ABBWW Chapter 22

Chapter 022 The Young Master – “Why don’t you just call him brother?” (22/35)

 

Mu Jincheng cursed under his breath.

 

But he knew full well that now was not the time to let Wen Xusheng lead him astray. He was already in the wrong; if he let himself be swayed, this entire trip would be for nothing.

 

So Mu Jincheng offered no reply to Wen Xusheng. Instead, he fixed his gaze on Shi Jingge, his face gradually contorting with pain and shame. His already haggard appearance made this anguish and humiliation seem all the more genuine.

 

Shi Jingge’s expression softened slightly. Then he subconsciously glanced up at Shi Rongqing.

 

Shi Rongqing mentally cursed Mu Jincheng a million times over before slowly nodding in agreement. However, Shi Rongqing spoke before Shi Jingge could, “Mr. Mu has extensive connections and prioritizes too many people. Being entangled in mundane affairs, he lacks the time to give Mr. Wen and my family’s Xiao Ge a proper explanation. That’s quite understandable. Everyone can sympathize with that. In which case, there’s no need to trouble Mr. Wen. I’ll handle it. After all, this matter involves Xiao Ge. I’ll give him an explanation.”

 

The last sentence was directed at Wen Xusheng.

 

At that moment, Wen Xusheng and Shi Rongqing were on the same wavelength.

 

Trying to dodge the issue by changing the subject, huh?

 

Well, they were determined to see this through!

 

Wen Xusheng nodded in agreement. “Then I’ll express my gratitude to Mr. Shi in advance.” After a pause, he continued slowly, “Everyone knows how close the Shi brothers are. Your bond with Xiao Ge is truly enviable.”

 

Shi Rongqing’s lips curved upward. That felt like the most pleasing thing Wen Xusheng had said all day.

 

“Mr. Wen, you’re too kind. It’s my pleasure,” Shi Rongqing said, stepping closer to Wen Xusheng and naturally positioning himself beside Shi Jingge. Wen Xusheng cooperated seamlessly, shifting closer to Shi Rongqing. Together, they shielded Shi Jingge between them.

 

A flicker of satisfaction crossed Shi Rongqing’s eyes. “I haven’t thanked you yet for looking after Xiao Ge. I watched the livestream—I owe you a lot for taking care of this little rascal.”

 

Wen Xusheng’s gaze softened. “It was Xiao Ge who looked after me.”

 

The two chatted as if no one else existed, shielding Shi Jingge behind them. Mu Jincheng couldn’t see Shi Jingge at all—his gaze, his expression, his gestures were all hidden!

 

What’s more, Wen Xusheng and Shi Rongqing were both incredibly sharp-tongued. Their mastery of verbal artistry seemed maxed out. And Mu Jincheng had given them all the ammunition they needed. Every word and implication was aimed at belittling and discrediting him, stopping just short of calling him a fraud outright.

 

Back when Shi Rongqing alone had been speaking in veiled insults, Mu Jincheng had barely managed to handle it. Now, with Wen Xusheng added to the mix?

 

This wasn’t just double the torment. This was an absolute trump card!

 

Mu Jincheng felt he couldn’t endure it any longer. But he dared not engage with their words. His only option was to cut off the source.

 

“Xiao Ge.” Mu Jincheng’s voice was hoarse, tinged with bitterness. “Well, I’m off.”

 

The implication was clear: he wanted Shi Jingge to see him out.

 

The moment those words left his lips, Mu Jincheng felt his heartbeat suddenly quicken.

 

He couldn’t actually see Shi Jingge, yet his gaze fixed straight in his direction. Even when he met Shi Rongqing’s piercing stare, he merely shifted his eyes slightly, refusing to look away.

 

He was waiting for Shi Jingge’s reaction. His fingertips trembled with anticipation. Truthfully, he didn’t know what kind of response he was hoping for.

 

“Oh.” Shi Jingge’s muffled voice came from behind Wen Xusheng and Shi Rongqing.

 

Instantly, both men sensed his foul mood. Their gazes toward Mu Jincheng grew even colder.

 

On the way home, Shi Jingge had been exceptionally lively, visibly in high spirits. This was the main reason Shi Rongqing hadn’t immediately kicked Wen Xusheng out.

 

Yet in the end, Mu Jincheng had ruined it all. How could Shi Rongqing not be furious?

