"...Are you going to call the police to arrest me now?"
Wei Qilin looked at the old man with a defiant gaze, displaying a "what's the use" attitude after his plot had been discovered.
The old man pondered.
"...Grandpa." Zheng Feibao looked at him pleadingly. Zheng Fulai didn't speak, but his expression was hesitant. Only Zheng Feiran had a stern face, revealing no emotion.
After several seconds, the old man suddenly sighed. He looked at Wei Qilin and said, "I won't call the police to arrest you. You can leave."
Hearing this, Wei Qilin didn't show any joy. He stared at the old man expressionlessly and said, "Do you think I'll be grateful to you if you let me go? You're dreaming!"
He didn't hide his hatred at all. "I will always remember that it was you, Zheng Qi, who betrayed us and caused our Wei family to be destroyed... As long as I have the chance, I will repay you a hundredfold for what you did to our Wei family!"
After saying that, Wei Qilin turned to leave.
"Qilin," Zheng Feibao suddenly called out to him, her eyes filled with sorrow yet stubbornness. She asked, "Did you marry me only to get revenge on the Zheng family? Don't you have even the slightest feeling for me?"
"…No." Wei Qilin took a deep breath. He stood there, not turning his head. His cold voice said, "Do you know how much effort I have to put into controlling myself every day in front of you and everyone in your Zheng family, just to keep from showing the slightest bit of hatred?"
"I will always remember that it was Zheng Qi, your grandfather, who killed my grandfather and my father…" He sneered and asked, "And you, as his granddaughter, do you think I would like you?"
Zheng Feibao's eyes blinked lightly and quickly again, and tears rolled silently down her cheeks.
She took a breath, turned her head to wipe away the tears streaming down her cheeks, and said, "I understand."
Then, in a calm tone, she said, "Since that's the case, there's no need for our marriage to continue. Get ready, we'll go and process the divorce in a couple of days."
Xu Gui saw that upon hearing Zheng Feibao's words, Wei Qilin's hand, hanging by his side, trembled slightly. He clenched his fist lightly, then quickly relaxed it.
"I understand..." Wei Qilin said, then left without saying anything more.
After Wei Qilin left, Zheng Fulai hurriedly went to Zheng Feibao's side and asked her worriedly, "Sister, are you alright?"
Zheng Feibao's mood was actually quite heavy, but seeing Zheng Fulai's tearful eyes, she smiled and couldn't help but ask, "Why are you crying?"
Zheng Fulai wiped away her tears and stubbornly said, "I'm not crying." Even though tears were still welling up in her eyes.
Zheng Feibao laughed first, then sighed, muttering, "Silly child, what's there to cry about? This marriage was a mistake from the beginning; now it's just correcting that mistake."
...
The old man had almost fainted from an allergic reaction and now looked exhausted. Dr. Fu, who had been seemingly oblivious, reached out to help him back to his bedroom.
"Grandpa, let me help you," Zheng Feiran said, walking over.
The old man turned around, glancing at Xu Gui before looking at Zheng Feiran, saying, "No need. Dr. Fu is enough for me. You should stay and properly entertain our distinguished guest..."
Distinguished guest?
Zheng Feiran looked at Xu Gui, who smiled at him, but then seemed to suddenly remember something, his expression freezing.
The old man looked at Xu Gui with a kind smile and said, "This time, I really owe it all to Master Xu. My old bones escaped a disaster. If it weren't for my failing health, I would have personally entertained you properly!"
He sighed, "Now, I can only ask my good-for-nothing grandson for help... Master Xu, if you need anything, just tell him, and he will do his best to meet your needs!"
Xu Gui glanced at Zheng Feiran, whose expression was becoming increasingly stiff, and said in a calm tone, "I won't stand on ceremony with Mr. Zheng."
"I, I will also entertain Master Xu properly!" Zheng Fulai said eagerly.
The old man looked at him, reached out and patted his head, saying, "Good boy."
Watching this scene of "grandfather and grandson being kind and filial," the paparazzi felt uneasy. He couldn't help but lean closer to Xu Gui and whisper, "Teacher Xu, do you think what Mr. Wei said earlier was true or false? Did the old man of the Zheng family really do those things back then?"
Xu Gui replied, "What does that have to do with us?"
Her tone was nonchalant: "We're just doing our jobs for money, solving problems for others. So, as long as we resolve their recent 'abnormalities,' we've already achieved our goal here. As for the truth of the matter, why should we delve into it?"
Rather than pondering whether Wei Qilin's words were true or false, she'd rather think about how to spend the two million that was about to be in her hands… Hmm, this was a very serious matter.
Xu Gui pondered.
The paparazzi, after hearing her words, couldn't help but glance at her.
"…Master Xu." Zheng Feiran approached, his tone towards Xu Gui this time much more sincere and respectful, devoid of that sarcastic, cutting tone.
