remember

“Yuanjing, it’s been three days already, why won’t your dad let Xiaoshi come out?”

While comforting his wife, Lu Yuanjing stared at the screen, secretly racking his brains for a way out of the predicament.

He knew that the old man had long intended for Lu Yuanzhi to be the heir of the Lu family. Asking for 20 million to get a piece of empty land was also a way of telling everyone that he and his son had no designs on the group and that they had made their intention to stay away from the group public.

Unexpectedly, even so, Lu Yuanzhi still interfered, refusing to give up even this small amount of start-up capital.

A well-planned drama completely blocked Lu Yushi's path to survival in the old man's eyes.

Whether he admits it or not, Lu Yushi will inevitably suffer a lot of grievances.

If he admits it, the infamy of stealing his own secrets and selling them for money will be a burden that Lu Yushi will carry for the rest of his life. He did nothing wrong, yet he is burdened with such a stigma that will be difficult to clear in the future. Moreover, Old Master Lu is extremely biased towards Lu Yuanzhi and will never give Lu Yushi a chance to clear his name.

If they don't acknowledge it, how can anyone live in a desolate suburban house?

“When did Xiaoshi ever suffer like this?” Shi Nian’an said, forcing back tears. “They call it a mansion, but the walls aren’t even finished. The dusty environment is even worse. It’s been cold these past few nights, and the forecast says it will rain tomorrow. What will Xiaoshi do all by herself?”

"Alright, get some rest. I'll go to the old house again tomorrow."

Lu Yuanjing stroked his wife's shoulder, all his words seeming pale and powerless. He couldn't persuade Lu Yushi to admit to something he hadn't done; he couldn't convince the old man Lu to release the man without evidence.

"That damned Lu Yuanzhi, after taking that 20 million, who knows how he'll swagger around in front of Xiao Shi. If I had known it would end like this, I would have preferred that Xiao Shi stay at the branch office for the rest of her life, at least the family could be together, and Xiao Shi wouldn't have to suffer like this."

Lu Yuanjing was taken aback, then shook his head helplessly and whispered, "Nian'an, now that things have come to this, if we advise Xiao Shi to accept the status quo, wouldn't that be helping Lu Yuanzhi bully him?"

"I……"

"Do you think Xiao Shi would rather none of this had happened, or would you rather have more say and compete with Lu Yuanzhi?"

“But your father is so biased, leaving Xiao Shi to fight against your father and Lu Yuanzhi alone. How could she possibly win?”

"This time we were caught off guard."

...

A soft, plaintive whisper echoed into the deep of night.

The 28-day confinement marked the beginning of the first confrontation between Lu Yushi and Lu Yuanzhi.

Lu Yuanzhi took away the 20 million that belonged to Lu Yushi, while Lu Yushi exchanged three years abroad for his freedom, leaving behind countless long nights where he had to fall asleep with sleeping pills.

Over the past three years, with the help of his grandfather, Lu Yuanzhi has continuously expanded his power. The flattery around him has numbed his most basic judgment, so much so that even when the dark muzzle of a gun was pointed at him, Lu Yuanzhi still did not believe that he had been defeated.

"Bang!"

The dilapidated iron gate was kicked open, dust fell in a flurry, floating in the air with the airflow. As the wisps of dust dissipated, Lu Yushi's indifferent face appeared before them. He had his left hand in his pocket and his right hand playing with a gun, the muzzle swirling around his finger bones, unhurriedly.

The sudden light made Lu Yuanzhi squint and look outside. He saw a familiar suit and trousers, and his surprise turned to joy. He shouted, "Lu Yushi, call an ambulance for me right away!"

There was no answer, only the heavy footsteps approaching.

Then, the door closed again.

"What are you doing! If you dare touch me, my dad won't let you get away with it." Having always been a superior person, he naturally didn't easily beg for mercy. Lu Yuanzhi shouted loudly, "Stop! I told you to stop! Do you want to experience those 28 days again?"

Her footsteps stopped as she wished, less than half a meter away from him.

"Call an ambulance. I was shot in the leg and can't move."

The small room had only a tiny window, through which the summer sun peeked in with its warm rays, but all of it fell on Lu Yushi.

His face was illuminated by the sunlight, like sunlight piercing into an old glacier.

Having slept for less than five hours in three whole days, Lu Yuanzhi's words were like a thorn stuck in my heart, piercing through the despair of those 28 days.

He would rather be punished in any way—beaten, scolded, or handed over to the authorities for leaking secrets—than be alone in an empty house, oblivious to day and night, whether asleep or awake, with no peace in his ears and no sunlight before his eyes.

It made him feel as if he would completely go insane in the house.

