Release that Man

Madam Grace called after Cedrick, but she was quickly interrupted by people that walked in from the door. Two very serious-looking men walked in after ‘Tess’. Ignoring the atmosphere in the room, they walked to Madam Grace’s bedside. “Madam, they’re here already.”

Madam Grace looked at the two men. This was something that she had ordered before her surgery—investigate the truth behind the sniping. She put her personal affair aside. After all, for now, it was definitely more important to know the truth first because it was related to Madam Grace’s personal safety.

Therefore, she nodded, signaling the two to stand aside for now. Then she turned to Cedrick, who had stopped, and said with some regret, “We’ll continue this conversation when it’s more convenient, okay?”

Cedrick nodded after some hesitation. However, he waited until the next day, and there was still no reply.

…

“It has been a busy night at the villa. Quite a number of people arrived at 9 pm, and they looked like they’re armed…” Brother Shuang had breakfast in Cedrick’s room. The tapered fingers folded the sandwich before sending it into the perfect lips. He sighed even with the food in his mouth. “Not only that, I seem to have noticed a construction team. It looks like Madam Grace is really afraid after what happened.”

The construction team was not there to move, but what Ye Shuang meant was they were mainly there for various special renovations. Like infrared alarms, pressure plates, security cameras, and various high-end traps…

“It does sound like a big project.” Cedrick was dispirited, and similarly, he also had a sandwich in his hand, but he was making a mess while eating it, with sauce splattered on the corner of his lips, a complete contrast to the spiffy Brother Shuang. “You’re right, those people are armed with guns and even flash bangs and small grenades… Believe me, I can see them no matter how hard they try to hide.”

To be able to tell what a target was carrying was the most basic skill for a thief.

After finishing the sandwich, before reaching for another, Brother Shuang wiped his fingers and gulped down half a glass of milk. With one hand on his cheek, he wondered, “But Madam Grace is kind toward us already. The construction team didn’t come into our rooms to do anything; I’m pretty sure that was Madam Grace’s idea.”

“So, you’re touched simply because she’s decided not to spy on us, huh?” Cedrick mocked but quickly caught himself. Before Brother Shuang said anything, he sighed. “I’m sorry, that was wrong of me to blame you.”

Ye Shuang showed understanding. “I understand, it’s your rebellious age.”

Rebellious your head! Cedrick looked at Ye Shuang speechlessly. Ye Shuang smiled and continued eating. For that moment, silence stretched between them.

After filling up on another few sandwiches, Ye Shuang suddenly spoke to break the silence. “Do you plan to stay to try to communicate with Madam Grace, or do you not need the answer and plan to hurry back to America?”

“I don’t know.” Cedrick’s hand that held the glass to his lips stopped. After some time, he put his hands down and held the glass between his knees, fiddling with it. “Actually, I know the whole truth, and it doesn’t really matter whether Madam Grace admits my existence or not. After all, I’m already grown up, and I don’t need a guardian to watch over me. Furthermore, her attitude won’t affect the real blood relation that we have. I just… Erm, perhaps, I’m just looking for a reason that can squash the hope in my heart?”

Cedrick frowned as he tried to find a more appropriate words to express his thought. “As you know, I’ve never been a child who lacked love in my life. Earlier, I wanted to find my biological father because I suddenly found out about him, and it was honestly largely influenced by the impulsiveness of youth. Then, things changed, and I realized that my family relationship is far more complicated than I thought.

“When I first found out about Madam Grace, the desire for the truth came second. The biggest emotion was actually excitement because this was something exciting and extremely challenging.”

At this point, Cedrick paused before putting the glass of water to the side with some semblance of annoyance. He leaned back in the chair to relax, and he stared blankly at the surface of the table.

“So what if she admits my identity and promises to love me? I don’t need a mother to watch over me constantly; it’ll only make me feel uncomfortable. I also don’t need a family to fill up an emptiness in my childhood because even if my stepmother was not my mother, I honestly can’t say she was bad to me.”

During this long and arduous process of finding his family, after being made upset again and again, Cedrick’s emotions were involuntarily being led away by the slowly revealed truth. The initial search for his father was due to determination. Later, the search for mother was due to shock. Then it was to understand Madam Grace’s personal situation… Since every step of the journey proved to be a great challenge, Cedrick had placed all of his focus on how to resolve the problem. But when he was one step away from the finish line, Cedrick finally had the time to slow down to rearrange his thoughts, and he suddenly realized that he did not know how to interact with his future mother.

