Belated Romance (Mu Tongrui)

Lingye put the pedal to the metal all the way to the Fu Manor.

Silence befell the residence late in the night. Siqi and Han were nowhere to be found, and Zhengyuan

sat on his own in the living room, as if he had been waiting for Lingye.

Lingye was on a warpath as he entered the house. Without saying hello, he cut to the chase, “What did

you do to Rui?”

Putting his weight on the cane, Zhengyuan stared hard and long at Lingye. Lingye’s recklessness only

angered Zhengyuan. “Look at you! Tongrui is safe, so don’t worry about it!”

“She can be safe with me! Why did you have to drive her away? You must be happy with yourself now!

Did you ever consider her feelings?”

“Lingye, watch your attitude! I’m your father. Why did you barge in here and jump at my throat? Let’s

not forget that you’re under my roof now.”

Lingye drew a deep breath and callously pressed along his brow bone as he fought back the rage and

anxiety. “Yes, you’re the head of the household, but do you think it was proper of you to send Rui away

behind my back? She’s not an outsider. She’s your daughter-in-law and the mother of your

granddaughter, for heaven’s sake!”

Zhengyuan stood up with the help of his cane before looking askance at him. “Hmph! Siqi is asleep.

Are you trying to wake the kid to hear our argument?”

Lingye gritted his teeth. “I don’t want to fight with you. Tell me where Rui is now.”

“Hmph! You won’t give me a chance to send her away if I don’t do it in the dark, b*stard! Lingye, is your

head clear right now? Do you understand the severity of the matter? Your Aunt Xian will spread the

scandal all across the city tomorrow if I don’t send her away!”

Lingye was never bothered by how the media portrayed him. In fact, he was not one to allow the media

and irrelevant people to get the best of him.

“Alright, I know you’re all about your ego. You can get your wish, but on the condition that you tell me

where Rui is.”

Zhengyuan gave Lingye a sidelong glance and chuckled as Lingye dug his heels in. “Lingye, are you

trying to walk all over me? I’m not going to tell you. What are you going to do about it? Are you going to

tear the house down or burn it to the ground? Why don’t you call the cops on me?”

“I don’t mind doing so if that’s what you want.”

“You, b*stard! What are you going to do if I tell you Tongrui’s whereabouts?’ Zhengyuan made a face at

him.

Lingye gave Zhengyuan a chilling look and spoke in a stern voice, “Since so many of you in North City

is against me and her, I’ll go to her and never come back. It’s not like these people will fly all the way

out just to break us apart.”

“Aren’t you something else? What about Siqi? What about this family? Are you going to wash your

hands off the business? Are… Are you going to piss me off?”

Zhengyuan raised his cane, aiming for Lingye’s leg. However, his weapon was suspended in the air for

a while until Zhengyuan pursed his lips and put his cane down. He turned around, and with his back

facing Lingye, Zhengyuan said, “I won’t tell you where Tongrui is. There’s one thing I want to make

clear to you – I’m not as cruel as you think. I hid Tongrui from you for the sake of the Fu family. She’s

Siqi’s mother. It doesn’t give me pleasure to send her away, but I… only doing this for all of you. You

can carry on with your life like nothing ever happened, and I’ll deal with your aunt. Once her aunt calms

down, and the whole thing blows over, you can bring Tongrui back.”

Lingye scoffed and replied, “Sure, you’re not cruel. All you did was lay out the problem in front of her,

forcing her to choose. You knew that she would leave the place for the sake of the Fu family, Siqi, and

me.

“Dad, I thought that deep down, you cared for her even though you were tough on her. It has crossed

my mind that Aunt Xian, Fu Jia, or even Uncle Fu might put pressure on her, but it never occurred to

me that the person to take her away from me would be you.”

Zhengyuan, whose back faced Lingye, froze.

Despite his best intentions, Zhengyuan could not bring himself to apologize. Instead, he blurted out in

defense, “I had to do it for the sake of the family whether you like it or not!”

If looks could kill, Lingye would have blood on his hands. “Why didn’t you make her sign the divorce

papers prior to her leaving? Isn’t it a safer choice?”

“What are you talking about, Lingye? Get out of here right now!”

“Do you think I would come back here if it wasn’t to get Rui’s information from you?”

Turning on his heel, Lingye stormed off in large strides. He stopped at the door and said, “That reminds

me. You can forget ever seeing me again if you continue to keep Tongrui away from me.”

His voice was devoid of emotion, as calm and blunt as a hammer.

“Beat it! Do you think I want a b*stard like you in my life!”

“I will take Siqi with me when the time comes. You can forget ever seeing Siqi again.”

Ashen in the face, Zhengyuan clutched his chest. “Don’t you dare, b*stard!”

Alas, Lingye was long gone. The only response Zhengyuan got from Lingye was the roaring sound of

his engine.

Zhengyuan held the arm of the sofa as he slowly sat down. He rested a while to catch his breath when

he heard a tiny voice.

“Grandpa!”

Dressed in cotton pajamas, Siqi bolted down the stairs in her slippers.

“What are you doing down here, Sweetheart? Did I wake you?”

Siqi drew close and blinked her sleepy eyes. With a frown, she asked, “Grandpa, I heard Daddy. Is

Daddy home?”

“No. You heard it wrong.”

“But I heard him for sure… Grandpa, you were calling him a b*stard. Did you have an argument with

Daddy, Grandpa?”

Zhengyuan had no words.

“That didn’t happen. Come on, Sweetheart. I’ll take you to bed.”

Siqi took Zhengyuan’s hand. Since the rage sapped the old man of his energy, Zhengyuan could barely

stand when he rose to his feet. Siqi furrowed her brows and gave her grandfather a worried look. “Are

you alright, Grandpa?”

“I’m okay. I guess I must be tired.”

“Let’s go to bed then, Grandpa.”

“Come on. We should head upstairs and get some rest. Siqi is the most thoughtful out of anybody in

this house.”

Curious, Siqi inquired, “If Daddy is a b*stard, what does it make you, Grandpa? Are you a big b*stard

while I’m a little b*stard? Little b*stard doesn’t sound right. I don’t want to be a little b*stard, Grandpa.”

The little girl looked up to Zhengyuan in all her innocence.

Zhengyuan was speechless. “No. Siqi is the most adorable girl in the world. You’re not a little b*stard.

You’re the best granddaughter I could ask for. Go on to your room and lay your head, child.”

He thought to himself. Lingye, you b*stard! Grow a pair and never come back!