Chapter 32
Peach Blood
The news of JK's family reunion has spread throughout the streets and alleys. The world is still shaken by the news of Hoang Kim's accident, and then a violent earthquake of news shakes the earth.
Everywhere, in every country, people and families, whether eating or chatting, have been speculating about the ambiguous relationship between JK and Hoang Kim's mother.
This group of people has mocked Mrs. Hang for her past mistakes with JK, saying she has been afraid to face her ex-husband. JK has said their families separated the two to save her from embarrassment.
Other people have suspected that JK has treated his old lover badly and that they broke up. In later years, JK has regretted it, so he has reunited with his descendants to make amends for the past.
Those who defend women and those who flatter JK have split into two factions, attacking each other from the virtual world to the real world. The never-ending war of words has broken out into a media war, with newspapers, reporters, and television splashing water into the rain[1], creating a storm of global public opinion.
Ignoring the world cursing each other over things that have nothing to do with them, unrealistic dreamers fantasize about becoming JK's long-lost descendants. The perfect dream of strangers is the very nightmare of JK's 'family members'. Ngoc and her two daughters watch the live broadcast in the hospital with a melancholy expression.
"Yes, viewers, the news of Hoang Kim's accident is still shocking. The whole world is in an uproar over the incredible story of JK reuniting with his descendants after being separated for thirty years. It was the widow and her three daughters, all of whom were not famous. But the widow's mother is also the mother of the world-famous star Hoang Kim. Mr. JK revealed that he and Hoang Kim's mother were separated by both parents, and were forced to marry other people. Mr. JK and Mrs. Hang could not go home together because everyone had their own family. Now, JK only cares about his youngest granddaughter who is seriously ill. So, what is the specific situation? Everyone, listen to Mr. JK's story!"
The camera is pointed at JK and Luu Ly. The little girl looks at the camera lens blankly. JK rubs his granddaughter's head. The old guy smiles gently, like a model of a kind grandfather.
- Hello everyone, today is the happiest but most painful day of my life. After thirty years, the fallen leaves have returned to their roots, but I have received shocking news that my youngest granddaughter has cancer. Her blood is extremely rare and incompatible with her relatives' blood and bone marrow, so she cannot undergo a bone marrow transplant!
JK cries with red eyes, the old guy lets hot tears slide down his melancholy face:
- I am looking for a suitable blood and bone marrow donor. Whichever hospital in the world finds the bone marrow, I will reward them ten times the cost of the bone marrow transplant and promote their image to the world. The individual who donates the bone marrow will become a core in the JK corporation, will enjoy preferential treatment compared to all other employees, and the descendants of that person will inherit the position unconditionally!
The audience mourns the bitter fate that teases JK. The melancholy people are commiserating that the petite and cute little girl is tortured by the disease. The realists call directly to encourage them. JK bows his head and thanks. The maternal grandfather reminds his granddaughter to be grateful for that heart. Luu Ly turns to the camera awkwardly and greets everyone with her hands folded across her chest.
Ngoc and her two daughters cry, frustrated by the image of Luu Ly timidly leaning on JK's chest. The little girl smiles carefree at her grandfather, and JK caresses the little granddaughter's cheek affectionately. 'Affection' crushes the hearts of Lưu Ly's mother and elder sister. Their wounded hearts clench tightly when JK utters the word 'family'.
- Family has always come first for me! God has been unfair to Luu Ly. I will go against God's will to seek justice for my granddaughter! Please, everyone, help me fulfill my wish. Thank you!
An evil ghost preaching fairness is like spitting in Thanh Hang's face. A woman who suffers injustice laughs until her eyes are crimson with resentment. She laughs until she knows nothing, and her manic laughter suppresses bitter, choking cries. The grieving mother looks at her son who struggles to survive.
The older brother awaits death every day, every minute, every second. His feeble breaths on the hospital bed erode his mother's hope. The enemy tramples on pain mercilessly to capture the heart of the one he tortures. That false face drives Sam insane. Resentment sparks a smoldering blaze of fury; he burns to settle accounts with the perpetrator.
Huge is deeply frustrated with his impulsive son. Yet the father's toughness, unstoppable as it is, can even incite his son's violence. Only a gentle mother can soothe him. She quietly brushes her hand against her son's shirt, clinging lightly, almost imperceptibly. But Sam cannot move his legs, heavy as stone. His hands tremble. He clutches his head, twists it, his mouth twitching as if to scream. He forces himself to endure, stifling the sound of his resentment.
