Chapter 242

Aunt Lin was turned sideways, talking to the person beside her, when a shadow suddenly loomed before her; she looked straight ahead and saw that it was Xia Xi's partner blocking her path: "Oh, it's you—why didn't you go in to eat?"

Xu Yanfeng didn't expect that this aunt still remembered him.

"I had something come up, so I didn't go over." Xu Yanfeng gave a vague answer, glanced at the old lady beside Aunt Lin, recognized her as the one who had tied the white thread for him, gave a slight nod in greeting, then turned his gaze back to Aunt Lin's face: "Are you available now? I'd like to talk with you."

Aunt Lin stared, unsure what this imposing young man wanted to talk about.

Xu Yanfeng said: "It's about Xia Xi; it won't take much of your time."

"Well, then... okay." Aunt Lin told the old lady beside her to go ahead first.

It's cold outside; Xu Yanfeng invited Aunt Lin to sit at the coffee shop across the street.

Aunt Lin doesn't drink coffee, so Xu Yanfeng ordered her a cup of tea.

"What do you want to ask?" Aunt Lin said, holding her cup, speaking first.

She always felt that the person before her and Xia Xi's relationship seemed off; Xia Xi had a child out of wedlock, and she hadn't heard that Xia Xi was married. That's what everyone outside said, and she didn't know if it was true.

The Xia family hadn't lived in Qianlin for a long time, so all kinds of rumors circulated.

Xu Yanfeng drew his gaze back from outside, took a sip of bitter coffee, and said: "Could you tell me about the Xia family's incident back then?"

Aunt Lin eyed him suspiciously: "You don't know?"

"He's Xia Xi's partner—how could he not know about her family's affairs?"

Aunt Lin wasn't the type to gossip; she was worried that what she said might affect Xia Xi.

Xu Yanfeng noticed her wariness, his gaze softened, and he proceeded gradually: "I don't know the details very well; I'd like to learn more. You've watched Xia Xi grow up, so you should know her nature—she bears everything herself." He played the emotion card, his words half true, half false.

His words were sincere; Aunt Lin relaxed a bit: "Actually, I don't know much either, just what everyone else has heard."

Xu Yanfeng: "Please go on."

"Xia Xi's father is not human. In the factory he ran, a worker got injured; he didn't want to take responsibility, so he fled, leaving family members to face the situation; he also sold the restaurant; police chased him, and during his escape he hit and killed someone. The families of the injured worker and the deceased kept coming to the house causing trouble every few days. Xiao Xuan had a congenital heart condition; she couldn't take the fright, so she was hospitalized not long after and underwent major surgery—truly tragic."

Xu Yanfeng's eyelid twitched: "Do you still remember when this happened?"

"I remember, I remember it most clearly." Aunt Lin had worked at Peishan Grand Hotel for over ten years; she couldn't forget when the hotel was transferred: "Six… no, seven years ago, early March. Let me think… it should have been March 5, the day of Jingzhe (Awakening of Insects). I was on duty then when a group of people suddenly entered the hotel; leading them was a newly rich man surnamed Wu, who said Xia Xi's father had sold the hotel to him, giving the elderly lady one week to settle things and prepare for handover."

Early March…

Xu Yanfeng stared, stunned; he and Xia Xi had broken up in mid-March of that year, and while they were together her family had already run into trouble—yet she had never mentioned it to him.

A string twanged in his mind; Xu Yanfeng's voice turned urgent: "What happened next?"

"Later, Xia Xi's father was arrested. Heaven has eyes—soon he died in prison, whether from illness or something else. If he hadn't died, who knows how he'd have dragged the family down after release."

Xu Yanfeng didn't care about Xia Xi's father: "I'm asking how the Xia family ended up later."

"No one knows the exact state of her family, but it must be tough—Xia Yue even came out to borrow money." Aunt Lin recalled the past with a sigh: "We old employees gave her money, but she was too embarrassed to take it. Probably it was too little; those workers suffered severe injuries and disabilities, and the person who was killed needed compensation, plus Xiao Xuan's surgery costs were a huge expense."

Xu Yanfeng held his breath; he didn't know any of it.

