My girlfriend is from the future!

"...Apologize? Hmph."

He Panshan did not answer immediately, but pondered the word that was both strange and familiar. He looked at his son, his face devoid of its usual sternness and the tenderness from before, only a strange smile that was hard to describe.

“Natural, you must think these two words are very important to you, but before I answer, I want to ask you a question first: when was the last time you had the thought of apologizing?”

Instead of answering, the old man asked a question. The dim light illuminated the lines at the corners of his eyes, and also revealed a kind of coldness and arrogance in his eyes that seemed to have been polished by the years.

when?
This is not hard to figure out, and it didn't even happen that long ago; it was probably when Cao Aiqing toasted him with that glass of wine...

The girl's desperate gamble signifies that the play written by the "writer" must continue, but while he may be a good director, he is not necessarily a good actor...

He Tianran silently swirled his wine glass, seemingly recalling the scene that had just unfolded. He placed the glass back on the stone table. He wouldn't drink the wine the girl had offered him, as if as long as he didn't drink it, it would be as if none of this had ever happened...

He Panshan saw through his son's thoughts and exposed him:
“Son, if you’re thinking of apologizing because of Xiao Cao, then I think you’re somewhat deceiving yourself.”

"What do you mean?"

"literal meaning……"

He Panshan, puffing on his cigarette, said slowly:

"Don't you think that my decision to abandon Tao Wei and choose Bai Wenyu back then is very similar to your current decision to let Xiao Cao leave and replace him with Yu Naoqiu?

"I do not……"

"nothing?"

He Tianran stopped talking abruptly, unable to refute the established facts and his father's question.

Seeing the barely concealed disappointment on his son's face, the father pressed further:

"You didn't want to apologize, or you didn't want to regret it?"

"Dad, I'm asking you! You don't need to use me as an example!"

He Tianran's retort only brought a smile to He Panshan's face.

"Ha, I don't understand, son. I don't understand what you're running away from. Like when you asked me why I never apologize, what answer are you looking for from me? Or do you need me to apologize because you think this kind of superficial thing is important to you... Even further, if I apologize to each of you, what problem will it solve? Son, you're right here. If I apologize to you, the price is taking back everything you have now. Do you want a happy childhood, or a barren life of working nine to five?"

"There's no conflict. You're my dad, you..."

So you think I'm wrong?

He Tianran stood up excitedly, but was interrupted by He Panshan's nonchalant words.

"But as I said before, I believe I've been a good father to you, so why should I apologize? And why should I care about your or other people's opinions?"

The older man, seemingly starting to open up and share his thoughts, also stood up:
“Let me tell your son why you might not have the life you have now just because you wanted a happy childhood. It’s because I still believe that building a career is the right thing to do than playing in the mud with you back then. So, to make up for it, I gave you more money than you could ever spend in several lifetimes. I took advantage of your mother, but I gave her the most prestigious position and unlimited resources. I hurt Tao Wei, but I gave her son the title of ‘He’!”

He took a step closer, his imposing presence almost tangible, forcing He Tian to retreat until he sat down again.
“Son, apologizing means regret, it means you think you had a better choice back then. Isn’t that just deceiving yourself?”
"You're asking me now why I never apologize? Do you expect me to deny the past decades of my life? Do you expect me to admit that everything I, He Panshan, have done along the way has been completely wrong?"

The old man looked down at his descendants and said in a deep voice:
"If you've already made a choice, don't beg for forgiveness in return for the outcome. That only proves you're weak and doesn't demonstrate anything. If you want to be able to stand up for yourself in the future, then be prepared to 'pay the price' for your choices. And if someone doesn't renege on their obligations, what is there to fear from others' criticism? So..."

He looked away and gazed again at the city lights below the mountain. He slightly raised his wine glass, as if to toast the business empire he had built, which stood on the banks of the Tuomo River.

"I don't need to apologize for the life I chose."

These words struck He Tianran like a heavy hammer, making his eardrums ring.

This is not sophistry; it is a cold and powerful logic built on extreme self-identity. He Panshan does not not feel that he is wrong, but he fundamentally refuses to use "right and wrong" to judge the series of "results" in his life.

