You don't get a say in this

The moment he stepped out of the hotel, a pleasant female voice rang out from Lu Xingchen's pocket: "Five million yuan received in Alipay."

Huo Chuyun worked pretty fast. Hehe, he really couldn't bear to let me suffer without money.

Lu Xingchen hailed a taxi by the roadside.

The Lu Residence.

As soon as Lu Xingchen got out, he heard repeated, agonized whimpers from the courtyard, along with furious hissing.

It was Xiao Huang and Tofu!

"Damn cat! You dare scratch me? Once I'm done with this mutt, I'll skin you and cook you!"

In the courtyard.

A man with multicolored dyed hair, black cross ear studs, and a black punk leather jacket held a bloodstained stick, viciously swinging it again and again at a little yellow-brown dog with a lame leg.

The little dog spat blood, giving faint whimpers like a helpless child as it trembled and backed into a corner.

Yet a filthy little cat stood firmly in front of the dog like a warrior, all its fur bristling like steel needles.

It hissed fiercely at the man while repeatedly swiping its sharp claws, trying to fend off the stick that whistled through the air, but it was like a mantis trying to stop a car.

"Yihao, that cat's so scary. I'm afraid it'll scratch me. And the blood that dog's spitting is getting our courtyard dirty. The housekeeper will have to go to all that trouble to clean it."

Another man in a white knit top spoke fearfully, trembling all over as he kept ducking behind the man in black.

"Don't worry. I'll deal with these two beasts today and throw Lu Xingchen out along with them, so they won't be an eyesore to you."

It was Lu Yichen and his third older brother, Lu Yihao.

Veins bulged on Lu Xingchen's forehead in fury. He charged at them like a gale, grabbed Lu Yichen by the hair with one hand, and slammed him into the ground.

With a thud, Lu Yichen landed cheek-first. Fortunately, his reactions were fairly quick, and he managed to get his hand beneath his fair, delicate face in time. Otherwise, he would have suffered more than a scrape.

"Aaaaah! Yihao, save me! My face!"

Hearing Lu Yichen's agonized cries, Lu Yihao hurriedly turned to help him up.

Seeing that Lu Xingchen still wouldn't let go of Lu Yichen's hair, he snapped, "Lu Xingchen, have you lost your mind? Let go of Chenchen right now!"

Lu Yihao stared at Lu Xingchen as though he had seen a ghost. In the past, never mind speaking freely in front of them, Lu Xingchen had always been meek and hunched over like a man in his seventies.

If they told Lu Xingchen to go east, he was like an obedient dog who would never dare go west.

He would never have dared go berserk and hit people like this.

"Sure!" Lu Xingchen obediently released Lu Yichen.

While Lu Yihao was busy comforting Lu Yichen, Lu Xingchen grabbed Lu Yihao's hair instead, raised his hand high, and brought it crashing down, stirring gusts of air.

Smack, smack, smack. One slap followed another.

"Have you gone mad, Lu Xingchen? Stop!" Lu Yihao desperately twisted his head, trying to fight back, but he couldn't break free of Lu Xingchen's grip no matter what he did. "Aaaaah! It hurts!"

"Bastard! That's what you get for beating my dog and my cat! If I don't beat you into the hospital today, my surname isn't Lu-it's Huo!"

Lu Xingchen's slaps kept coming, one after another, the smacking sounds ringing through the Lu family courtyard. His hand didn't feel much, but anyone who heard them wanted to cover their own face, wincing in sympathy.

Gradually, Lu Yihao was beaten unconscious, leaving only faint, muffled groans.

Lu Yichen had only just recovered his wits. At the sight, he immediately lunged over.

"Stop! Lu Xingchen, let go of Yihao! Do you still want to be allowed into the Lu house tonight? Aren't you afraid Mom and Dad will punish you? Aren't you most afraid of our eldest brother? He's coming back to the Lu Residence tonight. Aren't you afraid he'll lock you in the dark room?"

Lu Yichen's yelling made Lu Xingchen's ears hurt. He released the unconscious Lu Yihao and turned to stare straight at Lu Yichen.

The corners of Lu Xingchen's lips lifted slightly into a terrifying smile, and his hand clamped onto Lu Yichen's cheeks like a giant pincer.

"Lu Yichen, you know what? Your blush looks a little pale today. Want me to touch it up with a few slaps?"

Lu Yichen shook his head like a rattle drum, practically losing his mind.

How had Lu Xingchen turned into this nightmare after just one day apart? How had I never known he was this strong?

Hadn't I only sent Lu Xingchen to President Fei's room?

President Fei was useless too. Wasn't he always so good at tormenting people? Why had he let Lu Xingchen come back so soon?

Lu Xingchen curled his lips in a sinister smile, like an evil spirit that had crawled out of hell. "You don't get a say in this."

"No! No!" Lu Yichen desperately tried to shrink backward, but couldn't move an inch.

"Ah!" A shrill scream suddenly erupted. "Lu Xingchen! You little bitch, what have you done to your younger brother and your third brother?"

Seeing a mountainously bloated figure hurtling toward him, Lu Xingchen rose and dodged as nimbly as a cat.

A thud like muffled thunder rang out, and the woman's body sent dust rising from the ground like a disturbed swarm of bees.

Lu Xingchen watched coldly as Zhou Fenglan lay on the ground groaning, then crouched to examine Xiao Huang's injured leg.

Tofu rubbed against him, mewing in a tiny, sweet voice as though complaining about why he had only arrived now.

"Good girl. Daddy's late. I'm sorry." Lu Xingchen stroked Tofu's filthy fur, his heart aching.

"Lu Xingchen, hurry up and help me up! Do you even recognize me as your mother anymore?" Zhou Fenglan glared, her eyes wide.

Seeing Lu Xingchen still fussing over those two beasts, she twisted her nose in fury and cursed.

"You beat your third brother and younger brother over these two beasts? Do you have any regard for the Lu family at all?"

"And weren't you sent to President Fei's room yesterday? Why did you run away? I only found out when President Fei called and gave me an earful. Think you're all grown up now?"

Lu Xingchen looked at her contemptuously. "Which sewer cover was left open for you to crawl out again? My wings aren't strong enough yet. If they were, I'd be smacking you in the face with them."

"I can tell this is your family's first time being human. You've managed to miss every human trait. You sent me to some fat old man, and I wasn't even allowed to run?"

Zhou Fenglan looked as though she had heard the biggest joke in the world and raised her bloated head haughtily.

"Not only were you not allowed to run, you should thank your father and me for finding you such a good match. Better yet, get on your knees and kowtow to thank us."

"And I'm your mother. How dare you speak to me like that? You really are a wild child from the countryside, utterly ill-bred. You can't compare to Chenchen at all."

"Isn't that right? You gave birth to me, after all. I just inherited your genes and Lu Wenshan's."

Lu Xingchen raised an eyebrow and scoffed. "And just because I don't consider you human, do you really have to stop acting like one?"

"Since you think marrying that Mr. Fatso is so great, I'll bring the marriage registration office over for you and Lu Wenshan in a moment. You two can just get divorced."

"Tomorrow, you can marry that whatever-his-name-is, Mr. Fatso. Your figures look pretty similar. You'd make a good match. That'll save you from constantly going on about getting married."

"Of course, I'll pass your request on to Lu Wenshan too, so he can prepare to divorce you."

Zhou Fenglan's gaze instinctively darted away, a flicker of unease flashing through it. Then she recovered and cursed, "What nonsense are you talking about?"