"Despicable! You sneak-attacked me!" The middle-aged man clutched his broken nose, grimacing in pain.
"Did you expect me to count to three and ask if you were ready?" Chen Yang said with amusement.
"Chen Yang, what are you doing? Do you have to escalate things to the point of no return?" Luo Sulan was going mad. Han Rui had clearly resolved the situation to everyone's satisfaction, but this good-for-nothing just had to stir up more trouble. To think the Qin Family is saddled with someone like him.
"Chen Yang, people like that aren't to be trifled with. Get over here," Qin Qiu called out. There were seven or eight of them. If a fight broke out, she would be responsible for taking them to the hospital, and she already had more than enough on her plate. This damn bastard. All he does is cause trouble for me.
"My dear, these people came here asking for you by name. Don't you want to find out who's pulling the strings?" Chen Yang asked.
Qin Qiu furrowed her brow. Hearing him put it that way, the situation did seem strange. Initially, she had just wanted to de-escalate the situation and hadn't given it much thought.
"Listen to Xiaoqiu and let it go! You might not realize it, but these kinds of thugs are infamous for holding grudges. There's no need to provoke them," Han Rui said with a chuckle, forcibly suppressing the panic in his heart.
"Did you hear that? Get your ass over here now!" Luo Sulan roared again. "You just angered Second Uncle and Aunt, and now you're provoking these thugs? Are you trying to drive the Qin Family into the ground?"
Luo Sulan was furious. All she wanted was to kick this good-for-nothing out of the house immediately.
The middle-aged man lying at Chen Yang's feet shouted to his underlings, "Are you all dead? Get him!"
"Who dares make a move?" Chen Yang said, stepping on the middle-aged man's neck.
"Don't move!" the middle-aged man hastily cried out, his voice trembling. "B-Big Brother, spare me!"
No one could have expected the useless Chen Yang to act so shrewdly at this moment.
With his hands in his pockets, Chen Yang looked down at the man. "Speak. Who sent you?"
"Th-this..."
The middle-aged man hesitated. He had already been paid, and the person who hired him was not someone to be trifled with. If I talk, what good will come of it?
But as Chen Yang gradually increased the pressure on his foot, the man felt his windpipe being crushed. The pain was overwhelming, and he couldn't breathe properly. He's going to stomp me to death!
As the saying goes, a wise man knows when to yield. Staying alive was what mattered most right now. He raised a trembling hand and pointed at Han Rui. "It was him!"
"He gave me five thousand yuan to bring a group of men and cause trouble for Qin Qiu. Then he would play the hero and save the damsel in distress!"
Han Rui was speechless.
Qin Qiu and Luo Sulan instinctively looked at Han Rui.
"Heh." Han Rui, a master of deception, quickly masked his nervousness with a smile. He spread his hands carelessly. "And you believe the word of a lowlife like that?"
Luo Sulan nodded vigorously in agreement.
Qin Qiu, however, eyed Han Rui with suspicion. From what she knew of the young master, he would stoop to anything to charm a woman. It wasn't out of the question for him to use such a tactic on her.
Chen Yang nodded thoughtfully. "You're right. The words of such scoundrels are indeed not to be trusted."
A smirk began to form on Han Rui's lips, but it froze before it could spread across his face as he heard Chen Yang's next words.
"Take out your phone."
With his life in the balance, the middle-aged man didn't dare hesitate. He fumbled in his pocket for his phone and handed it over respectfully. "B-Big Brother, here it is!"
Seeing Chen Yang take the phone, Han Rui could no longer maintain his composure. His face fell completely. For a moment, he didn't know what to do.
"Hmm?" Chen Yang scrolled through the phone, feigning surprise. "There's a 'Mr. Han' in the call history. I know it couldn't possibly be you, right?"
"Let's just call and find out."
Han Rui's mouth twitched.
RING! RING!
The sudden sound of a ringing phone came from Han Rui's pocket.
"So it really was you," Qin Qiu sneered, her voice cold. "How despicable."
Han Rui was speechless.
In an instant, his face turned as ugly as a pig's liver. He was a veteran of the romance scene, yet this was his first major defeat. Most crucially, he had lost to a good-for-nothing! Resentment, indignation, shame, and a storm of other emotions churned within him.
Chen Yang tossed the phone aside and chuckled. "Quite the strategist, aren't you, Mr. Han!"
"So what if it was?" Luo Sulan, though a little surprised, didn't seem to care. She smiled and said, "Han Rui only did this to get Xiaoqiu's attention. His intentions were good! 'It is only natural for a gentleman to pursue a beautiful lady.'"
Then, Luo Sulan pointed a finger at Chen Yang, her expression changing instantly to one of contempt. "But you, you good-for-nothing, what's the point of all this fuss you're making?
"If you truly have Xiaoqiu's best interests at heart, then you should leave her and get out of the Qin Family. Don't hang around my house like a freeloading, mangy dog. You may be shameless, but I have my dignity to think about!"
Luo Sulan patted her own face, righteously indignant.
Chen Yang was dumbfounded. Does this old woman have a screw loose?
Qin Qiu was also furious. She couldn't help but rebuke her mother, "Mom, how can you say that? Han Rui clearly has ill intentions."
"Then just accept his pursuit! Once you agree, everything will be perfectly legitimate, won't it?" Luo Sulan blurted out.
Qin Qiu was speechless. What is she even saying? Is this woman really my mother?
Han Rui laughed. Yeah, what was the point of all that trouble? Who can do anything to me anyway?
"Auntie, I have some business to attend to, so I'll be leaving now. I'll come see you again tomorrow," Han Rui said to Luo Sulan with a smile. "I remember you mentioned wanting to eat some swimming crabs, didn't you? I'll bring some over."
"Han Rui, you don't need to bring me anything. Just come visit your auntie often," Luo Sulan said earnestly, holding his hand.
"Of course. From now on, I'll come every day."
Han Rui signaled for his men to leave. As he passed Chen Yang, he stopped and leaned in close to whisper, "Kid, do you see this? This is reality! In this day and age, money is king. What can a good-for-nothing who lives off his wife do to compete with me? In my eyes, you're nothing but a pathetic, scurrying ant!
"Oh, and I heard that after all this time with Xiaoqiu, you haven't even touched her hand? Ha, that's hilarious!
"For that alone, I really ought to thank you! Do you know why?"
Han Rui glanced over at Qin Qiu. "Because you've left me an untouched Xiaoqiu! Ha ha ha!
"And remember what I said before. If I still see you here tomorrow, prepare for disaster!"
Chen Yang's expression didn't change as he replied coolly, "A pity you won't live to see tomorrow's sun."
"Is that a threat? We'll see about that!"