Divorce Application - Chapter 31

Chapter 31: The Green Tea

The plane Liu Sinan was on landed at 8 p.m. She had asked housekeeper Wang, and Li Jinping was still at work.

The car went straight to the villa on the mountainside. She sat in the passenger seat as the car sped along. When they reached the bottom of the mountain, Liu Sinan, with a gloomy expression, rolled down the window. The gate guard didn’t even look twice and let them through.

The car stopped at the courtyard gate. The outer gate of the villa was a three-meter-high iron fence with spikes on top. There was a device at the entrance to read vehicle information. All of Liu Sinan’s cars were in the garage. The one she was driving now was Wu Haoxue’s from last time.

The information wasn’t recognized. Liu Sinan unbuckled her seatbelt, got out of the car, and scanned her face. With a “ding,” the gate opened.

As she ran into the courtyard, Liu Sinan’s anger had subsided a lot. She told herself that she wasn’t here to cause trouble. Her only goal was to take Salt out of here.

“Salt!” Liu Sinan ran to the first floor and saw Salt lying on the second-floor French window. She called out to the dog directly. “Come down!”

Salt couldn’t see Liu Sinan, but her sharp ears heard her voice. She immediately sat up, wagging her tail happily and looking around.

“Here!” Liu Sinan walked to the flowerbed on the first floor and shouted with her head up. “Salt!”

Salt finally saw her. She excitedly spun around in a circle and ran out without hesitation.

Liu Sinan waited on the first floor for thirty seconds. First, she heard a happy “woof,” and then a golden retriever, half her height, rushed into her sight, running so fast that she didn’t even brake and knocked her down into the flowerbed.

Salt must have missed her terribly. She burrowed her head into Liu Sinan’s arms.

“Ouch, you’ve lost so much weight, but you’re not any lighter.” Liu Sinan was so happy that tears came to her eyes. She rubbed Salt’s face and touched her ears. Salt huffed and burrowed into her arms, making a sound that was full of grievances.

“Okay, okay, you big baby. I’m back. I’m taking you home.” Liu Sinan tried several times and finally stood up from the flowerbed.

The commotion here alarmed a lot of people. Housekeeper Wang, wearing slippers, chased after them. She was stunned when she saw Liu Sinan.

“Ms. Liu, why are you back?” Housekeeper Wang said with a cry. “And you’re all dirty!”

She said this as if she wanted Liu Sinan to go inside and change into clean clothes, but Liu Sinan interrupted her. “I’m here to take Salt away.”

Housekeeper Wang was stunned again. It took her several seconds to recover. “Ah? This, it’s not impossible. But it would be better to get madam’s permission to take Salt…”

Madam? Li Jinping?

Liu Sinan scoffed. She picked Salt up, turned, and walked out.

Get Li Jinping’s permission?

Who is Li Jinping?

This was her dog that she had raised. She had trusted Li Jinping to leave the dog with her, and as a result, Salt had become the way she looked in the picture.

She heard that Li Jinping was still working overtime today. Indeed, she managed such a large company that she had no mind to care for a dog’s well-being. Plus, with the existence of Lin Xia in this villa, it would be inhumane for Liu Sinan to leave Salt here.

Housekeeper Wang was confused by her actions and didn’t react in time to stop her. By the time she reacted, someone had already blocked Liu Sinan’s way.

Lin Xia was followed by several servants. She stood in front of Liu Sinan and frowned. “Madam isn’t back yet. You can’t take Salt without madam’s permission.”

Before Liu Sinan could say anything, Salt, who was in her arms, jumped down and bared her teeth at Lin Xia, hissing at her.

Liu Sinan squatted down and patted Salt’s head. “No, I’m not leaving you. Don’t be angry.”

Then she looked up at Lin Xia and said calmly, “Who are you?”

Lin Xia’s voice was on the sweeter side, and she was very cute. Even with her face tense, she wasn’t intimidating. She stood in front of Liu Sinan, and even though she was the one blocking the way, she looked delicate and weak, as if she was the one being bullied.

