He tricked the female lead into becoming his boyfriend, but then went on to criticize the male lead.

Fu Yanchen's Adam's apple bobbed as he recalled the events of that year, his eyes filled with weariness and helplessness: "At first, I wasn't sure either. I went to my father to verify, but he was too stubborn. The more crucial the matter, the more he would shut up and deliberately conceal it. The more he didn't say anything, the more it suggested that something was amiss."

They beat someone up badly, but didn't say anything.

Fu Yanchen paused for a moment, then continued, "In the end, I saw a psychologist and, through hypnosis, gradually recovered all the memories I had deliberately forgotten from that night when I was five years old."

"so what?"

Fu Yanchen lowered his eyes, his long eyelashes unable to conceal the suppressed desolation in them: "When I was little, Wen Ruzhi liked to abuse me. Nobody liked me."

When Sang Jiuning saw that Fu Yanchen looked unwell, her heart was in complete turmoil.

How come they all have such tragic childhoods?

She sat quietly in place, her mind already conjuring up images of young Fu Yanchen, covered in injuries, tiny and helpless.

She had an urge to go up and hug this older brother.

Childhood wounds can take a lifetime to heal.

Finally, she suppressed her emotions, reached out, and gently patted Fu Yanchen's clenched hand, her voice softening: "Brother, don't think about the past. You've grown up. It's all in the past."

"Um."

As soon as he finished speaking, Fu Yanchen lowered his head slightly, his eyelashes casting a shadow that perfectly concealed the triumphant glint in his eyes.

Sure enough, the pitiful are always cared for; it turns out my sister falls for this.

Sang Jiuning was still thinking about the clues Wen Zhaoci had once told her.

The information Wen Zhaoci obtained from Zhao Muze did mention that her mother had a very close best friend who was indeed present at the scene back then.

However, the two people's accounts were completely contradictory.

Wen Zhaoci's investigation results pointed to Fu Yanchen; however, Fu Yanchen's hypnotic memories pointed to that unfamiliar best friend.

Who is telling the truth? And who is lying?

Should I ask Mom directly? No. Bringing up the past abruptly will only severely upset her, and the consequences could be disastrous.

Go ask Dad? If he knew the truth, he would have told us when Wen Zhaoci asked last time, and he has a pretty good impression of Fu Yanchen.

There is simply no way to verify this matter.

Sang Jiuning looked up and met Fu Yanchen's eyes with an unprecedented seriousness, exhaustion, and earnestness, and her heart softened.

The scales in her heart had begun to tip.

She spoke softly, "Brother, whether it's true or false doesn't matter anymore. I just hope you can stay well. Do you understand what I mean?"

She was willing to preserve this family bond, after all, Fu Yanchen was a good person.

Upon hearing this, Fu Yanchen's tense nerves suddenly relaxed, and most of the gloom in his eyes dissipated.

Even though she didn't completely trust him, and even though she still had doubts, she didn't hate him, didn't push him away completely, and was still willing to acknowledge him as her brother.

This was half the success he had anticipated.

A barely perceptible hint of trepidation flickered in his eyes, like a child afraid of being abandoned, as he softly pleaded, "I will prove to you that everything I said is true. Sister, please don't hate me, okay?"

He paused, lowered his voice further, and said with a hint of candid vulnerability, "I have seen the doctor properly and taken my medicine diligently."

Seeing his cautious, self-contradictory demeanor, Sang Jiuning felt a pang of sadness and gently nodded, "Yes, I don't dislike you. My brother has always been very good to me, you will definitely get better slowly."

Fu Yanchen's tense lips finally managed a slight smile, and the darkness in his eyes faded slightly, replaced by a touch of warmth.

"Would you like some coffee?" he asked softly.

Sang Jiuning immediately shook her head slightly, a sense of vigilance rising in her heart.

It wasn't that she didn't trust him, but having experienced it once before, no one could guarantee that this cup of coffee hadn't been tampered with beforehand, and she couldn't take that risk.

Fu Yanchen instantly understood her defensiveness, a hint of loneliness flashed in his eyes, but there was no life in them.

