Battered Young Miss 96 Tribute 33

"Yes, we are."

Not in the mood to talk, Zhang Tianyu had dark shades on to hide the expression on his pale face, which hadn't gotten much sleep.

"Are we really, really going to see Aunt Mi?"

"Jie! Are you still three? Why are you asking me the same question? I don't have time for all this!"

"That's what you always say...."

Zhang Jie pointed out that her father would promise to take her to see her cousin, but change his mind at the last minute.

"Have I ever gone back on any of my promises to you?"

"No, but..."

"Then stop being stubborn! I told you that we are going to see her and that is it!"

"What if you say that we have to go home because of work?"

Another excuse Zhang Tianyu always gave to his daughter, that both he and his niece were busy people and that the timing just wasn't right.

"Zhang Jie! You are beginning to push it with me! Have I failed in my duties as your father?"

"...."

Zhang Tianyu answered his daughter with a question, this was his way of making himself appear in a somewhat positive light with his child. The President of Zhang Corporation made his daughter refer to his niece, who was his daughter's cousin as Aunt due to the twenty year age gap between the two, rather than referring to the heiress as cousin Mi.

"No Dad! But you always said one day I'll see her, I can't wait to meet Aunt Mi, you never talk much about her just like mom."

Zhang Jie's mouth was formed in a cute little pout, which her father gave her the "look" that meant, "no pulling of attitude with me" while the two sat in the back seat of a silver luxurious car.

"We are not going to talk about that, didn't you promise not to bring up the topic of your mother? If you continue to behave like this, I'll have Gao Yifeng turn the car around to drop you at home and you will not be seeing your cousin today!"

The expression on the face of Zhang Tianyu made the little girl hold her tongue, but she still folded her arms across her chest in a show of stubbornness. She wore a somber black frilly long sleeved dress, a dark bow by the side of her flowing hair and a black pointed boot on both feet. All custom made.

"Young lady! Take your hands down this instance, before I do something we will both regret!"

Zhang Jie knew her dad rarely got to use his hands to discipline her, unless he was extremely angry, which she could see from the way his hand formed a tight fist on his lap and the blue veins popping from his temple. Gao Yifeng looked at the father and daughter through the rear view mirror, he didn't know why she had an uncanny resemblance to someone who did exactly the way she was acting, in that rare moment of childishness as the image flashed in his mind for a moment, but he shrugged his shoulder to dismiss it. The little girl did as her father asked, although with great reluctance.

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"See!See! Is that not Assembly man Ji and his wife Madam Cui! To think they would come to the funeral of their granddaughter, when none of them showed up to their daughter's, the late Zhang Jinxia and son-in-law's funeral. The rich are something else all together!"

"They are really scary! Why show up? Is it their way of making things right to Miss Zhang Mi's mother?"

"No! That can't be, those type of people can never do wrong! Once they make up their mind, not even the President of the country can sway them to change it!"

"Is that not an exaggeration?! President of the country?!"

"But, come on! She that mink on her shoulders! I bet it is enough to fund someone here their retirement!"

"What are you saying? That if their kind offers to open an early retirement account for me with money already in, I'll not say what I truly think of them?!

"Stop acting like a saint! If either of them says they will set me up for life, why not? Why would I badmouth them for whatever decision they had to make?"

"Don't let us get off from the initial discussion, but don't any of you find it strange that not even once had they made contact with the deceased heiress of Zhang Corporation, it is now today of all days when she is to be buried that they all come in their limousines and luxurious cars to send her off with such lavish display of wealth?!"

"I also find it strange too, didn't Madam Cui and her husband practically disown Ji Jinxia, since she told them she was going to marry into the Zhang family. I heard neither of them attended the wedding to show their disapproval."

"Isn't it time to put all of this behind them and reconcile? Over twenty five years of feuding is not a good thing, what if the Zhang heiress had married and had a child? Then the child would not know their great grand parents? Why don't the rich value family? Its all about money if you tell me."

"I'll bet Miss Zhang must be turning in her grave, when she knows that her grandparents who never showed their faces while she was alive, now came to see her when she died. What a pity! Money doesn't buy happiness."

The talk went on among the reporters that were not actively covering the high profile guests arriving into Zhang villa. Assembly man Ji and his wife proudly stepped out of their car with their heads held high and nose in the air, not stopping to exchange greeting to those who were reaching out a hand for a handshake. It was when they saw Yang Lin and some others at the main entrance leading inside, did they stop to take the bag that was offered to them, reaching into it to put on the black funeral band on their right hand and place the pin of lily flower at the center of their chest.

Chapter end