Madam, Please Behave
Chapter 410: The Past

It was over an hour before Liu Changqing finally got home.

Because he’d been walking under the blazing sun the whole time, even though it wasn’t quite midday yet, his face was visibly flushed.

He was sunburned.

With both hands full of groceries, he couldn’t dig out his keys, so he stood at the door and tapped it with the tip of his foot, calling out:

“Zhiyue… Zhiyue, open the door for me!”

His son was definitely more reliable now.

A few seconds later, Liu Zhiyue opened the door after hearing his dad call. When he saw the bags in Liu Changqing’s hands, his eyes widened.

“You bought this much?”

“When I went to get the hen, a few old ladies told me the seafood market just got in some really good crucian carp today—perfect for nourishing the body. So I bought three. One for soup, one to braise, and one to keep alive for now.”

Liu Xiazhi, who had been watching TV, perked up when she overheard the conversation. She hadn't been interested at first, but seeing the large black plastic bag in her dad’s hand made her pause. Then she let out an excited squeal.

Liu Xiazhi loved animals.

As a warm-hearted kid, she was crazy about all kinds of animals.

She jumped off the couch and dashed over to her dad.

She leaned in to take a closer look.

“Why isn’t it moving? Is it dead?”

“It’s alive. No way it’s dead.”

After answering his daughter, Liu Changqing turned to his son.

“Go get the big basin from the bathroom and fill it with some water. We’ll put the fish in there.”

“Okay.”

Liu Zhiyue quickly reached out to take the bag.

The moment he grabbed it, he was startled.

No wonder his dad’s shirt was soaked through—between the fish and the water, the bag must’ve weighed at least six pounds. It wasn’t super heavy, but plastic bags really dig into your hands when they're packed like that.

Just holding it made his palms sting.

Carrying the bag toward the bathroom, the fish inside started wriggling just as they passed it from father to son. The bag’s surface bulged and shifted as the fish thrashed inside.

Seeing how lively the fish were, Liu Xiazhi got even more excited.

With a face full of amazement, she squealed, “Mmm mmm mmm! It moved! It's alive!” and followed her brother like a little tail, bouncing toward the bathroom.

Liu Changqing finally felt relieved.

He looked at the hand that had been holding the bag and saw the deep red marks left on his palm.

Hearing the noise outside, Su Yan came out of the bedroom. She had been explaining something to their daughter and peeked into the bathroom to see the kids filling the basin. When she saw the three fish, she looked a little surprised and walked over to Liu Changqing.

Taking the hen from his hand, she asked curiously,

“Why didn’t you just have the shop clean the fish?”

“I was worried they wouldn’t be fresh.”

“Fair enough.”

Su Yan didn’t press further. She took the hen and walked off to the kitchen.

Since her mom was here, Liu Changqing didn’t need to handle the cooking today.

Otherwise, if he did everything himself, it would’ve embarrassed his mother-in-law.

Besides, he’d had her cooking before—her food was delicious, just as good as his. He felt totally confident leaving it to her.

With the groceries sorted, Liu Changqing closed the door behind him.

Then he headed for the bathroom and saw his daughter squatting by the basin, looking like she wanted to poke the fish.

But the fish flicked its tail, splashing water onto her face. She let out a startled yelp, then burst into cheerful laughter.

The father and son fell silent as Liu Zhiyue watched his giggling little sister.

He looked a bit helpless.

Liu Changqing didn’t say much either, just gave his daughter a quick reminder.

“Don’t touch them with your hands. You’ll stink of fish, and it won’t wash off.”

“Got it!”

Satisfied with her answer, Liu Changqing left the bathroom and headed to the bedroom.

He moved quietly.

Afraid the twins might be napping, he opened the door very gently.

Just as it opened, he heard An Yuanyao’s voice.

The kids were awake.

She was lying on her side, gently poking at the babies’ tiny hands, softly murmuring:

“Zhi’an, Chunnuan… Mommy’s right here~”

“They’re too young to understand anything you’re saying.”

Liu Changqing spoke as he walked in. Knowing the babies were awake, he dropped the stealth act.

He shut the door, went to the wardrobe, and picked out a fresh set of clothes to lay on the bed.

Then he began changing in front of An Yuanyao.

While doing so, he asked,

“Did the babies eat?”

“Just fed them.”

At that, An Yuanyao suddenly looked worried.

“Honey… what if I don’t have enough milk? These two eat like little monsters…”

“It’s fine. We’ll switch to formula if needed.”

“Yeah… I guess that’s all we can do.”

After hearing her husband’s response, An Yuanyao glanced down at her chest and sighed.

Looking at her children, her earlier worry faded and was replaced by a gentle smile.

Even though the babies didn’t have a regular sleep schedule and had kept her on her toes, still…

She reached out a finger to gently touch her daughter’s little hand.

So soft… it felt like a dream.

Liu Changqing, now dressed, watched his wife’s gesture. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but stopped himself.

He pursed his lips.

After a moment of hesitation, he changed the subject and asked,

“Wife, do you like this kind of life?”

“Hmm?”

An Yuanyao, who had been playing with the babies, paused and looked at him, confused.

“Why the sudden question?”

“Just curious… Are you happy with our life now?”

“Of course.”

After answering, she turned her eyes back to the kids beside her, eyes full of affection.

“Our home is full of warmth. You love me. The kids are sweet. And now we have these two… I never even dreamed of a life like this before.”

“Is that so…”

Staring at his wife and children lying on the bed, Liu Changqing muttered softly, as if to himself.

As time passed, it seemed like something clicked for him.

He opened his mouth again, this time with determination in his voice.

“Then I know what I have to do now…”

“Know what?”

“Nothing… I just want this life to continue.”

