Qiqi looked up at him, her breathing became heavy, and she subconsciously shrank back.
She was terrified of being beaten by him again.
Fortunately, Shang Kang didn't get too close. He sat down to the side and said softly, "Qiqi, believe your brother. Have you forgotten how good we were to you when we first brought you home? If it weren't for the Shang family, you would have starved and frozen to death long ago if you were begging outside."
Qiqi's eyes suddenly reddened. She would talk to Shang Kang alone because they had saved her back then.
At the time, she was homeless and had a serious cold and fever.
She had no money to buy medicine, so she could only wait and see, each day dragging on, waiting to die at any moment.
Later, Shang Kang picked her up, had the family's housekeeper give her a bath, and then took her to the hospital, where she was cured.
At that time, she vowed to be good to Shang Kang and Shang Shenghao for the rest of her life, and even her birthday wish that year was for them to be healthy.
But she never expected that her kind father and gentle brother would become so heartless in such a short time.
"I don't want to go home anymore. All these years, everything you and Dad forced me to do is just repayment for the kindness you showed me back then. I have no family left in this world..."
At this point, Qiqi burst into tears. She bit her lip tightly, trying her best not to cry out, and said, word by word, "I want to live."
Shang Kang frowned. Did she mean that as long as she stayed in the Shang family, she would die?
Qiqi continued, "The lawyer said that as long as I tell him about the torment and pain you've caused me, he'll find a way to bankrupt you and Dad and send you to jail. But you also saved my life and were kind to me for a short time. Sister Tang said that we should let bygones be bygones. If you let me go, I'll let you go too, okay?"
Shang Kang was stunned, looking at the little girl in front of him who was only seven years old. Every word she said was so mature and so direct.
He could hardly believe that she had said those words.
"Who told you to say that?"
Qiqi shook her head: "It's what I wanted to say. You always say that I'm a bad girl who keeps everything to myself. But if I had said it back then, I probably would have been dead."
Looking at the pain and gloom in her eyes, Shang Kang suddenly felt very short of breath.
“If you and Dad let go, I will tell my lawyer brother that I don’t want to pursue this anymore. I just want to live a simple and ordinary life.”
Looking at her innocent yet obedient face, Shang Kang tried to continue to coax her.
However, Qiqi had already seen through her brother's thoughts and spoke first: "No matter what you say, I will not go back."
She rolled up her sleeve, revealing bruises that hadn't fully healed: "These are marks left from when you and Dad beat me with belts. There are many more on my body; there's evidence. Do businesses really want to risk bankruptcy and jail time for a girl like Qiqi that you don't even love?"
She overheard her lawyer brother and Sister Chu talking when they said that.
She didn't know the specific meaning, but she vaguely felt that it was very useful.
Sure enough, Shang Kang's expression changed. He took a deep breath, thought of Xu Nuan's fate, and then of the powerful Fu family behind Tang Yaoyao. In the end, he let it go.
"Qiqi, if we give up custody of you, will you stop pursuing the past?"
Shang Qiqi nodded: "Yes, I mean what I say, but I have one more condition."
It was at this moment that Shang Kang realized that the little girl he had been exploiting was actually a negotiation expert. He asked in a deep voice, "What?"
“Apologize to Sister Chu, Sister Tang, and Sister Su. You have slandered them.”
Shang Kang listened, feeling somewhat embarrassed.
But he said clearly that Qiqi was giving him and his father a chance. If they didn't seize this opportunity, perhaps it would be too late to salvage the situation.
He finally nodded: "Okay."
Then, in front of Shang Qiqi, he called his father and summoned him over.
The door opened.
A group of people walked in.
Shang Qiqi wiped away her tears, looked at Chu Nian's worried face, and smiled gently: "Sister Chu, I'm fine."
Shang Kang was silent for a moment before looking at the others in the room: "I'm sorry. I didn't take good care of Qiqi before and used the wrong way of educating her. I don't deserve to continue being Qiqi's brother."
Tang Yaoyao was stunned. In just half an hour, Shang Kang had given in. What did Qiqi say to him?
Fu Zhiyu didn't want to waste any more words and asked directly, "Does your business intend to relinquish guardianship of Qiqi?"
"Well, since Qiqi likes Miss Chu, let her live with Miss Chu. It's also a way for us merchants to atone for our sins."
Fu Zhiyu asked again, "So, you admit to the crime of abusing Qiqi?"
"terribly sorry."
This is an admission.
It seems that Shang Kang is a smart man; he knows that continuing like this will only lead to an even more complete defeat.
Just then, Shang Shenghao arrived.
"Qiqi, are you feeling better?"
Qiqi nodded. Although she didn't want to pursue the matter further, she felt no gratitude and simply nodded faintly.
"That's good, that's good."
Shang Shenghao answered his son's call and talked to him for a long time. After weighing the pros and cons, he had no choice but to give up custody of Qiqi, because if they really went to court against Fu Zhiyu, it would be like throwing an egg against a rock.
After bowing, he said, "Miss Tang, Miss Chu, Miss Su, I apologize for my previous words and actions. I'm sorry. I'm entrusting Qiqi to you from now on. I hope she can be happy."
This change was actually within Tang Yaoyao's expectations.
At this critical juncture, Xu Nuan got into trouble. In his memory, Xu Nuan had also worked with Shang Shenghao, which was a blow to his spirit.
Apologizing proactively and relinquishing custody of Qiqi is the smart thing to do.
Tang Yaoyao pursed her lips: "Since you've given up, let's go through the legal process and have the child adopted by Chu Nian. From now on, we can't have anything to do with her anymore."
"Okay, we have no objections."
Tang Yaoyao nodded, looked at Qiqi, and her eyes softened: "Qiqi, now that they have confessed to all their crimes, you have the opportunity to send them to prison. Whether you send them or not, the choice is yours."
Shang Shenghao and Shang Kang were shocked. They hadn't expected that Tang Yaoyao would punish them even after they apologized and gave up custody of Qiqi.
He could only look at Qiqi and wait for her to give him the answer.
Kiki remained silent for a while, then looked at the two men in precarious situations before asking, "Is it true that no matter what I choose, my sister will help me?"
Tang Yaoyao nodded: "Yes."
Qiqi pursed her lips: "Then I choose to end it here."
Tang Yaoyao felt a pang of pain in her heart upon hearing this: "Why, Qiqi, did you forgive them for what they did just with an apology?"
Qiqi shook her head: "I just don't want to hate anymore."
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