Li Lingxiao repeatedly checked Nuonuo's body. All the wounds on her skin had completely vanished, and seeing her bouncing around as if nothing had ever happened, the shock in his heart was beyond words.
The look in his eyes as he gazed at his daughter grew even more complex, filled simultaneously with the joy of recovering what was lost and a latent unease regarding an unknown power.
"Nuonuo, are you really okay? If anything hurts or feels uncomfortable, you must tell Daddy," Li Lingxiao asked to confirm once more, terrified that his daughter might just be enduring the pain in order to comfort him.
Nuonuo nodded vigorously, her little face etched with earnestness. "Nuonuo is really okay! Brother Chuyi helped Nuonuo heal everything, and Nuonuo doesn't hurt anymore!"
"Brother Chuyi?" Li Lingxiao acutely caught onto the name, turning his gaze to his daughter with a questioning look.
If he remembered correctly, right after they first found Nuonuo, she had also mentioned that Brother Chuyi said something about a dragon on his chest.
Back when he first found Nuonuo, he had been in a complete panic and completely forgot what the little one had said.
Realizing she had slipped up, Nuonuo quickly covered her little mouth, her big eyes rolling around as she tried to muddle her way through.
Li Xiran sensed something was amiss from the side. She walked over to Nuonuo and asked gently, "Nuonuo, who is Brother Chuyi? Can you tell Auntie?"
Nuonuo hesitated for a moment, looking at Li Lingxiao and then at Li Xiran. In the end, unable to withstand Li Xiran's gentle offensive, she whispered, "Brother Chuyi was sent by Mommy to protect Nuonuo. He's amazing!"
Li Lingxiao and Li Xiran exchanged a glance, both seeing shock in each other's eyes.
Lu Ranran had been missing for three years without a trace, yet now Nuonuo was saying someone had been sent by her to protect Nuonuo. What kind of secret was hidden beneath all this?
"Nuonuo, where is Brother Chuyi right now? Can you take Daddy and Auntie to go meet him?" Li Lingxiao asked tentatively.
Nuonuo looked at Chuyi, who was floating in mid-air. She saw Chuyi sitting cross-legged, shaking his head slightly, as an ethereal voice sounded softly beside her ear: "No, Nuonuo. Only you can see me; no one else can."Upon hearing this, Nuonuo gently shook her head at Li Xiran and Li Lingxiao, saying, "Brother Chuyi said other people can't see him, only Nuonuo can, so he can't see Daddy and Auntie!"
Li Lingxiao and Li Xiran exchanged a glance. Could this little girl Nuonuo have lost her mind from being abused by the Cheng Family?
How pitiful! Their Li Family would not let the Cheng Family off!
Li Xiran gave Li Lingxiao a look, signaling him not to ask any more questions. She sat down beside Nuonuo, gently stroked Nuonuo's head, and said, "Alright, since our little darling says we won't see them, then we won't."
Knowing he wouldn't be able to get any more information out of Nuonuo for now, Li Lingxiao had no choice but to drop the subject for the time being.
He decided to investigate this "Brother Chuyi" in secret to find out who he really was and where he came from.
Seeing Li Lingxiao turn to leave, Nuonuo quickly grabbed the cuff of his suit jacket and said, "Daddy, Nuonuo wants to go with you too!"
She still had to help the little ghost brother find a good family to be reincarnated into!
Li Lingxiao glanced at Nuonuo, then looked at Li Xiran beside him.
"Since Nuonuo wants to go, let's set off." Li Lingxiao picked Nuonuo up, his eyes filled with gentleness. "Today, Daddy is going to take Nuonuo to teach those people who bullied our Nuonuo a lesson and help Nuonuo get proper revenge!"
Li Xiran nodded, quite satisfied with her younger brother's approach. Following closely behind Li Lingxiao, the group departed from the Li Family Old Residence in a grand procession.
The motorcade sped all the way, finally coming to a stop in front of the Cheng Family villa.
Holding Nuonuo, Li Lingxiao stepped out of the car. His icy gaze swept across the Cheng Family villa, as if he intended to freeze everything inside it.Cheng Nan and Lian Qian still thought the matter was over, until the housekeeper came running over in a panic, blurting out, "Sir, Third Master Li has brought the little young miss and people from the Li Family here!""
