I Became the Rich Family’s Stepfather and Couldn’t Stop Laughing - Chapter 4

Xi Ling felt a rush of blood to his head. Lost among the sexy silhouettes of one top-tier supercar after another, he couldn’t help but want to take them all for a test drive immediately.

However, supercars were obviously not suitable for dragging his family along to the police station. Eventually, Xi Ling followed the driver to a low-key, dignified, pure black Cullinan.

Naturally, this was also a luxury car with a price tag exceeding his future annual salary.

But Xi Ling’s appetite had been whetted by the string of top-tier supercars. Seeing the boxy Cullinan, he couldn’t help but feel it was slightly underwhelming. He sighed inwardly: it really is hard to go from luxury back to frugality.

He had only looked around briefly, yet his mindset had undergone such a earth-shattering change.

When Xi Ling’s butt settled into the comfortable leather seat, he was instantly thrilled; he clearly felt the steadiness, comfort, and practicality that were entirely different from the flashy supercars.

Xi Ling’s mindset shifted slightly again. Since they were all his “precious treasures,” why compare them at all?

Everything has its strengths and weaknesses; as a wealthy adult, one should have it all!

Thinking of this, his gaze toward the back of the cub’s head beside him grew even more intense, and his determination to raise the cub grew even firmer.

Although Xi Ling wasn’t keen on human cubs, he believed he was a hundred times better than Nanny Tian. Not to mention the Huo family’s main residence if they had cared about this child in the slightest, they wouldn’t have let him be tormented by Nanny Tian like this.

However, after sitting in the car with his feet off the ground, his intelligence regained its high ground. Xi Ling acutely grasped an additional point from the “ATM Breakdown Incident.”

This cub didn’t just hold grudges and seek revenge; he held them very carefully. He was just waiting to grow up to pay the original owner back, one by one.

And he had absolutely no experience raising a cub. If he offended the child inadvertently… “The villain is risky; be cautious when raising a cub…”

Before Xi Ling could think deeply, the driver reminded him: “Madam, a car has been following us the whole way.”

Fu Hao had mentioned the paparazzi lurking around before he hung up the phone. Xi Ling glanced back indifferently; anyway, he didn’t intend to return to the entertainment industry, so let the two paparazzi follow if they wanted.

It wasn’t until they arrived that they discovered it wasn’t just “a couple of cats or dogs.” The entire police station was packed to the brim with reporters and paparazzi. He would have believed it if someone said all the city’s media had been mobilized.

Xi Ling hadn’t been in the entertainment industry before, and without the original owner’s memories, he couldn’t imagine how high the heat would be after the original owner “crashed.”

He also hadn’t expected that while he was pondering the problem of raising the cub, three more trending search terms with his name had popped up:

#XiLingTakenAwayByPolice# [Explosive]

#XiLingArrestedForChildAbuse# [Explosive]

#XiLingQuitsRecording#

…

The “Xi Ling” crash incident originally started with an anonymous tip from someone in the upper circles, claiming that Xi Ling’s persona as a pampered wealthy wife was fake.

The informant provided two points: first, “Xi Ling” had never stepped foot into the Huo family manor; second, “Xi Ling” had been married for two years, yet the husband had an illegitimate child who was already three years old. The true state of his “wealthy marriage” was evident.

“Xi Ling” had immediately tried to make up for it in various ways. To prove family harmony, he had even signed up for a parenting show intending to clear his name. But before filming officially began, the “phone blocked” incident popped up.

Now, with his wealthy in-laws, husband, and stepson all three generations crashing simultaneously, “Xi Ling’s” persona as a pampered wealthy wife had instantly flipped into that of a “wealthy family’s most hated person.”

Although “Xi Ling” had been unpopular in the entertainment industry, the baseline heat he got from the title of “wealthy male spouse” was still very high. Showing off his affection like a madman only to get slapped in the face was exactly what the internet trolls loved to see. One could even say that for the year-end period, netizen anticipation for the aftermath of Xi Ling’s crash was second only to the Spring Festival holiday.

Entertainment media naturally moved like sharks to blood. They couldn’t get into the manor because of the tight security, so they blocked the gate waiting for Xi Ling to come out. Everyone knew he was supposed to go to the studio today to shoot the official photos for the parenting show.

