Chapter 106: Chapter 106: Gu Yunchuan Seeks Information

Gu Yunchuan was seething with anger, but he suppressed his temper and made his way to the old apartment building where the Chen family lived.

He was no fool. Instead of going straight to the Chens, he found an old lady washing clothes by the courtyard and asked her about the family.

This old woman was the neighborhood gossip—she knew all the juicy details about everyone.

Seeing the two yuan note Gu Yunchuan handed her, she spilled everything she knew about the Chens, no holds barred.

She told him how the man of the Chen family had a formidable ex-wife, who’d remarried into a good family and still sent him twenty yuan a month for living expenses, always right on time.

She said the Chen man used to be a good-for-nothing, and it was his ex-wife who paid for his job at the machinery factory.

She told him how, when the Chen man was injured, the ex-wife even brought chicken soup to visit him, delivering all sorts of supplements for several days in a row.

She bragged that Mrs. Chen liked to show off about having a “money tree” in the family, claiming she could get as much money as she wanted.

The old lady had even met Xia Shuhua, saying every time she came by, she had her hair permed in fashionable curls and wore stylish dresses.

She sighed, saying if only her own son had such a capable ex-wife, it wouldn’t matter if they divorced or not—they’d still be like family.

Hearing all this, Gu Yunchuan clenched his fists, feeling a deep sense of betrayal.

He thought of how he’d poured his heart out to Xia Shuhua, trusted her with all the family’s money, how she was stingy with Qinghuan and Lanting, reluctant to spend a penny more on them, even pocketing their living expenses—yet she was so generous with her ex-husband, supporting that whole good-for-nothing family.

Right now, he wished Xia Shuhua were in front of him so he could punch her in the head and rip out her heart to see if it was black.

But he forced himself to keep listening.

The old lady kept chattering away.

“You wouldn’t believe it, just a couple days ago, the fiancée of the Chen family’s son from the countryside showed up—she’s already three months pregnant, poor thing. Mrs. Chen refused to acknowledge her, but in the end, it was the daughter taken away by the ex-wife—what’s her name, Zhao Di—who came back and settled the whole thing.

I heard Mrs. Chen say that girl didn’t even bat an eye, just handed over two hundred yuan to send that country girl away.”

Of course, Mrs. Chen was exaggerating—the money was actually from their own pocket.

Gu Yunchuan didn’t care about Chen Fulai’s romantic escapades; he only cared about one thing: Chen Zhaodi could just casually pull out two hundred yuan for the Chen family.

First, it meant she definitely had money, and since she wasn’t married yet, the money couldn’t be from Yun Nianzhou—it had to be from home!

Xia Shuhua had actually given her daughter so much money to spend freely, yet lied to him that there was only five hundred yuan left at home.

She’d been hiding money behind his back—unforgivable.

And Chen Zhaodi was an ungrateful wretch. He’d raised her all these years, hoping she’d help him out after marrying well, but now it looked like there was little hope.

He couldn’t help but regret it. No matter what, his own children would always be the best. He shouldn’t have been so heartless to Qinghuan and Lanting—when he got old, he’d have to rely on his own flesh and blood.

Second, Chen Zhaodi must have done this at her mother’s urging. Why were they so generous to the Chen family? Two hundred yuan wasn’t a small sum, yet they just handed it over.

Could it really be, as the people at the factory gossiped, that Xiaobao wasn’t his son, but the child of her and her ex-husband...?

A spark of suspicion can ignite a prairie fire. Once the seed of doubt was planted, it quickly grew out of control.

Gu Yunchuan was now torn, battling with himself—he wasn’t even sure anymore: whose child was this, really?

Xia Shuhua, she’d fooled him so thoroughly!

In the end, Gu Yunchuan didn’t even know how he managed to walk out of there.

Over the past few years, Xia Shuhua had always treated him with deference and sweet words, making him forget how fickle people’s hearts could be.

Back when he was with Zhong Zijun, he had to pretend to be a gentleman, constantly trying to please her.

Zhong Zijun was busy—she was a university professor, most of her time devoted to her students and academic research, or spending time with the children. She hardly managed the household, leaving everything to the nanny.

He felt unneeded, unimportant, living without dignity. That was why he’d betrayed the Zhong family without hesitation.

But with Xia Shuhua, he was the master, truly living like a man.

Every day, someone ironed his clothes before he went out, someone cooked delicious meals when he came home. He made all the decisions, big or small, never having to worry about a thing. His word was law in the house.

Xia Shuhua and Chen Zhaodi both had honeyed tongues, serving him so well he was always comfortable and happy.

He’d enjoyed it too much.

Now, it felt like he’d just woken from a long, painful dream.

He wandered alone to the riverbank, sat there thinking for a long time, and didn’t head home until the sun had set, lonely and lost.

In the end, he decided to give Xia Shuhua one more chance. After all, they’d grown up together as childhood sweethearts.

He’d once betrayed Xia Shuhua for wealth and status by marrying Zhong Zijun, so he thought, no matter what happened, he should give her another chance.

But the real reason was, he was no longer young—he couldn’t handle any more ups and downs in life.

Meanwhile, on Xia Shuhua’s side, she was still nursing injuries from being beaten by Gu Yunchuan the day before, so she stayed home to rest and look after the children.

She was still lost in her dream of soon having a wealthy son-in-law, completely unaware of the rumors swirling outside—and of course, no one would tell her.

Chen Zhaodi was the same, focused on preparing for her wedding. In just two days, she and Yun Nianzhou would be married—she wanted to be the most beautiful bride.

Yun Nianzhou had promised her the most romantic, happiest wedding, and they’d even ordered beautiful Western-style outfits for the occasion.

Everything for the wedding had long been prepared by mother and daughter.

Despite the scarcity of goods, Xia Shuhua had managed to prepare four sets of bedding and several beautiful new outfits for her daughter.

There were also four large suitcases packed with daily necessities, a watch, and other valuables—of course, there was jewelry too, mostly gaudy gold and silver pieces.

Mother and daughter had tried their best to imitate the lifestyle of upper-class families, but at heart, they were still grassroots, unable to shake off their vulgar ways—just poor imitations, neither fish nor fowl.

They’d have been better off just being themselves; at least then, people might respect them more.

Chen Zhaodi was already picturing herself moving into her new home, starting a new life with Yun Nianzhou, and how happy she’d be.

“Qingyue, here’s the money I’ve saved for you—it’s not much, just five hundred yuan. Keep it safe. Your father already suspects I’m hiding money from him. I might not be able to help you much in the future, but your husband is the only son of the Yun family, so you won’t be short of a few hundred yuan. I’ll be counting on you for the rest of my life,” Xia Shuhua said, stuffing a wad of bills into her daughter’s hands.

Chen Zhaodi happily counted the money and painted a rosy picture for her mother: “Mom, I knew you were the best! Don’t worry, once I’ve settled in at the Yun family and have a child or two, we’ll live the good life together—eating well, living well, enjoying endless wealth and glory. We’ll never have to bow to Gu Yunchuan again.”

“My daughter really is capable.”

Just as the mother and daughter were talking, Gu Yunchuan came home."