Rose Manor: Tycoon's Relentless Chase-Chapter 324 - 305: Temporary Separation

Shen Jianian looked at him with a blank expression, it was too absurd, and she even pulled a slight curve at the corner of her mouth.

"What are you talking about?" Shen Jianian shook her head, caught between crying and laughing, saying, "How is that possible?"

She still couldn’t remember the car accident scene; she knew nothing about the details of that accident, but she would never forget the state of her body afterward for the rest of her life.

That face full of scars and blood, she had secretly hidden in the bathroom, untied the bandage, and looked in the mirror. Her body was covered with small and large wounds, the cold sweat breaking out would soak through the hospital gown. She had a cerebral hemorrhage, barely survived... lying on the hospital bed for countless days and nights, her spirit shattered, her emotions collapsing multiple times.

Now Fu Jichen was telling her that all this stemmed from his sister, Fu Yuling.

According to what he had told her previously, even her leaving Beicheng alone for Jiang City was because of his mother, Wei Ronghua.

One was his sister, the other his mother.

Though, they were not his biological sister and mother.

Shen Jianian looked at Fu Jichen’s face, that calm and gentle face; she suddenly felt unsettled, not knowing how to feel about him. Rationally, she knew Fu Jichen was innocent and shouldn’t be blamed, but emotionally, she couldn’t accept her suffering being caused by the relatives around him.

If back then she hadn’t been with Fu Jichen, would all those things have happened?

She wouldn’t have had a car accident; she would have a healthy body instead of being like now, unable to endure even a breeze, frequently getting sick; nor would she have lost her original appearance, undergoing surgeries multiple times, ultimately having to live with a completely unfamiliar face; and she wouldn’t have lost her memory, living in a haze.

What Fu Jichen brought to her, was it more sweet or more bitter?

Can the sweetness in front of her outweigh the bitterness she suffered in the past?

Shen Jianian knew very well the answer was no.

Her hands and feet gradually grew cold, she distanced herself from Fu Jichen, got off the bed, unsure how to face him, and chose not to face him: "I’m going to get some water."

Shen Jianian poured herself a cup of hot water, holding the cup and curled up on the sofa in the living room, covered with a thick blanket, she still felt cold, unable to warm up.

Fu Jichen looked at the half-open door. Before he revealed the truth, he had already anticipated this result.

His difficulty in speaking not only stemmed from Fu Yuling’s inappropriate feelings toward him but also because he guessed Shen Jianian might not forgive him after knowing the truth.

After waiting for a long time without seeing Shen Jianian come in, Fu Jichen walked out.

The solitary figure curled up tightly, trapping herself in the sofa, with the cup in her hands emitting steaming vapor. Fu Jichen paused for a moment and still chose to walk over.

He stood by the sofa, reached out, and took the cup from her hands, seeing her palms were scalded red.

"Don’t speak," Shen Jianian spoke first to stop him, "Don’t say anything, I don’t want to hear it now."

Her mind was a mess, no matter what he said now, she wouldn’t be able to take it in. She didn’t want to trigger new conflicts at this moment.

Fu Jichen felt sorry for her, bent down to set down the cup, wrapped his arms around her, saying nothing, silently accompanying her.

Shen Jianian licked her lips, further stating her request: "Can you let me be alone quietly? Let’s separate temporarily, I want to calm down."

Fu Yuling, Wei Ronghua, these two names were intertwined chaotically in her mind; she really feared she couldn’t control her temper and vented at Fu Jichen.

"Temporary separation?" Fu Jichen’s expression was stunned, beginning to doubt his understanding, swallowed with difficulty, his voice dry, "Do you mean... breaking up?"

"No," Shen Jianian wasn’t that impulsive.

Fu Jichen allowed his heart to settle, hesitated for a while, and didn’t agree with her, worried that in her current state she might encounter trouble being alone, so he offered: "I can refrain from disturbing you, let me accompany you."

Shen Jianian rejected his proposal, lifted the blanket off her body, hid away in the bedroom, locked the door, and crawled into the bed with two layers of quilts.

Leaving Fu Jichen alone in the living room, sitting loosely on the sofa, his hands intertwined in his lap, back hunched, burying half of his face in his palms. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Jixiang suddenly sprang out from somewhere, with its tail erect, rubbing against his trouser leg. He extended a hand to pet its noticeably rounder head: "Your mom doesn’t want me anymore..."

*

Shen Jianian tossed and turned all night, hardly sleeping well. When she got up in the morning, she didn’t see Fu Jichen at home. Breakfast was laid out on the dining table.

Fried eggs, toasted bread, fruit, and a cup of freshly squeezed soy milk. Shen Jianian touched the cup with her finger—the soy milk was still hot.

