Chapter 179

Chapter 179

Xie Tianqi had been unconscious for too long. Because of nerve damage in his legs, he still couldn’t stand or walk on his own. Xia Wanzhi and Xie Qiyan had gone back to the Xie Family Old Mansion two days ago, but they hadn’t managed to see him.

According to Xie Tan, he was throwing a temper.

He was furious that he couldn’t return to Xie Corporation.

“I’m not dead yet. Why shouldn’t the shares that belong to me be returned to me?” After failing to get anywhere with the Old Master, Xie Tianqi had passed out in a fit of anger and been sent to the hospital again.

The Old Master called Xie Qiyan back and told him everything that had happened.

“He wants them, so we just give them to him?” Xie Qiyan felt not the slightest ripple inside. He gave a faint, mocking laugh. “On what grounds?”

It was true that he didn’t care about the Xie Family’s assets. Back then, he had returned to seize power in order to look for his mother. Now that Yao Qin had been found, he had no lingering attachment to the Xie Family whatsoever.

But now, he had changed his mind.

Anything that could make Xie Tianqi unhappy was something he very much enjoyed doing.

“He’s on guard against you,” the Old Master said. After all, age brought experience. The moment he sensed something off in Xie Tianqi’s attitude, he had begun to suspect as much.

Though Xie Tianqi hadn’t said it outright, every word had implied that Xie Qiyan was an outsider.

Xie Qiyan frowned, suddenly remembering what Xie Tianqi had said to him the day he woke up.

On guard against him?

He would rather let the second and third branches split up the shares than allow his own biological son to hold absolute power alone.

Why?

More than twenty years had passed, and Xie Qiyan still couldn’t understand why Xie Tianqi hated him.

Before he turned five, Xie Tianqi had clearly been a competent, loving father.

After leaving the Xie Family and returning to Qingcheng Villa, Xie Qiyan carried the cat carrier through the door. The moment he looked up and saw Yao Qin standing by the entrance, he froze for a second, then quickened his steps.

“Mom, it’s cold. Why are you standing in the draft?” Xie Qiyan reached out to support her. When he saw Liu Shubai inside, his brows drew together.

Liu Shubai snorted, then turned and walked away with a chilly air.

Who else was she waiting for if not this precious son of hers?

Yao Qin’s brows curved gently, her gaze fixed on Xie Qiyan’s face. “I was waiting for you to come back so we could eat together.”

Because she needed to take medication, Yao Qin had to have dinner at six in the evening and take her medicine right on time at seven.

Ever since Yao Qin returned, Xie Qiyan and Xia Wanzhi had moved from Lanting Bieyuan to live here. But lately, because other matters had caused a pileup of company work, he had been working overtime almost every day and only getting home around eight.

The past few days, Yao Qin hadn’t waited for him. But today, when she heard that Xie Qiyan had been called back to the Old Mansion and learned that he was already on his way home, she insisted on waiting no matter what anyone said.

“I’ll wash my hands first. Mom, go sit down,” Xie Qiyan said, the smile in his eyes deep and genuine. Even his steps seemed lighter.

Xia Wanzhi poked her head out from the dining room, then wandered around the living room before asking Xie Qiyan, “Where’s Changsheng? Didn’t you say you were bringing Changsheng back from Xie Tan’s?”

Xie Qiyan dried his hands and only then remembered Xia Changsheng, whom he had forgotten. “By the door.”

Xia Wanzhi: “…”

The cat carrier had been left on top of the shoe cabinet. Xia Wanzhi went over and took the cat out. “Look at your dad. Totally unreliable.”

“Who’s Changsheng?” After pulling out a chair for Yao Qin, Liu Shubai ladled soup while asking Xie Qiyan, who had been invited by Yao Qin to sit beside her.

Xie Qiyan introduced him solemnly. “Xia Changsheng. My son.”

With a clatter, the porcelain spoon knocked against the porcelain bowl. Liu Shubai looked up in shock. “You already have a son?”

Yao Qin was just as surprised. “I’m a grandmother now?”

At that, Liu Shubai simply put down the spoon, bowl, and chopsticks, then headed toward the entrance. “Where’s the child?”

Xia Wanzhi didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. She lifted Changsheng high in her hands. “Right here.”

Liu Shubai stared at Xia Changsheng, and Xia Changsheng stared right back at him. After a few seconds of silence, as if he were cursing something inwardly, Liu Shubai turned around and returned to his seat.

“Allow me to introduce him properly. His name is Xia Changsheng, and he’s been Xie Qiyan’s son for almost fifteen years,” Xia Wanzhi said with a smile, standing a little distance away from the dining table for fear that cat hair would float over.

Liu Shubai was rather surprised. He adjusted his glasses and sighed. “He’s a little old man now. He certainly lives up to the name Changsheng.”

Yao Qin gazed at the cat with gentle, kindly eyes. “After dinner, let me hold him too.”

“No rush. From now on, if you’re bored at home, you can play with Changsheng,” Xie Qiyan said. He called a servant over to take the cat away, then pulled out Xia Wanzhi’s chair for her, ladled soup, and picked out food for her with complete attentiveness.

Yao Qin took it all in, the smile in her eyes growing deeper.