Looking at his wife, a smile spread across Liu Changqing’s face.

“You, me, Zhiyue, Xiazhi, Zhi’an, Chunnuan… the six of us, living a simple, peaceful life.”

Because of Li Wanran’s sudden appearance today, Liu Changqing had been feeling uneasy ever since he got home.

What he was worried about… was Ye Rong.

In his mind, that woman was nearly unhinged—no, scratch that, she was basically insane.

Why would someone like her even exist?

He couldn’t wrap his head around it.

Why would someone as outstanding as Li Zhengmao be hated so intensely by Ye Rong? Why was she so obsessed with defeating him?

It made no sense.

From the original host’s memories, everything about Li Zhengmao painted him as exceptional.

Though he came from nothing, he never bowed to fate. He built an empire from scratch. And yet… why did Ye Rong hate him so much?

He’d never heard any scandalous rumors about Li Zhengmao. His conduct was impeccable. Even his father-in-law, An Quancheng, once said Liu Changqing reminded him of Li Zhengmao—meaning the man was probably quite handsome in his youth too.

How could a man like that be hated so deeply by Ye Rong?

He’d been dead for years, and she still wanted to one-up him?

That’s insane.

Human thoughts are strange. Everyone has their own perspective, and while opinions may align at times, dive into the details and you’ll always find differences.

To someone like Liu Changqing, who thinks like a normal person, Ye Rong’s mindset was utterly incomprehensible.

If life were a game of poker, then Ye Rong had been dealt a hand of unbeatable cards—double jokers and four twos—yet she somehow played herself into a losing position.

In some twisted way, it was impressive.

Most people couldn’t screw things up the way she had.

People like her, who you could never predict…

To keep their current peace intact, Liu Changqing made a decision.

Only once she was no longer a threat could life truly return to normal.

Otherwise, she was like a ticking time bomb—no one knew when she might go off.

After leaving the bedroom, Liu Changqing walked into the kitchen.

He saw his mother-in-law cleaning the hen and asked,

“Mom, need a hand?”

“It’s fine… I got it.”

Su Yan didn’t even turn around as she replied, then added:

“Oh, right—today we’ll just do chicken soup. No need for fish soup too. Save that for tomorrow.”

“Sure, but… Mom, let me help with something. You don’t visit often. I can’t just let you do everything.”

“You’re funny. Back home, I always did this stuff. Even when your dad hired help, I hated it. I started martial arts when I was little, but stopped after getting married. If I don’t stay active, I’ll lose all my strength… If your dad ever pisses me off, I won’t even have the energy to…”

She trailed off mid-sentence, suddenly realizing she’d let something slip.

Though the water was still running over the hen, her hands stopped scrubbing.

The atmosphere instantly turned awkward.

After a few seconds, she slowly turned around and squinted at Liu Changqing.

“Did you just hear what I said?”

“Uh… my ear was itchy, I was picking at it… didn’t catch that last part.”

Liu Changqing froze for a second, then quickly raised his pinky to scratch his ear, wearing a stiff smile.

No wonder his father-in-law was scared of her…

Su Yan stared at him for a beat, then suddenly chuckled. She shook the water off the hen and said:

“You’re a clever one. Not like that bit—”

She paused mid-sentence again, then rephrased.

“Not like what Ye Rong said about you being dumb. You’ve got the smarts I had when I was young.”

“Hehehe…”

Liu Changqing let out an awkward laugh and didn’t dare say anything else. Su Yan didn’t press further either. She grabbed a knife from the counter and started chopping the hen.

Watching her, Liu Changqing thought for a moment and finally asked:

“By the way, Mom, you mentioned Ye Rong earlier. Do you know her well?”

“Not really. Barely spoke to her.”

Su Yan answered without hesitation.

“The families used to be close, but most of the visiting was just Yuanyao going over to her place. Li Wanran rarely came to ours. Your dad and Li Zhengmao were good friends, that’s why the kids played together back then.”

“I see… So why did Li Zhengmao only want one kid? Didn’t he want a son to carry on the family name?”

“Well, you need to be able to have one first.”

Su Yan chuckled as she said it.

No matter their age, women always loved a bit of gossip. She’d had no one to share this with before, and now that her son-in-law asked, she couldn’t help herself.

She stopped chopping and turned to Liu Changqing with a mischievous glint in her eye.

“You probably never heard this… When Ye Rong first got pregnant, she didn’t plan on keeping the baby. I don’t know what really went down between her and Li Zhengmao, but in the end, she gave birth. She never left the house during her pregnancy.”

“She stayed inside the whole time? That extreme?”

“Yup. My guess is she was too proud. Her family used to be rich, and even though they lost it all, old habits die hard. I bet she just didn’t want to go out looking pregnant. You wouldn’t believe how stuck-up she used to be—always had her nose in the air, hated everything, acting all delicate…”

“So… why couldn’t she have more kids?”

“I’m not exactly sure. Your dad said something happened after she gave birth. Her body wasn’t the same. She couldn’t have more.”

“She couldn’t…”

Seeing Liu Changqing’s furrowed brows, Su Yan realized she might’ve said too much. Now wasn’t the time for gossip—she had soup to make.

She quickly said:

“Anyway, why am I telling you all this? Go on now. I’ve got the kitchen covered.”

She shooed Liu Changqing out before he could process it all. The next thing he knew, the kitchen door had closed behind him.

Standing outside, Liu Changqing fell silent.

Piecing together what his mother-in-law had said with his own suspicions…

So Ye Rong lost her ability to have children, and that trauma is what drove her over the edge? That’s why she ended up the way she is?

The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

He started to feel anxious.

He had to act quickly.

Because who knew what Ye Rong might do next?