Chapter 15: Shen Lichuan Does Not Want Her To Keep The Child
Upstairs.
Liancheng’s complexion lost its color, and she cried out in fear, “What do you want to do?”
Shen Lichuan remained silent, his expression cold and murderous.
He was the type of gentle young master; even when Liancheng had seen him at his most stern, it could not compare to the aggression in him now.
“This child cannot be kept—” His ears twitched, and he immediately stopped the rest of his sentence.
Footsteps were heard on the stairs, thudding rapidly.
Rapid.
Urgent.
There was no escape.
In less than a minute, they had reached the corner of the second floor.
Liancheng looked at Shen Lichuan, then at the door; the lock was engaged.
But she couldn’t keep it locked forever.
If the footsteps belonged to Liang Wenfei, then she was coming for Shen Lichuan.
If she took a second longer to open the door, who knew what would happen.
Opening the door directly would lead to eternal damnation.
With disaster imminent, Liancheng’s heart was burning with anxiety.
Almost in the next second, the door was violently knocked.
“Open the door.” Liang Wenfei said fiercely, “I know Shen Lichuan is inside, Liancheng you bitch, open the door—”
Liancheng clenched the doorknob; the early winter wind blew through the window, chilling her until she trembled uncontrollably.
“Open the door!” Liang Wenfei twisted the lock, but the door didn’t budge at all, and her suspicion was almost confirmed.
Liang Wenfei immediately began to curse, “You dare to lock it, you bitch? My family raised you for over twenty years, you took my wealth, you don’t repay my kindness but hold grudges? Pretending to be pitiful and pure, acting all sophisticated, don’t you even look at what a failure your inferior genes produced, are you worthy?”
Liancheng’s fists clenched until they made a crunching sound, her knuckles turning white and numb.
The sound of the lock turning became sharper and sharper, and Liang Wenfei’s curses became more and more frenzied, “You think seducing Li Chuan will let you stay in high society and continue to enjoy wealth and luxury? Dream on. If you touch Li Chuan today, I’ll chop off your damned hands and skin you alive. Open the door, you son of a bitch, open the door.”
“And this is why I didn’t give you a sense of security?”
The voice was not loud, coming from the turning point of the stairs between the second and third floors, but it was devoid of any warmth, instantly freezing Liang Wenfei’s scolding. She turned her head at the sound.
Shen Lichuan stood on the first step of the corner. The massive crystal chandelier reflected brilliant light, casting it down onto Shen Lichuan like spilled ink, accentuating his elegant demeanor, yet carrying a terrifying aura of anger.
Liang Wenfei looked at him, then at Liancheng’s door, her face filled with uncertainty.
At this moment, Liancheng’s door also opened.
She glanced at the stairs with an expressionless face and looked at Liang Wenfei, “You wanted to come in? Shen Lichuan is still in my room, go see.”
Liancheng’s clothes were neat, her cotton shirt without any overwhelming wrinkles, and her complexion was pale, not suggesting any exercise.
Shen Lichuan’s breathing was steadier than Liancheng’s, without any heavy gasps; his hair was fluffy and thick, yet his hairstyle was perfectly in place.
Even if he had sensed someone coming upstairs and prepared in advance, Shen Lichuan could not have teleported to the corner of the stairs between the second and third floors.
Thinking this, Liang Wenfei was stunned for a moment. She had just promised not to be so oversensitive again, and less than an hour later, in her own home, she had proven herself wrong.
“What’s wrong?” Mother Liang came upstairs upon hearing the noise, “What happened?”
“She wants to come into my room to catch us in the act.” Liancheng deliberately emphasized the words “catch us in the act.”
Mother Liang glanced at where Shen Lichuan was standing and immediately understood the general situation. “Liancheng, you’ve misunderstood your sister again. Feifei wasn’t trying to catch anyone, Mom asked her to call you for dinner.”
Liancheng was stunned.
Suddenly she lost all interest, and didn’t even have the thought of refuting.
She had been trained by Mother Liang; whatever she knew, Mother Liang knew even better.
Liancheng wasn’t surprised that Mother Liang wanted to protect Liang Wenfei, but she could think of many ways to break through the situation, yet Mother Liang chose to step on her to elevate Liang Wenfei.
