After Li Jing got off work, Lu Yao closed the shop early.
She brought her parents’ luggage up to the second floor, and Lu’s mother immediately went to the kitchen to take a look.
The kitchen wasn’t large, but it was fully equipped. One could tell that Lu Yao lived a very organized life.
“How much is the rent here?” Lu’s mother asked.
Lu Yao’s hand paused as she packed. She said indifferently, “It’s not expensive. Someone introduced me.”
Lu’s mother had heard Lu Yao mention this before—that it was someone Jiang Yunyun had worked with, so the rent was discounted. However, now that she was here, Lu’s mother still wanted to ask again.
This place wasn’t like their hometown. No matter how cheap it was, the quoted price still made the couple feel a pang in their hearts.
However, they didn’t feel right saying anything, fearing that if they spoke too much, Lu Yao would change her mind about the divorce.
Lu Yao cleared off the sofa. “There are no hotels nearby, so I’ll have to trouble Dad to sleep on the sofa for one night. Tomorrow, I’ll go find a place for you to stay.”
Lu’s father nodded without complaint.
They had arrived suddenly, and Lu Yao truly hadn’t had time to arrange things; having a sofa to sleep on was already quite good.
Lu Yao added, “I’ll be waking up very early tomorrow. Don’t worry about me, just keep sleeping. Li Jing will come in for work then, and you can ask her if you have any questions.”
“She’s a good person.”
Lu’s mother burst out laughing.
Lu Yao looked at her strangely. “Did I say something wrong?”
“No.” Lu’s mother shook her head. “I just feel like you’ve changed quite a bit.”
Lu’s mother spoke with a sense of sentimentality.
Lu Yao was stunned for a moment, then she followed with a smile. It seemed true; her changes now were more than just a little significant.
In the past, Lu Yao was always the lukewarm type who stayed behind others, waiting for someone to settle things before nodding steadily.
That was because people had pampered her. When she was young, she had her parents, and after graduation…
Lu Yao smiled. “At least it’s a change for the better.”
Lu’s mother agreed, “Yes, it is.”
The couple had rushed over from their hometown without a word mainly because they wanted to see how their daughter was doing and if she was being mistreated.
When Lu Yao and Luo Yueming first got married, they had visited as well. At that time, Luo Yueming hadn’t bought a house yet and lived in a rented place, though it was a two-bedroom apartment.
Compared to now, it wasn’t even as good. Lu’s mother’s eyes felt sour.
She wiped away a tear. “Go to sleep early. Your dad and I will just wander around nearby tomorrow.”
“Okay,” Lu Yao said softly.
Lu Yao turned off the lights and shared a bed with her mother. With her father lying on the sofa nearby, the feeling of being surrounded by family made her feel very at peace.
She really had changed. Lu Yao closed her eyes and fell asleep with a sense of security.
The next day, Lu Yao returned after delivering some goods.
She was worried about her parents being in an unfamiliar place and wanted to get back as soon as possible.
Usually, she returned near noon, but today she made it back to the shop half an hour early.
Li Jing was chatting happily with Lu’s mother. After looking around, Lu’s father was not in the shop nor upstairs. Lu Yao asked her mother where he went, and her mother said he went out to find an inn.
“How could you let him go out alone?” Lu Yao looked outside worriedly.
“You can open a shop by yourself, so surely a man who has lived as long as he has can find an inn?”
Lu Yao was left speechless by the retort.
Li Jing was laughing loudly, but then she noticed Lu Yao’s slightly resentful expression and found it even more amusing, though she didn’t dare laugh anymore.
She cleared her throat. “I told Uncle of a place near my house. I wasn’t sure how long they want to stay, but you can find short-term rentals there; they are much cheaper.”
Li Jing was a local and had lived here for over twenty years; she was more familiar with the area than Lu Yao.
Hearing Li Jing’s words, Lu Yao finally felt at ease.
However, not long after, before Lu Yao even had time to go upstairs to cook, she received a call from the police station.
Looking at the caller ID, she felt a bit panicked. She mentally reviewed her business license procedures and wasn’t sure if anything was missing, so she answered the phone with trepidation.
Lu’s mother looked over and saw Lu Yao’s expression becoming increasingly wrong, and her heart rose in her throat.
Lu Yao looked at Li Jing, nodded quickly, and hung up the phone. She said rapidly, “Dad encountered a robber in an alley. There was a struggle, and now he’s at the hospital.”
“What?” Lu’s mother was instantly stunned.
Even Li Jing was dazed. She was the one who recommended the place to Lu’s father; she felt she was responsible.
The three of them didn’t delay. They pulled down the rolling shutter, posted a “Closed for Rest” notice, and headed to the hospital and the police station separately.
