Su He arrived home as darkness fell.
She replied to a few congratulatory text messages, only to discover several missed calls. One was from Jiang Xiaoxiao, and the others were from the same unknown number.
Su He called Jiang Xiaoxiao back first. Learning she was busy, she didn't disturb her further.
As for the unknown number, she could probably guess who it was.
She hadn't seen them since Su Chenghai signed the agreement severing their relationship.
Lu Yanbei had fulfilled every promise made to them. Unfortunately, Su Chenghai lacked the capability to manage the large enterprise himself, watching helplessly as the company collapsed.
Of course, he hadn't suffered a complete loss.
At least, with the company's property rights in hand, he could still get a substantial amount of money by selling it.
And the tens of millions in cash, Lu Yanbei had transferred every cent to Su Chenghai. However, he had underestimated a woman's desire for revenge. After he divorced Qin Ruofang, Qin Ruofang had been plotting how to get justice for herself.
Furthermore, Su Chenghai's siblings were not people to be trifled with. Hearing that he had received such a large sum from Lu Yanbei, they all wanted a piece of the pie.
Ultimately, in collusion with Qin Ruofang and his second uncle, Su Chengtao, they transferred Su Chenghai's tens of millions of cash directly from the bank, leaving him a penniless pauper!
Since receiving the money, Su Chenghai had been spending all his days with his mistress, dreaming of a bright future. Their illegitimate son was in his final year of high school, and they planned to send him abroad for further studies. When he returned, he would have a legitimate reason to take over the family business.
This trio lived a harmonious life, with Su Chenghai completely forgetting his wife who had been with him through thick and thin. Thus, Qin Ruofang secretly colluded with his siblings, catching him completely off guard.
When he discovered the money in his card was gone, he was so furious he nearly had a stroke.
Of course, Lu Yanbei had played a part in fanning the flames behind the scenes.
After passing through Qin Ruofang and the others, Su Chenghai's large sum of money eventually returned to his hands.
This was a story for another time, and we shall not dwell on it for now.
After discovering the money was missing, Su Chenghai’s first stop was the bank. The bank naturally wouldn't admit to any work-related errors, as the person withdrawing the money was Su Chenghai himself. Besides, an ID card couldn't be faked.
Su Chenghai insisted on viewing the surveillance footage, and the bank was quite cooperative.
Upon seeing that the person who transferred his money was his own younger brother, Su Chenghai clutched his chest and remained silent for a long time.
"Chenghai, what's wrong? Don't scare me!" The mistress, seeing his pale face, rushed forward to support him.
Her son, however, showed no concern for his father's health, preoccupied only with whether he could still study abroad. "Dad, who swindled the money away? Can it be recovered? My visa is ready; you promised!"
Su Chenghai leaned against the counter, taking a long time to recover.
He pushed away his mistress's hand and hurried out.
The mistress, seeing him stagger and stumble, followed him with concern. "Chenghai, where are you going?"
Su Chenghai gritted his teeth, slammed the car door shut, and unleashed a torrent of curses. "Damn you, Su Chengtao, you ungrateful wretch! You'd better not let me find you, or I'll carve you into a thousand pieces!"
The mistress was frightened by his expression. Before she could get into the car, Su Chenghai sped away.
Su Chenghai drove straight to his old family home after leaving the bank.
Su Chengtao, of course, denied it, saying he had gone to the bank that day for business but had absolutely not taken his money. "Big brother, I'm your biological brother, don't you trust me?"
"I have no idea how much money you have, nor do I have the capability."
"Transferring money requires the person to go in person and present an ID. How could I possibly have your ID?"
Su Chengtao defended himself with a straight face.
His other siblings also tried to pacify him, urging him to be rational and not damage their sibling bond.
Su Chenghai, in his rage, refused to listen.
He grabbed Su Chengtao by the collar and roared, "How dare you deny it! The person in the video was you! The bank made it very clear that it was you who transferred my money! Give me back my hard-earned cash!"
Su Chengtao adamantly refused. "Big brother, I have always respected you. You can't just accuse me falsely!"
"I didn't touch your money; the bank is shirking responsibility!"
"Chenghai, calm down." The elderly matriarch of the Su family also tried to mediate, leaning on her cane. "You know your brother's character; he wouldn't do such a thing!"
"If not him, then who?" Su Chenghai glared fiercely at everyone in the room.
He had worked his way up from the countryside, enduring hardships to build his current fortune. Over the years, after he became successful, he had generously helped his siblings.
As the eldest son, he had always been instilled with the concept that the elder brother is like a father. The matriarch had warned him not to forget his roots, saying that his siblings were the closest people to him, and they should help each other to live good lives.
Su Chenghai had indeed done so over the years, even to the point of arguing with Qin Ruofang.
He had lost count of how much money he had given to support his family.
But how had they repaid him?
Other than causing trouble and forcing him to clean up their messes, they had only reached out their hands for money.
His angry gaze terrified everyone in the room into silence.
The matriarch, unable to bear it any longer, said with a stern face, "I taught you from a young age that harmony in the family brings prosperity! Look at you, coming here to make such a scene during the New Year. Where is your demeanor as an elder brother!"
"Mom!" Seeing his mother's blatant favoritism, Su Chenghai felt a chill in his heart.
Hadn't he contributed enough to this family?
Why was his mother siding with his second brother when trouble arose?
"Mom knows you're anxious. But Chengtao is not wrong; why would he steal your money? The bank isn't foolish to just hand money over to anyone. Think about it carefully, is there some misunderstanding..."
"That's right, big brother. An ID card is not something anyone can get. If you ask me, your paramour is the most suspicious!" his sister Su Yuetao said sarcastically.
Over the years, she had always been jealous of Qin Ruofang. Qin Ruofang came from a wealthy family, and from childhood, she had lived the life of a pampered young lady. Unlike her, who had to wear other people's hand-me-downs.
When Su Chenghai first married Qin Ruofang, she met her sister-in-law for the first time and clearly sensed her disdain and contempt. She would remember that look of being looked down upon for a lifetime.
Now that Su Chenghai had divorced Qin Ruofang, she naturally wanted to step on her.
After hearing her analysis, Su Chenghai suddenly came to his senses.
Yes, how could he have forgotten this?
Qin Ruofang had always been in charge of household affairs. His old, invalidated ID cards might still be in Qin Ruofang's possession. With the ID card, finding someone to impersonate him to withdraw the money would be foolproof.
Thinking that his ex-wife had colluded with his brother to transfer his vast fortune, Su Chenghai was furious.
He beat Su Chengtao severely, then drove straight to Qin Ruofang's maiden family home.
Qin Ruofang, of course, had no intention of confronting him in front of his family. She had already coordinated with her relatives and gone on a vacation abroad. Su Chenghai's search there, therefore, yielded nothing.