CH 8.1

Hate Her 08 – There are no such good things!

Shang Lu’s words were so direct that it could be described as harsh.

“Who taught you to speak like this in front of your elders?” Father Shang looked at her with a reprimanding tone.

He only said that Shang Lu should not have said such things in front of elders, but he did not say that her words were wrong.

Both Jiang Yi and his parents couldn’t bear it, and their faces showed signs of discomfort.

But Father Jiang was a smart businessman and immediately reacted, smiling as he stood up and said, “Xiao Lu, we have heard some rumors about those things in the entertainment industry, but we didn’t really care about them. Uncle here also wants to apologize to you. But Uncle also wants to tell you this today, that little celebrity, Uncle will handle it to your satisfaction.”

“Dad!” Jiang Yi was now visibly angry, knowing that it was not the right time to speak, but still said, “Ning Lin didn’t do anything wrong, she is innocent…”

*Slap!*

Father Jiang was furious and slapped Jiang Yi directly, saying coldly, “You have no right to speak here! Do you really think you’re something special?”

“Uncle doesn’t need to get angry.” Shang Lu took over Jiang Yi’s words and looked at Father Jiang, continuing, “On this point, I agree with Jiang Yi. This matter has nothing to do with her. It’s unfair to use power to oppress others. I just hope to dissolve this engagement and let Jiang Yi be with the person he loves openly and honestly, which is beneficial to both of us.”

Jiang Yi lowered his head, lost in thought. His father was already sweating on his forehead, and his mother looked at a loss.

At this moment, the decision-making power was obviously in Father Shang’s hands, but he said, “Shang Lu, why don’t you and Jiang Yi take a walk in the garden? Some refreshments have been prepared for you there.”

Father Shang’s attitude was also quite evident, it was time for the parents to talk.

Shang Lu pursed her lips, didn’t say anything, and walked outside.

Jiang Yi followed her at a distance of five steps, not too close nor too far.

Shang Lu sat down at the round table, and Jiang Yi pulled out the chair opposite her.

Shang Lu lowered her head and poured herself a cup of coffee.

It was iced, not convenient for her to drink.

She hesitated for a few seconds, then handed the coffee to Jiang Yi, saying, “Use it for your face.”

Jiang Yi took the coffee, looked at Shang Lu, and his eyes were filled with emotions that he himself didn’t even realize.

He was contemplating and hesitating about something.

Shang Lu took a deep breath and decided to have a calm and peaceful conversation with Jiang Yi for the last time.

So, Shang Lu looked at Jiang Yi directly and said, “It doesn’t make any sense for us to keep dragging this on. If you really like Ning Lin, you should take responsibility for her. You can’t claim to love her while not even giving her a proper status, and at the same time, dislike me but still want to use me. Don’t make me look down on you for real, can you?”

Facing Shang Lu’s words, Jiang Yi didn’t answer, he just looked at her.

Shang Lu felt uncomfortable under his gaze and asked, “What are you looking at?”

“Nothing.” Jiang Yi suddenly smiled and said, “Shang Lu, I always thought you’ve changed, but now it seems like I was mistaken, you’re still as childish as before.”

Shang Lu didn’t like his tone of thinking he understood her so well, and said directly, “Just get to the point if you have something to say.”

“You think we can dissolve our engagement just by reaching a consensus with me, but it might not be that simple.” Jiang Yi picked up his coffee and took a sip before continuing, “I’ve said before, our engagement was arranged by our parents, and the most critical person in this is your father.”

Shang Lyu frowned, “So what?”

In fact, Shang Lu didn’t really understand her father. After all, in her father’s eyes, this daughter was the culprit who took away his wife’s life, and their relationship was as distant as strangers.

Jiang Yi smirked and looked at Shang Lu. His emotions had obviously calmed down, and he had returned to his usual suave and noble demeanor in the eyes of others.

He lightly caressed the rim of the coffee cup with his fingertips and then asked, “How about we make a bet? I won’t have to do anything, and no matter what you do, as long as your father is still around, this engagement will continue.”

He appeared overly confident, as if everything was within his control.

However, Shang Lu sneered and said, “Jiang Yi, put away your boring bet. No one can decide my life, including him.”

Shang Lu didn’t understand her father, so she didn’t know that Jiang Yi knew her father so well.

After the servants came to escort them back, everything returned to the harmonious atmosphere of the past.

Jiang’s parents said they would properly discipline Jiang Yi when they got back, and they were preparing to hold the engagement ceremony for her and Jiang Yi on Jiang Yi’s birthday in two months.

Everyone seemed to disregard what she had said, and it seemed like everything had turned a new page.

Shang Lu couldn’t take it anymore and was about to say something to her father, but Father Shang said, “Some things don’t need to be rushed.”