Several images flashed quickly in his mind—this was before he and Xia Xi broke up—she was often absent-minded, frequently zoning out, attributing it to a cold; he believed her, but later when he asked if her cold had cleared, she acted as if she had forgotten she'd ever said she had a cold.

At that time, her family was having trouble, so of course she wasn't in the mood for dating.

He clearly noticed her abnormality, yet didn't investigate further, being brushed off by her.

Overwhelmed by the information, Xu Yanfeng's mind was in a mess; he urgently needed clarity, but one thing puzzled him greatly: "How could they end up having to borrow money when Peishan Grand Hotel had been open for so many years, heard to have good business all along—her family should have had considerable savings."

"I don't know that either."

So Aunt Lin had from the start indicated she didn't know much either; many details were known only to the Xia family themselves, while most people only knew the surface.

After many years, even the surface grew fuzzy, and rumors passed back and forth lost the truth.

The tea in front of Aunt Lin cost thirty-something dollars; she didn't waste it, sipping it mouthful by mouthful. As she told him these things, she felt heavy-hearted, and sighed: "The hotel is gone, the house sold too, the whole family moved away; I haven't seen them in ages—if it weren't for the old lady's passing, they wouldn't have come back. I see Xi Xi is doing okay now, but she's got a whole family to support, so she must be struggling too. Aunt, I don't know how you two are doing, but no matter what, if you can help, please help her family more. Xia Yue should be able to get out this year; it's a shame she didn't get to see the old lady one last time. Sigh, life is unpredictable."

"Xia Yue?"

He didn't catch that last sentence—where is Xia Yue coming from?

Aunt Lin looked up at him; does he not even know that?

"In the second year after the Xia family's trouble, Xia Yue was imprisoned for manslaughter. Her husband is a ruthless man who personally sent her in; she got a heavy sentence and hasn't been released yet." Aunt Lin grew more solemn: "Xia Yue is also a pitiful person."

"Who did she kill?"

"Her mother-in-law." Aunt Lin shook her head: "I don't know why. I also know that Xia Yue girl—she's gentle, kind-hearted, always smiling when she meets people; if she weren't driven to desperation, how could she have done such a thing?"

After Aunt Lin left, Xu Yanfeng stayed alone in the coffee shop for a long time.

He pulled out his phone, trying to find Xia Yue's case online; the court should have published the judgment.

He entered the parties' names in the search box, and the corresponding judgment popped up.

Xia Yue stabbed her mother-in-law, Wang Yuzhen, who had mistreated the child, stimulating her mentally and causing her to lose rationality; it was a crime of passion. However, a crime of passion is still intentional homicide. Wang Yuzhen died from excessive blood loss despite rescue efforts; according to relevant laws, the penalty is generally three to ten years' imprisonment. Xia Yue was sentenced to six years—a heavy sentence.

Xu Yanfeng noticed the judgment mentioned the child; Xia Yue is in prison, so where is her child?

"Is it being raised by her husband?"

"No, Xia Xi's daughter isn't her biological child; perhaps it's her sister's child."

In the hotel, guests had all left; Xia Xi finally had a moment to sit down and eat something, but after a few bites she kept yawning nonstop.

She hadn't rested well for several nights straight; she could barely keep going.

Zhou Du is a night owl; staying up late is routine for him. Last night he accompanied Xia Xi in keeping vigil, and he was still energetic, his sunglasses hanging upside down from the back of his head: "My mom mentioned your family's past affairs; most likely Xu Yanfeng heard about it, so you should be mentally prepared."

Xia Xi's motion of picking up food paused, her expression shifted for an instant, then returned to normal.

Xu Yanfeng appeared at her grandmother's funeral; anyone present who mentioned even a sentence could possibly know about her family's past, so she shouldn't be surprised: "I know."

Zhou Du suddenly stiffened his face and burst out a swear: "Fuck!"

Xia Xi looked at him; he raised his chin and said, "Speak of Cao Cao and Cao Cao arrives."

Zhou Du stood up, hooked his fingers onto the sunglasses hanging at the back of his head, pulled them forward to rest on the bridge of his nose, covering the upper half of his face, intending to slip away: "I'll go ahead first; you handle it yourself."

Xia Xi turned her head; Zhou Du and Xu Yanfeng passed each other, one leaving, the other approaching.