Chapter 99: Housewarming
Translator: Lonelytree Editor: Millman97
Ye Shuang really could not understand the world of the rich. For Han Chu, San Lin City’s weather was not bad, and the real estate price was not steep. His friends were there, and that was more than enough for him to call this place home. Furthermore, his new agent was established here. Yao Zhixing did not count; he had merely been playing, and he only did it for half a year before quitting. If Ye Shuang planned to do this long term, then it would be necessary for Han Chu to have constant contact with her. However, what if there were changes in the future? He could sell the house, right?
In reality, Han Chu had real estates in other cities both locally and abroad; buying a new house in San Lin City was nothing for him. For example, Yao Zhixing and Fang Mo also had holiday houses or villas in other cities, much less Han Chu, who was more mobile than them. Normal citizens moved with their houses, and one house could last them a life while rich people moved around depending on their taste.
Ye Shuang sighed silently to herself and promised to be on the lookout for Han Chu. After all, it was no skin off her back.
…
When it was almost 6 pm, Ye Shuang returned to the kitchen to continue cooking. Han Chu treated the place like it was his own home and planted himself in front of the television. When the dishes were mostly ready, the other guests started to arrive. The last guest, Fang Mo, arrived at 7 pm. Ye Shuang then switched off the stove and served the soup that she had been stewing over the slow fire.
The dinner atmosphere was peaceful. After all, all the guests were directly or indirectly related, so there was no communication problem. Lawyer Lin’s group had a contractual relationship with Han Chu; Han Chu and Fang Mo were friends; Han Chu and Yao Zhixing were also friends. Technically speaking, the social butterfly was undeniably the headhunter, Han Chu.
Even compared with the expert, Miss Chef, the dishes cooked by Ye Shuang with her cheat were still exceptionally delicious. Even Lawyer Lin’s group, who were already used to Miss Chef’s meals, could not find a single fault with the food.
After dinner, all the empty plates were dropped inside the sink, and Ye Shuang prepared a large fruit plate to serve her guests. “Anyone up for a round of mah-jongg? Brother Fang has prepared for all kinds of occasions; there’s a mah-jongg table placed on the balcony.”
Initially Fang Mo thought about buying a snooker table, but after some consideration, he realized mah-jongg table was bigger, and there were more mah-jongg players than snooker players, so he made the switch in the end.
“Count me out.” Yao Zhixing waved his hands. “Tonight, I have a midnight race, so have fun without me.”
Fang Mo smiled. “I’ll just chat with Xiao Han.”
Lawyer Lin’s group each had something to deal with, and they had to work tomorrow. They only planned to stay for a while before leaving, so naturally, they would not play. In the end, everyone just sat in the living room chatting.
Han Chu was watching the television when he suddenly asked, “There’s only three or four days left for An Zining’s contract, right?”
Lawyer Lin’s group was quietly talking among themselves, but they raised their heads when they heard this question. In the end, it was Lawyer Lin who represented the whole group to provide the answer. He nodded and said, “That’s right, but I might personally extend the contract because there are some things between the two families that have not been settled yet. Thus, I will continue to represent Miss An to negotiate the divorce with Mr. Chen. The others will return to the workshop to report for the next duty.”
Then he turned to update Ye Shuang on the missing person case. “Mr. Chen’s mistress has been escorted by the An family to fulfil the abortion. She took the money and left San Lin City the next day. Based on the current situation, there is a possibility for the two families to mend their relationship.”
These things could be found out with some asking around, so there was no need to keep them a secret. Lawyer Lin did not think it was a problem to share that after all; they were not exactly secrets. The most important thing among the upper society was the speed at which one received information. For many occasions, if one was unable to grab firsthand information and made a wrong decision from the lack of information, the loss might be a large amount of wealth or an irreparable relationship.
Since there were no outsiders, Lawyer Lin did not mind sharing. Furthermore, Han Chu did not stop Lawyer Lin, so this meant that he also thought sharing the information was not in violation of any rules.
Fang Mo frowned like he wanted to say something, but there was hesitation. Han Chu caught his expression and directly asked, “There’s a problem?”
Lawyer Lin also turned his way. There were some things that he did not think he should say, but since they had brought up the topic this way, Fang Mo believed it would not hurt to expose some insider information before Yao Zhixing and Han Chu. Therefore, he said kindly, “I believe the marriage problem between An Zining and Chen He is bigger than the couple themselves. Of course, if the two families could mend the broken bridge, it will be great, but for certain parties, it will not be the best result. Furthermore, if it can happen once then it will happen again. There were influencers between An Zining and Chen He, and I’m afraid things won’t be settled so easily.”