He Panshan looked at the stunned He Tianran, the arrogance in his eyes gradually fading, then turning into a cold, disappointed look:
“This is my answer, son. You can think that your father tainted your relationship with material things, or that I am a mercenary and cold-hearted businessman, because I have never apologized and have never said that I am a good person. But Tianran, I can see that you want to be a good person too much.”

Upon hearing this, He Tianran was suddenly jolted.

But He Panshan didn't stop there. He stretched out his finger and tapped his son's chest from a distance:

"Look at you tonight. Facing Xiao Cao, you had clearly made the decision to break up and made up your mind, but you didn't even dare to drink that glass of wine. You had to ask that girl to smooth things over for you and give you a dignified ending. You want to break up, but you don't want to bear the stigma of being a heartless man, even if you just think about it."

"Dad, I..."

"You don't need to feel embarrassed."

He Panshan interrupted him, his tone unusually carrying an almost "teaching" connotation:

"Almost all men waver between 'boy' and 'man,' wanting both pure love and practical benefits, but naturally..."

He sat back down on the stone bench and drank the remaining wine in his cup in one gulp.

"If you embrace the calculations of men to escape the fear of pure feelings in 'boys,' that's not maturity, that's cowardice; conversely, if you force yourself to play the role of a 'saint' that you're not suited for in order to protect the dreams of 'boys,' that's not affection, that's foolishness!"

A night breeze swept by, carrying a biting chill, yet it kept He Tianran's mind unusually clear.

"Do you know why you're so conflicted? Do you know why, in my eyes, you always seem to be schizophrenic, wanting to be a ruthless ruler one moment and a respectable, untainted person the next?"

He Panshan's voice was both playful and sharp:
"Because you are greedy, yet you can't control your own life, and you even try to be a good person!"

He slammed the empty wine glass heavily on the stone table, making a crisp "bang," just like the pounding of He Tianran's heart.

“You keep all the pain to yourself and fight it in your heart, while on the surface you try to maintain a situation where you are innocent and forced into it. Then you regret it, feel guilty, and want to apologize, as if a word of forgiveness can alleviate your pain. But son, aren’t you tired of this? Aren’t these all your own choices?”

He Panshan stood up, patted his knees which were chilled by the night breeze, and gave his final summary of the evening:

“Naturally, as long as you still need to find relief through ‘apologies’ or ‘guilt,’ you’re still just a child. When you learn to be a ‘bastard’ like me without batting an eye…”

He turned his head to the side, his eyes deep and unfathomable:
"Come talk to me about 'I'm sorry' again." After saying that, the old father said no more, patted his son on the shoulder, turned around, and walked alone along the path paved with courtyard lights toward the huge mountain house that symbolized responsibility, reality, and the choices he had made in his life.

He Tianran suddenly understood why he had split into "writer", "teenager" and "lead singer".

Because he couldn't, like He Panshan, unify all the contradictions within one body without it collapsing.

My father is an open-minded "bastard" who has made peace with himself.

His son, on the other hand, is torn between "good" and "evil," trying to retain the last shred of conscience, yet ultimately forced to bow to reality...

mortal.

……

……

Inside, the heating dispelled the chill.

He Panshan casually took the hot towel handed to him by Wang Ma, wiped his face, and ignored the housekeeper's complaints about the family dinner being held so poorly and ending in discord. Instead, he showed a rare, contented smile and said in a pleading tone:
"Alright, that's enough. I have my plans. By the way, Sister Wang, take away the wine from outside. Also, have the kitchen make Tianran a hangover soup. Let him rest at home today. Oh, and where's Xiaobai?"

"I took Xiao Cao home. Sigh... really... what is your son thinking?"

"Just ask him when the time comes. He's always told you everything since he was a child. I'm leaving now; you two can't really talk much if I stay here."

"Go! Go! Go."

He Panshan handed the hot towel back, and Wang Ma waved her hand impatiently at the head of the family, clearly indicating her intention to drive him away.

The old man left the side hall and walked alone to the study.

He didn't turn on the main light, but only switched on an old-fashioned desk lamp on the table.

A dim, yellowish light enveloped the large mahogany desk, illuminating an old family photo on it.

That was a photo of him, Bai Wenyu, and He Tianran when they were young.

