She scoffed and nodded at the card in Yao Tang’s hand.
“For all I know, as soon as you cash out that money, you’re just going to use it to renovate your dilapidated old house, buy some furniture, and find Yao Yana marriage match. It will be gone in the blink of an eye! Well? Am I wrong?”
Qin Man rolled her eyes atYang Rongand his wife, convinced that she had seen through their opportunistic facade.
Jiang Wan exchanged a look with her husband before saying, “Don’t worry about us, Sister-in-Law. We’re getting by quite all right.”
As for Yao Yuan, he was staring at his wife incredulously, a myriad of emotions flickering in his eyes.
Old Madam Yao, on the other hand, was turning red with fury. Her chest heaved up and down as she tried to catch her breath. There were a lot of things she wanted to say, but she couldn’t find the words to express herself.
She felt betrayed. She had never known that her eldest daughter-in-law had such a vile character. If she had, she would never have let that woman into her family!
Just then, Yao Tangreached out and squeezed the old lady’s hand.
The gesture was comforting, and Old Madam Yaoinstantly calmed down. Her rage cooled as well, if only a little.
She turned to her eldest son. “So this is how you’ve been seeing your brother and his family all this time?”
Yao Yuan shotQin Mana glare and sighed. “Of course not, Mom. Look, ifYao Tangwants to learn how to play a musical instrument, then she is free to do so. However, I think she should put it on hold until the college entrance exams are over.”
He shifted his gaze to Yao Tang. “This is a crucial stage in your life. Don’t waste your time and effort on anything else, and just focus on your studies for now. Do your best to get into a good college.” He took out a second card. “Here, use the money in this one to buy some clothes and other nice things for yourself. Take it as compensation for all that your parents owe you.”
Jiang Wan frowned again. There was no need for others to finance them; her family could afford to raise the two teenagers!
She made to return the second card to Yao Yuan, butOld Madam Yaowas quick to clasp it againstYao Tang’s hand.
Qin Man watched it all happen before her eyes, her upper lip twitching in outrage. She glared at everyone and practically snarled, “Ranranand I will be taking our leave. Do enjoy your food and each other’s company!”
What a despicable affair!
They had lost their mind, all of them! Especially that old hag. She just kept going on and on about whatever she liked, and didn’t even praise Ranranfor being such an outstanding student and an exemplary daughter.
They would only be wasting their time by pinning their expectations on that good-for-nothing Yao Tang.
So what if her test results were better than Ranran’s? She couldn’t compare to their precious daughter in other aspects, anyway.
One day, that old lady would come to know just how wrong she was, and she would definitely regret her choices!
Qin Man tookYao Ran’s hand and was about to usher the girl out of the room when a bunch of fashionable young men poked their heads through the door.
“Are you here, Leader Yao?” one of them called out in earnest.
Yao Ran stopped in her tracks, surprised to find the genius boys from theMusic Association. She had only seen them from afar and never had the chance to approach them before.
Then their words slowly sank in.
‘Leader Yao? Who is he referring to?’
Qin Man immediately presumed that they wereYao Ran’s friends. She smiled at them and said, “Hello. Did you come forRanran? You are her friends, right?”
But they only glanced at Yao Rancuriously, as if they had no idea who she was.
“No, we are addressing Yao Tang,” a boy replied as he spotted her sitting at the table just a few feet away. “We are good friends with her. In fact, she is the concertmaster of our ensemble.”
Tension filled the room as everyone froze in shock.
Yao Tang finally got up from her seat and walked toward the door to speak with the boys.
Apparently, they were also dining in the restaurant, and just happened to catch a glimpse of Yao Tangearlier. They hesitated at first, but they were glad that it really turned out to be her.
Qin Man stood rooted to the spot, her face ashen. She was struggling to wrap her head around the title “concertmaster”.
What did those rascals mean?
Did Yao Tangreally hold such an important position?
Yao Tang and the boys exchanged goodbyes shortly after, and she came back into the room, shutting the door behind her.Qin Manfollowed her back to the table, her nostrils flaring.
“Concertmaster?” she shrieked before turning to Yao Yuan.
She opened her mouth to say something else, but was unexpectedly cut off by her husband.
“What the hell are you trying to do now?” Yao Yuanroared.
