My Bizarre Relatives 06

"Hmph." The old lady turned and walked away, and as she left, the others also shook their heads and dispersed.

No one helped Li Mei stop Fang Zhiyi—they never liked that little Fang girl anyway.

Eldest Aunt's family just stood there watching. Fang Yu stood with her hands on her hips, taunting Li Xue, who gritted her teeth and turned her head away.

And just like that, Fang Zhiyi spirited Fang Ruoruo away.

The medical check-up was real, but the key was to quickly bond with Fang Ruoruo.

That very night, Fang Ruoruo stayed in the apartment Fang Zhiyi had rented. He apologized, "Dad just got back from out of town, so this place isn’t great. Can you bear with it for now?"

Fang Ruoruo nodded, but soon asked, "Where’s Mom? I miss Mom."

Fang Zhiyi sighed—he knew this would happen. The child had always been with Li Mei, so of course she’d constantly think about her mother.

But this would take time. After coaxing the child to sleep, Fang Zhiyi turned to see Fang Yu smoking in the living room. She looked him up and down and sneered, "Well, well. Never thought you’d grow a spine. Hah."

Fang Zhiyi caught the sarcasm in her tone—his sister had always been like this. But for now, she was an ally. He smiled, "It’s for my daughter."

Fang Yu glanced toward the bedroom, stubbed out her cigarette, and said, "Go ahead and play the good dad. I’m leaving. Tsk, look how broke you are."

Fang Zhiyi didn’t argue, watching as she opened the door and stepped out.

Suddenly, Fang Yu paused. "Listen, I don’t care if you starve, but don’t let the kid go hungry. If you can’t feed her, send her to me."

Fang Zhiyi nodded repeatedly. "After all, she calls you Auntie."

The words made Fang Yu freeze mid-step. The sharpness on her face softened slightly, and she gave an awkward half-smile before shutting the door.

The next day, Fang Zhiyi didn’t send Fang Ruoruo to school. Instead, under Lawyer Yu’s guidance, he took her for a medical check-up. Thankfully, aside from mild malnutrition, she was healthy. After a brief chat, Lawyer Yu left to prepare the legal documents.

Fang Zhiyi then took Fang Ruoruo straight to the mall.

Her initial wariness soon melted into bright smiles.

Dad bought her a new backpack, a new dress, treated her to fried chicken and burgers, and even got her a complete set of fairy tales.

A warm sense of happiness blossomed inside her.

As Fang Zhiyi watched his delighted daughter, his phone rang.

It was his ex-wife. "Fang, bring my daughter back right now, or I’m calling the police!"

Fang Zhiyi scoffed. "Go ahead. Everything I’m doing follows legal procedure. I have every right to suspect you’ve been pocketing the child support I sent for Ruoruo! Expect a court summons."

There was a long pause on the other end. Li Mei clutched the phone in disbelief—this spineless man was actually suing her? Panic crept in. "Fang Zhiyi, you agreed to let her stay with me. We have an agreement!"

Fang Zhiyi chuckled. "A handwritten one, full of predatory clauses. Let me educate you—that’s legally invalid."

"You—"

"Save it. Like I said, wait for the summons." He hung up.

Li Mei was distraught. She paced around the house, tearfully apologizing to everyone until her relatives reluctantly forgave her. It wasn’t until Old Mother asked about her granddaughter’s whereabouts that Li Mei remembered Fang Ruoruo had been taken away.

But after that call, unease gnawed at her. Eldest Aunt cracked sunflower seeds nearby. "Him, sue you? On what grounds? Honestly, you’re such a fool—can’t even control a useless man. But then again, why bother with a little girl? She’s not worth much. You’d be better off dumping her on Fang and remarrying. Actually, that carpenter from the east end of the village isn’t bad."

Old Mother chimed in, "Listen to your sister. We’re family—we only want what’s best for you."

Li Mei kept her head down. In her heart, Eldest Aunt was always right, but she couldn’t stand the carpenter—he was over a decade older and missing an eye. As for her daughter… she couldn’t explain it, but she refused to let her ex-husband have anything, not even the child.

Seeing her silence, Li Xue rolled her eyes. "Still being picky? I’m only looking out for you."

Fang Zhiyi hadn’t expected the legal process here to be so different. Disputes like theirs were handled swiftly, and soon, he and Li Mei were summoned for mediation.

The outcome: Li Mei had to provide monthly records of how the child support was spent, and Fang Zhiyi had the right to audit them. Their original agreement wasn’t legally binding, but since Fang Zhiyi lacked stable income or property, he was granted two days a week with Fang Ruoruo—no interference allowed.

Once mediation ended, Li Mei glared at Fang Zhiyi. Fang Ruoruo dashed over and hugged her. "Mom!"

Li Mei looked down at her daughter’s new dress and bit her lip. What was Fang Zhiyi trying to prove? That he knew how to treat a child? That a new dress and backpack made him a good father? Disgusting! But with the mediator still present, she didn’t dare act out.

Li Mei took Fang Ruoruo back to her family home. Seeing the girl’s fresh new look, Li Xue sneered, "Oh? Done living the high life with your dad? Back so soon?"

Fang Ruoruo’s smile faded. She could feel the weight of invisible expectations pressing down. Quietly, she went to her room, carefully took off her new clothes, folded them neatly, and put them away. Back here, she had chores—she couldn’t afford to dirty them.

Dinner that night was lavish—at least by Fang Ruoruo’s standards—but she still sat in the corner.

"Fourth Sister, feeling generous today?" Li Xue remarked. "Win the lawsuit?"

Li Mei pressed her lips together and quietly explained the mediation result.

Li Xue’s eyes bulged. "What? He gets to check the accounts? What’s he implying? That we’d steal a child’s support money? How shameless!"

Elder Uncle’s expression darkened too.

Li Mei hurried to explain, "It’s fine, it’s fine. We’re family—no need to split hairs. I’ll keep the records, but we all eat together, right, Ruoruo?"

Fang Ruoruo, who had been eyeing the braised pork across the table, hesitated. But under her mother’s gaze, she nodded.

Eldest Aunt finally smiled. "Not ungrateful after all. I thought the little brat had turned into a white-eyed wolf after one day with her dad."

Fang Ruoruo earned her mother’s approval—a single piece of braised pork.