Chapter 16

Behind Pei Xingze, the media reporters entrusted with an important mission had begun filming and following Weng Shao the moment he got out of the car.

Through the camera lens, the kindly-looking Pei Xingze personally handed Weng Shao a five-thousand-yuan cash check in front of Yu Huixin. Weng Shao then held up the check and took a commemorative photo with Pei Xingze. Looking utterly bewildered, Yu Huixin was pulled over by Weng Shao to join the picture.

The murmurs around them reached Yu Huixin's ears, and she finally realized what was happening. "You found a kind person to sponsor your education?"

"It's not just sponsorship for school—" Weng Shao was about to share the good news that Pei Xingze had arranged for the two of them to work at Lakeside Garden as a property consultant and a cleaner when an angry voice cut him off.

"Don't take his money!" An elderly man with a full head of white hair forcefully shoved through the crowd gathered at the entrance and strode into the courtyard. At a glance, he spotted the three people standing side by side.

"You ungrateful beast! For a mere few thousand yuan, you actually hooked up with our family's enemy? Is that all you're worth? You shameless thing..." Old Master Weng flew into a rage, pointing at Weng Shao's nose as he cursed him viciously.

Weng Shao watched the hysterical Old Master Weng expressionlessly and said nothing. Yet his attitude instead triggered Old Master Weng's memories. He immediately recalled how Weng Shao had aggressively provoked him into fainting at the banquet. Afterward, that little beast had even refused to repent or admit his mistakes.

The more Old Master Weng thought about it, the harder his hands shook with rage. Old grudges and new hatred combined, and his gaze toward Weng Shao seemed poisoned.

"You greedy bastard!" With trembling hands, he reached into his pocket, pulled out a stack of cash, and viciously hurled it at Weng Shao's head. "How did I raise such a shameless grandson? Don't you just want money? Fine! I'll give you money!"

Pei Xingze, standing beside Weng Shao, took a large step forward and placed himself directly in front of him.

Red banknotes fluttered through the air, while the old man's venomous curses filled his ears. The onlookers pointing and whispering around him gradually blurred and twisted, and countless faces filled with disgust, contempt, hatred, and revulsion suddenly appeared before Weng Shao's eyes—

"Weng Shao, you lunatic! To take revenge on us, on Dad and Mom, you actually joined forces with the Pei family? What do you think you can gain from this? You're nothing but a dog wagging its tail and begging at Pei Xingze's side!"

"You damn homosexual! To win over Pei Xingze, you actually climbed into his bed on your own? You've completely disgraced the Weng family! There's no one in the Weng family as willing to degrade themselves as you!"

"You ungrateful bastard. If I'd known you would one day join outsiders in stealing the Weng Group, I never should have softened my heart and let you come back."

"Why aren't you dead yet?"

"Go die!"

In the end, every image froze on Old Master Weng's twisted face as the villagers tried to restrain him with a flurry of words, yet he continued struggling furiously and cursing without end. "Do you think you'll live a good life after destroying the Weng family? You're nothing but a weapon someone else is using against Yingjie!"

"If I'd known you would become like this, I should have thrown you into a toilet and drowned you back then. You unfilial, rebellious spawn..."

Seeing Old Master Weng rely on his age to throw his weight around, his words growing uglier and uglier, Pei Xingze, who stood protectively in front of Weng Shao, gave the reporters a look.

The media reporters, whose cameras had been rolling all along, immediately rushed up to Old Master Weng. "So you're Weng Shao's grandfather. May we ask why, as an elder, you use such vicious language to curse your own grandson?"

Old Master Weng instinctively shoved away the camera thrust in front of him. "Where the hell did you little bastard come from? This is our family business. Outsiders should stay out of it."

"You keep calling Weng Shao rebellious and unfilial, but as far as we know, Weng Shao has always been an outstanding student with excellent character and grades. Exactly how has Weng Shao been unfilial to make you so dissatisfied?"

"You've all been deceived by him. He's an ungrateful, heartless wretch. For money, he could ruthlessly abandon his adoptive father. Isn't that enough to prove he's unfilial?"

"However, as far as we know, Weng Shao wanted to acknowledge his biological parents because he hoped Mr. Weng Yingjie would sponsor his university education. As Weng Shao's biological father and legally his second uncle, Mr. Weng Yingjie is Weng Shao's relative by both blood and law. Why is he unwilling to sponsor Weng Shao's education?"

"Some netizens previously questioned whether Weng Yingjie spends millions every year on charity but refuses to sponsor his own biological son, who is also nominally the son of the elder brother who saved his life, because he is not truly charitable at all. They believe he is merely using charity as a publicity stunt and is actually an ungrateful hypocrite. What is your opinion on these doubts?"

"Weng Yingjie refuses to pay for his biological son's education, but after hearing about this, the Pei Group was willing to sponsor Weng Shao. Yet you, his grandfather, strongly opposed it. Why? Don't you want your grandson to attend university?"

"We also heard that you previously used illness as an excuse to make Weng Shao suspend his studies and go to the hospital to care for you. Weng Shao refused, so you called him unfilial, correct? What were you thinking when you asked a senior high school student about to take the college entrance exams to abandon his studies and care for you?"

