"Yes, Mom, let's go. I can earn money to support you. We'll never see him again; let him fend for himself!" Lu Qing also urged Li Feng.
Seeing that Li Feng seemed about to mention divorce, Lu Dayong finally realized the seriousness of the situation and fell to his knees before her.
"I was wrong. I will never lay a hand on you and our daughter again. I'm not like this normally; I only hit you when I've had too much to drink. I promise I'll quit drinking starting today.
Feng'er, I love you, and I love Xiao Qing!"
Li Feng's face showed hesitation again as she looked down at the man before her. "If only you knew this day would come, why did you do it in the first place? I..."
"Aren't you going to forgive him and not get a divorce?" Ye Huohuo couldn't help but retort.
Li Feng wiped her tears. "He is detestable, but, but he is Xiao Qing's father after all! He, he isn't always like this. When he's not drinking, he's quite good to us!"
"Mom, he drinks almost every day, and when he drinks, he hits people. Your arm has been broken several times by him. If you keep indulging him, he'll beat you to death one day!" Lu Qing tugged at Li Feng's sleeve, trying to persuade her. "Do you know what I'm most afraid of when I go to work every day? I'm most afraid of coming back to find you beaten to death by him!"
"Xiao Qing, he is your father, after all... Give him a chance, he'll get better!"
"Mom, you've given him chances for over twenty years, and he's only gotten worse. He's beyond saving!"
Ye Huohuo watched anxiously from the side. They say all responsibility for domestic violence lies with the man who beats his wife. But at this moment, she had a feeling that a wife who endures long-term domestic violence from her husband also bears some responsibility.
Some of these women do it for face, while others are simply soft-hearted. After being beaten, as long as the man pacifies them a little and repents with half-truths, they forgive him.
Again and again, eventually, the abuser becomes accustomed to hitting, and the victim becomes accustomed to being beaten. She even felt that Li Feng was somewhat responsible for her own misfortune. After being beaten to this extent and having harmed her daughter, she was still considering forgiveness.
"Li Feng!" Ye Huohuo no longer addressed her as Aunt Li. Her expression turned serious and cold. "Do you know why your daughter got involved with that scumbag?
They say fatherly love makes a daughter's marriage happy. Girls who have had sufficient love and nourishment can distinguish the qualities of a good man and won't be easily swayed by a man's sweet talk.
As for a girl who grew up lacking love, or even under the shadow of her father's domestic violence, she will magnify any small kindness a man shows her, believing it to be true love, and can be easily bought with small gestures.
Your daughter is the best example. That scumbag gave her some flowers, took her out for a few meals, and said a few sweet words, and she thought she had found her soulmate, only to fall into a bad person's trap.
Ultimately, more than half of Lu Qing's tragedy is her father's responsibility. Do you bear no responsibility for your constant tolerance?
What's so good about such a father that she should cling to him? If he hasn't done a single thing a father should do, why must Lu Qing acknowledge this father?
You can choose to silently endure being beaten to death, but you have no right to decide your daughter's future and force her to support such a scumbag father."
After speaking, Ye Huohuo took Lu Qing's hand. "Come, I'll take you away!"
"No need. He's the one who should leave!" A Cheng pointed at Lu Dayong.
"He is suspected of illegal gambling, assault while intoxicated, and theft, and he also injured someone during the theft. The police are looking for him! I can arrange for him to be severely punished. He won't be out for at least eight to ten years!
Didn't he just say he wanted to quit drinking? After ten years inside, his drinking problem will surely be cured." A Cheng raised his hand and showed the three digits displayed on his phone – 110.
Upon hearing this, Lu Dayong's legs immediately went weak, and he slumped to the ground. Suddenly, as if injected with adrenaline, he sprang up and rushed madly towards the door, shouting, "I don't want to go to jail, I don't want to go to jail..."
He hadn't taken more than two steps before A Cheng grabbed him by the arm and tripped him with his foot in a small joint-locking technique, pinning him firmly to the ground.
At this moment, Lu Dayong clutched Li Feng's clothes like a drowning man grasping a lifeline. "Xiao Feng, for the sake of our many years of marriage, you have to save me! Please ask them to let me go. I'll serve you and our daughter like an ox or a horse in my next life."
Seeing his pathetic state, Li Feng's heart softened again, and she opened her mouth to plead. Qin Chu, unable to watch any longer, said, "Do you know what he stole money for?
It wasn't to buy food or clothes for you and your daughter; it was for whoring! That woman's name is Xiao Hong Pao, or something like that. He spent a lot of money on her.
When he ran out of money, he still asked you and your daughter for it. He doesn't give you a penny, yet you still give him money to find other women. I really don't know if you're foolish or perverse!"
Qin Chu's words were always unpleasant, but Ye Huohuo found them surprisingly comforting this time.
Seeing her mother like this, Lu Qing was so angry her teeth ached. "Mom, you usually give him money to avoid a beating. Do you know how I earned my money?
That was the money I earned from selling myself! He used his own daughter's earnings from selling herself to go whoring. He doesn't deserve to be a father, or even a human. Are you still going to spend your life with such a beast?
If you insist on staying with him, I will not only have no father, but I will have no mother either!"
This time, Li Feng was finally moved. "What? Xiao Qing, what did you just say... How could this be? You've always studied diligently since you were young, you have a good job, how could you..."
Ye Huohuo took Li Feng's hand. "Lu Qing's meaning is very clear. Do you still insist on staying with this man?"
Lu Dayong was still lying on the ground, shouting, "Xiao Feng, you must save me. As the saying goes, a day of husband and wife is a hundred days of kindness, we..."
Li Feng picked up a wooden stick from the side, the one Lu Dayong usually used to beat her. This time, she gripped it tightly and fiercely struck Lu Qing's father's thigh.
"I was blind, not only did I harm myself, but I also harmed Xiao Qing. My life is ruined. I absolutely cannot let you ruin our daughter's life!"
Hit after hit, she vented the anger and hatred that had been building in her heart for a long time.
If Ye Huohuo hadn't pulled her away in the end, Li Feng might have truly beaten Lu Qing's father's thigh to a break.
At this moment, the sound of police sirens grew closer. A Cheng tore a bedsheet and bound Lu Dayong hand and foot, making him look like a tied-up pig.
Lu Qing and her mother cried, holding each other. Li Feng repeatedly blamed herself, calling herself foolish for harming her daughter.
Ye Huohuo watched from the side, feeling uneasy. Although Li Feng was foolish, her concern for Lu Qing was genuine, and her love was deep. Looking at the mother and daughter reunited after their ordeal, she couldn't help but think of herself.
She couldn't even remember what her parents looked like. The only photograph she had of her parents was a group photo taken when she was three years old, with her father and mother holding her.
In the photo, her father was so young and handsome, and her mother was so gentle and beautiful, fitting all her fantasies about parents.
It was just a pity that for her, they were merely fantasies; she would never be able to see them again.
Just as she was lost in her own sorrow, she suddenly heard someone speaking behind her, "Huohuo? Is that you, Huohuo?"
Ye Huohuo turned around abruptly and was shocked by what she saw behind her.