They had waited all morning without seeing Xi Ling, and everyone thought this guy had no face to see anyone and had simply quit the parenting show, but they accidentally caught a police car.

As the police negotiated with the gatekeeper to open the windows, the paparazzi swarmed up to ask the reason for the police report child abuse. They were instantly as excited as vultures seeing blood.

Based on Xi Ling’s current “crash” status, the media at the scene soon reached a consensus Got it! This guy must have had nowhere to vent his anger and took it out on his three-year-old stepson!

When the police car drove away from the Huo manor, the trending search for Xi Ling’s arrest exploded. Countless media outlets drove to the hospital, only to find that the person in the car was neither Xi Ling nor the abused child, but the nanny who had suffered a heart attack.

But the news had already exploded into the sky, and there was no way to retrieve spilled water. Besides, child abuse was truly something that Xi Ling was capable of doing. The paparazzi who released the news added the word “suspected” to the search term and continued to lurk at the police station entrance. As soon as they saw Xi Ling get out of the car, they deleted the “suspected.”

Xi Ling’s side couldn’t find a parking spot near the police station, so the driver had to drop them off and drive further away to find one.

Before the car had even stopped, it was swarmed by a sea of reporters. Countless people pounded on the car windows. Huo Xingmian, who had slept muddledly the whole way, was woken up by the noise. With an expression of indifference, he buried his face in the nanny’s arms and shook violently, habitually displaying the same terrified demeanor he had shown in front of Nanny Tian.

Huo Xingmian didn’t know what kind of insanity his stepfather was having acting like he was being very good to him, but it could never be real.

Xi Ling hadn’t even stood firm before he was poked in the face by countless long guns and short cannons (cameras and microphones).

“Are you abusing the child to vent your dissatisfaction with your wealthy marriage?”

“Rumor has it your husband hasn’t returned home once in two years of marriage. Is this true?”

“Will you quit the entertainment industry after the child abuse charge is confirmed?”

“Were the sweet details you talked about previously all fabricated? Netizens guess you suffer from delusions; what do you think about that?”

“…”

A barrage of questions came like a machine gun. Xi Ling didn’t have a chance to interject. It seemed these people’s questions were designed specifically to dump all the blame on his head.

The only thing Xi Ling was glad about was that, in order not to catch the virus, his mask had been “welded” to his soul. Going out without a mask felt as uncomfortable as going out without underwear. So even though he had left in a hurry, he hadn’t forgotten to dig out the thickest mask he had to wear.

It was just that the original owner’s masks were custom-made. He had found the plainest one, which had a black background with diamonds inlaid, and a circle of large antique-bronze rivets around the edge. It was so trendy it nearly gave Xi Ling rheumatism.

However, although the mask looked exaggerated, it still helped him avoid the awkwardness of having lenses shoved right up his nostrils.

Xi Ling had no chance to open his mouth, so he simply shut up and didn’t answer. He looked back at the nanny, who had nowhere to stand, and saw the poor cub huddled into a little ball in her arms, already trembling again.

The child had already been tortured to death by Nanny Tian; Xi Ling was truly worried that this child would be triggered by the swarming reporters. He simply took off his coat and covered the cub in the nanny’s arms.

The nanny was extremely surprised, and in her daze, she ignored the slight stiffening of the cub in her arms.

The clothes Xi Ling wore were rare pure-colored pieces from the original owner’s wardrobe. In particular, this long black down jacket didn’t look like the original owner’s style at all.

The hoodie and sweatpants underneath were a set. Although they lacked all the flashy decorations like patches, diamonds, and embroidery, they were a plain, solid color but a slightly fluorescent green.

Xi Ling had chosen it purely for comfort, like wearing red underwear during the New Year; nobody would see it under the coat. Who would have thought he would take off his coat in front of so many people?

The situation was sudden and he had no choice. Xi Ling could only bite the bullet and pave the way for the nanny holding the cub while dressed like a glowing giant green pepper.

All the entertainment media and onlookers at the scene fell into a brief stupor. One skinny male reporter was the first to react: “Are you changing your dressing style so suddenly to imply that there is a third party in your wealthy marriage?”

