《Wooing my Bodyguard Wife》


 Chapter 1 Hating Rich People

    Ah. Why wasn''t she born a pretty rich heiress again?


    "Miss, your card doesn''t work. Would you like to pay in cash instead?"


    "Really? Even with the discount coupons?" Xue Ning asks incredulously, pointing to all the crumpled coupons she deposited on the counter.


    "Miss, you can only use one at a time, they can''t be stacked," the cashier says, sounding pissed. Xue Ning res at him, her big eyes and impressive dark circles making a scary picture.


    The cashier mumbles meekly, "it''s in the T&Cs, please don''t make trouble for me."


    Xue Ning sighs to herself, reminding herself not to shoot the messenger. This poor guy was just the same as her, a sad adult working a poor paying job to make ends meet in this expensive city.


    "Fine," she growls out. "Then if I make separate purchases it''s fine right?"


    "Yes? But -" The cashier starts, but Xue Ning cuts him off.


    "Then I''ll just take this first," Xue Ning says, pointing to one box of aspirin. "And I''lle back for the rest of themter."


    "...Alright," the cashier says, immediately helping her to scan her purchase. Xue Ning hands over the measly pocket change scrounged from her jacket pocket.


    Behind her, a group of teenage girls were not too pleased about the dy in queue and have taken to talking snidely behind her back.


    "God, how can one purchase take so long?"


    "Sshh¡­ she''s using coupons you know. Of course those take longer."


    "Coupons for one item? You must be joking. I didn''t realise people were that poor."


    Xue Ning turns and steadily res at them, getting satisfaction from the way they squeak and


    eventually fall into ashamed silence.


    But then someone else chimed in, her shrill voice reminding Xue Ning of nails on chalkboard.


    "Excuse me, Miss? Can you hurry it up? Some of us don''t want to waste our precious time in line. I have a boyfriend to impress at a partyter." Xue Ning turns around to eye the person that spoke to her.


    A tall woman looks down at her imperiously, and her nose scrunches up, as though Xue Ning is some foul-smelling dirt stuck at the bottom of her shoe.


    Xue Ning rolls her eyes. Great. Another rich stuck up party-girl that she''ll most likely have to be polite to at work.


    But she isn''t at work now, so she merely scoffs and retorts, preparing to give this woman a tongueshing.


    "Then why isn''t your boyfriend buying things for you? Does he not love you enough?"


    "Nonsense! Of course he loves me! He bought me this Chanel bag!" She says proudly. She deliberately waves her branded Chanel bag in front of Xue Ning''s face, as though it could dispel the poverty surrounding her.


    Xue Ning snorts as she eyes the bag.


    "Miss, you better hope your boyfriend''s feelings for you are more real than the fake Chanel bag you''re carrying." Xue Ning says callously, ignoring the shocked gasps from the schoolgirls and the horrified cashier.


    "How dare you! I''ll have you know that this ispletely authentic!" She screeches to Xue Ning and everyone who was listening. "My darling would never give me fake goods!"


    "No it''s not," Xue Ning replies cooly, giving her a mildly pitying look. "The logo on your bag isn''t even the right shade of gold."


    And she should know, she served rich bastards on a daily basis, and some of them dly taught her how to discern fake goods, and her coworkers helped supplement that knowledge.


    Before the woman can argue further, she continues.


    "Your Chanel bag has a logo with a cool blue undertone, but the logos of real Chanel bags have a warm orange one. If I were you, I''d be angry at your boyfriend. Nevermind that he gave you a fake bag - he didn''t even give you a good fake!"


    The woman lets out an outraged scream, and Xue Ning is half-hoping she''ll try and fight her, it''s been a while since she got to punch someone.


    But s, she merely leaves in humiliated silence. The schoolgirls have their mouths open in surprise.


    "Miss, your purchase is ready," the cashier says hesitantly.


    "Thanks," Xue Ning says, "now I want to buy these too," she points to the packet of tissue paper that she had initially picked up. Her skin is as thick as a rhinoceros when ites to snatching deals. "The coupon should apply then."


    She doesn''t need to imagine the disappointment and dismay of the girls behind her, but they clearly learnt their lesson. Instead ofmenting on her, their conversation turned to celebrity gossip - and who was a bigger celebrity than one of Shanghai''s modern day princes: Sun Jingwei?


    "Did you hear? Sun Jingwei is buying an ind for his 25th birthday!"


    "I heard he''s inviting every beautiful woman to that ind!"


    "What a party boy¡­ I''m so envious¡­I want to go too!"


    "You? Only if he pays for your stic surgery - ouch why did you hit me!"<sub> </sub>


    "You deserved it. I''m not asking for much from God, I just want to marry him!"


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning rolls her eyes at the sheer nonsense. Sun Jingwei, what a pain in her ass.


    She had never met him, but with all the terrible rumours about him - she never wanted to meet him!


    He was like a ghost haunting everyone in Shanghai, and she hated ghosts, especially said ghosts were rich handsome men that had the world at their fingertips, but still proceeded to squander all their potential.


    All the rich businessmen looking to get drunk had whined about what a fucking lucky bastard he was, always bragging about how his father was a billionaire, treating all of them to drinks and stealing their dates and consistently winning all his car races.


    Xue Ning had made consoling noises and merely slid over another drink, secretly unsympathetic at theirints. These customers were rich enough to blow at least three months worth of her rent money on one night''s worth of alcohol that would leave them puking at the back of their BMWs on the way back to their penthouses.


    ''Fuck those rich bastards'', she thinks to herself as the cashier finally bags herst purchase, giving her a look like he would be thanking God if she never appeared in his outlet again.


    She strolls off nonchntly, ignoring the group of gossiping girls who give her the stink eye, before breaking off into a quick jog the moment she exits the outlet.


    She needs to reach her workce in time! They had received a reservation for the entire club for some party. Some rich tycoon''s son apparently picked their club, so her boss had been losing his mind for the past week, wanting everything to be perfect.


    A flurry of activity greets her when she enters the club.


    "Hey Xue Ning, you need to look more excited! There''s going to be a huge party tonight!" Her older coworker, Qiu Tong, chatters excitedly to her as they wipe down the sses and the counter.


    "Qiu Tong-jie, that means we have more crazy people," Xue Ningments. She was fine with her usual array of heartbroken customers, or people who hated their bosses. Parties however, meant that everyone was in a mood to celebrate. They got rowdy, and then¡­ they got horny.


    Xue Ning prays to any god out there that this isn''t that sort of night. She doesn''t want to see anyone''s naked body under the neon discotheque lights of her club.


    "More crazy rich drunk people!" Qiu Tong corrects excitedly. "Maybe one of them will throw thousand dor bills everywhere and we can pick up some. Wouldn''t it be great?"


    "That would be great," she agrees, cheering up at the thought.


    "Everyone, look sharp," their manager orders. "We''re opening in half an hour, and everything must run smoothly. Got it?"


    "Yes sir!" They all reply, busying themselves withst-minute preparations - checking the lights and music, taking stock of the inventory, even wiping the floors and couches and ensuring that the toilets had toilet paper for a long long night ahead.


    Before they knew it, it was time. The doors opened and in came a steady stream of party-goers, women with tight outfits unting their figures, men in shirts and suits, and Xue Ning and Qiu Tong found themselves quickly hit with drink orders.


    Even though her hands were kept busy, Xue Ning knew none of the people she served was the person responsible for hosting such a night. No one that rich or important arrived so early. But then again, as long as the night continued peacefully, she wouldn''tin.


    After two hours, she gestures to another coworker to cover for her as she takes a quick breather outside. Ducking out from the staff entrance, she makes her way to the back alley and breathes in the cool crisp night air. It was 2am, and the night scene was still alive and thriving, but the rhythmic pounding of EDM beats was making her head hurt.


    She hurriedly takes a quick drink of water, only to pause when she spies someone lingering at the fire escape.


    He was tall, with broad shoulders wearing a well-pressed suit. His face was obscured by shadow, but Xue Ning could still see the hint of a strong jawline and a sharp cheekbone.


    No onees here other than the staff. Suspicious. She mentally calctes how hard she would have to hit to knock him out if he was indeed causing trouble.


    "Oi, what are you doing here?" She calls out. The man startles, before shooting her a sheepish grin that shows the whites of his teeth.


    "Nothing! Just catching my breath before I go in again." His voice was deep. It curled pleasantly in her ears, but she ignored that sensation. He could be a criminal. She narrows her eyes at him.


    His suit was pressed and clean,pletely wrinkle-free, and she didn''t smell any alcohol from him. He was most likely sober, in addition to being tired and nervous. God knows how often she had heard someone trying to sound like they were fine when they were absolutely not.


    "You''re lying," she argues. "You don''t look drunk."


    "I have a great alcohol tolerance!" The man exims with bravado. "I''m just psyching myself up forter! The real party only starts when I''m here, don''t you know?"


    "No?" She takes another swig of water.


    "You don''t know who I am?" He asks challengingly. Xue Ning feels the faintest urge to deck him, but she has to conserve her strength. He''s not a threat to anyone but himself.


    "Nope. Should I?" Xue Ning asks, raising an eyebrow before taking a quick look at her watch. Her break is almost over. "No matter who you are, don''t puke on the floor. I have to go back to work."


    "Wait - "


    She doesn''t, because she''s not paid to stand around in an alley on one of the busiest nights they have.


    "Bye. Hope you feel less nervouster." She says, nearly draining thest of her water before deciding to throw him the bottle. The man catches it with iling hands.


    Huh. Guess he wasn''t lying about being drunk, or this man just had terrible reflexes to begin with.


    "Drink some water anyway. Make sure to throw that in recycling when you''re done," Xue Ning says, as he stares at her, nonplussed, still clutching her stic bottle in one hand.


    "What''s your name?" The man asks.


    "Not telling you," Xue Ning replies tiredly.

 Chapter 2 Happy Birthday

    "It''s nice to meet you, ''Not Telling You''," Sun Jingwei says cheekily "I guess you can call me Mr You Don''t Look Drunk.''"


    "I''m not calling you anything," the mysterious woman says, her voice just that bit of sulky. "I''m going back inside. If you cause a fight, I''ll kill you."


    With that friendly parting shot, she ducks back into the club, leaving Jingwei alone in that dark alley.


    "...Oh? Now you''ve piqued my interest." Jingwei murmured to himself, rolling the water bottle in his hand. He had only seen her for a brief moment, but in that short while, it felt like his life had gotten interesting again.


    He had not felt interested in his life in a long while, even during the month-long celebrations held in honor of his 25th birthday.


    Celebrations have begun in a frenzy, and it seemed like everywhere he turned, his birthday was quickly turning less into a celebration for him and more of an excuse to indulge in an excess of well¡­ everything. It was fun enough for the first week, but then he already felt tired in the second week!


    He wants to go home, but how can he? He''s the goddamn host of this party, the main star. Everyone wanted a piece of him, regardless of whether he wanted to give it to them or not.


    "Jingwei-ah, can''t you bring me to your penthouse for the night? I want to see your house." A coy request made, but regretfully rejected.


    "Jingwei! Can you lend me your Ferrari? I want to take it for a spin!" Another rejected request.


    "Jingwei, do you want a beach house? I''ll sell it to you for a good price!" No, he already had 10 beach houses, and he bets that the beach house wasn''t that good anyway.


    He could have theoretically let them stew in their disappointment, but Jingwei once again got cajoled into hosting a drinking contest, which then devolved into a series of bets and hasty agreements created via misced bravado.


    His father, Sun Taiwei, one of Asia''s richest tycoons, was going to be so fucking furious when he hears about how Jingwei threw yet another extravagant birthday bash, egged on by his fellow peers and the heady rush of alcohol.


    Oh no, it wasn''t even about the money, because Jingwei knew his father was rich and would only get richer by the hour. Jingwei could fling bags of bills out from his private jet and it still wouldn''t have made a dent in his ie, even if the cash ended up crushed in the turbines of the jet and the whole ne exploded, turning Jingwei into gory confetti. His father already had his older brother, Sun Tianwei, as his perfect heir and he''d probably save more money when he didn''t need to cover Jingwei''s multiple misdeeds.


    God, that was a depressing thought.


    So here he was, left alone in a dingy alley next to Opal Horizon, one of the bigger clubs in Shanghai, trying to muster some form of enthusiasm for the birthday party thrown in his honour, with his own money. It wasn''t the most prestigious, but honestly, as long as Jingwei had hiswyer on speed dial, he could have partied on the side of a sewage pipe and everything would be fine.<sub> </sub>


    Perhaps that''s a n for next year. He wonders how many of the current party goers would show up. Not more than five, he reckons, and that''s only if he bribes them with enough money. Sewage parties didn''t look attractive on social media after all.


    Maybe that cute grouchy woman that passed him her water woulde to his sewage birthday party next year. She looked like she would if he looked sad enough.


    In one look, she managed to figure out that he was nervous. How many people around him could do it? How many of them would even bother?


    He stares at the simple stic bottle crinkling in his hands, her words reying in his brain. She had given him her water, entirely unprompted. But not unwee.


    He recalls the rise of an elegant eyebrow before she told him not to puke on the floor.


    She had no idea who he was. No one would mention something as disgusting as puke to him, Sun Jingwei.


    If she did know the truth and was pretending to save face, she could be an award-acting actress. Jingwei would rather choose to believe that for once, someone out there was willing to show him some kindness without expecting anything in return.


    He opens the water bottle and drains it dry, before flushing at a new realisation.


    Was this what normal people called¡­ an indirect kiss?


    He had done many lewd and perverted things over the years as a yboy, but this was new. He shakes his head to get his thoughts in order.


    ''Come on Sun Jingwei, you don''t know this woman. Get yourself together.'' He scolded himself, before draining the water bottle and leaving it on the floor. There was no recycling bin nearby.


    He sighed, exhaling a puff of air into the warm summer night.


    It was refreshing while itsted. Now¡­ It was showtime.


    And if he managed to get the real name of Miss ''Not Telling You'', that would be the best gift this year!

 Chapter 3 Meeting Young Master Sun

    The party was in full-swing when Xue Ning returned to her post. She thanked Qiu Tong for holding down the fort while she was away and got back to work, mentally hoping that that man managed to feel better. Even without looking clearly at his face, his bodynguage showed that he was someone that needed a night at home petting a dog more than a night at the club, but who was she to order him around?


    Looking at the raucous party-goers, she knows that her first impression was right. That man never stepped in the club. The crowd was halfway to stered, dancing wildly to the pulse of music reverberating through the club.


    Everyone who wanted a drink had already gotten one, making the dance floor a bigger attraction. The bar was situated slightly further from the stereos, so Xue Ning could enjoy the sight of people humping on each other without destroying her eardrums.


    Her eyes, however, are another story. She winced as she saw yet another couple makeout on the floor, hands wandering under their outfits. Please God, Buddha, any heavenly entity, please let them make it to the private rooms on the second floor. She doesn''t want to see this, but all heavenly powers were clearly busy granting the prayers of others, for she sees a sequined top loosen and fall to the floor, much to the hooting delight of the crowd.


    She averts her eyes from the half-naked woman, only to realise with horror that more people were taking off their clothes!


    She turns to Qiu Tong andins. "Why are they topless?"


    Qiu Tong shrugs. "They are drunk? They want to show off their boobs? Who knows? If I paid over 10000 yuan for a pair of bigger boobs I''d unt them too."


    Xue Ning facepalmed and groaned into her hands.


    Qiu Tong pats her in constion. "Hey don''t feel bad. Your boobs aren''t shabby either. And yours were even free!"


    Xue Ning splutters, turning red as she is torn between thanking her for the praise and smacking her for herment. Working at Opal Horizon for the past six months really caused her to broaden her horizons for what constituted eptablements and behaviour.


    Qiu Tong snickers, but she must take pity on her for she sends her to serve drinks to the VIP and VVIP customers in the rooms above instead.


    "It''ll be less overwhelming than this crowd," she says, "even if they were to go wild, it''s confined in one room so just ninja your way out of the room and shut the door!"


    "Got it," Xue Ning says, preparing a selection of drinks for their esteemed guests. If they weren''t drunk yet, they will be. She steeled herself and went upstairs, bncing the tray in her hands.


    "Hello?" She knocked on the first room and entered, and immediately wished she didn''t.


    "Oh baby, you feel so good¡­ fuck¡­" The man groaned as he thrusted into the woman moaning under him. Xue Ning''s retinas burned at the sight of his naked butt on disy. She''ll need bleach for her eyes.


    "Sorry for interrupting. I''lle backter." Xue Ning replies robotically, face ming red as she turns around and ms the door firmly behind her.


    She will revisit this room much, muchter. When they were hopefully done and passed out on the couch. And were fully clothed.


    "Excuse me, your drinks are here." The second room was better, but not by much. She was greeted with what seemed to be a group of drunk university students doing makeshift karaoke.


    "Ayyyeee that''s great!" One of them, who seemed to be the ringleader, said. He reached for a ss with shaky hands, downing it in one gulp. "Ah fuck, this is such good shit."


    "Goooood shit should be appre-appreciaaated, you loser!" Another one chimes out. He grabs a cup and takes a small sip. "Like this!"


    "Don''t forget guys! We can drink all we want - because we aren''t paying!" A girl screams in delight. A chorus of cheers greeted her statement.


    "Thank you Sun Jingwei for being born, you absolute rich bastard." They whooped and hollered in delight. Great. They were getting rowdy already. And did he just mention the infamous Sun Jingwei? Was he the host of this party? Nevermind, it wasn''t her business - but if someone pukes on her tonight, she''s going to mentally bill him for her shitty work night.


    "If you want anything, do order it from the ipads." She quickly mentions after settling the sses on the table.


    "Noooo don''t go!" One of them warbles, grabbing her arm. She easily twists it out of the way. Handsy drunk customers were sadly, one of the hazards of the job she had to get used to.


    "Do you wanna be my girl?" He continues pleadingly. Xue Ning stares at him. His eyes weren''t even focused on her - they were drifting to the light on the wall. He was sloshed alright. One had to be to even bother hitting on her when there were tons of more attractive women in the vicinity.


    "No, thank you," she replies firmly. "I have a boyfriend."


    She was depressingly single, but that random student didn''t need to know that. Hell. Even her parents didn''t need to know that, but they did.


    "Buuuurn!" His friendsugh at the prompt rejection. The boy was briefly crestfallen before heughed in good humour.<sub> </sub>


    "I''ll be going now," she hurriedly makes her way out of the room, but not before she hears them say "If you were Sun Jingwei, she''d say yes!"


    Sun Jingwei again. Why was everyone so obsessed with him? She gave herself a mental shake and went to the third room.


    "Excuse me, your drinks are here." She said, preparing to ce them on the table.


    "Thank you, darling." A relieved voice greets her. Her eyes widened in surprise. There wasn''t a naked person in the throes of passion, or a group of rowdy drunks.


    It was that man from the alley. Mr You Don''t Look Drunk.


    Xue Ning froze and took a closer look, only to find the man''s eyes locked on her own. She flushed at the image he made, lounging on the leather couch as though he had all the time in the world.


    The warm yellow light illuminated his stunning features. Strong brows, pronounced cheekbones, a tall nose bridge and a jawline she could use to cut her vegetables on.


    And his eyes. They were still on her. She had the vague feeling like she was being mentally undressed. She narrows her eyes at his impudence, but he is an important customer. If she wants to kick his ass, she''ll have to do it after work hours and in a ski mask.


    As though sensing her particrly violent thoughts, the man lifts both hands in a conciliatory gesture. He still has his arms wrapped around two beautiful women though, so it''s not much.


    "Won''t youe and sit with me?" He asks.


    "No." She replies curtly, before realising he is still technically a customer that could lodge aint. "I mean, it would not be proper. I have other guests to serve."


    "That''s too bad," He replies, with only the slightest hint of whining in his voice. Somehow, she has the strangest feeling that he actually sounds like he means it. What a good actor.


    "You already have two beauties hanging from your arms," she points out politely as she sets their drinks up. "One mustn''t be too greedy, yes?"


    "Oh? You''re lecturing me?" He leans forward, and his half-unbuttoned shirt falls further to reveal a tantalising glimpse of tanned skin and the hint of muscles. Xue Ning tears her eyes away from his body only to see his smirking face. "You have a lot of nerve."


    "I have enough," she replies easily. "Do remember to drink some water afterwards." His eyes shed with obvious amusement.


    "I hope you enjoy your night with your guests." She continues, knowing that he''ll understand the implied ''without me'' unsaid at the end.


    "Thank you then¡­ Snow," His eyes darted to her name tag on her uniform, lingering on the curves of her breasts before they focused on her face again. She rolled her eyes internally. What a perverted yboy! He already had two scantily dressed women literally hanging off his arms and he was still eyeing her?


    Insatiable. Guess whatever nervousness or tiredness she saw back then must have been long gone.


    "She''s right, Young Master Sun! Pay attention to us!" The woman on his left side tittered in a grating voice.


    Young Master Sun? Nah it couldn''t be. Sun wasn''t amon surname, but it wasn''t so rare¡­ right?


    "Are you more interested in this woman than us?" The one on the right side chimed in, pouting all the while.


    She stared at him, while slowly inching backwards, the same way one would flee from a sleeping predator. The door was so close, just a few more strides¡­


    "So what if I am?" He asked, stopping her right in her tracks.


    What. The. Fuck.


    =


    This novel is only authorized to be read on Webnovel.

 Chapter 4 Brewing Disaster

    His night just improved exponentially! Jingwei''s eyes roved all over Snow. Now he could see her more clearly and he liked what he saw. ck hair tied into a short ponytail, big doe eyes, a cute button nose and full lips. Her soft round cheeks looked very pinchable.


    She was ring at him. It reminded him of petnt kittens he used to have that would bite and scratch when provoked, before his father made him give them away, iming they were unsuitable as pets.


    So adorable.


    "Surely you jest," she says, still trying to discreetly escape. He smirks at the way she''s trying to sneak away from him. "I''ll be on my way. Have fun! Goodbye!"


    Just like before, she all but leaves before he can get thest word. Why does this keep happening to him when ites to her?


    The first time could be an ident, because she didn''t know who he was.


    This time, it was deliberate! She must know who he is, one of the girls called him by his surname. What was her name again - was it Xiao Chun? Or Xiao Hua? He honestly couldn''t recall, they all blurred together in his mind, the same perfumed bodies and sweet, almost sharine, voices, even their features seemed to be almost copy-pasted from one another.


    The stic surgeon responsible for them must be rich. Not as rich as him of course. But still.


    And of course, they all wanted the same things. Either his body, heart, or money.


    "Young Master Sun, how could you tease us like this?" One of them said, pretending to sulk. "Ignoring us for the bartender is so mean!"


    "Exactly!" The other one echoes. "How are we not as beautiful as her?"


    "Isn''t beauty in the eye of the beholder?" He asks curiously, a hint of steel lurking underneath his cheerful demeanour. He smiles with all his teeth. The girls flinch. "Are you saying that my eyes are wed?"


    "Well¡­ no¡­of course not! But¡­" the girls splutter and hesitate. That was all the excuse he needed to send them away.


    "Go. The both of you are ruining my mood." He pretends to scowl and points a threatening arm at the door.


    "But Young Master Sun! We''ll get scolded!" The girls panic, and one of them grabs at his arm with her long manicured nails. He shakes her off.


    "And is that my business?" He retorts. "I''ll call you to return if I feel better! Now scram before I really get angry."


    They fled in a haste. He hopes they don''t wait by the door, he had no intention of calling them back. He was going to get Snow to bring up more drinks (especially water) so that he can stare more at her cute face while she tries not to punch him.


    He smiled to himself as he recalled their short interaction.


    Many people want to punch him in the face, but she''s the only one other than his father that made it look so obvious. It was hrious, because her nose scrunched up in disgust before she remembered that she was supposed to smile.


    She smiled so painfully. Her lips barely moved up before they settled into a natural downturn. Paired with her doe eyes winged with sharp eyeliner, it gave him the impression of a particrly disgruntled cat that identally stepped in water.


    That settles it. He''s going to make Snow his woman. How hard could it be?


    =


    Xue Ning sneezes as she''s cleaning the countertop. Qiu Tong shoots her a concerned look, but she shakes her head. She''s definitely noting down with a cold. She refuses to. ''Come on, immune system,'' she mentally orders, ''do your job. Destroy those germs!''


    "Are you sick?" Qiu Tong asks. "If you are, don''t sneeze into the sses!"


    "I''m not sick. I just sneezed once." She protests.


    "Oh¡­ then¡­ is someone thinking about you?" Qiu Tong asks mischievously, nudging her yfully. "A special someone?"


    "No!" She refuses to remember the look in Sun Jingwei''s eyes as he stared at her in the room. Definitely not.


    "Really?" She observes, still cleaning the same shot ss. "There''s no one? You''re 25, girl. It''s best to start looking now - if not all the good ones will be snatched up!


    "Oh man, not you too¡­" Xue Ning grumbles. "My mom gave me this exact same speech when I called her three days ago!"


    "And she''s right, take it from someone who''s been there - the dating pool only gets shittier with time! You''ve got to take advantage of your youth!" Qiu Tong deres adamantly.


    "I am! I''m working to earn money!" She asks, not expecting an answer.


    "What if you end up a leftover woman?" Qiu Tong asks in concern. "I just don''t want you to get more trouble from society."


    "There''ll be someone that likes to eat leftovers, I guess," Xue Ning replies, touched by Qiu Tong''s concern.


    "Besides, being single isn''t so bad. I don''t have to spend money dolling up to look good!" She adds.<sub> </sub>


    And that is true - if not for this job, she wouldn''t have bothered to even buy eyeliner, mascara and lipstick to look presentable. She hates spending money - and because of this she even has to buy makeup remover!


    "Still¡­ we should treat ourselves sometimes. Life is too sad otherwise." Qiu Tong says, patting her shoulder. "You are too young to be stingy with self-care."


    "I guess," she says, not really believing it.


    Then she sneezes again. Crap. There was now snot on her face. Was it Sun Jingwei''s fault or did she really catch a cold?


    "Ah! The sses!" Qiu Tong exims, "Xue Ning-ah, just go to the restroom and clean up first. I''ll handle it. Take some medicine too!"


    Xue Ning protests weakly, but is still shooed away to the toilets. She needed to wash her hands and blow her nose at least. She made her way to the nearest toilet - it wasn''t the staff one, but it was empty and blessedly clean enough.


    She might as well take a short break; she enters the cubicle meant for cleaning supplies, locks it and promptly sits on an upturned bucket.


    Ah. Finally her feet get to rest after hours of standing up.  She took off her shoes and flexed her toes, encased in socks. Her muscles nearly cried in relief.


    She hears the sound of high heels as someone enters the loo.


    "Jie, what do we do now? The n is foiled!" A woman frantically asks.


    "Shhh, not so loud, do you want people to hear?" Another woman scolds her.


    "It''s all that bartender''s fault! Hua-jie, why did she have to appear?" The first woman angrily exims. Even in a softer voice, Xue Ning  can still hear her clearly. Her skill of eavesdropping on people who were shit-talking about her has been honed for years since she was a student dealing with asshole schoolmates.


    "Well, Xiumin, you made things worse!" The second woman, Hua-jie, whispers just as furiously in return. "Why did you make him angry? You know his temper!"


    "He''s a brat." Xiumin bitterly grumbles. "I''m going to make him lose everything."


    Wow. She raises an eyebrow in amazement. Someone really has a bone to pick with that man. She stops massaging her feet to listen more carefully.


    "And we will¡­ the night is not over. Everyone is still in ce. Look, knowing him, he''s going to look for the bartender again. We''ll just have to find her and stay close to her! The n can still proceed."


    "Hua-jie, you''re right." Xiumin sniffles. "That man is not leaving this ce unscathed!"


    They leave the restroom, unaware that said bartender was massaging her feet merely a cubicle away.


    Well. What does she do now? Go back and warn that man that the two women he was cuddling with wanted to end him?


    Was it her business?


    She waits a while longer, before putting on her shoes and leaving the restroom. She''ll just¡­ y it by ear. Maybe the women just wanted to p Sun Jingwei, instead of something more serious like stabbing him with a knife. It was just impossible. There was no way to hide a knife in their skimpy outfits.


    Xue Ning takes a deep breath and calms herself down. She doesn''t need to interfere. What she does need to do is return to work. She can''t let Qiu Tong handle the entire bar by herself.


    "You''re back! But you don''t look so good, are you sure you''re alright?" Qiu Tong asks.


    Well, she just overheard a potential conspiracy to murder. In bed. Perhaps.


    "I''m fine really," she assures Qiu Tong. "It''s just work stress and I''m tired."


    Qiu Tong looks dubious, but she doesn''t press any further.


    Xue Ning sighs in relief; there is no point pulling Qiu Tong into a possible shitstorm. If the news spread, it would create a huge wave of panic and the customers would leave in droves.


    What''s more, nothing truly happened yet. And she has no clue what could actually be the n. What if the women just wanted to kick Sun Jingwei in the balls? Why should she stop them?


    What''s the sense in raising the rm for nothing?


    Doing this would affect the club''s reputation.


    More importantly, she would be fired!


    Even with all these rationalisations, Xue Ning can''t get rid of the niggling feeling at the back of her mind that she was missing something important.


    If she had known what was going to happen, she would have just stayed in the toilet the whole night until morning came.

 Chapter 5 Disaster Strikes

    Xue Ning wished for a peaceful end of her shift, but Qiu Tong shot her an eager look when she went back to the bar and she knew, deep down, her wish was not granted.


    Sun Jingwei was at the bar.


    She shot him an incredulous look. Why was he even here, shouldn''t he be lounging in the VIP room specifically reserved for him?


    "Xue Ning, look who asked for you!" Qiu Tong exims delightedly.


    Guess Sun Jingwei wasn''t a hallucination, because Qiu Tong could see him too.


    "Hello, we meet again," Sun Jingwei says with just the slightest hint of smugness. "It must be fate."


    "I work here," she answers tly, too tired for her brain-to-mouth filter to work. Qiu Tong smacks her arm as a warning, but that man seems to smile even wider at her answer.


    "I know! But I must say, I''m surprised that someone as cute as you is a bartender." Jingwei continues, leaning forward to tower over Xue Ning. If not for the bar counter between them, Xue Ning would have felt the heat of his body radiate in her direction.


    "What''s so surprising about that?" Xue Ning demands, frowning at his words. She refuses to cower before his alpha male posturing.


    She purposely tiptoes just a bit, tilting her head higher so she can meet his eyes more evenly, but he''s still nearly two heads taller and very amused by her efforts to intimidate him.


    Curse him. If only she was 20cm taller!


    Beside her, Qiu Tong has her head in her hands.


    "Young Master Sun, please don''t be offended by her," Qiu Tong pleads anxiously. "She''s¡­"


    "Very tired and cranky." Xue Ning says, knowing that Qiu Tong is trying to find a way to diplomatically state that Xue Ning was onement away frommitting violence without offending Sun Jingwei.


    "It''s alright, I am a magnanimous man," he deres. "I forgive you on one condition - you make me a drink right now."


    "What do you like?" She asks. This she can do.


    "Surprise me." He smiles , propping a hand on his cheek as he tilts his head to eye her thoughtfully. "I believe you will have something that suits me."


    "Oh I do." Xue Ning is the one smirking for a change, as she easily hands him a bottle of mineral water. Sun Jingwei stares at it, nonplussed.


    "You are so thirsty. I think this is just what you need," she replies smugly. Behind her, she hears Qiu Tong''s cry of dismay.


    Right. This man was a VVIP customer. She was going to get fired.


    "I knew there was a reason why I liked you." Sun Jingwei smiles brilliantly. "Has anyone told you you look like a cute kitten when scolding me?"


    "Are you a masochist?" Xue Ning asks while staring at him nkly. There is no reason for him to look this delighted after she all but implied he was a horny lech.


    Heughs, loud enough to be heard over the music.


    "Who knows? I wouldn''t mind discovering it if it''s with you." He even winks at her for good measure. The bar feels strangely warm for a reason.


    "Then we are both going to live in blissed ignorance then," she retorts easily. "Seriously. Do you want an actual alcoholic drink, or are you here to stare at my face until the club closes?"


    "I can do both. A gin and tonic please, paired with your phone number?"


    "One gin and tonicing up." She tantly ignores the second part of his order, choosing to busy herself with creating the drink.


    She can still feel his eyes on her though. Did he never see a bartender work before?


    "Young Master Sun! You''re down here!" She froze; it was the same two women whispering in the washroom!


    "We''re really sorry we made you mad. Please let us drink a bit with you to make up for it?" From the voice, Xuan Ning guessed that she was Xiumin.


    She had dark curls that tumbled over her back like an inky waterfall, and a face and figure that wouldn''t look out of ce in showbiz. Inparison, Xuan Ning felt like a tiny tired potato.


    "Yes please let us!" The second woman, Hua-jie, continues to cajole him. "If not, we won''t be able to forgive ourselves. May we trouble Miss Bartender to make more drinks?"


    "She''s busy with m-" Sun Jingwei protests.


    "That''s fine," Xuan Ning cuts in. "This is my job after all. What do you wish to have?"


    "Hmm¡­ a Long Ind Iced Tea for me." Xiumin says.


    "I want an espresso martini!" Hua-jie adds.


    "I see, please wait a while," she says cidly, while internally cursing. Both drinks they ordered seemed normal, but they had a long list of ingredients and were both time-consuming to make. It will keep her busy, with less time to entertain Sun Jingwei in conversation.


    Now that she has overheard their conversation, she can''t help but wonder if this was on purpose. Her gut feeling says yes, so she makes sure to keep an eye out for any shady behaviour between the two of them.


    Of course, this doesn''t go unnoticed by Sun Jingwei.<sub> </sub>


    "My my Snow? Are you jealous that my attention has been split from you? Don''t worry, I''ll still have my eyes on you." Sun Jingwei deres firmly. She wants to rub her temples.


    How much did he drink before she visited his room? Is this how he behaves when sober?


    And how did he end up misunderstanding her actions? She''s trying to possibly save his sorry life - why does he have no survival instincts?


    "Don''t worry, I''ll survive," she replies dryly, shooting both women an impassive look while handing him his drink. He takes a sip and smiles. So far so good.


    "Qiu Tong, can you help me with the Long Ind?" She asks. Qiu Tong agrees and helps grab the relevant liquor.


    While she busies herself with working the coffee machine for that espresso martini, she still keeps a careful eye out on the trio at the bar. Hua-jie has her hand on his chest, ying with Sun Jingwei''s cor while giving him a good view of her cleavage. He tantly stares.


    Xue Ning rolls her eyes. So much for having his eyes on hers. All men do is lie.


    Xiumin isn''t lying about wanting to harm Jingwei though.


    Xue Ning is exhausted, but not tired enough to miss the way she dumps a handful of powder into Jingwei''s gin and tonic while he''s distracted by said cleavage, all while pretending to serve him his drink.


    What the fuck. She ms the bottle of liquor on the counter and snatches the spiked drink away from Xiumin. Some of it sloshes out of the ss, and the look on Xiumin''s face could have curdled milk.


    "Oi Sun Jingwei, don''t drink this one," Xue Ning says. "I think a fly died inside it."


    "It looks perfectly fine to me," Xiumin says with a practised smile, but her knuckles are white, a sharp contrast to the bright red of her nails.


    "Oh yeah? Then I''ll pour you some from this drink and you can drink it yourself!" She argues.


    "Young Master Sun, the bartender is bullying me!" Xiumin pretends to throw a tantrum, her voice attracting the attention of the other party goers and staff "Look there''s nothing here!"


    "I just saw you spike his drink," Xue Ning says, patience running thin.


    "Huh? Why would I do that? Who has ever heard of a woman spiking a man''s drink? Everyone, don''t you think it''s nonsense?"


    Xue Ning splutters, but Xiumin isn''t done spouting utter nonsense.


    "Besides, I think you''re just jealous that Young Master Sun is spending time with me instead of you." She crosses her arms, deliberately drawing more attention to her assets. "But who can me him? He has eyes."


    The crowd begins to mutter. The name Sun Jingwei gets heard more than once.


    "Li Xue Ning! What do you think you''re doing!" The angry voice of her boss reaches her ears. "Do you want to be fired!"


    Before she can exin, Hua-jie cuts in cooly.


    "Your employee used my friend of spiking Young Master Sun''s drink without proof. This is a very serious usation."


    "That''s because I did see you spike her drink," Xue Ning protests hotly.


    "But there''s no proof! Is this how your employees treat VIP customers? Snatching their drinks and arguing with them unprovoked?" Hua-jie argues, her eyes glinting cruelly.


    "Xue Ning! How could you do something like that! Give back her drink this instant!" Her boss yells at her, aghast.


    "But she really did -"


    "Give it back and apologise!"


    "Oh screw you!" Xue Ning cries out, pissed beyond belief. "You know what - fine, I''ll prove it."


    Before anyone can stop her, she downs the entire spiked drink in one shot.


    It hadn''t tasted any different.


    "See? She''s perfectly fine! Now you can see she''s clearly lying, Young Master Sun!" Xiumin''s voice rings in her head like a fire rm.


    Perfectly fine? What bullshit. Her body feels like it''s on fire, her skin prickling with a growing heat. Was she having a fever? She sways on her feet, leaning onto the bar counter for support. The side of the bar counter rubs against the seam of her pants, making her moan.


    She feels her nipples stiffen even in her bra, without stimtion. Things were not good.


    She tries to go to the bathroom, but her limbs feel incredibly heavy, like her bones were made of lead. She wanted to yell for help, but her mouth didn''t cooperate.


    Well. Guess she''s fucked.


    She res at Sun Jingwei through her rapidly blurring vision. At the core of it all, this was his fucking fault.


    Her legs buckle, and she copses on the floor in a loud thump. Her spiked drink tumbles out of her hand, the ss breaking with a sharp crunch.


    Thest thing she sees is Sun Jingwei''s horrified face looming in front of her, screaming words she cannot understand.

 Chapter 6 To The Hospital

    Sun Jingwei watched, paralysed, as Xue Ning swayed in front of him, her eyes fluttering shut even as she tried to stay awake. There was no denying that she had been drugged, and Jingwei could only hope that she did not ingest anything life-threatening for his sake.


    He stretches out his hands to steady her - but it''s toote! Xue Ning stumbles and falls backwards with a heavy thud, the spiked drinking ss shattering from the impact.


    "Call an ambnce!" Jingwei roars as he leaps over the counter in desperation, pulling her close to check for bleeding wounds.


    "Oh god she''s bleeding!" Qiu Tong yells. "Xue Ning, hang in there - the ambnce ising soon!"


    At this new development, the crowd predictably panics, screaming louder.


    "AHHHHHHH a murder! A murder!"


    "Oh my god! She''s dead!"


    "Daddy! I want to go home!"


    Jingwei ignored all the screeching, focused on the unconscious woman in his arms.


    "You idiot! Why did you do that!" Sun Jingwei scolds frantically, while brushing away ss shards from her body, uncaring of the way they nicked his bare hands. She was bleeding, but thankfully it wasn''t from her head. She only got cuts from the broken ss on her arms.


    He marred her smooth skin! He was a monster!


    "You''d better not die on me!" He continues, willing her to wake. His hand touches the soft skin of her cheeks. They felt abnormally warm to the touch. What was in that drink?


    "Oi! Respond when I''m talking to you!"


    Remarkably, that gets a response. Xue Ning strangely, nuzzles closer to him and sniffs at his neck, before mouthing at the patch of exposed skin on his corbone.


    God. This was cruel torture. Why couldn''t something like this happen when they were both conscious and willing?


    Instead, he gets a handful of squirming Xue Ning who is subconsciously pushing her best assets into his hands. Even if he didn''t want to take advantage of her, there was no denying the softness of her breasts and how full they felt.


    God, please, I know that I never visited church, but I will now if you save us both!


    What he gets is his saviour lifting her arm weakly to his face and patting it. God, he must seem like a wreck if even the drugged bartender is subconsciously feeling sorry for him. Her hand falls, but he manages to hold onto it before it falls.


    Why was her skin so hot? He grips it tight, willing his strength to transfer to hers.


    After what seemed like forever, the ambnce had arrived to transport her to the hospital.


    The medical staff pried Xue Ning''s unconscious body from Jingwei''s tight hold to transport her to the nearest hospital, only to be surprised when they realised Jingwei squeezed his way into the back of the ambnce and simply refused to be shooed away.


    p "Drive to Zhongshan hospital ASAP!" He orders. Zhongshan hospital was owned by his father - Xue Ning would have a VIP ward reserved for her upon her arrival, no questions asked.</anda>


    "Excuse me sir, are you the patient''s husband?" One staff member asks cautiously, watching the way he was still clutching her hand. There were no wedding rings on both hands.


    "If you''re not, I''m going to have to ask you to step aside."


    "Yes I am." The words slip out of his mouth before he can stop them. "So drive to Zhongshan hospital before something happens to my wife!"


    The paramedics gasped in surprise. Right in front of them was famed bachelor Sun Jingwei, and lying on their stretcher is his wife? They could hardly believe their eyes!


    They won''t be the only ones.


    Unbeknownst to him, this hasty statement was recorded by a bystander and uploaded online. In less than 24 hours, it would be viewed over 100 million times and create a mass of spection that far exceeded any previous scandal of his.


    But for now, Jingwei is blessedly unaware of the chaos brewing in the distance as the ambnce shuts the doors and drives off. Jingwei fishes for his nearly dead phone and makes a call to reserve the VIP ward and have the doctors on standby.<sub> </sub>


    His second call is to his assignedwyer and possibly his best friend, Liu Shengli, who nearly doesn''t pick up.


    "Jingwei, you better have a bloody good reason to be calling at this hour." Liu Shengli grumbles near incoherently, voice thick with sleep.


    "Someone tried to drug me but Xue Ning drank it instead and now we''re both on the way to the hospital." The words escape Jingwei in a rush.


    "What the fuck. Who is Xue Ning? Are you alright?" Shengli''s voice sounds more awake, more panicked.


    "I''m fine! I don''t know about my bartender though," he says, desperate. "She''s still unconscious and she got cut from the ss shards."


    "Oh my god. Okay. Sit tight, let the doctors do their job. And for the love of god don''t answer any questions from the police unless I''m there." He can hear Shengli breathe a harried breath. "I''ll meet you at the hospital."


    "Sorry for the trouble," Jingwei says. "I''ll double your bonus. Do you want a new house too?"


    "I want you to stay out of trouble for good, but a new house is good too." Shengli replies. "Do you know who did it?"


    "...No. But I think she does."


    "Great. Just great." Another harried sigh. "I''ll send a memo to your father and older brother then."


    Jingwei pre-emptively winces at the tongueshing he''ll receive for this.


    "Make sure they focus more on the fact that someone tried to drug me," he says. "No one should be so desperate for my virtue."


    "No shit, I''m sure your family will know. See you tomorrow. Oh wait, it''s today. See you in a few hours - AND DON''T DO ANYTHING STUPID." Shengli all but yells into the phone, sleep gone from his voice, before hanging up on him.


    Well. Guess he did deserve that for waking him up at an ungodly timing. He blinks and yawns, feeling more tired now that the adrenaline was wearing off.


    The worry was still there though. Xue Ning''s vitals were steady enough, but she was dead to the world.


    If she wasn''t there to stop it, it would have been him. He owes her his life, and he''ll be damned if he doesn''t pay it back.


    =


    After being assigned as Jingwei''s personalwyer for two years, Liu Shengli wasn''t new to receiving work calls at odd hours for all sorts of reasons, mostly to clean up Jingwei''s messes.


    They ranged from making drunk party girls sign NDAs to stop them from bbing on social media about whatever strange kinks Jingwei may have, to resolving the destruction of public property during those nights where things turned ugly.


    An attempted drugging was something new. And to make matters moreplicated, someone unrted to their family or their business took the hit for Jingwei. Who knows what that woman would ask in return for such an act?


    Not to mention the perpetrators were still atrge. If Shengli''s thoughts were correct, then this drugging was premeditated - and the culprits would definitely have fled the moment the bartender got drugged instead.


    What a mess. He hastily drafts a memo to his real boss, Jingwei''s father, and makes sure to loop his poor older brother into the loop too.


    Hopefully they would have more ideas about the culprits. The Sun family had made many enemies over the years - perhaps one of them had just decided to strike at the lowest hanging fruit.


    Just as he was about to make his way to the hospital, his phone beeped with a notification.


    [1 New Message] from Unknown Number


    ''Have you seen this yet?''


    He frowns. If this was another person sending him Sun Jingwei''s doctored sex tapes for him to verify and sue, he is going to be very pissed.


    He clicks on the link, and his mouth drops.

 Chapter 7 Waking Up

    The bed was really soft. Xue Ning doesn''t recall her thin mattress back at her rented apartment being thisfortable. That must be why she didn''t want to wake¡­ it was nice to drift in and out of consciousness, head on a soft pillow and tucked under a warm nket, a warm hand holding her own and the constant beeping of her rm clock¡­


    Wait. That wasn''t normal.


    Xue Ning tries to open her eyes, only to find them incredibly heavy. Her limbs were also not responding. She whimpered; was this sleep paralysis?


    The warm hand squeezes her own. She tries to squeeze back, but merely manages to move a few fingers.


    "Ah! Doctor! She moved! Hey, can you hear me?"


    Xue Ning frowns at the loud voice, her eyes still glued shut.


    "Sorry, I must have startled you," the voice gets softer, warmer. It makes her heart flutter somehow. She has a feeling the speaker is leaning down to whisper in her ear, because she can smell the hint of cologne at her side.


    "This is all my fault. Please be okay?" The voice pleads, now tenderly massaging her hand. "Squeeze back if you can hear me."


    Xue Ning doesn''t want that voice to sound so sad. She squeezes with as much strength as she can muster, which is¡­ not much.


    "Please move aside Mr Sun, I need to examine the patient." Another voice says, coolly professional. The warm hand is gone, and she finds herself missing it already.


    A bright light shed into her eyes. Ouch. She blinks repeatedly and is greeted by an unfamiliar face wearing ab coat and a stethoscope staring down at her.


    "She is conscious, rest assured. It''s best to let the poison flush out of her body system naturally, but that''ll take a while longer. So for now, we''ll keep her for observation first." The man says.


    "Thanks Doctor." She turns her head to the source of the voice and winces at how sore her neck feels. Mr Sun¡­ Where had she heard that name before?


    Xue Ning coughs. God her mouth feels dry.


    "Wa-water¡­" she croaks out.


    "Here!" A cup of water was hurriedly brought to her lips. "Ah wait, you probably should sit up -"


    She takes a few hesitant sips, but once she takes a closer look at the person who was kind enough to help her, the water immediately goes down the wrong pipe, causing her to choke and spit out water all over herself.


    "You! What are you doing here?!" She croaks out, disbelivingly.


    Sun Jingwei was feeding her water. Sun Jingwei was helping her sit up and frantically using napkins to wipe away the water she coughed up, his hands nearly pawing at the wet fabric on her chest. She grabs his offending hands with her own to pull them away.


    "Oi. Where do you think you''re touching?" She growls out.


    "Oops?" Sun Jingwei lets out a sheepish smile. "Hey - don''t hit me - the doctor said you''re supposed to take it easy!"


    "What happened to me?" She asks. Her memory was blurry after chugging that spiked drink. Now that she''s lying in a hospital bed, she realises she made a highly moronic mistake. She should have just thrown the drink back in that woman''s face.


    However, during that night, she was exhausted and cranky and feeling incredibly wronged, all factors impairing her judgement.


    "You got drugged because you drank the spiked drink meant for me. You saved me big time. You have no idea how much this means to me." Sun Jingwei says apologetically.


    She waves him off.


    "Don''t get the wrong idea, I didn''t do it for you. I would have done it for anyone else." She says. "Nevermind that - did you catch the women that did this?"


    "They''ve escaped," Jingwei replies, even more apologetically.


    "What? How?" She exims in shock, nearly coughing at the indignity of it all. "They were right there! Next to you!"


    "I was more worried about you than I was about catching them." Jingwei says seriously. "My people are already investigating this matter as we speak."


    "How long have I been here?" Xue Ning asks, before looking around the hospital room. It was bigger than her entire apartment, and it even included a television mounted on the wall, a sofa bed next to her, and a tiny kitchte tucked in the corner. She can even spot a private toilet and shower at the end of the room.


    "¡­ Where am I?" She asks warily.


    "Zhongshan Private Hospital - this is one of their S ss wards, so you don''t have to worry about anyone harassing you while you''re resting. And the doctor is a family friend - he''ll make sure you''re back to full health as soon as possible." Jingwei replies, staring at her intensely.


    "...Thanks." Xue Ning says, feeling a bit awkward at his continued attention. She decides to drink more water. "But you still haven''t answered my first question - how long have I been here?"


    "You''ve been here for around¡­ 8 hours?" Jingwei guesses. "I admitted you at around 4.30am, and it''s noon time now. Do you feel hungry enough to eat something? I can order food in."


    "It''s fine, there''s no need to go through the extra trouble." Xue Ning says, patting her stomach. "I don''t think I have much appetite."


    "How about some fruit?" He ps his hands twice, and immediately a bevy of maids walk into her hospital room, each carrying a tter covered in a cloche. Xue Ning''s mouth hangs open in surprise.


    Were the maids just waiting outside her room door? What on earth?


    Mistaking her look for awe, Jingwei continues smugly.


    "My family imported some premium dragonfruit, apples from Mt Fuji, strawberries from Australia¡­" With each listed fruit item, a maid lifts open the respective cloche to reveal the said fruit sitting underneath it.


    "How¡­" She points at all the maids, but they merely look at her as though she''s the strange one for not predicting their appearance.


    "If fruit isn''t to your taste, I can get my chef to cook you something you like. No matter your craving, I''ll fulfil it!" Jingwei promises.<sub> </sub>


    "It''s fine, I''ll have what you''re having," she hastily assures him. Jingwei looks too serious; if she had jokingly mentioned that she wanted croissants from France he might have just flown them over.


    Not that she has ever been to France. She''s not going to waste money to eat fancy bread.


    "Alright, so I''ll get you a tomahawk steak too then, with a sd side and some fruit for dessert. I would give you wine too, but the doctor said no alcohol until you''vepletely recovered."


    Tomahawk steak? Didn''t steake from cows? When did they start hunting hawks for meat?


    Rich people really were from another.


    "Ah, that might be a bit¡­ much." Both the amount of food and the cost. "I would honestly be fine with noodles from the hospital cafeteria."


    He stared at her, aghast.


    "What? I''ve heard Zhongshan hospital provides good hospital food too!" Xue Ning says defensively.


    "Okay. If that''s what you want." Jingwei says, automatically deting like a balloon. She feels oddly apologetic at his disappointment - it felt like she just kicked a puppy.


    "You can still buy your tomahawk steak, don''t let me stop you." She says. "And I''m a grownup who saved youst night, so actually, you don''t need to worry about me."


    "Sadly Miss Li Xue Ning, that''s not a possible course of action at the moment." He argues firmly. "The culprits responsible are still atrge, and with you being both my saviour and the best lead for the case, I cannot in good conscience leave you alone."


    She sighs and leans back on the pillows.


    "Really? Don''t you have anything better to do than to watch over me?" Xue Ning asks suspiciously.


    "Truly, there''s nothing more important." Jingwei replies with a warm smile. "So¡­ would you like steak and noodles for lunch?"


    =


    "Why is my son not back yet? He''s not even the one hospitalised!?"


    An angry voice bellows, disturbing the tranquil Sunday afternoon. Outside, birds perching on theirndscaped trees fled in fear, leaving a flurry of frantic chirps.


    Unfortunately, Liu Shengli was not as lucky as the birds. He was trapped inside with the mansion staff, office staff, as well as Sun Jingwei''s older brother, Sun Tianwei while the patriarch of the almighty Sun family, Sun Haowei, raged over his youngest son.


    "Aish! This idiotic son of mine!" Sun Haowei continues to yell, not expecting a reply.


    The offending news article was still on his phone''s browser.


    The title?


    ''Sun Jingwei involved in a Party Drugging Case!''


    The old man had lived through so many hardships to establish hispany to be Asia''s biggest tradingpany, dealing in everything under the sun from telmunications, to jewellery, even to managing famous celebrities, only for hispany''s name to be continuously dragged down the mud by his youngest son and trashy tabloid news.


    In this case, the trashy tabloids were wrong, but with his son''s reputation as damaged as it was, even this nonsensical ''news'' article resulted in thepany''s stocks falling. Uneptable!


    Furious, he throws his phone on the floor, shattering the screen immediately. Everyone winces. The head butler immediately picks it up and reces it with another new phone, but Sun Haowei waves him away, face still red with anger.


    "Father, calm down. This stress is bad for your blood pressure." Sun Tianwei coaxes calmly, to no avail.


    "Your younger brother is bad for my blood pressure!" Sun Haowei thumps his chest. "Look at what the news is saying!"


    "Father, this time the tabloids are wrong. Our PR team has already issued a statement with rifications. Our legal department has also begun suing them."


    "That''s right," Liu Shengli takes this opportunity to chime in. "We have already sued them for nder in this case."


    "So? The main issue is this dumbass son of mine. If he didn''t get into trouble, would the tabloids have so much ammunition to write about him?" He roars.


    "And what''s more, this unfilial son doesn''t even bother to pay me a visit after causing this much trouble! Does he still have this father in mind?"


    "Of course he does," Sun Tianwei says, "he''s just worried about the bartender."


    "Speaking of which, have you done what I''ve asked?" Sun Haowei takes a deep breath to calm himself down. One of the maids serves him a fresh heated cup of Pu Erh tea.


    "Yes Father, it''s already in progress. Shengli also visited her in the hospital while she was unconscious. Don''t worry."


    "Good." Sun Haowei nods, closing his eyes briefly. If only Jingwei was half as diligent, half as obedient, and half as intelligent as his oldest son.


    If only his wife was still here with him to help take him in hand¡­


    <o>,m But there is no point crying over spilt milk. What is important is for that youngest son to hurry back home, instead of dilly dallying in the hospital ying nursemaid to his saviour.</o>


    He turns to Tianwei.


    "Drag your brother back home now. We have given him enough time to run riot, this time, I''m going to make sure he truly understands what it means to be a man!"

 Chapter 8 Quiet Thoughts

    Xue Ning chewed on an apple. Beside her, Sun Jingwei did the same while lounging on the sofa.


    She stared at him, trying to make sense of his behaviour. Throughout the lunch, he had been nothing but gentlemanly and attentive, making sure shecked for nothing. He had her noodles served in a ceramic bowl that looked way too beautiful to be used as dishware, cut small bits of his steak for her to try, even tried to feed her from his fork before she batted his hand away in irritation.


    Something was up.


    She recalled what she had known of Sun Jingwei, prior to this night.


    There were three things she learnt about him from the gossip circles:


    <strong>1. He was very hot. </strong>


    ording to schoolgirls and lonely housewives, he was the epitome of male perfection, much to the distaste of their husbands. He looked every inch the perfect lover, and Xue Ning had more than once wished she could bleach out her ears when she overheard them talking about their sexual fantasies starring Sun Jingwei.


    She stared at him and he smiled back at her.


    The rumour mill wasn''t kidding, she thought to herself. Even if he wasn''t the best-looking man ever, he was still¡­ pretty good-looking.


    <strong>2. He was bloody rich. </strong>


    Like he could shit in a golden toilet bowl and throw out that golden toilet bowl for a new one for several lifetimes and not make a dent in his life savings.


    His family was part of the top 1% of wealthy people in the world, and it showed in his behaviour. He collected country homes the same way children collected pokemon cards.


    asionally he donated exorbitant sums of money to women''s charities and apparently helped build animal shelters, which was nice, assuming it was true.


    Everyone knew that he had a hand in the underground street races at midnight, butw enforcement couldn''t touch him.


    With his kind of money, no one could.


    I''m now staying in a VVIP ward and getting fed imported fruit continents away, Xue Ning muses to herself. So once again, that was true.


    <strong>3. He was a human trainwreck. </strong>


    Sun Jingwei was infamous for stumbling out of clubs with a woman on each arm, his drunk face stered across society''s pages and social media. Even Xue Ning, who hardly used social media, couldn''t escape it, because her rich customers never stoppedining about him!


    Seeing that strange women hated him enough to drug him, yes. He definitely was a human trainwreck!


    Now that she confirmed the rumours for herself, she narrowed her eyes at him.


    No man, least of all someone like her, would treat her, in and poor Li Xue Ning, with this much care, without a hidden agenda.


    It would have been a depressing thought when she was a teenager, but now that she''s grown, she merely epted this to be a part of her life. She wasn''t the same hopeful teen to be fooled by sweet words and acts of kindness, only to have the rug pulled beneath her feet when she least expected it.


    No one would get the better of her. Not even a billionaire''s son, who remained devastatingly handsome even after he changed into a simple shirt and pants.


    He is still smiling mischievously at her from the couch.


    She raises an eyebrow challengingly.


    He merely waves back, a tad bit mockingly.


    She frowns to herself, before stumbling on a few reasons that were more usible than him being interested in her.


    <strong>Firstly, he felt guilty about the incident.</strong>


    Possibly. Assuming that he had a heart that could still feel guilt. She heard from the doctor how the drugs weren''t meant to affect Jingwei himself that strongly, merely knocking him out for a few hours or so. But because she was a woman of lighter weight, they did way harder than they needed to.


    In all the dramas she watched, for every rich male lead that cared, there were at least five other assholes who happened to be his family members.


    So it was dubious. Even if he wasn''t an asshole, his family might be. She resolves to keep her guard up.<sub> </sub>


    <strong>Secondly, he was afraid she''ll sue. </strong>


    He''s here to pamper her so that she''ll feel morefortable with him and hence not sue him for the incident.


    She remembers one fact - if he was not distracted by cleavage, they would not have spiked his drink.


    So yes. He was a pervert and it led to her lying in the hospital bed, but she also didn''t want to put the me entirely on him. The bulk of me should go to the two women responsible.


    Well, even if she wanted to sue, she was so broke that she wouldn''t even waste money on the printer ink used for the court summons. If he didn''t know that, she wasn''t going to dissuade him.


    <strong>Thirdly, he didn''t want her going to the tabloids.</strong>


    In the guise of caring for her, he was secretly keeping an eye out on her and making sure she remained in the hospital so that she could not tell anyone about the situation.


    The good food on beautiful tes was just a shiny, tasty distraction.


    Yes. This was the most likely scenario, which would exin why he was so cagey around her using her phone. He had hovered around her using her phone until she added him on Wechat.


    He must have been afraid she''d take some incriminating photos of him lounging around with his shirt untucked and his stupid muscles to the tabloids to sell for quick cash.


    He did nearly get drugged by two women. No wonder his guard was up. That made sense. Xue Ning was sympathetic to his plight, but she also really wanted her life to go back to normal.


    "I know I''m handsome, but you''re going to make me shy if you keep staring at me," Jingwei smirks in direct contrast to his words.


    Xue Ning splutters. Nevermind. She has a feeling this man would send his own pictures to the tabloids if the ones publicised weren''t ttering enough.


    "Don''t worry, I won''t be looking at you after I leave the hospital," she says firmly. He shoots her a betrayed look, giving her the best impression of a wounded animal.


    Xue Ning remains unfazed and heartless and continues to ask.


    "When did the Doctor say I can be discharged again?"


    "When you''ve recovered from nearly dying." He replies quickly. "And you really don''t want to go out right now, I assure you."


    "...Why?" Xue Ning asks cautiously, "what is happening outside?"


    Before Jingwei can open his mouth to reply, he is interrupted by a brief knock. The door opens to reveal a handsome man in a tailored shirt and long pants.


    "Excuse me, are you Miss Li Xue Ning?" He asks. His face looked stern and cold, and he wouldn''t look out of ce in a historical drama. However, his tone was gentle and his eyes were warm. The contrast made her cheeks flush.


    "Y-yes." Xue Ning replies, feeling uncharacteristically nervous.


    With her eyes on the neer, she failed to notice the brief sullen look that crossed Jingwei''s face as he watched her attention be taken by someone else.


    "Ge why are you asking? You already know!" Jingwei grumbles, making a sound of displeasure.


    "Ge? This man is your brother?" Xue Ning exims in surprise. Her head swivels between the two of them, disbelieving.


    Sure, both of them were tall and had broad shoulders, and they could wear a suit like they were born in it, but their personalities and demeanors seemed so different at first nce it gave her whish.


    Their faces also didn''t look very simr. They must have favoured different parents, for while Jingwei had a pair of upturned fox eyes, a sharp jawline, and the slightest hint of baby fat still on his cheeks, his brother had eyes shaped like willow leaves with a less pronounced jawline.


    "Yeah he is," Jingwei says, no longer slouching on the couch.


    "I am Sun Tianwei," the other man follows smoothly, giving her a professional handshake. She shakes it, nonplussed, while shooting Jingwei a quick look of confusion.


    "Ge, why are you here?" Jingwei asks. "Did anything happen?"

 Chapter 9 Investigation Part 1

    "You still have the nerve to ask?" Tianwei''s eyes sh with irritation, all earlier gentleness gone. "I''m here to help you clean up the mess you made!"


    "Is this about the tabloids? It''s not a big deal, they''re always talking shit about me." Jingwei shrugs casually, but Xue Ning can still sense the tension in his shoulders.


    It wasn''t there before his brother arrived.


    "Is there a problem?" Xue Ning asks.


    "So to speak. Our family deeply apologises for involving you in such a matter, but your assistance is still necessary with regards to this case." Tianwei gives her a polite bow. She does a double-take at his courtesy.


    "How can I help?" She asks.


    "I believe you may have some information about the preparators of the drugging case. Normally the police should be investigating, but we would prefer to not alert those responsible that we''re onto them."


    "It''s so serious?" Both Jingwei and her ask at the same time.


    "Of course. ording to our family doctor, it''s not an ordinary date **** drug that normal people can purchase with shady connections. It has an additional aphrodisiacal effect when mixed with the right alcohol.  Most women would not even know to avoid its existence, let alone purchase it."


    "That exins a lot." Xue Ning muses, remembering how she felt the night before, like she was about to crawl out of her own skin if she wasn''t touched and fondled. She shudders at the memory.


    "So you believe that someone supplied the women with these drugs to target him?" She asks, feeling a chill creep down her spine.


    "Precisely. No matter how annoying Jingwei could be, I doubt he could inspire women to murder him." He turns to his younger brother, whose face was looking more ashen as he stared at the both of them.


    "Didi, you know that you are priceless alive. They would have wanted you incapitated, defenceless and ridiculously horny."


    "...That would have been a PR disaster waiting to happen." Jingweiughs with no humour.


    "That''s assuming they are trying to ruin you in the first ce." Tianwei corrects.


    Xue Ning and Jingwei stare at him in equal horror.


    "What else could they do?" Xue Ning asks, almost afraid of the answer. Jingwei rubs a hand over his face, looking strangely weary.


    "Oh loads. You have no idea." Jingwei begins ticking off his fingers.


    "ckmailing me with the resulting pictures and videos for one.


    Making sure I end up fucking them without protection so they end up pregnant with my child is another.


    Forcing me to marry them due to the pregnancy and hence giving them a route into my family is the third option.


    They could also im all sorts of things happened during that night, because I won''t be able to refute them.


    Of course, don''t forget good old-fashioned kidnapping where they ransom money for my safety. Knowing my dad, he''ll probably throw me into the ocean himself for daring to get kidnapped.


    So you see, there''s all sorts of things they could do! Isn''t that amazing?" Jingwei finishes with a dramatic flourish, anger boiling under his skin.


    It wasn''t directed at Xue Ning though. It was aimed at those women and whoever was working with them behind-the-scenes. How dare they aim at him in a bid to get to his family, just because the other members were near untouchable.


    If they wanted revenge, they should have gotten their hands dirty and confronted him in person! Doing this was cowardly, and if not for Xue Ning''s interference, he wouldn''t be here, eating lunch so casually as she recuperated.


    He owes Xue Ning a lot. He wonders if she knows.


    "Wow. That''s terrible, but it makes sense," Xue Ning replies quietly, remembering what she overheard in the washroom.  "One of the women said she wanted to ruin your life."<sub> </sub>


    Both men startled at her words.


    "Wait¡­ you knew?" Jingwei asks, staring at her in surprise.


    "Tell us everything you remember." Tianwei demands, pulling out a notepad from his pocket.


    ? Xue Ning coughs, feeling slightly awkward under their intense gazes.


    "Well, I overheard the two women when I was resting in the cubicle meant for cleaning supplies," she confesses. "It was a while after I saw them cuddling with Jingwei in the VIP room, and they wereining about how I ruined their ns."


    "Really?" Tianwei turns to his brother. "And may I know what happened in the room with them?"


    "Nothing out of the ordinary," Jingwei furrows his eyebrows as he recalls the night. "You know, it''s the same shit, women flirting with you and asking you to drink. They said the club sent them to look after me."


    "Huh? Our club doesn''t have that sort of service." Xue Ning cuts in, surprised.


    "Hmm. I see. Continue then. Why did you send them away?" Tianwei asks.


    Jingwei shuffles in his seat. Was he embarrassed?


    "Well I wanted to drink with Xue Ning alone, so I sent them away," he grumbles. "But then it turns out you have a boyfriend, so nevermind me."


    "Oh." Xue Ning says, also feeling embarrassed. There was a moment of awkward silence as they met each other''s eyes and pretended to look away.


    Tianwei clears his throat. "Yes, very interesting, so after you ruined their first n, which I presume to be drugging you in that private room with no witnesses, they went to the bathroom instead, where Xue Ning overheard them."


    "Can you provide names and more details?" Tianwei continues to ask her.


    "Sure¡­ one of the women was called Xiumin, she was the one that said she wanted to ruin him. The other woman was called Hua-jie, she seemed to be the one in-charge. She was more¡­ in control of her emotions?" She says, recalling the conversation.


    "They also said that Jingwei woulde to look for me, so they would just hang around me and wait for another chance to strike before the night ended."


    Tianwei gave her an indescribable look at her words, before turning to Jingwei with a raised eyebrow.


    "What?" Jingwei asks defensively.


    "Nothing." Tianwei replied easily, but he gave Jingwei another look that spoke volumes. Jingwei flushed. "Back to you, Miss Li, is there anything else you remember?"


    "Hmm¡­." she frowns, fingers idly rubbing the soft nket. "There''s one thing that''s strange. Usually our club has a protocol for spiked drinks. Even if it''s just a suspicion, we aren''t supposed to give the drinks back."


    "Even if the customer ims she didn''t spike it?"


    "Yeah. The manager should have been on my side!" She yells, pissed. Both men stare at her outburst, but Xue Ning was on a roll after recalling the sheer indignity of that incident.


    "That''s why I was so mad when he told me to give the drink back and to apologise to them for the false usation. Even if I had to apologise, I shouldpensate with a new drink. Just because they are VIP customers¡­" She mutters bitterly.


    "That''s weird. If you''re talking about VIP customers, who would be a bigger VIP than me, the man that actually booked this venue for his birthday party?" Jingwei muses, gesturing to his face.


    "If someone was suspected of drugging me, shouldn''t management throw the two women out?"


    He finishes with a flourish.


    The room falls into silence as realisation sinks in.

 Chapter 10 Investigation Part 2

    "Oh god," Xue Ning massages her temples. "My boss is in on it too? What the fuck?"


    "Highly likely." Tianwei says grimly. "Which means that the party responsible for this incident is powerful, organised and most likely relentless."


    "Fuck," Jingwei clenches his hands. She notices his fingers are shaking slightly. "Okay, now maybe they don''t know we''re onto them. Is there anything we can investigate from the club? Like¡­ the leftover spiked drink?"


    "It''ll be all gone by now," Xue Ning points out. "We always clean up before we close. And it would have evaporated seeing that we''ve been here for hours."


    "Even when one of their own employees gets drugged?" Jingwei asks, choosing to ignore her quip about evaporation. There had to be something left behind - if not the alcohol, perhaps prints on the ss?


    "Especially then." She sighs, wondering if she was fired for that stunt. The only messages she received from the club were anxious messages from Qiu Tong wondering how she was. She had replied before lunch that she was alive.


    She really meant that little to everyone else. Even when she could have died, only one person at work bothered to check on her well-being. Her family was far away, and they hadn''t heard about her news - and she wanted to keep it that way.


    She felt tears well up in her eyes and hurriedly scrubbed them away in frustration.


    "Here," Jingwei hands her a tissue. "Don''t cry."


    "I''m not crying." She wasn''t. He should stop looking at her like a kicked puppy. He was the one that had people out to end him, for goodness sake.


    "Well, I always did know someday, I would piss someone off badly enough they''d want to kill me." Jingwei muses, a tad melodramatically. Xue Ning scoffed.


    "Let''s hope it doesn''te to that." Tianwei says dryly, gripping his brother''s shoulder. "At least let Father have that honour. You have toe home now."


    "But what about Xue Ning?" Jingwei protests.


    "Are you a doctor? A nurse? What else can you do for her, peel fruit?" Tianwei asks.<sub> </sub>


    "He can''t do that either, the maids did it," Xue Ning chimes in. Jingwei gives her a betrayed look.


    "Ge, you already said someone powerful is after me. They could go after Xue Ning too - for revenge!"


    A contemtive look crosses Tianwei''s face.


    "While that might be true, staying here is not a long-term solution. I suggest -"


    A handphone rings, interrupting him. Tianwei prepares to reject the call, but then pauses.


    "Who''s that? Your girlfriend?" Jingwei teases.


    "See for yourself." Tianwei gestures to his handphone screen. Jingwei takes one look and pales immediately.


    "Hello, Father," Tianwei answers the call and then puts it on speaker. Xue Ning tries not tough at Jingwei''s obvious panic.


    "Tianwei, where is that idiotic brother of yours?" A gravelly voice asks.


    Jingwei gives Tianwei a pleading look, shaking his head frantically. It''s hard to notugh at the sight.


    Tianwei nods in response. Jingwei''s relief is short-lived.


    "He''s right next to me Father, would you like to speak to him?"

 Chapter 11 I’m His Wife?

    "Sun Jingwei, you ungrateful whelp, are you still refusing toe home?" The voice booms from the handphone.


    Everyone winces.


    "Hi Father, nice to hear from you too -" Jingwei starts, only to be shut down by his father''s voice.


    "Don''t give me that nonsense! Don''t think I can''t figure out that you''re avoiding me!"


    "I would never!" Jingwei squawks out, looking less like a suave yboy and more like a scolded puppy.


    "Thene home this instance!"


    "But how can I leave Xue Ning alone?" Jingwei protests. "Dad, she''s in the hospital because of me!" Xue Ning would feel more touched at his words if she didn''t know it was an excuse.


    Poor little rich boy caused trouble outside and refused to go home because he''s scared his father will skin him alive! She had seen simr behaviour back when she was dealing with drunk husbands.


    "You should go back," she hisses, crossing her arms. "I''ll be fine."


    "It''s not right! I should be beside you when you are sick!" Jingwei holds the phone away from him as he replies. He doesn''t want his dad to eavesdrop on their conversation.


    "Why? It''s not like you''re my husband," Xue Ning points out. "Don''t worry your father unnecessarily!"


    "Ahem," Jingwei''s father coughs. "I may be old, but I''m not that hard of hearing!"


    Xue Ning and Jingwei shoot each other exact looks of panic.


    "Son, pass the phone to Li Xue Ning, I want to talk to her," he deres. Xue Ning gulps, mind immediately racing to the worst case scenario - Jingwei''s father was going to send someone to silence her once and for all after she already told Tianwei all she knew,


    Why would Jingwei be so hesitant to let her talk to his father otherwise? Something must be wrong.


    "Father¡­ don''t yell at her?" Jingwei pleads meekly, before handing the phone over to Xue Ning.


    "Of course! Why would I yell at the woman that saved you! I''m yelling at you, this idiot who got taken advantage at a club and had to be saved by a woman!" His father yells.


    Xue Ning tries to give the phone back to Jingwei, sensing that his father was not done scolding him, but he refuses to take it.


    ''Talk to him,'' he mouths to her while pointing to the phone.


    ''You coward,'' she mouths back before putting on her sweetest smile while facing the phone, nevermind that his father technically cannot see her.


    "Hello Uncle, this is Li Xue Ning. May I know what''s the matter?"


    She''s so focused on the phone conversation, she doesn''t notice Tianwei and Jingwei raising their eyebrows at her sweetened tone, paired with her polite, yet firm words.


    "Miss Li, firstly I must thank you for saving my youngest son," His voice suddenly became kind. "Rest assured that the Sun family will cover all costs while you''re hospitalised."


    "Thank you Mr Sun," Xue Ning says politely.


    "I am also requesting your cooperation until this case is resolved." The voice is still kind, but Xue Ning isn''t foolish enough to miss the ''or else'' that''s unsaid.


    "Yes, I understand. I have already given Mr Tianwei details about the drugging case." She replies.<sub> </sub>


    "I''m not just referring to that. Pass the phone back to my son please." She frowns at the phone, and looks at both men. Which son was he referring to?


    Probably the one that made the mess.


    "...Alright."  She hands the phone back to Jingwei who holds it like a live grenade.


    "Hi Father, it''s me." Jingwei says warily.


    "Yes. It''s you." His father says, all kindness gone. "Have you seen the news online?"


    "About me drugging someone? You know that''s false!" Jingwei protests hotly.


    "I''m not talking about that. Go and search Weibo - can''t believe I am more updated than you on your news!"


    Xue Ning and Jingwei share another nce. She has a bad feeling about this. They begin to search using their respective phones, but she has to smack her phone a few times to get it to work.


    Her phone is slow and her data n is shit, which is why Jingwei is the first to exim ''WHAT THE FLYING FUCK'' when he reads the news. Tianwei gives a disapproving tsk at the foulnguage.


    She stares at her own phone. Come on,e on¡­load already¡­ but no, it remains resolutely stuck at the loading screen.


    "Now you know the mess you made!" His father roars from the other end. Xue Ning gestures to Jingwei to share the news, pointing to her slow phone. He immediatelyes closer and lends her his phone so she can read thetest headlines.


    ''CALL-GIRL HOSPITALIZED AFTER INTERACTING WITH SUN JINGWEI'' What the fuck. Who was the call-girl? It better not be referring to her!


    ''SUN JINGWEI SECRETLY ENGAGED, FIANCE IS HOSPITALISED'' He was engaged? She shoots him a puzzled look. That poor woman must have been angered to death at his womanising ways.


    ''SURPRISE PREGNANCY FOR SUN JINGWEI''  She snorts at this headline. When did he get pregnant? His belly was still t, and from what she could see, he even had abs you could wash clothes off.


    ''PROOF OF SUN JINGWEI''S ENGAGEMENT'' Curious, she clicks on the link.


    The video is grainy, and the audio quality wasn''t the clearest, but no one could mistake the man in the ambnce as anyone other than Jingwei, nor the words ''MY WIFE'' that echoed clearly even through the cacophony of sirens.


    She frowns and zooms in on the video, whose hand was he holding? The angle wasn''t the best, and Sun Jingwei''s broad back was curled over the woman in question, making it difficult for her to figure out.


    She then begins to read the article below it.


    Once she does, she immediately wishes she hadn''t.


    ''Sun Jingwei reveals a shocking truth: the consummate yboy has been married all this time! One has to wonder why a man that seems so in love with this mystery wife would be infamous for having multiple affairs. Perhaps there''s something more nefarious underneath the surface!


    Upon investigation, the woman in question is known as Miss Li X N, a bartender at the bar. Love truly can be found in a hopeless ce!


    Of course, with Miss Li hospitalised, it is hard not to specte about the real reasons for her copse. It is strange that for all of Mr Sun''s wealth, his lover is left to fend for herself, working a job that puts her in contact with dangerous, unscrupulous individuals.


    Let us know what YOU think about this situation! Don''t forget to subscribe to our newsletter for up-to-date entertainment news!''


    She drops the phone in shock.


    WHAT. THE. FUCK. The woman in the ambnce was her?! She was Sun Jingwei''s mysterious pregnant wife?!

 Chapter 12 A Job Offer Part 1

    Xue Ning picks up her phone again.


    After reading an article that removed years off her life, her finger hovers over the loadments button. Should she? Didn''t some philosopher im that knowledge is power or something simr to that?


    It''s better to know what people online are saying, she rationalises to herself. That way, she won''t be caught unaware when someone decides to yell mean things at her in broad daylight.


    She holds her breath, and begins reading thements.


    +2131566 I bet that woman is pregnant! That''s why Sun Jingwei is so panicky - he''s afraid he lost the baby!


    +35265 Sister, you''re onto something here. Just think, he had so many women, and he kicked them all to the curb so easily! A baby would make sense!


    +6734 This woman is so smart, using the baby to trap him!


    +503 Please like he''ll actually take responsibility. He''ll most likely make her abort the baby, or keep the baby and throw her out.


    +726 Brother you''ve been watching too many CEO dramas. No man who wants to abort the baby would be so stupidly desperate!


    ''Baby? What part of this makes sense? Have their brains been reced with soft poo?'' Xue Ning thinks angrily to herself.


    The otherments were not much better.


    +239585 How can a mere bartender be good enough for Sun Jingwei? Wanna bet this is a passing fancy and he''s gonna dump her like a hot potato the moment he sees her in daylight!


    +32586 What are you talking about? Sun Jingwei is a drunk wastrel - a bartender''s wife is perfect for him!


    +4630 There''s someone for everyone no matter how shitty¡­ So where is mine?


    +1204 Sister I feel your pain¡­


    +20149 Her xxx skills must be fucking godly then, for him to care so much about her!


    +3201 Maybe he really is in love with her? Who knows?


    +8201 Yeah right. If this is true, I''ll be Jesus


    Now they were specting on her nonexistent bedroom skills! She wanted to throw her phone on the floor, but she was actually reading this garbage on his phone, and she definitely did not have the money to rece it.


    (Her bedroom skills weren''t entirely nonexistent, they pleasured one person - herself! The most important person! Who even cared about Sun Jingwei''s pleasure! She certainly didn''t. She never would!)


    "Hey, don''t read thements," Jingwei snatches his phone back. She makes an offended noise, but he gives her a serious look. "It''s really not worth it, take it from someone who''s been there. People write nonsense all the time."


    "Bastard. This is all your fault." The insult slips out of her mouth before she can stop it, even as her voice begins to shake. In anger, or fear, she''s not too sure.


    "People never even noticed me enough to write nonsense about me - and now? They think I seduced you? That I trapped you into our nonexistent rtionship with our fictional baby?" Her voice rises at the end, in outrage and incredulity.


    She res at him and he briefly recoils at the venom in her gaze.


    "You. You''d better find a way to fix this mess. Immediately."


    "I will! Don''t worry about it -"


    "How can I not worry? This wouldn''t have happened if you weren''t so distracted by that woman''s cleavage!" She ps the table attached to the hospital bed. Now that she recalled the entire night, she remembered how the two women worked together to spike his drink.


    "Well I - " Jingwei splutters, but she''s not finished.<sub> </sub>


    "Have you ever seen cleavage before? Couldn''t you just search it on the Inte! You dumbass! Don''t you know it''s important to be alert and aware when drinking?" She rants in a flourish, fingers clenching into a fist that she longs to fly into his face. She closes her eyes to calm down.


    Deep breaths. Deep breaths. Think of peaceful things. Like puppies and kittens. And tiny babies. Babies that theizens think she''s having.


    She opens her eyes. This method of calming down is regrettably a failure.


    "How can you speak to me this way? Ever since I was born, no one has lectured me like this!" Jingweiins, leaning closer to her to intimidate her with his height.


    As though she''s the one in the wrong for calling him out.


    Xue Ning scoffs at his bullshit words and pulls him closer by his shirt cor. If she''s already pissing him off, she might as well just go all out.


    "Are you sure? Your father just called you to tell you to go home and you''re telling me no one lectured you before? Maybe you just weren''t listening!"


    "You -" Jingwei''s face turns red in anger.


    A cough distracts both of them. Tianwei was still there standing at the side, now holding his phone that Jingwei left half-heartedly on the couch when they both started arguing.


    The phone that still had his father on the other end of the line.


    Both of them startle and spring apart, as though they were caught doing something more scandalous than arguing. Xue Ning feels her face redden. Great, she said all this while his father was still listening!


    Not that she regretted her words, but there was a time and ce for everything.


    "Sorry to interrupt," Tianwei says smoothly, secretly amused at how the both of them were hellbent on ignoring each other when they looked close enough to kiss a few seconds ago. If he hadn''t made his presence known, they''d probably be angrily making out - and that would not solve the problem.


    Now that he has got their attention, Tianwei continues.


    "As things have progressed to this state, I would advise Miss Li to stay at one of our houses just for the time being, to evade the paparazzi."


    ? "Wouldn''t that be worse? I''d bebelled as some kind of¡­ kept woman!" Xue Ning exims. "And I still need to go to work. Can''t we just ignore this mess? Eventually people will stop talking about it, right?"


    "Do you mean your job as a martial arts instructor for children?" Tianwei asks. Xue Ning blinks in surprise.


    "How did you know?" She asks, before realising it was a stupid question. Of course they had someone look into her background.


    "My family did research on you," Jingwei casually brags about their legalised stalking. "Had to make sure you weren''t a golddigger.


    "Are you sure I''m not a golddigger? I''m poor enough to be one." She argues anyway, just to wipe that smug look off his face.


    "Oh please if you were a golddigger, you''d be a piss-poor one. How would you possibly not know who I am in the first ce? I''m the biggest pot of gold in this ce!" He retorts.


    She scowls at him, having no propereback for that. Truth be told, if she was a golddigger, she wouldn''t need to work two jobs.


    He smirks, pleased that he''s got the upper hand.


    "As I was saying," Tianwei cuts in, with a pointed look at his younger brother to please hold his tongue, "while we understand that you wish to work for a living, our family could employ you instead."


    "As what?" Xue Ning and Jingwei both ask at the same time. To their surprise, it''s not Tianwei, but his father who answers.


    "As my son''s bodyguard."

 Chapter 13 A Job Offer Part 2

    The hospital room is silent for that brief moment as his words slowly begin to sink in, then it explodes into noise as all three of them start replying at the same time.


    "I''m sorry, but did you just¡­ ask me to be your son''s bodyguard? Xue Ning asks incredulously.


    Jingwei''s reaction was less polite. "Father, are you insane?! How can she be my bodyguard! She''s tinier than me - how can she protect me if someone does want to kill me?"


    Tianwei''s reaction was more subdued, but still doubtful. "Father, I don''t think that''s wise, she is nowhere near qualified -"


    "Nonsense!" Sun Haowei bellows, and all of them fall silent.


    "Jingwei, didn''t she already protect you?" His father points out easily.


    "Yeah but - " Jingwei starts, but his father ruthlessly continues.


    "Besides, if you weren''t hanging around disreputable people, would you be at risk of dying? You should have just stayed in thepany and worked hard. Instead, you spend your time endangering yourself with reckless hobbies! Drinking parties! Street racing! BMX biking! Do you think your body is made of titanium?!" His father roars at the end.


    Xue Ning raises an eyebrow at his words, giving Jingwei a careful onceover. She was surprised that he was still in rtively good shape, with thick hair, broad shoulders, muscled arms and a slim waist. With all the drinking she expected him to have a pot belly and receding hairline.


    Jingwei, noticing her eyes, deliberately flexes his arm muscles while giving her a smug smile.


    Urghh. She gives him a disgusted look in return.


    "Miss Li, are you still listening?" He asks, voice losing the volume but not the authority.


    "Yes sir?"


    "Be my son''s bodyguard in secret. In return, we''ll organise a press conference to clear the air. We''ll inform people that you''re employed as a helper, tasked with babysitting my wayward son. You were then injured in the line of duty."


    "That sounds¡­ fine?" Xue Ning said hesitantly. "But what about the ''my wife'' issue?"


    The issue that was caused by your son''s big mouth, she does not say.


    "Easy. The statement will just say that my son panicked and said the wrong thing. It''s not the first time he opened his mouth and wreaked havoc," his father replies heartlessly. Xue Ning has a feeling he''s idly flicking dirt from his fingernails.


    She catches Jingwei''s eyes. He looks almost resigned at this unttering picture his father painted of his behaviour.


    Well, there was no way to refute his father''s statements either.


    "I see. But I must let you know that I only have a first aid certification and CPR certification. As for martial arts, I only have a ck belt in taekwondo and a certificate in Shaolin boxing. I can only drive automatic cars." She recites her current credentials. It wasn''t much, but Jingwei seems surprised and Tianwei reluctantly impressed, so chances are she wasn''t as unqualified as she thought.


    If she had more money, she would have been able to learn more, but her parents refused to support her any further when they heard that she wanted to spend her life bing a human shield for people.


    "That is adequate. Our family will pay for the relevant courses while you work for us, in addition to your sry." His father replies. Xue Ning''s eyes widen, this sounds like a dreame true!


    "Father, shouldn''t she go for the courses first before bing my bodyguard, secret or otherwise?" Jingwei frowns at the phone while talking.


    "It''s not just my safety that''s at stake - what if she gets seriously injured because she wasn''t trained properly? That''s irresponsible of you!"


    Xue Ning finds herself strangely touched by his thoughtfulness. It was nice of him to think of her well-being even when they were arguing just 10 minutes ago.


    "Then you should limit your activities so that you won''t put Miss Li and yourself at unnecessary risk. If you just came to the office for work and stayed at your home for the rest of your days, her skills should be sufficient to keep you safe,"  was Sun Haowei''s dispassionate reply.


    So. Secret bodyguard was just a fancy way of saying babysitter. She''s the human hostage that appeals to Sun Jingwei''s inner nobility; her presence ensures that he doesn''t do anything too ridiculous that might risk their lives.


    She was upset, but more than that, she was impressed at his machinations. He could t out reveal his intentions right in front of her, because he knew well enough there was no way she could turn down such a lucrative offer due to frivolous notions like pride.


    She needed his help to salvage her reputation more than she wanted a job as a real bodyguard, and he knew it.


    She would also not put it past him to research about her family background and infer that she was short of money.


    In short, she was the rabbit firmly trapped in the jaws of a wily fox, ready to be fed to the ungrateful cub that still can''t hunt even when it''s fully grown.


    Sun Haowei was really a genius. No wonder the Suns have grown to such unprecedented wealth and power with him at the helm. Even at his old age, he knew how to manipte people.


    She then looks at Jingwei. How could the apple have fallen so far from the tree?<sub> </sub>


    Jingwei had his arms crossed, and his face was looking less than pleased. He also realised what his father had in mind, but just like her, he had no way out.


    "Father, how long will this arrangementst?" Jingwei asks, bringing up a very good point she had forgotten to think about.


    "Until we find the people responsible for your drugging case," his father replies. "Did you forget that there are people who are trying to hurt you?"


    "And that''s why it''s dangerous for Xue Ning to be my bodyguard!"  Jingwei exims, "Father, you understand right?"


    "No," was the t unsympathetic reply.


    "Father!" Jingweiins, nearly sulking before realising that he was a grown man who should not be behaving like a kid.


    "I''m done talking with you about this," his father responds coolly. She senses he''s out of patience.


    "Tianwei, remember to give me the findings of your investigation when you return. As for Miss Li, once you agree to the terms of our arrangement, I''ll get my people to contact you regarding an official contract and for the press release."


    "I agree, thank you," Xue Ning says, because honestly, she couldn''t have said anything else. Jingwei shoots her a horrified look. It could have been due to worry (for her life), but she''s more inclined to think that it''s because of his impending pseudo-house arrest.


    "Excellent, I''m d to know you''re at least smarter than my son," with this fatal parting shot, Sun Haowei hangs up for good.


    Everyone heaves a sigh of relief at the dial tone.


    "We''ll be in touch then, Miss Li," Tianwei smiles at her, but it''s tinged with exasperation at his father''s actions.


    "Sorry for causing you trouble," she bows her head politely in return. Poor man, imagine needing to spend his Sunday afternoon at the beck and call of his father and cleaning up his younger brother''s messes. Speaking of said younger brother¡­


    "Why did you agree?!" Jingwei explodes in the corner. "You could die, you moron!"


    "I could also die crossing the street," she retorts, "or choking on a fishbone, or getting crushed by a vending machine¡­at least this way I''ll be able to achieve my dream!"


    "Of dying?" Jingwei asks. "Because that''s what is going to happen to you if whoever is gunning for me decides to skip the drugging and just go for murder!"


    "I meant: being a bodyguard! I want to be a professional bodyguard!" She exims.


    "Why would you want to be a meat shield? What young woman wants to be a human bulletproof-vest?" Jingweiments.


    "Don''t quote my mother at me!" Xue Ning has the strangest feeling her mother has possessed Jingwei in that very moment, with how often she has heard her words on this matter.


    "Well, your mother sounds like a woman who is wise and hasmon sense, so I would dly quote her!"


    "Don''t make me quote your father on your behaviour! Because I will!" Xue Ning warns.


    "Oh please, like I haven''t spent years hearing it. It''s useless," Jingwei deres. "You''re too cute to be scary the way he is!"


    Cute? He thought she was cute? She splutters, her prepared retort dying on her tongue.


    Jingwei falls silent too, at the sudden promation, suddenly staring at the ceiling.


    "While this is absolutely fascinating, Jingwei and I need to go back home," Tianwei says regrettably. He sounded like Xue Ning''s aunt whenever she was forced to stop watching her television dramas. Xue Ning does not like thatparison.


    "Come along Jingwei, it''s time to go," Tianwei coaxes. "You can talk to Miss Li using your pher."


    "Who says I want to talk to her/him?" Both of them speak at the same time.


    "Alright, feel free to argue with each other over the phone then. We still need to go." Tianwei says warningly at Jingwei. "If you want to reverse Father''s decision, you best return to argue your case."


    "Ge, you''re right," Jingwei gets up with a sense of renewed purpose, giving Xue Ning a jaunty wave goodbye. "I''m going to change his mind!"


    "Don''t you dare, Sun Jingwei!" Xue Ning yells at his retreating back.


    "If you fuck this up for me, I''ll end you!"

 Chapter 14 The Ride Home

    Jingwei stewed in uneasy silence on the drive home. There were many reasons why this idea of his father''s was bloody terrible, and the biggest on top of that long list was the fact that she wasn''t qualified.


    He was over a head taller than her, with broader shoulders and more developed muscles. If he wished, he could throw her over his back and drag her away. How can someone like that be his bodyguard?


    If she had to protect him from gunshots, they''d both be dead because the gunman would simply aim higher to shoot his brains out after they shot her!


    He gnashed his teeth, upset with the way his father easily manipted the situation in his favour. Sure, he hasn''t been a prodigal son (okay, he hasn''t even been a normal son, but at least he wasn''t that unfilial), but that didn''t mean his father could treat him like a disobedient dog that needed constant minding!


    It''s one thing to manipte him (he had grown up in this family and was used to this strange notion of affection), it was another thing to drag an entirely innocent person involved in his mess.


    Well. Not entirely innocent. But Xue Ning was something more than an innocent bystander, she was his saviour, and now his father was going to sink his teeth into her.


    A secret bodyguard? That was rubbish. He knew it, she knew it, his father knew it. His father wanted to find a babysitter for him.


    He wanted to make Xue Ning his own, the same way all of Jingwei''s past ''secretaries'' and ''personal assistants'' and even some of his ''friends'' were all his father''s people to begin with, merely hanging around Jingwei to report his actions to his father.


    Jingwei had taken great pleasure in creating trouble for them to report, even making a sizable number of them quit in regret. Unfortunately, it had also turned his reputation into one of a ridiculous yboy with no sense or limits, and he could only do more outrageous things to hold up his reputation.


    And now someone, or a group of very angry people, want to ruin him for it.


    Heughed, because he would be crying at the sheer irony of it all. His perfect brother shot him a look of concern over his phone. Probably reporting to Father that Jingwei wasughing like a loon in the car.


    His phone beeps with a message. Was that his father?


    Nope.


    Strangely enough, it was an unknown number - but he could tell the message was from Xue Ning, because she wrote down her name before threatening him. How precious.


    <strong>''This is Xue Ning, nice to meet you. DO NOT make me lose this chance to be a real bodyguard YOU''LL REGRET IT!''</strong>


    She even added a bunch of angry emojis with a dagger behind. He smiles and types out a response.


    From Jingwei:


    <strong>''Oh please, you are so untrained in intimidation! You need to do a lot better than to scare me! You''re not even using the right emoji.''</strong>


    He eagerly adds a bunch of grenade stickers and explosion emojis. He paid for these sticker sets. It felt good that they finally made their debut. He didn''t have a chance to use them before.


    From Xue Ning:


    Xue Ning''s next message is just 20 of the same explosion emoji. There were no fancy stickers, but she did upload a picture of a man''s middle finger. It definitely was too thick to be hers. He cackles.


    From Jingwei:


    <strong>''Ohohoho so impolite and naughty~ Mis Li is a bad girl eh? Taking photos of random men''s middle fingers to use?''</strong>


    From Xue Ning:


    <strong>''IT''S YOUR MIDDLE FINGER!''</strong>


    From Jingwei:


    <strong>''Oh. You''re right? Been taking pictures of MY HANDS SECRETLY??? You only had to ask darling, I''d let you.''</strong>


    From Xue Ning:


    <strong>''NO YOU DUMBASS I GOT IT FROM THE INTERNET''</strong>


    <strong>''ALSO YOU SHUT UP OR THIS WILL BE YOU''</strong>


    Dagger emojis follow her message and an emoji of a face with crossed eyes. Jingwei does not need to be a genius to guess who it could refer to, but the urge to tease her is still stronger than his sense of self-preservation, so he does not reply with an apology.


    From Jingwei:


    <strong>''Wrong~! That''s more likely to be YOU, darling! I''m taller, broader, handsomer and richer¡­ you''ll be dying first if someone does shoot me!''</strong>


    He knows the sing-song tone of his message along with the pet names would irritate her further. It''s best that she bes irritated and gives up on this stupid n. He can simply cause another bigger scandal to make everyone forget about the earlier scandal with her. It worked fine for him so far.


    From Xue Ning:


    <strong>''Idiot. Being bigger just means that there''s more of you to hit. More importantly: NOT YOUR DARLING''</strong>


    From Jingwei:


    <strong>''You''re supposed to PROTECT me from getting hit, darling. Oops. If not darling, what about dearest?''</strong>


    From Xue Ning:


    <strong>''I''ll im it was an ident, seeing that I am ''untrained in intimidation'' and need practice to be more intimidating.''</strong>


    <strong>''Call me that and you can say goodbye to celebrating Father''s Day for good!''</strong>


    Jingweiughs. This is fun.


    From Jingwei:<sub> </sub>


    <strong>''My dear, you have more luck trying to teach kittens to imitate sabertooth tigers. The saber tooth tigers are extinct for now, in case you didn''t know.</strong>


    <strong>And don''t say that - you''re depriving my father of celebrating with me? For shame, my dear Miss Li. For shame.''</strong>


    He includes a crying sticker of a kitten for added punch. It kind of looks like her.


    From Xue Ning:


    <strong>''I KNOW THE SABERTOOTH TIGERS ARE EXTINCT. And what do you mean FOR NOW? Is your family doing some weird experiments to bring them back to life or something?''</strong>


    <strong>''That''s not what I meant and you know it! I''m going to end your Sun family line!''</strong>


    More dagger emojis follow her statement.


    From Jingwei:


    <strong>''SSSSHHH that will ruin the surprise~ besides I''m sure you''ll love to feed the tigers in my stead¡­ seeing that you''ll be PROTECTING ME''</strong>


    <strong>''You''ll have to castrate my brother first. He already lost his sense of humour so make sure to be gentle with him.''</strong>


    He adds a winking sticker of someone blowing a kiss. Ah, what would he give to see her reaction in person!


    "Why are you smiling creepily to yourself?" His brother asks warily. "You''re not thinking of escaping from the car right?


    "No? Ge, our car is reinforced with titanium and the windows are made of super plexiss. If I could escape, I''d be Superman." He shrugs to himself.


    Maybe he could escape if he had a sabertooth tiger. Hopefully Xue Ning would utterly hate it and realise being his bodyguard was a terrible decision and then quit with a hefty severance package that Jingwei would give so she can live out the rest of her life¡­ doing what?


    He didn''t know. Thisck of knowledge itched at him oddly.


    He waited for a reply.


    From Xue Ning:


    <strong>''Feed your own tigers. Your pets - your responsibility!''</strong>


    <strong>''Also, gross. I DO NOT need to think of your brother in this manner. That poor man is already working on a Sunday.''</strong>


    Jingwei frowns. Why was she thinking about Tianwei to begin with? That thought made his chest itch. Must be allergies.


    From Jingwei:


    <strong>''What about poor me?''</strong>


    From Xue Ning:


    <strong>''What about the tigers?''</strong>


    From Jingwei:


    <strong>''WHAT ABOUT POOR ME''</strong>


    He throws in a sad puppy eye sticker. Xue Ning responds and she is unmoved.


    From Xue Ning:


    <strong>''ANSWER MY QUESTION ABOUT THE TIGERS''</strong>


    "Stop looking at your phone," Tianwei scolds. "We''re arriving soon. You''d better prepare yourself for meeting Father, he''s less than happy with your behaviour."


    "We are?" Jingwei looks up, surprised. Their car was a BMW, and their chauffeur had ten years of experience, which meant the ride was incredibly smooth, but Jingwei could not recall when time flew so quickly when he was forced to return to the mansion.


    It usually dragged on intolerably, like malt candy on a hot day.


    Huh, guess texting Xue Ning distracted him more than he realised. But now that his brother had dragged him back, he could only think about the eventual confrontation.


    "Jokes on you Ge, when has daddy dearest ever been happy with my behaviour?" Jingwei regrettably puts his phone away, yawning at his brother''s disgruntled look.


    "When you behave like this it''s no wonder he''s unhappy. Stop causing trouble and arguing against him!"


    "I''m trying! This time I''m really innocent!" He protests, feeling wronged.


    "Ge knows, and I''ve sent the information to our Father," Tianwei replies. "Our investigation team shoulde up with a few leads by the end of the week."


    "I hope so," Jingwei sighs as he sees the familiar metal gates of the mansion loom in front of him. The car makes a slow steady drive through the winding path. The ginkgo trees that lined the pathway were beautiful, and visitors would stop and gawk, but all Jingwei felt was quiet dread as the tree branches cast shadows over his face.


    The joy he felt from Xue Ning''s text was steadily leaking away like oil from a car engine, and reced with the stifling smell of exhaust fumes.He steels himself for yet another exhausting encounter where he would be once again told that he was a deficient son and a good-for-nothing wastrel.


    ''Well, it''s not like I never heard something like this before. I can handle it.'' He thinks to himself consolingly.


    He enters the room, only to get smacked in the face with a cup of tea!

 Chapter 15 Father’s Ultimatum

    "Father, nice to see you too. You''re in such good health!" Jingweiments, wiping the dripping tea from his face using his sleeves.


    ''At least the tea is cold this time, and I''m not bleeding,'' he thought to himself, even as the floor around him was littered with shattered porcin.


    Small mercies.


    He licks a few drops of tea that ran down his face.


    Chrysanthemum today. Perfect for his funeral.


    "So you still know how toe back home?" Jingwei''s father thunders. Such a loving statement to receive, in addition to the weing familiar embrace of his father''s cup of tea.


    "Hello Father, how could I forget? The chauffeur drove me all the way in," Jingwei says charmingly. His father remains unamused.


    "Hmph. Sit down."


    "Father, I''m dripping tea -"


    "Sit."


    Jingwei gingerly makes his way to the soft leather couch and sits, feeling a bit like a dog.


    "First of all, do you know how much trouble you''re in?"


    This was a trick question, wasn''t it?


    "Father, what do you mean? I don''t understand."


    His father''s face slowly started to turn red. Jingwei hastily amends.


    "If you''re talking about the tabloid piece that imed I was drugging people, that was false. I was the one nearly drugged!"


    "Exactly!" His father ps the table hard enough that the tea cups rattle, spilling tea from the rim. "How dare you end up in such a position!"


    "Huh?" That sounded almost like¡­ his father was concerned? That was new.


    He leans forward slightly to take a closer look, and was surprised to see how his father seemed to look more tired, with dark eye circles that could rival the prized pandas in the zoo, bags under his eyes (non-luxury brand ones), and Crow''s feet that could almost reach the greying hair at his temples.


    His father suddenly looked older and more haggard. This new development sobered him, however his father''s actions left him reeling in confusion.


    Thest time his father showed him abject concern that wasn''t wrapped in insults aimed at demolishing his self esteem was around ten years ago, before his mother died.


    What could he say?


    "Don''t worry Father! This son of yours is blessed by heaven - how can anything bad happen to him?" He even adds a jovial smile.


    His father shoots him a flinty re. His smile dies and he looks back down at the carpet instead. There were footprints on it, which meant that someone had to be pacing frantically up and down hard enough, long enough, to make marks that wouldst.


    Jingwei''s heart twinged. He was such an unfilial son.


    "Sorry for noting back sooner. Please fling more teacups at me if it makes you feel better," Jingwei says, hanging his head in guilt.


    Even if his father had not been the kindest or nicest to him, and downright tried to control him like a dog sometimes, it still felt wrong to have his old man worry to the point of stomping all over the carpet. He had arthritis for god''s sake. What if his kneecaps gave out?


    "Hmph," his father repeats, taking a sip of tea from another tea cup as he watches his son sit morosely on their sofa.


    "I was worried about Xue Ning - I mean Miss Li," Jingwei continues to exin, sensing that his father wasn''t going to say anything unless he started first.


    "The doctor said the drugging was more serious than he expected, because she drank the dose meant for me. And the drug wasn''t even the usual date rape drug. Father, she was unconscious for hours! I couldn''t leave then! And when she woke up, she was so weak! How could I leave her in that state?" He stares beseechingly at his father, hoping that he would understand.


    "You would have done better if you hade home and told us immediately what went on so we could investigate, instead of wasting precious time waiting for an unconscious woman to wake," his father replies harshly. "You''re too softhearted, you didn''t think things through and you prioritised all the wrong issues."


    Ah, there was the customary insult, but even that was weaker than the norm.


    "The culprits have long fled the crime scene," his father says, gripping his tea cup so tightly his knuckles were white.


    "If you had even used an ounce of intelligence, you should have made sure the culprits were restrained before bothering with saving Miss Li. Instead, now they have escaped and will most likely be making more attempts at harming you. Your actions have indirectly caused more trouble for yourself!"


    "How can you say that Father?" Jingwei protests hotly. "If not for Miss Li, the one lying in the hospital bed, or worse, in some dingy two-star hotel might be me! How could I leave her lying on the ground without trying to help her first?"


    "See! Too softhearted! You are my son, your life is worth more than the life of some random woman!" Sun Haowei thunders, face beginning to resemble the colour of puce.<sub> </sub>


    "Then why do you want this random woman to be my bodyguard then?" Jingwei challenges, sensing an opening. "Shouldn''t you actually get a professional to protect this precious son''s life?"


    "Because this idiot son of mine somehow thinks he is invincible," his father hisses through his teeth. "That''s why I want an amateur guard with no experience or training. That way, you''ll learn that whatever stupid dangerous decision you make has consequences. Consequences that''ll hit her harder than you, because she''s smaller, weaker, poorer."


    "Father! You can''t do that!" Jingwei protests. "How can you treat Xue Ning like my - whipping boy? How can you use her like this? She''s my saviour!"


    "I have to. Because you do not listen to reason, you do not listen to sense, you simply do not think!" His father roars.


    "Did you forget I was listening to the both of you argue? I heard everything - this mess happened because you were not paying attention to your own drink, distracted by a woman''s chest. Have you not looked at enough breasts in your lifetime? Why did I need to pay all those club hostesses then?" His father rants, angrily pointing at him.


    "B - but " Jingwei tried to argue, but his father still wasn''t done.


    "Maybe if your bodyguard is a woman you can stare at her chest instead of going out for parties nightly!"


    "Father that''s improper she''s -"


    "Because of your reputation the Zhou family has refused to even think about letting their daughter meet you, and no family in our circle would entertain a marriage meeting -"


    His father was on a roll, the same way a boulder rolled downhill and crushed everything in its path, and poor Jingwei''s arguments were the sad little flowers heartlessly ttened before they could bloom.


    "It''s not like I want to meet Zhou Yu either, she''s so irritating -"


    "Your actions continue to damagepany stocks -"


    "Thepany stocks rebound anyway!"


    "And that''s why I cannot leave thepany to you!" His father yells.


    "I didn''t say I wanted thepany!" Jingwei protests.


    "You certainly wanted money to spend though! Where do you think it came from? Heaven?"


    Jingwei falls quiet. Even if he had alternative ie streams, it was true that the bulk of his spending was financed by his father.


    "See! Until you be more sessful than me - you''ll do what I say!" He deres with grim finality. Jingwei clenches his fists, but remains silent.


    "Tianwei, get Miss Li''s situation sorted out. She''ll start work as soon as she''s able." Jingwei had nearly forgotten that his older brother was still in the room, so focused on arguing with his father.


    "Don''t worry Father, it''ll be done." Tianwei promises easily. Father nods in approval before turning back to Jingwei.


    "Do not get yourself into any more trouble, or I will personally disown you. Do you understand me?"


    "...Yes." Jingwei replies glumly. It wasn''t the first time he was threatened with disownment, and it would not be thest.


    "Good, now both of you can scram. I want some peace and quiet." Father says, and Tianwei and Jingwei slink out of the room like sad pets. Well Jingwei does; Tianwei moved with weary purpose.


    "Make sure you don''t get into trouble," his brother warns. "It won''t only be you that suffers from now on."


    "...I know," Jingwei mumbles, running his fingers tiredly through his hair.


    "Get some rest," Tianwei pats his shoulder before making his way to his home office. To his surprise, Jingwei follows behind him.


    "Jingwei?"


    "I want to see the contract you''re giving her," Jingwei says. "If she''s going to be my person, my bodyguard¡­if we''re going to be responsible for each other¡­ then I must know everything. All of her information too."


    "Fair enough," Tianwei responds, raising his eyebrows slightly. This was new - Jingwei had never really bothered with the nitty gritty details, but perhaps this new hire could change the way his younger brother dealt with things.


    He could be more responsible. More reliable. More respectable.


    And Tianwei didn''t want that.


    =


    Back in the living room, Sun Haowei sinks into the leather couch, rubbing the bridge of his nose. Li Xue Ning. He frowns. No matter what, she is only good enough to be a shield for his son, a method to develop his son''s potential.


    He would never allow for any rtionship to develop between her and his son.


    She would break his heart, the same way her parents broke his.

 Chapter 16 [Bonus Chapter] Interns At Sun Enterprises

    [CAN SKIP IF YOU WANT TO GO TO THE MAIN PLOT but if you want some side pairing goodness... read on!]


    Somewhere in China, a bright young woman named Yi Ting is eager to start a new stage of her life. She is fresh out of high school, and is ready to apply for an internship at Sun Enterprises, to hopefullynd a cushy job in thepany in future to support her family.


    Of course, she also had a less-than-ster record of childhood delinquency (she punched one boy once) back when she was in school, which made getting an internship a lot harder than it had to be.


    But that was alright. There was always onepany that was open to potential employees.


    Sun Enterprises is always hiring, because they are always firing.


    At least, that''s the impression she got after researching them.


    On ssdoor, a website used for ratingpanies, the famed Sun Enterprises only has a rating of 2 out of 5 stars. She ignored the first tendrils of doubt creeping in. Surely apany as reputable as Sun Enterprises shouldn''t rank this low? But then again, maybe they have a lot ofpetingpanies downvoting them. And it wasn''t possible to please everyone.


    And they mentioned good pay. That had to be worth everything.


    Some of the more memorable reviews she recalled reading were as follows:


    From Pang S L:


    PROS: Now I have enough money to pay for the therapy that I now need from working at Sun Enterprises.


    CONS: I NEED THERAPY. WHAT DO YOU THINK.


    Likes: 12553 Dislikes: 30


    From Meng S Y:


    Do NOT work at Sun Enterprises, unless you are single and nning to die alone in your house by 30 without even a pet. Your pet will die of starvation loneliness if you work here, kind of like how you will if you work here long enough. They''ll fire you if you start dying at your desk.


    Likes: 10092 Dislikes: 43


    From Chen P P:


    This ce has no concept of personal time, and their second Young Master loves to give you a heart attack by creating trouble at odd hours.


    The good thing? I''ve found myself bing more patient with my young son now.


    Likes: 5256 Dislikes: 159


    Surely all these people were exaggerating.


    On his first day of internship, Yi Ting joins a crowd of 20 other starry-eyed interns as they are brought around thepany building. The sun shone through the clean ss windows, giving the entire building a sense of life.


    Yi Ting feels hopeful for her future.


    Then she and this other intern Liu Shengli gets assigned to shadow the youngest Sun heir. The youngest Sun hadpany shares, but no one actually knew what he did for thepany - and no one had the guts to outright ask, because they were scared to get fired.


    Sun Jingwei had no real managerial post, but him being Sun Haowei''s youngest son was enough authority to make heads roll if he wished.


    Initially, Shengli and her were at loggerheads, determined to out-do each other to prove they were the better hire.


    But after the first 6 months, they realised the truth - the real menace was Sun Jingwei! Their animosity mostly dwindled into camaraderie, because no one would really understand what it was to ''work'' for Sun Jingwei.


    They all thought it was a great opportunity, and Sun Jingwei had a reputation for being easier to work for than his older brother Sun Tianwei. That man was cutthroat, a workaholic, and intolerant of ipetency.


    They heard he made five interns cry.<sub> </sub>


    Well, not like Sun Jingwei didn''t make interns cry, but the reasons are different.


    "What the fuck, I went tow school to be a nanny," Liu Shengliments into his beer, his cor popped and tie undone. This was the most dishevelled Yi Ting had seen him since he entered thepany.


    Yi Ting didn''t look much better, her face red with alcohol and her hair in a mess.


    "SO? At least you''re getting experience!" Yi Ting points out, huping. "He never lets me do anything! I just sit in the office and watch him spend money and flirt with women!"


    "I want to fight real court cases. Now I''m just wiping his ass," Shengli whines.


    "Hic - His pickup lines are so bad. So BAD!" Yi Ting whines louder, because she''s not losing to Shengli in this, he doesn''t know how good he has it.


    "Then why the fuck do they work?!" Shengli asks, in the voice of a man who can''t believe he has been forsaken by God. "How could women fall for him and his cheesy lines, and then hate him when he dumps them in the morning!"


    Shengli had to be there for all the morning-afters with an NDA for them to sign. Never before has seeing naked women been any less arousing for him. If Sun Jingwei turns him gay he''s going to sue him.


    "You''re asking me?!" Yi Ting yells back. "How would I know?! How does ''Are you a parking ticket? ''Cause you''ve got fine written all over you'' work on anyone with a brain?" She shudders as she remembers that pickup line. Sun Jingwei had thankfully onlyughed at her barely concealed look of disgust on her face, instead of firing her.


    Liu Shengli must have his brains addled by the alcohol, because his mouth moves faster than his brain for once. "So what pickup lines would work for you?"


    "Eh? Are you hitting on me?" Yi Ting asks, spluttering out a mouthful of beer.


    "You wish!" Shengli denies it immediately, ignoring that same part of his drunk mind that was saying Yi Ting looked very pretty in the dim lights of the bar. "You alwaysin about his bad pickup lines, are you sure you''re not jealous of the women he''s telling them too?"


    "Huh?! Liu Shengli, did you hit your head on the table? Do I need to hit your head on the table?" Yi Ting replies, beforeing to a realisation.


    "I GET IT. YOU ARE JEALOUS." She leans over and gives him a consoling pat on his shoulder, but it''s more like a painful p. Yi Ting really had no strength control when drunk.


    "Don''t worry bro," she continues seriously, but her eyes can''t even focus on his face. "I won''t tell anyone you''re in love with Sun Jingwei. Your secret is safe with me!"


    "Goddamit woman! I am not! What kind of manga have you been reading during work hours!" Shengli screams, looking around to see if anyone heard her oundish deration. Thankfully, no one is interested in their conversation.


    Yi Ting just continues to pat him, her hand now moving to his head. It''s like getting pped by an octopus. He grabs at it to stop her.


    "It''s okay bro, I got your back," Yi Ting deres. "We need to stick together."


    "Who''s your Bro?" Shengli replies instinctively. "You''re so drunk, I''m hauling you back now."


    "Okay." Yi Ting woops and wraps her arms around Shengli. "Let''s go man!"


    "Yes, yes," Shengli says, dragging her body out from the bar.


    "...Thanks," Yi Ting murmurs into his neckter, when they are both in the same cab on the way home.


    "For?" Shengli asks quietly. "The cab fare? Think nothing of it."


    "Nah, for everything," Yi Ting hups. "I don''t think I could have stayed in this job for so long if you weren''t here. You''re great."


    "...You''re wee," Shengli chokes out, not daring to turn to look at Yi Ting. His ears burned, no one has ever said that to him, drunk or sober. And Yi Ting wasn''t going to remember this the next day. "... I think you''re great too."


    Silence greeted his reply.


    Shengli chanced a quick look, and Yi Ting was dead asleep. Figures. Fine, he''ll just tell her that tomorrow. Or never.


    Never would work.

 Chapter 17 Mother’s Phone Call

    Xue Ning waited for a reply about the tigers, but Jingwei remained ominously silent. He wasn''t really intending for her to feed the tigers, was he? Wouldn''t rich people hire people specifically for that?


    Before she could contemte the intricacies of feeding recently revived sabre-tooth tigers, her phone rang loudly.


    It was her mom. Oh dear.


    "Hello Mother?" She asks cautiously.


    "Xue Ning! I saw the drugging news about Sun Jingwei - didn''t it happen at the club you said you were working at?"


    "Ah¡­ yes¡­I''m fine though," Xue Ning replies hesitantly. If her mom found out she was the one who got drugged she''ll probably book a ne ticket and drag her back home by her hair.


    ? "I told you not to work at this sort of ce! It''s so dangerous, especially for a young woman living by yourself! If anything bad happens to you, it''ll take days before anyone finds out!"


    Oh, if only her mom knew how true it was.


    "It''ll be fine! I might have a new job." Xue Ning says. It wasn''t technically untrue.


    "Oh good! Finally you''re taking my advice¡­ your new job will be something safe right? Not dangerous at all?" Her mother asks, nosy with worry. Xue Ning feels the slightest hint of guilt at the lie, but when it came to her family, it was often easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.


    "Yeah, it should be. It''s an office job after all." If Sun Jingwei stayed in the office then she would also be in the office. It''s not a lie. If he made her feed tigers, she could tell her mom she was working at the zoo.


    "That''s great to hear, my good daughter," she can feel her mother''s warm smile from over the phone. Xue Ning determinedly ignores the guilt that''s growing stronger. "Remember, you can alwayse home! Mom and Dad will always wee you with open arms!"


    "I know, but I won''te back so early. You know that," she replies to her mom.


    Even if her family loved to have her back, working at their family''s restaurant, she personally couldn''t stomach the thought of possibly spending the rest of her life behind a stove, cooking meals for the rest of the townspeople. She wasn''t good at cooking and didn''t love it the way her parents seem to, in a way that they would eagerly devote their lives to the craft.


    "How is Gege and sister-inw? Are they okay?" Xue Ning asks instead, to get rid of that elephant in the room.


    "They are fine, and they''ve been helping with the restaurant." ''Unlike you'', a malicious voice in her head whispers. It sounded suspiciously like her old school bully. ''Some daughter you are, leaving your family behind.''


    How could she have left the town to grow up in when she should have stayed to help her parents, and perhaps marry one of the boys she grew up with in that same small town?


    Simple: Xue Ning didn''t like the town, nor most of its people. They found her crass and udylike, spreading gossip about her and her family when they thought she was out of earshot. Some even did it right in front of her on purpose!


    The mostmon gossip she heard was that her parents must have offended someone so powerful that they were forced to leave their cushy jobs in Shanghai to move to such a small town to raise a family.


    She used to wonder about it too, but after living in Shanghai for the past 6 months, she thinks it might have just been to save more money on living expenses. One would have to sell a kidney here to raise a family out of a shoebox apartment. She was already having trouble feeding herself.


    Ironically, the best food she has eaten since she arrived was after she was hospitalised.


    "Xue Ning, are you still listening?" Her mother asks.


    "Ah yes, that''s good," she replies hastily, looking down at the nket. "So has Ge gotten any better at cooking noodles yet?"


    "He has improved, our regrs can''t tell the difference between his and your father''s anymore!" Her mom replies delightedly. Xue Ning is also relieved; at least her parents have one child that''s capable enough.


    "That''s good to hear," she says.


    "Nevermind about him, he is fine! You''re the one that we worry about the most!" Her mother says. "I hope you''re working hard on building a proper career and finding a husband. Do you remember your ssmate Shunxi from school? She''s already married to that boy¡­ I think it was Junhui?"


    "Ah. Good for her," she replies, face twitching in irritation. Of course Zhang Shunxi, with her pretty face and prettier manners had gotten married, nevermind that she spent her schooling years making snidements about Xue Ning. And of course she married the one boy Xue Ning had a crush on.


    "It''s not that Mother wants to rush you, but you really should start looking!" Her mother continues, getting more anxious with each passing word. "You''re already 25 and you still have no one - if you don''t hurry, all the good ones will be snapped up!"


    "Mother, you say it like it''s that easy," she replies, half-grumbling. "Am I supposed to find a guy from the supermarket?"<sub> </sub>


    "Make sure you actually dress up when going to the supermarket then!" Her mother scolds. "I''ve seen what you wear on a daily basis - how will you attract someone like this?"


    "There''s nothing wrong with the way I dress!" Xue Ning protested. She just preferred to wear simple T-shirts and jeans, or long pants, or shorts, with a hoodie if it was cold. Nevermind if it made her look like a first-year university student.


    "My dear daughter, your father and I believe that you''ll definitely find someone if you doll yourself up more often!" Her mother continues. "You are very pretty! Have more confidence!"


    "Thanks mom," she replies dryly, not believing it for a moment. Parents always thought the world of their children, which was why they were often disappointed. Just look at Sun Jingwei and his father.


    "But there''s no rush. Brother is already married - you should ask him for grandchildren instead!" Xue Ning exims.


    "Exactly! You said it yourself, your brother is already married despite being only 3 years older than you. How can I not worry about my favourite daughter, when I''ve not seen the head or hair of any future boyfriend?"


    "I''m your only daughter," Xue Ning points out, choosing to ignore the rest of her words.


    "That''s exactly why I worry," her mother exims hotly. "I finally agreed to let you stay in Shanghai because I hoped you would build a career and find someone you like there. Shanghai has a lot more men after all!"


    "Let me stay?" Xue Ning squawks in disagreement. "You didn''t ''let'' me stay, I left for Shanghai by myself!"


    "And you think I can''t book a ne ticket and haul you back just as easily?" Her mother replies. "Don''t be ridiculous!"


    Xue Ning sulked, knowing that her mother wasn''t joking. Which was why she never had to find out about Xue Ning''s new job, or she''ll probably be kept under house arrest until she reached 50 years old.


    "From now on, don''t spend your time in unsavoury ces, focus on getting a good job and finding a good man to marry, okay?"


    "I''ll do my best Mom," she replies, with no intention of doing so. Thankfully, her mother seemed to be nearing the end of her talk.


    "You''d better! You''re only young once, don''t waste your youth like this." Her mom concludes passionately. "Make sure to find someone by the time Chinese New Year rolls around next year, or I''ll start introducing my friends'' sons to you. Come to think of it, are you sure you wouldn''t want to meet -"


    "Hello? Mom? I can''t hear you¡­ the connection is weak¡­ I think it''s time... Bye Mom!" Xue Ning knows it''s a cowardly way to end a conversation, but this wasn''t the first time her mother suggested matchmaking her. She heaves a sigh, hopefully when she bes an actual bodyguard, her mother would eventuallye around to ept her new job and stop the matchmaking attempts.


    Ha. And maybe pigs can fly. Fat hope.


    Her phone rings again, she immediately picks it up, expecting it to be her mother calling her to continue her matchmaking spiel.


    "Mom, I don''t want to meet your friends'' sons!" She exims irritably.


    "Good, because I''m not giving you time to go on dates," was the amused reply. Xue Ning startles and checks the caller ID.


    It wasn''t her mom. She flushed in embarrassment, and is horribly d he can''t see her in person.


    "Yes, I realised," she says, pretending to be unaffected. "Are you calling me to tell me about the tigers?"


    "Not exactly," Jingwei replies loftily. "But you''ll be d to know that despite my best efforts to sabotage you out of a job, you''re now my unofficial bodyguard."


    "Really? That''s great!" Xue Ning nearly leaps off the bed in excitement, before she registers the rest of his words. "You tried to do what?"


    "As my unofficial bodyguard, you are not allowed to harm my person, it''s in your contract," he adds hurriedly, probably sensing the less-than-friendly thoughts she had over the phone. "I''ll ask your doctor when you can be discharged and then we''ll meet to sign the agreement if you''re okay with the terms."


    "Fine," she settles back into the bed. "I think I can be discharged by tomorrow."


    "Right. I''m still asking the doctor," he retorts. Xue Ning can hear the shuffling of papers on his end.


    "Trust me, once you start work, you''re gonna wish you didn''t."


    With this ominous parting line, Sun Jingwei hangs up.

 Chapter 18 A Mysterious Package

    Xue Ning gets discharged the very next morning, after eating a delicious hospital breakfast. She wasn''t going to turn down a free meal, especially not one that included fish congee and fried dough sticks. It even came with a serving of fruit to help her digestion!


    Ah, the perks of being a VIP in a hospital ward. She doubts she would have gotten a meal half as good as this if she was in a regr ward. Maybe some buttered bread or steamed mantou at best.


    With her belly full of food and a spring in her step, she made her way to her small, dingy apartment. Her neighbours were probably out for work, so Xue Ning didn''t need to bother with small talk; she could enter her apartment in easy silence.


    "Home sweet home," she says to herself, looking around her apartment. Home for now, was a small apartment with only one bedroom, with paint peeling off three out of the four walls, and pipes that groaned ominously whenever she tried to have a hot shower.


    Her kitchen had a frequently used microwave with a less frequently used stove, as well as a sink full of unwashed dishes, with kitchen tiles that had seen better days. The previous renter had caused more than a few to crack, making them safety hazards, liable to cut an unsuspecting foot.


    (Xue Ning, being a consummate problem-solver on a budget, merely put a stack of old newspapers on top of them. Problem solved. Those crack tiles did help her get cheaper rent though, and everyone around her had newspapers to donate always. As far as she''s concerned, this was a win-win scenario.)


    It had only been two days, but her house seemed to look a lot dustier. She could see dust particles floating in thete morning sun and her floor felt grimy already. Urgh. She groaned to herself and rolled up her sleeves; before deciding to tackle the easiest chore - her dirty dishes.


    =


    After washing her dishes and sweeping the floor, she sits on her lumpy couch, exhausted, resisting the urge to pick at the scabs on the cuts left behind from the ss shards. It was almost time for lunch, but her fridge was still depressingly empty.


    Just as she was about to leave her home to get food, her doorbell rings, followed by someone thumping at her door.


    Suspicious. She has never had anyone visit without prior warning. A nce at the peephole shows a well-dressed woman carrying a huge box. She frowns  - she didn''t order anything.


    Her doorbell rings again. She opens it warily, making sure there''s only one small gap so that she can m the door back in that person''s face if necessary.


    "Is this Miss Li Xue Ning''s house?" The woman asks politely, with a touch of confusion as though she can''t believe she lives in such a ce.


    "Yes, and I am Li Xue Ning," she replies, one eye looking through the gap.


    "Oh good, I''m delivering the necessary work attire from Sun Enterprises," the woman replies in relief. The box must have been heavier than expected. But still, she has to make sure she isn''t  someone out to kidnap her. Women can be kidnappers too.


    "Do you have any ID?" She asks.


    The woman sighs and puts down the box with a thump, grumbling under her breath. Xue Ning could vaguely make out the words ''pain'', ''fuck'', and ''stupid boss.'' It didn''t take a genius to figure out what she meant.


    She shes his employee ID at her. Her photo looks a lot happier than her actual face.


    WANG YI TING


    HR & Admin Executive


    Wow, an executive is here delivering her parcels like an ordinary delivery woman.


    Xue Ning opens the door more apologetically.


    "Sorry," she says, opening the door to receive the parcel. Yi Ting deposits it into her arms with the feeling of someone finally free of a huge burden.


    God, the package was heavy. Did Sun Jingwei pack her a gold bar? She stumbles and dumps the package on the couch. It creaks ominously under the weight.


    "Are you alright back there?" Yi Ting asks. She catches the inquisitive look she gives to her apartment, taking in the small size, the second-hand furniture, the peeling walls.


    "I''m fine," she replies. "Thank you for making the way here to deliver this parcel."<sub> </sub>


    "It''s my job," she shrugs. "Or not really, but I was forced to do this. Can I take a photo of your front door so that I can prove I delivered the parcel?"


    "Sure."


    After the picture was taken with a loud snap, an awkward silence falls as they both run out of pleasantries.


    "Well, goodbye then, thanks again!" She hastily says.


    "Bye," Yi Ting says just as quickly, and all but flees away from the house. She shuts her door and locks it, before turning her attention to that huge parcel.


    "Let''s see¡­" she mutters to herself, using a rusty pair of scissors to cut open the box, making sure to avoid damaging the inside. If she damages it, she might have to rece it with her own money.


    With a triumphant flourish, the box finally opens to reveal¡­ fabric in stic? She goes through the box slowly, marvelling at the five ck T-shirts and five ck long-sleeved shirts as well as the ck pants packed inside.


    This is a great new work outfit, she thinks gleefully, all ck and fitted and identical. Perfect because she doesn''t need to think about matching tops and bottoms.


    She continues digging through the box, and bes increasingly confused at what she finds.


    A pair of ck boots, that is normal enough.


    A pair of strappy ck heels with crystals iid at the front? Strange.


    A pair of stilettos, this time in bright red. She could probably kill a man with them, and not by wearing them.


    With increasing confusion, she pulled out a slinky red cocktail dress. The fabric was stretchable, but Xue Ning had no doubt that this dress was made to cling to every curve in her body.


    This dress was barely long enough to cover her ass. Did Sun Jingwei overestimate her height? Was this dress even for her? Or was he that much of a pervert?


    She raises her eyebrows and keeps looking through the box.


    The next outfit she pulled out took her breath away. It was an evening gown that seemed to shimmer from within. She gingerly touched the fabric - it was softer, silkier than anything she owned. The gown shimmered as she held it in front of her, wishing for once she had a full-length mirror so she could take all of it in. She expected it to sweep the floor, but strangely enough the gown wasn''t that long - in fact, if she put on the heels delivered, they would reach the perfect length.


    She wanted to try it on, but then shook herself out of those ideas. There''s a possibility that these outfits were sent to her wrongly by mistake. It would hurt more, if she wore it and fell in love with it, only to realise it was never meant to be hers to begin with.


    Something that seemed luxurious didn''t belong to someone like her. She regrettably folded it back, carefully settling it aside to be repackedter.


    She rummages through the rest of the box, hoping for a pleasant surprise, only to be greeted withcy undergarments.


    What on earth? Is this his idea of a joke?


    She stares incredulously back at the box, the first thing she sees is a sexy ckce bra that probably cost more than a month''s worth of rent. She gingerly lifted it aside, only to reveal the matching panty set. She removed that, only to be greeted with another bra, this time with smooth satin cups instead ofce.


    Of course it came with the panties too. She lifted them up for a closer look, and they were almost sheer in the afternoon sunlight. If she focused, she could see her hand behind the fabric.


    How could she possibly wear this! It was almost translucent! Practically good for nothing! Perfect for perverts!


    She growls. Sun Jingwei better exin himself!

 Chapter 19 [Bonus Chapter] Deciding On Xue Nings Gifts

    A few days ago...


    Yi Ting and Shengli stare deadpan at Sun Jingwei''s myriad of purchases lying around the office, and then at Sun Jingwei who was strangely, actually in the office at such an early hour.


    "Boss?" Yi Ting asks hesitantly, "what is happening here? Am I getting fired?"


    "Did you piss off another one of your one-night-stands?" Shengli asks.


    "Nonsense! Stop roasting me and help me look over all these, especially you, Yi Ting."


    "Me?" Yi Ting asks, pointing to herself in surprise.


    "Yes, as a woman, what are the items that appeal to you from everything here?" Jingwei waves a hand to epass the multiple parcels stacked on top of each other, as though they were a Taobao warehouse.


    "Er¡­ I''ll just take a look then," Yi Ting says, shooting Shengli a look of abject confusion. After working for Sun Jingwei for years, this was probably the least troublesome request of his. "Oi, Shengli, be useful and bring me the parcels."


    ''Hello? Am I your dog?" Shengliins as he proceeds to do just that, unceremoniously shoving the parcels at Yi Ting, who is now sitting on the floor.


    Jingwei hides augh behind his hands. Liu Shengli couldin and grumble all he wanted, but he would still do what Yi Ting asked. Jingwei wonders when Yi Ting would ever notice - but even if she didn''t, this is still fun to watch.


    "What are youughing at?" Shengli narrows his eyes suspiciously.


    "Nothing!" Jingwei says innocently, hands outstretched. "You can give your opinions on the things I bought too! I''m sure you and Yi Ting will provide me with some new insight."


    Yi Ting opens the first parcel to reveal ckcy underwear. The price tag attached to it shows that it is worth 3 months of Yi Ting''s sry.


    "Boss, what insight are you looking for?" Yi Ting asks, internally despairing. No amount of on-the-job training could have prepared her for working under Sun Jingwei. "It''s underwear."


    "Whether or not you think most women will like it," Jingwei says. "Is this sexy enough? Comfortable? What would you think if your boss sent you this?"


    "Boss, while I''m ttered at your interest, I must reject you." Yi Ting says seriously, staring up at him. "You''re not my type."


    "This is sexual harrassment," Shengli says tly, ignoring the way his intestines curdled at the thought of Jingwei liking Yi Ting. "Yi Ting, I''ll help you to sue the pants off him."


    "Ohe on! This isn''t for you, I''m just asking if I were to give this to someone who hypothetically saved my life from ruin, would it be fine?" Jingwei asks.


    "This is for your bodyguard?" Shengli exims.


    "Yes!" Jingwei says excitedly. "You got it!"


    "Boss, if I were her, I''d just let you die," Yi Ting states heartlessly. "You''ll make her regret saving you."


    "Oh," Jingwei says, face falling immediately. "Then what about if I gave her this dress along with it? Would it change her mind?" He then hands them a garment bag that was lying over his work dress.


    Yi Ting unzips it cautiously, revealing a beautiful evening gown in sky blue.


    "Oh, this does look nice," Yi Ting says wistfully. "But what excuse are you going to give her to ept this?"


    "It''s another uniform for her bodyguarding duties. I can put it under workce expenses." Jingwei shrugs casaully.


    "No wonder Rui Lin from Finance hates you," Shengli says, shaking his head. "You make her job a lot harder than it needs to be."


    "And we pay her a lot more to make up for it," Jingwei replies smoothly. "So this dress is good."


    "It looks good," Yi Ting agrees. "But do you have her measurements?"<sub> </sub>


    "Not exactly. I just eye-balled it, but it should fit," Jingwei says.


    Shengli makes a tsk-ing sound in response. "That''s not ideal, but you asking for measurements would be weirder."


    "True," Yi Ting nods. "So here''s hoping she can actually fit into it, if not she''ll hate you more."


    "Do you guys realise that the only time when the both of you agree on something is when you''re roasting me?" Jingwei asks idly.


    "It''s great team bonding," Yi Ting replies honestly. "If you weren''t our boss, I would have murdered Shengli in our first month."


    Shengli scoffs, rolling his eyes. "Like you can."


    "What, like you and your scrawny arms are going to stop me?" Yi Ting raises an eyebrow. Shengli was a man that did not work out, for he spent most of his time looking over contracts.


    "Not everyone needs to use brute force to get their way!" He argues.


    "You''re just saying that, because you have the strength of a limp noodle!" She yells back.


    "Okay okay, calm down, children," Jingwei says catingly, as though he''s a kindergarten teacher trying to calm his rowdy students. "Look, I have more parcels for you guys toment on!"


    Shengli and Yi Ting quiet down, but not before trying to discreetly kick each other''s foot. To be called a child by Sun Jingwei, one of the most childish people they''ve ever met, was a grievous insult.


    Yi Ting opens the next parcel. It was a pair of fancy heels, presumably to go with the dress.


    "This looks fine? But how did you get her shoe size?" She asks, curious.


    "I looked at her shoes when she was still in the ward," Jingwei says proudly.


    "I see," Shengli replies with dead eyes. He doesn''t know whether to be proud or appalled at his resourcefulness.


    While he was busy cleaning up Jingwei''s mess with the police and the media, this man was out there staring at the shoes of his presumed future wife to buy her fancy heels.


    "Next box!" Yi Ting says cheerfully. This task isn''t as bad as she feared, she''s having fun now - it''s as though she''s one of those influencers doing unboxing videos, only better because she didn''t pay a single cent for any of these gifts!


    The next box reveals a sexy cocktail dress with a plunging neckline.


    "Boss, you''re a pervert." Yi Ting says.


    "Is this your first day of knowing him?" Shengli asks sarcastically.


    "Guilty as charged." Jingwei admits easily, "I think Xue Ning would look amazing in this outfit though!"


    "Now I''m curious to know how she looks like," Yi Ting says, a finger tapping on her chin.


    Sun Jingwei smiles at her, it suddenly looks more evil than she expected.


    "Guess what Yi Ting? I have the best way for you to find out!"


    Shengli makes fake consoling noises whileughing at her, because he knows what''sing. Yi Ting refuses to believe the signs, but there is no mistaking the wordsing out from Sun Jingwei''s mouth.


    "You can deliver all these packages to her!"


    She despairs.

 Chapter 20 Reserving You For Dinner

    Sheys out all the gifts in a neat square, making sure to put the underwear front and centre, before taking a photo. She then draws a circle in red ink around it and adds an arrow, before sending that picture along with the message ''EXCUSE ME? DO EXPLAIN."


    She gets a call less than a minuteter.


    "Oh good, you received my delivery!" was his excited reply.


    "Did you identally mix my outfits with the ones meant for your girlfriend?" Xue Ning asks tly.


    "Of course not! I don''t have a girlfriend! All these are handpicked for you!" Jingwei exims.


    "You handpicked underwear for me?!" She squawks, face red. "We''re not that close!"


    "How can you say that? You''re practically my saviour! I owe you a life debt!" Jingwei argues. "Sexy underwear is the least you deserve!"


    "You''re giving your saviour underwear?" She asks incredulously in return. "Do you not find anything weird with this?"


    "Does my saviour not need underwear?" He asks, and Sun Jingwei must have no sense of self-preservation, he continues, "are they the wrong size? If so, I''m sorry - tell me your size and I''ll get you new sets."


    "No need! They are fine!" It did not escape Xue Ning''s notice that the underwear would be a perfect fit based on her measurements, which was why she felt so rattled. How could he guess her underwear sizes so effectively?


    Did he research her underwear sizes?


    "Oh good," came his relieved voice. "I had to guess based on my observations of your breast size and hip size. Thankfully it worked!"


    "You what," she replies tly.


    "Well, I had to guess," he exins with a tone that implies that Xue Ning was being unreasonable about his hidden ability to figure out women''s sizes with his eyes alone. "You didn''t tell me your three measurements, remember?"


    "Of course I wouldn''t!" She splutters a reply. "Look at what you sent me!"


    "So you don''t like ckce?" He asks in confusion. "Strange, that''s usually a design preferred by women. I thought it would look great on you!"


    "It''s not the design I have issues with!" Xue Ning replies hotly. "Why are you sending me underwear in the first ce! How is that rted to my job?!"


    "You might need it!" Sensing her confusion, he borates further. "What if I''m attending a g or a cocktail event, or I''m choosing to go to a club to find out more about the people trying to drug me? You''ll need to blend in!"


    "...Are you going to a club? Have you found any leads?" She asks, heart beating quickly in excitement.


    "Not exactly. But me going back to clubbing will definitely help! My brother thinks so too!"


    "Your brother?" If it was a suggestion by Jingwei''s older brother, then it wasn''tplete nonsense.


    "Yeah! My brother brought up a really good point - if I go into ''hiding'', they won''t know how to strike at me - so the police won''t be able to get more evidence to catch them."


    "So¡­ your n is to use yourself as bait?" She asks incredulously.


    "Precisely!" She can hear him beaming from the other end of the line.<sub> </sub>


    "I¡­ wouldn''t your father be very angry at you for putting yourself in possible danger?" She asks, trying to wrap her brain around this ridiculous idea.


    "That''s why I hired you. Duh." He replies smugly. Xue Ning wonders what''s the protocol for professional bodyguards when they are assigned to someone with no sense of self-preservation. Somehow she doesn''t think punching them in the stomach until they change their mind is the right course of action.


    "Fine, but I''m not wearing that sexy dress," she replies. "The pants and shirt are fine - I want to look invisible enough that people think I''m another bartender."


    "If you say so," he gives a wistful sigh. "I just think it would be a shame for your legs to be hidden from the world."


    She rolls her eyes. "Keep talking like that, and I''ll make sure these legs end up wrapped around your neck."


    "Oh will they? I''m looking forward to it," Jingwei''s voice suddenly bes deeper, sultrier, dangling the promise of a wickedly good time.


    Her face flushes in response, and she has to give herself a good mental smack. Why did she say such things without thinking? This man was technically her boss, even if they were the same age. She can''t be treating him like a drinking buddy.


    "I meant I was going to strangle you - get your head out of the gutter!" She scolds him, before realising that it wasn''t polite. She is greeted withughter from the other end. So much for maintaining professionalism.


    "Hahahaha oh man, you just walked right into that one," Jingwei says, stillughing breathlessly. Was it fondness she detected through his voice? Impossible, he was probably just amused.


    "Yes, I walked into that innuendo with my legs that will not be wrapped around your neck, yes." Xue Ning replies dryly. "Buried in your stomach on the other hand¡­"


    "Tsk tsk Miss Li, please redirect that violent streak of yours to the people trying to harm me. If you do that, I''ll reward you handsomely!" Jingwei responds with the slightest whine in his voice.


    "You''d better, or I''ll hold you hostage instead," she threatens. Oh crap. Even less professionalism.


    But somehow, Sun Jingwei must have a great tolerance for rude employees because he merelyughs louder in response. Xue Ning didn''t think she was that funny - or maybe he just found her attempts at threatening him hrious.


    Who knows? He must have had many people threatening him. One of them got close enough that he needed to hire Xue Ning, a not even certified bodyguard.


    "Then we have a deal. Tomorrow evening at 6pm. Crystal Pce Gardens. I''ll pick you up! Wear the dress if you like! See you."


    "Wait what -"


    The phone line goes silent. Xue Ning blinked rapidly, the conversation moved so quickly that she was blindsided with the details.


    It sounded strangely like a date, but that thought was so impossible Xue Ning disregarded it the moment it appeared.


    So¡­ tomorrow. He was picking her up at 6pm? What club opens so early?


    And technically, shouldn''t she be the one picking him up? Whoever heard of a boss driving their employee to do their job? But then again, she had no car, and she doubts he would like to sit behind her rickety bicycle.


    She swears to herself to get her hands on the keys to thepany cars. It would be embarrassing to be chauffeured by the very person she was supposed to protect.


    Now¡­ What kind of club is this Crystal Pce Garden?

 Chapter 21 Jealous Text

    Meanwhile back at his own apartment, Sun Jingwei pumps his fist in the air at the sessful date request. He could have invited her over to his apartment and cooked a meal for her, but a Michelin star restaurant would be more impressive.


    He had not told her it was a dinner date, but he refused to possibly risk their lives on an empty stomach.


    Jingwei hopes she wears one of the dresses, but to be honest, she could have worn a potato sack and he would still be happy to see her.


    Because this would mean that she had shown up. She had stayed, and not quit at his outrageous request and less than professional behaviour.


    (He ignores the ugly voice in his head that murmurs ''she is just doing this for work'' ''she''s using you like all the others'' ''she doesn''t even like you, no one likes you, go away''.)


    <o>,m Things will be fine. They will have a wonderful dinner and then they''ll go to a club where hopefully nothing terrible happens and the case will be solved and Sun Jingwei doesn''t have to worry about endangering Xue Ning''s life again.</o>


    And then they can perhaps go on another dinner date together. Lunch. Breakfast. Supper. He thinks it would be nice to finally go out with someone that''s not pretending to butter him up only to stab him in the back.


    Xue Ning seemed like someone who would stab him from the front. She is terrible at hiding her intentions¡­ and it''s refreshing. He stares at her name on his contact list, thumb hovering on the Message button, before forcing himself to stop.


    She would find him too clingy otherwise, he reminded himself. He didn''t like it when women constantly contacted him with nonsense, so he shouldn''t do the same to her.


    But it was hard to resist the impulse to text her somethingpletely ridiculous just to see what scathing retort shees up with to reply.


    Maybe just one message wouldn''t hurt. It was to reply to her earlier question after all.


    To Xue Ning


    P.S. The tigers are real. They eat and shit a lot.


    There. That''s all. He''ll put his phone away and focus on important things, like thepany''s share prices and whether or not the paparazzi have finally vacated his premises.


    His phone buzzes with a new message. He immediately picks it up, hoping for a reply.


    It''s from an unknown number.


    He opens it, only for the earlier excitement to be reced with confusion.


    From Unknown Number:


    ENJOY YOUR EVENING


    IT''LL BE YOUR LAST


    Was this a prank? How did someone even know he nned to go out tonight? He repressed the urge to shiver. This wasn''t anything he needed to worry about.


    Did Xue Ning send this message? No, that was impossible. He only knew her for a few days, but he knows she would never send an anonymous text to threaten him. She would have just called him outright to cancel their date.<sub> </sub>


    Crap, didn''t Xue Ning have a boyfriend? Or at least something like one? He rubbed his temples, trying to recall their meeting in the club VIP rooms. He remembered the sinking feeling of disappointment when he heard that she was attached.


    Maybe it was Xue Ning''s jealous boyfriend who sent this message to threaten him.


    But in his honest opinion, this mysterious boyfriend of hers wasn''t any good. What kind of boyfriend didn''t visit his girlfriend when she was hospitalised? He didn''t even show up once!


    Xue Ning had no visitors during her stay in the hospital at all, which was why Jingwei made the time to keep herpany.


    This mysterious boyfriend also didn''t even attempt to deck Jingwei for identally putting his girlfriend in danger. What kind of man was he? A heartless bastard?!


    He was a coward too, for choosing to threaten him via text. Jingwei scowled and called the number, determined to give him a piece of his mind, only to be greeted with an automated voice message.


    ''The number you have called is no longer in service. Please, try againter. The number you have called is no -''


    Jingwei cuts off the call in disgust. This mysterious man probably used a burner phone just to send one threatening message. He didn''t even have the guts to use his real phone number!


    He''ll let Xue Ning know during dinner that her boyfriend is a spineless bastard that threatens people via text. How could she want to spend her life with this kind of person?!


    "What a coward," he mutters to himself, flinging his phone on the sofa irritably. Hopefully, Xue Ning will dump that sorry bastard after giving his number to Jingwei so that Jingwei can hire people to scribble it on the walls of public bathrooms everywhere.


    The thought makes him smile. He stretches, deciding to spend more time preparing for his fun night out than thinking about this issue.


    Xue Ning clearly deserved better - and perhaps he''ll use this dinner to prove it to her.


    =


    "Sun Jingwei, you bastard¡­ You still want to go out and date?" A feminine voice hissed in anger, before it chuckled darkly in disgust. If anyone else had heard it, they would have shuddered and hastily made excuses to leave, but the one person who was listening merely smiled peacefully.


    "Let him have one good night," the second voice said, like it was trying to cajole a child throwing a tantrum. It belonged to a man, and his voice gave the impression of a snake-oil salesman trying to make a sale. "You know the Boss has his ns. Trust him."


    "Of course I do!" The first voice yelled. "I always trust the Boss. Don''t insult my loyalty!"


    "Then, make sure you don''t screw up this time," the second voice loses its geniality, bing harsher and colder almost immediately. "Our Boss'' benevolence isn''t infinite, he won''t tolerate another mistake."


    "I won''t¡­ I won''t¡­" the first voice promises, almost feverish. "I just need one more chance¡­"


    "And you will have it, Xiumin¡­If you seed¡­" The man throws his head back andughs.


    "The Sun family will fall tonight, starting from that arrogant Sun Jingwei!"

 Chapter 22 [Bonus Chapter] Noodles Back Home

    "Dear, I think our daughter is hiding something from us," Xue Ning''s mother, the lovely Yue Niang said, lips pursed as she washes thest of the dishes from the straggling customers before they close for the night.


    "Why do you think that?" Her husband, Li Tai Cheng, asked. He was standing beside her, helping her to dry the bowls. It would be easier if they had an automatic dishwasher, but after running the sums, he realised it wasn''t worth the expense.


    "Just a feeling - you know she tried that old trick on me? The one where you pretend your phone is breaking up to end a conversation?!'' She exims, flicking soap suds everywhere in her agitation. "Since when did she do things like that? I thought she grew out of it after she stopped being a teenager!"


    "Well, she could be undergoing dyed puberty - Wife, don''t hit me! The tes are breakable!" Her husband yelps.


    "You are exaggerating," she retorts, giving a prim sniff in reply. "But I''m serious about our daughter. She told me she got a new job, but she''s not telling me the whole story. I''m afraid it might be something disreputable."


    "I doubt it," her husband replies. "Look, how I think¡­she has a boyfriend."


    The te nearly slides out of her hands in shock.


    "Wife, there is no point in worrying about it now," Tai Cheng points out, refusing to think about his baby girl possibly dating some strange man from Shanghai. "Our daughter is now a fully grown adult. What are you going to do? Fly to Shanghai to haul her back home? That''s nonsense and you know it."


    "I could do it, you know that," Yue Niang muttered. "I could even fly the ne myself."


    "Yes, yes, of course you could. My wife is the most capable after all," Tai Cheng teased, and gets an elbow in his ribs for his efforts.


    "But you shouldn''t do it anyway. We need to respect our daughter''s independence and her good judgement. She left the bartending job, didn''t she? So she knows that it wasn''t a good one," Tai Cheng exins.


    "Besides, when have you known our baby Xue Ning to act on impulse and be hoodwinked by rich handsome men? She hates rich, handsome men! Remember how she reacted when you tried to set her up with Old Liu''s son?"


    "True," Yue Niang conceded reluctantly. "If she keeps rejecting the matchmaking offers, I''m going to find rich, beautiful women for her then. I''m sure I could find someone for her."


    "So supportive," Tai Cheng cooes yfully at her, and gets another elbow in the gut for his efforts. Thankfully, his stomach had a thinyer of fat to shield his organs from his wife''s pointy elbows. He had never been soft in the middle, but ageing and a gentle, peaceful lifestyle meant that he had the fortune to develop belly fat.


    "We''re back!" Their oldest son Tai Xuan announces. He and his wife had just returned from delivering food to customers on their motorbikes. "Do you need any help with the dishes?"


    "No need, the both of you can just go shower first," Tai Cheng says, smiling at both his son and daughter-inw. "Your mom was just telling me that she thinks your sister is secretly dating a handsome rich man in Shanghai."


    "I did no such thing," Yue Niang protests. "Children, don''t listen to your dad, he''s spewing nonsense."


    "Yeah, that does sound like nonsense," Li Tai Xuan says, nodding. "Since when has Xue Ning''s type been handsome or rich?"


    "Very true," his wife, Xin Yu, says, going into the restaurant to deliver the receipts. "She told me that she only likes to punch rich handsome men until they vomit out gold coins."


    "Speaking of rich handsome men, have you heard about the Sun Jingwei scandal?" Tai Xuan asks. Strangely, both of his parents fell still at his simple question.


    "Oh? There''s a scandal? I haven''t noticed," his mom replies casually, after a heavy pause.


    "Mom, you really need to go on the Inte more often!" Tai Xuan scolds her yfully. "It''s nuts I tell you, apparently he got some girl pregnant and he''s marrying her!"


    "What?!" Both of his parents eximed.


    "It''s not confirmed yet," his wife added. "It''s a lot of rumours for now, but there''s a video of him calling some woman his wife. Everyone is losing their minds because apparently she''s a bartender?"<sub> </sub>


    "A bartender? Like our Xue Ning?" His father asks, exchanging identical looks of panic with his wife.


    "Yeah, bute on Dad! Shanghai is so big, it has a poption of 26 million people! There''s no way our Xue Ning would be tangled with Sun Jingwei out of all people. It just doesn''t make sense," Tai Xuan scoffs disbelievingly. "If they do know each other, I''ll eat my motorbike."


    "Stranger things have happened," his wife points out. "But if he''s speaking the truth, we''ll all get a wedding announcement over Weibo. There''s no way someone like him will keep this a secret."


    "That''s not true, you forget that his father wouldn''t want anything to do with it. He''ll want to keep it low-key." His father replies, a tad bit bitterly.


    Tai Xuan rolls his eyes. "Dad, you speak like you know Sun Jingwei''s dad." His back is turned, which is why he did not see the way his parents froze like stone statues at his words. "Come on, darling, are you done with the ounting?"


    "Almost," Xin Yu says, a tongue sticking out as she concentrates on the sums. "Don''t disturb me."


    "Go and bathe first then, son," Tai Cheng suggests, easily side-stepping his son''s previous realisation. "If not you''ll hold up the queue for the bathroom."


    "Got it! I''ll see all of youter!" Tai Xuan says, waving a cheery goodbye at all of them and giving his wife a quick peck on the cheek, before turning tail to return home - their shared apartment that was only a stone''s throw away from the restaurant.


    Tai Cheng and Yue Niang looked at each other and heaved identical sighs of relief. It did not go unnoticed by their daughter-inw, but she kept quiet. It''s probably nothing important.


    "Mom, Dad, I have good news, our restaurant is earning a good amount of profit so far thanks to our increased deliveries," Xin Yu reports proudly.


    Tai Chang and Yue Niang give her grateful smiles. With the restaurant thriving, it allows them to be less reliant on the money their eldest son had given them for their household expenses.


    They were already thrifty to begin with, but now they had another reason: their son and daughter-inw are trying for a baby, and everyone knows that babies cost a lot of money to raise!


    Yue Niang and her husband had cushy nest eggs when they moved to Hubei to start a new life. It should have been enough for them to live the rest of their lives in rtivefort, but then they had a son, and then another daughter three yearster.


    To make matters worse, as a child, Xue Ning had a weaker constitution. She wasn''t ill enough to spend the majority of time bedridden in the hospital, but she did spendrge amounts of time tucked safely at home instead of ying with the other kids.


    That did not endear her to the other children. They saw how their daughter developed quick fists and a sharp tongue as a defence mechanism, and they despaired at the way she built her walls so high.


    They enrolled her in various martial arts sses to help her make friends, but she came out of it with a mean right hook, aundry list of rivals, and the worst ambition of wanting to be a bodyguard instead.


    If Xue Ning had wanted to be a trophy wife instead, Yue Niang would have jumped for joy - but no, her precious baby daughter that she spent 10 hours pushing out of her wanted to be a bodyguard! A glorified meatshield!


    Yue Niang could not shake that niggling thought that Xue Ning''s new job was most likely something she would not approve of. Something like being an exotic pole dancer, a club hostess or¡­ a bodyguard.


    "Dear, if you keep frowning like that, you''ll get permanent wrinkles," her husband murmurs to her.


    "I just have a bad feeling," she replies quietly. "And the recent news about Sun Jingwei doesn''t help either."


    "It could just be a coincidence," Tai Cheng says, trying to convince both of them. "Besides, remember what our son said, about Shanghai being a huge city with over 26 million people? When will they ever get a chance to meet?"


    When indeed.

 Chapter 23 Steady Hands On The Wheel

    10 minutes to 6pm, Xue Ning''s neighbours were treated to an unusual sight of a bright red sports car parked innocently in front of their dingy apartmentplex. Random passersby gawked at the car, with some even bothering to take photos of such a rare urrence.


    Xue Ning only facepalmed at the sight of the car. It was so red that a bullfighter could have used it to enrage bulls. She hurriedly slid into the car, thankful for the tinted windows that hid Jingwei''s face from nosy neighbours.


    Luckily she hadn''t worn the cocktail dress. Instead she had put on her ck jeans, a ck shirt along with an old leather jacket that had seen better days.


    Of course, Xue Ning going into such an expensive car would already cause gossip to spread. But she didn''t know how bad it could get untilter.


    "Woah, you''re earlier than I expected. Are you that excited to meet me for dinner?" Jingwei asks as he smiles at her, one hand on the steering wheel, idly drumming along to the beat of the pop song ying from the car radio.


    He was dressed in a full suit, but he wore no tie. Instead he left his cor and the top button free to reveal his tanned skin and corbone. He was handsome enough that Xue Ning had to blink twice to recalibrate her senses. Perhaps this was a bad idea. Being in such close proximity with him dressed like this might lead her to trouble.


    But free food. She can''t say no to that.


    "You''re early too, so I could ask the same for you," she replies easily, sliding into the car and putting on her seat belt. The car even smelled expensive, the scent of clean leather and cologne mixing together to form a uniquely masculine scent. Her nose twitched. It was a lot more pleasant than whatever she smelt before at her old workce.


    "I asked you first," Jingwei says, looking at her intently. He had leaned even closer, and this newck of distance from his gaze does strange things to her intestines, and she feels her face flushing. It must be indigestion.


    "I''m hungry, sue me," she replies easily, deliberately looking away and pretending to busy herself with adjusting her hair in the rearview mirror, raising an eyebrow at a ck car parked at the side. She hasn''t seen that vehicle before.


    "Can we go now? Your car is attracting a lot of attention."


    "You''re too broke, I''d feel bad if I were to sue you," he says, amused as easily drives the car out from the parking lot with only one hand on the steering wheel. Xue Ning is torn between feeling impressed and worried. "And yes, I suppose you can say that this dinner is the highlight of my entire month."


    He shoots Xue Ning a grin, before turning to focus on the road.


    "Use both hands when driving," she says, because she doesn''t know how to reply to his words. This was Sun Jingwei''s birthday month, he must have had so many celebratory meals - how could dinner with her be the highlight of his month?


    Surely he was just being kind.


    "I could do that," he winks at her. "But I always keep one of my hands free when I''m in a car with a pretty girl."


    She gives him a deadpan look.


    "Quit that bullshit and drive properly," she scolds. "I don''t want to die before we even get to eat."


    "Yes Ma''am," he gives her a one-handed salute, leaving only one hand on the wheel. She res, and he makes a great show of putting his other hand on the wheel.


    "I must tell you that I''ve been driving since I got my licence." Jingwei says reassuringly. "Driving one-handed is not a problem for me. I even race with one hand. I only don''t drive drunk. That''s when I get my chauffeur to drive."


    "Good for you," she says, pleasantly surprised at his words. A lot of her old rich customers from the club would drive intoxicated if they could, if she hadn''t called them cabs and got her co-workers to shove their sorry asses into the vehicle.


    "So you see, I''m a responsible driver! I''ve been driving since I was 16!" He deres. "Don''t worry, we''ll get to our destination safely."


    "I see, but shouldn''t I be in-charge of driving you?" She asks, curious. "I''m technically working for you. It''s weird to be driven by my boss."


    "Nah, I like driving," he gives her another charming grin that makes him look very boyish. It gives Xue Ning shbacks to her high school crush. "It makes me feel free, you know? Like nothing can catch you."<sub> </sub>


    "I guess?" She has never driven anything fast enough to experience that feeling.


    "Maybeter you''ll drive me back, and you''ll understand." Jingwei says.


    "You''re letting me drive your car?" Xue Ning blinks in surprise.


    "Why not? You''re working for me - what''s mine is yours now." Jingwei says cheerfully. "Can you help me to change the radio channel until I find a song I like?"


    "Sure," she says nkly, shifting through stations on autopilot. What''s ''his'' is ''hers''? Did he mix up the saying? It should have been the other way around - what''s hers is his, wasn''t it?


    "Stop!" He yells, snapping her out of her thoughts. A soulful bad reverberates through the car.


    Even his sound system was state-of-the-art, allowing her to listen to the different musical instruments that make up the song. Rich people really have it good.


    "By the way, I think you got the saying wrong," she says conversationally as Jingwei does his best to lipsync a high note.


    "Huh? I''m pretty sure I know the lyrics to this song. It''s one of my mother''s favourites." He replies, frowning.


    "No I don''t mean the song! I meant with what you said - what''s yours is mine. Shouldn''t it be the other way around - what''s mine is yours? Seeing that you are my boss, and you are paying me, and you even bought me a lot of outfits." Xue Ning says, counting each point with her fingers.


    "Ah, but it goes both ways. You are mine - my girl - bodyguard, you are my bodyguard, so of course what''s mine is yours. You''re literally going to save me from possible death and dismemberment, I think you deserve somepensation for that." Jingwei replies quickly, nearly tripping over his words.


    She frowns at the slight hup. A girl bodyguard? Was he looking down on her because she was a woman?


    Well. She''d just have to prove that she was capable then, even with her limited experience andck of training.


    "I''ll make sure I''ll keep you safe," she promises, holding a fist up. "I might be smaller than you, but I pack one hell of a punch."


    "I''d rather you''d be safe and well," Jingwei confesses glumly. "Hopefully they''ll catch the ones responsible soon and then life will go back to normal."


    "Don''t worry, I''ll be out of your hair soon enough," Xue Ning says, crossing her arms and leaning back into the seat. "You''ll be able to sit with other girls and impress them by driving one-handed."


    "So¡­ does that mean you''re impressed with my one-handed driving?" Jingwei asks, delighted.


    "Is this the only thing you took from my words?" Xue Ning squawks.


    "Why do you keep answering my question with a question?" Jingwei asks in return.


    Xue Ning splutters and huffs, choosing to look everywhere else but at Sun Jingwei and the smug satisfaction radiating off him. She nces at the rearview mirror again and blinks in surprise.


    Tailing them was the same ck car from before.


    =


    This novel is only found on webnovel! If you are reading it elsewhere, just know that it''s A PIRATED VERSION. Read here instead: https://.webnovel/book/wooing-my-bodyguard-wife_22674969905692805

 Chapter 24 Drive Like An F1 Racer

    "Jingwei, do you have security tailing us?" Xue Ning asks, curious. He could have a team of qualified bodyguards following him for their dinner, seeing that Xue Ning would be too busy eating to technically protect him.


    "No, why? You''re my security." Jingwei replies, confused.


    "Then¡­ does anyone know where you''re going out tonight?"


    "My staff does." Jingwei shrugs, "They helped me reserve a table for tonight."


    "Ah. So people know," Xue Ning says, furrowing her brows. "If someone wanted to hurt you again, could they find out where you are?"


    "Possibly. But they aren''t going to sell me out." Jingwei frowns. "Every member of my family''s household staff has been vetted thoroughly by my father and my brother."


    "I see, in that case¡­"She frowns at the rearview mirror, thinking of a n. The ck car was still following them, keeping the same distance from their own car in a manner that could only be deliberate.


    "Hey, can you changenes? Just keep doing it. I want to see something."


    "Sure?" Jingwei agrees easily, even if he''s confused. "If you want proof of my great driving skills you just need to ask."


    "Yes, yes, now, start changingnes." She says, keeping her eyes on the rearview mirror. She also readies her phone camera to take a video, just in case.


    "Your wish is mymand," Jingwei salutes cheekily, and immediately cuts in smoothly into the nextne without any hesitation.


    The ck car does the same a few secondster.


    "Continue," shemands, forgetting that she''s technically ordering her boss around. Jingwei follows her instructions, bemused.


    "Yes Ma''am," he says jokingly, expertly drifting into the thirdne.


    The ck car follows them.


    "Change again."


    "Again."


    "Again."


    "One more."


    "Again."


    No matter how many times Jingwei changesnes, the ck car follows them faithfully as though they are a homing missile locked on them. She stops filming and sends him the video, just in case.


    "My dear Xue Ning, it''s not that I''m not happy to demonstrate my skill, but is there a point to this?" Jingwei asks, feeling more confused than before.


    "I''ll tell you, but don''t panic." Xue Ning says, ignoring the endearment.


    "Hit me with it, I can stay calm," Jingwei says confidently.


    "Don''t turn around but someone is tailing us. In that ck car that''s two cars behind." She says, and has to stop him from turning around. "I told you not to turn around!"


    "What?! How can I not look?" Jingwei yells, in a very uncalm way, as he nearly abruptly swerves into the nextne in shock, and gets a chorus of angry honks in return.


    "You still need to keep your eyes on the road!" She scolds. "I took a video just now when you were changingnes, that car just followed us through everyne for no reason."


    "Fuck," Jingwei swears.


    "I can''t confirm it, but it''s better to be safe than sorry." She says, using her phone to discreetly take a photo this time of the ck car from the side mirror. She sends the picture to him too, as a backup.


    "Well, let''s confirm it then." Jingwei deres, "Xue Ning, do you get carsick?"


    "Not really, why?" Xue Ning has a feeling she''s not going to like whates out of his mouth.


    Jingwei''s eyes are bright with excitement, as though his earlier panic didn''t exist.


    "Because I''m going to do - this!" Jingwei ms on the elerator, and Xue Ning holds onto dear life as she sees the speedometer climb steadily to 120km/hr.


    "Are you crazy?! What are you doing?!" She shrieks as he squeezes between cars with barely any space between them. She desperately wishes she had 20 more seatbelts to strap her down.


    Jingwei lets out a whoop in reply. "Losing them! Hey! Make sure to take a video!"


    "You crazy man, if I die, I''ll haunt you forever!" Xue Ning deres as she shakily holds up her phone to the rearview mirror, where that ck car is still tailing them.


    But Sun Jingwei wasn''t mindlessly bragging about his driving skill, in fact, he surely downyed it - because even as Xue Ning filmed on, the distance between the two cars was slowly but surely widening, despite the other car''s best efforts to keep up.


    "Promise?" Jingwei asks, his eyes focused on the road.


    "What promise?" She asks, still focusing on her video, to ignore the screaming panic in her mind at Jingwei''s driving. She swore thest car they passed scraped off years of her lifespan along with the car''s paint job.


    "You''ll haunt me forever!" Jingwei says,ughing as he makes another dangerous turn, even giving her a saucy wink.


    "Deal!" She screams out, "don''t look away from the road, you fucker!"


    He onlyughs wildly in reply. Sun Jingwei must be insane, Xue Ning thought to herself. It was just impossible for a sane person to drive the way Sun Jingwei did. With his skills, he would have been a terrifyingly great F1 Driver.<sub> </sub>


    "Are they gone now?" Jingwei asks, as the number of cars on the road increases due to the evening traffic, causing him to slow down to blend in.


    "... I think so?" Xue Ning looked carefully at the rearview mirror, even turning her head back to check, but there seemed no sign of the ck car anywhere. She slumps on the seat, exhausted now that the threat has gone.


    "You really lost them. I can''t believe it." She wheezes out, taking deep breaths to calm down.


    "Ha! You should have more faith in me. I told you my driving skills are good." He boasts cheerfully. "Ah, that felt great, I haven''t done that in a while."


    Xue Ning stares nkly at him. Right, this man was rumoured to host underground street races for fun.


    "Have you considered trying out for Form One?" She asks. "It''s a waste of your skill otherwise."


    "I wanted to, but Father said that was a life-threatening career and not a suitable profession for someone of my status." He replies, as though reciting the words from memory. "So I just race for fun."


    "Fun. You must have broken at least 50 trafficws." As well as Xue Ning''s will to sit in a car.


    "Oh crap. Forgot about those." Jingwei winces and exins."That''s why I usually race at night - no one really cares and the police will look the other way."


    "Hurrah for corruption then," Xue Ning replies tly.


    "It''s the power of money," Jingwei says, and then asks. "Can you help me to send the videos to my brother? He needs to know that someone tried to follow us, so I wasn''t racing for no good reason! And he also needs to help me smooth over the police."


    "Your poor brother," shements, scrolling through her contacts list before realising she didn''t have his number.


    "I don''t have his number." Xue Ning says, so she sends thetest video to Jingwei instead.


    "Oh, then you can just help me send it to him with my phone! It''s in my pocket!" Jingwei says, head tilting to gesture to his shirt pocket, inviting her to help herself to his phone.


    "Fine," Xue Ning reaches out cautiously, but the angle is awkward and she ends up squeezing a handful of his pectoral muscle instead of grabbing the phone. It was firmer than expected.


    "Xue Ning ah, are you that impressed with my driving?" Jingwei asks yfully. "I''m ttered by your interest, but I don''t put out on the first date!"


    "I didn''t do it on purpose!" Xue Ning flushes and restrains the urge to smack that offending chest muscle of his. Jingweiughs loudly.


    "And this is not a date!" She squawks out, as she manages to free his phone from his shirt pocket, only to realise it was locked. Jingwei suddenly quietens, but Xue Ning is too distracted by his phone to notice the sudden silence.


    "What''s your password?" Xue Ning asks.


    "It''s 150896," Jingwei replies, fingers drumming a random beat on his steering wheel.


    "Your birthday?" Xue Ning wonders as she enters the string of numbers to reveal his phone interface. She hastily goes to WeChat to forward the video to ''Bro Tianwei''.


    "Done," "You know my birthday?"


    The both of them speak at the same time.


    Xue Ning blinks at his question.


    "I guessed? This August was your birthday month, and you were born in the same year as me."


    "Oh," Jingwei says, sounding disappointed for some strange reason. "I see."


    "We should cancel dinner," Xue Ning says, choosing to ignore the strange change in mood. "It''s too risky."


    "Wait till my brother responds first," Jingwei says. "Who knows, it could be a security team sent by him."


    "Do you honestly think that?" She asks.


    "...No," Jingwei runs a hand through his hair, messing it up. "Ge wouldn''t send a team without telling me."


    "So going out for dinner is still a risk!" Xue Ning exims.


    "But we did lose them, so honestly, it''s a win for us. We should celebrate by going out to eat!" Jingwei deres.


    Xue Ning stares incredulously at him and wonders if this man lost his brain cells in that car chase.


    "What? I''m hungry after all that driving I did. And I''m sure you must be too." Jingwei says. "We''ll have our meal while waiting for my brother to get back to us. What do you think?"


    "I''m not..." Xue Ning sighs as her stomach chooses the exact time to let out a grumble. She slumps further on the seat and waves a tired hand.


    "You know what? Do whatever you want." Xue Ning says, crossing her arms. "But if this dinner ends up going to shit, just know that I''m going to be saying ''I told you so'' for the rest of your life."


    "I can deal with that." Jingwei replies, inexplicably pleased. He must be hungrier than she expected, Xue Ning muses, shaking her head. Dinner clearly meant a lot to him.


    "So I hope you like duck, because the restaurant we are going to specialises in roast¡­"


    As Jingwei continues to ramble about the restaurant''s specialties, Xue Ning rxes into her seat, hoping that this would be all the excitement she would get for today. Please let me have a calm peaceful filling dinner, she prays.


    If only she had known how the dinner would turn out, she would have wrenched the steering wheel from his hands and drove them back herself!

 Chapter 25 [Bonus Chapter] Traffic Police

    "Guys! Look at this!" One of the newest recruits, Chang Le screamed.


    An office full of sleepy traffic police startled awake. They were supposed to monitor the traffic cameras to ensure that they could respond quickly in the case of an ident, but usually, nothing like that happened. Their work was pleasantly boring, and most of them spent time doing anything else but their jobs.


    "What? Is there a pile-up? Do we need an ambnce?" They all yelled over each other.


    "Maybe?" Chang Le said hesitantly, his eyes still glued to the screen, his finger pointed at a bright red car that was expertly weaving through the traffic as though it was a hot knife cutting through butter. "I think he''s going to crash soon!"


    "Wait, isn''t that Sun Jingwei''s car?" One of his seniors, Zhou Zhimented, flipping through a notebook. "Red Ferrari? Licence te number KING15?"


    "I think so?" Chang Le squinted at the screen, but he couldn''t make out the te number.


    "Must be," another senior, Da Li, pointed out through a mouthful of biscuits. Chang Le twitched at the chewing noises, and the way crumbs fell on his shoulder. He politely brushed them away, vowing to himself that when he got promoted, he was going to ban snacking in the office.


    "Oh definitely," a third senior, Yan Chi chimed in. "Even if the car isn''t his, just look at the way he drives - Sun Jingwei is definitely behind the wheel."


    As one, they turned to stare at the screen just in time to watch the red Ferrari skirt dangerously close to the car next to it, before elerating even faster and switching ane.


    Chang Le''s mouth fell open.


    "That showoff," Zhou Zhi rolled his eyes. "I''m surprised that he''s driving like this when the sun is still out though, our Superintendent is going to explode again."


    "Wanna bet there''s a hot beauty next to him? He always takes them out for car rides to impress them," Biscuit-senior Da Li said as he continued to drop crumbs on him.


    "Duh of course, it''s still daylight, not even he''s dumb enough to race like this with clear video evidence."


    "He must really like this woman then," Yan Chi stated. "God knows how many women have begged him to use his fancy tricks, but he always refused."


    They watched as he made another sharp turn, narrowly squeezing through two cars.


    "Why did he refuse?" Chang Le asked curiously. From the file he read on Sun Jingwei, he loved driving and hot women, so he should be jumping at the chance to show off.


    "Well, his dad would kill him. The family is already getting ck for his other scandals," first senior said. "The illegal racing could be overlooked if it happened at night - but in broad daylight? Try exining to everyone how he can still keep his licence." Zhou Zhi said, with no small amount of bitterness.


    "Good old nepotism and bribery," Da Li stated, dusting off thest of his crumbs all over Chang Le''s head. He quickly shook them off, because he had more questions to ask.


    "Wait, you mean there are illegal races? Here?" Chang Le eximed in surprise.


    "Of course," Zhou Zhi said. "You weren''t here five years ago - I tell you, those were the days. There was at least one race every night. Now, there''s only one per week. Back then, our Superintendent kept trying to resign in protest, but Sun Jingwei wouldn''t hear of it, and kept him employed."


    "Why?" Chang Le asked, baffled.


    "Because he is insane, or a sadist," Zhou Zhi said, a spective glint in his eye as he stared at Chang Le.


    "He kept him employed, but our Superintendent wasn''t allowed to arrest him or his racing buddies. Our Superintendent almost had a stroke. They only let him retire when we made an agreement with us and the cops - none of them could be arrested for racing if it happened past midnight."


    "That''s¡­" Chang Le replied, at a loss for words. "Then¡­Have they ever¡­killed anyone by ident?"


    His seniors gave each other a look.


    "What?"<sub> </sub>


    "Well, not that I know of," Da Li said, shrugging. "Then again, they could have hidden it."


    "Wasn''t there a case of one of his racing buddies crashing into an old woman and a fire hydrant two years ago? Bai Shi Ting?"


    "Ah yeah, that one was a real piece of work," Zhou Zhi shook his head, his breezy tone a sharp contrast to his white knuckles, created from gripping onto the chair too hard. "But his dad was also too rich, so we still couldn''t arrest him. He''s still driving now."


    "That''s ridiculous!" Chang Le eximed. "This is illegal! They should all be arrested!"


    Everyone in the office turned to look at him with varying levels of pity on their face.


    "Kid, trafficws don''t exist in their eyes," Yan Chi patted his crumb-free shoulder.  "The sooner you learn this, the easier it is for you to stay here."


    "But¡­ but¡­this is wrong!" He turned back to stare at the screen. "Is he just going to get off scot free?"


    "Pretty much, kid," Zhou Zhi said consolingly, then his face lit up, because he remembered something important."You know what, we can''t exactly arrest Sun Jingwei, but let''s see if we can send him and his family a warning about flouting trafficws in broad daylight."


    "Oh good idea, I would love to get a bonus," Da Li replied enthusiastically.


    His senior then cheerfully texted his current Superintendent about the incident. He got a reply in less than a minute; he would be speaking to the Sun family patriarch about this - or more likely, the Sun family''s firstborn son.


    See if Sun Jingwei had the guts to be this brazen next time!


    He longed to be able to do more to curb the arrogant Young Master Sun, but this wasn''t the right time yet. He was here only to provide a pair of eyes for the people who actually had the power to do so.


    Meanwhile Chang Le watched the footage over multiple screens, and he couldn''t help but notice a generic ck car that was trying its best to follow Sun Jingwei''s route as faithfully as possible, as though¡­ It was tailing him.


    Was Sun Jingwei trying to lose the tail? But who would be following him to begin with?


    "Seniors, there''s a car that''s following him. What do we do about that?" Chang Le asked.


    "Really?" Zhou Zhi peered at the screen and shrugged. "Nothing. It''s probably his own family''s security detail."


    "I see," Chang Le said, frowning. He still had a bad feeling about the car, and he zoomed in to take a closer look. Licence te 09326. Why would Sun Jingwei need a security detail, and if so, why would he go through so much trouble to shake it? Especially if there was already a prior agreement in ce?


    Eventually, one couldn''t see Sun Jingwei''s Ferrari anymore. To their surprise, that car made a sharp u-turn into the otherne and promptly drove off in the other direction!


    "Guess their job is done," Zhou Zhi murmured to himself.


    "Eh? What did you say, Senior?" Chang Le asked.


    "Nothing, don''t worry about things like this, okay? And especially not about people like Sun Jingwei and his rich friends. Just keep your head down and work hard," Zhou Zhi advised, patting his head like he was a child.


    "If you say so," Chang Le replied, giving that strange ck car onest look. "I still think this car is weird though."


    Senior Zhou Zhi smiled, but it didn''t reach his eyes.


    "I''ll let the Superintendent know too, so leave it to me," Zhou Zhi promised, knowing that he definitely wasn''t going to do such a thing.


    After all, he had some idea of who was in the car.

 Chapter 26 This Is Not A Date

    "Here we are," Jingwei says with a proud flourish. Xue Ning stares at the words Crystal Pce Garden on the que hanging above the entrance. They were gilded with gold. Framing the sign were two traditional Chinese watercolour paintings.


    Xue Ning knew nothing about art, but even she knew these pieces were beautiful and expensive.


    "Fancy," she says, taking note of the marble floor that shone so brightly she could see her reflection in it.


    "Yes, our Crystal Pce Garden has an illustrious history. Our dearest wee to Mr Sun¡­ and your¡­ guest."


    The serving staff was a woman called Xiao Hui. She had an angelic face, features entuated with makeup to make her soft sweet smile look even more friendly and weing.


    When she received the news that she was going to serve Young Master Sun, she was ecstatic! She had worked here for over two years, but this was the first time she had a chance to serve a mega VVIP.


    If she performed well, who knows? He might decide to date her and she can say goodbye to her hard life!


    As such, Xiao Hui simpers and bats her eyshes, deliberately pitching her voice higher because that is what men tend to like. Her attention never strayed from Jingwei.


    Behind Jingwei, Xue Ning made a disgusted face at the tant sucking up and at the server''s voice. Was there a need to make her voice so airy and breathy? She sounded like she was on the verge of an asthma attack. How was one supposed to listen to her?


    Luckily, Xue Ning''s disgusted look didn''t register on the server, because Xue Ning got nothing more than a cursory nce leadened with judgement when she walked in with Jingwei.


    But that didn''t bother Xue Ning at all. She merely gazes back, impassive. She just survived a car chase with Sun Jingwei at the wheel, why would she care about a lovesick server? She''s just here for the free meal. Let poor Sun Jingwei handle his fangirl. Her job as his bodyguard doesn''t include saving him from gold-diggers.


    "Yes, I''ve reserved a private table for the two of us." Jingwei reaches out and pulls Xue Ning closer to him, deliberately holding her hand tightly right in front of Xiao Hui, all while giving a smile that shows off all his perfect white teeth.


    It actually looked a bit intimidating. Xue Ning has never seen him make such an expression. She stares at him in surprise, and then looks at their sped hands. Is this Sun Jingwei''s way of making sure she wasn''t ignored?


    That''s¡­ kind of him. Even if it wasn''t really necessary. She wasn''t going to step foot in this restaurant without someone else footing the bill.


    Meanwhile, poor Xiao Hui has to take a second topose herself. She shot Xue Ning with a barely noticeable dirty re before stering a brighter smile in front of Jingwei.


    Xue Ning raises an eyebrow. The food better be worth this terrible service.


    "Right this way Sir." Xiao Hui says, still refusing to acknowledge Xue Ning''s presence. Xue Ning doesn''t care, free food remains free food and she''s ready to pull her hand free, only for Jingwei to hold it tightly and refuse to budge.


    "Don''t forget my dear Xue Ning here! I couldn''t wait to bring her here to try your dishes!"


    Jingwei''s words are cheerful, but everyone can hear the warning in his voice. His smile is wider, and scarier, this time around. He looks like a shark ready to rip into his evening meal.


    "Of - of course Young Master Sun, and Lady Xue," The server says, stumbling back in shock. Xue Ning barely manages to stop snorting in amusement. "Follow me, this way please."


    "Your dear Xue Ning? You sure love lying." Xue Ning whispers to his ear as they follow the server into the restaurant. "Now let go of my hand."


    "Are you not a dear? Is your name not Xue Ning? How did I lie?" Jingwei whispers glibly in reply as they are shown their seats. Xue Ning squeezes his hand tightly in retaliation, hoping to cut off his blood cirction so she can free her hand.


    Jingwei merely lets out a hastily stifled yelp, but he still keeps a tight hold. Because if he does let go, he might not have a second chance to hold her hand.


    "Is there anything wrong?" Xiao Hui asks, hoping for a reason to toss Xue Ning out of the restaurant just so she can serve Young Master Sun on her own.


    How could this woman have possibly caught the eye of the illustrious second young master of the Sun family! Surely there must have been some mistake!


    Everyone knew that that man was a yboy that had his pick of beautiful women, from models to actresses to singers, so why would he be interested in this drab woman that didn''t even bother to dress up to visit a Michelin Star restaurant? Such disrespect!


    Young Master Sun even held her hand and called her ''my dear.''  When she turned around to look at them, their heads were bent together because they were whispering sweet nothings into each other''s ear. Their hands were still sped tightly together.


    How was this possible?


    "Here is your table," Xiao Hui says through gritted teeth.


    "Thank you," Jingwei says, finally letting go of Xue Ning''s hand, only to help her pull out a chair for her to sit.<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning and Xiao Hui stared in silence.


    "...Thanks," Xue Ning says as she awkwardly sits down. "I could have gotten my own chair."


    "Yes, but what kind of date would I be if I let you?" Jingwei answers easily,pletely ignoring the choking noises from their server at the tant confirmation of her suspicions.


    "What date?" She mouths silently, demanding an answer, eyes wide with shock. This wasn''t the n. But he only gives her a wink in response. Her eyes narrow. Was he up to something?


    "Thanks, do I pull out your chair too then?" Xue Ning asks, half-hoping he would say yes.


    "No need, no need." Jingwei says as he sits down across her before finally turning to poor Xiao Hui. "Can we have the menus?"


    "Yes, here they are." Their server replies, with a lot less enthusiasm than before. She hands each of them a menu. Xue Ning''s menu came with an extra death re that she merely smiled at.


    "You can leave now, we''ll call you when we decide on what to order." Jingwei waves her away, despite her best protests.


    After Xiao Hui left, Xue Ning wasted no time in hissing angrily at Jingwei. It reminded Jingwei of a disgruntled kitten.


    "What date? Since when was this a date? Exin yourself!"


    "Rx!" Jingwei whispers in return. He takes a quick look to see that they were truly left alone in the room, before continuing. "Just pretend alright? You saw; that rude woman was clearly not going to leave me alone otherwise."


    "How is pretending I''m your date going to help?"


    "Then she''ll give up on me!"


    "But what about me? What if news of me dating you gets out?" Xue Ning points out. Who knows, maybe Xiao Hui was just right outside, writing a post on Weibo about how she saw Sun Jingwei and his girlfriend at the restaurant.


    He blinks. "Then we would sue her for invasion of privacy. It won''t be hard to find the culprit that leaked the news, seeing that she''s the only suspect."


    She falls silent. He''s technically right, but she can''t shake off the unease.


    "Besides, would it be so terrible?" Jingwei asks seriously.


    "To sue?" Xue Ning asks, confused.


    "No. I meant the idea of dating me," Jingwei rifies. "Would it be such a terrible idea to you?"


    "Well¡­ no," Xue Ning says, mentally reviewing all that she knows of Sun Jingwei so far. He was rich beyond belief, easily distracted by breasts, shameless in using his charms, which were attributes that she disliked.


    However, he was also kinder than expected, magnanimous enough to not hold grudges.


    He didn''t mind her blunt manners, in fact he seemed perpetually amused with whatever she said, even when she wasn''t trying to be funny. No one, not even Xue Ning''s family members found her that amusing.


    He made sure to visit the hospital when she was hospitalised, sparing no expense in making sure she was well-taken care off. Xue Ning merely had to cough, for him to immediately pour her a cup of water.


    He only left her side when his brother made the trip to bring him home, and even then it was done only after he had ascertained that she would make a full recovery.


    Back then, she thought he was overreacting out of guilt, but even if he was, the fact that he felt guilt and sought to make amends already put her way ahead of other people she knew, so many others who would rather close their eyes and pretend a scandal of this magnitude didn''t happen.


    Xue Ning had expected to be paid a sum of hush money for her efforts along with an NDA to make sure she didn''t b, but instead she had round-the-clock care, premium meals catered to her every craving, a constantpanion she could bicker with without hard feelings.


    Underneath all the bluster and his shiny wealthy exterior, Sun Jingwei has a good heart. It shocked her to realise it.


    But that doesn''t mean she would (could, should) date him.

 Chapter 27 That’s Not My Boyfriend

    "Xue Ning?" Jingwei asks cautiously, for his dinnerpanion had gone silent. Was his question too much?


    "Yes? Ah, right. How do I put it - you''re not a bad person," Xue Ning says, trying to form words. "And honestly, you won''t be a bad boyfriend - for a girl with a rich family, I think you''d be great."


    "I''m sensing a ''but'' here," Jingwei says, trying to smile, but it seems less happy than before.


    "But I''m not rich, and I''m technically working for you." Xue Ning shrugs. "So theoretically dating you would be fine, but it would be troublesome in real life."


    "Ah I see," Jingwei says, disappointed. Xue Ning had the strangest feeling that she kicked a puppy and then left it outside in the rain. It was not a good feeling.


    "So it''s not because of your boyfriend? Because even if you wouldn''t date me, I''d still think you deserve a better man."


    "My boyfriend?" Xue Ning asks, confused.


    "Yes! I can''t believe that man never showed up the whole time when you were in the hospital to visit you. What kind of neglectful boyfriend is he?" Jingwei asks, incredulous. Before Xue Ning could reply, he continued.


    "What''s more, even if you didn''t tell him, shouldn''t he be worried about not hearing from you for over a day? Especially if he knew you were working as a bartender in the wee hours of the morning!" Jingwei exims, louder now.


    Xue Ning hastily makes shushing noises, reminding him to quiet down. It barely works, because Jingwei still wasn''t doneining about her fictional boyfriend.


    "And look, even if he couldn''t visit, he could have a get-well gift delivered. The hospitals have balloons and flowers for that reason. What''s more, he didn''t have the guts to confront me in the hospital, or post something on social media to condemn me online for what happened to you."


    He clearly gave it a lot of thought. She didn''t know whether to feel ttered or worried.


    "But then when he finds out I''m taking you out to dinner he decides to send me threats on my phone, I can''t believe this¡­ Xue Ning-ah, I''m telling you as a friend, this boyfriend of yours is a spineless coward. He should be threatening me in person."


    "Wait." Xue Ning holds up her hand to stop him from speaking. "What threats?"


    "Threatening messages. Telling me that ''this dinner would be myst.'' So dramatic. Is he a  Bond viin? Honestly, it''s so old school. Your boyfriend really needs to work on intimidation."


    Jingwei makes an offended sound at the very thought, but all Xue Ning feels is horror.


    "It''s definitely not from my boyfriend." Xue Ning says, a cold chill settling into her body at the dawning realisation, her breath quickening as she takes another look around the room. Was it just her imagination, or is the surrounding area too quiet for a busy restaurant?


    "I know you have a lot of faith in him, and it''s hard to believe -" Jingwei starts, but Xue Ning cuts him off easily by grabbing his arm.


    "It cannot be my boyfriend, because I. Don''t. Have. One." She says slowly, and watches as this new realisation sinks in for him. All outrage at Xue Ning''s fictional boyfriend seems to leak away, reced by gradual rm and increasing panic.


    "What. So. Oh my god." Jingwei leaned forward. "Wait, so you were lying about the boyfriend when I first met you?"


    "That''s not important! Let me see the messages." Jingwei hands his phone to her, with minimal grumbling about how herck of a boyfriend was very important news, and she unlocks it easily to read the threatening message.<sub> </sub>


    From Unknown Number:


    ENJOY YOUR EVENING


    IT''LL BE YOUR LAST


    <o>,m "Did you send this to your brother?" She asks.</o>


    "No, I thought this was from your boyfriend!" Jingwei is trying to remain calm, but she can see the panic rising in his eyes. "I was going to tell you to break up with him because he''s a piece of shit, but it turns out he doesn''t exist and someone else is trying to kill me!"


    She looks at the phone messages to see if Jingwei''s brother has replied with any new information, but his brother only said that he sent the video to the investigators, and for them to wait patiently for news.


    Well. Fuck.


    Xue Ning was technically his bodyguard, but in that moment she felt that she was the one that needed the bodyguard. She really should have just demanded he send them back to his mansion after the ck car appeared, instead of allowing him to go for this fancy restaurant dinner.


    If something happened to him, she would never forgive herself. She breathes deeply to calm herself down. No matter what, she must make sure he gets out of this unscathed. For what it''s worth, he had put his trust in her when he hired her, and she wasn''t going to betray his trust.


    "Alright, forward this message to your brother too, tell him to get someone he trusts to pick us up as soon as possible." She instructs. The sky was getting dark, it''ll be harder to see who was tailing them when night falls, even with the streetlights. idents would also be more likely to ur.


    They had to get out of here by nightfall.


    "Okay," he obediently did as she said. "Now what? Do we just leave?"


    "I¡­don''t know," she confesses. "I''m worried that someone mighte after you in the restaurant, but leaving would mean that we might get tailed again."


    "And this time, we might not be lucky enough to get away again." He urately guesses the train of thought.


    "Yes, and your car is so eye-catching," she adds. "It''ll be very easy to find us, even at night."


    "I see your point," Jingwei sighs. "Who knew my love for fast cars would bite me in the ass?"


    "Next time, just drive a taxi or something," Xue Ning mutters bitterly. "No one notices a taxi."


    "Noted," he says tiredly. "So now, let''s order food for dinner."


    "You''re still in the mood to eat?" She asks. Her own stomach had been reced with a nest of snakes, writhing around, causing nausea to rise.


    "Why not? We''re already here." Jingwei shrugs. "And if I do die tonight, I refuse to be a hungry ghost. So order away, Xue Ning. We also need to kill time before my brother arrives."

 Chapter 28 A Luxurious Last Meal

    "Don''t talk rubbish. You''re not going to die," Xue Ning promises seriously. "They''ll have to step over my dead body first. And if you do live, make sure topensate my parents."


    She then looks at the menu and thinks of her dinner, trying to ignore the morbid thoughts swirling in her head.


    If Sun Jingwei was murdered with her present, knowing her luck, she''d be charged as a murderer or an aplice.


    If she was indeed found dead at this restaurant, her parents would be inconsble. Hopefully Jingwei provides for them for the rest of their lives. She''ll haunt him otherwise.


    If she and Sun Jingwei were found dead together, the damage done to her reputation would be unimaginable, but at least she''ll be dead and won''t have to worry about it. Her family though¡­


    She shakes her head to stop herself from overthinking. Who knows? Perhaps nothing would happen.


    Focus on the food, Xue Ning, she scolds herself. This could be herst meal! The Peking Duck sounded nice, so did abalone porridge.


    Maybe she should just go for the skan King Crab. It''ll be suitably expensive and fancy, and she had always wanted to try it but she couldn''t justify the expense.


    Jingwei stills, staring at her with wide-eyes. "You can''t die. I absolutely forbid you to die."


    Xue Ning just stares back at him, crossing her arms. "Well then we should have note for dinner, but here we are. I want to eat skan King Crab. What about you?"


    "I''ve lost my appetite." Jingwei states, looking paler than before.


    "Why do you keep changing your mind?" Xue Ning scolds. "You were right about not dying hungry. Come on, pick something. You need to keep your energy up."


    "Ah¡­ then¡­ How about the ck chicken ginseng soup? We need to nourish our nerves. And I''ll add some longevity noodles too, so that both of us live long lives." He gives her a pointed nce at those words.


    "Fair enough." She shrugs. "Let''s call the server, I bet she''s wondering why we took so long."


    Xiao Huies back into the room, looking less than pleased at her being left to wait outside the room while they conversed. Usually, servers would be giving advice about what to order and what drinks they should get, but this couple merely tossed her outside without a backwards nce! Did they think she was an ordinary waitress! She''d show them!


    "Hi, have you decided on what to order? I have suggestions if - "


    "No need," Sun Jingwei cuts her off easily. "We''ve already decided - two portions of ck chicken ginseng soup, longevity noodles, and one King skan Crab to share."


    "Would you like wine with your dishes? Our restaurant has -"


    She sees Xue Ning shake her head slightly but decides to ignore it, only for Sun Jingwei to hold up a hand to stop her.


    "It''s fine, we should not be drinking now."


    Xue Ning and Jingwei met each other''s eyes in an unspoken agreement. If they were in trouble, drinking alcohol would impair their judgement and worsen things.<sub> </sub>


    Xiao Hui red at this couple, and especially at Xue Ning. This woman must have drugged Sun Jingwei, there was no way he would not be drinking when visiting a restaurant! That man was famous for being a great drinker. The only reason why he would not be drinking is if someone made him stop.


    "I see, I shall let the kitchens know," Xiao Hui says through gritted teeth and spins on her heel to storm out of the room, but the two of them didn''t even spare her second nce. This evening wasn''t going to her ns at all - she had hopes to charm Sun Jingwei, or perhaps one of his rich friends, and to lead a life of pampered luxury.


    Instead, Sun Jingwei''s eyes were solely for his date. Perhaps there was some truth to the rumour of him being married.


    "It''s so infuriating isn''t it, that some random womanes and steals him away?" A voice asked from her left. She turns around to see a woman in a long evening gown, lounging outside her own private room, clearly waiting for someone to appear.


    "Excuse me? Do you need some help?" Xiao Hui asks, confused.


    "Don''t you think it''s ridiculous?" That woman continues. "That he can live a life of luxury and change women like clothes?"


    "Er¡­" Xiao Hui backs away slowly from her. "Sorry Miss, I don''t see how it -"


    "How much do you earn a month working here? I''m guessing 13000 yuan? I''ll give you 20 times that amount if you do something for me."


    "What would that be?" Xiao Hui asks cautiously.


    "Pour hot soup on that woman''sp," That woman says callously, "just make it look like an ident."


    "I can''t -" Xiao Hui protests, aghast at her demand. Hurt a customer? Hurting Sun Jingwei''s date? She''d be lucky to be alive at the end of the night.


    "20 times is too little? 50 times then, here''s half of it," The woman shrugs easily, handing her a thick wad of cash. Xiao Hui''s eyes widened impossibly at the number of zeros on each note. With this amount of money, there''ll be nothing stopping her from getting the life she deserved to have!


    "I¡­. I see, very well. Then let''s work together, Miss¡­?" Xiao Hui trails off, realising that she still doesn''t know who this strange woman is.


    "You don''t need to know my name," the woman smiles mysteriously, revealing her gleaming teeth under her bright red lipstick. They shone ominously under the soft yellow lights of the restaurant. Xiao Hui had the strangest feeling; it seemed that they were sharper than knives.


    "Just make sure the deed is done, and I''ll be here to transfer you the rest of the money by tonight. Of course¡­ if you back out, things will look terrible for you. You know that right?"


    That question was apanied by a coquettish tilt of her head, but there''s no mistaking the warning in that woman''s voice. It wasn''t a question, not really.


    "Yes, I understand," she says hesitantly, ignoring the warning bells ring in her head. There was no way for her to go back on her word.


    If she did not do as this woman asked, there was no way she could exin away the stack of cash that mysteriously found its way into her hands. It would be her word against this woman, and no one would take her side. She''d be fired without a second thought.


    All she had to do was pour hot soup on a woman she didn''t really like, and she could retire in a life of rtive luxury. She could do it. She had to. She ignored the pangs of her conscience screaming at her to reconsider.


    "Good. I await your good news." With a cheerful parting wave, the woman turns back into her room, humming a cheerful tune, leaving Xiao Hui standing alone in the walkway, a heavy wad of cash in her hand.

 Chapter 29 I Wish I Was That Crab

    "Here''s your food, please enjoy your meal." Xiao Hui says in a quavering voice.


    "Oh good! The food is finally here! Serve it please," Sun Jingwei exims, sitting upright eagerly. Seated across from him, his date stared at Xiao Hui with narrowed eyes, as though she could tell that Xiao Hui was up to good.


    Xiao Hui refuses to meet her eyes out of fear; her focus is on making sure she''s calm enough to execute the task wlessly.


    "Here is the Longevity Noodles, would you like me to portion it for you?" Please say no, she hoped. Xiao Hui wasn''t sure that her hands would hold steady enough to even serve noodles properly.


    "Of course," Sun Jingwei answers, with the tone of someone stating the obvious. "How could I be taking my own food?"


    Xue Ning rolls her eyes. "Do you not have hands? You won''t die if you scoop your own noodles."


    "Xue Ning, how can you say that?"  Sun Jingwei whines to her. Xiao Hui has the strangest feeling that he''s acting cute to charm his date. Xiao Hui would have found it adorable, but her mind was whirling with thoughts about her task. Perhaps she could just knock it over? Would that do?


    Meanwhile Xue Ning stares at Jingwei, unmoved by his act. Sun Jingwei wasn''t going to serve himself, because his hands were probably as sweaty as hers. Both of them were on their guard for the slightest hint of a threat.


    Xue Ning narrowed her eyes at their server. Where had her earlier bravado gone? She seemed like a new person, refusing to meet their eyes, wholly focused on executing her tasks. Perhaps her boss found out about her rude behaviour and scolded her for her tant disrespect. That would exin her sudden meekness and why she was taking her own sweet time portioning the noodles, making sure that there was no mess.


    Her fingers were trembling. She must have gotten a hell of a tongueshing. Xue Ning suddenly feels sorry for her.


    "Here is the King Crab." Their server says, setting it on the table. Xue Ning''s eyes widened at the dish; pictures on the menu had not done it justice.


    The crab was huge, and if the legs and ws of the crab were still attached to its body, their table wouldn''t be long enough to even hold it. Thankfully, the chefs have already prepared for that possibility and separated the legs and ws into another dish for them to eat.


    Despite the possible threat of death, Xue Ning''s mouth watered as she breathed in the delicious scent of the spice buttered crab. She licked her lips as she stared at how thick the crab legs were¡­ the crab meat inside was sure to be thick and meaty, bursting with vour.


    Across her, Sun Jingwei suddenly felt his pants tightening at the hungry look on Xue Ning''s face as she stared at the crab meat. He shifted in his chair; this wasn''t the time or ce to pop a boner, especially when his life was possibly in danger, but his lower half clearly had a mind of its own when he saw that small pink tongue of hers dart out to wet her soft lips.


    He had always thought those lips of hers were incredibly kissable, but now there were more lewd images in his mind fighting for attention. He choked and willed himself to get a grip. He was in danger! She was in danger! Any horny thoughts could wait until they were safe and well.


    They put on the stic gloves provided to dig into the crab meat.


    "Wow¡­this looks so good," Xue Ning says in a breathy moan, with stars in her eyes as she holds one of the legs in her hands.


    Instead of cracking it open and removing the meat with her hands to eat like Jingwei expected, Xue Ning simply sucked the meat out from the opening, relishing in the taste of the fragrant buttery sauce. In her opinion, this sauce, seasoned with herbs, was a perfectbination with the fresh crab meat. She licked her lips, making pleased noises even as some of the sauce escaped from her mouth and dribbled down her chin.


    Meanwhile Sun Jingwei sat across from her, holding a crab leg of his own, wondering if this was punishment for his past sins. Did Xue Ning not realise how lewd she looked? Cradling that thick crab leg in her hands and then sucking from it like that¡­ all while making those noises that sent this mind rolling straight into the gutter.


    Xue Ning''s cheeks were full with crab meat, and her tongue darted out again as she tried to lick some of the sauce from her lips. Jingwei shoved his own crab leg into his mouth just to stop himself from saying something stupidly horny or worse, moan at her practically feting crab meat.


    Jingwei wanted to put his head in his hands. If Xue Ning was his girlfriend and his life wasn''t in danger, he probably won''t even wait for the rest of the courses before devouring her on the dining table instead of their actual food.<sub> </sub>


    But because Xue Ning wasn''t his girlfriend, had no intentions of being his girlfriend, and his life was in certain danger, he had to shove those dirty thoughts deep down inside where they would probably haunt his dreams in future.


    ''God surely had a sick sense of humour,'' Jingwei thought to himself as he ate his crab. It was delicious, but he couldn''t appreciate it with all these conflicting thoughts in his mind.


    However, there was one person that was feeling more conflicted than Jingwei, and that was the server Xiao Hui. She knew she had a mission to aplish, but the soup would only be served after the crab course, so she had to stay put in the room as the kitchens prepared the dish.


    ''This was some kind of torture!'' Xiao Hui despaired. Who ate crab like that in public?! She felt like she was some sort of strange voyeur in their forey; a quick nce at Sun Jingwei proved that he was even more affected by her disy.


    His face was slowly reddening despite never taking a single drop of alcohol. He never looked away from Xue Ning''s face, watching her eat with fevered desperation, and he kept shifting in his seat. Xiao Hui would bet her meagre fortune that he was hard as a rock.


    There was no way his date wouldn''t know right? No woman could be that oblivious to a man''s interest, right? She looked at Xue Ning again, who was still devouring the crab leg with single-minded focus, refusing to let it go until she sucked out everyst bit of meat and sauce.


    Finally she stopped.


    Xue Ning paused as she felt two pairs of eyes on her, her hands still holding the crab leg. Their server''s face was red and she hurriedly looked away when she spotted Xue Ning looking at her, which was normal enough.


    What was strange was that look of desperate, wing hunger in Sun Jingwei''s eyes as he stared at her, holding his own crab meat in his hand. Was he so greedy that he wanted to eat all the crab meat from the legs and leave her with the shell?


    "What are you looking at?" Xue Ning scolds, plucking some of the legs and dumping them on his te. "There, now it''s split evenly, don''t say I''m eating your share."


    "I''d rather you eat me," Jingwei muttered under his breath.


    "Eh? What did you say? I didn''t catch it," Xue Ning asks. All she heard was faint grumbling, too low to figure out words.


    "Nothing," Sun Jingwei croaks out in despair. "Thanks for sharing."


    "You''re wee," Xue Ning says, confused before she understood. That poor man must have been so worried about the threat on his life he couldn''t even enjoy this delicious meal.


    "Just eat, but not too much. You''ll need more energyter and I don''t want you to be sleepy." Xue Ning continues, willing him to understand. If they were attacked, she''d need him to have energy to escape. If he got a fooda, he''d be a sitting duck.


    Jingwei nods, seemingly understanding her meaning. "Don''t worry, I''ll eat well."


    To say Xiao Hui was shocked was an understatement. Sun Jingwei''s date was so forward! She just implied that the both of them were going to be sleeping together after dinner. What reason would she want him to eat, if not for the energy to go for multiple rounds?


    And of course she wouldn''t want him to overeat, if he got sleepy they wouldn''t be able to do it as much.


    Xiao Hui flushed as she imagined the two of them in bed together - both of their bodies wouldplement each other nicely - nope. No. No.


    She was not going there. She had a mission to aplish, and she was definitely going to do it, to make up for the both of them subjecting her to this strange sexual tension. Maybe the spilled soup would ruin their nightly activities for tonight, but Xiao Hui''s future took priority over this shameless couple!

 Chapter 30 In Hot Soup

    "The soup has arrived," their server announces. Another waiter wheels in a trolley and on it are two white ceramic pots, decorated with intricate paintings of tigers and dragons. Xiao Hui removes both lids with a flourish, and in that very moment, the subtle, delectable scent of steamed chicken soup wafts through the room.


    The chef clearly put a lot of effort into the dish. If one looked carefully, one could see a huge chicken drumstick resting in the center of the clear soup. It looked tender and mouth-wateringly delicious, and it was apanied by other delicacies. Each pot had a thick stalk of ginseng that most likely cost five years worth of pay for the average citizen, along with many varieties of mushrooms to add extra vour to the soup.


    There were even lotus roots, red dates and tofu. It promised to be a hearty meal, especially if someone was cold. The soup was piping hot, with actual steam being visible as it curled in the air.


    Sadly for the chef, Xue Ning only spares the soup a cursory, approving nce, most of her attention still on the crab. Perhaps if nothing goes wrong tonight, she''ll be able to get this soup for takeaway to enjoy for supper, or even for tomorrow''s breakfast. She''s sure it''ll still taste nice, even reheated.


    As Xue Ning contemtes on her next meal, Xiao Hui puts the n into motion. She firstly gets the waiter to leave - there''s no point having more witnesses to this incident. Then she serves Sun Jingwei first, because he''s footing the bill.


    "Thanks," Sun Jingwei says politely, putting down the crab meat to focus on his soup. He uses a ceramic spoon to take a sip, before wincing at how hot it was.


    "Careful Xue Ning, this soup is hot," he says, carefully blowing on his spoon before taking a sip. Xue Ning gives a wordless hum of acknowledgement, too focused on digging thest vestiges of crab meat.


    This was almost too easy, Xiao Hui thought to herself. This woman was so distracted by the crab it wouldn''t be difficult to tip the entire bowl down on her when serving her.


    "Here is yours," Xiao Hui says to Xue Ning, lifting her portion to set it on the table, only for her arms to ''identally'' tremble and for the pot to identally slip out of her shaking hands.


    "Xue Ning, look out!" Sun Jingwei screams frantically, his hands outstretched but it''s too little, toote.


    The ceramic pot tilts over and falls, and piping hot soup dances a graceful arc in the air beforending on Xue Ning, sshing her with broth and bits of chicken meat. Mushrooms and red dates fall to the floor, rolling idly around her feet. The one lone stalk of ginseng ends up wedged between Xue Ning''s breasts. Rivulets of soup that weren''t immediately absorbed by her clothes dripped on the floor, making soft pitter patter sounds, an apaniment to the horrified silence in the room.


    For a finale, the pot bounces off the edge of the table and ms unceremoniously on the floor with a loud crack, before shattering into two.


    Xue Ning, thoroughly unprepared for the unexpected hot soup shower, let out a pained scream, flinging herself away from the table.


    The skin on her arms was already turning red, and she had no doubt she was going to develop burns after this dinner. After the initial pain of having hot liquid sshed on her, her skin continued to hurt. It felt like her skin was rubbed raw with sandpaper, doused with lemon juice on an open wound and then set on fire.


    ''I''m sorry! I''ll get a towel!" The server screams and all but flees the room. If Xue Ning was in less pain, she would have red at her and demanded an exnation, but all she can think about is getting out of those clothes ASAP.


    "I''m going to the toilet," she chokes out, and she''s running to the restroom before Jingwei has the time to reply.


    As she runs, she hears footsteps behind her and hurriedly turns around, only to find Jingwei following her. She ducks into the Ladies, expecting him to wait outside like a normal person, but he immediately follows her inside.


    Thankfully, the restroom was empty.


    "Xue Ning, are you alright?" Jingwei asks, panicking, his hands fluttering all over her, but never actually touching her. "Did you get burnt? We should go to the hospital now. I''ll call an ambnce."


    "I don''t know," she says. She was going to take off her shirt to check, but then Jingwei was here. They weren''t that familiar for her to be stripping for him so easily.


    "Do you mind going outside? I want to check!" Xue Ning says.


    "It''s fine, it''s not as though I''ve never seen a woman''s body." Jingwei protests, looking at her with worry and mild exasperation. "You''ll need help to clean yourself up."


    "...Fine, but if you do anything weird, I''m stuffing your head down the toilet bowl." Xue Ning concedes. It''s true that Sun Jingwei had his fair share of women before he even met her, and it wasn''t as though her body would drive him into a frenzy of untamed lust.


    If he tried anything, she could just break his fingers, bodyguard or not.


    "Of course," Jingwei agrees easily enough, so Xue Ning whips off her shirt, throwing it into the sink.<sub> </sub>


    Sun Jingwei sucks in a breath.


    "Hey? Does it look that bad?" She asks, taking a look at herself in the mirror.


    "We should go to the hospital," Jingwei says shakily. His eyes rove over the curves of her breasts, still encased in a bra that was soaked in soup. Normally, seeing the woman he likes in her wet underwear would have been a dreame true. But in these circumstances, Jingwei couldn''t muster up anything other than worry and dismay. The skin on her chest and stomach was red, and Jingwei had a feeling it would start peeling soon.


    He hurriedly wet some paper towels and gingerly pressed them onto her bare skin. Xue Ning jolted in surprise - less so from the sensation of cold water on her heated skin, and more from him touching her bare skin.


    "Sorry! Does it hurt?" He asks anxiously, peering into her eyes. "Oh wait, that''s a stupid question. Of course it does." He scolded himself.


    "Nevermind - you should take off your clothes first. You can''t have them sticking on your skin." He continues. Before Xue Ning could retort if he was expecting her to walk around naked, he had slipped out of his suit jacket and draped it around her shoulders.


    "Wear this first."


    "...Thanks," she says quietly.


    "It''s no trouble," Jingwei replies, taking a closer look. Thankfully, their size difference meant that his jacket was long enough to reach her mid-thigh, making it a suitable recement for her lost outfit if she decided to remove her pants.


    "If it''s any constion, you look nice in my jacket." Jingwei says sincerely, shooting her an affectionate smile. Xue Ning has to will herself to stop blushing like a schoolgirl - she was drenched in hot soup, half naked in front of him. This was the worst time to find herself attracted to him!


    "You must be joking, but thanks anyway," she says, turning around to face the sink, sshing her face with cold water. Focus, Xue Ning, she told herself. Your body is in pain!


    "I would never joke about that," he replies, shaking his head. She can see the look on his face from the mirror, but she doesn''t recognize it.


    "More importantly, do you need my help to take off your pants?"


    She chokes.


    "Hell no you pervert!" She denies vehemently, face blushing for real, but whether it''s out of embarrassment or anger, no one can tell.


    "Just asking! They look really tight." Jingwei holds up his hands to protest his innocence. "Taking them off yourself will hurt, and you''ll still need to run your legs under cold water."


    "And how do you know all this?" Xue Ning asks, curious.


    "That''s for me to know and for you to find out," Jingwei replies primly before deftly changing the focus. "So if you don''t want me to look, I can just wait in the toilet cubicle and call an ambnce."


    Xue Ning blinks, surprised at his easy eptance and thoughtfulness. He didn''t wait for her reply, merely taking his phone from his pocket and locking himself into one of the cubicles.


    "Hello, yes - I would like an ambnce sent to Crystal Pce Gardens. My friend is suffering from severe burns. Is there anything that can help?"


    As Jingwei continues to converse with the call operator, Xue Ning learns that Jingwei had the right idea, she should be running the wounded area with cold water.


    But while it would still be possible for her to bnce her legs to get them under the running tap, there was no way her upper body could fit, because she was a rtively normal human being and not an olympic gymnast.


    Her brain helpfully chimed out a suggestion. How about letting Sun Jingwei drip cold water all over her upper body instead?

 Chapter 31 No Clean Underwear

    <strong>Definitely NOT!</strong> She internally screamed to herself, trying to get that image out of her head. Her imagination continued to provide her an borate fantasy, of Sun Jingwei cradling her half-naked body close to him, carefully dripping water down the flush skin of her chest, asking her if she''s feeling alright, his mouthing closer to lick -


    She aborts that train of thought immediately, face flushing heavily. Perhaps this was a side effect of the shock of having hot soup spilled on you just when you were finally enjoying dinner, Xue Ning rationalises to herself. These were unusual circumstances, so no wonder her mind was frazzled anding up with strange scenarios tofort her.


    Yes, that was it. Xue Ning definitely wasn''t someone that would daydream about yboy sons of billionaires. She was only here to protect him.


    She grits her teeth and decides to begin the arduous task of peeling off her jeans that were stered to her thighs after the hot soup spilled on her. She takes her deep breath, unbuckles her jeans and slowly tugs them, unable to stop hissing at the sensation of her painful skin exposed to cold air.


    "Ah fuck," she mutters bitterly to herself.


    That hurt! And it continues to hurt, even after she removes her shoes topletely take off the jeans. She is almost too afraid to look, but she forces herself to examine the state of her thighs. The skin there is a painful red, with raised welts.


    Her panties are also stained with soup - she should have taken them off, but there aren''t any recements. Double fuck.


    "Xue Ning, are you okay?" Jingwei asks, his concern still audible even when he''s stuck in the cubicle. "I can help you! Do you need anything?"


    "It''s fine!" Xue Ning squawks. "Unless you''re carrying spare panties with you, you can''t help! Wait, do you carry spare panties?" She asks, almost afraid of the answer.


    Was he that sort of man to carry women''s underwear around with him in case of emergencies?


    She hears the sound of him spluttering a denial.


    "Of course not! Actually, now that this has happened, I''m thinking I should. But for now, I don''t have spare underwear¡­ how about I lend you my pants first?" Jingwei asks.


    "Nonsense! What will you be wearing then?" Xue Ning exims, while trying to see if she can get her thigh under the tap. She winces - the stretch is ufortable to say the least. Even with her flexibility, stretching when her skin is mildly burned is more painful than expected.


    "I can just wear my boxers. It''s not as though I''mcking in that department," He replies matter-of-factly. She can just imagine his carefree shrug.


    "Are you crazy?" Xue Ning yells, over the sound of running water. Finally, one of her thighs was experiencing sweet relief. "What if you end up on the news?"


    "Then they''ll know that along with havingrge amounts of money, I also have arge package and a great taste in underwear." Jingwei answers easily. "It''s branded, you know. I didn''t pay 80000 yuan for it for nothing."


    "What on earth?" Xue Ning exims, choosing to ignore everything else but thest part of his statement for her own sanity''s sake. "Is it made of gold? What kind of underwear is this?"


    "It''s made out of quality silk to protect my family jewels, of course I need to invest in a good one!" Jingwei argues. "The future of the Sun family is at stake!"


    She snorts as she uses more paper towels to dab her upper body.


    "There''s still your older brother, I''m sure he can help in ensuring the future of the Sun family." Xue Ning says dryly.


    "Anyways," Jingwei continues, as though she didn''t say anything, "I wouldn''t mind letting you wear my boxers, but I have a feeling you''ll say no."


    "Smart of you. I''m definitely saying no," she replies tly. No matter how desperate and ufortable she was, she wasn''t going to put on Sun Jingwei''s expensive boxers. Like he said, they were protecting his family jewels.


    Wearing them would be an indirect kiss between theirher regions! Practically indirect sex! She would rather go without underwear and she wasn''t even an exhibitionist!


    "Even if I was close enough to wear your underwear, you also can''t appear half-naked for goodness sake. Think of your reputation!" Xue Ning continues, still eyeing her thigh. It is less painful now, but doesn''t look any less red. But she also needs to care for the other one.


    "Why not? Am I supposed to let you continue wearing your soiled panties?" Jingwei asks incredulously. "And everyone already thinks I''m out of my mind half the time. It''s not like my reputation can sink any lower!"


    "You''ll be surprised," she argues, switching to her other thigh. It could be the cold water that made her feel better, but the conversation with Jingwei was also doing a fantastic job of distracting her so that she didn''t feel much pain. "I''m sure if pictures of you in expensive underwear show up online, you''ll give your father a heart attack at his old age."


    <o>,m "When you put it like that, you make me sound like some sleazy underwear model." Jingwei muses. "But then, what about you?"</o>


    "We''re going to the hospital soon. I''ll live." She replies dryly. The hospital better have some good painkillers and burn cream.


    "If you say so," Jingwei says, begrudgingly. "Just let me know when it''s okay for me toe out?"<sub> </sub>


    "Not yet," she replies, remembering to take off her wet bra to rinse. She shrugs off the suit jacket and takes off her bra,menting at the soup stains.


    Maybe she can make Jingwei get her a new one, seeing that this was technically ruined when on duty. One that''s not as expensive as his underwear, but still gloriouslyfortable to wear.


    She then uses more paper towels to gingerly tap at the reddish skin on her chest to clean and soothe it, wincing all the while. She shivers when a particrly strong gust of cold air from the air conditioning blew at her, causing her nipples to harden and goose pimples to erupt.


    Time to put the suit jacket on - oh. She flushes at the feeling of her bare breasts rubbing against his suit jacket. Her nipples were already sensitive from the cold air, and the soft silk lining of his suit jacket was a bigger distraction than she expected, along with the smell of his cologne along the cor.


    Focus. Just as she was trying to put her socks back on, the toilet door swung open.


    She jumps in surprise, preparing for an attack.


    But it was only their server, Xiao Hui, who looked incredibly apologetic, almost close to tears. She holds a wad of fabric in her arms, with a tube of burn cream on top, offering it to Xue Ning with a deep bow.


    "I''m really sorry! Please use this for now!"


    Xue Ning stares back at her, surprised that she even bothered to show up.


    "Thanks, I guess." Xue Ning says, taking the bundle from her.


    Xiao Hui still stands in front of her, twisting her fingers anxiously.


    "You can leave now," Xue Ning says.


    "But - but I - " Xiao Hui stutters, giving her a pleading look.


    "It''s fine, I''m not going to sue," Xue Ning says, giving her her bestforting look. Judging by the look of increased panic on Xiao Hui''s face, she had failed utterly. Ah, to be born with a resting bitch face that wasn''t any good at smiling was the worst!


    "I''m serious, stop looking like I''m going to eat you. Or I''ll reallyin." She says threateningly. Ironically, that seemed to reassure their server more than her attempt atfort.


    "Thank you! Thank you!" Xiao Hui whimpers in relief.


    "It''s fine. idents happen," Xue Ning shrugs. "I know how it feels to be so tired that mistakes happen. Don''t worry about it."


    Somehow, Xiao Hui looks even more conflicted after her words. Xue Ning wonders if she is indeed so bad atforting people with her words, and so she gives her an awkward pat on the shoulder too.


    Xiao Hui twitches, like she just managed to not jump out from her skin.


    "It''s fine, really, don''t you have work to go back to?" Xue Ning asks, hoping that she''ll leave so that she can change into the new clothes. She finds herself strangely morefortable with stripping in front of Sun Jingwei than putting on clothes in front of a stranger, but she doesn''t not wish to examine that thought in detail.


    "I¡­. I have something to say." Xiao Hui says, stammering as she gives the restroom a quick look, stilling at the upied cubicle. Xue Ning sees where she''s looking and stands in front of it protectively, just in case. Xiao Hui blinks at this reaction, her face clearing like she somehow understands.


    Xue Ning doesn''t know what she could be thinking of, but she has no patience to even bother finding out.


    "Spit it out then," Xue Ning says, giving her a warning nce. "Quickly."


    "I''m sorry it wasn''t an ident - I was made to do it - don''t hurt me -" The words escape Xiao Hui in a mad rush like air from a deting balloon.


    "WHAT?!" Everyone jumps as they hear the outraged yell of Sun Jingwei from the cubicle.


    Xue Ning was hoping he would remain silent throughout so that his presence in the women''s restroom is kept a secret, but that hope was quickly dashed when he unlocks the cubicle door and throws it open with a bang, pulling himself to his full height to level a re at Xiao Hui.


    "How dare you do such a thing to my wife!"

 Chapter 32 Multiple Realisations

    "Who is your wife?" Xue Ning retorts. "Was the foodced with drugs? Are you in a fooda to be speaking such nonsense?"


    Jingwei splutters. "That''s not important! She just said that she burned you with hot soup on purpose!"


    He pulls Xue Ning behind him as though shielding her from further harm, and turns to re at Xiao Hui, who stumbles back at the venom in his gaze.


    Xue Ning moves closer and stares at the muscle twitching in his jaw, the furious light in his eyes, so unlike the Sun Jingwei she had seen so far. His arm is stretched in front of her, just barely brushing against her waist, protective, while his other hand clenches into a fist.


    Sun Jingwei is protecting her. It feels¡­ nice. Her fingers lightly traces the muscles of his arm, before she clutches at his hand, willing him to calm down, the difference in their hand sizes sending a frisson of something down her spine.


    Sun Jingwei turns to look at her, wonderingly.


    Xue Ning doesn''t know what she should actually do. She had never inspired this level of protective rage from anyone that wasn''t an immediate family member. Often, she is the angrier one that is intent on pursuing justice, and she could fight her own battles.


    But now, she''s on the other end of the equation for once. The protected instead of the protector.


    A gentle warmth spreads throughout her body at his actions, unlike the blistering heat of spilled soup.


    Sun Jingwei, I will guard you with my life.


    "Let''s hear her out, some things don''t make sense," Xue Ning says. She has a feeling if she lets go of Sun Jingwei''s hand, he''s going to end up doing something he''ll regret.


    "But -" Jingwei protests.


    "Trust me on this," Xue Ning says, squeezing his hand. "I have a weird feeling about this."


    Jingwei stares into her eyes for a moment, before finally relenting.


    "Fine," he says, but he still doesn''t move his body away. His hand is still firmly holding hers.


    "Why did you do it?" Xue Ning asks, turning to face Xiao Hui who was now trembling like a leaf.


    "Even if you hated me that much, which is strange because I have never seen you before, you wouldn''t risk this job to dump hot soup all over me. This is a job at a prestigious restaurant, it''ll pay more than any other roadside stall. There''s no way anyone would risk a stable ie to pour soup on a stranger!" Xue Ning analyses.


    "Not just a stranger, a paying customer. A guest of your VIP customer," Jingwei helpfully adds, smiling with cold eyes. "Even if you do wish to attract my attention, this is the exact way to not do it. Now that you have, I suppose I could grant you a date¡­ in court."


    ? "Please don''t sue!" Xiao Hui begs frantically. "I was paid to do it! One of the other customers, a woman wearing a red dress, promised me 650,000 yuan if I poured hot soup on you!"


    "And you believed her? Are you stupid?" Jingwei asks incredulously. "So if she asked you to stab someone with the crab leg you would do it too?"


    Xue Ning snorts; Jingwei sounds so much like her mother at that moment.


    "She paid me half of it in cash, look - I can prove it to you!" Xiao Hui pleads, reaching into her pockets. Both Jingwei and Xue Ning shift in case she has a weapon, but instead Xiao Hui reveals a thick stack of cash.


    "I didn''t dare put this money anywhere¡­ she told me that she would wire me the rest of the money after I did this¡­ please¡­ I know I did something wrong, but I didn''t think¡­"


    "So you were effectively bribed to pour hot soup on a valued customer and cause her burn injuries" Jingwei summarises tly, flint in his eyes. "Is this supposed to make me feel sorry for you? Because I sure as hell don''t."


    "Wait - now that''s even weirder. Why would someone spend so much money on pouring hot soup on me?" Xue Ning wonders, confused. "This money is worth more than my life!"


    "Nonsense! Nothing is worth your life," Jingwei retorts firmly, turning to re at her.


    "That''s kind of you to say, but utterly false," Xue Ning pats his arm to console him. Sun Jingwei is getting too serious and angry, it almost makes him seem like a whole different person, and it is doing strange things to her heart.


    "But back to the point, perhaps if someone offered this much money to kill me, it''ll make some sense. Or to ssh hot soup on you, because you''re infamous. It doesn''t make sense to offer this much money to give me minor burns," She borates.


    "You''d be surprised at what hate makes people do," Jingwei states seriously, "and people with money to burn can do anything."


    "Like you said, they''d have to hate me. And I don''t think I''ve done anything to anyone that would make them¡­" she trails off, suddenly remembering someone she had recently offended.<sub> </sub>


    "Xue Ning?" Jingwei asks, worried. "What are you thinking of now?"


    Xue Ning turns to look at Xiao Hui, who was mercifully ignored until now. She still looks horribly guilty.


    "Okay, you im that someone bribed you, do you have a name? Can you describe her face? Any identifying features?" She grills, a suspicion in her mind.


    "I didn''t get any name, but she was roughly this tall¡­ and she was wearing 3-inch heels." Xiao Hui held her hand above her head. "She wore really thick makeup with red lips and a red dress¡­ even her fingernails were painted red."


    Red fingernails? When had she seen that before¡­ she frowns, trying to recall.


    "That tells us nothing. Everyone here is dressed up to the nines," Jingwei says, displeased. "Do you remember which room she was from? Could you check the records for a name?"


    "Yes! Yes I can do that!" Her head bobs so furiously in agreement that Xue Ning worries for her neck muscles.


    There was a moment of silence as they stood and watched each other.


    "Then go do it?" Jingwei prompts impatiently, raising an eyebrow. Huh, she didn''t even know he could do that. Where did he learn it from?


    Xiao Hui lets out a distressed meep and all but flees from the bathroom. They hear the sound of her heels cking on the floor bing softer the further away she was from the toilet.


    And now they are alone. Xue Ning is suddenly bing hyper-aware of the fact that they are standing a lot closer together than before due to his earlier protective gesture. She could still feel his body heat, a wee relief from the cold of the bathroom.


    From such a close distance she could almost count the eyshes framing his eyes. His eyes, which are still locked on her face.


    She hurriedly looks away from him, moving apart to ensure some space between their bodies, pretending she doesn''t see the faint disappointment in his eyes.


    "I think you scared her off," Xue Ning says quickly.


    "Please, I''m not that scary," Jingwei scoffs, before leaning closer to gaze down at her, with a yful smirk. "Were you scared?"


    "Like hell," she shakes her head and smacks his arm, catching his eye. "But I have to admit that you were kinda¡­ cool. Less of a loser than usual."


    He beams at her. His smile suits him a lot more than that harsh anger from before. "Ah, Xue Ning, you say the sweetest things."


    "Don''t get too used to it," she warns, but she''s smiling too, buoyed by the cheerful atmosphere now that they''re a step closer to catching the culprit.


    "What do you say we get out of here?" Jingwei asks, suddenly expectant.


    "We should wait for Xiao Hui toe back with the information first," Xue Ning replies, rejecting his suggestion. "In fact, you should go back into the cubicle and wait - what if some other woman sees you?"


    =


    True to her words, there was another woman who was indeed hell-bent on seeing him. The woman in red had stormed into the private dining room that Sun Jingwei had booked, only to find it disappointingly empty. She had waited for at least 15 minutes, standing around in her stilettos, but only the waitstaff showed up to clean up the mess left behind.


    This wasn''t going to n at all! She began to tug at her hair, before realising that she still had to look presentable.


    She breathes deeply to calm down. Sun Jingwei¡­ where did this shameless man flee to? Outside? His precious woman didn''t leave the premises, so he can''t have gone far. Sun Jingwei wasn''t ungentlemanly enough to ditch a date in distress.


    (No, he only kicked them out after one night in bed.)


    She taps her fingers on her chin, contemting. A slow smirk spreads across her face as she remembers someone.


    Perhaps that opportunistic server would know something useful. Xiumin was always a persuasive individual who had a myriad of ways to coax people to talk.


    Now¡­where could she be?

 Chapter 33 Confrontations Everywhere

    Xiao Hui hurriedly rushes to theptop at the counter, recalling the room number where she found the woman loitering. It was near Sun Jingwei''s reserved room.


    Of course, there was no guarantee that she wasn''t deliberately hanging around Sun Jingwei''s room on purpose just to cause trouble.


    ''Dimitri Von Holson''


    She stares at the name given in the reservations. It was a male English name, which could mean that it might not have even been her reservation to begin with, or she was just the plus one. She didn''t recall any Europeans entering her restaurant, so maybe he didn''t even show.


    Either way, she would bring this name and phone number to Sun Jingwei and Xue Ning - hopefully they would forgive her for her earlier actions. She couldn''t afford to be sued, and it would have been fine if she had just kept her mouth shut, but her guilty conscience reared its ugly head at the worst time.


    She could have ignored it, but then Xue Ning had to be understanding and forgiving and it made Xiao Hui feel like the worst sort of scum. It would be easier to live with herself if Xue Ning had been angry, had been upset, had been the gold-digging bitch she painted her as.


    Now she could only try to make amends. She should know better than toe between a couple as in love as those two, unlikely as they seemed. Sun Jingwei''s possessive protectiveness was so like a male lead in a drama; she would have swooned, but then his anger had been squarely directed at her.


    If Xue Ning had not interfered, Xiao Hui would have been cuffed in a police car on her way to prison right now. Just for that alone, Xiao Hui owes her a debt of gratitude!


    She takes note of the name and phone number on her phone, and makes her way back to the washroom.


    =


    Target spotted. The woman in red smirked as she saw the little mouse scurry suspiciously back to what must be her nest, the restroom. After some thinking she guessed that Sun Jingwei''s woman must have remained in the toilet to clean herself up, so Sun Jingwei must be somewhere close.


    All she had to do was tail her and keep a watch to see if anyone was leaving the restroom. It was almost too easy. She patted herself on the back for a job well done - she had done a good job in making this server do her dirty work. Poor, jealous people were all too easy to manipte.


    If not for the fact that Sun Jingwei had gone off script, she would have aplished her mission much earlier. But that''s not a big setback, merely a tiny hup in the grand scheme of things.


    By tonight, Sun Jingwei will be in her hands for good.


    Oh look, speak of the devil. It was the server, walking quickly, too fast to be anything but suspicious. She smirked and raised her hand to pull at the server''s shoulder, causing her to jump and scream in panic.


    Xiao Hui had just been making her way back to the restroom before she got ambushed by thest person she wanted to see - the very woman that threw her into this mess!


    "Hello there, remember me?" The woman smiled sweetly, but Xiao Hui wasn''t fooled.


    "It''s you!" Xiao Hui pointed a shaking hand at her. "I did what you said, don''t bother me anymore!"


    "Oh? You''re not even going to ask for the second part of your payment?" The woman asks in mock surprise. "Don''t tell me you''re actually sorry?"


    "What if I am?" Xiao Hui tilts her head up, trying to seem braver than she felt. "Why did you want to hurt Sun Jingwei''s date so badly?"


    "I don''t have to exin myself to the likes of you," was her cavalier answer. "Now answer a simple question of mine and I won''t have you fired, where is Sun Jingwei?"


    "I don''t know!" Xiao Hui panics, shaking her head frantically.


    "Oh really? I beg to differ," the woman stalks closer while Xiao Hui inches back slowly, trying to find an escape. In a broad deserted walkway, Xiao Hui somehow still had the feeling she was cornered.


    "Let me go!" Xiao Hui exims. The woman had grabbed Xiao Hui''s arm, smiling while Xiao Hui struggled to escape. She looked at her the same way a cat would gaze at a iling mouse, with condescending amusement.


    "Sure, you just need to tell me one simple thing," her fingers tightened, gripping Xiao Hui''s wrist hard enough to leave bruises. Her long painted nails dug themselves into the soft skin, leaving crescent marks. Xiao Hui stifles a faint cry of pain as she tries to flee, with no sess.


    "Now¡­ answer me when I''m still being nice: where is Sun Jingwei?"


    =<sub> </sub>


    At the sound of the door opening, Xue Ning gives Jingwei a harsh shove back into the cubicle. Xue Ning ignored his indignant face and merely closed the door, mouthing the words ''lock the door'' before the door mmed shut. And not a moment too soon, because the person who came in wasn''t their apologetic server Xiao Hui, it was a tall woman in red in stilettos.


    "You!" Xue Ning eximed, immediately standing in front of the locked cubicle, preparing for a confrontation. This must be the woman that bribed Xiao Hui. Her face seemed vaguely familiar.


    "Oh look, guess you''re still alive, what a pity," The woman scans Xue Ning from head to toe, sniffing dismissively at hercklustre outfit. Xiao Hui had provided her with a thin cotton shirt and a new pair of pants, but she hadn''t changed into it yet.


    "I could say the same for you," Xue Ning retorts, hackles raised. "Getting Xiao Hui to do your dirty work is just pathetic. If you have the guts, go after me yourself!"


    "Xiao Hui? Ah, was that her name? God, she was such a sniveling wimp." The woman looks at her nails, already bored. "Never mind about her, I have bigger fish to fry."


    "Sniveling?! Hey! What did you do to her?" Xue Ning yells angrily, but the woman ignores her question, merely looking around the restroom.


    "None of your business, now get out of my way." The woman scoffs and raises a hand to shove Xue Ning aside, only for Xue Ning to bat it out of the way.


    "Or what?" Xue Ning retorts, refusing to back down. "I don''t know who the fuck you are, but you''re a real despicable bitch!"


    "You don''t know who I am?" The woman screeches. "How dare you say this, after ruining my attempt to be Sun Jingwei''s new bride!"


    "Huh? What the flying fuck? Are you his stalker?" Xue Ning asks, hoping that Sun Jingwei hears this and has themon sense to call the police, while still staying in the cubicle.


    As the woman''s face begins to resemble the colour of her dress, Xue Ning suddenly remembers where she saw her from.


    "Wait, wait wait, I remember you! You''re that bitch that tried to drug Jingwei!" Xue Ning exims, "You''re¡­ Xiumin! You put me in hospital, you fucker!"


    "Me?! You put yourself in the hospital! Who asked you to drink it?" Xiumin screeches back in return. "It was meant for Sun Jingwei, you bloody idiot!"


    "And I was just supposed to let you drug him?" Xue Ning asks, confused and angry.


    "You should have," she replies imperiously. "That man is not worth your loyalty!"


    "I can decide that for myself, thanks," Xue Ning scowls. "Besides, I''m not taking life advice from someone who just admitted to attempted drugging."


    "Suit yourself! You''ll regret it in future!" She yells, striking at Xue Ning''s face. Xue Ning barely managed to dodge it, grabbing her wrist.


    Xiumin easily slides out of her hold and goes for a second strike, this time punching her in the chest. Xue Ning stumbles, but luckily she catches herself in time to grab Xiumin''s fist, pulling her close to headbutt her under her chin.


    It makes a satisfyingly loud crack, but Xiumin wasn''t down, she reached for Xue Ning''s hair and gave it a harsh painful tug. Xue Ning screamed in pain, but she remembered her teachings from her old teacher - when your hair gets pulled, you shouldn''t struggle against the hold. So Xue Ning leans in and used her legs to deliver a swift kick to her stomach.


    Xiumin lets go of her hair, shrieking. Xue Ning immediately uses the chance tond a fierce palm strike straight at Xiumin''s nose. Xiumin screams like a banshee as she falls to the floor, crumpled in a heap as she holds onto her nose.


    "My nose! You bitch! You''ll pay for this!"


    "No thanks, I''m poor." Xue Ning isn''t dumb enough to wait for Xiumin to get up and try again, so she immediately pins her on the floor with her body weight, twisting one of her arms behind her back.


    "Let me go!" Xiumin screams, writhing on the floor like a dying tuna. "You''ll regret this!"


    "Shut up! Your screaming is hurting my ears!" Xue Ning screams back. "I didn''t get to have a good dinner because of you! You bitch!" Xue Ning deliberately twists her arm further back with more force, just to get her to stop yelling.


    "Sun Jingwei, you''d better be calling the police!" Xue Ning exims. "If you don''t I''ll really just sic her on you!"

 Chapter 34 Tormenting Your Tormentor Part 1

    "Xue Ning, why are you so cruel to me?" Sun Jingwei gives a intive whine at her words, his head popping over the cubicle to gaze down at the scene. He is relieved that Xue Ning had everything under control, so he doesn''t have to use wet toilet paper as makeshift projectiles. That would have made everything incredibly messy.


    "So did you call the police?!" His lovely Xue Ning demands, ring at him from the corner of her eye, not letting down her guard. From this angle, Jingwei could see the shift in her bare thigh muscles as she easily pinned down the culprit, much like a lioness hunting down her prey.


    Truly, the sight of her pinning down her opponent wearing only his suit jacket, was a masterpiece worthy of being hung on the wall of any gallery. Utter perfection, Leonardo da Vinci himself couldn''t outdo this - the perfect blend of sensuality,petence and power.


    Oh, she is half-ring at him, still waiting for a response. Back to Earth now, Sun Jingwei, he scolds himself. It''s time to stop fantasising about Xue Ning''s thighs and how they would look wrapped around your waist.


    "Of course! It''s not everyday we catch a criminal that admitted to their crime so easily." Jingwei beams cheerfully, looking down at Xiumin mockingly, even if he can''t exactly make out her features through her curtain of hair, messed up from the earlier brawl.


    He has no clue what Xue Ning did because he was stuck in the cubicle, but he had every faith that Xue Ning would win this brawl and keep him safe. Xue Ning had a huge score to settle with this woman who tried to drug him, inadvertently causing her to be hospitalised, and finally, ruining her dinner.


    Xue Ning might have ced more importance on thest reason though. But that was fine with Jingwei. He was never anyone''s first reason for anything, after all. He was used to it.


    Besides, he ced more than enough importance on the first two reasons for the both of them.


    He smirks and jumps down from the toilet seat, opening the door with a loud bang, giving Xue Ning a jaunty wave hello.


    Xue Ning responds by rolling her eyes, even as the woman she''s pinning down makes another attempt at escaping.


    "Hello there, I suppose I should say nice to see you again, but I would rather we never met¡­" Jingwei purposely stalks towards Xiumin, close enough so that she can re at his leather shoes.


    This woman, who was responsible for causing so much trouble over such a short time. He wasn''t going to let her off so easily. He tilts her head up so that he can get a good look at her face, still smiling at her re.


    "Also, are you sure you''re the same woman? I¡­ don''t remember anyone looking like you actually. Sorry." He says with mock regret.


    "Who asked you to be drunk?" Xue Ning chimes in.


    "You didn''t recognize her immediately either!" Jingwei retorts easily, dropping his hand from the woman''s face so that he can pay more attention to Xue Ning, giving her a brief smile and a knowing nce.


    Work with me here. Jingwei winks at Xue Ning.


    Xue Ning was confused, before she narrowed her eyes in understanding. She could see no reason NOT to piss off her captive.


    Yes, she was petty like that. Sue her.


    "I was tired after a long day at work, what''s your excuse?" Xue Ning says. "Eye problems?"


    "Nah, my eyesight is perfect! I think it''s just the lighting here that makes her look different." Jingwei says, consideringly.


    "Really? Isn''t it because I mmed her head and broke her nose?" Xue Ning asks innocently.


    "Oh, so that was what that loud crack was!" Jingwei says, impressed. "Very well done, I think she looks better now."<sub> </sub>


    "Hey, you can''t say stuff like that," Xue Ning replies with mock seriousness. "Her stic surgeon might be sad."


    "No, he''ll be happy. She''s going to need to visit him again for a new nose, right?" Jingwei points out delightedly. Ah, it was so fun to banter with Xue Ning, and watch her unleash her acidic tongue on someone else for a change.


    "That''s ridiculous, how will she get to see a stic surgeon in prison?" Xue Ning argues.


    "Ah, you make a good point. So I guess this broken nose will be permanent then." Jingwei says with mock sadness, and goes back to take a closer look at the woman''s face. "So sad, so sad."


    "What so sad? That''s karmic retribution for her crimes." Xue Ning states.


    "You are one to talk about karmic retribution! Sun Jingwei, you know what you did to me!" Xiumin snarls from the position.


    "Actually, I don''t," Jingwei says.


    "You filthy liar! We slept together!" Xiumin screams.


    "Well, that doesn''t narrow it down at all," Jingwei shrugs. "I slept with a lot of people."


    "You''re such a slut," Xue Ningments. "Aplete manwhore."


    "Thank you, darling, for your astute observation," Jingwei says.


    "Sounds like she didn''t have a good time with you though, so you''re probably not that good in bed," Xue Ning says.


    "Hey! All women that I''ve slept with were ready and willing, and no woman has walked away from my bed unsatisfied." Jingwei protests. "It must be something else."


    Xiumin lets out a deranged wail that echoes in the empty washroom. It raises goosebumps on Xue Ning''s arms.


    "You can still deny your sins? I''m talking about the damn video!"


    "Video?" Jingwei asks, before realisation dawns in his eyes.


    Then he crouches down, taking a closer look at Xiumin''s face. Xue Ning wants to smack him, but she has her hands full - if Xiumin bites off his nose, it''ll be his own damn fault.


    "But¡­ you still don''t look like her. And that video has nothing to do with me - I was a victim too!" Jingwei says.


    "What video?" Xue Ning asks, confused.


    Xiumin cackles hysterically with a hint of sorrow. "What video? Don''t tell me you''ve never watched my sex tape with Sun Jingwei!?"

 Chapter 35 Tormenting Your Tormentor Part 2

    "Urggh - Why would I watch Sun Jingwei''s sex tape?" Xue Ning wrinkles her nose in disgust at the mental picture formed by Xiumin''s words. "That''s just gross. No offence."


    "None taken," Jingwei shrugs, moving further away from Xiumin in case Xiumin decides to spit in his face.


    "The whole country saw it!" Xiumin screams. "My life was over from that day onwards!"


    "How is that his fault?" Xue Ning asks, half-curious. "Isn''t he a victim too?"


    "VICTIM?!" Xiumin shrieks, nearly bucking Xue Ning off with anger. "He orchestrated it - I know it!"


    "Hey, I definitely didn''t," Jingwei solemnly swears with his hand upright. "I wouldn''t do that to someone who didn''t agree to be filmed, and especially not leak such a private tape!"


    "Don''t try to look good in front of your new squeeze!" Xiumin yells. "You''re just a useless perverted man!"


    "Hey!" Xue Ning cuts in, shoving her head back down onto the floor. All her screaming was giving her a headache. "Do you have any proof that he did this?"


    "... I just know it''s him!" Xiumin deres after a pause.


    "So you have no proof," Xue Ning says, trying not to roll her eyes. "And you me him, the other party in the video - the other victim?"


    "He''s not a victim!" Xiumin spits out. "He''s perfectly fine after that incident!"


    "No I was not!" Jingwei suddenly yells, furious. "Do you think I want my bedroom activities leaked to the whole world?!"


    Xiumin quiets down in surprise, but Sun Jingwei isn''t done. Xue Ning listens with interest.


    "Everyone just goes oh look, it''s Sun Jingwei, he''s so rich he can do whatever he wants but that''s not the point! No one should be filming me, or you to begin with! Ande on, the first video leak didn''t even show you clearly - I was the one in clear view!"


    Xiumin hisses, but she seems less angry. Only slightly.


    "Really?" Xue Ning asks, surprised. She looks down at Xiumin. "Then how did you get ruined in this mess?"


    Jingwei stares at her, deted. "Wait, you really didn''t hear about this scandal?"


    "Why would I care about two people I don''t know having sex?" Xue Ning asks, nonplussed. "Besides, the one filming the both of you should be the one you''re both angry at."


    Xiumin lets out a brokenugh from the floor. "Ha¡­ right¡­ The first video wasn''t clear, but then someone managed to clean up the second video! Who else could it be, if not you?!"


    "Look, just because I could do it doesn''t mean I would do it," Jingwei exins, nearly tearing out his hair in frustration. "What would be the point in making it HD? To give perverts more ammunition?"


    "How should I know?!" Xiumin screams with tears in her eyes. "All I know is that you ruined my life! I wish I never met you!"


    Jingwei barely flinches at her words, but Xue Ning catches the briefest look of pain that shed in his eyes.<sub> </sub>


    "Enough from you," Xue Ning says, shoving Xiumin''s head on the floor, mind whirling with the new information. "Aren''t you both victims? How is hurting Sun Jingwei going to help you? You should be working together to catch the filming bastard!"


    Xiumin lets out an angry hissing sound, much like a boiling kettle.


    "Listen, I know you want to hurt him in revenge" Xue Ning says to Xiumin, "but he''s also a victim. You should at least confirm that he''s the culprit. What if you''re just being used to hurt him?"


    Oh my god. Xue Ning''s casual words have suddenly made things clearer. She and Jingwei shoot each other with the same look of realisation.


    "If you don''t wish to spend the rest of your days rotting in the prison cell, you better tell me the mastermind behind you," Jingwei demands cooly.


    Xiumin gives him a venomous re and just hisses like a snake. Or a particrly angry kettle.


    "Sorry, I don''t speak boiling kettle or Parseltongue," Jingwei says apologetically, before turning to Xue Ning. "Did you hit her too hard just now? I think you may have caused some brain damage."


    "How about I hit you the same way I hit herter, then you can tell me if I''m doing it too hard or not?" Xue Ning retorts, raises an eyebrow.


    "Why, you always say the sweetest things." Jingwei replies with a slight grin. Xue Ning knows about the video, and she doesn''t me him for it. "I should be jealous that this woman here got your thighs around her before I did."


    "I''ll never tell you about my Boss, so you can just kill me!" Xiumin sullenly deres from the floor. "I can''t bear to listen to the both of you anymore. I''d rather be locked up for good."


    "Since when are you given a choice?" Xue Ning retorts. "Now hand over the name!"


    Jingwei adds, "But if you do insist on being locked up for good, who are we to deny you? We are good Samaritans aren''t we?"


    Xue Ning and Xiumin give him identical looks of incredulity. Xue Ning then ms Xiumin''s head on the floor again. Just because she could. That lost ginseng chicken she could have had for breakfast was not a small loss. More importantly, even if Xiumin was also a victim, it doesn''t give her the right to go around hurting other people!


    "Ouch," Jingwei winces in sympathy. "Are you out to cause brain damage?"


    "What brain is there to damage? It''s not obvious like her nose," Xue Ning replies tly. Jingwei snorts. "And honestly, if she hasn''t realised that she''s just being made used off by now, there''s no point in her having a brain."


    "How dare you!" Xiumin screeches. "Boss will never use me! He cares for me!"


    "Oh he definitely doesn''t," Jingwei says with a scoff. "If this Boss of yours cared for you, he would have helped you regain a normal life and treated you well to make up for the injustice you suffered. Instead he allowed you toe here, to dirty your precious hands by trying to kill me."


    "Killing you will make up for the injustice!"


    "Funny that you would say that," Jingwei casually says, "because for the past few years, I''ve beenbouring under the impression that YOU leaked the video!"


    Everyone stills in surprise.

 Chapter 36 Tormenting Your Tormentor Part 3

    "Listen, you are not the first woman that tried to ckmail me and you''ll not be thest," Jingwei states in a manner so matter-of-fact that it makes Xue Ning angry for him - how does one live a life like his, just expecting to be ckmailed? The news is so depressing that she wants to punch someone, preferably Xiumin.


    Xiumin, as though sensing her violent thoughts, makes outraged noises in protest. Xue Ning shushes her harshly.


    "I thought it was your fault all these years, and then it turns out you''re a victim too," Jingwei continues, now that Xiumin is actually listening to them.


    "The original video was already taken off the hot search by mypany''s team, so things should have died down. But then, the video resurfaced in better detail, with you inside it, so I thought you were doing it to trap me."


    Xiumin responds with a bitter scoff, her body trembling under Xue Ning''s hands.


    Jingwei frowns to himself as he recalls that painful time. Just as he thought the dust was finally settling, that video had reappeared on all social media sites, sharpened to the point where one could use it as a sex scene in a movie!


    One could even see the birthmark on his inner thigh, if they zoomed in hard enough! He''s probably sure some perverts out there already did, and repressed a shudder.


    Back then, everyone thought then he was perfectly fine with the video leaking, and he made it seem that way,ughing off all the crude jokes and the knowing smirks that his ''friends'' gave him.


    They made a whole bunch of unwantedments about his body, his bedroom kinks, even the way he moaned. It was enough to give anyone insecurities!


    And that wasn''t even ounting for the shit random strangers said online about it. Their legal department had such a busy month suing maliciousmenters, they all went on a two-week long vacation after the whole debacle was over. Shengli had packed off to the Bahamas for a month!


    No one had cared - no one had realised that he couldn''t get a proper night''s rest in the months after, too afraid that someone was spying on him.


    They didn''t know that he had to wear sunsses whenever he had to leave the house, which wasn''t often, because he couldn''t shake off the lingering paranoia of someone watching him.


    It took at least half a year before he could finally sleep in rtive peace, and even then, he still woke up sometimes, bedsheets drenched in sweat.


    No one bothered to ask him how he felt about the issue. Not his brother, not his father, not his staff and certainly not his ''friends''. Everyone treated it like it was his fault!


    Everyone other than Xue Ning. It would have been so easy to side with Xiumin too - but instead, Xue Ning had acknowledged the fact that he was a victim too. It felt like a weight was lifted off his shoulders. He gives Xue Ning a grateful look, but she just stares at him, confused, before scowling at Xiumin.


    "Anyway, your Boss is aplete coward sending you to do his dirty work," Xue Ning says. "Who knows? He might have leaked the video to get you on his side!"


    "It''s - I - I''m not - Boss" Xiumin splutters, her thoughts in a mess. Sun Jingwei, damn the man, is actually bringing up valid points.


    How had her Boss known what she had to endure after the video, when he came to look for her to help her? Had he kept tabs on her - if so, why didn''t he offer help sooner?


    She feels her heart waver for a brief moment, then she shakes her head.<sub> </sub>


    Boss already said Sun Jingwei was a master at maniption, so of course he tried to get her to change her mind!


    "It''s your fault!" Xiumin protests, angry enough to spit. This time, her anger is also directed at herself, for daring to doubt her Boss, the one man that saved her from despair.


    "Don''t try to pin the me on my boss, you bloody ungrateful hypocrite!"


    Xue Ning shoves her head down, but this time, Xiumin refuses to stay silent. Xue Ning idly wonders if they really should stuff toilet paper in her mouth, maybe they could use the clothes their server bought for her to change into as a makeshift gag.


    "You ungrateful man! You''ll get your retribution! You and your entire family better watch out! Boss wille for me - he won''t let you off like this!" Xiumin continues to scream, eyes bulging in anger.


    "He?" Both Jingwei and Xue Ning ask,tching onto the same word, at the same time. "Your Boss?"


    Xiumin only turns her head to give Xue Ning a smug, victorious look, despite her woeful circumstances.


    "You''ll knowter, when hees for you! For both of you!"


    "Right," Xue Ning says disbelievingly and presses harder on Xiumin''s back, turning her face back to the floor. "Stop acting like a Disney viin henchman. It''s pathetic."


    "She''s right, everyone knows the ending of a Disney viin. They end up dead. And because you were clearly not listening to us: I DID NOT LEAK THE VIDEO." Jingwei takes a deep breath and continues.


    "More importantly, what did you do to our server? Do we need to add another assault charge to your list of crimes? Possible drugging and kidnapping? Don''t tell me¡­ you killed her?!"


    Xue Ning gives him a horrified look, but it''s hard to tell whether it''s because of Xiumin''s possible criminal actions or his incredible dramatics.


    Xiumin lets out a scoff and grumbles to the floor.


    "What did you say? I didn''t quite catch that? Did you, Xue Ning?" Jingwei asks, making a show out of digging his ear.


    "Not a word," Xue Ning replies, deliberately ignoring Xiumin in her efforts to continue pissing her off. God this woman just refuses to even believe in the chance that she could have been set-up. Is she brainwashed or just in denial?


    "So I guess she''s fine with going to prison for a longer time?"


    "Yeah, sounds like it. They''ll wrangle a confession out of her soon enough. Oh look," Jingwei smiles with boyish delight, as policemen pound on the restroom door, before swarming into the room to handcuff Xiumin.


    "Her ride has arrived."

 Chapter 37 Police Interview Part 1

    "Thank god," Xue Ning says with great relief, as she eagerly hauls herself from Xiumin''s prone body. Xiumin had be limp with tiredness, or perhaps she was finally realising there was no way to avoid the consequences of her actions.


    "You were amazing!" Jingwei gushes effusively, throwing his arms around her in a bear hug. Xue Ning lets out a soft squeak, frozen in surprise. How does one respond to getting hugged by a tall good-looking man? Xue Ning had zero experience regarding this, so her arms merely hung awkwardly by her side before they slowly moved to rest on his broad back, where she could feel the heat of his body even through his clothes.


    "Thanks, I guess," she mumbles into his shirt, indirectly getting a whiff of his scent. She flushes.


    "So incredible! The greatest!" Sun Jingwei continues to heap endless praises, nearly nuzzling her. If the bathroom was big enough, he would have spun her around in joy. Xue Ning''s face got steadily redder at his sincere praises - this was the first time anyone had given her so much appreciation for doing her job.


    Then she notices the group of people watching them from the opened door. Some of them were holding phones. She hurriedly coughs and pulls herself from Jingwei''s arms, ignoring his puppy eyes.


    "We''re in public!" She hisses, rearranging her outfit so that she looks more presentable.


    Her outfit, which consisted of Sun Jingwei''s suit jacket over her panties. Oh god. Please let no one notice this fact. She''ll never be able to exin this away if it ends up on social media.


    "So?" Jingwei says, his hands outstretched as though going for a second hug. "You still did a good job, and you deserve more people praising you!"


    "It''s alright, you''ve praised me enough," she says, batting his hands away. "Besides, you did your job too."


    "What did I do?" Jingwei asks, confused. "I just stayed in a toilet cubicle until you told me it was safe toe out."


    "Exactly. That''s the main point." Xue Ning says. "You just stayed hidden and called the police. You heard her, she clearly wanted to kill you because of the video."


    "And you kept me alive!" He says, clutching her hand joyously. Xue Ning needs to know how much she means to him though. He had not felt like himself for the longest time, but meeting her has been life-changing in more ways than one.


