Chapter 184: Chapter 184

Fu Jichen watched her face full of tears, but felt no sympathy, only sensing pretentiousness.

The afterglow in the sky had faded, and the streetlights in the courtyard lit up. The wind on the terrace was strong, making Wei Ronghua’s eyes sting. "Jichen, believe your mother, I really didn’t..."

Fu Jichen withdrew his arm from her hand, not even bothering to maintain the most basic courtesy, pressing her step by step, "I’ll ask you again, how did you threaten her?"

Wei Ronghua was teary-eyed, and could only manage to utter a single "I", stammering for half the day without saying a complete sentence.

How was she supposed to say it? That she threatened Shen Jianian with her teacher and friends?

He’d probably forgive her even less if he heard that.

Fu Jichen didn’t expect to get an answer from her, giving a self-deprecating laugh, "To fall into this situation today, in the end, I also hold some responsibility. It’s because I don’t know you well enough."

Because he knew some old stories, he had been wary of her from the beginning, not expecting things to still go astray.

Wei Ronghua kept shaking her head in denial. She knew it would be : once he found out that she had forced Shen Jianian to leave, he would blame Shen Jianian’s death on her.

"What exactly do I have to say for you to believe that I didn’t do it?" Wei Ronghua cried out heartbreakingly, "In your eyes, is your mother a cold-blooded murderer?!"

Does she really have to die for him to believe that it has nothing to do with her?

Wei Ronghua’s heart felt like it was being ripped apart, unbearably painful. Why would her own son, for the sake of a woman he’d known for less than a year, question her ?

Fu Jichen had been ready to leave, but the sound of this heart-wrenching cry made him stop in his tracks. He turned to look at her tear-stained side profile, and asked in a low voice, "Did you really never act like a murderer?"

Wei Ronghua was caught off guard, her blurred vision showing her son’s cold face, his gaze like an arrow piercing straight through her brow.

Her heart trembled, and then her whole body shook, "Jichen..."

A man’s deep voice suddenly interrupted what Wei Ronghua couldn’t say, "What’s going on here?"

Fu Zhengjun stood by the glass sliding door, not having heard what was said before but based on intuition, sensed that the atmosphere between the mother and son was not pleasant, perhaps even tense.

As he walked closer, Fu Zhengjun saw his wife crying like it was raining, and his son looking indifferent, unable to make heads or tails of it for a moment. Frowning, he asked again, "What’s the matter?"

Wei Ronghua felt a grievance that couldn’t be expressed, pursing her lips, mind still lingering on her son’s question, her heart racing.

Some things she thought with time could be treated as nonexistent; now she finds that the more she tries to forget them, the more they become hidden troubles. Once resurfacing, the pain doubles, incurable by medicine.

Fu Jichen didn’t rush to leave. In front of his father, he briefly recapped the conversation he had with his mother, trying to let him see the truth about his partner beside him: "Shen Jianian got into a car accident in Jiang City, and her body is yet to be found. Today I found out that before that, Mother had gone to her, used some means to force her to leave. Now I can’t help but suspect whether the accident was really an accident or human-induced."

Wei Ronghua countered, "Jichen, do you want to wrongfully kill your mother?!"

It was rare for Fu Zhengjun to hear his son say so much in one go to him, yet he did not interrupt, as the shock inside him kept growing with his son’s words.

By the end, his gaze was directly on the person beside him, "Is what Jichen said true, did you go to see Shen Jianian?"

Wei Ronghua’s tears had dried up; not feeling that she’d done wrong anywhere, she said rightfully, "Jichen is about to get engaged to the Xu Family’s daughter. What status does she have to stay by Jichen’s side? What would the Xu Family think if they found out? Last time their affair made it to the news, and the Xu Family already had a lot to say."

Fu Zhengjun’s eyes showed confusion, as if he couldn’t understand her actions, "Didn’t I tell you that Jichen has his own thoughts, that you shouldn’t interfere? I’ll speak to Dad about it, nothing’s settled about the engagement until the last minute."

"Invitations have already been sent out! There’s no room to maneuver!"

