At that time, leather shoes were very expensive. He worked very hard and managed to get into a very good workplace unit. The salary at the unit was high and the benefits were good, and it was enough for him to support his family.
Everyone at the workplace was dressed smartly and all his colleagues in the department wore leather shoes during formal occasions. At that time, he had asked Old Madam Kong to buy them for him, but she said that there was not enough money to buy food for his brothers at home and rejected his request.
What happened was a traumatic experience for him. It was only after he became a soldier that he could finally afford to buy leather shoes. He treasured all his shoes, carefully wiped down each and every pair, stored them properly in boxes and could not even bear to wear them.
However, every time he was with Xia He or when he came to visit the Xia family, he made sure to wear leather shoes.
Kong Lu flew into a rage out of humiliation and said, “Yes! That’s right! I pretended to fall into the water to make you feel sorry for me! Why can’t I pretend to fall into the water? Do you really want me to drown!”
“Smack! Smack!”
Xia He raised her hand and slapped Kong Lu twice.
“You should sober up!” Xia He shouted.
Kong Lu’s eyes instantly reddened and his entire body trembled with anger. He clenched his fists and stared fixedly at Xia He. She had actually raised her hand and slapped him twice in front of so many people, and did not bother about how it made him look.
After slapping him, Xia He immediately regretted her action, but she did not want to back down. She glared back fiercely at Kong Lu, making him feel even more embarrassed.
Besides, Xia Zhe was still around and there was nothing he could say…
He turned around to leave the Xia residence, but Xia Zhe grabbed him tightly.
“Trying to leave? Every time, you would avoid the problem and let my sister bear the responsibility alone. Don’t even think about going anywhere today. Go upstairs and settle the issue with my sister before taking your sister with you!” Xia Zhe said as he looked at Kong Lu coldly.
“Let go of me!” Kong Lu roared back.
Xia Zhe maintained his grip on Kong Lu and refused to bulge. Exasperated, Kong Lu wanted to punch Xia Zhe, but Xia Zhe stopped him with one hand.
Xia Zhe forcefully dragged Kong Lu upstairs as if he did not hear Kong Lu cursing at him.
Kong Lu took the opportunity to try and take Xia Zhe down, but Xia Zhe saw through his plan and the two of them started fighting at the staircase.
“Xia Zhe! Enough is enough!” Kong Lu roared.
“How dare you still be so pompous!” Xia Zhe was so angry that his veins were bulging. Without another word, he dragged Kong Lu upstairs. Liu Fen came out of the kitchen and felt at a loss when she saw the scene in front of her.
“Oh! Stop fighting! Xia He, go and stop the fight!” Liu Fen hurriedly walked up to Xia He and Qiao Mei.
“Xia Zhe will be fine. Third Aunt-in-law, don’t worry,” Qiao Mei said with a smile.
“You! How can you still smile! Your husband is in a fight! And you, Xiao He! Why don’t you care about your husband!” Liu Fen stood there and pointed angrily.
It was not that Xia He did not care about Kong Lu, but what just happened made her unwilling to worry about this man who always lied to her.
“Kong Lu won’t die. Xiao Zhe knows his limits,” Xia He said calmly.
After saying that, the three of them looked towards the upper floor. Xia Zhe’s fists kept landing hard on Kong Lu’s body. There were numerous muffled thuds and Qiao Mei felt a sense of pain just looking at what was happening…
Her heart ached for Xia Zhe’s hands.
“This is still considered light? Still considered knowing his limits?” Liu Fen hesitated for a moment before asking Qiao Mei.
“Um… it seems alright. Third Aunt-in-law, if you’re worried, why don’t you go up and take a look?” Qiao Mei said with a smile.
When Liu Fen heard this, she silently turned her head away and looked up worriedly.
Although she wanted to go up and stop the fight, she was sure she would lose her life if she got hit accidentally! Seeing how merciless Xia Zhe’s punches were and how decisive Kong Lu was in retaliating, it was definitely a serious fight.
Xia Zhe threw Kong Lu into Xia He’s room and stood at the door, not entering the room.
Xia He sighed and walked upstairs expressionlessly, followed by Qiao Mei and Liu Fen.
Liu Fen had even forgotten how scared she was of Qiao Mei and chased after her to ask, “What exactly happened between Xiao He and Kong Lu? What’s the conflict? Do you know? Can you tell me about it? Why?”
Qiao Mei rolled her eyes and wanted to ignore Liu Fen. She did not know which question to answer first.