Hanna has always been close to Thanh Hang, and has remained sympathetic toward Sam and his father, even making the stone statue emotional. But everyone has lived with secrets in their hearts and has died carrying the mysteries of life. Couples have lived in the same house and have slept in the same bed, yet they have still dreamed different dreams and have hidden their innermost thoughts. Parents and children have groped for each other in the invisible distance. In the past, that distance had separated her family's emotions. Now that invisible barrier has separated Hanna from the people she respects.
She is a pure flower that has not given off all its fragrance, a fragrance that has been imprisoned by reason in the rules of etiquette. The tacit rules force her to live according to the will of those who impose the idea a bad settlement is better than a good lawsuit. The idea of not offending anyone has bound her from childhood to adulthood.
The maturity of her body and mind inadvertently makes people who come into contact with her suspect that this so-called pure flower is fake. Moreover, the family of "someone's back silhouette" lacks a "flower shadow." A gentle flower cannot yet fully exude her fragrance in that warm nest.
The flower is glum because she is just an outsider. She has no reason to feel sad or to blame the family for not sharing their confidences. The flower has to wait for the person she cares about to open his heart to her.
At this time, she cannot comfort and encourage, and should not be curious about family secrets.
The flower quietly exudes her fragrance next to the one she cherishes.
The fragrance dissipates the pain just like calling the dream back to the mother. The "truth" will come and reveal secrets to the flower.
***
The path leads to the desolate suburbs, trees growing in wild disarray. No one approaches it. But today, the cold place is "warmed" by the scorching heat spreading in all directions. On every street in the magnificent Capital, people more numerous than grass ants crawl behind reporters and media outlets. Vultures swarm around the shabby house.
The dilapidated place has been so rundown that even the devil has been too lazy to disparage it, and even ghosts couldn't be bothered to haunt it. Now, it has become the focus of national attention. The world shares in the joy with a rain of likes. A flurry of hearts being sent causes a storm of sharing, broadcasting a special live show:
"Family reunion – joy and tears!"
The busy crowds are on tenterhooks, holding Halo Illusias, Phantom Mirrors, and other cutting-edge technologies, capturing scenes more interesting than the festival: cameras and flycams hover around the house, flashes continuously illuminate the car carrying JK to the gate.
He gets out of the car and greets everyone. The crowd applauds and congratulates JK. He thanks them and approaches the home of his relatives. JK cannot remember how many times he has visited this place. He has experienced enough joy, anger, emotion, and hate in a strange place, and now it has become familiar.
All emotions are buried in the joy of reunion. The simple happiness of ordinary people is still far away for JK. His relatives have been treated harshly by him, and they still haven't forgiven their father and grandfather.
A drop of peach blood is more than a pool of raw water. Even though hatred runs deep in the bones, they still find it hard to deny that they are the offspring of the perpetrator, and that the perpetrator is their flesh and blood. Purifying the tainted blood flowing through their veins proves nearly impossible. Turbid blood is not raw water for the mother and her two daughters.
The old man is a devil, but he is not a stranger. The old man is their peach blood.
JK is not afraid of the offspring lashing out at the guilty father; an impulsive move would only unearth long-buried secrets, let vultures tear the family apart, and turn the mother and Lưu Ly into scapegoats for the vultures to tear apart. But JK still fears that welcoming the joy of reunion is the very thing that is more terrifying than resentment.
Desperation forces him not to care about traumatizing his offspring again. He is willing to become a demon just to stay by the side of the angels. There is no turning back for those who regard family as their life. The old man sees the light at the end of the tunnel. Whether it is the light of heaven or the fire burning in hell, he must go to the place that waits for him to feel the warmth of family affection.
JK slowly raises his hand, hesitating and making everyone tense. The silence breaks with a loud cheer, and everyone excitedly takes photos of the door slowly opening. The male crowd is full of praise for the God-given beauty of JK's offspring. The female crowd becomes doubly excited, filled with admiration and jealousy that fate had given the mother and her two daughters everything they had dreamed of.
- They are more beautiful than all other women!
- What does she eat to look so good? Her beauty takes away everyone else's beauty, honey!
- The Miss must be jealous!