This was a reminder targeted at Lawyer Lin. Other people, including Ye Shuang, were distancing themselves from this case quickly. Only Lawyer Lin intended to remain connected to this case. If thing became complicated, one could imagine how troublesome it would be for Lawyer Lin. In fact, he might be so wrapped up in this case that he would not be able to take up any other cases.
Lawyer Lin pushed on his glasses and soon realized what Fang Mo was hinting at. “Mr. Fang thinks that I should pass the case onto someone else?”
Fang Mo smiled. “Certain things are hard to talk about, like family relationships. Both the An and Chen families are big families with complicated power structure; I’m sure you understand.”
Ye Shuang chimed in. “Is it about Sister An’s little brother…”
She swallowed the rest of the sentence and tossed the room a knowing look.
Miss Chef looked on with interest. This was even more interesting than television drama.
Fang Mo was surprised. “So, you all already know about it.”
The fight of inheritance was none other than these few things. Theoretically speaking, An Zining was a married daughter, so she would not influence her little brother’s right to inheritance and, in fact, would aid her little brother in the future. However, after Fang Mo released some insider information, they understood why Brother An was so cautious of An Zining.
To put it simply, it was the case of sexual orientation. Brother An was a man, but he also liked men. With this in mind, his right to the inheritance would not be as solid. For the first few years, after the An parents realized this, they tried to stop Brother An from having a boyfriend, but since Brother An did not bring back any girlfriends for the following years, the An parents still did not know whether their son had been ‘corrected’ or not.
Therefore, the married daughter was thus brought back to the forefront, and if Brother An still refuse to marry in the future even though An Zining was already married, she could still return to inherit the An family treasure. Yes, the An family inheritance would carry on to the Chen family, but it was still better than letting it go to the son who would have no progeny.
“…One is a son that cannot provide an heir, and the other is a married daughter; how should An parents choose‽” Fang Mo laughed bitterly. “This is an open secret among the upper society, and it is still too early to tell whether it was An Zining or her brother who will take the inheritance, so this further complicates the marriage between An Zining and Chen He.”
Ye Shuang rearranged the relationship web in her mind and asked curiously, “Won’t it solve everything if Sister An just asks for a divorce after her pregnancy and returns to An family?”
Fang Mo laughed. “There are way too many relationships that are involved between the two families. Lawyer Lin is dealing with the divorce case, so he should know a thing or two about this. There are too many business deals between the two families, and a drastic parting will cause a giant loss. To be honest, this is trouble created by An Zining herself. In reality, neither of the families wanted to have the younger generation divorce, and saying to take away An Zining’s child is also an empty threat.”
Some nodded knowingly, but others were confused. Yao Zhixing who showed zero interest in other people’s gossip. Miss Chef had heard everything, but she did not think she would understand the complicated dealings of the upper society. Only Han Chu and Lawyer Lin followed this information closely to prevent themselves from accidentally stepping on this taboo in the future.
Just as everything was deep in thought, Ye Shuang sighed. “Since both families need to cooperate, and both wish for an heir, they should just push Brother An together with Chen He and let An Zining bring home the heir, then everything will be… Hmm? Why are you guys looking at me like that‽”
“…Nothing, I just feel like it’s time for me to leave.” Fang Mo’s eyes twitched as he stood up. When Ye Shuang walked him to the door, he asked, “By the way, why didn’t I see Xiao Ye today?”
“He’s out on duty,” Ye Shuang lied easily. “Anything you wish to tell him?”
Fang Mo nodded. “Have you heard of the celebrity, Luo Mingxin?”
Of course! Ye Shuang nodded excitedly. “Definitely, I even have his signed photograph and collector’s edition album.”
“Good.” Fang Mo sighed a long sigh before continuing embarrassingly. “When I sent the internal advert to the company clients, one of them was a client who sponsored Luo Mingxin’s new film. They seem to have interest in cooperating with Xiao Ye. Even though I have rejected it on Xiao Ye’s behalf, I do not think they will give up that easily. They might contact you should they fail to contact Xiao Ye. In any case, be prepared.”
Brother Shuang has such a huge presence‽
Han Chu wandered over when he heard this. “Agents are not supposed to accept private cases.”
“If he does, this is only a part-time job, not a headhunting case.” Fang Mo smiled as he waved goodbye. “In any case, be prepared.”