In the blink of an eye, the pistol was cocked. When he finally snapped out of the mire of the past, Lu Yuanzhi was already slumped in the corner, his right hand bleeding profusely.

Qiu Jingxun rushed in from outside, blocked the door, and said with a serious expression: "Yu Shi, come on, you go out the back door. I'll handle things here. Don't worry, ambulances are slow to arrive overseas. I'll make it look like a criminal attack."

Lu Yushi stared silently at his right hand.

"Hurry up and go," Qiu Jingxun pushed him, not even noticing the trembling in his hands, "If Old Master Lu finds out, we're finished."

In the corner, Lu Yuanzhi, clutching his bleeding right hand, sneered: "Lu Yushi, it's not too late for you to beg me now. Or, do you dare to kill me? Do you dare to let me die here?"

"Shut up!" Qiu Jingxun.

"Do you dare!"

Lu Yushi gripped the gun tightly with his right hand, the excessive force causing his knuckles to turn a sickly white.

Lu Yuanzhi stared at him warily, his eyes filled with confidence that he wouldn't dare to do anything. "The Lu family is nearby and will be here soon. Do you believe me or not..."

"Bang!"

The gunshot drowned out Qiu Jingxun's urging. Qiu Jingxun stood there stunned, watching as a dark hole appeared on Lu Yuanzhi's left wrist, from which blood gushed out.

Without waiting for a reaction, he grabbed Lu Yu, who was being forced into a corner, and whispered, "Are you crazy?"

Lu Yushi seemed not to hear, his face expressionless, taking one step at a time, his eyes fixed on Lu Yuanzhi who was trying to squeeze into the corner, and finally saw the panic that should have appeared long ago in front of him.

"Lu Yushi, I'm your uncle. What do you want?" His battered body had nowhere to retreat, and his voice was sharp but laced with malice. "You'd better take me to the hospital now, or else..."

Lu Yushi stared at him for a while, then squatted down and pressed the muzzle of his gun against his chin.

Seeing this, Qiu Jingxun frowned deeply, walked over and squatted down beside him, patiently persuading, "Yu Shi, listen to me, leave now. I've already called people over. This place has nothing to do with you... Yu Shi, he can't die here. Old Master Lu knows you have people here. If he dies here, you won't be able to explain yourself."

Qiu Jingxun's persuasion failed to convince Lu Yu, but it gave Lu Yuanzhi a great deal of confidence.

"land……"

Before he could finish speaking, Lu Yushi interrupted him: "I've already transferred the Lu family members."

The voices were calm, as if they were discussing whether the weather was sunny or not.

Lu Yuanzhi's astonishment widened, and belated terror froze on his face. His straight back bent down, sliding down the corner of the wall, his trembling body unable to distinguish between pain and fear.

"Let me go, let me go. I can get Dad to give you this branch company... no, the whole company too. Haven't you always wanted to join the company? I'll get them to cooperate with you, okay? Next month's election, I'll get them all to vote for you, alright? Let me go."

Lu Yushi stood up, put away his gun, and looked down at Lu Yuanzhi, who was kneeling at his feet and pleading desperately.

Just like back then, Lu Yuanzhi stood high above him, staring at him fiercely, his cold eyes flashing with a bloodthirsty light, and said, "Beg me, beg me, and I'll let you leave. Kneel down and beg me."

Shaking his head to clear away the heavy memories, Lu Yushi said, "You won't die."

"Phew." Lu Yuanzhi let out a long sigh of relief, lowered his head, and stared at his legs with hatred in his eyes. He thought to himself that once he got out, he would definitely make Lu Yushi suffer a terrible death.

Looking up, Lu Yushi turned his gaze away.

Lu Yuanzhi tentatively asked, "May I leave now?"

Lu Yushi neither agreed nor disagreed, and turned to leave.

Their figures receded into the distance, and soon both disappeared completely behind the door.

Wild birds flew back and forth outside the window a few times, and just as the last rays of sunlight disappeared, footsteps came again from outside the door, chaotic and disorderly.

Lu Yuanzhi breathed a long sigh of relief.

We're saved.

He straightened his clothes and adjusted his expression to make himself appear calm and composed.

The door was pushed open, but all the people who entered were unfamiliar faces.

The long stick fell erratically, and the legs went from pain to numbness to loss of sensation in just a moment.

The liquid inside the glass bottle shimmered faintly. They pried open his mouth; the pain blurred his consciousness, and he slept for a full 18 days.

When he woke up, Grandpa Lu was by his bedside.

"Dad." He opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

Having slept for too long, his throat was swollen, sore, and itchy. He took a deep breath and glanced at the hot water in the glass on the corner of the table.

