The Bigger Picture, Apology, and the Instigator

The Bigger Picture, Apology, and the Instigator

Inside the gymnasium

Tang Long had long since lost his earlier arrogant demeanor. Like an eggplant wilted by frost, he had completely shriveled up.

He still remembered how, not long ago, Grandpa had spent a great price to send his eldest brother into a Martial Arts Academy.

Everyone who could enter that Martial Arts Academy was, without exception, a peerless genius and monstrous talent like his brother.

Yesterday, while his brother was showering, he had secretly checked his phone and discovered a group chat. He had originally wanted to see in detail which families' young masters and young ladies were in it.

But before he could take a proper look, his brother caught him red-handed and gave him a severe scolding.

"Tang Long, I don't care what kind of behavior you had before. Remember to keep yourself in line now. North Sea is no longer what it used to be. If you create trouble for the family out of nowhere, I won't mind breaking your legs. You can spend the rest of your life in the family as a tool to carry on the bloodline. That would count as contributing to the family!"

His elder brother's icy voice still echoed in his ears.

He had always known his place in the Tang Family. Everyone thought he was the Tang Family's second young master, but only he knew that, in his grandfather's and elder brother's eyes, he was nothing but trash. From childhood to adulthood, they had never truly looked at him.

At first, Tang Long studied hard, but no one cared. Later, he became what he was now, and still no one cared. His brother, who was only a year older than him, never cared what he did.

Yet yesterday, the elder brother who had never bothered with him warned Tang Long not to offend people he could not afford to offend. The first thing Tang Long thought of was the group his brother had recently joined—the Martial Arts Academy's group.

He had already prepared himself to keep his head down, so how had he been so unlucky as to run straight into one of them?

At that moment, his phone kept buzzing. It was his elder brother calling. Under normal circumstances, he might have answered excitedly long ago, but now, he did not dare pick up.

"I've always kept a low profile at school. I only wanted to study properly, so there shouldn't have been any intersection between us. Why did you come looking for trouble with me?"

"Could it be that your brother doesn't like the look of me?"

Su Tu looked down at Tang Long.

He had never met Tang Long before. In fact, because he had been so focused on studying, he had not even heard of Tang Long's notorious reputation. Their only connection was that Tang Long's brother, Tang Yangwu, was also Zhou Wuliang's student.

But Su Tu had spoken with Tang Yangwu yesterday. The man had seemed quite mild-tempered and had been very friendly in conversation. If Su Tu remembered correctly, Tang Yangwu had even been the first person from the group to add him.

"No! It has nothing to do with my brother!" Tang Long hurriedly explained.

He had long lost his earlier lofty attitude. Like a child who had done something wrong, he was at a loss, explaining himself in a panic.

"It's... it's because of Wang Nuannuan!"

"Wang Nuannuan?"

At those words, the adorable girl with baby fat appeared in Su Tu's mind.

"What does this have to do with her?"

"I've liked Wang Nuannuan for six years. I've liked her since middle school, so I came to Green Vine Academy."

"If you like her, go pursue her. Why come looking for me?"

Sure enough, students were always caught up in these trivial matters. You liked him, he liked her, she liked "her"—a complete mess.

"Because... because after Wang Nuannuan confessed to you, she kept her student status and took a long leave from school."

"So you think that was because of me?" Su Tu looked speechlessly at Tang Long. They were clearly around the same age, yet Tang Long looked to him like a little brat who had not been weaned. Over something like this, he had actually brought a group of people armed with baseball bats to cause trouble for him.

"Mm." Tang Long's voice was now as faint as a mosquito's buzz.

"You've really got ambition, don't you?! For Wang Nuannuan, do you even know who Wang Nuannuan is?!" Suddenly, an angry roar came from the doorway. Tang Yangwu strode in with great strides.

Seeing this, the young heirs around them did not even dare raise their heads. They finally understood what it meant to kick an iron plate. They could not beat him in a fight, could not outthink him, and now it seemed they could not match his status either.

They were all the "discarded sons" of their respective families. It was difficult for them to even come into contact with the true heirs, while Tang Yangwu was the Tang Family's genuine future successor. His status was on an entirely different level from theirs.

"Big Brother." Tang Long trembled all over as if a mouse had seen a cat upon seeing Tang Yangwu.

Slap!!!

Tang Yangwu seemed to appear before his younger brother in an instant and mercilessly slapped him across the face.

He had not held back. Half of Tang Long's face immediately swelled, and bright red blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

"Sorry, Su Tu. I didn't know he would provoke you. This matter has nothing to do with me, so don't misunderstand."

"We study under the same master. Hurting you would do me no good, and it would only make our teacher think poorly of me."

Tang Yangwu explained himself to Su Tu cleanly and directly.

