Chapter 35: I Want a Divorce

Chapter 35: I Want a Divorce

"Who's this?" Yang Yuan blinked, carefully examining Ye Leyao in front of him.

The young man before him seemed to be around his age, strikingly handsome in a way that made him stand out in a crowd.

At first, Yang Yuan thought the young man might have some connection with his cousin, but as an avid shipper, he scrutinized them closely and found no hint of intimacy between the two. He realized it was just a misunderstanding.

Qin Yao introduced, "His name is Ye Leyao. He's Huo Yan's younger brother and also my... variety show colleague?"

Mentioning Huo Yan, Yang Yuan immediately understood Ye Leyao's identity.

The Huo family did indeed have an adopted son who rarely attended banquets. He never imagined he would be so handsome!

Yang Yuan loved making friends with good-looking people. He walked right up to Ye Leyao with a broad smile. "Hello there! My name is Yang Yuan, I'm Cousin Yao's younger brother."

Ye Leyao, uncomfortable with sudden proximity, took a step back, offering a polite smile. "Hello."

He looked even more handsome when he smiled! Yang Yuan instantly wanted to befriend Ye Leyao.

Ye Leyao didn't know what Yang Yuan was thinking, finding his constant smiling somewhat perplexing:

"You're still smiling? If you don't go upstairs soon, your bird will really get torn apart. Then let's see if you can still smile!"

Indeed, they couldn't afford any more delays.

Qin Yao suggested, "Let's go. We should head upstairs now."

Yang Yuan agreed hastily, leading the two of them up the stairs.

The Huo family watched the trio's retreating backs, exchanging glances.

"Should we... follow them?" Huo Jing asked softly.

Huo Yan was eager. "Of course we should!"

When watching a spectacle, one must always be up close!

Huo Dad looked at Huo Mom.

What could be a suitable reason for following them?

Huo Mom pondered for a moment, then suddenly said, "We don't necessarily need a reason."

The three men from the Huo family turned to look at her.

How so?

Huo Mom curved her lips into a smile. "The hosts are having a party at their home. It's not a big deal if guests want to casually tour the villa, right?"

The men from the Huo family all came to the same realization.

It wasn't a big deal at all!

They could even inform the hosts and ask them to guide the tour!

Huo Mom was full of ideas!

Huo Yan took the lead, ready to catch up with Ye Leyao, only to be stopped by Huo Dad.

Huo Yan turned around in confusion.

Huo Dad and Huo Mom beamed. "Let's find Mrs. Yang together."

While they could indeed explore on their own, such an event shouldn't lack the presence of the hosts.

Huo Yan looked anxious. "Then why hesitate? Let's go, we should hurry!"

Time was of the essence, and Huo Yan didn't want to miss a single exciting moment.

Huo Dad and Huo Mom shared the same sentiment, walking towards Mrs. Yang without hesitation.

...

Meanwhile, under Yang Yuan's guidance, Ye Leyao and Qin Yao followed him to the fourth floor.

The old Yang residence had a retro-style decoration. The four-story villa didn't have an elevator installed throughout, and the entire staircase on the fourth floor was made of red sandalwood, with wooden floors in each room.

"No wonder the villa caught fire so easily. The whole place is made of combustible materials."

Ye Leyao couldn't help but whisper in awe.

Yang Yuan was a chatterbox, spending the time chatting with Ye Leyao one moment and turning to talk to Qin Yao the next.

Ye Leyao didn't expect to actually encounter a two-dimensional E person, slightly intimidated by the E person's enthusiasm, but thankfully Qin Yao was there, so the pressure wasn't too overwhelming.

Finally, the three reached the fourth floor.

"That's your room?" Qin Yao pointed to a room and asked.

Ye Leyao's gaze followed, and he was instantly alarmed:

"The door is open!"

"How fast is Yang Tian?!"

"Ahhhh—Is Guzi okay? How can you still be chatting with Qin Yao, Yang Yuan?!"

Yang Yuan nodded, realizing in that instant that his room door was open. He was puzzled. "Yes, this is my room. Hey—Who opened my door?"

"You're so calm even when someone opens your room door! Go check it out quickly!"

As Ye Leyao's words faded, Yang Yuan pushed open the door to his room.

Yang Yuan's room was a suite. Upon opening the door, one would find themselves in a living room with an excellent view through its floor-to-ceiling windows. The sunlight streamed in, casting a warm glow on the wooden floors, creating a cozy atmosphere.

Ye Leyao led the way inside, her gaze sweeping across the room, finding it odd:

"Huh, isn't Yang Tian here?"