Lin Xia frowned and said seriously, “I’m madam’s personal doctor. Madam asked me to help take care of Salt. I have to ensure her safety and can’t let you take her away.”

Madam? Liu Sinan had ignored the title before, but now that she heard it, it sounded incredibly harsh.

Li Jinping let you live in the villa, let you boss the servants around, and let you take care of the dog. She was just short of letting you take over the house, right?

But so what? Liu Sinan hadn’t even planned to see her, but now Lin Xia was standing in her way, not letting her take Salt.

Letting Salt get a cold, and now stopping her from taking Salt away. With the new and old grievances combined, Liu Sinan was so angry she laughed.

Liu Sinan stood up and took a few steps forward. She was a head taller than Lin Xia. She looked down at her and said calmly, “Then do you know why Li Jinping agreed to take care of Salt?”

Lin Xia subconsciously took a step back, her eyes looking at Liu Sinan with an unpleasant expression.

Salt followed Liu Sinan forward. If Liu Sinan hadn’t held her back, she probably would have pounced.

Liu Sinan patted the back of Salt’s neck as she spoke. “Because Salt is my dog. For a while after the divorce, I was very depressed and felt like I couldn’t take care of her, so I asked Li Jinping to help me.”

When she said this, Liu Sinan’s expressionless face suddenly showed a slightly sarcastic smile, which then turned into a faint look of contempt. “Even after the divorce, she still had to take care of my dog.”

“You didn’t watch her carefully yesterday and let her get a cold. Didn’t Li Jinping scold you?”

Liu Sinan said the last sentence slowly, not at all worried about whether Li Jinping had actually scolded her.

Salt was raised under the care of housekeeper Wang. Liu Sinan often traveled for work, and housekeeper Wang took great care of Salt, making her look shiny and healthy. She must have had a soft spot for her.

If it weren’t for that, how could Wu Haoxue have so easily gotten the picture of Salt on an IV drip?

Li Jinping definitely knew about Salt’s illness, whether Lin Xia told her or housekeeper Wang revealed it.

As for whether Li Jinping had scolded anyone, Liu Sinan thought probably not.

After all, Li Jinping rarely got angry easily. That kind of stubborn and traditional restraint was almost in her bones. It was less about manners and more about a deeply ingrained habit.

Lin Xia wouldn’t have done anything to make Li Jinping scold her.

But just because Li Jinping didn’t scold people, it didn’t mean she was a pushover. Calmness and amiability were just her attitudes, not her methods.

Seeing the sudden change in Lin Xia’s expression, Liu Sinan didn’t even have to guess. Li Jinping must have said something unpleasant, maybe just a cold remark or a look, which was enough to make her feel like she had a fishbone stuck in her throat.

Liu Sinan smiled faintly. “Now I’m the one who wants to take her away. Even if Li Jinping was here, she couldn’t stop me. As for you… a private doctor sent to take care of Salt? Even less so.”

This kind of nonchalant contempt was more humiliating than a slap in the face.

Liu Sinan’s series of attacks made it impossible for Lin Xia to maintain her calm demeanor. Her eyes darkened, and she ordered the people behind her, but her eyes were fixed on Liu Sinan. “Go get the dog. Madam instructed me to take good care of Salt. You know what to do.”

The people Lin Xia brought were very particular. Liu Sinan glanced at them. There were a few new faces, probably new servants she had hired after the divorce.

There were also a few familiar faces. The moment they made eye contact with Liu Sinan, they quickly looked away and lowered their heads.

The new faces, hearing Lin Xia’s words, wanted to step forward, but they were stopped by the familiar faces.

The situation was at a stalemate.

Housekeeper Wang had sighed many times in the back. She finally stepped forward and said to Liu Sinan, “Ms. Liu, it’s difficult for us servants too. Why don’t you call madam and tell her? We definitely won’t stop you.”

After she said that, she looked at Lin Xia and the people behind her. “Ms. Liu is an honored guest. What are you all standing there for? Go do whatever you were doing.”

The servants immediately scattered.

