Shouldn't he be at work at this time?

Huo Yuntang hurried toward the stairs, but upon seeing that there were guests in the house, he stopped and nodded politely before answering Madam Huo's question.

"I'm here to pick up some important documents; I won't go to work until this afternoon."

When Huo Yuntang came downstairs with the documents, only Huo's second wife remained in the living room.

Madam Huo greeted him, "Yun Tang, if you're not in a hurry to leave, come and have some soup."

Although she and Huo Yuntang lived under the same roof, they hadn't had time to exchange more than a few words these past few days, mainly because Huo Yuntang was too busy, and Madam Huo didn't want to bother him.

However, she was concerned because Huo Yuntang had recently intervened in the matter of Madam Gu and had been severely criticized by Old Master Huo. Although it was not enough to make the eldest son's family laugh at her, it still made her feel uncomfortable.

What she cared more about was whether Huo Yuntang had met with Xie Li.

She knew all too well how outstanding her son was; it was safe to say that every socialite in Linjiang City was eager to be with Huo Yuntang.

If that village girl found out that her son was her former fiancé, wouldn't she just stick to him like a leech?

Moreover, the two had a close relationship in Tiandu Mountain, and the village girl had saved her son's life.

Using this as leverage will likely lead to endless trouble in the future.

After a moment of contemplation, Madam Huo asked, seemingly casually, "What is your opinion of the Xie family's true daughter?"

She paused, then added with a smile, "Just now, Madam Liu was talking about some of the deeds of that real daughter..."

Huo Yuntang paused in his soup-drinking motion, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly. "I've heard about it."

He didn't know why the buzz was so strong; even his business partners were talking about Xie's real daughter during breaks in meetings, their words filled with disdain and contempt.

They've clearly started treating that real heiress as a source of amusement and a joke during their leisure time.

Huo Yuntang didn't want to get too involved in the discussion; he still remembered how he'd been humiliated last time.

No one had ever gotten the better of Huo Yuntang, yet he had somehow managed to slip up and suffer a hidden loss.

Huo Yuntang finished the soup in one gulp. "A person who is full of lies, shameless, disobedient and unfilial, oh dear."

He shook his head, not wanting to say anything more offensive and dirty his mouth.

Madam Huo's eyes flickered slightly, realizing that her son had harbored a deep grudge against Xie Li after his previous setback. Indeed, with that kind of personality, it was easy for him to make enemies everywhere.

She was being too cautious and overthinking things before.

Although Huo Yuntang received the most orthodox elite education and was relatively upright and kind, he was also always proud and could not tolerate anyone acting wildly in front of him.

So what if the two have some history? According to Huo Yuntang's approach, he should repay the debt of gratitude by simply sending a check and that would be the end of it. He wouldn't bother getting involved with someone of such poor character.

Madam Huo was finally relieved: "I never expected her to be raised so badly. Huizhu has also suffered a lot. Fortunately, Ziyuan is a good girl."

Huo Yuntang suddenly remembered something, "Oh right, Mom, I plan to propose to Ziyuan at her birthday party and announce our engagement to everyone."

Madam Huo was overjoyed: "That's great, let's do it that way. You'd better dress up handsomely then!"

She finally found something to do. Since Huo Yuntang was proposing, she needed to discuss the process with Ding Huizhu and also take care of the clothing and styling. These things couldn't be taken lightly, as a press release would be needed later.

After discussing it with Huo Yuntang, Madam Huo the Second prepared to go about her business.