Chapter 21: Protect Her

Han Mo dashed forward in front of He Huanhuan, scrutinizing her intently, his expression filled with tension: "Why is Han Xuan here? Did he hurt you?"

He Huanhuan clapped her hands confidently: "With him? Hurting me?"

These tough girls, when they fought, were brutally dirty.

Men kicked, women clawed.

Aiming for wherever hurt the most.

Han Xuan’s few moves were nothing special.

On the ground, Han Xuan was still wailing in agony: "Take me to the hospital! It hurts so much!"

At the doorway, Han Yongchang finally heard the commotion and rushed over.

The moment he entered, he heard his son’s cries of pain, scaring him into hurrying inside: "Xiaoxuan, what’s wrong? What happened to you?"

"Dad!"

With his backer finally here, Han Xuan poured out his grievances with a full heart: "He Huanhuan kicked me down there! Get her! Get her!"

His emotions got the better of him, and he accidentally strained that area again, finally overwhelmed by the pain. He rolled his eyes and passed out.

"Someone! Take the Second Young Master to the hospital!"

A chaotic group of people rushed in and carried Han Xuan out.

That left Han Yongchang, his face full of fury, and the guests, waiting to enjoy the drama.

Han Yongchang stood up with a grim face and looked at He Huanhuan: "Girl, you need to explain yourself to me."

Han Mo’s face turned colder. He stepped forward, blocking He Huanhuan: "Shouldn’t Han Xuan be the one to explain? Why was he in that room? What was he trying to do? He..."

"Han Mo!"

Han Yongchang cut him off sharply, barely containing his rage: "That’s your brother!"

"Is it?"

Han Mo sneered: "I didn’t know my mother had two sons."

"Han Mo!"

Han Changyong could no longer hold back his anger: "Are you asking for trouble?"

The company’s equity was all in his hands!

Had this boy lost his mind?

Was he not afraid of being kicked out of the company?

His eyes were full of threat, but he was shocked to find no trace of fear on Han Mo’s face.

He just looked at him coldly, as if this man wasn’t his father.

As if they were two completely unrelated people.

His heart suddenly skipped a beat. He felt like things were slipping out of his control.

He suddenly couldn’t understand this son of his.

He knew Han Mo held a grudge against him, and he had always known.

He and Chen Meixin had started as a young couple, supporting each other through it all. They opened a shop, built a business, and grew it bigger and bigger, until they finally made it into the circle of the rich in River City.

Everything was good—until he went and had a child with someone else.

That crushed Chen Meixin, making her sick with grief, and she died young.

How could Han Mo not hate him?

But he had his own reasons. Once the business took off, he wasn’t the same man he used to be.

Chen Meixin didn’t see it that way. She thought that since they had climbed from poverty to wealth together, they were still the closest partners.

She was domineering and blind, with no idea what he truly needed.

He needed a woman’s admiration, not to be screamed at at home.

When they were young and poor, it was tolerable. But now he was the chairman of a public company. Why should he still take the abuse?

If she wouldn’t pamper him, someone else naturally would.

He never intended to drive her to her death, nor did he plan to bring that other woman and child into the home.

It was she who couldn’t handle the truth. That wasn’t his fault.

But that ungrateful son blamed him for everything, shifting all that hatred onto him.

So why bother playing the loving father? He wasn’t the only son he had.

All those shameful memories of poverty, of groveling, of being some man’s dog—he could just throw them away.

Father and son stood their ground, cold and stiff.

Han Yongchang would never back down. He was the superior, the father.

If he yielded, where would his dignity be?

He just couldn’t figure out why that damn boy had suddenly become so stubborn.

Hadn’t Han Mo always wanted to get his hands on Chen Meixin’s shares?

What had changed all of a sudden?

That was not a good sign.

He knew how much his son valued his mother. He didn’t believe he would throw away all his past efforts for a girl he had known for only a few days.

But the evidence was right in front of him. Han Mo was firmly shielding He Huanhuan, refusing to let him question her.

His eyes were mocking: "Dad, are you afraid to ask Han Xuan?"

"Don’t you dare slander your brother!"

In the silent room, the father and son were at daggers drawn.

The onlookers at the doorway didn’t utter a word. Hell, who would break into such a gripping scene?

What if they interrupted and the fight stopped halfway?

"I wanted... I wanted to seduce you! If I could... the East City project... get Han Mo kicked out of the company..."

"Seduce me? Or rape me?"

"Isn’t that... isn’t that basically the same thing?"

In the quiet room, a conversation rang out with an electronic voice overlay. The female voice was clearly He Huanhuan’s, and the male voice was unmistakably that of the recently carried-off Han Xuan.

He Huanhuan pushed Han Mo aside, her face full of disgust: "What are you doing? You’ve wasted half my time!"

Han Mo: "... Where did you get that recording?"

He Huanhuan raised her phone: "He lunged at me first, so of course I had to keep evidence. I’m not stupid."

That ugly loser had bad intentions. If she was going to beat him up, she had to record his dirt first.

Otherwise, how would she prove her actions were justified?

Without that alertness, she’d have been sent to juvenile detention countless times by now.

The veteran survives a hundred battles—her trick was always hitting the record button first!

She lifted her face to look at Han Mo, glowing with triumph, begging for praise. Her rainbow-colored hair made her look wild and bold, and Han Mo’s gaze softened: "You’re really amazing."

Even without him, she could take care of herself.

Truly amazing.

He Huanhuan put her hands on her hips: "Damn right!"

In the recording, Han Xuan’s voice was loud and clear. Every word was heard by everyone present.

Old Mr. Gu immediately stood up from behind the crowd. Just now, it was his daughter who had kicked someone’s son, and he had to keep a low profile. But now, it was Old Han’s son who had tried to do wrong by her. He had to stand up for his daughter.

He quickly pushed the people in front of him aside and joined the fray: "Old Han, I think you need to give me an answer about this."

Outside the crowd, Gu Chacha bit her lip in frustration.

This He Huanhuan loved stealing the spotlight so much!

She hadn’t even started her own act yet, and this girl had already caused such a mess. How could the rest of her plan play out?

But by now, the situation was beyond her control.

All she could do was stand aside and watch how things unfolded.

Song Zhuo stood beside her, patting her hand soothingly: "Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you get your revenge."

She nodded silently and turned her gaze back to the scene.

Inside the room, Old Mr. Gu stared grimly at Han Yongchang: "Old Han, Huanhuan has suffered a lot outside before coming back to me. We’re old friends of years. Is this how you treat her?"

"Oh, Old Gu, I really had no idea about this..."

The moment Old Mr. Gu stepped forward, Han Yongchang’s momentum immediately weakened.

He was still hoping for a piece of the East City pie. This was a critical moment—how could he afford to offend him?

The man who had once climbed the ladder by being another man’s dog knew exactly how to grovel when he needed to.

After apologizing to Old Mr. Gu, he immediately walked quickly over to He Huanhuan, bent down, and leaned in close to her. "Huanhuan, my dear niece, your uncle really has no idea what's going on with Xiaoxuan. Give me some time, and I promise I'll get to the bottom of this for you!"