0032 032 Every family has its own troubles.
Qi Shuyao looked around and was shocked that even overgrown weeds could be found in the city of Jingyang. Three buildings stood in the middle of the weeds. Even though their exteriors were dilapidated, their height and exquisite details were not inferior to those in the city center today.
Qi Yu parked the car behind the shade of a tree, making it difficult to notice.
"Where is this? What are we doing here?"
"This is the piece of land that the Cheng Group is vying for, the one left behind by the Gu family. This is the history of Jingyang City, and also the place where I was born."
Qi Shuyao turned to look at him.
She saw his expressionless face, and behind him, through the weeds, a small, thin figure ran quickly past, looked in their direction, and then disappeared into the dilapidated doorway of the middle building.
She watched the small, thin child disappear through the gate, thinking she was seeing things. She shook Qi Yu's arm, speechless with surprise.
Qi Yu was clearly surprised as well. A strange feeling stirred within him. He didn't rush to get out of the car. Instead, he took out his phone and dialed Xiao Lan's number. Holding Qi Shuyao's hand, he looked around.
Before the call could be connected, he saw another car approaching from behind.
The car slammed to a halt under the tree, and Pei Youwen jumped out of the driver's seat and disappeared into the building's entrance.
Qi Shuyao was so surprised that she couldn't speak.
Xiaolan finally answered the phone, and unusually, she spoke first.
"Boss, the lab said the DNA comparison results you provided might be inaccurate, and they suggest we do a second comparison between the mother and daughter."
"Let's put that aside for now. When you were down there, did you see a very thin little boy?"
"I saw it. That little boy was always hovering around the girl named Tu Mi, his eyes full of wariness, like a stubborn little mule, sigh..."
Qi Yu silently hung up the phone, his chest heaving noticeably. Qi Shuyao felt her hand being gripped tighter and tighter; she tried to pry his fingers away.
"What's wrong? What happened again?"
"No, it's work-related. Today's plans have changed. I'll come back another time..."
Qi Shuyao looked at him with a puzzled expression as he backed the car out again.
Many more days passed without any news. Qin Zhuohan hadn't come to class either, and life was strangely peaceful until today when Qi Yu suddenly wanted to take her out to this desolate place, said some strange things, and then hurriedly wanted to leave.
Even if that child is a homeless person here, what about Pei Youwen?
“Dad, Pei Youwen…”
"From now on, you should have absolutely no contact with him, regardless of whether he contacts you again or not, or whether he has spoken to you since."
"I've mentioned it, but it's always about painting."
"Don't say anything more from now on."
"oh."
As the car drove away, she looked back at the three buildings, which were no longer very tall. She couldn't tell what their original purpose was, nor did she know what he meant by being born here.
"Dad, do you mean my grandparents used to work here?"
Qi Yu stared ahead, driving very fast, and only answered after a long time.
"They are not important, and we don't need to know."
Qi Shuyao sighed. Today was another day where she couldn't get anything out of him. It's true that after being in the workplace for so long, you can't say anything directly.
She was idly observing the passing vehicles when she spotted the license plate number of the car that would pick her up from school on the road in Jingyang.
Qi Yu's car also stopped. The man leaned over and gently rubbed her cheek, speaking apologetically.
"I can't play with you today. I have some work to do. Uncle Mu will take you home first."
"All right."
She got out of the car and watched Qi Yu disappear from her sight in a flash.
"Miss, let's go back."
Uncle Mu got out and opened the car door for her. A second before she turned around, she suddenly looked across the street. Qin Zhuohan, who hadn't been seen for more than half a month, was standing on the other side of the road, wearing a mask. He had already seen her.
"Uncle Mu, wait a moment, I'm going to say hello to my classmate."
They met in the alley at the end of the road, and Qi Shuyao then noticed that his mother was standing next to him.
What are you doing here? Aren't you going back to school?
Before Qin Zhuohan could speak, his mother rushed over and grabbed her hand.
"Yaoyao, please, for the sake of the fact that you and Zhuohan have been classmates since childhood, please beg your father to help us, okay? We really have no other way."
"What's wrong……"
Qin's mother was crying incoherently and unable to speak. Qin Zhuohan pulled her hand away from Qi Shuyao's, sighed several times, and looked troubled.
