"I hope you know that none of what your mother said was true." Bai Tao finally calmed down and stopped laughing. His eyes were bright as they looked at him. 

 

In his past life, he depended on his mother and shunned his father. Spending his whole life thinking that the older man didn't care about him. 

 

In this life, he would enter a tentative alliance with his father while avoiding his mother. Not for the first time, he wondered if he reincarnated into an alternate universe.

 

"I know." Was it easier for him to accept because he had already become disillusioned by his mother? 

 

Or was it because he had craved this kind of relationship in his last life. With everything he ever wanted to be presented to him on a silver platter, how could he not have hope in his heart? 

 

Bai Li’s finger tapped an uneven pattern on the arm of the chair. "What did grandfather say?" 

 

"He agreed to have Bai Wei come live with him. I told him it was just until our separation was finalized. He was curious as to where you would be staying." Bai Tao folded his arms and rocked back in his chair. 

 

"I told him I was going to send you to a boarding school on recommendation from a friend. The new story is that I found out you were deliberately handing in your assignments empty as a rebellion. I was hoping that by changing your friends and environment you would do better," Bai Tao spoke quietly. 

 

It was a good cover story. It allowed room for why his grades would increase and washed away his previous failing marks. 

 

Plus, it provided some cover for when his mother found out he was leaving. She would be angry that my father found out I was deliberately doing bad but she wouldn’t be suspicious. "What are you going to say when you ask for Wei Wei to live with him permanently?"

 

Bai Tao paused, unsure of whether to continue. "I am thinking of having Wei Wei come and live with me."

 

Bai Li froze. He also thought of having Bai Wei live together with his father. He thought she was still young enough to adapt to the new situation. 

 

While he couldn't wrap his head around Lee Shen and Bai Fang being good people. He was prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt.

 

His father grew uneasy the longer he took to answer. How could he say this without showing too much of his hand?

 

Bai Li took a moment, choosing his words carefully. "I think...I think you would have to get a counselor to assess Bai Wei first. They would need to help her transition into it. Her living with you isn't something that would happen any time soon." The tapping of his finger paused. 

 

His father deserved to know more. He wouldn’t be around to protect Bei Wei in this life, maybe his father would do a better job than he did. "The reason I asked to be allowed to go to boarding school was that I thought my mother was gaslighting me. Bai Wei is younger than me. If mother wanted to, she is at the right age where her mind could be groomed."

 

Rushing forward, he wanted to get all his words out before his father could interrupt. "I feel broken inside when I think of separating and disobeying my mother. I have almost a manic need to please her. To do what she tells me without hesitation." He held his head down.

 

Bai Li didn't know what kind of expression would be on his face but it wouldn't be good. The effects were less now after years of therapy in his past life. 

 

"For Wei Wei, she won’t have any way of recognizing or sorting out those feelings. Mother won't be able to complain or argue with grandfather so her hold on Wei Wei will lessen." He knew these words would hurt but they were the truth. "I don't think you can care for or protect Wei Wei right now. Mother isolated us from you to the point where we are no more than strangers."

 

Bai Li was shocked as he watched Bai Tao grab a vase from his desk and hurl it into the wall. Pieces of glass scattered everywhere. 

 

"Is that all?" Despite his actions, Bai Tao's voice was calm. 

 

Should he continue? "Have you thought about what will happen when my mother finds out about Lee Shan? About her no longer being able to have children? Heaven forbid she finds out about Bai Fang. Mother will stop at nothing to see Bai Wei and Bai Wei is dependent on mother…"

 

"You were willing to abandon her," Bai Tao said, anger in his voice.

 

That was true. He felt a twinge in his heart, but a moment later it was overpowered by the memory of the knife plunging into his chest. 

 

"Honestly, I thought I was the only one mother was messing with. Her interactions with Wei Wei are always sweet. It wasn't until yesterday that I realized we were being made into two different types of weapons.” He paused and looked out the window. His eyes lost focus as he got lost in his memories. 

 

“I can see it. A world where the only kindness and love I know is what I experienced from Wei Wei. How much would I sacrifice for her? How much would I give to her? A ball and chain around my ankle called obligation. How much of it would be real and how much would be choreographed?" Hadn’t this happened to him once? 

