Bai Hua was someone who loved to stir up trouble. However, in front of Feng Wan, she had to be careful with her words.
More than that, Nan Zhengde was sitting right there, which meant that she had to be on her best behavior as well.
Hence, Bai Hua was in no position to contradict anything Feng Wan said, no matter how harsh it was.
“Mum, I’m not trying to go against her. I was just worried about the kids. They are my precious grandchildren after all. I can’t bear to see them suffer.” Bai Hua explained while wiping off her tears, as though she had been wronged.
“Just stop with the act. Where were you when the girl was raising the kids on her own? All of a sudden, you’re their loving grandmother now? Do you think that you’re better than their own mother at taking care of them? Who are you trying to impress?” Feng Wan sneered.
“Mum! Why would you think that? Do I really seem that heartless to you?” Bai Hua asked.
Nevertheless, Feng Wan huffed, paying her no further attention.
“Alright, alright. Please just get out now.” Nan Zhengde ordered.
Reluctantly, Bai Hua stood up and left the room.
Feng Wan remained, as she knew that Nan Zhengde was not referring to her.
Nan Zhiyuan was of the same mind.
That was until Nan Zhengde turned to look at him. Seeing as such, he took his leave, soon after.
“She’s truly ridiculous! I’m beginning to think that her cancer is merely a ruse! It seems as though she’s returned to be a nuisance to all who are around her!” Feng Wan exclaimed.
“The diagnosis was done by some of the country’s best specialists. It’s highly unlikely for it to have been a lie. Besides, you’re an elder. You should cut her some slack,” Nan Zhengde reasoned.
“On the other hand,” he continued, “Her words weren’t completely wrong either. How can a mother use her own children to make money? If she really needed it, the Nan Family could have helped her. Right now, it gives others the impression that our family is incapable of even taking care of two kids! She has even tried to hide this from us. This woman is definitely not as kind as she appears to be.”
Nan Zhengde was furious because this incident had brought utter humiliation to the Nan family.
“She could’ve had her personal reasons, for doing as such. You can’t believe everything that Bai Hua says. You know how she is, after all.” Feng Wan pressed forth.
“It’s not Bai Hua. Rather, it’s all the news that I’ve seen online! Argh!” Nan Zhengde raged aloud.
While the two elders were still talking, Nan Chen arrived.
Hoping that Nan Chen would bring Ning Ran along, Nan Zhengde was greatly displeased when he found that Nan Chen had come alone.
“Grandpa, I have a meeting later so I’m in a hurry. Please just calm down. There’s no need to be angry over something like this.” Nan Chen urged while looking at his watch.
“You are the person in charge of the Nan family. You should know full well how this would affect the family name. How could you have allowed the children to work in such a manner? How much could they have earned? This is simply mortifying!”
Nan Chen could sense the severity of Nan Zhengde’s rage from the tone of his voice. It was a tone that Nan Chen had seldom heard.
Without a word, he went ahead and poured Nan Zhengde a cup of tea.
“Let it all out, Grandpa. I deserve it,” Nan Chen admitted sincerely.
Hearing what Nan Chen had said, a sense of sympathy welled up in Nan Zhengde, as his anger slowly diminished.
Nan Chen was his successor after all; the person whom he had nurtured, his greatest pride within the Nan family.
“I’m aware that there’s a lot going on in the company. Nevertheless, the family still comes first. You can’t just allow that woman to do as she pleases.” Nan Zhengde chided after he calmed down.
“Grandpa, the reason that I didn’t bring her along is that I wanted to talk about this, just between the both of us.”
“Are you trying to defend her?”
“Definitely not. It is without a doubt that what she has done is completely wrong.” Nan Chen affirmed.
“Why didn’t you allow her to explain herself to me then?”
“Her words don’t mean much, since it’s only natural for her to have defended herself. I can only trust the results of my own investigation”
Nan Zhengde narrowed his eyes as he stared at Nan Chen. “Did you find something?”
“When they were doing the commercial, she was not in contact with any of the members of the Nan family. This means that she might not have known of the relationship between the kids and the Nan family. If she’d known any better, I don’t think that she would have done that. The pay for commercials back then was abysmal. She could’ve merely brought the kids to me, naming her price. There was no reason for her to even consider shooting the commercials,” Nan Chen explained.
“As for the rumors online, about her abusing her children,” he continued, “They’re fake. I didn’t even have to investigate this. Even if she were as sinister as you’d thought, she wouldn’t have treated the kids in such a manner. I’ve bathed the children before and they had no signs of injury of that nature. Those terrifying photos of a wounded kid are all fake. That’s not Dabao, nor is it Erbao. I can guarantee that much.”
Nan Chen finished what he had wanted to say, as he quietly turned his gaze to Nan Zhengde.
“You’d said that you weren’t defending her?” Nan Zhengde’s brows furrowed.
“Grandpa, you’re a wise and experienced man. You’d know if I was trying to deceive you. I’m not defending her here. I’m merely stating facts.”
“You can stop with the wooing. It’s not your style. You are Nan Chen, a man with a sharp tongue.” Nan Zhengde muttered.
“I’m being honest here. You can easily see through me. I can’t hide anything from you, even if I tried.”
Nan Zhengde took a sip of tea. “What you’ve said seems rather logical. However, disregarding whether she had known about the family, I can’t accept the fact that she’d allowed young children to partake in such a job. Chen, she’s not a good match for you. Let her go.”
Nan Chen grew silent.
However, Feng Wan who was listening on the side spoke out. “Didn’t you say that you wouldn’t interfere with the youngsters’ decisions? What are you doing right now?”
“I’m not interfering. I’m simply providing him a suggestion.” Nan Zhengde uttered in defense.
“What if Chen refuses? I doubt that you’d sit still and do nothing!” Feng Wan questioned.
“I won’t do a darn thing, you old woman! Stop the nonsense!” Nan Zhengde was flustered.
“Oh okay. Chen, you’ve heard him, right? Your grandpa has said that it’s merely a suggestion. Thus, you decide who you want to marry! He won’t interfere!” Feng Wan announced as she turned toward Nan Chen.
“You… Are you senile? Why would you say it in such a manner?” Nan Zhengde’s voice trembled in frustration.
“I’m five years younger than you. Why would I go senile before you?” Feng Wan teased.
“No one is senile here. You are both old and wise.” Nan Chen urged.
“He’s the only old one here, not me.” Feng Wan refused to be addressed as old.
Nan Chen smiled awkwardly in respond.
“Chen,” Nan Zhengde continued, with a stern look on his face. “Even though you’d done well in Vietnam last time, the Ouyang family are not people whom you can take lightly. I’ve been thinking, what if we cooperated instead, as opposed to always going at it. Continuing like such will only serve to bring hurt to our families. If we were to form an alliance through marriage, no one in the province will dare to stand against us.”
Nan Zhengde’s reasoning left no room for contradiction, and Nan Chen understood that.
Nevertheless, I don’t want to marry Ouyang Qing.
