Chapter 42: I Don’t Care Who I Talk To, It Has Nothing To Do With You…
“I know.”
Liang Sheng looked up at him. Though his voice was small and his eyes held a trace of fear, they were unusually firm. “But I don’t know why you’re angry! My coming here was Grandfather’s decision, but it’s also my right. You have no right to stop me, and certainly no need to treat me like this!”
It was the first time he had spoken so much in one breath, the first time he had directly resisted the man’s oppression. His entire body was tense; his cheeks were flushed, his chest heaved with rapid breaths, and his breathing was shaky. He was clearly forcing himself to hold his ground.
He knew that doing this would only invite even greater fury from the other man, but he wasn’t afraid. Grandfather had encouraged him—to be brave, and that he would always be the best!
Shen Xingyu stood silently. The gaze he leveled at Liang Sheng was the calm before a storm.
“Is this how it has to be? Shengsheng, I’ll give you one last chance. Admit you’re wrong, and I’ll let it go.”
“Young Master, stop being so stubborn with President Shen! Quickly, apologize to him! You really are in the wrong this time.”
Su Nian chimed in, standing by Shen Xingyu’s side and putting on a facade of selfless kindness.
“You, shut up! No one asked you to speak…!”
Liang Sheng turned to glare at him. He was no longer quiet or timid; he was utterly sick of this person who constantly feigned weakness and innocence. For Shen Xingyu to use someone like this to humiliate him was truly disgusting!
Su Nian hadn’t expected him to snap back with such biting words. Rage filled him, but he had to desperately suppress it.
He glared at Liang Sheng before ducking behind Shen Xingyu, acting frightened. “President Shen… the Young Master is so scary! I’m frightened…”
“Don’t be afraid.”
Shen Xingyu offered a brief word of comfort, but his eyes never left Liang Sheng.
“Apologize to Niannian.”
He spoke in a commanding tone, strangely obsessed—obsessed with making Liang Sheng bow his head and admit fault, obsessed with restoring their relationship to how it used to be. Only then could he potentially get more.
He wanted it all. He wanted Liang Sheng’s love, he wanted Liang Sheng’s heart to be given willingly—he wanted every part of him!
“I won’t…!”
Liang Sheng refused.
“Apologize.”
Just as those words left his lips, someone approached with a laugh and a toast, breaking the three-way deadlock.
“President Shen, it’s been a long time! I hope you’ve been well. Congratulations on your company’s performance reaching new heights this year!”
Shen Xingyu’s anger had yet to subside. Being interrupted at this moment, he responded with a cold face:
“Mhm. Thank you.”
The person toasting him was Gao Hongcheng, the Vice President of the Gao Group. He felt a bit awkward, but he didn’t want to miss the chance to collaborate with the President of the Shen Corporation. Maintaining a warm smile, he exchanged a few more pleasantries and insisted on clinking glasses with Shen Xingyu.
Shen Xingyu ignored him, his gaze indifferent.
Su Nian, however, sensibly stepped forward to intercept the toast for Shen Xingyu. He raised his glass with a smile. “Our President Shen doesn’t drink. I’ll drink in his place.”
With that, he downed the glass.
“What a fine tolerance for alcohol! Might I ask who you are to President Shen? With an air like yours, could you be the Young Master?”
Gao Hongcheng sized Su Nian up. With his fair skin and delicate features, he looked like a perfect match for Shen Xingyu.
Su Nian pursed his lips, his cheeks flushing slightly. He had to admit the man before him had good eyes.
Shen Xingyu neither confirmed nor denied it.
This ambiguous attitude was the final straw for Liang Sheng. Why was it so hard for Shen Xingyu to acknowledge him in public?
He took a step forward. Though nervous, he finally plucked up the courage to speak for himself.
“Sir… you’ve mistaken him for someone else. I am Ayu’s wife. He is not.”
Su Nian’s face instantly darkened.
Unbelievable. This person usually swallows his pride in silence, but just because he’s wearing a new suit today, he thinks he can put himself on a pedestal?!
