Disobedience To Control chapter 39
Bad Seed
Footsteps echoed on the steps. Song Siheng didn’t look back as he descended the stairs in the darkness.
Only when he sat in the driver’s seat did he realize how sore his eye sockets were. He buried his head in the steering wheel, his breath becoming short.
About two minutes later, he raised his head, started the car, and drove off.
It wasn’t until the car had driven about ten meters that he couldn’t help but glance in the rearview mirror. The light in the small room on the second floor was still on, but the figure inside was no longer clear. Song Siheng stepped on the accelerator, and the car quickly left the old neighborhood.
Since that day, he and Yang Xiaobei had not contacted each other again.
Spring in Jiangcheng arrived fiercely, and the temperature quickly rose to twenty degrees, with early cherry blossoms blooming in the park.
On a weekday afternoon like this, Song Siheng received a call from Fu Xuehua, saying that Miss Yu had promised to have a meal at their house before the New Year, and asked Song Siheng to come back when he had time.
To Fu Xuehua’s surprise, this time Song Siheng agreed readily.
“Then next Saturday, come home at six in the evening. Come back early, don’t keep people waiting.” Fu Xuehua reminded him.
On the second Saturday evening, Song Siheng arrived home on time.
Coincidentally, he and Song Qin almost parked their cars at the door at the same time. There was only one parking space left at the door, and Song Qin didn’t give it to him, but parked diagonally first. Song Siheng didn’t talk to him, but reversed and parked on the roadside outside the door.
The two almost walked side by side into the garden. Song Qin took out the key to the front door, turned it twice, and opened the door.
Fu Xuehua stood up from the sofa in the living room when she heard the sound.
Song Siheng took off his coat and entered the living room, but noticed that Fu Xuehua’s expression was not good.
“What a coincidence.” She glanced at her phone, “Miss Yu said she couldn’t make it today because of something sudden at the academy.”
Song Qin nodded, “Then I’ll go upstairs first.”
“What’s the rush today?” Song Ping walked out of the kitchen, looking at Song Qin.
“Nothing. It’s just that she’s not coming, so I don’t need to wait here.”
“Song Siheng rarely comes back. Let’s have dinner together before going upstairs.” Song Ping pulled out the chairs in the dining room, indicating that they should all sit down.
Aunt Qiu prepared a whole table of dishes, three meat dishes and three vegetable dishes, plus two cold dishes, and a pot of fresh bamboo shoot and perch soup.
There were five chairs by the table, but unfortunately, only four people sat down in the end.
Fu Xuehua and Song Ping sat at both ends of the long table, and Song Siheng sat opposite Song Qin.
Just as Song Siheng sat down, Fu Xuehua looked at him. Song Siheng understood: “I know.” With that, he got up and went to the bathroom.
When he came back, Song Qin had already taken off his glasses. The three of them sat around, but no one spoke.
“How’s the company recently?” Song Ping was the first to speak, looking at Song Siheng.
Song Siheng had just picked up his chopsticks to pick up some meat, but suddenly stopped, smiled, and said, “It’s going well.”
Song Qin suddenly looked up at him, and his chewing stopped.
“Thanks to ge’s help, we’ve expanded a lot of business.” Song Siheng’s expression was gentle, his tone steady.
Song Ping was stunned. This was the first time in so many years that Song Siheng had called Song Qin “ge” in front of them.
Fu Xuehua was somewhat surprised, “Are you two getting along so well now? I said you brothers should communicate more. There are plenty of places where you can help each other in the future.”
Song Siheng nodded, “Yes, Song Qin has been very generous with his help. How about next time I treat you to a big meal?”
Song Qin put down his chopsticks, put on his glasses, and gave him a faint smile, “You’re too polite, Siheng. I’ll go to the bathroom.”
After he left, Fu Xuehua asked Song Ping, “Is Xiao Qin not feeling well recently?”
Song Ping shook his head, “I haven’t heard him say.”
Fu Xuehua said, “Then why does he look so bad?”
