Manager Shang glanced at Gu’er. Although he was the hotel manager, it wasn’t his place to intervene. He knew this was a struggle between Lin Shan and Yu District Chief, and it was best for him to just watch.
"Such a sharp tongue. Lin Shan, is this how you raise your daughter? Hmph. Look how wild she is. No manners at all."
Yu District Chief knew Gu’er had a point, but he wasn’t about to argue with her. He felt she wasn’t on his level; he only needed to target Lin Shan.
"It’s not your place, Yu District Chief, to comnt on my daughter. How I raise her is none of your business. You think she’s wild, but I think she’s my pride and joy. A daughter of Lin Shan should be exactly like this. You wanted an explanation, now you have it. So, Yu District Chief, how about you give us an explanation?"
Lin Shan’s gaze turned cold. He stared at Yu District Chief, unafraid even with Secretary Yuan present.
Yu District Chief glanced at Secretary Yuan. Seeing no reaction from him, he gave a sinister laugh and said to Lin Shan, "Lin Shan, you’ve raised a wild brat. You still think you’re back in the village? This isn’t the village, and you’re not the sa Lin Shan you used to be. Don’t think you can be a savage like before. You assaulted soone, and that’s a breach of discipline. Just you wait, you’ll be writing a self-criticism report."
Yu District Chief felt that Lin Shan was finished this ti. He had always been overshadowed by Lin Shan, and now that he finally had a chance to crush him, how could he not be thrilled?
Lin Shan’s expression changed.
Gu’er frowned. ’This guy, Yu, seems to know Dad from way back. He even ntioned the village. Did they have a feud back then?’
Gu’er was about to speak but Lin Shan pulled her back. He took a step forward, standing ramrod straight, and fixed his gaze on Yu District Chief.
"You Erbaihua, you listen to and listen good. Even if we’re not in the village anymore, and even if I don’t have a hunting rifle in my hands, I can still take care of you. You believe that? Or have you forgotten what I told you all those years ago? Are you asking for a repeat performance?"
At that mont, an overwhelming aura of pressure and dominance radiated from Lin Shan. It was as if, regardless of who stood before him, he reigned supre.
"You... you!"
A vicious glint flashed in Yu District Chief’s eyes, but his body couldn’t help but tremble. mories from his youth flooded his mind, making him both hate and fear Lin Shan.
"Quite the spirit, Mr. Lin."
Secretary Yuan finally spoke, his voice calm. He could see that Yu District Chief was so intimidated that he couldn’t even speak.
"You’re too kind, Secretary Yuan. It’s nothing, talking about ’spirit’ in front of you. I hit soone, and for that, I broke the rules. I will write the self-criticism, and I’ll accept whatever punishnt the organization gives . But here today, I am a father, and I will not let anyone bully my daughter. If you have a problem, you bring it to ."
Secretary Yuan smiled at Lin Shan, a flash of appreciation in his eyes. ’This man is much better than Yu District Chief,’ he thought.
"Secretary, look how arrogant he is, even in front of you! Just writing a self-criticism won’t be enough! Breaching discipline is no small matter. You have to teach him a lesson. Otherwise, he won’t even know his own na!"
Unable to handle Lin Shan himself, Yu District Chief hurriedly appealed to Secretary Yuan.
Secretary Yuan shot him a look, and Yu District Chief took a step back, not daring to make another sound.
"Your daughter is nad Gu’er? Her cooking is quite good."
Lin Shan was stunned. Many others in the room were stunned as well. From the sound of it, it seed Secretary Yuan knew Gu’er.
For the first ti, Yu District Chief focused his attention seriously on Gu’er. Before, his gaze had been fixed on Lin Shan, and he had barely looked at the girl. But one look, and his expression was one of shock.
This Gu’er looked so much like a young Chen Fengjiao. But compared to Chen Fengjiao, Gu’er seed strong-willed, whereas Chen Fengjiao had been like a delicate flower.
"Your na is Gu’er? Weren’t you lost? You ran so far away back then... You... you... how did you find your way back?"
Yu District Chief pointed at Gu’er, looking like he had just seen a ghost.
Secretary Yuan was sowhat displeased, but Yu District Chief’s words piqued his interest. ’Lost... found her way back... looks like there’s a story here.’
Lin Shan’s face was dark as he glared at Yu District Chief.
But Gu’er’s heart skipped a beat. She had gotten lost in the chaos when her parents were about to return to the city. She had always thought she’d gotten lost because she had just wandered off on her own. But thinking back now, she had only been a little over three years old at the ti. It was unlikely she could have just wandered off, out of everyone’s sight, to a place where no one could find her. It seed too incredible to be true.
’In his panic just now, he said I ran so far away. How would he know I ran so far? Even my parents don’t know that. There’s a hidden aning in his words. Could it be... was he the one who carried away back then, took sowhere far away, and then abandoned ? Did I only get farther and farther away because I was trying to find my way ho?’
Once this thought took root, Gu’er couldn’t suppress it. This was the only thing that made sense. Even if it wasn’t Yu District Chief himself, he was definitely involved.
’Besides, after I went missing, Mom and Dad asked the villagers to help find . This Yu District Chief seems to be from the village too. Maybe he was the one who sabotaged the search, misdirecting everyone so the villagers couldn’t find .’
’Mom and Dad went back to the village to look for , but they mostly just asked the villagers for news and then followed those leads. But was the information they got even real? If this Yu guy had soone secretly spread false information, of course they would never have found .’
Gu’er didn’t know that her speculations were already very close to the truth. For now, it was just a guess.
"How did you know I went far? My parents don’t even know where I went, so how would you? I was only three years old when I got lost. A child that young couldn’t have run out of the village all on her own. I rember a man holding . I didn’t cry or struggle because he was from the village. He carried , took sowhere very far away, threw on the side of the road, and ran off. Was that man you?!"
Gu’er didn’t actually rember what happened back then at all. What she was saying now was a complete bluff.
Hearing Gu’er’s words, Lin Shan was shaken to the core. A cold light instantly appeared in his eyes as he stared daggers at Yu District Chief.
"It wasn’t ! I wasn’t the one who carried you!"
Yu District Chief never imagined Gu’er would be bluffing. He thought she actually rembered and blurted it out instinctively.
"Then who was it?"
Gu’er pressed him, her voice trembling slightly. She truly hadn’t expected this—she really hadn’t just wandered off and gotten lost all those years ago.
Lin Shan’s heart jolted again, his eyes narrowing. He hadn’t expected this either. When he’d heard Gu’er’s story before, he too had assud she’d probably just wandered off. But to think that You Erbaihua had a hand in it... Lin Shan suppressed the rage boiling inside him. He needed to know the answer.
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Third update is here! Thank you to Xiaohan Weiyu and FF722 for the monthly tickets! Looks like we’re just a few tickets shy of sixty. Does that an I need to get ready for another bonus Chapter?
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