HBWMA -Chapter 53 Shh! Walls Have Ears

“Dad.”

Shen Jiao forced her tears back and, holding Fu Sui’er’s hand, walked calmly into the main hall.

That single word broke the eerie silence.

Fu Lingnan subtly adjusted his expression and glanced at Fu Jiaming without drawing attention. Fu Jiaming understood and put on an affectionate look toward Shen Jiao. Shen Jiao, feeling disgusted, simply ignored him.

“…”

Fu Jiaming’s expression darkened briefly, then he turned his “kind father” smile toward Fu Sui’er again.

“Sui’er, are you okay? I was so worried when I heard you were missing. Come here and let Dad take a look at you.”

Fu Sui’er lowered her gaze and pulled Shen Jiao’s hand, hiding slightly behind her.

Fu Jiaming’s smile stiffened. “What’s wrong?”

Fu Lingnan also noticed something off in Fu Sui’er’s mood. He smiled and beckoned her. “Sui’er, come here. Come to grandpa.”

After a moment of hesitation, Fu Sui’er shook her head while still holding Shen Jiao’s hand. “Grandpa, I’ll stay here with Mom.”

Shen Jiao froze slightly, both surprised and touched by the child’s protection.

Ever since the child became sensible, she had always resisted Shen Jiao’s strictness. Before today, Shen Jiao had always assumed that compared to her stern mother, Fu Sui’er preferred her indulgent grandfather and father.

Fu Jiaming frowned and slowly stood up. “Sui’er, didn’t you say yesterday while holding Dad’s hand that you didn’t want to go to Xiaying? Now that Grandpa and I are here to take you back to the Fu family, aren’t you happy?”

Shen Jiao let out a cold laugh and pulled Fu Sui’er tightly behind her.

“Fu Jiaming, I warn you—Sui’er is my daughter. She will not be going back with you to the Fu family.”

“…”

Fu Jiaming’s face sank. He looked at her expressionlessly. “Jiao, don’t drag the child into our matters. You’re only making it painful for Sui’er. Do you really want her to grow up without a father or a mother?”

Shen Jiao’s jaw tightened. Her beauty was inherited from her mother—bright and elegant. Time had not taken her looks away; instead, it had given her a calm grace she didn’t have in youth.

Was this the man she had once defied her father for? Back then she had believed she was marrying love, but time had proven cruel. Her love was as fragile as paper in the wind, and the boy who once would have jumped into the sea for her was now buried in memories thinner than paper.

Shen Jiao tightened her grip on Fu Sui’er’s hand and shot back coldly.

“Fu Jiaming, this is clearly your fault—how dare you turn it around on me? You cheated, and that wasn’t enough—you even brought back an illegitimate child? When you were out there enjoying your so-called family with that bastard, did you ever think you still had a daughter at home?”

“!”

Fu Jiaming’s mind went blank for a moment. “You—”

“What about me?” Shen Jiao smiled faintly. “You were certain I wouldn’t expose your true face in front of Sui’er, so you acted without restraint. But today, I’m not going to let you get what you want.”

She lowered her gaze toward Fu Sui’er, her eyes full of guilt.

“Sorry, Sui’er. Mom still couldn’t protect you properly.”

Fu Sui’er’s face was full of shock. Her whole body trembled as she stared at Fu Jiaming, tears welling in her eyes but stubbornly refusing to fall.

“Mom… you’re lying to me, right?”

Shen Jiao couldn’t bear it, but still shook her head firmly. “No. It’s true.”

“Waaah—!” Fu Sui’er suddenly broke down, crying uncontrollably.

Fu Jiaming, humiliated on the spot, turned pale with rage. “Shen Jiao! If you have something to say, come at me—why are you tormenting the child like this!”

“Enough!”

Fu Lingnan closed his eyes briefly and interrupted the argument in a deep voice.

“Old Shen, this matter is indeed our Fu family’s fault. I, as the head of the family, cannot absolve myself of responsibility for failing to discipline this unworthy son.”

“Today I will state this clearly: Sui’er will always be the Fu family’s treasure. As for this disgraceful son, he is unworthy of a single cent of the Fu family’s assets. As long as you agree, I will immediately transfer all assets under his name to Sui’er. With that, he will never be able to cause trouble again.”

“Dad!” Fu Jiaming was stunned. This had not been mentioned beforehand. Those were assets worth hundreds of millions—were they really going to be given away just like that?

Shen Jiao’s expression shifted slightly. She hadn’t expected the Fu family to go so far just to repair this marriage.

But precisely because of that, she was even less likely to agree.

