The two-day weekend felt unusually long and arduous for Quan Jiu.
Finally, Monday morning arrived. She dawdled at home until half-past eight, but Chu Rong showed no signs of leaving.
“Aren’t you going to work?” she asked, a hint of suspicion in her voice.
“Part-time, working from home.” Chu Rong wiped down the coffee table in the living room, then went to the laundry room to fetch a mop, diligently cleaning the room.
Quan Jiu chuckled speechlessly. Rubbing her throbbing temples, she took a moment to recover before abandoning the struggle and heading out the door.
However, she didn't go to the company. Instead, she went to a place she had long wanted to visit—Quan Xingfa’s home.
Some debts, since she now had the time, needed to be settled.
Quan Jiu had never set foot here since leaving at eighteen. After so many years, the front door of Quan Xingfa’s house had been replaced.
She rang the doorbell. After a considerable pause, a voice from inside asked, “Who is it?”
It was Tong Xiuqiong, her paternal aunt. A sharp-tongued, indecisive housewife with little standing in the family.
The moment the door opened, Quan Jiu smiled and calmly called out, “Auntie.”
Tong Xiuqiong’s back tingled at the sound. Upon seeing who it was, her face stiffened in shock, and she stood frozen, unable to move.
She hadn't expected this little vixen to be even more stunning than she had been a few years ago, exuding an air of haughty nobility, like a queen looking down upon her servants.
Quan Jiu’s smile widened. “It’s been a few years, won’t you invite your niece in for a seat?”
Tong Xiuqiong finally snapped back to reality, subconsciously stepping aside. Her eyes scanned Quan Jiu from head to toe, growing more astonished with each glance.
Her entire outfit, from head to toe, must have cost over a million. This little vixen was indeed wealthy.
Quan Xingfa was engrossed in his phone in the living room when he suddenly exclaimed excitedly, “It’s arrived.”
Tong Xiuqiong’s face lit up. Temporarily forgetting Quan Jiu, she rushed over to look. “Really? How much?”
“Ten million.” Quan Xingfa counted the zeros excitedly.
Quan Jiu gracefully sat down to the side.
Tong Xiuqiong quickly nudged Quan Xingfa, gesturing for him to look over.
Quan Xingfa, happily counting, turned his head. The smile instantly froze on his face. After a moment, his expression darkened, and his voice rose in anger. “You little beast, you actually know how to come back.”
Quan Jiu smoothed her hair away from her ear, smiling faintly. “It’s time to settle the accounts between us.”
“You beast, how dare you talk about accounts with me? I’ll settle one with you first. You ate, drank, and lived at my place for free for three years. Counting twenty thousand a year, that’s sixty thousand for three years. Plus interest, that’s at least seventy thousand.
Seventy thousand from before is equivalent to over a million now. I won’t calculate anything extra. Considering you’re my niece, I’ll only charge you one million. I’m being very kind to you.”
Quan Jiu chuckled softly and nodded. “Anything else? Perhaps you could settle it all at once.”
Tong Xiuqiong immediately chimed in, “Of course there is! You beat up my son so badly he was bedridden for days. And your cousin’s face, you practically disfigured her. Their medical expenses, emotional distress compensation, and damages—that’s at least another million.
I could have sued you and sent you to prison for life, but thinking you’re our niece, we decided to settle this privately. If you have any conscience, you should be grateful and be filial to your uncle and me. If it were anyone else, I would have taken them to court.”
Quan Jiu nodded again, smiling. “Very good. Anything else?”
Quan Xingfa asked with a stern face, “You started a company, how are the profits? You’re always slacking off, starting a shoddy company and wasting my money.”
Quan Jiu’s eyebrows arched slightly. “Your money?”
“Of course it’s my money. I’m your guardian. You ate my food, drank my drinks, used my things, and lived in my house. Do you intend to be an ungrateful wretch and not acknowledge it? You think that’s your money? Without me, you wouldn’t have a single cent. You’ll go this afternoon and transfer the shares to me, or this matter won’t be over.”
Quan Jiu couldn’t help but burst into laughter. “After so many years, you truly haven’t changed at all. Still this disgusting…”
Her laughter carried a chilling coldness. “And punchable face.”
“What did you say, you little beast?” Quan Xingfa, enraged, swung his right hand towards Quan Jiu’s face.
But Quan Jiu was faster. Raising her palm like a blade, she struck Quan Xingfa’s right wrist with a sharp chop. A crack echoed, followed by Quan Xingfa’s pained howl. His poorly healed bone had broken again.
Tong Xiuqiong shrieked and grabbed an empty fruit plate from the coffee table, hurling it at Quan Jiu’s head.
Quan Jiu didn’t even flinch. She grabbed Quan Xingfa by the collar and yanked him forcefully in front of her. Tong Xiuqiong’s plate landed precisely on Quan Xingfa’s head.
She had used considerable force, driven by a desire for revenge for her son and daughter. Thus, the plate struck Quan Xingfa, causing his head to bleed.
Quan Xingfa’s hand hurt, but his head hurt even more. Screaming, he cursed, “You damned whore, are your eyes blind? You hit me in the head!”
Tong Xiuqiong, both angry and scared, dropped the fruit plate and frantically dialed 120. Then, she grabbed a face towel and pressed it against Quan Xingfa’s head. The living room was filled with more groans.
Quan Jiu’s laughter echoed through the living room. “What’s wrong with you two? Weren’t you looking for me to settle accounts? Why are you fighting amongst yourselves? Oh dear, how could I possibly accept this? After not seeing each other for so long, you’re treating me to such a spectacular show. You must have worked very hard, Uncle and Auntie.”
“You rotten beast, you just wait. I’ll beat you to death today. You’re a dead beast, not worthy of being part of our Quan family. I’m expelling you from the Quan family.” Despite the intense pain, Quan Xingfa still had enough energy to speak.
Tong Xiuqiong, seeing the blood on his face increasing, kept urging, “Don’t move, just don’t move.”
Quan Jiu leisurely took out a card from her wallet and slowly introduced, “This one has fifty million deposited in it.”
She took out another card and said with a smile, “This one has a hundred million deposited in it.”
Then she took out a third card. “This one has three hundred million deposited in it.”
A fourth, a fifth… Quan Jiu took out a total of six bank cards and laid them out. “These add up to nearly seven hundred million.”
Quan Xingfa forgot his pain, staring at Quan Jiu in shock, his eyes practically glued to the bank cards.
Tong Xiuqiong, amidst her greed, couldn’t help but question, “How do you have so much money?”
Quan Xingfa, however, didn’t care if it was real or not. He reached out to demand, “Give it all to me. I raised you. Now it’s time for you to repay me.”
Quan Jiu put the bank cards back into her wallet one by one, smiling faintly. Leaning back on the sofa, she said lazily, “Unfortunately, I won’t give you a single cent of this money. And…”
She put the bank cards back into her wallet. “I’m going to take the inheritance my grandmother left me.”
Quan Xingfa and Tong Xiuqiong’s faces turned pale. Then, Quan Xingfa became furious, pointing at Quan Jiu and shouting, “Rotten beast, you know the password. After all these years, you lied to me, saying you didn’t know. I knew you beast weren’t telling the truth.”
Quan Jiu smoothed her hair and said with a smile, “That’s right, I know the password. And I also know that this inheritance is worth over a billion. I came today mainly to thank you for watching over the inheritance for me all these years.”