Chapter 49

Chapter 49

The door to the lounge was kicked open with a loud bang.

Yu Mingze walked into the room, his face dark with anger, slamming the door shut behind him, cutting off the dozens of curious gazes outside.

"I thought you had some shame," Yu Mingze looked down at Jiang Shangyun, "I didn’t expect you to resort to moral blackmail."

"A rabbit without a tail—true to form!"

Yu Mingze's words cut deep, and Jiang Shangyun’s face flushed red instantly.

He stammered, "I didn’t..."

"You didn’t what?" Yu Mingze couldn’t be bothered to listen to his obvious lies, "If your mother is really insane, then go contact a mental hospital. If the mental hospital is willing to take her, do you think the prison would stop her from getting treatment?"

"Ye Mingzhao is neither a doctor nor a lawyer, why are you coming to him?"

As Yu Mingze spoke, he looked at Jiang Shangyun, who was still kneeling, with complete contempt. "Do you honestly believe Ye Mingzhao is some divine being from Yonghe Palace, and that if you kneel before him, your mother will miraculously recover?"

Jiang Shangyun’s face burned with embarrassment. "I didn’t think that. I just hoped Ye Mingzhao would show some compassion and agree to let my mother be treated outside of prison. We just want to bring Mom back home—"

"Is your house a hospital?" Yu Mingze asked rhetorically. "If your mother is sick, shouldn’t she be hospitalized? Do you think she can be cured at home?"

"And you chose today, of all days, to come to Ye Mingzhao? What, are you planning to kneel and cry in front of the reporters after he refuses you?"

Jiang Shangyun was rendered speechless by Yu Mingze’s sharp words and could only look at Ye Mingzhao with pleading eyes.

Ye Mingzhao smiled gently at Jiang Shangyun and said in a gentle voice, "Mingze is right. I’m neither a doctor nor a lawyer, I can’t help you with this. If you want to make a scene at the premiere, I don’t mind."

Yu Mingze was about to say something when Ye Mingzhao waved his hand. "Let him do what he wants. Consider it an extra act for our premiere."

After saying this, Ye Mingzhao got up and left the rest room.

Yu Mingze glared at Jiang Shangyun angrily before following Ye Mingzhao out.

Left alone in the empty rest room, Jiang Shangyun sat there dejectedly, tears falling and staining the floor in front of him.

After a while, Jiang Shangyun also got up, disheartened.

Outside the rest room, Yu Mingze was still a little uneasy and quietly asked Ye Mingzhao, "Should we have someone throw him out?"

"No need," Ye Mingzhao replied calmly, "If he’s bold enough to cause a scene, it’ll just generate more buzz for our premiere."

Yu Mingze was anxious. "We can’t let that happen. If he really causes a scene, what will people say about your reputation?"

He would never allow the crew to use Ye Mingzhao’s reputation and interests for publicity.

Ye Mingzhao curled his lips, though the smile didn’t reach his eyes. "Ever heard of moral blackmail?"

Yu Mingze was taken aback. At a time like this, was Ye Mingzhao really going to quibble over definitions?

Ye Mingzhao smiled. "Only someone without morals would resort to moral blackmail."

Moral blackmail only worked if the target had morals and was willing to give them away to someone who needed them.

Yu Mingze blinked, looking at Ye Mingzhao, feeling a bit bewildered.

At 10 AM, the *Prince of Beggars* premiere officially began.

Invited media reporters sat below the stage. The host had barely said a few words when suddenly, a commotion was heard outside the venue.

Everyone looked in the direction of the noise and saw a thin young man, seemingly in his twenties, forcing his way into the premiere despite the security personnel's attempts to stop him.

The media reporters instinctively stood up, pointing their cameras at him like sharks smelling blood.

True to form, Jiang Shangyun didn't disappoint. Pushed by the security guards, he rushed to the front of the stage and knelt in front of Ye Mingzhao, his face flushed red, while the reporters behind him frantically took photos and videos.

"What's going on here?"

"Who is this person?"

"Why is he kneeling here?"

Some well-informed reporters found Jiang Shangyun familiar. After a moment of recollection, one of them exclaimed, "Isn't he the child born to Ruancuimei after she married? The half-brother of Ye Mingzhao?"

As soon as the words left the reporter's mouth, it was as if a drop of cold water had fallen into a hot pan. The premiere site instantly erupted.

The media reporters swarmed forward, some pushing toward Jiang Shangyun, asking why he was causing a scene at the *Prince of Beggars* premiere, while others directed questions at Ye Mingzhao.

Chaos ensued. The host tried several times to restore order but failed, leaving him looking helpless and frustrated, glancing at the main creative team on stage.

Yu Mingze's face turned livid with anger. If Ye Mingzhao hadn't stopped him, Yu Mingze would have had Jiang Shangyun thrown out already. How could he have allowed such an awkward situation to develop?

The other main actors also seemed uneasy. Their curiosity was nearly bursting from their throats as they stared at Jiang Shangyun kneeling below the stage, yet not daring to cast a single glance in Ye Mingzhao's direction.

This scene was broadcast live to the internet.

"What's happening?"

"Is this some kind of publicity stunt?"

"I heard that Ruancuimei's first trial verdict has been handed down. She got a year and a half, and the Jiang family didn't appeal."

