Chapter 41

Chapter 41

For a fleeting moment, Gu Yubai felt as if he had been transported back to the Qing Dynasty.

Otherwise, how could he be hearing such an outrageous term?

"You lowly peasant..."

Gu Yubai was utterly dumbfounded, his raised hand, poised to block the incoming slap, momentarily frozen.

Before the blow could land, a dark silhouette suddenly appeared before him, Yu Li's broad, towering back firmly shielding him.

Gu Yubai retracted the foot he had already lifted to kick the assailant, remaining quietly in place, a smirk playing on his lips.

Yu Li frowned, a flicker of anger crossing his face. He seized the woman's hand and forcefully shoved her away.

He didn't hold back his strength. The woman cried out, losing control of her body as she stumbled backward, landing hard on her rear.

In an instant, her wails pierced the air.

The previously noisy scene abruptly fell silent. The young man who had accompanied the woman to cause trouble instinctively recoiled. His gaze darted to Gu Yubai, who was peeking out from behind Yu Li with a smirk, and his face paled, a hint of fear flickering in his eyes.

How... how dare he?!

That guy was unnaturally strong!

Not only had he kicked him into the garden pond, but he had also held him underwater, making it impossible for him to break free no matter how hard he struggled.

He looked like an unassuming youth, barely twenty, gentle and slender—someone he wouldn’t even glance at normally. Yet, his actions were brutally efficient!

This damned brute!

The young man burned with humiliation and resentment. It wasn’t just him—several others had joined forces against Gu Yubai. He had only acted a little more arrogantly because he wanted to impress Su Shengli. Why was he the only one singled out for such brutal treatment?!

The others had been spared after being kicked once by Yu Li’s assistant.

But him?! He had been held underwater and forced to gulp down several mouthfuls of murky pond water.

If the auction hadn’t been about to start—if Gu Yubai hadn't glanced at his watch—he might have been left submerged for who knows how long. To make matters worse, the others had shamelessly fled without even calling for help!

Humiliated and furious, the young man had planned to slip away and pretend nothing had happened. But then... he ran into his infamously combative mother at the entrance of the private room.

And now...

As it turned out, even his mother was no match for the assistant—because standing behind him was Yu! Damn! Li!

Dear heavens! No one had mentioned that Yu Li valued this assistant so much that he’d personally step in to protect him from a slap!

The young man wanted to cry. His mother, still splayed on the ground, was equally stunned. After a few more wails, she finally recognized Yu Li and immediately widened her eyes. Taking a deep breath, she turned and glared at her son.

The next second, she stood up and slapped him across the face.

"I told you to have some sense when you’re out in public! Offending me is one thing, but offending Yu Li’s assistant? You’re digging your own grave!"

Then, with a bright smile, she turned to Yu Li.

"Mr. Yu, I apologize for my son’s ignorance. He mistook a real Buddha for a fake one! Rest assured, I’ve disciplined him properly—he won’t dare show his face around you again!"

The young man: "......"

You were the one who insisted on coming!

Aaaaaah!

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----

The young man’s face was a portrait of complete devastation, while his mother, who had been behaving like a harpy moments ago, now stood poised and dignified.

She smiled politely as she dragged her distraught son away, sparing a glance at the young man now standing beside Yu Li. Her expression stiffened before she forced out a pained smile.

Just like that, the commotion seemed to vanish into nothingness.

The woman sighed in relief and turned to leave as if nothing had happened—until the silent young man finally spoke.

"Wait."

Her heart clenched. Shoulders slumping, she turned back with a tight smile.

Before Gu Yubai could say anything, she abruptly whirled around and slapped her son again.

"You fool! How dare you drag me into your mess? Now even I don’t have the face to clean up after you! If you’ve got any guts, come clean right now!"

The young man’s head snapped up, incredulity plastered across his face.

Another slap landed.

The woman proclaimed self-righteously, "Don’t give me that look! Clean up your own mess. If you confess now, they might go easy on you. But if you don’t... Heh! You won’t like what happens when we get home!"

The young man: "...Fine, I’ll talk."

Wronged. Absolutely wronged. He hadn’t even asked his mother to intervene, yet now he was the one taking all the blame.

If she hadn’t volunteered, he wouldn’t have been slapped three extra times.

Head bowed, the young man turned back, shame and resentment battling on his face as he blurted everything out without hesitation—likely because he had no genuine allegiance to begin with.

"Su Shengli was the one who held a grudge against you. We were just trying to regain his favor, so we went along with his plan to provoke you. Otherwise, we’re strangers—why would I have any reason to dislike you, especially when you’re Yu Li’s assistant?"

"As for the reason... According to him, he despises you because you’re connected to the True Young Master of the Su family, Gu Yihong. You even admitted you’re Gu Yihong’s older brother. Su Shengli’s that vindictive—of course he’d hate you. And since you’re also in Yu Li's inner circle? That just makes it worse."

Gu Yubai instinctively shot a look at Yu Li.

Yu Li met his gaze silently. Neither spoke, but after two seconds, they averted their gazes simultaneously.

After those three slaps, even if Gu Yubai had more to say, he couldn’t bring himself to voice it.

--------

Just as he was about to dismiss them, an aged but commanding voice rang out from nearby.

"It seems the Su family has failed to properly raise its children, allowing such disturbances to arise time and again. Wanlin, I’ve told you before—no matter how much you pamper your son, you mustn’t let him cross the line."

"Some children are worthy of your affection, but others... The more you indulge them, the more they become utterly shameless."

An elderly man with silver hair, dressed in traditional Hanfu and leaning on a cane, emerged from behind a tree.

