Chapter 28

Lu Yancheng followed behind her, his voice low and muffled. “Still think I can’t do it?”

Song Si replied, “I still say it!”

Lu Yancheng: “I always take revenge, never sleep on it.”

Song Si: “……”

(Why does that sound so familiar?)

Bang—

He Yunzhen dropped the breakfast in her hands. Soy milk spilled everywhere, soaking the buns and fried dough sticks on the ground.

From over ten meters away, Song Si saw her in-laws across the way, frozen in place. Their fair faces instantly turned red.

She: “……”

(Ugh, so embarrassing. All Lu Yancheng’s fault!)

(What do I do? I can’t face them anymore.)

(Wuwuwu, that jerk Lu Yancheng! His reputation was already bad, and now it’s even worse in front of my in-laws!)

Lu Yancheng was the first to regain his composure. “Dad, Mom, I’m taking Si to get some breakfast.”

He believed his parents had heard her thoughts—no need for him to explain anything.

He would take full responsibility!

Lu Yuanzheng responded with an “Oh,” coming back to his senses. His face looked like it was on fire, his mind dazed and confused.

Surely… surely it wasn’t what he was thinking?

He took a deep breath and didn’t dare look in his daughter-in-law’s direction. “Y-Yancheng, I’ve booked you a room at the hotel.”

His hands fumbled in his pocket for the key—he was so nervous it took him a while to find it.

Lu Yancheng stepped forward and took the key. “Dad, Mom, Grandma is doing much better. I’ll take Si to the hotel to rest for a while.”

Lu Yuanzheng stiffly nodded. “Alright.”

He Yunzhen couldn’t even form words.

What she had just witnessed was beyond what she could handle.

So… it wasn’t that Song Si didn’t want a divorce—it was that her son couldn’t let her go?

With her face flushed, Song Si managed to speak, “Dad, Mom, we’re going to eat now.”

(Trying to salvage some dignity here. I still have pride!)

(That damn Lu Yancheng, what’s wrong with him? Has he never seen a woman before? Must’ve read too many CEO novels! Wait… were there even CEO novels in this era?)

(Dear in-laws! Please believe me! I’m a very decent person!)

Lu Yuanzheng stood there, feeling the blood freeze in his veins.

W-What exactly just happened?

Before he could react, Lu Yancheng was already dragging Song Si away.

A cold wind swept through the hallway, snapping him back to reality. He turned to look at He Yunzhen.

Her face was pale. “You… heard it too, didn’t you?”

Lu Yuanzheng nodded stiffly. “W-What did you hear?”

He Yunzhen took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down. “The last sentence was: ‘Father-in-law, mother-in-law, please believe me, I’m a very decent person.’”

Lu Yuanzheng was speechless for a long time.

He Yunzhen looked toward where Lu Yancheng and Song Si had gone. The two were already at the stairs.

It was obvious—Song Si was mad, and their son was coaxing her… and not doing a very good job.

Lu Yuanzheng sucked in a sharp breath. “Do… do you understand what’s going on?”

He Yunzhen looked at him. “I was hoping you could tell me.”

She couldn’t bring herself to say anything else—this was the most neutral thing she could manage!

The couple stared at each other and both shook their heads. They stood in the hospital hallway in silence for a full ten minutes.

Eventually, He Yunzhen bent down to pick up the breakfast spilled on the floor.

Lu Yuanzheng said, “I’ll go buy another one?”

He Yunzhen replied, “Let’s go see Mom first.”

The two entered the hospital room to find the old lady looking particularly cheerful, wearing reading glasses and enjoying a book while sitting up in bed.

When she heard them enter, she looked up and—visibly disappointed—said, “Oh, it’s you two.”

Lu Yuanzheng: “Mom, Yancheng and Si went to the hotel to rest.”

Grandma Lu gave an “Oh” and nodded. She put her book down and looked at her son and daughter-in-law. “Those two seem really close. I can see that Ah Chen is very attached to Si. Finally learned how to dote on his wife.”