Women and girls shout as if meeting a global superstar:
- Kya, I wish I were her!
- So beautiful! - A sexy girl, even if she doesn't want to, must also praise - I am a girl, still fascinated, not to mention a group of lustful men!
JK is proud to hear worldly people praising his offspring. On the outside, he appears calm, pressing down the stormy waves rising in his heart. The old man, worried, faces his relatives, weariness smearing indifference across the faces of the mother and her two daughters. Yet JK still smiles brightly, introducing his offspring to the world. He strives to deceive the worldly people, but the thin cloth that covers the eyes of a saint is torn apart by the flatterers:
- Bang Suong, Tuyet Lan, my idols, I love you sisters!
- She is indeed the daughter of someone else's family!
- The children of a family are not only alike in feathers, but also alike in wings!
Praise inadvertently blows a chill over the mother and her two daughters. The cold air instantly freezes the feeling of disgust and then covers the cold faces with frost. The greatest fear pushes the old man from heaven to hell and carves sadness on his dry old face.
After a night of nightmares, traces of wrinkles have spread on JK's face, yet he remains happy in front of the public. The happiness of reunion has erased the pain and helps him confidently share the joy with the world.
Everything is ruined at the last moment, JK silently curses the people who are busybodies, flattering him. The flattering words pour a bucket of cold water on his offspring. The cold water immediately freezes the stiff smiles on the lips of the mother and her two daughters. The joy of reunion is drowned in the heart-wrenching cold. It is so cold that they lose all sense of the world around them.
The flash captures an image of these bodies without a soul. Everyone from reporters to gossipers squints and frowns at this unusual attitude. Loud whispers big and small echo everywhere:
- It's strange, the family is reunited, but why is JK the only one happy?
- You see how cold and heartless his descendants are, treating their relatives as if they are their enemies!
- JK left his wife and children because his parents forced him to, he did not abandon his offspring, mother and her two daughters should not blame the person who gave birth to them like this!
Gossip is the savior who pulls him out of the ice cellar. Discussion turns into fear for the girls, mother and her two daughters worry that their families and "relatives" will be spat by the mouths and tongues of the world, burying the family in the quagmire of humiliation. Fear repels the indifference that spreads on the girls' faces, forcing the "descendants" to show "kinship" to greet "fathers and grandfathers".
JK ignores the forced smiles of his offspring and the suspicious whispers in the prying crowd. He is as happy as if it were a festival, putting his arms on the shoulders of his relatives. Their bodies tremble slightly under the hands of the devil. They are forced to draw a face that will please the world, but cannot erase the disgust in the memory of the mother and her two daughters.
The look of contempt flashes and then disappears immediately. JK carefully video-calls the hospital to blindfold worldly people's eyes. Luu Ly smiles brightly at her family. The little girl raises her eyebrows and looks at her mother and sister who are smiling gently.
That smile is soaked with bitter tears of sadness because daughter - the younger sister becomes a tool to cover up the sin. Anguished hatred dyes their eyes red, the mother and older sister suppress their anger and laugh with the little angel.
- Oh, why are mother and sister crying then laughing again?
Ngoc and her two daughters wipe away their tears and tell lies:
- Mother and sister did not cry, our house was filled with cars, dust got into our eyes!
The Lan sisters try to swallow the grievances that choke their throats. Lan says softly:
- My mother and I are smiling because you are having fun!
The crowd falls silent, the excited cheers disappear in the quiet atmosphere. The melancholy crowd secretly wipe away the sad tears of sympathy for the pitiful fate. People who doubt JK's family affection now bow their heads in shame because of the pain of the exemplary man's family.
- Worried about Luu Ly, the mother and her two daughters are like lost souls!
- But why were they so cold towards JK at that time?
- Tsk, this old woman! JK family not yet painful enough? Why do you still have silly questions?
- That's right, I heard that the hospital hasn't found a suitable bone marrow yet, and Luu Ly only has three months to live. People are worried about their loved ones, so it's normal to feel melancholy and confused, to seem distant and cold when you are so worried. Stop being suspicious, stop touching sadness!
The mother and her two daughters pay no attention to all the discussions; they only care about Luu Ly. JK pretends not to hear it. The old man happily chats with his youngest granddaughter. The vultures will not let go of their fat prey. Gathering in groups, squawking, they ask:
"Sir, are you planning to have a family reunion party?"
