Chapter 17: Tearing Off the Mask

Chapter 17: Tearing Off the Mask

The Meng couple were able to give birth to two exceptionally good-looking children, Wei Houming and Meng Siyu, so their own appearance must have been quite remarkable.

Judging by their appearances alone, Wei Houming bears a striking resemblance to them, making it easy to see that they are related as parents and children.

However, Mencius' parents had prematurely gray hair and, despite being middle-aged, showed signs of hardship, as if they had suffered a lot over the years.

Kui Houming twitched his fingertips, staring intently into their eyes, and said firmly, "You are the most suitable people to answer this question, so why don't you come to me?"

Meng's father smiled at Wei Houming, his wrinkles twitching as he looked uneasy: "Child, we originally intended to keep this a secret. Since you've come to us, you must know we are your biological parents. In that case, we don't want you to misunderstand."

He sighed deeply and began to recount the past: "When your mother gave birth to you, it was during the invasion of the demonic forces. While we were fleeing from our pursuit, we were accidentally separated from you. It was our fault. You can hit us or scold us, as long as you can forgive us, anything is fine."

By the end, Meng's father's voice had choked with emotion.

Kui Houming raised his eyes.

Yes, that's right, he's thought that way for the entire fifty years of his life.

But the result overturned his understanding.

Is the person in front of me telling the truth?

Kui Houming's gaze at Meng's father was sharper than ever before, as if he could see into the depths of the other's heart.

Mencius' father felt a pang of anxiety and, by pretending to wipe away tears, sent a subtle signal to Mencius' mother.

Meng's mother stepped forward and patted Meng's father on the back reassuringly. Then she looked at Wei Houming with guilt and said, "Your father was slashed eighteen times by the demonic cultivator and was seriously injured. Child, don't blame him. Blame me. I failed to protect you."

As she spoke, she lifted Meng's father's sleeve, revealing jagged scars on his arm, some only a few inches long, others covering his entire arm, a shocking sight.

Having handled sect cases for a long time, Kui Houming could naturally distinguish whether the wounds were faked or not. Without a doubt, the other party's injuries were not fake.

A complex emotion flickered in his eyes, but he remained silent.

At this moment, Mencius' father blushed, slapped away Mencius' mother's hand, and put down his sleeves: "Are you confused? These are all old stories. You're just making the child laugh at you for no reason."

Mencius' mother stammered, "Wasn't that the truth?"

"Shut up."

After scolding him, Meng's father hurriedly explained to Wei Houming.

"Don't listen to your mother's nonsense. I only suffered minor injuries and lost a lot of blood. She's just a woman and she thinks I'm going to die, so she's making this up. But I'm tough. I'm not that easy to kill."

Kui Houming looked at the two of them and listened calmly to their words.

Meng's father changed the subject, his voice a little dry: "But it's you. Your mother and I lost you. At that time, the sky was falling. We almost died together with those demonic cultivators. If it weren't for the fact that your brother was still young, we really wouldn't have survived."

Mencius' mother then said, "Your brother suffers from a weak constitution and has not developed well since childhood. If he is left alone, it would be tantamount to letting him die. We really can't bring ourselves to do it."

Meng Siyu stood behind the Meng couple. He was a full head shorter than Wei Houming and was thin, clearly suffering greatly from the disease.

Kui Houming stared at the family and suddenly felt an invisible sense of rejection. Perhaps this feeling had always been there, but it was particularly obvious at this moment.

He finally spoke: "And then?"

Kui Houming wanted to hear their version of the "truth" from beginning to end.

Seeing that he had given in, Meng's father felt reassured and said, "Later, your mother and I went back to look for you, but we couldn't find you anywhere. So we took your brother and hid in Ping'an City. We learned by chance that you had been adopted by Elder Kui Tu of the Wendao Sect."

"Yes, God has taken pity on us and let you live. Your father and I are overjoyed and want to bring you back, but we can't do that."

Meng's mother choked up, unable to speak for a moment: "We...we found out that Elder Kui Tu is looking for medicine for you. With him treating your illness, you won't have to suffer like your brother. So..."

"So you pretended you never gave birth to me so that I could recover? You just left me with Master? And you haven't even come to see me once in all these years?" Kui Houming spoke rapidly, like a machine gun.

Mencius' mother paused, then lowered her head guiltily: "It is our incompetence as parents that we gave you a weak body but could not cure you. Rather than this, we would rather give up on acknowledging you and let you live a healthy life."

Kui Houming admitted that he wavered for a moment when he heard their words, but he quickly came to his senses.

The more pitiful they sound, the more ironic the reality becomes.

Moreover, Xiaolou's feelings had never ceased.

[His attire was impeccable, making him look weathered and successfully evoking Captain Wei's sympathy; his expression was also perfect, further eliciting a sense of self-reproach from Captain Wei.]

[Damn, their acting is really good! They made it so plausible that I almost believed them. Ugh, how could they even say that?]

