It had become common knowledge that Ning Yunhuan visited daily; the surrounding staff would see her and instinctively part, creating a pathway for her approach. As she drew near, before the door even closed, a thunderous roar echoed from inside:

"Father, how can you treat me this way? Fine, don't give me the money, but why won't you even lend it to me? I’m not asking for much, just twenty million. Can't you even grant me that? Can the Ning family company not produce twenty million? It’s not like it’s going bankrupt!" With every mention of this, Ning Yuncheng’s voice grew more furious, causing the hospitalized Father Ning’s face to flush a deep crimson as he coughed several times, pointing a finger at Ning Yuncheng, utterly unable to speak.

"Enough, Yuncheng, is this how you treat your father the moment you arrive?" Madam Ning, seeing how distressed her son had made her husband, feared for Father Ning’s health and quickly moved to soothe his back. Only then did she speak sternly, "Do you even know, your father is currently..."

"He’s fine usually; he only gets sick when I ask to borrow money. He’s definitely faking it!" As soon as Ning Yuncheng heard Madam Ning speaking, he blurted out without thinking. Gu Yingxi had returned crying over half a month ago, and he and Xie Zhuoyin had wondered if someone had bullied her. But she absolutely refused to say. Eventually, unable to get it out of her, he and Xie Zhuoyin had teamed up to pressure her until she finally revealed that she owed fifty-five million.

She claimed she had broken someone’s phone and someone’s handbag! At the time, Ning Yuncheng suspected his beloved had been set up—what phone or handbag was worth fifty million? Furthermore, people had been hassling Gu Yingxi frequently lately. If he and Xie Zhuoyin hadn't guarded her day and night, she might have been harmed long ago. This only solidified Ning Yuncheng’s suspicion that she was being framed.

Although fifty million was a large sum, compared to Gu Yingxi’s life, it was insignificant. Therefore, he and Xie Zhuoyin had agreed to repay the debt for their beloved to stop the constant harassment, as an open threat is easier to dodge than a hidden arrow.

Xie Zhuoyin's status was not what it used to be. As a young master who lived off small dividends, his annual take was at most two or three hundred million. However, due to several errors he'd made in the company, his dividends had been used to cover those holes for the past two years, leaving him short of cash. Nevertheless, he had volunteered to cover twenty-five million of the debt. Not wanting to look lesser in Xie Zhuoyin's eyes, Ning Yuncheng gritted his teeth and promised to secure twenty million for his beloved.

The problem was that Father Ning had recently cut off his financial lifeline, leaving him unable to produce even a hundred thousand yuan. Although he had studied in England for several years and wasn't young anymore, Ning Yuncheng was accustomed to extravagance and had no savings. After all, he used to just ask Father Ning whenever he needed money; when would he ever be short? Moreover, as a young master, he didn't work; even at his own family’s company, his title was merely for show, and he had never truly worked before. Now, facing a genuine need for funds, after much thought, his only option was to return and ask Father Ning for money.

Although the Ning family was wealthy, Father Ning suspected Ning Yuncheng’s motive upon hearing his request for twenty million and refused. Seeing Ning Yuncheng’s agitated state now, Father Ning remembered the doctor’s warning against becoming agitated and forced down the anger boiling inside him. “What do you need this money for? You must realize, while our family can produce twenty million, doing so would undoubtedly strain our immediate liquidity...”

"Father, just say yes or no. Anyway, when you and Mother die, this money will be mine. Why can't you give it to me now? Don't you know I need it urgently?"

That single sentence nearly made Father Ning fall backward, the veins in his forehead throbbing. Madam Ning's face was also deeply displeased. Ning Yuncheng clutched his hair, "I truly need it urgently. You are so heartless; cutting off my allowance as usual is one thing, but now you won't even lend me money? Are you afraid I can't pay it back? Do you want to drive me to death before you're satisfied? Do you believe me if I say I'll jump off the building right now!"

Hearing this, the people outside began whispering amongst themselves. Ning Yunhuan finally couldn't stand it. She pushed through the crowd, rushed inside, and without a second thought, grabbed the thermos and slammed it onto Ning Yuncheng’s head:

"You shameless wretch! Are you intentionally here to provoke Father?" In her previous life, Ning Yuncheng first begged Father Ning for money for Gu Yingxi, and when Father Ning refused, he turned his schemes onto her. Ning Yunhuan suffered terrible misfortune because of him in her last life, culminating in his act of wanting to share Gu Yingxi with other men and gifting her the company the Ning family had managed for generations, effectively angering Father Ning to death, sending him to the hospital from which he couldn't be revived. Now, hearing him still bringing up borrowing money, Ning Yunhuan’s heart tightened, as if recalling the unlucky days of her past life, and she put more force behind her swing.

