you can ask your servants if Lu Jin and she often meet secretly?"
Her words hit the nail on the head, and Jiang Yuwen could no longer pretend; her face turned pale and then red.
Seeing that Jiang Yuwen's attitude had changed, Lu Jiaojiao panicked and grabbed his arm, pleading, "Don't listen to her nonsense!"
Jiang Yuwen flung her hand away, looking at her with disgust: "Enough! Shut up!"
The surrounding chatter grew louder and louder; the Jiang family had completely lost face.
Jiang Yuwen was too ashamed to stay there any longer. She glared at Lu Jiaojiao and Lin Peirou before turning and leaving.
Lu Jiaojiao watched Jiang Yuwen's retreating figure, then glanced at the disdainful looks around her, knowing that she was completely finished this time. She collapsed to the ground and burst into tears, but no one would pity her anymore.
Shen Qingtang gave her a cold look, then turned and left with Pei Nian'an. She was nothing compared to this clown.
She didn't need to waste any more time. Right now, she had more important things to do: find the missing children and uncover Liang Wanwan and Jiang Yuwen's conspiracy.
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