Wine-scented Beauty

Chapter Thirty: The Battle of Wits

"Brother Lu, look at her. I finally came back, and Sister Meiqing said this to me." Tian Cuiwei tugged at his sleeve and said coquettishly, not caring whether Ji Meiqing was present or not, directly undermining her.

Ji Meiqing looked at the hand that was on Lu Yu's arm and suddenly had an urge to twist it off. However, after thinking about it, she didn't say anything since Lu Yu was still there.

"Since we've finally managed to come home, let's have a meal together."

"Oh..." Tian Cuiwei glared at Ji Meiqing with some resentment, stabbed hard with her chopsticks, and started eating angrily.

Dinner finally ended, and Ji Meiqing put down her chopsticks and said to Lu Yu, "It's your turn today."

Lu Yu understood and conscientiously cleared the dishes off the table. Tian Cuiwei, seeing this, was furious and immediately stopped Lu Yu, glaring at Ji Meiqing, "Why should he clean up! You live here, you should do it."

"So you're coming?" Ji Meiqing stared straight at her. "I happen to have room and service fees for the next few days, could you please pay them together?"

She smiled, and without arguing further, left. Tian Cuiwei was speechless for a moment, unsure of what to say.

In the end, she could only look at Lu Yu and huffed spoiledly, "Brother Lu, are you really just going to watch her take everything from you little by little?"

“I don’t mind.” He smiled and then left.

Tian Cuiwei was at a loss for words. She could only return to her previous room indignantly. She had miscalculated by leaving for so long.

Ji Meiqing took a relaxing hot bath and then lay in bed reading. Tian Cuiwei's return today was probably not accidental; she just had to be careful.

She fell asleep while watching, and when she woke up the next day, she felt a fire burning in her heart. She didn't know what was going on outside the room, but she got out of bed, put on her coat, and went out of the room.

As soon as they stepped outside, the sound grew even louder. It was sharp and mournful, as if someone was crying. Ji Meiqing frowned; why did that sound so familiar?

It seemed to be Tian Cuiwei's. She approached and realized it really was her. Ji Meiqing's head throbbed again. She walked over and coldly looked at her sitting on the ground. "What's wrong with you?"

"I'm so sorry, Sister Meiqing, I accidentally broke your brewed wine..."

"It's broken..." Ji Meiqing sniffed. There was indeed a smell of alcohol in the air. Could it be that she broke it? Looking at the black fragments on the ground, it was not hard to see the terrible state of the place.

"You're talking nonsense! It was clearly intentional. That big jar of wine was placed in the center of the table; how could it have been accidentally knocked over?" Li Ming couldn't stand her attitude any longer and hurriedly explained, his eyes filled with sincerity.

Ji Meiqing glanced at it and then looked away.

"It's just a jar of wine; we can brew more. But next time, no unauthorized personnel should come in here." Ji Meiqing glanced at her lightly and warned, "Understood?"

"I understand." She trembled at Ji Meiqing's gaze and nodded hastily.

Ji Meiqing didn't bother to look at her again and led Li Ming and the others out.

Once they reached a secluded spot, Ji Meiqing said, "I know you're unwilling to accept this, but it's alright, we can start over. Just be careful, it won't be so simple next time you see her come in."

"I'm not reconciled. Why is it that when she makes a mistake, we're the ones cleaning up after her?"

"Do you think I'll let her go so easily? The real show has only just begun." Ji Meiqing smiled. "It's getting late, let me go back and get some sleep first, then we'll go out together this afternoon."

"Yes..." Li Ming was still somewhat unwilling, but Ji Meiqing was too lazy to pay attention to him anymore. She went back to her room and slept for a while. After resting, it was already evening. Ji Meiqing lay on the bed and didn't want to move.

But since I still had things to do, I got up to wash up, and as soon as I came out, I overheard some things I shouldn't have heard. It was rather strange…

"Brother Lu, I really didn't mean to. I just accidentally bumped into it. You have to believe me. I've explained to Sister Meiqing so many times, but she just doesn't believe me. She thinks I broke it on purpose."

Hearing her voice, which sounded like she was in heat, Ji Meiqing couldn't help but shudder, but she still listened patiently.

Lu Yu said, "Then what do you want me to do?" He was clearly getting impatient, and for some reason, he looked at her with a hint of annoyance.

"Could you please go and talk to my sister for me? Although I've made things difficult for her before, I now realize how naive I was. But I know she's angry right now and won't listen to me."

“Okay,” Lu Yu agreed. “I’ll put in a good word for you. You can go do your own thing first.”

"Thank you, Brother Lu. I knew you were the best to me." She forced a smile and looked at Lu Yu. He just smiled back perfunctorily.

After listening for a while, Ji Meiqing went directly to the back to find Li Ming and took the mother and son out onto the street.

Sitting on the oxcart, Ji Meiqing took out two money pouches from her bosom and handed them to them, saying, "These are the wages I promised you for this matter. Remember to keep them safe."

Li Ming stared in astonishment at the bulging money bag, unable to fathom how much money was inside.

"Don't be surprised when you see the monthly salary plus bonuses, subsidies, and social insurance and housing fund!"

Upon hearing this, Li Ming eagerly opened the money bag, counted the money, and was then shocked...

"This...this...this has already exceeded the amount you promised..."

“Yes, money makes the world go round, especially for you guys. This way you’ll be even more motivated to work for me in the future!” She smiled. “Today we’re here to buy medicinal herbs and some raw materials. Take a look first, and meet us at Xikelai at dusk.” Ji Meiqing lightly jumped off the car and then swaggered away from their sight.

She went directly to the pharmacy, bought some medicine, and then casually looked around the street. When she saw something she liked, she just gritted her teeth and left.

Meanwhile, Widow Li took her son to look around the butcher shop. After eating at the Lu family's house for so many days, her son had finally started to look healthier.

She seemed to be growing taller, but what made her even more gratified was that the money she received today was enough for them to eat well for a month. Moreover, they could even save some money when eating at the Lu family's house.

She left happily, bought a pound of lean meat, and then took him to buy a set of clothes. Finally, she led Li Ming to Xikelai to meet up.