Chapter 2

"Weng Shao? He's just an ungrateful wolf, with his eyes buried in money..."

Weng Shao could not understand it. He merely wanted an easier life—why did that earn him everyone's curses and condemnation? His closest relatives used the most vicious words to curse him and the most vile suspicions to judge him. Countless times, he had defended himself, tried every way to please them, wagging his tail and begging for scraps of affection, imagining that he could move his family with his actions. Yet all his humility earned him was ever-growing humiliation and wariness.

It was only when they had squeezed out every last drop of his remaining value, kicked him out of the company, and driven him from the house that Weng Shao finally saw how pathetic and laughable he had been, always fantasizing that his family would accept him.

How could someone be as foolish and cheap as he had been?

Since everyone thought he was an ungrateful wolf, thought he harbored ulterior motives, thought he had returned to the Weng family only for money, then he would give them exactly what they wanted!

After being driven from the family, Weng Shao immediately went to the Weng family's greatest competitor. Within just a few years, he brought the Weng Group, painstakingly built by Weng Yingjie, crashing down—since no one wanted him to live well, then no one would live well at all.

Whatever others had been stingy about giving him, whether money, power, or affection, he would fight for it and seize it himself.

He had once dreamed of receiving so, so much love. Since he could not have that, then so, so much money would do. One day, he would make everyone who had looked down on him, humiliated him, and betrayed him pay the price.

"Weng Shao, did you hear a word I said?"

Someone smacked the back of his head hard, and the dull pain completely woke Weng Shao. Somewhat sluggishly, he turned his head to look at the person who had hit him.

The sight of Weng Shao looking half-dead made Weng Yingjie furious. He had silently caused such a huge mess, turning him into a laughingstock before everyone, and now he wanted to pretend he was innocent?

"I told you to kneel and apologize to your father. Did you hear me?" Weng Yingjie berated him harshly. "How did I ever give birth to such a heartless, ungrateful son? For money, you have no regard for decency or shame. You actually wanted to abandon the parents who raised you for eighteen years..."

Weng Shao studied Weng Yingjie's still-youthful face with curiosity. In Weng Shao's memories, this man, whom he had enraged into having a stroke and then sent to a sanatorium, had long been at death's door. His mouth could only drool, and he could not even form a complete sentence. How could he possibly still have the tongue and strength to nag and curse like this?

"Why are you looking at me?" The hairs on Weng Yingjie's back rose under Weng Shao's stare, and he instinctively raised his voice.

Having spent years away from home building his career, Weng Yingjie was not familiar with this son he had already adopted out to his elder brother. After all, he had spent these years occupied with business and rarely returned to his hometown, so naturally he had even fewer interactions with Weng Shao. He only knew that this was an overly quiet, obedient child, and he had heard his grades were fairly good.

It was not until Weng Shao suddenly went mad at a banquet, publicly revealing his own parentage and clamoring to acknowledge his biological parents, that Weng Yingjie realized trouble had come knocking.

Weng Yingjie greatly disliked Weng Shao's presumptuousness. He thought this child was far too calculating and of poor character. At such a young age, he was actually willing to heartlessly abandon the eldest uncle who had raised him for eighteen years for the sake of wealth and splendor. Weng Yingjie found that deeply disappointing.

What made Weng Yingjie even angrier—what even sent a chill through him from the bottom of his heart—was the ambition and resentment revealed in Weng Shao's eyes.

"Don't look at me like that, you ill-bred thing!" Embarrassed into anger, Weng Yingjie shouted again. "You've clearly been spoiled rotten by your parents. Today, I'll teach you a proper lesson on behalf of my elder brother, you disobedient child!"

As he spoke, Weng Yingjie raised his hand and swung it hard at Weng Shao's face.

Twenty years ago, eighteen-year-old Weng Shao had been caught completely off guard and received that slap squarely across the face. For the next two months, with the red, swollen handprint on his cheek and the flood of spit flying at him from every direction, he endured the darkest, most desperate days of his senior year. That sudden accident even affected the academic performance Weng Shao had always been proud of. In the end, his grades plummeted, he lost his guaranteed admission, and he was only accepted into the lowest-ranked 985 university in Jinghai City.

But now—

Weng Shao took a step back and avoided the slap.

Weng Yingjie's fingertips barely brushed past Weng Shao's nose. The suddenly uncontrolled force threw off his balance, and inertia made him stagger forward. With a sharp smack, that runaway slap landed heavily on the face of Weng Yingjie's father—Old Master Weng.

Author's Note:

The story is starting! It's still my favorite old-school, melodramatic wealthy-family infighting style. Feeding myself with my own work~~~

Original quote: "I want a great, great deal of love. If there is no love, then a great, great deal of money." — Yi Shu, The Story of Xi Bao

Chapter 2

The crisp sound of a slap rang out, and everyone froze.

"Why is the Weng family's second son raising a hand against Old Master Weng?"

"A son actually dared to hit his father? He'll be struck by lightning for that!"

"The Weng family's second son didn't do it on purpose. He wanted to hit Weng Shao, but Weng Shao dodged, so the slap landed on Old Master Weng's face."

The scattered whispers made Old Master Weng's face flush crimson. With a red, swollen handprint on his face, he shouted sternly, "What is going on here?!"

Weng Yingjie explained helplessly, "I didn't... I didn't expect that slap to... Dad, are you all right?"

