After My Engagement Was Broken, I Married My Fiancé's Uncle - Chapter 3

Jiang Hongyuan had just stepped out of his study. Turning his head, he saw a familiar figure standing at the corner of the hallway.

It was his eldest son, Jiang Xingchen. The young man was handsome and carried an air of distinction; his face bore a seventy percent resemblance to his father’s younger self.

“What are you doing here?”

“I heard crying just now, so I came to check. Father, what are you busy with? Why aren’t you resting yet?”

“I was just discussing some matters with Xingyuan.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a burst of wailing erupted from inside the study.

Jiang Xingchen couldn’t help but frown. “Xingyuan… did he make you angry again?”

“Those are minor matters. Next week, I plan to send Jiang Xingyuan to the Xie family.”

Hearing this, a look of surprise flashed across Jiang Xingchen’s face. “You’ve still decided to go through with it?”

“The Jiang family has already reached this stage, there is no room for regrets.” Jiang Hongyuan’s gaze turned exceptionally deep as he spoke.

“Does it have to be Jiang Xingyuan?”

Jiang Xingchen was still uneasy. Everyone had seen what kind of person Jiang Xingyuan had become over the last two years. “Wouldn’t Xingran be better?”

Hearing this, Jiang Hongyuan sighed. He looked at his proud eldest son, knowing what he was worried about, and patted him gently on the shoulder. “It can only be him. Xingran… he isn’t suitable.”

“Besides you, Xingyuan is my only biological flesh and blood. Moreover, he was the one originally betrothed to the Young Master of the Xie family.”

“Will that Young Master from the Xie family be willing?”

Jiang Hongyuan’s eyes narrowed slightly. “That remains to be seen. We won’t know until we try.”

“As they say, wealth is found in danger. It is time for the deck to be reshuffled. The company shares and Xingyuan are the ‘tribute’ we are offering to Third Master Xie. Whether our Jiang family rises or falls depends entirely on this move.”

Hearing this, Jiang Xingchen abruptly shut his mouth.

“Xingyuan suffered a lot as a child; he’s quite pitiful. As his older brother, find some time to chat with him. As a member of the Jiang family, he must shoulder the family’s responsibilities.”

Even though Jiang Xingchen was unwilling, he complied: “Understood, Father.”

Seeing Jiang Xingchen agree, Jiang Hongyuan said no more.

After the two left, a figure appeared silently in the corridor. It was unclear how long they had been standing there. Recalling the conversation, their gaze landed on the closed study door, eyes darkening.

“Butler, my room is so stuffy. I want to go out for some fresh air to clear my head.”

“No. I will only let you out once you have memorized these materials.”

Jiang Xingyuan looked at the butler blocking the door, his brows knitted tight. It seemed they were hell-bent on making him flatter that Xie family young master and become a live-in son-in-law!

Jiang Xingyuan glanced at the documents in his hand and felt that life was no longer worth living. He sat down on the floor, ignoring his pride.

Who the hell wants to memorize this crap!

He understood Jiang Hongyuan’s intent, it was nothing more than wanting him to use his good looks to seduce the young master of the Xie family.

Tsk tsk tsk. Truly a despicable tactic.

However, given his terrible reputation, as long as that Young Master Xie wasn’t blind, how could he possibly like him?

Jiang Xingyuan rubbed his smooth chin, his eyes darting around. Did Jiang Hongyuan really have that much confidence in him?

He thought for a long time but couldn’t figure it out. Instead, he got sleepy after a while. He simply used the pile of documents as a pillow and fell asleep.

The next morning, Jiang Xingyuan woke up and stretched. He massaged his stiff shoulders and saw the butler still standing in the study. He took the initiative to greet him: “Morning, Butler.”

He patted his growling stomach and asked tentatively, “Butler, I’m hungry. How about you let me go grab a bite first, then I’ll come back and finish memorizing?”

The butler looked at Jiang Xingyuan and shook his head. “I’m sorry, Second Young Master. You must finish memorizing before you can leave the study.”

“Can’t you make an exception?”

Jiang Xingyuan’s eyes narrowed. He immediately rolled up his sleeves, if that’s how it was, don’t blame him for getting physical.

However, when he saw a stun baton suddenly appear in the butler’s hand, he froze. They were playing for keeps. He sensibly straightened his sleeves and met the butler’s emotionless gaze with a wide grin: “I was just… scratching an itch.”

Hearing his stomach growl again, Jiang Xingyuan felt the strongest crisis of survival since returning to the Jiang family.

Being hungry was no joke.

Frowning, he picked up the materials from the floor and began reading rapidly. Fine, he’d memorize it, okay?

