Jun-Yu: "Dad... what terrible crime have I committed to deserve a punishment like this? Is my only crime that I was born as your son? If that's the case... then you're the one at fault, Dad. No one chooses where they're born. So what exactly was my crime? Why did you destroy everything I've spent my entire life working for?"
★★★
Inside Jun-Yu's secret room at the Long-Ying-Ting Apartment, dim lights cast long shadows across the room.
Jun-Yu stood silently in the center, while the same twelve men who had brought him there stood behind him.
A moment later, the door opened.
Jun-Kai entered the room, accompanied by several bodyguards, his personal assistant, and his secretary.
Jun-Yu had already guessed that this was his father's doing, but he still couldn't understand what Jun-Kai intended to accomplish.
As soon as Jun-Kai entered, one of the bodyguards pulled out a chair for him.
Seeing his father in person after such a long time, Jun-Yu smiled faintly and spoke in a gentle voice.
Jun-Yu: "Dad... why did you have me brought here like this?"
Jun-Kai replied coldly,
Jun-Kai: "I've come to clip your wings. Who gave you the courage to enter the National CRRC Road Racing Championship without telling me? What if something had happened to you today? What was I supposed to do then?"
Although Jun-Kai's voice remained calm, the deep concern of a father was impossible to hide.
Jun-Yu smiled.
Jun-Yu: "Why, Dad? Aren't you happy? It was my very first race, and I didn't finish as the first or second runner-up—I became the champion."
Jun-Kai's expression darkened.
Jun-Kai: "No. I'm not happy. Your reckless actions have only filled me with fear. You'll be punished for this... and so will your racing partner, Shu-Yang. My men have already surrounded him. You still haven't explained why you entered today's race without informing me."
Throughout the conversation, Jun-Yu had listened calmly.
But the moment Jun-Kai mentioned Shu-Yang, his composure shattered.
Just as Shi-Han had once joked, it was as if Jun-Yu's twelve-thousand-megawatt power line had finally snapped.
His eyes blazed with anger.
Jun-Yu: "Say whatever you want to me, but don't drag Shu-Yang into this. If Shu-Yang had raced in my place today, perhaps you'd have been much happier."
After a brief pause, he narrowed his eyes.
Jun-Yu: "But there's something I don't understand... How did you get into this room? You don't even know the password to my secret room."
Jun-Kai: "Shu-Yang is the very reason you can't get racing out of your head. And as for the password..."
Jun-Kai stopped mid-sentence and snapped his fingers.
One of the security guards immediately switched on the room's lights.
As the darkness disappeared, a different kind of darkness fell over Jun-Yu's life.
Jun-Kai spoke again.
Jun-Kai: "I destroyed your secret laboratory before coming in here. Now, you're returning to Luoyang with me. Immediately."
Beneath the Long-Ying-Ting Apartment was Jun-Yu's secret laboratory.
It contained countless scientific instruments, research equipment, computers, and inventions he had spent years building.
Now...
Everything lay in ruins.
Beakers, funnels, safety goggles, computers, and countless other pieces of equipment were scattered across the floor.
One glance at the destroyed laboratory was enough to leave Jun-Yu speechless.
His breathing grew heavy as words failed him.
How could his own father destroy everything he had worked for his entire life in just a few moments?
His hands trembled.
His legs grew weak.
Tears streamed uncontrollably down his face.
Yet Jun-Kai's expression remained completely emotionless.
It felt as though the ground had disappeared beneath Jun-Yu's feet.
He slowly collapsed against the wall.
A damaged computer lay beside him.
Grabbing it desperately, he frantically typed on the keyboard, trying to recover his work.
Nothing happened.
No files opened.
No data remained.
In desperation, he crawled toward a corner of the laboratory where the shattered remains of his beloved robot were scattered across the floor.
Picking up the broken metal pieces with trembling hands, he tried to put them back together.
But it was hopeless.
Everything had been destroyed.
Clutching the broken pieces tightly against his chest, Jun-Yu let out a heart-wrenching scream that echoed throughout the building.
---
Jun-Yu's anguished cry reached Mei-Xue's ears.
Jun-Kai hadn't come to Shanghai alone to check on his son's condition.
Mei-Xue had accompanied him.
After arriving in Shanghai, she had gone shopping to buy a few things for Jun-Yu.
She had just reached the elevator on the ground floor when she heard her son's desperate scream.
A mother's heart instantly trembled.
Without waiting for the elevator, Mei-Xue ran straight toward the secret laboratory.
As she reached the doorway, she heard Jun-Yu speaking through tears, his voice filled with pain and resentment.
Jun-Yu: "Dad... what terrible crime have I committed to deserve a punishment like this? Is my only crime that I was born as your son? If that's the case... then you're the one at fault, Dad. No one chooses where they're born. So what exactly was my crime? Why did you destroy everything I've spent my entire life working for?"
Jun-Kai's face darkened.
Jun-Kai: "Shut up! You're becoming far too disrespectful. You've grown bold enough to talk back to me? I'll teach you a lesson right now."
Without another word, Jun-Kai raised his hand and slapped Jun-Yu hard across the face.
The sharp sound echoed through the room.
