HBWMA -Chapter 35 Sophistry

The tense standoff made the empty embroidered pavilion feel even more still, the silence occasionally broken by the sound effects of a snake in a game eating apples and growing larger.

Putting on an act.

Jiang Wanyi coldly glared at Jiang Huashan.

From Qinyuan to Juyuan, a round trip would take at least twenty minutes even at a fast pace. After standing for a while, Fang Mei already felt her legs growing sore. She suddenly realized something and looked around with a subtle expression.

Trouble! She had gone too far with the arrangements—if the old master came and there wasn’t even a place to sit…

Fang Mei frowned and looked at Jiang Huashan. Could this damned girl have planned even this?

The more Fang Mei thought about it, the more uneasy she became. Just as she hesitated whether to change locations, hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside.

Soon after, several black-clad bodyguards carried in two rosewood armchairs with circular backs.

That fast?!

Fang Mei’s expression changed slightly, and she quickly composed herself. Jiang Wanyi also straightened her hair and posture deliberately.

Supported by Shen Zhi, Old Master Shen slowly walked in with a cane.

At that moment, the snake in the game had already eaten all the food and cleared the level. Jiang Huashan turned off her phone, stood up, and smiled as she went forward to greet him.

“Grandpa.”

“Good girl.” Old Master Shen gently patted the back of her hand, his gaze casually sweeping across the room.

Fang Mei secretly studied him, but seeing no readable emotion in his eyes, she carefully restrained her thoughts. “Old Master.”

Jiang Wanyi, afraid of being overshadowed by Jiang Huashan, stepped forward and called out sweetly, “Grandpa.”

Old Master Shen nodded and pointed at one of the armchairs, his demeanor calm and warm. “Xiao Fang, you sit.”

“Yes.” Fang Mei responded, waiting until Old Master Shen was seated before sitting down herself.

Jiang Wanyi glanced at Jiang Huashan smugly.

See that? Grandpa is still on our side.

Old Master Shen slowly rubbed the Buddhist beads on the dragon-head cane handle and looked at Jiang Huashan. “Xiao Zhang said you had something to tell Grandpa?”

Fang Mei quickly jumped in, afraid Jiang Huashan might say something wrong. “Old Master, please don’t laugh at us. It’s my fault for not disciplining the child properly.”

Old Master Shen’s gaze paused slightly as he turned to look at Fang Mei.

Fang Mei continued, “Old Master, to be honest, ever since Huashan came back from Winter Garden, she’s been throwing tantrums. Because of the incident with Sui’er, she’s become estranged from Wanyi and insisted on changing rooms. I had no choice but to temporarily rearrange things. Wanyi felt wronged after being moved out of her room. As a mother, I can’t bear to see either child suffer, so to comfort Wanyi, I moved some of her usual furniture into her room. But I didn’t expect Huashan to become upset over it and even call me, her own mother, a thief. I…”

Fang Mei’s voice grew more and more aggrieved, as if she were about to cry.

“And that’s not all!” Jiang Wanyi stepped forward and looked at Old Master Shen pitifully. “Grandpa, my sister even said she doesn’t need us anymore and wants to kick us out.”

Old Master Shen looked at Jiang Huashan. His expression remained unreadable. “Is that so?”

Jiang Huashan nodded. “Yes, that’s exactly what happened.”

Jiang Wanyi froze.

Was she stupid? She wasn’t even trying to deny it in front of Grandpa?

Old Master Shen patted Jiang Huashan’s hand reassuringly, then shifted his gaze back to Fang Mei. “Xiao Fang, you emptied Huashan’s room. Wanyi wasn’t wronged, but did you ever think about Huashan?”

Fang Mei immediately realized she had misspoken and quickly explained, “That’s not it! Old Master, both of them are flesh and blood that fell from my body—how could I not care? It’s just that recently Huashan has been causing trouble repeatedly and even got Sui’er injured. I thought giving her a bit of discipline might help her realize her mistakes. I truly didn’t mean to neglect her. Old Master, a mother disciplines out of love—how could a mother not love her own child?”