"What are you saying!" Lu Siyuan said, displeased.
Although what his younger brother said in the recording was indeed a bit off, Lu Siyuan's first reaction was to defend him. He was his younger brother, and even if he had done something wrong, Qin Shen shouldn't have said that to him.
Qin Shen glanced at him coldly, his smile utterly mocking.
The guests had lost control; they couldn't even maintain their smiles, and everyone was looking towards the Lu family's house.
The previous furtive glances turned into blatant staring. Qin Shen's angry and disappointed expression, and Lu Sibai's reddened eyes, all indicated that this was an unexpectedly good show.
Most people remained on the sidelines, some were eager to see the drama unfold, and others, like the Chu family, were closely watching the situation after being falsely accused.
Mr. Feng was covered in sweat. He didn't know where his subordinate who had been sent to turn off the monitor was. He couldn't care less about that and called for others to turn off the live stream.
"Don't turn it off!" Before President Chu could stop him, Chu Tianze went to cause trouble for the staff arranged by the Feng family.
Although he didn't understand who was responsible for what happened today, Chu Tianze was heartbroken by Lu Sibai. The more he liked him before, the more he hated him now, even more than before.
The recording speed was increased, and although they were delayed for a while, the recording never stopped.
"...Aren't you two dating?"
"...He is the young master of the Qin family..."
Qin Shen's eyes were cold and icy, and his hands trembled slightly. Lu Sibai shivered as she tried to pull him away, but he brushed her off.
It turns out that everything he thought was fake; the person he liked didn't really like him, but only because he was the young master of the Qin family.
"...Brother Tianze, don't worry about it..."
“...If you don’t like him...just say it...it’s too unfair to you…”
"...Dad won't agree to...Mom and Aunt Luo..."
"...I think I've met someone I like...I don't want to hurt him...I don't have the courage to confess..."
He has someone he likes, so it's even harder for him to tolerate being a "bully" and coercive person, right?
I don't want to hurt the person he loves, but what about myself? What am I? What about the bond we formed growing up together? What about our sweet relationship of the past two years?
Lu Minghai's face was ashen; he wanted to say something, but couldn't bring himself to speak.
Mr. Qin and his wife resisted the urge to leave immediately; to storm off in this kind of situation would be tantamount to deliberately provoking someone into trouble.
Even if everyone knows that the recording is about their child, they should pretend they know nothing and that it has nothing to do with them.
No one dares to laugh at them to their faces unless they expose this secret.
Only Feng Zhihui remained as "naive" as ever. She looked at her youngest son with surprise: "Sibai, is that really what you think? You don't like Ashen? Then why don't you tell your mother?"
Lu Sibai cried. He had no mind to deal with Feng Zhihui. With tears streaming down his face, he pleaded with Qin Shen, "Shen, none of that is true, please believe me..."
"Believe you?" Qin Shen sneered. "Then tell me, did you say those things? Did you say those things?"
Lu Sibai was speechless. He wanted to deny it, he wanted to say that the recording was fake, that someone was trying to harm him.
But he doesn't even know who released the recording, nor does he know how many copies there are. Even if he can solve this one problem, what if there are backups?
Qin Shen stared intently at him, unsure whether to wait for a rebuttal or an explanation, but in the end, Lu Sibai said nothing.
He avoided the question and only cried and begged.
He cried so bitterly, large tears falling down his face, quickly soaking his clothes.
She didn't even bother to wipe her tears, looking at him with teary eyes, her eyes full of pleading.
In the past, let alone Lu Sibai crying like this, even just a frown from him would make Qin Shen feel extremely distressed.
This is his childhood sweetheart; they were playmates when they were young and fell in love with each other when they grew up.
He doted on him and protected him. He was like a pampered little prince, with a sweet tongue and a love for acting cute. Sometimes he would act pretentious, but that was also adorable. Qin Shen couldn't bear to see him suffer even the slightest grievance.
But now, the person he cherishes most has plunged a knife into his chest, churning it inside his heart.
The image of the person held in that heart was also pierced to pieces by this knife.
"Ah Shen..." Lu Sibai cried so hard he could hardly breathe. Qin Shen's eyes were terrifying. He felt a wave of panic wash over him, as if he were losing the most important thing in his life.
