Chapter Forty-Eight: A Midnight Meeting

Father and son had been estranged for many years and had never discussed such matters. Luo Yichen never expected his father to ask such a question. He said desolately, "Discussing this now is completely meaningless. We should be talking about how to handle the impending lawsuit!"

"How can it be meaningless? I don't want you to do something you'll regret. In matters of the heart, I am a complete and utter failure. Therefore, I truly don't want you to end up the same way."

For the first time, Luo Yichen felt that his father also carried a heavy burden of helplessness. Perhaps years of remorse had brought him some epiphany. Whatever the case, his father was the first person to consider his feelings. This changed Luo Yichen's perspective of him.

With deep anguish, Luo Yichen said, "Shang Qi was the one I wanted to marry. But with so much having happened now, all of that is already impossible."

Seeing him in such deep sorrow, Luo Shixun grew even more anxious. After a long silence, he said, "Go and apologize to Shang Qi! That girl truly loves you, and perhaps she will forgive you. You must take responsibility for what you have done and marry her as soon as possible."

Luo Yichen's body trembled with profound shock, leaving him completely frozen. After a long while, he asked in sheer disbelief, "How can you be certain she truly loves me?"

Luo Shixun suddenly realized how utterly clueless his son was about women. He said, "That night, ever since you introduced her, I began observing her in secret. Throughout the entire event, Shang Qi's gaze never left you, almost to an audacious degree. For a reserved woman to behave like that can only mean she loves you far too much."

Recalling the scene from back then, Luo Yichen realized it was exactly as his father described. Yet, could this prove that Shang Qi truly loved him? Furthermore, given that such an event had already occurred, what could possibly change?

His mood plummeted instantly from joy to grief as he said desolately, "Whether she loves me or not cannot erase the fact of what happened. Even if she marries me, what's done cannot be undone. How much pain would she endure having to face me day after day after marriage!"

"Where there's a will, there's a way! Yichen, if you want to make amends now, I will help you reason with your grandfather. He has already set his mind on sacrificing Shang Qi. After suffering through this ordeal, that girl's entire future will likely be ruined."

Luo Yichen's mind was in total chaos, and he no longer wanted to listen to his advice. A nameless fury surged within him, and he shouted at Luo Shixun, "Stop talking!"

The moment the words left his mouth, Luo Yichen realized his tone was too harsh. He softened his voice and said, "I'm sorry! I'm just not in a good state of mind."

"Think it over carefully, and call me if you need help."

Luo Shixun's words stirred turbulent waves in Luo Yichen's heart. After the incident, he had suspected Shang Qi might be connected to the drugging. Yet deep in his subconscious, he desperately hoped Shang Qi was innocent. Luo Yichen longed to ask Shang Qi if what she said back then was merely meant to spite him in anger.

His heart was filled with contradiction, struggling fiercely between reality and expectation. Thinking over and over again, he still could not suppress the doubts in his heart and wanted to get to the bottom of it. Thus, Luo Yichen put on his sunglasses, picked up the car keys Mu Lichen had delivered yesterday, and walked toward the parking garage.

Luo Yichen started the engine and drove toward Shang Qi's home under the cover of the dense night. All the way there, he plotted how to avoid reporters. Arriving downstairs at her apartment building, he found not a single reporter keeping watch, which left him feeling quite puzzled. Could Shang Qi not be home?

He called Xia Luo and asked, "Shang Qi isn't home. Help me find out where she went."

"Don't tell me you're currently outside her apartment building!"

"As a matter of fact, I am!"

"Are you insane?"

"There isn't a single reporter here."

"I know what I'm doing, just give me the address."

With no other choice, Xia Luo gave it to him.

A sharp pain pierced Luo Yichen's heart, making him wish he could spirit Shang Qi away immediately. However, with Xi Jingpeng holding all the cards for now, he had to bide his time in silence. Outside Shang Qi's villa, he wanted to talk to her in private. He waited in the pitch darkness. Finally, the deep of night arrived, bringing absolute silence. He climbed over the garden wall, sneaked under an open window, and entered the house.

Luo Yichen was in a sorry state by this time, having scraped his arm while climbing the window, leaving a raw, bleeding gash. Ignoring the pain, he groped his way forward in the dark. With great difficulty, Luo Yichen finally found Shang Qi's bedroom. He gently pushed the door open and stepped inside.

Shang Qi was sitting on the bed, wide awake. Ever since that incident, she had suffered from chronic insomnia. To avoid worrying her parents, she turned off the lights at the scheduled time every day, yet often sat awake until dawn. In the silent depths of the night, Shang Qi bore the terror and grief entirely alone.

The moment Luo Yichen entered, Shang Qi noticed him. She wanted to scream, but not a single sound escaped her throat. In the moonlight, Luo Yichen caught sight of a pair of eyes filled with sheer terror. He lowered his voice and said, "Don't be afraid! I won't hurt you like that again."

Shang Qi did not believe a word of it. Knowing she was no match for Luo Yichen, she simply gave up on the idea of fleeing. She groped around the bed, searching for anything she could use for self-defense. After fumbling for a long time, she found only an MP3 player she had just been using to listen to music. Secretly, Shang Qi turned it on and activated the recording function.

Approaching her bedside, Luo Yichen said, "I heard you've developed aphonia. Is that true?"

