Chapter 34 All I do every day is act like a spoiled princess
Zhong Yan had something else he didn't understand. He gave Wen Yi'an a deep look, then walked inside.
Inside, the atmosphere was harmonious and joyful. Zhou Yanyu's eyes were gentle, and the old lady was also smiling as she spoke to Shuyun.
Anyone who sees them would think they're easygoing, and they are; they're just very good at cultivating their reputations.
He pulled up a chair and sat down, his face showing no sign of anger. "You two seem to be having a good chat?"
The old lady laughed and said, "That's right. I watched Shuyun grow up. I liked this girl very much back then."
Zhong Yan nodded. "She likes you quite a bit too, doesn't she, Shuyun?"
Shuyun exclaimed, "Of course! I consider her my own grandmother!"
Zhong Yan nodded, "Alright, this is what it means to be willing, understand? From now on, you grandparents and grandchildren can be filial, but don't involve Ji Tanyuan anymore. She's an outsider, it's not worth it."
Upon hearing this, Shuyun didn't know whether she should laugh or not.
She then said politely, "Ayan, what are you saying? How can you talk about your wife like that?"
However, how could the old lady not hear the veiled sarcasm in his words?
"Zhong Yan, what do you mean? If she were an outsider, I wouldn't care about her. Did Ji Tanyuan complain to you again?"
Zhou Yanyu frowned, then looked outside and saw Wen Yi'an enter, looking apologetic at her: "Mom, you asked me to go check on the orphanage that the Zhong family sponsors today, but I forgot and didn't go."
Zhou Yanyu looked at her youngest son, whose face was not good-looking, and sneered: "You think I deliberately only let your wife go, right?"
Zhong Yan: "As expected, you didn't like me to begin with, and by extension, you didn't like her either, but there has to be a limit to how much you suppress her. Ji Tanyuan is gentler with her than you are with your dogs..."
The old lady threw down her spoon, and with a crash, the bowl and plates shattered into pieces, startling Shuyun.
Zhou Yanyu was even angrier when Zhong Yan said such offensive things to Ji Tanyuan.
"Suppression? Going to the orphanage is suppression? Zhong Yan, I only made her stand in the sun for two hours, and I stood there too. How come you think I'm torturing her?"
"All you do every day is act like a spoiled princess. What's wrong with toughening up your will? What, is marrying into the Zhong family really just about enjoying life without any obligations?"
The two elders scolded him, but Zhong Yan remained sitting there indifferently. He seemed to be used to it, used to the fact that each of these people had their own grievances and dissatisfaction.
The old man and Zhong Fangqi, who was returning home from get off work, were also attracted by the sound.
"What's wrong?" Zhong Fangqi asked impatiently.
Then he saw Shuyun sitting there, his expression softened, and he said, "Shuyun is here too."
Shuyun nodded blankly.
She then realized what was happening, stood up, and patted the old lady on the back: "Grandma, don't be angry. Don't you know what kind of temper Ayan has? Let's talk things out properly. Don't let someone with ulterior motives take advantage of us and alienate our relationship."
The old lady glanced sideways at Ji Tanyuan in the distance and snorted coldly, "We've already drifted apart. Some people forget their mothers after they get married. Not only do they show no respect to their mothers, but they also offend me, a person with one foot in the grave!"
Ji Tanyuan lowered her head and pursed her lips, inwardly marveling that the saying "some old people get more confused as they get older" was indeed true.
Almost simultaneously, Zhong Yan also laughed, but there was no smile in his eyes, only indifference, annoyance, and blatant sarcasm.
"Really? I thought it was because we weren't close to each other that they all wanted to come and kick us while we were down."
Zhou Yanyu said in a deep voice, "Zhong Yan! Shut up!"
Zhong Fangqi grabbed Zhong Yan's shoulder and squeezed it hard, reminding him that there were outsiders present.
Zhong Yan's expression was cold. He took his father's hand off his shoulder, stood up, and looked him in the eye. "You know, you know there are some things that can't be shown in public, but you still let it go. It's been like this since you were a child."
This isn't simply about disliking Ji Tanyuan; it's also about disliking him for using those disgusting, baseless rules to oppress people.
He once resisted even greater suppression, as if he had to kneel down and fawn over them with gratitude, and that raising his head was disrespectful, just like Ji Tanyuan now.
The old lady was still stunned by Zhong Yan's disgusted expression and couldn't recover for a long time, sitting there unable to react.
She wasn't seeing things; the annoyance and indifference on Zhong Yan's face weren't feigned.
Zhong Jing grabbed his younger brother's wrist. "Go back and sit down."
He looked at Shuyun, who was sitting there looking somewhat lost, and asked, "How about we come back another day?"
The old lady was displeased and grabbed Shuyun's wrist, refusing to let go. "Why do we have to change the date? It's perfect to eat together now. Let the second son's family leave. They want me to die sooner."
Zhong Jing smiled and said, "Grandmother, why are you saying such hurtful things?"
The old man said in a deep voice, "Zhong Yan, apologize."
Ji Tanyuan looked up at the old man upstairs. Just like his current position, he seemed to be standing at the highest point in this house, manipulating everyone in his hands. Most of the time, the mastermind or the beneficiary was invisible.
Ji Tanyuan was dressed in a white shirt and black high-waisted pants, with her ponytail hanging down her back. Apart from her face being a little red from the sun, she had a reserved demeanor. She leaned against the cabinet at the entrance of the restaurant, as if she were invisible, but when you looked over, you would find that she was also looking at you gently.
The old man withdrew his gaze and said to Zhong Yan, "I don't know where your temper comes from again, but this is not a place for you to run wild. You're not united in this family, and you want to cause trouble?"
Zhong Yan put his hands in his pockets. "This time, is it a broken left leg?"
The old man said, "If you want to." Then he glanced at Ji Tanyuan's reaction.
There was no reaction, no emotion, no surprise. She was completely unmoved by Zhong Yan standing up for her. He was all talk and no action; he had misjudged her.
Before the marriage, he thought Ji Tanyuan was an easy person to control, just a bit of a spoiled young lady, and that he could easily take over the Ji family's high-tech shares. But now, he was not so sure.
The old lady stood up in the deathly silence: "Well, well, everyone's gone too far. Shouldn't Ji Tanyuan go? Your mother can stand her but not her? I've always said she's spoiled, and you've really spoiled her. The Zhong family is marrying a daughter-in-law, not a princess."
"Besides, how can a mere merchant be expected to act like a princess, unable to even tolerate the sun?"
Shuyun nodded, but now that she had some sense, she knew it wasn't the right time for her to speak, and she even needed to find a time to slip away.
In the end, Zhong Jing stepped in and resolved the issue, having Wen Yi'an explain things at length, and only after much persuasion was the matter brought back to a smooth conclusion.
It wasn't that her mother was deliberately making things difficult; Wen Yi'an had genuinely forgotten to go. Wen Yi'an never expected that her little scheme would escalate into this way. Zhong Yan was taking it too seriously.
At the dinner table
Almost no one could eat, but still no one said, "I'm not in the mood to eat," and they all sat and waited for the elders to leave first.
During that time, only Zhong Yan ate heartily, and even peeled shrimp for Ji Tanyuan.
Zhou Yanyu also began to dislike Ji Tanyuan at this point. Originally, she didn't dislike her, but Ji Tanyuan was disobedient in every way, making Zhong Yanlai lose face in front of outsiders.
The old man wiped his mouth and said to the two brothers, Zhong Jing and Zhong Yan, "You two, come up here."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
