+++

"Perchance are you the person behind the capsizing of The Great Adventurer? Did your people instruct the Captain to do such a trick?" It was Xue Jinxu's voice.

s.h.i.+ Fan Hai snickered. "You're a quick learner, little sweetheart. I'm starting to like you. Too bad you're already married. Tsk tsk tsk…"

"Yes, I arranged the capsizing of The Great Adventurer. You like it?" There was a pause. "See, I made sure you weren't onboard when it happened. How thoughtful of me, don't you think?"

"First, you sabotaged the launch of MT Dragon Heart, and abducted my little brother Guangxi, now this! What else will you do? When will you stop?" Xue Jinxu asked.

"I won't stop until I get what I want." The man in the recording darkly chuckled.

"Ah, yeah I remember. You recently got married haven't you? I thought we were betrothed. I got confused about that a bit."

"The Great Adventurer was my gift. Did you like my gift?" The low male voice continued. "It's also a warning." He added threateningly, hinting something else.

"Has Grandfather known about your marriage? I wonder if you'll be this brave in front of the elders."

"What's the name, Chen Linyun? Did I get it right? Hmmm… You have to pay for taking what's mine."

"So, have you had a clear copy of this conversation?" s.h.i.+ Fan Hai was mocking them. "You think I won't figure out that you're recording this? Very well. Use it as you please. If you don't have enough material yet, just tell me so. I'd gladly lend a hand."

++++

The recording stopped. Xue Jinxu's eyes were wide from shock. "That is.. That is…"

"I've known for quite a while. Guangxi gave me this." He sighed. "Your brother cares for you and loves you a lot that he fought for you while you were away, do you know that? He's quite fl.u.s.tered that I didn't do anything when he gave me this. That's why he was quite rebellious towards us, his elders. Your parents do not even know about this recording."

"I'm sorry, child, if I arranged your marriage with him. You see, a promise is a promise. Our ancestors and theirs agreed to combine our families through marriage. For generations, there wasn't a match because either there were only sons or only daughters at both sides. Your generation is the first for the marriage setup to be plausible."

"Your great great grandfather, my own grandfather encountered harsh trying times when he was still starting our s.h.i.+pping company. It was the s.h.i.+ clan who helped our ancestors establish our company. The s.h.i.+'s are our s.h.i.+pping company's first clients, and the partners.h.i.+p had been only stronger through out the years. To show our family's grat.i.tude, your great great grandfather and the s.h.i.+'s ancestor made arrangements of marriage."

"But there are exceptions. Certainly, I, as the head of our Xue Family, will not allow any evil to enter our house, our family. I will not honor this marriage arrangement if it will mean the downfall of our family. I will be held accountable for this. I will answer to our ancestors in the afterlife."

"Knowing that, will you come home now, child?" Grampa looked at Xue Jinxu eagerly.

"Grampa, as I've said, I won't divorce my husband. Please accept him. Only then will I return to our house."

"That's a no, then." He sighed. Grampa Xue tried everything he could just to convince this headstrong granddaughter of his. Still, he did not succeed. "If you change your mind, Xu'er just let us know. You are always welcome." He said while standing up.

"Likewise, Grampa. If you change your mind, and realize that Chen Linyun is quite the man that is perfect for me, just let me know. We will arrange to visit you at the soonest possible time."

"I appreciate all your efforts today, Grampa. I understand fully now where you were coming from. I'm sorry I also questioned you."

"But Grampa, I won't divorce my husband." She said steadfastly.

"Please give Chen Linyun a chance, Grampa. You'll see for yourself. I'm confident with him." The lady smiled triumphantly as if she already won the arguments. Her almond eyes sparkled with this newfound glimmer of hope. She knew that Grampa was now open for negotiation. Just a little more push…

"Hmph. Just who did you take after? Grampa asked his tenacious granddaughter lovingly.

"You." Xue Jinxu smiled at her Grampa. "Take care, Grampa. Thank you for the visit. It really meant a lot to me."

Grampa grunted his acknowledgement and left. Even if he did not succeed in convincing Xue Jinxu to return home under his terms, at the very least, they had come into an understanding. However, while exiting the apartment complex, Grampa Xue was worried. 'If I accept her husband into the family as she wishes, he might end up with the same fate as Ah-Minhe's. I hope not."

----

Inside the guest room where Teng Man Rui was staying, she could not help but overhear the conversations in the living room, especially the recording.

Until now, she had not witnessed yet, first-hand with her own eyes, the atrocity of s.h.i.+ Fan Hai. She always discovered it after-the-fact. She was quite taken aback when she heard the recording. Her body was trembling non-stop. She could not believe her ears. The way s.h.i.+ Fan Hai bullied her friend was completely alien to her. He had not treated her in any way near that in comparison. It was the first time that she finally finally understood the resentment that Chen Linyun and Xue Jinxu harbored towards her beloved. Indeed she finally understood.

Teng Man Rui had somewhat known that s.h.i.+ Fan Hai was behind the capsizing incident. However, she did not know, and wouldn't have even the slightest clue nor idea that the demise that Xue Guangxi experienced a while back was also s.h.i.+ Fan Hai's doing. It was completely vicious. He was just a boy…

In her mind, she could still hear his words, "I won't stop until I get what I want". Then she remembered what he had told her before. "I'm doing this for us, Man Rui. It's for our future together."

'Oh my G.o.d.' Was all she could exclaim in her mind.

---

After Grampa left, Xue Jinxu was ecstatic. She went towards Teng Man Rui immediately after she sent Grampa off. She wanted to share her jubilation with her friend. When she found Teng Man Rui, she was alarmed.

"Man Rui, what's wrong? Are you okay? What happened?" She rushed towards her friend who was shaking in shock. She was seated on her bed in the guest room.

Teng Man Rui continued to shake violently. Upon hearing her words, she looked into her eyes but did not utter anything. She was clearly and deeply troubled as if her world just crumbled. Her eyes were wide with apparent shock. As to the cause of her shock, Xue Jinxu could not decipher.

"Man Rui…" Jinxu embraced her friend to comfort her and to stop her from shaking. She was getting more worried by the second. Just what exactly happened to her while she was talking to Grampa?

"N-Nothing… Nothing, Jinxu… I… I'm fine…" She was stammering softly while blinking repeatedly. She pursed her lips. Afterwards, streams of fresh tears rolled down her tears. She sobbed quietly.

"You're not okay. It's fine if you don't want to tell me. I'm here for you, mhmm?" Jinxu consoled her friend while hugging her and rubbing her hand on her back.

Just seeing her try to be okay when clearly she was not was actually already heartbreaking. Just knowing that her friend was living with her to support her in her recovery from her miscarriage, when in fact she was also facing her own battle, without her knowing about it made her ashamed of herself.

She really was too selfish. First, she pushed her husband away. And now, she's keeping Man Rui for herself without even knowing about her friend's own struggles.

"Oh, Man Rui… I'm sorry…" Xue Jinxu said, also nearing tears.

Teng Man Rui's sobs grew stronger. "No, Jinxu… I'M sorry… I'm sorry, I really am…"

In her mind, she added, 'It's my fault… It's my fault…"