After spending over half an hour carefully inspecting the 11-story apartment building planned for the group of little vixens, Chen Qing felt satisfied.
She had chosen an apartment building over scattered villas mainly for easier management.
While her boss doted on those girls, Chen Qing wasn't so lenient. Just like Feng Caifan back then, if anyone broke the rules, Chen Qing wouldn't hesitate to discipline them.
Finally, standing by the floor-to-ceiling window in the living room of a top-floor duplex, Chen Qing occasionally glanced at the layout of the surrounding luxury residential area while flipping through a list of property owners in the various communities.
This information was supposed to be confidential.
But when the "goddess" wanted it, confidentiality ceased to exist.
Chen Qing wasn't looking at this list with any ulterior motives. She just wanted to be fully informed.
After all, a group of little vixens moving in all at once would be too conspicuous. The residents of these communities were either China's nouveau riche or foreign elites, all of whom considered themselves superior. It was inevitable that some might develop inappropriate thoughts.
After skimming through the list, Chen Qing handed it back to Lian Ying, who stood beside her, and instructed, "Except for those circled, anyone who dares to come here and cause trouble, don't be polite. Warn them once, and if they don't listen, report to me. As for the others, just tell them whose last name these little vixens share. If that doesn't work... well, there shouldn't be many people that stupid. I love dealing with fools."
With the current influence of the Westeros system, they weren't afraid of provoking anyone, anywhere in the world.
Lian Ying nodded in agreement.
As Chen Qing was giving further instructions, Jiang Shanwu approached and whispered something in her ear.
"They're here already? Since we're close to the airport, bring them over. I'll take a look."
Jiang Shanwu nodded and left to handle the matter.
Chen Qing didn't bother changing locations. The view here was excellent, so she had Lian Ying make some coffee and sat down by the window. She didn't idle either, pulling out a copy of yesterday's New York Times from the documents she had brought with her. It was the original English version, and she began reading it carefully.
Aside from the news about the second wave of the Asian financial crisis, she quickly found an article that interested her.
The Westeros family would fully fund the ITER project.
Chen Qing had been following this and knew the general outline of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor project. She had even discussed it with her boss.
Her boss's attitude at the time had been quite interesting.
He had said that if the project could be based in China, it would be ideal. If it were built in Europe or America, it might take 10 years or more to complete. But in China, it could be done in five years, no problem.
The obstacles were external.
There was no way around it.
During her boss's last visit to China, he had mentioned something else. Fundamentally, the seemingly free social systems of the West actually indicated a gradual loss of humanity's communal attributes.
What seemed like progress in civilization was, in fact, a very frightening thing.
Because individuals were increasingly no longer subservient to the group, it would be difficult to ensure the overall interests of humanity on a large scale, such as technological progress.
If it were just that, it wouldn't be a big deal. But more seriously, if some large-scale social problems arose, such as epidemics, the fragmented Western society would struggle to resist. Furthermore, if another large-scale world war broke out in the future, the West, with its lost communal attributes, would be even more vulnerable. Everyone would be out for themselves, and no one would be willing to sacrifice. It was hard to say what the outcome would be.
Chen Qing thought this made a lot of sense. Her boss's vision was becoming increasingly grand, and she was struggling to keep up.
She was just a small woman, after all.
After more than ten minutes, before she could finish the newspaper, Jiang Shanwu returned with two women, one older and one younger. She placed a file folder on the table next to Chen Qing.
Chen Qing let the mother and daughter stand there while she finished reading the New York Times. Occasionally, she glanced at the two women. The mother and daughter, both delicate and fragile in appearance, seemed timid and reserved, but Chen Qing wasn't fooled. Especially the younger one, who looked pitifully at her mother, as if she were shy. But her eyes betrayed her, darting around whenever Chen Qing wasn't looking.
Indeed, appearances could be deceiving.
After finishing the newspaper, Chen Qing picked up the file folder Jiang Shanwu had placed on the table. Inside were the medical records of the two women.
As she flipped through them, Chen Qing finally spoke, glancing at the older woman. "Zhang Aicao, and Qin Buzui. Hmph, being your daughter is really unlucky. She didn't even get a proper name."
Having been left standing for over ten minutes, Wei Mu, who was used to a life of comfort, was not only feeling the strain in her legs but also growing increasingly anxious. Hearing this, she instinctively defended herself in a soft voice, "I didn't name her."
"Oh," Chen Qing turned to the younger girl, who had just turned 15 and was already 1.7 meters tall. "How did you get your name?"
Zhang Aicao, who shared a similarly haphazard name with her half-sister, leaned closer to her mother and whispered, "My grandmother named me." She paused, then added, "She... she favored boys over girls. When she heard I was a girl, she was sewing a sachet for the Dragon Boat Festival. She saw some mugwort and named me after it. She always called me a money-loser."
Chen Qing smiled and glanced at the girl, who seemed to have a lot to say. "So, do you think you're a money-loser?"
Zhang Aicao instinctively leaned closer to her mother, lowering her eyes and not answering.
Seeing her daughter lean closer, Wei Mu instinctively moved away, showing some disdain. If she hadn't only given birth to this one child, and if it hadn't been a girl, she wouldn't have suffered so many snide remarks over the years in the Zhang family. She didn't even dare to confront her husband when he started keeping mistresses.
But even after keeping two mistresses, he still hadn't produced any children. This proved that the problem wasn't with her. What did it matter to her if the Zhang family had no heirs?
