Interests

"Su Yaoguang!" This insolent attitude pushed Zhang Ya's patience to its absolute limit. From his childhood, she had raised this son under the strictest demands. Her sole aim was for him to shine brilliantly and achieve great fame and success, so that one day she could guide him into the upper echelons of Tiannan, using his extraordinary status and prestige to make his biological father, Su Huaifeng, regret everything. In earlier years, this son had indeed been submissive and docile before her, never daring to utter a word of contradiction. Over the past few years, as the Zhang family began to rise, she had felt she could fully rely on her family's newfound strength to avenge her past humiliation. Furthermore, Su Yaoguang had proven utterly disappointing; despite her painstaking efforts to cultivate him for so long, his performance in every aspect remained thoroughly mediocre. Disillusioned, she shifted her focus back to her family clan and loosened her discipline over him a bit. Yet how could affairs within a major clan ever be simple? Having been away from home for so many years, she had long grown estranged from the clan elders. After a year or two of fruitless maneuvering back home, she had failed to achieve any prominence at all. Out of desperation, she turned her sights back to Su Yaoguang, intending to use this blood-related son as an entry point. By leveraging the Zhang family's backing, she hoped to extort a fortune from the Su family to strengthen her own standing. And yet, the result... After merely a year or two of neglected supervision, this once obedient and honest son had turned entirely rebellious, daring to walk all over her! Sensing that his cousin was on the verge of throwing an impotent tantrum, Zhang Hong intervened first to prevent the tension from escalating. "Did someone from the Su family say something to you? What kind of promises did they make?" "Whether it's your side or the Su family, I have no desire to deal with either of you," Yaoguang replied placidly. "No desire to deal with them? Then when Su Yaoyu came all the way to Yunmeng City a few days ago with such a grand entourage, was it just to meet a lover?" a man in his early thirties sneered. Yaoguang tilted his head, giving him a glance. "And who are you?" "Zhang Rufeng. By seniority, you ought to call me Cousin—" Before he could finish, Yaoguang cut him off with a flick of his hand. "If you don't know how to speak properly, keep your mouth shut." "Nephew, it's not that I'm scolding you, but you've been out in the real world for a year or two now, and you've seen how deceitful society can be. Surely you understand how vital status and background are for getting anywhere?" Adopting the tone of an earnest elder, Zhang Hong said with heartfelt gravity, "With status and background, you can thrive effortlessly in any industry. Others work themselves to the bone just to earn a hundred or two hundred thousand a year and get called successful. But if you have connections and influence, you land a major contract, flip it with a flick of your wrist, and easily pocket tens of millions without lifting a finger. That's money ordinary laborers could never earn in an entire lifetime of grueling toil, accumulating a body full of ailments, even if they worked themselves to death with overtime. So, listening to your mother and me will do you no harm." He paused briefly before continuing, "Besides, we're simply going to the Su family to reclaim what rightfully belongs to you, things that were usurped by others." "And then?" Yaoguang looked at him. "Once it's taken back, who manages it? You?" "You're still young. If a massive fortune suddenly falls into your hands, it's inevitable that you wouldn't be able to handle it and would squander it on debauchery, which could easily ruin your life. We elders are holding onto it for your own good. Furthermore, we'll invest and manage this money, paying you handsome dividends every year. On those dividends alone, you could easily live a comfortable life free of worry," Zhang Hong continued in a tone brimming with concern. Yaoguang shook his head upon hearing this. He had completely lost interest in continuing to speak with these people. *Tap, tap, tap.