 

Couldn’t he let his little bunny enjoy two days of happiness?

 

However, Mu Jincheng was also angry! What was Shi Jingge’s reaction? ‘Oh?’ Just one word?

 

He’d spent three days tormenting himself into this wretched, haggard state, and this was the response he got from Shi Jingge?

 

All the pent-up frustration, rage, and misery in the recent days ignited into a raging inferno, surging straight to the crown of his head. At that moment, Mu Jincheng truly couldn’t contain his emotions.

 

Simply put, his mental state had collapsed.

 

“Don’t you consider me your brother anymore?” The accusation burst out before Mu Jincheng could even process what he said.

 

“Mu Jincheng!” Shi Rongqing’s voice crackled with suppressed fury. But then, a hand suddenly reached out from behind him.

 

Shi Jingge, who’d been blocked behind the two men, pushed them aside and emerged from behind them, his eyes blazing with unmasked anger. “What do you mean? You doubt me? You actually doubt whether I consider you a brother?”

 

Mu Jincheng opened his mouth to salvage the situation, but it was too late. This statement negated everything Shi Jingge had ever done for Mu Jincheng.

 

Nothing could be more devastating than these words.

 

The young master’s eyes blazed with fury and resolve as he declared, “If you considered me a brother, you wouldn’t have waited this long to bring those people before me! Mu Jincheng, I trust you. I’ll make excuses for you. I’ll cover for you. But I’m not a complete fool! Just because I don’t want to think that way does not mean I cannot! I am not truly stupid. You’re my brother, so I never doubted you. Even if evidence was thrown in my face, I could pretend not to see it! You said it yourself: brotherly love is as vast as the heavens. One must trust every action of a brother. A true brother would never harm the other. You—”

 

Shi Jingge paused, as if he wanted to say something. He swallowed it back in the end.

 

But Wen Xusheng noticed his hand had clenched into a fist, clearly struggling to suppress himself. He still didn’t utter those hurtful words.

 

Shi Jingge took a deep breath. “Since you’ve made it clear, then I guess we shouldn’t be brothers anymore.”

 

Leaving those words behind, the young master turned and walked away. In that instant, Wen Xusheng thought he saw a glimmer of moisture in the young master’s eyes. Wen Xusheng’s heart trembled, followed by a dense, dull ache.

 

His Xiao Ge was hiding tenderness deep within his bones.

 

“Xiao Ge! It’s not like that! Xiao Ge! Let me explain!” Mu Jincheng cried out in panic, trying to chase after him, but Wen Xusheng and Shi Rongqing held him back.

 

“Get the hell out of here!” Shi Rongqing punched Mu Jincheng. It was the first time Mu Jincheng had ever seen Shi Rongqing lose his temper like that.

 

But worried about Shi Jingge, Shi Rongqing only cursed a few times before rushing after him. Wen Xusheng, instead, took over Shi Rongqing’s task.

 

Mu Jincheng desperately wanted to follow, but Wen Xusheng held him back.

 

At that moment, Mu Jincheng was startled to realize just how strong Wen Xusheng was!

 

“Mr. Mu, have you been hypnotizing yourself for so long that you truly believe you’ve been so good to Xiao Ge?” Wen Xusheng’s expression gave way to a mocking smile, yet his eyes were unusually cold and sharp. “Perhaps I should help Mr. Mu recall? Finding trouble daily to ruin others’ moods—it seems Mr. Mu truly has too much time on his hands. Evidently, all this suppression hasn’t overwhelmed Mr. Mu yet. I’m ashamed I gave you time to come out and spy.” Wen Xusheng bowed slightly. “Rest assured, it won’t happen again.”

 

In a flash, Mu Jincheng pointed at Wen Xusheng, shouting uncontrollably, “It was you!”

 

His voice brimmed with unmasked fury, yet carried an undercurrent of fear.

 

Mu Jincheng had been under constant suppression lately. He knew most of those directly targeting him, but there was one mastermind behind the scenes. No matter how hard he racked his brain, he couldn’t figure out who it was.

 

And that person had indeed caused him no small amount of trouble.

 

Shi Rongqing alone wouldn’t have driven him to such a desperate corner so quickly. But with Wen Xusheng’s involvement, plus all the petty opportunists he’d suppressed now jumping out to kick him while he was low, his downfall came crashing down like a collapsing mountain.

