Chapter 89 Starting a Group (by Wen Huilin)

"Huilin," Wen Guodong beckoned with a smile on his face, "You two really are living well in the big city. Chen Ang isn't bad either."

Hearing her father's pleasantries, Wen Huilin frowned. She really wanted to tell them that they had been deceived by Chen Ang, and that Chen Ang was just an insidious, petty person.

But she couldn't tell them the truth, because her family didn't know about her finding Chen Ang to take the fall, much less that the secret was out and Chen Ang was now taking revenge.

"Exactly. Chen Ang arranged everything so thoughtfully for your brother's visit today. The presidential suite at the Qianxi Hotel, and this restaurant... You married a good husband, you should be content."

Li Meifeng's mouth hadn't closed since Wen Huilin walked through the door. She never imagined that coming to Bin City would result in such excellent treatment.

Upon hearing that they were staying at a five-star hotel, Wen Huilin felt her vision go dark; it went without saying that she would be the one paying for it.

Her rapidly heaving chest could not suppress the raging fire within.

Her eyes blazed with fury as she glared sideways at Chen Ang, wishing she could kill him. But she was speechless; she couldn't even find an angle to argue from.

Should she say Chen Ang was wrong to spend money hosting her parents?

That was certainly something she couldn't say. She could only glare at Chen Ang with hatred, loathing him for always standing on the moral high ground to disgust her.

Chen Ang glanced at her, the corners of his mouth curling up uncontrollably. He looked back at Wen Guodong and his wife, "It's not easy for you either. It's rare for you to visit, and Huilin instructed me to host you properly."

Watching the cheerful Chen Ang, Li Meifeng suppressed the corner of her mouth and turned to complain to her daughter, "Before, you said Chen Ang's family went bankrupt, but they look perfectly fine to me. Look how decent you guys are; what bankruptcy? That must have been a lie."

At the mention of Chen Ang's family bankruptcy, Wen Huilin felt a sharp pain in her chest. Her mind was filled with those hundreds of millions in funds. She turned her head away, her expression twisted.

Chen Ang chuckled, ignoring Wen Huilin. He picked up the teapot to refill Wen Guodong's cup, his tone humble, "Your words make me feel ashamed. The family was indeed in difficulty a few years ago, but I assure you both, that will absolutely never happen again. Huilin suffered quite a bit with me in the past, and from now on, I will definitely compensate her twofold."

When he mentioned compensating her, his gaze lingered on Wen Huilin.

Wen Huilin met his gaze and only felt coldness within those eyes, making goosebumps rise on her back involuntarily.

How could she not know that Chen Ang was being sarcastic?

On the other side, Wen Guodong nodded repeatedly, and Li Meifeng was grinning from ear to ear.

Wen Huilin let out a long breath, picked up her chopsticks and then put them down again. Her fingers clenched and unclenched under the tablecloth.

Chen Ang took in all her little movements; he was very satisfied with her performance.

It was to make her suffer, to make her panic.

As the waiters brought out the dishes one after another, the banquet gradually reached its peak.

Wen Guodong picked up a piece of fish with his chopsticks, praising repeatedly that it was fresher than what they bought at the market back home.

Li Meifeng tried every dish one by one, eating with great delight.

Wen Zhiyong was shoveling food into his mouth, spitting bone fragments and residue all over his plate.

Only Xue Shanshan ate very refinedly, occasionally looking up at Chen Ang.

Chen Ang seemed to sense it; he put down his chopsticks and looked up, "Shanshan, you graduated last year, right? What was your major? Are you working now?"

As he spoke, he pushed the newly served plate of crab meat lion's head meatballs toward Xue Shanshan.

"Secretarial studies. I haven't found a suitable job yet; good companies now all require more than two years of experience." When Xue Shanshan said this, she smiled at Chen Ang, a smile clearly tinged with coquettishness.

