Chapter 1621: Guilty Conscience
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Zhou Zheng’s second wedding had not been as cheery or glorious as Qiao Dongliang had expected.
“…” Qiao Dongliang was taken aback. He had not expected that Qiao Zijin was the one who had wronged Zhou Zheng first. Even if he was Qiao Zijin’s father, he felt that he had no right to stop Zhou Zheng from finding a second wife who was even younger and prettier than Zijin. But what he still could not get over was how Zhou Zheng specifically chose the day of Zijin’s funeral to get married and even prevented his granddaughter from attending her birth mother’s funeral.
Other than that, Qiao Dongliang did not really mind if Zhou Zheng got remarried, although he did cling on to the hope that Qiao Zijin would reconcile with Zhou Zheng. Qiao Dongliang did not even mind, so he was extremely shocked to hear that Zhou Zheng’s parents had disagreed. “Wh-why?”
“Why?” Zhai Yaohui was gleeful. “You’re foolish, but that doesn’t mean that other people are foolish too! Parents have a great wealth of experience that their children do not. Do you really have to ask why? No wonder your Qiao family is in such a mess. The father doesn’t act like a father, but the daughter has to act like an ancestor. Just one woman can turn the whole family upside down and create so much trouble.” All these were just a good start for Qiao Dongliang. It was not just because of Ding Jiayi.
As head of the house, as long as Qiao Dongliang had been smarter and taken responsibility, Qiao Dongliang should have been able to rein Ding Jiayi in no matter how brilliant or how foolish she was. Unfortunately, after the incident, Qiao Dongliang, as was his habit, simply pushed all responsibility to Ding Jiayi, feeling that it was entirely Ding Jiayi’s fault that their two daughters turned out like this.
No. Qiao Dongliang was the one who had ‘contributed’ the most.
“Not only that, but Mother Zhou had also renovated a large house, intending for Qiao Zijin to move in with her husband and children after she had a second child. I won’t repeat whatever happened afterward. Since Zhou Zheng was going to get remarried, Zhou Ying’s status and position in the family became rather awkward. So, Mother Zhou made a decision for the two elders to bring Zhou Ying to that new house and to leave the old house to Zhou Zheng and his newly-married wife, as well as the children that the woman would bring with her.”
In this matter, apart from Zhou Zheng, the behavior of the Zhou family was indeed praise-worthy.
“Don’t mind my harsh words. The truth is usually brutal. The Zhou couple has done so much more than you as a birth father for a daughter-in-law who started an affair outside. I hope you won’t disturb Qiao Nan anymore in the future if you have any problems. Now, Qiao Nan’s most important identity is as the daughter-in-law of the Zhai family. Secondly, as the mother of my three grandchildren. Thirdly, she’s an independent individual. Being your daughter comes in fifth or sixth place. If you have any problems, it’s best not to disturb ‘other people’.”
Qiao Dongliang chewed on his lips. Zijin was gone, so Nan Nan was now his only daughter. How could he be ‘other people’ in Nan Nan’s eyes?
“I know you haven’t said a word, but you’re silently disagreeing with what I just said. I won’t try to beat around the bush with you.” Zhai Yaohui was used to bigger occasions and matters, and not at all used to these trivial family matters. But his working style as a chief would never change. “Qiao Nan has been married into the Zhai family for over a decade now, and the three children are already in junior high school. Have you realized that you have never addressed me as your in-law and have instead always addressed me as your chief? As for me, I’ve never taken the initiative to ask you to drop that courtesy and address me more casually since we are a family. I’ve always taken it for granted that I should accept you addressing me as your chief.”
Qiao Dongliang felt immensely guilty. He had indeed felt that way but had never asked about it. He had thought that it would be too embarrassing for him to ask about such a matter. “I’ve always addressed you as chief because I respect you deeply.”
“Is that so?” Zhai Yaohui denied what Qiao Dongliang had just said. “Is it because you respect me? Or is it because you feel guilty toward Qiao Nan and thus have no right to be her father? That’s why you don’t feel like part of the family even after Qiao Nan gave birth to three children. I’m sure you know best in your heart.”
From the beginning to the end, Qiao Dongliang himself was clearest about that.
The one whom he owed the most to was not Qiao Zijin, but Qiao Nan. Because of this debt, Qiao Dongliang had never been able to stand tall in front of his daughter, Qiao Nan. Qiao Dongliang could not even face Qiao Nan proudly, much less Qiao Nan’s in-laws.
“Actually, I’m now on a tangent. Let’s get back to the matter at hand. You’re already clear of the Zhou family’s attitude, so are you still thinking of having the whole Zhou family fall into bad luck along with Zhou Zheng?” Zhai Yaohui quickly stopped. He knew all too well that his words would be a slap to Qiao Dongliang’s face, and that would cause Qiao Dongliang to hold back a little. But it would not be for more than a few days. After a few days, Qiao Dongliang would be back to normal.
Qiao Dongliang shook his head as guilt filled his face. “Chief, you’re right. They have done much more than I have as a father.” He was useless. Whatever he had done for Zijin could not compare to whatever the Zhou family had done. “In this matter, Zhou Zheng is the only one at fault.”
If Qiao Dongliang still brought the rest of the Zhou family into this matter, then he was being utterly shameless. It would be no different from an ancient emperor who would drag all three generations of a criminal, or even his entire clan, into the matter.
“Fine, since you’ve said that, we’ll continue our conversation. Nan Nan is a good kid. Because of Qiao Zijin, our family has made efforts to help Zhou Zheng have a stable job. You know that too.” Without their arrangement, there was no way the Zhou family would have treated Qiao Zijin so well and let her live such a luxurious life.
Qiao Dongliang felt increasingly awkward. “I… I know.” It was just that when he had his days, he chose to forget that the only few good years that Qiao Zijin had were all due to her younger sister, Qiao Nan. Although Qiao Nan disliked the Qiao family on the surface, she had never shortchanged them as her family. In fact, she had done more than what other daughters would do for their families.
Qiao Nan had sacrificed too much for the Qiao family, but all three of them chose to ignore Qiao Nan’s sacrifices. Instead, they focused on how stingy and revengeful Qiao Nan was. Because of some small incidents when she was younger, she chose not to acknowledge her mother and sister, and she even had a poor attitude toward her birth father.
Zhai Yaohui led Qiao Dongliang on step by step. If Qiao Dongliang remained silent and did not answer him, he would not speak either. Only when Qiao Dongliang responded in the manner that he wanted did he continue. “Didn’t I mention earlier that Zhou Zheng isn’t a particularly intelligent person? If he wants to commit any bad deeds, he won’t be able to do it well. So, Zhou Zheng has already left his job and gone to find a new one somewhere else.”