Chen Feiyu scrambled out of the room, still pulling up his trousers. The Chen family steward rushed over, grabbed him, and hurried him outside.
Zhong Xue emerged from the room, her clothes disheveled. Perplexed, she asked, "Dad, what’s going on? Why are you in such a rush?"
Zhong Jian shook his head. It had all happened so suddenly; he had no idea what was going on. Filled with dread, he speculated, "Could this have something to do with Shen Ye?"
The thought had been stuck in his throat like a fishbone all along.
Zhong Xue looked dismissive and said with absolute certainty, "Impossible. It absolutely cannot have anything to do with Shen Ye! Shen Ye is just a barbarian from the backwoods; how could he possibly have that kind of power?"
Zhong Jian opened his mouth, but the words died on his lips. He knew full well the terrifying reach of Medicine King Valley’s miraculous medical arts. Yet, blinded by greed, he had betrayed the valley to ingratiate himself with the Chen family.
The Chen family was a mid-sized powerhouse in Ningjiang with assets exceeding ten billion. Today, however, they were facing a massive crisis, and everyone within was terrified, fearing for their own survival.
"Dad, why are you calling me back in such a hurry? I haven’t had enough fun yet." Chen Feiyu had no clue about the severity of the situation and immediately began to complain, looking thoroughly dissatisfied.
*Smack!*
Chen Li landed a slap on Chen Feiyu’s face, sending him spinning in circles.
"Dad, why did you hit me?" Chen Feiyu covered his swollen cheek, his face full of grievance.
Chen Li’s eyes bulged like a furious bull as he bellowed, "Don't call me Dad! I am not your father, and I don't have a son like you!"
Chen Feiyu finally realized something was wrong. Seeing the grim faces of his family, he asked in a low voice, "Dad, what is really going on? Is all this necessary? In Ningjiang, who would dare mess with our Chen family? Even if the sky fell, we’d be fine..."
"Damn it! You're at death's door and you still have the gall to be mouthy? I’ll beat you to death!" Chen Li was enraged. He pulled off his belt and began lashing out at Chen Feiyu, striking him across the head and face.
Chen Feiyu let out shrill screams, crying out in pain, "Dad, why are you hitting me? What happened? Sob, sob, Mom, help me..."
Not a single person stepped in to stop the beating. The members of the Chen family looked at Chen Feiyu with predatory glares, their eyes filled with murderous intent.
Covered in wounds, Chen Feiyu lay on the ground shivering, his face twisted with terror and injustice. When he saw his grandfather appear, he saw a glimmer of hope and cried out, "Grandpa, please, you have to do me justice! Dad beat me for no reason, it hurts so much, boo-hoo..."
His grandfather, who usually doted on him, looked completely different now, his face a mask of malice. He raised his cane and began striking Chen Feiyu, roaring with every blow:
"You little brat! Do you have any idea what kind of catastrophe you’ve caused? Do you know you’ve killed the Chen family? The blood and sweat of five generations of the Chen family have been destroyed in an instant because of you! I’m going to beat you to death!"
Bruised and bleeding from the cane strikes, Chen Feiyu cried out in agony, "Even if you want me dead, you have to let me die knowing why! I truly didn't do anything!"
Seeing Chen Feiyu still acting so stubborn, Chen Li was so enraged that he grabbed an ashtray and smashed it against him, screaming, "You degenerate! Since you want to die knowing the truth, I’ll tell you! A hundred and three of our business partners and clients have just terminated their contracts with us, swearing never to work with us again! All our shipments are stuck, payments can’t be collected, and hundreds of millions in orders are worthless! The banks have frozen all our accounts, and every card, stock, and fund held by the Chen family has been sealed! The Chen family is finished! Are you satisfied now?"
Chen Feiyu was gripped by total terror, crying out, "Dad, how could things go so wrong out of nowhere? Why is this happening?"
Chen Li roared, "You beast! You have the nerve to ask me why? Don't you know what you did out there? Shen Ye ordered all of this! With one word, Shen Ye has wiped out our Chen family!"
