Standing Next To You-Chapter 336: The Lin family cracks

Seeing Old Master Lin’s displeased expression, Li Mei couldn’t hold back any longer and broke the tense silence.

"Father, Lin Sanju was shy, so we only had a small celebration. You know how he is; he doesn’t like to be the center of attention, so we didn’t announce it to the family."

Lin Ruo quickly added, "That’s right. Ever since Lin Sanju became the only heir candidate in our branch, he has done his best to show his skills. But he still lacks social skills. He rarely speaks his mind, so his words can seem sullen. Please don’t misunderstand his earlier words, Father."

Lin Sanju glanced at his parents. They seemed afraid that he would be scolded and punished. He fell silent.

He wasn’t used to being shielded by them, but he didn’t dislike it.

Lin Sanju discreetly glanced at Bei Sangyun. He had done what he could. Saying more would only make things worse.

Bei Sangyun put down her glass and interrupted.

"I have finished my dessert. Can I go now?"

Bei Sangyun’s sudden interruption made the already tense atmosphere even heavier.

Everyone looked at her with stunned eyes. Did she really want to leave before the headmaster? How rude does she wants to be?

Bei Sangyun did not wait for the old man’s response. She stood up. "It’s getting late, everyone. I’ll go first. It was a nice dinner."

The smile on her face, devoid of any sincerity, seemed to mock the people at the table.

Especially Old Master Lin. The mocking smile hurt his eyes. His expression grew colder.

"...Bei Sangyun," Lin Ginxian called her name through gritted teeth. Because of his rising anger, he unconsciously used her former name. "Sit down."

Bei Sangyun ignored him. As she took a step, Old Master Lin spoke with a heavy voice.

"Sit down. Our family dinner isn’t over yet."

Old Master Lin could dismiss his youngest grandson’s words as the remarks of a rebellious teenager. He also considered Bei Sangyun’s rude attitude as part of her rebellious phase. He even extended his patience because he had wronged her before.

So Old Master wouldn’t take offense at any of that.

However, if she did not sit back down, it would be different.

Bei Sangyun turned to Old Master Lin. She smirked. She knew the old man well. He was testing her again.

Too bad. She didn’t want to take the test. She wanted to fail it.

Under everyone’s watchful eyes, Bei Sangyun turned her back and walked away.

Old Master Lin’s face turned ugly. He slapped the table.

"Don’t you understand the meaning behind this family dinner?!"

Bei Sangyun stopped in her tracks. She shrugged, "To get indigestion while fighting with each other for your favor?"

The people at the table inhaled sharply.

Although her words were somewhat accurate, to speak such harsh, blunt words to the Head Master was akin to severing her ties with the family. Had Lin Ginxian’s daughter gone insane?!

Old Master Lin staggered at her blunt words.

Bei Sangyun just smiled and left, leaving everyone speechless.

The people inside couldn’t believe what they had just witnessed. That unruly girl dared to go against the Head Master so bluntly! Did she not want to live?! frёeweɓηovel.coɱ

"Ha. She is getting more unbridled and despicable than last time. How are you disciplining your child?" someone mocked Lin Ginxian.

"She is uncontrollable, uneducated, and rude. Someone like her does not deserve to be in the family."

"You shouldn’t have taken her back into the family, third brother. No matter how much you want to compete for the succession, you shouldn’t bring an ungrateful brat like her."

The adults at the table mocked Lin Ginxian as much as they could. Lin Ginxian’s face burned red with rage. If not for the remaining reason he had left, he would have stormed out of the room to teach that despicable brat a lesson. But he held on because their father was there.

Slam!

Old Master Lin slapped the table, causing his sons and daughters-in-law to fall silent. His face was dark as he glanced at his sons.

"Silence. You fools. You don’t even know how to properly educate the young ones. How could I leave the family to any of you?!"

His sons’ faces contorted. They felt wronged—being dragged into this for no reason.

"My son, Lin Zhe, is doing great. It is Ginxian’s daughter who is despicable and uneducated—" Lin Baozhi wanted to retort. He and his son were being implicated when it was only Lin Ginxian and his daughter’s fault. However, his wife, Yu Qiaoqi, tugged at his sleeve, indicating for him to shut up.

"Doing great? If your son is doing great, then he should have educated his cousins well! But I don’t see any genuine concern from any of you! This family dinner is for us to bond. But all you do is complain to each other!" Old Master Lin yelled so much that his chest hurt.