After a while, Song Siheng picked up his phone from the table and glanced at the time. It had been fifteen minutes, and Song Qin hadn’t come back yet.
“Siheng, do you want to go see what’s wrong with him?” Fu Xuehua asked.
Song Siheng nodded, then pulled out his chair and got up to go to the bathroom on the first floor. However, when he reached the door of the bathroom, he found that the light inside had long been extinguished, and the door was open.
Pushing the door, Song Siheng saw that there was no one in the bathroom.
On the north side of the bathroom corridor, there was a small door leading to the shaded north garden. That door was not closed.
After thinking for a moment, Song Siheng took out his phone, swiped it twice, and then put it back in his pocket. He opened the door and walked out. Sure enough, Song Qin was standing on one side of the north garden, holding a cigarette between his fingertips.
“Ge, when did you pick up the habit of smoking?” Song Siheng walked up behind him.
Song Qin pressed the cigarette butt against the pillar by his side, and the spark extinguished in an instant.
“What’s wrong?”
“Just seeing that you hadn’t gone back yet, I came out to check on you.” Song Siheng stood by his side.
“What’s up? Need my help?” Song Qin crossed his arms and looked at him, his expression unchanged.
“Nothing urgent.” Song Siheng looked around the north garden, then looked into Song Qin’s eyes, “Just have a little question to ask you.”
“Go ahead.”
“On the last Thursday before the New Year, where were you?” Song Siheng took a half step forward, staring at Song Qin.
Song Qin’s fingers trembled slightly, then he sighed softly, “What? Investigating my whereabouts?”
Song Siheng shook his head, “No, it’s not that. I received an anonymous email.”
Song Qin’s expression darkened suddenly, “What email?”
Song Siheng frowned, looking conflicted as he said, “I found it strange too. It’s from someone claiming to be an employee of EM. They said they heard some rumors related to you. I didn’t reply, so I came to verify with you.”
Song Qin stepped back half a step, “I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
Song Siheng scrutinized him for a moment, then cleared his throat and whispered, “There’s surveillance outside Li Ke’s house. And I got a reply email from Xu Lang to you, with your name mentioned.”
Instantly, Song Qin’s face changed dramatically, and he stepped closer to him, demanding, “Where did you get it from?! It’s impossible! I told him to delete it!”
Song Siheng finally smiled, “I made it up. Ge, why are you so lacking in vigilance? You confess as soon as you’re tricked?”
The back of Song Qin’s hand holding the cigarette butt revealed his bones, his lips twitched slightly, and soon he straightened his back to support himself firmly, “Now that you know, why pretend with me?”
Song Siheng’s smile disappeared instantly, his gaze sharp as a hawk’s, “Song Qin, I do have evidence in my hand. If I sue, you’ll be in for at least three years.”
Song Qin threw the cigarette butt onto the damp ground and crushed it thoroughly with his shoe, “Are you threatening me? What do you want?”
Song Siheng looked at him, “I can give you a way out.”
Song Qin frowned, “What way out?”
“If you still want to teach at the university, I can give you this opportunity. But you have to cooperate with me in staging a play.” Song Siheng picked up the cigarette butt crumbs from the ground, threw them into the nearby trash can, and then clapped his hands, “If you can deceive me, you can naturally deceive Xu Lang too.”
“Impossible.” Song Qin refused before he could finish speaking.
Song Siheng hadn’t expected his reaction to be so decisive, “Ge, you’re asking for trouble.”
Song Qin grabbed his collar, staring into his eyes, and gritted his teeth, “I’ve suffered enough. I don’t need this.”
Song Qin was slightly shorter than Song Siheng, and he hadn’t even stabilized himself before Song Siheng broke free from his grip.
“Relax, I have something else to ask you.” Song Siheng looked at Song Qin, “I’m not Xu Lang’s match in the first place. Why did you help me first? Wouldn’t it be faster to introduce the company in North City directly to Xu Lang?”
