Finally, back at the Shen home, after stepping into the living room, the first thing that came into view was the brightly colored balloon affixed to the window, which excitedly spelled out two big words, “Happy Birthday”.
The living room was decorated very childishly, and there were even stuffed bears as tall as Tang Li resting on the sofa.
A three-tier birthday cake with a blue hue was placed quietly on the tea table. The top of the cake has a lovely whale leaping out of the blue water.
When Tang Li approached, he saw a line of words written on the bottom tier of the cake.
[—— My little Chestnut, brother will always love you.]
For a moment, Tang Li was stunned. His eyes were filled with joy, and his nose even stung a little. It seemed that a hot liquid was spilling out of his eyes.
This is undoubtedly the best birthday gift he has ever received.
Tang Li looked up and turned to Shen Yu, who was sitting in front of him in his wheelchair with his straight back facing the little villain. He called out softly, “Brother Shen Yu.”
He didn’t know if he was too sensitive, but he somehow felt that the atmosphere in the living room is too quiet. The servants, including Uncle Zhang and Aunt Chen, stood quietly in the corner of the living room and did not dare to look at them.
Shen Yu heard his call but refused to turn around and face him.
“Brother Shen Yu. What’s wrong with you?” Tang Li cried in a childish voice, taking two tentative steps forward.
Before his voice fell, he was interrupted by Shen Yu: “Don’t come here.”
Tang Li’s footsteps stopped for a moment. He thought about it and quickly retreated to his previous position. He grinned uneasily and said, “Brother Shen Yu, is there anything I did to upset you?”
The answer to Tang Li’s question was only a sneer.
Now he is guilty, he knows how to call him brother?”
Tang Li’s stood stiffly in place. He seemed to realize something in that moment. His face gradually grew green, and even his smile became extremely reluctant.
“What’s wrong?” Tang Li said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Shen Yu did not speak, but slowly turned around in his wheelchair. The expression on his face could be described as despair. His lips were tight, and his cold eyes rested on Tang Li’s face.
Looking at Tang Li made Shen Yu very uncomfortable. The little villain’s slightly flat mouth, and the glimmering light flowing in those phoenix eyes gave him a pitiable appearance.
“Brother Shen Yu…”
As usual, the villain shouted Shen Yu’s name in a soft, waxy voice, like a puppy who made a mistake and was begging his master for forgiveness.
This time, however, Shen Yu was indifferent.
He looked straight at Tang Li and remained silent.
No fear…
No worries…
Not a trace of regret…
Doing such bad things, and then acting like this.
Shen Yu closed his eyes and felt that all his internal organs were sore with anger. All he could see was the memory of when he went to the hospital in the afternoon. Lei Yumeng was lying weakly in the hospital bed, her exposed hands and feet were badly bruised, her wrists were covered with heavy gauze, and she was groaning in her sleep from pain.
In a only a little more than a month, Lei Yumeng has changed from a lovely girl who jumps around to a patient who is thin and sick.
At that moment, Shen Yu could hardly believe his eyes.
Mrs. Lei was sitting beside the hospital bed with a pale face and black circles under her eyes. She covered her face with one hand and wept silently.
Mr. Lei called Shen Yu to the corridor outside the ward and pleaded in a low voice, “Mr. Shen, we did not discipline for our daughter enough, and failed to stop her behavior in time. This must have caused trouble to the Tang child. We are deeply sorry and Yumeng’s mother will go to school to pull her out tomorrow. I hope you will forgive us.”
In the face of the sincere Mr. Lei, Shen Yu looked on in a daze and did not respond for a long time.
After a while, Shen Yu squeezed out a few words from his throat: “I’m sorry…”
“No.” Mr. Lei waved his hand in a hurry. “Don’t say you’re sorry, blame the students and their head teacher. They’re the ones who hurt Yumeng. Tang Li is also a victim in this matter.”
Shen Yu opened his mouth but did not know what to say.
The memory of Mr. Lei father apologizing to him was like a sharp needle quenched with poison, which penetrated into his skin so hard that he could hardly breathe.
He knew that Lei Yumeng’s parents didn’t really think Tang Li was free from blame, but after looking at Shen Yu’s face, they could only put their feelings aside and carefully apologize to him.
