Chapter 42: Are They All Starting to Self-Harm Now?

After Song Yinyin left the Ling family yesterday, she felt she absolutely couldn’t just let this go. After much deliberation, she decided to call Song Qingtian back, using Father Song to put pressure on her—and it would also make it easier for her to take action. She planned to have Song Qingtian’s phone handed over so she could delete that recording.

So when Song Pingzhao came home at noon, Song Yinyin immediately started acting cute with him.

“Dad, it’s been ages since Sister Qingtian last came back—won’t you invite her over for a meal?”

Knowing her daughter better than anyone, Deng Siyu didn’t believe Song Yinyin was really missing Song Qingtian. She figured there must be some ulterior motive behind her words, and she quickly chimed in to persuade Song Pingzhao as well.

“Yeah, ever since Qingtian married into the Ling family, she hasn’t come back very often. I actually miss her quite a bit.”

Both mother and daughter had stirred up Song Pingzhao’s memories. He remembered how close he and Song Qingtian used to be when she was little, but after Song Qingtian’s mother passed away and he remarried Deng Siyu, having another daughter, their relationship grew distant. On top of that, with his company keeping him busy, he ended up neglecting her even more. That’s why, even though he knew full well Song Yinyin and Ling Hanyu were quite close, when Song Qingtian expressed her desire to marry Ling Hanyu, he still went ahead and arranged their wedding.

Ever since then, he could clearly sense Song Yinyin wasn’t happy about it—but what could he do? The most frustrating thing was that although Song Qingtian kept in regular contact with Song Yinyin, she always treated him, her own father, with cold indifference. From the way Song Yinyin spoke, he could tell Song Qingtian’s relationship with Ling Hanyu wasn’t very good either.

So he often regretted whether he should have pushed ahead with that marriage in the first place.

“Then I’ll give her a call and see how it goes.”

Song Pingzhao said hesitantly, because he knew Song Qingtian wouldn’t even bother to say a single word to him these days. He wasn’t sure if she’d show up or not, but going to the Ling household…

Thinking about Ling Hanyu’s cold attitude toward him made him feel too embarrassed to go. The only comfort he had was Nuonuo—every time she saw him, she would jump right into his arms, sweetly calling him “Grandpa,” just as adorable as Song Qingtian used to be when she was little.

Song Pingzhao didn’t want to be eavesdropped on while making the call, so he headed straight to his study. He ran through several drafts in his mind before finally dialing Song Qingtian’s number.

When Song Qingtian answered, she hadn’t even gotten home yet—she was still figuring out how best to deliver those books to Song Yinyin—when her phone suddenly rang. She glanced at the name: Dad.

She analyzed it and realized it must be her own father, since she didn’t think she’d ever saved her father-in-law’s number. Besides, even if Ling Hanyu’s parents needed to reach her, it would normally be Mother Ling who’d call.

“Hello.”

She recalled that when she was reading, Song Qingtian had never been particularly fond of this “Dad,” so her tone was rather indifferent when she spoke. But on the other end, a slightly agitated, somewhat aged voice came through.

“Hello, Qingtian. Could you come over sometime? I’ve been missing… missing Nuonuo. Why don’t you two come over for a meal?”

Song Pingzhao had originally wanted to say he missed Song Qingtian, but he remembered how she’d shot him down the last time he’d said something like that.

He still remembered exactly what she’d said:

“You miss me? You just want to laugh at me, don’t you? Let me tell you—I’m not getting a divorce just to give my spot to Song Yinyin!”

Song Pingzhao had no idea why Song Qingtian had such a misunderstanding, but no matter how many times he explained, she wouldn’t listen. So from then on, he simply avoided saying things like that—and even stopped calling altogether.

Hearing the slightly pleading tone in Song Pingzhao’s voice, Song Qingtian suddenly thought maybe he really did have feelings for the old Song Qingtian. Plus, she was just planning to visit Song Yinyin, and here was Song Pingzhao giving her an opening. Her mood instantly brightened, and even her tone took on a hint of joy.

“Alright, then why wait for a specific day? I’ll head over right now.”

End of Chapter 42: Are They All Starting to Self-Harm Now?