Chapter 5: A Shift in Perspective

Chapter 5: A Shift in Perspective

Hospital.

Shen Caisheng sat by the hospital bed, his tone grim.

"Are you trying to kill yourself?"

Hou Fang trembled on the bed, the pain in his abdomen making him clench his teeth. "Brother Shen... I didn’t have a choice."

Shen Caisheng remained unmoved. "Who put you up to this?"

This time, Hou Fang’s actions were truly shocking.

Who would’ve thought someone who cries over a scratch would stab himself? Shen Caisheng was so furious he was at a loss for words.

Hou Fang struggled to speak. He wouldn’t have done this if he had a choice, but those people crossed the line.

They poisoned Yuan Yuan today; if they took him away, could they really be trusted to care for him?

Hou Fang forced a smile, but it looked more like a grimace. He knew Brother Shen was really upset with him this time. "I’m so sorry..."

Not getting a response, he muttered, "Please, take care of Yuan Yuan for me. I don’t want him to see me like this. Brother Shen, just help me this once. I promise I won’t bother you again."

Shen Caisheng was silent for a moment. "Do what you want. I’m out of here. Call the nurse if you need help."

He couldn’t even figure out why he was so mad.

Hou Fang’s real name was Hou Fang, and he had a younger brother named Hou Yuan.

Like Shen Caisheng, they had lost their parents young, though the Hou family had been much more prosperous when their parents were alive.

Back then, Hou Fang’s parents were top technicians at the factory. Both were killed in a workplace accident.

The factory was at fault, so they gave the brothers a house and a hefty compensation.

Things were fine until, two years ago, distant relatives found out about the brothers’ house and money and started contacting them.

At first, the brothers were thrilled—everyone craves family.

But they were young, not naive, and soon saw through their relatives’ true motives.

Seeing their motives, Hou Fang cut ties with them.

But when the family act failed, they started scheming, one of which was to target their custody rights.

Hou Fang was already an adult, so they couldn’t control him, but they thought they could take custody of Hou Yuan.

Once, they even kidnapped Hou Yuan. Hou Fang had to ride his motorcycle to the countryside and cause a scene to get him back, finally settling the matter.

After that, those people quieted down for a while, and only a few remained in contact.

But now, even the few remaining relatives started trouble again, trying to hurt Hou Yuan to gain custody.

These people were inhumane, but Hou Fang’s approach was also too extreme.

When he had his cousin stab him, he must’ve known he might not survive.

Long before the incident, he had already asked Shen Caisheng to take care of Yuan Yuan.

Shen Caisheng was pissed off because he genuinely considered the other guy a close friend. He didn’t even bother talking things over with his buddies, acted recklessly, not giving a damn about his own safety.

"You wouldn’t believe it, sis, if it weren’t for Brother Shen, Monkey would’ve been in jail for assault multiple times by now," Ma Jie, who was helping Yuan Lingling sweep the snow, also mentioned Monkey.

-

Yuan Lingling: "Ah?"

"They pulled some shady tricks, got Monkey wasted, slipped him something, and even locked a girl in his room."

Yuan Lingling’s jaw dropped. If it weren’t for his sincere expression, she would have thought he was mocking her.

"Sis, you didn’t expect it, did you? You wouldn’t believe the scumbags out there."

Yuan Lingling faked a laugh, "Yeah, right."

"...So he got injured because of this? Stabbing someone over a hookup gone wrong? That’s too crazy."

Is everyone in this story batshit crazy?

"No," Ma Jie’s expression darkened. "Those lowlifes would stoop to anything. To get their hands on Yuan Yuan, they drugged the kid. If Brother Shen hadn’t discovered it in time, the kid could’ve been killed."

Yuan Lingling was floored, "Drugged? To prove that Monkey can’t raise the child well?"

"That’s exactly how beastly they are. That person was even Yuan Yuan’s favorite cousin, what a piece of work!"

Yuan Lingling was deeply shaken.

No wonder he pulled a knife. If it were her, she might have wanted to kill someone too.

"But why did he get stabbed himself?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Yang Ying’s loud voice came from outside the courtyard.

"Ugh, what a bunch of fakers! It’s like the pot calling the kettle black!" After saying this, she had already entered the courtyard.

Ma Jie dropped his broom and went to greet her, "Mom, who’s got your panties in a twist now?"

"Who else could it be but those two from the Xie family? They’re blaming Brother Shen’s wife, saying your sweet potato cakes are toxic. Pah, why didn’t it poison those shameless creatures to death?"

Yuan Lingling shot a glance at Ma Jie, only to see his eyes wandering, looking guilty.

She was starting to put two and two together.

Was there something fishy in those cakes?

Just now, the Xie mother and daughter ran back holding their stomachs. She figured they were pulling a fast one, but it turns out it was this guy’s doing.

