Stop Calling Me Brother All the Time—Are You a Rooster?

As the only classmate who knew Xie Chen's "true background," Lu Fei felt the pressure double.

Especially when he saw the WeChat screenshots, he knew this marked the beginning of his classmate's war against his adoptive family.

Lu Fei had known for a long time that Xie Chen was a master at controlling his scores.

To satisfy his adoptive family's need to suppress and control him, he performed only average on every test. Unless it was something decisive, like advancing to graduate school or studying abroad, he never showed his true abilities.

And Lu Fei had been fortunate enough to witness those "miracles" every time.

For example, someone ranked in the bottom hundred of the grade suddenly becoming the provincial top scorer in the college entrance exam.

Or the only overseas study spot going to a failing student who had barely graduated after constantly flunking two subjects.

Or a top overseas institution packed with elites making an exception to hire a Chinese professor as its youngest lecturer of classic case studies...

There were far too many examples to list.

If the Xie Family hadn't ordered his classmate to return to the country, he might have long since become a senior partner on some Wall Street firm!

When Lu Fei had gone to pick him up from the airport, he had been quite confused. "Things were going so well abroad. Why come back?!"

"Big Brother said the Xie Family needed me."

That was how Xie Chen had answered. Lu Fei had even sneered inwardly,

Did they need a person?!

Or did they need a loyal, obedient dog?!

Even an outsider like Lu Fei couldn't stand the way Xie Chen had been treated after the adoption. How excessive must that family have been?!

Had Xie Chen finally awakened now?!

Was he finally done enduring it?!

Lu Fei had followed the variety show livestream from start to finish.

Seeing Xie Chen tear into those two brothers had felt especially satisfying!

Sure enough, once he stopped being polite, he became so much better!

With that thought, Lu Fei unhesitatingly sent the WeChat screenshots to a reporter he somewhat knew. The other side quickly replied,

[Are these screenshots real? They're not edited, right?!]

Lu Fei's fingers flew over the screen. [Would I dare send them to you if they were edited?! This is such a hot topic right now. Spreading rumors could get someone sued.]

[True, but I really didn't expect this to involve the Xie Family! Wasn't Xie Chen adopted by them? Why would they pay to have one of his legs broken?! Do they have no feelings for him at all?!]

Filled with righteous indignation, Lu Fei replied, [Feelings, my ass. Ever since they adopted Xie Chen, they treated him like a dog. Now that the dog won't obey, they want to teach him a lesson!]

[Xie Chen is kind of pitiful. Even cutting ties with them isn't enough—they have to break one of his legs?!] The reporter began sympathizing with Xie Chen's situation, but still hesitated. [You want me to expose this? But the Xie Family has a PR department too. I'm afraid it'll get suppressed quickly.]

[It's fine. Just expose it. Leave the rest to me.]

After Lu Fei sent that message, the other side replied with an OK hand gesture.

Satisfied, he put away his phone and quietly waited for the situation to continue spiraling out of control.

Sure enough,

Xie Chen, who had gone straight into the kitchen to stew chicken after finishing the afternoon's tasks, was found by Xie Jinran, who immediately launched into a barrage of accusations.

"You did this, didn't you? You left the Xie Family unwilling to accept it, so now you're starting rumors and causing trouble?!"

Xie Chen turned around while wielding a large ladle. "What rumors? What trouble? Can you finish your nonsense properly?"

Seeing the "weapon" in his hand, Xie Jinran warily took a step back. "Did you post the WeChat screenshots online?! You actually had the nerve to use such crude Photoshop tricks?!"

He had just gotten a call from Big Brother saying that the matter involving Biaozi had spread online.

There was a ninety percent chance Xie Chen had done it, because only he had the opportunity to access Biaozi's phone.

As soon as it hit Weibo's trending searches, the Xie Group's PR department had people take it down. Yet this huge scoop sprang up like mushrooms after rain—delete one post, and another appeared. It simply never ended.

Big Brother had determined that Xie Chen was behind it, which was why he had sent Xie Jinran to pressure him into deleting it.

Otherwise, if they delayed any longer, the group's image would definitely suffer!

Xie Jinran was anxious too, and he shouted angrily, "Hurry up and have them delete the Weibo posts, or Big Brother won't let this go!"

Xie Chen laughed when he heard that. "How exactly won't he let it go? Is he planning to hire someone to kill me again?!"

"What kind of nonsense is that?!" Xie Jinran cast a wary glance at the camera and tried to sound righteous. "The Xie Family raised you from the age of three. Even if there was no merit, there was still effort. How could you maliciously slander us like this?!"

[Is this huge scoop really something Xie Chen posted?! The WeChat screenshots said the person who transferred the money was Xie Zhenting's secretary! Does that person even exist?! Could this be malicious framing?]

[I just wanted to watch a variety show in peace, but it turned into a spy drama. What was the director thinking? Can't these guests calm down a little, especially Xie Chen? He's been jumping around everywhere. All we get to watch is his performance!]

[Is something wrong with the person above? What kind of victim-blaming is that?! Xie Chen helped Bright Village get a water supply. That's called doing real work!]

[Exactly. Watch if you want, get lost if you don't!]

[I'm increasingly convinced these are trolls hired by the Xie Family. Nothing they say makes any sense; they're just blindly taking sides!]

Xie Chen slowly stirred the chicken in the pot. "Malicious slander? If the screenshots are fake, then that would be malicious slander. But what if they're real?"

"How could they be real?!" Xie Jinran felt somewhat guilty, but his tone did not yield in the slightest. "Whether they're real or not, take down the Weibo posts first. Do you know how much damage staying online like this will cause the Xie Family?!"

At that moment, Xie Ran also walked into the kitchen. "Brother Xie Chen, stop being mad at me. We're family no matter what. We can't let outsiders laugh at us, right? You don't want the Xie Family to suffer this undeserved injustice because of this either, do you?"

Unhurriedly, Xie Chen poured the mushrooms into the pot and sprinkled in some seasonings.

His cooking motions made Xie Jinran freeze. For a moment, he seemed to see the young boy struggling to stand on a stool as he prepared breakfast for the family...

"Brother Xie Chen, I'm talking to you. Did you hear me?" Xie Ran moved closer.

Xie Chen abruptly turned his head. "Stop calling me brother over and over. Are you a rooster?! Going to lay an egg?! Get lost. Don't try to morally blackmail me. What even is that? I've never had any!"

His words were sharp and his attack fierce, leaving Xie Ran speechless. Frightened, he retreated to where he had been standing.

[When it comes to roasting people, I only respect Xie Chen. I need to write this down in a notebook.]

[The popular character setup these days is some washed-up nobody arguing nonstop. He keeps going on about being adopted or not. My ears are growing calluses from listening to it. Good for Xie Chen—stay away from the Xie Family's PUA!]

[Hahaha, Xie Chen is awesome. He doesn't forget to cook even while roasting people. Put the lid on the pot, and he doesn't give a damn about anyone!]

"If you have a problem, take it out on me. Don't vent your anger on Xie Ran." Xie Jinran stood in front of Xie Ran and shouted at Xie Chen, "We're trying to reason with you nicely right now. If you won't listen, don't blame us for suing you directly for defamation."

Xie Chen curled his lips into a wicked smile. "I'm so scared. Hurry up and do it. While you're at it, verify whether those WeChat screenshots are real."

"Let's see who ends up in jail first!"