Chapter 710 - An Eye for an Eye (1)
Chapter 710 - An Eye for an Eye (1)
Back to where Li Meili and Zhang Jiren were, the two were seated at the large dining table with the three other Zhangs for dinner. Li Meili had never liked family dinners and she surely hated spending one with the Zhang family. She didn't even pay attention to what they were talking about as she only came here to give her husband some face in front of his family.
Zhang Jiren took the responsibility of speaking on behalf of her while Li Meili was only answering with a few words whenever Zhang Xianzhe tried to strike a conversation with her.
"Sorry about that, Father. Meili isn't feeling good today." Zhang Jiren said when Li Meili excused herself to go to the washroom, freeing herself from the unwanted presence of the Zhang family. She also didn't like how Zhang Jiren's brothers were looking at her as if she was a prized possession they needed to win.
At least she was spared from meeting Zhang Wuying tonight as she was sure if she would know how to act in that situation. Zhang Xianzhe had mentioned that his sister was still grieving over Tang Beixuan's sudden passing and hadn't come out of her room since his funeral.
Li Meili would have done the same if she hadn't known she was pregnant. There was no doubt that Tang Beixuan's passing had not only challenged her sanity, but it also wavered her resolve to continue her life without him.
Meanwhile, Zhang Jiren didn't care one bit about how Zhang Wuying was faring. He neither cared if Tang Beixuan's death drove her to insanity. Zhang Wuying should know by now how painful it was for him and Tang Moyu when she killed their mother.
Not only did Zhang Wuying deprive them of their mother's love, but she also ruined their childhood by tearing them apart from each other, as if killing Yan Qiuyu wasn't enough to spite Tang Lixue.
Losing Tang Beixuan was just touching the tip of an iceberg. It would never be enough for Zhang Jiren to quell his thirst for revenge against the family that ruined his life. Indeed, Tang Beixuan had been an innocent bystander in this, but the fact that he was the most precious person in Zhang Wuying's life had dragged him into the issue his own mother had started.
Tang Beixuan shouldn't have lost his life, but knowing that the old woman had been suffering because of him, how can Zhang Jiren let the chance to spite her go? An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Zhang Wuying had taken the life of their mother and now fate decided to make her pay an equal price for her sins.
Karma was truly a bitch. It might have taken some time to work, but there was no doubt that every heinous action would face its consequences and for Zhang Wuying, the price had been her precious child's life.
It was unfortunate that Tang Beixuan had to lose his life, but did Zhang Wuying know that what she did to the Tang family was worse? Perhaps, it was Tang Beixuan's misfortune to have her as his mother, although Zhang Jiren had to admit that Tang Beixuan had been a better brother for his twin sister than he ever could be.
Tang Beixuan had been insecure about not being able to help Tang Moyu, but he didn't know that his safety was enough for the empress to relieve the burden on her shoulders. That was why when he died, Tang Moyu also felt that she had failed him and had questioned herself since then.
"It was really a pity. Didn't you and Tang Beixuan get along before he died? Even I can't believe he lost his life just like that." Zhang Xianzhe said as Zhang Jiren joined him in his study for a private conversation with the old man.
"It was an accident no one had anticipated. It's no one's fault." Zhang Jiren replied, but he knew better than to mention about his and Feng Tianyi's suspicion that it was premeditated. Until they could find conclusive evidence that could prove it, they would need to be very careful about this unknown enemy lurking in the dark, waiting for a chance to harm Tang Moyu.
The empress was his and the devil's achilles' heel and it would only be natural that people who wanted to seek revenge on them would go after Tang Moyu. As to what could be the motive behind it, Zhang Jiren and Feng Tianyi had yet to find out.
"This only proves that we cannot assure what could happen in the future." Zhang Xianzhe agreed with him. "So about the Li family…"
"About that, Father…" Zhang Jiren then proceeded to inform the old man about the existence of the prenuptial agreement he signed with Li Meili before they got married.
As Zhang Jiren expected, the smile on the old man's face immediately vanished and was replaced by a deep scowl on his face once Zhang Xianzhe found out about the clauses of the contract.
"I see. So Chairman Li isn't willing to play nice with us." Zhang Xianzhe poured himself a glass of wine and downed it in one go, annoyed that Chairman Li had made a move even before he could make his.
"Bastard." He cursed, throwing his glass on the wall.
"Li Meili is his only daughter. Their relationship as father and daughter isn't good, but that doesn't mean he doesn't care about her. As long as she's on our side, it's still possible to change his mind." Zhang Jiren said, aware that he needed to tread carefully on this issue without giving Zhang Xianzhe a reason to suspect him.
It wasn't hard to gain Chairman Li's favor through his daughter, but that didn't mean that Zhang Jiren was willing to be used by Zhang Xianzhe. Since he made a promise to his twin sister to protect Li Meili at any cost, then he didn't have any other choice but to fulfill it.