Chapter 61: Repaying Kindness
It was the first time Ling Hanmu had seen someone so confident and proud in front of him. Looking at Xia Chenge, he felt as if she was radiating a dazzling light, making it impossible for him to look away.
Xia Chenge sensed Ling Hanmu’s gaze fixed on her, and inexplicably felt an invisible pressure bearing down on her.
She pretended not to notice and quickly walked to the bedside to check on the Old Madam’s condition.
“The doctor gave her medicine, and she’s been asleep for over half an hour. She won’t wake up for now, nor will she hear our conversation,” Ling Hanmu said from behind her.
Xia Chenge frowned slightly, took the Old Madam’s hand, and carefully examined it. Confirming that the doctor’s medicine had no adverse effects on her, she finally felt a weight lifted from her heart.
“If you need to go back, I’ll watch over things here. No one will be able to get near the Old Madam,” Ling Hanmu said proactively when Xia Chenge remained silent.
Xia Chenge looked at Ling Hanmu. “Why are you willing to help me like this?”
Ling Hanmu paused for a moment, then smiled. “There’s no ‘why.’ Life is just too boring, and I simply want to watch the show.”
Xia Chenge rarely felt grateful towards others, but at this moment, she was truly grateful to Ling Hanmu.
It’s easy to add splendor to a flower, but difficult to send charcoal in the snow.
Ling Hanmu’s repayment of kindness formed a stark contrast with Xu Jingyi’s repaying kindness with enmity.
They are all human, so why are some people worse than pigs and dogs?
If Ling Hanmu had recognized the original owner earlier, the original owner wouldn’t have met such a tragic end.
Xia Chenge sighed inwardly. Sometimes, fate is truly hateful.
“Thank you, Young Master Ling,” Xia Chenge said sincerely.
“No need for thanks. If you really want to thank me, how about offering yourself in marriage? What do you say?” Ling Hanmu said with a smile.
Xia Chenge’s gratitude instantly vanished. She knew she shouldn’t be sentimental in front of Ling Hanmu!
“Heh heh,” Xia Chenge said expressionlessly.
Ling Hanmu looked hurt. “Little Brother, why do you always dislike me so much? What’s wrong with me? I can change if you tell me!”
“You’re good in every way. No matter how you change, you’ll still be good. I still don’t like it,” Xia Chenge raised an eyebrow. “Can you stop being so childish?”
“How is offering myself in marriage childish?”
“Forget it, I can’t be bothered to argue with you. If you have something to do, you can leave first. I’ll take care of my grandmother.”
“Alright, I’ll be going then.” Ling Hanmu didn’t tease Xia Chenge any further and turned to leave with a flourish.
Xia Chenge watched him leave the hospital room and returned to sit by the bedside.
The Old Madam was still asleep, undisturbed by their deliberately softened voices.
Xia Chenge looked at her and slowly fell into deep thought…
Meanwhile, after Xu Jingyi and Xia Minglan left the hospital, Xu Jingyi, with a dark expression, went to Sheng Xia Group.
Xia Minglan followed him, but Xu Jingyi ordered her to go home from the lobby of Sheng Xia Building. “You don’t understand company matters. Don’t follow me and cause trouble. Go home first!”
Xu Jingyi’s cold tone made Xia Minglan uncomfortable, but thinking about what happened at the hospital earlier, she became unhappy too. “I just came to see the company. How can I cause trouble?”
Xu Jingyi was very annoyed. “Do you even know how much trouble you’ve caused? You’re how old, and you still act so thoughtlessly!”
Xia Minglan became furious. “Xu Jingyi, don’t try to shift the blame onto me. If it weren’t for me all these years, do you think you’d be where you are today? Do you think because you’re capable now, you can start yelling at me?”
“I’m warning you, Xu Jingyi. My patience has limits. Don’t keep crossing my boundaries. If you anger me, you won’t have a good time either!”
Hearing this, a sinister glint flashed in Xu Jingyi’s eyes. He clenched his fists, suppressing the urge to lash out at Xia Minglan, and tried his best to sound calm. “That’s not what I meant. Don’t misunderstand. I just don’t want you to be bothered by Xia Chenge’s matters and then be bothered by company matters as well.”