 

He’d assumed Shi Rongqing had found an ally, but he never imagined that person would be Wen Xusheng!

 

This man—this was the man!

 

Not only had this man crushed his career, but he’d also stolen his Shi Jingge!

 

How dare he? How dare he!

 

In the raging flames of fury, deep resentment took root.

 

Mu Jincheng glowered at Wen Xusheng, his eyes bloodshot and expression tinged with madness. He’d already pushed himself to the brink of exhaustion, hoping to soften Shi Jingge’s heart. But now, this frenzy made him look like a demon!

 

“Wen Xusheng…” Malice nearly overflowed from Mu Jincheng’s eyes.

 

At that very moment, a furious voice erupted. “What are you doing?”

 

Shi Rongqing had caught up to Shi Jingge and offered comforting words. But when Shi Jingge turned his head, he realized Wen Xusheng was missing. Worried, Shi Jingge turned back to search for him.

 

From afar, he witnessed this scene.

 

Mu Jincheng was about to attack Wen Xusheng!

 

Shi Jingge immediately rushed forward and placed himself in front of Wen Xusheng. He shoved Mu Jincheng hard, catching him off guard and sending him tumbling to the ground.

 

Mu Jincheng stared at Shi Jingge in shock as if unable to believe what had just happened.

 

Shi Jingge watched Mu Jincheng warily, his eyes burning with unhidden fury. He shoved Wen Xusheng deeper into the gate, glancing back at Mu Jincheng with every push, as if terrified Mu Jincheng might lunge at Wen Xusheng again.

 

He resembled a kitten whose fur stood on end upon seeing its human hurt.

 

Wen Xusheng’s heart softened. He stepped forward and pulled the young master inside, then closed the iron gate.

 

Only Mu Jincheng remained locked outside. He instinctively rushed forward, gripping the gate’s bars and shouting, “Xiao Ge!”

 

Shi Jingge’s footsteps halted. He turned to look back, but heard Wen Xusheng murmur, “Thank you, Xiao Ge.” Shi Jingge lifted his head to look at him. “Xiao Ge has no idea how scared I was just now.” Wen Xusheng held Shi Jingge’s hand. “Look, my hands are shaking.”

 

Sure enough, Wen Xusheng’s fingertips trembled.

 

Shi Jingge pressed his lips together, a flicker of regret in his eyes.

 

Wen Xusheng stammered awkwardly, “Could… Could you hug me? Give me some strength.”

 

How could Shi Jingge refuse? He immediately wrapped his arms around him.

 

Amidst Mu Jincheng’s roaring, Wen Xusheng coaxed the young master away.

 

Not once did Shi Jingge look back at Mu Jincheng as he vanished from sight.

 

Mu Jincheng gripped the bars, his head drooping in defeat before he slowly sank to his knees.

 

Had he…ruined everything?

 

Shi Rongqing approached him slowly. Hearing footsteps, Mu Jincheng hoped it was Shi Jingge again. He snapped his head up, his heart racing with excitement only to find…

 

“What do you want?” Mu Jincheng glared at Shi Rongqing with disgust. Since the mask was already off, he saw no point in pretending.

 

“Nothing much,” Shi Rongqing replied with a faint, icy smile. “Just came to thank you.”

 

Mu Jincheng wasn’t about to believe Shi Rongqing meant well.

 

Shi Rongqing smiled faintly. “Recently, I uncovered something quite interesting. Turns out, you started scheming against my brother over a decade ago. Even your first meeting was meticulously staged. The reason my brother and I have such a terrible relationship? That’s all thanks to your relentless meddling over the years. As for why? Let’s just say money talks. You want the Shi family? Nice try.”

 

Mu Jincheng sneered. “You already know everything. What’s the point of saying it?”

 

“Of course I must say it.” Shi Rongqing chuckled softly. “So you might as well use your brain and think carefully—why, knowing all this, did I still hold back when dealing with you? Oh, right. I wonder if you remember Wei Han? That assistant you placed by Xiao Ge’s side.”

 

Mu Jincheng certainly remembered Wei Han. “What are you getting at?” Mu Jincheng eyed Shi Rongqing warily.

 

“Nothing much. Just wanted to tell you that the person you assigned is a bit dim-witted. He’s not very loyal. So I followed up on the leads and uncovered quite a few juicy tidbits. Like”—Shi Rongqing paused, then spoke with deliberate calm—“the evidence proving you stole Shi Corporation’s trade secrets.”

