Chapter 31

In fact, from the moment Jiang Muti received the information about Yun Duo and their biological mother’s current family, she had a hard time believing it.

She couldn’t help but marvel at how some women’s values were completely incomprehensible.

First, there was the man who had an affair with her back then.

It was said that Old Yun, a top-level manager in a prestigious family, was not only handsome but also had an elegant and refined temperament.

The butler, too, was an important part of high society, meaning it wasn’t just about having the right skills.

Even though Old Yun was almost fifty, she still looked like she was in her thirties, with a charm that came from years of experience that younger men couldn’t match.

There were many people in their household secretly infatuated with the butler, hoping that he would become Yun Cheng and Yun Duo’s stepfather.

Much like how older European and American male celebrities seem to gain more charm as they age, it was easy to imagine how popular they must have been when they were younger.

On the other hand, Yun Duo’s mother’s affair partner, when he was young, had a greasy, superficial look, and just over a decade later, he had turned into a greasy, middle-aged, creepy uncle.

Not to mention the difference in self-discipline—comparing the two was like night and day.

According to the information Jiang Muti had obtained, it had always been Yun Duo’s mother running around taking care of everything after returning to the country.

Whether it was reconnecting with old relatives and friends, figuring out her son’s schooling, or finding financial sources for the family, she was the one doing it all.

Meanwhile, the man would sleep in late every day, often spending his afternoons and evenings at bars where young girls were, flirting around.

The couple had argued about it, and it was clear that the conflicts had started long before they came back to the country. However, that man had no other skills but to charm people.

Yun Duo’s mother was evidently smitten with his sweet talk, and it seemed like she would be trapped by him for life.

Then, there was the child she had with her current husband. The child was young—he was conceived during their divorce, and now he was only around twelve or thirteen.

Despite being young, the youth in their country matured quickly, and the boy had already picked up the habits he needed.

From what Jiang Muti saw during their time back in the country, he didn’t seem interested in studying to get into a private school, nor did he follow his father to nightclubs, but that was only because his age prevented him from getting in.

Every day, he acted just like his father—being waited on hand and foot, not just in terms of meals but also waking up in the afternoon to head straight to an internet café.

Although legitimate internet cafés wouldn’t allow minors in, there were some that operated under the guise of repair shops. They had few machines and were disorderly. Even if they were caught, they could easily claim the child next door came to play.

It wasn’t that they were necessarily making illegal profits from minors, but it was impressive that the kid had found his way around the system in such a short amount of time.

Truly a natural-born talent for the underworld.

In comparison, Yun Cheng and Yun Duo were much slower to pick up on things. Despite being good-looking, good at studying, and having a few talents, ^[1]“they couldn’t hold a candle to others when it came to practical skills” means that Yun Cheng and Yun Duo were far inferior to others in terms of real-world abilities or street … Continue readingthey couldn’t hold a candle to others when it came to practical skills.

Up until now, these two silly siblings’ imagination for manipulation was still stuck on tying people up in sacks.

When Jiang Muti said this, the two siblings held her down and gave her a beating.

But it once again deeply reminded people that the starting point of relationships didn’t necessarily have much to do with external conditions or excellence.

How is it that the Yun family’s father and son are like pearls and jade, while the other father and son are like mud, yet Yun Duo’s mother loves the mud, rolling around with it in her arms, while for her, pearls and jade only have commercial value?

As they were speaking, the car had already arrived at the meeting place.

Old Yun and Yun Duo’s mother were sitting by the window, talking about something. The three of them didn’t get out of the car but watched from across the street for a while.

The woman’s expression shifted between sorrow and anger, as if she were complaining about something, occasionally blaming Old Yun.

Her dramatic performance was similar to what they had observed outside the school before, except Old Yun had been calm and collected from the start.

He occasionally sipped his coffee, responding indifferently. Every time he spoke, the woman would either falter or become embarrassed.

It seemed that when it came to verbal sparring, she was no match for him.

This was certain—the woman’s tricks were only effective on a naive girl like Yun Duo. How many difficult clients did Old Yun have to deal with every year?

How many emergencies did he have to handle? Especially in a wealthy family, where there were many social events, his skill in managing emotions was flawless. How could a lazy, good-for-nothing man intimidate him?

