Chapter 105: Arriving at the Door

She had not expected the other woman to bring up something like this. Although her grandson came by often, he usually only chatted with her about ordinary family matters and seldom mentioned work.

She had no idea what the Li family had done to offend him, but he had gone so far as to cut off cooperation with them altogether.

She knew very well that the partnership with the Li family had been arranged by Old Master Lu himself in the first place. Since her grandson had ended it, he must have had his reasons.

So she said, “If it has been cut off, then so be it. Must the Lu family account to you for everything?”

The woman bristled. “Cao Xiuhua, what happened between us was so many years ago. Why are you still holding a grudge? And why did you incite Lu Qianan to sever the cooperation with the Li family? That was something his grandfather decided!”

“And what if it was decided by his grandfather? Since Qianan cut off the partnership, it must mean that project was losing money. If there were profits to be made, they would never have stopped it so abruptly.”

“How could it not make money? Our Li family has been taking in revenue from that project every year, and the Lu family must have as well. Lu Qianan is clearly just trying to get back at me for your sake! This was a partnership his grandfather arranged, and he is being utterly unfilial!”

Cao Xiuhua laughed. “If it was your grandfather who arranged the partnership, then why don’t you go ask him to back you up? Why come to me?”

The woman on the other side was instantly at a loss for words.

Why had she come to Cao Xiuhua? Naturally because she knew Old Master Lu’s name carried no weight in the Lu family anymore. After all, it was now Lu Qianan who held the reins, and Old Master Lu had long since stepped back.

Since Lu Qianan was avenging Cao Xiuhua, she naturally felt that if she could persuade Cao Xiuhua, the problem would be solved.

By the time Lu Qianan and Qin Miaoyu arrived, they saw someone already in the hospital room.

Qin Miaoyu did not know her, but from the unfriendly atmosphere, she could tell that this unfamiliar woman and her grandmother were certainly not on good terms.

Lu Qianan, of course, knew who she was. She was Old Master Lu’s first love and the mother of the second son of the Li family.

If not for the mess of events back then, Lu Qianan could have called her auntie. But after learning all the grievances of the older generation, he addressed her as Madam Li, and now as Old Lady Li.

“Old Lady Li, what brings you here?” Lu Qianan asked coldly.

Having managed the Lu family for quite some time now, he carried himself with considerable authority, and Old Lady Li looked a little uneasy.

But then she thought of how, once those few projects were gone, the Li family would soon revert to the circumstances of years past. She forced down that trace of fear.

“Of course I came for the partnership issue. The branch under the Lu family has been working perfectly well with the Li family. Why did Young Master Lu suddenly terminate it? This was a partnership your grandfather personally arranged back then!”

Lu Qianan said indifferently, “Projects that don’t make money have to be cut. The Lu family is not a charity. Even if we were, wouldn’t it be better to help those who are truly in need?”

Old Lady Li evidently had not expected Lu Qianan to speak this way as well. She believed it was all just an excuse. “Clearly our Li family has been relying on those two projects—”

“Relying on those two projects for income, you mean?” Lu Qianan cut her off.

Old Lady Li nodded.

A trace of mockery curved Lu Qianan’s lips. “I’m afraid Old Lady Li does not know this, but while the Li family has indeed been making money, our Lu family’s branch has been pouring money into it all along. To put it plainly, it was simply another form of the Lu family paying money to support your Li family for nothing.”

“Nonsense. How could that be? If that were true, why did your branch keep the partnership all this time and only now decide to end it?”

Why had it never been cut off before? Naturally because, in the past, it had been arranged by Old Master Lu, and no one dared pursue the matter. As for his father, he had never taken the Li family seriously and therefore had paid no attention to it.

But now that he had discovered it, what needed to be dealt with would be dealt with. Even if the arrangement brought in a little money, he had no real need to continue cooperating with the Li family. He did not think much of that amount at all, and he also did not want the Li family continuing to take advantage of the Lu family.

So he said impolitely, “If thinking that makes Old Lady Li feel better, then by all means think that. My grandmother needs quiet rest to recover her health. Old Lady Li, see yourself out.”

Lu Qianan’s firm stance made Old Lady Li realize that this trip had been for nothing.

She shot the three of them a resentful glare, lingering for a few seconds on Qin Miaoyu before turning and leaving the room in anger.

Qin Miaoyu walked to her grandmother’s side and asked, “Grandma, are you all right just now?”

Cao Xiuhua shook her head. “I’m fine. You two should just rest well at home. There was no need to make a special trip for something so small. I could handle it myself.”

Qin Miaoyu said gently, “Grandma, your leg is inconvenient right now. What if she had seen that and deliberately taken advantage of your inability to move easily? That’s why we came right away. We couldn’t let you suffer, could we?”

“Yes, yes, yes. It was fortunate you two came to help Grandma.”

On the other side, Lu Qianan asked the nurse and learned that his grandmother had not yet eaten. He immediately told her to go buy some food.

“Grandma, you keep urging Miaoyu and me to eat on time, but you don’t eat on time yourself. If you do this again, then I won’t eat on time either.”

Cao Xiuhua immediately backed down. She knew her grandson usually got so busy that he ate irregularly, so she always reminded him to eat. She had not expected him to turn the tables on her today.

Qin Miaoyu covered her mouth and laughed beside them.

On the way back, Qin Miaoyu asked Lu Qianan and only then learned why Old Lady Li had come.

“She really didn’t know the Lu family was not making a cent and even had to pour money into it?” Qin Miaoyu was curious.

“Who knows? Even if she did know, she would never admit it. After all, free money was being handed to her. People like her would only feel pleased and triumphant.”

“Then would she still go looking for Grandma?”

“No. Once she knows my stance, she won’t bother Grandma again. However, she may go to Grandpa and try to think of another way.”

For that, Qin Miaoyu found herself rather impressed by Old Lady Li.

To have kept Old Master Lu on her side for so many years, her methods were certainly extraordinary.

When they got home, Qin Miaoyu opened her phone and saw a message from the blogger.

The blogger said she had found a company specializing in wedding services. Thinking Qin Miaoyu was also a soon-to-be bride preparing for her wedding, she had been very enthusiastic in sharing her own experience of preparing for marriage.

Qin Miaoyu listened carefully and politely ended the call at last.

She then searched online for the wedding services company the blogger had mentioned and discovered that it had only been established not long ago.

She sent all the information to Xu Xiaoqi, then sat on the sofa lost in thought.

Before starting the studio, they had imagined a bright future together, but now that the studio had been open for only a short time, many things had already happened, and she suddenly realized that running a studio was not nearly as easy as she had thought.

And now, out of nowhere, there was this wedding services company of unclear background.