Chapter 392: Being Beaten

"Dad, this is my daughter. We haven't seen each other for over twenty years; can't we even catch up?"

"Must you force me to tear away your last shred of decency? Can't you leave a good impression on Xiaoguan? Is it really better to make her hate you both?"

Guan Daye looked furious and was extremely disappointed in this son. Although he hadn't told Guan Xiaoguan much about the two of them over the years, he had been trying his best to hide the truth of what happened back then, simply because he didn't want father and daughter to end up like enemies. Yet, he had still underestimated the bottom line of these two.

In truth, Guan Daye had missed his son over the years; after all, he was his own son. But these few short sentences since they returned had broken his heart all over again.

It seemed that apart from coveting his Yellow Fish and antiques, this son's greatest contribution to this family was giving birth to Guan Xiaoguan.

Guan Daye looked at his daughter-in-law again. This woman was the culprit who had changed his son. Originally, this second son was a bit spineless and cowardly, but at least he was filial. After marrying her, he became a completely different person.

Guan Cunzhong and Guan Cunxiao, the two brothers, used to get along very well. The eldest, Guan Cunzhong, had a tough personality and was protective of his own; he had taken good care of this younger brother.

But now, as soon as this uncle returned, he started hurling abuse at his nephew. It went without saying that his daughter-in-law must be the one behind it.

Comparing the two, this second son was not even a fraction as good as his grandson, Guan Tai.

"Sigh, if only the eldest were still here," Guan Daye thought to himself.

If Guan Cunzhong were still here, he could at least suppress the second son's family. Now, with only the younger generation's Guan Tai left, it wasn't appropriate to use force or scold his elders.

"Dad, what are you saying? If you hadn't forced us to have a child before giving us money back then, we wouldn't have..." Guan's mother suddenly realized Guan Xiaoguan was still there and immediately shut her mouth.

But it was too late. Guan Xiaoguan's body trembled upon hearing this, and she closed her eyes in pain. Although she had no impression of her parents, that didn't stop her from imagining them. But now, with such a cold and cruel reality placed before her, how was she supposed to face it?

"It's okay, Xiaoguan, let's go home." Li Aihua pulled the slightly trembling Guan Xiaoguan home directly.

"Auntie Li..."

"Alright, alright, don't cry. Apart from being your biological parents, they are complete strangers. You don't need to pay them any mind."

"There's no need to be sad because of their nonsense. They don't deserve it. Be good, let's not dwell on it."

"Mm."

"Sigh," Li Aihua sighed in her heart. It was truly helpless to encounter such terrible parents.

"What's all the noise outside? Aihua, is Xiaoguan...?" Zhang Ping'an's parents, who were with the two children in the Back Courtyard, heard the commotion and came to the Middle Courtyard.

"Dad, Mom, it's nothing. Since you're here, I'll go out and handle it."

"That's fine." Zhang Laohan checked the time; at this hour, his eldest grandson would be back soon.

Li Aihua went out and saw the two parties still confronting each other at her door. She felt a bit of dissatisfaction toward Guan Daye in her heart.

In this day and age, people believed that a filial son comes from under the stick; it would have been better to just give them a beating. If that didn't work, her eldest grandson Guan Tai could have done it for them.

"Auntie Li."

"Grandpa, Brother Tai, why are you here? Who are they?"

Zhang Weidong had just returned from work. He parked his bike at the alley entrance and discovered this scene as he walked over.

"Weidong, you're back just in time. Xiaoguan is in the room; go and comfort her."

Guan Cunxiao also caught the implication in Li Aihua's words. Could this young man be his son-in-law?

"Auntie Li, what happened to Xiaoguan?"

"These two are Xiaoguan's biological parents. Xiaoguan also knows the truth about what happened back then."

"This..." Zhang Weidong couldn't care about anything else and was about to step into the courtyard when he was pulled back by Guan Cunxiao.

"Son-in-law..."

"Get lost."

