Chapter 48: The Ex-Wife

Lu Guanchang's ex-wife, Zhao Qiuyun, was originally from Wild River Ditch Village near Binhai.

Ever since her divorce from Lu Guanchang, she had taken her daughter back to her maternal home.

Because of the divorce, however, she was not warmly welcomed by her family. After all, in that era, a divorce was always perceived as the woman's fault, subjecting her to cold stares and idle gossip.

To spare her daughter from such grievances, Zhao Qiuyun eventually left Wild River Ditch Village with her daughter, Lu Hongxia, and moved to the neighboring city of Ci'en.

Located in the southwest of Qionghai and adjacent to Binhai, Ci'en boasted unique natural conditions, rich cultural characteristics, and a superior geographical position.

With abundant sunshine and immunity from monsoonal extremes, its cost of living was far lower than that of Binhai, a bustling tourist city.

They say that necessity breeds change. Possessing little formal education, Zhao Qiuyun started setting up a street stall to support her daughter, selling cooling refreshments and desserts such as Qingbuliang, sweet potato jelly, and old-salt fruit juices to help people beat the summer heat.

Because she started early, belonging to the first wave of individual entrepreneurs, competition was minimal, and she actually managed to turn a tidy profit.

Zhao Qiuyun was, in truth, a remarkably capable woman. Previously, while she had a husband who provided a regular monthly allowance, she never had to worry about the practicalities of life.

Now, however, she had to plan for the future of both herself and her daughter at every turn. Thus, after making money, she refused to be complacent with small successes. She successively opened a restaurant, a supermarket, a clothing store, a housekeeping company, and more.

Though she did not attain immense wealth, her lifelong hustle secured her a comfortable level of assets. Along the way, she remarried; her husband treated her exceptionally well, and she went on to give birth to another son and daughter. Nowadays, she had long since handed her businesses over to her children, spending her twilight years bouncing grandchildren on her knee and living a life of great happiness.

As for Lu Guanchang's daughter, Lu Hongxia, she had long since changed her name to Zhao Hongxia, taking her mother's surname.

Having experienced family turmoil at a young age and drifted from place to place with her mother, Zhao Hongxia had appeared more sensible and mature than her peers since childhood.

Her environment forged a strong-willed personality, making her exceptionally proficient in both her studies and her endeavors. Consequently, after taking over her mother's business, not only did things not go into decline, but they flourished even more, reaching unprecedented heights.

When recounting his ex-wife and daughter, Lu Guanchang's tone subconsciously carried a hint of complacency, tinged with a sense of reflected glory.

Shen Siyuan could not fathom what he had to feel complacent about. Did their current achievements have a single copper coin's worth of connection to him?

Surely he didn't believe that their success as mother and daughter was thanks to his abandoning his wife and child back then, did he?

"So, do you think there is any need to disturb them? Do you really think they still care about your pathetic assets?" Shen Siyuan asked retorts.

"But... but I feel so unreconciled."

Lu Guanchang's face twisted slightly. Having toiled through a lifetime only to help raise another man's children and grandchildren, and having his own nest occupied by a cuckoo, how could he possibly be resigned?

It was fortunate that ghosts could do no physical harm to the living; otherwise, he would have torn those two apart limb from limb just to vent the hatred burning in his chest.

Outer appearance stems from the heart. His mouth split apart all the way to his ears, his body bloated, and his belly swelled until he sat there looking like a giant, open-mouthed toad, ready to devour something at any moment.

"Whoa, Grandpa Lu is so scary."

Doudou hid behind Sister Xiaoyue, acting all stealthy and peeking out, indescribably cute.

"Didn't you just say he was a good person?" Yin Xingyue slanted a glance at her.

"Mom said you shouldn't think someone isn't a good person just because they don't look nice," Doudou argued.

"One shouldn't judge a book by its cover, true."

"Right, right, that's it! How do you know that too? Sister, you're so amazing."