Within seconds, the fair skin of Jun-Yu's cheek turned bright red.
The moment Mei-Xue witnessed it, the shopping bags slipped from her hands and crashed onto the floor.
Mei-Xue: "Stop it, Jun-Kai! What are you doing? He's grown up now! How could you hit him in front of so many outsiders? Didn't your conscience stop you even once?"
As she spoke, Mei-Xue signaled the bodyguards to leave the room.
Her voice was firm.
But Jun-Kai's anger burned even more fiercely.
He raised his voice.
Jun-Kai: "You've spoiled him! Because of you, he's become completely out of control. Did you ever teach him what was right and what was wrong? Because of you, I was never able to discipline him properly. I wanted him to become a C-pop idol. Our family owns one of the biggest entertainment companies in the country, so why does he insist on wasting his life on science and motorcycle racing? Do you even realize his bike suffered brake failure today? The moment he entered that race, our enemies tried to kill your son."
Mei-Xue froze in silence.
Deep down, she knew Jun-Kai wasn't entirely wrong.
After a long pause, she spoke softly…
Mei-Xue: "Even so, who gave you the right to destroy his laboratory? Just because you're his father doesn't mean you can destroy his dreams simply because you can't fulfill them."
Mei-Xue's words stirred a flicker of guilt in Jun-Kai's heart.
Standing beside his mother, Jun-Yu continued to sob quietly.
Jun-Kai couldn't bring himself to look at his son's face.
Jun-Yu's expression was as dark as a storm-filled sky, yet it was Jun-Kai's own heart that bore the weight of that thunder.
Would a woman ever truly understand the silent language of a man's pain?
Even if others couldn't, shouldn't Mei-Xue—Jun-Yu's mother—understand that everything he had done was out of a father's desperate desire to protect his son?
Just as Mei-Xue was Jun-Yu's mother, Jun-Kai was his father.
Did she really think he wasn't suffering as well?
Had she ever stopped to imagine the agony in a father's heart as he worried about his child?
Today, Jun-Kai had hardened his heart and destroyed Jun-Yu's laboratory for only one reason—to drive the obsessions of research and motorcycle racing out of his son's life before they cost him everything.
Yet instead of standing beside him, Mei-Xue defended their son, making Jun-Kai's resolve crumble.
The dam holding back his emotions finally broke.
In a choked voice, he spoke from the depths of a father's heart.
Jun-Kai: "Protecting Prince Jun's life is far more important to me than fulfilling his wishes. Mei-Xue, becoming a parent isn't just about giving birth to a child—it's about guiding them toward a better future. I failed to guide one of my children down the right path, and I refuse to lose my Prince Jun as well. So don't try to persuade me with words. Try to understand me instead. Have you ever once thought about how I've been living since we lost our daughter? You're a mother... then tell me—can you understand how a fish survives without water, or how a snake lives without its precious pearl?"
Jun-Kai's heartfelt confession left Mei-Xue speechless.
She had no words.
Hearing the anguish pouring from a father's heart reminded her of Jin-Yu.
Tears slowly rolled down her cheeks.
It had been years since they had last seen their daughter.
Four years ago, they had left the precious child they loved with their enemies, and since that day they had never met Jin-Yu again.
Neither Mei-Xue nor Jun-Kai knew that Jun-Yu had secretly traveled to Beijing several times just to see his sister.
Jun-Yu looked directly at his father.
Jun-Yu: "Do you even have a heart, Mr. Jun-Kai? You're right—simply giving birth to a child doesn't make someone a parent. But are you truly worthy of being called a father? Fine, maybe my sister made mistakes, but what was wrong with my dream? You refuse to even see your daughter because of her mistakes, but what have I done? Shu-Yang understood you perfectly. Forget being a father... you're not even worthy of being called a human being."
Before Jun-Yu could say another word, Jun-Kai stepped forward and slapped him across the face once again.
This time, however, Jun-Yu didn't cry.
He stood firmly in place, breathing heavily as he stared at the shattered remains of his dreams.
But his words had gone too far.
Mei-Xue glared at him and scolded him sharply.
Mei-Xue: "Jun-Yu! How can you say such things about your father? After reading so many books, is this all you've learned? Is this the way I raised you? Have you ever tried standing in your father's shoes, even once, and seeing everything from his perspective?"
Jun-Yu's voice trembled with pain.
Jun-Yu: "I'm going crazy... My head feels like it's splitting apart. Mom... what am I supposed to live for now? Dad destroyed everything I worked for. How am I supposed to face my classmates at the university? Our exhibition is coming up soon. That robot was my dream project... What am I supposed to present to Professor Chen now?"
Even now, Jun-Kai failed to realize how deeply he had wounded his son.
Still believing there was a solution, he spoke calmly.
Jun-Kai: "There's still time. It isn't too late. Our company is about to launch a new action thriller. You'll play the male lead. And you'll withdraw from your current science program at the university and transfer to the Computer Science department."
★★★
Readers, what do you think Jun-Yu will do next?
Will he give up his studies and take over the family company?
But can someone truly become a CEO or an actor simply because they are told to?
What awaits in the next chapter?
Will Jun-Yu fight to protect his dreams... or will they be buried beneath his father's expectations?