Chapter 403 The family property will not be given to others
The raindrops were like endless silver threads, weaving obliquely between the eaves and corners of the Xuanyuan old house.
The blue-gray tiles were dripping with water, creating dense puddles on the bluestone slabs, reflecting the mottled copper rings on the old house's vermilion lacquer gate, exuding an old and oppressive majesty.
The family meeting had just ended, and the scent of sandalwood from the long mahogany table had not yet dissipated, but it could not suppress the smell of gunpowder lingering in the air.
The news of Xuanyuan Ce's arrest was like a huge rock hitting the deep water of the Xuanyuan family, and the ripples it caused made everyone present fall silent.
The old man's ultimatum, as he sat in the main seat, still echoed in his ears.
"From now on, everyone in the mansion must put aside all those unorthodox practices! If anyone dares to cause trouble for the family again, don't blame me for being disrespectful of family ties!"
Xuanyuan Ge was walking on the corridor. A corner of the shoulder line of his dark suit was wet by the rain, but it did not affect his upright figure at all.
The palace lanterns under the corridor swayed in the wind, and the dim light shone through the paper-pasted window frames, casting flickering shadows on his face.
The cigarette between his fingers was half burned, the ashes were shaky, but he didn't take a puff.
"Hey, isn't this the busy man of our Xuanyuan family?" A teasing voice came from behind, with undisguised sourness.
Xuanyuan Ge did not stop, but glanced at Xuanyuan Qing who was catching up with him out of the corner of his eye.
My cousin was wearing a flashy white suit and his hair was combed sleekly, but the jealousy in his eyes could not be hidden, like a poisoned needle.
"Just after the family meeting warned people to 'control themselves and return to propriety,' Young Master Xuanyuan forgot about it?"
His voice was as cold as the rain outside the corridor.
Xuanyuan Qing took a few steps in front of him, a hypocritical smile on his lips.
"What are you talking about, cousin? I'm just concerned about you.
Look at you, you are so old and you don’t even have a family. If the old man really asks about the heir one day, what will you do?
We can't let our family property fall into the hands of outsiders, right?"
"outsider?"
Xuanyuan Ge finally turned around, his eyes as sharp as a knife, piercing straight at Xuanyuan Qing.
"Instead of worrying about other people's marriages, you might as well think about how to stop your shell company from relying on family support. After all..."
He scoffed and brushed off the non-existent dust on his suit. "If I haven't achieved anything after getting married, what's the difference between being married and not being married?"
These words hit Xuanyuan Qing's sore spot accurately.
He married the daughter of a wealthy businessman three years ago, thinking that he could make great achievements by leveraging the influence of his wife's family. However, his company suffered heavy losses and he had to secretly embezzle funds from family projects to fill the gap.
Xuanyuan Qing's face instantly turned the color of liver, and his fingers clenched whitely: "Xuanyuan Pavilion! Don't go too far!"
"Excessive?"
Xuanyuan Ge took a step closer, and the aura around him forced Xuanyuan Qing to step back subconsciously.
"Watch your mouth! If you let me hear this nonsense again, it won't just be a verbal dispute."
After saying that, he walked around Xuanyuan Qing and went straight to the end of the corridor, leaving the other party with a cold and hard back.
Xuanyuan looked at his back, his chest heaving violently, and the resentment in his eyes almost overflowing.
He took out his cell phone and pressed a few keys fiercely, but stopped before dialing. Now was not the time to fall out.
He took a deep breath, put a fake smile on his face again, turned and walked towards the side hall, where his "spy" was waiting for his reply.
…
In the study, the scent of sandalwood wafts through the air.
Jiang Shutong sat on a pearwood chair, her fingers unconsciously stroking the carvings on the armrests.
She had just heard about the argument in the corridor from her trusted servant, and her brows were furrowed.
She was aware of Xuanyuan Qing's ambition, but Xuanyuan Ge was too stubborn. The family was in a turbulent time right now, and the quarrel between brothers would only make outsiders laugh at them.
“Dongdongdong——”
There was a knock on the door.
"Come in."
Xuanyuan Ge walked in, still wearing the chill of the rainy night. He casually draped his soaked coat on the hanger, revealing the neatly ironed white shirt underneath. The collar was slightly open, adding a touch of casualness, but it couldn't hide the melancholy between his brows.
"sit."
Jiang Shutong pointed to the chair opposite and poured him a cup of hot tea herself.
"You are my son, the legitimate ruler of the Xuanyuan family. What did you just argue with your cousin about? I heard it all."
Xuanyuan Ge picked up the teacup, his fingertips touched the warm wall of the cup, but it couldn't warm the chill in his heart.
"Nothing, he's just a bit of a chatterbox."
"Gossip?"
Jiang Shutong put down the teapot and her voice suddenly rose.
"He has no good intentions! Xuanyuan Ce just got into trouble, and the old man is furious. Your cousin is just hoping you'll make a mistake so he can use it to climb the ladder! And you're actually confronting him head-on!"
She paused, her tone softened, and pleaded, "Age, Mom knows you're angry about what happened back then... but the family doesn't belong to you alone. You have to plan for the future."
Xuanyuan Ge raised his eyes and looked at the white hair on his mother's temples, feeling a little sad.
My mother has lived by the family rules all her life, and what she values most are offspring and inheritance.
"I know what I'm doing."
"You know?"
Jiang Shutong smiled bitterly, "Do you know that the old man keeps talking about wanting a great-grandson? Do you know how those people from the side branches look at you?
Xuanyuan Qing has been married for three years. Although he has no children, at least he is family in name.
What about you? You're in your thirties and you don't even have a fiancée!
If this continues, after the old man passes away, the family property will really be passed on to Xuanyuan Qing's family!"
Xuanyuan Ge tightened his grip on the teacup, the heat from the rim of the cup blurring his vision.
He was silent for a moment, then spoke slowly, his voice not loud but every word clear: "No."
"What can't you do?"
"The family property will not be given away for free."
He raised his eyes and looked at his mother with a determined gaze, "Because my son is growing up. In the future, everything in the Xuanyuan family will belong to him."
"son?!"
Jiang Shutong stood up suddenly, the chair legs scraping against the floor. She looked at her son in shock, as if meeting him for the first time.
"You have a son? When did it happen? How come I didn't know? Who is the child's mother?"
A series of questions came at him, but Xuanyuan Ge just pursed his lips and refused to say another word.
Jiang Shutong stared at his tense profile, and suddenly remembered something. She took a half step back with a pale face, holding onto the edge of the table to steady herself.
She asked in a trembling voice, "Is... is it Su Ling's child? The Su Ling who disappeared five years ago?"
The snowy night five years ago overlapped with the rainy night now, and Jiang Shutong's memory was instantly pulled back to that chaotic winter.
Su Ling has a good personality and is likable.
If they were just an ordinary family.
She would probably agree to let Su Ling in.
But the Xuanyuan family is a leading family.
It has been passed down for hundreds of years.
It can't be ruined because of one marriage.
So, she personally stepped forward and asked Su Ling to leave.
At that time, Xuanyuan Pavilion searched frantically, but in the end only found a note with scribbled handwriting, and the name was never mentioned again.
Xuanyuan Ge still didn't answer, but just drank the remaining tea in the cup, and the bitter taste of the tea spread over his tongue.
He neither admitted nor denied it.
Jiang Shutong looked at him like this and was already about 70% convinced in her heart.
My son never says anything he is not sure of. He is so sure, it must be true.
She was surprised and happy, her eyes instantly reddened: "Where is that child... now? How old is he? Is he healthy? Is Su Ling... still alive?"
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