Midnight, the Ming Family Villa.

Ming Yue had slept soundly through the night, but when she woke up, it was still the middle of the night.

She tried to go back to sleep, but there was no drowsiness at all.

So she got out of bed, draped herself in a robe, and stood by the familiar window, gazing out at the familiar street scene.

The moon was as ever, the scenery as yesterday—yet alas… there was no longer a single figure she had been waiting for. Only the desolate street mournfully echoed in the dark night.

As she watched, tears unconsciously welled up in Ming Yue’s eyes.

But she refused to let them gather into actual tears; instead, she clenched her teeth and forced each one back inside.

Finally regaining her composure, Ming Yue returned to that rather uncomfortable bed—but this time, she wasn’t sleeping. Instead, she busied herself with both her phone and her laptop.

On her phone, her fingers lightly tapped, and a recording slipped into Liu Jia’s phone like a ghost, then whispered softly in Liu Jia’s ear like a phantom.

When Liu Jia finally jolted awake from her dream, Ming Yue immediately stopped the recording and quietly erased all evidence without leaving a trace.

Meanwhile, on her laptop, she was watching and listening to the scene and sounds from her own father, Ming Shuo’s, room.

There, the two who had once been inseparable were no longer tenderly affectionate as before; instead, they were engaged in a heated argument.

Liu Qinxin sat on the edge of the bed, her eyes terribly red, quietly sobbing, “Shuo Ge, I don’t care—I’ve never asked you for anything before. This is the first and only time! I’ll say it again: I’m not the kind of woman who can’t tolerate others, but that wicked woman has really gone too far. If we keep her in the house, Jiajia and Lai Lai will both lose their lives. So I’m saying it once more: in this house, it’s either just me and the kids, or it’s just that wicked woman! If you won’t agree, I’ll take Jiajia and Lai Lai away tomorrow!”

“Qinqin, please don’t do this. You know how Ming Yue is…” Ming Shuo placed his hand on Liu Qinxin’s shoulder, his brows filled with worry.

Liu Qinxin cried even harder, gasping for breath, “What about Ming Yue? Shuo Ge, honestly—since she came home until now, have I ever given her a cold shoulder? Have I ever made her feel unhappy? Haven’t I always thought of her first? Haven’t I always obeyed her? Haven’t I swallowed my grievances and never argued with her about anything? As a stepmother, I’ve already done more than enough. What else do you expect from me?”

“Qinxin…”

“Shuo Ge, you know I don’t like fighting or making a scene, but she simply can’t stand our children. What am I supposed to do? Am I supposed to just stand by and watch our kids be tortured to death by her?”

“That’s not what I mean.”

“So what exactly do you mean? I’ve been pleading with you for so long, yet why still refuse to let her go? I’m not asking you to kill her—I’m only asking you to kick her out, to remove her from our innocent, poor children’s side. Is that really too much to ask?”

Liu Qinxin grew more and more agitated and heartbroken as she spoke, then turned around, grabbed Ming Shuo’s hands, pressed them against her own neck, and made a choking motion, crying bitterly as she said, “If that’s the case, then Shuo Ge, just put me out of my misery once and for all! Rather than watching our children be tortured to death by her in the future, wouldn’t it be better if you strangled me right now? That way, I won’t be utterly heartbroken later!”

“Stop this nonsense!” Ming Shuo couldn’t bear to strangle her, so he quickly pulled his hands away, wrapped his arms around the distraught woman, his eyes full of tenderness, gently wiping away her tears and softly coaxing, “Stop this nonsense! Qinqin, be good—please stop this nonsense! I promise you, I promise you—isn’t that enough?”

“Really?”

End of Chapter 97: Counterattack 23