"Miss Meng." Tang Xiyi tried hard to maintain his composure, but the moment he saw Meng Ruyi, he couldn't help showing a bitter smile. He took a deep breath, wanting to get up and leave, but still sat down obediently. It seemed that Tang Xiyi had been taken advantage of by Brother Xiao Song!
Hearing this, Cheng Lang beside him also looked up. A faint smile appeared on his handsome face. He nodded at Meng Ruyi and greeted her softly.
Meng Ruyi nodded slightly at him, with mixed feelings.
The person in front of her was actually related to her tragic death in the previous life. However, that tragic death hadn't happened yet. In this life, Cheng Lang's life seemed to be different from that in the previous life.
The person in front of her was Cheng Lang, but not exactly the same as the Cheng Lang in the book.
He was still born according to the description in the book, but was different because of some subtle changes.
Although Meng Ruyi had mixed feelings in her heart, she still sat down beside Song Huaizhi and quietly watched them discuss.
Song Huaizhi casually poured her a glass of cold plum juice. Then he looked up at Tang Xiyi and said slowly, "Young Master Tang may want to consider it again?"
His tone was firm, which made Tang Xiyi grit his teeth. Although he had taken over the Tang family early and had cultivated the ability to remain calm in the face of great danger, he still couldn't help getting so angry with Song Huaizhi from time to time that he almost fainted.
"What's going on?"
The atmosphere on the scene was solemn. Meng Ruyi wanted to break the ice, so she asked Song Huaizhi and the others.
"Miss Meng!" Tang Xiyi suddenly looked up and said to Meng Ruyi, "Please persuade Young Master Song! He's asking for too much. How could someone ask for 30% of my Tang family's property right away?"
"30%! 30%!" Tang Xiyi's eyes widened. He took a deep breath. Realizing that he had spoken too loudly, he lowered his voice and continued, "My Tang family has a century - old foundation. If I give away so much for nothing, wouldn't I be an unfilial descendant!"
"The ancestors of my Tang family will come to me in the middle of the night!"
As Tang Xiyi spoke, looking into Meng Ruyi's clear eyes, he suddenly felt a bit guilty.
Thinking of the stupid thing he did by bribing Meng Ruyi at that time, Tang Xiyi lowered his head and cleared his throat to cover up his embarrassment.
30%?
Did Brother Xiao Song want to use this property for disaster relief?
However, this time he was really being a bit excessive. 30%! The Tang family was extremely wealthy. Taking 30% of their property would be like tearing a big chunk out of Tang Xiyi's heart!
But Song Huaizhi surely wouldn't do something without a good plan. Moreover, the Tang family was now an ally of hers. No matter how much Brother Xiao Song disliked Tang Xiyi, he wouldn't do something to undermine their alliance.
Hearing this, Song Huaizhi slightly curled his lips, but his eyes were cold. "Young Master Tang, you refused as soon as I made my offer."
"The Crown Prince has suffered a great loss this time, losing so many people. He must be in a serious financial deficit." At this point, Song Huaizhi slowly picked up his cup and took a sip, then continued, "Tell me, how will he make up for this deficit?"
Tang Xiyi caught his breath and froze on the spot. His heart stopped for a moment and then started beating more violently.
"I..." Tang Xiyi hesitated but still spoke, "30% is too much. This..."
"If someone takes the opportunity to annex the Tang family, then..."
Half - way through his words, Tang Xiyi suddenly realized something and swallowed the rest.
No, no one would dare to do this. Now the Tang family was backed by the academy, and since he had done such a good deed, no sensible person would have any thoughts about the Tang family at this time.
"30% is the result of my careful consideration." Seeing the wavering look on Tang Xiyi's face, a flash of smile appeared in Song Huaizhi's eyes. "Do you know? If it's too much, the Tang family will surely suffer losses. If it's too little, some interested people may take advantage of it."
"If you take out 30%, I'll find a way to turn it into 50%."
Hearing this, Meng Ruyi couldn't help being secretly surprised.
Brother Xiao Song was far - sighted. It seemed that she still had a long way to go.
"No, I can't decide this alone." Tang Xiyi looked dejected. He pleaded with Song Huaizhi, "Please lend me a few guards, Young Master Song. I need to go back."
"Okay. Jingzhe can go with you."
Watching Tang Xiyi leave unsteadily, the atmosphere on the scene seemed to gradually relax. It was no longer so heavy that Cheng Lang could hardly breathe.
Coming back to his senses, Cheng Lang looked up and saw Meng Ruyi and Song Huaizhi both looking at him thoughtfully. He immediately broke out in a cold sweat. Looking at the two of them, he hesitated and said, "Miss Meng, Young Master Song, do you have..."
"Yes." Meng Ruyi spoke first and asked, "Brother Xiao Song and I have always forgotten to ask. May I ask what brings Young Master Cheng to the capital?"
Hearing this, Cheng Lang's face changed slightly. After hesitating for a moment, he let out a deep sigh.
"I'm here for myself." As Cheng Lang spoke, a bitter smile appeared on his face. "My adoptive parents came to the capital to do business back then. They accidentally picked me up by the roadside. They searched everywhere but couldn't find my biological parents. Since they had never been able to have children, they simply took me away with them."
"Unfortunately, when I was twelve, they passed away due to illness. Then I was adopted by my master and went to the deep mountains to study medicine."
Starting to study medicine at the age of twelve meant that Cheng Lang had only studied for a few years.
The fact that his medical skills were praised by Song Huaizhi showed that he was really a genius. No wonder he was one of the male leads.
Meng Ruyi let out a deep sigh and then said to him, "I'm sorry. I've brought up your sad memories."
"It's okay." Cheng Lang said with a calm face. He smiled slightly and said, "These are all old stories. Besides, I came to the capital with a gambling mentality."
"The capital is so big. If I want to find my biological parents from it, it's no easier than looking for a needle in a haystack." As Cheng Lang spoke, he smiled and said, "Moreover, I don't even know if I was abandoned or if my parents accidentally lost me."
So this was the reason why Cheng Lang was so determined to come to the capital?
Meng Ruyi was quite surprised. She said to Cheng Lang, "Does Young Master Cheng have any mementos? Brother Xiao Song and I may be able to keep an eye out for you."
Cheng Lang's face showed a slight surprise. He didn't expect things to go so smoothly. He took out the brocade bag on his waist, which contained a small jade pendant.
The jade had impurities and wasn't of the best quality, but it felt smooth in the hand, as if it had been often played with by its owner.
It seemed that Cheng Lang's obsession with finding his biological parents was not as open - minded as it seemed on the surface.
Meng Ruyi took the jade pendant and saw two small characters written on it - An Ran.
She handed the jade pendant back and said, "Brother Xiao Song and I will do our best."
There were really too few clues. The child was lost more than a decade ago, and all he had on him was an ordinary jade pendant.
If the jade pendant had been more valuable, the search scope might have been narrowed. But this kind of jade with impurities could also be bought by relatively well - off common people. So now it was really like looking for a needle in a haystack.
The characters "An Ran" on it, no one knew if it was Cheng Lang's name or a nickname of some woman.