Zheng Fulai followed beside him. Although the matter was resolved, Zheng Fulai didn't seem happy at all; instead, he frowned, looking dejected. Upon seeing Xu Gui, he tried to perk up and also greeted him, "Master Xu."
Zheng Feiran adopted a very humble posture in front of Xu Gui, speaking sincerely, "Master Xu, I was blind before, misunderstanding you as a fraud. I apologize to you!" The previously
listless Zheng Fulai immediately perked up upon hearing his apology. He looked at the other man in surprise and said, "You actually apologize to people?"
Zheng Feiran smiled, displaying the demeanor of a gentleman, but the action of his left foot was completely inconsistent with his expression. He ruthlessly stomped on Zheng Fulai's instep, grinding it forcefully. It
was impossible for this action not to stem from some personal grudge.
"Awooo—" Zheng Fulai yelled instantly, glaring angrily at him.
Zheng Feiran's expression remained unchanged, only looking sincerely at Xu Gui.
Xu Gui blinked and said, "No need for an apology, but do you remember our bet?"
Zheng Feiran was taken aback, then remembered something and asked, "...You mean that one million?"
Xu Gui nodded quickly.
Zheng Feiran smiled and said, "A bet is a bet, and I did lose our bet. I'll obediently hand over the one million from the bet later, not a penny less... Also, you saved my grandfather, which is a great favor to our Zheng family. To express our gratitude, our Zheng family will offer another five million as a reward!"
Hearing this, Zheng Fulai hurriedly said, "And me, I also promised to give you one million, Master Xu. I'll transfer it to you later."
One million, five million, one million...
Xu Gui felt that no apology or sorry was as real as this cash, but...
"Then five million won't be necessary," she said. "Mr. Zheng Fulai and I have already agreed on the payment. If I can resolve your family's issues, he will give me one million. Then, there's the bet between me and Mr. Zheng Feiran."
She concluded, "So, you only need to give me two million."
Hearing this, Zheng Feiran looked somewhat surprised. He gave Xu Gui a deep look but didn't insist, only nodding and saying, "Alright, since Master Xu says so, then we can only do as you say."
Zheng Feiran didn't delay. After speaking, he directly transferred one million to Xu Gui. As for Zheng Fulai's one million…
Zheng Fulai was very reluctant. He stingily transferred the last one million in his bank account to Xu Gui. He whispered to Xu Gui, "This is my last savings. All the previous money was swindled away."
Xu Gui couldn't help but look at him a few more times, almost having the urge to deceive him herself. After all, this person was so easy to fool; it was practically challenging his conscience.
However, in the end, Xu Gui gave up the idea of deceiving him… She was a kind-hearted Xuan Turtle, really.
*
Perhaps knowing that Xu Gui didn't have much affection for him, Zheng Feiran later had Zheng Fulai entertain Xu Gui. However, Xu Gui did seem to have more affection for Zheng Fulai than for him.
Xu Gui didn't intend to stay at the Zheng family's house any longer. When she said she had to go back, Zheng Fulai drove her to the parking lot. On the way, he couldn't help but express his gratitude to Xu Gui a few more times.
"...I really didn't expect that everything that has happened at home over the past month was all just a charade by Brother Qilin." —Even now, he still calls Wei Qilin "Brother Qilin."
"But how did he do that?" Zheng Fulai was still puzzled. "The dead fish in the pond, the withered osmanthus tree... and the woman's crying that my grandfather always heard."
He suddenly shivered and looked at Xu Gui nervously, saying, "Master Xu, is my house actually haunted too?"
Xu Gui: "..."
Xu Gui pondered for a moment and asked, "Have you ever thought that the fish in the pond died because he poisoned them? And the withered money tree was because he had someone pour boiling water on it. As for the woman's crying that your grandfather heard in the middle of the night... there's something called a tape recorder in this world."
At this moment, she deeply felt what Wei Qilin meant when he said, "I thought you were just ridiculously stupid"... This Mr. Zheng Fulai really did think very simply.
"Okay, it seems so." Zheng Fulai chuckled dryly, then his expression tightened as if he had just remembered something. "Wait! So, Brother Qilin has accomplices in our family?"
—Despite being called stupid, he had now keenly grasped the problem. "Who is it?"
Xu Gui said nonchalantly, "Mr. Zheng Feiran should be able to find out." But this matter was none of their concern. Zheng Fulai
breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That's true." Brother Feiran was so smart; he probably already thought of this.
After a few seconds, he sighed again and frowned. "Brother Qilin said he doesn't like my second sister at all, but I don't believe he has no feelings for her at all. Master Xu, you haven't seen how he and my second sister get along. They've never even argued once since they got married."
Zheng Feibao may have a cold and aloof appearance, like a flower on a high mountain, but she is actually a very gentle person at heart. Wei Qilin is also peaceful and broad-minded. The two of them together are truly a perfect match.