The dinner felt nauseating to Shang Lu.

Everyone seemed to be in a good mood, except for her, whose emotions were clearly on the verge of collapsing, like a hysterical madman waiting for that moment of complete eruption.

Strangely, the angrier one gets, the calmer they would be on the surface.

After dinner, she even followed Father Shang’s arrangement and politely saw Jiang Yi and Jiang’s parents off to their car.

Returning to the main hall again.

Shang Lu looked directly at her father and asked, “Do I have to marry Jiang Yi?”

Father Shang took off his glasses and rubbed his temples, then asked in return, “The engagement with the Jiang family was arranged when your mother was pregnant with you, as an unfinished wish of hers. Can’t you even fulfill this small matter as an unworthy daughter?”

Absurd.

Shang Lu laughed.

So that’s the reason. No wonder Jiang Yi was so confident, it was related to her mother.

Indeed, anything related to her mother would be enough to turn her already somewhat pathological father into a completely paranoid lunatic.

She looked at the man in front of her.

He was a devoted husband, but also a cold-hearted father.

Shang Lu suddenly felt he was very pitiful, and herself as well.

Because her birth caused her mother to leave, she had been labeled as an unworthy daughter by her father since birth.

Her father hated her, her brother resented her, and there was no one in this family who loved her.

In fact, Shang Lu had once fantasized that if her mother were still alive, she would have loving parents and maybe a doting brother, and it would be a family that everyone envied.

But there were no “ifs” in this world.

However, Shang Lu had never thought that just because of a casual remark her mother made, perhaps as a joke, her life would be confined to that framework.

It was so unfair.

Shang Lu couldn’t help but close her eyes, and a sarcastic smile appeared on her lips. “If I refuse, what would you do? Will you tie me up and take me to the civil affairs bureau to register with him? Or wait until the wedding night and let him forcefully take me? Better yet, I could bear him a child as soon as possible, a child who shares both his and my blood, and carries all the hatred of their parents since birth!”

But then her voice softened, with a bewildered tone that she herself couldn’t understand, murmuring, “Is this what you want? To live the latter half of my life hating my own child, just like you do?”

*Bang!*

The tea table was flipped over directly, and the tea set was scattered all over the floor.

Broken glass pieces were scattered all over, and hot water splashed on Shang Lu’s legs.

She looked at her father, whose hand was raised high in the air, just a few centimeters away from her face.

The room was a mess, and the servants were hiding at the door, afraid to even breathe.

But in the end, the hand that was raised in the air turned into a clenched fist and fell. Father Shang looked at Shang Lu, his chest heaving with anger, and asked, “Are you resenting me?”

“Why not?” Shang Lu found the question ridiculous. Since they had come to this point, there was nothing she couldn’t say anymore. She replied directly, “Should I love and respect a father like you?”

Father Shang’s face darkened, and he quickly turned the wedding ring on his hand, as if only this way could he calm down his emotions the fastest.

He didn’t respond to Shang Lu’s words, but instead said, “If you refuse to marry Jiang Yi and fulfill your mother’s wish, then you are not worthy to be a daughter of the Shang family. It’s up to you to choose, either marry Jiang Yi or completely cut off ties with the Shang family, and you won’t get a penny from the family from now on.”

In other words, Father Shang’s threat was that either she married Jiang Yi, or she would sever all ties with him and the Shang family, along with any financial support.

Sure enough, this kind of threat successfully stunned Shang Lu.

Seeing Shang Lu’s obvious stunned expression, Father Shang felt that he had regained control and asked, “Are you scared now?”

“Not really scared, just a little pleasantly surprised.” Shang Lu looked at her father seriously, and then sighed, “So I can choose not to marry Jiang Yi, and also cut off ties with you and the Shang family? Turns out there are such good things in the world? I get to enjoy all the benefits myself.”

Under the incredulous gaze of her father, Shang Lu quickly lowered her head and rummaged through her bag, pulling out a bank card and handing it to him as if afraid that he would change his mind in a split second.

“All the living expenses that you had your assistant transfer to me over the years, I haven’t used any of them. They are all here. Of course, if you think there’s a problem, you can have the assistant contact me. Goodbye, Mr. Shang!”

Amidst her father’s angry roar, Shang Lu left without looking back.

The next step was a familiar routine. Shang Lu quickly blocked all of her father’s contact information, just like she did to Jiang Yi.

She stood in place, looking back at the Shang family mansion, and then at the window of her own bedroom.

Her heart felt inexplicably empty.

She suddenly remembered that there was a plush toy in her room that Jiang Yi had given her a long time ago.

But that was something to be discarded as well.

Perhaps this time, she could finally be free.