Li Xingze smiled. “My brother would never go. He cares about Luoxue the most and won’t forgive Gu Mian.”
The next second, Li Tingshen stood up and headed to the kitchen.
Li Xingze: “…”
“My brother truly lives up to being the eldest grandson – he’s the most filial and always listens to Grandma!” Li Xingze quickly added.
Madam Li’s expression softened slightly.
Li Tingshen entered the kitchen and saw Gu Mian alone in the western kitchen area, making a cake.
She was completely focused, treating the cake-making process as if it were an art form.
Over the past three years, Li Tingshen had rarely paid attention to this wife who had been married to him for luck.
He didn’t resist her presence, and even found himself unexpectedly drawn to her in intimate moments, but aside from their time in bed, he had never really looked at her properly.
Now he suddenly realized that when Gu Mian was focused, she seemed to glow.
Li Tingshen didn’t know where these random thoughts were coming from. Collecting himself, he walked over to her. “Dinner is ready. Let’s go eat.”
“You go ahead. I’m almost done and will be right there.”
“Grandma said we won’t start until you’re there.”
Gu Mian naturally understood priorities. Making the Li family wait for her in such circumstances would only breed resentment.
She could only put the cake in the refrigerator first and follow Li Tingshen to the dining room.
When Madam Li saw Gu Mian, her previously displeased face immediately broke into a smile. “Mian Yatou, you’re here? Come sit down and eat.”
“Sorry to keep everyone waiting.” Gu Mian apologized before sitting down beside Li Tingshen.
“Let’s begin.”
Only after Madam Li spoke did everyone pick up their chopsticks to eat.
Li Xingze’s eyes shifted cunningly as he stood up and used serving chopsticks to place a shrimp in Gu Mian’s bowl.
Gu Mian froze, looking puzzled at the face that bore some resemblance to Li Tingshen.
Others also looked at him in surprise.
Li Xingze smiled as he spoke. “Sister-in-law, the food in prison must have been terrible, right? You’ve lost so much weight. Eat more.”
Li Tingshen frowned!
“Xingze!” Madam Li looked at her grandson, her eyes full of warning. “Don’t talk nonsense!”
“What nonsense am I talking?” Li Xingze wore an innocent expression. “Did Sister-in-law not go to prison? Or has she not lost weight?”
“You…”
“Grandma.” Before Madam Li could scold him, Gu Mian spoke first. “Xingze isn’t wrong. I did go to prison – that’s a fact. There’s nothing that can’t be said.”
She understood clearly that the more she avoided and resisted it, the more others would use it to attack and humiliate her.
Rather than clinging to meaningless insecurity, it was better to face it openly.
Dignity was something she was destined to lose from the day she went to prison.
Madam Li looked at Gu Mian with heartache. “You’ve already suffered enough. Grandma won’t let you be mocked in your own home.”
“What has she suffered?” Li Xingze spoke indignantly. “She only spent a year in prison and came back without any losses! The pitiful one is Luoxue, who has to spend her life in a wheelchair!”
Yin Luoxue lowered her head, looking at her legs with a pained expression, but then sniffled and spoke as if nothing was wrong. “Xingze, don’t say anymore. Let bygones be bygones. I said from the beginning that I don’t blame Gu Mian, so having her spend just one year in prison was enough.”
Gu Mian curled her lips, finding it utterly ridiculous.
Li Xingze grew even angrier upon seeing Gu Mian’s expression. “What kind of attitude is this! Luoxue has been so good to you, yet you’re still not satisfied? As long as I’m here, don’t even think about laying a finger on Luoxue again! A woman like you should be locked up in prison forever to keep you from harming others!”
Just as Madam Li was about to speak, a deep, icy voice slowly sounded.
“Have you said enough?”
Everyone followed the voice to Li Tingshen, who had remained silent until now.
The man’s face was dark, the low pressure surrounding him seeming to drop the room’s temperature by several degrees.
Li Tingshen raised his eyes to look at Li Xingze.
Li Xingze felt a chill run down his spine!
He had always been afraid of his older brother since childhood. Even now that he was grown, a single look from his brother could make him shudder!
Li Xingze nervously swallowed and asked, “Brother, did… did I say something wrong?”
“Didn’t Grandma say no one was to mention this matter again? Are you deaf, or do you simply not take her words seriously, hmm?”
Just as Li Xingze was about to explain, he heard him speak again. “Gu Mian is my wife. I haven’t said anything, so what gives you the right to criticize her here? If you dare to insult her like this in front of me, would you have tried to kill her with a knife if I weren’t here?”
Li Xingze’s face instantly turned pale. Both intimidated and angry, he said, “Brother, you never used to care about these matters before. Why are you standing up for Gu Mian today?”
“I’m not standing up for her.” Li Tingshen picked up his wine glass and took a sip of red wine, his voice cold. “I just want to remind you all that even if Gu Mian were a dog I raised, she wouldn’t be for others to discipline. Understood?”
Yin Luoxue secretly gritted her teeth, though a gentle, sweet smile remained on her face. “Ting Shen, how can you compare Gu Mian to a dog? Xingze won’t discipline her anymore. Please don’t let such a small matter damage the bond between brothers.”
“Luoxue is so sensible,” Madam Li said with a smile. “Unlike Xingze, who’s grown wild in the entertainment industry with no sense of propriety.”
Yin Luoxue was flattered. Madam Li had never liked her before—no matter how proactive or warm she was during their encounters, she would only receive a cold response. This was the first time she had ever been praised.
Yin Luoxue quickly seized the opportunity to ingratiate herself. “Thank you, Grandma. Grandma, let me serve you some soup.”
“Such small tasks should be left to my granddaughter-in-law. There’s no need to trouble you.”
Yin Luoxue’s hand, poised to serve the soup, froze in mid-air, leaving her utterly embarrassed.
Li Xingze hurriedly came to her rescue. “Luoxue, you can’t reach. Let me serve it.”
Only then did Yin Luoxue awkwardly withdraw her hand.
Madam Li continued, “Luoxue is right. You brothers must not let this harm your relationship, especially when it’s caused such a scene at a family dinner. It’s utterly improper.”
Li Xingze brought the soup to Madam Li. “Grandma, I was wrong. Please don’t be angry.”
“I’m old, with one foot in the grave. I don’t ask for much—I only hope Ting Shen and Mian Yatou can give me a great-grandson soon. But heaven doesn’t grant wishes easily. Mian Yatou was forced to suffer a year in prison because of all of you.” Madam Li wiped her tears. “Because of what you did, my wish for a great-grandson has been delayed another year!”
Under the table, Gu Mian’s hands clutched at the hem of her clothes.
If Madam Li knew she was pregnant, she would be overjoyed. But this child was destined to remain unknown to the Li family.
Li Xingze comforted, “Grandma, she brought it upon hersel…”
Remembering Li Tingshen’s glare from earlier, he swallowed the rest of his words.
Madam Li wiped her tears and continued, “Now that Mian Yatou has finally returned, this household has become chaotic. You two brothers dare to argue at the dining table—it seems this old woman must step up to restore order.”
Li Xingze’s heart sank. “Grandma, how do you plan to restore order?”
Surely she wouldn’t freeze his bank cards!
Madam Li looked toward Yin Luoxue. “When all is said and done, everything traces back to Luoxue. Although the Li and Yin families have been longtime friends and are next-door neighbors, we aren’t blood relatives and should maintain proper boundaries. From now on, Luoxue need not attend family banquets like this one.”