Therefore, Zheng Fulai truly didn't believe Wei Qilin's words that he had no feelings for Zheng Feibao at all.
"He's definitely lying," he said.
Xu Gui casually remarked, "Does it matter whether he's lying or not?"
Zheng Fulai was taken aback.
Xu Gui looked at him and said, "They were separated by the hatred of their families' destruction. How do you expect them to choose? Pretend they know nothing, that nothing happened, and continue being together?"
Zheng Fulai was speechless.
"It's precisely because they both understand this that they made their current choice," Xu Gui said clearly. "It only shows that they are destined to be apart, not each other's soulmates."
Zheng Fulai: "...Even so." But he was still sad, saddened for them.
The chubby little boy shrugged and escorted Xu Gui and the others to the parking lot, then instructed the family driver to take them to the overpass where Xu Gui had set up his stall before standing aside, watching their car leave.
After getting into the car, Xu Gui first checked his bank account balance on his phone and carefully counted it.
"Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands...millions!" That's right, it was indeed two million!
She thought she was very calm, but in reality, to the person filming her, she was practically beaming with joy, her eyes practically radiating happiness. One eye seemed to scream "money," and the other eye seemed to scream "money.
" The filming crew couldn't help but ask, "Ms. Xu, since you like money so much, why didn't you agree when Mr. Zheng Feiran offered you an extra two million?" He had assumed Ms. Xu would agree without hesitation.
Hearing his words, Xu Gui regained some focus and said, "I do love money, but there's a saying: 'A gentleman loves money, but he acquires it in a proper way.' I won't take money that isn't rightfully mine."
Upon hearing this, the filming crew immediately felt a deep respect for Xu Gui. He exclaimed, "Ms. Xu, you're such a principled person? I'm sorry, I underestimated you."
Xu Gui: "..." Her expression was somewhat guilty.
Sorry, she had lied.
Actually, she wanted to accept the two million without hesitation, but she didn't want to get involved with the Zheng family, so she refused after weighing the options. In other words, her refusal of the two million wasn't due to any principles.
Xu Gui: This fact should be self-evident.
"By the way," the cameraman remembered something and said to Xu Gui, "We turned off the live stream earlier because of privacy issues, but I recorded the key parts on my phone, which can completely prove that the two million was money you earned through your work!"
"I've already sent this video to the director. With these two million, your ranking will definitely break into the top thirty, and you won't be eliminated!"
Although she had already earned two million, Xu Gui, who already knew that money was a good thing, had her eyes light up. She happily said, "I told you, my luck has been on my side these past few days, I definitely won't be eliminated!"
Her ranking wouldn't stagnate anymore; she wanted to take first place.
"My temporary goal is to earn 10 billion!" she calculated, "Although I'm still a little far from my goal..."
Cameraman: ...You haven't forgotten your 10 billion little goal?
Just then, Xu Gui's eyelid suddenly twitched violently. She blinked, suddenly feeling a little flustered.
"What's going on?" She touched her still-twitching eye, feeling as if something had happened at that moment, but because she couldn't control herself, even though Xu Gui had a feeling, she didn't know what had happened, or who or where it had happened.
Xu Gui frowned.
*
At this time, the program director had already received the video from the camera crew.
The assistant director looked over and asked, "What's wrong?"
"It's nothing," the director replied. "It's just that Xu Gui made two million through fortune telling..." To be honest, he wasn't surprised at all.
You see, fortune telling and feng shui are things that the wealthier people are, the more they believe in them. Therefore, the more skilled someone is in this area, the more money they can make. When Xu Gui started fortune telling and discovered how accurate she was, the director realized that if she wanted to make money, it would be a very simple matter for her.
The director clicked his tongue.
The assistant director glanced at her and said, "Weren't you worried that Xu Gui would be eliminated? Now that she's earned two million, she's a sure thing to be in the top thirty. You should be relieved, right? Why the long face?"
The director, with a straight face, said, "Who said I was worried about her?"
The assistant director chuckled.
The director tried his best to evaluate Xu Gui fairly and impartially: "...Although some of her actions are sometimes baffling, she's a very likable person. I've observed her fanbase, and it's mostly made up of 'mommy fans' and 'career fans.' These fans are not only loyal but also long-lasting. As long as she doesn't do anything outrageous, they're unlikely to unfollow her."
In short, from all perspectives, keeping Xu Gui is a good thing for their program.
So, he wasn't worried about Xu Gui; he was worried about the entire production team!
Assistant Director: ...Heh.
"..." The director suddenly turned to the others and asked, "Does our program's director have the right to fire the assistant director?"
Assistant Director: ? ?
"Director, you're always right!" he said righteously.
*
After confirming that Xu Gui had indeed earned two million, the director had the staff record the data. Therefore, when Xu Gui started her broadcast at noon, countless viewers of "360 Trades" discovered that a live stream room had suddenly jumped to the thirteenth position.
Viewers: ? ?
Is there some kind of shady deal?!