Chapter 486: Multiple Crimes, No Hope of a Comeback (Minor Revision)

Gu Kai opened his mouth several times, but didn't know how to rebut.

From the start, the Gu family couldn't control Jiang Lai; instead, the Gu family needed Jiang Lai.

They used to be able to control Gu Sen, but Song Shiwei and Gu Yinxue, the mother‑daughter pair, behaved so badly that they forced Gu Sen into rebellion; now neither emotional appeals nor logical arguments work.

Father and daughter share the same hatred toward the enemy.

Gu Sen said to Gu Kai: "Gu Yinxue's incitement to murder and kidnapping is an established fact; instead of coming here to negotiate peace, you'd be better off thinking how to deal with the upcoming crisis facing the Gu family."

Gu Kai came away dejectedly and left dejectedly.

The ward fell quiet again; Gu Sen lifted the pigeon soup on the table, stirred it slowly with a spoon, and said, "Thank you for speaking for me just now."

Jiang Lai paused while reaching for water and said, "I was only making the Gu family see a fact."

"Alright." Gu Sen drank the soup, said nothing more, fearing Jiang Lai might feel uncomfortable.

He wanted to tell Jiang Lai to go home and rest properly, but seeing her sit quietly in the ward made him feel unusually at ease, and he ultimately couldn't say it.

Jiang Lai glanced at her phone now and then, dealt with a few messages, said little because she didn't know what to say, and thought she would just stay here until Ke Zhongyu finished his business and came over.

Neither father nor daughter disturbed the other; they remained in the same space until the ward door was knocked again.

Jiang Lai got up to open the door; standing there were Tang Yun, her son, daughter‑in‑law, and grandson, while Gu Hai was the only one absent.

Tang Yun said Gu Hai was busy with official matters and would visit her older brother later, but everyone could hear it was an excuse.

Gu Jiashu must have been sternly taught; today he was very obedient, calling "Auntie" politely, then going over to call Gu Sen "Grandpa" and asking if Grandpa still hurt.

Adult matters don't concern children; Gu Sen patted Gu Jiashu's head, said he no longer felt pain, then looked at Tang Yun and the nephew and niece‑in‑law, inviting them to sit.

Tang Yun said, "We're here to check your injuries; seeing you able to sit, speak, and drink soup eases our minds. You need proper convalescence; we won't stay long."

Gu Sen smiled slightly; he has always been generous toward others.

Tang Yun recalled what her husband had done, felt deep remorse toward Gu Sen and Jiang Lai, could not look the father‑daughter in the eyes, and forced out a smile, looking at them with full apology.

Everything was conveyed without words.

Gu Sen thought Gu Hai's absence was fine; when blood brothers reach this point, not meeting is the lightest punishment.

Tang Yun's family sat for less than ten minutes before getting up to leave, and Jiang Lai escorted them to the door.

Tang Yun turned to face Jiang Lai: "Stay with your father; having you here will surely lift his spirits. If you're tired, have Zhi Yan take over your shift, or get a caregiver. Your father has been through this, so he probably wants you and your brother by his side, since his real family now consists only of the two of you."

As for Song Shiwei, Tang Yun didn't mention a word, but the Gu family already knew: Gu Zhiyan went home, ordered people to pack Song Shiwei's belongings and send them to the sanatorium; Song Shiwei had already been taken care of.

Not sending her to a mental hospital was already an act of mercy toward Song Shiwei.

Gu Zhiyan performed these tasks while his high fever had just subsided, his head still hazy; back home he told someone to pack his mother's things, and Wu Ma, while packing, asked what had happened.

Gu Zhiyan directed the servants to move items, not hiding anything from them; he wanted them to realize that from now on the house will no longer have Gu Yinxue nor Gu Tai Tai, and warned them not to speak about it publicly.

Upon hearing the news that the second miss had kidnapped the husband and wife, Wu Ma was startled; the shoebox she had just packed fell to the floor with a crisp clatter.

"Wu Ma," Gu Zhiyan said coldly, "I have something to ask you: how did Yinxue know which hospital my mother is in? You're the only one who cherished her in this house. I only mentioned my mother's transfer to the kitchen when I came back, and you're often working in the kitchen."

Wu Ma trembled all over; when she met Gu Zhiyan's icy stare, she almost wanted to kneel.

"I‑I‑I, I…" Wu Ma stammered for a long moment, unable to speak, her expression nervous, eyes filled with terror.

The other servants glanced at Wu Ma; one of them mentioned that day Wu Ma had asked him where the meals were to be delivered, indistinguishable from pointing at Wu Ma.

Gu Zhiyan called security, had Wu Ma taken to the police station; Wu Ma begged relentlessly, saying she knew nothing and was only duped by the miss.

Gu Zhiyan told her to keep these words and tell the police.

This interrogation of Wu Ma yielded other information as well.

The medicine Song Shiwei takes daily.

