Chapter 805: The Two Stepson Brothers Fight

The eldest Nie, having been pointed out by his stepmother, gritted his teeth.

Of course, he didn’t think his son was speaking nonsense.

He hated Gu Baishuang, hated this stepmother who bore a son.

If it weren’t for the stepmother giving him an extra brother, the family inheritance wouldn’t have been divided further.

As the eldest son of the Nie Family, he believed the majority of the family inheritance was his, and a full brother from the same mother could get a share, but Nie Xiaofeng shouldn’t have any part at all.

When Nie Xiaofeng secretly joined the military behind the family’s back, he was overjoyed even in his dreams.

When war broke out at the border, he hoped more than anyone for Nie Xiaofeng to die in battle.

But Nie Xiaofeng didn’t die. Instead, he earned merits and became the youngest deputy general in Dasheng.

In private, he lamented to Mrs. Zhang that it would have been better if Xiaofeng had died. Without a wife or children, as the eldest grandson Yanbrother could inherit Nie Xiaofeng’s lineage, all of Nie Xiaofeng’s accomplishments would automatically go to Yanbrother.

His private lament turned into something Mrs. Zhang foolishly taught their son.

Now that it all came to light, he felt humiliated as well.

"Mother, how could I think like that? Saying it this way is like putting a curse on my heart," the eldest Nie approached Gu Baishuang, kneeling with a thud, and said, "When we were in our twenties, it was you, Mother, who took care of us, made sure my brother and I grew up, found us wives, and helped look after the family. How could I be so heartless as to curse you and Xiaofeng?"

"Three years ago, I did indeed think about taking over the business from your hands, but it wasn’t to seize your shop. I was concerned about you working hard outside, and I wanted you to enjoy a life of comfort at home. Yet, it led to such a big misunderstanding, showing my unfilialness."

Gu Baishuang looked at the eldest Nie with a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.

The tearful display would indeed look like a stepmother oppressing a stepson to those unaware of the situation.

The eldest Nie was the most sinister, always stirring things up from the shadows, but this time, being dragged into the light, he had no choice but to put on an act.

It was because Gu Baishuang held the economic lifeline of the whole family in her grip. Had she still been the helpless stepmother she used to be, the stepsons would have devoured her whole.

Seeing that Gu Baishuang was ignoring him, the eldest Nie turned around, gritting his teeth, and slapped Mrs. Zhang to the ground, cursing angrily, "Wretch, you’ve spoiled a good child. Concerned about the third brother joining the military, which was initially well-intentioned, you always think of the worst angles, teaching the child to learn the same."

Yet he didn’t even mention the words Yanbrother said about Gu Baishuang not being part of the Nie Family and wanting to drive her out.

Mrs. Zhang, after being hit, spat a mouthful of blood.

The second daughter-in-law, Mrs. Sun, displayed a slight smirk, quickly retracted it, and said with schadenfreude, "Elder sister-in-law, you always speak so recklessly. Even if you don’t covet the third brother’s inheritance, saying it so much made Yanbrother believe it."

Mrs. Zhang glared at Mrs. Sun and retaliated, "Do your words sound any better? Saying the third brother would sooner or later fall on the battlefield, and the second house’s two sons would be adopted to the third brother to inherit the General Mansion. Isn’t that what you said?"

Mrs. Sun deeply regretted adding fuel to the fire, furiously retorted, "Elder sister-in-law, since Yanbrother exposed you, don’t try to drag me down."

Then she hastily explained to Nie Xiaofeng, "Third brother, don’t listen to the nonsense of elder sister-in-law. Shenge and Xiangge always follow behind Yanbrother’s heels, learning his mischief. Just the other day, I gave them a beating, and just now I don’t know what nonsense they learned from following Yanbrother around again."

Mrs. Sun attributed the claim that the General Mansion belonged to her two sons to having learned from Yanbrother.

Mrs. Zhang was driven mad.