She and Fu Jiaming had already torn everything apart. There was no possibility of reconciliation. Without love, why force themselves to live together at all?

As for the excuse about “doing it for the child,” that could only fool Fu Sui’er. If Fu Jiaming truly cared about the child, why would he go around playing with women in the first place—and end up with a son?

Merchants seek profit, politicians seek power. The Fu family was built on both politics and business, so what they naturally pursued was wealth and status.

If the Fu family could give up assets worth hundreds of millions, that only meant they were after something far greater than that.

Shen Jiao maintained her composure and said in a low voice, “Thank you for your kind intentions, Old Master Fu. However, you are underestimating our Shen family. The few scraps under Fu Jiaming’s name aren’t even enough for my daughter’s dowry. I don’t sell my daughter.”

Fu Lingnan narrowed his eyes, his gaze dark as he studied her. When had he ever noticed that this daughter-in-law was so strong-willed?

In truth, Fu Jiaming was also reluctant to give up those assets, but Shen Jiao’s words only made him feel even more humiliated. Unable to hold back, he snapped, “Shen Jiao, stop pretending here. You think you’re so clean? What about you sneaking around with other men behind my back?”

Shen Jiao glanced at Fu Sui’er, her whole body trembling with anger.

“Fu Jiaming, don’t you dare spout nonsense!”

Fu Jiaming let out a cold laugh. “What? Guilty?”

“Enough!”

Fu Lingnan stood up and turned to Shen Zhuang. “Old Shen, you are the head of the Shen family. Why don’t you state your position?”

Shen Zhuang had been pretending to be deaf and mute the entire time. Hearing this, he deliberately sighed and shook his head in a troubled manner.

“What else can I say? My daughter—when she said she wanted to marry, I let her. Now that she doesn’t want to continue, I naturally agree as well. I already told you before, from the beginning I never thought much of that useless son of yours.”

“You…” Fu Lingnan gave a cold smile and nodded. “Fine. The Shen family is indeed tough. I’ve disturbed you today. Jiaming, take Sui’er with us. We’re leaving.”

Shen Jiao’s expression changed slightly as she quickly pulled Fu Sui’er into her arms.

“No! Sui’er is my daughter. She’s not going anywhere!”

Since things had already escalated to this point, Fu Lingnan no longer bothered to be polite.

“Then I should remind you of one thing—Sui’er carries the Fu surname. She is my Fu family’s daughter.”

Shen Jiao felt her heart tighten as she looked at Shen Zhuang, pleading silently.

Fu Lingnan remained composed and confident.

“Our Fu family’s upbringing can’t compare to yours. Even illegitimate children can be brought into the house openly in the Shen family. The Fu family doesn’t lack resources—we will naturally raise our own daughter.”

Shen Guiling looked at Fu Lingnan in shock.

He had been watching the entire scene unfold from beginning to end, staying out of it, but when Fu Lingnan indirectly mocked the Shen family, he finally began to study the old man seriously.

Shen Zhuang gently patted Shen Guiling’s hand and slowly stood up.

“Old Fu, what exactly do you mean by that?”

Fu Lingnan replied, “Old Shen, aren’t you being a bit too overbearing? When your Shen family produced an illegitimate child scandal, you forced the Yao family to accept it. Now that Jiaming admits his mistake, you still refuse to let it go. Only officials are allowed to set fires, while ordinary people aren’t allowed to light lamps? Do you think the Shen family is so powerful that you can ignore old allies like us?”

Shen Zhuang frowned slightly. This old fox Fu Lingnan was clearly trying to stir trouble.

Fu Lingnan continued, “Old Shen, I’ll say it again—our Fu family only recognizes Sui’er. Although Jiaming made a mistake, you have no right to deprive him of his role as a father. I originally came to resolve the misunderstanding between our families, but since Miss Shen is unwilling, I won’t force it.”

Then, with a sorrowful look, he turned to Fu Sui’er.

“Er’er, come home with Grandpa. Your aunt and brother are heartbroken knowing you’ve been wronged in the Shen family.”

Fu Sui’er’s eyes filled with tears as she looked between Fu Lingnan and Shen Jiao.

What should she do? She truly didn’t know how to choose. All of them—grandpa, dad, and mom—were the most important people in her life. Why had things become like this?

She grabbed Shen Jiao’s hand tightly, crying uncontrollably.

“Mom… please…”

Bang—!

At that moment, a loud crash suddenly rang out from the hall.

Everyone was caught completely off guard and froze in shock.

When they finally reacted, they saw a girl in a white dress crawling out from inside a cabinet beneath a carved display shelf in the room.