When he left, Shen Yu asked Uncle Zhang to inquire about the Lei family’s bank account number and deposit a sum of compensation as soon as possible.
But on the way home, he still felt bad.
He just couldn’t make sense of the recent events.
Tang Li has just turned eleven years old. He should have been an unknowing child. So where did he learn how to do think and do such cruel things?
But at this moment, looking at Tang Li’s unrepentant face, Shen Yu suddenly understood.
Tang Li himself is the biggest villain in the original novel.
Doesn’t that fit in with the ruthlessness of a villain?
Even if Shen Yu treats him attentively, even if Shen Yu actively wants to pull him back from his inherent evil ways, it will ultimately mean nothing… Just because Tang Li is a real villain and a natural cold-blooded animal.
Even if Shen Yu had the best intentions, he could not warm the heart of Tang Li.
Shen Yu clenched his lips and felt so sad that he wanted to cry. He took a deep breath and forced back the feelings that poured into his eyes. Only the despair that had soaked into his bone marrow remained.
“Uncle Zhang.” Shen Yu looked away from Tang Li’s pleasant face and said hoarsely, “Take apart the decorations.”
“As you wish.” Uncle Zhang responded in a low voice, turning his head and motioning to Aunt Chen and the other servants. The group of people acted immediately.
Tang Li was frozen on the spot, and his little face was full of confusion. He did not seem to understand Shen Yu’s meaning.
“Shen Yu, are you unhappy with something?” Tang Li asked in dismay.
Shen Yu ignored Tang Li’s words, he refused to give him any more attention. Suddenly, he saw the three-layered cake on the tea table, Shen Yu’s eyes flashed, and then he said to Uncle Zhang, “Throw this away too.”
“Yes.” Uncle Zhang nodded and strode to the tea table to pick up the tray that held the cake.
When Tang Li saw the situation, he was immediately flustered. He staggered over, spread his arms over the cake protectively and quickly said, “Isn’t this my birthday cake? Why throw it away? You can’t throw it out!”
Uncle Zhang turned his head to Shen Yu.
Shen Yu sat in his wheelchair with no expression. His calm eyes are like a lake without even the slightest ripple. Even his breath is soaked with a detached tone: “I said throw it away.”
Uncle Zhang no longer hesitated, after bypassing Tang Li in front of him, he picked up the cake on the tea table and went out.
He was only able to take a few steps when suddenly, Tang Li rushed over like a madman and tried to steal the cake from Uncle Zhang’s hands.
Uncle Zhang was shocked by Tang Li’s sudden action and, on reflex, turned sharply to the side to avoid the little villain. As a result, he collided with Tang Li’s small body.
The weight of the three-tier birthday cake is not light. Even Uncle Zhang, as an adult, had some difficulty carrying it. At the moment he was hit by Tang Li’s body, his own body’s center of gravity instantly changed, and his hands became unstable.
The whole cake fell straight onto Tang Li.
Tang Li had no intention of avoiding at all and instead reached for the cake.
Unfortunately, such a delicate thing as a cake cannot withstand such harsh treatment. In the end, Tang Li’s face and body were pasted with the fallen cake.
Uncle Zhang was stunned and looked at Tang Li in surprise: “Young master Tang Li…”
Tang Li’s expression was slightly stunned. He looked down at the cake pasted on his body, and at the empty hands he wanted to catch it with. He was as stranded as a small animal lost in the forest.
“This is my cake. It’s the cake you gave me…” Tang Li muttered, grieving as if he was about to cry, “Why did you throw my cake away? Didn’t you give it to me? You can’t throw away my cake without my consent…”
Uncle Zhang, who had a hard time listening to his helpless muttering, could only turn his head away in silence.
Shen Yu, who was sitting not far away, watched all this quietly from beginning to end. After hearing Tang Li’s words, the sarcastic arc of his mouth became more and more obvious, and his voice opened coldly: “Consent? So what you did in school was with my consent? Did you let Lei Yumeng suffer those injuries with her parents’ consent?
As soon as this was said, Tang Li’s whole face turned pale.
If he had just suspected that Shen Yu knew about his association with Lei Yumeng, now he is quite sure that Shen Yu not only knows about it, but also knows all of the bullying Lei Yumeng suffered, and that he has been standing idly by.