"Are you insane?" Ning Yuncheng took several hard blows. The thermos was packed solidly with soup, making it quite heavy; hitting a head and face was genuinely painful. Caught off guard by Ning Yunhuan’s attack, and fueled by anger which made his strength enormous, he struggled fiercely before grabbing Ning Yunhuan’s arm and flinging the soup onto the floor: "What are you doing?"

"What are you doing!" Father Ning, seeing Ning Yuncheng twist his daughter’s hand and remembering her recently healed bone injury, could no longer remain seated. He gasped heavily, quickly gesturing to Madam Ning, "Quick, quick, tell him to, let go."

Perhaps due to overexcitement, he suddenly had trouble breathing, which greatly frightened Madam Ning. She quickly pressed the nearby call button, then turned to her son with a frosty expression, "Aren't you going to let your sister go? Look how upset your father is."

"He wasn't sick earlier or later; why is he suddenly ill the moment I ask to borrow money?" His words clearly implied that Father Ning was feigning illness. Father Ning’s face first turned ashen, then flushed bright red, tears threatening to spill.

"Shut up!" At this moment, Ning Yunhuan only wished her thermos had been of lower quality; it would have been better if the scalding hot soup had poured over his head, making him yelp in pain!

The room descended into chaos, and the crowd outside began pointing and murmuring. Ning Yuncheng’s face cycled between pale and flushed. Seeing Madam Ning’s panicked expression and Father Ning’s continuous gasping, he finally relented somewhat:

"Maybe he isn't faking it now."

"You shut up!" Madam Ning couldn't hold back this time. She walked toward her son and savagely swung her arm, delivering a resounding slap across his face.

With a sharp smack, Ning Yuncheng’s head snapped sideways. Madam Ning had used tremendous force; he stumbled several steps and had to lean against the wall to keep his footing.

"If anything happens to your father, don't call me Mother anymore. You can just call Gu Yingxi your mother!" People say a man forgets his mother once he gets a wife. Ning Yuncheng hadn't even officially married Gu Yingxi, yet he was acting like a madman. If he were actually allowed to marry her, wouldn't he turn the Ning family upside down?

Seeing that Father Ning did not appear to be acting, Ning Yuncheng began to panic. Hearing Madam Ning’s words, his face flushed and paled in turn. He let out a cold snort, intending to leave, but just then, several nurses who had heard the commotion rushed in with a doctor. Ning Yuncheng was pushed aside, and in such a crowded situation, he felt too embarrassed to make a hasty exit.

"We already stated Mr. Ning cannot endure any more agitation. How did you manage to upset him again?" An older doctor, wearing gold-rimmed glasses and bearing a stern expression, frowned and reprimanded them angrily, "Are you all hoping he lives too long and needs more torment?"

"Who knows if he's faking it just because he doesn't want to lend me money," Ning Yuncheng mumbled softly, though deep down, he harbored some doubt.

Father Ning, who was still gasping for air, heard these words. His eyes rolled back, and he utterly lost control. A thread of drool escaped the corner of his mouth, and he completely fainted.

The doctors, seeing the situation, dared not even check his blood pressure, immediately hooking the flexible tubing around their necks: "Hurry, send him to the operating room."

Madam Ning was both worried and terrified. When she saw her son standing there, her anger boiled over, and without hesitation, she slapped him again, "If anything happens to your dad, I will not forgive you!"

At this point, Ning Yuncheng also started to feel nervous, genuinely afraid that Father Ning wouldn't recover. Therefore, he dared not utter a sound when struck by Madam Ning, merely following the gurney as they wheeled Father Ning out of the room. Fortunately, Father Ning collapsed at the hospital. A blood vessel in his brain ruptured, but the emergency surgery was timely, causing no significant delay. The operation proceeded smoothly, leaving no lasting neurological damage, though he would certainly need long-term care and must avoid all forms of stress from then on.

Following this incident, Madam Ning developed a deep rift in her heart toward her son. If he could do something like this today for Gu Yingxi, who hadn't even formally joined the Ning family, nearly costing his father his life, she worried he might do the same to her in the future.

Recalling all the pampering she had given her son over the years, feeling she had done nothing to wrong him, Madam Ning couldn't stop her tears from flowing. When Father Ning was out of surgery, she saw Ning Yuncheng sighing in relief, hesitating as if ready to leave. She wiped her tears and said, "If you have something to do, you should go ahead."

"Mother, Xi'er is at work now. If I’m late, she’ll be in danger when she gets off work tonight." Ning Yuncheng did worry about Father Ning, but he was more concerned about Gu Yingxi, recalling the time she was almost drugged and nearly taken advantage of by thugs at a high-society club. Since Father Ning was now safe, he naturally planned to go pick up Gu Yingxi. If he didn't go, he feared that rascal Xie Zhuoyin would steal his beloved's heart away again.