Xi Ling: ???

Although he felt rationally that there were too many pots on the original owner’s back, and the entertainment reporters were too good at adding fuel to the fire in this situation, it was best to shut up and leave quickly but upon hearing such an outrageous question, Xi Ling couldn’t help but blurt out: “With your imagination, why aren’t you writing novels?”

Seeing him open his mouth, the reporters around him became even more excited, as if they were a group of suddenly activated zombies. Xi Ling immediately protected the nanny holding the cub and quickly squeezed into the police station.

The video was posted online, and everyone’s attention was attracted by Xi Ling’s strange outfit.

After all, Xi Ling’s previous outfits had been a combination of various unexpected color blocks, possessing a sense of fashion that disregarded the lives of others, at least a century ahead of the rest of the world.

It would have been one thing if it were just the first time seeing him wear plain solid colors, but it was a whole set of fluorescent green. Nobody would believe him if he said it wasn’t an implication.

However, the real reason was just that Xi Ling couldn’t stand the original owner’s aesthetic and felt those chaotic things felt prickly against his skin when worn, so he had worn the original owner’s base layer as long johns.

Xi Ling only said one sentence the whole time, and that was in response to the reporter’s question about “a third party in a wealthy marriage,” and he hadn’t even clearly responded to it.

Give Archimedes a fulcrum and he can pry up the earth; give entertainment reporters a punctuation mark and they can do anything.

To get attention, one company analyzed it more outrageously than the next. The “green clothes implication” and the “lack of clear denial” were quickly defined by the media as Xi Ling’s rich husband having an affair, and their wealthy marriage existing in name only.

Nobody noticed Xi Ling taking off his clothes to cover the nanny was to shield the cub, because before the cub could be discovered, he had been tightly wrapped up by Xi Ling’s down jacket.

So, when Xi Ling opened his phone after finishing his statement, the latest push notification had changed to: #XiLingImpliesWealthyHusbandCreaThinkCEOisCheatingDuringMarriage#

Xi Ling went numb.

Through the thread of events neatly organized by the “Big Eyes” (Weibo), Xi Ling quickly figured out the beginning and end of the original owner’s crash. He felt he was on the verge of being paralyzed.

It was probably because the entertainment industry hadn’t made such a big scene for a long time, and the gossiping netizens were thrilled:

[Damn Hahahahahaha where did this levee-greening essence come from!]

[Help! My Eyes! Can’t show off his affection, so he just flips the table?]

[Xi Ling is so rude, just smearing his down jacket on the nanny. Is the car rented? Can’t you put the clothes down?]

Xi Ling: “…………” Unscrupulous reporters, you’d best not sleep too soundly tonight!

He turned his head to look at the cub shrinking in the nanny’s arms, helplessly clutching his forehead. He couldn’t blame the child for not being discovered.

Although the cub was three years old, he was thin and small due to Nanny Tian’s long-term neglect and abuse. When he huddled into the arms of the slightly chubby nanny and was covered by clothes, he had no presence at all.

However, when leaving the police station, he was still covered; he couldn’t just ignore the cub and lift the down jacket to explain to the reporters.

Considering the cub would hold a grudge even if he was too young to remember it, the internet had a memory, he couldn’t afford to take this black pot.

Xi Ling ignored the series of messages from his agent Fu Hao and asked him directly for the original owner’s Weibo account.

Fu Hao went on another rant, explaining to him in detail the one hundred reasons why the parenting show was a must-attend.

Xi Ling knew that the reason the other party was frantically persuading rather than forcing him was because the original owner was not only an artist under Fu Hao but also half a “Gold Master Dad.”

The original owner entered the entertainment industry just to spend money. All resources relied on throwing money. Not only could he often help the agent bring new artists into the crew, but he also had to split the money he earned with the team. With this degree of being a “sucker,” he would be detained as a Great Buddha if he went on a trip to Leshan.

Therefore, Xi Ling’s spine was extremely stiff: [Shut up, send it to me, otherwise I’ll quit the industry now and you won’t earn a cent in the future.]

A Gold Master should look like a Gold Master.

Less than ten seconds after the message was sent, Fu Hao sent the account and password over, and even very cooperatively changed the bound phone number to Xi Ling’s.

