52: Chapter 52 The bathtub is bigger than the dorm room, is this what you call a wealthy family?

The master bedroom door closed, and the world went completely silent.

Su Muyang stood at the bathroom door; the floor tiles beneath his feet were as warm as human body temperature.

This wasn't a bathroom; it was clearly a swimming pool.

The circular massage bathtub in the center was large enough to fit all four people from his dormitory plus a mahjong table.

Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the artificial lake at Dragon Bay shimmered, and the distant city lights looked like a glowing belt, framed by this window into a painting.

In the past, when he delivered food and passed by these luxury residential areas, he would always wonder: "Do the people living here even smell better when they poop than everyone else?"

Now he knew.

It really did smell better.

"Young Master, the water temperature is kept constant at 42 degrees, and sleep-aid essential oils have been added."

The old butler in a tuxedo stood at the door, bowing slightly, not daring to enter. "Clothes have been prepared in the walk-in closet; you can change into them once you've finished washing. If you need anything, press the bell on the wall."

Su Muyang nodded without speaking.

Once the person had left, he took off his tattered clothes, stained with blood and dust, and tossed them into the trash can in the corner.

He had bought this T-shirt during his freshman year from Pinduoduo with free shipping for 19.9 yuan. He had worn it for three years, and the neckline was so loose it could slide off his shoulder. He used to be reluctant to throw it away, thinking it was still wearable.

Now, looking at that pile of rags, he only felt it was an eyesore.

Su Muyang stepped into the bathtub.

The warm water instantly enveloped his entire body, and every pore relaxed in this warmth. The knife wound on his waist was covered with a waterproof bandage, but it still throbbed with a dull pain.

He leaned against the edge of the bathtub, looking at the massive crystal chandelier on the ceiling.

It was so bright.

It was so bright it made him want to cry.

Su Muyang raised his hand and looked at his palm. These hands had moved bricks, delivered food, and handed out flyers, and just a few hours ago, they had broken the nose of a rich second-generation heir.

He used to believe that "hard work can change destiny" and "only by enduring the bitterness of hardships can one rise above others."

To buy Qian Li a lipstick that cost a few hundred yuan, he could eat steamed buns and salted vegetables for a month straight. To get that scholarship of a few thousand yuan, he could stay up all night studying until his nose bled.

And the result?

The result was that Wang Hao used nothing more than a handbag to shatter his three years of effort. The result was that he was threatened with a beer bottle to his head at a food stall and nearly lost his life.

"Heh."

Su Muyang scooped up a handful of water and splashed it hard onto his face.

Water droplets slid down his cheeks and into his mouth; it tasted a bit salty.

All that talk about diligence leading to wealth, all that talk about sincerity being exchanged for sincerity. In this bathtub, he suddenly realized the truth.

Hard work is just toxic chicken soup used to brainwash the poor. In this world, money is the greatest shortcut and the only highway leading to dignity.

If he weren't Chen Fan's son tonight, and hadn't left the police station in a rolls-royce, he would currently be squatting on the cold concrete floor of a detention center, waiting to be destroyed by the Wang family.

"Dad is right."

Su Muyang closed his eyes, rested his head on the soft pillow, and muttered to himself.

"Since I have grasped this knife, I cannot let go."

At the same time, on the other side of Jiangcheng, at the Wang family villa.

The atmosphere here was even more oppressive than a funeral home.

The living room was in shambles, with broken porcelain shards all over the floor; that was a set of Ming Dynasty tea ware that Wang Tiansheng had just smashed.

"It hit the limit down? It hit the limit down again?!"

Wang Tiansheng gripped the phone, his voice cracking as he roared, "What is the PR department doing? How could those scandals be flying everywhere? Get the trending topics removed! Spend money to remove them!"

On the other end of the line, the secretary's voice was filled with tears: "Mr. Wang, we can't remove them... The other party spent too much money, and also... also the bank just called and said they want to withdraw the loan, demanding we pay back the 300 million yuan in short-term loans before tomorrow..."

"300 million?!"

Wang Tiansheng's vision went black, and he nearly collapsed onto the sofa.

