Chapter 100

Chapter 100

Ye Mingzhao and Chu Hengyi exchanged glances, both simultaneously thinking of the same person.

"That illegitimate child—"

"Could it be Dad—"

They spoke at the same time but uttered two completely different names.

Ye Mingzhao looked at Chu Hengyi with some helplessness, realizing that they truly lacked any chemistry.

Noticing Ye Mingzhao's gaze, Chu Hengyi blinked silently, unembarrassed, and smoothly changed the subject: "Why do you think it was Chairman Ye who leaked the information to Mrs. Zhou?"

"Why did you think of that illegitimate child?"

Again, they spoke in unison.

Ye Mingzhao and Chu Hengyi both fell silent, awkwardly quiet for a few seconds before Chu Hengyi spoke first: "I deduced it based on the principle that whoever benefits the most is the mastermind."

Chu Hengyi paused slightly and then asked, "What about you?"

Ye Mingzhao: "Gut feeling!"

Chu Hengyi glanced at Ye Mingzhao, then looked at him again, silently commenting inwardly: "This answer is even less reliable than mine."

But it was easy to verify.

After returning to the Ye family, Ye Mingzhao patiently waited for the Ye family members to come home from work. When the whole family was gathered together for dinner, Ye Mingzhao got straight to the point and asked his question.

Chairman Ye served himself a bowl of soup, blowing on it while calmly responding: "Since Zhou Heting could stir up trouble for our entire family over some trivial wealth, I had to return the favor in kind."

Hearing Chairman Ye frankly admit to his own actions, Chu Hengyi's hand, holding his chopsticks, paused slightly. He lowered his head, slightly dejected, and stirred the rice grains in his bowl.

Seeing the hair whorl on Chu Hengyi's head, a hint of a smile appeared in Ye Mingzhao's eyes. He deliberately asked Chairman Ye: "So, how exactly did you do it? Did you have someone inform Mrs. Zhou about the existence of the illegitimate child?"

Chairman Ye shook his head. With his cunning and strategic mind, how could he so blatantly interfere in someone else's family affairs?

Even if the Ye family and the Zhou family were enemies, if Chairman Ye had truly done that, it would have been criticized.

Dealing with someone like Zhou Heting, Chairman Ye believed he didn't need to dirty his own hands—he only needed to inform the illegitimate child, who was far away on Wall Street, about the news of Old Master Zhou bringing his children to fight Zhou Heting for the family fortune. The rest of the script would naturally be written and performed by others willingly.

Chu Hengyi looked at Chairman Ye: "How did you know Zhou Heting had an illegitimate child?"

Facing Chu Hengyi's confusion, Chairman Ye smiled gently, his eyes showing a trace of affection as he looked at Chu Hengyi.

He knew the Ye family owed Chu Hengyi too much. If it weren't for his own ruthless actions back then, coupled with a moment of misplaced mercy, failing to eliminate the problem at its root, Chu Hengyi wouldn't have been abducted and suffered so much in the Chu family for so many years.

After returning to the Ye family, Chu Hengyi had always held a grudge, even resentment, toward the Ye family members. Chairman Ye was not unaware of this, but he didn't know how to make amends.

Fortunately, Ye Mingzhao was the first to notice something amiss with the Chu family, following the clues to uncover the connection between Chu Jianguo and his wife and the human traffickers, decisively severing Chu Hengyi's affection for his adoptive parents. This also gave the entire family time to warm up to Chu Hengyi.

This was also a significant reason why Chairman Ye didn't stubbornly oppose when he discovered Chu Hengyi and Ye Mingzhao were together.

He didn't want to lose two sons again because of his opposition. After all, the Ye family still had Ye Mingchen and Ye Mingxi, so they wouldn't be left without heirs. In that case, as long as Chu Hengyi was happy, he could be with whomever he wanted.

As for Ye Mingzhao's thoughts...

Chairman Ye gave a faint smile. Having raised Ye Mingzhao for over twenty years, how could he not know that beneath his gentle and obedient exterior, Ye Mingzhao was more decisive than anyone else?

Such a meticulous and calculating person, if he truly wanted to hide a relationship, there would be no third person in the world who would know about his romance with Chu Hengyi.

Since this matter had spread so widely, even reaching his ears, Chairman Ye could easily deduce, even with minimal thought, that Ye Mingzhao must have played a significant role in stirring the pot.

—This child has always known how to subtly probe people's hearts, achieving his goals quietly and effectively.

It's just pitiful for their naive second son, Ye Mingxi, who probably still thinks he played a major role in announcing his two younger brothers' relationship.

At this thought, Chairman Ye silently glanced at Ye Mingzhao and then at Ye Mingxi, receiving a dutiful smile from his younger son and a foolishly innocent look from his second son.

