Zhang Yu's icy voice, like the scraping of cold iron, resonated throughout the hall, each word striking like a hammer blow.
"Today, Li Dagang and Mo Zhai, my brothers, almost lost their lives at your hands."
This blood debt must be repaid in blood.
Qin Xuehua was both frightened and enraged by this undisguised Killing Intent. Her forced "motherly" authority made her blusteringly shrill out:
"Zhang Yu, you are my son, and my blood flows in your veins."
Xiao Heng and Wan Ning are your younger brothers and sisters, your blood relatives.
Are you really going to kill your own flesh and blood for the sake of a few unrelated strangers?
"Closest family members?"
Zhang Heng seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world. He suddenly raised his head, his eyes bloodshot, and laughed angrily:
"What a dear blood relative."
Back then, in the Zhang Family, how many times did you, at Zhang Heng's instigation, nearly kill me?
Who was pushed into the icy lake in the dead of winter?
Who was the one who tested the medicine on Zhang Heng and nearly died from poisoning?
Who was falsely accused of theft and nearly beaten to death by family discipline?
His gaze, like a poisoned knife, scraped across Qin Xuehua and Zhang Wanning's deathly pale faces.
"These are what you call your closest relatives?"
My dearest flesh and blood who wish I were dead?
Li Dagang and Mo Zhai saved my life when I was driven to the brink of despair by you and almost died on my way to seek medical treatment.
Their kindness is a thousand times more precious than your shameless, sucking-out bloodline.
Zhang Wanning felt a chill run down her spine from the deep-seated hatred and icy questioning in Zhang Yu's eyes, but her long-term pampering and self-righteous sibling ethics also enraged her, and she screamed:
Zhang Yu, are you ever going to stop?
They kept repeating the same old, trivial matters over and over again.
Yes, we were wrong before, but aren't your two brothers still alive?
Why are you so petty and insistent on holding onto this?
"Do you really want to drive your mother to her death and force our whole family to their demise before you're satisfied?"
Upon hearing this, the hall fell silent.
Although Xiao Sheng and Xiao Yun had long witnessed the shamelessness of the Zhang Family, they still couldn't help but get goosebumps when they heard Zhang Wanning's outrageous statement that "the person isn't dead, so don't bother with it."
The two exchanged a glance, both seeing in each other's eyes the shock of "never having seen such a shameless person."
Xiao Fenghua and Xiao Meier frowned deeply, their eyes filled with disdain as they looked at Zhang Wanning.
Hu Qingxuan and muttered under her breath:
"It doesn't matter if the person isn't dead?"
What if you die?
Oh, death is probably what they mean by 'What more do you want from someone who's already dead?'
That's really something.
Her gaze toward Zhang Yu couldn't help but carry a hint of sympathy.
No wonder this guy is so cold-hearted. Growing up with family like that, it's a miracle he didn't turn into a monster.
"Not dead?"
Zhang Yu seemed to have his suppressed anger completely ignited by this shameless remark.
He took a sudden step forward, his aura surging forth. Although he didn't deliberately suppress it, the icy rage that erupted in that instant sent a chill down everyone's spine.
"If His Your Highness Prince Qi hadn't arrived in time, and if the Imperial Family guards hadn't reacted swiftly and risked their lives to snatch them from the clutches of your ravenous servants, they would now be two cold corpses."
His gaze, sharp as lightning, shot towards Zhang Heng, whose eyes were darting away:
"Moreover, you used deadly methods, each move aimed to kill, leaving no room for retreat."
If they hadn't received timely treatment, even if they hadn't died, they would have been permanently disabled, living a life worse than death.
Zhang Wanning, tell me, is this what you call 'don't bother if they're not dead'?
"If it were you, Zhang Wanning, lying there today, or your mother, Qin Xuehua, would you still be able to say such things?"
Qin Xuehua and Zhang Wanning were rendered speechless by Zhang Yu's sharp aura and questioning, their faces turning pale and then red.
Seeing Zhang Yu relentlessly pursuing him, Zhang Heng felt both anxious and afraid.
