Upon arriving at the police station, Jiang Xiaoli was taken to an interrogation room, while Tian Xiaomeng sat on the other side of the railing.
The middle-aged policeman opened his notebook, intending to record their conversation.
Tian Xiaomeng spoke up, "Officer Liu, didn't you record this? Can I talk to Xiaoli alone?"
Officer Liu looked at Jiang Xiaoli, who nodded to him. "It's okay, I can do it."
Officer Liu finished setting up the recording equipment and went outside. The interrogation room was very quiet; the only sound was the cassette tape spinning in the recorder.
Tian Xiaomeng chuckled softly, "Xiaoli, I'm so envious of you."
Jiang Xiaoli frowned. "What do I have to envy?"
Tian Xiaomeng stared blankly at the corner of the table.
"Of course I envy you. You have a hero father and a mother who cherishes you."
As for me, my dad is a good-for-nothing who lives with his wife's family and never says a word, all he does is drink. My mom only loves to gamble.
They don't care about me at all; they only care about their precious son!
She paused, and Jiang Xiaoli didn't respond. She continued speaking.
"Those idiots on the street laugh at you for not having a father, but I really envy you. I'd be better off without parents like mine!"
"When I first met Wang Xu, I was so happy. He was the person who cared about me the most in the world."
"I'm willing to have his children, really, I am!"
"Actually, I'm so happy that you had your mom make a scene between our two families. Wang Xu can only be with me now."
"But……"
"But why don't all the good things belong to me!"
Jiang Xiaoli couldn't help but ask, "What exactly happened during the week you had your surgery?"
Tian Xiaomeng glanced at her and said, "You're still curious, aren't you?"
Then she slowly said, "To save money for my family, I was discharged from the hospital early. I went to find Wang Xu with great joy, and do you know what I heard?"
"Hahaha! My dear mother is conspiring with Wang Xu and his mother to sell me to the mountains to be a shared wife!"
"Hahahaha! That's my own mother!"
Jiang Xiaoli couldn't believe it. "Why would she do that?!"
Tian Xiaomeng stared intently at the desk lamp. "Yeah, why? So what if I can't have children? Does that mean I'm not her daughter?"
"Hehe, Xiaoli, you're saying my own mother is going to conspire with the person who harmed me to sell me out for 30,000 yuan? Don't they deserve to die?"
At this moment, Jiang Xiaoli felt a mix of emotions.
She didn't know how to persuade Tian Xiaomeng. Looking at her thin figure, she couldn't help but sigh.
Tian Xiaomeng laughed, "Isn't it great now? We're all going to hell together, hahaha, we're all going to hell together."
Her shrill laughter echoed in the small interrogation room.
After a while, Jiang Xiaoli got up and left the room.
Li Guizhi paced anxiously at the door. When she saw her daughter come out, she looked at her nervously and asked, "Xiaoli, are you alright?"
Jiang Xiaoli let her mother examine her body, saying, "Mom, I'm fine. She can't get close to me at all."
Officer Liu asked with concern, "Have you finished talking?"
She nodded. "She already said so, just listen to the recording."
After the matter was over, Li Guizhi took her daughter home.
Recalling Tian Xiaomeng's words, Jiang Xiaoli asked, "Mom, is Tian Xiaomeng's mother short of money?"
Li Guizhi sighed, "After the police came to find you that day, I went back to the old house and heard from the neighbors that she owed tens of thousands of yuan to others for gambling."
Jiang Xiaoli frowned. "She and her sister must have made a lot of money selling spicy snacks last year."
Li Guizhi said irritably, "Don't even mention it. Those two sisters gambled together, and they've already lost all the money they made selling spicy snacks."
She sighed softly, "Gambling really does ruin people's lives!"
After a while, she recounted what Tian Xiaomeng had said to her mother.
Li Guizhi couldn't help but curse, "Is this how a mother should act! She doesn't even care about her child's health, and she even... she really is!"
More than half a month later, the trial of this shocking case of patricide and matricide in Xi'an came to an end, and several newspapers published the results of the case, causing an uproar.
...
This incident didn't have a significant impact on Jiang Xiaoli. She simply called Zong Jiayu, Dafu, and Zhong Yuan and emphasized to them several times that they must not participate in gambling.
They had only been making money for a short time, and she felt that people like them were the easiest targets for seasoned swindlers.
Zong Jia and the other two solemnly promised that they would never gamble, which put her at ease.
But she still added a caveat: "If I find out anyone is gambling, I will cut off all cooperation with them."
Zhong Yuan's face scrunched up like a chrysanthemum. "Little Pear, what kind of gambling is considered gambling? Does it count if I play mahjong with someone for a dime or two?"
Zong Jia couldn't help but pat him on the back of the head, "Stop joking around, Little Pear is talking about serious matters!"
Jiang Xiaoli chuckled, "Brother Yuan, a little gambling is fun, but excessive gambling is harmful. However, all large-scale gambling starts from small-scale gambling. What do you think?"
Zhong Yuan compromised, "Alright, alright, I'll only play with you guys from now on, is that okay?"
Dafu pouted, "I'm not playing with you, you're too bad."
Amidst laughter and conversation, the group reached a consensus.
...
On April 3, Jiang Xiaoli and Zong Jia arrived at the new factory area early in the morning.
Today is the unveiling ceremony for the first branch of "Jiang Li Ji" Food Co., Ltd.
At 10:18 a.m., Jiang Xiaoli and Zong Jiayu unveiled the red cloth together, firecrackers went off, and celebratory voices came from all around.
The factory director of the first branch factory was Zong Jiayu, and the deputy factory director was Dafu.
At noon, the two of them had lunch with the county leaders who came to attend the unveiling ceremony. Jiang Xiaoli dragged Han Xue to eat in the canteen.
Han Xue asked curiously, "Young Master Jiang, why aren't you having dinner with the county leaders?"
She waved her hand, "Oh dear, I'm still young. Let others handle the socializing if they can."
Han Xue chuckled, "If you hadn't mentioned it, I really wouldn't have remembered that you were still a minor. Chen Jing is nowhere near as good as you."
Jiang Xiaoli ate her fast food and said, "Chen Jing is doing well too. Our teacher recently praised her for making great progress."
“Really? Looks like I should praise her to my aunt when I get home,” Han Xue chimed in.
Jiang Xiaoli ate quickly, chatting casually with Han Xue, "Now that you've been transferred to the branch factory, how often do you go home?"
Han Xue thought for a moment and said, "That's really not certain. It depends on how busy I am at work. If I'm not busy, I'll go back every weekend. But if I'm busy, there's no fixed time."
Jiang Xiaoli smiled and said, "The branch factory is in dire need of manpower right now, so you've all worked hard."
“Working hard when you have something to look forward to doesn’t feel like hard work,” Han Xue replied.
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