Still, Jiang Qingli could not suppress her anger. “My mother secretly stopped paying Jiang Chen’s living expenses for 3 years, and I only found out today. And because Jiang Chen pushed Jiang Haotian down the stairs, the Jiang Family kicked him out.”
“Jiang Chen came to see me today and said he wanted to cut all ties with me. That’s all.”
She placed particular emphasis on the words “cut all ties,” practically grinding them out through clenched teeth.
“What did you say?” Shen Yulan’s expression immediately darkened.
‘Mother Jiang is actually that stingy?’
Without living expenses, how was Jiang Chen supposed to survive?
And cutting all ties? Was that really true?
Jiang Chen loved Jiang Qingli so deeply. Could he truly bear to leave her?
Shen Yulan’s surprised reaction only made Jiang Qingli’s expression darker.
She did not even understand what was wrong with herself. Whenever she remembered Jiang Chen’s cold attitude, an inexplicable suffocating feeling tightened around her chest.
Then there was the matter of his living expenses. Every time she thought about it, frustration churned inside her.
She was angry at herself, angry at Mother Jiang, and angry at Jiang Chen.
She simply could not understand how little he must have trusted her.
He had not even told her about something this serious. He would rather go hungry by himself?
‘If he had told me, wouldn’t I have helped him?’
‘Did he ever think about what would happen if he couldn’t afford next semester’s tuition?’
She had even given him a way out, yet he had refused to take it.
He had said he no longer liked her and wanted to cut all ties with her.
‘Has he ever thought about who else would take care of him if I stopped caring about him?’
But ultimately, the person Jiang Qingli was most angry with was Mother Jiang.
She hated owing anyone anything, so she had always believed that she had never wronged Jiang Chen over the years.
But now, she could not help wondering whether there had been even more unfair treatment like this in places she had never seen.
‘Why?’
As far as she was concerned, even if Jiang Chen had never accomplished anything remarkable, he had at least never done anything wrong.
‘Why can’t Mom tolerate him at all?’
Jiang Qingli tightly gripped the wineglass in her hand, her eyes gloomy.
Only when the fragile glass shattered in her grasp and blood began seeping from her palm did she finally snap back to her senses.
Irritated, she shook the blood from her hand.
“Eldest Young Miss, are you all right?” Butler Li was startled and hurried forward to wipe the blood away, but Jiang Qingli avoided him.
Already in a terrible mood, she replied coldly, “I’m fine. Butler Li, you remembered to park my car outside the club entrance, right?”
There was a reason she had chosen this particular club.
It was extremely close to both Jiang Chen’s school and his residence, practically within a few minutes’ walk.
If Jiang Chen returned home today, he would definitely see her car parked outside.
Jiang Qingli had a sensitive stomach, and Jiang Chen had always urged her to drink less, or preferably not drink at all.
In the past, whenever she drank even a little, Jiang Chen would worry about her. No matter how far away he was, he would make a special trip just to pick her up.
She refused to believe that Jiang Chen could see her car outside and resist coming in to find her.
Nearly half an hour had already passed.
Surely his tantrum should be over by now.
“Don’t worry, Eldest Young Miss. I parked it in the most noticeable spot. I guarantee Young Master Jiang will definitely see…”
Before Butler Li could finish, Jiang Qingli glared him into silence.
“What does me parking here have to do with him?” Jiang Qingli snapped. “Am I not allowed to visit a club owned by my own family?”
“Yes, yes, of course.”
Butler Li immediately changed his tune. “I understand, Eldest Young Miss. If Young Master Jiang comes later, I’ll make sure he isn’t allowed inside. I’ll tell him you don’t want to see him and absolutely won’t let him disturb your evening!”
“You!!”
Jiang Qingli’s face darkened. She pointed at Butler Li, but after standing there speechless for several seconds, she still could not force out another word.
“Fine. You’ve got guts.”
‘Was that what I meant?!’
Butler Li spread his hands with an innocent expression.
‘Eldest Young Miss, wasn’t that what you ordered me to do?’
‘Why are you getting worked up again?’
Just then, a knock sounded at the door, followed by the manager’s voice.
“CEO Jiang, there’s a young man outside who says he’s your younger brother. He came to pick you up. Should I let him in?”
‘Younger brother?!’
Other than Jiang Chen, who else could her younger brother possibly be?
Jiang Qingli’s gloomy eyes instantly lit up.
The faintest smile appeared at the corners of her lips.
‘Heh. After everything he said so confidently this time, after all those ruthless words, I was wondering how long he could resist coming to find me.’
‘So that’s all his resolve amounted to.’
As expected, he still could not let her go.
All that talk about no longer liking her had merely been another attempt to deceive himself.
“Heh, make him stand outside,” Jiang Qingli said with a soft snort. “Tell him I don’t want to see him.”
She wiped the blood from her hand, elegantly took a sip of wine, and leaned back against the sofa.
The gloom surrounding her moments ago had vanished. Even her complexion looked noticeably better.
Yet she remained stubborn with her words.
Butler Li could tell at a glance that most of her anger had already disappeared. He quickly whispered to the manager, “It’s cold outside. Let Young Master Jiang come in and wait outside the private room. As long as he doesn’t enter the room itself, it doesn’t count as letting him in.”
“Yes!”
‘Why didn’t I think of that?’
If he did not enter the private room, then technically he had never been let inside.
‘No wonder this guy works directly beside the boss.’
The manager quickly brought Jiang Haotian to the entrance of the private room, then looked at Jiang Qingli with an ingratiating smile.
“CEO Jiang, I brought your younger brother here. Look, I didn’t let him inside.”
Hearing this, Jiang Qingli was in a rather good mood. She looked toward the doorway with a faintly mocking expression.
“Jiang Chen, didn’t you say you wanted to cut all ties with me?” Jiang Qingli asked. “So what are you doing here now?”
Almost the instant those words left her mouth, she clearly saw Jiang Haotian’s face standing in the doorway.
Her expression visibly darkened at a speed anyone could see.
“You… Why are you here?”
Jiang Qingli immediately glared at the manager. “Didn’t I say not to let anyone in?”
The surprise and displeasure in her eyes were almost impossible to hide.
‘This club manager is getting better and better at his job, isn’t he?’
He actually dared to obey her on the surface while doing the exact opposite behind her back?
Besides, hadn’t the manager said it was her younger brother?
‘What kind of younger brother is this?’
‘Those two younger brothers aren’t the same at all!’
“No… CEO Jiang, this young master said himself that he was your younger brother,” the manager explained miserably. “Could there have been some misunderstanding?”
The manager felt like crying.
‘Can someone please have some sympathy for a working man?’
Was he supposed to let people in or not?
Besides, he had assumed no one would possibly dare impersonate Jiang Qingli’s younger brother.
Jiang Qingli’s expression remained gloomy.
It was not that she genuinely disliked Jiang Haotian.
She had simply been certain that the person outside was Jiang Chen, only to discover that it was Jiang Haotian instead.
‘No, seriously, why is he here?’
The mocking words she had just directed at “Jiang Chen” suddenly felt painfully embarrassing.
She had completely humiliated herself.
Already somewhat drunk, Jiang Qingli’s face became as dark as the bottom of a pot.
She was not the only one disappointed.
Shen Yulan, who had been watching with anticipation, was equally disappointed.
“Manager, you people are really getting better and better at your jobs, aren’t you?” Shen Yulan blurted out. “You’ll let just any random nobody in now? Is this Qingli’s younger brother? Hurry up and get him out of here!”
Jiang Haotian’s expression instantly turned black.