Mrs Fox Heinous Revenge: Can You Love A Villainess like Me?
Chapter 271: My Dearest Daughter

Chapter 271: My Dearest Daughter

AiLin’s breaths came in thin, shallow gasps as relief flooded her veins. The tension had drained from her so quickly that her head spun, and for a moment, she wavered on her feet. Before she could collapse, Li ZiChen’s arms were around her, steady and warm, holding her up. He pulled her close, cradling her against his chest, his touch grounding her.

Now that the storm had passed, her body betrayed her, her limbs weak, her energy slipping away as if exhaustion had finally caught up with her all at once.

"You need to rest," Li ZiChen murmured, his voice low, steady, yet laced with concern.

"But what about LiAi?" AiLin’s fingers curled into the fabric of his shirt, desperation in her touch. "I can’t rest. Not when she’s still sick. Not when—"

Li ZiChen silenced her with a soft press of his lips against her forehead, a gesture so gentle, yet firm with finality. "You can stay at the hospital. There’s a guest room where you can sleep, and I swear, the moment anything happens, no matter how small, I will tell you."

"But—"

"AiLin," he cut in, his hands tightening ever so slightly on her arms, his tone soft yet unyielding. "You’ve been holding yourself together for too long. If you collapse, who will LiAi turn to? Let me take care of this. Just this once."

Her body trembled, whether from exhaustion or the sheer weight of her emotions, she wasn’t sure, but the moment she gave a small nod, surrendering to his words, he guided her towards the resting room.

For a while, she couldn’t sleep. Her mind raced, her heart still tight with worry. But the exhaustion was merciless, pulling her under despite her best efforts.

After making sure that AiLin had fallen asleep, Li ZiChen stepped out, his expression immediately sharpening as he spotted Xiao MuChen waiting for him. The man had been leaning against the opposite wall, arms crossed, eyes unreadable, but the tension in the air between them was palpable. A part of him was grateful to Xiao MuChen but the rest? Still angered by how he had chosen the sharpest words to cleave AiLin’s mental health, ruining her even further.

Li ZiChen sighed, shutting the door with a quiet click. He only turned toward him fully after making sure that the door behind him was locked tight. "Something you want to say?"

Xiao MuChen’s gaze didn’t waver. "AiLin suspects LiAi could be your daughter." He let those words sink in, before his voice dropped and his eyes narrowed, "What about you?"

Li ZiChen’s eyes raised his furrowed eyebrows. "I don’t know what you’re trying to imply."

"Don’t lie to me, Li ZiChen." Xiao MuChen took a slow step forward, his expression darkening. He could feel that trusting AiLin was never a mistake but Li ZiChen? This man was an enigma. His expression was hard to read and it was even more difficult to pinpoint his true intentions. "You know it. I know it." His voice was edged with something dangerously close to accusation. "You’re LiAi’s father, aren’t you?"

Li ZiChen’s breath stilled for a fraction of a second. His body tensed, the weight of the accusation pressing against him. But then, he let out a low sigh, turning into an annoyed glare.

"You’re mistaken, MuChen," he said, voice strained. "I wanted LiAi to be my daughter, but she’s not."

Xiao MuChen scoffed, his disbelief sharp. "Oh, so now you’re playing innocent? Don’t insult my intelligence." His hands curled into fists. "You are her father. Stop pretending otherwise! I don’t know why but it seems AiLin doesn’t really think that you’re the father either. She told me that she was assaulted... don’t tell me you-"

"Don’t say nonsense Xiao MuChen. Paying for your words won’t be light," and at that, Xiao MuChen flinched. "The one AiLin was with that night wasn’t me," Li ZiChen snapped, his patience finally breaking, his voice rough with barely contained frustration. "It was Bai HaiZe!"

Silence crashed between them, but it was short lived.

