This brief sentence left Li Sisi feeling both embarrassed and shy, and she hurriedly explained to her mother that Xu Lang was just her colleague.
Liu Guiyun clearly did not believe this.
Her daughter had no shortage of suitors; someone had even once chased her all the way to their doorstep. Yet her daughter's attitude toward those suitors had been ice-cold—forget about inviting them in for a glass of water, she hadn't even let them through the front door.
Bringing someone like Xu Lang directly into the home was a first!
"Mom, I have some good news to tell you."
To distract her mother, Li Sisi immediately brought up the subject of her promotion.
Sure enough!
Liu Guiyun was overjoyed. "Really? Then you won't have to work so hard from now on!"
As a mother, her heart ached to see her daughter working day and night, only to come home and take care of her burdensome self while also funding her younger sister's university education.
Before Li Sisi could speak, Xu Lang chimed in with familiar ease, "Auntie, from now on Sisi only needs to sit in the office, sip coffee, and look at a computer screen. She won't be tired at all."
"That's good, that's good..."
Liu Guiyun felt a sense of relief, but then asked, "Sisi, how did you suddenly get a promotion? Just a few days ago, I heard you complaining that the manager of your department was making things difficult for you!"
Li Sisi gave Xu Lang a meaningful look, as if to say: *You'd better explain this yourself.*
Xu Lang didn't shirk the responsibility, smiling as he explained for her, "Our company discovered that the department manager was abusing his power, so we fired him. Since Sisi has exceptionally strong work capability and a great sense of responsibility, we decided to have her take over as department manager."
"That's for sure. Leaving everything else aside, Sisi's sense of responsibility is definitely top-notch," Liu Guiyun vouched for her daughter.
"Why don't you keep my mom company for a bit? I'm going to go make dinner."
Li Sisi put on an apron and busied herself in the kitchen, her domestic grace prompting Xu Lang to steal a few extra glances.
This guy's personality allowed him to get along with people of all ages, and in conversation, he always managed to find openings to make Liu Guiyun burst into laughter.
Soon, Li Sisi had prepared several dishes, and Xu Lang personally pushed Liu Guiyun's wheelchair to the dining table.
Stir-fried pork belly with dried bamboo shoots, steamed yellow croaker...
These were very simple home-cooked dishes, but for Li Sisi and Liu Guiyun, meals this lavish were reserved strictly for festivals and holidays.
"Xiao Xu, eat up," Liu Guiyun said, continually placing food in Xu Lang's bowl.
Xu Lang didn't stand on ceremony and ate with great relish.
*Bang—*
The front door was kicked open, shattering the warm and cozy scene.
A disheveled man in his early fifties walked in. Without even needing to ask, Xu Lang could guess that this was Li Sisi's father.
"Dad, dinner is ready."
Despite having no affection for her father, Li Sisi never committed acts of defiance and proactively went into the kitchen to fetch an extra set of tableware.
The man sat down at the table and looked Xu Lang up and down. "Trying to woo my daughter?"
"Jianwen, don't be like this. This is Sisi's colleague," Liu Guiyun reminded him with a deep frown.
With a loud *thump*, Li Jianwen slammed his hand on the table. "When I'm talking, what is a woman interrupting for?"
Liu Guiyun had suffered plenty of bullying from her husband over the years, to the point where a single glance from him was enough to fill her with anxiety and fear.
Li Jianwen then turned and patted Xu Lang on the shoulder. "Are you flush with cash? Lend me a few thousand to spend, and I'll ask for a smaller bride price when you marry my daughter later."
"Dad, stop talking nonsense," Li Sisi said, a mix of shame and anger on her face.
"It's fine, it's fine!"
Xu Lang waved his hand and looked at Li Jianwen with a cheerful smile. "You need money? No problem. After we finish eating, Brother-in-law—uh, Uncle, come with me to my car to get it."
