The Female Lead Decides to Act Wickedly

Chapter 703 - 285 This Time It’s Swindler Again (2)

He Tiantian chattered endlessly, her words filled with concern for Wei Yanting.

Wei Yanting was deeply touched and hurriedly said, "Aunt, I’m not afraid! I have acted uprightly and sat uprightly, and fostering grace is still grace. You are all alone, and as a child you raised single-handedly, it’s only right for me to reciprocate the care. How could that be wrong?"

Wei Yanting had no fond feelings for Mrs. Zhang, let alone a bunch of cheap relatives he had never even met.

The Zhang Family had indeed returned to Capital City, but after the turmoil of the past few years, they were no longer as prosperous as before.

The "Old Master Zhang" mentioned by He Tiantian, who was Wei Yanting’s uncle, had been called back to Capital City but only to serve as an idle officer in the Ministry of Rites.

He had a title but no real power.

And as for the other uncles from the Zhang Family, they didn’t even have such nominal positions.

Their return to the city would not lend any support to Wei Yanting; rather, they would become a burden to him.

Not to mention anything else, just the expenses for eating and drinking in Capital City for the dozens of people in the Zhang Family, cannot be supported by just Uncle Zhang alone.

And the freshly established Heir of Marquis Pingnan was, after all, a direct nephew of the Zhang Family. Would this family not seek out Wei Yanting?!

If the Zhang Family could not stand that "Gu Xiuniang" a foster mother was living in the Marquis Mansion and argued with Wei Yanting before refusing to visit, it would be an unexpected joy for Wei Yanting.

Unfortunately, even if the Zhang Family is not smart, they would not do such a foolish thing.

Perhaps, to curry favor with Wei Yanting, they might even try to ingratiate themselves with "Gu Xiuniang."

Just like Feng Zhongliang.

Feng Zhongliang had hoped to continue currying favor with Mrs. Zhang through Shuang Jiang, but before his plans bore fruit, Mrs. Zhang fell ill.

Shuang Jiang could not even see Mrs. Zhang, and Mrs. Zhang’s confidants were either sold or driven away by the Marquis, leaving only a few newly purchased servants who were all sent to manage the estates.

Feng Zhongliang was completely panicked.

Subsequently, Wei Yanting was appointed Princely Heir, and Marquis Pingnan took his family back to the Southwest. That was when Feng Zhongliang realized—

He had been foolish. There was Wei Yanting, a huge opportunity unexplored, and he had wasted his efforts trying to please Mrs. Zhang.

Even though he had fostered Wei Yanting for thirteen years.

It’s said that fostering grace is not as profound as birthing grace, but though he was not as noble as Marquis Pingnan, his affection for Wei Yanting over the years, well, following the birth of Shuang Jiang’s child, his care for Yanting was admittedly not as before.

But still, he had not mistreated Yanting.

Now that Wei Yanting had become the Young Master Heir of the Marquis Mansion, he wasn’t expecting to be treated with the reverence of a Grand Master but at least he deserved some benefits.

Wei Yanting... he hadn’t forgotten how his foster father had neglected and slighted him after having other children.

However, Wei Yanting wouldn’t take things to extremes.

He was after all concerned about his reputation, and Feng Zhongliang wasn’t entirely useless.

His willingness to "obey" was a valuable trait.

Before leaving, Marquis Pingnan allocated some properties and manpower to Wei Yanting.

Furthermore, the court restored half of Mrs. Zhang’s dowry to Wei Yanting, which included estates and storefronts in Southwest.

Wei Yanting then sent Feng Zhongliang back to Southwest to manage the shops and discreetly gather some intelligence for him.

Of course, Feng Zhongliang was just the public face of the operations. Behind the scenes, Wei Yanting had other plans.

Although naturally allied with Marquis Pingnan in interests, even within the alliance, Wei Yanting wouldn’t trust completely; he needed a backup plan!

Over the years, he had made many connections in various circles in the marketplace, giving him unique channels for gathering intelligence.

At Shuang Jiang’s prompting and feeling anxious without clear instructions, Feng Zhongliang went to ingratiate himself to He Tiantian.

He Tiantian, clearly uninterested and impatient with any involvement with Feng Zhongliang, quickly sent someone to give Wei Yanting a message.

Thus, a few days later, Feng Zhongliang, along with Shuang Jiang and her son, set off on their journey back to the Southwest.

While Wei Yanting’s usage of Feng Zhongliang was multifaceted, to the observant, it might look like: Wei Yanting, deeply affectionate towards his foster mother, arranged a future for his estranged foster father just for his foster mother’s sake.

Wei Yanting didn’t mind this misunderstanding. In fact, he would even strive to deepen such a misapprehension.

First, he truly cherished his foster mother and wished to repay her;

Second, his return to the Marquis Mansion didn’t weaken his gratitude toward his foster mother’s kindness, which sufficiently showcased him as a man of deep loyalty and integrity.