Lin Wan mentioned again that she needed to leave when it was almost eight o'clock in the evening.

This time, Lu Fangliang did not ask her to stay, but instead helped her to settle Lu Jiaxue's recrimination, causing Lin Wan to leave him a good impression.

After leaving, Lin Wan rushed home immediately. Upon reaching home, she found out that the house was dark, and her husband was not home. She felt a little strange and called Li Mu immediately.

Li Mu told her that Du Xinzhu had come to visit in the evening and wanted to treat them to dinner. They headed to the restaurant first after waiting for her for some time.

Lin Wan hurried to the restaurant after asking for its location. She was a little furious when she saw what was going on there.

The first thing she saw was her husband sitting in the middle, with Du Xinzhu on his left and He Xiaoyu on his right. The cups and plates on the table were in disarray. It was clear that they had almost finished eating.

When Du Xinzhu saw Lin Wan, she hurriedly greeted her and asked her to take a seat. Enthusiastically, the former asked Lin Wan what she would like to eat and planned to order a few dishes for her alone.

Lin Wan held back her anger and said with a smile, “I've already eaten. I came over just to have a chat with you. You can continue with your meal. Don't mind me!”

The crowd had no doubts and continued to talk about the divorce lawsuit. Du Xinzhu told Lin Wan that she had gone to the court to file for divorce, and that Fang Qiang would receive a summons from the court in a few days.

Lin Wan listened absentmindedly while responding occasionally. After an hour or so, He Xiaoyu and Du Xinzhu left one after another. And Li Mu and his wife got up to go home too.

On the way back home, Lin Wan walked hurriedly. Li Mu caught up with her and tugged her arm, “What's wrong? I sensed something was off since a while ago, are you throwing a tantrum?”

“How dare I throw a tantrum? Aren’t you so comfortable, Mr. Li? With two beautiful women beside you, I shouldn’t have expected you to remember your wife.” Lin Wan said bitterly.

“What bullshit are you talking about? Xinzhu invited us to dinner today, and I’ve reminded you earlier. It was you who missed the date and didn't come. Why are you blaming me instead?” Li Mu responded unhappily.

“Can’t you remind me if I forgot about it?”

“Are you picking a fight on purpose? Who was it that asked me not to call? You told me these few days were very crucial, and that you had to concentrate on rehearsals. So I wasn't allowed to disturb you. Things were done as you asked, but now you’re the one who’s blaming me for following your instructions. Can you be more reasonable?”

Lin Wan was at a loss for words. What was wrong with her today? She seemed to be using nonsense to cover up her panic. The point was that she had clearly done nothing wrong. What exactly was she panicking about?

“Then, then why didn't you ask if I had eaten?” Lin Wan asked quietly, her expression becoming aggravated.

Without a word, Li Mu dragged her to a noodle shop down the street and ordered a bowl of egg noodles for her. He watched his wife finish the bowl of noodles silently.

On the way back, neither of them spoke. It was only after they arrived home and entered the house that Li Mu asked, “When did you finish rehearsing?”

“I came home after rehearsals, and I didn't look at the time.” Lin Wan lied out of habit.

“You've been rehearsing since 3pm, and it was after 8pm when you called me. This is just a primary school choir, and you've been rehearsing for over five hours? Aren't you going a bit off the rails for that championship?”

“I didn't want to either. The kids kept singing badly and I had to correct them over and over again. So much time had passed before I even knew it. I didn't want that to happen either.”

“I think that’s just about enough!” Li Mu advised, “I've always wanted to tell you something. I'll just say it all today!”

“Alright, go on!”

Li Mu pulled his wife to sit on the sofa and said in a serious manner, “I know that women value the sense of ceremony more than men, hence I do not oppose you of this. In fact, I’m very supportive of it.”

“But is the result really that important? All the dedication, the hard work, and proceeding to the finals are all a sense of ceremony. The championship is only the icing on the cake, not the only proof of the sense of ceremony you’re seeking for.”

The more Li Mu spoke, the more agitated he became, and his voice got louder.

“You told me you wanted to win the finals, and that you want to put a perfect end to your education career. These are what you often say, but to be honest, I don't agree with you at all.”

Lin Wan pouted and responded unhappily, “Is that what you think? Is it wrong that I want to end it perfectly? Don’t you support my desire for perfection?”

Li Mu took his wife's hand and said to her seriously, “Of course there is nothing wrong with pursuing perfection, but don't be too obsessed with it. Ever heard of the beauty in imperfection? As long as you’ve tried your best and fought for perfection, does the ending really matters that much?”

“I think that you are so focused on the results of the competition that you have forgotten the original intention of setting up the choir. Did you go through so much trouble of setting up the school’s choir in the first place just for that championship trophy?”

Thinking, Lin Wan sat there without saying a word.

Li Mu patted his wife's hand.

“There are only a few days left before the competition. I hope you can adjust your mindset and not worry too much about the gains and losses. I will support you unconditionally in whatever you want to do with the choir. But I sincerely hope you make a positive change, and not be too harsh on yourself in the future.”

“Okay, I'll do as you say. I’ll try to stop striving for perfection in things from now on, and try to go easy on myself.”

“That's right, go with the flow and do your best. Don’t be too stubborn with the results. Always remember that the process is just as important as the outcome.”

...

In the detective agency, Zhou Zijian and the others high-fived each other!