Actually, Su Tu had already figured it out before Tang Yangwu arrived. This should have been a misunderstanding. Still, the other party needed to be made aware of it. After all, mouths were made for speaking. It might not seem like a big deal now, but if it was not said clearly, there was no telling what it might become in the future.

"It was indeed a misunderstanding. I've already asked and cleared things up. Don't worry about it." Su Tu waved his hand dismissively.

Only then did Tang Yangwu relax. It seemed Su Tu was not a petty man. For a moment, Tang Yangwu regarded Su Tu's character even more highly.

Then, he turned his gaze toward the group of young heirs. "Do you want me to ask you to get lost?"

At once, they scattered like birds and beasts, not one of them sparing Tang Long a glance from beginning to end.

"These are your good brothers?" Tang Yangwu said angrily, disappointed that Tang Long refused to improve.

"Do you know that the Wang Family, like ours, has a Martial Dao inheritance? Wang Nuannuan is the same age as you, yet she possesses Martial Dao talent. Her Flawless Mind means she no longer needs to study. She needs to temper her body now, which is why she no longer comes to school."

"In her eyes, what are you? And you still wanted to stand up for her?"

Hearing Tang Yangwu's words, Tang Long wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and felt bitterness well up in his heart. So he had been that laughable. So they had never belonged to the same world.

"But Kong Lun also said..." he instinctively began, but swallowed the rest.

It did not matter what anyone had said anymore. He had done it all willingly.

"Kong Lun? What did he say?" But upon hearing that name, Tang Yangwu frowned.

Only then did Tang Long speak.

Tang Long had always secretly loved Wang Nuannuan. It was no secret, and quite a few people in their circle knew about it.

A few days ago, Wang Nuannuan handing Su Tu a love letter at the school gate had made Tang Long furious. Still, he had merely looked into Su Tu and had not done anything excessive.

But afterward, a young heir named Kong Lun, who often hung around with him, passed him some news: because of Su Tu, Wang Nuannuan had kept her student status and was going far away to New Star.

The moment he heard that, Tang Long could no longer suppress the fire in his heart. That was how the scene from earlier came about.

After hearing the whole story, a cold glint appeared on Tang Yangwu's face. "The Kong Family..."

Then he looked apologetically at Su Tu. "Sorry. My younger brother was used as someone else's weapon."

"What do you mean?" Su Tu frowned slightly. It seemed there was more to this matter.

Tang Yangwu sighed, glanced at his pitiful younger brother, and said, "When you came to the Martial Arts Academy, you should have noticed that many people our age were waiting outside, right?"

Su Tu remembered the scene and nodded.

"Kong Qiu was also outside then. If the Red Seal had not appeared, with his talent, he would have had a chance to become Old Zhou's disciple. But you appeared, and Old Zhou only accepted seven disciples. So he lost that chance."

"From what I know of him, he would not have shown any reaction at the time. He might even have acted like everyone else, appearing envious and regretful, but deep down, he would already have held a grudge."

"And Kong Lun is his younger brother. They probably investigated your identity, discovered that you attended the same school as my brother, and that led to what happened today."

Tang Yangwu analyzed the situation calmly. The Kong Family and the Tang Family were of roughly equal status. The Tang Family might be wealthier, but the Kong Family's inheritance went back further. In terms of Martial Dao alone, the Tang Family could not compare to the Kong Family.

"He wanted to use this method to cripple me? Then replace me?"

Su Tu raised his brows, his tone turning grim.

"Probably not. Kong Qiu has already entered another martial academy, and his teacher is quite strong."

"Then why?"

"Because he can't stand seeing other people doing well. He puts on a reasonable front, but if you touch his interests, he'll find every possible way to make things unpleasant for you and set what he calls reason straight."

Tang Yangwu did not finish his sentence, but Su Tu could already imagine that the method of "setting things straight" would not be very friendly.

"Su Tu, my family has wronged you in this matter. No matter what, Xiao Long offended you. If you're willing, you can come stay at my Tang Family home for a while."

Tang Yangwu's mind raced. Was this not the perfect chance to build a relationship with Su Tu?

"No need to trouble yourself. I'm particular about where I sleep. I'm not used to sleeping in a different place." Su Tu politely declined Tang Yangwu's goodwill.

He could avoid it for a while, but not forever. What was meant to come would come. Su Tu was not someone who liked to run away. He would carve a path through mountains and build a bridge over water. If there was no road ahead, then he would make another. That was his style.

"All right. Then take this."

"Consider it my apology on behalf of my younger brother."

Tang Yangwu took an exquisitely crafted small box from his clothes and handed it over.

The box was covered in mechanical gears that spun continuously.

"What is this?"

"A compound nutritional supplement. One dose contains roughly the nutritional protein provided by ten cows. You've only just established your Martial Dao Foundation, so this is exactly when you need to replenish what your body lacks."