pjbooks Chapter 290
Chapter 290
Old Master Ji took Butler Yu and a few servants, packed over a dozen suitcases, and headed to the capital in a grand procession.Wherever his mother was, he would go. Regardless, he refused to be separated from his mother.
Compared to the Furong Manor in Haicheng, the villa in the capital was slightly smaller, and the courtyard wasn't as spacious, but it was enough to house the family.
On the first floor, besides the servants' quarters, there was a large bedroom for Old Master Ji to stay in.
Old Master Ji prepared the largest single room on the second floor for Rong Yu, decorating it exactly like her bedroom in Haicheng.
Ji Yanting and Ji Mohan simply moved over as well, staying in the rooms on the third floor.
Once the university semester began, Ji Jingchuan and Ji Zhouye would also live here after successfully being admitted to universities in the capital.
"Great-Grandma, here is the sheet music and lyrics." Ji Yanting sent over a document. "It's the work of Qi Su, a musical genius in the industry. It's written very well, and he composed the music too. Great-Grandma can familiarize herself with it first."
Rong Yu looked at the sheet music and began to hum softly.
She really liked the artistic conception conveyed by the lyrics, which was why she decided to take on this job, but she felt that something was a bit off about the melody.
Just as she was pondering this.
Butler Yu suddenly walked in. "Old Master, Old Madam Xie has arrived."
Old Madam Xie, dressed in an elegant qipao and followed by her personal assistant, walked in with a beaming smile. "Now that brother-in-law is living in the capital, it will be much more convenient for our two families to visit each other. I picked out a housewarming gift; it will look perfect hanging in the living room."
She presented a traditional Chinese landscape painting.
Old Master Ji immediately had Butler Yu arrange for the servants to hang it on the wall.
Old Madam Xie's gaze fell upon the people in the living room: Ji Yanting, Ji Mohan, and that Miss Rong she had seen previously on the cruise ship.
Her gaze lingered on Rong Yu's face for quite a while.
Old Master Ji secretly glanced at Rong Yu.
Rong Yu understood the meaning behind his look: he was asking if they should just go ahead and tell Old Madam Xie her true identity.
Rong Yu gave a faint shake of her head.
The younger generations of the Ji family were related to her by blood, so she could trust them.
But this old madam was merely Yingbao's wife's younger sister and had no solid ties to the Ji family.
Perhaps, the second after telling Old Madam Xie, her sons, daughters-in-law, and grandchildren would all know that Rong Yu was a wandering soul from seventy years ago...
Old Master Ji took a sip of tea and spoke, "Miss Rong's biological mother died early, and her biological father remarried. With no place for her at home, she has always lived with the Ji family. I treat Miss Rong as my own... own, own granddaughter. We are all family."
Old Madam Xie smiled and said, "Your Ji family hasn't had a girl for several generations. Taking in a granddaughter is good; granddaughters are caring."
She suddenly sighed. "Back then, when my sister was pregnant, she loved eating the spicy radish and spicy tofu I made the most. We thought it would be a daughter, but unexpectedly it was a son. That boy also loves spicy radish. Oh right, brother-in-law loves it too, doesn't he? It just so happens I'm in the mood today, so let me cook a dish for brother-in-law."
Old Master Ji hurriedly said, "You are a guest, there's no need for you to cook..."
However, Old Madam Xie had already rolled up her sleeves and walked into the kitchen.
Rong Yu looked up and glanced over.
This old madam might have done these things in her youth, but after decades of living a pampered life, she probably wasn't very good at it anymore. Even so, the elderly lady insisted on cooking, with a group of servants waiting on her from the side.
Rong Yu turned her eyes. "A-Yan."
Ji Yanting walked over. "Please give your orders, Great-Grandma."
"Go investigate." Rong Yu tapped her finger. "What exactly has happened to the Xie family?"
For an arrogant noblewoman to lower her posture to this extent, something major must have absolutely happened.
Dinner was soon ready, and a dish of spicy radish appeared very abruptly on the dining table.
Ji Mohan was someone who didn't quite understand the ways of the world. He picked up a piece with his chopsticks, and as soon as he put it in his mouth, he spat it out, his face scrunching up. "Why does the taste seem a bit weird..."
Old Madam Xie looked embarrassed. "I put a bit too much soy sauce, but it's fine, it's edible. It's just right for recalling past bitterness and appreciating present sweetness."
Old Master Ji chewed the radish with a crunching sound. "Delicious, truly delicious. Mo... my, just an exclamation, don't mind it. Miss Rong, you should have some too."
Rong Yu took a small bite. If the soy sauce and salt had been moderate, the taste would actually be quite okay.
After dinner ended, Rong Yu didn't disturb the two of them catching up. She took her phone and went to the pavilion in the garden, eating fruit while scrolling through the news on her phone.
She happened to come across a news article about astronauts. Two astronauts from the Lighthouse Nation were actually stranded in space for several months. She simply couldn't believe that in this day and age, such a thing could happen, and moreover, it happened to the superpower Lighthouse Nation...
If they could just leave living people in space, who knows how much garbage they had thrown out there.
She was reading with great interest.
"Mom."
Her elderly son leaned over.
Rong Yu turned off her phone and turned her head. "What's wrong?"
"Um, it's just..." Old Master Ji scratched his head. "Mom, Xiaohui came over today because she still wants to ask me for a favor. She used to be very proud, so lowering herself to borrow money is a particularly difficult thing for her to do. Since she opened her mouth to ask, I feel too embarrassed to refuse."
Rong Yu asked, "How much does she want to borrow?"
Old Master Ji held up both hands. "One billion."
Rong Yu frowned. "Did you ask her why she needs to borrow so much money?"
"Something happened to the Xie family. I couldn't really ask about the specifics, afraid of embarrassing her." Old Master Ji sighed. "Lending out a billion should be able to solve the Xie family's troubles. Once she catches her breath, she will slowly pay off this debt."
"A billion probably isn't enough." Ji Yanting walked into the pavilion. "Old Master, the incident with the Xie family is no ordinary matter."
He threw a stack of documents onto the table.
Old Master Ji quickly picked them up to look.
As he saw the contents of the files, the elderly man's eyes widened more and more.
Rong Yu saw them too.
Illegal fundraising contracts, joint letters from victims, bank statements... Her brow immediately darkened. It turned out that Old Madam Xie's son had used the bait of high returns to illegally raise billions from the public. He had even forged government approval documents to lure a large number of ordinary citizens into the trap.
The matter could barely be covered up anymore.
Old Madam Xie spent almost every day running around, borrowing money to fill the massive hole.
Old Master Ji looked completely incredulous. "This, this is impossible..."
"A Ponzi scheme," Ji Yanting said slowly. "Using new investors' money to pay interest to older investors, creating the illusion of making money... Now the capital chain has broken, and the hole can't be filled. All the fixed assets of the Xie Group have been mortgaged, but it still can't contain the fire. Once this blows up, the several heads of the Xie family will all have to go to prison."
Having navigated the ups and downs of the business world for many years, Old Master Ji naturally knew how serious this matter was. His personality felt as if it had been torn in half.
One side said he should help; after all, she was the biological younger sister of his beloved wife, and she had once extended a helping hand to the Ji family.
The other side said he couldn't help; this was a crime. Once he helped, he would be aiding and abetting evil...