Chapter 59: Are You Embarrassed?

Soon, Li Zhiyuan and his group arrived at the small stall selling spicy soup (hu la tang) in a grand procession.

From a distance, they could already see that the stall was full of people, with a long queue.

But Ye Shi wasn’t there! Li Zhiyuan was momentarily stunned, only to find that the ones running the stall were Ye Erquan and two girls who looked quite attractive.

Was that… Zhaodi and Laii?

Li Zhiyuan finally recognized them.

He remembered that Zhaodi and Laidi used to be very skinny and dark, looking almost like sticks, but now they were becoming more and more beautiful.

Then he thought, this must be his own influence, so how could they be ugly?

If it was Zhaodi and Laidi, then it would be even better!

The two girls were soft and delicate, their voices trembling even if he raised his voice a little back then. He will havethem write out the secret recipe; wouldn’t they obey his orders now?

As for Ye Erquan, he was even more foolish.

Although Ye Daquan wasn’t particularly clever, at least he had a fiery temper. When something didn’t make sense to him, he’d throw a punch.

Ye Erquan was a complete fool, who, when faced with something, would just stand there in a daze.

“There are too many people, let’s queue up quickly!” said Liu Gaosheng.

Li Zhiyuan looked as if he was in charge of the situation: “Queue up? I’ll just have them serve us directly. We should also ask them to clear a table for us. Brother Zheng, you all wait here for a moment.”

Zheng He and Qian Hai nodded, watching Li Zhiyuan walk up to the stall step by step.

Ye Erquan scooped up a bowl of soup.

Ye Jin’er took it and, following the customers’ requests, added more chili oil, while Huan’er collected the payment.

Everything was proceeding in an orderly manner.

Li Zhiyuan approached Ye Jin’er. The sisters froze for a moment, a flash of disgust in their eyes. They pretended not to see him and kept working without stopping.

Seeing them glance at him, Li Zhiyuan paused, a bit surprised.

Zheng He and the others were watching!

Li Zhiyuan glanced back, staring at Ye Jin’er. “Zhaodi!”

Ye Jin’er slapped the table and shouted loudly, “Who’s Zhaodi? My name is Ye Jin’er! And who are you?”

Li Zhiyuan was stunned. Was this really the daughter he couldn’t even raise his voice in front of?

He realized something was off, but just a moment ago, he had confidently declared that getting the recipe was no big deal. Zheng He and the others were still watching!

Li Zhiyuan’s face darkened. “Zhaodi, is this how you speak to your father?”

“What, do you want me to speak to you differently? Should I give you a slap first?” Ye Jin’er mocked, staring at him.

“What’s going on?” The customers waiting for the spicy soup weren’t in a hurry anymore; they all gathered around to watch the commotion.

Zheng He and the others exchanged looks and quickly stepped forward. “Brother Zhiyuan, what’s going on?”

Li Zhiyuan’s expression changed, and he quickly forced a smile. “It’s nothing, nothing at all. She’s just too busy, and her voice got a bit loud.”

Qian Hai’s sharp little eyes flashed, and he laughed, “What’s all the noise about? Brother Zhiyuan, didn’t you say the owner and you are close?”

Liu Gaosheng quickly stoked the fire: “You’re familiar with them, just a casual word, and they’ll give you the recipe.”

“Recipe?” Ye Jin’er widened her eyes, staring at Li Zhiyuan and coldly sneering. “Where do you get the nerve to ask for our family’s recipe?”

As soon as she said this, everyone present burst into laughter: “A few restaurants have tried to get the recipe, offering higher prices each time, but they still don’t sell it.”

“Now here comes some random person, saying they can just ask for it with one sentence.”

Even the people who had been standing by his side were now mockingly staring at him.

Li Zhiyuan’s face turned bright red, filled with anger and embarrassment. “No, I’m not just some random person! I’m a close acquaintance of theirs!”

“Who’s your acquaintance? I don’t know you. Get lost!” Ye Jin’er yelled fiercely.

“Pfft!” Qian Hai laughed. “Zhiyuan, they’ve already said they don’t know you. Did you lose your memory or something? If you’re trying to trick them into giving you their recipe, at least come up with a better excuse! And even if you were an acquaintance, why would they hand over their recipe to you?”

Zheng Nian frowned and said coldly, “Zhiyuan, what’s going on here?”

Gu Zhiyuan’s face turned bright red, and he hurriedly said, “No, we’re really familiar! Not just familiar, actually, they are my daughters! Li Zhaodi and Li Laidi!”

He then stared at Ye Jin’er: “You brat, I am your real father, and you dare say you don’t recognize me? Ungrateful child.”

“You’re surnamed Li, I’m surnamed Ye. How can you be my father? Do you have any proof that I’m your daughter? Is my name on your household registration book?”

Gu Zhiyuan was choked for words.

Zheng Nian and others frowned.

Li Zhiyuan angrily said, “Even if you don’t have my surname, you’re still my dear daughter!”

Saying that, he turned his head to explain to Zheng Nian, “Zheng brother, they are truly my daughters, I swear to heaven. If I’m lying, may I be struck by lightning.”