Shen Xingyu was surprised that Liang Sheng would actually step forward to argue and proactively claim to be his wife…
The corners of his mouth tilted up slightly. Though his expression remained calm, a hint of dark satisfaction flickered in the depths of his gloomy eyes.
Liang Sheng had been blocked by Su Nian earlier, so it was only now that Gao Hongcheng saw the beauty standing before him. His eyes widened.
The flushed face, the noble velvet suit—he looked like an ethereal masterpiece of the mortal world.
If the youth who had toasted him earlier had a bit of charm, then the person before him was one in a million!
Gao Hongcheng marveled in his heart. He quickly slapped his own mouth and eagerly tried to win Liang Sheng’s favor.
“My apologies! I didn’t realize you were the real Mrs. Shen! My eyes were dim to have mistaken you. Please don’t hold it against me, Young Master!”
To see a useless waste get a Vice President like Gao to bow and scrape to please him… the more Su Nian thought about it, the angrier he got.
“It’s fine.”
Liang Sheng gave his usual gentle smile.
He’s actually smiling at someone else?
How can he smile so sweetly at another man?
Shen Xingyu’s gaze locked onto Liang Sheng. A powerful surge of bitterness and displeasure welled up in his heart. At this moment, he truly wanted to grab Liang Sheng’s face and force him to smile only at him!
Gao Hongcheng hadn’t noticed that Shen Xingyu’s face had darkened to the extreme; he was still busy heaping on the flattery.
“Come, let me toast the Young Master! You are truly exquisite! Like a celestial fairy descending to earth.”
“I don’t drink, thank you.”
Liang Sheng shook his head, refusing politely.
From the moment Liang Sheng appeared, Gao Hongcheng’s eyes hadn’t left him. He was trying his hardest to show off.
Unable to take it anymore, Shen Xingyu pulled Liang Sheng back to his side and spoke coldly to Gao Hongcheng:
“Fine. Have you said enough?”
“President Shen, you…”
Gao Hongcheng was at a loss. He had heard that the young master of the Shen family was cold, but he hadn’t expected him to be this frigid.
“Get lost.”
Shen Xingyu spoke the words lightly.
If looks could kill, this tactless fool would have died a thousand times over.
Gao Hongcheng’s hand shook, nearly spilling the wine in his glass. Having gained no benefits and only a face full of dust, he didn’t dare voice his anger. He could only leave in a sorry state.
“Who allowed you to talk to other men?”
Shen Xingyu turned his gaze back to Liang Sheng, questioning him with displeasure. The moment he thought of his little wife smiling at someone else, he felt a frantic jealousy.
He didn’t know what was wrong with him. Before, he never had to worry about Liang Sheng betraying him, but ever since Xie Zhengran appeared, his possessiveness and desire for control over this person had grown daily, becoming reckless and overbearing.
“I don’t care who I talk to, it has nothing to do with you…”
Liang Sheng lowered his head, his voice muffled in resistance.
He was being firm for once, but he still sounded like a soft persimmon that anyone could squeeze; even his rebuttal was weak.
Shen Xingyu hadn’t expected him to dare speak like that. His anger flared even higher as he grabbed Liang Sheng’s wrist, warning him in a low voice, “I’ll deal with you when we get back.”
“You… let go!”
Liang Sheng grew flustered and tried to struggle, but the man wouldn’t give him the chance, gripping the slender wrist tightly.
Just as they were about to head toward the main table, a deep male voice rang out from behind them: “Xiao Yu, wait a moment.”
Shen Xingyu was annoyed by the endless socializing. He didn’t like crowded places. If it weren’t for the fact that the Old Master’s leg was injured and he had no choice, he wouldn’t have come at all.
Those people looked dignified on the surface, but they all had their own ulterior motives. Their fawning and flattering faces, all for the sake of gaining a connection with the Shen family, made him feel disgusted.
Seeing who had arrived, Su Nian quickly tugged at the man’s sleeve and whispered, “President Shen, it’s Chairman Jiang and Young Master Jiang.”
