“Yes! An’an!” Xu Yanli immediately stepped forward as well, putting on a look of deep affection.
“My heart has only ever belonged to you! You said it yourself—that you felt uneasy holding onto those things, afraid someone would covet them, so you asked us to keep them for you, right?”
As he spoke, he leaned in closer, lowering his voice so only the two of them could hear, thinking himself clever: “All this fuss you’re making… isn’t it just to get me to change my mind? As long as you get these people to leave and smooth things over… I promise, I’ll never touch Su Qingyue again. Satisfied?”
Su Qingyue burned with rage inside but forced a look of frail innocence on her face.
Her red-rimmed eyes looked at Ruan An’an, her voice soft enough to squeeze water from: “An’an, all the mistakes are my fault! I… I just got blinded by my ambition, wanting to leave a line for the Ruan family! Please calm down, I’ll pack up and go back to the countryside, never bothering you again!”
She made a show of wiping away nonexistent tears.
Ruan An’an lifted her big, wet eyes and looked at Su Qingyue with an expression of “pure innocence,” her voice soft, slightly sweet, and just tinged with surprised delight: “Really, sister-in-law? You’re going to pack up now? I’ll beg Commissioner Li to borrow a cart… oh no, send a military vehicle for you! The countryside roads are rough; I wouldn’t dare let your baby bump get jostled.”
Keep pretending! Let’s see how you handle this!
Su Qingyue’s fake smile froze instantly, as if someone had grabbed her by the throat, her eyes wide.
A military vehicle? Was this girl really trying to drive her out?
No, there was no way she was going back to the countryside!
Thinking this, Su Qingyue looked at Xu Yanli with tearful eyes.
“Arli…”
Xu Yanli couldn’t stand that look; his face immediately darkened as he turned toward Ruan An’an.
“Ruan An’an…”
Before he could speak, Ruan An’an twisted the hem of her clothes nervously, interrupting him: “Arli, don’t rush. I know… I know what to say.”
The anger that had just risen in Xu Yanli subsided, and he straightened his posture slightly.
He knew this woman couldn’t live without him; this whole scene was just a jealous act!
Thinking this, he tilted his chin toward the militia captain, smugly: “If you don’t believe me, don’t believe my mom, at least you can’t disbelieve Ruan An’an, right?”
Li Ying crossed her arms, huffing through her nose, her triangular eyes full of disdain as she scanned Ruan An’an.
Little brat! You’ll die if you leave my son!
Performing for whom here?
Just jealous that Qingyue is pregnant?
Bah! My son just beckons, and you’d crawl back like a little puppy, tail wagging!
Su Qingyue lowered her head, concealing the fury churning in her eyes, her nails digging into her palms.
Little brat! All an act! Once this is over, see how I deal with you!
The militia captain frowned at the confident looks of Xu Yanli and his mother.
He turned to Ruan An’an, who kept her head lowered, his voice firm: “Comrade Ruan An’an, you tell us! What exactly is going on?”
Ruan An’an trembled like a frightened fawn, her body shaking, head buried lower, her voice small and quivering with tears: “I… I think mom… maybe… maybe she meant well…”
She shyly glanced at Li Ying, then recoiled as if burned, shoulders huddling tighter.
“Mom… mom’s always been… really good to me… really… she knew I cared for Qiao, worried that if I gained weight Arli would dislike me… so… so whenever there was a bit of fatty meat in the house… she took it to the annex for sister-in-law… saying she’s pregnant… precious…”
“And… and the few boxes mom left me…”
She seemed to summon all her courage, her voice trembling: “She said… I’m young… timid… afraid… afraid I wouldn’t guard these valuable things… that thieves would covet them… so she took them and hid them properly…”
As Ruan An’an spoke, her thin shoulders jerked slightly with each breath, looking pitiful.
No one saw the terrifying frost hidden in her eyes.
Old witch, just wait! The meat you swallowed, the money you took—you’ll pay it all back today, principal and interest!
“Absolute nonsense!”
Li Ying was so angered by this “heartfelt confession” that she felt her soul rise.
Spittle flew as she pointed at Ruan An’an’s nose, stomping her feet: “Little brat! You… you don’t want to enter my Xu family, right?!”
Ruan An’an, looking startled, suddenly recoiled, almost collapsing.
*** stepped forward like an iron tower, glaring at Li Ying.
“Comrade Ruan An’an! Don’t be afraid! The Party and government will protect you! Let’s see who dares touch a single finger of yours today!”
The militia captain also stepped up: “Comrade Ruan, don’t be afraid. With me here, no one can threaten you!”
“I… I…” Ruan An’an, behind ***, only showed her wide, tearful eyes, lips trembling, as if scared out of her wits, shaking her head violently.
Xu Yanli grew anxious, pushing through the crowd, forcing himself to soften his tone in what he thought was tender concern: “An’an, listen! As long as you explain everything clearly to the captain, things will be like before! As for Qingyue…”
He glanced at Su Qingyue, face pale, gritted his teeth, lowering his voice further, coaxing: “You just upset her, right? Fine! I’ll make her leave! Pack her things and send her back to the countryside to rest! Out of sight, out of mind! That works, right?”
First get Qingyue out of the way, then calm this foolish woman and get past this stage.
She loves him so much, willing to endure anything for him—this is a step she can take.
Xu Yanli’s cold, heartless words struck Su Qingyue like an ice pick.
Her face drained of color. With a determined heart, she suddenly lunged to Ruan An’an’s feet, “plop,” kneeling heavily.
Her hands clutched Ruan An’an’s pant legs, nails digging into the fabric, crying out in a piercing, desperate voice:
“An’an! All the blame is mine! You can hit me, scold me, anything! But you can’t… can’t take revenge on Arli and Mom, sending them into the authorities!”
She cried as if her heart were tearing apart, as if the sky were collapsing.
“I’ll go! I’ll leave right now! I’ll pack and return to the countryside! I’ll never appear in front of you again! Please, spare them!”
“Oh, Qingyue! You’re pregnant! Get up! The ground is cold!”
Li Ying, feeling concerned, rushed to pull Su Qingyue up.
But Su Qingyue knelt firmly, brushing Li Ying’s hand aside, her tears glinting with stubbornness.
“Mom! Don’t pull me! If An’an isn’t angry, doesn’t forgive me… I… I have no face to stand!”
Xu Yanli’s heart twisted as he watched Su Qingyue kneeling and sobbing.
After all, the child is his! How could he really abandon her?
But thinking of his own situation, he turned his face away.
The tugging at his pant leg felt like a snake coiling around his calf. Beneath Ruan An’an’s lowered lashes, a chilling light glinted like a blade.
So much devotion! So much endurance!
Kneeling at me? Pulling at me? PUA-ing me? Morally manipulating me?
Alright, Su Qingyue, today I’ll show you what a top-tier green tea bitch looks like!
Thinking this, Ruan An’an looked down from her high stance at Su Qingyue kneeling and wailing at her feet, a faint curve forming at the corner of her lips.
Next second!
“Ah—!!!”
A piercing, terrified scream tore through the air.
Ruan An’an’s whole body seemed to be shoved by an enormous force, thrown backward heavily, completely off guard.
Tears streamed down her face like broken beads, as Su Qingyue looked on, stunned and confused:
“Sis… sister-in-law? You… why did you push me?”