Faced with Liu Xin's apology, Mu Linjing had no intention of accepting. She knew too well that they were only bowing their heads to her for the moment. Once she let them off the hook, they would quickly reveal their true colors.
She spread her hands, "Auntie, I don't have the final say in this matter. You owe the boss money, not me, so you can't beg me."
Liu Xin was quite patient. After all, when you're under someone else's roof, you have to bow your head. She continued to speak kindly to Mu Linjing, "Linjing, what Auntie means is, why don't you help us pay this money back? You work in a big company; this amount must be a small sum for you. Your uncle and I didn't go home for the New Year, and Ni Mei is so pitiful all by herself at home."
Little did she know, the less her precious daughter was mentioned, the angrier Mu Linjing became.
During the New Year holiday, she had finally managed to spend some time with her parents, only to have Zhang Xinyi disrupt it. The mere mention of this person made her angry.
"She's not pitiful at all. My savings were all used for my mother's medical treatment, so I really can't help you. You owe the debt yourself, so you pay it back yourselves. Work hard, pay off the money, and then you can go back to see your precious daughter."
She couldn't be bothered to talk to these two any longer. She asked the boss for a private room. If she hadn't seen the thick skin of this couple before, she would surely be depressed now.
Seeing that this approach wouldn't work, Zhang Yi and his wife could only grudgingly return to the kitchen to continue their work. As they worked, they grumbled, "The richer they get, the stingier they become. I think her boyfriend is a pauper too."
These words fell into the ears of another employee in the kitchen, who immediately corrected them, "You two really don't know who you're dealing with. Do you know who that person was just now? That was the second young master of the Zhan family. He's loaded with money, how could he be a pauper? You really have no eye for it."
Zhang Yi and his wife had naturally never heard of the Zhan family, so they quickly asked, "Is the Zhan family very rich?"
"It's clear you're from out of town. The Zhan family is a dominant force in this area. A tiny bit flowing from their fingertips would be enough to repay your debt. Why aren't you begging them nicely?"
Upon hearing this, the eyes of the couple lit up. They hadn't expected Mu Linjing to find such a wealthy boyfriend. Wouldn't that mean she'd become a rich lady in the future, free from worries about food and clothing?
Liu Xin started to scheme in her mind. How could that girl Mu Linjing be worthy of such a good man? If her own daughter could get involved with the Zhan family, wouldn't she be able to wear gold and silver, and live a life of luxury in the future?
She called Zhang Yi aside, and the two of them secretly plotted, deciding that their own daughter was the most suitable.
Mu Linjing was unaware that her boyfriend had been targeted. She hadn't seen Zhan Yichen for half a month, so they naturally had a lot to talk about.
As they were chatting happily, she received a call from her mother. She thought she had forgotten to report her safety after arriving, but as soon as the call connected, she heard her mother's anxious voice before she could even speak.
"Jing'er, did you see Xinyi at the station?"
Mu Linjing found it strange that Zhang Xinyi would run into her. "No, why?"
Aunt Mu on the other end sighed deeply and recounted the day's events.
With Zhang Yi and his wife not around, Zhang Xinyi's meals had always been taken care of by their family. Today, when she went to deliver food to Zhang Xinyi, she found that no one was home and her phone was turned off. She searched every room and only found a note on the table.
Zhang Xinyi had said she was going to find her parents, which greatly frightened Aunt Mu.
Even though their hometown wasn't far from Pengcheng, Zhang Xinyi was still a student. Going to an unfamiliar place would naturally make any adult worry.
Although her parents were not likable and her own character was not very good, she was not an extremely evil person. Aunt Mu was naturally worried.
So, she quickly called Mu Linjing and asked her to check the station to see if she could find her.
Mu Linjing was immediately furious. This person was truly good at causing trouble for her.
But she couldn't just ignore it. Firstly, her mother was also very worried, and secondly, she couldn't just let a child run around outside by herself.
Pengcheng was a vast city with many bad people. If something happened and she didn't go, she would feel guilty.
After explaining the situation to Zhan Yichen, they hurriedly left the restaurant and happened to run into Zhang Yi and his wife, who were still plotting. Seeing them in such a hurry, they even went up to ask what had happened.
Mu Linjing was somewhat exasperated, "It's your good daughter who ran off here by herself, forcing me to go look for her now."
Upon hearing that it was their family's business, the couple dropped their amused demeanor.
Liu Xin had originally planned to have her daughter come and meet this promising second young master of the Zhan family, but unexpectedly, her daughter arrived first.
"Linjing, can I go with you too?"
Although they were driven by profit, she only had this one daughter, and she was counting on the betrothal gifts from her daughter in the future. Naturally, she was worried now.
Mu Linjing didn't think too much about it and readily agreed.
The three of them rushed to the station and searched through the crowds for a long time without success, so they had to ask the police for help.
Finally, they successfully found Zhang Xinyi in a convenience store. Seeing her sitting there, Mu Linjing was filled with anger.
This child was truly too vain. Even though she didn't have much money in her pocket, she ordered a meal in the convenience store, saying that in the icy weather, eating something warm would keep her from freezing.
Seeing someone come to look for her, she directly asked Liu Xin to pay for her.
But Liu Xin had no money. She was still wearing her restaurant uniform, and her pockets were cleaner than her face. She could only look at Mu Linjing.
Mu Linjing took a deep breath and resigned herself to paying for her meal.
"Alright, let's go. This is so embarrassing."
Zhang Xinyi slung her backpack over her shoulder and glanced disdainfully at Liu Xin's attire, thinking it was embarrassing her.
If it weren't for the public setting, Mu Linjing feared she wouldn't be able to suppress the rage in her heart and would have slapped her across the face.
She pulled Zhang Xinyi into the car and, after closing the door, could no longer hold back. "A dog doesn't shun its poor family, yet you shun your mother for being embarrassing. To put it crudely, you're worse than a dog."
Zhang Xinyi was accustomed to vanity, and at home, Liu Xin would pamper her. How could she endure being scolded like this by someone else?
Moreover, she was no weakling when it came to cursing. The moment she opened her mouth, she stopped herself and instead put on a wronged expression.