Chapter 26: Alimony (Part 2)

That meant she wouldn’t need to scrape together 10,000 yuan anymore—she could simply have Han Chao provide the guarantee and open the shop directly.

Convincing her husband would be much easier than convincing anyone else, right?

But Han Chao had been working overtime for a full week. He was scheduled to come home tomorrow, Saturday.

She’d have to wait until then to discuss it with him.

Just as she reached her doorstep, she unexpectedly ran into Chen Fanshi.

Her father.

A few days ago, when she had called, he had told her not to disturb Zhang Yanli because she was in a bad mood.

Chen Yufeng figured he was probably having a rough time himself, so she hadn’t called again.

But today, he looked unusually energetic.

“Dad? What are you doing here?” she asked.

Chen Fanshi walked into the courtyard, then into the house. Only after closing the door did he open his leather bag and pull out a thick envelope.

“Feng’er, I’ve been handling some business at the military district lately. While chatting with the officers, I kept hearing them talk about Han Chao. His reputation is really something right now.”

In reality, the exposure of Ma Shangbei’s corruption was thanks to Mimi.

As a result, Han Chao had forced the high-ranking officers into silence.

Lately, he had been busy conducting inspections across the entire military district, investigating potential hazards in various camps. His influence was undeniable.

Of course, while they were family, just as Zhang Yanli despised Chen Yufeng, Chen Fanshi had no real attachment to Ma Shangbei.

He had spoken on Ma Shangbei’s behalf before, but now that Ma Shangbei was in trouble, he didn’t actually care.

Who would genuinely care for a stepson?

In comparison, Chen Yufeng was his biological daughter. It was only natural for him to show favor to her.

But what really shocked Chen Yufeng was the envelope in his hand.

It was so thick that it was practically bulging—clearly filled with a significant amount of money.

“Dad… are you giving me money? Where did this come from?” she asked while pouring him a cup of water.

Chen Fanshi accepted the cup but didn’t drink. Instead, he smirked with satisfaction.

“Your Aunt Zhang sold a property recently to pull some strings, but Ma Shangbei’s crime is too severe. No one—from the Public Security Bureau to the military—is willing to take the money. She’s busy, so she asked me to deposit it for her.

“I figured I’d give it to you instead. Feng’er, Ma Shangbei is worthless, but Yuhuang is a good kid. He’ll turn 17 next year. I plan to send him to Han Chao—so make sure Han Chao takes good care of him.”

Every parent hopes their child will be successful and take the right path in life.

Chen Fanshi was the kind of person who sang praises for whoever held power.

When he thought Ma Shangbei had potential, he did everything he could to support him.

Now that Ma Shangbei had fallen, he turned to curry favor with Han Chao instead.

Seeing that Chen Yufeng wasn’t taking the money, he insisted, “Take it. This is thirty thousand yuan. Just keep it.”

Chen Yufeng hesitated and asked, “Dad, does Aunt Zhang really not know about this money?”

“I withdrew the previous five thousand with Yuhuang, and he told her. But she doesn’t know about this sum,” Chen Fanshi replied. “Last time, she didn’t say anything to me—just told me that if I wanted to give you money, I shouldn’t keep it from her. But this time, it’s a large amount, so let’s keep it from her for now. We’ll tell her later.”

So Aunt Zhang had known about the five thousand from before.

And knowing that, she had still handed over thirty thousand yuan to Chen Fanshi for safekeeping.

Something about this didn’t sit right with Chen Yufeng.

Chen Fanshi patted Tiantian’s little head and said, “I’m your grandpa. Now I’m giving your mom money, so when you grow up, you have to be good to Grandpa, okay?”

“Mhmm, when I grow up, I’ll be good to Grandpa,” Tiantian responded, then called out to Mimi, “Sister, change the channel to Dream of the Red Chamber! I want to watch Dream of the Red Chamber!”

Mimi, clutching the remote tightly, pointed at the TV and said, “Sister, let’s watch The Bund! Look at this bad guy, Ding Li. He gave money to Xu Wenqiang, but actually, it was to set him up. Hmph! I want to see how Ding Li dies in the end.”

Lately, apart from Dream of the Red Chamber and One Plum Blossom, the old drama The Bund had also been airing on TV.

Tiantian loved Dream of the Red Chamber, while Mimi loved The Bund. The two girls fought over the remote all the time.

Even tigers don’t eat their own cubs—Chen Fanshi wouldn’t intentionally harm Chen Yufeng.

But Zhang Yanli had been tied up by Han Chao before, and Ma Shangbei had been taken down by him.

Could she really not hold a grudge against Chen Yufeng and her husband?

If she had known that Chen Fanshi had already given five thousand before, why would she still let him handle thirty thousand all on his own?

Mimi’s words—”He gave money to Xu Wenqiang, but actually, it was to set him up”—suddenly rang an alarm in Chen Yufeng’s mind.

After all, Chen Fanshi was her father.

But she was already married now. If she secretly took money, and the money happened to come from Zhang Yanli—the mother of Ma Shangbei, who had just been arrested by Han Chao—

Would Zhang Yanli later report this to the military and accuse her of taking bribes? Or even claim she had extorted the money?

