"Huanhuan, don't blame your father too much; he actually wants to be fair to both sides. After all, Ning Yuncheng is your elder brother. Now that the company is yours, we can't just stand by and watch him get harmed. Can you... can you forgive your mother and me?" As Madam Ning said these things, she felt a pang of guilt. Her son had changed so completely in recent days, becoming like a different person. She couldn't stand it and had cried privately many times, but he was still her son. Seeing him in such a state now, Madam Ning couldn't bear it.

Both Mr. and Mrs. Ning had witnessed how ruthless the debt collectors were, and they genuinely feared that their son's limbs would be chopped off if he couldn't repay the money, just as he claimed. Seeing her own flesh and blood suffer, Madam Ning couldn't bear it. She only thought of handing over all their savings. The thought of their future life made her eyes well up with tears again.

"I don't know what we'll do from now on, but we have to get past this hurdle first."

Ning Yunhuan handed her a tissue to wipe her nose, while she looked at her father, who sat silently, looking as if he had aged ten years in an instant. "Father, you're paying this off for Ning Yuncheng this time. What will you do afterwards?" Mr. and Mrs. Ning had divided their assets long ago and hadn't kept a single cent for themselves. They hadn't considered her at all in doing this, which was a pity, as it was all for the undeserving Ning Yuncheng.

"Don't worry about your mother and me. We'll just live frugally. We'll save up some money later to buy a small place to make do. I managed the Ning Corporation for many years; I can certainly find a job somewhere. I should be able to support us." Mr. Ning had already planned it out. After paying off the debt, he would swallow his pride and approach his old friends for a job, maybe as some kind of supervisor, to earn enough money. If he and Madam Ning lived sparingly, it should be enough.

Although Mr. Ning wasn't born into a powerful or wealthy family, the Ning family had always been well-off. From childhood, he had never suffered any hardship or lacked spending money, let alone the idea of working under someone else's roof. He used to be on equal footing with his friends. To end up with nothing and have to work under them would mean his back could never straighten again—not only would life be difficult, but his pride would be wounded. Yet, he was willing to do it, and Ning Yunhuan sighed:

"Father."

"Don't worry," Mr. Ning said quickly, clearly afraid his daughter would object or think he was favoring Ning Yuncheng. "I've helped him this once. Your elder brother has learned his lesson and will surely be scared. I deliberately delayed my answer for a few days. As long as he knows fear, he absolutely won't gamble again."

Hearing this, Ning Yunhuan couldn't help but give a bitter smile. "Whether Ning Yuncheng gambles again or not, I won't comment on that. But Father, Mother, do you remember what I told you before? I had someone watching Gu Shaotao and Ning Yuncheng." Since she had brought it up, Ning Yunhuan knew she had to reveal Ning Yuncheng's true intentions. She couldn't believe that after being anxious and terrified for days, and their father's loving heart going out to Ning Yuncheng, they wouldn't become disillusioned once they realized he had lied!

"We remember," Mr. Ning replied. A strange thought suddenly surfaced in his mind. In truth, they had both forgotten about that. Hearing Ning Yunhuan bring it up now, the couple felt a sudden urge to persuade her to reconcile with Ning Yuncheng, as they were siblings after all, and there should be no lasting enmity between them. Little did they expect that what Ning Yunhuan said next nearly drove Mr. Ning mad with anger.

"Ning Yuncheng did lose money, yes, but don't you two know he didn't lose ninety million? He only lost a little over ten million. It was Gu Shaotao who likely lost seventy or eighty million."

Mr. Ning's hands began to shake violently. Madam Ning's lips trembled so badly that she seemed not to grasp the meaning of her daughter's words. "What do you mean by that?" They couldn't believe their own son would scheme against them like this, so Madam Ning asked again, unwilling to believe it.

"It must be that Ning Yuncheng took on Gu Shaotao's debt to please Gu Yingxi, and then came to you two to get the money to pay it off," Ning Yunhuan sighed, finally revealing the truth. She knew this revelation would shock them now, but it was far better than them sacrificing everything only to be kept in the dark until the truth eventually came out.

Keeping this secret now wasn't for their own good; it was enabling Ning Yuncheng. Revealing it now would certainly hurt Mr. and Mrs. Ning, but it would also make them guard against Ning Yuncheng. This was the first time Ning Yuncheng had schemed against them. If they knew early, preparing themselves mentally, then even if Ning Yuncheng repeated the actions of his past life, Mr. Ning certainly wouldn't die of anger from a sudden shock.

"..." Mr. Ning looked at Madam Ning with a bewildered expression. Madam Ning's face instantly turned ashen, then flushed beet red, a mouthful of blood choking in her throat, making her nearly spit it out. With her chest heaving violently, Madam Ning's eyes suddenly widened, and she slumped straight back over the sofa.