He looked remarkably spirited—his posture straight, his complexion rosy, exuding vitality that belied the fact he would pass away within a year.

Gu Yubai’s gaze wavered momentarily.

He looked behind Patriarch Su and saw almost the entire Su family present, though everyone's expressions were grim at the moment.

Among them, Su Shengli and Su Linyuan were the most noticeable.

Su Shengli's face was pale, a mix of humiliation and pent-up resentment. Su Linyuan, however, widened his eyes slightly, his eyes wide with disbelief.

Su Linyuan couldn't believe that his innocent, kind-hearted brother would be petty enough to have his friends harass Gu Yubai just because of his connection to the legitimate Young Master, Gu Yihong.

But when these people spoke, they had no idea the Su family was present, meaning they couldn’t have lied.

This proved what they said was true.

Su Linyuan’s heart sank, and he felt a twinge of unease.

That discomfort deepened when he recognized the young man standing beside Yu Li—someone he knew.

Last time, when he had made the effort to visit the Gu family to see Gu Yihong, the young man had casually mentioned being Gu Yihong’s classmate. But now, from what he’d just heard, this person was actually Gu Yihong’s elder brother, sharing the same adoptive father.

This man was Gu Yihong’s older brother—no wonder he had been so guarded around him.

For some inexplicable reason, Su Linyuan found himself preoccupied with the young man’s opinion of him.

Among the three similarly aged young men around him, he had always been closest to Su Shengli, whom he’d grown up with. He felt no connection to his so-called blood-related younger brother, Gu Yihong. But toward the young man beside Yu Li, he felt an inexplicable closeness in his heart.

-----

Patriarch Su’s anger showed no sign of letting up.

If his earlier words had been vague, now his cane was pointed directly at Su Shengli. Song Manman immediately pulled Su Shengli back.

Patriarch Su looked at Su Shengli with an unreadable expression.

He said coldly, “Originally, I was still hesitating whether to show you leniency out of consideration for the years you’ve spent growing up in the Su family. But now, it seems you don’t need me to do anything extra for you—you already know where you stand. This is good. Very good.”

Anyone could tell Patriarch Su was being sarcastic.

Su Shengli only understood that Patriarch Su was displeased with him for sending others to harass Gu Yubai, but he didn’t grasp what he really meant by his words.

What leniency?

What did this old man want? When had he ever shown him leniency?

He looked uncomfortable, and he said quietly, “Grandfather, I was wrong. Please don’t be angry. I was just… just a little upset, that’s all.”

Patriarch Su stared at him coldly, saying nothing. Su Shengli gradually fell silent, a sense of foreboding rising in his heart. He quickly replayed Patriarch Su’s earlier words in his mind.

What exactly did this old man mean?

Su Shengli couldn’t understand, but Su Wanlin and Song Manman beside him suddenly realized something.

Su Wanlin’s eyes flickered sharply. His gaze darted frantically between Su Shengli and Gu Yubai, but in the end, he said nothing, his expression indifferent, his eyes flashing with amusement.

Song Manman was slower to catch on. Her face filled with horror as she looked up and cried out,

“Father, that was Mother’s inheritance—she specifically willed it to Shengli! Even if Shengli isn’t the Su family’s blood descendant now, he’s still a child the Su family acknowledges. How can you casually alter Mother’s last wishes?”

Su Shengli’s head snapped up, his earlier dejection gone, replaced by panic.

“Grandfather! You can’t do this! I… I know I was wrong. I know you don’t like me, but those were things Grandmother left for me. She loved me the most…”

Patriarch Su raised a hand, cutting him off.

He said coldly, “Those weren’t meant for you. They were left for the Su family’s second young master. You could only receive my wife’s inheritance if you were the Su family’s biological child—that you were of Su blood. Only then would you have the right to inherit.”

“But now, the Su family’s true second son has changed. You grew up in the Su family, so you know full well that the Su family isn’t a charity. Raising you all these years and still letting you live in luxury now is already being more than generous.”

Su Shengli’s face twisted in disbelief, he looked utterly devastated, as if Patriarch Su’s cruel words had shattered him completely.

Song Manman couldn’t stay seated any longer. She took two steps forward. “Father, that's not fair. Those things were always meant for Shengli—”

Under Patriarch Su’s icy stare, she retreated two steps.

Su Wanlin patted her back and whispered, “Don’t worry. Father won't be that harsh.”

Sure enough, the next second, Patriarch Su added with a mocking smile,

“But there’s one thing you can rest assured about. After all, you are now the Su family’s officially adopted son. Aside from not receiving the inheritance based on blood relation, you’ll still get your share of the annual dividends from the Su Group, just like every other Su family member once they reach adulthood and go to college.”

“With that, what else could you expect?”

Patriarch Su believed he had been more than generous. The problem was, the annual dividends from the Su Group paled in comparison to the value of Madame Su’s inheritance.

Su Shengli’s brow furrowed deeply. He looked up at Patriarch Su and realized the Patriarch had decided.

This inheritance was out of his reach forever.

“Then… what about the engagement between the Su and Yu families?” Su Shengli looked up at Patriarch Su.

Seeing the obvious surprise on Patriarch Su’s face, Su Shengli quickly added,

“I know Grandfather is displeased with me and doesn’t want to give me Grandmother’s inheritance anymore. I won’t fight for those assets. But the engagement between the Su and Yu families was something Grandmother always wanted to fulfill before she passed. Does Grandfather not even want to respect her dying wish?”

After hearing Su Shengli’s words, Patriarch Su’s smile suddenly became inscrutable.

He stared fixedly at Su Shengli and said slowly, “Who told you the agreement between the Su and Yu families was an engagement?”

The air grew tense.