Thinking of this, Tang Li suddenly felt cold all over.
“Shen Yu…” He cried out, “It’s not what you think…”
Shen Yu couldn’t bear it. He grabbed the wheelchair arm and raised his voice, “What else can it look like?”
Tang Li was stunned, and his voice stopped abruptly. He looked at Shen Yu timidly.
“Tang Li, I have asked you many times, but every time you lie, you never tell me the truth.” Shen Yu’s eyes were filled with such a thick sense of disappointment that it could not be concealed. “I always thought you were just playing a game of puppy love, but I didn’t expect you to do more than I imagined. You used those people to bully that girl!”
“Shen Yu, it’s not like that…” For the first time, Tang Li’s always cold face showed a truly panicked expression. He shook his head like a rattle drum and went to grasp Shen Yu’s hand.
But the next second, Shen Yu was relentlessly moved away.
“Don’t touch me.” Shen Yu’s voice was ice cold.
“If she hadn’t badgered me and threatened me with you, I would never have done anything like that.” Tang Li’s face and body were covered with cake. He looked extremely confused. His voice trembled as he explain, “Everything that Lei Yumeng has suffered is her own fault.”
Shen Yu coldly smiled, “Just because she was pestering you, you used others to force her to commit suicide at school?”
Tang Li said, “I am not the one who bullied her, nor am I the one who made her commit suicide.”
Hearing this, Shen Yu’s temples throbbed suddenly. He put his hand on his forehead and said angrily, “What’s the difference between you and those people? It’s just that the blood wasn’t spilled directly on your hands that you can say such indifferent things. Don’t forget, you are the murderer who indirectly led to Lei Yumeng’s suicide! “
How can you be so cruel?
How can you watch a girl be bullied because of you?
How can you act as if it had nothing to do with you afterwards?
For a time, numerous questions and exclamations filled Shen Yu’s mind. His mood was unstable, he leaned on the wheelchair and gasped slightly. His hot eyes seemed to penetrate Tang Li’s body.
He sighed in a low voice, “I thought I could change you and pull you back from that dark road. Until now, I didn’t realize that those peoples’ maliciousness has already penetrated into your bones. You were born like that. You are you. I can’t change you.”
After a pause, he said, “Tang Li, do you have feelings?”
Shen Yu did not get a reply from Tang Li.
He didn’t even know whether Tang Li understood his words or not.
Shen Yu abandoned his gaze and suddenly lost the energy to observe Tang Li’s reaction. After Aunt Chen and others cleaned up the living room, he waved his hand and asked the servants to leave first.
Then he asked Uncle Zhang, “Is there any real estate near the school?”
Uncle Zhang bowed his head and answered empathically, “There are two places. One is in Guiyuan district. It’s only ten minutes away from Shenghua International School. The other one is in Lugang District. It’s a high rise with more than 200 levels. It takes half an hour to drive to school. It’s also better in security and more convenient for transportation.”
“You decide.” Shen Yu closed his eyes tiredly and rubbed his eyebrows. “I’ll send Tang Li with you later. From now on, let him live there and come back once a month.”
Before Uncle Zhang could respond, Tang Li had collapsed and yelled, “Why?!”
Shen Yu opened his eyes and stared lightly at the shocked Tang Li: “I can’t teach you anymore.”
After a few seconds, he added, “But since I promised you that I would bring you up, I will keep my promise. You don’t have to worry about that.”
Tang Li stared directly at Shen Yu, it was if he was looking at someone he had never seen before.
Gradually, the dark eyes of Tang Li became covered in a layer of watery mist, and the sorrow lingering in the bottom of his eyes seemed to overflow.
Tang Li moved his lips and spoke in an incredible tone: “All this for the sake of Lei Yumeng?”
Shen Yu sneered: “It has nothing to do with her.”
“Then what is it? Or is it you disliked me for a long time and now you have a reasonable excuse to kick me out?”
Shen Yu noticed that Tang Li was approaching a breaking point. He raised his eyes to the red eyes of Tang Li. He felt terrible. He frowned and said, “It’s not like that.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Yu saw several crystal tears rolling out of Tang Li’s eyes.
Then the tears came out like beads with broken threads.
