Chapter 650: Qin Huairu's Talk with Tang Yanling

Lou Xiaoe, who was grumbling.

She squatted down.

Her gaze was level with Shazhu's photo on the tombstone.

She looked at that old photo from thirty years ago.

She felt a surge of emotion in her heart.

Shazhu's life was truly aggrieved; over thirty years, he amassed a great estate for the Jia family, yet he himself didn't even have a photograph.

One can see how black-hearted the Jia family people are.

She also fully saw Qin Huairu's tactics—not leaving Shazhu even a cent of pocket money; whatever Shazhu earned, he handed over all of it, and in the widow's heart, Shazhu was always an outsider, so they never regarded him as one of their own.

"Ah!"

A sigh.

It flew from Lou Xiaoe's mouth.

All kinds of feelings were present.

She took out a pack of fine tissues from her bag, pulled out a few sheets, held them in her hand, and carefully began wiping the tombstone before her, while continuing to voice her dissatisfaction.

With Shazhu's death, the hatred toward him also dissipated.

"Shazhu, I, Lou Xiaoe, have looked down on you my whole life—truly, when I was Xu Daming's wife, I already thought you were a muddlehead, and I still think so; you lived and died without ever understanding your own life."

"Even if Shazhu was muddleheaded, you also gave birth to a son for him." Yushui interjected: "Speaking of this, we still have to thank Granny Long."

Deep in her heart.

She didn't take a liking to Granny Long.

But she couldn't help but admit.

Granny Long's act of matching Lou Xiaoe with Shazhu prevented Shazhu from possibly dying without heirs; otherwise Shazhu would have followed in Yi Zhonghai's footsteps.

Considering Lou Xiaoe's leaving an heir for Shazhu.

He Yushui chose to forgive Granny Long.

"You He family certainly ought to thank Granny Long; that old lady, in fact, is not a good thing either. When I divorced Xu Daming, you know the situation, He Yushui—truly, having no home to return to, Granny Long schemed against me for a bite to eat, and I went along with it. She said Shazhu was decent; I had already divorced, and besides, being of such background, I had no right to refuse. I reckon, if I had refused Granny Long's matchmaking between me and Shazhu, I probably wouldn't be alive today."

He Yushui said nothing.

Having experienced those things.

Only then did she truly feel the inner cruelty.

"Your brother served as Granny Long's filial grandson for so many years, yet Granny Long still schemed against him at her death; the old lady's house, promised to Yi Zhonghai, but given to your brother—guess what Yi Zhonghai would think."

Lou Xiaoe lowered her gaze onto the tombstone.

"You're called Shazhu; the single character 'fool' encompasses everything—you don't even know who treats you well or badly, yet you still want to be like Dorgon, truly thinking a widow with a child is easy to control; all you have now is of your own making, you had several chances to escape the scheming, but you trusted Yi Zhonghai and Qin Huairu, and even refused to acknowledge your own biological son—you deserve it."

Her gaze suddenly turned to He Yushui.

She asked out of the blue.

"Yushui, guess whether your brother regretted anything before he died?"

"He probably did regret it."

"Then as for revenge against the Jia family, your brother would have liked to see it."

"I don't know!"

……

Qin Huairu didn't know that Lou Xiaoe and He Yushui were conspiring against her, worrying about Tang Yanling's situation, with a heart full of thoughts, she appeared at Tang Yanling's parents' doorstep.

She looked at the gate before her.

She let out a breath from her mouth.

She steadied her mind.

She stepped toward the Big Courtyard.

It was also a coincidence—one going in, one coming out, they happened to bump into each other, rivals meeting.

At the moment they saw each other.

Both were somewhat startled, perhaps neither had expected to meet the other here.

Each was stunned for more than ten seconds.

Tang Yanling spoke first.

"Mom!"

As for what to say next, Tang Yanling didn't know what to say; facing Qin Huairu, being able to call her "Mom" was already Tang Yanling's biggest concession.

Never had she imagined that this woman, who looked so kind, was actually a person who devours people without spitting out bones.

The matter of Qin Huairu and Shazhu.

Tang Yanling had learned about it when she was dating Bangeng.

Knowing their affairs, if it weren't for Qin Huairu, for the Jia family's benefit, wanting Shazhu to help raise the child, she did the despicable thing of sabotaging Shazhu's matchmaking; although she knew Shazhu was past thirty, she used the excuse that Bangeng disagreed with them being together, and dragged out Shazhu's eight years, waiting until Qin Huairu couldn't bear children, Bangeng needed work, a house, and money, then shyly moved in with Shazhu, bringing bedding.