Ye Shuang thought about it. Even though Cedrick’s words were a mess, she did grasp the gist of what he tried to say. “I think your biggest problem is your nervousness.”

“Nervousness?” Cedrick asked.

“Yes.” Ye Shuang nodded in confirmation. “Normally those who yearn for family relationships are those that lack that particular element in their life because they don’t have it, so they desire it. But like you said, you didn’t lack any love when you were young, perhaps just less than normal… Cough! In any case, it was probably curiosity that played a bigger part for you to start this search.”

Ye Shuang paused before suddenly praising Cedrick. “Cedrick, you are a very handsome man, and even though it was not a valid career, it is undeniable that you’ve achieved something in your life, and you’re quite famous for it.”

Cedrick was glad, but he was also confused. “How is that related to our conversation?”

“That’s the source of the problem.” Ye Shuang sighed. “If it was someone who had nothing or was seriously lacking, then they would stop at nothing… or at least try their very best to grab this something that they don’t have. But you are not lacking anything, so when you deal with certain problems, you are easily influenced by your emotions.”

Is this mother the same as the one in your mind? Will she love you as much as you love her? If you two really reconcile, what kind of change will it bring to your life? Can you really accept the sudden appearance of a completely strange mother in your life?

Ye Shuang thought about it before concluding, “Life influences how we make our decisions. The more comfortable one’s material life, the pickier one will be when it comes to the spiritual life. To put it more frankly, it is being too free after feeding yourself. If you don’t believe me, put yourself in the shoes of a child from a poorer place who couldn’t feed themselves day to day. If they realized that there was a mother out there, whether it was to treat her as a spiritual support or a lifeline, they would never let her go or even have the luxury to be so picky like you.”

Cedrick gave it some serious thought. “I admit that you’re right, but I don’t think it is any fault on my shoulders to have demands of my mother.”

“Then what do you plan to do?” Ye Shuang asked. “We’ve come back to the initial topic. No matter how you think, there has to be a final answer. Is it to accept everything because you love her, or do you want everyone to pretend like this has never happened and this is the final goodbye?”

“Hmm… Don’t you have something else to do?” Cedrick changed the subject. “Perhaps I should follow you for now. After all, there is no desperate need to face this choice.”

Ye Shuang laughed. She gave Cedrick a side-eye and did not even try to attempt to hide her caution and reluctance. “With your wavering stance, what if you decide at the last minute that having a mother is the best thing and decide to betray me at the most crucial moment?”

“I’ll definitely inform you before I stick a knife into your back,” Cedrick promised seriously.

Go to hell…

The breakfast-cum-consultation was over, and Ye Shuang came out of Cedrick’s room with a bad feeling. When she ran into ‘Tess’, she even received a mocking gaze from the latter. Resisting the urge to flip the bird, Ye Shuang held her gaze and walked to the stairs. She had just arrived at the living room when he received silent observation from at least four bodyguards.

There were mainly two meanings behind their looks. This man sure is handsome, is he Madam’s latest pet? Even though this is the villa, it is better for him not to wander around the living room.

Out of safety concerns and how much Madam Grace cared about Ye Shuang, a character that looked like the leader soon walked over and politely asked Ye Shuang to leave. “You can go upstairs to visit the madam or go to the media room to watch some movie… or to play a game. In any case, there is nothing interesting here. I personally suggest you return upstairs because it is safer.”

Brother Shuang was a spy, so of course, he would not let such a brilliant opportunity go. Therefore, Brother Shuang politely rejected the man’s kindness. “I just want to go for a breather, it’s too oppressive up there… By the way, how is the setup coming along?”

The leader looked up with some hesitation as if uncertain how much he should reveal to a ‘male pet’.

‘Tess’ stood by the rail to witness the show. After meeting the leader’s eyes, he thought about it and nodded expressionlessly, giving his ally a small helping hand.

The leader sighed, and after getting the approval, he did not continue to be vague. “We have our brothers patrolling the outside of the villa, and all communication in this area has been interrupted. Please don’t worry.”

“Oh.” Ye Shuang nodded and then continued to push for more. “Do you mind if I walk around the place?”