A beautiful summer night

Hou Mengqiu's feigned madness wasn't just something Xie Qiyan feared.

Xie An is not Xie Tianqi's child.

She was afraid of being disgraced, afraid that Old Master Xie would not let her off the hook, and afraid that if this matter got out, Xie An would become the laughing stock of the entire Beicheng.

What she feared most was that Xie An would hate her if he found out.

She sent Xie An away, not letting him know anything about it. She preferred to pretend to be crazy rather than face the truth.

She was afraid of everyone's condemnation.

But now she has no way out.

There was no turning back for her.

"You chose to have an affair, and you chose to have the child. You have to bear the consequences of your actions." Xia Wanzhi said these words not out of pity for her, but for Xie An's sake.

Xie An was only two years older than Xie Tan. He was well-behaved and obedient, and Xia Wanzhi often took him along when she played with Xie Tan.

Xie An is innocent.

Xia Wanzhi could imagine how devastated Xie An would be if he found out he wasn't a child of the Xie family.

But that's the truth.

Xia Wanzhi felt only sorrow.

The mistakes Hou Mengqiu made back then should now be borne by Xie An along with her.

Hou Mengqiu's eyes were in disarray. Upon hearing this, she suddenly locked her gaze on Xie Qiyan. Xia Wanzhi didn't give her a chance to speak and coldly rebuked, "What? You still think it's my Ayan's fault? You hate him for investigating his mother and finding out about your scandalous affair with Driver An?"

Hou Mengqiu felt a sharp pain in her heart. She shifted her gaze to the left and stared intently at Xia Wanzhi: "I never imagined that such a delicate girl could become so sharp-tongued."

"She wasn't like this before. It's just that she's suddenly seen the world. She didn't expect Aunt Hou to be this kind of person, so she couldn't help but say a few more words." Xia Wanzhi said sarcastically.

The more indifferent Xia Wanzhi was, the more Hou Mengqiu felt pain in her heart.

Xie An got along well with Xie Tan and also with Xia Wanzhi.

Hou Mengqiu also likes the things her son likes.

Xia Wanzhi criticized her, and it was as if she saw Xie An criticizing her through her.

"But is this my fault! It's Xie Tianqi! He can't have children..." Hou Mengqiu wept bitterly, turning her gaze away from Xia Wanzhi, clutching her chest and choking back sobs, "I just want a child..."

"Wanting both? How can that be?" Xia Wanzhi sighed lightly. "Wanting a child and also wanting the Xie family's things? How can someone like you get all the good things?"

"You've been hiding the truth about what you did to Aunt Yao back then, while carefully protecting Xie An from being implicated. Aunt Hou, you must be having a hard time in the mental hospital, right?" Xia Wanzhi lowered her eyelashes, her voice becoming indifferent. "If you had known this would happen, why did you do it in the first place?"

Yu Fei and Huo Yang looked at each other, glancing at Xie Qiyan and then at Xia Wanzhi.

One person admired Xia Wanzhi's fierce protection of her husband, while the other felt happy for Xie Qiyan.

Xie Qiyan's anger had long since dissipated when Xia Wanzhi spoke up for him.

It all started with that phrase, "My Ayan."

What Hou Mengqiu is after, and whose child she had, has nothing to do with him.

He only cared about things related to Yao Qin.

It is true that he bribed Yang Datong to have improper intentions towards Yao Qin, and it is true that he had an argument with Yao Qin, which led to her falling into the river.

Xie Qiyan never intended to do anything to Xie An.

But he couldn't possibly leave Hou Mengqiu unattended.

After leaving the villa in the western suburbs, Xie Qiyan asked Yu Fei to release the man. Two days later, news of Hou Mengqiu's affair with An Bihua and Xie Anfei being Xie's grandson spread throughout the wealthy social circle.

Family scandals should not be made public.

But this isn't his home.

If there is no evidence and the law cannot punish Hou Mengqiu, then he will punish him himself.