Qin Shen looked at him coldly, his eyes filled with deep suspicion and inquiry. No matter how much he cried or begged, his heart still ached, the kind of pain that felt like a piece of flesh had been ripped out.
Yet he was calmer than ever before; the boy before him was so familiar, yet so unfamiliar.
He felt as if he had never truly seen him. They had grown up together and knew each other perfectly, yet now he wondered if what he had seen before was all a mask.
Otherwise, why would all of this have happened today? How many things is Lu Sibai hiding from him?
"Well? Now you know who lied and who's the liar!" A mocking voice rang out, and Chu Tianze stood not far away, his face full of sarcasm.
The reason he was able to leave was that the live stream couldn't be stopped. Whether it was because the audio protagonist was his own nephew or because it was the host family today, the Feng family couldn't let things continue to develop. The large screen in the venue and the live stream were both turned off.
"Tianze, don't get involved at a time like this." Lu Siyuan was at his wits' end. He had witnessed the relationship between Lu Sibai and Qin Shen firsthand and really hoped that his younger brother could be happy.
Even though he rationally knew that Lu Sibai's actions were wrong, given how things had turned out, Lu Sibai was still his younger brother, so how could he not protect him?
"I got involved? Wasn't it your good brother who dragged me into this?"
Chu Tianze glared at him resentfully: "You heard it yourself. He was the one who complained to me, he was the one who said he was forced. Everything I said is true. He seduced me, deceived me, and then kicked me aside, throwing all the blame on me..."
He kept saying they were brothers, but he was wronged. Lu Siyuan even said something like, "I know you like to play around, but Sibai is my brother. How could you play around with him?"
This is his good brother. He's blind. He deserves it!
Heaven has seen the light; retribution has come!
"Tianze!" President Chu interrupted him sternly, then smiled apologetically at the Lu and Qin family elders, whose faces were dark with anger: "I'm sorry, my son was being disrespectful. He was very upset, please don't blame him..."
He then tried to pull Chu Tianze away.
Chu Tianze was young and eager to vent his anger, but now that the recording was out, everyone knew the truth, so there was really no need for him to say anything more.
Let the Lu and Qin families fight it out; the Lu family might just suffer a major setback this time.
They didn't need to say anything unnecessary. Both families were in a fit of anger, and if their son went too far and provoked them to vent their anger on the Chu family, it would be a great injustice.
Provoked by Chu Tianze's hateful gaze, Lu Siyuan suddenly thought, "You didn't play this recording, did you?"
It was just a flash of inspiration when I said it, but once it came out, I realized it made perfect sense.
The audio recording clearly shows a private conversation between Lu Sibai and Chu Tianze, and the recording is very clear; it would be difficult for an outsider to record it so clearly.
If it was Chu Tianze, then it makes sense. As one of the parties involved, it would be very convenient for him to record the conversation. Si Bai has never been wary of his own people, and Chu Tianze is his friend, so Si Bai naturally wouldn't be suspicious of him.
If we follow this line of thought, not long ago Chu Tianze passionately kissed Si Bai, but in the recording he acted completely innocent and pure. The contrast is too great and doesn't make sense.
So... is it possible that all of this was actually a conspiracy orchestrated by the Chu family?
Lu Siyuan instantly conjured up a series of scenarios in his mind, and the others were not to be outdone. They were all business tycoons who were used to all kinds of methods, reversals, and conspiracies, and they all started to speculate about a conspiracy.
Lu Minghai seized the opportunity to explain to Qin Shen's father: "Brother Zhengping, I don't think this matter is as simple as it seems on the surface. It seems to be aimed at the two children, but it is actually trying to sow discord between our two families. We can't let the person behind this get away with it."
Feng Zhihui didn't think that much about it; she was the most confused person present and still didn't understand what was going on.
But she has one good point: she never contradicts Lu Minghai in public, and even if she doesn't understand, she goes along with what he says.
Lu Minghai tried to persuade Qin Zhengping, but she grabbed Luo Youqi's hand and said nice things: "That's right, our two families are so close, so many people are envious. We've been best friends for decades, you can't not believe me."
