DLRC – Chapter 98 You Just Want to Get Back at Me

Ge Zheng continued furiously, “Good thing Old Huo found you! Otherwise, who knows which wild man you were planning to live with while taking his son along!”

Yu Wei felt as if she had been struck by lightning. Her whole body trembled, and disbelief filled her face.

Though it was after the Spring Festival, the weather was still bitterly cold. Huo Mingwang’s office felt empty and desolate. Yu Wei sat on the soft sofa, yet the chill climbed relentlessly up her spine—up to her chest, her neck, and finally to her mind.

Cold engulfed her completely. Though she was indoors, it felt as though she were locked in a freezer.

The heat from her nervous sweat, scared out of her by Ge Zheng moments ago, had already evaporated into the frigid air. Her mind was full of that one sentence from Ge Zheng—“Huo Mingwang’s son.”

She knew. At last, she knew.

No wonder… no wonder Huo Mingwang treated Yu Hui so well. He knew all along. He knew Yu Hui was his son. That’s why he was different from other men—so good to Yu Hui, so good that she sometimes felt Yu Hui really was his child.

Was she really that stupid? From the very start, their story had been planned. He had approached her with an agenda—from the beginning—to get close to her, and to Yu Hui.

And she had thought it was true love. But it turned out… it was all for the child?

Is that it? So the reason Huo Mingwang came close was… what? To take revenge on her?

No one knew the original owner had switched bodies with her, so in everyone’s eyes, all the wrongdoings looked like hers alone…

“I’m sorry… it seems like everything was done by me… but my son…”

Before she could finish, Ge Zheng cut her off sharply: “What do you mean, ‘seems like’?! Damn it, it was you!”

Ge Zheng, seething, jabbed his finger at her nose in rage—right as the door opened and Huo Mingwang walked in. Their eyes met.

The atmosphere froze instantly. Huo Mingwang saw his wife crying her heart out on the sofa while Ge Zheng—rough and intimidating—stood pointing at her aggressively. The sight made Huo Mingwang’s eyelid twitch violently.

Without thinking, he strode forward in long steps and yanked Ge Zheng by the collar.

“You want me to send you back right now?!”

“Whoa, Old Huo! What’s this about? I didn’t bully her!” Ge Zheng protested, pointing at Yu Wei. The woman was still crying, but quickly got to her feet.

“Huo Mingwang, I’m leaving,” Yu Wei said and hurried past the two men. Huo Mingwang’s heart lurched; he shot Ge Zheng a dark look and moved to chase after her, but Ge Zheng grabbed his arm.

“Hey! Old Huo, don’t you want to ask why Yu Wei’s crying?”

Huo Mingwang shook off his grip coldly. “No.”

He jogged after her. Yu Wei had already run downstairs. The factory was big; even though she had memorized the route earlier, it still took her a while to find the main gate. She started running toward it.

“Yu Wei!” Huo Mingwang caught up and gripped her shoulders. “Ge Zheng talks nonsense—don’t be mad.”

“Mm, I’m not mad. I’m going home.” Yu Wei tried to pull free, but couldn’t. Her voice came out thick with suppressed tears: “Let go. My son is waiting for me at home.”

At the mention of her son, Yu Wei lifted her eyes and looked seriously at Huo Mingwang. Only now did she notice—Yu Hui really looked like him. Especially those brows, those deep eyes—the father and son were practically identical.

If she had been shocked upon hearing earlier that the child was Huo Mingwang’s, now, after breathing the cold air outside, her frantic heart had calmed somewhat.

“Yu Wei.” Huo Mingwang refused to let her go. He had a feeling—if he let her walk away this time, he would regret it. Regret it forever.

“Huo Mingwang, let go…” Yu Wei sniffled and tried to push him away, but his arms were immovable.

He stood in front of her, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. Employees passed by constantly, and seeing the scene, their eyes widened as they stopped to watch their boss’s drama.

Whoa—an affair?!

“Yu Wei, you came here for me, didn’t you? Let’s go inside and talk.” Huo Mingwang shot a cold glare at the onlookers. The two security guards finally came to their senses and started clearing the crowd.

“Move along, move along!” the guards ordered. Yu Wei, hearing the commotion, tried to turn and leave again.

Huo Mingwang still wouldn’t let go. But Yu Wei was stubborn too—she insisted on leaving. The two were locked in a silent standoff, neither willing to yield.

Crowds dispersed, then new ones gathered. Finally, Yu Wei couldn’t take it anymore.

“Huo Mingwang, whatever it is, talk later. My son’s at home waiting for me. Let me go first.”

Huo Mingwang noticed that she wouldn’t even look him in the eye as she spoke. Something must have happened just now—maybe Ge Zheng had told her something he shouldn’t have.

