Chapter 516: Please Don’t Tell Me That You’re in Love with Me
“Father, I…”
“That’s it,” Old Master Li said. He looked at Su Chenghui with a complicated glance. His eyes contained a slight trace of sadness. “Qianxue and I will not forbid you from seeing the kids. But you and Qianxue don’t need to see each other anymore.”
Su Chenghui’s face turned pale. He was in his forties and had been through a lot, but at that very moment, he had no idea what to do. He felt as helpless as a young man who had started to make decisions on his own just recently.
Old Master Li had been a part of Su Chenghui’s family for over twenty years. It hurt him to say those words to Su Chenghui, but in the last two months, he learned that his daughter did not love Su Chenghui anymore, not even a little bit.
He would give Su Chenghui another chance if his daughter still had even the slightest feeling towards him, to make it possible for him and Li Qianxue to get back together.
But Li Qianxue obviously hated Su Chenghui now. In that case, forcing them to get back together would be a pointless endeavor.
Old Master Li glanced at the chessboard and said, “You have won this round. We don’t need to finish it.”
Did he win? That wasn’t true. He had lost, he had lost everything. Su Chenghui stood up and went downstairs, looking like a ghost.
Downstairs, Li Qianxue was in the living room watching the house workers clean up. She was sitting on the sofa with Su Qingsang. The two of them were talking.
Su Qingsang stood up quickly when she saw Su Chenghui come downstairs.
This time, Su Chenghui ignored her and walked straight up to Li Qianxue.
“Can I talk to you?”
“No,” said Li Qianxue, sitting still. “I have nothing to say to you.”
“Qianxue,” called Su Chenghui. He clenched his teeth so hard that he felt like his gums would bleed. “I only need five minutes. Can’t you do that?”
“No,” said Li Qianxue, raising her head to look at him in the eyes coldly. “I don’t even want to give you one minute.”
Su Chenghui felt as if an arrow had just pierced his heart. “Qianxue, you…” He wanted to beg her.
“Sister,” called Su Yuxin. He had just returned from walking the guests out. He had come into the house only a few minutes ago.
“I have a gift for you,” said Su Yuxin, looking at Su Qingsang. “I forgot to give it to you yesterday when you got home. Come upstairs and take it.”
Su Qingsang glanced at him. The boy didn’t need to say that. She was already planning to leave.
“Mom, I’m going upstairs to get the gift.”
Su Qingsang headed upstairs together with Su Yuxin. Before leaving, Su Yuxin glanced at Uncle Zhang. He did that to signal for him to tell the house workers in the living room to leave.
Uncle Zhang immediately got his meaning. As he waved a hand, all the house workers left.
Sitting on the sofa, Li Qianxue looked a little sulky. She looked at Su Chenghui and asked, “Su Chenghui, you must be feeling so happy now, aren’t you?”
He had been out of the family for such a long time. Yet, some people were still willing to stand on his side.
“Qianxue, I feel so bad now.” Su Chenghui stood before her. He wasn’t happy at all. “I really, really feel bad.”
“The money you got from our divorce should be enough for you to go to a nice hospital to check what’s wrong with you,” said Li Qianxue in a very unfriendly tone. “Did you spend it all in just two months?”
“It’s okay, I can still afford to pay your hospital bill. How much do you need? Just give me a number,” she said, looking at Su Chenghui as if he was a beggar.
Su Chenghui clenched his fists. His dry and deep voice was toned with bitterness when he asked, “Qianxue, you think I’m here to ask you for money?”
“What do you want then?” Li Qianxue turned to look at him impatiently. “Don’t tell me that you regret getting a divorce. Don’t tell me that after leaving me, you suddenly realized that you’re in love with me, so you now want to get back together with me.”
Su Chenghui really didn’t know how to continue that conversation.
What could he possibly say? Could he tell her that he did want to get back together with her? Could he tell her that she was exactly right? After losing her, he had indeed realized that he was in love with her, that he couldn’t live without her. He wanted to start fresh with her.
“Qianxue, don’t be like this. I do regret what I’ve done. Qianxue, I really love…”
“Chenghui.” Li Qianxue stood up, staring straight at his face. The look in her eyes was icy cold, mixed with contempt. “Can you be more shameless?”
“Qianxue?”
“You will really say anything to make yourself a part of the Li Family again.”
Li Qianxue didn’t believe him. In her eyes, that was only another trick that Su Chenghui was playing.
“Qianxue, I do want to come back, but not to the Li Family. I want to come back to you.”
Li Qianxue couldn’t bear listening to that. “You want to come back to me? I’m the Li Family now. Don’t you know that?”
Su Chenghui knew that she had deeply misunderstood him.
“Alright,” said Li Qianxue, as she stood up. “Su Chenghui, if you have even a little bit of dignity left, go as far away from me as you can. Do not show up in front of me again. As for what you just said to me, I’m sorry, I don’t even believe a word you said. So, you can stop talking.”
Li Qianxue turned to leave. Su Chenghui reached out to hold her hand without thinking and said, “Qianxue, I meant what I said.”
