Sensing that something was off with Jiang Yan, Jiang Yan dismissed the thought of leaving, pivoted on his dress shoes, and returned to his seat.
"What on earth do you mean?"
Ignoring him once again, Jiang Li shifted her gaze to Lin Manru.
"Mother, Qin Xiaoxiao has already confessed at the police station. It was she who drugged Jiang Yan's drink, attempting to seduce him into having a relationship with her."
"Though she didn't succeed, she could at least be charged with assault with intent to cause harm."
"What?!"
At this revelation, all three of them stood up, simultaneously shocked.
Lin Manru was slow to react, "What? You're saying Qin Xiaoxiao is at the police station? When did this happen?"
Qin XiuZhi completely panicked, "What? Xiaoxiao is at the police station? How could this happen?"
What enraged Jiang Yan even more was the accusation, "What? What did you say? I was drugged? I was actually drugged?"
He, the Eldest Young Master Jiang, nearly lost his chastity to a servant's daughter?
Even the police knew about it now!
Would he have any face left if this got out?!
Only Jiang Li remained calm, seated, even leisurely pouring herself a glass of warm water.
Jiang Yan couldn't stand it and snatched the glass from her. "Hey, this concerns your own brother's life, how can you still be so calm and keep drinking water? What exactly happened?"
"Yes, Lili." Lin Manru looked unhappily at the pale-faced Qin XiuZhi before asking gently, "What's going on, really?"
Jiang Li remained calm and composed.
"I've already made myself quite clear, haven't I? There's a cause and an effect. As for the process—" She looked deeply at Jiang Yan, "Are you sure you want me to say it?"
Jiang Yan: "..."
"Better not to say it, then."
Regaining her composure, Lin Manru finally pieced it together.
So, this mother and daughter were purely scheming against the Jiang Family, trying to ascend the social ladder using this incident!
"I'll make things clear today." Lin Manru sat back down, emulating Jiang Li's calmness, "Qin XiuZhi, I don't fancy the Qiao Family daughter, so don't expect me to fancy yours."
Qin XiuZhi never expected her painstakingly developed plan to crumble in an instant.
She had everything planned so well.
To take advantage of the rift between the Qiao and Jiang Families, hoping to stir up trouble and profit from both sides.
Even if her daughter couldn't become the Young Madam of the Jiang Family, having this leverage would ensure a worry-free life in the future.
But now, it was all ruined.
Out of options, Qin XiuZhi decided to go for broke, "Madam, even if you look down on us, what can you do? Things have already taken shape. If the Eldest Young Master refuses to take responsibility, I'll tear off this old face and make a scandal, and the Jiang Family's reputation will be the one at stake!"
"You!"
Lin Manru hadn't expected the Qin XiuZhi she thought was the most honest and straightforward to be such a scheming and sly person.
But as the saying goes, the barefoot are not afraid of those with shoes on. What if she really became desperate and lashed out, wouldn't her son and the Jiang Family be ruined?
However, Jiang Li spoke up:
"Who said things are set in stone?"
"When I got there, they were just embracing, nothing had happened, and I immediately had Xiang Hao take the police to collect evidence. Forget about setting sail, not even a plank had been laid."
"Mrs. Qin, the reason I didn't expose this in front of so many people was to give you a chance to come forward willingly."
"But you couldn't even pour a glass of water without reluctance, not to mention your petty tricks. Tell me, can I let you off the hook?"
With this unexpected turn of events, Lin Manru immediately looked to Jiang Yan for confirmation.
Though Jiang Yan was reluctant to recall the event, he still had to speak up.
"Heh, if a hug and a kiss mean I have to take responsibility for her, then there are too many people I'd have to answer to."
Qin XiuZhi lost all hope and collapsed onto the ground, pale as a ghost.
"How could this happen..."
Lin Manru didn't want to hear any more of her excuses.
What happened today was enough evidence that if she blindly made concessions and showed softness, it would only make things worse.
She simply called Jiang Ye and reported the incident to the police, allowing her and her daughter to have a reunion at the police station.
After the police finished writing up the report, they took the people away.
By late at night, the Jiang Mansion, which had been in turmoil the whole day, finally quieted down completely.
Lin Manru, feeling as if a great burden had been lifted, sat down on the sofa and took her daughter, Jiang Li's hand.
"Lili, thank goodness for you today; otherwise, I wouldn't have known how to deal with these people."
Jiang Li said, "I'm the daughter of the Jiang Family, so naturally I have to consider the Jiang Family's interests."
She had deliberately waited until dinner to expose Qin XiuZhi.
The Qiao Family were outsiders. Dealing with things properly in front of outsiders would preserve their reputation.
Since Qin XiuZhi was part of their family, she naturally had to be dealt with in front of the whole family in order to serve as a warning to those who harbored ill will.
In her previous life, she hadn't noticed Mrs. Qin's strangeness in time.
It allowed Mrs. Qin to fan the flames in front of her own mother time and again, eventually making her daughter entangled with Jiang Yan.
Now, it seemed necessary to catch both mother and daughter in one fell swoop.
Hearing this, Lin Manru was extremely relieved.
Her daughter had changed so much, and had completely taken on the demeanor of a proper lady; even if she went with her husband, she would be at ease.
"Jiang Yan, you should learn from your sister. Everything worries me; you're not a child anymore."
Having been manipulated all day, Jiang Yan had already lost his good mood.
"Who knows if she's just going through a phase? Maybe she'll dye her pink hair back tomorrow."
Leopard can't change its spots.
He didn't believe for a second that Jiang Li had suddenly become a graceful lady overnight.
No, that's not right.
She was now a wolf in sheep's clothing!
Lin Manru scolded Jiang Yan a few more times before turning back to her daughter, "Don't worry, I've learned from my mistakes. When your grandfather comes back, I'll tell him everything. Even though the Qiao Family left intact today, they won't have an easy time in the future."
"But, Mother," Jiang Li suddenly darkened her eyes, "Do you really think the Qiao Family are the masterminds behind all of this?"
Lin Manru sat up straight, "What do you mean?"
Opposite her, even Jiang Yan rarely showed a serious expression.
Jiang Li fell into thought as she looked at them both.
It wasn't hard to guess that the reason the Qiao Family had the confidence to confront them in front of so many people was that they had a more formidable supporter behind them.
And aside from Shang Shaojing, she couldn't think of anyone else.
Previously, under the control of the story, she had publicly provoked and embarrassed the female lead on multiple occasions.
And Jiang Yan had also expressed his feelings for the female lead, both overtly and covertly.
Given Shang Shaojing's temperament, he would certainly seek revenge.
That he was behind today's chaos was entirely within reason.
However, she was still unclear how much of the male lead's halo Shang Shaojing, the male protagonist of the book, possessed. The Jiang Family's foundation wasn't stable yet, and rashly going head-to-head with him would not yield any benefits.
So, she smiled as if nothing were amiss, "It's nothing, Mother, perhaps I'm just overthinking things. It's very late, you should rest."
"Alright, you've also had a tiring day, go back to your room early."
When the living room had mostly emptied out, Jiang Yan finally got up from the sofa with a stern look on his face, pondering over what Jiang Li had just said, and then gazed at her receding figure.
The person behind the scenes?
Heh.
He probably had a good guess who it was.