First Meeting

Mr. Lu was dumbfounded. Huo Xiaoran’s words surprised him. He thought that Huo Xiaoran should be flustered or angry.

But he was so rational that it was admirable.

But Qiao An was deep in thought.

Huo Xiaoran knew that the other party was his family, but he still addressed them so distantly. Wasn’t he afraid of the consequences? Did he not want to acknowledge his relatives?

Or was it that she was dissatisfied with his bootlicking method of acknowledging his family that made him feel lingering fear and not dare to give his sincerity again?

If it was the latter, Qiao An felt uneasy.

She did not want Huo Xiaoran to look down on her, but she also did not want Huo Xiaoran to alienate his family because of her.

Old Master Lu said, “Huo Xiaoran, I’ve seen countless people, but I don’t quite understand you. Let me get this straight. Although our Lu family loves the young, we will never allow people with ulterior motives to use their juniors to threaten us.”

Huo Xiaoran sneered. “That’s right. My Angel Group has suffered a heavy blow, but I, Huo Xiaoran, have never relied on outsiders’ childish thoughts. I didn’t come to the Lu family that day to cooperate. However, I bumped into Lu Xiaoyun by chance. I’m a righteous person and saved her. Now, it seems that I’m unlucky.”

“Mr. Lu, don’t worry. I, Huo Xiaoran, don’t want to have anything to do with your Lu family in my life. I’m even more afraid of Lu Xiaoyun. I also hope that Mr. Lu can discipline your daughter and stop her from appearing in front of my wife for no reason. If she makes my wife unhappy, I don’t mind making you unhappy.”

Elder Lu snorted. “Hmph, if you don’t provoke Xiaoyun, will she pester you? Will she pester your wife? If you don’t fool around outside, your wife will naturally feel at ease.”

Huo Xiaoran said angrily, ” Did I provoke Lu Xiaoyun? Hmph, she had good friends and was bullied by her hooligan boyfriend at the entrance of her house. I saved her out of kindness. If this is considered provoking, then I need to reflect on myself. In fact, I regret saving her now. If I can turn back time, I can tell you clearly that no matter what was happening to her, I will have turned around to leave.”

The two men’s expressions darkened.

In their hearts, Lu Xiaoyun was a young lady and Huo Xiaoran was a villain. He was not worthy of her at all. In Huo Xiaoran’s eyes, Lu Xiaoyun was the ugly person who caused trouble.

Old Master Lu looked at Huo Xiaoran suspiciously…

Qiao An saw that the grandfather and grandson were at odds and still felt a little guilty about Xiao Ran’s determination. Xiao Ran valued relationships, but he took her feelings into account and forcefully tore himself apart from the Lu family.

That was no way to repair their relationship.

Qiao An looked at Xiaoran and saw that he was burning with anger. She couldn’t help but remind him, “Brother Xiaoran, they are guests.”

Huo Xiaoran looked at Qiao An with disdain. “I don’t care if he’s the emperor or the Jade Emperor. I’ll treat anyone who destroys my family as an enemy.”

Qiao An was speechless.

Elder Lu did not know where Xiao Ran’s emotions came from and only felt that he was childish and ignorant.

Elder Lu said to his son, “Since Huo Xiaoran has already said the ugly words, I’ll believe him for the time being. I believe he can keep his chastity in the future and not pester Xiaoyun. Let’s go.”

Mr. Lu left angrily.

Huo Xiaoran sat on the chair at the side dejectedly. Qiao An looked at him steadily and couldn’t help but sigh. “Do you want me to feel guilty and blame myself?”

Huo Xiaoran stared at Qiao An with red eyes. “An’an, I don’t want you to feel guilty. I just don’t want to make you angry. I feel like I’m a complete failure and have broken my wife’s heart.”

Qiao An said no more.

Qiao An was hospitalized for seven days. On the third day, Father Qiao came to the hospital to visit Qiao An.

He had already heard Huo Zhou mention the argument between Qiao An and Huo Xiaoran. Father Qiao also had his own thoughts on this matter.

While the father and daughter were left in the ward, Father Qiao said to An’an earnestly, “An’an, I’ve heard about you and Xiaoran from Huo Zhou. To be honest, Dad also hates men fooling around. But Xiaoran didn’t provoke other women, but his sister who’s related to him by blood. I think Xiaoran’s heart is still clean.”

“You’re not unhappy, so I don’t think you’re fussing about Xiaoran’s restlessness. You know that he’s not such an unbearable man. You’re just angry that he’s too solicitous to Lu Xiaoyun. You were suspicious and sensitive during your pregnancy. It was his fault that he neglected your feelings. But Qiao An, Xiaoran’s fault isn’t enough for you to go to this extent. That’s his cousin. What’s wrong with him helping his sister in danger?”

Tears streamed down Qiao An’s face.

She was anxious and angry and guilty towards Huo Xiaoran.

Father Qiao said earnestly, “I can tell that you actually care too much about him. When he saved his father back then, he almost gave up his life. You’ve been living a life worse than death for the past few years. Now, you want him to put you and the children first. If he breaks down at all, you’ll make a mountain out of a molehill. It’s a classic case of once bitten, twice shy.”

However, no one knew their daughter better than their father.

Qiao An choked. “Dad, I don’t want to lose him again.”

Father Qiao’s eyes flickered with tears. “Xiaoran has probably never experienced the pain of losing a loved one bravely. So he can’t feel where your pain comes from. But An’an, Dad taught you that you have to love yourself first before loving others.”

“You shouldn’t put all your emotions on Xiaoran, because when you can’t control his thoughts, you’ll be in a lot of pain.”

Qiao An nodded. “Dad, I understand. I’ll go to work when I’m discharged.”

Father Qiao said, “Do what you like and deprioritize your romantic feelings. Give Xiaoran some freedom and space. Otherwise, you’ll all be tired.”

Outside the door, Xiao Ran heard his father-in-law and wife’s discussion. The knot in his heart for the past few days had finally been untied.

He had found Qiao An’s pain point. He was happy that Qiao An valued him, but he was also disappointed that An’an wanted to take back the love she had for him.

He could do without freedom.

Sigh, didn’t he bring this on himself?

Huo Xiaoran sighed endlessly. He sighed at the unpredictable changes in life. He couldn’t grasp the best things in life.

—-

On Monday, Lu Xiaoyun and Huo Xiaoran’s genetic test results were out.

When Huo Xiaoran received the genetic test report, he couldn’t wait to open it. Unexpectedly, the result was shocking.

Lu Xiaoyun was not lying. She was indeed not a child of the Lu family.