Chapter 387: Unfilial Thing

“Sure, you can borrow my Light Brain.”

Shen Lu slyly had Sang Yue come over so she could ask to borrow her Light Brain.

Sang Yue agreed immediately without asking any questions.

This time, Shen Lan answered the call quite quickly, even sweetening her voice a little.

Shuiyunjian didn’t accept walk-in customers, only reservations.

Customers booked directly with Shen Lan, so she always answered calls from unknown numbers, putting on a pleasant voice to sound more appealing.

“It’s me, Xiao Lan.” Though Liu Qiang was stubborn, he knew Shen Lan wasn’t keen on talking to him, so he immediately stated his purpose after identifying himself. “I have something very important to tell you, Xiao Lan. This is important for both you and me.”

Shen Lan scoffed. “What could possibly be important in your family? Don’t tell me Liu Yaozu is getting married and you don’t have enough money, so you’re trying to get some from me again?”

She hadn’t forgotten that Liu Qiang had previously planned to use his daughter to get the bride price for his son’s marriage.

If she hadn’t run away quickly, she’d probably be married by now.

“How can you think of us like that?” Liu Qiang couldn’t help but adopt a serious tone. “This isn’t about your brother.”

“Oh? Then what is it?” Shen Lan was now genuinely a little curious.

“Your mom and I…”

“Watch your wording, please. You are not my birth parents.”

“Yaozu’s mother and I divorced.” Liu Qiang obediently corrected himself; after all, he was asking Shen Lan for a favor. “Now, I want to marry a new wife. Help me look around the Upper City District and see if there’s anyone suitable.”

Shen Lan’s first reaction was that her ears were failing her, so she remained silent for a good ten seconds.

Liu Qiang grew a bit anxious. “Xiao Lan, are you listening? My standards aren’t high. She has to be younger than me, gentle, and definitely obedient—I don’t want one who isn’t. But if she has money, the other requirements can be relaxed a bit.”

‘I’ve thought this through,’ Liu Qiang mused. ‘Women from the Upper City District are different from women in the Lower City District. The conditions I mentioned before were meant for women from the Lower City District.’

If he married a woman from the Upper City District, he could logically move there himself. That benefit alone was something no woman from the Lower City District could provide.

Therefore, the other conditions could be relaxed a bit.

‘I’m so incredibly flexible and adaptable,’ he thought to himself.

Shen Lu had to use all her strength to suppress a burst of laughter, but the corners of her mouth twitched violently. Beside her, Sang Yue stood dumbfounded.

Before this, she hadn’t interacted with the people from the backyard. Even though Yang Jing now lived in the dormitory, the two had only exchanged polite greetings.

She didn’t know what the three members of the Liu Family were like, much less that Yang Jing and Liu Qiang had already divorced.

But none of that mattered. Sang Yue was simply stunned by Liu Qiang’s confidence.

‘It’s not that I look down on people,’ she thought, ‘but given Liu Qiang’s looks, build, and age, how could he have the gall to state those conditions?’

“Are you fucking insane?” Shen Lan snapped back to her senses and started cursing. “A man like you? Who would want you besides that fucking idiot Yang Jing? You want someone younger, gentle, and rich? How do you have the goddamn nerve to say that with a straight face?”

“You moron, get lost! If you ever fucking call me again, I’ll have someone teach you a lesson!”

“You!” Liu Qiang wanted to curse back, but Shen Lan didn’t give him the chance and hung up. “That damn girl, her temper is really something else now. Can’t she just talk things out nicely?!”

“Dad, you saw it yourself. Shen Lan isn’t willing to help you, and I can’t either. You’ll have to figure something out on your own. If you really can’t think of anything, go ask Liu Yaozu.” Shen Lu enjoyed the drama, adding fuel to the fire. “It was his idea for you to divorce and marry a new wife. Now that you’ve divorced Mom, he should naturally be responsible for what comes next.”

“Your brother…” Liu Qiang started to say, ‘What use is your brother?’ He still needed to be taken care of for his every need. But his son was his precious treasure, and he couldn’t just bad-mouth him in front of an outsider.

“His injuries haven’t healed yet, so even if he wanted to help, he couldn’t. Shen Lu, you’re my daughter too. You have to handle this, no matter what!”

“Sir, this isn’t…” Sang Yue couldn’t listen anymore and wanted to speak up for fairness, but Shen Lu stopped her. “Fine, I’ll handle it. But from now on, you’ll stay quietly in the backyard and do your job properly.”

“Ungrateful brat!”

Liu Qiang snorted coldly and stormed off in a huff.

His reaction was utterly baffling, leaving even Sang Yue confused.

“Boss Shen, how could you agree to that?”

‘This was clearly something she shouldn’t have agreed to.’

“Agreeing is one thing, but actually doing it is another,” Shen Lu said with an indifferent smile. “I was just placating him.”

“But he’s definitely going to keep pestering you about this.”

“That’s fine too. If I’m in a good mood, I’ll humor him. If I’m annoyed, I’ll tell him to get lost.”

“…” Sang Yue was speechless. “Is that really okay?”

‘They’re still family, after all.’

Shen Lu returned the Light Brain to Sang Yue and patted her on the shoulder. “You should focus on your own shop. Also, if you want to enter the Kitchen King competition, you should hurry. The registration period will be over soon, and then you won’t be able to compete.”

After lunch, Shen Lu had a video call with Fu Cheng for a while.

Fu Cheng looked to be in better spirits. Shen Lu was chattering about everything under the sun when she suddenly gasped.

“I have a surprise for you. You’ll see it when you get back.”

A smile touched Fu Cheng’s eyes. “Can’t you tell me beforehand?”

“Nope.”

“Fu Cheng?” A woman’s voice suddenly rang out in the hospital room. Fu Cheng turned his head to see a female doctor in a white coat walking in from the doorway.

“What is it?” Shen Lu asked, not understanding the situation. Her perspective only allowed her to see Fu Cheng, not the person who had walked in.

“It really is you!” The female doctor took off her mask, revealing a pretty face. Her tone was joyful. “When I heard the news yesterday, I thought it was just someone with the same name.”

“Jiang Ying?” Fu Cheng racked his brain for a moment before finally putting the name to the face.

“Yes, you remember me?”

“Back in school, your grades were always at the top of the class.”

If Fu Cheng always held the number one spot, then Jiang Ying was always right behind him in second.

Their classmates used to joke that their two names were always together on the rankings. After seeing it for years, everyone was used to it and said they should just get married after graduation so their names could be linked for life.

Similar jokes were made for years, only fading away after Fu Cheng got engaged.

With a past like that, it was impossible for Fu Cheng to forget her.

Shen Lu pricked up her ears, listening to their conversation and guessing that the woman she could only hear must be one of Fu Cheng’s old classmates.

“I heard before that you…” Jiang Ying paused, not finishing her sentence, and gave Fu Cheng a brilliant smile. “I’m very happy to see you again.”

When she learned that Fu Cheng had been gravely injured, that his condition was untreatable and he was just waiting to die, Jiang Ying had been heartbroken for days.

She had even visited the Fu Family home twice, hoping to see Fu Cheng and accompany him in his final moments.

But she never succeeded. Later, she heard that Fu Cheng had been entrusted to his fiancée’s care, and after that, the trail went cold.

Jiang Ying’s family background was ordinary, so she couldn’t find out much useful information. She had truly believed that Fu Cheng had already succumbed to his injuries.