Bab 37: Team Up
Editor: Atlas Studios
So that's your real concern, big sister?! thought Xiang Wan.
Bai Lu was now very clear about the relationship Xiang Wan had with Bai Muchuan. Yet her mom still asked that question while knowing the answer.
So they want to embarrass her outright?
Xiang Wan actually felt slightly abashed.
But she had been a lot stronger lately. Her lips curled up and pretended she had not heard anything.
The question was directed at Bai Muchuan, not her. She was here to get the parent of the spoilt child for compensation.
Bai Muchuan raised his eyebrows when he saw the calm face of Xiang Wan. He pulled out the hand inside his pocket slowly, whisked his hair, and sat on the sofa. Then he asked Nanny Li to get water for everyone.
"Sis, you've specially come here from the capital just for this matter?" He faced Bai Musi directly.
He did not admit nor did he deny; this was basically Bai Muchuan's style.
Bai Musi only had one daughter—Bai Lu. She divorced her husband when her daughter was very young. Hence, she felt that she owed her daughter a complete family. She coddled and cosseted her ever since and would not tolerate seeing her daughter suffer even the slightest injustice.
Hearing that, Bai Musi furrowed her eyebrows. "Since she's not your girlfriend, why did you side with her and let her bully Lulu like that?"
Bully? Who's the actual bleeping bully?
Xiang Wan felt her heart being ripped.
She did not know if it was because of his denial of a relationship, or due to Bai Musi's accusation. She was very unhappy.
"Excuse me, auntie," she puffed out her chest and raised her chin slightly, ready to battle it out with words. "Can you get your facts clear before you accuse anyone?"
Auntie? At that instant, cracks seemed to form on Bai Musi's delicate, well-maintained face.
She turned to look at Xiang Wan with an unfriendly look. "Who are you calling?"
Xiang Wan wore a gentle and pleasant smile. "In this house, who else but you deserve this most respected honorific?"
Bai Musi stifled. "Have you no upbringing?"
"Is using an honorific considered no upbringing?"
Xiang Wan was an author who had a good temper, but when it came to quarreling, she was never afraid.
She was preparing to "search" for some sarcastic remarks in her head but was stopped by Bai Muchuan's gaze.
He talked to Nanny Li in an idle tone, "Tell us what happened that day."
"Yes, Young Master Bai." Nanny Li had been listening to them for a long time. She came over in a nervous and restless manner. She smiled like a peacemaker and was hesitating to speak when she got interrupted by Bai Musi.
"I don't need to know that!"
"…"
"That's not important!" She scowled in a low tone while staring at Xiang Wan disapprovingly.
"I only want to ask this young lady. By using the issue of compensation, you stayed at Chuanzi's house without any sense of shame, what do you exactly want to do? Are you preparing to latch onto Chuanzi from this point onward? Miss, can you treat yourself with dignity by watching your behavior?"
Holy sh*t!
Xiang Wan had never felt so humiliated in her life.
Her cheeks were burning red with anger—at this moment, her 26 years of good temper had gone to the dogs.
"Auntie, it does not matter if one is blind, but if you don't conduct yourself well, your many years of living would have been in vain. Firstly, I'm staying in Detective Bai's place due to official business, and it is Detective Bai who urged me to come."
She glanced sideways at Bai Muchuan as a gesture of confirmation of her words.
Bai Lu lowered her head at this time.
Obviously, she had lied to her mother…
Unfortunately for Bai Lu, her little uncle did not intend to help her with the lie, either.
"Hm," acknowledged Bai Muchuan whose eyes squinted slightly. "This has nothing to do with the damage of the laptop."
"Hear that?" Xiang Wan's heart felt warm and she spoke to Bai Musi more confidently, "Secondly, compensation should be paid for damaging other people's property. Parents who are not preparing to compensate should be treating yourself with dignity by watching your actions! No wonder your precious daughter does petty things. A crooked stick will have a crooked shadow. Like mother like daughter!"
"…"
Bai Musi was so angry that she stood up from the sofa.
Holding the mobile phone, she asked bitterly, "Alipay or WeChat Pay? How much money? Tell me."
Xiang Wan gave a relaxed smile, "Cash. Twenty thousand."
Bai Musi's hand paused in the air. She was now fuming in anger.
"Miss, you're extorting me?"
"Auntie, my laptop is very expensive, so is my pajamas. The amount of 20,000 is already exclusive of emotional damages, and it's already very cheap on account of Detective Bai. Don't let yourself be looked down upon because of this 20,000 yuan! Your daughter has told me before that the only thing your family has is no lack of money!"
Bai Musi was fuming not because of the 20,000 yuan! It was because Xiang Wan had asked for cash.
It was impossible that she would be carrying 20,000 yuan in cash with her.
She firmly believed that Xiang Wan was out to pick on her, and looked toward Bai Muchuan indignantly.
Only then did she discover that his eyes were beaming with a smile.
"Chuanzi!" She gritted her teeth. "What do you say?"
"Me?" Bai Muchuan was like an outsider who looked confused. He nodded his head seemingly in contemplation. "It would be best if we can settle this privately so as to avoid hurting the harmony between us. Twenty thousand yuan, fair enough,"
"Hah!" Bai Musi suddenly laughed while staring at him, "I understand now. You don't regard me and your niece as your family, to the extent you don't even hold the Bai Family in regard as well… Fine, I shouldn't have come. Lulu, let's go!"
