Everyone was stunned, standing motionless like a row of statues.
This…
Actually, Granny Fu shouldn't have been so blunt. But since these people had gathered without inviting Chen Yang, she couldn't help but feel indignant on his behalf. Besides, it was the truth, so there was no harm in speaking plainly.
The silence lingered.
Keywords like "all these years," "all the funding," and "top-tier support" sent everyone's thoughts tumbling, and they struggled to process it. This was especially true for Xie An, Wu Peng, and the others.
"Granny Fu," Hu Tao was the first to speak, "are you saying our charity ho has been receiving donations from Chen Yang all this ti?"
"Donation isn't quite the right word. He has taken over completely, paying for all expenses himself. It's now completely separate from any governnt support," Granny Fu explained earnestly. "And our charity ho is just one of over a hundred that Chen Yang has taken over across the country."
Hu Tao: "..."
Everyone: "..."
"How is this possible?" Xie An's face, once filled with pride and arrogance, was now ashen, as if his parents had just died.
Wu Peng looked as if he'd been struck by lightning, his eyes bulging.
BANG.
Hu Tao walked over, slinging an arm around Wu Peng's shoulder while patting Xie An's. "President Xie, is it? I wonder how much a top figure from Chu City like yourself is planning to donate?"
"Can it compare to Brother Yang?"
Xie An: "..."
"Shall we do the math?" Hu Tao smiled playfully. "Let's say one charity ho costs two million a year. With over a hundred hos, that's three hundred million. It's been several years now, so we're talking about over two billion."
"So, President Xie, how much are you prepared to donate today?"
Xie An: "..."
"A tough question to answer? That's fair, it is your parents' money, after all! Let rephrase: What is your family's net worth?"
Xie An: "..."
The great President Xie, who had been catered to hand and foot all evening, was now utterly speechless. He had intended to donate 200,000, a figure that would have dwarfed everyone else's contributions, but now…
"Oh, right." Hu Tao turned to Wu Peng. "Old friend, if I rember correctly, you always had a knack for getting into trouble, and it was almost always Yang who bailed you out. You were the closest of brothers, yet here at a simple get-together, you've done nothing but humiliate him?"
"A mont ago, didn't you say he wasn't qualified to sit, that he should stand?"
"I, I…" Wu Peng's face turned beet red, consud by humiliation.
"Regretting it now? Huh?!" Hu Tao clapped Wu Peng's shoulder, unable to contain his excitent. "Actually, Brother Yang isn't just a philanthropist. He has another identity."
"I'm certain that over the past few years, you must have talked about him with your friends over drinks or als."
"Siyan, roll the clip!"
As he finished speaking, the main screen in the banquet hall flickered to life. Everyone instinctively looked up as a familiar face appeared on the screen.
Clad in Golden Armor and wielding the Blood-Dripping Spear, he pointed it diagonally toward the southern sky.
Resolute and iron-willed.
Like the War God incarnate!
"That… that's Chen Yang! He… he's the forr Supre Martial Commander?!"
"Oh my god! So it wasn't soone with the sa na—it really is him!"
A wave of shocked gasps and cries swept through the hall.
CRASH.
Xie An's hands trembled so badly that his wine glass slipped from his grasp and shattered on the floor. A cold sweat broke out across his back.
"This is fake, right?" Beside him, Wu Peng couldn't believe it—he refused to believe it—and questioned Hu Tao sharply.
Hu Tao just smiled. "You have a phone, don't you? Look it up yourself!"
Following his lead, not just Wu Peng but many others subconsciously pulled out their phones and went to the official website.
Wu Peng and everyone else froze.
It really was him!
The official website even provided an explanation. It stated that this photo was taken by chance during the first battle at the Qingyuan River, and it was the only front-facing photograph ever released of the Forr Chief Military Commander.
"Compared to Chen Yang, calling you a couple of dancing clowns would be a complint! You get a little bit of money and swagger around like you own the world, desperate for everyone to fawn over you?" Hu Tao glanced at Xie An. "Do you see how ridiculous you are now?"
Xie An: "..."
"Hmm?!" Hu Tao demanded.
"This… this is all a misunderstanding! I might have had a few too many drinks and got carried away. That's why I was spouting nonsense and acting so foolishly!" Xie An desperately tried to explain.
Nearby, Qin Han gripped the table, his pale face drenched in a waterfall of cold sweat.
Wu Peng's face was ashen. He seed drained of all life and spirit, standing there like an empty shell, as if he had lost the most important thing in his life.
If only… If only he were still like before, clinking glasses with Chen Yang, reminiscing about old tis. If only… But there are no 'if onlys' in this world. Does life ever give you a second chance?
"There's nothing wrong with having money, but you should at least learn how to be a decent human being first," Hu Tao said with a cold laugh.
Xie An nodded furiously. "Right, right! From now on, I'll turn over a new leaf and be a low-key person."
"Ptooey!" Hu Tao spat disdainfully, his icy gaze landing on Wu Peng. "You can be soone's dog, you can ignore your old brothers, but why did you have to humiliate him?"
"Using Chen Yang as a stepping stone to prove you're a good little dog?"
"I, I…" Wu Peng staggered back several steps before collapsing to the floor, his face flushed with sha, completely crestfallen.
Subconsciously, he glanced toward where Chen Yang had been sitting.
But the seat was empty.
Hu Tao shook his head to himself. The gathering's friendly nature had soured from the very beginning. With Chen Yang's personality, there was no way he would have stayed.
"That boy Chen Yang… he's actually…" It took a long mont for Granny Fu, standing not far away, to co to her senses. Her initial shock gave way to a look of imnse pride.
At this point, the party was effectively over. There was no reason to continue, and guests began to leave one by one.
Seeing his chance, Wu Peng tried to slip away, but Zhao Siyan blocked his path.
"Chen Yang asked to give this to you," Zhao Siyan said, holding out a check to Wu Peng. "I could tell he was very hurt, but he still wants to help you."
"He also wanted to tell you that his own ability is more than enough to support his pride, allowing him to stand tall and righteous in this world."
Wu Peng: "..."
So that's what it was. The thing he had cast aside all these years like a worn-out shoe was what Chen Yang considered a man's backbone. To not grovel, to not flatter. To not have to answer to anyone. To be filled with noble spirit, open and honest. So what if he had to walk through life alone? Before others, before myself, before heaven and earth, my conscience is clear.
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