Supreme Heir Son-in-law

Chapter 916 - 915: Stay

"But you can’t blame everything on me. It was you who acted without consulting me first," He Qing said, pouting, her eyes welling up.

"I did it for your own good," He Chen replied, frowning.

"So, just because it’s for my sake, you can ignore my wishes? I don’t know why you’ve been so hostile toward him since the beginning. You haven’t even tried to get close to him or understand him before you judged him. Brother, once you know him, you’ll see he’s a really good person, really," He Qing said earnestly, looking at He Chen.

"Brother, can we not drive him away? Could you try to get to know him before making a judgment?"

Looking at He Qing’s pleading eyes, He Chen eventually softened. After all, she’s his only sister. What else can he do but spoil her?

"I’ll listen to you this time, but I’m saying upfront, I’m giving him this one chance. If it turns out there’s nothing wrong with him, I won’t bring up driving him away again. But if I find he’s done something wrong, you can’t stop me from making him leave." Succumbing to He Qing’s eyes, He Chen gave Xu Ke a chance.

"Yay! I knew my brother was the best. You won’t be disappointed," He Qing said, smiling through her tears as she saw He Chen relent. She even gleefully shook He Chen’s head, messing up his well-combed hair into a bird’s nest before letting go, leaving He Chen utterly without temper toward his sister.

Meanwhile, the rumor about Xu Ke’s fallout with He Chen somehow spread at Shenghao, but it’s only among the employees for now. The main reason no one dared to mess with Xu Ke at Shenghao was that He Chen had made it clear, and no one wanted to offend the richest He Family in Ning City, so naturally, nobody would be blind enough to bother Xu Ke. But now, with rumors spreading, quite a few people who used to support Xu Ke wore gloating expressions.

"Some people, you know, just had a stroke of luck before, got the favor of some unknown ghost, and turned from a sparrow into a phoenix, making many envious. But in fact, a sparrow is just a sparrow; no matter how flashy its feathers, it can’t become a phoenix. Look at our manager, only a few days as a phoenix before being knocked down and reverting back to a sparrow," said one particularly flamboyant and handsome young man in the lounge, sarcastically.

"He saved the young master of the He Family in front of so many people. Supposedly, as long as he didn’t cause trouble in Ning City, he could bask in glory as long as the He Family was around. So why the sudden fallout? What did he do to make the He Family’s young master so angry that he even smashed our box?" Someone put down their mirror, stopped fiddling with their hair, and eagerly discussed with the person next to them.

"Don’t you know? Use your brain a little. The He family’s young lady has been visiting him often lately. Probably, he hit on their sister, which ticked off the brother. I heard from a buddy that He Chen has only one sister, who he treasures like a jewel. You as a lobby manager going after his sister would tick anyone off," another person gossiped while applying foundation in front of a mirror.

Just as the three were engrossed in gossip, a young man with a somewhat androgynous appearance, who had been silent in the corner, furrowed his brows and spoke, "Can you guys stop speaking with such malice? No matter what happened between them, the manager has been good to us. If not for me, then you three, at least, which of you hasn’t been helped by the manager? And which of you hasn’t sucked up to him? Now, as soon as you hear the manager’s backer is gone, you’re all ready to kick him while he’s down. Isn’t that a bit too much?"

The three people turned red with embarrassment from the young man’s words, but they thick-skinnedly shook off the shame quickly, scrutinizing the young man with a particularly critical gaze.

"Don’t make us sound so terrible. The fact you’re here listening means you’re no different from us. If you really can’t stand it, you could leave. No one’s stopping you. Or, if you want to defend the manager, you could come over and hit us. Neither hitting nor leaving, do you know what your behavior is called? It’s like being a hypocrite, worse than us. At least we’re open about being bad, unlike you sneaky folks," said the first gossiping young man, flicking his fringe and sneering.

The flamboyant man’s mockery was so on point that it nearly sparked a fight, if not for Xu Ke’s timely arrival.

"Why are none of you working and choosing to argue here?" Xu Ke appeared suddenly at the entrance, and it was unclear how much he heard. The previously noisy group fell silent instantly; everyone except the androgynous-looking young man was startled by Xu Ke’s sudden appearance.

Talking behind someone’s back while the subject is right behind you—anyone would be spooked and embarrassed with flushed faces.

"Manager, it’s you! When did you get here?" The flamboyant young man reacted first, smiling as he approached Xu Ke and asked.

"Are you trying to ask how much I heard of your conversation? I heard it all," Xu Ke said, with a half-smile as his eyes scanned the group. The previously blushing group turned ghostly pale, showcasing an instant face-changing act for Xu Ke.

Even the flamboyant young man who could argue freely earlier was now tight-lipped, unsure of what to say.

"Why are you still standing here? Get back to work," Xu Ke said to those still in place.

"If you’re scared I’ll retaliate, there’s no need. As long as you don’t cause trouble for me, I won’t waste my time on you."

The few who were considering what to say to mend relations with Xu Ke finally walked past him without saying a word, intimidated by his cold demeanor and expression.

Just as they turned the corner, ensuring no one could hear them, the flamboyant young man spat on the ground and whispered, "What a joke, thinking he still has backing? Bah!"

"Stop it, someone might overhear you again," another tugged at his sleeve, cautioning.