However, Old Yun was essentially the lifeline for the woman and her family. No matter how awkward it was, she couldn’t back down. There was still time to negotiate here.

Jiang Muti said, “Alright, let them talk for now. We can start working.”

Yun Cheng and Yun Duo watched the woman inside the window, looking both furious and conflicted. Suddenly hearing her words, they asked in confusion, “Aren’t we going to get out of the car and barge in to flip her table?”

Yun Duo pouted. “Dad finally gets a day off. I can barely remember the last time he had a day off. Do we really have to waste the whole day on this? I’d rather he be at home, sleeping.”

Yun Cheng also said, “Isn’t she going to use us to blackmail Dad? We’ll see if we want to go along with it.”

Jiang Muti responded, “Oh! And then what? We kick her out today, and she’ll just leave your dad alone? Do you think if you make your stance clear, she’ll suddenly become obedient?”

She tapped their foreheads. “Let me tell you something—right now, this whole family probably can’t even come up with the rent for next quarter. How much money do you think they can borrow from the relatives they haven’t contacted in years?”

“You think if you don’t want to be drained, she won’t stick to you? Do you think mosquitoes and blood-sucking leeches are reasonable?”

Yun Cheng and Yun Duo exchanged a look, their expressions filled with helplessness. “Isn’t there any way to solve this once and for all?”

“We came out for the one-time solution.” Jiang Muti rolled her eyes. “Who has the patience to keep an eye on a broken-down family and deal with their constant nuisances? We have to solve the problem at its root.”

Yun Cheng was startled. “You—you don’t mean—”

“Get rid of them?” Yun Duo finished her brother’s sentence.

Biological siblings, so alike! Even their stupidity was the same.

Jiang Muti slumped. “I’d say you’re smart, but your imagination isn’t enough. I’d say you’re dumb, but you always say the most astonishing things.”

“Of course, I know getting rid of them would solve everything, but do these ^[2]“broken tiles” is a metaphor for something worthless or insignificant.broken tiles really deserve the risk? Are they worth it?”

Unexpectedly, Yun Cheng and Yun Duo both sighed in relief. “Exactly. Dealing with bodies is troublesome. You can’t rely on it. Those two are fat like pigs. Even if we did it, it would take forever.”

“Hey! Are you two seriously not messing with me right now?” Jiang Muti stared at them.

As a result, the two siblings’ expressions became increasingly innocent. “No, didn’t you say we were going to do bad things? We’re just following your line of thought now.”

Jiang Muti clicked her tongue. “Good thing our family isn’t involved in the underworld. If we had family members like you two, we’d be finished in one generation.”

With their playful banter, the ominous atmosphere of causing trouble turned into a comedic prelude to three bumbling thieves trying to rob a bank.

Jiang Muti felt her sense of class being dragged down a lot by the two of them.

Fortunately, the place where Old Yun and the others had arranged to meet wasn’t far from the woman’s house. Jiang Muti had prepared in advance and was just waiting for the final moment to catch everything.

They drove to a small alley, got out of the car, and turned to the back of the alley.

This was a quiet spot, not frequently visited, as it was near the back entrance of an internet café. Occasionally, a few local punks would gather here, smoking or transitioning from playing games to real-life troublemaking.

As soon as Jiang Muti turned into the alley, a young man with yellow hair was squatting there, smoking. Upon seeing the three of them, he stood up and stubbed out his cigarette.

“Who’s in charge?” the young man with yellow hair asked.

“I am!” Jiang Muti replied, then asked, “Is everything ready over there?”

The young man smiled. “You’re the big customer. How could we slack off on anything you asked? Don’t worry, our boss is personally handling it.”

Jiang Muti nodded. “Alright, go inside and pull out the one who looks like a little student.”

The young man was given the instructions and, without further words, immediately went inside.

Yun Cheng hurriedly pulled Jiang Muti aside. “I know these guys are easy to control, but aren’t you afraid of getting into trouble yourself? Why come here personally? You’re usually so sharp, how come you’re not thinking clearly this time?”