“Boss, this evidence is not fabricated at all. This whole video recording is the perfect evidence. Let’s see what Li Mu would say?” Zhou Zijian said with a laugh.

The boss patted him hard on the shoulder with admiration.

“Good job! This case can be promoted as an archetype in the company. All of you better learn from Zijian! Remember, we’ve long passed the days where we rely on fake photos and videos. From now on, every case has to have a plan. And try your best to make sure your cases follow the plan you set!”

Words of agreement can be heard from the crowd. Han asked confusedly, “Boss, but this doesn't mean that Lin Wan cheated right? Would her husband really divorce her after seeing this video?”

“Of course!” The boss said confidently, “A married woman who acts as the mother of a girl who lost her biological mother, and even accompanies the girl to the playground with her father? What she did has obviously crossed the line. Cheating doesn't always have to be about sex. An emotional affair would pose a larger effect.”

“Wouldn't it be a bit of a stretch to use a video like this to prove that she’s in an emotional affair?”

“Of course not! No explanation can be reasonable enough to explain her behavior. In other words, it would be difficult for her husband to put himself in her own shoes no matter how much she tried to explain herself. Hence, even if she hadn't been in an emotional affair, this evidence would be enough to ruin her marriage.”

At this point, the boss instructed Zhou Zijian, “You can contact He Xiaoyu now. Show her this video clip and tell her that Lin Wan has been getting very close to Lu Fangliang recently. There will definitely be more videos like this in the future, and we will hand her all the evidence before it’s too late.”

The boss's arrangement surprised Zhou Zijian. He suggested carefully, “Boss, isn’t this a little too hasty? I suggest collecting all the evidence before submitting it to He Xiaoyu all at once. By then, all these videos would bring a greater toll on Li Mu!”

Han agreed. “Boss, I agree with Brother Zhou’s suggestion. If we give the evidence to He Xiaoyu now, she will most likely hand it to Li Mu. If Li Mu loses his cool and decides to ask Lin Wan about it, our follow-up plan will be ruined.”

The boss pulled out a few cigars from his drawer and threw one to each of them, who lit the cigar cheerfully and looked at him.

“Brothers, I’ll be honest with you. I want to take a gamble. Let me ask you, which is more painful? A quick stab or a slow cut?”

Zhou Zijian was the first to understand and asked tentatively, “Boss, are you planning to let Li Mu know the truth first? And let him realize his wife was lying to him about all these while getting closer and closer to Lu Fangliang?”

The boss nodded and exhaled a puff of smoke, “By doing this, his hatred and resentment will be stronger and stronger. Guess what’ll be the results at the very last moment?”

“Boss, your idea is definitely a good one. But I'm scared that Li Mu won't be able to keep his cool!”

“We’ll need He Xiaoyu's help. When you meet her, make sure you convince her to accept and follow our plan. Ask her to persuade Li Mu to calm down. It won’t be easy for him at first. But when the degree of sadness reaches a certain threshold, Li Mu will definitely become more and more calm. And of course, his feelings for Lin Wan will eventually die down as well!”

“Noted. I'll contact He Xiaoyu now!”

In a private room of a luxurious restaurant, Zhou Zijian respectfully handed a CD to Tangquan, who opened his laptop and put the CD in. He then clicked the play button under He Xiaoyu’s gaze.

The video had a pretty long duration without any signs of editing. He Xiaoyu knew that this video evidence was not fabricated even before she finished the video.

“How did you guys get this?” He Xiaoyu asked excitedly.

“To be frank with you, it was Lu Fangliang who took the initiative to contact us. He wanted us to track Lin Wan's movements, hence I took the opportunity to devise a plan for him to pursue her. This is just the first step, and there will be other arrangements later. I’m confident that when evidence is combined together, it is enough to prove that Lin Wan cheated on her husband.”

He Xiaoyu's frowned and her expression turned grave.

Zhou Zijian explained hurriedly, “Miss, you may think that I am acting despicably and unscrupulously. But please think about it, there is no smoke without fire. If Lin Wan knew her boundaries well, she would not have got herself into the trap no matter how much I set her up. After all, no one forced her to get herself involved in all these.”

He Xiaoyu nodded slowly, she totally agreed with Zhou Zijian. No one forced you to act as someone else’s mother, and to act all lovey-dovey with a widower. It was all your own choice, and you can’t possibly blame anyone else.

It was just that if another woman was set up just because of her, she could not accept such an act even if that woman is her rival in love.

“Enough is enough. Although you're not wrong, I still can't accept such an act. I don't want you to set up another woman on purpose just to help me. Do you get me?” He Xiaoyu said calmly.

“Totally understood. Miss, please don't misunderstand my intentions. We are not doing this to help you. It’s because Lu Fangliang is interested in Lin Wan. We set this plan up because we wanted to earn his money. Of course, we don’t mind providing you with this evidence to fulfill our previous agreement.”

He Xiaoyu hesitated for a moment before she nodded and said slowly, “Well, since this matter has nothing to do with me, I won't support or oppose it. Let's see what she’ll do, shall we?”

Zhou Zijian took the opportunity to say, “Miss, I have a suggestion. Can I go on?”

“Go ahead.”

“Miss, I’ve been completely frank with you so far. I know that you will pass this evidence to Li Mu, and I apologize in advance as my suggestions happens to be related to Li Mu.”