Qin Yao followed closely behind Ye Leyao, his eyes meticulously scanning every corner of the room.

Everything looked... like normal furniture.

Where could the grains be?

Ye Leyao soon realized that there wasn't a single element related to the otaku culture in the living room:

"Could it be that Yang Yuan keeps his grains in a separate room?!"

"For a grain eater, once you buy grains, you must display them. Grains not shown have no soul. So—where did Yang Yuan put his grains?"

The large suite spanned over a hundred square meters, with a living room nearly fifty square meters in size. Apart from a bedroom, there were three other rooms.

"Which room is it, oh my god!!"

Ye Leyao sounded anxious. Just as she was contemplating whether to ask directly, Qin Yao suddenly pointed at one of the rooms and asked, "What's in this room?"

Yang Yuan followed Qin Yao's gaze, his expression stiffening for a moment before quickly recovering. He looked at Qin Yao in surprise, "Ah, Cousin, you really came to my room just to visit?"

He had assumed Qin Yao didn't want to attend the banquet and had come up here for some peace!

In Qin Yao's mind, he was certainly not here for a visit but to protect Yang Yuan's grains.

But he didn't say that out loud; instead, he headed straight for the room.

Since he didn't know which room it was, he might as well check each one.

Yang Yuan hadn't expected Qin Yao to head straight for his room. Startled, he jumped ahead of Qin Yao, blocking the entrance to his room, looking particularly nervous: "No! You can't enter this room!"

Seeing Yang Yuan react so strongly, Ye Leyao was certain:

"It seems we've found it. Yang Yuan's grains must be in this room!"

Qin Yao looked at Yang Yuan blocking his path, his brows slightly furrowed, puzzled: "Why can't I go in?"

Was it that shameful to have grains?

Yang Yuan was breaking into a cold sweat.

How could he explain this!!

The room was filled with his wives; how could he casually open it for others to see?!

Yang Yuan found it hard to speak, but Ye Leyao understood perfectly:

"Mm... Indeed, for an otaku, apart from their desktop background, what they least want to show outsiders, especially family members, is their pain room."

"Yang Yuan has so many limited edition grains; he must be a seasoned otaku. This room... hmm, probably has dozens of life-size standees, right? And they're probably dressed quite lightly?"

Ye Leyao blushed at the thought:

"That would be... too embarrassing."

Life-size standees?

In a flash, Qin Yao seemed to finally understand what "grains" truly were.

His expression became complicated.

It wasn't that he wanted to see Yang Yuan's otaku wives, but rather that his otaku wife might be in danger right now!

"Cousin," Yang Yuan took a deep breath, regaining his voice, and suggested, "Can't we visit another room instead?"

There was no need to see his wives right away!

Qin Yao was racking his brain for an excuse when Ye Leyao suddenly spoke up, "Hey, I think I heard something coming from inside the room."

"Huh?" Both Yang Yuan and Qin Yao turned to look at her.

Qin Yao was bewildered.

What sound?

Standing so close, why hadn't he heard anything?

Then he heard Ye Leyao's quiet inner monologue:

"I just made up an excuse. It should fool Yang Yuan, right?"

Qin Yao: "..."

I wasn't fooled. Do you think Yang Yuan will be?

In the next second, Qin Yao saw Yang Yuan become unusually tense: "What sound? Is something wrong with my wives?!"

In his panic, he forgot that Qin Yao and Ye Leyao were still there and turned to open the door.

Qin Yao: "..."

Yang Yuan really believed him!

In order to properly preserve all his figures, Yang Yuan not only installed an intelligent humidity controller in his pain room but also kept the air conditioning on year-round to maintain dryness.

When he first heard Ye Le Yao mention that there was a sound in the room, he thought that the smart controller he had installed had malfunctioned, causing him a moment of great fright.

Who would have thought that when the door opened, there were no mishaps, but instead, he saw a stranger suddenly appear in the room.

Ye Le Yao recognized the little fat boy at a glance:

"Yang Tian has indeed come!"

Then his gaze began to appraise Yang Yuan's entire pain room, exclaiming,

"The combined value of these figures could buy another house, couldn't it?"

Qin Yao was also looking at the figures and was startled upon hearing this.

So... valuable?

Yang Yuan never expected that there would be a stranger in his most cherished pain room. He stared at Yang Tian for several seconds before sternly demanding, "Who are you?"

At that moment, Yang Tian was standing in front of a glass display case, with a limited edition figure nearly half a meter tall placed before him. His hand was currently gripping the main doll of the figure.

