Today, Zhao Han wasn’t too busy with work and got home quite early.
Aunt Song didn’t go out today and stayed home to plan the redecoration of Anning’s room.
When Anning came home from school, Zhao Han was sitting on the living room sofa, reading the newspaper.
He was really happy to see Anning bringing so many classmates for a visit.
Zhao Han warmly welcomed the students from class 12.
While Xiao Yuan and the others looked careless, as if they didn’t understand manners at all,
once they arrived at their classmate’s home, they acted exceptionally well-behaved.
Each one came up to greet Zhao Han, calling him "Uncle Zhao," making him beam with joy.
Hearing the commotion, Aunt Song also came downstairs and was also very happy to see so many kids visiting.
She quickly asked Aunt Zhang to prepare lots of snacks and personally cut some fruit to serve.
"Our Ningning really owes you all for looking after her at school."
While letting the kids sit down, Aunt Song smiled and thanked them, "Ningning has mentioned several times how nice you all have been to her. I’ve always wanted to find time to thank you."
Zhao Han was purely delighted; he had no disdain for the kids’ unusual outfits in his eyes.
Because Anning had suffered too much for her first fifteen years, Zhao Han felt particularly sorry for her and wanted to compensate. In his view, anyone who was nice to Anning was a good kid, and as for wearing clothes with lots of holes, what’s there to fear? It’s the trend.
Dyed hair? Well, kids will be kids, they all have their rebellious phases.
"I and Ningning’s mom have always wanted to invite you all to our home."
Zhao Han kept speaking, "Didn’t expect you’d come today. You know what... how about staying for dinner tonight? I’ll call your parents in a bit."
Aunt Song pulled Zhao Han to leave, "You guys have fun, Old Zhao and I won’t disturb you, we have some other things to do..."
She hadn’t walked a few steps when Xiao Yuan stopped both Aunt Song and Zhao Han, "Uncle Zhao, Aunt Song, we didn’t come to visit today."
Aunt Song was taken aback and began to scrutinize Xiao Yuan.
The more she looked, the more familiar Xiao Yuan seemed, as if she had seen him somewhere.
However, what concerned her wasn’t this, but what these kids were here for. It couldn’t be that they had conflict with Anning, or had caused trouble at school.
"Do you have some matter?"
Aunt Song still wore a particularly warm smile on her face.
Xiao Yuan took out his phone, opened it, and played a video for both Aunt Song and Zhao Han, "Uncle, Aunt, please watch this yourself."
It turned out, when Anning confronted Zhao Mingzhu, Xiao Yuan had attentively recorded a video.
He came to Zhao’s home specifically to show the video to Anning’s parents.
After all, hearing is false, seeing is believing.
Aunt Song and Zhao Han weren’t originally sure why Xiao Yuan suddenly asked them to look at his phone.
But when they saw that video, they understood everything.
At the same time, both Song Ruyi and Zhao Han didn’t look too good.
Gao Nana also took out her phone: "It’s not only Xiao Yuan who recorded the video. I did too. We were just worried that Anning is too kind-hearted and especially introverted. We feared whether she would talk to Uncle Zhao about today’s incident when she returns. We didn’t want Zhao Mingzhu to catch an opportunity to bully her later."
Dong Xue also nodded: "Anning wasn’t just angry about today’s incident, even our entire class was upset. We came back with Anning mainly to be witnesses."
Song Ruyi forced a smile: "Okay, I understand. Thank you all so much for today. Ningning is timid, she probably wouldn’t dare to go if it wasn’t for you guys giving her courage."
A trace of deep thought flashed across Zhao Han’s eyes, seemingly pondering something.
Xiao Yuan pocketed his own phone and touched the red hair on his head, looking very serious.
"Have Uncle and Auntie thought about one thing?"
This time, even Zhao Han was quite surprised.
"Are you repaying some kind of debt to the Liu Family, and now you’re here to settle that debt?"
Xiao Yuan questioned with a stern face: "If not for owing them a debt, why would your biological daughter suffer so much in their home, while the Liu Family’s daughter has been pampered by you for fifteen years? Now that the truth is out, you’re still raising their daughter and even planning to give her a share of the inheritance, a substantial dowry. When the time comes, the Liu Family’s daughter might not be grateful to you but to her real parents."
Zhang Ke nodded along and said: "Xiao Yuan is right. Even if the Liu Family’s daughter doesn’t want to be grateful to her own parents, if the Liu Family causes trouble, she will have no choice but to spend your Zhao Family’s wealth on them, ever-filling the Liu Family’s bottomless pit—supporting their sons to marry and raise grandchildren, essentially making your Zhao Family support your enemies for life."
Yue Xiaofei added, "It might be Anning who owes them something, otherwise, why would the Liu Family cling onto you and suck your blood in the future?"
Gao Nana looked disdainfully at Zhao Han’s intelligence: "Uncle Zhao is an old hand in the business world. We children can think of this logic, why can’t you understand it?"
With that one sentence, Zhao Han was left speechless.
He involuntarily began to think so too.
Even Song Ruyi couldn’t help but start to imagine wildly.
Dong Xue patted Anning’s head: "Actually, we didn’t need to come, but we just couldn’t bear to see you raising an enemy in the future. As your closest kin, it’s like stabbing a knife in your heart. Besides, Anning is too sensible. If we didn’t come, she might have endured it. We couldn’t bear to see that and decided to talk to Uncle and Auntie."
Zhao Han couldn’t help but glance at Anning.
Song Ruyi’s eyes welled up with tears: "Ningning, Mom... I didn’t expect Zhao Mingzhu to..."
Anning quickly waved her hands: "No, I don’t blame you all. I’m... not really angry at Zhao Mingzhu for badmouthing me. I just think that I’m now your daughter, representing the Zhao Family. If I have a bad reputation, it affects the reputation of the Zhao Family as well."
Zhao Han’s gaze grew even more profound.
Indeed, Zhao Anning is the biological daughter of the Zhao Family. If she turned out to be incompetent, it would be the entire Zhao Family that suffers. If Anning could think of this without any particular teaching on the matter, how could Zhao Mingzhu, who grew up in the Zhao Family, not understand?
It seems Zhao Mingzhu harbored undesirable thoughts.
Anning lowered her head, nervously fiddling with her clothes: "Also, Zhao Mingzhu said I am an orphan with no parents, merely leveraging the Zhao Family. I got really angry. It doesn’t matter what she says about me, but I can’t stand her cursing my parents. You are alive and well, yet she curses you... How can she do this? Haven’t you been good enough to her? After raising her for fifteen years, doesn’t she have any feelings at all? How can she bear it?"
This time, Song Ruyi also started to resent Zhao Mingzhu.
No one wants to hear a child they have cherished for many years curse them to die sooner and be reincarnated.
But Zhao Han thought further.
Anning’s parents are them, but Zhao Mingzhu’s biological parents are her foster parents. Zhao Mingzhu curses Anning as an orphan, but she’s also including her own parents in that curse.
This child is too cruel, too heartless.
Zhao Han couldn’t help but think of a phrase: born spineless and ungrateful, a natural ingrate.