"Wenyun, what are you talking about?"
Zhao Hao's face was deathly pale.
Even though he knew it was impossible, being caught off guard and having his deepest fear exposed was still incredibly agonizing. He subconsciously glanced at Xuewen, only to meet a pair of eyes filled with the same guilty fear.
His heart skipped a beat.
Could it be...
"Shouldn't you know exactly what I'm talking about?" Shang Wenyun sneered and shook her hand. She had used so much force that it ached a little; otherwise, giving him just two slaps would have been letting him off too easily. How could this bastard be so thick-skinned!
For over ten years, she had been kept in the dark, spun around by his lies like a complete fool.
Now, even his death had been a lie!
Hearing this, Zhao Hao panicked even more.
His heart sank. He forced a smile and apologized, "I know I've wronged you by not being home these past few days. Xuewen also said he was ignorant and broke your heart. I apologize to you, but you shouldn't say things out of anger—"
"It will ruin the years of affection between you and your son."
"Mother."
At that moment, Zhao Xuewen, with red eyes, called out pitifully.
What a great assist!
Su Ning watched the drama unfold and sighed inwardly. If Shang Wenyun hadn't known the truth and was simply heartbroken by the Zhao family and her son, this fake father-and-son combo might have actually earned her forgiveness.
But now, it should backfire, right?
She guessed correctly.
However, aside from being furious at their shamelessness, Shang Wenyun mostly felt humiliated in front of Su Ning and her many colleagues. The shame of airing her dirty laundry in public kept her from lashing out immediately.
Zhao Hao, however, thought he had moved his wife.
"If you're still angry, you can hit me or scold me, and I absolutely won't fight back. But after you've vented, I hope you'll apologize to the child..."
"Someone shut him up."
Su Ning sighed.
Was this guy even speaking a human language? She thought that after surfing the internet and experiencing countless online battles, she was immune, but she didn't expect to be so easily disgusted by a real-life weirdo... Well, maybe her defenses had dropped because her life was going too smoothly lately.
Over there, a few people stepped forward and physically helped Zhao Hao complete the action of shutting up.
Her gaze fell on Zhao Xuewen.
Her tone was teasing.
"Do you still remember who I am?"
Zhao Xuewen clenched his fists tightly. How could he not remember? In his short life, the person he hated and disliked the most was Su Ning.
"It seems you do. The last time we met was at the hospital." The system reminded her that she had received a massive wave of rewards. In a great mood, Su Ning curled her lips and continued to provoke him:
"Then do you know why I came to the hospital?"
Zhao Xuewen froze.
That's right.
This woman was famously vile-tempered. How could she possibly come to the hospital out of pure kindness to visit the sick child of her sister's English teacher? Impossible!
He stared blankly at Su Ning.
Only to see a dangerous smile flash across her cold, arrogant face. It looked like smugness, or perhaps the look of someone who had finally obtained a long-coveted toy.
Her voice pitched upward:
"You grew up abroad, have you ever heard of something called a blood type test? It doesn't matter if you haven't, let me explain it to you. Simply put, it's impossible for parents to give birth to a child with a blood type that doesn't match theirs."
He hadn't fully grasped the meaning of those words yet.
Beside him.
The ignored Zhao Hao widened his eyes, his facial muscles twitching uncontrollably. He instinctively struggled to look at Shang Wenyun, finding only coldness, resentment, and mockery... Not a trace of sympathy.
"Something interesting happened."
Su Ning continued.
Everyone present could feel her mood rising; joy radiated from her fingertips to the ends of her hair. They all had their own thoughts... but no one dared to interrupt.
"Twins. One blood report shows it's a biological child, but the other doesn't match the parents at all. It really makes one curious."
"How could I not come and take a look?"
"However, even though I kindly told Ms. Shang the truth and your sister heard it too, you were the only one who left with someone else. It's a pity... Do you want me to tell you who the bastard child is?"
Despite being precocious and smart.
Zhao Xuewen was still a child under ten. Hearing this, he subconsciously shook his head, looking around in a panic at the others, especially Shang Wenyun's face. Pursing his lips, he shouted loudly:
"I am their biological child! Father and Mother have always loved me the most."
"Is that so?"
Su Ning casually straightened her posture. She had already received the reward notification, and the long string of zeros made her dizzy. She didn't say anything else.
