Chapter 417 - 423: What Happened?

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Han Yu looked at the warm and affectionate scene of the mother and children laughing together, his heart softened into a puddle. Suddenly, a thought crossed his mind: nothing could compare to a family being together like this, happy and harmonious—career ambitions weren’t so important after all.

However, this thought merely flashed through Han Yu’s mind without taking hold. The truth was, he couldn’t truly give up, for building a career and achieving things had always been his wish and belief. To speak of giving up was only possible after truly achieving his ambitions, and the young Han Yu still had a burning desire for recognition and revenge to realize.

Knowing that Dad hadn’t mistreated Mother, all three little ones had smiles blooming on their faces, but there was still a hint of uncertainty and worry on Brother Xing’s face. He didn’t know what changes had taken place in this life, everything seemed different—Father and Mother, who had been distant in the past, were now loving and caring in this life, giving him a happy family and two additional siblings. Everything was moving in a positive direction, which was the greatest dream he had in his previous life, and he was determined to maintain it.

But today, seeing the tears on Mother’s face, Brother Xing suddenly felt a sense of crisis, fearing that Father and Mother might return to the estrangement and coldness of his previous life, or even worse than being strangers. He knew he had to find out what the argument was really about. After all, he wasn’t truly a three-year-old child who would believe such excuses meant for fooling children.

Su Wenyue didn’t miss the thoughtful expression on Brother Xing’s face, but with Han Yu and the other two children present, it wasn’t appropriate to probe or ask too much. It was only after Han Yu took Brother Chen and Sister Yu out to the Courtyard to play that Su Wenyue took the opportunity to sit Brother Xing on her lap.

“Brother Xing, Mother sees that you have something on your mind. Is there anything you can share with Mother?” Su Wenyue asked softly.

But Brother Xing merely hung his head low. Although he knew that Mother had noticed something, she didn’t explicitly point it out. At his tender age of not quite three, there were things he felt he couldn’t discuss, even with Mother. The events of his previous life made him especially crave Mother’s affection and left him feeling insecure, making it hard for him to completely trust someone.

Su Wenyue saw Brother Xing’s reluctance to speak. Having gone through a rebirth herself, although she did not understand whether Brother Xing experienced the same, she could empathize with his complex feelings. She looked at him intently and waited patiently for him to respond.

“Brother Xing, Mother has something she would like to consult you about,” Su Wenyue said when Brother Xing remained silent for a long time, feeling a slight disappointment in her heart. Perhaps Brother Xing couldn’t fully trust her, which was why he remained silent; indeed, she had been an unfit mother in her previous life. If this really was her Brother Xing, then having what they have now was already more than she could ask for.

Hearing Su Wenyue’s words, Brother Xing looked up at her. Though he said nothing, his face clearly asked for her to continue.

Su Wenyue candidly shared the current predicament of their family and her decision with Brother Xing, partly to test him. After all, Brother Xing was the Eldest son and was expected to take on all future responsibilities of the family. It would have been manageable if they were just an ordinary family, but Han Yu’s future achievements were sure to lead the Han Family into turbulence. Consequently, the expectations for Brother Xing were even higher.

Brother Xing wasn’t surprised by Su Wenyue’s words; he had experienced the same events in his previous life. Although there were many changes, the major movements still followed the original track. However, in his previous life, both Mother and he had been uninvolved, while Dad had continued to struggle in the military camp. In this life, Dad’s status was significantly higher, having already become a prominent general; Brother Xing was aware of Dad’s ambitions and knew they couldn’t avoid these matters.

“Mother, I want to stay with you and Dad!” Brother Xing declared firmly without hesitation. Yet considering his younger brother and sister, he said, “I’m definitely not leaving, but the younger siblings are still small. If Mother fears they can’t endure hardship, maybe you could send them to Zhuangzi, entrust them to a few loyal Servants to look after them, and bring them back when things are more settled?”

Brother Xing had resolved his position—having finally found such a happy home with loving parents, he would not leave under any circumstances. Besides, things had not escalated to a point where leaving was his only option.

“Mother has already decided that all of you will stay. Not just you, but Brother Chen and Sister Yu will stay as well. Although staying with Father and Mother will make your lives harder, enduring hardships is the road to becoming a man of substance. Besides, it isn’t that dangerous just yet. Father and Mother are quite confident they can ensure your safety, and if things ever become truly dangerous, then we can consider sending you away,” she explained.

Su Wenyue’s words reflected only part of her thoughts. There’s no such thing as absolute safety in this world. While the Zhuangzi arranged by Han Yu was secretive, an increasing number of people were now aware of its location. Any hint of it could eventually lead people to discover it. Zhuangzi’s advantage lay in its concealment, but its defense and resistance capabilities were significantly weak. If discovered, the consequences were imaginable.

Su Wenyue’s considerations were not unfounded—in fact, such events had occurred in her previous life. Not everyone fights fair and square on the Battlefield with capability and strength. Some who cannot win openly would resort to sneaky tactics, sending assassins against the families of opposing generals, taking them hostage or using them as leverage. If leverage didn’t work, they might kill them out of spite. Su Wenyue had heard of several such incidents.

Seeing Su Wenyue had no intention of sending him away, Brother Xing was content. For him, hardship was nothing to fear. Having grown up in the Village and experiencing harsh conditions, even with the protection of Grandpa and Grandma, he still endured much suffering, let alone his later experiences in military camps, starting from the bottom without relying on his Dad’s Status and working his way up, not to mention the later events… for him, these hardships were truly insignificant.

“Don’t worry, Mother. I will take good care of the younger brother and sister; you won’t need to be distracted,” Brother Xing assured, knowing at his young age he couldn’t offer much help. Taking care of his siblings was the only thing he could do well to alleviate Father and Mother’s worries.

“Brother Xing is such a good boy, with you here, Mother really has less to worry about,” Su Wenyue affirmed, feeling even more certain about many things through Brother Xing’s responses. Regardless, in her eyes, Brother Xing would always be her son, and that was more than enough.

Since she had decided to keep the children with Han Yu, Su Wenyue was mentally prepared for the dangers that would follow and had made considerable arrangements. Of course, these measures were taken privately, though she and Han Yu were well aware of what was to come.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om