My stepmother forced me to donate bone marrow, so I retaliated by slapping my scumbag father in the

Fifteen years have passed, and this place has hardly changed.

The walls were peeling, the electrical wires were tangled, and rows of old clothes hung outside the stairwell.

The elderly folks who got up early to buy groceries couldn't help but glance at their luxury car as they passed by carrying cloth bags.

Sun Mei felt extremely uncomfortable under those gazes.

She was dressed in an expensive suit, her high heels clicking on the muddy ground, her face contorted with disgust: "Jianjun, are you sure the address is right? This place is uninhabitable!"

Shen Jianjun said in a deep voice, "The secretary investigated, so it can't be wrong."

"Then hurry up."

Sun Mei didn't want to stay a second longer. "I'll take the blood sample and leave. Congcong is still waiting at the hospital."

Shen Jianjun didn't reply and started walking towards Building No. 3.

The stairwell was even more dilapidated.

The motion-activated lights flickered on and off, cardboard boxes and old furniture were piled up in the corner, and the air smelled damp, musty, and filled with the odor of cooking oil wafting from somewhere.

Sun Mei stepped up the stairs, her face growing increasingly dark: "What bad luck!"

She complained in a low voice, "If it weren't for Congcong, I would never have come to a place like this in my life."

Shen Jianjun heard it, but he didn't care about her.

When he reached the third floor, he stopped at the door of room 302.

The door is old, with faded Spring Festival couplets pasted on the edge, and several scratches around the peephole.

There was a pair of faded sneakers and a plastic bag by the door containing an instant noodle cup that hadn't been thrown away yet.

Shen Jianjun raised his hand and knocked on the door, knock knock knock.

Footsteps came from inside the house, and the door opened.

Shen Ze stood behind the door, holding disposable chopsticks in his hand.

He was wearing a faded white T-shirt, and his hair was casually ruffled, clearly indicating that he had just gotten up not long ago.

A bowl of instant noodles sat on a small table in the living room, steaming hot, with an employee ID card and an old cell phone next to it.

Shen Ze paused for a moment upon seeing the person outside the door.

Shen Jianjun.

Fifteen years had passed, and the man before me had aged a bit, with wrinkles around his eyes, but his demeanor remained unchanged.

He was dressed impeccably in a suit, his shoes were gleaming, and his watch looked incredibly valuable.

Standing next to him, Sun Mei was well-maintained and had exquisite makeup, but when her eyes swept across the room, her disdain was almost impossible to hide.

Shen Ze's hand holding the chopsticks slowly tightened. He had imagined many times what it would be like to see Shen Jianjun again.

Perhaps it was at her mother's grave, or perhaps it was a chance encounter at a street corner.

Perhaps, this man finally remembered that he had abandoned a wife and a son, and came to her door with guilt that was fifteen years too late.

Even though Shen Ze no longer needed it, human nature can be quite ridiculous sometimes.

Even though I know I shouldn't have any expectations, I still have that absurd thought the moment I see the other person.

Shen Ze looked at him, his voice indifferent: "What are you doing here?"

Shen Jianjun was also sizing up Shen Ze.

The 22-year-old was much taller than the skinny child he remembered.

Her eyebrows and eyes resemble Xu Ying's, especially her eyes. When she is quiet, she is silent, but when she stares at someone, it makes people feel uneasy.

Shen Jianjun felt a moment of unease.

But he quickly suppressed his emotions and forced a kind smile onto his face: "Xiao Ze."

The moment those two words were uttered, Shen Ze found them jarring.

I haven't called it that in fifteen years, but now it comes out naturally.

Sun Mei, standing to the side, was extremely anxious upon hearing Shen Jianjun's tone.

She wanted to take the person away directly, but she was afraid that Shen Ze would be offended and that it would delay Congcong's affairs, so she could only endure it.

Shen Jianjun continued, "It's been so many years since I last saw you, you've grown up."

Shen Ze didn't move the door open: "Get to the point."

Shen Jianjun's fake smile froze for a moment.

