Rebirth: Once Again With You

Li Caiyi looked at her brother's back from behind and could finally relax her tense shoulder. Although she was furious, she wasn't that delusional to think she could win against her father in a physical fight.

Nevertheless, she refused to back down after knowing the evil deed Li Jirong had committed. The slap on her mother's face was the only thing that went out of her calculation because previously, nobody would try to protect her before her father.

"Father, calm yourself down. Do you forget our promise?"

Li Caiyi wasn't the one talking to him, but even she shuddered when she heard how chilling her brother's tone was. Although Li Junjie looked unperturbed on the outside, he was actually fed up by now.

'Promise? What promise?' Li Caiyi thought inwardly after noticing Li Jirong's hesitant look after her brother asked that question.

This was her first time hearing about it. Li Jirong's words were absolute in the Li family's house, and no one could defy him. Not even Li Junjie, whom he treasured like a pearl in his hand. She didn't expect her father to back down just from one sentence from her brother.

Li Jirong clicked his tongue before harshly tugging his hand out of his son's grasp. "Tell your sister to pack her things as soon as possible. Don't let me see her face when I wake up the next morning."

After spatting those last words, he hurried to his room and slammed the door. He didn't even stop to check on his wife's condition. Li Caiyi was baffled once again.

"Xiaohua, go fetch a cold towel. Xiaoyi, help me move Mother to the couch."

The twins moved accordingly to follow Li Junjie's order without question. Li Caiyi sat beside her mother and examined her cheeks, which had already been badly swollen.

Meanwhile, Li Junjie kneeled in front of Su Suyin and gently inspected her jaw. "Hmm…"

"Brother, how is it?" Li Caiyi asked worriedly.

"There is nothing wrong with the jaw bone. Fortunately, the impact isn't as horrible as the sound implies."

Li Caiyi heaved a sigh of relief, and Li Chunhua came over not long after that with a towel and a bowl of water and ice. "Brother Jie, I brought it."

"Good." Li Junjie took the towel, dipping it in the cold water, before wringing it dry. Then, he carefully put them on Su Suyin's swollen cheek.

She hissed for a bit upon the contact, but her tense expression gradually relaxed as Li Junjie gently pressed it onto the swollen part. "Mother, you shouldn't eat anything too hard for now."

Su Suyin smiled fondly at his only son. "I know. Thank you as always, Jie."

"Next time, please don't be so reckless."

"But how can I just stand by and witness your father beat your sister?"

Li Junjie paused briefly before saying, "I will do something about it next time."

"You are?" Su Suyin looked at his son in surprise. His apathetic son was actually volunteering himself to do something. She felt it was worth it to bear the hit now. "I'm happy to hear that."

While the mother-son pair were exchanging words, the twins only sat by the side, watching how gentle their brother was in treating their mother. His face was still as expressionless as always, but his movement was cautious.

Li Caiyi wondered what was the promise his brother had talked about with Li Jirong earlier? Among all her family members, Li Junjie was the one she understood the least because they had never talked too much before.

'Don't tell me that my brother also has his own reason for behaving that way around the house? Not only because he is too apathetic about it?' Li Caiyi thought inwardly.

Come to think of it, even if her brother has always been blunt and straightforward, he used to be easier to talk to compared to now.

What had actually happened between him and Li Jirong? Li Caiyi was very curious.

​ "Brother, what do you mean by 'promise' earlier?"

Before Li Caiyi could voice her question, Li Chunhua had beaten her into it first. Not to mention, she went straight to the point!

Li Caiyi examined her brother's reaction, but there was hardly any change in his expression. The one who was affected by that question was Su Suyin instead.

With that brief reaction, she could quickly tell that this 'promise' between Li Jirong and Li Junjie must have been somehow related to Su Suyin. That was why her brother immediately moved forward when he saw Li Jirong had hurt their mother.

Li Caiyi tried to rack her brain to think about the incident in her previous life, but nothing came up.

"More importantly, what are you going to do, Xiaoyi?" Li Junjie didn't answer Li Chunhua's question and diverted the topic to Li Caiyi instead.

"That's right, Xiaoyi. Why would you go against your father like that?" Su Suyin sighed sadly. "Now, he won't forgive you even if you go and apologize to him."

"I never intended to apologize in the first place," Li Caiyi harrumphed. "Mother, don't worry about me. I'm sure this is just temporary. I can stay in the hotel for the time being, or maybe I can just rent a cheap room somewhere."

Su Suyin frowned in dissatisfaction. "Don't take this situation too lightly! Where do you intend to go in the middle of the night like this? Just stay in your room for a while and don't come out when your father is around. As long as you don't meet him directly, I'm sure he won't say anything about it."

"Mother, what if he blamed you again for it? For Father, anything that happened in this house is never his fault. I don't want to see you get hurt because of me again," Li Caiyi argued stubbornly.

"No, he won't do that. This happened because I butted in so suddenly, and he had no time to react."

"Even if it's not Mother, Father would try to beat Xiaoyi again if he sees the chance. I agree Xiaoyi should leave the house." Li Junjie chimed in and incurred Li Chunhua's protest almost immediately.

"Brother Jie! You are too heartless! How can you just tell her to get out of the house so ruthlessly like that?! Fine, if Xiaoyi goes, then I will go as well!"

"Absolutely not. None of you shall go anywhere tonight, and that's final!" Su Suyin reprimanded both her daughters while glaring at them.

Li Junjie sighed tiredly and looked at Li Caiyi grudgefully. He didn't need to say anything for her to get his meaning.

'Look at what you have done now.'