The medicine passed through only three hands: the doctor, Song Shiwei, and Gu Yinxue.

Wu Ma also said that every day Gu Yinxue called to remind her to bring water and medicine to her mother, never missing a day.

Gu Zhiyan already knew that medicine was fake; the analysis of its composition came out, showing it contained trace harmful substances that, with long‑term use, would cause brain damage.

Angered, Gu Zhiyan almost crushed the report in his hand; when Gu Yinxue woke, he forced the report into her mouth and slapped her hard several times.

Gu Zhiyan, his face darkened, delivered his mother's belongings to the sanatorium; after the sedative wore off, Song Shiwei, now silent, rolled her eyes and called out "Son".

The doctor said Song Shiwei would be lucid now, but most of the time she is in a manic state.

Gu Zhiyan looked at his mother curled in the corner of the bed, his heart a mixture of feelings; he told the doctor, "She was originally taking anti‑mania‑depression medicine, but midway the medicine was swapped. The replacement isn't available on the market. The test report is here; it contains trace harmful substances and may have already caused some brain damage."

The doctor said the report would help subsequent treatment, but Gu Zhiyan didn't let the doctor take it, only made a copy.

Because it also serves as evidence of Gu Yinxue's crime.

Incitement to murder, kidnapping, intentional injury and abuse.

Multiple crimes punished together; don't even think of turning the tables.

After the doctor left, Song Shiwei shakily lifted her head, speaking nonstop.

"What medicine? What was swapped? Where's your dad? Son, where's your dad? Tell your dad, I won't divorce, I won't sign, I want nothing, I just don't want a divorce… I've already taken revenge, I've avenged him, I've avenged you all…"

This mother's condition shouldn't be further provoked, but Gu Zhiyan felt a tight pain in his heart, could hardly endure it, and perhaps he also wanted to obtain a possible answer for himself.

So he slowly approached his mother, squatted down and said, "Gu Yinxue had already swapped your medicine; your good daughter never intended for you to recover. She's also using you, exploiting your poor mental state to attack and deal with your biological daughter, to deal with me and dad, even to kidnap you and dad; the money in your account has been looted."

"Mom, do you know you're wrong?" A hint of hope still lingered in his eyes.

Song Shiwei's eyes widened, and she let out a shrill howl.

The doctor left and returned, looking at the calm mother and agitated son with a complex expression, ultimately saying nothing and having someone prepare a sedative.

Gu Zhiyan stared at his mother, who still refused to admit fault and preferred to go mad; his eyes suddenly reddened, and a self‑mocking smile tugged at his mouth: "No wonder they say pride is the first of the seven deadly sins; even now you still don't know you're wrong, mother."

He knew his mother had devoted half her life to him, driven by guilt, the pursuit of fame and status, and maternal love; this devotion had twisted into an inextricable knot, its complexity understood only by the two of them.

The father, utterly disheartened, refused to see his mother; Jiang Lai had been cruelly abandoned years ago, and from the bottom of her heart resented the instigator, making both of their choices understandable and not blameworthy.

Only he, Gu Zhiyan, cannot; this lifetime he is destined never to fully sever the bond with his mother, even though he is already a little elephant that has broken free of its chains; the blood ties and daily nurturance are like bonds that, even if you break the bone, the tendons remain, uncut and unbreakable.

So he still clings deep in his heart to a faint final hope.

Mother, do you know you're wrong? Do you know abandoning your own daughter was wrong?

Reality keeps letting him down.

Even after being exposed, betrayed, kidnapped, and suffering successive crushing blows, it still couldn't rouse his mother at all; not a hint of remorse could be seen.

His mother is fundamentally that arrogant and fanatical.

Not even such a heavy, tragic lesson can shake her entrenched obsession; when it comes to matters about herself, there is even less reason to harbor any hope.

The life‑changing events for him are mere trivialities to his mother—can she understand that he is a person with an independent will? Can she realize that forcing him to do what he does not wish is wrong? Can she recognize that he is already thirty, and that parents should gracefully let go of their child?

She simply cannot.

"Mom, from now on just stay here; someone will take good care of you, and I won't come to see you again," Gu Zhiyan said, no longer wanting to keep confronting his mother's deeply rooted dominance and arrogance, unwilling to continue being drained by her outdated, obsessive views, and thus chose to temporarily sever the constantly draining mother‑son bond.

As soon as the words fell, the doctor's sedative was injected into Song Shiwei's arm.

Song Shiwei's eyeballs nearly popped out of their sockets, staring intently at Gu Zhiyan's face; disbelief and panic flickered in her gaze.

As the drug took effect, no matter how hard she tried to keep her eyes open, her eyelids grew heavier and gradually closed.

In the second just before Song Shiwei slipped into deep sleep, Gu Zhiyan heard two words forced from her throat.

"Don't…"

Gu Zhiyan shed two tears and, without a hint of lingering attachment, turned and left.