Dong Bing had been living like a king these past few days—finally, his debts were paid off.
Murong Dan had suddenly become incredibly caring toward him, and he felt more like the head of the household than ever before…
Sure, he was a bit exhausted at night, but overall it was totally worth it.
Today, Murong Dan surprisingly didn’t ask him to join her for a meal, so he went out for a stroll by himself in the evening.
And who did he run into? The very servant who had helped him pay off his debts last time.
The servant told him that Sheng Mingli needed a favor, and then led him to a brothel…
Over the past few days, Dong Bing had figured things out—Sheng Mingli, the second young master, was just like him, a son born of a concubine.
But the guy was incredibly gifted academically and had actually passed the provincial examination this time.
Dong Bing was full of curiosity about this Second Young Master Sheng. The servant brought him to a door, told him to go in alone, and said he’d understand once he was inside…
When Dong Bing entered and saw the person on the bed, his eyes lit up instantly.
He finally understood exactly what the servant meant.
This Sheng Mingli must be head over heels for him!
Otherwise, why would he go to such great lengths to “approach” him?
Dong Bing wasn’t particularly talented at anything—but he was exceptionally good at loving himself!
Seeing that Sheng Mingli had such a fine appearance, and since Dong Bing wasn’t picky about gender anyway, his lust got the better of him. He reached out his wandering hand toward the person on the bed…
Just then, the door was violently kicked open from outside.
“Who—”
Dong Bing jumped like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. He turned and saw two women wearing veils, and assumed they were girls who had wandered into the wrong brothel.
“Get out—” he snarled.
The ones who had burst in were none other than Duanmu Rui and Little Apple.
When the two of them saw the scene inside—especially Sheng Mingli lying on the bed clearly in an abnormal state—they were instantly furious.
Without a word, Duanmu Rui grabbed a vase from the side and hurled it at Dong Bing.
Dong Bing couldn’t dodge in time and was hit so hard he saw stars, howling in pain.
Little Apple also kicked Dong Bing several times in the stomach.
Little Apple was strong—Dong Bing’s face went pale, cold sweat beaded on his forehead, and he dropped to his knees…
What made it even more convenient was that this room was in a rather remote corner, so even with all the commotion, no one came to check…
“You—how can you just hit people like this?
“Do you even know who I am?
“I’ll make sure you pay for this—”
Dong Bing gasped for air a few times, his eyes full of venom.
Duanmu Rui sneered, and Little Apple delivered another chop with her hand—Dong Bing’s eyes rolled back and he collapsed to the ground.
“You go wait at the door…”
Duanmu Rui only spoke after Dong Bing had passed out.
“But… you…”
“Don’t worry, I can handle a good-for-nothing like him no problem!”
Little Apple thought about it—this brothel was pretty big, and without a guide, Sheng Mingshu would probably take forever to find the place—so she nodded and went out.
When she got downstairs, she happened to see Sheng Mingshu and Huaishan rushing over, so she led them upstairs.
When Sheng Mingshu saw Sheng Mingli’s condition, he was absolutely furious. He was also deeply grateful to Duanmu Rui, but this wasn’t the place to talk.
He immediately carried Sheng Mingli on his back, while Huaishan carried Dong Bing, and the group headed to a medical clinic.
The doctor at the clinic prescribed medicine for Sheng Mingli. Meanwhile, Huaishan had already woken Dong Bing up and interrogated him.
Yuanyuan also met up with them and had found Sheng Mingli’s servant, Fengshou.
It turned out that Fengshou had somehow eaten something bad and had to rush to the latrine, which was why Sheng Mingli had been so easily dragged off to the brothel.
Dong Bing had never met Fengshou either. When he learned that the servant he’d met was not actually Second Young Master Sheng’s servant, Dong Bing was dumbfounded.
Sheng Mingshu then asked what that servant looked like, and based on Dong Bing’s description, he drew a portrait.
The person in the portrait looked very much like Yu Cheng, one of Sheng Mingjian’s attendants.
“This was aimed at me…”
Sheng Mingshu took a deep breath. On the way here, he had actually already guessed who was behind this.