Only then did Shen Xingyu’s mood soften slightly. Back then, it was thanks to Jiang Tianyang that he, who had been lost for years, was successfully brought back. He didn’t have any particular dislike for this Uncle Jiang.
He turned around and offered a slight smile to the newcomer. “Uncle Jiang.”
“Good, good. It’s been a year, and Xiao Yu has become even more composed. I really have to praise you. That problem with the tourism industry last time nearly caused the Jiang Group heavy losses. Luckily, you stepped in to help and solved it in just a few days. Very few people have that kind of ability; even I, your Uncle Jiang, feel inferior. Your future is limitless!”
Jiang Tianyang praised him without stinting. The more he looked at Shen Xingyu, the more he felt the man fit his standard for an heir. It was just a pity he had sired a useless brat himself.
“Even I, your Uncle Jiang, feel inferior~”
Jiang Chuzhou stood to the side, mocking his father in a sing-song, sarcastic tone. Seeing his old man acting so stiffly made him want to laugh.
Jiang Tianyang felt a surge of fire. His pleasant expression vanished instantly as he turned to berate his son.
“Look at you! What kind of state is this? You don’t learn anything good, just loiter around all day. Can’t you learn from Xiao Yu? Look at how he manages his company so it thrives, while all you do is waste the family fortune! How did I raise such a worthless son!”
“Yeah, I’m worthless. Then why don’t you just let Brother Yu be your son? Since I’m such an eyesore, I’ll just get lost~”
Jiang Chuzhou didn’t care at all. He remained lazy with his hands in his pockets and even blew a whistle at Shen Xingyu.
Shen Xingyu simply felt it was a disgrace.
Jiang Tianyang was so angry he started laughing. He pointed at his son, trembling with rage. “You’re truly going to be the death of me!”
“Dead? Then hurry up and give me the company! I’ll buy you a grand tomb, old man.”
Jiang Chuzhou completely ignored his father’s ashen face. He shook his leg while reaching out his hand toward him.
Liang Sheng watched, unable to help but wonder. Jiang Chuzhou was born into a noble family; although he lost his mother early, Jiang Tianyang was very cultivated in his speech and conduct. How could he have raised a son like this…
He didn’t know Jiang Chuzhou well, so he didn’t want to speculate.
Su Nian, on the other hand, was covering his mouth to hide a giggle.
He had to say, this Young Master Jiang was truly hilarious, daring to curse his own father to an early grave in his face. Such commendable courage!
Jiang Tianyang was nearly spitting blood from his stupid son’s provocations. He couldn’t catch his breath, clutching his chest as he stumbled back several steps, nearly falling. Fortunately, Shen Xingyu was quick and caught him.
“Uncle Jiang, are you alright?”
Jiang Tianyang waved him off. “I’m fine… I’m fine… To have sired such a rebellious son, it’s a misfortune for the family…” He sighed in frustration. “I’ve let you all see something embarrassing.”
“Jiang Chuzhou, you’ve gone too far.”
Shen Xingyu frowned, looking at Jiang Chuzhou.
Jiang Chuzhou shrugged indifferently and ran a hand through his hair, playing the role of someone who was completely unreachable to the core. “Are you praising me for being too handsome? Fine, I admit it.”
“Utterly unreasonable! Just ignore him!”
Jiang Tianyang had given up all hope for this son. He calmed his emotions and looked at Liang Sheng by Shen Xingyu’s side, forcing a smile. “Shengsheng, why were you willing to accompany Xiao Yu to the gala this time? You used to avoid it like the plague.”
Shen Xingyu shot a cold side-eye at the person beside him.
“Hello, Uncle Jiang.”
Liang Sheng first greeted him politely, feeling a bit awkward. He offered a strained explanation: “Before… I didn’t like the crowds much. This time I came back to visit Grandfather, so I thought I’d attend the gala while I was at it!”
In truth, he had wanted to attend before, but Shen Xingyu ha
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