Another Day of Pretending for the Wealthy Couple - Chapter 34

Zhong Yan understood everything perfectly. He cast a deep glance at Wen Yi’an before walking further inside.

The atmosphere inside was warm and cheerful. Zhou Yanyu’s gaze was gentle, and the elderly lady was beaming as she listened to Shu Yun speak.

Anyone who saw this scene would think these people were quite amiable, and why wouldn’t they? Reputations were so easily crafted.

He pulled out a chair and sat down, not a trace of anger visible on his face. “Having a good chat, are you?”

The elderly lady smiled. “Of course! I watched Shu Yun grow up. I’ve always adored this girl since she was little.”

Zhong Yan nodded. “She adores you too, doesn’t she, Shu Yun?”

Shu Yun let out an “Ah!” and said, “Of course! I see her as my own grandmother.”

Zhong Yan nodded again. “Good. That’s what I call mutual affection, understand? From now on, you two can play the loving grandmother and devoted granddaughter. Just leave Ji Tanyuan out of it. She’s an outsider, not worth the trouble.”

Hearing this, Shu Yun didn’t know whether to laugh or not.

Then she offered a polite remark: “A-Yan, what are you saying? How can you speak of your wife like that?”

But how could the elderly lady miss the sarcasm laced in his words?

“Zhong Yan, what do you mean by that? If she were an outsider, I wouldn’t bother with her at all. Did Ji Tanyuan complain to you again?”

Zhou Yanyu frowned and glanced outside, just as Wen Yi’an entered. With an apologetic tone, she said, “Mom, you asked me to visit the orphanage funded by the Zhong family today, but I forgot and didn’t go.”

Zhou Yanyu looked at her ill-tempered younger son and sneered. “You think I deliberately sent only your wife, don’t you?”

Zhong Yan replied, “It’s to be expected. You never liked me to begin with, so it’s only natural you don’t like her either. But there’s a limit to how far you can push someone. Even Ji Tanyuan scolds her dog more gently than you treat her…”

The elderly lady slammed her spoon down with a sharp crack, shattering the bowl and plate. Shu Yun jumped in fright.

Zhou Yanyu grew even angrier at Zhong Yan’s disrespectful defense of Ji Tanyuan.

“Pushing her? Going to the orphanage is pushing her? Zhong Yan, I only made her stand under the sun for two hours, I stood there too! How is that me tormenting her?”

“Nothing but a spoiled princess every single day! What’s wrong with toughening her up a bit? Did she think marrying into the Zhong family meant she could enjoy the privileges without any responsibilities?”

As the two elders scolded him, Zhong Yan remained seated, utterly unfazed. He seemed accustomed to it, accustomed to each of them nursing their own grievances and discontent.

The noise drew the attention of the old master and Zhong Fangqi, who had just returned home from work.

“What’s going on here?” Zhong Fangqi asked impatiently.

Then he noticed Shu Yun sitting there, and his expression softened. “Shu Yun, you’re here too.”

Shu Yun nodded blankly.

A moment later, she collected herself and stood up, patting the elderly lady’s back. “Grandma, don’t be angry. You know how A-Yan is. Let’s talk things out calmly. We shouldn’t let anyone drive a wedge between you and your grandson.”

The elderly lady shot a sidelong glance at Ji Tanyuan in the distance and snorted. “The wedge is already there! Some people forget their own mothers once they take a wife. Not only do they show no respect to their mother, but they even dare to offend an old woman like me who’s halfway into the grave!”

Ji Tanyuan lowered her head and pursed her lips, thinking to herself that the saying “some elders grow more foolish with age” was not without merit.

Almost simultaneously, Zhong Yan chuckled, but there was no warmth in his eyes, only coldness, weariness, and unmistakable mockery.

“Is that so? I thought it was because we were never close to begin with, which is why everyone feels the need to step all over us.”

Zhou Yanyu said in a low voice, “Zhong Yan! Shut up!”

Zhong Fangqi gripped Zhong Yan’s shoulder and gave it a firm squeeze, reminding him that there were outsiders present.