    "My life is yours forever." He squeezes her hand. "Whatever you need, just say the word and it''s yours."


    Xue Ning rolls her eyes, but her heart beats slightly faster at his words. God, this man just spews out cheesy lines with no shame.


    "Yes, I would be a really shitty bodyguard if I didn''t." Xue Ning points out, refusing to even go near hisst two statements. What would she even do with Sun Jingwei''s life? What would she need from him that she could not eventually achieve herself?


    A police officer coughs politely to get their attention. "Excuse me, do you have a second?"


    Right, they were still technically in the middle of a crime scene. The policeman looked at them expectantly, with world-weary exasperation. He should have expected to be treated like air when he received the distress call for high priority individuals. Who else was a higher priority than Sun Jingwei, the second son of a billionaire who managed to involve himself in all sorts of random offences?


    At least this time he wasn''t drunk, caught for public disturbance, or eluding every trafficw known to man. In fact, he seemed to be a victim this time around, which was a refreshing change!<sub> </sub>


    "Oh it''s Officer Tang! Nice to see you again. How''s your wife?" Jingwei says merrily, as though greeting an old friend.


    Officer Tang''s lips merely gave a tired twitch that could vaguely resemble a smile, if one squinted under the right lighting.


    "Sorry Officer Tang," Xue Ning says politely, bowing slightly. She gives Jingwei a warning look and he follows with a slight downward tilt of his head.


    Officer Tang immediately had a better impression of this woman. Not only was she capable enough to subdue a potential threat, she was respectful and had the ability to corral Sun Jingwei into some civility. Were the rumours right? Was Sun Jingwei secretly married?


    "I have a few questions I need to ask," Officer Tang says, slipping back into his work mode. He was not going to ask about their rtionship. He would have timeter to discuss such things with his wife when he got off work. His wife adored romance, and he adored her.


    "Yes, of course Officer," Xue Ning replies. "Do you want to question us here?"


    "In the toilet?" Sun Jingwei adds. "That''s new, but I don''t mind. It makes a good change!"


    Xue Ning and Officer Tang both turned to look at Jingwei like he lost his mind.


    "We can go outside," Officer Tang says to Xue Ning, clearly the more rational one of the two.


    "Yes, please," she says, nodding to him before walking out of the bathroom, Sun Jingwei hot on her heels like a puppy trotting adoringly after his owner.


    The rumours were starting to seem more real to Officer Tang.


    Officer Tang leads them to an empty dining room to conduct the interview. He nods to his assistant, a young junior police officer called Lin Rui, who hastily begins to voice record. Meanwhile, Officer Tang pulls out his notepad.


    "Officer Tang, why haven''t you upgraded to using your phone too?" Jingwei asks casually. "Look, your assistant is doing it!"


    "If my assistant is doing it, then I don''t have to do it," Officer Tang says, his eye twitching in irritation. He takes a deep breath and clears his throat.


    "Alright, let''s begin this interview," Officer Tang says. "May I know what happened here?"


    "Long story short - that woman bribed our server to spill hot soup on me," Xue Ning says, before realising that she forgot something. "Wait - how is Xiao Hui? I mean, our server. That madwoman implied that she did something to her."


    "Is she alive?"

 Chapter 38 Police Interview Part 2

    Officer Tang shakes his head.


    "Don''t worry, the paramedics have already taken a look at her. Other than some bruising, she is fine. She''s currently getting interviewed by my colleagues," he replies.


    He did not say that Xiao Hui was a bit shaken and had taken to walking around with an officer for protection, and had outright screamed when she stumbled upon Xiumin outside the restaurant, when Xiumin was getting hauled to the police car.


    She had only stopped shaking when she was sure there was no way Xiumin could escape from the car. Officer Tang thinks she''s going to need that shock nket for a little while longer.


    "Oh good," Xue Ning says, heaving a sigh of relief.


    "Shouldn''t you be going to the paramedics too?" Jingwei asks Xue Ning, concerned. "You got more injuries that should be looked at. And yours are definitely more serious."


    "It''s fine, this interview is more important, and Officer Tang is already here and waiting," Xue Ning replies, giving Officer Tang a polite nod.


    "But - "


    "I''ll try not to hold you then," Officer Tang says, only half-joking. "Now, back to the issue: what happened after the soup was spilled?"


    "Oh, I got burned because the soup was fresh out of the kitchen," Xue Ning says casually, while Jingwei winces. "So I went to the restroom to clean up. This man just followed me and refused to wait outside, so I made him stay in the restroom cubicle to get some privacy."


    "I see," Officer Tang says, writing it down. Sun Jingwei voluntarily hid in the toilet. That was news. "Then what happened next?"


    "Oh then the server went to the toilet to apologise," Jingwei says. "She stuttered and stammered and said a whole lot of things, but her main point was to im that she wasn''t really at fault," Jingwei takes a deep breath and continues to rant loudly.


    "She said it wasn''t an ident and how she was made to do it because some woman in red paid her to do so. And then she didn''t even remember what she looked like. Officer Tang, isn''t this just ridiculous? Why is she trying to excuse her own actions? Bribery is a crime!" Jingwei finishes, throwing his hands in the air.


    Officer Tang sighs and makes another note in his notepad. Sun Jingwei being upset over bribery was honestly ridiculous, seeing that it was one of his family''s modes of operation.


    He turns to Xue Ning to get her statement, which would hopefully go into more objective detail and less indignant feelings.


    "What he said was true," Xue Ning says, nodding. "I thought it was an ident because she was clumsy and most likely tired, so I told her it was alright, but then she admitted that it wasn''t an ident and someone paid her money to do it."


    "And then this idiot" Xue Ning continues, pointing at Sun Jingwei, in case Officer Tang had any misconception who she was referring too, "came out from the cubicle despite me telling to stay inside, saying that I was his w-wife," Xue Ning only stumbles slightly over the words, while the junior officer next to Officer Tang choked.


    "Just for the record, I''m not his wife," Xue Ning adds earnestly, leaning forward. "I''m not even dating him. Please note that."


    Beside her, Sun Jingwei shakes his head and tugs at her jacket. "Xue Ning, is this so valid to the investigation that you must highlight it?"<sub> </sub>


    "Yes," Xue Ning replies, and refuses to borate further while Sun Jingwei, the grown man he is, huffs and sulks like a child. She ignores him easily, giving both of them a polite smile. Lin Rui, Officer Tang''s junior officer, flushes like a schoolboy with a crush.


    Jingwei''s face turns cker almost immediately. He scowls at Lin Rui and wraps an arm around Xue Ning''s shoulder, only for her to side-eye him and heartlessly push it away.


    "What''s with you? Stop being weird." Xue Ning scolds. "We''re still getting interviewed. Focus!"


    "I am focused!" Jingwei protests indignantly, half-ring at Lin Rui who is now staring at the table like it''s the most interesting thing in his life. "Someone else isn''t though."


    "Are you ming me - "


    Officer Tang had the strangest feeling that this was how other people felt when he argued with his wife. He makes a mental note to stop bickering with her in public in the future.


    "Quiet, both of you!" he says, in the tone of a teacher that had to stop his two students fighting for the umpteenth time, "What happened next?"


    "Then she told us that a woman in red paid her in cash to do this to me, and she even took out the wad of cash to show us! It was a lot, at least."


    "Half of 650000 yuan, Officer Tang," Jingwei chimes in from the side, "Like that makes it justifiable to pour hot soup on a customer. Honestly bullshit."


    Officer Tang continues to jot down notes, while Lin Rui sits there, riveted by the story and by Xue Ning.


    "It''s worth more than my rent for a year, which is why I got suspicious," Xue Ning continues easily. "Officer Tang, think about it, I am a normal person with a normal life, who would bother to spend so much money on injuring me? Not even killing me, mind you."


    "Touch wood!" Sun Jingwei ms his palm on the wooden table, making all of them jump in surprise. "Do you want people to kill you? That''s insane."


    "Of course not! But that''s why it''s weird, right Officer?" Xue Ning turns to Officer Tang for support. Officer Tang nods mutely, which is all the encouragement Xue Ning needs to continue her tirade.


    "If someone paid that much to injure Jingwei, it would make sense, it doesn''t make sense to injure me, but -"


    "And I told you rich people who want to hurt people don''t care," Jingwei interrupts, "so we made Xiao Hui go find out who booked the room that the woman came from, so at least we''ll have some idea."


    "But then Xiao Hui never came back to see us," Xue Ning continues. "And it''s not like we could have gone out to find her, but then that woman Xiumin came in instead."


    "And then Xue Ning kicked her ass," Jingwei finishes proudly, to stunned silence.

 Chapter 39 Police Interview Part 3

    "Just like that?" Officer Tang asks tly, staring at them with beady eyes.


    "That''s the highlight, Officer Tang," Jingwei says seriously.


    "Well, there was more to it than that," Xue Ning says, trying her best to remember the conversation. Sun Jingwei really cut out a lot of things in the middle to make her look like a superhero.


    "There was a lot of trash talking going around. And I told her I had no idea who the fu - I mean who she was, but I called her a total bitch," Xue Ning says seriously, trying to censor herself in front of Officer Tang. He was technically an elder and an officer.


    "Then what happened?" This time it is Lin Rui that asks eagerly, leaning forward to listen more carefully. The distance between him and Xue Ning is now closer than ever, and Jingwei has to restrain the urge to pull Xue Ning away from this baby-faced junior officer.


    If he tries something like that, Xue Ning might be pissed enough to ignore him entirely, then what would he do?


    "Then that woman got so offended that she straight up screamed at me, saying that I was the one that ruined her chances of being Sun Jingwei''s bride," Xue Ning recalled, wincing. "Her voice was¡­ loud. Grating. Terrible."


    "Also, she was preposterous and most importantly: WRONG," Jingwei can''t help but chime in. "She ruined her own chances by trying to drug me, for goodness sake. You''d think after what was done to her she''d ce more importance on consent, but clearly that''s not the case."


    "So she was the woman responsible for your drugging?" Lin Rui asks, in a manner that is less investigative and more like a fan asking his favourite celebrity about their day.


    Officer Tang makes a mental note to lecture him on the right interview methods. They are here as professionals gathering information, not aunties at the wet market gossiping about whose son went out with whose daughter!


    And more importantly, they are not here for Lin Rui to make heart-eyes in front of a witness that happens to be Sun Jingwei''s not-wife. That''s behaviour unbing of a police officer, who should remain professional at all times!


    "Yes, I remembered her from the time I saw her at the club," Xue Ning says. "You guys should have the file from the previous case? I gave my statement then."


    "We do?" Lin Rui asks, confused. He looks at Officer Tang.


    "That case was immediately escted to our higher-ups because it involved an important person-of-interest. So while we do know about your case, we''re not privy to all the details, nor are we in-charge of solving it." Officer Tang exins.


    "That''s too bad," Jingwei muses. "I would trust my case with you, Officer Tang."


    "Please don''t give me extra work," Officer Tang says, rubbing the bridge of his nose in tiredness.


    "Sorry," Jingwei and Xue Ning both say at the same time.


    "Back to the topic, so she admitted to the drugging?" Officer Tang asks.


    "Yes, because I used her of causing me to be hospitalised, but then she imed it was my own fault for drinking the spiked drink that was meant for him." Xue Ning continues, and Lin Rui lets out a gasp.


    "She even mentioned me by name, Officer Tang," Jingwei adds. "I recorded the entire audio, want me to send it to you?"


    "Yes, thank you." Officer Tang says, and he soon receives the notification that he has a new audio message. He also forwards it to Lin Rui, who was giving him eager hopeful eyes.


    "So yeah, after that, we fought." Xue Ning states simply, and does not borate further, but Sun Jingwei was there to fill in the gaps.<sub> </sub>


    "I didn''t even need to see the fight, I just heard the screaming and the sound of fighting, and then I heard a crack and Xue Ning yelling at me to call the police if not she''ll sic that madwoman on me." Jingwei says proudly. "Isn''t she great? She even broke her nose!"


    "That''s so cool!" Lin Rui says excitedly. Jingwei smiles at him in agreement before remembering that he''s a love rival. His smile automatically changes into a scowl, but Lin Rui doesn''t notice. He''s too busy staring at Xue Ning with starry eyes.


    Meanwhile Xue Ning is staring at the table, slightly embarrassed by the way Jingwei is gushing about her aplishments.


    Officer Tang clears his throat and gives all of them a stern look. Lin Rui hurriedly schools his face into one of professional calm. "I mean, that''s incredible. You did a good job."


    "Exactly! That''s what I told her too!'' Jingwei agrees haughtily. He doesn''t want to have anything inmon with Lin Rui, but at least he has the sense to know that Xue Ning is incredible.


    Jingwei will let him keep his job for now.


    "That''s not the most important part," Xue Ning ispelled to say, because Sun Jingwei seems to be forgetting the elephant in the room.


    "What is it?" Officer Tang asks.


    Jingwei steels himself and answers." Apparently she was the woman in my sex tape scandal. All this time, I thought she leaked the video, and she thought the same about me! So we suspect there''s someone behind orchestrating everything, and she kept mentioning a Boss that helped her."


    "She also said that they wereing for not only Sun Jingwei, but the entire Sun family. We still didn''t get a name from her though." Xue Ning adds. "Everything is fishy."


    "That''s alright," Officer Tang, "Our people will look into it."


    "Please do - in fact, show him the text!" Xue Ning exims, suddenly remembering the threatening text that Jingwei thought he received from her non-existent boyfriend.


    "Text?" Both officers ask.


    Jingwei shows them the threatening text.


    From Unknown Number:


    ENJOY YOUR EVENING


    IT''LL BE YOUR LAST


    "This is ridiculous right?" Jingwei asks rhetorically. "Imagine sending threatening texts like this in this time and age."


    While Sun Jingwei remained rtively calm, both officers gave each other worried looks.


    Sun Jingwei''s phone number wasn''t exactly public knowledge - and one had to send him a friend request to even send a text!


    Was his phonepromised?

 Chapter 40 Police Interview Part 4

    "I see, who else knows about this?" Officer Tang asks.


    "My older brother said he would look into this." Jingwei replies. "He''s been following my case from the beginning."


    "I see," Officer Tang says. Perhaps he wouldn''t need to bring this up. Sun Tianwei was notorious for being meticulous, going through every detail with a fine-toothb so that he could nitpick it to perfection. If Sun Jingwei had informed his older brother, chances are his brother would have a contingency n created the very next day.


    In fact, Sun Tianwei would be a lot more efficient in solving the issue than the overworked, underpaid and frankly exhausted police department.


    "There''s also one more thing. We also got tailed by a ck car on the way to this restaurant, but we lost them halfway thanks to someone''s ridiculous driving." Xue Ning gives Jingwei a look from the corner of her eye, just in case anyone has any doubt about who she was referring to.


    "You mean my ridiculously incredible driving that no one can imitate," Jingwei corrects. "In your words, I could have been an F1 driver in my other life."


    "Forget ''other'' lives, your driving shaved off years of ''this'' life of mine," Xue Ning states tly, pointing at herself. "I might never sit in another car again. Only public transport for me from today onwards."


    "You just sat in a car! Did you already forget that I drove us here?"


    "Yes, and then we got ambushed by a madwoman who was your one-night-stand! And I didn''t even get to drink the soup! It''s such a waste¡­" Xue Ningments.


    "Let me get this straight," Officer Tang says, resisting the urge to rub at his temples. The hair there was already greying from stress, and he just got more stressed from their words.


    "The both of you realised you were tailed, somehow managed to lose the tail, and instead of reporting it to the relevant authorities and going somewhere secure, the both of you still proceeded with your dinner ns?" Officer Tang asks, raising his voice near the end, sounding like a disappointed parent.


    "We were hungry," Jingwei says sheepishly. "But when you put it that way Officer Tang, it does sound really stupid doesn''t it."


    "In my defence, I did tell him it was stupid, but he didn''t listen," Xue Ning adds, in case the officers thought she endorsed such nonsense.


    "Yes, Xue Ning is clearly my smarter half," Jingwei says, smiling winsomely. The mentioned smarter half merely rolled her eyes at his words, muttering denials under her breath.


    "Yeah, it''s obvious," Lin Rui says thoughtlessly, before realising he spoke out loud. Officer Tang shoots him a death re, but Jingwei justughs in smug amusement. Finally that junior official has acknowledged that Xue Ning was his other half! He has surrendered.


    Now if only the woman he wants to make his other half would agree to his statement, but instead she''s busy pulling up the car chase video to show Officer Tang. Jingwei could only sigh and admire the furrow between the eyebrows.


    "We also have a video of the car tailing us, if you wish to see it." Xue Ning says, tantly ignoring the strange nce Jingwei gives her, going straight back to business.


    "That''ll be much appreciated." Officer Tang says, d that someone here was still focused on the important things.


    He watches the video, raising an eyebrow at how the ck car tried its best to keep up with Sun Jingwei''s brand of reckless driving.


    "You do realise this happened in broad daylight?" Officer Tang says, giving Jingwei a meaningful look.


    "...Yes." Jingwei agrees. "But there are extenuating circumstances! You''ve seen the video! And now with this arrest, you know that I wasn''t trying to race cars or cause an ident!"


    "I know, but I just need to let you know that others might not see it the same way, even after we let our superiors know about it," Officer Tang says warningly.


    Jingwei nods, bing serious for once. Xue Ning has no idea what they are talking about and makes a mental note to grill him for informationter.


    "Meanwhile, I would advise the both of you to keep a low profile, at least until we catch all the perpetrators responsible. Especially you," Officer Tang continues, levelling a firm re at Jingwei who is trying his best to look like he is busy listening and not shooting Xue Ning adoring nces.


    "We will, thank you for letting us know. And thank you for hearing us out." Xue Ning says, bowing politely in thanks. She nudges Jingwei, and he does the same.


    "Yeah Officer Tang, thanks foring! Sorry for taking time away from your wife. But, you know, I''m always d to see you. Say hi to your wife for me!" Jingwei says cheerily.


    Officer Tang barely restrained his eyebrow from twitching in irritation, a feat only made possible when he thought of his dearest wife waiting for him at home.<sub> </sub>


    "Thank you," He replies as calmly as he can. "I''m sure she''ll be happy to hear from you too."


    "Alright, time to go home then," Jingwei says, stretching his arms before realising something important. "Oh wait, Xue Ning, we need to get you to the ambnce."


    "It''s fine! I can go by myself." Xue Ning replies, stifling a yawn. It had been a long day, and the adrenaline was wearing off now that the main threat was in police custody.


    "Nonsense, I can apany you!" Jingwei says cheerfully, refusing to be dissuaded, standing up to tug her out of the room.


    The both of them then make their way through the hallway, never more than a foot apart from each other, their hands half-clinging to each other, their faces turned towards each other as they continue to bicker about something or another.


    Officer Tang observes this and gives a thoughtful hum. This was new. Out of all the times that he has interviewed Sun Jingwei before, this was the only time where he was sober and¡­ happy, even when he had people threatening his life.


    He didn''t know who this Li Xue Ning was, but it was easy for anyone who had known Sun Jingwei''s past behaviour to see the vast difference her mere presence made to Sun Jingwei''s attitude. It was like she uncovered theyers of grime that hid the joyous, witty man Sun Jingwei truly was underneath it all.


    Even if he wasn''t a diehard romantic like his wife, he finds himself strangely rooting for them to work out in the long run. They fit well - they were a lot better than the women Sun Jingwei used to surround himself with, fellow drunks that enabled each other to behave worse than they normally would.


    This woman had a good head on her shoulders. She''d be good for him, assuming Sun Jingwei doesn''t screw it up.


    "Officer Tang, should we be going now?" Lin Rui asks meekly.


    "Yes, we should," Officer Tang says, shaking himself free of such errant thoughts. Why was he even thinking about this? (Because his wife would want to know every tiny detail and would be supremely disappointed if he failed.)


    "And don''t think I''ll forget about your behaviour today! You''re in for more training courses when we return!" He continues to lecture.


    "Yes Sir!" Lin Rui gives a hasty salute.


    =


    As they leave the makeshift interview room, Xue Ning turns to speak to Jingwei.


    "Should I be worried that you''re so chummy with a police officer?"


    "What can I say?" Jingwei shrugs casually. "I am a people person, a sheer delight to be around."


    "Right, then why does he look so constipated whenever he has to talk to you?" Xue Ning asks, disbelieving. "He seems perfectly fine with me."


    "Don''t fall for his charms Xue Ning, it''ll only end in heartbreak," Jingwei says in mock sadness. "He''s a married man devoted to his wife."


    "And how do you know this?" Xue Ning asks, half-afraid of the answer. "Please don''t tell me you and her¡­"


    "Hey! Get your mind out of the gutter!" Jingwei replies,ughing at the horrified look on Xue Ning''s face. "I don''t go for happily married women, so don''t be worried. Or jealous."


    "Me? Get jealous? Over you? Pigs will fly." Xue Ning scoffs. "You should be more careful; Officer Tang might just shoot you for talking about his wife."


    "Hey, it''s not my fault his wife is a fan of mine," Jingwei whines, flinging an arm around her shoulders to pull her closer. Xue Ning bats it away half-heartedly. "I am just that handsome, I can''t help it."


    Xue Ning pauses in her footsteps and turns to face him, her sharp eyes roving all over him, before they finally focus on his face, considering.


    "What is it? Do I have something on my face?" Jingwei asks. The way Xue Ning stared at him was going to make him blush, and that wasn''t how he wanted things to go - he was supposed to be the suave one making her blush!

 Chapter 41 Hunger

    "Nothing," Xue Ning says, smirking when she sees his ears reddening. She refuses to look away, delighting in his embarrassment. Finally, the tables are turning! This shameless man will get a taste of his own medicine.


    She lets out an evilugh.


    "Hey! I''m sure it''s not nothing! Spit it out!" Jingwei protests hotly. "Why are you smirking at me like that?"


    "Puh," Xue Ning says, spitting out air. "Here, it''s out."


    "You''re so childish," Jingwei scolds, but he''s alsoughing with her.


    "You''re more childish," Xue Ning retorts.


    "No you''re more childish," Jingwei says insistently. "The most childish."


    "No, you''re more childish," Xue Ning replies, emphasising it by pointing at him. "No wonder Officer Tang has all that white hair, he must have had his hands full dealing with you."


    "That''s alright, he just can''t get over the fact that his wife loves me enough for both of them. I''ll live," he says primly, adjusting his shirt cor. His action drew Xue Ning''s attention to that patch of exposed skin below his neck, and his corbones.


    She suddenly had the irrational urge to bite and lick. Huh, maybe she was just hungry. She did get her dinner cut short and then fought off a madwoman.


    "Xue Ning? Do I have something on my face again?" Jingwei asks hesitantly. Xue Ning had suddenly quietened with an intense look in her eyes.


    "I''m hungry," Xue Ning blurts out, thankful she didn''t say something like ''your corbones suddenly look sexy; I want to bite them'' because she would have to migrate to another country to get over the secondhand embarrassment.


    "Ah, that''s understandable," Jingwei says, suddenly apologetic. "Our dinner got interrupted, and then you got injured, and you still had to waste energy protecting me."


    "The soup was wasted," Xue Ning says morosely. Now that she begins thinking about the food, she can forget about that sudden irrational urge to bite Sun Jingwei. She wasn''t some rabid dog or secret werewolf.


    "I know, but how about we go out for supper after you get checked over by the ambnce? I can even get the chefs here to make another pot of soup if you want," Jingwei offers.


    "No thanks, the chefs also want to go home on time," Xue Ning says, waving off his thoughtful suggestion. "I can just eat bread at home or something."


    "Bread at home? Alone? Sote?" Jingwei gives her a horrified look. "No no, I insist on buying you a proper meal to make up for today''s dinner. You shouldn''t go to bed hungry. Come on tell me - what do you want to eat?"


    "Anything will do, I guess." Xue Ning shrugs, before yawning again. Jingwei nods, mentally reviewing every eatery and restaurant he has eaten at to think what she would like.


    "What about you? What do you want to eat for supper?" Xue Ning asks curiously.


    "You."


    Silence. Xue Ning blinks at him, disbelieving. Surely her ears are ying tricks on her.


    Sun Jingwei meanwhile, just barely managed to keep his scream inside, instead of letting it escape just like that less-than-pure thought he just had about eating Xue Ning on his bed.


    "I mean, you-r choice! I''m fine with anything too!" He corrects hastily.


    Xue Ning narrows her eyes. Jingwei tries to look as innocent and not-horny as possible, but judging by the way her arm seems to be gearing up tond a solid punch, he''s not doing a good job.


    n B: Distraction!


    He hurriedly grabs the arm and drags her along the hallway. "Oh look, I think we really should get your burns looked at, then we can go and eat supper. You''re already so tired."


    "Fine," Xue Ning grumbles, deciding not to pursue his slip of the tongue and letting herself be dragged along. It feels like she is walking a hyperactive golden retriever.


    Sun Jingwei even has eyes that remind her of a puppy, and he used them on her just now! He must never know about this weakness of hers, because she just knows deep down, he''s going to exploit it for all it''s worth.


    They quickly arrive at the ambnce, where they find Xiao Hui sitting by the vehicle with a shock nket wrapped around her, along with another police officer standing next to her. They seem to be deep in conversation, with the police officer taking notes. However, the moment Xiao Hui sees them, she immediately stands up, bowing to them.


    Jingwei wanted to immediately pull Xue Ning to the care of the waiting paramedics, but Xue Ning had other ns, instead moving to check on Xiao Hui. Jingwei makes a displeased sound at the back of his throat.<sub> </sub>


    "I''m sorry!" Xiao Hui cries out, bowing repeatedly.


    "What for?" Xue Ning asks, grabbing her hands to try to get her to stop. Jingwei, who was still holding a grudge, did not bother. Instead, one of his hands drifts to rest on the small of Xue Ning''s back, where it idly rubs circles. Xue Ning does not seem to notice.


    "For revealing that the both of you were in the restroom," Xiao Hui chokes out, eyes brimming in tears. "She ambushed me when I was just going to find you and forced the news out of me¡­"


    "Ah, that''s fine," Xue Ning shrugs. "We all got out unhurt."


    "Excuse me?" Jingwei gives her an incredulous sweeping look, scanning her from head to toe. It didn''t take a genius to know what he clearly thought of her statement.


    "Are you joking? Unhurt? Do you think I called this ambnce here for decoration? You need to get your wounds looked over!"


    "You''re wounded?" Xiao Hui asks, but then she continues shamefacedly, after realising something critical. "Ah¡­ your injuries from the hot soup."


    "Yes. Her injuries from the soup," Jingwei repeats curtly, before giving Xue Ning a pleading look. "Can you please go and get yourself treated by the paramedics for my peace of mind?"


    Xue Ning sighs and nods, sensing that Sun Jingwei isn''t going to let this go until she is looked over by a professional. This reminds her of the first time she was hospitalised thanks to Sun Jingwei''s drugging incident - back then, he too, was also adamant about getting her the best care.


    It hadn''t even been a week since that incident, but her opinion on him has turned¡­ not aplete 180 degrees, but certainly at least 90 degrees.


    "I''m so sorry for keeping you!" Xiao Hui bows again. "I''ll talk to youter regarding the name I''ve found out. The one that the woman used to book."


    "Alright," Xue Ning says, "in fact, how about you message it to me? That way, we can still take a look even when I''m getting treated."


    "Sure! Of course!" Xiao Hui responds enthusiastically, and they exchange numbers before Xue Ning gets ushered into the ambnce, Jingwei following closely behind.


    The paramedics stared at him.


    "Are you injured?" One of them asked.


    "No, but I''m not leaving anyway." Jingwei says resolutely.


    "Yeah, he''s not kidding about that," Xue Ning adds, "so¡­do you have something for minor burns?"


    The paramedics begin to examine her thighs first, for they are already exposed.


    Unfortunately, while the burns themselves weren''t so serious, the skin had suffered more injury from the fight. She did move her legs a lot back then, and the skin was stretched painfully when it should have been left alone. Now that the adrenaline was fading, Xue Ning wasn''t only feeling more tired, she was also in a lot more pain.


    "Please hold these cold packs to your thighs for 20 minutes," the paramedic says after he examines her. The first step would be to cool the area to reduce redness and swelling, before he could even apply ointment and bandage her wounds.


    "Sure," Xue Ning says, and proceeds to do so, before realising that she had trouble making sure both packs were on the insides of her thighs at the same time. Her arms are sore, and the packs keep slipping. It would be a lot easier, if she had an extra pair of hands.


    "I''ll help. If you want," Jingwei offers, immediately kneeling in front of her bare legs, hands ready to hold a cold pack.


    The paramedic gives him an exasperated look, but he is duly ignored, so all he could do was sigh and shuffle slowly away, making a mental note to check on his patient 20 minutester.


    Urgh. It''s such a pain to treat couples!


    Couldn''t they even wait for the ambnce door to close before they became lovey-dovey? He was still right there, feeling ridiculously single. He makes a mental prayer for them to not do anything funny in the ambnce and shuts the ambnce door.


    p Meanwhile, Xue Ning just blinks tiredly and hands him a cold pack, too exhausted to think about the ramifications of her decision.</anda>


    Her decision, that led to Sun Jingwei, kneeling in front of her bare legs, head in between her thighs, while she was only clothed in her suit jacket and a pair of soiled panties. His hands, carefully pressing a cold pack to her thigh while he looked up at her.


    Like a starving man in front of a buffet.

 Chapter 42 Inside The Ambulance Part 1

    Sun Jingwei looked up and swallowed. His mouth had dried up. He wondered if he had offended some heavenly power to deserve this sort of sweet exquisite torture. Did he identally kick over an altar? Stomp incense sticks under his boots? Sign a document to tear down a temple? He did not recall.


    All he could do was gaze up at Xue Ning, like she was a goddess and he was the hopeless devotee on his knees, hoping for salvation.


    But Xue Ning wasn''t a goddess nor was she the devil; she had no idea what she was doing to him. If Xue Ning had all intention to torture him, to make him beg for forgiveness, he would have dly bore it all.


    If she had looked down at him kneeling before her and merely smirked at his horny desperation, tempting him with the way his suit jacket had ridden further up her thighs, revealing pale thighs and the tantalising curve of her butt, just barely hidden from view. If she had purposely teased him with the hint of her cleavage, visible as she leaned down to better hold onto the ice pack.


    Instead, Xue Ning merely looked at him, gentler than she ever had before, with eyes bleary with exhaustion. How was he supposed to resist that? All he wanted to do then was to take her bed, in more ways than one.


    She had let out a softest yawn, lips unknowingly forming a small delicate pout. He was strongly reminded of a kitten. Or a bunny. Or some other equally adorable woond creature that his brain could not recall because he was too distracted by her thighs, breasts, lips¡­everything.


    Her eyelids were fluttering shut, but she still passed him the cold pack that he was supposed to press on her thigh. She trusted him with this. How could he betray her trust by lusting over her, when she was clearly hurt and vulnerable?


    What''s more, she was hurt on his behalf. How could he be such a scumbag to even think of her in such a way?


    He wasn''t going to be a wolf that took advantage of her. He chastised the part of him that longed to spread her legs wider, unbutton the suit jacket on her to reveal the cotton of her panties so that he could -


    Nope. Not going there.


    He chanced a look at Xue Ning, who only blinked at him slowly. Some deity up in Heaven must have taken pity on him, for he hadn''t realised that there was a bulge in his pants.


    He mentally pped himself for his impure thoughts and focused on doing the job he volunteered for, pressing the ice pack to the reddish skin on her thigh. The bright red of her skin helped to put things in perspective.


    "How are you feeling?" Jingwei asks cautiously, deliberately keeping his voice low and staring intently at the ice pack.


    "Hmm?" Xue Ning jolts awake, before realising it was just him and rxing. "It''s fine. My hands are cold though."


    "Oh?" Jingwei easily uses one hand to keep the ice pack in ce, his other hand instinctively goes to envelop her smaller hand in his, squeezing it to warm it up. It was cold, just like she said.


    Xue Ning lets out a small pleased sound, much like a happy kitten. It sends a warmth spreading through his chest. "Thanks for the help."


    "Happy to help," Jingwei says, surprised at how true it was. Half the time he helped others because it was expected, because it was charity, because there was something in for him at the end.


    But now, this time, he was happy to help. He wanted to help so badly, even if it should have been left to the paramedics, even if Xue Ning never wanted to see him again, he would have still offered her a hand.


    "Pity we don''t have more hands," Xue Ning says, disappointedly.


    "Why?" Jingwei asks.


    "I actually want to put more ice packs on my chest." Xue Ning confesses. "And maybe my stomach."


    Jingwei chokes. So much for not trying to think dirty thoughts, they all entered his mind with the speed of a bullet train. Now he couldn''t help imagine Xue Ning lying on the stretcher bed, back arched as she slowly unbuttoned his suit jacket to reveal the soft swell of her breasts. He had just barely managed to stop himself from turning into a horny pervert, but clearly his trial wasn''t over.


    To make things worse, the person torturing him didn''t even know she was torturing him.


    "Ah, I see," Jingwei says hoarsely. "Sorry we are not spiders. Do you want me to find a radioactive spider for you?" It was a silly reply, but it was better than whatever lewd thoughts that were floating around in his head.


    Xue Ningughs tiredly, nearly dozing off. "Do you have radioactive spiders lying around in yourpany?"


    "I''m sure I can get our Research and Development to look for some, it can''t be that hard." He suddenly remembers something. "You might as well ask for more things, what do you think of radioactive tigers?"


    "Didn''t you say you had sabertooth tigers?" Xue Ning asks, frowning as she tries to recall. "Or some normal tigers. You didn''t reply to my text when I asked."<sub> </sub>


    "Ah, yeah." Jingwei says, recalling that conversation. "My dad wanted to see me, so I had to stop replying."


    "Bet he scolded you badly," Xue Ning muses. "He did sound so angry at you on the phone back at the hospital."


    "You have no idea," Jingwei says fervently. "He was so angry. He really didn''t leave me with any face. But then again, this isn''t the first time I got scolded so badly. You''ll get used to it after a while."


    Xue Ning had nothingforting she could say to that. If she said ''that''s rough, buddy'' it sounded so¡­ unsympathetic. Instead she asks, "Do you make him angry a lot?"


    "There was once. Back in high school, I think that was the worst case of scolding I got." Jingwei confesses. It was not an understatement to say that that incident forever changed the trajectory of Jingwei''s life, leading him to live a miserable hedonistic existence until Xue Ning hade along.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning waits patiently for him to borate, only to be surprised when he falls silent, seemingly lost in his memories.


    "You don''t have to tell me if you don''t want to," Xue Ning says, hesitantly. "If it brings up bad memories, then don''t bother."


    "Yeah, but I want to. Perhaps not now, but maybeter." Jingwei says quietly. If he wanted Xue Ning to be a part of his life, she deserved to know - even if she did not realise that she was this important to him.


    "Alright," Xue Ning replies, equally quiet.


    They sit in silence, breathing quietly in unison in the shared space of the ambnce.


    "Do you want to lie down on the stretcher instead?" Jingwei asks. "It''ll be a lot morefortable."


    "No thanks, if I do that I''ll just fall asleep right here." Xue Ning replies, shaking her head.


    "What''s wrong with that?" Jingwei asks. "You''ve had a long day. I''ll wake you when the paramedic returns."


    "I don''t want to sleep now - I''ll throw off my sleep schedule," Xue Ning exins seriously, even as she feels tiredness creeping up on her.


    "Of course, you would have a sleep schedule," Jingwei says, amused and fond. "Such a good girl."


    Good girl. These words, paired with the sudden knowledge that Sun Jingwei was actually kneeling between her exposed legs, caused a strange heat to spread through Xue Ning''s body. and pool at herher regions.


    Because Xue Ning is a grown adult, she ignores it the same way she ignores the cracked tiles at home. Unfortunately for her, Sun Jingwei had caught her flushing and smirked. Perhaps Xue Ning wasn''t as unaffected as he thought - and more than that, perhaps she was even interested.


    There''s only one way to find out.


    "Fair enough, I guess I have to entertain you then." Jingwei says impishly before mentally pping himself. Out of all the pickup lines he could have used, why did he choose the one that sounded like a sleazye-on?


    Xue Ning raises an eyebrow. Was this histest attempt at hitting on her? Maybe he saw how his words affected her - no, not possible. To destroy the strange mood that fell over the both of them, she tilted her chin downwards to re at him,


    "Okay, what are you going to do? Sing? Dance? Do magic?" Xue Ning leans in even closer, pasting a look of condescending expectation on her face, looking at him the same way children looked at a clown in a circus, or a trained monkey in the zoo.


    "Other than making money disappear and reappear, I have no magic skills." Jingwei replies dryly, cheering at the way Xue Ning''s lips quirked into a smile. "Miss Li Xue Ning, do you think I''m an idol? Singing and dancing are not my forte."


    "Boo¡­ then how are you supposed to entertain me? You liar," she says, shaking her head in mock disappointment, her lips subconsciously forming a pout that Sun Jingwei longed to kiss away.


    Before he could think about the possible consequences of his actions, Jingwei closed the distance between them. There was only a mere centimetre between their faces. This close, he could see the flutter of her eyshes. He felt the warm air of her surprised breath caressing his cheek.


    He raises a hand to cup her face. It was steadily growing redder by the second.


    "Xue Ning, are you sure you''re ready for my kind of entertainment?"

 Chapter 43 Inside The Ambulance Part 2

    Xue Ning''s brain short-circuited. Never before did she think that she would have ended up in this situation! She was never the school belle with hordes of guys beating down her door. Oh, she had beatings alright, just of the more violent kind.


    Xue Ning definitely knows she didn''t look like a stunning actress starring in a romanticedy, so why was Sun Jingwei, a man handsome enough to put all male leads to shame, still staring at her?


    Sun Jingwei keeps looking like he wants to kiss - no, like he wants to devour her whole, but he doesn''t make any further moments. The ball is in her court, but her heart is already beating like she ran a marathon, and in the midst of it all, her unwanted insecurities reared their ugly heads.


    Xue Ning had zero actual kissing experience. If she kissed him, she wouldn''t be able topete with his many ex-girlfriends and he would just know.


    He''d find hercking and make fun of her and she would have to injure him permanently to deal with the embarrassment.


    Eventually their light-hearted and supportive rtionship bes strained and awkward and then she''ll have to move to another city just to avoid seeing his face stered on every social media.


    Either that, or they''d really like kissing but then nothing more coulde out of it, because he''s the son of a billionaire and she''s just his bodyguard. They end up kissing, possibly going further, and then she ends up pregnant with his child and his father gives him a cheque for 100 million yuan to leave his son.


    Her brain then helpfully brings up another point - wouldn''t this be against workce fraternisation rules, even if they weren''t technically in the workce? What was the protocol if one ended up sleeping with their boss?


    Even if (and that was a very huge ''if'') everything went swimmingly well in the beginning, Xue Ning knew deep down the differences between them would lead to an eventual breakup.


    Sun Jingwei could go ''it''s been fun, but I think we aren''t that well-suited for each other, sorry'' and Xue Ning would have to live with heartbreak while everyone med her for daring to trust someone like him with her heart.


    There doesn''t seem to be a future where they are both happy when together.


    "I can hear you thinking, you know that right?" Jingwei says, brushing her cheek softly as he stares at her. His heated gaze has simmered into something more gentle, more amused. He moves away slightly from her, just to give her more breathing room.


    "I can see your braingging like Inte Explorer on an oldputer," he even adds the screeching sound of a dial-up Inte.


    "You¡­" She narrows her eyes, all thoughts forgotten, and grabs at his shirt cor. The ice packs drop on the floor with a loud thump, but both of them ignore it. "Are you making fun of me?"


    "What?" Jingwei asks, pretending to be offended. "How on earth did youe to that conclusion? Just because you''re scared of kissing me doesn''t mean you can say anything you want!"


    "Who''s scared of kissing you?" Xue Ning retorts. She still had her bad habit of never letting an argument go, no matter how nonsensical it was.


    "You, obviously." Jingwei says smugly, with a touch of understanding. "I get it, I''m so handsome, you might feel very scared when kissing someone like me. You may also worry about my fangirls assassinating you after they find out."


    "Who will feel scared and worried about kissing you?!" Xue Ning splutters loudly, shoving him away. Jingwei stumbles in surprise, nearly falling - but Xue Ning reaches out instinctively to steady him. "Careful! Don''t fall!"


    Jingwei could have righted himself almost immediately, but he didn''t.


    Instead he pretends to stumble further, purposely tugging at Xue Ning''s hands so she ends up falling into his arms. Theynd on the floor with a loud thud. Jingwei''s tailbone aches, but Xue Ning''s warm body is straddling his, as she nestled into his arms, because she tried to stop him from falling.


    Because she cares about him.


    Jingwei can''t stop the smile from spreading across his face. If his family saw it, they''d think he was drunk, or doped on drugs, but he isn''t, he''s merely so very happy.


    Because Xue Ning cares about him.


    Suddenly his world seems to burst into vibrant colour, nevermind that they were inside an ambnce that was predominantly decorated in shades of white.


    "Aww, you do like me!" Jingwei beams at her from where they were still tangled together on the cold floor of the ambnce. He wraps his arms around her waist and squeezes, using this rare chance to bury his face in her neck.


    Xue Ning mainly smelt of spilled soup, but underneath it all there was the smell of fabric softener and fresh towels. He took a deeper breath, breathing in her unique scent.<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning turns and smacks him gently. "Well, someone has to," she grumbles, voice muffled by his shirt.


    She is determinedly not looking at his face, but being surrounded by Sun Jingwei''s scent wasn''t making things any easier. He smells like sandalwood, and she is strangely reminded of a refreshing summer breeze.


    Luckily, with the way he is hugging her, he shouldn''t be able to see her boiling red face. Even her ears feel hot. It was as though her face was the one that got doused by hot soup instead of the rest of her.


    Is this what an allergic reaction felt like?


    Unknown to her, Jingwei actually could see the blush travel from her face to her neck, and further down.


    Oh, what would he give to find out how far that delightful blush of hers went. Hopefully, in the near future, when Jingwei has sessfully convinced her to be his girlfriend he could finally find out and cause more of such full-body blushes to ur.


    "I''m d it''s you that likes me though, not someone else." Jingwei says seriously, tilting Xue Ning''s head so that she can look into his eyes. "I don''t want anyone else to like me. I just need you to like me."


    "You - you - why - how - " If Xue Ning''s brain wasgging before, it straight up short-circuited now. She stares at him, eyes wide in confusion, denial, hope.


    "Rx¡­ rx¡­ you don''t have to reply yet," Jingwei says, rubbing her back gently. "I just had to tell you before I exploded with feelings."


    "Exploded with feelings," Xue Ning repeats, like she cannot believe her ears. "Are you referring to lust?"


    "What? That''s not true! Don''t doubt the purity of my affections! I have very pure feelings for you!" Jingwei protests.


    "Don''t bullshit me, I can feel that bulge in your pants, Sun Jingwei," Xue Ning says with narrowed eyes. "Purity of my affections? More like the perverseness of your erection!"


    She even rolls her hips to prove her point, but that had the unintended effect of brushing their lower halves against each other.


    Three things happen at once.


    Firstly, Xue Ning lets out a surprised whimper at the new sensations. Sun Jingwei''s sizable bulge was harder than she expected, and his warmth, even throughyers of cloth, was something she could feel through the thinyer of her panties. She grabs at his shirt in surprise, fingers digging into the soft fabric.


    Secondly, Jingwei had let out a loud moan that echoed in the silence of the ambnce, staring at her, his eyes dark with hungry lust. His hands automatically drifted to her hips, where his suit jacket had ridden up once again, wanting to hold her, wanting her to continue.


    His eager hands touched the soft fabric of her underwear and traced her soft skin, marvelling at the heat from her. The friction of their lower bodies was exquisite torture, and he wanted more.


    Thirdly, and perhaps the most unfortunate for the both of them, was the knock on the ambnce door. Before they could even understand what was happening, it opened to reveal a paramedic that hastily averted his eyes from this amorous couple.


    A paramedic with bad timing was awkward enough, but that wasn''t the biggest issue.


    The issue was the new person beside the poor paramedic. It wasn''t Xiao Hui, Officer Tang, or his young assistant Lin Rui. It wasn''t even Zhou Yu, the woman that almost became his fiancee.


    Standing there with an impassive look was Sun Jingwei''s older brother, Sun Tianwei.


    Jingwei would rather see almost anyone else! God, it was so awkward. Jingwei felt his boner dete almost immediately.


    There was nothing like seeing a family member to effectively kill whatever sensual mood that enveloped him and Xue Ning.The only thing that could have possibly made it a million times more awkward would be seeing his dear father beside him. Not that he was ashamed of Xue Ning, but there were things one simply did not need to know about their close family members.


    If he had caught his father in a simr position, he would have bleached out his eyes than to witness it again! If he still remembered that sort of scene, Jingwei would willingly fling himself through the turbines of an airne.


    "Hi Ge," Jingwei says weakly, willing a hole to open up in the ambnce and just swallow him and Xue Ning together. "Fancy meeting you here."

 Chapter 44 Inside The Ambulance Part 3

    Meanwhile, Xue Ning had frozen, her face still dangerously red. She did not dare to breathe. Perhaps she had a foolish hope that she would be invisible if she didn''t move, the same way prey animals would freeze when they sense a predator around the corner.


    Unfortunately, Sun Tianwei caught her eye, and gave her a slow smirk.


    ''Oh god, please send a lightning bolt to kill me. And Sun Jingwei too.'' Now that her wish for invisibility has been foiled, Xue Ning prays desperately to any higher power to wish for a quick death, but she still remains disappointingly alive. It must be because she hadn''t offered incense during the New Year!


    As she was still alive, Xue Ning had to witness the slow way Sun Tianwei eyed the way his younger brother and her were cuddled together on the floor. His eyes drifted from the top of their red faces all the way to their intertwined legs, and to her toes that were curling from embarrassment in her shoes.


    She wasn''t even wearing pants!


    Xue Ning remembered that she used to have strange nightmares about going to school and realising she didn''t put on pants, and this was a simr nightmare - wait, it was actually worse, because she was regrettably already awake.


    This easily made Xue Ning''s list of Top 10 Most Embarrassing moments. She prided herself on being savvy enough so embarrassing moments didn''t happen as often to her as they did to other people, but ever since Sun Jingwei entered her life, she''s been racking up these moments like they were discount coupons!


    "Sorry to interrupt your love-making session," Tianwei says politely, with a note of smug amusement, as he still continues to stare at them both tangled on the floor, in an extremelypromising position.


    He even gives a pointed look at the way their crotches have touched. Xue Ning springs back from Jingwei as though she had been burned - oh wait, she had, and that was what led to this situation in the first ce!


    "Ge!" Jingwei exims, nearly leaping from the floor in surprise too, only to realise that both he and Xue Ning moved at the same time while their legs were still tangled together. They fell back on the floor in an ungainly heap, both of their heads colliding together with a loud crack.


    "Ouch," Jingwei groans, rubbing his head, "your head is really hard, Xue Ning."


    He still offers a hand to pull her up though. Xue Ning bats it away irritably and stands on her own.


    "Your head is just too soft," Xue Ning argues, and she delivers a quick jab to his stomach for revenge. Everything was his fault! She despairs as she tries her best to look as presentable as she could.


    "Now that I have your attention, I have urgent news that I need the both of you to listen to," Sun Tianwei says, "then the both of you can continue your tryst at ater time, after Miss Li gets her wounds bandaged."


    "This isn''t what it looks like!" Xue Ning says pleadingly, waving her hands. Beside her, Jingwei looks torn between agreeing with her and upset that Xue Ning had so easily denied what happened between them earlier.


    Sun Tianwei holds up his hand and gives her a gentle smile.


    "It''s alright, Miss Li. I am not here to judge. I''m here to help both of you, your wound still needs looking at," Tianwei says calmly, but his lips are twitching in an effort to stop himself fromughing.


    Xue Ning res at Jingwei in angry embarrassment. Jingwei looks at her shamefacedly, but he still tries to hold her hand, only to give Xue Ning a sad face when she rejects him without a word.


    Instead, Xue Ning moves to sit at the side, where the paramedic began to apply burn cream on her reddened skin. Jingwei could only look longingly at her, before turning to look at Tianwei with a pleading look, as though Tianwei could solve this problem for him.


    Honestly, couldn''t his brother keep it in his pants? They were left alone for less than 20 minutes!


    It was getting harder not tough at his poor younger brother. Tianwei covered hisugh with a quick cough.


    His brother had been blessed with looks that had women throwing themselves at him, and he had never been shy about using all his advantages to woo starry-eyed girls.


    It had been a while since he saw his dear younger brother feel embarrassed because of a woman. Usually, he just brushed it off with an easy smile - on one asion, he had even invited Tianwei to help himself to his girls, as though Tianwei was desperate for his leftovers.


    His younger brother could really be obliviously offensive at times. Thankfully, Jingwei remained harmless when it came to fighting for the family fortune, if not Tianwei would have more problems on his hands. He was fine with being a good older brother to a good-natured wastrel, but he''s not sure he could be as friendly to a highly prodigal sibling.


    As a sympathising brother, Jingwei''s multiple fuck-ups gave him a headache. However, when it came to his career, Jingwei''s multiple fuck-ups were a blessing! Jingwei''s many personal disasters have ensured Tianwei continued to remain the favoured son, his father''s trusted right hand, the one most likely to inherit the lion''s share of his estate.


    And now, this mess with Miss Li is going to make him look even better. Out of all the girls Jingwei could have fallen heads-over-heels with, he went for a girl with no powerful family, no money, and not even an extraordinary beauty!


    Sun Tianwei vows that he would do his best to get them together. As his older brother, he wants his younger brother to be happy.


    As an ambitious businessman out for the family fortune, his younger brother''s romance would make his father so angry that Tianwei would look better inparison.


    Tianwei just needs to support Jingwei''s romance, and be ready to pick up the pieces of family fortune in the eventual argument.<sub> </sub>


    "Don''t sulk, Jingwei," Tianwei says, patting his shoulder. "Patience is a virtue. You should wait for Miss Li to make a full recovery before doing anything too strenuous. More importantly, please remember to use protection."


    "Ge!"


    "We''re not doing that! We''ll never!"


    The two of them yell at the same time.


    "Wait, we''re never doing it?" Jingwei asks hesitantly, turning to Xue Ning with disappointed eyes. "Like never ever? For the rest of our lives?"


    "There is no ''rest of our lives''," Xue Ning says vehemently, choosing to focus on that part of his words instead of the intense disappointment Sun Jingwei projected at the thought of them never ending up in bed together.


    Xue Ning then screams silently into her hands, embarrassed beyond belief. She couldn''t even look him in the eye now, so she busies herself with her phone. It''s only now that she remembers that she told Xiao Hui to send her the contact information of the person that booked the room that madwoman Xiumin stayed in.


    If she wasn''t so hopelessly tired and distracted by Sun Jingwei''s¡­ everything, they wouldn''t have wasted precious time that they could have spent investigating it.


    Xue Ning vows to not get distracted again. She was here, with a job to do!


    From Xiao Hui:


    Hi Miss Li, this is the name of the man that booked the room!


    ''Dimitri Von Holson''


    Once again, I''m very sorry for all the trouble I caused you!


    Ah, a foreign name. She frowns, trying to pronounce it, but failing. Her English had always been abysmal at best. There''s nothing for it; she turns to Jingwei for help.


    Jingwei, delighted that Xue Ning was no longer ignoring him, practically bounded over to her. Tianwei could almost visualise the wagging tail behind him. It was adorably pathetic, and their father may have disowned him for that.


    "Xue Ning! You''ve stopped ignoring me!" He says delightedly. The paramedic discreetly rolled his eyes as he bandaged up Xue Ning''s thigh.


    "I can still ignore you, don''t try me," Xue Ning threatens. Jingwei immediately wipes the smile off his face to paste a more contrite expression.


    "Please don''t," he begs, only half-joking. "I would be devastated."


    "And this is my business how?" Xue Ning asked testily.


    Jingwei splutters. Xue Ning decides to stop bitching at him for now and shows him her phone. There were more important things to focus on.


    "Anyway, I just called you so you can help me pronounce this name. ording to Xiao Hui, this was the name of the person that booked the room. But it''s in English."


    "d to help; let me see," Jingwei had gone abroad to study after all, and he was fluent in English, Chinese, Japanese and Korean. (Some also said he was fluent in asshole-speak, but he ignored thosements. They clearly stemmed from jealousy.)


    Xue Ning easily hands her phone to Jingwei, who takes one look at the name and pales immediately.


    "I''m telling you - I think the name is fake," Xue Ning says, pointing to the name. Next to her, Jingwei is frozen in shock. "Hey, are you alright?"


    "Ahahaha¡­" Jingwei awkwardlyughs. "Xue Ning, you have no idea how smart you are."


    His beloved Xue Ning truly hit the nail on the head. Dimitri Von Holson was a fake name.


    He should know, because he created it when he was 16.

 Chapter 45 Third-Wheeling Expert

    "Jingwei? Jingwei? Hello? Earth to Jingwei?" Xue Ning asks, waving her hand in front of Jingwei to get his attention.


    Jingwei startled, as though he only just realised that Xue Ning was there next to him.


    "What''s the matter with you?" Xue Ning asks, looking over him suspiciously. Jingwei refused to meet her eyes, which was highly strange. He had never missed a chance to stare at her face before.


    "Nothing is wrong with me!" Jingwei protests, darting a nce at her face before looking away. If he just stared at Xue Ning for a while longer, he might just tell her every single fucked up thing he did in the past, and then she would never want to see him again.


    "I''m fine! Really!" Jingwei continues, trying to sound confident. Xue Ning is strongly reminded of their first meeting in that darkened alley, where Jingwei was also acting tough.


    What a liar. And he hasn''t even gotten better at lying either. She doesn''t have a water bottle to chuck at him now, even though he looks like he really needs a drink.


    "...Right, and I''m Mother Theresa," Xue Ning retorts easily. "Mr Sun Jingwei, you are such a shitty liar." She shakes her head in disappointment.


    Before Jingwei can splutter and defend his lying abilities, Xue Ning gets up. The paramedic makes a displeased noise, for his work was interrupted. Xue Ning gives him an apologetic look, but then shoves Jingwei to her seat.


    Sun Jingwei met eyes with the paramedic. They had identical looks of confusion on their faces, and they turned to Xue Ning for an exnation.


    "Just sit down for goodness sake, you look so pale all of a sudden¡­" She grumbles, embarrassed at the fact that she had to exin herself. "Can you take a look at him? I''m fine now, I think he needs more help."


    "Xue Ning! There''s really no need!" Jingwei hastily assures her, trying to get up again, only for Xue Ning to ce her hands on his shoulders and push him back down.


    "Please take a look at him," she says to the paramedic, with more urgency this time around. The fact that Sun Jingwei hadn''t even made a smartass quip about how irresistible he was that she wasn''t able to keep her hands off him was proof that something was seriously wrong.


    "But you''re still injured¡­ you should be sitting," Jingwei continues, his voice trailing off when Xue Ning continued to watch him impassively. He then gives the paramedic a hopeful look, hoping for back up.


    "Miss Xue Ning, if you can let me finish bandaging your legs, I''ll work on Young Master Sun." He says. Jingwei gives him a grateful look.


    "Fine." Xue Ning sighs. "Move over then," she says, nonchntly squeezing next to Jingwei, their thighs close enough to touch.


    Jingwei shoots her a surprised look, but Xue Ning ignores him, even as her face reddens slightly under his pleased smile. He then slouches slightly, just so he can lean against Xue Ning''s shoulder, close enough to nuzzle her neck.


    Meanwhile the paramedic sighed. Couples in love were really hard to handle. He returned to bandaging Miss Li.


    Sun Tianwei also sighed. He had the strangest feeling that he was watching a romanticedy, only his younger brother was actually the lovesick female lead with Miss Li as the taciturn yet secretly caring male lead. How was this possible?


    "It''s fine, if you don''t want to tell me - if you cannot tell me about this name," Xue Ning says quietly to Jingwei, while staring at the way their hands were close enough to touch. Would it be okay for her to hold his hand tofort him?


    She was so out of her depth. Xue Ning had spent most of her living years being the opposite offorting. She deliberately made herself tough and sarcastic, keeping a careful distance between herself and others so that they couldn''t hurt her with their words. Sometimes, she would hurt them first, just to avoid trouble down the road.


    That also meant that she was downright terrible atforting people. People looked for her when they needed a bully''s face kicked in, and not when they got dumped!


    What''s more, if she did seed inforting people, she did so by making them so angry at something else she said that they promptly forgot about their sadness.


    Xue Ning doesn''t think this method will work on Jingwei.


    "You know, you can just tell the police about it, or your brother. You can even text it? Draw something?" Xue Ning suggests, "They need to know, if you want them to catch the culprit."


    Jingwei breathes out loudly and gives her a wan smile.


    "Are you going to suggest smoke signals next? Morse code?" He nudges her yfully. "Carrier pigeons? It sounds ridiculousing from you."


    "If it works, it works." Xue Ning says seriously, not letting him wriggle out of this. "You can even choreograph an interpretive dance, for fucks sake. As long as they get it."


    "That won''t be necessary," Jingwei smiles at her, but it''s mncholic and his eyes are dim. "The only way the police can find and question that person is through using a Oujia board."


    "Oh my god." Xue Ning gasped. The person was dead already? That certainly derailed all of her nned rebuttals.


    "I see," Tianwei chimes in from the side, his tone knowing. Xue Ning had almost forgotten he was there. "While that might be so, we will still need more information. Don''t forget, his body was never found."


    "Who is he?" Xue Ning can''t help but ask.<sub> </sub>


    "A ghost," Jingwei replies. She wants to roll her eyes at his response, but Xue Ning senses that his flippant answer was just his way of dealing with the issue.


    Fine. Let him stew alone then. She''ll let him keep his secrets for now. The paramedic had finished his work, so there was no need for her to sit any longer. Xue Ning begins to stand up to give more space, but Jingwei''s hand immediately reaches out for her, grabbing at her wrist.


    Xue Ning stills, because Jingwei''s hands were mmy and cold, so unlike the warm hands that cradled her on just a while ago.


    If that man was a ghost, he was certainly doing a fantastic job of haunting Sun Jingwei.


    Pity she wasn''t an exorcist. And seeing that this topic was such a heavy one for him, she didn''t want to say anything else, in case she inadvertently made things worse.


    All she could do was hold his cold, mmy hands in hers, squeezing them to give him some smallfort.


    "Ah¡­ I''m fine, really," Jingwei says, shooting her a small smile, but Xue Ning can see the faint tremble of his fingers. "See, you do care about me!"


    "Is that the key point here?" She asks dryly, but it is good that he''s slowly turning back to his usual flirty self.


    "It is to me!" Jingwei insists. Xue Ning just nods half-heartedly, too tired to argue with him any further. How was she supposed to fight a ghost? If he was indeed a ghost. Sun Tianwei said that ''his'' body was never found, and she watched enough dramas to know what that implied.


    Well. That was the job of the police, not her. She wasn''t going to investigate this issue. She''s here as his bodyguard, not his private investigator.


    "Now that Miss Li is fine, we must be on our way," Tianwei states, preparing to leave.


    "What about him?" Xue Ning points to Jingwei. "I think he needs some medication for his nerves."


    "Nonsense! All I need is your love," Jingwei winks at her, bad mood seemingly much improved.


    Xue Ning stares tly at him before turning back to the paramedic. "Exactly my point. See, he definitely needs serious medical attention. I suspect brain damage."


    "But I''m serious -"


    "So am I -"


    "Quiet, both of you," Tianwei barks out, before calming himself with a deep breath. Why was he forced to babysit at the age of 30?! Was this karma for not marrying and starting a family?!


    "We''re going back after we send Miss Li home. Father wants to see you, and you know he can''t stay up toote." He says sternly.


    "Ah, alright then." Jingwei says, face falling as addresses Xue Ning. "I''ll still buy you supper first though, since you didn''t eat enough for dinner."


    "Takeaway is fine. Come on, let''s go."


    The three of them exit the ambnce and make their way to Tianwei''s car.


    "What about your car?" Xue Ning whispers to Jingwei. "Aren''t you driving it home?"


    "Only if you''re sitting in the car with me," Jingwei replies smugly and promptly gets smacked in the arm.


    Walking slightly ahead of them, Tianwei''s eyebrow twitches as he listens to his brother flirt shamelessly. He walks even faster, widening the distance between them, and easily reaches his car first, sliding into the driver''s seat.


    Behind him, Xue Ning and Jingwei were still taking their own sweet time, yfully bickering with each other.


    "We should walk faster, your brother seems pissed." Xue Ning says.


    "But the faster we reach the car, the less time I will have to spend with you!" Jingwei points out.


    "We''re not - argh, you are so¡­" Xue Ning flexes her fingers like she wants to pinch him.


    "Handsome. Amazing. Incredible. Delightful." Jingwei begins listing adjectives, and Xue Ning wants to smack him again, but then she spots the headlights of a car getting rapidly closer.


    "Look out!" She screams.

 Chapter 46 First Kiss & Murder Attempts

    Before Xue Ning could shove Jingwei away from the path of the car, he moved first to push her away. God, what a moron! She would have screamed at him if she had the time, why should he be trying to save her!


    Thankfully, she managed to grab his arm and tug him with her as they narrowly fell by the wayside, groaning as they rolled on the harsh asphalt of the road. She grabbed Jingwei and tried to shove him under her, just in case the car decided to make a second attempt at murdering them, but Jingwei was having none of it, trying to shield her instead.


    If the situation wasn''t so dire, she would have lectured him about what a bodyguard does, and who was actually the bodyguard in question.


    Even with the both of them fighting to protect each other, Jingwei still had the upper hand in terms of strength, so he sessfully pinned Xue Ning under him, covering her with his body as though he was a human shield.


    "Move! You idiot!" Xue Ning despairs, desperately squeezing Jingwei''s waist with her arms in ast ditch attempt at trying to get him to roll over. "If you die here, I''ll kill you!"


    Jingwei didn''t say anything. Instead he took one look at her panicked, anxious face and smiled so tenderly at her she forgot to curse him.


    He then leaned down and kissed her softly on her lips.


    Xue Ning felt her heart simultaneously stop and beat out of her chest.


    There were loud honking noises in the background, the screech of car tires and the quiet vibrations from the road that were steadily getting stronger, but all Xue Ning could hear was the erratic thumping of her heart, and the soft sound of their lips finally separating.


    Sun Jingwei was still smiling brilliantly, as though he had fulfilled every dream in his life. His head was haloed by the headlights of an approaching car, but his eyes were still brighter, and in that brief moment, he looked like an angel.


    It took Xue Ning''s breath away.


    Then she remembered that they were still in danger, and used his distraction to roll him over so that she was on top, shielding him instead, preparing for the inevitable car crash, mentally sending an apology to her poor parents for being such a shitty daughter. Maybe in their next lives, they won''t want her anymore.


    At least she wasn''t going to die unkissed, even if she would die a virgin. She had Jingwei to thank for that, and that fool was still trying to shove her off him.


    Sun Jingwei, you are an idiot, she thinks with a slight tinge of hysteria. Despite it all, I''m d I met you.


    She braced herself for impact, pinning her full weight on Sun Jingwei so he can''t flip her over like before.


    "Xue Ning! Let go of me!" Jingwei is screaming at her to let him up, but she doesn''t listen.


    There''s a crash, but there''s only a shattering of ss raining over them instead of the shattering of their bones. Xue Ning and Jingwei blink slowly in confusion, slowly turning around.


    The scene before them made their mouths drop.


    Sun Tianwei had rammed his car into the side of the offending car, causing it to flip over!


    "Holy shit." Jingwei gasped in horror, before running to the car. "Ge! Are you okay?"


    ? Xue Ning wanted to follow suit, but she was more interested in the driver of the car that tried to murder them. So far there wasn''t any movement from that vehicle¡­ was the person responsible dead?


    Sirens red all around the area as the police circled the car in question. The ambnce had also arrived quickly, as they were nearby.


    Sensing that they had the situation well-in-hand, Xue Ning follows Jingwei, just in time to see Sun Tianwei stumble out of his wrecked vehicle, looking shocked but physically unharmed.


    "Ge! Oh my god!" Jingwei yells, nearly bawling as he envelops his older brother in a hug. "You could have died! What did you do?!"


    Tianwei merely shrugged and adjusted his spectacles. They remarkably stayed on during the crash.


    "Thank you for saving our lives." Xue Ning gives a deep bow. Without Sun Tianwei''s interference, that car''s second attempt on their lives might have seeded.


    "Consider it payback, Miss Li," Sun Tianwei replies steadily. "For the many times you''ve saved my brother''s life."


    Jingwei flings his arms around the both of them, pulling them into a close hug. Both Tianwei and Xue Ning made simr surprised noises.<sub> </sub>


    "I''m so d the both of you are fine!" Jingwei exims, near tears. He sniffles, and Xue Ning could almost see the snot dropping out.


    "You idiot crybaby," she scolds, but it sounds too fond for him to take any offence.


    "More importantly, are you alright?" Xue Ning asks Tianwei, carefully looking him over for any sign of injury.


    "Only a few superficial cuts," Tianwei replies.


    "You should still go to the ambnce Ge!"


    "No thanks, I''m sure they are busier with the other party," Tianwei pushes up his sses, eyes glinting as they focus on the wrecked body they hauled out of the ck car.


    He had made sure to hit them where it hurt after all, and his car was specially reinforced to the point that it could probably survive a bomb st.


    The other car was not his match at all, he thought smugly to himself. Jingwei may have better driving skills, but in this case, all Tianwei had to do was elerate and ram straight into the motherfucker that tried to kill his brother and his not-girlfriend.


    If anyone had the right to kill them, it was him, for making him sit through their kindergarten flirting tactics!


    Back then, he was still watching them flirt badly from his car. He was just about to honk at them for taking their own sweet time, only for his heart to jump to his throat at the sight of a car hurtling straight towards them with no intention of stopping.


    Then he saw his idiot brother actually shove his bodyguard out of the way! Tianwei screamed, thinking that the night was going to end in his brother''s death, but thankfully, his tiny bodyguard had kept a firm arm on him, hauling him along with her even as he pushed her away from harm.


    Tianwei immediately drove the car straight towards their side, honking angrily to attract attention from the people near the restaurant. However, that did not deter the driver of that car, who swerved and made a sharp U-turn to finish what it started.


    So Tianwei switched to the offensive, immediately choosing to crash straight into the car so that it would go off-course. The ss on his windscreen shattered, but the metal held firm and he had working airbags. And of course Tianwei had already put on his seatbelt, so he was fine.


    The same could not be said of the culprit. Xue Ning winced as she stared at his battered body on the stretcher as it was transported to the ambnce.


    But it was better for it to be a random stranger than her or Jingwei.


    "Do you recognize this person?" Xue Ning asks.


    "This was a person?" Jingwei replies sarcastically, before bing serious. "No, I do not. I have never seen such a painfully average person in my life."


    "We''ll get him ID-ed immediately," Tianwei deres, immediately stalking away to order the beleaguered police officers to do their jobs, threatening to have all their heads on a tter if his demands weren''t met. The police scattered like harried ants, and Officer Tang waved Tianwei to his side for an interview.


    As a victim of course. Even if Tianwei had deliberately rammed the car straight at the other party, Tianwei would still be considered a victim if everyone in the police department wanted to keep their livelihoods.


    "Poor Officer Tang, guess he''s working overtime tonight," Jingwei muses. "No happy times with his wife."


    "At least now he''ll have one more lead, assuming he actually survives," Xue Ning shrugs, watching the ambnce drive off, sirens ring. "And one more thing¡­"


    Then she turns to Sun Jingwei and promptly socks him in the stomach. He bowls over from the surprise punch.


    "What was that for!?" Jingwei asks, hurt.


    "Do you still need to ask! Why did you shove me out of the way? I''m supposed to be protecting you!" Xue Ning yells. She''s not even going to touch on the kiss that was sprung on her by surprise. One thing at a time.


    "What, am I supposed to let you die for me?" Jingwei yells back, indignant, his eyes zing as he res at her. "That''s crazy!"


    "That''s my job," Xue Ning hisses in exasperation, throwing her hands in the air. "I''m your bodyguard. Body. Guard." She emphasises each part separately, with added hand gestures in case he didn''t get it.


    "I''m supposed to protect you; why are you making it so difficult for me?" She finishes.

 Chapter 47 Preparations For Home

    "Why are you making this so difficult for me?"


    His precious Xue Ningmented at him, tired face scrunched in confusion.


    "Do you need to ask? Is it not obvious?" Jingwei asks incredulously, trying to look for deceit in her eyes, but finding none.


    "If it was obvious, do you think I need to ask?" Xue Ning points out. "Are you being annoying on purpose?"


    "No, this is just my natural charm," Jingwei can''t help but quip in return. But Xue Ning doesn''t seem amused this time, her arms crossed in front of her.


    It inadvertently emphasised the curve of her breasts. Her breasts, that were pressed against him when he kissed her when theyid on top of the road, not knowing if they would die in the very next minute.


    Jingwei didn''t have a good exnation for his actions; he just knew two things - 1. He desperately wanted Xue Ning alive and well, and 2. He didn''t want to die without ever having kissed Xue Ning once in his lifetime.


    "And Xue Ning," he continues. "If you don''t see something this obvious, I''m going to tell my father that he assigned me a blind bodyguard."


    "Do you want me to get fired?" Xue Ning squawks. "You''re such a bastard!"


    "Oi! Don''t insult my mother! My parents were married before they had me!" Jingwei protests, but he''s grinning so widely that Xue Ning has the strangest urge to pull him closer to wipe the look off his face with her lips - with her fist. She means fist.


    There will be no repeat of that kissing incident. Chances are that Sun Jingwei was ovee with the prospect that he was going to be turned into roadkill, so of course he kissed her, because she was right there, pinned under him and unable to escape.


    No one would want to kiss Xue Ning unless they were on the verge of death. She has made peace with that.


    And she let him kiss her without biting his lips off, because¡­because¡­ she was taken by surprise and she was also scared of dying.


    There was no other reason, she imed to herself. Nevermind in that moment she was filled with the powerful urge to cling tightly to him and never let go.


    It was clearly due to the near-death experience! She''s sure that science would back her up on this.


    "Argghh," Xue Ning grumbled to herself while shooting him a baleful re. "Infuriating man."


    Sun Jingwei merely gives her an adoring look, before tugging at her arm.


    "Xue Ning, let''s go home after my Ge is done with the police."


    "Go home? With you? To your house?" Xue Ning asks nkly. "Why?"


    "It''s safer that way for both of us," Jingwei points out cheekily. "You''re supposed to protect me right? So of course you must apany me home."


    "Alright, but what about supper?" She protests, now even hungrier after nearly being ttened by an iing car.


    "Our household staff can make something for you," he replies easily.


    "Fine," Xue Ning agrees. It made enough sense; she could only rest easy after he was sent home safely. Who knows if someone would try to kill him on the way there? It''s better to be safe than sorry.


    "And the mansion has more than enough rooms for you to stay the night." Jingwei continues.


    Wait what? Xue Ning splutters. "Oi Sun Jingwei! What are you thinking of?" Just because they kissed under extenuating circumstances doesn''t mean that she was going to stay the night?


    "Not like that! Although¡­" he gives a thoughtful hum, eyes roving all over her figure, taking in her shapely calves, firm thighs (now bandaged), the pinch of her waist and her full bosom, before finally resting on her rapidly reddening face. "I wouldn''t say no if we continued with what happened in the ambnce."


    "Hello?! You nearly died!" Xue Ning has to mention. "Someone tried to kill us! And you''re still feeling horny?"


    "Why not? Is that a crime?" Jingwei asks curiously. "There''s a reason why there are so many babies born after a war."


    "That''s not how it works!" Xue Ning exims, exasperated before she spots the teasing glint in his eyes. "Aish - you know it!"


    "Stay the night, Xue Ning," Jingwei repeats, more seriously this time. "It''s already sote, and you got injured, and you''re still hungry. My ce has enough room and toiletries to house eighty of you with no problem, so just stay the night."<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning''s heart wavered slightly. He brought up very good points - and honestly, part of her wasn''t all enthused about going back home to her dingy apartment and showering with cold water sote at night.


    "We have a movie system at home, thetest gaming system, a pool table, an actual indoor pool and sauna - " Jingwei starts listing everything their mansion has, in a bid to convince her to stay.


    Most of these added amenities weremissioned by him, he wasn''t going to live in a house that didn''t have entertainment, despite the disapproving looks he got from his father and brother when he first proposed the renovation ns.


    Xue Ning holds up a hand to stop him from rambling. "Okay okay I get it, your house has everything. I''ll stay, I''ll stay. Does it have a hot shower though? That''s what I want more than anything."


    Xue Ning felt gross and sticky all over, first it was the hot soup, then her sweat, and there could be some gravel from the road all over her too.


    "Of course! You can even have a bubble bath if you want, I have bath bombs stocked."


    "I see," Xue Ning replies, not actually seeing. Sun Jingwei made bombs? For his bath? Isn''t that highly dangerous? Is that why someone wanted to kill him?


    "Good! I''ll call home to make arrangements then, you sit there and rest first," Jingwei beams delightedly, pointing to a bench while immediately using his phone to call their housekeeper.


    Xue Ning, sensing his need for privacy, sits herself down while keeping an eye on Jingwei to make sure he wasn''t kidnapped or murdered. At this distance, she couldn''t really hear what he was saying.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei also had one eye on Xue Ning''s tiny, tired figure, sitting hunched over on the bench. He longed to wrap her up in his arms and rain kisses all over her picture perfect face and even more perfect body, but this wasn''t the time¡­ yet.


    He calls their old housekeeper Lady Yu, who was practically his second mom after his real mother passed away. She picks up after only two rings.


    "Lady Yu! This is Jingwei, can I ask a favour?"


    "What is it?" Lady Yu asks warily. "I''m not helping you to smuggle a pack of sled dogs into the mansion, or letting you slide yourself down the staircase railing. You nearly cracked your head open thest time."


    "No! This time is not anything like that! I''m bringing home my saviour, and I want her to get a good meal, a nice warm bath and a change of clothes for her to stay the night. She got injured saving me again. So Lady Yu¡­ please? Can you help?"


    "...Fine," Lady Yu admits begrudgingly. "Although I do wish you told us earlier, Young Master Sun. This is very short notice."


    "Just do your best Lady Yu!" Jingwei says excitedly. "I believe in you - you''ve pulled miracles before."


    "ttery will not get you out of this," Lady Yu says, but she sounds less unhappy than before. "I shall do my best. Is this guest of yours a man or a woman?"


    "A woman!"


    "I see," Lady Yu replies, in a knowing tone.


    "What?"


    "Nothing," Lady Yu replies breezily. "I look forward to seeing the woman you hold in such high esteem, Young Master Sun. Should I prepare the suite for honoured guests?"


    "No need!" Jingwei replies readily. "Don''t treat her as an honoured guest - treat her¡­ like a cherished member of our family."


    Lady Yu falls silent in surprise. Wasn''t doing so tantamount to dering to everyone in the household of his intentions to marry? Did the Old Master know about this?


    "I see," Lady Yu repeats, once she has digested the news. The boy she had watched grow up was now bringing someone he loved enough to possibly marry. She feels herself getting emotional, but she also wanted to meet the girl in question, just to see if she was worth his regard.


    If he picked a useless party girl golddigger to be his wife, Lady Yu would wrench off his ear!


    "Very well, I understandpletely. Everything will be arranged," Lady Yu deres fervently, her mind running through every item Young Master Sun''s woman might possibly require.


    New clothes - pyjamas, casual wear, dresses, possibly lingerie. A full set of toiletries. Aromatherapy candles and bath salts. Silk pillowcases and bedding. Condoms. And so much more. Lady Yu had her hands full, but she will make sure she delivers.


    She has so many things to prepare, now that she knows about the real importance of her guest.


    "Goodbye, Young Master Sun. The household looks forward to your return," she hangs up, but not before hearing his cheerful ''Bye'' in response.

 Chapter 48 Daydreams At Night

    Jingwei makes a small pleased fist pump at getting Lady Yu''s help. With her on his side, Xue Ning would get everything she ever needed to rest and recover after a long grueling day.


    He vows to be a spectacr host so that she would not want to leave in the morning. His brain immediately provides him with various scenarios¡­


    Perhaps after they''ve showered and had a good supper, Xue Ning might want to choose a movie or TV series to watch in his home theatre. They could sit together on the soft leather loveseat and Jingwei could ''identally'' stretch out an arm to curl around her shoulders.


    A good ro would be perfect to set the right mood. Or maybe a horror movie would be the better choice, so Jingwei could look brave and capable and not like the coward he was deep down.


    Or perhaps Jingwei would mention his family''s dogs over supper, and Xue Ning would also say she loved dogs, then he could bring her to visit the kennels at the back of the house. The path to the kennels was uneven, for the cobblestones were old, so he would hold her hand and lead her slowly to the kennels.


    His family kept a variety of dogs, of various sizes and breeds. It was not a stretch to say that his father treated the dogs better than he did his children at times. He could introduce them to her¡­ if she was going to be a part of his family, she would have to know them.


    Or maybe, most likely, Xue Ning would be exhausted after such a long day and would just like to turn in for the night. As such, Jingwei would ensure she gets one of the best rooms in the mansion, with a sturdy king-sized bed and the best mattress that money could buy.


    She would sleep on silk sheets with a thread count of over 3000, and there would berge, fluffy pillows for her to hug. He would even put on soft music and light up aromatherapy candles if she wished.


    Of course, his biggest wish was for her to let him sleep in the same bed as her. He''s sure he''s nicer than a pillow to hug.


    "Oi, why do you have such a dopey look on your face?" Xue Ning asks, walking closer to wave a hand at Jingwei''s face.


    After hanging up the phone, he had merely stood there and smiled to himself like a moron. This was so suspicious - it was like he was thinking of a lover. Was the person on the other end of the line his ex? Was that why he didn''t want her listening in?


    Her intestines writhed ufortably at the thought, before she reminded herself that it didn''t matter who Sun Jingwei dated or didn''t date. She''s his bodyguard, not his lover.


    "Xue Ning! Why do you look so constipated?" Jingwei asks, jogging back to her.


    "No I don''t," Xue Ning grumbles, crossing her arms. The thought that Sun Jingwei might possibly not be over his previous lover crossed her mind, and she subconsciously frowned harder.


    "My dear, don''t frown like this! You''ll get wrinkles early!" Jingwei chides her gently, using a gentle finger to smooth out the furrow between her eyes. She bats away his hand. Jingwei took no offence, instead he looked highly amused, the same way one person ying with a kitten would be.


    "I would not," Xue Ning replies.


    "Would too, but that''s okay, I have face masks for that." Jingwei replies blithely. Skincare was important no matter your gender, and it was a pity more men did not know that.


    "More importantly, romance or horror?"


    "Huh?" Xue Ning blinks at the sudden change in conversation topic.


    "Just pick one."


    "Horror I guess," Xue Ning shrugs, before bitterly adding. "Technically romance is also horrifying."


    Jingwei senses some sadness, and immediately makes sure to distract her by wrapping an arm around her shoulders, ignoring her surprised expression.


    "Horror it is!" Nevermind that Jingwei was a consummate coward who was afraid of the supernatural. If Xue NIng preferred horror movies, that was what he would dly watch. "You won''t regret staying over at my house!"


    "If you say so," Xue Ning says. Jingwei seems highly enthusiastic in having her over. Was it because he had no real friends to invite to his house?


    That was kind of sad. She vows to treat him a bit better.


    "Oh look! Ge is done, let''s go!" He eagerly pulls her along and wraps another arm around Sun Tianwei, who looks exhausted after the questioning. "Bye again Officer Tang! Remember to kiss your wife goodnight!"


    Xue Ning catches Officer Tang taking a long deep breath in response. Poor man.


    "I''ll drive," Jingwei says, giving no room for argument as he leads them to his car. "You''re injured and Ge just Grand-Theft-Autoed a man."


    "I am perfectly capable of driving," Tianwei states, but he still slides into the shotgun seat. Xue Ning, by unspoken agreement, sits at the back of the car. It was smaller than the two front seats, but then she didn''t need much room.<sub> </sub>


    Jingwei does a double-take at his brother sitting shotgun. He thought Xue Ning would sit there. Tianwei merely gives him an incredulous face. Jingwei could read the meaning in his face.


    ''Do you expect me to sit in the backstead Didi? After I saved both your lives?''


    He gives his brother a sheepish smile in apology. ''No Ge. But I did want Xue Ning to sit with me¡­''


    Meanwhile Xue Ning had no clue of this silent conversation happening in front of her. She yawned widely, leaned back on the smooth leather seat and promptly conked out in the back seat, surrounded by the scent of Sun Jingwei.


    The drive home was mostly silent, but Jingwei couldn''t help checking on Xue Ning''s sleeping figure at the back of his car. Tianwei noticed.


    "Focus on the road," he scolds. "If you get into a car ident, she''ll be done for."


    "Okay okay! I know!" Jingwei nods, but he still can''t resist onest nce at Xue Ning. She looks like she is sleeping peacefully.


    "You have very strong feelings for her," Tianwei states, deceptively casual. Jingwei flushes to his ears, but doesn''t lose control of the wheel.


    "So what if I do? Are you going tough at me, Ge?"


    "I already did," was his callous reply. "It was funny to see your sad face when she rejected your help in the ambnce."


    "Ge, before youugh at me, please get a girlfriend." Jingwei pleads. "Get someone to stop you from bing a workaholic. Or you''ll end up bald and alone."


    "Hmph. Worry about yourself." Tianwei says curtly. "Your romance doesn''t seem to be going well either."


    "It''s going, it''s going," Jingwei says, taking a quick look at Xue Ning to check if she''s really asleep. "I want to marry her, no matter what."


    "Then did you n on our dear father approving?" Tianwei asks. "Because we both know that he might just keel over from the news."


    "Who knows?" Jingwei says, optimistic. "Maybe he''ll be so happy that I''m serious about someone for once that he''ll let it go."


    "If only you had been so serious about Zhou Yu, your ex-fiancee," Tianwei grumbles. "Pardon Ge for being blunt, but what''s so special about her?"


    "Xue Ning? What isn''t special about her?" Jingwei replies, sighing besottedly. Tianwei gives him a disgusted look, before realising that it was his own fault for bringing her up.


    Jingwei continues without any encouragement, "I like how blunt and honest she is with me, and I like how she pretends not to care about me, but she actually cares a lot. And she''s smart and funny, and she''s really cute. Do you know that she smells like a warm nket on a cold day? Isn''t it incredible? And she is so strong, did you see her thighs? Ge you should see her kick -"


    "Nevermind, I''m sorry I asked." Tianwei says, stopping his brother from preaching about the various charms of Xue Ning. He hadn''t seen his brother so interested in anyone, or anything in years. Thest time¡­ was probably before Wu Shang Jing''s incident.


    "More importantly, does she know you like her enough to propose?" Tianwei asks.


    Jingwei falls silent at that. Tianwei stares incredulously at him. Jingwei focuses on the road to avoid his brother''s judgemental gaze.


    "You have got to be kidding me," Tianwei has his head in his hands. "You can say all this to me, but have you actually said all this to her before even nning your future wedding in your head?" And Jingwei was someone who would n his wedding in vivid detail before he even confessed. His brother was just an optimistic dreamer like that.


    "...Not in these words, but she should know. I think I''ve been quite obvious?" Jingwei replies, hisst word trailing off into a question.


    Tianwei shakes his head. "If you have been as obvious as you im, then it would mean that you''ve been rejected. Better work harder then."


    "Wait Ge, does it mean you''re supporting me?" Jingwei asks excitedly, before remembering to keep his voice down.


    "...At least she has a good head on her shoulders," was Tianwei''s response, "which is more than I can say about the other women you used to have around."


    "I am a changed man now," Jingwei replies, his voice low and serious. "If it''s not Xue Ning, I don''t want anyone else."


    Behind them, Xue Ning''s sleeping heart skips a beat.

 Chapter 49 Arrival At The Mansion

    The rest of the drive was peaceful. The two men in front asionally talked, but the bulk of the time, it wasfortable silence.


    However, behind them, Xue Ning wasn''t feeling well-rested at all! Her heart was racing a mile a minute, all thanks to the words she overheard when she was supposed to be dead to the world. Her ability to know when someone was talking about her never seemed to rest, it seemed.


    "If it''s not Xue Ning, I don''t want anyone else."


    Her eyes nearly opened in shock; thankfully she managed to suppress that urge. She squeezed her eyes shut instead, focusing on keeping her breathing even.


    How was she supposed to live with that knowledge? She could have pretended it was about her as a bodyguard, but deep down, she knows, Sun Jingwei harboured other intentions. Romantic intentions, the kind that led to a huge church wedding and walks on the beach during sunset and owning dogs together.


    His words had put the kiss they shared in a whole new light.


    But Xue Ning was very good at ignoring things she didn''t know how to resolve. Even if she wanted to pretend she hadn''t heard it, her mind wouldn''t let her forget it. It reyed the smooth baritone of Jingwei''s voice, the firm conviction of his words.


    It set her heart aze.


    She was still tired, but she could no longer fall back to sleep like before. Now, what was the best course of action? Should she confront him on this? That would mean admitting that she overheard him when she was supposed to be asleep. If something like that happened to Xue Ning, she''d be too embarrassed to even face him.


    What could she even say if she pointed it out? Did she like him? He was definitely considered one of her friends at this point, but did she like him¡­ as a lover?


    The very thought of that word released a flight of butterflies through her stomach.


    Her feelings were a mess. She takes a deeper breath and tries to think about this rationally, before arriving at a conclusion.


    If her feelings for him weren''t definite, she wasn''t going to say anything. That would be disrespecting his feelings. She needed to treat them with the same gravity that he had when said those words in the car, words not meant for her ears but still sincerely meant.


    Yes. That was the right course of action for now. She needed rest, a good meal and a hot shower. Everything else can wait.


    Decision made, she calms down slightly and tries to go back to sleep¡­ anytime now¡­


    "Xue Ning, wake up. We''re arriving soon," Jingwei calls to her.


    Xue Ning jolts awake, internally despairing. She rubs her eyes and squints at the scenery. Currently, the car was on a path lined by tall trees. There were only tiny lights at the foot of each tree, and together, they looked like stars in the night sky, making a constetion of a beautiful winding road in the dark of the night.


    The path looked long. Was this entirend considered their property too? It seemed like an awful waste of space. As the car got closer to the main mansion, she spied tall garden hedges and lighted fountains, as well as a variety of fancy marble statues, also lighted from the base to make them look like tinyndmarks.


    This ce almost didn''t look real. People really live in ces like this? She must be hallucinating.


    Then they pulled up to the actual mansion, and Xue Ning''s mouth dropped open in surprise.


    There was already a whole line of staff waiting for their arrival. Ah, it must be because both of his sons areing home. Perhaps this was protocol for them, to all assemble at the front of the mansion to greet them.


    If Xue Ning worked here, she would have hated that.


    Jingwei parks the car right in the middle of the two lines of staff.


    "We''re here!" He announces proudly.


    Tianwei merely gets out of the car without fanfare. Xue Ning hesitantly opens the door and follows suit, before Jingwei could even help her open the door. He beamed brightly at her and pulled her beside him, so she could get an even better look at the mansion.


    Xue Ning barely managed to avoid gawking at its sheer size.


    Was this a mansion, or was it a hotel that looked like a mansion? It was at least three stories tall, and it was wide enough that she had to turn her head, and even then, she wasn''t able to see the real end of the house.


    She mentally counted at least a hundred ss windows, reinforced with intricate steel window frames gilded with gold.


    How did she know they were gilded gold?


    There were tiny decorative lights under every window to highlight it!<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning wonders how expensive their electricity bill would be. The cost of electricity for the lights on the mansion grounds could have fed her for a month!


    Sun Jingwei really came from a different world.


    "Wee back, Young Master Tianwei, Young Master Jingwei," an older woman greets them. "Wee back!" The rest of the staff chant in unison, before they bow and straighten up with the precision of soldiers running drills in the army.


    Xue Ning is more impressed by them than anything she has seen so far.


    "The main house is pretty cool right?" Jingwei asks proudly, waiting for her reply like an eager puppy.


    "...House?" She asks nkly. This was a house, the same way the Great Wall of China was just a wall.


    He nods.


    She stares at him, then looks back at the mansion in its entirety. What else could she do but nod?


    "Yeah. Cool. It''s very¡­ bright," Xue Ning says, trying to be polite in front of his staff. They sure had their work cut out for them; maintaining a ce of this size would be difficult. She bows to the staff politely. "You guys have worked hard, sorry for making you greet us outside thiste. Thank you."


    The crowd of staff stared back, nonplussed. Xue Ning mentally pped herself - who was she to tell them that they''ve worked hard? It wasn''t as though she was their boss, or god forbid, thedy of the house.


    Before she could try to retract her statement, Jingwei cuts in, a hand looping through hers. She blinks in surprise.


    "Yes, Xue Ning''s right, you guys did great with the mansion!"


    "Quit dawdling and enter. You can give her a tour of the grounds tomorrow when it''s bright," Tianwei scolds. Honestly, his brother was sticking to Miss Li like gum on the bottom of a shoe, as though he''s afraid she''d be taken from him at any moment.


    "Right, let''s go then, Xue Ning," Jingwei smiles and leads her up the steps, because of course they had equally gigantic steps leading to the equally gigantic heavy wooden doors of the mansion.


    The door handles were ornate and gilded with gold. Even the hinges were also gold in colour. If someone wanted to rob this house, they''d have their hands full of treasure. Well, assuming they got past the tight security. Xue Ning had also spotted a frighteninglyrge number of CCTVs, and their camera lenses all seem to be eerily capturing her on video.


    The staff behind them followed them back into the mansion in a neat file, supposedly going back to their jobs. However, none of them wanted to miss the chance to see the possible future Mrs Sun in the flesh! This was the most delicious gossip they have gotten in years - and best of all, it wasn''t because of some fuck up their Young Master did.


    Their handsome Young Master was in love, and that fact broke the hearts of more than a few young maids who still harboured a me for him. This, paired with the fact that she had casually talked to them like she was thedy of the house, made her a target of their intense dislike.


    Who was she, to monopolise Young Master Sun''s time and attention? Thanking them for their hard work? It wasn''t her ce to do so!


    Under the twinkling lights of the crystal chandelier hanging high in their living room, the mysterious Miss Li that Young Master Sun dered his wife doesn''t look like any beauty at all.


    More than one young staff had to do a double-take when they saw her - she just looked like an ordinary, albeit cute, woman, who had been through the wringer and was in a desperate need for a bath and sleep.


    This was the woman that enchanted Young Master Sun to the point where Lady Yu was bringing out all the stops in making sure she wasfortable? Preposterous. Sun Jingwei liked tall, statuesque women, such as supermodels.


    This woman he eagerly brought in was tiny inparison!


    The younger staff felt even more puzzled, but their confusion didn''t matter. Sun Jingwei still wasn''t letting go of this woman''s hand.


    Meanwhile, the older workers merely shook their heads at such childish behaviour from their younger colleagues. To them, Miss Li''s words were an indication of her good upbringing, and showed that she was empathetic to their struggles as staff, which was a refreshing change.


    Most of the guests that arrive in the mansion tended to treat them like order-obeying furniture, meant to be used and then faded into the woodwork, but Miss Li had noticed them, appreciated them, more than she had the fancy decorations that Lady Yu ordered to be put up for the mansion.


    Miss Li had the approval of the older staff, but only time would determine if she could keep it. After all, she hadn''t met Lady Yu or the Sun family patriarch yet.


    All of Sun Jingwei''s love would be worth nothing if his father didn''t approve of her!


    Speaking of the devil, that very same patriarch was already waiting in the living room, sitting on the leather sofa with his arms crossed. He was wearing a very impressive frown, one that only grew bigger when he saw his youngest son holding the hand of his bodyguard.


    "What''s this I hear about attempted murder and a car ident? Exin yourselves now!" He roared.

 Chapter 50 Meeting The Future Father-In-Law Part 1

    Xue Ning immediately gives him a polite bow, trying to extricate her hand from Jingwei''s grip. However, Jingwei holds on firmly, refusing to let go.


    This does not go unnoticed by his father, his brother, and the multitude of nosy household staff that are watching with bated breath.


    "Hi Father, this is Xue Ning, my bodyguard." And future wife. That part is left unsaid, but from the way his father narrows his eyes, he gets the implication and does not like it at all.


    <o>,m "Nice to meet you," Xue Ning says politely, before giving Jingwei a re that was a lot less polite. Why is he still holding her hand so tightly in front of so many people? Couldn''t he tell that his father is this close to bursting a blood vessel?</o>


    "Father, do you want the good news or bad news first?" Jingwei asks with a charming grin, ignoring the way Xue Ning is trying to discreetly break free of his hold without making a scene.


    His father''s eyebrow begins to twitch, a tell-tale sign of his anger. Before Jingwei can continue, his old man grabs a seat cushion and flings it straight at Jingwei for his cheeky attitude.


    But the cushion never hit Jingwei. Xue Ning''s arm had stretched out instinctively to shield him, and the cushion hit the palm of her hand with a loud thud.


    But she felt no pain, because it was a soft cushion wrapped in a silk case.


    Sun Haowei may have been well-built for an old man, but there was no real danger in his throw.


    The real danger is that indescribable look in Sun Haowei''s eyes at her actions. Xue Ning realises that she might have caused more trouble for herself, judging by the quiet hush that fell over the room at her actions.


    She flushes in embarrassment, but she refuses to cower meekly. She merely gives Sun Haowei another polite bow before stuffing said cushion into Jingwei''s arms, taking this chance to break free of his handhold.


    Would this be enough reason to fire her? She wonders to herself. Does a bodyguard protect his charge from the person who hired him in the first ce?


    Meanwhile Sun Jingwei just stares at her in awe, as though she''s a goddess that hung up the moon and stars.


    The older staff all give each other discreet smiles; it seems that this time, Sun Jingwei had chosen someone well - he had picked someone truly special. To protect him from his father''s wrath even subconsciously¡­ It is heartwarming to behold.


    But it is a pity she would not be here after tonight. There is no way a prideful man like Sun Haowei would have let that action slide.


    "Father, I will exin," Tianwei cuts in smoothly to break the awkward silence that had fallen on everyone. Jingwei is still making lovestruck googly eyes at his bodyguard, who is staring nkly at the wall as though she wants to blend into it.


    No one wants to catch the eye of his father; Sun Haowei looks like he choked on a lemon, he res at the both of them as though they are responsible for destroying his entire collection of Ming dynasty vases.


    He is torn between ring at his son, or ring at the woman he brought home.


    "You''d better start now," his father says warningly.<sub> </sub>


    "The woman that tried to drug Jingwei has been arrested and is now currently in police custody, thanks to Miss Li''s efforts." Tianwei starts, giving Xue Ning a nod of acknowledgement. If she wasn''t there, his idiot brother would probably have been kidnapped or murdered in the restuarant.


    "We have also gotten confirmation of her identity - it''s the same woman that appeared in Jingwei''s¡­sex video." Tianwei says, taking a quick look at his father''s face just in time to see it scrunch up like a blended lemon.


    There were a few things in life Sun Haowei hated more than being reminded of his son''s multiple scandals with women.


    "...And now she''s back to chasing after you? Is she trying to film a sequel?" His father demands.


    "No Father, you got it wrong - she didn''t leak the film!" Jingwei exins. "I thought she did and she thought I did - "


    "Foolish!" His father ms an angry hand on the armrest. "Where is the proof that it wasn''t her doing?"


    "Father, she''s out for revenge because she thinks I secretly filmed her and leaked the video, so she -"


    "And you believed her?" Sun Haowei barks out, furious at the gullibility of his youngest child. "She''s just trying to manipte you into not pressing charges!"


    "I''m not forgiving her!" Jingwei protests. "She bribed someone to spill hot soup on Xue Ning! I would never forgive someone like that!"


    Xue Ning finds herself the centre of attention yet again thanks to Sun Jingwei''s words.


    His father lets out a wheeze, much like an angry, winded bull in a bullfighting pit that still wanted to charge at the matador.


    She has a feeling she''s the matador. Jingwei shifts slightly towards her, as though trying to shield her with his own body. If they were alone, she would have told him not to bother. He was the equivalent of the red cloth!


    "Idiot son," his father hisses, hyperfocused on his son''s actions. "Have more care for your own life!"


    "I do - I''m just telling you, it''s possible that she isn''t the main mastermind of this incident!" Jingwei exins hotly, a hand sneakily trying to hold Xue Ning''s own. "We''re both victims - and Father, you know that something like this would affect the woman more right?"


    "Of course, but I don''t care about her circumstances," Sun Haowei states tly, "she''s a criminal."


    "Father, what Jingwei is trying to say is that we could use her to extract more information about the main mastermind. The woman in question is clearly not in the right state of mind to execute such convoluted plots on her own." Tianwei exins, because his younger brother and father are just going in circles.


    He''d seen that woman, and her behaviour was rming to say the least. She kept on smirking at Jingwei and Miss Li from the police car, even after they went out of view.


    This wasn''t anything too concerning on its own, but when paired with the sudden car ident, it became terrifying!

 Chapter 51 Meeting The Future Father-In-Law Part 2

    "Yeah, that''s what I meant!" Jingwei nods enthusiastically. "And Father, caring for Xue Ning is as good as caring for my own life!"


    His father''s body twitches in irritation, as though he had gotten a nasty electric shock. Xue Ning turns to Jingwei, willing him to shut up, but of course, he doesn''t.


    "Do you know that Xue Ning saved my life?" Jingwei continues excitedly, not waiting for his father to reply. "She told me to hide in the cubicle and then kicked that woman''s ass! And then saved me from the car that tried to kill us both!"


    Xue Ning only nods awkwardly. She remembers that near fatal car ident very differently - how Sun Jingwei was so fucking stubborn he tried to shove her out of the way when she''s supposed to be protecting him.


    Her cheeks heat up when she remembers what happened after. God. Please let Sun Haowei be unable to read minds.


    Meanwhile, Sun Haowei raises an incredulous eyebrow.


    Apparently the daughter of his traitorous friends had some skills of her own - who would have thought? Perhaps, despite their ims of retiring from their sort of life, they actually imparted some of their skills to their daughter.


    Initially, he wanted Jingwei to hire her for multiple reasons. She was meant to function as an innocent bystander, someone to ensure that Jingwei wouldn''t put himself into dangerous situations without thinking twice.


    Secondly, it was revenge. If something did happen to her, he would have felt a dark sense of satisfaction at delivering a painful blow to her parents.


    Clearly that n failed on both fronts. Not only did his son NOT stop his dangerous activities, he even roped her into them! He had received the video of his son''s driving back when he was trying to escape the tailing car from the traffic police.


    If he didn''t have a pacemaker in his heart, it would have just given out right there and then!


    Thankfully that video wasn''t on social media - he didn''t need his son''s reckless driving public knowledge for everyone to rip apart. Thest thing the Sun family needed was another scandal.


    Meanwhile, the daughter of old, traitorous, beloved, friends was also in the car with him, and she didn''t throw her resignation letter the moment they stopped. Clearly she had as little self-preservation as his youngest son! Peas in a rotten pod!


    He wanted to give her parents a call to tell them what their precious daughter was doing, but then remembered that they have not spoken in nearly 30 years.


    He gives her another, more considering look. She had her mother''s eyes, but her father''s mouth. It galled him that he could still remember their faces. He gnashed his teeth, furious at everyone, but mostly himself.


    His n for revenge was going reluctantly down the drain, the more time he spent looking at her and seeing traces of the friends he used to love. Instead of perverse satisfaction at seeing her injuries and bedraggled expression, all he felt was a strange heartache and the growing need to call her parents to pick her up.


    If his friends had not left him for the far-flung corners of the country, perhaps they would have been raised close enough together for this to happen. He settles for ring at her, because he wanted to re at her parents and they weren''t present.<sub> </sub>


    Jingwei sees this and moves protectively in front of Xue Ning, protecting her from the weight of his father''s strange re. Several of the maids swoon internally at this disy of manliness.


    "That''s not all that happened tonight!" Jingwei continues, aiming to distract his father from Xue Ning. "Ge nearly killed a man with his car!"


    Mission sessful. Sun Haowei turns his death re to his oldest son, who looks like he''s ready to strangle his younger brother.


    "Since when were you such an impulsive driver?" His father demands, appalled. "Are you trying to drive me to an early grave? Do you want your inheritance so quickly?"


    Everyone sucks in a huge breath. Inheritance had always been the elephant in the room, along with the Sun patriarch''s poor health.


    Tianwei sighs, shaking his head.


    "Father, that''s not the full story. Someone was trying to kill the two of them by running them over. These two managed to dodge the first attempt, but the car made a u-turn and was going to try again. I only did what I had to do," Tianwei exins patiently.


    "I see," Haowei says, with a faint hint of pride at his son possiblymitting hit-and-run. "So you ran over the would-be killer with your car?"


    "I rammed straight into his car," Tianwei rifies.


    "Do you need a new car?" His father asks, clearly focusing on the important details in this conversation. Xue Ning doesn''t know how a car recement was more important than someone trying to kill them, but who knew with rich people.


    "Yes, one that''s the exact same model would be ideal." Tianwei nods. Xue Ning reminds herself that these people were rich enough that they could toss away cars that were barely dented for brand new ones. She had seen the state of Sun Tianwei''s car - it was still fixable, and the Sun family certainly had resources for it.


    "As for the car driver, he was sent to the hospital. We will be informed once he bes avable for questioning. The woman responsible was also sent to the police station. We also have a lead on the possible mastermind of the drugging, which we will investigate first thing tomorrow." Tianwei concludes.


    "Good," Sun Haowei rubs his eyes. "Finally, some good news after all the mess that has happened."


    "Mess?" Jingwei asks hesitantly. His father immediately turns to him and res. Jingwei is a grown man, so he does not scuttle to hide behind Xue Ning''s much smaller figure.


    He would really like to though.


    "Yes¡­your mess. Apparently, the both of you are SECRETLY MARRIED!" His father ms a hand on the coffee table, causing everyone to jump.

 Chapter 52 [Bonus Chapter] Mrs Tang’s Online Hobbies

    "Wife, you''re still awake? I told you not to wait for me." Officer Tang scolded in concern when he saw that the lights in his dining room were still on past midnight. His son was already fast asleep, because he had to go to school the next day.


    Meanwhile, his wife was still staring at herptop with bleary eyes, trying to stay awake. A quick look on her screen showed that she was once again on the same gossip site.


    "Are you arguing with Sun Jingwei anti-fans again?" Officer Tang asked in dismay. "Didn''t you say you needed beauty sleep? Why are you missing sleep for him?"


    "Oh you''re back! This iste, even for you," His wife chided gently, choosing to ignore his incredulous questions about her online habits. After ten years of marriage, he should know when to just ept her hobbies.


    Upon closer look, she saw the utter exhaustion on his face and immediately got up to give him aforting hug. Officer Tang slumped into her arms, burying his face in her neck.


    "Shanshan, today was a very busy night." He said into the fabric of her nightdress.


    "Ah-jiu, did something terrible happen?" She asked in concern. "Do you want some hot tea to drink? You can tell me more about it."


    "Yes please." Officer Tang said. "You''re not going to believe what I''m going to tell you."


    "Try me," she said. "It can''t be more ridiculous than people online iming that Sun Jingwei knocked up a woman and then tried to get her killed to keep the secret."


    "What on earth?" Officer Tang eximed. "How do peoplee up with this crap?"


    "Exactly! Husband, you understand me perfectly - of course I couldn''t let them just say this nonsense on the inte."


    "Shanshan, this is the inte. This is where nonsense is born." Officer Tang said, yawning. "Why bother?"


    "Of course I should bother! They are tantly spreading untruths to justify their hatred of him." Shanshan said, shaking her head. "How could I let that go?"


    "Yes, that I do," Officer Tang said tiredly. His wife seemed to think that Sun Jingwei was just a lost child trying to find his way through life, despite being a 25 year old man with nearly every privilege life had handed to him on a silver tter.


    (He was a lot less sympathetic, but anyone would be after being forced to see his sheepish smile after yet another cock-up in the middle of the night.)


    Come to think of it, maybe that was why Sun Jingwei was such a mess back then. Too much of a good thing would screw up anyone and Sun Jingwei was too handsome, too bold, with too little self-preservation andmon sense.


    And then most importantly: he was too rich to suffer any real consequences, which meant that he usually didn''t experience how bad things could get, until they did.


    "But I don''t think you''ll need to defend him online for much longer," he continued. Shanshan looked at him in surprise.


    "What do you mean? Is his family finally taking some legal action against those rumours?"


    "Not exactly. Remember that rumour about him having a wife?" Officer Tang asked cautiously. His wife was going to be so excited.


    "OH MY GOD. So it''s true!" She pped in amazement to herself, delighted at this news.


    "Yes - " then he remembers what Miss Li Xue Ning told him, that she was, in no uncertain terms, Sun Jingwei''s wife. "Well not really his wife," He hastily amended. "And don''t call her his wife, she wouldn''t like that at all."


    "So he has a fiancee! You''ve met her today? What is she like?" Shanshan eagerly asked.


    "I think ¡­ she is a normal woman," Officer Tang said, ignoring the first part of his wife''s reply. A fiancee wasn''t a wife, so Miss Li shouldn''t mind.


    "I would expect so?" His wife rolled her eyes at him. "Did you expect him to marry an alien? Actually, if there were aliens, they would go for him, wouldn''t they? He''s that handsome after all."


    "Wife, your husband is still here, right in front of you." Officer Tang said dryly. Now it was his turn to roll his eyes at his wife, who could wax poetic about Sun Jingwei''s face. There was a reason why they would only meet each other over his dead body!


    His wife was a big enough fan only after meeting him once. If they met more often, Officer Tang might wake up to seeing Sun Jingwei''s poster hanging above their marital bed, and that would inspire any man to murder.


    "Yes I know, I can see him," Shanshan said. "In his human, non-alien, glory. Apparently just like Jingwei''s future wife."


    "You know what I mean," Officer Tang said, half-amused and half-exasperated at his wife''s words. She clearly longed to vex him, but then again, he knew that and still married her. So it was technically his own fault. He drank more tea and continued.


    "Remember that woman I told you about yesterday night - the one that thwarted Sun Jingwei''s drugging attempt? She''s the one." Officer Tang said. One usually shouldn''t be talking about cases with their spouses, but seeing that that incident wasn''t his case, it was fine.


    Also his wife had nearly gone into a panic at the news and shook him for information, so of course it was his husbandly duty to assuage her stress.<sub> </sub>


    Shanshan''s mouth fell open as he told her that.


    "Oh really? This is just like a Korean drama!" His wife seemed even more delighted at the information he revealed, pping her hands in excitement. "So the rumours of them meeting at the bar were true! And it''s a rescue romance! If she''s like a heroine, then she should be tall, like a supermodel. Is she?"


    "She''s not tall," Officer Tang said. "In fact, Sun Jingwei is over 20cm taller than her."


    "Height difference!" His wife eximed. He did not get the appeal, but nodded anyway. Happy wife, happy life.


    "Anyway, she looks like a normal woman." Officer Tang said, being obtuse on purpose, just to see his wife pout.


    "Such incredible skill when ites to describing people''s faces! It''s a wonder any suspects can get arrested."


    "That''s what CCTVs are for," he said ndly. "And why would I be taking note of a random woman''s face? I''m only looking at my wife."


    "tterer." Shanshan said, but she was blushing delightedly at his words. "But don''t think you''re off the hook! Give me details! Were they on a date today? Do you have a picture?"


    "No." His wife sighed.


    "Fine, I''ll stalk her online."


    "Wife, please. What happened to respecting people''s privacy? That woman is an ordinary person like us that hates the limelight! She''s not a rich heiress or some supermodel or actress." Officer Tang said.


    "When you put it that way, I shall not pry too much." His wife said, but Officer Tang watched with a deadpan expression, sipping his tea as she still searched for ''Sun Jingwei''s date'' in the search engine. She would not stop until her curiosity was sated.


    He was sure that she wouldn''t find anything though. The Sun family was notorious in keeping their searches clean - if his wife did find something, it would be taken down in two hours.


    "Is this her?" His wife pointed at the screen.


    Officer Tang spat out his tea.


    "How did you find this!" He asked. It was an image of the two of them embracing in the toilet, Sun Jingwei half-spinning her around.


    "Magic!" She said proudly. "But no, husband, it''s actually really easy. First you type in the search bar -"


    "I know how to search for things!" He protested hotly. First Sun Jingweiments on not using his phone for note taking, now his wife mocks him for not knowing technology. Another reason why they must never meet!


    "Right, keep telling yourself that." She said, smiling cheekily at him. "Anyway, it wasn''t hard, the pictures are everywhere now! I think it''ll hit the hot news by tomorrow if they don''t take it down. Do you want to text Sun Jingwei about it?"


    "NO." Officer Tang said firmly. "I am a police officer, not their PR team."


    He thought about Miss Li, and then felt slightly guilty for not helping. He squashed it down. It wasn''t his job - if Sun Jingwei cared about her as much as he imed, then he should be the one making sure her name was kept out of the press and online.


    Sun Jingwei should be the one taking responsibility for his own rtionship and for her well-being. If not, that man has no right to date her! Officer Tang wasn''t going to help him with his rtionship!


    "Well, at least her name isn''t out yet, even if her face is." Shanshan mused. "Of course, once more people get interested I''m sure they''ll find out who she is eventually. Remember the woman in Sun Jingwei''s sex video? They dug her out in less than a week!"


    "How could I forget." He replied dryly. That woman in question was sitting in their holding cell right now. He was going to interview her tomorrow morning. He sighed, feeling exhaustion sink into his bones. If only he didn''t have to do the interview tomorrow!


    But Sun Tianwei wanted the case to be concluded as quickly as possible, which meant Officer Tang was in-charge for now. Sun Tianwei didn''t want to waste time with the handover.


    "Husband, go and shower and sleep." Shanshan smiled warmly at him, shoving him to their bathroom. "You worked hard today."


    "Then what about you? Are you going to sleep soon? Don''t tell me you''re going to stay upte arguing with moreizens." He asked cautiously.


    "I won''t!" Shanshan said, with a fervent glint in her eye. Officer Tang clearly didn''t believe her, but still went to shower. He wanted to sleep.


    Meanwhile, Shanshan began drafting her article.


    It''s not ''arguing withizens'' if she''s writing an online post about Sun Jingwei loving this mysterious fiancee of his, who was just a normal girl who rescued him from ruin. It was peak romance!

 Chapter 53 Not-So Incriminating Pictures Part 1

    "Secretly married?!" Xue Ning and Jingwei both exim loudly in unison, but while Xue Ning''s tone is one of confusion, Jingwei''s one was one of delight.


    She res at him, and he gives a terrible impression of looking confused.


    "Excuse me Sir, wasn''t it cleared up before I started this job?" Xue Ning continues to ask.


    "Yeah Father, didn''t we put out an announcement or anything? Did our PR department ck off?" Jingwei adds on.


    "Our PR department has never rested for a day since you flew back into the country five years ago," Tianwei replies tly. "There''s a reason why that department has the highest turnover rate in the entirepany."


    "Oh." Jingwei says glumly, falling silent. No wonder Yi Ting keeps cursing him out - she was the sad soul in charge of hiring.


    "¡­ Did anything else happen?" Xue Ning asked cautiously, seeing that no one was going to borate.


    "Nothing too terrible," Sun Haowei replies. His voice is deceptively casual, and it scares Xue Ning more than the yelling. "Other than my son doing a spectacr job in making the world believe he''s desperately in love with you, rendering all our earlier efforts of denialpletely moot."


    "Oh," Xue Ning says faintly, because there was nothing else she could say in response.


    "Father!" Jingwei exims, face redder than a tomato. But he still seems too pleased at this oue. Xue Ning makes herself count to 20 to stop herself from elbowing him. Patience. Patience.


    "What, you impudent boy? You dare to feel embarrassed after acting so shameless?!" Sun Haowei demands, throwing a printed photo at them. "Just look at the both of you, carvoting in public."


    The carvoting in question showed them hugging. It was a picture of them taken when they were still in the restroom, after they took down Xiumin. Sun Jingwei had spun her around delightedly then, and she was so relieved and happy that they got rid of such a big threat that she let him.


    One of the nosy staff must have taken the photo then. Thankfully, Xue Ning''s underwear was not on disy.


    "What''s wrong with that?" Jingwei says, staring at the photo. He didn''t see anything with hugging, but perhaps that was too much for a man like Sun Haowei, who belonged in the era of no public disys of affection. "Father, you have to move with the times!"


    "What rubbish!" His father yells and ms a huge stack of photos on the table. "What about all these then? Everyone thinks the both of you are married!"


    Xue Ning and Jingwei look at each other before approaching the pictures cautiously, fearing the worst, but they don''t show anything untoward.


    There are a few photos, taken at her shabby apartmentplex. Someone had gotten grainy photos of her getting into Sun Jingwei''s eye-catching Ferrari. Luckily, the windows were tinted so no one could really confirm if it was Sun Jingwei in the car, even though everyone present knew that only he drove this particr car.


    So, the photos are just creepy, but not incriminating. Xue Ning does not like the idea of her neighbours spying on her for spare cash. Who knows what they might do when she returns to her building?<sub> </sub>


    There are more pictures, this time it showed¡­ CCTV footage of them at the restaurant? Even though the pictures weren''t of the highest quality, one could still clearly see Sun Jingwei holding her hand tightly in all of them, their bodies close together.


    This was from the time where they pretended to be dating, just so that he could get Xiao Hui to leave him alone! And look how well that turned out - Xiao Hui was harmless,pared to Xiu Min, the woman that was actually obsessed with him.


    Did the police pull out the CCTV footage to look for Xiu Min, but end up stumbling on them?


    She would like to have words with them immediately - their priorities are so fucked!


    There are more photos of them walking in the restaurant and milling outside. These new pictures must have been taken after they''ve gotten interviewed by Officer Tang, for in the pictures they looked happier. They were half-bickering with each other then, still buoyed with happiness by their sess.


    In a particr photo, Jingwei had a hand on her back, and it looked like he was guiding her along to the ambnce while saying something. She had a faint smile on her face, as though she''s trying hard not tough. That seemed¡­ fine. Innocent. Friendly.


    What was less friendly: Sun Jingwei''s face. The photo had captured the full extent of his puppy eyes. He looked at her so adoringly, so hungrily, in the photo that Xue Ning felt her cheeks heating up just by staring at it.


    Come to think of it, he wore that look often, when he was with her. She chanced a quick nce at him, only to realise he was already staring at her with that very look on his face. She stares back down at the photos.


    Luckily, there wasn''t any photo of their kiss. There would be no turning back from that point.


    "Who took these photos?" Xue Ning asks. The thought that someone was secretly taking pictures of them both made her skin crawl. And the CCTV footage too! Were the police doing their jobs?


    While Xue Ning worried over potential paparazzi and the ipetence of the police force, Jingwei was undergoing a mini-crisis on his own.


    He stared at his own face in the multiple photos, cataloguing the affection in his own eyes and the genuinity of his smile. This was the first time he looked at himself when he was looking at her!


    Did he ever look so in love, so besotted, with any other women? Surely he must have, once upon a time. But he honestly could not confirm it.


    But that could be because he had never fallen in love like this, so deeply, that every atom in his body was hellbent on flinging itself through space to reach Xue Ning.


    "So?" Jingwei asks his father, raising an eyebrow. Xue Ning gives him a warning look, hoping that he doesn''t antagonise his father further, but Jingwei reaches out and holds her hand right in front of him.


    "Father," Jingwei says cockily, "What''s wrong with these pictures?"

 Chapter 54 Not-So Incriminating Pictures Part 2

    Xue Ning''s heart was about to beat out of her chest! What on earth was Sun Jingwei trying to pull! Even if he was in love with her (big if still), how did he expect her to marry into his family when he''s outright making sure he pisses off his father as much as possible?


    Sheer insanity. If they weren''t right in front of his father, she would have elbowed him in the gut.


    Meanwhile, the room was enveloped in tense silence. The staff continued to watch dumbly as one of their Young Masters straight up held the hand of his woman right in front of his disapproving father, daring him to react.


    "They''re all over the Inte," Sun Haowei spits out. Xue Ning pales immediately, does this mean her family back home will see it?


    Maybe they won''t. Maybe the signal tower would just vanish into thin air. Hah. Fat hope. Her hands are starting to sweat from nervousness, but Jingwei still holds her hand firmly, his thumb rubbing small circles into her hand to calm her down.


    She''s dreading the phone calls she''ll get in the morning.


    "Father, I have an idea," Tianwei cuts in, his eyes glinting. "We can use this to our advantage."


    Everyone turns to look at him with curious eyes.


    "Since everyone believes that Jingwei and Miss Li are romantically involved, any denial on our part will just make us look like we disapprove of Miss Li. That will not reflect well on us or thepany, because people will think we''re looking down on someone of her status."


    "...Go on," Sun Haowei says, peering at his son through his beady eyes, sharp even with age.


    "I propose we let Miss Li move in with Jingwei to his apartment." Tianwei continues.


    Jingwei shoots his brother a delighted look. He knew it! His older brother would always have his back, even when ites to his love life! When Xue Ning and him finally tie the knot and have children, they''ll name one of the kids after him.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning choked on air. What on earth was Sun Tianwei saying? She always thought he was rational and intelligent.


    Sun Haowei''s face ckened almost immediately. Letting his son, and the woman he is in love with who happens to be the daughter of his past friends, live together? Over his dead body.


    "Nonsense!" He roared. "Tianwei, I expected better of you! What kind of thoughts has your brother been filling you with!"


    "Father, please listen," Tianwei pleads, "this is for everyone''s sake. There were two attempts on Jingwei''s life already tonight; it''ll be safer for Miss Li to guard him when she''s staying with him. We can use the rumours of their rtionship to their advantage."


    Sun Haowei seethed, but could not refute his eldest son.


    Tianwei continues. "What''s more, with Jingwei settling down, public opinion of him will shift for the better. A man in amitted rtionship will always sound better than a drunk yboy getting into trouble."


    "You feel very strongly about this," Sun Haowei points out, his eyes narrowing. His eldest son was up to something.


    "Father, I am willing to continue this talk with you privately, but for now, we should let Miss Li and Jingwei rest. They both had a long day," Tianwei points out. Jingwei gives his older brother a grateful look, because while Xue Ning was tooposed to fall asleep in front of his father, he could tell that she was getting tired.<sub> </sub>


    "Hmph," his father grunted. Jingwei took it as an agreement and quickly pulled Xue Ning away from the room with a hasty goodbye. Xue Ning was bewildered, she barely managed another bow in goodbye before she was pulled out of the room and along a ridiculously long corridor.


    The entire floor was marble, and there was a dark red carpet lining the middle. Was this a pce or his house?


    "Wait, where are we going?" Xue Ning asks.


    "I''ll bring you to see Lady Yu! She has everything prepared for your arrival." Jingwei smiles at her, swinging their linked arms idly. "So, what do you think so far?"


    "...Your father doesn''t like me," Xue Ning says, a bit glumly. It was rare for elders not to like Xue Ning - her behaviour usually rubbed teenagers and her peers wrongly, but old people tended to like her straightforwardness.


    Jingwei''s mouth fell open; that clearly wasn''t the response he was looking for. She continues, "I''d better go, he might just fire me tonight."


    "Then I''ll rehire you," Jingwei says firmly, his hand squeezing hers. "So stay."


    "Are you sure it''s a good idea?" She asks. "Your Ge is already courting death by proposing we live together."


    "Nah, Father won''t do anything to my brother, he''s the favoured son." Jingwei says cheerfully. "If he gets pissed off enough to leave the family, my father will be left with me to inherit his business and empire! Which is crazy. He''ll never allow it."


    Xue Ning lets out a tiredugh. Jingwei has a point.


    "So¡­ what is your brother nning actually?" Xue Ning asks. "Is he really expecting us to live together as a couple to improve your yboy reputation?"


    "And to protect my life," Jingwei adds. "But that''s Ge for you, his ns always have more than one benefit. He''s smart like that. Oh look! That''s Lady Yu! Good evening!"


    Xue Ning gives the mentioned Lady Yu a quick bow, and she returns it easily. Lady Yu was apparently a matron in her early 50s, her long hair tied up in an elegant bun. She was dressed simrly to the rest of the household staff, but she had a petticoat instead of the usual skirt.


    Lady Yu was clearly the one in charge of the household staff, and she gave Xue Ning a polite once-over, her face betraying no thoughts.


    "Please bring Xue Ning to her room to freshen up!" Jingwei says to Lady Yu, before turning to Xue Ning. "I''ll go and see how my Ge is getting on - I''ll join you for supperter. See you!"


    "Wait, you''re not apanying me?" Xue Ning asks.


    <o>,m Jingwei smiles. "Aww, you''ll miss me right? Don''t worry Xue Ning, I''ll be back before you know it." He even shoots her a finger heart and a wink.</o>


    "On second thought, nevermind," she says, face scrunching up at his cheesiness. She waves a hand at him."Scram, begone, go. Goodbye."


    "Goodbye, Young Master Sun." Lady Yu repeats politely before gesturing to Xue Ning. "Shall we, Miss Li?"

 Chapter 55 Family And Friends

    Everyone falls into stunned silence. Tianwei thinks his father might have just stopped breathingpletely.


    "So Father, you can''t give her a sum of money and chase her away like in all the dramas, or try to get people to intimidate her, or purposely match me with someone else, or - "


    "Jingwei hush," Tianwei advises, watching his father''s face slowly turn purple with rage.


    "What? I''m serious!" Jingwei exims.


    "Hmph, are you scared that your love can''t handle such challenges? If the both of you split because of this, this rtionship is not worth cherishing!" Sun Haowei deres, his mind already whirling with ns.


    He''s going to prove to his son that this new infatuation with his bodyguard was just a passing fancy, by all means necessary.


    "Father, I mean it," Jingwei says, staring at his father''s strict eyes without flinching.


    "If I find out you did something like this to sabotage my rtionship progress with Xue Ning, I''ll get on my bike and fly off the tallest cliff I find!" Jingwei deres.


    "You dare to threaten me? Your own father?!" Sun Haowei roars in return. "See if I don''t beat you into a pulp!"


    "I''ll still marry her even if you disown me!" Jingwei says loudly.


    "You -"


    "Let''s not be hasty," Tianwei cuts in before fists really begin to fly and he ends up with one less brother. "We have more pressing concerns, remember? Father, may the three of us speak in private?"


    Sun Haowei catches the hidden meaning.


    "Everyone out. Shut the doors," he orders, and the horde of well-trained staff obeyed easily without question. In less than ten seconds, the room was cleared except for the three of them, and the huge oak doors leading to the living room were firmly shut with a final quiet lock.


    "What is it?" His father asks, getting right down to business.


    "We suspect someone rted to the Wu Family may be out to kill Jingwei," Tianwei states calmly.


    "That is a loaded statement," Sun Haowei replies evenly, gripping the armrest of the sofa hard enough that his knuckles turned white. "The Wu family is long gone."


    "We have no proof of that," Tianwei argues. "And we''ve found a lead that at least shows that someone knew something about Jingwei''s past with Wu Shangjing. Jingwei can tell you more."


    Both of them turn to Jingwei.


    "He knew. The name." Jingwei starts, taking a deep breath to calm himself. "I mean, he knew my hacker alias from before, Father. No one else knew it but him," Jingwei says. "I think he''s still alive."


    "He could have simply told more people back then," Tianwei points out. "And you saw the reports on his death."


    "But he - " Jingwei wants to protest, but it''s his father that interrupts him.


    "I would not put it past that boy to leak your information," Sun Haowei mutters bitterly. "Who knew the boy I saw as a second son would have done something so heinous?"


    Both sons of his do a double-take at his words. Jingwei is shocked that his father was expressing any form of emotion at Wu Shangjing, who he treated like a vermin after news of his misdeeds were outed.


    Tianwei was shocked, because his father mentioned that Wu Shangjing was his second son. Then was he the first son, or was it Jingwei?


    Tianwei collects himself and continues.


    "So you see Father, I had more reasons to ensure Jingwei remains protected by Miss Li, even if she''s not a trained bodyguard. We need to get to the bottom of this case first," Tianwei says.


    "And you''re making sure Xue Ning stays with me, using those rumours floating around as a cover, so that whoever is after me doesn''t think Xue Ning is actually my bodyguard," Jingwei states, working through his brother''s train of thought.


    "Wait, Ge, did you spread those rumours?" Jingwei asks, half-impressed and half-appalled. Tianwei refuses to dignify his question with a response.


    "Even after this incident with that woman Xiumin, it would just seem like two women catfighting over Jingwei to others. No one, outside us, would take her seriously," Tianwei continues, "which means we''ll have more chances to trap the culprit when they fail."


    "Ge, you''re fucking scary," Jingwei ps his hands slowly, still shocked at the way his brother''s brain worked. "But I''m definitely making Xue Ning go for actual bodyguarding courses. If they escte, I need her to be protected!"


    "Not for her to protect you?" Sun Haowei cuts in snidely. "What an idiotic son."<sub> </sub>


    "We can protect each other," Jingwei replies smoothly. "Then once everything gets settled, we''ll be happily married and I can tell our children what a badass their mother is."


    Sun Haowei''s face looks like he''s praying to the Goddess of Mercy for patience not to smite his son right there and then.


    Meanwhile, Tianwei''s thoughts were in a whirl. Sun Haowei had called Jingwei an ''idiotic son'', but it was still a son nontheless.


    He tries to recall if Sun Haowei had ever referred to him as his son in private. Strangely enough, he wasing up nk.


    Jingwei was a son, albeit an idiotic son. What did that make Tianwei? The smart servant? No, that cannot be. He hadn''t done anything to risk disownment - for nearly 30 years, he was the perfect heir, pride and joy of the Sun familypared to the ck sheep that was his younger brother.


    Other than hisck of a wife, Tianwei was the best candidate for his sessor!


    Jingwei may have a firm candidate for his wife, but Father wasn''t coping well with that knowledge, which begs the question: why?


    It would be different, if Jingwei was the sole inheritor of the estate. He would need a wife that was savvy enough politically and of a powerful family background to aid him in his business, one that could say the right things to the right people instead of bluntly insulting them.


    But Jingwei isn''t the heir. Tianwei is. Unless¡­ his father has something else in mind?


    A tendril of doubt creeps into his mind, and refuses to budge.


    It was irrational for his father to be so opposed to such a match - sure, he had hopes for Jingwei to marry Zhou Yu, but Zhou Yu had rejected that proposal so harshly that it was inconceivable for their union to happen.


    Then again, why was the Zhou family''s heiress matched with Jingwei and not Tianwei? Was it truly because they wanted Jingwei to marry into their family, or was it a sign of his father''s favouritism?


    He vows to dig further into this matter.


    =


    "Boss, I have grave news to report," a man says, sinking into a low bow. His voice was gravelly, and he dared not look up, especially when he was the bearer of bad news.


    It didn''t matter that his boss seemed like a kind, genial person who wouldn''t hurt a fly. It was all a facade.


    "Rise Zi Long, what did I say about standing on ceremony with me?" A soft, silky voice replies.


    "Not to do it," Zi Long responds. "But that would be disrespectful of me, Young Master Wu."


    "Young Master¡­ you''re the only one that calls me that now," he says, with a tinge of deranged mncholy. "Back then I was the one¡­"


    Zi Long wisely kept silent, after thest man that tried to interject got his tongue cut out. It was easier to let Boss work through his moods and memories on his own, instead of interrupting him half-way.


    "Now Zi Long, what is it that you wished to tell me?"


    p "Xiumin has been arrested, and her aplice is in the hospital now," Zi Long says, his head down, and waits for the eventual explosion of temper.</anda>


    "<strong>THAT USELESS BITCH! BOTH OF THEM!</strong>" His Boss screeches, his voice ringing madly in Zi Long''s ears. Zi Long doesn''t flinch, because he''s better trained than that. He doesn''t flinch when his boss sends aputer monitor flying, nor when a paperweightes flying his way, smacking him dead on the forehead hard enough to bleed.


    This wasn''t the first time his Boss had a violent outburst. It would not be thest. Countless men and women have fallen prey to it, but not Zi Long, never Zi Long, because he had been watching the Young Master for so long.


    "Young Master, what are your orders?" He asks, ignoring the blood steadily dripping down his face.


    "The usual," his Boss says, calming down slightly. "You know our rules; we do not tolerate failure."


    "It will be done," Zi Long promises, but just before he turns to leave, his Boss calls him back.


    "Get that cut looked at," Wu Shangjing says, staring at the blood with a frankly disconcerting look in his eye. He walks closer to Zi Long and uses his finger to smear the blood away.


    "Yes, Young Master." Zi Long says, and turns away, pretending he did not see the way his Young Master licked his fingers clean.


    It was all Young Master Sun''s fault, that their Young Master became like this, this perverse creature wearing human skin.


    Zi Long refuses to shudder. He has a job to do.

 Chapter 56 Lady Yu

    Sun Jingwei had blown a kiss in Xue Ning''s direction before leaving her alone with Lady Yu, and Xue Ning had no clue what that enigmatic smile pasted on Lady Yu meant.


    "How are you feeling, Young Mistress Li?" Lady Yu asks as they slowly make their way down the corridor.


    Xue Ning blinks, not expecting that term of address.


    "I''m fine, but you can just call me Xue Ning," she replies, a bit sheepishly. She felt like a newborn colt toddling about, especially whenpared to Lady Yu who seemed to glide smoothly across the floor with practised grace, even in her matronly outfit.


    "I see, Xue Ning." Lady Yu replies politely in return.


    They fell silent, their footsteps as the only sound when making their way through the never-ending corridor. Xue Ning''s footsteps sounded particrly loud and clunky whenpared to Lady Yu''s softer, more graceful steps.


    The silence grows awkward. Or at least Xue Ning thought so. Lady Yu merely had that same enigmatic smile on her.


    "So - "


    "Miss Li -"


    They both speak at the same time.


    "After you," Xue Ning says politely, gesturing to her


    "Oh no, you should go first," Lady Yu says, bowing slightly and gesturing to Xue Ning in return.


    "Er," Xue Ning starts. "Where are we going?" She peers down the empty hallway full of identical doors.


    "Pardon me, I forgot to mention this earlier, but I''m bringing you to your room," Lady Yu smiles. "I hope you''ll find your arrangements adequate. We had very short notice, after all."


    "Oh, anything is fine!" Xue Ning insists sheepishly. Great, she was inconveniencing the staff sote at night. "You don''t need to go through extra trouble. You can just toss me into a guest room, I can settle it myself."


    "That would be remiss of me," Lady Yu shakes her head, eyes lit up with¡­ amusement? "You''re Young Master Jingwei''s precious guest. We must make sure you''re well-taken care of."


    Precious guest? Normally it wouldn''t sound suspicious, but the way Lady Yu''s eyes twinkled makes her wonder if there''s some hidden meaning she isn''t getting.


    "Thanks?" She replies hesitantly. "Sorry for giving you and the rest of the staff trouble sote at night though." Xue Ning gets more guilty the more she thinks about it. Why had he gotten the entire house involved just for her? He could have just stuffed Xue Ning in one of the spare rooms and called it a day.


    Instead, he had made someone else work overtime just to ensure she was well-taken care of.


    "It''s really alright though, you can just bring me to the room and leave me there! If Jingwei tries to make trouble for you, I''ll talk to him." She promises seriously, in case Lady Yu thought that she was lying and trying to get her into trouble.


    Lady Yu smiles, a sight warmer than before.


    "That won''t be necessary, I wanted to see you in person," Lady Yu replies. "It''s always easier to learn more about someone that way, yes?"


    "Yes?" Xue Ning replies, confused. "I mean, yeah."


    "I''m d you agree, and we''re arriving at your room soon," Lady Yu says, walking faster to lead her into another corridor, with more borate doors. This time, the marbled floor was carpeted and there were mini chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. Outside every room door, there was a disy vase full of blue roses.


    Xue Ning''s mouth falls open. She was staying in one of these rooms?


    But Lady Yu did not stop. She made another turn, and then another, and the doors grew more borate, the carpet more lush, the chandeliers more extravagant.


    The blue roses have been swapped for red ones.


    "Is this ce Hogwarts?" Xue Ning muttered to herself. She was getting tired from all the walking around, and she could barely keep straight of where she was supposed to go. If not for the changes in decor, she wouldn''t have been able to keep track of where she was.


    The doors weren''t evenbelled for heaven''s sake!


    In front of her, Lady Yu''s lips curled into a smile as she heard the girl do her best to keep up.<sub> </sub>


    So far, if she evaluated Miss Li Xue Ning objectively, she had a favourable impression of her. She was polite, she wasn''t spoilt rotten, she didn''tin about the long walking distance even though she should have, because Lady Yu made sure to take the long way around to her room, just so that she could give her a better look at the rest of the mansion and the wealth that she might enjoy in future.


    Miss Li didn''t catch the fact that she was leading her in circles though. That wasn''t a point in her favour, but that could be exined by exhaustion and the fact that she was a first-time visitor to the mansion. Even Wu Shangjing, before his fall from grace, had needed more than one visit to familiarise himself with the directions.


    "We''re here, please enjoy your stay" she announces with cheerful finality, pulling the heavy doors open. Xue Ning turns to stare at her room, blinking repeatedly to take it all in.


    To call it a room would be a massive understatement! It was a room the same way the Great Wall of China was a wall.


    The first thing she noticed was the gigantic king-size canopy bed right in the middle of the room. It had six fluffy pillows on top of it, along with a thick duvet that Xue Ning longed to crawl under to sleep with. The curtains were pale translucent white silk, and they fluttered delicately in the cold air of the air-conditioning.


    "Wow. Are you sure I''m supposed to stay here?" Xue Ning asks, eyes staring at the huge bed, then moving onto the delicate chandelier at the high ceiling of the room. She could see two doors, most likely leading to the bathroom.


    This room alone was twice the size of her dingy apartment!


    "It''s a bit¡­ much." Xue Ning says hesitantly.


    "Is this not to your liking?" Lady Yu asks. "We can have something new prepared -"


    "No no no - this is perfect, really!" Xue Ning says, shaking her head and waving her hands rapidly, in case Lady Yu really decided to prepare a new room based on her words. "It just seems too beautiful to stay in!"


    "What are rooms, if not for people to stay in?" Lady Yu responds easily. "You might have already noticed, this house has an excess of empty rooms. Even if every staff member lived here, there is still more than enough room. So feel free to stay here for as long as you like. A house like this should be full of life after all."


    She gives Xue Ning another meaningful nce, but Xue Ning has no clue how to interpret it. She simply bows in thanks.


    "I see, thank you then, I''ll stay here for tonight."


    "Have a good night''s rest then," Lady Yu says, smiling. "After you are done washing up, feel free to call for supper to be brought up. We''ve already had it prepared, but I''m sure you would like to freshen up first."


    Before Xue Ning could ask about clothes, Lady Yu already had her answer prepared.


    "Clothes are in the wardrobe, and the bathroom already has the toiletries you need. Do change out your shoes for the slippers provided. If there is something else you need, please contact me using the house phone in the room."


    Xue Ning takes a closer look - sure enough, there was a phone on the coffee table, right next to the TV mounted on the wall.


    "Thank you again," Xue Ning says. "I didn''t expect this much¡­"


    Lady Yu gives her a motherly smile. "There is no trouble, you can repay me by treating Young Master Jingwei well.


    "Huh? Well¡­ I''ll try?" Xue Ning says sheepishly, feeling a bit embarrassed. "I curse him out quite often." And threatened him more than once. There was also some furious elbowing. Damn, when she thinks about it, she''s not exactly treating him very well, is she?


    "You don''t have to change, just being yourself is enough," Lady Yu borates. "It''s been a long time since I saw Young Master Jingwei happy."


    "Oh," Xue Ning says, face flushing at her words. "I mean, that''s nice. Oh wait, not nice, because he should be happy more often, but I mean -"


    "I understand," Lady Yu says, nearlyughing at how this young woman was trying to exin herself. Young Master Jingwei had chosen someone special indeed.


    "Right," Xue Ning nods awkwardly. "I''ll just¡­ go and bathe then. Thanks for the help Lady Yu."


    "You''re wee," Lady Yu smiles. "Then I''ll bid you goodnight for now."


    "Bye!" Xue Ning says, before entering the room and closing the door behind her.


    Behind the other side of the door, Lady Yu sighed.


    "Ah, Yue Niang¡­ your daughter looks so much like you. No wonder the Old Master doesn''t know how to deal with her."

 Chapter 57 Exploring The Room

    Now that she was left alone, Xue Ning took her time looking around the gigantic room the Sun family had so kindly provided her to stay in. First things first, she hurriedly pulls the curtains to give herself some privacy. It''s unlikely that someone could spy on her with the mansion''s security, but better safe than sorry.


    The room strangely also had two doors inside it. One led to the bathroom. Xue Ning assumed the other would lead to a storage room, but she wasn''t going to explore it now, when there was a nice warm shower waiting for her! She switches on the lights to the bathroom, bathing it in a gentle yellow glow. There was a huge marble bathtub, which wasn''t too surprising.


    What was surprising was the fact that it already had a bubble bath in it, and there were rose petals in the water, their sweet scent enveloping the bathroom.


    Did Jingwei have this prepared for her in advance? That was¡­ nice of him. She''s not going to think about the red petals arranged in the shape of a heart. Nope.


    She decides to shower first to wash herself clean before even stepping into the rose bath. It would be a crime to dirty the water like that.


    She undresses herself, making sure to take out her phone and house keys from Jingwei''s suit jacket and puts them next to the sink for safekeeping. She then slowly undoes the bandages to make sure she gets aplete wash. Even if it hurts, she''s not missing this chance for a full body hot shower and bath! She then stood under a refreshingly hot shower, gently scrubbing herself free of grime before entering the bath.


    Xue Ning lets out a hiss as she slowly lowers herself in the bath, her muscles enjoying the warmth even as her skin screams for relief. She then leans against the bathtub - it was so big, it seemed to be made for two people to bathe in.


    Suddenly she had a mental image of sharing the bathtub with Jingwei, her reclining to rest her weary back on his chest as he hugged and -


    She quickly dunks her head into the water to snap herself out of it.


    ''Don''t be weird and ridiculous just because he''s nice to you,'' she scolds herself. They belong in different worlds, and she should know that better now, because she''s lounging in a toiletrger than her living room.


    She stayed in the bath until the skin on her fingers shrivelled like prunes, before reluctantly getting out and wrapping herself in one of the thick fluffy bath towels.


    Idly humming a cheerful tune, she hopes there are some T-shirts in the cupboard, only for her to trail off awkwardly when she meets Sun Jingwei''s equally surprised eyes.


    "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!" She screams in shock, holding onto her towel.


    "I live here? This is also my room!" Jingwei protests. Technically, this was his house, and he could go anywhere he wanted. It was just sheer coincidence that he ended up in this room because he wanted to use the big bath. Instead he stumbled onto Xue Ning, smelling like a garden of roses, with her skin baby pink with the steam from the bath, her eyes wide with surprise.


    She only had a towel on. Jingwei gulped and tore his eyes away from her figure with herculean effort, willing himself to not pop a boner. There would be a time and ce for itter, and it''s not when Xue Ning looks like she wants to murder him for tresspassing.


    "No that cannot be! Lady Yu led me to this room!" Xue Ning retorts, before pointing an angry finger at the door, her other hand on her towel for added security. "OUT. I need to change!"


    Jingwei pauses, realisation dawning on his face.


    "Alright, going now, keep your towel on," he says, but instead of going out the front door, he merely exits from another door in the room. Xue Ning blinks in surprise. So that extra door didn''t lead to a storage room like she''d expected. Instead, it led to another room.


    She locks that door and opens the cupboard, looking for something suitable to wear.


    "Oh my god! Who wears this!" Xue Ning hissed to herself as she pulled out lingerie after lingerie from the cupboard, despairing. "Why are there no normal T-shirts here?"


    Did Lady Yu put her in the room meant for Sun Jingwei''s one-night-stands? She wanted to call Lady Yu, but the thought of bothering her at such ate hour stilled her hand. She wasn''t going to be that asshole.<sub> </sub>


    Reluctantly, she put on the silk panties and matching bra, before deciding to knock on the door Sun Jingwei passed through.


    "What is it?" Sun Jingwei''s voice asks cheerfully.


    "Can I borrow a T-shirt and shorts to wear?" Xue Ning asks. "There''s nothing in my cupboard but lingerie."


    "Are you naked?" His voice asks in return. It sounded like he was choking on his tongue.


    "No - I have a towel on," she replies. "So can I borrow - "


    There was a loud thump from the other end of the door, as though someone fell and knocked his head against the door.


    "Hey!" She yells, concerned. She immediately unlocks the door to open it, fearing the worst.


    Only to get an armful of wet, half-naked man iling straight at her!


    Unfortunately for her, she didn''t know that Sun Jingwei had merely slipped on the wet floor, distracted with the thoughts of her wrapped in a towel. He had mmed his head against the door, and that door was the only thing keeping him upright.


    (Who knew Lady Yu was devious enough to do this to him! He didn''t create that much trouble for her in the past, did he?)


    He internally screamed to himself, then he realised he was screaming out loud in surprise when the door opened.


    ? He falls forward, hands windmilling in panic as hends straight into Xue Ning''s panicked arms.


    "Careful!" Xue Ning yells, and Jingwei grabs onto anything that could help steady him.


    Good news: Xue Ning had managed to catch him in time, they both stumbled back, but didn''t fall on the floor.


    Not-so-good news: The towel falls on the floor instead, heartlessly ripped away by Jingwei''s iling hands. Ity sadly on the floor, a soldier fallen in the line of duty, the white of it a sharp contrast against the brown hardwood floor.


    Jingwei stared at Xue Ning''s face, and then his eyes roved downwards, attention wholly captured by the enticing swell of her breasts in white silk.


    He could have lived in that moment forever, with her body pressed so closely to his, their bare skin touching, their arms wrapped around each other.


    Does Xue Ning feel the same way? He hopes so.


    Not a secondter, Xue Ning knees him in the balls.

 Chapter 58 Your T-Shirt

    "Ouch¡­" Sun Jingwei wheezes, falling on the floor in a crumpled heap. "Xue Ning! What''s that for!"


    "For being a pervert!" Xue Ning yells as she hurriedly wraps herself back in the towel, her body boiling red from embarrassment, just like a cooked lobster. She had grabbed him on instinct to prevent him from cracking his head on the floor, but she didn''t realise he was half-naked until he ended up in her arms.


    And of course, he pulled away her towel, and ended up leering at her breasts. Thankfully she had the foresight to put on one of the sexy bras. If not, he would have seen everything, and Xue Ning would then be arrested for murdering the youngest Sun family member in his own room.


    "It was an ident!" Jingwei whines pathetically on the floor. "I think you cut off the Sun family bloodline¡­"


    "Your brother is still here, and your father isn''t that old. I''m sure they''ll manage!"


    Jingwei makes a face of intense disgust from the floor. "Gross. Why do you make me think of my father reproducing?"


    She makes a simr face, now that he brings it up. "You were the one spouting nonsense to begin with! Nevermind!"


    She steps over his prone body to enter a new room. It turns out that the two rooms were connected through this one door, as though it was a hotel room forrge families.


    It was simr in design to hers, but she didn''t care for room decor. She made a beeline for the closet.


    "What are you doing?" Jingwei asks, mbering from the floor to stand right behind her, watching her as she digs through it for something she could wear.


    All the clothes smelled like him, but she refused to think about how nice he smelt, and how his warm puff of exhaled air on her ear sent a thrilling heat through her own body.


    "I''m borrowing your T-shirt and pants. Problem?" She states grouchily, flicking through an entire column of dress shirts. That man dared to cop a feel and had an eyeful of her in lingerie, lending her clothes was the least he could do!


    "What colour do you want? Design? Fabric type?" Jingwei asks easily, like a trained salesman, his arms reaching over her head to help her find something to wear.


    "Anything is fine, I just want a normal T-shirt and pants," Xue Ning grumbles, refusing to look at him or his defined arm muscles from the corner of her eye. She could still feel his warmth on her skin.


    Jingwei shrugs and easily pulls out a soft ck T-shirt along with a pair of boxer shorts.


    "I have no pants that will fit you, but this should be fine? You seem to like ck a lot." He asks hopefully, preparing to spring back, just in case Xue Ning decides to kick backwards andnd another blow to his family jewels.


    "Fine, thanks" Xue Ning says, snatching them from his hands. She scurries off into the bathroom, but not before Jingwei caught the lovely shade of pink still on her face. He makes sure to keep his face even, onlyughing to himself when she enters the bathroom. Oh, how cute of her!


    Meanwhile Xue Ning hurriedly put on the T-shirt he had given her. It was so soft and sorge that it felt like she was swimming in a warm nket, and she could detect a faint hint of his scent along the cor.


    ''Focus, he probably smells nice because of expensive detergent.'' She tells herself, pping her cheeks to snap herself out of the strange mood.


    He was so much taller than her that the ends of his T-shirt reached her thighs. Which meant that she didn''t need to wear his boxer shorts, even if they were clean. Xue Ning wasn''t sure if she was ready for that level of intimacy. But to go without pants¡­<sub> </sub>


    On second thought, she put them on anyway. What if she fell in front of Sun Jingwei?


    She had enough of going pantless for one night, and she wasn''t going to give anyone a free show.


    Giving herself a quick look in the mirror, she nods, satisfied. There was no helping the dark circles under her eyes, the paleness of her lips and the faint scratches on her arms, but she''s at least clean and dressed.


    "Thanks," Xue Ning says gruffly after she leaves the bathroom. With more clothes on her body, she feels less embarrassed, more in control. "Sorry about kneeing you in the balls," she adds, because he was technically still her boss.


    "You''re not sorry!" Jingwei says, halfughing as he puts on his own T-shirt. Good. Xue Ning doesn''t have to be distracted by his muscles and his warm skin and the smell of his body.


    "You don''t have to lie to me." Jingwei adds, turning around to face her, blessedly clothed now, even if his hair was still damp like hers. He must have also taken a shower.


    "In my defence, you did deserve it." She shrugs, wrapping the bath towel over her wet hair.


    "I beg to differ, but the magnanimous me will not argue with you. I ept your apology." Jingwei says grandly. His smirk makes her want to punch him.


    "Don''t punch me!" He holds up his arms in surrender. "At least not until I bring supper to you."


    "You?" Xue Ning asks, curious.


    "Yeah, it''s inconsiderate to make Madam Yu do it," he says with a matter-of-fact voice. "She''s nearly 60, even if she doesn''t look like it."


    "That''s kind of you," she says, meaning it. It was good to know that Sun Jingwei didn''t treat his staff poorly. "But I can just go with you?"


    "Nah, use this time to rest first," Jingwei says, cheerfully guiding her back into her room. "As my saviour, you''re not to expend more effort than necessary! I''ll make something for you to eat."


    "Sure," Xue Ning says agreeably, before the rest his statement actually sinks in. "Wait, you cook?!"


    =


    "Is something the matter, Young Master Jingwei?" Si Qing, the young maid on duty asks, panicking at the fervent look in her employer''s eyes, and the way he was rifling through the cabs for food.


    "Nothing! I''ll just make something for Xue Ning for supper before she goes to bed."


    "Are you sure that''s wise Young Master?" Si Qing asks hesitantly. He might give her diarrhoea, or worse, make a mess out of her kitchen. She didn''t want to clean the kitchente at night.


    "Trust me on this, I''m a great cook!"

 Chapter 59 Cooking Supper For You

    What most people don''t realise is that Sun Jingwei is not, contrary to expectations, a fucking terrible cook. He had survived abroad for a period of time, and there was only so much takeout he could stomach before he finally caved and explored his kitchen.


    (He didn''t want to eat in restaurants, because eating alone in a foreignnd was a new level of misery for him.)


    And he was dreadfully homesick and couldn''t stand what passed for ''authentic'' Chinese food in America. Panda Express had nearly made him cry, and not from joy.


    So he bought a cookbook, watched a few culinary videos, and hunkered down to cook something edible. After weeks of burnt dishes, triggered fire rms, and a very pissed off fire department with equally pissed off neighbours, he upgraded his dishes from ''dumpster fire'' to ''barely passable''.


    With more time and effort, the quality of his dishes improved steadily. They were no longer overly salty or overly sweet, there was no undercooked fish or raw chicken meat. His favourite dish to cook was still fishball noodle soup, because it was easy, delicious, and one could fit a variety of ingredients inside it.


    It was also his mom''s favourite dish. He tried his best to recreate the taste, but it always fell short somehow, as though he was missing a key ingredient. He continued cooking even after he returned to China, but only in thefort of his apartment. There was no point in cooking in the mansion, where there was an entire army of staff to cater to his every whim.


    Until now.


    Jingwei puts on an apron, handed to him by the dumbstruck maid on duty. She had taken one look at him and rubbed her eyes, as though he was a hallucination brought about by thete hour. He almost wanted to tell her to pinch herself if she thought she was dreaming.


    He hopes Xue Ning would like the noodles he cooked. He wasn''t that insane to create the noodles from scratch sote at night, but the noodles in the mansion were good enough. His hands moved quickly, chopping up spring onions, fishcake, slices of wagyu beef.


    "Young Master! Let me do this for you!" Si Qing insists, thinking that her Young Master was going to slice off a finger in the midst of his enthusiastic quick chopping.


    "No need, I got this," he says, shing her a smile that makes her heart skip a beat. But she knew deep down she had no chance, because he was in the kitchen cooking a meal for another woman.


    "Okay¡­ do let me know if there''s anything I can help you with," she says, hovering awkwardly in the kitchen, not willing to leave. She didn''t want to miss the sight of him cooking.


    "Sure," he says, but his eyes are focused on the rapidly boiling soup.


    After a mere half an hour, Sun Jingwei had two perfect bowls of steaming noodle soup, ready to be eaten. He waved off Si Qing''s helpful offer of carrying the bowls to his room, wanting to do it himself. He already made the meal, so he might as well carry it to her.


    Meanwhile Si Qing followed behind him, disbelieving. Not only did the Young Master cook for the woman, he even brought the food up for her! Now she was even more curious about the woman in question. To her knowledge, the Young Master never lifted a hand to do house chores in his life - let alone cook.


    They soon arrived at the room, but the door was closed. Si Qing knocked on his behalf and opened the door, happy that she could at least do something for him.


    The grateful smile he gave her made her blush.<sub> </sub>


    "Xue Ning!" Jingwei calls out, "supper is here!"


    <o>,m Silence greeted his statement. Jingwei puts the tray on the table and pulls apart the canopy curtains, only to be greeted with Xue Ning''s sleeping face.</o>


    "Young Master, should we save the noodle soup for tomorrow?" Si Qing asks hesitantly.


    "Nah, I''ll wake her, you can go now. Thanks for the help." Sun Jingwei replies, an easy dismissal. Si Qing makes her way outside the room, making sure to close the door behind her. She doesn''t want to think about what kind of tactics his Young Master might use to wake his lover. It just makes her feel terribly single and jealous!


    Meanwhile in the room, Jingwei takes a moment to admire Xue Ning''s face, mouth ck with sleep. Was that a hint of drool on the pillow? He stifled augh and hurriedly took a picture - not for ckmail, but just as a souvenir. He couldn''t help but smile at how she slept, arms and legs wrapped around a pillow, nkets bunching around her like a dumpling.


    Her face looked younger, without that customary frown between her brows and the stress of the evening.


    He leans in closer, nning to wake her up by blowing into her ear.


    He takes a deep breath. Just as he was about to do so, Xue Ning turned her head.


    He freezes. Their faces are now barely an inch apart.


    Xue Ning must have sensed someone staring at her, because she opens one baleful eye to check on her surroundings, only for them to find Sun Jingwei''s guilty face so close to her.


    Should he move away? Move closer? Before he can make a decision, Xue Ning yells and springs awake, identally headbutting him in the face. Jingwei lets out a muffled groan of pain.


    Why does this keep happening to him?


    This time, he really didn''t have any perverted thoughts in mind!


    "Yah, Sun Jingwei, what are you trying to pull!" Xue Ning doesn''t shriek, but shees close to it. She holds the pillow in front of her like it''s a battering ram, and Sun Jingwei''s body was the gate to the fortress that she wanted to destroy.


    Jingwei gulps and sheepishly moves further away, his hands instinctively covering his crotch.

 Chapter 60 Eating Supper Together

    "Nothing really!" Jingwei protests. "I just wanted to wake you up for supper! Look - I made noodle soup for you and I didn''t want it to be wasted - don''t kick me in the crotch -" Jingwei continues, giving her his best innocent, pitiful look and quickly points to the table to distract her.


    Xue Ning gives him ast baleful re, her eyes narrowed in suspicion, before going to the table to take a look. She still holds the pillow in her arms, just in case he lied.


    True to his words, there were two bowls of hot noodle soup waiting for her. She could smell the aroma of the soup, and her stomach growled without remorse. There were fish balls, dumplings, vegetables, minced pork and¡­ was that beef she saw lying on top of the noodles?


    That marbling made it look like wagyu, but there was no way someone would put wagyu on top of in yellow noodles¡­ right? That would be a ridiculous expense and luxury!


    She nces at Sun Jingwei from the corner of her eye. RIght, how could she forget that he was technically the epitome of ridiculous expense and luxury?


    And he is still looking at her expectantly. She could smell the aroma from the soup as well as the spices used on him - perhaps he wasn''t lying earlier about personally making her supper.


    "So¡­ are you hungry?" Jingwei asks hopefully, beginning to ramble out of nervousness. This was the first time he cooked for someone, after all. He desperately wants Xue Ning to like this.


    "I hope you like noodles. Because that''s all I could make in such a short notice. Unless you want to eat yoghurt with ice cream for supper."


    "I love noodles," she says, moving aside to invite him to sit next to her to eat together, as though they were strangers at a convenience store sharing space to eat their cup noodles. Only now, it would be ridiculous to call Sun Jingwei a stranger after all that they''ve been through together in the past one short week that they''ve known each other.


    "Oh good," Jingwei says in relief, shooting her a bright smile as he sits next to her, preparing to dig into his own bowl. Xue Ning doesn''t stand on ceremony, she digs in as soon as the soup is cool enough to not scald her tongue.


    "So¡­ how is it?" Jingwei asks, half-afraid of the answer. He had watched as she took one sip of the soup and paused, before nibbling on the vegetables and noodles, biting a chunk out of the meat and fish balls.


    "Did you really make this?" Xue Ning asks seriously.


    "Of course!" Jingwei exims, hand reaching out to swear to the heavens. "I swear, this bowl of noodles is entirely my creation!"


    "Then why does it taste like something my mom would make? The vour is a bit different - but it''s so simr!" Xue Ning exims. "If you can cook like this, you should honestly open your own restaurant - just not next to my family''s restaurant!"


    "Really? So you think it''s good?" Jingwei asks excitedly. She can almost imagine the tail wagging behind him in delight.


    "Yeah, it''s great, and I''m not saying this because I''m hungry," Xue Ning says, shoving more noodles into her mouth, slurping them loudly. "Answer my questions: when and where did you learn how to make this?"


    The taste of the noodles was nostalgically familiar. She was instantly transported to her family''s noodle restaurant all the way back home in the countryside, to its red brick outer walls to the smooth walls inside, yellowed slightly with age. She remembers sitting by the corner in the kitchen with her brother, doing their homework while her parents busied themselves with cooking and serving customers.<sub> </sub>


    The aroma of the soup back then, was strangely simr to the aroma of the soup now. It was enough to trigger faint feelings of homesickness in her. She had not gone home to see her family in over half a year, despite being in the same country.


    Perhaps she could give them a call tomorrow, just to see how they were doing.


    "I''m self-taught!" Jingwei says proudly. At Xue Ning''s disbelieving look, he borated. "Okay, I watched a lot of cooking videos and read cookbooks!"


    "You must be a cooking genius then," Xue Ning says through a mouthful of meat, only half-joking. "This reminds me of what my mother cooks, and my family runs a noodle restaurant."


    "And I fed you noodles? Oh god," Jingweiughs to himself. "Wow, I could have really fucked up with this."


    "But you didn''t," Xue Ning continues to eat. "That''s why you must be some sort of culinary genius."


    "Nah, thanks for the praise, but credit should go to my mom," Jingwei says. There is a slight pause as he gathers himself; Xue Ning waits patiently, because it was clear that Sun Jingwei''s mom was no longer still living.


    "She used to make noodles like this for me and Ge all the time, so when I learnt how to cook, I just wanted to recreate this dish she made for me you know? But it''s not the same," He sighs into his soup. "I can''t understand why the vour is different."


    "Different how? Maybe try adding vinegar next time. And oyster sauce. And more garlic." Xue Ning suggests, remembering how her mother cooked before.


    "I guess I could try it. Do you cook?" Jingwei asks curiously. "Or do you just eat all the noodles in your home?"


    "Yeah, I can cook, but I don''t like to though," Xue Ning states, a pleased sound escaping from her lips as the piece of wagyu beef melts in her mouth. It was a good skill to have, but she refused to be chained down to her family''s restaurant before she could live her life to the fullest.


    "That''s fine, I''ll cook for us then," Jingwei replies easily, smiling at her, causing her to choke on her soup.


    Cook¡­ for us? Us, as in him and her? Xue Ning''s brain had to reboot itself at his statement. In what world is a billionaire''s son cooking for her like he''s her hired chef?


    Like he''s her househusband?


    Impossible.

 Chapter 61 Movie Date

    "Right," she replies weakly, focusing on her food instead, her ears red with embarrassment. How was she supposed to respond to such a statement? Did he even mean it in that way?


    Perhaps he meant it between friends. Friends cook for each other all the time. Roommates do that too. Not that she would ever end up living with Sun Jingwei. Ever. They upied two different worlds, and tonight was just an anomaly.


    "I''ll wash the dishes then, so it''s fair," Xue Ning says, taking somefort in the fact that his offer to cook for her isn''t going to be realised anytime soon. She hates washing dishes.


    She drains the bowl dry, letting out a satisfied burp at the end.


    "Good meal, thanks for cooking it," she says, patting his arm in thanks. She wipes her mouth clean on the napkin and leans back against the chair, her eyes closing inzy satisfaction.


    She reminded Jingwei of a cat that was going to nap after eating her fill.


    "Wow, you really finished everything," Jingwei says, impressed and bemused. He wasn''t even done eating yet - but that was because he was distracted by the captivating sight of her eating his food. It was almost impressive how much she could stuff in that mouth of hers without choking, and then he had to mentally p himself to stop his thoughts from rolling in the gutter yet again.


    Instead he flips her bowl upside down to make a point. There was really nothing left! She had vacuumed it clean.


    "Were you that hungry? Or was my food just that good?"


    "Are you fishing forpliments?" Xue Ning asks, looking at him with one eye, the other still peacefully closed.


    ? "Maybe? You''re the first person I''ve cooked for since I''ve returned to the country you know! Come on - rate my cooking!" Jingwei demands yfully.


    "Hmm¡­" She raises a hand. Jingwei watches it expectantly.


    After a brief moment of contemtion, she held up three fingers.


    "What? Only three points?" Jingwei protests, half-outraged as though he was an obnoxious contestant on a cooking contest. "Madam Judge, I demand an exnation!"


    Her lips twitch into a smile, and she clears her throat, deliberately putting on airs.


    "Dear contestant, firstly, I''m giving you three points out of five," she says grandly, pretending to be one of those patronising judges. "While your noodles and soup were delicious enough, I question your choice to include wagyu beef in the menu."


    "It''s fusion food, Madam." Jingwei says with mock seriousness. "There was a movie in Korea about rich people putting expensive meat on noodles, so I wanted to do it too."


    "I see," Xue Ning says. She does not see, because she''s so behind on pop culture.


    "Nah, you don''t! I bet you''ve never watched it!" Jingwei exims, catching her in the lie. "Nevermind, you can watch it with me now in my family''s movie theatre."


    "Your family''s movie theatre," she repeats tly. Of course they had a movie theatre. "Is it in this mansion?"


    "Duh," Jingwei replies. "Why would I have a movie theatre outside?"


    "Why indeed," Xue Ning says, rolling her eyes at her own stupid question. "Fine, but don''t get offended if I fall asleep halfway!"


    "You won''t, I guarantee it!" Jingwei says smugly.<sub> </sub>


    =


    Jingwei brings Xue Ning to the smaller indoor movie theatre that he had built specially for him and his friends back then, because everyone else in his family deemed watching movies to be a frivolous waste of time. He discreetly nudged Xue Ning to the love seat, hoping they could share it, but she was more distracted by the popcorn dispenser and cotton candy machine.


    "You know, if you''re still hungry, you can just say so," Jingweiments. "I''m not gonna judge you forte-night snacking."


    "I''m not snacking, it''s unhealthy," Xue Ning says primly before she slouches on the loveseat,mandeering most of the space. Jingwei purposely waves a bag of popcorn in front of her, and she turns her face away.


    "Fine, I''ll just eat ALL OF IT, by myself." Jingwei deres. "Now move," he shoves her yfully to make more room. "I''m a lot bigger than you, so I clearly need more room to sit here."


    "Must be all thete-night popcorn then," Xue Ning says easily, still not moving.


    "Then you should definitely eat more of it, you''re tiny," Jingwei replies without missing a beat.


    "Are you calling me short?" Xue Ning asks, fist held up in warning. She would be more terrifying if she didn''t look like she was toozy to move.


    "More like¡­ bite-sized." Jingwei says with mock seriousness, finally seeding in making enough room for himself, even if her bare legs were slung over his own, her ankles asionally jabbing at his waist. "Your ankles are really cold and pointy!"


    "Really? Want to try my elbows then?" Xue Ning threatens.


    "Nevermind," Jingwei says immediately, starting the movie. "I won''t survive if they are anything like your knees."


    Xue Ning frowns, ready to take offence before she realises what he''s talking about. Then she realises that her legs were dangerously close to his crotch, and immediately sits upright.


    "Oh? Now you move?" Jingwei asks,ughter in his voice. "But good, this is a great movie, I''d hate for you to sleep and miss it."


    Xue Ning grumbles intelligibly, embarrassed at her behaviour. How could she put her legs all over him like that? Clearly the cosy atmosphere of the mini theatre was making her think they were the best of friends, that she could behave so casually with him.


    She vows to focus on the movie instead. This was a chance to watch a movie for free!


    =


    An hour into the movie, Jingwei finds Xue Ning snoring into his shoulder, her body slumped on his for support. He stills, not daring to move in case he woke her.


    Was this how cat owners felt when their cats slept on their arms when they were working?


    Xue Ning was even letting out asional soft snuffling sounds as she slept. It was so unfairly adorable, Jingwei wanted to call up every politician on his father''s payroll and make them ban this because it was too cute for words.


    "Xue Ning¡­ Xue Ning¡­ wake up¡­" he cajoles softly, gently patting her to wake her.


    "Hmmm¡­ Jingwei¡­" She grabs onto his arm and holds on tight, and Jingwei''s heart nearly bursts out of his chest. He waits, hoping to hear more.


    "Jingwei, I like¡­ " She likes? Jingwei''s eyes widen and he sucks in a deep breath.

 Chapter 62 Sleeping Together?

    "Jingwei, I like¡­ " She likes¡­? Jingwei''s eyes widen and he sucks in a deep breath, waiting for Xue Ning to continue.


    "Potatoes¡­ the turtle is a thief¡­ my rice¡­" Xue Ning mumbles.


    Huh?


    Jingwei stares at Xue Ning, but Xue Ning continues to mumble nonsense. "The potatoes are blue¡­ harvest¡­"


    Oh my god. Who knew his adorable Xue Ning had the hrious habit of talking nonsense in her sleep!


    "Yes, rx, I''ve harvested the potatoes, Your Majesty," He whispers in her ear, stifling hisughter at her response.


    "Catch the horse¡­"


    Now there were horses? Xue Ning must be having a hell of a dream. Jingwei shakes his head. He was initially disappointed that Xue Ning didn''t continue her statement of what she liked, but then he realised that her mentioning him meant that he was in her dreams!


    He sessfully made a big enough impression that he was in her dreams!


    That was ster progress! Sure, there were most probably a lot of women who dreamt about him, but none of them really got to know him as a real person.


    When ites to Xue Ning, even if her dream involved was nonsensical enough to include thieving turtles, blue potatoes and missing horses, he''ll still be ridiculously d he''s part of it.


    His night-time ns have been derailed though, so now he has to restrategize.


    Initially, when they settled down to watch the movie, Jingwei was watching Xue Ning from the corner of his eyes, cataloguing her reactions and hoping for the right time to put an arm around her shoulder.


    At first, she was interested, but as the movie went on, all the interest in the world couldn''t hold her eyelids open. They slowly drifted shut. Jingwei wanted to deliver a teasingment to wake her up, but then her head dropped onto his shoulder and he froze in shock, words stuck in his throat.


    He had gingerly wrapped an arm around her sleeping back, but she did not stir. Even gently patting and shaking her did not work.


    "Ah, what am I going to do with you?" Jingwei asks rhetorically. He couldn''t leave Xue Ning to sleep on the loveseat, she''ll develop muscle aches the next day.


    "Don''t punch me for this when you wake up okay?" He asks, before easily picking up Xue Ning in a bridal carry. "God, you''re not really heavy, you need to eat more."


    Xue Ning lets out a snore in reply.


    He slowly made his way out of the theatre, rapidly shushing the random staff he passed on the way to her room. If they kept on calling him ''Young Master Sun'' in that high-pitched tone of shock, Xue Ning was going to wake up! And then he wouldn''t be able to carry her in his arms anymore.


    The staff got the memo, but that did not stop them from gawking at the sight of their Young Master carefully cradling a woman in his arms as she slept on, oblivious. Even if his friends and other women had fallen asleep, Jingwei usually just called the servants over to deal with it, or simply left them on the floor depending on how much he liked them.


    To personally carry her for that long of a distance between the theatre and the rooms¡­ the staff were already hearing wedding bells in their heads.<sub> </sub>


    Jingwei was oblivious to the thoughts of his mansion staff, he had finally arrived in front of the room, only to realise he can''t open it with his hands full.


    "Let me," Lady Yu''s voice came from behind him, giving him a good scare as she opened the door.


    "Lady Yu, aren''t you supposed to be sleeping by now?" Jingwei asks quietly, after his heart stopped trying to jump out of his chest.


    "I wasn''t going to miss this," is Lady Yu''s whispered reply, and her lips shift into a smile moremonly seen in matchmaking aunties. "I didn''t believe it when Si Qing told me you were carrying her personally, so I had to take a look for myself."


    Jingwei has no reply to that.


    "Well, don''t just stand there like a statue," Lady Yu chides gently, pulling back the canopy curtains and fluffing up the pillows with practised motions. "Put her down and tuck her in."


    Jingwei nods, grateful for the extra help. If he had dropped Xue Ning once, she would have woken up, and he would have gone to meet his mother in heaven, and then she would scold him for dropping her.


    There is only one problem. Xue Ning''s arms hadtched around him when he was carrying her to her room, as though he was her favourite pillow, and she now refused to budge.


    He gives Lady Yu a pleading look. Lady Yu stares back at him.


    "Help?"


    "Just get into bed with her," Lady Yu replies.


    "Excuse me?" A loud squawk nearly escapes Jingwei''s throat, before he squashed it down.


    "The bed is big enough, so just share the bed," Lady Yu exins. It was technically true, but at the same time it was so surprising to hear such wordse out of Lady Yu''s mouth that he didn''t know how to react.


    Lady Yu had always been a huge stickler for propriety, and she had always hated all the other girls he brought home. She didn''t even like Zhou Yu, and she was his ex-fiancee, a honoured guest!


    For her to say such things, she must like Xue Ning well enough.


    "Okay, but if she punches me tomorrow, I''m telling her you told me to do it," Jingwei mutters jokingly. Lady Yu smiles as Jingwei slowly gets on the bed, with Xue Ning still snoring blissfully in his arms.


    "Fair enough," Lady Yu says agreeably. "Meanwhile, I would like to remind you that I have replenished the stock of condoms in the drawer. Please use them if necessary." Lady Yu then turns off the lights, uncaring of the minor bomb she just dropped on her Young Master.


    "Wait - condoms?" Jingwei croaks out weakly. Now Xue Ning''s legs were also wrapped around him, dangerously close to his family jewels.


    "Goodnight Young Master Sun," Lady Yu says, smiling indulgently at the panicked look on Jingwei''s face. "May you have sweet dreams."

 Chapter 63 Spending The Night

    Needless to say, Sun Jingwei did not have sweet dreams. How was he supposed to fall asleep like this?


    Heid awake for a long time despite his exhaustion, watching Xue Ning snore as she wrapped her limbs around his body like a particrly amorous octopus. The room was dark, but he could still faintly make out her features as she slept.


    His heart was beating a mile a minute, and he made yet another attempt to extricate himself from her tight hold. If they woke up in this position, Xue Ning was going to kill him in the morning, no questions asked!


    Xue Ning let out a displeased grumble in her sleep and clung on tighter, burying her face in his chest.


    Well, that n was a failure. He takes a deep breath, and regrets it when he smells a sweet scent permeating his nostrils.


    Xue Ning''s scent was dangerously addictive, yet soothing. He couldn''t resist the urge to take another whiff of her hair.


    Oh, he was in trouble. Her scent, paired with the close body contact, along with his not-so-repressed, less-than-tonic feelings for her had resulted in the awakening of his lower half. He makes another attempt to escape, but Xue Ning flings a thigh across his crotch and presses on it.


    He barely stops himself from moaning out loud. Desperate times called for desperate solutions! He began to think about the least arousing things in the universe: his father''s naked body, his grandparents doing it, the fucked up stuff he found on his ex-friend''sptop¡­


    Well. It worked too well. Not only was his bonerpletely dead, he now also felt his insides grow cold as fear began to creep in.


    Were his father and brother right about the remnants of the Wu family being responsible? Or was Shangjing - no, it was impossible that he was alive after the ident.


    He chanced a quick look at Xue Ning, who was still snoring, blissfully oblivious. Eventually he would have to tell her the full truth about everything.


    Hopefully, she''ll still let him stay in her life after he does.


    He closed his eyes and breathed deeply. Sleep doesn''te easy, but it eventually ims him.


    =


    THE NEXT MORNING


    Xue Ning''s stomach gives a loud grumble, hunger pangs a more effective wake-up call than any rm clock. She stirs blearily, still not really wanting to get up, because the bed was soft and warm , and her pillow smelled really nice too, it was moving - wait.


    She opens her eyes in rm, only to be greeted with Sun Jingwei''s sleeping face. She barely manages to stop herself from screaming in shock.


    Ignoring the panicked screaming in her mind, she instead takes a careful look at herself. Okay. Her clothes were still on her body, underneath the duvet. Sun Jingwei was also fully clothed, even if his T-shirt had ridden up sometime during the night to reveal a glorious six pack that made her mouth dry, as well as a trail of hair that was leading down to a spectacr tent in his pants.


    Xue Ning hurriedly tore her eyes away. It doesn''t mean anything. Men pop boners all the time for no good reason. Her male ssmates back in school suffered the same problem, leading to ridiculous amounts of teasing.


    Focus on yourself! She scolds.


    She cautiously takes note of her own body; she didn''t feel any different - there wasn''t any strange soreness that wasn''t caused byst night''s injury.<sub> </sub>


    Actually, she felt incredibly well-rested. She had not slept this well in a long while. Sleeping in Sun Jingwei''s arms had made her feel safe and adored and well-taken care of. This realisation made her want to bury her face in the bedsheets and never reappear.


    This can''t be happening to her! She can''t be catching feelings for him after a good night''s rest! He''s just a good pillow, she rationalises to herself. A good, warm, ridiculously handsome pillow that also smelled really nice!


    Beside her, Jingwei remained peacefully asleep, arms loosely wrapped around her in an embrace as though she''s his pillow, his face dangerously close to burying itself in her boobs. She gingerly tried to push his arms aside, but he simply tightened his hold with a pleased murmur. She then tried to move her legs, only to end up brushing against his hard cock.


    Jingwei moaned. She froze.


    What was the protocol for getting out of such a situation? Xue Ning had never spent the night in bed with another man, even tonically, so she had no clue. Should she just pretend that nothing happened and go back to sleep? Ignore his morning wood, hoping that he''d wake up first and then leave the bed?


    How could she go back to sleep knowing that there might be something of his poking her?!


    Her stomach gave another displeased grumble, adding to the protest.


    <o>,m Decision made, she steeled herself, smacking his chest with one hand.</o>


    Jingwei let out an impressive groan, but he still didn''t wake. Instead he rolled her over, pinning her down with his bulk and nuzzled into the crook of her neck, his arms wrapped around her body, a hand on her chest.


    Heat bloomed inside her at their new position.


    "Oi, Jingwei¡­Jingwei, wake up! I want to eat breakfast!" Xue Ning yelled, trying to wake him up.


    "Bwuh?" Jingwei murmured, still half-sleep. "5 more minutes¡­"


    He then buried his face in her neck.


    She eyed his ear. Should she bite - no, she decides on something more evil.


    Xue Ning heartlessly twisted his ear. "Wake up!"


    "Ouch!" Jingwei screamed, now forced awake and ready to fling his pillow at whoever was responsible. "Stop that you - oh, it''s you. Good morning!"


    He beamed up at her, his tone suddenly went from angry to doting so fast it gave Xue Ning whish.


    "Yes, were you expecting to wake up with someone else?" Xue Ning asked sarcastically. If he said yes, he''s not going to wake up again.


    "Of course not, especially not when you were the one that wanted to sleep with me in the first ce!" Jingwei replied easily, grinning impishly.


    <strong>WHAT.</strong>

 Chapter 64 Morning Wood

    "That''s bullshit," Xue Ning denied immediately.


    "Come on, don''t tell me you don''t remember what happenedst night?" Jingwei asked, a hand idly stroking her back, while the other rubs circles around her hip bone, trying to calm her down.


    She red at him. He smiled back. Infuriating.


    They were still cuddled together. Her face slowly reddened as she realised this, but Sun Jingwei seemed perfectly at ease with this development!


    "Oi, where are you touching?" Xue Ning growled. Jingwei hastily lifted his hands away, looking apologetic, and Xue Ning found herself strangely missing his hands on her body.


    She hurriedly sat up and freed herself from the hold. "And what do you mean by what happenedst night - nothing happenedst night!" Xue Ning eximed.


    "True," Jingwei also sat up, stretching his arms over his head. Xue Ning refused to stare at the shift in his arm and chest muscles as he cracked his joints. "Other than you clinging to me like an octopus and refusing to let me go throughout the night, nothing happened."


    "You lie," she shook her head. "That definitely did not happen."


    "Cross my heart, everything I said was the absolute truth," Jingwei held up his hand to swear. "If you don''t believe me, you can ask Lady Yu. I carried you back after you conked out half-way through the movie to your room and you refused to let me go!"


    Xue Ning stared at him in horrified embarrassment. Come to think of it, she did remember bits and pieces of the movie, and howfortable the couch was. She must have fallen asleep then.


    "Oh god." She dropped her head in her hands. "Did I really?"


    "Yeah, but that''s not the most important thing!" Jingwei said. Xue Ning was just about to fear the worst, but then he continued. "We''ll need to rewatch the movieter, you missed all the good parts!"


    "Eh?" Xue Ning can''t believe this was what he''s focused on, but then again, she didn''t want to think about anything else either, especially not his boner that was still. Right. There.


    "Can you¡­ take care of that first," she said, pointing in the general direction of his crotch, averting her eyes.


    "Oh right," Jingwei said, face flushing slightly as he realised the state he was in. In the past, if he ever woke up with a woman, usually they would offer to settle that particr problem for him, but things were different now. "Er¡­ I usually do it in bed so would you -"


    "Gross! I''m leaving now!" Xue Ning screamed as she sprung up, but not before flinging a pillow straight at his smug face, her own face a burning red. Jingwei justughed uproariously at her flustered face, catching the pillow easily.


    The entire scene felt so frighteningly domestic, Jingwei didn''t know what to do with himself other than joke about it, because if he turned serious, Xue Ning might just turn tail and run, and then what would he be left with?


    Better to joke, so that she''d think it wasn''t a big deal.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning narrowed her eyes at his behaviour. Something was off about him, but she couldn''t figure out what.<sub> </sub>


    Just as she was going to ask, there was a loud knock at the door.


    p "Young Master Sun, Miss Li, are the both of you decent?" Lady Yu''s voice asked from outside the room.</anda>


    "I''m fine," Xue Ning replied.


    "Yeah! Same here!" Jingwei yelled, holding a pillow to cover his crotch. Xue Ning made a mental note to never use that pillow again, assuming she had the chance to even stay a second time and not be heartlessly kicked out by Jingwe''s father.


    Lady Yu entered the room, barely managing to stop herself from breaking into childish giggles at the amusing sight. Young Master Sun clearly had some problems, judging from the pillow cement and the way Miss Li''s face was glowing red, and how she was deliberately refusing to look at him.


    They were both still fully clothed, but Lady Yu hoped that they had be closer after they spent a night in each other''s arms.


    "Good morning to the both of you," Lady Yu smiles politely, "I''vee to invite the both of you down for breakfast, the Old Master is already up."


    "Really?" Xue Ning asked, "Oh shit - I mean, then give me 5 minutes to wash up ande down for breakfast. Is he waiting for us before he begins eating?"


    "The Old Master has already begun with his meal, but I would still urge you to make haste, because he has something to discuss with the both of you afterwards."


    "Got it," Xue Ning nodded hurriedly, running to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. Jingwei followed suit, grabbing one of the spare toothbrushes in the bathroom. Lady Yu shook her head; this boy had a full set of his own toiletries back in his own room - why did he need to squeeze with Miss Li?


    Judging by the death re Xue Ning gave him, she had the same thought.


    "What are you doing here?" Xue Ning asked through a mouthful of foam. "Go to your own toilet!"


    "This is technically my toilet too!" He argued. "This whole house is mine!"


    "Isn''t this house your father''s?" She spits into the basin, half-ring at him while rinsing her mouth.


    "And I am my father''s son, so it''s my house too!" He replied. Xue Ning rolled her eyes. Fine, guess she''ll be sharing the toilet with this childish man. She elbowed him out of the way so she could rinse her face - oh wow, even the facial foam was an expensive brand.


    While she bent over the sink to wash her face, Jingwei got an eyeful of Xue Ning''s delightful ass in his boxer shorts. Any other time, his boner would have made a reappearance, but the thought of having breakfast with his father kept it at bay.


    If he and Xue Ning were married, it would be a whole different story. They''d be able to wake up together, have fantastic sleepy morning sex, wash up together, eat breakfast together, live the rest of their lives together.


    Hopefully his father would agree. Wouldn''t it be great?

 Chapter 65 Tense Breakfast

    "Hey do I need to change clothes to eat breakfast with your father?" She asks Jingwei, after she finishes washing her face. She is still technically wearing his extrarge T-shirt and boxer shorts.


    Jingwei raises an eyebrow and thinks for a moment.


    "Nah," he spits in the sink, rinsing his mouth. "As long as you''re wearing clothes, it''s fine. I only got scolded the one time I went half-naked, and that''s because Lady Yu said it was a health and safety hazard for the maids."


    Xue Ningughs disbelievingly at this response. "What - are you telling me they were so distracted by your abs that it was dangerous?"


    "Hey, you said it, not me," Jingwei winks and waggles his eyebrows yfully. He looks ridiculous, and Xue Ning couldn''t help butugh at his face. "Besides, how do you know I have abs? Were you sneaking a peak?"


    "Like I want to!" She exims, turning around to leave the bathroom, but not quickly enough for Jingwei to see the shell of her ears turning red. He cackles, the sound reverberating through the bathroom.


    "Stopughing and wash your face!" Xue Ning says as she storms out of the bathroom. "Good morning Lady Yu, please wait a while, this idiot - I mean this man hasn''t washed his face yet."


    "That''s no issue," Lady Yu replies, still smiling. She seemed to be in a very good mood.


    Jingwei was suspiciously quiet. She looked at the mirror only to see him quickly look away from her butt.


    "Pervert," she shook her head. "Hopeless!"


    p She, of course, chose to ignore the fact that she was also eyeing his butt when it was his turn to wash his face. This was just payback. Not lust.</anda>


    After she and Jingwei washed their faces and looked somewhat presentable, Lady Yu led them to the dining hall where they were meant to have breakfast.


    "Good morning," Xue Ning said cautiously, wondering which chair she was supposed to sit on. The dining hall had a ridiculously long table that could at least sit 20, and Sun Haowei sat at the very head of the table.


    "Morning father!" Jingwei, being an actual family member, had no hesitation about his seating. He plonked himself two seats away from his dad and gestured for Xue Ning to sit next to him, so she was three seats away from the Sun family patriarch.


    That extra seat distance made it slightly easier to ignore the strange look he gave her when she entered the dining hall. Even if he didn''t like her, she isn''t going to not eat breakfast just to avoid seeing him.


    Instead, she focused on the mouth-watering spread of food avable on the table. This looked like breakfast that belonged in a 5-star hotel buffet!


    (Not that she had been to many. She had only gone to one such buffet back in her hometown before the whole outing turned sour - and nope, she wasn''t going to think about that now.)


    Other than a variety of steamed buns, there were also different types of dim sum avable for her to choose from.


    Normally that would be enough for her, but there were also fried dough sticks, congee and French toast! There were servants busying themselves with refilling sses and reheating food, hovering around the hall waiting on standby.


    "Xue Ning, try this one, this is good," Jingwei said through a mouthful of bun, easily picking up a little bit of everything to leave on her te.


    "Thanks," she said, feeling at least 10 pairs of eyes staring at her due to his actions. Awkward. She stuffed a dim sum into her mouth so she''d hopefully not need to speak.


    It was ridiculous. There were only three people eating in the dining room so far! Why would there be so many servants milling around? Sun Jingwei and his father still had their limbs attached, surely they could pour their own drinks and pick up their own dim sum.


    "Excuse me Miss? Would you like coffee or tea? We also have a selection of fruit juice." A maid offers politely, her hand holding onto a sk of warm water.


    Xue Ning nearly choked in surprise and Jingwei had to thump her back.


    "No thanks," she croaked out in reply. "I''ll pour my own water. Really, there''s no need."


    "Oh no, we insist," the maid replied. "You''re an honoured guest."


    Meanwhile Jingwei had already ordered his drink, a coffee and milk with 2 spoons of sugar.


    "Just do as she says," Jingwei told the maid. "Xue Ning likes to do things for herself."


    Before Xue Ning could respond, Sun Haowei cut in with a bitingment.<sub> </sub>


    "Unlike you? This useless man who hasn''t lifted a finger all these years and is only a waste of my resources?"


    Both of them turned to look at him, Jingwei with a faint hurt, the same way one would feel when someone pressed on an old bruise that hadn''t healedpletely.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning was bewildered, and not too pleased at his words. Jingwei hadn''t even done anything to get scolded yet!


    "Father!"


    "For your own sake, you should leave my son," Sun Haowei continued, in a casual tone as though he wasmenting on the weather.


    "What?!" Xue Ning eximed. "Excuse me?"


    "You will of course be appropriatelypensated for your time -"


    "With all due respect sir, we aren''t dating," Jingwei''s face fell further, but Xue Ning wasn''t done. She was so pissed, she grabbed his hand in full view of everyone, because the alternative would be grabbing the cutlery knife like a weapon.


    "Even if we were dating, whether I leave him or not would not be your concern!" Xue Ning dered hotly, furious. She just wanted to eat breakfast, but Sun Haowei had to be a bastard so early in the morning.


    If her parents found out about this, they''d rip him a new asshole - nevermind that he was one of the richest men alive. Her parents hated this sort of domineering, condescending behaviour.


    She stuffed another bun into her mouth in anger, chewing furiously in Sun Haowei''s direction, her hand still holding Jingwei''s own.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei did a very good job of pretending he wasn''t affected by Xue Ning defending him. Sure, she had denied their rtionship (which was depressing, seeing that he thought they were making huge progress, but Rome wasn''t built in a day), but she also did say that if they were dating, it''ll be none of his father''s business whether they broke up or not!


    No one he''d been with had ever said that. Whether as friends or otherwise. Sun Haowei was always an influence they couldn''t ignore, because they knew deep down, Sun Jingwei''s own fortunes were inexplicably tied to his father. Even Shengli and Yi Ting worked for him because of his father''s will.


    He flipped his hand over toce her fingers with his, squeezing gently, hoping that Xue Ning would understand what he''s trying to say. He takes a shaky sip of coffee, unsure his throat can form words yet.


    If this was any other time, Xue Ning would have smacked his hand and pulled away. Now, she squeezed back, because Sun Jingwei clearly needed some support in front of his father, who couldn''t even wait until he had eaten breakfast to insult him.


    Also, the petty part of her wanted to piss Sun Haowei off. So she squeezed back, her other hand helping herself to more dimsum. The anger was making her ravenous.


    Sun Haowei gnashed his teeth. He was hoping to make them panic, then throw them a lifeline by making them live together after threatening to keep them apart.


    But this audacious girl just threw the offer back in his face! That''s it, he wasn''t going to let them live together any longer, he wants this girl far, far, away from his youngest son!


    "Good morning," Tianwei said as he entered the dining room, and got three different grunts in reply. The atmosphere was tense, and it didn''t take a genius to figure out why. Miss Li and his younger brother were holding hands right in front of his father! And she was even dressed in her brother''s clothes.


    Even someone as old as his father would know what it meant!


    As he ate, he observed the couple sitting across from him. Xue Ning was angrily ripping into a fried dough stick, while his brother stared at her with a lovestruck expression on his face over his coffee cup.


    Urgh. Lovers. Tianwei ignored them in favour of scrolling through the news on his phone, sipping on his own ck coffee. Before he could read the news report on the resurgence of cybercrimes, his phone rang.


    Everyone was startled, and Sun Haowei shot him an irritated look. "Using your phone at the table again?"


    Tianwei gave him an apologetic look, but didn''t hang up, because the call was from Officer Tang. Clearly, it was urgent if he called him before breakfast.


    "Morning, Officer Tang," Tianwei greeted him politely. "Are there new developments in the case?"


    "You can say that," was Officer Tang''s hesitant reply. His voice sounded weary, as though he hardly slept the night before.


    "Our prime suspect was found dead in her holding cell this morning."

 Chapter 66 Bad News And Worst News

    "What?" Tianwei stood up in surprise, nearly jostling over his breakfast. He did not shriek, but he came pretty close to it. Everyone in the room stared at his uncharacteristic behaviour.


    "Ge? Is everything okay?" Jingwei asked cautiously.


    "No. No it''s not." Tianwei replied, before he realised that he was still on the line. "I''ll put you on speaker, Officer Tang. Kindly repeat what you''ve said to the rest of my family."


    "Good morning everyone, sorry to disrupt your peaceful morning. I have bad news to report," Officer Tang said gravely.


    Then he dropped that same metaphorical bomb on the rest of the listeners. Some of the maids hastily stifled their screams, and one of them even dropped her jug of orange juice, causing it to spill all over the expensive carpet.


    "Preposterous!" Sun Haowei roared, mming his hand on the dining table. His mood, already poor to begin with, plummeted to the deepest pits of hell. "What is the meaning of this!"


    "What on earth?" Xue Ning eximed, dropping thest bits of fried dough stick on the table.


    "Holy shit," was Jingwei''s reply. His mouth had dropped to his stomach. Xiumin wasn''t an innocent person by all means of the word, and she had tried to do considerable damage to him, but he still didn''t want her dead!


    How could this have happened?


    "We''ve already contacted the coroners to do an autopsy." Officer Tang continued. "They''ll hopefully be able to figure out the cause of her death."


    "That''s only part of the problem!" Jingwei yelled. "Officer Tang, how on earth could someone kill her in the middle of the night? Don''t you have people on night shift duty guarding her? Or are they all dead too?"


    "No, no, they''re not dead. But they have been hauled off for questioning." Officer Tang replied. "They apparently fell asleep at their posts after eating supper."


    "Then what about security cameras?" Xue Ning asked. "Surely the police station must have them."


    "We do, and we''ll be looking through the footageter," Officer Tang said. "This incident also has all of us on edge."


    "I''ll join you after breakfast," Tianwei said, his tone making no room for objections. He then shoveled food as fast as he could into his mouth, before gulping it down with coffee.


    "Xue Ning and I will go too!" Jingwei said. "We can help!"


    "Nonsense, what help will the two of you be? Don''t interrupt the police doing their jobs!" Sun Haowei barked at them both.


    "But -"


    "The both of you should stay for now," Tianwei agreed. "Father, have you told them about the new arrangement we agreed on yesterday?"


    "That arrangement is over," his father scowled over his congee. "I changed my mind."<sub> </sub>


    "Father!" Jingwei protested. Xue Ning looked at him, curious and confused. Was this decision made without consulting her? Of course it was.


    "What is it?" She asked, not expecting an answer due to Sun Haowei''s angry face, but Tianwei replied anyway.


    "We want you to live with Jingwei to better protect him." Tianwei said, "and now that we have gotten such sombre news, I believe that securing Jingwei''s protection is now a greater priority."


    Sun Haowei clenched his hands hard enough for his knuckles to turn white. Regrettably, Tianwei made a good point. If someone had dared to sneak into police custody to murder their prime suspect, it showed that they were clearly ruthless enough to clean up lose ends by any means necessary.


    They haven''t even gotten a hint of useful information from her! And now, their attempts on his youngest might just escte. They''ve already resorted to murder, Sun Haowei did not want to think about what they would do to his youngest son if they managed to get their hands on him.


    Even if this impertinent woman wasn''t a real bodyguard, at least he knew she''d probably throw her body in front to shield his son from a bullet or two. She was willing to antagonise him for Jingwei''s sake, and they weren''t even together!


    Of course, there''s no guarantee that his son wouldn''t be throwing himself between her and a bullet, but she seemed more alert than his idiot son, so the chances of her being the shield were higher.


    That was enough reason for him to keep her around¡­ for now.


    If she got injured in the line of duty, he would get Tianwei to prepare a hefty severance package and retirement back in the countryside where she came from, further separating her from his son.


    If they lived together, his son would probably drive her away with his poor living habits.


    Either way, they would be separated for good. It was just a matter of time; he simply needed to be patient. He reminded himself that one did not reach the top of the business world without the ability to n ahead and the ruthlessness to sacrifice pieces.


    (Old age was making him more irritable than usual, or perhaps it was just Xue Ning''s angry, judgemental face, so foreign yet familiar at the same time.)


    "Hmph. I see your point," he said curtly. He turned to Xue Ning. "You are now my son''s temporary wife. Pack your things and prepare to move into my son''s house by today. There is no time to dy."


    Xue Ning''s mouth dropped open. What was the first part of his request? Did she mishear?


    "Thanks Father! I knew I could count on you!" Jingwei eximed, before turning to beam delightedly at her. "We''ll go right after breakfast!"


    "Alright," she said, because what else could she have said? She''ll grill Jingwei about the ''pretending to be his wife'' issueter in private.


    Her appetite mostly gone, she then waited for Jingwei to demolish his remaining food. He then led her to his garage, a building the size of a school, that was just meant to house his many, many cars. If normal people collected stamps, Sun Jingwei collected cars in all shades, of all designs. But he still made his way to the red Ferrari from the night before. Xue Ning grabbed his shirt sleeve before he could get in.


    "Do you have another, less conspicuous car?" Xue Ning demanded. "Do you not recall us getting tailed just a day ago?"

 Chapter 67 Driving Conversations

    Jingwei frowned at her words. The Ferrari was still his favourite, but Xue Ning had a point, but . But


    "Good point, we''ll take the Porsche instead."


    "The Porsche?" She asked, wondering which one he was referring to. She didn''t have much clue about cars, beyond knowing which ones looked expensive and which ones were most favoured by the rich douchebags that visited her club (BMWs, they were always BMWs).


    "This one!" She stared at the car he pointed at. It was cobalt blue. She gave him a deadpan look.


    "No. Do you have anything that looks normal? Not rich?" Xue Ning asked. This car would definitely still stand out!


    "I could ask our servants to loan us one of their cars, but are you sure about this? We can just use the ck BMW. It has enough room for all your stuff, and if someone shoots at us we''d probably survive. Just look at Ge''s stunt yesterday."


    "Fine, we''ll use that then," she said. Anything that could survive a self-inflicted car ident and possible bullets was great in her book.


    "Let''s go then!" Jingwei hummed a cheerful tune, and they got into the car. Jingwei turned on the radio and hummed an obnoxiously peppy pop song, and when his GPS booted up, he cheerfully said, "My wife''s house."


    "Very well, Young Master Sun," came the automated voice reply.


    Before Xue Ning could strangle him for impudence, the voice that came out of the car distracted her. It didn''t sound like the usual voice that came out of a normal GPS system - in fact, it sounded more like Lady Yu!


    "Why does your car''s GPS voice sound like Lady Yu?" She had to ask.


    "Well, I couldn''t make it sound like my father, right?" Jingwei replied, whichpletely missed the point. "If I hear his voice in my ear when driving, I''d crash."


    "Rich people," she shook her head. Of course Sun Jingwei had the ability to get someone to configure his GPS to sound like his beloved¡­ servant? Mother figure? Either way, one had to apud him for his creativity.


    p "Why not your brother?" She asked.</anda>


    Jingwei winced. "Not conducive to rxing. I''ll just feel bad that he''s working so hard while I''m off having fun most of the time."


    "Maybe you should be having less fun then," she pointed out. "And don''t think I''ll be distracted - why is my address saved as ''my wife''s house''? And what did your father mean by me pretending to be your wife?"


    "Would you rather I save another woman''s address instead?" Jingwei asked cheekily, ignoring her second question. Xue Ning scowled, reminding herself that she couldn''t pinch his muscr arm in retaliation, because that might lead to him losing control, causing a traffic ident.


    His toned arm was already distracting enough on its own, the muscle definition on his arms further highlighted by the fact his T-shirt had very short sleeves and were straining around his biceps.<sub> </sub>


    Also, she didn''t want to have additional skin on skin contact with him. Not that it didn''t feel good when they woke up, curled together in a loving embrace - the problem was that it felt too good, and it was all Xue Ning could do to resist the urge to fall into his arms again.


    When she was in that dreamlike state between sleep and wakefulness, she felt safe and loved. His touch soothed an ache in her that she didn''t even know was present, until it was gone.


    It was tantamount to drinking her first sip of water from an oasis after wandering alone in the desert. All Xue Ning wanted was more - the warmth of his skin on hers, theforting scent, his steady breathing by her ear, and then she had to stop herself from wanting, because Jingwei would definitely indulge her, pamper her, and then she would get used to it, the same way adopted stray cats get used to easy food and care.


    Those cats found it hard to adapt once they were left abandoned. She knows; she had fed them before, those poor things that still meowed after her, hoping for cuddles and food.


    Xue Ning doesn''t want to be those cats that trusted their owners only to be left to fend for themselves when things got tough, nevermind that Sun Jingwei was slowly but surely worming his way into her life like some aggressive fungus.


    "Still not your wife," she grumbled to herself, ears red,pletely missing the fond look that Jingwei gave her from the driver''s seat as she focused on his hands gripping the steering wheel and the easy flex of his arm muscles. "Ridiculous man."


    "Excuse me, it''s your ridiculous man. I also respond to ''darling'', ''dearest'', or ''husband''. ''Baby'' is also fine too! Along with sweetheart," Jingwei said smugly. "Of course, I am always open to your suggestions, dearest."


    "Bastard," was Xue Ning''s eloquent suggestion.


    "No, that''s too vulgar," Jingwei said,ughing.


    "I''ll say it lovingly," she retorted, "and don''t think I didn''t notice you didn''t answer my second question. What is this about me pretending to be your wife and living with you?"


    "It''s kind ofplicated," Jingwei began.


    "Uplicate it then?" Xue Ning asked.


    "Oh wow, why didn''t I think of that," Jingwei replied sarcastically, a smile tugging at his lips. "Well, to put it simply, you are pretending to be my wife so that my people targeting me don''t think I''m guarded. With both of our skills, I''m sure we''ll catch them! Just look at what happenedst night!"


    "I''ll do my best," Xue Ning promised, but even she knew, deep down, things will not be as easy as Jingwei made it sound. Someone had broken into police custody and had Xiumin murdered! Sun Haowei clearly hoped that she would die in the line of duty - it would kill two birds with one stone.


    Jingwei fell quiet, as he also remembered the sombre news they just received. But he was determined to be optimistic about things - he was going to live with a woman he definitely adores and possibly could love for the rest of his life!


    "Anyway, we will know more when my brother returns from the police station. For now, let''s just live together as husband and wife first!" Jingwei deres.

 Chapter 68 Brothers Suspicions

    Xue Ning choked on air at his easy deration.


    "Husband and wife? That''s pushing it," she argued. "We''re not even dating. If anything, we''re friendly roommates." Friendly, with a strange tension that seemed to creep up whenever she least expected it.


    "So cold, I guess we''re on the verge of divorce already," Jingwei mused in mock sadness, even pretending to sob.


    Xue Ning shot him an unamused look. "Focus on the road before our lives get divorced from this earth," she said, before looking through her long-neglected handphone.


    She was greeted with an ominous 5% battery life, and many, many messages from her family members. Her mom called a whopping 30 times! Her dad, 10, but most likely because he was next to her mom. They also left over 50 messages.


    Even her brother and sister-inw called her. Now she was worried. Did something terrible happen at home?


    She hurriedly called before her phone could die on her.


    "Hello? Did something happen?" Xue Ning demanded the moment her call went through.


    "Xue Ning! I should be asking you this question!" Her mother shrieked from the other end of the line. She hastily moved her phone further away from her ear.


    "What? Nothing happened to me!"


    "Nothing happened? My bloody foot!" Her mother yelled. "Then exin why pictures of you hugging Sun Jingwei are online? Are they real?"


    "What are you talking about?" Xue Ning asked, despite having a pretty good idea. Sun Haowei had thrown the whole stack of paparazzi-worthy photos at them the night before, but her mother doesn''t know that.


    "Check your phone messages," her mother hissed. "And I''ll be waiting for an exnation, youngdy! That woman in the picture better not be you!"


    "Right, will do Mom," Xue Ning said. "By the way, my phone is also running out of battery, so don''t panic if you can''t contact me!"


    "Then charge your phone, before I fly over to Shanghai and drag you back home," was her mother''s unsympathetic, ominous reply. Sun Jingwei''s face looked like he was mildly terrified and reluctantly impressed.


    "Wow, your mom sounds a lot like you," Jingwei blurted out.


    "Who was that?" Her mother asked curiously, suddenly very interested. Her voice takes on a friendly, cheerful tone, a 180 degree shift from the threatening tone earlier. "Xue Ning, is this¡­ your boyfriend?"


    "Mom! No!" Xue Ning groaned. Jingwei''s mouth was open, doubtless he was going to do something stupid like introduce himself to her mother. She immediately made a zipping motion across her mouth, followed by a shing motion across her throat.


    Message received, Jingwei hastily gulped and went back to driving. Technically, Xue Ning''s mother wasn''t correct - he was Xue Ning''s husband! Fake husband, but honestly, if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, who was to know otherwise?


    He''d just have to do such a good job at being a fake husband, that she doesn''t threaten to fake divorce him.


    "Alright, alright. I shall not tease you for now," her mother said cheerily. The news that her precious daughter could be involved with a man made her feel extremely hopeful that the rumours were false.


    "But please do let us know what is happening with you! Your poor father barely slept a wink when he saw the photos!"


    "Okay, I''ll investigate it first," Xue Ning promised, feeling slightly guilty at the thought of her parents worrying. "I''m guessing Ge and sister-inw also know?"


    "Of course! They showed it to me!" Her mom said.


    "I see," Xue Ning said, vowing to kick her brother''s ass twice, because she wasn''t going to hit her sister-inw. "I''ll go and see what''s the fuss then. Bye Mom!"


    "Bye!" She hung up, and Xue Ning heaved a sigh of relief before checking through her messages.


    "Your mom sounds scary, but nice, Jingwei said longingly, with just a touch of wistfulness. Xue Ning suddenly remembered that his mother had passed away, and strangely enough, the mansion seemed to be scrubbed dry of her presence.


    There wasn''t even a single picture or painting of Jingwei''s mother. But then again, perhaps she just wasn''t privy to it - maybe it hung above Sun Haowei''s bed, judging his parenting decisions.


    That''s what she would do, if she were Sun Haowei''s dead wife. Jingwei could be a moron at times, but insulting him before breakfast was a low blow! And she didn''t think it was right for him to be throwing things at his son and mming his hands on tables.


    Someone clearly needed anger management lessons, but no one had the guts to tell him so.


    Thankfully she wasn''t Sun Haowei''s dead wife then. Marrying an overbearing, demanding man like him would make her hate living.


    If she were to ever marry, she''d pick someone she could talk to, without worrying that they would lose their temper for no reason. Someone that could make herugh, even when she was grouchy, someone who still thought she was funny, no matter what she said.


    Someone who was still looking at her from the corner of his eye, waiting for a response. She coughed, face red at the fact that she got caught daydreaming about him for no good reason.


    "Yeah, but don''t piss her off," Xue Ning said, trying to calm herself down. "I have a feeling she''s not too fond of you."<sub> </sub>


    "Why? I''ve never met her." Jingwei asked.


    "Exactly. So all she knows about you are your terrible rumours." Xue Ning stated. "No matter how desperate my mom is about finding me a match, she''ll never approve of you."


    "Famousst words," Jingwei said. "Wanna bet? I bet I can charm your mother into loving me after one visit."


    "...Are you trying to be my step-dad?" Xue Ning asked mischievously.


    Surprised, Jingwei nearly swerved into anotherne, garnering more than a few irritated honks from nearby cars. Thankfully, the peak hour for morning traffic was already over.


    "Oi! Don''t say stuff like that! Oh my god!" Jingwei said, face scrunched up in disgust. "I''m sure your mom would be lovely, BUT NO."


    Xue Ning cackled at the look on his face, but then the smile falls off when she looks through what her brother sent her.


    ''XUE NING MY BELOVED SISTER


    IS THIS YOU IN THE PHOTO


    Please say no


    Because if it''s you, I''ll have to eat a motorcycle


    PLEASE SAY NO EVEN IF ITS YOU''


    View Attachment (1)


    Xue Ning clicked on it, and lo and behold it was a screenshotted image from Weibo. The headline said ''Sun Jingwei hugs beloved wife <3 after surviving attempted assault''


    The picture? Sun Jingwei spinning her around in the bathroom, with her wearing his jacket. But her bare legs are clearly visible even if her panties were not.


    Her brother didn''t send her the link, because he didn''t want her to read thements - which meant that thements were probably¡­ less thanplimentary.


    Well. It wasn''t as though Xue Ning never dealt with hate. She went through elementary, middle and high school with the worst green tea bitches in existence! She can deal with some random people on the inte talking shit about her.


    Thankfully, no one seemed to figure out who she was from the photo. It helped that her social media presence was practically non-existent.


    Now¡­ How should she reply to her brother? She thought for a moment, before smirking evilly.


    ''My dearest older brother:


    Do take a video of you eating the motorcycle! I want to see! :DDD


    <strong>PS. DO NOT TELL MOM & DAD IT''S ME IF YOU WANT TO LIVE''</strong>


    She sent the message, and not a moment too soon, for her phone battery decided that it was time to give up.


    "What happened? You have a very¡­ suspicious look on your face." Jingwei mentioned as he made a turn into her apartmentplex. Xue Ning was just about to tell him, but then she realised something strange - there was a crowd in front of her building!


    For a crowd to gather on a Wednesday morning, after children have been sent to school and working adults were off to work, something terrible must have happened!


    Did someone jump off the building?


    No, it was worse - because once the crowd had a glimpse of their car, they began to rush towards them, like aunties at a supermarket sale.


    "What on earth?" Xue Ning eximed.


    "Oh fuck me," Jingwei said, and immediately made a sharp u-turn, tires squealing on the tarmac. Xue Ning grabbed onto her seatbelt for dear life. The horde of people were undeterred by the fact that they could potentially turn into roadkill, for they continued to fling themselves in the way of the car.


    Sun Jingwei thankfully, didn''t seem to be in the mood to turn all of them into mincemeat even though he could (should) have. He just drove slow enough to not fling their bodies aside, but quickly enough that they had to jog faster to keep up.


    Xue Ning could spot the few women that clearly skipped cardio, for they were already panting. She fought the urge to point andugh.


    "Are they paparazzi?" Xue Ning asked.


    "Worse," Jingwei replied bitterly. "They are fanatics."

 Chapter 69 Fanatics

    "Fanatics? From where?" She eximed, as the car slowly made its way back onto the main road. Some of them were still trying to keep up, but eventually, they were blessedly free of human leeches and far, far away from Xue Ning''s apartment.


    "Everywhere? Who knows really, they''ve been after me for years," Jingwei said. "Can you use my phone to give Shengli a call? He needs to threaten to sue people again."


    "Who?" She asked as she reached into his front pocket to grab his phone. Unlike the first time she did it, there was less hesitation and awkwardness, even if his chest muscle felt just as firm as before.


    It also helped that this time, they weren''t followed by suspicious ck cars. Like the car that tried to kill them the night before. She shivered at how close they came to death.


    "Shengli is my personalwyer! He''s been with me for a long time, since he was an intern actually. It was him who handled the initial club incident too," Jingwei exined, giving her a quick, careful look. "Are you cold, Xue Ning? You are shivering. Is the aircon too cold?"


    Jingwei already had his hand out, ready to change the settings.


    "I''m fine," Xue Ning said, unlocking his phone with the password he gave herst time, and spotting Shengli in his recent messages. Hisst message to Jingwei was a intive ''please don''t create more trouble''.


    Xue Ning would almost feel bad for calling him, if not for the fact that her apartment was mobbed by people and she wasn''t allowed to swat them aside like they were houseflies.


    "I''ll put you on speaker," Xue Ning said.


    The phone gets picked up a mere two ringster.


    "Please tell me you have a mighty good reason for calling." A highly irate voice stated. "Or I will ask for a transfer to your brother''s department immediately."


    "Good morning to you too, Shengli." Jingwei said wryly. "How are you this fine morning?"


    "That depends on what you called me for," Shengli pointed out acerbically. Any other boss would have found it rude, but Jingwei merelyughed. Xue Ning wondered if Jingwei was so epting of her own sarcastic remarks because he was surrounded by people who are simr.


    "Do I need to help you flee the country? Write another NDA?" Shengli continued.


    "None of that, just good old suing again. My loving fans have returned," Jingwei said.


    "Really? I thought they would have given up after your stunt with thewn sprinkles." Shengli said. "Are they still camped outside your ce?"


    "No - they are camped outside Xue Ning''s house instead! I need you to get some police officers, some of ourwyers and sue all of them again." Jingwei said, making a slow loop around her apartment, making sure to stay out of view from the crazy fans that were still congregating at the apartmentplex, clearly waiting for him to return.


    Shengli spluttered. "And how would I know where she lives?"


    "Ask Yi Ting! Come on man, I''m giving you a reason to go out of the office and talk to her," Jingwei said. "Don''t sound so grouchy."


    This Shengli person made a noise over the line, as though he was an overboiling kettle. Xue Ning guessed that he probably had sky-high blood pressure.


    "Fine," he gritted out. "I''ll be there shortly, DO NOT go out of your car, or anywhere near her apartment until I give you the all clear."


    "Got it, thank you!" Jingwei said cheerily before hanging up.


    "Yi Ting¡­ she''s the woman that delivered my parcel right?" Xue Ning frowned as she tried to recall.


    "Correct! She was supposed to help you unpack it too, and then tell me your reactions, but I guess she didn''t want to go that far," Jingwei mused.


    "I also wouldn''t want her to do that," Xue Ning scoffed. The thought of unboxing sexy lingerie was already embarrassing enough alone, having another stranger with her watching over her reactions would be unbearable! "That''ll be so awkward for us both - I had a feeling she was ready to leave the moment she delivered the package."


    "Good thing I''m not a stranger then," Jingwei said. "And after seeing these people camp at your apartment, I''m d you''re moving in with me. Your house isn''t safe."


    "And your house is?" Xue Ning asked curiously.


    Jingwei shrugged asnguidly drove along a randomne. "At least my apartmentplex has security guards on duty. And electronic locks. And an rm system with CCTV. Yours¡­"


    "Yes, my house sucks," she said bluntly. "Don''t run away screaming if you see a cockroach in my kitchenter."


    "I still want to see it," Jingwei insisted. He had a feeling her housing situation was less than ideal, but he wanted to know exactly how she lived, just so he would know how to make improvements on his apartment!


    Humans are creatures of inertia; if he made her feel sofortable, she would never want to move out!<sub> </sub>


    "Suit yourself, how long do we need to wait for Shengli to clear the rabble?" Xue Ning asked, curious.


    "Won''t be long," he said, tone conspiratorial. "He hates work, so he''ll always make sure to resolve it quickly. And with these kinds of fan stalkers, there''s already protocol - it''ll be done in an hour max!"


    "Alright then," Xue Ning leans back against the clean leather seat. "Guess we''ll just wait then."


    -


    Back at the office, Liu Shengli immediately organised his own legal team, a pack of wide-eyed interns who seemed utterly confused at the thought of going out of the office to deliver summons.


    They came in here expecting to be chained to their desks, flooded with stacks of paperwork, dying of Vitamin D deficiency as they never see the light of the sun, like every legal intern in any otherpany.


    But of course, Sun Enterprises had always prided itself on being different. It provided an enriching, fulfilling and¡­ unique working experience.


    "Now, all of you know what you must do," he handed them thick stacks of brown envelopes, each containing important legal documents.


    "While you''re threatening legal action on the trespassers on Li Xue Ning''s property, do get as much identifying information from them as possible. I''ve sent a file with information of Sun Jingwei''s most persistent stalkers, make sure to familiarise yourselves with them on the way."


    "If they attempt violence, don''t forget to add assault on the list of charges." His interns paled.


    "I''ll be there to supervise, so consider this your first mission on the field." He continued, internally smirking at the looks of despair on his interns. Poor sweet summer children, he''ll show them that working at Sun Enterprises wasn''t all shine and mour.


    The interns gulped. "Sir¡­ you mean¡­ we could get hurt?"


    "Yes." Shengli said heartlessly. "If you do, get it on camera. You''ll bepensated fairly."


    The interns shot each other with appalled looks. No wonder the reviews for this ce were so poor, and the turnover rate was so high! But s, they couldn''t refuse, and deep down, they know that if they performed well, they''d be like Mr Liu Shengli, giving orders from his cushy leather chair.


    "Make sure to get as many of them as possible. Do all of you understand?" Shengli asked.


    "Yes Sir." They replied, with various levels of enthusiasm, which is honestly, not much.


    Just for that, he wasn''t going to tell them that there were going to be police officers, and Yi Ting had sent a couple of security guards as added backup. He wasn''t that evil. Much.


    "Prepare yourself, we''ll leave in 5 minutes." He said, pping his hands twice. "Get this settled in an hour to increase your bonus."


    Suddenly, there was a lot more enthusiasm, as all the interns bowed and fled the room, calling for thepany cars.


    -


    "Are they done yet?" Xue Ning didn''t want to be that annoying child in the backseat when her parents drove on road trips, but she found herself regressing to that state of mind while Sun Jingwei made yet another turn around the residential estate.


    They''ve passed by the same bakery 9 times, and that logo of a winking Frenchman holding a baguette seemed to grow more mocking with every loop!


    "Soon, Xue Ning. Be patient," Jingwei chided gently. It was amusing to see Xue Ning stew in impatience next to him. He was having a great time, familiarising himself with the area, just in case Xue Ning would like to have a date nearby.


    "I just don''t like the thought of people near my living space." Xue Ning confessed. "And now that your car showed up, they''ll know it''s definitely me in the pictures online."


    Goodbye privacy, it was nice knowing you. Xue Ning mused bitterly.


    "Yeah¡­" Jingwei replied awkwardly. "The news would have leaked out eventually, but at least we can make sure you''re safe with me in my home. No deranged fan of mine will hurt you with me there!"


    "Oh, how the turntables have turned." Xue Ning said dryly, to hide her inner unease. Deranged fans weren''t going to stop withwsuits - there was a reason why they are deranged! She had a feeling she would be seeing more of them in the future, whether she liked it or not.


    More importantly, this confirmed a thought that had been steadily brewing in that one hour drive - there was no way she could return to her normal, unobtrusive lifestyle, before she ever met Sun Jingwei.


    Just like Xiumin, everyone will suddenly know of her, have opinions on her, and have no qualms about possibly harassing her.


    Now only time will tell, if she would have the same ending.

 Chapter 70 Scene Of The Crime

    "I would say good morning, but these are terrible circumstances indeed," Officer Tang said the moment he saw Sun Tianwei storm into the police station, a thundercloud over his head.


    The police station had already been cordoned off with bright yellow tape, warning people not to approach, but Sun Tianwei merely lifted the yellow tape and walked straight in, bureaucracy and warnings be damned.


    However, even the tape could not stop curious onlookers from loitering around the area. It''s not everyday that a police station bes a crime scene. And no one could miss the body bag that was brought out and then sent to the morgue. That certainly set tongues wagging.


    "Likewise," Tianwei replied. "Is there any new news?"


    Officer Tang said, "We''ll only know more of the cause of death after the autopsy. Currently, there has been no signs of a break-in into the holding cell. The CCTV footage doesn''t show anything out of the ordinary¡­ it''s as though she just died in her sleep."


    "That''s impossible," Tianwei dered. "There must be something wrong with the footage!"


    "Even if there is, we''ll also need our tech team to go through it," Officer Tang said.


    "Then what about the officers on duty? Have they been interrogated?" Tianwei asked.


    "They refuse to speak without awyer present." Officer Tang scowled uncharacteristically. "So now we''re waiting for theirwyers to arrive."


    "Ridiculous!" Tianwei eximed. Who can ordinary police officers even hire on their measly sry? They''ll most likely be assigned some poor public defender that''ll try to get them a reduced sentence for their negligence at work. They were merely dying the inevitable.


    "It is what it is."


    "Didn''t they say they fell asleep after supper?"


    "Yes, and when they realised the severity of the issue, they didn''t want to say anything more." Officer Tang exined, shrugging his shoulders. His face looked drawn, the lines under his eyes more visible than ever. He barely had gotten 4 hours of sleep! He had to interview Sun Jingwei and Li Xue Ning, and then Sun Tianwei, and then write the report with his findings.


    Even when he was back home trying to get some sleep, his mind kept him awake with the oddities found in the case. Someone clearly wanted to harm the Sun family, which did not narrow down the list of suspects. Instead, it made the case infinitely more dangerous, especially with the way the perpetrators were already willing to resort to attempted murder, damn the consequences.


    Oh wait, it wasn''t attempted murder any longer. Now, it was actual murder! One could argue that it was still not confirmed that there was any sign of foul y, but Officer Tang''s intuition was honed from years of experience, and it pointed to someone deliberately silencing a potential witness.


    Tianwei huffed irritably. "Fine, can I see the crime scene?"


    "Only if you want to contaminate it," was Officer Tang''s tired reply. "By all means, please make yourself at home."


    Tianwei scowled but got the underlying meaning. He had to remind himself that he wasn''t technically a detective, and had no jurisdiction over investigations. The reason why he could even get informed about the case was due to his family''s status.


    He looked around the station. Was it supposed to look this empty?<sub> </sub>


    "Where''s everyone? Is your station suffering from a manpower crisis?" Tianwei barked. Was that why a possible killer could waltz in here and just murder a criminal?


    "Oh, we got a call to handle a big public disturbance." Officer Tang gave Tianwei a look of surprise. "It''s about your brother''s lover."


    "...What has she done?" Tianwei asked with no small amount of trepidation.


    "She didn''t do anything, but her apartmentplex had beenpromised by your brother''s overzealous fans. They were making a ruckus."


    "I see," Tianwei frowned. The news of Sun Jingwei with a new woman would have driven them out of the woodwork - just so that they could see for themselves. Poor Miss Li will be facing more harassment soon, but that''s his brother''s weight to bear.


    Just as he was about to settle down and wait, he saw someone he never expected walk straight into the police station!


    =


    Back at Xue Ning''s apartmentplex, the interns had their hands full. The stalkers, initially persistent, scattered like startled sheep. These interns, handpicked from prestigious universities around the world, ran around theplex like children ying tag, intent on capturing the faces of stalkers.


    It wasn''t going as well as expected. They had spent the bulk of their lives studying behind desks instead of exercising. If not for the sudden arrival of police officers and security guards, they would never have been able to corral them to deliver the summons.


    Three of them were frequent offenders. Even after getting sued, their only reaction was to stare at the roundabout, as though expecting Sun Jingwei''s car to drive right up so that they could get a glimpse of his face!


    Deranged. Shengli felt vicious satisfaction in arresting and suing all of them.


    After thest of them were dragged away in police cars, Shengli could finally breathe in relief.


    "Sir?" One of the interns began hesitantly. "Actually, we didn''t need to be here? Wouldn''t it be faster to get the police to arrest them and then meet them at the station with the summons?"


    "Yes, but when will all of you get exercise and Vitamin D?" Shengli retorted. "This is for your own good!"


    The intern could only give him a wordless look of resignation, before nodding silently. Smart kid.


    Now he should call Jingwei and tell him that it''s all clear, but honestly, Jingwei could stand to wait a little longer.


    Just like how Jingwei imed he was doing Shengli a favour by giving him a chance to talk to Yi Ting, he was going to go buy himself and Yi Ting an early lunch, so that he could return the favour.


    Sun Jingwei should be grateful for more one-on-one time with his lover, after all.

 Chapter 71 Meeting Shengli

    "Theoretically speaking, how long does it take to arrest the crowd outside the apartment?" Xue Ning asked, staring at the dashboard clock with dead eyes. She had a feeling this Shengli person had deliberately dyed updating them as revenge for making hime all the way to her home to sue people.


    "Usually, not this long. Do you want to grab a bite?" Jingwei asked obliviously.


    "We just had breakfast two hours ago," She had to point out as she slumped on the carseat in boredom. "Are you hungry already?"


    "You''ll find that I always have an appetite," he smiled at her, but there was a sudden heat in his eyes as he stared at her face, before roving to the rest of her. "For more things than one."


    "Greedy," she retorted, crossing her arms in front of her, but she can''t help the faint smile that crosses her face. He was such a pervert - but it was slowly bing endearing to her. She must be suffering from brain damage.


    "You should beware of indigestion, idiot." She scolded.


    "What doesn''t kill you makes you stronger."


    "In that case, you must be bloody indestructible," she replied. "First the drugging, then the crazy fans."


    "You know, when I think about it, the crazy fans aren''t so bad." Xue Ning stared at him as though he confessed to secretly being a vampire-werewolf love child that survived on sunlight.


    "I mean, they are like the cicadas returning every year. They make a lot of noise and try to follow me, and then my people drive them to the ground until they get some incentive to return."


    "And your fake rtionship with me is certainly incentive enough." She then casually asked. "Am I allowed to use force to defend myself from them if they do try anything?"


    "Xue Ning, I''d support you even if you killed one of them," Jingwei said frankly, holding onto one of her hands, the other still on the wheel.


    "WIth me, you''ll never end up going to jail."


    "That''s reassuring," Xue Ning said, staring at their joint hands, because she had nothing else to reply to such a powerful deration. "Now focus on driving before we both end up dead."


    "As my wifemands," he said indulgently, squeezing her hand before continuing to make the same loop. He could probably do this in his sleep, but thankfully he didn''t need to demonstrate it, because Shengli called with timely news.


    "It''s all taken care off."


    "Oh finally!" Xue Ning eximed, jolting awake from hernguid state where she felt like she was melting into the carseat.


    With this statement from Shengli, Jingwei wasted no time in turning the car around, driving quickly back to Xue Ning''s apartment, the excitement infectious. He was so close to seeing Xue Ning''s cockroach-infested apartment, and it must be love''s power that he is actually delighted about it!


    "Make sure to lock your car," Xue Ning reminded as he parked the car. "I don''t want anyone stealing our ride home."


    "Yes Madam," Jingwei said, cheering at her words. She said ''our'' and ''home''! The word ''ride'' was in the middle, but that''s not important.


    The courtyard was empty of fans when they got out, but there was no shortage of curious eyes that stared at them from every floor of the apartmentplex. They weren''t even hiding it!


    Just from a quick nce, she could spot Aunty Wen from the fifth floor, Uncle Ping on the third, and Granny Cao loitering on the first floor still holding her bag of vegetables, doing her very best to seem that she wasn''t gawking at their arrival.<sub> </sub>


    Jingwei eagerly led her by the hand to a man wearing a suit, looking remarkably put together in the hot afternoon sun. There was no sweat beading on his temples or on his upper lip, and his wire-framed sses seemed glued to his face. His eyes were sharp as he took in their linked hands, his lips curling into a smirk.


    Xue Ning somehow wanted to deck him.


    "Shengli! This is Xue Ning. Xue Ning, meet Shengli."


    "Nice to meet you," she replied curtly.


    "Likewise, Miss Li," His sses shed as he replied. "You are not what I expected."


    "I could say the same for you." She had expected a frazzled paper-pusher, but Shengli was sharply dressed and well put-together, and he seemed well-built under his suit. "And what did you expect from me?" Xue Ning asked challengingly.


    Shengli drawled, "I thought you''d be taller. Dressed more provocatively. Jingwei always had a type -"


    "OKAY MOVING ON - Thanks so much for your help Shengli," Jingwei hurriedly pats him on the shoulder, "go back to the office and take a long break, Xue Ning and I have a lot of packing to do!"


    Shengli let out a little, evilugh, before bowing politely and driving off.


    "That was Shengli?" Xue Ning asked. "I''m not sure if I like him."


    "It''s okay! You will eventually! Even Shengli''s current girlfriend didn''t like him initially either." He confessed, as they made their way to the lift lobby. Jingwei stared at the grimy buttons, then at the floor littered with trash, along with the pamphlets hastily stuck to the wall, half-falling apart.


    A cockroach scuttered from the dustbin, into the cardboard haphazardly in the corner of the lift lobby.


    The entire area smelled faintly of mildew.


    "This ce seems¡­ nice," Jingwei said.


    Xue Ning barked out a disbelievingugh. "If you think this is nice, my house is definitely going to impress you."


    "Do you want to take the lift or stairs?" She continued. "I cannot guarantee that there is no pee in the lift."


    "Are you joking?" Jingwei asked, but Xue Ning was deadly serious. "Okay, maybe the stairs. What floor do you live on?"


    "Fourth floor, apartment number 44."


    "Wow. How auspicious." Jingweimented. "Wait - really? You aren''t pulling my leg?"


    "Of course not, do you know how much cheaper the rent is for this one apartmentpared to the rest?" Xue Ning pointed out. "It''s just a silly superstition anyway, but if it saves me money, why not?"


    Sun Jingwei only gave her a heartbroken look in response.

 Chapter 72 Xue Ning’s Apartment Part 1

    Sun Jingwei gave her a heartbroken look, and she frowned.


    "Oi, don''t pity me!" Xue Ning said, smacking his arm. "It''s really not that bad once you get used to it!"


    If possible, he looked even more heartbroken at her words.


    Poor Xue Ning, she lived in this dingy ce that can''t even get people to clean up their lift lobby. There was a faint smell of cigarette smoke and dried piss in the air, and suspicious ck spots on the walls.


    Xue Ning lived here, with such an inauspicious address, simply to save more money for daily expenses!


    "It''s still sad," Jingwei insisted. "And what are these ck spots?" He pointed. "Is this mould? Is your lift lobby capable of creating a new species of fungus?"


    "Nah, it''s just cockroach shit, don''t touch it." Xue Ning replied. Jingwei drew his hand back as if burnt.


    "Cockroach shit¡­ on the walls?" He repeated faintly.


    "Or lizard shit. It''s either one or the other." Xue Ning shrugged. "Lizards are more likely though, these buggers are always around. Don''t step on them."


    "Duly noted." Jingwei said, and he took a more careful look at the floor surrounding his feet. In a fit of paranoia, he lifted his shoes to check the underside for any animal droppings and carcasses.


    He stumbled, and Xue Ning easily grabbed his arm to support him. She didn''t want him to fall against the wall and smear that branded T-shirt of his with shit. A posh man like Sun Jingwei might just have a meltdown, and she was ill-equipped to deal with something like that.


    The vultures on social media would love it though. Which is another reason why she had to help him. Not because she wanted to hold his arm or anything!


    "Thanks darling," he said distractedly, taking another look at his shoes. Was that ck speck dirt¡­ or¡­ he shuddered internally, giving Xue Ning a pleading look.


    Xue Ning took one nce at the bottom of his branded shoes and rolled her eyes.


    "That''s just dirt, put down your feet."


    ? Jingwei took another look just in case. Now that Xue Ning said it, he felt more reassured and heaved a sigh of relief.


    "How long have you been living here for again?" Jingwei asked. "You seem really used to these¡­ circumstances."


    "Not too long, and it''s life," Xue Ning shrugged. "It could always be worse. At least my home has its own toilet."


    Jingwei stared at her, horrified.


    "You mean some houses don''t have toilets?" He squawked out. He imagined the sprawling estate of his mansion without any toilets whatsoever. Impossible.


    "Yeah,munal toilets are a thing, ever heard of dorm rooms?" Xue Ning asked. "It''s a lot cheaper to share a toilet, but I refuse to skimp on this." She had enough bad experiences with shared bathrooms in school to invite them into adulthood. This was a necessary expense.<sub> </sub>


    "Huh," was Jingwei''s only response. Seeing that his mind was frantically rebooting with new knowledge, Xue Ning decided not to hold it against him. If he pawned his watch, he could probably buy at least half of this building.


    "Anyway, are you okay with climbing up three flights of stairs?" She asked, finger preparing to press on the button. "It''s fine if you say no, I won''t judge you. Much."


    "Hey! I''m fit enough to climb three flights of stairs!" He protested. He had caught Xue Ning checking out Shengli''s physique when they first met him, and that was certainly fuel for hispetitiveness. Even if Shengli and Xue Ning had not gotten along, it still rankled him.


    He was going to make sure she couldn''t take her eyes off him! And it starts with proving his own fitness.


    "Lead the way!"


    "Fair enough," Xue Ning casted a doubtful look at him, before climbing the stairs. She wasn''tpletely healed, but it was good for her to get some exercise - she had been eating astonishingly well these past few days.


    Sun Jingwei was strangely quiet as they climbed up. She expected him to make some quip about how narrow the staircase was, and the possible presence of pests. She even expected him to wheeze in exhaustion.


    Curious, and just a little worried, she turned around slightly, only to see Sun Jingwei''s eyes focused on her ass! No wonder he was so quiet! She whipped around to re at him, but before she could actually scold him, he stumbled back, startled, and nearly fell backwards!


    "Careful!" She yelled, grabbing onto his T-shirt with one hand, the other gripping the staircase railing. God, this man was a menace to his own wellbeing. Thankfully he managed to catch himself by holding onto the railing, but Jingwei immediately let go as soon as he was able.


    "Xue Ning, thanks for saving me, but I must know, has this railing ever been wiped?" Jingwei asked warily, staring at his own hand as though it was rife with germs.


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes, but internally smirked. It was time for her to get some revenge.


    "Railings need to be wiped?" She asked curiously. "I didn''t know that!"


    Jingwei stared at her, and then at his hand, and then back at her, before letting out a mournful sound as though he was a kicked puppy.


    Sheughed.


    "Just kidding. I know that railings need to be wiped." Just as Jingwei was beginning to feel relieved, she continued. "But the ones here aren''t though. No one bothers."


    Jingwei stared at her, horrified.


    "Don''t worry, I have dish soap at home. It''ll set things right." She saidfortingly. She patted his arm with her hand that touched the railing, expecting him to flinch or jump away, but he did no such thing.


    How surprising.


    "Alright, I''ll douse myself in it," he promised, holding her dirty hand with his own clean one. She stared at him, what was the point? Now both of his hands were dirty.


    He caught her curious look and smiled. "Who has ever heard of someone washing only one hand? If I got one hand dirty, I might as well dirty the other one too. And you''re my wife, so no matter how dirty your hand is, I still want to hold hands with you."

 Chapter 73 Xue Ning’s Apartment Part 2

    There was a hastily stifled gasp from the bottom of the staircase. It reached their ears easily, since their feet had stopped stomping on the stairs.


    Ah, they had nosy neighbours. Sun Jingwei must have guessed that there were eavesdroppers, hence he said what he said!


    Smart of him. It was a good thing that she didn''t fall for those honeyed words.


    Sun Jingwei was getting too good at this pretend rtionship business, spewing cheesy romantic lines like he genuinely meant every word!


    At least he wasmitted to keeping their cover, and she needed all the help she could get. She wouldn''t know how to act in a normal rtionship, so she has to count on him for this, even if hearing his words did strange things to Xue Ning''s icy cold heart.


    "Come on, you dumbass," she said, thest word slipping out too easily as a habit. She paused as Jingwei snickered quietly; should she be calling the love of her life a dumbass? What would the eavesdropping person think?


    Well. It was toote to take back her words. Wouldn''t it be weirder, and a lot more suspicious, if she corrected herself and said ''I mean baby''? Could she even call him with such a nickname?


    "Of course, my dearest, lead the way," Jingwei replied easily, sounding like an indulgent husband humouring a grouchy wife to anyone who was listening.


    Sun Jingwei was good at this.


    Too good.


    She turned around so he wouldn''t see her slowly reddening face, half-dragging him up the flight of stairs. Jingwei''sughter echoed in the empty stairway until they finally reached her apartment.


    -


    "Wee to my humble abode," Xue Ning said, opening the door to her home. It looked like exactly how she left it, with paint peeling off the walls and dust in the air.


    Jingwei entered, and cautiously looked around. There was only a living room, a tiny bedroom and an even tinier kitchen.


    He frowned as he looked at the living room - the couch was small and the fabric was peeling at certain parts, and there was a small coffee table that seemed to have a side shaved off.


    Xue Ning either had a hobby of collecting entric furniture that could be disyed in a museum for modern art, or more likely, she simply snatched whatever furniture that was the cheapest and still functioning.


    His heart ached for her, but she didn''t notice.


    "Take off your shoes and put them here," she gestured to a stack of old newspapers that were acting as her makeshift shoe rack, bending down to remove her own shoes. Jingwei eyed the worn out pair of flip flops and ragged sport shoes, and vowed to buy Xue Ning new pairs. It couldn''t be safe to even walk out in these.


    He bent over and removed his own shoes. Just as he was about to remove his socks, he spied the thickyer of dust on the floor.


    "Do you have house slippers?" Jingwei asked hesitantly.<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning stared at him nkly, before finallyughing. "No I don''t, if you''re afraid of a little dust, you can just keep your socks on, but don''tin if they get wet when you use the bathroom!"


    "I won''t," Jingwei said, internally shuddering at the thought of wet, dusty socks.


    He kept his socks on as he wandered into the kitchen, observing the in floor tiles, the kitchen that didn''t even include a proper table. The table was barely the size of a school desk, and looked like it had been stolen from someone''s garbage dump, for there was graffiti on it.


    He didn''t know who Lu Xia and Qi Ying were, but he hoped they were still together, if not the marriage vow carved into the table would be for nothing.


    It was most likely for nothing.


    He continued to poke around the kitchen. There was only a small stove with a pot on it, and when he looked up at the decaying wooden kitchen cabs, he could see an old rice cooker, a toaster and an electric kettle cramped together, along with two tes crushed to the side.


    Only two tes!


    The ss panel was already yellowing, but he could still see the charred edges of the toaster and how the cables seem to have seen better days.


    Surely this wasn''t safe? How had Xue Ning managed to live like this for so long?


    He finally reached the sink. It was small, but clean, and he hurriedly washed his hands with the soap provided.


    There was no hand towel for him to wipe his hands on. He sighed.


    If Xue Ning insisted on moving back to this house in future, he''d triple her bonus so that she can afford a better ce! Best if she decided to marry him and he''ll keep her in luxury for the rest of her life. Even if they divorced, he''ll make sure to give her enough alimony to live happily!


    When he finally emerged from the kitchen, he found the living room empty. Instead, there was the sound of muffled cursing from what must be the bedroom. He walked in to find Xue Ning hunched over a small suitcase, cursing as she tried to zip it up. There were clothes spilling out of it.


    "Need any help?" Jingwei asked.


    "Yes, seeing that it''s your gifts that made it so difficult to pack in the first ce," she grumbled half-heartedly. "I can''t fit the evening gown or high heels inside the suitcase so they are going back in the box."


    "That''s fine, I''ll carry it," Jingwei said agreeably. "Do you have anything else you want to bring along?"


    "Nah, you''ve seen the state of my house right?" Xue Ning gave a self-decrepitatingugh. "What can I take from here that you do not already have? Won''t my things look out of ce?"


    "So what?" He shrugged as he took the suitcase from her, using his much heavier bulk to shove the top down. Xue Ning took a moment to admire the flex of his arm muscles before she hurriedly zipped the suitcase. The zipper groaned in protest, but thankfully still held firm.


    "If it makes my house feel more like a home to you, just bring it." Jingwei said, staring firmly into her eyes. "I want you to befortable when living with me."

 Chapter 74 Stellar Pretending

    "If it makes my house feel more like a home to you, just bring it." Jingwei said, staring firmly into her eyes. "I want you to befortable when living with me."


    Sensing Xue Ning''s disbelief, he added. "You can bring stuff like your shoes or even your graffiti table. I may need convincing on your mouldy toaster though."


    "My toaster isn''t mouldy, it''s well-loved," Xue Ning retorted instinctively, ignoring the fact that her mother said the exact same thing when Xue Ning had taken a photo of it to show her family the newest addition to her kitchen. Meanwhile, her father had called it a fire hazard, and her brother had called it a source of radiation.


    Ridiculous, all of them.


    "Yeah, by the racoons in the park," Jingwei said tly. "I think if you toasted bread in it, it might just give you indigestion."


    "What if I insist on bringing it?" Xue Ning said, tilting her head up challengingly to stare him down. "What if I need it to feel at home?"


    Let''s see if Sun Jingwei meant what he said earlier. Everyone could spout words promising things, but fewer couldmit to their words.


    Come on Sun Jingwei, prove me right. Prove that you''re a snobby rich man that wants to treat me well just to feel good about yourself. Prove to me that you''re terrible, so that my heart can stop beating in double time when you are near.


    "Then bring it," Jingwei said, shattering all her doubts. "You can even disy it at your bedside if you wish. Just don''t use it! It''s an issue of your health! Besides, aren''t you always trying to save money? Wouldn''t falling ill and seeing a doctor waste more money?"


    Xue Ning could only stare at him, speechless in surprise. Sun Jingwei was speaking sense! He was using her logic against her!


    "Not that I can''t afford a doctor for you," Jingwei added, "but why go through the trouble?"


    Xue Ning stared out the window, looking for the sign of the apocalypse. There were no flying pigs, earthquakes or alien invasions.


    ? "Oi! I can be sensible!" Jingwei protested. "Don''t underestimate me - I saw that look on your face!"


    "That''s just my default face when I look at you." She replied, hurriedly brushing the dust off her clothes. "Anyway, more importantly, you''re going to help me carry that box of your gifts to your car. I can carry the rest."


    Jingwei stood up and had the gall to reach for a hand to drop a kiss on the back of it, as though he was some fine gentleman. "Yes dear. I am here at your service."


    She rolled her eyes. "You know, you don''t need to act like this when it''s just the two of us."


    "Act?" He blinked in confusion.


    "Yes - but good job on the stairwell just now. I didn''t realise my neighbours might be eavesdropping."


    "Good job on the stairwell?" Jingwei echoed dumbly.


    "Guess you do have sense after all." Xue Ning patted his arm, oblivious to the way Jingwei''s brain was frantically trying to make sense of her words. "Now let''s go before everyone and their mother spies on us from the lift lobby."<sub> </sub>


    =


    Toote.


    Everyone and their mothers, fathers, as well as second-cousins-twice-removed were all there waiting at the lift lobby, when they got out of the rickety lift that was one trip away from the junkyard.


    Was this how celebrities felt? Xue Ning twitched at the way greedy eyes peered at them, looking for scandal to record with their phones. She should have carried the box instead - it would have offered some protection against their eyes. She clutched at her suitcase tightly, trying to keep calm by taking deep breaths.


    This wasn''t going to be like when she was back in school.


    She forced herself to look up, steeling her spine. She took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders, preparing to bulldoze over all of them if they didn''t make way. Her suitcase could stand to roll over a few exposed toes.


    "Smile, don''t look murderous," Jingwei hurriedly whispered in her ear, before taking the lead.


    "Excuse me, let us through, thank you very much!" Xue Ning watched as he easily slipped on a winning smile that had more than one person stumbling back from how handsome he was. He adjusted his hold on the box so that he could grip it with one arm (and wasn''t that a sight that did an interesting thing to Xue Ning''s intestines), and his other free hand easily reached out to hold Xue Ning''s hand, squeezing slightly as he led her through the crowd.


    "Excuse me, excuse me, stand back, thank you¡­"


    Xue Ning followed him, trying her best to give a friendly non-threatening smile. Judging by the way several people recoiled away in fear, she wasn''t seeding.


    Either way, both of them managed to make it to Jingwei''s car in one piece, without tripping over people. They hurriedly put her luggage in the back seat and Jingwei even helped to open the car door for her, giving her a quick wink that only she could see.


    Acting. She reminded herself. They were acting as a couple, so of course she shouldn''t be scowling at this gentlemanly action. Normally she would, because she was perfectly capable of opening a car door!


    But well. Acting. She pasted a pleased smile on her face. Jingwei took one look at it and began snickering, and he didn''t stop until her apartmentplex faded from the rearview mirror.


    "Oh good, we''re finally away," Xue Ning said, relieved. "Your acting skills are great. Unparalleled."


    "My acting skills. Right. Acting," Jingweiughed helplessly to himself. It was so ironic.


    He spent years pretending to be sincere and gentlemanly to random girls, only for the girls around him to fall for his actions, treating them as proof that he loved them, that they were meant to be the next Mrs Sun.


    Now, he truly meant every action and gesture, and Xue Ning was out there thinking he''s faking all of it!


    Was this his bad karma catching up to him?

 Chapter 75 Your New Home

    As Jingwei drove them back to his house, Xue Ning noticed how the buildings lining the street got increasingly luxurious. Gone were the ramshackle shophouses and the dirty, faded paint jobs on shoddily cobbled apartments, gone were the traffic jams with incessant honking and the ever-present smell of polluted air.


    Instead, she was greeted with clusters of fancy condominiums with even fancier foreign names, and the hustle and bustle of the streets eventually faded into quiet, peaceful greenery.


    Here, the people spoke in soft tones, and green trees lined a pathway free of litter. Children yed in a yground that featured a goddamn dinosaur structure. They screamed like ordinary children, but even that wasn''t enough to disrupt the calm of this ce.


    "Wow, so do you live around her? It seems peaceful," Xue Ning said as she continued to look out the window.


    "I live a bit further up!" Jingwei said as he drove his car up a rtively steep slope. "This area is mostly full of young rich families, because they want to get their kids into the good schools nearby. The security in this area is also pretty good, because the parents are paranoid about their kids."


    "That''s good - so you''ll actually be safer here," Xue Ning said. She turned around, just to check if they were being followed by suspicious vehicles. Thankfully, she found none.


    Soon they arrived at Sun Jingwei''s apartmentplex. There was a security guard on duty who bowed when he saw Jingwei, letting his car through theplex, but he did a double-take at Xue Ning''s presence in the car next to him, and the suitcase of her belongings in the back seat.


    "Good afternoon, Mr Sun. Is your guest staying here permanently?" The security guard asked cautiously.


    "Hi Lao Wen, yes she is! This is my wife, Xue Ning," Jingwei said easily, gesturing to Xue Ning. Xue Ning bowed politely to him and wanted to offer her hand to shake, only to realise he couldn''t reach her from there. She settled for a polite wave.


    "Nice to meet you," she said demurely. The security guard was flummoxed - sure, he had the rumours and promptly dismissed them because Mr Sun never brought anyone to his private apartment.


    Until now!


    He would love to tell everyone that he met the elusive Mrs Sun, but he was locked under an NDA that threatened him with jail time if he were to do so. Gossiping online wasn''t worth this cushy job.


    "I see, nice to meet you too, Mrs Sun Xue Ning," the security guard, Lao Wen, said. Xue Ning could only nod, the back of her ears turning red at the thought of being addressed as Mrs Sun.


    "You can just call me Xue Ning, it''s fine," she hastily corrected him. Xue Ning doesn''t think she''ll be able to get used to being called Mrs Sun for a long, long while.


    "Very well then, Madame Xue Ning." The guard replied politely with a smile. "I wish the both of you a pleasant stay and a loving marriage."


    "Thanks," Xue Ning croaked out in surprise. "Thanks!" Jingwei echoed with a lot more enthusiasm.


    They drove in, and Jingwei parked his car in an empty lot. Strangely enough, the surrounding lots were all empty too.


    Did no one live here?


    "So which level do you live on?" She asked wonderingly, when they made their way to the lift lobby. Of course, it was paved with shining marble and smelled like a refreshing floral perfume, aplete 180 from Xue Ning''s shabby lift lobby. Jingwei had to use a pass card to even ess the lift. It was like living in a hotel!<sub> </sub>


    "Currently it''s the 20th, but I might move to a new floor. It really depends." Jingwei replied. "Do you have any preference on floor numbers? I can move if you prefer a higher or lower level."


    "...What do you mean? Don''t they already have people living there?" Xue Ning asked, confused. "They can''t all be empty."


    "There are tenants, but I own this entire building. I can kick them out if I want to," Jingwei said nonchntly.


    "Please don''t." Xue Ning warned, her brain breaking at the thought of someone owning an entire building and having the ability to move into a different apartment at whim, changing residences like clothes.


    If she were a tenant and herndlord kicked her out just so he could live in her apartment, she''d scratch his car, no questions asked.


    "We are not here to cause trouble!" Xue Ning insisted, giving him a warning look. Jingwei did not need to make unnecessary enemies.


    The lift doors opened easily with a smooth ''ding'', and Xue Ning was once again struck by the differences in their living station. The lift was decked in soothing yellow lights and lined with full-length mirrors on two of its sides. In the top right hand corner, she spotted a working security camera.


    But what caught her attention was the fact that there was a small cushion sofa for one to sit on. Inside the lift.


    Were Jingwei''s tenants all so elderly that they couldn''t stand when taking the lift? Surely no one would need to sit on this for no reason, right?


    Xue Ning''s exasperated confusion did not end when they arrived in front of Jingwei''s house. He unlocked his electronic lock with his birthday passcode and hurriedly ushered her into his house.


    "Wee to my humble abode," he said, echoing Xue Ning''s words from earlier. Sheughed at the sheer ridiculousness of it all, slowly making her way into his house. Humble was not the descriptor she would use. The moment she took off her shoes, Jingwei had handed her a pair of house slippers, matching with his own.


    "Here! Wear these - the floor can get chilly." Jingwei said, and he was right, because the floor was made out of some strange stone-marble hybrid that whisked away heat from her feet the moment she stood on it.


    <o>,m Strange. First order of business: she plugged her phone to a power outlet near the living room. Once she saw that it was charging, she continued to walk around the house.</o>


    While doing so, she noticed that rather than painting the walls a different colour, Jingwei had elected to decorate them with art pieces more suitable for museums.


    "Is all this real?" She pointed to the variety of paintings on the wall. There were some fancyndscapes, some fruit, and a few cats. The focal point of the decor was a huge painting of a beautiful woman hanging in the living room, a benevolent smile on her face.


    "Seeing that I had themmissioned, I hope so," he replied as he took the suitcase from her. "I wanted something for my empty walls, but I couldn''t paint for shit, so I got people to do it for me."


    "More importantly Xue Ning, do you want to sleep in my bed?"

 Chapter 76 Bedroom Negotiations Part 1

    "More importantly Xue Ning, do you want to sleep in my bed?" Jingwei asked, "Or do you want to -" Before he could continue, Xue Ning''s hand had immediately hit his stomach with a loud smack.


    "Oi! Don''t be so shameless! I haven''t even seen your entire house and you want me in your bed already?! What the hell?" Xue Ning yelled, preparing to deliver another blow.


    Jingwei hastily held up his hands in surrender. "It''s just an innocent suggestion!" He said, but his face was anything but innocent, with the way he mischievously waggled his eyebrows. "Ouch don''t hit me!"


    "Give me a good reason not to then," she growled warningly.


    "Easy - let me ask you a question, aren''t you supposed to be my bodyguard?"


    "Technically yes¡­?" She replied warily, sensing a trap.


    "How are you going to protect me if you don''t sleep in my room? What if an assassin climbs through the window and stabs me in my sleep?"


    "You live on the 20th floor?" She pointed out, brandishing her hand to the tall windows that showed the peaceful scenery of gentle rolling hills, sprawling residential buildings and even the skyscrapers further away. "How do you think an assassin is going to get up here? Fly?"


    "Jet packs are a thing," he insisted, smiling, "but I was thinking more of the lift we just took."


    "There is a security guard on duty, making sure that only residents can enter. Are your tenants assassins?" Xue Ning replied, less amused.


    "They could be?" Jingwei scratched his chin. "I''ve never really talked to them. Who knows? They might want to hurt the poor, fragile, innocent, me!"


    Xue Ning scoffed. Sun Jingwei had used three descriptors for himself, and all of them were inurate.


    "Besides, my room is big enough for both of us to sleep separately. Unless of course¡­ you''re already assuming you''re sleeping in my bed with me." Jingwei said with a knowing smirk.


    "You - "


    "I understand," Jingwei continued, a hand on his heart. "After all, who could resist cuddling with me at night? You certainly didn''t. I am a warmfortable pillow for anyone to hug."


    Xue Ning blushed as she recalled how she apparently clung onto him like an octopus even when she was asleep. In her defence, it was like he said. He was a warmfortable pillow that also happened to smell really good, even through the groggy haze of sleep.


    "So what? All the more reason to not share a bed with you," she eximed, victoriously pouncing on the point he raised. "I need to be alert and awake to keep you safe, not cuddling with you in any capacity whatsoever."


    Jingwei stilled as he heard her rebuttal.


    "We can still share a room!" He insisted. "You haven''t seen it yet right? It''s definitely big enough for both of us to share. Come here and take a look!"


    She narrowed her eyes.


    "Just a look, I swear! Besides, you may want to sleep in my room after seeing it! I can even move into the guest room if you want!"<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning stilled her fist, and she narrowed her eyes suspiciously at Jingwei. Jingwei made sure to look as innocent and as well-meaning as possible, as harmless as a newborn baby, even though deep down he wanted nothing more than Xue Ning to agree to nightly cuddling.


    He had purposely asked the question in a way so that he could leave himself with some wiggle room! He didn''t want to start their first day of being roommates with his own murder - he would end up a ghost, and the sickly pallor of being a spirit would make him look hideous.


    But despite the possible risk of getting punched in the stomach for his audacious request, he couldn''t not try.


    There was a miniscule, one-in-a-million chance that Xue Ning could have said yes. So how could he not take that gamble?


    When it came to love, it was nothing ventured, nothing gained!


    "Pervert," Xue Ning hissed anyway, snatching her own suitcase from his hands in a displeased huff. Jingwei gave her a beseeching nce, but was quick enough to move out of her way. His toes had barely avoided getting run over by the squeaky wheels of her suitcase.


    Xue Ning was determined to ignore Jingwei, but it was hard, when he was following her eagerly at her heels, looking like a puppy that knew it did something wrong but was still hoping for praise.


    "I''m serious! And I wasn''t lying about the size of my room either."


    He opened a door, and the sight of his room proved his point. Even with a huge king-sized bed in the middle, there was still so much room for Xue Ning to wander into. There were four fluffy pillows strewn all over his bed. The nkets were bunched at the side and his sheets were rumpled.


    "You don''t make your bed?" She asked, with a raised eyebrow. They had that inmon.


    Jingwei merely gave her a sheepish shrug. "Never got that habit. I didn''t see the point, why make it when I''m going to sleep in it again anyway?"


    He grinned at her. "Of course, if you agree to sleep in my bed, I''ll make it five times a day if you want!"


    "Nevermind," she shoved him, and proceeded to check out the attached bathroom.


    While it looked simr to the one used in the Sun family mansion with its polished marble tops, borate tap designs and stained ss mosaic tiles, there was something ridiculous that surely had to be Sun Jingwei''s personal addition.


    There was a 20-inch TV mounted on the wall facing the bathtub.


    "I purposely designed it so that I could watch movies while enjoying my bath or when showering." Jingwei said, delighted at the gobsmacked look on Xue Ning''s face. "You can try it too! Take a bath and pick a movie. It''s linked to the main movie catalogue."


    "Maybe next time," Xue Ning said, choking with a red face as she looked at an innocent bottle at the side of the bathtub.


    The word LUBRICANT was clearly visible.


    Next to her, Jingwei could only give an awkwardugh.

 Chapter 77 Bedroom Negotiations Part 2

    "Watching movies, I see." She said dryly. One did not need to wonder what sort of movies he was watching with this bottle next to him.


    She wasn''t some sheltered innocent who had no idea what it was for, which was why she would not be stepping into the bathtub unless Sun Jingwei scrubbed it clean with disinfectant.


    "Ah," Jingwei said, a little embarrassed. He didn''t have time to clean up because he wasn''t expecting anyone to move in, let alone a woman he liked enough to possibly marry.


    Well, hopefully Xue Ning wouldn''t mind? She could be open-minded enough. Jingwei was willing to share his supplies if she wanted.