"Secretarial is good. You have a good appearance and a great temperament." After saying this, Chen Ang turned his gaze to Wen Zhiyong, "Zhiyong, you should also settle down. You're about to be a married man; a girl as good as Shanshan can't afford to wait."

Hearing this, Wen Huilin stopped picking up food for Chen Zetian. She realized Chen Ang was up to something again and hurriedly tried to stop him, "Chen Ang, talk less while eating. Zhiyong has his own plans; why are you spouting nonsense?"

Chen Ang smiled derisively and stopped talking. He knew that once the team fight started, someone would naturally follow up.

Wen Zhiyong put down the crab shell in his hand and wiped his fingers with a tissue, "Sis, Brother-in-law is right. I really do want to settle down early, and Shanshan has agreed."

As he spoke, he suddenly leaned forward and changed the subject, "Sis, Shanshan and I are still a bit short on the bride price. Do you think you could lend us some to tide us over? Once we're married, I'll go out and find a job immediately. I promise to pay you back."

The room went quiet at this moment.

Everyone else held their breath, waiting for Wen Huilin's answer, except for Chen Ang, who was busy eating.

Wen Huilin placed her chopsticks on her bowl and looked up at Chen Ang. She remembered the scene from last night.

Now that it was her turn to be stuck in this position, she deeply realized that both advancing and retreating were traps.

Looking back at Wen Zhiyong, the rage suppressed deep in her heart surged uncontrollably.

She cleared her throat, suppressed her emotions, and gave an awkward smile, "Zhiyong, my expenses here are also high. You can't rely on me for everything. So, how much are you still short?"

"It's not much." Li Meifeng spoke up before her son could, "We've been scraping together for years; your brother has saved tens of thousands, and the two of us have taken out tens of thousands from our coffin money. Now we're still short..." She counted on her fingers.

"Short by three hundred thousand." On the other side, Xue Shanshan flipped her phone face down on the table. Her voice was neither high nor low, as if she were stating a pre-determined price.

Hearing this, Wen Huilin frowned in astonishment, as if she hadn't understood, "Three hundred thousand?"

So it turned out the bulk of the bride price for her brother's marriage was all going to be her responsibility.

She instantly realized that the hundreds of thousands she had sent home over the past seven years hadn't improved her family's situation; instead, it had only fed the greed of these blood relatives.

Just as she was about to say something, Chen Ang's voice rang out before hers.

"This money actually isn't that much, is it?" Chen Ang picked up a piece of pork rib and put it in his mouth, his tone as casual as if he were just mentioning it in passing.

"Where would I have that much money?" Wen Huilin said in a fit of rage. Furious at Chen Ang for siding with outsiders against her, she unconsciously dug her nails into the tablecloth.

She then added, "A while ago, Chen Ang bought a bmw x5, which cost hundreds of thousands. Zetian accidentally hurt someone at school, and we paid over a hundred thousand in compensation. Plus, Zetian's interest classes also cost one hundred thousand. I really don't have any money right now."

Counting the expenses, Wen Huilin was practically gritting her teeth; the hatred for Chen Ang in her heart was bone-deep.

Every single one of these expenses was her lifeline, and all of them were Chen Ang's deliberate calculations.

"Really no money left?" Seeing this, Wen Zhiyong looked at his parents in surprise, then asked Wen Huilin.

Wen Guodong and his wife were also bewildered. Wen Huilin's words were completely different from what Chen Ang had said earlier, leaving them unsure who was lying.

"She does, brother, she does." Chen Ang put down his chopsticks and smiled at Wen Zhiyong.

He then turned to look at Wen Huilin, "The bmw x5 was bought with my own separate money. You should have savings; why not take them out to help Zhiyong in this emergency? He is your own brother, and marriage is a major life event."

After speaking, Chen Ang continued to bury his head in his food, but the satisfaction in his eyes could not be hidden.

This money was marital property. When the lawsuit for fraudulent upbringing came, in the division of marital property, at least half or more would be his.

If it was given away, he could get it back, but Wen Huilin might not be able to.