The butler walked out of the ward and waved his hand at the bodyguards who were brutally beating him. Only then did they stop.
Lu Zelei was beaten until his face was bruised and swollen. If he hadn't known it was him, no one would have recognized him.
"Scram, or I'll beat you to death," the butler said coldly.
Although he was beaten, Lu Zelei sneered in his heart.
"Now everyone knows that Nangong Shanshan is pregnant with my child. Who do you think she can marry now? Which man would want Nangong Shanshan?"
"Her best option now is to marry me, so that she and the child in her womb will be legitimate."
"Despicable scoundrel!"
Slap! Slap!
The butler cursed and slapped Lu Zelei twice across the face.
Lu Zelei was beaten within an inch of his life, but so what?
"I am a household name, a celebrity with tens of millions of followers on Weibo. No matter how brave you are, you wouldn't dare to kill me. My fans are the kind who always stir up trouble. If this gets out of hand, none of you will have a good outcome."
His status as a public figure was Lu Zelei's greatest trump card.
It didn't matter if they looked down on him; no matter how displeased they were, they wouldn't dare to kill him.
"I will publicly state on Weibo that I will take responsibility for Nangong Shanshan, and I will attribute all the blame to myself. I will do my best to restore Shanshan's reputation. Please relay this to her."
Lu Zelei knew how to strike a balance between punishment and reward.
Lu Zelei, dragging his battered body, went to find a doctor. If he didn't get treatment, he might die here.
The butler was furious, but there was nothing he could do about Lu Zelei.
As he said, only by stepping forward and taking all the blame could Nangong Shanshan's reputation be salvaged.
This was what she cared about the most. If her reputation was ruined, she might fall into despair, which the butler was unwilling to see.
One day later, Lu Zelei posted a long essay on Weibo.
...
"It's All My Fault."
I first met Nangong Shanshan at a luxury store, and we got acquainted. Later, at a party, Shanshan got drunk and cried heartbrokenly. To comfort her and talk her through it, I also got drunk with her. We then had a wild night and never contacted each other again.
Until before Shanshan's wedding, I accidentally heard from someone else that Shanshan was feeling nauseous and vomiting. Later, I confirmed that Shanshan was indeed pregnant, which is why I rushed to the wedding venue to stop it.
Shanshan didn't know she was pregnant at the time. Please don't blame her. She is just a pregnant woman now and cannot bear this.
I, Lu Zelei, dare to take responsibility and will bear the responsibility of a man. I accept all criticism and accusations, and I ask that you target only one person.
Finally, I apologize to those who have been hurt in this incident, and I apologize for the negative impact caused. I am sorry.
...
Lu Zelei was the first party involved to speak out on the matter.
This long essay quickly trended, and the comment section exploded.
"Nangong Shanshan cheated before marriage and is marrying with a baby. Is this the decline of morality or the distortion of human nature?"
"President Ye also publicly broke off the engagement at the time. This is six of one, half a dozen of the other. He wasn't genuinely marrying anyway."
"Could it be that Nangong Shanshan was sad because President Ye didn't like her, so she got drunk and Lu Zelei took advantage of the opportunity?"
"Nonsense! Our brother is handsome. How could he not be worthy of Miss Nangong? I think Miss Nangong herself had relationship troubles and seduced our brother to comfort her."
"Brother has taken responsibility like a man. What more do you want?"
"Idols have their own lives. He dares to take responsibility, and we support our brother and protect him. Bad people, go away! Go away! Go away!"
"The child is innocent. I hope no innocent life is harmed because of the adults' mistakes. Praying."
...
Surprisingly, there were quite a number of people supporting Lu Zelei in the comment section, though most of them were Lu Zelei's fans.
As everyone knows, idol fan clubs are diverse. Some idol fans are more extreme, while others are rational.
...
Xianfu Group.
Tang Xiaomin was busy preparing for the company's IPO every day, so she couldn't attend to Tang's business.
An IPO was a major event, and she couldn't afford to be distracted at this time.
After a tiring day, when she returned home for dinner, she saw Tang Yu cooking in the kitchen, wearing an apron.
The Tang family was still wealthy. Even if they didn't work, they could live a life of comfort and security for the rest of their lives with careful spending.
Tang Yu had recovered and occasionally went to the hospital for cosmetic surgery. With the current level of cosmetic surgery, he would eventually regain eighty to ninety percent of his former appearance.
Seeing Tang Yu so leisurely cooking and enjoying life, Tang Xiaomin felt unbalanced.
"You're off work. Wait for me; dinner will be ready soon."
Tang Yu said, and he successively brought ten dishes to the table. The portions were not large, just enough for three people.
To be honest, Tang Yu had a talent for cooking, and his dishes looked quite presentable.
Halfway through the meal, Tang Xiaomin suddenly said.
"Are you getting used to living in this house?"
Zhang Meiyu said, "Although this house is not as big as our previous villa, it's cozy and nice."
They were living there for free, so of course they would say it was good.
Tang Xiaomin looked at Tang Yu and said, "Even close relatives need to settle their accounts. It's not right for you to live here for free all the time."
Zhang Meiyu's expression immediately became serious. Tang Xiaomin had a peculiar personality, and she couldn't guess what she was thinking.
"Xiaomin, how about..."
"It has nothing to do with you. I'm talking to Tang Yu."
Tang Yu's expression remained normal. Ever since he moved in, he knew that Tang Xiaomin would eventually say this to him.
She could be generous sometimes and petty at other times.
Tang Yu smiled calmly.
"I cook for you. Doesn't that offset my rent?"
"No," Tang Xiaomin said coldly.
Tang Yu knew that this sister of his was not to be trifled with. The best approach was to not provoke her.
Tang Yu thought for a moment.
"If you think cooking isn't enough to cover it, then I'll pay you some money. Is that okay?"
"Hmph."
Tang Xiaomin wasn't stupid. What good would it do if he paid her a thousand yuan a month at market price?
To deal with someone like this, she had to use Yan Jue's method.
Make him go out and work, toil like a beast of burden, and earn money desperately to give her the life she wanted.
After Xianfu Group's IPO, she would only become busier, and she would also have to attend university, making her even busier.
Right now, there was a good place for Tang Yu to dedicate himself.
Free labor was not to be wasted.
A cunning glint flashed in Tang Xiaomin's eyes.
"It's too formal to give money. How about this, you come and help me manage Tang's, and I'll make you the general manager. In return, I'll let you live here, and I'll provide food and lodging. What do you say?"