After My Flash Marriage with the Sick Beauty, I Reached the Pinnacle of My Life - Chapter 36

“Shishi!”

Xia Shishi was holding the organized data when Mother Xia stumbled back into the house from outside.

Mother Xia was extremely worried, terrified that her precious daughter might do something drastic.

Xia Shishi was already known to be a crybaby, easily affected by emotional turmoil.

The comments from those netizens were so excessive; if Xia Shishi had seen them, how heartbroken would she be? It would have been alright if Xia Shishi were still with Wen Jiao, as Mother Xia was sure Wen Jiao would take good care of her.

But upon hearing the news of Xia Shishi’s return, Mother Xia couldn’t help but assume the worst!

“Don’t be sad, Mom will have someone issue a clarification right away,” Mother Xia was about to embrace her daughter and comfort her wholeheartedly.

Xia Shishi turned around. “I’m not sad.”

Mother Xia’s words instantly caught in her throat.

Her daughter’s current state was certainly unexpected.

Initially, Xia Shishi’s insistence on going to the engagement banquet was enough to surprise Mother Xia. Now, the Xia Shishi who used to cry pitifully just at the thought of Wen Jiao possibly not liking her, was utterly indifferent to Qi Xue’s slander and the netizens’ vicious words.

If the previous Xia Shishi felt like she had become sensible to Mother Xia.

Then the current one truly felt like she had grown up.

Mother Xia suddenly felt a bit reluctant; without her daughter’s usual acts of childish affection, her heart felt empty, as if her daughter was no longer close to her.

Xia Shishi couldn’t be bothered to reassure Mother Xia at the moment.

She was in a hurry to refute the accusations.

After the matter was resolved, Mother Xia would naturally feel relieved!

Only then did Mother Xia look at the items in Xia Shishi’s hand. “What are these?”

Xia Shishi pulled out a few sheets of paper from inside. “Qi Xue’s salary slips, and these.”

Xia Shishi then took out a USB drive.

“The home surveillance footage.”

In her previous life, Xia Shishi had panicked and never expected that Qi Xue, with whom she had gotten along so well, would turn around and bite her.

Instead of trying to resolve the issue, she focused more on being sad, heartbroken, and staying indoors all day.

It was her parents and Wen Jiao who stepped forward to deal with the matter for her.

However, since the person involved didn’t come forward herself, the persuasiveness was greatly weakened, and by the time the evidence was collected, it was too late to completely change the netizens’ impression of her.

She became Xia Shishi, a person full of sin.

The stock of Xia’s Group also plummeted because of this incident.

Although Wen Jiao helped later, the company still began to show signs of decline, and with Fu Yunhan continuing to sabotage them from the shadows, the Xia family was completely ruined!

Xia Shishi clutched the USB drive. She was well-prepared and believed she could overcome the difficulty this time.

She was a bit perplexed: “Am I too foolish, or is Qi Xue too foolish?”

Mother Xia: “Shishi, what are you talking about?”

Xia Shishi snapped out of her thoughts, unable to explain that she was pondering the original plot. She merely questioned Mother Xia: “Mom, do you think Qi Xue didn’t consider the consequences of doing all this?”

Mother Xia hesitated.

Thinking that Xia Shishi had now grown up and some things could be said directly, she finally spoke: “Silly girl, everyone in the family knows you are the most soft-hearted.”

Xia Shishi: “…”

“You might say harsh things, but as long as someone needs help in front of you, you will always assist. Even if someone makes you angry, you just chase them away and don’t hold a grudge afterwards.” Mother Xia could understand the reason Qi Xue dared to do this.

Qi Xue had been around Xia Shishi for so long.

She knew Xia Shishi’s personality.

Qi Xue probably firmly believed that Xia Shishi wouldn’t settle the score with her, and even if angry, she would at most warn her to stay away.

Taking the money and leaving the city—what difference would it make?

The money she received from the Xia family, and the benefits she gained from others, were enough for an ordinary person to live a stable life.

Mother Xia was more puzzled than Xia Shishi. Her point of confusion was why Xia Shishi had suddenly fired Qi Xue before, and now had the evidence ready. Did she know something in advance, and if so, why didn’t she tell her?

Her daughter truly wasn’t close to her anymore.

Mother Xia began to feel that letting her daughter marry was a mistake.

It was only an engagement now; was it too late to go back on it…?

Xia Shishi understood, and her face flushed, irritated at herself for being so weak: “Darn it, I’ll call a press conference right now and let her see if I’m soft-hearted or not!”

She had warned Qi Xue plenty of times. This time, she absolutely had to resolve the matter completely!

The Xia family had a long-term collaboration with many reporters.

When the video was released this time, the reporters were sensible enough to wait for the Xia family to contact them first. Once they received the call, they rushed over without delay.