Tang Li did not feel them at all, his eyes were scary red, and a few visible green veins appeared on his forehead. He seemed to be trying to suppress his emotions. He tried to speak calmly, “If I didn’t do that, Lei Yumeng would still pester me and stay outside my classroom day after day, just like Jenny Yang is pestering you.”
Shen Yu was stunned and murmured, “Although I don’t like Jenny Yang, I wouldn’t do anything to hurt her.”
“That’s why you gave her the chance to continue to pester you.”
Shen Yu was suddenly stunned into silence, and his unbelieving eyes wandered around Tang Li figure several times.
He could hardly believe that…
This sentence was uttered from the mouth of an eleven-year-old child.
At the same time, Tang Li continued: “Your refusal isn’t firm, you give her the chance to hope, even if she follows you around like a dog you don’t do anything about it. Your behavior makes her believe that as long as she takes the initiative and stay persistent, then one day sooner or later she’ll be Mrs. Shen.”
Shen Yu, with a blue face, slapped the armrest of his wheelchair in anger: “At least she was not forced to commit suicide because of me!”
Tang Li spoke, his gaze locked on Shen Yu’s own eyes, “You’re such a bad man.”
Hearing this, Shen Yu was so angry that he even breathed a little unsteadily. In an instant, his heart burst into flames and his mouth burst out words before his brain could process them: “Exactly, if I were not such a bad man, how could I take in a troubled teenager like you?”
After the words fell, the whole room was dead silent.
Tang Li did not make any more noise and instead went directly into a robotic state.
Shen Yu’s reason gradually returned. Finally, he realized what he had said and immediately softened his heart. “Chestnut, I…”
Tang Li did not give him an opportunity to explain, but turned around and left.
Soon, Tang Li’s back disappeared from Shen Yu’s sight.
Uncle Zhang looked at Shen Yu and went out quietly without saying a word.
———————-
Winter nights come early.
Just before 8 o’clock in the evening, the sky outside the windows had been already been covered by the heavy cloak of night. Looking at it, it was like a strong and huge curtain, which covered all the light tightly.
“It’s going to snow tonight.” Aunt Chen looked out of the window and said.
Shen Yu sat beside the sofa and played with his mobile phone. He listened and looked up at the dark night sky outside the window. He said, “It’s only December now. Why is it snowing so early?”
“It snowed at this time last year.” Aunt Chen turned around and said uncertainly, “I think the weather forecast says that, even if it doesn’t snow tonight, it may snow tomorrow and the day after tomorrow.”
Shen Yu: “Oh…”
He kept looking down at his cell phone, but he couldn’t see the content on the screen.
Aunt Chen watched Shen Yu’s absent-minded reaction. She sighed, not knowing how to comfort Shen Yu.
Although Aunt Chen and other servants were dismissed by Shen Yu before he and Tang Li quarreled earlier this evening, she clearly saw Tang Li walking towards the gate in the front yard, and Uncle Zhang did not say a word.
It seems that this time there is a lot of trouble…
Whether it’s Shen Yu or Tang li, both are in a bad mood this evening.
Aunt Chen hesitated for a while and advised, “Sir, it’s not early in the evening. How about going upstairs to rest.”
“Em.” Shen Yu nodded, then picked up his cell phone, and manipulated his wheelchair to take the elevator upstairs. Suddenly, he thought of something and told Aunt Chen, “If Uncle Zhang comes back, tell him come to my bedroom to find me, I won’t go to sleep quite yet.”
Aunt Chen answered, “Yes sir.”
Maybe it’s because Shen Yu was so worried that even though he was sitting on his bed after taking a bath, he really didn’t feel sleepy at all.
He thought for a long time, finally, he picked up the mobile phone that had been placed on the bedside table, and dialed Uncle Zhang’s phone nervously.
After a second call, he was connected. Uncle Zhang’s voice was intentionally lowered when speaking into his mobile phone: “Sir, I am accompanying young master Tang Li outside. There is nothing to worry about. Please rest assured.”
Shen Yu asked, “Where are you?”
“Lei Yumeng’s front door.” Uncle Zhang said, “She left the hospital this afternoon and went home. Young master Tang Li has been keeping watch in front of her house.”
Shen Yu felt very strange: “What’s he going to do?”