After being rejected by her father, Shao Hui played many emotional cards, but Zhuang Shuo refused to accept any of them and insisted that she sell the core formula of "Magnolia", otherwise there would be no discussion.
Shao Hui really had no choice.
She would provide Wang Dan with ten bottles of spiritual spring water every month. In order to cover up this secret, she squeezed aloe vera, ginseng, angelica dahurica, poria cocos and other Chinese herbs into juice, mixed it with the spiritual spring water, and gave it to Wang Dan.
A small bottle of Lingquan can be diluted into several tons of skin care products.
Even if Wang Dan took the liquid in the bottle for testing, she would never have thought that after removing all the Chinese medicine, water was the most important ingredient.
As a result, after working together for several years, Wang Dan was never able to obtain the core formula of "Yulan". However, she relied on the magical effects of "Yulan" and crazy sales to develop her own cosmetics company into a leader in the industry.
Without her own formula, her lifeblood was in someone else's hands, something Wang Dan couldn't tolerate. Over the past few years, she had put a lot of effort into Shao Hui, but she couldn't find the key.
Now, Shao Hui is full of weaknesses, and it would be strange if Wang Dan didn't take advantage of the situation.
But Shao Hui would never tell her the secret of Lingquan.
Wang Dan was selfish, greedy, and ruthless. If she fell into Shao Hui's hands, she would devour her until not even a bone was left. If she knew there was a spiritual spring in Shao Hui's palm, she would chop off Shao Hui's hand and search it cell by cell under a microscope.
Countless terrifying images flashed through Shao Hui's mind, making her tremble with fear.
The weather outside was cold, but Shao Hui's heart was even colder.
She was wrapped in two thick quilts but couldn't sleep all night. After dawn, she walked into the bathroom and looked at the person in the mirror in a trance.
This person's hair was dry and tangled, his skin was rough and sallow, his eye circles were black, and his lips were pale. Even when he was abducted in his previous life, Shao Hui had never seen herself in such a miserable state.
She washed her face with cold water to clear her mind, and after taking a few deep breaths, her heart, which had been beating wildly all night, finally found a moment of relief.
However, at this moment, a text message came from an unfamiliar number: [Two days left! ]
There is no doubt that this is Jin Erxian.
The moment she saw the message, Shao Hui collapsed. She leaned against the sink with both hands and cried heartbreakingly in front of the mirror. She dared not cry out loud, but could only bite her lip hard, suppressing the urge to wail.
Why is life so difficult? She now has to use all her strength to face every day in the future.
Shao Hui hid in the bathroom and cried for a long time. It was not until she heard her mother calling her downstairs that she hurriedly wiped her face and went to the restaurant.
He Ming was wearing the same suit he wore yesterday, with his shirt collar buttoned neatly, but there were still a few bright red marks behind his ears and on the side of his neck. This showed how passionate Zhuang Li was towards him last night.
He sipped his porridge while reporting on his schedule for the day, a satisfied look on his face. "The lawyer will go to the police station to handle Jin Erxian's case. I'll go to work at the company at nine o'clock and be back at eleven-thirty to have lunch with you. In the afternoon, we'll go home together to move our things to this neighborhood, and tonight we'll pick a place for the wedding."
Zhuang Li instructed. "I tampered with the information Xiao Yiheng sent to the Patent Office, and all he could produce was a bunch of junk. So, you can continue to apply for the butterfly wing patent and publish it as soon as possible. This is safer. You can just take over the orders that Xiao Yiheng withdrew."
"Okay, I'll have someone follow up right away."
"I'll go to work with you later. You go about your business, and I'll accompany you in the office." Zhuang Li took out a tissue to wipe his mouth, then leaned over and kissed He Ming on the cheek, whispering softly, "We've been apart for so long, I'm already traumatized."
In front of his mother-in-law, He Mingxiang acted calmer, but he couldn't hide the smile on his face.
He nodded with red ears: "Okay. Then I'll go back and change clothes and pick you up later."
