How could he let a man who hurt his daughter go on living in peace?

Xilin Park, the villa district.

Following Chu Yunxuan, Zhang Hongxing drove straight into the underground garage of the purple-and-blue villa at No. 7 without any trouble. He got out and went up to a room on the second floor that housed a telescope.

Before Chu Yunxuan could speak, Zhang Hongxing walked over to the telescope, removed the eyepiece cover, and pressed his eyes to it.

A European-style villa appeared in his field of view. Its exterior resembled an eagle spreading its wings for flight, but there was no sign of anyone inside.

"Is that their home?"

"Of course. Why else would I bring you here?"

"Are they home right now?"

"They should be. In a few days, Qin Dagang will be competing in the most important match of his career so far. His coach gave him a day off to relax so he could get himself into peak condition."

"Thanks. You don't need to stay with me unless I need something else."

"All right, I'll head out, then. Feel free to use any of the cars in the garage. The keys are on the table downstairs. Call me if anything else comes up."

Chu Yunxuan gave Zhang Hongxing a meaningful look, then turned and left the villa.

"All right."

Zhang Hongxing answered without turning around and pressed his eyes to the telescope again. Something had changed at the villa opposite. For some reason, his granddaughter Wenwen had run out into the yard alone and crouched there with her arms around her knees.

From the way her body shook, it was clear she was crying.

His precious granddaughter was crying, and she looked utterly heartbroken.

How could he possibly stand by and watch?

Zhang Hongxing immediately jumped out of the window, then vaulted over the wall into the villa opposite.

"Grand... sob..."

"Shh..."

Before Wenwen could finish calling out to him, Zhang Hongxing covered her mouth.

"Wenwen, don't say anything. Grandpa sneaked in here. Tell me quietly, what happened? Who bullied you?"

"Grandpa... sob... hurry inside and save Mommy! Daddy's hitting her again!"

"How dare he!"

Zhang Hongxing's eyes widened in fury.

"Wenwen, wait here for Grandpa. I'm going inside to save Mommy."

"Okay."

The sadness vanished from Wenwen's eyes. Her grandfather's arrival had filled her with hope. In her young mind, he was an immortal who had descended from heaven. There was nothing Grandpa couldn't do.

After reassuring Wenwen, Zhang Hongxing headed straight through the villa's front door. At that moment, he tossed aside every thought of investigating in secret.

His daughter could be suffering abuse at her husband's hands right now. The most important thing was to rush in and stop him.

He had been walking for less than twenty seconds when a man's voice reached him.

"You bitch! You should be grateful I even bother hitting you! Take a good look at what you are. You think you can scare me by saying your dad's back?"

"Without me, how could you ever live in Capital City? How could you live in a villa this nice? Where would you get the money to buy all your things?"

"And you say your dad's so capable. If he's really that great, call him over!"

"Dagang, everything I told you is true. It's been ten years. When have I ever lied to you? Please stop doing this. I really can't take it anymore. All this time, it was for Wenwen, for this family that I..."

"You fucking bitch! Now you dare talk back to me!"

The woman who had always meekly accepted whatever he did had suddenly grown "defiant." Qin Dagang found that even harder to tolerate, and fury instantly blazed in his eyes.

Today, he was going to teach this woman a proper lesson.

He had only one way of dealing with an opponent: knock them down.

At that moment, he saw his wife, Zhang Ying, as an opponent he needed to defeat.

"What are you trying to do? Dagang, have you gone mad?"

Zhang Ying recognized the change in Qin Dagang's eyes. When he had hit her before, he had always held back. Otherwise, she would never have survived this long, much less persuaded herself to forgive him again and again.

But now, she was afraid.

She sprang to her feet and fled toward the door, but Qin Dagang launched a flying kick at her. If it connected, it would leave her half dead on the spot.

Fortunately, Zhang Hongxing arrived in time.

Before Qin Dagang's kick could strike Zhang Ying, he leaped between them and caught the flying leg. Then, using its momentum, he flung Qin Dagang away, sending him crashing heavily into the wall.

Thud!

The entire villa seemed to shudder. Qin Dagang, who had been somewhat dazed from drinking, instantly sobered up.

"Dad, what are you doing here?"

When Zhang Ying saw who had arrived, tears glistened in her eyes.

"If I hadn't come, this animal would have beaten you to death today! Something this serious, and you didn't tell me beforehand? I really don't know what you were thinking."

"Dad, I'm sorry. I..."

"Enough. Go outside and look after Wenwen. Leave this bastard to me."

"Dad, don't hit him. He hasn't had it easy either."

"You're still defending him?"

The more Zhang Hongxing heard, the angrier he became. If she hadn't been his daughter, he would have turned around and left.

"He's still Wenwen's father, after all. When he hasn't been drinking, he's actually quite good to us."

"Get the hell out, you bitch! When have I, Qin Dagang, ever needed you to plead for me? Him, hit me? You'd better worry about this filthy bastard instead.

"So that's why you dared talk back to me today. You found yourself a 'sugar daddy' to back you up! Calling him Dad over and over, so sweet and affectionate. You really are a bitch."

"Qin Dagang, you're no man!"

Zhang Ying roared at Qin Dagang, then turned and left the villa. At that moment, she wanted nothing more to do with him.

Zhang Hongxing walked up to Qin Dagang with a sinister smile and unleashed a barrage of punches and kicks.

Then he followed her out of the villa.

"Dad, what did you do to him?"

"Don't worry. I know how far to go."

"Grandpa, are we going back to your house now?"

"Do you want to go to Grandpa's house, Wenwen?"

"Yes! I love Grandpa's house best! Uncle's there, and Auntie, and Grandma, and Lele. Mommy, can we go to Grandpa's together?"

"Of course. I promise."

"Yay! Grandpa, Mommy, let's hurry!"

Compared with adults, a child like Wenwen had much simpler thoughts. Besides, Qin Dagang had rarely spent time with her. Whatever goodwill he earned from his occasional gestures of affection had been completely destroyed by his drunken violence.

After leaving the villa, Zhang Hongxing did indeed take them to the airport.

But he bought only two tickets.

"Dad, please don't do anything rash."

Zhang Ying looked at her father anxiously. The family she had struggled to hold together for ten years was about to fall apart. She didn't want her father, who had only recently returned, to get into trouble again because of her.

"Don't worry, Yingzi. Don't you know what your dad is capable of?"

"Dad, it's not that I don't trust you, but you really don't need to do this. Besides, he doesn't deserve to die. You can't go and..."

"What are you thinking, Yingzi? What kind of person do you take your dad for? I just have a few things left to finish here. I'll be back in a few days."

"But..."

"No buts. Just take Wenwen home and enjoy yourselves."

"All right."

It took Zhang Hongxing quite some effort to persuade his daughter to leave. Afterward, he called Chu Yunxuan.

Of course he wasn't going to let Qin Dagang off just like that.

How could he let a man who dared hurt his daughter go on living in peace?