Chapter 439: Chapter 439 - Who Could Share in Her Loneliness

When Huo Jinyao had left with Su Qingsang, he only said that he was going to ask the airport staff about when the plane could take off.

Now it was past time for dinner, and they were still here and hadn’t come back.

Xiang Caiping had waited for the better half of a day in Huo Jinyao’s villa and still had not heard from the two of them, which made her worry a little.

Looking at the number on her screen, Su Qingsang had a momentary shock and started to feel conflicted all over again.

At this time, she inadvertently looked at Huo Jinyao. Li Qianxue sat next to her, and at a glance, she saw the name of the caller registered on the phone.

It was a very simple ID. Just the word ‘mom’.

Li Qianxue’s heart skipped a beat, and she seemed to remember now that Su Qingsang had regarded Xiang Caiping as her mother.

Her hands started to shake a little, and she was barely able to resist the urge to snatch away Su Qingsang’s cell phone.

Su Qingsang was so embarrassed. She also knew that Li Qianxue had seen it. However, the phone just kept on ringing, and she had to pick up the call under everyone’s gaze.

Li Qianxue was right next to her. She really didn’t have the courage to answer Xiang Caiping’s call with the word ‘mom’ as she usually did.

Huo Jinyao took one glance at her, and then took her phone from her hand. While watching the others around him, he stood up and went aside to answer.

Su Qingsang felt like someone had just lifted a burden from her shoulders and breathed a long sigh of relief.

Turning her head, she met Li Qianxue’s eyes, which were full of pain. Her hands trembled and she could hardly keep calm.

The inexplicable guilt that built up inside her made her unable to meet Li Qianxue’s eyes.

From where he was, Huo Jinyao was able to see Su Qingsang’s reaction as he listened to Xiang Caiping’s concerned voice over the phone.

“Why haven’t you come back for dinner?” Xiang Caiping always had the company of her daughter and son-in-law all this time. Now that she was caught unawares and left to have dinner alone, she felt abandoned.

“Something came up here. Mom, have a bite first. We’ll come back after we’re done settling this.”

“Okay. Then make sure you drive carefully. You have to pay more attention at night. It’s still cold out there, don’t catch a chill.”

“Okay.” Huo Jinyao said a few more words, keeping his tone light. He hung up, went back to his seat and returned the phone to Su Qingsang.

Li Qianxue watched Su Qingsang pick up the cell phone. The call had ended, but she was still looking a little out of sorts.

Su Qingsang was a bit embarrassed, especially as three pairs of eyes were scrutinizing her.

It was a really bad feeling. She wanted to say something but felt like any words would have been quite empty of meaning.

Li Qianxue had stiffened up. She sat there and just kept looking at Su Qingsang.

Su Qingsang was very uncomfortable with the staring and felt like getting up and slipping away quietly. Li Qianxue suddenly got up and pulled her up along with her.

“Come. Follow me.”

“Mom? Where are we going?”

“Let’s go. Let’s clear this up with her once and for all.”

Su Qingsang froze for a moment as if she immediately understood what Li Qianxue meant to say.

She had pulled her hand away without thinking, and Li Qianxue turned around and looked at her. “Do you call her mother?”

Su Qingsang’s lips moved, and she was at a complete loss for words. “I...”

“Do you call her mother?”

Su Qingsang couldn’t answer. If anything of this was Xiang Caiping’s fault, she could happily and easily choose Li Qianxue.

However, Xiang Caiping was just as blameless as Li Qianxue.

“You didn’t call her mother, did you?” Li Qianxue stressed this point and insisted on an answer.

Su Qingsang couldn’t find an answer, but Su Yuxin couldn’t stand to watch this any longer. He stepped forward and stood in front of Li Qianxue.

“Mom, what are you trying to do here? Sister didn’t know about this before.”

“But she knows it now. She knows the truth now.”

Li Qianxue closed her eyes. It wasn’t supposed to go down like this, not like this.

She turned around and looked at Su Qingsang. “You haven’t told her, right? You didn’t plan to tell her at all, did you?”

Su Qingsang didn’t know what to say. She wanted to reunite with Li Qianxue with all her heart. However, it was also true that she did not want to hurt Xiang Caiping.

At this moment, she seemed to understand a little of what Su Chenghui felt. She was caught between a rock and a hard place.

“Why don’t you tell her? Do you want to be her daughter? Do you still want to continue living in a lie? Is that right?”

Li Qianxue was about to have a breakdown. She just could not accept it. How could it come to this?

This was her daughter, one whom she had overlooked and ignored this whole time. It was not easy for her to finally bridge the gap with this daughter. And now that it looked like things were finally getting back on track, it turned out Su Qingsang decided to acknowledge another mother.

“What are you doing back here then? Why did you come here?”

Li Qianxue felt so hurt. She put her hand over her heart, feeling terrible. “What did you come back for? Why have you returned?”

Su Qingsang stepped forward and wanted to say something. However, at this time, it seemed inappropriate to say anything at all.

Old Master Li looked at the chaos unfolding in front of him, and his body seemed to sway a little, but he managed to keep himself steady.

Su Yuxin wanted to offer some words of encouragement but did not know where to start.

Li Qianxue was still hurt deeply, and Su Qingsang was at a complete loss. Huo Jinyao suddenly took a step forward at this moment.

He stood next to Su Qingsang and put both of his hands on her shoulders.

“Are you putting the blame on Qingsang now, Mrs. Su?”