He gave Hou Mengqiu whatever she feared most.

Old Master Xie was furious for two days because Xie Qiyan wouldn't return to the Xie family, so he went to find him in person.

The old man returned to the company in a menacing manner. Yu Fei and Huo Yang came down to greet him, standing on either side of the old man and winking at him.

"Chairman—" When the elevator arrived at the president's office, Yu Fei braced himself and stopped the old man.

Old Master Xie sneered: "What, I can't even see him now?"

Yu Fei gave a dry laugh: "That's not what I meant, it's Xia..."

Before she could finish speaking, the door to the president's office opened, and Xie Qiyan, who was sitting on the sofa inside, opened his mouth to receive food from Xia Wanzhi.

The old man's hurried steps stopped in his tracks: "..."

Yu Fei touched his nose, suppressing a laugh as he hadn't been able to laugh earlier: "Chairman, I meant to say it's not convenient."

Isn't it a bit inconvenient?

Huo Yang almost couldn't help but laugh. He tugged at Yu Fei's sleeve, and the two of them quickly slipped away.

Their CEO, Mr. Xie, is truly brilliant.

Although using Xia Wanzhi as a shield is not very ethical, openly showing affection to the old man is indeed a good way to appease him.

You know, the old man has been looking forward to Xia Wanzhi marrying into the Xie family for a long time.

In the office, Xia Wanzhi secretly pinched Xie Qiyan hard with the hand that was around his waist.

Saying they're opening the door for ventilation is clearly just a way of deliberately leaving the door wide open for people to see.

"I knew it! You were just being all cutesy, asking me to feed you cherries. You've got some nerve!" Xia Wanzhi guessed Xie Qiyan's little scheme. While pinching him, she played along, feigning shyness as she pushed Xie Qiyan away and awkwardly stood up, calling out, "Grandpa..."

The old man was so charmed by her sweet "Grandpa" that he almost forgot why he was there. He coughed lightly and said, "Little Maruko is here too."

Xia Wanzhi smiled and came over to help him: "Aunt Yao's life is uncertain, and Ayan is in a bad mood. I want to stay with him a little longer."

When the trump card was revealed, it was Xia Wanzhi who had played it. The old man clenched his fists, sat down, and sighed heavily: "Never mind, never mind..."

"The news has already spread, what else can I care about?" The old man wasn't unaware that Xie Qiyan had disregarded the Xie family's reputation and made a big fuss about this in order to get revenge on Hou Mengqiu.

He was angry, angry that his eldest grandson didn't care about the Xie family or him.

Upon hearing Xia Wanzhi say that Yao Qin's fate was unknown, he realized that Yao Qin's disappearance was related to Hou Mengqiu.

"Grandpa's not angry anymore?" Xia Wanzhi poured two cups of tea, one for Xie Qiyan and one for the old man.

Although she appeared to be treating everyone equally, the old man could tell that she was actually protecting Xie Qiyan.

Instead of being angry, the old man suddenly felt happy.

"With you in the way, how can I be angry?" The old man pondered for a long time, refraining from cursing, and only said the important things, "Please have Xie An's name removed from the family register on the first day of next month. You are the head of the family, remember to come back."

"As for your stepmother, our Xie family can't accept her. Your father hasn't woken up yet, so we can't get a divorce, but she's too ashamed to come back. I know you resent me, resent me for not agreeing to your mother coming into the family back then, but if I had known she gave birth to you, if your father had brought you and your mother back, I wouldn't have refused..."

But it's too late.

Xie Tianqi has changed his mind.

The old man only regretted that his wife had passed away early and that he had focused on his work and neglected his son's education, which resulted in raising a beast like Xie Tianqi.

He also hated himself, hated his own stubbornness.

If he had agreed to let Yao Qin into the family back then...

Seemingly guessing what the old man was thinking, Xie Qiyan's gaze darkened slightly: "He is not good enough for my mother."

The old man gave him a deep look and said nothing more.