Chapter 21

A private room on the second floor of Wang Xiang Pavilion.

“Xiao Zhou, why are you so late?”

Xu Zhou pulled out a chair and sat down, casually glancing at the two people in front of him, his face unreadable.

Seeing that Xu Zhou didn’t respond, Xu Wensong cleared his throat awkwardly.

“You haven’t been in touch with the family all these years, you don’t know how worried we’ve been. You’ve been running wild outside for so long—it’s time to come home…”

His face was full of concern, but his eyes kept studying him. He didn’t look anything like himself—more like his mother, as if cast from the same mold.

And that expression of indifference, so similar to his mother’s, made Xu Zhou feel annoyed.

Li Qing smiled lightly. “You see, you ignored all our calls. We even thought something might have happened on the way. Your father was so worried he almost called the police.”

The two of them spoke in unison, deliberately acting close and intimate.

Xu Zhou’s face remained impassive. When he had run away from home, Xu Wensong hadn’t even called the police, not a single call—just letting him fend for himself.

“Where’s the item?”

Xu Wensong’s eyes flickered. He glanced at Li Qing before speaking. “Since it’s your mother’s last keepsake, what if it gets lost? How about this, Xiao Zhou—tonight… or tomorrow, you come back home, and we’ll be like before, as a family…”

Xu Zhou let out a cold laugh and stood up. “Then there’s nothing left to talk about.”

“Wait, I still have something to say.”

“What?”

Hearing his voice so cold and emotionless, Xu Wensong’s face tightened. He had already made an effort to speak kindly, taking into account that Xu Zhou was his son.

But now, he immediately assumed the posture of authority.

“You’ve gotten increasingly insolent toward your family over the years!”

Xu Zhou let out a light laugh. “Do you even deserve to be my family?”

Li Qing’s smile twisted, displeased at Xu Zhou’s words. “That’s too cold-hearted! We lived with you for so many years—how could we not be your family?”

Xu Zhou looked at her.

The icy gaze made Li Qing avert her eyes, feeling uneasy.

Then she reminded herself—he’s just the son of a hostess. Being born into a wealthy family was luck, his biological mother’s death was fate. Raising Xu Zhou was already as much as they could do.

Xu Wensong glanced at a message on his phone, forcing back his rising temper, and tried to appeal to emotions again.

“Xiao Zhou, I know you’re upset because Dad’s work kept him busy, that’s why you ran away. But Dad runs a large company—he has employees to provide for, a wife and children to support, so many things to think about. Of course he couldn’t focus on you—you have to understand…”

“Over the years, Dad put work first and neglected the family, but your mother kept this home so well. Every parent-teacher meeting you went to, she went in your place. Every time you were sick, wasn’t it her who took you to the hospital…”

“She cared for you even more than for Xiao Chen—you could at least show some sense…”

When Xu Zhou heard the last sentence, he couldn’t help but laugh. What nerve…

If Xu Wensong weren’t concerned about his reputation and face, he probably would have thrown Xu Zhou out long ago. Always putting on a facade of the perfect husband and father—Xu Zhou felt exhausted on his behalf.

As for Li Qing, she played the perfect wife in front of Xu Wensong, but behind the scenes, she showed a completely different face. Truly a match made for Oscars—the whole family could win best actor and actress.

Xu Zhou kicked the chair aside and stood.

He took a card from his pocket and placed it on the table in front of them, his tone calm.

“There’s thirty million in this card.”

“That includes all the expenses you’ve spent raising me—rent for eighteen years, at the highest market price, over six million, plus tuition, living costs, and everything from my birth until leaving this home. Thirty million is more than enough. Consider this repayment of your ‘parental kindness.’ From today on, I have no relation to this family.”

After saying this, Xu Zhou felt a weight lift from his heart. It had taken him years to let go of all the unfairness and blatant malice he experienced in this family, and finally, in this moment, he felt a release.

Xu Wensong’s eyes widened in disbelief.

Li Qing froze, mouth open, unsure of what to say.

No one expected Xu Zhou to take such action.

The two of them exchanged glances and fell silent for a long while.

“Xiao Zhou, are you serious? You can’t just say something like that. You and Wensong… are blood relatives, father and son. How can you just sever ties…”

“It’s only as good as the words you’ve spoken,” he said. Xu Zhou knew if he didn’t make them pay a price, they would continue to argue until it dragged on forever.

“Well…”

Xu Wensong looked troubled. If he accepted the thirty million, the company’s situation would improve. But Zhang Yu was waiting for Xiao Chen to take initiative before letting up on the pressure on the Xu Group.

If Xu Zhou wanted to sever ties, wouldn’t that actually help?

He brought Xu Zhou to Zhang Yu, whatever happened next or any negative fallout would no longer be his responsibility.

“Ahem… Xiao Zhou, you’re being a bit hasty. You could talk to Dad first. Taking out this much money at once, Dad can’t accept it…”

Xu Zhou looked at them, voice calm. “This is all the savings I can access right now, all earned by myself. You can take it without worry.”

“You…” Xu Wensong lowered his head, frowning. “Dad knows you’re disappointed in this family, but you don’t have to…”

“What, you don’t want the money? Then I can take it back…”

Li Qing looked flustered, signaling to Xu Wensong. This money is too good to waste—right now the company is losing money daily. Thirty million is a godsend.

Xu Wensong raised his head, as if making a heavy, difficult decision. His tone was solemn. “I know it’s too late to repair our father-son relationship… since you’ve decided to sever ties, then… fine. We’ll listen to you…”

Everything was settled.

Xu Zhou stood, looking at them, took out paper and pen, and quickly wrote down an address.

“That necklace—I want to see it within three days.”

He was about to leave.

Li Qing pinched Xu Wensong’s arm, signaling him to stop Xu Zhou.

“Xiao Zhou, can you wait a moment?”

Just now, Zhang Yu had sent a message saying there was a last-minute dinner at Wang Xiang Pavilion, in the same location they had arranged to meet. He could come over after finishing his work…

Xu Zhou paused, knowing Xu Wensong was about to reveal his real intention.

“More business?”

Xu Wensong opened his mouth, unsure how to describe it.

Li Qing stood in front of Xu Zhou, speaking with pointed clarity.

“You’ve probably heard of the richest man in Xin City, right? Right now, he’s basically untouchable here. Your father has had some business dealings with him recently and arranged to meet him here…”

Xu Zhou leaned against the wall by the door, voice slightly impatient. With these two around, he didn’t want to stay another moment.

“Get to the point.”

Li Qing’s expression stiffened—she was easily angered.

She bit back, finally forcing out a habitual smile.

“I heard… he likes men…”

“So?”