On the way back to the old residence, while taking a detour to buy pastries for the old man, Tang Wan received a phone call.
It was Zhang Liyun who called, "Aunt Liyun, what's the matter?"
"It's still about Momo's classmate yesterday."
"What about her? Didn't the police handle it already?" Tang Wan's tone was calm.
"You see, she's been at the station for a day. The young girl has learned her lesson. She's just a student and young, just scare her a bit."
The intermittent voice came through, and the carriage was silent. Although Jiang Jinsang couldn't hear everything, he guessed a few things.
"Wanwan, are you free now? Her parents have come to the house and want to meet you."
The girl's family sought connections, but since she was caught red-handed with no options, they had no way to reach Tang Wan and could only try their luck here.
"They seem quite sincere, you..." Zhang Liyun wanted to be a peacemaker.
"If they're here to apologize to me, I've received it. Aunt Liyun, sorry, I'm busy, so I won't be going." Tang Wan said and hung up the phone.
Zhang Liyun looked at the couple sitting in the living room, with a helpless expression.
"Sorry, I can't help you. You know our relationship. I'm not close with her. She is a bit stubborn, sometimes she won't even listen to her dad, let alone me."
"It was a small matter, but it had to get this big. I... Her family spoils her, so I can't really say anything."
"Really, I'm sorry, I can't help you."
The couple quickly waved their hands, "No problem, don't worry about it."
Their daughter was caught stealing, which was already embarrassing enough. Zhang Liyun, as a distinguished lady, treated them so warmly without any pretense, and they were grateful.
"I'll find someone to pull some strings, your daughter won't suffer inside," Zhang Liyun continued.
"Thank you so much."
They were not locals and didn't have much influence to find connections. Since Zhang Liyun spoke up, the couple was naturally grateful.
"You could say Wanwan went too far. Actually, it's better to be forgiving. She's just too headstrong and can't help it." Zhang Liyun smiled innocently.
In the ears of the couple, these words made Tang Wan seem like a strong, unforgiving, and unreasonable young lady.
Zhang Liyun sipped her tea, observing the couple's expressions with a hint of a smile.
Rumors were dangerous.
Bully her daughter and let that brat earn a good reputation?
Strong and unreasonable, she wanted to see if, when such rumors spread, any family, let alone the Jiang family, would want her as a daughter-in-law!
...
As Zhang Liyun reveled in her own cunning, the couple's phone suddenly rang. Seeing it was a call from the police station, the middle-aged man, the father, tensed up, cleared his throat, and answered the call.
"Hello, Officer Yang..." His tone was ingratiating.
"What did you say, my daughter was released!" The man stood excitedly, "… Oh dear, Officer Yang..."
So excited he could barely speak.
"You said it was Miss Tang who specifically called?"
"... Okay, I'll be right over. So I need to pay bail and handle the paperwork, I understand."
"Is it convenient to let me thank Miss Tang..."
Zhang Liyun's smile froze and instantly cracked.
After the man hung up the phone, he didn't have time to say anything to Zhang Liyun, just politely thanked her and took his wife to the police station.
Zhang Liyun found out through her connections that the girl caught stealing yesterday had indeed been released.
That Tang Wan, the brat!
She called me, gave me attitude, yet behind my back, she did this...
Isn't this deliberately slapping me in the face!
*
At this moment, Tang Wan was sitting in the car and had already received a thank-you call from the couple, presumably having gotten her number from the police station.
"Miss Tang, we're really sorry, we've always wanted to apologize to you in person. What my daughter did was indeed... Are you free tonight? We'd like to treat you to dinner."
"Uncle, you're too kind. I was indeed a bit impulsive at the time. Just take her back and explain the pros and cons. Besides, it's not you who did something wrong."
"A child's misstep is the father's responsibility, I am accountable."
"Having you apologize to me is really something I can't accept..."
After exchanging a few polite words, Tang Wan hung up the phone.
At the police station, the girl's parents were already deeply grateful to her.
Recollecting Zhang Liyun's words now, it felt bizarre.
"Isn't Miss Tang a good person, she thought of everything for us, even worried about us being embarrassed at the meeting, and saved us face. That Madam Tang is simply talking nonsense."
"How good can a stepmother be, always spouting nonsense."
"Listening to her now, it's clear she was deliberately tarnishing Miss Tang's reputation. If we hadn't interacted, we might have thought she was really overbearing."
"Oh, I heard she's fighting for the inheritance, this stepmother pretends well."
...
Zhang Liyun had been keeping an eye on the developments at the police station, and the tide had turned, now praising Tang Wan.
Most importantly, this time, she acted like a villain and was thoroughly outmaneuvered.
**
The car had already arrived at the entrance of the Yiyu Tea House, and Tang Wan got out to buy pastries.
Jiang Jinsang tilted his head to watch her enter the tea house, rubbing his fingers.
"Sir, that Madam Tang must have suffered, right?" The person in the passenger seat turned to look towards the back.
Jiang Jinsang curled the corners of his mouth, "She invited the girl's parents into the house, two outcomes, Tang Wan sees them, reconciles, then she is the peacemaker, still a top hero in the couple's eyes, inevitably praised;"
"The other is that Tang Wan doesn't see them, appearing overbearing and strong, allowing her to smooth things over in between."
"Since the person was going to be released anyway..." he scoffed softly.
"Why should she be the good person!"
The two people in the driver and passenger seats also figured it out. In the Tang family, because of the fight for the inheritance, tensions were brewing, with ulterior motives in actions.
Zhang Liyun plotting was outmaneuvered by Tang Wan effortlessly.
Truthfully, with such a simple apology and release, ordinary people wouldn't have thought so deeply.
"Sir, this Miss Tang seems docile, but..."
"Pretty interesting, right," Jiang Jinsang said.
Both pursed their lips, wasn't it actually terrifying?
Indeed a fierce person.
Clearly not someone easy to deal with, having just slapped the stepsister's face, immediately following with the stepmother's, as if meticulously planned.
When Jiang Jinsang looked outside, the storm had calmed, and Tang Wan was coming out with several boxes of pastries from the tea house. He rubbed his fingers, at this moment his phone buzzed with a message:
[My god, I heard you're moving into the Tang family? What's up with that? Cohabiting?]
Cohabiting?
When Tang Wan got into the car with the pastries, she saw Jiang Jinsang's lips slowly curl up, nodding and smiling at her, appearing almost otherworldly.
She pursed her lips; regarding the matter at the police station, she indeed used a bit of cleverness, which Jiang Jinsang definitely saw through. Anyway, as long as Zhang Liyun didn't scheme against her, there would be no issues, or else, she wouldn't be polite.
At that moment, Zhang Liyun was heading to the old residence with Tang Mo, her face like asphalt.
Previously, Tang Wan hadn't fought or competed, showing no sign of being someone with high-level schemes, and they as mother and daughter had hit a brick wall.