After Being Betrayed I Married the Glamorous CEO-Chapter 148, Life is full of disappointments, eight or nine times out of ten!

Chapter 148: Chapter 148, Life is full of disappointments, eight or nine times out of ten!

After their lovemaking ended, Shen Fanyun let out a long sigh and entered Sage Mode.

Su Xiyang brought up her mother again.

"She really is a very, very dominant and capable person," Su Xiyang sighed, her expression distant.

Shen Fanyun sensed something was off. To mention such a woman so frequently means one of two things: either something has already happened, or she’s about to appear in Hangcheng City. Is she trying to give me a heads-up?

"She has asked me more than once to leave Hangcheng City and pursue my career where her family is from," she continued. "I refused her every time, using the excuse that my company was finally on track and I couldn’t leave it."

"This time, after my falling out with Grandfather and losing the company, she’ll definitely use it as an opportunity to come back and force me to go with her. That’s just her personality."

Su Xiyang shook her head. That woman... she might not truly love me. If she did, she wouldn’t have just left so decisively right after I was born. She came back to visit sometimes, but... I’ve never felt genuine motherly love from her. She’s the most familiar stranger I know.

"I can feel it. Her real purpose is to use me as a pawn for an arranged marriage with some powerful family, all to bolster her own career."

She hated the idea of her life being controlled by someone else. Besides, if she were to ever get married, she wanted to be the one to choose her partner, not have it arranged for her—especially not an arrangement that was so obviously a business transaction.

"That ruthless?" Shen Fanyun raised an eyebrow. Are there really parents in this world who don’t love their own children?

Su Xiyang murmured, "After she left the Su Family, she remarried and... she went on to have a son and a daughter. To her, I suppose I’m not really her child, am I? Heh."

"She has her perfect little family, happy and blessed with both a son and daughter. As for me, I’m just a pawn. From her perspective, when it’s time for me to marry, I have to marry whoever she designates!"

A bitter smile touched Su Xiyang’s lips. The woman she called mother had once cast a huge psychological shadow over her, a source of immense pressure. Now, it seemed this haunting ghost from her past was about to return.

My break with the Su Family was a major event. Knowing Su Ke, he probably already tipped her off. Even though my mother and grandfather don’t get along, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.

This was also why Su Xiyang was telling him all this; she hoped Shen Fanyun would be mentally prepared. After all, their relationship... She worried that one day the madwoman would come after him. Although Shen Fanyun was no pushover in Hangcheng City, that woman was no ordinary person, and she came from a powerful family. Su Xiyang wasn’t confident that Shen Fanyun could come out unscathed every time.

"If... if you get dragged into this because of me... that’s not what I want. I hope you understand," Su Xiyang said sincerely.

Shen Fanyun was taken aback. This woman is just too kind-hearted sometimes.

He ruffled her hair and smiled. "Your problems are my problems. Don’t worry. Whatever comes our way, we’ll face it head-on. No need to panic."

Su Xiyang forced a smile, turning her head to stare unblinkingly at the sunlight outside. The weather had been beautiful the past couple of days, with miles of clear skies.

This casual chat with Su Xiyang had deeply affected Shen Fanyun as well.

I’ve been back for a while now, but I still haven’t been able to bring myself to go see my parents. That year, Han Long’s persecution not only cost them their jobs, but they ended up kneeling and begging him for mercy. That scene... it’s a pain I’ll carry for life. All these years, I’ve never been able to truly let it go. I’m afraid that if I see them again, the first thing to pop into my head will be that image—their sorrow and helplessness, their dignity crushed as they knelt on the ground like animals, kowtowing. It was my fault. I brought that suffering upon them.

Therefore, I feel too ashamed to face them. Besides, they have a younger son now. Over the years, they must have moved on from that hurdle. Their lives have probably gotten better, right? If so, why should I disturb them? Why reopen old wounds?

Shen Fanyun sighed to himself. Alas, every family has its own problems. Su Xiyang is unfortunate, but aren’t I the same? She has a home she won’t return to because it isn’t truly hers. I have a home I don’t dare return to. Besides, they aren’t even my birth parents. Leaving for good might be the best choice. If I go back, even for a glance... they might not be happy to see me. I already feel like I wronged them so much back then. I don’t want to disrupt their peaceful lives now.

CLICK.

Shen Fanyun casually lit a cigarette. Smoke swirled around him as he wrapped an arm around Su Xiyang’s shoulders, his expression shifting between sorrow, conflict, and a distant haze.

"What’s wrong?"

This was the first time Su Xiyang had ever seen him like this.

Shen Fanyun stubbed out the cigarette. "It’s nothing."

"Want to go for a walk this afternoon?" he asked, taking the initiative.

Su Xiyang nodded. "Then I’ll need to change into some sportswear first."

Shen Fanyun’s gaze drifted downward. Su Xiyang’s stockings were torn and in disarray. They looked good, but they clearly weren’t very tear-resistant.

「In the afternoon」

Shen Fanyun and Su Xiyang arrived in the old district.

Due to shifting government policies, at least half the population had left, moving to the new district to make a living. The only ones who remained were the elderly and a few young people who were reluctant to move.

Near the district lay a long, meandering river that flowed east. Its current was sometimes gentle, sometimes swift. On the fifteenth of the eighth lunar month, many people would come to watch the great tidal bore. Now, in the season of soaring eagles and overgrown grass, the landscape was lush with vibrant green.

Shen Fanyun found a soft, dry patch of ground and lay on his back, saying nothing as he stared blankly into space. Dressed in white sportswear, Su Xiyang sat quietly beside him. The breeze caressed her face, carrying the unending scent of fresh grass. So this is what it’s like. To be in a place like this, doing nothing, just letting your mind wander... it might be the greatest pleasure in the world.

"This is so comfortable," Su Xiyang stretched, then rested her small head on Shen Fanyun’s chest.

Shen Fanyun didn’t tell her that his home was right here in this very area.

Back then, my parents bought a small apartment near Hangcheng No.1 Middle School for my studies. After the incident, the apartment was abandoned. They moved back to where it all began, the area where I grew up.

Close to home, yet so daunted. A journey that should have taken less than five minutes felt as if it were separated by an insurmountable mountain range. I don’t know how I could possibly cross it.