CH 159

Lu Hengchuan, the head of the Lu family in Zhongjing, was also Lu Lingxi’s grandfather in his previous life.

Wang Shuxiu didn’t know too much about the past events of the previous generation. She only knew that Lu Yishui’s mother was a maid for the Lu family back then, and then somehow Lu Yishui was born. At that time, Lu Hengchuan had already married and had children, and Wang Shuxiu’s mother-in-law left the Lu family in disgrace and went back to Fengcheng alone. Xiao Feng and Yan Yue already knew everything Wang Shuxiu said but it was the first time Lu Lingxi heard about it.

He looked at Wang Shuxiu in bewilderment. He thought he could get rid of his past life but he never expected that he would still be involved with the Lu family after all. Lu Lingxi couldn’t tell what he felt, so he pursed his lips and didn’t speak.

Yan Yue noticed his expression; his heart ached. Not caring what Wang Shuxiu would think, he reached out and put his arms around Lu Lingxi, whispering, “Xiao Xi, I’m with you.”

Lu Lingxi returned to his senses and nodded gently.

Wang Shuxiu could see that Lu Lingxi’s reaction was a bit off and asked nervously, “Xiao Xi?”

Lu Lingxi smiled reluctantly, “Mom, I’m fine, what happened later?”

“Later?” When talking about this, Wang Shuxiu got angry and slapped the table hard, “Later, one of the children in the Lu family got leukaemia, and I don’t know what your grandmother thought. There are so many people in the Lu family but none of them was willing to come out to test for a match. But your grandmother had to carry you to save someone’s life. Lu Hengchuan, that old bastard…” She hadn’t finished. Xiao Feng helplessly poked her gently, reminding her to pay attention to her tone.

Wang Shuxiu was a bit unhappy, but continued after a pause: “Lu Hengchuan, who usually ignored your grandmother, actually had the cheek to agree at the time. I chased you all the way to Zhongjing before I managed to snatch you back. Let me tell you, there is no one good in the Lu family, they are all a bunch of selfish bastards. Your mom strongly disagrees with the idea of recognising the ancestors. Lu Hengchuan, that old bastard… Lu Hengchuan wants to be your grandfather, I say no way! It’s either him, or me!”

Xiao Feng: “……”

He knew that according to Xiaohua’s temper she wouldn’t be able to hold back her anger. When Xiao Xi was still in Kunnan, Xiaohua was so worried that she couldn’t sleep at night, afraid that Lu Lingxi would be fooled by the Lu family in Zhongjing to go there. After all, they were just ordinary people; the Lu family and they were really two worlds apart. To put it bluntly, there were not many ordinary people who wouldn’t be impressed when a large consortium like the Lu family suddenly came out one day and said they were your relatives and wanted to take you back, compensating you with money, fame and fortune for everything. Even if Xiao Xi was obedient and sensible and didn’t care about money, there was no guarantee that once the Lu family played the emotional card, Xiao Xi wouldn’t become soft-hearted.

Wang Shuxiu was worried about it and swore to Xiao Feng that if the Lu family played the emotional card, so would she. It was not easy for her to raise Xiao Xi for so many years; when the time came, she would hug him and cry and Xiao Xi would definitely not let her feel sad. As a result, Xiaohua’s tears were nowhere to be seen but her temper was seen clearly.

Xiao Feng’s heart felt relieved. Wang Shuxiu also felt a little too impulsive when she regained her senses. But as soon as she saw Lu Lingxi, she thought of the child she had worked so hard to give birth to and raise. The Lu family shamelessly snatched him once and tried to snatch him a second time, so she couldn’t bear it.

“Either him, or me.” She repeated it again bitterly, “Little bastard, do you understand?”

Although Wang Shuxiu’s words were brief and rude, Lu Lingxi was just simple but not stupid. He could imagine how difficult it was for Wang Shuxiu back then and how angry she was now. He looked at Wang Shuxiu and nodded with pursed lips, and after thinking about it, he whispered his assurance, “Don’t worry, Mom, I won’t recognise the Lu family. My family is only you and Dad, Big Brother Yan, Uncle, Aunt, Dahei and Xiaohei.”

