Willingly Offering Heart's Blood

Su Minghui nodded thoughtfully. That made sense. She had heard that the old master of the Chu Family was a notorious womanizer, but she had never expected such a grown illegitimate son to surface.

As Su Leyun spoke, the truth slowly unfolded before Su Minghui.

The murderer was named Chen Jun, the product of a one-night affair between the old master of the Chu Family and Chen Jun's mother. Old Master Chu refused to acknowledge the child and would not even give him the Chu surname, so Chen Jun took his mother's surname. The outside world knew nothing of his existence.

Although Old Master Chu did not acknowledge him as his son, he was still very generous with money. Mother and son wanted for nothing, but Chen Jun's mother was always miserable.

She had originally thought she could rise in status through Chen Jun, but she had never expected that she would barely see the man again after that night. She could only learn about him through newspapers and television, and his legitimate wife was usually beside him in those reports.

Chen Jun's mother had no friends. She poured all her resentment toward the Chu Family onto the young Chen Jun, undoubtedly planting the seed of hatred in his heart.

Good times did not last. Chen Jun's mother spent her days idling around and became addicted to gambling, quickly losing all the money the Chu Family had given her. Mother and son could only move from an upscale residential complex to a rundown old neighborhood. There, Chen Jun went through far too much, all because of the man who had abandoned them.

The thought of revenge grew wildly in his heart. Chen Jun turned it into motivation and was admitted to China's best university in one fell swoop.

The day school began should have been his happiest day. After all, the prestige of that university might have completely changed his life, and he had even begun to feel that revenge no longer mattered.

But fate loved playing tricks on people. The moment Chen Jun arrived at the dormitory, he saw Father Chu—the rightful heir of the Chu Family. With a handsome, refined face, clothes that would cost an ordinary person several months' salary for just one piece, and a smile, he held out his hand to introduce himself to Chen Jun.

Chen Jun froze for a moment as he shook his hand, unconsciously thinking, He definitely has never been cornered in an alley on a rainy day, beaten and kicked while people called him a bastard, has he?

Why were they both that man's sons, yet living such vastly different lives?

He was the admired prodigy everyone envied, while Chen Jun could only be a rat lurking in the gutter, unable to see the light of day.

Thus, Chen Jun appeared to get along very well with Father Chu. He even joined Chu Corporation directly as a special assistant after graduation. Yet in secret, he was furious with and resentful toward the entire family.

At last, his hatred reached its peak in the year Chu Xuan was born. That same year, Chen Jun also married and had a child. But unlike Chu Xuan, who was healthy and could eat and sleep well, Chen Jun's child had remained in the hospital since birth.

Because of weak immunity caused by congenital deficiencies, the child caught practically every illness a newborn could catch. Two critical condition notices were issued within forty days of his birth.

It was only after Father Chu learned of the situation and arranged for the best doctors to treat him that the child barely survived, leaving the hospital for the first time at two months old.

But from then on, Chen Jun and his wife became frequent visitors to the hospital, taking their child there every few days. Although the child made it safely to the age of three, he remained frail and sickly. Even simple things like speaking and walking lagged far behind children his age.

Chen Jun's own childhood had been a nightmare, so he had wanted to make up for all his regrets through his son. Yet he had never expected his son's fate to be so fragile that even staying alive was difficult.

Chen Jun once again lamented the unfairness of fate. It was one thing for him and Father Chu to be as far apart as heaven and earth, but why would fate not even spare his son?

It was as though Heaven had truly heard Chen Jun's questioning. On yet another trip to the hospital with his child, he encountered a Taoist priest with pitch-black eyes. The priest stared at the child for a long time. Just as Chen Jun was about to curse at him, the priest looked at him instead.

"Your child was born fated to die young. He has only a few days of life left. But this humble Taoist has a way to defy fate and change his destiny. I only need one thing."

There seemed to be whirlpools in those black pupils. After a single glance, Chen Jun fell into a daze.

"How much money do you want? I can give you all of it!"

The Taoist shook his head. "Money is merely an external possession. What I need is for someone to willingly offer their heart's blood. Blood obtained by digging out a living heart is the most effective."

With a wave of the Taoist's hand, the child, who had been sitting blankly, suddenly had life in his eyes. When he looked at Chen Jun, he actually called out clearly, "Daddy."

Chen Jun was overwhelmed with excitement. Everything proved that the Taoist's words were true.

Chen Jun returned home in a daze. His wife was busy in the kitchen preparing dinner.

He stared at her for a long time, the Taoist's words echoing through his mind again and again. Finally, he rose, walked behind his wife, and embraced her from behind. "Honey, if there were a way to save our baby, would you be willing to pay any price?"

His wife did not hesitate at all. "Of course I would. As long as our baby can be healthy from now on, I'll do anything."

The instant she finished speaking, Chen Jun's hand slowly rose and closed around her neck. He used all his strength, and before long, her body went limp as she collapsed to the floor.

When she woke again, she was tightly bound in a dark room. Before her stood a bizarre altar with two straw dolls on it. One bore their son's name, while the other bore the name Chu Xuan.

She struggled in panic, unable to understand what was happening. She had clearly been at home making dinner for her family, so how had she suddenly ended up in such a hellish place?

Halfway through her struggle, she suddenly saw Chen Jun. He was kneeling before the altar with a devout expression. Before she could question him, a Taoist dressed in black emerged from the shadows. Holding a sharp dagger, he said not a word and drove it straight into her chest.

She screamed in agony, and Chen Jun could not bear to watch, turning his head away.

"Don't struggle. This is all for our baby. With your heart's blood, he can live."

The dagger continued moving within her chest, slicing open a gash. Blood surged out desperately, quickly filling her chest cavity. It erupted from the throat that was screaming in agony and splashed across Chen Jun's face.

Finally, the Taoist dug in with force, pulling her still-beating heart from her chest into his hand.

His wife's face twisted in agony, her mouth hanging wide open and her eyes bulging as though they would fall from their sockets. Even when she breathed her last, her eyes never closed.

After she died, her corpse vanished into thin air, as though the tragic scene had merely been a nightmare Chen Jun had dreamed.

His wife's heart still twitched mechanically, blood flowing from it and dripping sparsely into the container the Taoist had prepared.