Chapter 175: Chapter 168: Still Shaken
Not to mention, she is the daughter-in-law of the Yin Family, the mother of Shuangshuang and Huanghuang, the girl for whom Shixiu went against his family to stand by...
If even he and his wife are now so frightened to the point of feeling chills down their spines, hands and feet going numb, then imagine how... Meng Meng’s maternal grandfather must feel.
The three of them remained silent, no one speaking first...
Yin Shaohui and Zhou Mengqin didn’t know what to say...
While Yin Shixiu found himself speechless.
That moment kept replaying in his mind, the moment when Su Xiaomeng was nearly hit.
His mind was almost blank, without any thought, and it was only when he came to his senses that he realized he had stopped breathing.
His hands felt as if they were wet and hadn’t been dried, clammy...
Truly terrifying.
All those negative emotions he had never truly experienced over the years continued to surge in his psyche after encountering Su Xiaomeng.
A sense of endlessness, a blind, unbounded fear.
Is this a good thing, or bad?
Yin Shiqing entered with his son and daughter-in-law.
At this moment, Yin Shaoting somewhat regretted checking that document first; now that he’d found a chance to slip out, he naturally wouldn’t go back into the murky waters.
"Close the door."
Yin Shaohui raised his eyes, his voice deep and heavy, a mere instruction uttered like a cold, hard command.
Yin Shiqing was a bit confused, but his son, Yin Bowen, had always been good at reading expressions and immediately went to close the door.
"Grandpa, Grandma, is there something going on?"
Zhu Lan asked, but she wasn’t entirely in the dark—after all, Mr. Bai had been here.
Zhou Mengqin said nothing, just looked at her, and then turned the computer around, not playing anything, merely showing them the final freeze-frame.
Zhu Lan moved her lips, quickly saying, "Grandma, we can resolve this—"
"The eldest grandson of the Yin Family, the eldest granddaughter-in-law of the Yin Family, that’s how they are."
Zhou Mengqin interrupted Zhu Lan, speaking lightly, with a touch of self-mockery, "No wonder Old Sir Bai had to say that... anyone can make it into the Yin Family Tree; it seems that it’s just a facade, a sham... utterly worthless."
"Grandma..."
"Zhu Lan, you’ve always been well-behaved and sensible; which uncle doesn’t praise you? If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I’d suspect Elder Bai deliberately framed you."
Zhou Mengqin narrowed her eyes slightly.
Zhu Lan had always been somewhat afraid of Zhou Mengqin, so the words and explanations she’d thought out earlier were swallowed back down involuntarily.
Standing like a little bride to the side, head bowed, but still glancing at her husband with furrowed brows, displaying a bit of coquettishness.
Yin Bowen straightened his spine, "Grandpa, Grandma, I really can explain this matter."
"Explain? How do you explain?"
Yin Shaohui stood up, struck his cane forcefully on the ground, then pointed it at Yin Bowen, and shouted, "Kneel down!"
Yin Shiqing still hadn’t fully grasped the situation, stepping forward, "Mom, Dad, please calm down, what’s actually going on here?"
"See for yourself."
The study remained quiet, no one made a sound, until Yin Shiqing finished watching the surveillance footage.
"Do you know who this girl is?"
Zhou Mengqin asked.
Yin Shiqing had a vague guess...
After all... Yin Shixiu’s gaze on him was hard to ignore.
"Your sister-in-law."
Yin Shaohui said coldly, sweeping a glance over Yin Shiqing, finally resting his gaze on Yin Bowen and Zhu Lan.
At this moment, Yin Shixiu’s phone rang...
He glanced at the caller ID, feeling both tense and warm inside...
Yin Shaohui gave him a look.
Yin Shixiu said, "It’s a call from Meng Meng. I’ll step outside to take it."
"...Mm."
Yin Shaohui nodded in response.
Yin Shixiu answered the call and stepped out of the room...
"Xiaomeng."
"Ah! Uncle!"
On the other end, Su Xiaomeng’s voice was clearly deliberately lowered, anxiously calling out to him before hurriedly asking, "Did Grandpa make things difficult for you just now? Are Dad and Mom very angry?"
Hearing Su Xiaomeng’s slightly anxious voice, Yin Shixiu’s eyes softened.
He stood on the balcony, his gaze drifting far away, landing on another hill not far off...
"Uncle? Say something!"
As she received no response from Yin Shixiu, Su Xiaomeng became more anxious.
"...No."
Yin Shixiu replied.
Su Xiaomeng clearly let out a sigh of relief, "That’s good, that’s good."
"Ah!"
Su Xiaomeng had just relaxed only to become worried again, speaking in a pitifully aggrieved tone, "Things aren’t looking good, uncle."
"...Hm?"
"Grandpa is angry at home... I feel like the two of us are going to be torn apart..."
At that moment, Su Xiaomeng was hiding in the little garden, secretly calling Yin Shixiu, her eyes glancing behind her now and then, afraid that grandpa would rush out to seize her phone.
Listening to her pitiful voice, Yin Shixiu’s lips curled into a smile.
It was heartache, indulgence, relief, and... pleasure.
Such close calls, such relief, hearing her coquettish, helpless, pitiful words on the other end of the line.