Ye Le Yao's breath caught for a moment:

"Ahhhh, hurry up and make him let go of the figure—"

Yang Tian, upon hearing the commotion, turned around to glance at the group. Then, as if nothing had happened, he continued to try to break the figure with his hands.

Yang Yuan instantly exploded, quickly stepping forward. "I asked who you are? Who the hell let you into my room to touch my figures?"

Without thinking, Yang Yuan grabbed Yang Tian's hand and pulled him out.

Yang Tian, accustomed to getting his way through brute force, was determined to get what he wanted.

Yang Yuan pulled him, and he immediately turned around and bit down on Yang Yuan's hand.

Yang Yuan was startled and quickly released his grip.

This gave Yang Tian an opportunity. In a lightning-fast move, he snapped off the head of the figure and held it in his hand, turning to run out.

Ye Le Yao instantly exploded:

"What is he doing!!"

Yang Yuan was even more incredulous: "Are you crazy?!"

Yang Tian was unperturbed and even looked back at Yang Yuan provocatively.

Seeing his figure being decapitated was already infuriating enough, and this little fat boy still had the audacity to act as if he owned the place. Yang Yuan could no longer suppress the anger burning in his chest.

"I need to help—"

As Ye Le Yao was about to step forward, Qin Yao suddenly reached out to stop him.

Ye Le Yao looked puzzled.

"Huh? Why are you stopping me?"

Then Ye Le Yao saw something like a trail of smoke flash before his eyes. The sound of a thud echoed, and the little fat boy who had been standing in front of them was now brutally thrown to the ground. He immediately let out a wailing cry.

Mrs. Yang, who had just arrived on the fourth floor with the Huo family, paused in her steps.

Why did that crying sound so familiar?

The expressions of the Huo family members instantly became excited.

Has it already started?

Right ahead was Yang Yuan's room. Could they directly enter and watch?!

Inside the room.

Ye Le Yao stared dumbfounded at the wailing Yang Tian lying on the ground, then looked at Yang Yuan, who was sitting directly on his back.

"What... just happened?"

Qin Yao then explained, "My cousin was too mischievous when he was young, so my uncle sent him to Shaolin Temple." Qin Yao met Ye Le Yao's astonished gaze and continued, "He lived in Shaolin Temple for five years, learning martial arts. After returning, he went on to study wrestling, judo, and even achieved a black belt in taekwondo."

Forget about a flabby little fat boy like Yang Tian.

Even if there were five more burly men larger than Yang Tian, they might not necessarily be able to defeat Yang Yuan.

"Yang Yuan is actually... so good at fighting?"

Ye Le Yao's pupils widened in shock.

In the next moment, he saw Yang Yuan effortlessly pry open Yang Tian's tightly clenched hand, ignoring his cries, and take out the head of the figure from his hand.

After carefully examining it, confirming that the figure's head was undamaged, Yang Yuan snorted heavily, "Fortunately, my wife is fine, otherwise—"

He would have beaten this little fat boy right then and there!

Yang Yuan stood up from the little fat boy and carefully reattached the figure's head.

It was at this moment that Mrs. Yang's voice sounded from the doorway, "Little Yuan, what's going on?"

Yang Tian, who hadn't gotten the toy he wanted and was thrown to the ground by an overhead throw, howled even louder when he heard someone arrive.

Mrs. Yang led the way, with the Huo family following behind.

Upon entering, they saw Young Yang sprawled on the ground, wailing.

The corners of the Huo family's lips involuntarily curled upward at this sight.

Indeed.

A well-deserved beating; they hadn't liked the look of that chubby boy either.

Yang Yuan had just placed the figurine back in its spot and closed the glass cabinet when he heard his mother's voice. He turned around, his expression somewhat grim. "Mom, who is this person?"

He knew his son best.

When Mrs. Yang entered and saw Young Yang lying on the ground, she didn't need any explanation from Yang Yuan to understand what had happened.

It was normal for Yang Yuan not to recognize Young Yang right away, given that their family had long since severed ties with Yang Jie's household, and it had been a while since Yang Yuan last saw Young Yang.

Although Mrs. Yang also disliked Young Yang, today was Old Master Yang's birthday, and Yang Kun had just had an argument with Yang Jie. If another fight broke out because of Young Yang and his brother, how would the old man feel?

So even though she knew that Yang Yuan was in the right, Mrs. Yang still tried to mediate. "It's your uncle's son. Go ahead and help him up."

