Wei Mingjue took the initiative to contact Zou Yuyang and invited him to a meeting at his office. He had originally intended to meet Zou Yuyang alone to discuss a few matters, but unexpectedly, Wei Mingyu tagged along as well. Watching the two of them glued to each other, Wei Mingjue pressed his lips together and massaged his temples.
Naturally, Wei Mingyu and he were full brothers, meaning they were practically identical in certain aspects. His precious younger brother must have been monitoring Zou Yuyang’s every move, and upon learning that Zou Yuyang was heading over to see him today, insisted on coming along. Although Zou Yuyang was an Alpha, he lacked any real backbone and simply yielded to Wei Mingyu tagging along.
“Brother, what is it that you called Yuyang over for today?” Wei Mingyu asked, linking arms with Zou Yuyang in confusion.
Averting his gaze from their linked arms, Wei Mingjue ignored his brother’s question and looked straight at Zou Yuyang instead. “Let me ask you, how did you convince Zou Yuqing to go to Venery to handle your messes every single time?” He was genuinely curious about what made Zou Yuqing willing to go to such places time and again to clean up the mess left behind by an estranged older brother.
Zou Yuyang was taken aback. He had been extremely nervous when Wei Mingjue contacted him, assuming he had somehow offended this terrifying person again and even suspecting that Wei Mingjue might want to quietly get rid of him behind Wei Mingyu’s back.
Though he had no idea how Wei Mingyu found out he was going to see Wei Mingjue, having Wei Mingyu present instantly relieved some of his tension. He never expected the inquiry to be about Zou Yuqing.
Regaining his composure, Zou Yuyang replied, “There was not really much to it. I just told him I would give him money. As you know, their family is poor and desperate for cash, and he has to buy all sorts of medicine, so he always agreed readily.”
Faced with this half-true, half-false answer, Wei Mingjue did not dwell on it too much. When he heard Zou Yuyang say their family, he merely found it somewhat ironic, considering Zou Yuqing was technically part of the same family.
In truth, Wei Mingjue had already guessed that Zou Yuyang used money to dismiss Zou Yuqing. Having confirmed it, he pressed further, “How did you set your prices? Based on the severity of the trouble? Do not hide anything. Tell me how you paid him.”
Under such oppressive circumstances, even with Wei Mingjue standing beside him, Zou Yuyang still felt a tremor of nerves. “If he took a slap or a punch, I would give him a thousand. Depending on the count, if he got jumped by a gang, it was five thousand, and if the injuries were severe, the amount would be higher,” he stammered.
“Then how did you even know how many hits he took?” Wei Mingjue frowned in confusion. “Were you at the scene?”
“Well, I usually hid in the very corner table at Venery to watch.”
Wei Mingjue did not know how to react. Listening to Zou Yuqing’s account, a sudden surge of anger rose within him, making him want to slam his hands on the desk, stand up, and beat the living daylights out of the Alpha before him, or release his dominant pheromones to put Zou Yuqing in his place. But with Wei Mingyu still present, he could not do that.
Clenching his teeth, he finally asked one last question: “And for this matter with Minyu, how much did you give him?”
Who was unfamiliar with the Wei family’s methods? Even they themselves knew the rumors portraying them as ruthless and operating in both legal and underworld circles, though those tales were half-true. Just how much money would it take to make Zou Yuqing agree to take the fall for Zou Yuyang on something that could potentially cost him his life? One hundred thousand? Two hundred thousand? Wei Mingjue could not help guessing.
“Five thousand.”
Five thousand? Wei Mingjue stared at the Alpha who dared not meet his gaze, suddenly finding it somewhat laughable.
What must Zou Yuqing have been thinking when he accepted that five thousand? He was so exquisite; if it were up to him, he would have been willing to pay ten or even twenty times that amount. Yet he knew Zou Yuqing was not the kind of Alpha who would sell himself out purely for money.
“Make Zou Yuqing return that five thousand to you.” After a moment of thought, Wei Mingjue rested his chin on his crossed hands and smiled at Zou Yuyang.
“Huh?” Zou Yuyang was dumbfounded; this was entirely outside his expectations.
“What is the matter? Neither you nor he suffered any actual loss from this incident. Why should you spend that five thousand, or are you implying my younger brother is only worth five thousand?” As he spoke, Wei Mingjue deliberately glanced at Wei Mingyu.