* Just then, hurried footsteps echoed outside. Moments later, Su Yaoyu, Caiyun, Lin Xiaowei, and a middle-aged man in a sharp suit strode in. When she saw Zhang Ya and the others blocking the doorway, Su Yaoyu's expression turned noticeably complex. Still, she called out, "Mother." "Hmph, I have no ungrateful daughter who bites the hand that feeds her," Zhang Ya said coldly. "I endured ten months of hardship carrying and giving birth to you, yet you refuse to lift a finger when asked to do the slightest thing. What use are you to me?" "Mother, the things you've been doing... are illegal..." Su Yaoyu said. Mindful of the many outsiders present, she chose not to elaborate. Instead, she said, "I have business and need to take Yaoguang back home for a visit. What are you all doing here...?" "Business?" Zhang Ya let out a gloating sneer. "Su Huaifeng's illness flared up, didn't it? He probably won't survive it this time. Are you taking Yaoguang to see him one last time? Hah, had he known this day would come, he shouldn't have acted as he did!" "Mother, you and Father were together for three years, after all... A day as husband and wife brings a hundred days of grace..." "Shut your mouth!" Before Su Yaoyu could finish, Zhang Ya cut her off in fury. "From the moment I was heavily pregnant and caught him fooling around with three women, there has been no grace between us—only hatred!" Su Yaoyu opened her mouth, completely at a loss for words. Meanwhile, Yaoguang merely stood by and watched. Not a hint of emotion showed on his face. He was not the original host, after all; toward Zhang Ya or Su Huaifeng, he felt no genuine attachment. Even hearing from Zhang Ya that Su Huaifeng was on his deathbed caused barely a ripple in his heart. Had it not been for taking over this body and inheriting the original host's karma, he would not have wanted to see the faces of people like Zhang Ya or Su Yaoyu in the first place. Standing to the side, Zhang Hong had been quietly observing Yaoguang. Witnessing this, he felt a twinge of regret inside. Using Yaoguang as a pawn, opening a breakthrough through him to tear off a piece of meat from the Su family, would clearly not be an easy feat. However... If the emotional card failed, he could always play the card of self-interest. In the adult world, material interests were far more effective than so-called sentiments. "Over the past decade, Su Huaifeng placed the right bets, and his assets swelled more than tenfold. He even secured a seat on the board of Buzhou Group. In terms of net worth, he has at least five to six billion. Xingyu Center alone is worth no less than three billion. But how much of that will your Su family actually part with for Yaoguang? Would he even get a tenth? The rest will likely be devoured clean by his uncles." As Zhang Hong spoke, he turned his gaze to Su Yaoyu. "As for you—once Su Huaifeng dies, you'll have neither father nor mother. Who will stand up to uphold justice for you then? A married daughter is like spilt water. When the time comes, if the Su family leaves you with even a few hundred thousand for a dowry, it would be considered generous. Your position as general manager of Xingyu International Hotel will be at an end as well. Today you're General Manager Su, and out of respect, people call you Miss Su. Without that respect, once you return to the Su family in the future, you might not even have a seat at the table." "This is internal business of our Su family. You needn't trouble yourself over it," Su Yaoyu said, her attitude toward Zhang Hong far less gentle than toward Zhang Ya. "I don't care about the Su family's business, but when assets belonging to my nephew are being usurped, I cannot simply sit by and watch," Zhang Hong stated with righteous indignation. "The case against Su Xiangyang is massive, and with such a tremendous uproar, the Su family won't be able to protect him. Barring any surprises, he'll be going to prison very soon. That means Yaoguang is Su Huaifeng's sole heir. Moreover, he has come of age. Out of Su Huaifeng's five or six billion in assets, even if he doesn't inherit all of it, he should get at least half, shouldn't he? If the Su family tries to brush him off with a hundred or two hundred million, we on the mother's side will be the first to refuse." With that, he cast a glance at Yaoguang. "Nephew, rest assured, we will stand firmly behind you." "This matter..." Su Yaoyu was about to refuse. Yet at that moment, Yaoguang spoke up. "Wait!" He took a step forward. "Su Xiangyang is going to prison?" "The disturbance was immense, and the evidence was conclusive. The first trial has concluded: twenty years," Zhang Hong replied with a smile. "Perhaps with some maneuvering down the line, those twenty years might be reduced to fifteen or ten. But when it comes to dividing the cake left behind by Su Huaifeng, he certainly won't make it." "Twenty years, ten years." Yaoguang listened, then glanced at Su Yaoyu. "Is this the family discipline carried out by the Su Family Disciplinary Hall?" "The patriarch will compensate you..." Su Yaoyu said hurriedly. "No need," Yaoguang said. "Didn't you always want me to return to the Su family? Let's go."