“Such as?”
“She had a boyfriend, and the two were in a messy relationship until Chen drove him away. Her father used to own a company, but it went bankrupt and got closed down due to poor management. After that, her father became terribly ill and needed a lot of money for his treatment.
However, she refused to pay him a single cent. When he threatened to kill himself by jumping into the river, she simply told him to go ahead and do it. There are videos of that incident, in case you don’t believe me. This is just one of the many spine-chilling things she has done in the past, and I seriously question her moral standard.”
Nan Zhengde’s face was twisted with fury. This is beyond terrifying! Who would’ve thought the girl I have approved of to turn out to be such a monster!
“Do you have any proof on what you’ve just said? You’re not just making these accusations because you don’t like her, are you?” Nan Zhengde asked angrily.
Bai Hua felt a little guilty when she heard that, as most of what she said was fabricated.
Ouyang Qing was the one who gave her the pictures and videos, so even Bai Hua herself wasn’t completely sure of its authenticity.
All she could do was try to add oil to the fire and make things seem a lot more serious than they actually were.
This old man has seen a lot throughout his many years of managing his business empire. Did he notice something wrong with what I said?
“I don’t dislike her at all. On the contrary, I like her quite a lot! She’s pretty and smart. On top of that, she even gave birth to two amazing children for the Nan family! I don’t really believe in the rumors either. I didn’t tell you about it because I was afraid you’d get mad. If you don’t believe me, you can just forget that I ever said anything.” Bai Hua pretended to be upset.
Nan Zhengde simply snorted in response.
“Leave now! You’ve angered my dad!” Nan Zhiyuan shouted at her.
“Wait.” Nan Zhengde called out to Bai Hua. “Where did you hear all of this from?”
“I…”
“Is that all you’ve been doing since your return? Digging up dirt on Ning Ran?”
“No, dad! I simply heard about this from others!”
“From whom?” Nan Zhengde pressed on.
Bai Hua was starting to panic. As expected of the Old Master… He’s managed to corner me with just a few simple questions!
“Some friends of mine. Fine, I admit that I went around asking about it.”
“That’s a lot of information you’ve got there. It’s clearly collected and organized, so tell me… Where do you find so many friends so quickly after your return? Even if they were old friends of yours, it would be too much of a coincidence for them to all know so much about her.”
As the saying goes, the elder really is the wiser. I thought Nan Zhengde would be losing his mind from anger, but he’s surprisingly calm and level-headed! I don’t think I can handle any more of his questions.
“I know you don’t believe me, so just forget I have said anything!” Bai Hua pretended to cry, but it didn’t look convincing at all.
“Of course, I don’t believe you! Who told you to do this? Who helped you dig all that dirt on her? And what would that person stand to gain out of all this?” Nan Zhengde continued pushing her for answers.
“There really is no such person! With how advanced technology is nowadays, you can easily find all this information online!” Bai Hua was finally able to come up with a more reasonable excuse.
“While I may not be too familiar with the internet, I do know that most of the stuff online are fake. Did you base all of your accusations off unreliable information found on the internet?” Nan Zhengde asked.
Bai Hua was close to losing her temper. What a difficult old man! You’re the one that asked me for more information, and now you’re suspecting me instead? Whose side are you on anyway?
However, she didn’t dare show any signs of her anger whatsoever.
“You’re right, dad. I shouldn’t have criticized her like that without any solid evidence. I admit that I was wrong, but I only did this out of concern for Chen! I want him to marry someone decent who can help him out with his career!” Bai Hua tried to please Nan Zhengde.
“You can leave now. Don’t cause any more trouble! I won’t forgive anyone who meddles with the affairs of Nan family. Do you hear me?” Nan Zhengde shouted.
“Yes, dad. I understand.”
Bai Hua quickly turned around and left the scene.
“Were you aware of all this?” Nan Zhengde asked Nan Zhiyuan.
“No, I wasn’t! I intend to look after you ever since I came back, so I didn’t have any time nor energy for that nonsense!”
“Is that so?” Nan Zhengde wasn’t convinced.
“Yes, I really don’t know anything about that. Don’t worry, I won’t meddle in the affairs of Nan family affairs anymore,” Nan Zhiyuan said.
“I hope so. All right, you may leave now. Have the butler come in,” Nan Zhengde said.
“Okay.”
The Nan family butler, Chai Hua, came in a few minutes after Nan Zhiyuan left.
Chai Hua was a slightly chubby man in his fifties and loved wearing an old-fashioned grey suit like the mob bosses did in movies.
“Old Master.” Chai Hua bowed politely before Nan Zhengde and addressed him as he always did.
“Call Chen and have him come over,” Nan Zhengde said.
“Right now?”
“No, do it tomorrow or the day after. Just tell him to drop by whenever he’s free.”
“Do I tell him the reason for coming over?” Chai Hua asked.
“Yes, get him to come and pray to help calm himself down by listening to some chanting.”
“Yes, Old Master,” Chai Hua responded.
He was about to leave when Nan Zhengde called out to him again.
“Wait, there’s something I’d like to ask you.”
“What is it, Old Master?”
“Please, drop the formalities. You’ve been working in the Nan family for so many years now, we’re as close as family,” Nan Zhengde said with a frown.
“This is just basic etiquette.” Chai Hua chuckled.
“Chen is supposed to escort a very important guest today, but I heard he has ditched the guest over a woman. I just wanted to ask your opinion on his character. Do you think he is the type to act so selfishly and irresponsibly?” Nan Zhengde asked.
“Hmm… I don’t know.” Chai Hua kept his reply vague.
“Just answer me honestly, and don’t tell me you don’t know when you’ve looked after him since he was a child. What do you think of his character?”
“Young Master Chen is, without a doubt, a giant among men. Combine that with his training and experience, and I believe he may very well surpass your accomplishments in the future.”
“So you don’t think he’d let a woman control him, do you?”
“No, I don’t.” Chai Hua nodded.
“Me neither. Help me keep an eye on the eavesdropping couple outside. I want to know who they’ve been in contact with lately,” Nan Zhengde said.
Bai Hua and Nan Zhiyuan had their ears pressed against the door, and they went pale upon hearing that.