The grievance in Wei Ronghua’s heart was diluted by anger. No one understood her painstaking efforts; instead, they all came to blame her, as if she was the greatest villain in the world.

Fu Zhengjun’s expression grew extremely ugly. He knew his wife’s strong character, and dealing with Shen Jianian was likely more than just talking, probably warnings and threats were involved.

The girl was only in her early twenties, in her prime years. The night she came to the old house to celebrate the old man’s birthday, she greeted the family dignifiedly. He still had an impression of that and could see his son’s attention to her.

Never had he seen Jichen bring a girl back to the old house before.

His son’s current state of mind is like his own when he first fell in love with a girl, wanting to be together at all costs. He hadn’t been able to fulfill that promise back then, betraying that person, leading to her untimely death, leaving himself with a lifetime of regret.

He wished for his son to have completeness, and so had discussed this many times with the old man.

The old man was stubborn and inflexible; decades of notions couldn’t be changed overnight. He thought Wei Ronghua shouldn’t be .

Facing her now, Fu Zhengjun didn’t even know what to say.

"Even you don’t believe me?" Wei Ronghua’s tears, which she’d just managed to stop, burst forth again.

After saying this, she looked at the faces of her husband and son, clearly showing disbelief in her words. At this moment, she only felt immense sadness; having worked hard for this family for decades, and what had she ultimately gained?

The estrangement of her son, the distrust of her husband.

Without another word, Fu Zhengjun grabbed her hand, dragging her out of the terrace, taking large steps back to their bedroom, locking the door to keep any interruptions at bay.

"Now there’s no one else here." Fu Zhengjun released her hand, coldly looking at her, needing to clarify some things, "I ask you, does that girl’s car accident have anything to do with you?"

"No, no, how many times do I have to say it?!" Wei Ronghua was pushed to swear a toxic oath, "If Shen Jianian’s death has anything to do with me, may I be struck by thunder, die a horrible death! Is that enough?"

However, Fu Zhengjun’s expression did not soften much, "You should know, there are many people in this world who swear, but not many whose sworn words actually come true."

Wei Ronghua felt a pang in her heart.

"You know very well that your son has intentions for Shen Jianian. What you’ve done is pushing him away from you. Have you thought this through?" Fu Zhengjun spoke deeply, "Or did you think that what you’ve done is seamless and wouldn’t be found out by him, so you could be at ease?"

Wei Ronghua was left speechless, for he’d hit the nail on the head.

After a long silence, Wei Ronghua tried defending herself, "I was only going with Dad’s wishes; he wouldn’t allow Jichen to be with that Shen Jianian in any..."

"Don’t use Dad as a shield. Search your heart; did you have any selfish motives before you did these things?" Fu Zhengjun’s tone bore heavy fatigue, not from lack of sleep but from utter disappointment in his wife’s actions, "You are his mother; you should be mindful of everything for him. What you should do is respect his wishes rather than impose your views on him. I thought some truths you would understand even if not spoken aloud; myriad signs show you’re indeed not a qualified mother."

The moment Fu Zhengjun finished speaking, a heavy slap landed on his face.

"I’m not a qualified mother, then, in your heart, who is a qualified mother?" Wei Ronghua’s hand fell slowly after the slap, feeling numb in her palm, not knowing whether it was sadness or anger, she trembled all over, pointing at Fu Zhengjun, "Fu Zhengjun, I suspect that in these thirty years of marriage, did you ever truly care about me at all?"

She knew back then he had someone he loved, and she had schemed to take him from that woman, but after thirty years of marriage, how she had treated him should be felt by anyone who wasn’t heartless.

She thought that life was long, and maybe one day, she could warm his heart, make him forget that woman and accept her.

In their everyday life together they were respectful, never arguing, and with no passion, decades passed like a snap of the fingers; she had been quite satisfied with the status quo, thus no longer dwelling on love or lack thereof.

But now, this man told her she wasn’t a qualified mother, leading her to suddenly realize he might never have been sincere with her, not even a little.

Wei Ronghua staggered and fell into a chair in a dismal state, "You can’t say it, so I’ll say it for you. Is it only Xiao Heting that you care about? Pity she’s dead! You’ll never see her again, she’s long turned into dirt!"