CHAPTER 786: CHAPTER 782: EXTRA STORY | FAN HONGSHAN 01

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Seeing her birth mother and little brother truly at odds, the bond between mother and child severed—

Fan Hongshan felt no pleasure as she had imagined, but silently cooperated with her eldest brother, helping their mother clean up the long uninhabited old house before leaving with an uneasy heart.

Along the way, the siblings felt a heart-wrenching pain for their mother’s whimpering cries.

"Eldest brother, mom’s really not a bad person, it’s just that..." Fan Hongshan wanted to plead for their mother to her brother but then abruptly remembered her mother’s final, still-remaining request for Fan Fengshou from her eldest brother.

She had no children and could not understand this kind of ’maternal’ behavior of her mother.

"Hong Shan, don’t worry; she is my birth mother, no matter what, I will always remember the kindness of being born and raised by her, rest assured."

Fan Jiefang drove the car to the community building where his youngest sister lived and brought up a topic: "Do you want me to accompany you up, so he doesn’t get the wrong idea?"

"No need, eldest brother, I’m fine. Drive carefully, it’s too late now, and going back to the countryside isn’t safe. You also have work tomorrow; don’t tire yourself out."

"Alright, then I’ll head back. Hong Shan, no matter what happens, your eldest brother is always here for you, don’t be a stranger."

Even if Fan Jiefang wanted to help his youngest sister with her marriage, he was not Fan Hongshan and didn’t know what she was truly thinking. Besides, the warmth or coldness of a marriage is something only those involved can really know...

He could only feel sorry for her in his heart, never thinking of meddling in her marriage, he sighed inwardly and left after agreeing.

Fan Hongshan, feeling reassured by her eldest brother’s guarantee and his sudden offer, went upstairs wearily.

After returning to her marital home, Zhou Yilang saw the swelling on her face and furrowed his brows but didn’t ask her about it. He simply told her that if she wasn’t going to cook, she should tell him in advance, so he and the children wouldn’t have to wait for her.

Fan Hongshan just quietly acknowledged and hid the self-mockery at the corner of her mouth as she returned to her room with mixed emotions.

This left the man across from her and the children exchanging puzzled and strange looks.

"Daddy, what happened to that woman?" The little girl, only eleven years old, didn’t quite understand as she looked at her father. Yet in her heart, she felt unhappy. How had that woman gotten injured?

Seeing her father’s wife come back in disarray, with the advantage of height, she clearly saw the self-mockery on her face and especially the injuries on her face and forehead—it was obvious she had been hit.

Thinking of how the woman was usually at home, always showing a shallow and gentle smile to her and her brother, today she had a stony face and didn’t even greet them before going into her room!

Used to her gentle smile, being cold shouldered like this made the little girl feel uncomfortable. But what bothered her even more was that the woman didn’t say a word about being hurt!

"Adult problems are none of the children’s business; don’t ask too many questions. Take your brother back to your room to do homework, and then go to bed." The man glanced at his daughter’s pursed lips then at his son with his head lowered, holding his book upside down.

He didn’t bother much about his daughter’s impolite way of referring to his wife and simply commanded them after finishing his order, he continued reading his documents.

"Yes..." The girl and boy, seemingly quite afraid of the man, immediately nodded and quickly packed their bags and left the living room with the brother at the sound of his cold command.

For a moment, in the spacious living room, only the man’s tall figure remained, sitting as steady as a mountain.

Zhou Yilang moved the bone joint of his finger holding the file, adjusted the glasses on the bridge of his nose, and his long, narrow eyes slightly squinted.

What flashed in the bottom of his eyes were the blue bruise marks at the corner of her mouth and the purple swelling at her forehead under his gaze.

Originally, marrying this wife had been entirely an accident.

But it’s undeniable that this wife has done her duties excellently. Throughout the eight years of marriage, she has always been very gentle and mild-mannered. Regardless of what she truly thinks, Zhou Yilang is indeed quite satisfied with his wife.

No fights, no fuss, she stays true to her role.

Thinking of this, the man’s thick fingers placed the document down, stood up to turn off the lights in the living room, and followed the path that Fan Hongshan had taken, heading back to the bedroom.

Zhou Yilang carelessly set his glasses on the nightstand, the room is empty, only the sound of water trickling down from the bathroom, indicating that his wife was taking a shower.

He casually lit a cigarette and stepped out onto the balcony.

The small town was very peaceful. It was just nine o’clock, only a few lights were still on in the neighboring houses.

The early winter’s night was carrying a refreshing, chilly breeze. He turned around to lean on the balcony, listening to the ’click’ of the door opening. The figure of his wife, wrapped in a towel, suddenly entered his field of vision.

She had not expected that her husband, who usually never returned to the room before eleven at night, would be hiding on the balcony just after nine tonight.

Because she was preoccupied, she was a bit absent-minded while dressing and even forgot to put on her underwear. Fortunately, the towel was big enough to tightly wrap her from chest to buttocks.

First, she moved to the door to lock the room and then let out a ’huff’ of relief. Then she took the towel from the door, and sat down on the bed with her head down to dry her hair, not noticing the glasses on the nightstand at all, nor did she see the quick spray of cigarette smoke on the balcony in the dark night—

Zhou Yilang always felt that he had good self-control. As a member of the Zhou family, he had a pride and self-discipline that others did not.

However, in the eight years of his marriage, he had never seen his wife’s body that was as pure as snow under the light.

Especially after his eight years of cultivating, she had the figure of a young girl with the charm and allure of a mature woman. The slightly drooping hair strands shadowed her partially hidden facial features, illuminating them as if they held fluorescence, allowing him to clearly see her expression.

Perhaps because she knew there was no one around, the look on her face was very indifferent, lacking the gentleness she usually showed in front of him and their children— even though the bruises on her lips should have made her appear disheveled, the slight hook of her thin lips conveyed a cold self-mockery.

Under the moonlight and lamp, her skin, usually kept indoors, was whitened, and the bruises on her face were even more striking.

For the first time, Zhou Yilang saw such a seductive wife.

After eight years of sharing a bed and dreams, he now knew that the gentleness displayed by his wife in front of him was a pretense, a disguise.

The cigarette in his hand burned out and he crushed it underfoot—

With a ’sizzle’, very faint, Zhou Yilang stepped slowly into the inner room, and the woman sitting on his bed with enticing movements, completely unaware, was his prey.

It wasn’t until Zhou Yilang pulled the curtains on the balcony, making a ’whoosh’ sound, that Fan Hongshan, engrossed in her inner world, was startled. She looked up, her cold smile not yet faded, as Zhou Yilang grasped her elbow and pulled her into his embrace—

"Who hit you?" Zhou Yilang pulled the woman into his arms, only then realizing that the rhythm he only pursued in the dark of night was a waste of the treasure he now held.

"Sir?!" Fan Hongshan was startled, her hands instinctively reaching to grasp the loose towel covering her chest. Her heart was pounding rapidly—

Why is he here?

Her gaze instinctively moved to the door she had locked, and then it dawned on her much later that he had not come from the room, but from the balcony!

Her damp hair had blocked her vision earlier, but now that her hair was half-dry, she could see the plain glasses on the nightstand!

Even a fool like Fan Hongshan realized that this man had already been enjoying the cool air on the balcony while she had been taking a bath!

This—