They, her husband and she, had been anxious sick with worry for him, even deciding to move to a smaller house to scrape by because of him. Mr. Ning was even willing to go out and work just for Ning Yuncheng, having to answer to others for the rest of his life. But who knew that Ning Yuncheng was deceiving them for the sake of Gu Yingxi!

Thinking of the agony her husband and she had endured these past few days, Ning Yuncheng had never once considered his parents' feelings. His mind was only on Gu Yingxi; he didn't care how worried his parents were! Upon learning these truths, Madam Ning suddenly couldn't take it anymore. Her vision went black, and she lost consciousness.

Mr. Ning rushed over in a panic, but Ning Yunhuan had already called Lan Lingyan. "My mother has collapsed from shock."

Lan Lingyan was certainly aware of everything happening in the Ning household. Hearing Ning Yunhuan's words, he didn't hesitate and made another call. Ning Yunhuan heard the sound of him seeking a doctor on the other end of the line. The father and daughter dared not move Madam Ning, unsure of her condition. After hanging up, about twenty minutes later, a car pulled up outside the Ning residence, and a group of people carrying equipment entered the villa.

Several middle-aged men in suits briefly examined Madam Ning before stating, "Madam, it's fortunate you didn't move her. For a full assessment, we need to take Mrs. Ning back for a detailed examination." Madam Ning's condition was akin to a stroke caused by acute shock. Since she wasn't very old, the severity would determine if surgery was necessary. Plus, it was discovered early; with proper rehabilitation afterward, there likely wouldn't be any lasting sequelae.

Mr. Ning followed Madam Ning into the first car, leading the way. Ning Yunhuan followed in a separate car because she had things to discuss with Lan Lingyan, so she didn't ride with her father.

Once in her car and having the bodyguard follow the vehicle ahead, Ning Yunhuan redialed Lan Lingyan's number, her voice tinged with anger:

"Did you know about Ning Yuncheng coming home to ask for money all along?"

Lan Lingyan did know, and he had deliberately kept it from Ning Yunhuan. He hadn't eased up on the debt collectors, even because of his in-laws, and instead had pressured them even harder, which only heightened Mr. and Mrs. Ning's panic. Thinking of Madam Ning being carried out just moments ago, Ning Yunhuan's eyes stung, and she bit her lip tightly before continuing:

"If you knew, why didn't you tell me?"

"If I had told you, would you have let them give Ning Yuncheng the money?" Lan Lingyan's voice was remarkably calm. He could tell Ning Yunhuan was on the verge of tears; her tone was tight, but he still analyzed dispassionately: "If we let this slide this one time, there will be countless opportunities for him to borrow money in the future. If we don't stop it now and make your parents cautious, it will only become more troublesome later." He always preferred to use a sharp knife to cut through a messy situation, focusing only on the outcome regardless of the means. Forcing Mr. and Mrs. Ning like this was the best opportunity to make them completely give up on Ning Yuncheng. In fact, ever since he helped Ning Yunhuan devise the plan to lure out Ning Yuncheng and Gu Shaotao, he had been calculating toward this very day.

It was just that his wife was too soft-hearted; she couldn't bring herself to be harsh with Mr. and Mrs. Ning. Since she couldn't bear it, he would do it secretly for her, solving these problems. Then, Mr. Ning wouldn't be fooled by Ning Yuncheng again, making it easier for Ning Yunhuan to deal with her brother and have more fun, wouldn't it?

Lan Lingyan generally disliked explaining himself, but hearing Ning Yunhuan's faintly tearful voice now, his expression grew even sterner. "There's an old saying: a short pain is better than a long one! Feeling heartache now is better than losing a life later. Look at you, with such little backbone—stop crying!" There was a hint of threat in his tone, but toward the end, his demeanor softened. "If you dislike it, I promise I won't keep it from you next time."

He had originally intended to handle these dirty matters himself and didn't want Ning Yunhuan to feel conflicted. But now that she knew, Lan Lingyan didn't want to hide anything from her, though promising not to hide it next time didn't mean such things wouldn't happen again.

Ning Yunhuan certainly understood his concession. This was a man so forceful that even when facing Lan's father and Lin Min, he hadn't backed down even slightly. Yet, when she criticized him, he hadn't become angry; instead, he explained this extensively. Ning Yunhuan knew his heart, but thinking of Madam Ning right now, she still said, "But my mother is sick with anger."

She knew what Lan Lingyan said was logical. Madam Ning getting sick from anger now was better than what happened in her previous life, where Mr. Ning died of rage.

"Ning Yuncheng made her angry," Lan Lingyan wouldn't be foolish enough to take all the blame onto himself at this moment, unlike that saintly figure Ning Yuncheng, whose upbringing never taught him such kindness or selflessness for others.

Hearing Lan Lingyan so readily shift all the blame onto Ning Yuncheng, Ning Yunhuan, despite being angry at his ruthless methods, couldn't help but laugh. "I don't care who made her angry. I only hope my mother is okay."