The Baby I Lost Is Actually with My Ex-Husband!
Chapter 232 - Chapter 232 Chapter 232 Getting Closer to the Truth

Chapter 232: Chapter 232: Getting Closer to the Truth Chapter 232: Chapter 232: Getting Closer to the Truth Lin Qi nestled in his arms, her face buried in his chest, thus the sun didn’t shine directly into her eyes.

Huo Tingdong held her like that and fell back asleep. When he woke up, his arms were empty; Lin Qi had already gotten up. After washing up, she saw he was awake and said, “Time to get up.”

Huo Tingdong turned over and sat up. Lin Qi had already prepared the toiletries for him.

He turned on the faucet, filled a cup with water to rinse his mouth, and noticed some issue with the water quality here.

He didn’t want to rinse his mouth with such dirty water.

Lin Qi knew his obsession with cleanliness was acting up again, so she went to buy mouthwash and bottled water and came back: “Here, use the mouthwash.”

She hadn’t expected to find mouthwash in the supermarket of a small town.

After Huo Tingdong finished washing up, they went out to have breakfast together.

Exiting the small hostel, they were greeted by the bustling life of the town.

Lacking the hustle and coldness of the city, the streets and alleys of the town were filled with a sense of human warmth.

Steamed buns, deep-fried dough sticks, soy milk, filled buns, pancakes…

Lin Qi thought Huo Tingdong certainly wouldn’t be used to such down-to-earth breakfasts, but to her surprise, he adapted well and wasn’t picky at all.

It’s good that he’s not picky.

Watching Huo Tingdong take a bite of a pancake, Lin Qi asked, “Is the pancake tasty?”

Huo Tingdong replied, “It’s alright.”

Food that he could eat was actually not so particular for him, as long as it looked hygienic, which might be a “common issue” among men; if they could eat something, it was usually considered good enough.

Of course, there’s a difference between edible and delicious.

Huo Tingdong asked, “Before, was it always Momo who cooked?”

Lin Qi felt guilty for a second: “I would cook occasionally too.”

But Huo Tingdong gave her a skeptical look: “Momo said what you cook is very unpalatable.”

Lin Qi was annoyed: “He said that?”

Why is he discussing even this kind of thing with Huo Tingdong?

Huo Tingdong said, “He mentioned that his cooking skills were forced out by you.”

Lin Qi said, “Fine, I got it, shut up.”

Her face flushed and she looked down, biting a pancake resentfully, feeling somewhat unwilling to accept this.

It looked like she needed to seriously work on her cooking skills at some point.

Watching Momo cook seemed simple, and she felt like she had learned it, but when it was her turn, she’d be all thumbs.

Initially, she was often splashed with hot oil, or she would frequently overcook the meat to the point of charring it. Momo would either complain that she added too much soy sauce or too much water.

Huo Tingdong said, “Cooking is something you don’t need to force if you have no talent for it.”

Lin Qi: “…I can’t tell if you’re trying to comfort me or mock me.”

Huo Tingdong said, “I’m just advising you to take it easy.”

Lin Qi: “…”

After breakfast, the two of them got in the car. Huo Tingdong had booked a teahouse where he arranged to meet with that man.

…

Half an hour later.

The man hurried over.

For some reason, he seemed stunned upon seeing Lin Qi, but he didn’t show it too obviously.

Lin Qi learned from Huo Tingdong that this man’s surname was “Mo,” named Mo Tiesheng.

Once Mo Tiesheng arrived, he seemed a bit uneasy upon seeing Huo Tingdong. Sitting opposite Huo Tingdong and Lin Qi, Lin Qi scrutinized his face and began to have doubts.

Is he Lili’s father?

Mo Tiesheng had a somewhat dodgy look, with no resemblance to Lili whatsoever.

Lin Qi asked, “Are you Lili’s dad?”

Mo Tiesheng nodded his head.

Lin Qi felt not a hint of fondness for this man, after all, he had irresponsibly abandoned both Lili and her mother.

Mo Tiesheng looked at Huo Tingdong, “You are Huo Tingdong, right?”

Huo Tingdong replied, “Yes.”

Mo Tiesheng tentatively asked, “You said… as long as I agree to meet with you, you’re willing to give me $10,000…”

His words carried a reminder.

Huo Tingdong replied, “Rest assured, before you leave, I will give you every penny of that money.”

Mo Tiesheng asked, “In cash?”

Lin Qi said, “I have brought cash.”

She saw that the man looked uneasy, as if he wouldn’t be reassured without seeing real money, so she took an envelope packed with $10,000 in cash from her bag and placed it beside her.

Seeing the money, the man seemed much relieved; he had been worried on the way here that Huo Tingdong might be a swindler.

Huo Tingdong asked, “Moli, she’s your daughter, right?”

Mo Tiesheng nodded, “Suppose so!”

He was evasive and hesitant.

Huo Tingdong said, “I’ll ask questions, and you answer them. I want to hear the truth. Listen well, what I’m asking now is, is she your biological daughter?”

Mo Tiesheng could feel the commanding presence of the man before him and didn’t dare to speak carelessly, so he revealed the truth, “Actually, she’s not my own child.”

At this point, he seemed rather shifty.

Huo Tingdong asked, “She isn’t your own child?”

Mo Tiesheng said, “I don’t want to deceive you, she was adopted by me and her mom. At that time… her mom was found to be infertile, so we decided to adopt a child. This child was from the neighboring county, and she looked so smart and spirited that I thought of bringing her back to raise and take care of us when we’re old. Later, her mom and I didn’t make it, so the child went with her.”

Lin Qi frowned, “Was it Lili’s mom who couldn’t have children, or was it you?”

Her question was very direct.

The man’s face turned green immediately.

No man in this world wants to admit to having fertility issues, so he turned red with anger and retorted loudly, “I’m fine! I can have children. It’s her mom’s issue!”

With that said, Lin Qi understood.

She quickly sorted through the story.

This man got together with Lili’s mom, and because he had fertility problems, the woman decided to adopt a girl with him. Now that this man had fallen in love with someone else, he abandoned both mother and daughter and remarried.

Generally speaking, in a couple, if the man has issues, the woman might choose to adopt a child, but if the woman has issues, the man will definitely leave.

Lin Qi then asked, “Do you have contact information for Lili’s biological mother?”

Mo Tiesheng said, “I don’t, but I know where her shop is.” He paused, then suddenly added, “She somewhat resembles you in her eyes and brows!”

Lin Qi was momentarily dazed, then hurriedly responded, “Can you take me there?”

Mo Tiesheng shook his head, “No! What if she wants to take the child back? I was afraid she would regret it, so I didn’t give her contact information.”

Lin Qi said, “A mother wanting to see her daughter is natural, isn’t it? Moreover, since you don’t want her anymore and aren’t raising her, why should you deny her the chance to take back her child?”

Mo Tiesheng replied, “But the child isn’t with me now!” He seemed guilty by the look of it.

Lin Qi said, “If she wants the child, I will handle it. You just need to take us there!”