Xi Ling took the account and immediately blocked Fu Hao to save himself from the other party repeating the same words over and over again.

He posted a photo of the police report receipt on Weibo. To avoid over-interpretation if he said too much, Xi Ling only posted one photo.

The receipt clearly indicated that the reporter was Xi Ling and the matter reported was that Nanny Tian had abused a child and stolen financial assets from the home. The police signature, date, and official seal were all present at a glance, it was highly credible.

After posting it, Xi Ling couldn’t help but sigh in his heart: This body of mine is finally distinct from now on…

There was absolutely no abuse! From now on, Huo Xingmian would be the apple of his eye!

As a result, when he pulled down to refresh, the comment section already had quite a few comments:

[Found a scapegoat so soon? 6.]

[After all that, it’s just relying on abusing the child and saying the husband is cheating to divert attention. Mr. Huo, hurry up and take the child away, don’t let Xi Ling continue to make trouble @CreaThinkTechnology]

[I believe you, a ghost. Ugly wealthy man, get out of the entertainment circle, okay?]

Xi Ling: ???

He took a deep breath and let his rolled-back eyes drop, his peripheral vision noticing the cub who was quietly peeking at his phone.

Xi Ling subconsciously turned the phone upside down on his lap, only then remembering that Nanny Tian said the child’s brain development was delayed and his early education was progressing very slowly; he hadn’t learned much.

But sooner or later, he would learn to read, go online, and search for old news.

Xi Ling scratched his philtrum and pondered for a long time, then unblocked Fu Hao from his blacklist.

At the same time, a private jet landed steadily.

Not long ago, Huo Siyi, the CEO of CreaThink Technology and the eldest son of the Huo Group, had just ended a business summit.

During the eight-hour flight afterward, Huo Siyi maintained his extraordinary efficiency like a working machine, holding two video conferences in a row and resolving the remaining tasks of the two companies during the business trip.

It wasn’t until just before getting off the plane that his secretary, Dong Xi, seized the opportunity to mention an important event that had happened at Nanyuan today: the male Madam had called the police to arrest Nanny Tian.

Although Huo Siyi wore an ice-cold face lacking emotion, appearing to hate everyone equally, Dong Xi knew that the male Madam was absolutely in the category his boss hated most. Thus, news about Xi Ling was rarely reported upward.

But this time, it involved the young master and Nanny Tian. Even though Huo Siyi was normally indifferent to the young master, considering it had reached the point of calling the police, he still mentioned it concisely.

Huo Siyi’s brows knit slightly upon hearing this, and a moment later, he said coldly: “Follow up on the aftermath.”

The implication was the same as before: there was no need to report to him.

Dong Xi immediately replied, “Yes. Also, the Madam, he today…”

Before he could finish, he was interrupted by Huo Siyi raising his hand. A clear look of disgust flashed in the man’s dark blue eyes: “I don’t want to hear anything related to him again.”

After speaking, his lip line tightened. His cold, white skin showed not a single fine line due to a lack of expressions over the years. Paired with the deep, three-dimensional bone structure brought by his complex bloodline, the man’s perfect face looked more like a handsome, cold sculpture.

Seeing this, Dong Xi could only lower his head and comply, even though his eyes were full of words left unsaid.

Years of work experience told him that compared to an all-around secretary, Huo Siyi cared more about his obedience. After all, his boss’s previous secretaries had been transferred away for this reason.

The brief conversation came to an abrupt end in less than a minute. Huo Siyi re-tied his shirt button to the very top and walked out of the cabin door expressionlessly.

Looking at his boss’s handsome and freezing back, the report stuck in his throat made Dong Xi’s mind wander for a moment. His girlfriend had privately classified Huo Siyi as the “abstinent type.”

Dong Xi, however, felt that “abstinence” implied having desires to be restrained, but his boss had clearly jumped out of the Three Realms and was not in the Five Elements; he had absolutely no worldly desires.

Thinking of the media blocking the airport, ready to ask the “desireless” Huo Siyi countless questions related to his extramarital affair…

Dong Xi rubbed his eyebrows in a headache, already foreseeing his year-end bonus sprouting wings and flying away.