Chapter 30: That Pair of Scoundrels Continued
He immediately went on high alert, not daring to speak rashly. Instead, he chose a cautious, ambiguous answer. “What do you think?”
Song Quan said, “I know you’re acting this way today, even refusing to call me Dad, because you’re resentful that I ignored you for a while. But haven’t you realized that I was actually angry?”
Mu Jia Shu: “…”
He really hadn’t.
And this man… something was off.
Song Quan gave a small smile, though there was no joy in it. “I married your mother on a whim of passion, always believing that sincerity could move even stone. I could overlook that you weren’t my child, but I hoped her second and third children would be my own flesh and blood. Even a stone would have been warmed after all these years, yet she thought of your heartless biological father until the day she died! I did do wrong; I made a promise, but my patience wasn’t as great as I imagined. I loved her, but after all these years of her refusing to accept me, I hated her too.”
Mu Jia Shu could understand Song Quan’s perspective, so he didn’t speak, simply listening intently.
Song Quan calmed his emotions slightly and continued, “But you are different. Xiao Shu, in all fairness, have I ever treated you poorly since you were a child?”
Mu Jia Shu followed his lead and shook his head.
Song Quan said, “The days when you were small were likely the hardest times of my life. I was abandoned by my family, hadn’t even graduated university, and had no ability to support myself, so I had to work odd jobs to survive. Your mother was polite and grateful toward me, but she didn’t love me. My parents even wished they had never had such an unfilial son. I felt like I had suddenly transmigrated into someone else’s body—the whole world, my whole life had changed! Everything had to be relearned; I didn’t dare see a single one of my old friends, not wanting them to find out my situation…”
Mu Jia Shu was slightly moved and glanced at him. Song Quan looked back warmly:
“But during those days, whenever I came home, you were the one who welcomed me the most. You’d shout ‘Dad’s home!’ and rush over to hug my legs excitedly. When you saw my hands were blistered from the construction site, you’d frown and blow on them for me. You relied on me, you needed me; no matter how lowly I was outside, in your heart, I was always a great father… Back then, you were the only person in the world who truly loved me. I won’t forget that!”
Mu Jia Shu pressed his hand to his forehead. He felt that if he were actually Shen Shu, he would be moved to tears right now, crying out “Dad” and sharing a heart-to-heart sob.
…It was quite a dramatic scene.
Unfortunately, although he wasn’t above a bit of acting to achieve his goals, it wasn’t necessary right now. He wasn’t about to play along with this script, so he simply looked down as if at a loss, avoiding the hope in Song Quan’s eyes.
Song Quan seemed a bit disappointed. “Over time, regardless of my relationship with your mother, you became my most important… family. You were sensitive and shy as a child, with a bit of a loner personality. I thought you’d always rely on me; I didn’t expect you to like Li Qing so much later on, even talking back to me for his sake. What kind of trash is Li Qing? Think about it—what father would want to see his son with someone like that?”
Mu Jia Shu thought to himself, Holy crap, this web of love and hate. A stepfather like Song Quan shouldn’t sound so mournful; it was too weird. On the surface, he maintained a quiet, slightly melancholic look and whispered, “…I’m sorry.”
Song Quan said, “I’m not blaming you; I was just angry for a while. I have some capital now and was planning to find you a decent job in a few days. I didn’t expect you to join Wei Shao’s company first. Xiao Shu, the things you know… did Wei Shao tell you?”
Mu Jia Shu didn’t hesitate to push it onto Wei Xun. “Yes.”
Song Quan said warmly, “Then what are your plans for the future? Do you want to come home?”
Mu Jia Shu said, “I haven’t decided yet.”
As he answered, he quickly sorted through their conversation in his head.
Because of the bad impression Song Quan had left during their first meeting, Mu Jia Shu had made a mistake—he had naturally assumed Song Quan was indifferent toward Shen Shu. He hadn’t expected their father-son relationship to be far closer than he’d anticipated. His initial attitude toward Song Quan had been inappropriate, so he had to be more careful now.
Still, it wasn’t a major issue… Mu Jia Shu tapped his finger thoughtfully on the table, deciding to use this chance to clear up the things he wanted to know.
Beside him, Song Quan heard him say he hadn’t decided and began advising him not to return to the Mu family, but to work with him instead. Mu Jia Shu intentionally hesitated and asked, “Where have you been lately? Why… why are you suddenly so rich?”
Song Quan froze, searching for the right words. Mu Jia Shu added, “I couldn’t find you for so long… do you know I was very angry too! Tell me the truth, are you really with… with another woman like the rumors say?”
Having understood their relationship better, he boldly adjusted his attitude, speaking more freely. However, keeping Shen Shu’s timid nature in mind, he intentionally made his speech a bit stilted.
Song Quan immediately said, “No, I’m not. Don’t misunderstand!”
Mu Jia Shu arched an eyebrow. “And?”
Song Quan couldn’t win against him and said helplessly, “I reconciled with my parents.”
