Chapter 013: The Condom Belongs to My Uncle!

Zhou Jingyi found a seat and sat down. The sharpness in his gaze softened considerably, carrying a hint of amused mockery as he watched the scene unfold.

Wen Ni pressed her lips together and withdrew her gaze.

The Old Madam was waiting for Shen Xue’ning and Wang Sufang to return. Bored, her eyes landed on Zhou Jingyi. “Why are you back so late?”

Zhou Jingyi nodded.

The Old Madam continued, “Have all your work arrangements been settled?”

Zhou Jingyi responded with a lazy tone, “For now, I’m overseeing overseas business. Once the project wraps up, Eldest Brother said he’ll have me take over domestic affairs.”

The Old Madam looked somewhat dissatisfied. Wasn’t this plainly sidelining Zhou Jingyi? But she said nothing of it. “Then you must learn well from your eldest brother.”

“Yes,” Zhou Jingyi replied.

Min Xianshu interjected, “Little Five, all that’s happened in our branch lately must have been a spectacle for you.”

Zhou Jingyi’s eyes glinted coldly like distant stars. “It’s nothing. I’m used to it.”

Min Xianshu was left speechless.

At that moment, Shen Xue’ning returned first, bringing with her a young actress from the opera troupe.

Shen Xue’ning dutifully addressed the Old Madam, “Grandmother, she said she has something to report, so I brought her back first. Auntie Wang and Auntie Liu are still searching over there.”

The Old Madam immediately recognized the girl—a renowned oriole of the troupe, stage name Magnolia. She had an excellent singing voice and the Old Madam was particularly fond of her performances.

The Old Madam asked, “Magnolia, what do you wish to report?”

Magnolia ground her teeth, her indignation evident. “Old Madam, I want to report Zeng Weiyin.”

The Old Madam nodded. “Go on.”

Magnolia spoke angrily, “During rehearsals these past days, Zeng Weiyin has either been late or just loafing around. He claims he’s attached himself to a wealthy widow, that he’ll soon be rich and never have to worry about food or clothing, unlike us who make a living by performing.”

Min Xianshu jumped in immediately, “Did Zeng Weiyin say who this person is?”

Magnolia glanced at Wen Ni, her voice indifferent. “From what he hinted, it seems to be the young mistress whose husband just passed away.”

Wen Ni fell silent.

Min Xianshu’s confidence surged. She slammed the condom in her hand hard against Wen Ni’s face. “You wretch, what else do you have to argue?”

Zhou Jingyi’s gaze grew dangerously deep.

Wen Ni touched her face, bent over, and picked up the condom from the floor.

Min Xianshu, utterly disgusted, fumed, “You still have the nerve to pick it up?”

Instead, Wen Ni walked straight to Zhou Jingyi and extended her arm.

She opened her palm. There, stark against her fair skin, the condom was displayed right before Zhou Jingyi’s eyes—square and tidy, obscuring her palm, her slender, white fingers pointing directly at him.

Zhou Jingyi’s eyes were as dark and brilliant as a moonlit sea, the cold light swirling in their depths, enough to pull one into a whirlpool with a single glance.

With an innocent look, Wen Ni said, “Uncle, I can’t keep this secret for you anymore.”

Min Xianshu hurried over. “What nonsense are you spouting? What does this sordid thing have to do with your uncle?”

Zhou Jingyi said nothing, his head slightly lowered, gaze locked onto Wen Ni’s, sharp and warning.

Wen Ni spoke softly, “This fell out of Uncle’s pocket. I picked it up. Since I also work on this floor, I was afraid people would think it was mine, so I kept it. I never thought it would still end up being found by someone else.”

Min Xianshu seized Wen Ni’s hand. “Cornered, are you biting whoever you can now?”

Wen Ni shook her head.

The Old Madam stood up, struggling without Wang Sufang’s support, and Shen Xue’ning rushed to help her.

With Shen Xue’ning’s support, the Old Madam approached. “What is going on here? Whose is this, really?”

Wen Ni looked Zhou Jingyi straight in the eyes, unflinching.

Min Xianshu, frantic with anger, shouted, “Wen Ni, you push your own filth onto your elders now? Your uncle is renowned for his integrity. How dare you?”

