1108 Delay in Getting Home



"Who knows what the future will bring for me. I remember you saying that you want to buy me a house. If I give all my money to your two children, can the two of them handle my funeral affairs in the future?" Xia He asked laughingly.

"Sure, sure, sure! I've already set aside a house for you. I'm just waiting for you to agree," Qiao Mei said.

"Shoo, shoo, shoo. As if I can accept a house from you. I'm just saying for the sake of saying," Xia He said as she flapped her hands.

Another half an hour passed but Xia Wen was still not back yet. Xu Lan became so agitated that she wanted to just burn down the whole house. Xia Wen was usually very proactive in handling the Xia family's affairs, but when it came to his own matters, he would dawdle and make no progress for a long time.

If Xia Wen had curbed Tan Jing's actions much earlier and set out a clear boundary with the Tan family, the Xia family would not have suffered so much! No matter how successful their family was, they could not let the Tan family waste their money like this! Men were all the same. They were not in charge of household matters so they did not know how big household expenses were. What was the use of spending all their time on socializing outside! The family was going to run out of money!

"Sister Fan! Has Xia Wen returned our call?" Xu Lan asked anxiously.

"Not yet. He's probably on his way. Let's wait a little longer. He should be back soon," Sister Fan said in a careful manner.

"Wait, wait, wait! All I do is to wait! Is it wrong of me to ask him to come back quickly! Is his work so pressing that it's more important than his family!" Xu Lan said angrily.

Qiao Mei and Xia He immediately stopped chatting and looked in Xu Lan's direction. If Xia Wen did not return soon, he might even have to kneel in the courtyard tonight and not be able to enter the house.

"Come, let's go chat with Mother and buy Eldest Brother some time," Qiao Mei said.

Tan Jing sat on the sofa like a statue and did not even blink. If not for the fact that she could still breathe, Qiao Mei would have thought that she had fossilized!

"Mother, why are you throwing such a big tantrum? You'll have wrinkles if you get angry," Qiao Mei said as she walked over and held Xu Lan's hands.

Wrinkles? If having one or two wrinkles meant that she could get these vicious people in the family to get lost, then she would be more than willing to have them! Xia Wen was already a grownup now and did not listen to her and Xia Mao anymore. He kept insisting on doing things his own way and his entire family was going to get harmed in the end!

Initially, the Tan family only coveted the Xia family's authority and money. Xu Lan did not expect them to have designs on Qiao Mei's two unborn babies now. Xu Lan did not even dare to tell Qiao Mei yet, worried that Qiao Mei would rip out Tan Jing's tongue right away. If Qiao Mei knew why they were asked to come back today, there was no saying what she might do!

"Eldest Sister-in-law is already here. Why isn't Eldest Brother back yet?" Xia He sat opposite Tan Jing and asked her.

"I… I didn't come back with him. I came back first," Tan Jing said nervously.

Just as they were talking, Xia Wen arrived breathlessly, having run all the way in. He had a very important meeting today and no one was allowed to leave without permission. There was nothing he could do.

"I'm back! I'm so sorry, I have something on today and can't rush back immediately. Mother, what's the matter?" Xia Wen asked as he stood at the door.

Xu Lan was furious the moment she saw Xia Wen. Although Xia Wen had a very respectable job now, he did not have as much freedom as he did when he was a university professor. Nowadays, he was bound by those rules and regulations every day and she saw him much less often than before.

"Do you still know your way back! Doesn't our Director Xia have a secretary? Why can't your secretary return our call? What do you need this secretary for! You might as well fire him and find another secretary!" Xu Lan roared as she pointed at Xia Wen.

Xia Wen was confused for a moment. Why was Xu Lan so angry today and even asked everyone to come over? Even Liu Fen was sitting here. He must have done something to provoke Xu Lan.

Coincidentally, his secretary was on leave today so he had to do many things himself. That was why no one returned Xu Lan's phone call. Otherwise, she would not have to wait so long at home for a reply.

He quickly took out a pair of gold earrings from his bag and carried the box to Xu Lan. He had bought them on the way back just now. When he read the message on the pager, he knew that he would definitely be reprimanded when he returned home today. He thought that if he bought a small gift, it would make Xu Lan happy and he would get a less severe scolding.

"Mother, don't be angry. It's my fault. I'll definitely contact the family as soon as possible next time. I definitely won't let this happen again," Xia Wen said tentatively.