Blackstone Code-Chapter 475: Love Is Not as Good as Reading

“When I was a child, they played war games on horseback, and I just watched because you told me it would hurt me.”
“When I was a little older, they started trying smoking and drinking. You told me those were bad habits, so I never touched them.”
“As I grew up more, my friends began dating. You told me a good girl should keep her loyalty and purity, and I believed you were right.”
“There are so many things I can’t even remember now. And now you tell me Lynch isn’t the right one for me. Should I listen to you?”
Severella looked at Wadrick with a soul-deep question.
Wadrick nodded. “Yes. I just want to protect you from getting hurt. I love you, and I don’t want anyone to hurt you.”
Severella shook her head slightly. “But haven’t you noticed? I’m not happy. I’ve never been happy.”
“When those kids played war games on horseback, I watched them have fun.”
“When they smoked, drank, sang, and laughed, I watched them wake up smiling and go to sleep smiling.”
“When they were in love—whether happy or crying from pain—I was still just watching. I never felt it.”
“I don’t have a life of my own, Father. Everything is what you want. Maybe you’re right, but I’m not happy.”
“I’m more like an executor and spectator of the ‘standard life’ you imagined. All the emotions—joy, anger, pain—have nothing to do with me.”
“I’m not in pain, but I’m not happy either. If you think I shouldn’t see Lynch again, I will obey. But after that, you might never see me smile again, because this made me realize something: like some people say, I’m just a character living in a novel.”
“You are the author, and the pen is in your hand.”
Wadrick’s face grew serious. His wife tightly gripped his hand, partly worried he might get angry, partly to comfort him.
Every parent’s love comes from their heart and instinct. Few realize their actions may hurt their children, even if unintentionally.
Wadrick squeezed his wife’s hand and gently patted the back of it.
His daughter’s words gave him new thoughts. Having held power so long, he’d always assumed he was right—even in family matters.
Severella’s words woke him up. He had indeed shielded her from harm, but also drained color from her life.
She was merely a spectator, watching others’ emotions without ever feeling them herself.
This silence gave way to reflection, a trait of truly wise people: they listen and honestly reconsider their faults instead of blindly dismissing doubts.
While Wadrick reflected, Severella’s emotions calmed. Suddenly, she felt she might have been too harsh.
After all, her father’s actions were meant to protect her, using his experience to solve problems. His methods may have been wrong, but his intentions were good.
Feeling a bit embarrassed, she apologized. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said those things…”
“No!” Wadrick interrupted. “You’re right, Severella. I shouldn’t control your life. I can advise you, but I shouldn’t decide for you. I apologize for the stupid things I’ve done in the past and hope you can forgive me.”
“As for what you said about Lynch…” He sighed.
Severella, surprised and incredulous, stared at him, her mouth tightly shut, afraid to speak lest her heart jump out of her throat.
“Though I still hold my views, I won’t oppose you anymore. You can do what you want, but we need to reach some agreements.”
This was the best news Severella could hope for. She nodded eagerly. “Of course. What do you want me to promise?”
“If you don’t plan to marry him, then don’t sleep with him.”
“I know this might upset you. It’s a private matter, and I shouldn’t be the one to say it.”
“But I must say it: for a girl like you, purity is more important than anything else.”
“That’s my only condition.”
This was Wadrick’s final compromise. He understood better than most that this is still a patriarchal society. No matter how loud the women’s rights movements are, it’s not a women’s society yet.
Some power has been given to women, but real control remains with men.
Currently, the highest political female figure in the federation is just a mayor. In the federal parliament’s hundreds of seats, none are women, despite constant calls for inclusion.
Maybe that will change, but not within the next ten or twenty years.
In business, things are a bit freer, but no female chairs any major corporate board; it’s all men.
If things don’t work out and Severella marries a more ordinary man, he might reject her for losing her purity, thinking himself an
honest man
and not truly loving her.
For people of similar backgrounds, purity isn’t just about loyalty in marriage; it changes how they are perceived.
Marrying a promiscuous woman and marrying a pure one are completely different experiences for men.
Even if a marriage breaks down, a woman’s purity can earn her more sympathy from judges and society.
People like to see women faithful and wronged, crying over their wounds, so society can claim moral high ground and act. It may sound harsh, but that’s the reality.
So Wadrick’s one rule: no marriage, no intimacy.
Severella nodded immediately. “I agree, Father. I understand, and I know it’s the right decision. Anything else?”
Her smile was genuine and rare, making Wadrick unsure whether to feel happy or sad.
His daughter was growing up.
“Take our housekeeper, servants, and a few others with you. I don’t want you facing danger in that rundown place. Now…” He made a dismissive waving gesture.
Severella immediately stood up, lifted her skirt slightly, and bowed with a gentle knee bend. “Thank you, Father. I’m touched by your decision. You’re finally standing with me.”
Her mother added, “Breakfast was delicious. Thank you for everything you do every day. I’ll go pack now…”
Watching his daughter leave in a rush, Wadrick couldn’t help but laugh. His wife looked worried. “Is this really okay?”
“Whether it’s good or bad isn’t the point,” Wadrick said. “What matters is she wants to face life on her own. We should give her that chance.”
“She’s right. We can’t care for her forever. Eventually, we grow old and get buried in the ground. If I can take care of her now, what about later?”
“She has her own world, and one day she must face it herself.”
“As for Lynch and all this…” He glanced sideways at the smiling girl on the newspaper, casually adding, “It’s just a phone call. No need to worry. I like her courage when she stood up to me and how she spoke.”
“That shows she’s exceptional.”
Wadrick dabbed his mouth with a handkerchief. “This is her first real rebellion. It’s a day worth remembering.”
“We should always give her first rebellion a good outcome, shouldn’t we?”
Wadrick’s refined smile remained. Everything was under control.
The nightingale in the Wadrick household was about to fly out of its cage, truly stretching its wings in the sky. In Kurland City, others had seen the news too.
After all, Lynch—a rising business star with few scandals but many labels—was a magnet for media attention.
Add to that a young actress gradually stepping into the public eye, and people needed some distraction during these dull times.
In an apartment, Katherine’s closest friend glared angrily at the news and photos in the paper. “Say something, Katherine! Your boyfriend is cheating on you!”
Katherine lay lazily on the bed, stretching. “He’s not my boyfriend. We broke up, and I dumped him.”
She laughed thinking about it but still comforted her more upset friend. “Look, you didn’t see Lynch in high school. Back then, he was even more handsome than now.”
“Every day I had to deal with cheerleaders and even the last-row glasses-wearing nerds—lots of people were better than me. But in the end, I won.”
“If you really knew him, you’d understand maybe no one can truly enter his heart. Doesn’t that sound better?”
“Instead of worrying, why not sleep a little more or read a bit longer?”