“Mom, what did you say? Lai Lai? What’s wrong with Lai Lai? Where is Lai Lai?”

Liu Qinxin, who had just followed Ming Shuo downstairs, immediately heard Ma Fengying’s words. Her delicate face, already tinged with a hint of fatigue, instantly lost all color as she hurried down the stairs, nearly stumbling in her haste.

Thankfully, Ming Shuo caught her in time, preventing her from falling.

Ma Fengying was seething with anger but held herself in check, her voice laced with resentment as she snapped, “What do you mean ‘what’s wrong’? It’s all because of your so-called ‘good family’—our Lai Lai got hurt! She was pushed by that ‘good nephew’ of yours! Why on earth would you have to stir up trouble and drag our precious grandson over there? Liu, I’m warning you—if anything happens to my Lai Lai, I’ll settle this with you once and for all!”

“What?”

Liu Qinxin completely ignored the rest of Ma Fengying’s tirade, refusing to argue back. Instead, she took off at a run toward the door.

But before she could even step outside, she suddenly turned around, first casting a wary glance at Ming Yue, then looking up toward the second floor where her daughter was. Clearly worried about leaving Ming Yue alone with her daughter, she said to Ming Shuo, “Shuo Ge, thanks for staying home to take care of Jiajia. I’m going to find Lai Lai!”

“Take care of her? She’s a perfectly healthy adult—do you really think she’d die in her own home? You don’t want your son to see the kind of mess your Liu family has made, do you?”

Ma Fengying launched into a scolding, grabbing Ming Shuo and pulling him along.

Liu Qinxin could only swallow her frustration, shooting Ming Shuo a pleading look.

In the end, Ming Shuo sided with Liu Qinxin, gently pulling his mother’s hand away from him. “Mom, you go with Qin Qin. I’ll stay here.”

“Shuo Er, that’s your son—the only son you’ve got!”

Ma Fengying was beside herself with anxiety.

She seemed to have forgotten that Ming Shuo doesn’t have just one son—Liu Lai.

There’s also Ming Yue’s older brother, who has already passed away.

And then there’s Ming Yue’s younger brother, who’s still alive.

Yet she couldn’t remember any of it.

All she knew was that Liu Lai was her son’s son—her precious grandson.

Although Ming Yue had long grown accustomed to such remarks, hearing them again still filled her heart with a deep sense of sorrow.

She let out a cold laugh and quietly watched the stage not far away, saying nothing at all.

Soon after, Liu Qinxin hurried off.

Ma Fengying angrily cursed her son a couple of times, then rushed after her as well.

When things finally settled down, Ming Shuo sat down beside his daughter, Ming Yue.

This time, he wasn’t rigid or confrontational; instead, he spoke with surprising calmness. “I’ll say it again: move out. I’ll find you a good place to live, and I’ll cover the rent.”

“What if I refuse?”

Ming Yue didn’t lose her temper either—she remained equally composed.

Ming Shuo paused for a moment. “Don’t try to be stubborn with me. Being stubborn won’t get you anywhere. Just state your conditions, and we can part on good terms.”

“If you’d said that from the start, wouldn’t it have been better? It’s like nobody wants to live with a bunch of trash like you,” Ming Yue shot back, seizing every opportunity to counterattack.

She blurted out the word “trash” without even thinking twice.

Ming Shuo’s expression darkened slightly, but he didn’t dwell on those words. Instead, he said simply and bluntly, “Cut the chatter—state your conditions.”

“It’s very simple. First, give me back all the money and shares I originally asked for,” Ming Yue said slowly, raising one finger.

Ming Shuo didn’t respond right away.

Ming Yue quickly raised a second finger. “Second, I don’t want your rented apartment—not even a one-bedroom unit. Either buy me a spacious four-bedroom, two-living-room flat in the city center, or pay me the equivalent in cash. Exactly the amount equal to ten years’ rent for such a place—no more, no less.”

End of Chapter 100: Counterattack 26