Chapter 52: The True Face (Part 1)

  The night wind was biting, the cold air was oppressive, but Yang Suofeng's heart was even colder. When he realized what he had done, he almost numbly looked around at the four women, including Su Yunruo, who were still unconscious and had been ravaged by him. The room was filled with a strong, corrupt atmosphere. He walked out of the room that had brought them from heaven to hell without realizing it, and outside in the courtyard, the night air was cool as water, with only the faint moonlight shrouding the faintly lit courtyard. But the appearance of one person made Yang Suofeng's whole body feel like it had fallen into an ice cellar.

  That person was unexpectedly Tang Zī. He sat expressionless at the entrance of the courtyard, quietly gazing at Yang Suō Fēng, and beside him, there was no one else. Perhaps it was because he was so different from his usual self that Yang Suō Fēng involuntarily shrank back a little, as if realizing something, wanting to escape, but Tang Zī had already seen him, and slowly stood up. His expression seemed to be smiling yet not smiling, looking very strange, but his voice was very calm, saying slowly: "General Yang, you've worked hard, I've been waiting for you here for a long time."

  Yang Shuangfen only felt his throat dry, as if he sensed something heavy was about to envelop him, and he almost had no strength to bear it. He silently groaned and weakly said: "What are you waiting for me here?"

  Tang Ziyu smiled slightly and said: "I'll wait here for General Yang to finish enjoying himself, then we have something important to discuss."

  Yang Shuang's head buzzed with a loud noise, and his blood suddenly surged. Cai Bingxiao was right, this was indeed a trap designed by Tang Ziyu on purpose, the goal was to make himself bear the crime of raping Su Yunruo and other women. He regretted why he got on this treacherous boat, but unfortunately, he didn't discover anything before. In fact, Cai Bingxiao had already realized it and reminded herself, but she still brought about a great disaster. He curled up his body, slowly slumping down the stairs, and groaned: "What do you want to discuss with me?"

  Tang Zhi's eyes revealed a hint of complacency, as if he had seen his prey fall into the trap and was just waiting for him to deliver the final blow. At this moment, he no longer looked lonely and miserable, but rather cold and calm. He said lightly, "Does General Yang know that you have already committed an unforgivable sin?"

  Yang Suofeng's mind was a mess, and he knew the consequences of this matter. In any dynasty, insulting women was a very serious crime, let alone insulting four women at once. He couldn't help but think of beheading, shooting, and burying alive, with the shadows of those who had been executed flashing before his eyes. As for Tang Zhi's question, he knew it clearly, but he didn't want to answer. However, Tang Zhi was not in a hurry and did not urge him. After losing himself for a long time, realizing that his strength was gradually dissipating, Yang Suofeng vaguely said: "I don't know what you're talking about."

  Tang Ziyu smiled slightly, completely seeing through Yang Shuangfeng's thoughts, and said coldly: "Yang Shaoyou actually knows everything clearly, but you just don't dare to admit it. Didn't you think of anything when you were in the Warm Spring Village? Ah, I can tell from your eyes. Su Yunru is not an ordinary woman, she is the wife of the late General Cai Yanchi of the Land Army. You have insulted her, which is not just a crime of insulting women, but also insulting the widow of a martyr. Can you imagine what kind of consequences this will bring? Do I need to remind you about this?"

  Yang Shuang's face was ashen, his eyes dull and staring at his toes. He felt his stomach contracting violently, the bitter taste on his tongue growing heavier, as if everything in his liver was about to come out. He involuntarily wanted to vomit, but his throat opened several times without anything coming out.

  Tang Zihao looked at the poor young man with no sympathy, and said coldly: "Yang Shaojiang indulged in a moment of pleasure, committed an unforgivable mistake, now it's time to take responsibility..."

  Yang Shuangfeng suddenly lifted his head, his eyes filled with angry gaze, his face was red with anger, and his voice contained great indignation. He spoke word by word, gritting his teeth: "Tang Zixuan, stop pretending to be a good person! All of this is your scheme! If you hadn't put the anesthetic in my wine, if you hadn't deliberately locked the door, I wouldn't have lost my mind and committed such a heinous crime. From start to finish, everything was planned by you, your purpose was to frame me, to humiliate Su Yunruo. Tell me, why did you do this? I have no grudge against you, why did you frame me?"

  Tang Zilang coldly laughed and said lightly: "General Yang, you're really not on a high level when you say this! When did I ever put medicine in the wine? What evidence do you have? Do you have any witnesses? You yourself were drunk and disorderly, committing an unforgivable crime, and now you want to shift the blame? Do you want me to hand this matter over to the police station for investigation? Do you hope to be tied up with five flowers and taken to the execution ground?"

  Yang Shuangfeng took a deep breath, his face turned pale, but his eyes became more determined. He stared at Tang Zhi and said slowly: "Tang Zhi, you don't have to pretend anymore. I now know that everything you did before was just to deceive me. Your integrity, your clean hands, your love for the people, were all just a facade, a tool for you to cheat others. Mu Shunying was just your accomplice, and you two were in cahoots. When he failed to extort money from me and was killed by me instead, you took over and continued to blackmail us for our wealth. In the end, it's all about the wealth of the Su and Cai families that you've been plotting so hard to get. You won't deny it, will you? If not, you wouldn't have gone to such great lengths to frame me and put me in a desperate situation."

  Tang Zimo said calmly, "General Yang, your words are too serious! Mu Shunying and I are absolutely not on the same path. What he does is only for his own pleasure, while what I do is for the happiness of the vast majority of ordinary people under heaven."

  Yang Shuangfeng scolded loudly: "I spit on you! How dare you say that for the happiness of the common people?"

