Chapter 85 A Twist of Fate
It was late at night, and the shop's shutters were pulled down to close.
Warm lights shone on the second floor, where Ma Chunying had coaxed Xiao Gai to sleep.
In the living room, Yizhen and Yibao were lying on the carpet, building their imaginary little house with blocks, chattering away in childish language, their laughter ringing out.
Zhao Fei pushed the door open and came in. He first went to check on the sleeping Wen Xiaogai and Ma Chunying who was guarding her, and whispered a word of thanks.
Ma Chunying quickly waved her hand, indicating that it was her duty.
Zhao Fei then walked into the living room, his gaze sweeping over his playful daughter before finally settling on Wen Xiaoxiao, who was sitting at the dining table checking her accounts.
Wen Xiaoxiao looked up, saw him, and her expression froze slightly.
Zhao Fei didn't say much. He took a file folder from his briefcase and placed it in front of her.
Wen Xiaoxiao's heart sank.
She was afraid.
What if... what if the test results are unsatisfactory, what if any of the three children are not related to Zhao Fei by blood...
How should she face Zhao Fei's unreserved devotion and deep affection over the years?
"Take a look." His voice wasn't loud, but it carried a reassuring certainty.
Wen Xiaoxiao took a deep breath and opened it.
The first copy was from Zhao Yizhen. The second copy was from Zhao Yibao. The third copy was from Wen Xiaogai.
Three reports, in black and white, with conclusions so clear they leave no room for doubt.
Zhao Fei's voice rang in her ears: "The three children are all mine, Zhao Fei's."
Wen Xiaoxiao suddenly raised her head and looked at Zhao Fei.
Tears rolled down my cheeks without warning.
Her home is still intact, even more indestructible than ever before.
"Mom and Dad, what are you whispering about?" Zhao Yidi asked, approaching from the sidelines.
Wen Xiaoxiao quickly wiped away her tears with the back of her hand and forced a smile.
Zhao Fei reacted quickly, reaching out to ruffle his eldest daughter's hair, his tone relaxed and natural: "It's nothing, Mom and Dad are discussing where to take you for dinner in a couple of days for Yizhen and Yibao's birthdays. Yidi, is there anywhere you'd like to go?"
"Really?" Zhao Yidi's eyes lit up, and she immediately turned around and shouted to her two younger sisters who were still playing with building blocks, "Yizhen! Yibao! Mom and Dad are taking us out to eat for our birthday!"
Upon hearing this, the two little girls immediately dropped their building blocks, cheered, and ran over, pestering Wen Xiaoxiao with questions about what to eat and where to go.
The heavy weight that had been hanging over Wen Xiaoxiao's heart for many years finally lifted, turning into a warm and comforting sense of security.
The next morning, Zhao Qingda was already waiting there at the agreed time.
Seeing Zhao Fei arrive empty-handed, Zhao Qingda's lips curled into a mocking smile: "What, Mr. Zhao, have you come to your senses? You want to give the child back to me?"
Zhao Fei ignored his provocation, took out the file bag from his pocket, and threw it directly at Zhao Qingda's chest.
Zhao Qingda was startled by the impact and instinctively caught it.
He looked down at the file folder in his hand, then looked at Zhao Fei suspiciously: "What's this?"
"See for yourself." Zhao Fei's voice was somewhat cold.
Zhao Qingda frowned, tore open the seal, and pulled out the paper inside.
"...It has been confirmed that Zhao Fei is Zhao Yizhen's biological father..."
"...It has been confirmed that Zhao Fei is Zhao Yibao's biological father..."
"...Zhao Fei has been confirmed as Wen Xiaogai's biological father..."
All three reports reached the same conclusion.
Zhao Qingda's eyes widened instantly, his pupils contracted, and he abruptly raised his head, staring intently at Zhao Fei: "Impossible! This...this is fake! You forged it! Yizhen Yibao is mine!...Wen Xiaogai is mine too! It was you! You bought the fake report with money!"
"Fake?" Zhao Fei scoffed, his eyes filled with utter contempt. "Zhao Qingda, don't you understand yet? From beginning to end, Yi Zhen, Yi Bao, and Wen Xiaogai have had absolutely nothing to do with you. Wen Xiaoxiao is my woman, Zhao Fei's woman."
"You're talking nonsense!" Zhao Qingda roared. "You adulterous couple! You've been having an affair for a long time! You've been playing me for a fool! I'm going to sue you! Sue you for adultery! Sue you..."
"Sue?" Zhao Fei interrupted him, taking a step closer. "Zhao Qingda, do you think all the suffering you've endured over the years is just bad luck, or that you brought it on yourself?"
Zhao Qingda's roar stopped abruptly; he was stunned.
Zhao Fei stared at him and said slowly and clearly, "Wang Juan's lost child, this scar on your face, the 200,000 yuan you lost, the gambling debts you incurred later, the finger that was chopped off... do you think all of these things are just coincidences?"
boom--!
A thunderbolt exploded in Zhao Qingda's mind.
He staggered back a step, his back slamming heavily against the brick wall.
"You...it was you..." he finally managed to squeeze out a few words through gritted teeth, "It was all your doing?!"
"Yes." Zhao Fei admitted it readily, with a cold hatred and the satisfaction of revenge. "When you abused Wen Xiaoxiao, slandered her, and forced her to leave for a distant place while pregnant, you should have thought this day would come. Zhao Qingda, this is what you call retribution."
"I kill you--!!!"
He lunged at Zhao Fei without regard for anything else!
This lunge used all his strength, driven by a mad urge to take everyone down with him.
The fist whistled through the air as it struck Zhao Fei squarely in the face.
Zhao Fei seemed to have anticipated this, dodging to the side to avoid a fatal blow, but his shoulder was still hit hard, and he let out a muffled groan.