Half an hour later, Xia Shishi, having finished her makeup, first met not the reporters, but someone sent by Wen Jiao.

“Hello, I’m a lawyer from the firm. These are the documents Director Wen asked me to give you. May I ask if I need to step in later?”

Wen Jiao was meticulous in her work.

As soon as she learned that Xia Shishi planned to hold a press conference to clarify, she had people prepare the relevant documents.

The lawyer smiled at Xia Shishi and explained: “Ms. Qi Xue’s current act of spreading rumors is a serious offense. The number of views across various platforms has reached fifty million and is rapidly increasing. Furthermore, she incited netizens to verbally abuse you, causing mental distress to the party concerned…”

The party concerned, Xia Shishi, held the documents, her eyes gleaming, smiling happily.

She didn’t look affected at all.

The lawyer’s voice became hesitant, but he persisted: “According to Article 246, Paragraph 1 of the Criminal Law, we can demand compensation from Ms. Qi Xue or a fixed-term imprisonment of less than three years.”

The lawyer thought Xia Shishi would choose the fixed-term imprisonment of less than three years.

People like Xia Shishi were not short of money and would prefer the offender to pay a significant price.

Although it would be a bit difficult, he was a top-tier lawyer, and he had to strive to get the opponent incarcerated.

Xia Shishi hugged the documents tightly: “Wuwu, my wife is too good to me.”

Lawyer: ?

“I told her to rest well, yet she still has to worry about my issues. This clearly means she loves me. Muah, I love you too, wife.”

“…We are talking about serious business.”

Xia Shishi smiled sweetly: “I choose compensation.”

The lawyer looked utterly astonished.

“She must have taken money from someone else to do this. Since that’s the case, money is what matters most in her eyes, so I not only want her to spit out everything, but I also want her to spit out double.” Xia Shishi hooked her lips in anticipation.

“Tell me, how long will it take an ordinary person to earn that much money?”

The lawyer suppressed his astonishment, thinking that when it came to cruelty, it was these wealthy people who were the cruelest: “Based on Ms. Qi Xue’s education, barring any accidents, it would take at least five years of salary, and that’s the most ideal scenario.”

Xia Shishi pouted: “Only five years?”

He did say it was the most ideal scenario.

The lawyer thought it would likely take longer.

Having done such a thing, what good job would be willing to hire Qi Xue in the future? Her employment options would be much more limited, her salary lower, and the time required for repayment would also be longer.

How many years can an ordinary person work? With this compensation, although she wouldn’t go to jail, she would waste the best time of her life.

The lawyer took a deep breath: “Then, after Miss Xia’s press conference, I will make my appearance.”

Xia Shishi smiled at him: “Tell my dear one I said thank you.”

“Miss Xia,” the lawyer reminded her, “I will be the one going up to handle this matter later.”

Shouldn’t she be thanking him?

Xia Shishi was not that polite and immediately pointed out: “Did you not take my wife’s money?”

Thinking of the evidence Xia Shishi had prepared, the lawyer forced a smile: “It is my honor to serve both Misses!”

The reporters waited on the venue for a few minutes.

Xia Shishi came out from the back.

Flashbulbs flared up one after another. This was the first time they had seen Xia Shishi’s appearance.

She was unexpectedly beautiful.

Her skin was fair and delicate; even under the high-definition camera, not a single blemish could be seen.

It was thought that as the daughter of the Xia Group, she must have been using the products produced by the group since childhood to maintain such perfect skin.

Some reporters entertained the idea of checking out those products after work.

When their attention turned back to her, their eyes held a degree of envy.

However, there were still reporters who maintained a hostile stance: “Miss Xia, is it true that you don’t treat your employees as human beings?”

“Do you think your employer-employee relationship justifies those actions against her?”

“Do you intend to issue a public apology?”

These reporters were aggressive, showing no mercy in their questioning.

Every word and phrase was designed to push Xia Shishi to the brink.

This was a conflict between the working class and the capitalists; no one working for a leader or boss would want to be humiliated. They were human too! They rejected workplace PUA! And they certainly rejected bullying!

Once the reporters had such emotions, they only looked at Xia Shishi with disgust.

Seeing how pampered she looked, they could only curse her as a ‘dog capitalist.’

Xia Shishi looked calmly in their direction.

Such things had happened many times since Qi Xue’s incident.

In her previous life, starting with this event, countless accusations were piled onto her, and every single person genuinely wanted her to disappear.

But Xia Shishi wouldn’t allow it!

Her eyes held a hint of amusement: “How much is your monthly salary right now?”

The reporters were stunned by Xia Shishi’s counter-question, wanting to press further, but Xia Shishi insisted they give an answer before she would continue.

So, one reporter replied: “Around ten thousand…”

Xia Shishi nodded and asked another question: “Is it hard work?”

Nonsense, of course, it was hard work.

