"I want to see a lawyer!" Li Hongguang kept shouting this over and over after he was detained.
He did indeed see his lawyer, but when the lawyer arrived, he regretfully informed Li Hongguang: "This case has attracted a lot of attention. It's being jointly handled with the provincial department, and there will be a province-wide anti-trafficking operation launched soon."
Li Hongguang's face turned green. "But Li Xiaoya and I are relatives!"
"Yes, so you can try to get a letter of forgiveness from her immediate family. But unfortunately... her grandfather has also been taken into custody by the police to assist with the investigation."
"..."
Li Hongguang could only think of one last option: "I can pay compensation. I can give Li Xiaoya 50,000 yuan, no, 100,000... even 200,000 is fine! It's enough for her to study comfortably through university."
At this point, Li Hongguang suddenly paused and asked the lawyer: "Do you think it's possible that this is actually a setup orchestrated by Li Xiaoya's grandfather and her to extort money from me?"
"It's a honeytrap! This is a honeytrap!" Li Hongguang shouted.
The lawyer looked at him sympathetically: "Do you think people like Sheng Yuxiao and Qin Sui are short of money? They don't need you to pay for a settlement; they just want you in prison."
Li Hongguang finally broke down, pounding the table so hard that the arm of his glasses snapped off on the surface.
"Why are they singling me out? Why?!"
The lawyer stood up helplessly: "Maybe because... your little niece is too adorable."
Li Hongguang: "..."
Li Hongguang's outburst had already caught the attention of the detention center guards, and someone immediately rushed in to restrain him.
"Are you done talking with your lawyer?" the guard asked coldly.
The lawyer shrugged: "We're done. I'll be leaving now, thank you."
Grandpa Li was in a similar situation. No matter how much he ranted and raved, it had no effect here.
The police asked him: "Did you know about the Village Chief's plan to have Li Xiaoya poisoned?"
"What?! I-I didn't know! I didn't know! God damn it, he even wanted to kill my little Xiaoya..." Grandpa Li was terrified, crying with snot and tears streaming down his face.
Sheng Yuxiao watched Grandpa Li's unsightly behavior through the glass and frowned in disgust: "What a pity. It seems he really wasn't involved. Otherwise, if an immediate family member had attempted murder, Li Xiaoya's custody could have been transferred."
Sheng Yuxiao walked out and saw Li Xiaoya waiting in the hallway.
Li Xiaoya could now walk normally. She was wearing a little dress that Sheng Jun had bought for her earlier, and her hair was tied up by a nurse. She looked completely refreshed.
Sheng Yuxiao held her hand and led her to another interrogation room.
The Village Chief was detained there.
The Village Chief's hair was messy, and in just a few days, his wrinkles seemed to have deepened. He shook his head, saying, "I don't plead guilty, I don't plead guilty..." His forehead was covered in sweat, and his clothes clung to him, wrinkled like freshly pickled vegetables. He looked utterly miserable.
"I want to see my son, no, no, I want to see my granddaughter! Do you know who my granddaughter is? She's filming a show with rich people! Rich people!" The Village Chief shook his chair excitedly, spittle flying.
Sheng Yuxiao spoke coldly: "My father is too concerned with maintaining the gentlemanly demeanor of high society. If it were up to me, I would have kicked Li Qingqing off the show long ago."
"Qingqing, how could you abandon your grandfather?" The Village Chief covered his face and began to sob loudly.
Fearing that Li Xiaoya might soften, Sheng Yuxiao looked down to check her expression.
He saw her staring intently at the Village Chief, watching him very seriously.
"He's getting what he deserves," Sheng Yuxiao said softly.
Li Xiaoya nodded slightly: "Mama said he's a bad person, the worst person."
Sheng Yuxiao smiled: "Now that the bad person has been caught, are you happy?"
Li Xiaoya showed a small smile and said, "Mama would be happy."
Sheng Yuxiao couldn't help but pat her head.
The Village Chief and his group might have been formidable "bullies" in their small town, but once they entered the police station, they were nothing.
The interrogation was quickly concluded.
At the same time, the police issued a report, along with a notice requesting assistance in continuing the search for the person hired by the Village Chief to carry out the poisoning.
As soon as the report was released, it caused an uproar among the viewers of "Exchange Lives."
[Li Qingqing's grandfather paid 5,000 yuan to bribe Li Xiaoya's grandfather. Li Xiaoya's grandfather then turned around and sold Li Xiaoya to a distant cousin. After the truth came out, Li Qingqing's grandfather actually thought of silencing them and hired someone to poison Li Xiaoya... Oh my god! How vicious!]
