"Rumble rumble," thunder roared in the sky, numbing people’s eardrums and shaking the very earth beneath them.
"What... what did you say?" the old master, seated in the Taishi Chair, looked at the young man standing before him, his eyes filled with disbelief.
"There’s nothing left for me to hide now. Do you know who my mother is?" The man curled his lips into a cold sneer, full of wicked charm.
He stepped closer, "My mother is Yun Shu. Twenty-eight years ago, she had a brief romantic interlude with a man, and then she gave birth to me. Do you know who that man is?"
The old master’s mouth quivered, "You... you’re Yun Shu’s son?"
"Exactly, my name is Yun Shen. Her love was as deep as her hatred. Years later, she sent her own son to that man, father and son meeting without recognition, a true human tragedy...."
The old master, realizing something, suddenly opened his eyes wide: "You and Lanyi... you knew and still married her? It’s incest...."
The man’s gaze was cold and mocking: "So what if it’s incest? I did it on purpose. Aren’t you utterly fond of her? Your precious darling, your Mingzhu, I wanted you to taste the agony of a pain so deep it’s unbearable...."
The old master suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, pointing at him and shouting in anger: "If you want revenge, take it out on me, why involve Lanyi? She doesn’t know anything. Please, let her be... let dad beg you," by the end, he pleaded.
"When my mother and I were destitute and starving, you and your precious daughter lived in luxury and abundance. Did you ever think of my mother, ever think of me then? She is your daughter, it’s fitting that she repays your debt. She’s not innocent at all."
"I have never wronged her, and I wasn’t even aware of your existence... Her obsession is still so deep. Enough, enough, I am too tired to sustain this... I only ask one thing of you, from now on, treat Lanyi well... and the two children... otherwise, I will not let you be even if I become a ghost...."
"Mu Qingci... Mu Qingci... I am finally going to see you again... wait for me...."
"Puh," a spray of fresh blood spurted out, staining the white rice paper in front of him. A bolt of lightning cut across the sky, illuminating the study as bright as day for a moment, and also revealing the old master’s pale, blood-drained face and that relieved smile at the corner of his mouth.
Ever since Mu Qingci died, he had been holding on for his daughter, enduring the torment of each day, and now, at last, he could go to see her...
Mu Qingci, I’m sorry...
The man’s eyes darkened, he strode forward and grabbed the old master’s collar, "You’re not allowed to die, I won’t let you, do you hear me...."
His arm dropped heavily, the man had left, the soul had passed...
Outside the window, lightning flashed and thunder rumbled, a downpour began, as if even the night sensed the sorrow, with the wind and rain lashing fiercely, mourning with the heavens and earth.
"Bang..." The door to the study was suddenly flung open, and the man turned in alarm...
The woman stood there, her hair disheveled, her face expressionless, her eyes vacant. Once the most sought-after beauty in Manjiangzhou, she now resembled a walking corpse.
"Brother Shen, the things you just said, they’re all lies, aren’t they?" she suddenly smiled, advancing towards him step by step. She had always been proud and radiant, when had anyone seen her this gentle? This gentleness was like a sword hanging over his head, causing an ache in the man’s heart in an instant.
"I...." Another muffled thunderclap roared across the sky, recalling the remnants of his sanity, the emotions in his eyes retreating like the tide, replaced by a chill as cold and merciless as millennia-old ice. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novel✶fire.net
"It’s all true, Ji Lanyi. I have never loved you. Marrying you was only for revenge, because your surname is Ji, you are the daughter of Ji Huaixi...."
She merely smiled, "Brother Shen, I don’t believe it."
Yun Shen’s pupils constricted sharply, his hands clenched into fists, and he suddenly shouted at her: "Ji Lanyi, how much longer will you deceive yourself? I am your half-brother with the same father. I purposely married you to take revenge on you, to take revenge on Ji Huaixi... It’s time for you to wake up from your dream and accept reality."
Ji Lanyi continued to smile: "Brother Shen, no matter what you say, you can’t fool me. You love me." She pointed to his chest, her smile warm and sweet: "Your heart can’t deceive me, Brother Shen. You love me. Everything you did, you did because you had no choice...."
"Enough." Yun Shen cut her off, looking at her coldly: "Ji Lanyi, Ji Huaixi is dead, died from knowing the truth. The hatred for patricide can’t be shared under the heavens. Don’t you feel disgusted talking about love now?"
"Why should it be disgusting? My love for you and daddy’s death - what’s the connection? Brother Shen, I love you. For you, I can give up everything. Morals, patricidal vengeance, none of it matters to me, as long as I can be with you, nothing else matters...."