The two of them managed to appease the Qin couple through a combination of gentle persuasion and force.
It's hard to say whether they actually believed it or not; they might just not want to be in an even more embarrassing situation. Being framed is better than their precious son actually being cheated on.
Anyway, they didn't fall out on the spot.
Upon hearing this, the "mastermind" was terrified.
President Chu was startled and desperately tried to explain, "It wasn't us. This is a banquet hosted by the Feng and Hua families. How could we possibly get involved?"
Lu Minghai said with a forced smile, "President Chu has misunderstood. The matter has not yet been investigated, and we will not speculate."
He sneered inwardly. Even if they weren't the ones who did it, they had to suppress any conspiracy involved.
Actually, he also felt it was unlikely that Chu Jianyuan was behind it. If Chu Jianyuan had this recording, he would definitely use it to extort benefits from their family. Releasing it wouldn't have much meaning for the Chu family.
However, it might not be Chu Jianyuan, but rather Chu Tianze, a young man who is impulsive and cares a lot about his reputation.
But that doesn't make sense either. If he had prepared in advance and recorded this audio, why didn't he bring it out when he was wronged, instead of waiting until now?
Chu Tianze's anger and helplessness at that time didn't seem fake.
So, someone else actually made the recording? Who is it? Who wants to target the Lu family?
Chu Jianyuan wanted to explain, but Lu Minghai remained unmoved, smiling kindly on the surface but without a trace of amusement in his eyes.
Chu Jianyuan broke out in a cold sweat, knowing that Chu Jianyuan was determined to pin the blame on the Chu family again.
He knew his own son well; Tianze's surprise when he heard the recording was genuine, and this matter had nothing to do with their family.
"Let's go." Chu Jianyuan pulled his son away.
He was a man of status, after all. He tolerated and backed down when his son was smeared, but now Lu Minghai wanted to do the same thing again. Chu Jianyuan was not one to be bullied.
In the blink of an eye, things took a new turn. Lu Sibai was overjoyed and sobbed as she told Qin Shen, "Shen, I've been deceived. I liked you so much, do you remember? When we were little..."
He reminisced about some fun things that happened when they were young, and said with deep affection, "We grew up together, how could I like someone else? Who could be better or more outstanding than you?"
Qin Shen was reminded of the past by his words and couldn't help but soften her heart towards him.
Yes, how could their relationship of so many years change so easily?
But what's in the audio...
Qin Shen's heart was torn; he wanted to believe him, yet he dared not.
After years of being together, their feelings for each other have become an integral part of each other, making it too difficult to separate them.
He couldn't bear to let go, yet he felt a sense of unease. Lu Sibai's inexplicable conversation was like a thorn stuck in his heart, constantly reminding him that the feelings he cherished were mixed with who knows how much falsehood.
In the end, the engagement banquet ended hastily, and few people paid attention to the two main characters anymore; everyone was watching the Lu family's table make a fool of themselves.
Close friends and relatives gathered together and whispered among themselves, their eyes filled with mockery as they looked over there.
In the past, among the second-generation elites in the circle, the two children of the Lu family were the most outstanding. The eldest son was capable and talented, while the second son was well-behaved and sensible, and had even secured the heir of the Qin family.
The two brothers have a good relationship and support each other. It's no problem for the Lu family to prosper for several more decades.
And what was the result?
Not long ago, rumors and gossip about Lu Ershao's love triangle circulated. Their family's explanation was that Chu family's young master admired Lu Sibai and impulsively offended the beauty.
This could be attributed to Lu Ershao's charm, but what's the reality?
It turns out that this wasn't the case at all. It was clearly this Second Young Master Lu who was restless and, even after having Young Master Qin, was still thinking about seducing other people.
Listening to what's said in the audio, it's just enough to fool a naive young man like Chu Tianze.
Lu Sibai has a good family background and good looks, and her boyfriend is also presentable. What is she after by hooking up with other men?
If he didn't like men and was forced to have an affair with a girl, others could understand. But the person he seduced was clearly a man.
So why?
Is it cheap?
The elders are rather reserved when they talk about it; they may express their disdain, but they won't say it directly.
