Chapter Fourteen: Huo Shan Cheng’s Confession

Huo Qingqing opened her mouth and ate the food without responding to Ruan Tang, but the slight nod of her head showed that she liked it—she simply did not want to say much.

Ruan Tang smiled. “Then from now on, whenever you need anything for your drawings, just tell Auntie, all right?”

At that, Huo Qingqing’s eyes brightened faintly. She nodded. “All right.”

There was no denying that although Huo Qingqing remained skeptical of what Ruan Tang said, she still hoped, for the most part, that it was all true. After all, it had not been long since the two of them had made their pact.

After Ruan Tang and her daughter finished eating, someone soon knocked on the hospital-room door.

Ruan Tang thought it was Officer Tao and hurried to open it.

It was indeed Officer Tao. His expression was grim.

“Comrade Ruan, Captain Chen has brought someone back.”

Ruan Tang’s heart sank. She turned to glance at Huo Qingqing, who was watching them from the bed. After a moment’s thought, she turned around, walked over to her, and asked softly, “Do you want to go with Auntie?”

Huo Qingqing’s words would carry more weight. She was both the victim and the first witness.

At the same time, Ruan Tang wanted to see Huo Qingqing fight back with determination. The first time in her life that she had been bullied should not be something she hid behind others to face.

She looked at Huo Qingqing nervously, afraid that the girl had been traumatized by Huo Shancheng and would not dare go.

Ruan Tang would never force her. But a shadow could last a lifetime, and she did not want Huo Qingqing to spend the rest of her life hating the child she had once been.

Huo Qingqing looked at Ruan Tang, her clear black-and-white eyes filled with Ruan Tang’s reflection.

“All right.” Huo Qingqing nodded.

The swelling on her face had gone down somewhat, and she no longer looked quite so frightening.

Relief washed over Ruan Tang, and a gratified smile appeared on her face.

Fortunately, Huo Qingqing had bravely taken the first step.

After tidying up, Ruan Tang picked Huo Qingqing up and followed Officer Tao to the police station.

As they reached the entrance, a shrill voice pierced straight into Ruan Tang’s ears.

“That slut Ruan Tang tried to seduce a man and con my Shancheng out of his watch, and now she even dares to call the police! Does she think there’s no one left in the Huo family?! When Yanshu comes back, I’ll make him divorce her!”

It was Huo Shancheng’s mother.

A mocking smile curved Ruan Tang’s lips, but the amusement in her eyes did not reach their depths.

“Let’s go in, Officer Tao. It seems they’ve been waiting a long time. They’ll say anything now.”

Ruan Tang wore a faint smile, yet her gaze was cold and indifferent. When she looked at people, an inexplicable chill seemed to radiate from her.

Officer Tao glanced at her unconsciously and instinctively swallowed nervously.

For a moment, he seemed to want to say something, but in the end his gaze fell on Huo Qingqing’s face, and he let out a sigh.

“All right.”

With that, Officer Tao led Ruan Tang inside.

The door opened and closed with a sharp sound, and the room abruptly fell silent.

Huo Shancheng, his face full of irritation, turned and saw Ruan Tang with that good-for-nothing girl. His eyes immediately reddened.

“What are you trying to do?! Do you want this watch that badly?!”

His heart was divided between longing for the watch and guilt, because the watch truly did not belong to him.

But he did not dare admit it. If he confessed in front of the police, he would be detained for at least a month.

And the instigator of all this was the woman standing before him—Ruan Tang!

Huo Shancheng was consumed by resentment. He had never hated anyone so much.

First, it had been Huo Yanshu. Now it was Huo Yanshu’s wife, Ruan Tang.

He believed that the entire Huo family had been born to bring him misfortune.

They were the reason he could never enjoy a peaceful life!

Ruan Tang laughed when confronted. Standing behind Officer Tao, she looked at Huo Shancheng with open amusement.

“You’re asking me? Wasn’t this watch something you stole after beating my Qingqing while I was away?”

