Chapter 130: Turning the World Upside Down

Chen Liang deliberately waited until his good-natured older brother had been thoroughly scolded before he feigned an attempt to mediate. "Oh, Dad, can you let me finish speaking before you get so angry?"

Chen’s father, still fuming, turned his head toward Chen Liang. "Go ahead, tell me! How exactly has your brother been bullying you? Your mother and I will stand up for you! I refuse to believe that the world has turned upside down, with a son riding on his father's back and crapping on his head!"

Chen Liang suppressed a giggle, then put on a serious face. "Oh, Dad, you’ve all misunderstood my brother. This was my own idea, and I’ve been thinking about it for a long time!"

"Bullshit! He’s treated you like this and you’re still speaking up for him? Eldest son, don’t you feel ashamed?"

Chen Dashan had already made up his mind and only believed his own judgment. He assumed Chen Liang was merely covering for his brother, so his temper flared up again, and he launched another verbal assault on his eldest son.

Big brother Chen Jian thought to himself: *Sigh, being alive is just too difficult. I might as well just be destroyed. I’m exhausted!*

"Hua, you should also discipline Dad. He just starts firing away without letting me finish!"

Chen’s mother, caught off guard, slapped Chen Dashan, but once she realized what was happening, she turned her fury on Chen Liang and gave him a few solid swats. "Who are you calling 'Hua'? I’m your mother! You little brat, always so disrespectful."

Chen Liang endured the slaps, then cheekily leaned in toward his mother and draped an arm around her shoulder. "Mom, look at how beautiful you are—aren't you just like a flower?"

"If it weren't for you, with Dad’s old mug, how could he have produced such handsome sons as my brother and me? You agree, right, Mom?"

"You rascal, don't think flattering me will save you from a beating. I'll have your father fetch the willow switch later and see if he can’t beat the life out of you!"

Chen Dashan rolled his eyes. A woman’s heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea; only a fool would believe that. Based on his understanding of his wife, if he dared to touch a single finger of her precious son, she would likely transform into a tigress and devour him whole!

"Oh, Mom, do you really have the heart to watch such a handsome son get beaten? If that willow switch hits me, won't your heart ache just as much? The ancients said it best: 'The blow lands on the son, but the pain is felt in the mother's heart'!"

With just a few words, Chen Liang had his mother completely wrapped around his finger. When she turned back to look at Chen Dashan, she couldn't help but glare at him. Having fully embraced her role as the protective mother, she snapped, "Chen Dashan, if you dare lay a finger on my son, I’ll fight you to the death!" Her stature as the head of the household was on full display.

A bewildered Chen Dashan thought: *What does that even mean? What did I do to deserve being fought to the death? By God, I am more wronged than Dou E, who caused snow to fall in June!*

Watching Chen Liang turn black into white with his mother’s backing, Chen Dashan felt his frustration boiling over with no place to vent. He couldn't keep this old son anymore; he was absolutely sabotaging his own father!

The more Chen Dashan thought about it, the angrier he became, to the point where he couldn't even finish his meal. He was full from nothing but pure rage.

"Dad, don’t be angry. Here is my reasoning..." Seeing that his father had finally been suppressed by his mother, and having gotten her into a good mood, Chen Liang finally laid out his plan.

"Dad, think about it. There are eight of us living in three rooms; it’s clearly a bit cramped. Besides, Little Sister is graduating soon and she’s a grown woman now—she can't keep sleeping in the same room as you two forever, right?"

"And little Chen Hong is growing up; he needs his own space to sleep. Furthermore, once Xiaoyu gets pregnant, the house will be even more crowded. That’s why I want to take advantage of the housing allocation quota while we still have it and secure a small courtyard house."

Chen Liang’s words gave his parents pause. The issue of housing was something no family could escape, and the boy was right—since they had the opportunity, why not claim another small house with a yard?

Chen Dashan was honest, but not rigid. Since Chen Liang’s logic held up, he eventually relented, though he still looked troubled. What about the gossip from the neighbors?

When he voiced his concerns, Chen Liang brushed them off. "What of it? Dad, I’m just moving out to live; I’m not splitting the family. You aren't going to stop me from coming home for dinner, are you?"

Chen Dashan thought about it and realized he was right. As long as he still came home for dinner, no neighbor could say a word against the Chen family.

By the end of dinner, Chen Liang had finally persuaded the whole family to let him move out.

He didn't waste any time. The next day, Chen Liang went to the factory to find the housing management office. He knew he couldn't bypass Vice Director Li, who was in charge of logistics.

After seeking advice from his uncle, Chen Liang had dug into Vice Director Li’s background. He finally understood how this man, whose gut was filled with nothing but rot, had managed to climb so high.

It is difficult to explain these things directly, so let us use an old analogy: if his uncle belonged to the "Royalist" faction, then Vice Director Li was part of the "Crown Prince's" faction. As long as the Prince didn't attempt a coup, they were natural allies.

His uncle’s advice was simple: you can reach out to him, but don't get too close. Don't let your interests become too deeply intertwined. He was the type of person you could have a drink with, but never share a meal with.

Chen Liang carried two cartons of "Pagoda Mountain" cigarettes and a bottle of Xifeng liquor, sneaking off to find Vice Director Li.

After knocking on his office door, he was greeted with great enthusiasm. "Section Chief Chen, come, come! I just got some fresh Maojian tea; come and have a taste!"

Indeed, Chen Liang was already a deputy section-level cadre; calling him "Section Chief" was perfectly appropriate.

"Director Li, you’re too kind. I’m actually here to ask for your help with something!"

Pulling the cigarettes and liquor from his bag, Chen Liang pushed them toward the director.

The "Pagoda Mountain" cigarettes were the soft-pack variety—the highest-end smoke an ordinary person could buy on the market. They weren't cheap; two cartons cost fourteen yuan and eighty cents, enough money to feed a family of three for a month. With the three-yuan-eighty-cent bottle of Xifeng liquor, this was a substantial gift.

"Section Chief Chen, what are you doing? Are you testing a cadre with these things?" Vice Director Li smiled, but with Chen Liang’s expert-level mastery of micro-expression observation, he caught a hint of caution in the man’s eyes.

"Director Li, you speak too seriously. My position as Section Chief is just for show; I don't actually handle the real work. All the matters in the section are decided by my uncle!"

Chen Liang was being transparent. He was telling him that his uncle knew he was here, so there was no need to be suspicious. Logically speaking, whether Royalist or Crown Prince, both belonged to the same camp—they were on the same side!

"Oh, I see. As long as there are no issues with the principles involved, I will certainly help!"

Damn it, talking to smart people is truly exhausting. In just these few sentences, all sorts of power struggles were hidden.

He was essentially saying that if it fell outside of his official principles, he couldn't help!