Chapter 7

Seeing his sister-in-law's expression, Xiao Cheng guessed what Fang Yujia was thinking. He indeed felt a bit uncomfortable. He had clearly stood up for his sister-in-law, but now he was in a difficult position, without even a chance to explain.

However, he didn't pay much attention to it. After all, the one who hit someone was him. He just felt a bit frustrated, but it wasn't a loss. He suspected that Qiao Yifeng was even more frustrated, not only forgiving him but also defending him.

Xiao Cheng was extremely suspicious. Why would this guy defend him? Even if he didn't want to expose the eavesdropping, it shouldn't be enough to defend him. Why? Xiao Cheng didn't think Qiao Yifeng was that kind-hearted.

"Mr. Qiao, I will give you an explanation for this. Please go to the reception room to rest. After I deal with the family matters, I will come to find you."

...

After Qiao Yifeng left, only three people remained on the floor: Xiao Cheng, Fang Yujia, and Xiao Guowei, who had a cut on his forehead.

Just now, Xiao Cheng had thrown Xiao Guowei, and unexpectedly, he had hit his forehead. Xiao Cheng even maliciously speculated that Xiao Guowei might have deliberately hit his forehead, considering that Xiao Guowei was a master of internal martial arts.

Xiao Guowei, nearly fifty years old, was a master of internal martial arts and showed no signs of aging. His black hair had no white strands.

Xiao Guowei glared at Xiao Cheng with venom. If it weren't for the fact that Xiao Cheng was the family's only heir and couldn't be openly harmed, he would have unhesitatingly crippled Xiao Cheng. He didn't believe that Xiao Cheng had the strength to match the family head. He estimated that he had been too careless, which allowed Xiao Cheng to take advantage of him.

Fang Yujia's face was ashen, her chest heaving, clearly very angry. It was one thing for her brother-in-law to hit Qiao Yifeng, but to hit her uncle before that was another matter. Although she disliked her uncle, he was still an elder of the family.

"Uncle, tell me what happened just now."

Fang Yujia didn't give Xiao Cheng a chance to explain. She directly asked her uncle, preferring to believe the uncle who often made things difficult for her rather than her brother-in-law.

Uncle added some details to his account, saying that he was standing outside the office door, happy that Xiao Cheng had come to the company. But as soon as Xiao Cheng approached, he hit him and "threw" him out. He didn't mention the eavesdropping at all.

If it were anyone else, Fang Yujia wouldn't have believed it. Could someone throw a man weighing over a hundred kilograms?

But she knew that Xiao Cheng had that ability. She had long known that the Xiao family was a hidden cultivation family, and the direct descendants practiced a supreme heart method, making them much stronger than ordinary people. Xiao Cheng had never lost a fight at school, so she didn't doubt Xiao Guowei's words.

Seeing that Fang Yujia was biased, Xiao Cheng didn't bother to explain. Misunderstanding was fine; after all, in her eyes, he was already on par with a demon.

If good intentions are treated like liver and lungs, then let them be liver and lungs. Tonight, we'll eat liver and lungs, and even abalone won't change that!

Seeing that Xiao Cheng showed no remorse, looking like a dead pig not afraid of boiling water, Fang Yujia became even angrier.

She said, "This is insubordination. You should know the family rules. Don't think I will cover for you. I will tell Grandfather!"

Insubordination, according to the family rules, deserved fifty lashes. Xiao Cheng's heart skipped a beat. This punishment was no small matter. If he were still at the peak of his innate cultivation, it would be like scratching an itch. But now, at the fourth stage of foundation building, fifty lashes would peel off a layer of skin.

But even fifty lashes, what of it? In his previous life, he had endured much hardship. This punishment was nothing.

"I never intended to hide it."

"You!"

Fang Yujia was speechless. She thought Xiao Cheng would act pitiful and beg for her mercy, giving her a chance to educate him. But unexpectedly, Xiao Cheng showed no emotion and said this.

However, it was somewhat perplexing. When did her brother-in-law become so principled? In the past, whenever he did something wrong, he would beg her to cover for him. Fang Yujia suddenly understood something. Her brother-in-law must be planning to follow the path of the patriarch.

She didn't want to waste time on Xiao Cheng and turned to Xiao Guowei, saying, "You must tell the family head about this and about hitting Mr. Qiao. Don't be too lenient."

Fang Yujia left, having agreed to have dinner with Qiao Yifeng tonight to continue discussing today's business. Since her husband Xiao Yi's mysterious death, she had never accepted any man's invitation, but Qiao Yifeng was different. Qiao Yifeng was her old classmate, and tonight's dinner was purely for business, with no romantic intentions.

After Fang Yujia left, Xiao Guowei's expression changed completely, his eyes filled with malice, staring at Xiao Cheng.

Xiao Cheng completely ignored his uncle's venomous gaze. He was certain that his uncle wouldn't do anything to him. People like his uncle, who were deeply calculating, always believed in revenge being a dish best served cold and that small matters should not be rushed. He had no courage to beat him face-to-face.

After Xiao Cheng left, Xiao Guowei's face became even darker, muttering to himself, "I'll see how long you can be so arrogant. The patriarch and the family head will die one day. When they are gone, who will protect you? Hmph!"

...

When Xiao Cheng left the 18th floor, it was already evening. The entire city of Hu Hai was lit up, with several towering buildings nearby illuminated with colorful lights, creating a vibrant scene. The streets were filled with speeding vehicles, a picture of prosperity. Seeing this, Xiao Cheng felt a sense of being in a different world.

For five years, he had been living in pursuit and self-reproach. Suddenly being reborn eight years in the past, the feeling of fate playing tricks on him was very complex, stirring up an indescribable emotion in his heart.

Undoubtedly, being reborn at this time made him feel very happy, but there was also a sense of desperate loneliness. Everyone in the family hated him, and he knew many things about the future but couldn't tell anyone, even if he did, no one would believe him. This feeling was very frustrating, like constipation.

Not having anyone to trust was a profound sorrow.

He wasn't always like this. As a child, he had been innocent, just like any other child.

When he was four, he happily showed his mother a perfect score on his test, but his mother didn't even say a word of praise. She just stared at the mahjong table and said, "I win," completely ignoring him. That night, the perfect score became fragments, scattered in the rain, until the red 100 faded and no one could recognize it.

Later, his mother, for some reason, immigrated to Canada, leaving him alone. He was only six years old, and on the day she left, he didn't shed a single tear.

Having lost his father at a young age, after his mother left, he was taken care of by his uncles, but they also passed away one by one.

Until he was fifteen, his older brothers got married one after another, and he had four sisters-in-law who began to take care of him. By then, he had already become a stubborn troublemaker. Later, his brothers also died, leaving the four sisters-in-law in tears every day. The direct line of the family was left with only him and the patriarch.

After the family was destroyed, he discovered some clues about his enemies, vaguely knowing that they were a cult of evil cultivators. However, he wasn't clear on the specific reasons for the attack on the Xiao family. The only thing he knew was that the cult was very powerful, otherwise, his master at the Golden Core stage wouldn't have died.

Thinking about having to bear everything alone in the future, Xiao Cheng felt a sense of powerlessness. After all, the enemy was a large sect, and he was just one person. But what could he do? He had to bear it. The patriarch was old, and the family members were only thinking about how to divide the family assets.

Of course, he wasn't afraid at all. There were still three years before the family's destruction, and in these three years, he could do many things.