Chairman Ye silently took a sip of soup.

Well, children will find their own paths.

Chu Hengyi, puzzled by Chairman Ye's sudden silence and his gaze at Ye Mingzhao and Ye Mingxi, impatiently urged, "How did you know Zhou Heting has an illegitimate child?"

Chairman Ye, snapping back to attention, patiently explained, "After the Ye family business acquired the Zhou family's assets, we have been working on integrating them."

Zhou Heting, the former chairman of the Zhou family, though ousted, had left traces of his actions during his tenure.

Chairman Ye aimed to thoroughly investigate the Zhou family's accounts to uncover evidence of Zhou Heting's misconduct and corruption, delivering a fatal blow.

Unfortunately, Zhou Heting was too cunning and left few loopholes in the accounts. Thus, Chairman Ye could only follow the clues to uncover Zhou Heting's close associates.

But both knew that those individuals were merely scapegoats for Zhou Heting.

Chairman Ye originally thought this move would end here, but unexpectedly, during the investigation, his team accidentally uncovered the secret of Zhou Heting's illegitimate child.

Chairman Ye seized the opportunity and orchestrated a grand drama of family infighting and marital discord.

Seeing Chu Hengyi's enlightened expression, Chairman Ye, having resolved a major issue, felt satisfied. He was smug about his still sharp skills and waited to see Zhou Heting's downfall.

Unlike Chairman Ye's mood, Zhou Heting, caught in the turmoil of family infighting, once again felt the sorrow of being plotted against by his own family.

New Sea City First People's Hospital

Lying speechless in the hospital bed, Zhou Heting stared in disbelief at Zhou Taichuan, who had suddenly appeared in his ward—his son, whom he had carefully raised and hidden for over twenty years, now standing openly before him.

Zhou Heting's first reaction was to tell Zhou Taichuan to leave immediately, to avoid being seen by Mrs. Zhou.

If Zhou Heting hadn't had a stroke, he wouldn't have cared about Mrs. Zhou's feelings. But now, lying in bed with a stroke, unable to speak or move, his safety and the mess of the Zhou family depended on Mrs. Zhou. Therefore, Zhou Heting wouldn't let Mrs. Zhou feel displeased.

No one knew better than Zhou Heting how foolish and cruel his wife could be.

In Zhou Heting's view, Mrs. Zhou might not be highly intelligent, but she was ruthless enough. Now controlling the peripheral forces Zhou Heting had cultivated for years, if she discovered Zhou Taichuan, his fate would be predictable.

But before Zhou Heting could express his thoughts with his twisted mouth and eyes, Zhou Taichuan spoke.

The younger son, similar in age and appearance to Zhou Yueze, dropped a bombshell that nearly caused Zhou Heting to have a heart attack.

"You didn't know, but if it weren't for that poisonous woman using your trust in her to secretly replace your blood pressure medication, you wouldn't have had a sudden stroke."

The person who had shared his life through thick and thin, his wife, was actually the mastermind behind his stroke?

This news was indeed a nightmare for Zhou Heting, who had always prided himself on manipulating people's hearts, a nightmare that would haunt him even in death!

Lying in the hospital bed, Zhou Heting widened his eyes, struggling to sit up, his face contorted with effort. Zhou Taichuan quickly stepped to Zhou Heting's side, carefully helping him to lean halfway up on the bed, his fox-like eyes, identical to Zhou Heting's, filled with feigned concern and resentment: "They say a day as husband and wife brings a hundred days of kindness, a hundred days as husband and wife brings a depth like the sea. That woman enjoyed wealth and luxury when you were prosperous, but once you fell, she could be so cruel as to harm you. Not only that, she somehow found out about my identity. She even took advantage of your misfortune behind your back—"

Zhou Taichuan, with tears in his eyes, held Zhou Heting's hand and, sobbing uncontrollably, bad-mouthed Mrs. Zhou right in front of Zhou Heting. He said that after Mrs. Zhou caused Zhou Heting's stroke, she took advantage of his incapacitation to send a legal notice to Zhou Taichuan, who was far away on Wall Street, demanding that he quickly return the jointly owned marital assets that Zhou Heting had gifted him.

"...If I don't give it back, she will sue you under the pretext of transferring jointly owned marital assets." Zhou Taichuan's tears fell on the back of Zhou Heting's hand, and his gaze was full of filial devotion and sorrow: "I came here this time to return the money to her."

"You are so seriously ill, I can't let you be sued by your wife over such a trivial matter. Our Zhou family would become the laughingstock of Xinhai City. Your enemies and competitors would surely laugh themselves to sleep."

