2924 I Can't Accept It

"When we got married, she was so tentative, afraid she won't be accepted, afraid you wouldn't like her. That's why she's always been careful around you, considering your moods and feelings. She's especially concerned about your views and how you viewed her.

"Because of what she experienced in her childhood, she's been very concerned about how others think about her," Mrs. Jiang said.

"So you know why she had to leave?" she asked Mr. Jiang. "I know my daughter very well. She's very strong and wouldn't be hard on herself because of what happened.

"She left certainly not for herself. It's only because of others. She left to be considerate of others' feelings.

"So why?" Mrs. Jiang pressed.

Mr. Jiang shook his head. "I don't know… I never expected… my thoughts would be guessed by Yujie."

"And what exactly is that! What is it that forced my daughter to go away!" Mrs. Jiang fumed.

"It's… I… I'm worried about Yujie and Huaizhou," came the reply.

"You're worried about them, how?" Mrs. Jiang didn't understand.

"They… are not related by blood, and they are close in age. They're also outstanding young adults. I'm afraid they'd develop romantic feelings for each other after being with each other for a long time," Mr. Jiang answered.

"You're weren't worried about that back then, and you're worried about it now?" Mrs. Jiang never expected Mr. Jiang to harbor such thoughts.

"I worried about that in the past too. Once they'd grown, I was scared they'd commit a mistake while staying under one roof," Mr. Jiang said hesitantly.

"And…" Mr. Jiang moved his lips, pausing. "And Yujie sacrificed too much for Huaizhou. What kind of feelings did she have for her to sacrifice so much for him?"

"And so you think Yujie is harboring feelings for Huaizhou?" Mrs. Jiang looked disbelievingly at Mr. Jiang.

Mr. Jiang bowed his head in shame.

"How can you think this way!" Mrs. Jiang raged.

"According to you, Yujie saved Huaizhou and it's wrong?"

"That's not what I meant…" Mr. Jiang said weakly.

"It's wrong for Yujie to save him and wrong for her to let him be! If she did nothing, you'd think she's ungrateful and didn't care for her brother. If she saved him, you'd suspect she harbored feelings for him." Mrs. Jiang was furious. "How can you be like this!

"Don't you forget, even when we didn't believe Huaizhou, it was Yujie who stood by him! When we thought she was wrong, she was the one stauch in her beliefs, sacrificing herself for Huaizhou!

"And because of her sacrifice, you actually think she…" Mrs. Jiang shook from anger, pointing at her husband. "You're heartless!"

"I don't… I just treat Yujie as my own daughter! They're both my children. To me, they're as good as biological siblings!" Mr. Jiang refuted. "But… But if they both really… really had any feelings for each other, I can't accept it!"

"Because of your suspicion, you forced my daughter away!" Mrs. Jiang's eyes were red now. "Yujie suffered so much! She sacrificed so much to save Huaizhou! It's a hurt she can never erase from her life!

"You knew what Yujie gave up for Huaizhou! How could you still force her away just because of your unfounded suspicions?" Mrs. Jiang cried.