CH 20

C20 – Absolute Truth! Biological!

As soon as Tang Yue left, all the young ladies present began teasing him. “You have to take good care of your sister and make sure she doesn’t run off.”

“And make sure you get along well with the other ladies, no throwing tantrums,” they added.

“Just stay here patiently until I come back, and then we’ll go home together,” one of them said before they all burst into laughter, even County Princess Huizhu joined in.

The Tang sisters blushed, but they were not upset. They both felt grateful to have such a caring older brother.

Tang Yue was led to a yard built on the water, surrounded by willow trees. The refreshing breeze dispelled the summer heat, and the scenery was so lovely that one would not want to leave.

Suddenly, they heard cries for mercy coming from the waterside pavilion. Tang Yue followed the maid and arrived to see a young boy being beaten up by a group of others.

“Please stop hitting me! Don’t slap me!” he begged, while the maid hurriedly intervened.

As Tang Yue watched, he saw the beaten boy surrounded by a group of youths. The boy was crying out for the County Prince to stop hitting him.

“Ouch… County Prince, please stop,” he cried out in pain.

“Excuse me, what’s going on here? Why are they fighting?” asked the maid, trying to pull the boy to safety. However, he pushed her away and refused to budge.

Onlookers gaped in amazement as the scene unfolded before them. Despite the commotion, nobody intervened, and there was even an overweight man shamelessly attempting to hit on a woman in the midst of the chaos.

Tang Yue’s gaze involuntarily shifted towards the chubby man, who resembled a plump, freshly-steamed bun. The man boldly slipped his hand into the woman’s clothing and began to caress her. The woman gasped and moaned, surrendering herself to the man’s embrace.

“Damn it! He’s not learning good manners at such a young age,” exclaimed someone.

Tang Yue averted their gaze and focused on the ongoing battle. Despite the maid’s attempts to intervene, the little boy persisted in using the person under him as a punching bag, displaying a five-star level of brutality.

“Young master, please stop fighting. If you persist, you may lose your life. The princess will not be pleased!” Despite her efforts, the maid was unable to intervene and was forced to fetch her mistress.

However, the young lady showed no signs of stopping. She continued to pummel the punching bag with unwavering determination.

Tang Yue observed the wild and impulsive behavior of the young lady with amusement. “That’s not going to be effective. You should aim for a specific spot with a depth of three inches. In less than ten strikes, the bag will be destroyed.”

Both the one who had been beating the bag and the one who had been beaten looked up simultaneously and questioned, “Who are you?”

Tang Yue responded, “You are young and inexperienced. The one who hit the bag was you. Do you hold a grudge against the bag or against your own fist?”

The young lady’s eyes gleamed fiercely like a beast’s. She focused her gaze on the spot Tang Yue had pointed out, contemplating whether or not to execute his advice.

The young man who had been pinned down by him shuddered and hastily shoved him away before leaping up. “I won’t fight anymore, I won’t fight anymore…”

Tang Yue had foreseen this outcome. This young man hadn’t retaliated despite being assaulted. Either he was too scared or simply didn’t want to fight. However, that was only under the condition that his life wasn’t at risk. When one’s life was in danger, nobody would just lie there and accept their fate.

The maid took advantage of the opportunity to snatch the little boy and clung onto him, paying no heed to his struggles as she dragged him out. “Young master, the princess is searching for you. Come with her servant immediately.”

As soon as they left, the audience erupted into laughter. “Haha… Zhao Sanlang, did you get a good beating? Look at your multicolored face, you don’t need any makeup anymore!”

“Zhao Sanlang seems to be enjoying it. He comes here every day to get thrashed. Perhaps the County Prince agreed to marry the princess after he beat him up.”

“Haha…”

Tang Yue finally grasped the cause of the incident. So it turned out to be because of the beauty. He truly agreed with the adage that love makes one foolish.

Only after the audience had laughed enough did they let Zhao Sanlang leave. A young man standing near Tang Yue inquired with a grin, “Who are you? I’ve never seen you before.”

Everyone’s gaze shifted towards him, and they recognized him as the person who had given advice earlier. Their eyes became more curious.

“I’m Tang Yue. I’m from the Yueyang Marquis’s Mansion.” Tang Yue briefly introduced himself. Normally, the maid should have performed this task, but she had already fled. He had no choice but to handle it himself.

“Yueyang Marquis?”

“Is his last name Tang?”

“Could it be… a branch of the Tang Family?”

“Or perhaps he’s the adopted son of Master Hou. If he cannot have a son of his own, he may have sought to carry on his legacy in this manner.”

Tang Yue could see that their speculations were growing increasingly far-fetched and felt compelled to clarify, “Yueyang Marquis is my father.”

“My father?” Tang Yue repeated.

“My father?”

“Is that true?”

“He is my biological father. Look closely at my face.” Tang Yue gestured to his fully genetic features. “If it’s not true, then what is?”

