"Either do as we say," he lowered his voice very low, and each word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth, with a fishy metallic smell.
"Or, wait and see your Su family—your father's life's work, your mother's proud 'Xinghai', and your eldest Miss Su's proud family name—completely rot in the mud, cursed by everyone, and never able to rise again! Choose one!"
The last three words were thrown out fiercely like a poisoned dagger.
Old Man Chao said nothing more, but just watched her struggle on the verge of collapse with his all-seeing eyes.
His skinny hand reached out to a nearby mahogany drawer inlaid with intricate mother-of-pearl, opened it silently, and took out a slim tablet computer.
His movements were unhurried, as if he was just taking out an ordinary ornament.
With a light swipe of the fingertips on the cold screen, the screen instantly lights up, and a high-definition image is projected clearly -
At the foot of the European Alps, a familiar off-white villa covered in ivy. Large floor-to-ceiling windows overlook a meticulously tended garden, and in the distance, snow-capped peaks stretch to the horizon.
In the living room, warm yellow light shines softly.
Her mother, wearing a lavender cashmere cardigan that Su Xinghui had sent her last year, was sitting on a soft fabric sofa, her head slightly tilted, staring intently at the TV screen with a peaceful smile on her face.
Her father, Su Mingyuan, was sitting on the single sofa next to her. He was wearing reading glasses and holding an open newspaper in his hand. His brows were slightly furrowed as usual, as if he was thinking about some news on the international page.
"Your mother's heart," the old man's calm voice sounded, as if he was stating an insignificant weather fact, but it accurately pierced Su Xinghui's last bit of luck.
"Not very good, right? It seems that the imported medicines prescribed by the doctor are almost finished." He paused and tapped lightly on the edge of the screen with his fingertips, making a light sound, like the prelude to a death knell.
"Although the Alps are beautiful in winter, the climate is unpredictable... An elderly man, overcome by emotion, suffered a heart attack..."
He shrugged his thin shoulders slightly, his action as casual as brushing off a speck of dust.
"Who can say for sure about this kind of thing? After all, accidents...are always around."
Su Xinghui's blood froze at that moment. Her heart felt as if it were being grasped by an invisible, icy giant hand, then violently dragged towards the abyss.
She turned her neck stiffly, her eyes moving mechanically back and forth between the cold document spread out, filled with evidence of her father's guilt, and the heartwarming scene on the screen where her parents were completely unaware.
"Have you thought about it?" Ye Linyuan's voice sounded again, with a lazy tone of confidence of victory.
He lowered his head slightly and glanced at the priceless platinum watch on his wrist. The dial reflected a cold glow in the dim light.
"My patience," he said, raising his eyes, his gaze like a poisoned needle, piercing Su Xinghui again, "is very limited."
Su Xinghui's lips moved slightly, but no sound came out.
Mr. Chao added appropriately: "Besides, don't you like Chao Youye? After this is done, I can let him return... to you."
At this moment, time is infinitely stretched and compressed.
Her shoulders collapsed in an extremely small and imperceptible manner, as if the spine that supported the entire world was instantly pulled away.
The tense lines of his spine softened, but it wasn't a relaxation, but rather a complete, resigned limp. The tightly stretched string finally snapped.
“…I promise.”
The words were as light as the sigh of a dying person, so weak that they were almost completely swallowed up by the sound of the wind outside the window.
However, in this dead silent room where even the air seemed frozen, it was clearly heard by the two people opposite.
A crack finally appeared on the icy mask on the old man's face that had remained unchanged for thousands of years.
He clapped his hands lightly, the crisp applause seemed abrupt and harsh in the empty room.
As if a switch that had been set long ago was triggered, a hidden door on the side of the living room, the same color as the wall, slid open silently.
A waiter in a black uniform and expressionless face appeared silently like a ghost, holding a bright silver tray in his hand.
On the tray, in two slender goblets, the amber champagne liquid rippled slightly, and tiny bubbles rose densely and happily, reflecting a cold, dazzling, yet extremely false light under the dim wall lamp.
"It's a pleasure working with you." Ye Linyuan raised his glass first, his lips curled up in a perfect, malicious arc, his eyes as sharp as a knife, firmly fixed on Su Xinghui's distraught face.
The liquid in the cup swayed gently with his movements, and the dazzling luster now looked like a reflection of hellfire.
Su Xinghui's gaze swept across the glass of champagne in front of her, which symbolized the "agreement." The jubilant bubbles in her eyes looked like tears of despair shattering.
Her gaze finally fell out of focus on the corner of the coffee table near the old man's armrest.
There, placed a small, forgotten green plant - a jade tree with thick leaves.
The edges of its leaves have lost their healthy green color and have taken on a withered, burnt yellow color. They are curled up weakly, and the leaves are covered with a thin layer of unattended dust.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