Zhong Yan’s expression turned cold. He removed his father’s hand from his shoulder, stood up, and met his gaze. “You know it too, you know some things can’t be brought out into the open. Yet you still let it slide. It’s been like this since we were kids.”

This wasn’t just about disliking Ji Tanyuan; it was also about resenting him, using those disgusting, baseless rules to suppress others.

He had resisted before, only to face even greater pressure, as if he were expected to kneel in gratitude and flattery. Even raising his head was seen as disrespectful, just like Ji Tanyuan now.

The old lady was stunned by the look of disgust on Zhong Yan’s face, sitting there unable to react.

She wasn’t mistaken, the disgust and indifference on Zhong Yan’s face were genuine.

Zhong Jing intercepted his younger brother’s wrist. “Go back and sit down.”

He glanced at Shu Yun, who looked somewhat flustered as she sat. “Maybe we should come another day?”

The old lady wasn’t having it. She grabbed Shu Yun’s wrist and refused to let go. “Why another day? I think it’s perfect for everyone to have a meal together now. Let the second family leave, they’re just waiting for me to die sooner.”

Zhong Jing smiled. “Grandmother, what kind of talk is that?”

The old man’s voice was stern. “Zhong Yan, apologize.”

Ji Tanyuan looked up at the elderly man upstairs. Just like their current positions, he seemed to stand at the highest point in this family, manipulating everyone. Most of the time, the mastermind or the beneficiaries remained invisible.

Ji Tanyuan wore a white shirt and black high-waisted pants, her ponytail hanging behind her. Apart from her slightly flushed face from the sun, her entire demeanor was reserved. She leaned against the cabinet at the entrance to the dining room, almost as if she were invisible, but when you looked over, you’d notice her watching everyone gently.

The old man withdrew his gaze and said to Zhong Yan, “I don’t know where you’ve gotten this temper from, but this family is not a place for you to act out. Instead of uniting, you want to cause trouble?”

Zhong Yan stuffed his hands into his pockets. “So, breaking the left leg this time?”

The old man replied, “If you wish.” Then he glanced at Ji Tanyuan’s reaction.

There was none, no gratitude, no surprise, no ripple of emotion over Zhong Yan standing up for her. Soft on the outside, hard on the inside. He had misjudged her.

Before the marriage, he had thought Ji Tanyuan was someone easy to handle, just a bit spoiled with a young lady’s temper, and that it would be easy to take over the Ji family’s high-tech stocks. But now, it seemed unlikely.

In the dead silence, the old lady stood up. “Fine! Everyone’s rebelling now! Shouldn’t Ji Tanyuan go? If your mother could endure it, why can’t she? I’ve always said she’s delicate, and you’ve really spoiled her. The Zhong family married a daughter-in-law, not a princess.”

“And besides, she’s just a merchant’s daughter. Where does she get the airs of a princess? Can’t even stand a little sun?”

Shu Yun nodded, but she had enough sense to know it wasn’t her place to speak. She even thought she might need to slip away at some point.

In the end, it was Zhong Jing who stepped in to resolve the situation. He had Wen Yi’an explain everything, smoothing things over with a mix of persuasion and reasoning.

It wasn’t that their mother had deliberately made things difficult; Wen Yi’an had genuinely forgotten to go. She hadn’t expected her small, intentional oversight to blow up into such a big issue. Zhong Yan was just too uncompromising.

At the dinner table…

Almost no one had an appetite, yet no one dared to say, “I’m not in the mood to eat.” as they all remained seated, waiting for the elders to leave first.

Throughout the meal, only Zhong Yan ate heartily, even taking the time to peel shrimp for Ji Tanyuan.

Zhou Yanyu also began to resent Ji Tanyuan. She hadn’t disliked her before, but Ji Tanyuan’s constant defiance had forced Zhong Yan to step in and embarrass himself in front of others.

The old master wiped the corner of his mouth and said to the two brothers, Zhong Jing and Zhong Yan, “You two, come upstairs.”