Chapter 13 — My Husband Brought His Ex Home

The police officer immediately stepped in to block him.

"Please remain calm, sir."

Han Duc Hai was beside himself with fury, veins bulging at his temples.

"This is the money belonging to the Han family!"

"It has nothing to do with Hua Tri Ha!"

Standing on the sidelines, a sudden clarity washed over me. Indeed, the money of the Han family had nothing to do with me. But the crux of the matter was that they had hidden this bank card inside my home, and then instructed Fang Xiao Hui to sneak in and retrieve it in the dead of night. The moment anything went wrong with this card, I would be the primary suspect, trapped by compromising circumstances. I fixed my gaze on Han Duc Hai.

"You hid money in my house—who were you trying to evade?"

"Your creditors?"

"Your relatives?"

"Or perhaps the other members of your own Han household?"

Han Duc Hai's complexion shifted dramatically. His micro-expressions provided the exact answer I needed. My father's voice dropped to a low, menacing register.

"You people treat my daughter's home like a personal safe?"

"And when something goes wrong, you expect her to take the fall?"

Chu Lan Chi was brought back shortly after. The moment she stepped through the front door and laid eyes on the bank card, her entire frame swayed unsteadily.

"Mr. Han, why did you bring the card..."

Before she could finish, she slammed a hand over her mouth. But it was already too late. The police officer turned his gaze toward her.

"You know about this card?"

Panic flooded Chu Lan Chi's eyes.

"I know nothing about it."

A cold laugh escaped my lips.

"Didn't you just let it slip a moment ago?"

She glared at me with venomous hatred.

"Shut your mouth!"

My father instantly stepped in, shielding me with his broad frame.

"Try shouting at my daughter one more time and see what happens."

Intimidated by his overwhelming presence, Chu Lan Chi instinctively shrank back. Han Duc Hai stubbornly refused to utter a single word about the exact sum of money contained within the card. After formally recording the incident, the police instructed all concerned parties to report to the precinct for further statements. This time, Han Duc Hai dared not hurl any more abuses. He merely fixed me with a malicious, unblinking glare, as though I had just ripped away his ultimate lifeline. Yet I knew full well that what he loathed wasn't that I had robbed him. It was the fact that I had stripped away his secrecy, dragging his hidden deeds into the glaring light. By four in the morning, the chaos temporarily subsided. My father insisted that I return with him first. Surveying my apartment, which now resembled a devastated war zone, I gave a silent nod. Before leaving, I had the property management director reprogram the temporary digital lock on the spot, while simultaneously restricting the front-door security camera feed so it linked exclusively to my personal smartphone. Han Hao had been standing motionless in the living room the entire time. Watching me meticulously pack up documents and my mother's personal mementos, he finally spoke in a subdued, hollow voice.

"Tri Ha."

"I genuinely had no idea my father hid the card here."

I did not pause my movements. He continued, "I admit I acted foolishly when it came to Xiao Hui."

"But I was completely in the dark regarding the financial matters."

"Can you please stop assuming everyone else is as malicious as you think?"

I slipped a box containing a pair of earrings into my handbag, lifted my head, and looked straight at him.

"Han Hao."

"Even now, you are still desperately searching for some moral high ground to stand upon."

His expression stiffened into a mask of stone. I pressed on. "You claim you knew nothing of the bank card."

"Yet you knew Fang Xiao Hui intended to move in."

"You claim you knew nothing of the earrings."

"Yet you knew she entered my master bedroom."

"You claim you knew nothing of your mother forging signatures."

"Yet you knew she wanted Xiao Hui to stay indefinitely."

"Every single time, you claim ignorance of the most severe transgression."

"Yet every single time, you manage to be right there on the scene."

His lips trembled uncontrollably, utterly incapable of forming a single word in defense. My father's voice called out from the hallway.

"Tri Ha, let us go."

I hoisted my bag over my shoulder and walked past Han Hao. Without warning, he lunged forward and grabbed my wrist. This time, my father moved faster than the police. With a swift motion, he intercepted Han Hao's hand.

"Let go of her."

Han Hao's eyes were shot through with angry, bloodshot veins.

"Father, Tri Ha and I are still legally married."

My father's voice was absolute ice. "Then I strongly advise you not to add a criminal record to your list of achievements." Slowly, Han Hao's grip loosened. I cast a final glance his way.

"Have your lawyer contact me tomorrow."

"And do not ever look for me again."

His voice came out hoarse and strained. "What if I refuse to grant a divorce?" I replied flatly, "Then we will take it to court."

"I have more than enough evidence."

Hearing those words seemed to completely break him; he remained nailed to the floor, utterly paralyzed. As the first pale light of dawn began to bleed across the horizon, I arrived at my father's modest, older apartment building. It was a dated unit spanning a little over sixty square meters. One of the hallway lights was burnt out, and the paint on the walls was peeling in jagged flakes. Yet, the moment I stepped across the threshold, a profound sense of peace settled deep within my chest. My father opened a thermal insulation container, revealing a steaming portion of millet porridge and two boiled eggs. He murmured softly, "I was worried you hadn't eaten anything last night." A sharp, burning sting bloomed behind my eyelids. I had held back my tears through the harrowing ordeal of the entire night, yet they finally broke free over this simple bowl of porridge. Sitting opposite me, my father awkwardly fumbled for a tissue.

"Cry if you need to."

"Once you are done crying, we will settle accounts with them."

Those simple words managed to coax a bittersweet laugh through my tears. By nine o'clock that morning, I contacted my lawyer right on schedule and transmitted the entire dossier of documents. After reviewing the materials, the lawyer remained silent for several long moments. He finally spoke, "Miss Hua, the divorce proceedings themselves are straightforward."

"However, the legal complications surrounding your parents-in-law may run far deeper than you currently realize."

I prompted, "What do you mean?" The lawyer explained, "The bank card you submitted is tied to a substantial relocation compensation fund."

"If they deliberately concealed these assets while utilizing your residence to harbor them, once their extended relatives inevitably step forward to claim their share of the payout, you could easily find yourself deeply implicated in the legal fallout."