Chapter 184: No Ties with Scum Men

Li Mo was stunned on the spot.

Although he didn’t fully understand the story, he recalled the first time he met Ye Xin Ran, how her own family had drugged her and sent her to a countryside squire’s house as a young lady.

From that, he pieced together a rough idea:

Lu Ting En must have deliberately abandoned his own daughter in this place.

The two of them were in a secluded corner, where no one was paying attention. Lowering his voice, Li Mo asked, “Huai’an, I’m not trying to pry, but now that your leg has recovered, about your revenge…”

Li Mo knew Xiao Huai’an wouldn’t let it go easily.

The only things that had kept him going all this time were his children and his burning desire to avenge his family’s massacre.

The Third Prince, along with his accomplices, the Lu family and the Chen family, were all part of it.

In Xiao Huai’an’s darkest days, it was sheer hatred that fueled his survival.

Back then, his face carried an unrelenting air of cold determination.

Li Mo had always feared that he might push himself too far and snap under the pressure.

But now, Xiao Huai’an seemed to have softened, his sharp edges dulled, leaving Li Mo unsure of what he was thinking.

Li Mo wasn’t urging him to seek revenge.

If Xiao Huai’an said he’d let go of his hatred, Li Mo would have been happy to see him live a peaceful and happy life.

But could he really let it go?

“The Third Prince is at the height of his power right now. I need to wait for the right moment,” Xiao Huai’an said, his eyes glinting with a dark resolve.

He couldn’t act recklessly.

He wasn’t alone anymore, he couldn’t gamble with his life.

Before, he only had his three children to protect. Now, he also had Xin Ran.

One wrong move on his part could put them all in danger.

“Exactly! That’s what I meant, you need to plan carefully,” Li Mo said, relieved.

He had always worried about Xiao Huai’an acting on impulse.

Now, seeing that Xiao Huai’an had spared Lu Ting En’s life and allowed him to leave Yun Tong County unharmed, it seemed he had genuinely come to terms with the situation.

“Huai’an, I’m really glad you’ve thought this through. We’ll take our time, and one day, you’ll definitely get your revenge!” Li Mo said.

At that moment, Ye Xin Ran finished attending to a customer. Noticing the two of them huddled together, she walked over and asked, “What are you two talking about?”

Li Mo quickly covered, “Nothing much! I was just telling Brother Xiao about our plans for future shop expansions.”

Xiao Huai’an, however, gently took Ye Xin Ran’s hand and said, “He was telling me to cherish the life we have now and focus on living happily with you.”

Li Mo: “…”

Well, that was pretty close to what he meant in the end.

But why did it feel like Xiao Huai’an was using this moment to show off their relationship?

“By the way,” Ye Xin Ran suddenly remembered something and asked, “Li Mo, the new shop is about to open. Won’t your wife come to congratulate you?

I heard that after you got married, you ran away to do business. What’s wrong, are you afraid of your wife?”

Li Mo hadn’t expected Ye Xin Ran to bring this up.

He shot a resentful look at Xiao Huai’an.

It was all his fault for bringing up the idea of cherishing life and living well together.

If his wife were as understanding and gentle as Ye Xin Ran, he wouldn’t have avoided going home for so long.

“She’s just a woman, what’s there to be afraid of?” Li Mo said stiffly. “She only acts so domineering because her father is the Duke of Rui. If I can’t beat her, can’t I at least avoid her?”

Ye Xin Ran, unaware of their marital issues, turned to Xiao Huai’an for clarification.

Xiao Huai’an shook his head, signaling that he didn’t know much either.

What little he did know had all come from Li Mo’s one-sided complaints.

Relying on one perspective was often unreliable.

Besides, for the Duke of Rui’s daughter to marry Li Mo, she must have valued him as a person. It didn’t make sense for her to turn around and mistreat him without reason.

Clearly, there was some misunderstanding here.

“Li Mo, since you’re married, there’s no reason to leave your wife at home living like a widow.

Moreover, if you expect a woman to stay loyal to you, manage the household, and care for your parents, how much money do you send her each month?” Ye Xinran asked pointedly.

At the mention of money, Li Mo visibly faltered.

“She has so much dowry already and is richer than me. Even if I gave her money, she wouldn’t care about it,” he muttered.

“Fine,” Ye Xin Ran countered. “By your logic, she doesn’t care about your money, nor does she care about you as a person. So why would she marry you just to bully you?

What are you, a monkey from Mount E Mei? Why would she go out of her way to pick on you?”

In all the time they’d known each other, this was the first time Ye Xin Ran had confronted Li Mo so bluntly.

Their business partnership had always been amicable.

She hadn’t expected that merely mentioning his family would ignite such a reaction.

Li Mo glanced at Xiao Huai’an, silently pleading for help.

Xiao Huai’an shrugged, making it clear he couldn’t assist.

Ye Xin Ran understood that this was Li Mo’s private matter.

But she had principles, she absolutely refused to be friends with scumbags.

Besides, when a household was in disarray, fortune and prosperity often suffered too.

As a business partner, Ye Xin Ran felt it was in her best interest to address this, even if only for the sake of their shared ventures.

“I’ll ask you, is the reason you’re avoiding your wife because you have someone else outside? Did you have an intended childhood sweetheart you were planning to marry?”

Seeing Li Mo looking all pitiful, Ye Xin Ran asked again.

Li Mo quickly shook his head.
“No, absolutely not!”

“Then, are you dissatisfied with your wife and deliberately neglecting her, wanting to take in a concubine or keep a mistress outside?”

“No, no!”

Li Mo waved both hands frantically, as if to shake away the very idea.

Seeing his reaction, Ye Xin Ran’s attitude finally softened a little.
Li Mo took the opportunity to explain, “I don’t have anyone outside, and there’s no one in my family! I just want to focus on running my medical clinic properly!”

“Then why did you get married?” Ye Xin Ran didn’t buy his excuses.

“I… I didn’t know what kind of person Yue Ting was before we got married,” Li Mo tried to explain weakly.

Ye Xin Ran didn’t press further.
This allowed Li Mo to finally breathe a sigh of relief.
He looked at Xiao Huai’an, silently asking with his eyes:

What should I do now?
You deal with your own wife!

Xiao Huai’an shrugged.
Whoever caused this mess should be the one to smooth things over.

Ye Xin Ran had already noticed their little exchanges.
She finally spoke, “In Great Liang, it’s not easy for a woman.
If you truly care, you should talk things through with your wife. Maybe the problem will resolve.
I see you’re good at business, so why don’t you have a solution for your own household?”

Li Mo’s face finally turned red.
Actually, Ye Xin Ran was right.
Even without her pointing it out, he knew he couldn’t avoid dealing with his own family issues.
Since he would have to face it sooner or later, it was better to resolve it before they grew to resent each other.
By then, there would be no easy solution.

“Alright, I’ll think about it. Once the new shop opens, I’ll bring Yue Ting over to stay for a couple of days.”