When Xu Tingyu was woken up by the phone, she found that her body temperature was acting up again.
Her voice was hoarse as she answered the call.
"Tingyu, how's it going with the house?"
"Your younger brother will be home soon. Could you come over and tell him in person?"
Zhang Qiu's somewhat obsequious voice came from the other end of the phone.
That one sentence jolted Xu Tingyu fully awake.
The house was lost.
And how could she tell her younger brother about their father's passing?
These two things felt like a thousand - jin burden weighing heavily on her shoulders.
But avoidance wouldn't solve the problem.
She quickly tidied herself up. When she saw her pale and haggard self in the mirror, she was startled.
She couldn't let her mother and younger brother see her like this.
She propped herself up and put on some makeup. Her complexion improved significantly.
When she went downstairs, Aunt Zhang immediately came up to her. "Young mistress, are you going out?"
Xu Tingyu nodded and was about to bypass Aunt Zhang.
But Aunt Zhang stopped her with a look of embarrassment. "Young mistress, Mr. Qi told me before he left today that since you're not feeling well, you'd better not go out recently."
Seeing Aunt Zhang's somewhat evasive expression, Xu Tingyu knew exactly what was going on.
"Is he trying to restrict my freedom?"
"Also, those weren't his exact words, were they?"
"How could he care about my health? He's just afraid I'll embarrass him if I go out."
There was self - mockery all over her face.
Aunt Zhang shook her head repeatedly. "No, Mr. Qi is really worried about your health. He took your temperature this morning and fed you medicine before he left."
Qi Shifeng's actual words weren't so nice.
"Tell her that since she's not feeling well, she should stay at home. Being weak and sick is not the way for her, and it won't threaten me either."
But it was true that he was worried about her.
Aunt Zhang stood in front of Xu Tingyu. "Young mistress, please listen to my advice. You haven't had a good rest for a while. If this goes on, your body won't be able to take it."
Xu Tingyu was already consumed by anger and couldn't listen to any advice.
"Then please tell him on my behalf that my body is mine and has nothing to do with him."
He thought that the affairs of the Xu family had nothing to do with him.
Then the body of a Xu family member like her had even less to do with him.
After saying that, she ignored Aunt Zhang's dissuasion and went out directly.
Aunt Zhang couldn't stop her. She watched her go out helplessly and sighed several times.
What a mess!
Xu Tingyu returned to the Xu family's old mansion.
As soon as she stepped in, she felt the stifling atmosphere.
Zhang Qiu and Xu Jia were sitting on the sofa, crying with their heads in their hands, while Secretary Qian was standing in front of the floor - to - ceiling window, looking very worried.
It seemed that Xu Jia already knew about their father's passing.
Her heart tightened, and she stopped in her tracks.
Their father was gone, and the house was lost. She didn't know how to break this "bad news".
It was Zhang Qiu who noticed her first.
"Tingyu, you're back. Where's the property certificate?"
There were still tears on her face, but there was a glimmer of hope in her eyes as she looked over.
Xu Tingyu avoided her mother's eager gaze awkwardly.
"I'm sorry, Mom. I'm useless."
She was so disappointed in herself.
Zhang Qiu was stunned for a moment, then immediately understood what it meant. The next second, her face changed.
"The house is lost? Xu Tingyu, you're the second young mistress of the Qi family. You couldn't even save a house?"
"Are you heartless? Do you really want to see your mother and brother on the streets?"
She rushed over, hitting Xu Tingyu while wailing.
Xu Tingyu understood the feeling of falling from heaven to hell, so she stood still and let her mother's slaps fall on her.
"I'm sorry. I'm useless..."
She repeated these two sentences numbly.
The hand by her side was tightly clenched into a fist, and her fingernails dug deep into her palm.
Xu Jia, who had been crying, saw his mother hitting his sister and rushed over to stand in front of Xu Tingyu.
"Mom, how could you hit sister? We've already lost Dad. Do you want to drive sister to death?"
The sixteen - year - old boy was good - looking and had a straight posture.
He was also a top - notch student and was always regarded as a campus heartthrob. He was very popular.
But due to his health problems, he looked a bit weak and pale.
However, this paleness didn't diminish his handsomeness. Instead, it added a touch of aesthetically broken charm.
Because of his poor health, even though he was a boy, everyone in the family doted on him extra.
Now, it seemed that overnight, he had grown up.
He knew how to be considerate of his sister and comfort his mother.
"Jiajia, your sister couldn't save the house. We'll be on the streets, but she could have saved it. How can I not blame her?"
Zhang Qiu retracted her hitting hands and slumped on the ground in a mess, crying loudly.
Xu Tingyu's heart ached. Deep inside her heart, there was a tearing pain.
"Sister, is what Mom said true? Will we be on the streets?"
There was confusion and pain in the boy's red and swollen eyes.
Xu Tingyu quickly shook her head. "No, I've already arranged a house for you and Mom. You can move in first."
She couldn't explain the complexity of this property to her mother and brother.
As the person in charge of the family now, she had to consider the best solution.
But Zhang Qiu still couldn't accept it. She slumped on the ground and looked at Xu Tingyu with hatred.
"I know you did it on purpose. You've always resented us and Jiajia, so as soon as you had a chance, you took revenge."
"I was really blind to raise such an ungrateful daughter. Your father in the underworld won't forgive you either."
Xu Tingyu knew that people would say things without thinking when they were extremely angry.
She told herself not to listen. Those weren't her mother's true feelings.
But the tears still fell uncontrollably.
"Mom, Jiajia, hurry up and pack your luggage. I promise you, I'll go out to work and earn money. I'll definitely redeem this house."
She hated her own incompetence.
It was only at this moment that she somewhat understood why her father had jumped off the building.
This feeling of helplessness, of having tried so hard but still being unable to change the outcome, was so suffocating and depressing.
It was actually Xu Jia who was calmer than Zhang Qiu.
He squatted down halfway, supported Zhang Qiu, and then looked up at Xu Tingyu. "Sister, I believe you."
The boy's face was deathly pale, and his eyes were red and swollen.
The look in his eyes as he looked at his sister was filled with trust and dependence.
Maybe because of her son's intervention, Zhang Qiu's mood improved, and she finally accepted the fact that the house was lost.
But she still made Xu Tingyu swear that she must get the house back.
"I don't care how you do it, but you must get this house back. Otherwise, I won't let you off even as a ghost."
"If you don't have the money, go and beg the Qi family. Isn't their old master very fond of you?"