    "Don''t worry about¡­ that. I''ll tidy this ce up?" Jingwei said reassuringly. "Of course, you can also use it if you want to - "


    "NO," Xue Ning dered, face red. "I''M NOT USING LUBE WITH YOU."


    There was a moment of silence. Jingwei''s lips twitched with the herculean effort to not burst into hystericalughter as they both registered the meaning of her reply.


    Xue Ning hastily added, "I mean, I''m not using lube! Your lube! With you! Don''t get the wrong idea!"


    "You don''t have to sound so offended!" Jingwei said, snickering as he leaned against the doorway of the bathroom, a picture of casual handsomeness, the beauty of his features highlighted under the warm bathroom lights.


    Unfortunately, Xue Ning couldn''t appreciate it because she was screaming internally into her hands. Her brain couldn''t stop thinking about the lube, Sun Jingwei and herself, all together.


    It would be hot. No. It would be gross. It was not hot at all! She refused to think about it any longer. She smacked her own cheeks, but Jingwei wasn''t done spitting nonsense.


    "We''re living together now - so even if you don''t want to, everything in this house is yours. Including lube." Jingwei said, the very picture of a generous husband. "So, if you have any other unique requests, kindly let me know, I will make the relevant purchases."


    Xue Ning let out an undignified squeak as she pivoted sharply, bumping into Jingwei in her haste to leave the bathroom. She passed by Jingwei''s rumpled bed, and then her head was filled with even more images of what he could be doing in it.


    The lube bottle was featured.


    Xue Ning''s face grew redder and she stormed away.


    Jingwei, to his credit, managed to wait until she left his bedroom before he started wheezing in helplessughter.


    "Fuck you Sun Jingwei! I can hear you!" Xue Ning yelled in embarrassment from outside, her face redder than the stupid tomato paintings Jingwei had on his wall.


    What could Jingwei do, but stroll out to meet her, whileughing even louder? Sure, he was risking his life by teasing her, but life is short anyway. He had people trying to kill him - he might as well make the most of it.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning had found herself in the living room, where it was thankfully free of lube bottles. It would seem that even someone as horny as Sun Jingwei had some standards. She eyed the living room in approval; it was designed beautifully.


    The dark greenish stone-marble tiles on the floor cast a serene, yet mysterious appeal over the room. This, paired with a dark brown L-shaped leather sofa backed against a wall and a sleek low ss table, made the room look elegant, sophisticated and calm, adjectives she would never have used to describe Sun Jingwei.


    There was yet another TV mounted to the wall, this time it was twice the size of the one found in the bathroom. Underneath it were multiple gaming consoles, but they were gathering dust.<sub> </sub>


    She turned back to gaze at the portrait of the smiling woman in the living room.


    "Beautiful, isn''t she?" Jingwei asked as he walked beside her. "I made the artist amend it until he got her smile just like how I remembered it."


    "Just like how¡­ who is she? An ex-girlfriend?" Xue Ning asked, her gut twisting at the thought. If Sun Jingwei had loved another woman so much that he got a portrait of hermissioned and hung it over his sofa in the living room, surely he wasn''t over her.


    There would be no ce for Xue Ning, no matter what words he spewed out. After all, actions always spoke louder.


    Which was good that he wasn''t in love with her, she rationalised to herself. Because this whole thing was just a job to begin with, and even her living with him was to keep up a pretence.


    Then why did she feel so disappointed? Why did her mouth suddenly feel like it tasted a lemon?


    "Oh? Is that a hint of jealousy I''m detecting Xue Ning?" Jingwei asked, siddling even closer to her to peer at her face.


    "No I''m not!" Xue Ning scowled and pushed his smug smirking face away. Urgh, why did he have to be so handsome? "Why would I care about who you like?"


    She doesn''t care. She doesn''t.


    "Right," Jingwei said, a smile growing on his face. He had years of experience in deciphering women''s emotions, and Xue Ning was a terrible liar, making it even easier for him to figure out her true feelings.


    She was jealous!


    That meant that she wanted him. enough to be jealous of a potential ex-girlfriend!


    This was proof she had some feelings for him, even if Xue Ning herself didn''t notice yet. But that''s fine, he could wait and win her over.


    "Well, I''m sorry to disappoint you, but she''s the woman that will always be in my heart."


    "Oh," Xue Ning said tly, ignoring her way her heart seemed to crack just a little bit. "That''s nice. Where''s she now?"


    "Hopefully in a better ce," Jingwei said wistfully. "After all, she doesn''t have to deal with my fuckups as an adult. Father already has his hands full."


    She stared at him in surprise. "Don''t tell me¡­" she looked at the painting, then back at him. Now that she was looking for it, there were more simrities between their looks.


    More familial resemnce.


    "Yep. You''ve got it." Jingwei smiled, it was softer and sweeter, yet a lot sadder than what she had ever seen from him.


    "Xue Ning, meet my mother, the lovelyte Mrs Sun."

 Chapter 78 Bitter Reunions

    While Jingwei was having a great time introducing his new favourite house guest to his extravagant apartment, the opposite was happening for Tianwei.


    Not only was his peaceful breakfast disrupted with horrific news, he arrived at the police station to realise the police knew nothing more than he did (which was abysmally little to begin with), and the cherry on top of this terrible cake?


    His ex-girlfriend just strolled into the police precinct in a form-fitting pantsuit.


    He nearly had a goddamn seizure at the sight. After six years, one would think he''d be over a rtionship that crashed and burned more horrifically than any stock market crash and avian disaster put together, but no, his heart still twinged painfully when he saw her walk in, her heels making loud clicking noises on the tiled floors.


    She used to avoid wearing high heels. But that was a long time ago. They had both be different people, but the polite smile she gave to the officer duty was still the same.


    The way it faded to an angry frown the moment she spotted Tianwei from the corner of her eye, was also sadly, regrettably, also the same.


    She whirled around, and Tianwei fought to keep his face politely even. Years had not dampened Lian Xingzi''s beauty, but rather added a maturity and patience, a patience that was fast fading when she stared at him.


    The scent of lilies permeated the air. He fought the urge to take a deeper sniff of her familiar scent.


    "It''s you." Xingzi stared at him, unblinkingly. "What are you, out of all people, doing here?"


    "I have a case to settle." Tianwei replied, his voice deliberately cold. Business was business, and she was, as always, in the way.


    "Funnily enough, so do I," Xingzi replied with as much warmth as Tianwei. Having had enough of conversing with her ex-boyfriend, she turned back to the officer and gave him a winsome smile. "May I speak to my client now?"


    "Client?!" Tianwei interrupted. He had a bad feeling about this. "Here?"


    "Where else," Xingzi said, barely managing to not roll her eyes, ring at him with a scoff. "I do not make a habit of visiting police stations for fun." Unlike you. Her eyes implied, which was an erroneous assumption, but of course she would get him wrong.


    Tianwei''s eyebrow twitched at his words and her implication, but he did not look away. He would rather gouge out his own eyes than to show weakness in front of this woman!


    "Madam, he''s in one of the rooms. I''ll guide you there?" The police officer asked hesitantly, staring at Tianwei and Xingzi. The tension between them could be cut with a knife, and it wasn''t helping the already terrible morale of the police department.


    <o>,m Meanwhile Tianwei''s ears perked up at the first word. Madam? Xingzi got married? Why had he not known this?</o>


    Because they broke up.


    "Thank you for your help. It''s good to know that some people care about getting things done." She replied sweetly, and Tianwei clutched at the sofa armrest at the sheer injustice.


    The nerve! How dare she imply that he was here to idle time away? He was here because he cared about getting things done!<sub> </sub>


    After her back disappeared from his view, he sucked in a deep breath to calm himself down, ignoring the way her scent caused him to reminisce about a time in his life where he was happier, even if he spent the bulk of that time arguing with her.


    Officer Tang, who watched the entire confrontation silently, finally emerged with a paper cup of water. "I got this for you, because we don''t allow alcohol in the station."


    "Thanks," he said as he downed the whole thing in one gulp. It would be better, if it was vodka.


    "So I guess you know the pro bonowyer that was assigned to our officers." Officer Tang stated, instead of asking because there was no way two people who stared at each other with that much hatred and longing could be strangers.


    "Hmph. You can say that." Although he probably knew as much about her now as a stranger on the street. He rubbed a hand over his face. "This willplicate the investigation, but it''s a small setback."


    "I''ll begin with the interrogation when he''s done meeting her." Officer Tang raised a hand like he wished to pat Tianwei on the shoulder, before thinking better of it and putting it down.


    "I wish to watch."


    "Normally I could make exceptions, but I''m certain thiswyer in particr would have a lot of things to say if she knew that you were watching the interrogation."


    He scoffed. "That''s nothing I''ve never heard before. I can handle it just fine."


    Officer Tang sighed. "No, Tianwei, I meant that this could cause more trouble for the precinct as a whole if she let it slip that you, an unauthorized personnel, had ess to the interrogation investigation. If she was a good friend of yours, I wouldn''t worry as much. But just from that short conversation, it''s clear there''s a lot of bad blood between the both of you."


    Bad blood was an understatement. Lawyer Lian Xingzi looked like she wanted to gouge out Tianwei''s eyeballs the moment they were alone!


    Tianwei clenched his hands. Officer Tang had a point. Curse her for showing up now!


    "Don''t worry, I''ll remain behind the one-way mirror." He promised. "She will not know about me. Besides, my family can handle a single pro bonowyer."


    Officer Tang frowned in displeasure at what his words implied. He needed to tread carefully. If someone of Sun Tianwei''s status insisted on having his way, it would be folly to argue otherwise. No matter what, their precinct was caught between a rock and a hard ce.


    Kick out Sun Tianwei? They''d be used by the Sun family of covering for their own officers if there was no conclusive result to the investigation. There would be no future for their precinct.


    Include Sun Tianwei? They''d be used by the court of public opinion for disregarding investigation protocol, which would bring doubt into investigation results. His family might even destroy the life of the defensewyer, just because they could.


    There was no right answer to this dilemma!

 Chapter 79 Interrogation Part 1

    Officer Tang thought it over quickly. What was more important to him - the survival of the careers of his colleagues here, or the possible destruction of the criminal defencewyer from the public defender''s office?


    If thewyer didn''t find out about Sun Tianwei''s involvement, perhaps there could still be a way out for her, and for the precinct. Because the public has to know about Sun Tianwei''s interference for them to even form an opinion about it!


    If thewyer did find out and kept it quiet, she would be safe from the Sun family''s retaliation. Hopefully, she will pick the wise decision.


    The second option was still the lesser of the two evils, because there was a chance of survival. If they went against the Sun family, it was guaranteed annihtion.


    There was a reason why Sun Jingwei had never spent any time in a holding cell, despite all his youthful delinquent behaviour.


    Officer Tang sent a mental note of apology to Lawyer Lian, he can only hope that Tianwei would be merciful enough and not try to harm her in any way.


    Thest thing anyone needed, or wanted, was a human rights abuse case on top of a murder.


    Officer Tang made his decision. He sighed and led Tianwei to the room behind the one-way mirror.


    "Please keep as silent as possible and do not leave the room," he told Tianwei. Tianwei nodded agreeably now that he had gotten his way.


    He then began the interrogation of one of his oldest officers, Ma Lin Tao.


    "Sir! I swear I''m innocent!" Lin Tao yelled the moment Officer Tang entered the room.


    From behind the one-way mirror, Tianwei smirked at the faint look of exasperation on Xingzi''s face. Clearly her client wasn''t all that good at listening to her, which was not surprising. No one wanted to listen to her, least of all him.


    "That''s what we''re trying to find out," Officer Tang said. "So let''s start from the very beginning, when did the victim arrive in our holding cell?" He knew the answer from his call records, but he wanted to see if they would corroborate it.


    "Around 10.30pm? I think?" Lin Tao scratched at his jaw, thinking back.


    "Our station only got the call that you were dispatched at 9pm. Then the car returned with the prisoner and she refused to give us her personal details! If not for you letting us know that her name was Xiumin and she was that woman in Sun Jingwei''s porn video, we''d never know. I would have put her name as Xiao Mei."


    "And then what happened?"


    "And then we just put her in the holding cell." Lin Tao shrugged. "What else were we supposed to do? It was sote already!"


    "Was she alone?" Officer Tang asked.


    "Yes, we didn''t arrest anyone else that night. Boss, even if we had, we also wouldn''t put them with her! She was justughing crazily to herself the whole night, pulling at her own hair. I thought she was possessed."


    "So she was really noisy for the whole night?" Officer Tang asked, with amiserating look.


    "You''d bet." Lin Tao nodded. "She made more noise than the drunkards we usually arrest for actual public disturbance."


    "Then how is it that you could have supposedly fallen asleep on shift?" Officer Tang asked angrily. "Sleep so deeply that someone could have snuck into our precinct and silenced her once and for all? Do you take the precinct as your bedroom?"<sub> </sub>


    Bingo. Tianwei wanted to apud Officer Tang, but he had to keep quiet.


    " I - " Lin Tao began to splutter.


    "Kindly refrain from trapping my client with your questions," Lian Xingzi interrupted. "We have no proof that my client was lying."


    Tianwei scoffed behind the mirror, but Xingzi continued.


    "The woman could have stoppedughing sometime in the wee hours of the morning. As my client''s shiftsted from 8pm to 8am, there''s no way any human could have made noise for all 12 hours."


    "She could," Lin Tao couldn''t help but chime in. "I think if she had enough energy, she really would."


    Xingzi shot him a death re, and Tianweiughed behind his fist. Lian Xingzi, you poor woman. Forced to defend idiots. See? You should have just be a prosecutor like I suggested. But no, you had to pick the losing side.


    "Quiet," she said warningly, and Lin Tao fell silent.


    "Fine," Officer Tang continued. "Then you said that you fell asleep after eating supper. What did you order, when did you order it and what time did you eat it?"


    "Er¡­ I ate fishball noodles with extra noodles and dumplings? Boss I just ordered from Lao Peng''s noodle shop down the street - you know it, you''ve eaten there before! I was feeling hungry after all the excitement and her screaming, so I ordered a bigger size than usual. Then I ate it around¡­ midnight? Or 1 am. Then I got tired and fell asleep."


    "I see," Officer Tang twitched at the easy admittance of Lin Tao sleeping on duty. "Then what time did you wake up?"


    "..." Lin Tao looked at the table, keeping silent.


    "WHAT TIME." Officer Tang repeated. "Better answer me properly you punk!"


    "Stop threatening my client!" Xingzi protested. "He has the right to remain silent."


    Office Tang red at Lin Tao, who was still determinedly looking at the table, refusing to meet his eyes.


    "So you mean to tell me, you got a fooda from eating too much, fell so deeply asleep when you''re on duty that a murder wasmitted right under your nose? And you didn''t realise it until hourster, we wanted to interrogate her and then you realised she was dead when she didn''t wake up?"


    "That''s not - " Lin Tao protested, but Officer Tang was on a roll.


    "Fuck Lin Tao, what kind of idiot are you!" Officer Tang eximed in disappointment. "You''re such a - "


    "Kindly refrain from personal attacks," Xingzi interrupted.


    "Sir! I also don''t know what happened. You know me, usually I eat like this on the night shift all the time, but this was the first time I fell so deeply asleep after eating! You have to believe me!"

 Chapter 80 Interrogation Part 2

    Behind the mirror, Tianwei made a mental note on his phone. Lin Tao could have been lying about his fooda habits, but it needed to be investigated anyway. He''ll send someone to check the order for the food, and then also get an interview with the staff there.


    "Besides, Jianzhi was there too! If I had fallen asleep, he should have been awake!"


    "You''re still trying to shirk responsibility?" Officer Tang scolded. "Don''t worry about Jianzhi, I''ll skin himter too! Now answer my question - did you offer any food for the suspect?"


    "Of course, I''m not a monster." Lin Tao said, offended. "I asked if she wanted to eat or drink anything before she gets interrogated tomorrow and she justughed in my face and spat on the floor. And then she began to cry, so I gave her a packet of tissue paper."


    "I see," Officer Tang said, rubbing his nose bridge. Police officers were not supposed to provide things like tissue paper to known suspects in their custody, even if they were crying women! Lin Tao clearly had a bleeding heart.


    But they weren''t babysitters!


    "So the victim did not ingest any food or water in police custody." Xingzi said smugly. "As such, it''s entirely probable that she would not have the energy to cause trouble and instead fallen asleep. How was my client to know that she was dead?"


    Tianwei gnashed his teeth in irritation. He hated it when Lian Xingzi was right. Sitting across from her, Officer Tang was also forced to concede that point.


    "Fair enough, but you''re notpletely off the hook," Officer Tang said warningly. "You''ve admitted to sleeping on the job, which is gross misconduct and has grounds for disciplinary action."


    "I''ll admit to that! But I definitely did not kill her!" Lin Tao raised his hand to swear, turning to hiswyer. "You''ll help me right?"


    "Of course," Lian Xingzi said. "I''ll make sure that justice is served."


    "Innocent people should be protected under thew, no matter what kind of powerful person is behind this incident."


    Lian Xingzi replied to Lin Tao, but her sharp eyes were staring straight at the one-way mirror.


    Xingzi would bet a left kidney that Sun Tianwei was on the other end of the mirror, listening into the interrogation and getting involved in the investigation, despite him not being a detective orw enforcement officer.


    Sun Tianwei red at her in return, a half-snarl on his face, even though he knew she couldn''t see him.


    Xingzi red even harder, as though she could sense his animosity through the mirror.


    Meanwhile Officer Tang just sighed. The youngest Sun family member was in a happy rtionship, and the older one seemed to meet his worst enemy. Either way, both of them were giving him trouble! He''d be on leave if not for this mess.


    "I''ll have a follow-up interrogation with you when we get the uncorrupted CCTV footage and more information from the coroner''s office." Officer Tang warned. "For now, you''re staying in our holding cell."


    "Boss! But someone died there!" Lin Tao protested, shaking his head. "I don''t want to!"


    Officer Tang gave him a stern look and he quailed.<sub> </sub>


    "I''ll stay," he squeaked. "But can we at least get a monk to pray for her first? What if she decides to haunt us?"


    "Great, then she can tell us who killed her," was Officer Tang''s dry reply. "We can save a lot of time by getting a medium and an ouija board for our investigation instead."


    "BOSS!" Lin Tao wailed, but Officer Tang merely walked out of the room with a casual wave. Tianwei should have used this chance to leave the room so they could discuss the case, but Officer Tang had told him to stay put. It had nothing to do with the fact he wanted to eavesdrop on their private conversation.


    And if he gets to stare at Xingzi''s long-suffering expression a little while longer, no one has to know.


    Lin Tao turned to hiswyer, his one guardian angel that promised to save him.


    "Lawyer Lian¡­You won''t make me stay in her holding cell right?" Lin Tao pleaded.


    Xingzi stared at him sympathetically. "Sadly, there''s not much I can do about that. But if your conscience is clear, then you have nothing to fear."


    "But I - "


    Tianwei leaned forward in anticipation. He knew it! This man was definitely hiding something.


    Xingzi holds up a hand to stop him. "Don''t speak here. The walls have ears, and sometimes there are even rats hiding in the walls."


    She nced at the mirror from the corner of her eyes, knowing that Sun Tianwei was there.


    "I''ll contact youter," she said, standing up from her chair. "For now, I would advise you to get some rest. Contact me if they wish to interrogate you again - and more importantly, do not say anything if I''m not present, no matter what they offer you, or if they threaten you. You cannot trust them to keep their word. Do you understand this?"


    "Yes." Lin Tao nodded frantically.


    "Good," Xingzi said, squeezing his shoulder. "I''ll see you soon. Let''s make our way out of this ce."


    They left the room together, but not before Xingzi gave one final re to the one-way mirror. If this was back in high school, she would have given him a middle finger too, but s, they have both grown up, even if Sun Tianwei still remained that pompous-arrogantpetent-handsome know-it-all from school.


    She would bet her left kidney that Sun Tianwei would be part of the investigation, and she''d have one more kidney to spare. Sun Tianwei was incapable of delegating work or staying in hisne, he just had to influence every single decision made as long as it had something to do with his family.


    Leopards could not change their spots. Rich, domineering men like Tianwei with control issues and the ability to bend thew in their favour would never be willing to sympathise with the downtrodden in society, or ensure they get their due justice.


    That''s why she became a pro-bonowyer in the first ce, instead of pursuing a more lucrative career as awyer in a prestigiousw firm. Back then, Tianwei even offered to get her a position as a prosecutor, a decision he thought was a great stepping stone for her career - an offer she rejected hotly.


    In her opinion, it just showed that even after knowing, and supposedly loving her for years, it showed how little he truly understood her.

 Chapter 81 Investigative Footage Part 1

    Meanwhile, Tianwei was this close to mming the door open to confront her for that ratment. He hated rats with an undying, unnatural passion and she knew it, after she saw him let out a horrendous screech when they were paired together to domunity work for the sake of extra credit.


    He would haveined to his parents, but he didn''t want to add to their worries - Mother wasn''t in good health, and Father''s mood was always erratic as a result. It was best to deal with whatever problem on his own, or with the help of the household staff if possible.


    Thankfully, Xingzi agreed to keep her mouth shut, but she also kept making squeaking sounds on purpose whenever he passed her.


    Why did he end up liking her again? He honestly cannot remember.


    Lies. He remembered it all too well, and then hated himself for remembering it. Just as he was reminicinsing all their times together, (a smooth road that was paved with ss shards), the door opened, interrupting his thoughts.


    "She''s gone for now," Officer Tang said. "But I have a feeling she knew you were there to begin with."


    "You''re right," Tianwei said smugly "But as long as she has no proof, it''s my word against hers."


    And Tianwei''s words weighed heavier than hers. Xingzi knew it too, and it pleased him to know that.


    Officer Tang raised an eyebrow. "While that may be true, please refrain from antagonising her unnecessarily. We''ll still need to see each other over the course of this investigation, and it''s best if we can all get along with minimal bloodshed."


    "She antagonised me first." Tianwei replied automatically, before snapping his mouth shut. That was an uncharacteristically childish reply from a man his age, but then it was Lian Xingzi''s fault. She had always been able to make him regress into childish actions like petty bickering.


    "...Right," Officer Tang said. "I don''t care who started it, but for now, I need you to end it because we''re supposed to be focusing on the investigation."


    Technically he wasn''t supposed to be lecturing Sun Tianwei at all, but seeing that he was behaving like a sulky child, the dad in him emerged unknowingly, ready to lecture. Sun Tianwei, appropriately chastised, merely pushed his sses up his nose with his middle finger and pursed his lips.


    "Has the tech team gotten back to us regarding the corrupted CCTV footage?" Sun Tianwei asked.


    "They''ve only just regained ess to our own security cameras. I''ve received a message from them that they''ve got some news to share. That''s why I came to get you." Officer Tang exined, leading him from the interrogation room and to the tech room.


    So if there was no update from the tech team, would I have been left in the room to rot? Tianwei wondered to himself. But such a thought wasn''t important to the investigation, so he kept quiet and followed Officer Tang to a small room packed full of screens, with a team of CCTV technicians hard at work.


    He frowned at the half-opened snack packets and the crumbs lying around their work station and his nose twitched at the faint smell of body odour.


    "Okay, you guys have been hard at work since 7 in the morning, what have you got?" Officer Tang asked, and all of them startled at a foreign voice in their room.<sub> </sub>


    They nodded hello at Officer Tang, but most of them gave Sun Tianwei another look, because they''ve never seen him before. Was he a new detective? Or an officer?


    He seemed too well-dressed, too expensive to be any of them. Maybe he was one of those hotshotwyers that wanted to get footage of Lin Tao and Jianzhi''s crimes to put them behind bars. Realising that, they shot him scowls and then turned back to their screens.


    Tianwei meanwhile, paid them no mind. He didn''t care if people liked him or not. He only cared if they could do their jobs.


    "Officer Tang, good that you arrived so quickly," Chao Ping, the supervisor for the team replied, waving him to one of the screens. They hurriedly walked over, and Tianwei internally despaired at how sticky the floors were. He could feel it as he walked, even through his leather shoes.


    "So far, the footage we''ve been able to recover isn''t very promising."


    "You called us here to tell us this?" Tianwei interrupted.


    "Well -"


    "What have you found out?" Officer Tang asked, shooting a quick re at Tianwei. For god''s sake that man could stand to have some patience.


    Chao Ping hastily averted his face from Tianwei''s impressive glower, choosing to focus on Officer Tang.


    "As I was saying, the footage was most likely corrupted, doctored to show a false narrative. We recovered some clips that showed that whoever manipted the clips knew what they were doing. They simply looped the same segment of time repeatedly, and they did it so seamlessly that no one noticed anything amiss upon first nce."


    He yed the night''s footage to prove his point. They craned their heads closer to the screen. True enough, there was nothing new happening in the video clip of the holding cell.


    It initially showed Xiuminughing maniacally to herself as she sat on the makeshift bed, her head tilted to the ceiling, her hair in a mess. Then she tugged at her hair and cried ugly tears, beforeughing again.


    One time, she approached the front of the holding cell , as though someone had called for her attention. However, it was just Lin Tao, for they saw the spitting incident he imed happened, and true enough, there was also a small packet of tissue paper thrown into the cell.


    Then apparently Xiumin seemed to tire herself out with her hysterics, sitting on the makeshift bed. Eventually she fell over, falling asleep.


    She remained in the same position for the rest of the clip. If a normal person saw this clip, they would think that nothing was amiss, but Officer Tang knew in his gut something was off.


    "Rewind to the part where she falls asleep." Officer Tang instructed. "There''s something strange about that part."

 Chapter 82 Investigative Footage Part 2

    "Rewind to the part where she falls asleep." Officer Tang instructed. "There''s something strange about that part."


    Chao Ping did as he said, and they all rewatched it with baited breath.


    "Do you guys see what I''m seeing?" Officer Tang asked, like a teacher questioning his students.


    "I see the suspect seems to be knocked out. As though she''s a puppet with her strings cut." Tianwei said, frowning at the screen.


    "I see our suspect falling asleep." Chao Ping said, restraining the urge to roll his eyes in front of this stranger. Puppet with her strings cut? How pretentious of this guy who yelled at him when he tried to speak. He must be someone high up in the hierarchy - maybe the police chief''s son, with how haughty he''s acting, like he''s too good for the peasants in the tech room.


    But back to the question posed by Officer Tang. If this was a test, Chao Ping would have failed abysmally - but after staring at the screen for so long, he''s no longer sure what he''s supposed to be seeing. "Can you just tell me what you see?"


    Officer Tang sighed and asked. "Is it possible to zoom in closer and improve the video quality?"


    "Officer Tang, I''ll do my best, but do you think I''m from CSI?" Chao Ping asked. "You know better than anyone how good our security cameras are."


    That is to say, not very good at all. As Chao Ping did his best to zoom into the paused frame as much as possible, the pixels became too grainy for him to tell what was what.


    Even after Chao Ping''s efforts in sharpening, it was as ideal as what Officer Tang wanted.


    "That''s all you can do?" Tianwei asked.


    ? "Excuse me, when your security cameras record everything in 144p, there''s only so much a human can do," Chao Ping replied dryly, restraining the urge to fling his cold coffee in his face.


    His team had been called in since the crack of dawn thanks to this emergency, wrestling to regain ess to the CCTV because some hacker took over and corrupted their footage. Meanwhile, this man with the smug sses and shiny shoes clearly didn''t give a shit about human limits!


    "Yeah, I understand." Officer Tang grumbled. He knew all too well that the budget for upgrading the security cameras clearly wasn''t used on the ones focused on the holding cells.


    Some higher-ups back then probably thought they weren''t needed seeing that officers were meant to be guarding them personally, and most criminals weren''t in holding cells long enough to make the expense worth it.


    Well. Until today, that is. Officer Tang swore he would send a strongly worded memo to the people responsible for their oversight. A murder in their holding cells was surely enough incentive to upgrade those outdated cameras.


    But outdated as they were, Chao Ping''s effort had borne a tiny fruit of sess.


    "There!" Officer Tang dered, pointing to a ck smudge. "Do you see that?"


    "It looks like a¡­ shadow?" Chao Ping volunteered. He zoomed slightly out, and true enough, there was a hint of shadow cast on Xiumin''s prone body.


    "Yes, now rey the video and look carefully at the shadow." Officer Tang instructed. "Doesn''t it look strange to you?"


    With bated breath, all of them watched the screen and focused on that ck smudge.<sub> </sub>


    Chao Ping frowns at the screen. "There it is! And¡­ it just remains there?"


    "For the rest of the video." Tianwei continued grimly.


    "Exactly. Whoever hacked into our security cameras to doctor the footage did a good job, but not good enough. They couldn''t erase the presence of the shadow, and when they looped the clip, the shadow still remained."


    "For a person to cast a shadow on her body, he must have gotten close enough to her to begin with." Chao Ping said, frowning. "Close enough to¡­ "


    He then made a shing motion with his throat.


    "Now, we don''t know the exact cause of death yet," Officer Tang said. "But it stands to reason that someone did kill her¡­ and they didn''t work alone."


    Someone had to sneak into the precinct while everyone was asleep to do the job, and there needed to be another person avable to hack into the cameras and doctor the footage so that the tech team on night duty did not notice anything amiss.


    "It''s just fucked up." Chao Ping said, shaking his head. "And I can''t believe this woman didn''t scream when someone entered her cell and tried to kill her. I''m sure it would have woken these two sleeping lugs."


    "Maybe she didn''t scream because she knew who it was," Sun Tianwei said, consideringly. "She could have been waiting - no, expecting someone to rescue her from the cell."


    "And they couldn''t just hire awyer for her like a normal person?" Chao Ping eximed. "That''s a lot of trouble to avoid arrest."


    "More like they''re criminals trying to tie up loose ends," Officer Tang said ominously. "Our suspect could have already been prepared to die the moment she got arrested, which could also exin the delirious behaviour Lin Tao imed she exhibited before they fell asleep."


    "Well, fuck then," was Chao Ping''s eloquent reply. "So are you telling me there''s like a group? Of people? Willing to murder their own if they fail? And they just strolled into our precinct and killed a woman?"


    "Nothing is confirmed," Officer Tang said, "do not panic unnecessarily."


    "Toote," Chao Ping said weakly, his face paling at the new knowledge. "I''m already panicking."


    "If it''s what you say, then there''s not much chance of my client being the culprit, yes?" A feminine voice cut in from the doorway.


    Tianwei knew who it was, even without turning his head. He could already smell the familiar scent of lilies. Everyone else in the tech room had also turned around at the sight of Lian Xingzi walking into the room.


    "I thought you said she was gone?" Tianwei hissed angrily to Officer Tang.


    Officer Tang merely blinked and shrugged. He was too old and too tired for this nonsense.


    "So? Now she''s back."

 Chapter 83 Meeting Tianweis Ex (Skip If You Dont Want To Meet Her)

    "Exactly. Do you have a problem with me being here, Sun Tianwei?"


    In front of them, Chao Ping choked. Thankfully he wasn''t drinking his coffee, or he would have spat it all over his keyboard and ruined it. The finance department definitely wasn''t going to give him money to rece it.


    But more importantly, that man was Sun Tianwei, the oldest son of billionaire Sun Haowei, the one most likely to inherit his wealth and power?


    Chao Ping thanked his past self for having the restraint to not give him the middle finger. He only gave a few sarcasticments¡­ surely that was eptable?


    Hopefully?


    If it wasn''t, Chao Ping could just say hello to living in the countryside or a dying border town, after he gets unceremoniously exiled from working in any city in the country. Chao Ping sent a mental prayer to his mom.


    ''Sorry mom, for all your efforts to raise me into someone of value, I went and told a billionaire''s son a video was only 144 pixels in quality. My bank bnce will also be 144 yuan at this rate.''


    Luckily for Chao Ping, Sun Tianwei''s focus was entirely taken by the sudden reappearance of Lian Xingzi. Chao Ping''s words werepletely forgotten.


    "What are you doing here?" Sun Tianwei barked out.


    "Getting information to defend my client, of course. In fact, I should be asking you that question, seeing that you''re not actually awyer."


    Sun Tianwei let out an angry hmph. Lian Xingzi smirked, knowing that she made her point, and then turned back to Officer Tang.


    "So, based on what I heard - "


    "Overheard, you mean," Sun Tianwei muttered.


    Chao Ping turned his head slightly so he could watch both of them from the corner of his eye. For a son of a billionaire, Sun Tianwei was starting to sound incredibly petty.


    "As I was saying before someone so rudely interrupted me," Lian Xingzi said in a louder voice, one of her high heels threateningly close to Sun Tianwei''s feet, "it seems increasingly likely that my client is innocent, or at least an unknowing aplice to a crime. On such grounds, I would like to argue for my client to be released for the time being."


    "Definitely not," Tianwei replied. "That man is definitely guilty of something. I heard it in the room."


    "And how would you know that it was an admission of guilt? Did you put him up to it?" Xingzi retorted.


    Tianwei was angered, but could do nothing more than to point fingers at her. Xingzi scoffed at his actions, delighting in hisck of verbal response.


    "Besides, in case some people forget, everyone is innocent until proven guilty," She added with a sharp look at Sun Tianwei. Chao Ping had to hand it to her, this woman had guts. She didn''t like Sun Tianwei, and she didn''t even bother hiding it.


    "What''s more, the most suspicious one here is you." She pointed out. "You do not have a valid reason to be here."


    "Of course I do," he argued. "Just because you don''t ept it doesn''t mean it isn''t valid."


    "You - "


    "You what -"


    "Will the both of you please quiet down? We''re distracting the team from their jobs." Officer Tang said, watching as they naturally gravitated towards each other just so they could continue to argue with each other.<sub> </sub>


    The tech team didn''t need any more excuses to be distracted from work, for even without the bitter, immature, lover''s spat in front of them, they''d certainly find other ways to entertain themselves - and Officer Tang can''t have them doing that. They had to focus on catching the hacker that corrupted their footage.


    The both of them hastily collected themselves, springing apart with identical looks of disgust on their faces. Their eyes clearly believed that it was all the other party''s fault that they were caught doing something so embarrassing like arguing in a public workspace.


    "Chao Ping, show Lawyer Lian the footage." He instructed. Even if Sun Tianwei didn''t like it, as a defencewyer, Lian Xingzi had the right to collect evidence.


    More importantly, part of him did believe Lin Tao was innocent. He had worked in the station for years, and the biggest trouble he had ever caused was when he tried to throw a juice box that wasn''t properly sealed into the dustbin, causing juice to stter everywhere.


    But of course, he wasn''t going to tell Sun Tianwei that.


    Instead, he gave Lawyer Lian a brief recap of what they''ve discovered, choosing not to tell her of their inferences. With her intelligence, she can make her own inferences to build a strong case for Lin Tao''s innocence.


    Lawyer Lian had also taken Jian Zhi''s statement after Lin Tao''s. It was unfair for her to have to juggle two defendants, but public servants were always overworked.


    Case in point: himself.


    "Thank you so much for your help, Officer Tang and Chao Ping," she smiled winningly at the both of them, "I''m d to know that some people are willing to give everyone a fair chance at the trial."


    She then deliberately flicked her ponytail to swat Sun Tianwei in the face as she turned away to leave. Sun Tianwei got hit - not with her hair, but with the strong scent of lilies that used to drive him half-mad with lust, nearly a lifetime ago.


    He huffed, refusing to move an inch. He wasn''t budging from his very spot.


    "Wow, she''s so amazing," Chao Ping couldn''t help but exim. "And so beautiful too."


    "No she''s not," Sun Tianwei replied with his mouth, but his heart knew otherwise.


    He would not have hated Lian Xingzi so much if she didn''t have the nerve to be that amazing, that beautiful, that capable of winning over his heart and then dropping it into the trashpactor with no prior warning.


    "Right." Chao Ping said, clearly disbelieving, but he had enough self-preservation to not continue prodding at a wealthy man''s heartbreak.


    "Anyway, my team will be working on tracking the culprit that hacked our CCTVs, and we''ll see if we have any digital signature in the doctored footage." Chao Ping continued, a gentle hint for their guests to leave. This was already too much excitement for the tech team.


    Tianwei and Officer Tang nodded, and left them to their own devices. While Officer Tang busied himself with other aspects of the investigation, Tianwei tried his best to focus.


    Unfortunately, thoughts of her continued to creep up in his mind unknowingly, even when he tried to banish them.


    The brightness of her smile, the warmth of her hands, the scent of her hair in the morning. One by one they sprung up unbidden, like mushrooms after rain.


    It was distracting him to madness.


    He should have listened to his father back then, when he said that she wasn''t well-suited for him. He would have saved himself the trouble of falling in love with a woman that was ipatible with their lifestyle!


    Speaking of ipatible couples, he hoped that Jingwei and Miss Li Xue Ning would have a happier ending. His n for the inheritance depended on it.


    May histe mother give these fools some divine guidance!

 Chapter 84 How I Met His Mother

    Histe mother''s portrait gazed down benevolently at Sun Jingwei and his new houseguest.


    "Yep. You''ve got it." Jingwei smiled, it was softer and sweeter, yet a lot sadder than what she had ever seen from him.


    p "Xue Ning, meet my mother, the lovelyte Mrs Sun."</anda>


    "She is beautiful," Xue Ning said quietly, giving the painting another look, resisting the urge to bow in front of it to show respect. "But if you don''t mind me asking, why a painting? Usually people frame photos instead."


    "Oh I didn''t really have any photos of her. Father took them all away when she died." Jingwei said serenely, but one could still detect the faint way his voice wavered at the end.


    "... What?" Xue Ning asked in shock. "Are you serious? Took them away?"


    "Yeah. I don''t think he burned them, but Ge and I didn''t get to see most of her photos." He shrugged. "I guess that was his way of coping with her death. He did love her very much."


    Jingwei continued while Xue Ning listened in stunned silence.


    "I only got this photo from Lady Yu, who knew her from before. The photo was small, so I decided to get someone to paint arger version of her when I moved out!"


    "..." Xue Ning stared at him, speechless. No wonder there was no hint of his mother''s presence in the mansion, not a single wedding photo, no family portraits from when the boys were children, no candid photos of the family on vacation on the many shelves lining the living room.


    It turned out that such an absence was deliberate! She felt rage flood her heart at Sun Haowei''s cruelty. Even if he did feel ridiculous amounts of grief to the point that he avoided all mentions of his wife in his home, he should have still let her children retain some form of memory of her, not scrub her out of existence!


    And after she bore him two sons too! There was no justice in this world!


    "Xue Ning? Xue Ning? You okay?" Jingwei asked cautiously, seeing Xue Ning''s face darken like a stormy sky.


    "Ah? I''m fine. Why?" Xue Ning asked, trying to keep calm so that she doesn''t do something stupid like call up Sun Haowei to yell at him for being a terrible father. If she were his deceased wife, she would have haunted him for the rest of his days.


    Jingwei was still staring at her, a hand barely brushing the curve of her waist. Right. She stopped herself from daydreaming about that metaphorical haunting scenario and focused on the present.


    No matter how much Sun Jingwei adored her, she''s sure it wouldn''t save her from being disposed of in some dingy back alley if Sun Haowei wanted it. He might even do it when Jingwei''s back was turned! Breathe Xue Ning, she told herself. He''s not worth it.


    "Are you sure you''re alright? The expression on your face looked like one of a serial killer," Sun Jingweimented, only half-joking.


    "How would you know?" She retorted instinctively. "Do you see many serial killers? Should I be worried?"


    A brief, unidentifiable emotion brushed past his face, before it smoothed back to his customary smile. "A, you are worried about me. You look so angry because you care!"


    Xue Ning spluttered. How had the conversation turned into this?


    "Of course I care!" Jingwei opened his mouth, presumably to spit out more cheesy lines, but she covered his mouth with her hand to cut him off, feeling the warmth of his lips on her palm.


    "And shush, even if I didn''t, I''d still think what your father did was seriously fucked up." Xue Ning dered. "Even if he couldn''t cope with your mom''s death, removing all traces of her wasn''t fair to you or your brother."


    Jingwei stared back at her with soft shining eyes.


    And then she felt a slimy sensation on her palm.


    "Gross! Did you just lick my palm? Are you a dog?" Xue Ning shrieked and sprang behind in shock. She wanted to wipe it on her pants, but then thought better of it and decided to wipe it on Sun Jingwei''s smirking face instead.


    Jingwei danced out of the way,ughing uproariously. Joy filled him up like hot air in a balloon, like a ss of bubbling champagne, leaving him breathless with happiness.


    Xue Ning cared so much for him! Upon hearing that the picture was of his deceased mom, she didn''t think that it was weird and awkwardly moved away (like some dates he had). She wanted to learn more about why the painting existed, and after she found out the truth, she even wanted to sock his father in the face!<sub> </sub>


    Suddenly he felt that every injustice he had faced in his childhood was worth it, if it meant that Xue Ning was here now to help him argue for justice on his behalf.


    Yes, Sun Jingwei knew Xue Ning well enough to realise when she was looking particrly murderous and ready to punch someone''s lights out. Not that he''d approve of her punching his dad, but it was the thought that counted!


    Well, here''s hoping their rtionship improves when he marries Xue Ning, if not meals at the mansion would be horrendously awkward.


    "Stand still and let me wipe your spit on you," Xue Ning demanded angrily, still holding out her hand like it was contaminated.


    "Just wipe it on yourself!" Jingwei eximed, stillughing. He had deliberately kept himself out of her arm''s reach. It was not hard, because Xue Ning''s arms weren''t very long. And part of him wanted Xue Ning to get used to having his mouth on her, because he had ns for their future that involved his lips on her skin.


    But of course he wasn''t going to say that - he didn''t want to die so early.


    He caught the eyes of his mother''s portrait from the corner of his eye. She seemed to be looking at him knowingly from the picture, as though she could tell what he was thinking.


    Somehow, that made him feel embarrassed, like a misbehaving child.


    "Got you!" Xue Ning cackled triumphantly as she happily smeared her dirty palm on his T-shirt, straight down the line of his abs.


    "Why Xue Ning, at least buy me dinner first before you take advantage of me!" Jingwei eximed like a scandalised maiden from the 19th century. "This is so scandalous!"


    "Oi don''t use me! You started it first!" She retorted, the tips of her lips curving into a smile. His mock outrage was hrious.


    "Who is so afraid of a little spit?" He asked challengingly.


    "I''m not! It''s unhygienic, you stupid man!" Xue Ning exined. "Who''s afraid of your spit! Bring it on!"


    How was he supposed to react to her audacious statement? Suddenly, Jingwei''s brain was flooded with images on how he could ''bring it'', and all of them were not safe for work.


    He pictured his mouth fitting over hers as he swiped an eager tongue over her soft lips before diving into her mouth, kissing her deeply so that he could taste her.


    When they parted, a string of spit would connect their lips, and she would gaze up at him with dted eyes and pull him closer for a second kiss. He would oblige, because he would never be able to deny her this, deny her anything.


    He would (could) easily carry her up and press her against the wall, and she could wrap those strong muscr heavenly thighs around his waist, grinding their lower halves together.


    His lips would then trail from her lips to her neck, teeth nipping at her skin to mark her as his, and then they could carry on from when they were interrupted in that ambnce -


    "Hey!" A hard smack on his chest distracted him from his thoughts. Xue Ning stared at him with suspicion in her eyes. This man definitely had been thinking about something lewd, she recognized that perverted gleam in his eyes and the way they focused on her mouth. His lips were parted too, and a tongue was peeking out.


    It made her want to bite him. Luckily, she caught herself in time and smacked him awake.


    "What''s that for?" He protested, wincing as he was rudely awakened from his sexy daydream by the very person he was daydreaming about. He took a quick nce at his own crotch, thankfully, his cock was still asleep throughout this detour.


    If it wasn''t¡­ Well, he could be waking up in the dumpster tomorrow.


    Unfortunately for him, Xue Ning also caught his downward nce. Her frown grew deeper. Jingwei let out an awkwardugh, hands torn between protecting his family jewels or easing the furrow between her eyes. It was deep enough that he could probably tuck a dor coin into the folds.


    "Xue Ning, don''t frown like that! You''ll get wrinkles early!"


    "And whose fault is that? It''s yours! I can''t believe you are thinking perverted thoughts in front of your mother''s portrait!" Xue Ning eximed, scandalised.

 Chapter 85 A Bet?

    Jingwei spluttered, but could not truly refute the ims.


    "You did say ''bring it'' and it involved my spit!" Jingwei exined. "My brain just made the connection on its own and spiralled down the gutter faster than mypany''s shares plummeting when I had a scandal." He continued to confess.


    Xue Ning did not look appeased or impressed by his honesty or hisparison. She crossed her arms in front of her, and that had the interesting effect of emphasising her already full chest to Sun Jingwei.


    Sun Jingwei gulped and reluctantly tore his eyes away from her curves that were still visible through his T-shirt. Suddenly, he remembered how they felt against his chest when they had fallen on the floor together.


    The room felt very warm all of a sudden. He stretched out his cor with an errant hand.


    "Besides, it''s not as though you didn''t like what happened in the ambnce. If my brother didn''t interrupt us, I think there would be more clothes flying off," Jingwei added, purposely not looking at Xue Ning directly.


    At his words, Xue Ning''s face blushed red enough to rival the tomato paintings, resisting the urge to press her thighs together as she recalled how intense everything felt in that moment. Her body clearly remembered it all too well, and wanted a repeat.


    His masculine scent, the strength of his hands and arms on her waist, pulling her closer to him and how good it felt when their lower halves grinded together.


    They would have gotten carried away. Deep down, she knew that too.


    "That was a special case! It won''t happen again!" Xue Ning dered fervently. Her body was just feeling the urge to procreate, it would pass with time. She wasn''t an animal that couldn''t resist her base urges. Unlike Sun Jingwei.


    "Did you forget that I also said something simr before?" She added haughtily.


    "How could I forget?" Jingwei replied, but instead of sulking like she''d expected, he stepped closer and gave her a slow, knowing smirk.


    He knew that Xue Ning had been eyeing him more than usual, he caught the quick nces to his neck and arms and his chest muscles, nces and stares that she forgot to hide, or couldn''t hide, when they were together.


    He knew this, because he was always watching her, more than she was watching him.


    She wanted him. He was sure of it. Now, whether she wanted to want him or not was an entirely different question, one that he was sure he could influence the oue of.


    "Don''t worry though, I won''t hold it against you when you change your mind," Jingwei murmured into her ear, deliberately pitching his voice lower and letting a warm puff of air gently tease the shell of her rapidly reddening ear.


    He had noticed that Xue Ning was always more flustered after when his voice was deeper.


    "If I change my mind," Xue Ning corrected, trying to sound calm and unaffected. She turned her head slightly away from his. Her heart was beating increasingly faster thanks to their sudden close proximity, and his voice rumbling in her ear, promising her a good time, wasn''t helping matters.


    "Don''t think you can seduce me into bed just because we''re living together!" Xue Ning said hotly. "I''m not that easy. I''d skin you alive."


    "I have noints as long as you do it personally," Jingweiughed lowly in her ear. "But that''s fine with me. Xue Ning trust me when I say that in the end, you''ll be the one wanting me in your bed. And I won''t even make fun of you for it. Too much anyway."<sub> </sub>


    She scoffed and rolled her eyes, shoving him away. Enough was enough; he was just trying to psych her out. Xue Ning refused to surrender.


    "You think very highly of your seduction powers. Why? Do you think all women will fall for your handsome face and hot body and sexy voice?" She demanded, gut twisting at the knowledge that Sun Jingwei could have his pick of any woman. Urgh.


    "So you think I have a handsome face, a hot body and a sexy voice?" Sun Jingwei repeated eagerly, his eyes brightening with delight.


    "Is this what you''re focusing on?"


    "That''s what you said! You think I''m handsome, hot and sexy!" He easily ticked each attribute off with his finger, waving them above her head. He was grinning so happily that one would think he struck the lottery.


    Oh wait, he was already rich enough to begin with. Xue Ning swatted at his fingers irritably.


    "You are insufferable," she grumbled.


    "Yes, but I am also handsome, hot and sexy. So much so that you''ll want me in your bed sooner thanter," Jingwei said, deliberately towering over her with a hand against the wall, still smiling that infuriatingly handsome smile as he gazed at her dotingly.


    "Want to bet on that?" Xue Ning asked, her mouth working faster than her brain.


    "With what?" Jingwei asked, amused and interested. No matter what, there was no way he would lose. "I''m sure money is out of the question for you."


    She rolled her eyes. Of course he knew she had no money. He just visited her apartment. If burrs entered trying to find money, she''d justugh and search with them.


    "Hmm. Seeing that we''re now living together - house chores." She dered after looking around the entire house. "The loser needs to clean the toilets by themselves."


    "I have housekeeping for that!" Jingwei protested. "In fact, I hired housekeeping for the entire house!"


    "Scared to lose?" Xue Ning retorted, staring up at him. "Also I guess that means you don''t do house chores." She frowned at the thought, crossing her arms in disappointment. That was expected, but the news was still unwee.


    Jingwei was suddenly reminded of his father''s and brother''sments regarding their situation.


    "Jingwei''s apartment is big, but it''s nowhere as big as this mansion. Miss Li will have nowhere to escape from him and his inconsiderate behaviour. They''ll probably split in a year,"


    "You''ll break up in a month. Assuming she even wants to date you after seeing how useless you are at home."


    "I can do house chores! I love doing house chores!" He dered, looking into her eyes, ignoring the enticing swell of her breasts, desperately trying to avoid the prophesied oues.


    "I''m a great househusband! Don''t break up with me!"

 Chapter 86 Love And War

    "Don''t break up with me!"


    Xue Ning stood in stunned silence after his pleading words.


    "Okay¡­" she said slowly, drawing out the word. Xue Ning tilted her head to the right, giving him a look of abject disbelief.


    "First of all, we can''t exactly break up because we are not really dating," She stated. Jingwei looked relieved at first, but then her words really sunk in and he deted like a balloon, sulking.


    "We could be married. I could arrange it," He muttered petntly under his breath.


    "And secondly," Xue Ning said in a louder voice, ignoring his grouchy mumbling. "I highly doubt someone who has lived with an entire bevy of servants at his beck and call can clean up after themselves. Rich kids are all the same."


    "I''m different!" He protested. "I''ll prove it!"


    "How?"


    "I''ll do all the house chores for a week!"


    "Only a week?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. "Pathetic."


    "Two weeks! Then we''ll split the chores." Jingwei negotiated.


    "Deal!" Xue Ning said, holding up her palm for him to shake. Jingwei paused; the fact that it was the same palm that he licked did not escape both their notice.


    "Why? Too grossed out by my hand that had your saliva on it?" Xue Ning asked challengingly, when Jingwei eyed her outstretched hand without moving. "I told you it was disgusting to lick - "


    Then Jingwei grabbed her hand and delivered a kiss on the top of her hand, before turning her hand over to give another kiss to her palm, all while shooting her sultry bedroom eyes.


    "You were saying?" Jingwei asked, his lips barely leaving her skin.


    "You - you!" Xue Ning snatched her hand away as though her hand got burned. She then smeared the remnants of his kiss back on his T-shirt, as though wiping her hands on a dishrag.


    However, she still felt her skin tingling where his lips touched. It was causing her heart to race and her cheeks to heat up. She knew that saliva was supposed to be slightly acidic to break down food, but was the strange tingling sensation a normal effect?


    Could she possibly be allergic?


    She cursed herself internally; why didn''t she pay more attention in biology sses?


    No matter what, she had to wash it off. She stalked off to the toilet, and of course Jingwei followed behind her like a mischievous puppy.


    "Xue Ning! Are you upset?" Jingwei asked anxiously. Perhaps he pushed too much, too fast. "I''m sorry!"


    "I''m fine! I''m just washing your dried spit off because it''s gross." She emphasised thest word over the sound of running water. She eagerly used the luxury soap on her hands, relishing in the refreshing scent ofvender.


    "It''s not!" Jingwei protested withughter at the way Xue Ning was discreetly sniffing her hands. It was good to know that they shared a favourite hand soap scent.


    "It is!" Xue Ning argued. "If you don''t think it''s gross, then do you mean that you go around licking the hands of women like a puppy?"


    "Only the ones I really love." Jingwei replied easily, with a roguish wink.


    Xue Ning responded by sshing tap water from the faucet straight at him. Was it childish of her? Yes. But bad dogs get sprayed with water.


    Jingwei didn''t even bother to dodge it, he merely stuck out a cheeky tongue even as his face and shirt grew wetter with the sudden spray.<sub> </sub>


    The wet shirt clung more tightly to his muscles. Xue Ning didn''t want to look, but she had eyes, and they were¡­ there.


    Jingwei smirked to himself as he noticed. Now, it was time for him to begin the first step of his marriage-and seduction-n. He had to show Xue Ning what he could have to offer her, other than his money (which is more his father''s, and Xue Ning didn''t even like his father).


    He purposely lifted the hem of his shirt to wipe his wet face slowly, despite the fact that the bathroom was stocked full of soft, fluffy and dry towels that he could use. Cleaning his face was just secondary, the most important thing was to give Xue Ning another view of his abs, glistening with water.


    And what a view it was.


    While Jingwei was dripping water on the floor, Xue Ning found her mouth to be suddenly very dry as she watched the subtle flex of his muscles, not knowing that Jingwei purposely sucked in his stomach to improve their definition further.


    Jingwei, even with his face covered by his shirt, could sense Xue Ning''s interested eyes, and he internally cheered.


    Step 1 is a sess!


    His marriage-and seduction-n had roughly a thousand steps and a lot more tactics, but all these tactics could be found in one of the following four strategies.


    1. Get Xue Ning to find him hot and seduce her into sleeping with him willingly


    2. Show her such a good time in bed she never wants to leave him for someone else


    3. Shower her with love, care, attention and money so she''ll want to stay


    4. Lastly, do household chores to make himself seem like great husband material!


    His father had tried to make him memorise Sun Tze''s Art of War with very limited sess. However one quote stuck with him:


    Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.


    Of course, his father would probably blow his top if he knew that Jingwei was applying these words of wisdom to woo and seduce his bodyguard not-wife, a woman he didn''t approve of, but that didn''t matter.


    Knowledge was always meant to be applied!


    Once Jingwei seeded, his father would have no choice but to ept it!


    With these strategies and multiple tactics, he will walk towards victory one small step at a time!


    "Use a towel," Xue Ning managed to croak out as she shoved a dry towel in his face. Jingwei pretended not to notice Xue Ning staring at him after he wiped his face dry.


    If he pointed it out, she might just be too self-conscious in future. He had to reel her in slowly, like a fish nibbling on bait.


    He was usually too impatient for fishing, but for her, he would learn patience.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning was clueless to all the machinations bouncing around in Sun Jingwei''s crafty head. Her own mind was frantically trying to reboot after seeing so much unexpected skin, along with the deep indent of his muscles.


    Great job Li Xue Ning, her brain screamed hysterically as they helpfully reyed that scene for her, along with all the previous times she saw his muscles.


    All the previous times she touched those muscles.


    Well done! She despaired. You''ve suckered yourself.

 Chapter 87 Bring It On

    "So I''m guessing we have our bet?" Jingwei asked once they left the bathroom.


    "About you doing the house chores? Sure."


    "Nope," Jingwei smirked and leaned in closer, his face was dry but it did not make it any less handsome. It was infuriating. He was too good-looking to smack in the face. "About me seducing you!"


    "Nope," she parroted him smugly, turning away to check on her charging phone in the living room. He didn''t follow her, but his voice did when he pretended toment loudly to himself.


    "Ah, I guess it''ll be an unfair bet, seeing that I''ll win so easily. There''s nopetition after all."


    "What on earth," Xue Ning spun back to look at him. Was he implying that she was already going to jump him the moment his back was turned? Please, she had more backbone than that! Even if he was ridiculously attractive and gave her adoring looks all the time. She had standards!


    "What nopetition. I''ll show youpetition!" She dered, pointing at him furiously. "State your terms, you idiot."


    Xue Ning called him an idiot, but she wasn''t much smarter, in his opinion. This was elementary level provocation and she still fell for it! With her impulsive tendencies, she definitely fought a lot of people back in school.


    "Hmmm how about¡­" Jingwei''s mind whirled quickly. He honestly did not expect his goading to yield any result and now his brain was scrambling to keep up.


    <o>,m "If I manage to seduce you sessfully, you''ll get a house." Jingwei dered. This was a good deal - he wanted Xue Ning to allow herself to be seduced by him after all. If he made the penalty harsh, she might really just cut off her nose to spite her face, and leave him with blue balls forever.</o>


    "Huh?" Xue Ning meanwhile, was frowning in confusion. In this case, losing the bet would mean sleeping with him, which would get her a house? Was he trying to bribe her into sleeping with him?! Everyone knew that the loser was supposed to get a penalty!


    Before she could yell at Sun Jingwei for his tant maniption, he continued.


    "If I fail, you''ll get three houses!"


    "HUH?!" She shook her head. "Can you repeat that? I don''t think I heard you right."


    "If I fail to seduce you in the end, you''ll get three houses." He repeated cheerfully. "Just think about it, you''ll get one house in the end. This is a win-win wager."


    "Three houses¡­" Xue Ning thought about it. Three houses would mean her parents could stay in one, her brother and sister-inw in another, and there would still be ast house left for her to stay alone in.


    They wouldn''t have to cram all together in one house, which would get even more crowded if her brother and sister-inw decided to have children.


    What''s more, if she ever got tired of living alone (unlikely, but possible), she could then sell the house. It would be an asset in this property market!


    That was of course, if Sun Jingwei actually kept his word.


    She narrowed her eyes. "How do I know you''re not lying?"


    "We can sign a contract, how about it?" Jingwei offered. "I''ll get Shengli to draw up one."


    "Then we need to decide what counts as ''seducing''," she pointed out. Xue Ning had very little knowledge regarding the art of seduction and what it entailed, hence in this ying field, Sun Jingwei would have all the advantage. He could skew the odds in his favour, and she wouldn''t know it until it was toote.<sub> </sub>


    That meant she could lose two extra houses! (Along with her virginity, but honestly, her virginity wasn''t worth as much as two extra houses. This wasn''t ancient China, where she would need to be untouched to marry well - and if she met any assholes that thought otherwise, she''d dly introduce them to the end of her fist.)


    She narrowed her eyes. "Fine, but you''d better make clear what counts as ''seducing'' and what counts as a sess! I''ll only sign if I agree on the terms and definitions."


    "Of course! I definitely wouldn''t want to cheat you." Jingwei said enthusiastically. In this wager, there would be two winners, or no winners. Xue Ning just didn''t know it yet. "We can negotiate on this over lunch, what do you say to food delivery?"


    "Sure," Xue Ning shrugged as her stomach gave an apanying grumble. It had been hours since her breakfast, and they had an eventful morning to begin with, thanks to the fanatic stalkers, random detouring, packing, nosy neighbours and now moving in.


    "What do you want to eat?" Jingwei asked, already browsing through his food delivery apps.


    "Anything is fine with me. What do you usually order?"


    "Alright, I''ll just order a variety of food then. You don''t have any allergies right?" Jingwei asked, browsing randomly through the stalls nearby and then just ordering anything that caught his eye. With this method, he could figure out what Xue Ning liked to eat. This was also seduction, but through her stomach!


    They always say the way through a man''s heart is through his stomach, and Jingwei is sure that''s not too different for women!


    "Nope, no allergies for me. What about you?" Xue Ning asked.


    "Honey," Jingwei replied.


    "No pet names yet," Xue Ning said suspiciously. "We haven''t decided on the contract terms yet."


    Jingwei snickered behind his hand. "No, I meant that I''m allergic to honey. But it''s good to know that you''re open to pet names. I''ll include that in the contract."


    "Oh." Xue Ning said, embarrassed, her voice small as she tried not shrink into a tiny ball. Why did she say something so stupid? Him bringing up that bet was really messing with her mind. "I see. Good to know."


    "I usually don''te into contact with it though, so it''s fine - and worst case scenario, I have an epipen in my room." He continued to exin, deciding to let Xue Ning go for now without teasing her.


    There would be many opportunities for itter, and judging by how embarrassed he gets about pet names, he was going to have a great time choosing one for her.


    "Ordered!" He said cheerfully with a flourish. Then, a cheerful ringtone began to fill the house.


    Jingwei looked at the phone in his hand and thought for a moment. It didn''t sound like the ringtone for his second or third phone either.


    "Hey Xue Ning, I think someone''s calling you." Jingwei said.


    "Really?" Xue Ning made her way to her phone, and true enough, the handphone was ringing.


    The caller ID showed ''Mom'' on the screen.


    She gulped, suddenly there was an ominous feeling in the air. There was no way her mom would have found out about her¡­ right?

 Chapter 88 Angry Mother Part 1

    "It''s my mom, so make sure you shush." Xue Ning gave Jingwei a warning re to make sure he understood this time. Jingwei nodded, and mimed zipping his mouth shut.


    "Hi Mom!" Xue Ning said, pretending that everything was fine.


    "Hello my dear daughter," Her mother''s voice came from the other end of the line. It was gentle and sweet and weing, and that set off rm bells in Xue Ning''s head.


    The only time she heard her mother sounded like this was when she found out her brother nearly got his then girlfriend (now wife) pregnant, and she used this voice to trap him into telling the truth.


    It did not bode well for her secrets to hear this voice used on her.


    "Yeah Mom, what are you calling for?" Xue Ning asked, one of her hands already twisting the hem of her T-shirt in nervousness. Jingwei saw it and gave her a curious look. She waved him away.


    "Well, your brother told me a very interesting story this morning," Her mother said, voice still sharinely sweet. It was giving her the creeps - and her bringing up her older brother meant that of course he betrayed her and told mom.


    Urgh. Gone were the days she could threaten him to keep silent by dumping frogs on his bed. She was too far away from home to do that now.


    "Apparently, despite you iming that it wasn''t you in the picture hugging a certain Sun Jingwei, your brother told me that it was you! All along!" Her mother continued, now working herself to a grand lecture. "My own daughter, you deliberately lied to me after I t out asked you if that was you in the picture! Do you take your mother for a fool?"


    Xue Ning winced; her mom''s voice lost the sweetness, and it was now bloody furious. And clearly she had to be angry enough to call Xue Ning in the middle of the lunch rush where she would normally be cooking for customers.


    "No I just -"


    "No buts youngdy! Do you know how shocked I was when your brother confessed that it was actually you in the picture? I thought he was joking! But then he said you told him that it was you, and then threatened him not to tell me or your dad!"


    Xue Ning smacked her forehead with her other hand. Why was her brother so stupid? Even if his conscience bothered him to the point that he had to confess that she was lying, why did he have to add the news that she threatened him not to tell their parents?


    Jingwei had now moved closer to her, looking at her in concern. She just shook her head in his direction.


    Her mother wasn''t done with her tirade.


    "And do you know how shocked your father and I were when we realised it? We read the article and saw the pictures! Xue Ning, what were you wearing? Were you involved with him? Look, I know I pressure you often to find someone, but that doesn''t mean you must pick a notorious yboy!" Her mothermented.


    Xue Ning moved her phone away from her ear. It was starting to hurt. Meanwhile, Jingwei looked vaguely hurt at the wordsing from her mother''s mouth. Somehow, it made her want to defend him, even when they were technically correct.


    "MOM! It''s not like that!" Xue Ning started, before realising that she would have to exin her bodyguarding job to her mother, who would probably disapprove of that even more than her ''rtionship'' with Sun Jingwei.


    "Then tell me what it is like! Xue Ning-ah, how am I supposed to know when you don''t tell me anything! I can''t read your mind!" Her mother argued, pain in her voice.


    "We met at the club! I saved him, he brought me out to dinner as thanks!" Xue Ning replied frantically to reassure her. "Our rtionship is not what you think it is!"


    Thankfully her mother couldn''t read minds, her bodyguard ambitions and newly bubbling feelings (pure or otherwise) for Sun Jingwei would have booked her a one-way ticket back home the moment her mother found out.<sub> </sub>


    "Are you lying to me?" Her mother demanded. "I remember there was a man''s voice when I called you in the morning, was it Sun Jingwei''s?"


    "Well - "


    "It was, wasn''t he? Why would he be spending the morning with you¡­ unless the both of you spent the night together?" Her mother asked, her voice horrified at the realisation.


    Jingwei choked. Xue Ning red at him, and he hastily stifled his coughing noises, his face red from the strain of keeping silent. Even if he had to die, he had to die quietly!


    He could have moved to another room, but he wanted to listen to the conversation too! He had to know what his future mother-inw thought of him.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning had her head in her hands. Technically, her mother was right, but it definitely wasn''t what her mother was thinking.


    "MOM! Nothing happened that night! We just slept at his mansion!" Xue Ning protested.


    "So the both of you did spend the night together!" Her mother retorted, somehow sounding even more dismayed that her suspicions have been confirmed.


    Xue Ning realised she had been sessfully trapped. She could only exin herself now.


    "Yes, but nothing happened! Mom, his mansion had like a bajillion rooms, there were more than enough beds! I was a guest!" Xue Ning argued hotly, refusing to be ndered by her own mom''s overactive imagination.


    (There was some form of nudity before they slept on the same bed, but it was an ident and nothing of that sort happened, they just cuddled in a huge soft bed!


    Somehow, she had a feeling that would not reassure her mother one bit.)


    "And why were you even invited to the mansion?" Her mother asked, voice sharp. "It isn''t a ce where people like us can stroll into just like that! Who do you think owns that mansion? He''s not a man you can afford to offend!"


    Xue Ning frowned. That warning was a little toote. She''s sure Sun Haowei hated her guts by now, but at least the feeling was mutual.


    "I was a guest Mom!" Xue Ning repeated. "Jingwei offered me a room to stay because it was already veryte after the dinner."


    "One of his exes tried to hurt him in the restaurant, so we had to arrest her. My pants got damaged." She continued, quickly summarising the events of the night. "I''m not wearing that to seduce him Mom, what kind of person do you think I am? Don''t you trust me?"


    "Of course I trust you! Even when you apparently lie to me about your whereabouts," her mother replied snarkily. Xue Ning winced. She walked right into that one.


    "More importantly, it''s him I don''t trust." His mother continued darkly. "Don''t you know about all the rumours about him and his family?"


    It was Jingwei''s turn to wince at her statements.


    He realised that there was now another new huge roadblock preventing him from making Xue Ning his real wife: Xue Ning''s own mother!

 Chapter 89 Angry Mother Part 2

    Jingwei winced as he listened to Xue Ning''s momin about his behaviour from every rumour that she read online.


    ''Please God, I know I''ve not been the most pious of men, but I will be if you make sure Xue Ning''s mother never meets my father. ''


    He had a feeling they''d either kill each other or be the greatest of friends, bonding over how distasteful they found Sun Jingwei''s yboy lifestyle to be, sipping tea as they dissected all his ws as a human being and stepped all over the shreds of his self-esteem.


    His heart sank further the more he thought about it. How could he hope to win her mother over? If Xue Ning''s mother was anything like Xue Ning, she''d hate his money too. Bribery was out of the question.


    "MOM!" Jingwei jolted in surprise. It was Xue Ning, hotly yelling into the phone, her knuckles gripping her phone tight enough they''ve turned white.


    "You haven''t even met Sun Jingwei before, how can you say such things about him? Didn''t you always say that gossiping is a terrible hobby? Then why are you doing this now? You know I don''t care about what rumours say!"


    Oh. Xue Ning was defending him. Again. She was arguing with her mom for his sake. He ducked his head, suddenly self-conscious of his own ws. And she was telling the truth - she didn''t care about rumours! When she first saw him in that darkened alley, she didn''t even know who he was, but offered him her water because she thought that he needed it.


    Because she was a decent person, who treated him like a normal person.


    And then, she had saved him from the drugging attempt. She thwarted Xiumin''s revenge plot, and defended him in front of a deranged Xiumin and his father.


    Now she was defending him to her mother too.


    There were tiny tears beginning to form near the corner of his eyes, and he hurriedly wiped them away before Xue Ning could see.


    He was a man, and his father taught him not to cry.


    More importantly, Xue Ning might think he was a loser! More of a loser than she already thought, anyway. He didn''t want to ruin his chances so badly.


    Xue Ning meanwhile, wasn''t paying attention to Jingwei''s actions at all. She was still hotly arguing with her mom.


    "Don''t talk back to me!" Her mother yelled warningly. "I''m warning you about him for your own good!"


    "Mom, do you think I can''t read men?! Do you think I''m an idiot?" Xue Ning yelled back, furious. "He''s an idiot, but he''s not a bad person!"


    Jingwei paused, the tears that were threatening to form immediately dissipating. Well, she wasn''t wrong. And Xue Ning thought he was a good person! He decided to focus on that instead of thement on his intelligence.


    "He''s my friend! Don''t insult him!" Xue Ning growled back, clearly not finished.


    He didn''t know whether he shouldugh or cry. The good news: she thought of him as a friend. The bad news: she thought of him as a friend, not a potential lover.


    Xue Ning''s mother clearly didn''t think much of her daughter''s deration, if the udylike snort she gave at the other end of the line was any indication. If a snort could sound dismissive and disbelieving at the same time, it would be hers.<sub> </sub>


    "My daughter, you''ve not met enough people yet! Men like him are dangerous!" Her mother insisted.


    Xue Ning let out an impatient huff, ncing at Sun Jingwei from the corner of her eyes. If anything, Sun Jingwei was a danger to himself, not to her!


    "Mom, trust me, if you meet him, you won''t think he''s dangerous." She exined. "Trust me, I know what I''m doing! He''s like a puppy!"


    Now he wasn''t even human in her eyes? Sun Jingwei despaired, but just a little. If he was a puppy, perhaps he could be epted as her house pet.


    He held that thought for a moment, before realising that it made him sound even more pathetic.


    Oblivious to Sun Jingwei''s despondent thoughts, Xue Ning''s focus was on deciphering the background noises from her mother''s end of the call.


    Her mother made a series of noises that sounded like aborted swearing and in the background, there was the sound of someone snatching the phone away.


    "Ah-Yue, help me with this, I''ll talk to Xue Ning -" Her father clearly interrupted the call, trying to defuse the tense situation. She could just imagine him trying to calm her mother down by distracting her with some nonsense or another.


    "Hi dad," Xue Ning said, calming down slightly. "How are things?"


    ? "Oh we are fine, just upset over your new rtionship." Her dad said smoothly. Jingwei and Xue Ning winced in unison for different reasons.


    "Dad, I''m telling you, it''s a misunderstanding! Why don''t you and Mom believe it? Do I look like an idiot to you?" Sheined, whining just a bit. She knew she was her father''s soft spot, and he had the tendency to give into her whims if she just whined enough or threatened him with temper tantrums.


    That was how she even got to learn martial arts as a kid. ording to her mother, her father was a man weak to tears!


    Suddenly, she wondered if Sun Jingwei was a man that would be easily cowed by crying women.


    Due to his yboy experience, he could be supremely confident in dealing with hysterical women. But most women would also be happy with him, so when would he have the chance tofort crying women?


    He seemed more like someone that would panic if someone bawled their eyes out in front of him.


    Well, it''s not as though she''ll find out. She''s not nning on ever crying in front of him.


    "My dear daughter, it''s not as though your father doesn''t trust you." Her father patiently exined, without raising his voice.


    "It''s the man that your father doesn''t trust!!"

 Chapter 90 Less-Angry Father (For Now)

    "It''s the man that your father doesn''t trust!!"


    Beside Xue Ning, Jingwei raised a surprised eyebrow. He wasn''t shocked by her father''s words, because they made sense, but he was surprised by the way they were spoken.


    So there were fathers that could talk evenly when they wanted to lecture their child. He knew logically that there had to be soft-spoken, calm fathers in the world, but his father, and the fathers of his associates weren''t like that at all.


    When he was a teenager, he honestly thought calm, reasonable fathers were a myth!


    It made him sigh. Why couldn''t his dad just be a bit like Xue Ning''s dad?


    "Who''s that next to you Xue Ning?" Her father asked curiously. "I heard someone sighing."


    The both of them stared at each other, startled. Did Xue Ning''s dad hear her sigh from the phone? How was his hearing so good? Weren''t old people supposed to be hard of hearing?


    Jingwei slowly inched away from Xue Ning, trying his best not to make another sound.


    "Dad, that''s just a person on the bus." Xue Ning hastily said.


    "Your background is too quiet to be on a bus," Her father replied cheerfully. "And knowing you, there''s no way you would be arguing with your mother in public where anyone could hear you, yes?


    Xue Ning fell silent, stumped at her father''s urate inferences.


    "Come on Ah-Ning, try not to lie so obviously to your old dad," Her father cajoled. "You''ve never been good at dishonesty, so just tell Dad the truth. I''ll go and reason things out with your Mom!"


    Jingwei blinked. Was this the famed Good Cop-Bad Cop strategy he was seeing right before his eyes? He recalled experiencing something simr, but it was a long time ago, when his mother was still alive to be the softer counterpart to his father.


    He turned to stare at her portrait once again.


    ''Please Mom. Bless me so Xue Ning''s parents will like me!''


    "Daaaad, I''m telling the truth! Even if I''m not on the bus now, the rest of it is true! We are friends!" Xue Ning said, in a sulky voice.


    Jingwei found it adorable, and he had never seen this side of her before. Xue Ning, since he met her, had beenpetent and impressive, sometimes embarrassed, angry and upset, and more recently tired and smug, but never really sulky and petnt.


    Between the two of them, it was Jingwei who had the monopoly on being sulky and petnt. Until now.


    He stuffed his fist in his mouth to stop himself fromughing. Xue Ning shot him a death re, warning in her eyes. He nodded and showed an appropriately chastised expression, pretending to sob dramatically in silence.


    Augh threatened to bubble out of Xue Ning''s lips when she saw his ridiculousness.


    "Xue Ning, dear, are you still listening to me?"


    "Ah? Yeah Dad I''m still here. Jingwei and I are really just friends!"<sub> </sub>


    "Then why is the Inte calling you his wife? I''ve never even seen the lettering of the wedding invite - how can he hope to marry you like this?" Her father protested, pointing out his main gripe. Unlike his wife, he knew Xue Ning wasn''t a poor judge of character.


    However, his daughter also had very little positive romantic experiences, and he wouldn''t be surprised if Sun Jingwei managed to convince her into giving him a chance.


    From what he researched online, Sun Jingwei was a handsome, charming man with lots of money, and his daughter did love money, even if she didn''t like who it belonged to.


    Frankly, if it was any other rich man''s son, perhaps he would be less anxious. He might even be vaguely optimistic, that his only daughter might live the easy life of a rich man''s wife.


    But because Sun Jingwei was Sun Haowei''s youngest son, it made it impossible for him to rx. He and his wife knew better than anyone what kind of man Sun Haowei was, and how he treated those he deemed unworthy.


    Hopefully his daughter would never need to meet him, let alone be his daughter-inw! He''d never allow it! His poor precious daughter would be miserable stuck in a family like that, and if Sun Haowei''s temper was just as bad as he remembered it to be, shes would definitely happen with depressing regrity.


    "Dad, I can exin the wife thing. Honestly, it''s because Sun Jingwei opened his big mouth." Xue Ning said, heartlessly throwing Jingwei under the bus after defending him so fervently earlier.


    Jingwei stared at her and mouthed the words ''Oi, why are you only ming me?'' His brother was also there pushing the wife agenda. She should know. She was tired, but she was there when it happened!


    Xue Ning ignored him and continued.


    "Don''t worry Dad, your daughter is getting three houses out of this! I''m an entrepreneur!" She continued enthusiastically.


    Jingwei spluttered. There was a simr sounding from her father''s end of the line.


    "That''s not an entrepreneur!" Jingwei protested.


    "Little Ning, that''s not an entrepreneur." Her father said.


    There was a moment of silence as Xue Ning''s father realised his suspicions were confirmed, that there was a man next to his daughter, listening in to his conversation.


    Jingwei suddenly felt a disturbance in the force. He could onlyugh awkwardly to himself.


    "Didn''t I tell you to shush?" Xue Ning whispered angrily, smacking his arm.


    "Xue Ning, is Sun Jingwei the man I heard just now? His father said pleasantly, in a tone of someonementing on the weather.


    Xue Ning paused, contemting whether or not she should lie. Jingwei made the decision for her, easily snatching the phone out of her distracted hands.


    Xue Ning shouldn''t have the burden of lying to her parents on his behalf - in fact, her parents seem to love and care so much for her! It would weigh on his conscience if their rtionship became strained because of him.


    She had two parents that loved her, while Jingwei wasn''t even sure he was loved by the only one he had. Why ruin things for her?


    "Hello Uncle, nice to meet you! Yes, it''s me, Sun Jingwei."

 Chapter 91 Of Fathers And Sons

    "Hello Uncle, nice to meet you! Yes, it''s me, Sun Jingwei. Your daughter helped save me from a few tight spots. Please don''t scold her," Jingwei said cheerily into the phone.


    Next to him, Xue Ning tried to snatch her phone back, but Jingwei purposely held it above his head. She cursed herck of height under her breath, and then cursed him.


    "Bastard, give me back my phone!" Xue Ningined, stomping on his feet on purpose. Unfortunately, she wasn''t wearing her boots, so the damage was minimal. Either that or Jingwei had really tough feet, for he wasn''t fazed at all.


    "Sorry sir, your daughter is trying to crush my feet, I''ll give back her phone." Jingwei said, hurriedly handing over the phone over to Xue Ning''s waiting hands. It wasn''t Xue Ning''s feet that made him give up. Instead, it was the heat of her body, pressed threateningly close against his own. Xue Ning hadn''t noticed, because she was too intent on reducing his feet to mincemeat.


    Lucky for him. If not all of him would turn into mincemeat. Of course, if Xue Ning''s father had an idea of what he was thinking and hated him, he would turn into mincemeat too. It''s best to just y along with whatever Xue Ning''s n was.


    "Hi Dad, yeah that was Jingwei.I told you he''s an idiot." Xue Ning said casually, ignoring the way he was exaggerating his pain, sitting on the sofa and rubbing his feet while giving her kicked puppy eyes. He was perfectly fine!


    "I see," her father said in a mysterious voice.


    "What. What do you see?" Xue Ning asked curiously.


    "Nothing for you to worry about, my dear daughter." Her father said. "I know you have the skills to physically look after yourself, but I just have to remind you - next time you want to injure a man, aim for his family jewels!"


    Her father purposely raised his voice at thest part, just to make sure Sun Jingwei could hear it.


    Jingwei choked. Xue Ning gave him an evil smirk, a leg raised threateningly in his direction. He shuffled further away from where she was standing, and grabbed a sofa cushion to shield his crotch.


    Xue Ning internally vowed to not touch that cushion unless it was thrown into a washing machine for a deep wash.


    "Of course Dad, I''ve already done that," she said proudly. "He definitely can''t outfight me."


    "I know," Her father said indulgently, but then his voice became softer and more serious. "but we worry anyway. Rich people have a lot of power, and are very used to getting their way."


    "Dad, I already know that!" Xue Ning replied, but she still walked to the spare room to continue their conversation. Her father clearly didn''t want to be overheard. Jingwei meanwhile, continued to sit on the sofa in a bid to give Xue Ning some privacy.


    He sighed and continued.


    "My dear, you know it but you don''t seem to understand it. If the both of you are merely friends that get along for now, that''s excellent. But what if one day your friendship goes sour, and then he hurts you to get revenge?"<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning paused, turning to crane her neck in Jingwei''s direction. He was now lying down on the sofa, yawning with an arm under his head. Him? He didn''t seem like a vengeful man.


    "Jingwei isn''t that kind of person," Xue Ning said, but this time she was a bit more unsure. She knew better than anyone how good friends could be bitter enemies the very next day; it was a lesson she learnt from school.


    "Little Ning, you mean that you hope he isn''t that kind of person." Her father corrected gently. "It''s good to be optimistic, but I would still want you to be careful. That manes from a very powerful family, if he wants to take vengeance, there''s very little you can do to escape."


    Xue Ning chewed on her bottom lip, thinking it over. From what she saw so far, Sun Jingwei wasn''t a vengeful person. His father called him names and scolded him, and he never even showed a hint of anger or want for revenge. He was only resigned to his treatment.


    And look at Xiumin! Jingwei had thought she was the one that filmed him and leaked the video years ago, yet he did not take any action against her then, even though he could have. He only got angry at Xiumin when¡­ when Xiumin bribed Xiao Hui to pour hot soup on her.


    She had felt warmed and touched by his protectiveness, but what would happen if one day she made him angry enough that he wanted to hurt her instead?


    "I understand what you mean Dad." Xue Ning said, "But I''ll still treat him as my friend for now. He hasn''t done anything to prove to me that he''s a bad person. I can''t just distrust him because you say so. You haven''t even met him yet!" Xue Ning insisted, after thinking it through.


    Somewhere deep inside, she knew that Sun Jingwei wasn''t a man that held grudges. She could usually tell if someone was a real vengeful bitch like herself, who could hold a grudge for three lifetimes if given enough due cause.


    And she couldn''t convince her father of it without telling him everything that ensued. That''ll definitely lead to a speech about how she was making terrible decisions for her future.


    Her father could only sigh in disappointment from the other end.


    His precious daughter was stubbornly believing in Sun Jingwei''s good character and refused to listen to his hints about cutting ties with him!


    That worried him, because once his daughter decided that something was ''hers'' to keep and look after, she''d never let go of it. God knows how many times he had to stop her from getting attached to the stray cats and dogs that wandered around the countryside.


    But now that she was in Shanghai alone, she decided to adopt a yboy instead!


    Worse of all, that said yboy was the son of the man that chased them out of the city to begin with!


    What kind of twisted fate was this?

 Chapter 92 Contracts Are Important

    "Dad, are you still there?" Xue Ning asked cautiously, sensing that her father had fallen suspiciously silent and that was never a good sign. Did she upset him enough that he was going to pass the phone back to her mother so she could finish yelling?


    "I''m still here, Xue Ning," her father replied, sighing again, "And I know that you''re an adult who can make your own decisions."


    Xue Ning thought that that was the end of it, but then her father continued warningly.


    "While I cannot stop you from making friends, please, just make sure you are ONLY friends. That ''wife'' title better be only a slip of the tongue."


    "Of course! It''s all fake!" She insisted, even if Sun Jingwei was trying his best to make it a reality.


    She had to remind herself that she only knew him for a really short time. She had to be careful - Xue Ning didn''t want to end up used and discarded.


    "You''ve watched all those dramas with your Mom right? I''m sure you don''t want to be the sad female lead that suffers for 50 episodes at the hands of her inws." Her father added anxiously. "That man''s father isn''t anyone you can mess with."


    Xue Ningughed loudly. In the living room, Jingwei stood up just so he could get a closer look at herughing face.


    Sadly, her back was facing him, so he could only see her shoulders shaking inughter. He slumped back on the sofa, disappointed. He would have liked to see her smile. He took another look at his phone; at least the food was arriving soon.


    "Dad, why do you sound like you know Sun Haowei personally?" Xue Ning asked, curious at the surety in her father''s voice.


    Her father coughed. "How could I? But it''s not like I can''t guess. I''ve met lots of people like him in my youth."


    "Fair enough." Xue Ning nodded. "Anyway, don''t worry about me, Dad."


    "That''s nonsense. Like I said earlier, I will always worry about you. Whatever he promised you, make sure to get it in writing! Get a contract drawn up if necessary!" Her father instructed, already prepared to send her contacts of his oldwyer friends that owed him a favour or two.


    A contract? Funnily enough, that was already in the pipeline. Her father would not approve of the subject matter, but it was good to know that they were on the same page.


    "Oh don''t worry Dad, I''ll definitely get him to sign a contract, especially about giving me the three houses." Xue Ning said. "Ge better be prepared to name his first-born after me!"


    "Don''t sign anything before getting anotherwyer to look at it!" Her father warned. "If it''s awyer in his employ, chances are that the contract would be skewed to benefit him. Dad will rmend somewyers that he knows for you."


    "Dad¡­ how am I supposed to pay for awyer?" Xue Ning pointed out. She hasn''t gotten paid yet for her job as Sun Jingwei bodyguard, because a month hasn''t passed yet. Come to think about it¡­ she hadn''t signed an employment contract yet!


    She had been working for free so far!<sub> </sub>


    The thought shocked her so much she would have exited the room to yell at Sun Jingwei, but then her father would overhear and know that she was working as his bodyguard, and then Mom will haul her home before she even achieves her dream.


    No, that cannot happen. She would not let them find out about the true circumstances of her employment. She''d rather they believe that she was Sun Jingwei''s fake wife!


    "Don''t worry about that! Thesewyers owe me," Her father said proudly. "They''ll do a good job for you."


    "Huh?" Xue Ning asked, confused. What, did her father save them from the brink of starvation with his noodle soup? There was no other way her father, a humble noodle stall owner, would havewyers willing to work for free. "Dad, how do you even havewyers owing you?"


    "...I''m very good atworking," was her father''s answer. "One has to be to run a sessful business."


    "Right." Xue Ning said disbelievingly. The answer made sense, but she knew it wasn''t the truth. "Anyway Dad, I''ll take your advice. It''s the lunch rush, so you shouldn''t spend so much time talking to me. I''ll talk to you and Momter, when Mom calms down."


    "Good good. As long as you don''t fall in love with him and don''t get trapped into any unfair contract, Dad will be at ease," Her father said warmly.


    Xue Ning choked at his words; what was that first part about her falling in love? How did her father get that impression?


    "...Right," Xue Ning repeated, too surprised to bother rebutting her father''sments.


    "Then I''ll hang up now! If there''s anything, feel free to call ore home," her father replied. "This ce will always wee you back!"


    "Yeah I got it. Thank Dad, bye." She said, then he hung up, leaving her in a silent room. Come home? No thanks. Going home now would be as good as surrendering! She hadn''t done anything with her life yet so far, so how could she go home?


    If anything, she would only go home when she had achieved big things with her life, just to rub in the face of her old school tormentors!


    "Xue Ning, are you done?" Jingwei asked cautiously. He had peered into the room, only to see that Xue Ning was no longerughing. Instead, her shoulders were tense and she was ring at her phone. "Woah, why do you look so angry?"


    "Huh?" Xue Ning asked, distracted. "Yeah, I''m done. And as to why I''m angry¡­"


    There were many things she could have said, such as ''my father thinks I''m in love with you, and they don''t approve'', or ''they think you''re a scumbag who will hunt me down once our friendship runs its course, and that somehow upsets me''.


    She could even have said that ''I just remembered my oldest crush got married to my high school bully'', but instead, what came out of her mouth was none of the above.


    "Sun Jingwei, I just realised that I''m working for you for free!"

 Chapter 93 I’m Working For FREE?

    "Sun Jingwei, I just realised that you''re taking advantage of me!"


    Xue Ning eximed, and Jingwei stared at her in surprise.


    "Hey Xue Ning, you can''t say that. The taking advantage was pretty mutual on both sides," Jingwei pointed out. "You technically saw me naked and cuddled me in bed too. That''s also a benefit!"


    "That''s not what I meant! And how is that taking advantage of you when you freely offer it?" She squawked out in protest.


    "Really? Then what did you mean?" Jingwei asked, ignoring theter half of her statement, because she was right. Even if Xue Ning didn''t want him now, he would still aim to seduce her.


    "I mean we never signed my employment contract!" Xue Ning said, throwing her hands out up in the air. "I''m risking life and limb for free!"


    "But that''s not true, we signed¡­" His voice trailed off as he realised he actually never offered her the employment contract to sign.


    "Now do you remember what happened in thest few days?" Xue Ning pointed out peevishly. "You sent the sexy underwear over, we went out for dinner, we met Xiumin, nearly died, I went home with you, met your father and now I am here living with you!"


    "When you put it like that, it sounds like we speed-ran our entire rtionship," Jingwei mused, smiling to himself. The smile faded when he saw Xue Ning''s unimpressed face staring back at him.


    "You''re right, I''ll get it rectified immediately," Jingwei promised, all smiles. "In fact, I''ll even add another zero to the end of your sry. You''ve managed to keep me safe and you''re even pretending to be my wife."


    Of course, Jingwei also had ulterior motives. If he paid Xue Ning well enough, she would continue to remain his bodyguard, which meant he would have more chances to win her over to be his real wife.


    And she would also think he was a generous boss, which would also help his image.


    More importantly, if Xue Ning got used to signing things with him, she might want to sign a marriage certificate without thinking too much too! It was unlikely, but not impossible. A man could dream.


    "This also has nothing to do with the three houses!" Xue Ning added determinedly. "I want another separate contract for that."


    Luckily her father called her and reminded her of what''s important. Everything had to be in writing, and she definitely wasn''t going to fall in love with Sun Jingwei. They were friends, and even then they were friends for now.


    He might call her his wife, but it was fake. She wasn''t even his wife by name. There was no marriage cert, fake or otherwise.


    "Deal! Consider it arranged, I''ll text Shengli after lunch and then he''ll send us the employment agreement." Jingwei said, flicking her forehead yfully, smiling cheerfully. Xue Ning wanted to take part in the seduction bet! Life was looking up for him.


    "Now there''s no reason for you to look so grouchy. You''ll get wrinkles on that pretty face."


    Xue Ning swatted his hand away, deliberately hissing grouchily.


    "What do you think of this spare room? You can sleep here for the time being, seeing that you believe that you''re not going to be seduced by me eventually."<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning swatted him again, just because she could. He was so insufferable, especially with his handsome smirking face, so sure that he was god''s gift to women.


    This time, he managed to move out of the way, grabbing her shoulders and spinning her around so she could face the room. "So what do you think? If you want to make any changes, I''ll call the interior designer to make some changes. We could also go furniture shopping -"


    "No need, this room looks nice!" She shook herself out of his hold and looked around the room. It wasn''t as big as Jingwei''s room, but she didn''t need that big of a room.


    This spare room had a queen-sized bed inside it, along with a cupboard for her belongings and a vanity table. It didn''t have a bathroom, but that didn''t matter - she could use the one outside.


    The walls were painted a soft cream colour, a goodplement to the hardwood floors. Large windows let in the afternoon sun, but there were curtains if she wished to have them drawn.


    All in all, it was a perfectly fine room.


    "Only nice?" Jingwei asked, slightly dismayed.


    "What else do you want me to say?" She raised an eyebrow. "It''s a perfectly good room, unless you''re going to tell me that it has termites. Wait, is it haunted?"


    "Of course not! Touch wood!" Jingwei immediately went to pat the wooden vanity table. "There are no ghosts and no termites. I wouldn''t let you sleep in a bug-infested room. So you don''t want to change anything? You''re satisfied with this room?"


    "For now, no." She shrugged. "Do you want me to hate this spare room so badly so that I''ll sleep in your bedroom?"


    "It was worth a shot," Jingwei admitted. "Think about it, my bedroomes with its own bathroom. Could you say no to that convenience?"


    "Shameless," she scolded, but her lips inadvertently curled into a smile at the half-despondent look on his face. "And you can keep your lube-infested bathroom to yourself thanks."


    "Infestation? It was only one lube bottle!" Jingwei protested,ughing. "But I could definitely make it into an infestation if you wanted. Do you have any preferred brands or vours?"


    "How about NO," Xue Ning replied, pulling a face. Jingweiughed harder at her disgusted face.


    "Alright, no lube for you then. I''ll now leave you to unpack then. Are you sure you won''t change your mind?"


    "Stop asking dumb questions and bring my bags into this room," Xue Ning instructed, crossing her arms and gesturing to her luggage in the living room with the tilt of her head. It was strangely attractive to him.


    "Come on now, put those hulking muscles of yours to good use. Make yourself useful."


    Jingwei could only sigh good-naturedly and leave the room, but not before giving her a cheeky wink.


    "Yes, darling. As my wifemands."

 Chapter 94 A Sweet Lunch

    After her bags had been brought into the room by a smug Sun Jingwei who continuously flexed his biceps in her face like a peacock showing off its tail feathers, she hastily unpacked her things. The cupboard was so big that her belongings only filled half of it.


    Just after she put her toiletries into the main bathroom, the inte buzzed.


    "Hi! Yes, sure,e up now." Jingwei said before smiling at her. "Xue Ning! Our lunch has arrived!"


    "Oh good." She was getting hungry after all the unpacking. "What did you order?"


    "A little bit of everything!" Jingwei said enthusiastically. Just as he was about to open the door for the delivery man, Xue Ning pushed him aside and proceeded to do it instead.


    "Xue Ning?" He asked hesitantly.


    "Just being careful," she said. What if someone decided to knife him in the ribs the moment he opened the door? Next time, she would ask the delivery staff to leave the food at the door instead.


    Thankfully, the delivery man did not carry a knife or any weapon. Instead he had bags of food that he was dly ready to pass onto Xue Ning at the earliest opportunity. Jingwei stood behind her, ready to help, but Xue Ning took all of them with a raised eyebrow.


    "Thanks for the quick delivery!" Jingwei yelled at the rapidly vanishing figure of the deliveryman, his hands already taking the bags from Xue Ning''s full hands.


    They moved back into the house after locking the door.


    "A little bit?" Xue Ning asked, gesturing to the multitude of takeaway boxes that were now on the dining table.


    "Well, you didn''t have any preference, so this is the next best thing. Besides, shops give discounts if you hit a minimum order," Jingwei exined, as though Xue Ning and her money-saving ass didn''t know this by heart.


    She was surprised that Jingwei knew it though, and actually used this promotion. He certainly didn''t need to save money through discounts.


    "More importantly, this is our first meal together in our new home, my dear! It has to be impressive."


    Xue Ning choked. Sun Jingwei really never stopped pretending that she was his wife, even when they were alone! Themitment he had was inspiring.


    (She reminded herself, once again, that this was all fake. They were just like children ying house in kindergarten, and the illusion would break when it was time to go.)


    "Nice! They even gave me an extra tub of cookies." Jingwei said smugly. "Let''s eat!"


    They dug into their meals, peacefully sharing the food. Xue Ning helped herself to sweet and sour pork, salted egg chicken and even some grilled eggnt. While eating, she managed to answer most of her messages. The martial arts centre contacted her and informed her that her services were no longer required, seeing as she missed at least two shifts without prior notice.


    Her lips pursed in disappointment. Technically, this new bodyguarding job for Sun Jingwei was more prestigious and paid a lot more, but part of her did miss the children and their antics.


    Jingwei meanwhile, could only give Xue Ning a curious look at her slightly saddened face. Did she not like the food? Jingwei himself had noints about the food, he polished off everything, clearing the tes with the efficiency of a vacuum cleaner faced with dust.


    "You eat a lot," Xue Ningmented, watching him in vague concern. That man seemed to inhale his food. "Careful, don''t choke."


    "Aww you care about me," Jingwei said with a smug smile. There was sauce at the corner of his lips. She pursed her lips and tossed a piece of tissue in his direction.


    "Wipe your mouth, you have sauce at the corner." She said.


    "So do you," Jingwei said, but instead of giving her a napkin, he decided to wipe it off with his thumb instead. He then licked that thumb clean with his mouth, all while smirking at her.<sub> </sub>


    "There. Problem solved."


    "You- !" Xue Ning spluttered, face red. Speechless with surprise, she could only stuff her mouth with more food angrily, so that she wouldn''t have an excuse to respond.


    Jingwei saw the way her cheeks puffed up like a greedy hamster andughed.


    "Now you should be careful not to choke." He said, smugly repeating her words from earlier. Xue Ning longed to choke him, just a bit, but he ignored her re to fiddle with his phone.


    "I''ve just sent a message to Shengli about your employment contract, he''ll amend it and Yi Ting will send it to you shortly! You''ll just need to sign it if you find the terms agreeable."


    "Of course, if you don''t, you can always negotiate with me." Jingwei added, his voice suddenly sultry, his eyes holding her own.


    Xue Ning was the first to break eye contact by rolling her eyes. She ignored her racing heart and the heat on her cheeks.


    "Somehow, I have a feeling your negotiations aren''tpany policy." They probably involved a lot less clothes and that huge bed she saw in his bedroom. Pervert.


    Why did she like it though? It must be temporary insanity.


    "Darling, I ampany policy." Jingwei pointed out. There was a fond smile on his lips as he reached for a cookie.


    He bit into it and had the nerve to lick his lips free of the crumbs while staring at her rapidly reddening face.


    "So just let me know whatever you want."


    "Do you negotiate with all your employees this way?" Xue Ning asked, raising an eyebrow.


    "Only the ones that are my wife," he replies winningly, winking at her.


    She stifled augh.


    "So, I guess that''s like every woman in Shanghai," she asked, delighting in the way he choked. How the tables have turned - she was going to use this chance to fluster him the same way he did to her.


    "Okay maybe not every woman, just those between the ages of 20 and 60," she added. He did not stop choking.


    "Hey do you want some water?" She asked, as his face turned red. "Did the cookie go down your windpipe?"


    Sun Jingwei shook his head. His eyes were filled with panic and fear. He pointed at the cookies and then at his throat.


    Xue Ning immediately stood up and cracked open a cookie. There wasn''t anything special inside, but when she held it to her nose and took a whiff, she understood.


    The cookie had honey in it. It was well-disguised with the peanuts and almonds and chocte, but there was still an underlying sticky sweet smell that could only be associated with honey.


    Jingwei was allergic to honey.


    Did someone purposely send the cookies to him?

 Chapter 95 Fateful Realisations

    Jingwei was allergic to honey.


    Did someone purposely send the cookies to him?


    There was no time to think about this, firstly she had to stop him from dying! Using her phone she immediately called for 120 for an ambnce, nearly screaming into the phone.


    "My husband got an allergic reaction! Come quickly!"


    If Jingwei wasn''t on the verge of death, he''d be delirious with joy at the thought of Xue Ning referring to him as her husband. He would be teasing her for her slip of the tongue, repeating ''I''m your husband'' in her ear repeatedly.


    Unfortunately, his eyes were tearing up not from happiness, but from his body''s reaction to honey.


    Xue Ning stared at him, distraught. He immediately tried to pat her consolingly tofort her, but his hands were feeling limp and his fingers had swelled up to resemble frozen sausages.


    She took one look at his red swelling face and ran off into his room.


    He didn''t look that terrible, did he? If he died like this, he''ll never let the heavens hear the end of it! How could a face as handsome as his be ruined just before his death!


    He refused to die - he hadn''t actually married Xue Ning yet, nor have they actually had sex!


    There was no way the heaven''s would be cruel enough to treat him this way, by giving him everything he wanted within arm''s reach only to heartlessly rip them away, right?


    The swelling of his airways prove otherwise.


    He began to panic, and internally prayed to his Mom for help.


    ''Mom! I''m not ready to see you yet? Can you bargain with God to give me a bit more time? I''ll definitely give you grandchildren! You just met my wife!''


    Meanwhile, the said wife was frantically searching for Jingwei''s Epi-pen. Unfortunately, Jingwei didn''t tell her exactly where he put that thing, only that it was somewhere in his room. A cursory nce showed that it wasn''t on his table, bedside or anywhere visible.


    If he lived through this allergy attack, Xue Ning would make sure that he put an Epipen in every room in in sight!


    But now, she could only ransack through all the drawers like a burr on a deadline.


    "Come on, where is it?" She yelled to herself in panic, tears nearly welling in her eyes. How long would it take for an allergy to kill? How long did Sun Jingwei have?


    His face had already swelled up dangerously, and she didn''t know if the ambnce would arrive in time.


    Thankfully, thest drawer at the very end of the room had what she was looking for. The relief she felt when she pulled it open to be greeted with the customary cylindrical shape of the Epipen nearly caused her knees to buckle, but she remained calm.


    She grabbed it and sprinted to the dining room as though her heels were on fire. Thankfully, Sun Jingwei was still hanging onto dear life, but he was also wheezing weakly, as though he couldn''t get enough air in his lungs.


    His eyes were bulging out and there were tears inside them. But then they focused on Xue Ning, and the fear and panic subsided. He seemed strangely at peace, his mouth twisted into a smile.<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning wasted no time, she popped off the cap of the Epi-pen and pulled up the loose-fitting pants to reveal his bare upper thigh.


    p If Jingwei wasn''t on the verge of death, he''d make some joke about getting to second base, and how she should buy him a meal before taking advantage of him.</anda>


    Unfortunately, eating a meal was what led to this situation, and he had no energy or breath to make wisecracks about his situation. He was rapidly losing energy.


    Xue Ning held down his thigh firmly and plunged the Epi-pen straight into the thick muscle of his thigh without any hesitation or squeamishness, as though she was a warrior ying the enemy.


    The Epi-pen made its tell-tale clicking sound, but she didn''t remove it, waiting for the 10 seconds to pass before she even had the guts to take a quick look at Jingwei''s face.


    What if the Epi-Pen expired? What if she was toote?


    Thankfully, Jingwei''s face was slowly returning to normal. The swelling was slowly residing, and his breathing grew steadier, the frantic wheezing gradually making way to deeper, more even breaths.


    "How do you feel?" Xue Ning asked, worry painted on every feature of her face. She tenderly cradled Jingwei''s face in her hands, still frantically looking him over for signs of distress. Jingwei could only stare up at her dumbly at her uncharacteristic obvious concern.


    The Epi-Pen dropped haphazardly on the floor with a loud tter, forgotten now that it served its purpose.


    Jingwei lifted his own hands to cover Xue Ning''s own trembling ones. They were sweaty and cold due to the earlier panic.


    "I''m fine, I''m fine, don''t worry, darling, I''m here," Jingwei murmured soothingly, as though calming down a spooked animal. He gently squeezed her hands, transferring some of his warmth to her.


    "Thank you Xue Ning, you saved my life." He added sincerely. There was no doubt that if he was alone, he wouldn''t have even managed to make it to the bedroom to grab his Epi-pen, let alone use it.


    "You''re sure? You''re sure you''re fine?" Xue Ning continued to ask, still staring at him as though she suspected him of lying to spare her feelings.


    "Yes, why would I lie to you?" Jingwei pointed out, his voice still soft and low. He turned his head to press a kiss onto Xue Ning''s palm.


    "Besides, you called me your husband. That''s enough reason to stay alive." He continued impishly, but his eyes were sincere as he gazed up at her adoringly.


    At his words, Xue Ning startled, as though a bucket of cold water had been thrown on her. She immediately let go of his face and stepped further away, ignoring the look of dismay that crossed Jingwei''s eyes.


    "If you can still spout cheesy lines, I guess you''re fine." Xue Ning warbled, trying to get her emotions under control. Sun Jingwei was fine, he and his abdominally cheesy self will live to see another day.


    He''s not dead¡­ he''s not dead¡­


    She did it. She had saved his life.


    She turned around and pressed her face into her hands, eyes tearing up unknowingly in relief.


    This stupid man was alive. He would be the death of her.

 Chapter 96 I’m Your Husband

    "Xue Ning!" Jingwei got up with his shaky legs and reached out for Xue Ning''s retreating figure, but ended up bumping his legs against the table top. "Oof - "


    Xue Ning turned back in concern, only to see Jingwei rubbing at his leg as he tried to get up.


    "Sit back down, you nearly died!" She scolded, running back to shove him back into the seat. "Wait for the ambnce to arrive!"


    "You called an ambnce for me?" Jingwei asked, touched.


    <o>,m "Was I not supposed to?" Xue Ning asked sarcastically, her hands on her hips.</o>


    "And while we''re at it, how can you put your Epi-pen in the furthest drawer? What if you needed it and you couldn''t get it in time?!"


    "Well, guess I would die then?" Jingwei answered, giving a small shrug with a hesitant smile. Hopefully Xue Ning would find it amusing enough to crack a smile at him.


    However, Xue Ning''s face ckened further at his response. Jingwei''s own smile fell off his face, clearly it was not the time for jokes. He reached out for her, tugging her closer to him. Xue Ning reluctantly let him, still staring down at his face, unimpressed and upset.


    "Yes I was very stupid, and I would be dead if not for you. I''ll line the walls with Epi-pen from today onwards." Jingwei promised, making sure to look appropriately sorry and very grateful that he did not die at his dining table thanks to a single cookie.


    He must have scared Xue Ning. Mentally, he vowed to make it up to her, someway or another. The moment she found something she wanted, he promised he would move heaven and earth to get it for her.


    "Damn right you will," Xue Ning agreed, nodding her head. Finally this man seemed to understand that this was not the time for jokes. Xue Ning''s heart was still beating in double-time at that sudden death scare.


    "Speaking of, why did you even order honey cookies when you know you''re allergic?" She asked, ready to yell at him now that he''s no longer in danger of keeling over.


    "Not to mention, how could you be so stupid to even eat one without checking?"


    "I didn''t order it!" Jingwei said, raising his hands up in surrender. "I swear, it wasn''t in my order list. I think one of the vendors just gave me a tin because we bought so much from them."


    "...Jingwei, none of us ordered anything from a bakery. How would these stalls even have cookies lying around to give us? Don''t you think it''s weird?" Xue Ning pointed out, casting a suspicious look at the small tub of ubelled cookies still sitting undisturbed on the table, save for the one Sun Jingwei ate.


    That one cookie nearly killed him.


    "But I''ve ordered from these stalls before," Jingwei rationalised, frowning to himself. "I ate their food and it tasted good, that''s why I decided to reorder from them.


    "I wanted you to have a good first meal with me to celebrate you moving in. Guess that''s out of the question," He added sadly, slumping against the chair in defeat. Truly, man proposes, God disposes! Heaven really ruined all his bestid ns.


    "... The food was good," Xue Ning said, because he looked so despondent that his lunch n went awry. Strangely enough, it was upsetting her. "The terrible part only started when you ate that cookie and nearly died."<sub> </sub>


    "Trust me, I do not wish to repeat that again." Jingwei said dryly, rubbing a hand over his face. No one told him that nearly dying would be so exhausting. Then again, no one around him had the habit of nearly dying.


    "Man, I can''t wait to tell my family that I nearly died from a biscuit. They''re going to destroy me."


    "And they should." Xue Ning replied heartlessly. "Didn''t you learn not to eat random ubelled things?"


    "Actually I didn''t! Why would I, when no one would have the guts to poison me?" Jingwei said, gesturing to himself. "If anything happened to me, my family would wipe the culprit and 7 generations of their families out of existence."


    He had a point. The same way apex predators never needed to fear getting eaten, wealthy, privileged people like Sun Jingwei never needed to fear assassination attempts, simply because the risk and consequences outweighed the reward.


    Until now.


    "Well, now someone tried to kill you via your honey allergy. How many people know about this allergy of yours?" Xue Ning asked.


    "Not many, it''s not public knowledge," Jingwei said, shrugging. "I didn''t want to let many people know that I could die via ingesting honey, that''s just asking for trouble."


    Xue Ning felt a cold chill shoot through her, and she had to sit down.


    "So, someone from your life that knows you well-enough could have possibly sent you these cookies to kill you?" Xue Ning asked, and Jingwei could only nod in acknowledgement, remarkably se for someone who had one foot in the grave.


    "Xue Ning, darling, don''t overthink things first," He said reassuringly, grabbing her mmy sweaty hands to hold again. It was testament to how frazzled Xue Ning was after the incident that she let him, instead of shoving him aside.


    He gently rubbed her hands until they became warmer. "There''s no evidence that this was an assasination attempt," Jingwei said soothingly.


    "It could have just been a stall owner wanting to suck up to a high paying customer - it''s not the first time something like that happened! Also some stalls do give free samples for customers to try. It''s just bad luck that I got something that I was allergic to, and we can''t me the stalls, they didn''t know."


    Jingwei''s words made logical sense, but deep down, her intuition was telling her there was more to this incident.


    "I still think this incident is suspicious," she insisted. "We''ll need to investigate which stalls gave you the cookies, and interrogate them!"


    She was not resting until she got to the bottom of this.


    After all, what kind of stall would give free samples and then notbel the tin with the name of the cookies or thepanybel? How would anyone know how to repurchase them if they did like it?


    Either someone was terrible at marketing their cookies, or they wanted to kill Sun Jingwei with them!

 Chapter 97 A Quick Check-Up

    "Xue Ning, don''t look so stressed," Jingwei cajoled, making sure to look as alive and healthy as possible.


    If he could do a cartwheel to prove his fitness, he would. But since he had never done any sort of gymnastics in his short life, his spine would probably shatter in the attempt and then Xue Ning would really kill him if he wasn''t already dead.


    "Look, I''m perfectly fine!" He continued, smiling brilliantly at her while sitting on the chair.


    "You nearly weren''t. If I hadn''t found that Epi-pen in time, you''d be a goner." Xue Ning confessed harshly, shivering as she recalled how close Sun Jingwei came to death.


    "Come here and take a closer look at me then," Jingwei said, still smiling. He puffed up his chest proudly and pointed at himself. "You''ll see that I''m in the peak of health. I can climb Mount Everest now."


    Xue Ning let out a disbelieving snort, but the ends of her lips lifted into a reluctant smile.


    "Please, you can''t even climb Mount Everest normally. In fact, I doubt you can even climb up a hill." She retorted. So far, all she has seen that man do is eat and flirt!


    "Hey! I''ll let you know that I''m in peak physical condition!" Jingwei protested, before waggling his eyebrows at her. "In fact, my dear wife, you should know that better than anyone."


    Xue Ning red at him warningly, but he was undeterred.


    "After all, you got both an eyeful and a handful justst night! How could you forget about our magical night together?" Jingwei continued toment, grabbing her hand to ce on his pecs, right above his steadily beating heart.


    "You - what magical night - "


    She flushed and tried to pull away, but he held her hand firmly, his eyes fixed on hers, willing her to look at him.


    "Xue Ning, I''m fine. Really. And I cannot thank you enough." He said, nowpletely sincere, without his usual brand of joking cheesiness. The whish made her head spin. Why did he keep trying to subvert her expectations of him?


    "You can feel my heart right?"


    The world suddenly seemed to shrink to only focus on their connected hands and his strong heartbeat under her skin. Slowly, she felt the tight knot in her shoulders rx as his heart continued to beat strongly under hand, its steady pulse the best physical proof that he was alive.


    Unknowingly, their breaths synced. Their breathing was loud in that quiet house.


    "You hold my heart in your hands." Jingwei murmured. "You always have."


    Somehow, even if she had an emotional range of a teaspoon, she managed to get a feeling he wasn''t just referring to the recent allergic reaction.


    "I - "


    Before Xue Ning could respond, the loud ringing of the doorbell shattered the strange mood that enveloped the both of them. Xue Ning pulled away her hand, and made for the door, while Jingwei slumped against the back of the chair harshly in frustration.


    Goddammit! He was so close to actually confessing!


    But it was probably for the best that it didn''t happen like this, with him nearly dying and Xue Ning nearly crying in panic, even though she pretended that she was perfectly fine.


    She had kept on looking at him from the corner of her eyes, as though expecting him to keel over any minute.


    If he had sprung his feelings on her like this, Xue Ning''s brain might have just rebooted in shock!


    It would be better for him to wait for a more cheerful, happy time. After all, he had many ideas floating in his mind about when would be the most ideal time to confess.


    They range from being silhouetted by the setting sun as they held hands while walking on his family''s private beach, to them taking his private jet to a more mountainous region so that they could properly stargaze without light pollution interfering. He also needed time to harvest enough rose petals to rain on her.


    So it was for the best that he was interrupted, he thought morosely to himself.


    He knew that, but deep down, he felt regretful anyway. The moment they shared just now was nothing like he nned, but it still felt so right that he had to give voice to the feelings bubbling inside him, threatening to overflow like an erupting volcano.


    "Excuse me? Mrs Sun, I''ve received a call from this apartment -"


    "Yes, yes, are you the paramedic? Can I see your ID?" Xue Ning asked, looking it over. Sensing nothing wrong (her job as a bartender meant she saw her fair share of fake IDs), she let her in, but not before she took a quick look downstairs from the window.


    True enough, there was an ambnce waiting on standby at the carpark. It was attracting curious nces among strolling onlookers.


    She felt more reassured that this woman wasn''t out to stab Jingwei, but she still kept a close eye on both of them as the paramedic took Jingwei''s pulse and examined him for signs of swelling or rashes.


    Jingwei caught her nces and winked at her. "Don''t be jealous, darling."


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes and asked the paramedic. "Do you need to give him any additional injections? Can I stab him with the needle?"<sub> </sub>


    The paramedic giggled softly at her words.


    "No need, Mrs Sun. Your husband is fine. His pulse is normal and the swelling in his airways has receded. Good thing that you''ve managed to administer the epinephrine in time. Your quick action saved his life."


    "I know right?" Jingwei agreed. "Isn''t my wife so cool?"


    "You keep quiet," Xue Ning scolded, "someone who nearly died from cookies shouldn''t be talking."


    Jingwei pouted. "My wife is mean to me."


    The paramedic smiled. "As long as you keep a supply of Epi-pens on standby, you should be safe. I would still advise being more careful about the food you consume, because food allergy reactions are inconsistent. Next time, you might not be so lucky."


    The both of them fell silent at her ominous warning, which was delivered with a soft, motherly smile.


    "You see? You heard the paramedic!" Xue Ning eximed, smacking his arm now that she had proof Sun Jingwei was indeed hale and healthy.


    "Yes dear, you were right, I was wrong. I shall never eat anything without you feeding it to me with your fingers," Jingwei replied, grabbing her hand as he stared at her, amusement in his eyes.


    Even if they were pretending to be married, his words were a bit too much!


    "Are you a baby? Or a pigeon that poops outside? Why do I need to feed you by hand?" Xue Ningined.


    A giggle interrupted them. They stared at the paramedic, who was shaking inughter. "It''s good to see that the both of you have a loving rtionship.


    "Thanks!" Jingwei beamed in reply, holding Xue Ning''s hand while Xue Ning could only nod dumbly. What part of their conversation seemed loving? She called him a pooping pigeon!


    After a final check, the paramedic gave him the all-clear, along with a cheerful wave goodbye.


    "One more piece of advice!" She said cheerfully to Xue Ning before leaving for good.


    "Make sure to rinse your mouth if you ate what he was allergic to - sometimes, couples kiss with tongue and then one party gets an allergic reaction even if they didn''t eat the food. We see that happen more often than you think."


    Xue Ning choked at her words. Kissing Sun Jingwei?! With tongue? Her?


    Meanwhile, Jingwei threw his head back andughed wildly, giving her a thumbs-up. "Got it! Thanks! I''ll write a good review for your service!"


    They watched as she left and the ambnce pulled away.


    "Xue Ning, what do you think of honey?"


    "Why?" She asked warily. "Is this another one of your stupid pet names?"


    "No, I meant as a food. Because you''ve heard the nice paramedic - you''re not going to be able to eat any of it now. So sorry." Jingwei said in mock sadness, his eyes looking at her with unbridled amusement.


    "Why not?" Xue Ning asked, less amused. She had a feeling some bullshit was going to materialise from his mouth.


    "Because I have a feeling we''ll be kissing a lot in future!"


    And there it was.


    "Prepare to be disappointed." She retorted. "I haven''t agreed to kissing you yet - in fact, I never agreed to kissing you! Don''t be so over-confident!"


    "Want to bet on it? We haven''t discussed the terms on that other contract yet, do you feel confident enough to make such a wager?"


    Suddenly, the memory of their first desperate kiss floated in her mind, unbidden. The softness of his lips, paired with his harsh grip on her, as he locked her in a loving embrace as though kissing her was the only thing that mattered in his life.


    As though kissing her mattered more than his own life.


    "Cat got your tongue?" Jingwei asked, as he watched Xue Ning''s face grow reader without her saying a word. "I guess you''re not confident after all."


    "Who said so!" Xue Ning blustered, shaking her head to free herself from that memory. That was just a one time thing, she insisted to herself.


    "I''ll take that bet!"

 Chapter 98 Just One Kiss Please

    "I''ll take that bet!"


    A smirk slowly spread across Sun Jingwei''s face. A poetic person would im that it was like the sunrise over the ocean. Xue Ning was not poetic and found his smile a bit too sleazy to bepared to something as lovely as the sunrise.


    It reminded her of snake oil salesmen, or cats that were stalking canaries for the kill.


    Xue Ning did not like the thought of being eaten.


    "Why are you smirking like this? It''s greasier than an oil spill. Stop it." Xue Ning said, inching further away from him with eyes narrowed in suspicion.


    Jingwei stood up, but he still didn''t stop smirking. Instead, he leaned in even closer just so he could continue staring, the way children did to pretty fishes in aquariums.


    He smiled in amusement at her wary expression, delighting in the way her eyes darted around and refused to meet his own.


    "What''s the problem?" She had a feeling that she just wandered into a trap, but she was too prideful to ask for help to escape.


    "Seeing that you just verbally agreed to our bet, I suppose it would be gentlemanly for me to allow you onest chance to back out. I don''t want you to feel like you were forced into it," Jingwei replied smoothly, but Xue Ning could detect theughter in his voice.


    He was offering her onest chance to retreat.


    Was he looking down on her self-control? Xue Ning narrowed her eyes. He was mocking her! Just because she didn''t have any real experience kissing, it didn''t mean he could look down on her!


    Preposterous. She''d show him.


    "Like hell I''m surrendering! I''ve gone 25 years without kissing you, I can go another 25 years without. Don''t think too highly of yourself!" She dered. Jingwei smirked at her patronisingly, and it made her want to smack that look off his face.


    Then she had the great idea to lie about her kissing experience.


    "In fact, I''ve kissed tons of people before you! You''re not that special!" She said, with all bravado.


    She wasn''t usually a liar, but it was worth it to see the slight twitch in Jingwei''s hands, the way his entire body jolted at her words, eyes blinking in shock.


    It was Xue Ning''s time to smirk. Finally, he didn''t seem so smug, so calm and in control.


    Jingwei''s eyes had darkened in a way that made him look dangerous, and the clench of his jaw was causing her heart to beat faster.


    Maybe she shouldn''t have lied. But she wasn''t going to admit she was a kissing virgin!


    "Is that so?" Jingwei replied, his voice smooth as butter. However, inside him, an ugly green monster was raging against the bars of its cage, trying to get out. Xue Ning''s lips had kissed tons of people, tons of ungrateful fools who probably didn''t know how to kiss her properly, if not she would never have agreed to this bet in the first ce.<sub> </sub>


    She didn''t know how good kissing could feel. He had to rectify that - he had to obliterate all her kissing memories that featured other people and rece them with him kissing her.


    "You must have lots of experience then," Jingwei said, a muscle twitching in his jaw as he thought about other men pecking her full lips.


    There was a faint thread of anger running through his body, and he tensely flexed his fingers. They longed to pull her towards him so that she would only look at him.


    "...Of course! Don''t look down on me! Your kissing isn''t going to do anything!" Xue Ning dered.


    However, her eyes subconsciously darted to his lips at her words, and she had to wrench them away before he noticed and began teasing her.


    "Besides, I think you''re the one that wants to kiss me more." Xue Ning said, as she watched how Jingwei stared unwavering at her own moving lips, as though they held the meaning of life and next week''s lottery numbers.


    In fact, she didn''t think he even blinked since she agreed to the bet. Internally, she celebrated. Those houses were hers! This proved that no matter what, he was definitely the more desperate one.


    "This challenge might be too hard for you instead." She continued with a meaningful nce at his crotch. Jingwei caught it and smiled at her pun, managing to briefly forget about the presence of ''other men''.


    "Do you have too many houses that you can afford to lose them to me?"


    Heughed; he had already lost his heart to Xue Ning. What are housespared to that? How could he want to stay in a house without her in the future? What was the point?


    "Thank you for thinking of my financial situation. Truly, my wife is a paragon of virtue. She deserves many kisses." He pretended to be touched, a hand on his chest, even pretending to wipe a tear from the corner of his eye before blowing her a kiss.


    She snorted, rolling his eyes. "Someone needs to have enough virtue for both of us. And you can go kiss yourself. I don''t need your kisses."


    The less said about Jingwei''s virtue the better. It was probably lost in a gutter somewhere, collecting dust and covered in grime.


    "Are you sure about that Xue Ning? Just give me one kiss," Jingwei leaned in even closer, close enough that she could feel the heat of his body and his scent entered her nostrils. He just needed one, to prove to her that he was the right man for her, not those random unnamed guys she kissed.


    She should have pushed him away, but her arms were frozen by her side, as though they instinctively wanted to reach out to hold him, but then her brain caught up and stopped her in time.


    Jingwei had no such hesitations, his arms slowly wrapped around her waist, his hands resting on the small of her back to subtly push her closer to him. She slid into his arms easily, as though she had always belonged there, and her hands ended up pressing against his chest muscles.


    Xue Ning flushed. Suddenly Jingwei was too close, and if she looked up, she could almost count his eyshes.


    "If you''re still uninterested in kissing me after this one kiss, I''ll concede defeat." Jingwei murmured in her ear. "Deal?"

 Chapter 99 A Kiss To Show What You’re Missing

    Her mouth ran dry and she had to swallow more than once as she stared at him. He continued to bring their bodies closely together, so much so that her breasts were pressing against his chest, but he didn''t make any additional moves.


    She had a feeling if she shoved him aside, he would have let her go. He would not have any hard feelings - he wouldn''t im she was leading him on and get angry. If he mentioned it again, he would instead make a joke about it, with no hard feelings.


    Xue Ning wouldn''t be called all sorts of names for refusing.


    Ironically, that''s what made her nod in agreement. Jingwei respected her opinions and her decisions. He wouldn''t hurt her.


    And objectively speaking, it was just one kiss. How good could he be at kissing? It wasn''t as though he had two tongues. She rationalised to herself. It wasn''t as though she was sleeping with him.


    "So is that a yes?" Jingwei asked with a pleased smile. "I want to hear you say it. I want you to say ''Jingwei, I want you to kiss me once so that I know you''re the best kisser''."


    This man was so shameless! Xue Ning''s face burned red, but she refused to cower. She had alreadye this far - she wasn''t going to lose now! She had to beat him at his own game.


    "Fine! Sun Jingwei, you shameless bastard, I want you to kiss me once, so that I can prove to - "


    Jingwei cut off the rest of her words with a swift kiss, pressing his lips to hers. Xue Ning blinked in surprise, nearly letting out a squeak. This was cheating! She wasn''t ready!


    But so far so good - it was just a kiss on her lips. She could handle that. Their lips touched, and she didn''t swoon or catch fire with desire.


    In fact, this was just proving that kissing wasn''t all that big of a deal. She wouldn''t die without his kisses.


    However, just as she let her guard down, Jingwei made his move.


    He clearly had a different idea of what constituted a kiss. His hands drifted from her waist to cradle her face, and he eagerly, gently, nibbled on her bottom lip as he continued to kiss her, with the same fervent adoration and desperation of their first kiss.


    Xue Ning''s eyelids fluttered as Jingwei began to kiss her in earnest, enveloping her in his embrace. How was Jingwei so good at this?


    This was technically only their second kiss, but Jingwei wanted to make it the best damned kiss Xue Ning would ever get in her life, not only because it would grant him further kisses, but because she deserved to know, to feel, what she did to him.


    How she drove him insane with want just by being herself.


    Thebination of his lips and teeth sent butterflies fluttering in Xue Ning''s stomach and she instinctively raised her arms to loop them around his shoulders, feeling strangely winded. Just as she parted her lips to take a quick breath, Jingwei, that sted opportunist, eagerly took the chance to push his greedy, eager tongue into her mouth, deepening the kiss even further.<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning''s whole body tingled as Jingwei imed her mouth, hungry and intense. She let out a desperate mewl at the new sensations, feeling strangely weak at the knees.


    Jingwei felt his entire body heat up at that mewl, simr to what happened when he ate that honey cookie. Now, he was tasting something much sweeter. He wanted to pull more desperate whines from Xue Ning''s lips, he wanted her ragged moans and overwhelmed cries.


    He wanted her to beg for more kisses from him.


    He wanted her to only think about him, and only him. No other man.


    Xue Ning felt Jingwei smirk against her lips as he redoubled his efforts. His hands buried themselves in her soft thick hair, gently tugging it as he continued to tease her with his kisses, taking note of all her reactions and what elicited them.


    His tongue left no space unexplored, and the taste of him soon silenced the more rational voice in Xue Ning''s head that was cautioning restraint, that wanted her to push him away before they both went too far. But by the time Xue Ning became aware of her limbs, her fingers had already tangled themselves in Jingwei''s hair and were desperately pulling him closer to her.


    Then Jingwei, with the reluctance of a beggar parting from hisst coin, released her. Their lips parted with a final exhale from him, but he didn''t move away. He continued to hold her, using this chance to breathe in her scent.


    Xue Ning stared at him with hazy eyes that blinked in confusion. She didn''t seem to understand why he stopped.


    Jingwei longed tomit this sight to memory. He licked his lips as he stared at her hungrily - Xue Ning''s face was flushed, her hair was a sexy mess, and her lips were swollen red, glistening with spit, after being kissed so thoroughly by him.


    Her eyes were still hazy with want. He gulped and widened his legs. His pants were feeling a little too tight, and if Xue Ning bothered to take her eyes off his lips and look down, she would see his lower half standing at attention.


    Jingwei never wanted so badly to continue kissing someone before, but he knew that he had to honour his word. He promised to give her only one kiss, and that was all she was getting.


    That was not all he wanted though.


    He should have bargained for at least 100 kisses. Maybe that would have been enough for him, for one day. Then he would want a thousand for the next, and ten times more than that the following day.


    "So¡­ how was it? Good?" Jingwei asked, even though he knew Xue Ning enjoyed the kiss as much as he did, if not more. Smug, possessive satisfaction settled in his gut as he watched her panting for breath.


    He did this to her, not anyone else.


    "Aren''t I better than all those other men?"

 Chapter 100 Awkward Aftermath

    "Aren''t I better than all those other men you mentioned?" Jingwei asked, his hands still wrapped around her waist, fingers idly stroking her back to help her calm down. If he put his hand on her chest, he was sure he would be able to feel the rapid beating of her heart.


    Xue Ning did look a bit overwhelmed by his kiss, and it was a huge boost to his ego.


    "It was¡­ fine," Xue Ning said, trying to sound calm and unaffected, but she was more breathless than expected, as though she did something more intense than just mere kissing.


    Her mind was still whirling at the kiss.


    She could only meet Jingwei''s eyes for a split second before looking away, feeling too embarrassed over what had urred earlier, and her own reactions to him.


    What was wrong with her? It was just a kiss! Why was her heart still beating so quickly?


    Maybe this time, she was the one undergoing an allergic reaction. That seemed like a more likely exnationpared to the one where she was so weak to Sun Jingwei''s kisses she caved like one of the multiple notches on his bedpost.


    She refused to be lumped in with the many other women he kissed! Best to pretend to be (mostly) unaffected, so that Jingwei wouldn''t get a big head and believe he was truly God''s gift to women.


    "Just fine?" Jingwei asked, smiling down at her indulgently. This was a golden opportunity for him to tease her - he couldn''t waste it! He wanted to see her face flush in embarrassment and possibly her lips curled into a subconscious pout.


    <o>,m Xue Ning was a terrible liar at the best of times, and now after she had been kissed within an inch of her life, she was even worse at hiding her true feelings.</o>


    Her eyes had darted away from his own, but they unknowingly focused on his lips. Jingwei purposely swiped his own lips with his tongue, just to see her reaction.


    Xue Ning''s cheek''s bloomed red as she spotted his tongue. The tongue that was just in her mouth less than a minute ago!


    Bingo. Jingwei smirked to himself; Xue Ning definitely thought the kiss was better than a mere ''just fine.'' Now, he just had to make her admit it.


    "My darling wife, it''s not good to lie," he chided mischievously.


    "Who said I was lying?" Xue Ning retorted instinctively, identally meeting his eyes again. "I guess you were alright. I mean. I''ve had better."


    "Oh?" Jingwei asked warningly, but his eyes glinted with amusement. He squared his shoulders and stepped forward, staring down at her with his full height. "Is that so?"


    "Of course!" Xue Ning insisted, and she took a step back.


    "Uh huh, then tell me more," Jingwei said, taking another step forward. Suddenly, he seemed less like the puppy-ish man Xue Ning thought she knew, and more like a hungry lion toying with his meal.


    "Tell you what." She muttered, taking another step back.


    "Let me know how I can improve, yes? Constructive feedback is always good to have," Jingwei said, his tone cheerful as he stepped towards her. Xue Ning choked as she registered his words.


    "Do you want a report card or something?" Xue Ningined, stepping back. She needed to buy enough time to think of a way to resolve this situation without revealing her lie or making Sun Jingwei''s head grow any bigger.


    (His real head anyway, the one below his waist was a lost cause. She refused to look at it, but her eyes drifted and it was certainly¡­ eye-catching.)


    She was now living with him, and he would be insufferable if he found out he could kiss his way out of any problems. Unfortunately, having him so close to her was wreaking havoc on her higher faculties. Most of her brain could only focus on wanting to pull him down for a second kiss, and that wasn''t going to solve problems.


    "If you''re going to give me one, I''ll wee it." He drawled out, once again stepping closer. "After all, I want to make my wife happy."


    Xue Ning took a step back, only for her back to hit the wall. Jingwei''s hand shot out immediately, she blinked as her head touched his warm palm instead of the wall.


    Oh. He had held out his hand behind her head to cushion it from bumping against the wall.


    Even when he was teasing her, he never stopped looking out for her.


    Now he sent butterflies fluttering through her stomach for an entirely different reason.


    "Careful Xue Ning," he murmured, "don''t want you to hit your head." He said as he stroked her hair adoringly.<sub> </sub>


    He was still looking at her with amusement. He hadn''t stopped staring at her since they kissed - every time Xue Ning took a quick nce at his face, she found his eyes already on her.


    Was she really that interesting to look at? It cannot be that she was such a spectacr kisser that Sun Jingwei wanted tomit her to memory. She had kissed one other person - and that kiss, as well as the aftermath, was such a horrible experience that she wanted to scrub it from her memory!


    As such, she had no actual kissing experience. When she recalled the kiss, she realised that it was mostly Jingwei taking the lead and doing most of the work. She was so inexperienced and he must have been able to tell, that''s why he''s teasing her now, asking about report cards and how to improve.


    God. That was embarrassing. She hid her face in her hands and tried not to scream too obviously.


    "Xue Ning? Are you feeling alright?" Jingwei asked, less teasing and now with more concern.


    "I''m fine," Xue Ning muttered into her hands. "Stop making fun of me, you insufferable man!"


    "How am I making fun of you?" Jingwei asked in confusion.


    "I know I''m bad at it! You don''t have to rub it in!" She eximed, shoving him aside to curl up on the sofa. If only she could sink into the soft cushions and never emerge. That would be great.


    "When did I say you were bad at it?" Jingwei protested, following her to the sofa so he could curl up with her. His boner was still at attention, which made walking a bit awkward, but Xue Ning seemed to be panicking for some reason.


    What kind of husband would he be if he left her worried or anxious? He had never seen her like this - so far she was always calm and self-assured, confident in her own abilities. How could a kiss do this?


    "I don''t have any constructive feedback for you! I''m not making report cards for your fucking kisses!" Xue Ning blurted out, her face red with embarrassment.


    "That''s alright, I already knew from your body''s reactions that you loved having my lips on yours," Jingwei pointed out. "I''ve already gotten all the feedback I need."


    Xue Ning let out a dismayed whine.


    "Sure! Your kissing is great! Which makes it worse that I was so bad at it!"


    She then screamed into one of the cushions, wondering if it were possible for one to suffocate themselves with them. This was why she never bothered with acts of intimacy! The secondhand embarrassment she felt for herself after it was over was going to kill her.


    She should have just stuck to punching people. That was something she could do in her sleep.


    "Huh? Are you joking?" Now Jingwei was staring at her as though she was speaking Greek. "But you''re not bad at it. At all. Besides, didn''t you say you had lots of experience? Kissing lots of men?"


    His tone coloured with jealousy when he thought about it, then he felt upset on her behalf. Did all those men tell Xue Ning she was a bad kisser? Was that why she was so unconfident? When he finds out who they were, he''s going to have them run over by a car!


    There was a mumble behind the cushion.


    "Eh? Xue Ning, I can''t hear you from behind it." Jingwei said, easily snatching it away to reveal her red face.


    It was adorable and he wanted to kiss her again.


    "I said: I lied. There was no ''lots of experience'' with ''lots of men''," she muttered bitterly, her head hanging low. "There was only one man, and¡­it was not good."


    "Oh," was Jingwei''s highly intelligent response. "So I only need to run over one man?" Good. Then he only needed to use one car.


    "What?" Xue Ning looked up. "No? There''s no need to run him over. Stop being possessive over my first kisses, idiot. You didn''t even know me then."


    "I beg to differ, my darling wife," Jingwei said, "and I wasn''t being possessive over your first kisses."


    Xue Ning gave him a disbelieving look.


    "Well, not exactly," he corrected hastily. He still wanted to wipe the floor with the mystery guy, but he had more reasons.


    "I was more upset over the fact someone got to kiss you and did such a bad job at it, that you thought that it was your fault!"

 Chapter 101 More Practice?

    "I was more upset over the fact someone got to kiss you and did such a bad job at it, that you thought that it was your fault!"


    Jingwei dered fervently.


    Xue Ning''s mouth fell open as she stared at him. How did his mind reach this conclusion?


    "You shouldn''t be upset at yourself - you should be angry at him!" Jingwei said, eyes lighting up with an idea. "In fact, give me his name now, I''ll search him up on Weibo and leave anonymous hatements on his profile page."


    "You know that cyberbullying is wrong," she said through an exasperatedugh. Sun Jingwei was a thoroughly ridiculous man, threatening to leave her old crush hatements over one bad kiss when he was still hard from their kiss.


    She flushed when her eyes inadvertently drifted to his package. How was he still¡­ she wanted to ask, but at the same time, she was afraid of the answer.


    After all, her not-ex never had this reaction when she kissed him. The look that crossed his face was something more of a cross between shock and disgust.


    "What''s with that sad look on your face?" Jingwei asked, immediatelying over to flick her forehead. Meanwhile, Xue Ning watched his boner. How was it still up?


    "If it''s because of that terrible first kisser, don''t worry. I''ll make sure he never steps foot in this city again." He promised.


    "That''s overkill." She pointed out, half-amused at the thought of Junhui getting turned away at check-points, or getting escorted off the ne. "Do you think you''re a king exiling people?"


    If this was Jingwei''s revenge for one bad kiss from Xue Ning''s not-ex, Xue Ning wasn''t going to tell him about the rest of it. He might just have Junhui assassinated.


    Looking back on her school days, Junhui wasn''t an all-that-great first crush, as far as first crushes went. What''s more, he definitely had terrible taste, for he willingly dated and eventually married one of the most beautiful, yet bitchiest bullies Xue Ning ever met, but that didn''t mean she wanted him dead.


    After all, he married Zhang Shunxi willingly. In her mind, that was a fate worse than death!


    "What are they going to do? Arrest me for it? I''d like to see them try!" Jingweiughed. The very idea was incredulous to him. He reached for his phone. "So what''s his name?"


    She scoffed, but she couldn''t stop the corners of her lips from rising. Her mood was strangely improving thanks to Jingwei. "I''m not telling you. And can you take care of your problem?" She gestured to his boner. "It''s very distracting."


    "Oh? Is it? I hadn''t noticed" Jingwei said, in the tone of someone who knew precisely how distracting it was. Despite her best efforts, Xue Ning hadn''t managed to keep her eyes off it for more than a few seconds since their conversation.


    "But you know, taking care of this should be your responsibility." Jingwei pointed out cheerfully with a mischievous smile. His face was handsome with joy, but his words made her want to scream.


    "After all, it was your kiss that did this!"


    She flung the seat cushion at his face. He caught it andughed.


    "Don''t me me for your horniness - there''s no way my kissing was that good to make you hard." Xue Ning said, rolling her eyes, willing herself not to blush at his words. "I never kissed anyone for real before you."<sub> </sub>


    It was probably morally wrong for Jingwei to be so pleased when he heard that Xue Ning never actually had a real kiss before him. But that was fine, he was never going to be a candidate for sainthood anyway with his hedonistic past.


    So he relished in the thought of being her first real kiss.


    "Good," he replied smugly, leaning over her, already angling for a second kiss. "As my wife, you''re only allowed to kiss me from now on."


    No one else better be kissing her. He wanted all her kisses, past, present and future.


    "And what if I don''t listen?" Xue Ning asked, just to annoy him. "After all, our marriage is fake -"


    Jingwei suddenly pulled her legs, causing her to squeak.


    Xue Ning startled as she was forced to lie down on the sofa. It was exactly how he wanted her, her beautiful face staring up at him in confusion as he settled between her thighs.


    The smile he gave her as he gazed down was predatory with intent. Desire lit up her nerves, and heat pooled in her gut. The juncture between her legs was beginning to tingle.


    "What are you nning, you pervert?" Xue Ning asked breathlessly. She had a pretty good idea from the way he was eyeing her though. She should have pushed him away, but arger part of her wanted to see where this train would lead to.


    "Seeing that you believe that you''re bad at kissing, there''s only one thing I can suggest." Jingwei said with mock concern.


    "Oh?"


    "More practice," Jingwei smirked. "What do you say?"


    Xue Ning thought it over. She had one kiss with him, and it was overwhelming. But if she got kissed more often by him, she would get used to it and he wouldn''t be able to tease her for being flustered anymore!


    "You make some valid points, so I''ll agree -"


    Jingwei, once again, having gotten permission, leaned down and cut off her words with another searing kiss. Now with the change in positions, Xue Ning realised it was even better because she didn''t have to worry about her knees weakening halfway, causing her to fall.


    Instead, Jingwei continued to kiss her as she enjoyed the feel of his body over hers, until her toes curled in satisfaction. She let out a strangled moan as his lips began to trail down her neck, leaving wet kisses with the slightest scrape of his teeth.


    "Good?" Jingwei murmured as he stared down at her, eyes dark with want. She nodded and pulled him down to continue, her hands tugging at his hair.


    Just as they were going to continue making out like horny teenagers, the shrill ringing of his mobile phone interrupted them!

 Chapter 102 Consequences

    "Aren''t you going to pick it up?" Xue Ning asked, panting slightly. "It could be important."


    "Nonsense," Jingwei eximed, looking at Xue Ning''s flushed cheeks and fluttering eyshes. Her chest heaved as she took deep breaths, trying to calm herself down.


    It was such an enticing sight that he couldn''t help but give her another kiss. "It cannot be as important as you."


    Whoever called him disagreed with his words. Just when his phone stopped ringing and Jingwei thought he could go back to focusing on Xue Ning, it started up again.


    Xue Ning red at him and gestured to his phone. Clearly she disagreed too. He still found it enticing, but the fist she held out did not bode well for his physical well-being. He reluctantly sat back up and picked up his phone.


    It was his father.


    That immediately killed the mood and his boner.


    "Hi Father, what''s up?" Jingwei asked casually, trying to sound like he wasposed and not frantically making out with his bodyguard just mere seconds ago.


    "You idiotic son!" His father yelled. "Look at what trouble you caused!" His voice was loud enough that Xue Ning could hear him even without using the speaker function. Jingwei then put his phone on speaker, so Xue Ning could also enjoy the dulcet sounds of his father screaming into his ear. Marriage is all about sharing ups and downs.


    (More importantly, he had a feeling Xue Ning needed to hear this, because there was trouble on the horizon that could implicate her.


    Xue Ning also got the hint, she sat up and began paying more attention.)


    "Huh?" Jingwei racked his head. He didn''t think he caused any trouble recently - sure there were the fanatics at Xue Ning''s ce, but that was handled already by Shengli and his long-suffering interns.


    Then he paused. Did one of her neighbours post any scandalous photos? Was Xue Ning implicated?


    "Father, you need to specify what trouble you''re referring to!" Jingwei replied, half-panicked. "I don''t think I did anything wrong?"


    "Just watch that video of you tearing up the roads! You still dare to tell me you didn''t do anything wrong?"


    "I did what?" Jingwei asked, confused.


    "Just go and take a look!" His father barked at him in anger and disappointment. Xue Ning slowly crept to where her own phone was and searched online. "Think about how you''re going to fix this!"


    To her trepidation, the number one thing on the hot search when she typed in Sun Jingwei''s name was Sun Jingwei reckless driving.


    She made her way back to the couch and clicked on that post. Jingwei peered over her shoulder to take a look.


    The video was an overhead view of the roads, and there wasn''t anything special, until she saw Jingwei''s blindingly red Ferrari cut through thenes like a hot knife through butter.


    Oh god. This video was from back when they were still making their way to dinner at the Crystal Pce Garden and they realised they''ve been followed!


    Of course, the crowd ofizensmsting his reckless driving in thements did not realise this. Even if they were observant enough to spot a ck car trying to trace his actions, they wouldn''t realise that it was because it aimed to hurt him.


    It wouldn''t fit the narrative they build up in their head, that Sun Jingwei was a wastrel with hedonistic hobbies.


    She had a simr narrative back then, and felt slightly guilty for it now.


    +8294897 Must be nice to have a rich dad to wipe his ass every time he does something wrong¡­ watch this video be taken down in 5 mins guys<sub> </sub>


    +356266 Don''t worry brothers! I saved this video, I''ll never let this die! Curse rich kids!


    +43215 Doing the Lord''s work right here!


    +763231 Can''t believe he''s trying to be an F1 driver on such a crowded road! Does he have no sense?


    + 34256 Hey at least we now have an F1 driver¡­


    + 32553 We''ve been losing all these years! Lets just use Sun Jingwei in future!


    + 2512 Good n, and if he crashes and dies, it''s no real loss!


    +194 Vicious, I approve


    +43 You guys will get bad karma for this


    +3561 Shut up fangirls, Sun Jingwei isn''t going to fuck you - he''s married!


    +752124 Crazy of him to race now! Even if he doesn''t want to live, other people do!


    + 82560 He''s a selfish bastard! This isn''t the first time he broke thew.


    + 3425 Speak for yourself. I''m not too hung up on living.


    + 214 Bro get some help


    Ouch. The topments certainly didn''t pull any punches. Xue Ning hurriedly shielded her phone screen so Jingwei couldn''t read thements.


    He didn''t need to read them; there was no point in willingly offering to get lynched alive by the inte mob. Thosementers behind the screens wouldn''t care.


    "See it now, my idiot son? Read what the people are saying about you!" Sun Haowei barked from the other end, clearly disagreeing with Xue Ning''s thoughts.


    Both of them jumped, nearly forgetting he was on the other end of the line. "Ourpany''s reputation is back in the gutter. Thepany''s stocks are falling because of you!"


    That was his concern? Xue Ning raised an eyebrow, incredulous. His son was getting dragged over hot coals on the Inte, getting called all sorts of names and death threats, and his father was more worried about hispany''s reputation and stocks.


    Jingwei took one look at the screen, sighed and gave Xue Ning aforting look.


    "Father, why are you so worried? This isn''t the first time something like this happened." Jingwei pointed out. "I can deny that''s me in the vehicle. Just get the traffic police to cover it up or something. We havewyers and money."


    Next to him, Xue Ning rolled her eyes at his sheer gall. Hurrah for corruption. Reasons why she would never marry him for real.


    "That''s not possible this time around," his father said gravely. "You have brazenly flouted the agreement your brother and I had with them to keep your racing habits a secret. They''re putting out their own fires now! They''re not going to have the time to clean up your mess!"


    "This time, you''ll handle this yourself!"

 Chapter 103 A Disaster?

    "This time, you''ll handle this yourself!" Sun Haowei dered with grim finality.


    "Father, what do you mean?" Jingwei asked hurriedly, but the only response he got was the unsympathetic beeping of the dial tone.


    They sat in surprised silence. Jingwei never had his father hang up on him before, usually he would scream at him until his heart''s content and then propose a solution. If he hung up, he must have really decided to leave him to his own devices.


    "How do you even solve this?" Jingwei muttered to himself, frowning.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning turned over Sun Haowei''s words in her mind. The traffic police were putting out their own fires? How curious. Wouldn''t any request from the Sun family trump any of their own internal department squabbles, unless the Sun family wasn''t putting out any request to begin with¡­?


    "Let''s find out more." Xue Ning said. She needed more information to make the next move.


    p She turned to her phone and decided to search for news. If it was as big as Sun Haowei imed, there wasn''t any way it would be hidden.</anda>


    True enough, simply typing ''traffic police'' was enough to link her to an entire page of news reports.


    She clicked on the first one and let out a low whistle at the headline, giving Jingwei a quick nce from the corner of her eye. He seemed frozen in surprise.


    <strong>CORRUPTED TRAFFIC POLICE CONDONES ILLEGAL STREET RACING</strong>


    Guess there was some truth to his rumours of illegal night races after all.


    <strong>Traffic Police Superintendent Liu Shixing is under fire for colluding with the youngest son of multi-billionaire Sun Haowei, Sun Jingwei, in the organising and participation of night racing on the streets of Shanghai. </strong>


    Jingwei and his father were both named in the article. No wonder he was furious.


    There was a video underneath that headline. The thumbnail was of a man with his back bowed in apology as camera shes brighten the background.


    She clicked on the video and Jingwei looped an arm around her shoulder and huddled closer to watch.


    The man in uniform started speaking as camera shes nearly blinded him.


    "I''m deeply sorry for my decisions. My decisions have damaged the prestige of the police department and shamed my colleagues'' efforts in keeping the roads safe for everyone. I will resign immediately.


    Once again, I''m very sorry."


    Reporters began to yell out questions, but then he exited the stage without answering them.


    Xue Ning then read thements, curious about public opinion.


    +34256 What a bastard! He and the entire department should go hang their heads!


    +4626 At least he admitted to his faults! Where is Sun Jingwei in all of this!


    +3256 He should at least have his licence suspended, if not jailed!


    +6233 If you think about it, what could the police do if the Sun family wanted to race?<sub> </sub>


    They have no power!


    Well. They weren''t wrong. Xue Ning clicked on yet another link, and her eyes widened. This was an entire dossier of Sun Jingwei''s races, the people he raced with, where he raced, and how the police looked the other way. It was a stunning piece of investigative journalism!


    "Are you going to end up in prison?" Xue Ning had to ask, briefly ncing through all the information.


    "Of course not!" Jingwei denied, scoffing. "I''ll just have my reputation dragged through the mud again. Maybe receive some good old death threats. This isn''t even as bad as my sex scandal video¡­ but I''m sorry for dragging you into it."


    Jingwei said, shamefully looking at Xue Ning. With the breaking of this news, there was no way Xue Ning would even think about pursuing a romantic rtionship with him.


    Even if she did (and that was a very big ''if''), her parents would immediately voice their disapproval - and who could me them? Who would want their only daughter dating a notorious man that made the headlines for scandals with depressing regrity?


    "It''s fine," Xue Ning shrugged. Truthfully, it may not be, but honestly, Jingwei made his bed, so of course he had to lie in it.


    Even if it meant she would miss him as a friend. And perhaps something more.


    "So, how are you going to take responsibility for your actions?" Xue Ning asked. "Are you going to hold a press conference? Domunity service?"


    "Would you like me to?" Jingwei asked curiously. "Do you think it''ll help?"


    "Maybe?" She shrugged. "It''ll be good to show people that you feel sorry and you want to be a better person. But then again, they might end up hating you more. So it''s up to you."


    Jingwei thought about it. He honestly didn''t care too much about what other people thought about him, but Xue Ning¡­ he had to be a better person if he even wanted to have something more than a one night stand with her.


    Knowing her, she wouldn''t ept a man that was cowardly and hid behind his family''s money and influence. She already hated corruption.


    It was time that he stepped up and took responsibility.


    "I''ll do it." Jingwei dered, letting out a deep breath. He had no idea if it would backfire on him or not, but it was worth a try. "I''ll hold a press conference to rify things."


    =


    A trillingugh greeted Zi Long as he checked in with his boss, once again bowing deeply.


    "Rise Zi Long. Why do you keep standing on ceremony with me?" Young Master Wu stalked closer to him, pulling him up.


    Zi Long noted that his hands didn''t shake. His boss took his medication then. Small mercies.


    "Boss? You seem¡­ happy." He noted cautiously, for Young Master Wu''s moods were as mercurial as the weather. One never really knew how he would react the very next second, but for now, it was easy for Zi Long to read fervent joy in the carefree smile of Young Master Wu''s face.


    He had not seen it in years. He was almost surprised at how much it transformed his face, back to the handsome youth he used to be.


    "How could I not be? Our n is finally executed." He cackled to himself, and Zi Long''s arms erupted in goosebumps.


    "Now, Zi Long, prepare for phase 2." Young Master Wu ordered, light in his eyes. "Sun Jingwei may have survived the honey cookies, but let''s see if he can survive what I''ve nned for him!"

 Chapter 104 You Have Terrible Ideas

    "You''ve decided to do what?!" Sun Tianwei yelled into his phone, a hand messing up his perfectly coiffed hair.


    Beside him, Lian Xingzi shot him a look of abject disdain with the slightest hint of curiosity. What could make Sun Tianwei lose his famedposure to yell in a public ce?


    Next to her, Officer Tang could only give an apologetic look at Lao Peng the noodle vendor, who was giving them dirty looks for disturbing his customers. They were already wary enough knowing that Officer Tang was here for police business and not for a social visit.


    Whatever Sun Jingwei said, it must have been incredulous enough to attract all of Tianwei''s attention that he didn''t care about keeping aposed front in public!


    "Please tell me you did not say what I thought you just did." Sun Tianwei continued, aggravated. "Have you lost allmon sense?"


    "No Ge, I think it''s a good idea. I want to hold a press conference to clear things up. I''ll also do somemunity service to make up for this scandal," Jingwei repeated earnestly from the other end, but to Tianwei, it all sounded like utter garbage.


    His brother might as well have told him that he wanted to streak naked in broad daylight, and it would still make more sense. Bowing to public criticism wasn''t how their family did things.


    "Ya! Are you listening to yourself? Press conferences andmunity service? You are Sun Haowei''s youngest son and my younger brother, you don''t need to do any of this! We''re not admitting guilt! Did you hit your head against the wall?" Sun Tianwei yelled in return.


    Lian Xingzi rolled her eyes. His sense of entitlement certainly hadn''t changed. Because she wasn''t a teenager anymore, she restrained the urge to smack the back of his head and instead she mouthed a ''shut up'' at him.


    He red at her, but then also realised he was in public and quieted down.


    "But I''ll need to rify this matter," Jingwei insisted. "Father said I had to handle this myself, so this is what I''m nning to do. Can you help?"


    ? "Can I? Yes. Will I? No, because this is a ridiculous idea. Father''s just saying this because he''s angry - and he''ll be even more upset if you do this." Tianwei seethed through gritted teeth. These ideas were uncharacteristic of his brother, who didn''t care about the opinions of people.


    Someone must have put ideas into his head. Someone like¡­


    "Don''t tell me you''re doing this because Miss Li told you too," Tianwei despaired. Jingwei spluttered, and Tianwei knew he hit the nail on the head.


    "I know you are in love with her, but that doesn''t mean you should blindly agree to her suggestions." Tianwei continued. "She has no idea about the best way to deal with this situation, and is only replying from amoner''s point of view."


    Miss Li? Sun Jingwei was in love with someone new? Lian Xingzi raised a curious eyebrow, then she frowned at Tianwei calling her amoner.


    "Ge!" Jingwei protested. "What do you suggest then? That I hide away again and never step into a car for the rest of my life? I can''t live like that. I need to take responsibility for my actions."


    "Don''t be delusional," Tianwei barked out. "This is going to backfire horribly on all of us."


    "We don''t know that!" Jingwei said.


    "I can make an educated guess," Tianwei hissing quietly into the phone to make sure no one overhears. "No matter what, do not take any action or make any statement. I''m now still investigating the murder of the woman that tried to kill you, so kindly refrain from causing any trouble. Just stay at home with Miss Li quietly!"<sub> </sub>


    "Ge, but -"


    "Goodbye." Tianwei said curtly, cutting off the call. He didn''t want to hear anymore - he already had enough on his te.


    "Harsh," Lian Xingzimented. "Are you sure you should be here and not back with your brother, cleaning up his mess?"


    "And leave you to interrogate the vendors, possibly obscuring evidence? Definitely not." Sun Tianwei replied, hackles raised. He knew that this woman wanted him gone just when they were about to interview the vendors.


    The food they had eaten had already been sent to thebs for analysis. He knew Xingzi was hoping that they wereced with some sort of sleeping drug, so that the two men on duty would have an irond defence.


    Sun Tianwei personally thought it was bullshit. It was more likely that they fell asleep after ingesting too much carbohydrates, hence he, Xingzi and Officer Tang were all at the noodle store.


    "Lao Peng, we just need to ask you a few questions," Officer Tang began, with a warning look at his twopanions.


    He would have preferred to conduct the interviews with Lin Rui, but instead he was saddled with two squabbling adults that hated each other on a professional and personal front.


    That was already troublesome enough, but just as they were leaving the precinct to visit the stall, they received the news that the Traffic Police Superintendent, Liu Shixing, resigned!


    That was a bomb that sent shockwaves throughout the police station, for no one expected that old fox would actually voluntarily resign. Then, an article came out about his crimes, about how he covered and helped Sun Jingwei and other wealthy heirs organise street races at night, and Officer Tang suddenly understood.


    Sun Jingwei was in trouble due to the leak, and the Sun family probably decided to cut off the tail of the lizard. Liu Shixing and Sun Jingwei could then share the burden of public outrage, instead of leaving Sun Jingwei to endure it all.


    If he had more time, he would wonder about the capabilities of the person that managed to dig out all the dirt between Sun Jingwei and the traffic police. Surely they had a man on the inside - there was no way anyone could have gotten their hands on so much confidential information otherwise. Even if they were a hacker, there were still limits!


    There was no way the Sun family would want the news released to the public, which meant whoever did it clearly had a bone to pick with the Sun family.


    But that wasn''t Officer Tang''s business. He had to focus on his own case, on poor Lao Peng who was sweating in the afternoon sun, staring at him with eyes that looked vaguely pissed off.


    "What do you want?"


    "We need to know if you sent out an order for the police station yesterday night from 10 to 11pm."


    Lao Peng crossed his arms.


    "Officer, are you joking? My store was closed yesterday night!"

 Chapter 105 Lao Peng’s Noodle Store

    All three of them shot each other various degrees of confused nces.


    "We literally have your food at the station¡­" Officer Tang paused as he realised something. "Lao Peng, all your takeaway meals use this container right?" He pointed to the stack of round containers with his stall logo on them.


    "Of course!" He puffed up his chest. "This is good for publicity! I want everyone to know where the best noodles in this part of towne from."


    The containers that had the food ingested by Lin Tao and Jianzhi were generic rectangle tupperwares, and had no stall logos.


    "Do you ever use different containers for delivery orders?" Officer Tang asked.


    "No, unless we ran out of such containers." Lao Peng shrugged, "then there''s no choice, of course I would use the generic ones. You know, the in rectangr ones."


    "I see," Officer Tang said, frowning. It was highly likely that Lin Tao and Jianzhi were tired enough that they didn''t realise the containers were different, or they simply assumed that Lao Peng ran out of his customary tupperware.


    They didn''t know that Lao Peng''s store wasn''t even open.


    "Lao Peng, isn''t your store normally open till 11pm? Why did it suddenly close early?" Officer Tang asked.


    "I wasn''t feeling too well," Lao Peng said quickly. "My nose was sniffling a lot, so I thought I might as well just close up early to get more rest. I can''t cook food when I''m sick, so I left my stall after 8pm, and my part-timers helped me to close the stall."


    "Can we talk to your part-timers?"


    "Sure, they''ll being in soon. Their shift is fromte afternoon to night." Lao Peng said. "Officer, is there some problem? Did someone get diarrhoea after eating my food?"


    If only it was something as minor as that.


    "Not exactly. Do you have an alibi for yesterday night?"


    "My wife was at home with me. But why do I need an alibi? Oh my god, did someone die?" He asked, panicked.


    "Yes, someone did." Sun Tianwei said, because he wanted answers, and terrorising people often managed to deliver those. "If you don''t cooperate with our investigation, I''ll make sure you''re charged too."


    Lao Peng''s mouth dropped open in horror. Lian Xingzi and Officer Tang both gave him equally exasperated looks. Sun Tianwei would have made the world''s worst police officer.


    "Stop scaring civilians," Xingzi scolded, and then she turned to smile sweetly at Lao Peng, who was sweating buckets at the thought of going to prison. "Can you give us the contact details of your part-timers? We need to contact them for more details."


    "Sure!" Lao Peng eagerly handed them the contact details of the two part-timers that were supposed to be on duty.


    Tianwei gave a satisfied smirk at the results, while Xingzi shot him a look of disgust. Officer Tang ignored them both in favour of doing more important things, like contacting their suspects.


    Both numbers led straight to voicemail. He frowned.


    "Lao Peng, give me a call when your part-timers arrive. They aren''t picking up."


    "Really? They are usually on their phones all the time," Lao Peng mentioned. "I usually have to remind them to pay more attention to the noodles or the customers."


    "And you still hired them?" Tianwei interrupted. "How¡­ understanding of you."


    "They''re just fresh out of high school and needed the money." Lao Peng said, shrugging. "And they were willing to work for half-pay and take night shifts, so of course I agreed!"<sub> </sub>


    Officer Tang narrowed his eyes at the news. Young adults willingly taking a pay cut in this economy and taking night shifts withoutint orpensation? Suspicious.


    "How long have they been working here for?" He asked.


    "Just a few months ago!"


    The timeline checked out then. Students graduated in June, and it was already August. They could be legitimate students looking for jobs, but he''ll still need to interview them to confirm it.


    "Can your hires cook? Even without you supervising?"


    "...Yes, I taught them how to. Why?" Lao Peng asked.


    "Nothing," Officer Tang said, sighing as a hypothesis formed in his mind. "Nothing at all."


    =


    After they''ve gotten what they came for, the three of them exited Lao Peng''s noodle store.


    "There''s a high chance my clients are innocent," Lian Xingzi said, with no small amounts of smugness radiating from her. Sun Tianwei hated it.


    "You''ve heard him, the stall was manned by two students fresh out of high school, and the containers used for the food weren''t even the usual ones. The entire thing just smells of sabotage."


    "...So instead of suspecting police officers that admitted to sleeping on the job, you choose to believe in the guilt of two students?" Tianwei scoffed. "So much for defending the weak and helpless individuals of society."


    "Don''t put words in my mouth! I defend my clients first and foremost! If the students are guilty, then they should suffer the consequences of their actions" Xingzi argued.


    The both of them were close enough to kill each other. Officer Tang had half a mind to order them to hold hands and get along, but they''ll probably just rip off each other''s fingers instead.


    "I''ll be going back to the station first while waiting for news." Officer Tang said. "I''d advise the both of you to settle your own issues first." He turned and gave Tianwei a knowing look.


    "Go and help your brother first. Without you, things might get worse."


    "Yeah Tianwei, be a kind soul for once and help your brother," Xingzi added. "I''ve not seen Jingwei for so long; has he finally grown taller than you?"


    "No," Tianwei said through gritted teeth. They were of the same height. "And don''t tell me what to do."


    Thest time Xingzi saw Jingwei must have been in Jingwei''s third year of high school, when he invited her over to his home. Jingwei was also very taken with her, and tried to hit on her with his usual boyish charm.


    It made his stomach churn with jealousy when he saw herugh at his antics then.


    Strangely enough, he still had the same reaction when he thought about it now.


    "If you''re not going to help him then maybe I will," she said determinedly. "After all, I''m sure he''ll need the expertise of awyer to get him out of this mess."


    "Over my dead body!"

 Chapter 106 Conviction

    Back at his apartment, Jingwei could only stare nkly at his phone for the second time today. His brother just told him in no uncertain terms to keep his head down and ignore the mess that was happening.


    While that was his original n to begin with, the thought of rifying the usations levied towards him and taking some form of responsibility remained an incredibly attractive thought.


    "I''m guessing your brother said no," Xue Ning guessed, after seeing the crestfallen look on his face.


    "You''re right," Jingwei said, leaning against the sofa as he looked at her curious face. "He told me in no uncertain terms that I wasn''t allowed to hold press conferences, and if I did hold one - he wasn''t going to help me at all."


    "That sucks," was Xue Ning''s sympathetic reply. "Guess we should just wait it out then."


    Before Jingwei could reply, his phone began ringing again.


    "Hello Lao Wen, is something the matter?" Jingwei asked warily. His security guard usually did not call him unless there was an emergency.


    "Mr Sun, I''m sorry to bother you - but there''s a crowd of reporters threatening to enter the apartmentplex. So far, I''ve closed the gates, but that also means any residents who wish to enter and exit are also unable to do so." Lao Wen''s voice took on a vaguely pleading tone.


    "Can you do something about it? Residents are unhappy, and the reporters don''t look like they are leaving anytime soon."


    "I see, don''t worry Lao Wen, I''ll handle it," Jingwei said with confidence he did not feel. He then hung up and went to his windows, and true enough, there was a crowd of reporters that were camping outside the entrance of the residential building, their huge DSLR cameras peeping through the iron gates of the estate.


    If one looked carefully, some individuals were holding hand-held mics, clearly hoping to get a scoop.


    Behind them, there was a string of cars waiting to enter the estate. He could just imagine the angry honks of his fellow neighbours as they tried to stop themselves from running over all the reporters.


    Xue Ning followed him to the window and she took a double-take at the size of the crowd waiting outside. It was almost like Sun Jingwei was a singer holding a concert, and these were his fans mouring for a glimpse of their idol!


    "Wow, has this happened before?" Xue Ning asked.


    "Nope, not since I moved here." Jingwei said, a little shamefacedly.


    "So this is the first time your neighbours ever had to deal with this sort of mess." Xue Ning guessed urately. "I know you were nning on letting it blow over, but even if you can''t hold a press conference, you should do something about that crowd waiting there."


    Xue Ning could see parents grabbing their young children by the hand to lead them away from their own home, shielding them from the bright camera shes. There was no way to open the gate without letting the locusts in, so they were stuck outside, forced to linger by the gate with them or leave in the hopes that they could returnter!


    These reporters were behaving more like unruly paparazzi, taking pictures of anyone that approached the building instead of focusing on Jingwei.


    Somehow, they reminded her of flesh-eating zombies, with the fixation on one person''s flesh in particr. She took a quick nce at Jingwei, who was gripping his window grills tight enough that his knuckles went white, staring down at the crowd of reporters with unconcealed hatred.<sub> </sub>


    She blinked.


    "I''ll call Shengli and his team to settle it," Jingwei promised, his heart aching at the way his own tenants, his neighbours, were turned away from their residences due to his actions, hating the way these vultures were making life difficult for innocent people.


    It was one thing to target him - because he had, with his actions, made himself newsworthy, but why were they harassing young families?


    In the past, he could afford to keep his head buried in the sand because he was living at his family''s mansion, and no paparazzi would dare to make the dangerous trek to the inner grounds to sneak a scoop, so he was rtively insted from their irritating behaviour.


    But this time, they were camped right outside his doorstep, with only one iron gate keeping them away!


    He turned away from the window resolutely, a muscle twitching in his jaw as he dialled Shengli''s number.


    "Shengli, I need your help." Jingwei said curtly, with none of his customary cheerfulness that he usually greeted Shengli with. On the other end, Shengli frowned. Clearly things were dire.


    "Judging by the tone of your voice, this has nothing to do with Miss Li''s employment contract," he said.


    "You''re right. There''s a horde of brainless reporters camped outside my apartment, and they are inconveniencing my tenants. I need them gone."


    "I can threaten to sue them for trespassing private property, but you and I both know that that''s only a temporary solution," Shengli replied. "You need to give them a reason to leave you alone. If not they''ll just be camping there for the slightest hint of news."


    "I''m thinking of holding a press conference," Jingwei confessed. Shengli paused, as though he couldn''t believe his ears. "Shengli, are you still there?"


    "Yes, I just can''t believe that you''re willing to hold one. Since when have you bothered to take responsibility? Since I''ve known you, you''ve always been more of a coward when it came to things like this," Shengli replied frankly. Jingwei winced, because he was right.


    There was a reason why the both of them were strangely friends despite being employer and employee; Shengli never shied away from letting Jingwei know how ridiculous he found him sometimes, and Jingwei needed people like that.


    He stared at Xue Ning''s back as she looked down at the crowd. Brilliant, honest Xue Ning who never failed to call him out on his behaviour while still protecting him from injustice, who believed he could be more than what the world thought of him.


    Jingwei steeled his spine; he didn''t want to be a coward hiding behind his family any longer.


    "You''re right, but it''s time I changed," Jingwei dered quietly. "My brother said he wasn''t going to help me if I held one, but I believe that''s still the right course of action."


    "Huh, guess you''re finally growing up," Shengli said, with a faint hint of pride.


    "In that case, I''ll be happy to help you".

 Chapter 107 A Tiny Neighbour

    Just as Jingwei was about to feel optimistic about his circumstances, Shengli continued.


    "Of course, you know there''s a chance that it''ll backfire terribly and you might have to live in a bunker for the rest of your days right?"


    "Yes, but at least my neighbours won''t have to deal with the press trying to blind them with camera shes," he retorted.


    "So magnanimous," Shengli said, only half-sarcastically this time around. "In that case, I''ll disperse the reporters first, and our PR team will make an announcement about the press conference date. Do we have our story straightened out yet?"


    "...No," Jingwei replied. "I just decided on this today."


    Shengli sighed. That sounded more like the Jingwei he was familiar with. Impetuous. "Fine, then you contact our PR department and keep me in the loop while I get rid of the press. Hopefully we''ll get everything resolved in two days."


    While they waited for Shengli to get back to them, Jingwei and Xue Ning watched the crowd cautiously. It looked like it was growing with no way of stopping.


    "I''m going downstairs to get them to leave." Jingwei decided.


    Xue Ning stared at him as though he had grown a second head. "Are you crazy?"


    "I have to do something! Just look at them!" He gave a frustrated sigh. "They''re multiplying! My neighbours still can''t enter their houses!"


    Before Xue Ning could argue, a knock on the door distracted both of them.


    "Are you expecting anyone?" Xue Ning asked suspiciously.


    "No one other than Shengli, but he hasn''t arrived yet." Jingwei said.


    The knocking continued.


    "Might as well answer it," Xue Ning said, "but you''re to get behind me."


    Jingwei nodded, but he had no intention of following Xue Ning''s instructions. It was unlikely that a resident would hurt him right outside his home, but if there was a chance, he wasn''t going to let Xue Ning get hurt shielding him.


    Xue Ning opened the door, with Jingwei looming behind her like an overprotective watchdog in case there was any threat.


    "Excuse me? Mr Sun? Is there any way for you to get those people downstairs to go away?" A hesitant voice asked. Xue Ning stared, there was no one in front of her.


    Then she looked down, and found the owner of the voice. It belonged to a young girl.


    ? Xue Ning blinked in confusion. This wasn''t what she had expected.


    "Oh hello," Jingwei said bemusedly. "May I know what your name is?"


    "Hi Mr Sun, I''m Bai Yue," the girl said with a polite bow.<sub> </sub>


    "Nice to meet you, Bai Yue," Xue Ning said, smiling. She knelt down to meet her at her height, the way she did to her kids in her martial arts ss.


    "Nice to meet you," the girl echoed, tilting her head curiously. "Are you Mr Sun''s girlfriend? Can you ask him to make those people go away? My Baba and Didi can''te home because of it."


    "Don''t worry Bai Yue, I''ll do it," Jingwei promised, also bending to meet her in the eye. "I''ll go down right now, and tell them to leave so that your Baba and Didi cane home."


    Xue Ning gave him an exasperated look, but she understood.


    The both of them could have still told themselves that it was a smarter decision to wait for Shengli to arrive, but when confronted with the pleading eyes of a young girl, they were helpless to refuse. This girl had the bravery toe to his door and ask for help, how could they turn her away?


    "Bai Yue!" A panicked voice came from the other end of the lobby. "Come back here!"


    "Mama!" The both of them turned to the source of the sound, who happened to be a beautiful young woman in her 30s. Bai Yue ran back to her mom, instead she pointed at Jingwei and Xue Ning excitedly.


    "Mr Sun is going to help! And he has a girlfriend!" She eagerly said.


    "Bai Yue, it''s rude to point at people." The woman scolded gently. "And you shouldn''t be disturbing people to begin with, that''s not polite." She turned back to Jingwei and Xue Ning who stood up to greet her.


    She gave them a polite bow in apology. "I''m so sorry for any trouble my daughter caused, she''s young, so she''s still immature and doesn''t watch her words."


    Next to her, her daughter looked mightily offended and wanted to protest, lips pursed in an angry pout.


    "Oh no, she wasn''t rude at all," Jingwei hastily assured her. "Miss Bai Yue was very polite and well-mannered!" He then gave Bai Yue a gentle smile. Bai Yue blushed bashfully and looked down at her shoes.


    Sun Jingwei really was ady killer, Xue Ning thought fondly. Even young girls weren''t immune to his charm. In the past, she would have felt disdain, but seeing him talk to Bai Yue without treating her like she''s ipetent made butterflies flutter in her stomach for a different reason.


    "If you say so," the mother said, giving the both of them a look of polite disbelief. Clearly she didn''t think her daughter was well-behaved. "Come on Bai Yue, it''s time to go back home. Don''t disturb Mr Sun and his girlfriend."


    She began to pull her reluctant daughter away, but before she could leave Jingwei began to speak.


    "Madame! I''m truly sorry for themotion my presence caused," Jingwei said sincerely, giving her a quick low bow. Xue Ning saw the look of shock that crossed her face. "I heard from Miss Bai Yue that your husband and son are still stuck outside because of the reporters. Rest assured, I''ll be going down to resolve this now!"


    "You don''t have to," she replied weakly, horror slowly creeping into her voice. Her daughter must have run her mouth again, and of course Mr Sun and his girlfriend weren''t going to scold her.


    "Bai Yue, why did you tell this to Mr Sun?"


    "But Mama! You were the one that said it first!" Bai Yue whined, stomping her feet. "You said he should man up and chase them away so Didi cane back and take his nap because it''s all his fault to begin with!"


    There was a painful silence.

 Chapter 108 Bravery

    Bai Yue meanwhile did not notice anything wrong, she ended her speech with a flourish, a tiny fist punching the air. Xue Ning was impressed at how she managed to memorise that entire spiel.


    Clearly she was very intelligent, or more likely, her mother repeated it enough times that she knew it by heart.


    The woman''s face turned a blotchy red in embarrassment, refusing to meet either of their eyes. Instead, she red at her daughter. "Bai Yue! Quiet! How could you say such nonsense in front of them!"


    "Well, you and your daughter aren''t wrong!" Jingwei gave a sheepishugh, a hand rubbing his neck. The daughter was simply parroting her mother''s views, and her mother had every right to be upset at how half of her family was stranded


    "Don''t worry about it," Xue Ning added, because the atmosphere was bing unbearably awkward, and young Bai Yue finally realised that she had done something wrong, even if she wasn''t sure what it was.


    Her face fell and she stared back at the floor, her hands clutching the hem of hercy pink dress. She began to sniffle.


    Xue Ning immediately got on her knees so she could talk to Bai Yue face-to-face.


    "Bai Yue, you didn''t do anything wrong, and thank you for letting us know about this. It''s very brave of you," Xue Ning saidfortingly.


    "Really?" Bai Yue asked hopefully, with a watery smile.


    "Of course. Sometimes, people need someone to tell them what they need to hear, even if it''s not so nice. You had good intentions, your Mom shouldn''t scold you for that," She patted Bai Yue''s head and gave her mother a firm look.


    "As a parent, you should be more careful with your words in future. Bai Yue merely repeated what you said."


    "We''ll be going now." The mother said shamefacedly, without responding to her statement "Sorry for bothering you. You don''t have to humour her request."


    Luckily, Sun Jingwei wasn''t a vengeful man. If he was anything like the rumours surrounding his father and brother, their family could have been homeless!


    She tugged her daughter away before Sun Jingwei could change his mind. Bai Yue was reluctant to leave though.


    She dragged her tiny feet on the floor, and kept turning back to wave at them every few steps, a smile on her chubby face. Xue Ning and Jingwei waved to her until the lift doors closed, obscuring the both of them from view.


    After that, Jingwei gave Xue Ning a fond smile.


    "I didn''t know that you''re so good with children," Jingweimented. Seeing Xue Ning interact with children was making him think about their future children, and he was hit with a pang of sudden longing so strong he almost couldn''t focus.


    "How would you have known?" She retorted. "You don''t surround yourself with children. And I actually work with them, remember?" Then her face fell as she remembered that she was technically fired.


    "Well, I used to work with them," she added, grumbling under her breath. She hoped that they were still keeping up with their practices, even when she wasn''t there anymore.


    "You got fired because of me, didn''t you." Jingwei guessed, the familiar feeling of guilt twisting his insides. "You missed your work, so they kicked you out."


    "It''s fine," Xue Ning said, shrugging. "You''re more childish than every student I''ve ever taught, so it''s like I never left."<sub> </sub>


    "In that case, I have to know, why are you so sweet and kind to Bai Yue, but not to me?" Jingwei asked teasingly, crossing his arms as he leaned in closer to her. "I''m feeling a bit jealous."


    "Bai Yue is a child, you are just childish." Xue Ning replied easily as she gently shoved him away.


    "Besides, am I not sweet and kind enough for you?" She asked, cocking her head deliberately to the side, as she cracked her knuckles. "Do you require more kindness?"


    "On second thought, I''m fine with things now," Jingwei said, giving her a hopeful nce. "Though¡­ I wouldn''t say no to more kisses."


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes. Shameless indeed. "Weren''t you going to y the hero and get rid of the crowd? Come on, let''s go then."


    "You''reing along with me?" Jingwei asked in surprise. "Can I get changed first?"


    "Of course. I''m your bodyguard, where else would I be?" Xue Ning replied matter-of-factly. "Sure thing, just remember to lock your door and we can go."


    "As my wifemands," Jingwei gave a dramatic bow and went to change into a more presentable outfit for the press pictures.


    =


    It was easy to say that he would disperse the crowd of ravenous reporters, but when the lift arrived at the first floor, Jingwei couldn''t help wondering if he had bitten off more than he could chew.


    He had already thought of the words he wanted to say, but he couldn''t help feeling nervous anyway, fiddling with the cufflinks on his cored shirt. Xue Ning grabbed his shaking hands and held them to stop himself from tearing off his shirt cuffs.


    The moment the lift doors opened, all calm left the building. Jingwei could already hear the rabble of pushy voices and the constant camera shes, audible even through the ss doors of the lift lobby.


    It promised to be a madhouse out there, one that would only get worse once the press saw him actually walk outside.


    "Are you sure you want to do this?" Xue Ning asked again, sensing the hesitation and nervousness in his eyes. "I will not think any less of you if you don''t wish to do it. The crowd looks rabid."


    "I will think less of myself though," Jingwei replied, taking a deep breath to calm himself down, before shooting her a grin. "Besides, I already promised Bai Yue I''ll do it. I''m not that much of a cad to break a promise to a young girl like her."


    You''re not much of a cad at all. Xue Ning wanted to say, but held her tongue. There was a hidden nobility inside Sun Jingwei that she found increasingly attractive, but then it only showed up when he was putting himself into possibly dangerous circumstances.


    "I''ll protect you no matter what," Xue Ning dered. "So go out there and do what you need to do."


    "I know," Jingwei smiled at her lovingly, a hand reaching out to pat her head. Xue Ning, sensing that he needed the extrafort, let him without batting his hand away.


    "Why do you think I even had the guts to attempt this?"

 Chapter 109 Facing The Crowd

    Together, they stepped out into the madhouse. Just as they predicted, the moment the press got wind of their presence, they immediately pounced on them like feral dogs on a piece of steak.


    "Mr Sun! What do you have to say about the underground racing incidents?


    "Mr Sun, is it true that you and your friends have killed a man on the road?"


    "Mr Sun, please rify the bribery and corruption ims!"


    If not for the iron fence keeping them out, Xue Ning had no doubt they would bepletely mobbed by them, with cameras and microphones shoved into their faces. Just thinking about it made her frown, but she tried to keep an impassive face as she walked behind Jingwei, watching his surroundings.


    She should have worn sunsses. Those camera shes were blinding her, but Jingwei seemed unaffected.


    He held his hands out, asking for silence, and the press eventually reluctantly quietened down just so that they could hear what he said.


    "Members of the press, while I understand your need for news, I would ask for your consideration to kindly refrain from disturbing my neighbours." Jingwei said, his voice calm and even, yet he managed to project his voice loud enough for everyone to hear.


    If Xue Ning had not seen his nervousness back in the lift, she would have believed that Sun Jingwei waspletely at ease with being in front of so many cameras, talking to reporters like they were old friends.


    "I know you guys have stories to write and KPIs to hit," Here there were some titteringughs from the reporters, and Jingwei responded with a rueful grin.


    "And I understand that perfectly. I''ll be addressing all your questions regarding this particr news at a press conference on 3rd September, 12 noon."


    Reporters moured over one another to yell their questions, clearly not getting the hint to leave the premises.


    "Mr Sun, will you be going to court?"


    "Mr Sun, what does your father think about this?"


    "Mr Sun, who is that woman standing next to you?"


    "Is she your wife?"


    Xue Ning blinked. She didn''t expect to be addressed, but of course reporters would notice a woman standing next to Jingwei. She wondered how Jingwei would answer the question.


    "All these questions will be answered at the press conference. Once again, kindly vacate the premises so that my neighbours can enter their homes." Jingwei repeated, this time with more warning in his voice, no longer smiling at them.


    The crowd made some movement, but they didn''t leave, as though by doing so they could wait for Sun Jingwei to give them what they wanted. Jingwei levied them a stern re, crossing his arms in silence.


    "Fuck you Sun Jingwei!" Someone yelled angrily. "You''re a criminal! Go to hell!"


    Jingwei blinked in surprise, while Xue Ning tensed, prepared for trouble. Heads in the crowd turned as they tried to find out the source of the voice.


    No matter how Xue Ning tried, she couldn''t pinpoint the source of the voice, for it was hidden within the crowd of reporters. Instead, she spotted something worse - eggs flying through the air!


    She immediately grabbed Jingwei to pull him back. Thankfully, she reacted in time, for the eggsnded on the floor (and one on his shoe) instead of his forehead. Bright yellow yolk oozed out, and Jingwei gingerly pulled his foot away from that mess.


    The crowd screamed in panic, yet they shoved at each other to get a closer look - no one wanted to miss the chance of taking a photo of seeing Sun Jingwei possibly getting egged in public. The camera shes doubled in intensity.


    She gnashed her teeth. Eggs were precious food and they shouldn''t be flung at people!<sub> </sub>


    Alright, technically no one should be flinging anything at people, but if they did, eggs were not a good option.


    "Thanks Xue Ning," Jingwei smiled at her, but she ignored him in favour of looking warily at the crowd. "I don''t think there''s any more -"


    Before Jingwei could finish talking, more eggs flew through the air, like homing missiles.


    "Come on, get inside!" She demanded, pushing Jingwei into the lift lobby. Jingwei wanted to yell at the people responsible for egging him, but Xue Ning gave him a look that promised that she would be flinging eggs at him if he didn''t get out of the way, so he followed her lead.


    "Well, that went well." Jingwei said, a bit too cheerfully for someone who nearly got turned into an omelette.


    "That could have gone better." Xue Ning frowned. "Can''t believe I didn''t see who were the wastrels flinging the eggs! Those bastards!"


    "Good thing you were there to watch my back." Jingwei replied, smiling at her adoringly. "It would have been embarrassing otherwise."


    She coughed. "It''s my job." One that she incidentally wasn''t getting paid for, still. "Is Shengliing over soon?" A quick nce outside showed that the press still wasn''t leaving.


    Perhaps they were hoping Jingwei would make a repeat appearance so that they could watch him get egged again. Vultures.


    "He said he woulde over as soon as possible." Jingwei replied. "Don''t worry."


    ======


    They waited for half an hour before Shengli showed up, with his sad interns and security guards in tow. The threat of legal action had done what Jingwei''s firm request couldn''t, and the press reluctantly scattered.


    Jingwei had a feeling some of them were still lurking nearby in the bushes nearby, but at least his neighbours could enter their homes again.


    "Are both of you crazy? Or just braindead?" Shengli asked the moment they were all safe in Jingwei''s apartment. "I know he is, but I thought better of you!" Shengli eximed to Xue Ning. "You''re supposed to keep him in check, not go along with his harebrained schemes!"


    "Hey don''t insult Xue Ning!" Jingwei replied. Shengli rolled his eyes. "I''m not - I''m insulting you!"


    "Don''t insult him," Xue Ning said warningly.


    "Both of you are disgustingly protective," Shengli said, ignoring their flustered faces. "But I don''t care - I want to know, is it so difficult for the both of you to just wait in this cushy apartment?" Shengli demanded.


    "Why would you go and confront them? Now you created an even bigger mess!"


    "How so?"


    Shengli growled.


    "You decided to throw yourself to the vultures ahead of time? PR is going to have your heads for this! And so will I - why did you only give me three days for a press conference?! Do you even know how much you need to prepare?"


    "I''m guessing a lot?" Jingwei replied sheepishly.


    Shengli replied ominously.


    "Oh, you have no idea."

 Chapter 110 Press Conference Planning

    After Shengli''s pronouncement, he had effectively decided to set up camp in Jingwei''s apartment. The three of them needed to make a n to ensure the press conference proceeded with minimal hups, so that Sun Jingwei wouldn''te out of it disowned or destroyed by the court of public opinion.


    They also went over the news that was already revealed to the public with a fine-tunedb, just to make sure that Jingwei didn''t say something that was already disproven by the news break.


    It was a harder task than expected, mostly because none of them trusted the press to actually stick to the list of pre-approved questions that they had agreed on for the conference.


    Also, they were working with limited resources, because Jingwei''s father refused to let anyone else from the legal department help. Even Xue Ning were forced into reading reports!


    Jingwei had to memorise multiple different answers for seemingly simr questions, to make sure that he didn''t get trapped into saying the wrong thing. Shengli in particr, was relentless in his grilling.


    Their main defence? They were going to im that Jingwei was escaping a fervent stalker that was upset that he had a fiancee, which wasn''t too far from the truth.


    After a few hours of this, they took a quick break and ordered food in. Xue Ning made sure there were no honey products anywhere near the checkout cart, which is how Shengli found out that his boss nearly died a few hours ago.


    "Seriously? You didn''t find it suspicious at all when you got an ubeled tin of cookies?" Shengli asked in confusion. His boss was really an idiot!


    "That''s what I said," Xue Ning said, surprised that she finally agreed with Shengli on something.


    "Why didn''t you listen to her?" Shengli lectured Jingwei. "You hired her to keep you alive, didn''t you?"


    Jingwei spluttered. Xue Ning remembered that she hadn''t signed her employment form yet. Maybeter, after the press conference.


    "I have a question to ask about the press conference - do I need to be there?" Xue Ning asked. "Technically I should be there, but no one knows that I am his bodyguard."


    "And they aren''t supposed to," Jingwei added. "So we can''t exactly make you stand behind me and re at the reporters, even if I really want to."


    "That reminds me, we need to get our story straight regarding your strange rtionship, thanks to the little stunt both of you pulled earlier," Shengli said. "If we can''t let them know you''re a hired bodyguard, what is the cover story you''re using? A partner, or is it something more serious like a fiancee?"


    "Xue Ning is my wife," Jingwei replied easily.


    "Not really." Xue Ning retorted.


    "See, this is the exact situation we wish to avoid." Shengli said, rubbing his temples. "The both of you need to be on the same page regarding your¡­ rtionship."


    ? "I can''t be your wife," Xue Ning dered. "For a start, we aren''t actually married, if anyone tried to search for our marriage certificate we won''t have one! You''d be branded a liar!"


    "We can always fake a certificate," Jingwei said. "And then backdate it."


    "And what happens when they look for proof of a wedding? You didn''t even prepare a ring for me! And don''t tell me your family would have a low-key wedding, no one would believe that." Xue Ning pointed out.


    Jingwei paused at her words. "How about me being your fiance then? We''re already living together - it would make more sense than me just being your boyfriend. Your reputation is also at stake here. And I''ve already been calling you my wife - so people will just think that I''m thinking of the near future."


    "That sounds¡­ eptable." Xue Ning said hesitantly. "But can I tell my family members that it''s fake? They might have a heart attack otherwise."


    "Can she?" Jingwei asked Shengli, who merely sighed.<sub> </sub>


    "That depends, can your family members keep a secret? Normally I would just let them believe it. You can just tell them it''s a long engagement, and then break up in a year iming that things didn''t work out between the both of you," Shengli said heartlessly.


    Xue Ning had a contemtive glint in her eye as she considered Shengli''s idea.


    "That sounds fair enough."


    "We''re not breaking up though," Jingwei promised Xue Ning, his hand holding hers as he gave her a sincere smile. "I''m never breaking up with you, unless you dump me first."


    "How can I dump you?" Jingwei wanted to steal a kiss at her words, but Xue Ning pushed him back and continued. "We''re not even dating. Really, we''re not."


    Thest bit was said for Shengli''s benefit. Shengli could only shake his head. Idiots.


    "Yet, we''re not dating yet," Jingwei said impishly.


    "Please shut up, the both of you." Shengli said wearily, cutting off their flirting. "We still have a long way to go before things are done."


    They continued to discusste into the night, and Shengli eventually had to leave the apartment to prepare for work the next morning. He never nned on staying over, and he certainly didn''t want to third-wheel their strange mating ritual, but unfortunately, Jingwei seemed intent on making him his reluctant wingman.


    "It''s sote and you''re tired, you can sleep in the guest room!" Jingwei said, trying to convince him to stay. "I have spare toiletries!"


    "Then where am I going to sleep?" Xue Ning protested, before she caught on to what Jingwei was trying to do.


    "In my room of course!" Jingwei replied, beaming at her.


    "You are so shameless, I''m almost impressed," Xue Ning said, half-amused. Never had a man been so desperate to get her into bed with him before. She nudged his foot with hers, and Jingwei felt a delightful shiver run through his body.


    "What if I kick you to the floor?" She asked challengingly.


    "Then I shall stay on the floor until you give me permission to rise again." Jingwei said, nting a kiss at the back of her hand, like a loyal knight. Xue Ning''s fingers curled in embarrassment at the gesture, but she did not pull away.


    Jingwei noticed that too, and beamed even more widely. Their eyes met, and he lifted her hand again to nt another kiss.


    She swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry, and Jingwei''s eyes stared at the movement of her lips and the bob of her throat withser-focus, as though he wanted to nt his lips there too.


    A loud scoff broke the mood.


    "Alright, I''m definitely not sleeping over after that disy," Shengli cut in, disgusted. "I''d rather sleep on the streets with the homeless."


    Before they could ask him to exin his rude statement, he continued.


    "I''m not going to cockblock you lovers from having sex!"

 Chapter 111 Calm Before The Storm

    "I''m not going to cockblock you lovers from having sex!"


    At Shengli''s frank statement, Xue Ning sprang away from Jingwei. She nearly forgot Shengli was still there, something that she med Jingwei for.


    Jingwei had a way of drawing her entire attention - it was an ability she could still ignore when they first met, but after all their shared kiss, her eyes naturally drifted to his imposing figure whenever he was within her radius, like now.


    "There''s no sex! None!" Xue Ning eximed, cheeks hot with embarrassment. She red at Jingwei; he was ying dirty. "Don''t try to seduce me before we even sign the contract!"


    "So it was working!" Jingwei said delightedly. "Don''t worry Xue Ning, I''ll make it worth your while."


    "What kind of harebrained scheme have you cooked up now?" Shengli asked warily. He didn''t want to know, but he had to. For the sake of his paycheck.


    Jingwei''s cheerful grin sent warning bells ringing through his head.


    "Xue Ning and I have a bet going on." He told him. "If I manage to seduce her to my bed, she gets one house. If I fail, she gets three houses!"


    "But nothing has been confirmed yet," Xue Ning added. "I haven''t signed any contract for this bet."


    Both of them gave Shengli a meaningful look. Clearly they expected him to draft the contract for such a ridiculous bet, even with his towering workload.


    Shengli stared nkly at them both.


    "I''m not even going to bother about this now." Shengli said, because he had never met two idiots that were so terrible at romance that they had to use a contract to have an excuse to sleep with each other.


    He got up to leave, but he couldn''t resist getting thest word after all they''ve put him through.


    He tilted Xue Ning''s head closer to him, delighting in the surprise in her eyes and the jealousy in Jingwei''s.


    "Seduction doesn''t only take ce in the bedroom." He said smoothly, letting go to step further back before one of them (Xue Ning, most likely) threw punches.


    "But no matter where you''re fucking, please avoid prative sex for now unless you have protection!" He smirked at their embarrassed faces. "You can''t afford a pregnancy scandal. I bid you goodnight."


    The door closed, but not before Shengli got the satisfying nce at their red faces.


    Now, with Jingwei''s jealousy riled up, maybe something will finally be done about that sexual tension, stupid bet notwithstanding. He wasn''t going to waste his time drafting such a nonsensical contract!


    ===


    "Sun family''s youngest son, Sun Jingwei, will be holding a press conference on the 3rd of September, 12 noon, to rify the recent news regarding his involvement in the street racing culture in Shanghai. One must specte on the sudden - "


    Sun Haowei choked as the words from the newscaster finally registered in his mind.


    "Turn up the volume," he ordered his chauffeur, who dutifully did so, but of course the newscaster had moved on to reporting other news. He scowled, was his ears too clogged with earwax that he didn''t hear carefully?


    Was his youngest son willingly handing himself over for the press to eviscerate?<sub> </sub>


    Did Tianwei know about this?


    He immediately called his oldest son.


    "Tianwei, what is this I''m hearing about a press conference?" He demanded, without even saying hello.


    "Father, while Jingwei had floated this idea to me, I''ve dissuaded him against it," Tianwei reported imperiously. "I told him that I would refuse to help him with such a harebrained scheme!"


    "Then why is the news reporting that he''s holding a press conference 3 days from now?" Sun Haowei asked. "Don''t tell me your brother has decided to take matters into his own hands!"


    "That''s impossible Father, he would never¡­" Tianwei trailed off, then he let out a hastily muffled curse. Clearly his son had seen the confirmation, but Haowei couldn''t have known that it was from Lian Xingzi''s phone - she was also another woman he found unsuitable for his son.


    "He apparently just did," Sun Haowei said through gritted teeth.


    "Father, are you going to help?" Tianwei asked cautiously. "I heard from Jingwei that you told him to handle it by himself. Are you really going to leave him to his own devices?"


    "Yes," Sun Haowei scoffed. "I have told your brother time and time again to give up on illegal street racing but he didn''t listen. This is his punishment! Don''t you dare help him!"


    "Yes Father, I understand." Tianwei agreed, mentally sending a prayer for his younger brother. Hopefully Miss Li would not leave him when he turned into Shanghai''s number one pariah - and he would be, because Tianwei knew his brother, and he was impulsive and immature.


    The press would destroy him, and the Inte mob wouldnd the finishing blow. Knowing how hungryizens were for blood, they would take every word from his mouth out of context to make him look worse.


    His brother really shouldn''t have picked this course of action.


    Well, at least he wouldn''t be any threat to Tianwei''s position. Not that he ever was. Perhaps after this fallout, Jingwei would be sent to some backwater town to live the rest of his days with Miss Li.


    The phone call ended with a definite click. Sun Haowei let out a world-weary sigh that was at odds with the anger disyed in the call.


    How did his youngest sone up with this sort of n? Surely it must be Miss Li Xue Ning that whispered into his ear, influencing him! And of course Jingwei would listen to her every word like it was gospel.


    His phone showed the video of eggs nearly hitting Jingwei, if not for that woman''s quick actions.


    She saved him, but she had also put him in that situation to begin with. His stupid son most likely won''t see it that way, and would grow more enamoured with her.


    "Sir, do you still wish to go to the office?" His chauffeur asked hesitantly, sensing the change in his mood.


    "I''ve changed my mind," he leaned back and closed his eyes. He was initially going to the office to see if there was anything he could do, but his son had made his ill-advised choices and would have to deal with the consequences by himself.


    "Just go straight home."


    "Yes Sir," The chauffeur replied, and the car reversed. The rest of the ride was spent in silence.

 Chapter 112 Ideal Type

    "I see that your family continues to be terrible," Lian Xingzimented, in a voice heaped with volumes of judgement.


    "Leaving the one person that wants to take responsibility to rot by himself, even when you know things won''t turn out well. Your brother got egged and you''re still not going to do anything?"


    Tianwei twitched and turned to her. "Kindly refrain from speaking about my family."


    "And what a supportive family it is," Xingzi replied mockingly, "poor Jingwei. Now I really wonder if he''s actually your father''s biological son. He seems almost too kind to be born into your family."


    "If you''re in love with him, you''re toote," Tianwei stated ndly, pretending to be calm and unaffected at the thought of his ex going for his younger brother. Judging by the amused smirk she gave him, he wasn''t doing a good job.


    "He''s already desperately in love with someone else."


    "That special someone who had themon sense to tell him to hold a press conference," she added. "At least he has the good sense to listen to her."


    "He is blinded by love," he hissed in reply. "He''ll regret it soon."


    ===


    Meanwhile at his home, Jingwei showed no signs of regretting anything. He had one hand against the door, trapping Xue Ning against it.


    Just like what Shengli said, seduction didn''t need to happen in the bedroom.


    Xue Ning, to her credit, only let out an embarrassed cough as she stared up at him, face still red at Shengli''s parting words. Prative sex? There was no sex! None!


    Unbidden, her brain helpfully recalled that there was a bottle of lube in the bathroom. Her face grew redder, but she still looked up to stare at Jingwei with a challenge in her eyes.


    Jingwei''s eyes narrowed as they focused on the tilt of her head. His other hand immediately reached out to brush the same spot Shengli had touched.


    ''Mine.'' He thought to himself.


    "Wow, you sure get jealous really easily," Xue Ning pointed out, huffing out a shakyugh. She finally found the reason for his strange actions. It was just a tilt of her chin, and she knew that Shengli didn''t mean anything by it - he was just doing it to rile up Jingwei.


    And judging from Jingwei''s darkened eyes, he did a sessful job.


    "How can I not be?" Jingwei asked, knowing it was irrational but he still couldn''t help it.


    "Idiot," Xue Ning said, half-fond and half-pissed. "Isn''t Shengli your friend?"


    "He''s on thin ice." Jingwei said darkly.


    Xue Ning''s hands came to hold his face. Jingwei''s heart thumped faster, was Xue Ning going to cradle his face and pull him closer for their third kiss of the day? He eagerly leaned in and wet his lips, hoping to make it clear that he was very agreeable to such a decision.


    Instead, Xue Ning stomped all over his dreams by squishing his face with her hands, so much so that his lips had ended up looking like goldfish!


    "Xue Ning!" He spluttered helplessly. This was not how things were supposed to go.


    "Sun Jingwei, your priorities need adjustment." She scolded, but Xue Ning couldn''t helpughing at the wronged look on his face. "Don''t be an idiot."


    "Can''t help it," Jingwei mumbled.


    "Eh? What did you say?" She yed dumb, pressing harder on his face. His skin was very smooth and bouncy and it made her jealous. How could a man have such wless skin!


    Xue Ning then adjusted her fingernails to make sure they didn''t end up digging into his face. She didn''t want to hurt him identally. Jingwei noticed it and smiled.<sub> </sub>


    "I mean, I will not be an idiot," he said dutifully. "I''ll try my best anyway."


    "Good," she said, satisfied, finally releasing him. "And don''t worry about Shengli, he''s not my type."


    "What is your type?" Jingwei asked as he gazed down at her. He had to know to study hispetition.


    Xue Ning had a contemtive look. She knew what answer Jingwei wanted to hear, hence she refused to say it.


    "For a start, men that do house chores are very attractive. For instance, like washing the dishes left behind from our lunch and dinner and taking out the trash."


    "I''m on it," Jingwei said immediately, rolling up his sleeves to wash the dishes. He knew he was being manipted, but this was a maniption he was d to sumb to. If Xue Ning liked the househusband type of man, he would be a househusband type of man for her!


    (And he''d do a better job of it than Shengli, who lived off microwavable meals, fast food and oily takeout. Yi Ting had better prepare to cook for him if they get married, if not she would be widowed by 60, as Shengli expired from living off MSG.)


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning watched in surprise as Jingwei actually did what she said. Was it truly so easy to get him to do chores?


    Did she have that much power over him?


    Even if so, he also had a sway over her. As she watched him wash the dishes, she realised that she may have created a monster for her own self-control to defeat.


    Somehow, the sight of him with his sleeves rolled up to his forearms, the subtle flex of his muscles as he scrubbed at a particrly difficult food stain with the dish sponge, and the way he his hands plunged into the basin of soapy water only to rise, wet and glistening with soap suds, was making her feel warmer than usual.


    ''No Xue Ning, focus on what''s important.'' She scolded herself. His press conference was a few days from now, and everything had to go smoothly. There would be no room for strange lustful feelings; they couldn''t afford to be distracted now.


    "Thanks for washing the dishes," she said as she moved away from him. She needed some distance, but her eyes still lingered on the way his back muscles shifted under his shirt, even as she slowly walked away.


    She didn''t want to meet his eyes, when she couldn''t get this¡­ appreciation of hers under control.


    Jingwei smirked at the porcin tes, he had grown up with all sorts of eyes on him, hence he could definitely detect Xue Ning''s intent gaze of desire on him, even without looking.


    Guess Xue Ning wasn''t lying when she said she was attracted to men who did housework. He purposely shifted his muscles just a bit more, and was rewarded with a quick shocked exhale of breath from her.


    "You''re wee," he said, still not turning around. He lifted one of the tes, thinking of angling it just right so he could spy on her expressions.


    Xue Ning didn''t even give him that chance. She muttered a hasty "I''m going to bathe now," as she all but fled the kitchen.


    Once the words registered in his mind, the te slipped straight out of Jingwei''s hands and back into the soapy basin.


    Just like how he imagined how Xue Ning''s wet naked figure would sink into the bathtub.


    Would she give the same quick exhale he heard earlier as she rxed into the warm water?


    The thought was driving him crazy as he scrubbed frantically at the dishes. But no amount of dried crusty food could chase the thought of her naked from his mind.


    He looked down at his soapy hands, and wondered when he would get the chance to wash her instead.


    "God, I''m so fucked," he muttered in dismay, as the images refused to leave his mind.


    His cock was once again hard.

 Chapter 113 Test Of Endurance

    Meanwhile Xue Ning hurried to themunal bathroom to take a quick warm shower. Not only had it been a long day, she needed something to do to take her mind off Sun Jingwei and his back muscles and his stupidly attractive face.


    As she washed herself with soap, thoughts of Sun Jingwei''s skilled hands drifted in her mind. His hands were like hers now, covered with soap suds. It wasn''t difficult to imagine his hands on her instead, roaming all over her body. Knowing him, he''d make sure to caress every inch of her skin, iming that he was helping her wash.


    She felt the stirrings of arousal form in her body, and the juncture between her legs grew warmer.


    No. This wasn''t supposed to be happening. She wasn''t lusting for Sun Jingwei, the biggest yboy in Shanghai!


    To snap herself out of this strange stupor, Xue Ning turned the temperature dial, immediately sting herself with icy cold water. She hastily stifled a yelp, but the spray had the intended effect.


    "Xue Ning, are you okay?" She heard Jingwei''s concerned voice from outside. "I heard you yell."


    "I''m fine! Don''t worry!" She insisted hurriedly. "Are the dishes done?"


    "Yeah they are! I''ll take my own bath now!" He yelled back.


    Ah yes, his bath with his lube. Xue Ning turned on the shower head and sted herself with yet another icy spray. Once she calmed herself down enough, she washed her hair and exited the bathroom, dressed in an overlyrge T-shirt that hung around her mid-thigh and a pair of sleeping shorts.


    The guest room didn''t have a hair dryer. Perhaps it was in Jingwei''s room, seeing that he was the only upant. Without thinking twice, she walked into his room, expecting him to be safely tucked away in his own bathroom.


    She didn''t recall seeing a hairdryer when she entered the previous time, but then again, she was too focused on the Epi-pen.


    Maybe it was near the bathroom.


    She turned around, only to get an eyeful of Jingwei lounging in his bathtub like a king, his eyes closed in bliss as he let out a moan.


    She froze.


    She did not want to know what he was thinking of at that moment, but before she could flee, he opened his eyes!


    It was hard to tell who shrieked louder, but Xue Ning would put her money on Jingwei, who identally caused a sizable amount of bathwater to slosh out of the bathtub in his panic.


    "Xue Ning! What are you doing here!" Jingwei yelled.


    "Oh my god! Why didn''t you close the door!" Xue Ning yelled in return, half-covering her eyes. However, her traitorous fingers couldn''t help but let her eyes roam over his wet figure.


    "Go close it!"


    Jingwei made a move to get up, water glistening from his skin, running down the lines of his abs and -


    "Nevermind! I''ll close it!" Xue Ning said hastily, looking away until she was sure that he sat back down from the tub.


    She hurriedly mmed the door shut with a loud bang, hence she didn''t hear the shocked gasp Jingwei gave at her attire.


    A men''s shirt with sleep shorts. He had seen her wear something simr before, but seeing her pale milky thighs and her revealed corbones, along with the way the slightly wet shirt clung to her curves thanks to her wet hair¡­


    It was making his heart beat in double time. Another part of him also sprung back to attention.


    Luckily Xue Ning hadn''t taken a closer look at him in the bathtub. He didn''t have a bubble bath, so there was nothing obscuring his dick from her view.<sub> </sub>


    Well. He stared at his lube bottle. Guess it was just him and his right hand again. Hopefully he''ll have another helping hand soon.


    ===


    "So why were you in my room?" Jingwei asked afterwards, when he waspletely clothed. Both of them sat on the couch in the living room, and Jingwei was idly surfing the TV channels for something to watch before bed.


    "I was looking for a hair dryer." Xue Ning said awkwardly. "I''ve searched around the whole house, and there isn''t one."


    "Oh shit, you''re right." Jingwei said, pausing in surprise, feeling guilty for not thinking ahead. "I don''t have one. I''ll ce an order for one now so we''ll get it tomorrow."


    "Thanks?" She said bemusedly. "But how can you not have a hairdryer? Do you never dry your hair?"


    "Why would I? My hair is short and a towel is enough."


    "And no one else needs to use a hairdryer?" She found that hard to believe. Surely one of his hookups must have needed to shower and bathe after staying the night. They can''t be that unhygienic to sleep just like that ¡­ right?


    She repressed a shudder at the thought.


    (''They might have even done it in the tub!'' Her mind helpfully added. After all, it was big enough to fit two people.)


    "Xue Ning, I invited no one else to this apartment before you." Jingwei said simply. "So there''s no need for a hairdryer."


    "You must be joking," Xue Ning said disbelievingly. "What about the hordes of women you used to sleep with?"


    "I usually end up at a hotel, or back at their ce," Jingwei replied, shrugging. "My mom''s portrait is here, so I don''t want any strangersing over."


    His mom probably won''t be happy with many of his life decisions. But at least he would have that inmon with her.


    Maybe she would approve of Xue Ning, even if his father didn''t.


    "Ah." Xue Ning said, her eyes going back to the painting of Jingwei''s mother. She seemed to be staring at them in amusement. "You look like her."


    "Really? I heard that I look more like my father though."


    She took a careful look at his face, then back at the portrait.


    "No. You look more like her, especially when you smile." She said after thinking about it. And Jingwei did smile a lot when he was around her.


    "Thanks," Jingwei said, pleased. He settled for a news channel, but then regretted his decision the moment the newscaster opened his mouth.


    "As reported earlier, multi-billionaire Sun Haowei''s second son, Sun Jingwei, will be holding a press conference - "


    Jingwei immediately changed the channel.


    "Are you nervous?"

 Chapter 114 No Distractions

    Jingweiughed awkwardly as he stared at the TV. It was now showing a nature documentary. A dead elephant''s dposing body was shown, and he hurriedly looked away.


    "Hahahaha¡­ why would you think so? I''m not scared at all." He insisted, but his eyebrow was twitching.


    "Please lie better at the press conference. If not, you''re going to die like that elephant in the documentary." Xue Ning said with all seriousness. The TV was now showing the scene of a flock of vultures waiting around. It felt frightfully ominous.


    "That''s so reassuring, thank you for that." Jingwei replied sarcastically. "I''m doing my best."


    "You''re wee," she patted his hand. Jingwei gave her a grouchy look, but he took the chance toce his fingers with hers. She pulled away, ignoring his confused look.


    "That''s why I think you should spend less time thinking about getting me into your bed, and more time pouring over those documents Shengli sent over."


    "Oh, that''s not possible." Jingwei said with all honesty. "Even if I don''t hit on you, I''ll still be thinking of you." He reached out to hold her hand again, and she let him, because if he did not listen to her she''ll twist his fingers backwards.


    "Well, stop it then!" Xue Ning insisted, as though it was as easy as turning off a light switch."You need all your brain power for the press conference! Stop using it to think of ways to seduce me!"


    Clearly, she did not realise that she had all but taken over Jingwei''s waking moments, and a majority of his sleeping moments too.


    Even with the threat of the press conference looming closer with each passing hour, it was impossible to not think of her, especially when she was now living in his home, barely steps away from him.


    He knew that despite her efforts to remain unmoved, she wasn''t as unaffected as she imed to be.


    "You''re wavering inside, aren''t you? So close to surrendering to my attempts," Jingwei asked mischievously, and Xue Ning had to smack him again.


    "See! This is what I''m talking about! Why are you focusing on the wrong thing?" Xue Ning scolded.


    "Okay okay, I''ll try to focus more on my press conference." He promised. "I''ll make sure to devote the majority of my time to the asshole reporters that are ready to rip me apart at a moment''s notice, instead of my beloved bodyguard wife that looks adorable in her sleepwear. Will that do?"


    Xue Ning flushed. There he was, doing it again!


    "Yes, exactly. And besides, I''m not your wife, I''m now your fiancee instead. You need to use the right words!" She insisted, ring at him. "If not, we''re going to have trouble at the press conference."


    Jingwei nodded obediently. "Alright, as my fiancee says. But can this embargo from you begin from tomorrow morning onwards? It''s hard for me to go cold turkey like this without warning."


    "Cold turkey?" Xue Ning choked out augh. "I''m not a drug!"


    Jingwei shifted closer to her, nearly enveloping her with her body as he looked at her intensely. They had kissed on this very couch just hours ago.


    Their eyes met, and Jingwei knew, from the way Xue Ning''s cheeks reddened and how her tongue quickly darted out to wet her lips that she was remembering it. He lowered his head further to murmur in her ear.


    "If you could read my mind, there''s no way you would think that. Do you know what you''ve done to me?"


    Xue Ning swallowed.


    "I can guess," she said weakly. "But that''s why I say you should stop thinking of me now. In that way. At least until the press conference ends. If you don''t, I''ll rip off your fingers."<sub> </sub>


    "...Okay." Jingwei breathed out a pained sigh, and sat back down on the couch as though it was a herculean effort to pull himself out of her orbit. "You have given me the most difficult test of my life, but for you, I shall endure."


    She would scold him for being dramatic, but she was feeling off-kilter too.


    "Good," she said instead, nodding to herself.


    This was what she wanted, so why was she feeling disappointed?


    "Now, I''ll be going to bed now. You should sleep early too." She continued, leaving the couch, but Jingwei held her hand firmly.


    "What?"


    "Can I have a goodnight kiss? At least for tonight." Jingwei pleaded with puppy eyes.


    "No," She said firmly. "There are no kisses until the press conference is over. Goodnight."


    Jingwei stared at her in horror, as though he was struck. His hold on her loosened and she tugged her hand away and went to her room.


    "Are you serious?" Jingwei whined intively after her, following her like a rejected puppy.


    "Yes, sleep well." Xue Ning said, closing the door on his face, ignoring the crestfallen look on his face.


    Jingwei sat on the couch, before a grin slowly spread across his face. No kisses until the press conference is over? This meant that she would be kissing him in future!


    (Of course, assuming he didn''t be Public Enemy #1)


    With that cheering thought, he decided to look through Shengli''s notes one more time. He felt more motivated than ever to get through the press conference!


    ===


    While Jingwei and Xue Ning could still get a good night''s sleep, Officer Tang was once again workingte at night.


    The results for theb tests have returned. What was suspected to be a simple case of fooda wasn''t that simple after all!


    It turned out that the noodles wereced with trace amounts of sleeping pills. Whoever was responsible for cooking the food had crushed the pills into fine powder and mixed them with soup. The powder was rtively tasteless, so the soup was enough to disguise its presence.


    Paired with noodles, fishballs and dumplings, no one was any wiser.


    And whoever who was responsible was smart enough to not put too much of it into the food - so as to ensure that the officers weren''t knocked out immediately! Instead, they let the drug kick in naturally with the fooda, so that it looked like a case of negligence instead of wilful sabotage.


    Officer Tang felt a chill creep up his spine at his work desk. Whoever nned this murder attempt was incredibly meticulous - if it had failed, Officer Tang had no doubt that another attempt would be made!


    Who did the Sun family offend so badly?

 Chapter 115 A Makeover?

    The next few days flew by in a sh. True to Xue Ning''s word, she refused to entertain even the slightest hint of flirtation from Jingwei, making sure all his focus was on preparing for the


    for the press conference.


    Jingwei had sulked, but seen the wisdom in her words when he found himself more sure of himself. He had run through the given information and even predicted more questions outside the list given, and he had his answers sent to Shengli for vetting.


    ("So how''s this? I thought of some new things they might ask, and here are my answers."


    Shengli stared at him over the video call, and then stared at the document. It wasn''t filled with nonsense, they were actual valid questions with good supported answers!


    "What happened to you? You''re being proactive." Shengli asked. "Are you dying?")


    Shengli had thought he was dying or possessed, until Jingwei mentioned Xue Ning''s ultimatum. Then he merelyughed at Jingwei''s plight and hung up the phone.


    Such a great friend!


    Then on the morning of the press conference, Shengli dropped a minor bomb on Xue Ning.


    "You have to show up in a beautiful outfit," he dered with no room for argument when he came over to Jingwei''s apartment for onest trial run. "None of your ratty T-shirts and jeans," he continued, casting her outfit a disparaging gaze. "You are Jingwei''s fake fiancee, and you have to look the part. Make sure to get your hair and make up done."


    "What outfit? I have nothing to wear!" Xue Ning asked, outraged. "And I have no makeup!"


    "Then get some with Jingwei''s money then," Shengli said, unsympathetic. "His ck card is good for something."


    "That''s not the issue here! I don''t even know what the standards are!" Xue Ning squaked. "Even if you gave me the money, I wouldn''t know what to buy!" And thest thing she wanted to do was to splurge and end up looking like a cheap hooker, or some desperate social climber.


    Even if this engagement was fake, she had some semnce of pride!


    "Okay, I''ll send you to Su Yan." Jingwei said, after thinking for a moment. "She specialises in makeovers, and she''ll get you ready by the time the press conference begins."


    "So I''ll meet you there at the venue directly?" Xue Ning asked warily. "Will you be safe on the way there?"


    Shengli interrupted. "Oh he''ll be fine. The trouble only starts when the reporters start opening their mouths."


    "If you say so." Xue Ning sighed. The things she did for her job. "Where is this Su Yan located?"


    =====


    Su Yan was apparently located in the heart of Shanghai, her hybrid boutique studio located right in the middle of several shopping districts. The cab fare Xue Ning paid to get there would have given her a heart attack, thankfully it was from Jingwei''s limitless pockets.


    ''Le Belle Maison'' She read, her lips moving wordlessly. Another ce with a western name, perhaps French?<sub> </sub>


    Strangely enough, her palms were feeling sweaty. She wasn''t even this nervous when facing off Xiumin in the toilet. Possibly because she had no idea what to actually expect. Just as she was about to knock, a sharp voice from inside the boutique interrupted her thoughts.


    "Are you going to stand there like a block of wood, or are you going to enter? I don''t have all day."


    Xue Ning frowned and immediately opened the door, only to be greeted with an effortlessly beautiful woman wearing wire-rim sses. Her hair was a soft brown, and it curled around her face gently to make her look sweet and sincere.


    However, the look in her eyes was nothing short of judgmental as she slowly raked her eyes up and down her figure. Xue Ning fought the urge to cover herself with her hands - she wasn''t going to let some stranger intimidate her.


    "Are you Su Yan?" She asked. "Jingwei told me to find you."


    "Yes he did, and I see why." She pursed her lips. "I have a very tight deadline when ites to your case, so let''s get started."


    "What are you going to do?" Xue Ning asked, even as she followed Su Yan to an area full of dressing tables, where several assistants were on duty. There were already women getting ready at other dressing tables, with hair stylists and makeup artists working on them.


    "Normally we would start with hair and makeup, but because you''re new, I need to conduct an analysis on you first." She led her past the dressing tables to another secluded room, where another assistant waited.


    "Now strip, I need to take your measurements."


    Xue Ning choked, wondering if she was joking - but no, she was dead serious, and with every second that Xue Ning wasn''t moving, her face grew darker.


    "Why?" Xue Ning asked.


    "So I can get you fitted for your outfit." She said primly. "Mr Sun requested me to make his fiancee presentable for a press conference, and that''s what I''m going to do.


    "The reputation of my studio depends on this. I will not fail, no matter how reluctant you are, or how difficult you are to work with." She continued determinedly. "My studio does not tolerate spoiled brats."


    "I''m not a spoiled brat!" Xue Ning retorted, aghast. Was that why Su Yan was so curt with her? She thought Xue Ning was a pampered bratty heiress deliberately out to make trouble for her!


    She had to defend herself.


    "I''m telling you now, I work two jobs, and I''ve never been to a makeover ce! I don''t even know how to match my foundation! I''ve never plucked my eyebrows! I buy the cheapest lipstick and use it as blush! I - "


    "I get it, I get it, please stop talking," Su Yan pleaded. Her whole body was twitching as she heard about Xue Ning''s inexperience with cosmetics. The disregard for makeup and beauty was making her itch!


    This wouldn''t do.


    Meanwhile, the assistant''s mouth also fell open in surprise. If this woman was telling the truth, then how could she possibly be Sun Jingwei''s type?


    Was she a liar?

 Chapter 116 Dress To Impress

    Su Yan shook her head. "Alright, I shall treat you like aplete novice. An utter amateur. I''ll select the best colours for your skin tone and we''ll proceed with fitting you with something thatpliments your body type. "


    "I''ll leave it all to you then," Xue Ning said bemusedly. "I usually just wear ck though. I think I look nice in it."


    Su Yan took a deep breath, as though her words had wounded her. "ck is not a colour, it is the absence of colour."


    "Okay?"


    "And anyone can tell you suit cool tones more," she looked over Xue Ning''s skin critically from head to toe. "Do you have tan lines?"


    "No?" Xue Ning replied. "Unless you count the faint ones on my arms and legs after wearing T-shirts and shorts." She rolled up her sleeves to show it, and Su Yan made a murmuring noise.


    "That''s fine, it''s not so obvious, unlike your pores." Su Yan said brutally. She peered closely at the skin on Xue Ning''s face and asked, "When was thest time you exfoliated your skin?"


    "...Never?" Su Yan''s face looked like someone killed her puppy.


    Xue Ning hastily added. "I wash my face twice a day with soap! I used a washcloth to scrub my face once. That counts right?" She added hopefully.


    Su Yan let out a sound that resembled a sob. This woman must be her most difficult customer, and it wasn''t even her attitude that was the problem!


    "No that doesn''t¡­ nevermind, I shall get my girls to work on your skin while I prepare your outfits." She sighed, Sun Jingwei had better be prepared topensate better for this stress. How can there be a woman that did so little skincare?


    Thankfully, her skin was mostly clear, even if it did look rough at parts, probably because of the poor skincare.


    After she had her measurements taken, Xue Ning was then shuttled to another area where another attendant was waiting with a plethora of hair and skin products.


    "Make sure her skin looks fresh and clear, but don''t irritate it." Su Yan ordered. "Makeup is going on after."


    "Yes Madam," the attendant said as she looked down at her new customer. Personally, she thought her features were striking even without makeup, but Madam must have an image in mind.


    =====


    While Xue Ning got her eyebrows plucked and ten years worth of dead skin cells scrubbed off her face, Su Yan peered at her extensive catalogue of ready made clothes to see what would suit her.


    The reason why Su Yan could rise above the cutthroatpetition of other stylists was because she had a knack of figuring out what suited a person and their personality, while making them look unique.


    She didn''t want her clients to look like someone they were not. She wanted them to look like the best version of themselves, to unlock the true potential of their beauty. That''s why she expanded her outfit styling business to include hair, makeup, facial and spa services.


    Because when a person was treated well, they would glow from within!


    However, as time was in short supply, Miss Li would not be undergoing any pampering treatments beyond the bare necessities. The facial scrub and skin care was to ensure that her makeup would hold up under the harsh lights of the cameras. She would not get a rxing massage or a foot spa.


    Even with all these adjustments, they were still pressed for time. The fact that she didn''t have any prior knowledge about Sun Jingwei''s supposed fiancee made things worse, because she couldn''t n outfits for her beforehand.


    And Miss Li was so unlike most women that walked through her doors, her ns would need changing anyway!


    The women that entered came expecting to be pampered like royalty. They knew their worth, and were raised with the best money had to offer.


    Meanwhile, Miss Li Xue Ning seemed to be a country bumpkin! She couldn''t dress Miss Li in haute couture, even if she had the dresses for it, because her bodynguage would show that she was merely ying dress up.<sub> </sub>


    What were her other options?


    Flowery dresses were cute, but they would make her look childish. They would be fine for dates, but not for possible press pictures. She needed something that looked a bit more formal - like she wasn''t Sun Jingwei''s newest fling, but his actual future wife.


    Long sweeping silk dresses were out, because she wasn''t tall enough. She didn''t have time to tailor it to her height thanks to the short notice.


    A corset? Possible. She had a very shapely bust, and her waist could stand to be highlighted further. Perhaps she could cinch her waist more tightly to create the hourss figure¡­ off shoulder?


    She began to smile as an outfit entered her mind.


    Now¡­where did she put those heels of hers?


    ======


    "Lady Boss, we''re done," Yu Li said to her 45 minutester, as she finalised her wardrobe. She had sent Xue Ning to wait at the dressing tables first, after she changed out of her clothes and into the bathrobe that all their clients used.


    "I plucked her brows, scrubbed off fiveyers of dead skin, I even exfoliated her lips and gave her a face and eye mask."


    "Good job." Su Yan said, "how did she take it?"


    "Pretty well," Yu Li said happily. "She didn''t make any fuss and she''s also polite."


    Yu Li leaned in and whispered, "so unlike our other clients."


    Su Yan could only give her a look, warning her to keep silent. They had opinions on their clients, but this was not the time to talk about it.


    "Wait¡­Zhou Yu hadn''t left yet?"


    "No Boss, she did not. She wanted another foot scrub and demanded refreshments."


    Su Yan''s face paled.


    "Boss, what''s wrong?" Yu Li asked.


    "Sun Jingwei''s current fiancee is now right next to his ex-fiancee." Su Yan replied faintly. "Incidentally, we know how badly behaved she is. How can I not worry?"


    Not to mention she had a feeling Miss Li wasn''t a doormat that would let anyone step over her, let alone a brat like Zhou Yu.


    "Maybe nothing bad will happen," Yu Li said hopefully. "After all, they don''t know each other. Maybe Miss Zhou will just think Miss Li isn''t worth talking to."


    Just as she finished speaking, they heard a loud scream from the other room.


    They stared at each other, horror dawning on their faces.


    It came from the hair and makeup station.

 Chapter 117 A Picky Asshole

    Xue Ning sat in one of the chairs, somehow exhausted from lying down and staying still. Her eyebrow area still tingled from the plucking, but her skin had never felt smoother or softer.


    Just when she thought she could rx in herfy bathrobe, a pompous voice interrupted her.


    "You''re in my seat."


    Xue Ning turned around to see a woman with dyed blonde hair, curled into voluminous waves, ring imperiously at her. She raised her eyebrow.


    "Get out." The woman continued, tilting her chin haughtily. "Don''t you know who I am?"


    Xue Ning continued to stare at her, and then took a long look around the room. There were more than enough empty seats for her to sit at, but she purposely decided to bother her.


    Behind her, there were sounds of horrified giggling. Clearly this group of pampereddies were looking for entertainment, and of course Xue Ning, who walked in with her ratty T-shirt and faded jeans and got lectured by Lady Su Yan upon entry, was a prime target for their bullying.


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes and pointed out, "There are at least four empty chairs around here, can''t you sit at any one of them?"


    "Are you deaf? I said this is my seat," she demanded, teeth bared. "And you clearly don''t belong here. Someone that looks like you shouldn''t bother wasting the time and efforts of Lady Su Yan and her team."


    If she had just asked politely, Xue Ning wouldn''t mind vacating her seat, why did she feel the need to add all that extra drivel at the end?


    Nonsense. She rolled her eyes at the interloper, and that made her even angrier.


    "Is your name on it? Point it out to me and I''ll move," Xue Ning replied, shrugging casually.


    "Judging by your tone, you don''t know who I am. I am Zhou Yu, the heiress of Zhou Enterprises" Nangong Yunling said haughtily, but Xue Ning did not give her the reaction she was looking for.


    Little did she know that Xue Ning had even less clue after her name was revealed! The name didn''t matter to Xue Ning - there were three Zhou Yu''s in her high school alone. What was one more?


    Zhou Yu, seeing Xue Ning''s deadpan expression, had no choice but to continue. "But as I''m a magnanimous person, I will forgive you, if you move now." The woman said, waving her manicured finger at Xue Ning''s face as though Xue Ning was a disobedient dog.


    How annoying.


    Xue Ning pasted a customer-service worthy smile on her lips while her eyes shot daggers at her. The woman, not expecting that level of vehemence, nearly faltered, but she refused to back down.


    "So¡­ there''s no name on the chair?" Xue Ning stated. She deliberately leaned back on the chair to make herself morefortable.


    The woman red at her more fiercely, but Xue Ning onlyughed. Even Xiumin was more of a threat than this pampered cat of a woman. The stress and worry of the past few days needed an outlet, and this woman was the unlucky volunteer.


    "Is this chair so important to you?" Xue Ning asked. "I can move if you ask me nicely."<sub> </sub>


    "I should be telling you that!" Zhou Yu barked out, shaking in barely repressed anger. How was she the one saying those words, as though she was doing her a favour? The nerve.


    "I guess I can move." Xue Ning said. Zhou Yu''s lips curled into a victorious smirk, but Xue Ning wasn''t done. "Who knew the heiress of Zhou Enterprises had a picky asshole?"


    "You -" Zhou Yu''s face turned an rming shade of red. Did she hear correctly? This low-ss tramp used her of HAVING a picky asshole?


    Xue Ning continued blithely.


    "After all, what reason do you have for not wanting your makeup done in a different chair? The only time where I hear something simr is when people need to shit in the same toilet bowl, because their bowels are used to it. Do you have this problem?"


    "How uncouth of you," Zhou Yu hissed out loud, her mind reeling from the disgusting insult. "Lady Su Yan must have truly fallen to ept someone like you as a client."


    "Sorry," Xue Ning said, not sounding the least bit apologetic. "Ah, but I realise now it''s my mistake." Xue Ning still did not move out of the chair though.


    "Then why are you not moving!" Zhou Yu''s hands reached out to Xue Ning, nails outstretched as if to push her aside, or to scratch her face.


    Xue Ning easily grabbed onto her wrists. They were so thin that she could easily snap them in half.


    "It was my mistake to not realise that your face and your butt aren''t too different after all." She smirked. "After all, they both have holes that spew shit. No wonder you''re insisting on this particr chair."


    Shocked gasps echoed in the room after her words. If Xue Ning turned around, she would have seen the horrified gasps paired with delighted eyes of the faces of the young women sitting in the room.


    Unknown to Xue Ning, there was a pecking order among the rich young daughters of Shanghai''s elite. Zhou Yu had always reigned over the flock as a tyrant queen, for her family was prestigious and was almost as wealthy as the Sun family.


    Of course, everyone longed to see her taken down a notch, but none wanted to risk the social fallout to do it. For some stranger to step in and help them, it must have been a helping hand from Heaven itself!


    Zhou Yu''s face began to turn an rming colour of puce. How dare this woman humiliate her in front of her twittering peers!


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning stretchednguidly while holding onto Zhou Yu''s flimsy wrist, her arms weren''t muscled at all so she had no strength to escape, much like a proud lioness pinning down a helpless deer.


    Finally, she decided to put her out of her misery. She turned and flung Zhou Yu back on the chair she just vacated, releasing her from her hold.


    "Here, you can have your seat back." Xue Ning said cheerfully, walking away to another empty seat like a reasonable person. Unfortunately, Zhou Yu wasn''t one to let it go.


    She lunged at Xue Ning''s back with a battle cry.


    "YOU FUCKING BITCH!"

 Chapter 118 This Is His Ex?

    Xue Ning whipped around immediately just in time to avoid Zhou Yu''s outstretched ws. Her fingernails came dangerously close to scratching Xue Ning''s face instead.


    If her back faced her, Xue Ning was sure that she would have ripped out all her hair!


    "Now you got your seat and you still want to bother me? Why? Do you want my other seat now?" Xue Ning asked, shoving her away. Zhou Yu may have been taller, but she didn''t work out to grow muscles for them to actually be used.


    So she stumbled back, identally knocking into another chair. It stung her pride to be swatted so easily like a mosquito! She made another lunge for her, ready to p her face. Xue Ning had her hands curled into fists, ready to fly.


    "Enough! Sit back down!" Lady Su Yan''s voice rang through the air.


    Zhou Yu paused. Finally someone was here to chase this¡­ creature out of her space.


    "Su Yan! How can you let this vermin into your establishment! I demand an exnation!" She cried out, acting like a poor aggrieved woman that suffered a great injustice. Xue Ning rolled her eyes at her dramatics - with her acting skills, she should have just joined the entertainment industry.


    "You chased me out of my seat first," Xue Ning mentioned. "And when I actually gave it up, you tried to attack me when my back was turned."


    Xue Ning finished with a scoff. "Coward."


    Su Yan internally despaired. What she had feared hade true!


    "You dare call me, Zhou Yu, a coward?" Zhou Yu yelled shrilly.


    <anno data-annotation-id="8d0b2f22-24e8-cdf1-f376-27c25a12be6c">"Why, I''ll even call Guan Yu a coward!"</anno> Xue Ning quipped easily. There was the sound of muffledughter from the other customers and staff.


    Even Su Yan herself had to use her years of experience to stifle theugh that threatened to escape. Her lips had to be forced downwards to portray grim disapproval, not hysterical amusement.


    Meanwhile, Zhou Yu''s face turned cker than a thundercloud.


    "Perhaps so, but we are alldies here, and we should aim to behave ourselves with decorum even when confronted with unexpected difficulties," Su Yan mildly rebuked Zhou Yu, giving Xue Ning a purposeful nce. This was the most diplomatic she could be!


    God knows how long she had wanted to do that to Zhou Yu, but the fear of retaliation stilled her mouth.


    Like this, she wouldn''t directly offend Sun Jingwei''s future fiancee, nor would Zhou Yu make bigger trouble - at least, not in her establishment. If she was going to start a fist-fight at the coffee shop next door, that wasn''t her problem anymore.


    "Yeah, what she said," Xue Ning shrugged and simply sat back down on her chair, ignoring the outraged look on Zhou Yu''s face. "Weren''t we pressed for time? We can start on my makeup now."


    "Yes Miss," one of the attendants eagerly scurried over to help. Everyone that had ever been bullied by Zhou Yu was now feeling incredibly pleased at the recent events. "I''ll make sure Mr Sun won''t be able to take his eyes off you!"


    "Mr Sun?" Zhou Yu eximed, her voice crackling like lightning. "Don''t tell me if you''re talking about Sun Jingwei!"<sub> </sub>


    "So what if she is?" Xue Ning asked, raising an eyebrow at her theatrics. "Is it any of your business?"


    Was she another crazy stalker?


    "Of course it''s my business," Zhou Yu said, suddenly smug. She let out an irritating little giggle behind her hand. "I guess you don''t know that you''re eating my sloppy seconds."


    "Huh?" Xue Ning looked at her, confused.


    "Sun Jingwei was my fiance." Zhou Yu exined slowly, as though she was talking to a particrly dull-witted child. A vicious smile spread across her face; now she could finally get revenge for the humiliation she endured at her hands.


    "I rejected him, despite his desperate pleas, because I found him grossly unsuitable as a husband. Even his father himself couldn''t get me to ept a useless man like him as my husband."


    "So you''re my recement." She continued, delighting in the look of surprise on Xue Ning''s face. "Maybe he thought getting someone like you would be easier, seeing that he had no chance with any other woman with dignity."


    "Of course, I don''t think he''ll ever actually marry you. You didn''t even know who I was. What kind of boyfriend would keep this kind of secret from you?" She asked mockingly in sympathy, a hand to her heart.


    "Seeing as we are both women, let me give you a word of advice. Sun Jingwei is not a man that can remain in your future. Be prepared to get your heart broken when he eventually dumps you like the garbage you are." Zhou Yu dered.


    The boutique fell into another stunned silence at the end of her spiel. Su Yan could only push her sses up her nose with her middle finger at Zhou Yu, even if she personally agreed with some parts of her vicious speech.


    In Su Yan''s mind, it was inconceivable that Sun Jingwei was truly in love with Miss Li Xue Ning. His past exes also visited her boutique, and every single one of them had personalities shallower than a puddle in summer and attitudes that made a radioactive nuclear disaster seem tame inparison.


    Case in point: Zhou Yu.


    Perhaps Miss Li was a new passion project of his; a new vour he wanted to try. He might have wanted to give the poor girl from the countryside a taste of luxury before the rtionship ended.


    She turned to look at Miss Li, expecting to see shock. Perhaps she would even cry, and that would make the makeup more difficult to apply. That''s of course, assuming that she remained in this ce and didn''t run out in tears.


    Zhou Yu also stared at Xue Ning, determined to catch even the slightest hint of weakness to get even for the humiliation she experienced. Surely no woman could handle this sort of realisation without breaking down!


    ''Come on, start crying.'' She thought hopefully. ''Let''s see those sweet tears well up in those eyes of yours¡­''


    However, Zhou Yu was hotly disappointed. Instead of seeing even a hint of a tear, all she got was a peal of brightughter from this interloper!


    <annotations style="disy: none;"><ol ss="tinymce-annotation-container"><li data-annotation-id="8d0b2f22-24e8-cdf1-f376-27c25a12be6c">Guan Yu was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during thete Eastern Han dynasty of China. Needless to say, he was not a coward. </li></ol></annotations>",

 Chapter 119 Thanks For Your Concern

    When Xue Ning first heard that this woman was Jingwei''s fiancee, surprise was her first reaction. He had made no mention of having an ex-fiancee that dumped him, but as Zhou Yu continued to degrade her, all she could think was that Jingwei dodged a missile!


    If she was the one engaged to Zhou Yu, she would rather fling herself into the pathway of an iing truck and be transported to a world with man-eating beasts, than end up shackled to such a shrew and bully of a woman.


    "Thanks for your concern," Xue Ning said breezily, "I''ll manage. I can see why Jingwei didn''t mention you to me - you''re simply not important enough to him to warrant an introduction to me."


    Zhou Yu gritted her teeth, before smoothing her face into a beatific smile.


    "For a bartender, you sound frightfully sure of your ce in his life, then let me ask you - have you ever been to his house? Met his family?" Zhou Yu asked condescendingly, a smirk on her face.


    Surely Sun Jingwei wouldn''t be insane enough to bring this ugly country girl right in front of his brother and father!


    Women like her weren''t meant to be given status or recognition, the best she could aspire to be was Sun Jingwei''s mistress, hidden out of sight and out of mind. Once her body lost its shapely figure, she would be forgotten by him too.


    "I don''t need to prove anything to you," Xue Ning said, as she watched the makeup artist hover awkwardly, waiting for her to finish talking so that she could begin the makeover. They were already running short of time as it is. Jingwei was more important than this childish brat.


    "Believe whatever you want. You''ll find out who I am soon enough." Xue Ning said.


    Zhou Yu smiled smugly; of course this slut wouldn''t be able to defend herself. She flicked her hair proudly and stalked off to another chair, sitting cross-legged, the very epitome of prim and proper behaviour.


    "Why are you still helping her?" Zhou Yu demanded. "No makeover can improve such a cheap woman!"


    "Kindly refrain from name-calling." Su Yan scolded firmly. "Our establishment has been tasked to help Miss Li, and that''s what we will do."


    "Hmph," Zhou Yu crossed her arms and let out a haughty sniff. Clearly she wasn''t used to people not indulging her whims.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning could only hold still as the makeup artist was putting foundation on her face. Even with Zhou Yu''s snidements, the makeup artist remained professional and undistracted by her irritating presence.


    If Xue Ning was the makeup artist, she would have shoved the makeup brush into her mouth to stop her from making noise!


    Part of her wanted to continue arguing - she could have easily said that she did meet his family, and they even had breakfast together, and Jingwei even talked about his deceased mother with her, but what was the point?


    Immature people like her would only find something else to pick on. Xue Ning had better things to do than entertain childish bitches like her.


    True enough, as the room fell silent, Zhou Yu also fell quiet for a moment. She would have felt ashamed, if she wasn''t so arrogant.


    Xue Ning hadn''t bothered to respond to her provocations, which meant that she was effectively trying to hit a cotton ball. The assistants merely made wordless noises and refused to engage her in further conversation, their silence a show of support for Miss Li who helped them deal with Zhou Yu.


    However, the other women could not keep silent. Clearly Zhou Yu brought up very good points, this woman was most likely a passing fancy of Sun Jingwei''s. In that case, of course they should still continue to side with Zhou Yu, just in case she remembered theirck of support and made things difficult for them in future!<sub> </sub>


    Even if Xue Ning had helped them humble Zhou Yu a bit, they still had to look out for themselves.


    As such, the hair and makeup artist had to work with the condescending and judgmentalments levied at Xue Ning.


    "You''re right, Zhou Yu. There''s no way she''ll be introduced to Jingwei''s family." A voice said.


    "Exactly! After all, only someone of your status could reject him! Someone like her isn''t worth it."


    "No amount of makeup could fix that face of hers," a third voice added.


    Xue Ning gripped the armrests of her chair, wanting to rip them off so she could smack them into their faces. But she endured in silence, because they were pressed for time, and she wasn''t allowed to haul Zhou Yu to the parking lot to eat her fists.


    As her hair was getting tugged and pulled in all directions, she nearly teared up when the makeup artist helped her apply eyeliner and mascara.


    "I wonder who her parents are, clearly they can''t be good people if they produced a daughter like you, small wonder they didn''t leave her under a bridge when they could." Zhou Yu said viciously, smirking as she found another avenue of attack.


    Xue Ning stilled. The makeup artist paused, sensing a dangerous aura emitting from her charge.


    It was one thing for Zhou Yu to insult her, but to insult her parents?


    This meant war.


    Xue Ning opened her eyes and turned to look at Zhou Yu.


    "Why? Are you mad I spoke the truth?" Zhou Yu said proudly.


    "You could have made me cry, if you were an eyeliner instead of a sack of shit." Xue Ning started, speaking quietly. Her lips curled into a smile that showed too much teeth, and Zhou Yu nearly flinched at the venom in her eyes.


    "And at least I know my parents wanted to keep me. You? Your parents must be kicking themselves with regret nightly at the fact that your mom didn''t get an abortion. I bet they can''t believe you came from the victorious sperm."


    "You -"


    Xue Ning snarled, she wasn''t finished. Zhou Yu needed to be reduced into a shriveling wreck of a human being.


    "They had one chance at a child, and they got you, a talking waste matter wrapped in mummified skin. It''s incredible they didn''t ''identally'' leave you in the wilderness to be eaten by bears, but I guess they didn''t want to be sued for sullying nature and poisoning wildlife."

 Chapter 120 Warrior Heiress?

    Zhou Yu recoiled at her words, face turning red with rage. Beside her, all herdies around her fell silent in abject shock.


    "And frankly, I think it''s weirder for you to be paired with Jingwei than I am. Aren''t you a heiress? Why were you matched with a second son? Or were you simply not good enough for Tianwei?" She asked, in the same tone of mock concern Zhou Yu used earlier.


    Xue Ning paused for a moment, loving the way Zhou Yu''s face turned white. She had clearly touched a nerve.


    If she was less vindictive, she would have simply left it from that point, but Zhou Yu had the nerve to bring up her parents.


    She wasn''t going to let her go just like this. She didn''t want to just touch a nerve, she wanted to stomp all over it and grind it into ashes right under her feet.


    She wanted her to bleed.


    "You rejecting Jingwei must have been due to the good karma Jingwei umted from his past life, and you not getting paired with Tianwei must have been your karma. He would have left you at the altar, if things even got that far."


    Xue Ning scoffed, nearlyughing at the thought of stern, no-nonsense Tianwei paired with a woman like her.


    Everyone''s mouths fell open at the sheer vitriol that escaped Xue Ning''s lips. How did this unassuming-looking woman have ws so sharp? She, knowingly or not, had managed to stab Zhou Yu right where it hurt.


    Zhou Yu was the only child of the Zhou family, despite her parents'' efforts to have a second child. Never mind that she was a girl - the main issue was herck of capability.


    No matter how they tried to cultivate her into the heiress that the Zhou family needed, she always fell short!


    Whether it was academics, sports, musical instruments,nguages or even cooking, she was a failure at all of them. There were otherdies from equally prestigious families that outshone her in every way.


    The only talent she had was picking on those poorer than her, and her family simply looked the other way, knowing that her victims wouldn''t be able to fight back.


    Meanwhile, the only saving grace she had was her looks, which was why they nned to marry off to the Sun family''s second son, a famed yboy known to be weak to pretty faces.


    No rich family''s first son wanted her, because she did not have the grace and decorum to conduct herself with the dignity required as the future matron of their legacies. Sun Jingwei was her father''s only choice - with hisundry list of scandals, he would be hard-pressed to find someone as well-connected as his daughter!


    But then Zhou Yu rejected the arrangement, iming Jingwei wasn''t good enough for her, which offended the Sun family and nearly drove her father into a heart attack!


    Even if it was true, no one withmon sense would have outright stated it.


    Zhou Yu''s father was livid when he found out, iming that she was worthless as a daughter and an heir, for she had no diplomacy and no foresight.


    "But I''m sure your family will find someone for you," Xue Ning finished consolingly, sitting back at her seat. "After all, even trash bins can attract roons."


    She turned to the makeup artist. "Will I be done soon?"


    "Yes Miss!" The makeup artist all but jumped at being addressed. In that very moment, Miss Li seemed more like the heiress than Zhou Yu, whose lips were trembling in an effort not to cry, her smug glee and haughty manner all but evaporated into thin air, leaving behind only a spoilt baby who realised there were bigger tyrants in the yground.


    She had done the impossible. Miss Li was a shining knight cloaked with vengeful justice, and Su Yan''s assistants could only be her fans.


    Zhou Yu could only bite her lips and blink back tears of hurt and rage, as this random woman cut into her so efficiently. She''d be thinking about her words every night! Once she found out who she was, she''d make sure to destroy her entire family!


    Everyone avoided meeting Zhou Yu''s eyes as she broke down. No one even passed her a tissue. Instead, they were looking at Xue Ning with newfound respect and fear.<sub> </sub>


    Her hair was coiffed and styled into curls that framed her delicate face, and they were pinned with bejewelled hairpins. She would have looked like a well-mannered, innocent youngdy, if not for the fact her makeup made her look like someone that could step on you like a bug.


    Her makeup made her big doe eyes look sharper and more deadly, yet they seemed to hold wisdom and secrets. Her lips were coloured a fresh red, simr to a ripe strawberry. Men would fall over their feet trying to taste them.


    The onlookers could only think it looked like a new blood stain, blended from the tattered remains of Zhou Yu''s self-esteem.


    Yet they could not look away, for Xue Ning looked like a warrior goddess, a woman that could crush empires underneath her feet.


    Meanwhile, Su Yan could only smirk and pat herself on the back for choosing the right look. Just as she predicted, this Miss Li wasn''t a pushover! She was polite, but she wasn''t an easily bullied meek girl.


    Su Yan purposely made her look a bit more intimidating, just so that other people would think twice before messing with her. It would be necessary, because women like Zhou Yu were sadly, not an umon urrence.


    With her height, she would also need to look more intimidating to also ward off men with ill-intentions. The press would also be more careful with dealing with her.


    Now for her outfit.


    "Miss Li, if you could follow me, I have your outfit prepared." Su Yan said with a smile. Xue Ning got up and easily followed her.


    The moment she closed the door, the room exploded into loud chatter as everyone couldn''t help but talk about the mysterious Miss Li and her actions.


    "Do you think she''s rted to the Li family in Southeast Asia?" One woman asked.


    "Which ones? The ones that are involved in maritime trade, or the ones that run the casinos and triads?"


    "Oh definitely casinos. She gives me the feeling of someone from that family, you know?"


    "She could also be from the Li''s in Beijing," another voicemented. "Weren''t they pretty well-off before?"


    "Ah, but no one knows what happened to that family¡­ maybe they moved to America." One replied. "Or they just all died out. We haven''t heard news from them in years. Maybe she''s one of them - look at the way she argues! So American."


    "There''s no way¡­" Zhou Yu added in a shaky voice. "No way this woman is from a rich elite family¡­"


    Everyone turned to look at her with barely concealed pity in their eyes.


    "Zhou Yu, maybe she really is one," one of them said. "Think about it, which woman in Shanghai doesn''t know who you are? Especially if she''s trying to get together with Sun Jingwei. Doing research on your partner ismon sense."


    "Unless she didn''t see the need too¡­ because her family is richer than yours?" Another added hesitantly.


    "Or maybe she''s one of those overseas kids," A third voicemented. "She lived abroad for her schooling and now she''s back to marry Jingwei."


    "In that case¡­" everyone turned to look at Zhou Yu, who became paler with every word that came out of their mouths.


    If she did offend a fellow heiress who was ted to marry Sun Jingwei¡­


    "You''re in trouble."

 Chapter 121 On The Way

    Meanwhile, Xue Ning was oblivious to the fact that the people outside thought her parents were apparently rich tycoons that ran casinos instead of the noodle store vendors they actually were.


    Thankfully she had no clue, if not she would have burst into cacklingughter and promptly ruined her image.


    Instead, she was more focused on the outfit in front of her. Her eyes widened as she stared at the ck and silver outfit offered to her. It was abination of a long-sleeved dress, a bustier and a corset, the top part of the outfit was white, but the bustier was ck and it was iid with tiny white crystals, artfully arranged to draw the eye to form a beautiful silhouette of the mannequin''s bust.


    The corset was ck, with bejeweledces at the front, and the bottom of the dress would end somewhere around the middle of her thighs. Thankfully, Su Yan did not pick high heels for her. Instead, waiting at the bottom of the outfit was a pair of solid ck ankle boots, with a tiny bit of heel to improve her silhouette.


    "Lady Su Yan, are you sure I''ll suit this?" She asked hesitantly. She wasn''t even sure if she should even touch it. What if she was too rough, and one of the crystals fell off? What if she wore it, and then realised that she wasn''t suitable for something so beautiful and had to take it off?


    The disappointment would be immeasurable.


    "Trust me," Su Yan said with no room for argument. "This outfit was created with you in mind. You need the world to know you cannot be messed with."


    "Okay," Xue Ning took a deep breath and nodded decisively. "I''ll try it on."


    "My assistants will help you," Su Yan said. "This is not an outfit that a person can put on or remove alone."


    That was how Xue Ning found herself standing only in her underwear, in front of two assistants that expertly nipped and tucked her body into the outfit, rolling up the sleeves to her elbows, while flicking the cor so that it met the end of her hair.


    She got a pair of diamond earrings to wear, with strict instructions to return them along with the outfit.


    They adjusted her bustier to tease at her full breasts, tugging at theces of the corset to further emphasise the curve of her waist, and made sure that the curve of her butt was present but not too distracting. Instead, they made sure to expose her corbones and a hint of cleavage.


    The dress was also at the appropriate length. Xue Ning just had to be more careful about how she sat!


    The assistants helped her into the shoes. Her makeover wasplete. When Xue Ning finally looked at herself, she could only gape at the mirror. Who was this woman standing in front of her?


    "There, perfect." Su Yan said, proud of her team''s efforts. She watched as Xue Ning transformed from a country bumpkin to an heiress no one would want to mess with. It didn''t matter if she actually wasn''t one - the right appearance meant half the battle was won!


    "Wow," Xue Ning said, exhaling a quick breath, blinking rapidly as she stared at herself in the mirror, cataloguing how she looked. "This is - I don''t even know what else to say, other than thank you. I never thought¡­ I''d look like this. Beautiful."


    Xue Ning had spent her youth getting called names for being not as beautiful as other girls, and while she responded with fists, it cannot be denied that some barbs buried themselves deep into her skin, hurting when she least expected them to do so.


    When she grew up, she just developed a thicker skin and stopped caring as much, but old wounds still left scars.<sub> </sub>


    "You''re wee." Su Yan replied delightedly. Xue Ning''s reaction was one of the reasons why she had entered this industry after all - to give confidence to those who didn''t think they looked good, but were actually simply not conventionally attractive.


    "Now, let''s go out and show the world." Su Yan continued, and they left the room together, Xue Ning striding out in confidence as she clutched her phone.


    The press conference had already started, but she wasn''t anywhere near the venue yet!


    She was so focused on that, it took her a beat longer than everyone else to notice the way everyone''s eyes widened when they looked at her. There was a sudden hush in the room as everyone marveled over her transformation, no one could believe this was the same woman that showed up in a ratty T-shirt and jeans!


    Perhaps they were right! She truly was secretly a heiress!


    No normal girl from the countryside could look this lovely in such an expensive, bespoke outfit!


    Zhou Yu''s fingers dug into the soft fabric of her bathrobe, and twisted them around in irritation. She recognized part of that outfit! She was the one thatmissioned that bustier, but how did it end up on her body instead!


    Not to mention, it was paired with other equally expensiveponents! That leather corset with bejeweledces was a long-time favourite of hers, but Lady Su Yan had always imed it was unsuitable for her.


    Now she was using it for this woman?!


    Zhou Yu was so mad she nearly exploded there and then. But she fought to keep her temper under control - she had to find out who this woman truly was. If she was an heiress, Zhou Yu would have no choice but to let the grudge go.


    But if she was just an ordinary woman Sun Jingwei had the nerve to pull into their gilded world, she''d make sure to put her in a world of hurt!


    Lady Su Yan watched with smug satisfaction from the corner of her eyes; Zhou Yu for once was shocked speechless. It was a good look on her, and saved her the trouble of looking for hearing aids in future.


    "I would call you a cab, but apparently Mr Sun has already arranged transport for you waiting outside," Su Yan said, knowing that everyone could hear her. "You must be really important to him."


    Xue Ning smiled, immediately getting Lady Su Yan''s point.


    "Jingwei is such a good man. He''s very important to me too." Xue Ning smiled, even if she said those words just to see Zhou Yu''s face turn purple, she meant every word of it.


    "I''m very lucky to have met him."

 Chapter 122 Waiting For You

    "That''s good to hear." Lady Su Yan said. "If the both of you are happy with each other, who has the right to criticise you?"


    Of course, those words were meant for a particr woman to hear. Everyone in the room internally winced at the blow.


    "I''ll escort you outside," Lady Su Yan said, and together they walked out to where a limo was waiting. Xue Ning internally face-palmed. Did Jingwei not realise this would attract undue attention! Why couldn''t he simply call a cab like a normal person?


    Ah, she answered her own question. Sun Jingwei wasn''t a normal person, but he was still very important to her. As such, she swallowed her own unease and got into the limo, but not before speaking onest time to Lady Su Yan.


    "Will you get into trouble for standing up for me?" Xue Ning asked frankly. "That Zhou Yu woman doesn''t seem like someone who will let go of a grudge."


    Su Yan barked out augh. "Possibly. Which is why you and Mr Sun better make such a stunning couple that my business survives the fallout. If not, I''ll be displeased with you."


    "Got it," Xue Ning said, feeling faintly touched at her gesture. "We''ll make sure everyone knows you''re the best."


    "Don''t waste time talking to me," Su Yan replied brusquely, but her lips curled into a smile. "You''re alreadyte for the conference."


    Xue Ning nodded, feeling like she had wasted enough time, she gave Lady Su Yan a firm handshake and a grateful shallow bow.


    The moment she shut the door, the driver stomped on the elerator. The limo drove off at the speed of light!


    Did all the drivers in Sun Jingwei''s employ driving like him? Was that one of the conditions for getting hired?


    If she died on the road today, she''ll haunt him for the rest of her life!


    =====


    Meanwhile, Jingwei let out a sneeze. Shengli shot him a horrified look.


    "Wipe your nose, don''t sneeze in public for goodness sake."


    "You say like I can control what my nose does." Jingwei pointed out. "And maybe this is a sign that Xue Ning is thinking of me."


    "Fat hope," Shengli said.


    "Why isn''t she here yet though?" Jingwei asked worriedly, looking around. The press conference was starting in five minutes, and he really wanted her to be there looking at him, just for moral support. Unfortunately, his prayers seemed to be unanswered.


    When he texted Xue Ning, he got no reply. When he texted Su Yan, Su Yan said that there was a brief hup, and she needed more time to resolve it.


    It made him wonder what on earth could have happened in Su Yan''s boutique! Did Xue Ning decide to beat up one of the heiresses? Strangle an intruder with the hair dryer cord?


    ? If she did, she must have had a good reason. Jingwei mentally prepared himself to get awyer for her if they decided to sue. Thatwyer would definitely not be Shengli, because Shengli was overworked and deserved a vacation after this press conference.


