"Chenchen, I'm sorry for what I've done these past years," Liu Chen heard Hu Xingfa say as she looked at him on the opposite sofa.
In just half a year, Hu Xingfa looked even more haggard than he had in the previous life, ten years later.
In her past life, Hu Xingfa's business had been flourishing. Although she hadn't paid much attention later, she had heard that he had bought bigger and newer houses and cars.
Now, from her mother's brief mentions, Hu Xingfa was left with only two properties, one for living and one for rent, and only a few excavators remained.
"How do you think you've wronged me?" Liu Chen asked, looking at the remorseful Hu Xingfa with confusion.
This question stunned Hu Xingfa, wiping the remorse from his face. How had he wronged her?
Was this a question a child should ask?
Shouldn't a child rush to hug me and say, "Dad, I miss you," with tears in their eyes, when I, their father, say I'm sorry?
The audience, however, felt a sense of catharsis upon hearing this.
This young girl wasn't fooled by her shameless father; she had turned the tables. Well done!
Hu Xingfa opened his mouth, wanting to say that he shouldn't have let his ex-wife take their child after the divorce, and trusting that his ex-wife would treat their child well, he had handed her over. But as his mouth opened, he said:
"Your mother found out about Zhang Lili and Hu Qian's affair and insisted on divorcing me. Your mother was crazy. After the divorce, she made you suffer.
Which successful man nowadays doesn't keep a mistress on the side? If she had just turned a blind eye back then, things wouldn't have turned out this way!"
As Hu Xingfa's mouth opened, his inner thoughts tumbled out like beans. By the time he realized he should stop talking, the entire speech had been clearly recorded by the cameras.
Liu Chen looked at Hu Xingfa with a half-smile upon hearing this.
"So, according to you, you're not here to apologize today, but to demand an explanation from me?"
"If you don't speak, I'll assume you've defaulted. Since you're here to demand an explanation, there's nothing for us to discuss.
When my mother married you, she owned dozens of excavators and had five properties at the time of the divorce.
But what happened? My mother and I were kicked out of the house with not a single property, no money.
She raised me alone. Honestly, I don't see how you have any standing to demand an explanation."
At Liu Chen's words, Hu Xingfa immediately became unhappy. He slammed his hand on the armrest of the sofa.
"Who said that! Wasn't that house you lived in given to you by me?! That house is in the city! It's worth hundreds of thousands now!"
Liu Chen's expression was calm, unfazed by his threatening gesture. She continued speaking:
"You gave it? If it weren't for my paternal aunt throwing a tantrum at your house after she knew my mother left with nothing, and preventing you from bringing your mistress of over a decade into the house, would you have given it?
Furthermore, that wasn't a gift; it was rightfully hers. After years of serving you and your mother, she hadn't saved any private funds, thinking she was saving money for you.
Turns out, in the end, she discovered all that money was saved for your mistress and the illegitimate daughter you kept outside, who is older than me."
Liu Chen's words directly revealed Hu Xingfa's long-term infidelity and the existence of an illegitimate daughter older than herself.
Perhaps some in the audience had felt sympathetic earlier, thinking it wasn't good for Liu Chen to be so harsh on her own father. But after hearing this, they couldn't help but sigh.
"Poor child!"
Liu Chen didn't need anyone's pity. She didn't need it in her past life, and she certainly wouldn't need it in this one.
"Yes! I made mistakes in the past! But children are innocent! Hu Qian was laughed at for years as a child without a father. I was there with you then!"
Hearing this, Liu Chen looked up at Hu Xingfa.
To be honest, she had expected him to be shameless before coming, but hearing him say these words to her face, his level of shamelessness exceeded her imagination.
Liu Chen shook her head, got up from the sofa, and made a move as if to walk off the stage, saying as she walked:
"Since you believe you did nothing wrong, why did you call me here for an interview today?"
Seeing that the duck was about to fly away if he didn't say something, Hu Xingfa panicked.
"If you leave, who will I get money from?
You're spending money recklessly now, always buying friends expensive bags worth tens of thousands. That money should have been for me!"
As Hu Xingfa spoke, he walked towards Liu Chen. Just as he was about to touch her clothes, a tall man in black directly blocked his path.
Seeing Hu Xingfa's movement being intercepted, Xu Danli, who had been sitting without any objection to Hu Xingfa's actions, showed a hint of regret in her eyes.
What a shame, this little vixen was protected. If Hu Xingfa had really hit her, her show would have become famous, that's for sure.
Xu Danli was now obsessed with ratings, thinking only of viewership, without considering if her show would even be aired if guests got into a physical altercation.
"Who are you! What business is it of yours if I talk to my own daughter!"
Hu Xingfa rubbed his fingers, which hurt from being blocked, and looked up at Ren Yu with a frown.
Ren Yu glanced at Hu Xingfa as if he were a cockroach, then looked back at Liu Chen, who had already returned to her seat. He then said, "If you have something to say, sit down and talk. Don't get physical. Even if you are Liu Chen's biological father, we have the right to accuse you of harassment."
Hu Xingfa rubbed his fingers, rolled his eyes, and sat back on his sofa seat, still grumbling, "What is this? Chenchen, these good-looking young men are just after pretty and naive girls like you to trick them out of their money. Don't spend money on him, or you'll regret it!"
Liu Chen ignored Hu Xingfa's words and asked, "According to you, since you feel indebted to Hu Qian, you should treat her better. Coming to me now is simply because you're envious of the money my stepfather's family gave me.
However, while you might be willing to take it, I'm not comfortable using my stepfather's money to support my biological father."
Liu Chen said this while watching Hu Xingfa. She had noticed that whenever Hu Xingfa mentioned Hu Qian, he would fall silent, afraid of revealing something.
Hu Qian was Hu Xingfa's weakness!
How could she get Hu Xingfa to bring up the topic of Hu Qian?