Chapter 12 Torrential Storm

Flash~ A branched lightning bolt tore through the sky as the rain poured down in sheets. At this moment, in his room at the Yunzhou City People’s Hospital, Master Qiu had already woken up. The Qiu family members were gathered at his bedside and they did not look good. Wang Qiao-Yu was crying, Qiu Mu-Ying simply kept quiet with her head down and Chu Wen-Fei was kneeling apologetically in front of Master Qiu’s bed. After all, it was Chu Wen-Fei’s gift that had sent Master Qiu into a fit of fright in the first place. The old man was in a severe state after the “surprise” and if he had not been sent to the hospital in time, he would have died. Luckily, Master Qiu managed to recover from the shock. Otherwise, Chu Wen-Fei would have to bear a very heavy burden. “Dad, please find a way to help Guang and Luo. We haven’t heard anything from them for the whole night. Are they going to prison? Will they face the firing squad?” “Fei-Fei is still a child. She needs her father~” The eldest daughter-in-law of the Qiu family was sobbing as she pleaded with her father-in-law. And Wang Qiao-Yu was also wiping tears away from her red-rimmed eyes. Although the Qiu family had many offsprings, the only ones who could shoulder the burden for the family were just Qiu Guang and Qiu Luo. Once they were gone, the family would simply collapse. “Stop crying!” “You only know how to cry~” “If you are going to keep crying, you can get out of my room!” Wang Qiao-Yu and her companions in misery were frightened by this violent outburst and promptly shut up. And then, Master Qiu took one look at the still kneeling Chu Wen-Fei and said gravely, “You can get up.” “Grandfather, I am sorry. What happened yesterday~” Chu Wen-Fei was going to continue when Master Qiu waved dismissively and said, “You don’t have to say anything. It’s not your fault. Someone else is targeting our family.” Master Qiu was an old-timer so he had already noticed the suspicious points in this incident. “What? Somebody is targeting our family?” “Who could it be?” “Qiushui Logistics hasn’t offended anyone powerful recently. And in Yunzhou city, we don’t have any business enemies either.” “So who’s going after our family!” Once again, Wang Qiao-Yu and the womenfolk went into a state of panic. Their bodies shook as tears streamed down their faces. “Shut up!” “You women are useless here. You are only good for irritating me.” Master Qiu was already in a lousy mood and listening to the cries of the womenfolk only made him angrier. “Think carefully. Have you offended anyone?” “Enemies don’t just pop up out of nowhere. There must be a reason why they are targeting us like this.” Master Qiu declared as he looked at his family. Qiu Mu-Ying and Qiu Mu-Hong shook their heads. They did not remember offending anyone powerful. They did bully weaklings like Ye Fan, but weak people like him were unlikely to have the power to retaliate against the Qiu family. “Wait, grandfather. It must be Qiu Mu-Cheng and that useless trash, Ye Fan!” “It must be them.” “They attacked the Young Master of the Shen family yesterday and, right after that, these calamities started happening to us. It can’t be a coincidence.” “The Shen family must have retaliated against us because of what Qiu Mu-Cheng and Ye Fan did. This is the Shen family’s revenge against us.” Qiu Mu-Ying screamed out the facts that she had just thought of. Chu Wen-Fei followed suit and said, “That’s right. The Shen family must have prepared the coffin in order to exact vengeance on us. They are one of the top-tier powers in Yunzhou and they have the backing of Master Li Er. In Yunzhou, there are few powers who are capable of orchestrating the events that happened yesterday. Very few, but the Shen family is definitely one of those groups.” “That bastard Ye Fan and that bitch Qiu Mu-Cheng! It’s all because of them. It’s their fault that my husband was arrested. Dad, we must not spare troublemakers like them.” The red-eyed Wang Qiao-Yu said viciously. Everyone else followed suit and placed the blame on the couple as well. Master Qiu had a sombre expression on his face as he coldly gave the order. “Go get that unfilial girl, Qiu Mu-Cheng, and bring her to me.” He was so angry that his voice shook as he spoke. When Qiu Mu-Cheng received the call, Ye Fan was still making breakfast in the kitchen. As a live-in son-in-law, it was his job to take care of all the household chores. “Mu-Cheng, breakfast is ready.” A few minutes later, Ye Fan had already finished setting the table so he started calling Qiu Mu-Cheng and her family to breakfast. “Stop shouting. Mu-Cheng has already left.” “Eh? Where did she go? It’s still early and it’s raining too.” Ye Fan asked with a frown. Han Li replied coldly: “What? Must my daughter report to you whenever she goes out?” Since his mother-in-law was angry, Ye Fan wisely kept his mouth shut. But Qiu Mu-Cheng did not return for the rest of the day, and that made Ye Fan very worried. Evening came and still Qiu Mu-Cheng did not return. Ye Fan tried calling her but nobody answered the phone. His worry deepened as he looked at the pouring rain outside. Just as he was about to go look for her at the Qiu’s family house, his phone rang. The caller was Qiu Mu-Ying. “Ye Fan, go to the Shen family manor and pick up your wife from the entrance. She’s not a princess but she’s as delicate as one. She only kneeled down for a while but she actually fainted on the spot? I am speechless!” “If you can’t do the time, then don’t do the crime. Now you’ve dragged us down with you. You guys are really jinxes!” Qiu Mu-Ying smiled coldly as she ridiculed Ye Fan and Qiu Mu-Cheng. What? “Mu-Cheng went to the Shen family?” “And she fainted?” Ye Fan’s face turned frosty when he heard the news. The