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Chapter 301: Chapter 301: Give Up
Shi Yan never gave up on Lin Man, despite liking her for many years and being repeatedly rejected. He knew that she savored the feeling of being pursued, and even boasted to her friends of a man, him, who was truly in love with her and had chased her for many years.
He knew most of her friends and knew there were other men in pursuit of her over the years. But all were rejected by Lin Man. No one had the persistence he had. Therefore, Shi Yan firmly believed that as long as he didn’t give up, he would win Lin Man over.
Recently, he thought he was close to success when Si Chen unexpectedly appeared, bringing him back to reality.
What he found even more intolerable was that apparently Si Chen was already married, but Lin Man was still crazily obsessed with him, and even after hearing about Xiao Zhenggang’s medical incident, insisted on coming here despite his objections.
Shi Yan felt like he was going mad. He wanted to lash out, but couldn’t bring himself to hurt Lin Man. His pent-up rage had nowhere to go and contorted his expression to such an extent that he looked like a wild beast, wanting to tear anything in sight apart.
Seeing the bloodshot fierceness in his eyes, Lin Man became apprehensively. She lost her temper earlier without thinking, but she was used to being so proud in front of Shi Yan that it was impossible for her to admit her mistake. Backing away two steps, she strove to stay calm, "Shi...Shi Yan, why do you care so much about what I do? I’ve made it crystal clear—I don’t like you. Even a hundred years from now the feelings will not change. Why don’t you just give up and find someone who loves you instead of pestering me?"
"Pester?" Shi Yan took a step closer to Lin Man and demanded, "Is that how you see my actions? Lin Man, even if your heart were made of stone or metal, I should’ve warmed it by now, shouldn’t I? You clearly loathe me, don’t you?"
As more passers-by stopped to watch their dispute, Lin Man felt a bit more secure. She got up her nerve, putting on an air of superiority, "You’re just not my type, and I don’t like people like you. You’re wasting your time."
After all these years of truly caring, this was the result. Shi Yan suddenly saw the light and gradually calmed down. He looked at Lin Man, "Repeat that, Lin Man."
To her surprise, Lin Man hesitated momentarily. She didn’t know why, she didn’t like Shi Yan and was annoyed by him, but in this moment, she faltered. Yet it only lasted a few seconds, she immediately responded, "I don’t like you. I’ve said this many times, very clearly."
"Lin Man, remember what you’re saying today." Shi Yan gave a self-deprecating laugh, thinking about how all these years of sincerity had been wasted on a woman who didn’t appreciate him. He gritted his teeth and raged, "I pursued you seriously, seeing you as a good girl. But you’ve taken advantage of my sincerity. You really think you’re so beautiful and high-class, like the moon in the sky that no one can reach. You even degraded yourself to the point of falling for a married man. If I’d known this was the kind of woman you are, even if you crawled naked into my bed, I would still find you disgusting."
Never did she expect that Shi Yan, who she had always seen as a passive person, would use such foul language to insult her. Encircled by the laughters and whispers of people around them, Lin Man’s face burned with humiliation and she wished she could disappear into thin air.
No matter the era, being involved with a married man was always looked down upon.
Seeing he finally achieved the outcome he wanted, Shi Yan shot Lin Man a hateful glance, turned around and strode away. In that moment, he felt as if his heart had died too. He couldn’t stop his tears from flowing even while walking away.
After loving her for so many years, it all ended as a joke.
Even if Lin Man had hesitated for a minute longer before rejecting him, he could’ve deceived himself into continuing his pursuit.
Having circled around Lin Man all those years, people even joked about it during friendly gatherings. He thought he was truly in love and respected the relationship. He thought it was his friends who didn’t understand him, or how wonderful Lin Man was.
How ridiculous it was...
It was all because of Si Chen. What was so special about a married man? Was it true that women liked bad guys?
Lin Man had surely taken him for granted, thinking he could never live without her. But once he truly let go, he realized it wasn’t as agonizing as he thought. He was just resentful after all these years, the ending was not what he imagined for himself.
...
Unaware of Lin Man’s visit to Si Chen at the hospital, Tong Yao and Si Chen had just arrived at her parents’ house. Her father, Tong Yaohui, who was supposed to go to work, sent his wife to the Vegetable Market to pick up groceries, planning to drink a few rounds with his son-in-law at lunch.
"You rarely get a day off, your mother and I don’t need to go to work. Let’s have lunch together."
Upon hearing Tong Yaohui’s words, Tong Yao immediately complained about his partiality. "Dad, whenever I ask you to take a day off and have a meal with me, you never say that."
Tong Yaohui replied, "We see each other every once in a while. If you want to eat your mom’s cooking, she can prepare it and we can bring it to you."
Tong Yao: "..."
Even though it seemed fair, Tong Yao felt something was off.
At noon, Wen Yun quickly stir-fried a few dishes and stewed a big pot of pork bone soup. Tong Yao helped around in the kitchen, claiming she had an internal heat issue recently and couldn’t eat spicy, so she asked Wen Yun not to add peppers into the dishes. Wen Yun didn’t suspect anything and gently chimed in, "You usually don’t listen when I tell you to cut down on spicy food. It’s easily going to get heaty in the summer."
Tong Yao put on a charmingly playful act and cooed, "You see, I’m obeying now. I’m asking you to use less chili."
Wen Yun smiled and took out two fresh cucumbers, "Wash and smash these. Your dad likes it when he drinks."
Tong Yao seized the opportunity, hugging Wen Yun’s arm and sweetly saying, "Mom, you have to help me later, don’t let dad and Ahchen drink alcohol. Ahchen and I are trying for a baby, they say it’s bad to smoke and drink during this period, I think it’s better to be cautious."
Suddenly reminded by Tong Yao, Wen Yun immediately put the cucumbers back into the cupboard, "I usually don’t allow your dad to drink, but I let him be this time because Si Chen is here. But now that Si Chen can’t drink, neither should he."
Tong Yao laughed out, "Mom, only you can keep my dad in check. He might seem to be the boss on the surface, but it’s actually you who call the shots behind the scenes."
"Butter-er," Wen Yun joked, "Alright, go call your dad and Si Chen to wash their hands for lunch."
"Okay!"
Tong Yao scampered off happily toward the Study Room.
Still in the dark about his wife and daughter’s collusion, Tong Yaohui went to fetch his long-stored good wine before lunch. However, as soon as he took the wine out, Wen Yun objected.
"What are you taking the wine for? Si Chen and Yao Cannot drink now, it’s bad for their health. You’re an elder, don’t you know any better?"
