HBWMA -Chapter 58 The Sham Scheme

Lakeside Manor, Zhou Residence.

The grey-white architecture of the Su-style garden was layered with bamboo shadows. Broken sunlight slanted across the courtyard, making it feel like a spring scene from Jiangnan.

Old Master Zhou wore a traditional long gown with a mandarin jacket, a pair of reading glasses hanging on his chest. He reclined in a rocking chair by the glass window, legs casually crossed.

“Old master.” Butler Zhou stepped forward and took the phone.

Old Master Zhou half-closed his eyes, swaying gently. “Why did everything stop? Keep the music going, keep the show running.”

In the center of the main hall, a man in a grey long gown wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. He bowed repeatedly, then straightened up in an instant, regaining his composure. He struck the table hard with the gavel.

“As the story goes, Old Master Fu Lingnan returned home filled with remorse, and immediately invited a top orthopedic master to treat the Fu family young master…”

Butler Zhou silently refilled Zhou Guochao’s teacup. Watching gossip is one thing, but the old master had actually written a script and made a storytelling performer act it out like a crosstalk-style narration—no one else could top that.

“Ding—”

The elevator chimed, and a girl stepped out.

“Grandpa.”

Zhou Guochao opened his eyes and slowly sat up. “Oh, Shanshan is here? Was it too loud and disturbed you?”

Zhou Qishan had neat short hair, black pants and a white T-shirt. She was taller than most girls her age, and from a distance looked more like a boy than a girl.

She scratched her ear and glanced toward the main hall helplessly. “You’ve written a new play again? What inspired you this time?”

Zhou Guochao looked pleased with himself and waved her over. “Come listen with Grandpa, you’ll know. It’s absolutely exciting!”

In his eyes, Grandpa’s dramas were even more melodramatic than prime-time soap operas. Zhou Qishan shook her head immediately. “Nope. I’m meeting A-Miao. She hates it when people are late. Her mouth is vicious—I don’t want to get verbally killed.”

“Oh, the Su family girl?”

Old Master Zhou looked a bit regretful. “Go on then… wait!”

He suddenly thought of something and coughed lightly, pretending to be casual. “Just you and that Su girl? The Shen family girl isn’t coming too?”

Zhou Qishan looked confused. “No. Grandpa, why are you asking about this?”

Old Master Zhou took a sip of tea to cover it up. “Grandpa’s just concerned about you. I heard you used to hang out together often. Why not anymore?”

“She always stuck to us at first. But later A-Miao thought she was too stupid and didn’t want to hang out with her anymore, so we stopped meeting as often.”

Zhou Qishan paused, then added belatedly, “Grandpa, why are you suddenly so interested in Jiang Huashan?”

Stupid?! Could someone stupid make the Fu family suffer such a huge loss?!

Old Master Zhou pondered for a moment, then waved his hand. “Just asking casually. Alright, didn’t you say the Su girl is waiting? Go on. Let Butler Zhou arrange a car for you. Come back early.”

Zhou Qishan nodded and left. Only after a few steps did she pause.

Was it her imagination, or did she just hear the name “Yao family” in Grandpa’s new story?

Whale Harbor landmark, Wangxia Plaza, Fu Family ancestral residence.

Fu Jiaming had been woken up by pain for the third time. The nurse was adjusting his injured leg when a surge of rage hit him. He grabbed a cup from the table and hurled it at her face.

“Ah!” the nurse screamed and collapsed. Blood immediately poured from her head.

Fu Lingnan, who had been outside discussing treatment with the attending physician, frowned at the noise and walked in.

Inside the room, the nurse was holding her head, covered in blood, crying and screaming. Fu Lingnan waved his hand. “Take her away.”

The doctor who followed in was shocked by the scene and watched as the nurse was dragged out in panic.

Fu Jiaming’s face was dark and twisted, almost hysterical. “Dad… my leg… what about my leg?!”

Fu Lingnan glanced at the doctor. “You may leave too.”

The doctor wiped his cold sweat and quickly retreated.

Fu Jiaming suddenly felt an ominous premonition. He stared at his father. “Dad, you won’t abandon me, right? What did the doctors say about my leg…?”

Fu Lingnan walked slowly to the bedside, his gaze cold. “It’s just a leg. Even if both legs of a Fu man were broken, it’s nothing serious. Look at yourself—what do you look like right now?”

Fu Jiaming turned deathly pale, clutching the blanket tightly. “Shen Zhuang… Shen Jiao…”

Fu Lingnan said coldly, “Given the situation, you and Shen Jiao should find time to divorce.”

“Dream on!” Fu Jiaming’s eyes flashed with malice. “You think you can cripple my leg and walk away unscathed? Impossible!”

Fu Lingnan frowned. “Put that aside for now. The priority is the 49 File matter.”

Fu Jiaming stiffened. “Dad, we clearly didn’t say anything back then. How did that little girl find out? This whole thing feels… strange. Maybe we should—”

Fu Lingnan raised a hand to stop him, his gaze sharp enough to cut him off.

“Idiot. Do you really think it was that little girl?”

He narrowed his eyes. “Shen Zhuang said something very correct.”

Fu Jiaming frowned in confusion.

Fu Lingnan’s eyes darkened. “She’s just a child. Without someone teaching her, she could never have fabricated something like that. If we didn’t say it, then someone else did. Shen Zhuang… I didn’t expect he still had a move like this hidden.”

Fu Jiaming was stunned. “So you’re saying… Shen Zhuang is behind all this? Impossible! The 49 File was handled so secretly—it was airtight. There’s no way he could have found out so quickly.”

Fu Lingnan shook his head with certainty. “There’s no such thing as an airtight secret. Once something is done, it will leak eventually. That little girl is just a decoy. Shen Zhuang is warning us.”

Fu Jiaming gradually panicked. “Then… what do we do? Now that the Shen and Fu families are already at odds, if Shen Zhuang really knows, wouldn’t our Fu family be finished?”

A dark current flashed through Fu Lingnan’s cloudy eyes. After deep thought, he finally made a decisive choice.

“Looks like we’ll have to contact Mister Bai.”