    It had nothing to do with how he touched Xue Ning''s chin without her permission. None at all!<sub> </sub>


    He also immediately sent one of his drivers to pick her up the moment she was done. There was no way he would make Xue Ning sit in a cab when he could pick her up in a limo!


    "Focus," Shengli scolded, sensing the way Jingwei''s thoughts were drifting to Xue Ning. It would be sweet, if it wasn''t so nauseating to watch.


    "If you fuck up today, you''ll never be able to see her again. How''s that for motivation?"


    "Thanks, as if I did not need any more pressure for today." Jingwei replied dryly. His hands were beginning to sweat.


    "I''m just reminding you of the stakes, so you do not open your mouth to say something stupidter." Shengli retorted.


    "Please take your seat, Mr Sun. The press conference will begin shortly." The organiser told him, gesturing for him to make his way to the main table. Currently, Shengli and Jingwei were in another room that doubled as a holding area, because Jingwei didn''t want to sit there too early and have reporters take photos of him fidgeting before the conference began.


    "Oh good! I made it in time!" Jingwei turned around, expecting to see Xue Ning - only for his face to fall as he saw Yi Tinge into view.


    "Don''t you have work?" Shengli asked, confused. "I''m pretty sure you''re supposed to be busy handling payroll ounts."


    Yi Ting waved a nonchnt hand. "Excuse me Liu Shengli, do you think anyone in thepany is actually working? They''re all tuning into this press conference! No one can focus!"


    "Really?" Jingwei asked in surprise. "I had no idea I was that popr."


    "For better or worse, your performance today will impact our lives and our bonuses." Yi Ting said frankly, shooting him a pleading look. "Please do your best."


    "I will," Jingwei promised, the butterflies in his stomach fluttering in double time. His phone beeped with a new message.


    It was Xue Ning!


    ''Sorry that I''ll bete. Every single traffic light in Shanghai is fucking red at the same time, not even your limo can escape them.


    But I''m sure you''ll be fine without me. You worked hard these past few days. Do your best. ''


    Jingwei felt butterflies for another reason altogether. Xue Ning cared enough to text him first! This was the first time she had initiated contact with him! Usually, he was the one texting her first.


    He hurriedly replied ''thank you <3 love you lots, rmb to kiss me when you arrive.''


    He got a picture of his own middle finger in reply. Heughed out loud, no longer nervous.


    "Alright, I''m ready, let''s get this show on the road." He said, rolling his shoulders and flexing his neck. He stalked confidently to the press table and took his seat, watching as every reporter''s eye focused on him.


    Bright shes of light and loud exmations immediately greeted his vision, and the cameras started rolling.


    His test had officially begun.

 Chapter 123 The Conference Begins

    "Firstly, let me thank the members of the press for taking the time toe here." Jingwei said, despite knowing full well that these vultures would have sooner gouged out their kidneys than to have missed this event.


    A little feigned politeness never hurt anyone, and he knew they thought he was an idiot who probably meant every word - which made it a win in this scenario!


    "I''ll now be taking questions regarding the video that was shared on the 31st of August." Jingwei said. "Questions unrted to this incident will be handled by the legal department."


    The reporters didn''t even wait for him to breathe before they started firing rapid questions at him.


    "What happened on that day?"


    "Was that you in that car?"


    "How do you justify such reckless driving?"


    "One at a time please," Jingwei said. "You first," he pointed to a woman that was wearing a white blouse and a charcoal grey pencil skirt. She didn''t yell her questions, but instead put up her hand and waited for her turn to speak.


    The logo on the mic in front of her indicated she was from CCTN, one of China''s cableworks.


    "Hi Mr Sun, I''m Min Rui from CCTN. My question is: what is your rtionship with the past Superintendent Liu Shixing? Clearly you have been given arge amount of leeway when it one takes into ount your past racing experience on public roads.


    "Hi Min Rui, to answer your question, while I do have knowledge of who Liu Shixing is in a professional capacity, I can assure everyone that I do not have a personal or professional rtionship with him, such that he would look the other way to indulge my driving habits."


    Technically, what he was saying was the truth. The working rtionship was between his father and Liu Shixing.


    "Then how can you exin Liu Shixing''s reluctance to arrest you?" Another reporter chimed in. It was CBS, one of the main TV channels.


    "That is something you should be asking him. I cannot presume to speak on his behalf," he said dryly. Of course, everyone knew it was because his father was all-powerful. Jingwei didn''t need to speak the obvious.


    "How did you learn how to drive like that?" A reporter asked. He was from the Shanghai Tribunal. Jingwei looked at him in surprise. That was a unique question, but not unexpected.


    "I''ve attended numerous go-karting courses andpetitions as a child, and when I grew old enough to drive a car, I learnt how to drive race cars too."


    Another reporter interrupted. "But the car you were driving wasn''t a race car! Didn''t you think that it would be something severely dangerous for you, your passenger and othermuters on the road?"


    That question was from Pei Ling, CBC News.


    "I assure you, I would not have done so if I didn''t have a good reason. I have been driving for years, and you can certify it for yourself after you leave this ce - I have never, unlike my peers, drove under the influence of alcohol, crashed into public property, or deliberately put innocent people in danger."


    Jingwei ticked off each point with his fingers, staring straight at the cameras.


    If his old acquaintance Bai Shi Ting was watching this press conference, Jingwei hoped he felt some form of guilt.<sub> </sub>


    That poor old woman¡­


    "Then what is your reason?"


    "Please tell us!"


    Reporters asked, sensing a delicious scoop.


    Jingwei gave a grim smile. He even practised it in the mirror to ensure it conveyed the right amount of gravitas.


    "You might have already seen the news on social media, or on the tabloids, about how my 25th birthday celebration at a club suddenly got cut short, and there was even an ambnce involved. To tell you the truth, two women tried to drug me that night."


    He paused, just to ensure it sank in. Reporters were scribbling into their notebooks and recording it faithfully. "It was only because of the quick thinking of the bartender on duty that I managed to escape unscathed."


    He continued, knowing that he held their undivided attention.


    "While my family had hoped that it was a one-time situation, I also received threatening texts on my phone. In addition, I realised that my car was being followed a few dayster, when I was on the way to dinner."


    More reporters were looking surprised. Sun Jingwei was getting tantly harassed? That was new. Most people would just stick to ming him online. This was big news - assuming it was true!


    "While this sounds exciting, is there any proof of your ims?" A reporter asked snidely. It was Jun Mu from CBTC. His face was fixed in a sneer. "Mr Sun, I''m here to report news, not your ramblings."


    "I''m d you asked," Jingwei said smoothly, letting his rudeness roll off him like water off a duck''s back. This man would be eating his words soon. "Please watch the unedited video of the scene of my driving. I realise that the one floating around online cropped out a vital element."


    He nodded to Shengli, who broadcasted the video with the projector screen. It was lucky that Shengli got this uncorrupted footage from one of the young men working at the Traffic Police.


    He had it saved without telling his colleagues, because he personally found it dodgy that a ck car was tailing JIngwei''s car, yet none of his colleagues bothered to care.


    And now that video was being broadcasted to all renowned media outlets in the room.


    Reporters, cameramen, sound crews alike all watched in surprise that slowly turned into shock horror as they realised that Sun Jingwei was telling the truth - he was getting tailed by a certain ck car!


    "As you can see," Jingwei spoke, breaking the stunned silence, "I purposely drove recklessly to check if I was truly being followed, or was it my own paranoia from the previous drugging incident. To my surprise, I was indeed being tailed."


    "Why didn''t you go to the police about this incident?" Pei Ling asked, and it was a reasonable question.


    "I didn''t want to postpone my date with my fiancee."


    After the press registered his words, all hell broke loose.

 Chapter 124 The Conference Continues

    Jingwei smiled sheepishly, looking every inch like a man in love. Shengli would have apuded him for his acting abilities, if not for the fact that he knew Jingwei was just being himself.


    "You have a fiancee?" More than one reporter eximed in surprise.


    "Excuse me, Mr Sun. Who is she?"


    "Did Miss Zhou Yu ept your proposal?"


    "How long have you been engaged?"


    Jingwei blinked in fake surprise. Of course, he guessed that he would be getting more questions about his fiancee than his reckless driving. Nothing distracted people better than gossip about celebrity rtionships!


    "Ah for a start, I''m not involved with Miss Zhou." Jingwei started, internally shuddering at the thought. Back when he was still drifting along aimlessly through life, he thought that she would be the right woman for him. She was beautiful and bright, and if he said his heart didn''t beat faster at the thought of having her as his wife, he would be lying.


    It was like she had cast a spell on him, and every time he spoke to her he grew to want her more.


    p His father and brother watched approvingly as Jingwei wooed her. They imed they would suit each other, that she would ground him and make him want to be a better man. Her parents would also make great allies in the business world.</anda>


    Zhou Yu had drive and ambition, they imed. She would straighten you out.


    So Jingwei eagerly went on tons of dates with her, hoping to learn more about the woman he was supposed to spend the rest of his life with. Months passed, and Jingwei had a ring prepared to propose. It would make both families happy, and Zhou Yu was... adequate, for a wife.


    She was terrible to anyone she deemed below her, but then again, she was also terrible to Jingwei. She didn''t approve of any of his hobbies and never stopped insulting his every move, but he could still deal with that. The overall benefits for his family outweighed the cost of his own happiness - and after causing so much trouble for his family, he felt a sense of responsibility to fix things for good.


    Perhaps they would grow to love each other in time.


    But it turned out that Zhou Yu''s ambition was just to milk Jingwei for publicity, and make Wang Kuan, the man she was truly interested in jealous!


    To add insult to injury, he caught her fucking a waiter in the restaurant toilet. When confronted by him, she wasn''t even apologetic for her infidelity!


    "Sun Jingwei, you''re such a trainwreck! So immature and a nuisance. If not for your father''s money, I would never have given you a second nce. Why would I want to spend the rest of my life with you? You''re not even worth Wang Kuan''s pinky toe."


    Needless to say, the engagement was broken.


    Zhou Yu went around telling everyone that he didn''t match his standards. Jingwei took up boxing sses and imagined her face on every sandbag.


    He thought he would never be over it, but now when he thought about it, him getting rejected by her was probably the best thing to happen in his very short life!


    If she had epted the proposal years ago, they''d probably be divorced now because she would be cheating on him, and yet still be chasing after Wang Kuan, another rich tycoon''s son. He would never have met Xue Ning.


    At the thought of her, a peaceful, loving smile formed on his face. The reporters were stunned at the sight. Was this because of the mysterious woman?


    "My wife is not a public figure, so kindly refrain from harassing her." Jingwei added, even though he knew it was futile. "And we''ve been engaged for a while."


    Less than a week in fact, but he wasn''t going to tell the reporters that. Even a pregnancy would take more time to show!


    Reporters continued to fire questions.


    "Where did you two meet?"


    "How long were you engaged?"


    "Does your father approve?"<sub> </sub>


    Jingwei smiled, happy that all the questions he had predicted had been asked.


    "I met her at work."


    Technically he did meet Xue Ning at her workce, he just didn''t specify that her workce was at a club. Let the reporters think that it was an employee - Sun Enterprises had thousands of employees, and they were all protected by thew to prevent people from digging too deeply into their personal lives.


    "Our engagement felt like a long timeing," he continued smiling. It certainly felt like that to him, he felt he waited his whole life for her to enter it. "I''ve never wanted anything more."


    "And my father and brother have both given their support towards my rtionship, and I hope the same can be said for all of you." Jingwei finished proudly.


    This whole fake wife scheme was cooked up by both of them after all. Jingwei was only making sure hemitted to the n! If not, he would also be wasting their efforts.


    How could a filial son like him bear such an usation?


    Yi Ting raised her eyebrows in surprise as she heard Jingwei wax poetic about his bodyguard, half-impressed at the way he had managed to reveal a whole lot of nothing to the press.


    Her boss had really levelled up! He was no longer spouting bullshit at the cameras like he used to, creating PR disasters with every word that came out of his mouth. He was the epitome of a man in clear control, even with his easy smile and friendly nature.


    She quickly monitored the live responses to his words on social media - initially, there was a lot of anger, and calling out on his cagey responses, but now, all of it was forgotten when Jingwei revealed he was engaged!


    Now thements section was rife with spection about who this mysterious woman was.


    "You drove recklessly for a woman?" A reporter scolded. "That''s not responsible."


    "Perhaps so, but I really wanted to celebrate our anniversary with a good dinner," Jingwei said, shrugging sheepishly. If anyone asked, they''d been dating for at least a year.


    "I thought I could simply lose the car following me and nothing would happen," he continued. "After all, who wants to believe they have people trying to kill you and your loved ones? It''s easier to think you''re overreacting. I wanted to believe I was overreacting."


    Jingwei saw a few sympathetic reactions in the audience.


    Time for him to bring out the big guns.


    "As you all know, I have not lived the most peaceful life. My issues might have paid for your bonuses!"


    There was the sound of hastily stifled snorting from the crowd. And from Shengli. Such a great friend.


    "I have always attracted the persistent attention from specific individuals, hence I suspected that it could have been them trying to harm my fiancee on our date. My goal was to lose them so we could have a nice evening, and not make her worry."


    Hopefully Xue Ning wouldn''t kill him for taking some creative liberties with her character. Xue Ning did worry about him, but she was more worried that Jingwei would kill them both via his driving.


    "But it cannot be denied that I caused a lot of trouble and inconvenience for everyone around me, and I am willing to take responsibility for that." Jingwei pauses for dramatic effect.


    "I''m willing topletemunity service to make up for my mistake."


    Everyone''s mouths dropped open. Whoever heard of a billionaire''s son volunteering formunity service?!


    Usually, people like him only showed up to cut fancy ribbons at opening ceremonies, and shake hands with other important people for press photos.


    Surely Sun Jingwei wasn''t going to pick up garbage on the roadside¡­ was he? Who was this woman that could inspire such a big change in his behaviour?

 Chapter 125 Reunion

    Jingwei, seemingly oblivious to the bomb he just dropped on his watchful audience, stood up straight.


    Every eye in the room was drawn to his imposing stature and handsome face. Under the bright lights, he seemingly had the aura of a crown prince ready to inherit a kingdom.


    It was so different, so unlike, from his usual yboy persona that reporters dared not look away, fearing that it was a mirage that would vanish if they simply blinked their eyes.


    When did Sun Jingwei be someone dependable?


    The women (and more than a few men) felt their hearts flutter just a bit when his kind eyes roved over all of them, as though they were the only ones that mattered to him at that very moment.


    (Meanwhile, Shengli caught Yi Ting''s confused eyes. She was clearly wondering what happened to her boss in those few days. Was he reced by a pod-person, or body-jacked by an alien? Did he have another person''s soul stuck in his body?


    Shengli could only give a miniscule shake of his head. He''ll exin it to herter.)


    "I would love to stay and answer more questions, but as you can see, we''ve reached the end of our allocated time together." Jingwei said grandly. "I would not like to take up any more of your precious time than necessary."


    "For any more enquiries, feel free to approach the media branch of Sun Enterprises, we''ll be d to address your questions."


    The reporters clearly felt differently, refusing to leave their seats until they got more details. They had to know if Jingwei was nning on cleaning trash, visiting orphans or building pet shelters for abandoned animals, so they would know when to send a film crew his way.


    But Jingwei had done what he was out to do, and he refused to entertain them for any longer. He gave a politely firm smile and turned around.


    Camera lights shed repeatedly, and reporters continued to yell his name.


    "Mr Sun Jingwei! What do you mean bymunity service?"


    "Mr Sun, will yourmunity service be sentenced by the court?"


    "Mr Sun, when is your wedding?"


    However he ignored all of theirments, striding confidently away. It made the reporters more desperate to get a scoop, and they left their seats to chase after him with their microphones.


    Oh, this was bad.


    "Sun Jingwei!" A voice called out for him from the doors. He could have recognized it in his sleep.


    A delighted smile bloomed on his face as he watched Xue Ning''s figureing closer.


    Jingwei had to do a double-take when he saw her. He had only seen Xue Ning wear a variety of casual wear and work outfits, so seeing her all dolled up like this was something incredible!


    Even from a distance, she looked fantastic in her new outfit. The crystals reflected the bright lights of the room, making her glow, as though she was an angel that descended from Heaven to bless them lesser beings with her presence.


    She had to be from heaven, because her figure was sculpted by the Gods. He felt like every teen male lead when they saw their lovers descend from a staircase at prom, captivated by the beauty his eyes have been privileged to behold.


    His eyes wandered up and down, trying to take all of her in, suddenly feeling the urge to show her off, and gouge out the eyes of anyone that looked at her wrongly.


    Sun Jingwei had immediately stopped trying to escape! The reporters cheered inwardly. Now they can continue to shove their microphones and cameras to his face to get their scoop.


    A few wiser ones chose to direct their attention to the woman that held Sun Jingwei''s attention.


    "Is this your fiancee, Mr Sun?" One reporter asked, and before Jingwei could even reply, they made their own conjectures.


    Mr Sun had mentioned a woman he was so in love with that he was willing to risk possibly dying to eat dinner with her.<sub> </sub>


    The lovesick smile and look of awe on his face as he saw her stormed into the room certainly fit their description.


    Immediately the horde of reporters shifted their focus, turning their cameras and microphones to her.


    Xue Ning blinked, temporarily blinded by the camera shes. If she had known it''ll be something like this, she would have bought a pair of sunsses first!


    "Excuse me! Are you Sun Jingwei''s fiancee?" A reporter demanded.


    "How long have you been engaged?" That reporter never got a straight answer from Jingwei, and hence decided to try his luck with her instead.


    "What do you think about his reckless behaviour?" Another one asked.


    She should have gotten earplugs too. God, these reporters were loud. They had microphones right in front of them, so why were they raising their voices?


    Xue Ning ignored all of their questions, stomping on as many toes as possible to ensure they didn''t block her way. They still didn''t get the hint. Over the crowd of heads, she tiptoed to catch Jingwei''s eye, shooting him a pleading look.


    Help me out of this mess! I''m going to cut a bitch if you don''t! Jingwei let out a richugh that attracted their attention, but his eyes were locked onto Xue Ning''s own.


    He walked closer, every inch the prince from a fairytale. Xue Ning felt her heart skip a beat, and not because he was here to save her from the mob of reporters.


    Viewers from home could only swoon and sigh, wishing they were in the shoes of that mysterious woman.


    The reporters parted to give him a clear look at her, sensing that they would be able to get a better scoop of their loving rtionship if they actually managed to see each other.


    "Kindly let my fiancee through, as you can see, she''s not that tall." Jingwei said glibly, avoiding the death re Xue Ning shot him.


    The reporters waited with baited breath for their meeting. Judging by the displeased look on the woman''s face, they could be seeing a couple arguing!


    They watched as she easily stormed towards him, with multiple cameras pointed in her direction so they didn''t miss a single moment.


    "Hey," Jingwei said, smiling breathlessly as he stared at Xue Ning.


    Xue Ning had always been lovely to him, but right now, he could drown in her beautiful eyes, highlighted in dark kohl and silver shimmer. He was no poet, but even he could be inspired to pen a so or fifty at the sight of her bright red lips, looking so luscious and tempting he wanted to lean down to get a taste.


    Instead he leaned to whisper in her ear.


    "You made it."


    "How could I miss it?" Xue Ning replied sweetly, but Jingwei caught the amusement in her eyes. Her hand reached out for his, and she cocked her head coyly at the door. To anyone else, it would have looked like she was acting cute, but Jingwei caught her signal.


    Jingwei smiled.


    Reporters and paparazzi were beside themselves with glee. Inte viewers were losing their minds. They were holding hands now! Maybe they would kiss next!


    They leaned in closer, their bodies nearly touching. Their hands were still tightly linked, fingersced with one another. Everyone held their breath. Any moment now, they would see them ovee with love and passion!


    Jingwei winked. Xue Ning smirked.


    As one, they both turned and ran straight for the door, with their linked hands swinging madly between them!

 Chapter 126 Unexpected Guests

    "They''re running!" The reporters eximed, stunned. It took them a moment to react, and by then Jingwei and Xue Ning managed to get a good head start. But the reporters weren''t pushovers; they hastily grabbed their equipment to chase them.


    Xue Ning almost felt bad for causing them trouble, then she remembered they camped outside their apartment and inconvenienced their neighbours and one of these fuckers might have been responsible for throwing eggs at Jingwei.


    They could deal with a bit of inconvenience.


    "Mr Sun! Wait!"


    "Mrs Sun! Please answer our questions!"


    While chasing after them, they continued to yell. Xue Ning had to marvel at their lung capacity. It wasn''t as easy to lose this horde of reporters as it was to lose that ck car that put them in this mess in the first ce!


    "Do you know where we''re going?" Xue Ning panted to Jingwei as they ran away.


    "No? I was following you." Jingwei said so cheerfully that she nearly punched him.


    "Great! I have no idea either!" She eximed, taking a quick look behind her. They were still hot on their heels.


    They continued a chase so frantic that Xue Ning had to wonder, through the loud pounding of her heart, if she had ended up in a zombie movie.


    Why did she go and attract so much attention by calling out his name? This wasn''t in her original n at all!


    Before she arrived, she nned to discreetly sneak into the conference room and take a seat at the far corner so she could watch over Jingwei, or sit somewhere at the back where she could keep a better eye out for threats, but then she had arrived sote that the whole thing was nearly over!


    She had to run to the hotel''s conference hall. Xue Ning didn''t want Jingwei to think that she had abandoned him, willingly or not. He deserved to have someone in the audience supporting him, seeing that she had not seen neither the head nor tail of his family members.


    His name just slipped out from her lips by ident. When she saw him being mobbed by the horde of reporters, her first thought was to let him know he wasn''t alone.


    She had forgotten that Jingwei and her couldn''t exactlymunicate via telepathy, and reporters had ears of their own.


    And Jingwei, that dumbass of hers was still standing stock still with a stupid smile on his face as he gazed at her after she called out to him.


    If he was smarter, he should have ran off first - she would have met him elsewhere!


    Moron. Yet she couldn''t help but return the blinding smile Jingwei gave her as they ran off, hand in hand, with her own.


    ''Guess this means I''m a moron too'', Xue Ning thought to herself wryly as they ran through the hotel lobby, giving Jingwei a quick nce.


    He looked nearly beside himself with glee even when he was being chased. She had to roll her eyes at that. Ridiculous man.


    Jingwei was having the time of his life as he held Xue Ning''s hand and got a cardio workout at the same time. A couple that exercised together stayed together!


    (Sure, now their exercises weren''t bedroom exercises, but it was only a matter of time.)<sub> </sub>


    It was romantic to run off hand-in-hand with your lover to escape the press, no matter what anyone said. If they were on a beach and the sun was setting, it would be the perfect moment!


    Just as they had to make a split second decision on which turn to take, a group of men in suits suddenly came into view and formed a barricade between them and the horde of reporters, offering them a safe passage to escape.


    "Who are you people?" Xue Ning asked warily, giving all of them a cautious look. There were at least 15 of them, and they were all tall and well-built. If they wanted to kidnap Jingwei, she wouldn''t be able to fight them off.


    Jingwei took a closer look at the men and frowned.


    "Captain Mu? What are you guys doing here? Does my father know you guys are loitering here instead of protecting him?" Jingwei demanded.


    "Father?" Xue Ning asked.


    "These men are my father''s bodyguards." Jingwei said, frowning. "So none of them should be here. Now answer my question - why are you here?"


    "Your father sent us here," Captain Mu answered evenly. "He sensed that you and Miss Li might have trouble extricating yourselves from the reporters."


    "Huh? But I thought he said he didn''t care?" Jingwei asked, confused. Xue Ning wasn''t much better, but she was also eyeing the bodyguards, trying to emte the way they walked and how their eyes scanned the walkways even as they escorted the both of them to another room.


    She had a chance to observe real bodyguards in action for free! Of course she wasn''t going to miss it.


    Captain Mu knocked on the door and entered, before he turned to the both of them to invite them in.


    "As you ordered, Old Master Sun, I have delivered your son and his fiancee safely to you."


    "Father? What are you doing here? And Ge? You''re here too?" Jingwei eximed. "Why?"


    "Such scepticism from you warms my heart," Tianwei said dryly. His brother was clearly expecting to be abandoned by his family, and Tianwei couldn''t fault him for it.


    Tianwei himself had spent his childhood thinking he was going to be left under a bridge if he couldn''t live up to his father''s standards for his first son.


    "Oh sorry, let me try again." Jingwei said, clearing his throat beforeunching into a more excited tone.


    "Father?! Ge?!" Jingwei eximed excitedly. "I''m so happy to see you! Is ourpany holding a function at this hotel?"


    Beside him, Xue Ning nearly facepalmed with her other free hand at his antics. She would, if not for the fact that Jingwei''s father was once again, ring at her intensely for no reason. She hadn''t even said anything yet.


    "Is this better?" Jingwei asked, standing in front of Xue Ning to once again, shield her from his father''s disapproval.


    "Is this the thanks I get?" His father demanded. "Aren''t you happy that I''m here to support you?"

 Chapter 127 Hardened Wings?

    ? "Aren''t you happy that I''m here to support you?"


    "What support?" Jingwei couldn''t help but retort. "Other than the bodyguards outside, the both of you didn''t lift a single finger to help me when I asked."


    Not that he expected them to. His family had a reputation of never faulting on their promises and threats. His father spent his lifetime making sure that his family was feared by their enemies and allies alike.


    Sun Haowei sucked in a deep breath to calm himself down. Tianwei merely raised an eyebrow at his younger brother''s daring.


    Behind him, Xue Ning was shocked that Jingwei actually called out his father. Not that he didn''t deserve it, mind you. Xue Ning had several less-than-kind words to say to him too.


    "In fact, I think Shengli, Xue Ning and even Yi Ting helped me more than you did," Jingwei continued frankly, ignoring the way a muscle twitched in his father''s jaw. "We couldn''t even get assistance from thepany''swyers because you refused to let them help me."


    After Xue Ning had opened his eyes to his father''s behaviour regarding his mother, he could no longer bring himself to be as civil as before. His father had made things difficult for him and his friends, all because he made a decision he didn''t agree with!


    "Did Mom tell you toe here to support me?" Jingwei asked, half-curious, while his father remained silent. "Did she appear in your dreams to remind you that today was my conference?"


    Xue Ning barely managed to stifle her gasp of surprise, while Tianwei''s mouth fell open in shock.


    Why was Jingwei bringing up his mother? Thete Madame Sun was a taboo subject in the family. Ever since she passed, the only time where Tianwei realised it was socially eptable to talk about her was during Qing Ming, where they visited her tomb.


    And even then, it was mostly Jingwei and him doing the visiting. Their father hardly showed up.


    It was a sobering realisation, that their mom would be an unspoken being in their household. Tianwei was a young teen back then, and the confusing mix of emotions was hard to process, even for someone as rational as him.


    It must have been worse for Jingwei, who was still a child trying to grieve. He felt a twinge of guilt for not doing more for his brother, but back then, he never rebelled against his father''s wishes.


    His father mmed his hand against the table, angered by his impudence. If this was Jingwei from a year ago, he''d simply be d that they showed up in support!


    If his father was displeased with his performance at the press conference, Jingwei would be cracking jokes to defuse the tense situation, or simply ept whatever scolding Sun Haowei wished to throw his way with a bowed head and slumped shoulders.


    But the Jingwei of now held himself proudly, meeting him in the eye without cowering or apology. He briefly inclined his head, still waiting for an answer.


    Tianwei suddenly felt chills crawl down his spine. What happened to his brother? How could a few days of living with Miss Li inspire such a change in his behaviour?


    "How dare you talk back to me!" Sun Haowei dered, pointing a finger at Jingwei, shaking in anger.


    How dare his son bring up his dead wife to call out his behaviour!


    "How am I talking back to you?" Jingwei asked, genuinely curious, oblivious to the rising tension in the room.<sub> </sub>


    The bodyguards around his father were too well-trained to show any outward emotion, but internally they were hoping for Jingwei to keep his mouth shut!


    They wouldn''t be able to protect him from his father if necessary. They also won''t be able to protect the Older Sun from a heart attack!


    "I merely mentioned if Mom had paid you a visit in your dreams. She wished me luck for today''s conference." Jingwei continued. "Or maybe she visited you, but you didn''t recognize her."


    "After all, you haven''t seen her face in decades."


    "Insolent boy!" Sun Haowei roared, nearly purple in the face.


    "Father calm down!" Tianwei said in rm. "Remember, your blood pressure!" He then shot a look at Jingwei, "just because you did well at the press conference, doesn''t mean you can treat Father like this!"


    He then made his father drink his tea, giving a quick look to his bodyguard to keep an ambnce on speed dial.


    "Like what? I just made an observation!" Jingwei pointed out, but he decided to back down for now. He just wanted his father to reflect on himself, not cause his blood vessels to rupture and give him a stroke.


    "But was I wrong? The both of you left me to flounder on my own. If that''s the case, why show up now?"


    Realisation dawned in Jingwei''s eyes the moment he finished speaking.


    "Ah. You want to make sure all of us show a united front to the press." Jingwei said. "You can''t let them know that the Sun family left their youngest to swim or sink. It would make you look heartless, and god forbid anything damage your reputation."


    Even tigers wouldn''t eat their young. At least not when the world was watching.


    Jingwei had a feeling that if the press conference didn''t go well, his father and brother would never have made their presence known to him. But because the crisis was averted, they were here to ensure the positive PR was shared with the whole family.


    Tianwei raised an impressed eyebrow. Jingwei had managed to guess at his thought process.


    "You''ve gotten smarter," Tianwei praised, almost proud. "You''ve done well at the press conference and I don''t have to disown you as my brother."


    Jingwei scoffed, but he couldn''t help the corners of his lips from rising. It was rare for his brother to outrightly praise him, and a small part of him still preened internally at his approval.


    "Done well?" His father scoffed. "It was barely passable, then you had to ruin it by introducing her to everyone!"


    At his words, Jingwei''s eyes hardened.

 Chapter 128 Rudeness?

    "Father, she has a name, and she''s right behind me." Jingwei said warningly. Xue Ning squeezed his hand for support.


    If she wanted to be an asshole, she would have said something like ''don''t be too mad at your father, old people often have memory problems.''


    But she refused to sink to his level! Her parents taught her better than that.


    Hence, she only bowed slightly to him. If she had nothing nice to say, she would say nothing at all.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei could have tolerated rudeness directed at him, but to have Xue Ning tantly ignored by his father while she was still there, after helping him escape the crowd of reporters.


    She was enchantingly lovely, and he had to keep his back to her for his own sanity.


    If he turned around, he would never be able to tear his eyes away from her. Back then, if not for the fact that they were surrounded by pesky rabid reporters, he would have kissed those strawberry red lips of hers, to see if they tasted like the strawberries.


    "Father, you shouldn''t be rude to my fiancee." Jingwei added, still looking at his father. He expected some form of acknowledgement or apology, but of course he didn''t get any.


    "She''s not your real fiancee," his father retorted. "Your entire rtionship is a sham! Don''t get too into ying pretend that you forget who your real family is."


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes, making sure her expression was hidden from view by Jingwei''s back, ignoring the tendril of anger that curled up her spine. His real family? Real family members didn''t leave each other in the lurch, especially when they were trying to do the right thing.


    Jingwei''s eyes darkened further at his father''s words.


    "She is as much my family as you are! Don''t insult her!" Jingwei retorted, upset.


    "Oh? What kind of family can be bought over with money?" His father asked craftily. "She only agreed to stay with you because you had something to offer her, and it isn''t something as worthless as your heart."


    Jingwei flinched, as if hurt. His father was professional at poking at his weak spots. He can''t deny the truth, Xue Ning''s rtionship with him was bound by a contract - Xue Ning herself had mentioned that she wasn''t going to work for free!


    "I -"


    Before he could think of a reply that didn''t make him soundpletely pathetic, Xue Ning gripped his hand hard enough to hurt and tugged him back so he was behind her for a change.


    <o>,m "His heart isn''t worthless! Don''t insult him!" Xue Ning snarled angrily. If she was a cat, she''d be hissing and spitting at him.</o>


    Unfortunately, she was born a human, and hence it was socially uneptable to w out his tongue for his words.


    "Xue Ning¡­" Jingwei caved, his resolution to not stare at her crumpling like wet tissue. He looked at her with a reverent gaze that indicated he was ready to go on his knees to worship her, possibly without clothes.


    In his defence, the conference was over. There was nothing else to distract him from how hot Xue Ning looked when she was shaking with righteous indignation on his behalf. It warmed his heart and sent blood beneath his belt.<sub> </sub>


    The bodyguards had to avert their eyes at the shameless disy of want.


    They had never seen their boss'' youngest son behave this way! He was supposed to be an irreverent yboy that nevermitted to one woman.


    Just watching him behave like a lovesick fool made them feel embarrassed!


    "Your son was trying to be a better person, to do the right thing. He was trying to help," Xue Ning continued, trembling with barely suppressed rage. All the stress from the past few days was catching up with her.


    Sun Haowei and his oldest son didn''t understand how hard Jingwei and the rest of them worked for this conference to be a sess.


    On both mornings, she had woken up to find Jingwei slumped over hisptop in the living room table, a puddle of drool collected at the side of his lips. He had fallen asleep in his chair after working through the night.


    When Xue Ning woke him up, he hurriedly showered and ate breakfast and continued to pore over the documents and rehearse his responses. He held up his end of the agreement - he didn''t let himself be distracted by her.


    It was Xue Ning that slowly felt her heart wavering in his direction when she saw his effort in making things right. It was her, who felt butterflies flutter in her belly when he yawned after she shook him away.


    It was her, who became increasingly distracted by him.


    How could his father im that his heart was worthless! Jingwei''s heart was priceless! It was worth more than his entire empire!


    "Instead of encouraging him or guiding him, the both of you left him to drown by himself!" Xue Ning said, casting Tianwei a furious look. "What kind of older brother are you?"


    She was angry at Jingwei''s father, but she had expected this sort of terrible behaviour from him.


    Xue Ning did not expect such from Tianwei. He disappointed her. In her mind, he was a good older brother to Jingwei. He willingly rammed a car into the car that wanted to kill them.


    So why didn''t he help Jingwei when he needed it?


    He was willing to kill for Jingwei, but not willing to lend him any aid? What logic was this?


    If it was her that got into trouble, her own older brother would have been there offering moral support at the very least!


    "How can you im that you supported him when you did the bare minimum? What right do you have to be angry that he was speaking the truth?" Xue Ning asked angrily.


    "And what right do you, aplete stranger, have to speak about our family''s matters?!" Sun Haowei roared in reply. He gave a condescending look at her entire makeover and scoffed.


    "Just because you''re dressed up now, that doesn''t make you worthy of being Jingwei''s wife. You are not, and will never be part of my family!"

 Chapter 129 Never Say Never

    p "Just because you''re dressed up now, that doesn''t make you worthy of being Jingwei''s wife. You are not, and will never be part of my family!"</anda>


    "Father! How could you - " Jingwei yelled from behind her, but Sun Haowei wasn''t done with his hurtful statement.


    "Get away from my son!" Sun Haowei demanded, flinging a cup of tea straight at Xue Ning''s head!


    Xue Ning''s first reaction was to dodge it, then she stilled, remembering that Jingwei was behind her! If she moved away, he''d be the one hit by the cup.


    So she stopped, deciding to let herself get hit instead. With how sharp the crystals on her outfit were, she had a feeling that she''d be fine.


    What she didn''t expect was Jingwei''s hand to shoot out from behind her ear to bat it away like an annoying fly!


    "Xue Ning, get behind me!" Jingwei demanded. She turned to stare at him incredulously - and she wasn''t the only one, Tianwei, his father and the whole host of bodyguards couldn''t believe their eyes.


    Where was the sweet-tempered, weak-willed and good-for-nothing Young Master Sun?


    The tea cup fell on the floor with a loud crack and shattered into smithereens. Warm tea spilled all over the cool marble floors, and Jingwei pulled Xue Ning away so that she wouldn''t be hit by any stray droplets of tea.


    Xue Ning''s mouth fell open and she could only blink in surprise. Sun Jingwei looked like a man out for blood!


    Meanwhile, everyone also turned to stare at Jingwei in shock. Tianwei was about to scold Jingwei for interfering, but he stilled at the look in his eyes. Jingwei''s face was darker than a stormcloud, and his eyes had the look of a predator.


    There wasn''t the customary fear or hesitance Tianwei was used to seeing. There was no panic in Jingwei''s eyes at the fact that the woman he loved could have been hurt.


    Instead, his eyes were full of outrage.


    At that dangerous look in Jingwei''s eyes, Xue Ning felt a gentle warmth spread through her, simr to the first time when he defended her from Xiaohui''s justifications, but now it settled deep into her bones, healing her from inside.


    Sun Jingwei was undoubtedly on her side. He was hers, and she was his.


    Xiaohui was just a waitress that was made to hurt her, but Sun Haowei was Jingwei''s biological father!


    It must have taken him a lot more courage to defend her against him, than to defend her against poor Xiaohui, who was merely acting on orders.


    Even if their rtionship was a mixture between best friends, employee and employer, and a strange arranged marriage in the public eye, at the heart of it, it was all very simple in the end.


    Xue Ning had wasted her brain cells trying topartmentalise it, only for her emotions to spill everywhere despite her best efforts, just like that cup of tea on the floor.


    She could only let out a helpless huff ofughter at her own stupidity, shaking her head.


    At Xue Ning''s exhtion, Jingwei''s focus shifted back to her. She gave him a slight smile and squeezed his hand.


    "Idiot, I''m fine. Don''t worry."


    In that moment, he snapped out of his protective rage. The darkness in his eyes dissipated, and it was reced with boyish nervousness as he hovered around her, fluttering like an anxious butterfly.<sub> </sub>


    "Are you unhurt? Did the shards cut you? The tea didn''t ssh on you right?"


    Xue Ningughed and waved him off, which of course set off rm bells in Jingwei''s head.


    Which woman wouldugh after being insulted so terribly and nearly getting brained by a cup of tea?


    Xue Ning must have been seriously hurt by his father''s words to use humour as a coping mechanism! Internally he despaired further - now Xue Ning was going to dump him for sure!


    Which sane woman would want to be saddled with a father-inw that was so rude?


    "I''m fine, I''m fine. Don''t stress about it." Xue Ning repeated, looking at him fondly. She normally hated people fussing over her, but somehow, it was endearing when Jingwei did it. Possibly because he knew she could take care of herself, but wanted to do it anyway.


    Because he could. Because she was important to him.


    "Didn''t you say frowning causes wrinkles?" She chided gently, flicking the centre of his forehead, causing him to blink in confusion. "Stop looking like you want to murder someone."


    "I''m not!" Jingwei protested. "I was just worried."


    "I''m more bummed about the tea honestly," Xue Ning pointed out. "Such a waste of good tea."


    She could only internallyment at the waste of a particrly good tea cup, along with the loss of a particrly good tea! With how intricate the design was on the cup and how bright the colours were, that tea cup probably cost as much as a year''s worth of her rent.


    She could still smell the fragrance of the tea all over the floor. Such a waste from someone who had the world and still took things for granted.


    "I''ll buy you some afterwards," Jingwei promised dotingly, which was entirely not the point and it had the added effect of making his father mad enough to puke metaphorical blood all over the floor!


    Sun Haowei knew this would happen when he let them live together! What did Tianwei say again - that they would hate each other and split? Nonsense! Now they were stuck together like mas!


    His death re waspletely ignored by his son and Li Xue Ning, for they were in their own world, so he could only re at his oldest instead.


    It was his fault for encouraging this scheme! Now he had to fix this!


    Tianwei sighed, upset. Why was he med for this when his father had agreed on it too? He decided to keep silent for the rest of this spectacle, refusing to be dragged into this mess any more than he already had.


    "Alright, will the both of you stop flirting?" Tianwei asked tiredly. "The rest of us are still in the room."


    "It''s not like I wanted you people in the room," Jingwei retorted dryly. "You''re free to leave, you know."


    "Hmph, the one leaving should be her," Sun Haowei spat out, shooting Xue Ning a venomous look. While this woman motivated his son to be less useless, she was also inciting his son to openly rebel against him!


    She was a thorn in his side, a cavity in his tooth. And what did people do with thorns and decayed teeth?


    They had them extracted, at all costs!

 Chapter 130 Offers

    For the sake of maintaining the prestige of the Sun family''s dynasty, this menace of a woman had to go!


    Sun Haowei leaned back imperiously and cleared his throat, the noise finally distracting the rude lovebirds from their strange mating ritual.


    "Since I''m still feeling charitable, I shall make you an offer, Miss Li." He began grandly.


    Xue Ning narrowed her eyes in suspicion. Sun Haowei was never the poster child for charitable acts; no one could create a billion dor empire if they were charitable. Rich people were often the stingiest - unless they were Jingwei of course. He spared no expense for her so far.


    "Are you still interested in being a bodyguard, Miss Li? Or have you given up on this ridiculous dream?" Sun Haowei asked.


    "I haven''t given up!" Xue Ning dered. "What''s it to you?"


    "I''ll give you 10 million yuan, along with an open admission to whatever bodyguard academy you wish to enrol in! It''s an offer valid for the rest of your life, for you to achieve your dreams to be a female bodyguard. Are you interested?"


    "What''s the catch?" Xue Ning asked, crossing her arms. She had seen this exact scenario y out on TV more than once. "Are you going to make me leave Jingwei like all those rich mothers-inw in soap dramas? That''s very cliche of you."


    Sun Haowei paused, his thunder suddenly stolen by her words. But he persisted anyway - by hook or by crook, he must achieve his goal of removing her from his son''s life!


    "Precisely. Leave my son and never see him again!"


    Jingwei gave his father a horrified look.


    "Father! You promised me not to interfere if I stopped biking!"


    "An oral agreement has no binding in the court ofw," Sun Haowei retorted. Xue Ning''s eyebrow twitched at his words, while making a mental note that Jingwei knew how to bike. Hopefully he would teach her in future; she had always wanted to try it.


    "A man is as good as his word. If you can break your promises to your son¡­ then your words are as worthless as fart." Xue Ningmented haughtily. "Give me a good reason why I should trust your offer."


    "You idiotic woman! I''m offering you more money you will ever make in your sorry life and this is how you reply to me?" Sun Haowei mmed his hand on the table, furious.


    "How long do you think this slutty body of yours can hold my son''s attention?" Sun Haowei continued. "You should cut your losses while you''re ahead!"


    "I don''t trust you to deliver on your offer." Xue Ning said honestly, her eyes bright with rage at his disparagingments. Jingwei meanwhile, could only stare nkly at him, appalled by his father''s rudeness.


    "There''s only your word as a guarantee, and you just said ''an oral agreement has no binding in the court ofw''. How can you expect me to believe you?" She asked, after quoting him word for word.


    "And I have never slept with your son! It''s your son that chased me first, it''s your son that deres he loves me, it''s your son that wants to sleep with me!" Xue Ning argued. "If you want to me someone, me him!"


    Sun Haowei gnashed his teeth, but she wasn''t done.


    "More importantly, I''m offended that you think your son is worth only 10 million! Even his face alone is worth more than that!"<sub> </sub>


    "Xue Ning!" Jingwei cried out, awed by the way she argued with his father and touched by herst sentence. "So you still think I''m handsome! Even when I have eyebags and I don''t wash my hair!"


    She turned to look at him and smacked his arm, half-embarrassed. "You already knew that, stop fishing forpliments!"


    "Nonsense! I didn''t know that! And besides, I always want more praise from you!" Jingwei dered fervently. Everyone could imagine a tail wagging behind him the moment he heard Xue Ning say something nice about him.


    "Come on, say more nice things about me! Praise me more! Other than my handsome face, what else do you like about me?"


    "SHAMELESS!" Sun Haowei screamed out loud, wishing he was deaf at that very moment. s, the gods above didn''t hear his prayer, and left him alive to witness this circus.


    How did he raise such a pathetic son that was begging forpliments from his fake wife?


    "I know what you are! You''re just like your mother - you''re a temptress! A vixen! Stop hoodwinking my son with honeyed words and bed favours! Take the money and scram, before things get ugly!"


    Sun Haowei screamed, his face twisted with rage, his saliva gathering at the sides of his lips.


    Before she realised it, he spat at her!


    Xue Ning flinched in disgust. That was so gross and unhygienic! How could this multi-billionaire be behaving like a drunk uncle at the roadside?


    Thankfully, she was far away enough that the spit didn''tnd on her.


    "Father, stop this nonsense!" Jingwei demanded, his temper rising yet again after his father insinuated that Xue Ning was sleeping with him for money. Now he was outrightly insulting her and her family members too!


    "You are being unfair and unreasonable." Jingwei hissed out, feeling incredibly disappointed at his father''s behaviour. "Why are you acting this¡­deranged? Father, do you have dementia? Is this a sign of Alzheimers?"


    "Also, did you forget what I said before? If you try any tricks like this, I''ll ride my bike off a cliff! You''ll have to piece my body back together just to hold my funeral!"


    His father scoffed.


    "Do that, and I''ll charge her entire family with conspiracy to murder. Let''s have her parents, older brother and his wife enjoy a long extended stay in our state prison." Sun Haowei promised, eyes glittering with malice.


    "I''m sure Miss Li would enjoy being cut off from everyone she ever loved, and she can''t even depend on you."


    Xue Ning felt chills descend her spine. Somehow, she knew that this man was capable of making that threat a reality. Sun Haowei leaned forward and smirked.


    "How do you propose to protect her from the grave, my son? When your existence is what puts her in danger?"

 Chapter 131 Your Worth

    "How do you propose to protect her from the grave, my son? When your existence is what puts her in danger?"


    "Father¡­ you''re terrible!" Jingwei could only shake his head in a mixture of confusion, rage and terror.


    Why did his father hate Xue Ning so much? Sure, she wasn''t the most polite of women, and her family had humble origins, but it seemed to him that he had a personal vendetta against her.


    Even during their first meeting, he had detected faint animosity radiating off his father. It grew stronger during breakfast, but Jingwei assumed that it would fade when they hadn''t seen each other.


    Why was it that his father continued to hate her so much? What could Xue Ning have possibly done to him?


    He checked on Xue Ning, worried that she''d be hurt by his father''s harsh words. She didn''t deserve to be called a seductive slut, nor did her family deserve to be threatened with a jail sentence.


    To his surprise, Xue Ning had a nonchnt smile on her face. Paired with the abhorrent hate in her eyes, it made for a terrifying image! Xue Ning looked like she was thinking of how best to disembowel his father and hide the body.


    The bodyguards around the room simultaneously tensed, sensing her bloodlust. Miss Li Xue Ning did not look like she posed a credible threat, but who knows what actions rage can inspire?


    Sun Haowei only smirked at her, knowing that no matter how angry she was, she could not strike him for fear of retaliation.


    Such was the fate of the poor and weak in their country. These people were nothing more than ground that his empire was built on, the cogs in his machine. They had to know their ce in society, and it was definitely not by his son''s side!


    "Are you going to p me?" He taunted her, knowing that she could not even hope to deal any damage. "I wee it."


    Xue NIng closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. She would not rise to the provocations of a downright rude old man who believed that the world revolved around his whims, who judged women by their sexual activities (orck thereof).


    She can y his game. She gave him a smile that had too many teeth to be polite.


    "Oh, I would never hit someone as elderly as you." Xue Ning started, "But I''ll still argue with you regarding one point: your son, Sun Jingwei, is definitely worth more than what you think of him."


    "I was right, you are a mercenary gold-digger. How much do you want then?" His father said proudly, as though his expectations have been met.


    "Xue Ning?" Jingwei began cautiously. He was initially sure that Xue Ning wouldn''t take up his father''s offer, but after seeing how his father insulted her continuously, he was having doubts.


    Xue Ning caught his hesitant look and gave his hand aforting squeeze.


    "Don''t worry, if I ept your father''s money, I''ll make sure to share it with you." Xue Ning said to Jingwei, tantly revealing her ns to his father, whose face was slowly resembling a grape. "But first, let me haggle with your father about your worth."


    What else could Jingwei do butugh helplessly at her pragmatic response? He flung a protective arm in front of her, just in case his father forgot he was still on her side.<sub> </sub>


    "I look forward to hearing it my dear. Let me know how highly you think of me."


    "For a start, you are a healthy male in your mid-twenties. Just your organs alone would be worth a fortune," Xue Ning started. "Kidneys, liver, bone marrow, pancreas, lungs, skin¡­ all those together should be worth more than a billion."


    "What about my heart?" Jingwei had to ask. "Surely it must be worth a lot."


    "Yes, but you said it was already mine. I''m not selling it." Xue Ning replied firmly, even if her cheeks bloomed red at her own shameless reply.


    Jingwei shot a look of pure adoration. His wife was so smart! So witty! So darling!


    ? His smile turned filthier as he thought of another organ that waspletely hers. If they were alone, he''d give her a preview on that huge king-sized bed, but unfortunately, he was cockblocked by his father, his brother, and their entire bodyguard team.


    Xue Ning caught that change in his smile and smacked him again, giving him a warning look.


    ''Behave.''


    Her arguing with his father was already bad enough, if he popped a boner because of it, his father might just murder them!


    "How much do you want then?" His father spat out angrily.


    "How much is your son worth to you?" Xue Ning asked, morbidly curious. "It should be at least half of your empire, yes?"


    "You -" Sun Haowei was speechless with rage. His son must have been blind, to fall in love with such a woman. She acted like she didn''t care about money, only to demand her lion''s share of the ransom when he least expected it!


    "If you''re not willing to give me that much, I''m not leaving him," Xue Ning said defiantly. "Your son is a good man who tries his best to do the right thing, even when it might backfire. He''s worth a hundred of you."


    Beside her, Jingwei had to blink back the tears that were suddenly welling in his eyes. He didn''t deserve her, but he was so grateful that Xue Ning entered his life.


    His father scoffed at her words. "You''re delusional. My son''s past is full of skeletons - you should not invest more feelings into him, you''ll only get heartbroken at the end."


    He turned to his youngest and barked out. "She must know nothing about you! Let me guess, you''re such a coward that you didn''t tell her about Zhou Yu?"


    Jingwei''s face paled, and his father smirked victoriously, pouncing on this moment of weakness.


    His son thought that he could fly out the nest with such flimsy wings of his? Dream on!

 Chapter 132 Skeletons In The Closet

    "Zhou Yu''s not the only secret - I''m sure you did not tell her about what happened with Bai Shi Ting? With Wu Shang Jing. Are you scared that she''ll leave you after she knows?"


    Jingwei spluttered, all earlier bravado gone. Instead, he was filled with an overwhelming dread at the truth of his father''s words.


    Sun Haowei smiled nastily, having made his point.


    Xue Ning could only blink in surprise at the sudden change in his mood. She didn''t know Sun Jingwei long enough for him to be spilling all his life''s secrets to her, but if they were all pain in the asses like Zhou Yu, she would understand why


    "Well, I''ve already met Zhou Yu," Xue Ning said, shrugging casually. "She''s a real piece of work."


    Even if Sun Haowei made sense, she didn''t want to give him the satisfaction of being right!


    "You have? When?" Jingwei asked, panicking.


    "At Lady Su Yan''s ce," Xue Ning said ominously. "I''ll tell you more about itter."


    Jingwei could only console himself with the fact that Xue Ning still wanted to talk to himter. So whatever happened with Zhou Yu couldn''t be that bad¡­right?


    Maybe he should call Lady Su Yan for a brief summary, just to get more information.


    "And I don''t know anything about the other two names, but that''s fine for now. I''m sure Jingwei will tell me the truth in due time, Old Master Sun. Thank you for worrying about me," Xue Ning said, somehow managing to make his father''s title sound like an insult.


    Sun Haowei bristled at her tone.


    "Now weren''t we negotiating about Jingwei''s dowry?" Xue Ning asked. "Oh wait, I mean his worth."


    "I''m the bride?" Jingwei thought for a moment, then nodded in agreement. "Sounds fair. As long as you''re the husband, I''m fine with that!"


    "I''m not fine with that!" Sun Haowei seethed, pissed at the thought of his youngest son being talked about as a bride. "And he does not deserve half my inheritance - Jingwei has put in no real work in running the business!"


    Behind Sun Haowei, Tianwei had to stop a pleased smile from forming on his lips. Just as he predicted, everything his father owned will indeed be left to him alone. Out of brotherly feelings, he''ll make sure to leave Jingwei a sizable share so he could live the rest of his days infort, provided he didn''t cause any trouble for him.


    "Why not? Jingwei is also your son, and you only have two children right?" Xue Ning shrugged easily. "How can he get nothing? It stands to reason that he''s worth half. Unless¡­ Do you have illegitimate children roaming around?


    Sun Haowei''s face paled for a split second, before it regained its customary reddish hue of anger.


    Behind him, Sun Tianwei caught that brief moment of fear. He narrowed his eyes in suspicion.


    Meanwhile, Captain Mu inhaled sharply after registering all her words. His entire team also looked shell-shocked at the nerve of this woman, but none of them could interfere without Old Master Sun''s explicit orders.


    Thest time someone said something disparaging about Old Master Sun, his team had to restrain that offending party and cart him away in a body bag.


    (Of course, no one else knew that. Captain Mu and his team prided themselves on discretion. There was a reason why they could remain in Sun Haowei''s employ for over a decade.)


    Normally, Old Master Sun would order them to have Miss Li ''taken care of'', but now he couldn''t, because his own son was in the way, throwing his weight behind her. If he tried anything, Sun Jingwei may sacrifice himself for her, and his death wasn''t worth the trouble!


    If Sun Jingwei died, Sun Haowei could just as suddenly have a change of heart and have his entire team imprisoned. A decade of working as a bodyguard for the most corrupt of individuals had taught him to protect his team''s interests, first and foremost!


    But this woman, Li Xue Ning, wasn''t done.<sub> </sub>


    "I did hear rumours about you keeping mistresses, and I''m sure Jingwei had to pick up his womanising behaviour from somewhere." She said, patting Jingwei''s arm to let him know she wasn''t insulting him on purpose.


    "The apple doesn''t fall far from the tree. If you''re mad at his actions and decisions, you should be reflecting on your abilities as a father."


    "You insolent, impertinent - " Sun Haowei panted out, his eyes bulging with hatred. One hand was thumping his chest, while the other hand inched closer to the teapot.


    Jingwei tensed, eyeing the hand warily. He stood in front of Xue Ning, his arm outstretched to shield her.


    If they wanted to hurt her, they would have to go through him.


    Unfortunately, Xue Ning didn''t appreciate his efforts. She merely pulled him back by his cor so he was behind her again!


    "Don''t be ridiculous," she chided. "I''m the bodyguard here, remember?"


    At this deration, Captain Mu could only stare at her in distaste. This woman dared to call herself a bodyguard? With herck of skills and poor attitude?


    Old Master Sun said that Miss Li would have ess to any bodyguarding academy. Was he nning to bribe Miss Li into the famed Imperial Guardian Academy in Berlin that was famous for having ridiculously high standards?


    More importantly, this tiny woman wanted to be a bodyguard?


    That was preposterous!


    More than her gender and her size, it was her temperament that made her unsuitable. Female bodyguards were rare, but he knew of ''Lipstick Daggers'', a Russian organisation that specialised in training female bodyguards.


    Bodyguards had to remain cool, calm and collected. They weren''t supposed to respond to provocations - their responsibility was to secure the safety of their client, not to engage in verbal fist fights!


    With how easily she got riled up in Jingwei''s defence, she would never be able to pass the tests given!


    Old Master Sun must have known it too, hence he made this offer. If she had epted, she would be richer, but the bodyguard dream would still remain just that. Some people were simply not cut out for this line of work.


    "I know, I know, but I always want to protect you," Jingwei said seriously. "Especially from my family. My dad would fling that hot pot of tea at you without hesitation!"


    They looked at said father, who was strangely enough, not doing any of that.


    Sun Haowei''s eyes were still bulging in anger, and his hand continued to rub his chest, as though he was in pain. But he panted desperately, as though he couldn''t get enough air, and beads of sweat were forming on his forehead despite the cold air conditioning.


    He pointed a shaking finger at the both of them, trying to speak, but his voice was weak and uneven, a far cry from the loud roaring he did earlier.


    "Ungrateful¡­ you''ll pay¡­suffer¡­"


    Suddenly, Xue Ning had a feeling something was horribly wrong. It couldn''t have been a food allergy, for Sun Haowei didn''t eat anything strange. That means¡­


    "Father, what''s wrong?" Jingwei asked anxiously. His father had never behaved like this before.


    "CALL AN AMBULANCE!" She screamed, and everyone jumped in surprise. "Your father''s having a heart attack!"

 Chapter 133 Endless Panic

    "CALL AN AMBULANCE!" She screamed, and everyone jumped in surprise. "Your father''s having a heart attack!"


    At Xue Ning''s words, everyone started panicking!


    Captain Mu immediately dialled for an ambnce, rattling off what happened to who and the directions to their location, with strict warnings to make it in time or else they would face unforeseen retribution.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei ran towards his dad, trying to help. But then he realised he hadn''t a single clue what to do!


    Tianwei wasn''t faring much better, he desperately clutched his father''s shoulders with his hands, but short of shaking him, there was nothing he could help with!


    (There was a sudden dark thought that rose in his mind - if his father passed now, he''ll inherit the entire estate. He had to squash it down - he was a callous man, but even he wouldn''t sink to wishing an early death on his father!)


    "YOU!" Tianwei screamed at Xue Ning, who was also trying to help his father. As far as Tianwei was concerned, she was responsible for this mess that ensued, so she had to fix it! "Save him!"


    "THEN CALL THE DAMNED AMBULANCE!" Xue Ning retorted, feeling guilt and panic colliding within her. She never expected her arguing would cause Sun Haowei to get a heart attack!


    He was a terrible person, but she didn''t want him to die like this, and especially not in front of his children.


    What could she do? Suddenly she remembered her parents taught her something important!


    "Is there an aspirin? If he''s not allergic, get him to chew and swallow one!" She ordered, feeling more calm and in control.


    At her instructions, Tianwei hastily unlocked his father''s briefcase and took out his medicine bag. He overturned everything onto the table, and Tianwei, Jingwei and Xue Ning began rifling through the pile to find the right one.


    There were high blood pressure meds, high cholesterol meds, high blood sugar meds¡­ his father had a verifiable cocktail of drugs swirling inside him.


    Xue Ning could only blink in surprise - Sun Haowei needed so many medications just to keep him alive and fit to maintain his business empire!


    If anyone of them were missing, that man''s body definitely would be in a world of pain.


    "Got it!" Jingwei cried out triumphantly, snatching a packet from the rest.


    "Give it here," Tianwei demanded and didn''t even bother waiting for a reply to snatch it out from his hands. After reading thebel to see that it was indeed aspirin and not something else, he hurried to his father and shoved one tablet in his mouth.


    "Father! Chew this!"


    Sun Haowei could only blink at him.


    "Ge!" Jingwei protested. "Wouldn''t it be better if you squashed it first before giving it to Father? I don''t think he can chew!"


    "Don''t tell me what to do!" Tianwei said harshly, even if Jingwei had made a good suggestion. "This entire mess was caused by you to begin with!"


    Jingwei flinched in pain, falling silent. But his brother was right. If his father died because of this, he''d be the most unfilial son!


    "The ambnce will be here very soon," Captain Mu''s voice cut through the panic. "For now, we must keep Old Master Sun calm."<sub> </sub>


    "He''s right," Xue Ning agreed. "Can the both of you carry him to the bed or the sofa so he can lie down and rest first?"


    Tianwei and Jingwei moved as one, each brother trying to lift Sun Haowei up by his arms.


    However, Sun Haowei was a stubborn man, and he waved one of his hands to shoo them away, disagreeing with her words. Xue Ning could only feel exasperated.


    She eximed, "I''m trying to keep you alive you stubborn old man! Stop fighting me on this!"


    He red at her, but his other hand was still pressing on his chest, as though he could rip out his own heart to stop it from hurting, and that was not a good sign!


    Maybe he would listen to his own bodyguard''s advice, if not her own. She turned to Captain Mu pleadingly. "Back me up on this, you know he should be lying down right?"


    Everyone turned to stare at him.


    Captain Mu blinked.


    Actually, he wasn''t too sure about her words. In the recent years since he started working for Sun Haowei, his job scope involved squashing all forms of dissent on Old Master Sun''s behalf. In fact, he probably caused more heart attacks to business rivals than actually protecting people!


    (As a bodyguard, that was something shameful to realise. But that was life. The idealism of bing a bodyguard to protect the weak and vulnerable was nothing more than a fantasy. They weren''t superheroes - they were just paid human shields, soullessckeys for the rich and corrupt.)


    Regarding Old Master Sun''s condition, he would have to take her word for it.


    But could this woman be trusted?


    From what he saw earlier, she harboured intense dislike that nearly bordered hatred for his boss, and the feeling was mutual.


    Could someone like that be kind enough, rational enough, to offer life-saving advice?


    If he agreed to her advice and Sun Haowei died, he might have to share some of the me! He and his team might be demoted if lucky, imprisoned if not.


    But if he didn''t agree and Sun Haowei died anyway¡­ the bulk of the me would then be put on her and Sun Jingwei. The both of them were responsible for aggravating Old Master Sun''s poor heart!


    He made his decision. He shook his head.


    "I do not agree," Captain Mu said. Her face fell and she threw her hands up in the air.


    "Fine! In that case, can you at least get him to stop putting pressure on his chest? It''s making things worse!"


    Before Captain Mu could reply with something snide like ''I don''t take orders from you'' or ''how do I know you won''t end up killing him'', Sun Haowei''s eyes rolled backwards, and he slumped into the panicked arms of his sons.


    Sun Haowei had copsed.


    "You murderer!"

 Chapter 134 Saving Him

    "You murderer! Look what you''ve caused!" Tianwei yelled, shaking his fist at her.


    "If you had just listened to me -" Xue Ning yelled back, aggrieved. "Just carry him to the bed and get him to lie down now!"


    "Ge! Just do what she says!" Jingwei pleaded, terrified that his father would die the longer they spent arguing about what was the right course of action, instead of actually taking action.


    "I will not!" Tianwei retorted, determined to refuse any suggestion that came from Xue Ning''s mouth.


    His attention was focused on ming Xue Ning. Who knew if her aspirin suggestion was even meant in good faith? She could have purposely made him eat a medication that made things worse.


    A horrifying realisation dawned on Tianwei - he might have identally fed his father a tablet that killed him! Everyone in the room saw him snatched the tablets straight out of Jingwei''s hands and stuffed one in his father''s mouth.


    If his father did pass away, he''d be an essory to murder, an aplice to killing his father - and there were so many witnesses in this room, it would be a hassle to seal their lips!


    Maybe this was Xue Ning''s n all this while, to have him help murder his own father so Jingwei could inherit the entirety of the estates and businesses.


    He had really underestimated her!


    "Ge!" Jingwei''s panicked voice cut through his thoughts. Tianwei turned to see Jingwei holding a shaking finger to his father''s nose, tears welling in his eyes.


    "Father''s not breathing!"


    "Oh my god, you killed him," Tianwei muttered nkly as he stared at Xue Ning. A fog descended on his brain, at the thought of possibly losing his father for good. A numbing cold spread from his fingertips to the rest of his body. "I did too¡­ I helped¡­"


    Xue Ning, having had enough of being med for everything that went wrong by a group of men that refused to listen to her instructions on how to make things better, easily shoved the two shell-shocked sons aside to lie Sun Haowei t on the floor.


    Sun Haowei may have stopped breathing, but she knew how to get him to start again.


    She opened his airways and checked for breathing. Just like what Jingwei said, there was no breath. She listened for his heart beat. There was none.


    There was nothing for it. She would have to perform CPR.


    "Xue Ning? What are you doing to my father?" Jingwei asked. He was ignored as Xue Ning began to conduct chestpressions on Sun Haowei, making sure to keep the count steady. She had no time to waste on distractions, not when saving a life was at stake!


    Unfortunately, chestpressions alone aren''t enough to revive him. Xue Ning steeled herself to perform the rescue breaths. She made sure Sun Haowei''s mouth was clear before she tilted his head back slightly and lifted his chin.


    She pinched his nose shut and ced her mouth fully over his. She could hear choking noises from the men around her. If the situation wasn''t so dire, she would have rolled her eyes. Haven''t they seen anyone conduct CPR before?


    She took a deep breath and blew into Sun Haowei''s mouth. His chest rose.


    She continued alternating between the rescue breaths andpressions, despite getting steadily more tired when it still didn''t yield any result. She couldn''t fail now - Sun Haowei was nothing more than an arrogant bully, an utter scumbag of a father, but clearly Jingwei loved him desperately and still wished for his approval.


    He would be so upset if his father died. That was enough reason for Xue Ning to keep trying.


    Unbeknownst to her, her honest efforts were noticed by many in the room.<sub> </sub>


    Captain Mu revised his initial opinion of her. He and his team could only watch in stunned, reverent silence as this young woman, who had every reason to not bother with Sun Haowei, continued to do her best to save him, while they, Sun Haowei''s actual bodyguards, stood by helplessly.


    The feeling of shame they felt was unbearable! If Sun Haowei made it out alive, Captain Mu decided that he would voluntarily mentor this young girl in the ways of being a bodyguard. Maybe she''ll manage to retain the idealism that led him into this career in the first ce.


    It could have been hours, it could have been minutes. Time had blurred together into something iprehensible, and Xue Ning''s hands were beginning to shake from exertion.


    "Xue Ning¡­" Jingwei watched her, half-wanting her to stop. He wanted his father to live, but he didn''t want Xue Ning to tire herself out while trying to save him! She was already paler and shivering slightly. His heart ached.


    Xue Ning didn''t hear anyone calling for her. Her worldview had shrunk to an incredible, wondrous sight - Sun Haowei coughed, and h''s chest was rising and falling automatically, without any help on her part.


    He was breathing.


    He was alive.


    She did it. She sessfully saved him!


    Just to make sure, she listened for a heart beat. It was weak and erratic, but it was there, and that fact was good enough for her.


    "He''s alive," Jingwei choked out wondrously, staring at his father with tears in his eyes. "Xue Ning you did it! You saved him!"


    He reached out to hold Xue Ning in delight, but Xue Ning only made a tired noise and waved him off.


    She fell backwards on the floor, falling on her butt as she panted at the air.


    After such a scare, her limbs felt as strong as limp noodles. Her body was soaked with sweat from the exertions, and it felt like she passed some of her own life force to Sun Haowei.


    All in all, the relief and exhaustion made her feel like a stic bag caught in the wheels of a car.


    "When''s the ambnce arriving," she murmured tiredly. She would have gone to the window to check, but she didn''t feel like moving.


    Besides, who knew if Sun Haowei would just choose to stop breathing? It''s best to keep a close eye on him.


    Jingwei, never a man to back down from rejection, came and tucked Xue Ning against his firm body, letting her tired back rest against his firm chest.


    It was a testament to how tired Xue Ning was that she only grumbled wordlessly, but slumped against him anyway, even as Jingwei squeezed her, nosed at her neck, all while rubbing her mmy hands in his to warm them up.


    "You did it! You''re so amazing¡­ I love you so much¡­Thank you for saving his life!" Jingwei cheered effusively, punctuating each break with a kiss on her cheeks.


    "Don''t thank me yet, wait till your father gets to the hospital first," Xue Ning said tiredly. She opened her eyes and red at him.


    "And don''t kiss me here, do you want your father to get another heart attack?"

 Chapter 135 I Choose You

    "And don''t kiss me here, do you want your father to get another heart attack?"


    Xue Ning cried out, pushing away Jingwei''s hands. Jingwei''s eyes were full of pain as they watched Xue Ning extricate herself from his hold, refusing to let him touch her again.


    Now was not the time for him to cuddle; and depending on how things with his father ended up, they might never cuddle again.


    His father hated her. And she gave him a heart attack.


    Even if Jingwei fancied himself in love with her just half an hour ago, surely this incident would have made him reconsider! She blinked back frustrated tears at how things developed - just when she finally made up her mind to pursue a possible rtionship with Jingwei, life had to interfere in the worst way possible.


    Sun Haowei had barely managed to survive a heart attack now, but what if he saw her with Jingwei and had a stroke next?


    How could she make Jingwei choose between his father and her? He might have chosen her now, but what if he regretted his decision yearster?


    People could change their lovers, but they only had one set of parents for a lifetime. What if Jingwei finally decided, possibly yearster, that Xue Ning was not worth his father''s life?


    What would happen to Xue Ning after that? How could she go back to a life without Sun Jingwei after experiencing a life with him?


    Him choosing his father over her would be the rational decision, but Xue Ning would be lying if she said she wouldn''t be devastated by it.


    She blinked back more tears, upset at her thoughts.


    "Xue Ning¡­" Jingwei murmured softly, sensing her distress. Xue Ning must have felt so guilty, thinking that she was the one responsible for his father''s state. "Come here¡­ don''t cry¡­"


    He murmured into her ear as he hugged her once again. "It''s not your fault. I know it feels like it¡­ but¡­ it''s not. If anyone is at fault, it''s me."


    The relief Jingwei felt at his father''s survival was making room for guilt. It was his insistence on defending Xue Ning, his insistence of continuing their rtionship (among other things) that led to his father developing a heart attack.


    But his decisions were not Xue Ning''s fault, none of this was, and if he could turn back time, he wouldn''t have said or done anything differently, other than maybe calling for an ambnce before he opened his mouth.


    "Xue Ning, you need to know this. No matter what happened today, I don''t regret my actions." Jingwei said fiercely. He tilted Xue Ning''s head so he could stare into her eyes. He needed her to understand his feelings.


    Xue Ning''s eyes widened in surprise, tears beading at the corners.


    "Truly I don''t. While I love my father, his words were ugly and unwarranted." Jingwei continued, squeezing Xue Ning''s hands with his own, refusing to let her shake him off. "Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me. I refuse to let him insult you."


    Jingwei''s words caused her heart to ache so painfully it almost felt like she was having a heart attack.


    "Your father hates me," Xue Ning choked out a sob. "He wouldn''t piss on me if I caught fire. If you have any sense, you should leave me alone for good. Knowing you, you''d be so sad if he died."


    Surely Jingwei wasn''t blind or deaf to miss the vitriol that spewed from his father''s lips. They defended each other and their rtionship, and now Sun Haowei was lying beside them, unconscious, barely back from the dead.


    If something like that happened to her parents, she wouldn''t have stayed, no matter how much she loved her partner.


    "Yet you still tried to save him," Jingwei replied quietly. "And you seeded. My father treated you appallingly, insulting your character and the characters of your family. He threatened to have everyone you loved sent to prison, yet you still bothered to save him."


    "How could I possibly leave you?"


    At his earnest words, Xue Ning''s tears finally lost the battle against gravity and rolled down her cheeks.


    Jingwei wiped them with his thumbs, making shushing noises all the while.


    "If anything, you have every right to leave me," Jingwei started.


    Xue Ning gave him a stricken look in response.


    "I mean, you''re way too good a person for me and my family, and if I were a better man I should let you go to find someone else who truly deserves you. Someone with a kinder, friendlier family that wouldn''t be so abominably rude to you." Jingwei continued fervently, willing her to believe him.<sub> </sub>


    He cradled her tiny face in his hands, as though he was holding a priceless Faberge egg, watching as Xue Ning stared at him with disbelieving eyes.


    "But because I am a terribly selfish man, I cannot do so. I will not. You are stuck with me forever. Even if you choose to break up with me in future¡­I''ll still be haunted by you. Forever and always."


    Xue Ning stared at him disbelievingly. Finding no lies in his eyes, she could only swallow thickly and nod, allowing herself to be pulled back into theforting embrace of his arms, wiping her tears on his Armani shirt.


    Hopefully her makeup was waterproof. She would hate to dirty his shirt.


    Jingwei smiled into her hair as Xue Ning was finally in his arms where she belonged. He felt safer, calmer, knowing that she was feeling better.


    Meanwhile, the room fell into incredulous silence at his confession. Sun Tianwei had to blink; when did his immature younger brother be such a romantic poet?


    <o>,m "The ambnce has arrived, it won''t be long before the paramedics are here" Captain Mu said, seeing the shing lights arrive from down the street. Meanwhile, his team of elite bodyguards could only stare nonplussed at how things turned out!</o>


    To put it in perspective, they watched as a couple was embracing beside the fallen body of their main boss, while his oldest son stood by watching his brother in shock, his attention not even on his father.


    Thankfully, Mr Sun was still unconscious. If he realised how ignored he was by them and how their rtionship actually got stronger because of him, he might just expire again!


    Xue Ning tensed, sensing many prying eyes on her. She tried to pull away only for Jingwei to whine and refuse.


    "The paramedics are arriving," Xue Ning hissed into his ear. "Let me go."


    "Not in this lifetime," Jingwei said. "But I''llpromise because you asked so nicely."


    He released her, but not beforending a kiss on her lips, smiling at her stunned expression. His hand never left hers.


    The paramedics soon arrived, and with everyone''s attention on the recently resuscitated yet unconscious Mr Sun, no one saw the inscrutable expression that crossed Tianwei''s eyes and the way his hands clenched into fists.


    In no time at all, Sun Haowei was loaded on a stretcher and transported to the ambnce that had the foresight to drive into the hidden entrance at the carpack, instead of right in front of the hotel.


    Hotel security as well as Captain Mu and his team made sure there was no nosy paparazzi loitering around snapping photos, trying to dy the inevitable news from reaching the press.


    If people found out Sun Haowei had a heart attack,pany stocks would plummet!


    As Tianwei was the oldest son, and the son that did not cause the heart attack, he had the honour of riding in the ambnce, while Jingwei and Xue Ning followed behind in Jingwei''s car.


    Jingwei hurriedly texted Shengli and Yi Ting a quick summary about what happened, downying the fact that he and Xue Ning indirectly gave his father a heart attack. He did not need them to know about it, just in case they identally let something slip!


    Meanwhile, Tianwei stared at his father''s ck face, breathing unevenly even with the oxygen mask. He truly did not expect his father to live.


    Miss Li Xue Ning had spent the better part of ten minutes giving him CPR to save him, and in that ten minutes, Tianwei had gone from dreading life without his father, to imagining what he could achieve without his father''s shadow looming behind him, watching him like a hawk.


    To his surprise, in those final minutes, he felt relieved. He was looking forward to inheriting his father''s empire and making it his own, without needing to obey his father''s orders, or to exin himself.


    That fantasy of having everything he ever wanted right within his grasp vanished when his father coughed and began breathing again.


    He felt a sh of disappointment so strong that it almost sent him reeling.


    Was he bing some sort of monster, wishing for the death of his father?


    No, it cannot be. Surely it must be his brain''s way offorting him regarding his father''s near-death incident. His brain was trying to look on the bright side.


    And the sight without his father was a lot brighter and more enticing than he realised.


    ''Father¡­ why are you still alive¡­?''

 Chapter 136 Hospital Ride

    Back in Jingwei''s car, the ride to the hospital was mostly silent. Jingwei had said everything he wanted to say and more back at the hotel, and Xue Ning was too exhausted regarding the earlier upheaval to make intelligent conversation.


    But some things still needed to be said.


    "I''m sorry for causing your father''s heart to fail." Xue Ning said remorsefully. "While I meant to defend myself and insult him, I didn''t want him to copse from anger."


    Jingwei let out a half-amused snort, giving her a fond look before turning back at the road.


    "I know, if you meant to kill him, you would have just left him on the floor to die. And part of the me lies with me too. Father always said I''d drive him to an early grave¡­ guess he was right. Without you, he would really be dead."


    He gave a self-decrepitatingugh at the end.


    "Without me, he wouldn''t be mad enough for his heart to fail." Xue Ning corrected.


    "Nah, don''t underestimate my father Xue Ning. Give him enough time, and he''ll get popping mad at anything. If it''s not at you, it''ll be at me. If not me, then Tianwei. If not Tianwei, then it''s thepany."


    "Aren''t thest two the same thing?" Xue Ning asked, curious. She had the impression that Tianwei was now running thepany due to Sun Haowei''s old age.


    "My brother wishes," Jingwei whispered in a conspiratory tone. "My father still holds the reins to thepany - every move my brother makes must still be approved by him."


    "... No wonder he needs to take all that medicine," Xue Ning said, "High blood pressure, high blood sugar and high cholesterol¡­why doesn''t he just retire to focus on his health? Your Ge seems ready to take over at any moment!"


    "Your guess is as good as mine," Jingwei said, shrugging. "Maybe he thinks my brother still isn''t ready. He''s definitely not handing me thepany. He loves it more than life itself."


    And with that depressing statement, they arrived at the secret back entrance of Zhongshan hospital. Before she met Jingwei, Xue Ning didn''t even realise secret back entrances existed. But of course they did, and the ultra rich had ess to them.


    Jingwei parked the car, and just when she was about to unbuckle her seat belt to leave, Jingwei paused.


    "Wait! I forgot something."


    "Your phone is still in your pocket, did you forget your house keys?" Xue Ning asked as she looked around the car.


    Taking advantage of her distracted state, Jingwei quickly leaned over and nted a kiss on her lips!


    He initially wanted to go for a quick peck, but Xue Ning had gasped in surprise. What kind of man would he be if he didn''t use that opportunity to deepen the kiss?


    He changed the angle, his mouth nted against hers while his tongue teased her relentlessly, leaving her breathless with want. Xue Ning let out a whimper as Jingwei''s mouth was wet and hot, and she could smell and taste the mints he must have taken before the press conference.


    However, Xue Ning, tired as she was, now had the experience of not one, but two mind blowing kisses. She mirrored Jingwei''s actions, and was rewarded with a full body shiver from him as he got a taste of his own medicine.<sub> </sub>


    Eventually, the need for oxygen grew too strong to resist. They finally pulled away for air, both of them panting like they exercised.


    "We should stop." Xue Ning said, as they finally pulled away for air. "This is not the time or ce!"


    "Right." Jingwei said. "Right."


    They both made no move to get out of the car. Xue Ning deliberately avoided looking at Jingwei''s lips.


    "Why did you kiss me?" Xue Ning asked warily. Was this Jingwei''s final kiss? Ast hurrah before they entered thend of celibacy and chaste handholds? Before they eventually broke up?


    "This is to convince you that I still want to kiss you. I always want to kiss you. Even when shit hits the fan, kissing you makes everything better." Jingwei said, smiling at her so lovingly her heart hurt.


    "Are you sure you aren''t doing this because you can''t kiss me in front of your father anymore?" Xue Ning asked.


    "Partly, but also because I missed you and I didn''t get to kiss you for the past few days, and you looked very kissable," Jingwei smiled with an easy shrug.


    "And stop thinking that this is ast kiss or something. Get that thought out of your head! When we go back, I have ns to kiss you so often, you''ll be begging me to stop," Jingwei added proudly.


    "Right." Xue Ning said dubiously. "I''ll believe it when it happens. Come on, let''s go and see your father."


    No matter what Jingwei imed, she was sure that there would be no further kisses if Sun Haowei died in the hospital.


    They exited the car, and were quickly ushered into a VVIP ward that was more luxurious than the one she stayed in.


    By the time they arrived, doctors had already finished examining him, and Sun Haowei was asleep on his hospital bed.


    "Doctor, how is he?" Jingwei whispered as Xue Ning hung behind to watch Sun Haowei from the corner of her eyes.


    "His condition is stable for now," the doctor replied. "But we''re still keeping him for observation. More importantly, it is imperative for him to change his lifestyle from now on. Less stress, more exercise and a healthier diet. This heart attack is a warning sign that things could get worse for him, if he does not make changes."


    Less stress? So Xue Ning had to stay out of the picture.


    "We''ll convince him," Jingwei said, knowing very well they had no real way of doing so. "Right, Ge?"


    Tianwei made a noise of agreement. "You get him to exercise, and I''ll get him to rx his responsibilities to thepany. Perhaps he can remain a shareholder, but resign from being a director. Such a post might be too taxing for him now."


    Xue Ning blinked, was she imagining the sound of pleased satisfaction in Tianwei''s voice?

 Chapter 137 Stay Away

    No son should be happy that his father was lying in a hospital bed, unconscious. Just to make sure, she chanced a quick look at Jingwei to see if he thought anything was weird about his brother''s behaviour.


    "Sure, but wouldn''t it be too taxing on you Ge? Are you sure you can handle it?" Jingwei asked, concerned.


    "Of course, I''ve been waiti - trained my whole life for this. It''ll be fine. I''ll safeguard Father''s legacy." Tianwei said as he held Sun Haowei''s frail hand in his.


    The gesture was supposed to be heart-warming, but Xue Ning internally shivered at the predatory look in Tianwei''s eyes.


    Did he just say that he was waiting his whole life for this?


    Suddenly, she was very d that Jingwei had no ambitions to take over thepany. He''d be eaten alive, and Xue Ning had no clue how to protect him from his own brother.


    "Thanks Ge," Jingwei said in relief. "I wouldn''t know what to do without you."


    From the way Jingwei was smiling gratefully at his brother, he didn''t see anything strange or terrifying with his behaviour!


    Maybe this was normal in rich families. Maybe all sons wanted their fathers out of the picture to inherit their fortunes.


    "No thanks is needed, we are family after all, but there''s one thing you must think about." Tianwei continued. "If you and Miss Li are still intent on continuing your rtionship, then you shouldn''t meet Father often. Or at all. You heard the doctor, we cannot risk him experiencing more stress."


    "...I understand," Jingwei said glumly. Xue Ning''s heart sank - there it was, not even half an hourter, and Jingwei was already forced to make a choice between her and his father!


    He then turned to look at Xue Ning. "I suppose I owe you an apology and a thank you for saving my father''s life. But forgive me for saying this, regardless of your rtionship with Jingwei, it''s best to limit your interactions with my father."


    "Sure," Xue Ning readily agreed, even if she had a feeling that Tianwei had ulterior motives for saying things like this, but she couldn''t figure out what they were.


    Tianwei smirked internally to himself. Not only would it be easier to sow discord between his father and Jingwei, he also didn''t want his father to find out that it was Miss Li who saved him.


    His father might warm up to her, and that''ll ruin his ns! Instead, he was going to im he saved his father to win him over.


    Jingwei might not be interested in thepany now, but who knows what could happen in future? He still had to research his father''s possible illegitimate children.


    The room fell into tense silence as both sons watched over their sleeping father. Xue Ning, sensing that she wasn''t needed or wanted, decided to leave the room to escape the ufortable atmosphere.


    As she walked, she observed that there were hardly any doctors or nurses bustling about; the area was as calm as still water. Very unlike a normal hospital, but then again, only the very powerful would be able to reside on the same floor as Sun Haowei.


    As she made a turn around a corner, she blinked at the sight of two police officers in uniform guarding a door to a hospital room.


    Police officers? Who was the person in the room that required guarding even when they were hospitalized?


    "Excuse me?" Xue Ning asked curiously as she approached them, "May I know who is behind this door?"


    "You''re not authorized to know this information," one man said curtly.


    "Who are you even?" The other one asked. "You don''t look like someone that belongs on this floor. But you do look familiar¡­don''t you think so, Lu Sheng?"


    Before she could wonder if he meant to offend her, Lu Sheng spoke up.


    "Ya Ren, She is the woman from the video, Sun Jingwei''s fiance."


    "Oh!! Then why are you here?" Ya Ren asked, an interested gleam in his eye. "Something must have happened to either your Sun family or yours."


    "You''re not authorized to know this information," she parroted his colleagues'' earlier line. "I''ll leave you guys to it then."


    Just as she was about to turn around and leave for good, Ya Ren reached out and pulled her back by the shoulder.<sub> </sub>


    She red at him and smacked his hand away.


    "Don''t touch me." Xue Ning hissed.


    "Sorry sorry," He said, not sounding apologetic at all. "But don''t walk away just yet! If you really want to know, I suppose I can tell you."


    "Ya Ren," Lu Sheng scolded, upset. "We''re not supposed to let anyone know!"


    "Come on Lu Sheng, we''ve been guarding this man for a week. It''s shit boring and I want to talk to someone else that''s not you for a change." He protested.


    Lu Sheng''s face twitched. "That''s not a good reason! We''ll be fired!"


    Ya Ren waved off his objections. "Lu Sheng, don''t be a stick in the mud! Besides, this is technically rted to her too."


    It was? Xue Ning''s ears perked up in curiosity, and she began paying more attention.


    Lu Sheng shook his head in disapproval, knowing full well that Ya Ren had a weakness for beautiful, sarcastic women, especially those he knew were already attached and yed hard to get.


    This woman that showed up right in front of them, with her contoured outfit and hair dishevelled like she just had sex, waspletely his type!


    "Let''s trade information, shall we?" Ya Ren asked eagerly. "For a start, what''s your name?"


    "Not your business," she said. If he found out her name and spread it online, there goes the end of her private life.


    "Oooh cold," Ya Ren said, pretending to shiver as he leaned in closer. "I like it. Are you sure you wouldn''t want to spend time with me?"


    She easily moved away, rolling her eyes - he was just like Jingwei, only less handsome.


    "No I don''t." Xue Ning crossed her arms.


    "Come on, just a while wouldn''t hurt -"


    Just as she was going to tell him to fuck off and stomp on his foot, a smooth male voice that was entirely too familiar to Xue Ning cut in.


    "I beg to differ," she turned around to see Jingwei glowering at Ya Ren''s face, his hand grabbing Ya Ren''s outstretched hand. "Since you''re the one that''s going to be hurting."


    Ya Ren gulped and tried to pull away, only for Jingwei to hold firm. Lu Sheng had a panicked look on his face but he knew better than to step in.


    "Is he bothering you?" Jingwei asked her seriously. "I could have him fired."


    "No it''s fine, I can handle it," Xue Ning said lightly, and turned to Ya Ren who was still trapped. "Now are you going to tell me who''s behind that door, and why is it rted to me? Or do you want to talk to him?"


    Jingwei caught her hint, and proceeded to re even more fiercely at Ya Ren.


    "Fine¡­I''ll talk," Ya Ren sighed, defeated. "It''s more rted to him anyway," He said, tilting his head in Jingwei''s direction.


    "We''re told he''s a key suspect in the harassment case involving Sun Jingwei, and since the previous suspect died in police custody, we have no choice but to stand guard until he recovers well enough for questioning. In case someone else decides to finish the job."


    Ya Ren made a shing motion across his throat, to emphasize his point.


    Jingwei and Xue Ning stared at each other in shock.


    That meant that this man was the car driver that tried to run them over back at the restaurant!

 Chapter 138 You’re Awake

    "Can we go inside to take a look?" Xue Ning asked, interested.


    She never got to see the face of the person that tried to kill her, herst memory of that man was one covered in blood and ss shards, and with the bad lighting, she couldn''t make out any features.


    "Let us in," Jingwei demanded less diplomatically. "Or I''ll get the both of you fired for harassing my wife."


    Normally, Xue Ning would baulk at this abuse of power, but then she also wanted to know whaty behind that door.


    (Also, it was satisfying to see Ya Ren gulp under the weight of Sun Jingwei''s steely re. Jingwei was getting more protective of her, and even though she didn''t need his protection, it still made her heart flutter.)


    At Jingwei''s statement, the two policemen could only stare at each other in defeat. They reluctantly relented to their request, for the sake of their rice bowls.


    "It''s not going to be anything interesting, mind you," Ya Ren said. "We''ve been here for days and there''s no change."


    "The doctors said that he''s physically fine, but he hasn''t regained consciousness." Lu Sheng added.


    "We''ll see him for ourselves," Jingwei said. "Maybe hearing new voices will wake him up."


    "If he wakes up, please inform us," Lu Sheng said, "The police need to interrogate him first."


    "Sure," Jingwe promised, but he had no real intention of doing so. At least not before he got his answers. He then held Xue Ning''s hand as they opened the door and entered the room, with the policemen outside trying their very best to not look like they were spying on them.


    The door closed and they walked down the mini-hallway, finally fixing their eyes on the person lying in the bed in the far corner. His eyes were closed and he had bandages wrapped around his forehead. There was a heart monitor attached to him, and it beeped a slow steady beat.


    "He doesn''t look like he''s dying," Jingwei whispered as they moved closer, peering over him.


    "I''m just surprised your family was willing to put him in a VVIP ward." Xue Ning whispered back. "He tried to kill you!"


    "He tried to kill us," Jingwei corrected. "Which is why I''m going to wake him up to interrogate him."


    Sun Jingwei then smacked that man right on the chest!


    Immediately the beeps from the heart monitor became faster.


    "What the hell!" Xue Ning eximed, pulling his arm back. "You could have killed him!"


    "No, I''m sure he''s already awake and ready to talk," Jingwei said. "That heart monitor doesn''t lie. You better wake up now, I''m the man you tried to kill!"


    Xue Ning''s eyes widened - it was just as Jingwei said, the heart rate of this man increased even more.


    "Don''t go closer -" Xue Ning warned, but Jingwei merely gave her a winning smile and leaned over the man, nning to use his fingers to manually lift his eyelids.


    Before he could do that, the man opened his eyes!


    "You''re awake -" Jingwei cried out in delight, then he choked. The man''s eyes were full of rage, and he wrapped his injured hands around Jingwei''s neck, squeezing the life out of him. Jingwei immediately tried to pry his hands off, but that man had an iron grip on his neck, as though it was his dying mission to kill Jingwei.


    "You.. it''s all your fault¡­" He wheezed.<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning cursed. Why didn''t Jingwei listen to her? She immediately went to that man''s feet to twist his toes. He let out a hoarse scream and loosened his grip on Jingwei''s neck. Jingwei, wasting no time, took advantage of the distraction to further away.


    "Get the officers toe in," Xue Ning ordered. "If he''s fit enough to strangle you, he''s fit enough to undergo interrogation."


    The man on the bed began to cackle breathlessly at her words, his arms falling limply to his side as he gazed at her with a smirk on his face.


    "Those officers¡­ are not here to help you. Call them in, and I''ll die before I reach the station." He said, breathing out as he closed his eyes.


    "I don''t believe you," Jingwei said, crossing his arms. He wanted toe closer, but Xue Ning gave him a warning re and he stayed away.


    "Try it then," the man said, "I''ve been¡­ pretending to be unconscious for days. I overhear many things."


    Xue Ning narrowed her eyes. She couldn''t risk calling his bluff - this man was the one real lead that they had!


    "What''s your name?" Xue Ning asked.


    "...Who are you?" The man asked, half-wheezing as he casted a curious look at her, as though finally registering her presence for the first time. "I''ve never¡­ seen you before."


    "She''s my wife," Jingwei said. "And answer her question!"


    "You¡­ got married? Scumbag¡­" He panted in anger, his heart rate increasing again. "You left Xiumin to rot¡­ and now you dare to get married?"


    "You tried to kill us for Xiumin, didn''t you?" Xue Ning guessed. He must have been keeping an eye on Xiumin, and when she got arrested, he tried to finish what she started.


    He red at them with hatred in his eyes.


    "I''m guessing yes, but who put you up to it?" Jingwei asked. "And don''t say it''s Xiumin, we know that there''s someone behind her that''s pulling the strings."


    "Xiumin would never¡­ betray the Boss," the man said bitterly. "You''ll¡­ get nothing from her."


    "We can''t get anything from her," Jingwei said regrettably. "She was killed in police custody."


    The man froze in disbelief. His eyes widened as he stared at them.


    "Killed¡­?" He whispered. "No¡­ no¡­ you must be lying¡­ she cannot be¡­"


    "She was," Jingwei confirmed seriously. "Whoever was responsible for this wanted to tie up loose ends, and they did it very quickly. She was confirmed dead the morning after she was taken to the station."


    "No¡­Xiumin¡­" He cried out weakly, heartbroken at this news. His eyes were filled with unshed tears. "How¡­"


    "We still don''t know how," Jingwei said, "but I have a feeling you can tell us who could be responsible."


    The man''s mouth mped shut and he turned away, even as tears began streaming down his cheek.

 Chapter 139 Do It For Her

    "If you loved Xiumin, you should seek justice for her," Xue Ning said, turning his face so she could stare straight into his eyes.


    "Her killer is still on the loose," Xue Ning said quietly. "Will you be able to die knowing that her murder is unsolved?"


    The man swallowed as he stared into the eyes of Sun Jingwei''s fiancee.


    What did he have to lose? If Xiumin was already dead¡­


    "I want proof," he choked out. "I want proof she''s dead."


    Jingwei and Xue Ning looked at each other. How were they supposed to prove that? It wasn''t as though they had Xiumin''s autopsy report¡­


    Then Jingwei''s eyes brightened and he took out his phone. He searched for Officer Tang''s police district and the date of Xiumin''s death, and it showed the police station cordoned off with crime scene tape, andizens'' imed that a murder had taken a ce due to the presence of a body bag.


    "Here, take a look. My brother is in-charge of the investigation, so nothing is public knowledge." Jingwei said quietly. "But as you can see, this particr police station that Xiumin was brought to had a murder."


    More tears rolled down the man''s cheeks as he read the headline. He lifted a shaking finger to the screen, touching the ck pixels that made up the garbage bag, mouthing Xiumin''s name silently.


    Xue Ning wanted to look away to give him some privacy to grieve, but she couldn''t risk him trying to strangle Jingwei again. Jingwei meanwhile, could only wait quietly until he got his feelings under control. He didn''t feel much for Xiumin, but this man clearly did. He felt upset on his behalf.


    Eventually, he heaved a sigh and rubbed at his wet face. Xue Ning handed him a piece of tissue to dab his face dry and he took it without a word of thanks.


    "Help us bring her murderer to justice." Xue Ning said.


    "How can I, when it''s all your husband''s fault?" He asked tiredly. He was a man in his early 20s, yet at that moment he seemed like a weary old man.


    Jingwei raised his eyebrow. "Look, I didn''t film the video. I exined it to Xiumin before - she thought I did it and I thought she did it, but I believe that it was done by your Boss."


    "My boss¡­?" He replied weakly. "That¡­cannot be¡­ it was him who helped Xiumin¡­ he assigned me¡­to her¡­ said she needed¡­my support¡­my friendship¡­ my love¡­"


    "Believe what you want, but there''s no point in protecting the man behind her," Jingwei said furiously. "I would not have her killed when she had information I wanted."


    "So¡­ Xiumin was coteral damage? She¡­ died¡­ because she¡­ knew too much¡­" The man replied, but it felt like saying these words pained him incredibly. But there was a firm resolution when he reopened his eyes, there was a burning need to see her killer suffer retribution that wasn''t there before.


    Xue Ning knew at that moment that they got him on their side.


    "The Boss¡­wants you dead¡­you and your family. All of you. Your money. Yourpany. Gone."


    "I see," Jingwei nodded. It felt good to finally have confirmation that someone wanted the destruction of his entire family and their fortune. "Do you have any details? Like his name? Organisation? What''s his n?"<sub> </sub>


    The man sighed. "I don''t have his real name¡­ but he was known as¡­Dimitri."


    Jingwei paled. It was that same name from before! That name that he created!


    "Have you seen that boss? What did he look like?" Jingwei asked, more frantically this time.


    "I¡­" the man closed his eyes, as though trying to recall. "I didn''t dare¡­ to meet his eyes¡­ but from afar¡­ he should be your age."


    "I see," Jingwei said woodenly. He took back his phone and searched for a photo from his old camera albums from nearly a decade ago.


    He had never bothered to declutter his phone, because those photos brought up memories he wanted to forget. And he could always expand his phone''s storage. Now, his unwillingness to face the past has paid off.


    He showed a photo to him. Xue Ning also took a look, but didn''t find anything out of the ordinary. It simply was a photo of two teenage boys with their arms slung around each other''s shoulders, making funny faces at the camera. One boy was Jingwei, and the other, a stranger.


    "Does your boss look like an older version of the boy on the right?" Jingwei asked evenly. Xue Ning eyed him curiously. It sounded like Jingwei had an idea who was responsible for the attacks, but was afraid of having it confirmed.


    The man frowned as he stared at the photo. "...Maybe? I think so¡­? But¡­I''ve never dared¡­ to look him in the eyes. The boss¡­ had a bad temper."


    Jingwei gave a sardonic smile.


    "Sounds like someone I knew. And let me guess, your boss is incredibly charismatic, and can convince people to do his bidding easily. He believes himself to be better than everyone else. And he has a single-minded determination to destroy everything I hold dear."


    The man on the bed blinked in surprise. So did Xue Ning.


    "I think I know who your boss is now." Jingwei said quietly. Deep down, he had always known but refused to ept it, choosing to believe in the reports of his death.


    "Care to tell me?" Xue Ning asked curiously. "Is the boy in the photo Dimitri? The man that manipted Xiumin to harm you?"


    "No, Xue Ning," Jingwei said regrettably. It was time for her to know the truth.


    "He is Wu Shang Jing, the only son of the prestigious Wu family. He was¡­ an old friend of mine. Their family rivalled us a decade ago."


    "Wu family¡­I''ve never heard of them before." Xue Ning said, frowning. She hadn''t been the most inte savvy person, but if they were as prestigious as Jingwei imed, then they should still be around. "Where are they now then? Did they go abroad?"


    Jingwei gave her a smile, but there was not much humour in it.


    "They were destroyed by me years ago."

 Chapter 140 Backs Against The Wall

    Outside, Lu Sheng and Ya Ren were getting suspicious at how the couple was still inside the room. Usually, once someone realised that an unconscious patient wasn''t waking up to talk to them, they would leave the room, disappointed and upset!


    The man in the room wasn''t beloved by the couple, they weren''t going to wait by his bedside for him to wake, sobbing into the tissues as they clutched at each other,menting about his circumstances and misfortune.


    Which meant¡­


    "Lu Sheng, do you think they''re fucking on the couch?" Ya Ren asked.


    "Don''t be crass, Ya Ren," Lu Sheng replied with a thoroughly disgusted look at him. "I''m sure they wouldn''t do it with aatose patient just next to them."


    Then he thought about Sun Jingwei''s rumours and reconsidered his words.


    "See! You think so too! If not, why would they be inside for so long?" Ya Ren eximed, scratching his head. "It''s suspicious and the Boss would think so too."


    Both of them paused.


    There had to be something inside the room that was keeping their attention upied.


    Could it be like what Sun Jingwei imed? That the man inside had finally woken up after hearing unfamiliar noises?


    As one, they nodded at each other. They had to check for themselves. They turned and Ya Ren''s hand reached for the door knob, twisting it to open the door.


    ===


    "You?" Xue Ning and the man asked incredulously in tandem.


    "It''s a long story," Jingwei said, "but in short, I ruined his family, and I''m not surprised that he''s out for blood."


    Xue Ning narrowed her eyes at Jingwei''s cagey behaviour. "You knew - you suspected it was him a long while back, right?"


    "Yes," Jingwei nodded, shamefacedly. "The moment I found out that the name used was Dimitri. That name was something I came up with, and he was the only one that knew about it."


    "Why didn''t you tell me about this earlier?" Xue Ning scolded. "Or if not me, anyone else?"


    "Well¡­ he was reported dead years ago, and I was already overseas back then," Jingwei muttered, aggrieved. "So I thought it couldn''t be him. I just thought he could have told someone else, who wanted to take revenge for his sake¡­I wanted it to not be him."


    Xue Ning breathed out. What a mess.


    "You''d better tell me everything when we get home." She said, ring at him for daring to withhold the truth from her. She was meant to be his bodyguard, but how was she supposed to protect him if he didn''t let her know about the iing threat?


    The man on the bed whispered, "Kill him for me¡­ avenge¡­Xiumin¡­"


    "Can you tell me more about his people? His organization? How big is it? Their operations?"


    The man blinked, surprised at her enthusiasm.


    "I¡­he has people everywhere¡­" He sighed. "I know he¡­ has ties¡­ to the police. Which was why¡­ I thought Xiumin would be fine." His voice cracked at the end, and he began to cry again.


    "I can''t believe¡­ he killed her¡­ she loved him¡­"<sub> </sub>


    "Fuck," Jingwei cursed, a hand angrily tugging at his own hair. "Can''t believe he''s such a bastard to kill his own people. Oh wait, I actually can. Fucking Shang Jing. "


    Xue Ning felt bad for Xiumin, but more than that, she was worried about the im that that mysterious man had his eyes on them, and ties to the police. Ties to the guards that were right outside the door and could storm in at any moment.


    She saw the movement of their shadows, as though they were turning in to peer into the room, a hand on the door. There was a tell-tale click of the door opening.


    Fuck. They had less than 10 seconds.


    "Wipe your tears and pretend to sleep." Xue Ning instructed the man as she approached Jingwei to rip his shirt apart, the buttons flying off to reveal his tanned skin, the lines of his abs and even the slight happy trail.


    "Xue Ning?" Jingwei asked in confusion, "What are you doing - "


    His voice cut off abruptly as Xue Ning began to mutter in his ear, grabbing his hands frantically to ce them on her body.


    "Undress me, touch me," Xue Ning ordered, and Jingwei felt an addicting thrill at hearing such an order from Xue Ning''s lips. His hands automatically obeyed, even as his mind whirled in confusion.


    "Wow, I knew you would change your mind, but didn''t you say that this wasn''t the right time for this?" Jingwei asked wonderingly, ucing her bustier eagerly.


    With the reveal of every inch of Xue Ning''s pale skin, he felt his sanity tethering off the edge of the cliff, his mouth dry with want.


    Xue Ning then grabbed his hand and ced it under her skirt, right on her bare thigh.


    "Now pin me against the wall and kiss me," Xue Ning ordered in a strangled whisper, her eyes watching the shadows move in the walkway.


    His sanity got kicked straight off the cliff!


    "!!!" Jingwei needed no further boration, perhaps Xue Ning had an ulterior motive, but who cares? She had given him permission to strip her naked and kiss her all over, and only a foolish man would look a gift horse in the mouth.


    He immediately picked her up, delighting in the way her thick thighs automatically wrapped around his hips, as though they belonged there. Jingwei hiked up her skirt to reveal her pale creamy thighs, the bane of his sleeping nights.


    How long did he spend wanting to touch them? Now that he was given permission, his greedy hands pawed at her thighs desperately, before squeezing her plump ass through her panties. Her butt was so firm and round, his mouth watered at the thought of spanking it at ater time.


    Meanwhile his greedy mouthtched himself to Xue Ning''s own, even as she tried to undo her own buttons to make herself look like a slut that was in the middle of a good time.


    Jingwei was doing a pretty good job of helping her, as he was actually intent on giving her a good time. He kissed her frantically, half-afraid she might change his mind.


    She could already feel the bulge in his pants, and with the way his hands were groping her ass, there was an answering wetness between her own legs as she gripped his shoulders.


    "Make some noise," she muttered in his ear quickly.


    Before Jingwei could register what she meant, she purposely grinded against him, causing him to moan.


    "Fuck Xue Ning¡­ you''re killing me¡­"


    "Oh yes¡­" she moaned out, purposely exaggerating her reactions.

 Chapter 141 Violent Confrontations Part 1

    The man on the hospital bed saw this happen right in front of his eyes. He knew that his eyes were supposed to be closed, but he couldn''t help but peek through his eyelids, curious at what was going on.


    He wanted to continue watching because it was just like a trainwreck, but then Sun Jingwei easily picked up his wife andtched a hungry mouth on her neck, sucking at her skin. His mouth made all sorts of lewd noises, and he could see Sun Jingwei''s hands roaming under her skirt, pawing at her ass.


    He decided enough was enough; he closed his eyes and yed dead and tried to think ofpletely disgusting things to keep his heart rate even so as to not give the game away.


    It was harder than expected. Even if he didn''t watch this couple canoodling right in front of his eyes, closing his eyes meant that every sound they made was magnified. They were moaning loud enough that they could star in their own porno.


    "Hey, what''s going on?" Lu Sheng''s voice interrupts them.


    Oh no. The officers have entered. He tried to keep himself calm.


    Ya Ren let out a low wolf whistle as he stared at the couple rutting against the wall. His eyes greedily eyed the exposed skin on her thigh. Who knew they had it in them?


    "See Lu Sheng? I told you they were fucking in here!"


    At once, Jingwei turned around to re at them, upset at the interruption.


    "Do you mind?" He asked testily. "We''re in the middle of something important here!"


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning could only internally heave a sigh of relief. It seemed like her n worked. But she hid behind Jingwei''s shoulder, only letting them see her eyes, which are narrowed at them.


    She had to look like she was embarrassed that she was caught in the act, yet irritated at the same time!


    "Oh sorry," Ya Ren apologised, but just like before, he didn''t sound very sorry. Only now he sounded more lecherous, his eyes still fixated on Xue Ning''s thighs.


    Jingwei caught his look and gave a warning growl, a green monster rearing its ugly head.


    At once, he put Xue Ning down and made sure her legs were covered, before shielding her with his body so these two men couldn''t see her dishevelled state.


    "Get lost, you perverts," Jingwei dered. "Out!"


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning could only secretly roll her eyes behind his back. She was supposed to be his bodyguard, but he always put himself in front of her. At least they won''t be suspicious of why they were taking so long. Now. If only they would leave.


    They needed some time to send Tianwei a message to have him dispatch the bodyguards to get rid of them, and then they had to stall for time so the two of them wouldn''t know that they caught on.


    "You''re calling us perverts?" Lu Sheng asked in an outraged tone. "The both of you were - were canoodling! In this room!"


    "Lu Sheng, you can just say that they were fucking," Ya Ren said, roasting his colleague, but he cast a wary eye over the couple. Sure, they looked like they were fucking, but clearly things hadn''t progressed to the point yet.


    He took a look at the man on the bed. He was still unconscious. And his heartbeat was steady¡­ but why were there used tissues by his side?


    If the couple had finished fucking and used the tissues to clean themselves up and threw them on his bed, it would make sense.


    It would have been disgusting, but still. It would make sense.<sub> </sub>


    But judging by how Sun Jingwei''s pants weren''t even unzipped, there was no way the tissues could have been used to clean up sexual body fluids!


    He narrowed his eyes.


    Xue Ning tensed behind Jingwei, her hand warily grabbing the back of his shirt, a silent signal to get behind him.


    Unfortunately, Jingwei was pig-headed enough that he didn''t move.


    Ya Ren smiled, but it didn''t reach his eyes. Instead he stalked closer to the sleeping figure, simr to what Jingwei did the first time round. Xue Ning kept a close eye on him, just to see what he was trying to pull.


    Ya Ren grabbed at the tissues first and took a sniff. Just as he predicted, there was no smell of cum or slick or even spit. Instead, it was vaguely damp¡­ as though someone had cried in them.


    "Gross!" Jingweimented as he saw this. To his surprise, Lu Sheng was nodding in agreement. Xue Ning said nothing, but continued to watch him. Her heart was beating faster - how could she have missed the tissues!


    He must have guessed something wasn''t quite right, and she knew from the way he peered into their eyes that he was suspecting them of lying.


    Both Sun Jingwei and his wife had dry eyes. Their eyes weren''t red or swollen at all.


    Which meant the tears had toe from only one source. The man lying on the bed. He had to be awake.


    Perhaps the fucking really woke him up and made him cry?


    It would be hrious if it were true, but Ya Ren knew deep down it wasn''t the case.


    To prove his point, he reached out and shoved the entire heart monitor straight onto him!


    ''Let''s see if you can still sleep through this!''


    "What are you doing!" Lu Sheng and Jingwei yelled in tandem.


    Xue Ning immediately lunged at it to catch it from falling, but she didn''t manage to catch it in time. Instead she only managed to push it away so it didn''t crush the poor man''s chest. The heart monitor fell to the floor with a loud tter.


    But the damage was done.


    The man''s eyes were wide open, and they took in Ya Ren''s bloodthirsty grin.


    <o>,m Xue Ning didn''t need the heart monitor to know that his heart rate was off the charts.</o>


    Ya Ren smirked. "Got you, you little liar. How long were you nning to sleep for, bastard?"


    Fuck. They''ve been found out!

 Chapter 142 Violent Confrontations Part 2

    Ya Ren took out a swiss army knife from his back pocket, intent on making quick work out of things. It would be messier than he wanted, and blood would stter everywhere, but he''s sure Boss wouldn''t mind - not if they managed to tie up this loose end for good and bring him Sun Jingwei and his wife!


    (He had always asked Boss why they couldn''t kill the man in the hospital, but Boss only smiled and said he had his uses alive. Perhaps that was what he meant. He wanted to use this witness as bait!)


    Xue Ning felt cold fear when she saw the glint of the de. This man meant business!


    She immediately pulled the hospital bed away from him, trying to stop him from sessfully stabbing the man. Thankfully, the man in question wasn''t lying there uselessly, he had barely managed to roll away from the de, so it punctured his mattress instead.


    Xue Ning used the chance to m her palm straight into his nose, with her full weight behind her!


    He staggered back in surprise, not expecting any attack from her. She then made a grab for his weapon, but he recovered quickly enough to pull away.


    "Oi oi¡­ are you sure you''re a wife?" He chided as he twirled it between his fingers. "So violent, aren''t you afraid he''ll divorce you?"


    Just nice, she heard the sound of a punch hitting a body from somewhere behind her, and a man let out a winded gasp. It sounded like Jingwei. She wanted so badly to turn around to see how he was doing, but if she took her eyes off this lunatic in front of her the man on the bed would be finished!


    "I would never!" came Jingwei''s voice from behind her. "And Xue Ning! Don''t worry about me!"


    "So your name is Xue Ning?" Ya Ren asked with a sleazy smile. "How cute."


    "Shut up!" She yelled back as she circled him, trying to find an opening to disarm him while keeping her between him and the man on the bed.


    "Why are you still lying there?" Xue Ning yelled for the man to hear, even as she kept her eyes on Ya Ren. "Get up and run for help, you moron!"


    The man didn''t need any further prompting, he immediately got up and started fleeing for the exit! Unfortunately, his legs were shaky after a week of bedrest and he stumbled to the floor.


    Ya Renughed at the pathetic sight, even as he kept his eyes locked with Xue Ning. He was feeling excited - it had been a long time since he had any fun, and this woman promised to be very fun indeed.


    The furious yet protective look on her face was a far cry from all the crying faces he was used to. Paired with the thighs he just got a glimpse off and the way her blouse was unbuttoned low enough to show a hint of cleavage¡­ He licked his lips. Delicious.


    "Trying to protect him? How noble of you, Mrs Sun. With those legs of his, he won''t be getting far!"


    Besides, he was a small fry. They won''t need him if they have two big fishes caught in their.


    At that very moment, Lu Sheng struck Jingwei again, this time managing tond a blow on his exposed stomach. Jingwei wheezed, but still kept standing, making sure that he had Xue Ning''s back.


    He didn''t give a shit about the man on the bed! He had gotten everything he needed from him, and if he had to choose someone to sacrifice, he''d definitely choose him.<sub> </sub>


    "How much is Wu Shangjing bribing you to work for him?" Jingwei asked as he prepared to defend himself. He hadn''t fought real humans in years, the only things he punched were sandbags. He was at a disadvantage.


    The only thing he was sure of was them wanting him alive. Wu Shangjing would absolutely loathe having his revenge n cut short.


    "Of course, you would think of money first," Lu Sheng replied disapprovingly even as he prepared to strike him again. He didn''t deny his boss was Wu Shangjing, which was all the confirmation Jingwei needed.


    "If not for money then what?" Jingwei asked as he ducked, avoiding a punch to tackle Lu Sheng to the floor.


    "Don''t tell me you''re in love with him!"


    "Shut up!" Lu Sheng demanded, flustered at his words. Jingwei used the chance to feint a punch that was easily blocked, but his main goal?


    Kicking Lu Sheng straight in the balls!


    Lu Sheng fell over with a groan, Jingwei knew from personal experience how painful it was hence he used this chance to straddle him, raining blows all over his face.


    "Lu Sheng! What on earth!" Ya Ren eximed, surprised that Sun Jingwei managed to get the jump on him.


    Xue Ning, sensing that Jingwei had things under control under his end, grabbed the man''s nket and flung it straight at Ya Ren''s head, obscuring his line of sight. While he iled around, trying to remove the nket draped over him, Xue Ning delivered a sweeping kick at his feet, causing him to fall.


    But the distraction from the nket was only temporary. Ya Ren flung it off just as Xue Ning was trying to disarm him.


    -Shhhk!-


    The knife tore through her blouse and bra, causing rhinestones and crystals to litter the floor. Thankfully, they protected her from the de, for it barely nicked at her skin. Ya Ren''s grin took a lecherous turn as he got to see Xue Ning''s bare full breasts in front of him, he hit the jackpot!


    With one hand on the knife to her throat, he eagerly reached out to paw her with the other. She stilled suddenly, and Ya Ren bared his teeth in glee.


    He wanted to see the frantic fear in her eyes! Perhaps she would try to cover herself up to maintain her modesty, but he would threaten her with the knife to let him see all of her.


    Perhaps after Lu Sheng has gotten rid of Sun Jingwei, he might even share her with him!


    "Be good for me," Ya Ren murmured, his teeth brushing past her ear, causing her to shudder in disgust. "Or this knife is going straight into your pretty neck."

 Chapter 143 Violent Confrontations Part 3

    Xue Ning could only freeze in terror. She didn''t want to die, but she didn''t want him to paw at her either!


    There had to be a way to resolve this situation¡­ for now, she pretended to y the part of the poor helpless victim that was ovee with fear and had no choice but to obey his instructions.


    Just as he predicted, she listened to his words. She leaned into the de, giving him a better view of her breasts, who were moving with every breath she took. He smirked - this woman knew how to y! Just for that, he won''t make her suffer¡­much.


    His hand reached out to squeeze, delighted at the warmth of her chest and the way she shuddered.


    Xue Ning felt his hands on her, and caught the hungry, distracted look in his eyes. His lust was obvious, and he didn''t think she was a threat.


    There was no better time than now! She shoved her fear and disgust deep down inside her, and stomped on his crotch.


    Ya Ren let out an unholy scream, his eyes bulging in pain. Xue Ning could have simply grabbed the knife in that very moment when his fingers fell ck, but she wanted revenge for his groping.


    She grinded the heel of her boot onto his dick, the same way she saw delinquents stomp out cigarettes at break time.


    He screamed, more desperately this time, and she took perverse glee at the way he tried to shy away from her foot, a far cry from his earlier confident lecherous behaviour.


    "Go to hell, you filthy pervert!" She dered as she snatched the knife from him. To ensure that he wouldn''t be able to try anything, she stabbed the knife straight into his palm! It sunk in with a dull thud, and Xue Ning was ironically reminded of her cutting meat for dinner.


    Blood began to leak all over his hand.


    "You''re the devil!" He screamed in pain.


    "Am I?" Xue Ning asked viciously, not expecting a response. She pulled it out and hot, red blood squirted everywhere,nding on Xue Ning''s palm and sttering all over their clothes and the hospital floor.


    Ya Ren instinctively cradled his injured hand, but Xue Ning wasn''t done, she grabbed his other palm and stabbed it too!


    "You fucking bitch!" Ya Ren screamed, and Xue Ning stomped on his dick again.


    "Xue Ning? Are you okay?" Jingwei asked, turning to look in her direction and palling at the sight of blood on the floor. "Oh my god! You got stabbed! Get a doctor!"


    "Rubbish! She stabbed me!" Ya Ren wheezed as heid on the floor with his palms bleeding out, his dick most likely damaged beyond repair. Sun Jingwei''s wife was no ordinary woman, that''s for sure! He would be having nightmares about this day for the rest of his life, assuming he even walked out alive from this ce.


    Lu Sheng took the chance to punch Jingwei''s face, injuring his nose. Jingwei let out a groan of pain. Lu Sheng then ran to Ya Ren, fully intent on helping him, but he was thwarted by Xue Ning!


    She pointed a bloody knife at him, her eyes burning bright with hatred. The deadly look in her eyes could have ended a war. Lu Sheng paused, his eyes darting between the knife in her hand, and Ya Ren breathing feebly on the floor, blood gushing out from his palms.


    "Can I get medical attention for - "


    "Behind you!" Ya Ren choked out from the floor, but it was toote.<sub> </sub>


    CRASH!


    Jingwei came from behind and smacked Lu Sheng right behind his head with a chair, as though his head was a pinata and he was an overly eager child wanting candy. Lu Sheng''s body slumped forward, and he went down without a further word.


    Just in case he had an extra thick skull, Jingweinded another blow on his head for insurance! He didn'' want him to get up anytime soon.


    Now that one bastard was out of the way, he could pay attention to more important things!


    "Xue Ning!" Jingwei cried out, seeing the faint trembling of her hand as she clutched that bloody knife, her eyes wide with terror only he could detect. He looked down at her torn outfit, revealing her bare breasts, her skin and clothing sttered with blood, and felt a primal rage wing from his throat.


    That bastard ripped her outfit! He touched her! Without her permission!


    He hurriedly picked up the nket and wrapped it around her protectively, as though swaddling an infant, before turning to re at Ya Ren on the floor. Ya Ren could only gulp at the terrifying look in Sun Jingwei''s eyes.


    "Xue Ning, do you want me to gouge out his eyes?" Jingwei asked, voice suspiciously even.


    Xue Ning blinked from her nket burrito. "Maybe only one eye. I already stabbed both his hands."


    "I''ll stab his ankle too so he can''t run away." Jingwei promised. Ya Ren, after hearing such dangerous words, began to desperately run for the exit, but Jingwei merely extended his leg and tripped him,ughing meanly as he fell.


    He then pulled his hair so Ya Ren was forced to look at him, his other hand wrapped around that man''s throat and squeezing.


    "Was working for Wu Shangjing worth it? WAS TOUCHING MY WIFE WORTH IT?"


    Ya Ren wheezed, but he could only produce croaking sounds, his eyes wide with panic as he choked.


    <o>,m "I''m asking you a question! ANSWER ME!" Jingwei roared, squeezing his throat even harder. Now, Ya Ren''s eyes were bulging with the effort it took to breathe.</o>


    "Jingwei, how can he reply? You''re strangling him." Xue Ning replied in a matter-of-fact manner. She can''t deny that she derived sick satisfaction from watching him suffer. But she also didn''t want Jingwei to turn into a murderer for her sake.


    She gently held onto his wrist. "We need him alive to interrogate him."


    Ya Ren shot her a look of disbelief, was she trying to keep him alive? But she didn''t meet his eyes.


    "No we don''t," Jingwei said, shaking Ya Ren for daring to even gaze at Xue Ning with his unworthy eyes after all that he did.


    His eyes darted to Lu Sheng''s prone body still lying on the floor, before he smirked darkly at Ya Ren.


    "We still have his friend, so his life is worthless to me. Unless I killed him by ident¡­ Do you want to join your friend on the road to hell?"

 Chapter 144 Violent Confrontations Part 4

    Ya Ren began to feel cold, but whether it was due to the blood loss, oxygen deprivation, or Sun Jingwei''s eyes, devoid of anypassion as he stared down at him without mercy like an angry god, it was hard to tell.


    "Which eye do you want to lose?" Jingwei asked, as though he was inquiring about his favourite dishes. "Choose before I choose for you."


    Ya Ren began shaking his head furiously. "No - no I -"


    "Jingwei, you don''t have anything to take his eye out with," Xue Ning reminded him. It seemed like Jingwei''s mind was consumed by thoughts of revenge, and he would not rest until he executed his ns. "Leave his eyeballs alone."


    Xue Ning didn''t doubt his ability, but she knew that he would be horrified at himself the moment the fog of rage and vengeance wore off. She didn''t want him to do something he would regret in the heat of the moment.


    So she had to snap him out of it.


    "Then shall I take off a hand instead?" Jingwei asked, entirely serious. "Or maybe a foot?"


    "How do you even - "


    "What''s going on here?!" Captain Mu barked as he entered the room, quickly taking in the utter disaster that greeted his astonished eyes.


    When a man stumbled into Sun Haowei''s room uninvited, he was immediately apprehended by his team. But instead of struggling to escape, he began to babble about how Sun Jingwei and his wife were fighting corrupt officers stationed at his door, and how one of them had a knife, and there was blood everywhere -


    It sounded like ridiculous nonsense. They would have ignored it, if not for the man promising to shed light on the drugging incident.


    So Captain Mu took a few of his men to the room where the man imed fighting was going on. And what a fight it was. It made bar brawls look tame.


    The heart monitor was lying broken, itsponents strewn all over the floor. The hospital bed was tilted on its side. A short distance away, a chairid broken on the floor, along with a prone body, knocked out with bruises all over his face and a wound on the back of his head.


    That would already be concerning enough, but Sun Jingwei''s corner of the room was a lot more terrifying!


    Blood pooled from where Sun Jingwei was standing, his clothes stained with blood, and the dark red stain was steadily growing bigger on the marble floor. The walls did not escape unscathed, blood stters decorated the usually pristine walls, creating a grotesque mural.


    "Jingwei! Are you hurt?!" Captain Mu eximed. With so much blood lost, how could Jingwei still be standing?


    "Don''t worry, Captain Mu," Jingwei said, his eyes still focused on the man he held by the throat. "It''s not mine."


    Captain Mu felt a strange chill go down his spine at Jingwei''s casual words. He wasn''t even panicking or frightened!


    Since when did Sun Jingwei have the courage to stab a man?


    For his fiancee perhaps. Captain Mu realised this as he took a careful look at Miss Li, who was wrapped in a nket, looking like a shell-shocked survivor as her bloody hands grasped the nkets tightly to prevent them from falling.<sub> </sub>


    "Good timing though Captain Mu, you are just the man I want to see," Sun Jingwei continued pleasantly. "You have a weapon, yes? Can you gouge out this man''s eye for me?"


    "I could, but we should make sure he remains alive and conscious for it," Captain Mu said gently, his heart beating quickly at Jingwei''s words.


    The youngest son was a wastrel with a good, soft heart - he wasn''t a cold-blooded killer, or someone willing to torture people on a whim.


    Something must have happened for him to lose his morals!


    He caught Miss Li''s eyes, and she gave him a pleading look. Clearly her words weren''t reaching him through the bloodlust.


    "You''re right Captain Mu," Jingwei said after thinking about it for a moment. "There''s no point torturing someone if he''s not conscious enough to feel it."


    Behind him, Xue Ning gave him a look of horror.


    "Excuse me? What torture?" Was Sun Jingwei going to turn into some sort of viin she saw in mafia dramas?


    "Exactly, Young Master Sun, let our doctors look him over and then we can proceed to interrogate them." Captain Mu said. Then he gave Xue Ning a meaningful look.


    "More importantly, you and your wife may need medical attention and new clothes. I''ll handle both prisoners in the meantime."


    "Right, I''ll leave it to you then," Jingwei said and promptly threw Ya Ren''s body on the floor as though he was an unwanted sack of potatoes. Jingwei didn''t even wait for it to hit the floor, he immediately turned to hug Xue Ning in concern.


    (Behind him, Ya Ren''s body fell to the floor with a dull thud, causing a tiny ssh of blood.)


    "How do you feel? Do you need a doctor? A psychiatrist? Anything?" Jingwei asked, as he looked over her anxiously.


    Xue Ning gazed into his eyes, and only saw eyes that were filled with love and concern for her. There was no rage or hatred.


    It was as though his earlier bloodlust was just a product of her imagination.


    Jingwei was hugging her with the same hands that were strangling Ya Ren not a minute ago. She wonders what it says about her character, that instead of feeling afraid or disgusted, she just feltforted and safe.


    Jingwei would never hurt her. She leaned into his hold and breathed him in, clutching at his bloody shirt with her cold hands, slimy with blood. The fear that she was trying to suppress was now finally let loose, and she couldn''t stop her body from trembling as she took in huge gulping breaths to calm herself down.


    She shuddered as she remembered the feeling of Ya Ren''s hand on her bare breasts.


    It was so disgusting! She took in arge gulp of air and nearly choked. She wanted - needed - to scrub herself clean!

 Chapter 145 Panic Attack

    "I''m here¡­ I''m here¡­ Everything is fine now¡­" Jingwei said, murmuring reassurances in her ear. Jingwei couldn''t turn back time to prevent Ya Ren fromnding his filthy paws on her, and that failure will eat away at him for the rest of his life.


    "I''m fine, I''m fine," Xue Ning said robotically, as though trying to convince herself.


    But Jingwei felt Xue Ning shiver in his arms. He knew she was lying, and his eyes darkened.


    p ''I''m going to destroy Wu Shang Jing, he vowed to himself. I''m going to be someone so terrifying, no one will ever dare touch a hair of Xue Ning''s head in future! ''</anda>


    "Xue Ning?" Jingwei whispered. "Are you feeling alright?"


    Xue Ning took a deep breath and smelt the metallic tang of dried blood. It immediately brought to mind Ya Ren''s grinning face and his touch on her, and the soft give of his palm as she stabbed the knife in.


    She began to feel herself hyperventting. No, she was not fine. She just stabbed a man twice. He deserved it, but that did not make the smell of his blood any easier to bear,


    "Xue Ning!" Jingwei called out in worry. He grabbed her hands and was surprised at how cold they were. Her eyes were unfocused and her breaths had be shallower.


    Something had to be done. Xue Ning clearly wasn''t in the best state of mind. Ignoring Captain Mu who was still waiting in the room, he pulled her to the empty bathroom in the hospital room.


    Here, the smell of blood was less strong, and the mix of clean white marble and peach tiles had aforting effect on most people. Best of all, as it was a VVIP ward, so the bathrooms were equipped with a state of the art shower and bath.


    "Xue Ning, here, wash your hands first," Jingwei said softly, as though coaxing a wounded animal to listen to him. He put her hands under the warm running water, and they watched as the water turned reddish-pink.


    Xue Ning then helped herself to the fragrant hand soap, scrubbing frantically at her hands as though they could wash off all traces of Ya Ren and his touch. No, just soap wasn''t enough, and it wasn''t only her hands that needed washing.


    "Xue Ning, if you scrubb any harder your skin will fall off," Jingweimented gently, holding them tight with his own hands. Her hands should have felt warm in his hold and after the warm water, but all she felt was numbness.


    Her entire body felt unclean.


    "I want a bath. Or a shower at least." Xue Ning blurted out as she broke out from his hold. She stared at the marble sink unblinkingly. "I¡­ don''t feel clean."


    "Okay, then you can take a shower. I''ll get someone to bring you a new change of clothes." Jingwei said, an easy smile on his face. He suspected that Xue Ning might be having a panic attack, even if she wasn''t aware of it.


    Not that he could me her. It''s not everyday she gets touched by a pervert and stabs someone twice. And this was all Jingwei''s fault - if he was a more capable man, he wouldn''t need her to protect him and she wouldn''t have to endure such suffering!


    "Okay." Xue Ning said, and proceeded to not move from her spot. She knew logically that she should chase Jingwei out of the room so she could bathe, but part of her didn''t want to be left alone after such a harrowing encounter.


    Even though Captain Mu was outside and could probably protect Jingwei, she still wanted him in front of her for her peace of mind!


    So she continued hesitantly, "Can you¡­"


    Jingwei smiled, getting the hint.


    "Of course! I''ll go out first and get your clothes for you, and a new towel." Jingwei said eagerly. He turned around to leave, only to be surprised when Xue Ning''s hand instinctively reached out to curl into his sweat-stained bloody shirt.<sub> </sub>


    "Xue Ning?"


    "Stay." She mumbled, staring at the floor, feeling her cheeks heat up in embarrassment and shame. God, why was she acting as such a weakling? She shouldn''t have blurted out something like this - what kind of bodyguard was she?


    She had to be stoic and strong, she couldn''t hide him away, or hide away in his arms forever.


    "Nevermind. I know it''s stupid. Just get me the towel and I''ll take care of things myself. You don''t have time to worry about me, you should be handling this mess -"


    Meanwhile, Jingwei''s eyes softened as he heard her words.


    "No, nothing is as important as you. If you want me here while you shower, I''ll be here. If you want me here while you take a bath, I''ll also be here. You can take as many baths as you want! In fact, you can even take a shit and I''ll still be here!" Jingwei dered fervently, meaning every word.


    That made her lips quirk up into a smile. Jingwei could only cheer internally in relief. At least Xue Ning was still capable of smiling!


    "I''ll draw the bath," Jingwei said eagerly, and proceeded to do that. A quick nce at the basin made him frown, there was just one generic shampoo and shower gel, not even anything suitable for a bubble bath!


    There wasn''t even a bath sponge! If this was the state of VVIP bathrooms, Jingwei feared for the C-ss ward patients. They probably had to share shower stalls.


    Xue Ning would just have to make do with this meagre assortment of toiletries for now. Perhaps when they got home, Jingwei could really spoil her with multiple bath bombs and premium bathing salts.


    "Can someone get us some clothes and towels?" Jingwei called out, his head popping outside the bathroom to see who was listening outside, which in this case would be poor Captain Mu and his men, along with the two unconscious corrupt officers.


    "Got it, Young Master Sun,"Captain Mu said. He could only sigh before calling one of his spare men to get whatever they wanted.


    Jingwei smiled and gave him a thumbs up, before turning back into the bathroom.


    Captain Mu would roll his eyes at the lovebirds taking a shared bath together, but after what they''ve been true, they were entitled to be more touchy with each other!


    (And it wasn''t as though Old Master Sun could disapprove. He was lying on bed hooked up to a heart monitor, getting his much needed rest while his oldest son plotted a corporate takeover of all his assets. Everyone in this family truly had their priorities in order.)


    Besides, this impromptu bathtime gave his men and the hospital staff some time to clean up the room. It was starting to look like a gory crime scene, and he knew from personal experience how hard it was to scrub bloodstains out from the walls and curtains.


    Meanwhile, back in the bathroom, Jingwei could only blink repeatedly, his mouth gaping like a fish out of water as he tried to look at everywhere but Xue Ning.


    Maybe he was dead. Maybe Ya Ren and Lu Sheng had actually killed him, and this whole thing was just a hallucination from his afterlife, or just God''s way of making up for his terrible adolescence.


    How else could he exin the sight in front of him?


    "Xue Ning? Why are you naked?"

 Chapter 146 Your Shower, My Torture

    "So that I can take a shower?" Xue Ning replied in confusion. "I''m not wearing clothes in the shower. You didn''t wear clothes in the bath either."


    Xue Ning then stared at him like he was the crazy one, as she shucked off thest of her clothing to walk into the shower stall.


    Unfortunately for Jingwei''s sanity, the panel of frosted ss segregating the different areas wasn''t opaque, and Jingwei could still see the faint outlines of Xue Ning''s body as she turned on the shower head, tilted her head up and let the water rain all over her.


    Now that he got a brief look at how her body actually looked, it wasn''t difficult for his mind to supplement the image with the one floating in his mind.


    He had already seen Xue Ning d in sexy lingerie, he should have known what to expect, but he was still left tongue-tied and weak in the knees at the brief sight of her figure in the nude.


    Xue Ning had a pair of full breasts that bounced slightly when she moved. They were still perky even without support. His fingers itched, longing to hold them. Her nipples were soft pink nubs that perked up in the cold of the bathroom, and they just begged for his mouth''s attention.


    He salivated at the thought of being able to y with and suck on those nubs, eliciting sweet moans from Xue Ning''s lips.


    He wanted to pinch the dip of her waist and palm the curve of her hips, squeeze the swell of her ass. He already got a brief feel when she wrapped those thick thighs of his around his waist, and Jingwei had been confused, yet dizzy with tion at her actions.


    It turned out that Xue Ning was just doing that to distract the corrupt police officers. It was a fantastic n, but things went downhill anyway, and here they were now.


    Xue Ning, showering naked barely two feet away while Jingwei could only wait by the side and wonder about how it would feel to part those delicious thighs and taste the sweetness between the legs.


    Jingwei felt his cock harden and he could only despair at his lower half. This was not the right time! Xue Ning just stabbed a man twice on his behalf, and she was low-key having a panic attack!


    Jingwei wanted her to get cleaned up, because it would make her feel better. When he felt upset, a hot shower and a warm bath always helped. It wasn''t because he was using this chance to see her naked!


    He couldn''t take advantage of her nakedness. He wasn''t that bastard Ya Ren, who shed at her clothes and pawed at her while threatening her with a weapon.


    Everytime Jingwei remembered it, his blood boiled with rage.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning didn''t really care about Jingwei''s internal angst. If she did, she wouldn''t have let out a loud moan that echoed in the quiet bathroom.


    Jingwei''s pants immediately tightened. The rage he felt at Ya Ren dissipated as quickly as it came to make room for unbridled lust and longing.


    ''Get yourself under control,'' he scolded himself. ''You are a man, not an animal.''


    Xue Ning, as though she heard his inner dilemma and decided life wasn''t hard enough, let out another moan in satisfaction. She loved the feeling of hot water on her skin, rinsing away the grime and blood, and not because of any perverted reason Jingwei thought of.


    Xue Ning initially wanted to strip and slide into the bath, but the thought of sitting in a bath with water that would steadily grow reddish-pink grew less appealing with each passing second.


    So at thest minute, she entered the shower areas instead! She didn''t expect Jingwei to return so quickly in time to see her in her naked glory, but at this point in time, getting clean took priority over whatever modesty she had.<sub> </sub>


    Let Sun Jingwei look, she thought to herself. If he didn''t like her body type or didn''t find her attractive, it would be better for both of them to find out now, rather than at night, in his bed.


    If he saw her naked in bed and promptly slid off and decided to sleep in the living room with the bodyguards, the embarrassment and shame would have destroyed Xue Ning, and she might murder him to cope.


    Which would be bad, because she would miss him, and not because he paid her well.


    Water in the shower stall began to turn red as it swirled down the drain, and Xue Ning felt the panicked fog surrounding her mind slowly lifting. Her hands were still feeling numb, and her heart was still racing, but at least she wouldn''t be smelling like a butchery.


    She undid the cap of the shower gel and took a careful whiff. The mild sweet scent of vani hit her nostrils, and she rxed further. She poured a generous amount on her hand and began tother up, rubbing soap suds all over her body.


    Finally she was going to get clean! She repeatedly scrubbed herself, almost hard enough to hurt. Ya Ren had gotten so close to her - she wanted to erase all traces of him on her.


    His breath on her skin, even his dead skin cells he had shed on her as his hands touched her had to be eradicated from this world.


    She was so intent on her task, she forgot that Jingwei was still in the bathroom, and he had a pretty good view of everything she was doing. When Xue Ning''s soapy hands rubbed all over her body, Jingwei could only think about how he wanted to be the one to wash her clean.


    She wouldn''t need to lift a single finger - he would be willing to expend all effort to dig into every nook and cranny to ensure she waspletely clean.


    Then he scolded himself for being a pervert and turned around to stare at the nk wall, willing his thoughts to calm down. Now that he couldn''t see her, he expected his lust to abate, but clearly he underestimated his own body!


    He shut his eyes, only for his ears to ovepensate for the loss in sight. His hearing began kicking into overdrive.


    As Xue Ning washed herself, Jingwei could hear the slide of soap on her body, the pitter-patter of water on her skin, the sound of skin on skin contact, and the soft, quiet moan of satisfaction as Xue Ning finished rinsing her body.


    It was torture.


    Xue Ning of course had no clue that she was destroying Jingwei''s sanity and self-control with every satisfied sound from her lips.


    But after she finished scrubbing and rinsing her body, Xue Ning realised she had a problem when she began to wash her hair. She frowned as her fingers caught on the stubborn tangles, feeling the sharp bobby pins dig into her fingers.


    Lady Su Yan had styled her hair with multiple pins and product, and in her haste to enter the showers, she forgot to remove them - and she couldn''t even see them, because they were at the back of her head.


    "Jingwei," she called out.


    "What? Do you need your clothes or a towel?" Jingwei replied quickly, his voice uneven, as though he was a butler left standing for too long.


    "I need you."

 Chapter 147 Washing Up Together

    "I need you."


    These words in Xue Ning''s voice echoed in the quiet bathroom, sending Jingwei''s mind straight back into the gutter.


    Not that it actually left the gutter, mind you, but Jingwei had been valiantly trying to control his urges. He wasn''t a brute!


    "To do what?" Jingwei asked hesitantly. It couldn''t be to wash her body right? Xue Ning already scrubbed herself clean and inadvertently let out a lot of sexy little moans that made his life a lot harder than it needed to be.


    By ''life'', he meant his cock.


    "Need you to untangle my hair," Xue Ning said sheepishly. "Lady Su Yan used a lot of pins to style it and I forgot to take them out before I showered."


    "Oh." Jingwei said, staring at his hands that were trembling in excitement. "I''ll do my best then, don''t me me if I yank out all of your hair."


    "You dare?" Xue Ning asked challengingly.


    "No," Jingwei said honestly, meekly, and decided to just do as she said, before Xue Ning changed her mind. He pulled open the ss door and said sincerely, "I promise, I''ll be gentle."


    Unknown to him, heat bloomed in Xue Ning''s body at his words. Mental images of the many different ways Jingwei could be ''gentle'' with her while she was nude and wet flooded her mind. Thankfully, they did not cause a flood anywhere else. She hurriedly turned around so that Jingwei was facing the back of her head.


    Jingwei knew he was supposed to be looking at the pins in Xue Ning''s hair, but of course his gaze drifted downwards. He eyed Xue Ning''s back muscles and her hourss figure with no small amount of longing, and his eyes fixated themselves on the two perfectly round globes of her ass.


    He gulped. Suddenly he felt very hot. Maybe he needed a cold shower too.


    "Hurry," Xue Ning said as she just stood there with her back against Jingwei. The shower was turned off, and the bathroom was slowly but surely getting colder.


    Of course, she knew that if she wanted to keep warm, she could simply ask Jingwei to warm her up. But just the thought of saying something so shameless made her cheeks heat up! No, she would never say anything like this to Jingwei.


    "Right. Right," Jingwei dragged his eyes away from Xue Ning''s delectable ass with great reluctance, stepping closer so he could slowly stroke through Xue Ning''s hair to find the pins. This close, he could see goose pimples erupting on her skin because of the chill.


    "Do you want to turn on the hot water? Just to keep this area warm?" Jingwei asked.


    "Won''t you get wet too?" Xue Ning replied. "The spray will definitely hit you."


    The shower head was actually above the both of them, simting rain falling from above. Clearly VVIP ward attendees got to enjoy ridiculous facilities.


    "It''s fine, I have to change anyway." Jingwei said, and so Xue Ning easily turned the water on and let it rain over the both of them.


    If the showerhead was one of those detachable ones, Xue Ning could technically block the bulk of the spray from Jingwei. However, she remembered she was still shorter than him, so there was no way Jingwei could avoid getting drenched.


    But he didn''tin even as the water soaked his shirt. He began the trying task of detangling Xue Ning''s hair and pulling out the pins without rendering her bald. It was a lot harder than expected, and he suddenly realised this must be why those mediaevaldies all had maids to help them with their hair.<sub> </sub>


    He gave a pin an experimental tug, and Xue Ning hissed in pain.


    "Sorry," Jingwei whispered as he tried again. This time, he tried to be as gentle and delicate as possible, as though he was pulling a block off a Jenga tower.


    "It''s fine," Xue Ning said, pained as she felt a bobby pin finally slide out of her hair without snagging too harshly on a tangle. "Continue."


    She was the one that engaged him to help her after all. She could have gotten a nurse, but she didn''t trust anyone else - what if one of the nurses was working for the enemy and had orders to kill her?


    She would have been unguarded, an easy target.


    Meanwhile, she knew Jingwei would never hurt her on purpose. Why else would she have the guts to show her naked back to him?


    "Alright," Jingwei said, and he slowly continued to remove the pins one by one. Soon, there were a handful of bobby pins in his hand, and Xue Ning''s hair was slowly returning to its usual state.


    Xue Ning let out a relieved sigh, the pinched feeling on her scalp slowly residing.


    "I think that should be all," Jingweimented, "you would not believe how many pins I pulled out of you! Just take a look, is your head a pincushion?"


    "It feels like one," Xue Ning said dryly, turning around to look at the pins on Jingwei''s outstretched hand. "Wow, that¡­ is a lot¡­"


    Xue Ning''s voice trailed off as she stared at his palm, then at his wrist, then at his arm muscles that were visible through the wet white shirt he wore.


    In fact, all his muscles were visible. The white shirt had nearly turned sheer in the shower, giving her a near unobstructed view of his upper body. In fact, this was even more arousing to her than him goingpletely nude!


    With every breath Jingwei took, she could see how his chest muscles shifted.


    She swallowed thickly.


    A quick nce at his lower half showed that she wasn''t the only one aroused. She hurriedly looked up, only to meet Jingwei''s darkened eyes. Even with droplets of water clinging onto his eyshes and hair nearly hanging into his eyes, there was no mistaking the desire in his eyes.


    Her mouth fell open. She had never been openly desired before she met Jingwei. The way Jingwei was staring at her¡­ it made her feel like she was just seconds away from being pinned and ravished against the wall.


    Jingwei flung the pins away, and they ttered noisily on the bathroom floor.


    "What -"


    Jingwei cut off her words with a bruising kiss on her lips.

 Chapter 148 Wetness (R18)

    [NOW THE SMUTTY PART BEGINS - UNDERAGED READERS, DON''T TELL ME YOU''RE READING THIS.]


    Xue Ning instinctively kissed back, wrapping an arm around his shoulders, looping it around his neck to pull him closer, but Jingwei didn''t need any more encouragement, he had no intentions of leaving Xue Ning''s lips alone.


    Her other hand was feeling the hard ridges of his muscles through the soft fabric of his wet shirt. The contrast was incredibly enticing to her, and she couldn''t help run a fingernail over his covered skin.


    When her nail brushed over his nipple, Jingwei let out a moan that she eagerly swallowed. She wanted to hear it again, and so she decided to toy with him a bit more by ying with his nipples, a smirk on her lips.


    It felt good to tease Jingwei, to drive him into senseless lust.


    "You''re such a minx," Jingwei panted out the moment he was forced to take a breath, his eyes dted with lust as he gazed at Xue Ning''s cherry-red lips and her lovely pink nipples. "I''ll return the favour."


    Before she could say something like ''bring it on'', Jingwei proceeded to give her a taste of her own medicine. As his lips began to kiss the sensitive skin behind the back of her ear, trailing wet kisses on her neck, his fingers easily went to massage her breasts, delighting in how heavy and full they felt in his hands.


    He was going to take his own sweet time with them, for their existence had tormented him for days.


    Xue Ning let out a needy whimper that had her flushing all over. She mped her lips shut; how could she have made such an embarrassing sound like that? She vowed to stay quiet, but it was an uphill task - Jingwei seemed to be intent on making her mewl with pleasure.


    "Let me hear you," Jingwei ordered hotly, his mouth still hot on her neck.


    Xue Ning shook her head, obstinate. In retaliation, he pinched her nipples, tugging them gently to tease them into swollen red nubs. Xue Ning shuddered and her mouth fell open, a wordless cry escaping her lips.


    "Much better," Jingwei drawled out, satisfied at herpliance. "Good girl."


    As a reward, he continued to y with her breasts and nipples. He had years of experience with many women, and as such, he knew just what to do to drive a woman mad in bed.


    What''s more, he paid close attention to Xue Ning to figure out what she liked - even if Xue Ning refused to tell him, her body was innocently honest, and easily gave up all her secret desires.


    Xue Ning cried out while Jingwei continued to toy with her nipples, her hands clinging to his shoulders. The more he touched her, the weaker her knees felt, and the arousal that was just simmering underneath the surface was already threatening to boil over. Wetness pooled between her legs and ran down her inner thighs, indistinguishable from the water from her earlier shower.


    Jingwei''s words, along with his actions had effectively sent her mind into a tailspin. Even when she asionally pleasured herself, she never imagined that it would be so¡­ intense!


    "Darling, you look so good for me," Jingwei continued as he casted a greedy eye on her heaving breasts. Now, even the milky skin had turned a delectable shade of pink from his actions, and from Xue Ning''s own embarrassed flush. Her nipples stood proud and swollen, little red nubs begging for attention, begging for a mouth to teach them pleasure.<sub> </sub>


    How could he refuse?


    Jingwei gave Xue Ning a knowing smirk, before he grabbed at her breasts, taking one nipple in his mouth, making sure to still pinch, toy and tug at the other nipple so that it wasn''t left feeling abandoned.


    Xue Ning gave a desperate moan, not even bothering to hide her reactions. Her eyes were hazy with lust as she stared down at the sight of Jingwei''s mouth over her breast, his hot tongue enveloping her nipple as he mischievously sucking at it, the barest hint of teeth sending pricks of pleasure reeling down her spine.


    His hands were still massaging her breasts, and her other nipple was already swollen and red, but Jingwei had no ns on leaving it alone. He ran a gentle fingernail over the poor nub, and Xue Ning''s body jolted in pleasure, a mewl escaping her lips.


    Jingwei smiled smugly. He got the reaction he desired, so of course he wasn''t going to stop now. He redoubled his efforts, continuing to y with her breasts.


    "Jingwei¡­" Xue Ning moaned helplessly, her back was now leaning against the wall, and Jingwei''s hands were holding her up as hevished attention on her breasts and nipples. She didn''t realise they could even give her that much pleasure!


    Admittedly, she didn''t have Jingwei in bed with her in the past. It was just herself and her vibrators, that she still had to hide from her nosy family members. Now it was just the both of them alone together, and Jingwei was still staring at her with ascivious look in his eyes.


    Jingwei smirked as he gazed up at Xue Ning, watching her flush and squirm away from his eyes, as though she wasn''t moaning and clutching at him for dear life just moments before. This was highly entertaining indeed.


    "Yes baby?" He asked, releasing her nipple from his mouth. It made a loud obscene ''pop'' that made her blush all the way from the roots of her hair to her toes. One of her nipples was now a shiny red, thanks to his talented tongue, while the other¡­


    "Ah, I neglected this other nipple. Sorry."


    As soon as he said it, Jingwei lowered his mouth and eagerly sucked at her other nipple. Xue Ning arched her back, inadvertently pushing her breasts against him even further. She wanted - no, she needed more from him.


    It was embarrassing, how wet he made her without even touching her pussy. She shifted her thighs impatiently, and squeezed them together to get some relief, and more wetness leaked out of her at the movement. Thankfully she was already nude, she would have soaked through her underwear otherwise.


    His touches have ignited a fire of arousal that he hadn''t yet quenched, and from the way he was still ying with her breasts and ignoring her pussy, it seemed like he had no ns on ever doing so!


    Xue Ning guessed she''d have to take care of herself. Just like before.


    One of her hands slowly drifted her wet core between her legs, preparing to y with her clit, but much to her surprise, Jingwei caught her hand in one sharp movement and pinned it firmly against the wall!

 Chapter 149 Mean Teasing (R18)

    Xue Ning gave a surprised gasp at his actions. She tried to pull away, but it seemed that Sun Jingwei was intent on keeping her hand pinned helplessly to her side of her thigh. So of course, being a woman with some sense, she decided to use her other hand instead - only for Jingwei to pin that one down too, without any hesitation.


    "Jingwei! What are you doing?" She cried out in dismay. She was out of hands, but there was a part of her that enjoyed how he was strong enough to pin her arms to her side. She didn''t even know she had this kink, until it happened to her.


    "Tsk tsk, such a naughty girl." Jingwei scolded her, and punished her with a sharp nip at the side of her breasts. Xue Ning cried out, her mind reeling from his words and his actions.


    More wetness dripped out of her, and she let out a desperate little whine when Jingwei grabbed both her arms and pinned both of them above her head with only one hand, all the while looking at her with mild disapproval.


    He did it so effortlessly too! Xue Ning would be impressed by his strength, if not for the fact that it was keeping her from pleasuring herself. She squirmed, trying to get free, but all she seeded in doing was amusing Jingwei further.


    "Aww baby, do you need something?" Jingwei asked mischievously as he watched Xue Ning pant and whine under his grasp, her body obviously aching for an orgasm. But he wasn''t going to let here so easily; this was payback for the few days of no-kissing before the conference!


    "You¡­"


    "Me?" Jingwei asked, deliberately not getting the point. He smiled at her before he enveloped his mouth over a nipple, giving a thoughtful hum. Xue Ning let out a broken wail as she felt the vibrations from his mouth on her nipple.


    Excellent. It seemed that Xue Ning had a pair of sensitive nipples! Or perhaps they became more sensitive after Jingwei had spent time toying with them. In that case, he hoped to y with them more in future. Surely Xue Ning would see the appeal.


    He thentched onto the other nipple and repeated his torture, delighting in the shivers that wracked Xue Ning''s body.


    "You¡­ ah¡­ ah¡­" Xue Ning''s scoldings devolved into a series of incoherent moans. "Bastard.. Ah¡­"


    "What did I say before? My parents were married before they had me!" Jingwei eximed innocently, before using his other hand to part Xue Ning''s legs. He expected more resistance, but Xue Ning easily parted them, even arching her hips to chase the movement of his fingers.


    Jingwei deliberately avoided her wet mound though, instead he continued to stroke her inner thighs, marvelling at how wet and sticky they were. Xue Ning must have felt so frustrated!


    Poor her, and he was still going to frustrate her further.


    "Touch me¡­" Xue Ning pleaded, the ache between her legs was bing unbearable. "Jingwei, please¡­ touch me¡­"<sub> </sub>


    Hearing Xue Ning beg for his touch made his already hard cock even harder, and Xue Ning had no idea how close he came to just ripping of his pants so he could fuck her against the wall.


    But he controlled himself, he wasn''t going to plough into her like a savage neanderthal (although that was also pleasurable), he was going to drive her delirious in pleasure, so much so that she would eagerly share his bed when they returned to their home.


    "Eh? But I am already touching you though," Jingwei replied cheerfully. To prove his point, he brushed her firm belly and stroked the top of her mound, but never actually touching her pussy. Xue Ning bucked her hips, trying to get his fingers in her, only for him to press down on her mound, massaging it gently.


    "See? I''m still touching you. What are youining about?" Jingweimented, as though Xue Ning was being utterly unreasonable in her demands. She trembled in his hold, letting out a strangled moan at how close he was to her clit.


    "You''re so mean to me," Xue Ningined breathlessly as Jingwei began to rain kisses all over breasts, trailing down her belly and to her shaky inner thighs, his tongue darting out to taste the wetness left on her skin.


    "If you¡­ah¡­ leave me hanging¡­here, I swear! I''ll¡­ kick you in¡­ the balls."


    Jingwei chuckled at her words, Xue Ning''s threat would have been more terrifying if she wasn''t letting out needy little whines every time his mouth got close to her pussy. His mouth watered as he smelled her arousal. Since that fateful day in the ambnce, all he had wanted to do was put his mouth on her and eat her out, as though she was a buffet.


    Sadly, this was not the right or ce for it. If they were on a bed, he would love to tie her up and eat her out until she was begging him to stop.


    "Don''t worry darling, I won''t leave you," he promised. He gave her a filthy smile as his hand finally decided to rub the folds of her poor neglected pussy. The effect was instantaneous; Xue Ning''s entire body shuddered as she let out a desperate mewl, bucking her hips on his hand, as though she was trying to ride it to orgasm.


    "Someone''s eager," Jingweimented yfully as he moved his hand away, as though his own cock wasn''t already ufortably hard in his pants. In that short time, his palm was already coated with her juices.


    "Someone''s a bastard," Xue Ning hissed, even as her chest heaved with tant arousal. She red at him, and he met her gaze evenly, licking her wetness from his fingers.


    Xue Ning flushed, her body was feeling so feverish she thought she might faint. Sun Jingwei was such a pervert!


    "You taste good," Jingwei said, still giving her that same filthy smile. He continued, tone dark with promise. "If we were at home, I''d pin you down on my bed, spread out your limbs and tie you up, so you have no choice but to spread your sweet little pussy for me to eat all day. Doesn''t that sound like a good idea?"

 Chapter 150 Dirty Talk, Dirtier Actions (R18)

    Xue Ning cried out in frustration, bucking her hips desperately as Jingwei''s words threw a gallon of oil on top of the fire of arousal she was already feeling. She felt her core ache with maddening longing, she grew wetter with every filthy word he murmured in her ear.


    His words easily conjured a whole host of images in her head, she could just imagine herself spread out on Jingwei''s king-sized bed, hands cuffed above the headboard while her legs were tied to separate bedposts, giving Jingwei unhindered ess to her pussy. He could then tease and toy with it to his heart''s content, all while she was helpless to stop him.


    Why couldn''t teleportation be invented yet? She needed the both of them back home on his bed, just so that he could deliver on his words.


    "You''re all talk and no action!" She gasped out, scolding him even as her legs instinctively parted further to encourage him to touch her. "Bet you suck in bed - ah - "


    "I refused to be ndered on my area of expertise," Jingwei said pompously, a tad breathlessly as he watched Xue Ning writhe under his hand. He had finally decided to throw her a bone, rubbing at the folds of herher lips slowly, taking great care to avoid her clit.


    "You - ah - ah.." Sweet little mewls escaped Xue Ning''s beautiful swollen lips as she bucked her hips, trying to hump his hand. So adorable, Jingwei thought fondly to himself even as she red furiously at him in frustration. He decided to give her pussy a soft, quick spank to punish her for her insult, only to be rewarded with a wanton moan.


    Oh. So Xue Ning liked things like this? Jingwei cooed consolingly and made a mental note to explore it furtherter.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning was seriously considering kicking him between the legs, and seeing that he was intent on not using his cock or his hands properly, it wouldn''t be a huge loss.


    This bastard had to be avoiding her clit on purpose. The terrifying alternative would be him actually not knowing where her clit was and what it did.


    Oh god. Did he not know? Were all the women he had been with faking it?


    p "Jingwei," Xue Ning asked, panting and half-panicking. "Do you know what a clit is?"</anda>


    Jingwei stared at her, andughed disbelievingly at her question.


    "My dear Xue Ning, I assure you, I fully know what a clit is and what it does," Jingwei said smugly and he moved his hand, rubbing her poor clit with deliberate slowness. It had been neglected for far too long, and that tiny thing was swollen and aching, longing for stimtion. He gave it a few conciliatory pats too, for good measure, before pulling his hand away.


    Xue Ning let out a needy, desperate whine at the sensations. His hand was gone too soon, but even the brief touch was enough to cause her legs to buckle from pleasure, and it was only Jingwei''s arms that kept her upright.<sub> </sub>


    "Insufferable shithead!" She cried out. Xue Ning vowed to get revenge for his behaviour. If not now, then someday. She was definitely going to pay back his teasing in full! "I''ll divorce you - ah - ah " Her voice broke into a wordless cry.


    "Your insufferable shithead," Jingwei corrected, going back to softly pinch her clit, delighting in the full body shudder that wracked Xue Ning, and from the way she imed she would divorce him. If she wanted a divorce, it would mean she already thought they were married!


    (Of course, he would only agree to the divorce over his dead body.)


    "And I guess I''ll stop teasing my poor little wife," Jingwei said, smiling wickedly as he began to rub her clit with his thumb. "Do you want my fingers in you, Xue Ning?"


    "Yes yes please oh god -" Xue Ning babbled, nearly incoherent with lust. His hand felt so good on her clit, just like she imagined it would after she saw him wash the dishes.


    Now that he was given explicit permission, Jingwei smirked as he kissed her, one hand massaging her breast while he began to finger her with the other hand. Xue Ning was so wet that his finger slid in easily with no trouble at all. He swallowed her intive cries begging for more.


    "Yes dear, whatever you want," he promised as he sucked a hickey on the curve of her neck, causing her to groan. For easier ess, he got Xue Ning to wrap one of her thighs around his waist, giving him a better angle.


    He inserted more fingers to feel the inside of her warm pussy, even as his thumb continued to rub at her clit. His fingers found that soft spongy surface that he knew was her G-spot and began to massage it, sending waves of pleasure coursing through her body. This, paired with Jingwei''s rubbing of her clit, brought her to a new height of pleasure.


    Jingwei felt her inner walls tighten around his fingers, and his entire hand was sticky with the sheer amount of slick Xue Ning was producing.


    "Jingwei - I''m - I''m - " Xue Ning cried out, not being able to form any more words.


    "I got you," Jingwei said, understanding what she wanted. She was so close to cumming, and he could feel it too - her inner walls had begun to clench tightly around his fingers, cloaking them in an addictive warmth, and by now she was so wet that Jingwei could slide his fingers in her with no obstruction at all.


    His fingers made lewd noises as they slid in and out of her, and Xue Ning could only loop her arms helplessly around his neck as she let out wanton little moans that went straight to his cock.


    If this was how good it felt for his fingers, it would be heavenly for his cock. He imagined that wet warmth enveloping his cock as her inner walls tightened around him, milking him dry. That thought was almost enough to make hime in his pants like a horny teenager, and he had to will himself to not get carried away!

 Chapter 151 Coming (R18)

    Meanwhile Xue Ning found herself on the brink of orgasm, it was as though her entire body had tightened, and Jingwei smirked down at her and nipped at her breasts while finger-fucking her even more deeply, paying even more attention to her swollent clit.


    Before she knew it, she came with a broken, whining keen that reverberated in the bathroom, her head nearly banging against the wall as she shuddered in his arms, leaking all over his pants and the bathroom floor.


    It had never felt this mind-blowing when she pleasured herself!


    "Gods, Xue Ning, you''re so sexy," Jingwei said breathlessly as he gazed at her shuddering body worshipfully. Xue Ning was gorgeous in the throes of orgasm, a pink flush all over her body with her mouth ck with pleasure as she cried out wordlessly, her eyshes fluttering shut as she was ovee with sensation.


    Now that he got an idea of how she looked like when she came, it was taking all his efforts to not fuck her into oblivion while she was still feeling loose andnguid. Instead, he decided to gently stroke her inner walls while they clenched repeatedly around him, pushing slick out.


    To say Jingwei was satisfied would be a huge understatement. He preened internally at the thought of satisfying his wife so well that she would never think about looking at anyone else.


    Xue Ning blinked slowly, she was still trying to recover from experiencing one of the, if not the most intense orgasms in her short life. It felt like all her limbs were made out of malt candy melting in the sun, and all she wanted to do was lean against Jingwei like azy cat.


    His fingers were still in her, but strangely enough, she didn''t want them gone. He was still gently massaging her inner folds, sending brief ripples of pleasure coursing through her body. She purred, satisfied.


    "Don''t stop," she murmured.


    "Feeling good?" Jingwei asked, "do you think you cane again?"


    ''Why not?'' She thought to herself, a rxed smile forming on her face. When she was pleasuring herself, she had never bothered to go for more than one, simply because it was too much trouble, and she was always afraid that a family member might catch her touching herself in the middle of the night.


    Now with Jingwei here, she didn''t need to lift a finger, and no one would dare to barge in.


    "Yes," Xue Ning said agreeably, tugging him even closer towards her. Jingwei went easily and she leaned on him, delighting in his warmth, even as she pawed at his shirt and oh, there was something that was still hot between her legs, below Jingwei''s expert hand.


    She looked down to see the outline of Jingwei''s hard cock still in his pants. With newfound bravery, she reached an inquisitive hand and stroked it through the cloth, and Jingwei let out a guttural groan in response, his fingers in her suddenly pausing in their ministrations.


    Xue Ning paused, before her eyes brightened at this new development.


    "So...I''m guessing you like this?" She palmed his crotch, feeling him throb in her hands. She had never touched a cock before, and she couldn''t help being curious about the package in Jingwei''s pants.


    Surely there had to be a good reason why legions of women were fantasising about him and this particr part of him in bed!<sub> </sub>


    (Now that she had a brief experience with his bedroom skills, she had to admit that he wasn''t just blowing hot air.)


    Jingwei let out a strangled moan, protesting weakly. "Xue Ning, you don''t have to touch me. I didn''t¡­ ah¡­ give you an orgasm for you to ¡­ ah¡­ feel like you owe me."


    "But what if I want to repay you anyway?" Xue Ning asked teasingly, watching as colour crawled up Jingwei''s face as she held his cock through his pants. This was a chance for Jingwei to experience a taste of his own medicine! "You should take off your pants, you look ufortable."


    Jingwei raised an eyebrow, before a deliberate smirk crossed his face. Was Xue Ning trying to y him? He looked forward to seeing her try.


    "But one of my hands is busy," Jingwei pointed out cheekily. Just in case she forgot what said hand was doing, Jingwei rubbed circles around her G-spot, causing her to gasp into his neck. "If you want me naked, you should strip me yourself."


    "...Fine," Xue Ning said, narrowing her eyes even as Jingwei continued to stroke the fire of her arousal. Challenge epted - she would definitely be able to undress him and begin her quest to wipe that smug smirk off his face.


    She reached up and started undoing his buttons. Meanwhile, Jingwei smiled adoringly at her as his fingers continued their rhythmic stroking¡­ and then he proceeded to y with her little button, aka her clit.


    Xue Ning gasped, her thighs instinctively mping down on his hand. She looked up to re at Jingwei''s deceptively innocent face. Her clit was still red and swollen even aftering once, but now it got a lot more sensitive!


    "Aren''t you going to continue? You only undid one button." Jingwei said with all innocence.


    "You¡­"


    Jingwei smiled and rubbed circles around her clit, causing a breathy mewl to escape her lips as she felt a stronger wave of pleasure slowly coursing through her. Xue Ning shook her head - this man was really the insufferable bastard she called him earlier!


    But she was determined to not let him get the better of her. She wasn''t going to be so easily distracted by his skilled fingers and his stupidly handsome face that was still gazing at her lovingly even has he continued to tease her.


    Xue Ning steeled her jaw and unbuttoned the next button, ignoring how she was half-grinding on his hand.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei chuckled at how stubborn his wife was being! This was so much fun - he loved watching Xue Ning try to resist sumbing to her pleasure, all for the sake of getting back at him. One day she might, but today wasn''t that day, for he was leagues of experience ahead of her.


    She deserved a reward for trying though. Jingwei smiled wickedly to himself¡­ now, how could he tease his stubbornly darling wife?

 Chapter 152 Consensual Competition? (R18) Part 1

    "Xue Ning, I have an idea," Jingwei began cheekily as he continued to finger her, relishing in her sweet muffled moans. "Do you want to bet with me?"


    "What bet?" Xue Ning choked out as she tried her best to focus on her task, something made exponentially harder by the fact that Jingwei was nibbling at her earlobes, causing her to shudder with pleasure.


    She briefly remembered that theirst proposed bet idea; it was about him seducing her. There was no point to that bet, that ship had already left the harbour - there was no way she was going to return to abstinence when she discovered her ticket to toe-curling orgasms was just next to her!


    Of course, she wasn''t going to let Jingwei know that yet. His ego would grow exponentially. She rather let him sweat for a while longer.


    "Bet you can''t get my shirt off before I get you toe," Jingwei said wickedly, a challenging glint in his eyes as he curled his fingers again to stroke Xue Ning''s g-spot.


    "You¡­ah ¡­ think too highly¡­ of¡­ yourself," Xue Ning panted even as her eyes fluttered shut at the delicious pleasure that radiated through her. "Bring it on."


    Jingwei didn''t hesitate; he immediately pinned her against the wall and devoured her mouth, a hand squeezing her breast while the other earnestly teased her pussy. Xue Ning grabbed at his shirt to give it as good as she got - refusing to bepletely dominated by his kiss.


    She nipped his lips and eagerly kissed back, mirroring Jingwei''s tongue. Her hands stroked the hard nes of his chest, tweaking his nipples as a form of revenge. Jingwei jolted but then proceeded to do the same to her, causing her to moan.


    "Darling, don''t forget my buttons," Jingwei panted out as Xue Ning grinded on this still-clothed cock. "You''re supposed to -"


    Xue Ning smirked, she pushed him slightly away. She looked at him carefully, admiring how the sheer white shirt clung against his muscles. The blood stains were now fading after he spent so much time getting drenched. She gently stroked those muscles at the parts where the blood stters were in apology.


    His shirt was a good expensive shirt. She identally ruined it once when Jingwei hugged her,pletely forgetting that her hands and clothes were bloody, and now she would deal the finishing blow.


    Jingwei raised his eyebrow, wondering what Xue Ning would do next. She had a strangely contemtive glint in her eyes, and that stilled his hand in her.


    Nothing would prepare him for the sight of Xue Ning grabbing his shirt by the cor and ripping it with her bare hands!


    He gasped in surprise, and he felt his pants get ufortably tighter, as though his cock was trying to remind Xue Ning that it was still there, trapped within fabric that she could also tear apart too.


    He never had this kink with other women, but apparently Xue Ning was an exception! He suddenly felt the urge to d himself in Armani suits just to watch her strong arms rip them apart to unveil his naked body, as though he was a present for her.


    All the buttons were heartlessly ripped from his shirt, and they ttered and rolled all over the shower stall. One even ended up stuck in the drain cover.<sub> </sub>


    "There," Xue Ning said smugly, grinning delightedly at him as she eyed his bare chest appreciatively. "Shirt is gone."


    How else could Jingwei respond other than kissing her adoringly and finger-fucking her furiously to orgasm? His wife was such a minx, so smart, so strong, so determined to win.


    Their bodies fell back together like mas of opposite poles, and soon they were both moaning in pleasure. Jingwei had tossed his own shirt on the floor, and only his lower half was still clothed, a fact that Xue Ning couldn''t forget, for the tent in his pants was severely distracting.


    "Are you going to take off your pants?" She asked curiously, her palm stroking his clothed cock, loving the way it seemed to jump to attention in her hands.


    "Aren''t you going to help me take them off?" Jingwei retorted breathlessly as he yfully nipped at the sensitive skin on the curve of her neck, his other hand deliberately rubbing her clit. "Don''t think I forgot about our bet."


    "The bet¡­ah¡­ mentioned your shirt¡­ only," Xue Ning argued through moans. She eyed his bulge with a small amount of trepidation. She had never done this before after all, and part of her was apprehensive about what would happen.


    Were they going to fuck in the shower? They had no condoms.


    <o>,m Was she going to pleasure him with her hands or mouth?</o>


    She didn''t know how to do that either!


    "Hey hey.. Rx. The pants don''t need toe off if you''re notfortable," Jingwei said reassuringly.


    Xue Ning gave him a wary nce, as though she couldn''t believe his words. He wondered what she had experienced that would make her so distrustful! Hopefully it wasn''t because of some bastard that wouldn''t take no for an answer. Jingwei would have him assassinated.


    "...You''re serious?" Xue Ning asked cautiously. Men usually didn''t¡­ please women without expecting something in return. She had heard enough rumours back in the countryside, and working in the club had only confirmed this opinion as fact. "You won''t get upset if I don''t¡­ suck you off?"


    Jingwei choked; his cock hardened at the thought of her sweet mouth and obscenely red lips wrapped around his cock, sucking him in as she gazed up at him with those lovely eyes of hers - he hurriedly shook his head, both to get rid of the mental image, and to convince Xue Ning of his words.


    "I''m serious!" Jingwei insisted,ing closer to rub her back. Xue Ning blinked at the innocent touch. "Listen, me giving you an orgasm is a reward for me! There''s no need for¡­ repayment. Or whatever you''re thinking of."


    Xue Ning still gave him a disbelieving look. That went against everything she had learnt about men, especially rich men! Was Sun Jingwei being serious?

 Chapter 153 Consensual Competition? (R18) Part 2

    He sensed the way Xue Ning had tensed as she eyed his crotch, and realised that seeing his cock now might be too much for her - she might think she needed to reciprocate!


    That thought was nice, but Jingwei wanted Xue Ning''s hands on his cock only when she was desperate and hungry for it, and not when she was thinking of returning a favour.


    There would be other opportunities in future. Even if there weren''t, he still wasn''t going to push Xue Ning to do something she wasn''tfortable with!


    He decided to make his point clearer. He murmured in his ear while he embraced her, gently putting her hand over his warm cock. The pants were also wet, but Jingwei knew that part of the wet patch was formed from the precum that gathered at the tip of his cock the moment he saw Xue Ning''s bare breasts in the shower.


    He then gently traced the curve of her lips with the thumb of his other hand, pressing on the middle of her soft plump lower lip.


    "Xue Ning, when you finally touch my cock, it''ll be when you''re desperate¡­ ravenous¡­ driven mad with lust that you long to wrap your sweet little mouth around my cock to taste my cum."


    Xue Ning let out a little whine, her lips automatically parting at the mental images his words evoked. Her on her knees, eagerly sucking him off while he cradled her face and tugged at her hair. She would be desperately horny and let him. More juices ran down her inner thighs.


    She opened her mouth wider to gently nip at the soft pad of his thumb, before kissing it softly. Jingwei''s eyes darkened, and that gave her the courage to slowly suck at the tip of his thumb, as though it was his cock.


    ''Fuck, you''re going to be the death of me,'' Jingwei thought to himself, sucking in a quick breath as he watch Xue Ning perform fetio on his thumb, her eyes still innocently looking up at him as though asking for approval.


    Surely Xue Ning had to know what she was doing? She had to know how easily she seduced him with this action alone.


    But he wasn''t done with his words. He moved closer, now backing her against the wall even as his thumb was in her mouth.


    "Even if you tease me like a little minx," Jingwei continued hoarsely, staring right into her eyes so that she knew he meant business. "I won''t be upset if you deny me. When you finally want my cock in you, it will be when your pussy is feeling so wet and achingly empty, that you''re left humping pillows for the slightest hint of relief¡­ then I will finally fuck you." Jingwei promised, even as his cock protested hotly at this turn of events.


    He wasn''t an animal. Jingwei was a wed human being, but he made sure all his bed partners wanted him first, wanted him more than he did them, before bedding them.


    Xue Ning was an exception. She could never want him as much as he wanted her - but she still had to want him first, for him to finally fuck her the way he longed to.


    "Jingwei¡­why are you¡­" Xue Ning cried out as she released his thumb with a pop, trembling with surprise and arousal at his words.


    Jingwei wasn''t the type of man who acted like he was entitled to sex. He wouldn''t judge her or me her for backing out, if she decided to do so. That warmed her heart, along with other¡­ lower parts of her body.<sub> </sub>


    She wondered if she would ever reach that stage of heady lust that he described, where she could think about nothing but his cock in her. Perhaps she was already half-way there now, for her inner muscles clenched upsettingly around nothing, now that he had withdrawn his fingers.


    But there were no condoms in this ce. Her brain wasn''t so addled with lust that she would risk a chance of pregnancy.


    So¡­ his fingers would have to go back inside her, where they belonged. Xue Ning grabbed his hand, and brought it between her legs.


    Jingwei blinked in surprise and lust, for he felt her juices drip on his fingers, onto the palm of his hand. He wanted to slide them inside her, but he waited for Xue Ning to speak.


    "Yes?" Jingwei prompted, curling his fingers just so the tips only managed to brush herher lips, delighting in how Xue Ning squirmed, as though she couldn''t decide whether to move her pussy away from his fingers or push them inside her.


    He smirked; he had an idea of what she wanted to say, but he wanted to hear her say it first!


    "Xue Ning, if you don''t tell me what you want, I can''t give it to you," Jingwei said, sounding entirely reasonable for once while Xue Ning could only puff out her cheeks and re at him.


    After multiple orgasms, her mind got less clouded with lust, and hence she was less prone to saying such¡­ shameless things.


    Then she remembered her partner was Jingwei, the goddamn president of shamelessness. She could just¡­ follow his example this time.


    "You''re shirtless, but I haven''te yet," Xue Ning exined, her eyes darting to the shower tiles before finally meeting Jingwei''s eyes, her face flushing with embarrassment at stating such¡­ desires so honestly. Even though she knew it was irrational, after all they had done, it still made her flush! It felt like she was¡­ begging him.


    That''ll not do. (Yet, for now.) She crossed her arms, pushing her breasts higher. Jingwei swallowed hungrily.


    ? "Unless¡­ Do you want to lose the bet?" Xue Ning asked mischievously.


    "Never," Jingwei purred as he got her meaning, and proceeded to lunge forward like a man possessed. He needed to drive Xue Ning to the peak of pleasure yet again!


    As the both of them grinded on each other, kissing and petting, it never dawned on them that they''ve never actually stated what were the rewards or consequences. In their minds, there was no loser in this bet - either way, Xue Ning would get another orgasm and Jingwei would get naked anyway!


    The real loser was Captain Mu who was still guarding the bathroom door, being forced to listen to them have sex.

 Chapter 154 Finally Done? No (R18)

    But it wasn''t like the two lovers were aware of their unwilling audience. All their attention was focused on each other.


    "I''ll keep my pants on for now," Jingwei gasped breathlessly. Xue Ning ran a curious hand over the shape of his cock, her teasing touches causing him to groan and jerk into her hand.


    He told himself he wasn''t going toe just like that - he wasn''t a teenagering in his pants at the first sight of a hot older woman (and yes, that had happened before, and no, it was not one of his proudest moments), he was an adult male.


    An adult male who had a woman he loves pawing curiously at his cock through the fabric of his pants, the sensation of wet fabric and her warm hand against the sensitive head of his cock was rapidly snapping his self-control.


    "Xue Ning¡­ stop," he groaned warningly.


    "Am I hurting you?" Xue Ning asked, watching him carefully for signs of distress. Was she being too rough with him there? Everyone knew how delicate those parts were, for men copsed the moment something hit them - hell, she''d kneed him in the balls once and Jingweiid in a foetal position for a good minute!


    "No no no," Jingwei hastily assured her, sensing her worry. She didn''t do anything wrong, and thest thing he wanted to do was ruin her confidence when it came to touching his dick. "I''m fine."


    "Then why?" Xue Ning tilted her head, curious, trying to work it out while Jingwei internally warred with himself. Should he tell her? Would she think he wasme?


    Then a lightbulb lit up over her head. She understood!


    "Are you close toing in your pants?" Xue Ning asked, grinning ear to ear.


    "Of course not!" Jingwei refuted hotly, but Xue Ning saw his face turn red.


    "You are!" Xue Ningughed, but there was no malice. Instead she was just surprised that her simple touch could drive him to that state. She stroked him again, feeling him shudder in her palm.


    She wanted to feel it again. She gave an experimental squeeze and he moaned, pleasure visible on his handsome face.


    Xue Ning smirked, now the tables have turned!


    "You''re doing this on purpose," Jingweiined, half-sulking. He wanted - no, he needed her hands on her immediately!


    "I have no idea what you''re talking about," Xue Ning replied serenely, but she couldn''t stop a mischievous grin from forming on her face as she rubbed his cock slowly and gently so that she wouldn''t hurt him by ident.


    The fact that it made Jingwei look more frustrated and horny was just an added benefit. His cocksureposure was slipping, and it was reced with maddening impatience as he longed to grind against her palm.


    His reaction made her feel powerful.


    "You''re a minx, Xue Ning," Jingwei choked out as Xue Ning began to undo his belt. "Wait - wait, are you sure about this?"<sub> </sub>


    "Yes, I''m sure," Xue Ning said firmly. She wanted toy her hands on his cock and y with it - she wanted to see if she could drive him to incoherence with her hands alone.


    (Also the thought of Jingwei having to deal with a boner for that long, after giving her two fantastic orgasms, didn''t sit right with her. Jingwei imed he didn''t need reciprocation, but he would still want it. He''s her fake husband - she wasn''t going to let some other woman please him!)


    She pulled away his belt and strewn it aside, her hands on his zipper.


    "Careful! I''ll do it!" Jingwei said as he hurriedly undid his own zipper. He didn''t need the sensitive skin of his cock caught in the teeth of the zipper, especially when he was so hard. He gingerly undid his fly and pulled down his pants, leaving his boxers on.


    Xue Ning blinked - without his pants on, she had a better idea of how his cock looked, and it was¡­ sizeable. She had no frame of reference, but it did look thick and long. She gingerly touched his shaft through the silk fabric, and felt him throb in her hand.


    "Is this your 80000 yuan underwear?" Xue Ning asked.


    "You remembered," Jingwei smiled fondly at her. "And no, this is only the 50000 yuan one. The cock is still the same though. And it''s all natural! Rest assured."


    Sheughed, feeling some of the nervousness leave her. "If it wasn''t I''d be worried. When would you have time to get a dick transnt?"


    "I''m sure with my money, I''ll be able to get someone to do it," Jingwei said cheekily, even as Xue Ning rubbed his cock just a bit faster at his words. Pinpricks of pleasure travelled through his body, and he moaned again.


    "Then I want to see it," Xue Ning replied. "Before you go for your dick transnt. Might as well get one final nce at it before it turns purple or green or ends up splitting in two. Or maybe it''s already green or purple."


    She remembered the more oundish rumours floating around Sun Jingwei''s manhood andughed.


    Jingwei snorted disbelievingly even as he enjoyed the sound of herughter. One final nce? Not if he had anything to say about that. He confidently stripped out of his boxer shorts, leaving Xue Ning to stare at his¡­ everything.


    "As you can see, my cock is a very healthy colour," Jingwei said proudly. It was red and hard, and it demanded attention after being released from its confines. "You''ll find out that I don''t need my cock to be split into two to pleasure women."


    "Oh," Xue Ning said, a little faintly. She didn''t have much experience (or any) with cocks, but she''s sure Jingwei''s one was on therger, thicker and longer side. It did look quite¡­ impressive, especially because it was hard and standing at attention, the veiny surface visible and with precum leaking at the top.


    If they had prative sex, how was this meant to fit inside her?! Even if she was stretched out¡­ no, she shook her head. Not possible.


    "Xue Ning? Are you okay?" Jingwei asked, not liking her silence. No women in the past were disappointed in his dick, but there were first times for everything!


    Did she prefer men with smaller dicks? Did his massive dick ruin his chances of gettingid?

 Chapter 155 Finally Done? Maybe (R18)

    He internally despaired, preparing to put on his boxer shorts again. His massive cock cockblocked his own rtionship. Why was this happening to him!


    "...You don''t need the dick transnt." Xue Ning said, stopping his hand as she eyed the red, weeping cock. "Is it painful?"


    "It''s not life-threatening," Jingwei said, amused at her concern. "And you don''t have to touch it if you''re not ready. I can touch myself just fine!"


    To prove his point, Jingwei eagerly stroked himself the way he preferred it, with long slow strokes from the bottom of his cock to the tip, using his own precum to lubricate himself further for a smoother stroke. With every stroke, JIngwei''s breath grew moreboured, and more precum gathered at the tip of his head.


    He was going toe soon, by his own hand, fuelled by the knowledge that Xue Ning was standing right in front of him, naked, watching him masturbate as though she was hypnotised by the movement of his hands.


    "Stop," Xue Ning ordered, grabbing his hand. Jingwei stared at her, confused and slightly frustrated. She smiled at him and stretched her fingers out.


    "Let me do it for you."


    "Are you sure?" Jingwei asked again, a smug look on his face. "It''s okay if you''re having second thoughts. My dick is very impressive."


    He said this in a matter-of-fact tone, as though he didn''t mean to brag, but he was just speaking the truth. Xue Ning rolled her eyes and retorted.


    "How would I know if you''re telling the truth? I''ve never seen any man''s real cock before! Unless you''re implying I should go out and see other men and get them to strip for me so -"


    "Definitely not," Jingwei growled out. The thought of Xue Ning pursuing other unworthy men, using her lovely hands to pull down their pants just so she could examine their hard cocks nearly choked him with jealous possessiveness. "You''re only allowed to touch mine!"


    Xue Ning internally smirked at his petnt possessiveness. Somehow, it was endearing especially because she knew, deep down, she''d probably never like any other man enough to even want to see them naked. Jingwei didn''t need to worry about her eyes straying.


    "I shall be the judge of that, now let me touch it," she said pompously, immediatelyying a hand on his cock. It was warmer than she expected, and she felt it pulse in her hand.


    She ran an exploring hand over the shaft, marvelling at the veins and skin, and another hand went to touch his balls.


    Jingwei shuddered, barely restraining the urge to spill in her hand. Xue Ning''s gentle, exploring touches were teasing him to the brink of no return, causing tension to build up in his groin, just waiting to be released.


    "Xue Ning¡­" He panted. "Stop teasing me¡­"


    "But I''m not teasing you," Xue Ning protested, finally looking up from his cock. She took in Jingwei''s flushed face and how he seemed to shiver at her touch, and how his poor cock seemed almost painfully hard with veins raised, his shaft nearly twitching from her fingertips.<sub> </sub>


    She gave him a good long stroke, ending at the tip of his cock. His precum was hot on her hand.


    "Ah, I guess I am, sorry," Xue Ning said wonderingly, staring at her own dirty hand. Jingwei must have been feeling what she felt, when he refused to touch her clit and kept her on the edge of orgasm.


    "After how you teased me, maybe I should keep continuing to do so," she continued, and the horrified look Jingwei gave her almost made herugh.


    "Xue Ning!" Jingwei protested, groaning at her fingers idly petting the head of his cock, as though it was a pet dog. He was this close to rutting in her hand. "You''re a much better person than me, don''t torture me like this! I''ll die!"


    "...Fine," Xue Ning took pity on this poor man, who was staring at her with sad puppy eyes, even his massive cock seemed like it was weeping. It was time to put him out of his misery.


    Besides, she really wanted to see the look on Jingwei''s face when he came. She began to do what Jingwei did before, rubbing the precum all over his shaft for a smoother glide, stroking him while he gasped and shuddered under her hands. The precum was barely enough, and Xue Ning suddenly remembered the bottle of lube she found in the bathroom.


    "No wonder you need so much lube," Xue Ningmented as she pumped his cock. It was so thick that so much lubricant was needed.


    "Now you see¡­" Jingwei still had the mind to wink at her even as he rocked his hips, thrusting into her hand. His cock seemed to feel more tense. Was heing soon? "But I''m¡­ hogging¡­ all of it. You''re so wet¡­. You don''t need¡­. any¡­"


    Xue Ning flushed. "Stop making fun of me or I won''t let youe."


    "I''m not! It''s - ah - a good thing - don''t bully me¡­ I''m a pitiful man¡­" Jingwei said, nearly desperate enough to go on his knees if Xue Ning did decide to not let hime.


    He knew, technically, there was nothing stopping him from giving himself an orgasm, but that''ll ruin the fun of it all! Having Xue Ning take him in hand was one of his fantasiese true, so he''s definitely not going to resign himself to his own lonely hand.


    Maybe once they talked about it, Xue Ning might be willing to order him around, making him please her. If he asked real nicely, maybe he could even convince her to step on him.


    "Come for me then," Xue Ning said, increasing her pace, watching as he whined and bucked into her hand. "Be a good boy ande for me."


    His desperation gave her a heady rush of power such that these shameless words easily slipped out of her lips. Any other time, and she would have rather stuffed her head down the toilet bowl!


    Jingwei didn''t need any more encouragement - he came with a loud guttural groan that echoed through the bathroom, spilling his hot seed all over Xue Ning''s hand.

 Chapter 156 Finally Done For Real

    Meanwhile, while the couple in the bathroom discovered how well suited they were in bed, Captain Mu continued to stand outside the bathroom. His ears burned at the moans that were audible even through the door.


    How long were they nning to stay inside there? Sure, they were young, but there had to be some limits to their youthful stamina, wasn''t there?


    Captain Mu paused, recalling his youthful indiscretions. Nevermind, they''d be inside for a long long time, if no one interrupted them and reminded them the outside world still existed.


    Next to him, his younger team member Wei Yan blushed redder than a cherry while holding onto the folded bath towels and a change of clothes. He was about to knock on the door to deliver it, but Captain Mu stopped him wearily, shaking his head.


    "Do you believe they''ll be putting on any clothes?" He asked dryly. "Let''s just wait till they get it out of their system."


    After all, he wasn''t new to the aphrodisiac effect of a near-death scenario. There was nothing that brought couples together faster than nearly dying, and the both of them nearly went on a lovely tour in the underworld. If Miss Li didn''t know any self-defence skills, the two guards would have overpowered them easily, possibly kidnapping or killing them!


    When faced with such an alternative, he''d rather endure the enthusiastic sounds of them having sex.


    "Captain Mu," his other team member, Ming Guang saluted him and reported. "We''ve confiscated their phones. Our doctors have also treated the two of them. Lu Sheng only has a mild concussion, and Ya Ren''s wounds are bandaged. However, Ya Ren''s hands might not be able to hold anything again, for that stab wound damaged the tendons and nerves in his hands. ."


    "I see," Captain Mu said, raising an eyebrow as he took the phones from Ming Guang, turning them over in his hands. They were generic handphones, password protected. He would need the tech team to hack into them, or convince the two of them to unlock it for him.


    Ya Ren would be an easier mark. Without proper use of his hands, he would be more protective of his remaining two limbs, which meant that Captain Mu could threaten them withrger effect.


    "That''s unfortunate for him, but great for us."


    He wondered if Miss Li knew where to stab to cause the right amount of permanent damage. If she didn''t, she had a natural affinity for torture and interrogation.


    "Now Hai Tang, Liang Liang and Xie Bi are watching over them," Ming Guang said. "Will you be interrogating them soon?"


    Captain Mu paused. As if it were nned, Sun Jingwei let out a guttural groan that every man knew the meaning of, and Miss Li gave an answering cry.


    "... Soon, I hope. For now, keep an eye on them and let me know the moment they regain consciousness. I''ll handle them the moment I finish debriefing Young Master Sun and his wife."


    Ming Guang saluted again, and left the room.


    "Captain, should I knock on the door now?" Wei Yan asked cautiously.


    "Be my guest," Captain Mu said. Normally, he should be the one doing it, but it was good training for the younger members of his team. They needed to be confronted more often with the more awkward aspects of being a bodyguard - such as stopping his charge from fucking.<sub> </sub>


    "Okay," Wei Yan said hesitantly, and knocked on the door. "Excuse me, Young Master Sun and Miss Li, I have your towels and clothes!"


    Captain Mu sighed. Wei Yan sounded like a hotel staff providing room service. In the bathroom, they could hear the sound of a couple yelping in surprise.


    "Right! Thanks!" Jingwei''s voice hastily replied, and the door opened just a gap for Jingwei''s muscr arm to slide out, along with his satisfied, grinning face. "Just hand over Xue Ning''s towel and clothes first, thanks!"


    How nice of him to think of his wife first!


    =====


    After a while, Sun Jingwei and his wife finally finished dressing themselves and they emerged from the bathroom, loose andnguid like cats after sunbathing.


    Xue Ning noted with surprise that the hospital room was nowpletely clean, free of blood stters. The overturned chairs, fallen heart monitor and the damaged bed were also reced and restored to their original ces.


    If not for the sharp smell of disinfectant and detergent in the air, she would think she just dreamt up the entire bloody encounter. The clean environment did a good job in calming her down, and the fact that she was also clean and wearing fresh clothes made her feel more in control of herself, especially when she had to face Captain Mu''s stern look and the knowing grins of his teammates.


    Everyone knew what they were doing inside! Xue Ning flushed. She hadpletely forgotten that other people existed outside the bathroom. She had moaned so loudly, surely all of them would have overheard.


    Meanwhile Jingwei gave them all a smug grin, not the slightest bit embarrassed. He weaved his arm to hold Xue Ning closer by her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder, breathing in the scent of her body. Now that he got a taste, he would never let her go!


    "Hi Captain Mu, sorry for the long wait," Jingwei said cheerfully, squeezing Xue Ning in aforting backhug, while she was so embarrassed and squirmed out of his hold. "Thanks for getting the room cleaned up. What''s the progress regarding the situation?"


    "Ya Ren and Lu Sheng have gotten treatment for their injuries." Jingwei saw how Xue Ning''s face froze for just a brief moment at Ya Ren''s name, and he hugged her again, rubbing soothing circles with his fingers.


    As long as Jingwei was alive, that man would never bother her!


    "After they regain consciousness, they''ll be interrogated harshly at our hideout." Captain Mu replied darkly, but he gave a small smile at Xue Ning.


    "You''ll be d to know that Ya Ren''s hands are effectively rendered useless. He will never be able to hold anything again. Good job on stabbing him," he praised, and Xue Ning blinked.


    She identally crippled a man? Well, he did deserve it, but still¡­


    "Wow! Xue Ning - that''s incredible!" Jingwei echoed his praise, quickly pecking her on the cheek. "Don''t worry, if that isn''t enough, I''ll chop off his legs too if you want. Or his dick."

 Chapter 157 Getting You Up To Speed

    "Thanks¡­I think," Xue Ning said bemusedly.


    "That''s my n for the interrogation," Captain Mu said casually as though he wasmenting on the weather. "Their handphones will be sent to our own tech team - we''re not involving the police unless necessary. They might not be the only two corrupt cops in the force. There''s still the issue of the leaked traffic camera footage that caused your scandal."


    p "You can contact Officer Tang though," Jingwei said. "In fact¡­ How about I contact himter? I''ll use the excuse that I have some fan gifts for his wife so that people won''t suspect it."</anda>


    "If I heard that reason from you, I''ll simply not show up." Xue Ning scoffed, but Jingwei could detect a small bubble of amusement in her voice. Thankfully, Xue Ning was still roasting him! If she didn''t, he would be tremendously worried.


    "I''m sure he would, if only to yell at me for wasting his time," Jingwei smiled winningly. Xue Ning leaned back on his shoulder, and he smiled at her with so much love and concern in his eyes that Captain Mu felt like he was interrupting something private between them.


    "Will the both of you be staying for the interrogation?" Captain Mu asked.


    Jingwei turned to Xue Ning and asked. "Do you want to go home now, Xue Ning? I''ll support whatever decision you make."


    "Let''s go home then," Xue Ning said, after a beat. While she just had a fantastic shower in the VVIP ward, she didn''t want to stay a second longer in this ce, just in case there was another threat lurking around the corner. Who knew if there were evil nurses with poisoned syringes justying in wait?


    "Alright," Jingwei said, his heart cheering at the thought of Xue Ning thinking of their apartment as a home, in the span of a short, but eventful, week. "Let''s go home then, we can get a nice hot bath and then I''ll cook some food for you!"


    "Did you forget we have nothing in our fridge?" Xue Ning asked, yawning as she leaned on him for support. His warmth wasforting, and she had a tiring day. "We didn''t go grocery shopping in thest few days; I think there''s only one tub of yoghurt that''s past expiry date. Do you want to get diarrhoea?"


    "Really? I didn''t notice." Jingwei said, frowning as he rubbed her back consolingly. "Then we can order food -"


    "Definitely not," Xue Ning said, turning back to smack him lightly on his chest. "Someone tried to poison you with honey cookies! Until we catch the culprit responsible, I''m not ordering any food outside."


    "Someone tried to poison you today?" Captain Mu asked, rmed at her words. This was new information - how was he not made aware of this?


    The lovebirds blinked, as though finally realising he was in the room.


    "Yes, but it happened a few days ago. So Captain Mu, you should also interrogate them about this!" Xue Ning said, and Captain Mu had to take a deep breath to calm down.


    "I still don''t think it was really a poisoning attempt -" Jingwei began, only to get shot down immediately by her.


    "Someone knew you were allergic and snuck us a tub of honey cookies with our food delivery," Xue Ning retorted tly. "If you ate the cookies while you were alone at home, you would never have reached your Epi-pen in time and you would have died at your dining table."


    "What - " Captain Mu desperately needed more information, but Li Xue Ning was scolding Jingwei and could not be stopped.<sub> </sub>


    "You wouldn''t be here arguing with me now! I''m not ordering more food from outside, especially when YOU HAVE NO MORE EPI-PENS."


    Jingwei hung his head and fell into shameful silence, like every chastised husband in human history. Wei Yan shot him a pitying look. Once again, Xue Ning had a point.


    "I''ll stock up on Epi-Pens before we leave, since we''re already in the hospital," Jingwei promised, holding his hand up to swear on it. He was going to get an entire box worth of Epi-Pens if it made her feel better.


    "Sorry to interrupt," Captain Mu said politely, internally screaming at how they weren''t focusing on the attempted murder of Sun Jingwei. "But can we go back to the fact that someone poisoned Jingwei?"


    And no one bothered to inform him about it. How was he supposed to keep members of the family alive like this?


    "Right," Jingwei said, "well, it''s like what Xue Ning said. On the first day she moved in with me, I ordered a lot of food for lunch. The delivery person came, handed us the food, and there were free cookies! I didn''t think much about it - who doesn''t like free stuff?"


    Captain Mu sighed and rubbed his forehead. This man was the son of a billionaire, why was he so excited about free stuff!


    "There were cookies in an ubelled tub," Xue Ning corrected fiercely, "who eats stuff that''s ubelled, especially when you have allergies?! Are you stupid?"


    "Yes, very stupid," Jingwei said, not even trying to defend himself. "That''s why I''m d I have you to keep me alive even when I make stupid decisions."


    Xue Ning didn''t want to smile, but she felt pleased anyway. She wasn''t a professional bodyguard, but so far she had thwarted multiple attempts on his life. She coughed.


    "Of course, but Captain Mu would agree that it was a foolish decision, yes?"


    "Immensely," Captain Mu said, his opinion of Miss Li skyrocketing higher than before. If she was still nning to be a bodyguard (if the bloody scene he walked into had not scarred her permanently), she at least had good survival instincts.


    Which is more than what he can say for her husband! He must have survived via sheer dumb luck, or umted good fortune from his past life!


    "Mr Sun, as there are now people out for your life, kindly refrain from endangering yourself even further with stupid actions," Captain Mu lectured. "They want to kill you, so don''t make it too easy for them!"


    "You heard him! Don''t do anything stupid!" She then turns to Captain Mu. "We also got some information from the man that tried to run us over when we interrogated the patient. Jingwei, tell him."


    Jingwei took a deep breath, clutching Xue Ning''s hand for courage. The earlier joy from their lovemaking was slowly getting reced by dread.


    "It''s Wu Shang Jing. He''s back."

 Chapter 158 Assigned Bodyguards

    A stunned silence met his pronouncement.


    "You must be joking."


    Captain Mu couldn''t believe his ears. The reason why he was even hired by the Suns in the first ce was because of Wu Shang Jing and his family! Back then, the rtionship between the two allied families had soured, and the Wus were seeking retaliation for Young Master Sun''s actions.


    As such, Sun Haowei was forced to hire Captain Mu and his elite team of bodyguards to ensure he and his family remained safe during that trying time.


    "He jumped off the pier and drowned years ago," Captain Mu said, frowning. "We scoured the seas for his body and we couldn''t even find any part of him."


    "You said it, there wasn''t a body." Jingwei said, shrugging, his shoulders tight with unease. "We have no real proof he''s dead. He''s always been good at diving, and at slipping through the cracks, unnoticed."


    Xue Ning raised an eyebrow. So this person was apparently a sneaky merman. Joy.


    "We have no real proof he isn''t alive either," Captain Mu said, just to make sure his charge didn''t dive off the deep end, overthinking conspiracies when there could be nothing.


    "But I shall take your words into consideration. Perhaps there are Wu family loyalists hiding all these years, biding their time to finally get revenge on you." He conceded.


    A family as old and powerful as the Wus, who were actually more prestigious than the Suns, surely had supporters who held a grudge against the Sun family, especially if they believed the Suns purposely caused their downfall to take over their empire.


    <o>,m Xue Ning frowned in confusion. Wu family loyalists? What was this historical drama ying out in front of her?</o>


    Meanwhile, Jingwei nodded grimly in agreement. That was also one of his conjectures.


    Captain Mu continued, "and now with your father out ofmission, it''s likely they''ll redouble their efforts to take out your brother and you. Make sure to stay vignt - I''ll assign more bodyguards for you and your wife."


    Xue Ning frowned. Having more guards would be good, even if it did rankle her pride, but she knew she stillcked experience to protect him. Today''s incident was proof of that - she needed more training, and with assigned bodyguards she could learn from them as they guarded her. It was a win-win solution!


    But where would they sleep? In the living room on the couch? Or in Jingwei''s room?


    "If you think it''s best!" Jingwei said, suddenly more agreeable, the glum fog around him vanishing. "They can stay in my spare room."


    Suddenly, Xue Ning understood Jingwei''s ns! He was trying to hit two birds with one stone - get protected, and get her to share a bed with him! Truly a devious man! She shook her head in fond disbelief.


    Jingwei gave her a cheerful smile, fully expecting her to catch on to his ns.


    "Then we''ll get going first! Send us your best team members Captain Mu. I have no ns to die early," Jingwei said, squeezing Xue Ning lovingly. "I still want to get married and have children with Xue Ning!"<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning choked. Children! Her face med at the thought, and the flush did not fade, especially when she recalled what happened in the bathroom. She now had a better idea of how Jingwei would proceed with actually making the children, and the familiar curl of arousal reared its cautious head. The thought of Jingwei working hard to make a baby in her made her pussy tingle, but she squashed it down viciously.


    This wasn''t the time to have children. They weren''t even really married! More importantly, there was a possible madman out for his life! A madman she had no idea about.


    She narrowed her eyes. That wouldn''t do. When they arrived home, she was going to make him cough up everything!


    =====


    They were assigned Ming Guang and Wei Yan.


    Ming Guang met their gazes evenly, his stern face never even twitching. He gave the both of them polite bows, standing ramrod straight at attention. He reminded Xue Ning of an army general.


    Meanwhile, Wei Yan was the opposite. He was clearly the youngest member of the team, but he took his job seriously, even if he was a tad bit overzealous in ensuring their safety. Xue Ning found him dogging her heels more than once. She didn''t know if it was a good thing or not.


    At least they were both professional, and didn''t make any mention of the fact that they heard Jingwei and her moaning in the bathroom. If they did, she''d probably explode.


    "I will drive your car to your apartment," Ming Guang said.


    "But I want to drive my car," Jingwei protested. He knew they were his bodyguards, but he didn''t trust them yet, and vastly preferred them to get their own transport. He didn''t want them to sit in the backseat of his car, eavesdropping on his conversations with Xue Ning.


    "Can''t the both of you just follow behind me or something, in your own car?"


    Ming Guang and Wei Yan stared at him in abject disapproval, as though Jingwei said he was going to strip and run naked all over the hospital, traumatising patients and doctors alike.


    "That''s unadvisable," Ming Guang replied curtly. "We have orders to keep you safe, and we risk an ambush if you''re in a car separate from us. If you wish, you can drive your car with me inside it, while Wei Yan takes your wife in another."


    Jingwei''s eyebrow twitched at his awkward phrasing, even if he knew Ming Guang didn''t mean anything by it.


    "No one is taking my wife anywhere," he dered, tugging Xue Ning closer to her while she rolled her eyes and yawned. "The both of you can follow me in another car -"


    "Just do as they say," Xue Ning interrupted tiredly, wanting to get home. "We can sit in the back together and let them sit in the front."


    "Okay!" Jingwei said, eyes brightening at the thought. He wasn''t going to argue against her words. The back of his car wasn''t very big, which meant they would have to sit closely together. More time for cuddling Xue Ning! "Let''s go then!"


    At this development, Ming Guang and Wei Yan pointedly did not look at each other. They could only think of a dog and his owner. To say that Sun Jingwei was whipped for his wife was inadequate!

 Chapter 159 Car Ride Guests

    As such, the four of them got into Jingwei''s Ferrari, after Wei Yan helped put a huge box of Epi-pens into the car boot.


    Xue Ning didn''t remember it being such a tight fit at the back when she fell asleep in Jingwei''s car before, but then again, Jingwei was now sitting with her, and he took up a lot of legroom.


    "This car of yours really isn''t a family car," sheined, trying to squeeze in the back. She shoved him more deeply inside the car to make more room for herself, purposely kicking his ankles.


    Jingwei yelped, and retaliated by grabbing her and making her sit on hisp, nearly causing her to squeal.


    "Nonsense, every car is a family car if you''re sitting in it with me," Jingwei argued. "You are my family!"


    "Nice sentiment, but that doesn''t change the fact there''s no room for two grownups in the back," Xue Ning retorted as she tried to getfortable with Jingwei''s ridiculously long legs. To make room, she''d need to chop them off!


    "How much did you pay for this car? I think you got scammed." Xue Ning continued to grumble. How could a car be so poorly designed - if it can''t evenfortably sit four people, it was just a fancier motorbike!


    "I''ll get us a bigger car in future," Jingwei promised. This was his favourite car, but Xue Ning had a point. In the past, he often drove alone. His ''friends'' had their own cars. Sometimes, he would drive women, but even then, they''d be in the seat next to him - and there hardly was anyone that warranted a second drive in his car, let alone being able to demand more room.


    But now things have changed!


    Jingwei thought about their future. If they had children, they would need child seats and boosters, and those definitely would take room. Maybe he should get one of those family SUVs, just in case he needed to drive Xue Ning''s family too.


    "Is everything alright?" Ming Guang asked politely, even though he could see what was going on in the rearview mirror. "Perhaps we should take another car, or split up, as per my earlier suggestion."


    Could this couple keep their hands off each other even as they bickered?


    Ming Guang was starting to doubt that was possible, for Sun Jingwei had held onto his wife''s hand the whole time when he was walking to the carpark.


    "Yes, yes, everything is fine," Xue Ning hastily assured him, but not without a final kick at Jingwei''s shin. Jingwei was now sprawled all over the backseat like a nket, and she was half-lying on top of him, scowling.


    He gave her a smug smile. She pinched his nose and he yelped, tugging her down so she fit snugly against his chest.


    For his peace of mind, Ming Guang tried to look for the button to raise the divider between the drivers and passengers.


    Unfortunately, he was unsessful, because Jingwei''s Ferrari was never meant to have people in the backseat to begin with.


    Wei Yan gave him a pitying look - but he was less bothered by the tant disys of affection than he was. His focus was more on whether Sun Jingwei had good taste in driving music or not!


    He clicked on the music yer, and an obnoxious pop song began ying from the speakers. Ming Guang''s eyebrow twitched, as a high pitched voice began to squeal Cheer Up Baby repeatedly<sub> </sub>


    "Turn that shit off," he barked out, and Wei Yan obeyed. He settled for turning on the radio louder to hopefully drown out whatever sounds Mr Sun and his wife would be making in the back seat.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning and Jingwei weren''tplete degenerates with exhibitionist kinks, so they did not paw at each other in the back seat, to the relief of their bodyguards. They finally managed to settle down with little violence, with Jingwei hugging Xue Ning as theyy on the backseat together.


    Instead, Xue Ning was staring despondently at the tattered bloody remains of her outfit, heartlessly packed into a stic bag after she picked it up from the bathroom floor. Such a beautiful outfit, ruined by misfortune and her own carelessness! No amount of dry cleaning was going to salvage this mess!


    She mentally prayed for Lady Su Yan to forgive her. She had painstakingly prepared an outfit for her, turning her from an ugly duckling into a swan, and she ruined it in less than a day. Maybe this was a sign that someone like her wasn''t meant for luxury or beautiful clothing.


    "Hey, don''t feel bad about the outfit," Jingwei said, seeing Xue Ning''s crestfallen look as she stared into the bag. He wrapped his arms around her. "The most important thing is that you''re alright."


    "I know," she said, "but I still feel bad. Lady Su Yan worked hard on it."


    "She''ll understand," Jingwei said. "Especially after we let her know that you stabbed someone to protect me."


    "I stabbed someone," Xue Ning echoed, recalling the feel of hot blood spurting on her hands. "Would you still like me if I told you that I don''t feel bad at all?"


    "Nah, he deserved it," Jingwei said coolly. "If he wasn''t already bleeding out and we didn''t need him alive, I would have stabbed him too for touching you without permission."


    "...Good to know," Xue Ning said, as Jingwei''s bloodthirstiness made a brief reappearance. She remembered the look in his eyes when he grabbed Ya Ren, and how he casually offered to chop off his legs and dick if he bothered her again.


    "I''m d Captain Mu interrupted us though. I don''t want you to be a murderer."


    "Well, I''m a realdy killer." Jingwei said jokingly. Xue Ning stared at him, unamused, and he fell silent.


    "In my defence, I don''t want to be a murderer too? I think?"


    "You''d better not," she threatened. "And after we get cleaned up, you''d better tell me everything about Wu Shang Jing and what happened in the past! No more secrets! I need to know everything!"


    "Yes dear," Jingwei said with a lopsided grin, even as his heart began to beat with dread at the thought of spilling his dirty secrets and his less-than-ster past. Hopefully Xue Ning would still want to remain by his side afterwards. If not¡­


    That thought was depressing, so he refused to think about it any longer. He didn''t want to sully this moment.


    "I will never keep a secret from you again."

 Chapter 160 Secret Plans Part 1

    Back at the hospital, Tianwei could only wonder at how things with his family could have imploded all at once. First his younger brother had people out to ruin him, then his father had a heart attack, and even the hospital wasn''t spared!


    If he didn''t know better, he would think that someone was using a voodoo doll to curse his family,


    But he did know better, and because he didn''t subscribe to this kind of superstitious nonsense, he believed that rather than a person''s curse, it would be more urate to say someone had a grudge against his family, and would stop at nothing to bring them down!


    That didn''t narrow down the list much, for his family had a lot of enemies. But for someone to be able to have the connections their enemy had¡­ the list became a lot shorter.


    Still, even with a smaller suspect pool, one had to have proof - and Tianwei was ready to get his by all means necessary.


    He stared down coldly at the man with shaky legs, his arms held down by two bodyguards as he was forced to kneel in front of Tianwei.


    Beside him, Captain Mu watched on impassively. They had moved their interrogation to a separate, empty, hospital room with better soundproof walls, just in case this man screamed loud enough to wake his father up. He didn''t want his father to wake so quickly.


    "So.. Mr Li Fan, you''re iming that police officers were trying to kill you?" Tianwei began smoothly.


    The man known as Li Fan nodded, refusing to meet him in the eye. If he closed his eyes, he could still visualise the blood stter on the walls and the blood pooling on the floor.


    That could have been him. He shuddered in fear. How had everything gone so wrong so quickly!


    "If you do not give us any useful information, I''ll personally hand you over to the police department. Perhaps they might have colleagues that''ll finish the job the second time around." Tianwei continued evenly, while Li Fan could only look up in undisguised horror.


    "You can''t! You can''t! I''m useful to you! They''ll kill me!" He yelled in panic, thrashing around as though trying to escape. But all his actions were futile; the bodyguards used more force to hold down his weak limbs, causing him to il harmlessly instead.


    "Then you''d better co-operate and give us actual useful information," Tianwei said. "Or you''ll be joining your lover in the afterlife soon enough!"


    Li Fan shivered harshly, nodding furiously. "I''ll tell you what I know! Please!" He pleaded, "Don''t send me back to them!"


    Tianwei raised an eyebrow and gestured for Captain Mu to take the lead.


    "Why did you try to kill Sun Jingwei?"


    p "I¡­I¡­" He stuttered. "I didn''t mean to!"</anda>


    "What do you mean you didn''t mean to?" Tianwei interrupted. "You drove straight towards them with the intent to kill!"


    "I¡­ I mean¡­ I wanted to injure him¡­maybe cause him to be paralysed. I wanted him to remain alive." He wheezed out. "My main goal was rescuing Xiumin! His injury was supposed to be a distraction. If they got hurt, no one would care about her¡­ "


    "Foolish," Captain Mu dered, and the bodyguards grabbed at his hand, slowly twisting it backwards. Li Fan began to scream in pain as his wrist slowly resembled a pretzel. Any further, and bones would begin cracking.<sub> </sub>


    "What was Xiumin trying to do in the restaurant?" Captain Mu asked.


    Li Fan choked out his answers through his sobs of pain. "She! She wanted to drug him to kidnap him! Let my hand go!" He wailed at the end.


    Of course, Captain Mu and his bodyguards did not do as he said.


    "On whose orders? Did she act on her own?" Captain Mu asked. This man was her aplice then. He was her hired muscle to lug Sun Jingwei''s heavy body away, her backup in case things went wrong, and the driver of the getaway car that nearly killed Sun Jingwei and his wife.


    "She wanted revenge!" The man gasped out breathlessly. "So our Boss told her where to find Sun Jingwei!"


    Tianwei and Captain Mu exchanged nces.


    "Who is this Boss, and how did he know where Jingwei was going to be?"


    "I don''t know! I told Sun Jingwei already!" He tried to tug his hand away to no avail. Tears of pain were streaming down his face. "Please let my hand go!"


    Captain Mu watched impassively as his wrist slowly turned purple.


    "Please!" Li Fan begged. The pain was bing unbearable. If he had known back then that this was how he would be treated after he was ''rescued'', he might as well have let the officers kill him! At least they wouldn''t torture him like this!


    Captain Mu gave the slightest tilt of his head. His team let his wrist go, but before Li Fan could even begin to feel relief, he felt them pulling his fingers back instead, stretching them painfully.


    "Tell us what you told Jingwei." Captain Mu demanded.


    Of course, Captain Mu already knew what he said, but he had to make sure the stories matched. People could lie, but they tend to tell the truth when they were interrogated through torture.


    "I don''t know his real name!" Li Fan repeated desperately. "He said he was Dimitri!"


    Dimitri. The name didn''t mean anything to Captain Mu, but Tianwei''s eyes widened. This was the name of Jingwei''s hacker alias when he was a foolhardy teenager, believing that everything he did was fun and games - until it wasn''t.


    That narrowed the list of suspects significantly. Not many were privy to the fact that his younger brother had a talent withputers. Now, Jingwei had given up this troublesome hobby of his after it had blown up in his face.


    "How do you know Dimitri isn''t his real name?" Captain Mu asked.


    "He''s Chinese!" Li Fan protested with teary eyes. "Which family would give their son such a weird English name?"

 Chapter 161 Secret Plans Part 2

    Well. He had a point. Even his family, who saw the worth of an English name in business dealings, wouldn''t give Jingwei that one. Jingwei had chosen it himself.


    "He looks like Sun Jingwei''s age!" Li Fan added.


    "And you believe someone so young, can have people in the police force ready to kill you?" Tianwei asked, half-incredulous, and half-taunting him.


    "He has eyes everywhere!" Li Fan choked out breathlessly. "Let my fingers go!"


    "That''s too vague," Captain Mumented, and one of the guards twisted his finger, causing it to dislocate.


    A loud wordless scream tore its way out of Li Fan''s throat, and it ended with Li Fan crying fat ugly tears that rolled down his face. This had to be his karma for failing Xiumin. If only he had sessfully run over Sun Jingwei on that night¡­ he wouldn''t be suffering like this!


    He screamed again, upset at how things turned out.


    Tianwei winced and moved slightly away; his eardrums hurt.


    "He wants you dead! All of you!" Li Fan cried out, his face pale and drawn, cold sweat beading on his temples. Now that Li Fan''s wrist and fingers were in pain, he could rte to the content of his Boss'' deranged ravings.


    Sun family, go to hell!


    Captain Mu discreetly signalled his men to release his fingers, but still continue holding onto him. with less force. Now that he was finally saying something of value, Captain Mu didn''t want him fainting due to pain. Reviving him would waste precious time.


    "borate," Tianwei said coldly, ring down at the snivelling heap of the man in front of him.


    "The Boss¡­wants all of you dead and gone. Whether it''s yourpany, or your money¡­ he just wants to destroy it all." Li Fan panted out faintly. "And I can see why, if this is how you treat people! Did you guys beat up his family?"


    The swelling in his fingers was normally a great discouragement against saying anything rude to these people, but he had enough with such poor treatment. He somehow knew that deep down, Sun Jingwei and his wife would never treat him like this. It was just his luck that he ran afoul of the Sun family and ended up with the merciless older brother.


    He wasn''t expecting a warm wee with open arms, but he was here as a source of intelligence, and willing to cooperate with their investigation! Surely it couldn''t be too much to ask for some courtesy - or for them to stop hurting him!


    "We''re the ones asking the questions, not you."


    "Sorry," Li Fan said, closing his eyes as he breathed out, trying to focus on anything but the pain in his left hand and the sharp ache in his index finger. "But I''ve told you all I know!"


    "How does your Boss n to take down the Sun family?" Captain Mu asked warningly, as though he would rip out his fingers if he didn''t give him a satisfactory answer.


    "I don''t know!"


    "I see," Tianwei nodded. "So you''ve outlived your usefulness." All of a sudden, the hands holding him tightened yet again, as though preparing to haul him away to toss in the trash.


    "No!" Li Fan protested, struggling hotly as he tried to save his own skin. He needed to buy some time to wrack his brain for any information that might be useful. The guards were unsympathetic, already beginning to drag his body across the cold marble tiles.<sub> </sub>


    "I - I - he has many people loyal to him!"


    The hands paused.


    "So?"


    "He said they were all out for revenge against you!" Li Fan blurted noisily. "He said that your familymitted so many sins, it was high time someone brought you to justice!"


    That mantra was amon one in the organisation. Everyone inside it had some form of grudge against the Sun family, one way or another. Li Fan himself had his own reasons for revenge. Xiumin was an important reason, but she wasn''t the only one.


    "And I suppose destroying my family members one at a time counts as justice," Tianwei replied dryly, raising an eyebrow. At least now he had an idea of what his family was up against."I don''t suppose you know how many people are inside this little organisation of yours?"


    Li Fan frantically shook his head. He honestly had no clue.


    Captain Mu frowned, sensing that he wasn''t telling the whole truth. "In that case, what was your grudge against the Sun family?"


    "Eh?" Li Fan blinked.


    "Why would agree to join the organisation and helpmit murder?" Captain Mu asked, with a heavy emphasis on thest word, to further remind him what he was being used of, in case he forgot this dire fact in the week he spent sleeping in the hospital.


    Li Fan scowled, the first real hint of backbone finally emerging from him.


    "Your family destroyed mine! I had to take revenge!"


    "You''re going to have to borate." Tianwei said dryly, peering at him. "Since I have never seen such an average looking face in my life."


    Li Fan bristled. "Of course you wouldn''t have seen me! But that doesn''t matter! Your family doesn''t need to see people to hurt them!"


    "Exin." Captain Mu demanded. Li Fan took a deep breath and continued angrily.


    "Do you remember thend development project in District 10, Shanxi? My parents didn''t want to sell their home to you, but you sent people to harass them until they gave in! What''s more, yourpany didn''t even pay them the money that was promised! In the end, we became homeless and penniless and my parents fell sick and died because of the stress!"


    "... " Tianwei paused. Now that Li Fan mentioned it, he recalled something like that. There was and development project in that area, and they needed to get all the residents out of the way so that they could tear down the apartmentplex to build new condominiums and a shopping mall.


    There were dissenters, long-term residents too attached to their homes to be swayed with money, so Tianwei had decided to use force to persuade them to see the error of their ways.


    And now one of them had found his way back in front of him. His lips twisted into a sneer. A better man would feel guilty that he drove his family to such dire straits, but all Tianwei felt was upset that his actions before had actually resulted in negative consequences for himself!

 Chapter 162 Secret Plans Part 3

    Captain Mu knew from the way Young Master Tianwei fell silent that their suspect was telling the truth. It was unfortunate that he and his family ended up butting heads with Sun Tianwei in a bid to retain their home. It was the equivalent of using a chisel to tear down a castle.


    But with this information, Captain Mu can continue his train of questioning.


    "In that case, how did you end up in this¡­ Dimitri''s organisation?" Captain Mu asked. "I''m sure it wasn''t because you saw a flyer that told you to join if you wanted revenge."


    "Of course not," Li Fan scoffed, even as his guards jostled him roughly for his cheek. "It was Boss that found me."


    "Through?" At Li Fan''s mulishly confused look, Captain Mu borated. "How did he contact you?"


    Li Fan opened his mouth to answer, then he thought about it and closed it.


    "Answer!" Tianwei ordered, but Li Fan only red at him. After he was questioned by these two, he remembered the reason for his grudge against the Sun family. He wanted to bring Xiumin''s murderer to justice, but he also didn''t want to give Sun Tianwei any more information that would cripple his Boss''work.


    His Boss had taken him in when he was stuck in a bad crowd, wasting his life as he drank himself to a stupor and picked fights with anything that crossed his path. If his boss had not offered a helping hand in time, he would have been knifed to death in a dark alley before he was even 18!


    "I refuse to answer you," Li Fan said, and winced at the fingers digging into his flesh. He wheezed in pain.


    "You seem to bebouring under the impression that you can make demands." Tianwei said imperiously, staring down at him as though Li Fan was something smelly he found stuck at the bottom of his shoe. "Might I remind you of your circumstances?"


    Li Fan''s mouth stayed in a stubborn firm line. Sun Tianwei''s words just reminded him about how much he hated them and their high-handedness!


    Sun Jingwei was clearly the anomaly in the family.


    "I''m not talking to you," Li Fan protested, ring at Sun Tianwei then at Captain Mu, as though daring them to beat him up. "I''ll only talk to Sun Jingwei and his wife."


    "Tough luck," Captain Mu replied evenly. "Sun Jingwei and his wife are back home, most likely fucking each other, so you''re stuck with us."


    "Then I won''t say anything more!" Li Fan dered hotly. "The both of you will not care about bringing Xiumin''s murder to justice anyway."


    Tianwei narrowed his eyes. He hated it when people refused to obey him and when things refused to go ording to n.


    "Fine, be that way," Tianwei growled out. "Captain Mu, lock this man up - preferably in the prison cell. Maybe he''ll be more inclined to talk if there''s another attempt at his life. Besides, we have another two people to interrogate. Perhaps they''ll be more forting with information."


    "Yes, Young Master Sun," Captain Mu promised.


    "All of you are scum!" Li Fan yelled out as he was dragged away, and he had to be knocked out with a sharp blow to the back of his head so that he would keep quiet.


    Unbeknownst to him, Captain Mu had no intention of throwing him back with the wolves and foxes in the police force. Instead, he was going to stick this man - boy really - into a fake prison cell that would make him think that he was back at the station.


    He wasn''t going to kill off a perfectly good source of information! A good scare would definitely loosen his lips and remove whatever stubborn pride he had left.


    Of course, if it failed, they could always bring in Jingwei and his wife, Captain Mu mused. They saved his life - Li Fan would talk to them, if not him.


    <o>,m "Call me the moment the two officials are awake. I want to interrogate them too." Tianwei ordered as he seethed, watching the empty space where that man used to be.</o>


    "Yes Sir," Captain Mu replied.


    Tianwei gnashed his teeth and whirled around, intent on getting to the bottom of things. Somewhere in China was an organisation filled with people that Tianwei and his family had ruined in one way or another, and it didn''t take a genius to know that was trouble just waiting to explode!<sub> </sub>


    "Young Master Sun, would you be going back to see your father now?" Captain Mu asked.


    "No. There''s no point anyway," Tianwei said heartlessly. "He''s not awake, and will not be awake anytime soon. I''ll go back to thepany first to resolve things. You stay here with my father and the criminals. Inform me when they are avable for interrogation."


    "Yes sir," Captain Mu said. He noticed that Tianwei did not ask to be informed when his father woke up. "I''ll send two bodyguards with you then, like I did for your brother. Safe travels."


    =====


    Meanwhile, a woman with long blonde hair watched the video of Sun Jingwei''s press conference with badly concealed jealousy. She kept reying the shrug of his shoulders in his suit, and the confident gait he had when walking towards that woman, the bane of her existence.


    How dare he look this handsome! How dare he be this¡­ this capable hunk of a man? He behaved like a CEO, his professionalism,petence and good humour were all on disy. If she had known he could be something like this in future, she would never have let him slip through her grasp.


    Curse Sun Jingwei and his hidden depths! Why couldn''t he disy this kind of behaviour from the very beginning! He wasn''t like this at all during their courtship!


    Zhou Yu gnashed her teeth at the thought that Sun Jingwei was capable of all this deep down, but he never bothered to do it for her. How dare he?! Wasn''t she supposed to be the love of his life?


    If Sun Jingwei had disyed such CEO-like behaviour, she would never have bothered to chase after Wang Kuan and offend both sets of parents! She wouldn''t have had affairs either! It was all his fault that Wang Kuan didn''t want anything to do with her!


    It never crossed her mind to question why Sun Jingwei was willing to change this much for a woman. The main point was that Sun Jingwei had changed for the better, he had moved on to look at a new woman with so much love that her insides were curdled with jealousy.


    "What''s so special about her?" Zhou Yu screamed to herself. The video focused on his handsome face and loving eyes as he gazed at his new partner, and she flung her phone directly on the floor in her rage.


    Her maid flinched at the sound of the sharp crack of stic hitting marble.


    "Lady Zhou, do you want to eat something?" Her maid, Qiu Ju, timidly asked when the Young Miss made no mention of picking up her phone.


    She was the newest staff member added to the mansion and hence was saddled with the unfortunate task of handling Lady Zhou Yu and her infamous temper. Zhou Yu opened one eye to re at her, but Qiu Ju ploughed on.


    "M-maybe it will make you feel better. You haven''t e-eaten since this morning, it''s bad to starve - "


    "Shut up!" Zhou Yu yelled in reply, furious that a mere maid had the nerve to presume she wanted to listen to her opinion. She red at her maid for daring to speak up. Qiu Ju hastily looked down at the floor, hoping that the Young Miss wouldn''t strike her.


    It was tiring to hide her bruises with makeup, and she had already been hit twice today alone.


    Something had pissed off the Young Miss tremendously since she visited Lady Su Yan''s boutique. Qiu Ju could only feel pity for whoever earned her ire. The Young Miss would spare no expense to destroy her!


    "Now where is that sted PI I hired? What''s taking him so long?" She demanded, and her maid could only stutter a weak response, hoping to not anger her further.


    If Qiu Ju didn''t need the job (and if she was a whole continent away), she would have yelled at Zhou Yu to be patient and to stop acting like a brat. But all her courage had been sapped away even in such a short time by Zhou Yu''s verbal and emotional abuse.


    Still, Lady Zhou Yu was still expecting a reply. She hated it when she got no response. Qiu Ju had learnt this the hard way and got hot tea sprayed at her for ''pretending to be a mute''.


    "It h-has only been a f-few hours¡­"


    "SO? I paid him good money to get answers quickly and I want them now!"


    At that very moment, Zhou Yu''s phone began to buzz from the floor.

 Chapter 163 Oh, It’s You Again

    "What are you waiting for? Pick up my phone off the floor idiot!" Zhou Yu barked out as she lounged back against her pillows, a hand stretched out imperiously, an implicit reminder for Qiu Ju to hurry. Qiu Ju hastily picked up her phone and deposited it into her outstretched hands shakily.


    Zhou Yu answered the call. "Hello Investigator, I trust that you have some good news for me?" Her voice was sickly sweet, a far cry from the fierce bratty behaviour disyed just seconds before. If Qiu Ju didn''t fear for her life and livelihood, she would have called her a two-faced bitch.


    "I have some news, although whether it''s good news or not¡­ that''s up to you," the man on the other end of the call said.


    "Tell me," Zhou Yu demanded.


    The man did, and Qiu Ju was half-horrified at the way her mistress threw her head back and cackled, as though this was the best news she had heard all year. She even wiped a tear from her eyes!


    "Thank you Investigator," she said lovingly. "You have given me the best present. Expect a bonus to yourmission."


    Zhou Yu hung up the call, and leaned further back on her pillows, the dark clouds that surrounded her simrly dissipating immediately, as though they never existed. Qiu Ju eyed her warily.


    Zhou Yu smirked at her. "Ask me why I''m happy. Aren''t you curious?"


    "Why are you happy, Young Miss?" Qiu Ju asked obediently.


    "How can one not be happy, when they''ve discovered a secret that can destroy the bane of their existence?" Zhou Yu replied, suddenly cheerful. "Ah, my mood is so good now, excellent. I''ll make some calls first. Prepare my outfits, I''ll be leaving the mansion when I''m done."


    "Where are you going, Young Miss?" Qiu Ju asked curiously, hoping that she would be gone the whole day.


    "To pay a precious someone an important visit."


    =====


    Oblivious to the iing storm, Xue Ning and Jingwei were enjoying a peaceful enough car ride home. It was ufortably cramped at the back, but they were already arriving at their destination. Xue Ning was looking forward to stretching out her limbs.


    Unfortunately, there seemed to be a long line of cars waiting for their turn to enter the gate, and the air was rife with car honks from disgruntled drivers. Several passengers have already exited their car and walked to the front to observe the source of trouble.


    "What''s happening?" Xue Ning asked warily. The scene of all these waiting cars gave her a sense of deja vu. "Is there another crowd of paparazziing back for a second round after the press conference?"


    Oh god. Was it them? Did they hear about Sun Haowei''s heart attack and decided they needed a soundbite from his son? She wouldn''t put it past them.


    "I''ll go and check," Xue Ning said, but Jingwei pulled her back.


    "No Miss Li!" Wei Yan protested. "I''ll go and check instead. You should stay here in the car, where it is safe."


    Xue Ning stared at him nkly, notputing his words. "That''s nonsense, I''ll go with you. How could I get into any trouble?"


    Jingwei protested. "Xue Ning! It''s not safe!"


    "It''s not safe for you," Xue Ning corrected gently, patting his hand as she prepared to leave the vehicle. "Now this is a public location and Lao Wen knows me. If anything happens, I''ll also have Wei Yan for protection. I''ll just be going to check things out, so you stay in the car!"


    "I can go alone though, Miss Li," Wei Yan said, sweating at the thought of Sun Jingwei stewing restlessly in his car as his wife went out to check. He might just run out of the car to chase after her!


    "No you''re not," Xue Ning retorted firmly, as though Wei Yan was the client and she was the bodyguard. She gave Jingwei a quick peck on the cheek and took advantage of his stunned silence to slip out of the car, Wei Yan immediately in pursuit.


    She waved at Jingwei as she left, while he stared at her nonplussed.


    "She really left," Jingwei blinked in surprise. He quickly moved to open the door, but because Ming Guang wasn''t born yesterday, he already locked all the car doors the moment Miss Li left the car.


    His charge wasn''t going anywhere outside if he had his way!<sub> </sub>


    "Ming Guang!" Jingwei protested as he tried to tug the door open. It stayed firmly shut. "Let me go!"


    "No Young Master, this is for your own good." MIng Guang replied evenly, watching the backs of Li Xue Ning and Wei Yan as they walked past the row of cars to the start of the queue, right at the entrance of the gate.


    Thankfully, it didn''t seem like anyone noticed them, for they blended right with the crowd.


    Xue Ning and Wei Yan quickly found out the reason for the long queue - there was a bright pink car parked obstinately right in front of the closed gate, blocking everyone from entering.


    Xue Ning frowned. What kind of driver was so inconsiderate?! She chanced a look at the car tires, they were in great working condition, no hints of a t tire anywhere, so there was no reason for the car to remain where it was.


    Did the driver not pass their driving course? A nce at the driver''s seat showed that it was empty. Well that exined it. No one could be deaf to the cacophony of honking noises from all the angry drivers trying to get in.


    Just as she was going to ask Lao Wen what was going on, Xue Ning saw the back of a woman with beautiful blonde hair, curled delicately into ringlets pointing a threatening finger at Lao Wen, who was sweating buckets in nervousness as he remained in his little booth.


    There was a small crowd of people watching her, and they were tutting judgmentally at her actions. However, strangely enough, no one bothered to tell her off. Instead, they watched her warily, as though she was a tigress liable to lunge at the next moving target.


    Xue Ning narrowed her eyes. The hair looked familiar - but when had she seen it before?


    "I know they are here! Get Sun Jingwei and his shameless hussy toe down now!" The blonde woman barked out as she knocked aggressively on the ss panel of Lao Wen''s booth. Lao Wen shook his head frantically, but it was useless.


    This woman didn''t believe him when he imed that Mr Sun and his wife weren''t back home; she demanded him to let her through so she could see him in person.


    Of course Lao Wen wasn''t going to do that! Judging by how she was already kicking up a fuss, letting her through would be nothing short of a disaster. But the crowd of upset residents grew increasinglyrger, and he began to frantically look for a saviour, even as he dialled Mr Sun''s home number, hoping that he would pick up.


    "Let me through, or my father will have your job!" She yelled shrilly.


    During times like this, he really wished he could retire in the mountains. Lao Wen prayed for a miracle, and lo and behold, one arrived!


    It was Miss Li, Sun Jingwei''s fiancee, who was walking towards him. There was another young man with her that he did not recognize, but that wasn''t important. Finally, one half of the couple arrived!


    "What''s the matter here?" Xue Ning asked evenly, prepared to have a nice, chill talk with the woman to hopefully convince her to move her car and stop creating trouble for everyone. As long as the woman in question was reasonable, surely they coulde to a happy conclusion.


    That n immediately went out the window the moment the woman whipped her head around at the sound of her voice.


    It was the one and only picky asshole, the woman that she saw at Lady Su Yan''s boutique: Zhou Yu!


    "YOU!" Zhou Yu dered loudly, pointing a finger at her as she red at her with vindictive hatred in her eyes. "FINALLY YOU DECIDE TO SHOW UP, YOU SHAMELESS BITCH!"


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes. Great. That''s what she wanted, a troublemaker pointing her out in front of a crowd. Was this high school again?


    "What do you mean by ''finally I decide to show up''?" Xue Ning retorted nkly. "Did I make an appointment with you beforehand? Is where I go any of your business?"


    "You have some nerve arguing with me, with your piss-poor background." Zhou Yu smirked. "But then I suppose it can''t be helped. My first impressions of you were urate - you are just a country bumpkin after all!"


    "Okay¡­" Xue Ning said with a heavy sigh,ying out the sequence of events. It felt like she was talking to a toddler. "So you came all the way here from your fancy mansion, blocking the gates and making a nuisance out of yourself because you wanted to see me?"


    "Yes." Zhou Yu said smugly, with no self-awareness whatsoever, but her smirk fell off at Xue Ning''s casual reply.


    "Sorry, I don''t swing that way!"

 Chapter 164 Gentle Negotiations

    "WHAT." Zhou Yu''s face ckened at her words. How dare this woman cast aspirations on her sexuality in public! She could already see people looking shocked at this false reveal.


    Xue Ning, not caring about the bomb she dropped in public, continued, pretending to sound apologetic that she had to reject Zhou Yu''s advances. "Even if I liked women, I wouldn''t like you. You''re too much of a brat for me."


    Zhou Yu spluttered. "How dare you! If anything, you''re the one that isn''t good enough for me. In fact, you aren''t good enough for Jingwei either! You must have seduced him with your body!"


    "Me? Seduce him?" Xue Ning pointed at herself,ughing. If anything, their interlude in the shower proved that Jingwei was the seducer, not her. But of course, she wasn''t going to let Zhou Yu know that.


    Instead, she decided to give Zhou Yu a mocking smile and wave. "Are you jealous that he likes me more¡­ or are you jealous that I like him more than you?"


    The crowd gasped in surprise and spections began to fly. Did Zhou Yu prefer women?


    ? "Oh my god.. I didn''t expect this¡­"


    "Is that why she broke off the engagement with Sun Jingwei?"


    "All the scandalous affairs were a cover up!"


    "SHUT UP!" Zhou Yu yelled, her face turning an unattractive colour of puce. How had things derailed so quickly? She was supposed to be the one humiliating Li Xue Ning, how is it that she had turned the tables so quickly?


    Meanwhile, Wei Yan could only mentally apud his mistress, looking at her with new eyes. Not only was she good in a fight, she was great with words too!


    "Don''t try to deny that you seduced him!" Zhou Yu brandished her phone. "There''s no way Sun Jingwei would be attracted to you, let alone want you to live with him! Li Xue Ning, you''re not an heiress, you are nothing!"


    Xue Ning blinked in surprise. Zhou Yu had found out her real name! But what was thatst bit? Either a heiress or nothing? That certainly made a human feel valued.


    "I''ve never pretended to be a heiress," Xue Ning replied tly, not even bothering to tackle her other statements. "Now can you move your car? You''re inconveniencing everyone."


    Behind her, Lao Wen nodded in agreement. He actually opened the ss panel (only slightly, because he wasn''t a moron and he wanted protection) to add his two cents.


    "Why wouldn''t Miss Li be living here? She''s Mr Sun''s fiancee! Of course they should be living together!"


    Interested murmurs began to spring up in earnest as the crowd casted curious eyes at Xue Ning, scanning her from head to toe.


    They had all watched the press conference earlier, and they were greeted with the holy vision of Xue Ning, fully dolled up as she and Jingwei embraced and ran away from the hotel.


    They tried to reconcile the sight of that beautiful woman with perfectly coiffed hair, smoky eyes and ruby-red lips, with this version of Xue Ning, whose hair had long reverted back to its normal state, makeup faded with the sweat and shower.


    Who was dressed in a simple T-shirt and shorts helpfully bought by the bodyguards.


    "This is the fiancee?"


    "She looked better in the video¡­"


    "Wow, the makeup and clothes really make a big difference¡­"


    Zhou Yu caught these murmurs and smirked.


    "Of course hair and makeup make a big difference. With the right tools, even a toad like you can look like a swan. But then again, it''s natural beauty that''s the most important. Jingwei must be doing charity, to end up with someone like you."


    Some listeners winced. Truly, there was no need for Zhou Yu to say such hurtful words, when she was the one creating trouble to begin with.


    Others thought that she had a point, especially when they took a more careful look at Xue Ning. Without the mour of the outfit, hair and makeup, she did look¡­ ordinary, especially whenpared to the Zhou family''s heiress with her bouncy blonde hair,rge eyes subtly lined with eyeliner and longshes further enhanced with mascara, her lips a pouty pink.


    But their figures¡­ one can''t deny that while Zhou Yu''s slim figure was attractive, Sun Jingwei''s fiancee had a curvier body that was sexier. They had proof from the press conference!


    "You pay a lot of attention to my looks, are you sure you''re not in love with me?" Xue Ning asked casually, cocking her head to the side. Zhou Yu spluttered at the usations, and Xue Ning continued to steamroll over her.<sub> </sub>


    "No matter what, I still won''t pick an inconsiderate person like you. Forget natural beauty, your personality is as wonderful as the steaming pile of garbage sent to the incinerator."


    "You bitch - " Before Zhou Yu could interrupt further, Xue Ning continued.


    "And it''s funny that you''re iming natural beauty is the most important, when your hair is blonde," Xue Ning said, her lips curving into a smile that showed more teeth than usual. "How about you shave off your hair first, and then we''ll see how beautiful you look when bald."


    A hushed silence fell over the crowd at her words. No one could believe someone was mouthing off to the Zhou family heiress!


    "So let me ask you once again before I lose my patience for good: are you going to move your stupid car or not?"


    "You want me to move on behalf of all these people? Sure!" Zhou Yu snarled, hands on her hips as she red at Xue Ning imperiously. "Get on your knees and beg for my forgiveness for ndering my good name! I''ll consider agreeing to your request from the goodness of my heart."


    "How can I do that? " Xue Ning replied, blinking theatrically. "I''m not begging for forgiveness over something imaginary, that''s like me going for my knees to see a unicorn."


    She turned to Wei Yan. "Doesn''t that sound strange to you? Would you kneel and beg for forgiveness if you ruined something that doesn''t exist?"


    "No, Miss Li. That would be insane." Wei Yan said, pretending to be calm and unaffected. To think this assignment was already bing interesting on the first day! Senior Ming Guang would be sad that he missed it.


    "Well I''m definitely not doing that," she replied, turning to Zhou Yu to scold her. "Go and take some probiotics; you''re so constipated that shit ising out your mouth!"


    ''Oooooooh'' A ripple ofughter and exmations went through the crowd, as though they were watching a particrly exciting schoolyard dispute.


    It felt great to see this inconsiderate heiress humiliated and reduced to a spluttering mess. While the residents were wealthy enough, none of them wanted to risk their home and livelihood to protest against Zhou Yu''s actions.


    But that didn''t mean they couldn''t support Sun Jingwei''s fiancee in getting her to move her car!


    Meanwhile, Zhou Yu''s face turned red in anger. She wasn''t going to let herself be insulted by Xue Ning twice in a day! Even when words failed her, actions wouldn''t.


    She raised her hand and Xue Ning tensed, teeth bared as though daring her to make her move. Zhou Yu aimed to p her, only to be surprised to find her hand stuck!


    She turned angrily, pausing when she realised her hand was held firmly back by a handsome young man. She gnashed her teeth; why were there hot men defending this bitch of a woman?


    "Let go!" She screamed in his face, but he didn''t flinch.


    "I cannot do that, you''re threatening Miss Li." Wei Yan said calmly.


    Xue Ning was also surprised. She was fully prepared to dodge Zhou Yu''s p, fling her to the ground and then rip off her hair strand by strand, but this was fine too.


    Wei Yan seemed excited that there was conflict happening - as though he was a hunting dog delighted at the prospect of prey. She could see the hastily disguised glee in his eyes.


    Far be it for her to ruin his fun.


    "I will not be insulted by the likes of you!" Zhou Yu shrieked as she pointed at her and Wei Yan. Her eyes swivelled between the two of them, and a strange light dawned in her eyes.


    Xue Ning had a feeling she was going to say something stupid, and her intuition was sadly right.


    "You''re such a slut that you''re moving on to fresh new meat! Bringing your new man to visit Jingwei''s home, and then getting him to defend you now! You''re the worst!"


    Yep. Xue Ning guessed it. Zhou Yu did the simple math equation of 1+1, and had gotten the wrong value of 50000.


    "That''s ridiculous," Wei Yan said, shooting Zhou Yu with a look of pure disdain.


    "Stop defending her! You''re being lied to!"


    "Should I be honoured that you think so highly of me?" Xue Ning asked. "Not even my family members believe I have the ability to seduce men so easily. Don''t project your own abilities onto me, thank you very much."

 Chapter 165 Tiny Hero

    Titteringughs came from the crowd. Wei Yan internally cheered - he wasn''t assigned to guard a white lotus heroine! In fact, he had a feeling that Miss Li would have dragged Zhou Yu across the tarmac face-first if he wasn''t there.


    Zhou Yu scoffed. "If your mother had your powers, she wouldn''t have married some poor noodle stall owner in the middle of fucking nowhere."


    Xue Ning stilled at her words as her eyes widened in shock. Did Zhou Yu just imply¡­


    "What did you say?"


    "You heard me - you''re just a daughter from noodle stall owners in the countryside." Zhou Yu tossed her long blonde hair behind her and gave her a derisive nce from her head to toe.


    "If you weren''t good at seducing men, how could you have held Jingwei''s attention?"


    The crowd couldn''t believe their ears. Sun Jingwei''s fiancee was the daughter of noodle stall owners? How preposterous? Their admiring nces became colder and more judgemental. In their eyes, she was a gold-digger of the highest order!


    Xue Ning took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. So Zhou Yu had finally found out her family''s background, in addition to her real name. That was fast! She must have found out the truth and then decided to pay her and Jingwei a visit to stir up trouble.


    While Xue Ning was thinking, Zhou Yu took her silence as confirmation and started crowing at the top of her lungs, like a rooster in the morning.


    "See everyone! This woman is just a money-grubbing slut!"


    "Wei Yan, let go of her arm," Xue Ning said, eerily calm as her vision narrowed to only focus only on Zhou Yu''s obnoxious face and her stupid flowing hair. She slowly stretched her arms out, it wouldn''t do for her hands to get a cramp while beating the shit out of her, after all.


    "Miss Li, I don''t think it''s a wise idea," Wei Yan said cautiously. He was supposed to protect Miss Li after all, and the bodyguard in him knew he was supposed to de-escte the conflict.


    The busybody in him however wanted to see a fist fight! But that might turn out badly for Miss Li, so he had to regrettably remain where he was.


    "Let go of her." Xue Ning repeated.


    "No, Miss Li, it''s not safe to be so close to radioactive waste." Wei Yan said earnestly, and was rewarded with a small smile.


    "Exactly, so you can let go now. I''m going to do my part for the environment and¡­dispose of toxic waste." She cracked her knuckles, and they made ominous popping noises. Everyone held their breaths, not daring to blink in case they missed even a moment of this riveting drama.


    In this very moment, a small shadow darted out from the crowd of onlookers to stand in front of Xue Ning, her arms outstretched as though she was trying to protect her.


    It was a young girl.


    "You''re a mean person! Why are you blocking our gate and being rude? I just want to go home!" The girl shouted, and her voice sounded familiar. Could it be¡­<sub> </sub>


    "Shhhh¡­" The mother tried to shush her and pull her away, but it was toote. The young girl had attracted the attention of the crowd and of Zhou Yu, whose eyes glittered maliciously at the young child that dared to stand against her.


    Upon seeing the mother, Xue Ning''s heart stuttered in recognition. It was Bai Yue''s mom!


    Then the girl¡­ was Bai Yue!


    "Come on, Yueyue, you shouldn''t be yelling in public at strangers!" The mother cajoled her daughter, shooting Zhou Yu a panicked look as her daughter refused to budge, ring stubbornly at who she thought was an evil woman who was just mean to people.


    How could she call the nice bravedy that got rid of the crowd from before a slut? Young as she was, she was mature enough to know that was an insult, even if she didn''t know what it meant.


    "And what''s so bad about owning a noodle stall?" Bai Yue asked with the naivety of a child. "You get to eat noodles all the time. I think it''s great. I like noodles."


    Xue Ning felt her heart warm at Bai Yue''s adorably earnest words. She was such an endearing child, and the crowd couldn''t help but be swayed to her side.


    Her innocent words brought up a good point - in the grand scheme of things, there was nothing wrong in being a noodle stall owner! Sure, it wasn''t on the level of being a billionaire, but all these people have gotten takeout at least once in their lives.


    (At least her family wasn''t made out of criminals.)


    There were a few indulgent chuckles at her words while Bai Yue''s mother tried to seal her own daughter''s lips in vain.


    No matter how powerful the Zhou family was, bullying children would still lead to criticism! However, Zhou Yu did not seem to get the memo. She red at Bai Yue threateningly, and Bai Yue''s lip trembled.


    However, Bai Yue refused to be pulled away by her mom!


    Sensing that her daughter would not be dissuaded, Bai Yue''s mom sent Xue Ning a pleading look. Her daughter had somehow decided to be a brave heroine after hearing what Xue Ning said to her! She was proud when she broke up fights between her ssmates but this was too much!


    Her daughter had run her mouth in front of Sun Jingwei and his wife with no consequences, but she''s sure that someone as vindictive as Zhou Yu, who apparently had a grudge against his wife, would not be that merciful even to a child.


    Zhou Yu smirked. "What is your name, little girl?"


    "I''m Bai Yue." Bai Yue replied, jutting out her lower lip. Xue Ning wanted to warn her not to give her real name to demons, because they would suck out her soul, but it was toote.


    "Bai Yue is it¡­ since you like noodles so much, this jiejie will make sure you get to eat noodles for your entire life!"

 Chapter 166 To See You

    No matter what, she was going to turn her parents into noodle store owners, just to fulfil that childish wish of hers. Beside Bai Yue, her mother was pale with horror. She clearly understood the hidden meaning of her words, even if Bai Yue didn''t.


    Xue Ning narrowed her eyes and immediately nted herself in front of Bai Yue, just in time, for Bai Yue tilted her head and peered at Zhou Yu carefully, pursing her lips.


    "But you don''t look like a jiejie. You look like an aunty," was Bai Yue''s innocently heartless response.


    Ouch. Everyone over the age of 20 winced when they heard her statement. Xue Ningughed at the humiliated flush on Zhou Yu''s face.


    "What do people say¡­ Only children and fools speak the truth? Is that the quote?" Xue Ning asked mockingly. "I''m only the daughter of humble noodle stall owners, but you should be more well-read than I am."


    "You damned brat! Learn some manners! Do you know how much my face is worth?" Zhou Yu made another attempt to lunge at her for saying that she looked like an old hag, but Wei Yan held her back in time.


    "Sorry, sorry¡­ My daughter is still young. I hope you understand." Bai Yue''s mother said hastily, bowing repeatedly.


    Zhou Yu wasn''t satisfied though with this show of apology - the one person she wanted humbled was stillughing at her!


    "She said another bad word," Bai Yue whispered, tugging on the tail end of Xue Ning''s shirt, half-hiding behind her thigh.


    "That she did," Xue Ning said, patting Bai Yue''s head to reassure her that she did nothing wrong.


    "Hey, Bai Yue was already very kind to call you an aunty, seeing that in my eyes, you''re actually a thousand year demoness wrapped in mummified human skin and discarded dog hair." Xue Ning smiled sweetly back at Zhou Yu.


    And all hell broke loose.


    =====


    MEANWHILE¡­


    "I''ll triple your sry if you let me out! Just for a quick moment! I need to go with her!" Jingwei cajoled. He had tried to negotiate with Ming Guang to open the door to let him out. With every passing minute that Xue Ning hadn''t returned, his mind had grown antsier.


    What if she was in trouble! Maybe a hooligan gang was blocking the way and she had to beat the living shit out of all of them to get through.


    "No, Mr Sun. I cannot and will not let you out." Ming Guang said, determined to ignore him.


    "You have to! Just look at this!" Sun Jingwei waved his phone in front of Ming Guang. It yed a video livestream on Weibo that showed two women arguing with each other.


    As it turned out, reality was worse than whatever Jingwei could have imagined.


    One of the women was Xue Ning, the love of his life, his fake fiancee, hopefully the mother of his future children.


    The other was his ex-fiancee.


    Even if the audio was garbled, he could tell from Xue Ning''s bodynguage that she was this close to beating the shit out of his ex-fiancee and the sentiment was returned twofold. One didn''t need to be a genius to know that he was the crux of the argument!


    "Come on! I have to stop the fight! I have to see Xue Ning!" Jingwei repeated, but to no avail. As far as Ming Guang was concerned, he wasn''t sending his newest charge to get caught in a cat fight, even if it did look interesting.


    Xue Ning could definitely take Zhou Yu in a fight, but Jingwei didn''t want to risk it. She could get hurt, or Zhou Yu might just be vengeful enough to destroy her and her family before Jingwei could help. If he was outside, but then that job fell to Wei Yan instead, because Jingwei was still stuck inside the car with no way out.<sub> </sub>


    Well¡­


    Jingwei looked at his phone contemtively, and then gave a cautious gaze at Ming Guang, who was still watching him from the corner of his eyes warily.


    He pretended to sulk like a boy, curled in his seat as he fiddled on his phone to distract him.


    It wasn''t as though Jingwei had no way out, but was he going to risk possibly pissing off his newest bodyguard to go after Xue Ning?


    Of course he was.


    Steeling his jaw, he used his fingerprint to ess his car''s mainframe from his phone, and then inputted a list ofmands he had inputted before to override the existing decision. His actions were old and familiar, simr to riding a bicycle after a long time.


    Habits were hard to break, he mused to himself as lines of code greeted him warmly like an old friend and the world was his oyster. All it took was a push of a button and¡­bingo.


    The door clicked open.


    He caught Ming Guang''s surprised eye in the rearview mirror and gave a cheeky wave.


    "What -"


    Jingwei didn''t reply - he simply grabbed his phone and darted out of the car, but not before mming the car door shut with a cheeky wave.


    "Get back here!" Ming Guang demanded, but Jingwei already ran ahead without even replying, his back vanishing into the crowd.


    Ming Guang swore, and immediately opened the door to follow him - or he would have, but for some strange reason, the door wouldn''t open.


    What on earth? He stared at the car door angrily and unlocked the door, only for the door to automatically return to its locked state. No matter how many times he did it, it was as though the car was only responding to Jingwei''s orders and no one else''s.


    What kind of nonsense was this? How could a door keep auto-locking? Was this car possessed? He shuddered in fear at the thought.


    Stuck in the car, he had no choice but to wait!


    =====


    Somewhere else¡­


    Wu Shang Jingughed in delight as the alert on his phone went off, notifying him that ''Dimitri'' was now online and back in business.


    It wasn''t difficult to find out why. Videos of the altercation were already swarming online. Jingwei never really learnt to stop his bleeding heart from ying the hero, even after all these years.


    Which meant that it was still just as easy to manipte him now. Especially when there was this new woman in the equation¡­ he zoomed in on her face and smirked.


    What a spitfire she was. Wu Shang Jing longed to keep her by his side for entertainment, but she was meant for other things.


    She was the key in the Sun family''s downfall!

 Chapter 167 What Did You Do?

    "....mummified human skin and discarded dog hair."


    "YOU BITCH!"


    At Xue Ning''s words, Zhou Yu let out a war cry andunched herself straight at her. Normally, Wei Yan should have been holding her back by the hand, but he was so shocked at the savage description in Xue Ning''s words that his grasp on her armpsed for just one tiny moment, enough for Zhou Yu to slip out of his hold.


    Xue Ning narrowly dodged her outstretched nails that were out to gouge her eyes. She quickly ducked (finally herck of height was good for something) and then headbutted her in the chin.


    Zhou Yu stumbled, but rage kept her standing and she used this chance to wrap her fingers in Xue Ning''s hair, pulling it as though she wanted to render Xue Ning bald.


    So of course Xue Ning had to return the favour. Luckily, Zhou Yu had longer hair, which meant it was all too easy to reach up and give it a painful tug, wincing as her shrieks assaulted her ears.


    Tears began to bead in Zhou Yu''s eyes. Never before had she been hurt physically in this way! She was the only child of Zhou enterprises, and no one had dared toy a hand on her for as long as she had lived!


    How could a peasant bitch best her like this! She screamed louder, but her stance became unsteady due to the unfamiliar pain, and in that moment of weakness, Xue Ning easily turned things around, pulling her down to wrap her head in a chokehold while Zhou Yu stomped all over her slippered feet with her heel boots.


    That hurt! But Xue Ning refused to let go, sheer spite kept her holding on to Zhou Yu''s head. This woman insulted her parents and hawker store owners alike, beating her up was tantamount to doing good in society!


    "FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT '''' The crowd chanted and cheered as everyone took out their phones to record the rare sight of women brawling in public with their fists and not just with words. One person was even narrating it as though they were watching an MMA fight.


    That person was inte celebrity Xie Bi, also known as Bibi to her fans. Who knew that she would stumble onto something so exciting - and she didn''t even n for it this time! She could see the subscriber count soar already.


    "Everyone, as you can see behind me, this is a fight for Sun Jingwei''s love! Sun Jingwei''s current lover has his ex in a chokehold and is spinning her around! Incredible!"


    Her fans and random viewers alike began to leavements and emojis.


    "Oof that fall would have hurt! Oh, is the ex-lover crying? Yes, but she isn''t giving up! Such persistence - ooh now Sun Jingwei''s fiancee has mmed her into the door of her own car, that was embarrassing, since she was the one that didn''t want to move her car in the first ce!"


    Bibi smirked in delight. Perhaps she would get Sun Jingwei''s fiancee on her channel for an interview. She could hear the coins flowing in!