Hearing his name, Dahei, who had been squatting at Lu Lingxi’s feet, immediately straightened up and rubbed against Lu Lingxi’s leg affectionately.

Lu Lingxi stroked Dahei’s head, and his heart instantly relaxed. It seemed as if after he had said this, all ties with the Lu family had been severed. Not just physically, but more so mentally, Lu Lingxi’s involvement with them in his past life was over.

From last June to now, it had been almost a year since Lu Lingxi had woken up. Although he tried not to think about his past life, he still occasionally saw news of the Lu family online. Every time he would think about the life of the Lu family, his parents in his past life, and… his elder brother. When he was alive, all he could feel was fatigue, not just physical, but mental boundless exhaustion. He knew that his life was abnormal, but he acquiesced to this abnormality. The education of his parents and the expectations of his elder brother made him accustomed to that kind of life, and he never knew how to resist… until he died.

Since his rebirth, his life was completely different from the past. He was ignorant, figuring out bit by bit how to live and learn. He was lucky to have Wang Shuxiu, Yan Yue, Dahei and Xiao Feng by his side. They showed him what family was, what parents were, and what it was like to love someone. Although the relationship between this body and the Lu family once again made him feel a little complicated, this time he was not alone. He had his parents, Yan Yue and Dahei by his side. He was Lu Lingxi, but he was no longer the Lu Lingxi of the past. He learned and had the courage to say “no” to the Lu family  and to his past life.

These thoughts were only fleeting; Wang Shuxiu was already smiling with satisfaction, “I knew I didn’t raise you for nothing.”

“……” Xiao Feng, “All right, Xiao Xi came back right in time to eat and didn’t have time to rest. Now everything is okay, Xiao Xi, Yan Yue, go to sleep. We can talk later tonight.”

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The matter on Wang Shuxiu’s mind was solved, and with it, Yan Yue also looked more favourable to her eyes, so she took the initiative to say, “Yan Yue, you take Xiao Xi next door to rest, and remember to come over for dinner tonight.” She guessed that there were some things that Xiao Xi would prefer to talk to Yan Yue about. Never mind how Xiao Xi looked now, he must have had some thoughts once he found out such big news. Anyway, she had already talked to Yan Yue, so she could have Yan Yue’s help in settling everything and be completely at ease.

After Wang Shuxiu and Xiao Feng had said that, Yan Yue obediently pulled Lu Lingxi to his feet, “Then I’ll go back next door with Xiao Xi first.”

“Go ahead.” Wang Shuxiu said with unusual enthusiasm.

Yan Yue smiled as Dahei already ran over and used his paws to open the balcony door.

Lu Lingxi didn’t say anything and followed Yan Yue back next door. After showering and changing his clothes, he was not sleepy for a while, so he hugged Dahei and huddled on the sofa, reading a book. Soon after Yan Yue came out of the bathroom and also tried to squeeze onto the sofa.

Dahei and Yan Yue stared at each other for a long time; then Dahei vacated his position, aggrieved, and plopped down on the carpet under the sofa, resting his head on Lu Lingxi’s feet.

Lu Lingxi smiled, holding the book, and reached out soothingly to scratch Dahei’s chin. Yan Yue stretched out his arms and hugged Lu Lingxi, kissing his damp hair and his face again as he softly said, “Xiao Xi, do you have anything you want to say to Big Brother Yan?”

Lu Lingxi was subconsciously about to shake his head, but a sudden impulse came up from the bottom of his heart. He hesitated for a few seconds, looked at Yan Yue with his clear eyes and hesitantly said, “Big Brother Yan, I have a secret I want to tell you.”

Yan Yue’s heart stirred and he tried to sound as calm as possible, “What?”

Lu Lingxi took a deep breath and said seriously, “I am actually Lu Lingxi, the Lu Lingxi of the Zhongjing Lu Family.”

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He had heard Ye Kang and Yan Yue talk about the Lu family in the past, and knew that Yan Yue was well aware of the Lu family’s affairs. He had been hesitant to tell Yan Yue of his origin. Before he used to avoid it, but now he had the courage to face it openly. He thought that Yan Yue would find it strange and ask him what he meant by this statement. Who knew that Yan Yue would lower his head and kiss him, saying just as seriously, “I know.”