Xiao MuChen’s expression twisted, his brows furrowing. Confusion was clear on the two men’s face beside their fury. Xiao MuChen was truly confused, his eyes questioning what he had heard. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Li ZiChen’s jaw clenched, the storm inside him barely contained. He didn’t want to repeat the story over and over again as it felt no different than rubbing salt over his wounds, "The night AiLin got pregnant, she was locked in that room with Bai HaiZe. That bastard. He was always good at acting like a nice kind guy, pretending to be the perfect one. But he’s just as dirty as the rest of us. I know he’s behind this, I just need evidence before I can tell AiLin the truth." His fingers dug into his hair, his frustration boiling over. "I liked her, MuChen. I wanted to be the one beside her. But she doesn’t even know that." His voice dropped, bitter and raw. "She never knew. And just because I love her doesn’t mean that I would bend the heaven’s will and force myself to her. I would rather kill myself than forcing my body to her."

Xiao MuChen exhaled sharply, shaking his head. "No... no. No way. That’s not possible." His voice was lower now, but filled with something different than anger or accusation. It was instead closer to disbelief and alarm. "Li ZiChen, stop lying to yourself. You are her father. The DNA test proves it!"

The world came to a standstill.

Li ZiChen froze, his entire body locking in place. His breath hitched, just slightly, barely perceptible, but it was there. His gaze snapped to Xiao MuChen’s, his pupils dilating just a fraction, a flicker of something unreadable flashing in his eyes.

Then, just as quickly, his expression turned unreadable, his lips parting slightly as if to speak, but no words came.

For the first time in a long time, Li ZiChen had nothing to say.

Only after a moment that he could pull himself together, asking in a broken voice, "What? What did you say?"

"DNA Test," Xiao MuChen squeezed his arms as he bite down his teeth. "When my brother and sister in law was still alive, I was curious of LiAi’s birth parents. I wanted to see for myself what kind of monster would have abandoned their own daughter when she is just so lovable."

"But how do you know it was me?" He asked, shaking his head in confusion.

He had never slept with AiLin until they met again.

He had never. AiLin doesn’t seem to remember that ever happening and he didn’t either. So it wouldn’t make sense that they had created a daughter without their own knowledge.

"I didn’t know-," Xiao MuChen felt nervous like he was going to uncover the world’s truth. He rubbed his arms, panic on his face as he muttered, "I saw your name written on the list..." he lied as he had truthfully heard about Li ZiChen being the possible father from Su MengYan but Su MengYan wouldn’t want his name to be shared to Li ZiChen. But it’s fine, when he looked at Li ZiChen, he seemed too distraught and shocked to comprehend this lie.

He continued, "I couldn’t get AiLin’s hair because she was in prison but I could get yours. So when I did I tested it."

Li ZiChen couldn’t even begin to ask how Xiao MuChen had managed to get a sample of his DNA. But then again, he wasn’t the type to guard every strand of his hair, nor had he ever been particularly careful about such things. It must have happened while he was abroad, back when he had been too focused on honing his strength, too obsessed with making himself powerful enough to return to AiLin’s side and protect her.

During his time away, security had been looser. There were fewer threats, fewer enemies willing to take the risk of eliminating him without leaving a trace. Perhaps that was when it had happened.

Li ZiChen pressed a hand against his forehead, his fingers trembling slightly as he tried to make sense of it all. But somehow... deep down, something within him already knew.

It all made sense now. That feeling he had felt when seeing LiAi for the first time. That strange, instinctual emotion he always had when he looked at LiAi, it was the same familiarity he felt when he looked at his own blood relatives, that unspoken bond that could never be fabricated.

But he never embark on the idea as the possibility because it should have been impossible. He would never forget if he had a child with AiLin. And yet, as the truth settled over him, as the undeniable reality sank into his bones, he couldn’t deny how right it felt.

He covered his mouth, realizing that he might have found the last puzzle to the past, the one he had always felt amiss.

Then Bai HaiZe... does he know of this?

"If you aren’t sure," Xiao MuChen looked at him, "You can test the DNA again... that’s all I wanted to confirm," he then bowed before turning around, running away from the place as he also needed time to understood everything.

Li ZiChen left alone, could only press his back to the cold wall, covering his face wit his hands as he didn’t know what he should felt.

Happy. Of course he was. But also sad. Sorrowful, guilty, and regretful.

Every mix of emotions stirred inside him as he realized that he had a daughter, a daughter that he had never known to exists.