Chapter 366: Regret
Yang Gongming, looking equally shaken, glanced at Yang Chen and laughed heartily.
"Don't think of me as an old man shamelessly kneeling before you. The person kneeling isn't your grandfather, elder, or retired official. I am representing the hundreds of Yang family members who survived because of your sacrifice. This is a debt the Yang family owes you. Though my kneeling may not compensate for much, I hope it brings me some peace."
With that, Yang Gongming slowly stood up, his chest proudly lifted, showing no shame, but rather a sense of relief.
"You think this will make me accept you?" Yang Chen couldn't help but laugh.
Yang Gongming shook his head, his voice firm. "I don't expect you to accept us because I knelt. I've said it before; as your grandfather, as your elder, I've never felt the need to kneel before you. No matter how guilty I feel, I have no reason to kneel to my grandson. Similarly, let me say something that may seem extreme but is, I believe, the truth: As parents, we never need to feel guilty toward our children, because without parents, there would be no children! Although your parents didn't raise you, they gave birth to you. Even if you endured great suffering afterward, you can't erase the fact they gave you life. Their intention was never to bring you into this world to suffer. Even deciding to have you at that time involved great risk. You can hate them, but you can't deny they are your parents, nor can you deny the life they gave you."
Yang Chen said nothing, trying to find a rebuttal but realizing he couldn't argue against Yang Gongming's words.
Perhaps, deep down, he hadn't completely severed his feelings for his family. Otherwise, he wouldn't have told Guo Xuehua not to expect anything from him, nor would he have spared Yang Lie.
Yang Chen knew that despite being called a "god" by the outside world, he was still just a person. He could do things others couldn't, but he still had human emotions. He was still young, though he had experienced much, making his heart feel old. Yet emotionally, he was still immature. He could love and enjoy being loved; he could also feel hate and anger.
He had once taught Tangtang not to take the mother-daughter conflicts too seriously. Being a mother and a daughter was a great fate. In the grand scheme of the world, in the vast universe, his pain and struggles were insignificant.
But humans are contradictory. Teaching Tangtang was one thing, but his situation was far from a simple parent-child argument.
It seemed Yang Gongming had finished speaking. He signaled to the old lady behind him, preparing to leave the room.
As he passed by Lin Ruoxi, Yang Gongming smiled, "Ruoxi, I'm sorry for frightening you."
"No, it's fine," Lin Ruoxi didn't know how to address Yang Gongming. Technically, she should call him "grandfather" because of her marriage to Yang Chen, but she couldn't bring herself to say it, feeling awkward.
Turning back, Yang Gongming looked regretfully at Yang Chen. "Your mother knows you're her son now. She's been looking for you for over twenty years, setting up many orphanages to make up for her regret. As her father-in-law, I pity her. She wants to see you, but for various reasons, she's been confined by Pojun and can't leave. Though I am Pojun's father, I never interfere in their affairs. If you can, I hope you'll let that poor woman see you. This is just an old man's wish. I understand it might be painful for you to see them, so I won't force it."
With that, Yang Gongming and the old lady left the study, heading downstairs.
Only when the sound of Wang Ma and Huilin bidding farewell to Yang Gongming reached the study did Yang Chen slowly turn around.
Lin Ruoxi looked at Yang Chen's expressionless face, wanting to say something to ease the atmosphere or comfort him but didn't know how. In the end, they both stood in silence.
After a long while, Yang Chen's lips curled into a faint, mocking smile. He nudged his lips toward Lin Ruoxi. "Hey, darling, don't you have any thoughts to share with your husband?"
Seeing Yang Chen's forced light-heartedness, Lin Ruoxi didn't respond with her usual cold stare but asked seriously, "What are you planning to do?"
"What do you mean, what do I plan to do?" Yang Chen asked.
"Just now, Elder Yang said that Madam Guo is being confined by Yang Siling. Aren't you..." Lin Ruoxi didn't finish her sentence, fearing it might anger Yang Chen. The more Yang Chen seemed unaffected, the more she found him terrifying. It was too abnormal.
Yang Chen walked slowly to the leather swivel chair by Lin Ruoxi's desk, sat down lazily, and stretched. "I thought you were going to say something serious. Wife, your husband turned out to be a high-ranking figure in the political elite. Don't you think you've hit the jackpot with your risky investment?" Yang Chen winked at Lin Ruoxi.
