I Crossed Over with My Enemy, Only to Find Him Running the Empire - Chapter 49

Chapter 49: Sophistry

Just then, an angry roar erupted from behind like a clap of thunder: “You beast! How dare you!”

When Wu Duofu arrived with Wu Ya and Li Qiaoqiao, he saw Wu Tiegen nearly naked about to press his thumbprint onto the paper.

Trembling with rage, Wu Duofu strode forward and delivered a fierce slap across his son’s face.

The gambling house thugs were about to step in to intervene, but they saw Wu Ya step forward with steady pace.

Though his clothes were simple, his upright posture and calm temperament made the thugs hesitate to move. Wu Ya swept a cold gaze around the room, his voice not loud but full of authority: “Family matters. We ask that you gentlemen make things convenient for us.”

The thugs looked at each other and actually stepped back a few paces, leaving space for the family to handle their business.

Wu Tiegen was dazed from the slap. Once he saw clearly that the newcomers were his father and his fourth brother’s couple, his face turned ashen. He stammered: “Father… Why are you here… I was just playing around…”

“Playing around?” Wu Duofu’s beard shook with anger. “Playing to the point of stealing land deeds? Playing until you’re left with only your undergarments? Speak! Did you steal your mother’s money?”

Wu Tiegen’s eyes flickered, and he argued stubbornly: “No, I didn’t! How would I dare steal Mother’s money…”

Li Qiaoqiao suddenly spoke up: “Third Brother, Mother already remembered. She smelled a strange fragrance last night. Was it the knock-out drug you used?”

As soon as these words came out, Wu Tiegen’s face turned deathly pale. His legs went weak, and he slumped to his knees: “Father! I was wrong! I was just muddled for a moment! Mother’s money was just sitting there anyway, I just wanted to borrow it for a bit. I planned to pay it back once I won…”

Wu Ya’s sharp eyes caught sight of a promissory note with wet ink on the counter. He stepped forward and picked it up. His face instantly turned grim: “Father, look at this.”

On the promissory note, in black and white, it stated that Wu Tiegen borrowed fifty taels, using the Wu family land deeds as collateral. The signature was already there at the bottom; all that was missing was the thumbprint.

Wu Duofu took the note, his hands shaking so much he could barely hold the paper. After reading the contents, he became even more uncontrollably furious. He raised his hand to strike again: “You calamity! You disaster! Not only did you want to steal the entire family fortune, you wanted to gamble away the family’s very lifeline!”

Wu Tiegen ducked and dodged his head, still making excuses: “I was just writing it… I didn’t really intend to mortgage it…”

The gambling house manager strolled over slowly at this time and sneered: “Old Brother Wu, your family discipline is lacking. Your son has lost quite a bit here. Since the family is here, this debt…”

Wu Duofu looked up sharply. In a mix of shame and anger, he blurted out: “The money he stole! You must return it!”

The manager laughed as if he had heard a great joke: “Old Brother Wu, a gambling house has its rules. A loss is a loss, and a win is a win. Since when is there a reason to return money? Could it be that your Wu family are sore losers?”

The surrounding gamblers burst into laughter, pointing and jeering.

Wu Duofu’s old face flushed crimson. He knew he was in the wrong but still forced himself to say: “That was stolen money!”

The manager stopped smiling and said coldly: “Stolen money is still money. How about we go see the officials and let the government settle this? We can also mention this business of stealing land deeds for collateral…”

Wu Duofu was instantly speechless.

See the officials? Wouldn’t that mean the family loses all face? And Wu Tiegen would face a lawsuit!

Seeing the situation, Wu Ya stepped forward and said neither humbly nor arrogantly: “Manager, we won’t trouble you with our family matters. We are taking our man now.”

As he spoke, he secretly tugged his father’s sleeve.

Wu Duofu understood. Though unwilling, he knew he couldn’t linger. He gave Wu Tiegen a fierce glare: “I’ll settle the score with you when we get back!”

He then cupped his hands to the gambling house crowd: “My family is unfortunate; thank you for the amusement.”

The gambling house manager knew when to stop and returned the gesture: “Safe travels, Old Brother Wu.”

Wu Ya took off his outer coat and threw it to his third brother: “Put it on. Don’t embarrass yourself here.”

