Chapter 442 Ren Shan Approaches Chen Aru

Chapter 442: Ren Shan Confronts Chen Aru

Although the battle was fierce yesterday, the downpour washed away all traces at the scene.

The only marks left on the ground were the drag marks from this morning, where Zuo Zuying had pulled Lu Jin'an toward the warehouse.

Gang Zi followed those trails and found the warehouse.

Seeing the large padlock on the door, he started pounding on it.

"Xiao Zuo, Xiao Zuo, are you in there?"

"Xiao Zuo, if you're still alive, say something. If not, I'm leaving—I'm freaked out too."

When there was no response from inside, Gang Zi turned to leave. But after glancing at the dragging marks on the ground, he still felt uneasy. He ran around to the back of the building, balanced on a rock to reach the high window, and squinted through the gaps in the boarded-up window.

In the dim light, he vaguely saw a curled-up figure inside.

Gang Zi's heart sank.

At Lu Jin'an's construction site, who else could be locked up here besides Zuo Zuying?

He had knocked and shouted, but there was no response—what was wrong with Xiao Zuo?

Gang Zi looked around frantically, then rushed to the cement-mixing area, snatched up a mixing shovel, and ran back. He raised the shovel and wailed on the lock repeatedly.

"Xiao Zuo, are you okay?"

"Hang in there!"

After slamming the shovel over a dozen times, Gang Zi kicked the door with all his might. The iron latch was torn clean off the wall.

He charged inside, bent down, and grabbed the person’s shoulders to turn them over.

He saw a face so swollen and disfigured it was unrecognizable—like a bloated, purple-skinned version of Qiu Qianchi. [TN: Qiu Qianchi is a famously disfigured character from Jin Yong's novels]

"X-Xiao Zuo?"

Gang Zi's voice carried doubt. Ugly—so ugly.

Upon closer inspection, it was horrifying—only a lone pinky remained on one of the hands.

He stared at the "purple sweet potato Qiu Qianchi" for a long time before his gaze settled on the person's clothing.

"Holy shit, the more I look, the more this resembles that unlucky bastard Lu Jin'an!"

Gang Zi let out a sigh of relief, muttering to himself, "Who the hell did this? This is brutal."

Could it have been Xiao Zuo?

That idiot never learns—why didn’t he just stab him straight through?

Gang Zi automatically reached down to pick up the shovel again but hesitated as he held it.

"Xiao Zuo's too sharp to make such a dumb mistake. Maybe he kept him alive for a reason?"

"Who cares if it's useful or not? Just follow his play. In this world, it's either about money or looks. Let me back you up—or take you down, whatever."

Gang Zi clenched the shovel and swung it straight toward Lu Jin'an's face without hesitation. Instantly, a chunk of flesh was gouged from Lu Jin'an's bruised face, and bright red blood welled up.

The shovel lurched forward with such force that after scraping off Lu Jin'an's skin, it slammed hard onto the floor. Gang Zi lurched forward, his abdomen hitting the shovel handle. The intense pain nearly made him black out, and beads of sweat instantly formed on his forehead.

Not far away, muffled voices could already be heard. Gang Zi tossed the shovel aside, hunched over to suppress his discomfort, and slipped away quietly.

Meanwhile, on Su Ping's side, after the doctor checked in, they said Su Ping was doing well. If he had no discomfort, he could go home with meds to recover at home—no need to stay in the hospital any longer.

Su Ping was itching to leave. Hearing he could leave, he was overjoyed.

Su An had come early to deliver breakfast and followed the nurse's instructions to complete the discharge procedures and pay the bill.

Back at home, Ren Shan hung up Su Ping's clothes and said to Su An, "An, I'm heading out for a bit."

Su An nodded. "Alright. While you're out, grab some groceries. Brother, what do you want to eat?"

Su Ping called out loudly to Ren Shan, "Shan Shan, I want pig’s feet—front ones, stewed with soybeans. They say you are what you eat. My hand's hurt, so I want pig’s feet!"

Ren Shan smiled. "Got it. Today, we’ll buy pig’s feet—front ones, stewed with soybeans!"

Su Ping was happy, and so was Ren Shan.

Once outside, Ren Shan’s smile vanished, her eyes turned icy.

Lu Jin'an, huh?

Not only did Zuo Zuying and her two children have beef with Lu Jin'an, but her own family also had grievances with Lu Jin'an and Su Jiao.

And Xiao Lan—she, too, had unfinished business with Lu Jin'an and Ai Xiaoqing.

A whole circle of people had some kind of bad connection to Lu Jin'an.

And the far-from-innocent Ai family—it was time for them to get what’s coming to them.

Without hesitation, Ren Shan headed straight for the police station in the northern part of the city.

The Ai household had been in a funk for some time.

Ai Xiaoqing had thrown her reputation away to exonerate Lu Jin'an and had never returned since.

Chen Aru, in her crazed state, kept searching for Ai Xiaolan, driving Ai Chengpeng and Ai Liangfa up the wall so much that they had no peace.

Half a year passed, and Chen Aru seemed to have given up, gradually quieting down. But with Ai Xiaoqing and Ai Xiaolan gone, the house no longer had its former liveliness.

The names of Ai Xiaolan and Ai Xiaoqing became off-limits at home.

Wanting to shift the atmosphere and divert Chen Aru's attention, Ai Chengpeng brought up Ai Liangfa's marriage plans.

Life had to move forward. With a new member joining the family—whether a son or a daughter—Chen Aru did indeed shift her focus, starting to pay attention to Ai Liangfa's marriage arrangements.

But in the dead of night, Chen Aru would sometimes drift like a ghost into her daughter's room, lost in thought.

Remembering the injustices Ai Xiaolan had suffered at home, she was wracked with regret. She didn’t understand—why had she and her husband treated their own daughter that way?

Their past affection for Ai Xiaoqing and their inexplicable hostility toward Ai Xiaolan now seemed utterly bewildering.

Guilt and remorse nearly drove her mad. She didn’t know what to do. She felt she, like Xiaolan, was sick at heart. Every day was agony, so she doubled down on Ai Liangfa's marriage.

Once the new daughter-in-law entered the household, once she became pregnant, once her grandchild was born—once she was truly busy—she could finally forget about Xiaolan.

Long-term depression and pent-up frustration had left her with a poor appetite, insomnia, an irregular heart rate, and her nervous system out of whack.

Whenever she wasn't busy, she would wonder where her Xiao Lan had gone.

Was she okay now?

What exactly had happened that day?

Had something traumatic happened to her?

Was Ai Xiaoqing's injury really caused by her?

And what had Ai Xiaoqing done to her to make her act so crazy?

She and her husband both suspected Ai Xiaoqing and Lu Jin'an, but they had no evidence.

It was at this moment that Ren Shan showed up at their door.

Looking at the woman before her, Ren Shan's eyes showed mixed emotions.

Was this the mother Xiao Lan had always cared so much about?

"Who're you looking for, kid?" Chen Aru could somehow tell the girl disliked her.

"I'm here for Xiao Lan."

Chen Aru's eyes narrowed to slits, her gaze piercing as she stared at Ren Shan—like a beast that had lost its cub, zeroing in on its prey.