Sister, Please Have Mercy on Me - Chapter 4

I removed every worry from Wen Lichu’s life.

I sent someone to negotiate with her gambling-addicted father, paid off all his debts in one lump sum, and warned him never to harass the family again.

I had her mother transferred to a VIP ward and hired two caregivers to look after her in shifts around the clock.

I paid all of her younger brother’s high school tuition and living expenses so she would never have to worry about money again.

If someone still had to worry about money after becoming mine, then I had failed at my job.

Wen Lichu was timid. Perhaps growing up poor had taught her to move through life with constant caution.

She had never been allowed room for error. One wrong step, and there would be no one to catch her. She would only fall deeper into the abyss, into a more terrifying hell.

At first, she was painfully restrained. Even her footsteps around the apartment were light.

Whenever I visited, she waited for me at the door like a kitten waiting for its owner to come home. She watched my face for the slightest change and cooked for me. One look that was less than friendly could make her tremble.

I did not like that.

So I coaxed her slowly. I took her shopping for new clothes and shoes and told her this was her home.

She would see the price tags and suck in a breath.

“It’s too expensive… I don’t need clothes this expensive.”

“You’ve already spent so much on me, Sister. I can’t let you spend any more. Cheap clothes are fine. I want to save you some money.”

I found that astonishing.

No one had ever wanted to save money for me before.

Wen Lichu had no idea how rich I was.

I said nothing and merely raised a hand to signal the cashier.

My woman was not going to wear cheap clothes.

When we returned, Wen Lichu bustled around the kitchen to make dinner.

I had hired people to take care of her daily needs, but she disliked having them around. She said their presence made her uncomfortable.

I did not insist.

I lounged against the back of the sofa and watched her move around the kitchen.

For the first time, a home felt warm to me.

The apartment could almost be called modest compared with the place Xu Tingshen and I shared.

We lived in a five-story villa with a private theater, a game room, dressing rooms, a wine cellar, and every imaginable amenity. Twenty people were employed to serve us at all hours.

Yet the place had never felt alive. It was as cold as an icebox, nothing like a home.

Here, with Wen Lichu, I found that feeling again.

Her presence filled every corner—soft and warm enough to make my chest ache.

After dinner, we curled up on the sofa to watch a movie.

Wen Lichu teased me. “You’re watching so seriously.”

“I invested in it,” I replied casually.

To be precise, Xu Tingshen had invested in it. He had wanted to promote some young actress, so he threw money at the production until they gave the spectacularly untalented girl the second female lead.

Every cent Xu Tingshen spent during our marriage was half mine.

So it was perfectly accurate to call it my investment.

Halfway through the movie, Xu Tingshen called.

He sounded impatient. “That intern is throwing a tantrum. Go deal with her.”

“Mm.”

I hung up.

Wen Lichu looked at me timidly. “Do you have to leave now?”

I nodded.

Disappointment crossed her face. She lowered her eyes, her voice dwindling to a whisper. “You’ve never stayed here overnight.”

Xu Tingshen and I had never spent a night away from home. It was written plainly in our prenuptial agreement: unless one of us was traveling for work, we had to return home no matter how late it was.

Even Xu Tingshen, for whom cheating had become routine, had never broken that rule.

I did not intend to explain it to Wen Lichu.

But for the first time, I found Xu Tingshen’s messes intolerably annoying.