She looked around, still not seeing Fu Jichen anywhere.

Shen Jianian sat down and eventually found a note under the plate, written by Fu Jichen: I’ve gone to the office. Remember to eat breakfast. The cat has been fed, no need to feed it again.

In March, everything was bursting with vitality. After eating breakfast, Shen Jianian, feeling lifeless from lack of sleep, got into the car.

Zheng Yi glanced at her and drove out.

Shen Jianian closed her eyes and leaned against the seatback, hoping to catch some sleep during the drive, in case she couldn’t endure suspending from wires later. However, the unresolved issues from last night were stirring in her mind, keeping her awake.

Resigned, she opened her eyes, thought for a while, and asked Zheng Yi, who was driving ahead: "When did you start working for Fu Jichen?"

Zheng Yi raised his eyebrows in surprise but soon returned to normal: "Let me think... It’s been about four years since I joined Mr. Chen."

Seeing Shen Jianian’s thoughtful expression, Zheng Yi decided to clarify: "Miss Shen, you seem to have forgotten. When you first returned to Beicheng from Yicheng, you needed a bodyguard and driver. Because I’m acquainted with Qu Mo, he transferred me from the security company. Since then, I’ve been driving for Miss Shen. After... the accident with Miss Shen, I started helping Mr. Chen with some trivial matters."

Shen Jianian: "Do you know the truth about my car accident?"

Zheng Yi looked stunned, and Shen Jianian saw it through the rearview mirror. She said with a certain tone: "Seems like you know."

Sighing, Zheng Yi said: "I wasn’t clear before, but this time, when the cleaner got caught, things started to become clear. Mr. Chen has always suspected the crash was deliberate, but couldn’t find evidence. After the driver was released from prison, Mr. Chen had someone follow him, but everything seemed normal, without any flaws. Mr. Chen was more eager than anyone to find the culprit."

Now the perpetrator was found, and it turned out to be Mr. Chen’s sister, Fu Yuling, the eldest daughter with congenital heart disease.

Truly deranged.

When Zheng Yi learned this news, he initially thought Mr. Chen would suppress everything. Anyway, Miss Shen had already returned to him; they could act as if nothing had happened.

But Mr. Chen chose to hand over the testimony and evidence to the police, uncovering the veil on that car accident even though he knew doing so would cast a shadow on the Fu Family. He still did it without hesitation.

Zheng Yi sighed again: "These years haven’t been easy for Mr. Chen. When your belongings were salvaged from the Songli River, everyone thought you were dead, but he didn’t believe it. For three years, he never gave up searching for you. Every time he found a little clue, hope rekindled, only to watch the clue vanish and hope shatter."

Shen Jianian turned her head to look out the car window, her voice ethereal: "Really?"

"To say something inappropriate, after you and Mr. Chen have gone through life and death and still found each other, nothing else matters anymore."

Zheng Yi could somewhat guess why Shen Jianian would ask these questions.

The person who harmed her was Fu Jichen’s sister, which likely created some estrangement in her heart towards Fu Jichen.

Although it’s uncertain how long this gap will last, from Zheng Yi’s perspective, Fu Jichen is quite innocent, so he wanted to say a few words on his behalf.

Of course, his words might be useless; the matters between the two still have to be resolved by themselves.

"You might have noticed, when Mr. Chen walks, his left leg isn’t entirely natural." Zheng Yi wasn’t sure whether mentioning this was redundant. In case Mr. Chen didn’t want Shen Jianian to know, he might face the risk of being fired, but he hesitated only briefly before continuing, "He had a car accident once, in Yicheng. Because he saw a figure resembling you, he thought it was you, thought you were still alive, and hurried to catch up to confirm, then had an accident."

Shen Jianian took a deep breath, her fingers clutching the pants on her legs.

She knew Fu Jichen’s left leg had been injured. On New Year’s Eve, just a slight slip had him sweating from pain. Later in the bedroom, she saw the post-surgical scar on his leg.

He hadn’t mentioned the cause of the leg injury to her, but he had talked about how he got the abdominal injury.

Zheng Yi concluded: "Mr. Chen intentionally conceals his left leg’s disability when walking. Saying it’s disability might be excessive, but he indeed suffered severe sequelae. Because he was too busy during that period, busy with things related to Jun Mountain and searching for you, he hardly rested. Last year, he decided to treat his leg at Jiangcheng First Hospital, but unfortunately, the authoritative orthopedic expert was sent abroad. After finding you, Mr. Chen didn’t bring up treating his leg again."

Having found Shen Jianian, Fu Jichen could hardly care about anything else. His heart was set on her, prioritizing her over everything; he disregarded all personal matters.

Now, having gone from being strangers to falling in love again, he’s even more unwilling to expose his imperfections in front of her.