To kick someone when they're down

  When she arrived home, her mother was alone there with tears streaming down her face. Seeing her return, she hugged her and cried even harder.

  "Xiao Li, if your dad really has something wrong with him this time, I'm afraid he won't make it..."

  "Mom!"

  She looked at her mother with a heart-wrenching and shocking gaze, the woman who had been shouldering the pain of illness all these years to raise her, yet never shed a single tear. Her appearance seemed weak, but in fact she was as tough as iron, however, once it came to her father's affairs, she lost her composure and rationality.

  Wiped away tears from her face, and with a hint of self-mockery, she forced a smile.

  "Xiao Liang, I know I'm being weak, but all these years you and he have been the spiritual pillars that keep me going. If anything were to happen to either of you, it would be a fatal blow to me..."

  Saying this, Lian Su let out a sorrowful sigh.

  "If I wasn't so cowardly and retreated at the time, if I was a bit braver back then, the outcome between me and your dad wouldn't have been like this, and you wouldn't be trapped in such a broken family!"

  Xu Liu tightly hugged her.

  "Mom, don't say that about yourself. You sacrificed your own happiness for the sake of the man you loved most in this world. In my heart, you are the bravest and greatest woman!"

  Lian Su couldn't help but shed tears of relief once again, no matter what others said about her, as long as her own daughter could understand her, that was the greatest comfort for her. She wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and said to Xu Liuqing:

  "Xiao Li, why don't you go take a look at the Xu's place? They've always relied on your dad as their mainstay, and now that something has happened to him, they must be feeling pretty bad too!"

  Xu Liu actually didn't want to go, because her father's legitimate wife Fang Hui had always been hostile towards her and her mother. However, Lian Su insisted that she go, believing that regardless of how Fang Hui treated them normally, Liu was after all Xu Dingbian's daughter, and it was a matter of filial piety and propriety for the daughter to visit her father when he was in trouble.

  The Xu family's mansion is located in a villa area nestled between the mountains and the sea. Xu Dingbian has always been honest and clean throughout his life, and he didn't deserve to live in such a high-end house. However, Fang Hui's maiden home was a renowned and respected family back then, and they had given their daughter several luxurious properties as dowry.

  When Xu Liu arrived at the Xu family home, Fang Hui was on the phone to someone, obviously seeking help from relatives and friends. But judging by her expression, it was clear that everyone was avoiding the Xu family like the plague, so who would be willing to help them?

  She hadn't even had time to say anything when she suddenly saw Fang Hui's face turn pale, the phone in her hand also suddenly falling from her grasp, and her whole body slumping down, swaying back and forth as if about to fall over. Xu Liu quickly stepped forward and supported her onto the sofa.

  "Aunt Fang, what's wrong?"

  "Flowing, flowing——"

  Fang Hui's first time didn't give her a chance to react, the first time she shouted out her name, she tightly grasped Xu Liu's clothes, and tears suddenly welled up in her eyes, desperate and sorrowful.

  "They just said your dad embezzled tens of millions, and this fact has been confirmed by the higher-ups. Your dad is really going to prison! If only they had slandered him for something else, but no, your dad was honest and clean his whole life, yet in the end he's getting a conviction for corruption and bribery - how humiliating and disgusting!"

  "What?"

  Xu Liu'er was also shocked, her father had been an honest official all his life, how could he possibly embezzle thousands?

  She knew about the infighting in official circles, and she thought it was just the other side trying to ruin her father's reputation so he couldn't run for mayor again. How could things be serious enough to land him in jail?

  Thank you for all the flowers, coffee, comments, red envelopes and other forms of support. Due to limited time, I haven't replied to each comment individually, but I've carefully read every single one.