Liu Sinan took a breath but hadn’t let it out yet when she saw an elegant little shadow walking from under the tree roots.

“Mi Fan,” Liu Sinan’s eyes lit up. She squatted down and clapped her hands. “Come here!”

Mi Fan glanced at her arrogantly, held her tail high, and walked over slowly.

Salt suddenly pounced and pinned Mi Fan to the ground, rubbing her big head against Mi Fan’s head, wanting to play with her.

Mi Fan was clearly disgusted with the dog’s head in her arms. She slapped Salt’s face and, while Salt was shaking her head, let out a meow and jumped out.

Liu Sinan picked up Mi Fan, weighed her, stroked her fur a few times, and then put her down. She smiled at housekeeper Wang. “Mi Fan is heavier.”

“She is, isn’t she? She stays in front of the monitor all day, meowing at the camera. Madam has called several times, telling us to take her away, complaining that Mi Fan is too noisy.” Because Li Jinping had raised cats since she was a child, housekeeper Wang talked about Mi Fan as if she was her own child, and once she started talking, she couldn’t stop.

Seeing Salt jumping around, wanting to play with Mi Fan, Liu Sinan suddenly felt a little teary-eyed.

These two had grown up together. It looked like Mi Fan was always hitting Salt, but anyone who raised a cat knew that Mi Fan really liked Salt. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have come out or come over to them.

Liu Sinan felt so sorry for Salt, that her divorce had to separate her from her little friend.

But on second thought, it wasn’t that she hadn’t left Salt behind. It was Li Jinping who didn’t take good care of her. If Mi Fan wanted to seek revenge, she should go and scratch Li Jinping.

“Auntie Wang, just tell Li Jinping whatever you want. If she wants to cause trouble, tell her to come find me directly,” Liu Sinan said, then paused and retracted her words. “Forget it. I don’t want to contact her. If she wants Salt back, tell her to contact my lawyer.”

After she said that, Liu Sinan gave Joey a look. Joey drifted the car over and stopped in front of her.

Liu Sinan patted the car door, let Salt get in first, and then got in herself.

Liu Sinan’s interaction with Mi Fan and housekeeper Wang’s chattering, as if no one else was there, completely left Lin Xia on the side.

No one noticed that Lin Xia’s expression grew gloomier. Finally, her expression darkened, and she rushed forward.

Lin Xia rushed a few steps and reached out her hand before the door closed. Liu Sinan had already turned her head to look elsewhere. It was too late when she saw her rushing over from the corner of her eye.

There was a muffled “squeak,” and the car door was pushed open by something at the moment it was closing.

At the same time, Lin Xia let out a scream and squatted on the ground, clutching her fingers in pain.

The sudden turn of events stunned everyone for a second. Liu Sinan was the first to react and said to housekeeper Wang, “Call 911 quickly.”

Joey turned off the car and got out of the driver’s seat. It was already night. There were two streetlights at the gate, and the lighting conditions were not good. But from the rearview mirror, he could clearly see that Lin Xia had rushed in during the last few seconds before the door closed.

At that time, the gap in the door was only twenty centimeters. Liu Sinan had already let go and turned her head.

By inertia, the car door would close on its own, following the trajectory Liu Sinan had used to close it.

At this point, if she reached her hand in, she wouldn’t have time to stop the door and would get her hand caught in it.

Liu Sinan got out of the car, frowned at her for a long time, and then turned to Joey. “What happened just now? Did you see clearly?”

Lin Xia was crying with her hand clutched. There was a clear red mark on the back of her hand that was already swelling and splitting, looking shocking.

Joey whispered what he had seen. He was puzzled. “She clearly saw the door was about to close, but she still put her hand in. Why?”

Liu Sinan looked down at Lin Xia, who was crying like a delicate flower. At this moment, she was shouting that she wanted to call Li Jinping.

Liu Sinan’s heart was cold, but she said, “She’s probably stupid. She wanted to stop the dog.”

Naturally, Joey stood on Liu’s side.

