Chapter 28: Call Her Little Aunt Mom

Hearing this, Zhou Jianghao was dumbfounded for several seconds before she finally reacted. “I didn’t fool around.”

With that, her brows furrowed instantly.

Over the years, many people had pursued her, but she had never taken a liking to anyone—whether man or woman. She had always kept her distance and never fooled around.

The expression on her face didn’t seem feigned. Sister Liu stared at her for a moment, and her heart finally settled. She muttered, “That damn bastard who claimed you were his girlfriend—pfft! He doesn’t even know his own worth, with his eyes stuck on his forehead…”

Zhou Jianghao immediately pressed for answers.

Seeing the change in Zhou Jianghao’s expression, Sister Liu hurriedly explained. Just a short while ago, a few women dressed in expensive clothes had come looking for Zhou Jianghao. They claimed to be her girlfriend and said they wanted to bring some friends to her home for a surprise.

The news had reached Sister Liu’s ears, and she had immediately sensed that something was off.

After all, she had caught Little Zhou and her wife heading home together several times—how could she not know where Little Zhou lived?

Moreover, they had clearly said they were married, referring to her as a wife. How had that turned into “girlfriend”?

Unless they were two different people!

If Zhou Jianghao hadn’t returned so quickly, Sister Liu would have gone upstairs to knock on the door and see what was really going on.

“Thanks.”

Even after hearing the explanation, Zhou Jianghao’s face had darkened, but she still offered a polite word of thanks before suppressing her emotions and heading upstairs.

“Hey, Little Zhou.” Sister Liu followed her up a few steps. “Who are those people?”

The gossip was plain on her face, impossible to hide.

Zhou Jianghao didn’t make a sound. She simply looked at her quietly.

In just a few seconds, Sister Liu was the first to back down. She waved her hand. “All right, all right! I won’t pry into you young people’s business!”

At those words, Zhou Jianghao’s expression remained unchanged as she turned and continued upstairs. She could still hear Sister Liu’s muttering from behind her, not exactly quiet:

“That temper of hers…”

Zhou Jianghao didn’t break stride. She didn’t need to strain her ears to know what came next. Her temper had always been odd—it wasn’t a new development. Back at the Tan Family, she had heard Li Zhenyu curse her countless times, even inciting her classmates at school to shun her.

But she was who she was, and others were who they were.

She didn’t live for anyone else, so she had no need to care about their opinions of her.

When she reached her door, sure enough, she saw several people crowded in front of the narrow entrance.

“Zhou Jianghao!” Seeing her, Li Zhenyu’s face grew even darker. “Finally caught you!”

With that, she took a step forward and shoved hard at her. “You got some nerve, huh?! Daring not to reply to my messages!”

But Zhou Jianghao dodged.

Li Zhenyu’s force met empty air, sending her stumbling forward from the momentum. If she hadn’t reacted quickly and grabbed the rusty handrail, she would have tumbled down the stairs.

“Zhenyu! Are you okay?!”

Her companions were scared out of their wits and rushed over to support her.

Although Li Zhenyu didn’t bear the Tan surname, she was still part of the Tan Family. If anything happened to her, they couldn’t bear the responsibility.

What answered them was an echoing roar: “Zhou Jianghao!”

Her voice was full of vigor—no sign she’d been hurt. The group exchanged glances and breathed a sigh of relief. They were also glad Zhou Jianghao had returned early; they had just climbed up to this rundown building when she appeared.

Otherwise, with how impatient Li Zhenyu was getting, who knew what state she’d work herself into.

“Is there something you need?”

Compared to the furious Li Zhenyu, Zhou Jianghao’s expression was far too calm.

But that only stoked Li Zhenyu’s anger further. It had always been like this, ever since they were kids! No matter if she hit or cursed, Zhou Jianghao always put on that indifferent face. It was infuriating.

It made Li Zhenyu look like a ridiculous clown, hopping around to no effect.

“Zhou Jianghao.” Recalling how Zhou Jianghao’s college professor had called begging her to plead with Little Aunt for mercy, malice brewed in Li Zhenyu’s eyes. She sneered, “Feeling pretty smug right now, aren’t you? What, you really think you’ve latched onto my Little Aunt’s thigh?”

Thinking back, all the changes had started from the day Little Aunt returned to the Tan Family Old Mansion.

The old Zhou Jianghao had been so docile, obeying her every word no matter what she did, never resisting. But from that day on, this little wretch had started ignoring her—defying her!

“No,” Zhou Jianghao said flatly. “I’m not smug.”

She truly didn’t understand Li Zhenyu’s hostility toward her.

They each had their own lives. Zhou Jianghao was always cautious and never intruded into Li Zhenyu’s world, yet the other woman always found some baseless excuse to come stirring up trouble.

“You still say no!” Li Zhenyu laughed in fury.

She was even talking back now!

The old Zhou Jianghao never would have dared speak to her like that. She must have heard about the punishment Little Aunt had given her last time and was gloating inside—probably snickering to herself who knew how many times!

The thought only fueled her rage. “Don’t even take a good look at yourself—what are you? Little Aunt just pitied you and tossed you a scrap like a lapdog, and now you think you’ve found your master? Bullying others with borrowed power?!”

No sooner had the words left her mouth than the sound of a door opening came from behind her.

She whipped her head around, her anger not yet faded. But when she saw who had appeared behind the door, it all froze on her face.

Her Little Aunt—an unattainable beauty like a high mountain flower—was standing there in Zhou Jianghao’s rundown home. Her hair was wet, she wore a bathrobe, and her feet were in cheap plastic slippers…

“L-Little… Little Aunt?”

