They surrounded me right after the breakup.

Xiao Xiao stared at Liu Meng as she opened the door, her eyes darting around.

Normally, there's nothing wrong with sisters visiting each other's homes.

But Liu Meng was wearing casual clothes.

He wore a loose T-shirt on top and pure cotton pants on the bottom.

Her face was completely bare, without any makeup.

Her hair was casually tied into a ponytail with a hair tie.

This is not how guests should behave.

As a woman, Xiao Xiao understood this principle all too well.

No woman would go to someone's house with a completely bare face.

Unless she already lived here.

Xiao Xiao's mind went blank for a moment, and an impossible thought popped into her head.

She remembered that she had been calling out in the group chat for a long time but no one responded.

I recalled Lin Yaoyao's perfunctory tone during our conversation.

Liu Meng replied immediately before, but has now disappeared for several hours.

Could it be…

Liu Meng, who used to be the most vehement in persuasion, has now taken the bait herself.

"I'll knock!"

Xiao Xiao immediately understood the situation and excitedly shouted.

The bag in his hand fell directly to the ground.

She didn't even bother to pick them up, and grabbed Liu Meng's shoulder.

"Sister Meng! Jiang Han slept with you too?"

Liu Meng's face instantly turned bright red.

She wanted to explain, but Xiao Xiao didn't give her a chance to speak at all.

"Sister Liu Meng is the most dignified, rational, and persuasive person in our group!"

"What did you say to Qingning before? You said feelings can't be forced!"

"What did you say to me? You told me not to covet my sister's man!"

"How did you try to persuade Yaoyao? You said love isn't a game!"

"How did you persuade Siyao? You said she needed to take responsibility for herself!"

"And now? What about yourself? Where have you taken responsibility?"

Xiao Xiao became more and more excited as she spoke, and her speech became faster and faster.

"You've been directly assigned to the Jianghan Plain!"

Liu Meng blushed deeply after being bombarded with this barrage of questions.

She wanted to argue, but no matter how many times she opened her mouth, she couldn't get a word in edgewise.

"I...I...I wasn't asleep!"

Liu Meng finally seized an opportunity and quickly began to explain.

"We haven't reached that point yet."

"We just kissed, and I just touched her a few times."

Xiao Xiao narrowed her eyes and took half a step forward.

Her interrogation-like demeanor made Liu Meng take a step back.

"Did you kiss?"

Liu Meng nodded.

"Did you touch it?"

Liu Meng nodded again.

"Through the clothes or inside?"

Liu Meng's face turned so red it was almost bleeding.

"Xiao Xiao! Why are you asking such detailed questions!"

"That means it's inside." Xiao Xiao clapped her hands.

"Damn it! We've already kissed and touched each other, what's the point of distinguishing between sleeping together and not sleeping together?"

"Isn't it just a matter of missing a membrane?"

Liu Meng opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.

The advice she used to give to her sisters has now all turned into boomerangs.

The more I say, the more I'm slapped in the face.

Lin Yaoyao's clear and upbeat voice came from the direction of the kitchen.

"Xiao Xiao, your words may be rough, but the principle is sound, but you're being way too rough."

Xiao Xiao pushed Liu Meng aside and turned to face the other sisters.

"You three already knew, didn't you?"

"So you only kept it from me and Yutong?"

Lin Yaoyao picked up the yogurt and took a sip.

"I didn't mean to hide it from you, you just missed it."

Xiao Xiao opened her mouth, but was choked up.

……

Meanwhile, in the study of an old house in the eastern suburbs of Jingzhou.

Jiang Boyong sat in a chair with a dark gray blanket covering his knees.

The huge room was lit by only one floor lamp.

Two men in black suits stood behind him.

One was wearing gold-rimmed glasses, and the other had an unlit cigarette between his fingers.

"I underestimated that young man surnamed Jiang."

Jiang Boyong spoke slowly, his voice hoarse and low.

"He came prepared, and every step he took was calculated to exploit our weaknesses."

"A direct confrontation in the entertainment industry."

"The real estate market has been contracting for several years, and the Lin family took advantage of the situation."

"The Xiao family is even more ruthless, acquiring core commercial projects at a premium."

"This is an attempt to uproot us from Jingzhou."

The gold-rimmed glasses had an opening, and the voice was steady.

"Mr. Jiang, after the court resumed its review of the case, the supplementary evidence submitted by the other party was very solid."

"Zhao Xiulan's testimony matches the timeline, and our legal team estimates that we have less than a 30% chance of winning."

"Then don't fight it in court," the man with the cigarette said.

"They attacked from outside the courthouse."

Jiang Boyong raised his eyelids and glanced at him.

The man with the cigarette took two steps forward.

"I've looked into Zhao Xiulan. She's retired and stays at home. She doesn't go out except to buy groceries, doesn't interact with her neighbors, and has no relatives in Jingzhou."

"The only thing she couldn't let go of was her daughter, Liu Meng."

"If someone made her understand what the consequences of continuing to testify would be for her daughter, she might not dare to stand in the witness stand again."

The study was quiet for a while.

Jiang Boyong remained silent for a long time before speaking.

"We must be careful; we cannot afford any bigger storms now."

"clear."

The man with the cigarette turned and walked towards the door.

The man with the gold-rimmed glasses went out with him.

After the door closed, only Jiang Boyong remained in the study.

The light from the floor lamp shone on the dark gray blanket on his knees.

He looked down at his hands resting on the blanket.

Those hands that once dominated the real estate scene in Jingzhou now tremble even when writing.

Time never spares anyone.

The man with a cigarette in his hand walked out of the study and across the dimly lit corridor of the old house.

The leather shoes made a dull sound as they stepped on the wooden floor.

The man with the gold-rimmed glasses followed behind him, and the two entered the side hall one after the other.

"What are you planning to do?"

"Zhao Xiulan goes to the vegetable market every Wednesday. She leaves at seven in the morning and comes back at eight-thirty."

"There's a breakfast stall at the entrance of the market. She would rest there for a while after buying her groceries and chat with the owner. That's when it's least crowded."

"Are you planning to start your business at the market?"

"It's not about taking action, it's about delivering a message."

"Find a stranger, pretend to ask for directions, and approach her."

"Just say a few words to her."

"What did you say?"

"Just tell her that her daughter's company is doing well lately, and tell her to be careful."

"Let's leave aside everything else and just this one sentence."

The man with the gold-rimmed glasses remained silent for a moment.

Are you sure it will work?

"Whether it works or not is not important; what's important is letting her know that we can find her daughter."

"Have someone go there at seven o'clock tomorrow morning."

"it is good."

"Tell that person to dress neatly. We're not here to cause trouble, we're here to remind her to be careful."

"The more polite the wording, the better; the more polite the words, the less sleep you'll have."

The man with the cigarette finished his cigarette, stood up, and walked to the window.

Outside the window is the abandoned backyard of the old house.

He did so many things for the Chiang family in this old house for many years.

I've seen people kneeling in this side hall, begging Jiang Boyong to let them go.

I've seen people sign their names in that building across the street and hand over their company to someone else.

I also saw a man named Jiang Yuantao standing at the entrance of the old house.

I waited all afternoon, but no one opened the door.

……