But everything was understood without words.
The observing neighbors and her subordinates weren't fools either. Seeing the kid's guilty look, the bastard child was definitely him... Tsk, tsk, he probably knew about it long ago.
Thinking about it further.
Shang Wenyun's face was frosty but she stood tall and righteous, while her husband looked defeated. Needless to say, the one playing tricks was the man, not the woman.
Passing off an illegitimate child as a twin.
Even the serialized novels in the newspapers couldn't write such a plot. Not to mention, there actually was someone among the neighbors who did this for a living, currently writing furiously with a pen in excitement.
Melodramatic, way too melodramatic!
…………
With nothing left to say, the two could only leave.
But before leaving, Zhao Hao spoke as if harboring deep grievances, "Whether you believe it or not, I can swear that I have never betrayed you! I hope you can think about it carefully, Wenyun."
These ambiguous words.
Paired with his pained, persistent gaze, they actually swayed quite a few bystanders... After all, they had never even heard of this so-called blood type test.
An illegitimate child turned into a twin.
It was a bit too coincidental.
"Fine, then swear," Shang Wenyun sneered, speaking to that repulsive face. "Swear that Zhao Xuewen is not a bastard, otherwise both he and you will die a horrible death and go straight to hell, to be reincarnated as beasts in your next lives."
Everyone looked at Zhao Hao.
Of course, he didn't dare!
It would be one thing if it were just him, but Xuewen... Xuewen was that person's child. He had always treated him like a precious treasure, valuing and cherishing him even more than his own biological daughter. He didn't want to risk even a one-in-a-million chance of the curse coming true.
"Wenyun, you've changed."
After a long stalemate, Zhao Hao shook his head in disappointment and lowered his head in pain:
"You used to be gentle and kind, never this aggressive or so paranoid that you wouldn't even listen to me. You've been brainwashed and influenced by Su Ning. Wake up, please? Su Ning is not a good person. She even admitted she went to the hospital just to watch a good show. From the very beginning, she never had any good intentions toward you or us..."
Hearing this.
Su Ning became very unhappy. Since arriving in the Republican era, she had been forced by circumstances to do a few bad things, but in Shang Wenyun's matter, she was a shining, absolute saint!
Slander, he was slandering her!
Even though the reward notifications kept dinging non-stop, it couldn't soothe the pain in her heart—
"Teach him how to speak properly."
The cold female voice rang out.
A moment later.
Crackle and pop, sounding like firecrackers going off during the New Year. When it finally stopped, Zhao Hao's face was bruised, swollen, and beaten beyond recognition. He couldn't utter anything besides muffled whimpers.
"Why is everyone in the Zhao family so stupid?"
Su Ning said in disgust.
She truly looked down on them now. Knowing full well they had offended her to the absolute core, they still harbored wishful thinking and stayed in Beiping, completely wasting the interception plan Lin Sen had burned the midnight oil to put together.
Staying behind was one thing, but they actually had the audacity to hoard rice and grain to profit off the war... She didn't even need to look for an excuse anymore; she could destroy the Zhao family with perfect justification.
Now, this "Devoted Second Male Lead" was exactly the same.
He needed a favor from her.
Yet he still dared to spout such nonsense?
Out of the goodness of her heart, she had her subordinates send the man back to the Zhao family, resolving Shang Wenyun's troubles. Faced with her gratitude, Su Ning merely waved a hand carelessly and dropped a cool remark:
"I'll allow you to come into work an hour—never mind, half an hour late tomorrow. If you're too late, Lin Sen might just drop dead from overwork."
"Remember, don't be late."
With that said, she got into the car.
The neighbors who had been watching the commotion all cast pitying glances at Shang Wenyun. What kind of Scrooge of a boss was this? Her subordinate was already in such a difficult state, and she only gave her a half-hour grace period?
And she acted so generous about it, too!
Shang Wenyun blinked, forcing her tears back, and bowed slightly to see the car off. The little daughter in her arms stirred, and she gently stroked the girl's forehead:
"What's wrong?"
"Let's wash up and go to sleep quickly." The little girl looked up and said worriedly, "It's so late. If we don't go to sleep soon, you won't have any energy for work tomorrow, Mommy."
"Okay."
