1136 Supposedly
"You can't break rules in clans like mine," added Xia Zhao. "The elders won't allow their descendants to degenerate. It's a matter of morality and we take it very seriously."
"Hmm..." Mu Chenyan hummed in understanding. "Now that I've heard a little about your clan, I can actually understand why you have this upright and dull personality."
"You just met my nephew. Does he look like a dull person to you, Yanzi?" asked Xia Zhao.
"Not really," she replied.
"Because he is anything but dull. He might not be the life of the party like the Xin family's daughter, Xiu but Ru is still someone you'd find a lot interesting." He sighed to himself as he added, "But you are right. Silence is kind of inherited in our clan. Everyone loves it."
"Really?"
"Hm."
Mu Chenyan played with the buttons of his shirt and he let her be. She was thinking something and he didn't even ask her to share because eventually, she will spill in front of him.
And she did very soon. "Zhao, I never thought your father was such a tra-..." She didn't complete her word but he understood it very well. "Don't mind. I have always liked your father. I feel like my understanding of him is suddenly subverted. You can't blame me for saying that about him."
Xia Zhao played with her hair as he said, "Have I ever blamed you for anything? It's not like I don't know how you like to talk. And I don't mind it at all. You can be who you are when you are around me. You know that, right?"
Mu Chenyan nodded in response, "But I'm still unable to come to terms with this truth."
"Is it really that difficult though?" asked Xia Zhao. "It was indeed my mother who seduced him but it was he who lacked self-control which led him where he is today. He says he is very happy with her."
"Isn't he? I thought they loved each other very much."
"Yanzi, I ask you to choose between your love and your family, who would you choose?"
"My family," responded Mu Chenyan without missing a beat. "Besides, my love is my Elle and my Elle is my family too. Isn't the choice very easy?"
Xia Zhao shook his head at her playful smile and said, "Be serious."
"The answer is still the same. How is it easy to leave your family for your love? Maybe the love is worth going against the whole family but for how long? What is the guarantee that the love will last forever? When you have to make a choice between two important people, no matter whom you choose in the end, it'll still leave a void in your life."
"Then what makes you think my father is still as happy as he claims to be and doesn't regret his choice back then?" asked Xia Zhao. "I never asked him if he really regrets it but what I do know is that he is very lonely in his life. He hasn't met his parents in decades. The reason why he desperately wanted my grandparents to see me was because he thought I'll eventually become the bridge between him and his family."
"Did it happen?"
"No one can bend rules in our clan. If you break the rules, the punishment will come too. Ru is the next chosen head of the clan and yet, he is also always punished when he breaks the rules. And unfortunately, Ru has been a rule breaker all his life and he has never been let off."
"It reminds me of the clan rules I read in Xiang family's ancestral house," said Mu Chenyan.
"If the Xiang clan had survived like Xia clan did, they would also follow their ancestral rules. It's just that the Xiang family only has a handful of descendants left now. And Uncle Tianyu doesn't want to use his ancestral rules anymore. He feels like there is no need to do so."
"Your mother was pregnant with..."
"No," he interrupted her words. "She was pregnant with a girl at that time."
"You have an elder sister?" She asked in surprise. "How is that possible? I can't be that oblivious."
"She was never born," he told her. "My mother did an abortion in a fit of anger."
"And your father still married her?" asked Mu Chenyan.
"He had made his choice at that point. Between family and her. He chose her. And since he had already made his choice, he had to go along with it till the end."
"Why is this so complicated?"
"Why are you so curious then? In my family, you only have to understand me. The rest doesn't matter."
"What if your grandparents didn't like me as they didn't like your mother?"
"Yanzi, it was never about like or dislike. The only reason my grandparents didn't accept my mother was that she became a third party in someone's relationship. She knew the man was her best friend's fiance but she still schemed against him."
"Oh. Then do you think they'd like me?"
"Why? You're ready to marry me?"
"Who said that? I'm just asking. You know supposedly."
Xia Zhao chuckled at her, "Yes. I understand. Don't worry. My grandparents like you a lot already."
"But your mother doesn't like me," reminded Mu Chenyan as she yawned and rubbed her sleepy eyes. She was really tired after all the work these days and hadn't had a good rest. Now that she relaxed in his arms and was casually chatting with him, her fatigue caught up with her. She actually closed her eyes and leaned on his shoulder.
Xia Zhao kissed the top of her head and whispered in a soft voice, "Her opinion doesn't matter in our life. If she has the right to choose who she loves, so do I." He wanted to say more but as she rubbed against his shoulder and hummed in satisfaction, he went silent. He rubbed her head lovingly before hugging her waist and standing up with her in his arms.
He took her to the bedroom and put her on the bed as he tucked her in.
"Good night, Yanzi!"
This chapter is updat𝙚d by f(r)eewebn(o)vel.com