Some of Qin Shen's or Chu Tianze's admirers, who had long disliked Lu Sibai, began to mutter curses under their breath: "Slut, always wanting more than she has, doesn't she know she'll burn her mouth?"
Lu Sibai's reputation in the industry was ruined instantly.
Or rather, it wasn't just his reputation within the industry; he was nationally known for live-streaming his cheating and seduction of men in front of millions of viewers.
Although the live stream was cut off, the recordings were played out in detail, and the names of all three main characters appeared, leaving no room for error.
In the dormitory, Bai Miaomiao turned off the live streaming app and said with lingering interest, "It's a pity the camera wasn't pointed at Lu Sibai's face. I only saw that he seemed to be crying, and he looked really good when he cried."
His last sentence was an exclamation, not a description.
Ruan Bei also felt particularly exhilarated. In his previous life, Lu Sibai was adept at navigating social situations and only crashed down after his death. Even then, the car might not have crashed.
Actually, he felt that those people weren't that blind at first. For example, Lu Siyuan fell in love with Lu Sibai and went through a very painful and complicated process.
Rationally, he knew very well that this was wrong. He was Lu Sibai's nominal brother, and Lu Sibai also had a boyfriend. He couldn't afford to cheat on her in any way.
But emotionally, he has difficulty controlling his feelings.
It was probably this suppressed feeling that made him feel guilty towards Lu Sibai, and he always gave in to him and protected him.
Ruan Bei appears at just the right moment, becoming the vicious male supporting character who "persecutes" Lu Sibai. Lu Siyuan is like a guardian knight, protecting his "pure" little prince, and turns his sword against Ruan Bei, the persecutor.
Later, Ruan Bei felt that he had become a pervert, or that he had gotten used to putting Lu Sibai first. Even if he caught Lu Sibai having an affair with another man at the wedding banquet, he would still make Ruan Bei take the blame.
Because he was used to abandoning Ruan Bei between his two younger brothers, it was a subconscious choice that he made without thinking.
But what about now?
Everything was just beginning, but everything is already over.
Lu Sibai's most important admirers, his official wife, his future biggest sugar daddy, and his fiancé, Qin Shen, can basically be declared to have crashed and burned.
Unless, as Bai Miaomiao said, Qin Shen is a cuckold who loves being cuckolded, then he might happily continue his relationship with Lu Sibai.
The loyal older brother, the king of backup options, and the guardian knight Lu Siyuan, hasn't even had a chance to fall for Lu Sibai yet, but he has already witnessed his brother kissing him, his brother being killed, his brother turning the tables, and his brother causing trouble.
Even if he favors Lu Sibai, he can't say that he's really innocent and naive. No one forced him to say those things, and right now there's no one like Ruan Bei to focus their attacks on him.
After all this, if he still falls for Lu Sibai, perhaps we can wish him success in becoming the eternal backup.
Then there's Chu Tianze. Although he didn't succeed in his previous life either, he was exiled abroad. In Lu Siyuan's romantic history, he wasn't even worth mentioning; at most, he was just a minor stumbling block.
But now this stumbling block stands firmly in the motherland, standing around Lu Sibai.
The Jincheng social circle is only so big. Unless Lu Sibai leaves on his own, he can't get around Chu Tianze. Chu Tianze's existence constantly reminds everyone of the absurd things Lu Sibai has done.
If Lu Sibai really leaves, that's fine too. Ruan Bei doesn't want to see him at all.
He even began to fantasize that if Lu Sibai really left Jincheng, perhaps the Lu family would never discover that the children had been switched at birth, and he could stay peacefully in his own home without having to get entangled with the Lu family.
"Stop laughing, come and look at this." Bai Miaomiao pulled Ruan Bei out of his beautiful fantasy, shoved the tablet in front of him, and grinned from ear to ear: "Netizens really know how to talk."
When Ruan Bei saw this, Weibo had exploded in just a short while, with three trending topics already on the list.
#ExtravagantWeddingAppointment#
#Wedding Accident: Private Audio Leaked#
#Lu Sibai cheated on his girlfriend#
Upon seeing the last one, Ruan Bei smiled. Lu Sibai had made a grand entrance with his full name on it, which made him incredibly arrogant.