 

"I didn't realize that mother was sharpening me, a blade to fight you and slowly raising Wei Wei to be a carbon copy of her." That wasn't totally the truth he realized it only because he had the opportunity to be reborn. In his past life even at death, he hadn’t been able to figure it out. 

 

"If I hadn’t worked up the courage to speak with you, I would never have known. I am only a child. I didn't realize how limited my view was." He was getting angry. What were the adults around them doing while he and his sister fended for themselves?

 

Getting up to pace the room, Bai Tao’s expression was dark. "I am already an adult and I just realized how narrow my point of view is. How could I be angry at you? I watched all of this happen and did not have a clue it was happening right under my nose."

 

Bai Li deflated, how could he stay angry at a person who readily admitted his flaws. 

 

"What has your mother told you about Lee Shan?" Bai Tao asked.

 

"She doesn't know about her specifically.” It wasn’t till his third year in college that the information about his father’s other family came to light. 

 

“At this point, she just has a brainwashing tune that she chants ever so often. I don't remember the exact rhetoric but it is usually something along the lines of you having a lot of whores. Who, you flaunt in her face as a way to disrespect her.” It was funny when he thought about it now. 

 

A foggy memory came to mind so he gave his father a subtle warning. “She is also vigilant against possible illegitimate children. In regards to them, she emphasized the fact that all of them are scoundrels and bastards who would destroy our family to steal our happiness and inheritance."

 

"She is very thorough about useless things." Bai Tao clicked his tongue. “To nip that train of thought in the bud, I want to be clear that there aren’t any more illegitimate children. I was careful about that.”

 

What was that? Why was he lying? 

 

Bai Li remembered when Bai Mei entered the picture. His father and Lee Shan had even had a public separation because of it. They had gotten back together but it had been a major blow to the couple. One which he had taken advantage of to stabilize his power in Wen Shi.  

 

“I have a half-sister.” Even if Bai Tao wanted to keep it a secret. He would clean up all these messy things that might cause problems later.

 

“That is impossible. I had a vasectomy after your sister was born,” Bai Tao said, his voice certain.

 

 Bai Li's eyes widened as he stared at his father. 

 

Why was this family so messy? 

 

“You are paying for and taking care of a little girl named Mei Jones. She is biologically my half-sister. Her mother is the secretary that resigned after working with you for 2 years. She is now 4 years old.” He stated all of this while observing his father’s reactions. 

 

Bai Tao stared at him with wide eyes. He sat heavily in a chair. His eyes dances as they tried to focus. “I never had a relationship with Rose Jones. I knew she was pregnant but she resigned saying she was getting married.”

 

Bai Li couldn’t believe it. Did his father really not know? 

 

His head hurt. 

 

Bai Li looked at his father. The other man was clearly confused. He was sure his father could lie just as effectively, but there was no reason to at this point. 

 

He tried to remember the exact circumstances of his last life.

 

“You had Bai Fang through artificial insemination and hid it from your wife. Could mother have done the same?” The question had scary implications. Bai Li was afraid of the answer.

 

The timing when Bai Mei appeared in his last life was too coincidental. Even in his last life he had been suspicious and tried to find out who might be behind her. 

 

It caused the stocks for the company to fluctuate, His father’s attention was divided between the company and stabilizing his relationship with Lee Shan. 

 

Not to mention the rift it caused between father and son. Bai Feng had stopped attacking him and concentrated on showing his ire to their father. 

 

The timing was perfect. It was something his mother would have done. Didn’t she always have a million plans and disposable pawns? An illegitimate half-daughter could be very useful for various things. 

 

It was just that, a plan that involved so many moving parts. It was too terrible. 

 

He was sure that Rose Jones had a relationship with a man she assumed was Bai Tao. She had appeared after being financially taken care of by his father. There were paper trials, hospital records. Even pictures of him holding his young daughter. 

 

If his mother set that up so many years in advance, then that was too terrifying. 

 

Who the hell was the idiot that said she didn’t have a mind for business? 

 

Wasn’t it that she was too obsessed with Bai Tao and didn’t pay attention to anything else?