Qiu Zheng nodded slowly, his weathered face filled with guilt.
He spoke in a low voice.
"I've failed Xiao He! Because of this job, I had no time or energy to accompany her, take care of her, or give her enough fatherly love."
"I know full well that her resentment towards me grows day by day. And look at me now—not only can I no longer protect her like before, I can't even give her the most basic fatherly love. I feel like a complete and utter waste."
"Aside from being a burden to her, I'm absolutely useless. Sometimes, I really feel like I'd be better off dead. If I just left like this..."
Hearing this, Jiang Jianmin's expression instantly became extremely serious.
He gripped Qiu Zheng's hand tightly and spoke firmly and unquestioningly.
"Don't talk nonsense! Even if you don't care about yourself, won't you think of Xiao He? You must stay strong and live on! Think about it—if you're really gone, what will be left for Xiao He besides the empty title of an 'orphan of a martyr's family'?"
"What use are those military merits you fought so hard for? Though you are disabled now, as long as you're still here, you can at least support Xiao He. At the very least, if you're alive, those merits of yours won't just be for show."
Hearing Jiang Jianmin say this, Qiu Zheng's eyes instantly welled up with tears.
Tears pooled in his eyes and soon rolled down his cheeks.
His eyes turned bloodshot, as if they could bleed.
Qiu Zheng showed an expression of sudden realization, as if waking from a dream.
He muttered to himself, "You're right! I really have been too selfish. In the end, I've always been a selfish father."
"To be honest, I could never understand why you left Kyoto so resolutely back then. Especially during the time we lost contact, my heart was full of resentment and blame toward you."
"I blamed you for being a coward and for running away from your responsibilities. However, until today, whenever I look at Xiao He, I feel I've failed her every single second."
"My so-called righteousness was actually exchanged at the cost of her happy childhood."
Qiu Zheng's words made Li Yan, who had been silent on the side, unable to suppress her inner sorrow once again.
She began to sob silently, her shoulders trembling incessantly; her crying was heartbreaking.
Jiang Jianmin spoke slowly.
"Since ancient times, you haven't been the only one to serve the world while failing those closest to you. It's hard to have both ways. You aren't wrong, but Xiao He isn't wrong either..."
Hearing this, Qiu Zheng couldn't help but pause, letting out a soft sigh.
Alas... his once-straight back seemed to slump slightly at this moment.
His entire being was shrouded in a faint sorrow.
Jiang Jianmin reached out his broad palm and gently patted Qiu Zheng's shoulder.
He said earnestly, "Old Qiu, why don't you come to Kyoto with me?"
At the mention of "Kyoto," Qiu Zheng's weathered face was instantly filled with surprise.
His eyes widened as he looked at Jiang Jianmin in disbelief.
He asked urgently, "Old Jiang, what do you mean? Do you really plan on returning to Kyoto?"
Jiang Jianmin nodded heavily, answering with a calm and firm expression.
"Yes, it's also time to go back..."
Seeing this, a joyful smile immediately broke out on Qiu Zheng's face, and he responded excitedly.
"Good! Good! For a person as talented and capable as you to stay as the CEO of this small construction company is truly a waste of talent. Once you're in Kyoto, with your skills, you'll surely be able to achieve great things and carve out a new world of your own!"
Jiang Jianmin shook his head.
"What you said isn't exactly wrong, but being the CEO of a construction company isn't that easy to pull off."
Qiu Zheng laughed heartily.
"True. For someone who grew up in luxury like you, it really isn't easy to work in a specific trade. I was shocked when I heard you say that the other day. I thought if you didn't want to enter politics, you'd directly take over your Second Uncle's company. I didn't expect..."
Hearing this, Jiang Jianmin replied, "I did think about it back then. When I first started my own business, I originally intended to take over Mingsheng Group, but then I thought, what would happen even if I did?"
"It would just be drifting through life. Later, my father kept using all sorts of means to force me back, so I steeled my heart and cut off all contact with the family to truly start from scratch."
"I tried many industries and eventually chose construction because, during this stage of infrastructure development, my line of work requires constant dealings with the authorities."
"I didn't rely on any family connections to reach this small scale today, and I've actually learned quite a lot."
Qiu Zheng replied, "I actually admire you quite a bit. With your background, you could have gone your whole life without ever having to strive."
Jiang Jianmin smiled. "Old Qiu, you don't understand. The power in that old man's hands is too great. You should know how my eldest and Second Brothers died, right?"
Qiu Zheng replied, "Of course. We were still young when Eldest Brother and Second Brother met their accidents one after another, but growing up watching them, I was deeply influenced. They were always my role models. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have sworn to serve the country with such loyalty."
Hearing this, a flicker of pain flashed in Jiang Jianmin's eyes.