Of these three trending topics, the latter two, especially the second one, were recorded by viewers who watched the live stream and uploaded to the audio, causing its ranking to soar to third place.
He refreshed the page, and a new one appeared.
#Lu Sibai, Qin Shen, Chu Tianze#
Ruan Bei almost burst out laughing. He clicked on it and saw that it was about their backgrounds and analyzing their love triangle.
He casually flipped through the pages and found all sorts of opinions. Some even offered seemingly plausible analyses, claiming that the person Lu Sibai mentioned liking in the audio recording was someone else entirely, suggesting it was actually a love quadrangle.
Ruan Bei showed the comment to Bai Miaomiao, who laughed so hard he slapped the table.
The one with audio is the most popular right now. Ruanbei opened it and took a look; the recording is quite clear.
The most upvoted comment below is: Everyone should learn from this; this is the textbook example of how a "green tea" woman flirts with men.
Lu Sibai was quickly given a nickname: the textbook of green tea.
"This..." Ruan Bei chuckled. Lu Sibai hasn't even shown his strongest skills yet, and you're all praising him so highly. Aren't you limiting his potential?
"I'm dying of laughter." Bai Miaomiao laughed so hard she almost fell over. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Qin Gu casually tapping away on his phone. She peeked over and saw Qin Gu liking each comment that was cursing Lu Sibai.
Bai Miaomiao suddenly remembered what she had forgotten and happily liked the comment that brought her joy.
Some of the comments were spot-on, hitting Bai Miaomiao right where it hurt, and he even sent her a red envelope.
Everyone browsed through the netizens' witty comments, filling the dormitory with a cheerful atmosphere.
Unfortunately, the good times didn't last long. As they scrolled through the page, the trending search ranking suddenly dropped, and the audio was also deleted.
"They've started pulling strings to remove trending topics and suppress news." The Qin and Lu families are working together, and maybe the Feng family is also supporting them. They're removing trending topics. To paraphrase Bai Miaomiao, if money can solve the problem, then it's not a problem.
Bai Miaomiao retorted angrily, "What? Can't you take a joke?"
Zeng Peng, a true internet addict, said nonchalantly, "It's okay, there are other places to go even if we don't have trending topics."
From the perspective of a mere bystander, this is arguably the biggest scandal in recent months. The combination of elements like a wealthy family, a male-male-male love triangle, a manipulative woman, and cheating could easily attract attention. All of these elements combined have kept netizens entertained for quite some time.
"Where else? Let me see." Bai Miaomiao urged Zeng Peng. He just wanted to see netizens mocking Lu Sibai in various ways; it was incredibly satisfying to watch.
Zeng Peng casually searched on Douban, Tieba, and forums, and sure enough, there were already popular posts. Ruan Beibai and Miao Miao happily gathered around to watch.
Some people were happy, while others were not.
Even after they separated, Lu Sibai couldn't persuade Qin Shen to give in. Although he no longer vehemently rejected Lu Sibai's advances, he remained cold and indifferent towards him, showing none of the gentleness and tolerance he once had.
The Lu family of four silently rode home. On the way, only Feng Zhihui asked a few questions, asking Lu Sibai what exactly happened.
She still can't understand why her youngest son really doesn't like Qin Shen.
How could Lu Sibai dare to tell the truth? His eyes were red and filled with tears. He avoided talking about Feng Zhihui's problem and cried, saying that he was wrong, that he had been deceived, that he liked Qin Shen, that he couldn't lose him, and begged his mother to help him.
Feng Zhihui was heartbroken by his crying. She hugged him and comforted him, promising to help him explain.
Lu Minghai and Lu Siyuan remained silent throughout. Lu Minghai had a gloomy face, seemingly lost in thought, and Lu Sibai didn't dare to bother him.
Lu Siyuan simply didn't know what to say. He was in a state of confusion, worrying about his brother's love life and also annoyed by the unknown mastermind behind it all.
After thinking it over, he realized that it probably wasn't Chu Tianze, but the enemy lurking in the shadows was even more alarming.
Upon arriving home, as soon as they entered and the door closed, the nanny eagerly reached out to take Feng Zhihui's coat and bag.
Lu Minghai slapped Lu Sibai hard across the face with his backhand.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com