17 17
◎Jiang Family◎
Uncle Li is dead?
Mu Heqing choked on the biscuit in her throat, her face turning red. She grabbed a large gulp of water from the rest area before she could swallow the biscuit.
Li Shi walked over and stood beside Mu Heqing, ignoring the stares of those around him.
Mu and Qing, clutching the water bottle, their eyes red from choking, said, "Show..."
"What happened? Why did you suddenly choke?" Li Shi was very nervous; he thought Mu Heqing was going to die here.
Mu Heqing almost choked to death on the cookies from Ouyang Zhu Group, and once again she felt that this place did not suit her.
"Uncle Li is dead? What happened?" Mu Heqing caught his breath.
"Who died?" Li Shi asked, still observing Mu and Qing's breathing. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that it had stabilized.
“His father.” Mu Heqing pointed to Li Yu sitting there.
Li Yu asked in despair, "Didn't you say that if our family wanted to continue, someone had to die? But we don't want to think about that anymore, so why did my dad still die so quickly?"
Li Shi did not speak.
Mu Heqing advised, "Don't put on this arrogant act now. They've raised you for a hundred years, it's no big deal for them to say a few words."
Tears streamed down Li Yu's face. He left the child at home and followed Li Shi out alone, just to find out why.
After Mu and Qing left, the family clearly agreed not to let Li Shi reincarnate in their family again, but to live out the rest of their days well.
Li Shi spoke up: "This is his wish."
"What?" Li Yu stopped crying.
"His wish was for the family to survive, and the price was his life. I fulfilled his wish; it was that simple."
Li Shi's tone was icy, his expression indifferent, and his demeanor made people uncomfortable, as if he were looking down on them from a great height.
"No! You're lying!" Li Yu broke down. "My dad clearly promised me."
Mu and Qing understood. According to what Li Shi had said before, the Li family had reached a period of decline. If they wanted Li Shi to still be in their family and be worshipped by them, more people would have to die.
Even if Li Shi didn't join the Li family and wasn't offered sacrifices by them, the Li family was still in decline. If they wanted to have another child, one of them would have to die. If he had a choice, Uncle Li would rather choose himself.
That was his wish.
Otherwise, the price he pays would not be in line with his wishes.
Mu Heqing asked, "Is Uncle Li's wish that if someone in their family is to die, it will start with him, then his wife, Li Yu, Li Yu's wife, then their children, and their children's children?"
“Yes, his premature death was to determine the order of death for the Li family members. Li Yu, you should be happy. Your child will have more children, and your family will continue to exist for a while longer,” Li Shi said.
Li Yu's expression froze instantly. Happy? He should be happy?
“What’s the point!” Li Yu shouted.
One parent after another died, until in the end there was only one person left in the family. Just for that, he had to die sooner.
Just for this?
Li Yu couldn't believe it. He hoped that Li Shi was lying to him, but he knew that Li Shi wouldn't lie about this.
Mu and Qing stood between Li Shi and Li Yu, with Li Yu, who was emotionally distraught, on their left and Li Shi, who was as cold as a god, on their right.
She felt a tremendous sense of absurdity.
She felt as if she had returned to seven years ago, to the days when she was about to graduate from high school, with reality and illusion pulling at her.
"What are you doing here?"
After finishing her business, Ouyang Zhu reappeared with Si Fei. She said helplessly, "You've made too much of a commotion; I don't know how to handle it anymore."
"Huh?" Mu and Qing realized belatedly.
Ouyang Zhu said, "Fortunately, no one was watching, otherwise it would have taken a while to deal with it."
Mu and Qing were puzzled. No one was watching? Even if the people at Guihui Group were passionate about their work, didn't they have any interest in gossip?
She looked around and realized that although there were so many people coming and going in the rest area, not a single person had stared at Li Shi's face.
Her worries were completely unnecessary.
Something just doesn't feel right.
"Chairman Ouyang, do you usually show them Sifei's paintings?"
“No, Consort Si usually doesn’t appear in front of others.” Ouyang Zhu shook her head; even she rarely appears in front of the group’s employees.
Besides, if people look at too many of Sifei's paintings, won't they become stupid? How will the employees work then?
"Honey, why are you asking this?"
“I feel something’s not right. What departments usually come to the rest area here?” Mu Heqing felt that her return to Ancheng would have to be postponed.
"Project Six is mainly responsible for green cleaning products."
…………
Jiang Mu has been quite upset these past few days.
After having that meal with Mu and Qing, he never saw her again.
He stared at his phone for a long time, typed a few words in the "QingqingQAQ" chat box, deleted a few words, and ultimately didn't send a single message.
He didn't know where his irritability came from, but he had met with Mu and Qing three times and didn't know what he cared about.
Most importantly, he ruined her first impression of him.
It was a truly unfortunate start, a complete disaster, perhaps a punishment for his past positive public image.
As he hesitated, his phone rang, and the words "low cabinet" appeared on the black screen.
He pressed the answer button.
"Gao Zhou?"
"Brother, it's me. I'm in the hospital."
"Why are you in the hospital?"
"Let me tell you, I've encountered something really weird..."