Yin Xingyue was, after all, still a primary school student, and hearing Doudou's praise made her feel rather pleased.

"We're ghosts now, not humans, so you can't judge by human standards. Let me tell you, the less someone looks like a human, the worse they are..."

"Whoa, so they're all bad guys? I thought they were all giant monsters. I was scared they'd grab me, so I stayed right behind Mommy and Daddy and avoided them. And when I was flying in the sky, I saw so many—are there really this many big bad villains?"

Doudou widened her eyes in utter astonishment.

"You don't have to be afraid of them anymore. They should be afraid of you," Yin Xingyue said.

She extended her right hand, and tiny blue flames immediately flickered on her five fingertips.

Seeing this, Doudou excitedly stretched out her own short, chubby little finger, pursed her lips, and stared intently at the fingertip as if putting her entire body's effort into it.

Yet her little fingers showed not the slightest sign of a spark. It was fortunate she was a ghost now and not human; otherwise, she might have accidentally farted out of sheer strain.

"Focus your attention and think with your heart."

Hearing this, Doudou wore an expression of sudden realization.

"So that's how it is. I was trying to use my little brain-pan."

She continued staring at her fingertip, but after a long while, she angrily cupped her little head in her hands.

"My little brain-pan is so disobedient! It keeps thinking about little monkeys, big bananas, big tigers, eating meat..."

Even Yin Xingyue, who was usually introverted and rarely smiled, was amused by her antics.

Seeing Sister Xiaoyue laughing at her, Doudou grew more and more vexed. At that exact moment, a flame flared up all over her body, and her entire frame seemed to be burning.

"Wow... Sister, Sister... I made fire come out! It turns out all you have to do is get angry." Doudou wore a look of utter delight.

Hearing the commotion, Shen Siyuan looked over at the two of them.

Lu Guanchang, standing nearby, naturally saw it too. Though separated by some distance, he still felt his heart skip a beat and a sharp pain pierce his soul. The anger that had previously clouded his mind and turned him into a toad-like creature instantly evaporated, snapping him back to his human form.

"Master, I beg you, let me meet my... daughter. Whether she is willing to seek justice for me or not, at least my heart will finally be laid to rest. Otherwise, I truly cannot accept this, and I will be trapped here for all eternity, unable to find release..."

Overcome by emotion, the various tumors on Lu Guanchang's face seemed to fade considerably, revealing his originally kindly appearance.

"Your daughter is far away in Ci'en. I only have free time on Saturdays and Sundays to make the trip over there..."

"It doesn't matter, I can wait," Lu Guanchang said hastily.

Shen Siyuan pondered for a moment. "Do you know her address? I can write a letter and mail it. If she can come to Binhai, that would naturally be best..."

"That's a good idea!" Lu Guanchang beamed with joy upon hearing this.

"In that case, follow me." Shen Siyuan stood up.

Lu Guanchang hurriedly followed Shen Siyuan upstairs into his rented room.

Shen Siyuan fetched paper and a pen, turning to Lu Guanchang. "You dictate, and I'll write."

Hearing this, Lu Guanchang lowered his head in deep thought, at a loss for how to begin.

Shen Siyuan paid him no mind. He poured himself a glass of water and walked over to the window, gazing down at the courtyard below.

The two little ones were down there, chasing each other and playing happily. Though it was already nighttime, even with the streetlights, it was difficult to see clearly.

However, the nether-flames dancing atop Doudou's head were far too conspicuous, shining as brightly as fireflies in the dead of night.

The reason he hadn't allowed the two of them to follow him inside was simply out of fear that if they stayed in the same room as Lu Guanchang, a careless moment might set him ablaze. Nether-flames used karmic retribution as firewood; the greater the sins, the longer they burned, and until the sins were exhausted, the nether-flames would never be extinguished.

"Master, I've figured it out."

Lu Guanchang's voice interrupted Shen Siyuan's train of thought.