Sure enough, upon hearing his older brother phrase it that way, Wei Mingyu agreed readily. “That is right, there was really no need to spend that five thousand. We might as well keep it to buy milk powder and toys for our baby instead.”
Zou Yuyang had actually thought along those very lines. Prompted by the two Wei brothers, he feigned a brief moment of contemplation before nodding. “Then how should I talk to him about it?”
“That is your own concern. Just make sure he returns the five thousand to you. Of course, you are not to mention me.” With a wave of his hand, Wei Mingjue signaled that the two of them could leave.
Once Zou Yuyang and Wei Mingyu departed, Wei Mingjue leaned back in his office chair and curved his lips into a smile. Five thousand, a completely negligible sum of money to him. Once Zou Yuqing lost it, he would surely take the initiative to contact him.
He was eagerly anticipating the day Zou Yuqing would proactively seek him out.
Zou Yuqing tossed the business card that had been forcefully shoved into his hands straight into the trash can without a shred of hesitation. The very next day, he requested leave and headed to the municipal hospital to pick up his mother’s prescription medication.
The schedule for collecting medication was fixed every month. Now holding a fluid sum of fifty thousand in his hands, Zou Yuqing decided to get higher-quality drugs for his mother. Medications for treating depression and manic disorders were not like remedies for physical ailments; they might not show immediate effects, and prolonged use often came with side effects. Still, as long as there was even a sliver of efficacy, Zou Yuqing was willing to spend the money.
Because he was well-funded, for the very first time he picked up a full half-year’s supply all at once, purchasing only the absolute best. Imagining that perhaps his mother’s condition would improve after switching to these new drugs, Zou Yuqing felt his mood lifting considerably.
He simply had not anticipated that a few days later, Zou Yuyang would call him.
“Zou Yuqing, take some time to wire that fifty thousand you were given back to my account. I ran into a bit of trouble over here, so I will not have you bail me out this time; I will just pay them off directly. As fast as you can.” Without waiting for a response, Zou Yuqing hung up the phone.
What was this supposed to mean? Was he being asked to return the fifty thousand? Frowning, Zou Yuqing called Zou Yuyang back several times, but Zou Yuyang refused to answer. Left with no choice, he sent a text message: Does Zou Yushen not give you money? I have already spent that fifty thousand, so I cannot give it back to you. Besides, this was the amount we agreed on in the first place.
How ridiculous could this be? No one knew what he had endured to earn that fifty thousand. Those were consequences Zou Yuyang should have faced, yet what gave Zou Yuyang the right to demand that money back now?
After a long while, Zou Yuyang replied: You did not suffer any real loss anyway. I will spell it out for you: I owe money to a casino, and it is way more than fifty thousand. I cannot let my dad find out about this, and asking you for just the fifty thousand is already me being generous. If you do not pay up, I will transfer the gambling debt directly to your name so you can pay it off for me.
Gambling debt. Zou Yuyang had gone gambling? Zou Yuqing froze in his tracks, his hand tightening around his phone as he read the final two sentences. He knew Zou Yuyang was capable of anything. Despite being such a coward, the trouble he stirred up was never small, even capable of shaking the entire city.
He did not know what to do. The money had already been spent, not only buying medicine for his mother, but also replacing some broken furniture to make their home look a little less cold and wretched. Yet his life was already pitch dark, as if trapped by every shadow imaginable.
His phone vibrated again, and Zou Yuyang followed up with another sentence: Xu Jie ruined my family, ruined my mother, and I can ruin the both of you just as easily.
How else could they be ruined beyond what they already were? Zou Yuqing glanced around his shabby little home, looked at his mother sitting blankly and motionless on the couch, and then looked down at himself, an Alpha who had been trampled upon.
He let out a bitter laugh and replied: I will scrape the money together as fast as I can.
Scrape it together, how was he supposed to pull together fifty thousand? By working odd jobs at the supermarket? How long would he have to work to earn that much? He looked at the medicine on the table, his mother’s lifeline. There was nothing of value left in the house to sell for quick cash, and he was completely unwilling to ask Xu Wang to borrow money.
For the entire afternoon, Zou Yuqing sat defeated on the sofa with his head hanging low. Finally, resigning himself to fate, he stood up, walked over to the room’s trash can, crouched down, and fished out the crumpled business card.