Zhan Nan took one look and hurriedly tried to help Zhan Bei up, but suddenly felt the two gazes fixed on him turn even colder.
His outstretched hand instantly froze mid-air as he cautiously raised his head to look at Zhan Qipei and Zhan Yuanshan.
Both men were ones he deeply feared, and he dared not provoke them lightly, especially now with such dark expressions demanding him to kneel, his fear escalated, and his legs began trembling uncontrollably.
Seeing Zhan Bei kneeling on the ground again, Cao Rushan quickly stepped forward to help him up.
"Oh my, Xiao Bei, how are you? Does your leg hurt?"
Her voice had barely faded, and her hand had just touched Zhan Bei’s shoulder when Zhan Yuanshan’s authoritative voice rang out.
"Cao Rushan, dare to help him and see what happens! Today, I, Zhan Yuanshan, am here, and they must apologize to Qiao Jing as Qipei has said!"
Today he absolutely had to teach Zhan Nan and Zhan Bei a lesson; otherwise, they were going out of line, daring to bully Jing Girl again!
Fortunately, Jing Girl was capable, always managing to teach those two ignorant brothers a lesson.
Cao Rushan looked at her two children with a pained expression but, due to the intimidating presence of Zhan Qipei and Zhan Yuanshan, did not dare to make another move.
Zhan Kaiyang tightly furrowed his brows, his face filled with displeasure.
He turned to Zhan Yuanshan and asked:
"Brother, is it really necessary to cause such a rift in our family over Qiao Jing? If we do as Qipei says, that would mean severing all ties between our two families!"
His grandsons had merely misspoken, and they had already apologized. Yet Zhan Qipei had demanded more, and how could he tolerate it?!
The idea of his grandsons kneeling, losing their dignity, and even ending the cooperation was a complete disregard for his face as an elder!
Zhan Yuanshan nodded confidently, completely ignoring what the other, Zhan Kaiyang, had said, and once again released his oppressive aura towards Zhan Nan and Zhan Bei.
"Zhan Nan, Zhan Bei, apologize to Qiao Jing, or don’t blame my cane for being blind!"
Zhan Qipei expressionlessly watched the two, applying pressure with his intimidating presence.
Seeing this, Zhan Nan turned for help to his mother and his grandfather, only to find both of them appearing powerless.
According to Zhan Qipei’s words, if they upset the other party again, new demands could be made, and if Zhan Yuanshan’s cane came down, he could certainly say goodbye to his legs.
Zhan Nan bit down hard and, facing in Qiao Jing’s direction, he and Zhan Bei simultaneously said:
"Qiao Jing, we’re sorry!"
After seeing this scene, Zhan Qipei quickly walked up to Qiao Jing’s side and asked:
Qiao Jing glanced indifferently at Zhan Nan and Zhan Bei kneeling on the ground, then at Cao Rushan and Zhan Kaiyang, and slowly said:
"Hmm, that’s enough."
After today’s lesson, Zhan Nan and Zhan Bei probably wouldn’t dare to trouble her again, and with Zhan Qipei willing to sever ties with the Zhan Kaiyang family for her sake, she wanted to pursue it no further.
No matter what, Zhan Kaiyang was Zhan Qipei’s relative, and severing ties would certainly lead to many issues.
Seeing that Qiao Jing was satisfied, Zhan Qipei finally dispelled the low pressure lingering around him.
After saying this, he lifted his gaze towards Zhan Kaiyang and his family.
"Someone will handle the affairs regarding the company’s cooperation."
Hearing Zhan Qipei’s words, Zhan Kaiyang was momentarily stunned before reacting and nearly lost his composure massaging his ear.
"Qipei, do you really have to take things this far?"
Zhan Qipei nodded expressionlessly, without uttering another word.
Zhan Kaiyang noticed Zhan Qipei’s stubbornness and seriousness. He stopped talking to him and looked towards Zhan Yuanshan instead.
"Brother, are you sure you want to go this far?"
He had no desire to sever ties with Zhan Qipei and the rest, knowing full well that the benefits brought by Zhan Corporation far exceeded just that.
If they really broke off the relationship, wouldn’t his family suffer a huge loss?!
It was just a misunderstanding after all. Having his two beloved grandsons kneel had already been enough of a blow to his dignity, yet now they were insisting on cutting ties.
"For Qiao Jing, is it really worth it?"
Zhan Yuanshan naturally took Qiao Jing’s side and nodded.
"Why wouldn’t it be? For Jing Girl, everything we do is worth it. Let’s do as Qipei says."
Seeing the grandfather and grandson’s stubborn attitudes, Zhan Kaiyang said through gritted teeth:
"Fine! Remember, this was your own decision!"
After saying that, he looked at Qiao Jing with a face full of resentment, his mind beginning to concoct petty schemes.
Just a woman, he didn’t believe he couldn’t find an opportunity to teach her a good lesson!
Zhan Yuanshan saw the issue was nearly resolved and was about to take Qiao Jing to eat and see his great-grandson when he caught the resentful expression on Zhan Kaiyang’s face.
He furrowed his brows.
Having been close brothers, he was decidedly familiar with Zhan Kaiyang’s personality.
Zhan Kaiyang was the type to hold grudges, and now, with Zhan Nan and Zhan Bei’s actions causing a complete rift between the two families, he would naturally feel uncomfortable.
But what concerned him was that Zhan Kaiyang kept staring at Jing Girl, and from his expression alone, it was clear he harbored resentment and certainly planned to cause trouble for Jing Girl later on.
This couldn’t continue. Zhan Kaiyang and Zhan Nan, Zhan Bei were different; if the former took action, it would surely be more extreme, and his methods more unpredictable.
Although Jing Girl was strong, open attacks were easy to dodge while secret ones were hard to defend against; plus, being pregnant now, there would inevitably be times when she let her guard down, and she could fall into Zhan Kaiyang’s trap.
With this in mind, Zhan Yuanshan suddenly saw Zhan Kaiyang and others ready to leave. He stepped forward a few paces, taking Zhan Kaiyang aside.
Zhan Kaiyang’s face was full of displeasure, as if he were prepared to disown his relatives then and there.
Zhan Yuanshan didn’t care about Zhan Kaiyang’s attitude and went straight to the point.
"Don’t trouble Jing Girl in the future. This was originally your grandsons’ fault. Now that it’s been resolved, if you bother Qiao Jing again, I won’t be polite to you!"
Zhan Kaiyang didn’t say a word, just looking at Zhan Yuanshan.
Zhan Yuanshan knew that Zhan Kaiyang wouldn’t easily agree, so, out of frustration, he revealed Qiao Jing’s identity.
"Qiao Jing is Professor Qiao."
Although he preferred not to disclose Jing Girl’s identity, he knew the only way to deter Zhan Kaiyang from harming her was this.
That way, Zhan Kaiyang would have to consider Jing Girl’s status and wouldn’t dare to act rashly.
Upon hearing Zhan Yuanshan’s words, Zhan Kaiyang scoffed disdainfully.
"Ha! Brother, you’re saying Qiao Jing is Professor Qiao? Though I’m aware she works at Professor Qiao’s Research Institute, there’s no need to claim she’s Professor Qiao, is there?"
He paused, glancing back at Qiao Jing.
"If she’s Professor Qiao, I’ll chop off my head and use it as a stool for you! Don’t think I’m unaware that you’re saying this to deter me from troubling her later."