Lu Lingxi’s eyes widened suddenly; did Yan Yue’s “I know” mean what he thought it meant?

When Yan Yue saw Lu Lingxi’s reaction, his heart softened and he smiled tenderly, “Xiao Xi, do you remember the time you got drunk?”

“The time of Mom’s wedding?”

Yan Yue nodded, “That time you told me you were going to tell me a secret, so I already knew all about it.” Of course, the private investigation didn’t count.

Lu Lingxi blinked, unable to respond for a long time. Originally he was the one who was going to tell Yan Yue a secret, but now it was a bit like the other way around. “Then don’t you think it’s strange, Big Brother Yan? Dead and alive again…” Lu Lingxi asked slowly.

Before he could finish, Yan Yue had already interrupted him, “If Xiao Xi hadn’t come back to life, how would Big Brother Yan have met you? No matter what the reason is, Big Brother Yan can only be happy.”

“Then I don’t want to go back to the Lu family, I…”

“I know.” Yan Yue kissed Lu Lingxi’s eyes and said in a deep voice, “Even if you wanted to acknowledge the Lu family, Xiao Xi, Big Brother Yan would stop you. Xiao Xi, don’t think too much, you have nothing to do with the Lu family now, you have your own brand new life. Everything in the Lu family is in the past, understand?”

“En.” Lu Lingxi nodded forcefully, completely letting go of his worries.

For the time being Lu Hengchuan didn’t know about Lu Lingxi’s attitude. He was now busy dealing with the follow-up of Sun Li’s bribery scandal that had broken out at the beginning of the month. Although the Lu family didn’t hesitate to sacrifice Lu Wei’an and put the blame for Hopewell’s bribery of Sun Li on Lu Wei’an’s head, the public was not stupid after all, and the reputation of the Lu family was still affected. The incident became more and more intense, directly leading to the suspension of several drugs newly developed by the Lu family in the past year or two, pending a new investigation by the Food and Drug Administration. This alone had resulted in incalculable losses for the Lu family, not to mention the fact that the Lu family’s stock had been plummeting for a month in a row, with the Lu family’s market value evaporating by nearly 20% in the short term.

“What did Yan Shihui say?”

In the chairman’s office of Lu Group, Lu Hengchuan stood in front of the window with his hands behind his back, asking his eldest son, Lu Chengwen, who stood behind him.

Lu Chengwen frowned and said, “Yan Shihui said he knew about it and that he would deal with this matter.”

“Deal with it?” Lu Hengchuan sneered, “Yan Shihui had a smooth ride for half his life, but he flopped hard with Yan Yue. He thought he had everything under control, but he didn’t even know what Yan Yue had been doing for the past year. Now that Yan Yue bit back and our Lu family was implicated, he wants to take it lightly, saying he would deal with it.”

The incident of Sun Li’s bribery broke out too strangely, and afterwards, the news couldn’t be suppressed, and Lu Hengchuan suspected that someone was behind it. He followed the clues for nearly a month, and found a lot of participants behind the scheme. There were competitors of the Lu family and the handwriting of the old man Ye of the Ye family but what surprised Lu Hengchuan most was that there were Yan Yue’s calculations in it, and Yan Yue was the first to make a move.

While Lu Hengchuan was shocked, he immediately thought of Yan Shihui. Everyone in Yan Shihui’s inner circle could see clearly that he was simply caught by the woman next to him, thinking that if all his property would be left to Yan Yue, he would wrong his later children, trying to strike a balance between them. Didn’t he see that Yan Hai wasn’t the right material either? He just suppressed Yan Yue blindly, forcing Yan Yue to make way for Yan Hai. Now Yan Yue daring to act like this meant that he was going to tear his relationship with Yan Shihui. Yan Shihui thought he could control Yan Yue? Deal with it; he would like to see how Yan Shihui would deal with it.

Lu Hengchuan didn’t take Yan Shihui’s words seriously. His Lu family’s losses were all Hopewell’s fault, and Yan Shihui had to give him an explanation anyway. What Lu Hengchuan was thinking about now was something else: how did Yan Yue get involved with Lu Lingxi?