My Alleged Husband

Chapter 365 - 345 I Haven’t Changed_1

Zhang Yichen daily complained to his grandfather, feeling intensely dissatisfied in his heart. In his grandfather’s eyes, was this the kind of person he had become? So, for one minor decision he had made, was his grandfather going to criticize him over and over again?

"Grandpa, do you really see me as such a person in your heart? Could it be that the child you’ve raised with great effort doesn’t deserve your trust? Why do you think I’ve become insensitive? I haven’t changed at all, it is you who think I’ve changed. The ones who’ve really changed are yourselves. You always unconsciously change, but you think everyone else has changed. Grandpa, one day you will realize that what you think of me now is wrong!"

Old Master Zhang truly didn’t know how to communicate with his grandson. Why was it that no matter what he said, he could never get through? Such a simple concept that everyone understood, yet why couldn’t his grandson grasp it? The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Such a simple problem seemed so complicated in front of his smart and wise grandson.

"What exactly must I say for you to understand my point? I’m not saying that what you’ve done is terribly wrong; I just feel that you shouldn’t keep any secrets from your wife. I don’t think you’re such a busy person; it’s just that what you’ve done is unfair to your spouse. She trusts you so much, but the things you do make her so sad. Don’t you feel guilty? You’ve studied for so many years, can’t you even understand such a basic principle? Don’t you know how much pain and hurt your actions bring to those who care about you? Have you become like your parents, obsessed only with yourself? You used to be a child I took pride in, but now, I am afraid of what you have become, a stranger to me. The things you do and the words you say are now so different from before. I don’t want the grandson I have raised with so much effort to turn into this kind of person. If you’ve done something wrong, you have to bravely face the consequences you’ve caused, and not shift the blame onto others. Others are not tools for you to offload your guilt; they have their self-respect and dignity. If you’ve done something, you should take the responsibility for it, and not expect everyone to try and please you—that’s futile..."

Zhang Yichen truly didn’t want to hear each word Old Master Zhang said to him. He felt that his grandfather didn’t love him like he used to and always protected his wife. In his grandpa’s eyes, was his grandson now less important than a newly-wed wife?

"Grandpa, do you no longer have a place in your heart for the grandson you’ve raised with such effort? Is your heart now only filled with my newly-wed wife? In your heart, I now seem inferior to even the slightest bit of my wife. What extraordinary thing does she have that makes you protect her so strongly? You are my own grandpa; you’ve raised me with hard work and provided me with a different life, granted me today’s achievements. Yet, why do you say such heart-wrenching words to me? Do you realize how hurtful the words you just spoke are to me, how much pain and sorrow they’ve caused in my heart? Just because I made such a tiny demand to my wife, do you have to seek justice for her and retaliate against me like this? I don’t want my grandpa to retaliate against me without any scruples for the sake of my wife. It will only make me hate her more, feeling as if she took away your love for me, and will make me believe she’s my jinx!"

Old Master Zhang couldn’t tolerate it any longer. Hearing his grandson speak about his wife like that, he couldn’t endure it in his heart and slapped his dearly beloved grandson across the face.

Zhang Yichen was stunned. For all those years, his grandpa had never laid a hand on him, and this time, the reason he did was none other than his spouse. Now he didn’t know whether he was right or wrong. Was marrying the woman he loved supposed to bring enmity with his own grandfather?

"Grandpa, you’ve never been willing to hit me or even scold me all these years, but today, you actually hit me. I really don’t understand; is it because of my wife that you’ve treated me this way? I am your own grandson, yet for the sake of my wife, you’ve let even your own grandson feel the blow—what’s so good about her that you protect her so fervently, even over your own grandson?"

Old Master Zhang knew he had been too impulsive and shouldn’t have casually hit his most beloved grandson; it would only cause his grandson to feel more repulsed.

"Yichen, listen to your grandpa explain. I didn’t mean to just now, I simply couldn’t hold back and that’s why I hit you. Please don’t be mad at me, okay?"

Zhang Yichen laughed out loud: "Blame you? What right do I have to blame you? You raised me with so much effort. Let’s say this slap is what I owe you. But Grandpa, was it worth it to do this for the wife I’ve just married? Do you know? Although the slap was on my face, it lay in my heart. My heart is shattered just like this slap from you. I care about you so much, and always thought no matter what, my grandpa would never hit me, because I believed that my grandpa loved me the most. Now I’ve realized, I was just wishfully thinking. Perhaps your heart doesn’t love me as much as I imagined. Grandpa, I hope you remember that you hit me today, and I will never forget why my grandpa had to lay a hand on me. A woman indeed brings calamity, she caused discord between my parents, and now she’s caused strife between me and my grandpa. Had I known it would turn out this way, I would never have brought her into my home. This is simply too painful for me."

After speaking, Zhang Yichen left. Old Master Zhang watched his treasured grandson leave the house with a red face, aware that he had been too impulsive this time, and under no circumstance should he have hit his grandson.