Reborn Young Miss: Phoenix Burning Red-Chapter 42: Call Me Uncle Reese (2)
Reese’s heart broke upon hearing Adrienne’s words. How much suffering did she endure over the past two years since her mother’s accident for her to turn this cold? How uncomfortable had she felt, knowing that her father had lied to her and even allowed his mistress and son to harm his ill wife?
Reese was so infuriated that he swore he would see Lewis Jiang’s fall with his own eyes. He repeatedly cursed the man in his heart. He also couldn’t allow Adrienne to suffer any more than she already had.
As they were talking, hushed voices could be heard outside the hallway.
"Madam, you are still sick! You can’t force yourself like this!" A woman exclaimed.
"What nonsense are you talking about? Why didn’t anyone tell me Addie is coming today?! Why are you hiding it from this old woman?! I want to see Addie!" An elderly woman answered. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞
"Addie! Addie! Are you still there?!"
The door suddenly slid open, revealing an elderly woman with gray hair. Adrienne rose from her seat and greeted her. The old woman’s body shook upon seeing Adrienne’s face, and she couldn’t help but shed tears.
Reese immediately jumped to his feet and held his mother.
"Mother, please calm down. It’s not good for your health to act like this."
"Adrienne..." Old Madam Zhao ignored his words and kept her gaze on Adrienne. "Addie, can you please come here and let this old woman see you?"
Reese glanced at Adrienne and was surprised when his niece shed her cold mask and gave his mother a bright smile. She strode towards them, letting his mother cup her cheeks with both hands, and gave her a good look.
His mother freed herself from his hold and hugged Adrienne tightly. Adrienne gently patted her grandmother’s back, not saying a word as she fell into a daze. After her mother fell into a coma, she had never had a hug this tender.
After some time, her grandmother released her and looked at her face with teary eyes.
"How come you only visited now? Did your mother come with you? I repeatedly told your mother that she’s free to come home anytime. She doesn’t need to be wary of her stubborn father, I could deal with him myself. I heard from someone that your father remarried, your mother must be heartbroken. I told her that your father was up to no good long ago, but she didn’t listen. Did the Jiang family treat you well? Have you suffered any grievances there? How come your brother didn’t come with you?"
Adrienne glanced at her uncle and grandfather, noticing the resentment in their eyes. Good, she thought. They should be ashamed of how they turned their backs on her mother. She then realized that her grandmother did not know what happened to her daughter. Didn’t anyone bother to inform her?
"Mom is doing well, albeit busy with work, so she couldn’t come with me. Grandma shouldn’t worry too much. As for my brother, you should ask him himself. Cayden is so busy he is barely seen at home these days." Adrienne’s tone and expression were gentle, contrasting her cold countenance earlier.
Seeing how Adrienne easily persuaded her grandmother to rest, Reese and his father’s impression of Adrienne gradually increased. They were pleased that she was able to read the atmosphere. Old Madam Zhao had been very sick for some time, and her heart was weak. If she knew what tragedy had befallen her daughter, she would surely be heartbroken and agonized.
When his wife left, Old Master Zhao confronted Adrienne once again.
"The person I’ve been looking for for years; how did you find her when I couldn’t?" He asked. He had lost count of how many investigators he had hired to find his missing sister.
Many years ago, when his mother gave birth to his younger sister, an enemy of the Zhao family colluded with someone and kidnapped his newborn sister. His parents had used all resources and networks to find her, but they died miserable, unable to find her until their last breath. Old Master Zhao didn’t give up and continued looking for her, but as decades passed, he started losing hope and believed his sister would never be found again.
So how come a young girl like Adrienne was able to locate her with limited resources?
Adrienne smiled and said, "I have my ways, Mister Zhao. If you’d like it, you can confirm whether I found the right person before doing your part in our deal."
However, Reese had enough of all of these. He went to Adrienne’s side and held her shoulder, feeling guilty for failing them.
"Lt. Zhao?" Adrienne asked, eyeing him curiously.She hadn’t expected him to react like this.
"What ’Lt. Zhao’? Call me Uncle Reese, I’m your uncle!" Reese insisted. He couldn’t understand why Adrienne thought she needed to strike a deal for them to extend an olive branch to her mother.
"This deal be damned, but I will help Addie and her mother regardless of what you say, Father." He said sternly. "I will not turn a blind eye and pretend everything is alright when it is not!"
He then faced Adrienne, held both her shoulders, and said, "Addie, forgive me for not stepping forward much earlier, but that won’t be the case now. Uncle has earned and saved some money and can help you! Uncle will need to finish some work, but I will surely return as soon as possible."
Rosemary was his sister. How could he just stand there and watch the Jiang family bully his sister and niece? When he heard of Lewis Jiang’s treatment of them, Reese was itching to do something.
"From now on, you don’t have to deal with everything alone. If Lewis Jiang and his bastard children bully you, tell Uncle, and I’ll teach them a lesson! How dare they think they could easily bully the daughter of the Zhao family? They must be tired of living!"