The more she thought about it, the more she realized this was a trap.

Zhang Yanli was an intelligent woman, an accountant. Given that she knew her husband’s ex-wife’s daughter was on good terms with her husband, why would she trust him with thirty thousand yuan—a significant sum of money? That was like letting a cat guard the fish or a dog guard the bones.

Chen Fanshi surely hoped Han Chao would be successful.

But Zhang Yanli hated Han Chao. She probably wished she could see him thrown into prison.

Of course, that was Zhang Yanli’s perspective, not Chen Fanshi’s.

Chen Fanshi was giving this money because he wanted Han Chao to take care of Chen Yuhuang next year—it was all for his son.

If she were the cautious type, she shouldn’t take the money.

But after thinking it through, Chen Yufeng decided she had to take it.

Chen Fanshi could never repay Zhou Yafang for what he owed her, not even in a lifetime.

Not only would she take this money, but she also had to make Zhang Yanli suffer a real loss.

“Dad, have a seat. Tiantian, bring out some sunflower seeds and peanuts for Grandpa.”

Tiantian obediently carried a plate of sunflower seeds from under the coffee table. There was a natural affection between a granddaughter and her grandfather. She even picked up a cup of tea and handed it over. “Grandpa, have some tea.”

Recently, ever since Ma Shangbei’s arrest, Zhang Yanli had been running around everywhere, trying to find someone to help him.

But even Ma Lin—her so-called best friend—had clearly told her she couldn’t do anything. Instead, she advised Zhang Yanli to stop making trouble and told Ma Shangbei to behave and confess everything.

Commander Ma, Ma Lin, and Zhang Yanli were all from Tianjin. They were from the same hometown and naturally looked out for each other.

But if even they weren’t willing to help, it showed just how serious Ma Shangbei’s case was.

Frustrated, Zhang Yanli had been ranting and raving at home every day.

But people, as they age, crave a sense of belonging, a sense of accomplishment, and a harmonious atmosphere at home.

Seeing Tiantian, Chen Fanshi was reminded of how, when Chen Yufeng was little, she used to serve him tea and peel sunflower seeds for him just like this.

He picked up Tiantian and said, “Call me Grandpa.”

“Hello, Grandpa,” Tiantian said sweetly, peeling a peanut for him. “Grandpa, eat this.”

Then Chen Fanshi turned to Mimi. “Why aren’t you calling me Grandpa?”

“Hello, Grandpa.” Mimi greeted him reluctantly.

When she saw that he was about to pat her head, she immediately jumped up from her seat, leaping onto the back of the sofa like a monkey.

Meanwhile, Chen Yufeng had gone to Han Chao’s study.

After a short while, she came back out and handed Chen Fanshi a receipt. “Dad, sign this.”

Chen Fanshi took it and saw that it read:

“This is to certify that Chen Fanshi has made a one-time payment of five thousand yuan as child support for his daughter until she turns eighteen, along with thirty thousand yuan as the division of marital assets to his ex-wife, Zhou Yafang.”

Below that were spaces for the payer and recipient’s signatures.

Chen Yufeng had already signed her name.

“Dad gives you money, and you still want a receipt?” Chen Fanshi asked with a grin.

Chen Yufeng replied, “Now I understand—Dad is the man of the house in front of Aunt Zhang. What he says goes. But what if Aunt Zhang goes back on her word and refuses to acknowledge this money later? What would we do then?

I’m Dad’s good daughter. I only want to be filial and take good care of you. But I don’t know what kind of person Aunt Zhang really is.”

The reason Chen Fanshi had given her money so readily last time was because she had repeatedly implied that he had no authority in his own household.

No man liked being told he had no status at home and was controlled by his wife.

This time, when he gave her thirty thousand, it was purely because he wanted Han Chao to help his son.

But hearing his daughter affirm his status in the family so confidently filled him with a deep sense of satisfaction.

Taking the pen, he swiftly signed his name and said, “We’re family; there’s no need to be so formal. I give you money, and at most, your Aunt Zhang will just argue a little. When the time comes, I’ll scold her until she shuts up.”

Chen Yufeng figured that not only would he fail to shut Zhang Yanli up, but he likely had no idea that she was deliberately letting him deliver the money just so she could use it as leverage against Han Chao, accusing him of bribery.

Since he had already signed the receipt, she didn’t bother entertaining him further. Helping him up, she patted the dust off his suit and said, “Dad, you should head home early. Try to be more patient with Aunt Zhang—it’s not easy for her either.”

Chen Fanshi actually wanted to stay a little longer, but since his daughter was ushering him out so decisively, he had no choice but to leave.

“Feng’er, take good care of the kids. When I have time, I’ll come over more often,” he said.

Chen Yufeng, wanting to give Zhang Yanli a hard time over the thirty thousand yuan, also decided to say something pleasant to Chen Fanshi. “Whenever you have time, bring Aunt Zhang and Yuhuang along too. We’re family, after all. A harmonious home brings prosperity, don’t you think, Dad?”