CHAPTER 524: CHAPTER 12 DISPUTE_2

"Shanshan, we haven’t seen you for some days now. How about you go back home and stay with mom for a couple of days?" Luo Meng said with a smile on her face as they were leaving.

Hearing this, Qiao Shan felt a chill run down her spine; every time her mom smiled like that, nothing good ever came of it!

Involuntarily, she turned her head to seek help from Shen Yinian.

Shen Yinian touched his nose, what could he say at this moment?

Thus, he directed his pleading gaze toward his own mother.

Lin Xiaoguai felt speechless, but still spoke up, "In that case, why not let Yinian join you as well? As his in-laws, you hardly know him at all. This could be a good opportunity to get acquainted."

Shen Yinian’s eyes widened. Had his mother just sold him out?

Qiao Shan, however, breathed a sigh of relief.

When they got home, Qiao Yuanting and Luo Meng completely ignored Shen Yinian and dragged Qiao Shan into the study. Shen Yinian was worried, but he couldn’t just barge in and had to wait at the study door.

"Qiao Shan, what exactly do you intend by causing such a scene?" Luo Meng started the confrontation.

"What do I intend?" Qiao Shan rolled her eyes, "As you see, getting married."

Luo Meng took a deep breath, "It’s one thing to choose someone else, but how did you end up with Shen Chi’s son? That whole family is cutthroat, don’t you know?"

Though Shen Chi might seem like a great person to the common folks and locals, almost no one of his own socio-economic level was devoid of fear towards him.

"It’s as if you cannibalize people and spit out their bones," remarked Qiao Shan with a pout.

Luo Meng choked on her words, while Qiao Yuanting spoke, "Shanshan, why don’t you ever understand our good intentions? Yes, Shen Yinian is excellent, and the marital candidates we could choose for you couldn’t compare to him. But that also means we can’t help you if you suffer indignities after marriage. The Qiao Family is wealthy, but the Shen Family is not lacking either. Moreover, commoners shouldn’t challenge the bureaucrats; not only is Shen Chi powerful and influential, he is backed by the colossal Han Family and Gu Family. If you suffer terribly at your in-laws’, all we could do is suffer in silence."

Qiao Shan was slightly moved by these words, but only slightly, because she knew...

"Dad, I believe what you say comes from the heart, but surely you’re not telling me everything, like..." she snorted coldly, "you can’t manipulate Yinian, and even more so, you might lose control over me because of him."

"You!" Qiao Yuanting was frustrated.

He began to wonder if his decision to give his daughter an elite education—to make her so astute—was akin to shooting himself in the foot. If only she had grown up like a regular girl, even if she lacked the ability to take over their business, finding a capable man...

That wouldn’t work either. If she couldn’t stand on her own two feet, wouldn’t she still end up under a man’s thumb?

"Qiao Shan! Can’t you speak properly? Do you have any idea what your dad and I have been working so hard for all these years?" Luo Meng exclaimed angrily.

"I really don’t know." Qiao Shan feigned confusion, "You tell me. You both spend at least sixteen out of twenty-four hours working every day. Do you even remember you have a daughter each month?"

"Have you ever joined me for a single meal, or personally picked out a gift for me, or attended one of my parent-teacher meetings?"

"You probably don’t know. Until I went to middle school, many people thought I was an orphan with no parents. No matter how much I explained I wasn’t, no one believed me. I would bring them to our house, but it was so empty except for the nanny. You were supposed to come home for dinner but would always have something come up at the last minute. It happened once, twice, multiple times, and after a while, I stopped trying to convince people. Sometimes I even started to doubt if I really was an orphan."

These words had been buried in Qiao Shan’s heart for many years, fueling much anger and resentment, but she hadn’t spoken them until today due to her pride.

Qiao Yuanting and Luo Meng were taken aback by her words, feeling somewhat guilty, yet they didn’t think they’d done anything wrong.

"Your father and I work so hard to provide you with a good family environment. Didn’t all that money provide the nanny and home tutors? Doesn’t studying abroad cost money?" Luo Meng said softly.

"But those aren’t what I wanted!" Qiao Shan yelled, "You always say it’s for me. But I don’t want designer backpacks and stationery, endless new clothes, a big beautiful house, no elite education, no study abroad. I just wanted my parents to be with me every day. I wanted you to take me to an amusement park, I wanted you to take me to-school, I wanted you to feed me medicine when I was sick, not the nanny!"

The guilt on Qiao Yuanting’s and Luo Meng’s faces deepened, but Qiao Shan knew they still didn’t think they were at fault. To them, her words were just the tantrums of a child, misunderstanding the adults.

"Shanshan, listen to your mom, no matter how good Shen Yinian is, he’s not suitable for you. He is another kind of ’only son’ for the Shen Family, and despite what Lin Xiaoguai says, your future children surely won’t bear the Qiao surname." Luo Meng tried to persuade kindly, "After all these years of hard work, are we supposed to hand it all over for someone else’s benefit?"

"That’s what you really wanted to say, isn’t it?" Qiao Shan shouted angrily, "Always claiming it’s for me, ha—is it so that you won’t have to see your business change its name, at the expense of my marriage, my happiness?"

"I’ll ask you one thing, are those buildings of the Qiao Family and Mengli Clothing more important, or am I?"

"Of course it’s..."

Before Luo Meng could finish, Qiao Shan cut her off, "I won’t accept any ambiguous answers, don’t tell me of course I’m important, but only if those buildings and Mengli Clothing stand tall can you truly protect me."

No one knew her parents better than she did.

Luo Meng was speechless; her daughter had said all that was in her heart. What more could she say? (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for it with a recommendation or a monthly ticket. Your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)