Upon hearing Ye Fengwu's words, Qin Guangnan's brows immediately furrowed.
Qin Fei leaned over to Qin Guangnan's ear and said, "Dad, since Qin Qinghan refuses the wine but insists on the punishment, let her spend her life with a criminal. After all, this criminal won't live long, and she will come crying back to Master Zhang."
At these words, Qin Guangnan's expression changed, and he let out a sneer. He turned to Ye Fengwu and said, "If you're so interested in this damaged flower, then I'll give her to you."
Qin Guangnan spoke as if he were handing over a slave, completely disregarding Qin Qinghan as a person, let alone his own granddaughter.
As soon as those words fell, Qin Qinghan's face turned ashen. She knew she couldn't refuse, nor did she have the strength to do so.
However, Qin Qinghan's parents couldn't accept it. How could they allow their daughter to be ruined by a criminal? How could they let her marry one?
"Dad, how can you treat Qinghan like this? She has done so much for the Qin family. She is your granddaughter!" Yang Yu shouted at Qin Guangnan.
Qin Zhi tightly held Yang Yu, his face bitter as he said, "Forget it, maybe this is Qinghan's fate."
Slap!
A sharp slap echoed through the air, landing on Qin Zhi's face. Yang Yu scolded, "Qin Zhi, you useless man! You can't even protect your own daughter."
Qin Zhi allowed his wife to slap him, saying nothing in return because he knew he was powerless. His position in the Qin family couldn't protect his own daughter.
Ye Fengwu looked at Qin Qinghan's helpless and desperate gaze, his heart filled with pain. He could only silently apologize in his heart. The only way to protect her and her daughter was by using this method.
Then, Ye Fengwu suddenly spoke, "It seems that you old fool have just made a beautiful match. Since it's an engagement, I assume you have the engagement ring?"
As he spoke, Ye Fengwu took a delicate box from his pocket and slowly walked toward Qin Qinghan.
Seeing Ye Fengwu walking towards her, Qin Qinghan instinctively tightened her grip on Jing Si. The wariness and disgust in her eyes grew stronger.
Ye Fengwu tried his best to make his expression and smile as gentle as possible. He first spoke to Jing Si, "Jing Si, how about I become your father?"
Jing Si looked at Ye Fengwu, fear clearly in her eyes. She had just witnessed his violent outburst.
Then, Jing Si shook her head and said, "Mom won't agree."
Ye Fengwu made a bitter expression and softly said, "If I become your father, no one will be able to separate you and your mother."
Hearing this, a flicker of hope passed through the little girl's eyes, but she still didn't nod. Instead, she looked up at Qin Qinghan.
Qin Qinghan, though wary, disgusted, and even somewhat afraid, couldn't help but continue to look at Ye Fengwu. She could sense the genuine tenderness Ye Fengwu had for Jing Si.
This wasn't something anyone could fake. As a mother herself, she could feel the sincerity of his love.
But she knew that criminals like him were often sadistic, and the violence she had witnessed firsthand only added to her fear. She couldn't imagine how her life would be once she was bound to this man.
Ye Fengwu looked at Qin Qinghan, staring at her breathtaking face. He couldn't help but feel a strange sense of relief, as if the mistake he made years ago was somehow worth it. It was a disturbing thought, but it was there nonetheless.
"I didn't know you were this beautiful," Ye Fengwu suddenly said.
Qin Qinghan tightly bit her lip, her eyes filled with defiance and struggle. She didn't know why, but her state seemed to be too tempting. Even Ye Fengwu, a man of steel, was almost mesmerized.
"I'm sorry..." Ye Fengwu spoke the three words he had wanted to say for the past eight years.
Qin Qinghan froze for a moment. She didn't know why he was apologizing.
Ye Fengwu opened the box and said to Qin Qinghan, "Marry me. Let me, Ye Fengwu, protect you and your daughter for the rest of your lives."
This proposal, for ordinary people, would have been romantic, but coming from a criminal, it took on an entirely different meaning.
Qin Qinghan, a woman herself, had dreamed of a beautiful love story when she was younger. She had always hoped for the chance to experience it, but she never even had the chance to hold hands with a man, let alone fall in love.