Bai Musi was so angry that she laughed. Her words left Xiang Wan bewildered.
She could understand that Bai Muchuan might not have held his sister in regard, but what did it mean that he didn't hold the Bai Family in regard?
In the living room, the atmosphere seemed to have stagnated.
Seeing her own mom getting angry at her uncle, Bai Lu started to sob and looked at Bai Musi helplessly.
"Mom, I'm not leaving. I'm not leaving, I want to stay here with little uncle…"
Bai Musi's eyes were raging with fire as her daughter's actions had disappointed her.
"Let's go! Such a disgrace!"
"I'm not leaving!" Bai Lu swiped away her mom's hand. She took a step back. Her eyes were similar to a pair of red bunny eyes with a bitter expression, pouting weakly. "Mom… just compensate her, it's only 20,000 yuan anyway… we're not short of money!"
Xiang Wan raised her chin slightly; she truly felt like laughing.
This niece was so fond of her little uncle that she hardly cared about her own pride?
Bai Musi had clearly seen this fact as well. She shot an angry glare at her daughter before she turned to Xiang Wan.
"Give me your bank account number, I'll do a transfer."
Xiang Wan smiled innocently. "The poor do not have any bank cards. Only cash is accepted."
It was 1 a.m. in the wee hours, and Xiang Wan was asking her for cash and cash only. In Bai Musi's eyes, this was considered too much.
She resented Xiang Wan to the extreme. Xiang Wan did not like her either, so she insisted on receiving cash.
"Auntie, actually I'm a very nice person. You don't have to worry so much, I can give you an hour to prepare the amount."
"Hmph!" sneered Bai Musi, "you're formidable! I've underestimated you."
She turned and walked to the door, carrying her bag with her. From the looks of it, she was going to get money.
Bai Lu hesitated for a while. She sneaked a peek at Bai Muchuan who was pulling a face and knew her little uncle was unhappy with her. She snorted, called for her mom, and followed her out of the house.
The living room was now left with an uneasy Nanny Li as well as Xiang Wan and Bai Muchuan.
"To say the truth," Xiang Wan commented without being polite with him, "I didn't want to force your sister like that, but she's too hurtful in her words. For a single like me, I dislike it the most when others make reckless remarks accusing me of latching onto a man…"
"No need to explain! I understand."
"…"
He said he understood, but his expression did not seem so?
Xiang Wan suddenly recalled the night that she called him to ask for "putting her up" for the night due to fear, and her face started to feel a little hot.
"Once I get the money, I'll leave!"
Bai Muchuan looked at her casually as he spread out his long legs and long feet, seemingly enjoying this moment of peace and relaxation. "No need, you stay," he said, unconcerned, "she's the one who's leaving."
Xiang Wan: "…"
What did he mean?
So she was really being made use of?
Just to deal with his elder sister?
"Nanny Li, prepare some supper to let my sister cool down."
Bai Muchuan instructed again.
That made Xiang Wan even more confused.
"Whose side are you on actually?" she whispered after watching Nanny Li leave the living room. "Are you having a conflict with your sister?"
Bai Muchuan squinted his eyes and replied, "I'm a detective."
He's a detective so he sides with reason and not kinship?
Heheh! Xiang Wan somehow did not feel that was the case, but she was too lazy to argue about it.
"And here I thought that you're not the biological child of the Bai Family as you dealt with them like that."
Bai Muchuan closed his eyes.
As Xiang Wan did not hear a reply, she noticed that he had closed his eyes.
Probably he was too tired, his eyelids did not even move as if he was asleep.
…
He had been working very hard for the 720 case after it happened.
…
Hm. Sleep tight.
…
Xiang Wan sat and waited.
Bai Musi came back in not more than half an hour's time.
She tossed the 20,000 yuan of cash onto the coffee table in front of Xiang Wan without taking a look at her. She only looked at Bai Muchuan solemnly.
"Previously, I don't know why you have to come to Jin City. Such an awful and remote place full of unruly people. What is it that's appealing to you? But now I understand…"
"Sis!" Bai Muchuan interrupted her, his gaze sharp and clear, totally unlike someone who had been sleeping.
"My transfer is arranged by the organization."
"Hmph!" Bai Musi sat down, seemingly without the intention of leaving.
However, whether it was the tone, the mood, or the expression, she was a lot more relaxed than before she went to withdraw the money.
"Laoer, I watched you grow up, how can I not understand you? Looks like you've not given up on that case years ago."
A layer of haze formed on Bai Muchuan's eyes.
He got up leisurely from the sofa, his handsome face seemed rather gloomy.
"Sis, it's getting late. If you're staying here for the night, then share a room with Bai Lu. And, you should teach her how to behave. This is not the Bai Family's residence at the capital. If you're not taking her in hand, sooner or later, someone else is going to do it for you!"
With that, he was preparing to go upstairs when he saw Xiang Wan not moving.
He turned and asked, "You don't need to write your update for tomorrow morning?"
Xiang Wan: "…"
Aren't they talking about a case years ago?
She had even pricked up her ears to listen but he had to remind her to update her novel?
…
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