“Huanhuan is here.” Mrs. Ning’s expression first stiffened. Sitting beside her, Ning Yuncheng’s body tensed, and he let out a cold snort, turning his head away without a word. After some absence, he wore his medium-length hair, a brand-new shirt, and his complexion seemed entirely discontented, unlike his former arrogance.

“Mom, why is he here?” Ning Yunhuan, seeing Ning Yuncheng’s cold sneer, didn't hold back, pointing directly at him to inquire. Before Mrs. Ning could speak, Ning Yuncheng had already sneered:

“Where I choose to be is none of your business! This isn't your house; I am also Mom and Dad’s son, so it is only right that I live with them. Moreover, you are a daughter who has married out; by rights, the Ning family has no claim for you anymore. Now that I have returned and apologized to Mom and Dad, the Ning family company doesn't need you to meddle anymore.”

Ning Yuncheng’s statement made Father Ning look somewhat awkward, and he quickly glanced at Mrs. Ning. Just as Mrs. Ning was about to mediate, Ning Yunhuan cut in directly: “You can have the Ning family company, if you wish. I can acquire it. If Mom and Dad agree, I can convert the value into cash for you.” Hearing this, she saw the joy flash across Ning Yuncheng’s face, and then added, “However, you are not welcome here. Please leave.”

“Huanhuan, he is still your elder brother…” Father Ning spoke with some difficulty, while Ning Yuncheng frowned: “You tell me to leave, and I’ll go? Let me tell you, I’m not leaving. This estate belongs to our parents, you can forget about the company, and you can forget about this house…” Lan Jiu’s estate was located in the most prosperous area of the Imperial Capital, covering a substantial area. Never mind that the small Ning family company was worth three hundred million at most, in this era of skyrocketing property prices, a small apartment in a good location could barely be bought for less than a million. Such an estate was practically priceless. After being with Gu Yingxi, Ning Yuncheng had experienced the bitterness of being penniless and was terrified of poverty.

Therefore, in the end, he couldn't resist. No matter how great the love, it couldn't withstand reality; he was utterly fed up with being poor. After loudly shouting for love over money, Ning Yuncheng finally realized how profoundly wrong he had been. Never mind that he was now missing a kidney; considering the Gu family’s attitude—when Ouyang Zhentian offered fifty thousand, Gu Xian was clearly much warmer towards him than she ever was towards himself. If he had money, Gu Yingyu wouldn’t dare to needle him to his face like that.

Having tasted the flavor of hardship, Ning Yuncheng valued the money he once disdained even more. After trailing Father and Mrs. Ning for a few days, he finally found them and seized the opportunity to apologize. Father and Mrs. Ning, predictably, forgave him easily. The moment Ning Yuncheng saw the estate, he had already claimed it as his own in his heart.

“If Mom and Dad decide to give the company to you, I naturally have no objection. However, if you want this estate, it probably won’t be that easy,” Ning Yunhuan said with a cold smile. She used to think that Ning Yuncheng’s intelligence plummeted once he followed Gu Yingxi, but she never imagined that even without Gu Yingxi by his side, just being with her for a while had influenced Ning Yuncheng to this extent.

Father Ning looked genuinely surprised and was about to speak when Ning Yuncheng angrily interjected: “Don't think you can monopolize it! I am also Mom and Dad’s son. You know exactly how much this estate is worth at a minimum. You think you can just use the company to fob me off and keep this estate for yourself? Don’t even dream about it…”

“Yuncheng, this estate isn't ours,” Father Ning realized something was amiss and quickly spoke up. “This is just where we are staying temporarily.”

Ning Yuncheng didn’t quite believe it, his face dark, and he questioned, “Dad, I’ve already apologized to you, won’t you forgive me? Why hide this? If this wasn't your estate, would the servants here be so respectful to you?” He was about to give more examples when Ning Yunhuan interrupted him: “Firstly, this manor is my husband’s asset. We are only temporarily housing Mom and Dad here because their previous residence had a small issue.” Ning Yunhuan emphasized the word temporarily with weight. Mrs. Ning’s face flushed slightly, knowing her daughter was displeased.

A few days prior, Ning Yuncheng had found them and apologized. Although Father and Mrs. Ning were angry with him, deep down they still missed their son. Seeing that he had seen the error of his ways, they were naturally delighted. When Ning Yuncheng said he had nowhere to live, Mrs. Ning, furious at how the Gu family treated her son, naturally told him to move his things over first.

Because Ning Yunhuan was busy filming commercials overseas during that time, they hadn't told her about it first. Furthermore, they knew their daughter didn't particularly like her brother. Who would have thought that before they could explain the situation, Ning Yunhuan returned and encountered him, leading to this brother and sister arguing as if they were enemies?

