Reborn As Super Heiress

Chapter 197: Chapter 194 Confrontation Chapter 197: Chapter 194 Confrontation Every time Father Zhou heard Master Zhou mention Zhou Yan, he was seized by the thought, “Why isn’t this child my son?”

But however much Father Zhou liked Zhou Yan, it couldn’t possibly exceed the love he had for his own son.

He had never considered that this nephew he so admired might one day return to the Zhou Family to compete with his son for the family business’s inheritance.

Thinking of Master Zhou’s recent attitude towards Zhou Zhen, Father Zhou’s eyes inevitably dimmed, his thoughts growing deeper.

“You’ve just gotten off the plane, and haven’t visited your grandfather in the hospital yet, right? Oh, why didn’t your mother come back with you?”

As Father Zhou attended to his work, he casually chatted with Zhou Yan.

“No, my mother couldn’t leave her work in America, so she sent me back to take care of Grandfather. Wasn’t Grandfather always in good health? How did he suddenly fall ill?”

Zhou Yan looked obedient and gentle, but the question he asked caused Father Zhou’s smile to freeze slightly.

The matter of Master Zhou falling ill had also been asked by Elder Miss Zhou over the phone. Concerned that Elder Miss Zhou might blame Zhou Zhen, Father Zhou, out of protection for his son, had given a vague answer, merely saying that Master Zhou was of old age and his bodily functions were in decline.

Elder Miss Zhou harbored no suspicions, but upon learning that Master Zhou’s health was failing, she quickly sent Zhou Yan back to tend to his father’s illness.

Separated by The Ocean, it was impossible for Elder Miss Zhou to know the real reason behind their father’s illness, but now that Zhou Yan had come, that lie might not hold up anymore.

Facing his nephew’s clear gaze, Father Zhou could not lie with his eyes open and could only heave a sigh. “There have been quite a few issues with the company recently. Zhen’er doesn’t understand these matters, and your grandfather has been so vexed by these things that he fell ill from overthinking.”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yan’s eyes filled with concern. “Isn’t it said that domestic jewelry market is booming? Zhou Family should be seizing this opportunity, so how could things go wrong?”

Zhou Yan’s question left Father Zhou feeling utterly embarrassed.

While his nephew had been focused on his studies and still knew that the domestic jewelry market was doing well, his useless son only knew how to behave rashly and impulsively. In Pingzhou, he squandered half of the Zhou Family’s liquid assets and even drove away veteran employees of the company.

Thinking of all these issues, Father Zhou felt a pressure in his chest and his face turned red with frustration.

“Ah, this was due to my lax discipline as an uncle, letting your cousin mess things up. Now the company is riddled with crises, and there are a pile of issues to handle every day. Let’s talk in detail after you’ve visited your grandfather. The reason he asked you to come back isn’t just because he missed you, his grandson, but also because he wanted you to join the company and assist Zhen’er. You know that your cousin has been unruly and ignorant since he was a child. Having you there to help keep an eye on things will also set your grandfather’s mind at ease.”

Assist? So, his uncle meant to say that he, a distinguished graduate of MIT, had rushed back from America just to serve at the whims of Zhou Zhen, an ignorant good-for-nothing playboy?

His uncle was really good at talking nonsense and distorting facts, uttering such shameless words without even feeling a twinge of guilt.

On the surface, Zhou Yan maintained his smile, but inwardly he sneered coldly.

If it weren’t for the housekeeper A Yun telling Elder Miss Zhou about the recent events at the old residence, he might have truly been kept in the dark by his uncle’s words.

This crisis at Zhou Family was caused by Father Zhou’s and Zhou Zhen’s improper and reckless handling of affairs, yet his uncle was still looking for excuses to paper over the cracks.

It seemed that his uncle didn’t truly regard him with importance, still treating him as a child.

A flicker of undisguised scorn flashed through Zhou Yan’s eyes. Since that was the case, if he didn’t show some tricks, wouldn’t he be completely looked down upon by the Zhou father and son?

Father Zhou was unaware of his nephew’s thoughts, and in his heart, he indeed didn’t see Zhou Yan as a true competitor.

After all, he had watched Zhou Yan grow up, and whatever he heard about the boy being intelligent and wise all came from Elder Miss Zhou.

Even though Zhou Yan had grown into a composed and sensible young man, in Father Zhou’s eyes, he was still a child, posing no threat at all.

After exchanging pleasantries with Father Zhou, the secretary was instructed to accompany Zhou Yan to the hospital to visit Master Zhou.

Zhou Yan didn’t delay either, following the secretary out of the office. Unexpectedly, just as he reached the corridor entrance, he bumped into Ye Zixin coming out of Zhou Zhen’s office.

Upon seeing Ye Zixin, Father Zhou’s Secretary Liu’s eyes flickered, and with a smile tinged with a hint of laughter, he said, “Miss Ye, you’re here to see Young Master Zhou again.”

Having been scolded by Zhou Zhen, Ye Zixin was in a bad mood and didn’t bother to engage with the overly attentive employee.

Of course, in Ye Zixin’s eyes, she was Zhou Zhen’s legitimate girlfriend, the future daughter-in-law of the Zhou family, and eventually the lady of the Zhou household.

Employees have always been attentive to the lady of the house, not the other way around.

She could curry favor with Zhou Mei and Master Zhou, Zhou Father and Zhou Mother, but there was no need to be pleasant to a minor employee.

So, she didn’t even bother to spare an extra glance at Secretary Liu’s enthusiasm.

Ignoring Secretary Liu, her gaze paused briefly on Zhou Yan, a flash of admiration crossing her eyes, but it quickly vanished.

She coldly walked past Secretary Liu and clacked into the elevator with her high heels, not waiting for Secretary Liu and Zhou Yan to enter before pressing the close door button.

Secretary Liu’s expression stiffened, and a shadow of gloom and displeasure flashed across his eyes.

Zhou Yan, however, smiled amiably: “Was that lady just now here to see A Zhen? Such flair—she must be from some prominent family. Seems like the ladies from S City and those from America are of the same temper, all with strong personalities.”

Secretary Liu’s mouth twitched slightly as he said indifferently, “What prominent family? She’s just Young Master Zhou’s new girlfriend, comes from an ordinary family. Who knows what method she used to have Young Master Zhou completely enchanted by her. He even broke off his engagement with Miss Su because of her.”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yan sneered inwardly, but he feigned surprise, “A Zhen’s engagement to the Su family was called off?”

Seeing Zhou Yan’s shocked face, Secretary Liu, thinking he was uninformed, hurriedly explained, “You didn’t know? No wonder, since you and Elder Miss Zhou have been in America for so many years, you couldn’t have known about the affairs here.”

“Just a few months ago, Young Master Zhou threw away the engagement ring in front of Miss Su and ran off with this Ye Zixin. The Su family was furious and called off the engagement with the Zhou family right away. The Su family also took decisive action; shortly after canceling the engagement, they ended their cooperation with the Zhou family, and several suppliers were also reluctant to do business with the Zhou family anymore.”

“Because of this, Master Zhou was so angry that he ended up in the hospital. If you ask me, the Zhou family’s current predicament is all due to Ye Zixin. This woman is truly a jinx!”