Something he shouldn’t have said?

Huo’s heart sank. Could it be… Yu Wei remembered the past?

He studied her expression carefully. Nothing had changed. She was still the same Yu Wei—the one he loved—not the old Yu Wei everyone hated.

“…Fine. I’ll take you home.”

He sighed, no longer blocking her way, but he wasn’t about to let her leave alone either.

Yu Wei saw he finally relented and hurried toward the gate. The security guards, sharp-eyed, swung the gate open and bowed as they watched the two leave.

Yu Wei mounted her bicycle, ready to go, but Huo Mingwang stopped her. “Take my car.”

“No need. Go handle your work. I know the way.”

Ignoring her, Huo Mingwang walked over, opened the front passenger door of his car, and—before Yu Wei could react—lifted her off the bike and carried her into the seat.

Under countless stunned gazes, he placed her inside, shut the door, then loaded her bike into the back seat before driving away toward Changqing Road.

Yu Wei’s heart pounded as she stared out the window at the employees left standing, dumbstruck, cheeks burning crimson.

Once the car started, Yu Wei finally regained her senses.

She turned to look at Huo Mingwang’s profile as he drove, her gaze slipping to his thighs involuntarily, brows furrowing.

Huo Mingwang noticed her troubled look. “What’s wrong?”

Yu Wei shook her head, silent, torn by two conflicting thoughts.

One voice urged her to hug him and give him comfort; the other warned her—Huo Mingwang had an ulterior motive in approaching her.

And the one he loved… probably wasn’t her. She was just a substitute.

“Did Ge Zheng say something unpleasant?” Huo Mingwang asked. “If so, I’ll apologize on his behalf.”

“You’re that close to him?” she asked. “Even apologizing for him?”

“Yeah. We grew up together. Later, he helped me a lot.” Especially the year Yu Wei left—Ge Zheng ran around endlessly for him. Even coming to Lucheng had been possible thanks to Ge Zheng’s help.

Yu Wei didn’t say anything after hearing that. She looked like she was sulking, but her expression didn’t seem angry at all—on the contrary, it was extremely calm. So calm it was almost frightening.

Huo Mingwang turned the steering wheel, occasionally glancing at her. “Tonight, I’ll take you and our son out for dinner. What do you want to eat?”

Yu Wei finally reacted, watching as the car slowly drove onto Evergreen Road. She replied, “No need. You go handle your work. Yu Hui and I will eat at home.”

The car’s space was already confined, and now that she had gone quiet, the silence felt unnervingly heavy. Huo Mingwang felt unbearably uncomfortable. He suddenly stepped on the brakes and brought the car to a stop.

“Yu Wei.” He leaned over to kiss her, but she turned her head away, avoiding him, so his lips only brushed the corner of hers.

His lips were hot, but they couldn’t melt the chill on her skin.

“Yu Wei, don’t keep things bottled up inside. Tell me.” His tone softened as he leaned closer, his sharp nose brushing the side of her face. “Okay?”

Yu Wei kept her head turned away, refusing to look at him. She had originally wanted to say something cold, but when she thought about all the things he had gone through, she couldn’t bring herself to be completely ruthless.

In the end, she held back and didn’t turn her head, only gazing out the window as she gently replied, “Mm, go take care of your work. I’m not angry.”

She just didn’t want to deal with him anymore. She needed time to calm down. Too many things had happened today—so many that she hadn’t even had time to process them.

Huo Mingwang sighed helplessly. “Alright. I’ll take you home first. See you tonight.”

When they arrived at the little courtyard, Yu Wei got out of the car without looking back and went upstairs. Huo Mingwang stood by his car, watching as she entered her room and shut the door firmly. He stared at that door for a long time before finally turning to leave.

When she got home, Yu Hui was still playing with Shu Ya and Shu Le. He was clearly in a much better mood than before she left. His little face was all smiles. When he saw that his mom had finally come home, he happily ran over and hugged her.

“Mommy!”

“Huihui.” Yu Wei bent down and hugged the soft little bundle, her heart flooding with warmth.

“Mommy, where did you go? I waited for you for sooo long!”

Yu Wei squatted down, laughing as she poked her son’s little nose. His doe-like eyes really resembled Huo Mingwang’s, especially when those bright, watery eyes looked at her with a smile. For a moment, their figures overlapped in her mind.

“Shu Ya, Shu Le, you two keep playing. I’m going to make dinner.”

“Okay! Auntie, you go ahead. We won’t bother you!”

Yu Wei smiled, rubbing Yu Hui’s little head. The boy followed her into the kitchen to help wash vegetables. During that time, he noticed that his mom kept sneaking glances at him, and whenever he looked up at her, she would quickly avert her eyes.