[Oh, they're starting to play the victim now. Sure enough, this part is late but it's here, and they're putting on quite a show. If I didn't know their true colors, I would have thought they were good parents.]

They abandoned Captain Wei in the wilderness; if Elder Wei Tu hadn't rescued him, he might not even be alive. Now they're claiming it was all for Captain Wei's good.

Have they forgotten that they initially used Captain Wei as a mobile health pack? How could they possibly consider anything else for him?

[It's all because Elder Kui Tu is a Nascent Soul cultivator. They're afraid he'll discover their secrets, so they don't dare to curry favor with him and can only secretly spy on him.]

[When Elder Kui Tu hadn't returned to the sect for many years, they forcibly went to his door to claim kinship, intending to take advantage of the time difference and cultivate a good relationship with Captain Kui, so that Elder Kui Tu wouldn't have anything to say when he returned.]

Lou Yuqing, taking advantage of being blocked by Senior Brother Gu, rolled her eyes at the Meng couple several times, speechless.

Si Nidie clenched her fists in righteous indignation, a surge of impulse rising within her, wanting to go up and beat them up.

This is the first time in her life she's been this angry!

Especially when they saw the Meng couple distorting the truth, as if they had some unavoidable difficulties, but in reality, they were driven by greed and wanted to suck the blood of Captain Wei.

Little did they know, standing before them were a group of people who knew the truth.

Si Nidie glanced at Captain Wei and, seeing that he remained silent, assumed he was heartbroken. She then decided to step forward and uphold justice.

Just then, Elder Kui Tu transmitted his voice, saying, "Let Ming'er confront the situation alone. That way, he can get rid of his inner turmoil. We shouldn't interfere."

Hesitation will inevitably lead to chaos.

Ming'er, I believe in you!

Si Nidie nodded upon hearing this.

"Really? You really think so?" Kui Houming remained silent for a long time before slowly speaking, "This is completely contrary to what I heard."

Mencius's parents were startled and quickly exchanged a glance, their hearts pounding. Had he come prepared?!

Before they could reply, Wei Houming said, "Someone told me that my birth was for a utilitarian purpose. Because Meng Siyu has a weak constitution, you gave birth to me so that you could draw blood to use as a medicinal ingredient for him. Is that right?"

Kui Houming stared directly at their faces, not missing a single change in their expressions.

To his disappointment, Meng's parents showed a strange expression after hearing his words. Although they quickly composed themselves, they couldn't hide it from him.

“No, child, how could we treat you like this? Someone must have framed us.” Mr. Meng quickly said.

Tears streamed down Mencius' mother's face as she cried, "Who the hell told you that we parents could be so cruel to our children?"

"Hehe." Kui Houming gave a sarcastic laugh.

“Words are no proof. I have evidence here. When you abandoned me, that person happened to see it and even used a recording stone to capture the image.”

A photo-taking stone?!

If it gets recorded by this thing, it's basically irrefutable evidence.

This unexpected attack threw Mencius' parents into a panic, making it impossible for them to maintain their perfect acting skills.

Mencius' parents dared to confuse right and wrong with Kui Houming because they took advantage of his young age and ignorance. But if he had the recording stone, the situation would be completely different.

Everyone was startled for a moment, then they realized what was happening.

[The photo stone was a trick Captain Wei used to deceive them.]

“I remember that the image stone can be faked. That person who gave you the fake image definitely had bad intentions and wanted to ruin our father-son relationship.” A bead of cold sweat quietly appeared on Meng’s father’s forehead.

As Mencius' mother rubbed her sleeves, she heard Mencius' father's words and, quick-wittedly, said, "It's also possible that the person knows you have achieved a high level of cultivation and is trying to blackmail you. Child, you mustn't fall for it."

The two spoke in perfect harmony, their words sincere and heartfelt, their responses perfectly synchronized, as if what they said was the truth.

Kui Houming's mocking smile grew wider and wider. He finally understood why he had been so easily fooled in the future; their acting was truly masterful.

"The recording stone doesn't exist at all. If you didn't do this, you should argue that you didn't abandon me, instead of questioning the authenticity of the recording stone," Wei Houming said coldly.

The Meng couple turned pale: "Are you trying to trick us?"

"Does it matter? The truth is already clear." Wei Houming looked at them deeply and said, word by word, "I wish I had never been born to you."

After saying that, he closed his eyes, forcing back the tears that were about to spill.

He thought he would be strong, but his heart still ached, a sharp, throbbing pain that made it hard for him to breathe.

When the Meng couple realized their lie had been exposed, they were flustered and didn't notice Wei Houming's expression. They even tried to say a few good words for themselves.

“Child, things are not as you think. Although we had some selfish motives, it is only natural. After all, your illness was more serious than your brother's at that time, and we simply could not afford to take care of you.”

"But I swear, we absolutely did not intend to use your blood as a medicinal ingredient!"

Kui Houming coldly rebuked, "Enough!"

A note from the author:

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[Lop-eared rabbit head]