“How I’ve treated you all these years, can’t you see any of it? And yet you still misunderstand me like this…”
“Minglan, I’m truly heartbroken.”
Xu Jingyi spoke, his expression turning sad, as if he were genuinely hurt by Xia Minglan’s words.
Seeing this, Xia Minglan felt a pang of annoyance. She lowered her head and grabbed Xu Jingyi’s hand. “Husband, I’m sorry. I, I didn’t mean it like that either. I was just in a bad mood, that’s why… Don’t blame me, okay, husband!”
“How could I possibly blame you?” Xu Jingyi sighed and pulled Xia Minglan into his embrace.
Xia Minglan nestled against his chest, completely oblivious to the coldness in Xu Jingyi’s eyes.
Xu Jingyi was becoming increasingly impatient with Xia Minglan. When Xia Chenge was still an idiot, he didn’t feel anything, but ever since Xia Chenge regained her senses, Xia Minglan seemed more and more brainless.
Every time she fell into a trap set by Xia Chenge, he had to clean up the mess!
“Husband, we really need to find a permanent solution to deal with Xia Chenge. Ling Hanmu just said he would help Xia Chenge,” Xia Minglan suddenly looked up at Xu Jingyi.
Xu Jingyi was also troubled by this matter. If Ling Hanmu truly helped Xia Chenge find evidence of Xia Mingxuan and his wife’s deaths, then he would be completely finished.
Although everything was handled cleanly back then, the Ling family’s influence was so great that if they really investigated, it would be impossible to escape!
“Do you have any ideas?” Xia Minglan urged again. “We can’t just sit here and wait.”
“Alright, I know!” Xu Jingyi said with some impatience. “But you’d better not act rashly. Without my orders, don’t do anything! Even if Xia Chenge spits in your face, you have to endure it.”
“Okay!” Xia Minglan reluctantly agreed.
“What about Mr. Huang and the others? We’re running out of time. We must take over Sheng Xia before that old undying person pushes Xia Chenge out. Otherwise, all our efforts over the years will be in vain!”
“I’ve tried every method. That old man is unyielding and refuses to budge.”
“Then stay home and behave yourself. Also, keep a close eye on Jingyun and don’t sneak out again.”
After speaking, Xu Jingyi opened the car door and signaled the driver to take Xia Minglan back. This driver was his confidant, and Xu Jingyi trusted him implicitly.
As soon as Xu Jingyi entered the building, all the Sheng Xia employees respectfully greeted him as President Xu. He nodded slightly, enjoying this superior treatment.
Although Sheng Xia was a company under the Xia family, Xu Jingyi had been managing and making decisions for it for over a decade. In the eyes of Sheng Xia employees, Old Master Xia’s presence was negligible; Xu Jingyi was the boss they looked up to.
“President Xu, Mr. Huang came by today, but we couldn’t reach you,” his secretary quickly approached him as soon as he stepped out of the elevator and reported.
Xu Jingyi frowned and took out his mobile phone. It had somehow been set to silent, and there were over a dozen missed calls.
He immediately called Mr. Huang back and hurried into his office.
“Hello, Mr. Huang. Regarding the Sheng Xia shares we discussed last time, have you considered it?”
…
The incident of the Old Madam Xia being ‘murdered’ escalated with Xia Chenge’s secret instigation.
All of Haicheng was abuzz with rumors that Xia Chenge had gone mad and lost all reason, becoming a terrifying presence.
Everyone was criticizing Xia Chenge’s deranged behavior and the police’s inaction, while sympathizing with Xia Minglan for losing her mother and being powerless to do anything.
“Holy crap, could Xia Chenge have really charmed Young Master Ling into helping her cover this up?”
“Doesn’t anyone in the Ling family care, letting Young Master Ling be used like this?”
“Xia Chenge is too terrifying. Poor Old Master and Old Madam Xia. Why are the police still doing nothing even after things have escalated to this point? Are they waiting for all the Xia family members to die before showing up?”
“Xia Minglan is truly pitiful to have such a crazy niece. Xia Chenge should go to the eighteenth level of hell and never be reborn!”
…
Just as things were becoming increasingly unmanageable, and everyone believed Xia Chenge had killed the Old Madam Xia, a video suddenly appeared on major online platforms, stunning everyone.
