The Comeback of the Cannon-Fodder Supporting Actress

Chapter 600: Chapter 590: The Stepmother Who Refuses to Be a Stepping Stone 78

Anning was quite surprised when she learned about Li Zhifang’s car accident.

She hadn’t expected that something would happen there before she even took action.

”Alright, I know.”

Anning hung up the phone and thought for a moment before calling Liu Qi and Liu Ming one by one.

Regardless of anything else, Li Zhifang had once taken care of the three Liu siblings. It would be fine if he was okay, but now that he had a car accident, it was both reasonable and natural for the three Lius to visit him. Otherwise, people might think they lacked compassion.

It’s not that Anning was soft-hearted or anything; it’s just how society works. She wasn’t afraid of rumors and gossip, but the Liu siblings still needed to establish themselves in society and live their lives. Having a good reputation could make things easier in many aspects.

After calling Liu Qi, she then reached out to Li Jingyu.

Li Jingyu might have been teaching a class because Anning couldn’t get through to his mobile phone.

So Anning called Liu Qi’s mobile phone again, asking Liu Qi to notify Li Jingyu and also go to the city together with him.

After finishing the calls, Anning went to accompany Zhang Fengfeng.

No one dared to tell Zhang Fengfeng about Li Zhifang’s car accident, fearing she wouldn’t be able to take it.

Zhang Fengfeng’s heart wasn’t good, and they were afraid that she might have another issue if she became too distressed.

By that time, Li Zhicheng and Liu Ru had already set off. When Anning arrived, Zhang Fengfeng was watching TV. Anning entered, hung her coat, and said, ”Mom, I went to Yun Gui the other day. The air there is really good, and I thought of taking you and dad there for a trip.”

”Do you have the time?”

Zhang Fengfeng picked up the remote and turned off the TV: ”Don’t neglect your work because of me and your dad.”

”It’s okay.”

Anning sat down with a smile: ”I have plenty of time now. I’ve hired so many people at the company; if I’m still run off my feet, then what do I keep them for? Just to eat for free?”

Zhang Fengfeng thought about it and agreed: ”Then when do we leave?”

Anning pondered: ”This afternoon. I’ll have someone book the flights and hotel now, help you pack, and we can leave this afternoon.”

Zhang Fengfeng then called Li Baolai, urging him to come back quickly.

Li Baolai was out for a walk when his mobile phone rang. Hearing from Zhang Fengfeng that they were going on a trip, he felt quite excited.

Staying in the Provincial City area all the time would bore anyone. He was healthy and active, so naturally, he wanted to travel more.

He didn’t have the means when he was younger, but now his son was doing well and willing to pay for his travels. He couldn’t wait.

Li Baolai said to the few old men he was walking with: ”Look at that, my wife just called. She said Miss Si wants to take us out, and I should rush back home.”

The other old men were envious: ”Then you should hurry, and take lots of photos when you’re there.”

”Of course.”

Li Baolai said goodbye to them with a smile and hastened home.

At this point, Anning had already called her secretary to book the flights and hotel.

She didn’t cook at Li Zhicheng’s house but instead took Zhang Fengfeng and Li Baolai out for a meal and then went straight to the airport.

On the way, Li Baolai asked Anning: ”Ning, how many clothes should we bring?”

Anning laughed: ”Don’t bring any. We’ll buy some when we get there. When you go out to have fun, just enjoy freely. What’s the point of bringing so much luggage—are we going on vacation or moving house?”

Anning’s words settled the matter for Li Baolai.

He knew Anning had a lot of money and would not stint on buying clothes for them, so he didn’t make a fuss about it.

Before, Anning had bought many things for Li Baolai, which he firmly refused to accept. He felt that it was his family’s fault that Anning and Li Zhifang had divorced, and he always thought about compensating Anning and felt embarrassed about accepting Anning’s things.

But at that time, Anning said to him: ”Dad, regardless of what happened between me and Li Lao Si, let’s put our grievances aside for a moment. Just talking about me, you, and mom, since I married into the Li family, you have never been bad to me. When I was busy and my child was young, who else could I rely on but you? I felt assured only with you taking care of my child. Whenever Li Lao Si and I went to the city or Provincial City to sell vegetables, and we couldn’t return for many days, you’d always help me look after the child without any complaints. To be honest, you owe me nothing. Why take care of my child if not to see me through my tough times and give a helping hand? When I entrusted my child to you, I did so confidently. Now that I am in a position to take care of you both, you should also freely spend my money.”

The words Anning said warmed Li Baolai and Zhang Fengfeng’s hearts.

From then on, Li Baolai no longer felt hesitant to take things from Anning.