What he said was indeed true. Normally, if someone wanted to do something shady and foolishly involved people from the underworld, if they encountered someone with a sense of ethics, it might go alright, but if they ran into a despicable rogue with no scruples, they’d end up causing trouble for themselves.

Jiang Muti had once been advised by her father’s friend, an experienced old police officer, to avoid taking shortcuts too often, as it could backfire.

If there was really no choice but to use extreme measures, the first priority wasn’t how to get the job done but how to keep yourself clear of it from start to finish. When you wanted to back out, you needed to be able to get out without a trace.

If you couldn’t guarantee these two points, then it was better not to do it at all.

Jiang Muti patted Yun Cheng’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. It’s all arranged through our family’s connections. Do you think my brother doesn’t know about this?”

“This was never really our business. But since I see you’re upset, I’m just letting you guys enjoy the fun.”

Would a family that’s already bankrupt and broken need the daughter of a wealthy family to handle it personally? That would be a joke. In reality, they didn’t even need to show up, it was just a matter of making a few phone calls.

And she was confident that as soon as they left home, people from Jiang Yunjuan’s side would already be keeping an eye on them to ensure their safety.

However, because of the particular positions these people held, while Yun Cheng and Yun Duo didn’t say anything, Jiang Muti knew they were extremely curious about this father and son.

People always have things they can’t let go of, and only when they face them will they realize they’re not as serious as they thought.

Before long, the person was pulled out. The child initially struggled, cursing in a mix of Chinese and foreign languages.

The foul language that came out of his mouth probably exceeded what Yun Cheng had in his dictionary. At least this guy had come from a relatively well-off family abroad and hadn’t lived in a chaotic slum.

The yellow-haired guy was clearly accustomed to bullying the weak, handling this situation with ease. A punch to the stomach, and the guy quieted down immediately.

The yellow-haired man immediately tossed the small, chubby kid, who was curled up like a shrimp, in front of Jiang Muti and the others.

“I’ve brought the person. Do you want me to cut off his ears or fingers?”

When it comes to professionalism, it’s clear who’s truly skilled, unlike Jiang Muti, who tends to make a lot of noise with little action.

While speaking, the man had already pulled out a knife, expertly flipping it around. The chubby kid, terrified, started crying and wet his pants, no longer daring to act arrogantly.

Jiang Muti twitched her lips. “No need!”

The yellow-haired man responded with an “Oh” and put the knife away, but his expression towards Jiang Muti and the others became a little strange.

Jiang Muti understood that look—it’s the look one gives when using a sledgehammer to kill a chicken. If it was just about beating or scolding a little student, would they need to go this far?

The young man next to this young lady was tall and strong—surely, no one would stop him from pulling the kid out and giving him a beating.

She couldn’t understand the ways of the rich.

At this moment, Yun Cheng felt a bit embarrassed. In fact, if Muti was using her family’s connections, it was still reliable.

Every wealthy family has some gray areas. People like the yellow-haired man were probably the lowest-tier members in that world.

But in general, families like theirs didn’t stoop to bullying little kids, so Yun Cheng, as the only man among the three, felt incredibly ashamed.

They had to hire someone to bully a little student.

Jiang Muti nodded slightly and lifted the child. Only then did the three of them get a good look at the kid.

To be honest, Jiang Muti was sharp-tongued and sharp-eyed, and the kid really did look like a toad.

He had a sharp little head and chubby cheeks. It wasn’t clear whether it was due to the prevalence of junk food abroad, but at around twelve or thirteen years old, his face was covered in pimples. This only made him look even more like a toad.

If we’re talking about the man now, greasy and balding, it’s because time’s cruel passage had done its work.

When he was younger, he wasn’t bad-looking, even Yun Cheng’s mother was quite beautiful.

“How did it end up with this thing?” Jiang Muti couldn’t help but comment.

“Maybe she stepped on a toad while pregnant?” Yun Cheng said expressionlessly.

Jiang Muti and Yun Duo looked at him in shock, and his face turned red as he muttered, “When I found out she had cheated and divorced, I grabbed a toad and threw it at them. That toad even peed on them.”