Li Zhenyu was utterly stunned, her face draining of color. She called out almost on instinct.

Her Little Aunt, whose schedule was as unpredictable as the wind, for whom time was money, whom even the Tan Family struggled to meet… Why was she here in Zhou Jianghao’s home?!

Tan Qingya’s cool gaze swept over the group of dumbfounded young people before she took a few steps toward Zhou Jianghao. With dominant possessiveness, she hooked an arm around the woman’s slender waist.

“Little Aunt!” Li Zhenyu snapped back to her senses and shrieked.

But as soon as the words were out, she caught the sudden chill in Tan Qingya’s gaze. A shiver ran through her, and she shrank back, her tone turning respectful and meek:

“Little Aunt, what are you doing here?”

She kept her head lowered, hiding the fury in her eyes.

Did she even need to ask?! Zhou Jianghao must have shamelessly seduced her Little Aunt! No wonder she was acting so bold—with Little Aunt backing her up!

“I should be the one asking you that,” Tan Qingya said coolly. Ignoring their changing expressions, she recalled what she’d just overheard. Chill deepened in her eyes, though a smile touched her face. “This is my home. You came uninvited.”

She arched a brow and nudged Zhou Jianghao forward a bit. “This isn’t some lapdog. Don’t you know—this is your Little Aunt Mom?”

The words landed like a thunderbolt.

Even Zhou Jianghao, pushed to the forefront before everyone, was stunned for an instant.

These weren’t all Tan Family members, but Tan Qingya showed no embarrassment over Zhou Jianghao’s humble background. She stated it openly and confidently. Any hesitation from Zhou Jianghao now would only make Tan Qingya lose face.

So she lifted her head, her long-buried pride shining through. “Little Yu, disrespecting your elders—this is the upbringing you’ve had all these years?”

Little… Yu?

Li Zhenyu finally snapped out of it, trembling with rage at the nickname. Her hand rose instinctively to slap, but an icy gaze froze her in place.

Feeling the pressure from her Little Aunt, Li Zhenyu’s hand went limp and dropped to her side, clenching into a tight fist.

She forced a smile, ignoring Zhou Jianghao’s words entirely, and turned to Tan Qingya. “Little Aunt, what… what do you mean by that?”

Tan Qingya rested a hand on Zhou Jianghao’s shoulder and pulled her closer into her embrace. Only then did she speak coldly and deliberately: “Can’t understand plain words?”

She acted as if she couldn’t see their ashen faces. Her red lips parted slightly. “Call her Little Aunt Mom.”

The narrow hallway grew even more oppressive with those words, heavy as lead.

Someone was the first to react:

“It’s our fault for being blind—we didn’t realize she was President Tan’s person. We’ll come by another day to apologize properly!”

“Yes, yes! We’ll apologize in person. So sorry about this.”

The group chimed in agreement. Ignoring everything else, they beat a hasty, awkward retreat. In moments, only Li Zhenyu and the other two Tan Family members remained.

“L-Little Aunt, when did you and… Miss Zhou get together? We didn’t hear a whisper of it,” Li Yunyan said. She was two years older than Li Zhenyu and managed to suppress her emotions for the moment, asking carefully.

If she remembered right, aside from that time at the storeroom door when Zhou Jianghao bit Tan Qingya, the two had no real interactions.

Wait—

Li Yunyan’s pupils contracted slightly.

Maybe that bite had been deliberate?

Zhou Jianghao bit Little Aunt on purpose to draw her attention, then kept seducing her step by step without them knowing!

What Li Yunyan could figure out, Li Zhenyu could too. She cursed inwardly, then adjusted her expression.

Heh, so what if she’d seduced her family’s Little Aunt?

She’d just find some pretty girls to throw at Little Aunt later. If Little Aunt could be hooked by Zhou Jianghao, she could be hooked by others too. In the end, she was just a plaything…

Tan Qingya said nothing, simply watching them in silence.

A few seconds later, Li Yunyan took the lead and called out, “Little Aunt Mom.”

Her tone was stiff and wooden, but at least she managed to say it. The other girl followed suit, calling out just as dryly, looking every bit as meek as a quail. That left only Li Zhenyu.

“Li…ttle…”

Li Zhenyu knew she ought to call out obediently right then, but staring at Zhou Jianghao’s face, she simply couldn’t force the words “Little Aunt Mom” past her lips.

The mere idea of addressing Zhou Jianghao that way filled her with shame and rage. She couldn’t even begin to imagine how she’d survive once Zhou Jianghao started lording it over her!

For a moment, her expression turned utterly ghastly.

Seeing this, Zhou Jianghao looked away. Her hand, trembling faintly from excitement, clenched quietly at her side. In a cold voice, she said, “Forget it.”

No sooner had the words left her mouth than she felt a pinch on her shoulder.

She glanced up on instinct, her eyes meeting Tan Qingya’s. A smile glimmered in the older woman’s gaze. “Baby, we can’t just let this go.”

Baby again…

Zhou Jianghao struggled to maintain her icy demeanor, the tips of her ears turning pink.

Tan Qingya naturally noticed the shift in Zhou Jianghao and fought back the impulse to reach out and pinch those reddening ears. With a mocking half-smile, she turned to Li Zhenyu. “Li Zhenyu, she is my lawful wife and the mistress of the Tan Family. If you refuse to call her that, are you asking to be thrown out of the Tan Family?”