  Tang Zixu solemnly raised his right hand, crossed it over his chest in a cruciform shape, and exclaimed loudly: "I, Tang Zixu, can swear to heaven that if I have used even one cent of the wealth I've obtained for personal gain, may I be struck dead by thunder at once! Heaven is my witness!"

  Yang Shuangfen completely regained her composure, completely ignoring Tang Zhi's solemn oath. She let out a long sigh and said with a bitter smile: "Tang Zhi, I have to admit that your plan is indeed too deep, even the way you make an oath is so fake. If I hadn't been cheated by you so badly, maybe I would have believed your oath. But now, even if you swore that you would go eat shit, I wouldn't believe it. You and Mu Shunying are a perfect match, one is tough and the other is soft, going back and forth, all for the sake of Su Yunruo's money. Your perseverance is really worth my learning. Damn it, I think I'm also greedy, but compared to you two, I'm still a bit too tender!"

  Tang Zixuan's face flashed with a misinterpreted anger, but it quickly dissipated. He spoke slowly: "Yang Suofeng, I don't want to say much, but everything I said earlier is true. Indeed, I did intend to plot against your wealth. However, my actions are not driven by personal motives, but for the sake of the tens of millions of impoverished common people under heaven. The wealth on your bodies was created by their blood and sweat, only to be plundered and occupied by you. I will represent heaven and retrieve their labor achievements..."

  Yang Shuang said viciously: "I spit on you! Don't disgust me with your nonsense in front of me! I won't believe a word you say! What do you have to do with the poor common people? With a dirty mind like yours, it's an insult to even mention the three words 'common people', you'd better go die!"

  Tang Zī's hands hung down, his finger bones making a series of crisp cracking sounds, which in the quiet night seemed especially clear. Yang Shuofeng's heart skipped a beat, his eyes showing a hint of terror as he looked at his hand, but still calmly and coldly stared at him.

  Tang Zishen took a deep breath and said in a serious tone: "Yang Shao, I don't want to explain too much to you. Everything I've done today is according to the will of heaven, and it's just retrieving the people's hard-earned money. I think what I've done is reasonable and justified. As for you, I have been kind and respectful, without any offense. You like Su Yun, so I helped you two get together. You already have Su Yun by your side, fulfilling your long-held wish. It's only natural that I want her money too. Time is limited, don't waste it on idle chatter, or else it will be detrimental to both of us."

  Yang Shuang couldn't help but laugh dryly twice, suppressing the anger in his heart and saying: "Is this your so-called logic of justice? Absurd! Why should I give you my money? What qualifications do you have? I like Su Yunruo, that's my business, even if you don't help, one day I will get her anyway. Do I need you to help me out? Look at what you've done now! Are you going to make Su Yunruo hate me forever?"

  Tang Ziyu smiled slightly, as if she hadn't heard Yang Shuangfeng's thunderous accusations, and said calmly: "General Yang is a wise man who knows how to make decisions. Perhaps General Yang has had feelings for Miss Su for a long time, and I'll help him achieve his goal. The Yang family has been entrenched in the Nanhai region for a hundred years, so they must have accumulated a lot of wealth. If you can donate some of this wealth to do some public welfare work and rescue the poor people from their suffering, I, Tang Ziyu, might be able to help General Yang wash away his crime."

  Yang Shuang said coldly, "Yes, I should thank you, but what I want to do more is to split your head in two and see whether your brain is red or black. Why is your heart so vicious?"

  Tang Zidao said calmly, "General Yang, there's no need to look at me like that. My brain is already red enough. As for my heart, I am not malicious. What I represent is the will of the people, and what I want to do is simply take back the wealth that was illegally taken from you."

  Yang Suofeng suddenly stood up, clenched his fists and stared at Tang Zixuan with a cold smile: "Tang Zixuan, you don't have to dream anymore. I, Yang Suofeng, since I fell into your trap today, will accept my fate. Even if I lose everything and become infamous for eternity, I won't say a word. However, if you want to get even a single penny from me, forget it! I, Yang Suofeng, can give up my life, can give up my reputation, but I absolutely won't hand over a single penny to you! Even if your words are as smooth as a lotus flower, and the salted fish can speak eloquently, I still won't change my mind. Give up this idea of yours!"

  Tang Zhi remained unmoved, with his hands clasped behind his back, pacing back and forth calmly. He said lightly, "Young General Yang, you're too agitated! You should know that agitation isn't a good thing; it will affect your judgment and lead to incorrect decisions. Young General Yang, think calmly about the consequences if your scandal is exposed and the charges are proven true. The Su family turning against you would be expected, and the Emperor would naturally strip you of your lordship title. As for being imprisoned or even executed, that's also a predictable outcome. It seems like Young General Yang should carefully weigh these consequences, which still leave room for maneuvering. Don't let temporary impulsiveness blind you to the existence of alternative paths."

  Yang Shuang's eyes were filled with sorrow and anger, the feeling of being abandoned by the world lingering in his mind. As soon as he thought about it, his face involuntarily twisted. The scene of being executed by firing squad in his past life reappeared before his eyes, making him dare not face his future fate. However, after a brief moment of terror, he gradually regained his composure.

  Facing Tang Zhi's threats and temptation, Yang Suofeng took a deep breath of cold air to calm his inner pain and panic. On the surface, he remained calm and said: "Tang Zhi, you don't need to threaten me. Although I'm not a clever person, I'm not a fool either. Being an official for thousands of miles is only for wealth, and you're no exception. If you really want to put me to death, you wouldn't have gone through so much trouble. What you actually want is to threaten me into giving you all the Yang family's wealth. Your goal is money, not my life. Tang Zhi, sir, I believe I see this point very clearly. Even if you kill me, you'll end up with nothing, and you might even get yourself into trouble."