Zeng Man seemed startled by Hu Mengling's sudden harsh words. She blinked, tears streaming down her face, and her body trembled uncontrollably. She was so frightened that she couldn't utter a single word.

Hu Mengling was instantly furious.

Although Zeng Man didn't speak, everyone vaguely understood from her words and attitude just now, and they all turned to look at Qin Hao.

Then they saw Qin Hao staring blankly, his whole body standing there like a wooden stake, unable to move.

Alright, is there anything else you don't understand?

Hu Mengling's heart sank to the bottom, and in the next moment she was overwhelmed by a crazy rage.

She took two steps up to Qin Hao and slapped him hard across the face: "It's you! It was actually you!"

As soon as she finished speaking, tears streamed down her face.

I was angry, sad, and even more ashamed!

All her efforts to put on this show, from talking about being a distant relative of the Qin family to going to great lengths to keep the old man around, were just to watch Qin Zheng and Gu Yueming make a fool of themselves in public, to make the old man disappointed in Qin Zheng, and to gain more benefits!

Who was she doing all this for? Wasn't it for him, for their daughter, and for this family?!

But reality slapped her hard in the face!

It turned out that it wasn't Qin Zheng who caused the trouble, but Qin Hao!

"You beast! Qin Hao, you beast!"

Hu Mengling's anger surged, and she couldn't care less about anything else. She raised her hand and slapped him hard again.

Qin Hao lowered his eyes and did not resist, but the dark undercurrents in his eyes were extremely sinister.

"Enough!"

A furious shout rang out like a thunderclap from a clear sky, interrupting Hu Mengling's cursing and kicking, and bringing her back to her senses.

Qin Yu's sharp eyes swept over Qin Hao and Hu Mengling, feeling utterly exhausted. But what had already happened was done, and the first thing to do now was to figure things out and resolve the situation.

Therefore, he paused for a moment and then said, "Whether you want to hit or scold, wait until we have a clear understanding of the situation before you talk about it. First of all, calm down."

He turned to look at Qin Hao, his face darkening: "You tell me yourself."

Qin Yu still held considerable authority at home, and even under such circumstances, Hu Mengling dared not act recklessly. Therefore, she wiped away her tears and retreated to Qin Yanshu's side, glaring at Qin Hao and the woman kneeling on the ground with her eyes full of anger.

Qin Hao's face was deathly pale. After a long while, he finally spoke in a hoarse voice, "I don't know what happened either."

"Don't know?" Qin Yu sneered. "They've come knocking on our door, and you're still telling me you don't know?"

"Tell me! What exactly is your relationship with her?!"

Although Qin Yu usually had a stern face, he loved his children and grandchildren very much and rarely got truly angry. At this moment, his sudden shout startled Qin Hao so much that he immediately knelt on the ground.

His face was pale, and he stammered, "It was...it was many years ago, maybe ten years ago...I went to a business dinner, and I...I drank too much...I accidentally...and then..."

Qin Hao suddenly looked up and said urgently, "And then that was it! I've never seen her since then. I really don't know anything! Dad, believe me, I really didn't do anything!"

"You've done nothing wrong and yet you've given birth to a bastard child! You've done nothing wrong and she's already come knocking on our door with that bastard child! Qin Hao, are you out of your mind or do you think we're all idiots?! Even now, you still dare to say you haven't done anything wrong?!"

Hu Mengling couldn't take it anymore and immediately stepped forward, pointing her finger at Qin Hao and cursing.

At this moment, Zeng Man, who had been crying the whole time, suddenly crawled forward on her knees and hugged Hu Mengling's leg, crying, "Madam, please don't be angry. Master Qin really didn't mean to do anything to betray you. That time was really just an accident. We really didn't do it on purpose!"

Hu Mengling was so angry she could barely stand. She kicked Zeng Man away: "It wasn't intentional! You've even given birth to a bastard child, and you're still telling me it wasn't intentional?"

She sneered, "You've kept what happened more than a decade ago a secret until today, and only now have you come knocking on our door with your bastard child. All this scheming is just because you're after the Qin family's wealth. And now you're pretending to be innocent and pitiful?"

"You shameless bitch!" Hu Mengling kicked Zeng Man again in anger.

Zeng Man's face turned pale from the kick, and it took her a while to get up from the ground. She shook her head and cried, "I didn't, I really didn't, Madam, you really misunderstood me."

“It’s Zhao’er…it’s my son…Zhao’er was almost hit by a car half a month ago while saving someone. Although he was unharmed, he was traumatized. The doctor said he has some kind of dissociative disorder. Now he refuses to speak and locks himself in his room every day. Sometimes he even has self-harm tendencies.”

“I only have one son. I’m scared. I’m afraid that something will happen to him if I’m not paying attention. I’ve taken him to see a psychologist, but there’s been no improvement. I had no other choice but to come to the Qin family!”

Zeng Man suddenly kowtowed heavily and said, "Zhao'er has the blood of the Qin family flowing in his veins. He is a descendant of the Qin family. I beg you, I beg you to save him!"

"As long as... as long as you're willing to save him, I can leave. I don't want anything, I just beg you to save my son's life!"

Two weeks ago, he was hit by a car while rescuing someone...

Something flashed through Qin Shi'an's mind, and before Hu Mengling could start cursing again, he suddenly asked in a low voice, "Where is that child?"

Zeng Man cautiously looked up and saw that everyone was looking at her before she pursed her lips and said, "Outside."

“Zhao’er is shy, and I was worried that he would be scared if he suddenly saw so many people, so I had him wait outside first.”

Qin Shi'an then said to the servants waiting to the side, "Go and bring the person in."

Zeng Man opened her mouth as if to say something, but when she met the cold, indifferent gazes of the crowd, she moved her lips and lowered her head.

No one spoke, because everyone knew that the woman in front of them was secondary; the child was the main concern.

Only after meeting the person can they consider how to resolve the matter.

The servant was gone for only a minute, and when he returned, he was all alone.

Qin Yu frowned: "Where are they?"

The maid trembled: "The person...the person is gone."

"What?!"

Everyone's expression changed instantly, especially Qin Hao and Zeng Man.

The two exchanged a quick glance, and Zeng Man understood. She immediately scrambled to her feet and stumbled out, calling out as she ran, "Zhao'er!"