Chapter 5 Part 2

“Bang, bang-bang, bang-bang-bang!” Next to him, the incessant sound of a soccer ball slamming against walls and furniture rang out, occasionally accompanied by breaking porcelain. After a few ignored warnings, the man finally lost his temper, got up, and chased the disobedient brat out of the house.

If Chu Yi had been there, he would have recognized the buck-toothed bear child being driven away as the one who had pelted him with mud at the village entrance earlier.

The house finally quieted down, and the man lay back on the bamboo couch. But before he could fall asleep, a paper airplane flew in from somewhere and smacked him right in the face.

“Chu Xuezhi!” the man roared in fury, impatiently picking up the paper airplane, assuming his brat had returned.

He got up and saw no one. Just as he was about to throw it away, he noticed several bold words written on it in pen—

To Chu Xiangyong.

Chu Xiangyong was indeed his name. Curious, he unfolded it and read. His lungs nearly exploded with rage!

Who was this Chu Xiangyong? He was Chu Jiaxing’s distant paternal nephew—which meant Chu Jiaxing had gotten involved with his own nephew’s wife and even fathered a bastard child.

Village gossip had always made Chu Xiangyong suspicious, but he had doubted everyone except his uncle! And he had never imagined his son wasn’t his own—that he had raised someone else’s child!

By the time Chu Dazhi and Yao Ke finished cooling off by the river and returned with Chu Sihui, Chu Xiangyong had already gathered a group of brothers and completely blockaded the Chu Family courtyard.

“Xiangyong, stop hitting! It’s all a misunderstanding!” Grandma Chu jumped in fright and rushed forward to pull at Chu Xiangyong only after reacting.

Chu Xiangyong’s eyes were bloodshot, his neck and face covered in scratches—he had clearly already caused a scene at home. “Misunderstanding? Misunderstanding him calling my wife in the middle of the night and sending her several transfers every month?! Chu Jiaxing, I treated you like an uncle, and you cuckolded me!!”

Chu Xiangyong’s wife was clever and had deleted all their call and chat records. But Chu Xiangyong’s brother had connections at the telecom company; without formal proof, he could still check privately.

One check revealed the issues. Moreover, to demand child support from Chu Jiaxing, she called him several times a month, leaving undeletable transfer records.

She was usually careful and never let Chu Xiangyong touch her phone. This time, he went berserk, fought with his wife, and tore through her phone!

“It wasn’t like that. I called her to play cards, and the transfers were for card money!” Chu Jiaxing dodged punches from Chu Xiangyong’s brothers while desperately defending himself red-faced. He and his nephew’s wife had indeed hooked up over cards, so the excuse held water.

“Playing cards in the middle of the night? With who—give me a name, and I’ll drag them here for a face-to-face confrontation right now!” And those transfers—hundreds each time, only outgoing? Who would believe it?

Seeing him stammer and unable to respond, Chu Xiangyong kicked him again, wishing he could devour his flesh. “No way. This time, we’re going to the city for a paternity test. I want to see if my son is mine or that bastard Chu Jiaxing’s!”

Chu Xiangyong was still young. After this mess, he didn’t want his wife anymore. If the son wasn’t his, he could have more!

Chaos reigned in the Chu Family courtyard. Chu’s mother and Wang Guifang wailed to the heavens, while Chu Jiaxing, beaten until his nose gushed blood, couldn’t even crawl up. He inwardly hated Chu Yi to the bone.

Chu Yi had just threatened him, and now Chu Xiangyong showed up—who else could it be?

Yao Ke, raised delicately in the city, had never seen such a spectacle. She grabbed her little bag and started backing out. “Dazhi, your family seems inconvenient today. I-I think I’ll head out first…”

“Keke, it’s all a misunderstanding! Cousin Xiangyong and them must have gotten it wrong.” Chu Dazhi, who had gotten a huge bruise on his mouth trying to break up the fight for his dad, panicked as his girlfriend defected too.

“Whether it’s a misunderstanding or not, let’s clarify first.” Yao Ke felt deeply uncomfortable—the woman was Chu Dazhi’s father’s nephew’s wife!

If there was nothing between those two, why call in the middle of the night? And Dazhi’s dad hemmed and hawed, refusing a paternity test—what else could it be but a guilty conscience?

Yao Ke slipped out the gate before Chu Dazhi could pull her back.

“Keke!” Chu Dazhi shouted and moved to chase, but Chu Sihui suddenly appeared and grabbed her brother’s arm. “Bro, why bother with her? Dad’s about to be beaten to death!”

Chu Dazhi watched his girlfriend leave, seething with frustration. He badly wanted to snap back that it served him right!

If he had still wanted to defend his father earlier, after seeing Chu Jiaxing’s evasions and the mounting evidence from Chu Xiangyong making his denials increasingly feeble… Chu Dazhi pretty much understood: his dad really had a bastard child with his cousin-in-law!

Subtly influenced by outdated ideas, Chu Dazhi had always believed everything in the Chu Family was his—even his cousin had no share. Now his dad was using his money to raise a bastard? How could he be happy?

But he couldn’t leave now; the villagers would gossip. Chu Dazhi wiped his face and ultimately turned back.

Seeing Yao Ke leave safely, Chu Yi had watched enough of the drama. Humming a little tune, he sauntered away from Chu Village, merit hidden and name unspoken…