From humble beginnings to the pinnacle of life

It happened without any warning, it just came out of nowhere.

But I was completely frozen on the sofa, my mind blank and shut down.

I've lived for over twenty years, and I only dated one girlfriend for six months. Holding her hand was a luxury I never even saw.

This was the first time I had ever touched the lips of a man, Su Qing, whom I had only known for a few days and who came from a completely different social class.

The entire room fell silent.

Su's parents stared wide-eyed, their faces filled with disbelief, their complexions turning ashen.

Su's mother's chest heaved violently, her fingertips trembling as she pointed at Su Qing, her voice shaking with anger:

"Su Qing! Are you trying to drive us crazy?!"

Mr. Su rubbed his chest, gritted his teeth, and growled, "The Su family is a scholarly and business family, how could we raise such a shameless and disrespectful daughter! You have utterly disgraced the Su family!"

Su Qing remained unfazed by the torrent of angry words.

She raised her hand to wipe the corner of her lips, deliberately provoking a retort: ​​"See? I'm just that casual and easygoing, you don't need to think too highly of me."

*Smack!*

The crisp, piercing sound of a slap echoed throughout the luxurious living room.

Unable to bear it any longer, Su's mother raised her hand and slapped Su Qing hard across the cheek.

Five bright red finger marks instantly appeared on her fair cheeks, swollen and glaring.

Su's mother's eyes were red, filled with both anger and pain: "Your father and I have worked hard from scratch for half our lives, giving you the dignity of the top circle, and paving the way with everything we have. And this is how you demean yourself and waste all our hard work?"

Su Qing didn't even blink, staring intently at her mother with a stubborn and obstinate look in her eyes.

"Am I demeaning myself, or have you all been demeaning me my whole life?"

Her gaze suddenly turned cold as she turned to stare at the fruit knife in the fruit bowl on the coffee table.

I had a bad feeling and got up to stop him, but I was too late.

The next second, Su Qing raised her hand and grabbed the sharp fruit knife.

The knife tip pressed directly against her slender neck, instantly leaving a shallow white indentation on her skin. With the slightest pressure, it would break the skin and bleed.

Her voice was hoarse, and she threatened to kill herself:

"If you insist on forcing me to marry Fang Heng, I'll die right here in front of you!"

"You always say I'm a disappointment, a disgrace to the Su family. Well then, I'll return the life and flesh you gave me! That's the only thing you ever gave me!"

"No! Put the knife down!"

Su's mother instantly broke down, hurriedly stepping forward to grab her wrist holding the knife. Tears streamed down her face, completely losing her previous domineering and harsh demeanor.

The situation seems to have reached a stalemate.

It could escalate at any moment, and the slightest mistake could lead to bloodshed.

I took a deep breath and slowly stood up.

I let out a long breath, suppressed the chaotic emotions in my heart, and steadily stood up, walking to Su Qing's side.

I held out my hand to her, my tone calm and serious: "Give me the knife."

Su Qing's eyes were red and swollen, and she glared at me fiercely with resentment in her eyes.

She's still upset that I exposed their fake relationship in public and didn't take her side.

She gripped the knife hilt tightly, refusing to loosen her grip.

I didn't try to coax or persuade her; instead, I said in a stern tone, "Su Qing, give me the knife!"

This time, the sharp, fierce look in her eyes slowly faded.

His tense demeanor dissipated considerably, making him resemble a hedgehog with its sharp quills raised.

I reached out and firmly grasped her slender wrist.

With a slight effort, he snatched the dagger and threw it onto the coffee table.

Before she could react, I reached out and pulled her into my arms.

Her body stiffened for a moment in my arms, then completely relaxed, and she obediently leaned against my chest without moving.

I leaned down and whispered in her ear, soothingly saying, "Don't do anything foolish. Leave the rest to me."

I slowly loosened my embrace, turned to face Mr. and Mrs. Su, whose expressions were gloomy, and calmly spoke:

"Uncle and Aunt, I'm the only outsider here, so what I say should be objective and fair enough."

Father Su's expression was cold and stern. He immediately retorted in a cold voice, "You are an outsider. You have no right to interfere in the Su family's affairs, much less to speak."

"He's qualified!"

Su Qing immediately stepped forward, grabbed my arm tightly, and retorted in a firm tone:

"He's my boyfriend, so he has no right to interfere in my affairs!"

After a long period of shock, Su's mother calmed down a bit and grabbed Su's father's arm: "Let him speak."

I said calmly, "First of all, Su Qing is rebellious and extreme, using self-harm to fight against her family. Her actions are absolutely wrong."

Upon hearing this, Su Qing immediately frowned, pushed me away forcefully, and glared at me with displeasure.

I continued calmly, "She has enjoyed the Su family's top-notch material support for many years. She doesn't understand the hardships her elders endured in starting their businesses, nor can she see the sense of crisis that the two of you are worried about for the younger generation to take the wrong path. She only cares about her own emotions, which shows her immaturity."

Upon hearing this, Su's father's expression relaxed slightly, and he raised his eyes to signal me to continue.

"Lin Ye! What are you saying? What do you know? What nonsense are you spouting? Shut up! Don't say another word!"

Su Qing immediately pulled me sharply.

I ignored her and continued, "But have you ever considered this: you gave her the money; you're the ones who caused this situation?"

Mr. Su slowly took off his glasses, looked at me sharply, and said:

"You mean, it was wrong of us to give her the best life and arrangements?"

I shook my head and said slowly, "It can't be said that we're wrong. You all know very well where the problem lies."

"You think that by providing her with so many material things, you can make up for all the years of neglect you caused her during her childhood, right?"

After a pause, I continued:

"Including your matchmaking with Fang Heng, your true intentions weren't to rely on the Fang family or curry favor with the powerful; you were simply convinced that Fang Heng's family was wealthy enough to protect Su Qing for life. Am I right?"

Both Mr. and Mrs. Su fell silent, and Mrs. Su lowered her head.

In their silence, I continued:

"You think that doing this will make you feel a little better, right?"

I smiled and shook my head: "Su Qing has grown up. When she was little, you could get along peacefully, but now that she's grown up, she can think independently."

"You can fool yourselves, but you can't fool her, and you certainly can't fool your own hearts."

"You only know how to pressure her with extreme methods now, but what about family? Family has long become something dispensable in your eyes. Isn't that tragic?"

"So she's not afraid of you at all; she's not afraid that you'll disown her."

After I finished speaking, the two of us remained silent for a long time.

I don't know if they listened to what I said, but at least I said what I wanted to say, and that's enough.

Mr. Su rubbed his temples, his usual domineering demeanor softening, and asked in a deep voice, "After saying all this, what exactly are you trying to say?"

"Respect her choice, and I'd like to offer you a piece of advice. It's a line from Kahlil Gibran's poem 'To My Children'."

"Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself. They come through you but not from you."

"Although they are by your side, they do not belong to you. What you can give them is your love, but not your thoughts, because they have their own thoughts."

After I said those words, Su Qing's gaze towards me changed.