Chen Qing noticed Wei Mu's subtle movement and smiled as she looked at her. "Do you think your daughter is a money-loser?"
The woman hesitated, then nodded. "Yes."
Hearing her mother say this, Zhang Aicao's pitiful expression deepened.
Chen Qing's interest grew, and she smiled with a gossipy tone. "What was it like fighting with your daughter?"
Here, she was referring to the other daughter.
The woman shrank back, glanced at Chen Qing, then quickly looked down, defending herself, "She... she started it."
"Oh, you brought so many people to capture your daughter, and she still started the fight? How useless are you?"
"I... I didn't want to fight her. I just wanted my dowry back."
"Your dowry?"
The woman clearly felt guilty but still said, "I deserved a share."
Chen Qing didn't press further and changed the subject slightly. "Then why did you smash the car? Do you know it was a fully imported custom model worth over 6 million?"
Although it wasn't the first time she'd heard this, the woman still felt her legs go weak. She whispered, "I didn't know... no, I didn't smash it. It was Zhang Suchen. He told people to smash it."
Chen Qing raised an eyebrow. "Who's Zhang Suchen?"
The woman hesitated for a few seconds before barely audible, "My husband."
"Your husband has already been arrested on my orders. They say he'll get at least ten years. I think, since you can't afford to pay for the car, he should get life imprisonment. What about you?"
The woman couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed to the floor, trembling. After a moment, she suddenly looked up at Chen Qing. "The car was driven back by that girl. She should pay for it too. The set of jewelry my mother left is worth at least a few hundred thousand. She can pay for it. And Zhang Suchen... I can testify against him. I'll be a witness. Make him get life imprisonment."
---
Zhang Aicao, seeing her mother collapse, also seemed to lose her strength and slumped down pitifully next to her mother, looking at Chen Qing with fear and an inexplicable sense of anticipation.
Chen Qing had never considered herself a good person, but hearing the woman's words, she couldn't help but feel like she was witnessing something extraordinary.
Glancing at the woman's tall, stunning figure, Chen Qing sighed.
The world is chaotic, and Heaven's way is even more chaotic.
Seeing Chen Qing remain silent, the woman grew even more terrified. Tears began to fall, and she crawled toward Chen Qing, trembling. When she reached Chen Qing's feet, she grabbed the hem of Chen Qing's pants and pleaded in a tearful voice, "Miss... please, spare me. I didn't know anything."
Chen Qing was about to say something when Jiang Shanwu, who had stepped out to take a call, returned. She glanced at the woman on the floor, covered the phone, and whispered to Chen Qing, "Qin Buzui."
Chen Qing raised an eyebrow and, without lowering her voice, asked directly, "What does she want?"
Jiang Shanwu no longer hid it and said, "She says she wants to speak to the boss."
"I'd like to speak to the boss too," Chen Qing said with a mocking tone. She was about to tell Jiang Shanwu to hang up, but then she glanced at the mother and daughter and decided to take the phone herself. She pressed the speaker button and asked directly, "What is it?"
Qin Buzui's voice came through, polite and calm. "Is this Sister Chen?"
The woman on the floor, who had already heard Jiang Shanwu mention her daughter's name, froze when she heard Qin Buzui's voice. She didn't dare make a sound.
Chen Qing glanced at the woman and replied, "Yes."
"Sister Chen, I need to contact the boss."
Chen Qing was a bit more patient this time but still showed her displeasure. "Do you not know the rules?"
"I do," Qin Buzui said. "But this is the only time. It's very, very important."
Chen Qing didn't beat around the bush. "Forget about the boss. Talk to me. Everything in China is under my control."
Qin Buzui hesitated, then said, "I can't find my mother."
The woman on the floor, sensing the coldness and even hatred in Qin Buzui's voice, trembled again.
Chen Qing didn't hide it. "Your mother is here with me."
"What?"
Qin Buzui sounded shocked, clearly thinking she had misheard.
The woman on the floor looked up at Chen Qing, her eyes filled with despair and pleading.
Chen Qing flicked away the hand clutching her pants and said, "Your sister is here too."
Qin Buzui, now sure she hadn't misheard, fell silent for a moment before finally saying, "Sister Chen, can you send my mother back?"
"Send her back for what?"
Qin Buzui paused, then added with more obvious hatred, "She and that Zhang guy killed my grandparents. They should both be locked up."
Before Chen Qing could respond, the woman on the floor screamed, "You little brat! You're the one who killed them! If you had just stolen the jewelry and given it to me, none of this would have happened. It's all your fault!"
After another moment of silence, Qin Buzui spoke again, not addressing her mother but still talking to Chen Qing. "Sister Chen, send my mother back. Lock her up with that Zhang guy. I promise, I'll spend the rest of my life serving the boss and repaying him. And you, Sister Chen, I'll remember your kindness too."
After Qin Buzui finished speaking, the woman on the floor, seeing Chen Qing's amused expression, broke down again. She cried and pointed at the phone on the table. "How can you say that? I'm your mother! I'm your mother!"
Qin Buzui ignored her and continued to plead with Chen Qing. "Sister Chen, please."
Then, the woman on the floor seemed to have an epiphany. She grabbed Chen Qing's leg and said, "Miss Chen, spare me. As long as you don't send me to prison, I'll serve you too. And my daughter, Aicao. We'll both serve you. There are two of us. We can do more than her."
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