Chapter 2004
Evening.
Outside the clubhouse.
Chen familyâs Little Sixth came out with his group, looking quite frustrated. Glancing at the tea stains on his clothes, he yanked off his shirt and tossed it on the ground. Not stopping there, he stomped on it furiously, venting his anger. It was summer, after all, so he wasnât afraid of catching a chill.
âWear mine,â a boy behind him offered, starting to take off his shirt. Among this group, Chenâs Little Sixth was the leader.
âForget it. No need.â Chen grumbled. âThese past few days have been damn unlucky. Nothingâs going right. What did I do to deserve this? I was trying to eat a meal, and something like this happens.â
âCool down, Sixth Brother,â someone said. âLetâs go to a bar.â
âTo hell with that, Iâm not in the mood,â Little Sixth growled.
One particularly tactless boy asked, âSixth Brother, why didnât you just beat that guy up back there?â
Chenâs Little Sixth glared at him. âWhy donât you go beat him up? Go on then, go now!â
That boy, being used to acting tough, rolled up his sleeves and said, âIâve been wanting to hit that guy. Dared to spill tea all over you? Must have a death wish.â
Chen was speechless. âAre you stupid or just pretending?â
âHuh? What do you mean?â the boy blinked, confused.
âYou donât know who Dong Xuebing is?â Little Sixth snapped.
The boy scratched his head. âThat âBrother Dongâ that Sister Ling mentioned? No, never heard of him.â He did know who Fang Shui Ling wasâshe was the Prime Ministerâs beloved granddaughter and the pampered princess of the Fang familyâbut he genuinely didnât know who Dong Xuebing was. Thinking about it now, he grew puzzled and asked, âWait, Sixth Brother, that guy spilled tea on you, and your familyâs always been close with Sister Lingâs, right? Technically, we were in the right. We even dared to brush off Sister Lingâs authority for a bit, so why would we back down for some Dong Xuebing guy? Who the hell is he?â
Teenagers, after all, werenât the most mature. Having been accustomed to wielding family power, they didnât always grasp the more profound implications. So now the boy finally realized something was off.
They could ignore Sister Ling?
Then why back off for someone named Dong Xuebing?
Could his background be even stronger than Sister Lingâs and Sixth Brotherâs?
He couldnât wrap his head around it. After all, Sixth Brother wasnât like him, a peripheral family member. The Chen family valued Little Sixth highly and gave him considerable leeway. In the time theyâd been hanging out, he had never seen Sixth Brother back down or admit defeat. So why, the moment he heard âDong Xuebing,â did he go completely silent and walk away? Why didnât any of the others speak up either?
It didnât make sense.
Admit defeat?
Was there someone who could make them back off?
And letâs not forget, they were in the right. That guy spilled tea first. Theyâd have grounds to keep their heads high anywhere. Even if they werenât, even if they beat up someone Sister Ling invited, so what? That guy wasnât close to her. At worst, theyâd apologize later, get scolded, maybe have their parents make a few callsâitâd blow over.
But now?
They just walked off?
That guy didnât even pay for the ruined shirt!
Who the hell was this Dong Xuebing?
An older youth looked at him and said, âYou donât know who he is? Your family never mentioned him?â
âNope. Why would they talk to me about Dong Xuebing?â the boy replied, a bit embarrassed. âAnd anyway, I havenât gone home in years. I live with my uncle.â
His situation was a bit unique. His family background was decent, but he didnât hold a high status in it.
Chenâs Little Sixth said bluntly, âIf you donât know, then shut your mouth. No oneâs treating you like a mute.â
âHe had his reasons,â the older youth said, turning to the clueless boy. âYou seriously donât know who Dong Xuebing is? And youâre trying to hang around in Beijing? One day, youâll pay for being this ignorant. Just wait until you hit a wall, then youâll understand.â
He paused and then said, âYou know Sister Huilan, right?â
âOf course! The eldest daughter of the Xie family,â the boy replied.
âWell, Dong Xuebing is Sister Huilanâs husband,â the young man said flatly.
âWhat? Is Sister Huilan married? Wow, I didnât even know that!â the boy exclaimed. He was out of the loop.
âBut the Xie and Fang families are about equal, right? Why do we have to give face to a son-in-law? Heâs not even an Xie by blood!â
Chenâs Little Sixth: ââŠâ
The others fell silent too. They were beyond exasperated.
The older youth rubbed his forehead and patiently explained, âSome people canât be judged by family background alone. You havenât heard what Dong Xuebingâs done?â
âI havenât. Iâm clueless,â the boy admitted with a bitter smile.
The older one said, âYou at least know Aunt Fang Wenping, right?â
âOf course! Aunt Fang is terrifying. I remember being told as a kid: of all the younger generation, never mess with Sister Huilan, and of all the older ones, never provoke Aunt Fang. My family drilled that into me.â
âThen that explains it. I wonât go into too much detail, but know that Sister Huilanâs husband is just as hard to deal with as her and Aunt Fang.â
âHuh?â The boy was stunned. âThat canât be.â
âHeâs even harder to deal with than Aunt Fang,â the young man emphasized. âIn all of Beijingâs noble circles, only a few are truly fearedâpeople you can count on one hand. Three of them are Aunt Fang, Sister Huilan, and Dong Xuebing. And Sister Huilan and Dong Xuebing are married. Offend one, and you offend both. Oh, and in case youâre behind, Sister Ling is about to marry the eldest son of the Xie family, so Aunt Fang, Sister Huilan, and Dong Xuebing will all be one big family. You understand now? What does it mean to provoke those three ruthless people? If not, then stop running your mouth.â
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