How could Old Master Weng possibly answer such pointed questions? Just as he was struggling to respond and nearly collapsing under the reporters' questions, Weng Yingjie's family finally appeared.

"Dad!"

"Grandpa!"

The brothers Weng Zhen and Weng Sui pushed through the crowd and stepped forward to support Old Master Weng. Weng Zhen glared furiously at Weng Shao and rebuked him with righteous indignation. "You're Grandpa's biological grandson, yet you just stand there and watch those reporters make things difficult for him? Then again, you brought those reporters here in the first place. You want Grandpa to lose all face. You want to disgrace our Weng family. You're taking revenge on us."

"Are you angry?" Weng Shao looked directly into Weng Zhen's eyes and said coldly, "I was angry too when reporters surrounded me at the examination center. When you found reporters to gang up on me and wanted to see me condemned by thousands and spat on by all, did you ever think that one day, the same thing would happen to you?"

Author's Note:

Chapter 16

"Enough!" Seeing Weng Zhen's momentum being suppressed by Weng Shao, Weng Yingjie had no choice but to step forward with a livid face. "No matter what, we're family. Did you really need to publicize our family affairs so everyone would know?"

As he said this, Weng Yingjie deliberately glanced at the reporters and sneered, "You even brought reporters here? What are you trying to do? Do you want to disgrace the entire Weng family and anger your grandfather to death?"

"Weng Shao, hurry up and apologize to Grandpa!" Weng Sui supported Old Master Weng, patting his back to calm him while reproaching Weng Shao with concern. "You grew up by Grandpa's side. He loved you the most. How could you make him angry?"

"This old gentleman looks robust and healthy, and his voice is loud and strong. He doesn't look like someone who could be angered to death." Before Weng Shao could speak, Pei Xingze took over. "Chairman Weng, you clearly knew I had brought reporters here for an interview, yet you deliberately sent an old man with a filthy mouth to come here, play crazy, and make a scene. You were obviously trying to ruin my plans. Now that you've failed, you want to throw dirt on us?"

Pei Xingze clicked his tongue and shook his head, his expression amused. "Chairman Weng's methods truly are... as lowly as ever."

Weng Yingjie's face darkened. He looked at Pei Xingze with a sinister gaze. "This is a matter for the Weng family. It is not an outsider's place to comment. If Mr. Pei has nothing else to do, take your reporters and leave. The Weng family does not welcome you."

Pei Xingze raised an eyebrow with interest and was just about to say something when Weng Shao slowly spoke behind him. "Why should the reporters leave?"

Everyone turned toward the voice and saw Weng Shao smile tenderly as he stepped out from behind Pei Xingze, one step at a time.

On a midsummer evening, the golden sun was setting in the west. The brilliant sunset made the young man's face look as soft as spring water, but his words were sharp as blades. "I thought everyone in the Weng family liked dealing with reporters. Otherwise, why would you pay reporters to interview me at the examination center on the day of the college entrance exams?"

At Weng Shao's words, Weng Yingjie's face darkened even further. "You're a member of the Weng family too."

"Am I?" Weng Shao's peach-blossom eyes curved into an affectionate smile, but there was not a trace of amusement in them. "I thought you didn't know that."

Weng Shao's mockery was too cutting. Unable to save face, Weng Yingjie opened his mouth to curse him. But the camera was thrust right in front of him, and mindful of the family scandal, Weng Yingjie could only swallow his anger for now. "Don't you just want to acknowledge us and have us sponsor your education? Fine. I agree. Send these irrelevant outsiders away first. Whatever needs to be discussed, we can talk about it slowly behind closed doors as a family."

Hearing Weng Yingjie's words, Weng Zhen and Weng Sui frowned at the same time. The terms Weng Yingjie offered differed from what they had discussed at home. Still, the brothers could understand. Given Weng Shao's insatiable greed, along with Pei Xingze stirring things up, Weng Shao might not obey unless their father raised the stakes.

Weng Zhen's gaze grew increasingly cold. He stared at Weng Shao, but what he was thinking was, Once this crisis is over, let's see how I deal with Weng Shao!

Weng Sui also looked at Weng Shao with obvious disapproval. He knew it—Weng Shao was nothing but a profit-driven ingrate. He had been painstakingly currying favor with the Weng family's enemy, and now that the situation was unfavorable for the Weng family, he was raising his price on the spot. What right did someone like him have to be his older brother?

He didn't deserve it at all!

Weng Shao laughed disdainfully. He looked at Weng Yingjie in disbelief, as though he had not expected him to truly be this stupid. "Don't tell me that even now, you think I would humble myself and acknowledge a thief as my father for a few thousand yuan?"

Weng Yingjie's heart skipped a beat at those words. He looked viciously at Weng Shao and asked instinctively, "What did you say?"

"I said you're as stupid as a pig!" Weng Shao laughed until tears streamed down his face. "You call me ambitious and insatiably greedy, so how could you think a mere few thousand yuan would buy me off and make me obediently listen to you? Or have you known from the beginning that I, Weng Shao, have always been an idiot you could summon with a wave and dismiss with a flick of your hand? That all you had to do was crook a finger, and I would give you my whole heart, then wipe away your spit with a smile?"