He opened the drawer, took out a brand new pair of reading glasses, put them on his nose, and after a few awkward movements, turned on the computer. The blue light from the screen shone on He Panshan's face, which was beginning to show signs of aging.

After a few clicks of the mouse, he logged into an email account and opened a contact named "Mia".

The chat history on the screen contained warning messages about He Yuanchong's "80 million" and "two plots of land," sent last month. It also included information about He Tianran's mental and psychological state, such as a recent message that read—

[Mia]: "Uncle He, Tianran has been acting strangely lately, and I've also noticed serious gaps in my memory. Many things don't match up. I hope you can verify for yourself if I'm telling the truth when you have time..."

The latest message from "Mia," dated last night after the Bulgari dinner in Shanghai, reads as follows:

【Mia】: "Aunt Bai suddenly contacted me, insisting that I attend the family dinner tonight and forbidding me from contacting Tianran. Uncle He, if I go... is it really appropriate? Are you planning to handle the matter between Tianran and Yuanchong tonight? I'm afraid my presence will make Tianran even more embarrassed."

He Panshan looked at the unread message. Even at a time like this, this girl was still worried about embarrassing He Tianran...

The old man tapped his fingers lightly on the keyboard twice, then revised his words again, carefully considering his choice of words.

As someone accustomed to giving orders, He Panshan rarely edited a message with such a cautious concern, almost like an elder to a junior.

[He Panshan]: "Girl, are you alright? You drank those three cups of wine too quickly. Remember to drink some honey water when you get back."

With a "whoosh," the message was sent, and he then edited a second one.

[He Panshan]: "Regarding that 80 million, thanks to your reminder, I've already given them a heads-up. Just now at dinner, I specifically tested him on a few basic questions about asset allocation and financial compliance... Indeed, as you said, he couldn't answer them. That blank look wasn't feigned; it seems he really has forgotten some of the business common sense he learned at HKU."

He Panshan paused for a moment, his mind flashing back to his son in the courtyard earlier, the one who dared to talk back to him, smoke and drink with him, and even dared to "ask him for an apology."

That feeling was very subtle.

The problem was clearly with the "hardware"—something I'd forgotten or forgotten—but the "software"...

That soul, however, seemed to possess a greater sense of vitality and innocence than before.

He continued typing.

[He Panshan]: "But it's strange. We chatted in the courtyard for a while just now. I originally thought that communicating with a 'sick' son would be difficult. But on the contrary, tonight was the smoothest conversation we've had in over a decade. He understood my... difficulties and logic, and even teased me in return. If this is also an 'illness,' then I think it's made him live more like a human being. Does such a mental illness really exist in the world? And I have another question: even if his memory is confused now, and his personality has even changed drastically, why did he choose Xiao Yu instead of you? Does this make him feel secure? Or is there... some hidden story you haven't told me?"

After writing this sentence, He Panshan took out a cigar from the drawer, but did not light it. He simply held it to his nose and sniffed it gently before setting it aside.

"Silly girl..."

A soft sigh came from the darkness.

He Panshan's hands landed on the keyboard again, and he sent another message. His tone lacked some of the majesty of a family head, but contained more of a belated sentiment as a father.

[He Panshan]: "Just now in the courtyard, I couldn't help but say a few words to him on your behalf. I forced him to tear off that 'good person' disguise and let him see the cowardice and greed in his bones. Do you think that if he wasn't facing you, would he pretend to be a 'bad person' in front of some other people? It's really a contradiction... But believe me, this is the complexity of us 'humans'."

[He Panshan]: "However, seeing him like that in the cold wind, I suddenly realized... all these years, I've only taught him how to do business, how to be an heir, but I've never taught him how to face his true self. He's living such a conflicted life, and in the end, you're the one who has to clean up his mess..."

[He Panshan]: "This is indeed... my lack as a father. Thank you, girl."

Three messages, interspersed with fragmented thoughts, were sent again as the mouse pointer was clicked.

"natural……"

He Panshan leaned back in his chair, looking at the deep night outside the window, his eyes becoming deep and complex.

"If you knew that you were able to escape unscathed tonight, to get through this ordeal with me, because a girl crushed all her dignity and laid it at your feet... then you really... should think of a way to properly apologize." (End of Chapter)