They carried cameras and microphones, running everywhere every day, sometimes too busy to eat, and following interviews on an empty stomach.

They didn’t even have fixed working hours; they had to get out of bed when needed, and they couldn’t even sleep peacefully when they got home every day, afraid that their boss would call and wake them up.

Money was hard to earn, and life was hard to live.

But as reporters, they knew clearly that 90% of people in the country did not earn over ten thousand a month.

They were already better off than the majority.

Xia Shishi continued: “If your salary were multiplied by five times, would you be happy doing this job?”

One reporter whispered: “Of course…”

With a salary of fifty thousand a month, they would practically live at their boss’s house, and they’d jump out of bed the moment their boss called them.

There would absolutely be no complaints!

Wait, was Xia Shishi implying… ?

The large screen behind her lit up, displaying Qi Xue’s monthly salary statements and job content.

From the time Xia Shishi was in high school until now.

The monthly salary was never less than fifty thousand. On holidays and festive occasions, the salary would increase further.

And the job description only had a few simple points:

Accompany Xia Shishi to school.

Make Xia Shishi happy.

That’s it.

The Xia family had nannies, so Qi Xue didn’t need to do any cleaning or prepare meals.

Nor did Qi Xue need to tutor her; tutors would come to teach, and Qi Xue’s grades were even worse than hers.

The two requirements mentioned above could be said to have no barriers to entry.

The only potential underlying requirement might be a good temper, not contradicting the employer, lest she be fired the next day.

What kind of requirement was that? Give them fifty thousand a month, and whatever Xia Shishi said would be law!

Did they dare to defy their boss’s requests?

Did they dare to talk back to their boss?

Who would dare…

“But, making Qi Xue kneel in the rain is too much.”

This complaint did not resonate with the majority of reporters. Hadn’t they rushed to their destinations in the rain countless times without umbrellas?

However, they still hoped to hear Xia Shishi’s explanation on this matter.

Xia Shishi’s explanation was simple and direct.

She had people play the video from the USB drive.

Thus, through the surveillance footage, they saw Qi Xue’s behavior in the Xia family home on a normal day.

When Xia Shishi wasn’t around, she acted like a young mistress, ordering people to cook whatever she wanted. If the ingredients were cheap, she’d complain, insisting on the same standard as Xia Shishi’s.

Even when Xia Shishi was present, the two of them would chat and laugh, and whatever Qi Xue wanted, Xia Shishi would have people prepare it for her.

They saw absolutely none of the abuse Qi Xue had accused her of in the video.

Beating and verbal abuse?

They looked more like close sisters.

If one could fake it for a moment, the surveillance footage, which was fast-forwarded, lasted for over ten minutes, and they still didn’t see the scenes Qi Xue had described!

Xia Shishi grew bored waiting and spoke under the reporters’ astonished gaze: “As for kneeling in the rain and having a high fever for three days, I also have her attendance record here, and the reason for her leave…”

Each piece of evidence demonstrated that Qi Xue was lying.

At this, the reporters were stunned.

Would they be willing to have a life where they got fifty thousand a month just to play with the young mistress, and got whatever they wanted?

One reporter immediately asked sincerely: “Miss Xia, you probably still need a playmate, right? Do you think I could be considered?”

Her education was higher than Qi Xue’s, and she was more capable than Qi Xue. She could polish the floor Xia Shishi walked on until it shone like a mirror.

“No need,” Xia Shishi smiled sweetly at her, “I have to spend time with my wife every day now, and my life is already very fulfilling.”

“…” She wouldn’t mind turning gay right on the spot.

Otherwise, taking this money would make her uneasy.

Xia Shishi continued to address the reporters: “Regarding the product issues that netizens are concerned about, I can guarantee that I have used our company’s products since childhood, and no skin problems have occurred. Everyone can feel safe buying them. The ingredients are also labeled, and if you are genuinely worried, you can check them. If you experience any allergies, feel free to contact us anytime.”

The Xia Group was, after all, a brand with over ten years of history.

It had consistently focused on developing skincare product formulas.

And having been sold for so many years, the price has always remained accessible to the public, always being consumer-friendly.

How could consumers give up such a good product just because of Qi Xue’s slanderous video?

Besides, Xia Shishi’s face was truly well-maintained!

“Miss, you can rest assured now.”

Uncle Zhang smiled with relief.

He also didn’t expect Xia Shishi to perform so well in front of the camera, saying things that were faultless, and preparing very sufficient evidence in a short time.

She was so impressive that even standing next to Wen Jiao, Uncle Zhang wouldn’t feel she was inferior.

She showed no signs of nervousness and was composed and graceful.

Her occasional display of a young girl’s charm also made people feel close to her.

Uncle Zhang turned to look at Wen Jiao and noticed a spontaneous, gentle smile on her face as she looked at the person on the screen.