Chapter 54: Matters of the Heart
Chao Jingyu was even more perplexed. “Then what is the real reason?!”
Shang Yucheng took a cigarette from the pack on his desk. “That’s something the esteemed neurologist needn’t concern himself with.”
Chao Jingyu had been a close friend of Shang Yucheng since childhood, and he was not unfamiliar with Shang Rong either.
How could one describe him?
He was the sort of scion that everyone recognized—a pampered, idle young man, not at all the same kind of person as Shang Yucheng or himself.
But he wasn’t truly evil, and his relationship with Shang Yucheng remained harmonious.
Everything about their harmony stemmed from Third Uncle Shang Jinkang’s deep affection and nurturing of Shang Yucheng, treating him as his own.
And that affection wasn’t just for show.
He knew full well that his own son was hopeless, so from the very beginning, he had raised Shang Yucheng as the heir.
Don’t be fooled by Nantian Construction’s current success—it was merely a playground for Shang Yucheng to hone his skills.
One day, Shang Jinkang would hand him the reins to the entire Shang enterprise.
Chao Jingyu, a neurologist, truly had no business meddling so far, and objectively speaking, there were many patients worse off than the Liang family.
He couldn’t possibly sympathize with them all.
“I’m just acting as a friend—I can’t stand seeing her hope snatched away before her eyes… You didn’t see her that night after coming back from the racetrack, waking from a nightmare… it was too…” Chao Jingyu paused.
“That night?” Shang Yucheng echoed.
Chao Jingyu could have explained, but recalling Chao Xinghe’s obvious interest in Liang Jinshang, he couldn’t resist probing Shang Yucheng. He feigned nonchalance. “Yes. Is something wrong?”
Shang Yucheng flicked his ash and spoke bluntly, “What do you think? Our brotherly bond isn’t close enough for you—you want to get even closer?”
He seemed to mind Chao Jingyu’s closeness with Liang Jinshang, though not excessively so.
But to Chao Jingyu, those words signaled that Shang Yucheng was not yet willing to let go of Liang Jinshang.
Brazenly possessive and selfish.
Chao Jingyu raised an eyebrow—a look both of them understood.
His affection for Gong Xueyuan was an open secret in their circle, and when Shang Yucheng planned to marry her, he hadn’t considered their friendship at all.
Because they both knew—brothers are brothers, women are women.
But just because Chao Jingyu was mature and magnanimous, it didn’t mean he should always be the one to step back.
“Then you have even less reason to treat Liang Jinshang that way,” Chao Jingyu said lightly, steering the conversation back. “I’ll say it again—if you still want her, fine, don’t give her anything, but you shouldn’t so brazenly steal her hope…”
Shang Yucheng grew impatient, cutting him off. “How do you know she won’t thank me?”
His words carried weight.
Chao Jingyu caught on quickly.
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If Shang Yucheng truly cared about Shang Rong’s health, he wouldn’t have switched the matching report. The one given to Shang Jinkang and Shang Rong had a suspiciously high compatibility.
It all seemed rather… calculated.
And given Shang Rong’s notorious proclivities, Chao Jingyu asked in surprise, “Did Shang Rong do something to Liang Jinshang…?”
Shang Yucheng stubbed out his cigarette, scoffing ambiguously, “You make me out to be far too sentimental.”
Shang Yucheng’s heart was hard, not easily swayed by romance.
Chao Jingyu’s gaze lingered on his hands—hands that were refined, with distinct knuckles, clearly pampered from a young age.
The wound from the riding crop was obvious across his palm.
Chao Jingyu pointed at it. “How’s the injury?”
Shang Yucheng replied coolly, “To spare myself further harm, you’d better stop showing off your so-called gentlemanly manners.”
He made it clear: he intercepted the crop because he had stepped in front of Liang Jinshang.
Apparently, avenging a woman by punishing his own brother wasn’t something Shang Yucheng would do—not for anyone, certainly not for Liang Jinshang.
In front of Shang Yucheng, Chao Jingyu shredded the real report and offered a final warning: “If I could get this report, your third uncle can too. You won’t tell me your true intentions—I hope your reasons can convince him.”
Shang Yucheng took his leave, passing by the ward.
Liang Yuanhan lay in intensive care, his face swollen and darkening—he truly looked near death.
At his bedside, a young man and woman listened to him speak.
Liang Jinshang was docile, while Liang Xizhou looked agitated.
Shang Yucheng thought, with a touch of contempt, Even in poverty, people quarrel over inheritance?
At that moment, Liang Jinshang rose—likely father and son needed to talk privately.
She stepped out and saw Shang Yucheng. Her previously downcast eyes suddenly brightened.
“Shang Yucheng!”
He responded lazily.
Liang Jinshang, revived for a moment, slipped back into silence after her greeting.
Chao Jingyu had already told her about Shang Rong. What else could she say?
Seeing her mute, Shang Yucheng nodded and was about to leave.
Liang Jinshang hurried after him, dragging him to the stairwell.
She had grown thinner these days, her eyes even larger, gazing at Shang Yucheng.
He said coolly, “Are you offering yourself to save your father?”
---
Liang Jinshang shook her head. “No, I… Our phones haven’t been returned yet…”
Shang Yucheng had more than one phone, and Liang Jinshang hadn’t asked for hers since the racetrack.
Perhaps she kept it as an excuse to seek him out again.
But Shang Yucheng made no move, not even a shift in expression.
Liang Jinshang stopped struggling, her voice dropping, “…If I offer myself now, would you accept?”
“Would I be taking advantage this time?”
Her pride had been stripped clean in the span of a week.
The Liang family’s misfortunes never ceased; she could only be grateful that her body still sparked some interest in him.
She was nearly saying, “Please, take advantage.”
But Shang Yucheng was a bastard, never pretending otherwise. “Liang Xizhou or Liang Yuanhan—which one do you want me to save?”
Liang Jinshang’s expression went blank.
Her brief relief lasted only a second.
Yes, his fleeting interest was enough for a single condition.
Shang Yucheng, reading her face, found her too greedy.
“When you learn the meaning of equivalent exchange, come find me again.”
Liang Jinshang, fearing he would leave, clung tightly to his waist. “Don’t go! Shang Yucheng… Save, please save my adoptive father! He’s dying…”
Liang Yuanhan’s death knell was about to sound—Liang Jinshang had no room for hesitation.
Shang Yucheng was direct, nodding his agreement.
But he didn’t lose out, either. “From today, you’ll live at my place.”
Liang Jinshang: “…”
Shang Yucheng laughed coldly. “Don’t look at me like that—I’m not that addicted to you. That bastard Hu is likely to make another move on you soon. If you stay at my place, I'll be spared a lot of trouble.”
Liang Jinshang grew anxious. “But Liang Xizhou…”
If Hu Zhinan couldn’t get to her, would he target Liang Xizhou? He certainly would.