As soon as he spoke, everyone’s eyes fell on him. When Li Qianxue heard that Huo Jinyao had addressed her so formally, she felt somehow uncomfortable about the whole thing.

“I am her real mother. I am. But then she...”

“That’s because you don’t know how they came to acknowledge each other as mother and daughter. You don’t know how well Xiang Caiping treats Qingsang.”

These people were all deeply involved in this situation. However, Huo Jinyao was an outside observer looking in.

He wrapped Su Qingsang tightly in his arms and used this protective posture to send a message to those around them.

Su Qingsang felt his warmth, and her heart started to beat steadier.

Huo Jinyao patted her on the shoulder and looked at Li Qianxue.

“The first time Xiang Caiping saw Qingsang was in Rong City.”

Huo Jinyao’s language was very concise, and the way he explained things was to the point. He told how Su Qingsang had gone on the news because of her act of bravery while she was in Rong City.

Later, Xiang Caiping saw her on TV and found that she looked very similar to Su Chenghui and that her name was Qingsang, and she decided to pay her a visit.

“I have looked into Xiang Caiping’s history. I knew that she gave birth to a child one day after Christmas the same day Qinsang was born. I also know that the child was later taken away by Su Chenghui.”

“Qingsang wanted to do a DNA test. However, Su Chenghui had come to us personally. With him around, we thought we could ascertain the facts.”

“Mrs. Su, before you put the blame on Qingsang, I also want to tell you about some of the sacrifices Xiang Caiping has made for Qingsang’s sake.”

For more than two decades, Xiang Caiping did not have her daughter with her. However, when she became convinced that Su Qingsang was her daughter, everything she did was motivated by a mother’s love.

“This sweater that Qingsang is wearing now, she knitted it. She had gotten into an argument with Su Peizhen just because she wanted to buy a gift for Qingsang, and she was almost killed in a car accident as a result of that.”

“Xiang Caiping is still in a wheelchair to this day.”

Huo Jinyao looked at Li Qianxue, who had calmed down now, and his tone became warmer.

“Qingsang had known since before the New Year that she was not Xiang Caiping’s daughter. Qingsang’s blood type was AB, while Xiang Caiping was a type O. Qingsang knew about this but chose to keep the truth from Xiang Caiping because she did not want to hurt her. Qingsang had also thought about questioning Su Chenghui at that time, but he refused to say anything more.”

“Later, when she found out that you were her real mother, she had wanted to go to the Su mansion to see you right away. But you had already gone off to the United States.”

“You heard this clearly. She wanted to see you at the time, but you weren’t there. She wanted to see you on an impulse. Because you were not in Lin City, it gave her time to cool off to process things.”

“You are not to be blamed. But what about Xiang Caiping? You flew to the United States for Su Peizhen’s sake, for fear that she would be lonely in a foreign land. But have you ever thought about one thing? Qingsang had, for the first two decades of her life, been alone. Who would think to consider her loneliness and isolation? ”

Huo Jinyao’s tone was not accusatory. He had simply and calmly pointed out the facts.

However, these facts were more difficult to accept than pure accusations. Li Qianxue’s body grew weak and she could barely stand. Drained, she sank into the dining chair.

“Much of this changed thanks to Xiang Caiping. It was thanks to her appearance that Qingsang was able to experience motherly love. Xiang Caiping does not know that Qingsang is not her child, and loves her sincerely. If Qingsang had come running to you as soon as she found out that you were her real mother, and completely disregarded Xiang Caiping, would you still want such a daughter? Would you want to acknowledge her? ”

Li Qianxue had grown quite pale and couldn’t say a word.

Not just her, but Su Yuxin and Old Master Li also bowed their heads.

Yes. Su Qingsang thought the world of the Su family. She always thought the best of their family and never associated them with anything negative.

However, despite this, Su Qingsang didn’t come up to acknowledge her family the first chance she got. There was a hesitation in her heart, out of concern was for a person whom she had no blood relations with, but who had given her motherly love.

“Mrs. Su, please forgive me for being so blunt right now. However, I still need to mention this. You are upset just because Qingsang has called Xiang Caiping ‘mom’ a number of times. In the past twenty-something years, Su Peizhen has always called you ‘mom’. If you were to put yourself in her shoes, wouldn’t Qingsang’s anger be more justified than yours?”

Li Qianxue was completely speechless. She just sat there blankly.

Su Yuxin stood beside her, seeing his mother’s state but unable to give her any comfort.

Su Qingsang could not help but throw a glare at Huo Jinyao. She knew he was a smooth talker, but saying all this to Li Qianxue was a bit much, wasn’t it?

Huo Jinyao raised an eyebrow to show he didn’t mean any harm. In fact, if anyone was to blame, it was definitely Su Chenghui.

Li Qianxue suddenly leaned her arms on the table and started crying loudly.

Her heartache, which had been relieved for a moment, seemed to come gushing out again uncontrollably.

Su Qingsang’s nose became sore again. She stepped forward and crouched beside Li Qianxue. She reached out and gently put one hand on her knee.

“Mom. Please don’t cry. All these things... None of this is your fault. I have never once blamed you.”

Her eyes were exceptionally clear and sincere.

“Mom, I know you may be upset. But... you need to give me some time with Auntie’s situation. I will need to break it to her gently. She is still recovering from her injury at this time, and she might not be able to handle such a shock. Can you understand this?”

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