Mu Jia Shu looked half-convinced. “So there really isn’t a rich woman supporting you?”
Song Quan’s expression actually softened. He stood up, patted Mu Jia Shu’s shoulder, and said with a smile, “Stop overthinking. It’s getting late; hurry home. I’ll come to see you again in a few days. I hope you’ll have a decision by then. The Mu family never raised you for a single day; you have no bond with them. Why go back there just to be mistreated?”
Mu Jia Shu didn’t miss the split-second hesitation in his answer. He lowered his eyes and nodded. “Okay.”
This was getting interesting.
As he walked out of the cafe, he caught Song Quan watching him leave out of the corner of his eye.
Reconciled with his parents… Mu Jia Shu turned his head back and thought deeply as he walked toward home.
Initially, when Wei Xun’s investigators said Song Quan was the son of the insurance giant Song Chusheng, Mu Jia Shu had suspected it was a mistake. Being a major player in the business world himself, he knew the Song family well. The current manager of the Song business was the chairman’s only son, Song Zhen. The sudden appearance of a Song Quan felt out of place.
But now, Mu Jia Shu felt this might actually be the truth. He had noticed a detail just now—Song Quan had married Shen Shu’s mother at twenty.
For ordinary people, the legal marriage age for men was twenty-two. The allowance for marriage at twenty only applied to certain ethnic minority regions. As far as Mu Jia Shu knew, Song Chusheng and his wife were from the Bai ethnic group. Such a coincidence was unlikely to be an accident.
Mu Jia Shu frowned slightly. He wasn’t particularly worried about the Song family, but the mysteries surrounding Song Quan’s identity were a bit troublesome.
Elderly people tended to sleep early and wake early. By the time Mu Jia Shu got home, Wang Xiufang was already resting in the bedroom. To save electricity, no lights were left on. Mu Jia Shu quietly shut the door and went to the kitchen. There was food left in the pot for him—a steamed bun and half a bowl of tomato and scrambled eggs.
He had basically mastered the skill of washing dishes by now. After eating, he cleaned the utensils and put them in the cupboard. Using the moonlight coming through the window, he organized the items he’d bought at the supermarket and realized he had forgotten to buy a radio.
Back when Li Zhiguo had come to their house, he had smashed Wang Xiufang’s radio. Mu Jia Shu had fixed it later, and the old lady made do with it, but he had wanted to buy her a new one. With one thing after another happening, he kept forgetting.
Mu Jia Shu decided he definitely had to buy one next time.
Actually, the supermarket he had gone to was close to home but not in a particularly bustling area, so he had thought the encounter with Wen Shihe was an accident. He didn’t expect to run into him again just a few days later.
He had just paid for the radio when he heard someone shouting “Shen Shu.”
Mu Jia Shu was dazed for a moment, not reacting. After a few steps, he remembered he was Shen Shu and turned around, finding that the one shouting was the annoying Wen Shihe.
Wen Shihe walked over from the checkout line. “I’ve noticed we’ve been running into each other a lot lately.”
…It was definitely a cursed fate.
Mu Jia Shu held his shopping bag and glanced at Wen Shihe’s empty hands; clearly, he wasn’t there to buy groceries.
He gave a faint smile. “Yes, what a coincidence. Since Wen Shao is busy, I’ll be going?”
“Hey, what’s the rush?” Wen Shihe blocked his path. “I’ve found you’ve become a lot more interesting lately. Li Qing can’t even compare to you… So, are you still devoted to him?”
Mu Jia Shu figured the man was just bored today. He didn’t commit to an answer, only saying, “If Li Qing heard Wen Shao say that, he’d be heartbroken.”
Wen Shihe waved a hand, appearing nonchalant. “Anyone following me who can’t even handle that wouldn’t have survived this long.”
Mu Jia Shu could sense Wen Shihe observing his expression as he spoke. He pursed his lips and turned to walk out of the supermarket without a word.
Wen Shihe followed him. “Oh, are you angry? You were acting so cool the other day, but I knew you couldn’t have forgotten Li Qing.”
Mu Jia Shu ignored him and walked straight out of the supermarket doors. If anyone else had acted this way with him, Wen Shihe would have lost his patience long ago. But oddly enough, as a man, Shen Shu had a delicate, refined beauty; his pouting expression was actually quite endearing. Despite his instinctive repulsion toward that face, Wen Shihe was momentarily captivated.
He reached out to take the bag from Mu Jia Shu’s hand. “Come on, let me carry that for you.”
Mu Jia Shu: “…”
He had originally wanted to use this excuse to shake Wen Shihe off, but he hadn’t expected the man to be suffering from “Arrogant CEO Syndrome”—the more you ignore them, the more they want to stick to you.
It was bizarre. What was wrong with this guy? He had looked down on him just a few days ago. He’d heard their family had underworld ties; maybe someone had hit him over the head in a dark alley recently.
Just then, the phone in his pocket rang.
Mu Jia Shu took a look and ignored Wen Shihe, walking fast to leave him behind before picking up. “San Ge.”
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