Upon hearing his youngest son's words, Zhou Heting trembled with anger. He mumbled unintelligibly, and although no one could understand what he was saying, his expression showed he was cursing up a storm.

Zhou Taichuan turned his head to hide a smirk, and when he turned back, his face was again filled with grief and helplessness.

"Dad, I came back this time to take you abroad. That venomous woman is completely unreliable. I fear for your life if she gets her hands on you. Come with me, let's leave it all behind, and I will take care of you in your old age."

The more Zhou Taichuan spoke like this, the heavier Zhou Heting's hatred and resentment grew. How could he possibly leave the Zhou family's assets to the person who caused his stroke?

With Zhou Heting's cunning and calculating nature, he wouldn't have easily believed Zhou Taichuan's attempts to sow discord. But when Zhou Heting saw the various proofs of cash, stocks, and real estate under Zhou Taichuan's name, his doubts were drowned out by the fury of his wife's betrayal.

Not to mention, Zhou Taichuan also brought the most direct evidence of Mrs. Zhou's betrayal—he brought the pharmacist Zhang Qi to face Zhou Heting.

Under Zhou Heting's deadly glare, Zhang Qi trembled and knelt on the spot in front of Zhou Heting, his face filled with terror and tears streaming down: "Mr. Zhou, it wasn't me! I never thought of betraying you, how could I dare to betray you? It was all the mistress. She found me and asked me to prepare a bottle of hypertension medication with a concentration a hundred times stronger. She said it was for the old master, to prevent him from causing trouble for you—"

Before he could finish, a loud shout came from the doorway of the hospital room: "Well! I was wondering how you suddenly had a stroke when you were perfectly fine. Your wife even blamed me, spreading rumors everywhere that it was me, your father, who caused you so much stress. Turns out you two had it coming with your evil schemes..."

Zhou Taichuan was shocked and looked helplessly at the old master Zhou standing at the doorway, leaning on his cane, shouting in rage: "Grandpa..."

"Don't you dare call me grandpa!" Old master Zhou rudely interrupted Zhou Taichuan: "I don't have a grandson like you!"

After saying that, old master Zhou pointed his cane at Zhou Heting on the hospital bed: "I don't have a son like you either!"

Old master Zhou stormed towards the elevator, pulling out his phone to call the police as he walked: "Is this 110? I want to report a crime. My daughter-in-law poisoned my son, causing him to have a stroke, and then blamed me. I want to sue her for attempted murder and slander..."

Old master Zhou's voice was loud and clear, drawing the attention of everyone in the hallway. Doors to various rooms opened, and a crowd gathered in the hallway, whispering to each other.

Zhou Taichuan, afraid the family scandal would leak, quickly ran to the hallway to pull old master Zhou's arm, trying to drag him back to the hospital room, but not daring to use too much force. The two of them tugged and pulled, and old master Zhou's cursing voice echoed clearly in the hallway.

Lying on the hospital bed, Zhou Heting was anxious, angry, ashamed, and embarrassed. He couldn't catch his breath, rolled his eyes, and passed out.

The beeping sound of the machine alarm instantly rang out, piercing through the noise of old master Zhou's shouting and Zhou Taichuan's soft attempts to calm him down in the hallway.

A group of medical staff in white coats and nurse uniforms hurriedly ran into Zhou Heting's hospital room. The on-duty doctor glanced at the machine on the bedside table, shone a flashlight into Zhou Heting's pupils, and his expression changed drastically.

In a moment, the group pushed Zhou Heting straight to the emergency room.

The crowd left in a flurry, leaving only old master Zhou and Zhou Taichuan standing dumbfounded outside the operating room, staring blankly at the lit surgery light on the door.

The Zhou family members, having received the news, arrived one after another. They had all learned the truth about Zhou Heting's stroke over the phone and stood outside the operating room, shouting and cursing, calling Mrs. Zhou a venomous woman. Some pulled Zhou Taichuan aside to ask questions, seemingly not quite believing his identity. Or perhaps, because of Zhou Taichuan's identity, they were silently calculating whether they could still get a share of Zhou Heting's family assets.

The sound of high heels hitting the tiled floor grew closer and closer. Mrs. Zhou, who had been delayed by trivial matters and had just learned the bad news, arrived at the operating room door. Before she could say anything, she was suddenly taken away by the police who had just arrived.

The onlookers who were still gathered in the hallway pointed at Mrs. Zhou's back and whispered among themselves, some even taking out their phones to record videos.

An hour later, Zhou Heting was still lying on the operating table, and the news of Mrs. Zhou murdering her husband had spread all over the internet.

Ye Mingzhao glanced at the trending topic that had exploded all over the internet, smiled, and put down his phone.

What a lively day indeed!

Truly, the older the ginger, the spicier it is!