Before Jiang Muti and Yun Duo could react, the yellow-haired man, who was holding onto the kid, looked at him with newfound respect. “Damn, you’re impressive, bro. If I had known, I would’ve thrown shit at my mom. Maybe the bastard she gave birth to would’ve turned out like a pile of shit.”

The three of them looked at him, realizing the yellow-haired guy seemed to have his own story.

Realizing he’d said too much, the yellow-haired man made a gesture of apology, signaling he wouldn’t interfere anymore.

However, when Yun Cheng and Yun Duo saw the child, their interest began to wane.

Yun Duo walked over, lowered her head to meet the kid’s gaze, and asked, “Do you have any other siblings?”

The kid, scared out of his wits, replied, “No!”

“No?”

“There’s never been anyone else!” The child seemed to have touched on a sore spot: “My mom said I’m the only son she truly loves. I don’t know about any older brothers or sisters. Who needs them to help in the future? We were doing fine abroad, so why suddenly come back? Fxxk!”

It seemed like he didn’t have a better understanding of his family’s situation. However, his mother must have said something to comfort him, perhaps because there would be two older siblings coming into his life.

Yun Duo smiled, as if something that had been holding her back for years had finally disappeared, leaving no trace behind.

She nodded and said to the kid, “Mm! In my family, besides my brother and me, there are no other kids.”

“None at all.”

She finished speaking and returned to her brother’s side. Yun Cheng put his arm around her shoulder and patted her.

Seeing how quickly the siblings had let go, Jiang Muti didn’t waste any more time and took out her phone.

She looked at the chubby kid and said, “Smile. If you don’t, I’ll have them cut off your ears.”

The kid immediately cried again, his tears and snot mixing together, but he was too scared to not smile.

In the end, his expression was completely unwatchable, looking like a hostage being tortured by kidnappers.

Jiang Muti snapped a photo and had the yellow-haired man send it to his mother using his phone.

Then, she smashed the kid’s phone and tossed him there before walking off.

The woman, who was in the café with Old Yun, originally didn’t want to bother with the unfamiliar message notification.

But after being verbally slapped just a moment ago, she had no choice but to check her phone to cover her awkwardness. When she opened it, she saw a picture of her son standing with thugs, crying while trying to smile.

She immediately became anxious and angry, no longer speaking kindly, and shouted, “You, Yun! Acting one way to my face and another behind my back, messing with my son?”

Old Yun didn’t even raise an eyebrow. “You promised this conversation would be calm and rational, and that’s why I agreed to meet you. If you continue with this approach, there’s no need to talk further.”

“Talk? How dare you say we’re talking? I know it’s that Jiang girl, right? She’s the one who stirred Yun Duo up last time, saying all those things about blood ties. Her unruly behavior, it must be her, right?”

Old Yun smiled slightly. “You’re too kind. My daughter can’t reach the status of your son, and as for Miss Jiang,”

His tone turned cold. “Her reputation is not something anyone can slander without cause. If you continue like this, I’ll have my lawyer deal with it immediately.”

The woman was momentarily stunned. The oppressive aura made her grit her teeth in anger, but she was too afraid to challenge the power of a wealthy family.

She shot Old Yun a hateful glance before rushing out.

On the way, the woman called her son, but it showed that his phone was off, which sent her mood plummeting.

She quickly reported the situation to the police. Although it had only been a short time, with the photos provided, the police wouldn’t ignore the case and sent two officers immediately.

She then called her husband, and while the call went through, no one answered. She kept calling several times, growing more anxious and frustrated.

She guessed he was probably out drinking at a bar, too busy with the loud music to hear his phone. Her thoughts immediately turned to cursing him out.

When she returned home, she found her husband there, but he was hastily packing his things, as if someone was chasing him.

“Why are you packing?” The woman walked over. “Forget that for now, our son might have been kidnapped. How could you not know where he went?”

The man replied impatiently, “I’m packing, preparing to leave.”

“Why? Our son is still missing!”

“They’ve come to our door,” the man said, his voice urgent.

The woman’s scalp tingled. “Impossible. Even if they are powerful, they couldn’t be chasing us internationally, right? This isn’t their country—would they dare to cause trouble here?”

