Chapter Ninety-One: Trouble Breaks Out

After returning home with the fool, Chen Liang tossed his dirty clothes into a large wooden basin and swaggered off as if nothing in the world concerned him.

As for the fool, he was left miserably washing the clothes he and his wife had changed out of, crouched beside the water basin.

Watching that all-around, fatherly fool of a man, Chen Liang found it strangely amusing. He could handle the housework, cook the meals, and earn money to support the family. Was that not the very definition of being capable of everything?

Chen Liang crouched nearby with a cigarette in his mouth, watching as though he were observing monkeys in a zoo. It was enough to make the fool boil with anger, yet the fool did not dare say a word. Who had told him to keep his wife, whom he cherished like a goddess at home, from lifting a finger?

Chen Liang kept watching until the fool hurriedly washed the whole basin of clothes, then finally dusted off his backside and left.

On his first day back, Chen Liang planned to give his wife a surprise.

Timing it just right, he arrived at the library entrance just before the end of the workday. Under the glow of the streetlamp, Xiaoyu's fair, delicate face shone with a dangerously alluring luster, and her shoulder-length black hair swayed gently in the wind. At that moment, Chen Liang suddenly felt that having such a wife was one of life's greatest delights.

His gaze roved with unmistakable greed over Xiaoyu's waist, her chest, and her lifted, peachlike backside, and the wickedness beneath him began to stir.

He had only been back a few days, and just seeing Xiaoyu was enough to make him lose control. No wonder people said that after three years in the army, even a sow could rival a beauty.

Sensing his stare with a woman's keen sixth sense, Xiaoyu looked up at once and saw the handsome man standing beneath the streetlamp at the entrance.

Seeing the man she had missed day and night, Xiaoyu was overjoyed. Striding forward on her long legs, she rushed to him in a few quick steps, seized Chen Liang's arm, and called out sweetly, "Brother! I've missed you so much!"

Chen Liang touched the reins of the warhorse that belonged to him alone. "Brother misses you too! I came straight here to pick you up and take you home the moment I got back."

"Mm! Let's go home together!" Xiaoyu clung to Chen Liang's arm and would not let go. The two whispered their tender nothings to each other as they walked toward the bicycle parking area.

With a single hand, Chen Liang unlocked the bicycle and pushed it out of the shed. Only then did Xiaoyu let go of his arm, shifting to the back seat instead and wrapping both arms around his waist.

Pressing her face against Chen Liang's back and breathing in his private scent, Xiaoyu felt at that moment that she must have been struck by a deadly poison called love.

This poison struck fast, lasted long, and could only be cured at a specific time and place, with a specific antidote.

By the time Chen Liang got home, his mother had already cooked many of his favorite dishes. Ever since his father had told her that her youngest son was coming back, she had been busy from the moment she got home. Such was the greatness of maternal love.

Though perhaps that glorious maternal love would last only one night, much like the university students of later years when they returned home on break. At best they could enjoy three good days before being criticized and disliked by their parents in every possible way.

Chen Liang sent Xiaoyu to wash her hands first, then went over to his mother and did everything he could to make her happy, hoping the maternal affection might be extended just a little. At the very least, it had to last until the next day, had to it not?

After Chen Liang and Xiaoyu helped his mother carry the dishes to the table, the family chatted happily while waiting for the eldest sister-in-law to return with little Chen Hong so they could eat together.

But they waited, and waited, and it was already clearly past the eldest sister-in-law's usual time of coming home. Still, that was nothing unusual; with little Chen Hong being such a little tormentor, it was perfectly normal for the eldest sister-in-law to take her out to buy some food or drinks.

They waited a good while longer, until even the honest father sensed that something was wrong, when the eldest sister-in-law came back, supported by Liu Siyuan.

The eldest sister-in-law, who had always cared deeply about her appearance, was now in a miserable state. Dust covered her clothes, her face was streaked with tears and mucus, and she did not even notice that her ever-neat cabbage-like hair had come loose and hung down about her shoulders.

In her dazed state, she could not even stand on her own and could only lean on Liu Siyuan for support.

This sudden turn of events left the entire Chen family at a loss, full of bewilderment. What had happened to the eldest sister-in-law today?

The eldest brother, Chen Jian, hurriedly stood up and took her from Liu Siyuan, his face filled with anxiety and concern. "Honghong, what's wrong? Don't scare me!"

The eldest sister-in-law, dull-eyed and motionless, suddenly saw Chen Liang and reacted as though she had seen a savior. Pushing the eldest brother aside, she fell straight before Chen Liang. "Little brother-in-law, please save Chen Hong. I... I lost her!"

Her words struck the entire Chen family like a bolt of lightning from a clear sky, stunning everyone senseless. They stared at her in disbelief.

But as soon as the eldest sister-in-law finished speaking, Chen Liang immediately understood. He hauled her up from the floor, sat her in a chair, and looked at her urgently.

"Sister-in-law, don't cry yet. Tell me everything from beginning to end, quickly. If you keep crying, it'll really be too late."

Chen Liang's voice was low, seething with anger. The eldest sister-in-law had never seen him like this, and the sight frightened her enough to snap her back to her senses.

"Little brother-in-law, it was like this... When we passed Plum Blossom Garden, Chen Hong insisted on eating a candied hawthorn stick. I... I stopped the car and bought one for her. But when I turned around after buying it, Chen Hong was gone. Siyuan and I searched for a long time and still couldn't find her. Then... then Siyuan brought me back."

"Sister-in-law, are you sure it was Plum Blossom Garden? Do you remember the hawthorn seller? Was he always selling there?"

"I remember. He was a hawthorn peddler who often sold things near Plum Blossom Garden. I used to pass him all the time when I went to pick someone up."

"All right, I understand." Hearing the eldest sister-in-law's words, Chen Liang immediately realized they had run into a wandering child abductor. Otherwise, little Chen Hong would never have left her side for no reason.

The only lead now was the hawthorn seller. Since, by the eldest sister-in-law's account, Chen Hong disappeared while buying the candied hawthorn stick, there was a strong chance that the peddler had seen what happened.

"Dad, Mom, and eldest brother and sister-in-law, don't panic. I'll go look for her right now. Rest assured, I'll bring Chen Hong back tonight!" Chen Liang's words were firm and resolute, and they instantly gave the family confidence, finally easing the knot in their hearts.

Often, people were just frightening themselves. Right now, Chen Liang was worried not only that Chen Hong had not yet been found, but also that the Chen family might run into some other trouble.

Besides, according to the later rule of the golden first twenty-four hours in missing-child rescues, Chen Liang was ninety-nine point nine percent sure he could bring little Chen Hong back.

After calming his relatives, Chen Liang told Xiaoyu to keep the eldest sister-in-law company a little longer, because this was the kind of thing no one ever wanted to see. Especially the eldest sister-in-law, who could not be blamed at all; she was the one directly involved, and no one would be more self-reproaching than she was.