He remained silent for a few seconds, suppressing all the bitterness in his heart, and then habitually asked her with concern, "Do you have any money to spend lately? If not, I'll transfer you more."

Sang Jiuning felt a surge of emotion.

This older brother is truly exceptional.

Even though things had reached this point where they were estranged and misunderstandings were rampant, all he could think about was that she might be short of money.

Feeling a little guilty, she said earnestly, "Brother, I'll pay you back all the money you gave me before when my husband comes back. I used that money to buy him gifts last time, and it cost quite a bit."

Fu Yanchen: ...

Every word was like a sharp knife, precisely stabbing into his heart, again and again, gently yet cruelly, slowly torturing all his feelings.

Sang Jiuning spoke a few more words with Fu Yanchen before returning to school.

On the other side, Wen Zhaoci wore a simple black coat, stood tall and straight, and exuded a cool and intimidating aura. Even in the noisy crowd, she still stood out.

His phone then received several message notifications, all of which were real-time reports from his bodyguard.

He lightly swiped the screen, quickly browsing the messages, his dark eyes showing no emotion whatsoever, his calmness bordering on indifference.

The bodyguard gave a detailed account of how Sang Jiuning was taken away by Fu Yanchen that morning, their brief private conversation at the coffee shop, and how everything went smoothly without any incidents.

Wen Zhaoci casually opened the dedicated location software, and a small, bouncing dot on the screen steadily stopped at the location of the university campus.

Fortunately, his little girl is doing well at school.

But the next moment, as the content being monitored finished playing, all the tenderness in his eyes vanished, replaced by a deep, cold chill.

Fu Yanchen has actually learned to play the victim; how despicable!

He found out on his first day there that Fu Yanchen was using Wen Zhaozhe to control him.

Wen Zhaoci pursed his thin lips slightly, understanding the situation perfectly.

Ultimately, it was because he was too soft-hearted towards Wen Zhaozhe.

He has spent five full days here, handling all the thorny matters swiftly and efficiently, without the slightest delay.

With official business concluded, what remains is settling personal scores.

Wen Zhaoci took out his phone and dialed a number for his subordinate in China. His voice was low and cold, devoid of any warmth: "Bring Wen Fengzhi over here."

A simple sentence, yet it carries an undeniable sense of pressure.

After hanging up the phone, he leaned against the car, his fingertips lightly stroking the edge of the phone, a calculating cold light surging in his eyes.

If the younger generation makes a mistake, the older generation should naturally step in to take responsibility.

Since his young lady is distressed about those losses, he will take them all back and even compensate her double.

All of Wen Zhaozhe and Wen Fengzhi's private assets were investigated and deducted.

If private assets are insufficient to cover all losses, then make up the difference in a simple and brutal way—send both the old and the young to mine for free, using their labor to pay off the debt, without any leniency whatsoever.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the university campus...

The afternoon classes ended on time. As soon as the bell rang, students poured out of the teaching building in twos and threes, and the noisy voices filled the entire school road.

Sang Jiuning packed her textbooks and backpack and slowly walked out of the teaching building.

She had already planned her itinerary: after class, she would go straight back to her apartment, get a good night's rest, and wait for Wen Zhaoci to return.

But as soon as she reached the school gate, she stopped abruptly in her tracks.

In the most conspicuous spot at the school gate, a low-key black sedan was parked steadily, with two familiar figures standing beside it.

It was Sang Tingyan and Fu Xulan.

Sang Jiuning's heart skipped a beat, and a bad premonition rose instantly, her back tensing up slightly.

Her biological father, Sang Tingyan, was a professor who had taught for many years. He had a serious and rigid scholarly air about him and was very particular about rules and etiquette, giving him a strong sense of authority.

Sure enough, before she could even greet him, Sang Tingyan strode forward, his brows furrowed, his eyes serious. He spoke in his usual lecturing tone, carrying the full authority of a teacher: "You think you're all grown up now? Getting bolder and bolder, even learning to sneak home and steal household registration books?"