Chapter 9

***Seeking support...***

Even so, Song Chen didn’t know how to bring up the topic of wanting to use the house as collateral for a loan to start a business with his mother. For Li Wan, this house was not only the only property she and her son had after the divorce, but also the only place they could call home. If anything happened, the two of them would have to return to their hometown in Dongguang Province, living a life of dependence. Therefore, Song Chen found it even harder to bring up the topic. With such real difficulties, the idea of not seeking help from his father began to waver.

After hesitating for two days, a call from home brought news of his father—Song Chen had a younger brother.

Seeing his mother, who was trying to be strong, force a smile, Song Chen fell silent.

The "butterfly" from over a decade later had just begun to spread its wings, so Song Chen couldn’t change the outcome of his parents’ divorce or the birth of his brother. In the grand scheme of history, Song Chen’s existence was just a grain of sand in the desert, insignificant.

The hospital wasn’t far from home; it was just a ten-minute walk.

On the way, Song Chen was filled with concerns. It wasn’t because he was hesitant about going to the hospital to "see his brother," but rather because he was unsure whether he should take this opportunity to tell his father about his plans and seek support!

"Xiao Chen, you’re here! Come over and see your brother! Hehe!"

Song Chen was familiar with the city’s first hospital, so even without asking, he found the room number his mother had given him and located the ward where Huang Zhen was staying. Seeing the crowd of people in the room—some were uncles and aunts, some were Huang Zhen’s relatives...—Song Chen, who was about to enter the ward, hesitated.

He heard a low but audible remark.

"How did he come?"

The casual words instantly froze the previously warm and harmonious atmosphere.

At forty-three, Song Hua was in the prime of his life, with sharp eyebrows and a prominent nose. Despite his small eyes, his long-standing position of power gave him an indescribable aura, even in moments of joy. Looking at his eldest son standing hesitantly at the door, a hint of sorrow and guilt flashed in Song Hua’s eyes.

Just as he was about to speak to ease the tension, an angry rebuke came: "Xiao Chen is my nephew, and he’s still my nephew even if he followed his mother. He’s my brother’s son! Why can’t he come here? Your words are not right, mother-in-law!"

The speaker was Song Hua’s younger brother, Song Ji, Song Chen’s uncle. Song Fen, Song Chen’s aunt, and her husband Cai Yue nodded in agreement, their eyes clearly filled with disdain and dissatisfaction as they looked at Huang Zhen’s parents. When Song Hua and Li Wan divorced, the Song family generally disapproved, but since Song Hua was no longer a struggling farmer from the 1970s and 1980s but the chairman of a company worth hundreds of millions, they could only feel sorry for Li Wan and Song Chen but were powerless to do anything.

But this didn’t mean the Huang family could openly exclude Song Chen in front of the Song family!

Huang Zhen’s father, Huang Zhenghong, and mother, Yue Hua, were workers. Before the reform and opening up, they were part of the "ruling class" with stable jobs. After the reform, they fell from grace, losing their jobs in the past two years and living a life of poverty, even affecting their only son’s education.

However, they had a beautiful daughter, Huang Zhen, who, after hooking up with Song Chen, used her cunning and charm to make Song Hua divorce his wife, Li Wan, and marry her, enjoying the life of a wealthy lady! Even more surprisingly, the "stepchild" Song Chen foolishly chose his worthless mother...

The Huang family of four celebrated, feeling like they had risen from slaves to masters.

So, with the advantage on their side, Yue Hua, feeling that "half of the Song family’s assets belonged to the Huang family," couldn’t help but show her arrogance. Seeing the Song family’s anger and her son-in-law’s displeasure, Yue Hua laughed awkwardly and said, "That’s not what I meant... I just meant..."

"We thought Xiao Chen was in class and couldn’t come, hehe! We didn’t mean anything else! Hehe!" Huang Zhenghong smiled and covered for his foolish wife with an elbow nudge.

A hint of mockery flashed in Song Fen’s eyes as she and Song Ji exchanged glances. They looked at Song Chen, who stood silently at the door, and sighed. Cai Yue also shook his head and waved at Song Chen, saying, "Xiao Chen, why are you standing at the door? Come in and hold your brother!"

Looking at Huang Zhen, who was lying in bed and coldly observing the scene, Song Chen suddenly felt like laughing.

Yes, he wanted to laugh.

If it were in his previous life, he would have been timid and anxious, watching the elders argue. But now, he was indifferent to the smug bird that had taken over the nest!

Even after knowing that his biological father would become extremely wealthy in the future, he remained indifferent, with no desire to return to the Song family—his father would be happy if he did!

Why should I be anxious and hesitant? Song Chen had a realization: I can achieve even greater success than my father! I believe I can! Otherwise, why would I have such an opportunity?

With this thought, he smiled at Huang Zhen, whose eyes were cold, and said, "Congratulations, Aunt Huang, your long-planned scheme has finally come to fruition!"

His words stunned everyone, including his father’s relatives and the Huang family. Song Fen kept glancing at her brother, who looked displeased, and then at Huang Zhen, who was trembling and glaring fiercely.

Song Chen, however, didn’t care. He smiled and walked toward his father, extending his hand, "Dad, let me hold my brother!"