The Old Madam added, “Indeed, Wen Ni, had you named another uncle, I might have believed you, but your Uncle Five? I simply can’t accept your story.”

Shen Xue’ning spoke gently, “Wen Ni, if you truly can’t find an excuse, just admit it. Grandmother cares for you. If you tell the truth, she’ll show you leniency.”

Three pairs of eyes bore into Wen Ni. Four, to be precise, including Zhou Jingyi’s.

His lips pressed into a thin line, his long, phoenix-shaped eyes slightly narrowed, their depths unreadable, as if he didn’t care in the least.

Wen Ni’s eyes brimmed with tears, grievance welling up, a single tear tracing down her smooth cheek, circling her jawline, reluctant to fall. “Uncle, do you really want me to take the blame for you?”

Zhou Jingyi watched her performance in silence.

The Old Madam, growing impatient, questioned Zhou Jingyi, “Jingyi, does this have anything to do with you?”

Zhou Jingyi turned his head. “What a question, Grandmother.”

The Old Madam understood at once. Her usually kind gaze grew stern—nothing displeased her more than a person with a messy private life.

If Wen Ni wished to remarry, she should do so openly: leave the Zhou family first, then pursue love. If she followed the proper steps, the Old Madam would say nothing and might even prepare a dowry for her.

But now, Wen Ni was secretly consorting with someone behind the family’s back. The thought of her and a young actor engaging in such conduct within her own opera troupe disgusted the Old Madam deeply.

Her tone turned severe. “Wen Ni, what more do you have to say?”

Wen Ni’s face flushed. “Grandmother, I truly didn’t—”

Min Xianshu sneered, “Still think you’re part of the Zhou family? You call us that, but we’re too embarrassed to listen. Wen Ni, you’re shameless, tangled up with Zeng Weiyin—heaven knows when you started. You should leave this house with nothing.”

Min Xianshu was thoroughly satisfied. Four hundred million—finally secured.

Wen Ni suddenly fixed her gaze on Min Xianshu. “I have absolutely nothing to do with Zeng whatever.”

Her eyes glinted fiercely, like a starving wolf on a winter night, startling Min Xianshu.

Min Xianshu instinctively recoiled, but quickly realized it was Wen Ni who ought to be afraid, not her. She straightened, full of arrogance. “Wen Ni, pack your things and get out. Our Zhou family doesn’t need a daughter-in-law like you.”

Min Xianshu tugged at Wen Ni’s arm. The two struggled back and forth until Wen Ni was shoved hard and collided with the silk-weaving loom. Her palm hit the warp knife, instantly drawing blood and staining the half-finished work she’d painstakingly woven.

Wen Ni collapsed against the loom.

“Tch,” Zhou Jingyi remarked, rising to his full, imposing height. “Nephew’s wife, my apologies for letting you be wronged.”

At those words, Min Xianshu shrieked, “Little Five, I know you’re kind, but you can’t cover for Wen Ni and take this disgrace upon yourself!”

Zhou Jingyi’s lips curled with cold amusement. “Kind? Sister-in-law, I’m afraid you don’t know me at all.”

Min Xianshu tried to protest, but the Old Madam cut her off. “Jingyi, this isn’t a matter to joke about.”

Zhou Jingyi let out a derisive laugh and said nothing more. He headed straight into his bedroom.

Before long, Zhou Jingyi returned and tossed something onto the silk-weaving loom, pinched between his elegant fingers.

Min Xianshu hurried to pick it up and compared it with the earlier condom—identical in every way, even the size, extra-large.

She froze.

Instinctively, she looked at Shen Xue’ning, who was equally stunned.

No one had expected that this entire scandal would end up implicating Zhou Jingyi.

Wen Ni, her lashes damp with tears, stole a timid glance at Zhou Jingyi.

The Old Madam let out a long sigh. “Since that’s the case, it’s all been a misunderstanding. Wen Ni has truly been wronged, so—”

Min Xianshu interrupted, “Mother, even if the condom incident was a misunderstanding, what about those photos, Zeng Weiyin’s words, and Magnolia’s testimony? None of that has anything to do with Jingyi, does it?”

The Old Madam fell silent.

Just then, Wang Sufang returned, carrying a bag. With a grave expression, she announced, “Old Madam, we found a piece of women’s intimate apparel in Zeng Weiyin’s room.”