Master Zhao was also aware of this matter. After all, when the government settled the issue for Zhao Luoyu back then, the Zhao family was involved.
Master Zhao gave a soft cough.
"I know your stepmother's temper. She won't make groundless accusations. Do you want me to go to her, or will you tell me yourself?"
Master Zhao was just bluffing without any evidence.
Zhao Luoning would never fall into the trap.
The two of them were engaged in a verbal tug - of - war.
Gradually, Master Zhao lost his patience.
"Do you really want me to find a maid to strip your clothes off?"
Master Zhao was well aware that as long as he could prove that the person in front of him was not Zhao Luojing, he could take back the two shops he had coveted for a long time.
Zhao Luoning, of course, knew what her father was up to. He wanted her to hand over the shops. There was no way.
"Father, actually, I've always had a question for you. Why are you so harsh on the eldest branch? Stepmother has done so many wrong things, but you just gave her a few strokes of the cane and let her go. Mother has taken good care of you whole - heartedly. Even though you've broken her heart, she comes back after you coax her a bit. But what's the result? You never believe her or her children."
"I'm also thinking about your mother. You surely don't want to see your mother suffer, do you?"
At first, when Zhao Luoning heard that the person in front of her was terminally ill, there was a moment of pity in her heart. But now, that bit of pity had been completely washed away by her disgust for him.
Actually, Zhao Luoning had been touched by her father before.
Every time something happened to the Zhao family, it was her father who stepped forward to take charge.
But these rare moments of being touched were all based on the premise that his daughter could bring benefits to him.
He was ultimately selfish.
As long as his interests were not touched, he was easy to talk to, and could even barely be regarded as a qualified father.
But once his interests were involved, his selfish nature was fully exposed.
Just like this time.
No matter how much the second wife had made a fuss before, when things came to light, as long as she begged for mercy and acted coquettishly, her father would act as if nothing had happened.
But this time was different. The second wife had tried to harm her father's life. So no matter how hard the second wife tried, her father remained unmoved.
In the end, her father only loved himself.
Seeing his "son" looking at him coldly, Master Zhao played the soft - hearted card in due time and said,
"Alas, I know you've always resented me. You don't understand your father's good intentions. I just hope you can grow up."
Hearing this, Zhao Luoning almost rolled her eyes to the sky.
Her father was really good at making excuses for himself. According to her father's logic, should she even thank him?
She would rather be nothing special, just like thousands of other young girls, waiting to be betrothed, learning the piano, chess, calligraphy, painting, female handicrafts and music.
Instead of struggling with others in the business world, haggling over every detail and fighting to the death.
Zhao Luoning had grown up in such an environment and had long hated such a life.
Just as she hated the big mansion.
She had learned to protect herself with a cold attitude since childhood.
So in terms of emotions, she was slow - to - warm.
So slow - to - warm that she was a bit dull.
Her first half of life had been trapped by two big mansions, and her most beautiful youth had been consumed in them. She couldn't let her descendants live such a life.
Zhao Luoning didn't want to talk to Master Zhao anymore.
Yes, Master Zhao.
She didn't want to call him father anymore.
He didn't deserve it.
The person in front of her made her feel sick.
At this time, Master Zhao was still falsely playing the emotional card.
"I know you've always resented your father. I was too hasty in handling Luoyu's matter. I'll explain the whole thing to the clan and the county magistrate. Luoyu is still a daughter of the Zhao family. If you have any news of her, let her come back. It's my fault as a father. If she's willing to come back, I'll apologize to her in person."
Apologize?
Did he really have the courage to apologize to his own daughter?
To be honest, Zhao Luoning didn't believe it.
This man was not only selfish but also very vain.
Now he just wanted to coax her into handing over the shops.
But Zhao Luoning didn't flat - out refuse either.
The decision of whether to come back or not was up to Zhao Luoyu. Even though she hoped in her heart that Luoyu would never have anything to do with this family again, she couldn't make the decision for Luoyu.
"Don't worry. I've never given up searching for Luoyu's whereabouts. As soon as I get any news, I'll come back and tell you immediately."
Master Zhao also knew that it would be difficult for him to get the pharmacy and the silk shop back for the time being.
After several rounds of probing, the answers of the child in front of him were flawless.
He couldn't really, as the second wife of the Zhao family had said, strip the child's clothes to see if it was a boy or a girl.
Since hard - pressing didn't work, he had to use soft tactics.
Master Zhao gave up his aggressive attitude and decided to adopt a round - about strategy.
He gave a soft cough, as if he had just remembered something. He got up and walked behind the bookshelf. He reached out and felt behind the neatly arranged spines of the books, and took out a paper package soaked in oil to keep it waterproof.
When he carefully opened the paper package, the things inside were exposed to the sunlight.
It turned out to be the deed of the Zhao family's tea house.
"You've dedicated yourself to the Zhao family for so many years. These things are what you deserve."
If it had been before, Zhao Luoning would have been deeply touched and cried when she got the deed.
But things were different now.
Zhao Luoning knew that the Zhao family's tea house was in the process of bankruptcy liquidation.
When Master Zhao gave her the deed at this time, it was clearly asking her to take over this mess.
This was exactly what Master Zhao had in mind.
Since Zhao Luoming took over the tea house, many senior tea - making masters had left.
Coupled with the wars in recent years, and since Zhao Luoming had just taken over the business, he didn't have as flexible a mind as Zhao Luoning. As a result, the business of the tea house had declined rapidly.
Now the tea house was in the process of liquidation. Not only were there large piles of unsold tea leaves, but also a lot of wages were owed to the workers. Even if the deed was sold, it might not be enough to pay off the debts.
Even if "Zhao Luojing" was unwilling to hand over the pharmacy and the silk shop, if he could help him balance the accounts of the tea house, with the family fortune of the Zhao family, he could still live a comfortable life until he died.
Zhao Luoning wasn't stupid. There was no such good thing in the world.
"Father, your son really can't accept this. If I do, it will be unfair to Luoming. After all, it's him, not me, who has been managing the affairs of the mansion in the past one or two years."
"Father is old and can't handle many things. Luoming is still young and may not handle things properly. As an elder brother, you should help him keep an eye on things so that he has a goal. You should understand that in this world, nothing can be obtained without hard work."
Zhao Luoning curled her lips.
This deed not only couldn't be obtained without hard work, but one might even end up losing everything!