Song Qin met his gaze, “That would be too boring. Letting you taste the feeling of gaining and then losing, that’s my purpose. The more money you put in, the higher he stands above you. Isn’t that more humiliating for you?”
Song Siheng felt that Song Qin had fallen into madness, “Song Qin, I really don’t understand what you’re thinking. Is what you’re doing fair to Li Ke?”
Song Qin had been frowning, but suddenly laughed, “Fair? Song Siheng, do you have the nerve to talk to me about fairness?”
His eyes became bloodshot, his right hand clenched into a fist, and he stared at Song Siheng fiercely, “Is there fairness in this disgusting family?!”
Song Siheng was confused, “Song Qin, do you know what you’re saying? You still think it’s unfair? When I broke my bones from being beaten by Song Ping, weren’t you just watching from the sidelines?”
Song Qin laughed coldly. “Song Siheng, you’re pitifully naive. You dare to talk to me about fairness. Do you know that they have your every roadshow report posted in the study? Do you know that every time you were about to return, Song Ping would be as nervous as a dog? You even dared to come out of the closet in this house. At that time, I thought you had ruined your life, but what happened? You came back in a few years, as if nothing had happened. Isn’t that ridiculous, Song Siheng? You can love whoever you want, and everyone just turns a blind eye?!”
“I’ve been like a fool, obeying them blindly for over thirty years. But what have I got in return? I have to be a magnanimous elder brother, I have to carry their expectations. You can just leave this house with a pat on your butt, but I can’t! Do you understand?!”
Song Qin’s voice trembled uncontrollably, “Everyone demands that I be obedient, I’ve dyed myself the same color as them, but what have I achieved? I wanted to be a docile person like them, but the whole world loves you bad seeds!”
“You’re all disgusting!” Song Qin raised his hand as if to strangle Song Siheng’s neck, but was twisted away by Song Siheng.
With a bang, Song Siheng swung his fist and hit his right cheek.
A stream of blood instantly flowed from the corner of Song Qin’s mouth, and his whole body stiffened in place.
Song Siheng looked at his unfamiliar and fierce face, feeling his internal organs churning, “Song Qin, so this is your reason for betraying me?”
He stepped forward half a step closer to Song Qin, “What have Iever done to you? When have I made you suffer?!”
Song Qin stared fixedly at Song Siheng’s face, “Yes, you’re so innocent, so kind. You can even openly keep university students! “
After taking a deep breath, Song Siheng spoke, “You’ve been following me?”
Song Qin raised his palm and patted Song Siheng’s face, “Yang Xiaobei. Nineteen years old. Did you think I didn’t know? But I have to say, you’ve raised a good dog.”
Song Siheng’s pupils tightened, “What do you mean?”
Song Qin raised his chin slightly. “I didn’t originally intend to go after Li Ke. Unfortunately, he’s incorruptible, refusing my money. You two are really a match made in heaven, deeply in love with each other, is that it?”
“You went to find Yang Xiaobei?!” Song Siheng felt like he had been struck by lightning. He paused for a moment, then suddenly remembered something, “On New Year’s Eve last year, right?!”
Song Qin didn’t deny it, “It’s amazing how someone would willingly get beaten up for a paying master. Quite the romantic fool.”
Suddenly all the memories rushed back. On New Year’s Eve, Song Qin arrived late for dinner. And Yang Xiaobei appeared at the suburban park entrance at night, with blood on his face, wounds on his back and waist.
Song Siheng’s anger surged, but he suppressed it forcefully before speaking, “Song Qin, have you gone mad enough? How many people do you want to drag down with you? You had a choice. I can come and go freely because I paid the price! You’re just weak, so don’t envy others for being able to fight for their freedom!”
Song Qin’s expression hadn’t yet settled, but upon hearing his words, a tear slowly welled up at the corner of his eye.
He extended his right hand, pointing at Song Siheng’s nose. “Song Siheng, you’ve been too well protected. I’m not like you. Everyone blessed your birth. But me, I’ve spent my whole life repaying debts. Do you understand?”