Yang Yuan's expression changed instantly, suddenly feeling that he hadn't hit hard enough.

But he knew this wasn't the time to be stubborn, so he reached out to pull Young Yang up.

Young Yang, however, refused to cooperate.

Having failed to get the toy he wanted and having been beaten up, he now felt pain all over his body. He writhed on the ground, crying and refusing to get up.

Not only that, but he glared fiercely at Yang Yuan. "You dared to hit me? You're finished! I'm going to get my dad to beat you up—"

After learning about Yang Yuan's absolute strength, Ye Leyao couldn't help but laugh at Young Yang's threat.

"Is it possible that you and your dad together can't beat Yang Yuan?"

The Huo family, who had just arrived and hadn't heard Qin Yao's previous words, were somewhat surprised by this revelation.

Was Yang Yuan really that good at fighting?

What a pity, it would have been great if they had been there to witness it.

Mrs. Yang looked at Young Yang writhing on the ground and felt a headache coming on. She stepped forward to persuade him. "Little Tien, get up quickly. The floor is dirty..."

As she said this, Mrs. Yang prepared to personally help Young Yang up.

Unexpectedly, before her hand could touch him, Young Yang suddenly jumped up and threw a punch at Mrs. Yang—

Caught off guard, Mrs. Yang was struck on the shoulder, causing her to cry out in pain as cold sweat broke out on her forehead.

"How cunning he is!"

Yang Yuan was startled. "Mom?"

"Is Auntie okay?" Qin Yao rushed forward.

Seeing that his plan had succeeded, Young Yang wore a smug smile on his face and stood up, preparing to lunge at Mrs. Yang again.

Qin Yao quickly pulled Mrs. Yang back, avoiding Young Yang's sneak attack.

Yang Yuan, seeing this, exploded in anger. "Young Yang, you actually dared to hit my mom? Are you crazy?!"

"So what if I did?" Young Yang's arrogance was palpable.

"Ahh, I can't take it anymore, I'm so angry!"

Yang Yuan was even angrier. With a stern expression, he moved forward and applied a standard chokehold on Young Yang, leaving him no chance to retaliate. He dragged Young Yang out. "Fine, then I'll hit you."

Mrs. Yang hurriedly intervened. "Xiao Yuan, don't—"

Before she could finish her sentence, a louder wail than before echoed through the room.

Ye Leyao, who had not gone inside, watched the entire scene unfold from outside.

"Well done!"

"Yes, yes, hit him on the butt. Even if it swells up, it's no big deal!"

Huo Yan burst out laughing.

Huo Dad and Huo Mom, mindful of Mrs. Yang's presence, covered their smiles.

Yang Yuan was genuinely furious.

When they were younger and their families were still in contact, this chubby boy would come into his room every now and then to mess with his figurines.

At the time, his grandparents and parents had advised him to let it go, and thinking that he had plenty of duplicates, he had endured it.

His limited edition figurine hadn't been damaged earlier, so it wasn't a big deal. But he should never have laid a hand on his mother!

His useless uncle didn't discipline his son, so as his cousin, he would take it upon himself to do so properly!

Yang Yuan found a strap from somewhere and bound Young Yang's hands and feet. Then, he yanked open a drawer, pulled out a wide plastic knife, and began striking Young Yang's buttocks!

Young Yang immediately let out a blood-curdling scream. "Aaaaaah—let me go! How dare you hit me!"

Yang Yuan: "Why wouldn't I?! I'm your cousin. If your dad won't discipline you, can't I, as your older cousin, do it instead?!"

With these words, Yang Yuan swung his hand faster, focusing solely on hitting Young Yang's buttocks.

Yang Tian was genuinely terrified now.

With his buttocks still being repeatedly smacked, the pain caused his entire body to tremble, and he wailed in agony: "It hurts—Aaaaaaah… Let me go! You need to let me go! Waaaaaaaaah…"

Ye Le Yao's heart blossomed with laughter.

"The reason for this beating is indeed very reasonable. An older brother is like a father!"

Mr. and Mrs. Huo couldn't help but curve their lips into smiles as well.

Mrs. Yang was supported out of her room by Qin Yao. Yang Tian had used all his strength to punch her shoulder earlier, and now she couldn't even lift it due to the pain.

Hearing Yang Tian being beaten by Yang Yuan outside until he was howling like a ghost, Mrs. Yang felt both relieved and helpless.

The relief naturally stemmed from the fact that after so many years, someone was finally teaching Yang Tian a lesson.

The helplessness came from the fact that if Yang Jie and his wife found out that their son had been beaten by Yang Yuan, the family conflict would likely escalate again.

