Kai adjusted his napkin and side-eyed Minhui as they sat side by side in tense silence at the huge round table, then he glanced across at Anna and ignored her small smile. Her attempt at softening the weird atmosphere between them, given he had been cool towards her. Irritated at being here. It just was another notch of her inserting herself in his life and ignoring his protests.
They were all dressed in formal clothes for the late lunch, as always demanded by Mother, sitting waiting with no conversation as they all seemed nervous about the arrival.
It was Kai’s day to see Yue, yet his mother had made demands, and now he was here instead, delaying his time with her until tomorrow so he could be interrogated. Anna’s presence was pissing him off, and more than telling, his sister’s mysterious demeanor had all his alarm bells going off. She had been evasive and overly quiet since she arrived, and he had a gut feeling he wouldn’t like this meal.
There were only ever two reasons his parents opted for dinner at a restaurant instead of their own family home. To control their children’s reactions and keep them tied down so as not to bring public shame, and to sit and make demands, lay down law. For some reason, his mother liked a neutral territory when going into battle mode. She felt the family home should be a haven of serenity and not bring drama to her soft furnishing. Kai snorted in disdain and shifted in his uncomfortable seat.
“Where’s Tian?” Minhui tried to break the silence, knowing fine well where he was, but she didn’t know what else to say. Tian was an extended part of the family and often with Kai whenever their parents returned. He was good at being a buffer when conflicts arose and knew how to keep Kai under control.
“The conference. Today is the first day, so he’s probably at the mixer by now.” Kai leaned back in his chair, using the fork he had picked up to tap on the table in agitation at his parent’s late arrival. He hadn’t seen much of them since they landed beside the meet with Yue, and conversations had been brief. His mother had been oozing the angry aura since they had confirmed Yuelin’s parentage. The airport pickup and the meeting with Yue had been tense and silent journeys while their father made small talk about OTS. Other than her demands, she hadn’t said much else to him. He could tell he was in the black book of shame over this.
“When are they back?” Minhui was picking at the corner of her napkin and avoiding her brother’s eye. Her nerves were taut, and her blood pressure was pumping to exhausting levels. She knew her brother would erupt soon and didn’t want to start on his bad side. She hadn’t wanted to do this but had never learned to stand up to her parents as Kai sometimes did. She was a respectful child, brainwashed from young never to question their decisions.
“Family dinner? Then why isn’t Qian here? He’s family.”
Minhui jumped nervously as the door creaked, alerting them to arrivals, and almost in sync, all three of them rose to their feet to greet their newcomers. Knowing their place and the expected response.
Mrs. Xuchen walked in first, like a queen commanding a kingdom. Dressed head to toe in elegant designer brands, her professionally applied makeup and hairstyle oozed with opulence. Her husband was behind her as the waitress held the door wide for them, and she appraised her children with a critical eye.
“Yes, ma’am.” Anna nodded in a polite response.
They waited until both were comfortable and settled before sitting down again, all moving in and straightening at the table because Mother was anal about etiquette and manners. They had it ingrained in them how to sit and eat a meal properly since birth.
“We already ordered, mother. All your favorites. The food will be here shortly.” Minhui reached out and poured her a glass of water, bowing her head, remaining pleasant, and smiling.
“Good. I am quite hungry. We had a day touring the headquarters and some of the established companies in Yanhue. I forgot how tiring this city could be.” She lifted her glass and took a small sip.
“I was reviewing the OTS reports, and everything seems to be going smoothly. Are you happy with the flow of the company?” Kai’s father launched into business and directed his eyes at his sons. A handsome man that Kai took after, yet in manner and personality, they were worlds apart.
“Yes. The reshuffling of staff is almost complete. The new protocols are in order, and we are beginning a product launch. The company didn’t have too many issues to begin with; it just lacked funding and good management with money sense. OTS will succeed.” Kai was a master in picking up dying businesses and breathing new life into them because he only went after the ones with promise. OTS had never been a failure; it was just handled badly.
“Please do not use that name in my presence.” His mother cut in drily. “Her mother may have graced her with it, but she has no right to use it. That name rests with our daughter.” She picked up her glass again. Her tone was stern and devoid of obvious emotion.
“You’re telling me I can’t use my daughter’s own name?” Kai snorted, gritting his teeth because he should have seen this coming. Pettiness and conflict were his mother’s defining traits. It was always her way or no way.
“Mom?” Minhui interjected, seeing the nuclear rise in her brother’s temper and how this had fallen like a lead bomb between them all. Kai was visibly agitated, shifting in his seat and clenching his napkin like he wanted to choke someone.
This is how their mother was. No discussion, only demands.
Anna squirmed uncomfortably, her cheeks flushed, and she cleared her throat subtly before grabbing her water glass to drink. Wishing to be anywhere but here. She was already trying to get Kai to forgive her, and this topic, and where she knew it was heading, was making her nauseous.
To them, this was a simple matter that a lawyer could fix immediately.
He had felt it in his gut when she wouldn’t even leave her car to greet her first grandchild properly. For that reason, he hadn’t even told Yue and distracted her from the nearby vehicle focusing her attention on playing with Minhui and him instead. He didn’t want her to be crushed by the fact her biological grandparents had been feet away and didn’t attempt to meet her. He thanked god they had used a limo with tinted-out windows.
It still angered him that it would have hurt his little girl, and he had told her they couldn’t come instead.
That’s all he needed.
Denying her existence in his world, never being able to include her in any public way or legal document. This was the reality in families like his. A shamed child they would deny all knowledge of. Kai would never do that to her.
Kai was steadily growing angrier. Almost bursting with keeping his temper in check and knowing he should try and curb it before he did something he would later regret.
The table was tense and silent as Minhui stared at her lap. Anna was trying to focus on her water glass, and his father steadfastly listened to his mother, nodding in agreement with no visible emotion about it. She had always been the power in this family, and no one stood up to her. This was how they were raised; she had trained them harshly over the years.