Rebirth: He Decides to Lie Flat
Chapter 423 - 423 418 Fainted from Anger (Third Update)

Chapter 423: Chapter 418 Fainted from Anger (Third Update) Chapter 423: Chapter 418 Fainted from Anger (Third Update) Jiang Yan stepped outside to take a call and returned shortly after.

He happened to overhear Teacher Yu apologizing to Mu Jiawen, “… I told the principal not to mention your names or offer any praise, but he was so excited. After all, this is the first time someone has donated so many books to the school all at once. While praising you, he also wanted to motivate the students to strive for success, to prove to them that children from rural backgrounds can create their own success. The intention was good, but I was worried it might cause you unnecessary trouble, so I never let him hang the banner with your names on it in the library.”

Jiang Yan thought to himself that trouble had indeed come looking for him.

But he didn’t voice this thought; after all, when he had heard about the whole school praising them from Xie Lin, he had anticipated this.

It didn’t matter to him; he earned his money fair and square, and he would give it to whomever he wanted. Did he really need to keep hiding from them?

It was good they found out; now they could get a taste of that burning feeling.

With such an attitude from him, Mu Jiawen cared even less; she didn’t take it seriously at all.

After chatting with Teacher Yu for about an hour, Jiang Yan and Mu Jiawen got up to take their leave.

Xie Yanfen was almost there, and even though they wouldn’t be going to Haishi with him, it was only polite to say goodbye in person.

The two left the high school section and soon arrived at the street where Xie Yanhai’s home was located.

As they were nearing their destination, someone suddenly emerged from a nearby alley.

“Xiaoyan!”

Jiang Yan and Mu Jiawen stopped and looked coldly at Jiang Family’s Third across the street.

He turned his head slightly and saw Old Lady Jiang scrambling anxiously down from a tricycle, yelling as she climbed, “Third, stop him!”

Jiang Family’s Third was at his wits’ end. Had the more than an hour’s conversation just now been in vain?

They hadn’t come today to pick a fight with Jiang Yan; they were here to mend relations. After all, did they think they could make him willingly hand over money by cursing at him?

As if in a dream?

Jiang Family’s Third frowned again, feeling that his mother was truly getting more muddled with age, becoming less and less capable of handling things.

“Why stop me? Is there a problem?”

Jiang Family’s Third looked at Jiang Yan; in the more than a year since they had last seen each other, the youth in front of him had left his teenage immaturity behind. He was tall and well-proportioned, with fine features, and a calm gaze that conveyed an indescribable chill. His facial shape resembled his older brother, but his eyes and brows looked more like his mother’s.

That was why Old Lady Jiang didn’t like him; she disliked Shu Wan even more, for always acting superior as a city dweller, looking down on their rural folk. Although she had married Jiang Fengwei, she hardly ever came back, never considering herself part of the Jiang Family, not to mention serving tea and water to her in-laws.

In the past, she was only kind to Jiang Yan because Jiang Fengwei had a stable job and sent money every month. Once that vested interest was gone, Old Lady Jiang naturally grew impatient dealing with him, and even more so now that she knew he had money but wasn’t giving it to the family. Instead, he was donating books like a fool, which only served to anger her further.

But Jiang Family’s Third knew he couldn’t lash out today. Not only should he not, but he also had to coax Jiang Yan to come home with sweet words.

“What do you mean, ‘is there a problem’?” said Jiang Family’s Third. “How can you not visit your family when you come back? It’s been more than a year; are you strangers to us now?”

Jiang Family’s Third forced what he thought was a genial smile, “As soon as your grandmother heard you were back, she immediately asked me to bring her to see you… Come on, come back home with me for a bit.”

As he spoke, Jiang Family’s Third stepped forward intending to grab Jiang Yan, but was deftly avoided with a sidestep.

Jiang Yan sneered, “Home? Whose home? Have you forgotten what my dad told you at the hospital the year before last? He and I have nothing to do with the Jiang Family anymore.”

“Nothing to do with them? I gave birth to him, raised him, and just because he says there’s no relation, there isn’t?”

No sooner had Jiang Lao-tai gotten off the tricycle and hurried over than, hearing Jiang Yan’s words, she instantly flew into a rage, casting her third son’s earlier admonishments to the wind.

Pointing angrily at Jiang Yan, she cursed, “You ungrateful brat, I raised you too, and now that you’ve grown up and toughened up, you ignore this old lady completely, a university student indeed, not even supporting the elderly, your whole education gone to the dogs…”

Perhaps because she was so furious, Jiang Lao-tai was rather unguarded in her speech, claiming if Jiang Fengwei in prison wouldn’t support her, then it should be his son’s burden…

Heh…

Jiang Yan coldly chuckled, the same old lines as his previous life. Back then, she had used this same tactic to blackmail him into providing for her in Jiang Fengwei’s stead.

Not wanting to deal with her, Jiang Yan, with Mu Jiawen by his side, planned to walk past her towards the Xie Family.

But how could Jiang Lao-tai let him go easily now that she’d finally found him?

She stretched out her arms to block him, saying fiercely, “You’re not going anywhere until we settle this matter of your provision for the elderly!”

Then she shouted loudly at the onlookers, “His father, my eldest son, won’t support me in my old age, and he won’t either now that he’s in university making money! Tell me, is there no justice in this world?”

“If his father won’t support you, go find his father. The man isn’t dead. What’s the meaning of clinging to your grandson instead?”

Mu Jiawen stepped forward, her gaze coldly fixed on Jiang Lao-tai. Pointing at Jiang Lao-tai’s third son, she said, “This one’s your son, isn’t he? Do you see him as a dead man? Is that why he doesn’t need to care for the elderly?”

“You…”

Jiang Lao-san’s face went pale, while Jiang Lao-tai was so angry her eyes nearly popped, “You little witch, who are you calling dead? You’re the dead one! Your whole family is dead; my son is fine!”

“If he’s not dead, then why are you looking for your grandson to provide for your old age? I almost thought all your sons had passed away, and that’s why you were eyeing your grandson. After all, I’ve never heard of a case where a perfectly able son is ignored in favor of demanding support from a grandson.”

After Mu Jiawen finished speaking, some people around them chimed in, “Although what the young lady says is harsh, she’s got a point. Old lady, you should seek support from your sons, not the grandchildren.”

“Exactly, exactly, here’s your son with you, neither disabled nor deprived of the ability to work; it makes no sense to turn to the grandson.”

Jiang Lao-tai shouted back furiously, “What do you know? He has money, so he should provide for my old age!”

Some people couldn’t stand to listen anymore, “If the grandson has money and gives it to you, that’s his filial piety. But if he doesn’t, it doesn’t make any sense to demand it. I’ve never seen anyone insisting on being supported by a grandson.”

“Indeed, and look, old lady, you seem pretty young and in good health, do you really need your juniors to support you now?”

“My mother is over seventy and she still doesn’t depend on us…”

Watching conflicts unfold is in human nature. When it touches on universally sensitive issues, people enjoy taking the moral high ground to pass judgment on others. Jiang Lao-tai’s original intent was to put pressure on Jiang Yan with her words, to coerce him into giving her money every year.

But what she didn’t expect was that, far from achieving her goal, she ended up being criticized by the crowd thanks to Mu Jiawen’s few words.

Whether it was genuine anger or something else, her vision started to go dark, a buzzing filled her ears, the voices of those around her gradually receding until her mind went blank and she lost all consciousness…