    Meanwhile, Bai Yue''s mom had used the distraction to frantically drag her inquisitive daughter away from the carnage. It was easier said than done, for her daughter refused to look away from the fight.


    "Mom!" Bai Yueined, as she tugged at her arm, trying to make her way closer to where Sun Jingwei''s wife had her opponent in a chokehold. Such violence! If this was a movie it would be rated PG-13. She hurriedly covered her daughter''s eyes, but her daughter peered through her fingers.


    "Mom, I wanna help her fight! I can fight!"


    "No you don''t want to help her fight," She scolded her fiercely. "You are in big trouble, youngdy, now we''re going!"


    They weren''t going home, because their way home was still blocked. Hopefully a trip to the shopping mall would distract Bai Yue enough. She personally needed a month at the spa to recover.


    "Mooooom -" Bai Yue whined as she was pulled away, her head still craning to get a look. "I can help!"


    Her mother internally cursed Sun Jingwei''s wife for filling her daughter''s head with strange ideas. Because of this woman, they might have to change their identities and go into witness protection!


    Hopefully, Zhou Yu''s attention would be more focused on the humiliating beatdown she suffered at Sun Jingwei''s fiancee''s hands, that the rudeness of her daughter would be an afterthought. She chanced a quick nce at the both of them and shuddered.


    Even from a distance, she could hear the heiress of the Zhou family scream expletives loud enough for everyone to hear. Unfortunately she only had two hands, so she couldn''t cover her impressionable daughter''s ears.


    "Mom, what''s ''fuck you and your fucking slutty pussy''?" Bai Yue asked innocently.


    "Something you should never say out loud," her mother said faintly. "Not even once."<sub> </sub>


    "Oh," Bai Yue said, nodding obediently. "Then what about ''you lying whore''?"


    "That too. If I ever hear you say such things, be prepared to be grounded for life!"


    Zhou Yu, with her cheek pressed against the side of her own car''s window, was still hurling worse descriptors. Xue Ning held her firmly even as her eyebrows climbed higher with every insult.


    From her parents, to her grandparents, to her great-grandparents, to long-lost rtives, to her future children and grandchildren, even all the random cats, dogs and hamsters she might own in the future¡­ Zhou Yu spared no expense, shooting vulgarities at all of them.


    Xue Ning''s hand was already getting tired, but Zhou Yu''s motor mouth still wasn''t stopping. It was almost impressive. She could make it as a female rapper.


    "I''ll execute your parents in front of you! Then I''ll execute you by ripping you apart - "


    "Please shut the fuck up; isn''t your throat already dry?" Xue Ning scolded. "Wei Yan, take over for me, I''m getting tired."


    "Right! Yes Miss Li," Wei Yan said, leaping to attention. Back when the two women were brawling in public, he could only stand by and watch. With the way they fought, it would have been worse if he tried to get in the middle of them and ended up hurting Miss Li.


    He was supposed to be helping Miss Li, but frankly, she had it under control! In fact, he felt entirely unnecessary, like a white crayon in the crayon box.


    Now that he could finally do his part for her, he eagerly took the burden off her hands.


    "What happened here?" Jingwei yelled in surprise as he strided their way. Even in a simple T-shirt and pants, he remained ridiculously handsome, and his muscles were a joy to behold. The crowd that was slowly dispersing quickly gathered again.


    ? "Are you hurt darling?"


    "Jingwei!" Zhou Yu cried out, making sure to sound pitiful and weak. Her saviour was here!


    No matter what, surely Jingwei wouldn''t leave her in the lurch, especially when she looked so pathetic, with her hair dishevelled and a bruise on her chin. They had a history after all, and Jingwei was once in love with her. She was his darling!


    But Jingwei didn''t even spare her a single nce, his eyes were only focused on Xue Ning. He cradled her face in her hands, looking into her eyes anxiously.


    "Xue Ning, darling, are you hurt? Your hair is now messy¡­ poor thing¡­" Jingwei said, as he began to pat her hair back into neatness, fussing at her, while Xue Ning bore it all with stoicism.


    Everyone sweatdropped. Why was Sun Jingwei behaving like a wife that found out her husband had a long day at work?


    "Yah Sun Jingwei! What is the meaning of this!" Zhou Yu whined, feeling more aggrieved that she waspletely ignored by him. She struggled, but it was futile. Wei Yan''s hold was even stronger than Xue Ning''s, possibly to make up for the fact that he was useless in the earlier fight.


    "Jingwei, don''t ignore me! Look what she did to me!" She cried out, deliberately letting a few big fat tears roll down her cheeks. Wei Yan gave her an utter look of disgust. "Even my father has never hit me like this!"


    "That exins so much," Xue Ning muttered to herself. "He should have walloped you more."


    Meanwhile Jingwei blinked as he looked over Zhou Yu.


    "Excuse me, who are you again?" Jingwei asked, but he didn''t even wait for a reply before turning back to Xue Ning over, his face darkening at the bruises on her feet caused by Zhou Yu''s heel boots.


    "Your feet are hurt!" Jingwei eximed. "What happened?"


    "Nothing important," Xue Ning said, casually shrugging as she adjusted her rumpled shirt. She survived Ya Ren and Lu Sheng trying to kill her, Zhou Yu was practically a level one slime inparison.


    "A mad dog was blocking the road. It barked and it bit me." She leaned in closer and whispered conspiratorially into his ear. Jingwei tilted his head down, ying along. "I hope it doesn''t have rabies."

 Chapter 168 Coming Back Home (Pt 1)

    "Best to get that looked at then," Jingwei said with amusement in his eyes. "Can''t have you dying of rabies before our wedding."


    "Wedding? Sun Jingwei, you can''t be serious!" Zhou Yu yelled, trying to re at him from her awkward position. "You are in love with me!"


    "Were," Jingwei corrected firmly, his fingers intertwining with Xue Ning''s own. He gave Zhou Yu a disdainful look before pressing a gentle kiss on Xue Ning''s fingers.


    "I was in love with you, but then you decided to cheat on me during our engagement party by fucking a waiter in the restroom. Surely you don''t think that I''m someone so pathetic that I''ll keep waiting for you toe back right?"


    Xue Ning''s mouth dropped open at his words, and she wasn''t the only one. This was new information!


    "Wait really?" Xue Ning asked disbelievingly. "This woman cheated on you? Why? How?"


    She couldn''t believe there was a person that would willingly do something so despicable to Jingwei. Oh, she can understand someone not liking him (that was her in the past), or possibly falling out of love with him - in that case, the right course of action would be to break up and find someone new.


    Cheating on him¡­. She couldn''t phantom it at all.


    "Possibly because she liked someone else," Jingwei said, shrugging.


    "How could I not!" Zhou Yu interrupted rudely. "You were wholly useless in the past! A rampant skirt-chaser party boy with no redeeming factors! I deserved better!"


    "Guilty as charged," Jingwei said, nodding agreeably. "I was a useless person before."


    "That doesn''t make it right," Xue Ning argued, furious, and both of them turned to look at her. "If you thought he was the most useless man in the world, then you should have broken up with him! Why are you ming him for your decisions?"


    "This is our domestic dispute! Outsiders shouldn''t interfere!" Zhou Yu spat out maliciously. "Don''t pretend to be a righteous person in front of me! Everyone cheats!"


    "I didn''t hit your head but you''re already spewing nonsense," Xue Ning retorted. "So what if everyone cheats on their partner? That doesn''t make it right!"


    The crowd murmured in agreement.


    Jingwei''s heart ached sweetly. Xue Ning was really too good for his world. Zhou Yu wasn''t lying when she said that everyone cheated - if anyone asked Jingwei, he could immediately give them at least 10 names of acquaintances he knew were having affairs.


    Such was the lifestyle they''ve all gotten used to, especially in a world where arranged marriages were stillmon and marriage was for profit, not love.


    Jingwei''s idealism when it came to marriage, and his belief that his partner would be his future soulmate was an exception that had gotten him weird looks more than once from his pragmatic schoolmates. It was definitely not the norm!


    Zhou Yuughed condescendingly. "You say this, because you can''t even cheat if you want to! You don''t have enough people that are interested in you for that!"


    "Why would I need more people to be interested in me?" Xue Ning retorted nkly, gesturing to Jingwei with her thumb. "My husband is right here?"


    Husband! Xue Ning called her his husband! The world was beautiful again, the sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and the sky never had such a beautiful blue colour. Jingwei could have burst into song, but then he''d probably be mistaken as a nutcase and institutionalised.<sub> </sub>


    Hence he settled for giving Xue Ning a lovesick look.


    Zhou Yu pretended to retch.


    "More importantly, can you move your car?" Xue Ning continued.


    "Yah, Sun Jingwei, are you going to let her talk to me like that?" Zhou Yu screamed,pletely ignoring Xue Ning''s words. "This slut daughter of noodle stall owners who seduced - "


    "Do. Not. Insult. My. Wife." Jingwei growled out warningly, his good humour from Xue Ning''s words going down the drain immediately. He pulled Xue Ning behind him as though he could shield her from her words. It was a nice gesture, even though it was unnecessary. He didn''t know that Xue Ning already ripped her a new asshole.


    "So what if I do?" Zhou Yu said, smirking even as half her face was squashed by her own car. "What can you do to me? Don''t forget who my father is!"


    "You - " Jingwei started, moving forward as though he wanted to personally settle scores, but even he knew there was a limit to what he could do to Zhou Yu. She was annoying, but she had a point - her father was powerful, and now with his own father out ofmission, he didn''t want to make things more difficult for Tianwei.


    But he couldn''t let her insult Xue Ning like this either! Before he could think of a response, Xue Ning chimed in.


    "Your poor father, imagine being treated like toilet paper even at his old age."


    "What''s that supposed to mean?" Zhou Yu spluttered. Jingwei was equally confused.


    "Well, aren''t you using him to wipe your shit? I''m just calling it as I see it."


    Xue Ning shrugged and pulled Jingwei back, continuing cidly.


    "And you can call me whatever names you want, but in the end, you''re just insulting yourself. If I''m a slut daughter from noodle stall owner parents, you are the heiress that lost to a slut from noodle stall owners. Which one of us do you think is more pathetic?"


    "I haven''t lost!" Zhou Yu protested, her face red with humiliation. Now tears were forming for real in her eyes.


    "Well, you sure aren''t winning," Xue Ning pointed out sympathetically, looking over her pathetic form and the way the crowd was heartlessly gossiping about her scandals while she was right in front of them. They didn''t even respect her enough to wait until they were behind closed doors!


    "And for someone of your status, that would be as good as losing."


    Zhou Yu could only fall silent, her lip pressed into a wobbling line as she blinked furiously. Wei Yan sensed that she had stopped struggling and loosened his hold.


    "Just go home, Zhou Yu." Jingwei said tiredly. "There''s nothing for you here. You killed whatever we could have had with your own hands. I have moved on, and so should you."


    "You¡­ you¡­" Zhou Yu burst into angry tears. "Fine! Be that way! Just you wait - you''re going to crawl back to me sooner orter! I swear it!"


    With that grim statement, Zhou Yu entered her car and mmed the door shut, her engine revving loudly as she finally turned and pulled away.

 Chapter 169 Coming Back Home (Pt 2)

    In her car, tears of humiliation rolled down Zhou Yu''s cheeks. She couldn''t believe it! How could Jingwei shoot her down in front of so many people? How could he possibly pick that slut over Zhou Yu? Her vision clouded with tears as she drove back home, elerating heavily.


    How dare he¡­ how dare he¡­ how dare he! Who was he to dump her? Her, Zhou Yu, easily one of the most beautiful women in Shanghai!


    She mmed her hands against her steering wheel, but that wasn''t enough to vent her anger. She honked angrily at other cars on the road, purposely cutting them, but that could not quell the bitterness and anger in her heart.


    Even the knowledge that she sent hooligans to destroy that slut''s parent''s store wasn''t enough for her. After how they had humiliated her today, Zhou Yu would settle for nothing less than theirplete and utter destruction.


    An evil smirk began to bloom on her face as she thought about something else she could do to them. Zhou Yu hurriedly wiped away her tears, now grinning like a maniac.


    "Li Xue Ning! I''ll destroy all that you hold dear!"


    =====


    Back at Jingwei''s apartmentplex, Xue Ning, Jingwei and Wei Yan hurriedly stood to the side, making room for the many cars that were quickly driving through the gate.


    Every driver that was behind the wheel gave the couple a curious look, as though actually looking at them for the first time. Jingwei was used to people staring at him, so he merely cheerfully waved as they slowed down to stare at him.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning felt highly awkward as they gawked at her with impressed faces, as though she was a hero that saved an entire bus full of orphans.


    Initially she wanted to get back into their car to avoid the staring, but on second thought, it would be pointless to run back only for Ming Guang to drive her inside anyway, seeing that she was already at the gate.


    They could have entered his apartment, but it would be terrible to leave Ming Guang alone after Jingwei had locked him in his car with no way out.


    "Hey, how did you escape Ming Guang?" Xue Ning asked curiously as they waited for him to drive in.


    "Magic," Jingwei said cheekily.


    "Sure, then you''d better hope that Ming Guang ''magically'' forgives you for that stunt." Xue Ning scoffed. "I don''t think he''ll be happy with your actions."


    "Oh, he definitely won''t be," Wei Yan chimed in. "Senior Ming Guang hates it when people don''t listen to his orders and get into trouble."


    True enough, when it was Ming Guang''s turn to drive through the gate, Jingwei could only give a sheepishugh in response to the death re levelled in his direction.


    He rolled the window down, taking a deep breath to calm himself down. "Mr Sun, kindly never do that again!"


    "Hahahaha¡­" Jingwei onlyughed awkwardly, but gave no promises.


    Ming Guang narrowed his eyes. "Mr Sun, will you let me out of your car?"<sub> </sub>


    "Oh right, sure, I forgot about that," Jingwei said as Ming Guang glowered. He hurriedly tapped something on his phone, and now the car was back to being manually controlled. However, Ming Guang continued to glower until the four of them finally arrived back in his apartment.


    Before they could enter, Ming Guang and Wei Yan had them wait outside while they quickly did a sweep of his apartment, before determining it to be safe enough for them to enter.


    They then stood at attention, guarding the door from inside. Xue Ning and Jingwei watched how they refused to budge and could only think about how it was a bit of an overkill. There was nothing that would kill them in their apartment for now.


    "You guys don''t need to stand around! Come now, let''s put your things in the guest room first," Jingwei said, leading them there.


    Oh right. Xue Ning''s heart began to beat faster.


    She was going to be sharing a room with Jingwei from now on!


    "Wait! Let me pack my things first," Xue Ning said hastily, running into the room before they could enter. "You guys unpack the Epi-pens first - make sure to put them all around the house!"


    "Yes Madam," Ming Guang and Wei Yan replied, and proceeded to do as she asked. Jingwei hid an amused smile - Xue Ning, with her reddening ears, was now taking charge of them as though she was thedy of the household.


    He shook his head; technically Xue Ning was thedy of his household, it was within her rights to order them if she wished.


    "I can help you! Let me!" Jingwei said, eagerly bounding behind Xue Ning like a delighted golden retriever.


    Wei Yan and Ming Guang exchanged nces. Clearly, it was Miss Li who held the reins in this house!


    "Nah, I can do it myself," Xue Ning said, waving him off. "Go pay attention to the Epi-pens! That''s more important! Shoo! Go!"


    She did not need him hovering over her while she was trying to pack and mentally prepare herself for sharing a room with him. Now that they technically had some form of sex, her brain no longer needed to imagine how it would feel. She needed to calm herself down from all the dirty thoughts flooding through it.


    So she had to shove him out the door and lock it so she could pack. And as she packed, she realised that he still hadn''t told her about Zhou Yu, or about Wu Shang Jing. She vowed to be less distracted by him, and instead, she would focus on eliminating the threats.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei stared dumbfoundedly at the closed door.


    "Xue Ning? Are you mad at me?" He asked hesitantly, knocking on the door. But Xue Ning only told him to go and pack first.


    "Mr Sun? Where do you want to put the Epi-pens?" Wei Yan asked, carrying the huge box with his arms. Jingwei sighed.


    Guess his wife didn''t need his help moving her things into his room!

 Chapter 170 I’m A Real Genius

    In less than 15 minutes, Xue Ning had sessfully packed her clothes and toiletries back into her luggage, and she tried to restore the room back into a rtively pristine condition. It was a bit awkward to have two male strangers move into a room she had been sleeping in for a week, so she took more care in making sure that she didn''t leave things like spare sanitary pads lying around.


    "I''m done, you guys can move in now," Xue Ning said, after she was satisfied with how the room looked.


    "And you can move into my room!" Jingwei added cheerfully. "I ced an order for a hair dryer, just for you. It''ll arrive tomorrow!"


    Xue Ning''s heart warmed. He remembered their past conversations. "Thanks."


    Unpacking was also quick, Jingwei was overly eager in helping her move into his room. He shoved his Armani silk shirts aside to make room for her own cheap cotton clothes, and he all but emptied one of his underwear drawers just to give her space to put her own.


    Still, she shooed him away when he wanted to peer over her head to see what she brought.


    (If they continued to sleep together in future, he would have many more chances to see them anyway! He''d better not make somement about how unsexy they were - she''d kill him.)


    For the bathroom, he helped her disy her meagre toiletries right in the centre so no one could miss them.


    Her box of sanitary pads was ced in the corner of the bathroom, and she pointedly did not look at the lube bottle still standing innocuously next to the bathtub. Now that she had seen Jingwei''s cock, it was hard to not imagine him pleasuring himself in the bathroom.


    Jingwei grinned at her reddening face, as though he could tell what she was thinking.


    "Xue Ning, we should celebrate you moving into my room," Jingwei said, giving her a warm back hug as he pressed a kiss to the side of her head, discreetly trying to lead her to the huge, soft, weing bed in the middle of his room.


    Apparently he wasn''t discreet enough, for Xue Ning merely smacked his arm and pulled away.


    "What celebration? Don''t forget, you''re supposed to tell me what happened between you and Zhou Yu. And the whole mess with Wu Shang Jing." Xue Ning demanded hotly. "I may have defended you just now, but if I find out you''re hiding important information from me - I''ll skin you alive!"


    Jingwei gave her onest squeeze and then let go. "In that case, we''d better go to the living room. If you skin me here, you won''t be able to sleep with all the blood stters. I need to tell Ming Guang and Wei Yan too anyway."


    "Fine," Xue Ning said, narrowing her eyes at his easy acquiescence, his carefree cheerfulness slowly leaking away. She was not going to like whatever came out of his mouth.


    The four of them gathered in the living room.


    "I''m sure all of you have many questions." Jingwei began.


    Ming Guang gave him an unimpressed look. "Yes, for a start, what did you do to your car? It refused to let me out."


    "Oh, I created a programme that allowed me to ess my car''s mainframe from my phone. I simply implemented a few keymands so that you won''t be able to unlock the door without me cancelling themand." Jingwei replied.


    Everyone stared at him nkly. Xue Ning blinked a few times, but still the words did notpute. It was as though Jingwei began to speak in French.


    p "Sure," Xue Ning said tly. "And I''m actually a great trapeze artist in a circus."<sub> </sub></anda>


    "You are? That''s great!" Jingwei replied encouragingly.


    "No I''m not!"


    Ming Guang looked even more upset. "Mr Sun, we''re trying to ensure your safety. Kindly refrain from telling tall tales!"


    "I''m telling the truth!" Jingwei eximed.


    Three pairs of disbelieving eyes greeted his statement.


    Jingwei sighed. "Guys, I know it''s hard to believe, but I''m actually a pretty good hacker. Well, I was anyway. I''ve been out of practice for a while."


    "WHAT?" It wasn''t clear who eximed first, but Xue Ning was sure that her voice was the loudest.


    "Jingwei, the words in the sentence you spoke made sense separately, but somehow, when they are joined together, they don''t make sense." Xue Ning continued, crossing her arms and shaking her head. If Jingwei had told her he used to be a male porn star, or a male stripper, or that he used to steal cars, she would have believed it more easily.


    How could she possibly wrap around the idea that Sun Jingwei was a hacker? A verifiedputer genius?


    When she met him, he was a lech that nearly got drugged because he was distracted by a woman''s breasts? Shouldn''t hackers be more¡­ intelligent?


    "I assure you, I''m not kidding." Jingwei said, putting his hand out to swear his sincerity. "I was nning to let that part of my past die, but then Wu Shang Jing reappeared and he''s out to destroy my entire family. I think it''s high time I told all of you."


    "I''m sorry, I''m still wrapping my mind around the fact that you are a hacker," Xue Ning said. "This ispletely unexpected. If you told me you had an illegitimate son, I would have believed you more easily."


    "Oh ye of little faith," Jingwei replied, half-frowning. "I always make sure to use protection!"


    "Can we please go back to the subject in question?" Wei Yan asked. "Mr Sun, this is hard for us to believe. Is there a way you can prove it?"


    Jingwei gave another world-weary sigh. "Xue Ning, do you remember the time you took a ride in my BMW? And then you heard Lady Yu''s wifeing out from the GPS?"


    Wei Yan and Ming Guang discreetly looked at each other. Hopefully Sun Jingwei was talking about normal car rides, and not dirtier riding.


    Xue Ning frowned as she faintly recalled such an incident. They were on her way to her home to pack her things.


    "Yes? So you''re telling me that was your doing?"


    "Of course!" Jingwei said proudly. "I''ve only been using my skills when ites to upgrading my cars."

 Chapter 171 Watch Me!

    "That''s¡­ hard to believe," Xue Ning said. She had thought it was Jingwei getting someone to make a customized GPS because he could, but the thought that he did this by himself was incredible!


    "Can you demonstrate something for us?" Wei Yan asked eagerly.


    "That depends, what do you want to see?" Jingwei asked, as though he was an artist takingmissions.


    "Can you hack into the Pentagon? The one in the United States, like all those hackers in the movies?" Wei Yan asked, eyes shing with excitement. If Mr Sun could do it, he would truly be an incredible man!


    "That''s a crime," Ming Guang sternly interrupted, his eyebrow twitching at the thought of courting more trouble. "We are trying to protect Young Master Sun, not give him more reason to have him arrested by another country''s government."


    Xue Ning nodded in fervent agreement. "If you end up thrown in some dingy jail cell in America, I''ll just take over this house and leave you to rot there. Don''t expect me to bust you out. I don''t know any English to even fly there."


    Jingweiughed adoringly. "I feel your love, I really do. In my defence, if I did end up in some dingy cell, you can inherit all my houses - but it won''t be because I hacked into the Pentagon."


    All three of them stared at him in judgemental silence. Jingwei sure spoke like someone who did a great number of things that couldnd him in jail, and he spoke it with such confidence.


    "Guys, you should be asking me why won''t I end up in some dingy cell!" Jingwei eximed, feeling slightly put-out. None of hispanions would make it as an interviewer.


    "Okay, I''ll bite," Xue Ning said with a tinge of exasperated fondness, "why won''t you be left to rot in some dingy cell? Is it because your family will bail you out?"


    "Of course not. Not that I love to brag about my skills -" Jingwei began smugly while Xue Ning snorted at the tant lies that spouted out of his mouth, "but I already did that as teen, and honestly, there''s not much kick."


    "Ha. Yeah right," Xue Ning said, rolling her eyes. This had to be one of Jingwei''s ridiculous brags. She looked into Jingwei''s eyes, expecting his eyes to glint with mischief.


    But no, while his eyes were warm as he looked at her, they were also surprisingly serious. He had to be a very good actor, or he was actually a hacker like those she saw in blockbuster movies.


    She really hoped he was joking. She''d rather he be an A-list actor than an A-list hacker any day!


    "Oh my god, are you sure you''re not lying?" Xue Ning eximed, still grappling with the sense of perpetual disbelief.


    "Is this because Zhou Yu called you useless just now and now you feel the pressing need to prove that you''re capable? Because if that''s the case, you don''t have to. I think you''re fine even without strange hacking abilities."


    "But I''m not lying!" Jingwei protested hotly, even as his heart warmed at her words. Xue Ning liked him even when she thought he was useless! "I swear, I''m telling the truth!"


    Wei Yan''s mouth also fell open at that admission. "Okay¡­ then what can you do that is proof of your hacking skills but isn''t criminal? Like hacking the Pentagon. Wait - are there any non-criminal hacking activities?" Wei Yan asked in confusion.<sub> </sub>


    "How about I hack into someone else''s gaming ount?" Jingwei offered. "I used to do this all the time when I was in middle school. It was so easy to just guess their passwords and clean out their inventory when they weren''t logged in. Also I used to be able to duplicate my items and made those poor suckers believe I could do the same for them. They''d just give me everything!" Jingwei even bragged a bit at the end, hoping to impress Xue Ning."


    "You can do that?" Wei Yan eximed excitedly, leaning closer to Jingwei.


    "Wow, what a scumbag," was Xue Ning''s unimpressed reply. "So will you get caught?"


    "I don''t believe so," Jingwei said confidently. "My dearest Xue Ning, I''m actually quite good at this!"


    "I''ll believe it when I see it," Xue Ning said doubtfully, her eyebrows furrowing in suspicion. "Forgive me for not having any confidence in you, seeing that I didn''t even know that you had this skill five minutes ago. Are you sure you aren''t scamming me? I''ll forgive you for it if youe clean now."


    "Ye of little faith. Prepared to be awed by my abilities!" Jingwei dered, rolling up his sleeves as he started up hisptop. The three of them stood behind him, watching carefully so as to not miss a single moment.


    "Did you guys y this too?" Jingwei asked as the familiar Maplestory logo appeared.


    Xue Ning nodded with a scowl. "Yeah I did. Then I stopped, because some fucker with an obnoxiously long username cheated me of my cashed items and cleaned out my inventory. I still remember his stupid shining demon lord special effect. If I ever find out who that yer is, he''s dead!"


    Xue Ning then paused and stared at Jingwei suspiciously.


    Was he the fucker responsible?


    "Yikes, well, that poor guy will get what he deserves," Jingwei said consolingly as the game music began to y, inspiring nostalgia in them both.


    Jingwei easily logged into his old ount, and proudly showed off his main character. It was ridiculously overpowered and it was equipped from head to toe with thetest equipment from a decade ago. There was even a special effect in the background.


    A stupid demon lord shining background, to be exact.


    It surrounded an equally obnoxious - and equally memorable name, and all of a sudden Xue Ning was transported 13 years ago where she first had the ''joy'' of interacting with this fucker who insulted herck of cash and then scammed her of her inventory.


    But maybe this wasn''t the same character. Maybe Xue Ning''s memory was spotty.


    So she asked. "Are you sure you''re not just bragging about your paid items? Where is the hacking I''m supposed to see?"


    Jingwei smirked. "Just wait and see!"

 Chapter 172 So It Was YOU

    His fingers began to fly across the keyboard keys, as though he was a man possessed. Tiny screens soon popped up repeatedly one after another, but Jingwei remained calmer than Xue Ning had ever seen him, whistling a jaunty tune. as he continued to alter the code.


    His confidence would be sexy, if not for the fact that Jingwei was activelymitting cybercrime. Even if it was on a much smaller scale, it would do nosting damage, except to the poor owner of the ount who would wake up one morning to find everything gone.


    "Ah, it''s been a long time since I did this, so I''m a bit rusty," Jingwei said with false modesty, even as he continued to edit the lines of code. It was just like riding a bike, even if the start was shaky, one never truly forgot how to do it. "Tada! Proof that I wasn''t lying!"


    He got ess to someone else''s game ount, easily transferring their items to his own.


    "Wow, that''s amazing," Wei Yan said with a hushed whisper.


    "Wow, so you''re a cybercriminal." Xue Ning said, narrowing her eyes as the puzzle pieces began to assemble.


    They formed a damning picture indeed.


    ? "Well they should have used moreplex passwords," Jingwei said, shrugging his shoulders.


    "I see," Xue Ning replied evenly. "And would you say the password redme55ninja is a good password?"


    Wei Yan and Ming Guang, with a fine-tuned sense of danger honed from their jobs, began slowly inching backwards. Ming Guang shot Jingwei a warning look, willing him to watch his mouth.


    But he was ignored, because Jingwei had no eyes for people that weren''t his wife.


    "No?" Jingwei said, frowning. "It''s very easy to crack because it only has letters and numbers and no special characters. Even if it has capital letters, it''s still not hard. That kind of password is juvenile. Which idiot would make this password?"


    "Me," Xue Ning replied curtly, giving him a death re.


    "Eh?" Jingwei blinked, not understanding his precious darling fiancee''s one word response. "What do you mean by ''me''?"


    "I had that password." Xue Ning replied, and waited for the words to sink into Jingwei''s brain.


    "Hahahaha¡­" Jingweiughed awkwardly as he realised he indirectly insulted Xue Ning. "Well, you were young then. Everyone has made one stupid password once in their life!"


    "You fucker," Xue Ning eximed, pulling him by his cor. "IT WAS YOU THAT HACKED INTO MY ACCOUNT AND SCAMMED ME!"


    "I did?" Jingwei asked in surprise as he tried to loosen the death grip Xue Ning had on his cor to no avail. "I don''t recall."<sub> </sub>


    "Of course you wouldn''t, you dickhead," Xue Ning argued hotly. It wasn''t as though Xue Ning''s ount was anything special or spectacr, but she was still proud of her progress, because it was hers and not her older brothers.


    "How many ounts have you hacked huh, you fucker? I bet I was just one of the notches on your bedpost!" She continued, shaking him by his cor as though he was a glow stick she just cracked apart.


    Wei Yan whispered to Ming Guang, "Should we stop her?"


    Logically, Ming Guang should say yes because he was supposed to protect his charge from all threats to his life, even if the threat was his wife.


    Illogically, Ming Guang was feeling just a slight tinge of petty at Sun Jingwei''s earlier actions. How could his Boss decide to trap him in his own car with no way out when he was just trying to do his job?


    As such, Ming Guang simply shook his head at Wei Yan''s question. Let him suffer for a while longer. Besides, Sun Jingwei had a strong streak of possessiveness; that man might not want people touching his wife - even if it''s to help him!


    Meanwhile Jingwei could only wish for a time machine, just so he could travel to the past and smack his past self in the face! Hacking game ounts? For shame! Did his past self know that he was ruining his future romance? Clearly not, because his past self was a moron!


    (Also, his heart had dropped all the way to his feet. If this was how Xue Ning thought about his actions regarding simple hacking of game ounts, she would hate him for the other things he did!)


    "Xue Ning I was wrong¡­ I''m sorry¡­" He wailed pitifully, making sure to channel the attitude of a repentant puppy that peed in their owner''s leather shoes. "I was a young and stupid child that didn''t know any better¡­"


    "Don''t feel too sad, you are still young and stupid now," was Xue Ning''s heartless response, but she finally let him go. Not because she had forgiven him, but because her arms were getting tired. She had used them to give CPR to his father, stab a man, and then fight Zhou Yu all in one day.


    What an exhausting day. And then she found out Sun Jingwei was that bastard responsible for stealing her Limited Edition Kitten Pet along with the Meow Meow Magical Ninja equipment set.


    What a fucker.


    She growled at him, while Jingwei continued to grovel for forgiveness, holding onto her hands as he looked pertinently remorseful, throwing out a litany of apologies for all his past misdeeds. Anyone could have thrown Sun Jingwei onto the theater stage during his monologue; he would not have been out of ce at all.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning still looked unmoved at the disy of passion and drama. Her eyebrow was raised, as though she was internally deciding how long she should punish him for his past actions. Should she wait for Jingwei to cry first?


    Wei Yan whispered softly so as to not be overheard. "Hey, do you think our Boss has a humiliation kink?"


    Ming Guang recoiled, shooting him a look of utter distaste and disgust at the mental images that crossed his mind. He fought the urge to retch. "That is¡­ urgh. Inappropriate. Disgusting. Never speak to me again."


    Wei Yan nodded, and then he continued to talk to himself. "I think he does, he seems like someone that would like it if she stepped on him."

 Chapter 173 A Second Challenge

    Ming Guang gingerly scooted away, mentally cursing Captain Mu. Why couldn''t he be assigned with a more professional bodyguard colleague? Instead, he was stuck with motor-mouth Wei Yan who had no qualms about specting about the rtionship and bedroom dynamics of his bosses.


    Urgh. He shuddered.


    "But if you think about it, isn''t it great!" Jingwei eximed, cutting short his monologue of sorrow to beam at her.


    "What''s so great," Xue Ning retorted hotly. "I''ve found out that I''m in love with a cybercriminal who robbed me when I was 12!"


    "You''re in love with me!" Jingwei repeated, delighted at her admission. "You love me! I''m so happy!"


    "Did you not hear the part where you robbed me?" Xue Ning asked dryly even as her cheeks reddened at her idental admission. She crossed her arms and pretended to stare at the wall next to Jingwei. "Don''t change the subject!"


    "Okay! But you love me!" Jingwei said cheerfully, just to get thest word. He wanted to say it over and over, scream it from the top of his lungs as he stood on the Great Wall, on top of the Eiffel Tower, on top of the Statue of Liberty.


    (He had to savour this, before Xue Ning no longer loved him.)


    "In return¡­ I''ll return the stuff I stole from you!" He promised.


    "You don''t even know what you stole, idiot," Xue Ning said with a scowl.


    "But I''m sure you do." Jingwei smiled winningly and waggled his fingers. "I''ll give it back now."


    "No thanks, I''ve stopped ying for over 10 years." Xue Ning said, smacking his fingers. "So is this the extent of your hacking skills? Robbing poor innocent children of their hard earned equipment?"


    "Of course not!" Jingwei replied, offended. "Do you want to rob Zhou Enterprises? I can do that too! I''m sure your parents wouldn''t mind a new set of kitchenware, or a new washing machine. I can make sure that they get that for free!"


    "And make my parents aplices to your crime? No thanks." Xue Ning said, then she thought for a moment. "But how do you n to rob them anyway?"


    "Watch and learn, my darling wife, the light of my life, the best thing - "


    "Shut up and just get to it, you braggart." Xue Ning grumbled, even as the corners of her lips turned upward at his tant ttery. The worst thing of all was how Sun Jingwei meant every single flowery word that emerged from that sexy mouth of his.


    What an annoying man! She wanted to kiss him sometimes and it was All. His. Fault.


    "I''ll hack into their merce site to give us, and anyone who just happens to visit, a 100% discount on all their items," Jingwe said cheerfully. "After all that Zhou Yu did today, this ispensation for you!"


    "How kind of you," Xue Ning said, still refusing to believe Jingwei had the skills he boasted of. Even if she did want to rob them blind, Jingwei''s offer still sounded too good to be true!<sub> </sub>


    Surely an enterprise as wealthy and well-known as the Zhou''s would have great cybersecurity that wouldn''t be so easily bypassed, unlike old gaming ounts held by children, which had passwords that hadn''t been changed in years!


    "Are you sure you''re up to this task?" Xue Ning asked.


    "Mydy, do you doubt my abilities?" Jingwei asked, affronted. "I''m hurt."


    "What gave me away?" Xue Ning retorted. "But seriously, are you sure they won''t find out and arrest you?"


    "Let''s find out!" Jingwei replied cheerily, eagerly visiting Zhou Enterprises'' merce site. Xue Ning saw the website load to reveal a new brand of vacuum cleaner. Huh. Her mom would like that.


    "I''ll get you that vacuum cleaner," Jingwei promised, catching the look of interest in Xue Ning''s eyes. If she wanted everything in the damn product catalog, he would give it to her!


    Jingwei started to work his magic on the site. Just like before, lines of code began to appear. Wei Yan and Ming Guang came closer, and the three of them huddled behind Jingwei to watch him work with baited breath.


    Jingwei smiled, everything was going just as he nned! All it needed was a few workarounds and¡­


    But wait a minute! He watched as parts of his code began drifting and shifting without his input. He frowned; was there another hacker overriding his code? Was this the Zhou''s family idea of investing in better cybersecurity?


    What on earth was going on?


    "Oi, why are you frowning?" Xue Ning asked, starting to panic. She knew nothing about coding, but she could read Jingwei''s expression, and the look on his face wasn''t that carefree, happy look he had when he was robbing gaming items from old ounts. "Are you in trouble? Are you going to be arrested?"


    "No no no! Everything is fine!" Jingwei hastily assured her, but he didn''t take his eyes away from the screen. Instead, his fingers flew faster over the keyboard, apetitive light dawning in his eyes. He hadn''t done this for a long time, but seeing someone dare to interfere with his hacking lit a fire ofpetitiveness in him. He didn''t want to lose to this unnamed hacker! If he did, he''d lose face in front of Xue Ning - and he refused to let that happen! If Xue Ning already called him a cybercriminal, he would at least work to be a goodpetent cybercriminal, and not some run-of-the-mill scrubb that got stopped by this obstacle!


    "Don''t worry Xue Ning!" Jingwei dered fervently. "By hook or by crook, I''m going to get that vacuum cleaner for you!"


    "You could just buy it with your own money," Xue Ning grumbled, but she watched Jingwei as he continued to type furiously. This side of him was new, and she was surprised at how much she liked it.


    She always did like people who refused to give up, people with their own passions, and people who werepetent. Somehow, Sun Jingwei was slowly bing all of these people the more time she spent with him!


    Seeing him code, she had to wonder if he kept this part of him hidden all this while. But no, he said that he hadn''t done it in a while. That was strange.


    If he was that good and he was interested in this¡­ unorthodox hobby, why on earth would he give it up?

 Chapter 174 His Panic Attack

    Meanwhile, Jingwei was oblivious to Xue Ning''s thoughts. He was focused on beating this unnamed hacker at his own game!


    It seemed that the hacker knew a few new tricks that Jingwei hadn''t known about. This was the problem in any fast-paced industry - the moment you stop catching up, you''ll get left behind!


    Jingwei cursed again, gnashing as his attempts were yet again thwarted. He could sense the other party cackling behind the screen. If it was him a decade ago, he''d be doing so too!


    But unfortunately, it seemed like he was a decade toote for this war. He was effectively bringing a knife to a gun fight - sure, the knife could do some damage, but only if he could even get close enough to bypass the firewalls set up by this person!


    p Xue Ning watched him struggle and sighed.</anda>


    "Not that I''m not touched by your dedication to get me a free vacuum cleaner, but if it''s getting too hard, you can stop." Xue Ning said, cing her hands gingerly on his shoulder, feeling the warm heat of his body seep through the fabric of his shirt and into her skin. "I''m not going to dump you for not getting me one."


    She wasn''t even going to dump him for hacking into her ount years ago! She might make him sleep on the floor though, just for fun, and just in case he thought that groveling would absolve him of all his sins.


    "But I want -" Jingwei protested, his eyes still focused on the screen, determined to regain ground in this uphill battle. But the brief moment of distraction provided by Xue Ning''s words was enough to make him lose his hold, and everyone watched in horror as Jingwei''sptop screen began blinking repeatedly.


    "Oh my god!" Wei Yan screamed. "It''s possessed!"


    "Theptop ispromised! We need to destroy it immediately!" Ming Guang dered.


    "Oh fuck," was Xue Ning''s eloquent addition to theirments. She watched the blinking screen in trepidation. If theptop started beeping, she was going to destroy it with a fire extinguisher.


    Thankfully it did not start making sounds like a bomb ready to go off. Instead, they were greeted with a picture of a cat meme - the one of a smug cat sitting in front of a sd bowl, with the words ''YOU MAD?'' captioned in front.


    Well. Xue Ning''s eyebrow twitched. She wasn''t even the one hacking, but she felt angry at this taunting meme. Was the other hacker a troll? Surely Jingwei wouldn''t be happy with this turn of events. She bent slightly to peer at his face, and was surprised at the beads of cold sweat already forming on his forehead.


    Strange.


    Even stranger was the unfamiliar look on his face. His eyes were darting side-to-side, as if it couldn''t bear to focus on the cat meme. His mouth was open, and he was panting, but it seemed like his body wasn''t getting enough oxygen.


    Xue Ning put a gentle hand on his neck to feel his pulse, and Jingwei leapt from his chair as though her touch had burned him!


    What was going on?


    "Jingwei? Jingwei!" She called him repeatedly, beginning to worry. "Sit down! What''s wrong?"<sub> </sub>


    "I - I -" Jingwei stuttered, running an anxious hand through his hair, messing it up further. "I messed up. He knows. Theptop ispromised. I need to get rid of it now."


    "Huh?" Xue Ning blinked in confusion. "What do you mean get rid of it? Do I chuck it down the rubbish chute?"


    "No, that''s not - that''s not enough," Jingwei said, shaking his head, his fingers jittery as he paced around the table, his replies sounding more like ramblings of a mad man than any coherent reply to her.


    "I''ll need to wipe the data first - oh god, assuming that he hasn''t gotten to it yet - what if he did and I''m toote -"


    Xue Ning could not make heads or tails of his words, but she could guess that seeing that cat meme brought up memories for Jingwei, and it frightened him. Someone from his past perhaps? She couldn''t be certain, because she was still missing a vital piece of the puzzle.


    But even without all the pieces, she knew Jingwei well-enough to tell that he wasn''t fine - in fact, she had never seen him like this, an anxious wreck of a man.


    "Okay, okay, calm down." Xue Ning said, trying to reassure him as well as herself. Jingwei panicking in fear over this was unsettling to her, because the both of them had been through pretty dangerous circumstances before, but he had never looked like this! So unsure and afraid, as though a gunman would enter the door and shoot him with no warning.


    She had to calm him down, just like how he managed to do it for her when she had a panic attack after dealing with Ya Ren.


    Sadly, there was no time for a shower (sexy or otherwise), because she sensed that the issue was time-sensitive.


    As such, she had to use other ways to calm him down. She pulled his tensed body into a firm hug and she helped tuck his head into the crook of her neck as she wrapped her arms around him. Jingwei made a confused sound, but she easily shushed him, slowly stroking his neck to calm him down.


    Wei Yan and Ming Guang froze in awkward confusion. They could only stand there and watch Miss Li cuddle Mr Sun as though he was a 5 year old boy, and not a 25 year old man to calm him down. If Mr Sun was in his right mind, he would definitely have been ecstatic, yet embarrassed at this turn of events. He would have been shameless enough to take full advantage of it, using the chance to hold and kiss her.


    Clearly he wasn''t in his right mind, for his arms seemed to hover over Miss Li''s back, as though he dared not touch her. His entire body was nearly vibrating, as though he was close to breaking down. Ming Guang and Wei Yan exchanged worried nces.


    What was wrong with their Boss?


    Xue Ning continued to murmur reassurances into his ear.


    "Breathe in with me," she instructed quietly. "Breathe in¡­ hold¡­yes¡­. Now let go¡­ Breathe in again¡­ hold¡­. Let go¡­ You got this¡­ yes¡­"


    Under her gentle instructions and warm hold, the tension that wracked Jingwei''s frame eventually began to bleed slowly away. He dropped his head on her shoulder and hugged her tighter in relief.


    "We''re so fucked, I''m sorry," Jingwei muttered bitterly in her ear. "This is all my fault."

 Chapter 175 Start Telling Me The Truth

    "Okay, we''ll talk more about itter. Didn''t you want to do something about theptop? I''m thinking of smashing it with the fire-extinguisher in the corridor."


    At her words, Jingwei gave a tired chuckle, lifting his head to smile at her. Xue Ning felt that anxious knot in her heart ease when she saw it. He could still smile! Surely things weren''t that terrible.


    "Let''s save that for the worst case scenario," Jingwei said as he reluctantly let go of Xue Ning''s addictive hold to sit back down on the chair, ready to fix his mess. Hopefully, he wasn''t toote - although, it would serve him right if he was! That was just what he was like before, wasn''t he, toote, too slow, too -


    "Jingwei," Xue Ning''s voice cut through the fog in his mind, like a lighthouse guiding him on a dark stormy night. "Get to work. Or I''ll get the fire extinguisher."


    "Yes Madam," Jingwei said, finally putting his shaking fingers back where they belonged, on hisptop keys. He hurriedly did his best to wipe hisptop free of sensitive information. Things like his credit card details, bank ount details were of course important, but he knew from personal experience that every tiny detail that he could get his hands on was dangerous for everyone around him.


    So he wiped everything. From his video browsing history, to his search history, all his chats¡­ years of history just went down the drain, just like that. Of course,pany documents and information were also gone (thankfully, he wasn''t in charge of much, and his brother definitely had backups).


    Wei Yan, Ming Guang and Xue Ning could only watch in silence. None of them knew what to say in this situation, except perhaps to exim ''what the fuck'', but they weren''t that heartless to do it now, when Jingwei was apparently burning years of memories away.


    Finally, he stopped and powered theptop shut, removing the hard disk and the battery.


    "Do I still need to get the fire extinguisher?" Xue Ning asked, because Jingwei was just silently staring at his hands. He jolted at her words, giving her a wan smile.


    "Maybe? Or anything that can crush this hard disk into irreparable smithereens."


    "Ah." Xue Ning looked around his house. "I''m guessing the wine bottles then."


    "Definitely not!" Jingwei hurriedly eximed, sounding more like his normal self. "Wei Yan, go get the fire extinguisher. We''re going to destroy this."


    "And then you will tell all of us what just happened." Ming Guang demanded, as though he was in charge.


    Jingewei froze at Ming Guang''s words, but then he gave a shaky nod. Everyone around him deserved to know what happened before, and why he had nearly gone to pieces just now.


    Xue Ning was still looking at him with worried eyes, even if she was trying to hide it. He really didn''t deserve her.


    "Okay¡­ okay." He repeated more firmly. It was time to stop running away from his past.


    Wei Yan hurriedly got the fire extinguisher, and Jingwei wasted no time in destroying the hard disk, forcefully mming the fire extinguisher against it repeatedly until it cracked and shattered into many tiny pieces.


    Xue Ning couldn''t even enjoy the flex of his muscles as he lifted the fire extinguisher to destroy it! Her mind was rapidly thinking about what happened earlier.<sub> </sub>


    This was what she knew:


    Firstly, Sun Jingwei had someone that wanted to destroy him and his family, and they would stop at nothing, including murder, to ensure that it happened.


    Secondly, that said person was most likely Sun Jingwei''s old friend, some man called Wu Shang Jing. If it wasn''t him, then it was rted to him.


    Thirdly, that said person wasn''t working alone. He apparently had spies in the police department, and god knows where else!


    Fourthly, Jingwei was apparently some sort of super hacker in the past, and now he was out of practice. Was his old friend/enemy part of his hacking circle? Was that why Jingwei was so shocked when he failed to hack into Zhou Yu''s website?


    She had too many questions and too few answers. Goosebumps were beginning to appear on her arms - she had an ominous feeling that all that happened so far was just an appetizer, and the true storm hadn''t hit them yet.


    Xue Ning shook her head, reminding herself to not panic first. If Jingwei was already losing his mind, she had to be the calmer and more rational one for a change!


    "Okay, now that this hard drive is broken into so many pieces that no one can piece it back together, you''d better tell us everything." Xue Ning said, dragging him to his sofa so he can sit down.


    Jingwei sighed and leaned back, tilted his head backwards. How was he supposed to start?


    Then he met the knowing eyes of his mother''s portrait behind him. Jingwei suddenly found himself missing her even more than before. If she were here, perhaps he wouldn''t feel so anxious and alone.


    "Jingwei?" Xue Ning prompted, grabbing his hand to hold. It felt cold and mmy, very unlike the furnace she was used to. Still, she squeezed it tightly, hoping to calm him down.


    Jingwei was startled. What was he thinking? Of course he wasn''t alone! He mentally scolded himself for behaving in such an uncool manner. He stopped slumping against the sofa, and proceeded to sit up properly.


    Ming Guang, Wei Yan and Xue Ning blinked at the surprising change in his behaviour.


    "Well, this story is going to be long." Jingwei began, taking a deep breath. "But from what happened just now, with the¡­ cat meme, I can say with at least 99% certainty that Wu Shang Jing is alive and out to kill me. Or destroy me and everyone I love. Come to think of it, thetter option is more his style."


    "That''s¡­ cheerful," Xue Ning said, "But who is Wu Shang Jing in the first ce? Why does he want to destroy everything you love? What did you even do to him?"


    At her question, Jingwei''s lips opened, and began telling his story.

 Chapter 176 8 Years Old Part 1

    "Mommy - Mom !" Jingwei had whined, hastily remembering to call his mother Mom instead of Mummy, because he was eight years old, not a baby.


    One of the kidsughed at him when he heard Jingwei call for his mom, insisting that Jingwei was a baby and he should go back to kindergarten. Jingwei socked him in the face, and his father was not pleased when he received the news that his son had punched Councillor Bai''s son in the face. Jingwei was forced to apologise, never mind that Bai Shi Ting was the one that called him names to begin with!


    "Yes baby?" His mother asked, giving him a quick look as she was momentarily distracted from the kitchen stove. She was stirring a pot of soup for the guests that were visitingter. Even with a bevy of servants at her beck and call, she still preferred to cook her meals. Her favourite was fishball noodle soup.


    "Why are peopleing over to our house again? I hate it! I don''t want people toe over to our house," Jingweiined, stomping his feet. They made soft little thumps on the tiles, because he didn''t have the leg strength yet.


    "They are always mean to me and call me names, and Father is never on my side."


    Other children would have loved having visitors to their home, especially if their home was as grand as the mansion Jingwei lived in. The bragging rights would have been incredible!


    However, whatever enthusiasm Jingwei initially had about having guests gradually eroded as the kids that he was supposed to befriend for his father''s sake turned out to be mean bullies that seemed to love picking on Jingwei when no one was watching.


    And when Jingwei retaliated, he was the one that got scolded by his father instead! Apparently, Jingwei was supposed to behave with all the dignity of a Sun family member, which meant not punching kids that wanted to make him cry.


    Even when they were at fault, his father always ced the me on him! He was always called too loud, too childish, too weak, too lousy¡­ There was no end of scoldings given by his father, and he alwayspared Jingwei to his brother and whatever new guest that visited.


    As such, Jingwei hated it whenever his father''s friends visited with their kids. It never led to anything good.


    He hated the thought of visitors so much that he would rather be forced to clear the litter of all the puppies in the kennel. The puppies were sweet and cute, and paid attention to him and never made him feel stupid when he gave the wrong answers to questions.


    So he wasining to his mother, hoping that she could stop his father from inviting people!


    His motherughed at how adorable her son was when he whined.


    "Oh my poor boy," she smiled indulgently. "I know it''s hard now, but just bear with it for a while. Once your father bes sessful enough, you won''t need to bother with them anymore."


    "When will that be?" Jingwei asked. "We already live in a mansion and have a lot of cars. We also have a lot of puppies. Why does Father want more?"


    His mother paused, trying to find a way to exin how her husband was a tangled mess of ambition, drive, and pride, wrapped with a crippling fear that he would never amount to anything worthwhile. How could she give her young son such an honest answer?


    Now Jingwei was still young enough to think the world of his father, and wanted his approval. When he grew older, eventually he would be disillusioned by his father''s actions.


    But she didn''t want that day toe so soon. So she had to reassure him.


    "Your father loves us a lot, and the way he shows his love is through giving us the best life, with a big house, a lot of cars, and a lot of money. We never have to worry about things many other people do," his mother said, patting his hair.


    "Really? Like what?" Jingwei asked in confusion. Everyone around him in school was also wealthy, and they seemed to be already worrying about things like where they should travel to for vacation.


    "Like¡­ having three full meals a day, a solid roof over their heads, a warm bed to sleep in at night. We never need to worry about falling sick, because your father can afford the best doctors to treat us. And all this is possible, because your father works hard for us. His efforts make our lives easy andfortable. He loves all of us Jingwei, he''s just¡­ not the best at showing it."


    Jingwei frowned, considering his mother''s words. His father loved him? He doubted that. He never hugged Jingwei or his brother, the way his Mom did. His life didn''t feel easy andfortable. Father never stoppedparing him to others, making him feel small inside.<sub> </sub>


    "Are you sure?" Jingwei asked, frowning. "I think Father likes scolding me more."


    His motherughed loudly, patting his head. "Don''t fret, my dear son. Your father scolds you because he expects a lot from you. You''re his son, so of course he wants you to do well."


    "So I don''t embarrass him," Jingwei said glumly, voicing the unsaid words, before he realised something. "Then is Gege not his son? Why does Father scold me and not me!"


    Her mother froze, before the smile slid off her face. She gave Jingwei a serious look, and Jingwei stilled.


    "Don''t say that! Remember that no matter what, your brother is always your brother. Whether it''s now or the future, the both of you must support each other to help your father, regardless of anyone''s words. Your brother works very hard to make your father proud as his first son." His mother said.


    Jingwei''s face fell. From his mother''s words, she clearly loved Tianwei more than him! Tianwei was the son that was making his father proud. Jingwei was just Tianwei''s annoying younger brother. Some kids in school even had begun calling him ''the spare'', seeing that Tianwei was obviously ''the heir''.


    Well, it''s not like they were wrong, Jingwei thought morosely to himself. Tianwei was better than him in every category that he could think of, and Tianwei could probably think of more categories than him too.


    "Okay Mom," Jingwei said, staring at the floor as he tried not to cry. He was already eight, he shouldn''t be crying. No one liked a crybaby. Tianwei didn''t cry, he was cool andposed and could argue a man twice his age to tears. "I''ll try to be more like Ge. I''ll make friends with those kids and stop punching them."


    "There''s no need to force friendship, if it''s meant to be, it''s meant to be," his mother said warmly. "And you can just be you - this cute, kind hearted, funny son of mine is already good enough for me. If you want to punch mean kids, make sure to not get caught!"


    Jingwei pulled a face. Cute, kind hearted and funny? Was he a clown or a pet? All those descriptions were so uncool! Then his mouth fell open at his mother''s words. He''d never considered it from that point of view before.


    "Okay!" Jingwei nodded eagerly, feeling better now that he talked to his Mom and had gotten ''permission'' to punch the visiting family''s child if he turned out rude like all the others. He wasn''t going to be pushed around any longer!


    "Sun Haowei," a tall imposing man greeted his father warmly, "How have you been?"


    "Better now that you are here," Sun Haowei greeted him in return. Jingwei had to school his face to stop the look of confusion from taking over. His father was talking to this man as though he was a good friend - which weirded him out. In his mind, his father was someone who was harsh to everyone. No one would be crazy enough to be friends with his father!


    Maybe there was something wrong with this man too.


    "Let me introduce our son. This is Shang Jing," Mrs Wu said in a melodious voice as she wrapped an arm around her son''s shoulders, pushing him slightly forward. She looked a lot younger than Jingwei''s mom, and she had an hourss figure along with soft doe eyes and a heart shaped face.


    Jingwei blinked in surprise - this woman didn''t look like a mom at all! In fact, he thought she seemed more like his very pretty homeroom teacher.


    Meanwhile Mrs Sun raised an eyebrow internally as she quickly scanned the woman from top to toe, even as she pasted a gentle, weing smile on her face. She didn''t expect the new Mrs Wu to be so¡­young. Poor girl.


    Clearly Mr Wu loved marrying younger women - he reced his wives every time they hit 25 years of age! Everyone who attended his wedding back then knew the wedding had an expiry date, except for his young hopeful wives who believed they could change him, only to be disappointed when they were handed a divorce letter after they celebrated their 25th birthday!


    Mr Wu Lei Zhe was truly an odious man. For all of Sun Haowei''s ws, at least Bi Yu knew he valued his family and tradition. Her opinions might be disregarded at times, but she wouldn''t be reced. She had given Sun Haowei an heir after all.


    "I''m not your son," Wu Shang Jing barked out irritably, and he all but flung the arm Mrs Wu had around his shoulders. "Don''t pretend to be my mom."

 Chapter 177 8 Years Old Part 2

    "Shang Jing¡­ Please don''t make a scene, we are guests here. Your father¡­" Mrs Wu said helplessly, casting a frightened anxious look at Jingwei''s family and at her own husband. The thunderous look on her spouse did not bode well for her or Shang Jing. She still had bruises on her face and body that she had to conceal with makeup before they visited the Sun family.


    She had to do some damage control, or both her and Shang Jing would have a terrible time!


    "Ah, he''s usually not like this, he''s just tired from the car ride. He''s really - "


    "Stop telling lies and don''t tell me what to do!" Shang Jing yelled, and before Mrs Wu could say anything more, a heavy hand struck him on his cheek with a loud p!


    The driveway was silent. The servants had their mouths mped shut, while Jingwei''s mouth fell open in shock.


    Mr Wu had struck his son in public! With so much force too! The poor boy''s cheek was already reddening, the palm print clearly visible on his pale skin. It was starting to swell up, and Jingwei could only wince in sympathy.


    That must have hurt a lot, but Wu Shang Jing didn''t cry. He merely red at his father hotly, as though daring him to give him another p. Jingwei didn''t know whether to be amazed or appalled. If it happened to him, he would have cried a fountain of tears and left home with his knapsack and his dogs!


    "Don''t disrespect your Mother," Wu Lei Zhe scolded. "And how dare you show such an attitude in front of our hosts!"


    <o>,m "No harm done, it''s alright," Mrs Sun Bi Yu reassured hastily, smiling as she tried to dispel the heavy yet awkward atmosphere. Clearly the Wu family had incredibly strange and twisted family dynamics, and if she had a choice she would leave them outside and send them home far, far away from her sons.</o>


    Especially Jingwei. Her youngest still had a look of horrified shock on his face when he saw the violence. He gave his father a wary look, and Bi Yu''s heart ached.


    She watched the other father-son pair. Wu Lei Zhe wasn''t even apologetic in the slightest - he was still standing proudly, and his son red at everything but him.


    That poor boy. She couldn''t in good conscience leave him to the tender mercies of his father. His new mom was probably going to get hit too, judging by the way she was trying not to tremble or meet his eyes.


    "He''s just a spirited young boy!" Bi Yu began, pping cheerfully as though the earlier p didn''t happen. She was just going to steamroll over it with positivity, that was how she survived this long, and that was how she would survive this too.


    "We''re d to have you here Shang Jing. And I heard that you''ve just started Primary 3 too - just like Jingwei here!" His mom gave Jingwei a look, expecting Jingwei to engage this poor boy in conversation, and Jingwei could only give an awkwardugh.


    How could he talk to this boy with both parents present? What if he said something wrong and his father decided to take a leaf out of this other man''s book and p him too?!


    What if he talked to the boy, and then that boy said something wrong and got pped again?!


    Both options were terrible. He chanced a look around for a conversation topic that wasn''t about him getting pped, and saw an older teenage boy standing attentively a few steps behind the Wu family. Did Wu Shang Jing have an older brother?


    Only one way to find out.


    "Hi," Jingwei began cautiously. "Do you have an older brother?"


    Wu Shang Jing gave him a blistering cold look, as though Jingwei was an idiot. Beside him, Tianwei wanted to facepalm.


    Of course he didn''t have any older brothers! If he did, why would the couple only introduce him alone!


    Jingwei internally despaired. He was initially hoping that maybe, just maybe, this new boy wouldn''t be bad news for him.


    But now he knew better! This new kid looked like trouble! He took a painful p from his father without crying, so even if Jingwei were to fight him, his punches probably won''t do anything to him. Jingwei might end up being the one that cried in the end - and wouldn''t that be even more embarrassing?


    "I mean, then who''s that guy standing behind you?" Jingwei continued to ask. If this boy wanted to punch him, he''d hide behind Tianwei. "Is he your cousin or something? He''s really tall."


    To his surprise, the icy look in Wu Shang Jing''s eyes defrosted slightly.


    "This is Zi Long. He is my bodyguard."<sub> </sub>


    "Oh, that''s cool," Jingwei said, meaning every word. Wu Shang Jing was the same age as him and already got a bodyguard! Then where was his own bodyguard? But wait, why didn''t he stop him from getting smacked by his father then?


    Thankfully, before Jingwei could open his mouth and blurt out the worst question to ask, Mrs Sun opened hers first, delighted that Jingwei was making some effort to y nice.


    "Oh, what horrid hosts we are, still leaving all of you to stand outside. Come in,e in!" She eagerly said, waving them inside. The servants quickly stepped aside in a single file, and the grand oak doors opened to wee their guests.


    Mrs Sun quickly looped her arm through Mrs Wu''s, determined to lead her away. Some part of her felt pity for this poor young girl, who was caught between a turbulent rtionship between father and son. Perhaps she could befriend her forpanionship, at least before her eventual divorce.


    (It wasn''t as though she had any friends with her now. Yue Niang and her husband had left tonds unknown to start a family, and she was helpless to stop them in the midst of her husband''s wrath.)


    "Thank you," Mrs Wu replied shakily, mentally thanking her lucky stars that Mrs Sun didn''t make a big fuss and instead diffused the situation.


    "Now, let''s let the men talk business shall we?" She asked, giving her husband a meaningful look. Sun Haowei nodded, seeing that it was the main point of this gathering. "We shall spend some bonding time together to get to know each other better!"


    "We should?" Mrs Wu asked in confusion.


    "Of course," Mrs Sun said. "But let''s get an ice pack for little Shang Jing first, and then we can let the kids y on their own."


    Both Shang Jing and Jingwei looked up in surprise. Shang Jing, because he truly didn''t expect anyone to care about him getting hit, and Jingwei, because he didn''t think his mother was insane enough to leave him alone with this kid and his bodyguard! Didn''t she see how bad the p was? Jingwei didn''t want to be next!


    What if this Wu Shang Jing got his bodyguard to beat him up? He''d be dead! Tianwei wouldn''t be able to save him - he was a book nerd!


    He gave his mom a pleading look, begging her to reconsider, but he was cheerfully ignored. "Try and be good friends okay?" She said, giving Jingwei a pointed nce at the end.


    Jingwei hastily stifled a whimper.


    "Of course Mother," Tianwei replied easily, shifting his sses. "I''m sure we will get along swimmingly."


    "I''m sure we''ll get along swimmingly," Jingwei echoed doubtfully in a high whining voice. Beside him, Tianwei''s eyebrow twitched.


    "Stop copying me," Tianwei demanded.


    "Stop copying me," Jingwei copied, making sure to sound as annoying as possible.


    "You''re being immature, stupid" Tianwei continued.


    "You''re being immature, stupid" Jingwei copied. Riling up his older brother was always fun, especially if there were guests. Tianwei wanted to look good in front of them, so he couldn''t retaliate fully.


    And if Jingwei was going to be forced to spend time with some sulky kid that got smacked, he could at least have some fun annoying his older brother.


    "I''m not dealing with this now," Tianwei said imperiously, turning away from him. "I''m going to get an ice pack for our guest."


    Jingwei followed suit, turning around the other way, only toe face to face with Wu Shang Jing''s amused eyes. He paused. Was there a hint of a smile on his lips?


    Yes it was! Jingwei mentally cheered, before he thought more deeply into it and started worrying.


    Was that smile a ''hahaha you''re so funny let''s be friends'' smile, or was it a ''hahhaha you''re like an idiotic clown that I would love to beat up smile''?


    If it was the second option, he was doomed! Tianwei definitely wasn''t going to save him now, after he annoyed him. He always said that he found Jingwei at the dog kennels and then they were forced to take him in because he was making too much noise. If Jingwei cried after getting punched, Tianwei would bring in all the dogs and leave him at the dog kennels instead!

 Chapter 178 8 Years Old Part 3

    "You and your brother are funny." Wu Shang Jingmented as he watched Tianwei''s retreating back.


    "Thanks," Jingwei said awkwardly. Whenever he and Tianwei bickered, his father didn''t find it amusing at all. "How''s your cheek?"


    "Fine, it doesn''t bother me," Wu Shang Jing said, shrugging cooly. "I actually can''t feel any pain, because I have some problem with my nerves. So it doesn''t matter how many times my father hits me."


    Jingwei stared back at him, half-horrified. Then he turned to Zi Long, hoping that this boy was joking. But no, Zi Long merely stared back at him evenly, a silent agreement to his words.


    "Oh my god," Jingwei said, stepping back in shock. "How can that be? That''s so¡­ sad? Or cool, I guess, depending on how you think of it. It''s like your superpower."


    Maybe this boy''s father believed that hitting him would be equivalent to punching the air, seeing that his son felt no pain. But Jingwei still thought that it wasn''t right for his father to treat him like a punching bag.


    Wu Shang Jing took one look at Sun Jingwei, this boy with the chubby cheeks and puppy eyes who stared at him with tant sympathy and beganughing. "I can''t believe you fell for that! You really believed me?!"


    "Wait, you were lying? How could you?" Jingwei replied, blinking in confusion, all his sad feelings gone. He was indignant that he was once again being yed for a fool. So much for extending sympathy!


    "I didn''t expect you to actually believe it," Wu Shang Jing said,ughing so hard that a tear actually formed in his eyes. This boy was fun to mess with - he looked genuinely sad and sorry for him! The other kids he tried this on merely gave him horrified looks, and one girl had burst into tears, calling him a monster.


    Well, his father also called him a monster for killing his Mom in childbirth. After the first eight years of hearing this repeated as fact, Shang Jing had all but grown numb to words like these, along with the revolving door of stepmoms that followed after as his father pretended to be a family man.


    "Well what was I supposed to think?" Jingwei retorted, pointing to Shang Jing''s cheek, where arge handprint was slowly turning purple. That cheek had also swollen spectacrly, giving Shang Jing''s face a lopsided look.


    "You didn''t even cry when your father hit you so hard! Half your face has swelled up as though you ate something allergic! If you can feel pain, then you must be a brave titan! That''s cool." Jingwei said. "If it were me, I''d be crying like a baby."


    Then Jingwei paused. He probably shouldn''t have admitted to this boy that he was a crybaby. That wasn''t cool. Now he was definitely going to get bullied, and he couldn''t even beat him hard enough to make an impact!


    "It''s nothing special," Wu Shang Jing said, trying not to sound too smug, even as he preened at Jingwei''s words, standing up straighter to seem more capable. Hardly anyone thought he was cool or brave, he was usually called names like ''nerd'' or ''cursed''. Now that someone actually thought he was cool, he wanted to seem even better in Jingwei''s eyes.


    "You know, do you guys have aputer here?" Wu Shang Jing said, his chin tilting up as he boasted pridefully. "I''ll show you what I can do on it - that''s the really cool thing about me!"


    "We do have one," Jingwei replied, "but what are you going to do? Make powerpoints? I can do that too - I can even add sounds and animations. I''m also pretty good at Minesweeper."


    Wu Shang Jing shook his head. This new potential friend of his wasn''t very bright, but that was fine. He would teach him the joy ofputers.


    "Just wait and see, I''ll show you a brand new world!"


    "That brand new world will have to wait awhile, Young Master Wu," Zi Long said dryly. "The older Young Master Sun is still getting ice for your cheek - surely you aren''t going to make him look for you?"


    Wu Shang Jing''s eyes twinkled in mischief at Zi Long''s reminder. Zi Long sighed.


    "I''m sure he''ll find me and his brother easily. We''re in his house anyway." Shang Jing replied easily, "And more importantly, didn''t I tell you to call me Shang Jing? Why are you still being overly formal with me, Zi Long-ge?"


    "It''s not proper because we are in public," Zi Long said, with the tone of someone who has repeated this argument many times.<sub> </sub>


    "I''m sure Jingwei isn''t going to rat us out." Wu Shang Jing turned to Jingwei, "you aren''t a snitch right?"


    "No I''m not!" Jingwei dered, huffing irritably. "I don''t snitch on my friends. Unless¡­ we are not friends?" Jingwei asked hesitantly. Wu Shang Jing sounded friendly enough when he wanted to show him something on hisputer, but who knew what his mind was thinking? Jingwei only met him today.


    "We are friends now," Shang Jing dered, with no room for argument. "So now that we are friends, you can call me by name here, Zi Long."


    "Why can''t he call you by name?" Jingwei asked, tilting his head. "What else is he supposed to call you?"


    "I''m his bodyguard, and my status is lower than his, so I must call him by his title." Zi Long said patiently, as though exining to a stupid child. Sun Jingwei wasn''t exactly stupid, but he was pretty naive, as far as things were considered. Zi Long would bet his left arm that boy got picked on all the time in school by his more savvy peers.


    "That''s kind of stupid," Jingwei said, frowning. He didn''t have the words to exin why that felt wrong, but he just knew it wasn''t right.


    "See! Jingwei thinks so too!" Shang Jing said, "So you must call me by my name now. And Jingwei, bring us to yourputer! Your brother will find uster. "


    "Okay!" Jingwei said agreeably, cheerfully leading them through hallways before they ended up in front of the room with arge clunky desktop inside.


    "What are you going to do now?"


    "Change the world!" Wu Shang Jing said, and proceeded to teach Jingwei the basics of coding, while Jingwei watched, dumbfounded in silence.


    Zi Long watched his charge try to impress his new friend and snorted behind his hand in amusement. At least things were going well this time around - he didn''t have to protect Shang Jing from another kid that wanted to test out the theory that he couldn''t feel pain.


    Yes. Wu Shang Jing had been telling a half-truth, when he said he couldn''t feel pain. Zi Long didn''t know much details and the medical jargon behind his condition, but he knew that Young Master Wu had some problem with his nerves growing up.


    There were plenty of rumours floating around in that huge estate - that Old Master Wu offended the gods and hence ended with only a strange cursed son and no other heirs, that Wu Shang Jing was initially dead but then a spirit possessed him so he returned to life with no regard for living beings, and all sorts of other nonsense.


    One rumour that Zi Long was willing to put more stock into was the one that sounded more factual and less nonsensical. An old servant imed Wu Shang Jing had a bacterial infection when he was a baby that led to a high fever that went unnoticed or untreated for too long, as the household was in an uproar over the death of thete Lady Wu.


    By the time Wu Shang Jing was sent to the hospital for treatment, the damage had been done - antibiotics could only save his life, along with some of the nerves that weren''tpletely destroyed by the infection and the fever.


    Anyone else would have thanked the gods for their mercy, but Old Master Wu was a callous, heartless, and possibly infertile man - the fact that his son was now a ''defect'' meant that he was less than human in his eyes, and the fact that his mother died birthing him was even more of a sin. With his mother''s death, how was he meant to have more children? He''d rather his son died instead!


    Zi Long could only wonder what family he worked for, but he thought of his paycheck, and how Wu Shang Jing had looked at him years ago, with creepy eyes that had no reason looking as sad as they were on a five year old, and his heart twinged in sympathy.


    He decided to stay. Someone had to look out for the kid, and it wasn''t going to be his father or his stepmoms. However, he could only do so much for the kid''s socialisation. It wasn''t as though Zi Long was a healthy bastion of model behaviour to begin with, and no child should be left alone without friends.


    Zi Long was just a bodyguard, in the middle of his teenage years. He wasn''t a suitable babysitter, or a friend for him.


    But now¡­things might be changing for the better. He watched as the boys squabbled good-naturedly over theputer, and felt a strange warm bloom in his chest.


    Maybe, finally, Young Master Wu would have a friend in his corner, by his side.

 Chapter 179 Once I Was 13 Years Old Part 1

    "So Shang Jing was your childhood friend? Who taught you how to hack?" Xue Ning asked as Jingwei had to stop to take a drink of water. His voice had gotten hoarse.


    That was most likely the start of it, but Xue Ning knew there was still more toe. Jingwei would not have looked so terrified at the thought of an old friend paying him a visit.


    "It''s¡­ "Jingwei began hesitantly. "Those were the happier days, when we were young and innocent. Or at least I was young and innocent. I keep wondering if Shang Jing was ever innocent. The rest of the story isn''t so good. Are you sure you want to hear it?"


    Jingwei looked pleadingly at her, as though hoping Xue Ning would tell him now so he wouldn''t need to revisit painful memories. Unfortunately for him, Xue Ning was determined to know everything. She nodded, and Jingwei let out a heavy sigh.


    "Then in the blink of an eye, 5 years passed just like that¡­"


    ======


    "Shang Jing, I think you can get Zi Long to let him go now," Jingwei mused as he lounged on his chair. "Anything more, and he might just die here - and I don''t want to deal with that. Think of the blood. Think of thewsuit."


    "Come on now, don''t tell me you''re bing soft," Shang Jing''s voice taunted silkily from the other chair. "Remember what he did to you?"


    Jingwei paused, a finger tapping on his chin as he eyed the slumped figure of another schoolboy who was only kept upright thanks to Zi Long''s hand on his cor. To give him some credit, he tried to get away, but he only managed to il hopelessly. Jingwei made a face as he watched snot and blood ssh around him, scooting back in disgust.


    Jingwei''s phone rang, but then he declined the call. It was from Lady Yu, most likely calling about dinner ns. But Jingwei had more important things to worry about, namely, watching his old bully metaphorically eat shit.


    "I do remember," Jingwei said, eyeing the injured boy.


    He was Ding Er Tai, one of the boys that loved to give Jingwei a hard time for years, coining the ''spare'' nickname and always calling him useless. He loved to take his belongings and fling them far away, just so he could watch Jingwei struggle to get them back, pointing at him and calling him a dog for fetching them.


    Recently he also said that Jingwei''s mother didn''t have long to live, which made Jingwei mad enough to burst. His mother had fallen ill, but she was getting better! She had to be. Ding Er Tai''s words made him so mad that he enlisted Shang Jing''s help in getting revenge.


    Thankfully, Shang Jing had transferred into his school a year ago! He had a ridiculously good time stomping all over the student body, especially on those people who dared to pick on his best friend while he wasn''t there.


    Now that he thought about it, maybe Zi Long can punch Ding Er Tai a bit more. Jingwei had suffered for years thanks to his actions. Formenting on his mother''s health, he certainly deserved more payback!


    "Beat him up a bit more, but can you do it further away? I don''t want his disgusting blood to ssh on me." Jingwei requested haughtily.


    "I forgot how squeamish you are," Shang Jing said,ughing. His best friend had a soft stomach and a soft heart, which was why Shang Jing took it upon himself to get rid of whatever obstacles that Jingwei was too nice or forgiving to deal with. And Jingwei never bothered to stop him, letting Shang Jing do whatever he liked in the guise of enacting justice.


    That was great. Shang Jing found that he liked it when there was bloodshed. He liked it when he was causing bloodshed, directly or otherwise. Getting revenge for Jingwei was a handy, rational excuse that put him in a good light. He got to enjoy himself, and Jingwei got to retaliate against all those punks that dared toy a hand on him.<sub> </sub>


    And best of all, he didn''t need to lift a single finger. Zi Long was there, getting his dose of daily workouts as he beat the shit out of their ssmates.


    "Zi Long-ge is a grown man that''s beating up 13 year olds," Sun Jingwei said dryly as he watched Zi Long m his fist into Ding Er Tai''s face, rearranging it further. At this rate, his parents might not even recognize him. "Do you think he gets bored?"


    "Then do you have anyone else you want him to beat up? How about our homeroom teacher?" Shang Jing suggested it casually.


    "What on earth?" Jingwei stared at him in shock. "Of course not."


    "I''m just saying! That man has it out for us." Shang Jing said, tapping his fingers on the armrests of his chair. "He said we were degenerates and a waste of society''s resources."


    "I am a waste of society''s resources," Jingwei admitted cheerfully. "I take great pride in being a wastrel, since my older brother has already cornered the market on being a capable genius heir. Might as well cover all the bases."


    Just then, Jingwei''s phone rang again. He frowned, and then rejected the call. He was still busy.


    "I''m sure he thanks you for your sacrifice," Shang Jing said, only half-seriously. If Jingwei was just that bit more studious and ambitious, Shang Jing believed that Sun Tianwei would not be able to sleep soundly at night, assuming he actually slept. Jingwei told him that his brother was surviving on getting coffee injected into his veins via an IV.


    A mountain cannot hold two tigers, an empire doesn''t need two rulers. The one good thing about Shang Jing being his father''s only son was that no one woulde between him and his inheritance, not if he had anything to say about it.


    He refused to suffer a decade of emotional and physical abuse from his father to be left with nothing to show for it. Once he hit 18 years of age, he''d get rid of his father to take his business empire for himself.


    Jingwei had no idea his hatred for his father ran that deep. Then again, Jingwei still adored his own father, despite that man giving him the bare minimum of affection.


    "But do you really have no interest at all in inheriting your father''spany?" Shang Jing asked curiously. "Are you going to bum off your brother when you grow up? What happens if he takes everything and leaves you penniless on the streets?"


    "Nah, my brother won''t do that! He loves me! And Mom would never leave me with nothing." Jingwei said with so much surety that Shang Jing suddenly felt jealousy rear its ugly head.


    Jingwei never doubted that his brother loved him, even though sometimes it seemed like Tianwei loved to strangle him more. He had a loving mom. Shang Jing had nothing. One day, Sun Jingwei would leave him too, once he found out about the illegal activities he was doing. He bit his lip hard enough to bleed, but he didn''t notice it because he didn''t feel it.


    "And besides, I also have you, my best friend in the whole world, surely you won''t leave me to die on the streets right?" Jingwei wheedled.


    "You''ll let me stay over in one of those empty rooms - holy shit what happened to your lips! Why are they bleeding?!"

 Chapter 180 Once I Was 13 Years Old Part 2

    At Jingwei''s frantic exmation, Zi Long immediately dropped Ding Er Tai''s body on the floor without a second notice. Itnded with a loud thump, and Er Tai let out a pained moan. But he was ignored as Zi Long quickly rushed over to dab at Shang Jing''s upper lip, his face worried while Jingwei fretted, hovering in the background.


    "Are you feeling okay?" Jingwei asked anxiously as he wrung his fingers.


    "I''m fine, stop worrying."


    "How can I not? You''re practically my second brother!" Jingwei said, and Shang Jing paused, his heart stuttering in his chest at Jingwei''s easy admission. Jingwei thought of him as a brother. "Let''s go get ice cream for that lip, and then we can try to hack into the bank again."


    "You just want ice cream," Shang Jing croaked out weakly, his heart still beating unsteadily. This was happening more often whenever Jingwei did something or said something, and Shang Jing didn''t like it one bit!


    But maybe¡­ Jingwei would be the one other person that would never leave him. He would always be at his side, like Zi Long, no matter what he did. He already taught him how to hack, and Jingwei didn''t think there was anything wrong with that. He liked causing trouble too. Surely he would support his other endeavours in future.


    "That too," Jingwei shrugged and stretched, getting out of the chair. "Who wants to deal with Ding Er Tai when there''s quality ice cream to eat right, Zi Long-ge?"


    "Can''t argue with that," Zi Long said wryly, dusting off his hands. The poor boy had already been beaten to a pulp. More importantly, he worried about the bleeding lips of his charge.


    Young Master Wu''s nerves were slowly failing, and he forgot himself again.


    Zi Long had already noticed a change in his charge''s attitude - he had mood swings wilder than a pregnant woman, and some of the things he said, the ns he made¡­ chilled Zi Long to the core. There were thoughts that normal human beings simply did not have about fellow humans.


    But that wasn''t any of Zi Long''s business, truly. He just had to stop his Young Master from getting hurt, and not from him hurting other people - even if it was his closest friend.


    Just then, Jingwei''s phone rang for the third time. He let out a groan of irritation, finally deciding to pick it up. Lady Yu was strangely persistent this time.


    "Hi Lady Yu, what''s up?" Jingwei asked, "Is this about dinner ns?"


    "Young Master Sun¡­ you have toe home now¡­" Lady Yu said, her voice wet with tears. "Mrs Sun is¡­ Mrs Sun is¡­"


    "My mother? What''s wrong with my mother!" Jingwei eximed in surprise, a cold fear spreading through his body. Lady Yu was always calm andposed, if she was crying too hard to speak clearly¡­


    Jingwei shook his head. There was no way! His mother was fine when he visited her yesterday in her sickroom! She was even well-enough to sit up!


    "She''s gone, Jingwei," Lady Yu choked out, and the phone fell out of Jingwei''s limp hand.<sub> </sub>


    "No¡­ no¡­ that cannot be, you''re joking right?" Jingwei muttered mindlessly to himself. He was in too much shock to realise that he wasn''t on the line any longer. Zi Long quickly picked up his phone for him, but the person on the other end of the line had already hung up. "Mom cannot be¡­ this is a lie¡­"


    "Come on, I''ll get Zi Long to send you home," Shang Jing said, his tone giving no room for argument. Not that Jingwei was capable of giving any argument at the moment, his face had gone ck with shock and he was beginning to cry breathless sobs as he hunched over, slumping onto the chair.


    If it were anyone else, Shang Jing would have punched them for making so much noise. But it was Jingwei, and he himself liked Mrs Sun. She was always kind to him, and always encouraged him and Jingwei to do their best. He preferred her over the ever-revolving door of stepmoms; they were only there for such a short time, he never would grow attached to them. He learnt that lesson the hard way.


    Sometimes, when life got unbearable for him, he would wonder what it would be like to have her as his real mother.


    To his surprise, he found his cold heart aching. How could she have left this world so quickly?


    Truly, only the good die young! His father, the monster that he was, was still alive and kicking.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei didn''t know how he made it back home when his world had effectively turned into a blur, his sound and sight seemingly made useless. Shang Jing had taken one look at his pale face and shaking hands and immediately whisked him away into his car so that Zi Long could drive them both to the Sun family mansion.


    "Things will be fine," Shang Jing said, not believing a single word, but someone had to say it anyway. Jingwei turned to look at him, tears running down his face.


    "Really? She''ll be fine?" Jingwei cried out, desperate for reassurance that Shang Jing could not give.


    But Shang Jing was good at pretending - he had been pretending for years to be a normal human after all, and it was easy to extend that illusion to Jingwei, someone who actually believed that Shang Jing was a normal person, someone who desperately wanted to cling onto fragile hope.


    If it were anyone else, he would have relished delivering the cold hard truth that their mother had passed away while he was out there, obliviously enjoying their life. He would have loved to watch as they broke down into tears of regret and shame, ming themselves for something out of their control.


    But this was Jingwei, his dear brother from another mother. So he would use his limited kindness on him, even if it was only a temporary mercy.


    "Miracles have happened before," Shang Jing said, giving Zi Long a quick look in the mirror. "How much longer before we arrive?"


    "20 minutes, Young Master Wu," Zi Long replied. "The traffic is bad."


    "Make it 10," Shang Jing ordered anyway. They had an actual good reason to break trafficws now, he might as well make the most of it.

 Chapter 181 Once I Was 13 Years Old Part 2

    Zi Long, ever the obedient bodyguard, immediately listened to his orders. He smirked and elerated suddenly, and the teens in the backseat ended up mming against the backrest in surprise as he began to weave through the streets.


    "Thanks Shang Jing," Jingwei said weakly, wiping his tears on his hands as snot began to fall from his nose. Shang Jing frowned in disgust and handed him a tissue box. "What would I do without you?"


    "Probably die alone somewhere," Shang Jing said, before wincing at his poor choice of words. He didn''t want to kick Jingwei when he was already down, but old habits of insulting other people were hard to break. ''Unlike your mother. ''


    "True," Jingwei gave a watery little sniff. He didn''t seem to mind Shang Jing''s verbal slip, his mind still on more pressing issues, the weight of his mother''s condition weighing heavily on his mind.


    To think he rejected Lady Yu''s calls so carelessly! What kind of son was he? He would never forgive himself if his actions cost him hisst moments with his mother. At that thought, Jingwei nearly broke down sobbing.


    "Don''t worry, you''re not to die without my permission," Shang Jing said. Jingwei gave a weakugh in response, thinking that Shang Jing was joking, trying to cheer him up and lighten up the somber mood in the car.


    But Zi Long caught Young Master Wu''s eye in the rearview mirror, and gave him a slight shake of his head in warning. Only he knew that Young Master Wu wasn''t joking.


    Sun Jingwei didn''t know it, but he was forever trapped in the web created by the Young Master, and his Young Master would never let him escape. He would keep him safe and warm and content, as long as Sun Jingwei never betrayed him. For the sake of Wu Shang Jing''s sanity, Zi Long hoped he never would.


    ''Let them remain the best of friends.'' Zi Long prayed to himself. ''Let Sun Jingwei continue to be oblivious to the darkness lurking beneath the gentle veneer of Wu Shang Jing''s pale face.''


    In no time at all, the familiar sight of the Sun family mansion came into view. Zi Long pulled over in the driveway, and Jingwei took off like a rocket, bolting from the car even before it had fully stopped.


    Zi Long and Shang Jing didn''t rush along with him. Deep down, they knew there was no point. The faster Jingwei ran, the faster he would break his own heart, and the both of them didn''t want to face the sight.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei didn''t realise that his best friend wasn''t running behind him. He was intently focused on racing through the familiar long hallways, with all its twists and turns. He knew the route to his mother''s sickroom like the back of his hand, but never has he felt this kind of dread crawling up his throat, threatening to choke him whole.


    Was it just him panicking, or was the entire mansion strangely silent?


    "Mom! Mom! What''s going on?" Jingwei yelled as he ran into her room, half-expecting to see his mother sitting up by her favourite spot at the window so that she could gaze at the rose gardens outside.


    The doctor had advised her to stay indoors because the weather was getting colder outside, iming that she should not be exposed to unnecessary chill. The family had agreed, despite her protests. Her sitting by the window that was cracked slightly open was thepromise everyone agreed on in the end.


    Jingwei burst into her room, and looked around desperately, panting wildly due to the impromptu exercise.<sub> </sub>


    His mother wasn''t at her favourite spot. With mounting horror, he turned to look at the bed.


    There she was, lying peacefully on the bed. It looked like she was asleep, but there was no way a simple nap would have thrown the entire household into an uproar. Lady Yu was silently sobbing at her side, and Tianwei was already staring at him with red-rimmed eyes, still d in his school uniform.


    His brother must have rushed back home from school too when he got the news - and of course Tianwei picked up the phone when Lady Yu called him the first time. Lady Yu probably called him first too, because Tianwei was reliable like that.


    The man of the household, his dear Father, however, was nowhere to be found.


    "Mom?" Jingwei repeated hesitantly, refusing to believe the truthid out before his eyes. He took several shaky steps towards the bed, but part of him didn''t dare to look too closely.


    If he just took a quick nce at the bed, it would look like his mother was simply asleep. She had been doing more of thattely, drifting off in the middle of conversations and needing to be carried back to her bed as she lost energy.


    Chemotherapy was brutal on his mother''s body and soul, and no matter how positive she was, Jingwei knew herck of strength and energy ate at her, especially when it seemed that the cancer was here to stay.


    Jingwei was still delusionally hoping that maybe his mother just took an extra long nap? And then forgot to breathe? Forgot to wake up?


    In his mind, it was inconceivable that his mother would pass away like this so quietly, so unassumingly.


    Unfortunately, Jingwei''s eyes saw what his mind refused to ept. It was crystal clear to him that his mother''s chest was depressingly still.


    "Mom! Wake up! Don''t scare me like this!" Jingwei screamed as he grabbed one of his mother''s free hands, and nearly screamed in shock. Even when his mother was ill, her hand had never felt this cold before. It waspletely frozen, but it was degrees colder than a living hand.


    "Shut up! She''s gone," Tianwei said bitterly, his throat hoarse as though he had also been screaming before Jingwei arrived. "All your screaming can''t bring her back."


    "That cannot be!" Jingwei yelled, more tears forming in his eyes as his brother''s words sank in.


    Tianwei would never lie about something like this - his brother had never made a joke in his entire life, always so uptight and rigid. "I don''t believe you!"

 Chapter 182 Once I Was 13 Years Old Part 3

    Tianwei stood up suddenly, and the chair he sat on toppled backwards with a loud tter. "So?! I don''t care! Mom is dead whether you believe me or not!" Tianwei screamed, his eyes bloodshot with grief. He grabbed Jingwei''s cor and hauled him closer, his reddened eyes ring straight at him.


    "Why didn''t you pick up your phone, stupid brother?! Why didn''t youe and see Mother onest time before she passed?"


    "Mother died¡­ all alone¡­Where were you?!" Tianwei continued, gripping Jingwei''s cor as though he longed to wrap his fingers around Jingwei''s throat.


    Jingwei could feel his brother''s fingernails barely brushing past the soft skin, as though they longed to dig themselves in to make him hurt. He grabbed Tianwei''s hands to pull him off, even more upset at his words, but Tianwei had a death grip on him.


    Well, two could y at that game.


    "All alone? Then you weren''t here either!" Jingwei screamed through his tears, gripping his brother''s tie, nearly strangling him. He was a lot shorter than Tianwei since he hadn''t hit his growth spurt yet, and this was a lot easier than grabbing his cor. He didn''t need to tiptoe that much.


    "Don''t you dare pin this on me just because you''re older! You''re just like me too! Absent! Stop acting like you''re better than me!"


    "You''re such a piece of shit! I wish you weren''t such a useless brother!" Tianwei''s eyes bulged out, as though he longed to beat the shit out of Jingwei. Jingwei bared his teeth through his tears. If his brother wanted a fight, he would give it to him.


    Anything would be better than dealing with the news that his mother died all alone by herself, with none of her family by her side after she had given her life to doing the best for them.


    They were really scum! Jingwei could see the regret in Tianwei''s eyes. If he looked hard enough, he could see a simr pain reflected in his own eyes, through the reflection of Tianwei''s sses.


    Tianwei needed to hit someone to forget, and Jingwei didn''t mind getting hit or trading blows. The pain would be retribution.


    Tianwei flung him on the floor and mmed his fist into Jingwei''s left cheek. Jingwei groaned and retaliated by kneeing him in the chest and headbutting his chin. They fell to the floor like two feral dogs, growling and snapping at each other.


    "Enough! Both of you - stop this at once!" Lady Yu cried out, distraught at how badly the Young Masters were behaving. She tried to pull them apart, only to be struck by Tianwei''s fist and Jingwei''s kick.


    Lady Yu bowled over, gasping in pain. That was definitely going to leave bruises!


    At least both boys stopped, horrified that their blows hadnded on an innocent person.


    "Lady Yu!" They both yelled at the same time, hurrying to her side to check on her.


    "Are you alright?" Jingwei asked frantically.


    Lady Yu stood up on her own, determinedly ignoring their efforts. Fresh tears started to flow down her face.


    "Boys¡­ please¡­ your mother''s body hadn''t even cooled, and you are here behaving like hooligans right in front of her deathbed, instead of the capable young men she wanted you to be! Do you not feel ashamed of yourselves?!"<sub> </sub>


    Her words were as good as a cold bucket of water being dunked over their heads, and both brothers stood silently, ashamed of their actions. Mother was dead, and Jingwei was sure they were the most unfilial sons to walk this earth. He trembled as more tears rolled down his cheeks.


    "Has Father been informed?" Tianwei asked woodenly in contrast, as though he finished using up all his tears and was only a dried up husk of a man, barely held together by duty.


    Lady Yu paused, before answering hesitantly. "Your father is in a meeting with the shareholders. He''lle after."


    Tianwei breathed in deeply and ran a hand over his face, trying to hold himself together. Beside him, Jingwei had a lot less restraint.


    "What the fuck?" Jingwei exploded in shock. "How could he still be at work?!"


    "Because that''s the kind of man he is. Ambitious, driven, callous and cold," Tianwei said, anger and grief simmering in his eyes. His mother should have married a better man.


    " ¡­I hate him," Jingwei whispered to himself, shaking with rage. In that very moment, he vowed that he would rather die than to grow up to be someone like his father, who neglected his children, neglected his dying wife, all for the sake of his business.


    "I HATE HIM I HATE HIM I HATE HIM! WHY DIDN''T HE DIE INSTEAD?!"


    ? Outside the room, Wu Shang Jing paused as he listened to Jingwei''s expression of rage and grief. Part of him felt happy that Jingwei was finally bing more like him - someone who also wanted his father dead.


    Jingwei was already his closest friend, but now, he could be his best ally too.


    He walked into the room and enveloped Jingwei into a tight,forting hug, the kind that he saw in dramas, because he didn''t have any real life experience.


    His father was still more likely to smack him than hug him, and his stepmom was somehow too afraid to touch him. Only Zi Long touched him, and the hugs he gave all these years could be counted on one hand.


    Thankfully, Jingwei didn''t run away screaming, or shove him away. Instead, he burst into bigger, more unrestrained sobs.


    ''Pat him.'' Zi Long mouthed from behind, and Shang Jing awkwardly patted Jingwei''s back, frowning in disgust as he heard Jingwei sneeze. Now his uniform would be covered in snot.


    "Don''t cry," he said softly. "Do you want me to hack into your dad''s email and send him penis ergement spam mail? Or we can make up a scheme to hack his credit cards to give him a taste of his own medicine? "


    Jingwei choked out a half-sob, halfugh, but he nodded, and Shang Jing smirked internally, even as he continued to hold him in aforting way.


    It was time to introduce Jingwei to the world of malicious hackers.

 Chapter 183 (Bitter)Sweet 16 (Part 1)

    In a sh, three years have passed. Losing his mother still hurt, but it hurt a bit less every day. Jingwei knew there was no way he would ever stop missing his mother, but at least he had Shang Jing forpany.


    Jingwei was now 16, and he had gone from school pariah to school heartthrob, the one person everyone wanted to date or be.


    He was now their campus superstar. Girls that used to frown at him for his mischief or give him disparaging looks for his grades had begun to giggle and blush at him instead, offering to tutor him one-on-one.


    Needless to say, there wasn''t any learning done when he took them up on their offers. At least not any that was actually useful in an exam. But then again, he no longer needed to care about his grades. Tianwei was too busy shadowing his father at thepany, and his father was too busy teaching Tianwei the ropes of the business to even remember he had a second son.


    That was all fine with Jingwei. It wasn''t as though heckedpany. Other than Shang Jing, he also made friends easily with his other ssmates because in the span of those few years, he had grown tall and handsome.


    Jingwei wasn''t gued with e, much to the jealousy of his other, more unfortunate schoolmates. In addition, he took up boxing, and his face had lost enough baby fat to reveal high cheekbones and a sharp jawline. His muscles had also developed, giving him a more mature, manly look despite only being 16.


    When he dressed up in a suit, older women flocked around him like bees to honey, thinking he was a university student! It was a huge ego boost, much to the jealousy of his ssmates.


    His voice had also stopped cracking at every third word. Instead it deepened into afortable baritone that he overheard girls describe as ''mouth-wateringly sexy''.


    What''s more, a quick look at the boy''s restrooms proved that he was well-endowed in that area too.


    Add the fact he was loaded with money? Jingwei knew that nothing could bring him down! If anyone tried, he knew how to deal with them - and not using his fists, but with hisputer.


    If he could hack into the Pentagon, what else could he not do? He thought smugly to himself, as he and Shang Jing lounged around in one of his mansion''s empty rooms on a warm summer''s day. Now all the both of them needed were cool hacker aliases, and they were set for life.


    "Come on, Jingwei, you have to admit Alexander Grande is a good name!"


    "Are you kidding me Shang Jing? Alexander Grande sounds so dumb. There was some king called Alexander, wasn''t there?"


    "He''s a conqueror, you just have shitty taste!"


    "Dude. He died. He''s clearly not that good at his job because he didn''t conquer death. And isn''t that surname taken from a Starbucks sizing?"


    "Well no one could conquer death. Do you think he''s Voldermort?! Anyway, the surname is based on an American singer. She really can hit the high notes, just like you when you see a cockroach fly - ouch, you shithead, what was that for?"


    "Ouch, stop hitting me! Voldermort couldn''t conquer death either, you dumbass! This is me whacking you for your shitty nickname."


    "Huh, then what''s your hacker alias going to be? I bet it''s something stupid like Expired Furball."


    "Of course not?! I''ve picked a really cool name."


    "Yeah right. I''ll believe it when I hear it."


    "Yes it is¡­ just wait¡­ it''s ''Dimitri Von Holson.''"<sub> </sub>


    "What. The. Fuck. That''s nonsense. And you''re insulting my name? Get some taste man."


    "I don''t care, it''s cool! And look, intementers think so too," Jingwei said, brandishing his phone, where a foreign news article was talking about their recent actions.


    He and his best friend Wu Shang Jing had just sessfully hacked through the firstyer of the Pentagon, and Jingwei had changed their background to include pictures of cat memes.


    The furor on the western Inte world after someone had leaked that news that the Pentagon had been taken over by cat memes had even been reported on the news! It made himugh with glee.


    Never did he think that he would have been able to do it so quickly - and it was so much easier than he expected!


    He hade a long way from simply scamming and hacking game items from fellow yers.


    His actions might have been illegal, but still, he finally achieved something so big that his father couldn''t lecture him that he was ''wasting his time'' and ''ruining his potential'' (if he even remembered Jingwei''s existence.)


    Best of all? This first real big aplishment was achieved with no help from his father at all!


    Initially, after his mother''s death, he had lived the next few months in a blur. If not for Shang Jing staying by his side and introducing him to coding, he didn''t know what would have be of him. His mom was no longer here to provide any warmth, and his father seemed to retreat into himself, pouring himself into his work.


    He also had all of her things thrown away, and Jingwei had gone on his knees to beg him to reconsider, only to get a cup thrown at him. If not for Lady Yu salvaging a precious few items from the incinerator, it would be like his mother never existed.


    p And that left Jingwei stewing alone in his grief and regrets. There was no space to mourn, and nothing he could mourn to.</anda>


    Coding gave him a new purpose, something to focus on when the miasma of grief that threatened to overwhelm him. Every time he sessfully hacked into apany website, a bank ount, a government agency database, he felt a little less numb, a little more alive.


    It was as though unlocking all these tiny achievements gave him a sense of purpose.


    Hacking through supposedly unbeatable security systems was fun, and when he seeded, he sent their owners cat memes afterwards to let them know they werepromised. He saw it as a public service; he was letting them know about the ws in their system, and he only left memes instead of viruses.


    And the end goal was of course to catch up to Shang Jing''s level of skills!


    "I can''t believe you''re getting validation from intementers." Shang Jing said derisively, turning up his nose at the thought of themoners sitting behind their screens, daring toment on things they could not hope to understand. "Do lions need to care about the opinions of the sheep? I certainly think not."


    "They''re also people," Jingwei retorted cheerfully. "Their opinions matter."


    "No they don''t," Shang Jing said with a proud scoff. "Only our opinions matter. Their existences have no meaning in the grand scheme of things."


    Jingwei onlyughed, thinking that Shang Jing was still joking. After all, when heid alone in bed at night, he sometimes felt like his existence was meaningless too, but that was fine. He wasn''t alone - he had his best friend, and he was sure things would get even better as he grew older.


    Then in that same year, everything came crashing down.

 Chapter 184 (Bitter)Sweet 16 (Part 2)

    "Shang Jing! What the fuck is this!" Jingwei demanded hotly, grabbing Shang Jing''s arm the moment he entered the room.


    "Ah, so you''ve found out," Shang Jing said with a raised eyebrow, nonchntly leaning against his chair when Jingwei confronted him on the existence of the videos.


    Jingwei had done the impossible - he had managed to hack into Shang Jing''sputer, a challenge that Shang Jing imed was impossible.


    But whatever joy he derived from the aplishment slowly turned into horror as he browsed through his files. He was initially looking for some funny ckmail material, such as Shang Jing''s pornos, just so he could make fun of himter.


    What he found though, was a lot more horrifying. Jingwei felt a chill spread through his body as he nced through the videos and pictures, disgust curling in his gut, threatening to make him throw up his lunch.


    How could Shang Jing keep this kind of¡­ sin lying around? Did he partake in such activities?


    Why was Shang Jing such a pervert, to keep multiple, numerous video clips of unsuspecting women changing in the bathroom? Some of them weren''t even grown women - only mere girls!


    What''s wrong with him! He even saw some with mutted animals, and he had to hurriedly click away before he vomited for real.


    He even saw Shang Jing''s ex-stepmoms in one of the videos, which scared him even more. How long had this been going on?


    While Jingwei was out sending cat memes, Shang Jing was essing the in-built cameras of the phones andputers to take secret videos of women.


    Come to think of it, he never wondered why Shang Jing required such a rigorous security system to begin with. It wasn''t as though their school work needed that much secrecy!


    "Oi, answer my question? What the fuck is going on?" Jingwei asked, this time taking a quick nce around the room to make sure that no one was eavesdropping. He didn''t even want servants to know. Jingwei lowered his voice. "Why do you have all these videos? What for?"


    "Come on Jingwei, don''t act dumb." Shang Jing scoffed, with a knowing nce at his crotch. "What do you think I use these vids for?"


    "You - but one of them is your stepmom?! And some of them are children!" Jingwei burst out, appalled at Shang Jing''s callous response. "How could you do this to them?"


    "Why not?" Shang Jing replied, having the nerve to actually sound confused. "They don''t mean anything to me."


    "Dude, they are real people! This is illegal! You can''t do this!" Jingwei protested, gripping his arm tight enough to hurt.


    "What nonsense. Of course I can. I already did, and I will continue to do it." Shang Jing said casually, twisting his arm away from Jingwei''s hold.


    "Don''t be jealous, Dimitri Von Holson, I''ll teach you how to do it too so you can get videos of your own. Also, you owe me a cat meme."


    Damn it, he actually sounded pleased and proud that Jingwei managed to break through his security system and discover evidence of his illegal activities. He even pped his hands slowly, the same way he did when Jingwei bullshitted an essay 10 mins before submission time.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei was this close to losing his mind.<sub> </sub>


    "What cat meme?! How can you joke about this!" Jingwei yelled out, his eyes wide with shock and hurt at how nonchnt Shang Jing was about everything. "I don''t want such videos! Did you not hear what I just said - This. Is. Illegal. What''s wrong with you?"


    "What''s wrong with me?" Shang Jing repeated softly, his face darkening. "Nothing is wrong with me. I have always been like this. You know me."


    "No." Jingwei said, shaking his head frantically, as though he was trying to convince himself. "This isn''t you. I''m sure you''re not this kind of person right? You''re not a criminal."


    "Wrong. We already did lots of illegal things already, what''s one more? Besides, do you think your family is so clean and innocent? That''s not possible," Shang Jing said, shrugging easily, and he wasn''t wrong.


    At 16, Jingwei was old enough to know, in that vague blurry way that he didn''t want to know the details of, that his family had grown into wealth really quickly, and chances that the growth wasn''t due to legal means was all too likely.


    (He''d seen the bodyguards lurking around his father, and they sometimes had a bit too much blood on their suits for people offering ''protection''.)


    What''s more, Jingwei already had ess to a Ferrari that he loved taking out for a spin way above the speed limit. Him and his ssmates all drank alcohol when they were underage, and brawled at anyone that looked at them the wrong way. Their families had enough money to blind anyone that wanted toin.


    But still, two wrongs didn''t make a right. There was no reason for Shang Jing''s activities.


    "This is wrong! It''s so fucked up!" Jingwei hissed, highly upset. Meanwhile Shang Jing just stared at him patiently, waiting for Jingwei to finish throwing his tantrum, as though they were back to being kids and Jingwei was just kicking up a fuss over who got thest chocte cone.


    Jingwei got even more upset at hisck of reaction. Couldn''t Shang Jing see that he was making a huge mistake?


    "Why would you do this?! Just go and search for porn like a normal person! Even paying for a prostitute would be better!" He continues to rant, willing him to see sense. To Jingwei, there was a line that shouldn''t be crossed, but Shang Jing couldn''t see that.


    It was one thing to do illegal things that only endangered himself and other willing participants, but Jingwei had an irond rule: he vehemently refused to involve others that weren''t involved.


    There was a reason why he would eagerly drink when he was underage, but never go behind the wheel even if he took a sip of alcohol, despite whatever names people teased him with, calling him a coward or a goody-two shoes.


    "Normal? Do you think you and I are normal people?" Shang Jing asks rhetorically, before breaking into cheerfulughter, pretending to wipe a tear from his eye. Jingwei felt a chill run down his spine, at the fact that his best friend could still beughing when his heinous crimes were being discovered.


    "Stop joking! I''m being serious here - there are children involved!" Jingwei had yelled, wondering if he had entered an alternate reality wheremitting such crimes against the vulnerable was something alright.


    Shang Jing had stalked closer then, levelling him a cold, cruel look. "So? It doesn''t matter. My family makes everything legal. If you dare to breathe the word of this to anyone, you''ll just be barking at the air. Don''t be a loser, Jingwei. You''ve been making so much progress," He finished consolingly, paired with a condescending pat to Jingwei''s cheek.


    "You can choose not to support me," Shang Jing continued unhurriedly, but he gave Jingwei a slow, warning nce. "But if you ever think of telling anyone, don''t me me for being unkind, even to you, my best friend."


    Shang Jing patted his shoulder, his fingers digging painfully into his muscles before letting go. Jingwei could only watch speechlessly as Shang Jing walked away, whistling a jaunty tune.

 Chapter 185 (Bitter)Sweet 16 (Part 3)

    "Young Master Wu, are you sure this is wise? How do you know he won''t report you?" Zi Long asked worriedly after they left the estate. Judging by the tight look on Shang Jing''s face, Jingwei must have discovered his misdeeds and had not taken the news well.


    If Sun Jingwei had been the type of person that delighted in the degradation of people, Zi Long would need to reconsider his skill at reading people.


    Shang Jingughed, but there wasn''t much humour in it. "Zi Long, tell me, what kind of person do you think Jingwei is?"


    "I¡­" Before Zi Long could reply, Shang Jing confidently answered his own question.


    "This friend of mine isn''t someone that is a brave hero. He likes hisfortable life, and hates to do anything that''ll upset it. I''m his only friend, and our families are allied, so all the more he''ll be reluctant to stop me. What''s more, do you think he has the courage to go against me and his father? Just wait and see. Nothing will happen."


    And Shang Jing was right.


    Jingwei knew that deep down, reporting would be futile. When your family was as powerful as Sun Jingwei''s and Wu Shang Jing''s, most illegal activities became legal with the right amount of money. Sun Jingwei was the only one that knew the dirty secrets hidden in Shang Jing''sputer, and that knowledge ate at him day after day, like a greedy parasite.


    He couldn''t help but keep hacking into hisputer daily, just so he could see what new depravity his best friend was up to in addition to the illegal filming of sex acts.


    What he found was worse. Brokering arms. Selling drugs. Dabbling in human trafficking.


    Jingwei was horrified, but he still kept his silence. He didn''t know how to stop him. The Wu family was powerful enough to cover up any misdeed.


    Unless he had his father''s support. That would make all the difference. Swallowing his fear and reluctance, Jingwei decided to seek advice from him. His father definitely wouldn''t want to have business dealings with someone so twisted!


    "Father, may I speak with you?" Jingwei asked hesitantly, actually knocking on his father''s home office door before entering. Such a polite act immediately attracted Sun Haowei''s attention. His youngest son was two steps away from delinquency, with his poor grades and truancy; clearly he wanted something from him which is why he''s bothering to y nice.


    "What trouble did you cause now?" Sun Haowei asked with a raised eyebrow. He crossed his arms and looked at Jingwei suspiciously. His son looked uncharacteristically nervous.


    "You can''t be out of money; I just deposited a million into your savings ountst month. Did you already crash the Ferrari I bought you? I told you to be more careful! Why are you always so careless?!"


    "Father! I didn''t crash the Ferrari! I''m a good driver!" Jingwei argued, upset that his father''s first thought was about him causing trouble. "It''s not about that!"


    "Don''t tell me,YOU GOT SOME GIRL PREGNANT?!" Sun Haowei roared angrily. "I knew it! Who asked you to keep spending time with girls instead of focusing on your studies?!"


    "NO! There are no pregnant girls!" Jingwei protested hotly. His father really thought he was that kind of careless idiot. How could he always assume the worst about him? How infuriating! This time, he was actually trying to do the right thing!


    "Father! It''s about Shang Jing."<sub> </sub>


    "What about him?" His father asked. "Are you guys going on holiday together alone? Do you know what kind of rumours will fly around if you do?"


    "No Father, we are not going on holiday." Jingwei said tiredly, rubbing his forehead. Great, his father didn''t want him to spend time with any girls, but also didn''t want him to spend time with Shang Jing alone for fear of gay rumours.


    Jingwei took a deep breath, and decided to just tell him everything before his father used him of something more ridiculous.


    "Father, I found out that Shang Jing is taking spy cams of naked women having sex. He''s also selling drugs! And humans! And weapons! I want to report him to the authorities -" Before Jingwei could continue, his father held up a hand to stop him.


    p "STUPID BOY!" His father barked out, mming that same hand on his table. "Have I taught you nothing all these years?"</anda>


    "Pretty much," Jingwei couldn''t resist making the smart quip was just on the tip of his tongue. Indeed. His father didn''t teach him anything.


    His father gnashed his teeth, but took a deep breath to calm himself down. "Do you think that anything wille out of reporting Shang Jing''s crimes to the police? We are all cut from the same cloth. It will achieve nothing and get our family pulled into his mess too!"


    "But if we used our resources we could punish - "


    "And why would we want to punish him?" Sun Haowei retorted. Jingwei fell silent in surprise.


    "Because he''smitting crimes?!"


    "And how is that our business?" Sun Haowei spoke slowly, as though lecturing a particrly dim-witted child. "As long as it doesn''t affect our corporate partnerships with them, why should you care?"


    "I -"


    "In fact, you should be thinking about how to contribute to the family business like him. At least he''s creating ie from his activities, but you? All you do is sit around all day doing nothing! Don''t bother me about this again, and don''t interfere in Shang Jing''s business. Do you understand me?"


    Jingwei stared at his father nkly, notprehending the words that came out of his mouth.


    "Do you understand me?" His father repeated, more seriously.


    "Yes father," Jingwei replied dimly, too shell-shocked at his father''s reply to fight. Maybe he''d have better luck turning to his brother for help. Surely his brother wouldn''t be so heartless to just let things go like that! And he was smarter too - if anyone could think of a way to get Wu Shang Jing arrested for his crimes and yet have them escape unscathed, it would be him.

 Chapter 186 (Bitter)Sweet 16 (Part 4)

    "Are you crazy? Is this what you were up to instead of studying?" was Tianwei''s heartwarming reply when Jingwei visited him without warning at his university campus in thete afternoon.


    His brother hadmandeered an entire study table for himself, much to the dismay of his fellow course mates. Tianwei''s notes were sprawled over the entire length of the table, and some were even stacked higher than Tianwei''s head. Jingwei would feel bad for interrupting his revision, but he had no other option.


    Normally, he would go to Shang Jing. But since the person causing the problem was Shang Jing, he was effectively left with nowhere to turn.


    "Ge, help me." Jingwei pleaded, refusing to leave.


    Tianwei, seeing that he was attracting unwanted attention, immediately packed his things and pulled him away to his dorm room. He took a wary look around for eavesdroppers before finally locking the door. Christ, his younger brother would give him a heart attack before he even hit 25.


    "Ge! I''m serious! What should I do?"


    "Nothing! You do nothing! Pretend you never knew about his actions." Tianwei insisted seriously, "No matter what you do, do not make him your enemy!"


    "Ge?" Jingwei asked, confused at how adamant his brother was acting.


    "Jingwei, don''t be a fool! You have evidence of his misdeeds, and that makes you a liability. If he has the cruelty to conduct those crimes as you have imed, what makes you think he''s not going to get rid of you the same way if you put one toe out of line?"


    "Shang Jing wouldn''t¡­" Jingwei''s body suddenly felt numb at the thought that Shang Jing might silence him for good. If this was just three months ago, he would have thought the idea ludicrous. But he didn''t know about Shang Jing''s private activities three months ago either.


    "Why wouldn''t he?" Tianwei asked darkly. "I''ve always had a bad feeling about him, and I was right."


    "How?" Jingwei asked weakly. "What do you mean?"


    "Have you not noticed that Old Master Wu is looking a lot frailer than before when we visited his house?"


    "Well, he''s getting older?" Jingwei shrugged. "Aren''t all old people like that?"


    "Old Master Wu is 5 years younger than our father. But his sight is failing, and he''s developing hand tremors and he needs a cane to walk. I have it on good authority that in a few years, most likely when Shang Jing hits 18, he will be forgetting things more often."


    "Ge¡­"


    "Wu Shang Jing is a deadly venomous viper Jingwei. It''s best to y a fool if you want to survive. Father is right - just don''t do anything. I''d rather you y at being an idiot yboy. Get out of the country if you need to."


    "But what about those people he''s hurting? Are we going to leave them? Surely there must be something we can do. You''re smart! Can you think of an idea?" Jingwei protested, upset.


    Tianwei paused, a sign of conflict appearing in his calm eyes. Jingwei felt hope for the first time in a long time - maybe his brother really could do something, but then Tianwei shook his head and sent his hopes plummeting down the ravine.<sub> </sub>


    "Those lives are not worth yours. Even if Shang Jing didn''t hurt them, something else or someone else would have gotten to them eventually. I would not pick saving their lives over our own." Tianwei replied solemnly.


    "...That''s a terrible thing to say," Jingwei muttered, reeling back in shock at his brother''s heartlessness. "So¡­ you''re not going to help me?"


    "I will not." Tianwei said firmly, looking over at his poor younger brother. He already had dark eye circles from not sleeping well, and he had curled into himself, looking sad and pathetic. Clearly this had been eating at him for a while.


    "Do you want me to suggest to Father to get you to study abroad?" Tianwei offered suddenly, and Jingwei looked up.


    "Huh?"


    "If you cannot stop thinking about this, perhaps a change of scenery would do you good." Tianwei said. "And the further away you are from him, the safer you''ll be and the more relieved I''ll feel."


    "Ge," Jingwei said as he heaved a deep breath. His brother meant well, but it was useless. "There''s no point. I''ll never stop thinking about it, and Shang Jing can find me anywhere."


    "Then you must continue to pretend to be a fool. Remain his friend. He won''t get rid of you if you keep your head down. He cares for you, as much as a vermin like him can care for anyone."


    Hearing such a statement from Tianwei made him feel worse. After talking to his brother, he now had a whole host of new reasons not to rock the boat and report Shang Jing. But could he truly forget about all his misdeeds?


    "You have gotten thinner," Tianwei observed. He felt a brotherly urge to rectify that."Come on, I''ll treat you to dinner."


    "I have no appetite." Jingwei replied faintly.


    "You still need to eat." Tianwei insisted firmly. "And I want another person to tell Lian Xingzi how misguided she is in her opinions."


    Jingwei''s ears perked up. That name sounded familiar.


    "Ge, isn''t that the girl you had a crush on in high school? The one that visited our house before to work on projects with you? Are you still trying to ask her out? Did she reject you again? That''s some." Jingwei snickered.


    "Listen here, I do not have a crush on her, and I am notme. I am a man with standards." Tianwei retorted primly, even as he watched Jingwei brighten at the news.


    Good. This would distract him well enough for a while, until Tianwei cane home for the weekend and let his father know about sending Jingwei abroad with a toon of guards. His brother cannot stay in the country.


    "I don''t know Ge, do you want me as a third wheel on your date?" Jingwei asked. "Or are you desperate enough to use me as your wingman?"


    "This is not a date, I do not need a wingman." Tianwei repeated, pointing a finger at his bathroom. "Now go and wash up - I''ll be meeting her soon, and I will not have you looking so pathetic and smelling like a wet dog."

 Chapter 187 Crashing My Brother’s Not-Date

    His brother''s not-date was at a ridiculously fancy restaurant. Jingwei saw the way the waiter''s eyebrow barely twitched as he pulled up an extra chair for him, as the reservation was changedst minute. Jingwei shot his brother a look, for someone who imed that this outing with Lian Xingzi wasn''t a date, the restaurant certainly gave the impression of one, since most of its customers were couples on dates.


    There was a lighted candle in the middle of the table to set the ambience and his brother was dressed in a suit with one of the most boring grey ties Tianwei had ever seen.


    Jingwei sighed. When was his date going to arrive?


    "Ge, are you sure you didn''t get stood up? Did you actually ask her out, or did you yell a date and time and leave before hearing her reply?" Jingwei asked cautiously, watching the muscle in his brother''s jaw twitch in irritation with each passing minute.


    His brother had even made them arrive 15 minutes before, and now it was 10 minutes past the allocated waiting time. Jingwei had to shower and then borrow one of Tianwei''s dress shirts and pants to even be allowed in this restaurant. Thankfully, he had grown tall and broad enough for them to fit him well. He didn''t want to look like a child ying dress-up.


    Now he was getting hungry. Could they order first, or would his Ge find that too rude?


    "She said that -"


    "Sorry I''mte, I was still deciding whether or not I shoulde." A woman''s voice interrupted Jingwei''s thoughts. Jingwei turned around to see a pretty girl in a ck dress. She had light makeup on and her lips were tinted with red lipstick. They curled into a smile as she saw him.


    "And who is this? Sun Tianwei, are you introducing me to your boyfriend?" Lian Xingzi asked. "Well, I am happy and will always support you - "


    Tianwei sighed. Jingwei had a feeling he did this pretty often when around Xingzi-jie. "This is my younger brother. You should know. You have seen him before."


    "Oh?" Xingzi leaned and took a closer look. "Ah, now that you say it, I do see the resemnce. But you can''t fault me for not realising it! I haven''t seen him in three years. Jingwei, you''ve grown a lot taller and more handsome since Ist saw you!"


    "Thanks! Xingzi-jie, you''ve also grown a lot prettier too," Jingwei replied, smiling cheekily, ying up the boyish charm he knew he contained in spades. "You look very pretty in your dress! Ge might not say it, but he thinks so too."


    Jingwei felt a foot kick his calf sharply, courtesy of his brother, but he kept his smile firmly pasted on his face. He gave his brother a quick look, hinting that he should say something to follow up. Tianwei definitely thought she looked nice, since he practically sprung to attention when he saw that she had arrived, his eyes never leaving her figure or face.


    Of course, Tianwei exceeded all of Jingwei''s expectations when he opened his mouth.


    "I see that you''ve stopped dressing like a homeless person," Tianwei said, eyeing her outfit, and Jingwei wanted to p his brother''s mouth. How could someone be so hopeless? Clearly what his brother wanted to say was that she looked nice, but then what came out of his mouth turned out to be offensive.


    "Ah? Sorry, I''ll change into my trash bag if that pleases you, why did you pick such a high-end ce?" Lian Xingzi asked sarcastically, sitting down on her own. Jingwei gave his brother another exasperated look - he wasn''t even going to pull out her chair for her? No wonder he still couldn''t get a proper date with her.


    It was up to him to salvage this mess.


    "Hi Xingzi-jie," Jingwei smiled winningly, "don''t take my brother''s words to heart - you know him, he''s emotionally constipated."<sub> </sub>


    "I know," Xingzi-jie said, leaning forward conspiratorially. "He''s what people would call a tsundere."


    "I''m not a tsundere," Tianwei protested, but he was duly ignored.


    "You on the other hand, are an utter darling," Xingzi said,ughing as she looked over Jingwei. "You''re going to be ady killer in future, if you aren''t already. I can tell."


    Jingweiughed awkwardly, partly because his brother was stewing in jealousy, and partly because he didn''t want to think about killingdies, especially thanks to Shang Jing''s videos.


    "Stop hitting on my brother," came Tianwei''s terse reply. "He''s underage."


    "Ha!" Xingzi smirked. "I''m not hitting on him, I''m conversing with a dinner partner that''s actually paying some form of attention to me and not ring at the tablecloth as though it personally offended him."


    Jingwei winced. Hard to deny that.


    "Also, since when did the high and mighty Sun Tianwei need his baby brother to talk for him? But you are very sweet Jingwei. Such a good kid." She praised Jingwei as though he was her grandson, nevermind that Jingwei was a teenager and she was only a university student too.


    "You -" Tianwei wanted to argue, but he could not find a way to make it sound like he wasn''t a petty jealous man, so he dropped the point.


    No wonder his brother wanted him toe along. Jingwei hoped that one day, when he found someone he liked, he wouldn''t behave that pathetically bad at wooing them.


    "Let''s order!" Jingwei said loudly, trying to salvage the situation. Several patrons turned around to stare at him usingly. He quickly sank into his seat.


    "What do you guys want to eat?" He asked more softly this time.


    "Rich people." Lian Xingzi said cheerfully without hesitation.


    There was a pause. Jingwei let out a chuckle, internally sweat-dropping at his brother''s taste in women. Wow, his brother had a crush on a woman who hated their family''s wealth.Jingwei couldn''t understand the appeal - sure, Xingzi-jie was very pretty when she was dolled up, and she was witty, but what made her so different from all the other women that flocked around his brother?


    On the other hand, if Jingwei wanted to find someone to fall in love with, he would pick a girl of the same social standing. She would be beautiful and well-mannered and polite, have the face of an angel but the body of a temptress. She would support his hobbies and love him and his money, and wouldn''t arrive 15 minuteste to a date!


    Meanwhile, Tianwei sighed, feeling a headache form between his temples.

 Chapter 188 Unexpected Source Of Advice

    "Sorry, they don''t have that on the menu," Jingwei said, to break the awkward silence, after taking a quick glimpse of the menu. He wondered if he could order alcohol for himself. He definitely needed it to get through this evening. "There are a lot of French courses instead. Do you want mushroom soup?"


    "That''ll do for an appetiser, thanks Jingwei," Xingzi smiled at him, before turning to Tianwei. "So what are you having? Or are you nning on achieving immortality by skipping meals?"


    "I''ll have the lobster and white truffle risotto with chardonnay." Tianwei said. "What about you Jingwei?"


    "A steak? Or maybe a beef wellington," His stomach growled in approval. "Can I get a bottle of red wine to go with it?"


    "No."


    "No."


    Xingzi and Tianwei stared at each other in surprise, as though they didn''t expect the other party to reject Jingwei''s request. Jingwei would feel happy that they are findingmon ground, but with the way his life was going, he really wanted a drink!


    "Oh? I''m surprised you''re not letting him drink."


    "Jingwei is underage, what kind of older brother would I be to let him indulge like this?"


    "And I suppose you are a kind and responsible older brother?"


    "I am a kind and responsible man to begin with."


    "I find that hard to believe."


    As they continued to argue with each other, their faces progressively got closer. Jingwei felt like a third wheel already. A third wheel that desperately needed alcohol in his system.


    "Can I have just a ss? I''m not even driving." Jingwei whined, but they ignored him to continue arguing with each other. Jingwei realised that this was probably what constituted flirting for them, and made a face. He took advantage of their distraction to g down a server and ce their orders, adding an extra order of red wine before they could stop him.


    He was initially nning on drinking just a ss, but as he watched his brother and his not-girlfriend bicker, he mentally added more sses.


    Thankfully, their dishes arrived soon enough, stopping their strange forey for that moment.


    His brother raised an eyebrow at the red wine, but Jingwei made a point in pouring sses for the both of them first, determined to polish off the rest of the bottle himself when the both of them continued to flirt.


    The rest of the evening progressed pretty well, with Tianwei managing to make Xingzi-jie smile a whopping 23 times, which was 23 times more than Jingwei predicted. His brother also seemed more cheerful as the evening went on, although that could be due to the alcohol.


    While they ate, Jingwei also entertained Xingzi with stories of his exploits in school, refusing to even touch the topic of Wu Shang Jing as best as he could. However, that caused his stories to not make sense, because Shang Jing was there for at least half of them, and it was so difficult to censor him out.


    Now that he thought about it, he really didn''t have anything that he did that wasn''t tied up with Shang Jing. Maybe that was the problem. He sighed and took a swig of red wine, failing to notice the way Xingzi''s eyes narrowed as she met his brother''s.


    His brother gave a shallow shrug, and helped himself to more alcohol too. He drank enough that he ended up spilling some of it on his pristine white shirt, which made Xingzi cackle into her soup.


    Tianwei red at her as he went to the restroom to wash up. Xingzi gave him a cheerful wink andughed again when he nearly tripped.


    As the restroom door closed, Lian Xingzi immediately turned to pin him down with a gaze sharper than a knife, despite also consuming alcohol. Jingwei had a feeling that he was a mouse trapped underneath the ws of a cat.<sub> </sub>


    "Jingwei, is there something bothering you? Is there someone bothering you?" She asked, concerned.


    "Eh, not really I mean - " Jingwei bbered, surprised by her question.


    "Since I''ve known you, you have not been a good liar," Xingzi-jie looked at him sympathetically. "You being half-drunk makes it worse. Whatever it is, feel free to tell me. I swear - I won''t tell your brother. And don''t worry about scandalising me - it can''t be worse than the stuff I hear inw school, when we go through our cases."


    "Really?" Jingwei asked suspiciously. "What if it''s about¡­ rape? Or murder? Or arms trafficking?"


    "Really. You won''t believe all the fucked up shit people do," Xingzi said, shaking her head. "I''ve been told I''m a good listener."


    "By my brother?"


    "Hahahah!" Sheughed breathlessly, and several heads turned in her direction. She paid them no mind, taking another swig of her drink. "Yes actually. Admittedly, he was pissed drunk and nearly crying from exam stress back then, and it was a terrible time for him back then, so I don''t expect a repeatpliment."


    "Wow." Jingwei said nonplussed. He didn''t think his brother was capable of drinking till he was so utterly pissed, and crying from exam stress. He had always been smart after all. "I didn''t think he¡­"


    "Yeah. It''s been hard for him since¡­your - since forever." Xingzi said, shrugging. Jingwei had a feeling she wasn''t telling the whole truth.


    "But I''m now asking about you! Do you have anything you want to get off your chest? Other than your shirt, because I''m not exining to your brother why you''ll be sitting shirtless when he gets back."


    Jingwei gave a weakugh, before thinking seriously about her offer. Perhaps¡­ if he didn''t say who it was, and made it sound like a hypothetical situation¡­


    "Xingzi-jie," he started, wetting his dry lip as he tried to exin. "I have this friend that found out that his best friend was doing a lot of illegal stuff. What would you do?"


    "How illegal are we talking about?" Xingzi asked, the inquisitivewyer in her emerging. "Are we talking about littering? Or shoplifting? Those crimes are technically illegal, but on the moral spectrum no one is really going to care. I need more information."


    Jingwei swallowed. "Like seriously illegal. Morally corrupt. You know¡­ stuff involving drugs and prostitution. The kind that would give someone a lifetime sentence in prison."


    "Okay¡­continue? What do you n to do?" Xingzi said, trying to follow Jingwei''s train of thought.


    "This isn''t about me, this is about my friend being worried about his friend," Jingwei rified hastily, sweat beading on his temples.


    "Right right, my apologies, do continue. What does your friend think about these criminal activities?" Xingzi asked, even as she did not buy his exnation.


    Jingwei was definitely involved, despite his fervent ims that this was the problem of a friend of a friend. This was clearly textbook deflection.


    Which was worrying. What was Jingwei''s friend really involved in, and how did Jingwei get pulled in?! Did Tianwei know about this - was this why he brought Jingwei along for dinner?


    "My friend hates it. Ever since he found out, he can''t sleep well, he can''t eat well, and he''s been stressed constantly. But even when he tries to convince his other friend to stop, the other friend doesn''t listen to him. What can my friend do?"


    "Does your friend n to report his other friend to the authorities?"


    "He wants to, but he can''t," Jingwei said after a pause.

 Chapter 189 Drunken Wisdom

    "He wants to, but he can''t," Jingwei said after a pause.


    "And why is that?" Xingzi asked curiously, pouring herself more wine. This story was getting interesting. "Is he getting ckmailed to keep his silence?"


    "No," Jingwei said, her words shedding a hint of candlelight in the darkness of his mind. Shang Jing had technically threatened him to keep his mouth shut, but he had nothing on Jingwei - at least, nothing as incriminating as what he had on Shang Jing.


    "But their families are good friends and business partners, so he''s afraid of the fallout that will happen if he does tell someone. And there''s no guarantee that he would get any punishment, so he might be endangering everything for nothing."


    "It wouldn''t be for nothing." Xingzi pointed out. "You''ll - I mean your friend will be helping those victims! The families of all those that were hurt would definitely not think that it''s nothing. It''s important to stop your friend''s friend frommitting more atrocities. Surely that isn''t nothing. And if your friend is really good friends with that criminal, then all the more he should stop him."


    "What? Really?" Jingwei asked, surprised at her words. "Isn''t keeping his silence the right thing to do? How could he¡­ stab his friend in the back like that?"


    "Keeping silent is the easy thing to do," Xingzi corrected gently as she took another bigger sip of her wine, her eyes clouded over for a moment. How many lives have been ruined by people who didn''t want to act, assuming that someone else would y the hero? She mused sadly to herself, steadily draining her ss.


    "Xingzi-jie?" Jingwei prompted. She seemed to be thinking about something else, falling silent as she chugged the wine as though it was cheap beer.


    "Oh right, sorry for spacing out," Xingzi said, shaking her head. This was the time to impart some advice, not for her to visit memoryne. "I''m just saying, if your friend wanted the best for his friend, he should stop him frommitting crimes, not enable him further! Friends don''t let friends go down a dark twisted road without trying to stop them."


    If Xingzi''s earlier words were a candlelight in his mind, her words now were a whole host of street lights illuminating the path forward for him. Jingwei had never thought of it that way, but Xingzi-jie had a point.


    If he didn''t do anything and let Shang Jing go down this path of his, what will happen to him in the end? He had to stop him before Shang Jing went down the path of no return! He also needed to help all those poor victims of his, and stop him from creating potential victims.


    But then he was still worried.


    "Xingzi-jie, what if that friend of mine is afraid of retaliation? His older brother said that that friend of his might hurt him and his family members as payback."


    Xingzi blinked and helped herself to another bigger ss of wine. That brother was clearly Tianwei. Those words had his cautious nature written all over it. He had always been the type to watch and wait, rather than jump immediately into the fray to do things. This attitude of his had been the cause of more than one argument.


    "If you know that he''ll retaliate, then isn''t it more important to get rid of him in one swoop so he can''t retaliate?" Xingzi said, making a chopping motion with her hand.


    "Huh?" Jingwei asked, not believing his ears.


    "I''m just saying, rather than praying he doesn''t target your friend, isn''t it better to be more proactive? Get rid of the threat and you won''t need to live in fear. Be a man! Or a woman! Strike first!" She dered, thumping her wine ss on the table. Luckily she had drained the ss, so no wine spilled out.


    Jingwei blinked. Xingzi-jie wasn''t making sense near the end, her face red with the tell-tale flush of alcohol, and she was blinking slowly at him, as though seeing him for the first time.<sub> </sub>


    "What kind of nonsense are you telling my brother?" Tianwei thundered from behind. Jingwei blinked, his brother was back from the toilet, and his shirt was still vaguely damp from his efforts to remove the red wine.


    He didn''t do a very good job, but thankfully the lighting in the restaurant was dim enough that it wasn''t obvious.


    Xingzi stillughed, happily drunk. "Nice shirt Tianwei, it looks like you had your period on your shirt, hahahhaha¡­"


    Tianwei sighed, all his earlier anger vanishing.


    "Why did you drink so much again? You know your own tolerance!" He scolded, pulling her wine ss and the wine bottle away. Xingzi-jie made several sad noises, but his brother was unmoved.


    Tianwei then turned to him. "Jingwei, disregard whatever Xingzi told you. As you can see, she''s now drunk and likely to spew a lot of nonsense. She will forget whatever she told you the next morning, when she''s vomiting tonight''s dinner in the toilet bowl."


    "I''m not that drunk!" Xingzi protested. "And what do you mean to dis-disregard my words? My words are great. I''m giving him good advice! Remember Jingwei!" She did the chopping motion with her hand again. "Do it. Be decisive. Cut it!"


    Jingwei nodded, his mind whirling with ideas. Finally, the weight pressing on his chest seemed to be lightening, now that he decided on a course of action that wasn''t closing his eyes and pretending Shang Jing''s sins didn''t exist.


    "Got it Xingzi-jie! You''ve been a great help!"


    "See?" She turned to Tianwei and smacked his chest while smugly eximing. "Jingwei thinks I''m being a great help!"


    Jingwei watched as her hand continued to remain on his brother''s chest. His brother covered his hand with hers, and instead of shoving it away, he brought it down so that it rested on his thigh instead.


    "I''m sure," Tianwei said, and was that fondness Jingwei detected in his voice? Did his brother get reced with a pod person in the toilet?


    "Ge, are you feeling okay?" Jingwei whispered. "You''re acting¡­ weirder than usual."


    "I''m fine," Tianwei said, shooting him a vaguely irritated look. "Call for our driver to take you home. I''ll need to drop her off first."


    Oh. Clearly his brother had ns tonight.


    "Wow, your thighs are really nice," Xingzi cheerfully mused as she began to paw his brother''s thighs in public. His brother tightened his hold on her hand and red at Jingwei.


    "What are you waiting for? Do it now!"

 Chapter 190 Snatching My Future Sister-In-Law?

    "Got it Ge! Have a good time! Do bring Xingzi-jie home sometime!" Jingwei said cheekily, dodging Tianwei''s hand as he tried to cuff him for his cheek. He shot his brother a knowing wink at his words as he dialled their family''s chauffeur.


    Tianwei was half-cuddling Xingzi-jie while he settled the bill. How cute. If Jingwei wasn''t tormented by the spectre of Wu Shang Jing''s crimes, he would have cooed and made obnoxious kissing noises in the background.


    Maybe, when all this was over and Tianwei married Xingzi-jie, Jingwei would mention all these cute embarrassing moments in his best man''s speech.


    The chauffeur arrived promptly and the three of them mbered into the back seat with various levels of drunkenness. Jingwei was proud to note that he wasn''t the most pissed-drunk one for a change, that dubious honour was given to the woman in his brother''s arms.


    "Send her home first, then send Jingwei back." Tianwei instructed the driver, giving him the address while Xingzi ran an appreciative hand on the leather seat, making happy noises. Before the driver actually started driving, Tianwei actually helped her put on a seatbelt, pulling down the hem of her dress to make sure she didn''t inadvertently sh anyone.


    Jingwei saw this and decided to hum the wedding march as obnoxiously as possible. His brother was so whipped - a pity Xingzi-jie was so drunk, she would not remember this.


    Come to think of it, maybe his brother was so nice to her because she wouldn''t remember it. If so, that was just sad.


    "What?" Tianwei asked, after he caught Jingwei staring at him with pitiful eyes. "Don''t tell me you don''t know how to put on a seatbelt. You''re 16 already! Do it yourself!"


    "Ge, you''re so biased." Jingwei whined, shaking his head but he did as Tianwei asked. Only Tianwei would be anal-retentive enough to actually get people to put on seatbelts when they were seating at the back of a car seat. Jingwei hadn''t done it in years.


    The car drove smoothly, and Xingzi''s head dropped on Tianwei''s shoulder. Jingwei peered over and snickered at the way his brother seemed to have frozen, torn between pushing her off or letting her sleep.


    "So cute," Jingwei murmured and Tianwei gave him a dark look.


    "She''s five years older than you. And a lot smarter. Way out of your league." He hissed quietly. Jingwei noticed how he was still trying not to move, so as to not wake her.


    He snickered even louder. Hah. His brother thought he was talking about her and not about them together! Maybe he can have some fun with this. He hadn''t felt this happy in a while.


    "That''s not true," Jingwei said, because he hadn''t been a little shit in a long while to his brother. He can''t have his brother forget about him.


    More importantly, it was so funny to watch his brother pretend to be unfazed and unbothered by Lian Xingzi when he was clearly ame human disaster whenever she was in his general vicinity. An evening alone with the two of them already made that very clear to Jingwei.


    "Didn''t you hear what she said at dinner?" Jingwei continued smugly. "She thinks I''m sweet. An utter delight. Tall and handsome."


    "She thinks you''re a good kid," Tianwei retorted, with heavy emphasis on thest word. He ignored the familiar surge of jealousy that appeared whenever someone liked Xingzi. This was Jingwei, for goodness sake. He wasn''t going to be baited by his younger brother.


    "So? I''m very charming! And I won''t be a kid in two years." He added, watching his brother''s eyebrow twitch with great amusement. "Maybe she''ll like me more than you by then, since all you do is argue with her."<sub> </sub>


    "I do not just argue with her," Tianwei protested. "This is called debating. And what do you know about women? Have you gone on any dates? No right, thought so."


    "Booo Ge, you don''t even pull the chair out for her during your date. That''s like the most basic etiquette."


    "I -"


    "You even brought me along! And Xingzi-jie thought that I''m your new boyfriend! What kind of impression are you giving her? Does she think you''re gay?" Jingwei continued.


    Tianwei sighed and shot a re at the top of Xingzi''s head. She always did like causing chaos for him. He could feel a spot of drool forming on his shirt.


    "She knows I like women. Keep talking, and I''ll never treat you to dinner again," Tianwei threatened.


    "Fine, fine," Jingwei said, reluctantly letting it go for now for the sake of free food. He was a growing teenage boy, and he wasn''t going to lose a potential meal ticket, especially one as rich as his brother. But still, he had one more thing to say.


    "When are you bringing her to our home for dinner though? I like her, I think she should be my new sister-inw. Or maybe I''ll be her second husband."


    "Second husband?" Tianwei asked testily, not liking the shit-eating grin on his brother''s face.


    "Yeah, when she divorces you for being ameass and marries me instead - ouch ouch ouch Ge let go of my ear!"


    "Keep your voice down, she is still resting," Tianwei scolded as he gave Jingwei''s ear onest painful twist. Xingzi let out a drunken mumble, and both of them froze. Thankfully, she seemed to remain asleep, slumped on Tianwei''s shoulder with her hair covering her face.


    Tianwei gently brushed the hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear, and Jingwei had to turn away at the tender look on his brother''s face. He was intruding on something strangely intimate - he didn''t even know his brother could look so soft at someone.


    Jingwei stared at the passing streetlights instead, thinking about his own life, and the advice Xingzi-jie gave him. She might have been drunk, but Jingwei thought she made more sense than his brother and Father when they were both sober.


    Wu Shang Jing had to be stopped, for everyone''s sake including his own. After all the love and support he gave Jingwei, how could Jingwei let himmit more atrocities and turn into a criminal?


    He already gave Shang Jing multiple chances toe clean or turn back, and Shang Jing had refused all of them with a derisive snort, iming Jingwei was a softhearted fool that knew nothing of the world.


    Well. It was time to show Shang Jing that he meant business!


    However, he would soon learn that Shang Jing did not see things his way.

 Chapter 191 You Betrayed Me?

    "Wu Shang Jing? You''re under arrest. You have the right to remain silent, everything you say can and will be used in court. You have the right to an attorney. If you can''t afford an attorney, one will be provided for you."


    "What? That''s ridiculous! Fuck off!" Wu Shang Jing dered, but then he realised that the police officers weren''t joking as they entered the ssroom, ready to arrest him. He turned to look at Jingwei with narrowed eyes.


    "You¡­ you! You motherfucker! How dare you!" Shang Jing howled, eyes bulging dangerously with rage.


    The nerve of his so-called best friend! How dare he call the cops on him! Shang Jing snarled - if he was going to hell, he wasn''t going alone. He immediately lunged for Jingwei, grabbing him by the neck, dragging him in front of him to use as a human shield.


    Of course, he wasn''t so dumb to be unarmed. The sharp pointy end of the scissors pointed at Jingwei''s neck, narrowly missing his trachea. Shang Jing watched Jingwei''s Adam''s apple shift as he gulped nervously, and smirked darkly to himself.


    Good, Sun Jingwei still had somemon sense. Surely this traitorous friend of his could undo this mess and call off the cops! Zi Long was regrettably somewhere on the sprawling school grounds, because there was usually no need to have him sit in during his sses. Shang Jing just had to meet him.


    "Oh my god! Help!"


    "Shang Jing has a knife! Ahhh we''re going to die!"


    "Jingwei is getting stabbed! What''s going on?"


    "We need to escape!"


    If Jingwei wasn''t also terrified, he would have rolled his eyes at his ssmates that were shrieking in panic, nearly causing a stampede at the doors as they fled from the ssroom in terror.


    Look! It was a pair of scissors! How could they mistake it for a knife! Admittedly, he wouldn''t put it past Shang Jing to bring knives to school to stab people or even small animals.


    Ever since he had begun digging and coting Shang Jing''s illegal activities, he found that his opinion of his best friend was slowly and surely tarnishing, until he was left wondering if he even knew the boy he treated as a second brother.


    Well. If Shang Jing did stab him through the throat, at least Jingwei would know that he had been ying a fool for years. He wouldn''t die an idiot. That was a small mercy. And Jingwei also noted with wry amusement, underneath the crushing anxiety and despair, that at least the warrant came during the beginning of organic chemistry instead of their lunch break, hencepletely disrupting the lesson.


    He hated organic chemistry. If he died, he wouldn''t need to sit in any more organic chemistry lessons ever again. That was a plus point.


    The police were also stunned at this turn of events. They were expecting a quick and easy arrest, seeing that the perpetrator was a 16 year old boy still in school. Who knew he was capable of holding his ssmate hostage? They reached for the tasers in their holsters.<sub> </sub>


    "Wu Shang Jing! Let your ssmate go right now!" The police officer in charge demanded.


    "Huh? Are you stupid?" Shang Jing retorted. "If I let him go so easily, why would I even bother grabbing him? Is this what my taxpayer''s money is going to, training idiot officers like you?!"


    "You don''t even pay tax. Why are youining?" Jingwei muttered bitterly. Yes, tax evasion was also on Shang Jing''s highly extensive list of crimes, but Jingwei didn''t care that much about it. But then, it actually caused a huge uproar in the National Tax Department!


    Compared to the filmed sex tapes and drug dealing, the government actually thought this was a bigger crime! Jingwei would cry if he weren''t so relieved that they would finally take action to arrest someone from a wealthy and powerful family.


    "Shut it Jingwei, you don''t pay tax either!" Shang Jing hissed, his scissorsing dangerously close to the thin skin of his neck.


    "I''m jobless and useless, what''s your excuse?" Jingwei retorted, feeling a strange bravado thates from standing by the edge of a cliff. He was going to die at the hands of his oldest friend, and that thought made Jingweiugh. It was either that or weep.


    "You''re in charge of your family''s ounts!"


    "Useless? Oh Jingwei, don''t put yourself down like that," Shang Jing cooed. If this was in the past, this would be a supportive statement from his best friend, but now, it was nothing short of a threat. Shang Jing''s eyes glittered maliciously as he peered into Jingwei''s eyes, a steady hand still holding the pair of scissors, as though deciding which spot to stab it in.


    "How could you possibly be useless?" Shang Jing continued, another hand trailing his neck, fingers gently grabbing his windpipe, another unsaid threat hanging in the air.


    "After all, would a useless person dare to get the police to arrest me? And during organic chemistry too - one of your most hated lessons! Have more pride in yourself!" Shang Jing dered, cackling madly as he pressed down. Jingwei choked, his arms iling as he instinctively tried to pull him away, but Jingwei and Shang Jing were always of equal strength, and now Shang Jing was mad enough to fit to murder!


    Faintly, he could hear the sounds of his ssmates screaming outside the ssroom. They were watching anxiously, and a lot of students had tears in their eyes, not understanding how Shang Jing could kill Jingwei right in front of them!


    "Even¡­ if I¡­ die today¡­ you won''t¡­ get¡­ away¡­ with¡­.this¡­" Jingwei wheezed out pathetically, his voice thinning due to theck of air. He had suspected that his life would be in danger after the warrant for Shang Jing''s arrest was out, but he never expected Shang Jing to try to murder him so quickly!


    But at least Wu Shang Jing''s crimes would never be buried. Jingwei made sure of that; he sent the knowledge of Wu Shang Jing''s criminal activities to every person with a working inte connection in the country. Even if the authorities wanted to side with the Wu family, the anger of regr people would force them to take action.


    In fact, reporters should be flooding to the school any moment now - he had disabled the security system that was meant to keep out intruders for today.


    He wanted them to report Shang Jing''s arrest, but if he didn''t do something to get away, they would be reporting his death instead!

 Chapter 192 Save Me?

    Jingwei felt himself slowly growing weaker, but he refused to die this pathetically! He kicked Shang Jing in the knees but that did nothing. Shang Jing''s hold didn''t even waver.


    So he aimed right between his legs, the vital spot for any man. Unfortunately for him, Shang Jing only stumbled slightly, instead of howling in pain and dropping Jingwei on the floor. If Jingwei was more rational, he would remember that Shang Jing told him that he didn''t feel pain like normal people did!


    ''Fuck.'' Jingwei thought miserably to himself, theck of oxygen making him woozy. ''Guess I''m really going to die like this!''


    "Young Master Wu! Drop him!" A voice interrupted them. Shang Jing shot the owner of the voice with a deadly re, expecting it to be the police, but it turned out to be Zi Long, with his arm outstretched, gesturing at Shang Jing.


    Zi Long had sensed that something wasn''t quite right when he saw Young Master Wu''s ssmates stream out from the ss to the corridor in panicked craze. It wasn''t lunch time, and there were no fire rm announcements, so he decided to just check in.


    ? As he approached the corridor, he had heard screaming and crying, along with exmations like ''Shang Jing getting arrested'' and ''Shang Jing is killing Jingwei'' so he immediately ran to stop his wayward charge.


    "Zi Long! This bastard betrayed me!" Shang Jing screamed, stomping his feet. "Are you on his side too? Are you also a traitor?"


    Zi Long internally panicked. Just great! Young Master was in one of his unstable mood swings, possibly triggered by the upsetting news, and he couldn''t feed him his meds now in front of all these people. The Wu family wanted - no, needed people to believe their heir was perfectly healthy.


    Zi Long had to soothe his emotions before they went even more haywire.


    "You need him alive. If you kill him now, you''re definitely not getting away with it." Zi Long pointed out gently, making Shang Jing realise that he still had a crowd of traumatised ssmates staring in his direction, along with his 60-year-old organic chemistry teacher who looked like he was going to have a heart attack.


    "I can''t let him go!" Shang Jing dered, shaking his head angrily, like a dog with a bone.


    "Then keep him alive, but as a hostage," Zi Long said. "If he''s dead, so are we. Old Master Sun would never stop hunting us down if we killed his youngest son. Stop strangling him."


    After an incredibly long second, his words seemed to finally have struck a chord in Shang Jing''s mind and he let go of Jingwei''s throat. Jingwei fell to the floor in a crumpled heap, desperately wheezing for breath. His throat was painfully sore, and his limbs felt like jelly, but he''d be damned if he didn''t try to escape.


    He staggered away with raggled heaving breaths, his legs as shaky as a newborn foal. In front of him, he could make out the blurry figures of police officers in front of him.


    Before he could get them to shoot Shang Jing, he felt a sharp blownd on his head. He fell back on the ground with a painful m, ringing in his ears.


    There were more screams, but they were growing steadily muffled. Good¡­ Jingwei mused¡­ he felt so tired¡­


    Everything went ck.


    ====


    "I''ll be leaving him in your capable hands"


    "So what about the prognosis?"


    "Keep him here for as long as possible¡­"<sub> </sub>


    "We will contact you if there are any changes¡­"


    "Check for any brain damage¡­"


    When Jingwei came to, it was to the gentle beeping of the heart monitor. He blinked, feeling as though his mouth had been reced with a cotton ball. After blinking the blurriness from his eyes, he realised he was staring at the in white ceiling of a hospital room.


    Oh god. What happened to Shang Jing? Did they actually manage to arrest him?


    Thest thing he remembered was Shang Jing''s hands around his neck, choking the life out of him. He shuddered, trying to banish the feeling of a phantom hand around his neck. At least now he was safe. Possibly. Shang Jing wouldn''t send someone to kill him in a hospital, would he?


    Beside him, the heart monitor began to beat faster. Jingwei curled into a ball, willing himself to calm down.


    ''Don''t panic¡­ don''t panic¡­'' he instructed himself, voice hoarse with disuse. Even speaking hurt, so he decided to just give himself a mental pep-talk instead.


    ''Let''s try and get more information first. I can always panicter. If Shang Jing is here, I''ll jump out the window.''


    Jingwei firstly began to take stock of his own body''s injuries. For a start, he was surprised to see an IV drip attached to one of his hands - clearly he must have been seriously ill! He had never gotten one of these before.


    Jingwei then felt around his neck area and winced; even a gentle press of his fingers hurt.


    He tried to turn around the room to get more information, but all he got was a dull pain that radiated from the back of his head to his entire body.


    Ouch. He gently touched the source of that throbbing ache, and he felt the softness of a hospital bandage. Thankfully, there wasn''t any blood on his fingers.


    So his body and voice were temporarily wrecked.


    He sat up slowly, leaning his back against his pillows. His body was lethargic with pain, but Jingwei''s mind desperately wanted answers to his questions. But it seemed that they were doomed to be unanswered, for he found himself depressingly alone in thatrge hospital room.


    Normally, visitors would at least leave gifts wishing for a fast recovery. That was what movies and dramas showed, but Jingwei''s bedside table was depressingly empty, without even a jug of water and a cup for him to drink from.


    Did his family not even bother to visit? Jingwei felt a pang of sadness at the thought. He nearly died! Why wasn''t his family bothered about this? What about his ssmates and friends?


    He wasn''t going to think about Shang Jing, because thinking about him was more painful than his crushed throat and scrambled skull put together.


    Instead, Jingwei decided to call for a nurse with the on-call button. Surely there had to be one that would respond!


    "Hi Sir! You are awake! Do you require a drink of water?"


    Jingwei blinked in shock. Why was the nurse speaking English?

 Chapter 193 The Not-Great Escape

    "Er¡­ hello?" Jingwei croaked out, trying his best to trante what he wanted to say in English. He could understand thenguage, but speaking it when his brain was already scrambled was harder than expected. "Where¡­Where am I?"


    The nurse gave him a motherly smile, her blue eyes twinkling. Jingwei could see that her blonde hair was tied into a neat bun.


    A blonde, blue-eyed nurse that spoke English? Clearly he wasn''t in Shanghai - he wasn''t in China at all!


    "You''re in UCLA Medical Centre," the nurse said warmly.


    Jingwei blinked. From the word ''medical'', she must have been talking about the name of the hospital, but that told him nothing!


    "Where?" Jingwei repeated weakly. ''Please let this be a bad dream.'' Jingwei thought to himself. ''Maybe this is just some far-flung part of China that had European-looking nurses. Or maybe she was an immigrant. Yeah. That''s it.''


    "UCLA, in Los Angeles. You''re in the United States, sweetie."


    "What?" Jingwei would have yelled, but he could only let out a strangled cry before choking at the sudden exertion. The nurse immediately hurried over to pat his back as Jingwei bowled over in surprise. "How? Why?"


    "I''ll get you some water to drink first, and then get the doctor to examine you. You''ve been out for a week," she said kindly, which didn''t answer Jingwei''s questions at all. But the nurse left with a cheerful smile before he could stop her, leaving him alone with his overactive imagination.


    Oh my god. Jingwei''s hands clutched weakly at his hair. His English wasn''t perfect, but he understood enough.


    He was stuck in the United States. He had been asleep for a few weeks! No wonder he had an IV drip stuck to his hand! And no wonder his legs felt like jelly - his muscles hadn''t been used for so long.


    Did his family send him here for treatment?


    Doubtful - if they had, they would - should have at least sent a Chinese-speaking nurse to tend to him! Or at least someone he knew!


    They didn''t even leave a Get Well card on the table!


    Worst of all, Jingwei didn''t even have his phone with him - he literally only had the clothes on his back, which were just a set of hospital pyjamas, along a roll of bandages around his head.


    Then¡­was this all a ploy by Shang Jing to lure him into a false sense of security?


    Maybe Shang Jing kidnapped him and dumped him in the States when he managed to escape the authorities in China. Then he could fuck with Jingwei''s mind, making him believe that he was safe and well, and then stab him when he least expected it!


    Come to think of it, was this even a real hospital? What if this entire ce was fake too?


    Jingwei''s breathing quickened with increasing panic. He needed to get out of here before the nurse returned. Assuming she was even a nurse, and not some woman Shang Jing hired to lie to him.


    Ignoring the slight numbness in his legs, he hurriedly got up. His vision blurred for a brief moment at the sudden rise and he wasted precious seconds simply standing still, waiting for his surroundings to return to normal.


    Then he began his slow, but definite journey out of the door, dragging the IV drip stand alongside him like it was a walking stick. If anyone tried to stop him, he''d tear out the IV and fling the entire stand at them.


    He sessfully opened the door, and had to do a double-take at the whirlwind of noise.


    "Motorcycle gang of 20 sustained injuries in a traffic ident, book all surgical rooms -"


    "Vehicle pile-up on the highway -


    "The patient in Room 201 got a dildo stuck up his ass, keep him hydrated - "


    This was just like a real hospital! He stared nkly at the doctors and nurses rushing around the corridor. If this was a hospital simtion, it was frighteningly realistic, especially when he peered down from his floor and saw paramedics wheeling in more people on stretchers below.


    "You shouldn''t be up and about," a voice scolded, and Jingwei was about to turn around and give that person a piece of his mind, before he realised that that person was actually speaking Chinese! He immediately whirled around and held the IV stand in front of him protectively.


    The man was tall and muscr, with a stern face. He looked like he could football tackle Jingwei and still walk away unharmed while Jingwei got admitted for more injuries.


    "Who are you?" Jingwei asked cautiously, even as his eyes darted around him to look for an escape route, his hand slowly inching to his IV drip. He could make a run for the stairwell¡­ or the elevator. His feet slowly began inching back.<sub> </sub>


    "I''m Captain Mu, I''ve been sent by your father to keep you safe. I didn''t expect you to wake up so soon."


    "Bastard!" Jingwei retorted disbelievingly. "Get lost!"


    That settled it, this man was clearly out to get him! He ripped out his IV, wincing as he felt the sharp paince through his hand. But he didn''t hesitate, he threw his entire weight against the IV stand, flinging it straight at the supposed bodyguard, causing saline fluid to ssh everywhere.


    "What the fu -"


    Before he could register the incredulous look on Captain Mu''s face, Jingwei turned and fled for the elevator, only to realise that running was a lot harder than walking, and he couldn''t even do that well enough without his pseudo-walking stick.


    "Out of the way!" Jingwei yelled, and nurses ducked away, letting out little surprised shrieks at the strange patient yelling in Chinese. Clearly this patient needed a psych evaluation!


    Jingwei made it as far as the turn in the corridor before his legs copsed. Jingwei cursed. He was so close to escape!


    Meanwhile Captain Mu could only shake his head and wipe away the saline solution from his face. This was disgusting, if he wasn''t paid a handsome five digit sum a day for babysitting this teen, he would have left him at the tender mercy of whatever contract killer that came around knocking.


    But he was paid handsomely, so he gave chase and caught up to him easily, pulling him up from the pathetic crumpled heap on the floor.


    "Are you done fooling around?" Captain Mu demanded, dragging him by his hospital cor as though he was an unruly dog that needed to be scruffed. "Why are you so troublesome?"


    "Let go of me!" Jingwei demanded, half-panicking as he still tried to get away. "Help! Help!" Jingwei yelled in English, hoping that someone could see that he was getting kidnapped in in sight, but everyone only gave him a cursory nce before paying attention to their daily lives.


    Jingwei despaired.


    "Oh for fucks sake." Captain Mu grumbled to himself, ignoring Jingwei''s protestations to drag him back into his room, even helpfully picking up the fallen IV stand for him. And just in time too, for the nurse hurried over with the doctor.


    "Can you just calm down and let the doctor examine you?"


    Jingwei still looked at him with wary eyes, but Captain Mu unceremoniously dumped him back on his hospital bed and asked the doctor.


    "Doctor, are you sure he doesn''t have brain damage?"


    The doctor smiled warmly and began his examination, even as the nurse fussed over his unplugged IV and hastily got him a recement. After Jingwei had been poked and prodded, had shlights shone in his eyes and his reflexes tested, the doctor smiled and gave him a clean bill of health.


    "You''ll make a full recovery. For now, I''ll advise you to take part in our physiotherapy sessions to regain strength in your limbs. If you experience any dizziness, vomiting or blurred vision, please let us know immediately."


    "Got it doctor." Captain Mu said before Jingwei could reply.


    They left, and Captain Mu turned and tossed him on object. Jingwei caught it before he knew what it was, and screamed at himself for the stupidity. It could have been a grenade, and he could have died!


    But thankfully, it was nothing that destructive. It was just his phone.


    His phone! Jingwei had never been so d to see it in his life! He immediately opened it to see hordes of unread texts and missed calls.


    "Now do you believe me?" Captain Mu asked, rolling his eyes at the dramatics of his teenage charge.


    "No," Jingwei said petntly. He could have his phone stolen.


    "Too bad, you''re stuck with me anyway." Captain Mu said. "I''ll inform your family members that you''re alive and well. You can speak to them with my phone."


    <o>,m "Why can''t I use my own?" Jingwei asked, and got his phone snatched away for good measure.</o>


    "Because it''s a security risk," Captain Mu replied, his eyebrows furrowing. "We believe your phone might bepromised. We cannot risk the Wu family sending hitmen to find you."


    Jingwei paused. "Is that why I''m here? In the United States? For my safety? What on earth happened when I was out?"

 Chapter 194 Sending Your Youngest Away

    [1 Week Ago]


    Back in China, Sun Haowei and Sun Tianwei had their hands full with the recent crisis that befell their family. News of the Young Master Wu''s misdeeds had hit every media channel in the country - every tom dick and harry, even those that were goddamn illiterate, knew that the boy had practicallymitted every crime under the sun before he even hit his 18th birthday.


    Was he a psychopath?


    His actions sparked widespread inte furor, and people began gossiping about the other families in their circle, namely the Sun family. Wu Shang Jing and Sun Jingwei''s friendship wasn''t kept a secret, and Jingwei didn''t exactly have the cleanest reputation online.


    Sun Tianwei was already prepared for the months of mudslinging that would follow.


    What he wasn''t prepared for was to see his younger brotheryingatose on a hospital bed, with bandages wrapped around his head and sizeable bruises around his neck.


    He was not prepared to receive the news from an apologetic police force that Jingwei was used ''as a hostage'' and ''strangled'' and had a table ''mmed into the back of his head'', as though his head was a baseball and Wu Shang Jing was going for a home run.


    To add insult to injury, Wu Shang Jing had escaped with his bodyguard. There was a countrywide manhunt for him, but Tianwei was not hopeful that it would amount to anything. The city itself was vast, there were many corners for a rat to hide in.


    "Are all of you useless or ipetent?!" Tianwei seethed, nearly vibrating with rage, while the police officers dared not look in his eyes. "You couldn''t even apprehend one 16 year old boy, when his bodyguard wasn''t even with him?! And you let him strangle my brother, give him a head injury and then escape?!"


    "We''re greatly sorry," the Chief Commissioner replied, bowing his head in apology. Beads of sweat formed on his temples.


    "We werepletely unprepared for the level of difficulty he would pose¡­ please ept our sincerest apologies, and wishes for Young Master Sun''s quick recovery."


    His men clearly didn''t take their jobs seriously! Perhaps they were reluctant to arrest such a high-profile criminal, afraid of the retribution.


    But now, they invited a bigger problem. Sun Jingwei was now bleeding and still unconscious thanks to their failure, and there''s no guarantee that Wu Shang Jing won''t finish the job!


    "Your wishes are pointless, do your goddamn jobs!" Tianwei demanded furiously. "If Wu Shang Jing is not found and arrested, don''t bother staying in this country any longer!"


    "Young Master Sun -"


    Sun Haowei rose from his spot on the hospital couched, and everyone fell quiet, watching him. He had looked over Jingwei''s prone body in silence, with an unreadable look in his eyes the whole time. Tianwei was the one spitting blood in obvious anger, but clearly his father had reached the end of his patience.


    "Police Commissioner Lee, needless to say you have been negligent in your duties. One can''t help but wonder if you actually intended to bring him to justice."


    "Sir?"


    "Not securing the perimeter of the school, not evacuating the ssmates, not arresting his bodyguard when he was still on school grounds¡­and then having the nerve to let him slip through your grasp?!" Sun Haowei roared at the end, and Police Commissioner Lee winced as spitnded on his face.


    But he made no move to wipe it off, fearing that Sun Haowei would rip his head off like a hungry tiger.


    "After my dear son had given you aprehensive dossier of all his misdeeds, you still thought you were catching a simple shoplifter? This is deliberate ipetence! What do you think will happen to the police department if I let the world know that you''re helping the Wu family heir escape!"


    "We would never!" He protested, panicking at Sun Haowei''s usations. "We will do our utmost best to capture Wu Shang Jing!"


    "That''s not enough," Sun Haowei said coldly. "To make up for this mistake, the entire Wu family must be brought to justice. Now scram!"<sub> </sub>


    Tianwei barely managed to keep the tant surprise from his face at his father''s words. What a conniving man! His father was using Jingwei''s ident as an excuse to destroy the Wu family, and he put pressure on the police department to ensure that they would execute his orders. Borrowing someone''s dagger to kill an old friend¡­ how vicious!


    "Sir¡­ how¡­" Police Commissioner Lee paled further at the thought. Arresting the wayward heir was already a tall order, but freezing their assets? Arresting his father?!


    But he had no choice but to obey.


    When the police officers left the hospital room, Sun Haowei turned to his oldest and gestured at him toe closer. Tianwei wondered why.


    "Father?"


    <strong>SLAP!</strong>


    Sun Haowei rained a meaty palm straight at his son''s left cheek, and itnded with a heavy smack!


    Tianwei recoiled, instinctively clutching at his cheek in pain. "Father! Why?"


    "What nonsense did you tell your brother?!" Sun Haowei thundered. "That cowardly boy would never have dared to leak such news if you hadn''t given him any ideas!"


    "I didn''t give him any ideas! You know I wouldn''t have endangered him or the family! I expressly told him to not do anything! I even told you about sending him abroad, precisely to avoid this situation!" Tianwei retorted, heaving deeply as he blinked back tears that were threatening to form.


    He felt especially wronged. Out of the existing family members, at least he tried to think of an actual solution, he tried to cheer Jingwei up by treating him to dinner, letting him tag along on his dates with Lian Xingzi.


    Lian Xingzi. He paused. Did she say something to Jingwei? No, it cannot be.


    Sun Haowei narrowed his eyes, catching the slight change in his oldest.


    "Then how do you exin his actions?!"


    "I don''t know!" Tianwei yelled back, upset. He wasn''t going to me Xingzi without proof, and he definitely wasn''t going to let his father learn about her.


    "You are lying." Sun Haowei dered. "I hope whoever you are protecting is worth your brother''s life."


    Tianwei paused, and Sun Haowei continued.


    "For now, we must get Jingwei out of the country."


    "Father?" Tianwei asked, confused at the topic change.


    "He cannot stay here. It''s no longer safe." His father said grimly. "The police are inept and the medical staff cannot be trusted. Wu Shang Jing''s crimes are listed and numerous, and Jingwei made himself an enemy when he revealed their identities. He needs to leave now."


    "But Jingwei isn''t awake," Tianwei protested, appalled. "Are you suggesting we just¡­ send him abroad like that? In a hospital bed?!"


    "With his own bodyguards." Sun Haowei said firmly. "When he recovers, he can study there. Make the necessary arrangements. If possible, I want him out of this country by tonight."

 Chapter 195 The Fallout (1)

    Jingwei stared nkly at the headline of the news article that Captain Mu oh so helpfully pulled up to summarise what happened in the past week.


    ''<strong>YOUNGEST WU FAMILY MEMBER STILL ON THE RUN''</strong>


    Holy shit? Did the police still not manage to catch Shang Jing? They were right in front of him in that ssroom! How could they be so bad at their jobs?!


    Below it was a picture of Wu Shang Jing''s face, half-obscured in shadow by his bodyguard, who was also masked. Jingwei''s heart twinged - he never expected his photo to be used as a mugshot picture, but here it was. Jingwei didn''t need to see the whole face to know it was scowling at the cameras.


    He read on.


    ''A week after news of the Wu Shang Jing''s criminal activities hit the news, the 16 year old has still evaded arrests after the attempted murder of his best friend and fellow ssmate: Sun Jingwei. So far, there is no news regarding the fate of the youngest Sun family member.''


    Huh. Attempted murder was a way to put it. He nearly died, and Shang Jing was very seriously trying to kill him.


    ''The Sun family are still offering hefty rewards to any individual that can provide them with information that will lead to Wu Shang Jing''s capture. Authorities gave a stern reminder that anyone caught aiding or harbouring Wu Shang Jing would be considered an aplice and dealt with ordingly.


    Meanwhile, Wu Enterprises as a whole remains under investigation, in light of Wu Shang Jing''s criminal activities. Thepany has been used of multiple crimes, including but not limited to: drug dealing, sexual harrassment of minors and tax evasion.''


    "Wow," Jingwei muttered to himself. A lot had happened in that past week. At least the world knew what kind of bastard Shang Jing was, and now he wouldn''t be able to continue hurting innocent people.


    "But are things really that bad back home?" Jingwei asked. "Can''t I go back now that I''ve woken up?"


    "No," was Captain Mu''s t answer. "The n was to keep you here until they arrested the Wu heir. Your brother also rmends you to consider schooling here too. While it''s more difficult to protect you from abroad, it''s also a lot more difficult for Wu Shang Jing and his family to retaliate against you."


    "I see¡­" No wonder he got no visitors or gifts, no one outside of his family even knew he was here. It wasn''t like he was forgotten, his existence was just kept hidden for now!


    "Then what about my brother? Or my father?" Jingwei continued to ask, worried. "If I''m not there, wouldn''t Shang Jing go after them instead?"


    "They also have their own security detail." Captain Mu said. "Rest assured, it''s more extensive than yours, seeing that they''re actually right in the heart of the mess."


    "Ah." Jingwei could only sigh, feeling a vague sense of guilt at causing trouble for his family. "How are my father and brother? Are they well?"


    Captain Mu handed him his phone. "I''m not a messenger owl; call them if you want to find out."


    Jingwei called his brother first. He wasn''t looking forward to talking to his father at all.


    "Hello? Ge?"<sub> </sub>


    "Jingwei, is that you?" Tianwei''s voice came from the other end, sounding remarkably frazzled. "How are you? Is your head hurting?"


    At the concern in his voice, Jingwei felt tears well up in his eyes and he hurriedly wiped them away.


    "Hi Ge! I''m okay! How are you? Have they caught Shang Jing yet?"


    "No," he could hear his brother scowl over the phone. "The ipetence of our police force continues to astound me. There have been a few sightings, but every time we think we''ve got a lead, he and his bodyguard slip through the cracks like fish through a broken." Tianwei then let out an upset hiss.


    He hated loose ends, especially murderous, psychopatic loose ends that were out to kill his family.


    "But on the bright side, the authorities have frozen all bank ounts linked to Wu Shang Jing and his family," Tianwei said, now sounding more cheerful. "I''m sure he''ll resurface when he runs out of money."


    "I doubt it," Jingwei said darkly. "He''s a really good hacker, Ge. He can get money by using other people''s money."


    "We have people keeping track of his online activities too," Tianwei said, although he sounded more grim than before. "But that''s why Father and I agreed on sending you abroad. At least the US has the FBI. It''s not safe for you to remain in the country when he''s still atrge- don''t use your phone from now on! Get a new one! If you wish to contact us, use Captain Mu''s phone instead."


    "Okay." Jingwei replied glumly. "I might as well go into witness protection at this rate. But are things that bad? Wouldn''t I be safer in the mansion?"


    "We were thinking of that, but then we do not trust the police back home to protect you. They can''t even apprehend one teenage boy," was Tianwei''s serious reply. "Add the fact that Shang Jing has been to our home so often, and knows it as well as his own mansion, even the mansion isn''t as safe as it could be. I sleep with a gun under my pillow."


    "Oh." Jingwei fell silent at that reveal. What could he even say?


    "Not to mention, you''ve offended a whole bunch of our less-than-savoury business partners." Tianwei added. "It''s best that they forget about your existence for the time being."


    "...What do you mean?" Jingwei asked warily, not liking the somber tone in his brother''s voice. "Don''t tell me¡­ our family also...."


    "Father did tell you that we were cut from the same cloth," Tianwei replied. Jingwei could just hear his nonchnt shrug from over the line.


    "Oh my god," Jingwei muttered, his hand tugging at his hair. His family business was criminal this whole time!


    "Our business is undergoing some financial setbacks at the moment. Wu Enterprises isn''t the onlypany under public scrutiny, and it doesn''t help that our families were so closely tied together. Investors are pulling out, and we''re being subjected to audits!" Tianwei raged at thest bit, the Sun family never had to endure such indignities before.


    "Needless to say, Father is very unhappy about this new change, and I''m currently cleaning this mess up."


    ''Your mess.'' Tianwei didn''t say it out loud, but he still heard it loud and clear - and his cleaning efforts included in his bed.

 Chapter 196 The Fallout (2)

    "Sorry," Jingwei said shamefacedly. "I never thought it would bring you both so much trouble."


    "Did you ever think?" Tianwei asked, not expecting an answer. "Father nearly had a heart attack when the news broke. For your own sake, you''d better hope you don''t get into any trouble in America. If you do, you''re on your own."


    "Yes Ge," Jingwei agreed obediently, before remembering something important. "But what about the victims? Those women in the videos? The kids that were trafficked? What happened to them?"


    "Dead." Tianwei''s voice echoed in his ears."Not all of them, but some."


    Jingwei felt faint and he fell against the pillows in shock. "How¡­ why¡­ what happened?"


    "The police didn''t get to them in time," Tianwei said regrettably. "That bastard and his cronies decided to get rid of their evidence the moment they realised they got found out. For others, once they realised that the world knew about what happened to them, they couldn''t live with the shame and took their own lives."


    Jingwei remained silent. There was nothing he could say.


    "Anyway, for now, just keep your head down and keep out of trouble. Listen to Captain Mu. Brush up on your English. If we don''t catch Wu Shang Jing anytime soon, you''ll be staying there for good." Tianwei instructed. "Do you understand?"


    "..."


    "Jingwei? Are you still there? Do you understand?"


    "Yes Ge. Got it." Jingwei said quietly, mind reeling with shock.


    "Good. Goodbye." And then he hung up, leaving Jingwei to stare at the phone nkly, thoughts whirling in his mind. Captain Mu sensed that Sun Jingwei wasn''t in his right mind, and simply took back his phone.


    "I''ll get you aptop so you can do your research on all that happened," Captain Mu offered, feeling pity for his charge. He was learning the hard way that the road to hell was paved with good intentions, and Captain Mu had no idea how to counsel him.


    "Captain Mu¡­" Jingwei said weakly. "Did I cause all these people to die?"


    "Who knows?" Captain Mu shrugged. "If not you, perhaps some other person, item or natural disaster might have done the job. Don''t me yourself kid."


    <o>,m "... Okay." Jingwei finally muttered, but it didn''t sound like he believed Captain Mu at all. His head continued to hang low in defeat, and Captain Mu detected the faint tremors in his shoulders.</o>


    He sighed. Why had he been the assigned babysitter?


    =====


    While Captain Mu got one of his team members to purchase a newptop andpletely debug it and encrypt it for Jingwei, Jingwei was internally cursing himself for his actions.


    Why had he bothered to y hero?! Someone as stupid and useless like him should have done kept his mouth shut like what Shang Jing said!


    Look at what happened the moment he tried to do something good - Wu Shang Jing was still on the run, his family''s business empire was suffering, giving more trouble to his family members, and worst of all, the people he wished to help by putting Wu Shang Jing behind bars were dead, or wished they were dead.


    No matter what, he didn''t manage to help anyone! He was such a failure that his family literally sent him to the other end of the world to wait out the storm, because they knew he''d cause more trouble if he remained.<sub> </sub>


    He quickly wiped away the tears that were threatening to fall. Stupid. How dare he cry? At least he was alive and well, not like all those people who died because of his actions. He still got to wake up in a fancy hospital with a team of bodyguards.


    There was nothing to do but wait.


    And wait he did.


    A month passed, then two. Then five.


    And finally, after he had sessfully brushed up on his English and a whole bunch of othernguages, learnt how to cook from various Youtube videos and seasons of Masterchef, and pissed off his neighbors once or twice by setting off the fire rm, he received life-changing news from his older brother.


    "You cane home now." Tianwei said in relief on Captain Mu''s speakerphone. "Everything is finally over! He can''t do anything to our family now."


    "Wait! Really? How? Did they finally catch him?" Jingwei eximed excitedly, nearly dropping his phone onto his pizza.


    His brother had called in the wee hours of the morning back at home, which meant that it waste at night in the United States. Jingwei had ordered two whole pizzas for ate night snack to apany his wine, since no one (except Captain Mu) could stop him from eating as unhealthily as he liked.


    It wasn''t as though he didn''t exercise - he went for long jogs around the park with a hoodie on so that he could pet dogs while Captain Mu hovered around him like a helicopter.


    Best of all, there weren''t any paparazzi here to take pictures of him, unlike back home.


    "Even better," Tianwei said smugly. "ording to the coast guard, he jumped off the pier and died. We think he was trying to cross the ocean to Hong Kong during a storm, but he couldn''t swim to his boat in time. He drowned, and good riddance to that bastard."


    Jingwei paused. Shang Jing was dead? "I¡­ that''s good news." He said, trying to believe his own words. It was good news, Shang Jing was a criminal, a terrible human being, he was the one responsible for making sure Jingwei had to hide away in a whole different country for his safety.


    So why did his heart ache at the news? He should have been happy that a psycho like Shang Jing got what he deserved, for the sake of all the people he hurt.


    Yet when he thought about Shang Jing, the first memory that appeared wasn''t him strangling Jingwei, it was of him teaching Jingwei how to code, and how his face split with joy when Jingwei finally, after multiple setbacks, sessfully hacked into a website.


    To his horror, he felt tears threatening to fall. He hurriedly wiped them away, not wanting Captain Mu to see.


    Shang Jing was dead, and Jingwei indirectly caused his death. So much for being brothers for life!


    Now that Shang Jing was dead, he didn''t need to hack intoputers again. He wasn''t going to hack intoputers again. He had enough. He was just going to live his life to the fullest as a wastrel, eating pizza and drinking wine and petting dogs at the dog park.


    "Ge," Jingwei started, breathing deeply to calm himself down. He didn''t feel up to going back home, where everyone and their mother had an opinion about his life decisions.


    "Can I stay here a while longer? Just a little while more. Didn''t you want me to study here? I can do that!"


    "No," Tianwei replied. "It''s time for you toe back home for good."

 Chapter 197 Back To The Present

    "So I came back, and hated it. Everyone thought they had an idea of who I was, and it was just so tiring to correct them, so I left again for further studies," Jingwei said, leaning back on hisfortable sofa. He closed his eyes and sighed.


    "More importantly, Wu Shang Jing is back from the dead, and out to get revenge on me for ruining him and his entire family. Did you know that in those six months, my family swallowed up all his family''s assets? Absorbed theirpany and their subsidiaries, took over their properties and holdings? That''s how we got even richer so quickly. We literally took over their market share."


    "No wonder he''s upset," Xue Ning guessed. "He''ll think that you and your family orchestrated his family''s downfall on purpose, just so you guys could dominate. If I were him, I''d be pissed too."


    "You would?" Jingwei asked cautiously, opening one eye to gaze at Xue Ning. "Does it mean¡­ you think I was stupid and did the wrong thing?"


    "Of course not!" Xue Ning eximed, smacking his thigh. He jolted at the pain. "You did the right thing! I can''t believe your father and brother didn''t see that! If I meet this Lian Xingzi woman, I''ll thank her for actually giving you good advice. Where is she now? Is she still dating Tianwei?"


    "No," Jingwei replied. "Can you believe they broke up? I thought they were going to get married! Ge liked her so much!"


    "I can," Xue Ning wryly. "What a pity though. But that''s not the main point - if you did anything wrong in this case, it would be not reporting it immediately!"


    "Oh," Jingwei said, feeling his heart sink. That''s it, he thought as he eyed the frown on Xue Ning''s face.


    Xue Ning was going to break up with him for good because he was a spineless jellyfish that still shivered at the thought of his ex-best friending back from the dead for revenge.


    But Xue Ning''s next words weren''t telling Jingwei to scram and never contact her again. Instead she said, "I can''t exactly fault you for that though. If it were me, I wouldn''t know what to do either."


    "Nah," Jingwei retorted instinctively. "Knowing you, you would have probably just broken all his fingers so he can''t type anymore. Then you would chop off his dick to really hammer the point home. Possibly m his head on the concrete a few times until he needed medical attention or facial reconstruction. Problem solved."


    Xue Ning''s lips twitched at his graphic descriptions. "You think too highly of my abilities."


    "Nonsense! You definitely would have done it!"


    "I''ll have to take down his bodyguard first! Come to think of it, now that we know he''s out for us, we should go for martial arts courses. Need to practise my dick-chopping abilities." Xue Ning pointed out.


    "Sure," Jingwei said agreeably. "As long as it''s not my dick you''re chopping."


    "Of course not," she replied, flushing slightly. "Why would I chop something useful that belongs to me?"


    "Oh? It''s yours now?" Jingwei murmured smugly, purposely leaning closer to her ear, delighting in the way her face grew redder at his proximity. He curled an arm around her waist to pull her closer, stroking the soft curve. "I''m d that it made such a good impression on you. Do you want to get to know it betterter?"<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning let out a little squeak in surprise at his forwardness, but she didn''t pull away. She didn''t want Jingwei to think that his confession changed anything for them, because it didn''t. It just made her feel bad for the kind boy he used to be, lost and alone and desperate for affection. "Sun Jingwei! Just you wait!"


    Their two reluctant onlookers, Ming Guang and Wei Yan, hastily averted their eyes. This was supposed to be a serious issue, so how had this shameless husband and wife pair managed to shift the focus to their bedroom activities instead? Where were their priorities?


    "Ahem," Ming Guang coughed as he stared at a nk spot on the wall. "Now that we know more about the threat, I would advise both of you to get new phones. Or at least, check them for bugs. We will conduct a sweep in the apartment too."


    "Right, you do that . In the meantime, I''ll be taking a rxing bath with my wife first!" Jingwei said cheerfully, even as Xue Ning startled at the sudden interruption.


    She kept forgetting that there were more people living in this house!


    ''Next time, I''ll smack Jingwei if he tries to seduce me in public,'' Xue Ning thought to herself. With more people at home, she wasn''t going to be reduced to some ridiculous horny woman who couldn''t let go of her fake husband. She still wanted to be a professional bodyguard!


    Meanwhile, Jingwei''s brain was filled with happier thoughts of bathing together with his wife. He got up and leaned over her with an outstretched hand, as though he was a Victorian gentleman escorting ady to her dance.


    "My dearest Xue Ning, would you honor me the right tovish you in bath bombs and kisses?"


    "What''s a bath bomb?" Xue Ning asked, staring up at him suspiciously. "You can''t destroy the bathroom. We have four people living here now - and you take up so much time in the toilet."


    Jingwei blinked, and burst intoughter as he registered her words.


    "Wait, you thought it was an actual bomb?"


    "How would I know?" Xue Ning pointed out. "I just found out you were a hacker in your youth, and you had a pretty traumatic life story in your teens."


    "I''ll show you, this will change your life," Jingwei promised excitedly, pulling her from the couch to the bathroom, showing her a variety of rounded spheres, as though he was a puppy showing his owner his favourite toys, his metaphorical tail wagging. "You just put one, or more into the bathwater depending on what you like, and watch the bathwater change colour and smell amazing."


    "Huh? That''s it?" Xue Ning asked. "Then I might as well use food colouring. And soap."


    Jingwei sighed. "I see I have a non-believer in my hands. But not to worry, by the time this bath time is over, you''ll see the light!"

 Chapter 198 Preparing For A Bath

    Xue Ning still had a disbelieving look on her face, but she let Jingwei do what he liked as he filled the bathtub with water. To her, a bath was just a bath - the only thing that made it different was the fact that this time, Jingwei would be inside with her.


    Possibly inside her in the tub too.


    That thought sent a deep flush throughout her entire body. Now that she had a taste of what orgasms with Jingwei were like, she couldn''t help but think how much better she could feel with his cock inside her. She shifted her thighs, trying to ignore the growing tingle between her legs.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei smirked internally even as he prepared to be busy setting up the bath. Xue Ning had forgotten that the bathroom boasted a huge clean mirror that of course reflected every bit of Xue Ning''s unknowingly naughty thoughts. He could see her face reddening under the bathroom lights, and decided to give her a bone.


    "Hey Xue Ning, do you want to take a shower first?" Jingwei asked, pretending to be oblivious. "Then you can just get in the bath immediately after. It''s about done - I chose the bath bomb with a vani scent."


    And true enough. The bathroom was soon filled with the sweet mild scent of vani as Xue Ning stripped naked and quickly stepped into the shower.


    Jingwei whistled a cheerful tune, because he actually had ulterior motives for choosing this particr scent - this was the scent of the shower gel Xue Ning used in the hospital bathroom, this was the scent that enveloped him when he got to finger her to orgasm for the first time.


    Call him a sentimental man, but now vani, a supposedly in and simple scent, was quickly bing one of his all-time favourites.


    And he hoped that this familiar scent would also remind Xue Ning of what happened between them. He had a feeling she was interested, but he also had to ount for the fact that they weren''t living in a happy world of two any longer.


    What if Xue Ning felt too self-conscious at the thought of sleeping with him because of their new house guests? He would find Shang Jing and shoot him himself!


    So he was going to use all means and ways to increase his chances. He wanted to remind Xue Ning of how good she felt while she was shivering under his ministrations, begging sweetly for another orgasm. He licked his dry mouth, feeling his pants tighten at the memories that flooded his mind.


    He was going to give her a repeat performance - no, he was going to give her an even better experience. He had a lot of experience in baths after all. Xue Ning would have no idea what hit her.


    "Okay I''m done, move," Xue Ning said briskly, stepping out of the shower without a towel covering herself. Jingwei stared at her and sucked in a breath - now, without the bloodshed, panic attack, and the hesitation of their earlier rtionship, he could fully feast his eyes greedily on Xue Ning''s wet naked body without feeling guilty or ashamed.


    And her body looked even more heavenly than he remembered! The way rivulets of water ran down her smooth skin and reflected the warm light of the bathroom bathed her in a golden glow. She was a goddess sent down to bless him! A heavenly figure of love and lust, he would forever worship her full breasts and build an altar of her hips, devote his life to ensuring she would go mindless with sex -


    "Oi. Stop gawking and move, I''m getting cold," Xue Ning muttered, swatting to get him to step aside so she could get into the bath. She wasn''t self-conscious initially, but Jingwei had stared at her with so much naked desire that she was getting embarrassed. Xue Ning didn''t feel cold, it was impossible to feel cold when Jingwei''s gaze set her body ame.


    She pointedly ignored the wetness growing between her legs as she sank into the bath, pointedly not looking at the bulge in his pants.<sub> </sub>


    p "Aren''t you going to go shower too?" Xue Ning asked. "You were a sweaty mess. Shoo."</anda>


    "Yes. Of course," Jingwei replied, as though he was in a daze. His eyes were reying the view of Xue Ning in the tub, the sexy curve of her breasts still visible over the water, her skin a beautiful pink. Her nipples were teasingly hidden by the foam.


    Such an utter tease.


    He eagerly stripped naked and identally doused himself in icy cold water.


    "Shit shit shi ahh it''s cold!" Jingwei yelled to himself as he tried to wash. Xue Ning snickered from the bath. What an idiot. But she liked this idiot.


    "Then join me in the tub to warm up then," Xue Ning said, and she could only smile smugly as she heard the ttering of multiple bottles from the shower stall as Jingwei registered her words.


    Oh, it felt good to get the upper hand sometimes.


    Then Jingwei actually emerged from the shower, every muscle of his on disy as he gazed at her with dark hungry eyes. Even the tendrils of hair nearly dropping into his eyes couldn''t conceal the lust they had.


    And his cock was still hard, despite the cold shower.


    The ache between her legs grew stronger, and more wetness flowed out of her. She flushed at the thought of bathing in water with her own juice, and squeezed her thighs closer together to alleviate the need.


    "Don''t worry, I definitely will," Jingwei promised, stalking to the tub with predatory purpose, delighting in the way his wife''s mouth fell open as she stared at him.


    If Jingwei kept on looking at her like that, she was going to climb him in the bathtub, and that would be a huge safety risk. What if they drowned and cracked their heads against the bathtub rim, and Ming Guang had to open the door for them and see her naked body?


    She would rather die!


    At that thought, Xue Ning vowed to keep her hormones under control. She instinctively shifted up so he could sit behind her, and she leaned back against his warm chest.


    Then she felt it. His hard cock was pressing against the cleft of her butt.

 Chapter 199 Bathtime Pt 1 [R18]

    Well. There was nothing for it. Xue Ning leaned further back, determined to rx and ignore that extra organ of his. She reminded herself that she had already touched it, and it was now nothing new to her - and if she identally squashed it, surely Jingwei would say something about it!


    "That''s it?" Xue Ning asked.


    "What do you mean that''s it?" Jingwei asked innocently. "Are you expecting more¡­ intimate bathroom activities?"


    His hands drifted to wrap around her waist, pressing her plump ass against his cock.


    "I was referring to the bath bomb." Xue Ning replied, pretending to be calm and unaffected while his fingers gently rubbed at her sore back, his other hand idly stroking her stomach, dangerously close to her womb.


    Xue Ning stared at his big hand, fighting the instinctive urge to part her legs and pull his hand to her pussy. She wasn''t some brainless horny woman who couldn''t control her baser desires! She managed to survive 25 years without throwing herself at a man, she could survive a bath!


    She turned her head slightly to re at him.


    "You bragged about it so much, but all I see is a bunch of glitter in the water. Won''t I need to bathe again to wash it off? How disappointing."


    "What a pity," Jingwei said casually to her critique, not sounding upset at all. "I think it smells very good though, don''t you think so?"


    Jingwei asked casually as he stretched out his legs, settling Xue Ning between them. Her pale muscr thighs fit perfectly between his, and he longed to get his hands on them, pry them apart with his hands to make her scream from pleasure.


    He remembered all too well how they felt in his hands when she had them wrapped around his waist, and he had to force himself to rein in his baser instincts that just wanted to grind his cock against her until he came. That wouldn''t be any good for her!


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning didn''t know the extent of the filthy thoughts Jingwei had rolling in his head. She swallowed, her mouth feeling strangely dry and her heart began to beat faster. Strange, why was she feeling nervous about this? She wasn''t even facing him!


    Maybe it''s because she wasn''t facing him, so she couldn''t look into his eyes and figure out what he was thinking. She''d have to look in the mirror, and she didn''t want to - she didn''t want to see her own face contorted with lust as she remained at his mercy.


    Her pussy grew wetter, as memories of thest time she was at his mercy decided to helpfully resurface in her mind. Jingwei wasn''t very merciful at all, and she loved it.


    "Xue Ning?" Jingwei prompted. Was Xue Ning daydreaming, or did she doze off already?


    "Huh? I''m fine!" Xue Ning startled, snapping out of her lewd thoughts. Water sloshed and swirled around her as she identally grinding her plump ass against Jingwei''s cock.


    Jingwei''s moan reverberated through the bathroom. The bathroom was expertly designed, which was why it had excellent acoustics. One could hear a pin drop in surround sound, let alone a guttural moan that was so loud!<sub> </sub>


    "Sorry," Xue Ning said, sinking deeper into the water. So much for ignoring that extra organ of his! She wanted to turn into seafoam.


    "It''s fine," Jingwei said, delighting in the way the shell of Xue Ning''s ears turned red. She was embarrassed! How cute! He purposely leaned closer to murmur in her ear. "You can make it up to me by letting me touch you. How about it, baby?"


    He added a yful nip, and smirked at the little gasp Xue Ning let out.


    "Fine," Xue Ning said, turning her nose in the air, a pout on her face. Jingweiughed, Xue Ning was like a haughty kitten that pretended that it didn''t want cuddles even as it plopped on yourp, meowing expectantly. "You are such a pervert."


    It was so cute that he had to pull her even closer to him, nting her body so he could press her soft wet chest to his own as he leaned down to kiss her, his tongue quickly slipping into her mouth to meet hers. Xue Ning kissed back just as eagerly, all earlier thoughts about not being brainlessly horny leaving her brain, as though they were never there to begin with.


    As Jingwei continued to kiss her, his hands began drifting down to massage her breasts, making sure to tease her sensitive nipples with his fingertips.


    Jingwei clearly paid attention to what she liked! Xue Ning tried to remain quiet, but she couldn''t help but let out sweet desperate moans as Jingwei redoubled his efforts to make her cry with pleasure.


    Could Xue Ninge just from him ying with her breasts? He wanted to find out, but that could wait for when they were in bedter. There were too many things he wanted to do with her in the bathroom.


    After the need for oxygen became too pressing, they were forced to part, but Jingwei still kept his hands on those round breasts of hers, squeezing them yfully.


    "Xue Ning, just rx. I''ll give you a massage." He promised, licking the shell of her ear and kissing down her neck. "You deserve it for being my best wife."


    Xue Ning let out an amusedugh that turned into a gasp when Jingwei''s hands began to wander downwards. "I''m your only wife, you idiot," She pointed out. "And I''m not even your real wife! But I guess that''s fine. Since your massage isn''t going to be a real massage anyway."


    Jingwei''s eyes darkened at her words. Not his real wife? Not if he could do anything about it!


    "Oh? I wouldn''t say that if I were you," he said warningly, before he tugged Xue Ning hard.


    "What - ah!" Xue Ning cried out in surprise as she fell back, her head hitting Jingwei''s chest. But Jingwei only smirked in response, dropping a quick kiss on her forehead.


    He used the slight distraction to part Xue Ning''s outstretched legs with his own thighs, delighting in the skin-on-skin contact, but he wasn''t content with that.


    Jingwei wanted to lovingly bully this wife of his, just a little more!

 Chapter 200 Bathtime Pt 2 [R18]

    "Jingwei! What are you doing!" Xue Ning cried out as Jingwei expertly used his hands to shift her parted legs, making sure her knees were parted and now above the bath water. Perfect.


    Xue Ning''s cheeks burned at the new position. Like this, her pussy was even more exposed to the warm bath water! Even the slight current of the water made by Jingwei''s hands made her moan as the water teased her pussy.


    But even if she wanted to close her legs to maintain some false modesty, she couldn''t!


    Jingwei''s legs kept them open. His thigh muscles were strong enough, holding her thighs apart, making sure that she couldn''t push them back together, that she couldn''t stop his hands from teasing and massaging her wet pussy.


    That casual show of strength made her even wetter.


    "Jingwei¡­" Xue Ning moaned weakly as Jingwei began to stroke her inner thighs. "Are you teasing me again?"


    "Me? Tease my wife? Definitely not!" Jingwei said innocently. "After all, she had such a stressful day dealing with my actual ex-fiancee, and finding out that her husband had a delinquent past. I want to help her destress."


    Jingwei then cupped her mound, and Xue Ning jerked her hips, trying to grind against it - but she only seeded at sshing water around, which only caused her pussy to tingle further at the stronger water currents. Jingwei had held her down with his thighs and hands, and she could only mewl desperately.


    "Patience, darling kitten." Jingwei said lovingly, the nickname slipping out of him as he tugged at a nipple. "You''ll get your treat."


    "You - " Xue Ning''s face med even redder as she registered the nickname. Kitten! The thought of being called that by him, in such circumstances, sent her head reeling even quicker.


    "Do you prefer to be called ''baby''?" Jingwei asked curiously, his hands drifting to cradle the curves of her hips. "Or my ''sweetheart''? Or maybe ''darling'' only? But ''kitten'' suits you the most."


    "Well, this kitten needs some attention," Xue Ning said petntly, face red as she grabbed one of his hands with her own and pulled it between her parted legs. "Are you going to be a mean master?"


    Xue Ning froze; where had thate from? What kind of lewd nonsense was she saying? It must be caused by the fog of arousal, there was no other reason!


    Meanwhile, Jingwei froze for another reason. His cock had gotten so impossibly hard at Xue Ning''s words, it took immense willpower to hold off his orgasm. Most likely Xue Ning had said it by ident¡­ but maybe they could try roleying in future?


    But for now, he got the hint.


    "Yes my dear kitten," he whispered silkily to her ear, "your master will definitely treat you well."<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning shuddered at the tone of his voice. It was like the devil whispering sinful promises to her, if only one would trade away their soul.


    Then Jingwei began to circle her clit with his fingers, idly toying with that sensitive little nub. The bathwater had sadly obscured his view, but he could still remember how lovely that red swollen cherry looked when it was bullied by his hands.


    "Jingwei! Stop teasing!" Xue Ning demanded breathlessly, and Jingwei retaliated by sending a current of water to ssh against herher lips. "Ah! You bastard!"


    "Life of a kitten owner is so hard," Jingwei mused, pretending to be sad. "Seeing that this kitten hates bath time."


    "There''s no cleaning involved here!" Xue Ning protested hotly, refusing to let him nder her even in this strange scenario. How had her life taken such a turn? She was chest-deep in vani scented bath water, tucked between the legs of Shanghai''s most eligible bachelor.


    Once the fog of arousal lifted, she knew she would be so embarrassed by the words that spewed from her lips.


    But that was a problem for another day. Now, all she wanted was for him to fuck her! And if she had to goad him into taking action using this roley, then that''s what she''ll do!


    "Are you sure you know how to care for this kitten?" Xue Ning asked challengingly. "Maybe I should get the other two men to y with me - ah!"


    "Tsk tsk, greedy kitten. How can you think of other Masters when I''m here?" Jingwei replied, his voice low and dark, promising retribution. He thrusted two fingers into her eager pussy without warning, delighting in how they slid in with no obstruction.


    There was a slick coating his fingers that definitely wasn''t due to the bathwater. He grinned broadly - Xue Ning could act all she wanted, but her body was honest!


    "You''ve been waiting for this for so long, haven''t you, kitten?" Jingwei asked as he continued to thrust into her, causing water to slosh around vigorously in the tub. It might have already spilled on the floor, but no one was paying attention.


    "Maybe you were already waiting for me to y with you when I prepared the bath, tempting me with this deliciously sexy body of yours. Did you want me to part your legs and fuck you into oblivion baby? Do you want to bounce on my cock in the bathtub while I suck on your sweet nipples?"


    Xue Ning could only moan incoherently, overwhelmed by the sensation of his fingers in her and the way his voice reverberated in her ear, saying all sorts of filthy things that made her arousal deepen. The mental images conjured by his words made her desperate, and she tugged at his hair, pulling him down for a kiss.


    "Gods, you''ll be the death of me," Jingwei gasped out as he continued to kiss Xue Ning, making sure to drive her to orgasm. It wouldn''t be long now - he could feel her inner walls clenching more tightly around his fingers. He was going to tease her over and over again, not letting her cum, but then she had to bring up other men.


    How dare she! Jingwei was going to prove to her that she didn''t need anyone else to satisfy her. He was going to give her so many orgasms that she''d be begging him to stop as he slid out of her sensitive pussy.

 Chapter 201 Bathtime Pt 3 [R18]

    Jingwei was pretty generous with his time and money, but the thought of sharing Xue Ning, letting other people feast their eyes on her cute little face scrunched up in pleasure, her breasts heaving in exertion, the her swollen juncture between her legs and her delicious thighs sent an ugly possessive rage through his veins.


    He refused to let other men, even men who had been sworn to ensure his safety, men whose jobs were to shield him from bullets with their own bodies, witness this heavenly sight in his arms.


    Meanwhile Xue Ning cried out in breathless gasps as Jingwei''s fingers didn''t stop their exquisite torment. In no time at all, she felt herselfing on his fingers with a loud moan, slumped against his body as tension drained out of her.


    Jingwei didn''t let her slip; he cradled her with the warmth of his body, tucking her close.


    "How are you feeling?" Jingwei asked as he cuddled her. "Good I hope?"


    Xue Ning let out a pleased hum in agreement, her eyshes fluttering shut. Jingwei found it so adorable that he had to kiss her eyelids. Just because.


    "I''m just d you didn''t decide to torture me again," Xue Ning said with a huff as she caught her breath. She tried to seem calm and unaffected, but then Jingwei turned to her and looked at her with so much love and desire in his eyes that she wanted to sink into the water in embarrassment.


    How was someone so handsome loving her so much still? Xue Ning had heard of men that lost interest the moment they slept with the women they were chasing, but she had let Jingwei bring her to orgasm thrice now and he still wanted more.


    "What are you looking at me for?" Xue Ning mumbled, turning away from his eyes. "Do you want my hand on you?"


    "Why can''t I look at my wonderfully sexy wife?" Jingwei retorted as he pulled Xue Ning so that she was now firmly sitting on hisp, his cock right in front of her pussy.


    She whimpered, her legs automatically parting wider for him, subconsciously inviting him inside her. The lust and longing that briefly abated with her first orgasm wasing back with a vengeance.


    "Shhh, there''s no need to part your legs so wide for me baby," Jingwei chuckled warmly into her ear, before licking the sensitive skin at the shell of her ear and kissing down her throat. "But I''m so happy that you want me inside you, to fuck you into oblivion until forget your own name."


    "Like I''d ever develop amnesia because of your cock." Xue Ning retorted, even as she flushed at the mental images Jingwei''s filthy words conjured. How would that kind of overwhelming pleasure feel? Suddenly, she had to find out.


    "Do you have condoms?" Xue Ning asked, her mouth dry as she felt the heat of his cock right in front of her. She hoped so, but then Jingwei dashed her hopes.


    "Sadly no," Jingwei said. He wanted Ming Guang or Wei Yan to help him buy a packet, but then thought better of it. Firstly, Xue Ning might get embarrassed, but more importantly, he didn''t want them to think of his wife and sex in those heads of theirs!


    "But don''t be disappointed! Let me show you a new trick," Jingwei said mischievously, gently shifting her legs so that her inner thighs were cradling the two sides of his cock, while her pussy was still rubbing against the shaft, coating it with her juices.<sub> </sub>


    "Your new trick is just thigh-fucking." Xue Ning pointed out in a deadpan voice, even as heat curled up her spine at the realisation. This was promising, because it didn''t seem like she would feel toe-curling pleasure. She could then use the time to recover from her earlier orgasm while Jingwei chased his own.


    "Oh, you know about it?" Jingwei asked, pleasantly surprised. "I see that you are a woman of culture. Are you¡­alright with this?"


    Xue Ning snorted. She had never heard ''woman of culture'' used like this.


    "You and I must have very different notions of ''culture''. But yes, I''m fine with this."


    "You''ll like this," Jingwei promised, with a fervent gleam in his eyes. He had arranged their positions with the single-minded determination of architects trying to build a functional building, and he was sure this would work.


    "I''m sure," Xue Ning replied, an eyebrow raised in amusement. Jingwei sounded so serious about this.


    And then he began thrusting against her, and Xue Ning''s mouth fell open in surprise.


    She expected that her inner thighs would feel him slipping in and out of her, but she didn''t expect that with every thrust, his cock would be brushing against her clit, giving her pinpricks of pleasure!


    Every thrust was too short to give her enough pleasure toe, and even as his cock rubbed herher lips, it just wasn''t enough. Add the motion of the water currents caused by his moments, and Xue Ning was moaning helplessly again.


    Sun Jingwei was teasing her! And she gave him permission! Jingwei''s hands were also busy, one was pinching and tweaking her nipples, while the other had an iron grip around her waist, making sure she couldn''t move.


    Xue Ning cried out, her mind slowly dissolving into a fog of pleasure as Jingwei used her. She was quickly realising she had a thing for being manhandled, but only by one man.


    Water sloshed everywhere as Jingwei continued to thrust between her thighs. In what seemed like no time at all, Jingwei came with a guttural moan, his seed spilling out in a hot rush. Xue Ning could feel the sticky warmth on her inner thighs and it coating her pussy lips, even as his cum quickly spread throughout the bath water.


    The bath water they were both sitting in! This was filthy, but what did it say about her that she wanted more? She still wanted toe!


    She had clearly unlocked some new level of depravity, and it was all Sun Jingwei''s fault!

 Chapter 202 Bathtime Pt 4 [R18]

    "Feeling good, wife?" Jingwei murmured breathlessly as he leaned his chin on Xue Ning''s shoulder. "You are so good to me¡­I love you so much¡­"


    He moved, nning to rain kisses all over her, but Xue Ning turned and caught his face with her hands, squishing it so that his lips resembled a duck, halting his efforts.


    "My dear?" Jingwei asked, voice garbled. Did he displease his wife? Oh dear, maybe Xue Ning hated it after all!


    "You teased me again, now you need to take care of me!" Xue Ning growled. It would have sounded more threatening if not for the pout that formed on her lips. Jingwei wanted to kiss it away. Xue Ning was too cute when she was acting tough, when all she wanted was more orgasms.


    "Not to mention our bath is now useless, we''re dirtier after bathing!"


    A slow, utterly filthy grin spread across Jingwei''s face as he eyed the impatient, eager, and petnt look in Xue Ning''s eyes. He wasn''t as good of a businessman as his brother and father, but he knew how to hit two birds with one stone.


    "Don''t worry Xue Ning," Jingwei promised, his eyes darkening as he eyed the showerhead above the tub. It was time to try out one of his bathroom fantasies. "I''ll clean you up."


    "How do you n to do that?" Xue Ning asked, a flock of butterflies fluttering in her stomach at the way Jingwei''s eyes dted when they looked at her. She had a feeling his ''cleaning'' was going to be something lewd too. She squeezed her thighs tighter, to alleviate the ache in her pussy.


    "You''ll find out," Jingwei said cheekily. "For now, let''s drain the tub and I''ll clean you up."


    As the tub drained, Jingwei ushered her into the shower stall and began tother his hands with soap, gliding over every inch of Xue Ning''s body in the guise of cleaning her.


    "You.. ah¡­" Xue Ning moaned as Jingwei spent an especially long time massaging her breasts and nipples, teasing them to hardness again.


    "Just making sure it''s clean," Jingwei said, pretending to be entirely oblivious to the effect of his hands on her. But the wicked smirk on his face gave it away. He then knelt and parted Xue Ning''s legs, proceeded to ''wash'' her inner thighs and butt, loving how Xue Ning whimpered helplessly.


    "You''re not cleaning." Xue Ning protested weakly. It was getting harder to stand upright, and her pussy was so wet it was dripping.


    "I am! But it''s not my fault that a certain part of you doesn''t stop leaking." Jingwei said impishly, eyeing the slick flowing down her inner thighs. The slick that he caused by his relentless teasing of Xue Ning''s body.


    Yes he was a cad, so sue him - but Xue Ning wouldn''t, because she wouldn''t want to waste her money.


    "I''ve been diligently cleaning your thighs, but clearly, I need to focus more on cleaning this part here." Jingwei drawled out, patting her mound with an indulgent gaze. He looked up to meet Xue Ning''s indignant eyes, face flushed with anger and arousal.


    Perfect.


    "You''re such a -" Xue Ning began to rant, but Jingwei took a quick look at the bathtub and smiled.


    "Oh look! The bathtub is drained, just in time for me to wash you. After you," Jingwei said cheerfully, guiding her back into the empty tub.<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning blinked in surprise.


    "There''s no water here?" She pointed out. What was he nning now?


    "There will be," Jingwei said and he began to rinse her with the removable showerhead, washing off the soap suds. Xue Ning rxed, because this seemed normal enough. She ran her own hands over her body, making sure that there was no glitter left behind.


    Jingwei swallowed as he watched her actions. His wife was truly the master of teasing him and she didn''t even know it! His cock was starting to be hard again.


    "Okay I''m done, it''s your turn," Xue Ning said, but Jingwei shook his head.


    "Nope, you''re not done yet," he said, climbing into the tub with her with a boyish smirk. Finally it was time for the main event. "Now lean back kitten, and let me clean your wet pussy."


    Oh.


    Xue Ning blushed to her toes, but found herself obediently listening to his words, half-wondering what Jingwei was nning. He would never hurt her on purpose, and all his sex ideas were enjoyable so far. Turns out there was one good thing that came out of him being a yboy!


    "Part your legs wider, let your ankles rest against the side of the tub so I can see it more clearly," Jingwei ordered, helping her get into position. Like this, her pussy was spread wide open for his perusal, and there was no way for her to hide any inch of her from him.


    And he knew it too, judging by the deliberate smirk that crossed his face. He thrusted his clean fingers into her, purposely coating his fingers with her juices and lifting them up for her to see.


    Xue Ning whined in embarrassment at her new position, fighting the urge to hide her face in her hands at the sight of his fingers shining in the glow of the bathroom. This man was truly a bona-fide pervert! "What are you doing?"


    "Inspecting you of course," Jingwei replied as though Xue Ning was the one asking ridiculous questions. Xue Ning gave him a middle finger, but it was ignored.


    "Tsk tsk, this is a serious issue. There''s so much slick that I''ll have to spend more time on this ce." Jingwei lectured mockingly, flicking the showerhead on and pointing the jet of water on her mound.


    "No one forced you, you fucker," Xue Ning would have said that, but then the gentle spray of warm water hit her sensitive pussy and Xue Ning shrieked, her legs shaking in pleasure.


    "Oh god! Ah¡­ oh my god¡­ " Xue Ning let out a series of helpless little mewls at the new sensations. She had never done this before, and clearly she was missing out! Who knew the showerhead felt so good on her swollen pussy?


    "I see you''re enjoying yourself," Jingwei said, turning off the spray.


    Xue Ning panted and red at him, with murder in her eyes.

 Chapter 203 Bathtime Pt 5 [R18]

    "Do you want to be kicked in the balls?" Xue Ning demanded, panting slightly as she felt the orgasm slip through her grasp. Oh it was so infuriating, and what made it worse was the shit-eating grin on Jingwei''s face.


    That face was the face of a man that knew exactly what he was doing to her! This was just like in the shower!


    "Nope," Jingwei replied in a sing-song voice that annoyingly made her lips curl into a smile. Oh, this was bad. Even his annoyingness was making her happy instead of annoying her! "Sorry Xue Ning, babe, but that doesn''t sound appealing to me."


    "Besides, I need to check something!" Jingwei continued cheekily, using two of his fingers to slowly stroke Xue Ning''s slit. More sticky wetness flowed out of her, and Xue Ning gasped, bucking her hips to get more friction. Jingwei felt his gut clench at the sight, if only he could burn this scene into his memory!


    His cock twitched, reminding him that Jingwei himself also needed attention. But Jingwei ignored it - teasing Xue Ning was way more fun. He could stand to be blue-balled a little while longer.


    "Ah, all that water didn''t work, it''s still not clean. In fact, I think it''s messier than before!" He imed with mock sadness, but he slipped his fingers easily back inside her to rub at her inner walls, delighting in how more slick dribbled out of Xue Ning''s greedy hole.


    Xue Ning gave him an affronted look, even with her eyes dted with pleasure and want, and he did not imagine the pleading mewl that escaped her lips when he reluctantly pulled his fingers out from her.


    "You did this to me!" Xue Ning panted, trying to press her legs closer together to pleasure herself, but Jingwei gazed at her and shook his head slightly, with a hungry look in his eyes and crooked smile on his lips.


    Fine. She gazed back at him with fiery eyes, parting her legs again. The stern, possessive look in his eyes made her heart beat faster. She would y his game for a little while longer! But if he taunted her one more time¡­


    "Just look at you, what a messy kitten," Jingwei cooed, stroking her inner thigh and wiping her own juices back on her. Xue Ning could only moan weakly at the sight. Tease. The worst husband ever. "Let me try to clean you again."


    He aimed the spray at her slit, this time making sure the water hit her swollen sensitive clit as he thrusted his fingers back in her without warning, curling them to ensure they stroked her G-spot. This time, Jingwei didn''t stop, too entranced by the sight of Xue Ninging.


    Xue Ning let out a series of tiny gasps as waves of pleasure began building inside her. Unlike before where Jingwei pulled away, this time, there was no stopping the rising tide of her orgasm as it swept through her, enveloping herpletely.


    She came with a helpless cry, arching her back as slick gushed out of her. She even nearly banged her head against the tub - but Jingwei quickly switched hands, so he could have one hand against her head, shielding her from harm as he gazed down at her lovingly, watching her shudder and shake as the orgasm.


    Jingwei watched the way Xue Ning''s hole clenched around nothing and smiled. It was a pity that he couldn''t have her inner walls clenching around his fingers and his cock, but it was more important that Xue Ning didn''t scramble her brains. He turned off the shower head and got into the tub, carefully carrying her out.


    "You okay, Xue Ning? Was that too much for you?"<sub> </sub>


    "Ah¡­ ah¡­god¡­ that was great¡­" Xue Ning gasped, panting from the aftershocks of her orgasm.


    ''I''m d," Jingwei''s smile turned smug. "I might not know much, but I definitely know how to have good sex."


    "Won''t argue with that. Now put me down," Xue Ning said as she looked down at his crotch, where his cock was still hard and demanding attention. "Unless you want to fuck me right here and now?"


    Jingwei growled in warning. "Trust me, there''s nothing I want more. But - "


    "Condoms," Xue Ning said, urately reading his mind. Both of them couldn''t take the risk of her getting pregnant! Xue Ning was only 25, with her own dreams to achieve.


    And in Jingwei''s case, he did want children with her eventually, the thought of having a child, maybe a girl, that looked exactly like a mini-Xue Ning as she toddled around the house was incredibly appealing. It would be so cute!


    But Jingwei knew there was a slim chance that he could be a good father, seeing that he had so few good role models to learn from. Just look at his own esteemed father! Those thoughts were too depressing to think when he was about to have sex with Xue Ning, so Jingwei banished them to the corner of his mind.


    "I''ll use my hand then, or do you have something else in mind?" Xue Ning offered, sounding remarkably coy as she stretched out her hands, indirectly pushing her breasts together.


    Jingwei swallowed. He had too many things in his mind. Xue Ning''s thighs were amazing, her breasts would be even more so. But perhaps hands are a good idea for now.


    "Your hands please! And now you will finally use my lube, even though you said you would never need to!" Jingwei added with extra cheer as he put her down, hurrying to reach for the lube bottle.


    Xue Ning could only sigh fondly. Past-her would never have predicted these string of events.


    "Who knew this day woulde?" She mused to herself as she held out a hand. Jingwei squeezed a sizable amount of lube, coating her fingers with the slippery substance. She smirked at Jingwei as she spread it evenly on her palms.


    "What are you waiting for? It''s your turn to get into the tub now." Xue Ning said with a glint in her eyes.


    Jingwei gulped; clearly it was time for payback!

 Chapter 204 About Done [R18]

    Xue Ning pounced,ying her hands on Jingwei''s aching cock, and Jingwei could only groan as the warmth of her palms touched his cock.


    "Oh god," Jingwei moaned as Xue Ning began moving her hands more confidently than before. The first time she touched him, she had no idea what he liked or the best way to proceed. But now she knew better, and proceeded to use the knowledge to drive him absolutely insane.


    "No god here, just me," Xue Ning replied smugly, loving the way Jingwei was desperately rutting into her hands. She could have stroked him off quickly, with the long hard strokes that he loved, but part of him wanted him to suffer the same way she did.


    So she took her own sweet time sliding her hands up and down his shaft, watching him shudder and moan while precum beaded on the tip of his cock. Feeling braver, Xue Ning quickly leaned down and gave it a small lick. His precum tasted saltier than expected, and more flowed after her first lick. She gave another, longer, lick, wanting a second taste.


    Jingwei let out a strangled whimper at the sensation of her warm tongue on his tip, not once but twice. If this was how a simple lick felt, Xue Ning was going to kill him when she finally learnt how blowjobs worked. He subconsciously bucked his hips, causing his cock to enter the soft warmth of her mouth. Xue Ning''s mouth fell open in surprise and she choked.


    Oops. This was not how he wanted her first blowjob experience to go! He immediately pulled away, but he ended up identally smacking Xue Ning''s face with his cock.


    Jingwei despaired. He was going straight to hell!


    "Oh my god I''m so sorry!" Jingwei immediately pulled away, his hands cradling Xue Ning''s face in concern, thumb brushing against her lips as he stared into her eyes in panic. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"


    "I''m fine, stop fretting," Xue Ning said, waving off his concern. She was surprised, but it wasn''t as bad as she thought it would be. "You should be thanking your lucky stars I didn''t bite down even when you surprised me."


    "Thanks for not castrating me with your teeth," Jingwei replied sincerely, shivering as he imagined how painful that would be. "But are you sure you''re alright? My cock did smack you by ident."


    Xue Ning scoffed, lips breaking into a smile.


    "Your cock isn''t as hard as a metal pole, so of course I''m fine."


    "How would you know? Does your face get hit by metal poles often?" Jingwei asked warily. If she said yes, he would hire a team to eliminate the people responsible by shoving said poles up their ass.


    "Of course not," Xue Ning rolled her eyes, and proceeded to stroke his cock, which was not as hard as a metal pole (but still quite hard) more vigorously. She preferred him gasping and moaning under her hand than worried about her, even if her heart (and some other parts) warmed at his worry.


    Maybe she won''t make him suffer for now. Yet.


    In no time at all, Jingwei spilled his seed all over her hands with a mighty, guttural groan.


    "Gods, Xue Ning, you''re so perfect. Love you," Jingwei said breathlessly, immediately reaching out to embrace her, kissing her deeply. If he focused, he could taste himself on her tongue, and that satisfied the possessive monster living in his heart. Xue Ning''s mouth was used to pleasure him, no one else!


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning sighed, even as she enjoyed the kiss. She could feel his sticky fluids smear onto her clean body. Guess they were going to take another shower!<sub> </sub>


    =====


    Wei Yan and Ming Guang could only stand outside the bathroom door. Wei Yan''s ears burned a bright red as he heard the loud moans echoing through the house, and there was an ufortable tightening of his pants as he heard Miss Xue Ning''s cry of pleasure. Jingwei''s answering groan also conjured scenarios in his head, each more perverted than thest.


    "Calm down," Ming Guang scolded him, even as his face was slightly red. This wasn''t the most ufortable thing his clients had done, and it would not be thest.


    "How long do you think they are going to take?" Wei Yan asked curiously, just to make conversation, because it was highly awkward to stand in front of a bathroom door in silence, listening to a young couple go at it like horny teenagers.


    "I don''t care." Ming Guang replied curtly.


    "Well I do! It''s already been 45 minutes. Senior, do you want to bet that they''ll be done in the next 15 minutes?"


    Ming Guang shot him a disapproving look. "No. I do not. Stop gossiping about our clients."


    "I think they could spend hours in there," Wei Yan continued, as though Ming Guang said nothing. Ming Guang shifted away, shaking his head.


    Initially, the both of them had gone over the safety precautions that they now needed in light of Sun Jingwei''s confession. They conducted a more thorough sweep of all rooms in the apartment, taking more care to search for bugs or hidden cameras now that they knew their enemy was a hacking mastermind.


    Then Ming Guang had even done a security sweep on the entire floor, taking note of the security cameras and possible blind spots. There were sadly too many of them - clearly the residents, architects and building management expected the gate to stop all threats, and hence didn''t bother with increasing security inside the building!


    In the span of that time, Sun Jingwei and his wife were still fucking in the bathroom. They could (regrettably) hear the moans and cries from outside, and it didn''t seem like it would be stopping anytime soon. Were they actively trying to make a baby in there?


    The romantic deep down in Ming Guang''s heart thought it was sweet that Sun Jingwei''s wife could still ept him hiding such important information about himself from her, while the cynic inside him suspected that she was just enduring it to get his inheritance.


    "Just leave them alone," Ming Guang said.


    Then, the sound of a mobile phone ringing echoed through the house, from Jingwei''s bedroom. The owner of said phone was Miss Li Xue Ning, and she was still stuck in the bathroom, so of course they weren''t going to interrupt them. She could call that person back when they were finished.


    She missed the first call. She also missed the second. But then after the 10th missed call, something had to be done! Who could be so ridiculously persistent and not realise the person was busy?


    Unless¡­ the caller was trying to harass her?

 Chapter 205 Bad News

    Wei Yan and Ming Guang exchanged worried nces, and Wei Yan hurriedly looked at her phone. He couldn''t exactly answer it, because this was an invasion of Miss Li''s privacy, but thankfully it wasn''t a stalker.


    It was just her mother, which then brought out a whole host of new questions - for a start, was everything alright at home? If Wei Yan''s own parents called him ten times without an answer, he''d assume the worst - that a car came and ploughed into his family, leaving one survivor. Or a meteorite had hit their house, so now they were homeless.


    No matter what it was, it can''t be good news. With that in mind, Wei Yan took her phone and gingerly knocked on the door, ignoring Ming Guang''s disapproving looks.


    "What is it?" Sun Jingwei''s voice emerged from the bathroom, sounding remarkably peeved.


    "Sorry to interrupt, but Miss Li''s mother has been trying to reach her daughter via her phone. She has called 10 times so far. We''re worried that it might be something urgent." Wei Yan exined.


    "Shit," came Xue Ning''s voice from the bathroom. "Got it! Thanks for letting me know! I''ll be right out!"


    In the bathroom, Xue Ning hurriedly detangled herself from Jingwei and dove straight into the shower, rinsing her body and her hair as though her ass was on fire. Sure, her mother wasn''t visiting, but Xue Ning had a feeling her mother would just know what she was up to mere minutes before picking up her call. And if her father and brother let her call ten times without stopping her¡­ clearly there must be some trouble back home!


    Jingwei could only sigh at the interruption, his eyebrows furrowed in worry, preparing to wrap Xue Ning up in arge fluffy nket when she was done showering.


    On second thought. Maybe not. Jingwei''s mind helpfully brought up thest time he saw Xue Ning d in a towel, and how said towel fell off identally to reveal her sumptuous breasts d in a sexy bra. Now there was no underwear at all - he couldn''t take the risk!


    Instead he decided to let Xue Ning wear one of his personalised bath robes. It was a little too big for her, but at least there would be no chance of idental shing! He made a mental note to get bathrobes for herter.


    And true enough, when Xue Ning emerged from the bathroom in a few minutes, with her hair damp, she was d in a fluffy bathrobe that was too big for her. It was clearly meant for a man of Jingwei''s height, which meant that it was nearly touching her ankles. Sun Jingwei followed her out with a towel wrapped around his waist.


    "Thanks for letting me know," Xue Ning said hurriedly, patting Wei Yan on his arm as she dashed to check on her phone.


    "No problem," Wei Yan said weakly, feeling his skin flush from where she touched him. Miss Li did look stunningly cute in the bathrobe.


    "Ahem," Jingwei pulled himself to his full height and narrowed his eyes, reminding this man that he also existed and he recognized that inkling of interest in his eyes as he stared at Xue Ning, even if Xue Ning didn''t.


    Wei Yan stared at the floor, feeling strangely guilty. But then when he thought more carefully, he realised it was ridiculous - there was no harm with simply looking!


    He raised his head, but by then Jingwei had already gone to his closet to select his sleepwear, uncaring of his state of undress. Meanwhile, Xue Ning didn''t even notice, because she was quickly calling her mom.


    "Mom! What''s the problem? Did something happen to you and Dad?" Xue Ning asked.


    "Funny you should say that," her mother replies, sounding uncharacteristically venomous. "Seeing that it''s your precious fake husband at fault!"<sub> </sub>


    "Huh?" Xue Ning turned to look at Jingwei who was pulling on a T-shirt. "What did he do? What can he even do?"


    Jingwei was with her for the whole day!?


    <o>,m "His father sent a bunch of thugs to make trouble at our restaurant!"</o>


    "WHAT?" Xue Ning yelled, and everyone startled in surprise. "Is everyone alright?"


    "Your dad got a cut on his arm, but your sister-inw got a bad shock and is resting on the bed." Her mother snarled from the other end of the call. "See! This is what your father and I were most worried about! I don''t know what lies that brat fed you, but he and his family cannot be trusted! All foxes and snakes!"


    "Dad got cut?" Xue Ning asked, focusing on the more important part of her words. "Did you guys go to the hospital?"


    "No need for hospitals!" came her father''s voice in the background. "I''m fine!"


    "You are not fine you stubborn twat," her mother yelled back to him. "Tai Xuan, haul your father to the doctor!"


    "He didn''t go to the doctor?! What the hell Dad? Are we that short of money?" Xue Ning demanded.


    At her words, Jingwei immediately reached for his phone to transfer money to her. He didn''t know how much regr people spent at hospitals, so he gauged based on his own experience. Surely 10 million yuan was enough!


    Meanwhile Xue Ning''s father continued toin. "Why would I need the doctor? I have a bottle of iodine solution here. The knife wasn''t even close to cutting me! Don''t underestimate my abilities! These thugs aren''t even good at their jobs - I should put them to washing dishes!"


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes through her worry. What abilities could her father have? He only knew how to cook noodles! It was a miracle he only got one cut!


    "Stop trying to sound cool. They were clearly good enough tond a cut on you." was her mother''s sarcastic reply. "Now go to the doctor before I decide on making myself a widow."


    "Xue Ning! Your mother is so harsh!" Her father continued to whine. "Speak some sense into her on my behalf!"


    "Go to the hospital!" Xue Ning yelled, throwing her hand up into the air. "In fact, all of you should go to the hospital! Are you sure you''re alright?"


    There was an ominous pause.

 Chapter 206 Travel Plans

    "Mom?" Xue Ning asked, now feeling more panicked. "Are you alright?"


    "Oh I am, but our restaurant isn''t." Her mother said, huffing. "They scared off our supper crowd! And the inside of our restaurant looks like a hurricane hit it. No matter what, Sun Haowei must pay for the repairs! I still think Sun Jingwei and his father are behind this!"


    Jingwei heard that, and then decided to send another 20 million to Xue Ning''s ount. If they were repairing the restaurant, surely more money woulde in handy. They could use this chance to renovate!


    In fact, he decided to send a quick message to his family''s personal bank manager - he was going to open a new ount and deposit money just for Xue Ning alone. Hopefully his future mother-inw would look more kindly at him!


    Meanwhile, Yue Niang helpfully did not mention to her daughter that she contributed to the hurricane when she mmed one of the men through the table when he tried to take her hostage. Small details. But her actions certainly shocked her daughter-inw though!


    That''s why she hurriedly told her son to take her away, despite her son protesting that he should be there to protect her and his father. No matter what, he was just one regr person, and he couldn''t have done much to hold the group of thugs back.


    She and her husband on the other hand¡­ Well, the fact that they could stillin was a testament to their skills. But she could feel the ache in her muscles due to overexertion and old age, and wasn''t that a humbling reminder of her own mortality.


    "Mom, Jingwei can''t have possibly sent thugs to attack you," Xue Ning protested, that she knew in her bones. "He would never."


    "His father could have!"


    Xue Ning then remembered that Sun Haowei''s hospitalisation was not public knowledge. Based on his attitude, he definitely would have sent thugs to harass her family, but the timing wasn''t right. She pissed him off so hard that he had a heart attack, and he had been unconscious since.


    He wouldn''t have time to order the attack!


    "But Mom, how did you even know that Sun Haowei sent the thugs? Surely they wouldn''t be stupid enough to tell you, right?" Xue Ning asked curiously. It wasn''t as though she knew how thugs operated.


    p "Actually, they did." Her mother said proudly. "All it takes is some persuasion."</anda>


    "Persuasion?" Xue Ning asked hesitantly. Did her family stuff fish balls down their throat until they confessed? Impossible, her family would never waste fish balls like this. "What did you guys do?"


    "Nothing you need to worry about," her mother said flippantly. "More importantly, they said that Sun Haowei ordered the attack!"


    "Mom¡­ I don''t know how to tell you this, but it''s not possible." Xue Ning said. She covered her phone and whispered to Jingwei.


    "Can I tell her your father got hospitalised? Is that sensitive information?''


    Indecision warred on Jingwei''s face.


    "Can she keep it a secret?" Jingwei whispered back. "If other people find out, there''ll be trouble."


    Xue Ning paused. Her mother wasn''t that great at keeping secrets.<sub> </sub>


    "Why is that? And who are you whispering to? Is it Sun Jingwei? Get him on the line now!" Her mother fired a barrage of questions suspiciously.


    "Just trust me! It''s definitely not him!" Xue Ning insisted hotly, only responding to her first question. "You must have been fooled!"


    "Me? Are you saying that your own mother is deaf?!" Her mother yelled, affronted. Xue Ning was going to be deaf if she kept it up. "How else am I supposed to interpret ''Sun Haowei sends his regards''? Of course it''s due to him! I don''t like you staying around his son. You know what - you shoulde home now. Don''t hang around his son!"


    "Nevermind that," Xue Ning said hastily, trying to divert her attention. There was no way to lessen her mother''s suspicions without telling her the truth - that Sun Haowei was lyingatose on a hospital bed, barely able to breathe on his own, let alone order a hit.


    "But you have a point about me visiting," she continued, biting her lip. Her parents had the tendency to downy their problems, and the thought of them being more seriously injured would keep her up at night. Also, the thugs might return to create more trouble. "I''lle home in a few days to see how you''re doing."


    "That''s my filial daughter," her mother replied warmly, with just a hint of smugness. "Stay for a while longer this time around! I know our tiny house probably isn''t as luxurious to stay inpared to the houses Jingwei promised you, but at least our house exists!"


    Wow. Her mother really didn''t think much of Jingwei and his ability to keep his promises.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei raised his head, his eyes wide with shock. Xue Ning was leaving so soon?


    "See you soon, Mom. Make sure all of you visit a doctor. I''ll see you guys soon." Xue Ning replied. All rxation from the bath was now drained from how, reced with an uneasy tension she knew would not go away until she saw her parents alive and well in person.


    As she hung up, Xue Ning sighed tiredly and slumped face down on Jingwei''s bed in exhaustion, screaming into a pillow.


    "Xue Ning, is everything alright?" Jingwei asked worriedly as he stroked her head. "Come, let me dry your hair for you first. I bought a hair dryer especially for you, remember?"


    "No thanks," Xue Ning said grimly, turning to gaze at him from the corner of her eyes as she kicked irritably at the mattress. "I''m sure you overheard the conversation. I''ll need to pack now and book ne tickets for tomorrow. You can stay here with Ming Guang and Wei Yan."


    "Book ne tickets?" Jingwei shook his head, as though the thought itself was ludicrous.


    "How about you just take my private jet? It''ll be a lot faster and more convenient. No luggage restrictions too." He offered, his heart aching at the thought of Xue Ning leaving him so soon.


    "Really? I can do that?" Xue Ning asked nkly, not believing her ears. Sun Jingwei had a private jet! Of course he did.


    "Sure! Just let me know when you want to fly, I''ll get the flight crew to standby tomorrow. Do you¡­want me toe with you?"


    Jingwei asked his question hesitantly. He knew the chances of rejection were high, but still, he had to ask, even if it would break her heart if Xue Ning said no.


    Xue Ning paused, and didn''t meet his eyes.

 Chapter 207 Coming Along

    "Ahaha.." Jingweiughed awkwardly, but there was no joy in it. He tried to not make his disappointment obvious, but his smile refused to form.


    "It''s alright! I''m fine with staying behind. Or maybe I''ll just send you off to your parent''s home ande back after." He said, trying to convince himself that he was fine with his proposed course of action.


    He would love nothing more than to tag along and introduce himself to Xue Ning''s family as her boyfriend, but he had a feeling that he wouldn''t be wee - and if he tagged along, he might put Xue Ning in an ufortable position instead!


    Logically, he knew that staying behind was the right decision to take. But that didn''t mean that it didn''t hurt.


    "Sorry," Xue Ning apologised quietly, turning over to look at him. She reached out to hold his hand and squeeze. "If it''s worth anything¡­ I want you to apany me. But I''m afraid things might be awkward for you."


    "How so?"


    "Well¡­ no one knows we''re really together." Xue Ning said, chewing her lip slowly. "And my parents think your father hired the thugs to trash their restaurant. I''m nning to tell them the truth when I go there in person though!"


    "That''s¡­ fine." Jingwei said, considering. "It''ll probably be safer to do it in person now that we know what Shang Jing can do."


    Then he beamed at Xue Ning''s words. "So you do admit it? Are we really together now? Dating? Married?"


    "Is that what you''re focused on?" Xue Ning grumbled, trying to repress her smile. "Yeah, then¡­ we are. We are." She said firmly, to convince herself. "You are my boyfriend who happens to be my fake husband and¡­ sometimes boss?"


    "I can work with that." Jingwei leaned down and pecked her on the lips, wrapping his arms around her to snuggle her. Xue Ning was still d in his bathrobe, making her look like an especially adorable burrito.


    His especially adorable burrito! They were now official!


    Unfortunately, Xue Ning still had a furrow between her brows.


    "But that only solves one issue. The main issue is that if they find out I''m working as your bodyguard, they''ll dislike you. But if they find out we are together, they''ll hate you! They already hate your father!"


    Understatement of the year. Her family still assumed they had a friendly business rtionship - that was why they hadn''t flown over and dragged her home. They were expecting three houses out of it!


    Once they found out about the video of her being dressed up as his fiancee, she was probably going to be put under house arrest and cooked alive - and if he came with her, he''d be in the cooking pot too!


    And if they found out about them actually dating and sleeping together¡­ oh god. She didn''t want to think about the madness that would ensue. Since she was her parent''s daughter, they wouldn''t end her. But Jingwei had no such protection!


    <o>,m "Ah."</o>


    Xue Ning felt the mattress shift as Jingwei rolled over next to her, and his finger came to flick her forehead.


    "Ouch! What was that for!"<sub> </sub>


    "For worrying about stupid things." Jingwei said fondly. Xue Ning retaliated immediately by jabbing her fingers into his sides, causing him to jump.


    "What stupid things?" Xue Ning asked indignantly. "Those are valid concerns! If youe with me, you''re going to leave my house in pieces! Why would you put yourself through it?"


    "That doesn''t matter though. If you want me there with you, I''ll be there." Jingwei said confidently.


    "And if you''re worried about our dating news, how about we just¡­ not let them know we are together?"


    "Huh?" Xue Ning asked, puzzled. Jingwei borated, sounding more animated now that he had a n.


    "We can simply pretend to be good friends - wait, we are actually friends too, so that wouldn''t be too hard! I''ll just say that I''m here to investigate the misunderstanding and provide financialpensation if necessary."


    Jingwei was sure that even if they didn''t like him, they would still like the huge sums of money that came with him! "Also this technically involves my father''s reputation, so I should be there. If there''s any issue, you can just me it on me. It''s not as though I''ve never been wronged before."


    "Good point," Xue Ning said, yet her frown remained. "But I don''t want them to me you for everything, especially when they don''t even know you? That''s not fair to you."


    "Life isn''t fair," Jingwei shrugged as he tucked her hair behind her ear. "I''ve gotten used to it, so don''t worry about me."


    Besides, his life''s unfairness led him to meet Xue Ning. In the grand scheme of things, he lucked out!


    Xue Ning sighed. "In that case, you''d better go and pack your things too. Oh, and we''ll have to tell Ming Guang and Wei Yan toe along also."


    "Must we bring them along?" Jingwei protested. He wanted to visit Xue Ning''s family alone. "Ming Guang and Wei Yan just finished unpacking today! Now they have to repack again."


    "Of course we are bringing them along!" Xue Ning replied indignantly. "You just heard that my family''s restaurant was attacked by thugs, and you want toe along without extra bodyguards? In fact, you should just stay home - I''ll go back alone. It''s safer for you to stay here."


    "Definitely not. You said it - there are thugs there! What if they decide to return? How can I let you go off alone?" Jingwei asked with a worried frown.


    "So you''ll make arrangements for all of us?"


    Jingwei made a hum of agreement, but they both remained on the bed, staring at each other. Xue Ning was too tired to move, while Jingwei just wanted to stare at her some more.


    "Well?" Xue Ning prodded his cheek with her finger when Jingwei continued to stare at her. "Are you going to do it?"


    "Yes dear," Jingwei said obediently, reluctantly getting up to make a few precious calls.


    The things he did for love!

 Chapter 208 The Journey Begins

    It was the middle of the night, and Jingwei would have dozed off into dreand, but his dear wife was too busy tossing and turning around, distracting him from his slumber. He waited for Xue Ning to settle down, but it seemed like just couldn''t fall asleep.


    No matter how high quality his mattress was, he could still feel her body move!


    After he heard her shift for the 15th time in the same hour, he finally decided to speak up.


    "Xue Ning, darling, do you want some warm milk?" Jingwei murmured quietly as his eyes fluttered open to stare at her. He could see her wide, shocked eyes with help from the moonlight.


    "You''ve been tossing and turning for a while now. What''s wrong?"


    Was it because she couldn''t adapt to falling asleep beside him? If so, he was prepared to make his couch his new bed.


    Xue Ning froze guiltily. Crap, she woke him up!


    "It''s nothing! I''m fine, go back to sleep." Xue Ning hurriedly replied. "Sorry that I woke you."


    "Tell me what''s wrong first," Jingwei asked. "Is it because you''re still worried? Or is it because you''re not used to sleeping beside me? In that case, I can go to sleep in the living room."


    "Don''t go!" She replied instinctively, grabbing his wrist. Then Xue Ning realised what she did, and let go, her face red with embarrassment. Thankfully the room was dark enough to hide it.


    Why was she behaving like a schoolgirl?


    "I mean! You should stay. I''m the one that should go. I''m disturbing your sleep - I''ll sleep on the couch instead." Xue Ning rambled. She then sat up, preparing to go, only for Jingwei to wrap an arm around her waist, pulling her back down.


    "Nonsense," Jingwei scolded. "If anyone should be sleeping on the couch it''s me."


    "This is your room, your house! Why should you be the one on the couch?"


    "Because I love you," Jingwei said, in the tone of a man pointing out the obvious. He yawned. "Now, if I''m not the problem,e here and let me cuddle you until you fall asleep. I''ve been told I''m a great nket."


    "By whom?" Xue Ning asked, narrowing her eyes even as she tucked herself into the warmforting hold of his arms. "Another ex?"


    "Of course not," Jingwei said. "My mom."


    "Ah. Sorry for your loss." Xue Ning mumbled as she breathed in hisforting scent. She had said it once, but that was before Jingwei told her everything that happened to him.


    "It''s alright," Jingwei said, hugging her tightly. "I''m okay now. Now try and fall asleep, or I''ll start singing."


    "How threatening," Xue Ning said amusedly, but proceeded to close her eyes anyway.


    Soon, she drifted off into slumber, but not before she felt a pair of lips kiss her cheek.


    =====


    The next day, everyone woke up bright and early, in various stages of tiredness, lugging suitcases of various sizes to the airport.<sub> </sub>


    It became very clear, even in the haze of morning sluggishness, that none of Jingwei''s fancy sports cars would have enough room to fit all their luggages.


    "Why did you pack so much? We''re not staying there for long." At least, he definitely wasn''t. Xue Ning might stay longer, depending on how her parents were, but even she wasn''t nning on living there for longer than a month.


    "Really? This isn''t a lot." Jingwei said cheerfully. "And besides, I got some gifts for your family too!"


    "When would you have time to do so? And more importantly, you do realise we''re supposed to be pretending to be friends right? Stop sucking up so tantly or they''ll get suspicious!"


    Xue Ning then stared at Jingwei''s equally fancy suitcase, her face scrunching in distaste. It was branded, that much she could tell - since there were Louis Vuitton logos stered all over the suitcase.


    To her, it just looked ridiculously tacky.


    "If I was a thief, I would definitely steal your suitcase first!" She added. "Just look at how gaudy it looks. It definitely screams ''valuables inside''!"


    "I''d love to see you try, if you can even lift it," Jingwei replied cheerily, as he called his family''s chauffeur to drive one of therger cars to bring them to the airport.


    Xue Ning, sensing the implied challenge, proceeded to lift it - or in any case, try to. The suitcase was half her height and seemed to be at least 30 kilograms!


    "You really packed your entire house into this suitcase. It''s not as though we''re going to Europe," Xue Ning grumbled. Luckily, the Sun family chauffeur had enough arm strength to throw his suitcase into the boot, while everyone else had normal, light enough luggage.


    On the way there, Sun Jingwei nursed a cup of coffee while Xue Ning yawned repeatedly behind her hand.


    If Jingwei was busy the night before making impromptu arrangements, Xue Ning spent the whole night sleeplessly tossing and turning due to worry, and she only managed to fall asleep after Jingwei cuddled her in his arms, flopping over her like arge heated nket.


    But even that little sleep couldn''t stop the tiredness, stress and worry from showing on her face.


    "It''ll be fine!" Jingwei promised, sensing her upset. He squeezed her hand as they arrived at the airport. Luckily, there weren''t any paparazzi mobbing them, even as more than a few heads turned at the sight of Sun Jingwei casually strolling through the airport, pushing his own tacky luggage.


    However, before they could approach, the security team on standby surrounded the four of them and whisked them away!


    It was a new experience for Xue Ning - instead of having to wait in line to get their luggages checked in and collect their boarding passes, they were merely escorted through a VIP entrance with a fleet of security guards surrounding them.


    No passport check required! What if she was a terrorist?


    "This is insane," Xue Ning muttered to herself as she looked around the private terminal lounge. Other than the airport staff, security team and the four of them, they were left entirely alone. "Is there no one else here but us?"


    "Nah, there''s bound to be some other important guests in other lounges. Y''know, diplomats and S-ss celebrities and what not. But don''t worry, we won''t see them. They''re taking their own private nes." Jingwei replied, reassuring her.


    "Mr Sun, you can take a seat first," a woman in a tight-fitting uniform quickly approached them, deliberately unting her assets in Jingwei''s face by bowing lowly enough for him to see the hint of her cleavage.


    Xue Ning snorted. Herees another gold-digger!

 Chapter 209 Remember Our Agreement

    The woman gestured to the plush leather sofas. "Do let me know if you like anything to eat or drink."


    Jingwei blinked and turned to Xue Ning, not even sparing her a second nce. "Darling, do you want anything?"


    "Nah, I''m not hungry," Xue Ning said, not even bothering to protest the pet name. She didn''t have much appetite since she received the news yesterday. "What about you?"


    "I''m fine," Jingwei said. "Then what about you guys? Wei Yan, Ming Guang?"


    "No." Both replied simultaneously. They weren''t going to eat something from a stranger when they were on a mission! Now that Sun Jingwei had left the safety of his home, they needed to be more alert.


    Meanwhile, the smile on the woman''s face was slowly bing more strained as Sun Jingwei continued to ignore her!


    "Excuse me Miss, how long do we need to wait before we can fly?" Xue Ning asked.


    The staff reluctantly turned to her to answer.


    ? "In as soon as half an hour, Madam. The crew is conducting the final checks for the ne. Is there anything at all that I can help you with?"


    "No thanks, you can go," Jingwei said, before he paused. "Wait, there is something you can do!"


    The woman practically threw herself at Jingwei at his words, dying to please him. She knew it! No man could resist her looks and her figure! She was the top air stewardess for a good reason, with a lot of happy clients under her belt.


    Perhaps he wanted some extra ''service'' on the ne, service that the grouchy, frumpy-looking woman that was apanying him couldn''t provide. Whoever his guest was, she didn''t look like anything special.


    She was dressed in a simple T-shirt and long pants, looking like a tired college student. Clearly she must be Jingwei''s younger cousin or something. Even if he called her his darling, she couldn''t possibly be his fiancee from the press conference video!


    "Yes! Whatever you need! I''ll help you fulfil your every request!" She replied, emphasising on the word ''every''.


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes. Wei Yan winced, this woman was going to embarrass herself.


    "Give my wife a shoulder massage!" Jingwei replied cheerily. Both Xue Ning and the woman stared at him in surprise.


    "I''m not your wife," Xue Ning corrected, her brow furrowing in unease. They were supposed to be pretending to be friends, not lovers! Did Jingwei forget their agreement already? What if this woman bbed?


    "Sir! Your wife?" She choked out, finally taking a careful look at Xue Ning, eyes were disbelieving. If the rumours were true, this woman was the one that beat up the Zhou family heiress so badly that she had to get reconstructive surgery!


    She paled immediately, stepping back in terror. And she still dared to flirt with her husband in front of her!


    "No need," Xue Ning said, scowling, not liking how the woman looked frightened to death at the sight of her. She knew she didn''t look her best, but this woman didn''t need to act like she saw a ghost!


    "Just get us on the ne quickly."<sub> </sub>


    "Yes Madam! I will do that now," she bowed hurriedly and all but fled with her metaphorical tail between her legs.


    "Wow, Miss Li, you really scared her," Wei Yan muttered in awe.


    "I didn''t even do anything!" Xue Ning protested. "And does my face look that scary?"


    "Of course not," Jingwei quickly assured her, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "You look as cute and lovely as always."


    "You do realise we are supposed to be just friends right?" Xue Ning said, even as she couldn''t help but lean into his hold.


    "That''s why I''m making the most of it now," Jingwei nted yet another kiss on her other cheek. "Once we touch down in Hubei, I''ll have to live with being your tonic friend. No hand-holding, no hugging, no kissing, no sex¡­"


    "You''ll live," Xue Ning said, smacking him. "Now make sure you remember our cover story, or we''re both toast!"


    =====


    After a few hours, they touched down at Hubei. The journey was pleasant and smooth-sailing, and Jingwei cheered when he saw the rolling hills of green and the tiny buildings from the ne window. Even if the circumstances weren''t ideal, he was going to visit the ce where Xue Ning grew up!


    To his surprise, there was no wee party waiting for them when they disembarked from the ne.


    "Aren''t your parentsing to fetch us?"


    "No, I told them not to bother. We''ll drive there. Come on." Xue Ning gestured for them to follow her into the car the airport had helpfully provided for the youngest Sun family member. "I''ll give you directions."


    Jingwei drove, marvelling at the way the smooth roads from the airport grew increasingly bumpy with every turn Xue Ning told him to take. While he still drove past high rise buildings at the start of the journey, eventually those buildings became increasingly smaller, increasingly dpidated. In fact, for a certain stretch of road, there weren''t any buildings at all, just plots of t farnd as far as the eye could see.


    "Are those cows?" Jingwei asked as he peered to the side of the window just for a moment, distracted.


    "Keep your eyes on the road," Xue Ning scolded. "And yes, those are cows. Have you never seen one before?"


    "Not like this!" Jingwei protested, even as he shifted his eyes back to the road, an action that he thought was pretty pointless, since there didn''t seem to be any human life on the road other than them. "This is cool! But are there really no people here?"


    "Oh sadly there are," Xue Ning said, "now turn right here and you''ll arrive at town."


    And true to Xue Ning''s words, a sleepy little town soon came into view. Jingwei slowed down, taking more time to look around inquisitively. The buildings clearly had seen better days, but there was a certain charm under it all.


    Time seemed to have slowed down.

 Chapter 210 Meeting The Family

    Despite being in the middle of the day, there didn''t seem to be much activity. He could see some housewives gathering in a group as they talked, their young children running circles around their legs. Further ahead, a flock of school children wandered around eating popsicles.


    How quaint.


    "Wow, you used to live here?" Jingwei asked wonderingly.


    "Go straight on the road till the traffic light, then turn left," was Xue Ning''s tense reply. "You''ll see a bunch of houses."


    Jingwei eagerly obeyed and sure enough, houses came into view. The roads got even narrower, and Jingwei paid more attention to driving, just to make sure the car didn''t bump against the motorcycles parked along the side of the road.


    "We''re here," Xue Ning said as they eventually arrived at a two-story house with a blue door. It looked exactly like all the other houses in the area, and if Jingwei had not gotten precise instructions from Xue Ning, he would definitely, without a doubt, be hopelessly lost!


    Jingwei then looked around.


    "Does this area have any carpark?"


    "You make your own parking spot. Just pick wherever you want, as long as it''s not blocking someone''s entrance."


    As such, Jingwei decided to just park the car at an empty spot further ahead that wasn''t infested by nts or insects, since there wasn''t any actual parking spot demarcated.


    "Remember to lock the car," Xue Ning said. "You don''t want the chickens flying inside and making a mess."


    "There are chickens on the loose?" Jingwei asked with much confusion.


    "Pretty much," Xue Ning shrugged. She took a deep breath, calming herself down. "Okay, let''s go."


    She led their party to her home, and Jingwei''s fancy suitcase got stuck in the loose gravel twice in that short distance, and when he tugged it extra hard to dislodge them, one of his wheels actually fell out!


    That was not a good omen.


    "Such an expensive suitcase, but it''s so useless," Xue Ningmented, shaking her head.


    Jingweiughed awkwardly. Hopefully Xue Ning''s parents wouldn''t think the same about him!


    Xue Ning rang the doorbell, and within a minute, the door was opened by a young, rtively handsome man.


    "I told you, we''re not interested in buying vacuum cleaners!" The man yelled. Then his eyes registered who was at the door, and he grinned, immediately grabbing to hug Xue Ning, who bore it with good humour.


    Jingwei raised an eyebrow. Who was this man?


    "Xue Ning! You''re here!"<sub> </sub>


    "Who''s selling you vacuum cleaners, Ge?" Xue Ning asked as she squirmed out of his hold.


    "Faster to answer who isn''t," Li Tai Xuan said, smiling adoringly at his baby sister. Then he remembered that they weren''t alone. He looked up and his smile faded, reced with something more hostile as he saw the face of one of Shanghai''s elite, Sun Jingwei.


    Jingwei, to his credit, wasn''t going to be cowed by another older brother that wasn''t his own. No matter what, surely Tianwei was way scarier! He gave a polite smile and reached out his hand, offering a handshake.


    Li Tai Xuan stared at it suspiciously, refusing to acknowledge Sun Jingwei''s hand, despite his sister elbowing him in the ribs.


    "Ge! Come on, since when are you so rude?"


    "Me? Rude?" Tai Xuan turned to look at his sister in confusion, demanding an exnation. Since when did his younger sister care about being polite to the son of rich billionaires?


    "Meimei, why is Sun Jingwei standing in front of our door?" He asked warily, his eyes flitting between Jingwei and hispanions who were standing slightly further behind, watching him with alert eyes. "And who are the other two men with you?"


    "Hahahaha, funny you should ask Ge," Xue Ning beganughing sheepishly, trying to diffuse the tense situation. "Would you believe me if I told you this guy - Sun Jingwei is my friend? And the other two are his bodyguards."


    "HUH?" Tai Xuan''s head swivelled disbelievingly between his precious younger sister and Sun Jingwei. "I believe your second statement, but not your first."


    He said frankly, eyeing Jingwei from head to toe judgmentally, as though he was an auntie during Chinese New Year. He took in his expensive cored shirt with the first two buttons undone, along with his shirt sleeves rolled up to expose his forearms, a watch that was worth more than a year''s ie, along with his fitted cks, leather belt and shiny shoes.


    His eyebrow twitched in irritation. There was no way he could be friends with his sister! His sister, as much as he loved her, was dressed slightly better than a hobo. And with herck of family wealth, he could see no reason why someone like Sun Jingwei would befriend his sister, unless he had some ulterior motive!


    And with his yboy reputation, Li Tai Xuan didn''t need to use his imagination to wonder what Jingwei might want from his sister. He snarled at the thought. If Sun Jingwei thought his sister was a gullible country girl that he could easily impress with his wealth, and toy with her heart and body as he pleased, he had another thinging!


    "Ge! I''m not lying!" Xue Ning insisted, even though she technically was. "We really are friends!"


    "Yes! Mr Li, I consider your sister to be one of the dearest people in my life. I love her!" Jingwei dered adamantly.


    Tai Cheng''s face nearly purpled with indignant shock, and he raised a meaty fist. This man imed to love his sister after a few short weeks? Who was he trying to kid?! Maybe Xue Ning, because she had very little experience with rtionships.


    At that thought, Tai Cheng growled. Sun Jingwei would only get close to his sister over his dead body!


    Jingwei had no sense of self-preservation, he was still determinedly not flinching from her brother''s deadly re. Behind Jingwei, Wei Yan and Ming Guang tensed, prepared to shield him and incapacitate the threat, even if said threat was Sun Jingwei''s fake wife''s older brother.


    Xue Ning wanted to facepalm. How could Jingwei forget their agreement so quickly! They haven''t even entered her house yet and he had already pissed off her older brother. Now she had to salvage this mess!


    "As friends!" Xue Ning hastily interjected, purposely waving her hands to get her brother''s attention. "Ge! He loves me as a friend! You know how rich people have no normal friends? I am that normal friend!"

 Chapter 211 Inviting Normal Friends

    Xue Ning then turned around and ''discreetly'' stomped on Jingwei''s foot. Jingwei got the hint and hastily agreed to her words.


    "Yes! What she said!" Jingwei dered, nodding frantically. "She''s my best friend! Apletely normal human friend that I love tonically! No ulterior motives whatsoever!"


    "Exactly! See Ge, you''re thinking too much!" Xue Ning followed up quickly, not giving a chance for her brother to interrupt. She knew that her older brother was just dying to cut in, a look of angry disbelief was still stered on his face.


    "Tai Xuan ah, who''s at the door?" A woman''s voice echoed from inside the house. "Is it that persistent salesperson again? Do I need to chase them off with a broom?"


    "No Mom! It''s Xue Ning! She''s back!" Her brother hollered back. "With guests!"


    "Well then let here in! Are you nning to leave your sister locked outside the door like when the both of you were kids? Can''t believe you hadn''t grown up by then - I didn''t raise you to be so rude - "


    "Mom! She has guests!" Tai Xuan yelled back, pointing a finger at Sun Jingwei, before realising that his mom couldn''t see it anyway, since she was most likely in Xue Ning''s old bedroom, preparing for her daughter''s arrival. "It''s Sun -"


    "Mom! Ge is bullying me!" Xue Ning yelled even louder, purposely drowning out his voice. "I came all the way here and he''s not letting me enter the house!"


    Behind her, Jingwei, Wei Yan and Ming Guang hurriedly stifled theirughs, especially at the affronted look on Tai Xuan''s face as he red at his sister.


    "No I''m not! MOM! Xue Ning is maligning me!" Tai Xuan whined.


    "Do not make me smack the both of you with my slipper," the voice threatened, sounding much more closer than before.


    They heard loud footsteps, and a head popped out from around the corner wall. It was an older woman with her long hair pinned back and tied into a neat bun, dressed in a T-shirt and long baggy pants. "Xue Ning! Oh! My daughter has finally returned!"


    "Hi Mum," Xue Ning waved as her mother all but bowled her brother over to look at her. "Can Ie in?"


    "Of course you can!" Her mother beamed and embraced her. "Have you gotten thinner? I told you city food is terrible!" She then turned to her oldest son, "What are you standing here for? Help your sister with her bags!"