Chen Feiyu was even more terrified, screaming in disbelief, "Impossible! This is absolutely impossible! Shen Ye doesn’t have that kind of capability! He’s just a poor kid from the mountains; how could he have such power?"
Chen Li grabbed Chen Feiyu by the throat and roared, "This command came directly from Shen Ye! The banks and the clients told me themselves—could they be wrong? Tell me, how did you offend Shen Ye? I want you to tell me every single detail!"
Chen Feiyu stuttered, "An hour ago, a man claiming to be a disciple of Medicine King Valley went to the Zhong family..."
Chen Li collapsed to the floor, his face ashen. He bellowed, "You fool! You’ve killed us all! How did I ever father a piece of trash like you? This had nothing to do with us originally—why did you get involved? Why were you so intent on seeking your own death?!"
Chen Feiyu wailed, "Dad, that bitch Zhong Xue tricked me! I had no idea Shen Ye had such power. If I had known, I wouldn't have dared to cross him even if you gave me a hundred guts! Boo-hoo, Dad, what do we do now? You have to find a way to save the Chen family!"
Chen Li roared, "Go find Shen Ye! Get on your knees and beg for his forgiveness! Do everything in your power to make him forgive us! If you can’t get his forgiveness, I’ll chop you up and feed you to the dogs!"
Chen Feiyu frantically dialed Zhong Xue’s number.
"Hubby, you’re finally calling me! I’ve missed you so much..." Zhong Xue cooed over the phone.
Chen Feiyu was in no mood for this and bellowed, "Zhong Xue, tell me where Shen Ye is! Where is he right now?"
Zhong Xue pouted, "Hubby, why are you looking for that mountain barbarian? How would I know where he went..."
Chen Feiyu interrupted her violently, shouting, "You bitch! You’ve killed me! I’m going to destroy you! Find Young Master Shen right now—if you can’t find him, I’ll slaughter your entire family!"
Zhong Xue was terrified to the core, and by the time she realized what was happening, the call had already been cut off.
Just then, Zhong Jian came running over, his face pale with panic. He shouted, "It’s over! A disaster has happened—Shen Ye has ordered the destruction of the Chen family! All their bank accounts, stocks, and funds have been seized, and every business partner has terminated their contracts! No one dares to defy Shen Ye’s command! The Chen family is finished!"
Shi Xiumei looked on in horror, stammering, "How could things go so wrong all of a sudden? Could it be a mistake? Does Shen Ye really have that much power?"
Zhong Jian screamed, "There is no mistake! I verified it with someone I know. The Chen family provoked a person they shouldn't have, and with one word, that person destroyed them! That person is the very same Shen Ye we drove away!"
Zhong Xue’s face turned as white as a sheet, and she stammered, "Dad, Shen Ye is just a mountain barbarian. Does he really have that kind of power?"
Zhong Jian wailed, "We were wrong! We were dead wrong! Shen Ye isn't some mountain barbarian—he’s a figure with heaven-reaching influence! Everything he said was true! It's over! We offended Shen Ye, and we're all going to be ruined. The Chen family is done, and our Zhong family is finished too!"
Shi Xiumei couldn't bear the shock and fainted on the spot.
"Sh-Shen Ye..."
Zhong Xue felt a bone-chilling cold. Her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed in a dead faint.
They had made a stupid, fatal mistake. To climb the social ladder with the Chen family, they hadn't hesitated to tear up a marriage contract and betray Medicine King Valley. Now, with one word, Shen Ye had instantly destroyed the Chen family they had worked so hard to cozy up to. To Shen Ye, the Chen family wasn't even worth a fart.
Zhong Jian wanted to kill himself; they were blind! They had personally driven away a man of heaven-reaching power. There was no one in the world more stupid than them.
Members of both the Chen and Zhong families began frantically searching for Shen Ye, hoping to kneel, beg for forgiveness, and pray to be spared. But Shen Ye was not someone they could find. A shroud of despair hung over both families.
...
That evening.
Shen Ye stretched his limbs and quietly climbed out of bed. A cold smirk appeared on his lips as he whispered to himself:
"The time is almost up. It’s time to go see what those two families look like now."