bookcurios Chapter 121 Heartbroken
Chapter 121 Heartbroken
If it weren't his parents standing in front of Anluo at that moment, he could have simply taken those words as a joke, chuckled inwardly, and turned away.
But these two people happened to be his parents, and instead of smiling, he felt like his heart was being torn apart.
After letting go of all the unnecessary expectations in his heart, Shen Luo was able to see his current situation more clearly. He knew very well that no matter how much he explained, it would be useless at this point.
If his parents were willing to believe him, then he wouldn't need to explain repeatedly from the beginning.
His parents clearly viewed him with suspicion from the very beginning; everything he said was met with skepticism in their eyes.
He asked Yun Xiaoyue, "Whether you believe me or not, it's all true, and the results have already been announced. What's the point of you telling me all this now?"
Yun Xiaoyue said, "How can it be meaningless? Since you made a mistake, you should make amends."
"make up?"
“That’s right,” Yun Xiaoyue said matter-of-factly. “The An family must have been deceived by An Ling. If you don’t apologize now, how can the An family not be angry when they find out they’ve been fooled? They might even take their anger out on our Shen family.”
"You want me to apologize to An Rui?" Shen Luo's voice trembled as she spoke, overwhelmed with heartache.
Yun Xiaoyue, however, completely disregarded Shen Luo's feelings and instead turned to Shen Honghui to ask, "Didn't you tell him?"
“No,” Shen Honghui replied, “Xiao Luo came with the An family at the time. I just didn’t have a chance to speak, and then I found out about An Rui and his affair. What else could I say?”
Shen Honghui sighed and explained to Shen Luo:
“Xiao Luo, I know you must have some grievances about this, but our family is really not doing well right now, otherwise we wouldn’t be thinking of coming back to Haicheng. An Shuhai is my and your mother’s childhood friend. In the future, our Shen family will definitely need the An family’s help a lot. We have to maintain a good relationship with the An family.”
“Yes,” Yun Xiaoyue continued, “I originally thought that since you and An Rui were teammates, I would tell you to get along well with him. But not only did you not become friends, you also caused him to leave the team.”
"Although the An family didn't say it outright, they must be blaming you. They never expected that you would not only fail to help the family, but also cause them even more trouble."
Anluo was truly heartbroken at this moment, and a deep sense of powerlessness completely enveloped him.
So his parents came to watch his game not because they cared about him, but to give him instructions.
It turns out that his parents didn't necessarily disbelieve him. They just thought that befriending the An family would bring benefits to the Shen family, and that being bullied by An Rui was just a minor matter. Offending the An family over such a trivial matter was simply not worth it.
He was the one who was bullied, but it turned out to be a problem for his family.
He was nothing more than a tool to be sacrificed and used to please An Jia.
Seeing Shen Luo remain silent, Yun Xiaoyue was very displeased and coldly spoke to him:
"Sometimes I really feel like you've come to our house to collect a debt. I suffered so much when I was pregnant with you and gave birth to you, otherwise I wouldn't get sick so easily now. Right now, our family is going through a difficult time, and instead of helping, you come here to make things worse."
"If I could have regrets, I would rather I had never given birth to you; it would be better than things being like this now."
Shen Luo knew what she meant by those words; she wanted to evoke her own sense of guilt towards her.
He had heard similar things many times when he was young.
Although Yun Xiaoyue never hits or scolds him, the damage she inflicts on Shen Luo every time she speaks in such a calm tone is far greater than any physical or verbal abuse.
Yun Xiaoyue knew what Shen Luo cared about, so she knew exactly what words she could use to hurt him and make him listen to her.
This trick of hers has always worked, and it's the same this time.
After listening, Shen Luo indeed didn't try to refute anymore. He spoke dejectedly:
"Okay, I'll go apologize. I'll do whatever you want with me."
……
[In short, Yun Xiaoyue used her physical condition and the Shen family's current need for help to morally blackmail Shen Luo, forcing him to apologize to the An family and claim that An Rui's bullying of him was a deliberate slander caused by his jealousy.]
Shen Luo had finally come to terms with reality and accepted that his parents didn't love him at all. He decided that this would be the last time he listened to them, and once this was over, he planned to sever all ties with them and never contact them again.
When the An family members looked at Shen Luo again, they could no longer hide the pity in their eyes.
They didn't think there was anything wrong with Shen Luo's choice. On the contrary, recognizing the problems of her original family and choosing to break away from them was a very courageous thing to do.
It's infuriating enough to pin the blame on the victim, let alone when it's their own parents doing so.
What kind of parents are Shen Honghui and Yun Xiaoyue? They're willing to sacrifice their own child for their own benefit.
If things are to be done as Yun Xiaoyue suggested, it's not as simple as just having the production team issue another announcement.
Last night's announcement already made a huge fuss. A matter that had already been settled was overturned overnight. Do you think bullying and member changes are child's play?
Even a fool could tell how speechless this would be, and the resulting public opinion would definitely ruin the production team. They might even think that Anjia was abusing their power and forcing the victim to change their testimony!
Moreover, although yesterday's announcement did not reveal Shen Luo's name in order to protect him, if the content of yesterday's announcement is to be overturned today, the person who "slandered" An Rui must be named in order to convince the public.
All the abuse will be directed at Shen Luo. He, the victim, will become the target of public criticism and be seen as a bad apple by the uninformed masses and fans. Will he still be able to stay in Dreamlight? Will he still be able to stay in the entertainment industry?
How could Yun Xiaoyue and Shen Honghui not care about even this?
An Shuhai, seeing Shen Luo preparing to apologize, spoke first to stop her:
"Wait a minute, don't apologize yet."
"Xiaoyue, I understand what you mean, but I can't agree. The announcement was already sent out last night. If we say now that all of this is Shen Luo's slander, what will people think of Shen Luo?"
What you're doing is no different from cutting off his future career in the entertainment industry. This kid's dream is to be a singer, right? Aren't you ruining his dream?
“That’s the price he has to pay for his impulsive actions,” Yun Xiaoyue said, completely unconcerned about what An Shuhai was saying. “If he had just discussed it with me first yesterday, things wouldn’t have turned out like this.”
"Besides, it's just that the production team explained the situation and canceled yesterday's punishment. They didn't ask Shen Luo to leave the group. He can still continue to be active in the group. How can that be considered ruining his dream?"
"Shen Luo," Yun Xiaoyue said, raising her voice slightly, "what did you promise me at home? Apologize to An Rui right now!"