As early morning residents passed by in the stairwell, they saw a well-dressed couple standing at the door, and upon seeing Shen Ze, they slowed down.

"Hey, Xiaoze, who's this?"

Aunt Wang from across the street peeked out, holding a vegetable basket in her hand.

Shen Ze didn't turn around, only saying, "We're not familiar with each other."

Shen Jianjun's face turned even uglier, and Sun Mei almost lost her temper on the spot.

Unfamiliar?

A son tells his own father that he doesn't know him?

But when she thought of Shen Cong in the hospital bed, she could only grit her teeth and bear it.

Shen Jianjun suppressed his temper: "Xiao Ze, I know there have been some misunderstandings between us over the years. I'm here today to have a good talk with you."

As Shen Ze looked at him, the last bit of hope in his heart gradually faded away.

Misunderstand?

Is the misunderstanding about abandoning his wife and children true?

Is the claim of not asking or caring for fifteen years a misunderstanding?

Xu Ying wanted to see him one last time before she died, but he said he couldn't leave. Was that a misunderstanding?

Shen Ze suddenly chuckled: "What are we talking about? How you offered incense to my mother, or how you've been sleeping soundly all these years?"

Shen Jianjun's face instantly darkened.

Sun Mei couldn't hold back any longer: "Shen Ze, how dare you talk to your father like that?"

Shen Ze's gaze fell on her: "You dare to interrupt?"

Sun Mei's face changed after being choked.

After she married Shen Jianjun, she was fawned over wherever she went.

The Sun family is a prominent family in Shanghai, and Shen Jianjun's business has grown bigger and bigger over the years, so she has become accustomed to others having to cater to her.

How dare a poor guy living in a run-down old house and eating instant noodles talk to her like that?

She was about to speak when Shen Jianjun raised his hand to stop her.

"Xiao Ze".

Shen Jianjun lowered his voice, "We're not here to argue today. I heard you work at Fengsheng Group, and you must be quite busy. How about this, you come with us to the hospital first."

Shen Ze's eyes turned cold: "The hospital?"

"right."

Shen Jianjun nodded, "A check-up will be quick and won't take up too much of your time."

Shen Ze stared at him: "What kind of examination?"

Shen Jianjun avoided his gaze: "It's just a routine check-up."

Shen Ze's smile grew even colder: "Shen Jianjun, do you think I'm easy to fool?"

Hearing this in the stairwell, Aunt Wang stopped walking.

The door next door was also ajar.

An old man carrying a birdcage stood at the top of the stairs, his eyes darting back and forth between the three people.

Annoyed by their stares, Sun Mei lowered her voice and urged, "Jianjun, why waste time talking to him? Just get straight to the point!"

Shen Jianjun frowned: "Shut up."

Sun Mei's eyes reddened: "Congcong is still waiting!"

"Congcong?"

Upon hearing this name, Shen Ze's eyes turned completely cold: "What happened to Shen Cong?"

Seeing that he couldn't hide it any longer, Shen Jianjun could only take a deep breath and say, "Your brother is sick."

I don't have a younger brother.

Shen Ze answered quickly.

Shen Jianjun's temple throbbed: "Shen Ze, don't say things out of anger."

"Shen Cong is your half-brother, and he has leukemia and needs a bone marrow transplant."

"The doctor said the success rate of matching between brothers is very high, so you'll have to come to the hospital with us for a test."

Having finally spoken, Shen Ze calmed down.

He looked at Shen Jianjun, then at Sun Mei, and suddenly found it all ridiculous.

Fifteen years, a full fifteen years.

Shen Jianjun was not there for him and his mother during their most difficult time.

When he was a child, he was so hungry that his stomach ached. To save money, his mother would wash the vegetable leaves clean and cook them into soup, but Shen Jianjun was not there.

He followed his mother, pushing a tricycle in the rain, his shoes filled with mud and water. Shen Jianjun carried Shen Cong into the mall without looking back.

His mother was seriously ill, and he called Shen Jianjun to ask him to come see her one last time, but Shen Jianjun said he couldn't get away.