Hao Shuai looked at me with a hint of helplessness and said, “Shouldn’t I be the one asking that?”
“My brother got into a bit of trouble, so I came over…” I replied, suddenly having an epiphany as I exclaimed, “You have the surname Hao, and Fatty also has the surname Hao. Could it be that you’re related?”
However, as soon as I said this, I felt something was off. Although Fatty shared the surname Hao, it was hard to believe he could have any connection to the Hao family in the capital. If his family had ties to the Hao family, how could he be threatened by a few small-time thugs?
Even though the Hao family wasn’t among the four great families, it didn’t mean they were insignificant. To establish themselves in the capital and be recognized as a family, none of them could be simple.
At that moment, Uncle Hao suddenly walked out of the house. Seeing Hao Shuai at the door, he paused for a moment, looking puzzled as he asked, “Who are you?”
Upon seeing Uncle Hao, Hao Shuai immediately bowed and said, “You must be my uncle, right? I’m Hao De’s son, Hao Shuai, here to take you back to the family!”
“Oh, so you’re Little De’s son! I didn’t expect you to be all grown up!” Uncle Hao chuckled, shaking his head.
But I was left completely stunned. Damn! Are you kidding me? Not only is Fatty related to the Hao family, but Uncle Hao is also the brother of the current head of the Hao family? This is way too messed up!
“What’s going on here? Since Uncle Hao is part of the Hao family, why would he be tormented by these small-time thugs?” I looked at Uncle Hao in confusion.
Before Uncle Hao could respond, Hao Shuai frowned and asked me, “Boss, are you saying that our uncle’s family is being threatened and harassed?”
“That’s right. Let me tell you what happened!” I sighed and recounted the events to Hao Shuai.
After hearing me out, Hao Shuai gritted his teeth and said, “How dare they bully our uncle! I’m going to find out who they are right now!”
I understood Hao Shuai’s character; he wouldn’t say anything insincere. This time, he was genuinely angry.
However, I was puzzled. Since Uncle Hao was the elder brother of the head of the Hao family, why was he living in such a small city? And why hadn’t he sought help from the Hao family when he was being bullied?
“There’s no need to investigate. That Young Master Chen is the only son of the deputy mayor of this city!” I said, looking at Hao Shuai.
Hao Shuai nodded and turned to Uncle Hao, saying, “Uncle, I will definitely resolve this matter! The harm done to Zhiwei will be repaid to that Young Master Chen!”
After saying this, he looked at me and said, “Boss, this is our Hao family’s matter. I hope you won’t interfere!”
“You’re talking nonsense. Fatty is my brother; I have to get involved in this!” I shot back at Hao Shuai.
Hao Shuai was taken aback by my words, and before he could respond, Uncle Hao said, “Xiao Tian, I know you have a good relationship with Zhiwei, but let Hao Shuai handle this!”
“Uncle, please don’t underestimate my boss. He is the current head of the Xia family, and his abilities far surpass mine! I just didn’t want him to interfere earlier; I wanted to compensate for the losses our family has caused you over the years!” Hao Shuai explained to Uncle Hao with a smile.
Uncle Hao was stunned for a moment, then exclaimed in surprise, “You… you are the current head of the Xia family!”
“What head of the family? I’m just a figurehead now; the one in charge is still the old man!” I scratched my head awkwardly.
Uncle Hao looked at me and asked, “How is Mr. Xia’s health?”
“He’s doing well!” Hearing Uncle Hao ask me this question reminded me of how the old man had tricked me.
Still puzzled about Uncle Hao’s situation, I asked, “Uncle Hao, you’re also a member of the Hao family and the eldest son. How did you end up in such a predicament?”
“I’ll explain that to the boss. In the end, it’s our Hao family that has let down our uncle!” Hao Shuai sighed and began recounting the history of the Hao family.
Back at the Hao family, since Uncle Hao, also known as Hao Ren, was the eldest son and had strong capabilities, he was already determined to be the next family head. However, Uncle Hao’s younger brother, Hao Shuai’s father, Hao De, had ambitions for the position of family head. Uncle Hao didn’t care much for the position and wanted to avoid a feud with Hao De over it, so he voluntarily proposed that Hao De inherit the family head position. But Hao Shuai’s grandfather disagreed and insisted on having Uncle Hao take over instead. With no other choice, Uncle Hao had to wait for his succession, but he ended up meeting Fatty’s mother. Wanting to be with her and fearing that he would have no time for her once he became family head, he chose to leave the Hao family and settled down here with Fatty’s mom.
The old family head of the Hao family was furious, believing that Uncle Hao was acting impulsively, and thus passed the family head position to Hao De. Although Hao De wanted to help Uncle Hao, he was stopped by the old man of the Hao family and had to give up. Hao Shuai sighed at this point and said somewhat relaxed, “So many years have passed, and grandpa’s temper has cooled down. In a few days, it will be his seventieth birthday, so I plan to use this opportunity to bring Uncle and his family back to the Hao family.”
“Oh, I see. I didn’t expect Uncle Hao to be so emotional!” I said, looking at Uncle Hao with a hint of amusement. Uncle Hao’s face turned red, and he smiled without saying anything. Hao Shuai is my brother, and Fatty is also my brother, so I naturally don’t want to see them on opposing sides. Now that they are reconciling, it’s the best outcome for both Hao Shuai and Fatty, as well as for me.
“I’ll go check on Fatty’s injuries!” I said and walked into the room.
“Xia Tian… I…” Fatty tried to sit up to talk to me. I shook my head with a smile, “Just lie down for now; let me treat your injuries first!”
“Hey! You idiot, don’t mess around! If Fatty dies because of you, I’m coming for you!” Zhang Yu said, looking at me.
I shot him an annoyed glance and replied, “What are you talking about, you fool? If I couldn’t handle it, would I even say that?” After that, I examined Fatty’s injuries. Most of Fatty’s injuries were superficial, but there was some internal damage. Luckily, nothing was broken, so I just needed him to take a healing pill and rest for the night.
“Take this!” I said, pulling out a healing pill and offering it to Fatty. Zhang Yu frowned and cursed, “Damn! Where did you get this sheep dung pill? Are you trying to poison Fatty?”
“Shut up with your nonsense! This is a medicinal pill, and if you don’t understand, just keep your mouth shut!” I said, giving Fatty the pill to take, then added, “Tomorrow, we’ll go find that idiot Young Master Chen to take revenge for you!”
“Boss, I suggest it’s best if I handle this matter,” Hao Shuai said from the side.
I smiled, “I’ll take care of Young Master Chen. Isn’t his dad the deputy mayor? You can handle the aftermath!”
“Hey! What do you mean just you? Count me in too!” Zhang Yu shouted from the side.
Hearing this, I laughed, “With your combat power of only 5, you dare say that?”
“How about we settle this?” Zhang Yu rolled up his sleeves and said to me.
I rolled up my sleeves too and replied, “Bring it on!” With that, the two of us started wrestling with each other.
Now that everything was ready, we just needed Fatty to recover, and tomorrow would be the day for that guy called Young Master Chen!