    "Mom!" Tai Xuanined, even as he quickly took her suitcase from his sister, but made no move to pull it into her room. "Look at who came with her!"


    Xue Ning''s mom raised an eyebrow and finally decided to tear her eyes away from her precious little daughter to rest on the three men that were waiting patiently behind her. The further two were clearly bodyguards - she could tell from their bodynguage and their cautious eyes as they watched the surrounding area for any threats.


    They might look casually rxed to untrained eyes, but Yue Niang knew that this was a deliberate pretence. If she had moved to strike their client, they would be ready to retaliate in an instance.


    One had to wonder why her daughter was apanied by such trained guards, but then her eyes registered who was thest man standing behind her daughter, waving with a sheepish expression on his face, and then everything made sense.


    Sun Jingwei was standing in front of her doorstep, blinking his puppyish eyes at her hopefully.


    "Mom? Can wee in?" Her daughter asked.<sub> </sub>


    "What on earth?" Yue Niang eximed. She blinked rapidly and smacked her son''s arm.


    "Ouch! Mom! What did you do that for?" Tai Xuanined.


    "Just needed to check if I was dreaming or not," she replied. Her son sulked.


    "Then why didn''t you just smack yourself then? Why smack me?"


    "Huh? Are you telling your mom to smack herself? So unfilial!" Yue Niang scolded. "Now shoo, don''t just stand here andin; go bring your sister''s suitcase into her room."


    "Fine," Tai Xuan grumbled, giving Jingwei one final stink-eye before he stomped away, dragging Xue Ning''s suitcase.


    "Now that I know I''m not dreaming or hallucinating, may I know what brings you to my doorstep?" Yue Niang asked Jingwei with a gentle smile.


    He looked quite like Haowei in his youth, but he had inherited Bi Yu''s softer features, which was good, because if he was a carbon copy of Sun Haowei, she would have left him right outside her doorstep for good, hospitality be damned.


    rm bells began ringing in Xue Ning''s head.


    "Mom, he''s my friend. Don''t be embarrassing." She hissed. "He''s here to check on Dad and the restaurant."


    "Right," Yue Niang drawled out, looking at Xue Ning. She sensed that her daughter wasn''t telling the whole truth.


    "Hi Auntie! Nice to meet you," Jingwei said politely, actually bowing low to greet her. He also offered a hand for her to shake, and Yue Niang took it reluctantly, making sure to squeeze his hand like a stress ball.


    Jingwei, to his credit, didn''t let out a scream. He only gave a pained smile in return.


    "Oh? How nice of him toe all this way for us." Her mother smiled sweetly, patting his hand after she had wringed all the life from it, a smallfort. "But why didn''t you tell him there was no need? This man is a tycoon''s son Xue Ning, I''m sure he has more important things to do than to follow you all the way here."


    Well. That was an implicit dismissal if he''d ever heard one. Good thing multiple scandals have given Jingwei a skin as thick as a rhinoceros, so he could ignore all her hints.


    "It''s no trouble Auntie!" Jingwei smiled, saying reassuringly. "Xue Ning is a good friend of mine, so I should help her get back home more quickly and safely. I wasn''t going toe, but then I heard about my father causing the attack on your restaurant! After knowing that, I had to visit you to clear the air, and to check up on you both."


    "Yeah! What he said!" Xue Ning said. "Besides Mom, do you think I''ll give up a one-in-a-lifetime chance to fly in a private jet? I didn''t even have to wait for customs or check-in!"


    "I see," Yue Niang said with a raised eyebrow. She wasn''tpletely buying all of Sun Jingwei''s reasons, but the faster she heard him out, the faster he would leave their family alone.


    "In that case,e on in - but your bodyguards must be left outside."

 Chapter 212 Tai Xuan VS Xue Ning

    At this, Wei Yan and Ming Guang startled in surprise. This civilian woman could tell they were bodyguards without being told?


    Perhaps she heard Miss Li talking to her son when she introduced them. That was a more likely exnation for things - they''ve taken special care to seem like normal visitors, especially because this was a small sleepy town, and they didn''t want to attract more undue attention than necessary.


    "That''s highly unnecessary - " Ming Guang began, ready to protest.


    "Mom, how can you leave people outside?" Xue Ning asked, also not liking her mother''s idea.


    "Just for a while, they''ll live." Her mother replied peacefully. "I''ll invite them back inter when I''m done. What do you think, Jingwei?"


    Jingwei thought for a brief moment, and agreed. "Sure thing! That''s fine with me."


    "Mr Sun, you cannot be serious!" Ming Guang despaired. Wei Yan also looked shocked.


    "It''ll be fine!" Jingwei smiled reassuringly, waving off their objections. "I''m sure Xue Ning''s mom isn''t going to hack me to pieces. I''m a guest, right Auntie?"


    "Exactly," Yue Niang said, beaming as she waved him in. "The both of you can look after his luggage outside - something so gaudy is bound to attract negative attention from our neighbours. Or robbers."


    Ah. Xue Ning''s mom clearly wasn''t expecting him to stay in her house! Not that Jingwei could me her - she hadn''t met him before today, and their house honestly seemed a little too small to amodate three grown men.


    Meanwhile Xue Ning muttered grumpily, understanding her mother''s hidden meaning. She was going to toss the three of them outside as soon as possible. "You say like our neighbours aren''t robbers and thieves. I''d rather have the three of them as our neighbours."


    Her mom snorted and stared at her shrewdly, "That''s actually high praise, since you hate having neighbours to begin with. I wonder¡­"


    "What?" Xue Ning asked, beginning to feel unnerved by her mother''s words. Did she know? Did she suspect something? "What did I say?"


    "Nothing my daughter," Her mother said as she waved her and Jingwei in. "Now let me get you some drinks, and Jingwei can let me know what he wants to say."


    They walked into the house together, and Yue Niang closed the door, leaving the two guards outside. Tai Xuan was already waiting in the living room, tapping his foot irritably on the floor. He scowled when he saw Jingwei also entering the house along with his mother and sister.


    "Mom, you let him in the house?" He asked, looking at Jingwei as though he was dog poo stuck at the bottom of his shoe. Jingwei raised a challenging eyebrow, but decided to for once, be the bigger person and let things go.


    Also, Xue Ning was giving him a warning look to y nice, so of course he obeyed.


    Besides, it wasn''t as though he needed to defend himself against Xue Ning''s brother out of all people. Xue Ning had got it covered.<sub> </sub>


    "She lets you stay in the house, so why not him? At least he bathes on time!" Xue Ning argued as she marched over and stomped on his feet, causing him to squeal.


    "How do you know that he bathes on time?" Tai Xuan retorted as horror entered his eyes. "Don''t tell me you and him - "


    "Like hell!" Xue Ning dered, pretending to shudder, even as her brother''s suspicions were urate. "He just smells a lot better than you!"


    "So you''ve smelt him - why are you even smelling him - " Tai Xuan''s face grew increasingly redder and he grabbed his sister, putting her in a headlock. Xue Ning shrieked and retaliated by tugging his hair. They spun around like expert wrestlers, and Jingwei was torn between ducking out of the way, or moving closer to get a better view at the spectacle.


    He and Tianwei had stopped roughhousing when his mother died, and no one else in his social circle would dare behave like this in politepany. Not to mention, especially with a female sibling!


    "Children behave!" Yue Niang ordered her children, expertly weaving through their carnage with the practice of a veteran and whacking them both on their heads. Clearly this was a regr enough urrence! "Honestly, why are both of you still behaving like toddlers? It''s been twenty years!"


    "He started it!" "She started it!" Both siblings said at the same time, pointing at each other.


    "Keep it down, your father is sleeping." She scolded. "I''ll get all of us some drinks, and we will talk like civilised adults, am I clear?"


    Herst few words were pointedly directed to her children. Sun Jingwei had a terrible reputation, but so far he had been nothing but polite, if not shocked at her children''s immature behaviour.


    "Yes," they grumbled, finally letting each other go to sit on the small couch. Jingwei was going to sit next to Xue Ning, but Tai Xuan immediately shoved him aside so he could sit next to his sister, leaving Jingwei with no ce to sit but on the cushion ced on the floor.


    Their house didn''t even have a sofa that fit four people! Jingwei was shocked at that realisation. Didn''t they have four people living in this house - so did they have to take turns sitting? How sad. He made a mental note to ask Xue Ningter if she wanted to give her parents a bigger sofa.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning gave her brother a dirty look. Jingwei was a guest!


    "Oi, why are you sitting on the sofa? Let Jingwei sit instead - he''s the guest!" She hissed at him, elbowing his side.


    "Why can''t I sit on the sofa? I paid for it, and I live here!" Tai Xuan retorted. "My legs are tired so I''m not moving."


    "You - fine, I''ll move instead - " Xue Ningined, ready to get down, but Jingwei shook his head.


    "No need no need, don''t argue on my ount!" Jingwei quickly interrupted, sensing another argument brewing between the siblings. "I''m fine with sitting on the floor, the cushion is very soft."


    "See, he''s fine with it, why aren''t you?" Tai Xuan asked. "Do you like him or something? Is that why you feel sad that his handsome, nice-smelling self is sitting on the floor?"

 Chapter 213 Doubt

    "You -" Xue Ning spluttered, before remembering that she was supposed to deny all romantic feelings. "Of course not, he''s just my friend. You''ve never made my friends sit on the floor."


    "You''ve never brought anyone home before, friends or otherwise. So how do you know if I would make them sit on the floor or not?" was her brother''s smartass reply.


    At that, Xue Ning could only grumble, sinking into the sofa. She had nothing to say to that. Her school life was pretty depressing after all.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei''s mouth fell open at his words. Xue Ning never had a friend that came over to her house before? That sounded hard to believe! Even a loser like him had Shang Jing, before everything burst into mes.


    Maybe Xue Ning went to her friends'' houses more often. That was a possibility.


    "Wow, then I''m honoured to be your first friend to visit your house!" Jingwei said cheerfully. He was also her first boyfriend and fake husband, but he couldn''t say all that out loud.


    Yue Niang heard his words from the kitchen, and couldn''t help but think better of him. Even if this kid came from Sun Haowei''s loins, he clearly inherited his nature from his mother! Bi Yu had always been the more friendly party that knew what to say to diffuse awkward situations.


    But then Yue Niang reminded herself that she still had to keep her guard up, until Sun Jingwe finally revealed his true motive foring here. She wasn''t going to discount the thought that he was here to ''settle'' things on behalf of his father.


    No one from the Sun family should be underestimated! They learnt that too well.


    "Here, have some water," Yue Niang said, deciding to make her presence known. She handed them sses of water in clean mugs, and Jingwei took his withoutint, drinking it immediately.


    "You know, you shouldn''t be so trusting," Yue Niang idlymented to Jingwei. "What if I had poisoned the water in your cup?"


    Jingwei choked and spluttered.


    "What? No way!"


    "Mom, stop teasing him," Xue Ning said sulkily. "He''s awfully delicate. A fragile flower. An idiot!"


    "Xue Ning!" Jingwei whined, before turning to her mother. "Auntie I swear, I''m not that much of an idiot!"


    Yue Niang scoffed, highly doubtful. If he wasn''t that much of an idiot, her daughter wouldn''t have needed to save him to begin with!


    But then perhaps this was a blessing in disguise. Idiots were always easier to deal with.


    "While I''m thankful that you bothered to personally escort my daughter back home to me, forgive me for being suspicious of your motives. You could have just gotten one of your people to send her back, there''s no need to go above and beyond like this. May I know what''s the real reason for your actions?"<sub> </sub>


    Jingwei was startled. It seemed like the interrogation had begun, and he couldn''t tell her it was because he was so hopelessly in love with Xue Ning and vice versa that he was already nning the names of their future children. He would be murdered while Ming Guang and Wei Yan stood outside, oblivious.


    So he settled for another, more practical truth.


    "I''vee to clear up the matter regarding my father''s actions. Or what you believe to be my father''s actions." Jingwei began, putting his cup gently on the table.


    "I know my father is not a good man, and he''s definitely guilty of many crimes, but I''m almost certain he''s not responsible for the attack on your restaurant."


    "What rubbish!" Tai Xuan dered hotly, rising from the sofa as though he longed to punch Jingwei in the face. Xue Ning pulled him down, scowling. "Did you think that we''re five year old kids, so easily scammed by your words?"


    "Ge, can you listen to him for a moment?"


    "Xue Ning, you believe this man? Did you get hoodwinked by his honeyed words?! I thought you were supposed to be smart!" Her brothermented, sinking back to his seat in disappointment.


    "I have a good reason!" Xue Ning retorted, upset at her brother''s insinuations that she would be so easily taken in. How little faith he had in her!


    "Let''s hear it then," Yue Niang said, sitting cross-legged on the floor primly. The temperature of the living room suddenly seemed to drop a few degrees as she gazed at Jingwei imperiously. Jingwei willed himself to show polite deference to an elder, but not fear.


    Xue Ning''s mom reminded him of a predator animal in the wild. If he showed fear and panic, he would be finished for good!


    "Auntie, this is secret knowledge, but my father had a serious heart attack on the very same day your restaurant got attacked. He went into cardiac arrest, and is now still hospitalised, yet to wake. There''s no way he could have ordered the attack!"


    "He could have ordered the attack before his heart gave out," Yue Niang argued, even as her eyes widened with this unexpected news. Two very different emotions flooded through her in that moment - there was smug spiteful satisfaction, that she lived long enough for someone who hurt her received their karma, but there was also worry and concern, feelings she thought she would never feel for Sun Haowei.


    Clearly her heart was softer than she realised! Even after the destruction and degradation of their working and personal rtionship, it seemed that there was still a tiny part of her that cared for his well-being.


    "Mom, that''s highly unlikely." Xue Ning cut in. "His heart attack happened on the same day as Jingwei''s press conference, but only a while after that - "


    "You mean the very same press conference that announced to the world that you were his fiancee? I get it now!" Tai Xuan dered, new understanding dawning in his eyes.


    "Mom, you see, it''s definitely his fault! Now it makes sense, that man didn''t like you marrying his son, so he called the thugs on us, then he got a heart attack because God had eyes and wanted to punish him for his evil actions!"


    Jingwei listened with increasing horror. This wasn''t how he expected things to go!

 Chapter 214 Fools Errand

    While Jingwei wanted to trust that his father was not capable of these sort of scummy actions, he found his faith in his own father wavering when Li Tai Xuan''s words painted a convincing alternate picture.


    "Sun Haowei knew the engagement was fake!" Xue Ning burst out. "That wasn''t the issue at all! Why would he attack you guys when he needed me to make his son look like a respectable man?"


    "Who knows?" Yue Niang turned to look at her daughter, shrugging her shoulders nonchntly. "Even if he knew the engagement was fake, that''s not a guarantee that he wouldn''t strike. In fact, he might have just been pretending to agree at first, then do this behind your backs to make you willingly give up on this charade you started."


    "That still doesn''t make sense," Xue Ning said bullishly. "If you told me he hired the thugs after he recovered from the heart attack, I''d understand, since I was the one that caused the heart attack in the first ce."


    "WHAT?!" Both her brother and her mother yelled simultaneously in shock.


    "Holy shit! Meimei what on earth did you do?"


    Her brother looked like he was losing his mind at this knowledge.


    "You managed to give Sun Haowei a heart attack? That takes some skill!"


    Meanwhile, her mother sounded vaguely proud. Xue Ning refused to read more into that, especially when the man they were talking about was Jingwei''s father, and Jingwei was sitting right there in front of them.


    "She also saved him though!" Jingwei added, in case Xue Ning forgot this fact. "Without her, my father would have died even before the ambnce arrived!"


    "And how did my daughter give your father a heart attack?"


    "I made him so angry, his heart gave out." Xue Ning said sheepishly. "Not one of my finest moments, I must admit."


    "How?!"


    Jingwei wanted to exin, but then he remembered his father got so angry because he didn''t approve of Xue Ning marrying into his family, and Xue Ning got so angry at him calling Jingwei a useless son, and then they started arguing and his father threatened to hurt everything she held dear.


    Wait. His father did say that, but wouldn''t that imply that he actually hadn''t taken action yet?


    "Well, my father did say he was going to destroy everything important to Xue Ning if Xue Ning didn''t listen to him, but then he had the heart attack immediately after," Jingwei mentioned, trying not to quail from the death res he received from all three members of the Li family.


    Yes, even his precious Xue Ning was ring at him for borating on the issue.


    "So I don''t think he actually sent the thugs to ruin your restaurant! He still needed Xue Ning to agree to his terms."


    "And what were his terms?" Her mother asked suspiciously, her eyes darting between Sun Jingwei and her daughter. If they were dating, she could probably guess that he gave Xue Ning a sum of money and told her to scram.<sub> </sub>


    But then again, they weren''t dating!


    Were they? Yue Niang frowned. Something wasn''t adding up.


    "Not important Mom," Xue Ning interrupted quickly. If her mother continued her line of questioning, she''d realise there were so many holes in their story. "He''s already in the hospital, so it doesn''t matter."


    "Yeah, and since Xue Ning saved his life, I''m sure he''ll be more grateful." Jingwei said, and Yue Niang had to look closely at him, just to see if he had brain damage. She wouldn''t put it past Sun Haowei to identally drop his son while carrying him as a baby, assuming he actually held his son.


    "Is this your first day of knowing your father?" Yue Niang asked with a raised eyebrow. "When has Sun Haowei ever been a forgiving man, especially to those that wronged him?"


    Jingwei spluttered. "Well¡­ but¡­ there''s no proof he did this!"


    "No proof he was innocent either," Yue Niang said, then she turned to her daughter. "You''d better get away from that family before he wakes up and decides to act on his final promise to ruin your life. Out of sight, out of mind! This is the best way to deal with him!"


    "Mom, why do you speak like you know Sun Haowei personally?" Xue Ning asked, and Yue Niang froze imperceptibly. Then she took in a quick breath and collected herself. Things were fine. Sun Haowei had a heart attack and was out ofmission. His son was sitting in her home, and had an undefined rtionship with her daughter. Things were fine!


    "Of course I don''t, that''s preposterous. When would I get a chance to meet him?" All these words flooded out of her mouth in record time.


    "Mom, it''s just a simple question," Xue Ning replied, nonplussed at her mother''s overreaction. "Don''t need to yell at me."


    Jingwei also stared at Xue Ning''s mother. That didn''t seem like a normal reaction.


    "Okay, but I also know my dad well enough to know that this isn''t his style." Jingwei said, when Xue Ning''s mother wasn''t saying anything more.


    "What do you mean?" Tai Xuan barked out.


    "He wouldn''t hire thugs to just destroy a restaurant, that''s just very¡­" Jingwei frowned, trying to find the right word. "Rudimentary. Like it''s a blunt strike. My father has the skill of destroying people down to an art form - if he wanted to destroy your livelihoods, he wouldn''t do it like this."


    "Exin then, how he would destroy us," Yue Niang asked, just so she could see if Sun Haowei''s son had actually gotten an urate measure of his father.


    "Firstly, he''d probably get someone to spread a rumour saying that your restaurant had caused food poisoning, which will cause your restaurant to shut down so that even when it reopens, customers will still be wary, and your business will suffer."


    "Then he''ll escte, by getting your suppliers to increase their prices when dealing with you, so you have no choice but to increase your costs. And when you try to look for other suppliers, he''ll get them to give you shoddy supplies, so the quality of your food suffers. He''ll let you struggle for a while hopelessly, eat into your savings, and then eventually pressure all the suppliers to cut off all working rtionships with you, so you have nothing to cook in the restaurant."


    "Jesus fuck," was Tai Xuan''s eloquent reply. But Jingwei wasn''t done!

 Chapter 215 My Fathers Possible Actions

    "And when you have no customers and no food, he''ll probably end up buying over thend for some stupid reason, like building another hotel. Nevermind that this ce is just a tiny town in the middle of nowhere and doesn''t need one!" Jingwei paused, realising that his words could be taken as an insult.


    "I mean, this ce is lovely, but it doesn''t exactly boast tourist attractions to justify the investment. But that doesn''t matter! He''ll just make some stupid reason and you guys will just have to ept it, and before you know it, he''ll evict you and demolish your restaurant and your house and the houses of your neighbours, just because he can."


    There was a stunned silence, which Jingwei assumed meant that they wanted more information of the twisted workings of his father''s mind, so he quickly provided more. It wasn''t hard. These were all things his asshole of a father had already done to people he hated. Jingwei didn''t like it, but it wasn''t as though his words counted for anything. Half the time, he was sure his father hated him too.


    "And he''ll make sure all your neighbours know it''s your fault, so you''ll be ostracised by them. Oh of course, that''s not all. He''d probably want to injure you guys too, just to really make sure that your bodies are in pain in addition to having no house, no money and no friends."


    "Sending thugs to the restaurant is so¡­mild inparison." Jingwei wrinkled his nose as he ended his exnation. "It''s such a lousy move that I don''t believe my father did it. He always made sure he destroyed his enemies utterly so they couldn''t stand up again."


    "That''s¡­ good to know," Xue Ning said faintly, staring at Sun Jingwei''s eyes as though seeing him for the first time. Chills traversed through her body at the thought of Sun Haowei doing everything that Jingwei said. What a callous and cruel man!


    "I stand corrected," Yue Niang smiled, but there was not much amusement in it. "You do know your father quite well indeed."


    "Thanks?" Jingwei replied politely. "But then again, I can say the same for you Auntie. How do you know that I was not bullshitting about my father? His actions aren''t public knowledge."


    If they were, Sun Haowei would be facing a lot more public outrage!


    "Yeah Mom, Jingwei has a point," Xue Ning narrowed her eyes suspiciously at her mother. "Is there something you''re not telling me?"


    ''Oh my daughter,'' Yue Niang thought wryly to herself, ''if only you knew.'' But outwardly she simply shook her head andughed.


    "Haven''t you ever watched a Korean drama in your life? That''s what all the rich tycoons do, in addition to giving the poor female protagonist a nk check to leave their precious son. I always thought those dramas were exaggerated, but it turns out reality is worse." Yue Niang replied, sipping on her water.


    She knew that all too well. After all, she and her husband had first hand experience regarding Sun Haowei''s modus operandi. They worked for him, with him, closely for decades after all.


    The only reason why they could even eke out a peaceful living in a distant corner of the country was because they had the skills to vanish!


    Perhaps it could be due to Sun Haowei still retaining thest bits of his conscience, and he realised hunting down his old best friends to the ends of the earth just because they wanted to retire from their life of crime wasn''t the right idea.


    Nah. Impossible. Yue Niang wasn''t that optimistic, even if her husband believed that Haowei would eventually respect and ept their decision to leave him. If he was that type of man, he would have epted their resignation with a handshake, and not aimed a gun at them to get them to reconsider.<sub> </sub>


    She then turned back to face Jingwei.


    "But for all your ims, at least three pairs of ears heard the exact words the leader of the thugs said. He and his group charged into our restaurant and flung our tables and chairs around, scaring the life out of our customers! When my husband and I tried to stop them, he got cut from their knives. When we asked why they were bothering us, he said that Sun Haowei paid them good money to wreck the ce!"


    "Mom, you didn''t call the police?" Xue Ning asked, appalled.


    "We already made a police report this morning, but you can guess how effective they are. They practically pissed their pants when I told him that Sun Haowei ordered them to trash the restaurant!"


    Jingwei winced; his father''s name had that effect on people.


    "And those that didn''t piss their pants justughed and told me toy off the alcohol, as though I had just imagined the whole thing. Can you believe we are paying tax for them?"


    Xue Ning''s mother snorted, and it was so much like Xue Ning''s that Jingwei had to stop himself from smiling.


    This was not the right time for it! He hurriedly looked back down.


    "The thugs also kicked me in the chest, wanna see?" Tai Xuan asked, and immediately pulled up his shirt without waiting for a reply, revealing toned muscles and a huge purple bruise smacked right in the middle of his chest, along with several small bruises around his sides.


    "Ouch," Xue Ning muttered as she eyed her brother''s body. "That must hurt."


    "Like a bitch. You have no idea," Tai Xuan grumbled, putting his shirt back down. "No amount of iodine will make this better! I''m still alright, but Xin Yu got scared terribly. You know she isn''t the bravest of people. "


    "Ah," Xue Ning mumbled, feeling strangely guilty. Her sister-inw was a sweet intelligent young woman (and possibly too good for her brother) who never even raised her voice. Seeing things enacting violence at close range would have scared her. "Where is she now? At the hospital?"


    "Nah, she''s resting in our bedroom. There''s no point in making her go to the restaurant when it''s closed anyway, since we can''t tidy things up that quickly. And Dad can''t cook - he''s injured. I could take over, but then I would have to cook and make deliveries too."


    "I can help!" Jingwei suddenly volunteered, drawing the eye of everyone in the room.

 Chapter 216 Dad Is Awake!

    "We don''t want your money," Tai Xuan immediately replied with a frown. "Who knows what your father will do to us after we ept it!"


    "Ge! Then take my money!" Xue Ning said. Her bank ount had seen a huge deposit just this morning. It did not take a genius to figure out who the money came from.


    Her brother narrowed her eyes suspiciously at Xue Ning.


    He wasn''t a genius.


    "What money? Your bank bnce is sadder than mine," Tai Xuan dered. "Did you suddenly strike the lottery in Shanghai?"


    "Technically yes? I met Jingwei after all."


    Xue Ning couldn''t help her eyes from meeting Jingwei''s own, and Jingwei smiled adoringly at her, looking at her with a soft look in his eyes. Xue Ning wasn''t the one that struck the lottery; it was him - which was why he had to do everything he could to solve this problem!


    "Hah, good for you then," Tai Xuan threw his arms in the air, upset at the situation and at the way Sun Jingwei seemed to be mooning over his sister. He''d better not be thinking what Tai Xuan was thinking.


    "You meeting him led to this mess! On second thought, Sun Jingwei, you better pay up. And then get lost."


    "Don''t be so rude!" Xue Ning scolded irritably, raising her voice to match her brother''s. "It''s not like he wanted this to happen!"


    "But guess what? It still happened anyway!" Tai Xuan yelled louder.


    "Children, quiet!" Their mother demanded. "Your father is still sleeping!"


    "Not anymore he''s not," a wry voice thick with sleep chimed in from the other end of the house. Everyone''s head swivelled to the source of the voice. Jingwei saw a middle-aged man wearing a singlet and boxer shorts wander into view.


    Li Tai Cheng yawned widely, stretching one of his arms over his head, because the other was still injured. Then he realised there was one extra person in his living room, one that was a stranger!


    He paused and hurriedly put down his arm, coughing awkwardly. Oh this was embarrassing, to be dressed in his worst outfit when a guest came over!


    Then he actually managed to take a closer look at the stranger and had to stop his mouth from falling open in shock.


    "Hi Uncle," Jingwei said, hurriedly getting up to introduce himself, going for a handshake. "I''m Jingwei, nice to meet you."


    "Ah¡­ nice to meet you too. Sorry that I''m dressed so shabbily, I wasn''t expecting any visitors at all." Li Tai Cheng replied as he stared back at Sun Jingwei''s handsome face in confusion. This was a really strange dream.


    "No no Uncle, it''s my fault foring unannounced." Jingwei replied, bowing low as he continued to shake his hand. Li Tai Cheng could only blink and ask him to sit back down, wondering if the doctor fed him some strange medication that caused him to hallucinate Sun Haowei''s youngest son in his living room.


    Was his mind too full of thoughts of Xue Ning''s potential rtionship with him that he dreamt him into life? That was¡­frighteningly possible. He turned to look at the other three members of his family for an exnation.


    "Hey, can all of you see Sun Jingwei too?" He asked, pointing at Jingwei. "I''m not delusional, am I? Told you I shouldn''t have gone to see the doctor! Now I''ve been fed funny pills to make me hallucinate!"


    Jingwei let out a surprised gasp. Now he was called a hallucination?


    "Dad!" Xue Ning called out in a panic, hurriedly getting up to look over him. "How''s your arm?"


    "I''m fine, I''m fine, I''m as healthy as a horse!" Tai Cheng dered delightedly as he embraced his daughter. Xue Ning had finallye home! "But Xue Ning! When did youe back? Why didn''t any of you wake me up?"


    "You were supposed to be resting," his wife replied dryly.


    "Sorry that we woke you," his son added.


    "Nevermind nevermind, as long as you are back now," Tai Cheng beamed. Since no one was making a fuss about Jingwei''s presence, Sun Jingwei must have been a hallucination. Now that his daughter was back, everything was good!


    "How did you get here so quickly? We just told you about the incident yesterday."


    "Oh, that''s because Jingwei helped me," Xue Ning said, pointing to Tai Cheng''s hallucination. "Dad, I actually got to sit in a private jet!"


    "Oh god," Tai Cheng muttered, but it wasn''t in response to Xue Ning''s words. Instead, Tai Cheng could only look at the sheepish figure of Sun Jingwei.<sub> </sub>


    "So you weren''t a hallucination after all," he said faintly. "God, I need to sit down."


    "Sit down, sit down." Everyone gestured to the sofa, and Li Tai Cheng sank into the firm seats.


    "Dad! Jingwei isn''t a hallucination! He''s really here!" Xue Ning said, grabbing Jingwei''s arm to pull him closer. Tai Cheng raised his eyebrows at the physical contact.


    His daughter, who hated physical contact with strangers, had kept her hand on Sun Jingwei''s arm. Hmmmm.


    "Yeah, he tried to convince us his father wasn''t responsible, but honestly, it''s rubbish! It''s definitely his father''s fault that you''re injured!" Tai Xuan interrupted.


    "Dad, how badly are you injured? What did the doctor say?" Xue Ning asked, ignoring her brother''s words.


    "One at a time," he sighed. "And don''t worry, I''m fine! It''s only a few cuts and the knife wasn''t even poisoned! So I''ll heal in a few days."


    "A few cuts?" Xue Ning eximed, upset and angry. "You said there was only one cut!" She wasn''t even going to think about possible poison on the de. Why was that in her father''s thoughts?


    "Hahahaha.." He could onlyugh awkwardly when faced with the upset look on his daughter''s face, half-afraid she would burst into tears. "Technically, Dad didn''t lie to you! There''s only one main cut, the rest are just small scrapes! See!"


    Xue Ning saw. There was onerge shallow cut that ran along the length of her father''s left arm, but then his right arm had a bunch of other smaller cuts, as though he got cut by a bunch of ss shards instead of a knife.


    "Dad! You''re lucky he didn''t cut your wrist!" Xue Ning cried out. "If this was on the other side of your arm, you''ll bleed out!"


    "I''m a lucky man blessed by Heaven, so don''t worry about me," Li Tai Cheng said reassuringly, while meeting his wife''s knowing gaze over his daughter''s head.


    The both of them knew it wasn''t as much as luck, as it was reflexes honed from a much more dangerous life! But he had no intention of letting his children know.


    "More importantly, why is Sun Jingwei here in our humble house?" He turned to look at Jingwei. "I want to be a good host, but if you''re trying to help your father finish what he started, I must ask you to leave."


    "I - " Before Jingwei could defend himself, Xue Ning replied.


    "Dad! He''s here to help with the restaurant, not destroy it! And we''re not sure that Sun Haowei was even responsible."


    "Oh, he definitely was," Tai Xuan muttered bitterly.


    "I''ll dly pay for the repairs for the restaurant and your medical fees!" Jingwei said, bowing deeply. "I can also cook or do deliveries for the restaurant!"


    There was a stunned silence in the house. It was then broken by Tai Xuan''s mockingughter.


    "You cook? A pampered rich boy like you? Don''t talk nonsense - we''re not giving our customers garbage to eat!"


    "I assure you, I can cook." Jingwei said. He was starting to get pissed off with Tai Xuan''s rudeness. He understood that Tai Xuan was rightly upset at his father''s possible actions, but there was no need to direct that rage towards him!


    "His cooking is good!" Xue Ning protested hotly. "He cooked for me before!"


    "What?!" Tai Xuan eximed, his eyes nearly bulging out at this new information. He wasn''t the only one that was surprised, Xue Ning''s parents were nearly beside themselves in shock.


    Sun Jingwei cooked for their daughter? That was very suspicious! No man would step into the kitchen to cook a meal for a woman for no good reason, especially if said man was as wealthy as Sun Jingwei, with an entire mansion full of staff at his beck and call.


    "When did this happen, my dear daughter?" Yue Niang asked sweetly. "I had no idea you and Jingwei were such good friends."


    "Yes, do tell," Tai Cheng added. "Because that information certainly did note out in our phone calls. Weren''t you only supposed to be working for him? Since when did you be such a valued employee?"


    "Er - " Xue Ning felt sweat form on her temples. Crap! What could she say now? She gave Jingwei a look, but he seemed equally at a loss.


    "I like cooking!" Jingwei blurted out. "And it waste at night and Xue Ning and I were hungry. I didn''t want to wake the cook, so I cooked instead."


    "LATE AT NIGHT?!" Three members of the family screamed in unison.

 Chapter 217 Cockblocking Brother

    "LATE AT NIGHT?!" Three members of the family screamed in unison.


    "Why were you togetherte at night?!"


    "What were you doingte at night?"


    "Where were the both of you?"


    Her three family members began yelling at the same time. Xue Ning winced as the volume of their collective voices increased.


    "Guys, please don''t worry! Nothing untoward happened!" Jingwei said catingly, holding up his hands to appease Xue Ning''s family members, who were ring at him with barely concealed hostility. He felt like he was going to be ripped apart by three ravenous wolves, and gulped in nervousness.


    "Then exin yourself," Yue Niang said, smiling with too many teeth.


    "Mom, you already knew I stayed over at his mansion!" Xue Ning replied, thinking quickly on her feet. "He cooked for me back then, and I slept over in one of the mansion''s guest rooms! Nothing else happened!"


    "Yeah! What Xue Ning said!" Jingwei said, nodding fervently despite herter statement being entirely false. "Xue Ning did save my life that evening! I would have been knocked down by a car if she didn''t pull me back!"


    He also identally saw Xue Ning in her underwear and they had cuddled together in bed, but honesty wasn''t the best policy in this scenario! He''d die!


    "Yeah Mom, this is just gratitude! Friendly gratitude!" Xue Ning added. "At least he bothered to thank me for stopping him from getting turned into a pancake - do you remember Ming Yan from my secondary school ss? I pulled her out of the way of a motorbike and she got pissed at me for ruining her outfit. Now that I think about it, I''m still pissed!"


    Her family members calmed down slightly at her words, but they still casted Jingwei suspicious looks from the corner of their eyes. Jingwei did his best to look as innocent and grateful as possible.


    "Huh. Well. He does seem stupid enough to get knocked down by a car." Tai Xuan muttered.


    Jingwei reminded himself that punching Xue Ning''s older brother would not endear him to the rest of his family, even if he really wanted to. It would also be bad form to get Ming Guang and Wei Yan to punch him.


    Meanwhile Xue Ning saw the pinched, slightly upset look on Jingwei''s face and felt her heart twinge in sympathy. She wanted to hug him to reassure him, but that''ll certainly reopen the line of questioning. But she couldn''t do nothing!


    "You''re also stupid," she settled for kicking her brother in his shin repeatedly while he squealed and stomped around the living room to avoid her feet. "Stop insulting my friend, or I''ll tell Sister-inw about the time you ate boogers for fun."


    "Okay enough now," their mother scolded them both. "Since Jingwei made the trip here to offer us help, we might as well let him see the damage done to the restaurant. He can help with the clean up. Xue Ning, you haven''t seen it either right?"


    "No Mom, I came straight home," Xue Ning replied, shaking her head, and her mom hid a smile at her words.


    Ah! Her daughter still loved them so much that she came straight home to check up on them instead of going anywhere else!


    The five of them were joined by Jingwei''s two bodyguards as they went out. Ming Guang and Wei Yan were d to see that Sun Jingwei was still in one piece, despite the slight slump of his shoulders. Clearly the talk didn''t go well!


    "Do we need to take a car? I can drive all of us there." Jingwei offered, only for all of them to shake their heads.


    "No need, the restaurant is quite near. We can all go on foot. But thanks for offering," Tai Cheng replied kindly as he began leading the way.


    As they started walking, Jingwei purposely walked slower so he could talk to Xue Ning discreetly. Xue Ning also tookzier steps, purposely hanging back so they could walk at the same pace. They traded secret smiles, and warmth bloomed in Jingwei''s heart.


    Wei Yan and Ming Guang then deliberately stopped walking behind Jingwei, just to give them the illusion of privacy.


    "So what''s the n now?" Jingwei whispered, trying his best not to hold her hand. "Do you believe my father did all that?"


    "I don''t know, there''s no proof. Guess we''ll just focus on fixing the restaurant first." Xue Ning whispered back, shaking her head slightly as she leaned closer to him. She could smell his cologne, and she wanted to bury her face in his neck - but her family was just ahead!


    "How are you feeling? You just got insulted so many times! Sorry that my brother is a dickhead," She continued, concerned.


    "I''ll live," Jingwei said, shrugging. "But man, your brother seems to really hate me. It''s like I murdered his dog or something."<sub> </sub>


    "What gave you that impression?" Tai Xuan''s voice asked from right between their heads, and they both jumped at once, startled.


    "There''s something suspicious about the two of you! Look at how guilty your faces are!" Tai Xuan continued, now pointing at them both. "What were the two of you talking about that you couldn''t let other people know?"


    Tai Xuan had seen the both of them lingering at the back, their heads gently bowed together as they whispered. Warning bells started to sound in his head; this was the behaviour of co-conspirators, of partners-in-crime, or lovers! He remembered doing something simr to his dates before.


    Sun Jingwei better not be harbouring any lewd intentions towards his sister!


    "We were talking about how annoying you are," Xue Ning replied easily. "How rude, how nosy¡­ Jingwei was nice enough to not tell everyone else."


    Jingwei sighed, feeling incredibly wronged. "Excuse me, I think those were your words."


    "Are you calling my sister a liar?" Tai Xuan retorted, and Jingwei had to roll his eyes.


    "I''m not a liar." Xue Ning said, huffing. "Ge, you are being super annoying. Scram, stop eavesdropping on people''s conversations. Shoo!"


    Tai Xuan gave an affronted look, ready to argue, but the party suddenly stopped. They had arrived at the restaurant.


    "Holy shit, what the fuck happened," Xue Ning muttered, her mouth falling in shock. Her mother''s words didn''t do justice to the damage done by the thugs.


    Their storefront was trashed, their signboard ''A Health(Li) Noodle Bowl''id there sadly on the floor, split into two.


    The thugs had managed to even reach that high up to tear down the sign and break it in half! Were they part of a pugilist sect?


    Around the entrance, she saw that the potted nts, flowers that her parents painstakingly raised, were no more. The ceramic potsid shattered on the floor in pieces, nt debri and soil strewn all over the floor, making a mess. There was a faint smell of fertiliser in the air.


    And the door! One of the doors had lost their hinges, and was just propped at the entrance. A simple knock would have caused it to topple. There were also many chairs and tables used to block the entrance, most likely to prevent looting since the door wasn''t going to be any help in preventing intruders from entering.


    Xue Ning''s heart ached, even as a terrible rage grew within her. How dare random thugs decide to make a mess out of her family''s restaurant! This was her parents'' livelihood, their pride and joy, their life''s work! They spent decades feeding people in town, only to be treated like this?


    "If I find out the person responsible for this mess, I''ll castrate him!" Xue Ning vowed, clenching her hands into fists.


    Meanwhile Jingwei winced, both at the damage and her words. When he was driving in the car, he didn''t even register that this ce was a restaurant, because it seemed like such a wreck. He thought it was an abandoned shop, the kind children would dare their friends to sneak into at night, iming it was haunted.


    He was initially sure of his father''s innocence, but he couldn''t defend him anymore.


    Now that he saw the damage, all he wanted to know was the truth! Was his father truly responsible for this act of casual cruelty?


    If his father had done this, he would never forgive him!


    Tai Xuan scoffed, not forgetting to give Jingwei a dirty look. "You think this is bad Meimei? Wait till you see the shitstorm that''s inside. We haven''t finished cleaning it yet."


    "Let me help," Jingwei volunteered immediately. "I want to help. Please."


    Before Tai Xuan can dere ''over my dead body, you scum,'' his mother interrupted him.


    "Of course you can. You should." Yue Niang said, with no room for disagreement. "Even if you''re the son of a billionaire, I''m sure you can at least sweep the floor and wash whatever dishes we have left."


    "Oh, he''s really good at that," Xue Ning said, instinctively praising him. "You should see him scrub the pots."


    Once again, Xue Ning and Jingwei found themselves surrounded in stunned silence, before all hell broke loose.

 Chapter 218 Neighbourhood Association

    When Xue Ning praised Jingwei for his dish-washing skills, his first emotion was happiness, because Xue Ning had never explicitly mentioned she thought he was great at chores. She only tried to eyefuck him as she spied on him from a corner, and while that was also ttering, Jingwei was a man that valued words.


    He needed praise! Especially praise from Xue Ning! (Yes, he realised that made him sound like a dog, but so be it! He''d rather be her dog than someone else''s human!)


    Then he remembered where they were and who they were with, and he immediately shot Xue Ning with a panicked look! Unfortunately, Xue Ning''s words came out faster than he could stop them, and now they were out in the world, making her family members incredibly suspicious.


    "Oh? He can do housework? That''s a surprise." Yue Niang asked calmly, looking at Sun Jingwei from head to toe. That man seemed strangely twitchy. Clearly he was hiding something. Either that, or he had a guilty conscience from his father''s actions.


    But it was her daughter that she paid more attention to. Her daughter who was never flustered, who never bothered with praising men, had reddened ears as she refused to meet anyone''s eyes!


    "Hahahaha¡­" Jingweiughed awkwardly. "I have many talents? Washing dishes is just one of them! I''m pretty good at cleaning toilets too!"


    "Perhaps, but I''m more interested in how Xue Ning knows this. Did you wash the bowls in front of her when you cooked for her?" Yue Niang asked.


    "Well -"


    "Hey Tai Cheng and Yue Niang!!" A loud voice yelled from the other end of the road. Everyone turned to look at the source of the voice. It came from a middle aged woman with her hair coiffed into a perm, and she was surrounded by other women with simr hair styles.


    Was this the trend in small towns? Jingwei wondered. But then, Xue Ning''s mom didn''t have that hairstyle, so maybe not.


    Meanwhile, Yue Niang let out a muffled swear as she saw the Neighbourhood Association women walking closer to them.


    If the heavens loved her, they would have ignored her or gotten knocked down when crossing the road, but they made it safely across to their side.


    "Misfortune neveres singly. Why are they here?" She cursed quietly to her husband.


    "Smile, wife. Try not to look too murderous," Tai Cheng advised, already pasing his customer service smile on his face.


    "Hi lovelydies! What a coincidence! Are you all out on your stroll now?"


    "It''s a neighbourhood patrol! We''re keeping the neighbourhood safe!" One of the women corrected pompously, drawing herself up to her full height.


    It was a measly 150cm, but the bright pink tracksuit that she wore more than made up for it.


    It threatened to burn the retinas of anyone who stared at it for longer than a few seconds. Jingwei already felt his eyesight failing when he watched her walk across the road.


    "Of course Mrs Poh, of course," Tai Cheng replied genially, seemingly not offended in the slightest. "Thank you for all your hard work."


    Jingwei mentally apuded him for his diplomacy and his lying skills.


    Meanwhile Xue Ning could only snort. Neighbourhood patrol? More like busybody aunties poking their noses where they didn''t belong! If they were actually any good at keeping the town safe, her parents'' restaurant wouldn''t be trashed!


    Yue Niang also pped a smile on her face, but it didn''t reach her eyes. She wasn''t as good as her husband when it came to concealing disdain, and it was hard to smile when this flock of clucking hens decided to peck around at her wrecked restaurant, making uselessments.


    "Aiyo, what is this mess? Has it not been cleaned up yet?" One of them tutted, looking disapprovingly at the entrance. "This isn''t good for business, you know!"


    "And it''s bad luck too," another one chimed in. "Your family doesn''t need any more of that!"


    Yue Niang''s eyebrow twitched. Who asked them?


    "Yes, Uncle Min saw you going to the clinic. Is everything alright? Will you recover? It would be a shame if you couldn''t cook for us. Your noodles are the best," another womanmented.


    "Don''t worry! I''ll make a full recovery!" Her father promised, still smiling cheerfully. "When our restaurant is repaired, you guys can definitely visit!"


    "I''ll hold you to that! I love your cooking!"


    One would think that at least her words were innocently meant, but then Xue Ning saw that she was leering, shooting covetous looks at her father while her mother was still right there next to him!<sub> </sub>


    Oh my god! So disgusting! This woman was hitting on her father right in front of his entire family!


    Xue Ning gagged, and unfortunately that attracted the attention of the Neighbourhood Association aunties.


    There was a glint in their eyes, as they stumbled onto someone new that they could criticise in the guise of giving ''helpful advice''. They had never stopped sinking their ws into the Li family''s youngest child, partly because they couldn''t do anything to Yue Niang, a woman that was so lovely she easily attracted the eyes of their own husbands.


    While Tai Xuan had grown up to be an exemry man with ster good looks and good enough grades, his youngest sister had always been a sullen, sulky girl that preferred to use her fists more than her words. An utter waste of her cute looks. It was no wonder that she had few friends!


    And what''s more, instead of deciding to stay and help her parents manage the restaurant, she decided to leave for the big city instead! What nonsense! Didn''t she know that women were meant to stay at home?


    Why did she even bother leaving for the big city - it wasn''t as though she would be able to find a rich husband with her rude grouchy attitude!


    As such, the Neighbourhood Association wholeheartedly believed that they were right to offer criticism of her attitude and behaviour. This was all for her own good in future! If Xue Ning didn''t change her behaviour and her dressing, she would be left on the shelf forever!


    "Xue Ning! Oh you''re back from Shanghai!" They eximed.


    "Hi Aunties," Xue Ning replied, trying to smile. Jingwei had seen happier people during funerals. "Nice to meet you."


    The hens began clucking disapprovingly, eyeing her outfit with barely concealed looks of derision. Xue Ning once again was dressed in a simple T-shirt and shorts.


    "Are you still dressed like this? With no makeup?"


    "Aiyo - didn''t you buy some nice clothes from the big city? All the Shanghai girls are very fashionable, you should learn from them!"


    "Aren''t you already 25? You should learn to act like a properdy! If not, no man will want to marry you!"


    "Ahem," Yue Niang coughed out loud, reminding these busybodies of her presence.


    "Of course! Not saying that you''re bad at raising your daughter, Yue Niang. You''ve been so busy looking after the family and the restaurant," Mrs Poh hastily added, backtracking. "It''s just that sometimes, everyone needs a little help!"


    Right. Help. Their help came in the form of insidious gossip and knives flung at her when her back was turned. Xue Ning would rather get help from Zhou Yu!


    "But Yue Niang, you should be happy! Look, your daughter has brought home not just one man, but three men! She''s too capable, if only my daughter can learn from her!"


    "It''s not good to lead men on though!"


    Tai Xuan growled. These women were implying that his sister was a slut! Meanwhile Xue Ning wondered if she could get away with roundhouse-kicking everyone in the face.


    The party''s attention was now directed to the three new fresh faces. One looked so handsome that just looking at him made them blush - he was definitely some bigshot movie star! They could vaguely recall seeing him from somewhere. One looked stern, while thest one was a cute young man.


    Surely thest one must be Xue Ning''s boyfriend!


    "Is one of these men your boyfriend? " Another woman asked to rify. "Like the one hanging at the back? Not bad, not bad! And you even brought him and his friends home to help!"


    Jingwei turned around in surprise; the woman was referring to Wei Yan! What on earth! How was he not the first choice for Xue Ning''s boyfriend? Were they all blind? Did she not watch the video of the press conference? A muscle twitched in his jaw.


    "Yes I am! Nice to meet you Aunties! You have a good eye!" Wei Yan suddenly dered with a beaming smile.


    Huh? Xue Ning blinked in confusion, catching Wei Yan''s eye. But he merely smiled at her and walked closer until he was standing next to her, putting an easy arm around her shoulder.


    "Huh? Are you crazy?" Xue Ning eximed at Wei Yan with widened eyes. She then turned to look at Ming Guang for more information. Did he know what his colleague was doing?


    Ming Guang could only shrug. He didn''t know, and he didn''t want to know! He was only there to protect Sun Jingwei, who looked this close to bursting a blood vessel!

 Chapter 219 Neighbourhood Association (2)

    Jingwei gritted his teeth as everyone continued to chatter around him, excited over the news. He red at Wei Yan''s side, but he smiled on, pretending to be oblivious.


    "Oh! Little Xue Ning has finally found a boyfriend! And what a strapping youngd he is!" Mrs Poh said, "although he''s not as good as the man my precious oldest daughter found."


    "No one is as good as your daughter''s husband," one woman eximed with barely concealed envy. "That man is a handsome CEO!"


    Xue Ning snorted internally. There was no way the man could be handsomer than Jingwei! She chanced a quick nce at his face, and was surprised to see the muscle twitching in his jaw, his eyes dark with jealousy.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning''s entire family nearly coughed out blood in surprise! Were they blindsided this whole time? Maybe Sun Jingwei was truly innocent this whole time - and he was just trying to matchmake his bodyguard and Xue Ning? To think they''ve all jumped on him for nothing!


    "You''re dating? Why didn''t you say anything!" Her parents demanded, giving Jingwei an apologetic look. But that man seemed to be ring at thin air! How strange, how suspicious.


    Yue Niang narrowed her eyes; was Sun Jingwei out to destroy her daughter''s rtionship? Did he not approve of her daughter distracting his bodyguard?


    "Yeah, we were keeping it quiet the whole time," Wei Yan lied effortlessly, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.


    "We were?" Xue Ning asked in confusion, trying to pry herself away from Wei Yan''s hold, but Wei Yan hurriedly winked at her, a signal for her to y along in this charade of his.


    "More importantly, does it mean that this handsome friend of yours is single?" Mrs Poh asked, looking at Jingwei up and down. "I can introduce you to my youngest daughter! She''s kind and sweet and demure, and of course she''s very pretty too! Her teeth are straight and she has beautiful hair! The both of you will look great together!"


    Xue Ning scowled, immediately feeling a strange surge of possessiveness course through her like a raging river. She wanted to grab Jingwei''s waist and snarl at Mrs Poh - there was no way she''d let her youngest daughter Li Fen near Jingwei! If she did her maths right, that girl just turned 20!


    But she held herself back, trying to take deep breaths to calm down. Wei Yan tightened his grip around her shoulders, sensing that Miss Li was very close tomitting assault on middle-age women.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei could only stare at this woman with barely concealed contempt.


    Did she not realise that she was describing her youngest daughter as though she was a prized horse? Jingwei had heard many simr descriptions when he talked to acquaintances with horses.


    "And I suppose she doesn''t bite, doesn''t shit and doesn''t fart either, and she can jump onmand?" Jingwei replied sarcastically, rapidly losing his calm and good humour.


    Yue Niang''s lips unknowingly curled into a smile. Good. Let Sun Jingwei call her out.


    "Excuse me? What did you say to me, young man?" Mrs Poh red at him, affronted.


    "I''m not interested in your daughter," Jingwei dered fervently, staring straight at Mrs Poh''s eyes. He tried to focus on her, instead of turning to look at Xue Ning, but it was difficult, when his head was automatically attuned to face her direction, much like apass pointing north, or the way flowers automatically grew towards the sun.<sub> </sub>


    "I am not single. In fact, I already have a girlfriend that I love very much, and I want to make her my wife in future, if she would have me. I would move mountains and part the seas for her."


    He realised, when he finished speaking, that he was staring at Xue Ning again. Xue Ning''s eyes met his, and her cheeks turned red at his deration, her heart began beating in double time.


    Her family didn''t know that it was meant for her, but she knew. That was enough. Behind her, Wei Yan once again tightened the hold on her shoulders.


    Weird.


    "Oh," Mrs Poh said meekly, face falling in the face of such firm rejection, before brightening up again. "Do you have a brother then? I''m sure he''s very handsome too. How about introducing him to my daughter?"


    Jingwei could onlyugh incredulously, imagining Tianwei''s reaction if he were to introduce this woman''s daughter to him.


    "While we love to stay and chat, we still need to clean up the inside of the restaurant," Yue Niang interrupted. "Of course, all of you are free to help! Many hands make quick work, and I''m sure since you love being helpful you''ll definitely not refuse?"


    Suddenly the group of women began looking around wildly, refusing to meet her eyes, as though she was a teacher asking for a volunteer from ss. Typical.


    "Oh suddenly I remember, I need to go - "


    "I''m sorry, I won''t be able to -"


    "My back is aching and I -


    "Nonsense! It won''t take up much of your time or effort!" Yue Niang insisted.


    "Exactly, and from what I can see, all of you are such helpful neighbours. Surely you wouldn''t leave them in a lurch after everything? What''s more, didn''t you say you were keeping the neighbourhood safe? Did you purposely let them destroy the restaurant?" Jingwei asked, deliberately bringing up their earlier statements.


    If he was going to suffer, he wanted all of them to suffer too!


    "Hey! You can''t say it like that!" The women squawked among themselves. "Of course we didn''t want such a terrible thing to happen! But what can we do? It''s already done! No matter how bad we feel about it, we can''t do anything to change it!"


    "You can help us clean up, if you''re feeling so bad about it," Xue Ning replied dryly, following Jingwei''s train of thought.


    "Unless of course¡­ you were lying this whole time?" Jingweiid the finishing blow, smiling unkindly.

 Chapter 220 What Are You Going To Do? Arrest ME?

    Meanwhile Xue Ning''s parents hid a smile at their words. They had always wanted to get even with these people, but for the sake of keeping friendly rtions in a small town, they were forced to hold their tongue more than once.


    Yue Niang in particr, was the target of many maliciousments by these women, who eagerly spread rumours that she was a vixen out to seduce their husbands and sons. It didn''t matter that they were all lies, everyched onto it like a starving man to a buffet, spreading it around.


    Jealousy was a disease, and the entire town was infected with it! Things got so bad for a time that they had to dip even deeper into their savings to ensure that their restaurant survived, because no one would visit them, iming that her food was poisoned or drugged.


    Thankfully, with enough time, most people forgot the worst of the usations, but Poh Jin Lian had never stopped making derisivements about her or her restaurant, and Yue Niang and her husband could only endure.


    Their restaurant needed customers for them to earn money to raise their children, and they learnt firsthand that poisonous words from her lips could do a lot of damage.


    If this was 20 years ago, these women, especially Poh Jin Lian, would never have made a single peep in their direction, let alone damage their livelihoods and insult her children!


    But now¡­the time for vengeance has arrived, and it was brought about by Sun Jingwei, the son of the man responsible for plunging them into this hell. Perhaps this was poetic justice, and the heavens just had a sense of humour!


    "Who are you to even say this to us?" Poh Jin Lian dered haughtily. "I bet you''re a nobody too, especially if you''re mixing with someone like Li Xue Ning. Here''s a word of advice, nothing good ever happens when you''re with someone like her!"


    "Someone like her? What do you mean ''someone like her''?" Jingwei asked casually, even as his eyes grew flintier with every wording out of her mouth. This confirmed it; these women somehow had it out for the Li family, but what confused him was why? They seemed to be an entirely average family.


    Poh Jin Lian drew herself to her full height, smugly preparing to insult her favourite victim. "I don''t me you for not knowing, but this girl is not a good person! Not only is she violent, she seduces men by pretending to be friends with them, always toying with their feelings but she nevermits! A vixen!"


    "A vixen! Wow Xue Ning, you didn''t tell me your town had a bunch of crazy women!" Jingwei eximed as he raised an eyebrow at the group of women, then turned to Xue Ning.


    Vixen? That was ridiculous - he had dealt with real vixens, and Xue Ning wasn''t one of them. She was his adorable little kitten that he longed to cuddle and treasure.


    "Well, it''s not as though they''re tourist attractions to brag about," Xue Ning said, sighing. It was people like Poh Jin Lian that reminded her why she had to leave, even if she would miss her family.


    "Nah, I think their mouths are big enough to qualify for a world record." Jingwei said, shaking his head. "Calling you a vixen? They must have a vivid imagination - or maybe they''re insane. A virus infected their brains and turned them into morons. Are you sure it''s safe to be around them? What if they''re contagious?"


    Meanwhile, Mrs Poh and her gang of friends spluttered at his words. Never before had they dealt with someone so disrespectful!


    "And you still want to get them to help at my family''s restaurant?" Xue Ning let out an uglyugh. "Fat hope."<sub> </sub>


    "What to do? I''m someone that believes in the good in people," Jingwei said, only half-joking. "So what do you women think? Are you going to prove me right and go and help? Or are you going to stand here wasting everyone''s precious time, spouting lies to soothe your ego?"


    ? The group of women hemmed and hawed, trying to think of a way out of this mess. They''ve never expected things to escte this far! They just wanted to make themselves feel better by picking on their ''favourite'' family.


    How did they know there would be unexpected support from Li Xue Ning''s new city friends? Li Xue Ning was never supposed to have friends in the first ce!


    "Let''s not waste any more time with this farce," Jingwei said, his face growing darker as he watched them continue to hem and haw in indecision.


    "Since you''ve arrived, you''ve been nothing but rude to a family you im to be helping. It''s a measure of the Li''s family magnanimity and good character that they haven''t told all of you to shut the fuck up!"


    "How dare you speak to us this way! Do you know who I am?!" Mrs Poh yelled. "My husband is the Mayor here! I''ll have you arrested, even if you''re a bigshot from Shanghai!"


    Jingweiughed condescendingly, and his smirk was better than the afternoon sun when it came to making Xue Ning hot under her cor. Her mouth felt drier than when she was trying to argue with her family.


    "Call him here then. I''ll wait right here for him to arrest me, if he dares. Let''s make a wager - if he dares to arrest me, I''ll kneel and humbly apologise for my words."


    "Hmph! Of course!" Mrs Poh crossed her arms, tilting her chin up arrogantly. But Jingwei held up a hand to stop her from celebrating prematurely.


    "But if he doesn''t arrest me, you''ll go on your knees and apologise for all the rude things you''ve said to the Li family. I have a feeling you''ll be kneeling for a long time! If not, you''ll be arrested instead!"


    "Don''t be disrespectful, young man!" Mrs Poh dered, shaking with rage. "Just you wait!"


    Meanwhile Tai Cheng used the chance to pull his wife aside, hurriedly whispering into her ear.


    "Should we stop him? What if he really gets arrested?"


    "Nonsense, this is the best show I''ve watched in years." Yue Niang whispered back hotly. "You will not deprive me of the chance to see Poh Jin Lian on her knees!"


    Yue Niang knew that if Sun Jingwei was anything like his father, she would be seeing metaphorical bloodshed by today, and she couldn''t wait!

 Chapter 221 Wait Till My Husband Hears About This

    The initial n of cleaning up the restaurant was postponed as everyone waited for the drama to happen. A crowd was starting to form, because a group of people gathering had always attracted undue attention.


    "Lao gong! You have to help me seek justice! Your darling had just been bullied!" Mrs Poh whined into the phone as she dialled for her husband. Her voice was so high and irritating that Xue Ning''s eardrums were threatening to go on strike.


    "What happened now?" Her husband asked in a half-worried, half-wary tone. His wife had a tendency of making mountains out of molehills, giving him extra trouble.


    But she was still his wife, no matter how annoying she was. If he didn''t help her, how could he hold his head up high in themunity? Their reputation as a lovey-dovey couple, and him as a family man, would be ruined! How will he run for re-election then?


    "Do you remember Li Xue Ning? She''s back from Shanghai, and she brought back three men! One of the men told me to ''shut the fuck up'' and ''kneel for a long time''! I''ve never been so hurt in my life!"


    "I see, don''t worry, I''ll definitely seek justice for you! Where are you? I''ll go and find you now!" He dered hotly.


    Li Xue Ning was a girl, but she regrettably inherited none of her mother''s grace. The beauty she had inherited was wasted on someone like her, since she became a roughhousing troublemaker.


    As a child and a teenager, she was always two steps away from delinquency! Who knew what kind of dangerous friends she met in the city?


    Damn her for bringing trouble all the way to their tiny, peaceful town! Everyone knew the Li family''s restaurant got trashed yesterday, and Xue Ning arrived a dayter with her new friends? Clearly something was up!


    At least her parents knew how to keep their head down. They never courted trouble when he arrived to be the new Mayor. Li Yue Niang never even stirred trouble when he tried to sleep with her - it was a pity her daughter was such a mean spirited girl, never willing to y nice, not even for him.


    Now, he needed to call the police. He had to teach Li Xue Ning and her delinquent friend a lesson they would never forget.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei and Xue Ning rolled their eyes in tandem. Talk about cherry-picking things to emphasise!


    "Wow, this woman is really delusional." Jingwei muttered, in a voice low enough for Xue Ning to hear. He leaned closer to her, purposely using his body to block Wei Yan from getting closer.


    "This is only the tip of the iceberg." Xue Ning muttered back, using the chance to shrug out of Wei Yan''s hold. It was getting too stifling for herfort. "You should see her throw temper tantrums. She makes Zhou Yu look calm and dignified."


    "Yikes," Jingwei shook his head. His arm instinctively wanted to curl at her waist, where it belonged, but he remembered just in the nick of time that they were a secret in public, so he let his arm hover behind her back as he flexed his hand, reminding himself not to touch.<sub> </sub>


    He need not bother, because Xue Ning could feel the heat of his body as he stood next to her, and she could imagine his arm behind her.


    She was so aware of his presence that it set her skin ame with longing. It had only been a few hours, but she wanted to hug and kiss him already. Her body, her mind, and possibly her soul had gotten so used to his presence that it was excruciating to go without.


    She wanted to steal anotherst nce at him, only to find that he was already looking at her, his eyes dark with want.


    Xue Ning gulped, feeling her resolution to keep their rtionship a secret waver. She wanted to pull him down and kiss him before everyone, feelings be damned.


    Thankfully (or not), the thick tension was interrupted by the annoying voice of Poh Jin Lian. They sprung apart quickly.


    "Laogong, I knew you would support me!" Poh Jin Lian cried out, relieved. "I''m in front of the Li family''s restaurant now, with the broken sign and dirt everywhere. It looks like a beggar''s hideout! Come quickly!"


    Everyone tensed, but Jingwei barked out a loudugh that attracted their attention. "Everyone, you heard that right? She''s increasing her sentence. Excellent. She must really love going on her knees."


    Xue Ning wheezed inughter, while her brother made a rapturous sound of delight. Sun Jingwei was endearing himself to him pretty quickly, especially now when he knew that Sun Jingwei wasn''t Xue Ning''s boyfriend. He seemed like a pretty cool dude!


    Tai Cheng and Yue Nian hid their smiles behind their palms, but their eyes were bright with joy. Even if everything went to shit with Jingwei arrested, they would have this memory of Poh Jin Lian getting insulted to keep themselves warm at night!


    "Laogong!! You heard that right?! You see! I''m not exaggerating! Now he''s sexually harrassing me! Come quickly!" She whined again, before finally hanging up the phone with a huff.


    "Hey, can you not insult my taste in women?" Jingweimented. He pointed to himself, purposely drawing attention to his handsome face and his drool-worthy body, just to better emphasise his point.


    "Do you honestly believe someone like me would go after a middle-aged woman like you? I don''t even know whether to call you confident or delusional!"


    Everyone tittered, seeing his point. More eyes roved over this new man appreciatively, and Xue Ning caught more than one shy nce and one red face. There were also pairs of friends that were yfully nudging each other, wagging their eyebrows as they gazed at him like he was a piece of fresh meat!


    Xue Ning snarled. She wanted to block his body from their greedy eyes! How dare they look at something that was hers!

 Chapter 222 Getting Slapped

    "Don''t worry, your husband will definitely arrest this hooligan," one of the womenforted her.


    "That''s right! Even though that''s a waste of his face¡­"


    "Just because he''s handsome, doesn''t mean he can be rude!"


    "True¡­ maybe he can leave after paying a fine? Besides, I''m sure he was just hoodwinked by Li Xue Ning and her family!"


    "You''re right! Who can me him¡­ I''m sure someone that looks like him wouldn''t be a bad person on purpose. She must have led him to it!"


    "Yes! Jin Lian, he''ll surely apologise to you afterwards, after he sees her true face. You can introduce him to your youngest daughter then!"


    Jingwei clenched his fist. He had never hit women before, but when faced with such rudeness about Xue Ning''s character, he wanted toy them t on the floor! He reminded himself to calm down - he would get even for Xue Ning''s sake.


    He went over to her and asked worriedly. "Hey, are you alright? Those women were saying very mean things about you."


    "Nothing I''ve not heard before," Xue Ning said reassuredly, but that just made Jingwei and Wei Yan look even more upset. "No seriously, I''m fine. I got used to this after a while, and this is quite tame already."


    She wasn''t even lying. After all, her school life was much worse.


    "I see," Jingwei said, clenching his jaw tightly as he watched the women continue to chatter on obliviously, still mindlessly insulting the Li family and Xue Ning in particr. They were going to pay for their words, and he didn''t mean in cash.


    They were going to pay in blood.


    Meanwhile, Yue Niang could only smile as she gazed up at the sky. Excellent. Today wasn''t going to rain, so if there was blood spilled, it''d stay longer on the pavement. Sun Jingwei was going to help her enact her revenge, and best of all, her hands would remain rtively clean after everything!


    After all, it was Sun Jingwei who made the deration!


    A literal stranger to their tiny town was calling them out on their behaviour. Even if they were to find out who he was and try to nder him, how could they possibly hope to damage his reputation?


    He could destroy them with a flick of his pinky finger. She was waiting for that to happen!


    As the women chattered among themselves, news of the wager spread. In a tiny town like theirs where entertainment was sparse, news like this set tongues wagging and more people immediately made their way over, impatient for the show to start.


    Many people had been a victim of Poh Jin Lian''s wicked tongue, but they hadforted themselves with the knowledge that they could never fall as far as the Li family. That family was the bottom of the bottom. The sacrifice they all needed to keep them safe from Poh Jin Lian''s attention.


    Now it seemed like the Li family was going to get their revenge - how could they miss the drama? They had to see this historical event for themselves!<sub> </sub>


    Soon, police sirens were heard. Xue Ning''s eyes were getting tired from how often she rolled them. Mayor Poh was another annoying man who loved to overreact!


    "My wife! Are you alright?" A portly middle-aged man dressed in a cheap suit, boasting an moustache that resembled a caterpir, got out of the police car and looked over at his wife. She seemed physically unharmed, but she turned her watery eyes on him, gripping his arm.


    "Laogong! You are here! Finally! I was so scared!" She wailed pathetically. "Look, this is the man that harassed me!"


    "Which one? Is it this man?" He asked angrily, pointing at Ming Guang who was standing in the corner, who had a thoroughly unpleasant look on his face. This, paired with his muscles, clearly showed he was a threat!


    "No it''s not," his wife snivelled and pointed to Jingwei, but Jingwei took the chance to duck behind Wei Yan.


    "So it''s you? You little punk! I''m sending you to the police station!" Mayor Poh yelled, his eyebrow twitching. Of course Xue Ning would mix with an unsavoury crowd! Despite this man''s baby face, he was hiding a ck heart!


    "No! It''s not him!" His wife shook her head frantically. "It''s the man behind him! He''s hiding like a coward! See, there he is now!"


    Sun Jingwei cheerfully stepped out with a cheerful wave. Mayor Poh was going to yell at him for fooling around, but then his eyes registered who he was actually seeing, and his heart stopped.


    Were his eyes deceiving him? Why was Sun Jingwei standing right in front of him?


    <o>,m "Hi Mayor Poh! Judging by how pale your face looks, it seems like you recognise me." Jingwei whistled cheerily. "I thought we could be good friends, but your wife is so ill-mannered. It''s a shame, a huge shame."</o>


    Jingwei shook his head, a mockery of sadness.


    "I''m not ill-mannered! Laogong! Don''t listen to him! It''s not my fault! He was the one that said those mean things to me!" Poh Jin Lian insisted, pointing a trembling hand at Jingwei. "You have to arrest him! You promised!"


    "You idiot woman! Don''t you recognize who this man is?" Her husband hotly yelled, grabbing her arm to pull it back down, tight enough to hurt. Poh Jin Lian winced, but she felt more aggrieved at the fact that her husband was raising her voice to scold her in public! Did he not care for her pride and reputation?


    She wrenched herself free and red at him, willing tears to form in her eyes.


    "No! But that doesn''t matter! Didn''t you promise me that even if the president himself did me wrong, you would still arrest him and seek justice for me? Are you going back on your words now?"


    Mayor Poh sucked in a huge breath. Why did he marry this woman? Was he cursed? She didn''t know when to shut up!


    "Laogong! You must help me -"


    Mayor Poh had enough, and he pped his wife straight on her cheek!

 Chapter 223 I Married An Idiot!

    The sound of the p reverberated loudly through the hushed silence of the crowd, before everyone started eximing at this expression of violence. Jingwei''s eyes widened - he never expected Mayor Poh to go as far as pping his own wife!


    Meanwhile Mayor Poh was shaking with fear and anger. He was only a mere Mayor, and he only got his position because the previous Mayor had pissed off someone powerful from the big city and was sacked, so got transferred to this sleepy town.


    ? To prevent the same fate from befalling him, he kept a close eye on the rich and famous in his country via the inte. Who knew his years of effort had all gone down the drain, because of his stupid wife that didn''t know how to shut up!


    Even if she wanted to insult the Li family, she should have at least seen who they were with before running her mouth!


    "Laogong! How dare you p me!" Poh Jin Lian shrieked in outrage, her hair flying wildly around as she shook her head disbelievingly as she had one hand on her cheek. "I''m your wife!"


    "You''re an idiot! Do you not know who this man is?"


    "No! Why would I?" She screamed. "He can be Li Xue Ning''spdog for all I know! Why do you care?"


    At her words, Mayor Poh''s face turned an ugly blotchy red. Meanwhile, Jingwei snorted. To think that this madwoman was the one person that actually got it right! The absolute ridiculousness of it all! Once they were in private, he was going to convince Xue Ning toe clean to everyone.


    "That''s Sun Jingwei! The youngest son of billionaire Sun Haowei! And you want me to arrest him?! Oh god, why have the heavens cursed me with such an idiotic wife? I should just get a divorce!" Mayor Pohmented, screaming at the heavens.


    There was a stunned silence after his exmation, then everyone began to buzz with increased excitement. It sounded like a host of locusts descending on their restaurant! People began jostling closer, hoping to get a clearer glimpse of Sun Jingwei to verify for themselves.


    Xue Ning, Ming Guang and Wei Yan tensed, preparing to pull Jingwei out of the way and into the restaurant at a moment''s notice.


    "...What?" Poh Jin Lian said faintly, her face paling like her husband''s. It made the red mark on her cheek look even more striking. She held up a hand, pointing a shaking finger at Jingwei who smiled smugly at her. "NO! That cannot be¡­ogong, you must be mistaken! This man just looks like him only! It''s impossible!"


    "Is it though? Are you really sure about that?" Jingwei asked, a finger idly tapping on his chin. "Do you want to take that chance Mayor Poh? Come on, arrest me then."


    Jingwei finished his statement by coyly putting out his hands together, as though taunting them to cuff him. Xue Ning wanted to smack the back of his head, if he wanted to be handcuffed so badly, he didn''t need to do this!


    "You - you - "


    "No! Of course we wouldn''t dare!" Mayor Poh quickly replied, sweating heavily. There were gross wet patches already forming at his armpits. Onlookers scrunched up their faces in disgust. But Mayor Poh didn''t care - he kept on bowing, while pulling his stubborn wife further away.


    "No! Laogong, I''m telling you! This is a fake! This man is a fake!"<sub> </sub>


    Yue Niang t out began tough at the look of desperation on Poh Jin Lian''s face, attracting her attention.


    "Li Yue Niang! How dare youugh so loudly in my presence!" Poh Jin Lian shrieked, her eyes wide with anger and humiliation.


    "Why would I not? Are you so used to buying fake goods that you now think that people can be faked too?" Yue Niang retorted, smiling with too many teeth.


    Poh Jin Lian took a step back at the ferocity in her smile - it felt like she was going to get eaten alive! When did Li Yue Niang go from docile sheep to rabid wolf?


    Meanwhile Jingwei could only p in appreciation. In that moment, Mama Li truly resembled her daughter when she was angry - oh wait, technically it was Xue Ning who resembled her mother. It seemed like ferocity was inherited!


    "Woman, can you shut up?!" Mayor Poh yelled again. "Why are you still arguing with Li Yue Niang? It''s been 10 years!"


    "So you also know that it has been 10 years," Yue Niang interrupted. "10 years of you insulting me and my family with backhandedments, because you can''t get over the fact that your husband''s eyes strayed to look at me when you first moved into town!"


    "Li Yue Niang - shut up!" Poh Jin Lian screamed, her face now red with humiliation, raising a hand to p Li Yue Niang.


    "Mom! Look out!" Tai Xuan and Xue Ning immediately moved, but it was toote, they wouldn''t reach her in time to stop it -


    Only for their mother to catch her wrist and twist it behind her back in one practised motion. Poh Jin Lian screamed in pain, and it was music to Yue Niang''s ears.


    "Trying to p me? With those weak arms of yours? Come on, have some sense!" She scolded gleefully, purposely leaning closer so she could get a better look at Poh Jin Lian''s terrified face. She wanted tomit it to memory.


    "You''ve never done a hard day''s work in ten years, and you still want to hit people? You''d have better luck getting the rest of your followers to do your jobs for you, rightdies?"


    Yue Niang turned her ferocious smile on the rest of the Neighbourhood Association, and the women hurriedly distanced themselves from her, not willing to attract Li Yue Niang''s attention, for fear of getting their heads ripped off.


    Their faces were also flushed with embarrassment - they had also been unkind to Li Yue Niang and her family because they were jealous of her beauty! And when Xue Ning grew older, their hatred had been redirected to her.


    They couldn''t let Li Xue Ning know that she was beautiful, because once she did, they wouldn''t be able to hurt her!

 Chapter 224 On A Warpath

    Yue Niang wasn''t done, she twisted Poh Jin Lian''s arm further, purposely stomping on her ankle too just for extra impact. Poh Jin Lian let out a pained scream that delighted her heart, so she continued to do it, taking special care to rub the sole of her boot all over the fragile bone.


    If she was wearing heels, she could have - would have dly broken her ankles and left her to crawl on the floor. But s, there was a time and ce for everything.


    She took a quick look at her daughter, who was huddled with Sun Jingwei and her boyfriend. Thankfully, her daughter had still managed to find love, even when surrounded with all the negativity around her!


    It didn''t escape Yue Niang''s notice that the insults and rumours levied towards her grew lesser when she grew older, while the number of rudements levied at Xue Ning increased as she grew older. All of them had an opinion on her attitude, her behaviour, her grades, her dressing, herck of friends, herck of rtionships¡­


    To make matters worse, her peers also began to parrot the same things they heard their parents say.


    No wonder her daughter wanted to escape this stifling town. Yue Niang wanted to keep her daughter close to her, but she had to acknowledge that this town was a toxic ce. Her daughter would suffer the longer she stayed!


    Tai Xuan was lucky to escape the brunt of it, for he had always been handsome and good at sports, a sure-winbination for poprity. Tai Cheng was seen as the poor henpecked husband, cuckolded by her. They pitied him, but did not respect him. It was her and Xue Ning that had to endure the worst of it!


    If not for this ce being so forgettable, making it the perfect ce to hide, she would have insisted the family move away too.


    But then again, they were already attracting attention. She might as well go all out and satisfy her bloodlust. Who knew when this chance would happen again!


    She gave Poh Jin Lian''s ankle another brutal stomp, and everyone winced at the scream that escaped.


    "You''re not screaming loudly enough," Yue Niangmented. "Come on, use that voice you do when you''re spreading rumours about my family. I know you have strong lungs, use them."


    She then twisted her fingers until they turned purple. Some people turned away, unable to take the violence.


    "Holy shit, Xue Ning, your mom is kind of scary," Jingwei murmured, half-impressed, half-terrified. She looked like Captain Mu when he was torturing informants - Jingwei had been unlucky enough to stumble into it once, and it gave him nightmares.


    "Does she know martial arts?"


    "Don''t think so, I think she just had pent up anger for 10 years. I can rte." Xue Ning muttered back, even as her heart cheered for her mother''s actions. Part of her had never seen this side of her mother, and it was so satisfying!


    "Then do you want to punch her? Or him? I can hold them while you beat them up," Jingwei offered. "Don''t worry, you''ll get off scot free."


    "I can help too," Wei Yan chimed in. "This couple really pisses me off."


    "Thanks," Xue Ning said, her heart warmed at the gesture. "But I''m not going to interrupt my mom on a warpath. That''s just asking for trouble."<sub> </sub>


    All three pairs of eyes turned back to the battlefield.


    Poh Jin Lian screamed and thrashed, trying to get away, but Yue Niang held on firmly, much like a cat squashing a mouse under its ws. She wasn''t done with the Poh couple.


    "Do you know what''s more ridiculous? When I rejected the advances of that perverted husband of yours, he also had the nerve to make our lives difficult! So don''t worry, you and your husband are peas in a pod, a heavenly pairing of maggots and dposing flesh!"


    "Wow," Xue Ning said, impressed. Who knew her mother had such a vicious mouth on her!


    The crowd hissed in unison, feeling the blownd perfectly. Their eyes swivelled between Poh Jin Lian''s pathetic pose, her shorter, dumpier figure in her gaudy tracksuit, and how her permed hair resembled a bird''s nest. They then looked at Yue Niang''s taller imposing figure, with her body kept fit from running the restaurant.


    While Poh Jin Lian''s face was kept younger looking by the multiple cosmetic procedures that her husband paid for, there was still no denying that Yue Niang had more striking features!


    "You''re a vixen! You should never have been in this town! You and your daughter are both out to seduce my husband from me!" Poh Jin Lian screamed as she blinked back hot tears.


    "Huh?" Jingwei and Wei Yan asked, confused at this turn of events. They turned to Xue Ning who just shrugged.


    "Excuse me? I seduced your husband? What kind of rubbish is this? If anything, you should be ming your husband for trying to hit on me!" Xue Ning retorted. She kept silent all this while when it came to their insults, but she definitely couldn''t let this usation pass.


    "WHAT THE FUCK." Jingwei eximed.


    "See? You admitted it!" Poh Jin Lian dered. "You, tempting him with your young tender flesh even as a teenager! If you never seduced him, why would he hit on you?"


    How could she forget the memory of her husband lusting over Li Yue Niang when Jin Lian and her husband just moved into their sleepy town?!


    Li Yue Niang back then had lovely eyes and an amazing figure. Paired with a head of long beautiful hair and a delicate, swan-like neck, and a feline grace notmonly found in women, she was a siren song for men everywhere! Of course her husband''s eyes had strayed!


    And when their darling daughter became a teenager, she caught his eyes wandering again! Like slut mother, like slut daughter!


    Xue Ning nearly retched at her words. Gross. Oh my god. Around her, people looked at her judgmentally. A teenage girl out to seduce a married man was a big no!


    They forgot that the grown-up was the one in the wrong. Their biasness was why Xue Ning never wanted to stay!

 Chapter 225 A Bad Man & A Shitty Husband

    "You are disgusting," Jingwei boomed out, ring furiously at Poh Jin Lian even as every cell in his body shook with a protective rage. He suddenly can''t stand the thought of Xue Ning staying in this town any longer, where she was subjected to the attentions of pervy balding old men.


    "I can''t believe you''re making excuses for your husband being a paedophile!"


    Everyone fell silent at his words. Jingwei had brought up a very good point.


    "I never said that!" Poh Jin Lian cried out, finally realising the severity of his usations. "You''re putting words in my mouth!"


    "''''Even as a teenager''. You said those words, and everyone here heard them with their own ears. Your husband was lusting for a literal teenager, after he lusted for her mother! How can you still defend him? Are you a paedophile too?"


    "That''s not what I meant! It''s her fault - she was the one - "


    "Just for that, I''ll personally make sure all of you get sent to prison! Disgusting vermin - none of you deserve to live!" Jingwei dered hotly. He didn''t need to ask Tianwei for help - he just needed to make a quick call to Officer Tang, and he''d make sure none of them saw the light of day.


    "I didn''t - "


    "Shut up woman! Haven''t you done enough! You and your big mouth will kill us both!" Mayor Poh screamed at his wife. Now he was doomed. His wife had made his preference for young beautiful girls known to everyone!


    Forget re-election, how was he going to even stay out of jail?


    Yue Niang scoffed. "The both of you can go for marital counselling in prison. But don''t scold your wife too badly, Mayor Poh. She got one thing right - I definitely wouldn''t be here if not for circumstances beyond my control. But you''re forgetting one important detail - I was here before you even arrived!"


    "But now I''ll still be here even when you leave¡­ in one piece or otherwise," Yue Niang continued ominously, loving how Poh Jin Lian was shaking under her hold.


    "Is it just me, or is Mom looking particrly bloodthirsty? Do you think it''s PMS? Not that it''s not cool, but man I''m d she''s our mom and not our enemy." Tai Xuan said to his sister. "And why didn''t you tell me about him creeping around you? We could have done something!"


    "There wasn''t anything to tell. He just liked to stare and he didn''t dare to approach after I threatened to stab him with the scissors. Freaking creepy though." Xue Ning shuddered, recalling the memory of his greedy eyes on her body. Because of him, she had always dressed conservatively in baggy T-shirts and long pants when she had to go out, just in case she bumped into him!


    "The nerve¡­ and then he still dared to im you were an insane delinquent!" Tai Xuan hissed, intensely upset.


    "He did what?" Jingwei chimed in, sounding if possible, even more upset than Jingwei. He had moved back to check on Xue Ning, and to give Mrs Li the space she needed to destroy her enemies. He wasn''t a kill-stealer, but now he was this close to bing a killer after hearing Xue Ning''s words!


    "Why are you eavesdropping on a private conversation with my sister?" Tai Xuan demanded.


    "What part of it was private? I was standing here the whole time! And it''s not as though you were keeping it a secret!" Jingwei protested. "Besides, I might get arrested soon, so do you want me to destroy that man for you? I might as well do something good before that."<sub> </sub>


    "Please, like they''d dare to arrest you after what that man said." Xue Ning scoffed.


    "Well," Tai Xuan coughed. "If you can make them beg for forgiveness and then throw them into prison, I''ll consider being nicer to you, since you aren''t dating my sister!"


    Jingwei and Xue Ning pointedly did not meet each other''s eyes at his words. Instead Jingwei only gave Tai Xuan an affronted look.


    "Excuse me? I''m already doing my best here - but your mother seems to have everything under control! How can I interrupt her meal of revenge?"


    "Yeah Ge," Xue Ning added. "What if Mom decides to rip into Jingwei instead?"


    Tai Xuan rolled his eyes. "Fine, be that way, the both of you. Let''s talk about happier things - like your boyfriend! Meimei, I am surprised at your taste in men. Tell me more about him."


    He jabbed a finger at Wei Yan who blinked in surprise. Meanwhile Jingwei scowled at the ground. Thankfully, Tai Xuan was too focused on his sister to see it.


    "Er¡­ his name is Wei Yan. He is Jingwei''s bodyguard."


    "And?" Her brother prodded. "That''s all? Not even his age? His family? Whether he has any pets? Favourite colour? Number of exes?"


    Xue Ning paused. She didn''t know how old Wei Yan was. She only knew how old Jingwei was! And of course she didn''t know all the other information!


    "That''s not important," she said instead, shrugging.


    Tai Xuan frowned; he certainly disagreed! But before he could continue to interrogate Xue Ning, Jingwei once again had all but stormed away to her mother''s side so he could re at Mayor Poh.


    He didn''t want to listen to Xue Ning talk about this fake boyfriend of hers! She should be talking about him to her brother!


    "Are you arresting me or not? My time is exceedingly precious, and I refuse to waste a second more than necessary on your adulterous, pedophilic, self!" Jingwei demanded haughtily, sounding every inch the arrogant entitled rich kid the tabloids painted him as.


    "Of course not!" Mayor Poh frantically assured him. "We would never! My wife was truly in the wrong, please be magnanimous and forgive her this once¡­ she is very shallow, petty and dim, and I have scolded her many times -"


    Jingwei shot him an even bigger look of disgust. "What a great husband you are - first you lusted over a married woman a decade ago, and then ganged up with your wife to make her life hell after she rejected you, and then you lust over that woman''s teenage daughter, and now you are throwing your wife under the bus to save your own skin! Truly a scumbag!"

 Chapter 226 Get On Your Knees

    Mayor Poh was speechless; his mouth was moving soundlessly like fish out of water as Jingwei summarised his numerous ws.


    "I was going to demand a kneeling apology from your wife, but now I''ve changed my mind." He paused for a moment, relishing in the look of faint hope in Mrs Poh''s eyes before he dashed itpletely with his next statement.


    "The both of you should get down on your knees and ask the Li family for forgiveness!"


    Jingwei then caught the eye of Xue Ning''s mom and hastily added. "Of course, that''s if you want them to? Do you want them to kowtow on the floor too?"


    "No need to kowtow¡­ for now. I''ll decideter." Yue Niang replied, smiling generously as she flung Poh Jin Lian on the floor as though she was a garbage bag she was flinging into the chute after a long day. She stretched her arms; that was a good work out!


    Meanwhile, Poh Jin Lian let out a pained shriek as her body hit the floor. 40 year old bodies were fragile and weren''t meant to be treated so harshly!


    Jingwei stared judgmentally at Mayor Poh. "You didn''t even catch your wife? For shame."


    "I - I¡­"


    "Get on your knees," Jingwei ordered darkly. "Both of you. Aren''t you forgetting something?"


    Xue Ning knew that technically, Jingwei''s words were to punish this asshole couple for purposely making life difficult for her parents (and her), but knowing that did not stop the sudden leak of arousal that flowed at this disy of dominance. She squeezed her thighs subtly together to alleviate the aching want, half-horrified at her body''s reaction to this side of Jingwei.


    Her cheeks felt hotter than usual, especially when her eyes traced the muscles of his back. When he ordered them to get on their knees, Xue Ning found her own knees weakening too, which was terrible.


    She mentally pped herself for her loss inposure. In public no less! What kind of pervert was she bing?


    While Xue Ning was grappling with suddenly being turned on by Jingwei''s domineering behaviour, the poor Poh couple had theplete opposite reaction to Sun Jingwei''s words. They looked into his eyes, hoping that it was all a joke, but Sun Jingwei was deadly serious.


    Horror slowly dawned in their eyes, as they realised the situation they found themselves in. Mayor Poh swallowed, but all his saliva had dried up in fear. His wife wasn''t doing much better, her eyes darting quickly, as though hoping to find an escape route.


    "Come on, we don''t have all day!" Yue Niang barked out irritably. "I still have to fix up my restaurant, something that would have been done if you bothered to help out. But no, you wanted to insult my family and now here we are, wasting more time!"


    "How about we just throw them in prison then?" Jingwei asked.


    "No! Please don''t! We''ll apologise, won''t we, Laogong?" Poh Jin Lian wailed, immediately getting on her knees. She stumbled, and grabbed onto her husband to steady herself, but that despicable man shook her off without a single nce, and she could only cower in front of Jingwei alone, her eyes filled with tears.


    Xue Ning somehow felt pity for her! She was a terrible person, but her husband was also a piece of shit.


    Maybe this was her n all along, but then Xue Ning remembered how her family had to endure her countless provocations and the effects of her rumours for years, and felt most of the pity evaporate.


    Swallowing his pride, Mayor Poh reluctantly got on his knees too, but not before shooting his wife a furious look. How dare she look so pitiful when she was the one that caused this mess to happen? He had never been this humiliated in his entire life!<sub> </sub>


    Now he was on his knees in public, begging for Sun Jingwei''s mercy so he could save his own skin.


    "To think I would live to see the day. Just for this, I''ll make you a bowl of noodlester!" Yue Niang mused, giving Jingwei a cheerful look. Her opinion of him had much improved, now that he wasn''t a potential love interest for her daughter.


    Sun Jingwei had a strong sense of justice and he did not tolerate bullying. From what she saw, Jingwei was also a man that ced much importance on husbands treating their wives well.


    All these things that would help her daughter if she remained friends with him.


    Of course. They had to be friends only!


    "Thanks," Jingwei replied cheerfully. Helping people get revenge on their tormentors did make him feel hungry. "Now do you want to do the honours?"


    "Of course," Yue Niang said cheerfully, her smile turning wicked. "Let''s begin shall we? From the moment the both of you entered this town. We have a lot of ground to cover so let''s hurry up!"


    The couple cowered in fear in front of her, spewing out countless apologies from their shivering lips, while Yue Niang looked imperiously over them, like a queen staring down at her unworthy subjects.


    She cut them off with a raised hand and a derisive smile.


    "That''s not good enough, do you even know why you need to apologise? Tell me - tell everyone about how you tried to ruin me and my family!"


    "I¡­ I¡­ " Poh Jin Lian realised that it wasn''t as though she didn''t know what to apologise for, she didn''t know which one to say first!


    "I''m¡­sorry for¡­ taking out my husband''s unfaithful behaviour on you and your family," she began, bowing her head. "It was¡­ wrong of me¡­"


    "And?"


    "And¡­ for purposely spreading rumours about you seducing married men¡­damaging your reputation¡­"


    "And?"


    "And¡­trying to purposely sabotage your restaurant by spreading bad rumours about it¡­"


    "Bad rumours like?" Yue Niang prompted.


    "Like¡­ like saying your noodles were poor quality, iming they caused food poisoning¡­"


    "See I knew it! You were the ones that caused our restaurant to be shut down once every year for bullshit ''health inspections''!"

 Chapter 227 Getting Arrested

    Yue Niang then eximed to the crowd. "See everyone? All this time you thought our restaurant was a second-rate noodle stall, but it turns out there was someone spreading poison all this while!"


    Their noodle restaurant had managed to still do well enough, due to the quality of their food, but they could have done better, and provided a better life for their children. This couple had robbed her of that opportunity. For that, she would never forgive them!


    "This bitch!" Tai Xuan growled angrily, cracking his knuckles. "You''re lucky your children are girls, because if they were men, I''d beat them up in front you!"


    "I''m sorry!" Poh Jin Lian repeated, shaking in fear.


    "Sorry? How will your apologiespensate me for the ie lost from all these years? And to think you''ve often made derogatoryments about my family''sck of money, when you''ve been contributing to it all this while!" Yue Niang roared, and everyone hushed in fear.


    "Not to mention, do you think I wouldn''t know what you''ve been saying to my daughter all those years? All the things you influenced her peers to call her? About how you got them to ostracise her?"


    "I - I''m sorry!" Poh Jin Lian wept, but Yue Niang wasn''t in the mood for forgiveness. She was out for vengeance.


    "You! A full-grown adult, bullying a child because you didn''t like me, her mother, because your husband, had the fucking gall to find me attractive! To call you pathetic would be an insult to the word!"


    Everyone watched in stunned silence, casting judgemental eyes over Poh Jin Lian and sympathetic eyes on Xue Ning. A grown woman bullying a child was just ridiculous!


    Xue Ning stangely felt like crying at the sudden sympathy - she didn''t like to think about her rtively sad and lonely childhood and adolescence, but there was no denying that she could have been a happier person if Poh Jin Lian wasn''t getting people to make her life more difficult than it had to be. She hurriedly wiped at her eyes with her hand, but she didn''t do it quickly enough - Jingwei turned around just in time to see her cry!


    Oh, that was embarrassing.


    Sun Jingwei just stared at her as though someone had kicked an entire litter of puppies after throwing a sack of kittens to drown in an icy river. She immediately pretended nothing was wrong, but Jingwei''s heart still ached when he saw a suspiciously pinched look remain on Xue Ning''s face.


    It looked like she was still holding back tears! Xue Ning, who was one of the strongest, most steady people he knew, looked like she wanted to bawl.


    That wouldn''t do!


    He wanted to go and hug her, but then her brother slung a supportive arm around her shoulder, muttering reassurances to her. If he did something now, he''d attract undue attention to her, and Xue Ning hated that.


    So instead, he decided that he would take revenge for her! Jingwei turned back to that scumbag couple and smirked.


    "Wow, so you''re an evil stepmother?" Jingwei chimed in cidly, but his eyes were cold. "But you''re not even rted to her at all - ah, I guess that just makes you evil. But don''t worry, you''re still a tiny bit above your husband."


    "Damn right she is, I''m surprised the churches don''t catch fire when she and her husband walk in every Sunday." Yue Niang added, snarling at them even as her heart felt joyous at Jingwei''s input.


    Her own husband could have joined, but he had always preferred to leave the verbal warfare to her while he sat aside and ate popcorn. He tended tofort people more - there was a reason why he was often on the clean-up crew.


    "They are Christian?" Jingwei''s mouth fell open in surprise, staring at them with new eyes. "Wow, guess God really is epting everyone nowadays. Jesus Christ."


    The crowdughed. He could hear Xue Ning snicker from behind him, and he smiled.


    Mayor Poh''s face flushed an angry red. "Li Yue Niang, don''t try to kick people when they''re down! You''ll suffer retribution for this!"


    "Ho ho ho, did I just hear a rat speak?" Yue Niang asked condescendingly,


    "Are you deaf?" Jingwei asked. "I was the one that insulted you! Why are you ming Mrs Li for my words? I see that you really don''t register my existence!"


    "N-no, Mr Sun, I wouldn''t dare - " Mayor Poh quickly amended his words, mentally smacking himself for saying the wrong thing. Now Sun Jingwei was just waiting to be offended, why did he still open his mouth to say something that wasn''t an apology?


    (Because he couldn''t take being insulted by Li Yue Niang! How dare this woman, who rejected him a long time ago, dare to insult him like this? He was the Mayor! How dare her daughter follow her footsteps! If she had just let him cop a feel, he''d treat her so lovingly!)<sub> </sub>


    "You wouldn''t dare insult me, but you''d dare insult the same person that you tried to hit on?" Jingweimented incredulously. "You''re not very bright, are you?"


    "ording to him, neither am I," Yue Niang cheerfully interrupted. The couple now leaned backwards, refusing to meet her eyes, but Yue Niang wasn''t going to let them off until she squeezed everything from them.


    She grabbed Mayor Poh''s chin and raised it so he had no choice but to meet her eyes. Yue Niang gave a feral smile at the fear and humiliation she could smell from the couple, or maybe that was just their nervous sweating.


    "Unfortunately, just like how you loved to insult me by calling me a brainless slut, I am not as highly educated as you! As such, I have no elegant words to describe you. Perhaps Sun Jingwei can help?"


    "Me? I don''t know¡­ but I''ve always been a man of action." Jingwei replied as he remembered how sad Xue Ning looked. "I think stripping them of their Mayor status and then letting them spend some time in prison for them to reflect on their actions would be a good start."


    The couple looked up in pure horror.


    "Well, that''s settled then! Goodbye Mayor Poh, I guess I have to call you Mr Poh from now on. I hope your CEO son-inw and your daughter will visit you in the holding cell tonight." Yue Niang promised sweetly, even wiping away the tears that escaped from Poh Jin Lian''s eyes.


    Jingwei turned to the befuddled police officers. "What are you waiting for? Take them away! Or do I need to rece all of you too?


    "No Sir!" They hastily agreed, pulling the kneeling couple off the floor. But it seemed like their bodies were stuck to the concrete and they refused to leave at all.


    "Mr and Mrs Poh, pleasee with us." One of the officers cajoled.


    "No! You cannot do this to us!" Mr Poh raged, his eyes bulging out. His wife began to cry harder. "I''ll get you for this!"


    "Please stop making a bigger spectacle of yourself." Another officer pleaded as he dragged their stubborn bodies from the floor. "Do you not want to leave with dignity?"


    "Laogong, he is right," Poh Jin Lian said through teary eyes. "We - "


    "Shut up! This mess wouldn''t have happened if not for you! No matter what, I''m divorcing you after this!" Mr Poh yelled.


    "How could you say something so heartless!" Poh Jin Lian screamed back at him. "After all I''ve done for you¡­ and who says you can divorce me, if anything, I should be divorcing you - you unfaithful bastard!"


    "Me? Unfaithful? Have you given me anything worth being faithful too? Just look at yourself! Fat and ugly and useless!"


    "You''re not handsome either! You''re balding and smelly and bad in bed!"


    The couple then started to kick and w at each other, intent on ripping the other party to shreds physically, not just with their words, scandalising their onlookers. The Poh couple was known to be quite lovey-dovey by everyone, and they even raised two lovely daughters, but no one could have guessed that their love was so fragile that it was broken by a single setback!


    "Fuck you bitch!"


    "You fucking manwhore!"


    They continued to scream expletives at each other, even as the officers hurriedly pried them apart, cuffed them and pulled them to the police car. Unfortunately, they only had one police car, which meant that this troublesome couple had to share the backseat!


    Husband and wife screamed and lunged for each other even with their hands cuffed. It would have been supremely romantic, if not for the fact that they were trying to murder each other!


    "Sorry for all the trouble they have caused you," the police officers bowed lowly to Sun Jingwei.


    "Caused me? What about the trouble they caused them?" Jingwei gestured to the Li family. "What was your entire department doing for 10 years? You heard that creep! They were deliberately ndering the Li family for a decade! If this happened to them, who knew how many other families this happened to!"


    The officers could only hang their heads, ashamed.

 Chapter 228 Who Is The Boyfriend?

    "We''re very sorry," the officers apologised again.


    "You''d better be," Jingwei said. "And why are you apologising to me? You should be apologising to them! To make things up to me and to them, you''d better lock them up for years! That man was a pervert!"


    "Yes Sir!"


    "Make sure it happens!" Jingwei instructed, "I''ll be following up on this issue, just in case some of you decide to look the other way!"


    "Yes Sir!" The officers sweated nervously. After Sun Jingwei''s warning, they weren''t going to risk getting bribed by Mayor Poh to let him out early! No matter how he offered to grease their palms, it wasn''t worth it if Sun Jingwei was ready to cut them down if they found out.


    They hurriedly got into the car with the couple still screaming at each other in the backseat, and then drove off so quickly it was as though there were hellhounds nipping at their heels. The faster they got to the station to deposit these two people, the faster they could be at peace!


    ======


    The crowd watched the police car vanish from view. With the main viins disposed of, the y hade to an end. As such, the crowd should have dispersed, but many people still wanted to linger to watch Jingwei.


    Such a handsome man with a sexy baritone, being a beacon of justice! How could they simply walk away from him! They had toe closer, even if it was to say hello. Many young and old women began to flock towards him, coyly tucking their hair behind their ears.


    Before Jingwei could do something stupid like kiss Xue Ning in public to let them know about his rtionship status, Ming Guang had parked himself in front of him to keep them away!


    "Anyone that bothers Young Master Sun will be arrested," he dered simply, crossing his muscr arms. "It doesn''t matter if you are young or old, rich or poor."


    The crowd groaned and dispersed more quickly after that, but not without more than a few wistful sighs in Jingwei''s general direction. Some women even went after Ming Guang, but Ming Guang''s death re refused to waver.


    The more persistent women even walked along the street and then made a detour, pushing their breasts out and sashaying their hips, hoping that they could catch his eye, but it was all futile.


    Sun Jingwei had only eyes for Li Xue Ning, but to his credit, he tried to make it less obvious than normal. Whether it was sessful or not though, was an entire thing all together.


    The three other members of Xue Ning''s family stared at the way Wei Yan watched over Jingwei, who continued to stare at Xue Ning, who was ring at the random women sneaking nces at Jingwei.


    Somehow, something wasn''t right! Shouldn''t Xue Ning be looking at her boyfriend, while her boyfriend looked over Jingwei (because it was his job), and Jingwei looked at the women (because he was known as a yboy)?


    Very strange. But they knew better than to bring this up in public!


    After thest of the stragglers have finally left, Tai Cheng hurriedly ushered everyone into the restaurant to rest. Or at least, gather themselves with some modicum of privacy.


    Xue Ning''s mouth dropped open when she saw the state of the restaurant. Tables and chairs were still strewn everywhere,ying at odd angles. Some of the chairs were bent unnaturally, clearly they needed to be reced!


    Not only that, there were still shards of broken ss (possibly from the window), smashed tes and bowls, along and trashed cutlery littering the floor.


    "Oh my god," Jingwei gasped as he saw what happened inside, nearly tripping over the ledge when he entered and falling on Xue Ning.


    Xue Ning caught him instinctively and scolded him. "Be careful! Why are you so clumsy?"


    "Sorry sorry, thanks for catching me," Jingwei smiled winningly, and used this chance to cling just a bit tighter to her. Xue Ning rolled his eyes and gave him an indulgent smile in return.


    Their moment was interrupted with a cough from Xue Ning''s father. He had a feeling that Sun Jingwei had less than tonic feelings for his daughter, but he''d never expected his daughter to return those feelings when she was already attached!


    This was most despicable - how could his daughter flirt with Jingwei in front of her boyfriend? They thought her better than that!


    "Walk carefully everyone, we haven''t had the time to clean up yet, because of our injuries," Tai Cheng ordered, purposely giving Jingwei a warning re, and the couple hastily split apart. He then gave Wei Yan a quick look, but that man didn''t even look bothered at what transpired at all!<sub> </sub>


    Instead, he was surveying the damage with a frown on his face. Such a dependabled! He decided to pay more attention to Wei Yan in return, since he might be his future son-inw in future.


    His daughter brought home her first ever boyfriend, but this was the impression they were giving him! A hostile town, violence and arrest, and now his wrecked restaurant while his boss flirted with his girlfriend!


    If this Wei Yan boy didn''t break up with her, he must really like her! Tai Cheng would be relieved beyond words to know there was someone for his daughter. Someone normal, that won''t be expected to marry someone else for the sake of his family.


    He had to help smooth things over with Wei Yan!


    "Sorry that you have to visit when it looks like such a state. If I knew there were visitors, I would have cleaned up more!"


    "No worries Uncle, this is perfectly fine! You shouldn''t be moving around with injuries anyway," He was talking to Wei Yan, but it was Jingwei who replied, walking next to him.


    Wei Yan nodded in agreement and hurriedly added, "besides, we''re here to help you fix things - if you fix everything, what else do we have left to do?"


    "True, true," Tai Cheng let out a tired chuckle as he looked at his beloved restaurant. "But I still feel sorry anyway. Instead of showing all of you visitors a good time, you got to see the worst of everything - and you even have to help!"


    "It''s no trouble!" Both men hastily assured him. "What can we do to help?"


    "For a start, let''s sweep the floor first. After we dispose of the shards, we can take stock of how many chairs and tables are broken in the attack, and how many we can fix and rece. We''ll also need to tidy the front of the store, fix the entrance, clean up the kitchen area¡­"


    "Got it!" Jingwei said eagerly. "Where are the brooms? I''ll sweep!"


    "You can sweep? That''s news to me," Tai Xuan chimed in from the side, his hand holding the hand of his wife.


    He had taken a quick detour to check on Xin Yu, and she was well enough to join them for the clean up. He hadn''t told her about their special guests though - he wanted to see the shocked look on her face! "


    "Don''t be rude," His wife Xin Yu chided gently, but her eyes widened when she realised there were three strangers in the restaurant. She instinctively tensed, clutching his hand tightly, expecting trouble to repeat itself.


    "Xin Yu, don''t worry, these are the people that came to help! I won''t lead you into trouble! Besides, you can meet Xue Ning''s boyfriend now!"


    "Xue Ning has a boyfriend?" Xin Yu eximed, her mouth falling open in surprise as she looked at her sister-inw. Xue Ning pointedly stared at the floor, avoiding her probing nces.


    To bring a significant other to help with this family matter¡­ Clearly marriage was in the cards! She looked over the three men with more assessing eyes.


    "Which one of you is Xue Ning''s boyfriend?" She asked, but it was her husband who answered her.


    "Take a guess!" He gestured to the three. "You have a one-third chance of getting it right."


    "Childish, but fine, I''ll indulge you," shemented with a raised eyebrow. If her husband was making her guess, that meant that the choice wasn''t something that would make sense! If not, what would be the point!


    She stared at the first man, he looked older, with his bulging muscles and stern expression on his face. This man seemed toe from a universe where Xue Ning was a man who entered the military and came out stoned-face.


    Much too mature for her. But maybe Xue Ning wanted someone like that? Her sister-inw hated frivolous men. Possible.


    She then turned to peer at the second man. He looked obviously younger, with baby fat still on his cheeks. He gave her a polite bow that she returned. He was also tall and well-built, dressed in T-shirt and jeans, but he gave her the general demeanour of a young teenage boy that just entered college!


    Did Xue Ning like boys so young?


    And then she looked at the third man, and he was perfect!

 Chapter 229 The Reveal Of The Real Boyfriend

    Her mouth dropped open as she gazed at him, and then she turned back to her husband, wordlessly pointing at him.


    How could someone so handsome exist before her? He had strong brows, pronounced cheekbones, a tall nose bridge and a sharp jawline, and his eyes were bright withughter.


    She had a vague inkling that she had seen him somewhere before, but she couldn''t ce it.


    "Wife? You''re choosing this person?" Tai Xuan asked, inwardly smirking. His wife was going to pick the wrong man.


    "No I''m not," Xin Yu replied, sensing the glee in her husband''s eyes. "I just think he looks familiar, but that can''t be. I would recall seeing someone this handsome in the restaurant before."


    "Is he more handsome than me?" Tai Xuan asked, his attention focused on the important things.


    "Of course," Xin Yu replied easily, without a moment of hesitation. Tai Xuan sulked, while Jingwei shot him a smug smile. Yes, this was why many husbands (like Officer Tang) hated him at first, until they were won over by his stunning personality.


    Xin Yu took a closer look at this man. Her husband had looked delighted when she was about to choose him, which hinted that he was most likely the wrong choice.


    But it could also be that he purposely chose to look delighted to fool her into thinking this man was the wrong choice, when he was actually the right one! Perhaps it was poor form to be so suspicious of one''s husband, but Xin Yu had always been an overthinker.


    Xin Yu then took note of his attire.


    He was so sharply dressed while Xue Ning was dressed so sloppily! They didn''t look like they belonged together, but maybe that''s why her husband wanted her to guess.


    Not to mention, Xue Ning must have told him the dress code¡­ he shouldn''t have dressed so formally¡­unless he was here to impress her parents!


    She smirked; she had discovered his trick!


    "Wife, have you made your decision?"


    "Yes," Xin Yu said, clearing her throat. All three men listened with various levels of interest.


    "Xue Ning''s boyfriend is¡­ this one!"


    Everyone choked in surprise, Xue Ning the loudest one of all, as she pointed straight at Sun Jingwei.


    "You''re wrong!" Tai Xuan dered smugly. "Try again!"


    Xue Ning caught Jingwei''s eyes. He looked so happy to just have someone acknowledge him as her boyfriend, even as a wrong guess.


    How could she pretend to date someone else knowingly, especially after all he did just now to stand up for her family?


    She thought she could keep their rtionship a secret, but not only was it more difficult than expected, she found that she didn''t want to keep it a secret, especially not from her own loved ones.


    Why did she need to hide it, from the people who loved her? They weren''t doing anything wrong!


    "Actually, she''s right," Xue Ning said, dropping the bomb without any warning. "Jingwei is actually my boyfriend."


    "HAHAHAHAHA" Her brother cackled, smacking her back. "Oi, meimei, don''t lie just to make sure your sister-inw wins! You shouldn''t joke about things like that."


    "Yeah Xue Ning, your brother is right, you shouldn''t joke about things like that. Besides, who is going to believe that we are dating, right?" Jingwei said quietly. Thest question was meant for himself to hear.


    What did Wei Yan have that made him more believable, a better match for Xue Ning than him?


    "Who is joking? And you''re supposed to support me, since we are actually dating." Xue Ning argued, stomping her feet in irritation as she red at Jingwei. Why was he throwing her under the bus?


    Jingwei shot questioning eyes at Xue Ning, wondering what her game n was. Was she really thinking about revealing their rtionship to her family just like this? After such an exhausting encounter with town bullies without even easing them into it?


    After Xue Ning had made so much fuss about keeping things a secret? Did she suddenly change her mind?


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning met his eyes evenly, giving him a nod.


    Jingwei''s eyes widened in surprise. But he couldn''t stop the smile from forming, even as his butterflies threatened to escape from his stomach like an alien infestation due to nervousness.


    "I''m not joking, I''m really dating Jingwei," Xue Ning insisted, looking at her brother directly to let him know she wasn''t joking even as she addressed everyone else. "Guys, Jingwei is my boyfriend, not Wei Yan."<sub> </sub>


    "Lying is bad," her father said disapprovingly as he gave Wei Yan a quick apologetic look. That boy looked so shocked!


    "What has Wei Yan done that you have to break up with him in front of all of us? No matter what, you should still try to talk things out first!"


    "Dad, there''s nothing to talk about!" Xue Ning protested. It would be funny if it were happening to everyone else, but since it was happening to her, Xue Ning could only feel upset. "Wei Yan and I are not dating!"


    "I''m tired of lying to people - lying to the Neighbourhood Association was fine, because they were utter bitches to begin with, but I see no reason to continue lying now to you guys, my family, who are supposed to love and support me!"


    "I do not support infidelity!" Tai Xuan protested. "And until today, I believed you didn''t either!"


    "Uncle, Auntie, there is no infidelity involved. Xue Ning is my real girlfriend." Jingwei added. He went closer to her to hold her hand,cing their fingers together. They raised their sped hands up to the light.


    "HUH?!" Exmations burst from everyone. No one could tear their eyes away from their sped hands. Their heads swivelled from their joint hands, to Wei Yan standing alone at the side, and then back again. "HUH?!"


    "Meimei, I''m not a slut-shamer, but you can''t do this." Tai Xuan said. "Are you cheating on Wei Yan with this guy?"


    "I''m not a slut. Ge what the fuck -" Xue Ning began, feeling incensed and hurt by her brother''s words.


    "Oh my god, I feel faint. I need to sit down." Yue Niang muttered, shaking her head. Her husband and son immediately came to support her, but she waved them off.


    With her restaurant mostly wrecked, chairs were in short supply. "Nevermind! One of you, get me a stiff drink instead!"


    Mom, you shouldn''t be drinking on an empty stomach," Tai Xuan chided.


    "Do you see any food here?" His mother retorted furiously, grabbing one of the strewn chairs to sit on it. Thankfully, it was sturdy enough to support her weight, even after being flung around to bludgeon people.


    "I could cook some!" Jingwei volunteered, but he quailed immediately at the death re Yue Niang shot him.


    "No thank you. Besides, I''m already full of anger! Stress! Indignation! All thanks to you and my daughter!"


    Xue Ning grumbled. "It''s not that terrible, didn''t you always want me to find someone good. Now that I have, why are youining?"


    "He''s good?" Tai Xuan asked incredulously, giving Jingwei a onceover. "Meimei, I know he''s definitely rich and good-looking, but were you living under a rock this whole time? Look at his long list of scandals with women!"


    "Exactly!" Yue Niang agreed fervently. "I don''t even go online often and I know about his bad behaviour. He''s a notorious yboy! Are you sure he doesn''t have an STD?"


    Jingwei winced. There it was - his past was catching up to him again!


    Xue Ning squeezed his hand tightly in support.


    "Of course he doesn''t! I''ve checked," Xue Ning protested, only for her words to cause a new uproar.


    "You''ve checked? What do you mean you''ve checked?!" Her mother demanded.


    "Oh my god, Xue Ning, have the both of you already done it?" Her father gasped, mouth dropping open in shock.


    "Jesus fuck, are you pregnant?!" Her brother eximed. "Is that why you''re suddenly introducing him to us? He knocked you up didn''t he? This bastard! I''m gonna teach him a lesson!"


    Before Xue Ning could retort, her brother immediatelyunched himself at Jingwei, fully intent on beating him into a pulp!


    "Careful!" Jingwei cried out, quickly stepping in front of Xue Ning, just to make sure that her brother didn''t end up hitting her by ident, a fact that both parents couldn''t help but notice.


    "Ge! You idiot!" Unfortunately, Xue Ning was equally stubborn! Instead of letting Jingwei take the hit, sheunched herself at her brother, and the two siblings began to grapple - or at least, Xue Ning was, while Tai Xuan could only swipe at her half-heartedly, casting wary looks at her belly.


    He could fight his sister, but how could he fight a pregnant woman?!


    Xue Ning was pregnant, even before his wife got pregnant, and they''ve been trying for a while now. That thought just made him more upset - did it mean that Jingwei and his sister were sleeping together often? Surely they had to be if she got knocked up!


    What was this insanity?

 Chapter 230 I’m Not Pregnant

    Unfortunately for him, his hesitation was all the opportunity Ming Guang needed. With two quick strides, he easily subdued Tai Xuan''s errant fists with his own, twisting his arms behind his back the same way Yue Niang did to Poh Jin Lian.


    "Oi, get your servant to let me go, you bastard!" Tai Xuan yelled as he tried to escape, furiously straining at Ming Guang''s hold so that he could make a second attempt to beat Sun Jingwei into a pulp. He stared up at Jingwei, with misced hatred in his eyes.


    "You dare to knock up my sister, but you don''t dare to suffer the consequences? Coward! Face me like a man, damn it!"


    "What consequences are you talking about? I''m not pregnant!" Xue Ning dered hotly, throwing both hands into the air in exasperation. "Guys, I''m not pregnant! Even if I were to have sex before marriage, do you think I''d be dumb enough to not use protection? I''m not Ge!"


    Both parents had to concede that point. Meanwhile Tai Xuan''s face flushed an ugly red, both from the exertion and from his sister''s words.


    "I''m only introducing my boyfriend. It''s not as though I got pregnant and we are getting a shotgun marriage, unlike someone I know. Why are you treating me worse than Ge when he thought he knocked up his girlfriend?"


    "You knocked up your girlfriend?" Xin Yu narrowed her eyes as she red at her husband, crossing her arms. "When was this? Who is the girl? Why did I not know about this?"


    "It was before I met you, Xin Yu," her brother quickly added, not liking the frown on her face. "It was just a pregnancy scare! If she was really pregnant, how could I marry you? I would have married her!"


    "I see," her sister-inw said, her voice deceptively even, a sign that she was unhappy. "Why didn''t you tell me this when I asked about your exes?"


    "I - it''s not important!" Tai Xuan replied, blustering. He had to redirect the me to survive.


    "And that''s not the point - we are talking about Xue Ning''s rtionship! If I didn''t tell you about one ex, I''m sure Sun Jingwei didn''t tell my sister about all his exes! He probably doesn''t remember half of them!"


    Everyone turned back to look at Xue Ning, casting Jingwei disapproving looks.


    "Hey, I''ve met his ex-fiancee! And his bed partner! I had a great time!" Xue Ning dered. Those weren''t technically lies. She had a great time fighting Zhou Yu and Xiumin. They probably didn''t have a great time facing her, but that wasn''t her problem!


    Her mother''s eyes nearly bulged out at her words.


    "Yah, Li Xue Ning, don''t get smart with me! Didn''t you swear to your father and I that this man was just a good friend of yours? Someone you just happen to help? That the whole wife situation was faked? Now you''re telling me that the both of you were dating all this while?"


    "That was not what I expected from the phone calls," her father agreed, his voice a lot milder than her mother''s, but he was also looking at them disapprovingly.


    "Did you take your father and I as fools? You even got Wei Yan to pretend to be your fake boyfriend because you didn''t want us to find out! When did you learn to lie like this?" Her mother continued hotly.


    "Hey, I didn''t make Wei Yan do it! He offered without telling us! I was surprised too!" Xue Ning protested. She was a liar, but she didn''t rope in other people!


    Everyone turned to Wei Yan.


    "It''s true," Wei Yan said, nodding. "I thought that those Neighbourhood Association women would continue to pick on Miss Li if they found out she was still single, so on a whim, I decided to lie."


    The women reminded Wei Yan of rude people in his hometown. When he saw Xue Ning cornered and cut down by their well-meaning words and not being able to retaliate, he instinctively jumped in to help!


    If he got to pretend to be her boyfriend, just for that short while¡­ It was still worth it.


    "And why didn''t Sun Jingwei here just tell people she was his girlfriend? Yah, Sun Jingwei, are you ashamed to admit that you''re dating my daughter?"


    "We were keeping it a secret!" Xue Ning eximed. "He wanted to tell you, but I didn''t want to, because I knew both of you would disapprove! Just like now!"


    "And that makes it okay to lie to us?" Her father asked, sounding strangely hurt. "We disapprove because we care about you, and we don''t trust him with your welfare." Tai Cheng nced at Jingwei from the corner of his eyes.<sub> </sub>


    That boy looked crestfallen, and a small part of him felt pity. But a bigger part of him was determined to protect his daughter from his yboy ways! The worst case scenario had happened - his youngest had been taken in by a handsome face and charming smile, just like all the girls he must have had before.


    "Dad, you and Mom don''t even know Jingwei well-enough to disapprove of him so fiercely! I know his online reputation is shit," at this, Xue Ning gave Jingwei an apologetic look.


    "In fact, I also judged the shit out of him when I first met him! I thought he was an idiotic rich kid who was an utter dickhead."


    Jingwei could onlyugh weakly. He''s still idiotic and rich, but at least he''s was bing a better person day by day, thanks to Xue Ning''s presence in his life.


    "Then? Why did you still go for him? I know weck money, but surely you didn''t think of pimping yourself out. I heard about the houses -"


    "Hey! How could you say this about your own sister? Just because you don''t like me, doesn''t mean you should insult your sister''s character! You''re behaving just like those aunties earlier!" Jingwei yelled in protest, eyes burning as he red at Tai Xuan.


    He had held his tongue all this while since it wasn''t his ce to argue in a family dispute, especially when said dispute was caused by him, but he couldn''t sit back and let Xue Ning be unthinkingly insulted by her own family!


    Tai Xuan got madder at his words. How dare this privileged stranger lecture him about how to talk to his sister! "Outsiders shouldn''t interfere!"


    "Why can''t he interfere?" Xue Ning retorted challengingly. "He''s the main thing we are arguing about!"


    Before anyone could reply, she continued to rant, as though a dam had been broken inside her mouth.


    "And I have to say one thing Ge - since I''ve met him, he has never, never ever implied I was a slut, a prostitute or gold-digger! Unlike you, my own brother! He has treated me with kindness and love, respect and care! So much so that sometimes I don''t even know how to deal with it!"


    "He''s not what the rumours paint him to be. Even if you don''t trust him, surely you should trust me to decide who I want to surround myself with!"


    Xue Ning ended her speech defiantly, once again lifting Jingwei''s hand in hers. Herst words echoed in the restaurant.


    Jingwei was torn between telling her to not fight with her parents for his sake, and crying ugly tears because once again, Xue Ning had defended him from the judgemental eyes of people!


    He had to be a better person, to be worth Xue Ning''s love and devotion.


    "Uncle, Auntie, I know I cannot convince you right now about my character, but with time, I hope you give me a chance to be epted in your family!"


    Jingwei then bowed low, surprising everyone present.


    The high and mighty Sun Jingwei, the wealthy second son of cutthroat billionaire Sun Haowei, the same man that had struck fear in the Poh couple and admiration among the crowd had willingly lowered his head to them, an ordinary couple running a family restaurant!


    Yue Niang and Tai Cheng could only trade incredulous looks of surprise.


    "Please give me approval to date your daughter! I promise that I will never let your daughter suffer any hardship, and I will do whatever it takes to help her achieve her dreams! I will always love and support her, in sickness and in health, for richer and poorer - "


    "Stop right there, youngster," Tai Cheng said warningly, holding up a hand. Jingwei fell silent respectfully, his head still bowed.


    Tai Cheng rubbed at his temples. Why was his spiel sounding remarkably like a wedding vow? Weren''t they talking about dating? Why did it seem like this man was asking permission to marry Xue Ning for real?


    "Mom, Dad, I have to let you know something! Even if you don''t give your permission, I''ll date him anyway! So you should just ept it!" Xue Ning dered rebelliously, gazing at her shell-shocked parents, daring them to react.

 Chapter 231 Tidying Up

    "Jingwei,e on, you can stop bowing now." She tugged at him, but Jingwei shook his head.


    "Not until your parents agree to our rtionship!" He was willing to go on his knees if he had to!


    If Sun Haowei was conscious and present, the sight of his youngest begging for the approval of his ex-friends to date their daughter would have sent him across the Yellow River to see his ancestors. It was already shocking enough for Tai Cheng and Yue Niang!


    "And what if I don''t agree?" Yue Niang asked condescendingly, trying to feel just a bit d that Sun Haowei''s kid was bowing lowly to her, only to find herself feeling irritated at his persistence. She wanted to yell at him to raise his head.


    Was his pride worth so little that he was grovelling for approval so easily? Where was his spine? How could she entrust her daughter to someone like him?!


    "Are you going to bow until your neck degenerates from the strain of gravity? Honestly, kids these days¡­ ckmail usually works better than emotional maniption! Don''t you know how the world works?"


    "Huh? Auntie, what are you saying?" Jingwei looked up in utter confusion.


    "Mom, are you saying we should ckmail you?" Xue Ning asked, considering.


    "We can''t do that though," Jingwei said sadly after thinking for a brief moment. "It''s wrong."


    Yue Niang nearly facepalmed at his words. His family was built on ckmail.


    "More importantly, we - I - have nothing to ckmail you with." Xue Ning added, sulking.


    At least her daughter got her point! Yue Niang couldn''t believe that her daughter was the smart one in the rtionship. That didn''t bode well for the future!


    "Kids these days¡­ fine, Sun Jingwei, you''re on probation now." Yue Niang said, giving Jingwei a severe re.


    "Probation?" Jingwei repeated hesitantly. "Like a job? As Xue Ning''s boyfriend?"


    "Yes. Don''t pretend your end goal isn''t to be my son-inw! I''ll ept this¡­ rtionship of yours on one condition: If I find that you''re unsuitable as my family''s son-inw, you will break up immediately!"


    "So¡­ you agree? Really? Thank you! I won''t let you or Xue Ning down! I promise! I''ll be the best husband, boyfriend and son-inw!" Jingwei dered, his hopeful eyes shining in the light, as though he was a female lead in a ro, happy to get the approval of her rich inws.


    This was a lifetime opportunity! If he could impress Xue Ning''s mom, she''d approve of him marrying Xue Ning!


    "Husband, boyfriend and son-inw? Does he think he''s Jesus? The father, the son and the Holy Spirit?" Tai Xuan muttered sarcastically, rolling his eyes. His words were ignored.


    "Mom, what do you mean by inappropriate behaviour?" Xue Ning asked cautiously, not liking her mother''s words. "Are you just going to decide it randomly and boot him away? That''s not ying fair!"


    "Xue Ning, I don''t think your mother is that kind of person, right? That sounds more like my father¡­"


    Yue Niang scowled at his words. How dare hepare her to Sun Haowei? They were nothing alike!<sub> </sub>


    "Who knows?" Xue Ning shrugged. "So Mom, are you going to ept him for good, or are you going to make up some stupid excuse to shoo him away? Because if you do, I''m not epting this!"


    "My dear daughter, I don''t want to ept this! But then again, even if I didn''t, you kids would still find a way to date behind my back anyway, especially once you go back to Shanghai. So what choice do I have? What if the both of you decide to elope?"


    She knew that if she opposed too strongly, the couple would be even more united! She might as well let them date. Yue Niang was sure they would break up eventually! Possibly even next month!


    With that in mind, she shouldn''t protest so much!


    "Besides, who knows if the both of you will give me a pregnancy scare too, just to convince me to approve. I''d rather not take that risk." She muttered dryly, casting a dirty look at her oldest, who was now sheepishly staring at the floor while his wife red daggers at him.


    Ming Guang, sensing the fight leave Tai Xuan''s body, decided it was safe to let him go into the tender loving arms of his wife.


    "Hi dear¡­" Tai Xuan said weakly.


    "Hi dear, I believe you and I are due for a good long talk."


    "But we need to help with the restaurant -" He protested feebly, trying to stall the inevitable.


    "We can talk while cleaning." Xin Yu said with no room forpromise. Xue Ning let out an ugly snort at the look of dismay on her brother''s face. Serves him right!


    "Yes. Let''s clean. We are here to clean," Tai Cheng said, rubbing his hand over his forehead. He was going to focus on the things that still made sense in his life, like fixing his restaurant.


    He handed out the brooms and delegated the tasks; his oldest son and wife would be sweeping up the broken ss, while Ming Guang and Wei Yan were ordered to clean up the entrance of the restaurant - this would allow them to keep an eye on things outside too!


    Meanwhile, Jingwei and Xue Ning would be checking the state of furniture in the restaurant, right in front of them.


    This was the first test for Jingwei! Was he going to make his daughter carry the tables and chairs, or would he do all of it himself?


    So while Tai Xuan and his wife swept up the ss shards over a highly ufortable talk about Tai Xuan''s sexual history with his ex-girlfriends that no one wanted to listen to but everyone couldn''t help overhearing, Xue Ning and Jingwei began sorting out furniture loudly to drown out his words.


    "Xue Ning, I''ll lift the tables while you check them?" Jingwei suggested.


    "Sure, but it''ll be a lot faster if we carry it together." Xue Ning said, flexing her muscles. "Why, you think I''m a weakling?"


    "Nonsense, you are many things, but a weakling is definitely not one of them!" Jingwei beamed. "Let''s do it together then!"


    Tai Cheng and Yue Niang''s eyebrows twitched in unison. Do it together? That was fine for shifting tables, but they better not be shifting beds together!

 Chapter 232 Watchful Gaze

    "Sure," Xue Ning got up and began to lift the chairs with help from Jingwei, intent on finishing this task as possible, but then she felt intense stares in her direction, causing the hairs at the back of her neck to stand.


    She whirled around, holding the chair threateningly, only to realise it was just her parents staring. At her re, Tai Cheng pretended to wipe the cutlery clean, acting like he wasn''t spying on his youngest daughter. Meanwhile, Yue Niang merely raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, expecting them to continue.


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes. Her mother wasn''t even trying to hide it!


    Jingwei also felt the stares, and he coughed, feeling strangely self-conscious. He usually had a lot of self-confidence, but now under the wary eyes of his future inws, he was afraid of making a mistake!


    "Hey Xue Ning, maybe I should do all the heavy lifting while you just rest," he whispered into her ear, sensing deadly res behind his back. It didn''t take a genius to know that her parents were unhappy at his decision to work together with her! "If not, your mom might think I''m a useless man. I need to prove my manliness!"


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes again and smacked his arm. "That''s ridiculous, what manliness is there if you strain your muscles? Moron. And how can I sit here and let you do all the work? That''s even more ridiculous! You''re not my servant."


    "But if I don''t do this I cannot marry you!"


    "Shut it and help me with this table, or I''ll dump you even before we reach the altar!" Xue Ning threatened.


    "Yes dear," Jingwei said meekly, immediately following suit. If Xue Ning dumped him, he wouldn''t even need to think about impressing his mother-inw! With his priorities now in order, he obediently listened to Xue Ning, much to the grudging approval of his judges.


    Watching them, her parents reluctantly agreed that they were a pretty good team. They cheerfully bantered as they did their jobs, and it didn''t take long for them to finish sorting and tidying the furniture.


    ("Well, at least this boy has sense, even though I still think he should have insisted.." Yue Niang scowled.


    "At least he knows our daughter is the main priority in his life, not us." Tai Cheng replied.)


    In this fashion, they quickly shifted the furniture around. Jingwei didn''t know if he passed the test her parents gave, but at least Xue Ning and him actually did their jobs, which is more than what he can say for Li Tai Xuan and his wife, who were arguing in the corner.


    "We''re done here," Xue Ning announced. "Anything else you want us to help you with?"


    "...Go cook dinner in the kitchen," Yue Niang said, with a glint in her eyes. "Jingwei did say he knew how to cook right? Now he can prove it! Let''s see if he can cook a satisfactory bowl of noodles for all of us. Xue Ning, go show him around the kitchen - and don''t you dare do anything unsanitary in there!"


    Both kids spluttered, their cheeks turning red.


    "Mom! That''s gross!"


    "I would never!" Jingwei added. At least not in someone else''s kitchen.<sub> </sub>


    His own kitchen was a different story altogether. It would be fun to introduce Xue Ning to sex on the kitchen ind, but he couldn''t think of that now, especially when her mother was staring at him as though she could sense whatever filthy thoughts rolling in his head!


    "Come on, let''s go and cook," Xue Ning said, face still red as she dragged Jingwei to the kitchens by hand, and him eagerly following behind like a puppy out for a walk with his beloved owner. "You can cook the noodles you made for me back then - "


    Tai Cheng watched the way his daughter''s eyes brightened when she was talking to Jingwei, and the way Jingwei gazed at her as though she strung up all the stars in the night sky, faithfully hanging on to his every word.


    How long had it been since he saw his daughter this pleased? This happy? Especially in this tiny town, where people insulted her in the guise of giving advice.


    Tai Cheng could only sigh. He had failed her as her father.


    This boy - no, this man, the son of his old friend, was here picking up the pieces and giving the daughter a rare, ordinary happiness that she had all but given up on.


    "He''s going to break her heart in future," Yue Niang murmured. She watched the same scene happen in front of her and came to a depressing observation. "The happier he makes her now, the worse it''ll be when he eventually leaves her."


    "That''s¡­ upsetting to say, wife. Maybe things will work out between them?" Tai Xuan asked. He didn''t know what he could do to help his daughter, if she ever had to deal with Sun Jingwei''s permanent absence.


    "Maybe pigs will fly." Yue Niang scoffed quietly. "He''s his son, I''m not getting my hopes up. Remember how he treated us despite years of friendship?"


    "He''s her son too," Tai Xuan pointed out. "So far, he seems more like Bi Yu than Haowei."


    "Bi Yu died over a decade ago though, how much influence could she have over him? If he was more like her, he wouldn''t have be a yboy. She would never have let him run riot." Yue Niang sighed, her heart aching at the thought of her old friend that was gone too soon.


    She and Tai Xuan never got to see her before she died. She blinked back the tears that were threatening to well up at that thought. They heard from news outlets that Sun Haowei''s wife was battling cancer, but never did they think that Bi Yu would sumb to it!


    It was unfathomable for a woman as strong-willed as Bi Yu to cave to the illness, especially with the medical care provided by the Sun family.


    But she died anyway.


    "Nevermind. Let''s not talk about this anymore. Just thinking about this upsets me." She grumbled, her throat closing up with grief. She desperately wanted a drink.


    "Let''s just wait for dinner." Her husband suggested, before raising his voice. "Now Tai Xuan, are you done sweeping yet? Do you need your father to do it for you?"

 Chapter 233 Cooking In The Kitchen

    "Yue Niang, you''re asking Jingwei to cook for us?" Tai Cheng asked, frowning as he couldn''t help turning his head to look in the direction of the kitchen. "Isn''t this too tough for him?"


    "Exactly. I want it to be tough for him." Yue Niang said, shrugging. "What? Does he think I''ll be easily satisfied by his half-baked efforts?"


    "You do realise he''s a wealthy heir, not a professional chef." Tai Cheng argued. "What if he gets injured? What if our daughter gets injured?"


    "Tai Cheng, listen to what you''re saying. Stop coddling them! Look at how old they are already!" Yue Niang eximed. "If they added up their ages together, they''d be older than me. If you''re telling me that these two grownups can''t cook a nice bowl of noodles for the family to eat for dinner, then how can I approve of their rtionship? They''ll die of vitamin deficiency and starvation!"


    Tai Cheng could only fall silent, seeing her point.


    "As long as you''re not expecting Michelin-star worthy meals," he said, sighing in eptance. "Just don''t be too disappointed when ites out perfectly ordinary. Remember, our refrigerator doesn''t have that many ingredients to begin with."


    Tai Cheng had zero expectations regarding Sun Jingwei''s culinary abilities. After all, when would he possibly need to cook? He had servants at his beck and call! Practice and experience were both important in making a delicious, home cooked meal - both were elements Sun Jingwei did not have.


    And even if his daughter praised him, it honestly, tragically, didn''t mean much - his daughter''s palette when it came to food was unrefined at best. Xue Ning would eat anything if it was cheap enough, and if it was freely made for her she would automatically find it delicious!


    "Him making ordinary food would already exceed my expectations." Yue Niang muttered. "I''m just expecting him to throw a packet of noodles into a pot of boiling water, mixed in the powdered seasoning, and call it a day."


    "That sounds more like our daughter. Maybe Jingwei will actually know how to use spices!"


    "I doubt it. If he''s dating her, that''s how he''ll cook! It''s not as though Xue Ning is a picky eater!"


    The said daughter in question sneezed. Clearly someone was talking about her behind her back! She had pulled Jingwei into the kitchen hurriedly, the back of her ears still burning red at her mother''s words. She couldn''t believe her mother expected Jingwei and her to be making out in the darkened kitchen like horny teenagers!


    (Not that she hadn''t thought about it, but still, there was a time and ce for everything!)


    "Here we are," Xue Ning announced, rubbing her nose with one hand as she hurriedly flicked the light switch with the other, bathing the kitchen in bright light. She took a good look at the kitchen. Thankfully, it had escaped the carnage that befell the rest of the restaurant.


    She could still hear theforting hum of the refrigerator, and there was no food waste lying around so Xue Ning didn''t have to introduce Jingwei to Hubei''s impressive cockroaches, rats and other pests just yet.


    "The kitchen is¡­small," Jingwei said, looking around. "I''m surprised it''s enough to cook for the entire restaurant. How many people work here?"<sub> </sub>


    "Four people. Literally everyone in my family works here," Xue Ning replied, shrugging. "It''s a family business. I think they hired part-timers to wait tables before, but they don''t trust strangers to cook in the kitchen."


    "But your mom''s letting me cook in the kitchen now." Jingweimented, then realisation dawned in his eyes, and he beamed, hugging Xue Ning delightedly.


    "Ah! So I''m considered family! I passed her first test!"


    Xue Ning blinked, even as she enjoyed the hug. "Er, let''s not get too ahead of ourselves. My mother is expecting you to fuck it up, so you have to do your best!" she said seriously.


    Once her mother set Jingwei this cooking task, Xue Ning already knew that her mother was deliberately setting Jingwei up for failure - after all, they lived and breathed in this restaurant, cooking noodles delicious enough to entice people to try even with all the nasty rumours floating around them.


    "Got it, I definitely won''t let you or your family down!" Jingwei promised, a hand thumping his own chest. "This is just like Masterchef - if I don''t do well, I''ll get eliminated!"


    "...Right." Xue Ning nodded, despite having no clue what he was referring to.


    "But do you believe I can cook well? I know you said you liked my noodles then, but were you just being polite?"


    "Since when was I polite to you?" Xue Ning retorted with a raised eyebrow. "Even if I was, I wouldn''t lie to spare your feelings if your food sucked. I liked your noodles. Go and cook something like that for them!"


    "Yes Madam, I''ll get right on it." Jingwei said, bowing in such a pretentious manner that Xue Ning wanted to nt her foot in his ass. Was this a normal emotion girlfriends felt? She had no one to ask.


    "Now let''s see," Jingwei thought out loud to himself as he opened the fridge to peer inside. "We have you and I, your parents, your brother and his wife, Ming Guang and Wei Yan¡­a meal for eight people¡­ that''s going to be tough."


    Jingwei had only made enough meals for two, because he ate double portions! Cooking for so many people was a new challenge for him! Perhaps he had to scale the proportions ordingly¡­ He then took a careful look at the ingredients in the fridge and despaired.


    Why was it so empty?! He wasn''t expecting Xue Ning''s family to have any wagyu beef lying around, but there were hardly any dumplings, vegetables and pork, at least not enough for 8 people!


    "Crap¡­ okay Jingwei, just think, you''ve got eggs at least¡­let''s see what I do have¡­" Jingwei continued to mutter to himself, focused on his task.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning just took the chance to tantly ogle at the curve of Jingwei''s ass and his strong thighs while he bent over to rummage in the fridge. After such a long trying day, this was what she deserved!

 Chapter 234 Something Else Is Brewing

    "Xue Ning, can you help me get the noodles? I can''t see them anywhere."


    "Huh? Right, sure. No problem," Xue Ning said, hastily collecting herself, reluctantly tearing her eyes from his behind. She had to focus! Shaking her head, she squeezed next to him in front of the fridge, bumping his hip on the way. Jingwei let out a pleased sound and pressed closer to her.


    "The noodles are inside the fridge, right here," she pointed to one of the airtight tupperware containers wrapped in stic bags at the corner of the fridge.


    Jingwei took it out and opened therge tupperware, only to be disappointed when he looked inside it; there were only two measly bunches of noodles! "That''s all?" How was he going to feed eight people with this?


    "These are most likely the leftover ones that were made three days ago. Before the restaurant got attacked." Xue Ning exined, frowning. This was a sad inventory indeed. No wonder her parents had to close the restaurantpletely! They couldn''t do deliveries if there was not enough food to deliver!


    "I''ll go tell Mom that I''ll buy some pre-made noodles from the supermarket or something," Xue Ning continued. "There''s no way you can feed all of us with this little!"


    "No need!" Jingwei dered, determined to look on the bright side of things. "I have an idea! I''ll just make more noodles. There are eggs here - I''m sure you guys have flour?"


    "We do¡­ but since when do you know how to do that?" Xue Ning asked, befuddled.


    "I just learnt it from videos. It''s a lot harder than making a pizza base, I''ll tell you that." Jingwei shrugged, as though that was apletely normal thing to do and not mind boggling incredible.


    "If you say so," Xue Ning could only take his word for it. Her culinary expertise was barely present - she ate to live most of the time, with her limited budget, while for Jingwei it was the opposite.


    He lived to eat!


    So Xue Ning just pointed him to the sealed bags of flour on the floor and admired the way his muscles flexed as he lifted one of them onto the kitchen counter without any trouble. Then her traitorous brain couldn''t help thinking how easily he could lift her up on the kitchen counter so she could wrap her legs around his waist and kiss him -


    "Xue Ning? Xue Ning!" Jingwei called out, waving a hand in front of her to attract her attention. "Are you listening to me?"


    "What? Sorry," Xue Ning apologised, flushing at the thought of being caught unaware again. She had to stop daydreaming like this! "Can you repeat what you were saying?"


    "Can you get me some salt? And eggs? And cooking oil? Do you also have a mixing bowl and a smaller bowl?" Jingwei asked, looking at Xue Ning carefully.


    Xue Ning blinked, as though just registering his words. She had seemed oddly distracted so far since she came home! "Or you can just point them out to me and I''ll get them," Jingwei said, feeling his heart ache for her. Xue Ning must have been so tired that she lost focus!


    They hadn''t gotten a moment''s rest since they arrived, and Xue Ning had to deal with her family members, seeing her family''s restaurant destroyed, evil people who made her life a living hell¡­ all of this must have taken a toll on her!


    "It''s okay, I can do it," Xue Ning said, hurrying around to do just that. Her parents had never changed the kitchenyout, so she could still find what Jingwei wanted. She even dipped a clean finger to taste the salt, just to make sure she had given him the right condiment instead of sugar.


    She was going to be a helpful assistant! Or at the very least, she had to stop lusting over Jingwei in the confines of her family''s restaurant kitchen. It seemed almost sphemy to think such thoughts in her mother''s territory!<sub> </sub>


    ''It''s fine,'' Xue Ning mentally reassured herself. ''That was just a moment of weakness. You are stronger than this.''


    Then Jingwei easily rolled up his shirt sleeves to reveal his muscr forearms, and she had to stifle the squeak that tried to escape. She had forgotten that making noodles involved kneading dough, and kneading dough involved Jingwei using his arm muscles.


    "Xue Ning? Is everything okay? Do you want to sit down? Are you tired?"


    She let out a garbled sound, as though she choked on a piece of chicken. No, everything was decidedly not okay, and it was all Jingwei''s fault. She didn''t want to sit down. She wanted to climb him like a tree!


    But of course she wasn''t going to say that. She merely waved off his concerns, but Jingwei narrowed his eyes and approached, putting his hand on her forehead.


    "Your face is red, and your forehead feels warm," Jingwei said worriedly. "I really think you should go home and rest. I can handle things here!"


    "Nonsense!" Xue Ning regrettably took his hand off her forehead. "I feel fine. Besides, I want to watch you make noodles from scratch. Have to make sure you produce something that my parents can eat without getting the runs."


    "Ye of little faith," Jingwei replied. "But since you are my girlfriend, I don''t mind if you want to watch me sexily knead dough!"


    Jingwei waited for the tell-tale denial and for Xue Ning to smack him, only to be greeted with her red face. Her eyes refused to meet his, possibly due to embarrassment.


    Oh. Oh.


    Xue Ning wasn''t feeling hot because of a fever. She was feeling hot because of him!


    "I see," Jingwei said smugly, pulling her close to him by her waist. "How could I have forgotten you had a thing for my arms?"


    "Maybe it''s not your arms. Your chest is nice too," Xue Ning grumbled, still embarrassed that JIngwei found out.


    But it was a relief too - she didn''t have to hide her feelings (horny or otherwise) from him.


    "Maybe I just like men who cook? Seeing that I''m not good at it."


    "Fair enough," Jingwei said cheerfully, nting a kiss on her lips before spinning her around so that her back was pressed against his chest, facing the newly created lump of dough in front of her.


    "In that case, you should pay close attention," Jingwei murmured in her ear, giving it a quick nip that made her shudder with want. "I''ll teach you personally how to make this dough rise."

 Chapter 235 Innuendough

    Xue Ning swallowed, her mouth dry with want. Her body shivered, ironically due to the warmth provided by hisrger, more imposing figure caging her own against the counter. If she leaned back, she could feel his half-hard cock against her ass.


    She had nowhere to escape to, but then again, she didn''t want to escape.


    "Teach me then, sir" sheughed into his ear, her words half-meant as a joke. She had added a ''sir'' on impulse at the end of her words. Jingwei was technically a teacher now - but then, the air surrounding them suddenly turned warmer. Sultrier. Heavier.


    Xue Ning swallowed as Jingwei stared at her with dark eyes dted with newly reignited lust. Her words clearly awakened something in him! He stepped even closer to her - now there was no space between their bodies, and that half-hard cock was feeling a lot harder than it was a moment ago.


    "Oh? I''ll teach you alright," he murmured in return, brushing his lips across the sensitive shell of her ear. She let out a gasp, lips parting as she expected Jingwei to lean in and kiss her, only to be disappointed when Jingwei didn''t.


    Instead, he reached for her hands, getting flour all over them as he brought them over the lump of dough that sat innocently on the table. Jingwei had mixed all the ingredients Xue Ning provided in the mixing bowl, flexing those ridiculous arm muscles of his as he stirred the contents until they formed a dough he was satisfied with.


    Sun Jingwei should have just been a baker! He wouldn''t have needed his money to attract women then; all he needed to do was roll up his sleeves and start stirring, and that would be enough.


    (On second thought, maybe it was best that he wasn''t a baker. She didn''t want the extrapetition!)


    Xue Ning had just watched the movement of his arm muscles, as though she was hypnotised. Heat had already started blooming within her then as though she was in an oven that''s slowly heating up.


    Now, feeling his hands on her own, all she wanted was to have them on other parts of her body!


    But then her family needed to eat.


    "Xue Ning, pay attention," Jingwei scolded yfully, as he nipped at her ear, causing her to jolt in his arms. He knew that his adorable wife was most likely thinking about something perverted. She thought she had a poker face, but now that he knew her well enough, her moods were easy to read!


    He was especially bing increasingly good at deciphering her ''I''m horny but I''m not going to say anything because of some reason or another'' look. One day, Jingwei would make sure she would initiate it, but for now, he was content with teasing her, teaching her.


    "You didn''t say anything!" Xue Ning protested. Just because she wanted to climb him like a tree didn''t mean he was going to let him nder her like this. "What am I supposed to learn huh? What kind of teacher are you?"


    "One that''s going to teach you how to make good dough," Jingwei said, and he nipped at the sensitive skin at her neck, causing her to jolt again. Heughed as Xue Ning turned to re at him with her face redder than a tomato. So cute. He wanted to spread her out on the kitchen counter to devour, but then her parents would murder him and he wouldn''t be able to marry Xue Ning as a ghost.


    "Still not seeing any teaching," Xue Ning snarked. "I want a refund. I''m going to write aint letter."


    "Forgive me, my dear student," Jingwei said dramatically, clutching her hands. "Now, let me begin, firstly because I''ve already turned out the dough, so what we''re going to do is we''re going to fold in the remaining flour."<sub> </sub>


    p "What?"</anda>


    "You take some flour and sprinkle it into the middle of your dough. And then you fold it." He illustrated, still holding her hands as he demonstrated.


    "That doesn''t sound hard," Xue Ning said as he continued to hold her hands. What was hard was Jingwei''s cock still poking her butt. "In fact, this is so simple."


    It was easy enough that Xue Ning didn''t need hand-held guidance, but both of them didn''t want to let go, so they didn''t.


    "What do we do next?"


    "Then we take the dough, and form it into a ball," Jingwei guided Xue Ning''s hands to turn the misshapen dough into a sphere. "And then -"


    "And then we punch the shit out of it," Xue Ning said. "I know this part."


    Jingwei chuckled warmly against her ear, and that sent delicious vibrations rumbling through his chest that she could feel against her back.


    "My wife is very good at punching, but you should save it for the assholes." Jingwei said, pressing a quick kiss to her cheek. "I''m gonna teach you a new skill! You actually have to use the heel of your hand -" Jingwei then used this chance to run his fingers over the heel of Xue Ning''s hand to show her,"This part here¡­ to push like you''re rolling it forward."


    Despite all his words, he made no move to let go of her hand so she could try it for herself. Instead, they both just remained in their original positions, staring at each other. Xue Ning wet her lips, and Jingwei''s eyes narrowed on that sweet pink tongue.


    "Aren''t you going to show me?" Xue Ning asked in a whisper.


    "Of course," Jingwei said, and he covered her hand with his much bigger one, purposely guiding her to press on the dough while keeping his eyes on her. His masculine scent enveloped her along with his body heat, and it took all her willpower to remain upright and not wrap her thighs around his hips.


    They weren''t just talking about dough now.


    "Just do it like this." Jingwei instructed softly, his eyes hot with want as he gazed at her.


    "I see," Xue Ning murmured as she gazed back down at their hands resting together, feeling more heat crawl up her face. He was still guiding her as they moved the dough forward and back, forward and back.

 Chapter 236 Stick It Up Your -

    "Good job kitten," Jingwei''s breath rustled a few of the loose tendrils of Xue Ning''s hair at the side of her face. Xue Ning held her breath, pressing her lips together, trying not to moan at his words, or at the feeling of his weight pressing more strongly against her hips, rocking with the sway of the kneading.


    It was all too easy to think that this was how Jingwei''s hips would move if - when he fucked her open.


    They continued to work in heavy, expectant silence, and Xue Ning was all too aware of how Jingwei was still hard underneath his pants, despite the two of them being stillpletely clothed.


    "How do you know when it''s done?"


    "The dough turns stiff." Jingwei said with a knowing smirk, pressing his hips closer.


    "That''s¡­ that sounds about right," Xue Ning said breathlessly, pushing back against his cock. "It certainly feels harder¡­What do I do?"


    "You let it rise," Jingwei murmured, teasing the shell of her ear. Xue Ning squirmed away from the ticklish sensation on that sensitive part of hers - or she tried to, but Jingwei had her caged firmly against the counter and so she could only endure, letting out helpless little pants that continued to snap Jingwei''s self-control thread by thread.


    "How do you know if it has risen enough? When is it ready?"


    Jingwei grinned, low and slow. "Easy, kitten, you just have to stick two fingers inside it to check." And he proceeded to demonstrate how to do that with his longer, thicker fingers, prodding the dough expertly while giving her a filthy smirk.


    Xue Ning swallowed as the tingle between her legs grew stronger, especially when Jingwei crooked his fingers just so. Her body clearly remembered how pleasurable that felt!


    "You!" Xue Ning whined, flustered at her own body''s reaction and at Jingwei''s answering smirk. She smacked him with her free hand. "You''re joking right? You''re making this shit up to tease me!"


    "No I''m not!" Jingwei protested,ughing as he kissed her again. Xue Ning was too cute. "This is really how you''re supposed to make good dough. But teasing you is just the bonus."


    "This is sexual harassment, you are terrible," Xue Ning said sulkily, not meaning a single word for she leaned back against his chest.


    "Yes, I''m the worst," Jingwei said agreeably.


    "No you''re not, stop insulting yourself," Xue Ning retorted, smacking him again. Jingwei could only blink in confusion.


    "Didn''t you just insult me?"


    "I can insult you, but you''re not allowed to insult yourself, dumbass," Xue Ning said, pinching his cheek. There was now a streak of flour on the side of his face, but it only made him look more handsome. Would wonders never cease?


    "Yes dear, whatever you say," Jingwei replied indulgently.


    "So is the dough ready?" Xue Ning continued to ask. "Like the actual dough."


    "Xue Ning, I was talking about the actual dough all this time!" Jingwei eximed, pretending to be shocked, but there was the tell-tale sign of mischief in his eyes. "....Don''t tell me¡­you thought I was - "


    "Shut it and just make the noodles before my parents get hungry enough to storm inside here and kill us both," Xue Ning ordered, with another smack at his muscr arm. She also squeezed it, just because she could.<sub> </sub>


    "Yes dear," Jingwei repeated obediently, kissing her again. He reluctantly pulled away from her and put the dough into another bowl, covering it with a clean towel to let it rest.


    "Huh? You''re just leaving it there?" Xue Ning asked suspiciously. What was he up to now?


    "It needs to rest for at least 20 minutes!" Jingwei said. "I''ll go and boil water first."


    "Alright." Xue Ning said, still watching over him carefully just in case he identally caused the kitchen to explode. But in that time, Jingwei moved expertly in her kitchen. He washed and set the pot of water boiling, and then began toy out everything he needed.


    He was doing this a lot better than she did!


    "Hey Xue Ning, do you know where the rolling pin is?"


    "The what?"


    "You know the thing used to roll the dough."


    "I know what it is!" Xue Ning protested, embarrassed. "I''ll go and look for it."


    She didn''t recall her parents using one to actually roll the dough. She remembered her Mom threatening to whack her brother with it if he didn''t stop bringing bugs home, but that was a decade ago at least!


    Xue Ning rummaged through the cupboards and drawers, hoping that her parents still kept it. The kitchen was now not a familiar environment to her, after years of absence.


    Meanwhile Jingwei could have helped, but he found it more amusing to watch Xue Ning scuttle around the kitchen, digging through the cabs.


    Also, Xue Ning had a very sexy ass when she bent over. He longed to massage it the same way he massaged the dough, but s, food awaits.


    "Found it! This stupid thing, who hides it all the way in the corner?" Xue Ning grumbled, finally standing up. To her surprise, Jingwei only let out a sad little whine.


    "What?"


    "Nothing," Jingwei said. The show was over too soon. What a pity! Then Xue Ning stood up and arched her back to stretch it after it had been hunched over looking for the damned rolling pin. Such an act inadvertently pushed her breasts forward, and Jingwei mentally salivated at the sight.


    Okay. It wasn''t just mentally salivating, but at least he had the presence of mine to swallow before drool could emerge from his mouth as though he lost all finer motor functions. He didn''t want to look like such a loser in front of Xue Ning!


    "Do I want to know?" Meanwhile Xue Ning narrowed her eyes, ring suspiciously at his smug smiling face. She brandished the rolling pin in his face. "Here, take this. Why do you need this for? You''re not making pizza."


    "Maybe I just wanted to see you bent over," Jingwei said cheekily, and he had to duck away to avoid being smacked by Xue Ning holding that said rolling pin, face red with indignation. "Ow don''t hurt me! I''m delicate!"


    "Delicate my foot! I should stick this up your - "

 Chapter 237 Caught In The Act!

    "Sorry sorry, but I do need it," Jingwei said, hurriedly snatching the rolling pin from her hand before she could lodge it up his ass. "I''m not that skilled at pulling noodles by hand, so I need this to help."


    "Oh," Xue Ning said, falling silent. It wasn''t as though she knew enough to argue. "Alright then. Do what you need to do."


    And what Jingwei did was to expertly tten the dough with the rolling pin, and then portion it into six even squares. He then slowly cut the portions with a knife evenly, making long thin strips. They weren''t the noodles that Xue Ning''s parents sold, that''s for sure!


    "Are you sure these are noodles?" Xue Ning asked dubiously. "They look kind of small."


    "Yeah, they are kind of like pasta. A Sun Jingwei special." Jingwei said cheerfully. "And they''ll expand when I cook them!"


    "Fair enough."


    So Xue Ning continued to watch as Jingwei began to cook for real. It turned out that Jingwei wasn''t blowing hot air when he imed to know about cooking noodles! The kitchen was soon filled with the mouth-watering aroma of spices and chicken soup.


    Xue Ning''s stomach growled as Jingwei continued to bustle in the kitchen, tasting and re-tasting his soup. He had to make sure everything was perfect! If his noodles were as good as the ones his mother used to make, he''s sure Xue Ning''s parents would have nothing bad to say.


    (If they did¡­ Well, Jingwei may have to have his first argument with his future inws. Or just assume that they had very terrible taste.)


    Jingwei ted the noodles carefully, his eyes deadly focused as he made sure that every bowl had approximately the same amount of ingredients, save for one that had three more dumplings than the rest.


    "Is that yours?" Xue Ning asked. "You must be really hungry."


    "This one?" Jingwei pointed to the bowl with additional toppings and smiled at Xue Ning, his eyes forming adorably handsome crescents. "Oh no, this is for you. I heard your stomach rumbling. Can''t have my future wife going hungry!"


    How could Xue Ning not grab him by his neck and kiss him after such a statement? Jingwei let out a pleased sound in surprise, eagerly wrapping his hands around her waist after flinging the spoon on the table, deepening the kiss.


    Xue Ning certainly found men who cooked attractive! He vowed to cook all three meals a day once they got back to their home. He wanted kisses!


    His tongue entered the hot cavern of her mouth, as his hand drifted lower to knead the plump curve of her ass. Xue Ning let out a desperate little whine and grinded their lower halves together, causing Jingwei to moan loudly. He picked Xue Ning up and deposited her on the kitchen table, lips barely a hairsbreadth apart. Xue Ning instinctively parted her legs and pulled him closer by his cor, another hand firmly behind his neck.


    The kitchen was soon filled with the sound of lips fervently kissing, along with stifled moans. The both of them were too wrapped up with each other to pay attention to the sound of multiple footsteps walking into the kitchen, until it was toote!


    "OH MY GOD! WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN THE KITCHEN!" A woman''s voice eximed loudly.


    "NEXT TO THE FOOD!" Another voice yelled in horror. This time the voice was male.


    As Xue Ning''s mouth was upied by Jingwei''s own, there was no way the words could havee from her or him.<sub> </sub>


    They sounded familiar, and very angry.


    Oops! They were in trouble!


    Both of them froze immediately, with matching looks of dread in their eyes. Jingwei reluctantly moved away, parting his lips from Xue Ning''s reddened ones - and damn it, there was even a thin string of spit connecting their lips, visible under the bright lights of the kitchen. It made Xue Ning''s lips look even lewder than they had any right to be!


    Someone took a sharp intake of breath, but Jingwei''s worldview had narrowed down to Xue Ning''s swollen lips.


    If they were alone, Jingwei would have leaned in again just to kiss it off. But because of the untimely interruption, both Xue Ning and Jingwei could only hurriedly wipe their lips on their sleeves. Xue Ning took a quick nce at herself - she was still dressed, even if her clothes were more rumpled than usual!


    But that wouldn''t be enough, for when she turned her head around, she could only splutter in shock.


    Her parents were staring at her, their faces torn between horror and anger, their eyes bulging out in anger as their mouths fell open in shock.


    How dare their precious daughter have the audacity to¡­ to fornicate in their kitchen! Next to the food! What was wrong with her!


    Yue Niang pointed an angry finger at her daughter, who couldn''t meet her eyes.


    "Yah! Li Xue Ning! What are you doing!"


    "Cooking," Xue Ning muttered, staring at the counter. How she longed to turn into that pot of noodle soup!


    "Cooking? What were you cooking eh? Rice?" Her mother fired a verbal barrage in return. "If your father and I didn''t interrupt, the uncooked rice would certainly be cooked! Not to mention you''ll be baking a bun in that oven of yours too!"


    "Mom!" Xue Ning whined, her face ming at her mother''s words. If only she could turn back time! Just one minute so she could push Jingwei away in time! "Nothing happened! We cooked noodles!"


    "We are old, not blind. Our eyes are working just fine!" Her father pointed out. His voice didn''t sound as upset as his wife''s, but his eyes were zing with protective rage along with anger.


    His daughter was tantly lying to him! When did she be someone like this?


    No - they couldn''t me their daughter. They raised her and they knew her well enough - she always had a strong distaste for most disys of physical affection and liars, so this new change in her character was definitely due to Sun Jingwei!


    To think he was still willing to give him a chance! He turned out to be a lecherous pervert!

 Chapter 238 Caught In The Act Pt 2

    "You. How dare you do this to my daughter." Tai Cheng seethed, and Xue Ning and Jingwei both took a step back at the killing intent radiating off him. Beside him, Yue Niang nodded in support. Finally her husband was taking things seriously!


    "Dad! It''s not his fault!" Xue Ning protested, waving her hands. "It was me -"


    "Nonsense! This man clearly seduced you! And now he''s leading you astray!"


    How can Sun Jingwei be such a disrespectful man to paw at his daughter under his roof!


    He clearly had no control over his baser urges! Not gentlemanly in the least! There was no way he would make a good husband for Xue Ning!


    "Dad he''s not - I was the one- "


    Furious at the fact that his daughter was still shielding this man, he picked up a pair of chopsticks and flung them at Jingwei!


    Jingwei yelped and ducked just in time to keep his head, because if he hadn''t, the chopsticks would probably have skewered his head like a fishball on a stick!


    Xue Ning turned and stared aghast at the cupboard; her father had thrown the chopsticks so hard that they embedded into the wood.


    "Dad! You could have killed him!" Xue Ning screamed hurriedly pulling Jingwei behind her to shield him from the force of his re. Jingwei wanted to tell her not to bother, for Xue Ning was a foot shorter and her father could easily throw another pair of chopsticks at his head, but he did feel safer anyway, his heart beating quickly at her disy of protectiveness.


    "That''s the point!" Her father eximed. "Now stand over here and let me aim my chopsticks at you."


    "Dad, don''t be ridiculous!" Xue Ning said, exasperated. "I was the one that kissed him first! You will not kill my first real boyfriend!"


    Her parents looked even more appalled at her statement, and Xue Ning had to roll her eyes. Did they think that she was immune to wanting Sun Jingwei? If she didn''t want him, why would she date him?


    Meanwhile Jingwei''s mind simply repeated the words ''first real boyfriend'' on loop, a goofy smile appearing on his face. Tai Cheng and Yue Niang saw it and could only shake their heads in disapproval.


    Was their daughter dating a moron? Why was he still smiling! Just as Yue Niang was going to wipe that idiotic grin off his face, she was interrupted by her son.


    "Guys? What''s taking so long? Did Sun Jingwei destroy our kitchen?" Tai Xuan''s voice echoed from the outside, and he popped a curious head inside, his eyes focusing on the bowls of noodles, the smell enticing with steam wafting up from the bowls.


    "Oh good, he actually cooked something that looks edible!" Tai Xuanmented in surprise, too focused on the food to detect the tension in the kitchen or the chopsticks embedded in the wood of the cupboards.


    "Xin Yu darling! Let''s eat! There''s even a bowl with more fillings for you." Tai Xuan eagerly reached for the bowl with more dumplings, only for Jingwei to swat it away as though it was an errant hand.<sub> </sub>


    "It''s not for your wife!" Jingwei interrupted angrily, "It''s for my wife!"


    At his words, both parents turned to re at him in unison. This brat was really waltzing in assuming that he would be their son-inw! He was determined to steal their daughter away from them!


    (Fine, he gained some points for giving Xue Ning more food, but overall, he was still in deficit!)


    They red at him, and then red at his food. To their disappointment, it did look mouth-watering, even if the noodles were oddly-shaped. Points taken off for that too.


    "I mean my girlfriend. My future wife." Jingwei hastily corrected as his future inws shotsers at his face, his bravado making way for self-preservation.


    He might not survive another chopstick-spearing attempt, but he had to show Tai Xuan who was the boss of this kitchen.


    "If you want your wife to eat more food, go cook it yourself!"


    "Yeah Ge, what he said," Xue Ning said smugly, and purposely pressed a kiss onto Jingwei''s cheek, loving her brother''s grossed out expression at her disy of affection.


    She normally wouldn''t be so demonstrative, but then she wanted to convince everyone else that she wasn''t being scammed into a rtionship! She was a fully grown woman who could make her own decisions, even if one of these decisions was to climb her boyfriend like a tree while her family was just loitering outside.


    (She didn''t say she made wise decisions! But she didn''t regret them, not one bit.)


    Meanwhile Jingwei looked like all his birthday presents from his past 25 years all arrived at once. Xue Ning kissed him! In front of her family members! On purpose!


    "Jingwei made this bowl for me alone, so if you want Sister-inw to forgive you, you''d better make a bowl specially for her!"


    "Of course I will, and I bet it''ll taste better than what he made," Tai Xuan said, bragging. "You know my skills are as good as Dad''s right?"


    "So? You''re a chef, your skills are supposed to be better to begin with! Jingwei''s driving skills are better than an F1 driver, and you can''t even change ane properly without hitting a pothole." Xue Ning retorted. "If you don''t want to eat your noodles, give them to me. I''ll eat your share!"


    "You''ve changed! Since when have you decided to side with an outsider over me, your brother?" Tai Xuanmented, sulkily grabbing at a bowl of noodles, fully determined to hate it. He red at Jingwei, who was too buoyed up by Xue Ning''s kiss to even bother feeling scared.


    "He''s my boyfriend. My future husband. How is he an outsider?" Xue Ning argued, helping herself to her own bowl while her parents watched with twitching eyebrows and an increasing dismay that their daughter had already stubbornly decided on Sun Jingwei as a match.


    This was just like the time when she insisted on adopting the stray puppy that wandered around the park!

 Chapter 239 The Taste Test

    That mangy little thing was cute, but it had fleas and was just another mouth to feed. Tai Cheng and Yue Niang had to pry their daughter away from it, causing a week-long tantrum, but Xue Ning eventually epted the truth - the puppy was not meant to be hers.


    Now, they had to do something simr about the situation with Sun Jingwei. Sure, Jingwei wasn''t some mangy puppy with fleas, but he certainly was ridden with scandal and possibly STDs! They had to dissuade her about his suitability as her husband!


    "Well, I shall be the judge of whether he''s good enough to join our family," Yue Niang dered imperiously, and Jingwei gulped in nervousness.


    "If I find that you can''t cook a good bowl of noodles, pack up and leave this town tonight!" Yue Niang dered with grim finality, looking every inch a regal queen about to sentence someone to execution. Or in this case, exile.


    "Mom!" Xue Ningined. "You''re being unfair!"


    "Don''t worry, I''m sure my noodles will pass muster." Jingwei said, giving a polite smile, pulling himself to his full height as he met her gaze evenly.


    He was trying to project confidence he wasn''t feeling. He was more nervous now than his first attempt at public speaking, but he couldn''t let Xue Ning''s mom know! She was like a shark that sensed blood in the water. He could not show any weakness. It was strangely like dealing with his father.


    "Here''s your bowl," Jingwei continued, serving it along with a clean spoon and a pair of chopsticks artfully arranged on a tter. Thankfully, his fingers didn''t shake.


    "Would you like to have chili along with it?"


    "No thank you," Yue Niang said, giving him a flinty re as she picked up the offered chopsticks. At least his table service was eptable.


    The kitchen fell quiet as they watched her judgemental eyes peer into the bowl. Xin Yu, Wei Yan and Ming Guang were hovering right outside the kitchen, not wanting to interrupt the building tension.


    Jingwei began to feel sweat forming on his palms as he watched Xue Ning''s mom take a spoonful of soup and sniff it warily, her nose wrinkling.


    p That was not a good sign.</anda>


    He tried his best with what he was given, but what if it wasn''t good enough?


    "I see you helped yourself to the chicken stock cubes," Xue Ning''s mommented, raising an eyebrow. Jingwei began sweating more heavily - was he not supposed to? But if he didn''t, he''d be serving flour soup!


    "Yes Auntie," Jingwei nodded evenly with a quickugh. "I couldn''t find any chickens to ughter and turn into soup on such short notice, so I had to dip into your stock, my apologies."


    "Yeah Mom, I told Jingwei he could use it," Xue Ning added as an extra defence. "If not, you''ll be eating soy sauce voured flour soup!"


    "Mmmm." Yue Niang hummed nonmittedly as she blew gently at the spoonful, causing small ripples to appear.


    Everyone held their breaths as Yue Niang spooned the first scoop of soup in her mouth, her eyes widening for a brief moment before it settled back to its judgemental gaze.


    "Mom? How is it?" Tai Xuan asked eagerly. "If it sucks, you don''t have to eat it - I''m sure I can cook something better for you!"


    "It''s¡­average," Yue Niang said as she scooped up a second mouthful to drink. "Nothing to brag about."


    "Oh," Jingwei muttered in disappointment, deting like a punctured balloon.<sub> </sub>


    And he realised that even if it was good enough, he doubted that her parents would admit it, seeing that he got caught rutting against Xue Ning like a horndog!


    ''Sun Jingwei!'' He mentally scolded himself.'' Why do you love to sabotage yourself?!''


    Xue Ning held his hand and squeezed in support.


    "Mom''s still eating, so it can''t have been that bad," Xue Ning muttered in his ear. "Have more confidence."


    Jingwei brightened at her words. Xue Ning had a point! For all her harsh critique, Xue Ning''s mother was still sipping the soup with a strangeplicated expression on her face.


    Maybe she hated people using her chicken stock cubes without permission? Either way, it was toote for Jingwei to do anything about it. He couldn''t possibly reform the dissolved cube from the soup! He was a billionaire''s son, not a god.


    She then used the chopsticks to grab a bunch of noodles, examining them from every angle.


    "Mom, Jingwei actually made these noodles from scratch!" Xue Ning said proudly. "There were only two doughs left behind, he made six new doughs and turned them into noodles."


    "You didn''t pull them?" Yue Niang asked, even though she already knew the answer. "If you had, we would have gotten more noodles for the same amount of dough. Wasteful of you."


    "No Ma''am - I mean yes Auntie," Jingwei said with a shamefaced look. "I don''t know how to do that."


    "Hmph," was Yue Niang''s only response. Jingwei deted even further, mentally kicking himself. Why hadn''t he tried to create noodles via pulling? He could have searched for answers on the Inte.


    "Mom, there''s not much difference anyway. Noodles are noodles." Xue Ning said.


    Her father let out a horrified gasp.


    "Xue Ning, how can you say that? This is our family''s pride and joy!"


    "Are you really my daughter?" Yue Niang added, shaking her head in disappointment. "I can''t believe such sacrilegious words came out of your mouth! Next thing I know you''re going to be eating microwaveable ramen."


    "I already do Mom," Xue Ning said, rolling her eyes. "I don''t have time to cook! I''m sure our noodle ancestors will understand."


    "I''ll cook for you," Jingwei offered sweetly, squeezing her hand.


    "Thanks," Xue Ning smiled back, giving him a quick peck in front of all her family members. Her supportive brother pretended to retch into the dustbin.


    "Besides, there''s no way Jingwei can master it in an evening. Would you rather have food or no food?" Xue Ning continued.


    "Aish¡­ this daughter of mine is arguing with me now that she has a boyfriend¡­ kids these days¡­" Yue Niang grumbled and then took a bite of the noodles, freezing immediately as the familiar taste bloomed on her tongue, sending her on a merry trip down memoryne.

 Chapter 240 Tears Over Noodles

    Two young girls ying together in the garden, then getting scolded for dirtying their new dresses by ident and flinging their ball into the fountain¡­


    The same two girls held hands as they entered a school with tall iron gates, wearing identical uniforms as they gazed up at the impressive brick building that would be their home for the next few years¡­


    Bi Yu crying as she screwed up the recipe for the umpteenth time, and getting scolded by their teacher for being such a terrible student¡­


    Yue Niang helping her with her cooking, eventually teaching her well-enough that she managed to make her own bowl of noodles¡­


    Bi Yu making noodles with various ingredients throughout the years to feed Yue Niang when she didn''t feel like cooking¡­


    The final bowl of noodles Bi Yu made her, before she and Tai Cheng fled to another end of the country, saltier with their tears, as they knew deep down they would never see each other again.


    Yue Niang never thought she would taste Bi Yu''s cooking again, but then now¡­ she took another big spoonful of soup as tears welled up in her eyes.


    "Mom? Why are you crying?" Xue Ning asked in surprise. "Jingwei''s cooking can''t be that bad!"


    "Oh my god! Sun Jingwei, your cooking sucked so much my mom cried while eating it! You bastard!" Tai Xuan yelled, rolling his sleeves. "Mom don''t eat anymore - I''ll toss this garbage man outside right now!"


    "Auntie! Is it that bad?" Jingwei asked, wringing his hands in panic. No one has ever cried while eating his food before! "I''m so sorry! I''ll make you a new bowl!"


    "Stop it, all of you," Yue Niang said, her voice sounding strangely choked up. Her eyes were now firmly back on the bowl of noodles, as though she could see Bi Yu''s reflection if she looked long enough. "His noodles are fine. I''m full now. You guys can eat."


    And then she hurriedly left for the washroom, hastily rubbing away the tears that were in her eyes. Her family could only watch in silence, gobsmacked with surprise, before everyone started speaking at once.


    "Yah, you bastard, what did you put in the noodles to make my mother cry?" Tai Xuan stalked dangerously towards Jingwei, his hands on his cor as he dragged him closer. The soup in the noodle bowls began sloshing dangerously as they brushed past the bowls.


    "I don''t know!" Jingwei protested. "Unless your mother is allergic to garlic or soy sauce, this shouldn''t be possible!"


    "Ge, let Jingwei go!" Xue Ning tugged at his hands, but her brother had an iron vice grip on Jingwei''s cor, his knuckles white with anger.


    "Meimei, you''re still siding with this man? He just made our mother cry with his food!" Tai Xuan roared in outrage. "Break up with him now!"


    ? "Let him go, it''s not his fault," a quiet voice said. They turned, only to see her father help himself to a bowl of soup. He took severalrge gulps and then mowed down the noodles with nary an expression on his face.


    "Dad?" Tai Xuan asked, confused. "Why are you eating his cooking? Didn''t you see Mom cry?"


    "Like I said earlier, it''s not his fault," Tai Cheng repeated. He was shocked at his wife''s tears, but then he took the first sip of soup, and he understood. "Unhand him now, he is a cherished guest in our house."


    "Huh? Cherished guest? This guy?!" Tai Xuan asked his father incredulously, not believing his ears - and he wasn''t the only one!<sub> </sub>


    Jingwei was also blinking in confusion. Didn''t Xue Ning''s father just try to skewer him with chopsticks a while ago? How could he change his mind so suddenly? Was this a trick to get him to let his guard down?


    He gave Xue Ning a questioning look, hoping she could exin. Xue Ning could only shrug in surprise; this sudden attitude change was certainly uncharacteristic of her father and she had no exnations for it.


    "Sun Jingwei, thank you for the meal," her father said, which wasn''t too surprising. But then he bowed lowly from his waist and sped his hands in gratefulness, and there was a certain sheen in his eyes that could have only been caused by tears.


    Everyone froze in shock.


    "It was nice meeting you," Tai Cheng continued with a soft real smile as he gazed at Jingwei, taking him in. It was as though he was finally seeing Jingwei for the first time as himself and not as Xue Ning''s boyfriend.


    Now that he looked carefully, he could see traces of Bi Yu in his face and demeanor.


    Some part of Bi Yu lived on in him.


    He let out a mncholic sigh; to think that he could still have a taste of Bi Yu''s cooking even after her death¡­would wonders ever cease?


    Perhaps this was just the heavens'' way of letting them reunite one more time.


    "This old man is tired after such a long day. Your Mom and I will be going home soon. All of you remember to clean up the kitchen first beforeing home!"


    "Yes Dad," the siblings replied, watching their father leave the kitchen. Once they heard their parents leaving, they began to argue.


    "What did you put in the soup?" Tai Xuan demanded. "How is it that it kept making them cry?"


    "Like I said, I don''t know! Can you let go of my cor now?" Jingwei repeated with an exasperated sigh. "Xue Ning, what do you think?"


    Xue Ning took a sip of her soup. It tasted fine to her! In fact, she decided to pull out a chair to eat right there and then, since no one was stopping her.


    "It tastes fine to me," Xue Ning said through a mouthful of noodles. "I don''t suddenly feel the urge to cry. Ge, let go of Jingwei and try a bowl too."


    Tai Xuan scoffed. "Maybe it''s just because you have shit taste, since you are dating a shithead," he said as he helped himself to his portion, narrowly avoiding the kick Xue Ning delivered to his shins with the power of experience.


    He frowned as the taste hit his tongue.


    "How is it? Do you feel like crying?" Xue Ning asked. "It''s not bad right?"

 Chapter 241 A Hotel?

    "No. It''s passable. Not bad but also not spectacr. No one in their right mind would cry over this," Tai Xuan said, rolling his eyes. "Xin Yu, what do you think?"


    His wife also took careful sips of the soup, helping herself to the noodles. She shook her head. "It tastes perfectly fine to me. Jingwei did a fine job with the food."


    Wei Yan and Ming Guang also took their meals, and parroted simr sentiments, which left Jingwei in even more confusion.


    "Maybe your soup makes parents cry," Xue Ning said, "but I still think your cooking is good. So don''t look so depressed!"


    "Thanks Xue Ning," Jingwei replied with a watery smile as he immediately cuddled her, uncaring of the disgusted look on his future brother-inw''s face as he did so.


    "Why must you guys do this in front of me?" Tai Xuanmented.


    "At least he''s voluntarily hugging his wife," Xin Yu said pointedly, giving her husband a narrowed look from the corner of her eyes. "That''s more than what I can say for some husbands."


    "Xin Yu, are you still mad at me over the -"


    "Ge, if you and Sister-inw are going to argue, can you guys clean up the kitchen while doing so? Jingwei and I cooked, so you guys should be cleaning."


    "Yah - Meimei, I''m sure your cooking involvement was just pouring soy sauce into the sauce tter - "


    "So? I still helped! Right Jingwei?" Xue Ning asked expectantly.


    "Of course you did," Jingwei said agreeably, smiling at Xue Ning. Even if Xue Ning sat around the floor and stuck out her legs to trip him, he would still say that she was helpful. "I would not have been able to do it without her. Her support was vital in the creation of this -"


    "Please just stop bullshitting. I know that you are absolutely whipped for my sister, but lying is a crime." Tai Xuan said with a shudder, holding up a hand. Sun Jingwei clearly loved to wax poetic of his sister''s strengths, no matter real or otherwise. He knew better than Sun Jingwei how good (bad) his sister was at cooking!


    "Just for that, you are cleaning the kitchen! Thanks Ge! Thanks Sister-inw!" Xue Ning said hurriedly, giving her brother a cheeky wave before grabbing Jingwei''s hand and dragging him out of the kitchen.


    Wei Yan and Ming Guang blinked, before they followed suit, ignoring the outraged yells from Tai Xuan as he called them to return to mop the floor.


    They had to protect Young Master Sun! It had nothing to do with them not wanting to clean up the kitchen, nothing at all.


    "Xue Ning, can we really just leave like that?" Jingwei asked, fretting even as he enjoyed the feel of his hand in hers while she dragged him away. It reminded him of them running away from reporters at the press conference, but this had something to do with Xue Ning''s family!


    "What if your brother doesn''t clean up well and then puts the me on us?"


    "He won''t," Xue Ning said confidently. "My brother won''t do anything to harm the restaurant - he loves it! And it''s going to be his in the future anyway. There''s no point!"


    "It''s not going to be yours?"


    ? "Why would it be?" Xue Ning shrugged, not feeling self-conscious at all. "I can''t cook well and I hate dealing with people. Giving me the restaurant would be like giving a dog a hundred dor bill."


    "I get it, it''s like me with thepany," Jingwei mused as they left the restaurant. He began to idly swing their linked hands in the peaceful summer night, and Xue Ning let him, her own mood improving with the evening air.


    The air was a lot fresher here than it was back in Shanghai, and Jingwei could hear the sound of cicadas buzzing in the humid summer air. The loud sound was a sharp contrast to theck of bustling human activity that he was used to. As they walked, Jingwei noted with surprise that night had fallen faster than expected.


    What''s more, the streets were darker than what he was used to! This tiny town had fewer streetlights than Shanghai. Jingwei looked around wonderingly; to his amazement, many stores were already closed, their shutters drawn and their lighted disys switched off. There wasn''t even a 24 HOUR pharmacy open.


    Jingwei grew increasingly thankful that he had Wei Yan and Ming Guang behind him for safety. If someone wanted to rob them, they could do it easily and no one would even know!


    They hung a bit further back, giving Xue Ning and him some privacy while still keeping them in view.<sub> </sub>


    "You don''t want your father''spany?" Xue Ning asked, breaking the calm with her question.


    "Not really," Jingwei confessed. "Like sure, the money is good, but running it is a lot of work! Just look at my brother! He''s so smart, and it''s still too much for him sometimes. If I inherited it, I''d die from overwork."


    "What do you want to do then?" Xue Ning asked. "Surely you''re not going to bum about all day like a wastrel. I love you, but¡­ you must have something you want to do with your life! Something that''s not illegal." She quickly added at the end, remembering his hacker past.


    "Er¡­" Jingwei paused. He had never bothered thinking about his future career paths! "I wanted to be an F1 driver, but then I might end up dying or paralysed, and then you''ll be a widow."


    "I''ll make sure to buy a hefty life insurance policy in your name before you get behind the wheel," was Xue Ning''s sympathetic reply. She expected some form of anger from Jingwei with her callousments, but Jingwei surprised her again.


    "You should! If I''m dead, I''d rest better in hell knowing that you''re well-taken care off with lots of money," Jingwei said agreeably. "Come to think of it, I haven''t paid for the restaurant''s repairs yet!"


    "You - " Xue Ning could only restrain the urge to scream into the evening air. How had she somehow hooked this man who knew precisely the right thing to say to her heart. "Argh, nevermind. Nevermind. We''ll try to convince my parents tomorrow. I''m sure they won''t be so stubborn as to turn away free money."


    "If you say so. It seems like Auntie and Uncle are really prideful people that won''t ept handouts." Jingwei said doubtfully. "But this is a problem for tomorrow. I''m sure Auntie and Uncle must be preparing for bed right now, like everyone else. Can''t believe the stores are closing already! And I haven''t even found a hotel to live in yet!"


    Xue Ning paused in surprise, and Jingwei was forced to halt his footsteps.


    "A hotel?"


    "Yeah, it''s not as though I can live in your house, even if I really wanted to. There''s also Wei Yan and Ming Guang," Jingwei pointed out. He had seen the inside of Xue Ning''s house, and there was no room for three additional grown men, unless they slept in the living room!


    "There''s no hotel here."


    "What?" Jingwei asked, appalled. "Are you joking?"


    "I''m deadly serious. Why would we have one? No touristse here. The closest thing we have is a motel bed and breakfast, and everyone that goes there goes there to have sex."


    "Oh," Jingwei said. "So it''s that kind of sleazy ce?"


    "Yes, so of course you''re not going to stay there! Over my dead body!" Xue Ning dered fervently. Once news got out that Sun Jingwei was staying at Heartbreak Motel, he would be swarmed with women wanting to sleep with him, and they might even use all sorts of despicable means to get him into bed with them!


    The very thought of those women trying to seduce him sent a hot possessive rage coursing through her. She remembered how she met Jingwei - Xiumin was trying to drug him to begin with!


    "Aww, you''re jealous! You don''t want me to stay in a sleazy hotel!" Jingwei said happily. "But don''t worry, no matter how strong the temptation, I will still think of you every night we are apart, and I will visit you first thing in the morning with a delicious breakfast."


    No, you must live in my house," Xue Ning said, an idea dawning in her mind. "I''m not taking no for an answer."


    "Xue Ning, you should be asking your parents this, not me! I am ttered that you want me in your home, but I''m afraid your parents might stab me in my sleep," Jingwei confessed hesitantly, kissing her knuckles. Xue Ning wanted him in her home!


    His heart was delighted, but he had to make a rational decision for their futures. He was already on thin ice with his inws, and he made two of them cry not even an hour ago.


    "Don''t worry about it," Xue Ning shook her head. "You, Ming Guang and Wei Yan have to stay in my house. I''ll convince my parents!"


    "...Should I be worried?"


    "Don''t be," Xue Ning said confidently. "I''m going to hit two birds with one stone."

 Chapter 242 Let Him Stay!

    They quickly arrived home, and from the shoes at the front door, Xue Ning''s parents had also arrived back home. Jingwei wanted to linger hesitantly at the doorway to buy time to think of a way to apologise, but Xue Ning pulled him inside.


    Her father was sitting on the couch with the TV on, but his eyes were dazed, and he didn''t look like he was paying attention to the melodrama ying on the TV at all.


    "Hi Dad, what are you watching?" Xue Ning said, and Li Tai Cheng startled, as though not expecting people to return.


    "Oh you''re back!" Tai Cheng said, and then his eyes caught Jingwei''s and an indescribable look crossed his face. Jingwei bowed low again.


    "Hi Uncle," he began hesitantly, wondering how he should apologise. How could he say ''sorry that my food made you cry, even though I had no idea how this could have happened?''


    "How are you?" He asked instead, trying to not sound too nervous even as his palms began sweating again. Xue Ning felt it too, but she still continued to hold his hand.


    "Sorry for¡­ sorry." He finishedmely.


    "I''m fine," Xue Ning''s father smiled gently. "Your cooking just surprised me and my wife, that''s all."


    "Ah," Jingwei said. ''At least he said ''surprised'' and not ''shocked'','' Jingwei thought to himself. He looked around, wanting to apologise to Xue Ning''s mother, but she wasn''t in the living room.


    "Where''s Mom? Did she go off to bed already?" Xue Ning asked curiously.


    "Yes, today has been a long day for her." Her father paused and amended his statement. "For all of us. You should be preparing for bed too."


    "Dad, since you''ve mentioned it¡­" Xue Ning began hesitantly, walking closer to her father, purposely widening her eyes while twiddling her thumbs. Jingwei wanted to coo at how adorable he found his wife! She was like a kitten with big sad eyes, begging for a cuddle.


    "What are you trying to do?" Her father asked warily, surprised at his daughter''s behaviour. He knew his daughter well-enough; she would never bother acting cute unless she wanted permission for something she knew he wouldn''t approve of.


    "Can Jingwei and his bodyguards live with us?" Xue Ning asked, and was promptly greeted by her father choking on air. "Dad! Are you okay? Drink some water!"


    At her words, Jingwei hurriedly went to the kitchen to grab a cup of water to give to him. Tai Cheng had to give him points for being proactive, even as he hacked up a globful of saliva at his daughter''s shocking words!


    "Thank you, but did you rinse this cup?" He asked hoarsely.


    "... No?" Jingwei replied sheepishly. "Should I have?"


    His answering sigh was loud, and he put the cup back on the table. Jingwei grabbed it and went to wash the cup and refill it.


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning was eagerly trying to convince her father to let Jingwei stay.


    "Dad, before you reject me, please listen to me first!"


    "No," her father replied tly, pointedly turning up the volume on the TV, focusing on the show. From the TV, a man screamed when he found out his daughter got knocked up by her boyfriend, and said boyfriend refused to take responsibility.<sub> </sub>


    How apt.


    Xue Ning then stood in front of the TV with her hands outstretched to get her father''s attention. "Dad, you know that our town doesn''t have a hotel. It only has a dingy motel where everyone goes to screw people. How can you let Jingwei stay there?"


    "Why not? He can just sleep alone then."


    "But what if he gets drugged by random women and then taken advantage of?"


    "He has his bodyguards. They can all sleep in the same room - It''s not as though he''s screwing them," her father pointed out. "Unless¡­ he is?"


    Tai Cheng then shot Jingwei a suspicious look. Was he a man that slept with his bodyguards? He wouldn''t be the first rich heir to do so. He was already willing to paw his daughter in their kitchen, who knows - maybe he would paw his guards when alone too!


    "Dad! If you''re going to do this I''m going to pack and stay in the motel with him too!" Xue Ning dered, and her father''s mouth dropped in horror.


    "Definitely not! Over my dead body! The both of you cannot be left alone together! Especially not in a motel!" He yelled in outrage.


    The both of them had no qualms about carvoting in the kitchen. If he sent his daughter there to the motel with him, it''d be as good as giving Sun Jingwei nket permission to do whatever he wanted with his daughter under the nkets! In 9 months, he''d be holding his first grandchild!


    "Rx Dad, that''s why I offered to let him stay here," Xue Ning said, her face a picture of innocence. "That way, you and Mom can keep an eye on us both!"


    Jingwei blinked. That didn''t sound like a good thing.


    Tai Cheng rolled his eyes in exasperation and crossed his arms. "My dear daughter, there''s a better solution. How about you stay here, in your house, where you belong, while that perverted boyfriend of yours and his bodyguards go to the motel instead!"


    "Sure, but if you send him away, I''ll sneak out to see him anyway." Xue Ning promised. "You can''t keep me here, I''m an adult."


    "You - "


    "But that''ll be unfilial, so I have another suggestion!" Xue Ning said excitedly, her eyes gleaming.


    "If it''s Jingwei and you in a motel room, I disapprove." Tai Cheng began to rub at his temples.


    "No it''s not, but If you send Jingwei to the motel without me, you''ll have to ept the money he gives you for the restaurant repairs."


    Tai Cheng''s eyebrow twitched. So this was his daughter''s n all this while? To manipte him into taking the money Sun Jingwei offered in exchange for keeping her at home?


    He didn''t know where to apud her for this half-baked scheme or smack the back of her head. What had she learnt in Shanghai?


    Meanwhile Jingwei could only mentally apud. His wife was a genius, to weigh the pride of her parents against their willingness to keep them apart!

 Chapter 243 Considering My Options

    Tai Cheng took a deep breath and considered all the options his daughterid out in front of him, sending a mental prayer to the heavens for patience and wisdom. He had a feeling his ancestors were rolling in their graves right this moment!


    <strong>Option 1:</strong> Sending Jingwei to the motel, and Xue Ning sneaks out in the middle of the night for a rendezvous.


    <strong>Thought process:</strong> He did not have much faith in him and his wife stopping their highly determined daughter. If they failed, they would meet and canoodle and he also had no faith in them remembering to use protection.


    Even if Sun Jingwei was the son of his old friend, theirst remaining tie to Bi Yu''s memory, that didn''t mean he was fine with giving him his daughter!


    <strong>Verdict:</strong> Over his dead body!


    <strong>Option 2:</strong> Letting them stay here


    <strong>Thought process</strong>: He wouldn''t owe Sun Jingwei any favours and money, and he and his wife could keep an eye out for and stop any hanky panky behaviour under his roof.


    However, where were they going to sleep? Also wouldn''t this mean that Jingwei could theoretically creep into his daughter''s room at night when they were all sleeping and continue from where they left off? Or they could make ns to sneak off together!


    <strong>Verdict</strong>: Bad choice too, but it was better than Option 1.


    <strong>Option 3</strong>: Send Jingwei to the motel, and ept his money so his daughter stays safely home, where she belongs.


    <strong>Thought process:</strong> A seemingly more ptable option than the first two choices. The restaurant was destroyed on Sun Haowei''s orders, so his son was right to offerpensation.


    Even though financial support was always wee and the restaurant needed all the help it could get to rebuild, Tai Cheng knew better than anyone that there was no free lunch in this world, and that made him hesitant.


    If he epted Sun Jingwei''s offer, Sun Jingwei could just as easily take back the restaurant in future if he wished, if one day he and his daughter broke up, leaving them in more dire straits.


    But then again, they were already in dire straits. Shouldn''t they make the best of things now, and get the restaurant running and maybe pocket some of the extra money to tide themselves over before Sun Haowei woke up from hisa?


    (And even if his daughter decided to break the agreement and still run off to find him, the money was still theirs!)


    <strong>Verdict:</strong> ACCEPTED


    "Alright daughter, you''ve made your case," Tai Cheng said, "While we would love to have Jingwei and his bodyguards stay as guests, our home is simply not big enough to fit three fully grown men on such short notice."


    He turned to Jingwei. "Hence, you and your bodyguards have to stay at the motel - without my daughter!"


    "So you''re taking the money? What happened to not taking handouts and refusing to ept money from the Sun family?" Xue Ning asked, unsure if she should be happy or not. Money was certainly important, but deep down, she wanted to spend more time with Jingwei!


    "Yes, I am taking the money," Tai Cheng confirmed, and then looked at Jingwei and rattled off his bank ount number with a meaningful look. Jingwei could only shrug and then put in a transfer of a million yuan.


    "Uncle, is a million yuan enough? Do you want more?" Jingwei asked.<sub> </sub>


    "For now, this will do," Tai Cheng said, smiling peacefully as he stood up and squeezed Jingwei''s shoulder, while Jingwei tried not to cry out. His future father-inw had ridiculously strong fingers that dug right into his muscles! He could work as a masseuse!


    "You''re wee, Uncle. Just tell me if you need more in future!" Jingwei replied, half-wheezing in pain when Xue Ning''s father finally freed his poor sore shoulder.


    His arm was feeling numb even though Xue Ning''s father had never touched it. Incredible, did he have some forgotten knowledge of pressure points like those martial arts pugilists?


    Somehow, he didn''t want to ask. He had a feeling he wouldn''t like the answer. He still remembered the chopsticks embedded in the cupboards.


    "Thank you for your kind offer. I''ll remember it," Tai Cheng said promisingly. Xue Ning could only look at her father in mild disgust - was he nning to treat Jingwei like an ATM with no withdrawal limit? If so, she''d stop him!


    "Dad, you can''t just take Jingwei''s money for no good reason! That''s gold-digging!"


    "I have a good reason," Tai Cheng said cheerfully. "What''s more, he needs to help with the restaurant renovations first thing in the morning."


    "Eh?"


    "So it''s time for you to check into the motel now," Tai Cheng said, gesturing to the door, an implicit dismissal if Jingwei ever heard one.


    "Ah¡­" The kids looked at each other, unwilling to move.


    "It''s gettingte, and you need to wake up bright and early tomorrow to help us. Us folk in small towns begin work at 4am, you know." Tai Cheng continued cheerfully, loving how panic entered Sun Jingwei''s eyes.


    (Well, those in the farms certainly did. And he personally woke up early to prepare restaurant ingredients. What Jingwei didn''t know wouldn''t hurt him.)


    p "4 am?!" Jingwei eximed, turning to Xue Ning for confirmation. Tai Cheng shot his daughter a warning look, and she could only nod in agreement.</anda>


    "Kind of? But maybe Jingwei cane at 5 am instead?" She asked meekly. "It''s not as though we''re opening the restaurant¡­"


    "No, no," Tai Cheng said, waving his arm in refusal. "I need him to join in my daily meditation. It''s a good habit to improve general wellness."


    "At 4 am?!" Jingwei spluttered, disbelievingly.


    "Yes, is there a problem?" Tai Cheng asked again. "Are you somehow unwilling?"


    "...No," Jingwei said, bowing his head as he swallowed. Clearly this was another test given to him!


    "I look forward to seeing you tomorrow morning Uncle!" Jingwei dered, trying to punctuate his voice with more enthusiasm. Judging by the amused look in his future father-inw''s eyes, he wasn''t doing a good job.

 Chapter 244 Goodnight Kiss?

    "Good," Tai Cheng said, clearing his throat as he snickered internally. This boy was clearly not a morning person after all!


    But if this boy wanted to win his approval, he was going to need to do a lot more than wave a thick stack of cash around and bribe his way to their good books!


    Tai Cheng was going to enjoy making him suffer some hardship - he can''t be giving his daughter to some man that didn''t know how to slog after all!


    "I''ll walk you out! Come on!" Xue Ning said before her father could continue speaking. If he had his way, he might have Sun Jingwei cleaning manure from the neighbour''s cows, and that would be too much!


    (Even if Jingwei would make a very hot farmer, her brain thought traitorously.)


    "Okay¡­" Jingwei said as he followed her obediently outside, his mind still reeling from the knowledge of a 4am wake-up call - wait, it would be even earlier than that, because he had to arrive at her house at 4am!


    "I can''t believe I''ll see you and your father in less than¡­6 hours," Jingwei said, mentally counting. His voice sounded a little faint.


    "You''ll be fine," Xue Ning said with confidence that she did not feel, her hands automatically reaching out for his. "He''s not going to murder you. I think."


    "Thanks for the vote of confidence," Jingwei said, pulling her closer. He wrapped his arms around her waist, relishing in finally getting to hold her and breathe in her scent. It steadied his nerves somewhat, and he liked staring down at Xue Ning''s beautiful eyes, illuminated by the moonlight.


    Finally he got to spend some private time with his wife without the judgemental gazes of her family and random people!


    "Missed you so much today," Jingwei murmured into her ear, squeezing her tightly. If he had his way, he would have snuck her away, or climbed into her room via her window just so they could share a bed again! "Please don''t divorce me if I''m bad at meditation."


    "I won''t. I''m not good at it either," Xue Ning said, stroking the back of his head even as her own heart began beating faster, so much so that she''s sure Jingwei could hear it.


    She had experienced many firsts with Jingwei, but this was another one - she never had the experience of walking her boyfriend out after he visited her home, and now they were standing on her front porch, embracing in the moonlight while cicadas buzzed in the summer air.


    This was just like a drama! If future-Xue Ning told her past self that this would happen and she would love every second of it (and of him), she would have checked herself into an asylum.


    But the truth was undeniable. Sun Jingwei was her boyfriend! A real boyfriend that she did coupley things with! Her face burned at the thought.


    "What are you thinking of?" Jingwei asked, sensing that Xue Ning was strangely quiet. A quick nce showed her flushed face. He bopped her nose, delighting in the way she went cross-eyed for a moment just to keep him in view.


    "Oh ho ho, it looks like someone is thinking perverted thoughts I see!" He teased, giving her butt a firm squeeze that had her squirming. "Sorry that we can''t continue from where we left off in the kitchen though," he continued regrettably, nosing at her throat.


    "You''re a pervert too," Xue Ning muttered, her ears red. "Shouldn''t couples be kissing in this scenario? Why are you thinking of doing other things already?"<sub> </sub>


    "If you wanted to kiss me, you should just say so!" Jingwei said, staring down at her smugly, but making no move to kiss her.


    He was really waiting for her to say those words, while her parents were still in the house! Even if her mother was sleeping, she had a feeling that her father was spying on them from the window.


    She whipped her head around and yes - her father was doing an absolutely piss-poor job of pretending he wasn''t peeking at them from the window.


    "Dad! Go inside!" She tried to shoo him in with her hand, but her father merely looked at her, affronted.


    "I just want to read the newspaper by the window, is that a crime? This is my house!"


    "Dad, your newspaper is upside down. And there''s no light outside!" Xue Ning eximed, rolling her eyes.


    "Well! Maybe I''m just training my mind and my eyes!" her father spluttered as a retort. He then aggressively flipped the pages of the newspaper. It made a loud fluttering noise.


    It was still upside down. Jingwei hastily stifled augh.


    "Go inside!" Xue Ning demanded, as though she was the parent and he was the child. "Unless you want to watch me makeout with Jingwei! I swear! Don''t you think I don''t dare!"


    "You -!" Her father could only take a deep breath as he aggressively rolled up the newspaper and jabbed it at Jingwei threateningly. Of course he knew his daughter dared! His little girl had the guts of a lioness - but he could still scare her puppyish boyfriend!


    Jingwei was a full grown man who had endured many threats from his own father, so he was proud to say he only let out a little ''meep'' as Xue Ning''s father looked like he longed to shove the newspaper down his throat. He stood his ground!


    "If you don''t leave, I''m going to kiss him right in front of you! You made me do this! Kissing him in three, two, one!"


    Her father made a face of disgust, and he must have turned away, but Jingwei wasn''t paying any attention to him.


    Xue Ning aggressively tugged him down by his cor tond a firm kiss on his lips. He responded instinctively, hoisting her up so that she could wrap her legs around his hips as he massaged her ass, exploring her mouth with his tongue.


    Beside them, their two bodyguards could only stare up at the moon in silence.


    They had to wake up in the wee hours of the morning, because Sun Jingwei''s father-inw wanted to torture him.


    To add insult to injury, they sadly had no one to kiss to make up for it.

 Chapter 245 Checking In The Motel

    Finally they parted, panting slightly in exertion. Jingwei weed the burn in his muscles from holding Xue Ning up, this was the best work out he could think of, second to actually having sex with Xue Ning.


    He gazed up at her reverently, taking in her faintly awestruck expression, her eyes bright with affection.


    "You can put me down now," Xue Ning murmured, a bit too breathlessly for her own liking. "Your arms must be tired."


    "I want to carry you forever though," Jingwei said, surprisingly honest. "I can do it."


    "Don''t talk nonsense and put me down," Xue Ning replied, embarrassed at his cheesy words. She quickly turned to the window; thankfully it was empty - her father must have gone inside to spare his eyes from the sight of his daughter climbing her boyfriend like a tree!


    "Fine, fine, but can I get one more kiss?" Jingwei asked beseechingly, pretending to look sad as though they weren''t frantically making out just seconds ago.


    "One more kiss, since you asked so nicely." Xue Ning said, bending down to peck Jingwei on the lips, only to let out a squeak in surprise as Jingwei took the chance to plunder her mouth again. He purposely faked letting go so that Xue Ning would panic, fearing a fall, just so that he could get her to cling to him tighter as his lips travelled downwards.


    "Y-you¡­ bastard¡­" Xue Ning let out a weak moan. "Not here! My parents are a house away!"


    "Oops, sorry," Jingwei said regrettably. He got carried away again! He reluctantly put her down, but his arms were still wrapped around her waist. "Do you think I can just sleep outside your house like this? I could pitch a tent!"


    He sounded so pathetic and so serious that Xue Ning had to pinch both his cheeks.


    "Don''t be ridiculous," Xue Ning scolded. "Are you going to make Ming Guang and Wei Yan sleep outside too? Just go to the motel and get a room! It''s only a few hours!"


    Jingwei sulked, his metaphorical tail was no longer wagging.


    "Okay," He said, resigned to the end of the evening. "I''ll miss you. Will you miss me too?"


    "It''s a few hours," Xue Ning said, half-amused as she gazed up at him.


    "So? That''s not an answer to my question. Will you miss me too?" Jingwei repeated and Xue Ning wanted to bite him with love and irritation. Why was this man so clingy!


    "Yes I will! Now go and rest!" She pointed to the road. "Goodbye!"


    "Farewell my love, the light of my life," Jingwei said theatrically, a hand on his chest. "Every day will be as stormy as this one until I return to your side."


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes. "It''s nighttime, and the weather is perfectly lovely. Go."


    "How cruel," Jingweimented, but his lips curled into a fond smile, his eyes still filled with love. "I''ll see you in the morning!"


    "Bye!" Xue Ning waved as Jingwei was reluctantly dragged away by Ming Guang who couldn''t stand this nonsense for a minute longer. She addressed Wei Yan and Ming Guang. "Look after him for me!"


    "Yes Madam," they both chorused, Wei Yan waving goodbye too. Jingwei kept turning back every few steps to take another nce at her, and she had to re at him to chase him away, but it made her feel so guilty!


    Then she remembered that actually, she wasn''t meeting him in the morning like he expected. Jingwei was meeting her father instead! Xue Ning would of course still be sleeping in, hopefully till noon, while he suffered.<sub> </sub>


    Oops.


    It was toote to tell him now. If she told Jingwei that she wasn''t going to be awake and he was going to spend one-on-one time with her father in the wee hours of early dawn, he might just cry and spend the night on her front porch.


    It would be for the best to keep him in the dark!


    =====


    Meanwhile, the trio of men made their way to the motel that was right in the centre of the tiny town. Jingwei looked at the sign in trepidation; the motel was called Motel 31, but then the ''M'' wasn''t even lit up!


    That didn''t bode well.


    They then walked into the motel lobby with Wei Yan and Ming Guang nking Jingwei. Jingwei''s eyes wandered around the lobby, slight distaste crossing his face. The ce smelled of cigarette smoke and cheap perfume - it was as though he was back in a club in Shanghai! The floor was just simple tiles, and the lights were dim - not because it was mood lighting, but because the ce was too cheap to buy better quality lights.


    There was also a slight sticky feeling on the bottom of his shoes as he walked in. He didn''t want to think too much about it!


    ''It''s just for a few hours,'' he convinced himself. ''I''ll be fine.''


    Thankfully, the lobby was deserted, save for a receptionist that was tantly smoking at the reception counter. He found the source of the strong smoke smell! Was this even allowed?


    He frowned as they walked towards her. This was so unprofessional; her blouse was unbuttoned far enough that anyone who wanted an eyeful of her chest simply needed to look down, so he purposely averted his eyes.


    He wasn''t going to ogle at any chest that didn''t belong to Xue Ning!


    Meanwhile, the receptionist nearly choked on her cigarette at the sight of three handsome men approaching her counter! Was this her lucky day or what? It could have been a dream, but there was no way she could have dreamt up such handsome men - especially the one in the middle!


    He was an absolute dreamboat, and she definitely wouldn''t mind showing him a good night or ten.


    She hurriedly put out a cigarette and put on her best smile.


    "Hi! How may I help you? I''ve never seen you before."


    "We''re visitors," Jingwei said politely, inching away from her overly friendly smile. "Can we have a room?"


    "Of course! Three rooms with double beds, since all of you look pretty¡­big?" The receptionist asked, fluttering her eyshes as she ogled at their muscles. Oh, to invite herself into their beds!


    "No," Jingwei hurriedly replied, frowning. "One room with one double bed for all three of us."


    "Huh?" The receptionist''s mouth fell open in shock. Did¡­ were all three men gay? And involved with each other?

 Chapter 246 Unwanted Guests

    At this, even Ming Guang and Wei Yan turned to look at Jingwei in confusion. Surely their boss can''t be so cheapskate to have one room with one bed for three of them! Was he booting them to the floor?


    "Yes, I want to spend my night with these two gentlemen. Kindly give us a room with utmost privacy." Jingwei said authoritatively, shing his credit card. He wanted his words to imply exactly what the receptionist thought.


    He began to drum his hands on the counter, but he stopped, afraid of what he''d touch. His fingers felt sticky and he hurriedly wiped them on his pants with a frown. Did no one clean the counter?


    "I see¡­I''ll get a room for you Sirs. How many nights?" The receptionist asked, shoulders slumping with barely concealed disappointment.


    Jingwei paused and considered. "A week." Surely Xue Ning''s family wouldn''t be so heartless to make him stay here longer than he had to!


    Meanwhile, the receptionist sighed. Truly, the good men were all snatched up or gay! What a pity. Still, she had a job to do. She reluctantly booked a room for all of them, taking her own sweet time.


    After all, even if she couldn''t get a taste, it didn''t mean she couldn''t look.


    Just as she handed him the keys to the motel room, a series of high pitched giggling and the sound of high heels and men''s shoes greeted his ears. There was also a heavy smell of cheap whiskey wafting through the air, and Jingwei''s stomach turned in disgust.


    Unfortunately, he was close enough to hear every word that came out of their mouths.


    "Oh, Boss, you''re so naughty!" A woman chimed. Jingwei didn''t need to turn back to hear the pout in her voice. "How can you do this to me!"


    There was a sound of a smack and a hastily stifled squeal, along with more giggling. From personal experience, Jingwei could guess that someone''s ass got spanked.


    "What did I say about calling me Boss? You should be calling me Daddy!" A man growled out warningly.


    "Of course, sorry Daddy¡­ baby has a bad memory. But why is Daddy naughty? There are people here?"


    "Oh baby, don''t pretend to be shy! Just look at how my little slut is dressed? Hey what''s the hold-up! I need a room for me and my baby right now!"


    Jingwei made a face of disgust and hurriedly turned - only to identally bump into said party on the way to the lift! A quick nce registered a woman in a skimpy cocktail dress and thick curly hair, her beautiful legs on disy along with her big breasts that looked too firm to be natural.


    The man was clearly in his mid-fifties, if that sizable pot belly was any indication. His shirt wasn''t tucked into his pants, his suit was ill-fitting and he wore a gaudy gold chain around his neck. Jingwei would bet his life savings that it was fake.


    The kicker though, was Jingwei seeing a pair of sunsses tucked into his hair. It was in the middle of the night! What a loser. He couldn''t help scoffing at the man''s attire, even as he turned to leave.<sub> </sub>


    "Oh Daddy," one of the women said rapturously, and the man was pleased, but then he realised his date for the night wasn''t looking at him at all!


    She was looking at this new man!


    "Xiao Chun!" The man scolded, pinching her bottom painfully. "How dare you look at other men!"


    Meanwhile Xiao Chun could only apologise, reluctantly tearing her eyes away from him. Wasn''t this man Sun Jingwei? Her family group chats had blown up this afternoon with pictures of this man, a visitor from abroad. He was so handsome!


    All of the men were also good-looking, and Xiao Chun had tough at the thought of the Li family''s youngest daughter having one of them for a boyfriend. At least it was the cute boyish one, and not the utter demigod standing in the middle!


    Seeing him and then seeing her patron was like looking at a dirty toilet bowl after seeing an incredible sunset.


    Hostesses like her couldn''t be choosy with their patrons, and Xiao Chun never minded Boss Wang that much - he was wealthy and he spoiled her with branded bags and expensive perfume, but she didn''t want to be his mistress for the rest of her life.


    Just one look at Sun Jingwei broadened her ambitions. She could do better this old man!


    She had to get him! A quick look at his hand showed there was no wedding ring, but even if he had one, it didn''t matter.


    "Sorry!" Xiao Chun gasped as she ''identally'' stumbled, pretending to be tizzy. Jingwei grabbed her instinctively, and she took the chance to press herself all over his body, gazing up at his lovely face. She batted her eyshes adoringly. "Oh, so sorry, I drank too much¡­Thank you for saving me."


    "From what? From your husband?" Jingwei replied incredulously, tilting his head at the man, whose sunsses seemed to be rattling in indignation.


    He can''t believe someone was actually trying the trip and fall method to seduce him. Come to think of it, he should use it on Xue Ning too. She could hold her up with those strong arms of hers¡­


    "N-no I - This is - " Xiao Chun spluttered, not expecting such a rude reply. She gazed up at him, only to see Sun Jingwei''s eyes already drifting off into space. What on earth? "Hello? Excuse me?"


    "Ming Guang," Jingwei stated, finally remembering he was still holding a woman that was not his darling. He all but shoved her into Ming Guang''s arms. He didn''t want to touch another woman that wasn''t Xue Ning!


    Ming Guang sighed and caught her, righted her and then promptly put her back beside the man that was looking less than pleased.


    "Yah! Xiao Chun! You slut! How dare you seduce other men when I''m right next to you!" Boss Wang raged, pping her cheek with such force that she fell to the floor for real this time with an ungainly shriek.

 Chapter 247 Another Jail Cell Companion

    "Hey stop that!" Jingwei dered as he instinctively helped her up. Xiao Chun clutched her swollen cheek in a daze. Did this man have a split personality? Why was he so uncaring of her before and now so gentlemanly?


    But even if he did, he made her heart flutter like no man had done before!


    "How can you hit a woman? What kind of man are you?" Jingwei scolded Boss Wang, who puffed out his chest in indignation.


    "Shut up! Stay out of my business, you gay boy!" Boss Wang spat out, and Jingwei frowned in disgust as flecks of spit flew in his direction.


    He wasn''t even insulted by that man''s words - there was nothing wrong with being homosexual! If Xue Ning was a man, he''d be one!


    (Back in the hospital, Sun Haowei shuddered, his eyes twitching even as heid on the bed,atose.)


    "Did you even brush your teeth?" Jingwei asked, shuddering and Boss Wang yelled in outrage, giving Jingwei a lovely view of his yellowing teeth. Guess not.


    That was bad enough, but then Boss Wang decided to follow up his statement by grabbing his cor, preparing to deck Jingwei in the face.


    "You bastard!" He yelled, and Jingwei flinched at the foul breath. Thankfully he didn''t have to endure it for a second longer - Ming Guang quickly wrenched his hand off Jingwei''s cor and socked him straight in the jaw!


    Xiao Chun shrieked in surprise at the loud crack that resounded, and Boss Wang''s body hit the floor with a loud thud. He wheezed and gasped in pain, mouth opening and closing like a fish on drynd.


    "Is he going to die?" Xiao Chun cried out, covering her mouth in fear.


    "He''ll live. Wei Yan, call the police." Jingwei ordered, and let out a tired sigh. Why didn''t he just pitch a tent in front of Xue Ning''s house and just sleep there?


    "Arrest me?! Don''t you know who I am?! Even Mayor Poh gives me face!" Boss Wang red angrily at them, squeezing out the words from his throat. He made another swipe for Jingwei.


    Jingwei dodged it easily, giving Ming Guang more room to subdue him.


    "Great, you can join him in the same jail cell then," Jingwei replied more cheerfully. He turned to the woman who was still half-clinging to his arm.


    "Go home and forget this man, he''s not worth it." He instructed, prying her hands off him.


    Jingwei then quickly bent down and swiped Boss Wang''s fat wallet from his back pocket. He opened it and his eyes widened at the stack of cash - clearly someone didn''t want his club activities traceable online!


    He grabbed the cash and passed it to Xiao Chun.


    "Here, take his money and go see a doctor and then do something else with your life. Don''t waste it on him! Do you want to sue?"


    "No! I want to stay with you!" Xiao Chun said, even as her hands easily epted the cash pressed into her hands. Her eyes were brimming with gratitude as she took in Jingwei''s imposing figure under the dim lights.


    "You saved me! I''ll follow you forever!"


    "Please don''t. if my wife finds out you tried to seduce me, there''s nothing saving you from her." Jingwei said.


    "Wife?" Xiao Chun said in dismay, and Sun Jingwei gave such a beautiful smile that it made her feel more light-headed than the blow she suffered on the cheek.


    "Yes, my wife. The most beautiful woman on this earth!" He said impassionately.


    After that deration, Xiao Chun could only shuffle away, heartbroken and defeated while all of them waited for the police to haul Boss Wang away.<sub> </sub>


    At least she had made some money tonight, even if it wasn''t through conventional means!


    But she still stole nces at Jingwei from the corner of her eyes. Maybe¡­ maybe she could still spend the night with him? Or maybe she should just follow him around¡­ yes¡­


    =====


    Meanwhile, in the holding cells¡­


    "Poh? My old friend? Is it really you?" Boss Wang eximed as he peered through the bars to the other holding cell, where his friend sat on the thin mattress given. He was aching all over, but at least his head had stopped ringing after the blow to his jaw. Sun Jingwei did say something about Mayor Poh being in jail, but Boss Wang didn''t believe it until he saw it with his own eyes.


    "Holy shit, is that your wife in the next cell? What on earth happened?!"


    "Didn''t you hear? I thought everyone would know about it by now." Mayor Poh muttered bitterly.


    He leaned closer to take another look; gone was Mayor Poh''s haughty manners and tidy appearance! Now his hair was mussed up as though he had pulled at it angrily, and there were many creases on his outfit. His moustache seemed to be twitching. There was also an oily sheen on his face, visible under the fluorescent lights.


    He couldn''t really see Mrs Poh clearly from his angle, but it didn''t take a genius to know that she was also looking less-than-cheerful about the new state of things.


    "How would I know?" Boss Wang said. "I only woke up in the evening to go to the hostess bar!"


    "My wife happened, that''s what! This stupid bitch went and offended Sun Jingwei, so he arrested both of us! I''m divorcing this fucking bitch the moment I leave this ce," Mayor Poh dered loud enough for his wife to hear. He shot his wife a dirty look, and she returned it with a middle finger.


    "Wow. I really missed so much," Boss Wang muttered to himself. This lovey-dovey couple seemed to be ready to kill each other!


    "What are you here for then?" Mayor Poh asked curiously. "Did you touch the wrong woman?"


    "Funny you should say that! It''s because of that same guy Sun Jingwei! He tried to paw my precious Xiao Chun, and then threw me in here! Can you believe this married man dared to snatch my woman?"


    Mayor Poh raised an eyebrow. He knew Boss Wang well enough that his version of the event most likely wasn''t urate, but it was still entertaining.


    "Married? Sun Jingwei is married?"


    "Yes! Shocking isn''t it! I learnt that just now. He wouldn''t stop talking about how his wife was a goddess. And he still had the nerve to go after Xiao Chun! Man, I really want to hit him!"


    Boss Wang still felt upset at how Jingwei so easily stole Xiao Chun''s affections. Xiao Chun was just a hostess girl that hevished attention on, and now she decided to dump him for someone younger and richer? Inexcusable!


    (Of course, he didn''t care that he was technically doing the same thing to his wife at home. That was different - men had needs, and his ageing wife wasn''t doing it for him any more.)


    "Old friend, rx." Mayor Poh said, a wicked smile growing on his face.


    "Rx? How can I rx! Have you lost your mind?!"


    "Don''t worry about Sun Jingwei," Mayor Poh gestured to him to lean in closer as he whispered conspiratorially into his ear past the bars.


    "I''ve already made arrangements. Someone has helpfully decided to reach out to us to help us get revenge!"

 Chapter 248 3rd Party

    Back at the hotel room, the three men were oblivious to the fate that would befall them. They stared at the one double bed silently.


    Wait, technically it was only two men that stared at the double bed.


    Sun Jingwei had taken one look at the bed and then promptly gone into the bathroom to take a quick shower. He wanted to wash away the smell of cheap cigarettes, perfume and whiskey that was hovering all over him, thanks to that unfortunate encounter.


    He had to make sure to look presentable for his father-inw tomorrow! But the motel shower clearly didn''t want to make it easy for him. The water pressure was poor, and it felt like someone was peeing on him, making showering a chore. To add insult to injury, the water temperature seemed to swivel from hot to cold to hot with no warning whatsoever, and he screamed in surprise.


    He wondered how he could convince Xue Ning to at least let him shower in her house. Then his brain thought about Xue Ning and the shower and remembered all the fun times they had, and his dick stood up again.


    Guess his shower would have to take a detour¡­


    Meanwhile from outside, Ming Guang had rolled his eyes at Jingwei''s behaviour. How could someone be so noisy when bathing? First screaming, then moaning. Disgusting.


    As Young Master Sun was definitely going to take the bed, he and Wei Yan were relegated to the floor. As such, he wasted no time doing a customary security sweep of the motel room.


    It was free of technological bugs, but sadly not free of biological bugs. Wei Yan had to swat a few errant moths that flew in from the open window, attracted by the lights!


    "Can''t believe they don''t even close the windows," muttered Wei Yan disbelievingly as he chased away thest stubborn moth. The windows made a squeaking sound when he shoved them shut.


    The air-conditioning also let out an ominous creaking sound when he turned it on. They waited with baited breath, but it finally opened and began sting semi-cold air into the room, just in time for Sun Jingwei to emerge from the bathroom in his own bathrobe, looking clean and refreshed.


    He wasted no time plopping himself right in the middle of the bed, iming territory even without drying his hair.


    "Welle on then, go and bathe and join me." Jingwei said cheerfully. "We have to get up at 3am tomorrow to meditate."


    "With all due respect Sir," Ming Guang said, in a tone that sounded quite disrespectful indeed, "three of us cannot fit on this bed. I''ll take the floor." Ming Guang was too tall for the sofa chair.


    Jingwei then turned to Wei Yan expectantly. "How about you? You''re already pretending to be Xue Ning''s fake boyfriend, you might as well pretend to be my fake boyfriend too."


    Wei Yan choked and hastily shook his head. He thought Sun Jingwei had forgotten about that, but clearly he was still holding a grudge! What a petty guy! If he shared a bed with him, he might be kicked throughout the night on purpose.


    "No thanks. Sir." He added btedly at Ming Guang''s warning look.


    "No, I insist," Jingwei said, waving him over. "I wanted to sleep next to Xue Ning, but since she''s not here, I''ll have to make do with you. You, her fake boyfriend, the man that was quick enough to pretend to be boyfriend in front of her family."<sub> </sub>


    "Sir?" Wei Yan asked hesitantly, rm bells ringing in his head.


    "No, no, I''m not mad," Jingwei said cheerfully, but Wei Yan would have been a pretty shitty bodyguard if he couldn''t sense the bloodlust radiating from him.


    "After all, it''s not your fault that your face looks morepatible with hers that everyone thinks you guys are a couple. And it''s also not your fault that you''re also interested in Xue Ning. Everyone should be interested in her. You have good taste."


    "Thanks?" Wei Yan said warily, shooting Ming Guang a worried nce. Ming Guang shrugged and helpfully went into the bathroom to wash up.


    "But it was really smart of you to use this method to pretend you''re dating her," Jingwei continued. "Since you knew that we had no intention of letting anyone know we were dating, there was no way to call your bluff! A perfect n, if I do say so myself. But it ends now."


    The air-conditioning wasn''t cold in such a third-rate motel, but Wei Yan still felt a chill travel down his spine at Sun Jingwei''s words and at the look in his eyes.


    Now he understood why Sun Jingwei wanted a room with all three of them! This was a power y!


    "I beg to differ," Wei Yan said, crossing his arms. His feelings for Miss Li might be new, but they were there and they longed to be recognized and treated with respect.


    "In the eyes of the townspeople here, I am still Miss Li''s boyfriend. You revealing the truth will just further harm her standing - she''ll be known as a ygirl, a whore jumping in between men. Is this what you want for the woman you im to love?"


    Jingwei smiled with too many teeth. "That won''t matter. We aren''t going to be staying long enough for Xue Ning to suffer any repercussions. But it''s good that you care so much for my wife." Jingwei emphasised thest two words, his eyes shing with anger.


    But he still kept a cheery grin.


    "It''s always good to bond with a man of culture. Soe on, feel free to sleep next to me!"


    "I''d rather not." Wei Yan wracked his brain for an excuse. "Wouldn''t Miss Li be upset if she finds you sleeping beside someone that''s not her?"


    "I''m sure she wouldn''t mind," Jingwei said.


    "Fine," Wei Yan said, gritting his teeth, as he mbered to the other side of Jingwei''s bed, purposely ring at him. He hadn''t showered and Sun Jingwei was bound to hate it, but he asked first. And he had something to say to him.


    "In case you forgot, even married couples can get divorced, if given enough incentive."


    Jingwei''s eyes shed. "Are you threatening me?"

 Chapter 249 Unwanted Observations

    "No, just making an observation Sir," Wei Yan said with a steely gaze, lying down on the bed. "Couples dating can also break up, especially without support from the family members. A third party wouldn''t make a difference."


    "Hmph. Fine then, I ept your challenge!" Jingwei pped his hand on the bed, and because the mattress was so lumpy the smack didn''t even cause the blow to reverberate.


    "Huh?"


    "In the end, I''ll be thest man standing at the altar when Xue Ning walks in," Jingwei vowed. "Wei Yan, you can try all your dirty tricks to win her over, but just know that you''ll lose!"


    Wei Yan scowled. Part of him wondered if Li Xue Ning knew how ridiculously possessive and dangerous Sun Jingwei truly was. She had only seen the cuter side of his possessiveness, his reluctance to part with her tonight, for instance.


    ? His protectiveness over her and willingness to indulge her every whim. But Wei Yan had a feeling that it wouldn''t be enough in future. This man had no career of his own and was living off his family''s wealth, and he even got himself into serious trouble that Wei Yan and Ming Guang had to be sent to guard him instead of Tianwei, the heir that was actually doing something!


    No matter how he thought about it, even if Miss Li didn''t like him, she still deserves someone better!


    "Miss Li will be the judge of that," Wei Yan said firmly, giving Jingwei a cutting look. "Her opinion matters the most in these circumstances, not yours."


    And then Wei Yan had tond a finishing blow. "Her parents don''t like you and your father destroyed their restaurant. What future do you hope to build together?"


    =====


    Back in Shanghai, Wu Shang Jing swirled a cup of red wine as he gazed at the monitor, taking a long, appreciative sniff before gulping it down like water.


    Good news deserved to be celebrated with good wine, no matter howte the hour!


    "Zi Long, isn''t it great that Heaven is still on my side?" Wu Shang Jing mused idly to himself, gesturing to the screen.


    Sun Jingwei had activated his credit card, which wasn''t out of the ordinary. What was weird was that he used his credit card to stay in a motel in the middle of the countryside. No wonder the trail went cold after he got on his private ne! Such a backwater town didn''t even have good enough Inte for him to work his magic.


    Clearly, his old friend had run away with the tail hidden between his legs.


    "Young Master Wu, you should be asleep," Zi Long said in concern. Wu Shang Jing''s mental state tended to get more erratic when Young Master Wu keptte nights, hence Zi Long had made more efforts to usher him to bed early, as though he was still the child he watched over.


    "Yes, yes," Shang Jing said fondly. "I''ll have sweet dreams now that I know where Jingwei is."


    "He''ll return to Shanghai," Zi Long said, after a cursory nce at the information on the screen. "There''s no way he can hide there forever."


    "Of course!" Shang Jing pped gaily to himself. He had already set the pieces in ce, and it was too easy now that he knew who Jingwei''s precious woman was.


    Sun Jingwei would be returning back to Shanghai, but no one could know what state he''d be in¡­


    And whether he would still have his precious fiancee with him when he returned. Oh, such anticipation! He couldn''t wait for next week!


    Meanwhile, Zi Long sighed, his hand holding his Young Master''s medicine case. The pills were left uneaten again. How much longer could hest like this?<sub> </sub>


    ====


    "Wife, I know you''re still awake. How are you feeling?" Tai Cheng asked as he entered their bedroom. He watched Sun Jingwei and his bodyguards drive off to the motel before returning to his own bedroom.


    Unfortunately, this meant that he also got an unwanted eyeful of his daughter making out with Sun Jingwei before he left! He wished to avert his eyes in disgust, but he was afraid that if he did, they''d go way further than they were supposed to! Thankfully, his daughter still had somemon sense to send him away.


    Tai Cheng didn''t like that hungry look in Sun Jingwei''s eyes as he gazed at his daughter. That man had no respect for them! Why couldn''t Xue Ning pick another man? The fake boyfriend Wei Yan seemed to be a better choice!


    He had kept a close eye on her as she turned in for the night, making sure she didn''t chase after him. Just in case. Now that Jingwei was finally gone, he could check on his wife, who had been suspiciously quiet.


    If she was her normal self, she would have flung a flower pot at Jingwei the moment they started kissing on their front porch!


    Yue Niang let out a sigh at her husband''s question. "Is he finally gone?"


    "For now," Tai Cheng answered, crawling into bed. "And you didn''t answer my question."


    "What''s there to say?" Yue Niang said with a sardonic smile. "He cooks like Bi Yu¡­ Guess she managed to pass her cooking skills to one of her kids. I''m surprised Sun Haowei even let her into the kitchen to cook, let alone teach her son. Remember how he imed cooking was for servants?"


    "Like he''d stop Bi Yu from doing what she wanted," Tai Cheng mused. "He isn''t that terrible."


    "Don''t tell me you still have rose-tinted sses on! If he didn''t ill-treat Bi Yu, it isn''t because he''s a good person. But because he didn''t care enough about her to do that." Yue Niang muttered, scowling. She knew better than anyone - she used to be Sun Haowei''s lover, before she picked Tai Cheng over him.


    During that time, Sun Haowei had always treated Bi Yu with a certain level of distance, so when news of their engagement hit the grapevine, they were both shocked.


    Yue Niang wanted to turn back and demand an exnation, but Sun Haowei would probably have them shot if they returned. Part of her always wondered if Sun Haowei purposely married Bi Yu as a twisted form of revenge against her and Tai Xuan for leaving, or was it because Bi Yu was the only one of their little circle that was still left.


    Either way, there''s no point in wondering about it now. Bi Yu was dead, and her son was in love with Yue Niang''s daughter. That thought gave her a headache.


    "I''m making Jingwei visit us at 4am tomorrow," her husband said. "I want to tire him sopletely that he leaves our daughter alone. Did you know that they were kissing outside our house just now? The nerve!"


    Yue Niang scowled. "I don''t trust him. Husband, make sure you work him to the bone tomorrow!"


    =====


    Back in the motel, Jingwei sneezed repeatedly as Wei Yan shuffled away in disgust from their shared bed. Was heing down with a flu, or maybe¡­ someone was thinking about him!


    He hoped that someone was Xue Ning. If only she was here by his side to hug and kiss all night¡­


    With that thought, Jingwei drifted off to dreand.

 Chapter 250 4 AM Encounter

    At 3 AM, Jingwei and his band of merry men were forced awake by the shrill sound of Jingwei''s phone. Jingwei instinctively turned and switched it off, continuing to snore in his pillow while Wei Yan and Ming Guang leapt to alertness, their training kicking in.


    "Wake him up," Ming Guang instructed as he began to go into the bathroom to wash up.


    "Why must I? I don''t want to," Wei Yan argued, but no one replied. He scowled at Sun Jingwei sleeping on the bed. They were his bodyguards, not his babysitters. They went wherever Sun Jingwei went.


    If Sun Jingwei didn''t get up, then they should be in the motel room waiting for him! They weren''t supposed to be in-charge of making sure he kept to his schedule.


    If this meeting with Miss Li''s father was as important as he imed it to be, he should have woken up immediately!


    ''Poor Miss Li'', he mused to himself as he watched Sun Jingwei drool into his pillow in disgust. ''This man is too immature and irresponsible!''


    After a while, Ming Guang was done and gestured to Wei Yan to take his turn. Wei Yan went in and washed up, while Jingwei continued to slumber on, oblivious.


    Ming Guang was frowning at Wei Yan when he emerged.


    "He still hasn''t woken up?"


    "Nope." Wei Yan said, shrugging.


    "You didn''t wake him up." Ming Guang said, narrowing his eyes as he realised the truth. "Why?"


    "I didn''t want to," Wei Yan said, crossing his arms. "Ming Guang, you take your bodyguarding job seriously - but don''t you think that waking him up would be considered overstepping? We''re not his nannies."


    "If you were nning to let him sleep in, couldn''t you have let me know the night before?" Ming Guangined, before he stared at Wei Yan, suddenly serious.


    "You and I both knew what we were getting into when we got assigned as his bodyguards. Don''t let your personal emotions cloud your judgement or stop you from your duties."


    "But this isn''t in my duties - " He retorted, but Ming Guang stared at him stonily with a raised eyebrow, daring him to continue.


    "Fine. Fine, I understand what you''re saying." Wei Yan said, taking a deep breath, squashing the irritation deep down. He turned to Jingwei and smacked his exposed feet from under the nket, channelling all his negative emotions into that hit.


    Jingwei woke up with a jolt, his fists in front of him as though he was ready to fight an enemy.


    "What¡­ what¡­ what''s going on? Why did you hit me?" Jingwei demanded with bleary eyes, his voice thick with sleep.


    "Wake up, you''re supposed to arrive at the Sun family house at 4am, remember?" Wei Yan reminded him waspishly.


    "Oh, right, right," Jingwei nodded to himself. Then he turned to his phone and saw that it was nearly 3.45 am, and jumped straight out of bed with an unmanly shriek.


    "Why didn''t you wake me up?" He screamed and he ran into the bathroom to wash up without even waiting for a response. "Oh my god, I''m going to bete!"


    Wei Yan scowled, and Ming Guang cleared his throat in warning.


    "I hope they break up," Wei Yan grumbled under his breath. "That''ll teach him a lesson."


    =====


    After the quickest shower Jingwei had taken in his entire life, the three of them hastily left the motel after collecting their valuables. Jingwei tried to maintain high spirits at the thought of meeting his future wife, but then his eyelids were still crusted together due to theck of sleep, and he kept yawning loudly every two steps.


    Thankfully, the roads were obviously clear and they could race to Xue Ning''s house only five minutes past 4 am. Hopefully his future father-inw wouldn''t hold it against him! He wanted to ring the doorbell, but then thought better of it and instead knocked on the door.


    "Uncle, are you here? This is Jingwei!"


    The door opened and Tai Cheng stared impassively down at the three of them.


    "You''rete," Tai Cheng pointed out. He had almost hoped that Jingwei wasn''t arriving, just so he could disapprove of him harder.


    "Sorry Uncle," Jingwei said, bowing quickly. "I overslept." He peered past the door, hoping to see Xue Ning but he was disappointed. "Are we going to meditate now?"


    "Hmph," Tai Cheng breathed loudly, heaping volumes of judgement in that one exhaled breath and he gestured for them to follow him. "I''ll bring you to the kitchen to meditate."


    Jingwei blinked in surprise.<sub> </sub>


    They entered the kitchen and were greeted with three sacks of bean sprouts. Did Xue Ning''s father put an express delivery of bean sprouts with the money he sent him, or were they just lying around the kitchen and Jingwei didn''t notice them because he was too busy focusing on Xue Ning?


    "Uncle? What do bean sprouts have to do with meditating?" Jingwei asked hesitantly.


    "I''ve found that cleaning and peeling them is a meditative activity." Her father said, crossing his arms. "Peel those and put the peeled bean sprouts in this bowl of water over here."


    Now that he had funds to renovate his restaurant and the extra manpower, he might as well use this chance to stock up on food preparation and work deliveries!


    Sun Jingwei was going to be put through the wringer. If he wanted to be his son-inw, he had to put in the work!


    "Alright," Jingwei said, gingerly as he got closer to a bag, staring at it cautiously. "So how do I peel a bean sprout?"


    Everyone stared at him, incredulous.


    Her father closed his eyes and sucked in a deep breath to calm himself down. Sun Jingwei didn''t know how to prepare bean sprouts. Of course he wouldn''t.


    "Uncle, I know how to do it," Wei Yan volunteered, sensing a chance to impress and taking it.


    "Please demonstrate then," Tai Cheng gestured to the sprouts, watching with a careful eye.


    Wei Yan first grabbed a handful and put them in a bowl of water, gently mixing them so that the green shells fell off from the bean sprouts. He then took the bean sprouts and strained them with a strainer, and put them in another bowl. He repeated this step over and over until he was satisfied, and then snapped off the roots of the bean sprouts.


    He even collected the roots and green shells in another bowl for Uncle to take a look. "Here Uncle, you can use this as fertiliser," Wei Yan said humbly.


    Tai Cheng beamed, delighted that at least one person had sense and he didn''t have to demonstrate from scratch. Look at how frugal he was!


    "Good good, very good. See, Jingwei? Just follow his example and things will be fine," Tai Cheng said, watching Wei Yan with approval. This boy clearly had more experience with the more nitty-gritty cooking chores! Why couldn''t he be Xue Ning''s boyfriend instead?


    "Yes, I know better than you, in more ways than one," Wei Yan murmured, hiding his smugness at the way Sun Jingwei clenched his fist. The sleepiness that Jingwei felt was quickly chased away by anger at how Wei Yan easily upstaged him and made himself look good!


    <o>,m "It''s alright, I''ll learn and do a better job," Jingwei promised, giving Xue Ning''s father a quick bow. "Don''t worry about it Uncle! I got this!"</o>


    "You''d better." Tai Cheng said warningly. "In fact, do it now so that I can see if you''re doing it properly."


    Jingwei followed everything Wei Yan did, but somehow, Xue Ning''s father found fault in nearly every step he did!


    "Don''t use so much water!"


    "Stop, stop, look at how hard you''re swirling the bean sprouts! Are you trying to break them into pieces!"


    "Look at how much water you spilled!"


    "Be gentle when removing the shells."


    "You''re supposed to snap off the root, not half the sprout!"


    It was as though Jingwei was dealing with a chef version of his father that nitpicked at everything he did!


    With how tired he was from only getting so little sleep, he wanted to snap, but then he caught himself in time. If he had burst into anger in front of Xue Ning''s father, he could kiss his chances of marrying Xue Ning goodbye!


    What''s more, he didn''t want to give Wei Yan the satisfaction of watching him fail. As such, he gritted his teeth and bowed his head, nodding and every criticism levied towards him. The words "yes Uncle, got it Uncle" were all he said.


    "I want all this done in 2 hours," her father said. They thought he would leave him to it, but Tai Cheng continued to remain in the kitchen, wiping down the countertops and sweeping the floor, before washing rice for everyone''s breakfast. All the ire that Jingwei felt drained away, reced by heartache. Xue Ning''s father worked so hard for the sake of his family!


    "Uncle, I can clean the kitchen too," Jingwei volunteered. "You shouldn''t be working so hard."


    Beside him, Wei Yan had to hand it to Sun Jingwei. He certainly didn''t know when to give up!


    Tai Cheng paused in surprise, before he shook his head.


    "Focus on your bean sprouts instead. If you do a terrible job, you can forget about dating my daughter!"

 Chapter 251 Bean Sprouts And Green Tea

    "Yes Uncle," Jingwei said meekly, staring down at his own bean sprouts. As the minutes ticked on, one couldn''t help notice how much better Wei Yan was at preparing his bean sprouts. For every one bowl that Jingwei was done with, Wei Yan had two bowls prepared.


    "Were you a bean sprout farmer in your past life? How are you so good at this?" Jingwei asked grouchily, ring at him from the corner of his eyes. He couldn''t stifle a yawn as he absentmindedly swirled his hand in the water.


    How was this his life now?


    His sprouts weren''t cooperating at all, and Uncle had crept behind him and let out several judgemental noises more than once.


    It made him so irritable that he smacked his hands into the bowl of water, causing water to ssh on him. To make matters worse, this caused his sprouts to ssh out from the bowl, causing Uncle to give him a disapproving look and scold him for wasting water and ruining the bean sprouts.


    Meanwhile, with every mistake Jingwei made, Wei Yan was steadily emerging as a strong contender for favourite son-inw!


    "I used to help my mother out with meal preparation during dinner time," Wei Yan said, pretending to be humble while inwardly smirking at Sun Jingwei''s immature behaviour. "Our family used to run a restaurant too, but we sold chicken bean sprouts."


    "Oh?" Xue Ning''s father ambled closer, interested. "That exins why you''re so good at this. Are you good at deboning chicken and slicing meat?"


    "I think so," Wei Yan said. "Uncle, you can give me a try first! If I''m good enough, I can help you with that."


    "Excellent!" Tai Cheng dered, with the enthusiasm of someone finding a 50 dor note on the floor by ident. "This old man will have to trouble you then."


    "It''s no trouble at all, Mr Li." Wei Yan said, a polite smile on his face. "I''m d to help."


    "Such a good child! Feel free to call me Uncle. You can stay for as long as you like," Tai Cheng said, patting him on the back while beaming. This man was good in the kitchen and polite and didn''t lust after his daughter like a pervert. What a pity his daughter was blind!


    Jingwei gnashed his teeth and snapped off a root of a bean sprout with uncharacteristic vehemence.


    "Jingwei! You''re snapping off half the sprout again!" Tai Cheng scolded in exasperation.


    "Sorry, Uncle." Jingwei sighed.


    "Please forgive him," Wei Yan added. "He had a long eventful night yesterday. We had some unexpected trouble with a woman."


    "Oh, I''m sure," Tai Cheng said darkly, in a tone of someone having all his worst fears confirmed. He had a feeling Sun Jingwei might be visiting the motel bar or helping himself to some drinks the night before.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei didn''t hide the scowl he gave Wei Yan. What was he trying to do, nder him in front of his father-inw in the guise of being helpful?!


    "Uncle, nothing happened!" Jingwei dered hastily, before Wei Yan could say anything more incriminating. "I''m loyal to Xue Ning and Xue Ning alone!"


    Tai Cheng gave him a frosty re and pointed to his sprouts. "Focus before I kick you out of my house!"<sub> </sub>


    "Yes, Uncle," Jingwei said morosely, even as he kicked Wei Yan''s ankle, a silent warning for him to stop spewing nonsense.


    CLANG!


    Wei Yan fell to the floor with a loud thud, and the bowl of bean sprouts he was holding spilled all over the floor, water sshing everywhere!


    "What on earth?! Get up!" Jingwei eximed, half-panicked as he grabbed Wei Yan. "Are you dying? Did I break your ankle? How can you fall to the floor with a gentle kick like that! You''re supposed to be my bodyguard!"


    "Sorry Sir, I was caught unaware. I was too focused on my task," Wei Yan said, pretending to be ashamed as hurriedly bent down to pick up the bean sprouts thatnded on the floor. Only the kitchen tiles saw his sly smile.


    "I''ll get a mop," Ming Guang said, frowning as he looked for one. He wanted alcohol. Wei Yan was purposely causing trouble like a concubine in a pce drama - did he not care about his career? Why was he doing this?


    If he was trying to get with Miss Li, Ming Guang would smack him in the head. Surely she cannot be worth the destruction of his career!


    "You shouldn''t be injuring your bodyguards," Tai Cheng scolded as he crossed his arms. Did Sun Jingwei have a hidden temper, in addition to womanising tendencies? He worried for Xue Ning - Xue Ning had his love now, but what would happen to her when his love for her ran out? What would happen if he got angry with her? He couldn''t trust Jingwei to noty a hand on her.


    "Wei Yan, are you alright?" Tai Cheng asked. "Do you need to rest?"


    "No need!" Wei Yan protested as he quickly picked up the remaining bean sprouts. "Besides, I''m about done already."


    "Good job," Tai Cheng said as he prepared to leave the kitchen. "When you''re done,e and meet me by the yard. Jingwei, you need to work harder."


    "Yes Uncle," Jingwei said through gritted teeth. He didn''t mind working hard, but Wei Yan was getting on his nerves!


    After Xue Ning''s father left, he whirled around to re at Wei Yan.


    "Oi, what''s your problem! What are you trying to pull?"


    "A bean sprout root," Wei Yan said in a deadpan manner, snapping said bean sprout into half right in front of him.


    "That''s wasteful," Jingwei seethed. "And I should fire you for insubordination."


    "You may if you wish," Wei Yan said, shrugging. "I''ll just work for Miss Li''s family instead. They might be nice enough to let me live here with them."


    Jingwei spluttered, and he spluttered even more when Wei Yan tossed half the sprout in his bowl. "I''m done now. Good luck, Young Master Sun."

 Chapter 252 Morning Kitchen Kiss

    With that parting shot, Wei Yan flicked his hands dry of water and proceeded to meet Xue Ning''s father in tne yard, where he was raking up dead leaves.


    "Uncle, I''m done with the bean sprouts," he reported dutifully. "Do you need help with the yard? I can sweep it."


    "No need, it''s good for an old man like me to put in some work in the morning," Tai Cheng rejected firmly as he made neat little piles of leaves.


    "What I''m more interested in knowing is what you think of your boss."


    "Eh? You mean Young Master Sun?"


    "Of course I''m referring to him. Who else is there?"


    "Right¡­ he''s my boss. What is there to say?" Wei Yan said, shrugging even as a pained expression crossed his face.


    He had to y this carefully, he didn''t want to look like a disloyal man that would stab his employer in the back by badmouthing him, but he also knew that Uncle Li brought him out to hear something negative about Jingwei that would validate his worst fears.


    "He''s not the worst person I had to guard, but he''s definitely not the best."


    "Oh?" Tai Cheng asked evenly, still sweeping the grass even when there was nothing to sweep.


    "He needed us to wake him up today," Wei Yan shrugged. "I just believe that he should have woken up by himself if he truly thought meeting you was important. He threatened to fire me for speaking up about yesterday night. If he does, can I work for you?"


    "Hmmm. Thanks for letting me know." Tai Cheng hummed nonmittedly before smiling. "If you can cook, I''ll hire you, but I won''t be able to pay what you''re used to."


    "That''s fine Uncle, I already saved enough money. And if I live here, I won''t need that much to live anyway."


    ''Unlike some people.'' That part was unsaid, but Tai Cheng heard it loud and clear.


    Unbeknownst to Wei Yan, Tai Cheng already had an idea what Wei Yan was trying to pull. It amused him to know that his daughter could inspire men to behave like conniving pce concubines trying to gain an emperor''s favour.


    Well, no matter what, he could use this to get information and suss out Sun Jingwei''s true character. Everyone could y nice and friendly when they were in a good mood. He needed Jingwei to be stressed, unhappy, and frustrated, and most importantly, away from his daughter!


    =====


    In the kitchen, Jingwei sneezed and rubbed his nose against the sleeve of his shirt. Ming Guang moved further away.


    "Oi, why are you moving away?" Jingwei asked with a whine.


    "You might have the flu." Ming Guang pointed out. "And stop staring into space and finish peeling your bean sprouts. I''m done too."


    "What! Shit, I''m thest one," Jingweimented. "How are you so fast at it too?"


    "I''m not fast, you''re just slow," Ming Guang said, "stop giving Wei Yan more chances to look better than you."


    At the mention of Wei Yan, Jingwei''s face darkened and he snapped the bean sprouts with more force, flinging them into his bowl.<sub> </sub>


    "That guy¡­ gah he pisses me off¡­ how dare he¡­"


    "Why are you muttering to yourself? So noisy¡­" A bleary voice asked, and Jingwei whipped around to see Xue Ning blinking sleepily at him. She was wearing an oversized T-shirt that was stolen from Jingwei''s wardrobe. It wasrge enough to almost entirely cover the pair of short shorts, and Jingwei''s mouth watered at the exposed curve of her thighs.


    Xue Ning was so cute, so sexy, and he felt all the irritation and anger leave his body in an instant. He remembered why he was willing to endure all suffering!


    "Xue Ning baby! You''re awake!" Jingwei eximed, immediately bounding over to her like a puppy seeing his owner, pulling her into a hug. Xue Ning only let out a wordless hum and pulled away as she helped herself to water, sipping it while blinking slowly.


    Jingwei meanwhile clutched at her waist as though it was a lifeline. "I missed you."


    "I''m going back to bed," was Xue Ning''s loving reply. She let out a loud yawn, and patted Jingwei''s cheek weakly. "Bye bye."


    "You''re not helping me?" Jingwei asked in dismay.


    "Nope, it''s too early," Xue Ning mumbled. She loved Jingwei, but she also loved her sleep. It felt great to sleep in her childhood bedroom, and she wasn''t going to give it up for anyone.


    "Oh," Jingwei said, deting like a punctured balloon.


    "Good luck. I believe in you," Xue Ning said, feeling vaguely guilty for leaving him to the wolves that were her family. She gave him a quick kiss in apology and Jingwei wanted to deepen it, but she pushed him away.


    "I didn''t brush my teeth," she protested.


    "I don''t care," Jingwei said fervently. "As long as I get to kiss you, nothing else matters."


    Xue Ning blushed at his words, feeling her heart race at his words even through the haze of sleep. Their arms wrapped around each other, and their lips met again. He let out a pleased hum as they shared their first sleepy morning kiss, and Xue Ning clung to him, half-purring as he enjoyed his body heat.


    Just as their hands were about to drift further down, Ming Guang cleared his throat loudly.


    "Ahem!"


    They sprung apart guiltily. Xue Ning had forgotten there was another person in the kitchen!


    "Peel your bean sprouts," Ming Guang said dryly. "If Mr Li sees you kissing his daughter in the kitchen instead ofpleting your task, I''m not saving you from his wrath."


    "Thanks for the reminder," Jingwei said, still not letting Xue Ning go.


    "Let me go. I''m going back to bed." Xue Ning mumbled, smacking Jingwei''s chest in embarrassment. Whether she could fall asleep or not was another issue altogether. "Good night."


    "It''s technically morning," Jingwei pointed out, amused, even as he let Xue Ning sidle out from his arms.


    "It''s night if I haven''t eaten breakfast," Xue Ning argued. Jingwei found her unfairly adorable that Xue Ning was still trying to argue with her eyes barely alert and her face red from the kiss. "Good night! Don''t wake me up before noon!"


    With that statement, she stomped back to her bedroom, and Jingwei let out the most bereft sigh when he saw her walk away, as though Xue Ning was a husband that had gone off to war and he was the sad wife waiting for her return.

 Chapter 253 Mr Brightside

    If Jingwei thought his day would improve after getting a morning kiss from Xue Ning, he was sorely mistaken.


    It seemed that everyone in the house (other than his precious darling) had it out for him! He''s sure that if they had a dog, it would have peed in his shoes. After the bean sprouts were done, he was sent to prepare dough in the restaurant kitchen.


    During this time, he had to deal with his own ineptitude while Xue Ning''s dad and her brother watched andmented on hisck of skill. He was not proud to say there was more flour on the floor than there was on the table top, and he had dropped the dough more than once while trying to create the noodle strands because he was so tired.


    No one was eating that for sure.


    To add insult to injury, Wei Yan also had no noodle pulling experience, but he was somehow doing better than Jingwei! Or at least, that was what Uncle was making it seem. ording to him, Wei Yan had ''potential'' while Jingwei was just wasting precious dough.


    Jingwei wanted to snidely say that having potential and realising it are two different things, but then he realised it could also be used to insult his whole life, hence he kept his mouth shut.


    Then after the dough it was sorting herbs, then it was weeding the garden, then it was fixing the antenna, then it was unclogging the skinks, then cleaning the toilets, then fixing that stupid tap¡­


    He felt less like Xue Ning''s boyfriend, and more like a free handyman and maid! He offered to pay someone to fix this, but Uncle was insistent that he do all this himself.


    What''s more, he wasn''t too good at those tasks to begin with, so he had to deal with a litany of judgemental tuts from Xue Ning''s family, especially when Wei Yan and Ming Guang could do all those tasks without batting an eyelid.


    Even that faulty tap agreed. It shot a sharp burst of freezing water all over his shirt when he made a wrong twist, drenching himpletely!


    Fuck his life. Jingwei had stared at the tap and morosely wrung his white T-shirt dry, rumpling it entirely. He sighed, stared at the tap, and decided to let Ming Guang handle it.


    He was so done. He wanted his wife!


    "Xue Ning?" Jingwei whispered, peeking around the walls to look for his precious darling. He sadly didn''t find her.


    After having his self-esteem eviscerated, all he wanted was to be held by Xue Ning''s warmforting arms. He hadn''t had a chance to speak with Xue Ning after their kiss in the kitchen in the morning. Every time he saw her, they were surrounded by at least three other people. Why hadn''t she seeked him out yet?


    Then he saw her in the yard. She was not alone.


    She and Wei Yan had their arms wrapped around each other!


    "What on earth!" He nearly shrieked in shock, the jealousy that emerged was so hot and strong he almost felt his body burn into pieces as though he had been chucked into an incinerator. He rushed into the yard, determined to pry them apart and demand an exnation. "Let her go! You bastard!"


    Wei Yan had gone too far this time - Jingwei could deal with snidements and backhandedpliments, being shown up at every turn, but he definitely could not endure him touching Xue Ning, especially not like this!<sub> </sub>


    And Xue Ning, what was she thinking? The thought of her betraying him¡­ it was inconceivable. He wanted to cry. Or scream.


    "Oh?" Xue Ning turned around and her mouth ran dry when she saw Sun Jingwei in a wet T-shirt charging in her direction. Then she saw the anger in his eyes and realised the position she was in.


    "Why are you holding onto - " Jingwei began, upset, but then Xue Ning did something with her arms, and Wei Yan''s body fell to the floor.


    "Holy shit? Did you kill him?" Jingwei demanded cautiously. "I mean, I''ll still help you hide the body!"


    "What? Don''t be ridiculous," Xue Ning said, rolling her eyes at Jingwei''s words, trying not to be distracted with the way his chest muscles looked in sunlight. "We were just sparring."


    "Sparring." Jingwei repeated, crossing his arms as he red at Wei Yan on the floor. He had a feeling this man was doing it on purpose. Wei Yan got up easily with a casual shrug.


    "Miss Li asked for a 1-on-1 lesson," Wei Yan said, blinking innocently. "How could I refuse?"


    "You still should have," Jingwei muttered grouchily. "Xue Ning-ah, next time you want someone to spar with you, ask me instead! I''ll let you fling me on the ground as much as you like!"


    Xue Ning gulped. Jingwei was saying pretty dangerous words. WIth his wet shirt, the only ce she wanted to fling him at was her bed so she could take it off him.


    "You were busy helping Dad around the house, I didn''t want to give you more work. You''re already so tired." Xue Ning said instead.


    And it was true, no matter how attractive Jingwei looked now with his tanned muscles out on disy and rivulets of sweat beading down his neck, Xue Ning could still sense the tired haze he carried with him.


    It made her unable to enjoy the sight as much as she would have.


    She knew her father was keeping her away from Jingwei on purpose, but that didn''t mean she had to like it. Jingwei was a guest, yet now he was treated like a ve. She''d bet he had never been treated like this ever in his life!


    "How are you? Are you alright?"


    "Tired," Jingwei replied with surprising honesty. "More importantly, you shouldn''t pick him! I''m your boyfriend! If you want someone to punch or grapple with, it should be me!"


    Xue Ning paused, an eyebrow raised. "What''s gotten into you? You want me to punch you?"


    "I don''t like youying your hands on another man," Jingwei burst out. "You should be touching me!"

 Chapter 254 In The Woods? (Pt 1)

    There was a moment of stunned silence, and then a giggle escaped Xue Ning''s lips.


    "You''re jealous!" Xue Ning eximed, marvelling at the sensation. No one had ever felt jealousy on her behalf before. "I didn''t expect that."


    "Why would I not be jealous? My wife has her arms wrapped around another man!"


    "And I suppose you''re going to be angry when I touch my brother and my father too," Xue Ning replied, amused as she gazed fondly at him while Jingwei sulked.


    "He''s not your family member," Jingwei said waspishly. "And I''m not angry! I''m jealous!"