Such a dirty trick—he couldn’t think of anyone else but his legitimate elder brother.
Sheng Mingyi’s health would prevent him from taking the imperial exams in the future, and Sheng Mingbo had no academic talent whatsoever. He wasn’t in those two’s way, so after thinking it through, only Sheng Mingjian remained.
What a wonderful elder brother he had!
Fortunately, nothing major had happened today. Sheng Mingshu thanked Princess Duanmu Rui again and again.
“Do you want me to help you take care of him? An eye for an eye?”
Duanmu Rui asked tentatively, her face flushing slightly as she finished speaking.
Sheng Mingshu was quite surprised—he felt the princess seemed a bit too warm-hearted. After thinking it over, he said:
“Thank you for your kindness, Princess, but we’ll take revenge on our own.”
Sheng Mingshu didn’t want to dirty the princess’s hands with this kind of thing, and besides, he genuinely wanted to personally get revenge—that was the only way to feel truly satisfied.
After saying goodbye to the princess, Sheng Mingshu took Sheng Mingli, who had regained his senses, back to the mansion.
The two discussed it and went to see Sheng Yong, explaining everything exactly as it had happened.
After hearing the story, Sheng Yong was so angry he slammed the table and stood up.
“This is absolutely outrageous! Unbelievable audacity!”
Sheng Yong roared, his expression extremely grim.
Sheng Mingshu said calmly, “Father, if I hadn’t arrived in time today, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
“By then, our Sheng family would have become the laughingstock of all Kyoto.
“I’m afraid I would have also performed poorly on the year-end exam. That’s why I’m so furious, and I specifically asked about many details.”
As he spoke, he pulled a portrait from his sleeve.
“This is a portrait drawn based on Dong Bing’s description. The servant in the picture bears some resemblance to one of the attendants by elder brother’s side—”
Sheng Mingshu’s meaning was already crystal clear.
How could Sheng Yong not understand?
He was furious.
Furious that his eldest son had no tolerance for others!
The eldest son was the legitimate heir. No matter how accomplished the concubine-born sons were, as long as he played his cards right, he could make them his own in the future, couldn’t he?
Moreover, the eldest son’s scheme was meant to destroy both of his concubine-born sons!
Angry as he was, the eldest son’s ruthless methods were indeed just like his own.
People generally favor the child who most resembles them.
Among these sons, the one Sheng Yong valued and doted on most was still Sheng Mingjian.
Besides, he had also taken the eldest son’s woman…
So he could only smooth things over.
He looked at the two sons before him—one with a calm expression, the other with eyes full of anger and grievance.
Sheng Yong cursed vehemently a few more times before sighing and saying:
“I will definitely give you two brothers an explanation for this matter. However, you both did well on the last exam—it’s hard to say whether there are ill-intentioned people out there trying to sow discord…
“Besides, the provincial exam is coming up at the end of the year, and your elder brother will be taking it too—
“I’m afraid that if there’s some misunderstanding, it could damage the bond between you brothers and affect your performance on the exam—”
“So what does Father mean?”
“How about I interrogate that servant first? If nothing comes of it, we can investigate more carefully after the exam—”
Sheng Mingli’s heart turned cold.
This matter was simplicity itself—just bring that servant named Yu Cheng over and confront him with Dong Bing, and the truth would come out.
Why make it so complicated?
Father’s heart was tilted all the way to the heavens.
Sheng Mingshu, on the other hand, had known this would be the outcome.
Their father had always put interests above all else.
If Sheng Mingjian scored better than him on the year-end exam, Sheng Yong definitely wouldn’t help them seek justice.
Only if he scored better than Sheng Mingjian on the year-end exam would Sheng Yong re-examine his value.
And Sheng Mingjian wouldn’t let Yu Cheng stay in Kyoto to be interrogated obediently either…
However, Sheng Mingshu hadn’t come all this way to get Sheng Yong to take revenge for them—he came to make Sheng Yong rein in Sheng Mingjian.
To make Sheng Mingjian stop causing trouble for the time being.
After the year-end exam, he would settle accounts with his legitimate brothers himself!
Including what happened when his concubine mother was poisoned!
