The shouting started downstairs just as he finished breakfast.

He heard the words reprobate and sexual deviant before he stopped listening.

The original plan was to spend the last week before school started here, but it was increasingly clear that would be unwise.

He just separated from Bai Wei, but it looked like they would be reunited soon.

In an ideal world, he would get an apartment. That way, he would have some alone time before school started. It was a dream. He was sure his father wouldn’t allow it.

If he even tried, it was possible he would be brought over to meet Lee Shan and Bai Fang.

No. His grandfather was the only logical choice.

His instincts were crap when it came to his parents. He needed to know if he could rely on those instincts going forward.

His instincts were usually sharp in other situations, and his grandfather's house would be the best place to test if that was still the case.

It would also be wise to test his grandfather's stance. His resentment of his grandfather could also be misplaced.

The more he lived this present life, the more he had to disregard his past suffering.

The feelings that churned inside him had no outlet.

Didn't he agree to coexist with Lee Shan and Bai Fang? Just to see that look of happiness in his father’s eyes?

Flopping back unto his bed, he held up his hand. Tracing the spot where his scar should be, he let his mind empty.

Didn't he prove he could walk a different path?

Having allies was better than enemies. If that was impossible, they could strive for indifference.

He waited until the sound of glass shattering stopped.

He heard the sound of footsteps coming towards his room. His mother burst in. Her clothes messed up. Her cheek was red?

Did Bai Tao hit her? That wasn’t his MO.

He didn't wait long before his father joined the party.

Why did this setup feel like his plans were going to get shot to hell?

"What bullshit are you trying to tell our son?" Bai Tao asked.

"Bullshit? Our son? Since why did you regard him as our son? When you were sending that whore to his room?" Ping An wasted no time in discarding a useless pawn.

"Aren't you clear who sent her to him?" Bai Tao asked, breathing heavily.

His mother brought out the worst in his father. The unshakable businessman was losing ground. Floundering in anger.

He realized that his mother was probably still calm and choreographing this.

"How dare you accuse me of...wasn't hitting me enough! I'm not letting you drive a wedge between us!" Ping An stood in front of him with her arms stretched wide.

"What do you mean he hit you?" His voice was high. In his last life, when did his voice break?

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He tried signaling his father with his eyes. Using his body to block her, he moved in front of his mother.

Bai Li made sure his mother couldn't see his mouth before he mouthed the words calm down.

It took his father a while to react. The older man shook his head.

"Haha. I see how it is. You ruined the boy. Even if you poisoned him, he wouldn't suspect you." Bai Tao gave him a look before walking out of the room.

Bai Li took a deep breath before turning and pulling his mother into a hug. This was the last one. He would enjoy it one last time.

Her fingers clutched the front of his shirt. "Li, your fathe…"

"Let's not talk about it." He cut her off. "I am done holding hope for genuine affection and respect. It is a waste of time."

His arms tightened around her. This was his goodbye and resolution for both his lives. He'd thrown away the naive notion that he could give her a chance. When his Ping An realized he would not be coming back to her side. It would mean war.

"I don't think I can stay here." He pushed her away from him and took a step back.

"Wha...why?" It showed that she didn't expect him to say that.

"Put your trust in me. I just need a little more time. You won't have to go so far from home. YOur family of three will be here together."

"I wa…" Bai Li took another step back.

"It doesn't matter," she shouted. "Just listen to me!" Advancing towards him.

This was the butterfly effect he created. His mother lost control of the situation.

In his last life, that never happened. This was her attempt to keep him at hand. He got the impression that the separation wasn't the only thing that was bothering her.

Closing his eyes, he realized he might have lost one of the gambles he made. His mother was suspicious. He was almost certain she didn't know what was going on.

Was it by instinct she realized something was wrong with the situation? She was testing him and his father.

It took him a while to realize, but she hadn’t been right since he said he was leaving the house. What was she picking up on? It probably wasn't him. Was it his father?

What was that saying about best-laid plans? He'd tried to get out of the house before he outrightly defied her, but that was not looking feasible.

"I have a friend you can stay with her until school starts." Ping An went from hysterical to poised in the span of a sentence.

What was she afraid of?

Separation?

What happened when he was separated from her in his last life?

She could not know that he didn’t plan to see her again after he left the house. As far as she was concerned, he would be back when the school took a break.

Her hand went up to cup her cheek that was starting to swell. "Don't be moody….."

He didn't hear anything she said after the word moody. He had an aha moment. It wasn't that his plans were collapsing. It was her plans that were falling apart.

Why was it bad if he separated from her for long periods of time?

It had to be something in his physical environment. Her psychological manipulation would not wear off even if they separated. In fact, it would work in her favor. His father sending him away would make him angrier.

The word his father said floated through his mind. Poison. He never suspected her of poisoning him, but she wasn’t above such behavior.

Bai Li was a moody aggressive teenager. His therapist helped him see that he had misplaced anger due to his home situation, but what if that wasn't the case?

Didn't he have moments when it was hard to control his emotions? Didn't he blame it on hormones? But he wasn't the only one with impulse control and anger issues. Didn't he wonder where Bai Tao's business acumen disappeared to when he came home?

For a good portion of his life, his mother was religious about eating one meal at home. She also custom-crafted perfumes and incenses for them to use.

He looked at his mother, who was still talking.

Waiting until she finished talking, he hung his head down. "I was going to say I wanted to go stay with grandpa."

Escape asap.

Going to her friend’s place wasn't even an option.

"We don't want to burden your grandfather."

Yeah. He was right. Maybe not about everything, but his gut told him he was right about this piece of the puzzle.

Acting as if he was hanging onto every word she said, he let his mind wander.

The porridge this morning wasn’t drugged. Maybe? The key factor was likely to be when he was supposed to have conversations with his father.

Until he was reborn, he’d never had a calm conversation with his father. She had the opportunity. He and Bai Tao didn’t communicate directly. His father would have needed to let Ping An know when he wanted to talk with Bai Li.

She didn't let them interact with each other without a buffer, so she would have known which meals needed to be drugged.

Still, his father was leaving. In his past life, his temper did not improve after the separation. Did she start giving him something else? Did they interact enough where he would notice?

His father’s words popped into his head again. If she fed him poison, would he know?

He stood up abruptly. Looking down at her in shock.

Could it be possible? Yas. The answer was definitely yes. Didn’t he realize last night that she had no bottom line?

Without stopping, he walked straight to his father’s office. He ignored her when she called his name.

"I needed to go to a doctor." Bai Li couldn't keep his voice even. "Now."