Chapter 482 — Money Delivered to the Door

Tang Zhi felt that using this money was not quite right, yet she was utterly without recourse — who could she blame for her family's run of bad luck, with every misfortune landing on them at once?

"Sis, don't be sad. That bastard's got no eyes in his head. Don't you worry — I, Xiaowei, am a man too, and I swear I'll pay you back every cent!" Xiaowei knew what was weighing on his sister's heart and tried to console her. "I won't put you in a tight spot!"

"Mm..." Tang Zhi nodded, somewhat comforted. At least Xiaowei was not the sort who only knew how to ask her for money; the fact that he had the heart to say so was enough.

The bank card was opened in Tang Zhi's name, and a one-time withdrawal of five hundred thousand naturally required her to appear in person. She found a bank open twenty-four hours, took out the money, and then, together with her mother, Xiaowei, and Xiaodan, took a taxi to the residential compound where the big boss lived.

"This is the place? My, how grand!" Mother Tang eyed the luxurious facilities and the handsome houses of the compound, and could not help a trace of envy. "When will our family ever live in a house as fine as this?"

"Auntie, this is Qianhua Waterside! It's one of the most upscale residential developments in the whole city — only rich people live here, and a single unit costs upward of ten million!" Xiaowei had been here several times before, so he knew the local market fairly well.

"Ten million? So expensive!" Mother Tang was startled, then cast her daughter a look of regret. "I'd been thinking my daughter had found herself a golden catch, and that your uncle and I might have a chance to live in a mansion like this someday. Now it looks like that's never to be!"

"Mom, what are you saying!" Tang Zhi frowned. This was precisely her sore spot, and she had no wish to bring it up; yet her mother insisted on voicing it.

"All right, all right, I'll say no more!" Yet Mother Tang was secretly turning something over in her mind: should she find a chance to talk with Wei Zhao, to see whether there was any hope of a reconciliation? Though perhaps these rich young masters had long since had a match arranged for them at home — otherwise why would he have broken up with her daughter so suddenly, without the slightest warning? There had to be some reason behind it!

Mother Tang had grown old and shrewd, and her mind was naturally full of twists and turns, seeing further than Tang Zhi ever could. And since she knew nothing of Feng Xiaoxiao, she was convinced there must be some hidden story behind Wei Zhao's casting her daughter aside.

So Mother Tang thought: even if Wei Zhao had a betrothal in place and could not marry her daughter, surely she could still be the other woman, couldn't she? Yes — her demands were not high; just buy the family a fine house here at Qianhua Waterside! And if that could not be managed, then she must at least extract another sum of money from Wei Zhao — no letting him off cheap! Even if he had not done anything to her daughter, he had still wounded her daughter's feelings!

Tang Zhi still had no idea that her mother was once again stewing over such mercenary schemes. Her own thoughts were still simple and clean, so it would never have occurred to her that her mother could harbor something so shameful. Had she known, she would have been furious beyond words.

Still, one could hardly blame Mother Tang for being so mercenary — the fickleness of the world had made her truly afraid of poverty! After so many bitter years, she did not want her daughter to suffer any more. That was why even the notion of being the other woman could surface in her mind — so one could scarcely blame her!

"This is it!" Xiaowei pointed out a detached villa to Tang Zhi and her mother. "President Zou lives right here."

"Mom, once we're inside, don't say anything out of place! This time we are not to hand over the money just like that — we must get an agreement signed first." Tang Zhi drew a deep breath and steadied her emotions, restoring herself for the moment to some semblance of normal, so that she would not think of the day's events.

Though Tang Zhi had never set foot in society, at a prestigious private school like Songshan No. 1 Senior High she had seen a good deal, and she knew that everything had to be put in a contract!

It was precisely because the contract had been unclear that her father had gone so long without receiving any compensation. So this time, paying this President Zou his money was all very well, but he must be made to write out a statement in his own hand, renouncing all further claims against Xiaodan.

"All right! We'll do as you say." Mother Tang knew her daughter had broader experience, and nodded in agreement.

Only then did Xiaowei step up and ring the villa's doorbell.

Zou Tiandi had been thoroughly miserable these past two days. He had offended not only Wei Zhao but Li Cihua as well — and either of them could snuff him out in an instant! And he had not the slightest thought of resistance.

His opponents were simply too formidable. Wei Zhao was himself a skilled hand of Yellow Rank or above, and there was no lack of Yellow Rank experts around Li Cihua either. In the old days, with Uncle Yan backing him, he could still swagger about Songshan City; but now that Uncle Yan had been crippled by Wei Zhao, how would he dare show his face outside and strut about?

"Damn it! To think that I, Zou Tiandi, was once somebody in Songshan City — and now I've come to such a wretched pass!" Zou Tiandi poured himself a glass of red wine and drained it in one gulp, speaking with no small bitterness.

Yet bitter as he was, he still counted himself lucky! He had offended Li Cihua, true, but it was no deep blood feud — he had merely declined to work with him, and Li Cihua would not come after him for that. And Wei Zhao had promised to let the matter drop. So Zou Tiandi could take a little comfort.

Otherwise he would by now have been unable to eat or sleep in peace. Fortunately, in a little while, a pretty young thing would be delivered to his door for his amusement, which soothed his gloomy heart a little.

At the sound of the doorbell, Zou Tiandi straightened the hem of his jacket. He knew it must be Xiaodan — after all, he had given her an ultimatum: tonight she was either to bring the money, or to have herself washed clean and delivered to him!

The nanny had already gone to answer the door, and Zou Tiandi strolled out of his study, heading down toward the living room below.

Tang Zhi, Mother Tang, Xiaodan, and Xiaowei entered the living room and sat down on the sofa with a certain awkwardness. Xiaowei and Xiaodan were somewhat better off — they had been here several times before — but Tang Zhi and Mother Tang were setting foot inside a mansion like this for the first time, and they were at something of a loss.

"Xiaodan's here, is she? So are you here to hand over the money, or to hand over the girl?" Zou Tiandi spoke as he came down the stairs, but when he saw four people sitting on the sofa, he could not help but pause slightly! Yet because the living room sofa faced away from the staircase, Zou Tiandi could not see who the visitors were.

"President Zou, I... we've brought the money!" Xiaowei stood up and turned to face Zou Tiandi.

"What? You've brought the money?" Zou Tiandi was taken aback, and in an instant a surge of fury rushed to his head! He had never imagined that Xiaowei could scrape together another five hundred thousand! How was that possible? Xiaowei's family and Xiaodan's were both from the countryside — even if they borrowed from every household in the village, they probably could not come up with that much money, could they?