He had always known when to fold, his main philosophy was “accepting one’s fate.”

Two hours later, he pushed open the study door.

The famished Jiang Xingyuan dashed out and headed straight for the dining room.

Completely ignoring the rest of the family sitting at the table, he grabbed the food and began devouring it like a wolf. He looked as if he hadn’t eaten in centuries, startling everyone.

Watching Jiang Xingyuan’s crude manners, Jiang Hongyuan frowned and instantly lost his appetite. “Jiang Xingyuan!”

The others also put down their chopsticks.

However, the eating Jiang Xingyuan didn’t care. Like a whirlwind sweeping through clouds, he cleared every plate on the table. Once he was full, he wiped his mouth and looked up at the three motionless people. He asked curiously, “Why aren’t you guys eating?”

The table was a mess. Even if Jiang Hongyuan and the others weren’t full, they certainly had no appetite left.

Seeing the ugly expressions on their faces, Jiang Xingyuan was secretly delighted. The frustration from the morning vanished instantly.

Pretending not to notice anything, he knitted his brows with a look of feigned guilt: “Oh… I accidentally finished it all. I was just too hungry… You guys won’t blame me, right?”

Jiang Hongyuan looked extremely displeased.

Jiang Xingyuan glanced around the table, ignored the looks from Jiang Xingchen and Jiang Xingran, and ran to Jiang Hongyuan’s side. Just as he was about to play the “good son,” he suddenly let out a loud burp.

A wave of food scented air rushed directly at Jiang Hongyuan’s face.

Jiang Hongyuan’s breath hitched, and his face turned visibly sour. “Jiang Xingyuan! Did you feed all your dining etiquette to the dogs?”

Jiang Xingyuan scratched his head awkwardly. He was just too full. Seeing that Jiang Hongyuan was about to explode, and remembering his plan, he quickly took a step back.

“Dad, don’t be angry. I came to tell you some good news.”

Jiang Hongyuan suppressed his rage. “What news?”

“I think you’re right. As a member of the Jiang family, I am willing to contribute my strength to the family. So, I’ve decided to go to the Xie family!”

Everyone at the table was slightly stunned by these words.

Jiang Hongyuan hadn’t expected the boy to cave so quickly. He thought it would take much longer.

“However…”

Jiang Hongyuan’s brow furrowed. “However what?”

“Our family’s situation is so difficult right now. If I go to the Xie family without any money… this relationship might be hard to pursue.”

How could he chase someone without money?

Dating costs money nowadays!

He wasn’t stupid. Since he couldn’t resist Jiang Hongyuan’s decision, he might as well take the opportunity to negotiate and make a killing. He wanted cars, houses, and cash.

Jiang Hongyuan’s eyes narrowed.

Simultaneously, Jiang Xingchen and Jiang Xingran looked over. No one at the table was a fool, they all understood that Jiang Xingyuan was blatantly asking for money.

Seeing his “cheap dad” remain silent, Jiang Xingyuan decided to provoke him further. He sighed: “Forget it, Dad. Let’s act within our means. We shouldn’t pretend to be rich if we aren’t. Anyway, it’s me the Xie Young Master will look down on, and I’m used to it. It has nothing to do with the Jiang family.”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Hongyuan didn’t get angry. Instead, he smiled and asked, “How much do you think is appropriate?”

Jiang Xingyuan smiled sheepishly. “Dad, just give whatever you think is right.”

“The Jiang family still has this much to spare. I’ll have someone transfer five million to you tomorrow.”

Jiang Xingyuan’s eyes lit up. “And what if I take Xie Huai out to play? We’ll need a place to stay in Xinghai City. I can’t exactly take a young master to a hotel.”

“Between the villa at Taihe Yu and the apartment at Nanhua, pick one.”

Jiang Xingyuan’s eyes sparkled. He hadn’t expected Jiang Hongyuan to be so generous. He pretended to think for a few seconds. “A villa is too big. I’ll take the apartment.”

The moment he said this, Jiang Xingchen, who could no longer hold back, spoke up: “Father, you previously said the Nanhua apartment was to be Xingran’s coming of age gift.”

Jiang Xingran held Jiang Xingchen back and said, “Brother, it’s okay. Let Father give it to Xingyuan.”

Jiang Xingyuan turned his gaze to Jiang Xingran. The “other” Second Young Master of the Jiang family, now the Third Young Master was a month younger than him. He was the child the Jiang family adopted after Xingyuan went missing.

Jiang Xingran was refined and stood tall. In his white shirt, he looked scholarly and polite.

Ever since Xingyuan returned to the Jiang family, people loved to compare him to Xingran. Aside from being the same age, they were polar opposites.

