Chapter 97

Chapter 97: Apology (New) In the video, Xu Jingxuan looked around, as if searching for someone. The moment Ruan Chutang appeared, Xu Jingxuan immediately grabbed a glass of red wine from a passing waiter and hurried straight toward Ruan Chutang. The closer she got to Ruan Chutang, the faster Xu Jingxuan moved, until she collided with Ruan Chutang. The glass left her hand, the red wine splashed, and everyone knew what happened after that. From the surveillance footage, who was right and who was wrong was clear at a glance. Xu Jingxuan had deliberately collided with Ruan Chutang. The crowd murmured, chattering among themselves once again. Some people had already been recording the video with their phones while it was playing. It was estimated that this surveillance footage would soon appear on the internet. A drama of heiresses pulling each other's hair was more entertaining than a Spring Festival Gala sketch. Some wanted to gain traffic, others just wanted to watch the excitement—either way, this video was bound to go viral online. ...... After leaving the screening room, Jiang Shixu called Elder Mrs. Jiang. Earlier, Elder Mrs. Jiang and Xu Jingxuan had neither come to watch. Now that the truth was out, they had to apologize to Tangtang. The call was answered by Aunt Gu, the housekeeper responsible for taking care of Elder Mrs. Jiang. "Young Master, the old madam's old condition has flared up." She's on her way to the hospital right now." "How convenient." Jiang Shixu clearly didn't believe it. Aunt Gu calmly glanced at Elder Mrs. Jiang sitting nearby. The old lady signaled her with her eyes. Aunt Gu lied in a steady tone: "Yes, Young Master. Just now you had an argument with the old madam, and her heart felt uncomfortable from the anger. You know how it is—the old lady can't handle stimulation." Jiang Shixu was silent for a moment. "What about Xu Jingxuan? Let her answer the phone." The phone was on speaker, and when Xu Jingxuan heard this, she frantically shook her head at Aunt Gu. Aunt Gu then said, "Miss Xu isn't in our car. I don't know where she is right now either." "Ha." Jiang Shixu let out a cold laugh. "How amusing. Since they won't answer the phone, I'll just have them go to Tangtang's house to apologize in person." Chutang had gone upstairs to change clothes. Jiang Shixu was alone in the garden outside making the call. On his way back to the banquet hall after hanging up, Jiang Shixu ran into Ruan Shaodong. Ruan Shaodong had just come out after finishing business talks, and the estate manager had reported to him what had happened in the banquet hall earlier. He had gone to find Elder Mrs. Jiang to demand an explanation, only to be told that Elder Mrs. Jiang and Xu Jingxuan had already left. So he came to find Jiang Shixu instead. Ruan Shaodong's expression was angry. "Shixu, what exactly happened in the banquet hall just now? Why did your grandmother and your sister bully Tangtang?" Jiang Shixu lowered his posture and spoke sincerely: "Uncle, I'm very sorry. Let me apologize to you on their behalf first." Ruan Shaodong snorted coldly. "The one who should apologize isn't you. I've already understood what happened. You were defending Tangtang the whole time. It was your grandmother and your sister who bullied Tangtang—they're the ones who should apologize! And they don't need to apologize to me; they should apologize to Tangtang." "I know. I'll have them come to your door to apologize in person." "That's more like it." Ruan Shaodong's expression softened slightly, though his tone remained stern. "The jewel of our Ruan family can't be bullied by just anyone—not even by the Jiang family!" "You're right, Uncle." Jiang Shixu had always been gentle and respectful toward Ruan Shaodong. ...... Soon, the video of Xu Jingxuan deliberately colliding with Ruan Chutang at the banquet went viral online. Besides the surveillance footage, there were also videos of Ruan Chutang and Xu Jingxuan arguing. The headlines were more sensational than the last. Such as "Green Tea Bitch tries to frame the true heiress, gets slapped in the face on the spot," "White lotus with endless schemes, heiress pursues