“I meant what I said as well,” Li Qianxue said, as she attempted to pull her hand out of his. Su Chenghui had it gripped tightly, however.
She knitted her brows with anger and said, “Su Chenghui, I’m warning you. Don’t push it too far. For the sake of our children, I don’t intend to make things difficult for you. Don’t make me do that.”
To be honest, she was disappointed at that moment, not with Su Chenghui, but with Su Peizhen.
If Su Chenghui showed up, it was clearly because he wanted something from the family. She refused to believe that he had come to wish Old Master Li a happy birthday sincerely.
She was really disappointed with Su Peizhen.
She had spent over twenty years raising that girl. She didn’t give birth to her, but all those years, both she and Old Master Li had loved the girl and cared for her truly.
But on Old Master Li’s birthday, Su Peizhen didn’t even make a call, let alone come to visit him.
Su Peizhen was really just like her father. She was as heartless and ungrateful as her father. No kindness could ever arouse her grat.i.tude.
Li Qianxue didn’t want to think of the daughter that she had raised as that kind of person. She hated to admit that. However, she couldn’t help but think that way.
“Qianxue.” Su Chenghui never knew that he could be hurt by some mere words that Li Qianxue had said.
The two of them had switched places. He seemed to finally be able to feel how she had felt all those years ago.
Was that how she had felt when he cold-shouldered her over and over again?
“Don’t say my name,” Li Qianxue said. She didn’t want to say another word to the man. It was meaningless. “I feel disgusted hearing you say my name.”
Su Chenghui felt intense pain in his heart. He could barely stand.
He shambled a step backward.
“Qianxue…”
“Please don’t tell me that you’re really in love with me. If you are, I can only tell you that your love makes me sick.”
Li Qianxue believed that he was pretending. She didn’t want to waste even one more minute on him, so she turned and left.
Su Chenghui was left standing there, watching Li Qianxue disappear around the corner of the stairs. Because of what Li Qianxue had said, he felt as if his heart was being punctured by a countless number of arrows.
He sat down, rested his head on his palms, and felt his eyes swelling. Tears almost gushed out of those eyes, but he didn’t let that happen.
“Qianxue, why do you hate me so much?” he thought.
He knew that he deserved it, that he was the one who had caused all the bad consequences. But still, he felt attacked.
Su Qingsang came downstairs after a long while, holding a small box.
She wasn’t surprised to see Su Chenghui sitting there alone. She walked to him and sat down next to him.
Su Chenghui thought that it was Li Qianxue who had come back. He raised his head expectantly, but as he saw Su Qingsang’s face, the gleam in his eyes dimmed.
That was so obvious. The look in his eyes allowed Su Qingsang to confirm that she was right about what Su Chenghui really wanted.
He was really in love with her mother. Perhaps, after the two of them got a divorce, he fell in love with her instead of growing hatred towards her.
“Dad,” called Su Qingsang. She handed him the small box. “I got you a gift from Rong City. I was gonna give it to you in a few days.”
Looking at the box and feeling the sincerity in Su Qingsang’s eyes, Su Chenghui felt as if something was gnawing at his heart.
He felt a m.u.f.fled, dull pain.
He remembered Su Qingsang bringing every family member a gift every time she came home. Those gifts were not expensive, but they exhibited her kindness.
However, her gifts for Li Qianxue and him were always thrown into a corner by the two of them.
“Qingsang…”
Su Chenghui remembered how he had ignored Su Qingsang all those years. But currently, Su Qingsang was the one helping him. She even got him a gift.
“Dad.”
Li Qianxue was too angry to notice how Su Chenghui looked at her pa.s.sionately. The hatred she had toward him made her ignore the affectionate look in his eyes.
“Qingsang, I’m sorry. I was…”
“Dad.” Su Qingsang wasn’t looking forward to hearing Su Chenghui apologize. Besides, he had apologized to her already.
“Can I ask you a question? Are you really in love with mom?”
Su Chenghui stopped short. He looked at Su Qingsang, and asked bitterly, “Don’t you believe me?”
He was aware that he had made mistakes. He had done a lot of wrong things. As a consequence, no one believed what he said today and no one chose to stand by his side. Realizing that, Su Chenghui felt frustrated, remorseful, and bitter.
“I believe you,” said Su Qingsang, as she had guessed his love for Li Qianxue long ago.
If Su Chenghui didn’t love Li Qianxue, he would have divorced her soon after Xiang Caiping showed up. If he cared for Xiang Caiping as much as he used to claim, he would have gotten together with her long ago.
Also, if he really had loved Xiang Caiping so much, why did he marry Li Qianxue in the end? She did threaten him, but it wasn’t like he had no choice at all.
“Qingsang?”
“I believe you.” Su Qingsang remembered the look Li Qianxue had on her face earlier. She put a hand on Su Chenghui’s arm. “Dad, I believe that you truly love mom.”
Su Chenghui grew a little emotional. He never thought that the only one who would be willing to believe him at the moment would be the daughter that he never cared about.
“Dad, do you have any plans for the future?”