Tiansheng Group looked impressive, but in reality, its capital chain had long been stretched as thin as a strand of hair. If these 300 million were withdrawn, that would be the final boulder to crush the camel.

"Who is it... who on earth is targeting me?!"

Wang Tiansheng slumped on the sofa, his hands shaking so hard he couldn't hold his cigarette.

Just then, the main door was pushed open.

Wang Hao walked in with a thick bandage wrapped around his head, his face bruised black and blue, looking like a pig's head. Qian Li followed behind him, cowering and shrinking, still clutching that Chanel bag in her hand.

"Dad! You have to stand up for me!"

Wang Hao started wailing as soon as he entered, tears and snot streaming down his face. "That Su Muyang is too ruthless! Look at what he did to me! I want to kill him! I want to find people to cripple him!"

It would have been better if he hadn't spoken; as soon as he did, Wang Tiansheng's wicked anger instantly found an outlet.

"Cripple him?"

Wang Tiansheng stood up abruptly, grabbed the ashtray from the coffee table, and smashed it hard at Wang Hao's feet.

Bang!

Glass shards flew, causing Qian Li to scream.

"You good-for-nothing brat! Do you have any idea who you've provoked?!" Wang Tiansheng rushed over and slapped Wang Hao across his already swollen face.

Slap!

This slap used all his strength; Wang Hao was completely stunned, forgetting even to cry out in pain.

"Dad... why are you hitting me? He's the one who hit me!"

"Hit you? I want to kill you right now!"

Wang Tiansheng was shaking with rage, pointing at Wang Hao's nose as he cursed, "Director Bai just called me! Do you know what he said? He told me to pray for my own luck! He said Su Muyang's file has been encrypted by the higher-ups, and even he cannot access it!"

"And! That new boss of Huihuang Group, that guy surnamed Chen, just spoke up, wanting our Wang family to vanish from Jiangcheng!"

Wang Hao covered his face, his eyes dull: "Huihuang Group... Chen Fan? Isn't he just a street vendor? Su Muyang is just a poor student..."

"A poor student?"

Wang Tiansheng laughed miserably and sat down on the floor, looking like he had aged ten years in an instant.

"That was him experiencing life! That was a real dragon swimming in shallow waters! You blind dog, you actually dared to step on a dragon's tail?!"

He grabbed his phone and looked at the stock price on the screen that was still plunging; every second, half a lifetime of his hard work was evaporating.

It was over.

Completely over.

Unless...

Wang Tiansheng looked up abruptly, a flash of madness in his eyes.

It was the look of a drowning person seeing a straw.

"Let's go!"

Wang Tiansheng climbed up, grabbed Wang Hao by the collar, and dragged him outside.

"Dad! Where are we going? My head hurts..." Wang Hao struggled desperately.

"To Longwan No. 1!"

Wang Tiansheng gritted his teeth, his eyes bloodshot. "Go and kneel before Young Master Su! Even if you have to kowtow until you bleed, as long as he is willing to lift a finger, our family can still be saved!"

"I'm not going! Why should I kneel to him..."

"You're not going?" Wang Tiansheng stopped, pulled a belt from his waist, his eyes fierce enough to eat a person. "If you don't go, I'll break your legs right now and drag you there even if I have to!"

Qian Li stood in the corner, watching this pair of arrogant father and son, who were usually so full of themselves, now tearing at each other like stray dogs, trembling with fear.

She remembered the cold look in Su Muyang's eyes in the police car.

The boy who once ran across half the city to buy her breakfast, the ex-boyfriend she had despised for being poor and shabby. Now, he had become a god who could wipe out the entire Wang family with just a flick of his finger.

She regretted it.

She regretted it so much her intestines turned green.

If they hadn't broken up back then... If she hadn't humiliated him just now... wouldn't she be the mistress sitting in that big house at Longwan No. 1 right now?

Unfortunately, there are no "ifs" in this world. There is only the cold reality, like a slap, striking everyone hard in the face.

Wang Tiansheng dragged the wailing Wang Hao out the door, and the black Mercedes-Benz raced through the night, heading straight for the hilltop manor that symbolized power and wealth.

What he didn't know was that in that manor, the father and son had already prepared a "big gift" for him. A gift that would ensure he could never turn his life around.