"Enough!" Old Master Weng impatiently knocked Weng Yingjie's hand away. "Haven't you embarrassed us enough?"

Old Master Weng covered his face, his cloudy, dead-fish eyes fixed tightly on Weng Shao. "Stop making trouble too. I don't know what Huixin told you, but you are indeed your second uncle's biological son. However, your second uncle adopted you out to your eldest uncle long ago. According to the customs here, you are now your eldest uncle's son. I know you're unhappy about it, but that is your fate. You have to accept it!"

Seeing Old Master Weng so full of vigor, Weng Shao knew he must be dreaming. Otherwise, how could he be seeing a dead man speak?

After such an embarrassing spectacle, Weng Yingjie had no intention of allowing the other clan members to keep laughing at them. He echoed Old Master Weng's words. "Your grandfather is right. I adopted you out to your eldest uncle, so you are his son. You must be filial to him, support him in his old age, and see to his funeral. Stop entertaining those foolish thoughts. Having your elder brother and younger brother is enough for me." The implication was clear: he had never intended to take Weng Shao back, nor did he lack sons.

A mocking curve suddenly touched Weng Shao's lips. "Whose son I am is not important. What matters is that you treated me as a bargaining chip to repay a debt of gratitude, wanting me to take your place and support the elder brother who saved your life in his old age. Since I need money for school now, shouldn't you be the one paying for it too?"

Perhaps the cold mockery on his face stung this family's self-righteousness. The Weng family, already humiliated, suddenly darkened their expressions. Even the two Weng brothers, who had remained silent until then, could no longer sit still.

"What exactly do you want? I truly don't understand. Whether you are Dad's son or Eldest Uncle's son, aren't you both Weng family blood? Since we are all family, why must you make things so ugly for your own selfish interests?" Weng Zhen stood up and righteously accused Weng Shao.

Weng Shao laughed. Sure enough, they were still the same rotten people. Even in his dream, all they could do was spout this self-righteous crap.

"Since we're all family, why must I be Eldest Uncle's son? How about we switch?" Weng Shao remained perfectly calm, without the slightest indignation despite being cursed to his face. "You can be Eldest Uncle's son. Feed the pigs and chickens every day, ride a tricycle to sell vegetables from a roadside stall, and wipe shit and serve piss for a paralyzed man. You aren't selfish—you're kind and righteous. I'm sure you'll make an excellent filial son and grandson."

Weng Zhen's face turned red with rage after just a few words from Weng Shao. He had never expected that the taciturn country bumpkin from his memories would say something so cutting. "Can you stop making unreasonable trouble and twisting logic here? I'm not Eldest Uncle's son. Why should I do those things—"

"Neither am I." Weng Shao looked at the furious Weng Zhen and smiled meaningfully. "You said it yourself. We're all family, so shouldn't we share hardship and happiness? We were all born to the same parents. I've already suffered for eighteen years and repaid our parents' debt of gratitude for eighteen years. Even taking turns, shouldn't it be your turn now? We're biological brothers, and you're even four years older than me! There's no reason for all of you to enjoy the blessings while I suffer the hardship, only for you to turn around and accuse me of not doing enough."

Weng Shao's logic was simple: whoever wanted to point fingers at him could switch places with him.

Weng Zhen's face went red and white. He instinctively avoided Weng Shao's gaze and cursed, "You're insane. I can't be bothered with you."

Weng Shao sneered. He knew that Weng Zhen, that two-faced bastard, only knew how to stand on the moral high ground and say self-righteous things. Once his own interests were involved, he turned on people faster than anyone. In his previous life, after Weng Shao joined forces with Pei Xingze to bring down the Weng family and swallow the Weng Group, Weng Zhen had actually wanted to hire kidnappers to abduct him. How could someone like that possibly give up his status as the Weng family's eldest young master to clean up shit and piss for a paralyzed eldest uncle?

In the eyes of their family, the disabled Weng Yingxiong no longer had any value to exploit. Yu Huixin and Weng Shao, by extension, were also regarded as burdens. Even though Weng Shao was Weng Yingjie's biological son.

"You don't want to switch? Then Weng Sui can go instead." Weng Shao's dark eyes shifted slightly as he looked at the bewildered Weng Sui standing to the side. "The two of us are twin brothers, born in the same year, month, and day. Since our parents want to use a child to repay a debt of gratitude, they shouldn't just sacrifice me. Everyone should have a share. That's what fairness is!"

"N-No, I don't want to..." Weng Sui looked deathly pale as he turned to Weng Yingjie and Zhou Shujing, pleading tearfully, "Dad, Mom, I don't want to leave you—"

Zhou Shujing hurriedly pulled him into her arms and shot Weng Shao a vicious glare. "Adopting you out to your eldest uncle was a decision made by your father and grandfather. Why are you frightening Xiao Sui?"

Weng Yingjie likewise glared at Weng Shao in disgust. Clearly, compared to Weng Shao, who had been adopted out from birth, had little contact or affection with him, and had humiliated him before all their relatives and fellow townspeople, Weng Yingjie cared far more about Weng Zhen and Weng Sui, who had been raised at his side since childhood—clever, sensible, obedient, and considerate. He sternly berated Weng Shao, "Stop saying such meaningless things to sow discord. Adopting you out to your eldest uncle was a joint decision by your grandfather and me. There is no room for you to bargain—"