My Alleged Husband

Chapter 181: Chapter 164 Where Is My Son?! _1

After Zhang Yichen left, Old Master Zhang sat alone in the living room for a long time, contemplating whether he had really done the right thing or not. He could tell that deep down, Zhang Yichen still cared for Zhang Zhentian and Xia Jing. He just didn’t know what to do, whether he should forgive his parents. He understood that for a child of only ten, this was a very difficult decision to make. If it were any ordinary child whose parents had troubles, he would surely rush to see them at once. But Zhang Yichen was different; he had been subjected to devilish training since the age of two, and just a month after his second birthday, he had been abandoned by his parents. Although he had no memories of that time, as time passed, as he grew older, and as he endured other people’s judgments and their mocking words, he knew it was all because his parents had discarded him, and as a result, he had suffered the scorn of others. Because of this, he had decided never to forgive his parents for all the hurt they caused, for all the ridicule, all due to their abandonment.

Back in his room, Zhang Yichen thought about the decisions he had made, unsure if they were right or wrong. Although he wanted to see his parents, when that strange phone call came in, he almost couldn’t resist asking about their condition. But he held back the greeting; he couldn’t let himself appear so weak. To become an emperor, one must be ruthless. If one isn’t ruthless, how can they achieve great things, how can they become the king that everyone admires? Only then would he not disappoint his grandfather, only then would he not let down those he cared about. Yet, it was precisely for this reason that those who loved him were hurt because of him!

After returning to his room, he kept pondering whether he should go to Los Angeles in the United States to see for himself the extent of his parents’ injuries. But as soon as he thought about being abandoned by his parents so cold-heartedly, his heart turned harsh. No, absolutely not. If you chose to abandon me back then, don’t expect me to forgive. What’s done is done, and some facts can never be erased. If you truly hope for my forgiveness, please recover properly. Maybe one day, when you truly realize your mistakes, I might consider forgiving you—or possibly never.

In his room, Zhang Yichen secretly made a phone call to the strange man behind his grandfather’s back, ”Hello, I am the young man who you called this afternoon. You mentioned that Xia Jing and Zhang Zhentian are my parents; may I ask how they are doing now?”

The stranger who had talked to him that afternoon was pleasantly surprised when he received the call. He had been worried about how to explain things to Xia Jing and Zhang Zhentian, and now the call came just in time, a real lifesaver. He cheerfully responded to Zhang Yichen, ”You may rest assured, your parents’ conditions are not very serious. They should be able to recover in a few months. May I ask if any family members can come over to look after them? They really want to see you all!”

As soon as Zhang Yichen heard this, his expression changed. He said to the man harshly, ”No need, we don’t have the time to come over. If possible, can you please pass on a message to them for me?”

”Of course, please go ahead!”

”Please tell them both to recover well, and also, please inform them my grandfather misses them very much!”

The strange man didn’t understand why the young man on the phone never expressed a desire to learn about his parents’ health from start to finish. He couldn’t help but ask, ”Sorry, although I am their son, they abandoned me when I was just a year old. If you really need to pass on a message, then please tell them that since they chose to abandon me back then and not want me as their son, they shouldn’t expect me to forgive them. Since they chose to leave the Zhang family and give up their own family, they shouldn’t think about coming back because there’s no place for them here anymore. If they enjoyed their freedom like little birds in the sky, they are free to chase their freedom forever without needing understanding from us relatives! Also, I hope you can tell them both that I will definitely make them pay for abandoning me. As for what that price will be, they might only find out in a few years. Moreover, I want you to tell them that this call isn’t because I wanted to inquire about their health; I did it for my grandfather. I don’t want my grandfather to suffer because of me, to hold back from making the call to ask about them. I know deep down he still cares about them, so consider this as me helping my grandfather with something.”

The stranger listened, not knowing what to say in response. He clearly remembered Xia Jing and Zhang Zhentian calling out this young man’s name before they passed out. Yet the young man on the phone had chosen to hate his parents. Alas, the hearts of parents are unfathomable!

”Alright, I’ll pass the message on to them. Is there anything else you would like me to tell them?”

”Thank you, no more. I just hope you can convey one last message for me. This family, they need not return here again. From now on, there will be no son for them here, no father. Since the two of them love each other so much that they could abandon their husband and their own child, then let them live out their lives in the outside world forever, never to return. It would spare both me and my grandfather unnecessary trouble. Thank you for passing this on!”

After hearing all this, the stranger hung up the phone and then pushed open the door to the hospital room. He went in and looked at the two people lying on the hospital bed, then he spoke, relaying Zhang Yichen’s exact words to his parents. To his surprise, as soon as Xia Jing and Zhang Zhentian heard these words, tears uncontrollably streamed down their cheeks, and they cried inconsolably.

”How can this be? He is the child I carried for ten arduous months and gave birth to. How can he choose to hate me for a lifetime just because I abandoned him, not allowing me to even return home? Why? Why is fate so unjust to me?” Xia Jing wept as she spoke.

When Zhang Zhentian heard these words, he couldn’t believe it. Was this really his son? Why had his son, who he hadn’t seen for ten years, changed so much, to the point where he could deny his own parents and choose to hate them forever?

”Xia Jing, don’t be too sad. Since we chose to abandon him back then in search of our own freedom, we have no right to blame him for hating us. Who doesn’t want the love of their own parents? But what have we given him in these ten years? Not even a word of concern, so it’s no wonder that he hates us. Let’s just stay together from now on. Maybe one day when he comes to understand, he might forgive us!” Zhang Zhentian said to Xia Jing gently.

”If I had known then that abandoning him would lead to this outcome, I would rather have stayed at home with no freedom for my entire life than choose to abandon him. But now it’s too late, what use is there in saying this? Can we do anything but silently endure the hate our child has for us?

”Perhaps!”

...

Talking back and forth in their hospital beds, the couple never stopped crying. They truly regretted abandoning their own child. However, since the deed was done, there was no turning back. All they could do was bear the pain until the day they died.