Just as Anning said, for the selfless years the elderly couple spent raising her child, she owed it to them to look after both of them.

Anning finally felt relieved once she got the two elderly seated on the plane.

She had no choice; she feared the older folks would hear about Li Zhifang’s accident from others if they stayed in Provincial City. So she thought of taking them away first, wait until the situation with Li Zhifang stabilized, then return and explain everything to them slowly.

Not to mention Anning’s situation, let’s talk about Liu Qi’s side.

After receiving the phone call, he immediately asked for leave and left.

Fortunately, the research institute wasn’t very busy at the time, or else it would have been difficult for him to take a leave of absence.

He drove straight to the middle school where Li Jingyu worked, and when he got there Li Jingyu was still teaching; the security guard didn’t allow Liu Qi to enter and asked him to register first.

Liu Qi chatted with the elderly security guard: ”Master, when will Teacher Li get off class? You see, you won’t let me in, and I have urgent matters here.”

The security guard checked the timetable: ”Another five minutes. Can’t you wait for just five more minutes even if it’s urgent?”

He sized up Liu Qi: ”What do you need Teacher Li for?”

Liu Qi could tell the old man misunderstood and quickly explained: ”I’m Teacher Li’s brother. You see, there was a situation at home, and they asked me to fetch her.”

”Brother?”

The old man raised his eyebrows and glanced at the name Liu Qi signed on the registration form: ”Who knows what kind of brother you are.”

Liu Qi stayed by the security guard for a while. When the bell signifying the end of class rang, he hurriedly called Li Jingyu.

After trying for a while without getting an answer, Liu Qi flattered the old man a few more times before he was allowed to go in.

Once inside the school gate, Liu Qi went looking for the place the security guard told him about.

When he got to Li Jingyu’s office door, he saw Li Jingyu standing inside, talking to a man.

”Ahem...”

Liu Qi coughed.

Li Jingyu turned around, and seeing Liu Qi, she was quite surprised: ”How come you’re here?”

Liu Qi gestured outside: ”Come out and talk.”

Li Jingyu pulled open the drawer, grabbed her phone, and a coat, then walked out.

The two of them went downstairs and found a quiet spot in the campus before Liu Qi asked Li Jingyu: ”Mom tried calling you but couldn’t get through; I just tried calling you too and got no answer, what’s going on?”

Li Jingyu thought for a moment: ”I left my phone in the drawer during class, it might be because the signal isn’t very good.”

Liu Qi didn’t dwell on this matter, and went straight to the point: ”Mom said that Dad was in a car accident, and she asked us to hurry over and check on him.”

”What?”

Li Jingyu’s face changed drastically, her lips turning somewhat pale: ”Is he, is he okay?”

Liu Qi shook his head: ”We’re not sure yet, we need to rush over right away.”

There and then, the two got into Liu Qi’s car and drove on the highway heading back.

On the way, they just happened to run into Liu Ming with Li Jingyan and Liu Yuzhen. When they arrived in City, Liu Yuzhen told Liu Qi, ”Jing Han went out of town with his advisor, I called him, and he’s on his way back; he should arrive later than us.”

The five of them also phoned Li Zhicheng, and by the time they got to the hospital, Li Zhifang had already had his limb amputated.

He was now in the hospital room but hadn’t regained consciousness.

All five Li brothers were there; seeing Liu Qi and the others hurry over, Li Zhipeng stood up and patted Liu Qi’s shoulder: ”Good lad, you came quite quickly.”

Liu Qi looked at Li Zhifang on the hospital bed: ”How’s my uncle?”

Li Jingyu and Li Jingyan approached to observe Li Zhifang; it was only then that the two children noticed that Li Zhifang had aged a lot, with white hairs already appearing at his temples. Moreover, the wrinkles at his forehead and eyes were deep, and he looked exceptionally gaunt.

For some reason, Li Jingyu burst into tears on the spot.

Even if she was angry with Li Zhifang, he was still her biological father. If it were normal times she could ignore him, but now that he was like this, she still felt some heartache.

Li Jingyan then asked Li Zhicheng, ”Where is Aunt Wang Baozhu? Where did she go?”

Li Zhicheng sighed: ”She went after the driver to ask for money.”

Liu Ming asked, ”And Li Jindong?”

Li Zhiyuan let out a cold laugh: ”Who knows which game hall he’s at. We found him when your uncle first had the accident and brought him to the hospital, but after he took one look, he showed no sympathy at all and ran away after a while.”

”Deserved it.”

Li Jingyan, with tears in her eyes, looked at Li Zhifang: ”Weren’t you always the one who doted on him the most? Now take a look, the son you cherished the most, he’s not even as good as my brother.”