Chapter 404: The Memories Return Home
After Third Young Master Ye had his meeting, he called Cheng Anya and she simply said that she had some problems at her daddy’s place that she had to settle so that she could leave with peace of mind. Ye Wei also told him that she was around, and Third Young Master Ye was secretly guessing if somebody was kicking up a racket at Daddy Cheng’s place. Given how filial Cheng Anya was, something would happen. He also knew that Ye Wei and Eleven were with Cheng Anya, so he was not worried as they would bring her back in one piece.
After reading the documents for about fifteen minutes, he realized that he could no longer digest the documents. He was worried about her because he did not see her and was not by her side. Since Third Young Master Ye knew that she was in trouble, he had no peace of mind and drove to Anya’s original apartment.
When he was on the road, he wanted to call Anya to tell her he would be reaching. However, he did not call after giving it some thought. He wanted to swing by to see what was actually going on given how terrible Anya sounded. It was as though she was suppressing anger in her.
Third Young Master Ye ended the call and gently smiled as he drove onto the highway. Moments after he entered the highway, he saw a car lose control at a bend and slam into the railings along the road.
The car, with a loud bang, destroyed the railings and kicked up a cloud of dust. The front of the car was severely dented in and there was no movement. The driver of said car had been driving extremely quickly, so the resulting collision was extremely severe and many cars around it screeched to a halt. As it happened on the left lane, he saw everything clearly.
He stopped the car. Somebody else had called the police. Third Young Master Ye went up to take a look at the person in the car. A bloodied hand stuck out of the car, and blood pooled on the ground. Some at the scene were already shaking their heads.
He secretly wondered, given the severity of the collision, whether this person was more likely dead than alive.
He did not care much and started up his car and continued driving. As the accident on the highway would cause a road closure, cars would build up on the road and all that was on his mind was to get to Cheng Anya.
When he saw the scene of the accident from his rearview mirror, an image of a bloodied him lying in the car flashed through his mind. He had a feeling of déjà vu and frowned.
His mind was suddenly jolted. Third Young Master Ye felt as though many needles were stabbing at his head. As he clutched his head and endured the searing pain, he exited the highway and suddenly came to a halt. An even sharper pain came upon him.
“Ahh…” He grunted as he clutched his head with both hands and hit his head. The pain caused him to tremble. Sporadic images that flashed through his head caused his head to ache even more.
Veins on Third Young Master Ye’s forehead throbbed. He thumped his head against the steering wheel occasionally whilst enduring an inhuman pain that was driving him to crack open his head.
“Why…” He murmured to himself as many images flashed through his head. Memories surged. The sharp pain drove the saying that ‘dental aches, stomachaches, and headaches were the three hardest aches to endure’ home.
A thick sheen of sweat appeared on his forehead.
As the pain gradually subsided, the images in his mind started to become clearer. He discovered, to his surprise, there were actually many images of Cheng Anya in his mind. The very memories he had lost… had finally returned home.
Cheng Anya, so it was actually her…
Seven years ago, he returned from America to pay respects to his mother, Yang Xing, during her birthday. Wherever he was, he would always return to pay his respects to her since nobody else would. He was in an extremely bad mood.
On a bright and sunny day, he drove to the seaside as part of a joyride and slowly walked along the beach while reminiscing about his mother alone. Whenever he looked at the beach, he would, without fail, recall the joy he had whenever Yang Xing brought him to the beach to play. He had once sprinted on the beach, part of his childhood. Those were the rare smiles he had that he could recall. He even recalled how a pregnant Yang Xing back then brought him to the seaside and how he told her that he would bring her and their then-unborn sister to see the sea after his sister was born. He even told his mommy that he would buy a seaside mansion that faced the sea and back-faced the wall for his mommy after he grew up.
He did not expect to encounter her at the beach.
She, in her school uniform, stood diagonally in front of him with her back facing him. She had a svelte figure with long, flowing hair. He felt that she had very nice-looking hair.