[I'd like to see who still tries to defend Li Qingqing now? Her whole family is rotten; no wonder she turned out to be a little devil too!]
[Now it all makes sense why Li Qingqing was so poised on the show. It's because she's the Village Chief's granddaughter! Their family even built a small villa. That poise was bought with money!]
[I heard Li Qingqing's father has been suspended from his job too, for suspected corruption and bribery]
[Wow, this whole family is something else!]
...
Li Qingqing sat in the Sheng family's mansion, watching the suddenly changing public opinion online, grinding her teeth.
Why was it even worse than in her previous life?
Why had Sheng Yuxiao and Li Xiaoya grown closer? They'd even roped in Qin Sui. Why?
Li Qingqing put away her phone, not daring to even look at the expressions of the servants in the mansion.
"The master is back," the butler's voice announced.
Li Qingqing immediately squeezed tears from her eyes.
"You've seen the news online?" Sheng Jun walked up to her and sighed. "Your family really is..."
Knowing that the cameras were still rolling, Li Qingqing suddenly hugged Sheng Jun's leg and burst into tears: "Grandfather did bad things, wuwu... We've wronged Li Xiaoya. How can Qingqing atone for grandfather's sins?"
Sheng Jun pushed her away.
Li Qingqing fell on her bottom and cried even more hysterically.
She cried until she fainted.
Only then did Sheng Jun reluctantly instruct the servants to carry her upstairs.
In contrast to the gloom here, Sheng Yuxiao held Li Xiaoya's hand as they walked downstairs: "Come on, let's see Qin Sui off."
The audience couldn't help but laugh.
[Qin Sui is leaving? Young Master Sheng, you're not even pretending to be sad!]
The car to pick up Qin Sui was already parked by the roadside.
Qin Sui stood by the car door, talking on the phone with his family: "You were the ones who insisted I participate in this show in the first place, and now that I don't want to leave, you want me to come back."
Mr. Qin on the other end was also very confused: "But you've already reformed so well, it's time for you to come back."
Qin Sui: "..."
Qin Sui indeed didn't want to leave.
He had only been there for a short while, and he was just about to win Li Xiaoya over from Sheng Yuxiao. At this critical moment, Li Xiaoya was taken away.
She was taken away while he was recording the show.
It was utterly humiliating.
Now, before he could even wash away this great shame, he had to step down just because Sheng Yuxiao could now walk steadily and record the show normally.
And now, seeing Sheng Yuxiao happily bringing Li Xiaoya to bid him farewell, Qin Sui was even more reluctant to leave.
"Qin Sui, come back, your mother misses you very much," Mr. Qin was still chattering on the other end.
Qin Sui heartlessly hung up on his father's call and turned to Li Xiaoya, asking, "Will you miss me when I'm gone?"
Li Xiaoya hesitated for a moment, opening her mouth.
Qin Sui quickly said, "Never mind, don't tell me."
[Don't want to embarrass yourself, young master Qin?]
[I'm dying of laughter, actually this show should be changed, I think it would be great if the three of you recorded together]
Qin Sui didn't know what the audience was thinking. He just took out one of his business cards and handed it to Li Xiaoya: "Take it."
Sheng Yuxiao snatched it away: "She doesn't have a phone at home."
Qin Sui looked at him: "Can't you install one for her?"
"Install one so she can call you? Not happening."
"..."
Qin Sui wordlessly patted Li Xiaoya's head before getting up to leave.
He flew home that very day.
Mr. and Mrs. Qin were waiting for him at home. When they saw him step through the door, Mrs. Qin was the most excited, rushing to hug him: "You've made your mother so proud!"
"Proud?" Qin Sui looked at her in confusion.
"Yes, these past few days I've been telling everyone about how my son bravely rescued a kidnapped little girl!"
"..."
"Sob, sob, I no longer have to worry about you going down a path of crime. You clearly have a soft and kind heart."
"..."
Mr. Qin laughed beside them, saying, "The show's producers should pay your mother for her promotion."
"What do you mean?"
"Mrs. Ning heard your mother's wild boasting and thinks her own son should be sent for reformation too."
"Ning Heng?"
"Mm-hmm."
"He can't go. Sheng Yuxiao is like a mother hen now, protecting Li Xiaoya and not letting anyone near her," Qin Sui said, feeling much more balanced inside. Although he had come back, others couldn't go either.
Mr. Qin, however, looked at him as if he were an idiot and said, "Ning Heng and Sheng Yuxiao have been close friends since they were little. Do you think everyone's like you?"
Qin Sui, whose mental balance was instantly shattered: "..."
Was it too late to turn back now?