The handsome guy next door loves to flirt.

Seeing Aruo's expression, Mingyuan thought of Yunshu and Mingkun and said sadly, "Aruo, it wasn't easy for us to get married. There are many people who love each other but can't stay together for various reasons."

Xu Ruo frowned and asked, "Mingyuan, what's wrong? Why are you suddenly so sad?"

Mingyuan stroked Aruo's head. This woman was protected too well by everyone. He didn't want her to know about Yunshu, otherwise she would definitely get agitated and affect the baby in her belly.

"It's nothing, just some feelings of nostalgia!"

Xu Ruo thought Mingyuan was sad because he was thinking of his parents, so she asked the servants to serve him food. However, when she asked about the smell of fish and meat, she couldn't ask about that, so she could only hide upstairs.

Mingyuan ate half of it before Xu Yang returned.

Mingyuan asked someone to bring him another meal, and told him to come and eat after he washed his hands.

"Mingyuan, is Aruo not here?" Xu Yang asked after looking around for a while.

"No, I'm upstairs. I can't stand the smell of fish, so I'm going upstairs to lie down."

"Don't let her know about Yun Shu!" Xu Yang finally revealed the reason.

"I know. I told Xiao Mingkun this afternoon not to let Xu Ruo know about their affair. But I'm still angry that the Gu family is so ruthless!"

"I suspect it's not just Gu Jia; the Sheng family isn't much cleaner either. Their families are incredibly complicated, but this time they went too far. That's a life lost, and two others are seriously injured and still in the hospital. They don't care about human life at all. To cause so much trouble over a marriage—it's disgusting just thinking about it!"

“Mingkun is also unfortunate. Now that things have turned out that way, the Gu family and the Sheng family are not something that Mingkun can deal with alone.”

"So this world is sometimes very realistic. If you don't become strong, you can't protect yourself and others at all."

“Dad… Mingyuan knew that his words had a hidden meaning and were implied.”

Xu Yang shook his head. "Let's eat!"

……

Mingkun's mother had been in the hospital for half a month, but her condition hadn't improved much. The doctor suggested that she go home to recuperate. During these two weeks, Mingkun barely went to work, leaving company matters to Tietou and Jinyuan. He and Minmin went back and forth between the hospital every day.

Seeing that half of his mother's body was still immobile, Mingkun felt very sad. His mother had been confined to a wheelchair since her early fifties.

Fortunately, Changjie at home took good care of her. Mingkun sent his mother back to her hometown in the countryside. Looking at the familiar village in front of him, Mingkun felt lost for the first time.

As I walked, I arrived at the old man's house. The old man hadn't changed; he was still the same. He was still sitting under the grape trellis in the yard. It was autumn, and the grape leaves were almost all gone, but the old man was still leisurely drinking tea as usual. Seeing Mingkun standing at the door, he glanced at him, and finally, unable to bear it any longer, said, "Come in!" He knew everything about Mingkun's situation. Liu Yufen and Xiao had gone to the city because of Mingkun's accident, and when they returned, he was paralyzed. Everyone in the village knew, and the news had spread.

Mingkun hesitated for a while, and only stepped into the courtyard when he heard the old man call him in.

Sitting across from his nephew, Grandpa Xiao looked at him, his face expressionless and his spirit broken, a far cry from his former competence and fighting spirit. He felt a pang of sympathy for the boy.

"If you had listened to me back then, you wouldn't be so heartbroken now. You two weren't meant to be; it wasn't the right time for you to be together..."

Upon hearing this, Mingkun suddenly looked up and asked, "Grandpa, when will our fate be right, and can we still be together?"

The old man shook his head after hearing this and simply said, "Throw them into a place of certain death and they will live; trap them in a deadly situation and they will survive!"

Mingkun was completely confused. What did it mean? Did it mean that he and Yunshu had no chance to be together again, or was it something about life and death? He didn't understand what the old man was talking about.

"Sir, could you explain this more clearly?"

"Figure it out yourself..." After saying that, he ignored him, got up and went into the house.

When Chen Manchun came out to get water, she saw Mingkun in the yard. Several months later, she finally dared to go up and greet Mingkun.

"How is your sister now?" Mingkun remembered that Chen Manyu had attempted suicide but failed, and later he heard that she was mentally unstable.

"She got married, to a divorced man who's 10 years older than her. That's good, at least it saves her from causing any more trouble," Chen Manchun said with a sigh. At least her troublesome younger sister had settled her personal life.

"Ah Kun, there's something I've always felt guilty about, and I haven't apologized to you yet." Man Chun came out to apologize to Ming Kun. She had acted recklessly before, which almost caused Ming Kun and Yun Shu to break up. If she hadn't been so confused back then, her sister wouldn't have married such a bad man, and her father-in-law and husband wouldn't have blamed her.

"Let's not talk about the past. I don't hate you!"

Mingkun knew she was apologizing for what happened with Chen Manyun. The matter was over, and after all, she was his eldest cousin's wife. He didn't need to be petty and had already forgiven her.

"No, it was because I changed Yunshu's fortune slip back then. Later, my father-in-law found out and made Yunshu draw a new one. Although I don't know what Yunshu drew, it was definitely different from the previous one. She might not be a person with a strong fate!"

"Really!" Mingkun's eyes lit up for a moment, but quickly dimmed again. "It's a pity we still broke up..."

"This...I'm sorry..." Chen Manchun had heard about her family's situation that morning and didn't know how to comfort her. Since that incident, she had changed a lot. She wasn't as shrewish as before, and she had become much more low-key. She had also distanced herself from her family. Her greedy mother made her feel ashamed in the village.

Mingkun then left his uncle's house, but as he left, he was back to his usual self. No matter what had happened, life had to go on, and as long as he loved someone and that person was doing well and happy, that was enough. With his mother like that, and his family to support, he had no right to remain depressed.

After returning home, he went inside to see his mother. He leaned close to her ear, and she mumbled a few words.

Mingkun held his mother's hand and said, "Mom, take good care of yourself. You'll be fine in the future. Your son... I'm unfilial. As long as you get better, I will definitely let you hold your grandson in your arms in the future."

After hearing his words, tears welled up in Liu Yufen's eyes. Her family had truly endured so much hardship. She hoped that after this ordeal, her son could start anew and forget that woman.

After Xiao Mingkun left, he instructed Sister Chang to take good care of his mother. He then went up the mountain to see his father. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that his father's temples were gray and his back was somewhat hunched.

I helped him with some work, and then Mingkun went back to the city in the afternoon. There were still a few projects at the company that needed to be completed before the New Year.

Mingkun's life returned to normal, and the Gu family also welcomed the day of their daughter's wedding.