Chapter 88: Singing in Unison
“Oh, hurry up and tell me, you’re killing me with anticipation!” the Old Madam urged her anxiously.
Xu Jingyun deliberately tugged at Xia Minglan’s sleeve with a large movement, drawing the attention of the two elders to her action. She then pretended to signal Xia Minglan to stop, and said with a smile, “Maternal Grandfather, Maternal Grandmother, it’s really nothing, just some roughhousing between classmates. A bump or bruise, nothing serious. My mother is just overreacting.”
Seeing Xu Jingyun’s actions, the two elders felt even more that they were hiding the seriousness of the matter.
“Don’t hide it from me anymore, just tell me whatever it is!” Old Master Xia’s heart sank to the bottom. If Xiao Ge’s temper was truly so unpredictable, then there was a real possibility of relapse at any time in the future. What would happen to Xiao Ge if they were gone?
Xia Minglan hesitated for a long time, feigning to downplay the severity. “Actually, it’s really nothing. It’s just that she pushed a commoner student, who fell and hit a table corner, resulting in a concussion. However, they’ve already been to the hospital for a check-up, and there are no sequelae. We also gave them a sum of money to settle it privately.”
“Old man, what are we going to do about this?” the Old Madam was so anxious that tears were about to fall.
They had thought their granddaughter had returned to normal and could live a good life from now on, but now it seemed that normalcy was only superficial, and she was still too unstable.
Old Master Xia fell silent, staring blankly at the ceiling, as if he had been struck by this incident.
“Because of these incidents, people have been constantly spreading rumors about Xiao Ge online. We can’t keep up with their fabrications even as we try to debunk them,” Xia Minglan said, as if she had made up her mind, pouring out everything. “Dad, Mom, I didn’t want you to know about these things, but I’m too foolish and can’t think of a better way to handle them.”
“Tell us everything else you have to say, all at once,” the Old Master’s voice sounded very dejected.
“Maternal Grandfather, you don’t know how ugly people’s hearts can be. Before, there were some misunderstandings between us and Xiao Ge, and we had arguments. But I don’t know who it was, they actually exaggerated and amplified these matters…” Xu Jingyun said urgently, then stopped midway as if hesitant to speak.
“Speak!” Old Master Xia commanded sternly.
Xu Jingyun said in a low voice, “Maternal Grandfather, I don’t know if it’s because Xiao Ge accidentally injured several people at school, and Young Master Ling is protecting Xiao Ge, so those people couldn’t do anything to Xiao Ge, and they started spreading rumors and slandering Xiao Ge online.”
“They said Xiao Ge pretended to be crazy from a young age, and then secretly had affairs, and had several abortions… In short, it’s extremely outrageous, some of the things I can’t even say.”
“Xiao Ge’s reputation in Haicheng is already beyond rotten. No matter how much we clarify, it’s useless. Moreover, because Young Master Ling is protecting Xiao Ge, they even dared to fabricate rumors that Xiao Ge and Young Master Ling have a marriage contract.”
“Maternal Grandfather, you also know the Ling family’s background. A family like theirs, how could they allow their heir to associate with a notorious girl? Even if that girl is being slandered, the Ling family would probably go all out to protect their reputation!”
“At that time, Sheng Xia Group…”
Xu Jingyun stopped speaking at this point, secretly observing the Old Master’s reaction.
The Old Master’s face turned ashen with anger, and he trembled slightly. “This is too much, it’s simply too much!”
“Even if Xiao Ge really has a marriage contract with that Ling family boy, so what? When did it become others’ place to gossip?”
Upon hearing this, Xia Minglan and her daughter’s expressions changed slightly. Xia Chenge indeed had a marriage contract with Ling Hanmu!
“Maternal Grandfather, does Xiao Ge really have a marriage contract with Ling Hanmu?” Xu Jingyun tried her best to keep her voice calm.
“That’s right, I did arrange a betrothal between Xiao Ge and Ling Hanmu with Old Master Ling, but Old Master Ling passed away many years ago, and the Ling family probably doesn’t know about this matter.” Old Master Xia, in his anger, no longer concealed the truth.