Seeing that his good friend Qiu Zheng hadn't noticed the many unknown and complex circumstances hidden behind this matter at all.
Jiang Jianmin opened his mouth, but the words that were on the tip of his tongue, intended to be spoken next...
...seemed to be blocked by something, suddenly becoming difficult to say.
He slowly reached out his right hand and placed it gently on Qiu Zheng's broad shoulder.
Then he patted it twice with a bit of force, as if trying to convey some emotions and information that couldn't be expressed in words through this gesture.
Meanwhile, seeing that Jiang Jianmin didn't show the slightest aversion to mentioning Kyoto matters.
...a surge of curiosity mixed with doubt welled up in Qiu Zheng's heart.
Consequently, a deep look of inquiry instantly appeared on his otherwise calm face.
Immediately afterward, he couldn't wait to ask.
"Old Jiang, after all these years, I've always had a question. I could never figure out why you left Kyoto so resolutely back then. And after that, you vanished like you'd evaporated from the face of the earth, completely losing contact with us."
"I've written you many letters over the years, but I never received even a shred of a reply. If it weren't for me being accidentally injured and disabled this time, I'm afraid those letters would never have had the chance to be delivered to you..."
Jiang Jianmin nodded. "They did forward the letters you sent me at the beginning. But later, seeing that I was truly unwilling and making quite a fuss, they slowly stopped bothering me. It wasn't until recently, seeing Jiang Cheng reach adulthood, that I realized the time is ripe and it's time to return..."
Hearing this, Qiu Zheng's eyes glazed over for a moment. "The time? So you never actually thought about completely cutting ties with your family??"
Jiang Jianmin shook his head. "Not exactly. At first, I really was afraid. When I was young, I also wanted to stand at the peak of power like my father, so I enrolled in Tsinghua University and majored in Social Management."
"I thought as long as I didn't enter the military academy and go to the battlefield like my eldest and Second Brothers, I would be fine. But a month after I first entered a work unit according to the family's arrangements, I had a bad premonition. Then one day, my Fourth Brother, who had been serving as the top leader in another province, was suddenly sent back to Kyoto."
Hearing this, Qiu Zheng's expression suddenly changed.
Because he noticed Jiang Jianmin's choice of words.
He used "sent back" instead of "returned."
Qiu Zheng asked, "Was Fourth Brother injured?"
Jiang Jianmin shook his head. "What was sent back was a corpse."
Qiu Zheng sucked in a breath, his face turning pale as he replied, "You mean Fourth Brother is gone? How could that be??"
Jiang Jianmin nodded. "Few people know about this. It's said he had a sudden heart attack during an inspection and couldn't be saved. But my Fourth Brother's health was always excellent. He had been training in the military since he was a child—he could do winter swimming and insisted on running even on snowy days. Moreover, before the incident, he got plenty of sleep every day and had a designated medical team for regular check-ups."
Qiu Zheng replied, "Yes, and Fourth Brother was so young. How could there be a problem with his heart?"
Jiang Jianmin nodded. "Just like other high-ranking officials who died mysteriously, my Fourth Brother's autopsy didn't find any issues."
"With my biological brothers passing away one after another, I was the only one left in the Jiang Family. Although I knew things weren't simple, I was only twenty-four then and had no idea how to protect myself. I suspected everyone around me every day. For a while, I even thought I was hallucinating. I was young and couldn't handle the pressure, and with Jiang Cheng being born, I got scared. I was afraid my child would lose his father at a young age."
"However, people's thoughts change. As Jiang Cheng grew older, I suddenly felt that being the CEO of a construction company didn't give me enough security. My boy grew up in a normal environment, but the talent he's displayed is anything but ordinary. I can't hold him back."
It's just a pity Jiang Cheng didn't hear this. If he had...
...he would likely have said, "Dad, you're overthinking it. It's all the halo given by System Dad. My thanks."
Seeing Li Yan reach out and pat his shoulder, Jiang Jianmin continued.
"I told my father before that our family was too much in the limelight. With power held so tightly, no one is willing to be a puppet in your hands forever. Countless other forces will try everything to cut off our path for development."
"If our family were just like other families and promised to step back to the second line or below within three generations, everyone could be safe. Unfortunately, they were still too impatient..."
Qiu Zheng looked at Jiang Jianmin with a face full of grief. "Eldest Brother, Second Brother, and Fourth Brother... who on earth harmed them?"
Jiang Jianmin replied, "Old Qiu, some things are better left unknown. Ignorance is bliss. This path was destined to be bloody from the start. I've come to terms with it now. A loss is a loss..."
Qiu Zheng replied, "Then you returning to Kyoto now, are you planning to..."
Jiang Jianmin didn't give a direct answer, only replying with a smile, "Jiang Cheng has grown up. Young people are often high-profile and reckless. I've rested enough; it's time to go back to work."