“…A box?”
Li Qing’s expression visibly turned serious.
During the days she had been home, Li Jianhui had slept until the sun was high in the sky, only sneaking out as dusk approached.
Sometimes, he wouldn’t return until the afternoon of the following day.
Not having to see that detestable face, Li Qing naturally couldn’t be bothered with him. Even if Li Jianhui died outside, she would only set off firecrackers in celebration.
Li Qing had never noticed any box at home.
“That’s right! That wooden box looked like it was finely crafted! The carvings on it… Oh dear, you’d better hurry home and check!”
“Alright, thank you, Aunt Liu.”
Li Qing nodded and immediately ran back home.
As soon as she entered the house, the living room showed no signs of being disturbed, but—
Li Qing’s gaze fell on her open bedroom door.
The wardrobe, the nightstand, even the mattress—all bore signs of having been rummaged through.
She and her mother now shared a room, while Li Jianhui had his own.
Her important belongings had long been moved to Ninth Street, so what Li Jianhui had likely been searching through were her mother’s things.
“!!!”
A sudden flash of insight struck her, as if something she had forgotten had been dredged back up.
Li Qing abruptly halted her steps, her expression turning dark and terrifying.
The wooden box…
She vaguely remembered her mother showing it to her.
It was a keepsake left to her mother by her late grandmother—a jade bracelet of decent quality.
Her mother had shown it to her to tell her that it would one day be passed down to her as well.
But she hadn’t known that her mother had hidden that box in her room.
If Li Jianhui had really stolen it to sell…
“Crack!”
Li Qing twisted her wrist coldly.
Then, she took out her phone and called Zhao Wenyi.
“Brother Zhao, help me check—”
“Li Qing?”
Li Jianhui’s guilty voice suddenly sounded outside the door.
Li Qing paused, calmly saying to Zhao Wenyi on the other end of the line, “I’ll come find you later,” before hanging up.
She lifted her head expressionlessly, meeting Li Jianhui’s gaze.
“What… what are you looking at me like that for!”
Li Jianhui’s eyes darted away.
Under Li Qing’s increasingly dangerous stare, his tone grew hesitant and faltering.
“Where’s… where’s your mother? Trying to starve me to death, is she?!”
“Hmph.”
Li Qing sneered coldly, striding forward and raising her hand before Li Jianhui could react.
“Slap!”
A sharp, forceful slap landed, crisp and resounding, leaving no room for mercy.
Li Jianhui, already a useless drunkard, staggered back two steps from the blow.
“You damn girl, how dare you?!”
He snapped back to his senses in disbelief, glaring at her with venomous eyes.
But Li Qing’s gaze was even more terrifying than his.
She leisurely stretched her limbs, her voice icy and piercing as she spoke: “Where did you sell my mother’s bracelet?”
“What… what bracelet…”
At these words, Li Jianhui, who had just mustered a bit of bravado, immediately deflated, awkwardly trying to change the subject.
He stubbornly insisted, “You can’t just say things like that! I never touched your mother’s things!”
“Never touched them?”
Li Qing echoed lightly.
Then came another “Slap!” across the other half of Li Jianhui’s face.
She stepped forward, grabbed him by the collar, and roughly slammed his head down onto the coffee table.
“Mmph! Mmph!”
Li Jianhui struggled with difficulty, yet remained unable to move.
Li Qing spoke coldly, “Do I need to repeat just how many of my mother’s things you’ve taken over the years?”
Li Jianhui’s eyes reddened with rage.
He roared furiously, “I’ve supported you all for so many years! Everything in this house is mine—what’s wrong with taking it?!”
“Hah.”
Li Qing let out a bitter laugh.
Li Jianhui truly showed no remorse—he was beyond saving.
She patted Li Jianhui’s cheek, leaned down, and threatened him unhurriedly, “You’d better tell me honestly where you sold it, or else…”
She left the rest unsaid, but the flicker of killing intent in her eyes said it all.
Unexpectedly, instead of being intimidated by Li Qing, Li Jianhui arrogantly threatened her in return.
“Then aren’t you afraid your mother will find out about you and that Zhao Wenyi and his crew—”
Thud!
Li Qing’s eyes turned fierce. The hand gripping the back of Li Jianhui’s collar bulged with veins, clearly pushed to the brink of her patience.
But in the end, she restrained herself.
Li Qing released her grip, glanced at the blood flowing from Li Jianhui’s head, and sneered, “Then go ahead and try—see just how tough your life really is.”
“You!”
Li Jianhui’s body trembled violently.
Clutching his head, countless vile insults flashed through his mind, but the memory of how Li Qing had nearly killed him just moments ago made him hold back.
He retorted defiantly, “It’s just a worthless bracelet! I’ll win it back sooner or later—what’s the rush?!”
“Keep dreaming your foolish dreams.”
Li Qing picked up her backpack from the sofa, tossed out this sarcastic remark, and turned to leave the house.
……
Li Qing arrived at the Miye Bar.
Zhao Wenyi was already waiting there, asking worriedly what had happened.
Li Qing explained the whole situation to him.
“Brother Zhao, could you help me find out where that bracelet ended up… Also, I suspect Li Jianhui has gotten into something again recently. I want to investigate him.”
“Alright, I’ll handle this.”
Zhao Wenyi agreed immediately.
A lingering fierceness remained in Li Qing’s eyes.
She sat at the bar for a while to calm down before continuing under Zhao Wenyi’s concerned gaze, “I want to find a new place to live.”
Sooner or later, that house would bring trouble because of Li Jianhui. Her mother couldn’t take any more stress, nor should she be disturbed by Li Jianhui again.
Hearing this, Zhao Wenyi suggested, “How about moving to Uncle Jiu’s place? Two rooms upstairs have become vacant after some tenants moved out.”
On Uncle Jiu’s turf, Li Qing wouldn’t have to worry about Chen Ruohua’s safety—Li Jianhui wouldn’t dare show up there.
“No.”
Li Qing shook her head in refusal. “I want to move somewhere closer to the hospital and school.”
“Mom, you’re moving?!”
Yuan Miao suddenly appeared at that moment.
Unaware of what had happened, he only overheard Li Qing’s desire to move, and his eyes lit up.
“Does that mean I can move in with you?”
“…”
“Ahem.”
Zhao Wenyi cleared his throat lightly.
He turned to Yuan Miao with a helpless, teasing tone, “What, are you unhappy living here?”
“Of course not!”
Yuan Miao widened his eyes exaggeratedly, his tone equally dramatic. “I love it here!”
Zhao Wenyi: “…”
He couldn’t help but chuckle.
Changing the subject, Yuan Miao said with a grin, “It’s just that I’ll soon be going to school with my mom—living together would be more convenient!”
Yuan Miao had also mentioned the school matter to Zhao Wenyi and the others.
Luo Zhengyu happened to walk in from outside and couldn’t help but chuckle teasingly upon hearing this.
“Is your relative even reliable? It’s been a week and there’s still no movement.”
“Uncle Luo!”
Yuan Miao pretended to be angry and glared at him.