The wicked mother-in-law doesn't try to whitewash herself; she only abuses her awful children.

Chapter 293 Deliberately Feigning Weakness

“Master, leave this matter to me. Now that we know Jin Fengxiang’s plans, we can guard against them. In my opinion, we should not only guard against them, but also take the initiative to counter their schemes.”

As the manager, He Chao took on the task.

Tong Huaqiong said, "Just be on guard. What a family fears most is internal strife and division. They don't even need outsiders to do anything; they'll destroy themselves. So there's no need for us to go to great lengths to retaliate. Our most important thing is to run Peach Blossom Dessert well."

Tong Huaqiong recalled what Tan Chun said in "Dream of the Red Chamber": "A large family cannot be killed in one go if attacked from the outside. This is what the ancients meant by 'a centipede, though dead, does not fall down.' It must first destroy itself from within before it can be completely defeated."

This is the current situation of Jin Fengxiang from the Chen family.

When brothers fight, the only one who ultimately benefits is an outsider.

He Chao indicated that he understood Tong Huaqiong's meaning.

Be wary of Jin Fengxiang, and if necessary, divide and conquer him.

Peach Blossom Desserts' biggest competitor has always been Gao Xiang Ji.

If it weren't for Jin Fengxiang's second son trying to scheme against Tong Huaqiong, Jin Fengxiang would never have even caught Tong Huaqiong's eye.

"I was careless this time and didn't notice Jin Fengxiang's movements. I will pay more attention in the future."

Seeing that Tong Huaqiong did not pursue the matter of his negligence, He Chao took the initiative to apologize.

The fact that his employer didn't pursue the matter shows their magnanimity, but it doesn't mean his work was without flaws.

Tong Huaqiong said, "As long as you do business, there will be competition. Competitive tactics are always hard to guard against, and it's not very meaningful to just be careful. As the saying goes, there are only thieves who can be thieves for a thousand years, not thieves who can be guarded for a thousand years. Only when we have a variety of ways to deal with thieves will they be afraid to come to our door."

He Chao said, "The boss is right to teach us a lesson."

According to Tong Huaqiong, Jin Fengxiang's second son is a fool. His priority right now is to find his brother's weakness, not to go outside and provoke competitors.

What is there to fear about such a person?

Tong Huaqiong was discussing business with He Chao when the Lu family sent an invitation in the name of Old Master Lu.

She and Gu Taohua and others were invited to visit the Lu family the next day.

That evening, Mo's mother had Qianqian bring over the capital for her trip to Southeast Asia to sell goods.

Five hundred taels in total.

Tong Huaqiong accepted it.

“This money wasn’t just saved by Mom, but also contributed by my sisters,” Qianqian said. “Mom was kind and shared this windfall with all of us sisters.”

Tong Huaqiong didn't know whether Mo's mother was kind or not.

But it's true that neither Madam Mo nor the girls at Tianxianglou are as wealthy as people imagine.

During the day, Tong Huaqiong learned from He Chao that Mo's mother was not the owner of Tianxiang Restaurant; she was more like a professional manager in modern society.

She transitioned from a career that relied on youth to becoming a madam.

No wonder she had such a strong sense of professional crisis; she was willing to cooperate after just a few words from Tong Huaqiong.

Tong Huaqiong said, "Please tell your mother that in business, there are gains and losses. Grandpa Lu can't guarantee that I will definitely make money, so I can't guarantee that you won't lose money either. There are tsunamis at sea, or even pirates. Maybe this bag of silver will be lost."

Qianqian said, "That's natural."

When Qianqian left Tong Huaqiong's room, she ran into Gu Dashu and Liu Yue'e coming up the stairs.

The couple walked and talked, with Gu Yaozu following behind, holding a string of candied hawthorns.

A warm and happy family of three.

Gu Dashu and Liu Yue'e spent the whole day shopping, buying clothes, rouge, jewelry, and food. Gu Dashu's hands were full of Liu Yue'e's spoils.