“Yuncheng, your sister is right. This house is not ours; it belongs to your brother-in-law…” Father Ning said awkwardly. He knew he was at fault in this matter and was preparing to get up to pack and move back. Their own villa had long been ready, but they stayed here for convenience, and for older people, this location was better in every aspect than their old house—better environment, better air. Who knew that Ning Yunhuan disliked Ning Yuncheng staying here?

“Impossible! Mom, Dad, are you deliberately lying to me just to give her more of the inheritance?” Seeing Father Ning say this, Ning Yuncheng became convinced that his parents were favoring their daughter and intentionally trying to keep assets from him. He stood up in a rage: “Are you also looking down on me? I already apologized!”

“It’s not like that…” Mrs. Ning managed to say awkwardly, but Ning Yunhuan had already summoned a maid: “Pack up his things and send him to the gate. He is not allowed to take a single thing from this house.”

“Yes, Madam.” The maid clearly knew who the real master was and complied immediately. Mrs. Ning was shocked: “Huanhuan, he is your elder brother, not an enemy.”

Ning Yunhuan remained silent. The events of her previous life had not yet occurred, but that didn't mean she had forgotten. The humiliation and abuse Ning Yuncheng inflicted upon her made her feel more disgusted with him every time she recalled it. She could forgive Lan Jiu, but she wouldn't forgive someone like Ning Yuncheng. Seeing her silence, Mrs. Ning felt a pang of sadness: “It was wrong of Mom and Dad not to tell you about this matter, but your brother is, after all, your real elder brother…”

She couldn't speak of the past life, but seeing Mrs. Ning try to persuade her, she suppressed the anger rising in her chest and said calmly, “Mom, if you and Dad want me to take care of you or let you stay here, that’s fine. But I absolutely do not want any connection with Ning Yuncheng. You two should first figure out who you want to give the company to.” After saying this and seeing Father Ning sigh, she stopped talking.

She herself had considerable money now. When she acquired the Lan Ning company, Lan Jiu hadn't required her to pay. But now that the Lan Ning company was running smoothly and earning a substantial income, and considering the revenues from Lan Ning Television, although she hadn’t spent money on it, the profits went into her account. To whom the Ning family company was given didn't matter to her; it was merely a matter of pride.

“You’re lying! Who knows if you emptied the Lan family’s company? Even if you must return my company, it’s only acceptable if you hand over Lan Ning to me!” Ning Yuncheng suddenly uttered something astonishing, pointing at Ning Yunhuan and demanding Lan Ning.

Since Ning Yunhuan had openly driven away Huayu’s people at the venue last time, she had already gained notoriety, and the fact that she was the boss behind Lan Ning could no longer be concealed. Ning Yuncheng naturally knew about this. Now he clearly revealed his intention to claim a share. Ning Yunhuan was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but cover her mouth, laughing so hard that tears streamed down:

“You want Lan Ning?” Father Ning beside her felt too awkward to speak, but Ning Yuncheng declared self-righteously: “Yes! Lan Ning was definitely established using money from the Ning Corporation. Moreover, the people working there are probably all former employees of the Ning family company. You think you can pull off this disappearing act, leaving me with an empty shell? You think too highly of yourself! Unless you divide Lan Ning equally!”

Ning Yunhuan laughed, looking at Ning Yuncheng and asking, “Then do you still want the Lan Ning television station?”

Perhaps because Ning Yuncheng failed to detect the sarcasm in her voice, his eyes lit up at the question: “Of course, I do!”

“I see you want everything, except for any shred of shame,” Ning Yunhuan mocked. Only then did Ning Yuncheng snap back to reality that she was ridiculing him. His heart instantly flared with anger, and just as he was about to speak, Father Ning, who had been listening for a while, could bear it no longer. He put on a stern face and said, “Yuncheng, you know exactly what the Ning family company is like. Huanhuan’s current company was established after acquiring the Fu family’s company; it hasn't relied on us one bit. And Huanhuan’s husband…”

However, Ning Yuncheng completely ignored Father Ning’s words and shouted harshly: “Don’t try to fool me! If you won’t give me the company, you must at least give me half, or I won’t let this go!”

With that, Ning Yuncheng acted like a madman, unleashing a torrent of curses: “I have already apologized! Now you people are digging a pit for me to fall into! What 'someone else's house'? You think I’ll believe that? You think I’ll just hand over this money to you? If I wasn't poor, why would Xi’er leave me? I gave so much for her; she truly loves me in her heart. It was only because I had relatives to support that she left me!” At this point, Ning Yuncheng himself probably didn't believe how deeply he still loved Gu Yingxi, but he was unwilling to accept defeat. He had sacrificed too much for Gu Yingxi; if he backed down now, Ning Yuncheng felt he couldn't swallow that bitterness.