Chapter 133: Speechless (3) |
Holding his daughter, Liu Changqing descended the stairs without sparing a glance at Li Wanran, heading straight for the door.
But Li Wanran wasn’t about to let him leave so easily. She abruptly stood up from the sofa, her demeanor conflicted.
“One child each! Let’s split them!”
“……”
Liu Changqing halted mid-step and turned to look at her, his gaze carrying the coldness of someone facing a stranger.
“When Ye Rong waved that agreement in my face, you and your mother forced me to sign it. It was you who cheated during our marriage, and yet I was the one who lost everything. Now that you see I’m not the broken mess you expected, are you disappointed?”
He watched the shock spread across her face and chuckled.
“Sorry to disappoint, but my family of three is doing just fine.”
“I’ll give you all the money back. I just want—”
Shifting his attention to his daughter, who was lying quietly on his shoulder, he asked softly,
“Xiazhi, do you want to live with your mother?”
“No…”
“Alright, then. Looks like I’ve got time, place, and people on my side. Apologies, Mrs. Li.”
With a faint smile at Li Wanran, Liu Changqing turned and left without looking back. His parting words hung in the air as he disappeared through the door.
“I’ll compensate you for the broken door. I’ll transfer the money to the bank card you used to use.”
Watching him leave, her gaze lingered on the vanishing figure of the man holding their child. For a long moment, she stood motionless.
After some time, Li Chongming emerged from his room, strolling lazily downstairs. He walked over to Li Wanran and casually draped an arm around her shoulders, his eyes also on the door.
“What a fool. I already called the police while he was upstairs. He’ll be arrested the moment he steps out.”
“……”
Li Wanran turned her gaze to him, her expression unreadable. Then, as if realizing something, she brushed his hand off and walked toward the stairs.
Startled by her sudden movement, Li Chongming followed behind her hurriedly.
“Wanran… What’s wrong?”
“……”
Without answering, she walked to the bedroom door, opened it, and stepped inside.
When Li Chongming tried to follow, she slammed the door in his face, shutting him out.
Staring blankly for a moment, he began knocking on the door.
“Open up! What’s going on with you?”
“I want to be alone tonight. Go sleep somewhere else,” she replied from inside.
Hearing her words, he stopped knocking, his expression shifting as he seemed to grasp the situation. Suddenly, he dashed downstairs, grabbed the landline phone, and called Ye Rong.
On the other end of the line, Ye Rong listened to his account, her face darkening. When he finished explaining what had happened, she abruptly hung up.
Her chest rose and fell with fury as she grabbed her phone and hurled it to the ground. The device bounced upon impact, its battery flying out.
Breathing heavily, Ye Rong stood and stormed toward the door. But as she opened it, she was met by her personal driver standing just outside.
Startled, she instinctively took a step back.
The man had a neatly trimmed beard and chiseled features that exuded maturity, though his age showed slightly. His calm eyes bore into Ye Rong as he spoke in a deep voice.
“Madam, you’ve already violated the rules set by the Master.”
Hearing this, her face contorted with rage, her inner turmoil evident. She slammed the door shut with a loud bang, the sound echoing her chaotic emotions.
Inside, the sounds of objects being thrown and Ye Rong’s furious screams and curses erupted.
“Even in death, you won’t let me go!!”
Outside the door, the driver remained unmoved, his gaze fixed on the tightly shut door. His mind wandered back to his first impression of Liu Changqing—the quiet, slightly dark-skinned young man that Li Wanran had brought home, someone who rarely spoke.
Liu Changqing…
Perhaps the Master misjudged you back then.
You’re far from incapable.
At the estate entrance, Liu Changqing carried his daughter toward the main gate.
Two police cars were parked not far away.
Liu Xiazhi peeked over his shoulder, spotting the vehicles and instinctively clinging tighter to his neck.
Noticing her tension, Liu Changqing patted her back gently without saying anything. He walked steadily toward a sedan parked nearby.
After opening the back door, he placed his daughter inside before getting in himself. Once the door closed, he let out a sigh of relief.
Liu Xiazhi immediately threw herself at him, clutching his arm tightly.
From the front seat, Chen Dafu glanced at the girl who was practically glued to Liu Changqing and clicked his tongue.
“Didn’t know you two had such a close bond.”
“I love my dad the most!” Liu Xiazhi exclaimed loudly before Liu Changqing could respond.
She buried her face into her father, seemingly oblivious to his sweat-dampened clothes.
This display surprised Liu Changqing. The drastic shift in her attitude made him wonder what she had been through.
His gaze fell on her injured knees, and his expression shifted.
“Xiazhi, what happened to your knees?”
“I tried to run away, but I fell. Then… they locked me in the room…”
“……”
Liu Changqing fell silent. As she spoke, Xiazhi kept her face buried in his arm, too afraid to lift her head.
Chen Dafu, overhearing this, snorted.
“What kind of mother does that? She’s heartless!”
“Shut up.”
“Alright, alright. Protective father, got it. I’ll keep quiet,” Chen Dafu muttered before calling to the driver.
“Let’s go.”
The car started, driving smoothly away from the neighborhood. The police cars trailed behind briefly before veering off at a fork in the road.
Watching through the window, Liu Changqing sighed in relief.
Chen Dafu smirked.
“I handled it. That Li Chongming guy… hilarious. He called the cops as soon as you went in. If I hadn’t intervened, you’d already be in custody.”
“When I reported them earlier, the police told me to handle it myself…”
“Of course. Li Wanran’s your ex-wife and the mother of your kids. They probably think she just took them out for a bit of food. Why would they care?”
Chen Dafu’s smile faded, replaced by a serious expression.
“Even if you fight them, will it change anything? Look at their status, their home. Then look at you. What do you have? What kind of place do you live in now? You’re not even their son-in-law anymore.”
“I know all of this…” Liu Changqing’s tone grew somber.
He withdrew his gaze from the window, gently stroking his daughter’s hair. In this unfamiliar world, raising his children well would require him to climb, step by step.
The original Liu Changqing had no remarkable abilities. With his father-in-law’s help, he managed to run a clothing factory. After his father-in-law’s death, everything he had shattered like fragile glass.
Ye Rong knew the old Liu Changqing too well.
Had Liu Changqing not arrived in this world, the original one might have crumbled under the weight of the divorce, just as she had predicted.
Resolute determination flashed in his eyes.
“Oh, by the way,” Chen Dafu said, remembering something. “That loan shark you mentioned—I handled it. Cut off the interest, so it’s 60,000 yuan.”
“60,000… Fine. I’ll transfer it to you when we get back.”
“Good.”
Chen Dafu leaned back, closing his eyes.
“You know, you didn’t have to lie earlier. If you’d argued a bit more, I’d have helped you anyway.”
“You think I was lying?”
“Look, as much as I’d love to see Ye Rong fail, I just don’t think you can bring her down.” Chen Dafu opened his eyes, turning to Liu Changqing.
“You have nothing right now. I don’t know why she’s hesitating to crush you, but I’m sure you can’t beat her.”
After a pause, Chen Dafu grinned.
“Let’s not dwell on that. I’ll drop you and your daughter home. It’s such a remote area, and it’s going to take another hour to get there.”
“……”
Liu Changqing looked at Chen Dafu, remaining silent for a long time.