Shang Qi could not utter a word. Bathed in the faint moonlight, Luo Yichen saw the terror in her eyes recede slightly, replaced by an intense, burning hatred. Feeling the hatred welling up from the depths of her soul, he shuddered with a chill. In that moment, he was truly terrified.

After much deliberation, Luo Yichen finally mustered the courage to say, "You must think I'm ridiculous for asking this now. But I simply couldn't help myself; I wanted to get the bottom of it. Were the things you said back then just spoken out of spite? If you truly loved me, could you treat it as if nothing ever happened?"

To his bewilderment, Shang Qi actually let out a bizarre, mocking laugh. She thought to herself: This has got to be the most ludicrous joke in the entire world! What does Luo Yichen take me for? Am I his toy? Something he can brutally violate at will and still expect to be treated like his precious darling. How utterly shameless and delusional of him!

Seeing Shang Qi's expression, Luo Yichen understood the truth instantly: even if she had once held a thousand shreds of affection for him, as of today, it was all lost to the wind. Thinking of the days they had walked together, Luo Yichen's heart was a tempest of tangled emotions. At this moment, he didn't know whether to love or to hate, nor did he know where he should go. A bone-deep agony was spreading throughout his entire body.

Seeing Luo Yichen standing frozen in place, a surge of fiery anger ignited within Shang Qi: Does he think I'm that easy to bully? He actually has the shameless audacity to linger here and refuse to leave. Shang Qi shoved Luo Yichen hard, attempting to drive him out of the room, but failed to budge him an inch. Growing even more furious, she raised both hands and began clawing and beating wildly at his head and body.

Luo Yichen did not fight back, allowing Shang Qi to tear his clothes and leave bloody scratch marks on his face and arms. After a long while, Shang Qi grew exhausted and finally stopped. Luo Yichen sighed and said, "If beating me makes you feel even slightly better, then rest up and continue whenever you've caught your breath."

Shang Qi stopped striking him and simply stared sorrowfully at the moon outside the window. The pristine moonlight fell upon her face, making her complexion look deathly pale. She longed to ask Luo Yichen why he had treated her this way, but since she could not speak, she could only look away to save herself the torment.

Seeing Shang Qi treat his presence as non-existent, Luo Yichen felt an indescribable sense of suffocation. Yet what could he do? After a long silence, Luo Yichen said, "Stop tormenting yourself. I'm leaving!"

Watching him slip away without a sound, Shang Qi's tears finally burst forth. In the stillness of the night, the sound of her suppressed sobbing drifted out through the window. Standing outside, Luo Yichen felt his own eyes grow moist. Shang Qi's weeping lashed at his heart like a whip. In that instant, Luo Yichen felt utterly worthless and utterly powerless.

Sitting in his car, Luo Yichen stared blankly ahead. Seeing Shang Qi's sorrowful expression earlier, he hadn't even brought up the question of who drugged her. In truth, the answer was already self-evident. Luo Yichen made a silent and resolute vow: he would find the mastermind who framed him and seek justice for Shang Qi.

"Ring!" A phone chime broke Luo Yichen's train of thought.

He answered the call. Mu Lichen's voice came through: "Where on earth did you run off to? Grandpa came to the apartment to see you and has been waiting until now without seeing hide nor hair of you. Get back here quickly, the old man is getting worried!"

Hearing that his grandfather had arrived, Luo Yichen immediately concealed his inner anguish. He said firmly, "I'm heading back right now."

Stepping hard on the accelerator, Luo Yichen sped down the road at maximum velocity. When he returned to the apartment, his grandfather had already been waiting for him for hours. The elderly man sat upright on the sofa, eyes half-closed as if dozing. Beneath the seemingly calm surface lay the brewing tempest of an impending storm.

Standing beside the sofa, Luo Yichen said softly, "Grandpa, it's so late, you should rest here for tonight! We can talk about whatever you need tomorrow."

Still keeping his eyes closed, the Elder Luo asked, "Where did you go?"

"I wanted to clear my head, so I went for a drive."

Grandpar Luo opened his eyes, scrutinized the scratches on his body, and demanded sternly, "What is the meaning of the injuries on your arm?"

"I had an accidental fall and scraped some skin," Luo Yichen lied.

Elder Luo was not so easily fooled. He immediately barked angrily, "You're still trying to lie to me? Tell me the truth!"

Realizing his deception had failed, Luo Yichen fell silent. He knew full well that if his grandfather found out Shang Qi had beaten him, there was no telling what kind of uproar he would cause. Therefore, no matter what, he could not tell the truth.

Probing further, Elder Luo said, "I know what happened even if you don't tell me! Don't forget, I raised you since you were a child. How could I possibly not know you?"

Realizing he could no longer keep up the facade, Luo Yichen fabricated another lie: "I was frustrated, so I casually found a woman and accidentally got into this state! I was afraid of being scolded by you, which is why I didn't dare tell the truth!"

With a tone of profound grief and indignation, Elder Luo said, "Chen'er, when it comes to Shang Qi, there is truly no lie too absurd for you to tell! Mu Lichen installed a satellite positioning system on the car he brought you. After the incident happened, I was worried about your safety and specifically had it installed. Yet why must you always resort to deceiving your grandfather?"