“Weren’t they originally trying to set you up with Ning Zeshu? But according to you, you didn’t agree, and Ning Zeshu’s attitude seemed pretty ambiguous from what I know. So the two families simply conspired to cook up a done deal to push this marriage through. And judging by their arrangements that night, they probably planned to make me take the fall, right?”
Ning Yichu mused, “After all, I arranged your room, I personally delivered the food you ate, and in the end, they could say I had ulterior motives towards you. But things went awry, and Ning Zeshu got involved, leaving me with nothing but an empty basket.”
“I was supposed to take the blame for you two being drugged, and you two victims would fall in love, giving the Ning family a perfect excuse to kick me out without worrying about their reputation.”
“Too bad, they tried to steal a chicken only to end up losing the rice. Things really went wrong, so they had to go with the flow and insist that I was trying to climb into your bed. He Rulin checked the surveillance and found nothing wrong. Maybe your parents didn’t allow him to find anything wrong? What do you think, doesn’t this speculation make a lot of sense?”
Although this was just Ning Yichu’s association based on their experiences that night, He Shixia found that the possibility was actually quite high.
“I will find out the truth and won’t cover for anyone,” He Shixia promised.
Ning Yichu: “Oh, I’m looking forward to it.”
Hearing Ning Yichu’s tone, He Shixia thought he might follow up with a sarcastic “husband” or “brother” or something, even though it wouldn’t be sincere. But as long as it came from Ning Yichu’s mouth, He Shixia liked to hear it.
Unfortunately, Ning Yichu didn’t say it, and He Shixia felt a bit disappointed.
At this moment, an old servant from the He family came over, standing a few meters away, and called out, “Shixia, your mom is calling you and Young Master Xiao Chu over. She’s waiting for you in the study with your dad.”
Ning Yichu lazily replied, “If they’re giving me a gift, it’s more appropriate to come over in person.”
He didn’t raise his voice deliberately, so the old servant a few meters away didn’t hear clearly and looked uncertainly at He Shixia.
He Shixia cleared his throat and said to Ning Yichu, “Then you play for a while longer. I’ll go see what Mom wants, and I’ll come back to find you later, okay?”
Ning Yichu frowned, “Don’t treat me like a kindergarten kid, okay?”
He Shixia apologized and then went back inside with the old servant.
The He family had a lot of stuff, and the servants were still helping to move things. He Shixia bypassed them and went straight to He Weian’s study.
“Mom.” He Shixia stood at the door, knocked on the open study door, and then walked in. He also greeted Tang Qingshan, who was making tea on the sofa, “Dad.”
Tang Qingshan nodded, “You’re here.”
He Weian, sitting at the desk, looked behind He Shixia and frowned, “Just you? Where’s Ning Yichu? Wasn’t he being bold and reckless in the dining room just now? Now he doesn’t dare to come see me? I heard from your grandmother and Ruxue that today’s incident was entirely stirred up by Ning Yichu. What exactly does he want? Why didn’t you control the situation and just let him cause trouble as he pleased? Also, how did he know about your uncle’s background? I wasn’t even fully aware before this.”
He Weian fired off a series of questions, while He Shixia’s gaze wandered around the study.
Then he walked to the bookshelf in the corner and took out a set of books from the top.
He Weian’s questions went unanswered, and seeing this, she felt even more provoked, “He Shixia!”
He Shixia turned around with the books, his tone calm, “Mom, this set of books is the one you bought at the auction last time, right?”
He Weian frowned, “Yes, it’s a rare antique, well-preserved. Be careful not to drop it. And don’t change the subject. Didn’t you hear a word I said?”
He Shixia nodded, “Then give this set of books to A Ning.”
He Weian was stunned, and Tang Qingshan, who was making tea, also looked up at He Shixia.
Tang Qingshan spoke, “Shixia, what are you saying? Your mom spent five million at the auction for this set of books. The money isn’t the issue; it’s the rarity and value. Why would you just give it away?”
