Chapter 24: Here for Revenge
The ragtag group banged on the door with iron rods, shouting, “If you don’t open up, we’ll smash down the walls.”
Xia Chenge didn’t confront them directly. Instead, she scaled the wall from another side, needing to confirm if the Old Master and the others were frightened.
“What exactly is going on?” Xia Chenge asked as soon as she entered the hall.
The nervous servant was startled but, upon seeing it was Xia Chenge, immediately felt relieved and hurried to greet her, “Little Miss, you’re finally back. These people claim the Xia family owes them for goods and employee wages, and they’re forcing our Old Master to come out and give an explanation.”
“Did you call the police?” Xu Jingyi, who manages the company, isn’t here, and they expect…
“He already called the police, but they’re taking too long to arrive…”
“Do the Old Master and the others know?” Xia Chenge interrupted them.
The servant lowered his head, “Miss Minglan is upstairs.”
Xia Chenge’s complexion turned cold, and she pushed past the servant, striding upstairs.
As soon as she reached the room door, Xia Chenge heard Xia Minglan pressuring the Old Master again.
Xia Minglan said, “You always only care about Xia Mingxuan and have never treated me as your daughter, always being wary of me. For so many years, Jingyi has poured his heart and soul into the Xia family, yet you treat him like a thief. I’m truly heartbroken.”
“Minglan, have we ever mistreated you? Half of the Xia family’s industry is already under your name. Why do you want to take Xiao Ge’s share as well?” the Old Master said with great pain.
“What do you mean ‘take’? That’s what I deserve. I raised her all these years, isn’t that right?” Xia Minglan sneered.
“A single beam cannot support a large house. Minglan, please let Xiao Ge go. She’s still a child.”
“My brother is dead, so the Xia family should be mine. If that waste Xia Chenge gets tricked in the future, am I supposed to watch the Xia family’s generations of hard work fall into the hands of outsiders? That is absolutely impossible!”
Xia Chenge violently pushed the door open, her expression stern, “By your standards, your husband and daughter are also outsiders! It’s my freedom to give my own things to whomever I please. What right do you have to yap and point fingers at me? I told you not to come to the Xia family if there’s nothing important, you really have a bad memory!”
Xia Chenge’s appearance drained all color from Xia Minglan’s face, leaving her terrified.
Xia Minglan desperately suppressed the fear Xia Chenge brought, confident that Xia Chenge wouldn’t dare do anything in front of the Old Master. She pretended to be calm and shouted, “When elders are speaking, what business do you have interrupting? Get downstairs!”
Upon hearing this, Xia Chenge let out a wild, unrestrained laugh.
After laughing enough, Xia Chenge looked at Xia Minglan sternly, “Someone who would even pressure their own parents to death, are you worthy of being an elder?”
“What nonsense are you spouting?” Xia Minglan’s face turned ashen.
“Instead of shouting here, you might as well worry about what happened to your daughter.” Xia Chenge walked over and casually mentioned, “Almost forgot to tell you, Ling Hanmu is here too.”
The moment Ling Hanmu’s name was spoken, Xia Minglan’s breath hitched, and fear washed over her like a tide.
At the same time, she remembered Xu Jingyi’s instructions: The Ling family indulges Ling Hanmu because he won’t live past twenty. A person with such a short lifespan is not to be feared. As long as you don’t directly conflict with Ling Hanmu, he won’t pose a threat to us.
“The Xia family’s affairs are not for an outsider like him to meddle in,” Xia Minglan’s confidence returned.
“Minglan, please stop. Don’t make any more mistakes,” the Old Madam said tearfully, “Xiao Ge is your niece. Can’t you leave her a way out?”
“Grandmother, you and Grandfather should rest well. I’ll handle this matter,” Xia Chenge turned to comfort the Old Madam, “Everything will get better!”
“If you weren’t so biased, would I be like this?” Xia Minglan thought they were scared and became arrogant again, “You need to understand that Xia Chenge is where she is today because of your selfishness… Hiss! Ah!”
Xia Minglan’s words were cut short by a sudden wave of pain.
Her face was filled with terror. She was at least three meters away from Xia Chenge, and she hadn’t seen Xia Chenge move, yet Xia Chenge was suddenly in front of her, gripping her arm…
“Are you human or ghost?” Xia Minglan’s heart was shattered. She desperately tried to pull her arm free but was shocked to find she couldn’t budge it at all.
Xia Chenge said with a half-smile, “Settling accounts here will scare Grandfather and Grandmother. Let’s go downstairs and talk slowly!”
With that, Xia Chenge dragged Xia Minglan out without further ado, closing the room door behind them to prevent the Old Master and the others from hearing anything.
Xia Minglan struggled desperately, shouting and screaming, “Xia Chenge, let me go! Help! Xia Chenge, you’re a ghost, you’re a monster!”
“Yes, I am a vengeful spirit, here to seek revenge on you,” Xia Chenge said sinisterly.
Xia Minglan was utterly terrified. Soon, due to her violent struggles, her exquisite makeup was ruined, her hair disheveled, making her look like a shrew who had just rolled around and thrown a tantrum. Under the astonished gaze of the servants, Xia Chenge dragged her to the first floor and threw her to the ground, utterly humiliated.
Xia Chenge smiled and squatted in front of Xia Minglan, nonchalantly extending her hand, “You’re getting old, you should accept it. Look at you, even falling down the stairs. Do you need me to give you a hand?”
Looking at Xia Chenge, Xia Minglan felt she was more terrifying than a demon and instinctively retreated, trying to get away from Xia Chenge.
Xia Chenge suddenly grabbed her shoulders, calmly gave Xia Minglan another fierce overhead throw, and Xia Minglan screamed in pain, lying on the ground unable to recover for a long time.
“All of you, get out. Without my command, do not step foot in here.” Xia Chenge pointed at the door and ordered the servants.
The servants, as if struck by fear, bowed their heads and filed out. In the vast hall, only she and Xia Minglan remained.
Xia Minglan looked at the terrifying Xia Chenge walking towards her step by step, trembling: Xia Chenge has gone mad, she’s truly mad!
“Xia Minglan, I warned you, but you insisted on courting death. If you don’t take the opportunities given, don’t blame me for being impolite.” Xia Chenge’s voice, laced with ice, sent a chill down Xia Minglan’s spine.
“You, you want to kill me?”
“Heh… Kill you? Don’t dirty my hands!”
“Let me go quickly, or my husband won’t let you off!” Xia Minglan said, trembling.
Xia Chenge burst into laughter again. After laughing enough, her gaze suddenly turned cold, “You’d better pray Xu Jingyi comes back soon, otherwise, not even heaven can save you!”
“I made it very clear this morning, don’t covet what doesn’t belong to you!”
“Putting other things aside for now, let’s settle how you treated your own parents all these years. To force them to hand over everything, you only gave them leftovers twice a day, never treating them like people!”
“The dog you raised even has a dedicated attendant, yet the parents who gave birth to you and raised you are not even as good as your dog!”
“I wonder if releasing this juicy gossip would cause you and your husband to have your spines broken by people?”
“Nonsense!” Xia Minglan roared to cover her guilt, unable to imagine the consequences if Xia Chenge actually released this information.