Cheng Nan sprang to his feet in an instant. How was this possible? That little bitch actually hadn't died!
And why on earth was she connected to the Li Family?!Cheng Nan was preparing to flee with Lian Qianqian, a sense of foreboding gnawing at his heart. He knew that whatever was about to happen would be more than he could bear.
But it was already too late.
Just as Cheng Nan reached the doorway with Lian Qianqian, Third Master Li’s Maybach pulled up. Li Lingxiao stepped out of the car, carrying Nuonuo in his arms.
At that moment, Cheng Nan’s blood turned to ice.
"Third Master Li, what brings you here? What an unexpected honor!" Cheng Nan quickly stepped forward, his face plastered with a sycophantic smile as he tried to mask his panic.
Li Lingxiao let out a cold laugh. Holding Nuonuo, he walked up to Cheng Nan, his gaze sharp as a blade. "Manager Cheng, where were you heading in such a rush?"
Cheng Nan acted the sycophant, saying, "Third Master, I only just realized you had arrived and was coming out to greet you."
He glanced at Nuonuo in Li Lingxiao’s arms, a flicker of disgust passing through his eyes. "My apologies, Third Master. My daughter is ignorant. If she has offended you in any way, I hope you can forgive her. I will certainly give her a proper scolding later."
As he spoke, he reached out to take Nuonuo from Li Lingxiao’s arms.
Li Lingxiao shifted slightly, dodging Cheng Nan’s hand. "Cheng Nan, open your eyes and look closely," he said, his voice frigid. "This is my daughter. You know full well what you did to her."
Cheng Nan’s expression shifted instantly. The realization struck him: the little wretch he had raised for three years was actually the little princess of the Li family. Terrified to admit to such a crime, he hurriedly denied it. "Third Master, what do you mean? How could I have done anything to your daughter? Before I knew Nuonuo was yours, I treated her like my own flesh and blood!"
"Like your own flesh and blood?" Li Lingxiao sneered, his eyes filled with contempt. "Cheng Nan, do you really take me for a fool? Burying my daughter on the back mountain—is that your version of treating her like your own?"
Cheng Nan turned deathly pale. He knew all his lies had been exposed.
He looked at Lian Qianqian, his eyes burning with resentment. It was all this woman’s fault! If not for her, he never would have beaten Nuonuo or buried her on the back mountain today!
He shoved Lian Qianqian forward. "Third Master, this was all her idea! She’s the one who made me do it!"
Lian Qianqian panicked. She never imagined that Nuonuo’s true identity was that of a Li family member; if she had known, she wouldn’t have stayed by Cheng Nan’s side for a second.
Lian Qianqian scrambled to explain, "Third Master, it’s all a misunderstanding! I was just joking with the young lady today, it wasn’t real—"
"A misunderstanding? A joke?" Li Lingxiao cut her off, his eyes ice-cold. "Fine. Since you two love jokes so much, you can go spend the rest of your lives playing them in prison. Men."
At Li Lingxiao’s cold command, a group of Li family secret guards stood in perfect formation before the couple.
"Take them away!"
Li Lingxiao’s words were a death warrant. The outcome was clear; they were finished.
Seeing that Li Lingxiao was about to have them taken away, Nuonuo called out from his arms, "Daddy, wait a moment! There is a Spirit Child inside that bad lady’s belly!"
Li Lingxiao stared coldly at Lian Qianqian, his eyes devoid of emotion. But when he turned his gaze to Nuonuo, his expression softened instantly. "Then tell Daddy, how do you want to handle it?"
Even though he didn’t believe in metaphysics, if his daughter said it existed, then it existed.
Lian Qianqian’s body shuddered violently. This little brat could actually sense the Spirit Child inside her! Her expression shifted instantly from shock to sheer terror.
Nuonuo looked at Lian Qianqian’s panicked face, feeling nothing but disgust. She remembered what Brother Chuyi had told her: this woman was not only malicious, but she had also caused the deaths of so many innocent people. But the Spirit Child inside her was innocent.
"Daddy, I want to take the Spirit Child out of the bad lady’s belly so it can go and be reincarnated," Nuonuo said loudly, pointing at Lian Qianqian.