The Rise of a Special Forces Soldier Abandoned by a Wealthy Family

"Alright, alright!"

Seeing this, Yan Fushan quickly stepped in to smooth things over (or rather, to shift the focus), glaring at General Liu and the others.

"Look at you all, so pathetic! All I asked for was a verbal 'signature'! Why are you all so nervous, like my grandson-in-law is some kind of Monkey King who wreaked havoc in Heaven!"

However, after he finished speaking...

General Liu, Elder Teng, Elder Zhao, General Zhang, and even Li Weiguo, who was watching the show from the sidelines—

They all nodded in unison, with utmost seriousness and certainty, their eye contact conveying a clear message:

"We certainly wouldn't dare say that!"

That's right, this kid is Sun Wukong! And he's an upgraded and enhanced version, Sun Wukong with nuclear weapons in hand!

Ignoring his old friends' expressions of "deep agreement," Yan Fushan coughed loudly, forcefully steer the conversation back "on track":

"Come on, come on! Let's not get sidetracked! Since you're here today, you should all do something!"

He pointed his finger bluntly at Zeng Rong, who was in the main seat, and raised his voice eight octaves:

"You be the judge! Be a witness! This old man! He's now going back on his word and refusing to acknowledge his grandson's engagement to my granddaughter!"

"You're all old friends who know each other inside and out! Wasn't it him who insisted on arranging this childhood betrothal?"

"And now? He's actually saying he 'announced the lifting of the ban' before? Listen to that, is that even plausible? Look at his old face, doesn't he look like someone who's treacherous?"

"You old scoundrel Yan! Stop spouting nonsense!"

Grandpa Zeng stood up abruptly, his beard bristling.

"When did I ever deny it? I'm stating the facts! I did announce the annulment of the engagement before! It's procedure! Do you understand procedure?!"

"Huh! A program?"

Yan Fushan scoffed and turned to the other "judges."

"Listen to this! He said he 'announced it to the public'! Then I'd like to ask, to 'who' did he announce it to? Did I, Yan Fushan, agree to it? Did the entire Yan family agree to it?"

At this moment, Old Zhao stroked his beard and slowly walked over, his tone calm yet carrying weight:

"Old Zeng, when you announced the annulment of the engagement, the circumstances were special, and everyone could understand. After all, Xiaolong's whereabouts were unknown at that time, and his fate was uncertain. You did that because you didn't want to hold Ruge back."

He then changed the subject.

"However, we old folks certainly didn't hear or see Old Man Yan himself explicitly say 'agree to the termination'."

"Now we understand that what you did was just a stopgap measure, a 'suspension' rather than a 'revocation'."

Now that Xiaolong has returned safely and rejoined his family, what about this marriage agreement...?

From both a moral and logical standpoint, it seems that "restoration" is the proper course of action.

Your Zeng family can't really go back on their word.

"Yes, Old Zeng."

Mr. Teng also chimed in at the opportune moment, his tone carrying a tone of persuasion:

"That girl, Ru Ge, is known as the 'future granddaughter-in-law of the Zeng family,' and she has kept herself pure and virtuous for so many years, just waiting."

You cannot ignore this affection and this steadfast commitment.

This marriage agreement must be honored!

With the two heavyweight "judges" expressing their opinions, Yan Fushan became even more confident, standing ramrod straight and looking down at Zeng Xu with disdain:

"Look! Old Zhao and Old Teng have both said that!"

You were the one who just shouted that you wanted to find someone to judge the matter!

Now the evidence is conclusive and the reasoning is clear, what else do you have to say? Huh?!

"Stop! Stop! Hold on!"

Seeing that the conflict was about to escalate again, and that it was clearly being "conspired" and guided by the old men, Zeng Linglong had no choice but to speak up.

He raised his hand, making a "pause" gesture, with a helpless yet amused expression on his face.

"Gentlemen, you can judge this as you see fit, or you can discuss the history of the marriage contract."

"But could you please stop circling around the topic and then suddenly pinning all the blame on my grandfather?"

He pointed to himself, his tone slightly amused:

"Ultimately, I'm the one involved in this engagement, right? And if it's to be implemented, it'll fall on my shoulders, won't it?"

"So, if you really want to clarify things, or if you want to 'implement' them, shouldn't you... ask for my opinion first?"

Upon hearing this, Yan Fushan immediately changed his tune, his face instantly plastered with a friendly yet undeniably authoritative smile, and he moved closer to Zeng Linglong:

"Xiao Long! What you said makes sense! Of course, you need to agree to the marriage! But..."

He then changed the subject and began to demonstrate his "logical genius" skills.

"You promised long ago! Now do you want to follow in your grandfather's footsteps and break your promise? Are you and your grandfather all cut from the same cloth, 'heartless men'?"

"Me...me?"

Zeng Linglong pointed at himself, looking utterly bewildered.

"When did I agree to that? I don't remember ever doing that!"

He was switched at birth, so how could he have any memories?

"See! I knew you were trying to renege on your debt!"

When you were first born.

Your grandfather said he wanted you to be betrothed to Ru Ge.

You just kept smiling foolishly, and kept smiling.

Doesn't that count as agreeing?

Yan Fushan suddenly pulled a yellowed old photograph from his pocket.

His movements were surprisingly fast, unlike those of an elderly person; he shoved right in front of Zeng Linglong.

In the photo, a chubby-cheeked baby wrapped in swaddling clothes is being held by Yan Fushan.

The baby did indeed grin, revealing a toothless smile.

There was still a faint, glistening... drool at the corner of his mouth.

"Look! Open your eyes wide and take a good look!" Yan Fushan pointed forcefully at the baby in the photo, his voice resolute and righteous:

"When you were first born, I held you in my arms! Your grandfather was right there, saying he wanted to arrange a marriage between you and Ru Ge!"

"You were in my arms, giggling nonstop! See? The photos are proof!"

"You couldn't speak back then, so this 'smile' means agreement! It means consent! It means joy! Our ancestors always said 'accept with a smile,' 'accept with a smile,' meaning to accept with a smile, do you understand?!"

"Look here again, that glistening at the corner of his mouth, he's drooling from smiling so happily! Isn't that irrefutable evidence?!"

Yan Fushan held his head high, displaying the posture of a victor who said, "The facts are clear, the evidence is conclusive, let's see how you can argue now."

"Fuck...!"

Zeng Linglong looked at the baby photo that made him "smile so hard he was drooling," and then at Grandpa Yan's "ironclad evidence, self-righteous" expression, and was completely speechless.

He had witnessed firsthand what true shamelessness was, and how the art of sophistry could be brought to such a pinnacle, so seamless, and so breathtaking!

It seems he can't shake off this "blame" today, and it's been firmly pinned on his head in an absurd way that he can't refute at all—a "baby's laugh."