That familiar feeling of jealousy and contempt for Zhang Yu surged up again, and he cursed indiscriminately:
What are you so smug about?
Zhang Yu, don't think we don't know.
You only got to where you are today by lining your own pockets when you were in charge of the Marquis Estate's estate, secretly accumulating capital, and then using our Zhang Family's money to curry favor with the Imperial Family.
You're a traitor, an ungrateful wretch.
Qin Xuehua and Zhang Wanning, as if grasping at the last straw, quickly echoed, "Yes, that must be it. Otherwise, where would a good-for-nothing like you, kicked out of your home, get the resources and connections?"
Hahahaha...
Zhang Yu laughed in extreme anger, his laughter filled with irony and sorrow.
He did not immediately refute, but instead turned his gaze to Prince Jing, Prince Qi, and others beside him.
Prince Jing's face had already darkened, and upon hearing this, he let out a cold laugh and said:
"Oh?
According to what you, Zhang Heng, said... oh no, according to the three of you, is the Great Wei Imperial Family so cheap?
With just a little gold and silver, you can make us Princes, Chairman Du of the Pill Association President Du, and even His Your Majesty look at Young Master Zhang differently, even... eagerly curry favor with him?
Ha! Are you trying to humiliate Young Master Zhang, or the entire Great Wei Imperial Family, or everyone present?!
Prince Qi also said calmly:
"I have only just seen the light of day. It turns out that in some people's eyes, the favor of the Imperial Family can actually be bought with money."
It's... pathetically stupid, and ridiculously stupid.
Although Prince Rui, Du Jun, and the others did not speak, their facial expressions said it all.
The Imperial Family is so noble; how could the value Zhang Yu has demonstrated be measured by mere money?
These members of the Zhang Family are utterly foolish.
Zhang Yu stopped laughing and looked at Zhang Heng, his eyes as cold as knives.
You're accusing me of embezzling funds?
"Alright, today I'll settle this with you!"
"When I took over the Marquis Estate's estate, the Marquis Estate held less than three thousand taels of silver, with an annual income of only one hundred thousand taels, and even a large amount of foreign debt."
"In just three years, I not only paid off all the old debts, but also made the Marquis Estate's annual income stable at over one million taels."
Farmland, shops, and trade routes all prospered.
Every single account is documented and traceable, and everything is crystal clear.
If I were to embezzle funds, would the Marquis Estate become poorer or richer?
He paused, his gaze sharply fixed on Qin Xuehua, whose eyes were darting around:
"Furthermore, your Zhang Family Freight Station has repeatedly purchased goods from my Merchant Guild of Commerce at prices 30% to 50% lower than the market price."
"If I were to line my own pockets and enrich myself at the expense of the public, why would I do such a losing business and benefit your Zhang Family?"
"This..."
Qin Xuehua was struck dumb, her mouth agape, but no sound came out.
Zhang Yu's words were all true, striking her heart like a hammer blow.
She later checked the Marquis Estate's accounts and found that Zhang Yu had indeed turned a profit and the family was thriving.
Zhang Family's Freight Station... has indeed been purchasing goods at half price.
Now that Zhang Yu had exposed her in public, she felt a burning pain on her face, as if she had been stripped naked in front of everyone.
Zhang Heng's face turned deathly pale. His previous accusation that Zhang Yu had embezzled funds was nothing more than a rash and habitual slander made in a fit of anger. Now, Zhang Yu refuted him with solid data and facts, leaving him speechless.
His little scheme was completely shattered, leaving him only with endless embarrassment and fear.
Zhang Wanning was also stunned. Although she didn't Steward, she knew that the Marquis Estate had indeed become much more prosperous under Zhang Yu's management.
Her expensive jewelry and clothes also largely depend on this.
Now that she's been so blatantly exposed, she suddenly realizes that her family might actually be the real "parasites"...
The hall was deathly silent. Only Zhang Yu's icy voice, like a final judgment, echoed in everyone's ears:
"Now, what else do you have to say?"