Chapter 284 I didn’t steal it, nor was I picked up

Chapter 284: I Didn't Steal Him, Nor Did I Find Him

"Sob, sob..." Li Qiuju hugged herself, crouched on the ground, sobbing.

Li Dongliang walked away in irritation, lighting a cigarette.

After finishing the cigarette, Li Dongliang angrily threw the butt on the ground and stomped on it.

In these times, how dumb could someone who got into college be?

With such vague hints, even if Li Dongliang couldn't guess everything, he could figure out that Pangpang wasn't found at all, and that Li Qiuju probably knew whose child he was.

He never cared before; whatever Li Qiuju said, he accepted it as truth. If she said the child was found, then so be it. It didn't matter to him either way.

He didn't even care about Li Qiuju, so why would he care about Pangpang's parentage?

"Either way, I won't raise Pangpang anymore. If you insist on keeping him, we'll go our separate ways. You take your path, and I'll take mine."

Li Qiuju stared at him in shock.

Li Dongliang coldly returned her gaze: "I don't care whether you're sick or not. I'm sick too. If we can live together, we'll keep up the charade of being a couple for appearances. If not, I don't care.

But the deal is, you have to sort out Pangpang's situation. If he was found, we'll give him up for adoption. If he was taken, I suggest you turn yourself in."

Li Qiuju shook her head repeatedly: "I didn't steal him, nor did I find him. He was left in my care by someone else."

Li Dongliang stared at her in surprise: "Left in your care?"

Li Qiuju never loved Li Dongliang. Being his wife in name only was the best option she had at the time.

If he had wanted a real marriage, she wouldn't have gone along with it.

The past was the first half of her life.

But to the indifferent Li Dongliang, it was just some trivial memories of a trivial person. Knowing or not knowing didn't matter.

For her and him, it was the same.

Since he wanted to know, she might as well tell him.

"Pangpang is the child of the man I loved most in my life and another woman."

Li Dongliang didn't speak, silently lighting another cigarette.

"I'm not sick. I just lose control when it comes to him.

He is my non-blood-related elder brother. His family adopted me."

Even now, Li Qiuju's emotions were still raw:

"Before the movement started, his family had completely cut ties with me. I didn't want to be his sister; I wanted to be his wife, but he didn't want that.

I volunteered to go to the countryside, but I regretted it after I went.

I returned to the city with a medical discharge form, only to discover that everyone in his family except him had perished in the movement, and he was nowhere to be found."

Li Qiuju wiped her tears: "I was alone and homeless, so I had to return to Lijia Village. You know what happened after that. Later, by a twist of fate, I married you."

Shortly after we got married, I received a telegram from him. He was to be exiled to a remote frontier thousands of kilometers away for re-education. He asked me to care for his child, given that his family had raised me for over ten years.

Li Qiuju's tears streamed down her face like a broken necklace of pearls. Her hands struck the roadside tree trunk repeatedly, uncontrollably.

It was only then that I found out he was already married and had a child with another woman. That child is Pangpang."

Li Dongliang lit up another cigarette, firmly grabbed Li Qiuju's hand, and pulled her aside to stop her from hurting herself:

"Then why did you tell me the child was found? Later, when we put out notices and went through the adoption process, you didn't say a word?"

This time, Li Qiuju kept her composure. She pinched her wound hard to stay alert and composed, countering Li Dongliang: "Does it really matter? Do you even care?"

Li Dongliang gave a self-deprecating smile and shook his head: "It doesn't matter, and honestly, I don't care. Even if Pangpang were your child with another man, I wouldn't care."

Li Qiuju smiled bitterly, thinking there was no need to discuss this further.

Didn't she wish Pangpang was her child with him?

"How's Pangpang doing?" she asked.

Li Dongliang scoffed: "Do you even care?"

Li Qiuju shook her head: "I don't care. He looks just like him, but he's another woman's child. Sometimes I feel like I could beat him to death.

But I don't mean to, I just can't help it, I really can't..."

Li Dongliang put out his cigarette: "Think hard about my offer. Either send the child away and move on with life.

Or you take the child and leave, and we'll get a divorce."

Li Qiuju wasn't surprised; Li Dongliang had always been selfish. "What about Pangpang?"

"The guards took him away. Your beating the child has become public knowledge, and you've ruined my reputation. Even if you want to keep raising him, the base leaders might not allow it."

Li Qiuju took a deep breath: "Let me think about it first."

"Since you know you can't control yourself from hitting the child, give the child a chance to live," said Li Dongliang. "What if one day you can't control yourself and beat him to death? The child would suffer, and you would have to pay with your life."

Every time Li Qiuju beat Pangpang, she would make him good food, not just because she was worried he would tell others, but also because she felt guilty.

When she was normal, she didn't want to be good to him, but after beating him, it seemed like she had an excuse to be a little nicer.

She knew this was pathological.

She also knew it was bad for herself and the child.

But she didn't mean to either, what could she do?

Should she really send the child away?

"Let me think about it carefully, and I'll give you an answer as soon as possible."

Li Dongliang nodded: "At the latest by tomorrow, I hope you can give me an answer.

The longer this drags on, the more it affects my reputation, and I need to give an explanation to the leaders.

No matter how powerful a lie is, it's better to tell the truth. Sooner or later, it will be found out."

You should truthfully inform the supervisors about Pangpang's background to avoid wasting manpower and resources on further investigations. It's not a case of theft or coercion; the adoption was done through proper legal procedures and is not illegal.

It's just that your mental state isn't great, which sometimes leads to losing control and hitting the child, but it's not intentional.

When it comes to other complicated relationships, the more you talk, the more likely you are to make mistakes. It's better not to mention them if possible—what do you think?"

Li Dongliang has always been thinking about himself. As for Li Qiuju and Pangpang, to him, they are just slightly more familiar than strangers living under the same roof.

Being so cold-hearted, Li Qiuju has already gotten used to it.

Li Qiuju is actually very confused in her heart and nodded absentmindedly: "Alright, I'll listen to you."

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