Volume 1, Chapter 20: Hah, Let's End This Friendship!

The old woman had gray hair, wore plain clothes, and her face was etched with deep wrinkles; she looked to be in her sixties or seventies. Even though she had nothing to do here every day, her face was still filled with exhaustion and numbness. Before coming, Jiang Chenyu had reviewed Li Hehua’s file and knew she was only fifty-one years old. Furthermore, even during her time at the Gu household, her sole responsibility had been taking care of Gu Jinyan. She had no heavy labor, held a high position, and her salary was exceptional. For someone who was neither short of money nor overworked to reduce herself to such a wretched state, there had to be an underlying motive. Jiang Chenyu stepped back silently, as she did not care to deal with people like this.

Gu Jinyan, however, had already walked up to her. "Auntie Li."

Upon seeing Gu Jinyan, Li Hehua froze for a moment. She quickly stood up, wearing a fawning smile. "Second Young Master, why are you here? Have you eaten yet?"

Gu Jinyan shook his head and glanced at the dining table. The table was spread with a rich meal and set with three bowls and pairs of chopsticks. One was for Li Hehua, while the other two were placed in front of portraits of two men—the memorial photos of her husband and son.

"Then wait a moment, I'll go get you some utensils, and we can eat together." She scrambled to put away the photos, sweeping the extra bowls and chopsticks aside as well.

Just as she turned to find utensils, Gu Jinyan reached out to stop her. "Auntie Li, don't trouble yourself. I only came to ask you a few things."

"What is it? You could have just called, or I could have come to see you. Why make the trip yourself?" Li Hehua acted coy, as if chiding him for being overly formal.

Her expressions were vivid and her gestures intimate. Watching from the side, Jiang Chenyu was deeply impressed. Her acting was far better than anyone she had seen in the television dramas she watched.

Gu Jinyan glanced at his companion, and someone immediately stepped forward to place a box on the table. Li Hehua’s expression stiffened instantly.

"What is this?" Li Hehua looked at Gu Jinyan, feigning confusion.

Gu Jinyan was in no hurry. He tapped his fingers lightly on the tabletop, his voice as calm and steady as a deep pool. "Auntie Li, you know that I detest being lied to above all else."

Li Hehua tried to argue, but when she met Gu Jinyan’s cold, indifferent gaze, she took a deep breath and began to laugh, her head bowed. Stripping away her mask of kindness, her voice turned sharp. "Yes, you are the young master. You sit high above, and your rules are absolute. People like us are just lowly, destined to die in vain!" She looked up, her face twisted and her eyes filled with resentment.

Gu Jinyan was caught off guard by her sudden change in demeanor.

The driver, who was acting as a secretary and accompanying Gu Jinyan, could no longer hold back. "What are you talking about? The young master is generous with money, and he has never stinted on giving us housing, cars, food, or clothing. He has never intentionally made things difficult for us. Where else could you find a boss like him?" If it hadn't been for the young master saving him from human traffickers, he would still be begging in some remote mountain village!

"Zhang Nan, you’ve been fooled by him too," Li Hehua screamed. "If he were truly good to us, then my husband and son wouldn't have died."

"Didn't they die in a car accident?" Jiang Chenyu recalled the file Gu Jinyan had given her and looked at him in confusion. Gu Jinyan clearly did not understand what she meant either.

"A car accident? If it weren't for him, how could they have been in a car accident!" Li Hehua threw her head back and laughed, but soon she began to weep. "That year, when I went home, I asked him what gift he wanted, and he said he wanted wild vegetable dumplings..." At the time, he had insisted he only wanted those dumplings and forbade her from lying to him. He had said he hated being lied to. But when she returned from home, she had forgotten to bring them. Fearing his reaction, she had called her husband and son to deliver them... She remembered it was raining heavily that day. Her husband had said, "Let's wait until the weather clears; our son is too scared to go out." But she was also terrified of facing Gu Jinyan, so she forced them to make the trip. They ended up in a car accident and died on the road.

