章節 17: An emergency
A room for redemption?
Dominic had to stop himself from laughing at the funniest joke he had ever heard. Not that it deserved mockery or ridicule, but shrugging it off was better than hoping she meant those words. Heaven had no idea what those words mean, and how destructive they could be if the receiver was someone else. For example, their son.
A moment of silence descended into the room as neither of them spoke for a while. Heaven kept her eyes on her lap while Dominic was studying her meek appearance.
"Are you sure?" he pinched the bridge of his nose and sounded annoyed at the sudden request.
"Yes," Heaven asserted and then raised her head. "That's all."
"Fine," he said with a huff. His sour expression told her he disapproved of the revision but didn't reject her request. "Sign the papers. My lawyers can just revise those later."
'Wait, what?' she thought in surprise. 'I thought they would have to redo these clauses before I sign them!'
"Hmm?"
Heaven cleared her throat, snapping back to reality. "Alright then." She picked up the fountain pen from the table, slowing down her movements as she pretended to read the paper once more. This time, the papers were already on the table.
"Bla bla bla… this here… and here… where do I sign?" she murmured, playing dumb as she stalled some more time. This was probably the last time she would see this man. It was best to familiarize herself with his presence, personality, and habits in case the knowledge would come in handy in the future.
While Heaven was reading under her breath like a buzzing bee, Dominic felt his phone vibrate against his chest. He shoved his hand inside his pocket suit, partially taking his phone out just to peek at its screen. Much to his surprise, the name on the screen was someone whose call he could never ignore.
Dominic glanced at Heaven. "I'll have to take this call. Excuse me —"
"Stay here," Heaven said in an authoritative tone. She then waved dismissively just when he was about to stand, keeping her eyes on the divorce papers. "I don't mind you taking calls. If it's not that important or confidential, just stay where I can see you."
Deep lines appeared on his forehead. Heaven had never used those words or that tone on him. Even the way she talked sounded unfamiliar. However, Dominic had no time to deal with all the changes that he noticed in Heaven. He sat down once again, casually tapping the answer button before placing the phone on his ear.
"Grandma." Just as Dominic addressed the person he was expecting from the other end of the line, his expression slowly turned hard.
There was a sudden shift of mood in the room. Heaven glanced in Dominic's direction. She frowned as soon as her eyes landed on the terror that was dominating Dominic's face.
"What did you say?"
The moment the last word left his mouth, Dominic sprung up from his seat in a hurry. He didn't even look at her, almost dashing to get to the door. Much to his surprise, just before he could reach the knob, a slender hand suddenly grabbed his arm to stop him.
"You look so pale," Heaven pointed out as soon as he looked back at her. "What's going on? What happened to Grandma?"
********
Heaven insisted on coming with Dominic even when he told her to let go. He didn't have time to explain, nor did he have the spare energy to argue with her. So in the end, he let her tag along to the Zhu family's old residence.
"How was she?" Dominic asked the doctor as soon as he exited the master's bedroom.
The old doctor offered a smile to the worried Dominic and said, "Do not worry, young master. The Old Madam is alright. She probably got too worked up, so she fainted, but rest is all she needed."
"I see," Dominic said. Relief flooded his voice as he felt like a thorn was plucked out of his throat. He pressed his temple slightly as a habit whenever he was under stress.
"Young master, the Old Madam is still strong and healthy. Do not worry. She will be fine." the doctor tapped Dominic's shoulder, squeezing it mildly as if to remind the young master to relax and breathe. "I've already left a note to Butler Fu. I'll be on my way."
"Thank you, Doctor." Dominic politely lowered his head while the doctor excused himself. The doctor noticed Heaven. He, too, bowed in her direction before he went his way.
Heaven stayed on the side, keeping a good distance from Dominic. She watched everything unfold, studying what sort of man Dominic was behind the man he presented himself to her.
Dominic was like a lion at first glance, as she had observed. He was quiet most of the time, but his presence was hard to ignore. Surprisingly, despite his cold and seemingly aloof appearance, his personality was quite different from what others would expect from him.
He wasn't as cold as his face, nor was he arrogant. In fact, he was considerate and polite. He gave respect when respect was due and expressed gratitude when necessary.
'He was more human than what he appeared to be,' she thought, pressing her lips into a thin line when he suddenly glanced in her direction.
"Young master," a voice rang out. Just as the silence was about to settle in between them, an old man came from the master bedroom. Heaven and Dominic naturally shifted their attention to him.
"Butler Fu, how's grandma?" Dominic asked, his voice full of worry.
"The Old Madam is requesting to see you, young master." Butler Fu smiled at Dominic and then looked in Heaven's direction. "She's also requesting to see the young madam."
'Me?' Heaven asked in surprise, then pointed at herself, and Butler Fu nodded. 'Why?'
Heaven glanced at Dominic to see his reaction. There was a trace of displeasure in his eyes, but she was certain this unpleasant look didn't originate from the Old Madam's request. It was more like Dominic seemed to have guessed the reason the Old Madam, his grandmother, called for them.
"Please. The Old Madam is waiting." Butler Fu's gentle voice brought Dominic and Heaven back to reality. The two cast him an odd look while he maintained his kind smile.
章節 18: Grandma Zhu
The Zhu family was one of the very few families in the upper echelon that maintained their status for generations. Their connections stretched to every industry, but no one truly knew how deep and strong the strings they could pull behind the scenes.