Somebody shouted out, and she suddenly turned around and smiled gorgeously. At that moment, he seemed to hear God say, “Ye Chen, this is your love at first sight.”
As she walked over smiling, his emotions were stirred. When he was about to walk up to her, he saw a man run over and hold her hand. The two of them walked away as they talked and laughed at each other.
He felt utterly dejected by the fact that the other person was attached.
When he first laid eyes on Cheng Anya, he only felt that she had a charm that extremely resembled his mother’s. He became comfortable looking at her and hoped to keep her by his side. However, he was too stressed to think this far.
Besides, when he encountered her at the beach, she was already attached. Although Third Young Master Ye was young then, he was still a very loose person and would not have had such a deep impression of her if it weren’t for the incident at the pub.
As it was his mother’s death anniversary that day, he was extremely vexed and went to the pub to drink after paying his respects to her. He did not have the mind to flirt with people and buffed the advances of those who tried to accost him.
Then, there she was, dead drunk and walked in a stupor. He quickly ran to support her but she identified him as a money boy. His ego took a dent. He was enraged and almost wanted to strangle her when he knew that she was looking for a man.
All his rage became a fiery lust.
Besides, knowing that she was drugged made his anger burn even more. He was angry at her, yet frustrated at her. He had no idea why he would have such an impulsive desire toward a woman he did not know.
It might have been that heart-rending moment at the beach or that stirring of his heart when she bumped into him.
Whatever happened later in the night spun out of control.
Lo and behold, when he woke up the next morning, there was a pink one hundred yuan note with a slip. Written on it was, “You’re such a damn beast. Here’s for your services.”
He crushed the glass and broke into a gentle, yet twisted smile.
Having been this old, Third Young Master Ye had never been humiliated by a woman like this. All those palpitations from love and that arousal in his heart could go to hell. He wanted to simply pin her down and do her so hard as a catharsis for all that pent-up frustration in him.
He pulled CCTV footage from the pub to view, but he stiflingly discovered that the CCTV footage from that moment was removed. As his rage burned incessantly, he searched for her up and down like crazy. He even waited at the bar for her for seven days just for that chance to see her, but she was never to be seen. As he counted down to the day he had to return to America, he became even more anxious.
When he was about to give up, she saw Cheng Anya in a taxi next to him at a traffic junction. He rejoiced, only for the taxi to move. He initially was a speeder and he was extremely anxious at that moment. He tailed the taxi and lost control of the car at a bend and hit into the railings along the road. Before he fainted, there was only a single thought in his mind: Don’t go.
He did not want to lose this memory.
…
As his memories gradually returned, he finally understood why there was this fuzzy shadow in his heart for the past seven years and how he painstakingly searched for that silhouette and familiar eyes amongst the crowd.
He hence had multiple stand-ins…
Until he encountered her again…
He remembered that they re-encountered each other like how they encountered each other in the pub. She fell into his embrace and looked up with all that radiance in her eyes.
He never told Cheng Anya that he could feel her return that very moment.
When they were by the beach, she turned back to smile, only for a similar image to flash through his mind. It was blurry and it disappeared before he could recall anything.
He thought that this was their common memory.
But what did she tell him?
She cooked up a campy story and lied to him. While he could allow the campy story to slide, the camp was just so classic. But… Third Young Master Ye grabbed the steering wheel and an unprecedented rage swept across him when he recalled that hundred yuan note.
He had never been this thoroughly humiliated by somebody in his entire life.
…
“Cheng Anya, you are dead meat!” Third Young Master Ye punched the steering wheel hard. How dared she lie to him! Had it not been for the accident that year, he would have long found her. He had no concrete idea as to whether he wanted to teach her a lesson or want her. All he knew was to find her and understand her. He had felt more humiliated those years back, and his desire for payback had been even stronger. All these thoughts disappeared before he fainted, and his only thought before he fainted was to have her by his side.
What did she do all those years? What did he do when they met? What if he had not fallen in love with her, and what if she returned a year later? Would they miss each other forever and be unable to experience what love was? Would he never live to know he even had a son?
