The Outsiders 07

Fang Yunhui's temper grew increasingly volatile. Even Fang Nian had been scolded by him a few times. She felt quite wronged; her eldest brother had never been like this before.

When Fang Yunyi's friends found out he was out of money, they all distanced themselves from him. The two lackeys who used to follow him around now relentlessly mocked and ridiculed him. Unable to take it anymore, Fang Yunyi ended up getting into a physical altercation with them. Not only did he get the worst of the fight, but he was also expelled from school due to the severity of the incident.

Only Fang Yunyao remained the same as before, holed up at home playing video games. He didn't ask for much—just enough money to make in-game purchases. So, every now and then, he would steal a little from Zhang Enyu, living a rather comfortable life.

Meanwhile, Zhang Enyu spent her days constantly on the phone, talking to who knows whom. Only Fang Nian stayed by her side at all times; the two of them acted as if they shared some secret.

"A friend? Asking to borrow money from you?" Fang Zhiyi looked at Fang Yuran, who stood before him looking somewhat conflicted.

"Yes, a very good friend. I didn't like to talk much before and had very few friends, but she was one of them." Fang Yuran felt a bit nervous; it was her first time talking to Fang Zhiyi about her friends.

"I don't quite understand." Fang Zhiyi set down his teacup.

"She said it's an emergency and that she'll pay me back next month, but..." Fang Yuran glanced at Fang Zhiyi. "I know you're in debt right now, Dad. I wanted to save my salary to help you pay it off."

Fang Zhiyi started laughing. "Pay off my debt?" He looked over at Wu Tiancheng, who was busy working nearby. "Lao Wu, how much money do I owe you?"

Wu Tiancheng looked up and gave him a cheerful grin. "Saying that is basically an insult to me, isn't it, Brother Fang?"

Fang Zhiyi waved his hand dismissively, while Fang Yuran looked at her father in bewilderment.

"You don't need to pay off my debt for me, and I don't need to pay it off either. That guy over there used to be living on the streets. It was your... well, I gave him a meal. Later, I found out his old mother was seriously ill, so I hid it from your mother—bah, your ex-mother—and gave him a sum of money. Although the old lady still passed away, she went peacefully. Do you really think he would ask me for money?" Fang Zhiyi stood up and took a few steps with his hands behind his back. "You might not talk much, but you aren't stupid. There's no way you couldn't tell that I was setting a trap for those people."

Hearing this, all the clues finally connected in Fang Yuran's mind. No wonder her father had done all that!

She looked at Fang Zhiyi with a sense of admiration. In the past, she only thought her father worked very hard, but she had never realized he possessed such cunning.

"Back to the topic at hand. Borrowing money from you. There are plenty of loan apps on phones nowadays, and banks offer micro-loans too. Why would she come to you?"

"Because she... she trusts me?"

"Bullshit. It's because she has nowhere else left to borrow from. She borrowed from those phone apps and couldn't pay them back, ruining her credit. None of her relatives or friends are willing to lend her a dime, which is why she finally came to you!" Fang Zhiyi sighed. "It's not that your dad likes to assume the worst in people, but there's at least an eighty percent chance that this is exactly what happened."

Seeing Fang Yuran's conflicted expression, Fang Zhiyi patted her on the head. "If you don't believe me, you can lend it to her and see for yourself. Just treat it as buying something."

"Buying something?"

"Right. Spending money to buy a lesson, spending money to see someone's true colors." Fang Zhiyi gazed off into the distance. That was all he could say; he couldn't exactly chew it up and spoon-feed it to her, could he? That would be too gross.

Fortunately, Fang Yuran did not disappoint him. Faced with her friend's request, Fang Yuran suggested that the friend borrow from the bank instead, offering to pay the interest for her so she wouldn't have to worry about it. As a result, the friend flew into a rage out of humiliation and immediately declared that she was cutting off all ties with her.

Later, Fang Yuran found out that this friend had gotten involved in gambling and had even lost her parents' house.

She was instantly filled with immense admiration for Fang Zhiyi. Every day, aside from working, she spent all her time by his side, chatting with him.

Sun Lei looked at Zhang Enyu, who was moving into his house with her entire family in tow, and was momentarily stunned.

"What... what are you doing? Didn't we agree to wait a while before doing anything?" he asked, rushing over to Zhang Enyu in a panic.

Zhang Enyu looked at him, her eyes gradually turning red. "We're about to run out of food, and you're still telling us to wait! Is there someone else?"

"How could there be!"

Zhang Enyu's display of fragile femininity left the children behind her utterly dumbfounded. What shocked them even more was the intimate interaction between Zhang Enyu and Sun Lei.

"Mom, what are you doing..." Fang Minghui suddenly felt a surge of anger. Although he looked down on his own father, he absolutely wouldn't allow another man to get handsy with his mother.

"Screw you!" Fang Yunyi cursed, charging forward directly and kicking Sun Lei to the ground.

Just as the others were about to unleash their fury, Fang Nian desperately held back her eldest brother, and Zhang Enyu cried out in a panic, "He is your father! He is!"

These words left all three sons frozen in shock.

They stared at Zhang Enyu in disbelief. "Mom, stop joking around."

At this point, Zhang Enyu threw caution to the wind. "I'm not joking! He is my boyfriend. Back then, if your grandmother hadn't been after Fang Zhiyi's bride price, I never would have married him!"

"You... you guys..." Fang Yunhui felt as if his entire world had shattered. He stood there blankly, unable to react for a long time.

When he saw Fang Nian familiarly pour herself a glass of water and sit down to drink it as if nothing had happened, he suddenly realized the truth. "She knew all along, didn't she?!"

Fang Nian rolled her eyes at him. "Of course I knew. My dad even told me to go enjoy a few days of luxury, but it turns out that dad of yours let you guys drive him into bankruptcy."

Fang Yunyi also looked at her in astonishment. "Mom, is she... is she your daughter too?"

Zhang Enyu shook her head. "No, but she is your father's daughter, which makes her my daughter."

Fang Yunyi was too shocked to speak. "Does that mean... Fang Yuran is our actual biological sister?"

Zhang Enyu looked displeased. "That little bitch is Fang Zhiyi's spawn! Niannian is your sister! You silly boy!" After saying that, she hugged Sun Lei affectionately. "Today, our family is finally reunited."

Sun Lei looked somewhat reluctant, but he still put on the posture of a father. "Come in and sit down, everyone, come in." His current house and car were all obtained by Zhang Enyu squeezing money out of Fang Zhiyi, a fact he was perfectly aware of.

Fang Yunyao had the highest tolerance for the situation. He didn't care who his father was, as long as he had money to make in-game purchases.

"So that paternity test was..." Fang Yunhui muttered.

Fang Nian rolled her eyes at him again. "Fake. You really are an idiot."

Sun Lei's house became lively. Although reluctant, Sun Lei had no way to shirk his responsibilities; after all, these three really were his sons. Under Zhang Enyu's urging, he gritted his teeth and officially registered his marriage with her.

They even threw a wedding banquet for the occasion. Zhang Enyu asked Fang Yunhui to deliver an invitation to Fang Zhiyi, but he couldn't even get to see him. She had wanted to show off and disgust Fang Zhiyi, only to discover that everyone in their family had been blocked by Fang Zhiyi on their phones and messaging apps. This realization made her cough uncontrollably out of sheer anger.