The woman looked at him, puzzled, "Brother Shen, what’s wrong with you?" Yun Shen looked at her deeply, a complexity and despair in his eyes like the abyssal traps, making her heart sink and an indescribable fear gradually invade her mind... "I’m sorry...." He took a step back, gave her one last look, then turned and quickly walked away. "Brother Shen...." She subconsciously chased after him, but in the vast night, his figure was nowhere to be found. And so, the tragedy began this very night. It was only later that Yun Shen finally realized, his encounter with Ji Lanyi was not a beautiful accident, but a scheme carefully orchestrated by someone else. This someone else was the very mother who gave birth to him and raised him. What could he do? What should he do? Having lived for thirty-seven years, his life was nothing but a joke. In the garden, the man drank sullenly, with rows of empty bottles at his feet. He slouched in the chair, staring blankly at the pitch-black night sky. Uncle Feng stood not far off, looking over with concern, yet not daring to step forward. A graceful figure slowly walked out of the darkness; her arrival softened the biting night wind, and everything seemed gentler. The young girl, her arm carrying a coat, gave Uncle Feng a tender smile, "Uncle Feng, you go back first. I’ll look after Dad." Uncle Feng frowned slightly, standing in place without moving. Yun Ya said nothing more and stepped toward Yun Shen. She draped the coat over Yun Shen and smoothly took the bottle from his hand, "Drowning your sorrows with liquor only deepens the sorrow. It’s late; time to rest." Her tender voice was so moving, it made Yun Shen stare at her involuntarily. Suddenly, he looked up at the young girl before him. Her long hair cascaded down, covering half of her face, leaving only half touched by the cool glow of the moon. Her willow brows were like a crescent moon, delicate and curved, her eyes bright as a sky filled with dazzling stars, gently moving. Those clear eyes reflected his current disheveled state. He suddenly grabbed her arm, his gaze coveting and clinging to her face. His hoarse voice most unintentionally let slip a name. Yun Ya casually brushed her hair behind her ear, concealing the fleeting scorn in her eyes. Her stunningly beautiful face was exposed without any disguise, beautiful indeed, but fundamentally not the familiar visage from his memory. Despair settled in his eyes gradually, like the silent waters of a lake, unable to stir the slightest ripple anymore. "Dad...." She opened her red lips, her calm voice instantly bringing back Yun Shen’s rationality. He abruptly let go and pushed Yun Ya away, his gaze filled with disgust, as if he had seen something filthy. The change was indeed swift. Yun Ya curved her lips into a smile and said gently, "Dad, were you thinking of Mom? Can you tell me what kind of person she was? I can hardly remember her face anymore." Her tender and lingering voice easily drew people into her world. Yun Shen’s eyes darkened, and he pressed his lips together, not wanting to say more. "Dad," the young girl’s gaze was gently fixed on him. "As a child, I thought Miaomiao and I had done something wrong, that’s why you didn’t like us. So, I tried hard to be excellent, hoping you’d look at me if only for a moment. But there was nothing; you never even hugged us once. I often wonder, what exactly did I do wrong? Or maybe, to you, our very existence was a mistake." Her soft voice carried no blame, simply narrating a fact. "Now I know, you were just hiding; you dared not face your own heart, you’ve always been running away...." "Shut your mouth," Yun Shen’s expression turned abruptly cold, his eyes icily fixing on Yun Ya. "You loved Mom too much, you can’t admit your failure, nor can you face up to your own baseness. You chose to betray your love for Yun Shu, and thus, you lost the woman who loved you deeply. For years, you’ve been deceiving yourself and others, numbing yourself with alcohol, yet you’re too cowardly to even utter one word of blame against the true culprit." Yun Ya’s gentle voice was the cruelest irony, so subtle yet it directly pierced the deepest recesses of Yun Shen’s sealed heart. Yun Shen suddenly clutched his head, groaning in agony, "Stop talking; just shut your mouth." Yun Ya sighed softly, "Dad, I am your flesh and blood daughter. Apart from Mother, no one in this world loves you more than I do." As she spoke, tears began to fall in large drops, looking so sorrowful. "The father I imagined was tall and majestic, like a towering tree sheltering me from the storm. Even though you didn’t like me, in my heart, you will always be the father I respect the most." Thɪs chapter is updatᴇd by novel(ꜰ)ire.net