“It’s not without reason,” He Shixia replied. “A Ning revealed the mistakes Grandfather made over the years and the true background of Uncle, preventing us from being kept in the dark. That’s indeed a contribution. As the head of the family, Mom should reward him a bit. This set of books will do; he likes reading.”
Tang Qingshan fell silent.
He Weian laughed in anger, “If he had good intentions, he could have said it privately instead of suddenly causing a scene, catching the whole family off guard. It’s a good thing your grandmother is in good health; otherwise, today’s commotion would have made her sick. And he would have succeeded as a hero? He Shixia, what’s gotten into you these days!”
He Shixia replied gently, “What counts as privately? Saying it in our own dining room, in front of the people involved, isn’t it private enough? Mom, you’re too harsh on A Ning.”
Her son’s unyielding attitude left He Weian speechless, “You really are… What are you thinking? Suddenly saying you want to transfer all your assets, including He family shares, to Ning Yichu, suddenly protecting him to the point where we can’t even communicate. Do you need a ritual to drive away evil spirits?”
“Mom, I’m very clear-headed,” He Shixia looked at her, his gaze deep, “I love him, and I owe him a lot, so now I want to make up for it as much as possible.”
He Weian and Tang Qingshan both looked as if they’d seen a ghost.
He Shixia: “I know you can’t understand, and I didn’t plan to convince you with a few words. But I hope you can realize that I’m serious, not just having a late rebellious phase. A Ning has suffered too much in the past and doesn’t want to endure it anymore. If you can’t understand him either, then just don’t interfere, to avoid more conflicts and unhappiness for everyone.”
He Weian sneered, “He really knows how to make people unhappy.”
He Shixia sighed softly, “But what he said is the truth. It just shattered the false peace and harmony, and that’s what made everyone unhappy. It’s not his fault.”
He Weian: “So you want to protect him and not let us interfere.”
“Yes,” He Shixia nodded, “By the way, since both Mom and Dad are here, let me ask directly. Three months ago at Kangning Grand Hotel, the night A Ning and I had an accident, was there any involvement from you?”
He Weian and Tang Qingshan’s faces turned even darker.
Tang Qingshan asked, “Shixia, what are you saying? And why are you suddenly bringing this up? Wasn’t it long over, and wasn’t it Ning Yichu’s doing? You can’t just push his mistakes onto others, especially your own parents, just because you want to protect him now. That’s too much, Shixia.”
He Shixia observed his parents’ expressions, his tone calm, “If I misunderstood, then I apologize. Anyway, I’m investigating this matter, and I will get to the bottom of it. If you were indeed involved, I hope we can be honest with each other and save some trouble. Of course, I hope you weren’t.”
“He, Shixia!” He Weian gritted her teeth and called his name, then suddenly felt powerless, “You really are… Have you decided to spend the rest of your life revolving around Ning Yichu, ignoring everyone and everything else?”
He Shixia smiled, “Only if he doesn’t kick me out.”
Whether Ning Yichu would kick He Shixia out, He Weian didn’t know, but she couldn’t stand her son right now and waved him away, “Out, out, get out of here.”
He Shixia took the book and walked to the door, and He Weian called him back, “Wait a minute.”
He Shixia turned to look.
He Weian sighed softly, “Shixia, all these years, you’ve hardly given the family any trouble. But when you decide to do something, even if it goes against the family’s opinion, you never listen to advice… Now, since you’re sure you know what you’re doing, I don’t want to say more. But you really need to manage Xiao Chu well, at least don’t let it get to your grandmother. She’s really old.”
He Shixia bowed slightly, “Sorry.”
When He Shixia returned to the garden with the rare book he had taken from his mom’s study, Ning Yichu was still there. He had gotten off the swing and was holding a dog by the flower bed.
The dog belonged to He Dingbang’s youngest son, He Ruzhu. It wasn’t very big, originally white-furred, but it rolled around everywhere and was often covered in mud and dirt. Now it was being held down by Ning Yichu, whimpering softly, looking quite pitiful.
