Empress Of The Lost Kingdom - Chapter 169

Under the pouring rain, in a darkened alley, two forlorn silhouettes remained together in a tight embrace.

“If you feel like I am burdening you, take a break…but please…please don’t think about breaking up with me…,” Lee Tae Yang’s voice trembled in agony as he cupped Li Juan’s face drenched in rain,

“I am cursed, I am the reason for your parent’s death…If something happens to you, I won’t be able to forgive myself,” She broke into tears,

“Why do you believe in those stupid fate and curse? There is no such thing,” He tried to explain to Li Juan who placed her guard against him.

“I want you to stay alive,” She removed his palm which caressed her face, “I only want you to stay alive…and happy,”

“Do you think I will be able to live without you?” He stared at her ink-black eyes and asked, “Do you-?”

“You should…you must-” Her words were shut by Lee Tae Yang’s quivering lips. He locked her lips in a vague effort to stop her, but Li Juan forcefully released herself from his domineering kiss.

“Xiao Li, we promised each other to spend a lifetime together. I know you are sacred, but I will be with you…I will always be with you…if we stay together, we can overcome any obstacles,” He tried to explain,

“What if I kill myself?” Li Juan asked in a cold voice, her aloof demeanour trembling as if she is possessed,

“Xiao Li,” Lee Tae Yang called in a startled voice, “What are you saying?”

“Instead of ruining your life, Mamma’s life…it is better that I disappear from all of your lives,” She mumbled alone, “If I go, everyone will be happy,”

“Are you insane?” Lee Tae Yang shook her shoulders and asked angrily. He barely saved her from death…all of them were trying hard to extend her life and what non-sense is she spouting?

“If I kill myself…then no one has to suffer…then I will do it….I will definitely do it…,” She muttered like a madwoman, trying to break free from his grasp,

“Xiao Li, stop it,” Lee Tae Yang tightened his grip, hurting her,

“Don’t touch me,” Li Juan seethed and pushed him away like a stranger. Her face had a tinge of fury, which is alien to her own cold demeanour.

She appeared like an entirely different person.

“Xiao Li,” He took a step towards her with baffled face,

“Don’t you dare to come closer to me,” Li Juan growled like a wounded beast, “Go away…” She turned away and ran towards her house, leaving a flustered Lee Tae Yang all alone,

Lee Tae Yang who was taken aback by her sudden change and wanted to follow her, but the moment he took a step towards Li Juan’s house, a high beam light flashed in the dark alley, lighting the entire place.

At the end of the alley, a high-end car remained like a silent spectator of the series of events that happened a while ago,

Lee Tae Yang stood frozen at the place, staring at the moving wipers of the car, on the bonnet of the car, a roaring golden dragon statue was engraved.

The same golden dragon symbol of the Guan family.

“Grandpa,” He muttered under his breath,

The general Guan Lin Zheng!!!

Why Grandpa Guan is here? His thoughts wandered all of sudden,

Lee Tae Yang glanced at the rooftop house before striding towards the car in heavy steps,

The backdoor of the car jolted open and revealed the overbearing frame of Guan Lin Zheng, who sat on the back seat,

Lee Tae Yang slightly bowed and got on to the car with an expressionless face.

“You should leave to soul city, right now,” He ordered in a steely voice.

“Hmm,” Lee Tae Yang sat there with his head lowered, listening to his grandfather.

“Your uncle met with a car accident and your family needs you,”

Lee Tae Yang frantically shifted his gaze to the nonchalant man who sat beside him.

“I have already talked with your hospital director,” Guan Lin Zheng stopped for a moment and glanced at the tiny rooftop house before averting his gaze to the young man who sat with drooping shoulders.

“Let’s go,” He asked the driver,

Lee Tae Yang was not in a situation to refuse and he was taken to soul city, that night itself.

Lee Tae Joon, his uncle who was returning from a foreign business trip got into an accident and the driver lost his life on the spot.

As the moment the accident news of the CEO of Lee corporation got publicized all over the media of K country, their shares started to plummeting,

In order to save Lee corporation within the next day itself the first young master of the Lee family who has been working in a foreign country took charge as the acting CEO.

The next week was challenging for Lee Tae Yang, as the eldest son of Lee responsibility of the entire corporation and his family was fallen to his shoulders. He was strangled by the chains of the corporate world which he ardently tried to avoid. To steady the plunging shares, he overworked to the verge of collapse and saved the Lee corporation from a major loss.

When Lee Tae Yang came back home and switched on his mobile, his screen was flooded by the calls and messages from Chi Yan and Hao Ren.

Lee Tae Yang dialled Li Juan’s number, but when the switched off tone was repeatedly heard, he dialled Chi Yan’s contact number. Within the first ring itself, Chi Yan picked up the call,

“Tae Yang, how’re things at home? Is everything alright?” Chi Yan asked in a hurried voice.

