Chapter 933: Chapter 913: The Inside Story of a Stroke
Jiayi couldn’t help but frown in disgust. On the surface, these words sounded like a plea, but underneath them was an unspoken warning.
Using her identity as Mrs. Huo?
The scandal regarding Zhenxuan being involved in drug trafficking as part of a Mexican drug cartel had only temporarily died down with his death. If the Huo family’s mistress were to land in prison for murder, the public outrage might suffocate Huo Tianpei.
Sure enough, Huo Tianpei hesitated for a moment, his fists clenched so tightly that his veins bulged. "Take this wretch back to the hotel first."
"If Dad finds out about her other matter, he might not want to settle this privately."
Huo Zhenyang spoke faintly, lowering the long leg that was crossed atop his knee until it rested on the ground.
The crisp, cold sound of his leather shoe touching the floor sent shivers down Su Yan’s spine.
Huo Zhenyang could see clearly that Huo Tianpei, for the sake of their family’s reputation, the company’s image, and his own dignity, wanted to handle the matter privately.
Private settlement?
At most, she’d end up like Yao Zhenru—locked away in a mental institution.
Or shipped off far away, like Huo Zhenxuan had been before.
Wouldn’t that be letting Su Yan off too easily?
"What matter?" Huo Tianpei stared in shock at his son.
After learning that Su Yan had killed Xiaolei and set up the scheme that led to the second son’s death, he couldn’t imagine any matter more severe than those.
Jiayi’s mind churned as she glanced at Huo Zhenyang. He hadn’t mentioned to her that there was something else, but faintly, she started to suspect what it could be.
Huo Zhenyang cast a glance at George.
George immediately left the lounge and called out loudly, "Come in!"
A thin, middle-aged man entered. Seeing the scene before him, he shivered for a moment, stuttering nervously, "Mr. Huo, Sir Huo."
"Who is this?" Huo Tianpei asked, surprised.
Tears welled up in Su Yan’s eyes as she stared at the man, finding him somewhat familiar. As she scrutinized him further, she suddenly trembled, her complexion turning ghostly pale.
"Mr. Huo, I’m an employee from the housekeeping department of Green Ripple Natural Resort. Over half a year ago, when you came to Yunling for a stay at the resort, I was in charge of cleaning your room."
Green Ripple Natural Resort?
That was during his first trip from America to Yunling, right before his departure back to America, when he had stayed at the resort to meet old friends!
It was the same time that Su Yan and the butler accompanied him.
It was also during that visit when he took an after-dinner stroll along the mountain path near the resort, leaned on his cane, and fell, which led to the stroke that hadn’t fully healed until now.
How could Huo Tianpei forget? His eyes widened. "What’s going on? Why are you here?"
The housekeeping staff swallowed nervously, glancing at Su Yan’s starkly pale face. "There’s a matter I’ve never told you, but it might be related to the incident of your stroke at the resort."
Huo Tianpei’s heart felt like it might leap from his chest. "That day, I decided to walk alone, leaning on my cane. The cane hit a hard stone and broke, which caused me to fall... Wasn’t that what happened?"
The employee hung his head and said, "...A couple hours before you fell, I was cleaning your room and accidentally saw Miss Su—oh, I mean Mrs. Huo—wiping down the cane you were using that day. At first, it didn’t seem unusual, but I noticed she was holding a small pair of scissors. Out of curiosity, I asked her why she needed scissors, and she told me that the cane sometimes had rough splinters that might scratch your hands, so she was trimming them off for you. I didn’t think much of it, but then she slipped me some money and told me not to say anything about what I’d seen. It wasn’t until after Mr. Huo had that stroke that I started to feel uneasy... The Huo family’s cane is made of top-quality century-old redwood, incredibly sturdy. There’s no way it could suddenly break without a reason. Could it be... Could it be Mrs. Huo was deliberately tampering with the bottom of the cane using scissors, which caused you to fall?"
Jiayi took in a sharp breath. She had always felt suspicious about that incident—how could such a coincidence occur?
At the time, Su Yan was about to be expelled from the Huo family by Huo Zhenyang.
Right then, Huo Tianpei’s stroke happened, requiring surgery in Yunling.
Su Yan seized the opportunity to stay behind and tend to him, regaining his favor.
Later, she managed to use her caretaking responsibilities as leverage, allowing her to remain in the Huo family!
As expected—
Huo Tianpei’s fall and subsequent stroke had to do with Su Yan!
Su Yan had deliberately tampered with his cane!
Turns out, Huo Zhenyang had been suspicious for some time. He must have discovered this housekeeping staff member long ago but had waited until today to confront it all, ensuring everything was settled together.
"Shut up! Shut your mouth! You’re spouting nonsense!" Su Yan snapped out of her stupor and howled furiously.
The employee was terrified by Mrs. Huo’s outburst and clammed up, falling silent.
"The one who needs to shut up is you!"
Huo Tianpei’s face turned white as if drained of blood. Furious, he swung his cane forcefully toward Su Yan!
Crash! The sound of the cane hitting the floor marked the complete collapse of Huo Tianpei’s tolerance for Su Yan!
The woman before him was not the gentle, considerate caregiver who had tirelessly watched over him by his bedside for days on end.
She was venomous, a beast.
During the worst of his stroke, he couldn’t get out of bed, and even his bodily functions had to be managed in bed.
Even the caretakers found the cleanup revolting, yet she handled it without complaint or disdain.
Moved by her selflessness, he had been touched to the point that even when he started noticing her ambition toward the Huo family empire, he had chosen to tolerate her!
Who could have known that his stroke, his paralysis, had been caused by her!
Ridiculous!
No longer caring about the Huo family’s image or reputation!
He raised his trembling hand in fury, pointing at Su Yan. "Take the hypnosis recording and this woman to the police station. Also, contact the lawyer—I want a divorce! I’m divorcing this woman!"
Two assistants stepped forward, pulling Su Yan up and dragging her toward the door.
Su Yan gasped for air, suddenly pointing at Jiayi. "You staged this! You conspired with the psychologist against me! You schemer—"
Huo Zhenyang’s face darkened, casting an impatient look toward George as he was about to deal with the crazy woman. But before anything could be said, Jiayi softly interrupted:
"Scheming? My, you’re too kind. My scheme against you couldn’t possibly compare to how you plotted my murder. And certainly couldn’t rival how you used the police to frame and kill Zhenxuan."
The cold sarcasm in her smile lingered at the edge of her lips, giving her an intoxicatingly dark allure.
Su Yan froze, her body turning icy as realization struck her. After a pause, she suddenly burst into laughter, deranged. "A hypnosis recording as evidence to accuse me of Xiaolei’s murder? Hahaha! Dream on—what kind of direct evidence is that? Dream on—"
She continued to cackle, her breath becoming hoarse as the sound faded down the corridor, dragged off by the assistants.
In the lounge, the atmosphere turned heavy and silent after Su Yan’s departure.
Minutes passed, and no one spoke.
Huo Tianpei settled back into his wheelchair, quiet and lifeless, a profound sorrow visible in his dim, muddied eyes, clearly devastated anew.
"Escort the old man back to the hotel to rest," Huo Zhenyang instructed firmly.
Jiayi glanced at Huo Tianpei. Within a short span, he seemed as though he had aged decades. She couldn’t help but whisper, "Old master, I’ll bring Zaizai to visit you later tonight."
