He Chuanhan had become hysterical. Most of the people present were simply watching the spectacle unfold, and some were not even bothering to hide their mockery, lowering their heads as they covered their mouths and laughed at him.
Who in the He Family did not know that He Chuanhan was simple-minded and physically strong but utterly lacking in brains?
Not a single investment project of his had ever turned a profit, yet the man stubbornly believed he possessed extraordinary talent.
His obsession with investment was bizarre. Clearly, the only thing he truly excelled at was spouting nonsense.
Back then, regarding the matter between him and He Siyu’s mother, he had twisted black into white, forcing a woman who had just given birth to endure vicious insults and slander until she ultimately committed suicide.
Then he turned around and married his current wife. Only eight years later did he finally have a son, He Huaichi.
He Siyu had been brought back from the hospital to the old residence by Grandfather He and Grandmother He, who personally raised him.
Because they had spoiled He Chuanhan too much, they had ruined him completely.
But when it came to raising He Siyu, their harshness and ruthlessness had reached an extreme.
Yet He Chuanhan deliberately chose not to see any of that. He stubbornly believed that He Siyu had done nothing and still obtained his current position effortlessly.
Grandfather He’s murky, profound eyes carried traces of sorrow.
“Chuanhan, when you were little, your mother and I indulged you too much. We raised you into someone arrogant and conceited. It’s not as though I never taught you. But could you learn anything?”
“Think carefully with your own brain. Every time I tried teaching you, what were you doing?”
“You were daydreaming. Thinking of excuses to avoid studying. Pretending to be pitiful. Craving attention.”
“It was your mother’s and my fault for raising you this way. But Siyu was taught personally by me. He had no childhood, no friends, no personal leisure time.”
“No one favored him. No one treated him kindly. Your mother and I pushed him to the brink over and over before giving him even a little room to breathe.”
“I even killed the puppy he raised just to control him. That was the first time he ever resisted me. I punished him by making him kneel in the ancestral hall and broke four discipline rods on him.”
“He was ill for a very long time. Even then, I still forced him to learn. Forced him to study like an emotionless machine.”
“Could you have endured that? Could you?”
“You refuse to suffer even the slightest hardship, yet you want to reap rewards without effort. Everything Siyu has today is what he deserves.”
“Yi An belongs to him. The He Family belongs to him as well.”
“I am a sinner. From now on, Siyu’s only true family will be his wife. I caused him too much pain in this lifetime. I will protect his wife until the day I die. No one is allowed to covet what belongs to the two of them.”
Grandfather He’s words caused everyone present to grow solemn.
Grandmother He lowered her head and wiped away tears. Ni Yang’s eyes also filled with moisture.
This was the second time she had heard about the road He Siyu had walked.
But this time, the confession came directly from the culprit himself. Even his voice had nearly choked with emotion.
She wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes with her fingertips and carefully observed He Chuanhan’s reaction.
The man stood beside the long dining table with his back hunched. His gaze was vacant, as though the light in the dining room could not reach him.
He remained hidden in darkness, his expression shifting from deathly pale to strangely twisted amusement.
Then he lifted his lowered head, the tears at the corners of his eyes disappearing into the hair at his temples.
“Hahahahaha—!”
“I couldn’t do it because that was your fault and Mother’s fault too! If you had treated me the way you treated He Siyu, would I have become like this today?”
“How laughable. Are you saying all this because you want me to pity He Siyu?”
“He got everything! What’s there to pity? Everything in the He Family belongs to him. I’m the truly pitiful one!”
The silent He Huaichi suddenly spoke.
“Father, after benefiting so much, can you stop pretending to be pitiful here?”
Ever since his older brother took over, Yi An’s market value had multiplied several times over. Their father received massive dividends every year without needing to do much at all. And now he still had the nerve to claim he was miserable. How shameless could he be?
“Shut up! I’m your father! Who allowed you to speak to me like that?!”
He Chuanhan cared deeply about appearances. Being mocked publicly by the son he cherished infuriated him. No matter how much he doted on him, he could not tolerate that.
Wen Shuhua shot He Huaichi a vicious glare for siding with outsiders.
The man merely shrugged indifferently.
Ni Yang could not remain unmoved. She was so angry she wanted to lift the chair beneath her and smash that beast of a man to death.
His values were twisted beyond repair. Selfish and self-serving, never reflecting on his own flaws, only blaming and envying others.
Grandfather He suddenly began coughing violently. Grandmother He cried as she rubbed his back soothingly.