His house is very close to the Shao family's, and it only takes ten minutes to go back and forth.
Before leaving, he couldn't help but kiss Zhuang Li on the lips, and whispered nervously: "Wait for me at home, don't run around."
"Go ahead, where can I go?" Zhuang Li waved his hand nonchalantly. He was wearing a loose robe, and when he raised his arm, the sleeve slipped down a little, revealing his snow-white skin, which was also covered with red marks.
He Ming held his wrist, kissed one of the red marks cherishingly, and then left the restaurant looking back every few steps.
They became conjoined twins before they even remarried. These two people... Shao Yan shook his head in disgust, but he was very happy in his heart.
Seeing her daughter standing at the door of the restaurant, she quickly waved, "Huihui, come and have breakfast."
Facing He Ming who was striding towards her, Shao Hui subconsciously lifted her hair and softly called out "Brother He".
He Ming walked out without even a word of response. He had already sensed the woman's intentions.
Shao Hui: “…”
Anyway, Shao Hui had gotten used to the pain. She walked into the restaurant, her eyes red. When she looked up again, tears rolled down her cheeks. She choked and said, "Mom, brother, you must save me!"
With no other options left, she could only turn to her family for help.
Shao Yan had sensed something was wrong with his daughter last night. Seeing her haggard appearance, he immediately hugged her and patted her, saying, "Huihui, don't cry. If you have something to say, just tell me slowly!"
Zhuang Li pulled out a tissue and gently wiped away the tears on Shao Hui's face. His tone was extremely gentle: "Don't cry. No matter how big the problem is, I can help you solve it. Just trust me."
Shao Hui naturally believed it, as she had already seen how cruel this man was.
"Brother, I owe a lot of high-interest loans. It was just a few thousand yuan at first, but later I don't know how, the interest compounded and it became five million yuan. Brother, the debt collector said this morning that if I don't pay back the money, they will publish my nude photos. Brother, please save me!" This was the excuse Shao Hui came up with after racking her brains.
I don't know how Jin Erxian got around to it, but he actually found a few debt collectors to cooperate with her in the performance.
Hearing her daughter's words, Shao Yan covered her forehead and slowly sat down, feeling dizzy. Five million was an astronomical figure for her, and she was so frightened that her legs went weak.
Zhuang Li bent his knuckles and tapped the table lightly, as if he was pondering.
Shao Hui was afraid that he wouldn't believe it, so she quickly showed him the text message sent by the debt collector.
Zhuang Li just glanced at it a few times and didn't read it carefully at all.
He waved at Shao Hui and said gently, "Make Mom a cup of hot tea."
Shao Hui quickly made a cup of tea for Shao Yan.
"Come and sit down." Zhuang Li waved his hand.
Shao Hui sat opposite him timidly.
"Why didn't you tell your family that you were short of money? Instead of borrowing it from outside? It's just a few thousand dollars. Does your family need this little money from you?" Zhuang Li asked calmly.
Shao Hui lowered her head and dared not answer.
"When have you ever asked your mother for money and she refused to give it to you? Every new iPhone is more expensive than the last. You always upgrade every time a new model comes out, costing thousands of dollars. Has your mother ever refused you?"
“When you were a kid, you loved dancing, and each lesson cost hundreds of yuan. Did your mother ever owe you anything?
"Other kids are wearing princess dresses, but you want one too. Mommy bought you three at once. Was your childhood missing something?
"When you went to college, you said your roommates' monthly living expenses were three or four thousand, and you wanted three or four thousand as well. Did your mother ever say no?"
Zhuang Li asked question after question.
Shao Hui just kept shaking her head.
"Do you know how long I used my last phone? Five years. I said I wanted to change it, but my mom told me that since I'm a boy, it's okay to make do with it, and I can buy my own phone when I earn money.
“When I was little, I wanted to learn dancing, but my mother said that since I was a boy, it was useless for me to learn dancing.
