Liu He thought Old Mr. Gong wanted to praise her for her efficiency when she heard that he was looking for her, so she turned around and walked away with Lin Zhiyi in tow.
As Lin Zhiyi entered the living room, she found not only the Gong Family there but also the Sang Family members.
When everyone saw the mother and daughter, the disdain in their eyes was unmistakable.
Upon reaching the center of the room, her gaze was met by Gong Chen’s cold, ink-dark eyes.
He sat at the head of the group, turning a red jadeite ring almost callously.
Lin Zhiyi knew then that something had gone wrong.
She had just steadied herself when she saw a pile of opened engagement fairing gifts on the floor.
Before she could speak, Sang Ran hurriedly approached her.
"Zhiyi, what exactly is going on with these?"
Lin Zhiyi was about to take a closer look when Liu He seemed to think of something and interrupted, "Miss Sang, is there something missing again? I’ll call right away to have it taken care of."
Sang Ran raised her hand to stop her, looking troubledly at Lin Zhiyi, "Zhiyi, are you too tired to have noticed?"
Lin Zhiyi didn’t quite understand what she meant and was about to speak when the sound of a teacup being set down heavily came from the side sofa.
Turning to look, a woman in a satin gown, with a pair of lustrous, large, Tahitian black pearl earrings, exuded a high-class air and impeccable poise.
Her lips curled into a smile, but when she looked up at Lin Zhiyi and Liu He, her eyes were slightly cold.
"Xiao Ran, I know you have a good heart, but this matter affects the reputation of both families, and we must have an explanation."
"Auntie! Zhiyi and the Second Madam have always been good to me. I trust they wouldn’t mess things up!" Sang Ran spoke up firmly.
Lin Zhiyi quickly searched her brain for information related to this woman.
In her previous life, after getting married and having children, she was kept under surveillance by Gong Chen’s men.
She rarely went out, so her only pastime was surfing the internet.
After a few seconds of recollection, she actually remembered this woman.
Mrs. Sang’s best friend and the only female president of Wen Group, she was both intelligent and noble.
After Mrs. Sang passed away, she cared for the Sang siblings like a second mother.
Although not related by blood, the siblings revered her as their aunt.
There had been rumors that she wanted to take advantage of the situation to become Mrs. Sang.
She then issued a statement declaring her dedication to spinsterhood.
The reason Lin Zhiyi knew about these decades-old stories was because Wen Qing had later broken her spinsterhood vow.
Without warning, she married a mysterious man and settled abroad, causing quite a stir at the time.
In her past life, Lin Zhiyi had glanced at a paparazzi photo of the couple at the airport, and the man’s silhouette had seemed strangely familiar.
Now, Wen Qing stood up with a light, amused laugh.
"Second Madam? Xiao Ran, I’m afraid that while you pour your heart out for others, they only see you as an easy mark."
Sang Ran’s lips tightened, and for a moment, she didn’t know what to say.
"President Wen, what do you mean? I’ve been sleeping only four hours a night these past few days, personally overseeing everything, all to ensure that the engagement between Xiao Ran and Lao San goes off without a hitch!" Liu He retorted angrily.
"Of course, you have to oversee it personally, or else how would you make a profit?" Wen Qing sneered lightly.
"President Wen, this is the Gong residence, please watch what you say," Liu He reminded her, trying to maintain dignity.
Wen Qing glanced at the engagement gifts on the floor.
Lin Zhiyi instantly thought of something and casually opened one of the gift boxes.
As she picked up a custom bracelet, she immediately felt that the weight was off.
Luxury items have identification marks, and after she looked closely, her face turned pale.
The platinum diamond bracelet that should have been there had been replaced with a silver zircon bracelet, and the price difference was substantial.
With roughly fifty boxes here, that would be nearly three million yuan.
Lin Zhiyi’s fingertips trembled slightly.
Liu He just glanced and argued, "Everything is clearly complete, on what grounds do you say I’m skimming off the top?"
"Mom," Lin Zhiyi called out softly, signaling her not to speak yet.
But Liu He couldn’t swallow her pride. She had finally made a name for herself in this family, only to be mocked and ridiculed by outsiders.
Lin Zhiyi raised her voice to stop her.
Liu He wasn’t foolish. She immediately understood the look in Lin Zhiyi’s eyes and, after a moment of stunned silence, snatched the bracelet from her hand.
"How could this happen? Impossible!"
Wen Qing swept a look over Liu He and casually sat down, lifted a teacup, and took a sip.
"Liu He, it seems you admit that the bracelet is a fake."
"Xiao Ran’s father’s plane was delayed due to a snowstorm abroad, so he had me attend the engagement party as a representative of Xiao Ran’s maternal family. Now that this has happened, it’s really difficult for me to explain."
"If it weren’t for our own people discovering this early today, and the guests had taken these things home, wouldn’t both our families have lost all face?"
"I ask the Third Young Master and Old Mr. Gong to give Xiao Ran some justice. How could she be bullied by others even before she has married into the family?"
Upon hearing this, Liu He turned pale, and her body began to sway.
Gong Shiyan quickly stepped forward and embraced her, saying soothingly, "Don’t rush."
Leaning on him, Liu He said grievously, "Husband, I really didn’t mess around."
"I believe you," Gong Shiyan replied with a nod.
Seeing this, Wen Qing sneered coldly, "Such deep affection. Perhaps Second Young Master should consider how you’re going to explain yourself."
Gong Shiyan frowned, "Wen Qing, the matter hasn’t been investigated clearly, and without evidence, isn’t it a bit hasty to assert that Xiao He is messing around?"
Lin Zhiyi’s heart skipped a beat upon hearing ’Wen Qing.’
She looked up and noticed the complex gaze between Gong Shiyan and Wen Qing.
But before she could ponder it further, Old Mr. Gong, in a fit of rage, threw his teacup at Gong Shiyan.
"Enough! How much longer will you shield her? You want evidence? I’ll give it to you! Take a good look at her true colors."
The old man snatched a few papers from the butler and slammed them down in front of Gong Shiyan.
Gong Shiyan picked them up and immediately stiffened.
Seeing the content, Liu He shook her head vigorously, "No, I didn’t know."
Lin Zhiyi moved closer to look, and it was actually Liu He’s bank statement, with an inflow of nearly three million that morning.
It matched the price of the gift just presented.
At that moment, a servant who had helped move the gifts a few days ago was brought in.
"We were only responsible for moving things; the Second Madam was in charge of the rest."
"Yes, the Second Madam and Miss Lin had checked everything during the acceptance check, and we don’t have the storeroom password, so there was no way to switch them."
"In the last two days, wherever the Second Madam asked us to go, we went. If she diverted us, whatever she and Miss Lin did, we didn’t know."
The last person brought in was the person in charge of the delivery that day.
He directly presented a contract, "Old Mr. Gong, Third Young Master, here is the Second Madam’s handwritten signature. We delivered the missing items as soon as possible, and they were checked by the Second Madam and Miss Lin before being signed off."
Indeed, that was the case.
Lin Zhiyi was certain that everything delivered that day was genuine.
Thus, the swap could only have taken place in the Gong Family home.
But Old Mr. Gong didn’t give her any time to think, and slapped the table heavily with his hand.
"Liu He! I trusted you to handle such an important matter, and I even praised you in front of the whole family. Is this how you repay me?"
"Old Mr. Gong, I didn’t switch them!" Liu He said in tears.
Old Mr. Gong waved his hand impatiently, "Now the only ones who could have switched the items are you two, mother and daughter. If it’s not you, then there is only one person left..."
Everyone’s gaze turned towards Lin Zhiyi.