She murmured repeatedly, “We were wrong… wrong from the very beginning…”
Ni Yang did not know what feelings she should use to face these two elders.
Every wound He Siyu carried had come from them, yet they were also undeniably the family members who had raised him.
She had no right, as an outsider, to judge the way they had educated him.
This was a dead end.
The He Family needed a capable successor, and Grandfather He did not want the rest of the He descendants to inherit the family.
His own son was ruined, so he trained his grandson instead, hoping to continue the family legacy.
From beginning to end, He Siyu had merely been a tool.
A tool created to inherit the family empire.
No one cared what he wanted.
No one cared what kind of life he wished to live.
He sacrificed his childhood, his time, and his dreams just to become the person others expected him to be.
And now he still had to endure such hatred from his own biological father.
No one pitied him.
Not a single person in this entire family.
She examined everyone seated around the long table. Each wore expressions of false sympathy.
But the greed for power and inheritance in their eyes was impossible to hide.
All they saw was that He Siyu had obtained everything they desperately wanted.
Yet none of them could bear the road he had walked to get there.
Hypocritical.
Disgusting.
Every single person here was.
The glamorous and untouchable President of Yi An Group, He Siyu, was someone whose right to choose had been stripped away since childhood.
He Chuanhan’s words were probably the true thoughts of everyone present.
He Siyu got everything. What’s there to pity?
I worked tirelessly for the He Family and gained nothing. I’m the truly pitiful one.
But while they enjoyed the benefits He Siyu brought them, they still resented and envied him for taking what they believed should have been theirs.
How laughable these people were.
Ni Yang’s eyes reddened. Her hands trembled with anger as she spoke gently yet forcefully to the two elders.
“Grandfather, Grandmother, I want justice for Siyu. He has worked diligently for the He Family, yet his own father publicly questioned and humiliated him. Is this matter really going to be raised heavily and then dismissed lightly?”
“Siyu has already suffered enough. Outside, he is Yi An’s Executive President. Inside this family, he is the grandson you personally raised and the heir you personally cultivated. Are you really going to let his father insult and question him publicly like this?”
“He is the face of the He Family. Insulting him is equivalent to questioning your judgment.”
“Grandfather, Grandmother, I am Siyu’s wife. I cannot stand by and watch him be bullied without doing anything. I ask that justice be given to Siyu.”
Grandfather He studied Ni Yang deeply.
Once she said those words, if he failed to punish Chuanhan now, it would mean he was condoning his behavior. In the future, He Chuanhan would only grow more reckless.
“Yangyang, Grandfather was muddle-headed. Grandfather will give Siyu and you a satisfactory explanation.”
He rose with the support of his cane and walked toward He Chuanhan.
Then he lifted the solid wooden cane and slammed it heavily against the man’s leg.
He Chuanhan cried out in pain and dropped to one knee on the ground, glaring furiously up at his father’s stern face.
“From today onward, you no longer need to go to Yi An. Kneel in the ancestral hall every day and reflect on yourself. When you truly reflect, then you may return. Put away thoughts you should never have had. No matter what, he is still your son. If you don’t know how to respect others, then learn from the beginning.”
“Dad, have you gone insane?!”
“No. You’re the insane one.”
More than once, he had received news that Chuanhan intended to harm Siyu. If Siyu had not been vigilant enough, he might already be dead.
And all this time, he had still been protecting this useless son.
Ni Yang stared coldly at the kneeling He Chuanhan.
Grandfather’s punishment was laughably light.
Compared to the punishments He Siyu had endured, this was insignificant.
Grandfather He still favored his son. That one strike alone had probably already pained him greatly.
Ni Yang looked away and held Grandmother’s hand, her eyes devoid of guilt.
“Grandmother, will you blame me?”
Grandmother He used her rough fingertips to wipe away the tears on Ni Yang’s face.
“How could I? Chuanhan was spoiled rotten by your grandfather and me. He should’ve been beaten long ago. You’re a good child. Siyu truly married a treasure.”
That night, after returning from the old residence to Yutang Villa, Ni Yang lay on the master bedroom bed, tossing and turning unable to sleep.
Grandfather He’s and He Chuanhan’s words echoed repeatedly in her ears.
This entire family was filled with extreme personalities. Not a single normal person among them.
How had He Siyu managed to grow up with such proper values in an environment like this?
And what exactly had happened between his mother and He Chuanhan back then?
What did a child who should never have been born even mean?
Aiyaa, aiyaa…
In the future, she should treat He Siyu a little better.
That poor little thing who had never been loved.