“I only buy new clothes once a year because I’m a boy and don’t need to dress up.
"When I was in college, I earned all my living expenses by working part-time."
Zhuang Li's tone gradually turned cold. "Mom poured all her energy into you, just because you're a girl and need to be pampered, and I'm a boy and need to learn to take on responsibilities. But what have you given Mom in return? Huh?"
Zhuang Li stared at Shao Hui with a cold expression.
Under such a gaze, Shao Hui felt as if her neck was weighed down by a thousand pounds, unable to lift her head. She hadn't known this until she realized that her mother, who favored sons over daughters, had always granted her every request. And her brother was treated even worse than she was.
She wanted to refute, but after searching through her memory, she found that what Zhuang Li said was true.
Why hadn't she noticed it before? What had blinded her?
At this moment, Shao Hui's mind was in a mess.
Before she could think clearly, Zhuang Li continued to question: "Besides the cup of tea just now, have you ever given Mom a sip of water? Huh?"
Shao Hui thought and thought, but could not find any example of herself being filial to her mother.
Zhuang Li's tone became even more stern: "Then do you know how your tuition, tutoring fees, living expenses, and extravagant consumption have all come from since you were a child?"
Shao Hui covered her face and whimpered softly.
She knew this. Her mother worked three or four jobs and risked her life to earn that money. Otherwise, her mother's health wouldn't have deteriorated so much. Her mother had given so much for her, why hadn't she seen it before, let alone cared?
Zhuang Li said in a deep voice, "It seems you understand how hard it is to earn this money. Mom suffered a lot to raise us. Do you think you have done her justice?"
Shao Hui was silent for a long time before she shook her head and said in a voice as low as a mosquito: "I'm sorry, I was wrong."
The words "I was wrong" actually came from the heart.
Once the words of apology were spoken, the negative emotions that had been pent up in Shao Hui's heart found an outlet, and she hugged Shao Yan and burst into tears.
During this period of time, she was really scared and helpless.
Shao Yan wanted to scold her daughter, but seeing her crying pitifully, she turned around and persuaded Zhuang Li: "Alright, alright, stop talking. Your sister knows she's wrong. She's still young and doesn't understand. Can you help her pay back the money first? I'll sell our old house later and give you the money. I don't have the ability to give you a rich life. All the mistakes are my fault."
Shao Yan was overwhelmed with grief and cried bitterly while hugging her daughter.
Being held in her arms and enjoying her endless indulgence and strict protection, Shao Hui finally understood something.
It turns out that the person who loved her the most was always by her side, but she just couldn't see it. After experiencing so much cruel betrayal, exploitation and calculation, she finally understood how warm and safe her mother's arms were.
"Mom, I'm sorry. I really know I was wrong. I will be filial to you in the future! Mom, I shouldn't have done that." Shao Hui hugged Shao Yan's neck and cried even louder.
Shao Yan patted her while stealing glances at Zhuang Li.
Zhuang Li rubbed his brows and sighed, "Okay, I'll help her pay it back. This is just one time, and it won't happen again."
Shao Yan heaved a sigh of relief, repeatedly assuring himself that he would take good care of his daughter. Shao Hui also collapsed, as if she had died once before.
But she knew that five million was just a small amount of money to Zhuang Li, and he wouldn't care. By opening this loophole, she could still take advantage of her mother's softness and get money from Zhuang Li next time. Being obedient to her mother was Zhuang Li's weakness.
As long as she finds the right excuse, her mother will always help her.
After realizing Shao Yan's indulgence in her, Shao Hui felt touched and regretful, but her selfish blood had been integrated into her bones, making her accustomed to looking at this family relationship from a utilitarian perspective.
Of course she would be filial to Shao Yan, because through this filial piety, she could get more benefits.
7480 muttered, "Master, are you really going to help her pay off her debt? She's trying to cheat you out of your money!"
Zhuang Li curled his lips in a half-smile. "How is that possible? This shortcut will only lead to a deeper abyss."
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