"Sisi, go buy me a bottle of liquor. I'm going to have a drink with... what did you say your name was?"
"Xu Lang!"
"I'm going to have a drink with Xiao Xu. Don't buy the cheap stuff, get a decent bottle of liquor!"
Seeing how readily Xu Lang agreed, Li Jianwen instantly found the fellow very pleasing to the eye.
Xu Lang declined, "I'm driving, so I won't drink. Let's just have a meal today, and another day I'll treat you to a drink outside, Uncle."
"Fine, fine, let's eat, let's eat."
Li Jianwen's mouth split into a grin from ear to ear.
The meal ended quickly.
Instead of rushing to clear the table, Li Sisi pulled Xu Lang aside. "Don't pay any attention to my dad; that's just how he is. If you give him money this time, he'll latched onto you forever. All my relatives and friends treat him like a plague god whenever they see him."
Xu Lang said unconcernedly, "It's fine, I have a way to change your father."
"He's been like this his whole life. It can't be changed," Li Sisi said, clearly disappointed in her father to the extreme.
Xu Lang said with absolute confidence, "I'll take him out for a spin in a moment. I guarantee that in a few days, when you and your mother see him, he'll be like a completely different person."
Li Sisi knitted her brows, looking at him with suspicion and curiosity. "Where are you taking him?"
Xu Lang didn't elaborate, simply flashing a mysterious expression before turning toward Li Jianwen. "Uncle, let's go out for a walk."
"You got it."
Li Jianwen had been waiting impatiently for a long time.
Not long after the two men left, Liu Guiyun pushed her wheelchair over to the kitchen entrance. "Sisi, why don't you go outside and take a look? Make sure your dad doesn't give Xiao Xu a hard time."
Hesitating slightly, Li Sisi put down the dishes in her hand, took off her apron, and hurried out after them.
Meanwhile.
Li Jianwen had followed Xu Lang outside the alley. Upon seeing the brand-new Porsche was Xu Lang's car, Li Jianwen gave a thumbs-up and showered him with praise for being young and successful.
"Kid, you've got a good eye. Our Sisi is a rare and wonderful girl!" Li Jianwen stroked the body of the car and chuckled lewdly. "But don't you worry, as long as I give the word, your affair with Sisi is as good as done!"
*Clack.*
Xu Lang pulled a backpack out of the trunk and unzipped it. Inside were neat stacks of hundred-yuan bills.
"Xiao Xu—oh no... my good son-in-law!"
Li Jianwen rubbed his hands shamelessly, his eyes fixed greedily on the cash.
Xu Lang pulled out a bundle of bills and placed it in front of Li Jianwen. "Uncle, I heard you're quite interested in gambling. Care to come play a few rounds with me?"
"Xiao Xu, so you and I are birds of a feather! Let's go!"
Li Jianwen agreed without a second thought.
The two men got in the car and drove off. No sooner had they left than Li Sisi came running out of the alley. Staring at the receding taillights, she felt a complex tangle of emotions in her heart.
"Brave Brother, right in here is that bastard's home."
Four or five burly men appeared under the streetlamp.
One look told Li Sisi this bunch was up to no good, so she didn't dare linger and hurried toward her house.
Yet, as the saying goes, fears are soon met—that very group followed Li Sisi straight to her front door.
"Brave Brother, this chick really isn't bad!" A bald man sneered with a lewd look on his face.
The scar-faced man who led the group stepped forward alone. "Beauty, I didn't expect you to be Li Jianwen's daughter!"
Li Sisi stared warily at the group and demanded, "Who are you people?"
"Never mind who we are!"
The scar-faced man smilingly produced an IOU from his pocket. "Your dad borrowed one hundred thousand from us, and he promised to pay it back at the beginning of the month. Now it's the end of the fucking month, and we can't even find a trace of him."
"Brave Brother, a father's debts fall to his children. If we can't find that bastard, finding his daughter works just as well..."