Half a year later.

Lou Xiaoe returned, also bringing Shazhu's son.

At that time, Tang Yanling felt it was a joke.

Qin Huairu, who had been entangled with Shazhu for over ten years, hadn't borne him a son or daughter; yet Lou Xiaoe, who had stayed with Shazhu for just a few days, gave birth to his son.

Qin Huairu's later divine moves once again stunned Tang Yanling, worrying that Shazhu would leave his estate to Hexiao, and similarly, Yi Zhonghai, who also worried about his old age, colluded with her to prevent Shazhu from acknowledging Hexiao.

Shazhu was also poisoned by Qin Huairu; since she forbade him to acknowledge his son, he didn't, faithfully serving the Jia family as a beast of burden; even when he was unable to move, half-paralyzed, Qin Huairu actually expelled the Jia family's greatest contributor, Shazhu, from the home, leaving him to die miserably beneath the overpass.

During the days Shazhu couldn't move, Qin Huairu only went to see him the first day; afterward, it was as if Shazhu had never existed.

Tang Yanling didn't understand.

How can a person be this cold‑blooded?

She realized she had never truly seen the Jia family, all the way up to the moment Shazhu was driven out and died a miserable death; Shazhu, with her death, let Tang Yanling see the Jia family's true faces completely.

Think about it.

Shazhu, who gave everything for the Jia family, could be mercilessly abandoned by them; one day, if Tang Yanling were like Shazhu—unable to move, with eating, drinking, urinating, defecating, and sleeping all done in bed—the Jia family would likely toss her out just as they did Shazhu.

A chilling feeling.

They sought out Tang Yanling.

For several days she hadn't slept; the moment she closed her eyes, she saw the scene of her being driven out by the Jia family and dying miserably.

She had carefully considered it for several days.

She felt that leaving was the best option.

She didn't want to deal with the beastly Jia family anymore.

This is also why, after Tang Yanling called out "Mom," she had nothing else to say, her tone carrying a hint of distant aloofness.

When Qin Huairu heard Tang Yanling's tone, her heart skipped a beat, and she silently muttered to herself.

Things have gone bad.

Tang Yanling no longer considered herself part of the Jia family.

What can be done about this?

She was anxious inside, yet forced a smile on her face.

"Yanling, do you have time? Mom wants to talk with you."

When Tang Yanling handed over the divorce agreement, she had already mentally prepared for the Jia family to come knocking, and she casually agreed.

"I'll return what I have in hand, then let's go to the coffee shop across the residential area; it's quiet there, and it'll be convenient for us to talk."

The stone in Qin Huairu's heart.

It has landed.

In that brief moment just now, the widow really worried that Tang Yanling would let Qin Huairu go back with her to her natal home to discuss the divorce there.

Many people, many voices.

Walls have ears.

Who knows who else might be in the house.

If Shazhu's death weren't such a big deal, it could just be said; but because her death touches the Jia family's hearts, it sets off a chain reaction.

"Mom is waiting for you here."

"Go ahead first; I'll be right there, at most a minute or two."

"Mom is waiting for you at the entrance of the coffee shop across the way."

"Okay."

Tang Yanling turned and went in, put down what she had in hand, stepped out, crossed the road, appeared before Qin Huairu, and they entered the coffee shop one after the other.

They found a quiet corner.

After the waiter brought two cups of coffee.

Tang Yanling handed over two ten-dollar bills.

"Ten dollars a cup; Mom, thanks to you, Yanling, gets to try this foreign novelty."

Qin Huairu's exaggerated expression.

It made Tang Yanling think she was doing it on purpose.

She didn't point it out.

She tossed the sugar cube from beside into the coffee, stirred it evenly with a spoon for a moment, then sipped and savored it slowly.

"You're here to talk about the divorce, right?"

Qin Huairu's hand gripping the spoon.

It trembled slightly.

I really didn't expect Tang Yanling to go straight to the point and even speak first.

According to Qin Huairu's expectation, Tang Yanling should have played a guessing game with her first, then Qin Huairu would ask.

I didn't expect Tang Yanling to turn the tables and take the lead.

The widow bit her lower lip with her teeth.

"Yanling, Mom just can't understand: your marriage to Bangeng has been so happy, we never heard you argue or fight, so how did you end up divorcing? Just now when Mom came, I asked Bangeng—he has no one outside, he didn't hit you or scold you—what's really going on between you two? Tell Mom, if it's Bangeng's fault, I'll scold him when I get back; if it's because of me and your grandmother, that's easy to fix—our Jia family may lack many things, but we have plenty of houses; if necessary, we can even get you a separate place."

