The father and son stared at each other in a silent standoff.
Xie Er and Xie San kept silent. They didn't even dare to let their gazes get involved. They just lowered their heads, staring at the little bit of food in front of them but didn't dare to pick up their chopsticks.
The atmosphere was so heavy that it was almost suffocating.
After a long while, Xie Wei finally said coldly, "Yunzhou, what do you mean?"
"My meaning has never changed," Xie Yunzhou said calmly. "No matter what happens in the future, my stance won't change either."
If it weren't for that woman, how could his mother have had an accident?
"It's high time you let go of the past," Xie Wei sighed. "Yunzhou, you should look forward."
Xie Yunzhou remained unmoved by his father's earnest tone. "Father is also entangled with the past. If father is willing to let go of that woman and her son and look forward, I can too."
Over the years, there had been new concubines in the Xie family, and Xie Yunzhou had never said anything. But that woman and her son were absolutely unacceptable.
Being contradicted like this, Xie Wei's face immediately darkened. "Xie Yunzhou, I've spoiled you too much in the past two years. You've completely lost sight of your place!"
He was the father, yet he was being overpowered by his own son. How could such a thing be right?
"Anyway, my mind is made up. I'm just telling you today. After choosing a good day, I'll let Yun Ce return to the Xie family and recognize his ancestors!"
After saying that, Xie Wei got up and left without having dinner.
Although he left, the oppressive feeling in the room didn't fade at all.
Xie Er and Xie San buried their heads even lower.
Obviously, in their hearts, Xie Yunzhou, their elder brother, held a higher status than Xie Wei, their father.
Xie Yunzhou took several deep breaths before he managed to calm down. "Eat."
However, he himself had lost his appetite. After taking a couple of bites, he got up and left.
As soon as he left, the other two brothers finally breathed a sigh of relief and could eat in peace.
"Why does elder brother have such a grudge against that woman and her son?" Xie Yuntiao said. "I've noticed that whenever it comes to them, elder brother is like a different person."
Xie Yunbin said in surprise, "Don't you know? Didn't your mother tell you?
Not long after Lady gave birth to elder brother, the mistress outside got pregnant. Our father devoted all his attention to her. He not only neglected Lady but also ignored elder brother. Lady became severely depressed because of this.
Later, when our father was away, that mistress came to our home and bragged about how much she and our father loved each other right in front of Lady. Lady was so stimulated that she drowned herself in the lake a few days later.
The worst part was that while Lady's funeral was being held, that mistress's son was celebrating his birthday. Our father chose to be with them and didn't show up at home for several days."
Xie Yuntiao was stunned for a moment. After a while, he said, "No wonder elder brother has such a grudge against them. If it were me, I wouldn't be able to let it go either!"
"Exactly! That mistress deserves it. She still hasn't given up after all these years. If things get out of hand, anyway, I'll stand by elder brother's side."
Xie Yuntiao nodded. "Me too. My mother said that Lady was an extremely kind person, and elder brother is an excellent elder brother. It's my fortune to have elder brother. I don't want that mistress to come in and mess up our family."
After the two brothers had eaten their fill leisurely, they returned to their courtyard together.
—
On the other side, after some hard work, Jiang Ye finally packed up his things and returned to the Marquis Mansion.
Before he even entered the mansion, the Marquis's wife greeted him warmly. "Yizhi, you're finally back! Oh, you've been living outside for so many years. It's really hard for me to see you! Now it's great that you're back. Our whole family is finally reunited!"
People were coming and going in front of the Marquis Mansion. The Marquis's wife beamed, attracting many people's attention.
But Jiang Ye remained as cold as ever. He didn't even say a word. He just watched as his servants carried his things inside.
The Marquis's wife wasn't annoyed by his attitude at all. Instead, she reached out her hand to him again. "Yizhi, now that we're going to live together, you can't always be like this, can you? Your father will feel bad if you're like this."
As soon as the Marquis's wife finished speaking, a voice sounded. "Oh, the Marquis Mansion is really lively. Even a show can be watched at the main gate. This mother-son harmony, which act is this?"
Everyone followed the voice and saw Meng Chun striding over.
Meng Chun was smiling. There were two teams of maids behind her, each holding a brocade box.
"Lord Jiang, the princess heard that you're returning to the Marquis Mansion today, so she specially sent us here to give you some housewarming gifts!"
Hearing her mention Jiang Ning'an, the tense corners of Jiang Ye's lips relaxed, and a hint of a smile flashed in his eyes.
Meng Chun looked at the Marquis's wife and said with a smile, "Madam, I hope I didn't spoil your show."
The Marquis's wife twitched the corners of her mouth and forced a smile. "What... what are you talking about? There's no such thing."
"That's good. Then I can go back and report to the princess with peace of mind," Meng Chun said with a smile. "Then you can continue your show. I'll take my leave!"
After saying that, Meng Chun led the maids and left.
As soon as Meng Chun turned around, she couldn't help but roll her eyes.
Jiang Ning'an had guessed right. The Marquis's wife would definitely take the opportunity of Jiang Ye's return to show how good she was. That's why she sent Meng Chun here to support Jiang Ye.
She had really come at the right time.
Now the Marquis's wife couldn't even force a smile, so she naturally lost the intention of feigning intimacy. She simply turned around and left.
Looking at the gifts that were even more numerous than his luggage, a hint of a smile flashed in Jiang Ye's eyes.
On the other side, as soon as the Marquis's wife returned to the back courtyard, her face darkened.
Jiang Wenlan quickly stepped forward to greet her. "Mother, what's wrong?"
"I didn't notice before, but Jiang Ye is not completely useless. He can even make the Princess of Zhaoyang stand on his side!" The Marquis's wife gritted her teeth in anger. "You don't know. Just now, the princess's maid came and humiliated me in front of so many people. She didn't care about the face of our Marquis Mansion at all!"
Jiang Yunfan pursed his lips. "Mother, it's all my fault for being useless."
The Marquis's wife took a deep breath. "It's not your fault. The Princess of Zhaoyang is not a good person either. Her close relationship with Jiang Ye is probably just like birds of a feather flocking together. You're different from them."
Seeing that the Marquis's wife was still in a bad mood, Jiang Wenlan rolled her eyes and said, "Mother, don't worry. Soon, not only Jiang Ye but also the Princess of Zhaoyang won't be able to act arrogantly!"
The power of the Xie family was not something ordinary people could compare with. After Xie Yun Ce returned to the Xie family and took control of it, they would deal with Jiang Ye first and then trample on Jiang Ning'an to vent the Marquis's wife's anger!
The Marquis's wife looked at her suspiciously. "What are you talking about, child?"
Jiang Wenlan didn't answer but winked at Jiang Yunfan.
Jiang Yunfan understood and also laughed. "Mother, don't worry about it. Wenlan and I are grown up. We can share your worries. You can just rest assured."
Looking at the siblings who were speaking in riddles, the Marquis's wife couldn't help but sigh.
What a headache.