Chapter 168: Chapter 168: Ominous Signs, Great Danger Looms in the Deep Night!
Ye Siyuan wouldn’t believe her brother could do such a despicable thing, not even if she were beaten to death.
But with the glaring headlines and those few pictures, the evidence seemed solid as a rock. If Ye Shen weren’t her own brother, she might have believed it herself.
The first photo showed Ye Shen with his arm around Yang Wanling as they entered a hotel room. The second depicted them embracing inside the room. The third was the check-in slip showing Ye Shen had used his ID. The fourth captured Yang Wanling’s dead body in the hotel bathtub after she had slit her wrists.
In the photo, Yang Wanling was naked, covered only by a white sheet. Only her head and neck were visible, along with the arm—wrist slit—hanging over the edge of the tub. The water in the tub was stained red with blood...
The photos were taken with great skill.
The screen was emblazoned with the words: "A society that devours people!"
If that scumbag weren’t her brother, she would undoubtedly have grabbed her keyboard and joined the netizens in cursing him.
But now, the person being attacked by the entire internet was her own brother. Ye Siyuan only wanted to say that she knew her brother best; he simply couldn’t have done this!
How could Yang Wanling have possibly committed suicide out of unbearable humiliation?
This was a frame-up!
Definitely a frame-up!
Her brother had eyes only for Song Tangtang!
Song Tangtang was Ye Shen’s girlfriend and also the Princess of S Country. The pair had been childhood sweethearts, and their relationship had always been as sweet as honey.
Even separated by distance, Ye Shen spent every day online playing games with his girlfriend, even though Old Madam Ye didn’t approve of their union.
Compared to Song Tangtang, Yang Wanling was a nobody.
How could Ye Shen possibly lay a hand on Yang Wanling?
But the netizens wouldn’t think that way.
Yang Wanling was dead, and her death was the best evidence.
Why else would she commit suicide if not because she couldn’t bear the humiliation?
Moreover, it was indeed Ye Shen who took Yang Wanling to get a room.
Ye Shen had personally escorted Yang Wanling to the hotel room.
What could possibly be on the mind of a man who takes a drunken woman to a hotel room? Surely everyone understood the implications.
Yang Wanling was an up-and-coming starlet in the entertainment industry.
The influence of a budding starlet in the entertainment industry was huge!
Her fans weren’t just upset; the entire internet was in an uproar!
In an instant, Ye Shen’s reputation was in tatters, and he faced outcry across the entire internet.
Dumbstruck, Ye Siyuan hurried home. Before she could even enter, she heard the sound of a teacup hitting the floor inside.
With a BANG, tea splashed everywhere.
The one raging was Ye Shen’s uncle, Ye Shiting.
Ye Shiting had once been the President of A Country for eight years. Even though he had stepped down, the imposing aura of his high office had not diminished. He smashed a stack of newspapers onto Ye Shen’s face and picked up a whip, ready to enforce family discipline.
"You little bastard, playing around with movie stars at your age! With your father and brother away, you think no one can control you, is that it?"
Old Madam Ye and Old Master Ye were both present, but no one dared to intervene. Such a scandal warranted discipline.
With Ye Shen’s father absent, and his grandparents unwilling to punish their grandson, the task fell to Ye Shen’s eldest uncle.
Ye Shen’s aunt embraced her furious husband, preventing the whip from landing on Ye Shen’s back.
Ye Shen’s aunt said, "It’s clear that Ye Shen is being framed. If you beat the child now, he will only feel more aggrieved."
"What infuriates me is that he was stupid enough to be manipulated! As a member of the Ye Family, how could he lack even a modicum of alertness!"
Ye Shiting’s face was stern, his disappointment palpable.
If Ye Shen had been cautious enough not to take a female star to a hotel room, how could he have been schemed against?
What infuriated Ye Shiting was his nephew’s foolishness.
Ye Shen’s aunt, her heart aching for her nephew, said, "As the saying goes, ’There are thieves who operate for a thousand years, but who can guard against them for a thousand years?’ Ye Shen is just too naive and fell for someone else’s trick. He’ll surely learn from this setback."
"In the future? What future? Once people seize an opportunity like this, they’ll want to destroy him completely. Who would give him the chance to learn his lesson?!"
Ye Shiting’s words starkly clarified the seriousness of the situation, causing Ye Shen to break into a cold sweat.
"Uncle, I really never touched Yang Wanling!"
Ye Shen’s aunt said, "Ye Shen, you’d better tell your uncle exactly what happened, and be honest."
Ye Shen dared not withhold anything and explained everything in detail.
Ye Shen said, "Last night, some friends asked me out for drinks. I didn’t know any female stars would be there. When I arrived at the private room, I saw several of them. Even so, I didn’t do anything inappropriate. Yang Wanling sat next to me, and we just had some drinks and sang a bit. Later, she got drunk. Thinking it unsafe for a girl to be so intoxicated out in public, and not knowing where she lived, I kindly got her a room in the hotel upstairs. I escorted her to the room. She was probably very drunk and insisted on hugging and kissing me, but I pushed her away and left. I really didn’t do anything to Yang Wanling! She tried to throw herself at me. I didn’t let her, and then she committed suicide? Is she crazy or something?"
Old Madam Ye said, "You silly child, you’ve been set up. It’s not that she’s crazy; someone wants to harm you."
Ye Shen exclaimed angrily, "Damn it! Who the hell is trying to harm me?"
Ye Shen had no idea that someone wanted to harm him, a fact Mo Yinhe had known for a long time.
Mo Yinhe hadn’t arranged for his protection or even warned him, precisely because he wanted Ye Shen to take a major fall. This was to stop his usual arrogant demeanor and his hedonistic lifestyle of constant partying and indulgence.
Of course, Mo Yinhe didn’t tell any other members of the Ye Family either.
He was determined to let Ye Shen take this fall.
So at this moment, no one in the Ye Family knew the full situation, and they were all frantic with urgency.
Seeing his panicked nephew, Ye Shiting said in a grave voice, "Think for yourself! When you’re in trouble, whoever stands to gain the most from it is the culprit!"
Ye Shiting tossed aside the whip. After sitting down, he took another cup of tea from the butler and sipped it. Once finished, he set the cup down heavily on the table.
At that moment, Ye Siyuan walked into the room, trembling with trepidation.
She saw her grandparents, uncle and aunt, and her cousin Ye Qinghan sitting in the living room, each with a solemn expression.
Everyone was contemplating who the beneficiary might be.
Ye Siyuan also wondered aloud, "Uncle, could it be someone who has set their sights on Song Tangtang, aiming to eliminate Asheng as a love rival?"
Ye Siyuan’s perspective was limited to such romantic entanglements; the first thing she considered was a conflict between rivals.
If Asheng were to be disgraced, his relationship with Tangtang would definitely be over. Isn’t that exactly what a romantic rival would do?
"Or maybe," she then voiced another thought, "someone is targeting our Ye Family. They always pick on the softest targets, and Asheng is the easiest one in our family to attack. He’s not as vigilant as my brother and I."
Ye Shen looked up at Ye Siyuan.
My own sister... you’re really one of a kind! Here I am in this mess, and you’re still twisting the knife! Making it sound like I’m the weakest, most naive fool in the Ye Family! I’m just too kind-hearted; I don’t assume the worst of people! Who would’ve thought that a simple act of kindness—getting a female star a room because she was drunk—could backfire so spectacularly! Given the circumstances, I couldn’t just leave Yang Wanling on the street, could I?