Chapter 7

She wiped away her tears and composed herself before heading downstairs, appearing a bit hesitant as she walked down.

Downstairs, both Director Huo and Huo Beiqing turned their heads when they heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs.

When they saw Xia Ruannuan, Director Huo’s stern expression softened slightly.

His serious face was meant for his daughter, not for someone else’s daughter.

Huo Beiqing noticed Xia Ruannuan coming downstairs, her posture seemingly obedient, and didn’t react much.

Xia Ruannuan greeted them politely, “Dad, you’re back.”

Director Huo nodded in acknowledgment.

Huo Beiqing raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

He remembered Xia Ruannuan calling him “uncle” at the hospital, and now she was calling his father”Dad.” The relationship was… complicated.

Looking at Xia Ruannuan’s calm demeanor, he thought, She has quite the strong mental fortitude!

But then again, if she didn’t have strong mental fortitude, could she have said, after he took sleeping pills, that he had taken advantage of her?

Xia Ruannuan gave a forced smile to both Director Huo and Huo Beiqing, and then turned to go help Chen Sao, saying, “I’ll help Chen Sao.”

As she turned, she pretended to wipe her eyes, as though she were wiping away tears.

Behind her, Director Huo looked at his son with a touch of disapproval, but since his son had done nothing wrong, he only said, “You’re married now. You’ll have to try to accept it.”

Huo Beiqing casually sat down, tugging at his collar, wearing a laid-back expression. He raised an eyebrow and asked, “What? Are you afraid I’ll cause trouble?”

Without waiting for Director Huo to respond, Huo Beiqing continued with a carefree smile, “Don’t you trust your own son?”

Director Huo sized him up. Huo Beiqing was tall, and even sitting casually, he had an undeniable presence. It was hard for anyone to associate him with anything improper.

There was no doubt—Director Huo was proud of his son.

Truth be told, Director Huo wasn’t happy about the marriage, but Xia Ruannuan’s father and brother had caused quite a scene at the compound. They wouldn’t listen to explanations, and no matter the truth, they insisted that Huo Beiqing marry his daughter. Huo Shuyuan was truly at a loss. He thought his son was getting older, so maybe it was time for him to get married.

Otherwise, with things being like this, he couldn’t control his son. His son was almost thirty; he couldn’t really let him stay single forever, could he?

So, he said a few words, and to his surprise, his son didn’t make a scene and actually went ahead and got his marriage certificate with the other person.

However, from that point on, his son didn’t even come home.

Huo Shuyuan didn’t dare to say anything about it.

But today, seeing the injury on Xia Ruannuan’s forehead and with red eyes, struggling to hold back tears, Huo Shuyuan felt guilty. As a father, he thought he should probably have a talk with his son.

After all, they were married now, and to live a good life, both people needed to open up to each other.

With this in mind, Huo Shuyuan glanced at Lin Wei, who was sitting beside him, lost in thought and not noticing his gaze.

The food was quickly brought to the table, but Huo Yuanyuan still hadn’t come down. Xia Ruannuan obediently stood aside, greeting everyone to sit down and eat.

Before sitting down, Huo Beiqing glanced at Xia Ruannuan again. He always felt that Xia Ruannuan had strong mental fortitude, that she could bend but also stand firm.

She dared to fight at their hospital, and now she was acting all obedient and quiet.

Huo Yuanyuan still hadn’t come down. After putting the dishes on the table, Chen Sao prepared to go upstairs to call her. At that moment, Huo Shuyuan’s face darkened. “There’s no need to call her. She’s not a three-year-old. Does she need to be reminded three times just to eat?”

As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of hurried footsteps came from the stairs. Huo Yuanyuan rushed downstairs.

She had deliberately delayed coming down to let her father and brother understand her grievances. But seeing that no one seemed interested in her grievances, and her father was probably going to scold her, Huo Yuanyuan didn’t dare to delay any longer.

“Dad,” Huo Yuanyuan said pitifully as she stood by the table.

Huo Shuyuan didn’t even glance at her. Instead, he told Xia Ruannuan, who was standing, “Sit down.”

Xia Ruannuan quickly pulled up a chair and sat down.

Huo Yuanyuan also walked over to sit next to Lin Wei. Just as she was about to sit, Huo Shuyuan snorted coldly. “Does our young lady still need to eat?”

Huo Yuanyuan froze in place, looking pitiful but too afraid to say anything.

At this moment, Lin Wei picked up her chopsticks and said, “Let’s eat.”

Huo Shuyuan glanced at his wife and then said, “Sit properly, no next time.”

Only then did Huo Yuanyuan dare to sit down, not saying anything more.

This brief scene made Xia Ruannuan sure that the highest authority in this family was her mother-in-law.

Luckily, from their previous interactions, Xia Ruannuan was able to tell that her mother-in-law was not the overbearing type.

Otherwise, she would have no hesitation in getting a divorce, even if it meant tearing her face off and pulling her hair out, she would leave that night.

The Huo family’s dinner table etiquette was still good, and no one spoke while eating. Everyone quietly ate their meal.

Since everyone was so elegant, Xia Ruannuan felt it was inappropriate to act rudely.

So, she quietly ate her food.

Being a celebrity, she usually ate very little and preferred light food, a habit she had maintained even after crossing over.

She ate less and kept things light.

This made Huo Yuanyuan eye her several times, occasionally sneering under her breath.

In Huo Yuanyuan’s opinion, Xia Ruannuan was just pretending.

Even if a person changes, it can’t be so sudden. Xia Ruannuan used to be someone who couldn’t live without meat, and at the dinner table, she would have all the meat dishes pushed into her bowl.

Moreover, she could eat a lot—almost three bowls of rice in one sitting.

Huo Yuanyuan didn’t understand how Xia Ruannuan could eat so much, and what was even more magical was that despite eating so much meat and rice, Xia Ruannuan didn’t seem to gain weight. This made Huo Yuanyuan somewhat envious.

Huo Yuanyuan was sitting next to Ho Beiqing. When she sneaked a cold grunt, Ho Beiqing looked at her and asked, “Is the food not to your liking?”

Huo Yuanyuan glanced at her older brother, who had a half-smile on his face, and buried her head to continue eating.

Xia Ruannuan ate very little, and everyone at the table noticed. Others didn’t think like Huo Yuanyuan. Instead, they were all thinking about the injury on Xia Ruannuan’s forehead.

Huo Shuyuan had heard some things about her injury from the hospital.

His daughter-in-law had gone to the hospital to see his son and had a conflict with one of the interns his son was working with.

That’s why he said that a couple needed to open up to each other.

Otherwise, many misunderstandings would arise.

Furthermore, life is lived by the couple, and no matter what others say, it doesn’t matter.

After the meal, when Huo Beiqing went upstairs, Huo Shuyuan couldn’t help but remind him, “The little girl is still young. If she doesn’t understand, you can teach her. There’s no need to be cold toward her.”

Huo Beiqing responded indifferently, “Is this the daughter you found for me?”