Her life had been ruined by a criminal.
She wished that these words had come from an ordinary man.
But she knew she couldn't refuse, so she tremblingly extended her hand forward.
Such a romantic proposal in a hotel was a joke to everyone around. Everyone was mocking them.
"A criminal actually has an engagement ring? It must be stolen," Qin Fei snorted derisively.
"It's probably a cheap knockoff from some street vendor!" Zhang Ge sneered, filled with jealousy. He had thought he would be the one to put a ring on Qin Qinghan's finger today.
Suddenly, Zhang Ge took out a very delicate box from his suit pocket and opened it. In an instant, under the lights, a ten-carat diamond ring gleamed, stunning everyone.
For a moment, the entire hotel gasped. A ten-carat diamond ring would be worth at least ten million yuan, and everyone was amazed at how much Zhang Ge had spent to buy it for Qin Qinghan.
"Qinghan, if you agree to send the child away, this ring can go on your finger," Zhang Ge said with a proud smile in his eyes.
Women have no resistance to money and jewelry. In front of a ten-million-yuan diamond ring, even a proud woman like Qin Qinghan would likely do anything shameful.
Zhang Ge had used this tactic on many women before. He knew that no matter how proud a woman was, she would eventually submit to wealth.
But just one second later, Zhang Ge's expression darkened. After taking out the ten-carat diamond ring, he noticed that Qin Qinghan didn't even glance at him.
At that moment, Ye Fengwu placed the ring on Qin Qinghan's ring finger. He smiled in satisfaction, saying, "It fits perfectly."
"That's..." A man in a suit from the South suddenly noticed the ring on Qin Qinghan's hand.
In an instant, his face turned pale with shock. The gem on the ring was a thumb-sized aquamarine stone. Even from over ten meters away, he could see the dazzling shine of the stone.
More and more people noticed the ring on Qin Qinghan's hand and were drawn to its brilliant blue hue. Several women even showed expressions of envy.
In a split second, Zhang Ge's ten-carat diamond ring paled in comparison. All eyes were now on the oversized, radiant aquamarine stone.
The man in the suit, a renowned jeweler and expert in gem identification, said with a serious expression, "If I'm not mistaken, that gem is likely a rare blue sea gemstone, one of the three treasures. There are only two in the world, and each one is worth over a hundred million U.S. dollars."
At these words, not only were the guests in the hotel stunned, but even Qin Guangnan and his son, along with Zhang Ge, widened their eyes in disbelief.
If someone else had said this, they might have dismissed it as a joke, but the man speaking was a well-known jeweler and a distinguished appraiser.
If the gemstone was real, it was worth more than enough to buy two or three of the Qin family's properties.
In that moment, Zhang Ge's once-proud gesture of holding up the diamond ring seemed utterly humiliating. He had been overshadowed by a criminal.
But soon, Qin Guangnan pushed that thought aside. If this rare treasure was in a criminal's hands, then it had to be fake.
Besides, this precious gem was now on the hand of a woman everyone looked down on.
Qin Qinghan never looked at the ring on her hand. Even though it might be worth over a hundred million U.S. dollars, what did it have to do with her? She would never truly accept it.
After wearing the ring, Qin Qinghan once again held Jing Si tightly in her arms.
But everyone around them took a deep breath. They were afraid the precious gem would get scratched, especially since Qin Qinghan was holding the child so carelessly.
Seeing Qin Qinghan accept the ring, Ye Fengwu let out a sigh of relief. Then he smiled and said, "Wife, I'm hungry. Take me home, let me try your cooking."
The word "wife" made Qin Qinghan feel a surge of rejection, but she couldn't do anything about his words. Judging by his tone, he seemed to have just gotten out of prison and didn't have a place to stay.
Was she really going to live with a criminal now?
"Mom, uncle is hungry. Let's go home," Jing Si suddenly said.
Hearing this, Qin Qinghan finally nodded in resignation. She walked expressionlessly toward the hotel door, with Qin Zhi and Yang Yu following closely behind.