“When did the Yueyang Marquis have such a grown-up son?” Yueyang Marquis inquired. Zhao Sanlang approached, nursing his swollen cheek, and circled around Tang Yue three times before asking, “Is he an illegitimate child or the son of a concubine?”

Tang Yue knew the question posed to him was impolite, and was aware of the other person’s grudge, so he answered calmly and without arrogance, “Zhao Sanlang should direct that question to my father. My apologies for not being able to provide a response.”

“Tch, even if you hadn’t spoken, we could have surmised that there was an additional son, who was also the biological offspring of the Marquis’s Wife. He certainly did not come from her womb,” the other person remarked.

Tang Yue did not wish to dwell on this matter and wanted to change the subject. Curious, he asked Zhao Sanlang, “Is it true that you come here every day to get beaten up?”

Zhao Sanlang’s expression changed immediately, and he glared at Tang Yue, “Mind your own business!”

Tang Yue thought to himself, “Well, that’s one way to shut me up, brother. I really can’t read you!”

Putting his arm around Zhao Sanlang’s shoulder, he led him aside and asked, “Do you want me to show you a better way?”

Zhao Sanlang was about to lose his temper, but the suggestion piqued his interest, and he asked nonchalantly, “What do you have in mind?”

“Beating up a rebellious child won’t solve anything. Today isn’t the right time to discuss this. Let’s talk about it another day. For now, let’s focus on building a long-lasting friendship,” Tang Yue suggested.

Before Zhao Sanlang could inquire further, someone nearby interrupted them, “Hey, what are you two whispering about?”

“Zhao Sanlang, did you get beaten up today? I see you’re cozying up to an unattractive man. Didn’t you say you only befriend handsome men?” the person taunted.

“Ugly man?” Tang Yue blinked in surprise. Was the person talking about him? It couldn’t be, right? Even though he wasn’t strikingly attractive, he didn’t think he was unattractive either.

He felt that he had to defend his appearance, so he looked at the young man who spoke and said, “Judging from your looks, I doubt you’re Zhao Sanlang’s friend, are you?”

Everyone was momentarily taken aback before comprehending the underlying meaning of Tang Yue’s words.

“Haha… This kid is quite audacious. He actually dares to make fun of one of the four most handsome men in Ye City.”

Tang Yue was so frightened that he wet his pants. One of the four most handsome men? This effeminate-looking guy? How was he supposed to survive in a society where looks were so highly regarded?

Maybe because of his vivid expression, everyone laughed even louder. “Look, this ugly brat is actually disrespecting Young Master Heng, haha…”

Zhao Sanlang looked at Tang Yue and then at Xu Ziheng. For some reason, he found the latter more likable.

He patted Tang Yue’s shoulder and said, “As expected, great minds think alike! I, Zhao San, have always said that Xu Ziheng isn’t worthy of being compared to me. The world is blind!”

Xu Ziheng had stunning peach blossom eyes that exuded a unique charm when he lifted his head. However, his demeanor was too maternal, and he wasn’t Tang Yue’s type.

On the other hand, Zhao Sanlang was quite good-looking. He was handsome and had a strong commitment to love. Unfortunately, he was straight.

“I heard that the Noble Heir of State Duke Heng is also here. Can you tell me who he is?” Tang Yue scanned the crowd, trying to guess which one of them was his prospective brother-in-law, apart from the two people who already knew each other’s names.

Regardless of who it was, they all seemed quite impressive. It appeared that his father had good taste in selecting potential spouses for his sister.

Little did he know that he was about to change his opinion. Everyone gazed at him with sympathy, and Tang Yue’s heart began to race. He followed the direction of someone’s finger and spotted a portly man flirting with an attractive woman.

Was it possible? Could that really be him?

Tang Yue asked for confirmation multiple times, and everyone agreed with him. The friendly expression that he had maintained for so long finally gave way to one of shock and disbelief.

Zhao Sanlang sympathized with them and tried to comfort them. “I understand that you’re not familiar with Noble Heir of State Duke Heng. He’s actually a decent person, but he enjoys having fun.”

In just two words, “hehe,” he concluded that Noble Heir of State Duke Heng lacked both talent and looks.

Xu Ziheng snorted in contempt and sarcastically remarked, “Everyone in Ye City knows that Noble Heir of State Duke Heng is a womanizer who has no ambition and has been reduced to a shell of his former self. Besides indulging in pleasures, what else can he do? How can you possibly say that he’s a good person?”

Tang Yue was also curious about this. Since the overweight man arrived, he had not left the side of any woman. If he persisted in causing trouble, it would be as if he was blind to the situation. The young man’s expression was already conceited. Could his charming and captivating sister truly intend to marry such a person?

Tang Yue furrowed his brows tightly. He resolved to return and inquire about this matter. Given how much the Marquis and his wife doted on their daughter, they shouldn’t do something so unreliable.