Ronan did not quite dare respond, leaving Mo Haihang to continue.
"Everyone has a little selfishness in them. Mine was probably preserving the atmosphere our family had back then. Actually, your aunt and I had always done quite well in our careers. Back in the seventies, your aunt had a falling-out with your grandfather. She and I took Mo Ya and made our own way in Xia City, and it never felt particularly difficult. Even then, we were already thinking about all the wonderful things that would come once the children grew up.
"Then we had Mo Peng, and later you all came back. The family stabilized. I had many siblings of my own, so we could share the burden of caring for the elders; my father-in-law was hospitalized year-round, but we could afford the expenses; my brother-in-law was tied up in a lawsuit, but he could stand on his own; my wife was not much of a cook, but she took care of everything else; and then there were the children. The three of them looked good no matter how you looked at them. We could fully imagine an even better future... Then, while I was imagining it all, Mo Ya brought home some punk from an underground band."
Ronan could not help speaking up for Mo Ya. "The facts proved that what she mainly wanted back then was to form a band, not get involved in a relationship."
"The facts proved that the underground band scene can warp people and change them!"
Ronan immediately fell silent.
Mo Haihang laughed instead. "Forget it. You know, from that point on, your aunt was a little better about it, but I had to tread carefully around Mo Ya. I wasn't sure of myself, and she was my only daughter. After what