"..."

Zhang Weidong kept a cold face, shook him off, and strode into the Middle Courtyard, completely ignoring his father-in-law's ugly expression.

In Zhang Weidong's eyes, apart from his parents and brothers, the person he cared about most was Guan Xiaoguan. When he first learned the truth about how Guan Xiaoguan was born, he felt angry at his future father-in-law, but also felt even more pity for Guan Xiaoguan.

He had sworn to hide the truth for the rest of her life to keep her happy. But now that Guan Xiaoguan's biological parents had shown up and revealed the truth, one could imagine the anger in Zhang Weidong's heart.

Guan Xiaoguan seemed carefree, but she was fragile and sensitive inside. He figured she must be crying very sadly right now. Thinking of this, Zhang Weidong's pace quickened a bit more.

"Xiaoguan..."

Zhang Weidong entered the Middle Courtyard and sure enough, saw his grandparents comforting Guan Xiaoguan. Seeing her tear-reddened eyes made his heart ache terribly.

"Brother Weidong..."

"It's okay, it's okay, I'm here." Zhang Ping'an's parents also tacitly took the children and left.

"Brother Weidong, did you know about it all along?"

Guan Xiaoguan's words made Zhang Weidong tighten his grip as he held her.

"Xiaoguan, I only heard it from my dad later on. We didn't want you to live in pain, so we didn't mention it."

"Mm, I don't blame you. It's just that seeing them like this makes me feel terrible."

"Alright, it's fine now. I'll handle it. You just stay home and rest well for these few days."

"Mm, okay."

The situation outside was awkward. At this moment, Zhang Ping'an had also returned. Looking at their appearances, which resembled those in the drama, he understood roughly at a glance.

He immediately gave Guan Tai a look. Guan Tai understood and went straight up to Guan Cunxiao and the other, giving them a good beating. He had been holding back for a long time.

Zhang Ping'an knew that Guan Daye still harbored fantasies about this youngest son—after all, he was his only son now—but if he didn't beat him, he would never wake up.

"Hey, hey, hey, A Tai, don't be impulsive." Zhang Ping'an pretended to intervene.

"You child, so impulsive. Come, listen to your uncle's advice."

"A Tai, stop!" Guan Daye was also anxious on the sidelines.

It wasn't until the two were beaten black and blue that Zhang Ping'an used more strength to hold back the red-eyed Guan Tai.

"I'm going to report this to Public Security! You hooligan, how dare you hit people, and hit an Overseas Chinese at that!"

Guan Tai sobered up a bit upon hearing this. He was just like that; once he started fighting, he was fully focused. It was precisely because of this that he was known as Pinming Sanlang in Jinghai; others would be three parts weaker in spirit just by fighting him.

"Look, it's all family business. What kind of big issue between an uncle and nephew can't be talked out?"

Seeing more and more onlookers, Zhang Ping'an had to explain loudly to Guan Tai.

"I see, so it's a family matter."

"That's right, I heard it clearly just now; these two are certainly not good people. They didn't care for their child after birth, and now they've come to see them."

"What kind of parents are they?" The others all wore expressions of disdain.

"What do you bunch of bumpkins know? We are Overseas Chinese. You little bastard, just you wait, I'm calling the Public Security right now."

Guan Cunxiao's mother continued to curse, and everyone around her was within the range of her verbal assault.

The crowd around them immediately exploded; this woman actually dared to call them bumpkins. Every one of them had leaped over the dragon gate from the countryside to the city to become a Worker, yet now they were being mocked to their faces.

The onlookers among the older women exchanged glances; one pulled hair, another twisted flesh, and they pinched thighs—in short, they unleashed a flurry of attacks on Guan Cunxiao's mother, while the men shoved Guan Cunxiao, followed by a punch here and a kick there.

"What are you doing? What are you all gathered here for?"

Seeing that the Public Security had arrived, the crowd hurriedly scattered, revealing the two miserable people inside.