Su Qingtian's embrace suddenly felt empty, and he felt his blood rush backward.
This was the first time the little girl had pushed him away.
Su Yunmo took Wu Qi's hand, acting very affectionately, "Doesn't Uncle like Momo? Then take Momo with you."
Wu Qi's hand stiffened, unsure how to respond. He looked at Su Qingtian, his voice urgent, "Does General Su really want me to take her away?"
A surge of anger rose in Su Qingtian's chest, and he strode forward, intending to pull Su Yunmo back.
Su Sizhuo quickly stepped forward to block Su Qingtian, his tone calm, "Of course. Our General's Mansion doesn't want to raise a little girl who only knows how to eat."
After saying this, he looked at Su Yunmo, his eyes shifting slightly, and nodded.
Su Yunmo breathed a sigh of relief.
Since her elder brother already knew what she wanted to do, he would definitely help her persuade their father.
Zuo Chenming was also unsure of what was happening, but he couldn't go against her wishes. "If that's the case, General Su should return."
Su Qingtian gritted his teeth, clenched his fists, and stared at Su Yunmo.
Su Sizhuo slipped his hand into Su Qingtian's large one, "Father, Momo has her own choices. If you truly care for her, you should let her follow her heart."
He paused, then added, "No matter what, Wu Qi is her biological uncle."
These words were like a basin of cold water drenching Su Qingtian from head to toe, chilling his very heart.
Su Qingtian took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and said, "Fine, fine. It seems our father-daughter bond is weak."
He turned and walked away, his steps faltering and hurried, looking utterly lost.
Su Sizhuo cast a deep look at Su Yunmo and turned to follow.
As they left, Wu Qi became flustered and moved to follow, "General Su, General Su!"
Su Yunmo grabbed his hand and raised her eyebrows, "Where are you going, Uncle? You still need to take Momo home."
Wu Qi's heart raced, and he flung her hand away, "Who's your uncle? You little brat, do you know you're blocking my path to wealth?"
*Thump!*
A crisp sound of a wooden clapper hitting a table echoed.
Wu Qi jumped in fright.
Zuo Chenming's face darkened, and he sternly said, "Since you have taken the child, you must take good care of her from now on and not let her suffer!"
Wu Qi suddenly remembered where they were. He quickly took Su Yunmo's hand again, bowing and scraping, "Your words are correct, sir. I will take her away now."
He quickly pulled Su Yunmo and headed outside.
Zuo Chenming watched them leave, sighing inwardly.
He feared the child would suffer greatly in the future.
However, for the General's Mansion, this was a way to escape an incident that could ruin their reputation.
...
The Wu family mansion had been sealed years ago. Now, Wu Qi and his wife lived in the side courtyard.
In the East District of the city.
Madam Wu had received the news early and was waiting at the entrance. Seeing Wu Qi return, she happily rushed to greet him, but her face immediately soured upon seeing Su Yunmo.
"Why did you bring this girl back? Where's the money?"
Wu Qi pushed Su Yunmo aside, "What money? This time, I tried to steal a chicken but ended up losing the rice. Su Qingtian is also quite heartless; he can just abandon the child he raised for so long."
Madam Wu: "How is that possible? Didn't the young lady from the Marquis's mansion say that Su Qingtian doted on this girl the most? Did you ask for too much money?"
Marquis's mansion?
Su Yunmo narrowed her eyes, a cold glint flashing in them.
It was indeed Lin Yuning's doing!
"How could it be too much? Can the General's Mansion not afford a mere five thousand taels?" Wu Qi entered the house and slumped onto a chair.
Madam Wu looked displeased, "What do you plan to do now? We finally came to the capital, thinking we'd earn a lot of money, but now we have to feed another mouth!"
She flung her sleeves as if throwing a tantrum, "I don't care. You go to the General's Mansion again tomorrow. Even if you have to lower the price, get the money back! I won't raise her for nothing."
Wu Qi slammed the table, "No, no. Seeing how it was at the Jingzhao Prefecture today, he won't give a single cent. If all else fails, we can sell this girl to a brothel."
A general's daughter could fetch a good price.
"Uncle wants to sell Momo? No, if I'm here, you have to be responsible for raising me." Su Yunmo climbed onto a chair and helped herself to a piece of pastry, popping it into her mouth.
Hmm, it was indeed not as good as the General's Mansion's.
Madam Wu rolled up her sleeves and strode over to grab Su Yunmo.
"You little troublemaker, do you think this is your General's Mansion? Stop putting on airs of a young lady in front of me. Go do some work, or you won't even get dog food!"
But before her hand could touch Su Yunmo, her wrist was grabbed.
Gui Sha, with a grim expression, flung her away.
Seeing Gui Sha, Su Yunmo raised her eyebrows in surprise, "Did Father send you?"
Gui Sha nodded and then shook his head.
When the General had given him to Miss, he had said that he belonged to Miss from then on and would only obey her commands at any time.
Even if Miss was no longer a member of the Su family, this rule would not change.
Madam Wu fell to the ground, and Wu Qi quickly went to help her up.
He recognized Gui Sha and dared not approach, "Since Su Qingtian has handed the child over to us, why are you following? Do you know that trespassing is a serious crime?"
Gui Sha frowned; he wasn't very clear about such matters.
"He is my person, but it doesn't matter." Su Yunmo waved her hand, signaling Gui Sha to step back, and jumped down from the chair.
She tilted her head and smiled, looking adorable, "Aunt is right. Since I've decided to live with Uncle, I have to help you with chores. What do you want me to do?"
Madam Wu gritted her teeth and sneered, "Consider yourself smart. From now on, you will be our maid. Go wash the clothes first!"
Su Yunmo smacked her lips, "No problem."
She turned and headed towards the laundry room, appearing very obedient.
Wu Qi looked at her departing back in confusion, unable to understand, "Why has this girl suddenly become so obedient?"
Madam Wu snorted, "It's good that she knows her place."
Although she said this, Madam Wu was still a little uneasy. After a while, she went to check.
Upon seeing the state of the laundry room, her forehead almost exploded, "Su Yunmo!"
All the clothes were cut and thrown all over the room, the floor was covered in water, and the bamboo poles for drying clothes were thrown onto the ceiling beams.
Su Yunmo was holding a brush and painting the wall, singing as she painted.
Gui Sha was responsible for carrying her.
The room was colorful and looked beautiful.
"Su Yunmo, you little brat, what are you doing!" Madam Wu's eyes were burning, but she dared not act because of Gui Sha.
Su Yunmo turned her head, paint even on the tip of her nose, "Working. The clothes are washed, and the things are tidied up. I wanted to make the house prettier."
Madam Wu felt like spitting blood.
This wasn't working; this was destruction!
"You, you, you... Go cook! If you mess it up again, I'll beat you to death."
Su Yunmo dropped the brush and blinked, "No problem."
Madam Wu flicked her sleeves and left to complain to Wu Qi, but as soon as she returned to the front hall, she heard a loud "Boom."