At the Zhao estate, Old General Zhao had already retired for the night, but many in the Zhao household remained awake.
Zhao Lide was currently in Zhao Chen’s room. Zhao Chen had been sent back after receiving forty strokes of the cane; though his life was not in danger, he had been left half-dead. The family had hired Wang Zhi to treat him, and after Wang Zhi’s departure, Zhu Peng was busy wiping away the bloodstains from Zhao Chen’s body.
Zhao Lide sat nearby, offering earnest counsel, relaying everything he and Old General Zhao had discussed. Initially filled with resentment toward Xie Qiqi, Zhao Chen realized only after hearing his father’s explanation that he had nearly brought a catastrophe upon them. He redirected all his pent-up rage toward Zhou Ling. "Father," he said, his voice tight with anger, "you should just drive Zhou Ling and her family away. We treated her as one of our own, but she never once thought of us that way. I was deceived, and if she stays, she’ll only lead my younger siblings astray!"
Chapter 362