Jiang Xingran had excellent grades, was gifted, polite, and had awakened as a Double-S rank Alpha.

Meanwhile, Jiang Xingyuan was illiterate, crude, and behaved like a delinquent. Even after his awakening, he was just an ordinary Alpha. The only thing he had going for him was his face, which had inherited the Jiang family genes.

Jiang Xingyuan was open-minded about it. He didn’t blame anyone; he had survived on the streets, which was good enough. If anything, he blamed Jiang Hongyuan’s genes for not giving him a smarter brain.

As for his older brother Jiang Xingchen being so excellent, that was probably a genetic mutation. It didn’t necessarily mean Jiang Hongyuan had “good stock” otherwise, why would Jiang Xingchen have a genetic disease?

They usually didn’t interact much, and Jiang Xingran rarely spoke to him. But Xingyuan knew Xingran hated him, even if the latter hid it well.

“Xingyuan, why must you steal Xingran’s things? Have we not treated you well enough?”

Jiang Xingyuan’s eyes turned cold. What did they mean, stealing from Jiang Xingran?

“Forget it then…”

Hearing this, Jiang Xingchen was stunned. He thought Jiang Xingyuan had changed his ways.

Instead, Jiang Xingyuan pivoted: “Dad, I’ll take that apartment! I wouldn’t want to make things difficult for you.”

After saying that, he pointedly huffed at Jiang Xingchen. “I just feel that things won’t taste right unless I snatch them, even if it’s a pile of dog shit.”

He looked exactly like a petty man who had just gotten his way. Jiang Xingchen’s teeth itched with rage. “Father, you shouldn’t have promised him so easily. You’re just feeding his greed!”

Jiang Xingchen frowned and stood up. “A-Yuan, you are truly too selfish. Is this how you act as a brother?”

Jiang Xingyuan turned a deaf ear. He simply said, “Brother, you’ve really wronged me. Father gave it to me of his own accord. I didn’t ask for it. As for how I act as a brother, I’m just following your lead.”

Jiang Xingchen turned pale with anger. The pressure of a top-tier Alpha pheromone instantly surged toward Jiang Xingyuan.

Jiang Xingyuan noticed immediately and grabbed his “cheap dad’s” arm, hiding behind him.

“Enough! Xingyuan is your brother!”

“I have my own plans for this matter. You don’t need to interfere,” Jiang Hongyuan said sternly. He wasn’t afraid of Jiang Xingyuan being greedy, he was afraid of him not being greedy.

Jiang Xingyuan enjoyed the sight of Jiang Xingchen’s furious face for a moment, felt he had gained enough for the day, and decided to bail.

“Uh, Dad, I have class this afternoon. I have to go to school now. I won’t disturb your meal any longer.”

Looking at Jiang Xingyuan’s uncharacteristically obedient look, Jiang Hongyuan said with rare kindness, “Go on then.”

“Also, your hair…”

“Don’t worry! I’ll dye it back before I go to the Xie family!”

As soon as he finished, fearing he’d be called back, Jiang Xingyuan slipped away.

At this time, on the rooftop of Building A, Shengying High School.

“Still no news from Huang Hao? Didn’t he say he handled it?”

“It’s strange. I’ve called him several times, and no one picks up.”

“I told you that Huang Hao wasn’t reliable.”

“I only let him go because he kept begging to join us.”

“Brother Chao, what do we do now?”

The speaker looked at the Alpha beside him who hadn’t spoken yet. The man was tall and strikingly handsome, with deep features, a high bridge of the nose, and a small mole at the corner of his mouth.

With a simple buzz cut, he looked sharp and fierce. He leaned lazily against the wall, his long, clean fingers playing with a butterfly knife.

“Has that kid come to school yet?”

Someone replied, “Not yet.”

After a while, finally bored of the knife, he snapped it shut.

He opened his phone and looked at the photo Huang Hao had sent last night. His face remained expressionless, but his dark eyes held a dangerous glint.

In the photo, an exquisite youth leaned lazily against a soft sofa. Silvery-white hair fell softly against a pale cheek. Under the dim lights, he seemed shrouded in a halo, his cheeks flushed with a drunken red. His watery eyes looked toward the camera, resembling a soul-stealing spirit from legends.

The angle was a bit strange. The more he looked at it, the more it looked like a selfie.

“Then we wait.”

On his way to school, Jiang Xingyuan suddenly felt a vibration from his bag.

He looked at Huang Hao’s phone, the several missed calls and unreplied messages and his eyes crinkled into a smile.

Oh, he almost forgot about that.

He wondered if that fellow Huang Hao had shown up at school today?