the matter to the end," "Two heiresses pulling each other's hair, it's actually because...", "Two heiresses fight over a man," "Heiress sisters turn against each other over a man," and so on. Chen Yuanyuan scrolled through the trending searches on Weibo. "These headlines are getting more and more ridiculous." Zhou Xueluo asked in confusion, "Speaking of which, does the Jiang family actually allow this kind of video to leak?" Chutang said coldly, "Netizens don't know that Xu Jingxuan is the Jiang family's adopted daughter. Haven't you noticed that neither Old Mrs. Jiang nor Jiang Shixu appeared in the videos?" Zhou Xueluo: "That's right, no wonder it could be posted." Chen Yuanyuan snorted. "Heh, that old hag from the Jiang family is really..." Zhou Xueluo quickly interrupted her: "Tangtang, aren't you going to take down the trending searches? Could it have a bad effect on you?" Chutang shook her head. "No, I won't take it down, and I won't allow the Jiang family to take it down either. Anyway, the surveillance footage is already up—anyone can see who's right and who's wrong at a glance. Making Xu Jingxuan lose face is exactly what I want. Who told her to keep playing mind games with me?" Chen Yuanyuan nodded. "I support you!" Zhou Xueluo: "I support you too." ...... The next day, Jiang Yi and his wife brought Xu Jingxuan to apologize in person. Jiang Shixu came along as well, but Old Mrs. Jiang didn't come—they said she was so angry that her heart condition flared up and she was lying in the ICU at the hospital. Whether that was true or not, Jiang Yi and his wife showed great sincerity, so Ruan Shaodong didn't press further about Elder Mrs. Jiang's condition. Last night, both Chutang and Ruan Shaodong had stayed at the estate, so today the Jiang family came to the estate to apologize. In the luxurious reception room, Ruan Shaodong sat in the seat of honor, with the Jiang couple seated on either side in the secondary positions, while Ruan Chutang and Jiang Shixu sat together. Xu Jingxuan was kneeling. Last night, Jiang Shixu had backed up the surveillance footage on his phone and sent it to Jiang Yi and Lin Yueying. The couple had sternly reprimanded Xu Jingxuan on the spot. However, Elder Mrs. Jiang and her husband didn't dare say much—it was Jiang Shixu who had followed them to the hospital and shown the surveillance footage to Elder Mrs. Jiang. With the truth laid out plainly before her, Elder Mrs. Jiang, no matter how dissatisfied she was with Ruan Chutang, couldn't turn a blind eye to the facts. Knowing that it was Xu Jingxuan's fault, the old lady tacitly approved of them bringing Xu Jingxuan to the door to apologize. No matter how Xu Jingxuan wheedled, screamed, or made a fuss demanding to see her, she kept her door firmly shut. With the old lady's tacit approval, Jiang Yi and Lin Yueying prepared generous gifts and brought Xu Jingxuan to the door to apologize. Xu Jingxuan had intended to sit down. Just as she was about to take a seat, before the Jiang couple could even speak, Jiang Shixu said coldly, "Who allowed you to sit? Kneel!" His tone was icy, carrying an unyielding pressure that brooked no argument. Xu Jingxuan pressed her lips together, on the verge of tears, and looked at the Jiang couple with a pitiful, aggrieved expression. Jiang Yi said grimly, "Kneel." Lin Yueying also wore a cold expression. "If you're told to kneel, then kneel." Turning her gaze to Jiang Shixu, who radiated a chilling coldness, Xu Jingxuan didn't dare resist and could only kneel. Ruan Shaodong was fairly satisfied with this. The Jiang couple delivered a lengthy opening statement expressing their apologies. When it came time for Xu Jingxuan to apologize, Jiang Shixu said coldly, "Turn around. Kneel and apologize facing Tangtang." Xu Jingxuan suppressed her feelings again and again, but ultimately didn't dare to resist. She obediently turned ninety degrees to face Ruan Chutang and knelt. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have deliberately embarrassed you on such an occasion. I know I was wrong." Ruan Chutang looked at Xu Jingxuan and asked her with keen interest, "Why do you target me at every turn?"