Tang Yanling's heart.

She let out a sigh.

The Jia family has many houses.

These houses weren't earned by Shazhu.

Whoever earned the Jia family's fortune died under the Jia family's ruthlessness, while the instigator, Qin Huairu, boasted to Tang Yanling's face that the Jia family has houses.

"Our feelings have broken."

"Yanling, tell Mom the truth: what's going on with you and Bangeng, what's going on with you? Mom knows it's not just a simple broken relationship; it must be because of something else."

Seeing Tang Yanling's unwillingness to speak.

Qin Huairu shifted the conversation.

"How, even Mom can't know?"

It is necessary to hear Tang Yanling herself say it's because of Shazhu.

Only then.

Only then can Qin Huairu relax and devise a targeted countermeasure.

Mom, it's just that the feelings have broken down, there's no other reason.

Is it because of Shazhu's matter?

Tang Yanling fell silent, she lowered her head, took a sip of coffee, as if suddenly interested, she raised her head and stared at Qin Huairu without blinking.

That moment just now.

Tang Yanling had the thought of seeking justice for Shazhu.

What you said is correct, it's just because of Dad's reason—I currently have no right to call him Dad, because in Bangeng's heart and in your heart, from beginning to end he was never considered family; in your eyes he was just a fool who made money for the Jia Family, pampered when he could earn money and discarded as trash when he couldn't; I can't forget what happened that night, and I will never be able to forget it for the rest of my life.

Tang Yanling's emotions.

Became agitated.

If it weren't for you, he should have had his own life, his own son, his own daughter, and wouldn't have died just now; you, for the Jia Family, ruined his affairs—I don't mean to look down on you, I just can't let go of all this, yet you actually stood by and watched Bangeng and them cast out him, who had devoted decades to the Jia Family, driving him out of the Jia Family and finally leaving this world; putting myself in your shoes, I think you Jia Family people would also do this without mercy—I'm afraid, I don't want to end up the same way as him, and I thought of divorce.

Qin Huairu's hand holding the coffee.

Was trembling.

Tang Yanling's sincere words.

It hit Qin Huairu's sore spot, and also exposed the Jia Family's dirty laundry.

Never imagined.

The Jia Family turned out to be this kind of character.

She knew she couldn't dissuade Tang Yanling.

The only thing we can do now is to minimize the impact of Shazhu's death.

"Yanling, you've decided, Mom respects your decision, but there are some things Mom needs to say bluntly up front."

"I know, given my grandmother's nature, Xiao Geng must stay in your Jia Family; I agree, after all he is the Jia Family's bloodline. After I divorce Bangeng, custody of the child will go to your Jia Family; I want nothing, I don't want a penny from your Jia Family, I will leave with nothing."

"If it were Jia Zhangshi."

"Such good terms."

"They would surely accept without even thinking."

"Too bad."

"The person who came was Qin Huairu."

"Upon hearing Tang Yanling wanted to leave with nothing, her mind subconsciously conjured up a bad scene, wondering if Tang Yanling would, after divorcing Bangeng, reveal those things the Jia Family did to Shazhu, leaving the Jia Family in an awkward spot."

"The more she thought,"

"the more she felt it was possible."

"the less confident she felt."

"Yanling, no matter when, Xiao Geng is the child you bore, you are his mother—this we Jia Family do not deny, but you don't need to leave with nothing; I've decided, within the Siheyuan, I'll give you a room; if you dislike living with us, you can also swap rooms with someone else."

"I said I would leave with nothing, and I will leave with nothing—I don't want a penny from your Jia Family."

"What should be given to you, you must take; what shouldn't be given, even if you demand it fiercely, we won't give. Of course, some things you know: our Jia Family has come this far, it hasn't been easy; that matter has already happened, and we even gave him a grand funeral—Bangeng even smashed a basin for her."

"Mom, I know what you're worried about; to be honest, if it weren't for Xiao Geng, I would really spill the truth, but just thinking that Xiao Geng would bear the label of a murderer's son for life would ruin him, so I won't speak, but I also don't want any entanglements with your Jia Family."

"Hearing Tang Yanling say that."

"The stone in Qin Huairu's heart."

"Has landed."

"Just don't let the matter get out."

"For the Jia Family, I don't mind giving Tang Yanling a room."