As they were talking, housekeeper Wang had already made a call, not to an ambulance, but to the Li family’s private doctor. She squatted down to comfort Lin Xia, who was sobbing uncontrollably. “Ms. Lin Xia… Dr. Lin, you are a doctor too. We don’t know if anything is broken yet, so don’t move your fingers. I have already informed madam, and she is on her way back. She will be here very soon.”

Li Jinping is coming back?

Liu Sinan immediately wanted to leave.

Lin Xia probably saw her intention. She looked up, her face covered in tears, and she accused her with a tearful voice. “You can’t leave!”

I can’t leave and stay here to watch you act?

Liu Sinan didn’t say anything, but she sneered. “Okay, I won’t leave.” It wasn’t that she was afraid of Lin Xia. If Liu Sinan wanted to leave now, probably not many people would stop her.

Liu Sinan didn’t want to leave now mainly because she had chosen to take the dog when Li Jinping was not around, which could be understood as her not wanting to meet Li Jinping. But to take the dog and then “hurt” someone and leave would probably make Li Jinping think she was immature and being a brat again.

Although she didn’t care much about what Li Jinping thought anymore, because of the rift between them all these years, Liu Sinan didn’t want to hear Li Jinping say “why are you being so difficult again” ever again, even after they were divorced.

Twenty minutes passed. Housekeeper Wang didn’t call for an ambulance. She called the Li family’s private doctor.

The private doctor was probably too old to come, so he sent his daughter, who was also a doctor, to come first.

Liu Sinan had met this doctor before. She was the one who had treated her wrist fracture.

This doctor was obviously much more professional. She didn’t say anything when she arrived. She squatted down and started treating the wound. After pressing it a few times, she confirmed that there was no crepitus, no fracture, and after a simple bandaging, she suggested, “Go to the hospital for an X-ray and a more detailed look at the injury.”

Lin Xia refused to go, insisting on waiting for Li Jinping to come back.

The doctor stepped back a few steps and frowned at housekeeper Wang. “Does she think I’m not professional? Should I have my dad come instead?”

Housekeeper Wang whispered, “Let’s wait here. Madam will be back soon.”

The doctor nodded nonchalantly, put her hands in her pockets, and walked up to Liu Sinan. She glanced at her wrist. “How is it healing?”

Liu Sinan said it still hurt. “It’s healing slowly, but it doesn’t affect my work.”

“I didn’t ask if it affects your work,” the doctor rolled her eyes. “Try not to move your wrist, or even if the bone heals, the tendons will be left with problems and it won’t be completely healed for three to five years.”

Liu Sinan nodded obediently. “Okay.”

The doctor raised her chin and turned her head, showing her satisfaction with the patient’s cooperation.

Another half an hour passed. Li Jinping finally came home. In the hour, Lin Xia’s hand had swollen to a horrific state.

“What happened?” After Li Jinping got out of the car, her gaze swept over Liu Sinan, faltered slightly, and finally landed on Lin Xia’s hand. She frowned and said, “Why haven’t you gone to the hospital yet?”

Lin Xia cried and looked up. “Madam, my hand is fine, but Salt is about to be taken away. Because madam said to take good care of Salt, I feel very guilty that she accidentally caught a cold. Now Ms. Liu wants to take Salt away, and I don’t dare to make the decision.”

The frown on Li Jinping’s face deepened. Her voice also lowered, with a hint of persuasion. “Don’t talk about that yet. Your hand looks very serious. You need to go to the hospital immediately.”

The doctor also nodded. “Ms. Lin, Ms. Li is back. Can you follow me to the hospital now? Even though it doesn’t feel like a fracture, we still need to do a detailed checkup.”

Li Jinping was wearing a carnelian red cashmere coat. She took off her coat and draped it over Lin Xia. She nodded to the doctor. “That’s right. Take her for a detailed checkup now.”

Lin Xia lowered her head when Li Jinping bent over to drape the coat over her. After Li Jinping stood up, she grabbed her pants leg and said in a small, wronged voice, “Madam, aren’t you going to ask how my hand got hurt?”