“It’s okay for now,” He replied,

“What about your uncle?”

“He is still under coma,”

“So you won’t be able to return?” Chi Yan’s voice sounded worried,

In this situation, he won’t be able to go back to S city,

“How is Xiao Li?” Lee Tae Yang asked after pondering for a moment,

“She…she is fine,” Chi Yan lied while keeping his voice steady, giving his friend no hint about the grave situation that occurred to Li Juan while Lee Tae Yang was away,

As soon as Lee Tae Yang left for soul city, Li Juan came looking for him in the hospital, regretting her decision. However, when she heard about his uncle’s accident from Chi Yan, she went home without a word in a devasted state. The next day itself, she was taken to the hospital due to the consumption of medicines in overdose, in other words, she tried to take her life.

Though Chi Yan and Hao Ren tried to contact Lee Tae Yang, they couldn’t get in touch with him.

“Can you tell her to attend my calls?” Lee Tae Yang asked in a pleading tone, even though he was busy with work, he was worried about Li Juan. That night he was left petrified with Li Juan’s nearly trance state. He clearly knew about the side effects of her brain injury and how it affected her consciousness. Li Juan was barely standing on the thin line between sanity and psychosis.

“Hmm, I will tell her,”

“Tell her that I will come and visit her, once everything gets under control here,” Lee Tae Yang said in an assuring tone,

Once he ended the conversation with Chi Yan, Lee Tae Yang went looking for his grandparents,

“I have something to ask you,” He said with a nonchalant face and took a seat opposite his grandpa.

“What happened to my parents?”

Lee Tae Suk, his grandfather, looked at him with dubious eyes. Why his grandson suddenly asking about his late parents?

“It was a car accident,” His answer was simple,

“Are you sure about it?” Lee Tae Yang’s eyebrows creased up, “Uncle Tae Joon also,” He didn’t complete his words and allowed his grandpa to fill the rest of the question.

Both the sons of the Lee family has gone through a similar accident which put them in grave danger. Even a child can recognize the strange similarity between the two accidents.

“Apart from your father and uncle, I had another son,” Lee Tae Suk said in a dispirited voice, “Lee Tae Wook…that was his name…

Even though he was an illegitimate child of mine, your father never treated Tae Wook any lesser than your uncle. But he…, “Grandpa Lee stopped for a moment,

“When all of us refused to agree with your father marrying a foreigner, he left the house and his position at the corporation, giving Tae Wook a chance to become the CEO.

However, your grandmother and her family were against it. They tried every way to stop the board of members from voting for him. Even though he was my own blood, the tag of an illegitimate child was forced onto him and live under the shadows of his brothers. It took us a while to realize that, his innocent personality was just a mask to hide his evil intentions…In order to secure his position in Lee corporation, he was the one who fabricated that accident that took your parent’s lives,”

Lee Tae Yang who silently listened to his grandpa’s words opened his mouth to inquire about the real murderer behind his parent’s death. “Where is he now?”

“He died in an arson occurred in the prison,”

“Hmmm,” Lee Tae Yang hummed,

“Why are you suddenly-,” Lee Tae Suk tried to ask,

“The forensic experts found a high amount of sleeping pills on the blood stream of the man who drove uncle’s car,” The corners of his lips tightened in dismay.

“Are you saying that..Tae Joon’s accident is also-” Lee Tae Suk’s wrinkled eyes, perched in shock.

“I am looking through it,” Lee Tae Yang said with a rigid face and stood up from the seat,before leaving the room, he halted his steps. “Do you remember uncle Bai, grandpa?”

Lee Tae Suk raised his gaze to his grandson who was interrogating him like a criminal,

“Why nobody mentions him when he also lost his life in the same accident?”

Lee Tae Suk had no answer to his question.

“What about his wife? He had a daughter. When uncle Bai died she was just a week old…why no one talks about them?” Lee Tae Yang’s voice had a blaming tone,

“I still remember that day, when both of you came to pick me from my home. Grandma blamed that little kid for the death of my parents. She called Wol Ju, a cursed child,”

“Tae Yang,” Lee Tae Suk called the young man who stood in front of his eyes,

“Aunt Li and Wol Ju left without a word and yet no one…no one ever mentioned their names in this house, no one cared whether their alive or not,” He scoffed,

“What are you implying?”

“Everyone blamed that newborn kid for the death of my parents. Why Grandpa.. you knew the truth and yet you remained silent?”

Lee Tae Yang spat out a question and left the room without taking a look at Lee Tae Suk who remained with a baffled face.

What his grandson said was true…even though Lee Tae Suk knew there was no such thing as called a curse, he never said a word against his wife, who blamed Wol Ju, the child who born on a full moon night, for the death of their son.

If he raised his voice at that time,

If he made an effort to stop his wife, Li Qin’s and her newborn baby’s life would have changed,

But he remained silent and allowed his wife to tag the kid as a cursed child.