    "If you be my husband, you will be my family member. Am I not supposed to touch you then?" Xue Ning retorted cheekily. The sulkier Jingwei was, the happier she felt. Her hot boyfriend was jealous!


    "Ahem! That''s different! You know it is!" Jingweiined. He wanted to continue ranting, but Xue Ning broke into louderughter. It lit up her whole face and sent a whole stampede of animals rampaging through his stomach. He wanted to keep thatughter forever.


    But of course, it would be better if she wasn''tughing at him, but at someone else.


    "Oi! Stopughing at me!" He whined, even as his own lips curled in joy.


    "You''re jealous! Hah!" Xue Ningughed and then thatugh turned into a shriek as Jingwei lunged at her, fully intending to carry her over his shoulders and onto some private ce where he could have his wicked way with her, but of course Xue Ning couldn''t make life easy for him.


    She ducked away and ran offughing, so of course Jingwei had to chase her, catch her, kiss her. The couple darted through the house and outside, attracting the attention from the neighbours who heard unfamiliarughter.


    Those who peered out of their windows would be shocked at a man chasing a woman, but those who had more sense would realise that there was nothing malicious in it, just a man who loved his wife very very much.


    "... "


    "This is going to be harder than expected." Wei Yan mused to himself as he stood. He was abandoned by the yful couple, and that hurt more than the pain he felt when Miss Li mmed him down into the grass.


    He thought that they would argue, but then they ran off gleefully together, doing some strange mating ritual.


    "Give it up," Ming Guang said, walking towards him while shaking his head. "Unless you''re reincarnated as their future son, you can''t butt into their rtionship."


    "I have Uncle''s approval though." Wei Yan argued petntly, his hands curling into fists.


    "Then you can marry her father instead." Ming Guang said pointedly. "Stop this nonsense. Even if you like Miss Li Xue Ning, you should know when to give up."<sub> </sub>


    "Perhaps so," Wei Yan said, having no intention of doing so. He didn''t get to where he was by being a quitter after all. A mere son of hawkers had be one of the youngest guards in Captain Mu''s team - that road wasn''t easy.


    Then they both froze, sensing surveince on them. They whipped their heads around, but whoever it was seemed to vanish from their view, their presence vanishing too.


    "Secure the house," Ming Guang instructed as he prepared to leave. It could be a false rm, but he was taking no chances. "I''ll go and look for the couple."


    =====


    Said couple had run into a deserted trail near the woods - or at least, there would be woods if it were thick enough. It was merely a patch of undevelopednd that nature decided to reim, but it was secluded enough that Xue Ning wasfortable in throwing caution to the wind and flinging herself into his arms to kiss her stupid jealous husband.


    ''It must be love,'' Xue Ning thought, half-deliriously to herself as she kissed him fervently.


    She had never liked jealous possessive men, finding them too clingy, but somehow she hadnded herself one jealous possessive and clingy man and still adored him!


    Jingwei caught her and hoisted her easily by her butt, a repeat of their good night kiss, but only now there were no prying eyes, no parents, no interruptions. He eagerly dug his fingers into the plump curve of her ass, causing Xue Ning to moan. His lips trailed down her neck, nipping and licking at her heated skin. It had only been an afternoon, but he missed tasting her.


    "Jingwei.. Ah¡­ " Xue Ning mewled helplessly as she grabbed at his forearms and squeezed. Underneath the wet shirt, his skin was warm from the sun, and he smelled vaguely of sweat and of him. She couldn''t get enough. Her hands looped around his shoulders under his shirt, fingernails digging into his skin as she nipped at the bump in front of Jingwei''s throat, returning the favour.


    Jingwei hissed, relishing in the sensations. If only there was somewhere to shove Xue Ning against¡­ but they were surrounded by trees and he wasn''t that ungentlemanly to shove his precious darling against the rough tree bark.


    "Fuck me against the tree," Xue Ning cried out, squeezing her thighs around his hips. She felt dangerously brave and reckless. Jingwei looked so good when he was helping her father fix up the house she used to live in. "Please¡­"


    "Gods, Xue Ning, you can''t say things like that," Jingwei groaned out, his cock getting harder at her words. There was already a huge tent in his pants, and he wanted a huge tent too, so he couldy her out and make her scream.


    "Why?" Xue Ning asked innocently, even if she was the worst minx that Jingwei knew. "I want your fingers in me, I want your cock in me - "


    Jingwei roared, heady lust coursing through his veins. He pressed her against the bark of the tree, but he made sure to cushion her head.


    But he didn''t want to give in so easily.


    "Then why were you touching Wei Yan? Do you like him more than me?" Jingwei growled out, jealousy leaking into his voice. A hand snaked beneath her T-shirt to squeeze her breasts, thumbing at her nipple through her thin bra, giving it a tug. " Do you want him to touch you like this too? Do you want him to fuck you against the tree until you scream yourself hoarse?"

 Chapter 255 In The Woods? (Pt 2) R18

    "No¡­ no¡­ I only want you¡­only you¡­ ah¡­ " Xue Ning moaned out as Jingwei continued his ministrations, as though he was determined to punish her for her behaviour. Wetness pooled in her panties at the thought - if this was how he reacted, maybe she should make him jealous more often.


    "Let me be the judge of that," Jingwei said even as his heart rejoiced at her words. He still wasn''t going to let her off easy though. He snuck a hand between her legs, brushing his fingers against her slit.


    "You''re so wet," he smiled, feeling smug at the discovery. He did that. Not Wei Yan. "You wanted this, didn''t you?"


    Meanwhile Xue Ning whined and bucked into his hand, wanting more friction. Yet Jingwei merely continued to touch her gently between her legs through her panties, delighting in the way Xue Ning squirmed and looked increasingly desperate.


    "Jingwei!" Xue Ning panted, half-pleading. "Don''t be mean!"


    "I''m not mean. I just want you to make it up to me." Jingwei retorted, moving his hand away much to Xue Ning''s disappointment.


    "What do you want me to do?" Xue Ning asked, purposely nuzzling at Jingwei, doing her best to look as cute and loveable as possible. She could feel that Jingwei wasn''t truly upset, but it was fun to y pretend.


    Xue Ning looked at him, blinking her beautiful eyes in confusion as she pouted, nosing at him. Jingwei wanted to boop her nose and then eat her out. Unfortunately, he could only do the first. Or maybe¡­


    "Let me eat you out," Jingwei asked, with a maniacal gleam in his eyes. Meanwhile, Xue Ning''s eyes bulged out.


    "Here?!" Xue Ning gazed wildly around, her face red with embarrassment. There was no one watching, but that wasn''t the problem - there was no bed! How was he going to¡­ "Are you sure about that? How would that even work? Do you even have muscle strength for this?" She wondered, staring at his arms dubiously.


    "When there''s a will there''s a way," Jingwei said. Xue Ning spluttered. Inspirational quotes shouldn''t be used in a time like this!


    "Is the way going to end in injury?" Xue Ning demanded. If she ended up breaking Jingwei''s neck in a deserted trail, she would kill herself after just to avoid the awkward questions.


    "No, but it''s good to know that you care about my well-being." Jingwei said flirtatiously, winking at her. She was torn between smacking him and kissing him.


    "You''re my boyfriend, of course I care about you, fucking dumbass." Xue Ningined, smacking him. "What if something goes wrong and you die?"


    "Ye of little faith. Trust me okay? I have lots of experience."


    Xue Ning narrowed her eyes and scowled. She didn''t want to think of Jingwei and how he got his incredible range of experience.<sub> </sub>


    "Do you?" She replied testily. "Then I expect to make it good for me."


    "Oh baby, you have no idea what you''re going to enjoy." Jingwei gave a throaty chuckle as he put her down, sliding his hands all over her body,a scious promise intent with every touch. Xue Ning whined, suddenly breathless with want.


    "Come. Sit on my face," Jingwei said, and Xue Ning could only blink.


    "Huh? How? Like a chair? Won''t you die?"


    "Trust me," Jingwei coaxed and looked around for a t surface that seemed rtively clean enough with no sharp objects to dig into his skull. "Take off those sexy booty shorts and your wet panties and part your legs baby. Put that sweet pussy on my face."


    "Jingwei!" Xue Ning''s face med at his dirty words. He spoke so shamelessly, yet he was so serious about it too!"


    "Come on, before anyone sees," Jingwei urged, and Xue Ning quickly pushed down her shorts and panties, her heart racing at her own actions. She was sure her entire body was flushing in embarrassment. She had never done anything like this, and in public too!


    The thought made her wetter. She decided not to explore this thought yet. Instead she makes her way to Jingwei lying on the grass, her thighs cradling his face, but she was still hesitant to ce her pussy on his face. Jingwei stared up at her, worshipping and reverent as he pressed kisses onto her inner thighs.


    "Rx Xue Ning, darling, I''ve got you," Jingwei reassured her, and she finally lowered herself over his mouth.


    Jingwei didn''t waste time, his tongue darted out to lick at Xue Ning''s folds, excruciatingly slow. He wanted to enjoy the exquisite vour of Xue Ning''s cunt, after wanting it for so long. Xue Ning had no idea how many times he thought of prying her legs apart so he could feast on the sweetness between her legs, and now it was his mission to make it good for her so that she''d want to repeat the experience.


    Well. That wasn''t going to be difficult. Jingwei had experience and a voracious appetite, and he gripped her thighs, encouraging her to sink down lower onto him so that he could eat his meal.


    Above him, Xue Ning had to cover her mouth to stifle the moan that was threatening to emerge. The sensation of Jingwei''s tongue between herher lips was devastating, and she wanted - needed more.


    Her body had already been thrumming with want, since their goodnight kiss and their morning kiss, and all that arousal had built up in her with nowhere to go.


    So much teasing that winded her up with no respite, and she couldn''t even touch herself for fear of being overheard by her family members. As such, she took up Wei Yan''s offer of sparring just to work off some steam, hoping that physical activity would help her calm down somewhat.


    She never expected it to lead to her sitting on Jingwei''s face as he ate her out, making loud slurping sounds that made her entire body flush. Pleasure was quickly building inside her as her entire pussy was pressed against his chin and mouth, and the tip of Jingwei''s nose was brushing against her clit.

 Chapter 256 In The Woods? (Pt 3) R18

    She subconsciously grinded against it, letting out desperate mewls. Xue Ning grabbed at the hem of her own T-shirt, trying to achieve some semnce of stability while doing her best to stifle the whimpers that were threatening to escape. She wanted to grind against Jingwei''s face, but she was worried - what if she identally cut off his air supply? Broke his neck?


    She shifted and took a quick look at Jingwei below her, only to get a glimpse of his mischievous eyes as he stared up at her, dark with desire and greed. That sight of Jingwei wanting more even as she was already on top of him made even more wetness dribble out of her - how lewd!


    Jingwei knew that Xue Ning was still hesitant, afraid of hurting him. But she needn''t worry - he wasn''t bragging when he said he knew what he was doing.


    He gazed up at Xue Ning, from this angle, he could see her face scrunched up in pleasure, the way she was trying to stifle her moans by covering her little mouth. Her face was red, most likely from embarrassment and from exertion.


    Oh no, that wouldn''t do. He wanted her to lose control.


    "Come on, kitten, let me hear you," Jingwei coaxed, his honey voice half-muffled, but the meaning was as clear as day.


    Xue Ning shook her head with a little whine! Definitely not! If they made too much noise, someone might stumble upon them and she''d have tomit murder.


    Jingwei smirked; fine, if that was how his wife wanted to y it, he would indulge her.


    He redoubled his efforts, devouring more of Xue Ning''s intoxicating taste as his tongue explored her cunt, licking up all her slick as though he was a man in the desert dying of dehydration, and Xue Ning was an oasis. He grabbed at her hips with his hands, fingers digging into her skin to press her deeper.


    A lewd whine escaped unbidden from Xue Ning''s lips as she understood what Jingwei was trying to do. She red down at him, but it didn''t have any effect - instead, she could feel Jingwei''s mouth smirking against her core as he continued to lick and suck at her. Xue Ning could hear all the sounds he made with every lick and suck, and all of Jingwei''s deep guttural groans, even when they were muffled by her slit.


    The sound of Xue Ning''s desperate panting soon filled the area, and her hands went from clutching at her own shirt to grabbing his hair instead, tugging it harshly. She was sure she was dripping enough to coat his whole face, but Jingwei had only hummed in delight, the vibrations shooting more pleasure throughout her body and she cried out, helpless at the onught.


    She grinded down on his face, rocking her hips with helpless abandon as she felt pleasure curl within her with every long swipe of Jingwei''s tongue. His handsome nose stimted her clit with every grind, adding even more pleasure that sent her thighs shaking.


    Jingwei knew he got Xue Ning now. She was close. Now he had to pay attention to the little bud that was still begging for attention. His tongue slowly circled it, delighting in the shudder he felt course through Xue Ning. His lips encircled it and he gave it a sharp suck, hearing Xue Ning cry above him. Excellent.


    (Also, it didn''t escape his mind that Xue Ning was already gushing wetness even when he wasn''t paying her clit special attention before. Perhaps this scenario was something his wife liked. He made a mental note to try it again.)<sub> </sub>


    Eventually, the wave crested and broke. Xue Ning came with a series of high-pitched moans, shuddering as her body sank fully on Jingwei''s, too overwhelmed by the sensations to hold herself up for a moment longer. Jingweipped at her juices, feeling incredibly satisfied while she trembled above him.


    Xue Ning thought about moving, but then her legs were still shaky - and more importantly, Jingwei''s mouth had no intention about letting her free!


    "You''re¡­ such¡­ so greedy¡­" Xue Ning mewled out helplessly while Jingwei''s mouth was stilltched to her clit, intent on bringing her to another orgasm.


    Of course Jingwei still wanted more. Jingwei would scoff, but he had better things to do with his mouth. He was always a very greedy man, and Xue Ning knew it too.


    But she didn''t know the extent of his greed when it came to her. He wanted all she could give, and more.


    Jingwei continued to suck and swirl his tongue around Xue Ning''s sensitive little bud,pping at all the wetness that continued to flow without stopping while Xue Ning continued to moan, being forced toe again and again. Her eyes were bleary with overwhelmed tears as she continued to ride his face, far too gone to care about propriety.


    Finally, it seemed that Jingwei was done. He gave Xue Ning''s slit onest long lick and nted a gentle kiss on herher lips, loving how Xue Ning shuddered and squirmed in his hold. Xue Ning quickly got up and nearly stumbled - so Jingwei pulled her so she could sit on his chest, purposely spreading her legs so that he could see her bare pussy.


    Wetness dripped down from her red slit, dirtying his shirt.


    Jingwei swallowed. His entire mouth and tongue tasted like her, yet his mouth still felt dry. He still wanted more.


    "Xue Ning, how about a -"


    Xue Ning caught that look in his eyes and smacked him, purposely moving away to put on her clothes. Jingwei could only sigh in regret, but even when Xue Ning was clothed, she was still magnificent after the throes of pleasure.


    "No, haven''t you had enough?" She groused, her face red as she saw the shine in his eyes and the wetness coating the lower half of his face. She did that to him, and he loved every minute of it.


    "Do you have something to clean yourself with?"

 Chapter 257 Eavesdroppers?

    "Nope," Jingwei said cheerfully,ying on his side as he propped his head up with an arm, admiring the sexy curve of Xue Ning''s ass as she stomped around the area. "But I don''t see a need to clean up, do you?"


    "I do!" Xue Ning disagreed vehemently, looking around for something she could use to wipe that smug smirk (along with her juices) off Jingwei''s face. Sadly there was nothing she could use, maybe except for Jingwei''s own shirt. With no other options, she just had to make do.


    She stormed over to him, and Jingwei was delighted, eagerly reaching out for her to continue where they left off. He was always hungry. His dick twitched at the proceedings. It was painfully hard now, and it demanded attention.


    "Oh ho ho, someone is eager!" Jingwei said, waggling his eyebrows saucily as Xue Ning grabbed at the hem of his shirt, pulling it up. He was ready to let her rip off his shirt and have her wicked way with him, but instead she merely pulled up his shirt to use as a makeshift napkin so she could scrub his face clean.


    "Xue Ning!" Heined as she finally let him go, his face now free of her juices. "Are you wiping me clean because you want to sit on me again? Because that''s the only excuse I''ll ept!"


    "No, calm your pants down," Xue Ning said tly, her face red. "We could have been seen just now!" Herst words were spoken in a harsh whisper, as Xue Ning took a quick look around, craning her head to see if any humans were in the vicinity, her heart racing for apletely different reason.


    The experience was heavenly, but now that the fog of lust had lifted, her brain was now screaming at her for her unwise decision. She was in public! Admittedly a deserted spot in a trail no one went to, but still! Public! But what if someone had seen and taken videos?!


    "There''s no one here though," Jingwei said, shrugging cavalierly. "And we won''t be staying here for it to matter anyway."


    "How can you say that?" Xue Ning stared at him, upset. "If someone sees, and gets evidence, and brings it to town¡­ my parents, my entire family would end up in a scandal! And if they posted it online¡­"


    Jingwei paused. "If something like that happens, I''ll destroy the person responsible." He said darkly. No one could be allowed to feast their eyes on Xue Ning in such an intimate setting. He would gouge out the eyes of anyone who tried.


    "If someone had taken video, it''ll be toote."


    "Thankfully this area is deserted," a new voice said, and Jingwei and Xue Ning both lurched to attention, equal looks of horror painted on both their faces. Thankfully, the person that came into view wasn''t a random gossipy townsperson, it was Ming Guang!


    "Ming Guang!" Xue Ning eximed. She had never been so d to see him before! His face was slightly red, but that could be attributed to the hot afternoon sun.


    "Were you here all along? Wait¡­ how much did you hear?" She continued to ask, her own face turning redder at the thought of him eavesdropping on the proceedings. She had sounded so lewd and wanton with her moans and mewls, and the thought of a stranger hearing all the dirty words Jingwei spouted at her made her want to die!


    "Enough," Ming Guang said with a polite cough, averting his eyes. He had gotten an earful and his mind could easily provide the mental images, but he had enough experience to tune out most things and focus on securing the area.<sub> </sub>


    "But at least you can be sure that there was no one else in this area while the both of you¡­" Ming Guang thought of how best to phrase it politely, his eyebrows furrowing. Xue Ning held out her hand to stop him, her face flushed even as relief coursed through her like an unblocked river.


    "Ah, it''s okay, you don''t have to say anything more," she assured him. "Thank you for keeping watch."


    Ming Guang only nodded.


    "Ming Guang? Did something happen?" Jingwei asked curiously, getting up. His boner had deted with Ming Guang''s sudden appearance. "You usually won''t look for me unless something bad has happened."


    "Well, I wouldn''t need to if you keep running away from me," Ming Guang retorted tartly, before taking a deep breath to regain his calm. His next words were spoken more evenly. "I''ve noticed someone that seems to be watching over the house. I got Wei Yan to secure the area first, and I''vee to get you both to return."


    "What! Oh my god!


    "We have to go back now!"


    Xue Ning couldn''t help worrying as the three of them made their way back. What if these were thugs trying to score a second hit against her family, and she wasn''t there to help them because she was getting fucked by Jingwei''s mouth? Her priorities were so messed up! If something happened to them because of this, she would never forgive herself.


    They rushed home, and thankfully the house still looked intact. Wei Yan was standing next to a woman who was twiddling her thumbs, looking hopefully at them - no wait, she was just looking hopefully at Jingwei!


    "I''ve found the person watching us," Wei Yan said, with no small amount of amusement. He pointed at her. "It''s just a false rm everyone."


    "That''s good," Xue Ning said, even as she frowned. This girl looked familiar - was she one of her old schoolmates? But she didn''t recall anyone with such a big chest¡­ More importantly, what was she doing here?


    "Why did you bring her here?" Ming Guang demanded, recognizing the girl that they saved fromst night. He red at Wei Yan. Even if she wasn''t a threat, no one in their right mind would bring her to the house!


    Jingwei also scowled. Wei Yan was clearly causing trouble on purpose, now that his n to get with Xue Ning failed the first time!

 Chapter 258 Old Classmate?

    "Guys, who is this?" Xue Ning asked, tilting her head as she stared at the new person. "You look familiar, but not¡­"


    "Xue Ning! It''s me, Chun Fei!" Chun Fei, also known as Xiao Chun to customers at the hostess bar, introduced herself. "Do you remember me? We used to be in the same primary school ss!"


    "Huh," Xue Ning blinked, trying to recall who she was but drawing a nk. She tried harder to recall¡­ Chun Chun¡­ Hmmm¡­ Wait a minute! There was a match! But then, the woman in front of her did look very different from the girl she remembered from her childhood.


    "Ah! I remember, the guys used to call you ''flying idiot''!" Xue Ning said, snapping her fingers.


    "Yes, that''s me," Chun Fei said, with a slightly pained expression on her face. That was what everyone first remembered about her, sadly enough.


    Wei Yan smiled. This was a pleasant turn of events! If Li Xue Ning found out that her old childhood friend was out for Sun Jingwei, that would definitely cause some strife.


    "Oh? Xue Ning, is this your old friend?" Wei Yan asked innocently instead.


    Xue Ning shrugged. "Old ssmate," and she didn''t see the way Chun Fei''s face fell slightly at her words.


    "Yes, we are old ssmates. I''m very d to see you!" Chun Fei said, determined to be enthusiastic. "I heard from others that you''vee back to help your parents after the attack! I think that''s very brave of you."


    "Ah. Thanks. It''s not as though I did anything." Xue Ning said awkwardly, and they stood there in silence for a moment. "Erm¡­ forgive me for being blunt, but what are you doing here?"


    Their rtionship wasn''t that close that she would be spending time at each other''s houses after all. If they were, Xue Ning would never have forgotten her name. She had so little friends and so many enemies!


    "Oh!" Chun Fei turned to gaze shyly at Jingwei. "I was actually looking for Mr Sun! I came to personally thank Mr Sun Jingwei here. He saved me yesterday night at the motel. Without him, I think Boss Wang would have beaten me up!"


    "You did?" Xue Ning asked, turning to Jingwei in surprise. "Wow, that''s good of you to do so. You have to tell me moreter."


    Jingwei shrugged. "That guy deserved it. I got the cops to throw him in prison with Mayor Poh!"


    Chun Fei nodded in agreement. "Yes¡­ and thank you for the money."


    "It came from that guy''s wallet anyway," Jingwei hastily rified, giving Xue Ning a pleading look. He wasn''t opening his wallets for random women! He needed Xue Ning to know that his life, his body and his money were all for her alone!


    "So you stole his wallet and gave her his money?" Xue Ning asked, just to make sure she wasn''t hearing things.


    "Yep!"<sub> </sub>


    "I cannot believe you," Xue Ning said, shaking her head but there was a fond grin on her face. Chun Fei blinked, she couldn''t recall Li Xue Ning being this happy before.


    "But Chun Fei, what were you doing at the motel? Do you work there?" Xue Ning asked, curious. She hadn''t kept up with nearly everyone after all.


    "Oh I¡­I¡­" Chun Fei stuttered, staring at the grass. It was embarrassing to admit that she was a hostess!


    "Nah, she came in from outside with a man called Boss Wang," Jingwei said, letting Xue Ning form her own conclusions. A light dawned in Xue Ning''s eyes and she nodded, understanding why Chun Fei was so hesitant in answering.


    No woman would want to admit she was working as a hostess! Xue Ning felt enough sympathy not to pry.


    "It''s fine, a job is a job," Xue Ning saidfortingly, patting Chun Fei''s shoulder. "We all have to do what we need to do to survive! Lucky Jingwei was there to stop that man from beating you up."


    "Yes, you''re right," Chun Fei said, her eyes watery. Li Xue Ning was still the coolest person she had ever met!


    Of course, Chun Fei did not say that Boss Wang wanted to beat her up because she threw herself onto Jingwei. Such information would only make Xue Ning think badly of her, and she didn''t want that!


    Xue Ning, even if she didn''t know it, was one of Chun Fei''s intimidating childhood heroes. With her cute scowling face and mean right hook, no one dared to mess with her! Unlike Chun Fei, who was called stupid and fat by her peers for fun.


    Who asked her parents to give her a name consisting of words that sounded like ''stupid'' and ''fat''! That would have been a terrible fate for anyone, but especially so for a young girl. Chun Fei hid in the toilets and cried, and Xue Ning was kind enough to lend her her handkerchief without even saying a word.


    And when she arrived at school the next day, Xue Ning had apparently picked a fight with the ringleader that made that nickname up, and then also beat up the rest of his tiny gang.


    Chun Fei wanted to cry in thankfulness and immediately offer her friendship, but before she could do that, her mother had pulled her away and told her firmly that she should stay away, because that girl was not a good girl.


    Good girls didn''t pick fights with groups of boys! So Chun Fei could only stare at Xue Ning from a distance throughout the years. Even when most of the girls in school took part in mocking her, Chun Fei kept her mouth shut and her head low. She wasn''t brave like Xue Ning to defend her, she couldn''t risk them targeting her instead!


    But deep down, she desperately wanted a chance to speak to her. Who knew that the chance woulde today? She had initially looked around for her saviour the night before, only to find out that he was one of Xue Ning''s friends from Shanghai!


    Birds of a feather truly flocked together - both people were heroes that saved her at different times in her life, even if they were pretty¡­rude when doing so.


    It was getting too peaceful for Wei Yan''s liking. He knew that Miss Li had apassionate heart, but would it still be present when she found out that Miss Chun Fei all but threw himself on Jingwei?


    Only one way to find out.

 Chapter 259 I Want To Sleep With You

    "Chun Fei actually has something else she wants to say to Young Master Sun, don''t you?" Wei Yan prodded, a serene smile on his face. He looked every inch the supportive friend, but Jingwei knew that he was up to no good!


    "Ah!" Chun Fei blushed redder as she gazed into Jingwei''s eyes. He was so handsome, but why did his smile vanish when he looked in her direction? He suddenly seemed colder and more intimidating. She felt her courage fail her as her lip trembled.


    "It''s nothing!" She said, shaking her head. "I''m fine!"


    "No, you came all this way, you should tell him what you told me. It can''t be worse than your attempt yesterday." Wei Yan coaxed her encouragingly.


    "I want to sleep with you!" Chun Fei burst out in a loud yell, and several heads from nosy neighbours popped out from the windows. Xue Ning and Jingwei had already attracted their attention by running around screaming earlier, but they had vanished from sight before anyone coulde down and scold them for making a ruckus.


    Now the two people were back, and there was Xiao Chun from the hostess bar propositioning Sun Jingwei! How could they miss this drama? People began exiting their houses and walking closer, just to better eavesdrop on the conversation.


    "Excuse me?" Jingwei asked incredulously, blinking in shock. Sure, he had been propositioned before, but never in such a tant manner! Most women tended to go for the seduction route.


    "I mean - I''m in love with you! And I want to sleep with you!" Chun Fei borated, her face turning red with the incredulous gazes of everyone. Jingwei had looked confused, which was understandable¡­ but Chun Fei took a quick nce at Xue Ning and nearly recoiled.


    She looked like she was ready to y her alive!


    "Xue Ning, why do you look so mad?" Chun Fei asked timidly, like a mouse squeaking in front of a cat.


    "You shouldn''t be angry," Wei Yan chided, giving Miss Li a much-needed reminder.


    "Why not?" Xue Ning growled out. "Don''t tell me what to do."


    "Calm down, my dear," Wei Yan said as he tilted his head to the side. Xue Ning followed his eyeline, and her own eyes widened as she realised there was a crowd that was slowly forming to spy on the proceedings.


    They weren''t alone! Nosy neighbours wereing out one after the other, and even what''s left of the Neighbourhood Association were watching with unconcealed interest.


    Fuck. Xue Ning sweated. They weren''t alone!


    "After all, the both of you aren''t dating, remember? You are dating me."


    Jingwei clenched his hands into fists, a muscle twitching in his jaw. Oh, this man was good. Now with the presence of outsiders, he couldn''t riskying im to Xue Ning and ruining her reputation!


    "...Right." Xue Ning said, an eyebrow twitching. Chun Fei let out a tiny meep at the murderous look on her face. It didn''t seem like Xue Ning liked this new boyfriend of hers!


    "I''m not interested in you," Jingwei said, turning back to Xue Ning''s old ssmate. He felt slightly bad at crushing her hopes so quickly, but he couldn''t lead her on - not when Xue Ning looked like she was going to burst a blood vessel.


    "Go and find someone else to date. Or sleep with. Whatever floats your boat. I won''t judge!"


    "But¡­" Chun Fei''s eyes welled up with tears at the heartless rejection. She pleaded. "Can we at least try? One date? Just for a while?"


    "No. You tried to seduce me yesterday, and I refused. You asked me today, the answer is still no. Even if you ask me tomorrow, it''ll still be no!"


    "What?" Xue Ning asked, frowning as she registered Jingwei''s words. There was an itchy sensation in her chest, as though ants were crawling all over her heart. Was it jealousy? "What happened yesterday? Why didn''t you tell me this?"


    "Oh, Young Master Sun, you didn''t tell Miss Li?" Wei Yan had a wide-eyed look of false surprise. "I didn''t expect that!"


    Lies. Hepletely expected it. The confrontation he had nned hinged on this fact.


    "Neither did I," Xue Ning mused, a little too bitterly for her own tastes. "What happenedst night, Wei Yan?"


    "Miss Chun Fei was escorting Boss Wang into the motel yesterday night, but she spotted Young Master Sun. With Young Master Sun''s stunning good looks and incredible stature, she immediately decided to change course and hit on him instead. It was using the good old tactic of pretending to fall down."


    "Ah," Xue Ning said, narrowing her eyes at both Jingwei and Chun Fei.


    "Xue Ning! That''s - " Jingwei began, feeling incredibly put upon.


    "Wait, let me hear more from Wei Yan first," Xue Ning said. Wei Yan watched with smug satisfaction as Jingwei spluttered helplessly. Finally he was getting hiseuppance! He cleared his throat and continued to talk.


    "Yes, and Jingwei caught her in his arms so she ended up dressed against him."<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning''s face darkened.


    "I pushed her away after that! Xue Ning! Believe me!" Jingwei argued. "I shoved her to Ming Guang, right Ming Guang?"


    "Yes you did," Ming Guang agreed.


    "That he did," Wei Yan continued smoothly, not letting Ming Guang''s support of Sun Jingwei''s events ruin his retelling. "So of course Boss Wang saw that tant attempt at seduction and got mad that her eyes were wandering around even when he was so close to scoring. Not that I can me Chun Fei here," he added, whispering conspiratorially.


    "Boss Wang was a 50 year old with bad breath and yellowing teeth, and he had a huge pot belly and receding hairline! Young Master Sun would of course look like a godsend to her!"


    Meanwhile Jingwei red at him and wished that a lightning bolt woulde and strike Wei Yan dead. Didn''t he know the value of keeping his mouth shut?


    "Wei Yan, you''re fired!" Jingwei dered, having enough of his errant mouth.


    Wei Yan blinked repeatedly. "Excuse me?"


    "You can''t fire him!" Xue Ning protested. "You need him as a bodyguard! And you can''t fire people for no good reason! This is against thew!"


    "I am thew!" Jingwei dered hotly. Xue Ning''s eyebrow twitched at his statement.


    "No, thew is thew," she argued. "And you can''t uwfully dismiss someone!"


    "Xue Ning, why are you defending him? Don''t tell me you actually like this guy more than me!" Jingwei eximed, jealousy coiling in his gut. Xue Ning''s family already liked Wei Yan more than him - what if they spent the whole day telling her how useless Jingwei was, and no amount of hot sex could make Xue Ning keep him?


    "That has nothing to do with it, stop being immature," Xue Ning scolded. "If you want to fire Wei Yan, you have to have a good reason!"


    "Oh I have so many reasons alright," Jingwei said bitterly, "The first is how he''s an utter snake, the second is how he apparently has the hots for my wife - "


    "At least this ''utter snake'' isn''t keeping secrets from me," Xue Ning interrupted. "Were you never going to tell me about this?"


    "There wasn''t anything to tell!" Jingwei protested, giving Wei Yan another deadly look before giving Xue Ning pleading eyes. Xue Ning remained unmoved.


    "I went into the motel, got my room at the receptionist counter, and then she and that Boss Wang came into the hotel lobby. She hit on me first! Then he hit her in the face and she fell on the floor. I couldn''t just leave her there!"


    Xue Ning scowled, conceding the point. Jingwei was right - if he had left Chun Fei on the floor after she had gotten struck, he wouldn''t have been the man she fell in love with.


    "That''s all?"


    "Yes! I swear!" Jingwei raised his hand again.


    "Then why didn''t you tell me?" Xue Ning asked. "If nothing happened, you should have still mentioned it! Did I not matter to you at all?"


    "It didn''t think it was worth mentioning, because you were all that mattered!" Jingwei argued. "But if it makes you feel better, I will do exactly as you ask in future."


    The listening crowd was getting increasingly confused with every passing word. Oh, it sounded like an ordinary lovers spat, the problem was that it didn''t match the information they were given!


    Wasn''t Li Xue Ning supposed to be dating that baby-faced Wei Yan boy? Why did the conversation sound like Sun Jingwei was her lover instead?


    Meanwhile, Chun Fei also realised an astonishing, terrifying fact - Xue Ning, despite being attached, was also in love with Jingwei! Oh no, she had be love rivals with her childhood hero! She had to make sure.


    "...Excuse me for asking, but are the two of you¡­ dating?" Chun Fei asked hesitantly, her head swivelling between the two of them while they bantered, as though she was watching a particrly riveting tennis match.


    "I thought¡­ Isn''t this man your boyfriend? He said he was. Everyone in town also said so."


    Chun Fei pointed at Wei Yan who was standing next to her.


    There was a pregnant pause as Jingwei and Xue Ning stared at each other. Should they let the cat out of the bag?

 Chapter 260 I Am Her Boyfriend

    "I am her boyfriend."


    Such a statement wouldn''t be shocking, but everyone gasped in shock when they heard it - because both men said it at the same time!


    Xue Ning wanted to scream into her hands. What was this nonsense? The worst thing she wanted to happen was happening right in front of her eyes!


    "Huh? You are both her boyfriends?" Chun Fei asked in confusion. Surely she must have misheard. "That can''t be?"


    "Why does she have two boyfriends and I can''t even get one?" One young woman, Mei Yuan,mented.


    "Oh that poor man! He''s been cucked!" Madame Lee eximed.


    "Cucked? Are you sure? Maybe he just had one-sided feelings for Li Xue Ning!"


    "Oh please, have you seen him? Which woman would stick with her boyfriend when confronted with someone like him?"


    "Wait, so you mean the other guy must have been cucked! Oh god!"


    "Wow, who knew the little Li daughter had such skill to seduce two men¡­"


    "Aiya, why are you saying this like it''s something to be proud of?"


    "Yeah! That just means she''s a ygirl!"


    "A slut more like it!" Lao Wang eximed hotly, thumping his chest. "The nerve!"


    "How dare she!"


    "No wonder that man sent Mayor Poh and his wife to jail¡­ she was manipting him all this while!"


    "Tsk tsk, this girl really has no morals!"


    "Her parents clearly aren''t doing a good job of teaching her!"


    "Well, what can you expect, they''re just noodle stall owners."


    Great, just great. Xue Ning rubbed her temples as the crowd around her gave her increasingly hostile looks. They thought she was cheating on Wei Yan with Jingwei! As she shut her eyes, she missed the brief look of restrained smugness that crossed Wei Yan''s face, before it was reced with abject shock and sorrow.


    He didn''t want to back Miss Li into a corner, but that was a small sacrifice he had to make for his n to work.


    He''ll make it up to her once they are actually dating! He''s sure they would make a much better couple than her and Sun Jingwei.


    Jingwei took a deep breath to calm himself down, trying not to beat the shit out of Wei Yan even if he really deserved it. He leaned down to whisper in Xue Ning''s ear, uncaring of the flurry of whispers that emerged at his actions. From a certain angle, it looked like he was pressing a kiss to her cheek.


    The crowd grew more outraged - this adulterous couple was too much! How dare they unt their rtionship in front of everyone!


    To Xue Ning''s horror, the crowd didn''t stop there. Some people even had the nerve to knock on the Li family house, demanding her parentse out to see her adulterous daughter.


    "Oi! Noodle Li and your wife! How did you guys bring up your daughter! She''s two-timing men now!"


    "Come out! Don''t hide away!"<sub> </sub>


    "Yah, take responsibility!"


    "What is it?" Her parents asked as they peered outside, only to nch at therge crowd that gathered. It was like a mob out for a witch hunt! They were only missing the torches, pitchforks and rakes.


    "Li Tai Xuan! Come out and see what a good woman your sister has grown up to be!"


    "That poor man¡­ saddled with such a terrible family!"


    "What''s going on?" Tai Xuan wondered, feeling pissed that his peaceful afternoon was disrupted with such nonsense. He had a feeling it was Sun Jingwei''s fault!


    "You and Xin Yu stay inside," Tai Chengmanded. "Your mom and I will go out to see what''s going on!"


    A sane person would just hide away in their homes, but Tai Cheng and Yue Niang weren''t too sane to begin with. They shared a look and then proceeded to grab their garden hose.


    "Are you sure?" Tai Xuan asked, worried. "I don''t think it''s safe¡­"


    "We''ll be just fine," Yue Niang promised, her eyes ready to kill. Beating up Poh Jin Lian had awakened the long-dormant bloodlust inside her, and now there was a new chance to sate it. In fact, it was delivered right to her doorstep!


    They had a bug infestation to take care of.


    The people gathered at the front of her house shrieked as freezing cold water was doused all over them without any warning. They immediately scattered, but they didn''t disperse. Instead, they remained ring at the house even though they stood there with clothes soaked in water, hair drenched to the bone and dripping water everywhere.


    "Sorry," Yue Niang said, not sounding apologetic at all. "I was watering the nts, didn''t see you there."


    "You shameless woman!" One of them screamed. Her coiffure was ruined!


    "What did you expect? Li Xue Ning had to learn the bad behaviour from somewhere!" Another woman screamed. Some of the more perverted onlookers took a chance to ogle at her sexy underwear.


    "If you have the guts,e out and face us!" They demanded hotly, and were greeted with another spray of the hose.


    "Hey! Stop harassing my family!" Xue Ning roared.


    "Why should we?" was the haughty reply given by the townspeople.


    "Yeah, I''m not listening to someone that cheats on her boyfriend!"


    "Hey, what do you want to do?" Jingwei asked her worriedly. "I''ll follow your lead."


    "I don''t know," Xue Ning said, her mind whirling at all the possibilities in her head. She didn''t want their rtionship exposed, but she didn''t like fake dating Wei Yan any more than Jingwei did. She hated lying, and it was the initial lie that snowballed into this mess! An angry mob was so close to beating down her house, and her parents were wasting water trying to get them to disperse!


    It was one thing for them to turn against her, it was another thing for them to turn on her family. She had to put a stop to it now.


    "Let''s¡­ just tell them the truth," Xue Ning said with a sad slump of her shoulders as she whispered back. Jingwei''s heart nearly shattered at the look in her eyes. His darling looked so defeated! Even if they were arguing, he never wanted this despondent look to make itself at home on her face.


    "I''m so tired of lying. If we don''te clean today, people will find out eventually."


    "Alright," Jingwei agreed. "Whatever happens, we''ll deal with it together." He then turned to the crowd and cleared his throat.

 Chapter 261 Glass Houses

    "Everyone, there''s been a massive misunderstanding," Jingwei saidmandingly, attracting the attention of everyone in the crowd. He grabbed Xue Ning''s hand to hold, giving it aforting squeeze. It was colder and mmier than he liked.


    "I am Xue Ning''s real boyfriend and her fiance, and her family knows it. This man is an absolute fake!" Jingwei exined, jabbing an angry finger at Wei Yan. He then turned to Chun Fei. "I''m sorry, but I have to let you know that this person lied to you. He was trying to use you to break us up."


    Chun Fei''s mouth fell open in surprise. She didn''t want to believe that she could have been made a fool of, so she caved to her first instinct - which was to deny his words. "That''s¡­ no that cannot be! What proof do you have?"


    "That''s right!"


    "Where''s the proof!"


    "Are you a liar too?"


    "Wake up you idiot!"


    "You''re getting cuckolded!"


    "Li Xue Ning, don''t you think you''ve lied enough?!"


    "It''s not like Sun Jingwei is a saint! Remember his yboy past!"


    "Oh my god - maybe Li Xue Ning was the one fooled!"


    "This idiot couple deserves each other!"


    The crowd started hurling abuse at them both.


    "Enough!" Xue Ning''s parents had stormed out of their house with brooms in their hands that they eagerly used to whack the shins of people who were still stubborn enough to stand in their way.


    "For heaven''s sake, why is my daughter''s dating news of so much interest to you people?" Tai Cheng roared. "Do you see me airing out your family''s business in public? For instance, Lao Wang, I never told anyone that you couldn''t get it up!"


    "He''s lying!" Lao Wang screamed, his face turning red with shame as everyone''s eyes turned to stare at his crotch with barely concealed sympathy. "There''s no way you could know that!"


    "Heard it from your wife," Tai Cheng said, shrugging nonchntly. "Sheins about you constantly to her friends."


    He continued. "Anyway, at least you aren''t in debt. Unlike Madame Lee here! That gambling addiction surely isn''t a worthy hobby. Any further and you''ll lose your house."


    Their eyes turned to Madame Lee, who began spluttering.


    "What nonsense! He''s making things up!"


    "Am I though? Everyone knows about you sneaking out for your secret poker and mahjong nights. If not, you must be having an affair." Tai Cheng said innocently.


    He did spend decades observing his fellow townspeople. While they didn''t publicise their issues, Tai Cheng didn''t spend his youth working as Sun Haowei''s eyes and ears for nothing.


    If he could dig up dirt on filthy rich families with security systems worth more than this tiny town for Sun Haowei''s benefit, how could he not find out about the affairs his fellow townspeople were embroiled in?<sub> </sub>


    Knowing all their dirty secrets gave him the power to keep his calm when insulted, because he knew that if he opened his mouth, he could ruin their lives.


    "And Lin Min Zhui visits hookers so often, it''s a miracle you haven''t been riddled with STDs yet! As his parents, you should keep an eye out for him." Tai Cheng advised one couple. "If he contracts something terrible, no woman will want him and all of you will die alone."


    "How dare you - "


    "Oh, I can''t forget about Xiao Leilei, I recall you causing your sister''s boyfriend to break up with her by purposely plying him with alcohol on New Years and throwing yourself at him. In the end, he sampled both girls and skipped town! So unfortunate - ah, I suppose you didn''te clean to your sister?"


    Tai Chengmented, watching Xiao Leilei''s face pale as her older sister grabbed at her arm.


    "You bitch! I knew you always liked him!"


    "Madame Jia, don''t look so scared. I''m not going to tell everyone about the time you poisoned your husband with cyanide to get rid of him. He was beating you after all. Terrible man, it was good that you got rid of him."


    Everyone gasped and gave Madame Jia a wide berth, too terrified to meet her eyes. A murderer was in their midst!


    "Yah, Li Tai Cheng! What''s the meaning of this!" Lao Wang screamed, stamping his feet like a child throwing a tantrum. "Why are you revealing private information!"


    "Why? If everyone is busy judging my daughter for decisions she makes in her private life, I think you should be open to the same experience. Haven''t you heard? People living in ss houses shouldn''t throw stones."


    The crowd shifted on their feet guiltily. Tai Cheng let the guilt fester for a while before continuing.


    "Don''t worry, I made sure all my information is urate, unlike all of you that jump to conclusions without getting the story straight!" Tai Cheng said with a nd smile.


    Ironically, it scared the townspeople more than if he red at them.


    "Everyone, I know you are shocked that my daughter could have gotten such a good-looking, rich, intelligent, kind-hearted, responsible man for a boyfriend, but it''s the truth. I was more surprised than all of you put together!"


    "Now is he insulting me or you?" Jingwei murmured into Xue Ning''s ear. His future father-inw had managed to do the impossible, he diverted the crowd''s attentionXue Ning thought for a bit.


    "Me definitely. He''s saying that I have no appeal." Xue Ning said, frowning.


    "That''s nonsense, you''re the most appealing woman I have ever met in my entire life." Jingwei dered, lifting her hand and kissing her knuckles. The crowd was torn between cooing at them or scolding them for their tant PDA!


    "I can''t even fault Wei Yan for falling in love with you - but I can fault him for deliberately creating this mess!" He whipped his head around and red at Wei Yan, before addressing the crowd.


    "I''m sure all of you have seen Xue Ning grow up. Let me ask you, does Xue Ning look like the type of girl that would love to make a scene or attract undue attention?"


    Heads began to shake. Li Xue Ning attracted attention whenever she fought, but she was notoriously allergic to any attention. She didn''t even want to take ss photos, a fact that was unheard of in their tinymunity!


    "Then if this man," he pointed at Wei Yan, "was in love with her, wouldn''t he already know this?"

 Chapter 262 Uncovering Lies

    Doubtful murmurs from the crowd grew. An antsy feeling grew in Wei Yan''s gut, but he kept a calm face. For now, it was just his word against Sun Jingwei''s.


    "She didn''t, it''s true," Chun Fei said, her voice a surprise to everyone present. "I remember you hating it whenever the girls in your ss crowded you in public."


    "You were watching me?" Xue Ning asked, confused.


    Chun Fei''s face glowed a ruddy and red and she stared back at the floor.


    "So why would he bring Miss Chun Fei to Xue Ning''s house, if not for the sheer purpose of creating a scene? If Chun Fei wanted to talk with me, he could have just arranged a gathering at a cafe with me and her alone, where Miss Chun Fei would have the chance to doll up. Which woman propositions a man dressed like this?"


    The crowd took a careful look at Chun Fei''s attire. She was dressed in a shirt that was slightly stained with dirt, along with khaki coloured sweatpants. She didn''t even have a bit of makeup on!


    "I was spying on you¡­" Chun Fei admitted, humiliated tears forming in her eyes. "I wasn''t prepared to see you today at all! I wasn''t going to confess anything today! But this man caught me and told me it would be fine if I were to confess, because Mr Sun wasn''t attached. He said¡­ he said I should have more confidence, that he would like me eventually."


    There was a pause as everyone digested her words. Xue Ning began to feel the slightest tendril of pity for poor Chun Fei, who trusted Wei Yan''s words.


    "I''m so sorry!" Chun Fei cried out, bowing low to Xue Ning. "I would have never made a move if I knew you were his lover! You stopped my bullies from insulting me in school, but I never repaid you for that. I would never have stolen your lover I swear!"


    "Oh. Then it''s okay," Xue Ning patted her shoulder, her earlier rage vanishing in the blink of an eye. Chun Fei was a victim of maniption. All her anger would be saved for Wei Yan. "Don''t cry. I''m not mad at you."


    "But I''m mad at myself! Everyone called me stupid, and they were right!" Chun Fei wailed, fat tears rolling down her cheeks. "I''m so sorry! And I think you''re the coolest and most amazing girl! Thank you so much for helping me back then!"


    "Oi, are you trying to steal my wife from me?" Jingwei asked snappishly. He was now wary when people became fans of Xue Ning - just look at all the trouble Wei Yan caused! Hopefully this Chun Fei wasn''t going to steal her from him!


    "No no¡­ I would never," Chun Fei choked out, blowing her nose. "I''m just so sorry¡­"


    "It''s fine, you''re forgiven." Xue Ning hastily reassured her, patting her back while she sobbed apologies. She didn''t expect this kind of support! It would have been nice if Chun Fei had approached her earlier - she could do with a friend back in school.


    "See everyone? You''ve heard from Chun Fei that this man lied to her," Jingwei pointed out smugly. "If anyone searched online, they''d know that I was already engaged, even if they didn''t know who the woman was."


    Wei Yan spluttered, sensing angry eyes turning in his direction. "Your engagement is fake!"


    "Our rtionship isn''t! You just wished it was," Jingwei retorted, before turning back to the crowd. "This man heartlessly gave false hopes to this young woman, knowing that her heart would be crushed at the end, just to get what he wanted!"<sub> </sub>


    "How could you!" Chun Fei burst out with a sob, wrenching herself out of Xue Ning''s hold to storm towards Wei Yan, blinking back hot tears of rage.


    "I trusted you! When you said you were dating Xue Ning, I thought you couldn''t be a bad man if she was willing to give you a chance, but you turned out to be a lying asshole! You don''t deserve her!"


    She raised her hand to p him, only for Wei Yan to grab a hold of it easily. Xue Ning wanted to interfere, but Wei Yan had Chun Fei blocking him as a makeshift shield.


    "Let me go! You bastard!" Chun Fei cried out. She didn''t know any martial arts or self-defence, and she didn''t have enough strength to pull away from the increasingly painful grip Wei Yan applied on her wrist.


    "I refuse to be lectured by a hostess!" Wei Yan''s usual friendly face was twisted into an ugly snarl. "You''re right about one thing though - you really arepletely stupid!


    All his ns were failing and it was all due to this idiot here! If she had yed along, she would have gotten into Sun Jingwei''s bed - Wei Yan would deliver her on a tter if he had to!


    But no, instead she had to open her stupid big mouth and ruin everything!


    He scoffed derisively at her.


    "Just think, even if Sun Jingwei was single, what makes you think he''d be interested in a hostess from a small town? Shanghai is full of girls more good-looking than you, doing the exact same thing! Have some sense!"


    He then flung Chun Fei''s hand away from him as though it contained a contagious disease, wiping his hand on his shirt. Chun Fei startled, the force of his hand was strong enough to send her stumbling back.


    Thankfully, Xue Ning grabbed her before her body hit the floor.


    "Are you alright?" Xue Ning pulled her up.


    "I''m fine! I''m fine!" Chun Fei hastily assured Xue Ning, staring at her with stars in her eyes. "Sorry for all the trouble! I caused you and your real boyfriend."


    "It''s not your fault," Xue Ning said, shaking her head, shooting Wei Yan a betrayed look.


    "Here I was thinking you were a decent man, but it turns out you were an entitled manchild!" Xue Ning spat out. "To think I trusted you!"

 Chapter 263 Born Hater

    "Me? An entitled manchild?" Wei Yan was outraged at that very thought. "Between the two of us, why am I the entitled manchild in your mind? Is it because I''m not handsome or rich enough for your tastes?"


    "You bastard! I can''t believe you''re trying to pin the me on me after all you''ve done!" Xue Ning burst out, fury in her eyes. "If you''re not good enough for me, it''s because you''re a maniptive snake that couldn''t even confess honestly to me. I don''t ask for a lot when ites to my partners - I just want them to be good people and you can''t even be that!"


    "I am a good person!" Wei Yan protested. "It''s Sun Jingwei''s fault I became this way!"


    "How so?" Xue Ning challenged, crossing her arms as her eyebrow twitched. "Please exin, because I have no fucking clue how you reached this conclusion!"


    Wei Yan''s eyes bulged out in anger, and he stomped his foot like a child throwing a tantrum. "It just is! Why does he have everything he wants handed on a silver tter by virtue of his birth!"


    "Huh? Oi, don''t me me for your own personality defects!" Jingwei warned, feeling incredibly insulted by Wei Yan''s words. It was one thing to hear these words from random people he had never met, but he considered Wei Yan as one of his people!


    He was there when Jingwei told him about Wu Shang Jing; how could he im that Jingwei had everything handed to him?


    "You chose to act like a scheming pce concubine! You''re employed as my bodyguard, but you chose to flirt with my fiancee instead of doing your job. Xue Ning didn''t even give any indication she liked you!" Jingwei ranted.


    "Did I hold a gun to your head and threaten you with death if you didn''t try to snatch my fiancee? Honestly!"


    "You don''t have a gun," Xue Ning said, patting his arm before stalking towards Wei Yan.


    "But more importantly, if you had truly loved me, you wouldn''t be trying to manipte me into breaking up with my boyfriend! You wouldn''t have purposely dragged innocent people into this mess! You wouldn''t be purposely creating a huge scene so you could emotionally manipte me into pretending to date you!"


    Xue Ning punctuated the end of her rant with a swift kick to his balls! Every male in the crowd winced in unison, feeling phantom paince through their body at that sight. Wei Yan bowled over, gasping in shock.


    He had expected Sun Jingwei to fight him, and Wei Yan could either beat him handily to show his superiority, or pretend to lose so as to garner pity from Xue Ning and the onlookers, while painting Sun Jingwei as an angry violent brute.


    He didn''t expect Li Xue Ning to be the person in the rtionship to bring him to his knees! He clutched at his groin, wheezing in pain.


    "You kicked me!" Wei Yan choked out. "How could you?"


    "You created a mob that harassed my parents and made one of my old ssmates cry. If you have the balls to do such despicable things, you should have the balls to endure the punishment!" Xue Ning retorted.


    "If you''re a man, stand up and let me do it again!"


    Wei Yan cast a helpless look at the crowd surrounding them, hoping someone would take pity on him and convince her to let him off. However, he was greeted with the condescending gazes of townsfolk.


    "Aiyo, this boy ah¡­to think he was hiding such an evil heart inside that sweet face."<sub> </sub>


    "You really can''t judge a book by its cover¡­"


    "Poor Chun Fei! She humiliated herself in front of an attached man because of this boy''s words!"


    "I hope she kicks him more! What kind of man would resort to petty tricks to win a girl''s heart?"


    "That''s so unmanly, I would never agree to be with someone like that."


    "I know right? That''s so scummy of him¡­"


    "Just destroy his manhood! He isn''t a real man anyway!"


    "That''s right! No real man would be so despicable in love!"


    Wei Yan paled as he heard the mutterings. He wasn''t going to get any support from these people. If they had it their way, they would dly munch on popcorn while Li Xue Ning stomped all over his manhood.


    He then gave Ming Guang a pleading nce. They were colleagues right? Surely he wouldn''t be so heartless to leave Wei Yan in the lurch in times like this! They were supposed to have each other''s backs!


    Ming Guang stared at the bird''s nest on the tree near the woods, refusing to meet his gaze.


    "Ming Guang¡­" Wei Yan breathed out. "Say something! Don''t just stare at the birds!"


    "Are you going to speak for him Ming Guang?" Jingwei asked casually, as though asking for his preferred lunch menu.


    Ming Guang sighed deeply as he turned to look at his threepanions, but especially at Wei Yan.


    "I''ve told you not to do things like this, but you refused to listen to me. You have shamed Captain Mu and ruined his trust in you, while squandering this godsent opportunity in your career. What else can I say?"


    "You''re supposed to be defending me!" Wei Yan yelled in panic. Ming Guang was hisst hope!


    "How can I? I should have asked Captain Mu to reassign another bodyguard, from the moment I knew of your immaturity, but I had hoped that you would still see sense! The love you imed to have for Li Xue Ning was nothing more than childish infatuation, and it seems to me that you hate Sun Jingwei more than you love her."


    Oh. At Ming Guang''sst statement, Xue Ning felt the clouds in her mind finally disperse, letting the light shine through. Jingwei had a simrly enlightened look on his face.


    "No wonder you were purposely trying to make me look bad in front of Uncle and Auntie!" Jingweimented, pping his hands. "You''re just a hater! Man, you should have just stuck with online trolling."

 Chapter 264 A Suitable Punishment?

    Wei Yan''s actions certainly made more sense now. He believed that he was truly in love with Xue Ning, but what he was in love with was besting Jingwei - and what better way to do that than to snatch the woman he loved from him right from his nose?


    Who that woman was wouldn''t matter - if Jingwei had moved on to Chun Fei, Wei Yan would have stolen her too!


    Xue Ning scowled.


    "You fucker! You have a lot of nerve treating me like a prize to be won!" Xue Ning hated it when she became an unwitting chess piece in someone else''s game! Her foot flexed, itching to deliver another swift kick.


    "You''re terrible!" Chun Fei agreed, nodding her head fervently. "I could still forgive you for making a fool out of me if you honestly loved Xue Ning, but it turns out, you don''t even like her enough to respect her!"


    "Huh?" Xue Ning turned to Chun Fei and shook her head. "Nonsense, don''t forgive him for making a fool out of you! He hasn''t even apologised! Hold onto your anger!"


    "Yes!" Chun Fei said, watching Xue Ning with barely concealed admiration as she tapped into the residual anger she felt at being fooled. She quickly wiped her eyes dry with her dirty shirt. Now all she wanted was to see her childhood hero make this scoundrel pay for his misdeeds!


    "Scumbag!"


    "Bastard!"


    "Asshole!"


    The crowd began to yell more insults, shaking their head in disgust. Xue Ning was also feeling simrly disgusted, both at Wei Yan and at the crowd. They switched sides so quickly as though they were a weather vane fluttering in the wind.


    If Wei Yan had more sense, he would have known better than to involve them - but then, he probably thought everything would go ording to his n.


    Ming Guang continued to address Jingwei. "Young Master Sun, perhaps it is my fault things got to this point. As his senior, I did not manage to curb his behaviour, hence he became this menace that created so much trouble. I did not have the foresight to realise how his immaturity could have such far-reaching consequences. If you must punish someone, punish me instead."


    Ming Guang ended his statement with a deep bow of apology.


    For the first time, Wei Yan felt the barest feeling of guilt curdle his intestines. He never expected Ming Guang to me himself for his own mistakes! Wei Yan''s face turned red.


    "Senior! Don''t apologise! You did nothing wrong!" Wei Yan yelled. The sight of prideful, determined Ming Guang lowering his head to Sun Jingwei out of all people sent fury coursing through him.


    How dare Sun Jingwei push his senior into a corner! Wei Yan gnashed his teeth. Of course, he chose to ignore the fact that Ming Guang wouldn''t have needed to do this if Wei Yan had just kept quiet and did his job.


    He could handle the vitriol of townspeople who never knew him and who he would never meet again, but now he was smacked with the notion that he let down his senior who had every faith in his abilities, who wanted him to seed, who believed he could do better.


    "Senior, don''t bow anymore! It''s not your fault!"


    "You idiot!" Ming Guang barked out, shooting death res at Wei Yan even with his bowed head. "If I had kicked the shit out of you when you first decided to be a disrespectful brat, this whole mess could have been avoided!"


    "I wasn''t disrespectful!"


    "You''re still refusing to learn from your mistakes?" Ming Guang eximed, upset. "Young Master Sun, I''m sorry that this boy has caused you this much trouble. You should contact Captain Mu to ask for a recement immediately."


    Jingwei blinked - he certainly wasn''t expecting Ming Guang to carry the me! His personal opinion of Ming Guang rose higher - while his opinion of Wei Yan continued to plummet faster than the crashing stock market.


    "Ming Guang, it''s not your fault," Jingwei said, not liking the regretful look he saw in Ming Guang''s eyes. "Wei Yan is a grown man who made his own choices. Admittedly, the choices were terrible and caused a lot of trouble for me, but you''re not his father!"


    <o>,m "You''re not responsible for his actions." Jingwei said firmly, squeezing Ming Guang''s shoulder. "So please stop bowing on his behalf. Someone as disciplined and as principled as you shouldn''t be doing this!"</o>


    As Jingwei tried to make Ming Guang stand upright, he could only feel more contempt towards Wei Yan - Wei Yan had someone that treated him like a blood-brother, that wanted to see him seed and was willing to shoulder part of the me when things went sour.


    And what did Wei Yan do in the face of such faith? He spat it in the face without even thinking!<sub> </sub>


    "Don''t me yourself," Xue Ning added. "Besides, it''s not as though this man here appreciates your help. He still doesn''t acknowledge that he did anything wrong!"


    Yep. A quick nce showed that Wei Yan was still red-faced, gritting his teeth in anger. Even his eyes were looking redder than usual - Xue Ning would prescribe him a few bottles of eyedrops, but she wasn''t feeling particrly kind towards him now.


    "That''s because I didn''t do anything wrong! All''s fair in love and war!" Wei Yan dered angrily. "And if your rtionship did end because of me, then¡­" a wicked smirk crossed his face, "then it''s not that strong to begin with!"


    "Our rtionship is plenty strong, thank you very much for your concern," Xue Ning said sarcastically. "Anyst words before I kick you again?"


    A wiser man would have gotten the cue to shut up. Wei Yan was not such a man.


    "If it''s not me, someone else will do it!" Wei Yan scoffed with smug superiority, never mind that he was outnumbered and in pain.


    "In fact, remember Zhou Yu? I''ll bet my life she''s going to return for revenge!"


    ("Who is Zhou Yu? Is it one of Sun Jingwei''s ex-lovers?" Tai Cheng whispered to his wife.


    "How would I know?" Yue Niangined. "I live here with you!")


    "It''s good to know that you care so much for my rtionship. You know what, since you are so interested, I have the best idea!" Jingwei said, sounding oddly cheerful. "Ming Guang, call Captain Mu for a recement, but I''m not going to fire Wei Yan! He can stay with me!"


    "What?!" That exmation came from at least five voices. There was being magnanimous and there was being a moron! This was tantamount to not only inviting a thief to your house, but also helpfully giving him the code to the safe and the location of your valuables!


    "Since he cares so much about our love story Xue Ning, I vote that we keep him around so he can continue to watch us be happy and in love, until Captain Mu sends his recement over. What do you think?"


    "I think you''re evil," Xue Ning said honestly, her face begrudgingly impressed at the sheer despicableness of Jingwei''s idea. "I don''t even know whether to be afraid or proud."


    "Pick ''proud'' please," Jingwei cajoled, batting his ridiculously thick eyshes as he held her hand, staring at her with pleading, lovestruck eyes. In the crowd, women swooned and sighed.


    Meanwhile Xue Ning could only roll her eyes. Jingwei certainly wasn''t wasting any time enacting his new n - which was basically to make Wei Yan die of jealousy by unting their rtionship over and over, or to drive him into throwing his resignation letter!


    "Fine, I''ll be proud. You stupid man."


    He leaned closer to whisper in her ear. From the corner of her eye, she can spot Wei Yan trembling like a bottle of coke with a mentos inside it, as though he was barely holding himself together at the sight of their heads bowed together.


    As though their very happiness caused him pain.


    "If he quits, I don''t have to pay his severance." Jingwei murmured in her ear. "I like to save money."


    "You''re a billionaire''s son," Xue Ning pointed out, crossing her arms in amusement. "You literally splurged millions of dors for the world''s ugliest branded suitcase."


    "And if I don''t need to pay his severance, I can buy you a matching ugly suitcase." Jingwei said cheerfully. "Wouldn''t it be great?"


    "You''re a terrible man," Xue Ning said, shaking her head fondly.


    "I''m your terrible man," Jingwei corrected gently, and pressed a kiss on her cheek in full view of everyone present. There was a chorus of hastily stifled gasps and squeals - now the crowd knew that Sun Jingwei and Li Xue Ning were theoretically an item, but seeing the proof in front of their eyes was something else altogether!


    Li Xue Ning had really done the impossible. Out of all the girls in their tiny town, this girl had managed to snatch the heart of a billionaire''s son!


    It was a plot right out of a romance novel, and the crowd couldn''t help but be starry-eyed, even as they watched with barely concealed jealousy.


    "Look out!" Chun Fei screamed.

 Chapter 265 Hogtied

    Wei Yan especially couldn''t bear to watch this nonsense any more! He let out an animalistic scream and lunged for Jingwei, fully prepared to strike his head when his back was turned, when he was busy kissing his wife to pay attention to his surroundings.


    SMACK!


    To everyone''s surprise, it wasn''t Ming Guang who saved Jingwei. It wasn''t Xue Ning either, even if she was the one who pulled Jingwei away afterwards.


    It was Chun Fei, who mmed her palm straight at his nose, smacking it with a loud crack. Wei Yan howled in pain, clutching his nose. It didn''t feel broken, but he sensed wetness dripping out of his nostrils, and when he looked at his fingers, they were coated with blood.


    Chun Fei had hit him hard enough to cause a nosebleed.


    "Oh you''re bleeding! I''m so sorry!" Chun Fei apologised instinctively, wanting to give him a tissue to wipe the blood away, before she remembered why she smashed her palm into his face to begin with.


    "Ah, but you deserved it! I''m not sorry anymore!"


    "Damn right," Xue Ning said proudly. "Well done, Chun Fei."


    "Thanks!" Chun Fei beamed brightly. Her hero had praised her! She felt like a flower blooming in the sun. If she had known how good it felt to personally hit someone to get even, she would have signed up for martial art lessons sooner!


    "Disgraceful," Ming Guang spat out in disgust. He cuffed the back of Wei Yan''s neck, causing more blood to spew from his nose. "Lie down and stop that bleeding. Once it''s resolved, we''re going straight to the airport and back to Shanghai."


    Ming Guang bowed again at Jingwei. "I cannot, in good conscience, let him remain with the both of you. He has be a threat to your safety."


    "Son, I agree," Tai Cheng said. "This man is now an open fuse. Keeping him close will endanger my daughter."


    "I''ll get some rope to tie him up with," Yue Niang said, preparing to go back to her house. "If he tries anything, hit him again!"


    They had that leftover rope from tying up floor bags and errant pigs, it was definitely good enough against one man, especially if her husband was doing the tying.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei wasn''t paying much attention to her. He was focused on one very important fact - Xue Ning''s father had called him ''son''!


    "Uncle! You called me your son!" Jingwei beamed delightedly, his metaphorical tail wagging. "Does this mean you approve of me now?"


    "That was just a slip of the tongue, don''t read anything into it!" Tai Cheng cleared his throat loudly, refusing to meet Jingwei''s shining eyes. Urgh. It was just like the stray puppy his daughter took in!


    "While I acknowledge you are a better match for my daughter than this one man, you also know better than anyone that it''s a very low bar to clear! I still want better for my daughter!"


    At this, everyone turned to Wei Yan who now had Ming Guang pinching his nose while blood continued to stream down his face. He looked very pathetic. A very low bar indeed.<sub> </sub>


    "Don''t worry Uncle, I''m sure by the end of my visit, you''ll ept me as your son-inw! I swear!" Jingwei promised, thumping his chest with his fist.


    "Yeah yeah, whatever you say," Tai Cheng said, purposely ignoring the determined look in his eyes. His own daughter is hiding a smile, that traitor. "Don''t get a big head!" He barked at Jingwei before addressing the crowd.


    "Show''s over everyone! Please leave!"


    The crowd continued to linger behind. Perhaps they were waiting for more bloodshed. Entertainment like this didn''te often, and now they were getting two fights in the span of a week! Li Xue Ning truly delivered entertainment better than the shitty broadcastingpanies!


    Tai Cheng sighed. He had no choice then.


    "Go home unless you want me to leak more of your dirty secrets!" He threatened. "I''ve been living here longer than you think!"


    Registering the threat, the crowd began dispersing faster than the wind, too afraid to meet his eyes. He snorted. Only Chun Fei remained, but she eagerly clutched Xue Ning''s hands, thanking her once again for saving her as a child, before giving Xue Ning her phone number and finally leaving.


    "Dad, good job on making all those lies about our neighbours." Xue Ning said, impressed, as they were finally left alone, with Wei Yan still in Ming Guang''s clutches. "I didn''t know you had such a good imagination!"


    Tai Cheng only patted her on her head fondly.


    "Oh my dear daughter, who said those were lies?"


    "Wait so that woman really poisoned her husband - " Jingwei began, looking strangely awed, instead of terrified. "Wow. Your town is hardcore Xue Ning. I should have expected it since you''re hardcore too, but this is incredible. This ce is amazing! I love it here!"


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes. "You won''t think that after you''ve lived here for a month, I assure you. But Dad, if they were true, how did you know?"


    "That''s not important," Tai Cheng said, "Instead you should ask why does your boyfriend look so happy about this - does he have a screw loose?" Sun Jingwei was also incredible too! Why was he awed at things that should scare a normal person? What did his daughter get into?


    "Oh, he lost all his screws a long time ago," Wei Yan said bitterly, and before Xue Ning could sock him in the face for his unsolicitedment, her mother returned with the rope she promised to take.


    "Here''s the rope," Yue Niang said, cheerfully flinging it at them. The thickly corded rope smelled vaguely of pigs and flour, and Xue Ning wrinkled her nose in disgust.


    Tai Cheng then quickly trussed up Wei Yan as though he was a prized pig for sale, uncaring of the way he spluttered at the indignity of it all.


    "How can you do this to me! I''m a human, not a pig!" Heined.


    "Well, since you want tomit adultery so bad, why wouldn''t you want to get the full experience of drowning in a pig enclosure?" Jingwei asked innocently. "Uncle, are there anykes? We can put him in a basket and send him on his merry way."

 Chapter 266 Please End Me

    Wei Yan spluttered, face red.


    "Yah, don''t pollute theke water!" Xue Ning scolded disapprovingly. "How are the wildlife going to survive if you toss his body inside? Think of the bacteria!"


    "You''re right, Xue Ning," Jingwei said adoringly as he began to wrap his arms around her, and they began to sway idly in the wind. "You''re so thoughtful! The best person I know!"


    "Come off it, ttery will not get you anywhere." Xue Ning scoffed, but the corners of her lips were moving up against her will. Relief was making her dizzy, so she leaned in closer to him, enjoying the warmth of his body. They''ve cleared the air, and the townspeople and her parents have epted her new rtionship.


    (If she sniffed him like a dog, she could almost smell¡­ herself, thanks to their earlier activities in the clearing. So, she decided that she''ll be a normal, rational woman. She wasn''t going to sniff him! Much.)


    "If you don''t wish to be tied up, the alternative is knocking you out repeatedly with brute force," Tai Cheng added serenely, as he flexed his arm muscles. "Would that be more preferable for you?"


    Wei Yan paused, thought about it, and shook his head. His nose and crotch were still aching, and if Li Tai Cheng knocked him around the head, he might not wake up.


    Although¡­ that wouldn''t be such a bad thing. He wouldn''t need to see this couple and their disgusting disys of public affection. While he was tied up, Jingwei had murmured something into Xue Ning''s ear while hugging her from the back, causing Xue Ning to blush hotly and smack him.


    It was definitely something perverted!


    "Hey! Stop smirking at me!" Wei Yanined.


    "I was?" Jingwei asked, with an innocent tone that fooled no one.


    "Should I be worried?" Xue Ning asked, in the tone of someone who was decidedly not worried.


    "Xue Ning, my beloved darling, I could never tear my eyes away from you." Jingwei assured, kissing her knuckles. Her parents pretended not to see.


    "How can I stand in the way of such a heartbreaking romance between you and Wei Yan?" Xue Ning retorted cheekily. "How can I fight with such a strong obsession?"


    "The both of you deserve each other." Wei Yan said tly. He turned to Tai Cheng and pleaded. "Uncle, just knock me out right here and now!"


    Tai Cheng only patted him on the shoulder and shook his head. "We must all live with the weight of our mistakes. That''s how you grow." He said, in the tone of a wise old man giving sage advice, but Wei Yan caught the glint in his eye! This old man also wanted revenge!


    "Come on, let''s go back inside." Tai Cheng hummed a cheerful tune, expecting them to follow.


    p Ming Guang then helpfully dragged Wei Yan''s immobile body back to the house, giving him the lovely view of the couple nosing at each other, as though they hadn''t spent the afternoon already wrapped around each other.</anda>


    Disgusting. Terrible. The worst. Wei Yan was going to m his head against a wall to knock himself out if he had the leverage to stand properly to do so.


    Unfortunately,dy luck was not on his side, and he was plonked on their living room floor while Jingwei and Ming Guang called Captain Mu to report his misbehaviours.


    "Hello Captain Mu! It''s me Jingwei!" Jingwei said cheerily into the phone.<sub> </sub>


    "Are you in trouble?" Captain Mu demanded, immediately thinking of flight schedules to Hubei.


    "Don''t worry, I''m still alive, but I need you to take Wei Yan away - oh no no, he''s perfectly fine, uninjured, but he tried to steal my wife away from me while sucking up to my inws, so you can see why I need him gone. Now he''s tied up and trying to chew through the rope, so can you send someone to pick him up?"


    Captain Mu paused, digesting Jingwei''s words. If Jingwei wanted to make an excuse to get rid of Wei Yan, this was a truly ridiculous one. What nonsense was this about tying Wei Yan up? Jingwei wasn''t a child any longer - he shouldn''t be telling tales. Clearly he had to talk to Ming Guang, the only responsible adult.


    "Very funny Jingwei. Can you pass the phone to Ming Guang?"


    "Captain." Ming Guang greeted him respectfully.


    "Ming Guang, exin."


    "It''s what Young Master Sun said. Wei Yan''s principles have beenpromised and he''s now a liability. He cannot stay here any longer. Please send a recement."


    "So he was serious?!"


    Captain Mu cursed on the other end of the line. He already had enough trouble dispatching the numerous threats to Sun Tianwei''s leadership, but now there''s trouble on the other end too? He should have known something was up when he didn''t get any daily updates.


    "Fine. I''ll send Qing Ge to the apartment." Captain Mu breathed deeply, mentally envisioning the change in shift schedules. Troublesome, but doable. Thankfully, the apartment wasn''t too far away.


    "Captain, no one''s at the apartment. We''re in Hubei now." Ming Guang said apologetically.


    "What? Why?!" Captain Mu pointedly did not scream into his phone, even as Tianwei raised an eyebrow at him from his desk, before shushing him. He had a lot of expansion ns in mind, and he couldn''t work if his guard was noisy. Captain Mu bit his tongue.


    "We''re visiting Miss Li''s family now." Ming Guang said. Captain Mu can hear Jingwei yell in the background. "I''m going to be the best son-inw they''ve ever had!"


    "I''m their only daughter - so of course you''ll be the best son-inw. You''ll be the only one?" Li Xue Ning chimed in from the other end.


    Captain Mu rubbed his temples.


    "Fine. Fine. I''ll send Qing Ge over, but he''ll take almost a day to arrive. Keep Wei Yan there in the meantime!"


    "Captain! Save me!" Wei Yan yelled from the floor. "I want to die!"


    "Don''t worry, he''ll be safe with us!" Jingwei promised, snatching the phone from Ming Guang''s hand. "Take your time. It''s not as though anything terrible will happen here. We''re in the middle of nowhere!"


    Oh. If only that were true.

 Chapter 267 A Fresh Start

    After they secured a promise from Captain Mu that a recement would be sent over as soon as possible, they briefly debated on where they would leave Wei Yan in the meantime.


    "Auntie, what do you think of putting him in front of the house?" Jingwei suggested, trying to be helpful.


    "Of course not! He''ll be blocking the way! Do you think he''s as slim as an umbre stand?" Yue Niang tutted. "Maybe if I tied him up harder¡­"


    Wei Yan gave her a horrified look. He was already trussed up tightly like a prized pork with no wriggle room, any tighter and he would lose all blood cirction and die!


    "Can you let me go please?" He pleaded. "I promise I won''t create any more trouble!"


    "I''ll be the judge of that," Tai Cheng said. "Don''t worry, we''ll still let you go to the bathroom if you ask nicely."


    Wei Yan spluttered with more despair.


    "Ming Guang, you''ll have to watch over him," Xue Ning added. She didn''t trust him not to cause trouble, whether by ident or on purpose.


    After that cheerful reminder, the family finally decided to leave Wei Yan propped against the door as though he was a human-sized door stopper. If fellow residents decided to bother them for some reason or another, they''d simply open the door and let Wei Yan fall on them, in his bounded glory. That ought to make even the most stubborn person think twice!


    Now, they were off to discuss more important things, such as the necessary repairs and renovations for the restaurant.


    "Since Jingwei so helpfully gave us one million yuan, we can proceed with renovating the restaurant." Her father. "Other than recing all the destroyed furniture, I would like to install air-conditioning, rece the plumbing, increase the kitchen size and restaurantyout, along with repeating the walls."


    "Dad, are you sure we can do it with one million yuan?" Xue Ning asked sceptically.


    "I can give more!" Jingwei said eagerly, already prepared to shell out more money, but Xue Ning elbowed him.


    "Dad, I can give you the money Jingwei gave me if you need more. But must we do so much? I thought we were just going to repair the furniture and the entrance!"


    "This crisis is an opportunity for us, and I''m sure Jingwei would be a willing investor in our business."


    "Of course I am!" Jingwei agreed readily and Tai Cheng smirked internally.


    He already knew Sun Jingwei was ready to open up his unlimited funds, so he had nothing to worry about other than the mildly disappointed look on his daughter''s face.


    "HOLY SHIT why did you tie up Xue Ning''s fake boyfriend?" Li Tai Xuan eximed as he and his wife finally emerged, only to see Wei Yan leaning against the door with ropes all around him like a cat scratching post. "Are we kidnapping him?"


    "No, this is his punishment for lying," Yue Niang said serenely. "Leave him alone. He has to reflect on his actions."


    "Huh, you must have really fucked up this time," Tai Xuan said, and then he turned to Jingwei. "Why are you still here? Shouldn''t you be gone by now?"


    "Be polite," Tai Cheng chastised. "This man is your sister''s boyfriend after all."


    "Hah!" Jingwei leapt up smugly and gestured proudly to himself. "You heard that right! I might be your future brother-inw!"


    "Like real! Dad, you''re joking right? Don''t tell me you''ve epted him?!" Tai Xuanined with no small amount of dismay.


    "For now, I see no reason to object." Tai Cheng said. While Sun Jingwei seemed to have no career ns and a bad reputation with women online, he was at least not a despicable man that would ruthlessly stomp on innocents to reach his goal.


    (Of course, he wasn''t going to like it if they were canoodling! Some things should be left after marriage!)


    The day passed quickly, with discussions for restaurant renovations keeping everyone entertained. Jingwei was surprisingly useful, offering up his suggestions for decor and contacts for kitchen contractors. He also talked about possibly using this chance to expand the menu to include more finger food and snacks for deliveries, along with using a tracker for deliveries.


    p "You have a lot of thoughts about restaurants," Xue Ningmented as they took a quick break. It was nearly time for dinner, and her mother had excused herself to cook something, refusing to let them help.</anda>


    "Is that a bad thing?" Jingwei asked cautiously.


    "No, just surprising. Why do you look so worried?"<sub> </sub>


    "Well, I eat at restaurants and buy takeout so often, I can''t help forming opinions." Jingwei shrugged sheepishly. "I hope they are useful! My dad always said that I spoke nonsense."


    Xue Ning''s family hadn''t told him to shut up, the same way his father did when he made business suggestions. Maybe they were that nice to let him talk uninterrupted, or they actually found his words enlightening!


    "Your insight is wee." Tai Cheng said firmly, irritated at his old friend. What kind of parent kept on putting down his child? "Have more confidence in yourself. I''m sure your father misspoke about you. Does he do that often?" He asked casually, trying to find out more.


    "Yeah, he calls me useless all the time. Then again, it''s not as though he''s wrong, so it doesn''t matter." Jingwei said, shrugging nonchntly, but Tai Cheng noticed how he didn''t meet his eyes.


    "Don''t feel so bad! I''d rather he scold me with his words than the tea cups! Do you know how much tea my father wasted because he was flinging cups at me? Seriously stupid."


    "...Let me get this straight. He flung teacups. With tea. At you." Tai Cheng said slowly, trying to make sense of things. Good lord. What kind of parent did his old friend be? Wasn''t this child abuse?


    "That''s fucked up," Tai Xuan said, and then he had to shake himself out of it. He was almost sympathising with Jingwei, and that scared him. He didn''t want to care about this man! He wanted him far far away from his family!


    Maybe this was just a scheme for him to make people feel sorry for him.


    "Are you making things up for sympathy? I''m onto you!" Tai Xuan continued, jabbing a finger at him. Xue Ning snarled and chomped down on her brother''s finger, and he shrieked in response.


    "He''s not, I saw it myself! He throws things at Jingwei when he gets angry! He tried to brain me with a teacup too!" Xue Ning exined, as her brother nursed his wound.


    "...I see." Tai Cheng said evenly, but Jingwei felt himself shivering due to the sudden temperature drop in the living room.


    "We''re all fine though! Dodged in time and all¡­ hahaha" Jingweiughed awkwardly to banish the sudden tension in the room. Xue Ning''s father had a really terrifying look on his face! It didn''t even look this scary when the angry mob beat down his door, demanding an exnation.


    "Well, just know that I will never do that to you, Jingwei."


    "You flung chopsticks at him two days ago," Xue Ning muttered, staring mulishly at him. "You nearly killed him. And after he made dinner for you."


    Tai Cheng twitched; his daughter was half-bing spilled water at this rate! Siding with her boyfriend over him, in full view of everyone? He wanted to beat his chest.


    "I apologise for that, and I promise not to throw anything at you in future." Tai Cheng said with gritted teeth. "I am not like your father after all."


    "...Thanks, I think? No one should be like my father though," Jingwei said bemusedly. Now that he wasn''t going to be skewered, he decided to ask a highly important question.


    "Uncle, can I ask you something?"


    "What is it?" Tai Cheng asked warily, eyeing Jingwei''s sheepish manner. Everyone was tense at the table. Was he going to ask for Xue Ning''s hand in marriage right here?


    "Can I please shower at your house today? I brought my own toiletries and everything!" Jingwei added quickly.


    Huh? Everyone blinked in surprise.


    "Why?" Tai Cheng asked. It better not be because he wanted to seduce his daughter!


    "The motel''s showers are terrible, Uncle. The water pressure is poor, and the temperature keeps changing. I spend more time waiting for enough water to rinse myself with than actually washing myself. Please let me use the bathroom here!"


    "You''re such a whiner," Tai Xuan said. "Dad, don''t agree to his request. Why is he using up our water and increasing our water bill!"


    Xue Ning kicked her brother.


    "I''ll pay for utilities," Jingwei said immediately, bowing his head. "Please Uncle! I won''t make a mess or anything!"


    "Dad,e on, let him bathe here." Xue Ning whined, grabbing Tai Cheng''s arm pleadingly. "We definitely have a better bathroom than the motel."


    "...Fine." He gave Jingwei and Xue Ning a warning look. "But you''re only showering alone!"

 Chapter 268 A Family Dinner

    There was a quick pause as everyone digested his words.


    "..." Jingwei spluttered, frantically shaking his head.


    "Dad! What on earth!" Xue Ningined, her face red with embarrassment. Sure, she had sex in more than one bathroom with Jingwei, but she wasn''t going to do it in her home with her family members in the same house!


    "Oh my god!" Tai Xuan''s face screwed up in disgust as he got what his father was implying. He continued to make retching sounds whileining. "Gross! I don''t want to think of you two -" he nced between his younger sister and her boyfriend, shaking his head.


    "Urghh! You''d better not be doing anything there! Dad! Don''t let him use our bathroom!"


    "I''ll go to the motel if you don''t!" Xue Ning threatened. "And get off your high horse! I already know that you and Sister-inw have done something simr?!"


    She did find condoms in the bathroom once, in the secretpartment of the mirror mounted behind the bathroom meant for her pads. Her brother was newly married. It did not take a genius to know who was using them.


    "We are married!" Tai Xuanined. "Also how did you even know?!"


    "You left a box of condoms out! I''m not stupid enough to think they are balloons!"


    "AHEM," Tai Cheng said, crossing his arms. "No matter what, I do not approve of the both of you¡­ fornicating inside my house. Don''t think I don''t know what young couples get up to! Your mom and I were young once!"


    At his words, both siblings had matching looks of disgust.


    "Now that''s just gross."


    "Agreed."


    Meanwhile Jingwei wondered if his parents loved each other enough to even canoodle in bathrooms. Probably not. That was depressing to think about.


    "DINNER!" Yue Niang called out. "Last one at the table is responsible for washing the dishes!"


    In the blink of an eye, everyone stood up and immediately bolted for the dining table as though they were a herd of stampeding beasts.


    ? "Guys?" Jingwei asked hesitantly, looking around. He was still sitting on the floor, trying to understand what happened. In a sh he was left alone with only Ming Guang forpany.


    "Come on guys," Xue Ning said, popping her head out from a wall. "It''s this way!"


    So he followed obediently with Ming Guang behind him, and found himself in the ''dining area''. It was a far cry from the ones he had grown up with. This dining area didn''t have fancy partitions or chandeliers. There wasn''t an impressive long marble table where everyone could sit one metre apart.


    Instead, this dining area was just the space around a rectangle dining table that had clearly seen better days. It wasden with several dishes. Jingwei couldn''t help notice that most of them were vegetable dishes, with only one meat dish. There wasn''t even a fish dish!


    His heart ached for Xue Ning and her family. One day, he vowed to treat all of them (even Xue Ning''s annoying brother) to expensive delicacies!


    What''s more, instead of individual chairs, there were short benches for people to sit on.


    Xue Ning waved him over, pointing to the empty spot next to her.


    Jingwei''s heart warmed. She saved him a seat!


    "Excuse me, excuse me." Jingwei said eagerly, squeezing next to Xue Ning. "Hello Sister-inw!"<sub> </sub>


    "Hello to you too," Xin Yu smiled, amused. "Sorry for the tight squeeze."


    "It''s fine!" Jingwei said, even as he kept his elbows to himself, hunching slightly to make more room.


    "I''ll eatter," Ming Guang said, seeing the cramped table and taking a step back. "Enjoy your meal."


    "Nonsense! There''s more than enough space." Yue Niang said, gesturing at everyone to make room. "I''ll save some food for Wei Yan at the door, remember to feed himter!"


    "Move," Xue Ning said, so Jingwei shuffled away, but he didn''t expect Xue Ning to press herself against Jingwei until their thighs were touching! Now if Jingwei just stretched out his arm to reach for a dish, he''d be brushing against her breasts.


    Jingwei gulped. Was Xue Ning really doing this in full view of everyone?


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning was oblivious to Jingwei''s internal turmoil. She merely pointed to her other side, "Ming Guang, you can sit here."


    Ming Guang settled in next to her, but because he was broader than most men, Xue Ning had to move even closer to Jingwei to make more room. He could already smell her scent from here, and it made his heart beat in double-time.


    "Jingwei, can you shift a bit more?"


    "Yeah. Yeah. Sure." Jingwei babbled, half-stunned as he moved as much as possible without falling off the bench, which honestly wasn''t much.


    Xue Ning''s bare thigh was still touching his own. He couldn''t help recalling how those thighs felt when sandwiching his head, and then had to think of his father having sex to dete the boner that threatened to rise.


    If anyone caught a glimpse of it, he''d be joining Wei Yan at the door!


    "Jingwei are you okay?" Xin Yu asked, "Sorry if it''s a bit squeezy. We weren''t expecting visitors."


    "It''s fine," Jingwei assured. "I arrived uninvited."


    "So he does have some sense of self-awareness," Tai Xuan muttered, before his knee mysteriously knocked against the table. "Stop kicking me!"


    "No fighting at the dinner table," his parents chorused at the same time.


    "Yeah Ge, no fighting at the table." Xue Ning said, smirking smugly. "Jingwei here, try some food."


    Xue Ning then scooped some vegetables into Jingwei''s bowl, brushing against his body. Jingwei croaked in surprise, like a squashed frog, but thankfully no one noticed because Tai Xuan startedining.


    "I''m your brother! Xin Yu, are you going to defend me?"


    "No. Just eat your food." But Xin Yu did not scoop any food for him, so he sulked into his rice.


    Jingwei gingerly took a small bite and let out a pleased hum. For a dish that looked so humble, the vegetables were just the right amount of crunchy and the gravy was vourful, making him reach for seconds.


    Somehow, this dish brought up memories of his mom cooking something simr for him when he was a child to tempt him into eating his vegetables! Was this the power of home-cooking?


    "Good right?" Xue Ning bragged. "My mom is great at cooking."


    "Yes! Auntie, your cooking is great! Where did you learn how to cook like this? It reminded me of food my mom used to make!" Jingwei said excitedly.

 Chapter 269 A Family Dinner 2

    Yue Niang froze. To distract everyone from noticing, Tai Chengughed loudly, eagerly scooping more food to Jingwei''s te.


    "I mean, my mom died a long time ago - but I''m not saying that your cooking is like a dead woman''s! Sorry if I said something wrong!" Jingwei was just about to apologise again, because Xue Ning''s mom was staring at him unnervingly, like she was about to burst into tears or stab him with her spoon.


    "It''s alright Jingwei, we understand what you mean. That''s a very nice thing to say, isn''t it, wife?" He nudged Yue Niang knowingly, and Yue Niang finally responded, shaking herself as though she was waking up from a dream.


    "That it is. One of my oldest friends taught me this recipe," Yue Niang said. "To think you would like it is surprising."


    "Hahaha, your friend must be a great chef Auntie! Does she own a restaurant too?"


    Yue Niang thinks of Bi Yu, trapped in a golden gilded cage as Sun Jingwei''s wife. "No she doesn''t. Now eat your food before it gets cold."


    "Yes Auntie!"


    ''Bi Yu, I''m feeding your child with the recipe you created. Aren''t you d you didn''t let me storm out of ss? Are you watching over us?''


    Other than Yue Niang''s nostalgic thoughts, the rest of the meal continued peacefully for all, since everyone''s mouths were too busy eating than sniping with each other.


    Jingwei even went for second helpings of rice - there was something about eating a warm home-cooked meal together with a family that made him want to stuff his face. His family would never be caught dead huddled around a tiny table squashed like sardines, but Jingwei enjoyed the warmth.


    It made him feel like he belonged somewhere.


    Of course, such peace was apparently short-lived as Xue Ning and her brother immediately started bickering over thest chicken drumstick


    "It''s mine."


    "My chopsticks touched it first."


    "No, mine did. You already ate one, meimei this is mine!"


    "A thief yelling thief? I saw you eat one drumstick earlier, greedy brother."


    "I''m giving it to your sister-inw, so don''t fight me for it!"


    "Well I''m giving it to Jingwei so you let go!"


    Jingwei looked up from his bowl of rice, blinking owlishly as everyone turned their eyes towards him.


    Everyone except Xue Ning, who was determinedly staring at the chicken, her ears red.


    Oh. Oh. Xue Ning loved him! She wanted to feed him because she knew he ate a lot! Jingwei smiled into his bowl, because the alternative was jumping in joy and there was no space for that. He also couldn''t kiss Xue Ning in front of her entire family with his mouth tasting like garlic. He was still a gentleman!


    "Tai Xuan, let Jingwei have the drumstick," Xin Yu said, amused. "He''s a guest. Unless you already consider him family¡­"<sub> </sub>


    Tai Xuan lifted his chopsticks off the drumstick as though he had been burned. "Take it! It''s yours!"


    Xue Ning took it and dumped it on Jingwei''s bowl without even looking at him.


    "Thanks, Xue Ning," Jingwei said adoringly, squeezing her hand. Xue NIng turned, met his eyes and blushed redder than a tomato.


    Tai Xuan pretended to retch into his soup. His wife stomped on his foot and he let out a manly squeal, mming his knee once again to the underside of the table. "Wife!"


    "Alright, stop this nonsense. Once we clear the tes, Jingwei can wash the dishes since he arrivedst." Tai Cheng said cheerfully. "Someone please feed Wei Yan too."


    "I''ll do it," Ming Guang offered, taking the te with leftovers to him. Even though he caused so much trouble, the Li couple was still kind enough to keep the food warm for Wei Yan.


    "He''s a guest!" Xue Ning protested. "How can you make Jingwei wash the dishes?"


    "That''s fine!" Jingwei said agreeably. "It''s the least I could do!"


    Unknown to him, Xue Ning didn''t want Jingwei to wash the dishes for another, less altruistic reason - Jingwei was too sexy when he washed dishes!


    But of course, all her protests were met with deaf ears, because she couldn''t tell her parents about how Jingwei doing the dishes made her want to tear off all her clothes so she could paw him.


    "A man needs to be able to do housework." Yue Niang said with no room for negotiation. "If you feel bad for him now, you will suffer when you marry him!"


    So now Xue Ning was suffering in a different way. While her family was out in the living room watching TV, she was staring at how Jingwei''s muscles flexed when he washed the dishes.


    No, she had to help him. If she just stared all the time, she''d beg him to fuck her in their kitchen.


    He wore her mother''s frayed blue apron and ugly neon yellow rubber gloves as he scrubbed, and still Xue Ning wanted him!


    "Xue Ning!" Jingwei turned around, a pot still in his hand. "What are you doing here?"


    "This is my house, why would I not be here?"


    "I know that, but you should be sitting in the living room. Your mom cut apples." Jingwei said fondly, even as he adored the fact that Xue Ning didn''t leave him by himself. The fact that she bothered to check on him already meant the world to him. "I''ll be done soon!"


    "I''ll help you," Xue Ning said, determinedly shoving him aside to make room for herself. "Hand me the wet dishes so I can dry them."


    "Aww, you love me!" Jingwei said in a sing-song manner, as he did as she asked. Their fingers brushed when he passed the te over, and the brief touch made him smile in contentment.


    Even if the day had started out terrible, everything was fine now. He got to wash dishes with Xue Ning - the casual domesticity was making his heart sing!


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning hurriedly dried every dish with the diligence of a top schr. The dishes were just a roadblock to her main goal - how was she going to sneak Jingwei into her bedroom?

 Chapter 270 In Her Bedroom

    The dishes were done in record time, and Xue Ning could still hear the TV from the living room. The soap opera Night Market Lovers was ying, so she knew her family wouldn''t be paying much attention to anything else.


    "Are you going to shower now?" Xue Ning asked.


    "Probably a good idea to do it now," Jingwei said, taking a cursory look outside at how her family was staring riveted at the TV. "I don''t want to fight with them for the shower. But -" Jingwei frowned, suddenly remembering something important. "I left my toiletries at the motel! I''ll have to go back -"


    "No need," Xue Ning cut him off quickly. "You can just use some of our toiletries! I''ll get you a towel. As long as you''re not using half a bottle of shampoo and shower gel, it''s fine."


    "But what am I going to wear?"


    "Nothing." Xue Ning blurted out, and Jingwei raised a confused eyebrow before a smirk grew on his face.


    "Oh ho ho I see someone has been thinking - ouch ouch ouch - please let me go Your Highness," Jingwei whimpered as Xue Ning,face red, tugged harshly at one of his earlobes.


    "What I meant to say is that it''s nothing that you''re used to," Xue Ning said, clearing her throat.


    "Right," Jingwei said, giving her a saucy wink, "I love how you''re trying to deny - ow ow ow - Xue Ning if you keep tugging my ears, I''m going to end up looking like Dumbo the elephant!"


    "That''ll be an upgrade, since you''re already Dumbo the human," Xue Ning snarked. "I''ll get you clothes from my brother to wear."


    "Your brother will hate that."


    "Exactly." Xue Ning smiled, and finally let go of his poor abused ear, but not before pressing a quick kiss to his cheek. "Go and shower, and when you are clean I can finally let you see my bedroom."


    Xue Ning then pushes him into the bathroom and closes the door in his gobsmacked face. "I''ll hang the towel outside!"


    p Jingwei was left standing alone in the tiny bathroom as he heard the sound of Xue Ning''s footsteps get softer. Did she just¡­</anda>


    He smirked to himself. His wife could deny it all she wanted, but deep down, she was just as hungry for him as he was for her! Xue Ning helped with dishes just so she could sneak him into her roomter. He wouldugh, but that might attract undue attention.


    Instead, he decided to fulfil his wife''s wishes. He immediately stripped and put his clothes on top of one upturned bucket, letting the warm stream of water wash over him. Normally, he would stand under the spray to rx, but this time, he was on a tight timeline!


    He quickly washed his hair, but when he reached for the shower gel and took a quick sniff, he realised that it smelled kind of familiar¡­ ah, this was the same one that Xue Ning used!


    His cock stirred as he recalled thest time her scent enveloped him. He hurriedly switched to cold water just to calm himself down as he scrubbed his body clean. There''s no point in wasting his precious energy now, stroking himself off when Xue Ning could be doing it for himter.


    He quickly pulled the towel hanging at the railing, wiping himself dry before wrapping it around his waist. It was honestly tiny enough that it felt like he was putting on a miniskirt! He then cautiously opened the door just a crack and peered around.


    "Psst. This way, hurry." Xue Ning gestured for him to follow her, and he hurriedly tiptoed after her, feeling like a thief. She pulled him into her room and closed the door.


    Now they were alone, and Jingwei was nearly naked in front of her. He smelled clean and fresh, and like her. Xue Ning gulped, trying to tear her eyes away from the sheer expanse of tanned skin and developed muscles, only to end up staring at Jingwei''s handsome face.


    Jingwei smirked.


    "I would ask if you got clothes for me, but I have a feeling you don''t want me to wear anything,"


    "Ahem. I have no idea what you''re talking about." Xue Ning said, pretending to be unaffected. "Your clothes are right here." She pointed to her drawer, but Jingwei made no move to approach it.<sub> </sub>


    "If you say so!" Two can y at this game. If Xue Ning wanted to pretend she was fine with him walking around with only the tiniest towel on his waist, he would oblige her. "In that case, can you show me around your room? I''ve never seen this part of the house before."


    "What''s there to see?" Xue Ning retorted as Jingwei began to poke around her room, still in that skimpy towel. Infuriating man. "Here''s the study table. Here''s my bookshelf, here''s my bed."


    "Everything here is cuter than expected! You must have really liked this character design." Jingwei said as he picked up Xue Ning''s rm clock.


    It had a surprisingly adorable design - there were cute pink rabbits all over it. A quick nce around the room showed that there were more than one of such designs - an old soft toy on her cab, bunny stickers with their colours faded stuck randomly on her cupboards.


    Jingwei could just imagine Xue Ning as a small young child, holding up the stickers with a serious look on her face while she decided on where to put them, only to stamp them randomly on her cupboard.


    "Put that down, it''s fragile" Xue Ning groused, her face red. Now it was bing embarrassing for another reason! Her room hadn''t changed since she was a kid, so now Jingwei was getting to see all her embarrassing childhood obsessions.


    Xue Ning had never even brought a boy to her bedroom, because there was never anyone that she trusted enough. And now she invited Jingwei, who was a nosy motherfucker rifling through her things, yet she didn''t want to kick him out.


    "Sure, I want to take a look at this instead anyway. Aww, you were such a cute kid!" Jingwei said as he picked up a family photo. Xue Ning was wearing a poofy pink dress that threatened to swallow her whole. Three members of her family were smiling, but Xue Ning was so obviously scowling at the camera, looking offended beyond belief.


    "So small, so grouchy. You look like a murderous cotton candy." Jingwei cooed fondly. He hoped their future daughter would look as cute as Xue Ning in the photo. He would spoil her silly. "Did you bite the photographer in your adorable glory after he took this photo?"


    "Aish - give it back!" Xue Ning tried to snatch it from his hand, only for Jingwei to raise it above his head as heughed. She tried to reach for it, but to her surprise, Jingwei used this chance to press her body against his. She flushed, feeling the warmth radiating off his body.


    "What are you doing?" Xue Ning whispered, not able to take her eyes off his maic gaze.


    "Something you clearly wanted me to do from the very beginning," Jingwei said, and began devouring her mouth eagerly, cradling her face in his hands as his tongue began exploring the familiar cavern of Xue Ning''s mouth. It was testament to how badly Xue Ning wanted him that she didn''t even mutter a token protest.


    Instead, she tugged him down and they both fell on her bed, with Jingwei above her as they continued to make out like horny teenagers. Jingwei''s hands drifted under her shirt, squeezing her breasts.


    "You didn''t wear a bra -" Jingwei choked out in surprise. This was a new development! Xue Ning was definitely wearing one when they were still washing the dishes (not that he was purposely looking, but still, he noticed things about his wife).


    Xue Ning flushed a darker red. "Why? You don''t like it? I''ll go put on one -"


    "No!" Jingwei eximed and Xue Ning shushed him quickly. "And you say you weren''t nning on seducing¡­"


    Jingwei''s voice trailed off as his brain stopped working. Xue Ning had whipped off her T-shirt in one easy motion, and all the blood in his brain went to his crotch.


    "Wow. Wow." He muttered breathlessly, his hands roving over her exposed breasts as Xue Ningid down on her bed. He leaned down to drop a quick kiss on her lips, before slowly moving down her neck to the valley between her breasts.


    "You''re so gorgeous, you''re going to kill me."


    Xue Ning let out a little whine, tugging away that tiny towel circling Jingwei''s hips. Thanks to Jingwei''s sizable erection, the tiny towel covered practically nothing now, and she dumped it unceremoniously on the floor.


    "Remember to be quiet," Xue Ning whispered, and then gave him a good firm stroke that had Jingwei''s body shuddering with want. He hastily stifled the moan that threatened to emerge.


    "Xue Ning, darling, that''s a bit hard to do," he said meaningfully, ncing down at his cock.


    "Do it anyway," was her heartless reply, as she continued to stroke him. "I was going to suck you off, but if you don''t want to behave¡­"

 Chapter 271 In Her Bedroom (Pt 2 - R18)

    "Such a cruel woman I married," Jingweimented, but he was fooling no one with the lovestruck look in his eyes, least of all Xue Ning. His arms trembled with effort to keep himself steady while Xue Ning continued to chip away at his self-control with every stroke of her expert hand. She had gotten scarily good at toying with his cock in such a short time!


    "Xue Ning, babe, darling, have you been practising how to get me off?" He hastily strangled an escaping moan. "You''re getting too good at this."


    "Oh? How did you know?" Xue Ning asked in surprise, and she beamed at the way Jingwei''s mouth gasped in helpless pleasure. "Those inte guides and bananas really came in handy!"


    "Bananas¡­ you''re the best wife ever," Jingweiughed as he gazed at Xue Ning adoringly. The thought of Xue Ning practising her handjob skills in secret to please him made his cock harden and his heart soften.


    He imagined her serious face, frowning as she palmed the bananas and read dodgy inte guides, andughed harder, before he realised something.


    "But I didn''t see any bananas in the kitchen?"


    "Oh, I ate them." Xue Ning said, blinking innocently at him. "I was also practising how to suck you off, so of course I couldn''t let other people eat those. It was harder than expected at first, because I kept choking, but now I''ve really improved. Want me to show you?"


    Jingwei''s eyes darkened with lust. The images in his mind had turned from cute to mind-blowingly hot as he imagined Xue Ning purposely trying to down a banana, her tiny mouth opening as wide as it could to take as much of it as possible without choking, face turning red and eyes teary from the strain.


    It was all too easy to rece the banana as his cock.


    "My dear, are you serious about it?" Jingwei still had to ask, even as every cell in his body longed to take her up on her offer. "Not that I love bragging, but my cock is a lot thicker than the banana."


    Xue Ning tried to shrug casually, but her eyes were focused on Jingwei'' cock. Her mouth watered as she thought about finally putting it in her mouth - she already had thoughts about it from the first time she licked at his tip, but that tiny want turned into a full-fledged desire when Jingwei ate her out like a man dying of hunger.


    What kind of lover would she be if she didn''t reciprocate? She knew, from stories online and from the ramblings of drunk men, that most men expected their lovers to be good at giving head, yet they hardly ever thought about reciprocating the favour, considering it to be beneath them, too messy, too time-consuming¡­


    As such, Xue Ning had never thought that someone would be willing to do it for her! Especially not Sun Jingwei, who already had women throwing themselves at him, eagerly going onto their knees if it meant he would grace them with a night.


    Instead, Jingwei turned out to be a man that was one of a kind! Not only did he beg to be allowed to eat her out, as though eating her out was a privilege for him and not a chore, but he was actually good at it too!<sub> </sub>


    Okay, scratch that. Good was an understatement. He was incredible. So much so that her insides nearly twisted in jealousy when she had more time to think about it. How many women did he do this for for him to get so good at this?


    And how many of those women sucked him off as payback? Or maybe they gave him fantastic head first so he ate them out in return?


    No matter what the sequence was, it was still undeniable that Jingwei had a lot of experience in bed, most likely with women who also had a lot of experience in bed.


    p And now, he was with Xue Ning, who had very little experience in bed. Sure, Jingwei didn''t mind it now, but that was because he was blinded by love! And also because he was a good, understanding person - which made it even more important that she reciprocated.</anda>


    (Because what if she didn''t, and he woke up one fine day and decided that little Xue Ning from the backwater town wasn''t worth it anymore? What if he realised that he could find someone else his dying father liked more and he could have a brother-inw that was less annoying?)


    "I''m sure," Xue Ning said firmly, fire in her eyes. She hurriedly went to her door to lock it, preventing anyone from entering uninvited. "Do you want me on my knees, or on the bed?"


    "Both are good, but I prefer the bed." Jingwei replied after a pause, eyes blown ck with desire. The thought of Xue Ning on her knees would keep him up at night, and it sent a primal part of him into overdrive, but he knew there would be future chances for it.


    (Also, he didn''t want to hurt Xue Ning''s knees! If she wanted to do this, he was going to let her rest her knees on the fluffiest pillow money could buy, covered in the finest silk pillowcase.)


    The chance to have sex on Xue Ning''s bed, in Xue Ning''s childhood bedroom, would only happen once. He wasn''t that optimistic to believe that her family wouldn''t suspect anything after a while!


    "Fine, lie down on the bed then," Xue Ning ordered, before adding, "If youugh at my efforts I''ll bite off your dick."


    Jingwei shuddered with want as he immediatelyplied with her orders. Xue Ning could have ordered him to jump out her bedroom window and he would have agreed.


    "I would neverugh at your efforts, baby" Jingwei responded breathlessly as he parted his legs, making room for Xue Ning to settle in-between them so that she could begin. Xue Ning crouched between his legs, half-naked. His dick twitched as he saw her exposed nipples harden in the cool air, wanting to put them in his mouth.

 Chapter 272 In Her Bedroom (Pt 3 - R18)

    Xue Ning leaned down to palm her hand over the base of his cock, massaging his balls. She remembered from the article that it was good to warm up the man''s organ.


    But judging by how Jingwei was already gasping, he wasn''t just warmed up, he was boiling and ready to go. There was already ayer of precum forming at her actions.


    Time for her to proceed!


    Xue Ning gave his cock a good long lick from the bottom to the tip, as though it was a popsicle, tasting Jingwei''s cock on her tongue. Jingwei groaned loudly, his hips immediately jerking upwards, chasing the sensation of her soft tongue on his cock.


    Xue Ning paused, not expecting such a big reaction to a simple lick. This was just the first part!


    "Did I do something wrong?" She whispered. "You sound like you''re in pain."


    "I will be if you don''t continue," Jingwei groaned.


    "Oh," Xue Ning felt a bolster of confidence. Clearly she was doing something right! "Then make sure to stay quiet."


    "Yes Madam," Jingwei said indulgently, only to find that he promised something that was nigh undoable once Xue Ning decided to put her lips over the sensitive tip of his cock and suck lightly, slowly but surely taking more of his cock into her hot mouth.


    "Oh god¡­ fuck¡­fuck¡­god¡­" Jingwei rambled nearly incoherently. The sensations of her mouth on his skin and the way Xue Ning''s mouth looked as she took him in slowly, her cheeks hollowing as she sucked him off, was quickly undoing whatever calm he felt. It took every ounce of self-restraint to not thrust into her mouth, holding his hips still with the sheer force of his will.


    "Ssssh" Xue Ning said, but she forgot that her mouth was still upied by his cock, and her shushing sounds identally caused Jingwei to moan loader, for it caused her mouth to vibrate against his cock.


    "Keep quiet!" Xue Ning demanded hotly, pulling away with a look of disapproval on her face.


    But Jingwei''s eyes were entirely focused on the redness of her lips, the sticky shine he knew came from his precum, as well as the trail of spit connecting his cock to her lips to pay attention to anything else.


    "Fuck, you look so hot sucking me off," Jingwei whined. "Don''t stop."


    "If you don''t keep quiet, I''ll bite off your dick," Xue Ning threatened. "Don''t test me."


    If he made enough noise that her parents burst through the door and saw her half-naked with Jingwei''s cock in her mouth, she would fling herself out her bedroom window and hope she broke her neck on the way down, because there would be no recovering from that.


    The awkwardness would kill her, if her parents somehow didn''t!<sub> </sub>


    "Got it," Jingwei said, Xue Ning''s angry words finally sinking into his brain. "How about you gag me with the towel then?"


    "...Fine," Xue Ning said, her face ming red as she quickly grabbed the fallen towel on the floor, dusting it clean. On second thought, she decided not to. What if Jingwei bit the towel and got infected with some disease thanks to the germs living on her floorboards?


    "No, this towel is dirty. I''ve changed my mind, you will just have to be a good boy and keep quiet for me. Can you do that?"


    Jingwei shivered at the steel in her words. He nodded fervently. "Yes, yes, whatever you want, please, just put your mouth back on me¡­"


    Xue Ning then ced her mouth back on Jingwei''s cock, and Jingwei bit his lip hard enough to draw blood to stop the moan from escaping his lips. Xue Ning continued to work her mouth and tongue all over his cock, licking and sucking as though his cock was a treat for her to enjoy.


    Jingwei wasn''t joking about his size - he was thicker than most bananas, and unlike those bananas, she couldn''t just chow down to end it. Her jaw was slowly getting tired, and her back was aching from being bent over his cock, but she refused to stop. She was enjoying the heady taste of him in her mouth, and mapping out the contours of his cock with her tongue.


    Wetness was pooling between her own legs - she never expected to feel turned on by doing this, but perhaps it wasn''t about the cock, it was about who it belonged to! If it was Wei Yan, she wouldn''t feel anything other than disgust.


    Meanwhile Jingwei was sure he was dying with the sheer effort to keep himself silent. Little moans and groans escaped his lips, and whenever they did, Xue Ning would stop and give him a disapproving look that made his dick harder.


    This was a new level of torture he couldn''t ever envisioned for himself!


    He wanted to be good for her, but his sanity was rapidly snapping. His arousal was going to reach a breaking point soon, and if he didn''t warn Xue Ning, she''d get a mouthful of him sttered all over her face!


    Meanwhile Xue Ning had no idea that Jingwei was that close to finishing. It wasn''t included in the Inte guides, and bananas only got soggy. And since Jingwei was restraining all his moans, Xue Ning couldn''t hear the true extent of his desperation!


    She only saw the way Jingwei''s body trembled with the effort to maintain silence - he was doing so much, all because she requested it! Her heart warmed, and she vowed to give him the best experience.


    She bobbed her head up and down, trying to take as much of him as possible, trying to rx her throat. Her eyes watered with the strain as spit ran down Jingwei''s cock, but she refused to give up.


    "Xue Ning! I''m - " Xue Ning raised an inquisitive eyebrow and slowly pulled away, wanting to know if something was wrong, but even thatst slide of her tongue over his cock was more than enough to push Jingwei to the edge.


    Before Jingwei could finish his warning, he came with a loud guttural groan, hips bucking wildly into Xue Ning''s mouth as he shot his load into her mouth and all over her face.

 Chapter 273 In Her Bedroom (Pt 4 - R18)

    Xue Ning spluttered and choked in surprise, coughing when she tasted the salty tang of Jingwei''s cum on her tongue. It was thicker than she expected, and she gasped, trying to catch her breath.


    The sight of Xue Ning with her shiny eyes wet with tears of exertion, her lips a lovely rose red, painted with his white essence caused a wicked beast to stir inside him. If he focused, he could see drops of his cum painting her eyshes.


    So beautiful. Sopletely his. No one else''s.


    One day, he was going to paint her all over in his essence, inside and out, and have her do the same to him.


    After all, she had sucked out his soul. She had to take some responsibility!


    "How did I do?" Xue Ning asked hesitantly when she finally stopped spluttering. She had swallowed quite a lot of his cum, but there was a lot of it on her face and on her bedspread too. Did Jingwei prefer women who swallowed? "Sorry, I know I didn''t manage to swallow all -"


    "Don''t apologise!" Jingwei said harshly, immediately lunging forward. He pulled Xue Ning closer to him, pinning her down on her bed so he could kiss her thoroughly, tasting himself on her lips. The mixture of their tastes mixing together was a heady cocktail for Jingwei, and he wanted more.


    "Don''t you dare apologise for giving me the best head ever." Jingwei ordered breathlessly when he pulled away from her lips, only to begin kissing Xue Ning everywhere else.


    Xue Ning moaned, forgetting her own order of keeping quiet as Jingwei continued tovish kisses all over her face, causing a bigger mess. Xue Ning wrapped her legs around his waist, urging him to continue as she tried to grind herself on his body.


    Jingwei''s cock wasid, but with the way Xue Ning squirmed beneath him, he knew it wouldn''t stay that way for long!


    "You''re joking right?" Xue Ning mumbled weakly as she remembered her performance. "It''s not that good¡­I didn''t even swallow all of it¡­"


    Jingwei paused, registering her words. Oh. Why was his wife so cute? He chuckled and flicked her forehead with a finger. "Stupid."


    "What?" Xue Ningined, swatting his hand away. She was beginning to feel incensed. "It''s what all the websites say! They say men like it when you swallow so I wanted to do that!"


    She failed though. That''s why her face was so messy and sticky. She was going to have to wipe herself clean before she exited her own room to bathe.


    "Fuck those websites." Jingwei dered, giving her a passionate kiss. "It''s my opinion that matters the most, not those people writing those sites."


    "But I -"


    "And I am very, very satisfied. Do you want me to describe it to you?" Jingwei asked, murmuring lowly in her ear, tracing the shell of her ear with his tongue, delighting in the way she shuddered and squirmed away from the ticklish sensation. His hands drifted to her nipples, tweaking them between his fingers.


    "Do you know how hard it was for me, to not make a single sound as you put your pretty little mouth on my cock to lick up my precum? How you traced your tongue along my cock so faithfully? The way your eyes teared up when you tried to take me in your sweet mouth¡­ It gets me hard just thinking about it."<sub> </sub>


    To prove his point, he brought her hand to his cock. Sure enough., he was already beginning to harden again.


    "How?" Xue Ning blinked in confusion. "Wait? You can go again?"


    "Not so quickly, but yes." Jingwei said smugly, and his eyes darkened while he gazed down at Xue Ning, who gulped in trepidation. Jingwei had caged her to the bed and surrounded herpletely. His hair was too short to block out everything, but the look of intent in his eyes made the world fade away around them.


    From this angle, Xue Ning could see nothing but Jingwei, haloed by the light on her ceiling. The tips of his hair turned golden brown under the fluorescent light.


    "Now, let me return the favour," Jingwei murmured as his hands drifted down to her shorts. He snuck a hand between her legs and pressed against her panties, and Xue Ning let out a helpless moan in response, her legs widening.


    Jingwei shushed her, because he wasn''t that good of a man to let this go without payback. "Shhhh Xue Ning, remember, you have to be quiet."


    "You fucker."


    Xue Ning red back up at him, promising pain and retribution.


    "Your fucker," he corrected cheerfully as he kissed her, swallowing her moans as he began to stroke herher lips through her panties. He was going to make sure they were drenched before he took them off her. "A baby, you''re already wet. Did sucking me off turn you on so much?"


    Xue Ning flushed and trembled at his words. "So what? Are you making fun of me? I''ll kick your ass!"


    Jingweiughed into her mouth, joy radiating off him. "No Xue Ning, I would never."


    He then continued to rub at her wet slit through her underwear, purposely tugging at it to provide more friction. Xue Ning gasped, her hips jerking in response.


    "Take it off," Xue Ning whined, lips screwed into a pout while Jingwei continued to tease her.


    "Fine, as my wifemands," Jingwei said agreeably, tugging off her shorts in one go and throwing them on the floor. Xue Ning waited, but that was all Jingwei did.


    "What about my panties?" Xue Ning protested. She would have pulled them off, but Jingwei refused to let her up, a wicked smile on his face.


    "Keep them on for now," Jingwei nipped at her lips, his mouth trailing down her neck totch himself onto one nipple, sucking it as his hand yed with the other. His other free hand reached between her legs to rub at her clit through her panties.


    Xue Ning covered her mouth with her hands to stop herself from screaming in pleasure.

 Chapter 274 In Her Bedroom (Pt 5 - R18)

    The multiple sensations were driving her insane! Jingwei''s hands over her panties made her want to buck her hips repeatedly so he could touch her more deeply, but it seemed that he was intent on teasing her. His sure touches over the soaked fabric was a new sensation, and Jingwei still had the nerve to circle her clit through her panties, causing her to mewl helplessly.


    "Look! Your clit is so swollen, it''s visible through the panty," Jingwei observed with a cheeky smile, tapping at it with his thumb. The rest of Xue Ning''s slit was also visible, since she had gotten so wet the panty fabric had be translucent. The very sight was so lewd that Jingwei wanted tomit it to memory for lonely nights.


    Xue Ning squirmed and panted in arousal, trying to keep her voice down - a task that got increasingly harder as Jingwei continued his teasing ministrations.


    "Your face will be visible through my window if you don''t make a move," Xue Ning threatened as she flexed her foot, pretending to kick a football. "Do you want my parents toe looking - "


    "Alright, alright, you have a point," Jingwei agreed, pulling down her panties in one swift stroke. "I knew it, look at how wet you are babe¡­ your panties are soaked."


    "I don''t need to see that!"


    "But you should!" Jingwei said eagerly. "I''m so happy you''re wet and eager for me."


    Xue Ning whined in embarrassment. She didn''t want to see how much she leaked, but Jingwei took great joy in showing how big the wet spot in her underwear was, and how he could see his fingers through the fabric that had beame. Now that her panties were gone, she could feel her slick drip on her own bedsheet, creating a damp spot. She instinctively pressed her legs together, trying to stop the flood.


    Damn. Next time she would put a towel down beforehand! Then she paused, her face flushing at the thought of next time.


    "Come on baby, part your legs," Jingwei cajoled. "It''s nothing I haven''t seen before. Let me eat you again."


    "You still want to?" Xue Ning asked in surprise.


    "Of course, I''m always hungry for you," Jingwei gave her a slow,nguid smile that promised a filthy good time. "So spread your legs for me and hold them open."


    A surge of heat and want coursed through her, and she parted her legs so Jingwei could get ess to her like he instructed, but she turned her face away, feeling acute embarrassment at the way Jingwei was staring at her.


    To make things more embarrassing, she was still holding her ownher lips apart for him to gaze at! She had never done something like this for anyone before!


    "What? Get on with it," she grumbled, face red. "My hands are getting tired."


    "Such a cute way to say that you want my mouth on you immediately," Jingwei said cheerfully. "Now lean back on your pillows and make yourselffortable first!"


    "I''m fine, get on with it!"


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes; Jingwei truly had the habit of wasting time - then all irritation left her face, reced with a look of absolute pleasure, when Jingwei finally took action!<sub> </sub>


    Hetched his expertly greedy mouth on her clit and began licking and sucking on it, while thrusting two fingers inside of Xue Ning. To his delight, they slid in without any resistance. Xue Ning groaned and bucked her hips wildly, wanting more, and Jingwei got the memo.


    Now he had more experience to know what Xue Ning liked, so it wasn''t difficult for him to drive Xue Ning to orgasm. He wanted to tease and bully her just a bit more, but he also wanted to live. And the threat of her parents knocking on the door was a very real one indeed!


    "Wait -wait¡­ " Xue Ning panted, and Jingwei paused, fearing there was a problem.


    p "What? Are you hurting?" Jingwei asked, worried.</anda>


    "No, I just didn''t want toe yet." Xue Ning said, and it was such an uncharacteristic statement that Jingwei just stared nkly at her, now feeling more worried than ever.


    "What? Are you feeling alright? Is this a new kink thing you want to try?" Jingwei asked cautiously, pulling his hands away. Was it because he overdid it? Oh no.


    Xue Ning rolled her eyes and huffed, even as her pussy twitched and demanded attention. Now she was quite close to the edge, but she didn''t want toe from Jingwei''s hands or mouth this time around.


    "There''s something else I want to try," Xue Ning said, as she reached under her pillow and grabbed that little ck box. She flung it in Jingwei''s direction, and it smacked his chest before falling harmlessly on the bed with a tiny bounce.


    Jingwei picked it up, and his eyes widened.


    This was a box of condoms!


    "Snuck it from the bathroom before you entered. I''m sure you have experience using these!" Xue Ning said proudly, even as part of her felt shame for tantly deceiving her parents. But at least she was using protection! They couldn''t fault her for that!


    "You¡­and you still im you weren''t nning to have sex with me? For shame, Xue Ning, for shame," Jingwei said, sounding entirely too pleased. He held the box of condoms with trembling hands, immediately opening it to see a handful of packets.


    He smirked and his cock rapidly hardened.


    "Xue Ning, I''m going to stretch you out first," Jingwei promised, eagerly kissing her as she let out a tiny mewl. "If I just shove it in you, it''s gonna hurt."


    "Isn''t that normal? I can handle it," Xue Ning said, pouting up at him.


    "You''ve never been prated before, I''m not taking that risk," Jingwei said seriously even as he squished her cheeks, inadvertently rubbing her own slick on her face. The shiny trail left behind made the pervert in him very happy.


    "I want your first time to be fucking incredible, and feeling pain is not part of it!"

 Chapter 275 In Her Bedroom (Pt 6 - R18)

    "Oh," Xue Ning whispered, her heart warming at the care she heard in his voice.


    "You don''t have to do that though. What if it takes too much time? Just shove it in me." Xue Ning continued, trying to sound confident while Jingwei shot her a disbelieving look. It was a strange reversal - she was the one who tended to look at him that way whenever he said stupid shit, but now she was getting a taste of her own medicine!


    "So? It''s still worth doing! I can''t believe you''re expecting me to fuck you without stretching you!" Jingwei replied, aghast.


    He shook his head, then calmed down and shot her a saucy wink. "Lie back down, I''ll show you it''s no trouble at all. Besides, you''re so wet, it won''t take long."


    Xue Ning slowlyid back on her pillows and spread her legs as Jingwei continued to finger-fuck her. The pleasure that was slowly receding thanks to the pause came back in full force, and Xue Ning could only twist her fingers into her bedsheets as she squirmed helplessly on the bed, panting wordlessly.


    She tried to contain her moans, but it was near impossible when Jingwei seemed to know exactly the right ces inside her to caress to make her toes curl. Xue Ning could hear the wet obscene slide of Jingwei''s fingers inside her as he rubbed at clit and at her G-spot, and it made her whimper into her pillow.


    "Jingwei¡­ah¡­ I''m going toe¡­ah¡­ " Xue Ning mewled, and Jingwei smirked, thrusting his fingers harder into her. He could feel it even if Xue Ning didn''t say anything; her inner walls were hot and clenching his fingers so tightly.


    "I know, just look at how tight your pussy is around my fingers," Jingwei said, marvelling. "It''s so greedy, and it doesn''t want to let me go. I can''t wait to feed you with my cock, maybe it will finally satisfy this pussy of yours."


    Xue Ning mewled at his dirty words. Her mind was whirling, her vision was blurry and the tension was reaching a boiling point.


    "Come for me baby," Jingwei coaxed, an order wrapped in his smooth low voice. "Once you do, I can bend you in half and fuck a baby into you."


    His words were the final push that broke the wave, causing Xue Ning to cry out helplessly as she came all over his fingers, drenching her bedsheets. Her pussy twitched and her body shuddered from the aftershocks of pleasure, but Jingwei still kept his fingers in her, now stretching her inner walls as he scissored her. Xue Ning moaned, her legs trembling from the increased sensitivity.


    "Jingwei¡­ please¡­" She pleaded, squirming on his fingers. "Are you going to fuck me?"


    "Of course," Jingwei''s eyes darkened as he stared down at Xue Ning''s teary eyes, flushed face, her hair syed all over her pillow, some of it lying t on her forehead thanks to her sweat. Her heaving breasts were lovely, her erect nipples even more so.


    Xue Ning could now take three of his fingers with no difficulty. It was now time. He reluctantly took his eyes off her so he could take one foil packet out from the box, tear it open with his teeth and quickly roll it down his aching cock, now fully hard and already leaking.


    Xue Ning whimpered with widened eyes, instinctively closing her legs. Did she imagine it, or did Jingwei''s cock look a lot bigger than she remembered? However, her closing her legs made her pussy tingle with pleasure. Her pussy continued to leak as she saw Jingwei''s sizable cock wrapped firmly in the condom.


    Jingwei sensed that Xue Ning was nervous, despite her earlier bravado. Her muscles were tensed up in a way that wasn''t due to overwhelming pleasure, but caution!


    "Rx Xue Ning," Jingwei said, leaning over her to kiss her deeply. "If you don''t like it, we''ll stop whenever you want to."


    "Please continue¡­ I want it¡­"


    "Spread your legs then. My cock can''t enter your sweet little pussy like this." Jingwei instructed.


    Xue Ning whined when his lips left hers, and she pulled him down, feeling his warm body cage hers. Jingwei''s hands came to massage her breasts as his tongue continued to plunder. Just when she was going to ask if Jingwei was going to do it, she felt it.


    Something was pushing into her. Something big and thick. She immediately paused at the unfamiliar foreign sensation.<sub> </sub>


    Jingwei kissed her more deeply, murmuring reassurances into her ear even as he continued to push into her slowly, inch by inch. Xue Ning mewled, gripping onto him as she tried to adjust. Her inner walls stretched to amodate Jingwei''s superior girth, and she moaned as she felt him slowly fill her up.


    "You''re doing so well, sweet Xue Ning, my perfect darling," Jingwei murmured, nibbling at her ear to distract her. He tugged at her nipples and nipped her lips, pressing kisses all over her neck, taking special care tovish more attention on that sensitive spot at the base of her neck.


    "Ah¡­ ah.." Xue Ning moaned helplessly, her legs were now wrapped around his waist.


    "So good for me," Jingwei said, his eyes bright with joy as he finally felt himself fully sheathed in Xue Ning. She was so hot and tight around him, and he could feel her pulsing around his cock even through the condom. "If only you can feel how good you feel around me, Xue Ning. You''re perfect."


    Xue Ning panted. Now she had gotten used to the intrusion, and she was getting impatient. Jingwei needed to move, now.


    "Are you going to move, or are we going to stay here like this until my parents barge in?" Xue Ning asked cheekily.


    "Ah? I must not be doing a good enough job, if you can still think about your parents while I''m literally balls deep in you. So sorry, I''ll do better," Jingwei retorted evily, purposely thrusting lightly to gauge Xue Ning''s reactions.


    Judging by the way her mouth fell open in wordless pleasure, she was liking this. Jingwei rocked his hips slowly again, making sure to push deep inside her and pull out slightly, teasing her inner walls. Xue Ning mewled.


    "You - don''t be mean! Just move!" Xue Ningined, panting more heavily now. Then a mischievous look entered her eyes and she taunted Jingwei.


    "Are you all talk and no action?"


    "I''ll show you action," Jingwei promised with a filthy smirk. "I''m going to make sure your pussy never recognizes another cock again."


    "Still talking. Are you sure - oh!" Xue Ning''s voice broke off into a choked gasp as Jingwei began to fuck into her in earnest, pounding into her relentlessly. Her bed began creaking ominously as he proceeded to do what she said, but the both of them ignored it.


    "Fuck you''re so tight, even after I stretched you out," Jingwei grunted out, "it''s like you were made to take my cock, Xue Ning. You''re so good at this."


    Normally Xue Ning would smack him for such a ridiculously audacious statement, but she was too busy letting out desperate moans, overwhelmed by the sensation of Jingwei filling her up from within, as though he was training her insides to only ept all of him. Every thrust brushed against that sensitive spot in her inner walls and smacked against her clit, causing pleasure to shoot through her body.


    Jingwei continued to litter hickies all over her body, sucking bruising kisses onto her skin. He wanted to mark her everywhere,ying an obvious im to her so that everyone would know that she was taken, and he wasn''t going to give her up!


    Even if he was dead, he''de back as a ghost to scare away her suitors!


    "Jingwei¡­ ah¡­ ah¡­ faster¡­harder¡­" Xue Ning pleaded, her fingernails digging into Jingwei''s back, leaving crescent indents as she wed down his back, overwhelmed with sensation. Jingwei wasn''t only fucking her, he was biting at her as though he was a wild animal!


    Still she needed more. Luckily, Jingwei knew what she was asking for. He wordlessly pushed her legs up as much as possible so he could get a better angle. To his utmost surprise and delight, Xue Ning was so flexible that he could push her thighs all the way back, so much so that her head was now between her calves!


    "Fuck, you''re killing me," Jingwei panted, his eyes wild like a madman. Not only was Xue Ning the love of his life, she was out there indirectly fulfilling his kinks! Now that he knew she was this flexible, he wanted to try out all sorts of positions. "How are you so flexible?"


    In this new position, Jingwei could fuck Xue Ning more deeply, giving her no room to squirm away as her pussy was forced to open itself more to him. Xue Ning could only mewl helplessly as she was folded in half. It was just like what Jingwei promised earlier!

 Chapter 276 In Her Bedroom (Pt 7 - R18)

    Jingwei continued to talk, even as he fucked her with the ferocity of an animal.


    "So fucking sexy, you''re going to kill me." Jingwei grunted out. "How can you even do this easily?"


    "I stretch! You can¡­ ah¡­ learn¡­" Xue Ning managed to moan out in reply as she dug her nails into Jingwei''s back, wing him. If she had a more coherent mind, she would have exined how years of martial arts experience could develop a more limber and flexible body that made Jingwei''s surprise move possible.


    But since her mind was filled with incoherent thoughts about how much she loved being fucked, all she felt was a pleasant burn, and the increased embarrassment of her new position caused her pussy to gush wetness, making it easier for Jingwei to slide in and out of her.


    Jingwei''s eyes were blown ck as he stared at her, trembling with need and craving a hard fuck, her pussy clenching tightly on his cock with every thrust, as though it was afraid he''d pull out for good.


    He wanted to knock her up, and in this position, it was easy to pretend that the condom didn''t exist, that he could fuck a baby in her if he tried hard enough. He grunted animalistically, thrusting even harder.


    Xue Ning cried out in pleasure, her need for silence long forgotten. Her moans were a sweet apaniment to Jingwei''s grunts, and the creaking of the bed frame made up the symphony that echoed through the room.


    It was a wonder that no one hade to knock on their door yet!


    If Xue Ning had a clearer head, she would have wondered why.


    But instead, she was too busy enjoying her first experience of getting fucked! Even though she had alreadye once, she could feel the familiar wave of orgasm fast approaching.


    "Ah¡­ah¡­I''m going to¡­"


    "I know, I know, me too, I''m close." Jingwei panted, reassuring her as he squeezed her waist, a hand drifting to the area above her womb and pressing down with a fervent glint in his eye. Xue Ning whined at the extra pressure, feeling the strangest pressure build up within her.


    "You first. Come for me, darling, my dear wife." Jingwei ordered, massaging her insides.


    Xue Ning shuddered helplessly as pleasure shot up her spine. She came for the second time, toes curling as tension bled out of her, wordless gasps escaping her tired lips. To her surprise, a stream of fluid quickly burst out of her, sshing Jingwei on the face!


    "Oh shit," Xue Ning eximed, horrified and mortified. Did she just pee on him? That''s it, they were going to break up. This was how her first and only sexual encounter with his dick would end, and Xue Ning was going to check herself into the nearest nunnery to forget this shameful encounter.


    Uncaring of Xue Ning''s internal turmoil, her inner walls clenched Jingwei''s cock tightly, intent on milking him dry, and Jingwei gave one final thrust, hard enough to shake the bed.


    He let out a guttural groan, finally letting go of thest of his restraint. Jingwei shot his load deep inside her and Xue Ning gasped, feeling the rush of hot cum flood her insides, even with the condom.


    The bed shifted ominously, but both parties were too overwhelmed with sensation to care.


    Xue Ning felt amazing, and all she wanted to do was to tuck herself next to Jingwei and cuddle, but then she remembered what she had done and felt like crying in humiliation.


    "Did I just¡­ Jingwei, I''m so sorry," Xue Ningmented, hiding her red face in her hands. "I''m sorry for peeing on you."


    "Wow," Jingwei''s voice didn''t sound angry. Xue Ning peeped through her fingers, only to see Jingwei stare at her with awestruck eyes. He pulled her hands away from her face. "Xue Ning, you can squirt."


    "I can do what?" Xue Ning asked, confused. Jingwei didn''t sound mad, which was great.


    "Squirt." Jingwei repeated, leaning back down to kiss her lovingly. "You''re so incredible! I love you so much!"


    "Oh good. So you''re not mad?" Xue Ning asked hopefully. She had to do more research on this ''squirting'' thing - it''s not that she suspected Jingwei lied to her


    "How could I be? I''m so fucking happy, you have no idea." Jingwei said. Xue Ning truly didn''t have any idea about how deep his perverted thoughts went, but she somehow still managed to fulfil each and every one of his kinks without knowing.<sub> </sub>


    Wasn''t this a sign that they were meant to be?


    The universe had put them together!


    Jingwei pulled her into his arms as they traded soft kisses, contentment radiating off them even as they were both sweaty and sticky with all sorts of body fluids.


    He could have pulled out of her, but a big part of him didn''t want to. He wanted to stay sheathed in her all the time. Perhaps in an alternate universe where he was a young lord and Xue Ning was his personal maid, sold to him to pay off her family debt, then he could tie her up on his bed and fuck her constantly¡­ His cock twitched at the fantasy.


    Xue Ning would look fantastic in a maid outfit.


    "Are you finally going to pull out of me?" Xue Ning asked sleepily. Was it her imagination, or was Jingwei once again hardening in her? No, definitely not. No man could keep going like this.


    "Yes, soon." Jingwei said, but he made no room to slide out of her. Instead he continued to rain sweet kisses all over Xue Ning''s face, humming in delight.


    "Time to let go," Xue Ning continued to mumble, but the warm embrace of Jingwei''s arms was a very difficult thing to fight. "Everyone is going to realise that we''re gone. We need to clean up."


    Jingwei chuckled warmly. "Yes dear." All these words sounded like Xue Ning trying to convince herself to move, but she hadn''t moved an inch away from him.


    Jingwei reluctantly slid out of her though, because Xue Ning didn''t deserve to have his limp dick and a full condom inside her. She only deserved him at his best! But he still didn''t let go of her. Xue Ning was so adorable when she was drifting off to dreand, and Jingwei was determined to watch her sleep.


    Then, Xue Ning''s handphone buzzed from the table.


    "Help me pick it up," Xue Ning swatted Jingwei''s arm. "You''re closer."


    "Yes dear," he said obediently, too well-sated to bother arguing. He passed Xue Ning her phone, and watched as her face twisted as she read the new message.


    "What''s the problem?" Jingwei asked cautiously.


    "We need to get cleaned up," Xue Ning said regrettably, quickly pulling herself away from Jingwei''s arms. Her entire body ached, as though she had done a full-body workout. There was a particrly pleasant stretch in her thighs that made her face burn. Meanwhile, Jingwei whined, stretching for her, but he was duly ignored.


    "My sister-inw texted me to give me a heads-up - she already did her best to distract my parents, but if we don''t get dressed, you''re going to be a dead man!"


    "I''d be a dead happy man," Jingwei retorted, but he reluctantly got up too. There wasn''t any point lying on a bed with several wet spots on it without Xue Ning, even if it was Xue Ning''s bed, and he didn''t want to die after one fuck.


    "Grab a towel from my cupboard and wipe yourself down. Or fuck it just wear the clothes!" Xue Ning instructed as she heard footsteps approaching. Judging by the distance, she had less than a minute to be presentable. She hurriedly put back on her clothes in record time, making a face at how sticky and gross she felt. But at least she would be bathing soon.


    She then sprayed some air freshener around her room, frantically pping her arms around to diffuse it faster. She needed to dispel the smell of sex! No one ever told her it would smell this strong!


    It wasn''t too effective, but it was better than nothing! Then she looked at her dirty bedsheet and despaired. What could she do?


    Meanwhile Jingwei hurriedly wiped himself down and put on the outfit Xue Ning had saved for him, staring at Xue Ning adoringly. Her shirt was on the wrong way! His wife was really too adorable for words.


    "Are you going to only stare at me? Or are you going to help?" Xue Ning asked peevishly. "We have less than a minute!"


    "I love the view, but your shirt is inside out. Hurry and change while I change the bedsheets." Jingwei then quickly tugged the bedsheet away and tried to fit a fresh one over it, but it was harder than expected. He hadn''t changed his own bedsheets in a long time.


    Xue Ning then hurriedly put on her own clothes, She turned around, only to see Jingwei still struggling to put on a bedsheet!

 Chapter 277 Outside Her Room

    40 Minutes Before The Knock¡­


    "What the hell? They''re breaking up again?!"


    Xue Ning''s family were seated in front of the TV, watching Night Market Lovers. Tai Cheng stabbed an apple slice with a toothpick, angrily chomping on it as he watched the couple on the screen break up for the umpteenth time under a huge rainstorm, due to misunderstandings generated by the main couple''s parents.


    "Mom, Dad, can we change the channel? Why are you so invested in this garbage?" Tai Xuanmented, a hand inching towards the remote control - but his mother swatted his errant hand and hissed at him, as though Tai Xuan suddenly decided to support Mayor Poh''s attempts at wooing her.


    "This is not garbage, this is quality entertainment. A hallmark of our culture." Yue Niang argued, shooting her son an angry re. "Youth these days have no taste!"


    "How does this show count as having taste?" Tai Xuan whined. "Come on, Ming Guang, support me here."


    "I have no opinion," Ming Guang said, as he pretended to be very busy with feeding Wei Yan at the door, as though he was a toddler incapable of holding a spoon. Wei Yan initially was wholly against being spoon fed like an invalid by his superior, but then Mrs Li had pointed a threatening toothpick at him and told him he could either suck it up or eat off the floor like a dog.


    So he sucked it up and swallowed his pride along with the food, all while cursing Sun Jingwei! If he didn''t interfere, he would be the one sitting cosily in the living room with the rest of the family!


    Come to think of it, where was Sun Jingwei? Shouldn''t he be done with the dishes by now?


    "Where is Sun Jingwei?" Wei Yan demanded petntly. "I bet he''s breaking all your tes in the kitchen. Better go take a look before we''re all eating off the floor like dogs!"


    "I''ll go and check." Xin Yu said, rolling her eyes. She really wanted to swat Wei Yan on his head for his immaturity!


    She walked to the kitchen, expecting disaster. Instead what she saw was a pile of perfectly washed dishes, and there was only Xue Ning left in the kitchen, chewing her lip anxiously.


    "Hey Meimei, did your boyfriend make you wash the tes alone?" Xin Yu asked, frowning. What a scumbag!


    "Of course not," Xue Ning''s tone was offended, as though the very thought of Jingwei doing something like that was unthinkable. "He did all the washing, I only dried. Now he''s bathing. But can I ask you for help?"


    "With?"


    Xue Ning took a quick peek outside of the kitchen to make sure that no one (especially her brother) was eavesdropping. She needed absolute privacy for this!


    "Sister-inw, can you help to distract everyone¡­ for like an hour? At least?" Xue Ning asked hopefully, her eyes shining.


    "Why?"


    "I¡­ IwanttosleepwithJingwei," Xue Ning exhaled, the words escaping from her in a mad rush. Xin Yu blinked, not understanding a single thing.


    "Can you repeat that? I didn''t hear you properly."


    Xue Ning gave her a shifty-eyed look and whispered, "I want to sleep with Jingwei."<sub> </sub>


    "Like¡­ tonight? Right now?" Xin Yu eximed, and was hurriedly shushed by Xue Ning. Xue Ning took another quick look; thankfully no one hade running after her.


    "Yes! In my room!" She blurted out. "I prepared everything already, but I need to make sure no one misses us!"


    "You should have just gone to the motel room since he''s already staying there," Xin Yu scolded, even as a smile began to grow on her face. Her sister-inw was growing up! Finally! From swearing off men, love and sex, to actively bagging all three at once. She was so proud, she nearly wanted to cry.


    "But I want to show him my bedroom," Xue Ning protested, her ears turning red. "It''s a part of me¡­ I mean -"


    "I get it," Xin Yu said, patting her adorable sister-inw on her cheek. "Aigoo, you have really grown up. Fine, I''ll do my best to help you bang your boyfriend."


    "Don''t put it like that!" Xue Ning squawked, her face now ming red to join her ears.


    "Don''t be so shy! Just go for it! You cannot waste time!" Xin Yu instructed. "Just like what I did to your Ge - I pushed him down - "


    "Oh my god, please don''t tell me," Xue Ning interrupted, recoiling with a look of abject disgust on her face.


    Xin Yuughed. "Fine, fine, but don''t be this shy with your boyfriend okay? Better hurry up to your room first now!"


    "Thanks Sister-inw. No matter what my Ge says, you''re still my favourite inw!"


    "I''m your only inw," she pointed out, feeling strangely touched anyway. "Now make sure you have fun with my future brother-inw!"


    Xue Ning nodded, scuttling quickly to her room. Xin Yu hid augh and went back to the living room.


    She wondered if Xue Ning managed to get protection - of course she would. Her sister-inw was the smarter of the two siblings. As long as Xue Ning didn''t take the condoms from the bathroom, things would be fine. Those expired a long time ago!


    "The dishes are fine, Wei Yan. It''s so nice of you to care about them." Xin Yu said as she sidled on the couch, next to her husband who was still grumbling about the show.


    "Then where is Sun Jingwei now?" Wei Yan asked.


    "Showering." Xin Yu said curtly, not wanting to continue talking with him. She turned back to the TV and asked. "So what did I miss?"


    "Nothing really, this show is so slow nothing happens!" Tai Xuan grumbled. "Look! She''s still crying in the rain!"


    "It''s emotional!"


    As the family continued to bicker over the TV, Xin Yu took note of the time, and kept one eye out for Wei Yan who had just finished eating his dinner. This man was sure to create problems for the couple!


    Sure enough, the moment he swallowed hisst mouthful, Wei Yan started opening his big mouth.

 Chapter 278 When Life Gives You Lemons

    "How is Sun Jingwei still showering after so long?" There was a wicked glint in Wei Yan''s eyes and he continued innocently. "Is he even alo -"


    Xin Yu immediately stormed over, with a huge slice of apple in her hand. She stuffed it into his mouth without warning, causing him to choke!


    "Eat some fruit," Xin Yu said, smiling sweetly with too many teeth. "You need the fibre!"


    ''Since you''re so full of shit.'' Xin Yu thought to herself. ''Can''t believe I have to waste a sweet apple slice on you! Just you wait, if you continue with your bullshit, I''m going to destroy your taste buds!''


    "Xin Yu!" Her mother eximed in surprise. "What are you doing? You blocked the TV just now."


    "Sorry Mom," Xin Yu apologised. "But I just wanted to make sure Wei Yan got to eat some fruit. Look at him! He''s so pitiful!"


    The family turned to stare at Wei Yan, who was still tied up and left at the corner, with a piece of apple shoved into his mouth. He did look very pathetic indeed.


    "Hmph. I guess we can spare him some fruit," her mother said begrudgingly. Yue Niang had fed him dinner, but she didn''t think he deserved fruit for dessert after all the trouble he caused.


    "Xin Yu-ah, you''re too kind for your own good."


    Xin Yu looked down demurely, tucking her hair behind her ear. Wei Yan wanted to scream. This was nonsense!


    "Wife, you''re not supposed to say it out loud! No man wants to hear they are pitiful! Even if he does look pitiful!" Her husbandughed.


    Wei Yan red up at Xin Yu and then at the rest of the family, upset and humiliated. He quickly chomped down on the apple, nning to swallow it as fast as possible so he could continue to speak.


    Xin Yu narrowed her eyes - she knew what he was trying to do! As such, she hurried back to the kitchen to grab her secret weapons. Wei Yan only smirked at her retreating back. Now that she was no longer minding him, he''d have the upper hand!


    "I''m just saying, didn''t you tell Jingwei that -" The family gave him cursory nces, too busy watching the show to care about his ramblings.


    "Ssshhh, this is a good part," Tai Cheng scolded him, the same way one would shush a disobedient dog for barking at their neighbours. "Aish, I missed it!"


    "Quiet! Stop disturbing them!" Ming Guang quickly covered Wei Yan''s mouth and continued to hiss at him. "Can you stop causing trouble? You''ve already lost your job, do you want to be tossed outside for the wildlife to devour?"


    Wei Yan spat into his palm, and Ming Guang frowned at his unhygienic and rude behaviour. He quickly wiped his hand clean on his pants, and Wei Yan responded with a nasty look in his eyes.


    "Like you said, I''ve already lost my job. What else can he do to me? I''m going to make sure this family hates him to the core!"


    But before he could do so, Xin Yu returned, looking suspiciously cheerful, holding a bag in her hands.


    "Jingwei is - "<sub> </sub>


    But the moment Wei Yan began to speak, he realised that he underestimated this woman! She was already prepared with another fruit - and it wasn''t a sweet juicy apple he had no trouble biting into.


    This time, it was a wedge of lemon with the lemon peel still attached. Wei Yan could feel the seeds with his tongue!


    More importantly, it fit perfectly into his mouth, leaving him no room to talk. If he wanted to talk, he''d have to eat it! His eyebrow twitched at the realisation.


    A fucking lemon! And not only one - his eyes widened when he realised that the stic bag was filled with lemons and limes.


    Was this woman insane?


    He continued to re up at her, but Xin Yu only raised a challenging eyebrow. If this man wanted to spew bullshit, she was going to make him suffer!


    Meanwhile, Ming Guang could only look at Xin Yu with new eyes. Why were all the women in this family so terrifying?


    "You''re feeding Wei Yan the lemons? That''s strange." Her husbandmented from the couch. Wei Yan nced at him hopefully - let him stop his wife''s madness!


    "We need to clear stock anyway," Xin Yu said sweetly. "And I think he needs more Vitamin C. Look at him, hisplexion isn''t looking too good."


    "I guess," Tai Xuan shrugged, seeing her point. He ignored Wei Yan''s pleading eyes. His wife was a soft-hearted darling that would never harm anyone. If she said he wascking Vitamin C, then he wascking Vitamin C.


    If she wanted to feed the stray man some fruit from the goodness of her heart, who was he to stop him?


    He could always get Sun Jingwei to buy more! With his connections, they could even buy dragon fruit to eat!


    Wei Yan wanted to cry in frustration. Li Tai Xuan was a moron! He could only save himself now. He gathered his nerves and bit down on the slice of lemon, immediately wincing at the strong sour vour that flooded his mouth.


    Wei Yan wanted to spit it out, but he couldn''t muster the strength to do so! The sour juice caused his mouth to burn - when did lemons have acid this strong? Was this even safe for human consumption?!


    He red up at her again, but Xin Yu merely smiled serenely.


    This woman was insane!


    "I hope you like this lemon," Xin Yu said cheerfully. "It''s been living in our fridge for a while, but we''ve ever had the asion to feed it to anyone. It''s supposed to help with your digestion. How does it taste?"


    Wei Yan bit down on the lemon slice, trying to reply, but it only caused more juice to burst out from the fruit. Some of it dribbled down his chin, but most of it flooded his mouth, drenching it in potent sourness that made his eyes instinctively water.

 Chapter 279 Time Is Up

    He wanted to curse at her, but he could do nothing but try to swallow the juice, shivering at every mouthful.


    "Oh wait, you can''t really answer. Sorry about that," she continued sweetly, dabbing at his chin with a tissue she grabbed from the table.


    "But don''t worry! I can tell you really love this! After all, you''re drinking all the juice. I still have a few of them if you want more. Just open your mouth! I''ll pop them inside for you!"


    Xin Yu finished with a beautiful smile, holding another lemon in her hand. It didn''t take a genius to figure out the implied threat in her words.


    That''s it! This woman was evil! The devil!


    But Wei Yan was stubborn and determined. He wasn''t going to let this two-faced woman bully him - he was a man after all! He gathered his courage and bit down on the lemon, blinking back the tears that started to form.


    ''It''ll be fine! Mind over matter!'' Wei Yan chanted to himself mentally as he continued to swallow the sour juice. His lips and tongue were tingling already. He finally managed to spit out the slice of lemon, smirking triumphantly at this woman who dared to get in his way.


    "Where is -"


    Another lemon slice was shoved in his mouth, forcing him to repeat the same arduous trial.


    "Hahhaha you must really be a huge fan of lemons!" Xin Yu said delightedly, even as her eyebrow twitched. This man was a persistence nuisance, the human personification of a period cramp! She took a quick look at her bag; unfortunately she only had four lemons worth of slices.


    Wei Yan was also watching her bag with deranged, yet determined eyes. He just had to bite through all of them, and then he would be able to ruin Sun Jingwei for good! Judging by how weird this woman was acting, there was definitely something strange afoot.


    She was too determined to silence him.


    That, and the fact that Jingwei and Xue Ning weren''t in the living room clearly proved that they were up to some sordid business that they didn''t want the elders to know about.


    He snorted, and identally choked on a mouthful of lemon juice.


    It didn''t take a genius to guess what it was.


    A shower? Wei Yan wasn''t a gambler, but he''d bet his left kidney that Jingwei wasn''t alone in the shower.


    After all, it wasn''t the first time they fucked in the bathroom - Wei Yan had stood outside for both instances, hearing them indulge in their pleasure. Those inconsiderate lovers deserved a taste of their own medicine, and Wei Yan would dly deliver it to them once he ate through this hellish bag of lemons!


    Slice after slice went into his mouth, and Wei Yan still continued to eat them, even when tears rolled down his cheeks. Xin Yu was begrudgingly impressed, but a bigger part of her began to worry, and she sneaked a peek at the wall clock. Only 20 minutes had passed! She didn''t have anything more powerful than these lemons!


    To make matters worse, Wei Yan seemed to be eating those lemon slices faster than she expected. Perhaps his mouth was already numb from the overdose of sourness, so he couldn''t feel any worse.


    Soon she was left with herst slice.


    Xin Yu frowned; she had to get rid of him!


    "Ming Guang, do you want to help me bring Wei Yan outside?" She asked politely, while Wei Yan''s mouth was still full. "I think he could use some fresh air."


    Before Ming Guang could reply, there was a creaking sound that echoed throughout the house, followed by a few loud thuds.<sub> </sub>


    Xin Yu''s heart leapt to her throat - oh god, why were they making so much noise?


    "What was that?" Tai Cheng asked, frowning as he peered around the couch. "Everyone, did you hear that?"


    "Hear what?" Tai Xuan asked, confused. "Must be just our houseining. It''s so old already."


    "Aish, I told you time and time again our house needed renovations, but did you listen to me? No!" Yue Niang grumbled as she raised the volume of the TV to drown out the sounds. "One day, our roof will copse on top of us and I''ll say ''I told you so''."


    "The house is in perfectly good shape," Tai Cheng protested, sinking into the sofa.


    Everyone kept a careful ear out for any suspicious noises, but there were none. Their attention turned back to the TV and Xin Yu was just about to heave a sigh of relief when she heard it again.


    A thud.


    Another thud.


    Yet another thud.


    It didn''t stop!


    It was a series of rhythmic thuds.


    This time, it was loud enough to be heard even with the raised volume!


    Frowns began to appear on everyone''s faces. Everyone except Wei Yan, because he was this close to bursting into diabolicalughter. Even heaven was on his side! This horny couple was going to get exposed soon!


    Then he choked on thest slice of lemon, briefly attracting the attention of her family.


    "Is Wei Yan alright?"


    "He''s fine!" Xin Yu assured them. "He just choked!"


    Unfortunately, Wei Yan''s near-death experience wasn''t enough to distract them.


    "Oi, what''s going on? Why is the sound starting again?" Tai Xuan burst out, irritated. "Meimei needs to stop practising basketball at this hour."


    "Your sister isn''t that inconsiderate. I think it''s our neighbours. Why are they trying to workout at this time?" Tai Cheng asked. "There''s a time and ce for everything!"


    "What neighbours? Laogong, we''re not living in a t like before." Yue Niang reminded him.


    There was a brief period of time where they stayed hidden in dingy ts to avoid the prying eyes of the Sun family, and were hence subjected to the worst neighbours anyone could have.


    Smelly neighbours with poor hygiene, screaming crying children, and the sound of couples energetically having sex when they were trying to sleep were depressingly routine!

 Chapter 280 No One Can Be Happy!

    To make matters worse, the walls were paper-thin and the bedframes rickety, which meant that Yue Niang had the dubious honour of being able to count every thrust the man made before he came. Perhaps a pervert would find more pleasure, but all Yue Niang wanted to do was to storm into their apartment and yell at them to shut up.


    Also, the highest she counted for thrusts was 60. That man didn''t evenst five minutes! Back then, she felt intense pity for his wife, who most likely had not gotten any satisfaction from that act.


    Come to think of it, the rhythmic thumps sounded oddly familiar. It had been decades, and her memory wasn''t as good as before, but the sound of the thumps that echoed in their house were almost like the ones she heard back then, in that dingy apartment!


    Yue Niang''s eyes narrowed as she connected the puzzle pieces, only to realise she hated the picture they formed. Xin Yu took a quick nce at her mother-inw and despaired.


    There was no way to exin this away! But she had to try!


    "Maybe Xue Ning is trying to perfect some martial art moves in her room?" Xin Yu volunteered. "She used to train a lot before she left for Shanghai after all¡­"


    Wei Yan scoffed. Oh, they were certainly training alright. If this was a wuxia novel, they''d be ''dual cultivating'' to achieve immortality! He spat out the lemon and yelled.


    "Open your eyes everyone, they are fucking -" He wheezed, as Xin Yu ''identally'' stepped on his hand. She wasn''t a heavy woman and she was barefoot, but human hands weren''t meant to be stepped on by anyone!


    Everyone turned to stare at him, questions in their eyes.


    "Annoying!" Xin Yu added at the end. "I think what Wei Yan wanted to say was that they were fucking annoying. I know singlehood is rough, but you should take things easy!"


    Wei Yan snorted. "Oh please. Let me spell it out for all of you - they are having sex in your home! What kind of man would take so long to shower? Use your brains everyone! And you!" He turned to Xin Yu with a malicious glint in his eye. "It''s so nice of you to help cover for them! Such a supportive sister-inw!"


    Fuck. Xin Yu''s face paled.


    "Is this true?" Tai Cheng demanded, immediately getting up from his couch. "Xin Yu-ah, are they¡­"


    Before Xin Yu could think of a response, Wei Yan interrupted smugly.


    "Mr Li, if you want to find out, all you have to do is to just knock on the bathroom door!" Wei Yan smiled nastily. "Of course, that is if you can endure the sight of what might lie on the other side. Based on personal experience, things can get very messy!"


    Xin Yu paled further and she hurriedly sent a panicked text to Xue Ning. If they had sense, they would hurry and right themselves back up again before the family came beating down their door!


    "What?!" Yue Niang and Tai Cheng shot each other looks of dismay. From the way Wei Yan spoke, it sounded like Xue Ning and Jingwei already had sex with each other! But there was no way¡­ surely their daughter wouldn''t lie to them about something like this!


    But then again, she lied to them about dating Jingwei to begin with. She eventually came clean, but she lied! She could have lied about this too!


    "Let''s go and take a look then," Tai Xuan said, also getting up. He gave Xin Yu a disappointed look. "Wife, if what he''s saying is true¡­"


    "Maybe he is, maybe he''s not," Xin Yu protested, trying to sound confident. "This is the same man that brought a mob to our house because of his lies. I can''t believe you''re trusting him over me!"


    They paused, considering her words. Just as Xin Yu was beginning to feel that there was some hope for the young couple (and for her), another ominous thud echoed throughout the house.<sub> </sub>


    Oh my god. How were they still going at it?!


    "That''s it, I''m going to check it out!" Tai Xuan burst out, unable to sit still any longer.


    "Wait! I''ming with you!" Xin Yu dered, immediately chasing after him, hoping to stall him.


    Meanwhile, Tai Cheng and Yue Niang traded brief nces as they watched their retreating backs.


    ? "What do you think?" Tai Cheng whispered.


    "We should go take a look." Yue Niang said.


    "What if they are actually doing it? I¡­ wouldn''t know how to react." Tai Cheng confessed.


    "We''ll cross that bridge when we arrive at it." Yue Niang said, determined, and the both of them slowly made their own way to the sound of the noise, hoping to high heaven that it wasn''t what Wei Yan was iming!


    That left Wei Yan and Ming Guang alone in the living room.


    "Finally!" Wei Yan released his diabolicalugh. "That''ll teach him to be so arrogant! Fucking her in the house of her parents -"


    "How is it even your business?" Ming Guang scolded judgmentally. "They are both grown consenting adults. Even if you reveal their private affairs, Miss Li will never sleep with you willingly."


    Wei Yan flushed an angry red. "Who cares! If I can''t be happy, no one can!"


    =====


    "Oi! Li Xue Ning! Sun Jingwei! I know you''re inside! Come out now!" Tai Xuan yelled as he stormed to the bathroom. The door was closed, and his face purpled at the thought of these two people canoodling inside it. He mmed his hand against the door angrily.


    "Don''t ignore me!"


    The door swung open silently to reveal an empty bathroom.


    "There''s no one here," Xin Yu pointed out.


    "I can see that," Tai Xuan scowled. "Thanks for stating the obvious, Xin Yu."


    "So that Wei Yan was lying! He imed that they were having sex here. Unless you''re telling me that they became invisible, that''s not possible." Xin Yu pointed out sarcastically, purposely trying to buy more time.


    Tai Xuan paused and thought for a moment. "He may have gotten the venue wrong, but there''s only one way to find out if the rest of his words are true!"

 Chapter 281 I Dont Care About Your Complaints

    Tai Xuan stormed to his sister''s room and thumped on the door. When he didn''t hear an immediate response, he grabbed the door knob and twisted it, only to scowl when he realised the door was locked!


    How dare his sister lock her door! He snarled. Now he was sure that there was something suspicious going on. He thumped on the door again, this time with more force. The old, rusty door hinges shook with every blow.


    "Oi! Li Xue Ning! Open the door!" Tai Xuan hollered. "Or are you and Sun Jingwei too busy fucking to do so?"


    Xin Yu hurriedly shushed him. "Husband, why are you yelling so loudly? It''ste at night!"


    "Wife, don''t think I forgot you were in on it too!"


    Meanwhile, inside the room, Xue Ning and Jingwei stared at each other in collective horror.


    They were both clothed, but the used condom was visible if anyone bothered to peep into the dustbin, and the bedspread still had suspicious stains on it, along with Sun Jingwei''s bath towel on the floor!


    "I''ll cover the bed with the nket and jump out the window," Jingwei offered, picking up that bath towel and throwing it on her bed, before covering it with the duvet. Xue Ning winced; now her nkets were dirty too! But she didn''t have a choice! Her brother was this close to ripping the door off its hinges.


    Jingwei then peered down, ready to jump from the window. From this height, he would only sprain an ankle - but then Xue Ning held him back.


    "You''re not fleeing like a thief, and neither am I." Xue Ning clenched her jaw, steeling her nerves. She didn''tmit any crime! So she marched towards the door, where her brother was still behaving like a maniac, trying to break down her door.


    "Li Xue Ning - I''m warning you now, open this door right now or else -" Tai Xuan dered, pushing against the door as though he could shove himself through the wood with sheer force, only for the door to open without warning.


    "Or else what?" Xue Ning asked, a wholly unimpressed look on her face. "You''ll cry? Besides, if you break down my door, you''re paying for it!"


    Tai Xuan would have replied with a smartassment, but he couldn''t, because he was this close to falling face first on the floor!


    Jingwei hurriedly caught him before he kissed the floor, since his own sister seemed intent on letting him suffer.


    "Are you alright?" Jingwei asked in concern as he pulled him back up, but Tai Xuan red at him and immediately shoved him away without a word of thanks.


    "You still have the nerve to ask!" Tai Xuan roared, taking a close look at his dishevelled hair. "You and my sister have been fucking!"


    He took a closer look at Jingwei''s dressing, and his face darkened further.


    "And how dare you wear my clothes! You thief! Just because you''re rich doesn''t mean you can steal things from people''s cupboards!"


    Of course, Tai Xuan was not happy to be shown concern by the man that was most likely sleeping with his sister in secret five minutes ago. In his mind, Sun Jingwei was just mocking him, trying to seem like a dependable man in front of his sister, when inside he was just a wolf preying on the innocentmb!


    And this man still had the nerve to wear his clothes!


    "I didn''t steal your clothes!" Jingwei protested indignantly. "Xue Ning got them for me! Do you want me to go around naked after I shower?"


    "You could have re-worn your old clothes!"


    "That''s gross and defeats the purpose of showering!" Jingwei argued, aghast at his reasoning. "That''s like using a dirty towel to dry yourself after bathing!"


    "Not everyone is so privileged - "


    "It''s justmon sense - "


    "Ge, I was the one that lent Jingwei your clothes! They''ll fit better than Dad''s." Xue Ning interrupted before Jingwei and her brother could start brawling over the meaning of showering.


    "Why do you even bother giving him my clothes! The both of you weren''t wearing any just now!"


    "How do you know?" Jingwei asked, weirded out. He hugged his chest protectively, looking every inch a scandaliseddy from a period drama. "Have you been spying on us?"


    "Huh, guess my brother is a pervert. I learn something new every day, and it''s always against my will." Xue Ning grumbled.<sub> </sub>


    Tai Xuan spluttered. How had the conversation derailed to this point!


    "Stop calling me a pervert! I know I''m right!" Tai Xuan''s eyes frantically darted around the room, looking for proof. There was nothing out of the ordinary on the table, and the bed was covered with a duvet (already suspicious, because his sister never made her bed if she could get away with it), but he found the biggest piece of evidence by peering into the dustbin!


    There was a used condom, lying pathetically on top of the used tissues.


    "Aha! See! Mom, Dad, there''s proof! Look there''s a condom in the dustbin! You guys were having sex!"


    "Really?" Yue Niang burst into the room, shoving past her son to stare at the sad piece of evidence. Her face purpled at the sight. There was no denying it this time! "How could you! You''re no longer a virgin!"


    Tai Cheng also looked and he could only sigh. He should have never let Jingwei shower in his house! And not even killing Jingwei would solve the issue - the rice had already been cooked, no amount of murder could undo it.


    "Guys, you are all overreacting." Xue Ning said. "And Mom, virginity is a useless social construct! It''s not as though we''re in Ancient China and you need me to remain pure to secure a marriage. You should be happy now I''m not dying a virgin!"


    Yue Niang''s eyebrow twitched. Her daughter was right, but she didn''t want to hear it! "I still do not approve of pre-marital sex!" She decided to turn to the party responsible for deflowering her daughter.


    "Sun Jingwei, don''t tell me you couldn''t keep it in your pants! How can I trust you like this? You didn''t even wait for marriage!"


    "Auntie, technically in my heart we''re already married and I -" Jingwei began, fully prepared to tell his future mother-inw about his ns to ensure that Xue Ning became his happilywful wedded wife with nothing to worry about but how to best spend his money, but Xue Ning interrupted him with a pinch to his side.


    "Mom, I was the one that seduced Jingwei." Xue Ning rified. "Don''t give him credit for my scheme! I nned and researched this!"


    "Well, I also participated. Very actively." Jingwei chimed in, not wanting Xue Ning to get med for everything, but then Xue Ning stomped on his foot, and he mped his mouth shut. "Sorry. Please continue. Shutting up now."


    "Your scheme¡­you did this on purpose¡­ oh my god¡­" It was hard to tell which family member was more dismayed at the realisation that it was Li Xue Ning who nned to jump Sun Jingwei in her own bedroom.


    Jingwei meanwhile, now tried to look as innocent and supportive as possible, deciding to keep his mouth firmly shut. His wife had the situation in hand. Maybe they would forget about his existence!


    "And I used protection, so you guys can''tin about me being unsafe!" Xue Ning added, proudly pointing to the used condom in the dustbin. "That already makes me smarter than Ge."


    Tai Xuan pointed an angry finger at her. "Oi! Don''t be disrespectful!"


    "How is it disrespectful to point out the truth?" Xue Ning retorted. "And you also had pre-martial sex, so its really the pot calling kettle ck!"


    "It''s different!"


    "How so?"


    "You''re a girl!" Tai Xuan eximed. "Of course it''s not the same!"


    There was a hush as everyone realised the error of his words. Everyone but Tai Xuan anyway. Xin Yu winced as she stared at the angry look forming on Xue Ning''s face.


    Xue Ning''s parents slowly decided to tiptoe out of the room, sensing an iing bomb st. This was the wisdom they''ve acquired after decades of raising their children - there was no stopping this sort of argument, their kids needed to sort it out on their own! They''d only interfere when fists started flying.


    "That''s sexist nonsense!" Xue Ning dered hotly. "Then Ge, were you sleeping with men all these while?"


    "No! Of course not!" Tai Xuan roared.


    "Then why are you judging the women that were actually willing to sleep with your sorry ass?" Xue Ning roared back, twice as fierce.


    "All these poor women that gave you a chance, only for you to stab them in the back like this! You''re an asshole!"


    "I- "


    "I, along with all other women, can make our own decisions on who to sleep with! If you want to make these kinds ofints, you can go join the Neighbourhood Association and gossip with the women there!"

 Chapter 282 Massive Hypocrite

    To say that Xue Ning was fucking furious was a massive understatement. Her own brother was a massive hypocrite! He also slept with girls before he got married, there were nights where he didn''te home and only snuck in through the house in the morning, smelling like cheap perfume. Who was he to dictate her sex life?


    She wasn''t done ripping him a new asshole yet.


    "More importantly, are you in a rtionship with Jingwei?"


    "What?" Tai Xuan spluttered. "Of course not! What nonsense are you trying to say? You''re the one dating him!"


    "Then why are you so interested in whether or not we are sleeping together?" Xue Ning pointed out, crossing her arms. "It''s not as though Jingwei is cheating on you, wait is he?"


    Xue Ning turned to Jingwei. "Are you cheating on my brother with me?"


    "Of course not!" Jingwei jumped in surprise at being suddenly addressed. He blinked at how the conversation had once again taken an unexpected turn, appalled at her very suggestion. "Xue Ning, even if I was into men, I would not be into men as annoying as your brother!"


    Tai Xuan nearly frothed at the mouth.


    "See? So why are you so concerned?" Xue Ning continued, raising an eyebrow.


    Tai Xuan yelled back. "Because I''m your brother! Don''t you know that rules are different for women? You''ve been so sheltered from rtionships - you don''t know what you''re getting into!"


    "Nonsense! Stop thinking I''m an idiot! I know what I''m doing!" Xue Ning raged, incensed at his words and the underlying implication that she was an innocent flower who knew nothing about the world. Her brother had no idea of what she had seen and heard when she worked alone in Shanghai.


    "You''re not an idiot, but you''re not smart either! You don''t know how men think!" Her brothermented, running a hand through his hair.


    "Now that you''ve given Sun Jingwei everything, what makes you think he''ll stick around? Not to mention even condoms can fail. Does Sun Jingwei even want kids?"


    Tai Xuan''s words made her pause as she clenched her fists. Xue Ning didn''t want to think about it, but her brother''s words had caused many old doubts to resurface - the websites had also warned that men might leave after getting a taste, but thements still encouraged women to give it ago, simply because they needed to know if they would bepatible in bed.


    No one wanted to be saddled with a poor, inconsiderate lover with no way of escape!


    Meanwhile Jingwei glowered at Tai Xuan as he stepped closer to Xue Ning''s side. "Sun Jingwei is right here and can hear everything you''re saying, and he is very unhappy about how you''re treating your sister."


    "Shut up, this wouldn''t have happened if you weren''t here!" Tai Xuan grabbed the cor of Jingwei''s T-shirt, and Jingwei let him, because it was technically his own shirt. If Tai Xuan wanted to rip his own clothes, he wasn''t going to stop him.


    "Even if I''m not here, your sister is capable enough to find someone else!" Jingwei said. "More importantly, how can you think that your sister is only worth her virginity?"


    "I didn''t say that. Don''t put words in my mouth!" Tai Xuan growled out.<sub> </sub>


    "You said that she gave me ''everything'' when she slept with me, so doesn''t that mean only her virginity has value to you?" Jingwei retorted. "Which is so wrong. Your sister has so much more to offer!"


    Tai Xuan had a gobsmacked look on his face. He didn''t expect to be out-argued by Sun Jingwei out of all people! This man was supposed to be a brainless perverted yboy that had no spine!


    Before anyone could even continue, Jingwei started to rant. It was as though a dam had broken, and he just had to spew out everypliment that crossed his mind, every single incident he had shared with Xue Ning immediately flooding to the forefront of his mind, begging to be remembered.


    "Your sister is so kind, she finds it in her heart to forgive people that have done her harm even if they do something terrible like pouring hot soup on her on purpose or hacking their old gaming ount to steal their goods or even trying to seduce me!"


    "Wait what?" Her parents raised their hands, wanting more boration.


    "Chun Fei just did it a day ago," Jingwei borated, but that wasn''t what her parents were worried about. Xue Ning had what poured on her? But Jingwei had already moved on.


    "She''s also great at arguing! My ex-fiancee nearly cried after she talked to her, something I thought was impossible, because my ex-fiancee was the one making me cry more often!"


    "She''s also so smart to think of ways to keep me safe when people are trying to track and kill me. Without her, I''d be dead ten times over! Like that time when someone tried to drug me at the club, or when they tried to kidnap me after our dinner. She also saved me from being ttened by a car that really wanted to kill me!"


    "Excuse me?!" Tai Cheng and Yue Niang were now exchanging looks of horror. Drugging, kidnapping and murder? What nonsense was her daughter involved in.


    Meanwhile Xin Yu''s mouth dropped open. "This sounds almost too ridiculous to be true!"


    But Jingwei was still on a roll! His eyes were shining brightly with joy as he continued to recount everything he liked about Xue Ning.


    "She''s good with a knife! You should see her stab a man in the hand!"


    Tai Xuan nched.


    "And that time she saved me from being pelted by eggs -"


    "Shuuush," Xue Ning said warningly, pping a hand over Jingwei''s mouth to stop his rambling mouth. He was divulging too much sensitive information!


    p "Hahahhaa," Xue Ningughed awkwardly to her shell-shocked family. "Don''t worry guys, Jingwei is just making things up. Especially about me stabbing a man in the hand. I have never stabbed a man''s hand before!"</anda>


    Technically, she didn''t consider Ya Ren as a man, so she didn''t lie!

 Chapter 283 Break Up With My Daughter

    "Then what about soup spilling?" Her mother demanded,ing towards her and tugging at her clothes, expecting to see burn marks. Xue Ning hurriedly tugged her clothes away from her - she couldn''t let her mom see the hickies Jingwei left on her!


    "Aplete ident! How can I yell at the underpaid and overworked service staff, Mom?"


    "Xue Ning was really kind not to pursue the incident." Jingwei said. "I was going to sue the pants off her for doing it on purpose!"


    "On purpose?!" Yue Niang''s head swivelled back to her daughter. "You said it was an ident!"


    "Well she didn''t want to do it, but she was forced to do it, so I''m considering it an ident." Xue Ning said as she discreetly stomped on Jingwei''s foot, giving him a warning re.


    Jingwei nodded and mimed a zip over his mouth. He was going to keep his mouth shut from now on.


    Unfortunately for them, everyone else saw this tant attempt at silencing.


    "Forced to do it by who?" Her mother asked. "His father?"


    "Of course not!" Jingwei dered, forgetting his vow of silence in just 10 seconds. "It was - ouch ouch - Xue Ning babe my foot¡­"


    "It was?"


    "Some other woman that wanted to kidnap Jingwei to fuck him. He''s really popr," Xue Ning said, refusing to mention how said woman was part of a scheme concocted by Jingwei''s ex-best friend, who now leads an organisation that''s out for revenge.


    And the fact that she was now dead after being sent to the police.


    Her parents didn''t need to know things like that! It''s bad for their hearts!


    "Then the car ident?" Her father asked worriedly.


    "Nothing serious! This idiot didn''t look left and right before crossing the road!" Xue Ning definitely wasn''t going to tell them about the attempted murder.


    Meanwhile, said idiot nodded agreeably. Whatever Xue Ning said, he would support.


    "I''m used to cars stopping for me all the time."


    "Privileged brat," Tai Xuan scoffed, and he focused on one other statement. "Your ex-fiancee made you cry? What a loser."


    How could he entrust his sister''s future happiness to such a useless man?


    "She thought so too, that''s why she cheated on me with the waiter, used me to make the man she liked jealous, and then now she''s upset because I''ve moved on." Jingwei shrugged as everyone digested that statement.


    "My apologies," Xin Yu said quietly. "That must have felt terrible."


    "But then it worked out in the end! If she liked me, I wouldn''t have met your sister, and that would be a tragedy." Jingwei said cheerfully, holding Xue Ning''s hand.


    "Ge, you being like his ex-fiancee is not apliment. She was an utter bitch!" Xue Ning added.


    "Tai Xuan don''t be rude," Tai Cheng said, his brain aching from all the new information. He thought Xue Ning and Jingwei sleeping together were the worst of his problems, but he realised that his daughter had been severely underying her exciting life in Shanghai!


    From what he deduced from Jingwei''s bodynguage, that man spoke nothing but the truth when he listed out all of Xue Ning''s good attributes, which meant that all those incidents did happen - including the stabbing!<sub> </sub>


    His daughter was embroiled in dangerous waters, and the longer she stayed with Sun Jingwei, the higher the chances of drowning. He caught Yue Niang''s eyes - and she nodded, understanding him implicitly.


    "Well, the both of you are consenting adults, I have no right to stop you." Tai Cheng said. "But Jingwei, can you give me some time to talk to you outside?"


    "Sure," Jingwei replied.


    "I''lle with you!" Xue Ning said.


    "You will do no such thing. You''re talking with me," Yue Niang said ominously. "Now everybody, get out! I need to speak to my daughter alone."


    ========


    "Break up with my daughter tonight," Tai Cheng dered, with no room for argument in his voice.


    They were now talking in the kitchen of their family restaurant, in a bid to be free of eavesdropping family members. Tai Cheng had heaved a huge sigh before dropping the ultimatum.


    "Why? Uncle, is this about us sleeping together before marriage?" Jingwei asked hesitantly. If he had known Xue Ning''s dad was so opposed to the idea, he would have simply put on his clothes and left the room!


    "No, this is about you putting my daughter into unnecessary danger." Tai Cheng said, a fierce glint in his eye. He looked less like a jovial noodle store owner, and more like a veteran of a thousand wars. A shiver shot through Jingwei''s spine, and he found that he could not respond.


    "I had years of experience determining truth from lies, and I believe you, when you say you love my daughter. As a father, it warms my heart to know there''s someone who thinks so highly of her despite her ws."


    "She has no ws," Jingwei said determinedly. Tai Cheng rolled his eyes. Men in love were always stupid.


    "And I suppose her fart smells of roses too?" Tai Cheng retorted, holding up a hand to stop him from continuing. He couldn''t be distracted now. "More importantly, I know that all these¡­ incidents you have mentioned, aren''t exaggerated lies."


    Jingwei froze. Cold sweat began to form on his temples.


    "My daughter, for all her violent tendencies, had never stabbed a man in the hand before. I shudder to know what could have pushed her to this point." Tai Cheng said evenly.


    "The press of a sharp knife against skin, the give of flesh as the de sinks in, cutting through thick muscles¡­ hot blood spurting out.. this is not something I wish my daughter to ever experience."


    "Hahahah, Uncle, why does it sound like¡­ you have personal experience in that?"


    "Because I do."


    Jingwei suddenly felt very cold. The kitchen was full of knives, wasn''t it?


    "And the car ident was most likely pre-mediated murder too."


    "How did you know?" Jingwei whispered shakily.


    "You''re Sun Haowei''s son," Tai Cheng shrugged. "For every ten people that want you alive, there must be more that want you dead."


    "And that is why you must leave my daughter for good, before she ends up dying on your behalf!"

 Chapter 284 2 Very Different Conversations

    Jingwei shook his head instinctively. "I can''t!"


    "You can''t? Or you won''t?"


    "Both," Jingwei dered firmly, even as he felt his toes sweating in fear.


    "If we were to break up, I would only ept it if it came from Xue Ning''s own mouth, and even then, I would do anything to make her change her mind!"


    Jingwei would probably go on his knees and hug her thighs until she gave in, or be a raging alcoholic if she didn''t. Just thinking about them potentially breaking up made tears well up in his eyes, and he frantically blinked them away. He was a man, and he wasn''t supposed to be crying so easily, especially not in front of his girlfriend''s father.


    "Please don''t cry," Tai Cheng whispered, horrified as he saw one tear roll out from Jingwei''s eyes. Now he felt like he kicked a puppy and abandoned it on the sidewalk.


    How did he suddenly be the bad guy in every family drama? He was just looking out for his daughter!


    "I''m not crying Uncle! I''m just allergic to¡­ something," Jingwei endedmely, quickly wiping his eyes dry.


    He cleared his throat and stood up straight, meeting Tai Cheng''s eyes evenly. Tai Cheng marvelled at the sudden switch; gone was the nervous crying wreck, the poor puppy that he kicked and abandoned. It was reced by a man that wasn''t taking no for an answer. The difference gave him whish!


    His daughter had tangled with a dangerous man! If he was half as possessive as Sun Haowei, he''d advise her to run for the hills.


    "Uncle, while I respect you a lot, I won''t break up with her just because you say so. I said this earlier, and I meant every word - I will only break up if Xue Ning wants it, and that is if she doesn''t love me anymore, if I can make her happier with my absence than my presence. Otherwise, I will never leave her side!"


    Thest words of Jingwei''s impassioned speech echoed in the empty kitchen. Tai Cheng felt goosebumps form on his arms.


    "Uncle, I will not change my mind, even if you decide to chop me up into minced meat using that cleaver in the corner." Jingwei added, his eyes darting to the knives neatly arranged in the corner of the kitchen.


    "Rest assured, I do not use kitchen knives to stab people. They make other knives for that," Tai Cheng said. One said knife was under his bed, just in case.


    "Sun Jingwei, while your devotion to my daughter is awe-inspiring, I still cannot find it in myself to ept you. If you were an ordinary man from an ordinary family, I would have no problems whatsoever. But you''re not."


    It was obvious, even to an untrained eye - Sun Jingwei wasn''t a normal person, in all senses of the word. He had grown up with the world at his fingertips, and Tai Cheng knew better than anyone how it could shape a man.


    "You are Sun Haowei''s youngest son. Wherever you go, you will have numerous eyes on you. You are a ma for trouble. I cannot have you around my daughter!"


    Jingwei chuckled, but there was not much mirth in it.


    Tai Cheng mmed a hand on the table. "What''s so funny? I''m not joking!"


    Jingwei straightened up. "I know Uncle. I wasn''t making fun of you. I just think that you and my Dad have a lot inmon."


    Tai Cheng''s eyebrow twitched.


    "So Sun Haowei also rejected your union? And you''re still persisting?"


    "Well, I wasn''t going to give up," Jingwei said, shrugging sheepishly. "We had an argument over that. He tried to get us to break up and I refused. We argued, and it caused his heart attack."


    Jingwei watched the incredulous expression on Li Tai Cheng''s face, the way his jowls ckened at the shock, deepening hisugh lines. The dim kitchen light illuminated the strands of grey at his temples.


    Come to think of it, Li Tai Cheng was also quite old too!


    "Please don''t have a heart attack, Uncle." Jingwei hurriedly said, watching him carefully for signs of distress. "Do you feel ill? Do you need to sit down? Oh god, if you die here, Xue Ning is going to break up with me!"


    "No, I don''t need to sit down!" Tai Cheng burst out, waving his concern away. "Your rtionship caused your father to have a heart attack and you''re still together?"


    Jingwei hastily reassured him. "Don''t worry! I don''t me Xue Ning for it at all. My father was very rude towards her, but he will definitely change his mind when he wakes up from hisa since Xue Ning saved his life!"<sub> </sub>


    "Jingwei," Tai Cheng began, rubbing his temples. "From what I hear of your father, he''s not even good to you. How can he be good to my precious daughter?"


    "Uncle, he''s not good to me because I''m a useless son," Jingwei said without any hesitation. "But no matter how useless I am, I will never let Xue Ning be bullied by him!"


    "Like he can bully my daughter, Yue Niang will kill him," Tai Cheng muttered to himself, rubbing his temples. He needed to re-strategize. Jingwei''s own father having a heart attack couldn''t break them up! Even if he had a stroke right now, it might not work either.


    Hopefully, Yue Niang had better luck convincing their daughter!


    =====


    Meanwhile, an entirely different conversation was happening back in Xue Ning''s room.


    "Now you have to get married." Yue Niang dered. "I don''t care how much he ims to love you, if the ring is not on your finger, it''s not a done deal! Make sure to get a prenup too - in the case of divorce, you should make sure to get half his assets."


    "Mom! Why do I need to marry him? I''m still young! And we haven''t been dating that long," Xue Ningined as she sat on her bed, pointedly avoiding the wet patches covered by her duvet.


    "And you still slept with him?" Her mother raised a judgemental eyebrow. Xue Ning spluttered, finding it hard to refute her point. "Besides, I''m sure Jingwei has no qualms about marrying you right this instant if he could. That man is so in love with you - and it would be stupid of you to not take advantage of it while itsts!"


    Yue Niang knew how infatuation could blind a man, causing him to make reckless decisions. Yet infatuation was never permanent, puppy love would always run its course, leaving behind the soldering embers of a fierce love affair.


    There was a reason why honeymoon periods in marriage neversted more than a year - and she did not trust Sun Jingwei to put in the backbreakingmitment needed to sustain a rtionship once the high was over.


    That man''s reputation as a yboy wasn''t something that could be built in a day!


    In the end, her daughter would be left with nothing but a broken heart.


    Yue Niang couldn''t do anything about that, but she could make sure that her daughter could sob at the back of a BMW rather than cry at the back of a bicycle!


    Also, with her daughter married to Sun Jingwei, she wouldn''t need to worry about her being a bodyguard! Sun Jingwei definitely wasn''t going to let her run off and put her life in danger. Yue Niang could then rest easy knowing that her only daughter was safe and pampered to the skies by a devoted husband.


    And if he stopped being devoted, she''d have half his estate.


    Pity her daughter wasn''t understanding her point.


    "Marriage is a big deal," Xue Ning said instead, crossing her arms as her face flushed at the thought of it. A real marriage, with a real wedding, for her and Jingwei. Her heart raced, but she didn''t know if it was from excitement or trepidation.


    "We can wait for years. There''s still time."


    "No, get married now. As soon as possible. Get half of his assets." Yue Niang said firmly. "From what I hear about Jingwei, that man seems to be either ridiculously ident-prone or a ma for trouble! Better marry him before he dies by ident!"


    Also, there was a high chance of divorce once Xue Ning realised married life wasn''t a bed of roses. Then she would naturally be out of Sun Jingwei''s life, and a lot richer for it too.


    "Mom! Why are you cursing him!" Xue Ningmented in dismay. "I''m not marrying him to get his money in case he dies. I''m not a gold digger!"


    "It''s not gold digging if the gold voluntarily walked up and deposited itself on yourp." Yue Niang retorted. "I''m just trying to look out for your future!"


    "No thanks," Xue Ning scoffed, shaking her head. "I''ll only marry him this early if he ends up knocking me up, and that''s not happening anytime soon!"


    =====


    OUTSIDE THE RESTAURANT¡­


    "Sir, is this the ce we''re supposed to target?" A man d in ck asked through his ski mask, casting a wary look at the restaurant. "It doesn''t look like our usual missions. Are you sure the youngest Sun is actually here?"

 Chapter 285 The Worst Criminals

    Everyone murmured in confusion, casting doubtful looks at the tiny family restaurant that had seen better days.


    "It looks too low-ss for him," another onemented.


    "Is this a joke? Did we get pranked?"


    "This ce already looks destroyed, why are we even here?"


    "Maybe we took a wrong turn somewhere," another one offered. "All the roads look the same in the dark."


    "Quiet. All of you. We have our orders," the leader said grimly and the team of seven quickly fell into silence. "This is the intel we got from our client. Do not question the mission!"


    "Yes Sir!" The group of men chorushed and it echoed loudly throughout the silent night. The leader wanted to facepalm.


    "Keep quiet! Do you want to be found out?" He hissed angrily. God, he was stuck with ipetents, but they were all the goons he could get on such short notice, since the task was also given without prior arrangements, yet he was given such a tight timeline to execute!


    It was also hard to get people willing to travel so far into the countryside to execute this one task - thankfully, their client Z was more than willing to pay for the increased travel expenses.


    "We''re splitting up. Half of you, go to the house and find Sun Jingwei and his wife. The other half, grab the kerosene oil from the van. We''re going to torch the restaurant!"


    "Yes Sir," they chorused, but this time more softly to not attract attention.


    "Remember our main objectives: Sun Jingwei and his wife must be captured alive, at all costs. The restaurant must be destroyed." He repeated. This was something their client emphasised repeatedly.


    Sun Jingwei and Li Xue Ning were not allowed to die! If he had more time, he''d wonder about the identity of their client. That person was clearly out for revenge, and they had no qualms about making a statement!


    "Can we injure them?" One goon asked worriedly. "We didn''t bring the chloroform and there are no stores open now. We can''t buy any."


    "We can''t buy chloroform at any store, stupid." Another goon scolded. "We''ll look like criminals."


    "But we are criminals."


    "So we should be stealing chloroform?"


    The leader sighed. Truly, it was hard to find good, smart henchmen nowadays! Any man that was smart enough would have steered clear from this line of work, hence he was left with morons, and out of this bunch of morons, the stupidest ones came with him this time around!


    "If it''s necessary to subdue them. We cannot have them getting away." The leader exined patiently, as though he was a schoolteacher.


    "Then what about the others?" A recruit asked curiously.


    "If they obstruct you, get rid of them. It shouldn''t be too hard. ording to the intel provided, two of them are old, and one is a frail woman. None of them should pose a problem."


    "The adult son and Jingwei''s bodyguards might be a problem, but we have the element of surprise on our side. Use the women as hostages if necessary."


    "Do we need to keep them alive?" Someone asked.


    "Our mission doesn''t specify whether they are needed alive or not." The leader said, pulling down his own ski mask. "Now is everyone clear?"


    "Yes Sir!"


    "Quiet!"


    "Yes Sir¡­"<sub> </sub>


    "Let''s move out!"


    ======


    "Uncle, do you have a headache?" Jingwei asked worriedly, fluttering around Li Tai Cheng. He still had a frown on his face, and his nose wrinkled, as though he smelled something bad.


    "Shush." Tai Cheng raised a finger to his lips. He whispered. "Did you hear that?"


    There was a muffled chorus of something outside their restaurant. Jingwei''s ears perked up in surprise - was it a bunch of rowdy drunk teenagers making trouble?


    "Uncle, I think those are drunkards." Jingwei said reassuringly. "Either that, or students who drank too much. I can go and chase them away if you want."


    There was another muffled cheer. Jingwei was prepared to chase them away, but Xue Ning''s father pulled him back.


    "No it''s not," Tai Cheng said with a frown. "We don''t have drunk students or drunk mobs."


    More importantly, he heard them say something like ''Yes Sir.'' That definitely wasn''t something a regr civilian would say!


    "But - "


    "Shhh. Do you hear that?" Tai Cheng whispered.


    A pause. Jingwei was about to shake his head because there was no more strange cheering, but then he heard the sound of footsteps shuffling around the restaurant. He waited for them to fade away, but they seemed to be getting closer!


    "Uncle, are there people looking for us?" Jingwei asked cautiously, not liking the wary, pinched look on Li Tai Cheng''s face. "Should we go outside and take a look?"


    But as he prepared to leave, Xue Ning''s father pulled him back and shoved him under the table!


    "Uncle? What''s wrong?" Jingwei asked, now beginning to panic.


    "The footsteps don''t sound like anyone we know. Keep quiet and stay low. I''ll go outside to check it out." Tai Cheng instructed, and he armed himself with two long cooking knives, a dangerous glint in his eyes.


    Jingwei froze, suddenly feeling terrified.


    But he knew that he could not be cowering under a table while Xue Ning''s father went to investigate.


    "Uncle, I''ll go with you," he said, trying to sound more confident than he felt. He picked up a knife too. "You can''t go alone! What if it''s dangerous? You''ll get hurt!"


    Xue Ning''s father could only look at him with an unreadable look in his eyes, while Jingwei stubbornly refused to get under the table. It was admirable for Jingwei to care about his life, but honestly¡­ it was almost unnecessary. He did his best work when no one was watching.


    There was a strange smell wafting through the air. Jingwei''s nose twitched and he gagged. Was that¡­ petrol?


    "Kerosene," Xue Ning''s father gasped, and he hurriedly pulled Jingwei towards him. Someone was trying tomit arson! "Run straight to the house and get help! I''ll create a distraction."


    "Uncle? What are you saying?" Jingwei shook his head frantically. "I''m not leaving you behind!"


    "Aish, this kid," Tai Cheng grumbled, even as fondness began to take root. This boy was a stubborn crybaby, but he wasn''t a coward. "Fine, but make sure to protect yourself! Remember, your life is more valuable than mine. If anything goes wrong, escape!"


    "With all due respect, that''s nonsense." Jingwei said firmly. "Xue Ning would never forgive me, and I would never forgive myself!"

 Chapter 286 Nothing Is Burning

    "Fair enough," Tai Cheng said, refusing to waste any time - if they were already pouring kerosene, chances are a lighted match would not be far behind. "Follow me, but not too closely. Keep low, and make sure your feet don''t make any noise. Don''t cast any shadows if possible."


    Jingwei nodded fervently, biting his lips to stop himself from panicking. Xue Ning''s father seemed to have a lot of experience dealing with delinquent arsonists - was that something normal in this town, along with the random cows in the fields?


    He would have to ask that, once his mind stopped shrieking at him. His hands were beginning to tremble, and he took a deep breath to calm himself down, only to be hit with the stench of kerosene. It seemed to be getting stronger, the closer they got to the outside.


    "How much of this is enough?" Jingwei heard a voice ask. "It smells fucking terrible."


    "Just pour the entire thing. Make sure to ssh it around! We need this whole ce to go up in mes."


    "I hope we have enough. Is Jia already done on the other side?"


    "I finished already; both of you are so slow. Stop talking and get to it! We''ve already got the easier job."


    "I know I know, don''t nag. There''s just a bit more¡­"


    Tai Cheng narrowed his eyes as he peered from the corner, keeping himself hidden in the shadows of the walls. The moonlight was bright enough to illuminate the silhouettes of three men in their twenties, and they were d in ck from head to toe, clearly up to no good.


    Even outnumbered, there was nothing they could do to him.


    Well. Thankfully there was more than one criminal. He could kill two of them and interrogate thest one. He turned to Jingwei and put a finger over his lips. Jingwei nodded, keeping quiet. Was Xue Ning''s father going to burst through the door like a sheriff and start threatening them?


    "Hello gentlemen, I must say, our restaurant is closed now. Pleasee back during opening hours." Tai Cheng''s voice echoed from the restaurant, startling all three men.


    "Fuck! There''s someone here?!" Their heads began to whirl around in shock, looking for the person who spoke.


    "Didn''t you check if the restaurant was empty?" One yelled, stomping his feet in frustration.


    "Why would I do that? There shouldn''t be anyone in the first ce!" Anotherined.


    "Fuck! Sir is going to kill us!" Thest one wailed.


    "Who cares! Let''s just set fire to this ce and - " Thest one said, holding a lighter in his hand as he prepared to fling it at the kerosene-soaked walls of the restaurant.


    But what they were going to do after, Jingwei never found out, for Xue Ning''s father slipped out with incredible grace and stealth that belied someone of his years, like a panther stalking through the foliage.


    Those three men barely had time to blink, let alone yell a warning when they saw a middle-age man approach them while holding two knives!


    "What - "


    Before they couldplete a sentence, Li Tai Cheng had whirled around like a martial arts pugilist from a wuxia novel, quickly shing through their wrists in the amount of time it took for Jingwei to scuttle to the entrance for a closer look.<sub> </sub>


    Jesus Christ. Was Xue Ning''s father an assassin? What was this? Jingwei wanted to rub his eyes, because he was certainly seeing mirages now, but then he remembered he was still holding a knife in his hands.


    "I''m bleeding!" One cried out.


    "Fuck! Help me!" Another wailed.


    "Shit!" The lighter dropped harmlessly on the pavement with a loud tter.


    "Don''t worry, you won''t die so quickly," Tai Cheng said. Those words were meant to be reassuring, but somehow, all three men felt shivers travel down their spine when they heard Tai Cheng.


    "Who are you old man?!" One party screamed and Tai Cheng frowned. He was going to attract undue attention!


    "You''re trying to burn down my restaurant, and you don''t know who I am?" Tai Cheng shook his head in disappointment. "Punks these days have no respect for social order¡­"


    "Respect this, you stupid old man!" Another man screamed and tried to grab his knife, even with his bleeding wrist. Tai Cheng rolled his eyes, here was a kid that had more guts thanmon sense!


    As such, Tai Cheng decided to show some mercy. He shed straight through his belly expertly, as though cutting through a salmon to make salmon sashimi.


    A faint line appeared on that person''s stomach, before he copsed in shock. Blood began to emerge from the fine cut, slowly staining his outfit!


    "Who are you?!" He screamed breathlessly, but Tai Cheng wasn''t concerned about him. He wouldn''t be moving for a while - and he needed to get the other two that were starting to run away!


    They ran with their backs facing him. A rookie mistake. Good thing Tai Cheng had two knives, so he didn''t need to chase after them! He simply flung both knives straight at them. Jingwei watched with bated breath as the des spun in perfect circles, reflecting the glow of the moon, before they embedded themselves de first into the backs of the escaping men.


    Their bodies fell with a thud.


    "Ah, I still got it," Tai Cheng said, nodding proudly to himself, even as he held a hand to his back. "This back¡­ I really should up my training¡­"


    Jingwei shivered as he gathered his courage to look more closely. They didn''t look like they were moving! The knives had spun like pinwheels in the wind, easily stabbing the two men. Jingwei didn''t know whether he wanted them to be dead or not.


    And Xue Ning''s father was the one that threw them! He was either a professional assassin, or he worked as a knife thrower in a circus. Jingwei was still desperately hoping for thetter.


    "Jingwei, look after this one," Tai Cheng gestured to the man bleeding on the floor before he cheerfully jogged over to the fallen men to retrieve his knives. They were expensive! He didn''t want them to get a taste of human flesh and blood, but the universe just didn''t want to make it happen.


    "Be careful Uncle!" Jingwei called out, worry crawling up his throat. Oh wait, that was bile. He swallowed it back down as he stared at the ck-d man lying on the pavement, bleeding heavily from his belly as though he was a pregnant woman undergoing caesarean surgery.


    "Sun.. Jingwei¡­" the man gasped out as he stared unblinkingly at him through the eyeholes of his ski mask. "You''re really here!"

 Chapter 287 Strange Torture

    [WARNING FOR GORE]


    Jingwei blinked in surprise. This person knew who he was - wait, was this person out to kill him in the first ce?


    He hurriedly pulled off the ski mask. To his disappointment, he didn''t recognize the man at all.


    "Who are you? What do you want?" Jingwei demanded, peering down at him, making sure he stayed clear of that man''s hands. Not like he had the strength to kill him, but one had to be cautious. If he died at the hands of a half-dead man, Xue Ning''s father would really think he''s a moron!


    "Like I''d tell you, because you asked. Are you stupid?" The man wheezed painfully.


    "If you don''t, you''re going to die by bleeding to death." Jingwei said, pointing to the wound on his belly. "Bet you didn''t think this would happen eh? Why are you even burning down this restaurant?"


    The man stayed firmly silent. Jingwei sighed.


    "Fine, I''ll have to make my own conclusions then. Let''s see¡­ I know! You ate the food here and got diarrhoea, but you couldn''t reach the washroom in time! Your bowels gave up and you shat in your pants, in front of your crush, forever ruining your chances. Because of this incident, your reputation was forever destroyed, and no one wanted to hire you. Jobless and loveless, you had no choice but to turn to crime! So you decided to burn this restaurant down as revenge."


    "Am I right?" Jingwei asked, his eyes staring down at him. "Or perhaps you -"


    "I did not shit my pants! What nonsense are you talking about!" the wannabe arsonist protested as heid on the floor, staring up at Sun Jingwei''s face illuminated by the moonlight. This had to be the weirdest night of his life!


    He was supposed to kidnap this man, but why didn''t anyone tell him that he had a few screws loose? Either that, or the bloodloss had made him hallucinate the babble of words that escaped his mouth.


    "I got it!" Jingwei said proudly, pping his hands. "You actually got dumped here in this restaurant. Your ex decided that she was in love with me, like all women are. So you want revenge on me and the restaurant. I''m so smart, aren''t I? But don''t worry, I''m a taken man!"


    "You''re delusional! Stop talking!" He wheezed. He couldn''t stay silent any longer. "Your wife will be taken soon!"


    The sheer nonsense that came out of Sun Jingwei''s mouth, paired with his handsome face, was doing something to the wannabe arsonist''s insides (those that hadn''t spilled out anyway).


    "My wife will be what?" Jingwei asked, the cheerful look on his face turning venomous in an instant. He twisted the nose of the man, causing him to squeal in pain. "If you refuse to tell me, I''ll pull out your fucking intestines! Wait - you know what, I''m going to sing and do that," Jingwei said smugly.


    A horrified look took over the arsonist''s face. Jingwei''s hands pressed down on his already painful belly, and he opened his mouth and began to howl straight into his ears!


    =====


    Meanwhile, seeing that Jingwei was perfectly safe (the criminal wasn''t, but that wasn''t Tai Cheng''s problem), Li Tai Cheng hurriedly jogged to the two fallen bodies, ready to grab his knives.<sub> </sub>


    Just as he was about to pull the first one out, a hand shot out to grab his foot, fully intent on dragging him to the floor! Beside the first fallen body, the second man had unsteadily got to his feet, trying his best to punch him.


    But unfortunately for them, even the element of surprise wasn''t enough. Tai Cheng simply readjusted his weight tond on his other foot, expertly dodging the punch and twisting the man''s wrist, coating his own hands with blood.


    The injured party screamed in pain as more blood spurted from his wound, clutching his hand. Tai Cheng shoved him, and he fell to the ground in a crumpled heap, the knife digging deeper into his back!


    He cried out in pain, unable to get up.


    Meanwhile Tai Cheng just wanted to wipe his bloody hands on something that wasn''t his T-shirt.


    "Feng Yi!" The other man croaked out, upset and outraged.


    "Worry more about yourself," Tai Cheng scolded, leaping on the first man''s back, causing him to copse from the unexpected weight!


    "Nan Yao!" The other man eximed. "Oh my god, you killed him! You murderer!"


    "Aish, how annoying," Tai Cheng grumbled. This was just like that stupid zombie movie his kids insisted on watching a decade ago, where the brainless mob tried to rip someone from limb to limb. These punks were humans, but Tai Cheng doubted they had a brain cell to rub in between the both of them.


    "Who taught you how to fight? You should be ashamed! And I sure hope those are your fake names. Troublemakers these days really have nomon sense. If I were your boss, I''d take a finger for this!" Tai Chengined.


    "Ahhh, it hurts! It hurts! Get off me!" A palliative whine of pain emerged from Nan Yao as he struggled to get up. It was barely audible, for his face was nted on the concrete.


    "Sorry," Tai Cheng apologised, but he didn''t move away. "This Uncle hasn''t worked out in a while. Forgive these old bones!"


    There was a faint gurgling noise from the body in front of him as the man tried his best to throw him off, but Tai Cheng nted himself firmly on his back. He used this chance to wipe the blood on his hands on Nan Yao''s clothes first.


    "Kids these days should stay in school and not be delinquents," Tai Cheng scolded. "And try to rx, I''m going to pull out my knife now. If you struggle, it will hurt more."


    "What the flying fuck? How do you know - AHHHHHH"


    Before Nan Yao could evenplete his response to that terrifying statement, Tai Cheng smoothly ripped out the knife in one clean movement!

 Chapter 288 Actual Torture

    [WARNING FOR GORE]


    Nan Yao let out a blood-curdling scream of pain, but Tai Cheng was more worried about the blood stter that formed on his T-shirt.


    He sighed; now his wife was going to scold him for dirtying his clothes unnecessarily. Now she would have to waste baking soda and lemon juice on him!


    "Shush you," he scolded Nan Yao, patting his head while he convulsed on the floor. "If you want the pain to stop, you should be an obedient child and let me know why you''re here. This restaurant is my life''s work, what have I done to deserve such treatment? Please enlighten an old uncle first!"


    Unfortunately, Nan Yao was in no condition to respond in humannguage. All Tai Cheng could hear were the wordless whimpers of pain, so he turned to Feng Yi, who was at least still conscious enough.


    "Since your friend can''t answer, you shall do it for him." Tai Cheng said, pointing his knife straight at him, the casual amusement of earlier vanishing in a sh.


    In the moonlight, the silver of the de was coated with fresh red blood that dripped steadily from the tip, dotting the pavement.


    On that very same pavement, Feng Yi could only tremble in fear as he gazed up at this uncle with barely concealed horror. He wanted to sob and cry for his mother. Who was this man?


    "Talk, or your friend won''t survive the morning." Tai Cheng said. In fact, that was a generous estimate. With a wound this deep, perhaps even a few hours would be difficult.


    "I¡­ I¡­"


    "We can do this the easy way or the hard way." Tai Cheng continued, grabbing Nan Yao''s limp hand from the pavement and twisting it painfully behind his back, so he could keep hold of it. His shoulder joint cracked ominously, and Feng Yi paled further.


    "Your friend has ten fingertips, five on each hand. For every minute you dy, he''d lose one tip. Once I''m done with his fingers, I''ll move on to yours." Tai Cheng said calmly, purposely holding his knife to that man''s pinky finger. "I hope your friend is insured."


    "Don''t¡­ don''t say anything¡­ Sir¡­wouldn''t want¡­" Nan Yao gasped out weakly.


    "So there is still at least one person unounted for," Tai Cheng said, narrowing his eyes. None of the three he disposed of were smart enough to be the leader. "Where is your leader?"


    "I''m not telling you!" Feng Yi eximed as all the hair on his body began standing up. This old man was sharp! But he felt increased bravado seeing Nan Yao resist so much pain. If his teammate could endure this much, how could Feng Yi give in so easily?


    "Then I''ll ask him instead," Tai Cheng shrugged, and sliced off the fingertip in one quick motion, as though he was chopping off spring onion roots before cooking them. Said fingertip fell to the pavement, right in front of Feng Yi''s face that had gone ck with pure horror. His eyes widened, and he could only point a shaky finger at Tai Cheng.


    "Murderer¡­ you killed him¡­" Feng Yi tried to crawl away, but the glint in Tai Cheng''s eyes rooted his limbs to the pavement, as though he had fallen on wet cement instead of concrete, and he couldn''t get up. Cold sweat began to form, and his body shook with a sudden chill brought about by the night wind.<sub> </sub>


    Tai Cheng smiled encouragingly, as though Feng Yi was his child that just fell down by ident while learning to walk.


    "Nonsense, he''s perfectly alive for now. If he dies, the me is put on you for wasting precious time and causing him to lose more blood," He exined reassuringly. "So unless you want to be responsible for the death of your friend here, you should be a good boy and give me what I want."


    Feng Yi shuddered, his teeth chattering in fear. In contrast to that man''s warm gentle tone, his eyes were deadly cold.


    "I¡­ I ¡­ we¡­"


    "Yes? Please speak up." Tai Cheng said, lifting Nan Yao''s hand to Feng Yi''s eyes, so that he could watch the bleeding stump more carefully. Since Nan Yao''s heart was still beating, there was still blood oozing from the wound. "Or do you want him to lose another fingertip?"


    Feng Yi''s eyes bulged out at the gory sight - no amount of sher films could have prepared him for real life. His stomach turned, and he quickly slumped to the side, puking hisst meal on the floor. He internally despaired - at this rate, he was going to die a hungry ghost!


    "Oops." Tai Cheng said, hurriedly putting the man''s hand down as the smell of vomit soon filled the air. This must have been too much for that poor kid! He had to remind himself that this new generation wasn''t as hardened as he was when he was their age.


    "Sorry for scaring you, but I really need to know. You did try to burn down my restaurant."


    Feng Yi wiped the bile from his lips after he dry-heaved, his eyes wet with tears.


    "You promise? You''ll save him? Save us?"


    "Yes," Tai Cheng said. "Now tell me, is this your entire team? How many members do you have?"


    "...No, Feng Yi whimpered, too exhausted to even shake his head. "There are¡­ seven of us in total."


    "Then where are the other four?" Tai Cheng asked, gripping his knife so tightly his knuckles turned white. He didn''t like the sound of this!


    "At your house... We''re supposed to kidnap Sun Jingwei and his wife, while burning down your restaurant." Feng Yi could only let out a cry of dismay when he saw Tai Cheng''s eyes darken.


    The very air around him changed, and when the old man got up, his hand on the knife, Feng Xi instinctively begged for forgiveness.


    "I''m sorry I''m sorry I''m sorry I don''t know anything else please don''t hurt me you promised me please don''t - "

 Chapter 289 Back At The House

    "I promised you medical attention, but that''ll happen after I kill off the rest of yourpanions. Turn over and let me pull out my knife." Tai Cheng projected an aura of calm, but inside, he was in a whirlpool of panic.


    "What? But you said - " Feng Yi protested, before quailing at the murderous look in his eyes.


    "The faster I get my knife, the faster I can get rid of yourpanions and call you and your friend an ambnce. So turn around, now."


    Feng Yi trembled; he didn''t want the rest of his team to die, but if it came down to his and Nan Yao''s life versus the rest, he''d pick the former over thetter! A sense of shame crept on him, but he turned around obediently.


    Tai Cheng pulled out the de in one quick motion, and Feng Yi bowled over on the concrete pavement, every nerve in his back screaming in pain. He felt the hot rush of blood flooding through his clothes, and he wanted to weep at how his life turned out.


    It was supposed to be a simple job - just torch a restaurant and kidnap a stupid rich couple when they were visiting their inws, but how had it ended up with him having to pull out a literal knife embedded in his back?!


    "Don''t worry, you won''t be paralysed. The knife didn''t strike your spine," Tai Cheng said reassuringly. "Now lie down face first and keep breathing evenly to slow your heart rate. I''ll be back after disposing of your teammates."


    Both Nan Yao and Feng Yi whimpered at his words. Tai Cheng even patted Nan Yao on the shoulder before he got up and rushed towards Jingwei, who was¡­ doing his best impression of a drunkard at karaoke? What on earth?


    "Jingwei, what are you doing? Stop ying around with him, we have to go now!" Tai Cheng demanded, gazing imperiously down at him. Jingwei looked up and his mouth fell open in shock. Li Tai Cheng''s T-shirt and shorts were sttered with blood! In his hands were his two knives, whose des were now red and wet.


    Jingwei got up immediately and began fussing over Xue Ning''s father, trying to look for injuries.


    "Uncle! Are you hurt? Oh my god we need to call an ambnce!" Jingwei eximed, nearly crying as he mentally scolded himself. Why hadn''t he gone with him to handle the two men? Uncle was so old, he definitely got hurt when dealing with them! He should have shielded Uncle with his own body!


    "We don''t have any ambnces here," Tai Cheng said. "But you don''t have to worry, the blood isn''t mine. It belongs to the two fools lying over there."


    Jingwei peered past Tai Cheng''s body to see two bodies still slumped on the floor. His nostrils twitched at the strong smell of blood wafting through the air as he shuddered, somehow feeling scared.


    Xue Ning''s father wouldn''t hurt him, but Jingwei was beginning to realise this man in front of him probably had a body count. He didn''t want to think too much about it, or add to it in any way!


    "They''ll still need a doctor though," Jingwei pointed out, eyeing their prone forms warily. They haven''t moved at all. "Along with this man here!"


    Said man stared up at him, wanting to make a smart-mouthed remark, but the words immediately died in his mouth as his eyes met Li Tai Cheng''s gaze. There was no warmth in them at all, and he hurriedly wrapped a protective arm over his abdomen, just in case Li Tai Cheng decided to finish the job.<sub> </sub>


    "Later, we need to go back to the house now! There''s four of them there. They want to kidnap you and Xue Ning." Li Tai Cheng said.


    "What?!" Jingwei screamed, the knife in his hand ttering to the floor as the words registered in his head. "Oh my god! Let''s go Uncle!"


    "Calm down and take your knife!" Tai Cheng scolded, and Jingwei obeyed unthinkingly, his mind clouded with worry. Xue Ning and the rest of the family were still there - and these thugs were out to kidnap her! Jingwei ran straight for the house, not even bothering to check if Uncle was behind him.


    ''God, please don''t let me be toote!'' He prayed frantically, his heart sick with anxiousness. ''I can''t lose her!''


    =====


    Back at the house, Xue Ning was ready to shower. She was still feeling sticky after the earlier bout of love-making with Jingwei, and she had to sit through that awkward talk with her mother. How could her mom want her to get married to Jingwei when she was still so young! And all for the sake of money too?


    Xue Ning shook her head in annoyance. And then she saw a glint of something from the bushes outside her opened window from the corner of her eye. The bushes shook, as though there was something inside them.


    She stared more closely, curious.


    But after a while, the bushes remained still. Perhaps it was a stray cat? She shook her head and she decided to go to the bathroom.


    The moment she left her room, the bushes shook again, but this time, the cause was clear, for a ck-d man emerged from the bushes, crouching through the grass to reach her window. This ck-d man was Ding Fei, and he was the leader of their operation.


    It didn''t take much effort to scale the wall to enter her room.


    He then signaled to hispanion that the coast was clear. Soon, a second man entered her room. With two men, Ding Fei believed that he could easily subdue a single woman.


    From what he had seen from the window, Li Xue Ning was just an ordinary civilian woman, with a petite height and curvy figure - she definitely wasn''t a match for them!


    He got the rest of the team to enter the house too; they had to secure Sun Jingwei. But Ding Fei was sure they would be sessful, once Li Xue Ning fell into their hands, there was nothing Sun Jingwei wouldn''t do to get his wife back!

 Chapter 290 Home Invaders

    [Warning for Gore? Eye-Trauma?]


    Yue Niang was going to turn in for the night after that long talk with her daughter, but she realised that her daughter was going to be sleeping in dirty sheets. Honestly, trying to hide such a mess from her inadvertently caused her to create a bigger mess! Now the nkets and the bedsheets all needed to be washed.


    Yue Niang scowled. Since her daughter was showering, she might as well change the sheets for her. Then she could throw them in the washing machine tonight to make sure they were scrubbed clean of¡­ suspicious fluids, and then hang them outside when the sun rose in the morning.


    She entered the room with her hands full of fabric, and paused.


    The room looked empty, but it smelled¡­different from when she just entered. There was a strong smell of sweat - and it didn''t smell like it belonged to any members of her family. She deliberately kept herself calm, even as her heart began to race.


    Yue Niang''s suspicious eyes swept around the supposedly empty room - and they widened as she noticed a few new stains on the hardwood floor.


    She had swept the floor daily, so she was especially sensitive to any changes!


    These new stains weren''t caused by a sexual fluids. Upon closer look, they looked like a whole bunch of scuffed boot prints, as though someone realised they were leaving tracks and then tried to hide it by smudging it, blending the dirt with the brown hardwood floor.


    But it was still dirt! From outside!


    Yue Niang narrowed her eyes. Home invaders were already bad enough, but now they had the nerve to dirty her house? She was going to wipe the floor with their faces!


    She purposely hummed a jolly tune, looking every inch the innocent, loving mom that was changing her daughter''s bed sheets, someone that had no clue that there were people in daughter''s room.


    Now that she knew there were people, she could sense wary eyes on her. There were only so little ces one could hide in after all. She would have to flush them out, and then get rid of them before any family members could be hurt.


    So¡­Yue Niang opened her mouth as though she was yawning¡­ only to let out the shrillest scream known to mankind!


    "ROBBERS! ROBBERS! HELP!"


    Just as she predicted, two men in ck (oh, how cliche, criminals these days were all the same) burst out from her daughter''s cupboard to try and silence her, only for her to purposely fling the clean bedsheets at their faces, obstructing their vision!


    They were distracted for that brief moment - but that moment was all that Yue Niang needed, for she easily grabbed Xue Ning''s desk chair and mmed it over the heads of one of them! She didn''t need to see them, just their heads covered in the fabric.


    The chair broke into pieces with a loud crack, wooden parts splintering all over the floor and the first man howled in pain.<sub> </sub>


    Yue Niang howled too, because now she had to clean up the mess, along with doing extraundry!


    "Get her!" The other man yelled, finally pulling off the bed sheet. She was just one woman, and he had three other men in the house. As long as they could catch someone to use as a hostage, they''d seed! He grabbed at her arm, but Yue Niang mmed her head against his, causing him to stumble.


    He wheezed in pain when she continued her assault, pulling him down and kneeing him in the gut, but he knew they could overpower her. His partner was already shaking off the effects of having a chair mmed on his head!


    But he could never expect this turn of events.


    Yue Niang drove the remnants of the wooden desk chair straight into his eye! She had kept holding onto it for this purpose! Ding Fei let out an animalistic scream of pain as every nerve in his right eye seemed to go on overdrive, and his vision began to blur. There was blood flowing from one eye, and a border of red formed at the edges of his view.


    "You bastards!" Yue Niang roared. "You''re paying for this!"


    The other man hurriedly grabbed her from behind, frantically pulling her away from his boss. Yue Niang kept a firm hand on the stake - ripping it out from his eye with a loud, obscene squelch!


    "Go to hell!" Yue Niang raged, headbutting the man that dared to pull her away straight under his jaw. It was painful for her, and her muscles were straining with the sudden exertion, but every sensation was dulled by the adrenaline coursing through her. It was as though the world moved in slow motion, and she could see every detail in crystal clear motion.


    It had been a long time since she felt like that.


    The bloodlust that had been sated temporarily by bullying Poh Jin Lian and her husband returned with a vengeance, and she found no better target than these men that dared to invade her home.


    With a roar, she drove the same stake into the second man''s eye! This time, she went for his left eye, just to make it a set.


    Of course, Yue Niang made sure to shove it with the pointy end first. She wasn''t an amateur.


    "Save me! Sir! Save me! AHHH NOOOO -" The man screamed as he felt the stake enter his eye. Yue Niang even twisted the stake, delighting in his screams. "PLEASE LET ME GO!"


    "I''m not done yet!" Yue Niang dered as she grabbed his head and mmed it into the wall repeatedly, causing his head to ring. He could barely stay conscious now. "You''re paying for the renovations, boy!"


    Ding Fei knew he had to stop her from harming his partner, but he was shaking in fear. His trembling fingers desperately tried to stem the flow of blood from his eye, but it was like using a small ster on a stab wound, utterly futile.

 Chapter 291 Shoes? In MY House?

    [WARNING - More Eye Trauma]


    Li Yue Niang pulled out the stake from his eye, narrowly dodging the spray of blood and eye fluid. She let go of the man, causing his unconscious body to slowly slide down against the wall, leaving a trail of blood that looked like it belonged in the first five minutes of every sher film.


    "Now there''s one more left¡­" Yue Niang nodded to herself, pleased with her handiwork. Despite a decade of inactivity, her skills weren''t too rusty, even if her back muscles were protesting the sudden exertion. Her arms burned with the strain, but she nned to just stick a few heat sters all over herself when this was over.


    She turned to the shivering man that was still conscious.


    Ding Fei shuddered. He wanted to p his past-self in the face - when he had first noticed the woman observing the room, he should have just jumped out to knock her out! But then he didn''t, because he thought she would just leave after getting what she came for. After all, their main target was her daughter.


    Curse his own stupidity! How could he have failed to determine she was a threat?!


    "How¡­ how did you know? We were here?" Ding Fei croaked weakly.


    "I could smell you," Li Yue Niang replied, stalking towards him like a tigress watching a wounded gazelle. Ding Fei was a manly man, which was why he whimpered in a very manly way and tried to scuttle away, only for his back to hit the wall. He tried to get up, only to stumble. He was forced to lean against the cupboard door for support.


    Now he couldn''t even stand upright! His vision was blurring with blood loss!


    He was out of ces to run. Even jumping out the window was out of the question, since his eye was so injured, he didn''t even have the depth perception necessary to walk in a straight line.


    "And you entered my house without taking off your shoes," Yue Niang red at him, spitting the words from her mouth. "Do you know how much dirt and germs you''re tracking into my home, young man? You utter fool! Were you raised by Neanderthrals? Or white Americans? Didn''t anyone teach you not to wear shoes in the house?!"


    Yue Niang screamed at him, and Ding Fei shook his head instinctively in fear, causing more blood to spurt out from his eye.


    "I''m sorry, I''m sorry, please don''t kill me, I won''t do anything to you," he pleaded, trying to buy time. He still had two other team members - if they were smart, they''d use the distraction to kidnap their target.


    "Of course you wouldn''t," Yue Niang scoffed as she looked down at this pathetic snivelling man. "But you''re in no condition to make demands. Now you''d better tell me what you''re doing here in my daughter''s room before I turn you into a blind man begging for spare change alongside the road."


    "I''m robbing the house!" He bluffed anxiously. Yue Niang looked at his twitching body and snorted.


    "Nonsense. Do I look like I was born yesterday?" She easily shoved his shaking body to the floor, looming menacingly over him. She purposely hovered the stake over his unhurt eye, causing him to go cross-eyed in a bid to keep it in view.


    And when he did, he wished he hadn''t. The wooden stake was now a dyed reddish brown, and if he looked carefully enough there was a faint translucent membrane that used to be a part of his eye.


    Or it could have been his partner''s eye. Just the thought made him retch, but Yue Niang grabbed his throat with her other hand and squeezed.


    "Don''t vomit in my house," she growled out. "Have you not made a big enough mess for me to clean?"<sub> </sub>


    Ding Fei gulped, but there was no saliva he could swallow. His mouth was drier than a desert.


    "Now, you''d better tell me the truth before this little friend of mine meets your eye. Maybe I''ll let them meet anyway, since you don''t need your eyes to talk!" She whispered in his ear, and unlike Ding Fei, she wasn''t bluffing at all!


    Yue Niang deliberately brushed the tip of the makeshift stake against Ding Fei''s lowersh line, as though she was a makeup artist trying to put eyeliner on a reluctant client.


    Ding Fei squirmed, frantically trying to avoid the wooden stake still hovering ominously above him, less than a hair''s breadth away from his very unprotected eye.


    Yue Niang let out an impatient ''tsk'' at that. She gripped his throat hard enough that he began wheezing, shivering as every cell in his body begged for help.


    It was terrifying to realise that he got it wrong from the very beginning; she wasn''t the one trapped in the room with them - they were the ones trapped in the room with her!


    "So¡­ are you going to talk?" Yue Niang repeated, watching how that sole eyeball darted around in fear.


    "I¡­ I¡­ " Ding Fei choked out.


    "Ah I guess not," Yue Niang said, and began slowly pressing the stake down against his exposed eye. Ding Fei began screaming in pain.


    "I''ll talk! I''ll talk! Please let me go!" Ding Fei cried out, tears forming in that one eye. Yue Niang removed the stake, and watched as his eye slowly turned red, thanks to the blood vessels exploding in his eye.


    "You have three seconds." Yue Niang said, blinking cidly.


    "What?"


    "Three seconds, two seconds, -" Yue Niang counted, and the stake brushed against his lower lid with false gentleness. Her fingers dug harder into the man''s throat.


    "Kidnap! We were supposed to kidnap Sun Jingwei and your daughter!" Ding Fei burst out, his voice garbled. He nearly wept from his one remaining eye. "Please, stop holding this damn thing! I don''t want to go blind!"


    "Thank you, was that so hard?" Yue Niang said, not expecting an answer. "But that''s not enough. Who sent you?"


    She found it exceedingly hard to believe that some low life thugs would bother to kidnap Sun Jingwei and her daughter for some cheap ransom! The effort wasn''t worth it - even if they seeded in the beginning, Sun Jingwei''s family would overturn the whole country looking for him.


    (Of course, she and Tai Cheng would probably kill an empire''s worth of people if it meant recovering their daughter. But most people didn''t know that! Case in point, the pathetic man groveling at her feet.)


    ""It''s¡­ It''s¡­"

 Chapter 292 Useless Police

    "My arm is getting tired," Yue Niang said warningly, "maybe I should rest this stake right on this lovely eye -"


    "I don''t know! I don''t know!" Ding Fei wailed as he struggled to get free. "Everything is confidential Ma''am! I don''t know who hired us!"


    "Give me your phone."


    "What?" Ding Fei asked, not registering her words. His brain was already lost in the maze of terror.


    "Phone, now." Yue Niang repeated, with the imperious manner of a queen, or more urately, a mother that found her child spending too much time watching videos online and not enough time studying.


    Her instructions cut through the maze of terror in Ding Fei''s mind, and he instinctively handed his handphone over without thinking.


    Yue Niang opened it. "Tsk, fingerprint lock. Kids these days and their gadgets¡­You brought your real phone for this," she grumbled disbelievingly. Did they not have the budget for burner phones? Or had the state of criminals deteriorated to this extent? "Unlock this before I chop off your fingers and do it myself."


    Ding Fei obediently lifted his thumb and unlocked his phone, wanting to keep his fingers. He couldn''t afford any more permanent grievous injury! He didn''t have insurance for this!


    Yue Niang nced at the phone, quickly browsing through his messages, a frown forming on his face. This man received a transfer of five million won as a deposit when he epted the mission to kidnap Sun Jingwei and her daughter, and Yue Niang knew he would probably receive the rest of it if he seeded!


    Five million won as a deposit¡­ whoever was in charge of this kidnapping attempt had deep pockets, so the kidnapping wasn''t for money, even if Sun Jingwei would fetch a hefty ransom. She scowled; what nonsense did her daughter get pulled into this time around?


    Meanwhile, Ding Fei watched her carefully from his own remaining eye, and slowly sidled away from her, before making a break for the door, his legs wobbling like jelly. He only had this chance to escape!


    "Stop right there," Yue Niang dered ominously, dragging him back by his cor. She brandished the stake at him to stop him from fleeing. "You and I aren''t done yet!"


    =====


    MEANWHILE, THE REST OF THE HOUSE¡­


    "ROBBERS! ROBBERS! IN OUR HOUSE!"


    The entire household was just finally calming down and getting ready for bed after the heated confrontation earlier, but Li Yue Niang''s yell jolted all of them into blind panic!


    Robbers have entered their home! In all of Li Tai Xuan''s 28 years of existence, this had never happened! No one would rob their home because their house was exactly the same as every other house in the area. If someone told Tai Xuan their restaurant had been robbed, he''d be more understanding.


    But their home?


    "Mom? Is Mom alright?" Tai Xuan yelled out, jumping from the bed as he heard his mom''s scream reverberate through the house. "Xin Yu, stay inside the room and lock the door, I''ll go and check it out!"


    "But that''s dangerous!" Xin Yu protested, half-clinging to his arm. "They could have weapons! You can''t go! You could die!"<sub> </sub>


    "And just let them rob our house? Of course not!" Tai Xuan pried her mmy hands away from his arm. His wife was trembling with fear, but she dug her heels into the ground in an attempt to stop him from leaving the room.


    "And Mom could be in danger. Just do as I say - call the police! Lock the windows and the door!"


    With that final word of warning, he pressed a quick kiss to her lips, and then shoved Xin Yu back into the room. He closed the door with a loud bang, ignoring the stricken, worried look on his wife''s face.


    "Husband! Husband!" Xin Yu cried out, thumping on the door. But she at least had the sense to stay indoors, even as every inch of her longed to follow him to make sure he was alright. She had to do something! She hurriedly locked the windows and grabbed her phone, hiding under the bed.


    Yes, she had to call the police¡­ the police¡­


    She shakily dialled the number for the police. Someone finally picked up after a depressingly long time.


    "Police station, what''s up?" A cheerful voice greeted her. It was such an entirely unprofessional opening but Xin Yu was too relieved to care.


    "Officer! It''s me - Xin Yu from the noodle restaurant! You must help me! Robbers are in our house!" Xin Yu screamed into the phone.


    "Robbers? You must be joking," the police officerughed at the other end of the line. "Your house doesn''t have anything to rob!"


    "Hey!" Xin Yu cried out, offended. "We''re not that destitute! And I''m not joking! You have to send someone over now!"


    "Really?" Xin Yu had the feeling the police officer was reclining on his chair, his feet on the table as he spoke to her. "Then tell me, how many robbers are there in the house?"


    "I¡­ I don''t know. I''m inside my room! Under my bed!" Xin Yu''s voice quavered.


    "What did they take?" That man asked indulgently.


    <o>,m "How would I know?!" Xin Yu eximed. "Didn''t you hear that I was under my bed?"</o>


    "And you say you''re not joking," the police officermented mockingly. "Oidy, don''t you know that making false reports is a crime? Just because you''re so free at night it doesn''t mean all of us are the same! Don''t waste our time!"


    "This is very rude of you! Hey! Hey! You -" Xin Yuined, but the sound of the dial tone greeted her ears. This sted man actually hung up!


    ''Useless man!'' Xin Yu raged as she clutched at her phone. These police officers never took their jobs seriously, and spent more time asckeys of thete Mayor Poh since the low crime rate made their jobs near obsolete.


    This area was so remote that no one took crime seriously because there was hardly any crime to begin with. Everyone knew everyone, so it hardly took any effort to snitch on each other. Their police


    But now there was a problem, and there was no one to help!

 Chapter 293 Mom? What Are You Doing?

    Tai Xuan stealthily grabbed a broom from the living room before he gingerly walked towards his sister''s bedroom, making sure his footsteps were as quiet as possible. The broom wasn''t the best weapon he had, not by a long shot, and it would be utterly useless if the invaders had a gun, but it was better than nothing! He had to buy time before the police arrived!


    He initially wanted to burst into the room, all bravado with his bare fists, but then he realised how suicidal that would be. He needed to at least have a weapon, and to have the element of surprise on these criminals so that he could get the upper hand!


    But as the distance between him and his sister''s room shrunk, he realised there was a strange smell in the air. His nostrils twitched; what was that smell¡­it was oddly familiar¡­


    ''Oh fuck me.'' Tai Xuan''s feet paused as his mind finally identified the smell, a look of horror growing on his face.


    It was blood. Tangy and metallic, something he smelled every time he went to the butcher to get some meat.


    Tai Xuan gripped the broom more tightly as he swallowed in fear. He fought the urge to gag at the metallic smell, now ever present in the air and impossible to ignore. And then there were strange thumping noises, along with someone whimpering in pain.


    ''Oh god, oh fuck, I''m toote,'' Tai Xuan shuddered, his mind filled with horrifying images of his mom, beaten and bloody. He clutched the broom as though it was a lifeline, trying to breath with his mouth instead - now that he arrived at the doorway, the smell of blood was inescapable!


    Gathering thest of his frayed nerves, he bit his lip and peered into the room, his eyes widening at the sight.


    "Mom? What the -" His grip ckened, and the broom slid out of his hands with a loud tter.


    "Shush!" Yue Niang demanded, and Tai Xuan''s lips mped shut obediently, even though he wanted to scream. He grabbed at the broom for protection.


    Yue Niang''s eyes critically swept over her shell-shocked son and the broom in his hand. Ah, this was bound to be traumatising for him. Her son was a rowdy man that had been in more than a few fights, but there was a world of difference between a schoolyard brawl, a bar fight, and the gruesome scene he just walked in on.


    So Yue Niang decided to make him focus on other things.


    "You only brought a broom? That''s not enough to sweep this mess up, but it''s better than nothing."


    "Mom, what is this?" Tai Xuan whispered frantically, his eyes darting around his sister''s room - or what was left of it. It felt like a tornado hit the ce, and it had helpfully blended a few humans to make a bloody decor.


    The desk chair was broken into pieces, bedsheets were strewn haphazardly on the floor, blood sttered on the walls and the doors of the cupboard.


    More importantly, there were two strangers inside the room! They looked like they were barely breathing! What the fuck!


    "I caught our robbers," his mother murmured with a pinched look on her face. "Oh should I say, kidnappers?"


    "Kidnappers?" Tai Xuan wanted to scream, but at his mother''s warning look, he kept quiet.<sub> </sub>


    "They were after Sun Jingwei and your sister," Yue Niang said grimly, holding up Ding Fei''s phone. "And I don''t believe that these two men make up their entire team. There must be more of them in our house."


    After a brief nce at the phone, she had deduced that this had to be at least a five man job. If someone wanted to kidnap a fully grown man and woman, they had to at least have three people to restrain them, especially since Sun Jingwei was a tall muscr man in the peak of health.


    And of course, one person to drive the getaway car. She added that extra one person for security and odd jobs, like getting food.


    Tai Xuan paled. Xin Yu was still inside the house! But if she locked both the door and the window, she should be fine.


    "It''s okay Mom, Xin Yu has called the police. They''ll be here soon! Once they arrest these people, we can make Sun Jingwei pay for it!"


    Now it was time for Yue Niang''s face to pale. Police? Here? That''ll certainly lead to ufortable questions she would find difficult to answer - namely the wounds on the men. How was she going to im all these were in self-defence?


    "The police? Are you sure they''lle?"


    "Of course! It''s not like they have anything better to do," Tai Xuan said, ring at the invaders. "Be prepared to go to prison, bastards!"


    Ding Fei blinked blearily in response. After all the torture he endured, prison sounded like a heavenly respite! Hopefully, this mad woman wouldn''t be following them there.


    "I''ll go to prison," Ding Fei croaked out. "But please, save me from her."


    "Eh?" Tai Xuan stared at him curiously.


    "Your mom is a monster!" Ding Fei dered shakily, and was rewarded with Li Yue Niang''s death re.


    "Kidnappers don''t get toin about their treatment," she said sweetly, a sharp contrast to the steel in her eyes. "Even if they are abject failures at their job."


    "Yeah, Sun Jingwei''s not even here," Tai Xuan added. "He''s at the restaurant."


    Hearing this, Ding Fei''s eyes finally brightened. There was finally some good news atst! If Sun Jingwei were alone, he''s sure three of his teammates would have captured him. They''ve caught the big fish! But he couldn''t let them know about it, so Ding Fei pretended to be devastated with this turn of events.


    Yue Niang took one look at him and frowned.


    "So, you have people at our restaurant too?" She demanded, gripping his cor roughly, shaking him the same way a dog would shake its favourite toy. "Tell me or else!"

 Chapter 294 A House Of Monsters

    "Of course not¡­ of course not¡­" He said weakly.


    "Say goodbye to your other eye then," Yue Niang warned, flinging him down to the floor with a loud thud. She grabbed her trusty makeshift stake and plunged down, only to find herself unable to do so, because someone was holding her back.


    "Mom, what are you doing? Don''t tell me you''re really going to¡­" Tai Xuan whispered, horrified as he pulled his mom''s hand away.


    When Tai Xuan first looked at the men, both of them had gouged eye sockets that were steadily bleeding. It was something he never expected to see in real life, and it made his stomach turn. Dinner had threatened to emerge from his throat, but in the heat of the moment, he didn''t bother to think how this man had gotten this injury.


    Now he knew.


    His mom did it! How was that possible! He eyed the weapon in her hand - oh my goodness, she had used part of his sister''s desk chair to gouge out a man''s eye! The whole thing was still dripping blood. He retched, and his mother took this chance to escape from his hold, leaving him bewildered. When was his mother so skilled at things like these?


    Tai Xuan could only stare at his mom in confusion. He wanted an exnation for her brutal behaviour.


    Instead his mother patted his shoulder and replied.


    "Targeting the eyes of your opponent is an important skill you need to learn for self-defence! If you can''t handle it, go stand outside and keep watch. Or get Ming Guang here," Yue Niang instructed.


    "Mom?" Tai Xuan repeated faintly. Was this woman even his mother? Or was his mother always this woman?


    "I need him to tell me about his n with the restaurant." Yue Niang said, a nasty glint in her eye. She gave him a dismissive look. "If you''re not going to help, don''t get in the way."


    <o>,m "Why¡­ how¡­" Tai Xuan could only blink, helpless at the new knowledge that his mother was a genius at interrogation. This definitely wasn''t something you could im as self-defence!</o>


    "Now you see why I say your mother is a monster?" Ding Fei added, scoffing at the appalled look on the man''s face as he slowly walked away, staggering in shock.


    "Ha, you better think twice, you''re going to lose your son if you kill me."


    "If I don''t stop you, I''ll lose all of them." Yue Niang retorted, her eyes shing coldly as she twirled the stake in her hand, droplets of blood sttering all over the room. Cleaning up would be difficult, but it certainly worked as an intimidation tactic, for Ding Fei lost his earlier cheek and was now scuttling against the wall, trying to get away.


    Yue Niang kicked him in the head, causing him to fall.


    "So¡­ are you going to talk now?"


    =====


    Tai Xuan tried not to listen out for the sound of a body hitting the floor as he walked away from the room. He knew that it was most likely the kidnapper who was injured, and said kidnapper was a criminal, but he felt the strangest stirrings of pity for him.


    It was easier to think about that, than to think about his mother and all her actions. But try as he might, he couldn''t shake the cold, deadly re from his mind. His mother, for all the times she''d been angry, had never seemed so calctingly cruel! This was an attitude more suitable for evil masterminds, not his sweet caring mother!<sub> </sub>


    Shaking his head, he quickly looked for Ming Guang, only to find him nted in front of the bathroom door, standing guard. There was a chair lodged in front of the bathroom door, preventing the door knob from turning.


    Tai Xuan could hear the outraged yelling from behind the closed door, as well as the sound of someone throwing themselves against the door to open it. Whoever was trapped inside was clearly a monster!


    "Ming Guang! What are you doing? What happened to your arms? Did you get attacked by the kidnapper?"


    "No." Ming Guang said wearily. "I got attacked by Miss Li."


    "Wait¡­ so that means that¡­ the monster was his sister?!


    10 MINUTES AGO¡­


    At Li Yue Niang''s first scream, he immediately went to protect Miss Li. He wanted to rush to Sun Jingwei''s side, but Sun Jingwei would be safer at the restaurant. Li Xue Ning was the one in greater danger!


    "Mom!" Xue Ning was in the midst of showering, but at the sound of her mother screaming, she immediately turned off the shower and burst out from the bathroom, preparing to help - only to be greeted with Ming Guang''s impassive face the moment she opened the door.


    "Please get back inside, Miss Li," Ming Guang said, refusing to let his eyes drift towards anywhere that wasn''t her face.


    "No! I want to help!"


    "You''re naked with soap suds all over you!" Ming Guang protested hotly, internally facepalming. Sun Jingwei and Li Xue Ning deserved each other - both had equally deficient senses of self-preservation. "Are you nning to blind the robbers with your naked body?"


    Xue Ning spluttered, but she sensed the wisdom in his words. Her face burned and she whirled back into the bathroom, mming it shut. Ming Guang could hear the shower begin again.


    He knew that she''d be out in a sh the moment she was clean and dry, so he ran to grab a spare chair. He quickly nted himself back in front of the toilet door, and true enough, she was out again, ready and raring for a fight!


    "Stop that, get back inside!" Ming Guang demanded, shoving her back into the bathroom, with limited sess. It was like battling an angry wet cat! "Don''te out!"


    Xue Ning snarled angrily, wing at his arms as she tried to free herself. "My mother is in trouble! I need to help her!"


    "Your mother is fine!" Ming Guang said, even if he didn''t know for sure. The fact that no strange men were storming out of her room demanding valuables was a sign that she had things under control.


    "How do you know?" Xue Ning asked, pausing in confusion.


    Ming Guang took this chance to shove her back inside, mming the door on her, ignoring her shrieks of protest and the way her fists beat against the door in outrage. He quickly used the spare chair to block the door, and he stood in front of it protectively, until Li Tai Xuan stumbled upon him.

 Chapter 295 Flushing The Rats

    "Thank you for doing your job," Tai Xuan said, wiping his sweaty forehead in relief. Finally something was going right! Good old dependable Ming Guang!


    If they all survived, he would cook him a good meal with all his favourite foods. Even if Sun Jingwei was missing, at least his sister was safe.


    "I''ll guard the door instead," Tai Xuan continued. "Please go and look for my Mom. She needs your help. Apparently those robbers were kidnappers, and they were trying to catch Sun Jingwei and my sister."


    "Very well." Ming Guang nodded, frowning at the update. Kidnappers were more troublesome to deal with. "How is your mother faring? Any injuries?"


    Strangely enough, Tai Xuan''s face nked, as though he was repressing a memory. He let out a chuckle, but there was no amusement in it.


    "Injuries¡­ ha¡­ My mom is perfectly fine. I''d be more worried about the kidnappers."


    Ming Guang raised an eyebrow. How strange.


    "Alright, I''ll look for her. Stay with your sister."


    Ming Guang instructed, before rushing towards the bedroom, while Tai Xuan knocked on the bathroom door to let Xue Ning know the coast was clear. It was just like when one of them got grounded as kids, the other would purposely knock on their room door as a discrete signal that the coast was clear.


    "Meimei, are you still alive in there?"


    "Let me out!" Xue Ning whined, knocking back. "Ge! Mom was screaming! I need to help!"


    "Don''t be stupid, Mom has it covered," Tai Xuan said, shuddering as he recalled the scene he walked in on. "Besides, you''re the one they are trying to kidnap, so you shouldn''t make their jobs easier! You and that stupid boyfriend of yours¡­ when I see him again I''m going to wring is fucking neck." Tai Xuan grumbled.


    If he had known Sun Jingwei would bring this much trouble to his home, he would have just knocked him out and made his bodyguards send him back home!


    "They''re out for Jingwei?" His sister eximed. "Where is he now? Is he alright?"


    "Excuse me? Did you forget the part where I said that ''you''re the one they are trying to kidnap''?" Tai Xuan repeated, his eyebrow twitching. "Stop caring so much about that idiot and start caring more about yourself!"


    "So is Jingwei alright? Where is he?" Xue Ning repeated, trying to escape. She needed to find him to make sure he was fine. If someone had followed him all the way out here to her family''s home to kidnap him, they must really want him to fall into their hands!


    She could only hope it wasn''t Wu Shang Jing. If someone as deranged as him was making more overt moves to capture Jingwei, she would be worried to death!


    "How would I know?" Tai Xuan replied grumpily. "Dad took him to the restaurant to have a talk, remember? So it should be safe. Man, if I were Dad, I''d make you break up right now. Look at the mess we''re pulled into thanks to him! If you saw the state of your room, you''d vomit blood."


    "My room? They were in my room?" Xue Ning felt goosebumps form on her arms. So she had been so close to being taken. If she had finished showering and went back into her room to rest, she would have been kidnapped with a towel wrapped around her!


    Then¡­ the glint in the bushes. The kidnappers were there all along, watching her. Her face paled, and she wanted to brain her head against the bathroom tiles. Why hadn''t she closed her bedroom window? Stupid, stupid, stupid!


    "It was lucky Mom caught them," Tai Xuan said, even if part of him wondered how his mom knew. "If not, we''d be receiving your ransom note! And we''re broke you know!"


    "Yeah¡­" Xue Ning said, falling silent. Her stomach churned with nausea. Now, she could only hope that Jingwei and her father were safe.


    =====


    "Mrs Li, you were looking for me?" Ming Guang asked cautiously as he peered into Li Xue Ning''s bedroom. A lifetime of training as a professional bodyguard allowed him to take in the gory sight without anything more than a cursory blink, even as a part of him wondered how Mrs Li could have managed to take down two fully-grown men on her own.


    "Yes, Ming Guang, just the man I wanted to see." Yue Niang said, handing him a phone. "ording to this trespasser - " she shot Ding Fei a thoroughly scathing look that made his toes quake in his boots - "they''re here to kidnap Sun Jingwei and my daughter."


    "Everyone knows a team of two is too small for such a task, hence I suspect there are more men in our house. I need you to flush them out. And then track the person responsible for this."


    Ming Guang nodded instinctively even if she wasn''t his superior. There was a question at the tip of his tongue. He wanted to know how Mrs Li knew so much about the logistics of kidnapping, but then he decided to swallow it down.


    Both injured men were missing an eye. Li Yue Niang held a bloody stake in her hand. Contrary to popr belief, it took a lot of strength to permanently injure the insides of the eye, since it was filled with muscles.<sub> </sub>


    The fact that Li Yue Niang managed such a feat twice meant that Ming Guang was clearly in the presence of a professional!


    Of course, he didn''t know if she was a professional bodyguard or a hitman. He didn''t want to find out either.


    "Yes Mrs Li," he bowed respectfully instead, taking the phone with both of his hands. "I''ll do as you say."


    =====


    MEANWHILE¡­


    The two men that were skulking around the house like a pair of rats froze when they heard a scream ring through the air, iming there were robbers in the house.


    They stared at each other in horror - theirpanions had been discovered too quickly! In such a short time, they hadn''t managed to find Sun Jingwei yet. Li Xue Ning was also still stuck in the shower.


    "What do we do?" Luo Lan whispered to him in panic. "I think we should go -"


    "We can''t!" Zhong Qing shook his head. "If we go back empty-handed, we won''t get a cut of the money!"


    "But Sir has already been discovered!"


    "So? It''s just the Mom, and this is Sir! He and Yuan Huang definitely can deal with one middle-aged woman. They''ll use her as a hostage to trade for Li Xue Ning when she enters her room after bathing! We just need to wait for Ding Fei to text us."


    "....You''re right," Luo Lan said, seeing the wisdom of his words. "There''s no way this girl wouldn''t save her mother!"


    "Of course I''m right," Zhong Qing said proudly, even though he was still in hiding, crouched down behind the kitchen counter along with Luo Lan. "So our job now is to focus on getting Sun Jingwei."


    "Then why are we in the kitchen?" Luo Lan asked. "We should be waiting outside to nab him when he leaves for the night!"


    "Leave for the night? Are you crazy?" Zhong Qing stared at Luo Lan as though he was stupid. "He''s here to visit the inws. Of course he''d be sleeping here! How can they make him sleep outside?"


    "But it''s not proper," Luo Lan whispered disapprovingly. "How can they stay together before marriage? So immoral. Do her parents not care?" The irony of Luo Lan''s wordspletely escaped his notice.


    "I don''t know what her parents think, but I definitely don''t." Zhong Qing grumbled, giving Luo Lan a judgemental look. "We''re kidnappers. Not marriage counsellors or parenting experts. Focus on the mission!"


    With this statement, Luo Lan reluctantly fell silent and decided to keep an eye out for their target.


    ording to Zhong Qing''s genius intellect, he predicted that Sun Jingwei would definitely visit the kitchen for a snack or a drink of water. From all he had read online, this man seemed to have a voracious appetite!


    When he and Luo Lan capture and deliver Sun Jingwei, the money they''d receive from their client would change their lives!


    Now, all they needed to do was wait.


    The sounds of screaming continued to echo throughout the house, along with the sound of objects being flung around. Zhong Qing''s body twitched in curiosity; he wanted to take a look, but he forced himself to remain still. His teammates were fine! They definitely weren''t going to lose to one woman!


    Sure enough, they received a text from Ding Fei. It simply said ''Target Secured.'' As expected from their leader. He was so reliable!


    "See, told you we have nothing to worry about," Zhong Qing bragged. "Now that we got one-half of the couple, the other half will definitelye running."


    Of course, there was no way those two goons who had remained crouched down in hiding knew that they were fooled. While they were hidden from view, it also meant that they had a limited view of what was happening!


    They couldn''t know what was happening in the rest of the house - and even if they stumbled upon the gory scene, they wouldn''t be able to believe their eyes.


    Which made them perfect sitting ducks!

 Chapter 296 Wei Yan Tries His Luck

    The phone dinged again, this time with a new message.


    [GATHER OUTSIDE]


    "Nice, it''s time to go," Zhong Qing sighed in relief; his back was already cramping. However, Luo Lan frowned.


    "Senior, I don''t have a good feeling about this. This sounds like a trap."


    "That''s nonsense," Zhong Qing said. "You''re too paranoid. Why would it be a trap? Our leader got the girl!"


    "Yes, but we still need to get Sun Jingwei for the money," Luo Lan protested. "Why would Leader tell us to meet outside when we haven''t gotten him yet?"


    Zhong Qing paused. "Maybe Leader found out that Sun Jingwei wasn''t in the house? We haven''t seen him walk inside here yet."


    "Leader, we should at least check the entire house first before leaving," Luo Lan insisted.


    "Fine, fine, if you insist." Zhong Qing sighed again, this time with more weariness. Luo Lan wasn''t his preferred partner, but beggars couldn''t be choosers. They slowly made their way from the kitchen to the living room, only to meet eyes with¡­ a man?


    Meanwhile Wei Yan startled upon seeing strangers emerge from the kitchen. These must be the robbers that Mrs Li was screaming about - but since they came from the kitchens, Wei Yan had to wonder about their robbery techniques. For heaven''s sake, no one kept valuables in the kitchen! But then he kept silent, not wanting them to beat him up.


    Both of them expected this man to scream, alerting the rest of the household. Luo Lan was ready to knock him out, but instead the man only blinked sadly, shooting pleading eyes at them both. Upon closer look, they realised that the man was tied up and left lying on the floor!


    Zhong Qing crept even closer, just to see if it was someone from their team, and he realised that this unfortunate soul was aplete stranger to him.


    So this family just tied someone up for fun and left him there? Was he a family member? Probably not, since he didn''t scream for help. Then was this incident some weird kink of people living in the countryside?


    ''Better not bother with him.'' Luo Lan thought, prepared to knock him out, but the man frantically shook his head.


    "Psss¡­ pssss¡­. Oi¡­ you guys¡­ yes you guys¡­ help me¡­I''m on your side¡­my name is Wei Yan," Wei Yan whispered, wriggling frantically to attract their attention. Luo Lan thought that this man looked particrly like a worm on a fish hook, desperately trying to get free.


    "Why should we?" Zhong Qing retorted.


    "If not I''ll scream for help!" Wei Yan threatened.


    Luo Lan ced a warning hand on his throat. Wei Yan gulped, feeling the heat from his palm.


    "If you try, I''ll destroy your vocal cords." Luo Lan promised.


    "Okay, I won''t scream," Wei Yan replied. He was a manly man, and manly men didn''t whimper.


    "Did you just whimper?" Zhong Qing asked. "Wow, you''re a loser. How did you end up tied here like a sack of meat? Did your wife leave you to die?"<sub> </sub>


    "I''m not from this family," Wei Yan said bitterly, "their daughter humiliated me in front of their neighbours and then dumped me after leading me on, and now they left me here to die!"


    From the first scream, everyone had darted to their hiding spots, and no one bothered to free Wei Yan from his spot on the floor. Even Ming Guang, who was supposed to watch out for him, didn''t bother to cut the ropes! He immediately left to help Li Xue Ning.


    That very thought made him grit his teeth in anger! If he didn''t want revenge against the Li family and Sun Jingwei before, he certainly did now.


    "Let me go, I''ll help you with the robbery." Wei Yan promised hotly. "This scummy family deserves to be robbed blind!"


    "That''s kind of you to offer, but we''re not actually robbers. We''re kidnappers." Zhong Qing said.


    "Senior! You can''t tell people that! It''s a secret!" Luo Lan cried out in dismay.


    "Really? That exins a lot," Wei Yan mused as he gazed up at them from the floor. "I thought you guys must have been utter shit at robbers if you came from the kitchen. But who are you kidnapping?"


    "We''re not telling you," Luo Lan replied, giving Zhong Qing a warning look. His senior shouldn''t be such a bbermouth! Meanwhile, Zhong Qing scowled at Wei Yan. He didn''t like being called terrible at anything, even at his fictional job.


    "I''ll know even if you don''t say anything. Who else but Sun Jingwei?" Wei Yan grumbled, rolling his eyes. "That man is the biggest prize."


    "Bingo," Zhong Qing said, "But that''s not all, we also want his girlfriend too!" Beside him, Luo Lan breathed deeply and closed his eyes.


    "Senior," Luo Lan began, in a very pained voice. "We don''t know if we can trust this man. Stop telling him things!"


    "I can help you with that," Wei Yan offered, trying to sit up with great interest. "Let me go and I''ll grab her for you! I know her very well!"


    "Who are you even?"


    "I''m Sun Jingwei''s bodyguard!"


    At this news, both Luo Lan and Zhong Qing snorted. They took one quick look at each other and started snickering like schoolboys.


    "If you want to lie, please lie better. I''m ashamed on your behalf." Zhong Qing said, shaking his head.


    "You''re his bodyguard yet you''re tied up and left on the floor?" Luo Lan snorted again. "You have room to talk about us being bad robbers! And if you''re really his bodyguard, why would you be helping us kidnap him? Do you take us for fools?"


    "I''ve been fired as his bodyguard," Wei Yan said, squirming angrily as he spat out. "All because his girlfriend liked me more¡­ that bitch Li Xue Ning¡­"


    "So you''re out for revenge because you are jobless and loveless. That''s honestly kind of pathetic!" Zhong Qing summarised.


    "Yes, so are you going to let me go?" Wei Yan demanded, gritting his teeth. He couldn''t believe two low life criminals were calling him pathetic! The nerve!

 Chapter 297 Wei Yan Tries His Luck (Pt 2)

    Luo Lan and Zhong Qing stared at each other, and then back down at him with equally unimpressed faces.


    "Are you joking?"


    "Of course not."


    "Why?" Wei Yan demanded petntly. "I could be a great help!"


    "Or you could be using this chance to sell us out to get back into Sun Jingwei''s good books," Zhong Qing said imperiously, with a haughty sniff. "Do you think we are idiots?"


    Thankfully, Wei Yan had the presence of mind to keep his mouth shut, even if he wanted to agree.


    "We cannot trust you. Who knows, you could be working for him to trap us!" Luo Lan continued, frowning down at him. Wei Yan snarled and wriggled more angrily.


    "Why would I help Sun Jingwei! I hate him!" Wei Yan eximed. "That bastard had everything I wanted fall into hisp! And look, I''m tied up and left on the floor, why would I ever want to help someone who did this to me? Even if I wanted to trap you, would I have time to be tied up like this for you to find me?"


    "...Good point." Zhong Qing said. If it were him, he''d never agree to going back to a boss like that.


    "Prove it then," Luo Lan crossed his arms. "Give us some information about Sun Jingwei that''ll help us nab him."