 

Mu Jincheng fixed his gaze on Shi Rongqing.

 

Shi Rongqing spoke slowly, “Now you can guess why I didn’t report it to the police.”

 

Mu Jincheng froze, a thought suddenly flashing through his mind.

 

But before he could grasp it, Shi Rongqing added indifferently, “Naturally, it’s because of my foolish younger brother. Don’t you get it yet? Mu Jincheng, my foolish younger brother—he’s your lucky talisman. As long as he cared about you, I’d hesitate to act. I’d always hold back, leaving room for mercy. I couldn’t risk ruining our brotherly bond over some trash. I had to wait patiently, slowly creating opportunities for my foolish brother to see you for who you really are. I thought it would take another year or two.

 

“But I never imagined you’d be so spoiled by my foolish little brother that you’d lose your mind entirely—jumping right out like this. Thank you for personally discarding your own lucky talisman. So now, I needn’t hold back. This doesn’t even require Mr. Wen’s involvement. It’s merely a matter of tossing trash into the bin. I’ll handle it myself.”

 

Panic surged through Mu Jincheng’s heart. He shouted, “Shi Rongqing! You can’t do this! You can’t! Shi Rongqing—”

 

“I can.” Shi Rongqing smiled faintly, looking down at Mu Jincheng. “But rest assured, Mr. Mu. I won’t resort to your dirty tricks. I’m a law-abiding citizen. After all, I have a younger brother to look after. See you in court.” Shi Rongqing waved his hand and strode away.

 

But he paused before he went far and turned back to Mu Jincheng with a faint smile. “There’s one more thing I need to tell you. The reason Xiao Ge has been ignoring you was for your own sake. I said that if you two didn’t contact each other this month, it would prove your friendship is genuine, and I’d accept it. Mu Jincheng, you’ll never know how much effort Xiao Ge has put in. But are you truly unaware?

 

“You’re not. You just never wanted to know. That way, you could keep manipulating Xiao Ge with a clear conscience. To put it bluntly, you’re a complete bastard, selfish to the extreme. You only care about yourself.”

 

This time, Shi Rongqing decisively walked away.

 

No matter how Mu Jincheng roared, wept, or begged for mercy, Shi Rongqing never looked back once.

 

“Let me see Xiao Ge! Let me see him! Shi Rongqing! Don’t go! Let me see Xiao Ge! Let me explain to him! Shi Rongqing!” As he shouted, Mu Jincheng’s tears finally fell. He slumped against the bars, sobbing harder.

 

In that moment, he didn’t even know who these tears were for. Were they for Shi Jingge? Or for himself?

 

He didn’t know.

 

But Mu Jincheng knew this: he was finished.

 

With each step, Shi Rongqing’s stride grew lighter and quicker.

 

Until he pushed open the living room door and heard Wen Xusheng say, “…Xiao Ge and Mr. Shi really have a great bond. That brotherly affection is truly enviable.”

 

It was nice to hear that.

 

Shi Rongqing raised an eyebrow, but before he could savor the satisfaction for even two seconds, he heard his own little brat foolishly trying to comfort Wen Xusheng.

 

“It’s fine. My brother and you are also close. He treats you like a brother too. Really, don’t doubt it. He’s never mentioned any of his friends to me, except you. You’re the only friend he’s ever mentioned in front of me. Why don’t you just call him ‘brother’ too?”

 

Shi Rongqing: ???

 

Shi Rongqing: !!!

 

—– —– —–

 

Author’s Note: Wen Xusheng: Xiao Ge agreed to it. How far away could the day be when I finally call Shi Rongqing “big brother”?

 

Shi Rongqing: Get lost!!!!!

 

Mu Jincheng: Not only did I get my comeuppance, but I also pushed my beloved young master toward that dog of a man. I even made Shi Rongqing find him slightly tolerable. Waaah, I’m such a tragedy QAQ

 

Shi Rongqing: Don’t worry. I find him intolerable again now 🙂

 

Mu Jincheng: Suddenly at peace.jpg

 

Finish one, then move on to the next~

 

Didn’t forget Wei Han—he got KO’d by Big Brother hahaha

 

If you’ve forgotten who Wei Han is, check the first two chapters~

 

 

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Edit: Krone

Proofread: Choux_choux