It was then that Chi Yang replied with a sincere and solemn promise, “Dad, don’t worry. I’ll definitely love and take good care of Nuannuan. I’ll do my best to keep Nuannuan company and keep her from harm. I’m not good with words, but I’ll use my actions to prove my worth to you. I won’t ever disappoint you.”
“Thank you, Chi Yang!” Duke Eton replied with a face that beamed with gratification. He even thanked Chi Yang in front of everyone. He did not put on any airs that a typical father-in-law was entitled to.
Chi Yang was not used to the way they interacted with each other. Yet, somehow, he felt that the responsibility on his shoulders had become heavier amidst their heart-warming exchange.
“And I thank you, Dad, for treating Nuannuan so well all these years and raising her into such an outstanding girl.”
Duke Eton laughed and said, “I didn’t nurture my Sunny at all. I do everything as Sunny instructed me to.”
Duke Eton’s words triggered kind laughter from the guests.
The Jiang District elites who were sitting at the back were all confused, especially those who attended the banquet celebrating Zhong Nuannuan’s return to the Zhong family. Zhong Nuannuan’s surname was Zhong, and she was the daughter of the Zhong family. Even if she was abducted and returned home at the age of 17, why did everyone, including both Duke Eton and Chi Yang, say that Zhong Nuannuan had no family?
Zhong Qianqian was so jealous that she could no longer contain her flooding anger. With the assurance that she would become a daughter from a first-tier wealthy family in the future, Zhong Qianqian could not help but jolt up from her seat and voiced out the internal doubts shared by many people.
“Zhong Nuannuan, you’re such a snob, aren’t you?! Are you sure you have no family? Who am I to you? Who is Zhong Kuijun to you? Who is Jiang Shuwan to you? Get it straight—we’re your real family! We’re the people who shared the same blood with you! Have you ever seen your biological mother? You’ve auctioned off such an expensive necklace, Moonlight, willingly donating it to the military base for Chi Yang’s sake. Yet, you’re unwilling to pay your mother a single cent. How can you be such an unfilial daughter?
“Also, you clearly have such an impressive family background, but you lied that you were sold to a farming district and pretended to be a village girl when you returned home at 17. You even lied to your biological parents. Do you despise us, or do you think poor people like us are not worthy of being your family?”
Zhong Qianqian’s accusation shifted everyone’s gazes at Zhong Nuannuan. They, too, wanted to know the answer to this question.
Although everyone was on the same page that Duke Eton was wonderful and that Zhong Nuannuan was very beautiful, if she turned out to be a woman who cared not for family ties and wished only to climb the social ladder, there was nothing about her to be envious about. In fact, on the contrary, they would look down on such people due to their moral high ground.
However, before Zhong Nuannuan or Chi Yang could say anything, Duke Eton, the protective demon of a father, intercepted forcefully.
“I was the one who told Sunny not to return home with her real identity. Why, do you have a problem with that?”
Zhong Qianqian choked at Duke Eton’s attitude.
Was he not acting like a gentleman just seconds before? Should he not be polite to everyone? Why was he treating her like this?
When Gu Mingzhe found out that Zhong Nuannuan was not Nangong Yu’s daughter, but the daughter of Duke Eton of Luntan, he could feel his intestines gradually turning green from the knots that they were entangled up in.
The top among the first-tier wealthy families in Luntan was not much worse than the top first-tier wealthy family in Camino. The main takeaway here was that Nuannuan had another status on top of that—a member of the royal family.
