Volume One, Chapter 129: A Broken Mr. Huo

As the phone slipped from his hand, Huo Mingting turned to stone, his entire body rigid and paralyzed. Only his eyes underwent a gradual transformation, shifting from pale to red, then to a deep, blood-shot crimson. It seemed as if a single blink would cause blood to spill from them.

Qin Minshu was nearing her limit. The drugs had stripped away her humanity, leaving her to writhe, twist, and crawl like a serpent, incessantly pressing herself against Huo Mingting. Chu Yue could no longer bear the sight; he was thoroughly disgusted.

"I’m leaving. If I stay any longer, I’m going to vomit."

Chu Yue turned away with a cold expression, but Tan Yao grabbed him. "Something is wrong with Mingting."

As brothers who had grown up together, they knew each other’s temperaments better than anyone. When they saw tears welling in Huo Mingting’s eyes, their own eyes widened in shock.

*Holy hell!*

*He’s... crying?!*

The next second, Huo Mingting shoved the clinging Qin Minshu away and lunged forward, his hands locking around her throat.

"!!"

Chu Yue and Tan Yao were both stunned.

"You lied to me! You’ve been lying to me this whole time!"

The veins on the back of Huo Mingting's hands bulged as he choked her. Qin Minshu’s face flushed a deep, suffocating red. Snapping out of their shock, Chu Yue and Tan Yao rushed forward, pinning Huo Mingting from either side.

"Are you insane? You’re going to kill her!"

The two of them barely managed to restrain him. Chu Yue had to snap at him, "This is Qin Minshu! Take a good look at who you’re holding!"

"It is exactly her that I’m choking!"

Huo Mingting roared, his scarlet eyes reflecting a state of absolute, unhinged fury. He was teetering on the edge of madness. Qin Minshu clutched her throat, coughing violently.

Chairman Qin and his wife, having received news on their way home that their daughter had drugged Ye Sheng at the banquet, offended the Ye family, and been blacklisted by the Ninth Master of the Huo family, were terrified. They had rushed back in a panic. Upon reaching the doorway and witnessing the scene, the Madam’s expression shifted violently as she rushed forward to pull her daughter into her arms.

"What is the meaning of this?" The Madam looked at her daughter’s bruised, reddened neck, then shot a look of displeasure at Huo Mingting. "Mingting, no matter what mistakes Minshu has made, you cannot resort to violence. You are a man."

Chairman Qin stood with a stiff face. While he did not want to offend Huo Mingting, seeing his daughter treated this way left a bitter taste in his mouth.

Chu Yue and Tan Yao were at a loss for words. Huo Mingting was acting so erratically today; he was barely recognizable.

"He is in the wrong."

Refusing to cover for his friend, Chu Yue punched Huo Mingting on the shoulder. "What the hell is going on with you? Say something! Your brothers are right here. If a crime has been committed, we have a police officer and a lawyer right here—don't you think we can handle it?"

*Did you really need to take matters into your own hands?*

Chu Yue didn't say it outright, but he was still shielding his brother. Though the Chairman and his wife found the comment grating, they said nothing.

Tan Yao caught Chu Yue’s eye, signaling him not to add fuel to the fire, and gave Huo Mingting’s arm a firm, grounding squeeze.

"Brother, tell us what happened. Don't scare us like this."

It was the first time they had ever seen Huo Mingting look like this—as if he were completely shattered. He hadn't even been this way when he broke up with Qin Minshu or when he divorced Ye Sheng.

They couldn't fathom who exactly he held in his heart. Between the red rose and the white rose, which one carried more weight?

"Ye Sheng," he suddenly murmured, speaking her name.

Chu Yue and Tan Yao asked in unison, "What about Ye Sheng?"

Huo Mingting felt a hollow, burning ache in his chest, his voice raspy and broken.

"Two years ago, the person who donated bone marrow to Cong’er wasn't Qin Minshu. It was Ye Sheng."

"…What?!"

Chu Yue and Tan Yao were struck dumb with shock.