“But Maternal Grandfather, even if there is a marriage contract, will the Ling family acknowledge it? Will it be disadvantageous to Xiao Ge?” Xia Minglan pretended to be concerned. “Moreover, given Xiao Ge’s current condition, I’m afraid…”
“Our Xia family children don’t need to endure such grievances. Since they like spreading rumors so much, let’s use facts to slap them in the face! Even without the Ling family’s token, I can produce something that will make the Ling family acknowledge this marriage,” Old Master Xia said angrily.
“Maternal Grandfather, what do you have?” Xu Jingyun asked, slightly excited.
“Dad, I think it’s better if you don’t bring it out,” Xia Minglan said, feigning advice. “With Xiao Ge’s current state, bringing it out will only anger the Ling family. It’s better to think of another way to arrange this matter.”
“Even if the Ling family acknowledges the marriage contract, Xiao Ge will eventually inherit Sheng Xia. Wouldn’t that be handing Sheng Xia over to the Ling family? The hard work of several generations of the Xia family would be lost. In that case, wouldn’t it be better to find a reliable husband for Xiao Ge, at least to preserve Sheng Xia?”
“Although Xiao Ge and Ling Hanmu’s marriage contract hasn’t been announced, it’s already spread like wildfire. The Ling family will eventually settle accounts with the Xia family. At that time, not only will Xiao Ge suffer, but Sheng Xia will also be affected.”
Old Master Xia fell silent again. He had been paralyzed in bed for many years, and his understanding of the Ling family was limited to more than a decade ago. Sheng Xia was the Xia family’s life’s work, and Xiao Ge was his darling. He was unwilling to lose either of them.
Seeing her father’s reaction, Xia Minglan knew that her long-term preparations had paid off. She couldn’t help but feel secretly pleased.
She sighed and finally stated the purpose of her visit. “Like you, I also worry about Xiao Ge’s future. Ling Hanmu is just a spoiled brat, he’s incapable of treating Xiao Ge well, and he’ll probably be furious about having a marriage contract with Xiao Ge.”
“The Xia family is not what it used to be. The Ling family will definitely want to break off the engagement. Instead of letting Xiao Ge suffer repeated harm, why not change the narrative and say that you arranged the engagement between Jingyun and Ling Hanmu back then…”
“No, I disagree!” Xu Jingyun vehemently opposed. “I don’t want to! Ling Hanmu will kill me!”
Xia Minglan looked shocked, as if she didn’t understand. “Yunyun…”
“Maternal Grandfather, I don’t want a marriage contract with Ling Hanmu. You can’t push me into hell just to make Xiao Ge better,” Xu Jingyun cried.
Xia Minglan roared, “You shut up!”
Then she turned to the Old Master. “Dad, the best solution is this. They won’t take their anger out on Xiao Ge and Sheng Xia. I’ll arrange for Jingyun to go abroad. Jingyun is still young, and in a few years, everyone will have forgotten about this.”
Old Master Xia looked at Xu Jingyun. “No, that would be too unfair to Yunyun.”
“Dad, are you going to stand by and watch Xiao Ge fall into a difficult situation? At least Jingyun is a normal person, but Xiao Ge isn’t…” Xia Minglan said, suddenly choking up. “Yunyun is my darling, how could I bear it? But Yunyun at least has parents, Xiao Ge only has you.”
Old Master Xia was somewhat swayed. Xia Minglan had said too much information at once, and his concern made him flustered. He worried that Xia Chenge would indeed be troubled by the Ling family. But if it were as Xia Minglan said, it would be too unfair to Xu Jingyun, which the Old Master did not want to see.
“Forget it, then we just won’t make this public.” After much deliberation, the Old Master decided not to acknowledge the matter.
Xia Minglan and Xu Jingyun’s faces darkened upon hearing this. After all her efforts, she had achieved this result?
“The Ling family won’t let this go. This matter can only be resolved once and for all. Dad, just do as I say. Consider it our way of making amends to Xiao Ge for these years,” Xia Minglan urged hastily.