A hundred meters away at the Xie household, two women were bitching. Although they deliberately lowered their voices, one could still piece together some things from their fragmented words.

"It must be Yuan Lingling who tried to harm us, she’s a real piece of work!"

"No, we must make her pay!"

"Let Second Brother go and demand it, he’ll surely get more. We’ll make that crazy bitch pay through the nose!"

...

The Xie mother and daughter usually put on a generous and gentle front, but since they see each other frequently, it’s hard for everyone not to notice their true colors. However, everyone also dislikes Yuan Lingling.

When they heard there was gossip about them, everyone no longer felt the cold, gathering in small groups in the alley, pretending to make small talk, but in reality, each was straining their ears not to miss the first-hand gossip.

Shen Caisheng walked past the entrance of the alley, expressionless, leading a child by the hand. When they saw him, everyone awkwardly retreated to their yards.

Some of the bolder ones went into their yards, circled around and came back out after Shen Caisheng had passed.

Shen Caisheng acted like he didn’t notice them. He had mastered the art of turning a blind eye and deaf ear since childhood, but he hadn’t expected to nearly collide with Xie Guanglian, who was bursting out of his house when he reached the Xie family’s doorstep.

"That no-good Yuan Lingling, I will never let her step into my Xie family’s door!" The voice from inside the yard was especially loud, as if the speaker had put all their energy into it. Xie Guanglian’s face went white in an instant.

Meeting Shen Caisheng’s gaze, he felt not just fear, but also a touch of... shame.

His sneaky, nasty thoughts of outdoing Shen Caisheng seemed to be exposed now, just like when Shen Caisheng had caught him stuffing stolen money into his schoolbag.

"I..." He wanted to explain, but Shen Caisheng just walked right past him, without even a sideways glance.

For some reason, Xie Guanglian felt his heart was more tangled than a ball of yarn after a cat’s been at it. In a fit of impulsiveness, he yelled, "Shen Caisheng!"

He wanted to ask why, why Shen Caisheng always seemed so cold to people, wasn’t there anyone or anything that he cared about?

Isn’t Yuan Lingling his wife? His wife’s about to be taken away, so why doesn’t he care?

Shen Caisheng stopped in his tracks. Xie Guanglian thought he might see at least a flicker of anger in the other’s eyes.

But Shen Caisheng just gave him a look and said, "Remember to pay back the money."

Those few words made all of Xie Guanglian’s recent moves look downright pathetic.

He had approached Yuan Lingling, partly to make some money, but more to outdo Shen Caisheng once, but Shen Caisheng hadn’t even cared.

Inside the yard, the two were still loudly "plotting." Xie Guanglian felt a lump in his chest, his entire face numb.

He didn’t know where the anger came from, but he turned and stormed into the main room, sweeping his father’s favorite tea set off the table.

The clattering sound rang out as Xie Guanglian roared, "Can you shut up, aren’t you embarrassed enough?"

Initially, he hadn’t intended for the two to know about his affair with Yuan Lingling, he just... wanted to enjoy himself.

But later, unable to withstand his younger sister’s constant provocations and comparisons with Shen Caisheng, he couldn’t help but spill the beans.

At that time, Jiang Liping was always worried that Shen Caisheng would find out and cause trouble for the family, but after he brought some money back from Yuan Lingling, their attitudes changed.

Yuan Lingling had never provoked them, and he was their closest relative. It was one thing to treat Yuan Lingling that way, but why did they have to force him to pay with such a matter-of-fact attitude?

"What are you going crazy about!" After a moment of stunned silence, Jiang Liping was the first to lash out, angrily saying, "Go and get Yuan Lingling here right now, she’s trying to kill us!"

Jiang Liping sat in a strange posture on the chair, barely breathing but still managing to give Xie Guanglian a fierce look.

For a moment, Xie Guanglian almost felt he wasn’t her son.

Although he had been a bit of a rogue outside, he had always been quite good to his family.

Not all the things he had said to Yuan Lingling were lies. As the second son in the family, he had always been less favored than his elder brother and less loved than his younger sister. Now, he owed money and didn’t dare to speak up.

Why, everyone was part of the same family, why did he have to be the least favored one?

He wanted to see how they would handle it if his elder brother's job was affected by their favoritism.

They made his life miserable every day, so he decided to make everyone else’s life miserable too.

Ignoring their harsh words, Xie Guanglian turned and went back to his room.

His room was on the west side of the central living area, the smallest in the house. Ever since he was a kid, his mother had been feeding him the line that he could move into his sister’s room once she got married.

What’s the deal with that?

Why did his older brother and little sister get to have spacious rooms growing up, while he was stuck crammed into this tiny little room?

Xie Guanglian slammed the door, and right away, Jiang Liping’s angry shout echoed from the other side, "Xie Guanglian, are you out of your mind?"

"Just let me die!"