“The reason they have the surname Ye is because… my ex-wife, Miss Ye, beat my mother, even breaking my mother’s leg. I tolerated her for many years, but in a fit of rage, I divorced her.”

“These two girls, no matter what, insisted on following the Ye family. I truly had no choice but to let them go with Ye.”

“Originally, when they were at home, they were relatively obedient and sensible. Who would have thought that just two months after leaving home, they became so fierce. Even when they saw their own father…”

As he spoke, he shook his head, looking deeply troubled:

“Zhaodi, Laidi, no matter what, I am still your biological father. Why do you have to glare at me and speak to me in such harsh words?”

After these words, the crowd’s gaze toward the Ye Jin’er sisters became less approving.

Zheng Nian and the others also looked deep in thought, feeling that the Ye Jin’er sisters had gone too far.

Ye Jin’er’s expression slightly changed. As long as the word “filial” was involved, it seemed like no matter what was said, it would always be wrong.

Ye Erquan was even more bewildered. In this kind of situation… he really didn’t know what to do.

“Woo…” Ye Huan’er suddenly knelt down with a thud, covering her mouth as she cried bitterly, “Father… why are you doing this?”

“Let’s not even talk about whether mother really hit grandmother. Even if she did, you divorced her. What else do you want? She almost died to stand by her resolve, and now she bears the terrible reputation of beating her mother-in-law.”

“You say we must follow her, but tell me, why should we follow a wicked woman?”

“Isn’t the daughter of a scholar better, or does the reputation of a wicked woman sound more appealing?”

When the crowd heard this, they also thought about it. Why would they not stay with the proper, good daughter of a scholar and instead follow a woman with a ruined reputation?

It was strange when you thought about it. The crowd couldn’t help but discuss among themselves:

“Even though mother was divorced, if they stayed with their scholarly father, they could still have a good life. But they insisted on going, which shows that living with the scholar father wasn’t good for them.”

“Mother’s a divorced woman; how difficult will it be for them to find a match in the future? Sigh! To bear such a reputation and still choose to follow her… Tsk, tsk, it’s hard to explain.”

Zheng Nian and the others also looked at Li Zhiyuan with deep meaning in their eyes.

“No…” Li Zhiyuan wanted to argue, but the identity of the scholar was the best proof.

“Father… it’s not that we want to follow her, we were forced to!” Ye Huan’er’s tears streamed down.

The eleven- or twelve-year-old girl was small and delicate, and her crying only made her appear more pitiful, evoking sympathy from those around her.

“You’re talking nonsense!” Li Zhiyuan’s face changed, “When did I ever force you to go?”

“Weren’t you the ones who forced us?” Ye Jin’er’s eyes reddened, “When mother came to take us, you wouldn’t let us go.”

Ye Huan’er said, “Mother saw this and thought we’d have a better life staying in the Li family, so she gave up. She even praised you, saying you were a scholarly gentleman, virtuous and noble, and that you would surely give us a good marriage dowry.”

“She said she would always watch over us. If one day we were sold by grandma, she’d report it to the authorities. But when you heard that we couldn’t be sold, and that you didn’t want to give us a proper dowry for marriage, you didn’t want us anymore. You let us go with mother.”

“This matter was witnessed by many people in Li Family Village and Qinghe Village. If anyone doubts it, they can ask around and investigate.”

Everyone present was stunned, glaring at Li Zhiyuan with disdain.

Not to mention what kind of person his ex-wife was, but the way she acted afterward was not wrong—always looking out for her daughters, wanting them to marry well.

If this scholar Li didn’t want to sell his daughters, why would he let them leave just like that?

It wasn’t just because he couldn’t sell them, and didn’t want to provide a good dowry for their marriage?

Qian Hai spat, “Pah! You usually act so high and mighty, but turns out you’re just like this.”

Liu Gaosheng looked at Li Zhiyuan and shook his head. “Even if it’s just a girl, she’s still your own biological daughter. Brother Zhiyuan, you’re a scholar—how could you think of selling your daughter?”

“No, no… I didn’t!” Li Zhiyuan felt like he wanted to die.

Although these were his most shameful thoughts deep down, how could they be exposed?

Li Zhiyuan could only keep explaining, “Brother Zheng, you must believe me… This is all nonsense. The reason they followed Ye is because they were deceived by her, not because I, as their father, was unfit.”

“Let’s say we were deceived by mother then!” Ye Huan’er smiled bitterly and shook her head, her face filled with despair. “No matter what you say, it’s just what you say. We’ll bear it…”

“Let’s not talk about the past. Since we signed the severance of kinship agreement, we’re no longer father and daughter, and there’s no connection.”

“But the spicy soup recipe was something mother created after leaving your family. It’s our livelihood, our skill. How dare you come here and ask us for the recipe, do you have no shame?”

“Mother was cast off by you, left with nothing, and didn’t take anything from the Li family. And now you want the recipe that she created, just like that?”

“You took it for granted, coming here and asking for something from the wife you divorced, do you have no shame?”

Ye Huan’er stared at him, her words shifting, constantly repeating phrases like “divorced” and “asking for something from your ex-wife.”