The man, seeing her hesitate, threw his things forcefully onto the bed. “How the hell should I know? You have international debt collection companies here, and over there, they don’t need to waste much manpower. They just send one person. I suggested we go elsewhere, but you insisted on saying Yun’s rich and has two kids, so he wouldn’t have any trouble getting something out of them.”

“What about the money you got out of them? Instead, you’ve been jumping around and getting caught.”

“It’s definitely that Jiang girl!” The woman spat. “I don’t believe she isn’t behind this.”

“The problem is right here!” The man said. “How long has it been since Yun worked in the high society? Now, after all these years, don’t you think they’ve taken full advantage? As long as you keep flattering that little girl, what problem couldn’t they solve for you?”

The man, though lazy, was still somewhat sharp. “This so-called international debt collection company—it’s very likely they registered it after finding out about us. As long as they confirm a legitimate debt relationship, they can send someone over. It’ll only cost the price of a plane ticket, and they get free help collecting the debt. Who wouldn’t want that?”

“They don’t even need to do it secretly. They can do it openly and leave you in a hopeless situation. ^[3]“You think you can take them on with eggs against stones” means you’re trying to fight an impossible battle or challenging someone much stronger than you, which is doomed to fail. … Continue readingYou think you can take them on with eggs against stones?”

The woman wasn’t pleased. “So now it’s all my fault? Why didn’t you stop me when I agreed to this in the beginning?”

“Alright, alright, forget it for now. Go find our son.”

“Didn’t you already call the police?” The man was impatient. “They’re probably warning us to leave. It’s not likely they’ll do anything too extreme the first time, so it should be fine.”

The woman couldn’t believe it. “You’re relying on them? Wait, why are you packing alone if we haven’t even come back yet?”

“You plan to go by yourself?”

After so many years of marriage, during the hardest time, she was the one running around handling everything while he thought about running away when trouble came?

The woman angrily opened the suitcase and started smashing it. “You damn animal, you’re actually thinking of abandoning us? And that’s your own son!”

The man shoved her aside with a cold laugh. “You’re telling me this? Didn’t you teach me that? I leave so I don’t drag our son down. How does that compare to you selling your own son and daughter for a good price?”

The woman suddenly felt like a joke in her own life. Her voice became a bit unsteady. “What was that money for? Huh? What was it for?”

It was meant to start a new life together, but stripping away the false facade, all that was left was his contempt and disdain.

As they were arguing, there was a knock at the door.

They thought it was the debt collectors. Startled, they quieted down and went to the door, peeking through the peephole to see two police officers outside.

They breathed a sigh of relief and quickly opened the door, only to have their son suddenly jump out from behind the officers.

The police said, “We found him downstairs. He said he was being bullied at an internet café. You should calm him down first. We need to check on the café.”

The officers then scolded the parents, “It’s good that your child is fine, but you parents are too careless. You weren’t working during the day and couldn’t even keep an eye on him, letting him go into such a dangerous place.”

In the end, the matter was dropped. As for the threat, there were no signs of injury on the child, and it was impossible to accuse anyone based on mere assumptions and vague guesses about some thug.

At this moment, Old Yun returned home and went straight to the main house, where he found the three children.

At the same time, Jiang Muti and the others had just come back and were playing foosball in the game room.

Old Yun pushed open the door, saw the children looking at him, and helplessly said, “You guys!”

Jiang Muti grinned and said, “It’s just that we kids are impatient, that’s all. We looked a bit anxious, maybe overstepped.”

It wasn’t hard for Old Yun to figure out the whole situation, he knew who to ask. However, he didn’t expect the young lady to have already prepared everything, making her move before he could even make up his mind.

But this was actually fine. The reason he was hesitant was because the woman was the biological mother of the children, and he wasn’t sure if being too harsh or too lenient would hurt the kids’ feelings.

But many things could be better understood by peers, so his two children probably had already come to terms with it.

After Old Yun left, Yun Cheng asked Jiang Muti, “What if that man runs away by himself? Leaving the mother and child here, the trouble still isn’t over.”

Jiang Muti smiled and replied, “How could he? He’s someone who’s willing to stay together even after being abandoned by family and selling his children. How could they separate?”

“How could they let them separate? A family should be together, shouldn’t they?”