Chapter 57: Immediate Confrontation, Caught Off Guard-Depois de renascer, recusei-me a assumir o fardo, e a família da minha esposa enlouqueceu.(Estufar-se em uma panela de ferro.)

Both Chu Tiankuo and Yang Xuemi put in a few good words for Zhang Zihao. After all, today was a momentous occasion, and things would become completely unmanageable if the situation fell apart right here.

Seeing that everyone was speaking up on his behalf, the corners of Zhang Zihao's lips curled upward in secret triumph. A few mere words were not enough to shake his standing.

"Grandfather, if you don't let him finish speaking, this marriage will inevitably become the subject of gossip for people everywhere."

Chu Mengyao gritted her teeth. Just as she had anticipated, everyone was taking Zhang Zihao's side.

Elder Chu hesitated and was about to speak. In his eyes, Zhang Zihao was a child he had watched grow up from a young age, and it was simply impossible for him to do such a thing. As for the person who had just barged in, nine times out of ten, he was just here to cause trouble and could safely be ignored.

"Elder Chu, could it be that you, too, are incapable of distinguishing right from wrong?"

Zhang Qiang let out a cold laugh, his voice echoing through the grand hall.

Everyone present gasped in sharp unison. Had this man lost his mind? How dare he openly point the finger at Elder Chu and question his judgment? He probably didn't even have nine lives to spare for such audacity.

Elder Chu abruptly stood up. Having spent so many years navigating the high society of Imperial City, he had witnessed countless scenes of all scales, yet he had never encountered such an arrogant young punk before.

"Elder Chu, do you dare let me finish what I have to say?"

Zhao Qiang did not retreat in the slightest. His gaze was resolute as he stared directly into the old man's eyes. Under such an overwhelming aura, an ordinary person would have collapsed long ago.

A wave of relief washed over Chu Mengyao inwardly; she had truly underestimated Zhao Qiang.

"On what grounds should this old man let you finish? Aren't you simply here to disrupt the proceedings?"

Elder Chu was a veteran of many grand occasions, and the intruder's intent to humiliate him was glaringly obvious.

"I am here to cause a disruption, but I am also here to tell the Elder the unvarnished truth."

Zhao Qiang straightened his posture. Whether or not he would be allowed to finish depended entirely on this old man. If he wasn't permitted to speak, no amount of talking would do any good. Zhang Zihao wanted nothing more than to shut him up, but if Elder Chu wished to listen, no one could stop him.

Before coming here, Zhao Qiang had inquired about Elder Chu's character from Chu Mengyao and learned that he was an upright and uncompromising man. Moreover, the old man held a special fondness for the Liu family, treating Zhang Zihao almost like his own biological grandson. Getting him to believe that Zhang Zihao had committed some despicable act would be harder than ascending to the heavens.

"Elder, I only speak out because I am afraid of you being deceived, and I offer this warning out of pure kindness."

"Surely you don't genuinely believe your granddaughter's groom is an honorable gentleman, do you?"

Zhao Qiang relentlessly hammered at Elder Chu's weak spot. He was determined to back the old man into a corner and force him to make a choice; otherwise, everything they had done today would be reduced to a wasted effort.

"Grandpa Chu..." Zhang Zihao attempted to interject, but he was cut off.

"Very well, very well. This is the first time in my life I have ever laid eyes on such a daring young man."

"This old man will grant you this chance. Let's see what kind of elaborate nonsense you can spin."

Elder Chu smiled, though a trace of stern majesty underlay his expression. "If what you speak is the truth, this old man can overlook your impudence. But if you are merely talking through your hat and making baseless trouble, do not blame me for showing no mercy."

"Grandpa Chu, this man holds a personal grudge against me! You must not listen to a single word he says!"

Zhang Zihao was now utterly panicked, beads of sweat continuously rolling down his forehead. Once Zhao Qiang was given free rein to spout whatever he pleased, there was no telling what catastrophic mess would be dragged into the light.

"Director Zhang, if what I am saying is false, what on earth are you so nervous about?"

Zhao Qiang walked right up to Zhang Zihao, patted him on the shoulder near the lapel of his tailored suit, and smiled with eyes brimming with mockery.

"Who says I'm nervous?"

