Chapter 154 - Secret Crossfire (2)
When he heard Zhao Youxi calling him, Sun Fengzi looked like she had just snapped out of her daze. She wanted to send Zhao Yifei up and get involved, only to find that Zhao Yifei had already moved forward with Zhao Youxi before she could even signal him.
Before Zhao Youxi even took a few steps toward the old master, she heard a sickeningly familiar male voice rise behind her.
"Grandfather, you"re finally here. Wait, don"t get down from the car just yet. It rained here just now, so the ground is slippery. I"ll support you."
Before his voice even faded away, Zhao Youxi saw a black figure moving past her to go toward the old master.
Zhao Youxi was stunned for a moment before she immediately understood the situation. The smile on her face became twisted for a moment. She no longer cared about etiquette and just strode forward to grab Zhao Yifei"s hand before she growled, "Zhao Yifei, what are you doing?"
Zhao Yifei gave Zhao Youxi a mocking look and chuckled, "I should be the one asking you that question? Look at you, all used to calling the old master your grandfather now. Aren"t you afraid that he will not respond to you after you call him? You"re just humiliating yourself."
"You—!" Zhao Youxi was. .h.i.t where it hurt, and she became so angry that her face turned red. Her grip around Zhao Yifei"s wrist tightened.
Zhao Yifei did not want to get involved with Zhao Youxi any further. He easily broke free of Zhao Youxi"s grip and continued moving forward.
But Zhao Youxi would not let him do what he wanted. Her gaze turned fierce, and she rushed forward to charge at him.
Zhao Yifei was shocked by Zhao Youxi"s sudden movement, and he hissed at her, "Are you mad?!"
"I"d like to see just who among us is the madder one, hah!"
Both of them found each other an eyesore, and just like that, they began competing with each other and refused to relent. They wanted to be the first to appear in front of the old master but did not expect that the old master, who did not intend to move for either of them, would suddenly speak up when they were just about to arrive in front of him.
"La.s.s, come here and lend me a hand."
The old master"s words were like a stone that fell into a calm lake. It caused a stir.
The two people who had been fighting for the advantageous spot stiffened. They could not retract their hands, but could not continue extending it either, making the situation really awkward for them.
As for the others, especially Li Hongyu and Sun Fengzi, had their faces turn red, then white, then red again. It was really exciting.
Zhao Youlin had gotten down from the other car, and she had been watching all this from her side. She originally did not intend to acknowledge it and was ready to bend down to pick up Joy when she suddenly heard the old master call out to her.
Zhao Youlin"s hand froze for a moment. When she turned her head around, she saw the situation at the old master"s side. Her eyes sparkled, and she instantly understood what was going on.
She pulled her hands back, shut the door, went past the frozen duo, and slowly arrived in front of the old master. She extended her arm to him and smiled. "Grandfather, the ground is slippery. Do be careful."
"Alright." When the old master got out of the car while being supported by Zhao Youlin, he did not put on a mighty and awe-inspiring demeanor. Instead, he looked so gentle that it was as if he was a kind, old man.
Unfortunately, this cordiality was not for Zhao Youxi and Zhao Yifei, and it had never been shown toward them before either.
As Zhao Youlin supported the old master and walked past Zhao Youxi and Zhao Yifei while chatting with the old master, the old master never even cast a single glance at them.
At that moment, Zhao Youxi and Zhao Yifei felt like they were clowns dancing in the old master"s palm. They were fully humiliated and ended up as jokes for others.
However, the rest of them did not know the truth about the seemingly close grandfather-granddaughter duo.
Zhao Youlin might have a brilliant smile on her face, but as she was supporting the old master, she pinched his waist and hissed, "Grandfather, you"re not eighty years old nor near-death. Why do you need someone to support you out of the car? Don"t you think you"re putting on a real show here? Should I pinch you a little more so that when you go out in the future, you will need someone to carry you in a litter? It"ll be even more convenient, and you"ll look even cooler. How does that sound?"
Since Zhao Youlin pinched the old master with all her strength, he was in so much pain that he was nearly unable to hold back his scream. After doing everything he could to hold it back, he heard this, and he was nearly so angry that he stomped in anger.
If it were not because there were still other people around them, he would have slapped this audacious granddaughter of his to teach her a lesson.
"You are truly… You won"t stop until you make me die of anger, will you? Can"t you see that I"m doing everything I can to help you gain a standing in the family? And you won"t even accept my kindness? You are seriously someone who bites the hand who feeds you, and you don"t know kindness when you see it, you traitorous girl!" The old master found an angle hid them from the view of others and glared at Zhao Youlin.
What he did not know was that when the old master glared at Zhao Youlin, he did not look as stern as he did when he faced the shareholders of the company or when he was facing the good-for-nothing descendants in his family. Instead, he looked like… a dog who was all bark and no bite.
Zhao Youlin could not hold it back and snickered. Then, she cleared her throat under the old master"s glare and said gently, "Alright, I know that you"re being kind. I said something wrong, so please forgive me out of the generosity of your heart, okay?"
"That"s more like it." The old master felt happy because of it. He immediately became high-spirited again, and Zhao Youlin shook her head in resignation when she saw it. She thought that the old man was surprisingly easy to coax back into a good mood.
In truth, Zhao Youlin actually knew what the old master intended to do when he had asked her to support him, but she felt a little resigned when she saw these rich people fighting over the act of helping an old man down the car.
Zhao Youlin supported the old master and walked forward ahead of the others. Duan Yarong and the others got out of the car and went to them quickly.
The others then looked like they snapped out of a dream and went into the cemetery.
Sun Fengzi did not continue arguing with Zhao Shuncheng. She beckoned Zhao Shuncheng over, who had not dared to join the argument all this while and just stood behind her.
Once she placed her hand on his arm, she strutted forward like an arrogant peac.o.c.k. When she walked past Li Hongyu, she even intentionally stared at her for a few seconds. Then, her gaze discreetly moved past Li Hongyu and Zhao Youxi, who was not far away from her. She snorted, then left.
Up to the end, Sun Fengzi did not say anything, unlike before. But the mocking snort and the disdainful demeanor was already enough to show her stance. Besides, her gaze when she looked at Li Hongyu spoke volumes.
Li Hongyu only felt that while Sun Fengzi stared at her, it might not be as direct as verbal mockery, but it was like a knife laced with poison that accurately stabbed her in her heart. It went straight for the spot that hurt the most, and it hurt her so much that it was a pain worse than death.
There was no way she could not understand the blatant mockery in Sun Fengzi"s eyes. Strictly speaking, both she and Sun Fengzi had been humiliated just now.
The only difference was that Sun Fengzi only felt humiliated and was caught in an awkward situation despite being embarra.s.sed by Zhao Youlin, because she was her aunt. But Li Hongyu was a stepmother not favored by the child born by Zhao Shunrong"s legitimate wife. Now, right in front of so many people, she was being looked down upon by her own daughter, and that woman"s daughter was being treated as a jewel by the old master. This was not any simple act of humiliation anymore. She had practically been slapped in the face.
With that thought in mind, Li Hongyu silently clenched her fists, and she could no longer hide the ruthlessness in her bones. It spilled out from her eyes.