Qiu family. It was the Qiu family! They placed all the blame onto Mu-Cheng and him. They thought that the Shen family was responsible for the acts of retaliation and so they forced Qiu Mu-Cheng to go and apologize personally to the Shen family. But, Qiu Mu-Cheng, that silly girl. Why didn’t she tell him? Why did she go by herself? Was she afraid that he would suffer humiliation? Was she afraid that he would have to face persecution at the hands of the Shen family? But, Mu-Cheng, I am your husband. I am your man. I am supposed to be the one to brave the rain. Why did you, a woman, go face the troubles alone? At that moment, Ye Fan’s eyes turned bloodshot and he clenched his hands so tightly that his fingers dug deep into the flesh. And flames of rage burned within his chest. “Qiu Mu-Ying, let me tell you. If anything happens to Mu-Cheng, there will be no place for the Qiu family in Yunzhou city!” Ye Fan’s words were cold and sinister. They rang like a crack of thunder to her ears and she was instantly stunned. Her face had also turned white as sheet. Very briefly, Qiu Mu-Ying wondered if she had dialled a wrong number. Was this still the useless trash of the Qiu family? Was this still the same submissive Ye Fan? Why did she suddenly feel such overwhelming pressure? Qiu Mu-Ying shivered unconsciously, an unknown fear fomenting in her heart. “Ying-Ying, what’s wrong? You look pale.” Wang Qiao-Yu, who was standing beside her daughter, asked curiously. Qiu Mu-Ying shook her head and replied, “Nothing, mom. It’s just that Ye Fan threatened me. He said that if anything happens to Qiu Mu-Cheng, he will take it out on the Qiu family.” When the Qiu family members heard this, they burst into laughter. “He’s just a piece of trash. He can only talk tough. There’s no need to take him seriously, right?” “He wants to take it out on us. Let’s see if he’s capable of doing so!” Everyone laughed. They didn’t give a damn about Ye Fan and his family. “But we still have to think of a way to get your uncle and father out. Yang-Yang, have you asked your father? Can he help?” Wang Qiao-Yu looked at Jiang Yang. His father was a part of the city administration and had his own connections. Jiang Yang shook his head. “Auntie, I did ask my father. But he said the Qiu family had offended a very powerful person. So my father can’t do anything.” When the Qiu family members heard this, they felt even more hopeless. “It’s all Ye Fan’s and Qiu Mu-Cheng’s fault. Is it really all over for our family?” They couldn’t help but lament. “Wen-Fei, please think of something. Your father also has connections in Yunzhou, right? Why not ask your father and see if he can help us.” A red-eyed Qiu Mu-Ying tugged at Chu Wen-Fei’s arm and pleaded. Chu Wen-Fei looked troubled. “My father knows businessmen, but I’m afraid he doesn’t know any politicians...” “Wen-Fei, just call him and try asking. Maybe he knows someone?” The Qiu family members turned to look at Chu Wen-Fei and they looked like drowning men desperately grasping for a straw to save their lives. Chu Wen-Fei smiled bitterly. Since his father did not even want to acknowledge this marriage, he thought that his father probably wouldn’t want to help even if he could. But the Qiu family members looked at him so yearningly that Chu Wen-Fei found it hard to turn down their plea for help. So even though he knew this endeavor was doomed to failure, he dialled his father’s number. “Dad, regarding the Qiu family’s problem...” Before Chu Wen-Fei could complete his sentence, Chu Yang’s angry voice came roaring from the other end of the line. “You unfilial son. Don’t call me ‘dad’. As long as you do not divorce that green tea bitch, I will not allow you to set foot inside our house.” Dududu~ Chu Yang had hung up. “Wen-Fei, how was it? What did you father say?” The questioning came immediately after the call. Chu Wen-Fei laughed guiltily and told Wang Qiao-Yu, “Mom, don’t worry. My father said he will think of something and take care of the problem.” “That’s good, that’s good. At this crucial moment, we can only rely on Wen-Fei and Yang-Yang. The people in Lei’s family are just useless troublemakers.” The Qiu family members smiled in relief and Master Qiu’s mood took a turn for the better. None of them suspected that Chu Wen-Fei had been bragging earlier. Take care of the problem? Yeah, right! Even if the problem of Chu Wen-Fei’s family being only second-tier and lower-ranking than the Shen family was ignored, Chu Yang was simply not interested in helping the Qiu family. At this moment, as the Qiu family members were digesting Chu Wen-Fei’s words of comfort, Ye Fan was on his way to the Shen family manor. When Ye Fan arrived at his destination, Qiu Mu-Cheng was still on her knees. The lamps on both sides of the street glowed weakly and illuminated her limp figure. Through the curtain of rain that was as thick as an iron wall, Ye Fan could see the small figure of Qiu Mu-Cheng. She was kneeling there all by herself, so small and forlorn like a single spark lost in the vast night sky, as if the world had abandoned her. “Mu-Cheng~” Ye Fan hurried over and swept her into his hug. Qiu Mu-Cheng’s body was icy cold and her clothes had been thoroughly soaked through by the rain. Her face was as pale as paper but her forehead was raging hot. Because she had been kneeling for a long time, her porcelain legs were marred by bloody marks. As the rain poured down, the blood from her wounds was washed away. “You stupid woman. Are you an idiot?” “Why didn’t you tell me. Why did you come by yourself!” “They’ve already expelled you from the Qiu family, so why bother yourself with them?” “Why are you so stupid?” Ye Fan howled angrily. The rain continued to beat down on him as he held Qiu Mu-Cheng in his embrace.