Why is it that every time he wanted to bond with his sons and grandchildren, they always parted in a bad way?

Old Master Lin was so angry that he called Head Butler Zhou to support him out of the room. "From now on, I don’t want to see any of you complaining to my face. Handle your own matters."

Old Master Lin left, leaving the room in absolute silence.

As soon as the door closed, Lin Baozhi and Lin Fang blamed Lin Ginxian. The family dinner always ended badly, but today, because of that illegitimate daughter, they had made the headmaster particularly angry.

Based on Old Master Lin’s attitude, they wouldn’t be able to look for him for days and wouldn’t receive his help when they needed it.

Lin Ginxian couldn’t endure it anymore and left the room. It was obvious from his expression that he would find his daughter to ’discipline’ her.

While the adults were busy hurling accusations at each other, the younger generation stood aside.

Lin Xiaoni was still shocked by Bei Sangyun’s earlier behavior. "I know she is crazy, but to do that to Grandfather? Isn’t she afraid she will really be kicked out?"

Lin Fei looked genuinely happy. "It is really lively. I always hate family dinners because of how boring they are. But thanks to her, it’s become more fun."

Lin Sunji just watched the scene in front of her in silence. If she was really honest, what Bei Sangyun had done today was not surprising to her. She had witnessed many crazy things that Bei Sangyun had done over the past months.

Furthermore, this scene was somehow particularly refreshing. It was as if Bei Sangyun held up a mirror to these adults, showing them how ugly they were.

Lin Sunji paused, suddenly surprised by her own thoughts.

Lin Xiaoni, who was expecting Lin Sunji’s comment, did not hear a word from her and glanced at the latter in confusion.

Lin Sanju was always silent, as his words were gold, so it wasn’t surprising he wasn’t commenting. But the Lin Sunji she knew would have cursed at Bei Sangyun at this moment.

She spoke to Lin Sunji. "What’s going on with you? Why are you so silent?"

Lin Sunji rolled her eyes at her, not bothering to answer.

Meanwhile, Lin Sanju also glanced at Lin Xiaoni, thinking that their naive, foolish cousin was sharp sometimes.

Lin Zhe glanced at the twins, his furrowed brow deepening.

*****

"Bei Sangyun!" Lin Ginxian stormed upstairs. He met Butler Xin on the stairs and erupted, "Where is she?!"

"The Young Miss is in her room."

Lin Ginxian stared darkly at him. "After I settle accounts with that unruly child, I have to settle accounts with you."

However, Bei Sangyun’s room was locked. Lin Ginxian demanded the key, but Butler Xin didn’t give it to him.

"I’m sorry, Master. I can’t do that."

Lin Ginxian’s eyes were red with anger. He stared at Butler Xin for a long time and finally put it together.

"...You two are in this together. How long have you been scheming with her?"

Butler Xin remained silent.

His silence only confirmed Lin Ginxian’s suspicions.

Now, he understood why there was no report about Bei Sangyun’s new ranking or why he couldn’t find Grandma Bei.

He shouldn’t have trusted this man. When Bei Sangyun asked to handle matters herself, he shouldn’t have agreed. Now, he had lost all control over his daughter to this man!

"So, it’s you. My daughter wouldn’t easily change from being obedient to being this unruly. Have you been manipulating her?"

Lin Ginxian could only explain Bei Sangyun’s sudden change in relation to Butler Xin. The daughter he picked up in the countryside was so obedient that she worked hard day and night just to be the daughter that could satisfy him.

The look in that child’s eyes totally changed in just one day. He could no longer see her yearning and desperation for approval. All he could see was indifference and coldness.

How could she suddenly change if no one was brainwashing her?

Lin Ginxian’s face was dark. "You...what have you been telling her?!"

Butler Xin was almost choked to death by Lin Ginxian. He held onto his hands and yanked them away. Fortunately, Butler Xin was stronger than Lin Ginxian and was able to push him away.

"Master, please calm down. You are not making sense at all."

"You must have been planning this from the start. Perhaps when you suggested finding Bei Sangyun, you had already started your plan." Lin Ginxian became more certain the more he spoke.

No wonder. No wonder that child always yearned to go back to that village. Someone was feeding her lies.

Butler Xin knew that he was exposed. But the matter wasn’t like Lin Ginxian suspected. He wasn’t the one manipulating her; it was the other way around!

The door suddenly opened, and Bei Sangyun, who had just changed into pajamas, glanced at them. "Can you guys keep it quiet?"