"So, Jiang Shangyun chose this moment to come here and kneel. Is he trying to apologize to Ye Mingzhao?"

At the same time, the on-site media reporters voiced this very question.

Ye Mingzhao looked at Jiang Shangyun kneeling silently below the stage and asked with a smile, "Since everyone is so curious about why you're here, why don't you tell them?"

Jiang Shangyun's face turned purple from holding back, but he still refused to say a word.

He had already reached his limit by kneeling before Ye Mingzhao in front of all those reporters and cameras. His self-respect and upbringing simply wouldn't allow him to further embarrass himself by opening his mouth to trouble Ye Mingzhao—not even for a single word more.

Seeing Jiang Shangyun's stubborn silence, Yu Mingze's voice grew angrier, "Speak! Since you've already thrown away your dignity to cause a scene at our premiere, what else are you ashamed to say?"

Encouraged by Yu Mingze's words, the reporters below became even more excited. They clicked their shutters frantically and shoved microphones in Jiang Shangyun's face, waiting for him to reveal a bombshell.

Jiang Shangyun looked up at Ye Mingzhao with a haggard expression.

Though just a few meters apart, it felt like an unbridgeable chasm separated the two blood-related individuals—one in the heavens, the other on earth.

Overwhelmed by shame, Jiang Shangyun opened his mouth numbly, "Ye Mingzhao, please, I beg you, let my mother go, alright?"

"I know what happened back then was her fault toward you. But now, she's lost her mind. Even if you wanted to punish her, isn't that punishment enough by now?"

As soon as these words were spoken, there was an uproar.

Everyone's eyes turned to Ye Mingzhao.

Even the viewers in the live stream were shocked.

"What's going on? Who's gone crazy?"

"Ruan Cuimei gone mad?"

"Is it true? Is Ye Mingzhao really that evil? Did he drive his own mother insane?"

"I've always thought Ye Mingzhao wasn't a good person. The reason he sued Ruan Cuimei was because he couldn't bear to leave the Ye family, right? If he really wanted to punish both of his biological parents, why did he only sue his mother and not his father too? He's clearly just a snob."

"I heard that his biological father also came to see him and gave him a five million check. He chose not to pursue it further."

"So it's all about the money after all."

"Why do you think I want to punish her?" Ye Mingzhao asked calmly, responding to Jiang Shangyun's resentful accusation.

Jiang Shangyun fell silent for a moment, his eyes growing angrier as he stared at Ye Mingzhao. "Isn't it? If you hadn't insisted on suing her, how could my mother have been driven mad by public opinion?"

"Are you saying she was a victim of cyberbullying?" Ye Mingzhao continued to ask.

Jiang Shangyun sensed something was off but still answered according to his own thoughts. "Isn't that the case?"

"Have you sued those who cyberbullied your mother?" Ye Mingzhao asked again.

Jiang Shangyun paused for a moment and mumbled, "No."

As soon as he said that, he suddenly realized that he was being led by Ye Mingzhao. He immediately opened his mouth to speak. "What we're discussing now is my mother's medical treatment outside of prison—"

"I personally suggest that if you really think your mother was driven mad because of cyberbullying, you'd better use legal weapons to protect your rights," Ye Mingzhao continued without intending to listen to Jiang Shangyun. "Gather evidence, hire a lawyer, and use legitimate and lawful means to seek justice for your mother—if you think she has a case."

Jiang Shangyun suddenly realized what Ye Mingzhao was trying to do, and his face turned pale.

In the live stream, viewers immediately voiced their dissatisfaction after hearing Ye Mingzhao's words.

"What does that mean? Is Ye Mingzhao saying Ruan Cuimei was driven mad by netizens?"

"What's this about cyberbullying? That's ridiculous! All we did was recount what she did back then. How is that cyberbullying?"

"Who knows if she's really mad or just pretending? I'd say Ruan Cuimei is faking madness to avoid severe legal punishment!"

"The Jiang family is really playing a clever game. On one hand, they say they won't appeal, and on the other hand, they're trying to use a sob story and moral blackmail to pressure Ye Mingzhao into backing down. They even went as far as to disrupt his *Prince of Beggars* premiere. Isn't this all just a publicity stunt?"

The media reporters on-site thought the same as the netizens.

A group of them instantly became energized and surrounded Jiang Shangyun, bombarding him with questions about his intentions.

"Are you really trying to avoid legal punishment through moral blackmail?"

"Why did you kneel and beg Ye Mingzhao to agree to your mother's medical treatment outside of prison? Is there someone who doesn't want her to receive medical treatment?"

"Is your mother really mad? When did she go mad? Which hospital diagnosed her?"

"If you manage to get medical treatment outside of prison approved, will you send her to a mental hospital? If her illness can't be cured, will you keep her hospitalized? If she recovers under the doctor's treatment, will you send her back to prison?"

"Did you choose to make this public at the *Prince of Beggars* premiere to use public opinion to pressure Ye Mingzhao into agreeing to your request?"

"If he doesn't agree, what will you do?"

The paparazzi present asked sharp questions, leaving Jiang Shangyun speechless. He could only helplessly look at Ye Mingzhao. At that moment, he felt that everything in front of him was a farce.

Ye Mingzhao also looked at Jiang Shangyun and smiled slightly. "What I'm more curious about is, in this farce, what role do you want to play?"