Lu Yuanzheng didn’t know what to say.

He Yunzhen felt deeply uneasy.

Was Song Si trying to avoid a divorce by clinging to Yancheng like this?

Or was she just overthinking things?

Still, regardless of the reason, now that their son was willing, getting them to divorce would be even more difficult.

Grandma Lu chuckled, “Si even told me they’re planning to have a baby soon—so I can have a big chubby great-grandson!”

Lu Yuanzheng forced a smile. “That’s wonderful.”

He Yunzhen said nothing.

Grandma Lu looked at her. “Yunzhen, you should stop being hard on Si. The kids are grown up now, and I think they’re doing great together.”

He Yunzhen gave a smile more painful than crying. “Yes, Mom.”

Grandma Lu added, “Why don’t you go rest, Yunzhen? Let Yuanzheng stay and keep me company.”

He Yunzhen: “Alright, Mom.”

Just as well—she needed some time alone to calm down.

But something still didn’t add up! Weren’t Old Song and Comrade Li supposed to have gone to Baiyang Village?

She had thought Yancheng would be delayed and wouldn’t arrive in Yuancheng until tonight at the earliest—so how had they all shown up before sunrise, including Song Si?

Song Dalong and Li Li had gone to Baiyang Village, and Song Si didn’t stop them? She just left for Yuancheng?

As soon as she stepped out of the hospital room, she heard her husband’s footsteps behind her.

Lu Yuanzheng said, “You should call Comrade Lao Qin. Didn’t they already meet Si earlier?”

He Yunzhen: “Alright.”

She needed to ask about Baiyang Village anyway.

Looking at her husband, she was nearly in tears. “Yuanzheng, our son… he seems completely different now. I barely recognize him.”

Lu Yuanzheng had no words.

They were husband and wife, after all—whatever they were doing should be normal.

It’s just…

Who would’ve thought Lu Yancheng would be so desperate he’d drag someone into the men’s restroom!

He was definitely going to have a talk with his son later!

…

At the state-run hotel, He Yunzhen used the hotel phone to call Qin Hua.

It was Qin Hua who answered. “Hello, who’s this?”

He Yunzhen: “It’s me.”

There was a brief pause. Qin Hua lowered her voice. “Has Si and Yancheng arrived in Yuancheng?”

He Yunzhen: “Yes, they’re in their room resting.”

A few seconds of silence followed.

The two had had a bit of a disagreement two nights ago over Song Si, and things hadn’t ended well.

Qin Hua was the first to speak. “Is something wrong?”

He Yunzhen: “Ah Hua, I’m sorry. I was a bit impulsive that night.”

Qin Hua finally chuckled. “As long as you know.”

There was a pause. Then He Yunzhen asked, “Old Song and Li went to Baiyang Village, right?”

Qin Hua: “Yes, they did. But they left without seeing Si or Yancheng.”

He Yunzhen froze. “They didn’t meet?”

Qin Hua replied softly, “They came early. Si and Yancheng had gone into town to buy something. Then they got a call from Lao Lu and rushed off to Yuancheng. Things were a bit chaotic—Old Chen forgot to tell them about the visit.”

He Yunzhen: “……”

Forgot, really?

She had a strong feeling that Old Chen and Lao Qin were very fond of Song Si… maybe they’d deliberately not told her and Yancheng?

After a long silence, she asked, “Have you noticed anything… strange about Song… Si?”

Qin Hua was quiet for a moment. Thinking that the truth would come out eventually, she replied, “You heard her thoughts too, didn’t you?”

He Yunzhen’s breathing hitched. “Her… thoughts? You mean what we heard was really… her thoughts?”

Qin Hua: “Yes. Si is… someone who was reborn. In her past life, her biological parents didn’t treat her well. She’s a pitiful child. Please don’t bully her. Be good to her.”

Clatter— the phone in He Yunzhen’s hand dropped onto the desk. She stood up in shock.

This… this couldn’t be real.

How could someone be reborn?! That’s impossible!