Being beaten by her mother-in-law and husband, mocked by her sister-in-law, she’d long lost her sanity.

Mrs. Sun’s move was like dancing on her landmine. Mrs. Zhang got up, grabbed Mrs. Sun by the hair, and yanked.

Mrs. Sun let out a howl but hadn’t reacted before a lock of her hair was pulled out by Mrs. Zhang.

"Bitch, you’ve caused trouble countless times with your elder sister-in-law status, and I’ve ignored you. But coming to Shengjing, you dare step on my head." Mrs. Sun grabbed back at Mrs. Zhang.

The two fell into a brawl.

Mrs. Sun was at a disadvantage, howling like a slaughtered pig.

The second Nie, seeing his own wife subdued and slapped by the elder sister-in-law, went to shove Mrs. Zhang.

Mrs. Zhang staggered, her face showing disbelief, then she scolded the eldest Nie, "You hit me—fine, you’re my husband, I’ll accept it. But what is he? Are you just going to watch him hit your wife? He’s not bullying me; he’s simply bullying you."

The eldest Nie became incensed by Mrs. Zhang’s words and went to punch the second Nie twice.

The second Nie was not to be outdone and began to fight back.

The two families already had tensions.

The second Nie was usually dissatisfied with Nie Mingyuan’s favoritism; when the three went out for business, despite his substantial contribution, Nie Mingyuan would suppress him, fearing he’d overshadow the eldest, even explicitly and implicitly indicating the future major family business would go to the eldest.

Nie Mingyuan was dissatisfied with the second always striving to be first, intentionally showing his competence before Nie Mingyuan. In the eldest Nie’s mind, the second should clearly assist him, yet he always managed to overtake him.

Their conflict erupted into a fierce fight at this moment.

Mrs. Zhang and Mrs. Sun saw their husbands brawling and started a shouting match.

Nie Mingyuan, who had been playing dead, turned red with anger.

"Scoundrels, do you want to anger me to death?"

"Everyone stop it."

Nie Mingyuan slammed the table repeatedly.

In the end, it was Nie Xiaofeng who forcibly separated the two brothers with one hand each.

Nie Mingyuan fell into the chair, panting heavily, scolding, "How did I teach you since you were young? Brothers united, their strength cuts through gold, yet here you are fighting each other."

If it weren’t for tonight, he wouldn’t have known both sons felt wronged by each other and hinted that their father was biased.

How wronged he was, exhausting himself for them, even calculating Gu Baishuang, willing to sacrifice his youngest son.

Was this how his two sons repaid him?

Gu Baishuang watched everything coldly.

The two sons always appeared harmonious in front of Nie Mingyuan, making him truly believe the interests of father and sons were unbreakable.

Previously, when the two stepsons bullied Gu Baishuang and Nie Xiaofeng, Nie Mingyuan was aware of their intentions but never stopped them.

Now, it was his turn to experience his sons’ swords turned on each other.

"Father, you always favor the second brother."

"Father, you always favor the eldest brother."

The eldest and second Nie brothers expressed their dissatisfaction with Nie Mingyuan in unison.

"You scoundrels."

Nie Mingyuan, in a fit of rage, threw the teacup and teapot at his two sons.

It was the first time Nie Mingyuan lost his temper so severely with his sons.

The two sons, intimidated, soon cried and apologized.

Nie Mingyuan collapsed into his chair, glanced at Gu Baishuang. Before she came, his three sons and two daughters-in-law surrounded him, chatting and drinking tea, a picture of warmth.

Everything was shattered upon Gu Baishuang’s arrival.

"Brought chaos to the household, are you satisfied now?"

After the sons and daughters-in-law were dismissed to their rooms, Nie Mingyuan gritted his teeth and questioned Gu Baishuang.

Gu Baishuang responded with a smile: "It’s your good sons who caused the household chaos, not me. With or without me, they’d still cause trouble. I’d only be satisfied if they didn’t trouble my son, didn’t want to seize my son’s accomplishments and inheritance."