"Oh! You want to see him!" Looking at his suddenly distant son, Song Hua felt a twinge of worry and hesitated about handing over the baby.

Huang Zhenghong and Yue Hua almost reflexively screamed, "No!"

The sharp voices made Song Hua and Huang Zhen frown. Without makeup, Huang Zhen looked less artificial and more charming, no wonder Song Hua couldn’t resist her!

"Uh!" Song Chen was taken aback but didn’t insist. He stopped with a half-smile and looked at Huang Zhenghong calmly, "Uncle Huang, are you afraid I’ll drop my brother because my arms are weak?"

"Of course not!" Huang Zhenghong laughed awkwardly but looked at Song Chen with a cold gaze, "I’m just worried you haven’t held a baby before. You’re young and might not know, a baby’s spine is very soft, so you have to be very careful when holding one! You’ll understand when you get married and have your own children!"

Huang Zhenghong’s explanation was forced, but Song Hua, who was about to hand over the baby, pulled back his hand and laughed, "That’s true, hehe!"

"Hehe!" Song Ji’s face was grim, but to avoid an awkward atmosphere, he had to force a smile. At that moment, he felt his throat tighten as he looked at his nephew! Everyone was indeed worried that Song Chen, being young and impulsive, might do something drastic... If Song Chen really lost it... it could be fatal!

Seeing the fear in his father and uncle, a hint of sadness flashed in Song Chen’s heart, but he smiled and said, "I see! Then I won’t hold him! I don’t want to accidentally ‘hurt’ my brother’s body!"

A gasp rippled through the room, and Song Hua, with a furious expression, scolded, "What nonsense! Don’t you know where you are? Go back to school, and come see the baby next time when we’re home!"

Song Chen shrugged with a relaxed smile, "I’ve dropped out!"

"Dropped out!" Song Fen was shocked and glared at her brother, "Brother, didn’t you say you’d provide Xiao Chen with tuition and living expenses?"

"I did!" Song Hua, holding the baby, turned his head and shouted, then glared at his son, "Why did you drop out? Give me a reason!"

Song Chen laughed, and it was a happy laugh, "I found that studying is useless. I want to do business! Doing business is great, when you have money, you can do whatever you want, date girls, have a son, and even divorce! You can still live comfortably!"

Song Hua placed the baby in his mother-in-law’s hands and, with a face ashen with anger, walked toward Song Chen, pushing aside his brother and sister who were trying to mediate.

Looking at his biological father, Song Chen, who was already standing in front of him, didn’t care and even sneered, "When the time comes, just marry a young wife who can be your daughter! It’s even better to keep a mistress outside! Dad, I need money for my business, lend me 100,000 yuan!"

At first, Huang Zhen was delighted, but as she listened, her smile faded and her face turned dark.

"Slap!" A sharp sound echoed as a slap landed on Song Chen’s face, which he had expected. His lips were cut by his teeth, and blood trickled out, making him look pitiful.

"Say that again!" Song Hua laughed in anger.

"Enough, enough!" Song Fen, who was already stunned, tried to mediate, "The child is young and doesn’t know better. You should understand his grievances, brother! Let it go!"

Song Chen laughed, wiped the blood from his lip, and said with a swollen left cheek, "Before I came, I planned to talk to you about my plans. I thought I could remain indifferent; I could congratulate this woman without being sarcastic; I could tell the baby in the crib, ‘Brother will protect you!’"

Looking directly into his father’s eyes, seeing the emotions of "pity," "guilt," "anger," and more, Song Chen said bitterly, "But I can’t forgive the betrayal of the man my mother once relied on, even if that man is my father! If you chose to be unfaithful, you shouldn’t have married in the first place!"

"Enough!" Song Hua, enraged and embarrassed, slapped him again.

"Don’t!" Song Ji, Song Fen, and Cai Yue couldn’t stop it in time, while the Huang family watched with interest.

But this time, Song Chen wouldn’t just sit there. He grabbed his father’s wrist and coldly watched as his father pulled away. Stepping back, Song Chen stood tall, his 173 cm frame looking especially imposing. He looked at his father, then at his uncles and aunt, and finally at Huang Zhen, and said coldly, "I swear! In three years, I’ll make you look at me differently! In six years, I’ll make you regret everything! In ten years, I’ll crush the Song Group under my feet! Completely!"

Everyone was stunned!

Song Hua looked at his son in shock, seeing the same cold and resentful eyes as his own. At that moment, he regretted it. He didn’t know what the woman had told his son, but how did their relationship suddenly become so strained?

Stepping back again, Song Chen suddenly smiled, his swollen left cheek making him look ridiculous. As if nothing had happened, he said, "On such a happy day, I shouldn’t have said such unpleasant things. I apologize. I’ll say congratulations to Mom, Dad, and Aunt Huang on their behalf." With that, he turned and walked away, ignoring the calls of his relatives.

I swear! No matter what means I use or what price I pay, I will rise to the top! I will!

Back home, seeing his mother, who was restless on the sofa, Song Chen, before she could scream about his face and what had happened, looked at her seriously and said, "Mom! Can I borrow this house for a while?"

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