After a Real Person Plays the Protagonist of an Anguish Novel [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 25.1

Chapter 25.1: Housewife 25

Early morning. He Chenguang was wandering with Shen Shanyu in the backyard plantation. Shen Shanyu had woken up very early today, seemingly startled by a nightmare. Fortunately, He Chenguang was a light sleeper; noticing something was wrong, he immediately got up to coax him.

Shen Mingzheng’s temper had been foul lately. He would wake up in a rage, though He Chenguang had never noticed him having such a “morning grumpiness” before.

In this high-pressure atmosphere, Shen Shanyu was also off-kilter, resulting in today’s nightmare. To prevent the child’s crying or movement from waking Shen Mingzheng, He Chenguang had no choice but to bring him out here to distract him.

In the early morning, the plantation gardeners had already begun their work. They were pruning trees, clearing weeds, and watering the vegetable garden—a scene of thriving vitality.

He Chenguang carried Shen Shanyu, weaving through the tall fruit trees and admiring the Shen family’s precious greenery. However, Shen Shanyu had no interest; his face was wilted, his eyes red, and before long, he was on the verge of tears.

He Chenguang patted his back. “Are you feeling unwell, Baby Shanyu?”

Two crystalline tears fell from Shen Shanyu’s eyes. He wiped them away with the back of his hand. “Mommy hasn’t talked to me for several days. Does he really not want me anymore?”

“I dreamed that he abandoned me.”

The more Shen Shanyu spoke, the sadder he became. He Chenguang set him down. Standing under a peach tree, He Chenguang plucked a beautiful peach and placed it in Shen Shanyu’s hands. “Did you forget what Uncle He told you?”

Shen Shanyu sobbed softly, looking at the gentle gaze of the man before him. “Uncle He said nobody likes him. Daddy doesn’t like him, and I shouldn’t like him either.”

He Chenguang rubbed the top of Shen Shanyu’s head. “That’s right. Even your Daddy hates him. You have to stand on Daddy’s side, don’t you?”

“He can’t do anything right, can he?” He Chenguang’s voice was soft and soothing. “Haven’t you always disliked him, Shanyu? Haven’t you wanted a new mommy? How about Uncle He becomes your new mommy?”

Looking at the extremely gentle He Chenguang, Shen Shanyu nodded reluctantly and hesitantly.

“Good boy,” He Chenguang chuckled. “It wasn’t in vain that I’ve been so good to you.”

At that moment, as the wind blew, the adult and child under the tree truly looked like a pair of mother and son. If one hadn’t heard what they said, the picture would have been quite beautiful.

Under another tree, Tang Yiqing watched those two figures, his fists clenched tightly. He could ignore He Chenguang’s constant maneuvering—that was just the plot—but when it came to the child, he could not tolerate it!

Teaching a young child like this was nothing short of malicious. What could be more detestable than this?

His own biological son was being taught to be cruel to his mother and to not love her. Any mother would break down.

Tang Yiqing was the same; his body was shaking, and he felt a profound sense of powerlessness. He had already grown cold toward Shen Shanyu, but this scene made his heart complex again. His day-after-day of meticulous care and protection was being undone by an outsider’s few words of poison?

His past sacrifices and the heart’s blood he spent on the boy had become a joke. He couldn’t help but ask himself why his devotion couldn’t withstand a few sentences from a stranger.

Could it be that a seed that is so easily corrupted… was a rotten seed to begin with?

Beside him, Zhou Mo seemed to sense Tang Yiqing’s emotional turmoil. He patted Tang Yiqing’s leg with his small hand, trying to comfort him. “Uncle Yiqing…”

A gardener pruning branches nearby had already put down her shears. Standing next to Tang Yiqing, she let out a “Pah!” of disgust. “Shameless.”

He Chenguang seemed to hear it. Sensing something, he scanned the area as he knelt to hug Shen Shanyu, and sure enough, he spotted Tang Yiqing in front of a plum tree.

He froze for an instant, but then the corners of his mouth curled into a smile again, seemingly completely indifferent to whether his words to Shen Shanyu had been overheard.

He Chenguang picked Shen Shanyu up and walked toward them step by step. When he arrived, a flawless smile was plastered on his face. “Yiqing, eating too many plums hurts the body. Peaches are much better for you.”

Influenced by He Chenguang, Shen Shanyu held out the peach in his hand. “Look, Uncle He picked this for me.”

In the next second, the peach was snatched from his hand by Tang Yiqing and smashed directly onto He Chenguang’s head. Juice and pulp splattered. Like a slow-motion film, the smile remained on He Chenguang’s face while Shen Shanyu instinctively blinked to keep the juice out of his eyes. The sudden impact terrified the boy; just as he was about to cry, he saw Tang Yiqing’s deathly pale face and reddened eyes.

With a sharp slap, Tang Yiqing raised his hand and struck He Chenguang across the face. The blow stunned the man, nearly causing him to drop Shen Shanyu, who slid down from his arms.

He Chenguang’s face instantly became red and swollen. He stood there dazed, and Shen Shanyu was also too stunned to cry.

“He Chenguang, you can come at me all you want, but you should not have targeted the child. You will ruin him!” Tang Yiqing was truly enraged, his body shivering with fury.

When anger reaches its peak, this is how it feels. His body felt weak, as if he couldn’t remain standing.

“You dare hit me!” He Chenguang’s mask shattered instantly. His eyes were bloodshot, and he lunged forward, clawing like a wild animal.

