Break free

Author: Wu Haiyan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-06-01
Features: Shen Dongjian felt like his head was about to explode. He paced back and forth in the room, trying to calm himself down. The clock on the wall chimed, and Shen Dongjian looked up—it was two o'clock. He then remembered that he had promised to pick up Mei Xue, so he hurried out.
When Shen Dongjian arrived at the hospital, Mei Xue had already packed all her belongings and was sitting by the window, waiting for him. What made Shen Dongjian happy was that Mei Xue was much better and looked radiant. However, what he didn’t expect was that when he took Mei Xue out of the hospital gate, he found Yangou Cang waiting there. Shen Dongjian froze for a moment. Yangou Cang walked over, smiled at Mei Xue, and said, “Are you Mei Xue?”
Mei Xue noticed that the two knew each other and replied, “Are you?”
“Didn’t Dongjian mention me to you? He’s always talking about you,” Yangou Cang said, looking surprised at Shen Dongjian. Shen Dongjian had no choice but to introduce, “Oh, he’s my adoptive father.”
“I am Yangou Cang.” Yangou Cang said with a smile.
“Mr. Yang, hello,” Mei Xue replied politely.
Shen Dongjian knew that Yangou Cang didn’t come with good intentions, but he didn’t know what his motives were. Yangou Cang had already seen through Shen Dongjian’s thoughts and, citing an urgent matter, insisted on taking both Shen Dongjian and Mei Xue in his car without hesitation.
On the way, Shen Dongjian stood guard by Mei Xue’s side, feeling uneasy. When the car stopped in front of Shen Dongjian’s house, the three of them went inside, and Yangou Cang immediately asked Shen Dongjian to go to the study with him. Shen Dongjian had no peace of mind leaving Mei Xue alone in the living room, so he asked her to come along. Mei Xue didn’t understand Shen Dongjian’s intentions and only wanted to avoid disturbing him, so she refused.
Yangou Cang understood Shen Dongjian’s thoughts and said with a smile, “Yes, Dongjian, you can rest assured about Mei Xue. She’ll be fine in your house.”
Helpless, Shen Dongjian agreed but reminded the nanny to take good care of Mei Xue. Then he followed Yangou Cang to the study.
As soon as they entered the study, Yangou Cang’s smile vanished, his eyes filled with hostility as he confronted Shen Dongjian, demanding to know why he still kept Mei Xue alive. Shen Dongjian walked to the window, looked at Mei Xue sitting in the garden, and assured Yangou Cang that Mei Xue would never know the truth.
Yangou Cang listened and scoffed, “If you really believe that nothing in this world can be hidden, then why did you kill Mei Jingyang?! Why are you so eager to break free from me and become a ‘clean’ person?”
Shen Dongjian fell silent.
“You think everything you’re doing for Mei Xue now is compensation? You’re setting a ‘bomb’ right next to your pillow. If it goes off, all your dark secrets will be exposed! On that day, you’ll only have your so-called conscience and your desire to be a good person to lead you to death.”
Yangou Cang’s words filled Shen Dongjian with fear. Every word struck him like bullets piercing his chest. In Shen Dongjian’s eyes, Yangou Cang saw a moment of hesitation, and he seized the opportunity to take the small PSS pistol from Shen Dongjian’s desk.
“This was the gun I personally gave to all of you. But I remember you stopped carrying it with you ten years ago. You’re afraid, or else you wouldn’t have brought it.”
“No, there won’t be that day. Mei Xue won’t know any of this,” Shen Dongjian still trembled from the chilling words he had just spoken.