“Mommy, what’s wrong with you?” Yu Hui tilted his head, his big eyes rolling around as he stared at her.

Yu Wei laughed again and looked into those eyes that seemed to hold tiny fragments of starlight.

Her voice softened, her mood relaxing quite a bit.

“It’s nothing. Tonight Mommy will make sweet and sour pork for you.”

Yu Hui grinned happily, and when Yu Wei saw his smiling face, something inside her seemed to clear up all at once. It’s really nothing. Even if Huo Mingwang only sees me as a stand-in, even if the one he loves is that wife he once married… at least I still have Yu Hui.

Only Yu Hui truly loves her soul.

That evening, as promised, Huo Mingwang came by. When he knocked on the door, Yu Wei was still stir-frying the last dish, while Yu Hui was in the living room playing with the giant panda plushie that Huo had bought him.

“Uncle Huo!” Yu Hui saw him and excitedly ran over to pounce on him. Even Xiaobai scratched eagerly at the door, but Yu Wei didn’t come out to greet him.

“Son, did you miss me?”

Yu Hui blinked in surprise at the way he called him “son,” but quickly giggled and hugged Huo Mingwang without a care in the world.

That afternoon, Huo Mingwang had asked Ge Zheng everything in detail. Yu Wei did know about the past now, but she still seemed to be in a state of amnesia—she only learned those things from Ge Zheng, an outsider’s mouth.

He played with his son for a while before Yu Wei came out carrying a plate of sweet and sour pork. She took off her apron and glanced at Yu Hui in his arms. “Huihui, come eat.”

“Coming, Mommy!”

Yu Hui climbed down from Huo Mingwang, ran into the kitchen, and brought out three sets of bowls and chopsticks. But there were only two dishes on the table. The portions were big, but with one more person—Huo Mingwang—there definitely wasn’t enough food.

Yu Hui froze for a second with his little spoon in hand, glancing between his calm-looking mom at the table and Uncle Huo standing aside.

The atmosphere was strange. Why did Mommy only make two dishes tonight? When Uncle Huo came before, she always made three. If she was in a good mood, there would even be four…

Something was off. Really off.

Yu Wei had originally planned to ignore Huo Mingwang and just eat with her son, but that burning gaze on her was impossible to ignore. She hadn’t made a portion for him on purpose, knowing he probably hadn’t eaten yet when he came here.

But… while cooking, her mind had been full of him and his wife—his relationship with the original Yu Wei.

She thought about it for a long time and felt more and more certain: Huo Mingwang must have mistaken her for the original Yu Wei. That’s why he liked her, why he liked her son.

Finally, unable to stand his probing gaze any longer, Yu Wei put down her chopsticks and pulled him into the bedroom.

“Huihui, don’t wait for me. Go ahead and eat first. When you’re done, play outside for a while.”

“Okay,” Yu Hui replied obediently.

The bedroom door slammed shut behind them. Yu Wei sat on the bed, looking at him calmly.

“Let’s talk.”

“Talk about what?” Huo Mingwang sat down beside her. When he leaned in, Yu Wei immediately shifted away the moment his arm brushed hers.

“Based on the time since I lost my memory, we’ve only known each other for… what, less than six months?”

“Mm.”

“So you started pursuing me before even knowing me—because you already knew me before?”

“Sort of, but…”

“So the one you really love… is actually your former wife, isn’t it?” Her tone sounded like a question, but her words carried certainty. It left Huo Mingwang momentarily confused.

“The one I love has always been you,” he said.

“Did you love her deeply?”

“Her?”

“The wife you married back in your northern hometown.”

Huo Mingwang frowned. Something was definitely wrong with Yu Wei today, but he still answered, “My wife is you. The one I love has always been you.”

Yu Wei gave a bitter smile. “Really? But you don’t even know who the person you love is…”

“Yu Wei.” Huo Mingwang’s expression hardened as he turned her body toward him. “I know very clearly. The person I love is you. Absolutely you.”

Yu Wei’s smile grew even more bitter. She knew all too well that she wasn’t the Yu Wei who had gone to the countryside as an educated youth.

The one Huo Mingwang truly loved was just the original woman who looked like her.

But that wasn’t her. And only she knew this truth.

“Are you approaching me just to take revenge?” Yu Wei asked quietly. The original Yu Wei had hurt him deeply—how could a man like him forget that completely?

Even Ge Zheng had been furious enough to smash her shop. So what about Huo Mingwang? The hatred in his heart—the kind that wanted to grind her bones to dust—must be no less than Ge Zheng’s.

Before he could answer, Yu Wei spoke again: “Or… is it because you know Yu Hui is your son? That you got close to me, said you liked me, just for him? You want to take him away from me?”

“So, you only wanted to take revenge on me…”