The only consolation was that Yang Yuan was beating Yang Tian on the fourth floor in his own room.

The soundproofing here was good, so Mr. and Mrs. Yang Jie downstairs probably wouldn't rush over so quickly.

Mrs. Yang didn't stop them because she also felt that Yang Tian should indeed be disciplined now. If they didn't intervene, society would have to deal with him later.

Yang Yuan still had a sense of restraint; while he beat Yang Tian until he cried out loud, he wouldn't really injure him. As he beat him, he didn't forget to ask, "Have you learned your lesson? Do you know where you went wrong?"

"I didn't do anything wrong!" The little fatty shouted even louder, "I… Aaaaaaaah—"

"Smack." Yang Yuan hit him harder.

"You're being stubborn?" Yang Yuan was amused by anger, "Then let's see whether your mouth is harder or the plastic knife in my hand is."

Seeing that Yang Yuan was about to continue beating him, Yang Tian finally showed fear in his eyes. He struggled on the sofa, "Let me go, waaaaaah… I'm going to make my dad beat you up! Waaaaaah—let go—let go—"

Seeing that struggling was futile, Yang Tian began cursing at Yang Yuan directly. His bound hands were raised to give Yang Tian the middle finger: "You f*cking idiot, you beast…"

As Yang Tian spewed increasingly filthy curses, Yang Yuan paused in his actions.

Ye Le Yao frowned visibly.

"He's been thoroughly spoiled."

"No wonder he could commit an act of revenge like burning down a villa."

With every curse Yang Tian spat out, Yang Yuan's anger grew stronger.

He raised his hand high, preparing to smack the little fatty's buttocks again. At that moment, a sharp female voice rang out—

"What are you doing?!"

Ye Le Yao turned around in time.

"Huh, his mother came so quickly?"

Jiang Fang hadn't seen Yang Tian for quite some time and was a bit worried, so she prepared to come looking for him.

Hearing that Yang Tian had gone upstairs, she followed. But when she reached the third floor, she heard Yang Tian's crying from above. Jiang Fang didn't dare delay for a moment and practically ran up the stairs.

Upon arriving, she saw her precious son tied to the sofa, with Yang Yuan standing beside him, ready to beat him. She immediately became so angry that her whole body shook, and she rushed forward to push Yang Yuan away, "Yang Yuan! Are you crazy?! Why are you hitting Little Tian?!"

Hearing his mother's arrival, Yang Tian suddenly had a protector. He stopped crying and began wailing to Jiang Fang, telling her what happened: "Mom! They hit me! They threw me to the ground and tied me up to beat me—they all hit me… Waaaaaaaah, it hurts so much, my whole body hurts waaaaaaaah…"

After listening, Jiang Fang's eyes reddened. Yang Tian had grown so big, and not only had he never been hit, he had never even been scolded.

And yet today, he was actually tied to the sofa and spanked by Yang Yuan!

Jiang Fang quickly squatted in front of the sofa to untie the ropes binding Yang Tian, glaring at Yang Yuan with bloodshot eyes, "He's your cousin, what did he do for you to treat him like this—"

"He broke into my room without permission, stole my figurines, and hit my mom. I just taught him a lesson. What's the problem?" Yang Yuan's tone was icy cold.

Ye Le Yao chimed in,

"That's right, a man's butt is big enough, what's wrong with a slap on the butt?"

Qin Yao almost couldn't hold back his laughter.

Hu Yan was also struggling to suppress his amusement.

Fortunately, fortunately, Ye Le Yao's inner thoughts could only be heard by their family members.

If Jiang Fang had heard that—

Wouldn't all her anger be directed at Ye Le Yao?

Jiang Fang had already untied the ropes on Yang Tian. Hearing this, she looked up and swept her gaze across the many people in the room, including Mrs. Yang standing next to Qin Yao. Her anger intensified, "Just because of such a trivial matter? Little Tian is just a child, how painful could his hits be? And you, an adult, are actually quarreling with a child? Also, Sister-in-law, didn't you know to stop him?"

As she spoke, tears fell from Jiang Fang's eyes.

Yang Jie had just climbed the stairs and heard his wife's crying. His heart tightened, and he hurriedly entered, "What's wrong? What's wrong?"

Seeing Yang Jie arrive, Jiang Fang hugged Yang Tian and cried even louder, "Yang Jie! If you don't give me an explanation for this, I'll divorce you!"

Ye Le Yao laughed upon hearing this:

"Is there such a good thing?"