Douluo: A Century-old Legend I Am the Second Uncle Chenxin

Chapter 1912 The Weakness, the Truth, and the Shadow of the Past

Looking for recommendations for floating
……

"No intention?" Dou Congtong looked incredulous.

“Miss Dou,” Chen Xiaojun looked at her, his tone calm, “If I truly had ulterior motives, then it wouldn’t be us ‘kids’ who have come to visit today. I’m here simply to inform Deputy Commander Dou’s family of his current situation, nothing more.”

A flicker of emotion crossed Ye Sirong's eyes. "Weren't we supposed to persuade my father?"

Chen Xiaojun shook his head and smiled, "Madam is overthinking it. There's no need for that, because Deputy Commander Dou has confessed."

Ye Sirong's expression finally changed slightly: "What do you mean by that, young master? I know Old Dou's character. Although he is not blindly loyal to Patton, he is by no means a coward who would easily betray his master. How could he possibly..."

A terrifying possibility suddenly occurred to her, and a glint of light flashed in her eyes: "Could it be that you used some... special methods?!"

At this moment, Zhu Yanfeng, who had been silently smoking, slowly spoke, tapping his pipe on the edge of the table with a dull sound.

He looked at Ye Sirong and interjected, "My dear niece Sirong, I am a generation older than you, so I will speak frankly. Dou Jing... is a tough nut to crack, and I agree with that."

“Xing, we took action, and he withstood a lot. But being tough doesn’t mean he has no weaknesses. What are his weaknesses… you should know best.”

Ye Sirong's body tensed almost imperceptibly, her face paled slightly, and her eyes suddenly sharpened like ice blades.

She understood! Everything suddenly became clear!
"How...how did you know we existed?!" Her voice trailed off, tinged with suppressed anger. "Was it confessed by those in the Bone-Digging Gang who knew about it?"

Chen Xiaojun shook his head: "I've already informed Madam. Those high-ranking members of the Bone-Digging Gang who knew of your and Miss Dou's existence, except for those who escaped, have basically all been killed on the battlefield. As for how they found out..."

He paused, his gaze becoming profound. "In this world of Soul Masters, there are countless secret techniques and Soul Skills. We learned of your existence and whereabouts directly from Vice Commander Dou's memories through a mental-type Soul Skill."

A silence, heavier than before and almost suffocating, enveloped the entire main hall.

Ye Sirong remained sitting upright, but her eyes were closed.

Dou Congtong felt a chill to the bone and a sense of powerlessness.

a long time.

Ye Sirong opened her eyes, forcibly suppressing her surging emotions, her gaze returning to its somber state: "Then... what does Young Master intend to do with my daughter and me next?"

She stopped using the word "teach" and instead directly asked for solutions, which showed a rational approach to reality.

They surrendered just like that? Not surprising.

Looking at this woman who had once been his aunt's attendant, now deeply mired in hardship yet still striving to maintain her dignity and composure, Chen Xiaojun's tone softened considerably:
"To be honest, Aunt Lin, we originally just wanted to meet Deputy Commander Dou's wife and daughter. We didn't know you were here, so we didn't have any specific plans and didn't come with any ill intentions."

He paused and said, "As for forcibly breaking into the house just now, it was to lure out any possible hidden sentries or monitors. We had to resort to this desperate measure to create conflict, since I promised Deputy Commander Dou that I would guarantee your safety."

"Therefore, it is necessary to confirm your security and assess whether you need protection. It seems that your strength has indeed exceeded my expectations."

He found an excuse for his actions.

Ye Sirong's tense nerves seemed to finally relax: "I see. Young Master's intentions are good. Sirong misunderstood. Thank you for your thoughtfulness."

She raised her head, her eyes pleading, "I have a request that I cannot keep, young master, I wonder if you would be so kind as to grant it?"

Chen Xiaojun picked up his teacup again and smiled gently: "Aunt Si wants to visit Deputy Commander Dou, right? That's easy. You and Miss Congtong can visit him at any time. I've already consulted my second uncle about this, and he has agreed."

Tears welled up in Ye Sirong's eyes instantly. She held them back and bowed deeply again, saying, "Thank you, young master! Thank you... second master!"

The heavy worry in her heart finally found a temporary outlet. She was very familiar with the style of Chen Lin Village, where she had grown up, and her attitude towards prisoners was neither good nor bad.

"Alright, alright, we've finally finished discussing business." Zhu Yanfeng broke the slightly heavy atmosphere at the right time. He knocked off the ash from his cigarette and refilled it with tobacco. "Sirong, now let's talk about personal matters."

"Let me ask you a question, young lady, why haven't you returned to Chenlin Village all these years? You haven't even sent a word. Your parents... and your older brother and sister, they've missed you terribly all these years!"

Ye Sirong's body trembled almost imperceptibly, and her eyes reddened slightly.

"Uncle Yanfeng, are my parents... well? It is I, Sirong, who is unfilial..."

She dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief, trying to remain composed. "I only came out of the Bone-Digging Gang's underground area ten years ago. At that time, Tong was almost seven years old, and in those years, the surveillance here was extremely strict. Although it has loosened up a bit in the last two years, but..."

She paused slightly, "And my marriage with Lao Dou is... somewhat difficult to talk about."

This is indeed the case.

Back then, Dou Jing used force to take Ye Sirong as his own, and he never even held a wedding banquet to keep it a secret. Their relationship remained hidden all along.

She became pregnant shortly after losing her virginity.

After her daughter Dou Congtong was born, she raised her single-handedly while under confinement.

However, that is the irony of fate.

Throughout the long, controlled years, Dou Jing, a man who lived a life of danger and was not interested in women, showed an almost obsessive protectiveness towards the mother and daughter.

In the Bone-Digging Gang's infamous territory, surrounded by wolves and tigers, he did everything in his power to build a safety barrier that outsiders could hardly imagine.

This limited yet incredibly real protection, forcibly granted in the darkness, and the shared experience of raising their daughter together, quietly entwined like vines.

Once Dou Jing falls in love, he gives his all, his feelings are sincere and unwavering.

Humans are complex, and emotions are even more complex.

Day after day, year after year, in the distorted soil, a complex and distorted emotion—mixed with dependence, gratitude, habit, and even a kind of identification catalyzed by the environment—quietly sprouted in Ye Sirong's heart.

After that, she and Dou Jing, who was more than ten years older than her, lived a relatively peaceful life, keeping to themselves and rarely going out.

Outsiders may find it hard to understand, but this is the struggle and adaptation of human nature in extreme circumstances.

Chen Xiaojun silently picked up the tea, which had long since gone cold, and took a sip.

Ye Sirong didn't say it explicitly, but he could guess that it meant the victim had fallen in love with the person who had taken her.

Based on his past life experiences, he naturally understood that this was a psychological state known as "Stockholm Syndrome".

The cruelty of fate and the resilience of humanity under oppression are sometimes more suffocating than the will of the gods.

Inside the hall, only Ye Sirong's suppressed voice remained.

Zhu Yanfeng took a deep drag on his cigarette, and through the swirling smoke, his gaze toward Ye Sirong held a mixture of sorrow and understanding.

While drinking tea, Chen Xiaojun sent a few words to Zhu Yanfeng telepathically.

Zhu Yanfeng's lips curled slightly.

(End of this chapter)