He Shixia paused and called softly, “A Ning.”
Ning Yichu didn’t turn around, still looking down at the little white dog in his hands, “It bares its teeth at me and barks non-stop. I used to be afraid it would bite me. It came over again just now, so I tried grabbing it, and it turns out it’s quite timid.”
He Shixia approached and squatted down beside Ning Yichu, “Hmm, this dog is a bit arrogant but essentially bullies the weak and fears the strong. If you don’t like it, I can have the servants take it to He Ruzhu to keep it in the side house so it won’t be an eyesore.”
Ning Yichu lifted the little white dog by the scruff of its neck, looking into its round eyes, and smiled, “Not enough. Even if it’s a dog, it has to pay the price for bullying me.”
He Shixia was slightly puzzled, “What can it do?”
Ning Yichu didn’t answer. He turned his head, glanced at He Shixia, and seeing him holding a book, asked, “What, did your mom ask you to bring me some books to cultivate my character?”
“No, this is a ‘gift’ I brought for you from my mom’s study. She bought it at an auction for five million. Do you like it?” He Shixia smiled.
Ning Yichu raised an eyebrow, pleased, “I like that price.”
Half an hour later, the lawyer arrived, and Ning Yichu finally let the little white dog go.
As soon as it was released, the little white dog yelped and ran away without looking back.
He Shixia had considerable assets, and the agreement the lawyer brought was a thick stack. Ning Yichu slowly went through the terms of the gift.
He Shixia added, “The He family has a family trust fund that provides ‘living expenses’ to descendants monthly. Also, some of the movies I acted in have profit-sharing, meaning as long as they are still being replayed, I can get a share of the money, settled every three months.”
“But these two income sources can’t be transferred and can only be under my name. If I die, there won’t be any new income, so these two items aren’t in the contract. Everything else is.”
Ning Yichu was curious, “Does the family trust fund include a share for the He family descendants’ spouses?”
He Shixia smiled, “I’m sorry, it doesn’t.”
Ning Yichu commented, “So stingy, not treating people as family.”
He Shixia: “…Sorry.”
The lawyer listened silently on the side.
After Ning Yichu confirmed the contract, he and He Shixia signed it together. The lawyer also stamped and signed it, and each of the three copies of the contract was held by one party. The lawyer said he would complete the actual transfer of assets as soon as possible.
The lawyer was quite efficient. The next morning, before heading out, Ning Yichu received a bank notification of a large deposit.
This was just the beginning. Bank transfers were relatively simple, but there were still various asset transfers to complete, such as He Shixia’s cars, houses, shares, etc. Once all the transfers were completed, the lawyer would come again to hand over the relevant documents and materials to Ning Yichu.
The balance changed so quickly, and the total amount was so large that it felt a bit unreal, like game currency… or ghost money.
Ning Yichu was overjoyed, “Hey, do you think maybe this isn’t the real world? I didn’t reincarnate; I just died and ended up in a fantasy world constructed by the underworld, and now I’m receiving funds from the Heaven and Earth Bank that you burned for me in the mortal world?”
He Shixia chuckled, “The inflation in the Heaven and Earth Bank is quite severe, isn’t it? Burning just this much is a bit stingy.”
Ning Yichu snorted softly.
That morning, they still had to go to the hospital to check Ning Yichu’s health and confirm the surgery arrangements.
Before leaving, Ning Yichu specifically had someone bring the little white dog over again.
Then he had the driver—He Shixia—drive to a pet hospital first.
He Shixia: “Pet hospital?”
“Yes.” Ning Yichu sat in the back seat holding the little white dog.
This little dog, which bullied the weak and feared the strong, no longer bared its teeth or barked at Ning Yichu, lying obediently on his lap.
Ning Yichu lifted its two hind legs and looked at them, smiling, “Those who bully me will all become eunuchs.”
He Shixia responded with a long silence.
Author’s Note:
Slightly reducing the word count, no update tomorrow, see you the day after [heart]