"Is the old man very angry?"
Yin Shixiu asked, though he knew perfectly well that Bai Fengmao’s anger wouldn’t dissipate anytime soon.
"Hmm, hmm, hmm!"
Su Xiaomeng nodded eagerly, "I saw him and Ming Lang return with Shuangshuang and Huang Huang, and I thought you were with them. Before I could ask, he said angrily that you didn’t come... I didn’t think much of it at first, but then he said... that he was prepared for you never to come, that even if you did, he wouldn’t open the door for you... and even threatened to set Ah Bu on you!"
"Uncle..."
"Yeah."
"You... you’re not really not coming, are you?"
Yin Shixiu laughed.
The laughter made Su Xiaomeng even more anxious... Her heart couldn’t help but race.
At this point, Yin Shixiu could still laugh? What was he thinking?
"Grandpa won’t let me go, won’t open the door for me, and wants to set the dog on me... What can I do?"
Yin Shixiu said helplessly.
"Clunk"...
Su Xiaomeng felt as if time had frozen, her eyebrows raised, her voice instantly turned cold...
"Yin Shixiu."
"...Yeah."
"Have you made up your mind?"
"What?"
"Grandpa said Mr. Yin and Mrs. Yin want you to divorce me! Have you already decided to leave me?"
Su Xiaomeng clenched her fists tightly. Yin Shixiu was unbelievably calm when grandpa said he wanted to take the child; Yin Shixiu gave the child away without a second thought.
Listening to grandpa’s tone, it seemed like Yin Shixiu didn’t care about the child at all, as if the child were a burden, and giving them to grandpa was a relief.
Of course, Su Xiaomeng didn’t know that Bai Fengmao exaggerated what the Yin Family said.
This way, he wouldn’t seem too impulsive and irritable today.
Especially about Yin Shixiu, Bai Fengmao couldn’t wait to describe this cunning grandson-in-law as someone who disregards everything.
So that Xiaomeng wouldn’t always treat him like a treasure.
Previously, Su Xiaomeng was very optimistic, always thinking positively.
But after being with Yin Shixiu, she often had negative thoughts...
When faced with problems, she’d unconsciously think of the worst outcome.
Hearing grandpa’s words, she instantly felt that Yin Shixiu might have made some major decision...
Feeling truly uneasy, she called him.
"Su Xiaomeng, can’t you stop overthinking?"
Yin Shixiu was somewhat helpless, "I thought that no matter what happened, you’d be firm in our decision to be together..."
Hearing this, Su Xiaomeng immediately regretted the impulsive question. She rubbed her nose...
"Of course I am firm! But who knows about you..."
She mumbled quietly, "Originally Mr. Yin and Mrs. Yin didn’t like me... now, with grandpa making a fuss, things are even more complicated. You must find it hard being in the middle... if you can’t withstand it, there’s no guarantee you won’t surrender..."
"Silly."
"Ah?"
"I said you’re silly."
Su Xiaomeng furrowed her brow, initially wanting to retort but on second thought felt quite helpless...
"Yeah, I’m silly, otherwise... Mrs. Yin wouldn’t dislike me."
Yin Shixiu didn’t expect this to touch Su Xiaomeng’s sore spot.
"Mengmeng, you—"
Before he could finish, on the other end of the phone, Elder Bai’s deep yet resounding voice rang out, "Mengmeng! Are you sneaking a call to Yin Shixiu?! Hang up! I won’t forgive them unless the whole Yin family comes over to apologize!"
"Ah! Oh! I’m not calling Yin Shixiu, I’m calling a classmate!"
Su Xiaomeng shouted back.
Then she quickly whispered to Yin Shixiu, "Uncle, listen! Even if Mrs. Yin puts a knife to your neck to force you to divorce me, you have to stand firm! Got it! If you dare think of betraying me, I’ll! I’ll! I’ll..."
She hurried to think of something, but couldn’t find a truly threatening condition for Yin Shixiu...
"You’ll curse me not to die peacefully."
Yin Shixiu said leisurely. Su Xiaomeng’s heart tightened, then quickly, "Spit, spit, spit! What are you saying! Anyway, you must stand by me! Got it!"
Yin Shixiu chuckled lightly, responded, "At your command, my dear wife."
Despite her reluctance, Su Xiaomeng hung up the phone and returned inside.
Yin Shixiu listened to the busy signal in his ear.
His heart felt like it was placed on a burning coal, warm yet painfully hot.
The little girl didn’t mention the accident she barely escaped...
Little did she know that her close call left his heart unsettled for a long, long time.
Just hearing her voice was far from calming his increasingly anxious heart.
The sun set in the west, and night fell over the entire mountain.
Sporadic street lights lit along the mountain road, scarce and scattered, the light they cast permeated with the chill of the winter night.
The Yin Family dined late.
The warning in the study, even with the door closed, lasted a long time.
The parents were notoriously strict; Yin Bowen and Zhu Lan were not let off easily, and their father Yin Shiqing couldn’t escape being implicated.
Yin Shixiu didn’t go in again; he stood on the balcony, contemplating certain issues alone.
Until the study door reopened, and Yin Shiqing came out...
Seeing Yin Shixiu on the balcony, he walked over.