Li Jing was worried about Lu’s father’s condition. If something happened to him, she wouldn’t be able to live with herself, so she and Lu’s mother went to the hospital first, leaving Lu Yao to go to the police station alone.
When Lu Yao rushed there, she didn’t know what to think.
She couldn’t help but hate those robbers. If anything happened to her father, she would want to cut them into a thousand pieces.
But mostly, she felt a panicked helplessness—a panicking heart that didn’t know what to do. She couldn’t actually do anything to the robbers, yet she was terrified of what might have happened.
By the time she reached the police station, her eyes were red.
Inside the station, two men were locked in handcuffs.
Their eyes were fierce.
When Lu Yao met their gaze, the two men looked back like predators, their eyes flashing with a sharp light.
They were defiant. Even when looking at Lu Yao, the victim’s family member, they didn’t restrain themselves. It was only when the policeman tapped the table as a warning that they lowered their eyes and remained silent.
Lu Yao was somewhat frightened by their gaze, then she thought of them laying hands on her father and quickly looked at the policeman.
The policeman was quite calm and even took the time to comfort Lu Yao. “It’s near the end of the year, and they came from elsewhere to target people who obviously aren’t from this city. Your father was tough; he held onto them and dragged them out of the alley…”
Lu Yao: “…They are two young men, and my father is so old.”
“Nothing was lost, but your father sustained some injuries.” That was the reason they called Lu Yao.
The two young men didn’t have a penny to their names and certainly had no ability to pay compensation. The police had contacted their parents, but their parents refused to deal with them.
That being said, Lu Yao just felt it was unfair.
She pursed her lips, her heart aching. This couldn’t just be the end of it.
The policeman comforted Lu Yao. “We will definitely keep them in custody and won’t release them until their education is complete.”
And what about Lu Yao’s father?
The policeman didn’t give a clear answer. Most likely, they just had to take the loss.
These two young men were social parasites whose parents didn’t even care about them. The police also found it troublesome, but there was nothing they could do.
Moreover, it was an attempted robbery, and regarding the injuries Lu’s father sustained, the two thugs insisted it was a mutual fight. Thus, it was very difficult to escalate the charges to a higher level of sentencing.
Lu Yao wanted to say she would hire a lawyer, but after seeing the policeman’s look, she shrunk back.
At that moment, Lu Yao felt like she hadn’t changed at all.
Still as weak as ever.
Before going to sleep last night, she had felt somewhat proud, thinking that after twenty years, she had finally grown into a daughter who could take care of her parents.
In the blink of an eye, she couldn’t even resolve this small matter. What use was she?
After listening to the policeman’s explanation, Lu Yao left listlessly.
Suddenly, she felt that this city was equally strange to her.
At least in the small town of their home, her parents wouldn’t encounter such an incident. Even if they did, many elders would stand up for them.
With thugs like these, they would surely be able to find the thugs’ parents and cause a scene at their door.
But Lu Yao could do nothing.
She was indignant. She argued with the policeman for a few sentences, but was easily persuaded back. This was the difference in experience. Although Lu Yao was still unconvinced in her heart, she could no longer find the words to speak.
She then rushed to the hospital.
She wanted to determine her father’s specific condition.
Li Jing came down to meet her, her face carrying a look of guilt. “I’m sorry, I didn’t expect this. I’ve lived there for so long and nothing like this has ever happened.”
Lu Yao was somewhat distracted, still thinking about the two thugs.
“This isn’t your fault.” Lu Yao repeated the policeman’s words.
They specifically targeted outsiders, especially in deserted alleys.
It was just bad luck that Lu’s father had lost his way while searching.
Although it had nothing to do with Li Jing, she still felt bad about it. “I told my parents about this. They’ll come over after work. Why don’t you bring Aunt and Uncle to stay at my house? It’ll be easier to take care of them.”
Lu Yao disagreed, feeling it wasn’t necessary.
However, Li Jing was insistent, and she looked as if she would cry if Lu Yao didn’t agree.
Lu Yao opened her mouth and could only say she would ask her parents’ opinion first.
She would let the older generation handle the back-and-forth of that matter.
Lu’s father was undergoing an examination in the emergency surgery department. It wasn’t yet certain if his internal organs were injured, so he couldn’t be discharged.
When Lu Yao went up to see him, her father’s hand was already bandaged. Seeing her father like this, Lu Yao burst into tears instantly.
Li Jing gently put an arm around her shoulder, patting her. “It’s okay. The doctor checked; he just needs to recuperate, and he’ll recover in two or three months.”
Of course, that was assuming no other injuries were found.
Li Jing’s eyes were full of remorse. If she had known, she would have gone with him.
Lu Yao sniffled, held back her tears, and walked to her father’s side.
Lu’s father was still laughing. “Seems I’m not too old yet; I caught two wayward youths.”