Anger swept through him.
The veins in the back of his hands throbbed. Third Young Master Ye floored the accelerator and raced toward Cheng Anya’s apartment. He was enraged and wanted to angrily ask her ‘why’. He sped up on the highway.
After driving for some distance, his anger subsided and he could not help but slow down.
He had not sped for a long time, and he would not speed. Ever since he started to give her a lift, he obeyed traffic rules and could not afford for things to happen. If what happened seven years ago repeated itself, he would lose his memory again and that would not be worth it.
He hadn’t settled that score with anybody, right?
As he thought about it, he drove much more slowly. The memories of the past few months slowly replayed in his month. Many things happened between them and she gave a lot of herself to him.
And what was he thinking about now? Exact revenge on her? What was there to exact revenge on? That was a joke! While the thought of revenge never crossed his mind, he was extremely angry. He could not put a finger on how his anger came about and what he would do with said anger.
Love slowly dripped into their lives. Seven years ago, she did not know him and she was drugged and drunk, only for him to take advantage of her. Given Cheng Anya’s character, the hundred yuan note and slip of paper was already a light punishment.
…
When he searched up and down for her back then, what was it for? Was it really out of revenge for her humiliating him?
Ye Chen, face it. It’s a lie.
Whether seven years ago or today, he loved her.
If it weren’t the case, why did he call out to her for her not to leave?
If it was indeed love at first sight seven years ago, he merely had a good impression of her. Seven years later, when they fell in love a second time, knowing and loving each other deeper than before. What else could he do?
His only revenge…’Cheng Anya, you will stay by me for the rest of your life.’
To fall in love with her at first sight was the best thing that could happen to him.
But… the score must be settled! Wait… After some quick math, Third Young Master Ye broke into a distorted smile. Someday.
As Ye Wei and all saw Third Young Master Ye stand at the door with a seeming smile, they turned to look at Cheng Anya. Ye Wei could not help but shudder as she could not tell whether her brother was angry or out to play mind games.
Ning Ning blinked his eyes. The truth finally came to light. So that was how he was born. The young kid felt that his fragile heart had been hurt.
“Dear Anya, did you actively seduce me back then?” Third Young Master Ye asked with a smile. Nobody could tell from the tone of his question whether he was happy or angry as it sounded like a typical tease. Cheng Anya looked at him deeply.
She shrugged her shoulders and smiled. “Whenever a man and woman are together, it’s either the male seducing the female or otherwise that ends up with mutual seduction. What’s so strange about that?”
Ye Wei was at a loss for words.
“…Mommy, Daddy is looking a little sinister,” the young kid said.
To think that his mommy still had the courage left them in admiration of her.
Third Young Master Ye walked over, his eyes on Cheng Anya. This woman looked no different after seven years save an additional 1-2 cm in height and the fake smile she wore.
The Cheng Anya he remembered from seven years ago was not this calm. While she did smile, she was not as… calm as now.
Where should he start to settle the score? This score could be settled.
Cheng Anya, at that moment, had no idea what was on his mind, but she could see the anger in him. There was something in his anger that she did not understand that left her in trepidation.
He could not have recalled it, right?
“Did you say that we fell in love and had a child together?” Third Young Master Ye asked in a seemingly curious manner.
“There are some gaps in our memory, and I skipped the part where we fell in love.” Cheng Anya smiled as she stared viciously at Lin Li. This gold digger sure… wanted money, so giving her a hundred million in hell notes would suffice.
Third Young Master Ye broke into a chilling smile. He said, “Dear Anya, does that mean that you had lied to me?”
“People say that white lies help make life that bit more beautiful. Ah Chen, the occasional lie does little harm.” Cheng Anya smiled. She could tell that he was out to settle that score.
Her mind whirred to life. How should she defuse that?
The two of them looked at each other and smiled, each one calmer than the other.
Everybody else felt a tingle down their spines.