Seeing this, the gardener immediately stepped in. Women who do farm work are physically strong; she grabbed He Chenguang like a small chick and shouted for help. “Old Li! Over here!”

In an instant, four or five gardeners working in the plantation rushed over and surrounded them. He Chenguang was held fast by both arms, unable to move an inch.

“Let me go! I am… I am!”

Before He Chenguang could finish, someone spat on his face. “You’re just a homewrecker! You’re despicable!”

“You… all of you! I’ll have Mingzheng fire you all!” Only now did He Chenguang feel fear. Shen Shanyu had been led to one side, and he realized he was now isolated and helpless.

A gardener supported Tang Yiqing, seeing that his complexion was poor and he looked incredibly weak.

“Young Madam, how shall we handle this?” the gardener asked.

Tang Yiqing steadied his mind, then looked at He Chenguang with a gaze of absolute determination. “He indeed deserves to be punished.”

This was no longer a simple matter between a legitimate wife and a mistress. He Chenguang had crossed his bottom line. In this world, the child was the only thing that truly belonged to him.

Every phone call He Chenguang had made to Shen Shanyu—on the way to school, before bed, during their outings, every single meeting—had been an opportunity for him to mold Shen Shanyu into what he was today.

Turning his child against him was an unbridgeable hatred.

Tang Yiqing pushed away the gardener’s supporting hand and walked toward He Chenguang. With a sharp slap, a blow landed. “I won’t settle scores for other things, but you corrupted Shen Shanyu.”

Another loud slap followed. “You destroyed my family and drove a wedge between mother and son.”

Slap!

“You provoke me again and again. Do you really think I’m an easy target? This is the Shen household. No one will stop me from hitting you.”

Tang Yiqing took a deep breath. Although he was the one delivering the blows, his heart was trembling. Since childhood, he had always been gentle, never reacting excessively even when bullied, but He Chenguang had gone too far.

He had never seen anyone so malicious.

Slap. One last strike. Tang Yiqing’s voice shook slightly. “I am telling you: do not provoke a mother.”

Tang Yiqing signaled the gardeners to release him. By now, He Chenguang’s delicate, beautiful face had swollen into a mess. He was completely cowed.

“You… you beat me like this…” He Chenguang was terrified. He never knew this gentle, honest Omega would actually dare to use violence. “You won’t be able to account for this to Mingzheng…”

“Go tell him then. I won’t care,” Tang Yiqing said. He slowly adjusted his breathing, steadied his spirit, and looked down at him with an expressionless, superior gaze that made him feel sacred and inviolable.

This is how an even-tempered, honest person is: when pushed to the limit, they will do something that shocks everyone.

He Chenguang didn’t dare stay any longer. He stumbled through the people blocking his way, picked up the now-wailing Shen Shanyu, and fled in disgrace.

Only then did Tang Yiqing finally relax his tense body. He walked a few steps and pulled Zhou Mo into his arms. The two children had been led away earlier and hadn’t seen the violence, so they didn’t know exactly what happened, but the conflict surely must have frightened them.

He patted Zhou Mo’s back soothingly. “Were you scared, Momo? Are you afraid of Uncle Yiqing now?”

Zhou Mo’s little face was somewhat pale, but he shook his head. Tang Yiqing affectionately stroked his head. “Don’t be afraid, Momo. Don’t be afraid.”

Tang Yiqing’s eyes were red, but he managed a soft smile. “Momo… do you blame Uncle?”

Zhou Mo pursed his lips, then said with certainty, “No. If you do something wrong, you should be punished. That’s what Mommy taught me. It’s the same for him.”

“Uncle Yiqing, you were bullied. Does your heart hurt?”

Children are very smart; they understand everything. Even if they were moved away, they could guess what happened.

Uncle Yiqing, you were bullied. Does it make you very sad?

Tang Yiqing felt a sting in his nose. He hadn’t seen Zhou Mo many times, but he knew the boy was the one being bullied. Children are sensitive; even if they don’t understand the complexities of adult disputes, they know who is bullying whom. Zhou Mo felt sorry for him, while Shen Shanyu joined an outsider to bully him. It was incredibly ironic.

“Uncle isn’t sad. It’s okay,” Tang Yiqing smiled.

At this point, the gardeners gathered around, teasing the child to lighten the mood.

“Young Madam, don’t be angry. That ‘someone’ is beneath contempt.”

“The Shen family only recognizes you as the Young Madam.”

Tang Yiqing shook his head with a smile. He didn’t care about those things anymore.

“The little one is so cute and well-behaved.”

“Young Madam, look, he actually looks quite a bit like you.”

Tang Yiqing froze. For a moment, he didn’t even process the meaning of the sentence, but the words “He looks quite a bit like you” made him go still. Slowly, those words seeped into his brain.

In an instant, the world seemed to spin. Tang Yiqing’s face went white. His head buzzed. He looked down at the child in his arms—the eyes… the nose and lips…

“Like me? You say he looks like me?” Tang Yiqing asked urgently. But those around him sensed something was wrong, and no one dared to speak.

Suddenly, as if all strength had left him, Tang Yiqing crouched down while holding the child. The people around immediately crowded in, their voices becoming a jumbled mess of chaos.

“Actually, some things are destined. Some people are born to live a life of wealth and honor; that is only natural.”

“Some people get what they shouldn’t have, but they don’t have the fate for it. Everything has to be returned.”

“Those things never belonged to him in the first place.”

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