"Sir, where will it be held?"
"You are Mrs. Hang's ex-husband, and you are considered a Hoang Kim stepfather. Do you know Hanna Izumi?"
"Sir, I see your granddaughter looks familiar. It seems that the Lan sisters were once national champions in martial arts and swordsmanship?"
Everyone is amazed, yells, and repeatedly presses buttons to take photos and record Tuyet Lan and Bang Suong. The young men yell frantically, and express their admiration for the two princesses of jade leaves and golden branches, beautiful and talented.
JK ignores a bunch of inelegant questions, and the last sentence strikes at the psychology of craving grandeur and taking pride in relatives. He wants to show off his obedient, kind, and talented granddaughter to the world, but the Lan sisters are not greedy for fame. The old guy has to postpone the joy by making an appointment:
- Thank you to everyone who has shown us care and love! Sorry, my family wants to chat after 30 years of separation, so I can't answer the interview. See you on the Internet. I will let you know the time later. Sincerely thank you!
The words cleverly chase away the crowd's interest, and the disappointed onlookers pull each other to leave. There is no one around the house. JK says goodbye to Luu Ly, the old guy turns off the Halo, tiredly taking off his friendly mask.
The mother's and her two daughters' stiff smiles disappear, and they go into the house silently. The door is not closed, the road is wide open, but the devil who is trying to become the dearest person is not welcome.
The devil wants to be one family with the angels, so the person masquerading as a human must become a normal human like everyone else. But the man who wants to be human throws his offspring to the wolves to hide his sin.
The devil is still a devil.
The devil cannot become human, and should not dream of washing away the sins that have dirtied the peach blood.
JK enters the house and sees Anh Dao watching a laptop. She stands up to greet him. JK nods in response, smiling slightly instead of thanking her for the advice she has given to the mother and two daughters. Anh Dao had a close relationship with JK's offspring, so last night he called to ask her to persuade his relatives to accept him.
JK did not ask her for help, and Anh Dao did not want to see the old guy lose face in front of the world. The blonde patiently analyzed the pros and cons, warning that if JK was exiled, they would all die with him. They had to accept the devil as their father and grandfather.
- I accept it no matter how you all torment, torture, and curse me! - JK lowers his head in melancholy, bitter sounds choke the hoarse voice - Please don't be cold to me!
The fierce, screaming wind suddenly stops, and the animals' howls become silent. Nature, all things and the victims are silent. There is no anger, no curse, no chasing away, only silence. Silence locks JK in an ice cellar.
It is better to be clumsy and sincere than to be wise and false. The intelligent old guy has blamed himself for being too wise and becoming false. He has miserably calculated, has refused to feel, and has listened to his rational mind. This subtle falseness has finally led to the premature death of sincerity.
His rational mind has been the guiding light of JK's life. The moment his steel spirit has been broken, the person who has always despised feelings has sadly regretted it. The proud and majestic JK has never given in to anyone, but now he has bowed his head again.
His rational mind forces JK to force his offspring to accept him, the old guy gives up his sincere feelings and lets reason guide him to his relatives. The father wants everything to be perfect in order to have hope of redeeming sins, unfortunately reason cannot lead the way to the bleeding heart.
That heart is not far away.
But only feelings can touch it.
The girls quietly return to their rooms. JK remains motionless, watching the shadows of his descendants. The old guy looks sadly at the unfinished meal of vegetables, melons, soy sauce, and eggplant; the meager dishes have long been a foreign thing to JK. Now, they have become a luxury dream for those who long to be with his descendants.
JK doesn't want to show weakness in front of anyone, but bitter tears soak his gloomy face. The eyes, filled with longing, are blurred in the image of his daughter and grandchildren playing, and of father and grandfather rejoicing around the humble meal.
Cold food, an empty heart.
A person who is lonely in the home of relatives must walk alone and leave alone from where he is not welcome.
This place welcomes the "dearest person" but does not accept the devil.
In this dark place, only illusions surround the minds of reasonable people.
This place has no light; there is only cruel reality and no fanciful dreams.
The devil is determined to return to being a human and turn his dream into reality.
Note
[1]Splashing water into the rain is a Vietnamese saying that refers to following the crowd. Specifically, in the case of reporters, it describes how they exploit social media users' psychology, creating topics or articles that ride on current events to generate media buzz, attract views, and profit.