Punishment itself wasn’t the main issue.
What mattered was Duan Xingning’s stance.
Who he chose to side with.
It was obvious—he sided with Madam Wen and Wen Shuyi.
After all, they were his fiancée and future mother-in-law.
No matter who was right or wrong, people naturally favored their own over reason.
Besides, An Li didn’t appear to be in the right.
Duan Xingning had always handled matters with stability as his priority. Both emotionally and logically, he chose to calm things down first, lest this future mother-in-law really take An Li to court.
However, his actions completely broke An Li’s heart.
She could reluctantly accept the issue with the photoshoot, but this—this she absolutely could not endure.
“Brother Xingning, why do you always refuse to believe me?” An Li’s voice trembled, yet she forced herself to question him. Every word carried a sting of grievance. “I said it already—the mango pomelo sago was taken by her herself. It has nothing to do with me!”
Though she stammered, every word was clear.
Her voice was hoarse with suppressed sobs, yet her tone was sharp, as if filled with tiny thorns.
It pricked Duan Xingning’s heart unexpectedly.
“Our Shuyi is Young Master Duan’s fiancée. What credibility does a mere assistant like you have? Why should he believe you? If you have the ability, show evidence!” Madam Wen pressed forward again, bringing her bodyguards straight toward An Li.
Her pointed finger, adorned with polished nails and embedded diamonds, nearly poked An Li’s eyes.
In the brief moment that An Li froze, someone suddenly grabbed her arm—not too hard, not too light.
She staggered backward instinctively.
When she looked up, she saw Duan Zhuo.
He pulled her behind him.
Facing Madam Wen’s accusatory finger directly, his flawless face carried sharp, striking features. His presence was aggressive yet noble, radiating a cold arrogance that seemed to look down upon everyone.
“The one who makes the claim bears the burden of proof. Since you say our girl framed your daughter, where’s the evidence?”
Duan Zhuo’s low, magnetic voice echoed through the hospital room.
His aura was overwhelming. Just moments ago, the confrontation had felt almost like idle gossip to the doctors, nurses, and even the bodyguards—but now, everyone unconsciously held their breath, tension tightening in the air, afraid of offending such a powerful figure.
Madam Wen’s aggressive demeanor instantly weakened.
The man before her was a notorious figure in high society.
Forget provoking him—even members of the Duan family themselves didn’t dare.
Those who had offended Duan Zhuo in the past either had grass growing over their graves or already had children in elementary school.
Even the family patriarch couldn’t control this grandson who held the family’s economic lifeline.
After all, most of Duan Zhuo’s wealth lay outside the Duan family. He controlled cutting-edge tech companies, to the point where even Wall Street giants treated him with utmost respect.
“What evidence?” Madam Wen retreated two steps with her bodyguards, still unwilling to concede. “We’re discussing family matters. This has nothing to do with you, Second Young Master.”
“An Li is our sister. If it’s family business, then I have every right to intervene.” A faint smile curved Duan Zhuo’s lips. “If you’re unhappy, come at me.”
After he arrived, An Li didn’t need to say a single word.
He shielded her behind him the entire time, not even allowing hostile gazes to reach her.
“Your so-called ‘sister’ deliberately switched the milk tea today, causing our Shuyi to have an allergic reaction,” Madam Wen repeated, though her tone lacked its earlier force.
“Where’s the evidence?”
“Evidence…? Isn’t our Shuyi lying in the hospital bed right now?”
“That’s a result, not evidence.” Duan Zhuo narrowed his eyes with disdain. “So you’re accusing based on nothing but your words? No proof, no witnesses?”
“What more evidence do you need?”
“You may not have any, but we do.” Duan Zhuo stated calmly. “I can prove that An Li didn’t switch the milk tea. Wen Shuyi took the wrong cup herself.”
“Y-you… how can you prove that?” Madam Wen stammered.
“Because I was right there at the time—”
Under the table.
Before he could say those words, someone pinched his arm from behind.
An Li was stopping him.
His lips pressed together briefly before he changed his words calmly. “I was at the scene.”
“That’s nonsense! How could you have been there?” Wen Shuyi panicked. “I didn’t see you at all.”
“That’s because you’re blind. If you weren’t, how could you not even tell what drink you picked up?” Duan Zhuo didn’t bother hiding his contempt.
“You!”
Wen Shuyi was left speechless.
“You may be blind, but our An Li isn’t. She noticed immediately that she had been given pearl milk tea.” Duan Zhuo paused. “But she didn’t drink it, because she’s allergic to the pearls in milk tea.”
Hearing that, An Li, standing behind him, looked up in confusion.
Since when was she allergic?
Duan Zhuo continued making things up without hesitation. “Good thing she didn’t drink it. Otherwise, we’d be the ones questioning Miss Wen—why she deliberately tried to frame her. Are you jealous that our Lili is prettier? If you have time to scheme against others, maybe you should spend it fixing your face.”
The accusation Madam Wen had placed on An Li was thrown right back at them.
Not only had they failed to frame her, but Duan Zhuo had turned the tables entirely.
Seeing the situation spiraling out of control, Duan Xingning finally spoke to stop it. “Duan Zhuo, let’s just drop this matter.”
After all, the Duan and Wen families had a good relationship. They couldn’t let such a small issue escalate into a fallout.
Duan Zhuo hadn’t intended to escalate it either.
If things escalated, the engagement between his brother and that “green tea” woman might fall apart.
That wouldn’t do.
He very much hoped they would stay together forever—so An Li wouldn’t be caught between wanting both him and his brother.
“Fine, let’s drop it. We’re not petty people anyway.” Duan Zhuo stopped at the right moment. “You two—mother and daughter—just bow and thank our girl.”
“Me? Bow? Thank her? On what grounds?” Madam Wen was still unwilling.
“Because she was the one who called the ambulance. Otherwise, your daughter might’ve caused her own death,” Duan Zhuo said coldly. “Or would you prefer to make this public? I can easily pull the delivery guy and surveillance footage and let everyone in the circle know.”
It was something he would absolutely do.
The Duan family might care about reputation and relationships.
Duan Zhuo didn’t.
This had originally been a small matter. The Wen family had simply tried to bully An Li, assuming she was easy to push around.
They hadn’t expected to hit a steel wall behind her.
Knowing she couldn’t afford to offend him, Madam Wen reluctantly stepped forward to An Li. “Thank you.”
“For what?” Duan Zhuo pressed.
“Thank you… for saving my daughter,” Madam Wen forced herself to say fully.
As for Wen Shuyi, lying in the hospital bed and unable to get up, she was also forced to thank her. She nearly ground her teeth to pieces but maintained a gentle tone. “An Li, thank you for saving me. Today’s matter was a misunderstanding. I accidentally took the wrong cup.”
An Li suddenly spoke, unexpectedly fluent, “It wasn’t a misunderstanding. You did it on purpose.”
Duan Zhuo was slightly surprised—and even felt a bit of pride, like a father seeing his child grow braver.
The girl had finally learned to stand up for herself.
After leaving the hospital room, Duan Xingning tried to speak with An Li.
But Duan Zhuo kept blocking him.
And An Li had no intention of responding.
“An Li, about today…” Duan Xingning paused. “I know it wasn’t your fault. But the situation was urgent. I didn’t want Madam Wen to target you, so I deducted your bonus to settle things quickly.”
An Li still said nothing.
The atmosphere grew heavy.
“Brother,” Duan Zhuo patted Duan Xingning’s shoulder. “I understand you.”
“Good.”
“I understand my ass. You’re just a coward. Even if you went to Chengdu to play bottom, no one would want you.”