Aside from the reputation of the current head of the LYON Group of Companies, Dominic Zhu, the previous heads of the family — Dominic's father and grandmother — had a much more respectable reputation. Every time those people would speak, everyone had to listen. But other than that, no one truly knows the actual nature of the family and their relationship to one another.
Having such a wealthy, influential, and powerful family, it wouldn't be surprising if many assumed the family members' relationship was fragile, constantly battling each other for inheritance. In actuality, the reality was different.
The Zhu Family had a close relationship with each other. Unlike his nonchalant and aloof personality, Dominic was surprisingly a family man. Even Father Zhu and Mother Zhu (Dominic's parents) were kind people. Not to mention his grandmother, the Old Madam Zhu. Their status might be intimidating, but they held no prejudice against people's statuses, nor did they look down on them.
It was the reason Heaven and Dominic's marriage went through smoothly. No one on his side objected.
Heaven didn't focus on this memory of the original Heaven until she tagged along with Dominic after hearing the news.
'It was very different from my family,' she thought, standing one step behind Dominic as he sat down on the chair beside the bed. Dominic carefully held the old woman's wrinkly hand. Even though she couldn't see his expression, his stiff shoulders already told her a lot of things.
The family the current Heaven grew up with was the complete opposite of Dominic's. Her environment was full of danger. She grew up surrounded by weapons, and sudden disappearances were a normal occurrence.
When she was young, she would always look for the uncles and aunties that she had grown attached to. She didn't know the real reason for their sudden disappearance until Heaven grew a little older. Those uncles and aunties didn't just go far away for a mission but died or were captured, only to be sentenced to death. Her own family executed others after discovering their ill-intention toward her.
Heaven had to digest the bitter pill of the nature of the family she was born in. It was not long after she accepted the reality of her life. She was not born a princess in a castle that gave her the privilege of being who she wanted to be, but she was born to be the queen of hell. The most beautiful and only flower who bloomed in hell.
There was no other choice.
'Back then, I thought that sort of family was the standard family and the ones in my mind were fictional,' she thought, watching the Old Madam slowly open her eyes after a few minutes. 'Dominic, you are one lucky bastard.'
Heaven kept a stoic face, not saying a word respecting Dominic's silence. If she could, she would excuse herself. However, she didn't know how to approach the man at this moment.
"Dom, you're here," the Old Madam chuckled weakly as soon as she recognized the man sitting beside her bed. "Did I make you worry?"
"Grandma, what were you doing for you to faint like that?" Dominic asked with a frown. "Doctor Peng already told you to stop from straining yourself. You're not getting younger," he added in a sweet loving voice.
"This brat." The Old Madam Zhu propped her elbow so she could sit up. Dominic rose from the chair to assist her. He grabbed a pillow and fluffed it before putting it behind the old woman's back so that she was reclining comfortably.
"I am still around seventy, Dom," argued Old Madam Zhu, facing his grandchild with a frown. "I can still run a few laps if I want to," she boasted.
"Grandma," Dominic said her name in an exasperated manner, he had a frown on his face when he continued, "I heard you fainted because you've been doing aerobics this morning. Exercise is good, but too much is not."
"You still have to eat a lot to learn before you can lecture me," the Old Madam Zhu argued stubbornly like a child. Her gaze caught a figure from the corner of her eyes. When she squinted her eyes to look at the person better, Heaven instantly stood properly and bowed to greet her.
"Heaven, child!" the old Madam's face brightened, and her voice sounded happy. "Come here, child. It's been a while since you visited me."
Old Madam Zhu patted the space beside her. She then glared at Dominic and said, "I'd rather chat with you than get lectured by your husband."
'Oh.' A memory suddenly resurfaced in Heaven's mind but didn't dwell on it that much. She nodded slowly and walked toward the bed, but since Dominic was already on the other side, she had to walk around to sit on the other side. Although he had a chair beside the bed, Heaven didn't want to block his view.
"Hehe. You promised you would visit Grandma often," Old Madam Zhu said in a hopeful voice. She immediately reached for Heaven's hand with her free hand and gently patted it as she asked, "Did you lose weight, my child? Is this punk not taking care of you?"
"Grandma," Heaven smiled subtly, a little conflicted about how to answer the old woman's question.
"Just tell Grandma if this brat is giving you a hard time, hmm? Even if I'm already in my late seventies, I can still set him straight for you."
'Actually, I was the one who was giving him a hard time,' Heaven thought, referring to the original owner of the body. She bit her tongue to stop herself from throwing herself under the bus.
"Heaven," Old Madam Zhu sighed, looking at the young lady with genuine affection and worry. "Have you been unhappy? Is Grandma hurting you?"
"What?" Heaven asked in confusion, her breath hitched, seeing the sincerity in the old Madam's eyes.
Dominic frowned as he watched the two interact. He didn't say a word and sat back. He knew why Old Madam Zhu fainted. It wasn't just because she did continuous exercise, but because the news about their marriage reached her.
"You don't have to lie to Grandma anymore, child. I heard what happened," Old Madam Zhu nodded, her voice was full of understanding. "Grandma is sorry for not knowing I have been pressuring you and for not seeing how unhappy you were."
"Grandma, you should rest first," Dominic suddenly said. He couldn't help but speak.
"Shut up!" Old Madam Zhu glared at him. "You are the reason little Heaven is unhappy. Did you think I would not know about the divorce? When are you planning to tell us about it, huh?!"
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