“What are you talking about?” Song Siheng really didn’t understand his meaning. “Are you crazy?”
With blood still at the corner of his mouth, Song Qin’s tears continued to flow, almost wailing as he shouted, “Since I was three years old, people have been pointing fingers at me, saying I killed my own mother! Song Ping, that beast, deceived me for over thirty years, clearly, he drove my mother to her death! I bent over backward, was cautious and prudent, only to find out this damn thing was all a scam! Let me ask you, who ever cared for me?! All of you are accomplices, you bunch of hypocritical, disgusting scums!”
Song Siheng stood stunned in place, almost unable to move. He didn’t understand what Song Qin was saying at all.
With a bang, the wooden door behind them was forcefully pushed open. Song Ping grabbed Song Qin’s arm. “Song Qin, what nonsense are you spouting?!”
Song Qin’s eyes turned unusually cold. “Nonsense? Tell me, with your conscience, did I say anything untrue? How did my mother die? Dare you face me and answer?”
Song Ping grabbed his arm, preparing to drag him into the house, but Song Qin struggled with all his might to shake off his hand.
“Song Ping. During the year in Wancheng, everyone said I killed my mother. But you were careless. I went back to Wancheng last year, guess what I found?”
Song Qin forcefully pointed at the button on Song Ping’s chest with his index finger. “Coincidentally, I found my mother’s diary.”
Song Ping’s face changed drastically.
Fu Xuehua, beside them, also froze, turning to look at Song Ping. “Song Ping! What’s going on?!”
Song Qin burst into laughter, trembling all over. “Keep pretending. Keep acting. You don’t know about something this big? Or is it that once you come to Jiangcheng, all past matters can be wiped clean?”
Seeing that Song Qin was not in the right state, Fu Xuehua tried to hold him from behind, afraid he would do something more insane. But Song Qin forcefully shook her off, and she stumbled back into the pillar behind her, sitting down in pain.
Song Qin’s tears continued to flow uncontrollably, and he tore off the tightly tied red rope on his left hand, revealing several shocking, vivid scars, exposed to the air.
“I’ve attempted suicide several times over the years.” He stretched out that hand, pointing at Fu Xuehua and Song Siheng one by one. “And what about you? Mother’s love, filial piety, how blissful. I hate you all, I hate every single one of you.”
Song Ping scolded him angrily, “Enough! Song Qin! Stop talking!”
Song Qin stared back angrily. “What right do you have to scold me? This time it’s Song Siheng. Do you think you, the instigator, can get away?”
After saying that, Song Qin’s shoulders twitched slightly, and then he wiped away all the tears on his face with his hand, looking disheveled.
Suddenly, he raised his right hand to look at his watch, a somewhat inappropriate smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.
“Song Siheng, it’s almost eight o’clock.”
Song Siheng was puzzled, looking at his eerie face. “What are you saying?”
“As far as I know, a sufficient concentration of carbon monoxide can kill a person in less than an hour. There are things you don’t understand, but tonight I can teach you. You can experience what it’s like for someone to die because of you.”
With that, he wiped away the bloodstains at the corners of his mouth again. “You should thank me. I’ve given you a chance. Tonight, you might still be able to see him one last time.”
Song Siheng felt as if he had fallen into an icy abyss, grabbing Song Qin’s collar. “Explain yourself clearly! What the hell do you mean?!”
Song Qin forced out an extremely ugly smile. “What else could it mean? Your little lover.”
“Don’t think you can lie to me to threaten me. He’s already gone to Australia!”
“Hahaha—” Song Qin laughed even more recklessly. “You really know nothing about him. Gone to Australia? You believe such nonsense?”
Song Siheng stood there dumbfounded, then, three seconds later, his hands couldn’t stop trembling.
“Song Qin! You’re a complete lunatic!”
With a bang, Song Siheng pushed open the door behind him, ignoring the looks from Song Ping and Fu Xuehua, and stumbled toward the roadside.