"You've probably heard that there was an accident at my family's hospital, and a patient died on the operating table."
"But isn't it normal for people to die in hospitals?"
"The dead man was a foreign businessman, Elena's uncle from Class 3."
"Ah...ah, that..."
“They’ve been making a scene for a while now, demanding that his father pay with his life. It’s gotten so bad that the hospital can’t stay open anymore. They even said they’d take it to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but nobody’s willing to help us. Yao Yao, please beg your father to help us, okay? Auntie really doesn’t know who else to ask.”
Qin's mother then took over the conversation and cried to her, looking very pitiful.
"But my dad isn't in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, so how can he help you?"
"Isn't he on good terms with the He family? Our country and their country also have very good relations. We can compensate no matter how much money is involved..."
Qi Shuyao broke free from Qin's mother's hand. What she said had gone too far and exceeded the scope of a normal relationship.
Xu Mei lay sprawled on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling, clutching a tattered rag doll in her arms. She grinned and mocked herself. She had been struggling since she was a teenager, drifting through half her life, and was still all alone. Yesterday, she broke up with Cai Zhiquan and was even slapped by his wife. That scoundrel! Hadn't she told his wife she wanted a divorce before she openly clung to his arm?
The woman turned over, staring at several pictures on her phone, looking for her next target.
Bang bang bang—
The sound of banging on the door startled her awake in bed. She pulled her shawl over her pajamas and looked through the peephole, only to see an unexpected person.
Qi Yu squeezed through the small crack in the door she had opened, then closed it tightly again.
It's been almost twenty years since they last met alone.
Qi Yu didn't have time to reminisce about the past with her, and didn't even look at her. But what he said made her collapse to the ground.
"Your daughter has been found. If you're worried about the results, you can have another paternity test done."
"What... find her, find her, where is she, is she safe, how old is she... is she pretty..."
There are always too many ways of thinking and logic in this world that others cannot understand. It would be foolish to waste energy explaining them every time. Qi Yu understood this more than ten years ago. He finally turned his gaze to Xu Mei's face.
"I'm pregnant."
"What! No, no, where is she? Please take me to see her, let me see her! No, whose child is she? Who is that man?!"
She was writhing and rolling around on the ground in a frenzy. Qi Yu took a step back and leaned against the wall. His phone rang. First, Qi Shuyao sent a message asking where he was, and then immediately called him.
He answered the call.
"Dad! Where are you? Is anyone around?"
"No, what's wrong?"
“I just ran into Qin Zhuohan on the street. He was with his mother. He said that the person who died unexpectedly in his family's hospital was a businessman from another country. He was also the uncle of one of our classmates in Class 3. They've already made a fuss and are saying they're going to escalate it to the diplomatic level. Did you know about these things?”
"Know."
"His mother just asked me to tell you to help them out, but..."
"Take them to the rooftop first, and I'll come over after that."
"Huh? You want to help them? Is that even possible?"
"I'll explain when we get back, okay?"
He put down his phone, looking down at Xu Mei with a cold expression.
Is that Yao Yao?
“My affairs are none of your business. Go and find that man surnamed Cao right now. After this matter is settled, I will take you to see your daughter.”
"I broke up with him a long time ago."
"With your skills, it wouldn't be difficult to hook him back."
"Is this how you see me now?"
"You should have foreseen this day the day you abandoned your child."
Xu Mei sat up, not bothering to pull her shawl back up. She resumed her usual smile, a smile as cold and venomous as a heartless snake.
"You don't want to see your daughter again?"
"Actually, it doesn't really matter whether I see her or not. She's already so grown up and should be responsible for her own actions. If she sees me, she might even complain about why I didn't want her anymore."
She gracefully got up from the ground, tossing her hair that was hanging in front of her back, her smile as perfect as ever.
Qi Yu knew that she had never changed; she only had eyes for herself, and nothing anyone else said would change her.
“There are 106 rooms on the top floor of the building. Once you’ve made up your mind, bring the guy surnamed Cao over.”
He turned and left, but after opening the door, he turned back and added another sentence.
"By the way, your daughter's child is Pei Youwen's."
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