Duan Yarong drew in a deep breath and tried to control her emotions. Then, she continued, “Youxi has been ignorant as well. She has been led astray by her mother. As a lady, she should have known how to restrain herself. Even though both of you are stepsisters, she should not rule over you given the fact that you’re her elder sister. How can she be so disrespectful? She’s truly a…”
Duan Yarong and Li Hongyu were different. Duan Yarong came from a prestigious background. She was an educated fine lady from a great family. She spoke modestly even though she was in a fit of rage.
Even so, Zhao Youlin unwittingly felt touched.
Zhao Youlin did not have any blood relationship with Duan Yarong. Yet, Duan Yarong knew that she would have sided with Zhao Youlin after her divorce especially since Zhao Youlin had not done anything wrong at all.
On the other hand, all Zhao Youlin’s so-called father did was to try staying out of trouble. How funny that he even brought along his wife and did not raise a single finger to stop his daughter from exploiting Zhao Youlin.
“Eldest aunt, don’t be angry. It’s not worth straining yourself because of them. I’m doing fine now. I live better with Joy after staying far away from them.”
Duan Yarong calmed down. She nodded and said, “You’re a single mother now. So, you have to be more vigilant when staying outside.”
Zhao Youlin’s heart clenched when she heard this. She asked tentatively, “Actually, Grandpa wanted Joy and me to return to the main residence.”
“Return to the main residence?’ Duan Yarong was a little startled when she heard Zhao Youlin’s words.
The Zhao family had many members. The former master had three sons. His eldest son was childless and stayed with him in the main residence while his second son, Zhao Shuncheng, and his third son, Zhao Shunchang had long moved out.
No matter how much the former master had adored his grandchildren, they were never allowed to stay overnight in the main residence, much less moved in the house for a permanent stay.
Duan Yarong thought about it for a long time and still did not know why the former master had said so. She raised her head and cast a glance at Zhao Youlin. She asked questionably, “What do you mean?”
“Grandpa asked me to think about it for a few days. So, I would like to seek your opinion.” Zhao Youlin looked at Duan Yarong without exposing the hint of wariness in her eyes.
Duan Yarong was deep in thought for a brief moment before she said, “In the end, it all comes back to you. You’ll enjoy more freedom if you stay outside. But, there are only the two of you out there without a man to take charge of the house. You’ll face some challenges in case you fall sick. If you move over here, there are more people around and I could also help you to take care of Joy.”
Duan Yarong paused for a moment before she continued, “However, chances are more people means more gossip. If you find no peace staying in the main residence, I don’t mind coming over to your side to help you out.”
Zhao Youlin smiled faintly and nodded after hearing her words. She was happy that Duan Yarong was actually so thoughtful of her and took her thoughts into consideration. She showed a more sincere smile.
As they were chatting, suddenly, they heard the sound of a click. The tightly closed door was opened and came in a sturdy man.
The man froze right after he opened the door and was greeted by the sight of Zhao Youlin and her son. The man’s expression was as cold as Mu Tingfeng’s. The only difference was that he did not seem as surprised.
“Rong, you’re back!” Duan Yarong smiled when she saw him and reluctantly returned Joy to Zhao Youlin. Then, she rose up and went up to him.
The man was Zhao Shunrong, Zhao Youlin’s eldest uncle. He was also the first heir of the Zhao Group.
When he saw his wife walk over to him, there were some slight changes on Zhao Shunrong’s poker face. His cold gaze softened.
The couple kissed each other as if no one was around them. Duan Yarong smiled faintly at Zhao Shunrong and said to him, “Youlin hardly comes back nowadays and has even brought Joy along with her. So, don’t put on a straight face. You’ll scare the child.”
Zhao Shunrong swept across Zhao Youlin with his cold gaze. There was a hint of indifference and alertness in his eyes.
Zhao Youlin knew that her eldest uncle was not fond of the previous Zhao Youlin. That was because the previous Zhao Youlin had been most ungrateful.
Zhao Shunrong and Duan Yarong were married for over twenty years and were childless. Despite this, Zhao Shunrong had never thought of remarrying just for the sake of having an offspring.
The man loved Duan Yarong so much that he could give up on his children for her sake and even loved everything related to her. Therefore, he used to treat the previous Zhao Youlin better than most people did just because Duan Yarong adored her.
Sadly, the previous Zhao Youlin did not know how to appreciate all this. All these years, Duan Yarong’s adoration for her had been in vain and she even ended up broken-hearted.
Naturally, the sense of duty of the man who loved his wife so ardently was triggered. So, he took back his privileges for Zhao Youlin and had wished Duan Yarong would stop keeping in touch with an ungrateful brat like her.
Duan Yarong had mentioned that she did not know about the incident of Zhao Youlin slitting her wrist at the Mu family’s house. Someone had intentionally hidden the news from her. Otherwise, Duan Yarong most likely would have known about the news. The person who had intentionally covered the news could be Zhao Shunrong.
On one hand, he was afraid that Duan Yarong would get worked up the moment she found out about the incident. On the other hand, she did not want Duan Yarong to waste her efforts on Zhao Youlin anymore. This man was very protective of his wife.
When Zhao Youlin understood why her eldest uncle was so unfriendly to her, she nearly let out a bark of laughter. Who would have thought that the successor of the Zhao Group was such a doting husband?
As she thought of this, she no longer found his serious-looking and cold face to be that fearful.
When Zhao Shunrong looked at her once again, Zhao Youlin took the initiative. She rose up and greeted him politely, “Hi, Eldest uncle.”
Zhao Shunrong’s eyes sparkled. He was caught by surprise. Who would have thought his niece who hardly spoke well back then would look into his eyes and had even taken the initiative to greet him.
The recent rumors about Zhao Youlin immediately flashed across Zhao Shunrong’s mind. Ever since she slit her wrist, his niece had done a lot of unexpected things.
After having been through a near-death experience, was it true that it could cause so many changes to the woman?
Zhao Shunrong was deep in thought and did not respond to Zhao Youlin after a long while.
When Duan Yarong saw this, she hurriedly pulled his sleeve and reminded him, “Youlin is greeting you!”
Only then did Zhao Shunrong return to his senses. He nodded politely yet coldly and said, “Glad to see you’ve come back here.”
Duan Yarong did not seem satisfied with Zhao Shunrong’s response. At the same time, she knew his character well. So, she did not want to comment further and tried to ease the tense atmosphere, “You know your eldest uncle’s character well. Don’t be bothered by the fact that he’s not talking much. We’re a family, there’s no need to take things so seriously.”
Zhao Youlin responded to her. She did not really care much about it. She knew the reason why Duan Yarong was able to accept her again was because of their past relationship.
Meanwhile, the eldest uncle had little affection for Zhao Youlin. This was further made worse with the incident back then. He was certainly telling a lie if he said he did not mind it.