As they passed each other, Liu Yue'e saw Qianqian, reached out and stopped her, her face darkening as she said, "What are you doing here?"

Liu Yue'e was furious, thinking that Qianqian had come to see Gu Dashu.

Qianqian pried Liu Yue'e's hand away and said, "What does this have to do with you, a country bumpkin?" Liu Yue'e's face turned red with anger.

Gu Dashu stepped between the two and said to Qianqian, "Qianqian, this is my wife. What are you doing here? I saved you last time, so you don't need to thank me. You should go back now."

Gu Dashu also thought that Qianqian had come to find him.

He was terrified at the thought of Qianqian tugging at his sleeve to thank him last night.

Seeing that Gu Dashu had no interest in Qianqian, Liu Yue'e was slightly relieved.

"Miss Qianqian, forget about me saving you from now on. You don't need to thank me," Gu Dashu said.

Upon hearing this, Qianqian flew into a rage. She raised an eyebrow and her eyes sparkled as she switched to a sweet, cloying voice, saying, "Brother Dashu, you saved me, and I've always wanted to come and thank you in person. Who knew you already had a wife? What a pity, what a pity."

Gu Dashu was terrified and said, "Miss Qianqian, you should leave quickly, my wife is going to get angry..."

He finally managed to appease Liu Yue'e, but why is this Qianqian still haunting him?

He regretted helping Qianqian back then.

Liu Yue'e was furious and said to Gu Dashu, "Why should I be angry? Tell me, why should I be angry?"

Gu Dashu was inwardly groaning.

Qianqian felt a sense of satisfaction at provoking Liu Yue'e's anger.

"So you're Brother Dashu's wife, then I should call you sister." Qianqian walked up to Liu Yue'e and continued to provoke her.

Liu Yue'e was furious. She pushed Qianqian away and cursed, "Shameless! You're seducing someone else's man!"

Qianqian stumbled and fell towards Gu Dashu. Gu Dashu was standing on the stairs. If he dodged, Qianqian would fall. He couldn't let her fall, so he grabbed her and quickly let go.

Qianqian leaned against Gu Dashu, and no matter how hard Gu Dashu tried to pull back, he couldn't shake her off.

Liu Yue'e was furious. She went up to thresh the grain while cursing Qianqian.

The noise startled many hotel guests, and many of them craned their necks to look outside.

Tong Huaqiong, who was in the room, also heard the noise.

"Stop right there!" Tong Huaqiong shouted angrily.

"Mother," Liu Yue'e sobbed, feeling wronged.

“Mom, I didn’t do anything.” Gu Dashu raised his hands.

Qianqian straightened up, fiddling with her nails, and said with tears in her eyes, "Boss Tong, I didn't do anything, but your daughter-in-law accused me of seducing Brother Dashu. I've lost all face, sob sob sob."

Tong Huaqiong's expression changed.

This Qianqian was clearly not like this in front of her; she changed her attitude instantly when she saw Gu Dashu and his wife.

When Liu Yue'e heard Qianqian turn the tables on her, she wanted nothing more than to scratch her face.

Gu Dashu said sternly, "Qianqian, what exactly are you trying to do? My wife scolded you because you caused her to misunderstand."

Qianqian, feigning frailty, said, "I came to help Mama Mo deliver silver to Boss Tong and to thank Brother Dashu. In your sister-in-law's eyes, it means I'm trying to seduce Brother Dashu."

With tears welling up in her eyes, Qianqian said to Liu Yue'e, "Even if I were a woman of the pleasure quarters, I could not bear such humiliation."

Liu Yue'e jumped up and cursed, "How shameless! Who are you trying to impress with this act? It's as if I'm slandering you. Don't play the victim in front of me."

Gu Yaozu chimed in, "That bad woman made my mother sad."

Qianqian covered her face and cried.

Liu Yue'e was about to hit Qianqian when Gu Dashu hugged her.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Qianqian turned around and went down the stairs, a smile appearing on her lips.

Tong Huaqiong stopped Qianqian and shouted, "Have you finished your performance?"