Chapter 58 : Mr.’s Tenderness

He Ting winked mysteriously and said, “I can’t tell you that for now. But don’t worry, I mean no harm to you. If you ever encounter any problems, feel free to come to me anytime.”

Mu Qianqian expressed her deep gratitude, “Thank you, and also thanks to the person who helped me behind the scenes.”

After Mu Qianqian left, He Ting sent a message to Fu Sichan “That little girl’s parents came to cause trouble, and I’ve taken care of it for you. However, for safety’s sake, you still need to take action yourself.”

The He and Fu families were old friends. Once, when the He family faced a crisis, Fu Sichan’s intervention helped save their assets.

Since the incident where Mu Qianqian almost got into trouble, Fu Sichan had been worried that someone at the school might target her again, so he asked He Ting to keep an eye on her.

After finishing a meeting, Fu Sichan saw the message and immediately furrowed his brows.

He called He Ting urgently, “Did Qianqian get hurt?”

The anxiety in his voice was apparent to anyone who heard it.

“No, don’t worry. The little girl was very lucky. She had two friends who sincerely protected her, so she didn’t suffer too much.”

Fu Sichan’s face darkened to the point where it seemed like it could drip water.

His assistants and secretaries lowered their heads, not daring to speak.

Since Fu Sichan took over the Fu family, he had always been adept at hiding his emotions. Rarely did his anger and hostility become so palpable as it did now.

It seemed that Fu Sichan was genuinely angry this time.

One could only wonder who had the audacity to affect Fu Sichan’s mood so profoundly.

…

On the way back to Mingyuan Community, Fu Sichan’s face remained grim.

Returning home, he expected to see the young girl secretly crying, but instead, she was sitting on the sofa watching TV as usual.

Of course, she couldn’t see it, only hear it.

“Mr, you’re back.”

Hearing the familiar footsteps, Mu Qianqian greeted him sweetly.

Fu Sichan noticed that, whether it was his imagination or not, his footsteps seemed more chaotic than usual.

His brows furrowed deeply as he strode over to her.

Seeing her swollen cheeks, Fu Sichan was visibly pained, and his clenched fists at his sides tightened abruptly.

His eyes were filled with a deep, frightening redness.

“Has someone been bullying you?”

Mu Qianqian shook her head and forced a smile.

“No, I’m doing fine.”

Fu Sichan gazed at her intently. “Qianqian, no matter what grievances you’ve suffered, you can always tell me. Don’t forget, this is your home.”

A surge of grievances flooded Mu Qianqian’s heart, and her eyes began to sting.

She was afraid to tell Mr. about her family, worried that he might disdain her background if he knew.

“It’s really, really nothing.”

Fu Sichan grasped her shoulders firmly, holding her tightly.

“Mu Qianqian, I’m your husband.”

The warmth from his hands flowed steadily into Mu Qianqian’s heart.

Her emotions found an outlet and broke down completely, all the strength she had been pretending to have crumbled.

Tears streamed down her face as she sobbed, “I’m sorry, Mr. I haven’t told you this, but actually, I… I have a terrible family. My parents only like my brother and my younger brother, and they don’t like me. They want to marry me off to an old cripple for the bride price.”

“Did they come to find you today?”

Mu Qianqian nodded through her sobs. “Yes, they want to take me back to marry me off. But I don’t want to go back with them.”

The little girl’s shoulders shook with her crying, her nose red and looking pitiful.

Though she was the one crying, Fu Sichan felt his heart being twisted in a way that hurt even more than if he were suffering himself.

What was going on?

Before Fu Sichan could process his thoughts, he instinctively opened his arms and embraced her.

“Don’t be afraid. I’m here.”

His embrace was so warm, it provided a comforting sense of security.

But Mu Qianqian didn’t dare to savor this warmth.

The more kind Fu Sichan was to her, the deeper her self-loathing grew.

Tentatively and uncertainly, Mu Qianqian asked, “Mr, will you abandon me?”

Fu Sichan’s face darkened. “What nonsense are you saying?”

In the Fu family, there was no such thing as divorce, only widowhood.

As long as Mu Qianqian lived, she was destined to be his wife for life.

“But my family might drag you down. They are unreasonable and greedy, and they might ruin you.”

Because of her self-esteem issues stemming from her background, Mu Qianqian had never dared to give her heart away.

Her family, she felt, did not deserve to be loved by anyone.

But what Mu Qianqian didn’t realize was that matters of the heart are not something one can simply control by will.

“Don’t overthink things. They are who they are, and you are who you are. You can’t choose your background, and you shouldn’t feel inferior because of them.”

“I will handle this matter.”

Fu Sichan ruffled her hair, and a fleeting harshness flashed in his eyes.

“Go wash your face. I’ll apply some ointment for you.”

“Okay.”

“Does it still hurt?”

Mu Qianqian bravely shook her head. “No, it doesn’t.”

Compared to the severe beatings she used to endure, these wounds were nothing.

Nevertheless, Fu Sichan meticulously applied the ointment. He was concerned that any scars on her face might be problematic. He didn’t mind himself but was worried that the girl, who cared about her appearance, might be bothered.

After applying the medicine, Mu Qianqian clutched Fu Sichan’s sleeve.

“Mr, do you think I’m too heartless? Even to my own biological parents?”

Fu Sichan replied solemnly, “No. Not everyone deserves to be a parent.”

The two irresponsible parents from the Mu family were entirely unworthy of being Qianqian’s parents.

From his previous investigations, Fu Sichan learned that in her former home, Mu Qianqian had to cook for the whole family and, in the dead of winter, clean her brothers’ shoes and wash clothes, her fingers freezing red.

They treated her like a servant, and when they were in a bad mood, they would beat her to vent their frustration.

In the past, Mu Qianqian lived on leftover food and was almost never full.

That’s why Fu Sichan thought she seemed so undernourished when he first met her. It took a while for her to gain some weight, but compared to her peers, she was still too thin.

Fu Sichan decided to hire a nutritionist to help Mu Qianqian properly nourish her body.

Mu Qianqian nestled against him, soaking up the warmth he provided.

“Mr, you’re so good to me. I now believe what that fortune-telling old woman said is true.”

“Hm? What did the old woman say?”

“When I graduated from high school, I met a blind fortune-telling old woman. She said I had already endured all the hardships I was meant to in this lifetime, and from now on, only good days were ahead of me.”

She had gotten into her dream university and married such a wonderful man who treated her so well. Despite her terrible family background, Mr. was willing to stand by her side. Where else could she find such a good man?

For Mu Qianqian, wasn’t this already living a good life?

Fu Sichan smiled and nodded, gently tapping her nose.

“The old woman was right.”

Fu Sichan had always been skeptical of metaphysics, and anyone familiar with him would be shocked to hear him say this.

To comfort his little crybaby, Fu Sichan had even discarded his own principles.

Mu Qianqian took off her coat, and a handful of crushed leaves fell from her pocket.

Fu Sichan picked up two pieces of the crushed leaves, looking puzzled. “What are these?”