Everyone Regrets It After My Death - Chapter 7

Chapter 7: That Was Not Your Fault

The three people surrounding Su Mingran dispersed with clear consciences as soon as they saw he had no further reaction. Su Mingran sat on the steps in the courtyard, staring blankly into space.

He once saw a short video about a mother cat. Every day she went out to find food, and every time she found some, she gave it to her kittens first. She didn’t eat. Eventually, starving, she swallowed small pebbles on the side of the road to fill her stomach. When the mother cat finally died of hunger, her kittens huddled beside her, and her body served as their last shield against the wind and rain.

The comments under the video praised the greatness of maternal love, saying it transcended species. Su Mingran had couldn’t help but ask: Are there mothers who do not love their children?

He received a flood of responses: “How could that be?” “A mother loves her child most; think of the pain of ten months of pregnancy.” “Yes, maternal love is great; they can give up everything for their children.” “Why are you asking such a question? What are you trying to say?”

Su Mingran wanted to say: But my mother truly does not love me.

He wanted to ask Yan Qian: If you really dislike me, why did you give birth to me? Why endure ten months of pain for a child you don’t love?

He stared at the ground, Yan Qian’s words echoing: “Reflect on yourself… everyone loves Xinghe… that means you have a problem.”

He fell into a trap of self-doubt. Was he truly not worthy of being liked? His father, mother, brothers, sister, and even Gu Pei—everyone favored Qi Xinghe. Was he truly the problem?

He sank deeper into this mental mire until a pair of light blue flats appeared in his field of vision.

“Child, are you alright?”

Su Mingran looked up, his eyes hazy with unshed tears, gazing helplessly at the woman standing before him.

The woman sighed softly and sat down on the steps beside him. “I am a guest invited by your father. You can call me Auntie Xia. I was looking for the restroom and accidentally walked the wrong way. I overheard your parents’ conversation and felt I had to tell you.”

“Child, that was not your fault.”

How could a biological mother say something so hurtful? The problem lay with the mother, not the child.

Auntie Xia gently stroked his hair. “Some parents simply do not like their own children. You play the piano beautifully and you are a handsome boy, but none of that has anything to do with them. Being unloved is not your fault.”

Su Mingran looked at her, the tears finally welling up. He remembered being left in the hallway as a child, his brother’s indifference, his sister’s mockery, and Qi Xinghe’s provocations. Like a lost child, he asked, “But Auntie, why don’t they like me? I’ve been very good.”

His grades were better than Qi Xinghe’s. He never asked for expensive things. Why wasn’t it enough?

Auntie Xia hugged him. “It’s not your fault. Grow up well. Are you still in school? Leave this place after you graduate.”

Su Mingran clutched her clothes and finally began to cry. “I want to leave. I need to find someone, but I can’t. I can’t find them.”

She didn’t know who he was looking for, but she pitied him. Su Mingran held onto her, patting the tragic thought that the maternal love he had craved his whole life was only being given to him now, by a stranger.

…

When Xia Wenxiu left the front courtyard, she noticed her clothes weren’t wet from his tears—only wrinkled where he had gripped them. Even in a breakdown, that child tried not to trouble others. Why would parents treat such an excellent child this way?

She couldn’t understand it, but she had seen enough of the Su family’s character. She pulled out her phone and called her son.

“Lingxuan? We can cancel that deal with the Su family.” “I met a child at their house… a bit younger than you. He’s living a miserable life there, and he’s their biological son. If they can treat their own blood like that, I don’t want to do business with them. It’s a pity I can’t save him…”

Inside, the party was winding down. Qi Xinghe finished his piece to polite applause, but the compliments lacked the genuine warmth Su Mingran had received. Su Minmin watched from the side, enjoying Qi Xinghe’s mediocre performance.

Qi Xinghe sensed her gaze and narrowed his eyes. Su Minmin coughed and made an excuse to go to the guest restroom to fix her makeup.

In the restroom, she thought of the way Qi Xinghe had smirked while holding her headphones. Her frustration grew until she slammed her powder compact onto the marble counter, spilling powder everywhere.

Qi Xinghe was becoming unbearable. He knew how hard she had worked to get those headphones. Su Minmin had to survive on the “scraps” left over by Su Mo and Qi Xinghe. Even though she was a minor celebrity, most of her earnings were handed over to the family.

She lived in a constant state of competition with other socialites in her “Sister Group” chat. Those girls often mocked her family situation. The headphones were supposed to be her big win—the first thing she had secured before any of them—and Qi Xinghe had ruined them.

The door opened, and two wealthy women entered. Su Minmin instantly masked her rage with a practiced smile. “Just a slip of the hand. What a waste of good powder.”

“Oh, just a slip? I thought someone had upset our Minmin.”

As they chatted, Su Minmin checked her phone. The group chat was @-ing her: Where’s our big star Minmin? Big star? She didn’t even get an audition for that famous director’s movie. Where are the headphones? Are there real diamonds? Let us see!

Su Minmin typed: I gave them to my brother. Wait a sec. Did she even buy them? I told you, her family likes the adopted son more than her. They’d never spend that on her.

Su Minmin clenched her fists. She glanced at the wrist of one of the women standing nearby. It was a diamond bracelet—a famous piece that once belonged to a 20th-century European princess. It had sold at auction for 7.5 million dollars to an anonymous buyer.

Su Minmin’s eyes gleamed. She forced a smile. “That bracelet is beautiful. May I see it?”

…

Later, Su Renhua called all the servants to the living room. A guest’s bracelet was missing.

“Search everywhere! Look for Mrs. Chen’s bracelet. It’s extremely valuable! Be careful!” Su Renhua barked. He turned to the woman. “Don’t worry, it must have just slipped off.”

Mrs. Chen was the wife of a major port authority mogul. The Su family could not afford to offend her. “It was an anniversary gift. It was secure on my wrist. It didn’t ‘slip’ off,” she said coldly.

Su Renhua broke into a cold sweat. He called his children over. Su Mingran, who was about to head to work, was shouted back into the room.

Su Renhua didn’t dare search the other guests, and he skipped over Qi Xinghe and Su Mo, not believing they would steal. Yan Qian offered to be searched, but he knew she didn’t care for such trinkets. His eyes fell on Su Minmin and Su Mingran.

Su Minmin began to cry. “Dad, I have dignity! How could I steal? You can search me!”

Su Renhua turned to Su Mingran. “Take off that backpack.”

Su Mingran looked at him expressionlessly and dropped the bag. He knew he would be the scapegoat.

A servant searched Su Mingran’s pockets—nothing. Then, they dug through the old backpack.

From a small hole in the lining of the tattered bag, the diamond bracelet fell out.