The Vampire Family Members Who Came to Claim Kinship 09

However, Zhang Daming never expected that a casual word of praise would give Fang Zhizu a sense of familiarity he hadn't felt in a long time. The validation from his biological father made him swell with pride, and he began to commit even more outrageous acts.

One day he was stealing chickens, the next he was pilfering vegetables. If anyone dared to scold him, he would set their haystack on fire. Trouble soon came knocking at their door, one incident after another. Even as unreasonable as the Zhang couple was, they didn't dare offend so many people at once.

Consequently, they were forced to pay compensation and gave Fang Zhizu another thrashing. They didn't beat him because he caused trouble, but because his trouble-making cost the family money.

"My drinking money and gambling stakes were all burned away by your fire!" If Zhang Daming had felt some reservations last time, he was truly furious now. Without wine to drink or cards to play, he would have beaten his own father, let alone his son!

Zhang Xiong cheered from the sidelines, while only Fang Zhiyi looked at Fang Zhizu and shook his head.

As expected, the beaten Fang Zhizu only stayed quiet for a single day. The following day, he went out and found the family who had led the group demanding compensation. He gave their child a brutal beating; if the adults hadn't discovered it early, he might have even kidnapped the child to sell him off.

This time, the commotion was even larger. A crowd surrounded the Zhang house, demanding justice.

Zhang Daming was livid, and Wang Ling paced in circles with anxiety. Only the culprit himself remained indifferent, a look of vengeful pleasure plastered across his face.

The Zhang family had no more money for compensation. Faced with the threat of a police report, Wang Ling—terrified that her previous assault on Fang Zhiyi’s superior would be uncovered—quickly turned to Fang Zhiyi and begged him to find a solution.

Fang Zhiyi was surprisingly generous, directly emptying his pockets of several hundred yuan. In the end, the Zhang family apologized and paid up, even handing over all the chickens they were raising to settle the matter.

After this incident, the Zhang family's reputation hit rock bottom, though it hadn't been particularly good to begin with.

The culprit, Fang Zhizu, once again faced the wrath of his biological parents. He remained tight-lipped, his eyes filled with a madness so intense that even Fang Zhiyi had to take a proper look at him.

"Beat him to death! Beat this freeloader to death!" Zhang Xiong shouted, casting a sideways glance at Fang Zhiyi as he spoke. In his eyes, both of these younger brothers were nothing but freeloaders.

"The Zhang family bloodline is truly... something else," Little Hei remarked.

Peace only lasted for three days.

Having mostly recovered, Fang Zhizu walked over to the dining table with a gloomy expression. He sat down and began gnawing on a steamed bun like a wild beast tearing at its prey.

Zhang Daming hadn't gotten out of bed yet. Wang Ling frowned and said, "From today on, you're going to work. The family lost so much money because of you! Do you hear me?"

Fang Zhizu didn't answer.

Zhang Xiong had been in a foul mood lately. Seeing this attitude, his temper flared, and he delivered a sharp kick. "She's talking to you! Are you deaf?"

Fang Zhiyi silently shifted his position. He had already glimpsed something tucked into Fang Zhizu's waistband.

Sure enough, Fang Zhizu suddenly pulled a wood-chopping knife from his waist and swung it violently at Zhang Xiong.

Zhang Xiong clearly hadn't expected the brat to actually strike him and didn't even try to dodge. It wasn't until a piercing pain surged through him that he collapsed with a blood-curdling scream. Fang Zhizu seemed equally stunned by what he had done. Watching the blood soak through Zhang Xiong’s clothes, the madness in his eyes faded, replaced by a wave of terror. His hand went limp, and the knife clattered to the floor.

"You... you brought this on yourself!" After all, he was only seventeen or eighteen. Panic seized him, and he turned and bolted.

Wang Ling wailed, Zhang Daming clutched his chest in shock, and Zhang Xiong twitched on the ground. Fang Zhiyi merely watched with cold eyes.

As it turned out, the original owner of this body was the only decent person in this entire family—and even then, he had been a fool for it.

Zhang Xiong was rushed to the town hospital. The Zhang couple doted on this son and even brought out the money they had stashed away for a rainy day. Meanwhile, some villagers had secretly called the police. When the Zhangs saw the officers, they panicked, but they breathed a sigh of relief when they realized the police were only there to inquire about the assault.

"It was that little bastard! He tried to hack me and his father yesterday, and today he actually hacked his brother!" Wang Ling cried, conveniently omitting any mention of their own abuse of Fang Zhizu.

After gathering the facts, the police left.

Zhang Xiong’s life was saved. The blade had struck his shoulder; while he survived, that hand would never be able to lift heavy objects again. The doctor suggested he stay in the hospital, but Zhang Daming adamantly refused. They simply didn't have that much money.

Looking miserable, Zhang Daming and Wang Ling hauled Zhang Xiong back home, only to find Fang Zhiyi leisurely soaking up the sun.

Zhang Daming's face darkened, and Wang Ling was also displeased. "I said, can't you find something useful to do?"

Fang Zhiyi turned his head and pointed at his leg. "I can barely walk. What do you expect me to do?"

"You... I was still working when I was pregnant with you!" Wang Ling snapped. Ever since these two sons had been brought back, the house hadn't known a moment of peace. she had a lot of pent-up anger and nowhere to vent it.

Fang Zhiyi replied, "Then I'll... go look for a job. After all, I have to support you all, don't I?" He struggled to his feet and grabbed a nearby crutch.

Hearing this, Wang Ling’s expression softened slightly. It made sense; her eldest son's hand was now crippled, which meant finding him a wife would be even more expensive. They would have to rely on Fang Zhiyi.

Zhang Daming snorted and suddenly reached out his hand. "Give me some money. I'm going to play a few rounds." He hadn't gambled much lately, and seeing people playing cards at the hospital had triggered his addiction.

"Money, money, money! Where do you think it all comes from?" Wang Ling said angrily. "Would it kill you to gamble a little less?"

Zhang Daming didn't care. He had seen that Wang Ling had some change left after paying for Zhang Xiong, so he reached out to snatch it. The two of them began to scuffle, completely ignoring Zhang Xiong, who had been tossed aside.

In the end, Zhang Daming got the money and left, cursing under his breath. Wang Ling spat a string of curses at his ancestors before realizing her son was still sitting on the ground. She hurried to help him up, then turned and saw Fang Zhiyi still standing there, seemingly lost in thought. She couldn't help but ask, "Why haven't you left yet?"

Fang Zhiyi shook his head. "I need a little money, don't I?"

"Money?" Wang Ling was stunned.

"Yes, I need to go to town to find a job, don't I?" Fang Zhiyi sat back down. "Otherwise, I can only sit here and wait for my leg to heal."

Wang Ling's face turned sour, but she gritted her teeth and went into the house. After rummaging around for a long time, she came out and handed Fang Zhiyi two crumpled ten-yuan bills.

Fang Zhiyi took them with a slight curl of his lip and hobbled away on his crutch.

As soon as he was out of their sight, however, he tossed the crutch aside, dusted off his pants, and began enjoying his day.

In town, he saw a wanted poster pasted on a utility pole. He hadn't expected the local police to be so efficient; his "dear" younger brother was already a wanted fugitive.

"A pity there's no reward money..." Fang Zhiyi shook his head.

The Zhang family never expected that when Fang Zhiyi returned, he still wouldn't have found a job. Having recovered somewhat, Zhang Xiong began to mock him.

"What's the use of being a college student? What's the use of growing up in the city? We're treating him like a god, but I see he's exactly the same as that brother of his!"