He raised his right arm and slowly reached forward, but the moment he touched the glass, his pupils dilated.

wrong!

His hand clearly touched the cup, so why didn't he feel anything?

I pulled my arm back and raised my left hand to massage, only to find that I couldn't muster any strength; my limp left hand felt like a deflated balloon.

My mind went completely blank for a moment. What happened?

Without thinking, he forcefully swung his arm and slammed it against the bed frame. His right hand slammed heavily onto the bedding in a twisted position, but he didn't feel any pain.

He opened his mouth as wide as he could, but still no sound came out.

Despair permeated my entire being.

After some commotion, they finally woke up Old Master Lu.

"Xiaozhi, you're awake. How are you? Is anything bothering you?" The usually energetic old man seemed to have aged 10 years in an instant, his face full of self-blame. "It's all Dad's fault, it's all Dad's fault."

Lu Yuanzhi was stunned for a moment, and it took him a while to understand. He opened his mouth and kept saying "ah", but he couldn't muster any strength to raise his hand.

Grandpa Lu tucked his hands back under the thin blanket and gently patted his shoulder to comfort him.

“Toxic gas was released into that room. By the time the ambulance arrived, your throat was already infected. To save your life, we had no choice but to…” He choked up, “…to cut it off.”

Lu Yuanzhi froze, and after a moment he frantically tried to get up, only to realize belatedly that he had no feeling in his lower limbs.

Using the strength of his arm, he reached down and found that the thin blanket covered only empty sheets.

It was Lu Yushi!

He tried to shout, but no sound came out.

I can't even lift a pen, let alone pick up a phone to type.

Grandpa Lu hugged him tenderly: "Xiao Zhi, calm down. Dad will find a medical team to treat you. It's okay. The medical care here is very advanced. We can use prosthetics and an electronic larynx. You'll get better. Everything will be alright."

Tears streamed down his once composed and strategic face.

Lu Yushi stood at the door, coldly watching the father and son embracing each other. After Lu Yuanzhi calmed down, he pushed the door open and entered.

"Chairman, there will be a specialist consultation at 2 PM tomorrow."

Lu Yuanzhi, who had calmed down just a second ago, went into a frenzy again when he saw Lu Yu. He twisted his body recklessly, his eyes filled with rage, and stared at Lu Yu with his mouth open and close, but no angry sound came out.

Old Master Lu's face was full of worry. He patted Lu Yuanzhi's shoulder and angrily scolded him as if he had nowhere to vent his anger: "Lu Yushi, your uncle got into trouble on your turf, and you're still standing here like nothing happened? Apologize to your uncle!"

Lu Yushi, who was usually not good at speaking, seemed to have become a different person. He slowly stepped forward and looked directly at Lu Yuanzhi: "Uncle, I'm sorry that you were so badly injured here."

He spoke slowly and deliberately.

His sharp gaze seemed to express dissatisfaction with Lu Yuanzhi's current predicament.

Lu Yuanzhi concentrated all his strength and raised his elbow in an attempt to deliver a fatal blow, but Lu Yushi lightly stopped his movement.

"Uncle, the doctor said that getting angry is not good for your wound healing," he said, taking out a syringe from the side, rubbing the words "sedative" with his fingertip, tearing open the packaging, and looking at Old Master Lu questioningly, "Would you like to do it, or should I?"

Old Master Lu waved his hand weakly, lowered his head, walked out the door, sat on a bench in the corridor, and left with a long sigh of despair.

"Come on in."

Lu Yushi nodded, watching the room door slowly close, then slowly turned around and looked directly at Lu Yuanzhi.

Having shed his arrogant nature, Lu Yuanzhi curled up, losing the ruthlessness that once made him so detestable.

"Do you like it here? The chairman specially selected the best sanatorium for you."

There was no answer. Lu Yuanzhi was speechless, his bloodshot eyes fixed on Lu Yushi as if he wanted to devour him alive.

After expelling the remaining air from the syringe, Lu Yushi chuckled softly and said, "Uncle, the bed is not like a corner of the wall. If you back up any further, you'll fall off."

The sunlight shone on his face, but it made Lu Yuanzhi feel a chill.

Taking advantage of the injection, Lu Yushi leaned slightly closer to Lu Yuanzhi and whispered in his ear, "Don't you feel like it would be better to die there?"

Naturally, no answer was received.

Looking at the hatred in Lu Yuanzhi's eyes, he slowly said, "However, your father won't let you die. You have no chance."

All resistance was silently suppressed.

Before he fell into a deep sleep, Lu Yuanzhi heard Lu Yushi's whispers echoing in his ears.

Do you regret leaving that house in the suburbs alive back then?