The sounds on the phone suddenly became noisy, and Jiang Mu couldn't hear them clearly.
"Gao Zhou, I didn't hear you clearly, could you say it again?"
"I'm telling you, forget it. I advise you not to investigate that Kyushu Manor anymore. The more mysterious it is, the more dangerous it is."
"Well, I haven't been investigating lately. I'm just afraid the old man won't let me off the hook. If it were a good thing, why wouldn't he go after Jiang Kaicheng?" Besides, he's been preoccupied with other things lately, and the matter of the Kyushu Manor has become secondary.
"Your old man probably can't cause too much trouble, just ignore him. Have you gone back to Qingcheng?"
"I just arrived yesterday. Are you hospitalized in Qingcheng? I'll come see you."
"No need, it's just a minor injury. Besides, it's so late, you can come again tomorrow. I want to eat the big steamed buns from Wangyue Pavilion."
"Okay, send me the hospital address, I'll come see you tomorrow morning."
"Bringing steamed buns?"
"I'll order now, with the steamed buns in hand."
Jiang Mu hung up the phone, and "Dwarf Cabinet" quickly sent the address. It was a private hospital called Qingcheng Dongqian Hospital.
The "low cabinet" is in the orthopedics department; it's estimated that it has a fracture.
After ordering the steamed buns, Jiang Mu stared blankly at the chat box between Mu and Qing.
What should I start with, and how can I salvage the first impression?
For the first time, Jiang Mu was struggling with interpersonal relationships.
He leaned back on the sofa, his brow furrowed.
A hand with a diamond ring on its ring finger reached out to touch Jiang Mu's back.
As if he had eyes in the back of his head, Jiang Mu tilted his body and dodged the hand.
He stood up, turned around, and with a forced smile, called out, "Sister-in-law."
Jiang Mu has an older half-brother named Jiang Kaicheng. The woman standing before Jiang Mu now is his brother's wife, Xu Ruyi.
Xu Ruyi, with her long, wavy hair, exquisite makeup, and wearing a black jumpsuit, said with a grin, "Oh, Xiao Mu is back! Was Ancheng fun?"
"It's alright." Jiang Mu maintained a polite smile.
Xu Ruyi approached Jiang Mu, her long black nails almost poking Jiang Mu's chest, and Jiang Mu silently took a step back.
"Why are you so far away from me? We have a past relationship."
"What kind of relationship?" Jiang Mu couldn't think of any past relationship between him and Xu Ruyi.
"My college classmate, I confessed my feelings to you, and then you came to see me with my boyfriend at the time, telling me to cherish the person in front of me. At that time, I felt that you were different. Unfortunately, fate played a trick on me, and in the end I married your brother."
Jiang Mu almost didn't even bother to feign an expression; for the first time, he was grateful for the twists of fate.
He looked behind Xu Ruyi and called out, "Brother."
Xu Ruyi's expression froze. She turned around and saw a furious man.
This man is Jiang Mu's older brother, Jiang Kaicheng. Jiang Kaicheng's parents are both good-looking, so he is also handsome.
However, his very first words ruined his image. He nodded to Jiang Mu and greeted him, "Brother, you're back."
"Yes, I just got back yesterday."
No sooner had Jiang Mu finished speaking than Jiang Kaicheng said to Xu Ruyi, "You're doing this again, again!"
"What's wrong with me?" Xu Ruyi retorted, straightening her chest.
Jiang Mu knew that the two of them were about to start arguing again. He silently left, leaving the battle to this couple who were only pretending to be husband and wife.
However, the sound of their arguing continued to reach his ears.
"You've provoked my brother again! Didn't I tell you he's been in a bad mood lately? Don't bother him!" Jiang Kaicheng said anxiously, clapping his left hand with his right, as if he were dancing.
How do you know he's in a bad mood? He seems to be in a good mood.
"He's my brother, how could I not know? If he were in a good mood, would he have been wandering around outside for so long before coming home? I told you, don't mess with him, don't mess with him, otherwise I'll be the one cleaning up your mess in the end."
"When did I ask you to wipe my butt?"
"Ha, that's hilarious. Last time you went to the club and didn't have any money when you went to book a room in the middle of the night, didn't you still call me to transfer money to you?"
"Was that your brother's doing? That explains why my card was suddenly frozen."
"You have no shame. Going to a hotel is one thing, but calling me is another? Are you trying to make headlines in Qingcheng again? You're making me lose all face." Jiang Kaicheng patted his face.
"How dare you say that to me? When I married you, I thought you were a good person, tall and handsome. I thought I had found true love. Who knew that on our wedding night, you would refuse to marry me no matter what, and keep talking about your mother."
"My mom said..."
"Don't mention your mother. We'll talk again when you stop talking about her!"
The arguing finally stopped. Jiang Mu stood in front of the door, about to open it.
A fair-skinned middle-aged woman hid in the darkness, leaning against the wall next to the door, and said softly, "If only you had married Ruyi back then, your father would have been so happy and would have put you first instead of Jiang Kaicheng."
Jiang Mu's face darkened, and she retorted, "Do you hate me, Mom?"
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