Chapter 405: Chapter 405: You Want to Guilt-Trip Me

’He just found out, and he’s already this cold to Chloe Reed. Has he ever cared about her as a daughter?’

The old woman couldn’t help but worry about Chloe Reed. She turned to look at her and saw Chloe on her phone, looking at something unknown, but her expression was perfectly normal.

The old woman took her hand, transferring its dry warmth. Chloe Reed froze for a moment, then broke into a smile.

"Grandma, I’m okay."

A look of heartache flashed in the old woman’s eyes. She knew Chloe Reed must be utterly disappointed; otherwise, she wouldn’t be so resolute.

’Poor child.’

Watching their tender moment, Charles Reed’s lips moved as if he wanted to say something.

"President Reed."

Walker Grant spoke up, addressing him. "You know what to say and what not to say. I don’t need to teach you that, do I?"

Charles Reed snorted coldly and turned to leave the hospital room.

"I know what he was going to say," Chloe Reed said softly. She looked at the old woman. "Grandma, I don’t think I can call you Grandma anymore."

But the old woman gave her a light pat. "What nonsense is this? You’re my granddaughter, and it doesn’t matter what anyone else says!"

Chloe Reed’s eyes stung, and a warmth spread through her heart. She leaned in and hugged the old woman. "Yes. You’ll always be my grandma."

"Good girl. Don’t you worry about all that nonsense. I watched you grow up, and I know your character. The bond we’ve built over more than a decade is far more reliable than any blood tie."

The old woman said softly, gently patting her back.

"Mhm!"

Chloe Reed nodded emphatically, the knot of anxiety in her chest finally loosening.

’The father who raised me since I was a child is so cold, yet the grandmother I rarely saw loves me so much.’

’I’m lucky in a way.’

"..."

The test results came back quickly. It was Autumn Linton’s old ailment: she needed quiet rest and couldn’t get too emotional. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

By the time she returned, her emotions had stabilized. Still, she looked at Chloe Reed and said, "Chloe, regardless of whether we’re related by blood, I’ll always see you as my daughter."

"Then what about Sunny Reed?"

Chloe Reed looked at her calmly, the corner of her lip twitching into a smirk. "I’d advise you not to think that way. In your heart, you’ve always favored Sunny Reed. And now’s your chance. You can give all your love to her. I don’t need it anymore."

"The two of you are different." Autumn Linton shook her head. "I feel guilty toward her, but my love for you comes from the bottom of my heart."

Chloe Reed didn’t want to hear any more of this. She turned directly to the old woman. "Grandma, I’ll wait for you outside."

"Alright."

She turned and walked out of the room.

Her tense body finally relaxed. The shackles binding her had been broken, and an inexplicable sense of relief washed over her.

’If only I had known the truth about my birth sooner, maybe I wouldn’t have struggled in misery for so long.’

The door opened behind her, and Charles Reed walked out. He looked at her indifferently and said, "Chloe Reed, since you plan to cut ties with us, you have to repay our kindness. If it weren’t for us, you might have died long ago."

Hearing his words, Chloe Reed’s brows furrowed immediately. "And I’m supposed to be eternally grateful to you for that?"

Charles Reed said apathetically, "Shouldn’t you be?"

"Hah!"

Chloe Reed scoffed and shook her head. "You want to guilt-trip me, but I’m fresh out of morals. I won’t be doing a thing."

Charles Reed’s brows knitted together. "We raised you for over twenty years, you..."

"You only raised me for ten years. For many years after that, it was Grandma who raised me and loved me."

Chloe Reed cut him off directly. "President Reed, you’d best not get any ideas about me. I won’t do anything for you."