"Because of your dumplings, my son’s head and body were severed!" She glared at Gu Jinyan with venomous intensity. "You are the murderer who killed them! How can you live so comfortably!"

Jiang Chenyu: "..." What kind of causal logic was this? The reason she disliked such people was that they were both pathetic and pitiable. They were too afraid to face their own problems, so they twistedly projected the blame onto others, using self-righteous methods to "seek revenge." It was truly absurd.

Gu Jinyan remained silent for a long time, watching Li Hehua sob. Only after a long while did he speak. "I asked for those dumplings because every time you went home back then, you would buy me many expensive gifts. I didn't want you to spend your money on me." He had known her financial situation was poor and didn't want her to waste her earnings, which was why he had requested something as simple as wild vegetable dumplings. "You said you were afraid of me, but have you really never lied to me all these years?" His tone was calm, devoid of anger or pity. "And have I ever punished you for it?"

Li Hehua did not answer. In truth, Gu Jinyan was a man who valued relationships deeply; regardless of how he treated others, he had always been truly kind to her. That was why she had even been willing to "pay" to work for him. And in forcing her husband to deliver those dumplings, wasn't she trying to avoid feeling guilty for the kindness the young master had shown her? So who was to blame for the death of her husband and son? Herself? But she had already lost them; she was already so miserable, so why should she be blamed?

"Tell me who told you to place this doll, and I will not pursue your transgressions," Gu Jinyan continued.

Li Hehua opened her mouth, and it took a long time before she replied, "No one directed me. I asked a Taoist priest and found out that you were born on the same day as my son. I heard this method could resurrect him, so I had a craftsman make a doll and hid it in your room."

"You're lying!" Jiang Chenyu said, exposing her directly. "A doll like this isn't something just anyone can make. And do you even know what kind of wood was used?"

Li Hehua turned to look at Jiang Chenyu. She looked somewhat familiar, but she couldn't recall where she had seen her.

"You had better tell the truth, or I have plenty of ways to make you speak," Jiang Chenyu said with a cold sneer. This was no empty threat; she truly had many ways to extract the truth.

Li Hehua clearly understood this. She gave a hollow laugh and looked back at Gu Jinyan. "Even if I couldn't resurrect my son, I know your days are numbered too!"

"How can you talk like that!" the driver interrupted indignantly.

Li Hehua only smiled sinisterly. "Gu Jinyan, you murderer, our whole family is waiting for you in the underworld!" As she spoke, she pulled out a pair of scissors and stabbed them into her own chest, her hand still tightly gripping the memorial photos of her husband and son. She had loved them so much; how could she have been the one to kill them? The culprit was obviously Gu Jinyan, and she would have her revenge! With this thought, she struck with great force. Blood splattered everywhere, and the onlookers nearby gasped in horror.

Gu Jinyan remained calm. He turned to his bodyguard and said, "Send her to the hospital." The bodyguard finally snapped out of his shock and scrambled to call for an ambulance.

"When she wakes up, do you want us to bring in a 'professional' to question her?" another person asked for Gu Jinyan's opinion. When he said the word "professional," a cold light flashed in his eyes, revealing him to be someone not to be trifled with.

Gu Jinyan shook his head. "No need. I already know who it is."

"Who?" Jiang Chenyu poked her head in, unable to figure out which of Li Hehua's words contained the truth.

Gu Jinyan answered a different question: "Let's go outside first. The air here is not very pleasant."

The air was thick with the scent of blood. Jiang Chenyu looked at Gu Jinyan’s pale face, nodded, and followed him out. As they stepped outside, a man came down from the elevator. Seeing Gu Jinyan, he trotted over and punched him on the shoulder. "Wuwuwu, Old Gu, you really are my only good brother~" He reached out to hug Gu Jinyan, but before he could touch him, Gu Jinyan shoved him away.

Then, they watched as Gu Jinyan strode to a nearby trash can and retched.

The man: "..." Fine, we are through!