Wu Tiegen hurriedly dressed himself and slunk out under guard.

The gamblers made a path, their faces filled with mockery.

Wu Duofu felt he had never been so humiliated in his life. He kept his head down and walked out quickly.

As soon as they left the gambling house, Wu Duofu kicked Wu Tiegen hard: “You beast! Hurry up! Are you waiting for the whole town to come watch the show?”

The four of them hurried home; no one spoke along the way.

Wu Tiegen hung his head, occasionally peeking at his father’s expression, too scared to even breathe loudly.

Wu Duofu’s face was ashen and his lips were tightly pursed, clearly enraged. Wu Ya and Li Qiaoqiao exchanged a look, seeing worry in each other’s eyes.

This matter wasn’t over; there would be another storm once they reached home.

As they neared the village entrance, Wu Duofu suddenly stopped and said sternly to Wu Tiegen: “When we get back, confess honestly! If you dare tell a single lie, I’ll break your legs!”

Wu Tiegen nodded repeatedly, cold sweat pouring down.

As the sun set in the west, the four of them walked into the Wu family courtyard, casting long shadows.

Wu Duofu had practically dragged Wu Tiegen back from the gambling house by the scruff of his neck.

The moment they entered the gate, Zhang Jinhua, who was feeding the chickens in the yard, looked up.

Seeing her third son in such a state, her heart sank. The chicken feed basin in her hand almost dropped to the ground.

Mrs. Wei (eldest daughter-in-law) frowned slightly, set down her work, and watched in silence.

This third brother was truly “rotten wood that cannot be carved.”

“Father… Mother… I was wrong… I was really wrong…” As soon as he entered his own yard, Wu Tiegen’s legs felt even weaker, and he begged for mercy with a sob.

Wu Duofu ignored him entirely. He threw him violently into the middle of the yard and roared toward the house: “Eldest son! Fetch the family discipline!”

The eldest son, Wu Tiezhu, came out of the house upon hearing the voice. Seeing the situation, everything was clear to him.

With a look of disgust on his face, he acknowledged the order, turned, and took down a thick, glossy wooden plank from the wall of the main hall.

At this, everyone in the yard was startled.

Mrs. Yuan and Mrs. Liu, who were busy in the kitchen, also ran out at the sound.

Mrs. Liu was still holding her child. Seeing her man slumped on the ground in such a pathetic state wearing only an outer robe and seeing her father-in-law’s murderous expression while her eldest brother-in-law held that terrifying plank, her face turned pale. Her hands holding the child trembled; she was both frustrated by his failure and paralyzed with fear.

“Father! Father, please calm your anger!” Seeing things get serious, Wu Tiegen was scared out of his wits. He scrambled up on all fours and began kowtowing: “Your son knows he was wrong! Your son won’t dare do it again! It was my fault for stealing Mother’s money! I’m not human!”

He cursed himself while his eyes darted around. Suddenly, he thought of an excuse and hurriedly shouted:

“But I… I did it for the family, Father! I wanted to take that little bit of money as capital to try my luck in the gambling house! I thought if my luck was good and I won back a hundred tales, I could fill the hole left by the medicine expenses for Second Brother and Fourth Brother, and even have some for the child of Canghai’s schooling! I had good intentions, Father!”

It would have been better if he hadn’t mentioned this. Upon hearing this absurd sophistry, Wu Duofu and Zhang Jinhua nearly fainted from anger.

“Bullshit!” Zhang Jinhua was the first to explode. She rushed up and began pummeling Wu Tiegen: “You black-hearted thing! You stole your mother’s coffin money to gamble and dare say it was for the family? I’ll beat you to death, you foul-mouthed beast!”

Veins bulged on Wu Duofu’s forehead. He snatched the plank from Wu Tiezhu’s hand and roared like thunder: “If I don’t break your legs today, my surname isn’t Wu! A hundred tales? For Canghai? I’ll teach you to talk nonsense! I’ll teach you to gamble!”

With that, the thick plank swung with the sound of rushing wind and slammed heavily onto Wu Tiegen’s back.

“Aow!” Wu Tiegen let out a blood-curdling scream and was knocked flat on the ground.