"Old Third, you still haven't answered Mom's question. Is Hua Bao really Qing Qing's child with someone else?" Yu Xiaohua emerged from the operating room, her spirits relatively good. After all, her shoulder was only injured, not a vital spot, so she was awake after the surgery.
Zhang Liunian glanced at her shoulder and interrupted, "No, Hua Bao has nothing to do with Qing Qing. Please don't misunderstand her."
Zhang Liushui, standing nearby, overheard their conversation and understood their meaning, choosing to remain silent.
In fact, when Jiang Qingqing brought Hua Bao back, he had also wondered if Hua Bao was a child Jiang Qingqing had outside. Otherwise, it would be inexplicable why she would marry Zhang Liunian after graduating from college.
At that time, the educated youths from Zhangjia Village couldn't wait to leave and no one wanted to marry into the countryside. But when she appeared with Hua Bao, everyone assumed it was for the child that Jiang Qingqing chose to marry Zhang Liunian.
Now that his mother finally brought up the matter, Zhang Liushui was quite curious about the truth.
"Really not? Then why did Qing Qing marry you?" Yu Xiaohua couldn't understand this point.
Zhang Liunian smiled, "Why don't you ever believe that she likes me?"
Zhang Liunian had told his family that they liked each other and decided to be together, but they didn't believe him at all.
Yu Xiaohua was speechless and said no more.
Seeing her demeanor, Zhang Liunian said very seriously, "I had the same thoughts as you before, but later, after carefully recalling the circumstances when Qing Qing married me, I understood that Hua Bao had nothing to do with her."
Upon hearing this, Yu Xiaohua's eyes snapped open, and she looked at Zhang Liunian excitedly, "You mean she was pure and chaste before marrying you?"
This was a difficult question. As a mother, Yu Xiaohua had never brought it up before.
If Zhang Liunian hadn't brought it up himself, she wouldn't have asked.
Zhang Liunian nodded. In fact, their first time together did not result in the legendary "seeing red," which was why he had doubted it in his previous life. However, he later learned that not all women would experience this, and he was very sure that Jiang Qingqing had never had children, nor had she been intimate with anyone else.
Yu Xiaohua let out a heavy sigh, as if a heavy stone that had been pressing on her heart had finally been lifted.
Zhang Liushui, standing beside her, also felt relieved. It was good that it was a misunderstanding.
"Then what are your plans for the future?" Yu Xiaohua, having shed her previous dissatisfaction with Jiang Qingqing, was eager to know Zhang Liunian's plans for Hua Bao.
Zhang Liunian shook his head, "I won't actively search for them. Since they abandoned Hua Bao, there is no parental bond between them."
Yu Xiaohua thought that it made sense. Anyway, her younger son was capable now, and raising another person would not be a burden.
"You handle this as you see fit. I won't interfere. By the way, when you get back, please apologize to Qing Qing for me. It's Mom who misunderstood her." Yu Xiaohua had dispelled all her reservations about Jiang Qingqing. After saying this, she felt much more relaxed and began to feel sleepy.
When she fell asleep, Zhang Liushui asked Zhang Liunian to go and attend to his business, saying he would stay and watch over her.
Zhang Liunian didn't object. After arranging for someone to bring food later, he left the hospital and headed to the old shop.
Upon arriving at the old shop, he immediately called his younger sister in the village to inform her father that his mother was fine but had been injured and would need to stay in Nancheng for a few days, so they shouldn't worry.
Zhang Xiaomei, upon receiving the call, rushed to inform her father.
Zhang Wenxue was finally relieved and stayed home with his grandson, waiting for Yu Xiaohua's return.
Meanwhile, after hanging up the phone, Zhang Liunian fell into deep thought. His release from prison today was truly beyond his expectations.
He didn't know who had helped him, but the downfall of the Tang family was indeed faster than he had anticipated.
No, the Tang family hadn't completely fallen yet, because there was still one person who hadn't been imprisoned: Tang Shikang's third brother, Tang Shitong.
According to Master Huang, those people had gone to seek refuge with Tang Shikang's third brother, who was an official in the provincial government.
The provincial level? Nancheng was a prefecture-level city under J Province, belonging to the same province as Jiangcheng.
If he went there, he might be able to find out who Hua Bao's biological father was.
However, Tang Shikang's words gave him a bad feeling, as if he was trying to set a trap for him.
Never mind, he would put this aside for now and focus on taking over the Nancheng market.
With the Tang family uprooted, no one could obstruct his pickle business anymore. The next step was for his pickles to lead Nancheng, and his new products were about to be launched.
In his previous life, Zhang Liunian had over three hundred types of pickles, but now he had made less than ten. He was not far from achieving widespread market dominance.
However, there were still two puzzling aspects to this matter: first, why was he released, and second, why did Tu Lu switch sides at the last moment?
"Zi Teng, what happened to the Tang family?" Zhang Liunian came back to his senses and saw Du Ziteng returning in a hurry, immediately asking.
Hearing his voice, Du Ziteng rushed forward excitedly, "Brother Liunian, you absolutely wouldn't believe what happened to the Tang family. I'm telling you, they've been investigated. I heard they were really doing heinous experiments in the basement of their mansion, with many madmen. The Tang family is truly finished this time, but strangely, Tang Shikang has disappeared."
Du Ziteng had stayed until now and was well aware of the events at the scene.
Zhang Liunian sighed and said, "He died. Old Huang is also dead."
"What? Dead? Old Huang is dead too? What happened?" Du Ziteng was stunned, his face filled with surprise.
"Tang Shikang escaped from the Tang family, and Old Huang took me to chase him..." Zhang Liunian explained the situation briefly.
Du Ziteng was enraged after listening, pounding the table with his fist, "This Old Huang is too much! How dare he betray you? It's good that he's dead, it's great that he's dead."
Zhang Liunian glanced at his trembling arm, his mood complicated, "I don't want to talk about his affairs. Later, you can ask someone to help him with the funeral arrangements!"
"What funeral arrangements? He betrayed you, why should we care about him? I'm telling you, you absolutely shouldn't help save his wife. Whether his wife lives or dies, she deserves it." Du Ziteng felt that Zhang Liunian was good in every way except that he was too soft-hearted.
Zhang Liunian twitched the corner of his mouth, "I don't plan to interfere, but he made a deal with me, saying that if it was within my ability, I should consider saving her. This doesn't cost me anything."
Moreover, Old Huang had told him many things before he died, including about Tang Shikang's third brother and the Tang family's old residence.
If what he said was true, then the reward far exceeded his requirements.
He was a businessman; he would only act if there was profit to be made. He wouldn't be a saint if there was no benefit.
"Forget it, he's dead. I'll handle his affairs, and you shouldn't let it affect your mood." Du Ziteng didn't inquire about any deals; he just needed to follow Zhang Liunian diligently.
Zhang Liunian was very pleased with his attitude and nodded silently, then got up to find Yan Guoguo and Ding Zhaoshan.
The three reunited, and Zhang Liunian learned that Fang Yan seemed to have had an accident and fallen unconscious.
"How could this be?" The time was clearly not yet due, and he had reminded Fang Yan not to contact Nancheng's traditional Chinese medicine shops. Unexpectedly, she still ended up in this situation.