Ignoring his joke, Lin Ruoxi said, "Yang Chen, don't be like this. I know you must be feeling very upset inside."
"What do you know?!"
Yang Chen suddenly sprang from his seat, pouncing on Lin Ruoxi and pinning her against the wall behind her.
Lin Ruoxi's face turned pale with fright, feeling as if Yang Chen had transformed into a beast, pressing her against the wall with overwhelming force.
Yang Chen's face loomed large before her, appearing more menacing and irate than ever. His eyes, tinged with a hint of crimson, were blazing with fury.
His hands, as solid as iron, were planted on either side of Lin Ruoxi's shoulders. His hot breath fell on her face.
The terrifying aura felt like a massive boulder on her chest, making it difficult to breathe.
However, Lin Ruoxi bit her lower lip, mustering all her strength to open her eyes and meet Yang Chen's gaze defiantly.
Yang Chen laughed derisively at the unyielding beauty before him. "Woman, do you know what it's like to eat human flesh? Let me tell you, it's not much different from eating raw rat meat. Oh, right, you've probably never had the chance to eat rat meat. Do you know what it's like to play dead in a pile of rotting corpses for three days and three nights? Let me tell you, maggots and some worm-like creatures, much longer than earthworms, will crawl into your nose and out of your ears. Do you know what it feels like to be injected with over a dozen types of biochemical drugs and used as a lab rat? It's like countless knives scraping the flesh inside your body, scraping for a week, half a month! Do you kno—"
Yang Chen couldn't continue.
With unwavering eyes filled with bloodshot veins, Lin Ruoxi abruptly kissed Yang Chen on the lips.
Yang Chen felt the cool, soft, jasmine-scented lips block all his words with an unskilled but forceful kiss.
Was he being kissed forcefully by this woman?!
Lin Ruoxi's eyes remained open, their gazes locked, lips intertwined, and noses brushing against each other.
Her breathing was rapid, revealing her inner turmoil and tension.
The sweet fragrance fermented madly in an instant, intoxicating Yang Chen.
But then, he saw clearly that Lin Ruoxi's eyes were gradually filling with tears. The tears gathered and finally streamed down her face.
Because Lin Ruoxi kissed him so forcefully, their cheeks pressed tightly together, leaving no gap between them. Yang Chen could feel the scorching heat of Lin Ruoxi's tears on their cheeks.
For a long time, as Yang Chen forgot time and place, Lin Ruoxi finally moved her lips away. She looked at Yang Chen silently, her expression as cold as ever.
"I know you're in pain. I've felt the same pain. When I poured all my efforts and abandoned my life to protect everything my grandmother left behind, that man who never fulfilled his father's duties spent his days in debauchery, colluding with outsiders to bully, insult, and even hit me. I thought about dying, about taking him down with me, about anything to make him disappear or to end my own suffering. Even when he went mad, I never felt sorry for him. I even thought he got off easy. But when you told me he died in the asylum, I felt ashamed of my own sadness. That night, I lost my mind and prayed he wouldn't suffer in another world."
Lin Ruoxi's lips trembled as she spoke, her eyes filled with tears. "You gave me the chance to be myself again. So I hope you won't end up like I did, regretting not seeing someone one last time before they died. Even if he didn't recognize me, just seeing him once would have eased my pain. No matter how much you can't accept that person, in this world, couples can divorce, friends can part, and colleagues can change. But parents and children are bound by life and death."
Yang Chen's eyes gradually cleared as he looked at the tear-streaked face of the woman before him. His expression softened.
Then, with a self-mocking smile, he murmured, "No wonder the old man said it's a good thing for women to read more."
Lin Ruoxi didn't catch what Yang Chen said and blinked in confusion, puzzled.
Suddenly, Yang Chen, as quick as lightning, planted a hard kiss on Lin Ruoxi's left cheek!
Lin Ruoxi let out a surprised cry, feeling like her cheek had been suctioned by a plunger.
"So soft, just as tender as your lips."
Yang Chen praised, smacking his lips, and laughed heartily. He moved away from Lin Ruoxi and walked out of the study.
Feeling a mix of embarrassment, annoyance, and a bit of happiness, Lin Ruoxi watched Yang Chen leave so abruptly. She called out worriedly, "Where are you going?"
Yang Chen waved his hand behind him, "Your husband is going to make up for your regrets."