Huo Shancheng panicked at once.

“Bullshit! When did I ever hit your Qingqing?!”

The moment he finished speaking, Ruan Tang stepped out from behind Officer Tao, and Huo Qingqing emerged from the shadows into the light.

The injuries on her face were impossible to miss. They were so horrifying that anyone who saw them drew a sharp breath.

There were other police officers and people who had come to report crimes in the room. Seeing this, they all looked at Huo Shancheng with complicated expressions, already convinced that he was nothing more than a thief crying out for justice.

The instant Huo Shancheng saw Huo Qingqing, his heart plummeted to the bottom. His face stiffened where he stood.

Unaware of the truth, Huo Shancheng’s mother remained arrogant and malicious.

“You actually dared to hit that little girl Huo Qingqing? Tell me, if I inform Yanshu right now, do you think he’ll divorce you immediately?”

Ruan Tang did not even raise an eyebrow.

“Go ahead. Let’s see whether he scolds you or me.”

Huo Shancheng’s mother widened her eyes and pointed at her.

“You!”

Huo Shancheng stopped his mother. He was no longer as composed as before.

“All right, Mom. I’ll talk to her.”

After soothing his mother, Huo Shancheng turned to Ruan Tang. His expression had grown considerably darker.

“You didn’t beat her yourself and plan to frame me, did you? You’re truly vicious, Ruan Tang.”

Inspired by his mother’s accusation, Huo Shancheng immediately claimed that the injuries on Huo Qingqing’s face had been inflicted by Ruan Tang herself in order to frame him and obtain the watch.

Captain Chen frowned at that.

Ruan Tang sneered. “The watch is mine. What reason would I have to do that?”

Huo Shancheng had not seen the evidence Ruan Tang had provided to Captain Chen. He had simply been brought back to the station as a suspect.

He assumed that he would be free to leave as soon as he cleared his name. At that moment, his face was full of certainty.

“You claim it’s yours, but where’s the evidence?”

He had no idea that the evidence was conclusive and that all they lacked was his confession.

Ruan Tang looked toward Captain Chen.

Huo Shancheng immediately followed her gaze.

When he saw Captain Chen take a folder from inside his coat, his heart gave a violent jolt.

“Expensive diamond watches like this always come with receipts and certificates. Ruan Tang provided them. This watch belongs to Ruan Tang.”

Captain Chen announced the verdict calmly. Upon hearing it, Huo Shancheng felt as if a bolt of lightning had struck him. His footing faltered, and his face went deathly pale.

Remembering the confident claims he had made earlier felt like a brutal slap across his face. Cold sweat began to bead on his forehead.

Seeing this, Ruan Tang led Huo Qingqing over to Captain Chen, intending to deliver the final blow.

She turned to Huo Qingqing, her voice softening.

“You tell him, Qingqing.”

Captain Chen also looked at Huo Qingqing, his gaze no longer as sharp as before.

Huo Qingqing pressed her lips together. Looking at Captain Chen in his police uniform, she opened and closed her mouth before finally speaking.

“Uncle Huo Shancheng came in while Auntie Ruan was away. I wouldn’t open the door, so he climbed in somehow. Then he snatched the diamond watch from Qingqing and hit Qingqing…”

As she reached the end, Huo Qingqing gave a small sob, and her eyes reddened.

Captain Chen recorded every word. Then he turned to Huo Shancheng, his gaze growing colder.

“Do you have anything else to say?”

Huo Shancheng had already crumbled when Captain Chen produced Ruan Tang’s receipt. At the question, he glared at Ruan Tang and her daughter with undisguised hatred.

“No.”

If he refused to confess now, he would only be detained longer. It was better to admit everything and hope that good behavior might earn him an early release.

Captain Chen nodded and turned a page in his notebook.

“Then return the diamond watch to Ruan Tang.”

Huo Shancheng had not brought the watch with him. He could only swallow his anger.

“The watch is at home. Mom, call Jiamei and have her bring it over.”