Having gained the upper hand, Zhao Qingda, like a mad tiger, forced Zhao Fei to retreat repeatedly, taking several blows.
However, Zhao Fei's physique and fighting experience far surpassed those of Zhao Qingda, whose body had been weakened by alcohol, women, and disease.
After the initial passivity subsided, he regained his balance and delivered a heavy hook punch to Zhao Qingda's abdomen.
"Ugh!" Zhao Qingda curled up in pain.
Zhao Fei showed no mercy, taking advantage of the situation to push him to the ground and raining down punches.
"This punch is to avenge Xiaoxiao!"
"This punch is for the children!"
"This punch is for me, Zhao Fei, and those thirty pigs!"
With each word he spoke, he delivered a punch.
After Zhao Fei had beaten him enough, he grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up, coldly saying:
"Zhao Qingda, see this clearly and remember this well. From now on, never appear in front of me or my family again. Otherwise, next time it won't be as simple as just a beating. Get out!"
He threw Zhao Qingda to the ground like trash, turned around, and walked out of the alley without looking back.
Zhao Qingda lay sprawled on the filthy ground, his mouth filled with the taste of blood.
He stared in the direction where Zhao Fei had disappeared, his gaze slowly shifting from a vacant look to a fierce, venomous hatred.
The child isn't his... never has been.
All the suffering he has endured over the years, and everything he has lost, was orchestrated by Zhao Fei!
Good, very good!
Zhao Fei, Wen Xiaoxiao, and those bastards... none of you will get away with this!
I will make you all...die!
A few days later, Wenbin came to find Zhao Fei with a big smile, carrying two bottles of good wine, his face flushed with barely suppressed excitement.
"Zhao Fei! Let's have a couple of drinks tonight!" Wenbin shouted as soon as he entered the door.
"What's making you so happy?" Zhao Fei was helping to organize the goods in the store when he looked up at him.
"Manjuan is pregnant!" Wenbin rubbed his hands together, grinning from ear to ear. "Almost two months! I just brought her back from the hospital, and it's confirmed!"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Fei punched him on the shoulder: "Great! You're going to be a dad! That's wonderful news! I'll have Xiaoxiao cook a few extra dishes tonight, and we'll celebrate properly!"
"Okay!" Wenbin readily agreed, but as he smiled, a barely perceptible shadow crossed his eyes.
That evening, the two men drank and chatted in the small living room on the second floor.
After a few drinks, Wenbin's joy faded, and he sighed.
Zhao Fei poured him a full glass of wine: "What's wrong? Not happy about becoming a father? Worried about the cost of baby formula?"
“It’s not about money.” Wenbin shook his head, took a swig of his drink, hesitated for a moment, and then said, “It’s about Manjuan’s parents… what they implied was that the child should take their surname, Han.”
Zhao Fei paused, his hand holding the food in his chopsticks.
He understood Wenbin's frustration.
Wenbin was a son-in-law who had married into the family, and he already felt somewhat ashamed. Now, he couldn't even keep his child's surname, so he must have felt terrible.
"What do you think?" Zhao Fei asked.
“What can I think?” Wenbin smiled bitterly, taking another swig of wine. “When I agreed to marry into the family, I knew this day would come. But… but now that it’s here, my heart still aches. Zhao Fei, to be honest, I don’t have your magnanimity. Look at how you treat Xiao Gai, you really dote on her like your own daughter, even more than I, her own uncle. If it were me… raising a child who doesn’t bear my surname, I’m afraid…”
He didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear.
Zhao Fei silently took a few sips of wine, put down his glass, and looked at Wenbin.
After a long while, he slowly spoke, his voice not loud, but incredibly clear:
"Wenbin, there's something I haven't told you in detail yet." He paused, meeting Wenbin's puzzled gaze, "Xiao Gai is also my biological child, Zhao Fei's child."
"puff--!"
Wenbin spat out the mouthful of wine he had just taken a sip of, as if he had heard something.
He hurriedly put down his wine glass, stammering, "You... what did you say? This... how is this possible? You two..."
"The specifics are complicated and hard to explain in a few words. But it's true, I've had it checked." Zhao Fei's tone was calm, as if he were talking about something very ordinary. "So, it's not that I'm magnanimous, I'm just raising my own child."
Wenbin was completely stunned. His mouth opened and closed repeatedly, but he couldn't utter a word for a long time.
The overwhelming amount of information left his mind buzzing.
"You...you son of a bitch..." Wenbin stammered for a long time before punching Zhao Fei on the shoulder. "You're really something! You kept it a secret so well! You really put my sister in a terrible situation! And you scared me half to death too!"
Zhao Fei took a punch from him, but instead smiled and said, "I didn't say anything before because I was afraid of causing trouble. I'm telling you now so you won't overthink it. Whose surname the child takes is a big deal, but don't get too hung up on it. No matter what the surname is, he's your flesh and blood, your parents' grandson. The bloodline is there, it can't be taken away."
He picked up the wine bottle and refilled their glasses: "As for me, you see, Xiao Gai's name was chosen by Xiao Xiao. We're used to it, and it's fine. I've never thought about changing it."
Looking at his open and magnanimous demeanor, Wenbin felt the pent-up frustration and turmoil in his heart deflate like a balloon gently punctured by those words.
Yes, regardless of whether the child is surnamed Han or Wen, the child is his and Manjuan's, and belongs to the Wen family.
He picked up his wine glass, clinked it heavily with Zhao Fei's, and downed it in one gulp.
"Fine! Whatever you say! No matter whose surname he takes, he's still my child!" Wenbin wiped his mouth, a hearty smile returning to his face. "Come on, let's do one more! For the child!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com