Zhang Zihao raised the volume of his voice, desperately trying to mask his inner guilt.

"Today is my joyous wedding day, Zhao Qiang! Just what on earth are you unsatisfied with, that you insist on coming to my grand celebration to stir up trouble?"

Shoving Zhao Qiang aside with a look of extreme disgust, Zhang Zihao glared at him.

"If you aren't nervous, why are you going to such desperate lengths to break my legs and have me thrown out?"

"By acting this way, aren't you simply confirming to everyone here that you have a guilty conscience?"

Zhao Qiang's lips curved upward into a smirk, and he ceased paying attention to Zhang Zihao. Since Elder Chu himself had given permission, there was no stopping him now.

"Allow me to introduce myself to everyone here. I am an employee working under this esteemed Young Master Zhang, and for the longest time, my wife, Liu Yuyan, has been his mistress."

If Zhao Qiang's previous words were merely provocative, this opening statement was an absolute bombshell.

The entire Chu family estate erupted in instant uproar as guests began whispering among themselves in shock and disbelief.

Unable to restrain himself a moment longer, Zhang Zihao widened his eyes in fury and cursed venomously, "Zhao Qiang! You are slandering me! You are spitting blood!"

"Director Zhang, look at you—you're getting worked up again."

Crossing his arms over his chest, Zhao Qiang wore a mocking smile. "If it were false, you wouldn't be flying into such a rage, would you?"

These two sentences from Zhao Qiang completely sealed off every escape route, leaving Zhang Zihao momentarily speechless and turning his complexion an even more ghastly shade of pale.

"And quite recently, my wife gave birth to a pair of twins. But those twins are certainly not my flesh and blood, as I have already gone through the trouble of getting a paternity test."

Zhao Qiang's words were choked with sorrow, his voice trembling as tears welled up.

"Did you happen to know about this, Young Master Zhang?"

Pressing his advantage step by step, Zhao Qiang fixed his piercing gaze on Zhang Zihao, denying him even the tiniest breath of reprieve.

"How on earth would I know about that? That is a matter concerning your own household and has nothing to do with me!"

With a complexion of leaden blue, Zhang Zihao hastily denied the accusation, yet his eyes darted about restlessly, utterly lacking the courage to meet Zhao Qiang's gaze.

Damn this accursed Zhao Qiang! Why did he have to launch his attack out of nowhere at this exact moment? With every pair of eyes in the room fixed upon him, any sign of agitation would immediately invite suspicion, leaving him with no choice but to maintain a facade of forced composure.

"Nothing to do with you? Are you telling me that the pair of twins my wife gave birth to aren't yours?"

Zhao Qiang abruptly spiked his voice. "Have you forgotten that back at Imperial University, you and my wife Liu Yuyan had a lingering affair?"

"Would you like me to help refresh your memory?"

Seeing Zhao Qiang charging relentlessly forward, Chu Mengyao refused to be outdone and boldly stepped into the fray.

She cared very little for the scandalous entanglements between Liu Yuyan and Zhang Zihao; her singular goal was to distance herself completely from this absolute scum of a man.

"Zhang Zihao, I had long since heard rumors about you and that campus belle back when you were students. I never imagined that even after you supposedly broke up, you were still carrying on behind closed doors!"

"You even went so far as to conceive a child in secret! What on earth is your family trying to hide by covering up so much?"

Chu Mengyao demanded in a loud voice, her emotions running high and agitated.

"To think that I foolishly trusted you, believing you to be the lifelong harbor I could rely upon—I truly misjudged you!"

Pouring her heart out with maximum theatricality, Chu Mengyao shrieked at the top of her lungs. Her performance of heartbreak and devastation was nothing short of an absolute masterpiece.

Zhao Qiang was momentarily stunned. Chu Mengyao had never mentioned anything about improvising a performance alongside him; she had nearly thrown him entirely off balance.

"Even if my wife Liu Yuyan possesses the beauty of a blooming flower, how could someone like her ever deign to look at a man like me?"

"Everyone else kept saying she must have been blind to choose someone like me, and I myself believed it was completely impossible—yet somehow, she actually chose me."

"Turns out I was nothing more than a sucker brought in to take the fall, playing the role of a convenient, unwitting father for the child she was carrying!"