Fairness, Liancheng didn’t expect, but if they wouldn’t even let her be a basic human being.
Why was she still staying in the Liang family?
………………
For dinner, Liancheng was willful for the first time in four years and did not go downstairs to attend.
Liang Wenfei was annoyed that Liancheng wouldn’t let it go, making her lose face in front of the Shen family.
After dinner, Father Liang called the Shen family to the study. She grabbed Liang Chaosu and complained, “I think Li Chuan definitely went up to see her. Brother, I really can’t rest assured, I want to check the surveillance.”
Liang Chaosu tapped the armrest of the sofa intermittently with his fingers. “How long did it take you from discovering it to going upstairs?”
Liang Wenfei recalled, “One minute? Or two minutes? I’m not sure.”
“Two minutes is not enough time to do anything.” A smile played on Liang Chaosu’s lips, but his eyes were dark. “You cursed too harshly.”
Liang Wenfei instinctively felt unconvinced. Liang Chaosu had always unconditionally supported her. Besides, even if she made a mistake, it was because she hadn’t confirmed it, and her impulsive actions were too hasty. It had nothing to do with whether she cursed Liancheng or if it was too harsh.
She pouted, “She deserved to be cursed. A fake bitch, shamelessly clinging to our house and we can’t get rid of her. I cursed her, and she deserved it.”
“It’s me who won’t let her go.” Liang Chaosu leaned back against the chair. “Her identification documents are always with me, she can’t go anywhere.”
“Why?” Liang Wenfei’s expression froze. “Didn’t you most want to kick her out, Brother?”
“When did I ever say I wanted to kick her out?” Liang Chaosu’s gaze was cool. “You are about to marry into the Shen family; you should restrain your temper. I don’t want to see a repeat of today’s incident.”
Liang Wenfei’s hand tightened, and she suddenly remembered that morning when she checked the hospital surveillance video. Liang Chaosu’s strange, inexplicable gaze was not that of someone looking at an irrelevant outsider, but more like a man looking at a woman, dark and intense, making one want to carefully ponder and savor it.
This thought struck Liang Wenfei like a knife, making her shudder. Her vocal cords became like a rusty machine, stuttering, “Brother, you—you wouldn’t—you aren’t—attracted to—her?”
“Is that your deduction?” Liang Chaosu chuckled. “You should learn more from Mother; the Shen family is no less than the Liang family, and their requirements for daughters-in-law are the same. You can be arrogant and domineering, but being unreasonable makes people doubt your intelligence, that you don’t have enough.”
This criticism was merciless, and the attitude was unprecedentedly sharp, piercing Liang Wenfei’s cheeks directly. She felt awkward and wronged. “I understand, Brother.”
Liang Wenfei had never received such a lesson before. She uttered a muffled sound, covered her face, and fled.
Liang Chaosu’s gaze followed her retreating back upstairs. She left him on the second floor and looked towards Liancheng’s room on the third floor.
The corridor light was dim yellow, and her door was cold and tightly shut.
For the first time, without her usual sharp retorts, she endured and holed up in her room. Servants brought meals several times, but the door wouldn’t open; it took Aunt Wang to be specifically called up to finally get it open.
Liang Chaosu’s chest felt heavy, and he took a step upstairs.
Liancheng had not turned on the lights; the sound of the key being inserted into the lock and turned was amplified infinitely in the dim gray silence of the room, gratingly loud.
Liancheng did not move.
After a few breaths, accompanied by steady footsteps approaching, a faint scent of alcohol filled her nostrils. It wasn’t pungent, but it spread overpoweringly.
She didn’t look up, feeling a gaze fall upon the top of her head, like fire, like ice, scorching her scalp.
Liancheng was the first to break, muttering dejectedly, “What are you doing here?”
“This is the Liang family.”
Liancheng fell silent.
The Liang family.
Liang Wenfei’s home, Liang Chaosu’s home, her parents’ home, but not hers.
Another long period of tense, drawn-out silence ensued.
This time, it was Liang Chaosu’s turn to be impatient.
“Speak.”
A tall, dark shadow fell over her, radiating utter sternness.
Liancheng was enveloped in the shadow, too weak to even breathe. “What should I say? What do you want to interrogate me about?”