    "He''s at the restaurant now. That pervert is most likely getting chewed out by his father-inw," Wei Yan scoffed. "That''s what he deserves for fucking his daughter in her room!"


    "I see," Luo Lan and Zhong Qing shared another nce, the corners of their lips inadvertently curling into smiles. If Jingwei was in the restaurant, then the other half of the team would have gotten to him already! The mission was a sess!


    But that also meant they would be returning empty-handed. The team would definitely call them useless and try to take their share of the money!


    "Maybe we should just bring him along when meeting up with the rest of the group." Zhong Qing muttered, gears whirling in his mind. If this was indeed Sun Jingwei''s old bodyguard, he would be full of information about the Sun family. That had to be worth something!


    Also, the longer he looked at Wei Yan, the more pitiful he found him. The ropes were still digging into his body, leaving reddish marks as he wriggled around, trying to getfortable. Judging by how deep and dark they''ve be, he must have been bound for at least an hour!


    "Yah, do you know a lot about the Sun family?" Zhong Qing asked.


    "I know secrets that''ll make your mother weep. Sun family''s security secrets are in my hands," Wei Yan replied, knowing that they were trying to ascertain his usefulness. He had to bluff his way out of this. "Free me, and you''ll get it! Think of how much you can sell those for!"


    Just as Zhong Qing''s hands drifted to undo the knots, Luo Lan stopped him.


    "No, we can''t let him go like that. What if he hits us and reports us to the police?" Luo Lan insisted.


    "Eh, we''ll keep him tied up when we bring him with us." Zhong Qing said, shrugging casually. "If he tries to betray us we can always get rid of himter."<sub> </sub>


    "So you want us to drag his body out?" Luo Lan asked, and then sighed. "Fine, I suppose this will be my workout today. We''re taking one leg each right?"


    "Of course!"


    "Wait what - " Before Wei Yan couldin, he found himself lifted by his legs and dragged across the floor without any care to the open window.


    "Hey guys, what are you doing?" Wei Yan asked, beginning to panic. He was starting to realise that throwing his lot with this group wasn''t such a good idea after all. They just didn''t seem to have all their screws attached. "Are you really going to - AHHH!"


    On a mental count of three, both Zhong Qing and Luo Lan lifted Wei Yan''s bound body and flung him out the window as though he was a trash bag they had to dispose of! Wei Yan screamed and fell on the ground face first with a loud crack.


    Tears welled up in his eyes; it had been a long time since he fell like this, like a child that couldn''t control his limbs. How humiliating!


    To add insult to injury, his jaw and nose ached. He might have broken something when he smacked the floor.


    "Shhh why did you scream?" Luo Lan scolded disapprovingly as he leapt out of the window. Wei Yan noted that hended on his feet, because he wasn''t tied up and thrown outside like garbage. "You''re attracting too much attention!"


    ? "Well sorry," Wei Yan said sarcastically. "I didn''t realise I would be thrown out of a fucking window."


    "Apology epted." Luo Lan said, not detecting his sarcasm at all.


    "Okay stop talking, we need to go to the meet-up point," Zhong Qing said, "Come on, grab his legs."


    "No wait - " Wei Yan choked out, but his voice was muffled by the floor.


    If he thought being thrown out of a first-floor window with his limbs was humiliating enough, he was quickly realising things could be a lot worse - like right now!


    These buffoons were dragging him while he was still lying t on the floor, face first, across the bumpy cobblestones and grass. Wei Yan struggled as dirt and gravel flitted on his face, wincing as they crossed a particrly rough patch ofwn. He spat out a mouthful of ants that had ended up on him, because these morons identally dragged him into their path.


    If he had known this would happen to him, he would have swept their yard more carefully! He would have killed off every insect!


    Meanwhile, the two men were still humming cheerfully.


    ''At least flip me over!'' Wei Yan raged to himself, mentally telegraphing his rage. ''I swear! I''ll kill you both!''


    As if they heard his thoughts, both men actually stopped. Wei Yan heaved a sigh of relief. But they didn''t flip him over!


    Strangely enough, they weren''t talking either. He heard the sound of two loud thumps, and something hot sshed over his back.

 Chapter 298 Ming Guang Meets His New Lover

    Minutes before Wei Yan gets devastatingly, embarrassingly and humiliating thrown out of the window like a bag of mouldy leftovers after a long day, Ming Guang and Mrs Li had already put their ns in ce.


    "This will do it," Yue Niang said smugly, peering down at her phone. She had sent the message to the group chat that they were to rendezvous outside.


    It was vague enough that the errant team members would assume that they''d meet at their usual spot, which meant that Ming Guang could catch thest of them in one swoop.


    "Are you sure this would work?" Ming Guang said disbelievingly. "No one could be that stupid."


    "These goons made a group chat and named it ''Sun Jingwei Kidnapping Mission'', how intelligent could they be?" Yue Niang asked dryly, shooting poor Ding Fei an utterly disparaging look.


    "You should be thanking your lucky stars that I''m not your employer. If I found out about your ipetence, I would have you drawn and quatered and your insides made into mincemeat!" Li Yue Niang''s eyes shed with anger, and Ming Guang found himself nodding in approval. He hated ipetence and stupidity too!


    Ding Fei closed his one remaining eye, willing himself to turn into dust and be blown away by the night breeze. He was losing quite a lot of blood, but there was still enough of it to reach his ears, causing them to flush an embarrassed red.


    Fine, making a group chat about their criminal activities wasn''t the best idea! But in his defence, it was a faster way to disseminate information! How could he risk calling - someone could discover his people when they heard them talk!


    ''This woman is so old, so she doesn''t get it'', he thought bitterly to himself, even as his wound ached.


    "Time to make your way there," Yue Niang said to Ming Guang, "make sure to bring a weapon with you - I''ll lend you my husband''s knife."


    Ming Guang waited at the door, keeping a careful eye out on the two men. One was still concussed, and Ding Fei continued to close his one eye, refusing to think about his future. How was he going to survive in the future? Perhaps he should just get this man to stab him right now; if he died, perhaps he''d be a vicious ghost in the afterlife and haunt this woman!


    Then he thought about this woman kicking his ass across two realms, and promptly discarded that idea.


    Meanwhile, said woman went to her bedroom to dig out her husband''s trusty knife from under their mattress.


    Their paranoia in thest 30 years had finally paid off!


    Initially, they used to sleep with their precious knife under their pillows, but that got riskier when they had children and sumbed to the sleep deprivation that gued all young parents. Even when it was fully sheathed, Yue Niang and Tai Cheng found themselves more likely to slice off their own fingers by ident than stabbing an intruder.


    And it got even more unsafe when Tai Xuan and Xue Ning grew old enough to mber into their beds, jumping on them in the morning to wake them up. Those kids of theirs were curious to a fault. What if they sliced off their feet? Yue Niang wouldn''t know how to exin it to the school teachers or the insurancepanies!


    So, as apromise, they put it under their mattress. Meanwhile, the sheathed swords were in their cupboard - and of course none of their kids ever found out, because none of them liked to make beds or doundry!


    Yue Niang removed the sheath in one practised motion, lifting up the knife. Even when the de was decorated with rivulets that looked like growth rings in a tree, it still caught the light with a deceptively gentle glow.The handle was made from a steady dark wood, and above it, another segment was carved with intricate waves of bright orange.<sub> </sub>


    Underneath the hilt, was the diamond that used to be her family''s crest.


    "Hello, Nangong. How long has it been since I released you?"


    Yue Niang sighed; this beauty of hers had spent too long in retirement, and yet not enough. It was time for it to finally see some real use! She made a quick sh, just to test it out, and was delighted at how the very air around it seemed to vibrate.


    It''ll do for these nuisances.


    "Here, Ming Guang, let me introduce you to Nangong Jin, my beloved knife." Yue Niang said, handing the knife to him as she went back to her daughter''s room. If things went back to normal, she''d install a sword holder here, just to make sure history doesn''t repeat itself.


    Ming Guang''s eyes widened as he received the knife with two hands, bowing respectfully. This¡­ this knife was a custom made one! He had never seen such an intricately beautiful design on the handle before, and it almost made him feel unworthy to hold it.


    But he would rather stab himself than to actually drop it!


    He clutched the knife more firmly in his hands, and realised that it was light, yet perfectly bnced.


    "Can I¡­?" Ming Guang asked, excitement growing inside him, as though he was a child with a new toy.


    "Feel free to test it out on them," Yue Niang pointed at the men, and Ming Guang blinked in surprise. Ding Fei watched the sharp point of the knife and mentally said a prayer for himself.


    "Oh no, I was just going to ask if I could test it on the curtains or something." Ming Guang said.


    Thank goodness some deity up there still heard him! Ding Fei could cry in relief, but he only had one eye and not enough bodily fluids.


    "Ah, that''s fine too," Yue Niang said, even if she was slightly displeased. She didn''t want to ruin the curtains, but then the blood stters would have made them unsalvageable anyway. "Slice away then."


    Holding his breath, Ming Guang went closer to the window and swiped the knife across the curtains, letting the tip of the knife brush past the fabric.


    The air was still.


    Ding Fei snorted. "Ha, you got a blunt knife - "


    Before he couldplete his sentence, the curtain fell apart!

 Chapter 299 Ming Guang Meets His New Idol

    Ding Fei yelped as the piece of fabric fell to the floor without any warning.


    "Say that again, I dare you," Yue Niang scowled. "My husband and I don''t keep blunt knives in the house! This knife is my darling, it just hasn''t warmed up yet; it''ll work once it tastes some blood."


    If Tai Xuan and Xue Ning were her blood children, then this knife, Nangong Jin, was her steel child, her babysitter, her precious best friend. How dare this miscreant trespasser insult its capabilities!


    There was another pause, and Ding Fei swallowed unsteadily.


    "That''s ridiculous¡­ hahahah¡­" Ding Feiughed weakly to bolster his own courage. "That knife is not alive¡­"


    "Keep talking and you won''t be alive either," Yue Niang said sweetly. Ding Fei let out a horrified croak, but blessedly kept silent.


    Ming Guang held the knife in his hands, this time with more reverence. Was it his imagination, or did it thrum in excitement under his hand? He always had a fascination with sharp des, but he had never wielded any de like this before, a de that was so beautifully sharp it could cut from the very tip.


    And it even had a name! Such a grand imposing name! If he were lessposed, he''d be screaming in excitement.


    How did a noodle stall couple get their hands on something like this? It was truly mysterious.


    "Thank you for this knife," Ming Guang bowed low again. "I''ll cherish it for the rest of my life."


    Yue Niang snorted. "Let''s see you handle the rest of those pesky kidnappers first. I''m not entrusting one of my precious babies to you!"


    "Yes Mrs Li," Ming Guang nodded, immediately leaping out the window so that he could hide within the bushes, cradling the knife in his hand so tenderly as though it was his lover and first-born rolled together in one.


    And so he waited patiently, surrounded by theforting smell of leaves and possibly chicken manure.


    And waited.


    And waited.


    Just as he was beginning to think that they got it wrong - that there was no one else in the house, he saw shadows on curtains. There was movement in the living room!


    It could be the Li siblings, but he highly doubted it. The toilet was tucked close to the bedrooms, and the siblings should have enough sense to stay put when there were strangers invading their homes, trying to kidnap one of them.


    On second thought, maybe it was them. What was he thinking? Those kids didn''t have much sense - that''s why they hired him!


    Before he could go and check it out, he sensed a dangerous presence behind him.There was a strong smell of blood wafting through the air. A strange pressure was building at the back of his head, and all warning bells went off even as his feet froze in sudden fear.


    Something cold tickled his neck.


    Ming Guang immediately whipped out the knife, just in time to protect his own neck from being sliced into two. The des kissed with a sharp hiss, and Ming Guang quickly rolled out from the bushes, ready to strike at the assant - only to realise that the person attacking him was Mr Li!


    "Mr Li?" He asked, not believing his eyes as he looked him over. The blood he smelled earlier was from his clothes, which were decorated with blood stters like a child''s art project. He held two knives with the ease of a veteran.<sub> </sub>


    He should have looked ridiculous, but somehow he was terrifying!


    "Ming Guang?" Meanwhile Tai Cheng was also shocked to find one of Sun Jingwei''s bodyguards lurking in the bushes like a pervert. If he didn''t have good enough reflexes, Tai Cheng would have killed him! "What are you doing here?"


    His eyes widened as they noticed the knife in Ming Guang''s hands. He was holding his wife''s precious knife: Nangong Jin!


    "I''m here too, guys? Hello?" Jingwei waved his hand. That wasn''t a problem - the problem was that he was waving the hand that was still holding a knife!


    Both men turned to stare at Jingwei. Ming Guang despaired, wanting to take it away from him before he stabbed himself with it.


    "What? I just wanted to remind you I''m also here." Jingwei said, finally putting it down before getting down to business. "Ming Guang, how are things inside? Is Xue Ning safe?"


    "She''s fine. I locked her in the toilet." Ming Guang said, hurriedly crouching down and gesturing for them to follow suit. "Mrs Li gouged out the eyes of two men. Now we suspect there''s more of them in the house."


    "Excuse me?" Jingwei did a double-take. "Did you just say Xue Ning''s mom gouged out someone''s eye?"


    "So you''re just waiting for them to escape?" Tai Cheng asked disapprovingly, ignoring Jingwei''s exmation, as though the fact that his wife was fully capable of inflicting bodily trauma was justmon news.


    "Where''s your initiative? How could you not sweep through the house?"


    "Mrs Li told me to do it. We got their phones andid out a trap for them." Ming Guang said defensively.


    He wasn''t going to argue with the woman that could induce partial blindness with brute force and who let him use one of the most beautiful deadly knives in existence.


    "And you just agreed¡­" Tai Cheng sighed. "Son, you have to offer suggestions!"


    "She lent me her knife," Ming Guang replied, as though that was sufficient reason to listen to her. And maybe to him it was! He cradled it protectively to his chest, something Jingwei thought was very strange since the knife was meant to protect him, not the other way around.


    Tai Cheng shook his head. He''ll sort that mess outter.


    "Mr Li, what happened to you? Why are you covered in blood?" Ming Guang asked worriedly. "Are you injured?"


    "I''m fine. There were¡­plications." Tai Cheng said, wincing at his strained back muscle.


    "Mr Li stabbed three men that tried to burn down the restaurant. Chopped off a few fingertips," Jingwei helpfully borated, even as his stomach churned with nausea. "They are still bleeding to death outside."


    "Oh." Ming Guang said faintly, gazing at Li Tai Cheng with renewed fervour. Who was this man really?


    Before they could continue their conversation, they saw a body from the window.


    It was Wei Yan!

 Chapter 300 Reunion?

    Poor Wei Yan was still bound and Ming Guang knew him well enough to imagine the look of fear on his face.


    "Did you guys forget about him?" Jingwei asked in a whisper, watching poor Wei Yan struggle like a fish on a hook. "He''s going to be so upset."


    And Jingwei wouldn''t even begrudge him for it. It was one thing to be tied up and left on the floor, it''s another thing for everyone to forget about your existence when there were criminals entering the home! He could have died - or in this case, ended up thrown outside the window!


    His bodynded on the floor with a sharp thud.


    "Oh my god, are they killing him?" Jingwei muttered to himself, aghast.


    "No, they would have thrown him off the roof otherwise," was Tai Cheng''s helpful rebuttal.


    "Stabbing is more efficient," Ming Guang added. Jingwei could only stare at them nkly. Clearly he wasn''t as well-versed in the art of murder as they were!


    "Oh, they''re moving him," Tai Cheng said, and the three of them observed Wei Yan being dragged via his legs, possibly to the main road. Jingwei winced in sympathy as he witnessed Wei Yan''s face being used as a floor cleaner. He had rolled his suitcase up this very path, and it was gravelly and uneven and generally a menace, even for durable, stic wheels.


    It must be hell on human skin! Ouch!


    "Why are they taking him away?" Jingwei asked.


    "They''re kidnapping him," Tai Cheng said with gritted teeth.


    Ming Guang frowned. He couldn''t just watch as criminals took his junior away to torture. "I''m going to save him!"


    "I''ll help."


    Before Jingwei could ask what they were nning to do, Tai Cheng and Ming Guang had already leapt ahead. His mouth dropped open - how was Xue Ning''s old father even faster than Ming Guang, a professional bodyguard?


    "Hey -" One of the goons turned around at the noise, but before he could yelp out a warning to his partner, Tai Cheng had already sliced the back of his knees, causing him to buckle to the floor in pain. Meanwhile Ming Guang took care of the other by slicing through his wrist, causing him to drop Wei Yan''s legs. As expected, the knife cut cleanly through the skin with barely any resistance!


    Luo Lan howled in pain - or he would have, if not for Ming Guang following up with a strong punch to his gut. He fell on the floor, winded and gasping for breath.


    "Give him back," Ming Guang demanded, pointing his knife at Luo Lan''s throat. "How dare you kidnap him!"


    "Excuse me?" Luo Lan choked at the fear and indignity of it all. He nced at Wei Yan, who was pointedly stil face down. "This man told us to take him along!"


    "Impossible." Ming Guang growled out.


    "You''re an idiot," Zhong Qing gasped out and smacked Wei Yan''s back with his bloody hand. He had gingerly touched the back of his knees when he fell, and nearly shat himself when he saw that his fingers were coated with blood. He barely felt the blow, but the pain was excruciating!


    Now he wiped them on this man''s back. This was all his fault! If they weren''t lugging his stupid body, they wouldn''t have been caught!


    "Yah, don''t pretend to sleep!" Zhong Qing would have kicked him, but his legs weren''t feeling up to it. "I knew it! You were nning to betray us all this while! You were buying time for your reinforcements to arrive!"


    Wei Yan continued to pretend to be unconscious. He backed the wrong horse this time, but as long as Ming Guang and Li Tai Cheng believed he was just a poor victim of circumstances, he could still survive this!


    "Hey don''t try to argue out of this!" Jingweiined as he strolled up to them. "We literally caught you in the act!"


    "Sun¡­ Sun Jingwei¡­" both goons gasped out, disbelievingly. Right in front of them was the same face they were greeted with in the group chat, the same man they believed their teammates had captured!


    "Yes, I heard you guys were looking for me and my wife." Jingwei said cooly, raising an eyebrow at the shell-shocked looks. "Now you''d better tell me why you''re doing this, or I''ll let you bleed out right here like the rest of your teammates."


    Luo Lan and Zhong Qing paled. They finally realised that their teammates were nowhere to be found!


    "I''ll go inside to see if everything is alright. Ming Guang, stay with Jingwei and keep him safe." Tai Cheng said. He knew Yue Niang was fully capable of handling herself, but he was still worried about her. His children were another problem!


    As he walked through his house, he followed the smell of blood in the air to his daughter''s room, where his wife was apparently whacking one of the men with a stake.


    "Wife, is everything okay?" Tai Cheng asked worriedly, staring at the mess that was his daughter''s room. With bloodstains on the walls and furniture strewn everywhere, how could one sleep in such a ce?


    "Nice of you to finally show up!" was his wife''s loving reply. Yue Niang looked at him, scowling initially, but then the look changed to concern when she spotted his blood-stained clothes and twin knives. "What happened to you? Did you kill people again?"<sub> </sub>


    "I''m fine, no injuries, yes I had a good time, thank you for asking." Tai Cheng replied sarcastically. "Of course I didn''t kill people! Those days are behind me. I just had to get rid of some pests."


    If her husband could still make smartassments, then he was perfectly fine. Yue Niang internally heaved a sigh of relief, but it was short-lived when she heard his next words.


    "But does our insurance cover attempted arson?"


    "No it doesn''t!" She squawked. "Don''t tell me¡­" Yue Niang turned and red at Ding Fei, who cowered behind the fallen curtain, holding it in front of him as though it was a steel shield instead of a flimsy piece of cloth.


    "Some thugs tried to burn down our restaurant." Tai Cheng exined before his wife had a heart attack from shock. "But don''t worry! They''ve been taken care of! I''m more worried about the smell of kerosene."


    Yue Niang whipped back to the poor soul on the floor, hauling him up by his cor.


    "Your people tried to burn down my restaurant?! You have some nerve! Clearly I must teach you a lesson today!"


    Ding Fei paled; if this man was her husband¡­ who was supposed to be at the restaurant, that meant¡­ the other half of his team had failed!


    "How¡­ how¡­" Ding Fei wheezed out, feeling breathless.


    "That''s not important." Tai Cheng said casually. "But if you don''t tell us who is behind all this, your team will bleed to death."


    "You¡­ how could you¡­you monster¡­" Ding Fei''s one remaining eye widened at how easily this man seemed to be treating the lives of his people.


    "I''ll let you think about it," Tai Cheng shrugged. "I''ll go check on my kids."


    Without a second thought, he patted his wife''s shoulder and handed her one of his knives, and turned around to look for his children, and he found his son standing in front of the bathroom door, squabbling with someone from the other end.


    Ah, that must mean his daughter was inside too!


    "Children! Are the both of you alright?" Tai Cheng asked worriedly.


    "Of course we''re - HOLY SHIT DAD, WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?!" Tai Xuan screamed as his eyes captured his father''s new look.


    He was just about to go and hug his father, before his brain caught up to him and told him it was a very bad idea. His father''s bloody clothes, along with the knife in his hands, was sending chills down Tai Xuan''s spine.


    "Do we need to call an ambnce?"


    "What happened?" Xue Ning demanded from inside the toilet, her mind racing with the worst-case scenarios. She frantically tried to beat the door down. "Open the door!"


    "I will, I will," Tai Xuan quickly pulled away the chair, and Xue Ning burst through it as though she was an angry buffalo. She had been trapped for so long, all the water from the shower had long dried on her skin.


    She stopped still at the sight of her father covered in blood.


    "Dad!" She cried out, horrified. "What happened?"


    "Oh good, both of you are fine," Tai Cheng smiled, relieved. Now he could breathe without feeling like his heart had been squeezed by a fist. "Let''s go see your mother!"


    "Is Mom alright?" Xue Ning asked.


    "Why wouldn''t she be?" Tai Cheng replied.


    "You have no idea, Meimei, no idea at all," her brother added.


    Xue Ning scowled and stormed to her bedroom, only to stop short at the entrance.


    "Mom¡­ Don''t tell me¡­ you did all this?" Xue Ning asked hesitantly, her eyes darting around her room. And the smell¡­ the smell¡­


    There were too many things that she had to take note of, yet her brain didn''t seem to register much of anything. Her breathing quickened, and her hands grew mmy.

 Chapter 301 Jingwei Returns To Her

    Seeing the blood stters on the walls just made her remember her time in the hospital, where Ya Ren had touched her and she stabbed him and his blood was hot when it spilled on her - when it spilled everywhere -


    "Meimei!"


    "Xue Ning!"


    "Oh my god! Go sit down!"


    Everyone began fluttering around her, and Xue Ning''s breath came out in quick shallow gasps, but all that did was cause her to inhale the coppery smell of blood. Her eyes were wide with panic, trying to focus on something to calm herself down. She looked around rapidly, but even the cute rabbit figures that usually gave her joy were sttered with blood.


    She looked at the bed where Jingwei was just making love to her, only to see the sheets messed up and bloody. And when her eyes turned to her intruders, Xue Ning had taken one look at the empty sockets where the intruders'' eyes should be, only to see a gouged out bloody space. Blood was still flowing out and steadily rolling down the man''s face,nding on her shredded curtain.


    Xue Ning tasted bile at the back of her throat.


    How could their eyes be missing?! It was difficult enough for her to stab through Ya Ren''s palm with a knife, how could someone have enough strength to rip out two eyes?! She then eyed the stake in her mother''s hand with increasing horror.


    Did her Mom manage to do this? How could she? Was she human?


    "Mom¡­ what on¡­what is this¡­" Xue Ning asked again, before bowling over with her hand over her mouth, trying to stop herself from vomiting.


    Yue Niang and Tai Cheng exchanged worried looks. Xue Ning wasn''t a squeamish girl, she never batted an eyelid when it came to blood (she had apanied her to the butcher''s with noints), so what could have caused such a big reaction?


    Nevermind, they had to get her to calm down.


    "I''ll bring her outside," Yue Niang instructed. "The two of you, watch over these people. Or haul them outside." Perhaps it was the presence of strangers in her room that caused Xue Ning to panic. Her daughter had always been a notoriously private person.


    Yue Niang gently led her daughter to the living room couch, guiding her to sit down. With shaking legs, Xue Ning fell on the couch, her head in her hands, bowled over as she tried to get herself back in order with limited sess.


    At least the urge to vomit was subsiding, even if the image of the empty, bloody, eye socket still continued to appear at the back of her eyelids. Xue Ning pressed her palms to her closed eyes, willing herself to calm. She wasn''t a weakling! She could conquer this!


    Breathe¡­breathe¡­breathe


    Meanwhile Yue Niang could only stare at Xue Ning, at a loss of what to do. No one around her had ever behaved like this before!


    "Xue Ning-ah, tell Mom what''s wrong?" Yue Niang coaxed as she crouched down to take a better look at her daughter, whose entire body seemed to be shivering from an unseen cold. "You''re not being yourself! Mom is worried!"


    Yue Niang identally raised her voice at the end, startling her daughter enough that she flinched, pulling her feet up to the chair. Xue Ning huddled into a ball, her hands falling from her eyes, who stared unblinkingly at Yue Niang.<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning suddenly had a horrifying thought - were her parents insane? How could her Mom be perfectly unaffected by that gory sight - more importantly, how could she even create it?


    "Sorry for yelling," Yue Niang hastily apologised, feeling strangely judged. "Do you want to drink some water? To calm down?"


    "Mom¡­Jingwei¡­Jingwei¡­ where is he¡­" Xue Ning muttered, twisting her fingers as her heart raced. She still hadn''t seen him yet, and that was causing anxiety to rear its ugly head.


    The previous time she felt something like this, it was also Jingwei that managed to calm her down. She wanted him with her to make sense of things!


    "Oh you want Jingwei?" Yue Niang smiled, relieved that her daughter was at least rational enough to make demands, even if said demand was for a man. "Mom will get him inside, you just wait here!"


    Leaving her daughter on the couch, Yue Niang went to the window and took a quick look outside, only to see Jingwei, Ming Guang, and two other men d in ck lying on their frontwn. Jingwei seemed to be prodding one of them with his hand.


    Yue Niang facepalmed. Didn''t anyone teach this man not to touch garbage?


    "Oi, you! Come back to the house! My daughter is looking for you!"


    "Me?" Jingwei startled, getting up.


    "Who else?" Yue Niang barked out. "Hurry!"


    "Okay!" Jingwei beamed cheerfully. "Coming right now!"


    Yue Niang was going to open the door, but it turned out that Jingwei decided on a more direct route! He casually passed Ming Guang his knife, before running up to the window. He cleared it in one quick leap as though he was a prized dogpeting in the high jump event.


    He certainly looked as happy as a golden retriever!


    Meanwhile, Yue Niang hurriedly moved to the side to avoid the collision. She frowned as Jingwei narrowly knocked into her in his attempt to enter her home. She vowed to install window grills on all the windows from now on. This was a security risk!


    "Couldn''t you use the door?" Yue Niang grumbled, but it was unheard because Sun Jingwei only had eyes and ears for her daughter. Jingwei''s eyes widened as he saw Xue Ning curled into a ball on the sofa, looking like a sad, wary kitten.


    He immediately ran towards her, crouching down to cradle her hands in his, squeezing them.


    "Xue Ning, you called for me?" Jingwei asked, purposely keeping his tone light and cheerful. Something must have triggered this behaviour in Xue Ning - it was just like the issue with Ya Ren!


    That voice was familiar¡­ Xue Ning blinked, realising that someone was blocking her view. Her eyes slowly focused on Jingwei''s smiling face. He was here! Alive!

 Chapter 302 Contemplating Careers

    Xue Ning leapt up in surprise, causing Jingwei to stumble backwards. He managed to right himself with their sped hands.


    "Jingwei, are you alright? Someone tried to kidnap you!" She eximed, pulling her hands away from his only to squish them against his face, as if to confirm that he was real and not a figment of her imagination.


    "Don''t worry, I''m fine," Jingwei reassured her, his voice slightly muffled from her hands squishing his lips into a duck pout. He used this chance to wrap his arms around her, cuddling her tightly. "How can anyone kill me? Wait - don''t answer that."


    "If you can still bullshit, then you must be fine," Xue Ning replied, her heart finally calming down at his words and at his familiar scent. "You''re not injured, are you?" She pulled away slightly, and her eyes travelled down his body. There were unfamiliar blood stains on his borrowed outfit.


    "Oh this? This isn''t my blood." Jingwei shrugged, seeing where Xue Ning was looking.


    "You beat them up?"


    "Would you think I''m cooler if I said I did it?" Jingwei asked hopefully.


    "No?" Xue Ning scoffed. "I''d think you were lying."


    "You know me so well," Jingwei replied, shaking his head fondly. He ced her hand on his heart. Xue Ning could feel the calm, steady beat of his heart, and felt her heart calm even further.


    Of course, the fact that she got to touch his well-developed pecs was another contributing factor. It wasn''t her fault that the way through his heart was through his muscr chest! It was like a stress ball providing her emotional support!


    Jingwei looked down at Xue Ning who was tantly squeezing his chest muscle as though it was a stress ball, and stifled augh. Behind them, Yue Niang made a face and discreetly walked away, trying to give them more privacy. There was no point in chaperoning them, since they''ve already done it!


    "And you''re right, it wasn''t me. But you wouldn''t believe me if I told you who actually knocked out three men." Jingwei continued, his hands drifting to Xue Ning''s waist.


    "Try me."


    "It was your father! But knocking down isn''t the right word - he held two knives and straight up sliced through their wrists! It was awesome! He cut through their wrists like it was nothing! I swear, your father was a master assassin. Or an acrobat from a circus. Was your father an acrobat?"


    "....What?" Xue Ning asked faintly. "You''re joking right? Of course my father isn''t an acrobat! He has a bad back! Bad knees! His eyes aren''t too good either!"


    "Nope, cross my heart, on my honour as a man - I''m telling the truth!" Jingwei said, with wide-eyes. "I swear Xue Ning, I saw your dad slice through three men. If your father can do all this with these health issues, he must have been incredible when he was our age!"


    "Then where are the men now?" Xue Ning asked, her eyebrows furrowing.


    "At the restaurant. Come to think of it, we should get them medical help. They''re probably bleeding to death now. So are the two people lying outside." Jingwei added.


    Xue Ning choked. "So they''re FIVE other people sent to kidnap us in addition to the two people in my room?"


    "What? Someone entered your room?" Jingwei eximed, a hot surge of fury coursing through him. "I''ll kill them!"<sub> </sub>


    "Don''t bother; my mother gouged out their eyes." Xue Ning said tly.


    "Oh." Jingwei said, relieved. "That''s fine then."


    "That''s not fine!" Xue Ning protested, pulling him down by the cor. "Someone sent a team of seven people to kidnap the both of us! We have seven people that are nearly dying! I think my parents are professional serial killers!"


    "Huh? How did you reach that conclusion?" Jingwei asked, smiling slightly. His wife was too cute! "There''s no way they could be serial killers. After all, none of your annoying townspeople were killed," Jingwei replied. "If I were a serial killer, they''d be the first people I target!"


    Xue Ning paused, thinking it over. Jingwei was right. She was letting her imagination run away from her!


    Jingwei helpfully continued enthusiastically. "In fact, I think they''re more likely to be professional hitmen! Or mafia!" He did remember how his future father-inw threw two knives and eliminated two men with such practised ease.


    "How is that more likely?" Xue Ning eximed.


    "You haven''t seen your father in action. If I took a video and posted it online, I''ll haveizens using me of doing CGI. He was like some martial arts pugilist!" Jingwei dered, waving his hands around like the des of a windmill. It made him look demented.


    "Please, if they were mafia or hitmen, then why would we be living in the middle of nowhere? And have so little money?" Xue Ning scoffed. "Hitmen are supposed to earn a lot from their missions! Either that, or my parents were really shitty hitmen."


    Which would be terrible too,e to think of it. Xue Ning didn''t like the thought of her parents being ipetent at anything!


    "Actually maybe he''s a stuntman." Jingwei added, with a tone of someone that solved a deep mystery. "Not a hitman. I mean, it''s more reasonable, isn''t it?"


    "That can exin my dad," Xue Ning conceded with a nod. "But not my mom!"


    "Why?"


    "Go to my room, and you''ll know why," Xue Ning said, dragging Jingwei to her bedroom where they saw her parents were frantically muttering in a corner, while her brother kept a beady eye on the two men with an increasingly constipated look on her face.


    Once she overheard her parents'' words, she didn''t need to ask why.


    "We don''t have space to bury so many people!"


    "Maybe we can just squeeze in the neighbouring plot...ah, but we don''t have time to bury them too."


    "If only we lived near the ocean," her fathermented. "We could just toss them out into the waters on a fishing boat!"

 Chapter 303 Meat Dumplings

    The two men looked at him in horror. They were about to be turned into fish food by this evil couple!


    Li Tai Cheng still continued. "Ah, if only we could make rice dumplings out of them, the fishes would eat well then¡­"


    Li Tai Xuan heard this and promptly shuddered; now he would never stop wondering where his parents got the meat for the annual dumpling festival.


    Yue Niang rolled her eyes at her husband''s suggestion, but for the wrong reasons. "The fishes would die of indigestion and the fishermen would have our heads. Don''t cripple the food chain!"


    Ding Fei hurriedly added, "I don''t taste good! Don''t chop me up to make rice dumplings!"


    Li Tai Cheng had the nerve to give him a sweeping nce from head to toe, before frowning. "Young man, have more confidence in yourself! You''re a youth in the peak of health, your meat will be more tender and full of nutrients!"


    Ding Fei shook his head frantically. "No sir!" He cried out. "I eat a lot of junk food! The fishes will die!" And if he had known this would be his future, he should have eaten more! Why did he bother working out if he was just going to end up at the bottom of the ocean!


    Tai Cheng waved a reassuring hand at him. "Don''t worry, I already said we can''t do that, since we don''t live near the ocean. The river here is too small to fit all of you!"


    Meanwhile, Jingwei''s mouth fell open when he saw the gory sight of Xue Ning''s room - blood stters, broken chairs, the messed up bed and fallen curtains¡­ It was just like the hospital room with Ya Ren! No wonder Xue Ning had seemed so rattled when he saw her on the couch. Jingwei squeezed her hand tightly, hoping to give herfort.


    Then he actually registered the words of her parents, and his mouth fell even further. Were they just casually discussing body disposal methods when no one died yet?


    "How about getting us to a hospital?" Ding Fei pleaded. "We need to see a doctor! If we live, you won''t need to worry about burying us!"


    Jingwei suddenly remembered the three men in the restaurant. They definitely needed some sort of medical attention!


    "My friend, we can''t let you do that." Tai Cheng argued. "Even if we brought you to our tiny town hospital, how are we going to exin the injuries of you and yourpanions? Imagine if the police came! I''ll get you some bandages and painkillers instead!"


    "Bandages and painkillers?!" Ding Fei was so mad, he forgot to be afraid. He angrily pointed at his empty eye socket. "Uncle, are you crazy? What bandage can regrow my eye?"


    "No hospital can regrow your eye too," Tai Cheng retorted pleasantly. Meanwhile, his son pped his hands, startling everyone.


    "The police!" Tai Xuan eximed, finally remembering his wife who was still hiding in their bedroom. "I got Xin Yu to call the police!"


    "Oh dear, this is a problem," Yue Niang grumbled. "Why did you do that?"


    "How much time do we have until they arrive?" Tai Cheng asked.<sub> </sub>


    "I''ll check with Xin Yu," Tai Xuan said, quickly running to his bedroom. "Wife, wife, open the door! It''s me!"


    The door swung open, and Tai Xuan was greeted with the red-rimmed eyes of his wife. Her face was pale, but it had puffed up from crying, so she reminded Tai Xuan of a steamed bun. She held her hair dryer in one hand, ready to fling it at her husband.


    "Finally you remember I''m still here!" Xin Yu squawked out, her voice hoarse. "What took you so long? You idiot husband, don''t you know how scared I was?"


    She had heard the sound of fighting, and some yelling, and the muffled voices of her inws and husband.


    Xin Yu then thought everything was fine and her husband woulde and get her, but then she waited and waited, until she eventually became less scared and more impatient. She crawled out from under the bed and stood by the door, making sure to grab her hairdryer as a weapon.


    And now her husband finally appeared! Honestly, was it too much to ask for him to send a quick text to let her know everything was fine!


    "Sorry, sorry," Tai Xuan said, rubbing circles around her back. "It''s my fault, but now everything is sort of resolved! Did you call the police?"


    "I tried, but that idiot hung up on me!" Xin Yu eximed, vibrating with righteous anger. "This is ridiculous, don''t you think so? That man imed I was lying about robbers and called me a prank caller!"


    "Those bastards!" Tai Xuan dered angrily. "But you have nothing to worry about now, let''s go see Mom and Dad. They saved us!"


    "Really?" Xin Yu didn''t believe it, but she still followed her husband to her sister-inw''s room, where she was greeted with a gory sight that made her dizzy. "Oh¡­ oh my god¡­ there''s so much blood¡­"


    "Mom, the police aren''ting." Tai Xuan said as he blocked his wife''s view of the room with his body. "Apparently some asshole on duty thought Xin Yu was lying about the robbery!"


    "Oh thank god," Yue Niang looked at the ceiling that was miraculously free of blood and sped her hands together in relief. "One less thing to worry about! So now we just need to get rid of all seven of you."


    Her words were so mind-boggling that Xue Ning had to pause, just to make sure she heard them correctly. Calling the police is bad? Disposing of invaders?


    Was this really her mother who used to tell her younger self to go to the police station if she witnessed a crime, or if something happened to her?


    Meanwhile, Tai Cheng disagreed. "Wife, just getting rid of them like this is such a waste."


    Ding Fei looked up at him hopefully, only for his hopes to bepletely dashed at his next words. "Instead, we should make use of them to lure out the mastermind of this entire scheme!"

 Chapter 304 A Plan Is Hatched

    "Good point," Yue Niang said, nodding in agreement. She was a woman that hated waste. "If we got rid of you, chances are whoever wanted to kidnap Sun Jingwei and my daughter would know that you failed. They might just send someone else to finish the job!"


    "Auntie, what do you and Uncle have in mind?" Jingwei asked curiously.


    "We''ll get you -" Tai Cheng gave Ding Fei an expectant, cheerful look - "to contact your Boss, tell him the mission is a sess. If necessary, we''ll tie Jingwei and my daughter up to make it look like they''ve been captured. When the culprites to get you, Jingwei will get his people to apprehend him."


    Jingwei blinked. That was a pretty good idea, though he doubt that Wu Shang Jing would be dumb enough toe in person, assuming he was even the one responsible.


    "Meanwhile, we can''t stay here. They already know where we live and could send people to finish the job. Jingwei, you own a private jet, yes? Is it possible for you to fly all of us out of this ce?" Yue Niang asked.


    "Huh? Mom, you want us to pack up and move? In the middle of the night?" Tai Xuan eximed, his eyes widening in shock. Beside him, Xin Yu was also baffled. Was her mother-inw undergoing a mid-life crisis? What sort of decision making skill was this?


    "That depends on Jingwei," Yue Niang then turned to Jingwei with a raised eyebrow. "So, can you do it? Get your people to fly us all to Shanghai as quickly as possible?"


    Jingwei spluttered as everyone turned to look at him. "Maybe? How soon are we talking about? Tomorrow morning?"


    "No, we don''t have that much time to spare. I want us out of this house in the next two hours."


    At this announcement, everyone''s eyes bulged out in shock. Everyone except her husband anyway, who understood the necessity of making a quick getaway in case the cops started knocking on doors, or worse, when their enemies decided to send someone morepetent to finish the job.


    "Mom, that''s just ridiculous!"


    "Why do we need to move so urgently?"


    "Where are all of you going to stay?"


    A litany ofints burst from their lips. Yue Niang held up a palm, and they fell silent. Before she could continue, Ding Fei hastily asked. "Can wee along too? For medical care. I promise, we''ll be on our best behavior! We can''t stay here!"


    "Of course I''m not bringing you along," Yue Niang said tly. "How do you expect us to transport the seven of you? And if some of you die on the way there, wouldn''t we be murderers? I''m not traveling with a corpse!"


    Ding Fei deted against the cupboard. "If we see a doctor we won''t be corpses¡­" He grumbled to himself, looking so pathetic that Jingwei''s heart twinged.<sub> </sub>


    "Maybe we can send them to the hospital first?" Jingwei asked. "How about all seven of you pretend to be in a gang fight with each other? Then you can get treated while all of us leave the ce."


    Ding Fei nced up at Sun Jingwei at his words. It was as though the fluorescent light over his head illuminated a halo around him, bathing him in holy aura. His saviour was here!


    "Yes! Yes we will! Oh thank you thank you thank you!"


    "Don''t be too nice to them," Yue Niang scolded, and Ding Fei saw his buoyant hopes rapidly sinking back into the ocean. "These people tried to kidnap you and my daughter."


    "We won''t do it again!" Ding Fei promised, frantically putting up his bloody hand to swear to them, looking at Yue Niang with intense seriousness from his one eye. "I swear, we will never work with whoever is responsible for this! As long as you get us medical care and don''t throw us into prison, we''ll do whatever you say! We''ll be your people! Actually, even if you throw us into prison, we won''t implicate you at all! We''ll give up our employer instead!"


    "Aish, criminals these days. No backbone or willpower." Tai Cheng shook his head in disappointment. "They don''t make them the same way anymore."


    Xue Ning raised an eyebrow at her father''s words. This was a very strange thing toment on, it was as strange as her mother''s anti-policement, and their discussion of best body disposal matters. She vowed to quiz her parents after they left the gory hellhole that was her childhood bedroom.


    "Please don''t let me die¡­" Ding Fei began to blubber, his earlier bravado fading. His lower lip trembled, and to Xue Ning''s horror, he started to weep. "I''m only 23¡­ I can''t die like this¡­ I already have one eye¡­.and my buddies¡­ they''re all so young¡­please¡­."


    He went on his knees, grabbing Jingwei''s thighs with his hands. Ding Fei had no shame left, only a desperate need to ensure the survival of himself and his team. Forget hugging a thick thigh, he would even suck Sun Jingwei''s dick if it meant he agreed.


    "Please have mercy! Bring us with you!"


    Jingwei looked down at the man who was sadly sobbing into his thigh. "There¡­there¡­" He said awkwardly, not knowing what to do. He shot Yue Niang a pleading nce. Could he really not afford to spare them a bit of mercy? They did need medical care! That empty eye socket could get infected, if it hadn''t already been.


    Yue Niang rolled her eyes. This future son-inw of hers was just too softhearted for her taste. Her poor daughter better be prepared to put her foot down in future, if not Sun Jingwei was going to fill her home with random men begging for help!


    "Just do what you want then. It''s your ne."


    "Oh okay! Then you guys should make your way to the nearby hospital and get treated," Jingwei said. "I don''t think you''llst the ne ride. Are you guyscking money? I can give you some."

 Chapter 305 Captain Mu Wants To Rest

    "Yes that''ll be great - I mean no, we already have money." Ding Fei was nning to get as much money as he could from Sun Jingwei, since the man was already offering and he was loaded to begin with, but then his fiancee, wife, or really scary girlfriend peered from behind him.


    She looked him straight in the eye, and made a shing motion across her throat!


    Ding Fei had to change his mind after that. If he didn''t, he wouldn''t be looking for doctors. He''d be looking for tombstones!


    "Eh? So is it a ''yes'' or a ''no''?" Jingwei asked, confused and oblivious to Xue Ning''s actions.


    "It''s a ''no''. Thank you for your kind offer," Ding Fei said meekly, his eyes darting to Li Xue Ning''s judgemental ones. Li Xue Ning gave him an imperious look of approval, and he heaved a sigh of relief.


    "Alright then, I''ll call and make arrangements for all of us to go to Shanghai," Jingwei said cheerfully. "I''ll need to tell Ming Guang too so he can contact the rest of the bodyguard team about our change in ns."


    "Go ahead," Yue Niang said. "For now, the rest of you go and pack your things. Necessities only. If it helps, pretend we''re going on a family vacation!"


    "Mom, that''s impossible," Tai Xuan said tly. He ran his hands through his hair, tugging them harshly. "How can we just drop everything and go like this? What about the restaurant? The house?!" Don''t tell me we''re giving everything up to start over?!"


    "How long will we be in Shanghai? Are weing back anytime soon?" Xin Yu asked hesitantly.


    She had a bad feeling about this - the fact that they were leaving their home in the dead of the night, as though they were criminals on the run¡­ it didn''t bode well for their chances.


    "As long as it takes for things to blow over," Yue Niang said, her gaze steely. Her tone brooked no argument. "And besides, both of you always wanted to see the city. What better chance than to do it with Jingwei''s help? Pack all your valuables and identification too."


    Husband and wife stared at each other helplessly. It seemed like there was no room for discussion! Tai Xuan was highly reluctant to leave the home he stayed in for 28 years, but he had no choice - if his parents and sister were going, of course he had to go with them. What if they faced more trouble in Shanghai?


    They dragged themselves back into their bedroom, beginning to pack. They knew their chances of returning were slim.


    "Old man, you should go pack our things too." Yue Niang chided.


    "I won''t take that long, nearly everything is receable in the end. It''s not like we haven''t done this before," Tai Cheng shrugged sadly. He wasn''t unfamiliar with constant moving, but two decades of peace was hard to shake off.


    If his son was feeling reluctant about moving, every cell in Tai Cheng was determined to stay, even though he knew his wife made sense. Now, their little home in the corner of the country was unsafe, and it would remain unsafe until they solved the issue.


    Behind them, Xue Ning''s ears perked up at his words. Her parents moved a lot before? That was hard to believe. That was another matter she needed to clear up.


    ======


    "Hi Captain Mu, sorry for disturbing you at such ate hour. Is this a bad time to talk?" Jingwei asked sheepishly.


    "You already said it was such ate hour," Captain Mu grumbled from the other end of the line. He was preparing to go to bed, but he had a feeling dreand wasn''t epting his visa.


    There must have been something drastic happening for Sun Jingwei to call him in the middle of the night! This sort of behavior was moremonly seen in Sun Tianwei, who he suspected was part robot, with the way he hardly slept.


    "So you do know it''s a bad time to talk. Is this about your recement? They''ll be here first thing in the morning."


    "Not really," Jingweiughed awkwardly. Warning bells began to ring in Captain Mu''s head, what new trouble befell Sun Jingwei this time?


    "Someone sent a team of seven to kidnap me and Xue Ning. Luckily they failed, but this ce isn''t safe for me or my inws. I think my inws are assassins. Also, I need to get a ne ride out for all of us."


    Captain Mu gripped the phone tightly and muffled the scream trying to escape his throat. Goddamn. Even when his expectations were rock bottom, Sun Jingwei could still limbo under the bar! Why was he regrettably proven right?


    "Captain Mu, are you still there?" Jingwei asked, after a moment of silence. Did he fall asleep? Jingwei felt bad for interrupting his bedtime!<sub> </sub>


    "I am," Captain Mu said. He wasn''t replying because he was trying to calm himself down. Counting to ten didn''t work, so he counted to twenty.


    It still didn''t work, but he couldn''t keep silent forever.


    "Is there any more news you wish to tell me?" Captain Mu prompted, hoping for a ''no''. But it was not his day.


    "Yeah, now that you say it, my inws are nning to lure out the person responsible for nning my kidnapping. They want to capture him by pretending that the team was sessful!"


    Captain Mu nearly spat out a mouthful of blood!


    "Nonsense! Are they insane? Don''t do something so dangerous!" Captain Mu yelled from the other end, thest lingering bit of calm dissipating like smoke in the wind.


    "Are you sure your inws actually like you? It looks like they''re trying to get you killed!"


    "Oh they definitely like me," Jingwei said. "If not, Uncle wouldn''t have saved me from those thugs. He really just sliced through their wrists like some pugilist expert! It was sick! He also threw the knives and they ended up stabbing the guys in the back. Now I wish I took a video, words really can''t exin it¡­"


    Slicing through wrists? Throwing knives? Captain Mu''s eyes widened. These were skillsmon in the earlier generation of hitmen, simply because the younger generation of assassins tended to prefer using more subtle methods to get rid of their targets.


    As turf wars between different ns dwindled with the passing of years, it was less necessary for hitmen to have a signature, to make a bloody statement. There was no need to inform the victim''s family about who made the hit.


    With the advent of DNA processing,puter databases and better CCTVs, thest thing any hitmen wanted was to draw attention to themselves, because now they could be found!


    Hence, like predators in the wild, they adapted to the changingndscape.


    Why should they slit someone''s throat or wrist and create unnecessary mess, when they could poison them with a needle under their pinky finger, triggering a heart attack that lookedpletely natural?


    "Even if what you''re saying is true, I do not rmend kicking the wasp nest." Captain Mu said. "Come back home safely and bring a few kidnappers with you for interrogation."


    "We can''t do that," Jingwei said regrettably. "They all got injured so badly by my inws. Two of them only have one eye each! We''re sending them to the hospital because they''ll bleed to death otherwise."


    Captain Mu despaired. Hospital? Were they running a charity or a rehabilitation home for criminals?


    "Now I must ask if you''re the one that wants to get rid of your inws," Captain Mu grumbled. "You do realise the police will begin to question them right? The moment someone''s lips loosen, it''s over for Li Xue Ning''s parents!"


    "Things will be fine, they already promised to use the excuse that they were in a gang fight with each other." Jingwei argued, radiating positively from the other end of the line. Captain Mu felt like throttling him. Just a bit.


    "Such a flimsy cover story would never hold up in court." Or anywhere, for that matter. "Once the police begin questioning them, they''ll realise there are too many loose ends. And if your inws left DNA evidence on those kidnappers, they''ll be in trouble too!"


    "Oh," Jingwei said, contemting Captain Mu''s words, his mind whirling. "But then they''ll be fine, simply because it''s too unbelievable. Even if they told the police the truth, no one will take them seriously. If I hadn''t seen it with my own two eyes, I wouldn''t believe it either!"


    Captain Mu looked at the clean, white ceiling of his bedroom, and sighed. "Fine, if I can''t convince you to make a wise decision, then grab the least injured one for interrogation back here. Take their phones. DO NOT GO AFTER THE MASTERMIND NOW."


    "Er¡­ " Jingwei chanced a quick look back into the bedroom, where Xue Ning''s Mom and Dad were poking at the kidnapper''s phone. "It might be a bit toote for that? But I''ll let you talk to Xue Ning''s Mom and Dad if you want!"


    "I do not want - "


    But the universe, along with Jingwei, didn''t really care about Captain Mu''s desires. Jingwei eagerly passed the phone to Xue Ning''s dad. Let people who have experience with this issue handle it! He just wanted to cuddle his wife, damn it!

 Chapter 306 Plans Change

    "What''s this?" Tai Cheng asked in confusion, holding onto Jingwei''s phone. There was already someone on the line.


    "The leader of my bodyguard team would like to discuss something with you!" Jingwei said. "I told him about the both of you trying to bait out the culprit and he thinks it''s a terrible idea, so¡­ you guys can discuss it! I''ll pick the decision that will guarantee everyone''s safety."


    Tai Cheng blinked, and raised the phone to his ear. Meanwhile Captain Mu heard Jingwei''s words and wanted to p himself. Did Sun Jingwei expect him to debate the pros and cons of the n?


    "Hello? Is this Captain Mu?"


    "Yes. And you are?"


    "Li Tai Cheng. Pleased to meet you!" Tai Cheng said politely. Captain Mu thought he sounded too cheery for someone who possibly sliced through three men.


    "I heard you want to bait the person responsible." Captain Mu said, wasting no time with pleasantries. Tai Cheng''s face also shifted, and the two of them began to converse in low voices.


    Judging by the furrow between Li Tai Cheng''s eyes, the discussion wasn''t going well. Jingwei wasn''t going to stick around to find out more; he decided to go and find Ming Guang to let him know about the new n, only to find him babysitting three men - two of the unfortunate kidnappers, and Wei Yan.


    "I swear, this man was ready to sell you out!" Zhong Qingined, jabbing an angry finger at Wei Yan''s face. Zhong Qing was on the floor, possibly bleeding out, but his sheer rage at Wei Yan provided him extra strength to argue.


    "He said he knew so many secrets about the Sun family and that he would tell it all to our boss, so we should bring him with us."


    "Senior, I would never do such a thing. This man is maligning me!" Wei Yan protested hotly as he stared up at Ming Guang. Senior Ming Guang had flipped him over so that his face wasn''t t on the floor.


    Instead, there was a huge scowl on Wei Yan''s face, helpfully illuminated by the full moon.


    "You did, you fucker, stop trying to lie your way out of this!" Zhong Qing yelled, and Ming Guang swatted him on the back of his head to keep him quiet. Zhong Qing shot him a look of pure betrayal. Good deeds really go unrewarded!


    Behind him, Wei Yan''s lips curled into a faint smug smile. Zhong Qing growled, gnashing his teeth with anger.


    "See! Mister, didn''t you see his face? He''s mocking you!" Zhong Qing whined.


    "Quiet," Ming Guang scolded, displeased. "You shouldn''t be ming other people for your own ws."


    "Hey Mister, I''m trying to help you here. This snake is going to stab you in the back with that fancy knife of yours if you don''t believe me!"


    "He is very sly and opportunistic," Luo Lan added, giving Wei Yan a look of absolute upset. "If you choose to trust him, you''re taking a big risk."


    "I''m not listening to the words of kidnappers." Ming Guang said, his face twisted with disgust. Even if Wei Yan had made less than wise decisions in the past few days, surely there was no way he would be dumb enough, or spiteful enough, to offer his allegiance to random home invaders!


    "Exactly Senior!" Wei Yan said, giving the other two men a wicked grin. "They''re just trying to sow seeds of distrust between us!"


    "Forgive me for interrupting," Jingwei said cheerfully, popping his head through the window. "I''m back!"


    "Get back inside," Ming Guang scolded, turning around to look at his charge, hencepletely missing the displeased look on Wei Yan''s face. Zhong Qing and Luo Lan saw it though, but there was nothing they could say! They tried to warn this man, but if he refused to listen, it was his funeral.


    "In a while! I''m just letting you know that we''re going to go back to Shanghai tonight. Can you go get our things in the motel? I''ll look after these three!"


    "Fine," Ming Guang nodded. While he was less than pleased about the sudden change in ns, he was professional enough to not let it show. He knew it was the best course of action.


    "Can you let me go then?" Wei Yan asked hopefully. "Since we''re already nning on going back to Shanghai. I''m not an actual kidnapper like them!"


    Jingwei considered it, and shook his head. "No, you''re worse. You tried to hit on my wife and couldn''t take no for an answer! You tried to make me look bad in front of my father-inw and even got the whole town to pressure her into fake dating you!"


    "Ho ho ho - that''s not what he told us!" Zhong Qing eximed vindictively, sensing a chance to get back at Wei Yan. "This man said that your girlfriend liked him more, so you got jealous and tied him up! I knew he was lying!"


    Luo Lan made a tsk sound. "Of course he was lying. Who is hepared to Sun Jingwei? Any woman with a slick ofmon sense would pick Sun Jingwei over him!"<sub> </sub>


    "Not even women. Men too," Zhong Qing said. "Mr Sun, I''m definitely picking you over this snake!"


    "Thanks!" Jingwei said cheerfully,ughing at the way Wei Yan''s face purpled. "But Wei Yan, you really should get your nose looked at."


    Wei Yan''s nose was now an unattractive red swollen bulb. He looked like a clown!


    "Shut up!" Wei Yan spat out. Get his nose looked at? By who? "I''ll get you for this! Who asked you to tie me up and leave me behind!"


    "Sorry for that," Jingwei said apologetically. "We kind of forgot about you."


    "How dare you!" His apology made Wei Yan even angrier. If he had died, a ''sorry'' wasn''t going to cut it. "If I stabbed you in the back, you definitely deserved it!"


    Meanwhile, Ming Guang frowned to himself as he heard the vitriol in Wei Yan''s voice. It was true that they failed him this time. But there was a seed of doubt growing in his gut. Were these two men telling the truth?


    =====


    "We have decided," Tai Cheng said, after finally hanging up on the phone. "Captain Mu has dly agreed to arrange transport at the airport. Now all of us need to go to the airport."


    "All of us?" Yue Niang spluttered. "Including the team of seven?"


    "...Yes," Tai Cheng said, sensing dramatic opposition in the air. His wife did not disappoint him.


    "HUH?! Who came up with this utterly insane suggestion?" Yue Niang demanded, her hands on her hips. "Was it that Captain Mu guy at the other end of the call? Call him back right now - I''m going to give him a piece of my mind!"


    "Wife, please calm down," Tai Cheng said, hurriedly pulling the phone away from her. "The team in Shanghai wants all of them there, in order for interrogation to go smoothly."


    "You mean they want more cannon fodder," Yue Niang scoffed derisively. "Clearly they can''t do their jobs properly if they need seven people to cough up one mastermind! Husband, how could you agree to this?"


    "He brought up a few good points." Tai Cheng shrugged. "While this bait scheme would work, we''re not as young as we used to be. What if our enemies decide to gun us down with a machine gun after they find out we lied? We don''t even have the protective gear to save ourselves!"


    Yue Niang grumbled something that sounded like ''I can cut the bullets'', which Xue Ning overheard and promptly decided to ignore.


    There was no way she heard it correctly! Nah, definitely not.


    "But Mom, how are we supposed to all go to the airport like this? We only have one car!" Xue Ning protested, startling both her parents. They had forgotten their daughter was in the room.


    "Exactly, husband, that''s a very good question. How do you n to achieve this?"


    "Oh, we can just take Mayor Poh''s pickup truck. He never uses it anyway." Tai Cheng said easily. Of course, now that Mayor Poh was sitting in a jail cell, he definitely wasn''t going to fight them for it.


    Xue Ning blinked. "Dad¡­ don''t you need the keys to drive his truck?"


    Tai Cheng shook his head. "Nope. Not if you know the right way to hotwire an engine and fake an ignition key¡­"


    His voice trailed off at Xue Ning''s disbelieving face. Oh right. He wasn''t supposed to let his daughter know about things like these.


    "And you know how to do that?"


    "Why wouldn''t I? Xue Ning-ah, don''t doubt your father! I used to be great at stealing vehicles!"


    "I see," Xue Ning said faintly, not knowing whether to be impressed or appalled.


    "Then you should stop talking so much and get to it," Yue Niang scolded. "Once everyone wakes up, it''s going to be a lot harder to sneak a truck out of the town."

 Chapter 307 Resetting Your Nose?

    Xue Ning watched as her father gave her a mock salute, grabbed a shlight with his mobile phone, and then went back outside, presumably tomit vehicle theft. His wife waved him off cheerfully, as though he was just going to the market to pick up an extra order of onions.


    Did no one see anything strange about this?


    "Mom? Are you sure about this? What if Dad gets caught?" Xue Ning asked, still unsure. She watched her father gradually vanish into the darkness, still wearing his bloody shirt! If anyone caught sight of him, her father would be sent to jail for sure.


    "Nonsense," Yue Niang said, shrugging off her daughter''s concerns. "He used to break into armoured vehicles, one tiny pickup truck is nothing!"


    "... Excuse me?" Xue Ning asked. "Mom, did you just say - "


    "Oh, look at the time," Yue Niang said, pretending to look at her non-existent watch. "You better pack your things soon. Or if you have nothing to bring, you can help wrap up their wounds. Once the truckes, we''re immediately getting on it!"


    Xue Ning''s eyebrow twitched at the tant change in subject.


    "Mom, you and Dad are definitely hiding something from me." She scowled heavily, staring at her Mom, who determinedly projected an aura of nonchnce. "Your behaviour here¡­ is just weird."


    "One doesn''t reach middle age without developing strange foibles," was her mother''s less than helpful reply. Xue Ning rolled her eyes.


    "Fine, keep your secrets for now," Xue Ning said, stomping her feet. "I''m going to get the bandages and look for Jingwei."


    She wasn''t that old, but she knew that stealing vehicles and expertly stabbing men weren''t just fun hobbies one picked up at the localmunity centre over the weekends!


    ======


    "My darling! Precious! The light of my life, stars in my eyes, breath in my lungs - "


    The moment Jingwei caught sight of Xue Ning, his whole body seemed to vibrate in excitement as he waved her over. Luo Lan and Zhong Qing exchanged incredulous nces - god, all the BDSM dungeons in the world couldn''t be as whipped as he was!


    "Shut it," Xue Ning said, smacking her free hand against his mouth, even as her lips subconsciously curled into a smile.


    "Only if you kiss me," Jingwei said. Xue Ning rolled her eyes. This man really took advantage of her! But then again, she did let him, gave him permission to enter her room and tromp around her heart. So was he really taking advantage, or merely taking what''s offered?


    That was something she would think about in future, but for now, since there were other prying eyes watching them, Xue Ning dropped a quick peck on his lips, only for Jingwei to pull her closer by her waist, pressing her body against his and deepening the kiss.


    The medical supplies in her hands fell helplessly on the floor. One roll of bandage bounced and smacked Wei Yan straight on his wounded nose, but no one noticed!


    Xue Ning let out a muffled moan, as Jingwei''s tongue curled around her mouth. Just as she was about to pull him closer, there was a sudden cough from the ground. Luo Lan''s ears were red as he watched them make out like teenagers.


    Xue Ning quickly pushed Jingwei away, remembering they were not alone.


    "There are people here!" Xue Ning spluttered, face turning red in the moonlight.


    "I know," Jingwei said as he gave one particr person a smug look, before cuddling Xue Ning adoringly. "I don''t care."


    He did it purposely so that their eyes could witness how much he craved his wife! Thankfully, even if Xue Ning grumbled about it, she still let him hold her.


    Unknown to Xue Ning, before she found Jingwei, he was already arguing with Wei Yan about who was a better fit for Xue Ning, with the two bleeding fools as unwilling judges. Wei Yan just kept on spitting lies about how Jingwei''s rtionship with Xue Ning was aplete sham, held up by contracts and lies, and how she was definitely going to file for divorce!


    It almost made Jingwei want to punch him in his swollen nose. But then Xue Ning appeared, and all was well - he got to kiss her while giving Wei Yan the ultimate middle finger.


    Zhong Qing couldn''t help but sarcastically add, "Wow Wei Yan, you really have such a vivid imagination! How can you think this woman would go for you?"


    Wei Yan gnashed his teeth, his face turning red in anger and shame. Xue Ning took a quick look at him, preparing to give him a piece of her mind, but her mouth fell open in surprise when she saw the change in his face.


    "What happened to your nose? It''s so¡­ swollen and crooked. Is it broken?"


    "No it''s not!" Wei Yan dered. "I feel perfectly fine!"<sub> </sub>


    "We threw him out the window Madam," Luo Lan reported.


    "What?" Xue Ning whipped her head around and cracked her knuckles. Zhong Qing shuffled further away, a tiny ''meep'' escaping from his lips at her death re. Maybe this Wei Yan man was telling the truth!


    "So you do have feelings - "


    "Shhhhhh," Luo Lan hurriedly interrupted. He felt his sense of self-preservation rear its timely head; if Zhong Qing said the wrong thing, Sun Jingwei could throw them into the dumpster in pieces for the locals to find!


    Luo Lan added, "We only decided to bring him along because he promised to leak Sun family secrets and betray Sun Jingwei, so don''t get the wrong idea! It was him who floated the idea first! We were just¡­taking initiative."


    "So you guys took the initiative to throw him out the window like a trash bag?" Xue Ning demanded, ring angrily at them.


    "He was very heavy," Luo Lan said, as though that exined everything, and maybe it did.


    "He''s kind of trashy," was Zhong Qing''s intelligentment.


    Xue Ning breathed deeply to calm herself down. She found it hard to believe that Wei Yan could possibly have hated Jingwei enough to ally with idiot kidnappers. That was a clear sign of cutting one''s nose to spite their face!


    Speaking of noses, Wei Yan''s nose needed medical attention.


    "Nonsense, don''t worry, I''ll help you reset it," Xue Ning promised, kneeling by his side as she stretched her fingers and her neck muscles. Wei Yan looked up at Li Xue Ning''s eager eyes and felt trepidation crawl up his spine, but he was determined to remain calm and unaffected.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei felt jealousy curl in his gut; why was Xue Ning still caring for this annoying man?


    "Xue Ning, are you sure you want to do this?" Jingwei asked, trying not to sulk. "He will survive until a doctor takes a look at him. A broken nose isn''t that serious."


    "No need, I can help!" Xue Ning said, giving him a reassuring thumbs up while Jingwei twitched. Was his wife purposely ignoring his jealousy, or was she simply unaware of it? "I learnt how to do this years ago."


    "From where? First-aid professionals?" Jingwei asked, curious.


    "Nope! From 15-second videos!" Xue Ning said proudly. "I watched many of them."


    "Oh. My dear, you are so capable." Jingwei said, returning her thumbs up. Hopefully Xue Ning would break Wei Yan''s nose even further, turning him into the ugly man he was deep inside.


    Jingwei wasn''t a medical professional, but even he knew broken noses needed local anaesthetic before resetting them.


    He stifled augh as he saw the dawning horror in Wei Yan''s eyes. Wei Yan''s eyeballs darted to Miss Li''s fingers with no small amount of concern, but he refused to flinch.


    He had to prove to Sun Jingwei that he was the better man! He shot Jingwei with a smug look from the corner of his eye. So what if he got to kiss Miss Li? Li Xue Ning still cared enough to treat him!


    "Hmm¡­ let''s see if I still remember¡­" Xue Ning muttered to herself, pulling up her phone to search for the relevant videos. Wei Yan''s face paled further - so not only did Miss Li learn how to reset noses from the Inte, she had also forgotten how to reset noses?!


    He had to stop her right now!


    "Sorry for troubling you," Wei Yan said, suddenly differentially polite. "But maybe you can just get me an ice pack? I''m sure it''s not that serious."


    "No no of course not, look at how swollen and crooked it is!" Xue Ning eximed, pointing at his nose. "How can you even breathe? I need to help!"


    "Exactly! Your nose looks like a clown nose!" Zhong Qing said, flinging the first metaphorical stone at Wei Yan.


    "You should get it fixed." Luo Lan threw another rock at him.


    "Yeah Wei Yan, we wouldn''t want your handsome face to be hurt."


    Wei Yan tilted his head and gave all three other men a deadly re, but he only got three shit-eating grins in reply. Curse them all! If he ended up disfigured, he was going to stab all of them in the face.

 Chapter 308 First-Not-Aid

    "Okay, breathe and rx," Xue Ning instructed. "I''ll shift it on the count of three. One, -"


    Xue Ning grabbed his nose bridge and shifted it on the count of two, and a sharp burst of pain reverberated in Wei Yan''s head, forming starbursts behind his eyes. He howled out loud, and more than one old neighbour blinked in their beds, surprised at the unfamiliar sound.


    ("Mama, I told you there are werewolves living within us!"


    "There is no such thing my dear, go back to bed and stop reading those strange foreign stories! I''ll take away yourputer time if you don''t!")


    Jingwei hurriedly covered Wei Yan''s mouth with his hand, not wanting him to attract unwanted attention, only for Wei Yan to chomp down on his hand as though it was a makeshift cloth gag!


    Now Jingwei howled in pain.


    ("See Mom, you heard that too! It''s a new wolf!"


    "Werewolves are not real - I''m banning you from theputer!"


    "MOM!")


    Meanwhile, the two men watched in amusement. "See, now he''s biting the hand that feeds him, literally!" Zhong Qingmented with a snicker.


    "Very apt observation," Luo Lan added, shaking his head judgmentally. "If this isn''t proof of his deficient character, nothing is!"


    Wei Yan heard every word, and promptly bit down harder on Jingwei''s hand in retaliation, determined to chomp off a bit of flesh as though he was a rabid dog. How dare these strangers make defamations of his character! They knew nothing!


    Then Xue Ning pulled back her fist andnded a harsh blow on his stomach, causing him to cough in pain! Jingwei used this chance to pull his hand away, wringing it in disgust in front of him. Other than the bite marks, it was covered in Wei Yan''s spit, which made itpletely gross!


    If it was Xue Ning biting him, he would have soldered through the pain. Or found it sexy.


    "Oi! Why did you bite me?" Jingwei demanded hotly, looking for something to wipe his hand with, and finally deciding on Wei Yan''s shirt. Since the spit was from him, it made sense to return it to its rightful owner.


    Wei Yan didn''t think it was a good idea, and tried to wriggle away from Jingwei''s hand. But since he was still tied up, he only seeded in looking like a dying tuna.


    "Why did you put your hand in my mouth then?" Wei Yan retorted.


    "Who asked you to scream so loud - you could have maimed me you asshole -"


    "Quiet, both of you," Xue Ning instructed as she grabbed Jingwei''s hand to check the damage. Other than the bite mark and broken skin, he was fine!


    "You''ll live," Xue Ning said nonchntly, dropping his hand like a hot potato. The two strangers watched in surprise - wasn''t she supposed to be his fiancee? Where was the tender loving care that was supposed to happen in moments like this?


    Then she took a look at Wei Yan''s nose, and a frown crossed her face. Was it her imagination, or did his nose seem more swollen than before? The guides said that resetting it would reduce swelling. Perhaps she made an error. Oh dear.


    "Wei Yan, the swelling isn''t going down. I need to try again." Xue Ning said, and Wei Yan shuddered.<sub> </sub>


    "No thank you! You don''t know what you''re doing! If I let you continue, my nose will be destroyed! I can''t even breathe properly now!" Wei Yan shrieked.


    Instead of wriggling now, he flipped himself on his side and began rolling to escape.


    It was humiliating, but if he could escape the unbearable pain, it would be worth it!


    "I can buy you a new nose," Jingwei said helpfully, as Luo Lan and Zhong Qing wheezed through their perfectly uninjured noses. The blood loss was making everything a lot funnier than normal, but they quickly stopped when they saw the sulky look on Li Xue Ning''s face. Sun Jingwei had caught it too, and hugged her supportively.


    "It''s okay if he doesn''t appreciate your effort, I definitely do! And these guys will too!" Jingwei said, giving them a knowing look. "Right guys?"


    "Yes, yes, of course."


    "If you wish to bandage our wounds, we''d be most grateful."


    Of course, they wouldn''t protest even if she wrapped them in so many bandages that they became mummies. At least they wouldn''t bleed to death!


    Xue Ning felt better, even as she spared onest guilty look at Wei Yan''s back. She began to apply first aid on their wounds, and the men were pleasantly surprised that her bandaging skills were better than her bone-setting abilities. They didn''t feel like they were close to losing their limbs!


    Meanwhile, Xue Ning could only marvel at the wounds. They looked shallow, but they actually bled a lot! And the wounds were right near the tendons, ensuring that anyone who suffered from these wounds would feel incredible pain and find it difficult to move around.


    "Who did this to you? Ming Guang?" Xue Ning wondered. She would have to ask him to teach her! This was such a useful skill!


    "Who is Ming Guang? The old man in the bloody shirt?" Zhong Qing asked.


    "No, that''s my dad." Xue Ning replied, and both men froze.


    "What?"


    "Your dad?"


    "Is that something surprising?" Xue Ning asked, her hands paused over the man''s knees.


    "You can say that." Luo Lan mused. "It''s not every day a daughter patches up the wounds inflicted by her father."


    ".... you mean my father did this to you?" Xue Ningughed incredulously. "Nonsense! He has arthritis!"


    "More like he gives people arthritis," Zhong Qing muttered warily. "If I can''t draw after this, I''ll raise hell."


    "You can''t draw anyway." Luo Lan pointed out. "If anything, this is an improvement." Zhong Qing wanted to kick him, but his legs were still injured, so instead he turned to this young woman.


    "Miss Li, I swear on my life and my hands and my balls, your father did this to us. In fact, I bet if you went to the restaurant right now, you''ll see the rest of my team members in even worse shape!"

 Chapter 309 About Secrets

    "You''re lying," Xue Ning said, shaking her head in disbelief. "There''s no way¡­ Impossible. I know blood loss makes you woozy, but you shouldn''t be lying!"


    "Madame, the blood loss happened after we saw your father stand over us with a bloody knife in his hand, not before." Zhong Qing pointed out. "I''m not a master at getting stabbed, but even I know he''s a professional! He looked like a wuxia pugilist!"


    "You''re not a knife holder or from a wuxia world, how would you know the difference?" Xue Ning retorted, quickly tying onest knot to ensure the bandage held. Her hands were steady, even as her mind whirled in confusion.


    If her father had skills like these, why would he be content with being an owner of a small noodle restaurant in the middle of nowhere, one that had to give face and care about the opinions of all these small-minded folk?


    Even if he were to live in some remote corner of the world, he should have been living like a king! Or at least, a very rich man.


    Xue Ning wouldn''t have seen her parents'' heads bowed over the kitchen table, a dim light flickering above their heads as they murmured to each other, trying to budget restaurant overheads and her enrichment lessons.


    She wasn''t supposed to be awake to see that, but she had, and the memory had stuck with her. She remembered creeping back into her room, nausea building at the pit of her stomach as her guilt swept over her young mind. She wondered why her family was so unfortunate enough to be born poor.


    The next day, her parents gave no sign that anything was wrong. They simply smiled at her and agreed to bring her to her martial arts sses! Xue Ning could only nod and stuff her face with rice, because if she didn''t, she would cry and her parents would know she knew.


    She also remembered her father bowing repeatedly to the instructor, pleading him to ept Xue Ning as a student, because she was diligent and hardworking, and would never give him any trouble!


    There was no way he could be some skilled hitman! If he was, why would he bow his head so often? He wouldn''t need to look for an instructor, he could just teach her himself!


    "Perhaps," Zhong Qing grumbled, not wanting to die on this hill. Who knew if this daughter had inherited his knife skills or his murderous aura, or had sometent ability of her own? He read all those novels and watched a lot of dramas, he wasn''t going to risk his life for this! "But if you''re fixing us up, can you also go to the restaurant to check on my colleagues?"


    "Fine, but this better not be a trap." Xue Ning grumbled.


    "We can get some rope to tie these two up first, then I''ll go with you!" Jingwei offered. Xue Ning thought it over, that was a pretty good idea, even as the two men looked less than pleased.


    Within minutes, there were now three bundled humans lying on their frontwn like tasty spring rolls.


    "Now stay here and be good, Xue Ning and I are off to the restaurant! Goodbye!" Jingwei said cheerfully. Xue Ning had grabbed a replenished bag of medical supplies and a shlight, ready to march off, but Jingwei eagerly took it from her and held her hand instead.


    "Stay here, he says. Not like we can do anything else!" Zhong Qingmented as he stared up at the moon.


    "At least we aren''t dying." Luo Lan added. "And we can breathe from our nose."


    As one, they turned their heads to look sympathetically at poor Wei Yan who was gasping through his mouth. Yep. No matter how pathetic they were, at least they weren''t him!


    ======<sub> </sub>


    As Jingwei and Xue Ning made their way to the restaurant, Jingwei whistled happily, swinging their sped hands as though they were on a field trip. Xue Ning indulged him, because she liked seeing him happy.


    At least one of them was happy.


    Jingwei noticed that Xue Ning''s mood was dampening, but he couldn''t pinpoint the exact reason. Hence he had to ask.


    "Xue Ning, why the long face? Is it because we''re leaving this town soon?" Jingwei asked. Xue Ning only looked at him and sighed.


    "I just¡­ do you get the feeling that my parents are hiding something from me?"


    "Yes¡­ but then, which parent doesn''t?" Jingwei shrugged easily. "I know my Dad is certainly keeping secrets from me. Mom too, when she was alive."


    "And you''re okay with it?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. "They''re lying to you!"


    "Everyone lies to me though." Jingwei said. Xue Ning frowned, and he hastily amended. "Well, except you. But from what I see, your Mom and Dad love you a lot. If they lied to you, they must have a good reason."


    Xue Ning paused her footsteps.


    "What?"


    "Nothing. That''s¡­ really mature of you." Xue Ning said, her face colouring at the realisation. Jingwei was right, there had to be a good reason! Besides, how could she trust the words of some random kidnapper over her parents!


    Maybe her Dad used to be a stuntman, and he didn''t let her know because she would want to be a stuntwoman. That made sense.


    "Always the tone of surprise," Jingwei said, shaking his head in mock disappointment. "To think I am held in such low esteem, my heart aches with the -"


    "Shut it, or more parts will be aching," Xue Ning warned, lifting their joined hands higher. It looked like a fist.


    "Yes Madam." Jingwei said agreeably. The mood was now lifted, and Xue Ning''s footsteps sounded a lot lighter than before!


    Then the both of them stumbled onto a dark figure lying on the floor. Xue Ning and Jingwei both raised a protective arm in front of each other, before they realised how ridiculous they were acting. The poor figure wasn''t moving at all!


    Xue Ning quickly used the shlight, and immediately wished she hadn''t. All the earlier light-hearted joy from earlier drained from her face as she took in the gory scene.

 Chapter 310 Bloody Discovery

    "What¡­ oh my god, what happened here?" Xue Ning cried out in dawning horror, staring down at the man. Said man only blinked sluggishly at her in response, his lips mouthing wordlessly when he spotted her.


    Beside her, Jingwei could only blink in surprise.


    That man looked a lot paler than he remembered!


    Xue Ning crouched down, shing the light in his eyes. "How do you feel?"


    The man let out a barely audible sigh, but what worried Xue Ning more was how the man''s pupils barely constricted in response! Just as she moved closer, her slippers made a disgusting squelch.


    ''Must be just some mud,'' Xue Ning thought to herself. Then she remembered she was standing on concrete. With great wariness, she looked down, and nearly dropped the shlight in shock.


    She was standing in a pool of blood!


    "Fuck," Xue Ning eximed. She wanted to step away, but if she did, she wouldn''t be able to help the man. She panned the shlight down his body and found the cause - there was one clean cut across his belly, as though he was a tuna that needed marinating.


    She fought the urge to vomit as she clenched her fists, crinkling the stic handles of her bag. The bandages inside it weren''t going to be enough! This man needed a hospital ASAP!


    "Jingwei, we need to get an ambnce here," Xue Ning muttered, grabbing her phone. "He''s going to die otherwise. What psycho did this?"


    Aplicated expression crossed Jingwei''s face. "That ''psycho'' is your father."


    Xue Ning stilled, her mind reeling in shock. "That''s¡­ not possible. I mean, he could do it. But how could he just leave him here to die?"


    Jingwei found that he had to defend his future father-inw. "Well, his teammates told him they had people at the house ready to kidnap you! Of course his priority was to make sure you were safe. Don''t me him. Honestly¡­ I would have done the same thing."


    "His teammates?" Xue Ning asked, pursing her lips, choosing to ignore thetter part of Jingwei''s statement. "Where are they now?"


    "Further up, I think." Jingwei said, pointing to the inky darkness ahead of them. "I saw Uncle take them down by throwing the kitchen knives. It should be¡­ somewhere¡­ around there."


    Xue Ning illuminated the way with her shlight, mentally sending a note of apology to the poor man she left on the ground. It felt terrible, but there was nothing she could do.


    Her father was responsible, which meant that if she actually sent him to the hospital, there would be a lot of awkward questions asked about the culprit. This man definitely wouldn''t protect her father!


    Besides, it seemed like there were more problems just a walk away. Her breathing grew more rapid as she saw two thin trails of blood that gradually thickened the more they walked, as though the bleeding men tried to crawl somewhere else for safety, only for them to copse on the floor in exhaustion.


    "Ah here they are," Jingwei said with false cheer. He also saw the bloody trails, but refrained from pointing them out. It was already terrifying enough.


    Xue Ning''s shlight illuminated two dark lumps on the floor,ying suspiciously still. She waved her shlight over the first man, and she found a stab wound on his back, close to his spine. The ck fabric of the shirt was still wet, most likely soaked with blood. Xue Ning crouched low and passed the bag of medical supplies to Jingwei, putting her free hand on the man''s throat to feel his pulse.<sub> </sub>


    There wasn''t one. Her eyes widened in shock.


    Xue Ning hurriedly grabbed his shoulder, and with a strong heave, she turned him over so the man''s face was facing her. He looked depressingly young. She ignored Jingwei''s panicked yelp.


    "Xue Ning, don''t just touch him like that! Your DNA is on his clothes now! You should have asked me to do it for you! I won''t get arrested!"


    "It''s toote now," Xue Ning said grimly. She put a finger at the man''s nostrils, trying to sense if he was still breathing, but he was depressingly silent. The only breathing she heard was from her and Jingwei. "Anyway, he''s dead."


    "Shit. We came here toote," Jingwei said regrettably. "But what about the other man?"


    Xue Ning quickly made her way to the next man, but just as she was going to repeat the same actions to check if he was alive, Jingwei stopped her by gripping her wrists.


    "Wait wait - I''ll touch him instead. That way, we can both be arrested together!"


    "That''s nonsense - " Xue Ning protested, but then Jingwei proceeded to flip the man around and feel for a pulse. "Huh, I don''t think¡­" Jingwei poked and prodded, and Xue Ning wanted to facepalm. "There''s nothing. I don''t feel anything."


    "Just check if he''s breathing, it''s a lot faster," Xue Ning said.


    "Good n," Jingwei said, cing his index finger in front of the man''s nose, the same way Xue Ning did before. They held their breaths as they waited¡­ and waited¡­ and waited.


    "Fuck." Jingwei eximed, exhaling tiredly. "He''s dead too. We need to get out of here."


    "What?" Xue Ning blinked in surprise. "Are we just going to leave them like this?"


    "Yes, because there''s nothing we can do for them." Jingwei sighed, and Xue Ning wondered at his callousness. "And darling, don''t re at me - you know it''s true! Unless you know how to get rid of dead bodies, we''re useless here. Instead, we''re just shedding our DNA all over this crime scene."


    Xue Ning bit her lip so hard that she felt her lip bleed. Jingwei wasn''t wrong, but¡­ he wasn''t right either.


    "Let''s go back to the house first okay? Maybe Auntie and Uncle will have more ideas. Or Ming Guang." Jingwei cajoled, tugging Xue Ning by the hand. His wife seemed to be frozen, either due to shock, fear or anger.


    "Right. You''re right." Xue Ning said woodenly as a realisation grew in her mind. Her father was now a murderer. Gods. But surely it must have been an ident, Xue Ning rationalised to herself. He was protecting Jingwei and himself, and Xue Ning would dly pick their safety over the lives of two random strangers.


    But still. They were dead. It was a sobering thought. She straightened herself and prepared to leave.


    "You''re right," Xue Ning said. "Someone needs to clean up - Oof!"

 Chapter 311 A Fingertip

    She had stepped onto something that made her slip slightly. The soles of her slippers were still damp with blood after all. Xue Ning pointed a shlight at the offending object, only to choke out a horrified gasp.


    Beside her, Jingwei let out a hastily muffled shriek.


    Illuminated by the shlight, was a severed fingertip covered in blood. Xue Ning bit her tongue in her attempt to stop herself from screaming in fear.


    "Fuck fuck fuck," Jingwei muttered frantically, his eyes focused on the severed body part. "Holy fuck. How did this happen? Where did this evene from?"


    "You didn''t know?" Xue Ning asked as she took a shaky step back. "Weren''t you here the whole time?"


    "No! I was annoying the first man as a form of interrogation." Jingwei said. "Your father was the one with them the whole time!"


    "Oh," Xue Ning said quietly. The puzzle pieces were falling into ce, and the picture they formed was damning indeed. "So. My loving father apparently hacked off this man''s finger. For no good reason!"


    Jingwei opened his mouth, wanting to defend him, but no words emerged.


    "See, you can''t even deny this!"


    "He might have had a good reason?" Jingwei tried anyway. "Maybe he was doing this to scare them!"


    Xue Ning scoffed. "If so, it definitely worked." It was scaring her already, and she wasn''t someone that got frightened easily. How did her father have the nerve to slice off a finger as a form of intimidation? That was just sheer ridiculousness! No normal person would think of doing that!


    "Or it could be your father''s finger all along."


    "It''s definitely not," Xue Ning had seen her father, and he was miraculously unharmed despite the blood on his clothes. Well, now she definitely knew how the blood got on him! "My dad was fine!"


    "Let''s go back anyway, if someone finds us here with the bodies, we''re done for!" Jingwei said, pulling her away from the two fallen. Xue Ning seemed to be warring with herself, her feet rooted determinedly to the floor.


    "Wait, I want to check something." Xue Ning reached into the pockets of the first man, feeling for something that could be useful.


    "What are you doing? Looking for souvenirs?" Jingwei asked curiously. Xue Ning rolled her eyes.


    "Of course not, I''m trying to see if they have a phone or some form of ID¡­ got it," she said, triumphantly digging out a phone from his back pocket, trying not to think of the fact that she was effectively robbing a corpse.


    She then did the same for the second man and pulled out his phone too. "Now we can go."


    "Good," Jingwei heaved a sigh of relief, holding her hand tight. Xue Ning would have found his sweaty palms funny, if not for the fact that her palms were equally sweaty. "Let''s go then."


    They made their way back to the house, now with two extra phones. When the house came into view, they realised there was one extra truck that wasn''t there before. Beside it, Li Tai Cheng and Li Tai Xuan were busy lifting one of the tied up men and putting him at the back of the truck.<sub> </sub>


    "Wow! Your father really did it!" Jingwei said, impressed.


    "Yes. He did." Xue Ning muttered quietly to herself, defeated. She wondered if she truly knew her father at all.


    "Hurry up and grab your things," her father said once he caught sight of them. But he faltered when he saw the wooden look in his daughter''s eyes. "What''s wrong? Did something happen?"


    "Dad. Can I talk to you for a second? Alone?" Xue Ning asked, barely keeping herself together.


    "Sure. Of course." Tai Cheng said, immediately feeling worried at the look of uncharacteristic sullenness on his daughter''s face. "We can go back into the house. Jingwei, help my son."


    He gave Sun Jingwei a warning look - did this man try to do something with his daughter that she didn''t like? Why else would she behave like this?


    Meanwhile, Jingwei only let out an awkwardugh at her father''s death re. It looked a lot more terrifying now that he knew it belonged to someone that could probably kill him in his sleep.


    "Yes Sir, I will!" Jingwei said, quickly helping Tai Xuan with one of the men. Tai Xuan red at him too, butpared to his father, he was as scary as a newly born cub. Jingwei only smiled sheepishly in response.


    "Bastard. This is all your fault. Now I have to leave my house¡­" Tai Xuanined as the both of them lifted Luo Lan to the back of the truck. To Jingwei''s surprise, there were multiple beady eyes staring at him, blinking warily.


    Baaa¡­baaaa¡­.baaa¡­


    "Oh my god," Jingwei''s smile widened in joy. It was like a petting zoo because there were sheep in the truck! This was the best thing ever!


    Unfortunately, he was the only one with that opinion. Wei Yan, Luo Lan and Zhong Qing all had various looks of dismay on their faces as they were forced to share an enclosed space with multiple curious sheep. They swarmed around them, their hooves delicately stomping all over their bodies as they sniffed them all over.


    "Go away, you bloody sheep!" Wei Yan cried out, trying to get away but only seeding to attract more of the sheep to him. He tried to stifle a sneeze as their woollen coats tickled his nose, but it was impossible.


    He sneezed, and was forcefully reminded that his nose was still broken as pain wracked through his nose and traversed down his spine. Tears welled up in his eyes, both from the stupid wool flying around and from the pain!


    "Sun Jingwei¡­" Wei Yan cursed fitfully as he continued to sneeze, "go to hell!"


    =====


    "Daughter, what''s the problem? Did Jingwei bully you? Tell your father, he''ll take care of it!" Tai Cheng dered, looking worriedly at Xue Ning.


    "Take care of it, how? Are you going to take care of it the same way you took care of the three men at the restaurant?" Xue Ning demanded, upset.

 Chapter 312 Reverse Interrogation

    "Xue Ning, what are you talking about?" Tai Cheng asked, concerned. "Why did you even go back to the restaurant? It could be dangerous!"


    "Dad, trust me, I''m not the one in danger! There are three dead men lying outside our restaurant!" Xue Ning shrieked. Technically, there was one man that was on his literalst breath, and by not calling the ambnce, Xue Ning doomed him to death.


    "Ah." Her father said, finally understanding why his daughter was panicking. It wasn''t every day that someone stumbled on a dead body, let alone three. "Don''t worry about it, it was an ident. Dad just overdid a little."


    "No fucking shit Dad!" Xue Ning eximed sarcastically. Before her father could scold her for foulnguage, she continued. "Did you know I nearly tripped over something? Can you guess what it was?"


    "A leaf?" Tai Cheng asked.


    "No! Dad, I stepped on someone''s severed finger!" She burst out. "Dad, if you killed someone by ident I could still understand, but how could you chop off their fingers?"


    Tai Cheng sighed wearily. "It was necessary. I needed to interrogate them, and this was the fastest, most effective way."


    "Sure," Xue Ning said, heaving in a deep breath. "Then Dad, my next question is how on earth did you know this? The interrogation, the sword skills, even stealing Mayor Poh''s fucking truck! That''s not something a normal person would know! And Mom too, Mom gouged out the eyes of two men - that''s not normal! Who are you really?"


    With every word, her voice grew louder. By the end of her tirade, her voice was loud enough to echo throughout the house, attracting her mother''s attention. Li Yue Niang walked to the living room, exchanging a worried nce with her husband.


    "If I told you that running a restaurant gave you such skills, you wouldn''t believe me, right?" Tai Cheng asked with a wan smile, suddenly looking decades older.


    "Of course not! I''m not that dumb! If all chefs could do this, there''d be murders during lunch hours." Xue Ning protested. "Tell me the truth!"


    "It''s a long story though." Yue Niang said.


    "Then you guys can sit down and tell me." Xue Ning said, crossing her arms.


    Tai Cheng sighed. What could he say? The room fell into an uneasy silence, and Xue Ning glowered.


    "How about you ask a question first, and we''ll try our best to answer?" Tai Cheng offered after the silence grew nigh unbearable.


    "I asked so many questions just now, you didn''t even answer one," Xue Ning grumbled to herself, before she looked back at her parents and asked. "Firstly, where did you learn those knife skills and interrogation tactics from?"


    "The knife skills were passed down from my mentor, the interrogation skills were honed with time," Tai Cheng said cagily. His daughter stared at him, unimpressed.


    "Dad, can you answer me seriously?" Xue Ning demanded. "Fine, maybe I should be asking better questions instead. Have you and Mom ever killed people outside of today? On purpose?"


    "...." Husband and wife stared at each other, and then the floor.


    There was an awkward pause, and Xue Ning crossed her arms, waiting expectantly for an answer.


    "Mom, Dad, it''s a very simple question with a very simple answer," Xue Ning said, feeling remarkably like their roles were reversed. She recalled her mother saying something simr when she found her sneaking fruit from the neighbour''s fruit trees.


    "Yes or no?"


    "Sometimes in life, you have to make tough decisions." Yue Niang said primly.


    "So I''m assuming the answer is yes," Xue Ning said, rubbing her temples. "Great. The both of you are assassins. Or mafia hitmen."


    "Xue Ning ah, it''s not as though we were trigger-happy serial killers," Yue Niang rified, deliberately not addressing her daughter''sst sentence.


    "We just had pretty rough lives before we settled down here! Sometimes, you need to do what you need to do to survive! And thankfully old habits die hard - if they didn''t, you''d be kidnapped now!"


    "I see¡­" Xue Ning said, her brow furrowing. She recalled their lives so far - it made sense that her parents weren''t born rich. They were clearly used to suffering.


    And it didn''t escape her notice that her parents didn''t deny the mafia hitmen usation.


    As she was deep in her thoughts, she missed the look of relief her parents shared. They didn''t want to tell their daughter the whole truth, but perhaps they could let her draw her own conclusions.


    "Besides, if we were cold-blooded murderers, why would I let Poh Jin Lian and her gang of merry harpies live for so long?" Yue Niang added. "I would have chopped them up and fed them to their own family members!"


    "Wife, please," Tai Cheng said, a pained look on his face. They were supposed to sound less murderous!<sub> </sub>


    "I''m just being honest," Yue Niang said, shrugging.


    "Then if both of you had these skills, why didn''t you just teach me when I wanted to learn? You wouldn''t need to waste the money on sending me to ss! Also, why didn''t you strike back at Poh Jin Lian years ago - you didn''t need to kill her, but you could have just beaten her up. Why suffer unduly?"


    "Our skills are not appropriate for children to learn. Kids should be kids. And we wanted you to make friends!" Tai Cheng said firmly.


    He was forced into rigorous training and had to master these skills as a child to survive - he would never put his own daughter through that sort of torment!


    "Xue Ning-ah, beating her up would just rain more trouble on our heads," Yue Niang added. "Not worth it. We moved here for a peaceful life!"


    They had to keep a low profile, lest Sun Haowei found out where they hid. Of course she had to hold her fists back. But with Sun Jingweiing into the picture, there was no point in staying hidden. She might as well borrow his status to get revenge!


    Xue Ning twitched. Her life here was peaceful, but it was by no means happy, thanks to all the terrible townspeople! With her parents'' personality, they logically should have done everything they could to ensure they weren''t bullied, but instead they just endured it silently.


    Something wasn''t adding up. This cowardly behaviour¡­


    "Who were you hiding from all these years?" Xue Ning demanded, and both parents froze, their eyes widening at the sudden question.


    "Hiding? What makes you think that?" Tai Cheng asked, but the words escaped too quickly from his mouth. Xue Ning narrowed her eyes.


    "You and Mom definitely were on the run from something. Or someone." Xue Ning insisted, her eyes lighting up with sudden realisation. "You were trying to keep a low profile to make sure someone didn''t find you, right?"


    "And this must have happened before - people invading your house, if not, why were the both of you so ready to just pack up and leave?" Xue Ning''s voice trailed off as everything started toe neatly together.


    The way they just epted the vitriol of the townspeople instead of moving somece else.


    The way they would rather suffer humiliation than pick a fight.


    They refused to let Xue Ning go to the big city, until she threatened to shave her head.


    Her father imed to know bigshotwyers for contract drafting.


    The way both parents insisted that she should never trust rich powerful men like Sun Jingwei.


    How her mother could shatter Poh Jin Lian''s wrist in a simple twist, and have enough strength to gouge out two eyeballs of fully grown men.


    How her father could gather incriminating information from their neighbours so easily.


    How her father could take down three men - no wait, five men, with only two knives.


    "Our daughter is really too smart," Tai Cheng mused to his wife. "Told you she would figure it out before she turned 30."


    "Nah. If she hadn''t met him, she wouldn''t have," Yue Niang pointed out, crossing her arms. "Aish, the one time she gets a boyfriend and he happens to be one of the biggest fishes in the ocean. What is this luck?"


    "Mom, I''m right here. I can hear you," Xue Ning said. "So I''m right?"


    "Sort of." Tai Cheng said, shrugging, giving Yue Niang a quick questioning look. Yue Niang nodded.


    He didn''t want to talk about his dramatic past as Sun Haowei''s bodyguard and friend, and how he identally ended up falling in love with Sun Haowei''s fiancee and how the both of them abandoned him when he asked for too much. And he definitely wasn''t going to bring up Yue Niang''s past if she didn''t want her daughter to know.


    Some things were better left unsaid.


    "But Dad has a favour to ask of you. Now that you know about this, please keep it a secret from your brother! If you''re taking it poorly enough, your brother might just lose his mind."


    "Got it," Xue Ning agreed, but then she frowned. "Wait - then is it safe for the both of you to go back to Shanghai? What if the person is still trying to get you?"


    "He wouldn''t," Yue Niang said, a strange little smile growing on her face. "Recently, we got the news that he''s hospitalised. He won''t be bothering us anytime soon."

 Chapter 313 The Power Of Love

    "Huh, that''s lucky," Xue Ning mused. There was a niggling feeling at the back of her mind, didn''t Sun Haowei also fall ill? Was he the man in question? But if he was, wouldn''t her parents just straight up tell her the truth?


    Then it must have been some other old man that croaked. Old rich coots were always gued with health problems thanks to their decadent lifestyles, it wouldn''t be surprising if more men croaked at the same time!


    Also, she wouldn''t be shocked if Sun Tianwei had made some of these men drop dead after his takeover. He was someone willing to get rid of hispetition at all cost.


    "Please don''t resent us," Tai Cheng pleaded. "Mom and Dad had our reasons to keep this a secret from you. We just wanted to lead a normal, peaceful life after all the upheaval we used to endure."


    How could Xue Ning hold onto her anger after that? She felt all the indignant rage leech from her at the beseeching look on her father''s face.


    "I don''t hate the both of you, but I don''t understand one thing," Xue Ning said. "How could we still be so poor to begin with if you worked for a rich man? And for such¡­ activities too? Was your past employer a cheapskate?"


    "Well, starting a restaurant does cost money, and one has to also save for retirement." Yue Niang said dryly. "Most importantly, raising children was more expensive than we realised. If we wanted to be rich, we would be childless."


    And it wasn''t as though Yue Niang could touch her inheritance; she lost all rights to it the moment she decided to run off with Li Tai Cheng instead of marrying Sun Haowei like her family wanted.


    As such, there was no point in telling her daughter that. Why bother bringing up the past when it wasn''t useful?


    "...Good point," Xue Ning said, deting. If her parents had sense, they should have aborted her the moment they got news of her presence. They already had a son, anything else (like Xue Ning) was an added expense. It was practically unheard of for families to have more than one child, especially if the first-born was a boy!


    Sure, her parents never said anything as cruel as that, but the townspeople never failed to make backhandedments to Xue Ning when she was old enough to understand the meaning behind sweetened words.


    ("Oh.. you have a younger daughter? You must really love children!"


    "You''re really keeping her? I see, I see, well, they say daughters are more filial anyway."


    "Girl, make sure to treat your parents well! They must really want you. Make sure you grow up and be beautiful! You need to marry rich!")


    Xue Ning blinked back the tears that threatened to form as she recalled past memories. She red hotly at the fluorescent light, willing it to burn all her tears away. Even if they were her parents, she still felt embarrassed to cry in front of them as an adult!


    Li Tai Cheng saw this and patted her head. His dear daughter was too stubborn for her own good.


    "We would still have chosen to have you, to keep you, no matter the cost." Tai Cheng said gently. "You and your brother are the greatest blessings we have received." Xue Ning''s lower lip wobbled at his words, and the tears she was trying so hard to keep at bay were now rolling down her cheeks.


    "Even if both of you did cause my blood pressure to skyrocket asionally." Her mother chimed in, wiping away her tears with her thumbs. "But then again, that''s part of having kids."


    "Mom¡­ Dad¡­" Xue Ning let out a garbled sound.<sub> </sub>


    "Stop crying already. What if your boyfriend sees this and thinks we''re scolding you?" Her motherined, a soft smile on her face. "That man would fight us on your behalf, and lose terribly. We''d beat the shit out of him!"


    "True." Xue Ning said, hastily wiping her ears on her shirt sleeve. Jingwei wasn''t a bad fighter, he had the strength of a healthy young man in his prime, but he wasn''t a match for her hitmen parents. She took a deep breath and collected herself.


    "I''m fine, I''m fine."


    "Good, now go and pack your things if necessary. We''re leaving as soon as Ming Guanges back with the luggages."


    ======


    "Xue Ning! Look! There are sheep!" Jingwei eximed the moment he saw Xue Ning emerge from the house with a duffle bag in her hand.


    "Oh I''ll get that for you," he said as he quickly took it from her, slinging it around his back in one easy motion. He took a closer look at her and saw her swollen eyes. "Is everything okay? How did the talk go?"


    "Well enough," Xue Ning shrugged. "I''m alright. And did you say something about sheep?"


    "You can see for yourself," Jingwei said cheerfully, "I''ll escort you."


    Xue Ning didn''t need an escort, but she let Jingwei help her up the truck, only to identally step on something soft when she was distracted by all the bleating around her.


    "Ouch!" A familiar voice screamed in pain, but it was muffled by the wool. "Save me!"


    "Sorry!" Xue Ning hastily moved away, wincing as she saw that she stepped on a human hand. She looked down, prepared to apologise, and met eyes with a sheep.


    Wait, that wasn''t right. The sheep stared up at her and bleated tively.


    "Get this damn sheep off me!" The voice yelled.


    "No, keep her on. Finally there''s a girl that likes you," Jingwei whistled cheerfully, escorting Xue Ning to a corner that was least congregated with the sheep. The other two kidnappers were also there, idly cuddling with the sheep.


    Which meant¡­


    "Is that Wei Yan under the sheep?" Xue Ning asked in surprise.


    "Yes. It was love at first sight for the sheep." Jingwei said cheerfully. "I couldn''t bear to break apart such a fervent love, so I''ve decided to help her achieve her dreams."

 Chapter 314 Finally Here

    "FUCK YOU SUN JINGWEI!" Wei Yan yelled, but the sheep was so fluffy that it absorbed all his screams. It shifted around his face, its hooves stepping all over his corbones and neck, causing him to wheeze. Finally he was going to be released from this suffering!


    He spoke too soon. The sheep merely found a morefortable position to settle into, much like a cat sleeping on its owner''s face. Now Wei Yan found his face next to its ass! He breathed in, gagging at the foul smell. Why didn''t his sense of smell vanish with his broken nose?


    Of course, everyone else didn''t understand how much Wei Yan was suffering. All they could hear was some muffled noises from under the sheep. Jingwei only slung an arm around Xue Ning and tucked her close to him,ughing at Wei Yan''s suffering.


    Meanwhile, Zhong Qing and Luo Lan saw this and vowed to never cross Sun Jingwei. He wasn''t a murderer, but he was way worse - he was someone who thrived off their humiliation and despair, all while still being hopelessly whipped for his wife!


    His other twopanions who were simrly tied up with bandages wrapped around their heads, thanks to their missing eyes, merely closed their one remaining eye. They pretended not to see, since they wanted to live long enough to receive medical care!


    In the meantime, Ming Guang arrived with the luggages. He took one look at his new mode of transport and sighed heavily. He was a respected bodyguard of a rich man. How did he end up riding with a herd of noisy smelly sheep?


    Nevertheless, he quickly made his way on the truck, stacking the luggages neatly in the corner that looked the least dirty, carefully trying to avoid the curious sheep that continued to dog his heels.


    At least he had the knife tofort him. It was the only thing keeping him sane at this point. As Ming Guang sat at Sun Jingwei''s other side, he held it tightly in his hands, nearly cradling it to his chest.


    "Ming Guang, give back my knife." Yue Niang demanded, knocking on the side of the truck. The herd of sheep startled and began bleating in protest. Ming Guang nearly joined them, before he remembered that he was a grown man, not a child throwing a tantrum.


    "Yes Madam." Ming Guang said reluctantly, handing it over. He looked wistfully at it as it left him, for Yue Niang tucked it back into her sheath before riding shotgun. Li Tai Cheng was of course the driver.


    "Wait, where''s my brother and sister-inw?" Xue Ning asked. They weren''t on the truck!


    "Oh, they''re taking Jingwei''s car to the airport." Her father replied cheerfully. "Xin Yu is allergic to wool."


    Wei Yan let out an outraged shriek at the news. Just great. There was a perfectly usable car, yet he was stuck on a truck? With a sheep''s ass in his face? Where was the justice!


    Unfortunately for him, no one gave a shit. Except the sheep, who nuzzled him lovingly.


    "Is everyonefortable? Got everything you need?" Tai Cheng asked. "We''re setting off now!"


    "Yes Sir!" Jingwei replied enthusiastically, holding Xue Ning''s hand. "We''re good to go!"<sub> </sub>


    "Alright," Tai Cheng smiled indulgently, and started the truck. It roared to life with a loud purr, and they began their slow steady drive to the airport. The countryside roads were bumpy, riddled with potholes that weren''t filled in due to theck of budget.


    "Wow this is fun!" Jingweimented after a series of intense bumps. Everyone else just stared at him like he was insane, their faces in varying shades of green thanks to motion sickness. "This is just like an amusement park ride!"


    "Please don''t talk." Xue Ning begged. "If you do, I''ll need to respond and I can''t talk right now. I want to vomit."


    Jingwei immediately kept quiet, but not without rubbing Xue Ning''s back in slow calming circles in a bid to soothe her nausea. His poor wife did look a bit too pale and sickly for her own good.


    (Part of him couldn''t help but think if Xue Ning was pregnant and suffered from morning sickness, wouldn''t she suffer like this too? Oh dear. He had to fund research to make sure he got the morning sickness instead.)


    Thankfully, things got better when they arrived at the main road. As there was little to no traffic, it was a breeze to drive through. No one was going to care about one pick-up truck filled with sheep. Xue Ning even fell asleep on Jingwei''s shoulder as the hours went on.


    While everyone dozed off, Xue Ning''s parents remained wide-eyed and alert. They didn''t want to be followed! Yue Niang held the phone of the operatives in her hand, wondering if she should stillunch the bait as per her initial n.


    "Don''t do it, wife," Tai Cheng advised, catching the look in her eyes. "We promised Captain Mu to listen to him this once."


    "Captain Mu, can''t believe this brat dared to tell you what to do," Yue Niang scoffed. "Technically you''re his senior."


    Tai Cheng shook his head, and they continued the drive in wary silence. The sky darkened further. They arrived at the airport just as the first of the sun''s rays illuminated the sky. Due to the early hour, there was no obstruction when the truck pulled into the empty airport runway, where Sun Jingwei''s retinue was already standing at attention.


    Captain Mu was waiting impatiently at the airport runway ready to escort Sun Jingwei and hispanions to his private ne, only to be utterly gobsmacked at the sight of a huge pickup truck stopping in front of him.


    Before he could demand it to be moved away, he heard a chorus of pleading bleats from inside.


    What on earth!


    "Hi Captain Mu!" Sun Jingwei greeted cheerfully as he helped his sleepy wife down from the truck. "Good morning! Can you guys help get our kidnappers from the truck? There are four of them in total."

 Chapter 315 On The Plane Back

    "...Good morning." Captain Mu muttered with a sigh. He waved to his equally disgruntled team, and they got to work, carrying the tied up bodies of the kidnappers down the truck and depositing them at his feet for his inspection.


    "Oh we''re here!" One of them woke up with a loud yawn, looking more like a child on a holiday than any hardened criminal. "Hi, do you mind getting us a doctor? We are kind of injured here¡­"


    Captain Mu raised an eyebrow as he looked them over - the one that spoke wasn''t that badly off, even if he did look a little pale. Hispanions with bandages around their heads hadn''t even stirred when carried.


    If he didn''t know any better, he''d think they were the poor victims instead!


    But of course he knew better. He raised his head, and met the slow, warning gaze of Li Yue Niang. He purposely kept himself calm, not willing to show the slightest hint of fear.


    "Captain Mu. Good on you for helping us." Li Yue Niang said.


    "It''s my job." Captain Mu replied evenly.


    "Speaking of jobs, catch!" Yue Niang threw the phone at him without warning. Captain Mu caught it with his ster reflexes as his entire team tensed, prepared for a threat that wasn''ting.


    "What''s this?" Captain Mu asked, looking at the phone in his hand.


    "You can start by tracing the contact from this phone so that we can get some progress on the way."


    "Fair enough," Captain Mu said, pocketing it. Meanwhile his men bristled at how their leader was spoken to by some woman from the countryside! The nerve of her to disrespect him after he came all this way for her!


    "Captain Mu, sorry for my Mom''s behaviour." Xue Ning said in embarrassment, watching as her mom stalked off to the ne without any need for an escort, as though this was her own ne. "She''s usually not this rude."


    "Really? I couldn''t tell." Captain Mu replied ndly. Xue Ning winced.


    "And here are two other phones from the rest of the kidnappers." She continued, handing them over.


    ? "The ones on the ne?"


    "No. These are from the dead ones." Xue Ning rified. "There were three of them. My dad took care of them."


    "...I see." Captain Mu said, his eyes darting to Li Tai Cheng who was trying to insist on carrying his own suitcase while the staff refused to let it go. He didn''t look like a man capable of such a feat, but stranger things have happened. "We''ll investigate it further. How are the rest of the men?"


    Captain Mu asked, raising his voice at the end to ensure that his team heard his question.


    "Sir, the two of them are shivering." His men reported. "There''s another one with a broken nose - he''s one of ours, Sir."


    Captain Mu reminded himself to cut off Wei Yan''s ess. He was now fired! As for the rest¡­


    "Very well, let the paramedics take a look at them first before they get on the ne. The rest of you, please quickly make your way to the ne. There will be breakfast provided. We''ll be departing shortly."


    "There''s breakfast? Thank you very much!" Xin Yu said enthusiastically. She looked quite well-rested for someone who just went for an impromptu road trip.<sub> </sub>


    However, her husband was another story altogether! Li Tai Xuan was nearly dead on his feet, yawning continuously behind his hand. He had not slept the whole night after all, since he was driving the whole way.


    "I don''t care about food now," Tai Xuan grumbled. "Let me on the ne. I want to sleep."


    With that, the entire party made their way to the ne. Xin Yu cheerfully dragged the body of her lethargic husband up the steps of the private ne, her excitement giving her increased energy. This was a once in a lifetime experience!


    Meanwhile, the staff trailed behind them, easily carrying their multiple luggages. Xin Yu dumped Tai Xuan on the first empty seat she could see, and her poor husband was so tired that he passed out immediately!


    Meanwhile, she marvelled at the luxurious ne interior. The leather seats were so soft! There was so much leg room! Even the tables were marbled!


    "Mom, Dad, isn''t this amazing?" Xin Yumented wonderingly, her hand stroking the smooth leather hand rest.


    "It''s alright," Yue Niang said, casting a wary look around, looking for hidden cameras. Xin Yu stared at her in confusion - how was her mother-inw so nonchnt about this? None of them had ever experienced such luxury!


    "It was very generous of Sun Jingwei to provide us a ride to Shanghai on such short notice," Tai Cheng said more diplomatically, to distract her. "Thank you once again, Jingwei."


    "No problem!" Jingwei said as he guided Xue Ning to her seat. "Do let the staff know if you need anything! I want a nice ss of wine."


    =====


    As the passengers (injured or otherwise) happily dug into their meal, a more sombre conversation was happening at the helm of the ne.


    "Captain Mu, we couldn''t find anything on Miss Li''s parents." A team member whispered to his captain. "Maybe if we had more time¡­"


    "When you say you can''t find anything, do you mean nothing useful?" Captain Mu demanded.


    "Yes Captain. We have birth records, school records, and work information, but when we take a closer look, we realise that all the information provided are ces that don''t exist." The member said, shaking his head. "The addresses don''t match anything given. It''s like someone just -"


    "Just made up many details to fake their identity." Captain Mu finished glumly. Thatplicated matters. He took a deep breath and wished that he could down a ss of wine. But s, he was on duty.


    "Yes Sir. Exactly," The other man nodded. "Do you wish to continue digging?"


    "Of course. But the main priority is still tracking the phone signal." Captain Mu said. "We need to see if it''s rted to him, or another random opportunistic bastard that wanted a ransom, or had a grudge to bear. The nned burning of the restaurant is highly irregr."


    "Yes Sir." The man nodded, preparing to leave, but Captain Mu stopped him with onest request.


    "Get Ming Guang toe here, I need to question him."


    "Yes Sir."

 Chapter 316 Background Digging

    "Sir, you called for me?" Ming Guang asked rhetorically, shuffling to the empty seat vacated by previous staff. He sat, straight-backed, ready for questioning.


    "I need all the information you have gathered from the past few days." Captain Mu said immediately, wasting no time with pleasantries. "And I''m not just talking about the kidnappers. I want every bit of information - especially about Miss Li''s parents."


    Captain Mu''s eyes subconsciously darted to Li Tai Cheng and Li Yue Niang, who were staring disapprovingly at Jingwei drinking wine in the morning, nagging him at how unhealthy it was.


    Jingwei then put down his ss shamefacedly, only for his beloved fiancee to take a swig, much to the despair of her parents.


    "Sir? You suspect they''re involved?" Ming Guang asked.


    "Who knows?" Captain Mu replied cryptically. "They definitely aren''t an ordinary civilian couple. If you believe this, I''ll have to demote you."


    "I know they are not regr civilians, but the worst thing they did to Jingwei was making him fix up their house." Ming Guang pointed out, feeling just a tad bit indignant on their behalf.


    They were a perfectly ordinary couple, if one ignored their tendencies to violently harm intruders - something Ming Guang could understand.


    "If her parents wanted to get rid of him, they''d simply push him into the path of a cow and let him be trampled. They didn''t murder him when they caught him and Miss Li having sex in her bedroom, I''d doubt they''ll kill him for anything else." He finished.


    There was a moment of stunned silence from Captain Mu, before he cleared his throat. "Fair enough, but we cannot have loose cannons. Their true identities must be ounted for to prevent future trouble, especially if they are going to be Sun family inws. Do you have anything you can tell me?"


    "They are by all means a perfectly ordinary couple. Mr Li has incredible skills at information gathering and Mrs Li has a very beautiful knife."


    "Excuse me?"


    The de and bnce were exquisite." Ming Guang confessed, as though he was a lovestruck girl penning initials into her notebook. Judging by the unimpressed look on his captain''s face, he hurriedly rushed to borate.


    "I mean," Ming Guang cleared his throat and recollected himself. "She handed me a knife for me to defend myself. It was clearly expensive, customised from the tip of the de to the handle."


    Captain Mu''s eyes shed in curiosity. "Tell me more."


    Ming Guang then continued to talk about how the knife was designed, and Captain Mu listened to him patiently enough even though he was half-rambling. Every man had their interests, and Ming Guang''s just happened to be customised weaponry.


    Besides, they had plenty of time and Ming Guang could have some information he didn''t realise was important.


    "And there was a diamond carving at the bottom of the knife." Ming Guang finished, and Captain Mu startled. Now this was important information that should have been mentioned from the very beginning!


    "Were they any words?"


    "No Captain. There were no words or initials, just the carving of a diamond. It could be an aesthetic choice." Ming Guang said, albeit dubiously. It was unlikely that Li Yue Niang would be a fan of diamonds; she didn''t seem to care much for frivolities like precious gems. But she could have admired their hardness and how unbreakable they were.


    "Or it could be a family crest." Captain Mu said, with more enthusiasm. "It will lead us to her previous employers. From your descriptions of the knife, it''s most likely a beloved gift, purposelymissioned for her to thank her for her service."


    "..." That was frighteningly likely, and Ming Guang was ashamed he had not thought of it first. "Her service, Captain?"<sub> </sub>


    "Once we find the family, we''ll know what she was hired for," Captain Mu said with cheerful finality. He had his own thoughts about what Li Yue Niang could be hired for, and it wasn''t anything as innocent as a housekeeper.


    "If necessary, we must remove her to secure the Sun family."


    ======


    "If you''re digging into my background, I would advise caution. Misfortune might befall you otherwise." Mrs Li said pleasantly, while they were both waiting for the same toilet on the ne.


    A private ne had many luxuries, but not more than one toilet cubicle, even if said toilet cubicle was veryrge and very well-furnished. After all, no one ever expected a private ne to suddenly fly so many people. It was supposed to be used for Sun family members, and there were only three of them from the main family.


    "I beg your pardon?" Captain Mu asked, equally pleasant even as he whirled around to face her. Li Yue Niang had a cid smile on her face and she repeated her earlier words, along with a cutting observation.


    "Your men were giving me odd looks throughout the flight. I''m a proud woman, but I know my body and looks wouldn''t be able to attract the attention of so many men. Even if my husband would disagree." Yue Niang said dryly.


    Captain Mu twitched, and he wanted to yell at his team for theirck of subtlety. Instead, what he said was "So you do admit there is something nefarious hidden in your past? Something that needed to be hidden under so many false details?"


    "Define nefarious," Yue Niang said, idly looking at her nails, a behaviour so casually dismissive that he sucked in a deep breath to calm himself down. Captain Mu had the strangest feeling he was talking to a recalcitrant heiress, rather than ady boss of a small-time restaurant.


    "You and your husband are not who you im to be," Captain Mu growled out. "I''ll find out the truth if it''s thest thing I do."


    The toilet door opened, and Li Tai Cheng blinked when two pairs of eyes turned to stare at him intensely.


    "Sorry I took so long," Tai Cheng apologised, mistaking the strange tension as disapproval. "You know I need a longer time to clear my bowels in the morning."


    "In that case, Captain Mu, after you," Li Yue Niang said with a handsome smile, waving him inside the toilet. Despite the foul smell, he persisted with an equally handsome smile of his own, refusing to let Li Yue Niang beat him in this.


    "Thank you for your generosity," Captain Mu said with gritted teeth. "I won''t forget this."


    He mmed the toilet door shut.


    "Now what was that about?" Tai Cheng asked his wife. "Why do you keep needling him on purpose? That poor man¡­"


    "That poor man wants to dig into our pasts." Yue Niang said pointedly, storming back to her seat, all need for a bathroom forgotten. "How do you expect me to let him off?''


    "That is his job." Tai Cheng said reasonably. "I would be surprised if he didn''t. That''s why we made those cover stories."


    "And he found out our cover stories were built on air." Yue Niang whispered hotly.


    ".... He is verypetent," was the only response Tai Cheng could give, not liking the way his stomach curdled at the thought. Oh dear. Now it seemed that he needed the bathroom again.

 Chapter 317 You’re Fired

    Thankfully, other than the realisation that Captain Mu might discover some unwanted truths in the near future, the flight was enjoyable, with minimal turbulence and interruption.


    They arrived at the airport and were whisked back through the VIP entrance, where security guards waved them through, raising an eyebrow at how the metal detectors red non-stop as member after member of the party walked through them.


    Even the middle-aged woman had a knife on her person, and their luggage was full of weapons tucked in between the clothes. But that wasn''t the weird thing, it was the slew of bandaged, bound men that had to hop through the metal detector since they couldn''t walk through it. Sun Jingwei''s guards caught them before they could fall.


    "Nice digs," Zhong Qing whistled appreciatively at the VIP service as he was held up. First the private ne, now the VIP entrance. He was treated better as a rich man''s prisoner than he was a poor man''s leader! "This is the first time I''ve been treated so well!"


    His otherpanions that had gone through the detector were also stunned and impressed, even if they were still wrapped like dumplings.


    "You guys are pathetic," Wei Yan scoffed as he watched these criminals gossip among themselves. These idiots were too easily taken in by wealth and privilege. They didn''t know Sun Jingwei was a bastard! He vowed to unmask Sun Jingwei''s fake kindness and let the world know about his real nature.


    Luo Lan turned to look at him and gave him a pitying look. "At least we''re not jobless. You had an iron rice bowl - a diamond rice bowl, and you still lost it."


    Wei Yan growled, ready to argue further, but the security guard told him that it was his turn at the detector. He wriggled and bounced through the metal detector, expecting someone to catch him on the other end.


    No one caught him, and hended on the floor with a loud thud!


    "What the fuck! Why didn''t anyone catch me!" Wei Yan demanded, as he red hotly up at the bodyguards, people that used to be his colleagues. His nose winced in pain.


    His soon-to-be-ex colleagues looked at one another in surprise.


    "I thought you were going to do it?"


    "No, I thought it was you."


    "It''s definitely not me."


    "Sorry Wei Yan," the first one apologised, hurriedly helping him up. "We all assumed someone else would catch you, since we weren''t specifically assigned to you."


    Wei Yan snarled. "You guys are the worst!"


    Before he could continue toin, Jingwei spoke.


    "Okay everyone got through! We can go back now! And Wei Yan, don''t forget, you''re still fired."


    The other bodyguards blinked, staring at Wei Yan in surprise. Captain Mu didn''t let the team know about Wei Yan''s issues or his termination, so this came as a shock to them.


    "You got fired? It''s only been a week!" Onemented, the corners of his lips moving upwards.


    "Didn''t you say you were going to do your best? How did this happen?" Another asked.


    "Congrattions, you''ve broken the team record. Fastest termination from a client," was the next deadpan response.


    The fact that the client was Sun Jingwei meant that Wei Yan would have a ck mark on his resume. Not only was he a ridiculously high profile client, he was also notoriously easy-going, bantering with staff and letting insults roll over him, like water on a duck''s feathers. He wasn''t like his anal-retentive older brother!


    Thanks to Sun Tianwei, Captain Mu''s face now boasted a pair of impressive dark eye circles. He was regrly driven up the wall by Sun Tianwei''s sky-high expectations and need for routine, rigour and respect, while Sun Jingwei never cared much for propriety.


    When he got assigned, Wei Yan even bragged to his cohort about how he got chosen for this mission because of his skills, and how it would propel his career to greater heights. He and Sun Jingwei were close in age and he fully expected for him to be Sun Jingwei''s bosom friend, so that his future would be bright.


    So how could Wei Yan get fired like this? What on earth did he do? Did he push Jingwei into a ditch? Dump itching powder all over his clothes? Try to fuck his wife?


    No matter what it was, it was a colossal fuckup!<sub> </sub>


    "Don''t worry, I''m not that much of a bastard to leave you with nothing. You''ll get your severance package." Jingwei continued, in a tone meant to beforting, but it pissed off Wei Yan even more.


    "Stop pretending to be a good samaritan, you asshole! How dare you fire me? I''ll quit instead!" Wei Yan yelled.


    "Fair enough, no severance package then," Jingwei shrugged. "Best wishes for your future!"


    "What? No wait - " Wei Yan began, trying to backtrack. He wanted - needed - the money for his future, since Sun Jingwei definitely wasn''t going to give him a ster referral after this debacle! "You can''t fire me!"


    "I just did. I admire your spine and dedication to cutting ties with me," Jingwei continued patiently. "Captain Mu, I trust you''ve already made the relevant preparations?"


    "Yes Sir. Wei Yan no longer has any ess to our ounts or security systems. We have also confiscated hispany phone."


    "In that case, it''s time to make him sign the NDAs. We''ll release him from the rope and send him on his way." Jingwei said cheerfully. "Everyone needs to fly the nest eventually."


    "That''s not how the idiom is used," Xue Ning scolded. She did feel bad that Wei Yan was getting the sack, but he had created so much trouble with Chun Fei and her parents, making it impossible to trust him.


    Wei Yan spluttered. He never thought Sun Jingwei was actually going to go through with it - this was the man that made decisions on impulse and changed his mind so easily! "Why are you so cruel, you bastard? And you, Miss Li, are you just going to let him act so heartless?"


    Xue Ning shrugged casually, even as she twitched at Wei Yan''s words. A leopard never changes its spots - this maniptive man wasn''t done yet! "Do you want to be heartless? Can''t say I disapprove."


    Jingwei stared at Xue Ning, and then at Wei Yan for one incredulous moment before throwing his head back. Peals of helplessughter escaped his throat, and everyone stared at him, wide-eyed in surprise.


    "HAHAHAHAHHA oh my goodness... old habits really die hard for you eh? Here you are, trying to make into the bad guy and manipting Xue Ning into helping you!" Jingwei eximed, pretending to wipe a tear from his eye.


    He then stared back at Wei Yan viciously, and Wei Yan suddenly held his breath at the sight. The puppy-ish delight from earlier faded, and he realised he forgot something pivotal - the man he taunted like a pet dog was actually a wolf!


    Just because it was obliging and kind, didn''t mean he was not dangerous.


    "I - " Wei Yan wanted to apologise, but Jingwei held up his hand.


    "I''ve heard enough. Not only has your attitude remained incorrigible, you''re still up to your old tricks! You refuse to take responsibility for your actions, ming everyone else for the consequences of your own actions. Even tying you up didn''t improve your attitude."


    "I cannot trust you to watch my back, and I have no need for a bodyguard I cannot trust." Jingwei dered with grim finality. "Captain Mu, make him sign the non-disclosure forms and send him on his way. I do not want to see him appear in front of me or my wife ever again!"


    "Yes Sir," Captain Mu said. He easily cut through the rope that bound him, and Wei Yan fell to the floor, feeling pins and needles all over his body as he regained some sort of feeling in his limbs.


    No one helped him up. While the bodyguards were a unit, no one was willing to offer aid to someone that was cast out from their circle. They didn''t want to attract Sun Jingwei''s negative attention!


    "Come on, get up." Ming Guang said. "Sign the form, and go home."


    "But my money! You''re really not giving me my severance? I''m going toin online!"


    "Should have thought about that before you mouthed off to Jingwei." Ming Guang muttered.


    "You''re evil! You made me say it! I won''t forgive you!"


    "You wanted to quit instead of getting fired. I''m just fulfilling yourst wish. But if you wish toin, I''ll see you in court. Shengli could do with an easy case," Jingwei replied with a raised eyebrow. Xue Ning found it unfairly hot.


    "You - "


    "Security, please escort this man to the exit," Jingwei ordered with cheerful finality. "I''m done with him."

 Chapter 318 Finally Alone?

    "You bastard!" Wei Yan howled, making a desperate lunge towards Jingwei, in a bid to rain punches on his face. Unfortunately for him, he forgot he was in the presence of several trained bodyguards that immediately stood in his way.


    PUNCH!


    It wasn''t any of these new guards that stopped him. The punch was thrown by Ming Guang, and it took him by such surprise that he could only stare wide-eyed up at his stony face, eyes swimming with hurt.


    "You punched me? Senior? Why?"


    "If you still can ask why, that means you haven''t learnt anything," Ming Guang said, staring back down at his junior prot¨¦g¨¦ in disappointment. He had tried so long to make excuses for him, but he realised that it was futile.


    Wei Yan was simply not fit for the job - no bodyguard would lose control so easily and strike at his employer, especially not when the fault was his own.


    Now, he couldn''t help but recall what the captured kidnappers said about him, about how he was trying to sell them out just so he could be free and get his revenge.


    "I have failed as a Senior." Ming Guang said hollowly to himself, moving aside as security guards rushed to the scene, pulling Wei Yan away by his arms. Wei Yan struggled hotly, but he couldn''tpete with the guards.


    "Bastard! I swear! I''ll get you for this!" Wei Yan eximed. Jingwei shot him a cheerful thumbs-up and waved goodbye, incensing him further. As he got dragged away, his figure steadily became smaller, and his voice got fainter, until it vanished entirely.


    "Ah, finally that''s settled," Jingwei said, stretching his shoulders. He saw Ming Guang''s unhappiness and patted him on his back consolingly. "Don''t feel too bad for him. You did all you could. And I was joking about not giving him his severance pay!"


    "Thanks Mr Sun," Ming Guang said with a heavy sigh. "I just¡­ never thought¡­he was a good kid. I don''t know what went wrong."


    Meanwhile, Luo Lan and Zhong Qing exchanged determined nces. A shining, golden thigh was right in front of them - they vowed to make themselves useful to Sun Jingwei. This man was so kind to even reward a traitor after firing him!


    Captain Mu cleared his throat, attracting everyone''s attention. "It''s time for us to make our way back. I''m sure your brother is looking forward to seeing you. He was very worried when I ryed the news of your attempted kidnapping."


    "I''m sure," Jingwei said, with the slightest tinge of doubt. He received no calls from Tianwei, not even a frantic ''HOW ARE YOU'' text. "But how are things back home?"


    "I''ll update you when we get back," Captain Mu said vaguely, not wanting to air out the Sun family''s private business in front of so many prying ears, especially not in front of Li Xue Ning''s parents.


    "Fair enough," Jingwei said, looping his arm around Xue Ning''s back. "Let''s go then!"


    The party was then ushered into multiple cars and driven back to the estate. Xue Ning found herself split up with the rest of her family - she and Jingwei got into the first car, and the rest of them got into the second one. Captain Mu strangely enough, decided to follow her parents.


    "Does Captain Mu have something against my Mom and Dad?" Xue Ning asked, wonderingly. "He keeps staring at them like they''re criminals."


    "Nah, that''s just his default face." Jingwei said reassuringly. "He''s paranoid about everything, which is why he''s so good at his job."


    Of course, Jingwei didn''t know that Captain Mu was suspecting her parents of criminal activity. In his mind, Captain Mu was being the best wingman! He must have known that he wanted to be alone with Xue Ning, without the rest of her family staring at them both.


    Even on the ne, Jingwei was on his best behaviour. If circumstances were happier, he would be dly introducing Xue Ning to the mile high club, but heforted himself with the thought that there would be more chances in future when they travelled alone.


    It was very hard to be touchy and affectionate with Xue Ning when the elders were giving him judgemental looks, and now that Jingwei knew how good they were at beating shit out of people, he was just a bit more hesitant to shamelessly paw Xue Ning in front of her family.


    Now they were finally alone, with Ming Guang and the driver in front.<sub> </sub>


    "What''s with that look in your eyes?" Xue Ning asked warily, pinching his cheek. "You look like a pervert."


    "Me?" Jingwei protested. "No, this is my normal face."


    Xue Ning snorted. "So you normally look like a pervert?"


    "Well, since I already look like a pervert, I might as well¡­" Jingwei smirked and proceeded to pull her onto hisp, raining soft kisses all over her face.


    Xue Ning squeaked and spluttered in surprise. "There are people here!"


    She was of course referring to the driver and Ming Guang. Xue Ning made the bare minimum protest because someone had to have somemon sense and propriety, and that person definitely wasn''t Jingwei.


    "The drive to the mansion will take an hour," Ming Guang stated, catching Jingwei''s knowing look in the rearview mirror, before promptly pressing a button; a divider rolled up, giving the two of them some privacy.


    "There, now they are gone," Jingwei said winningly, a hand drifting to her neck to pull her down into a deep kiss. Xue Ning let out a soft, pleased, hum for she didn''t want to make so much noise.


    "Keeping quiet on purpose?" Jingwei asked, squeezing her round buttocks. Xue Ning gasped and squirmed; his hands began to reach under her shorts, stroking her skin.


    "They can hear us," Xue Ning whispered hotly, tweaking his nose. She didn''t know whether she wanted to pull away from him or grind her ass harder into his hands.


    Jingwei made the decision for her anyway, by moving his hands upwards, they stroked the soft skin of her back and teasingly yed with her bra straps under her T-shirt, purposely not touching her breasts.


    Xue Ning whimpered, her voice barely louder than before.


    "If you care so much about their opinions, clearly I''m not doing enough. It really hurts my feelings," Jingwei said, his voice low and seductive in her ears. He followed up with a yful nip, his hands finally reaching under her bra cups to fondle her breasts.


    "Then you should do better," Xue Ning retorted, sniffing primly. "I''m not going to make noise for noth -"


    The end of her statement was a startled meep as Jingwei easily changed their positions, so that Xue Ning was nowying down on the spacious backseat of the car, staring up at Jingwei''s handsome face as he gazed down at her.


    Jingwei''s eyes shed with a challenge.


    "I''ll show you better," a wicked grin apanied his statement, before his lips descended on hers.


    =====


    In front of the car, two pairs of ears could still hear the muffled moans. The chauffeur decided to increase the volume on the radio to drown it out, but Sun Jingwei seemed to make it a personal mission to defeat the radio DJ in volume.


    "Does this always happen?" The chauffeur asked wearily.


    "You have no idea," Ming Guang grumbled.

 Chapter 319 Wei Yan Gets A New Job

    Wei Yan stormed through the airport, with visitors and staff alike giving him a wide berth at the thunderous look on his face. Those that were brave enough to wrinkle their noses at the smell of sheep dung radiating off his body were given an angry middle finger.


    He walked through the ss doors of the airport. He took in a deep breath - the morning air was supposed to be calming, but all he felt was anger and confusion. He tugged his hair painfully.


    Fuck! Now Sun Jingwei had fired him with no severance pay, how was he supposed to make his way back home with no money and no phone? He was such a bastard!


    Captain Mu wasn''t much better, he had taken back Wei Yan''s work handphone, iming it was apany expense. Wei Yan had his own personal phone, but it was still sitting prettily at home. Why would he bring it along on a work trip?


    So now here he was, stranded at the airport with only a few coins in his back pocket, a nose that continued to ache, and his body smelled vaguely of sheep shit.


    More people, well-dressed travellers with their shiny luggages, saw him blocking the entrance of the airport and pointedly rolled their luggages away, not wanting to meet eyes with this lunatic covered in wool. It was a bad omen for any traveller!


    "Ah girl, don''t go so near the scary man." One mother whispered in a voice loud enough for him to hear, pulling away her child from his path.


    "He smells weird. Why?" Her daughter eximed loudly, and the mother shushed her frantically, not liking the deranged look in the strange man''s eyes.


    "This is what happens when you don''t study hard," Another passenger said. This time, it was a father who pointed to Wei Yan and told his son, "If you don''t study, your girlfriend will dump you at the airport and you can only cry on your own."


    Wei Yan whirled around, snapping at him angrily. "Shut up! I wasn''t dumped!"


    The man backed up, pulling his son away. "See, now he''s a liar too. Look at those tears in your eyes! If you weren''t dumped, I''d eat my hat."


    "What happened to his nose?" The young son next to the man asked, pointing at Wei Yan''s face. "Mister, your nose looks red and round. Are you a clown?"


    A chorus of hastily stifled giggles met his statement. Wei Yan turned and red at all those curious onlookers, who quickly did their best to pretend they weren''t staring at him. The airport was dull in the morning after all, and Wei Yan was now unwilling entertainment for the masses.


    He could even see some people filming his humiliation on their phones, and he waved an angry arm at them, trying to get them to stop with limited sess.


    "I''m not a clown," he spat out, upset. Tears welled in his eyes against his will. How had he fallen so low? "Go find someone else to mock or I''ll beat you up!"


    With a final snarl, he harshly shoved the boy and his father out of the way, causing the boy to fall to the floor in a surprised heap.


    "Oi! How can you shove my son!" The man yelled, nearly shaking with indignant rage. "You''re bullying a child!"


    "I''ll bully you if you don''t shut up!" Wei Yan yelled back, rolling his shoulders. He wanted - no, needed to beat someone up as an outlet for his rage. He stalked threateningly towards the man, who frantically stepped back. He pulled his son behind him protectively.


    "Hey! What do you want! Don''t you dare hit me!" He yelled, but he eyed Wei Yan''s clenched fists with a wary look of fear. "I''ll call the police to arrest you!"


    "Call them then!" Wei Yan dered hotly, lunging straight at the man, grabbing his cor to shake him. "I''m not scared of you!"


    The young boy began to scream for help, and onlookers gasped and shuddered as the two men began to tussle for dominance, rolling on the floor like wild dogs fighting for scraps of meat. Wei Yan mmed his fist into the man''s nose and mouth, causing him to scream in pain even as he got kicked in the ribs.


    Eventually, themotion attracted the attention of the security guards who pried them apart.<sub> </sub>


    "I''ll have you arrested!" The man screamed at Wei Yan, who onlyughed like a madman.


    "Bring it, motherfucker!" Now his nose matched Wei Yan''s, and that thought kept Wei Yan amused even when the policemen cuffed him and brought him to the station. Since Wei Yan had no way out of the airport, this was actually a blessing in disguise, because now he got a free ride back to Shanghai.


    "Seriously, kids these days..." The policeman muttered as he entered Wei Yan''s case into the database. "What''s your name?"


    Wei Yan kept his mouth quiet.


    ? "Kid, can you please cooperate?" The officermented. "I just need a name."


    "Sun Jingwei."


    "Har har har," the officer stared at him, unamused. "If you''re going to behave like this, you''re staying longer in custody. Now, your name."


    "...Zhang Wei Yan." Wei Yan muttered bitterly in response.


    "Thank you, was that so hard?" The officer asked rhetorically. "Now let me see if that''s your real name."


    A quick search showed that yes, the cheerful man in the photo did match the surly man in real life. "You work in security, and yet you were causing a public disturbance?" The officermented in confusion.


    Wei Yan red mulishly back at him. "I''ve been fired."


    "Ah. Sorry to hear that." The officer said sympathetically. "Do you have anyone to call to pay your bail?"


    "...No." Wei Yan thought about it, and he realised that there was no one he could ask for help, and he refused to let his ageing mother know about this.


    "Then you''ll have to make yourselffortable then." The officer said consolingly, and that was that. Wei Yan was ushered to a holding cell and given a bun to eat by the officer who took pity on his rumbling stomach.


    He expected to be left alone and forgotten for weeks, but to his surprise, there was someone who came for him the very next day, paying for his bail with no questions asked. Wei Yan was hence released, with strict instructions to not get into any more fights with random people.


    "Who are you?" Wei Yan narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the new man. He hadn''t seen him before, and he didn''t believe that there were people who would be willing to help him for nothing.


    "I''m Zhou Zhi, nice to meet you," the man said politely, offering him a hand to shake.


    "Okay... and why are you helping me?" Wei Yan asked.


    "I heard you''re out of a job. I have a job offer for you." Zhou Zhi said. "And best of all, you''ll be able to get revenge against someone you hate. Are you interested?"


    Wei Yan''s ears perked up, but he forced himself to remain calm. One shouldn''t seem too forward. "Can you tell me more?"


    Zhou Zhi smiled. "I will, but first things first - I''ll bring you to see a doctor. That nose of yours needs medical attention."

 Chapter 320 Returning To The Mansion

    Meanwhile, back in another car¡­


    "Captain Mu, is there something on my face?" Tai Cheng asked curiously. "You''ve been looking at me through the rearview mirror the whole time."


    "Maybe he thinks you''re handsome," Yue Niang said, elbowing her husband yfully, before addressing Captain Mu, half-warning him. "At least buy my husband dinner first!"


    Captain Mu tried very hard not to roll his eyes. He failed.


    "I assure you, I''m not into your husband. No offence." He said dryly.


    "Good, I''d hate for you to get into an ident." Yue Niang said unblinkingly, while the poor chauffeur casted him a worried nce and shifted anxiously in his seats, as though expecting Li Yue Niang to run him through where Captain Mu sat.


    Captain Mu wanted to tell him not to worry, but there was a part of him that wanted her to stab him, just so he could get a closer look at the knife Ming Guang was talking about. Judging by how sharp it was after decades of disuse, Li Yue Niang would have kept it on her person, instead of chucking it in her luggage.


    He met her knowing gaze in the rearview mirror. Li Yue Niang smiled, showing all her teeth. His eyebrow twitched.


    Li Tai Chengughed awkwardly. "Hahahaha wife, you''re such a joker! Don''t take it to heart Captain Mu. I''m looking forward to us being friends. I''m sure we''ll get along handsomely."


    "Likewise." Captain Mu nodded, but privately thought that man was delusional.


    The rest of the ride continued in an easy silence, until the car turned into the familiar road that led to the Sun family mansion. The couple at the back began to whisper to themselves, and Captain Mu strained his ears, trying to eavesdrop, but he could only make out a few words.


    "Never change¡­


    "Road¡­ new bush¡­"


    "So gaudy¡­"


    "Running¡­"


    Captain Mu frowned. Yue Niang caught him eavesdropping and deliberately whispered in a louder volume, catching his eyes in the mirror. "This is such a waste of taxpayers money. I''m going to bomb it."


    The chauffeur gasped and swerved in surprise at the sudden threat, his ears hyper-sensitive to such an explosive word!


    Tai Cheng and Yue Niang were then flung to the side - they would have hit the side of the car if not for their seatbelts.


    "Oh, so you were listening too?" Yue Niang asked casually, not affected by the sudden turn at all. "Eavesdropping is not good."


    "Neither is bombing a private road," Captain Mu retorted instinctively. "I should have you arrested for making threats."


    Tai Cheng sensed the rising tension and grabbed his wife''s arm, willing her to keep quiet. His wife was alreadybative and argumentative to begin with, and now she was getting increasingly antsy as they were nearing the Sun family mansion. He could understand why she would make all sorts of inmmatoryments, but this wasn''t the right decision!


    He couldn''t support antagonising Captain Mu, especially if he was in charge of Sun Jingwei and his daughter''s safety.


    Yue Niang wanted to argue further, but at her husband''s touch and the minute shake of his head, she fell quiet. She settled for scowling at the back of Captain Mu''s head instead, shooting daggers at his head with her eyes.


    So it was up to Li Tai Cheng to diffuse the rising tension. Heughed cheerfully, as though he was oblivious to the awkwardness and hostilities.


    "Hahahah Captain Mu, don''t take my wife''s words to heart, but you know what makes great bomb?"


    Captain Mu''s eye twitched. Was this man going to discuss demolition tools and chemistry now? Was he going to unt his knowledge on bombs and challenge him on it? Fine, Captain Mu would indulge his foolishness just this once.


    "Nitroglycerine." Captain Mu replied stonily.


    "My cooking!" Li Tai Cheng eximed at the same time.


    There was now another awkward silence, before it was broken by a hastily stifled snort from Li Yue Niang and the chauffeur. Captain Mu''s face coloured as he realised what Li Tai Cheng was trying to do.


    Meanwhile Tai Cheng pretended not to notice the man''s embarrassment. He continued to ramble.<sub> </sub>


    "Captain Mu, I''ll cook you such a good meal, you''ll feel like a vour bomb just went off in your mouth! Do you like noodles? Even if you don''t, I''ll make you like mine. By the way¡­"


    "It''s fine," Captain Mu said, cutting him off. He had a feeling he was talking to Jingwei.


    Gods. A horrifying realisation entered his mind. Sun Jingwei was going to grow up and be this rambling chef and devoted husband. He even had the murderous sarcastic wife locked down for the future. They would marry and produce even more murderous chatty children.


    Captain Mu internally shuddered, vowing to retire before this futurees true.


    =====


    The car turned into a frighteningly nostalgic road, and Yue Niang sucked in a deep breath, willing herself to calm down. The iron-wrought gates loomed ominously ahead, casting familiar shadows over the grounds.


    "Yes. It''s me, Captain Mu. Team Alpha is returning." Captain Mu spoke to the inte.


    "Yes Sir. Gate opening now." An answering voice replied, and the iron gates swung open with a mighty swing. Yue Niang could almost imagine the metallic shriek caused by the old rusty hinges, but she noted they must have been reced a long time ago.


    Sun Haowei would never have allowed for broken things on his grounds. The car drove inwards. Yue Niang eyed the plethora of rose bushes lining the pathway and sighed, knowing that Bi Yu must have been responsible for their existence. She was always fond of gardening and flowers.


    "It''s been a while," her husband murmured, with the slightest hint of mncholy. "I''m surprised the roses are still here. Do you think he still¡­" He trailed off hopefully, but Yue Niang could fill in the gaps.


    "He didn''t do anything. It''s the gardeners'' work." Yue Niang grumbled quietly. Her palms were getting increasingly sweaty as the car drove through the winding, scenic path, finally turning past the ornate fountain she once spat in.


    She was surprised it was still there - knowing Sun Haowei''s personality, she expected him to have it demolished after she shoved him inside it, causing him to catch a terrible cold.


    "What a waste of water," Yue Niangmented to herself and the car arrived in front of the tall imposing doors of the Sun family. Household staff were already waiting by the side, their heads bowed in respect.


    Yue Niang''s heart thudded anxiously in her chest. What if someone from them recognised her from before?


    After all, she was a frequent visitor two decades ago. In fact, she often strolled up to the door and demanded to be let in. If Sun Haowei refused, she would have just climbed a tree and crawled in through a window.


    If there was any household staff from back then, they''d definitely remember her! Unlike her, Tai Cheng back then was a lot more lowkey, blending into the staff like a cog in a machine.


    Yue Niang consoled herself with the thought that perhaps no one would recognize her, even if they remembered her past acts. After all, she didn''t look much like her younger self. Decades have passed without expensive skincare; now she just looked like a regr middle-aged woman from the countryside.


    What''s more, surely the older servants would have retired by now! Yes. She had to stop overreacting.


    "Is your household staff very free?" Yue Niang asked. "They don''t need to wait for us - I can spot at least 30 windows that need cleaning!"


    ''Please don''t wait.'' Yue Niang hoped internally. Maybe the undone chores will remind them of their actual jobs! She wanted this crowd to disperse.


    "An astute observation on the windows," Captain Mu said, in a tone so dry that he could have rivalled the Sahara desert. "But you missed the forest for the trees - they''re not here for you. They''re waiting here for Sun Jingwei and your daughter."


    "Xue Ning?" Li Tai Cheng asked, confused.


    "Do you have another daughter?" Captain Mu rolled his eyes. "With Old Master Sun hospitalized and Young Master Tianwei still single, she''s as good as the newdy of the house now."


    "Oh my god," Tai Cheng eximed faintly, slumping against the leather seat in disbelief. He had known, had remembered, much of the Sun family''s wealth, but time had dulled his recollections, making him believe that he could have been exaggerating things.


    But as he eyed all 100 rooms of the imposing mansion looming ahead, his mouth could barely form words.


    "My daughter is a homeowner," he muttered incredulously. "She''s ady of the house. Wife, are you listening to this? I can''t believe this! What an honour!"


    "I am," Yue Niang said with less awe. She knew better than anyone what this meant - and it was less of an honour and more of a job, more of a prison. It wasn''t anything good.


    "She''ll hate it."

 Chapter 321 Re-Meeting Lady Yu

    "We''re here, Lady Yu," Captain Mu said, cutting Yue Niang''s stream of thought. They got out of the car, Yue Niang purposely dragging her feet in the hopes that the crowd of servants would disperse. Of course, they didn''t.


    "Wee to our mansion," Lady Yu began to greet their new guests, determined to keep a straight face. Once she had gotten news of Li Xue Ning''s parents visiting the mansion, she had nearly flown herself into a panic, trying to make everything perfect - but not for the reasons her staff expected.


    Yue Niang, her beloveddy and friend, was finally returning. She hadn''t seen her for decades, and the sight of Li Yue Niang, d in a simple T-shirt and jeans, was enough to overwhelm her to the point of tears. But Lady Yu had her pride, she wasn''t going to cry in front of her colleagues and juniors! That would damage her reputation among the household staff.


    So Lady Yu hurriedly bowed to hide her tears, much to the confusion of the staff.


    "We''re very d to host you," Lady Yu said, her voice choking up from the emotion. She used the chance to quickly blink away the tears that fell from her eyes. "Please,e in."


    If Lady Yu was surprised, it was nothingpared to the emotion Yue Niang felt when her eyes registered Lady Yu - or should she say, Yu Ming Yan, the girl that used to be her attendant, practically her younger sister!


    "You¡­" Yue Niang choked out as she gazed at Lady Yu disbelievingly. "How¡­ you''re still here¡­"


    Captain Mu''s head swivelled between the both of them, an inquisitive look on his face.


    "Do you know each other?"


    Yue Niang caught it and collected herself, pushing down all the emotions threatening to bubble to the surface. This wasn''t the time to lose control.


    "No. I was mistaken. I thought she was someone I knew." Yue Niang said shakily. "Apologies for the scare."


    Multiple desires warred inside her, but the two strongest ones were the urge to grab Lady Yu and hug her tight, and then she wanted to grab her by the cor of her stupid maid outfit and shake her harshly.


    Why was she still here, living and working in this shitty ce under the thumb of Sun Haowei?


    She should have left the ce and looked for happiness elsewhere!


    "It''s no problem." Lady Yu said, getting the hint. Her olddy clearly wanted their rtionship to remain a secret. "Please enter, we have prepared your rooms for you."


    However, ignoring herments was easier than done. Lady Yu''s throat felt tight with unshed tears. She did her best to pretend that they were nothing more than strangers, reminding herself that by now, they have spent more time apart than they have together.


    The years apart had swallowed them whole and spit them out as two different people. Lady Yu could still recognize Yue Niang''s face, but there was no guarantee she would still get along with the woman in front of her.


    She had to remind herself of that, even if her heart thought otherwise. "It''s this way."


    "Why are you leading her first?" Captain Mu asked, confused at the change in protocol. Now he was even more suspicious, his eyes narrowed as he nced at Li Yue Niang and Lady Yu.


    "We should wait for Young Master Sun and the rest to arrive first. Their cars are turning up the bend."


    And it was. So Lady Yu was forced to stand there, hastily blinking back tears and sniffling hard, as though she had caught a sudden cold. Yue Niang had to grab her husband to upy her hands so that she wouldn''t lunge for her.


    Tai Cheng''s eyes widened in surprise as he realised who Lady Yu was, but he remained calm. They stood together in quiet silence, and it was only broken when Sun Jingwei and their daughter stumbled out of the car.


    "Oh, you didn''t have to wait for us!" Jingwei beamed, stered to their daughter as though they were attached at the hip. Both parents eyed his messy hair and mussed T-shirt, and his pants that weren''t even buttoned at the top.


    Their eyes then scanned their daughter, who looked simrly dishevelled, with equally messy hair and reddened swollen lips. At least she was still dressed!


    Kids these days. "I see you were busy in the car," Yue Niang couldn''t help but point out, and the both of them sprung apart guiltily.


    "Nothing happened," Xue Ning lied, deciding to turn the tables. "Mom, are you sick? Your nose is red."


    "Lady Yu! You''re also not looking too good." Jingweimented worriedly. "In fact, you look like you want to cry - "


    "Ah now that we''re all here, can we go in?" Tai Cheng interrupted, pping his hands cheerfully. His son and daughter-inw had also finally arrived, their face shocked at the ostentatious wealth in front of their eyes. "My old bones are tired¡­ would kill for a good rest."


    "Of course!" Lady Yu agreed, pouncing on the out. She immediately strode forward, showing him the way as the party followed behind her, quickly wiping her eyes with her fingertips. "I have prepared rooms for all of you."<sub> </sub>


    "This is better than a hotel," Xin Yu marvelled as she admired the plush carpets and borate chandeliers.


    "Of course, it''s free." Her husband said, begrudgingly impressed.


    While they continued to ''oooh'' and ''ahhh'' over the house, Xue Ning was frowning. She couldn''t say that she knew Lady Yu well enough to know that she wasn''t acting normal, but she definitely knew her Mom well enough to know that she was hiding something from her!


    That didn''t sit well with her. Thest time her mom hid something from her, she gouged out two eyes. Xue Ning frowned. Could Lady Yu have known her mom from before? Did she work with her mom?


    "What are you thinking about?" Jingwei murmured in her ear.


    "How long has Lady Yu been working here?" She asked quietly, watching Lady Yu guide her family to the guest rooms with an indecipherable expression on her face.


    "Forever. I think she was here even before my brother was born." Jingwei said. "Why?"


    Xue Ning tugged him closer, because she didn''t want to be overheard. The butterflies in Jingwei''s stomach fluttered at their proximity - his brother would have found him pathetic, since he and Xue Ning were just making out like horny teenagers in the back of the car - but Jingwei''s heart still continued to race at Xue Ning''s presence.


    "... - Are you listening to me?" Xue Ning asked.


    "What?" Jingwei was startled. "Sorry, I was distracted."


    "By what?" Xue Ning scolded, exasperated. "Pay attention to me!"


    "I always pay attention to you," Jingwei protested. There were faint coughing noises from around them, and they looked around to find staff and family members staring at them with various levels of glee and disgust.


    Xue Ning dragged him away by the hand, back to Jingwei''s room. Jingwei waggled his eyebrows at her, his hands on her waist. "So you want to continue where we left off?"


    She smacked his chest. "Not now. I just needed some privacy. Can you do me a favour?"


    "For you, anything." Jingwei replied, even if he was slightly disappointed at theck of kissing.


    "I need you to help me find out if Lady Yu knew my mother from before."


    "You think they''re old friends?" Jingwei raised his eyebrow. "That''ll exin why Lady Yu looks like wants to cry."


    "Don''t you think it''s weird?" Xue Ning said. "My mom''s eyes and nose were also red. She was fine in the morning!"


    "I understand. I''ll do my best," Jingwei said, stroking her back. "But why wouldn''t your Mom just tell you if they were old friends?"


    "Exactly. It''s weird," Xue Ning said. "She already told me she and Dad worked for a rich man before, so why can''t she tell me they know each other?"


    "If they do know each other," Jingwei cautioned. "Who knows? Maybe they were just allergic to the same thing."


    Xue Ning gave him a highly unimpressed look. He pecked her pursed lips adoringly.


    "Alright alright. I admit that''s unlikely. But I''ll help you find out if Lady Yu knows your Mom." Jingwei assured her, kissing her again. "Now, do you want to take a quick shower?"


    "Are you trying to say I stink?" Xue Ning wondered, before taking an experimental sniff at herself and wincing. "Okay, you''re right."


    "Mind if I join you?" Jingwei asked hopefully. They had a fun ride back to the mansion, but they couldn''t do anything too¡­ in-depth due to theck of protection, a fact that Xue Ning was less than happy about when she found out.


    "Hmph. Do what you like," Xue Ning said loftily, hiding a smile as she turned around, walking to the bathroom.


    Jingwei''s lips bloomed into a smile as he observed the sway of Xue Ning''s hips as she walked away. She didn''t say no!

 Chapter 322 [Bonus Chapter] Baby-Making By Accident

    Xue Ning smirked as she heard Jingwei''s eager footsteps behind her. She purposely stretched her arms and then slowly pulled at the hem of her shirt, before lifting it up and tossing it behind her nonchntly.


    It fell on Jingwei''s body with a soft thud, and there was a sharp intake of breath behind her. Jingwei immediately pounced from behind, a hand wrapped around her dirty shirt as he lifted her up in his arms. Xue Ning shrieked in surprise.


    "You little minx," Jingwei scolded cheerfully, swinging her around as he brought her to the shower. "Naughty girl, trying to seduce me like this -"


    "What are you going to do? Punish me?" Xue Ning taunted, even as heat began to grow in her belly and between her legs. She wasn''t satisfied with what happened in the car.


    Jingwei''s eyes darkened at her words, and a wicked glint formed in his eyes. His mind was already whirling with possible punishments for her. "You asked for this."


    He carried her to the shower area and put her back on the floor, but not without brushing his fingers between the warm spot between her legs. Xue Ning squirmed as she felt his thicker fingers rub knowingly against her clit through the fabric, but then he pulled her fingers quickly away.


    "On your knees darling." He ordered, his hands going to Xue Ning''s chin, tilting it up so that she met his eyes. They wrapped her with a loving, possessive, domineering gaze that made Xue Ning''s mouth water.


    She registered his words and proceeded to go on her knees, wincing as her knees hit the cold marble floor. It was cold and hard, but her body was heated.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei found great satisfaction in seeing his wife on her knees, but then he noticed her minute difort. Oh no, that wouldn''t do.


    "Wait a minute," Jingwei muttered, quickly breaking out of character to fold Xue Ning''s shirt in two before putting it on the floor as a makeshift cushion. "Kneel on this instead, Xue Ning."


    Xue Ning gazed at the T-shirt disbelievingly and then looked back up at him. She shuffled to the shirt, and it did feel better on her knees.


    Now, it was her heart that was warm. She wanted to kiss him so badly, but the distance between their mouths was too big. So instead, she nuzzled his thigh, purposely kissing the tent between his legs.


    "Thank you," Xue Ning said, purposely blinking slowly to make herself look cuter.


    Jingwei''s heart felt like it was squeezed by a vice. His wife was so cute, so sexy, and she was clearly happy he cared for her well-being.


    "How are you going to thank me?" Jingwei asked loftily, pretending to be cool even as a smile was threatening to form from his lips.


    "I have no money so¡­" Her hands pawed at Jingwei''s inner thighs, causing him to jolt in surprise. "I''ll please you with my body."


    Xue Ning dered, with an answering twitch of her lips, even as her face burned with her choice of dialogue. All the terrible erotic dramas she had watched before were now used as reference! It was all Jingwei''s fault for corrupting her!


    The impromptu role-y was something they haven''t discussed before, but it felt like a fun thing to try. It was especially worth it for the way Jingwei''s eyes widened in surprise and disbelief. He certainly didn''t register anything cringy with her words.


    Instead, his hands found themselves buried in her hair without any dy.


    Jingwei couldn''t believe his ears. Xue Ning was starting this sort of scenario without warning him? It was like getting ten years worth of birthday presents all at once!


    "Your body?" Jingwei scoffed. He had to calm himself down and portray an image of a cruel dom in charge. "I''ll use your mouth first. If it''s good enough, then I''ll bother with the rest of you."


    "Yes Sir," Xue Ning said, her wetness growing at his condescending words. Jingwei actually had the potential to be a mean motherfucker, and she wondered when that side of him would show.


    She also wondered about herself and her own kinks. Why was this turning her on? If anyone else said this to her, she''d chomp off their dicks no questions asked. But because it''s Jingwei, she wanted to make it good for him.


    It must be love.


    So Xue Ning eagerly tugged Jingwei''s pants downwards, watching his cock spring out from his pants. She cupped his balls, and heard the sudden gasp from Jingwei''s mouth. A quick nce at Jingwei''s face showed barely concealed desperation in his eyes, even when he was pretending to be unaffected.


    She inwardly smirked as she nted a kiss on top of the tip of his cock, before opening her mouth and taking him in.


    Jingwei moaned as he felt the wet heat of Xue Ning''s mouth envelop his cock. Gone was the hesitancy that was Xue Ning''s first cock-sucking attempt, it seemed that she had learnt a lot from her first time, and now she was determined to ruin him.<sub> </sub>


    Xue Ning hummed purposely, her lips wrapped around his cock. Jingwei bucked his hips at the sensation, shoving his cock further into her mouth without warning. Xue Ning choked, but she forced herself to rx her throat and take more of him. This position was a lot easier than her first time!


    But her eyes still watered from the strain. She blinked and continued to suck, hollowing her cheeks to ensure Jingwei could feel it, and it took all of Jingwei''s self-control to not fuck Xue Ning''s sweet little mouth like a deranged animal. Xue Ning noticed Jingwei wasn''t making many big movements, and decided to take matters into her own hands!


    She massaged his balls as she continued to pleasure him with her mouth, delighting in the musky smell and taste of him.


    "Baby¡­ Xue Ning¡­" Jingwei groaned as he thrusted into his mouth. He looked down to see Xue Ning''s eyes, wet with tears from the strain. Her lips were swollen red and her cheeks were full. God he wanted to fuck her so bad. "Let go of my cock. Now."


    Xue Ning blinked in surprise, giving him an inquisitive look. Did she do something wrong?


    "I want to fuck you," Jingwei growled out, pulling his cock away from her mouth. It escaped with a wet pop, and his eyes focused on the thread of spit that connected her mouth to his cock. Xue Ning now understood what he meant, and she quickly stood back up.


    "How do you want to fuck me?" Xue Ning asked, half-curious, and half-wanting to rile him up even further. "Against the wall? On the floor? The bathtub?"


    Mental images flooded his mind with every word from her lips. They had done it against a wall and in the bathtub, but the floor would be very cold for her.


    "The bed." Jingwei said.


    "But we''re not clean." Xue Ning immediately replied with a frown. Sexy times were great, but Xue Ning didn''t want to roll around in a clean bed smelling like filth, even if she wasn''t the one cleaning it.


    Jingwei thought for a quick moment and smirked, turning on the shower without warning. "So let''s get clean then."


    Warm water enveloped the both of them from above, as though they were caught in a rainstorm.


    Jingwei''s hands reached behind her back, easily undoing her bra strap and flinging her bra aside. Her breasts bounded free from the hold, and water hit her skin, causing her nipples to perk up.


    "Strip." Jingwei ordered, his eyes focused on the swell of her breasts. Xue Ning proceeded to do as he ordered, tugging down her shorts with incremental slowness on purpose, just to tease him.


    Jingwei felt his mind going crazy at the sight of milky skin slowly appearing inch by inch. Finally, she took off her shorts.


    "Your panties?" Jingwei growled out, his eyes focused on the juncture between her legs.


    "Yes Sir," Xue Ning said, with a hint of mischievousness. She tugged it down. It didn''t escape his notice that Xue Ning''s underwear was damp, her arousal present and obvious as she pulled down her panties.


    He eyed the string of her slick as she tugged her panties away, his hands twitching with want.


    "Anything else?" Xue Ning asked challengingly.


    "Fucking tease¡­I''ll show you¡­" Jingwei growled out, eyes dark with promise. "I''m gonna fuck you so good, you''re not going to walk properly after this."


    Before Xue Ning could form a reply, Jingwei lunged forward, crushing her lips against his own. Xue Ning moaned, wrapping her arms over his shoulders, pulling him closer as her legs instinctively wrapped around his waist.


    Jingwei didn''t waste a second in their new position, he immediately lined his cock to the wet heat of Xue Ning''s entrance and entered, causing her to moan and shudder. Jingwei growled, his fingers digging into the thick flesh of her thighs, gripping them hard enough to hurt as he began thrusting.


    Xue Ning moaned as she felt her inner walls stretch to amodate Jingwei''s length, the feeling of him filling her up was addicting, and Jingwei pressed her against the cold marble wall, thrusting into her with reckless abandon as she writhed, caged in his hold.


    The ss doors of the shower began to fog up with heat from the shower and from their bodies. Moans reverberated throughout the bathroom, echoing loudly through the bedroom. The poor staff that approached their room quickly closed the doors and scuttled away, face red in their hands.


    As Jingwei and Xue Ning chased pleasure with reckless abandon, they didn''t realise that they forgot to use any protection.


    But that was an issue for another day.

 Chapter 323 Meeting Your Old Maid

    Meanwhile, a decidedly less amorous meeting was happening in another room. Lady Yu had sent Li Tai Xuan and his wife to their new quarters, and now she had led Yue Niang and Tai Cheng to their rooms.


    "You''ll be staying here for the time being," Lady Yu said, and Yue Niang fought the urge to sigh as she looked around the room.


    Who knew that she would be back in this same room after so long? Was this the world''s idea of a joke?


    And if she had any suspicions that Lady Yu didn''t remember her, they were all thrown out the window. The choice of room already proved it - Lady Yu had given her the very rooms she imed before, when she was ted to be thedy of the manor.


    She adored this set of rooms, because it had a glorious view of the sunset, paired with a lovely night breeze tinged with the smell of flowers from outside.


    "Thanks Lady Yu," Tai Cheng politely replied, since his wife was too busy sighing into thin air to respond. "Do you know where my daughter is?"


    At this question, Lady Yu''s face coloured. "They''re in Jingwei''s room."


    "Ah." There was no need to exin further. "Will theye out anytime soon?"


    There was an awkward pause as Lady Yu sent someone to check. In less than a minute, the maid scuttled back into their room, face burnt a bright red.


    "They are busy. With¡­ each other." She said haltingly, before fleeing at the disgruntled look that crossed Yue Niang''s face.


    "These kids¡­ that boy can''t keep in his pants." Yue Niang grumbled. "He better not knock up my daughter before marriage. I''ll kill him."


    "I''ll help," Tai Cheng added, an ugly scowl blooming on his face at the thought of his baby daughter having a child out of wedlock.


    "I''ve provided condoms in the drawer." Lady Yu reassured them, trying to put their worries to rest, but that only made them look more disgusted.


    "Does he bring women back so often that you have to stock up on condoms in his drawers?" Yue Niang demanded. "Isn''t he some kind of yboy? Oh god, we should have dragged him to the doctor to check for STDs."


    Next to her, her husband looked slightly horrified. He hadpletely forgotten about the venerable diseases - his brain was focused more on the fact that his sole daughter was dating Sun Jingwei.


    "Of course not!" Lady Yu retorted angrily. Yue Niang was her beloved mistress once upon a time, but she wasn''t going to let her badmouth Jingwei like all the other degenerates on the inte. "Before your daughter, he had never brought a single woman home to this mansion! And he uses protection! We never got news of a pregnancy!"


    And Lady Yu prided herself on keeping track of Jingwei''s affairs. Someone had to, and Captain Mu''s job scope didn''t extend to protecting him in bed.


    She was the closest thing Jingwei had to a mother all these years, and Lady Bi Yu would have hated her friend calling her son a whore!


    "Really? That''s a wee surprise." Tai Cheng blinked cheerfully. "Wife, he isn''t so bad! Our daughter is now his only exception! We don''t have to worry about Sun Jingwei''s illegitimate children roaming the countryside."


    Of course, if any of the younger staff heard, they wouldn''t realise that this was a dig at Sun Haowei. Sun Haowei was now a stern hot-headed billionaire that wasted more tea than he drank, but back then in his heyday, he certainly sowed a lot of wild oats!


    Li Tai Cheng had his hands full cleaning up his mess. He remembered cursing his stupid boss back then for all his antics - he never impregnated ady, but goddamn there were a lot of women throwing themselves at him, and he never declined.


    In fact, who knew if there were still any wild oats lingering in the wild? One of these days, karma was going to smack Sun Haowei in the face.


    "Husband, it''s because Sun Haowei would have blown a gasket otherwise." Yue Niang exined. "You know his temper better than I do. Imagine if Jingwei brought all the girls he hooked up with back here. He''d be disowned!"


    "..." Tai Cheng couldn''t refute that.


    "Nonsense, Jingwei is a perfectly loyal man!" Lady Yu replied hotly. "Bi Yu would be devastated to hear you say this of her son!"


    The couple was startled, along with some of the staff. They eyed the trio with spective eyes - why had Lady Yu suddenly called thete Lady Sun by her maiden name? Surely that was the height of disrespect!<sub> </sub>


    "Shush!" Yue Niang''s eyes darted to the staff, a warning look on her face. Lady Yu waved them away, and they reluctantly dragged their feet outside the room. Only after they heard the definite click of the door being locked, did Yue Niang turn back to Lady Yu, a scowl on her face.


    "Yah, Yu Ming Yan, what are you trying to pull?" Yue Niang hissed. "Your staff are going to be suspicious of us now!"


    "They won''t talk," Lady Yu said.


    "Servants always talk, don''t you know that?" Yue Niang scoffed disbelievingly. "Gossip spreads faster than germs in mansions like this."


    "Don''t talk down to me or tell me how to do my job," Lady Yu replied, trying to hold onto her temper. She missed her old mistress her older sister, but it she wasn''t going to let herself be scolded as though she was ipetent. It had been over twenty years.


    "I''m not the same girl you left behind."


    There was a stunned silence at that promation, and Yue Niang could onlyugh ruefully to herself.


    "You''re not wrong. But the fact that you''re still here shows that you haven''t changed much. Still the same scared girl." Yue Niang stated. "Why haven''t you left to look for a job elsewhere? I understand staying when Bi Yu was still here - but it''s been at least 10 years, and her children are grown. Why didn''t you leave?"


    "Where else could I have gone?" Lady Yu burst out at the implied insult, her emotions boiling over like soup left on a stove for too long. Tears began to form in her eyes.


    "It''s easy for you to say! You just left without warning! And you never looked for me! You promised you would stay with me forever - that you''d be my sister forever! I trusted you! Waiting for you to return!"


    Yue Niang flinched. She hadn''t bothered with involving Yu Ming Yan in her plot to escape her engagement. Instead, she left her alone, knowing that Bi Yu would look after her instead. She cut off all ties as easily as her knife through curtain fabric, but now there was a stubborn thread poking out, crying right in front of her.


    "Well, you shouldn''t have stayed here for so long anyway!" Yue Niang retorted, not liking it whenever people called her out for her behaviour. That was a fatal w of hers - she hated admitting she was wrong, especially not to people she used to lead.


    "You wasted your youth on this ce! Didn''t you always im that you wanted to meet your one true love, marry him and have a lot of children? You can''t do that while you''re here!"


    "I changed my mind," Lady Yu said primly, even as her eyes were wet with unshed tears. "I grew up, and decided to pick the path that would guarantee a content life, since everyone I knew and loved left me without a single goodbye! Don''t you dare judge me for my decisions Li Yue Niang, you have no right!"


    Yue Niang fell quiet as Yu Ming Yan - wait, it was Lady Yu now, as Lady Yu scrubbed at her eyes with a gloved hand. A wet patch formed, obvious on the white silk glove.


    "It''s alright, we''re not ming you," Tai Cheng said consolingly, keeping his voice low and steady. He wasn''t that close to Yu Ming Yan back then, but he felt terrible at the way they left her behind, rationalizing to themselves that it was for her own good.


    "Doesn''t sound like it to me," Lady Yu said with uncharacteristic bitterness, ring at the floor. "And stop speaking for your wife, she has a mouth of her own."


    Tai Cheng elbowed his wife, his eyes hinting at her to apologise. She was out of line, and she knew it.


    "I''m¡­ sorry." Yue Niang began weakly. There was another pause, and Lady Yu wanted to roll her eyes. Once a heiress, always a heiress it seemed. Apologies clearly weren''t her strong suit, even after all this time.


    She decided to throw a bone out of pity.


    ? "What for?"


    "Huh?"


    "What are you apologising for?" Lady Yu asked.


    "I apologise for leaving you behind. But please understand, it wasn''t as though we hated you or we didn''t want you or anything like that." Yue Niang said frantically, wanting to set things right but not knowing how to. It wasn''t like in the past, where Ming Yan could be cajoled with sweet treats or dresses from her extensive wardrobe.


    Admittedly, she had never fucked up this badly in the past either.

 Chapter 324 Once A Servant

    "We were going to be ouws running from Sun Haowei''s wrath! There was no guarantee if our n would even seed. The less people knew about it the better. If you didn''t know anything, you''d be safe."


    "And after we were gone, someone needed to look after Bi Yu." Tai Cheng added, with an awkward shrug. "We couldn''t trust anyone else. It was just¡­the right thing to do."


    Yue Niang red at her husband. He should have just kept his mouth shut! Did he not realise what it sounded like?


    "So you left me behind. And used me." Lady Yu said morosely. Her posture, normally perfect, had copsed under the realisation, her shoulders folding forward like a paper crane drenched in water.


    She felt terrible. All the anger she held leached out of her, leaving behind an ufortable grief, and what made it worse was that she actually understood why they did what they did.


    Lady Bi Yu was fragile in the first few years after they left. She had no friends left for support, and her new fiance Sun Haowei was bitterly upset over his friend''s betrayal. He had a perpetual thundercloud over his head,shing out at everyone and everything, and no one bothered with helping Lady Bi Yu, too afraid of his wrath.


    Only Yu Ming Yan had extended a helping hand, but it wasn''t without any ulterior motives.


    She just wanted to have someone understand how she felt - everyone around them was cursing the selfishness of Yue Niang and Li Tai Cheng, calling them all sorts of foul names, but Ming Yan remembered their kindness and their understanding and most of all, she missed them dearly.


    Lady Bi Yu understood her all too well. She missed them as much, if not more. And then Lady Bi Yu died too, leaving Lady Yu to grieve for her, all alone. She thought they would have returned then, or perhaps sent a message, a sign, to let her know they still cared.


    But nothing ever arrived, and Lady Yu was left to miss them.


    Now she was hit with the realisation that her feelings, her devotion, was merely one-sided.


    Once a servant, always a servant.


    Even if Lady Yu had loved thedy she served, she would never be anything more than an afterthought in her mind.


    She bowed, every inch the polite servant, not a hair nor movement out of ce.


    "Forgive me for my presumptuous behaviour. I won''t bother you with this again." She said woodenly.


    "Wait - I didn''t mean - Ming Yan - wait - " Yue Niang began but Lady Yu whirled around, refusing to cry in front of her.


    She was just a servant girl after all, and her tears had no ce in front of Li Yue Niang. She opened the door without warning, nearly knocking over the three eavesdropping maids that had their ears stered to the door.


    She knew from personal experience, they would hear nothing but muffled words - the doors were made with high quality oak after all. The secret was safe.


    "Lady Yu! Oh no! Are you alright?" The young maids cried out in panic, noticing her red and swollen eyes.


    "I''m fine. Get back to your duties," Lady Yu said, her voice choked with tears as she moved faster than they thought possible, storming away to her quarters. They tried to follow her, fluttering around her like anxious butterflies, but she waved them away with strict instructions to serve their guests well.


    The maids doubled back to the room, only to be faced with the closed door.


    "This is too much!" One of them cried out, stomping her foot. "How could they upset Lady Yu!"


    "We''re servants, why can''t they upset us? They can even beat us if they want." One girl pointed out. Life in the Sun household was pretty good inparison to working in some other households. She heard horror stories from maids from the Zhou family.


    "Excuse you, we have some rights!" The first girl eximed. Her name was Ruoruo, and she was fuming mad! Lady Yu was her boss, and she had always treated them with kindness and respect, even when her job was 20 times harder than theirs.


    "And even if we don''t, Lady Yu certainly does. She has been working here for decades, how can someone that just entered simply walk in and bully her like this? She''s not even the new mistress of this house! She''s just Li Xue Ning''s mother from the countryside!"


    "There''s¡­ no guarantee¡­Lady Yu was bullied though," a third voice said hesitantly. Her name was Mianmian. "Maybe¡­ maybe we''re overreacting? Lady Yu was already¡­ upset before. At the entrance." She had noticed the strange way Lady Yu acted when they greeted their guests.


    "Isn''t that even weirder? Have you seen Lady Yu cry before? Something terrible must have happened!" Ruoruo thought for a moment, and a lightbulb went above her head. "I got it - she must have been her bully!"


    "Huh?" A plethora of confused faces met her statement.


    "That woman inside bullied Lady Yu before, so badly that even now, Lady Yu is scared to face her and cries when she has to talk to her! She must be so traumatised!"


    Everyone pondered that for a moment. It made a frightening amount of sense.


    "Do¡­ do you think¡­ she did something¡­ to those men?" Mianmian asked worriedly. They had arrived with bloodied bandages, and their injuries were severe enough that a doctor was called down to treat them.<sub> </sub>


    "It must be." Ruoruo agreed with widened eyes. "She''s a real monster! We have to stop her!"


    The other two looked at her doubtfully.


    "Trust me! I have a n! But for now, we''re going to make sure no one helps them!"


    =====


    Meanwhile back in the room¡­


    Yue Niang tugged at her own hair angrily.


    "Yah Li Tai Cheng, why did you have to say it like that? No wonder she thought we were abandoning her to the dogs!"


    "We technically did, but at least the dogs were rich." Tai Cheng shrugged. "We can apologise againter if you want, but I know that she understands why we had to do it. It just hurts."


    "She thinks she''s just a servant!" Yue Niang eximed, distraught.


    "She is a servant," Tai Cheng said simply. "Just like how I was Sun Haowei''s servant. It is what it is."


    "You were his bodyguard, there''s a difference."


    "Wife, that''s not true. Have you forgotten? In this world, if you''re not a master, you''re a servant," Tai Cheng replied.


    His wife was a master - mistress. He didn''t even dare to phantom the thought of getting together with Yue Niang until she pursued him.


    "Next time we see her, just apologise for overstepping your boundaries. This is technically her domain now, not yours. Don''t pick a fight with her over stupid things - you haven''t seen her in decades, is this how you want things to end?" Tai Cheng continued.


    Yue Niang grumbled and sighed, but she saw the virtue in her husband''s words. "Fine. You''re right. I''ll apologiseter. Come to think of it, maybe I should ask her where Bi Yu''s grave is. I didn''t see it when we were driven in, did you?"


    "No I didn''t," Tai Cheng frowned as he thought about it. "Maybe there''s an altar with her tablet in the house."


    "There better be, if not¡­" Yue Niang said ominously, as she opened the door and peered around. It was now regrettably empty. Just when she wanted to ask someone for directions!


    No matter, she had been here before, surely nothing would have changed.


    "Come on husband, let''s go pay our respects to Bi Yu. I have a lot of things to say to her."


    "Likewise."


    However, finding the altar tablet seemed to be an impossible task. Yue Niang peered into every room and was sorely disappointed every time. There was an obscene amount of chandeliers, carpets and canopy beds, but the tablet was nowhere to be found.


    Even more strange was how there were no servants to be found anywhere.


    Whenever Yue Niang caught the tail gaze of a maid, she would bow and scuttle away, terrified as though Yue Niang was lioness hunting them for sport!


    It just pissed her off. Was Yu Ming Yan so bad at her job that this household became sox?


    "Do you think Bi Yu is outside? And why is no oneing to help us?" Yue Niangmented. She could have asked Jingwei, but then how could she exin wanting to visit his mother''s grave? They weren''t that close.


    And she would never ask Captain Mu - that was just sheer insanity! If he wasn''t paranoid about them before, he definitely would be after that.


    The only person that could understand was the same one she made cry hours ago. Yue Niang cursed her own big mouth. And her husband''s.


    "The grounds are beautiful," Tai Cheng said as he gazed outside the window. "If I were Bi Yu, I wouldn''t mind being buried outside with the flowers."


    "Good point." Yue Niang sighed. "But I''m going to catch a servant and question them first before I go walking. I''ve already wasted too much time in this ce!"

 Chapter 325 She Had Nothing?

    Ruoruo had been busy - she had immediately grabbed the first servant that walked past her after they left the corridor.


    "What do you want? I''m not trading toilet duty with you." Her colleague said warningly.


    "No no, it''s not about that. I''m just here to warn you about Li Xue Ning''s mother. She''s a real piece of work!"


    "Why? What did she do?"


    "She made Lady Yu cry!"


    "No way. You''re lying right?" The other maid shook her head judgmentally. "Ruoruo, are you trying to get me in trouble so you can get a promotion? I''m not stupid!"


    "Would I lie about Lady Yu?" Ruoruo protested, indignant at the very thought. "Fine, be that way, go and approach her. Hope she doesn''t hit you in the face like what she did to those men. If she makes you cry so hard until your face swells up like a pufferfish, don''t say I didn''t warn you!"


    Ruoruo then flounced away, determined to find someone else that was more willing to listen to her.


    "Wait what?" The other maid paled. She did hear whispers from the kitchen that the couple was responsible for the injuries. She thought those rumours were ludicrous, but perhaps there was a kernel of truth.


    She had to warn the others!


    =======


    "Seriously, is there no one working in this house?" Yue Niang wondered. They''ve been waiting for half an hour for someone to approach.


    "I think we should be more proactive. It''s going to be dinner soon at this rate." Tai Cheng said.


    Husband and wife met eyes and stalked towards the kitchen in unison, deciding to hide around the corner until some unfortunate prey/servant crossed their path.


    Lo and behold, there was a maid walking towards them! She was rapidly typing at her phone, which was why she didn''t immediately scream and run in the opposite direction.


    "Hi! We need some help."


    The maid froze. She looked up, and her face paled as she registered who she was seeing. Nearly everyone was warned about Li Xue Ning''s parents, and no one wanted to meet their eyes, whether in a dark alley or otherwise.


    She immediately tried to duck away, only for Yue Niang to grab her arm.


    "Please don''t hurt me!" The girl whimpered, tears already forming in her cheeks. "I''m only 21! I don''t have a boyfriend yet!"


    Yue Niang''s mouth dropped - so the mansion was already hiring women so young? Sun Haowei was a filthy pervert! Either that, or his sons were. She glowered, and the girl shuddered in fear.


    "I''m not going to hurt you if you answer me honestly," Yue Niang said, trying to beforting. Judging by the way the girl was shaking in her hands, it wasn''t working. "How long have you been working here?"


    "Three years."


    "So you know enough. Can you tell me where thete Mistress of the house is buried?"


    "What?" The poor girl stared at her, befuddled and suspicious. "Why do you want to know?"<sub> </sub>


    "I''m not robbing her grave! I just want to pay my respects to the woman that gave birth to Sun Jingwei as thanks. So is there a tablet or a headstone here?" Yue Niang asked anxiously.


    "Oh." The girl paused, before timidly replying. "There isn''t one."


    "...."


    "WHAT. Are you joking?" Yue Niang demanded, her hands unknowingly tightening their grip on the poor girl''s wrist.


    "I won''t lie about this! Madame, please let me go! You''re hurting me!"


    "Sorry," Yue Niang said, quickly removing her hand. "But how can there not be anything for his deceased wife?"


    "I don''t know Madame, it has always been like this since I started working here. Maybe some of the other older maids will know more!" The maid said, bowing repeatedly before she ran off, her hands fisted in her skirts.


    "This bastard," Yue Niang growled out, clenching her fist. If Sun Haowei wasn''t hospitalised due to a heart attack, she would have sent him to the morgue directly. Come to think of it, she still could!


    "Before you charge into the hospital, let''s apologise to Ming Yan first. And then maybe ask her what''s going on." Tai Cheng said, the voice of reason. "It''s just not possible for Bi Yu to have nothing!"


    =======


    "I''m sorry, I was wrong to imply you couldn''t do your job. And I shouldn''t have judged your decisions. I do hope you''ll forgive me. I''m no longer the young missy that you have to obey, but old habits die hard. Not that I''m using that as an excuse! I still had no right to scold you. Once again, I''m sorry."


    Lady Yu stared dumbfounded as Yue Niang bowed her head in front of her as an apology. Marriage must really change a woman - the sister she used to work for would never have bothered apologising! She and Sun Haowei had that inmon.


    "...It''s fine," Lady Yu said. Her face betrayed no other emotion. Her tears had long dried, and the swelling had gone down. She was back to being Lady Yu, professional housekeeper.


    "Okay now that you''re not mad, I have something I need to ask you."


    Lady Yu twitched internally. So the apology was just a way to gather more information? Was it even sincere? She gritted her teeth, but decided to let it go. No matter what, this woman was still a guest that she had to serve.


    "Where is Bi Yu''s tablet? Or is that too lousy for Sun Haowei?"


    "She doesn''t have one."


    "Okay so she has a grave instead. Where is it? I didn''t see it on the grounds."


    Lady Yu shook her head. "There''s nothing of her on these grounds. No portraits, no photos, nothing. There''s only a headstone in the cemetery."


    Bi Yu truly had nothing. Yue Niang stared dumbfounded. Next to her, her husband was simrly appalled.


    "So there''s no ancestral tablet. No headstone either." Yue Niang repeated bleakly, as though doing so might make it make more sense. "Is Sun Haowei insane? What kind of heartless bastard is he?"


    "He took it terribly when she died." Lady Yu said. It was a gross understatement. That man had sunk himself into work in grief, alienated his sons and left them with trauma of their own.

 Chapter 326 The True Story Pt 1

    "That''s no excuse! And you said there''s no photographs? What did he do to those things? Toss them into the garbage?" Yue Niang eximed heatedly.


    "He had most of her things burnt, despite his sons'' objections. I only managed to salvage some pictures to give to her sons." Lady Yu said sadly as she recalled Jingwei''s devastated face.


    "That fucking bastard!" Yue Niang dered, clenching her fists so tightly her knuckles turned white. Her husband was also furious.


    "Which hospital is he in? I''m gonna strangle him!"


    "He''s unconscious!" Lady Yu eximed. "You can''t do that!"


    "Just watch me," Yue Niang growled out. "I''ll rip out Sun Haowei''s throat with my bare hands!"


    After that pronouncement, Yue Niang stormed off towards the exit, presumably to do as she said. Her husband was a lot calmer.


    "You''re not chasing after her?"


    "She''lle back when she''s less angry, you know her behaviour better than anyone. She won''t rush out without a n." Tai Cheng said, shrugging. "Besides, it''s been a while since I''ve raided the kitchens."


    Lady Yu let out a polite, amused scoff. "I remember. Do you still know the way?"


    "Yes, don''t worry. Do you want me to steal you a lemon cake like old times?"


    "No, thank you." Lady Yu said with a wan smile. This man hadn''t changed much.


    =======


    Behind a corner, Jingwei and Xue Ning turned to each other, with equal looks of shock on their faces. They dared not speak up until they saw Lady Yu and Li Tai Cheng depart in opposite directions, then everything burst out of them as though a dam had broken.


    "Did you hear -"


    "They know each other - "


    "Raiding kitchens - "


    "Lemon cakes- "


    "Your mom has no tablet - "


    "Your mom is going to kill my dad - "


    "Fuck," Xue Ning said, with incredible feeling. The puzzle pieces were forming an incredibly damning picture. Lady Yu used to work for her mom. Her father had been to the Sun family mansion before.


    Her mom knew Jingwei''s mom!


    "Jingwei, what was your Mom''s status?" Xue Ning asked hurriedly. "Was she a normal person that married Sun Haowei?"


    "No normal person would marry my father," Jingwei replied. "They''d run away screaming the moment he lifted their veils."


    "I mean, was she some rich youngdy? Or was she some poor soul that Sun Haowei fell in love with at first sight?" Xue Ning asked, half-rolling her eyes.


    "Of course she was rich. My father wouldn''t have married anyone that didn''te from a powerful family, love or not."<sub> </sub>


    "Fuck," Xue Ning said again, rubbing her temples. The picture was now in high definition. "So my mom had Lady Yu as a servant and knew your mom, who was also a rich youngdy. What does that sound like to you?"


    "It sounds like your mom used to be a rich young missus! Wait, does it mean that she left everything behind to marry your father? That''s romantic!" Jingwei said, looking delighted.


    "You would think so," Xue Ning said, shaking her head. "I''m sick of all these secrets."


    "Let''s just ask Lady Yu then." Jingwei said. "She''s not going to hide things from us!"


    ======


    "Lady Yu, psss, over here." Jingwei whispered, his head popping out from a wall. "Are you feeling better? I noticed you weren''t feeling too good, and some of the maids are saying you were upset."


    Lady Yu stopped, turning around in surprise. She couldn''t help the fond smile that crept over her mouth as she watched Jingwei. He had grown up to be a pretty good man, all things considered. Now that he was happily in love, he seemed to be at peace.


    Next to him, Li Xue Ning was also waiting for her with a hopeful look on her face.


    "I''m fine. Why were you both looking for me? Did you run out of condoms already?" She asked.


    "No?" Jingwei squeaked. Meanwhile, Xue Ning''s face rapidly alternated between paling and flushing. Fuck, they forgot to use condoms! She began to panic, her mind reeling from the realisation that she could be a mom.


    Surely it wouldn''t be enough to get pregnant right? Her cycles weren''t regr anyway.


    She vowed to eat more pineapples. ''Dear God, don''t get me pregnant now!'' She internally pleaded. ''I''m not ready to be a Mom!'' But surely she wouldn''t be so lucky to get pregnant from one attempt! It was one in a million!


    And with all of Jingwei''s drinking, his swimmers wouldn''t be that good anyway. She rationalised to herself. She would be fine.


    "That''s not why I''m looking for you. We actually have something we want to ask." Jingwei said hesitantly.


    "What is it?"


    "Xue Ning?" Jingwei elbowed her, hinting at her to talk. She was the one that wanted to know about her mom.


    "Yeah - yeah - right. My question," Xue Ning said, clearing her throat. "Was my mom some richdy in the past?"


    "Why do you think so?"


    "Jingwei and I heard you talk to my parents. I know all of you knew each other back then. You worked for my Mom. If my Mom wasn''t someone wealthy, how could she afford you? And my Mom knew Jingwei''s Mom!"


    Lady Yu startled, her mouth falling open in surprise. She didn''t expect the truth to be out so soon!


    "Please don''t lie," Jingwei pleaded. "We''re both old enough to deserve to know the truth. How are Xue Ning''s parents rted to mine? And to you?"


    Lady Yu stared at them both, immensely troubled. This wasn''t her secret to tell, but her heart was still pissed over how Li Yue Niang treated her earlier.


    "Please Lady Yu, I''m tired of being kept in the dark." Xue Ning said wearily. "I''ve only found out recently my Mom had the skills to gouge out human eyes. She imed she used to work for someone rich, but they pissed him off so badly they had to hide in the countryside. Is this the truth?"


    Lady Yu let out an udylike snort.


    "Your mother is still terrible at making up stories!"

 Chapter 327 Their Past Relationship

    "What''s that supposed to mean?" Xue Ning demanded.


    "Your mother was Sun Haowei''s old fiancee." Lady Yu began. Her mouth continued to move, but Xue Ning couldn''t register any words due to the roaring between her ears.


    "What the fuck?" Jingwei eximed. "Lady Yu, is this your idea of a joke?"


    "I would never be able to make up something like this." Lady Yu replied. "Have you known me to lie about anything?"


    Jingwei shook his head, a horrified look on his face.


    "That cannot be." Xue Ning shook her head disbelievingly. "So you''re telling me my mom was actually rich?"


    "Believe it or not, it''s the truth." Lady Yu said. She turned to look around for eavesdroppers. Seeing none, she continued. "To say your mother was actually rich would be an understatement. Do you know what your mother''s maiden name was?"


    Xue Ning paused and thought about it. Her mother never mentioned it. Xue Ning remembered when she was six, she learnt about surnames and marriage in school. She found out that women didn''t need to take their husband''s surname.


    This struck her as strange because she always thought her Mom took her Dad''s surname. Why else would they have the same surname?


    She recalled that very incident.


    ("Teacher, why do my Mom and my Dad have the same surname?"


    "Well that could be because -


    "Because they are rted!" One of her annoying ssmates interjected, standing up from his seat to boo at her. "E Xue Ning! Your parents are siblings! E -"


    Xue Ning had promptly decked that boy in the nose, and gotten herself a firm scolding and a trip to the principal''s office. When questioned, she said he deserved it for being stupid. Her principal was unamused, and her mother had to be called down to handle it.


    "What do you mean my daughter got into a fight?" Li Yue Niang demanded angrily, ring down at Xue Ning.


    "Don''t worry Mom, I won!" Xue Ning eximed. "This boy is an idiot!"


    Said boy cried. His parents got angrier. They were forced to apologise and she was sent home for the day. As her mother brought her home, Xue Ning asked.


    "Mom, are you and Dad really siblings?"


    "Of course your father and I are not siblings. What kind of nonsense is this?" Yue Niang shook her head. "This school is full of idiots. Don''t be infected."


    "Then why do you and Dad have the same surname?" Xue Ning asked, tiny legs toddling after her Mom. She kicked at a pebble on the floor and watched it roll away.


    "My dear, a lot of people have the same surname. Three of your ssmates have the surname Lin. Are they all siblings?" Her mother pointed out sharply.


    "...No." Xue Ning mumbled, feeling ashamed at her mother''s words. It was so obvious, but she didn''t realise it! If she had known, she could have yelled it at her ssmates instead of punching him.


    "See? Next time, use your head first instead of your fists." Her mother scolded, but she also patted her on the head.


    "So your surname is really Li?" Xue Ning asked, just to make sure.


    "Yes." Li Yue Niang said, tucking her daughter close to her side as they walked home. "That''s exactly right." )


    "She told me it was Li, the same as my father!"


    "She lied." Lady Yu said tly. "Your mother''s real surname is Nangong. She is Nangong Yue Niang, first born of the illustrious Nangong family. They were rtive nobility, and they had titles and triad connections that Sun Haowei wanted."


    "Nobility? So Xue Ning you''re ady?"<sub> </sub>


    "Nonsense," Xue Ning shuddered at the very thought.


    Lady Yu continued as though she wasn''t interrupted. "Meanwhile they wanted Sun Haowei''s obscene wealth. Hence her parents, your grandparents, engaged her to Sun Haowei. It helped that the both of them were good enough friends."


    "Holy fuck," was Jingwei''s eloquent reply. "Then how did my Mom end up marrying him? Don''t tell me she seduced him?"


    "No she didn''t. Mydy Yue Niang didn''t want to marry Sun Haowei, despite being good friends. Your father assumed she was justining for the sake of it. He never expected her to fall in love with your father and run off with him!"


    "Oh my god. So the person that my parents pissed off was Sun Haowei? Because my mom broke off the engagement and decided to flee with my dad?" Xue Ning rubbed her temples. Her mom definitely left out that piece of juicy information in the retelling!


    "Who was Xue Ning''s dad? Was he some rich man''s son too?" Jingwei wondered. "He had to be someone special right? Uncle does have the dignity of a lord."


    "No. Li Tai Cheng was just Sun Haowei''s bodyguard. I think that just added insult to injury." Lady Yu confessed. "It was one thing to lose his fiancee to a man, it was another thing to lose her to an ordinary man that worked for him."


    Jingwei scoffed. "Yeah. If I were a woman, I''d pick Li Tai Cheng, no questions asked. Auntie made a good choice."


    His father was uncaring, had a bad temper, and loved to insult his sons. While Li Tai Cheng could kill a man in the blink of an eye, he was also a better man to build a family with.


    Living with him for a few days was already enough to make that clear to Jingwei!


    "Can''t argue with that," Xue Ning winced. "Your father is an asshole. Why did your Mom marry him?"


    "That''s a good question. I ask myself that every day." Jingwei said. "Lady Yu, can you give me the real story? Don''t tell me something ridiculous like they fell in love and all, I''m not a kid anymore!"


    Lady Yu made a tutting sound in disapproval. "While your Mother and Father did not marry out of love, they grew to appreciate each other in the end. Why else would your father be so devastated when she died?"


    "Yes, but why did she marry him?"


    "Well. He was single and lonely. She was single and lonely. They both missed the same people, but they never mentioned it," Lady Yu said. "And sometimes, that is enough."


    "That''s¡­ so sad." Jingwei said, crestfallen. His parents both weren''t each other''s first choice. They just got together because they were both abandoned and leftover.


    "It is what it is." Lady Yu said, sympathetic.


    Xue Ning hissed. Fuck. No wonder Sun Haowei kept looking at her strangely when she appeared in front of him. She was the child of his most hated couple!


    "Where''s my mom now?" Xue Ning demanded, her face flushed in anger. "How dare she keep this from me! I asked her if she was hiding anything and she swore that was it!"


    "She''s on the grounds, somewhere." Lady Yu shrugged, not looking too bothered. "She did say that she wanted to kill Sun Haowei for not having a tablet for his wife."


    "And you let her go? Just like that?" Jingwei eximed, his brain filled with visions of Xue Ning''s mother pulling the plug of his father''s life support.


    "Captain Mu is here. He''ll stop her."


    ======


    On the grounds¡­


    "Get out of the way if you don''t want to get hurt."


    "You assume that you can hurt me!"

 Chapter 328 Getaway Car

    Li Yue Niang cracked her neck, and the vertebrae gave a satisfying pop as she red at Captain Mu, who nted himself in front of her. In response, Captain Mu cracked his knuckles, a challenging glint in his eyes.


    "Once again, get out of the way." Yue Niang said. "I have a score to settle with your boss."


    "I can''t let you do that." Captain Mu said, raising his hands. "Will you just go back to the mansion and wait for dinner? I''ll pretend I didn''t see you trying to hijack one of our cars."


    "If you had just driven me to the hospital, I wouldn''t need to hijack your car. And you really should take out the keys if you''re not using them." Yue Niang retorted, shrugging as she eyed Captain Mu''s wary posture. Her body was itching for a fight to release the pent up aggression, but the more logical part of her brain urged her to practice caution.


    There was no way she could win against a man that kept himself fighting fit. But goddamn she wanted to do something to Sun Haowei! How dare he scrub Bi Yu''s existence away from his life, as though she was a dirt stain on the floor!


    "But I forgive you as long as you wise up and bring me to see your boss. Who knows? Maybe he''ll wake up after he sees my beautiful face."


    Captain Mu gritted his teeth at the shameless response. This woman was unrepentant!


    "I know who you really are!" Captain Mu snarled out. His men had managed to find out what the diamond crest carved in the hilt of the knife, and a few quick queries were all it took to link it to this woman.


    "Li Yue Niang, or should I say Nangong Yue Niang? It''s incredible how you''ve managed to keep your identity a secret for so long! What do you want?"


    "So you''ve spent your time researching me instead of questioning the kidnappers? Your priorities are skewed." Yue Niang tutted, even as she internally panicked at yet another person finding out. At this rate, the cat was going to w out of the bag!


    Captain Mu flushed an angry red at the reminder, and Yue Niang used the brief moment of distraction to stomp on his toes. Captain Mu yelled in outrage (not pain, no matter whatever anyone said) and chased after her, but she quickly slid into the car, purposely mming the door against his face before shutting it.


    She snickered at the shocked look on his face as she twisted the key to turn on the ignition.


    The car hummed to life under her hands. Sure the vehicles were more advanced now, but surely nothing changed that much! She turned the steering wheel and the car swerved sharply, nearly knocking over Captain Mu.


    "Stop right there!" Captain Mu screamed, but it was futile. Yue Niang waved goodbye politely before stomping on the elerator, leaving behind only a cloud of dust.


    Captain Mu seethed, but he consoled himself knowing that at least the iron-wrought gates would never open for her. She''d be stuck at the entrance and would be forced to return, her metaphorical tail tucked between her legs!


    =====<sub> </sub>


    Yue Niang recklessly drove through the grounds, speeding easily through the empty roads until she spotted the metal gate. Of course it was sealed shut, but she had her ways.


    Nothing was going to stop her from shaking Sun Haowei until he woke up, and then pping him hard enough to send him to the underworld!


    "Stop right there!" The guard at the gate demanded, watching the car slow down to an immediate halt. He wondered who was the insane driver - that person clearly needed to renew their licence! He peered down the window and did a double-take; the driver was a woman - in fact, wasn''t this the future mother-inw? He didn''t know she could drive like a racecar driver!


    "Hi Officer!" She beamed cheerily up at him. "You''re still on duty!"


    "Yes Madam," he said cautiously, wondering what was going on. "Are you going out of the mansion?"


    "Yes my good man," Yue Niang cheerfully replied. "I just need to take a quick trip out of town to buy a few things. We were brought here without much warning, and I''m missing a few belongings."


    "Madame, there''s no need to trouble yourself," the guard said puzzled. "You can just let Young Master Sun or Lady Yu know about it, and they''ll get it for you easily! There''s no need for you to personally go out to get it."


    "Nonsense, how can I trouble them?" Yue Niang shook her head, as though the very thought horrified her. She gestured to the man to lean down, and whispered into his ear, as though confiding a secret.


    "And you know¡­ I don''t want to sound like a troublesome mother-inw. It doesn''t reflect well on my daughter! She''s already getting ck from people because she isn''t from a rich family. What will they think if her mother from the countryside keeps asking people to get things for her? I''d rather do it myself. Besides, I know my own tastes." Yue Niang confessed, purposely inserting more sincerity into her voice. She knew there was a good chance of him letting her go.


    From what she could tell, the guard was probably a more straightced, yetpassionate man that wouldn''t make things difficult for a woman. Old school chivalry perhaps.


    Also, guards tended to be more wary about people entering the mansion, and not people exiting!


    True enough, a sympathetic expression crossed the guard''s face at her words. "I see Madame, I understand. I wish you a safe journey, but are you sure you don''t want someone toe with you? What if you have to carry something heavy?"


    Yue Niangughed, waving off his concerns. "You''re very kind, but I''ll manage. I''ll put the things in the car and drive back here, so there''s no trouble!"


    "If you''re sure," the guard said, before pressing the button. Yue Niang hid her triumphant smile as the gate swung open slowly. Instead she waved a thank you to the helpful guard, and began to drive to the hospital.


    Sun Haowei was going to have a lot to answer for!

 Chapter 329 Revival

    Back at the hospital, a pair of weary eyshes fluttered as though they sensed a disturbance in the force.


    "Sir? Sir? Can you hear me?" A nurse called out gently. Her voice reminded him of small waves at the beach. He hadn''t been to the beach in decades.


    "Can you open your eyes, Sir?"


    Sun Haowei wanted to, but his eyelids suddenly felt too heavy. His entire body felt that it was covered by a weighted nket, threatening to pull him back into slumber. Even his mind was just filled with white noise, but he refused to sumb to the sensation. He was Sun Haowei, and he was stronger than this!


    He twitched his fingers, a most familiar action from his years of beckoning servants. He needed someone to help him open his eyes.


    He heard a hastily stifled gasp. Good. It seemed that no matter where he was, he was still given the respect he was due!


    "Oh my god he''s awake! Doctor! Doctor! Pleasee quickly!"


    He heard more hurried footsteps, and someone pried his eye open and shed a bright light into his eye. He winced, wanting to snarl at the disrespect.


    "Oh good, you''re conscious." The man said with barely concealed relief. "Do you remember anything, Old Master Sun?"


    "..." Sun Haowei could only let out a wordless croak in reply. "W- wa - "


    "Get him water," the doctor ordered and the nurses quickly helped him sit up. Sun Haowei''s head spun, but at least the strange cottony fog in his brain was beginning to dissipate. He greedily drank from the offered paper cup, but his hands were still feeling too weak to hold it. Water dribbled down his chin, and one of the nurses hurriedly wiped his chin dry.


    Sun Haowei growled. He hated his own weakness!


    "Are you feeling better now?" The doctor asked. "Do you recognise me?"


    "Doctor Xu?" He croaked out weakly. "What happened?"


    "You had a heart attack and got hospitalised." Doctor Xu said matter-of-factly. "If not for the trace amounts of aspirin in your body, and how someone tried to keep you breathing via mouth-to-mouth, you would have been dead by the time you arrived in this hospital room.


    "In fact, you should thank your lucky stars that someone knew what to do!"


    "I¡­" Sun Haowei choked, sending everyone into a worried frenzy. It wasn''t because his heart was failing, or anything like that. His brain had helpfully recalled what happened before his heart gave up.


    His stupid younger son had brought that woman, that cursed daughter of his enemies, right in front of him and dered in no uncertain terms that she was his future wife! He spat at her!


    "Who saved me?" Sun Haowei asked. He was going to reward them for their quick action!


    "ording to your oldest son, he did." Doctor Xu said, a strange expression crossing his face.


    "He did?" Sun Haowei repeated, disbelieving. But his heart was heartened to know that his oldest son cared enough for him to keep him alive, despite wanting his inheritance.


    "That''s what he said. He''ll be d to know you''re alright. He was very worried about you." Doctor Xu said. Sun Haowei let out a tired hum in reply, but there was a nagging sense of doubt nibbling at the back of his head. His intuition told him there was something he was missing.<sub> </sub>


    "I see." Sun Haowei said, resting on the bed. "In that case, let him worry a while longer. I''ve been wanting a vacation for years."


    "Excuse me?" Doctor Xu asked, his eyes wide with confusion.


    "Don''t tell him I''m awake. None of you." Sun Haowei''s gaze swept over everyone in the room, from nurses to bodyguards and finally back to Doctor Xu.


    "...Alright." Doctor Xu agreed, internally sweat dropping. What was his VIP patient up to now? Was this his attempt at trying out retirement?


    "Leave, I want to rest." Sun Haowei dered with no room for disagreement. Doctor Xu could only sigh and let him know that he would conduct a follow-up checkup for him tomorrow, entirely in secret of course.


    When the door finally shut, Sun Haowei turned to the bodyguard next to him.


    "You were on duty when I had the heart attack?"


    "Yes Sir." The man nodded nervously.


    "So you saw everything?"


    "Yes Sir," the man nodded again.


    "Then tell me. Did my son really save me?" Sun Haowei asked, watching the guard carefully for signs of lying - and there it was, the quickened breathing, the shaky pupils, and the way his tongue licked his suddenly dry lips. His Adam''s apple bobbed frantically.


    "I¡­ yes. Yes he did." The man said firmly. "He is a very filial son.


    Sun Haowei let out a mirthless chuckle, nearly wheezing in amusement. It caused goosebumps to form on the arms of all his guards.


    "A filial son¡­ is that what they''re calling it now?" Sun Haowei asked rhetorically, staring at the nk ceiling. He didn''t need the guard to admit to his lies - let them keep their illusions. Besides, if he pushed them for an answer, surely one of them would report the truth to his oldest son, assuming they haven''t already.


    Perhaps Jingwei was the one that saved him, and his older brother took credit for the work. Knowing Jingwei''s attitude, he''d be feeling too guilty for causing his heart attack. Maybe he might even break up with that woman!


    If he did, Sun Haowei was willing to give him half thepany. His younger son saved his life!


    "Lend me a phone." Sun Haowei demanded. He needed to contact Captain Mu to catch up on things.


    "Sir, aren''t you supposed to be unconscious?" Another guard asked and immediately looked down when Sun Haowei shot him a piercing re.


    "What did you say?"


    "Nothing Sir," the man said meekly to the floor. A phone was handed to him immediately and Sun Haowei clicked on Captain Mu''s number, only to find that the line was busy.


    He scowled in disgust. What could he possibly be busy with?

 Chapter 330 She Saved Me?

    "She''s gone? What do you mean she''s gone?" Captain Mu demanded, nearly screaming into the phone. There was another call on the line, and he declined it immediately. There was nothing more important than this madwoman on the loose!


    His voice echoed in the cavernous corridors of the mansion, and more than one curious servant turned to look at him in confusion. "How could you let her go, you nipoop!"


    The male voice at the other end faltered. "But Sir! She''s Young Master Sun''s future mother-inw! And we''re more focused on threats entering the mansion, not people exiting! What reasons do we have to stop her from shopping outside?"


    "Shopping? Oh, I''m sure she''s shopping alright." Captain Mu scoffed, mentally kicking himself. If this woman was buying anything, it would be a coffin to stuff Old Master Sun in.


    He had underestimated Nangong Yue Niang''s craftiness. She probably put on a sad pathetic act to gain sympathy from his guards. He vowed to give them a good dressing down after that.


    "Captain Mu, what''s the matter?" Lady Yu asked, not liking the way his vein twitched on his forehead. Beside her, the lovely couple stood and watched him warily, as though he was a ticking time bomb ready to explode at any minute.


    "You need to rx," Jingwei added helpfully, "this is not good for your blood pressure."


    Captain Mu gnashed his teeth in frustration. "I''m sorry, but I find it incredibly difficult to rx after I found out that your mother - " at this, he turned to point at Li Xue Ning, "has taken one of the cars and drove out of the mansion, presumably to kill your father."


    He then pointed at Jingwei, in case anyone was dumb enough to misunderstand.


    "Oh." Jingwei said, palling rapidly at the thought of his father dying at the hands of his future mother-inw. He recalled the empty eye sockets and shuddered. "Surely you''re joking? I don''t think -"


    "Bloody fuck, you fucking liar murderor -" Xue Ning let out a plethora of curses that blended together marvellously before sucking in a huge breath to calm herself down. Everyone watched her, stunned at the vulgarity that spewed from her lips, especially when she was technically cursing at her own mother.


    "What? Why are we still standing here? Let''s get into a car and stop her!" She dered hotly at the frozen onlookers, and everyone began to move.


    Jingwei clutched at her hand with his own slightly sweatier one, and they were off.


    ======


    -Brrrrr brrrrr -


    Captain Mu hissed as he saw his phone light up again with another call. He was driving like a madman already and he shouldn''t be replying, but he saw that it was from the same bodyguard that was stationed at the hospital.


    Fuck, was that madwoman already there? He wanted to pick up the call, but it was a bad time to let his hands off the wheel. He didn''t want to send all of them to the hospital as patients!


    Li Tai Cheng hurriedly clicked on the ''ept Call'' for him, but Captain Mu only scowled in reply. He had found out that this man was Sun Haowei''s old bodyguard, so he was technically his senior.


    But so what?


    It was his wife''s fault that they were all in this mess! Li Tai Cheng sensed the reason for his animosity, judging by the apologetic looks he kept giving him as they drove. The sorry look in his eyes made Captain Mu even angrier. Seriously, this man stole someone''s fiancee. Did he have no shame?


    "What is it?" Captain Mu barked out angrily at the phone, and at Li Tai Cheng as his car swerved with a sharp turn. He ignored the irate honking of other drivers on the road, too focused on making the turn before the traffic light turned red.


    In the backseat, Xue Ning and Jingwei clutched their seatbelts for dear life. Sun Jingwei for once found himself on the other end of the driving equation, and he realised he didn''t like it.


    There was no reply, only some wordless breathing.


    "If this is a prank, I''ll kill you." He hissed threateningly. Li Tai Cheng wordlessly offered to help him hold his phone, but he rejected his kind offer.<sub> </sub>


    "You dare?" an old gravelly voice croaked out from the other end. Captain Mu''s eyes bulged open in shock as recognition sank in. Beside him, Li Tai Cheng paled. He looked like he saw a ghost.


    "Old Master Sun?" Captain Mu demanded, nearly avoiding the collision with another car. "You''re awake?"


    A scoff was his reply. "No, this is my spirit talking to you. What do you think?" Captain Mu winced, and Li Tai Cheng had to bite back his chuckle.


    "Father!" Jingwei eximed joyfully from the backseat, suddenlying forward between the two front seats like an enthusiastic dog on a car trip. "You''re awake! I''m so d!"


    "Yes, I see you haven''t " was his father''s reply. Jingwei had to blink back tears of joy. He had never been so d to hear his voice!


    "I know what you did to help me." His father continued, and Jingwei''s happy face turned into one of confusion.


    "What?"


    "You saved my life when I had a heart attack." Sun Haowei said firmly. "As such, you have proven yourself worthy to be my sessor."


    Jingwei choked, shaking his head frantically. "Father, you''ve got it wrong! It wasn''t me that saved you!"


    "Don''t let your brother im your credit," was his father''s nonsensical reply. "You need to stamp out that attitude of yours if you are going to be my sessor."


    "Father, that''s nonsense," Jingwei shook his head. "I''m not going to be your sessor, and I''m not the one responsible for saving you! Xue Ning is! She shoved the aspirin in your mouth and did CPR for you!"


    "I don''t believe you," Sun Haowei said. Xue Ning rolled her eyes at the window. If she lived off his gratitude, she would die. She was fine with not getting credit, but Jingwei continued to talk, refusing to let her deeds be buried.


    "Father,e on. Do you think I know how to do CPR? I''m only good at kissing people! Xue Ning actually has the first-aid certification, you should give her some credit. In fact, you have touched her lips so many times, Father. You should bepensating her instead!"


    Everyone made a face of disgust at the mental image created by Jingwei''s words. Xue Ning pinched his side, causing him to squeal in pain.


    "There''s no need for you to lie to protect her." His father said, sounding incredibly pained.


    "I''m not! Captain Mu, back me up here. You were there, weren''t you?"


    "...Yes Sir," Captain Mu said, reluctantly entering the conversation. "It was indeed Miss Li''s quick action that saved you. If she hadn''t fed you the aspirin and did CPR, you might have developed a stroke, or even passed away before we arrived at the hospital."


    There was a long pause on the other end of the line.


    "Father? Are you still alive?" Jingwei asked hesitantly. "Did you faint again? Oh my god CALL THE NURSE -"


    "I''m fine." His father replied, suddenly more curt.


    Then he hung up.


    "That went well," Xue Ning said, leaning back on the carseat. "Maybe I shouldn''t get out of the car. Once you grab my Mom, just shove her back inside and drive us home!"

 Chapter 331 Infiltration Success

    Back in the hospital room, a gloomy silence fell over the upants. None of the bodyguards dared to even breathe too loudly, lest they attract the wrath of Sun Haowei.


    Said man was gripping the handphone so tightly his knuckles turned white. He seemed to be seething as he red down at his hospital nket, as though it personally murdered his entire family.


    The guard wondered if he would ever get his phone back. Should he call for the doctor? Sun Haowei''s face was now turning a dangerous shade of red.


    "... So it hase to this," Sun Haowei seethed, his teeth gritted with anger.


    "Sir?"


    Sun Haowei ignored his worried guard; his mind was filled with disdain. It was galling to note that out of everyone in the room with them, including his retinue of professional bodyguards, seasoned household staff and his two sons, the one that saved him was this woman that happened to be the scion of his traitorous friends.


    To add insult to injury, his son was still dating her! He didn''t need his son to say it inly, the very fact that he continued to speak up for her even when she wasn''t with him clearly showed where his priorities were. The fact that he sounded so goddamn proud and happy showed they were still together!


    Even after she triggered his heart attack, his youngest still refused to set her aside!


    Just the very thought was nearly enough to send him back into an early grave - but now he knew, even if he were to take a jolly holiday in the Underworld, his youngest would refuse to break up with her.


    The only way he would be able to split them up, was if one party died.


    "Sir?" The guard repeated hesitantly, not liking the dark look in his employer''s eyes. "Do you want some water?"


    ======


    Yue Niang easily made her way to Zhong Shan Hospital, parking the car in an empty parking slot with limited sess. Half of the car ended up in the neighbouring lot, but Yue Niang didn''t care enough to fix it. She wasn''t going to need a lot of time - once she got to Sun Haowei''s unconscious body, she would shake him awake and give him the middle finger and a tongueshing he would never forget!


    She quickly squeezed into the lift, cramming with the other doctors, nurses and visitors. Her simple attire raised several eyebrows from the curious onlookers - Zhong Shan hospital catered to a higher quality of clientele, and they tended to dress like it, even for something as simple as visiting sick rtives.


    Yue Niang responded by pretending she didn''t see them, channelling the behaviour of a haughtydy. If they believed she was one of their own, they would take less notice of her. But while that would work enough for the lower floors, the VVIP wards surely had higher security. Her disguise as a visitor definitely wasn''t going to hold up.


    In front of her, the nurses continued to murmur to each other.


    "Patient in Ward 203 keeps calling for her husband -"


    "Didn''t the mane in with another woman on his arm, the nerve - "


    "She saw him and nearly tore out her IV - she was so mad."<sub> </sub>


    "Can''t me her - "


    The nurses were so engrossed in their conversation, no one noticed when Yue Niang sneaked a hand to unclip the employee tag of the nearest woman, tucking it nonchntly into her back pocket. When the lift stopped at one of the floors, she got off along with the rest of the visitors, trailing behind them.


    Once no one was paying her any attention, she snuck into the staff rooms, her stolen card allowing her ess. Yue Niang scanned the dingy room and her nose twitched, for a high-end hospital, it could really stand to give their staff better rest areas!


    She hurriedly dug through the closet for a clean uniform, draping the scrubs over herself. She put on a surgical mask and tucked her hair into one of those spare caps, stealing a stethoscope from the table before leaving the room, her heart racing in excitement.


    She took a good look at her ID. She was a nurse from the urologist department. Perfect.


    This was too easy. She was almost waiting for something to go wrong, but no one questioned her. She went back to the elevator and clicked on the button for the top floor.


    Sun Haowei wouldn''t be caught anywhere near the unwashed masses. He was a VIP of VIPs. Only the top floor would be good enough for him.


    The doors opened and she breathed out, walking out confidently and it wasn''t difficult to guess which room he was in. It was the one with a line of bodyguards loitering outside the room. They seemed to be gossiping among themselves, but they snapped to attention when they saw her approaching.


    "Stop!" One dered, putting up his hand. "Why are you here?"


    "I''m here to check up on Mr Sun on Doctor Xu''s orders. His dder could have problems." She replied evenly, purposely name-dropping Sun Haowei''s primary doctor. She also gave them a brief look at her ID. They cast a suspicious look at the ID, and she tutted impatiently.


    "Can the both of you hurry up? I still have my rounds toplete." She demanded, looking like a harried staff. They still continued to make suspicious faces at her.


    "Where are your tools?" He demanded. "How can you visit Mr Sun empty-handed?"


    "I need to check on him first before I decide if he needs a catheter." Yue Niang replied ndly. "Unless¡­ You believe that he needs one? Have you tugged his pants down and checked him personally?"


    The guards flushed and shifted awkwardly. One of them cleared their throat. "Fine. I will apany you inside."


    "Be my guest," Yue Niang said, eyeing him discreetly. She could take him down if he was caught unaware. They walked into the room together.


    "Mr Sun, the nurse is here to check on you." And Yue Niang bit back a curse when Sun Haowei looked up at her, all rheumy eyes and red face.


    What the fuck? Wasn''t he supposed to be unconscious? How was he already awake?

 Chapter 332 The Calvary Arrives

    "Why do I need to be checked?" Sun Haowei grumbled. Yue Niang blinked and hurriedly put on an act of a professional.


    "You''ve been unconscious for a while. It is possible that your dder has some infection." Yue Niang said, quickly ncing at the bodyguard, who was determinedly ignoring them both.


    A new, diabolical n brewed in her head. She decided to further borate on the grossness of dder infection. "Do you feel any pain while peeing? Do you feel a burning sensation? Are there traces of blood in your urine, or perhaps pus like discharge?"


    The bodyguard shuddered. Sun Haowei shrugged, but he narrowed his eyes suspiciously at her. How could a nurse be so bold? Was she trying to seduce him?


    "Don''t know. I haven''t gone yet. Do you want to help me?" Sun Haowei asked, with a raised eyebrow.


    Yue Niang twitched. Was Sun Haowei propositioning her? So not only did he not honour his wife, he was also a sleazy old man that hit on nurses assigned to look after him?


    She wanted to rip off the mask there and there and give him a piece of her mind, but then she decided to use this opening given to her.


    "If that''s what you want," she said meaningfully. The bodyguard looked horrified.


    "Help me up then." Sun Haowei dered, and Yue Niang grabbed at his arm, reminding herself not to dig her nails into his flesh. There would be time for thatter. She slung his arm around her back and proceeded to make their slow way to the bathroom.


    "Sir! I should be going with you - "


    "Wait outside," Sun Haowei ordered. The guard fell back, his face worried. Meanwhile, Yue Niang kept her face even if she wanted to cackle.


    Guess the heaven''s above wanted to make this easy for her!


    They entered the bathroom and got Sun Haowei to sit on the toilet bowl first. Then she locked the door.


    "Help me with my pants." Sun Haowei said expectantly.


    Yue Niang smirked, and lunged at him, covering his mouth with one hand and removing her mask with the other. She watched his eyes carefully, and relished the very moment where the expectant look in his eyes got reced with recognition and panic.


    "You!" Sun Haowei screamed, or he would have if not for the fact that her hand was nted firmly against mouth, muffling his words. Sun Haowei tried to bite her palm, and she congratted herself for having the foresight to wear gloves.


    "Yes, it''s me," Yue Niang hissed, looming menacingly over him. "Do you still remember me?"


    A rhetorical question, judging by the way his eyes widened at her words.


    "Even if you don''t, that doesn''t matter. How dare you scrub away all hints of Bi Yu''s existence?" She snarled at him. "I cannot believe you didn''t even make a tablet for her. You bastard! She gave you two sons! You should be on your knees thanking her very existence!"


    Sun Haowei red hotly back at her. This woman had no right to lecture him - she left him first, making him look like aughing stock, and she even had the nerve to take Tai Cheng away from him! How dare shee back?


    He stomped his feet in protest. It only made a weak thumping sound, due to hisck of energy. Yue Niang realised that Sun Haowei couldn''t make any sound to defend himself (not that he ever could), so she moved her hand to his throat instead, squeezing it warningly.


    "Insane¡­ bitch¡­" Sun Haowei croaked out, ring at her fiercely. His hands circled her own, trying to pull her away with limited sess. "I''ll have you and your daughter killed!"


    "After my daughter saved your sorry life? You have some nerve!" Yue Niang scoffed, her eyes glinting with malice. "But thanks for letting me know. Now I''ll end you before you even lift a finger, so you can meet Bi Yu and exin yourself!"


    "Sir!" His bodyguard knocked on the door, suspicious at theck of moaning that usually apanied escapades like this. "Is everything alright?"


    Yue Niang tightened her fingers around his neck. His yell for help died prematurely, choked to death in his throat.<sub> </sub>


    "Try yelling if you dare. Do you want yourst words to be ''help''? That can be arranged." Yue Niang whispered into his ear.


    A bead of sweat rolled down Sun Haowei''s temple, as his heart began to race from fear. His ex-fiancee was a terrifying woman, and once upon a time, he had been delighted to have her on his side.


    But now, she was his enemy! He had to get away!


    =====


    The tires of the car let out fearsome screeches and squeals as Captain Mu mmed on the breaks in the carpark of the hospital. Everyone lurched forward at the abrupt stop, and Xue Ning felt her breakfast nearly escape through her mouth.


    "We''re here. Get out now," Captain Mu said without preamble, and Jingwei and Xue Ning got out with shaky legs. Captain Mu red at Li Tai Cheng when he wasn''t moving fast enough for him, and Tai Cheng gave him a sheepish look and scuttled faster out of the car.


    The moment thest door mmed shut, Captain Mu took off at a run, dashing towards the lift. The three of them followed him, through the lift and across the corridors, huffing and panting all the while. Doctors, nurses and guests blinked in surprise as they saw Sun Jingwei hurtling through the hallways like a man possessed, his fiancee beside him.


    "Has anyone been through here?" Captain Mu demanded as they approached the bodyguards outside of his room. They were slouching against the wall, scrolling through their phones. Captain Mu vowed to have all of them written for insubordination.


    "Captain Mu!" All the men startled and leapt to attention as they saw their Boss spring up in front of them without warning. They identally mmed their heads against the wall in panic, and more than one man stumbled.


    To make things worse, Sun Jingwei was also here, albeit panting slightly behind him! It would have been funny if the situation wasn''t so dire.


    "No Sir! No suspicious person entered!" One hastily replied, stuffing his phone into his back pocket.


    "That''s not what I asked! Did anyone enter?" Captain Mu argued.


    "Yes. Only Doctor Xu and his nurse, Sir."


    "Nurse?" Captain Mu''s ears perked up at that. "What did she look like?"


    "We don''t know, she was masked¡­" The man trailed off at the murderous look on his Boss'' face. "But we checked her ID! It was legitimate!"


    Captain Mu nearly shrieked in rage. "OF COURSE HER ID WAS LEGITIMATE! IT DOESN''T MEAN IT WASN''T STOLEN!"


    His men quailed in fear, shaking in their boots. Thankfully, their boss only shoved them aside and entered the room, stomping like an angry bull. The rest of them followed him, and they ended up bumping against his back.


    "Where''s my father?" Jingwei asked worriedly. Everyone stared at the sight of an empty bed, then at the bodyguard standing outside the bathroom.


    "Sir!"


    Captain Mu barked out. "Answer his question!"


    "He''s in the bathroom with the nurse." The bodyguard said, his face flushing as he cocked his head towards the door. "They wanted privacy. For certain¡­ activities."


    Gross! Xue Ning shuddered at the implications of his words. Next to her, Jingwei looked a little green in the face. Li Tai Cheng had an unreadable look on his face. Meanwhile, Captain Mu sounded like an overboiling kettle, his own face redder than a boiled crab.


    "So you left them alone? You idiot! You''re supposed to be with your charge at all times!" He scolded before thumping on the door.


    "Li Yue Niang,e out right now! I know that you''re in there!"

 Chapter 333 Lock Them Up!

    In the bathroom, Li Yue Niang''s face froze with a snarl. Inparison, Sun Haowei snorted behind her hand, looking smug now that reinforcements have arrived.


    "Mom! Don''t do something stupid!" Her daughter called out anxiously from outside. Yue Niang''s heart stuttered - her daughter was here? How much did she know about her?


    "Wife, pleasee out and let Sun Haowei go. I know you''re not canoodling with him inside!" Li Tai Cheng continued.


    "I could be!" Yue Niang retorted, just so she could see Sun Haowei''s face twist in disgust. Outside, there were several retching noises, the loudest of iting from her daughter.


    "Mom! What the fuck!" Xue Ning screamed.


    "Gross!" Jingwei called out. "Father, you can''t be serious!"


    If Sun Haowei could make a sound, he''d yell at his dumbass son. Once again, he was focused on the wrong thing!


    "And Mrs Li, can you let my father go?" Jingwei asked, knocking politely on the floor. "I promise I won''t have you arrested or killed!"


    Yue Niang gave a derisive snort and finally moved her hand away from Sun Haowei''s mouth. There was no real point in keeping him quiet now that the cat was out of the bag. Instead, her fingers squeezed Sun Haowei''s face.


    "Even if you did, your father definitely wouldn''t let me off!" Yue Niang yelled at the door. "Can I get it in writing?"


    "Like hell!" Sun Haowei red up at her, hissing so hard that spit escaped his lips. Yue Niang pulled a face. "Jingwei, you''d better not do that!"


    Yue Niang red down at him. "Then you and I are going to spend the rest of our lives in this bathroom!"


    "Bring it on!" Sun Haowei dered hotly. "I''ll outlive you!"


    "Father, don''t be stupid," Jingwei cajoled from the other end, "you can''t outfight Xue Ning''s mom. I can''t outfight her either. Just let this go! Besides, you guys haven''t seen each other in over twenty years. You should take this chance to reconnect."


    Jingwei said this, but he hurriedly sent a quick text to Shengli, asking him for help. He needed a contract drafted ASAP that would stop future bloodshed, iming that someone held his father hostage. Shengli read the message, but didn''t respond. That was worrying, so Jingwei sent a longer, more descriptive message.


    Shengli sent back twenty upset emojis. A good sign!


    Meanwhile, Yue Niang and Sun Haowei had matching looks of incredulity in their eyes. Their eyes met by ident, and they hastily looked away, scoffing.


    Reconnect with each other? Over their dead bodies! Li Tai Cheng was clearly out of his mind!


    "I''ll have you thrown in prison," Sun Haowei threatened. "You and your entire family will live and die as inmates!"


    Instead of scaring Yue Niang, his words had the opposite effect and she lunged at him, grabbing at his cor.


    "Since you already n on imprisoning me, then I might as well go all out!" Yue Niang retorted and easily put him in a headlock, as though they were back to being children squabbling over thest eir. "Don''t think I can''t beat you up just because you grew taller than me! You''re a bby old man now!"


    They began roughhousing like belligerent children, grappling and hurling curses at each other. Outside, all they could hear was the stomping of feet and vulgarities and Captain Mu had already called the staff to get the master key, especially worried when he heard a loud thump at the door.


    "This is so fucked," Xue Ning said, nearly tearing out her hair in anxiousness at every thump and groan that came from the other side. "If my family and I end up in prison, feel free to date someone else!"


    Jingwei gave her a horrified look, as though she suggested skinning puppies to make a fur coat.


    "I won''t let him do that," He promised, but his words fell on deaf ears. She ignored him, turning to her own father.


    "Dad, do you think we can run away in time? Fuck, why didn''t you guys tell me the truth before? I wouldn''t have let the both of you return! We could have avoided this entire mess!"


    "True." Li Tai Cheng nodded, but he seemed remarkably calm at the thought of possible jail time. "Hindsight is always 20/20. But there are some things that cannot be avoided forever. I knew there was a chance this could happen, ever since I found out you were living with Jingwei."


    "Why didn''t you tell me then?!" Xue Ningmented. "I would - I would have -"


    "Left him without a word? Killed any chances of knowing him?" Li Tai Cheng finished, shaking his head while Jingwei had a stricken look on his face. "How could I do that to the both of you? We''re the older ones here; it''s not right for us to saddle you with our grievances. Let the adults settle it."<sub> </sub>


    Li Tai Cheng purposely raised his voice at the end, hoping that the two morons he cared for heard him. He continued, cocking his head at the bathroom door.


    "These idiots will work things out after they beat the shit out of each other. Don''t worry too much. They''ve known each other too long to not work things out."


    "Hey!" Both Yue Niang and Sun Haowei yelled in outrage. Li Tai Cheng''s earlier words had created the slightest feeling of shame in them, but hister words provoked a response.


    "How dare you call me an idiot? The idiot is him/her!" They both pointed at each other viciously and then continued hissing and spitting at each other as though they were stray cats that found themselves fighting over the same garbage dump.


    "Stop copying me!"


    "You''re copying me!"


    "No you are!"


    "I said it first!"


    Captain Mu sweatdropped. The conversation on the other end sounded remarkably juvenile.


    "See? They have one shared brain cell," Li Tai Cheng said conspiratorially.


    "Sir! I rushed here as quickly as I could!" A staff member knocked on the door, his legs wobbling with exertion, a key in his shaking hands. He was going to open the door, but Tai Cheng held him back with a cheerful grin.


    "Oh, there''s no rush, we can just leave them inside."


    "What!" Everyone yelled, the loudest voices were from the two inside the bathroom.


    "We''ll let them out when they get hungry and promise to behave," Li Tai Cheng shrugged. "Let''s order some food and eat right outside."


    His wife and his old ex-friend needed time to sort out their issues, in a ce where they couldn''t run from each other, where they couldn''t escape from ufortable conversations. This was the equivalent of him putting them in time out.


    More importantly, that''ll give Jingwei''swyer enough time to draft an agreement for Sun Haowei to sign. It was always better to have it in ck and white.


    Captain Mu gawked. "You are a terrible man." He said, torn between appalled and approval.


    "Thank you," Li Tai Cheng said cheerily, settling on the floor as though he was at a pic. "Man, I could do with some pork buns."


    "You''re insane," Captain Mu said faintly. His daughter agreed.


    "Dad, how are you so rxed about this? This could be ourst meal!" Xue Ning gritted out.


    "Oh, so I should order something more expensive. Good idea," was Tai Cheng''s nonchnt reply. "Alright, time to order abalone and shark''s fin! I''m sure Sun Haowei''s credit card is somewhere here¡­"


    "Dad!"


    "Don''t worry, we''ll all get to eat," Tai Cheng said. "Only people who are busy fighting inside the bathroom don''t get a share."


    "Bastard!" Sun Haowei yelled, outraged. "Don''t use my card! I''ll arrest you for fraud!"


    "Husband, buy it all and bleed him dry! But leave me a share of food!" Yue Niang added.


    "Nonsense! If anything, he should be leaving me food! Stop taking what''s mine!" Sun Haowei retorted, leading them to snarl and w at each other.


    "He''s not yours!" Yue Niang spat out.


    "He was until you took him from me!" Sun Haowei hissed. They both knew that they weren''t just talking about food any longer.

 Chapter 334 Her Truth

    "He was mine to begin with!" Sun Haowei continued, ring at Nangong Yue Niang hotly. "And so were you! I never treated the both of you poorly; how did I deserve to be stabbed in the back? Nangong Yue Niang, you still dare toe back here and lecture me about morality, when you seduced my best friend and eloped with him?"


    "Why did you choose to humiliate me like this?" These words escaped his lips in a mere whisper, but Yue Niang flinched as though she heard the words screamed into her ear. "How could both of you do this to me?"


    In over 20 years, Sun Haowei had a lot of time to stew in his feelings.


    When he first got the news that Nangong Yue Niang broke off the engagement and left him, he was in shock and disbelief. The invites were sent, the wedding dress bought, the venue booked. The only silver lining was that Yue Niang did not leave him stranded at the altar.


    If she hated the idea of the engagement so badly, why didn''t she tell him? He could have said something, done something. He thought they were on good enough terms, they were friends, so he was actually looking forward to the marriage.


    He expected Yue Niang to speak her mind if she was unhappy. Hell, half the time, the main problem was getting her to shut up. She never shut up,ining about everything from the mansion decor to her missions to the dresses she needed to wear.


    Sun Haowei didn''t expect her to jump straight to eloping with his best friend and bodyguard.


    He had years to go over their every interaction with a fine-toothb, and now with the power of hindsight, he spotted how Yue Niang''s eyes would always follow Tai Cheng when he was guarding him, and how Tai Cheng was always a little more indulgent of her than he was of other women by Sun Haowei''s side.


    But if not for them running away, he would still remain blissfully oblivious to the feelings brewing below the surface. He trusted them, damn it!


    He had to deal with everyone ''s mocking smiles, his own loneliness, the stinging shock of betrayal and the humiliation of being cucked.


    How could Yue Niang do this to him? How could Tai Cheng do this to him?


    "BECAUSE WE HATED OUR LIVES WITH YOU!" Yue Niang bursted out, grabbing Sun Haowei''s hospital gown by the cor.


    "Nonsense!" Sun Haowei screamed as though he had been struck. "I''ve always treated you well!"


    Yue Niangughed derisively.


    "We were done with this life. I tried to tell you to stop, and Tai Cheng also made it clear that he wanted to leave this life, but you just wouldn''t listen! You kept on going on about the kingdom you would build while bodies kept on piling up around us! Bodies of people we killed for you!"


    "We were sick of it! Sick of everything! And stop fucking lying to yourself - It wasn''t going to stop when I married you! You were never satisfied! It would just mean someone else would be doing my dirty work when I eventually got knocked up and forced to y hostess to all your scummy business partners!"


    Yue Niang screamed out years of pent-up frustration, tears of rage forming in the corners of her eyes. Next to her, Sun Haowei froze.


    One could hear a pin drop in the silence that befell the ward. Outside the bathroom, Li Tai Cheng could only sigh as he saw the horrified looks on everyone''s faces. Well. Here it was.<sub> </sub>


    "Hmm? Let''s hear it."


    "Was all that true, Uncle?" Jingwei asked hesitantly. "I know you were my dad''s bodyguard but¡­"


    "The best way to guard someone like your father would be to remove all threats posed to his person, past, present, and future." Tai Cheng said with closed eyes. If he tried hard enough, he could remember how Sun Haowei and his father advocated for the assassination of entire families, iming they were plotting to kill him.


    "That''s insane," Jingwei said quietly, understanding the severity of his words. Uncle was basically a hitman for his father - how could his father do this to someone he imed to be his best friend?


    No one makes their best friend a murderer. God knows how hard Jingwei tried to stop Wu Shang Jing from being one. He thought about Xiumin unexpectedly dying alone in a jail cell and shuddered.


    "Then Mom also killed people for him?" Xue Ning asked, agitated. "He made her kill - "


    "Yes. Not as much as I did, but yes." Tai Cheng said regrettably. "There was only so much I could do, and he didn''t trust many people to not betray him."


    "So Mom was one of the people he trusted and loved," Xue Ning said, trying to make sense of this new information. Her parents betrayed an old friend, who admittedly was a gigantic asshole, but that asshole did seem to love them.


    "He trusted and loved it when they killed on his behalf." Jingwei corrected gently, upset at his father''s past actions. "If you loved someone, how could you let them dirty their hands like this?"


    "Aish, why is my Dad such a piece of shit?" Jingweimented, turning to Li Tai Cheng. "Uncle, was he born a dick?"


    Tai Cheng opened his mouth, but no sound came out.


    "Okay. I got it," Jingwei said morosely. "I understand."


    "He had his good moments." Tai Cheng said weakly, not liking the crushed look on his face. "He was good to us. Just¡­ not good for us."


    "And not a good person." Jingwei finished, defeated. He looked at Xue Ning, devastation in his eyes. His father was a terrible person, and if he married Xue Ning, he''d be putting her in harm''s way. Knowing his father''s temper, he would never let her off. "I''m so sorry darling. You''re going to have a terrible father-inw if you agree to marry me."


    "Thinking of marriage already? Still presumptuous of you," Xue Ning asked with a raised eyebrow. Jingwei''s face fell further, and she immediately felt guilty, as though she kicked a puppy into a river.


    "I mean¡­ I understand if you refuse."

 Chapter 335 Sun Haowei Plots Revenge

    Jingwei''s shoulders slumped in pure exhaustion. "If you''re smart, and you''re very smart - you would take my father''s offer, dump me and get all the money, and go find someone else thates with less family drama! Preferably with a less psychotic father."


    "As long as it''s not Wei Yan." He added.


    Xue Ning scoffed. "I hate being told what to do. I didn''t dump you when your father demanded it, I sure as hell aren''t dumping you because you''re here sounding sad and wallowing in self-pity. Come on, get it together, or I''ll go date Wei Yan out of pure spite."


    While Xue Ning''s words were harsh, she squeezed his hand with uncharacteristic softness, her other hand patting the side of his face.


    Jingwei let out a watery chuckle.


    "Can''t have that then. You''ll be miserable."


    "Damn right. So will you." Xue Ning said. "It would be a different story if I hadn''t fallen in love with you before knowing this mess, but now that I am, you''d better stop trying to get rid of me. Stop trying to me yourself for every bad decision our parents made. They should clean up their own mess!"


    Xue Ning yelled it through the door pointedly. Sun Haowei and Nangong Yue Niang heard her loud and clear, and once again they felt the barest amount of shame creep through them.


    Meanwhile, Jingwei''s mind was just reverberating with Xue Ning''s words. Xue Ning was in love with him! And she didn''t want to dump him! It felt like a huge weight rolled off his shoulders.


    Before he could kiss her, his phone rang. He picked up only to be greeted with Shengli''s irate voice on the other end.


    "This isn''t April Fool''s, stop bullshitting me. Your father isn''t even awake, how could Xue Ning''s mother threaten him in a bathroom? Are you already drunk in the middle of the day?" Shengliined.


    "I wouldn''t be able to bullshit a story like this, Shengli." Jingwei protested. "And I''mpletely sober! More importantly, can youe up with a contract for my father and Xue Ning''s family to sign, to ensure they won''t be targeted by my father? Preferably in¡­ half an hour."


    "Are you insane?" Shengli demanded.


    "Okay that deadline is kind of unreasonable." Jingwei conceded. "How about getting it done at the end of day? That''s the most I can give you!"


    "That''s¡­. So you want to make your father sign a restraining order?" Shengli rifies. "That''s going to make your future wedding highly difficult to n."


    "Can you make a restraining order where they can be in physical proximity, but my father can''t threaten to harm Xue Ning''s family at all? Including verbal threats, physical threats, emotional abuse¡­ cover all the bases?"


    Shengli sighed. "I''ll do my best. You''re the worst."


    "Thanks Shengli!" Jingwei beamed. "You''re definitely the best man at my wedding."


    "No thanks."


    =======


    Hours passed. Jingwei refused to let out the two old folks from outside the bathroom, because he didn''t want his father to get any ess to any electronics that could allow him to contact anyone to harm Xue Ning''s family, despite his best efforts to escape.


    And besides, technically his father could survive in the VVIP bathroom. There were chairs to sit on, tap water for him to drink and the toilet bowl was avable for him to do his business if necessary.


    Of course, these factspletely eluded Sun Haowei. The thought of being sequestered in a


    bathroom as though he was a pet that hadn''t been toilet trained was just the newest blow against his pride. He was this close to wing at the door out of desperation!<sub> </sub>


    He didn''t even want to look at Yue Niang or think about their shared past. He needed to get out immediately and get rid of all of them, especially Li Tai Cheng who was still waiting outside, deliberately eating pork buns with relish while they starved.


    Not only were this couple making his stomach hurt, they were making his heart ache.


    "Unfilial son!" Sun Haowei yelled as he thumped the door, getting increasingly upset. "Unlock the door this instant!"


    Yue Niang scoffed, choosing to save her energy by reclining in one of those cushy chairs. She knew how stubborn her husband was.


    "Shut up and sit down. If you fall down and break your hip, your youngest son will be devastated."


    "I''m not taking advice from you," Sun Haowei said with gritted teeth, thumping on the door again. "Let me go, or I''ll disinherit you!"


    Yue Niangughed, kicking up her heels. "Sure, disinherit Jingwei. He''ll marry into my family as my new son-inw then. He showed us that he can cook, fix up the house and peel sprouts. All the skills he didn''t learn from you. Bi Yu taught him well."


    Sun Haowei snarled. "You made him work? In the kitchen? Like a servant?"


    "Well, were we supposed to let him sit around at home being useless? I''m not letting my daughter date a bum. She should go for someone that''s willing to get his hands dirty for her." Yue Niang replied, pointedly jabbing at a sore sport.


    "We shall see if your daughter deserves it. Who knows if she''ll decide to just run off with someone else instead ofmunicating her issues?" Sun Haowei returned fire.


    "As long as Jingwei doesn''t make her do anything she doesn''t want to, we won''t have a problem."


    "In future, she''ll have to do many things she doesn''t want to as his wife. No one who marries my son can be a quitter." Sun Haowei scolded, but he finally stopped thumping on the door and elected to sit across from her. Yue Niang felt the tiniest hint of relief - if he had fallen down, she might actually help him up.


    And that would be awkward.


    "Jingwei will be my eventual sessor. She''ll have to carry his burdens."


    "Not your oldest son?" Yue Niang asked with widened eyes. "You''re going to give up a perfectly good heir for Jingwei?"


    "Jingwei can be trained." Sun Haowei said, his eyes filled with an undefined emotion. Now he could kill two birds with one stone - turn Jingwei into their heir he was meant to be, over Tianwei the truly unfilial son, and possibly let the burden of being tycoon''s wife in high society drive her away!


    If she truly did stick with him to support Jingwei''s sess, then¡­ fine. He''d have to ept her.


    But his money was on their eventual divorce.


    "Wow. You must really hate Jingwei." Yue Niang said frankly. "I''ve only known your son for two weeks and even I can tell he''ll be eaten alive."


    "I don''t hate my son. And more importantly, your daughter will not let hime to any harm. All thanks to the power of love," Sun Haowei said thest part with the barest hint of mockery, a smirk crossing his face. He reclined back against the plush chair with satisfaction, delighting in the pissed look on Yue Niang''s face.


    Nangong Yue Niang snatched his best friend away from him? Fine.


    He''ll snatch the daughter she lovingly raised with his best friend away in return.


    "Jingwei, let me out now." Sun Haowei said with a glint in his eye. "I agree to let things go, only if Li Xue Ning agrees to marry you within the month!"

 Chapter 336 Bi Yu And Haowei Pt 1

    Sun Haowei expected his son to splutter and immediately open the door, gratitude welling up in his eyes as he thanked him and begged for forgiveness for treating his father like an untrained dog, but instead he heard his son''s dismissive voice.


    "Father, don''t try to lie your way out of this!" Jingwei said. "I''m not letting you out until you sign an agreement!"


    "I''m your father!" Sun Haowei protested indignantly. "And now I''m giving you what you wanted all this while! Let me out!"


    ? "Exactly! You''re not that kind," Jingwei said vehemently. "That''s why I''m not letting you out! Father, I know what you are like. I''m not getting fooled."


    "What do you know?" Yue Niang asked rhetorically, smirking at the way Sun Haowei was gnashing his teeth in anger. "Straight from the mouth of babes. Maybe your son will actually do a decent job as your sessor after all."


    "Shut up," he growled out, crossing his arms like a petnt child.


    Of course Yue Niang didn''t do as he said. "You know, it''s perfectly understandable for you to resent Tai Cheng and I for prioritising ourselves and abandoning you. But what about Bi Yu? She supported you when we left! You married her! She birthed you two sons!"


    "You know nothing about our marriage, stop sticking your nose where it doesn''t belong!"


    "Trust me, I wouldn''t have bothered looking for you if you hadn''t done the utterly despicable thing of not even giving her an ancestral tablet in your home." Yue Niang scowled.


    "Not only that, there are no pictures of her. Not a single family photo in your ridiculous mansion. Was she such a terrible wife and mother that you had to wipe her very existence from your memory?"


    "..."


    "You know that we''re not going anywhere. So talk."


    "Think what you like. I don''t have to exin myself to the likes of you," was Sun Haowei''s only reply as he settled back on the chair, leaving Yue Niang to stew in her own anger.


    "You do realise that the contract they are drafting outside stops you from harming me, and not the other way around?"


    "So? I''m not talking about it. You just need to know that it''s ALL. YOUR. FAULT." Sun Haowei emphasised thest point.


    "How so?" Yue Niang demanded.


    Sun Haowei''s lips remained determinedly shut, so Yue Niang decided to ssh water on his face. How immature of her, but as long as she wasn''t waterboarding him, he''ll keep his silence.


    Everytime he thought about his departed wife, it felt like his heart was thrown into a blender and turned into a repulsive paste of human weakness. They had so many years together, but it shamed him to think about how poorly he treated her in the beginning.


    With the original bride fleeing from the engagement, Bi Yu had stepped up and taken her friend''s ce to spare everyone the social shame - hence a strange union was born from the spares that were left behind.


    Honestly, he had never bothered with her before. Why would he? Yue Niang was his supposed fiancee, not her quieter friend that always panicked and cried when things didn''t go as nned. He suspected that she was out there to take advantage of the situation - trying to marry into wealth now that opportunity presented itself.


    He hated it. He hated her.


    Then they actually got married. Guests tittered behind their hands, loving the spectacle and scandal of Sun Haowei needing a recement bride. She bore it all stoically, but Sun Haowei saw the tear tracks when he lifted her veil away, and it made him irrationally angry.


    (He didn''t ask her to do this. No one did! If she didn''t like him, she was free to run away. So why did he feel so terrible about it!)


    A better man would have treated her well. Would have assuage her fears and tried to make her more wee.


    Instead, what Sun Haowei did was to ignore herpletely. They slept in separate rooms. He soughtpanionship elsewhere, and sent hordes of thugs and kidnappers after the runaway couple.


    (They had to return! They owed him an exnation! They had to put things right. If they grovelled a bit and begged for forgiveness, he would let it go.


    They couldn''t just¡­ leave him. Alone. They were supposed to create a new world order together!)


    He hated looking at his new wife, he hated everything she represented. Just seeing her reminded him of everything Yue Niang took from him.


    She took Tai Cheng and left him with her gold-digging best friend, thinking it a worthwhile trade, as though that would have made up for the way she callously dug two cavernous holes in his heart.


    Self-centred as he was, he did not realise that Bi Yu was also in pain, grieving the loss of her friends.


    Meanwhile, Bi Yu purposely kept herself out of sight from her new husband. She was a hopeful woman, not a stupid one. If she clung to Sun Haowei like a barnacle, he would hate her even more.


    Instead, she worked on the gardens, nting roses and herbs and all varieties of vegetables, hoping that her marriage would bloom like the flowers in spring and bear fruit in future. She then harvested her own vegetables and fruits and made meals out of them, sending tes to Sun Haowei.<sub> </sub>


    The matrons always taught her the way to a man''s heart was through his stomach.


    But no matter how beautiful or borate the dishes, the tes always returned, cold and untouched.


    Even the servants couldn''t help looking at her with pity in their eyes, weeping at the waste. Their young master seemed to detest his new wife!


    Days bled into months and then into years.


    Then one day, she simply stopped making his share.


    "Young Madame?" The old maidservant asked with uncharacteristic gentleness. "The portion for Young Master isn''t here."


    "Yes, that''s because there isn''t one," Bi Yu said, wiping her hands on her apron. "He hasn''t eaten any of my cooking since I arrived here. No sense in wasting the food I painstakingly grew on someone that''s not appreciative."


    "Young Madame! I''m sure Young Master is just¡­" The servant tried to defend her employer, but Yu Ming Yan snorted next to her.


    "A terrible husband?" Ming Yan continued. "So busy that he can''t spare more than one kind word to hiswfully wedded wife? Too focused on building a business he can''t share the same room as her? Too lost over his friends leaving him that he can''t move on and build a new life with what he has?"


    "Ming Yan, mind your manners," Bi Yu scolded, even as Ming Yan gave voice to all the unsaid feelings stewing within her. "You can''t insult the Master of this house."


    "But he''s insulting you Madame! That''s not right. He''s neglecting you for the sake of chasing those ingrates -"


    "Sssh." Bi Yu hushed her quickly, giving her a warning nce. She tilted her head to the door, where other servants were milling around, their ears ready for gossip. "You shouldn''t mention them here."


    Ming Yan reluctantly kept silent, but not without ast resentful re at the door.


    "I''m going to poison him," Ming Yan grumbled under her breath. "Who cares if he''s rich and handsome? I''m sure with your capabilities, you can find someone else."


    Bi Yuughed, amused at the very thought. "I''d rather you not end up in prison."


    "Only if I get caught," Ming Yan said, a determined light in her eyes.


    "Don''t bother. I have my own ns." Bi Yu said peacefully. She had given him enough time, and enough was enough.


    Since he hadn''t even touched her once, it was incredibly easy to have the marriage annulled on the grounds of non-consummation. All she needed was his signature.


    ========


    "I''m not divorcing you." Sun Haowei barked out, when confronted with the divorce agreement. "You just want my money!"


    "Well, technically I''m the one initiating the divorce. I''m divorcing you. You just need to ept it." Bi Yu corrected, with a calm that greatly unsettled Sun Haowei.


    "I''ve given us enough time to work things out, and there has been no improvement after a year. Did you forget you made me sign a prenup before I married you? Rest assured, I''ll not be making off with half of your fortune."


    Her family was rich enough on their own. They might toss her out for bringing shame to them, but she had made contingency ns to live on her own.


    Perhaps she might emigrate. Hawaii did look lovely.


    Sun Haowei''s face purpled as he looked through the document. She was serious about leaving him!


    "Please sign the documents. I thought you''d appreciate me letting you know in advance rather than sneaking out into the night like a thief."


    Unlike some people they knew.


    "I''m not divorcing you anyway." Sun Haowei said, gripping the document so tightly he left creases in the paper. Not content with that, he easily ripped it to shreds.


    "If the non-consummation is what bothers you, I can resolve it right now." Sun Haowei said as he got up from the chair, looming over her. She could feel the warmth of his body from where he stood.


    Bi Yu thought it was highly ironic that a divorce agreement was what made him pay close attention to her. Even their wedding didn''t manage such a feat.


    "No thank you," Bi Yu said, looking him straight in the eye. "I''m not fond of ying second fiddle in my own marriage. Who knows whose name you might moan out in the heat of the moment?"

 Chapter 337 Bi Yu And Haowei Pt 2

    Sun Haowei''s face purpled. "How dare you - "


    Bi Yu only scoffed. "Don''t worry, I''m not going to leak news of your intimate behaviour. I''ve already been humiliated enough by your disdain for me."


    By now, she had grown used to his methods of intimidation and only returned his look with an unbothered expression. She immediately gave Sun Haowei another copy of the divorce agreement,ughing at the surprised look on his face.


    "You printed extras?" He demanded incredulously, ncing down at the papers and then back to her face, as though actually seeing her for the first time.


    "Of course." Bi Yu replied, bemused. "Did you think I was dumb enough to not make copies just in case you crushed them with those bear paws of yours? It''s not hard to see the shredded newspapers in the living room. Visitors might think we''re raising a badly behaved dog."


    "Bear paws - I do not have ''bear paws'', and I''m not a dog - "


    "And here''s hoping you pay more attention to the documents than all the extra tes I left you. Do you know how much food you''ve wasted so far?" Bi Yu continued, interrupting his tirade.


    Since they were getting divorced, she might as well give him a piece of her mind. Maybe she''ll piss him off so much, he''d sign the document more quickly.


    "It took me four months for one sessful harvest, and you tossed it aside like it was worth nothing! People in Africa are starving, and you''re so ungrateful. You should be ashamed of yourself. And don''t even mention the potatoes - "


    Sun Haowei spluttered - how dare she cut him off! She had never done this before! She had never talked so much in his presence, but now she was ranting about the produce that he apparently wasted by not eating her meals.


    This was making him feel strangely guilty. That was unusual.


    Then again, she had never asked for divorce before.


    Now when he was looking at her, actually, properly, looking at her as herself without the shadow casted by her best friend, she was actually¡­ quite lovely, her cheeks red with exertion as she continued to lecture him about food wastage.


    "You can cook for me then, if you''reining so much about it. I won''t waste it this time."


    Bi Yu stared back at her husband, and wondered if she was hallucinating. Did she identally nt some drugs in her garden? She pinched herself on her arm harshly and winced.


    "What did you do that for?" Sun Haowei demanded, grabbing his wife to stop her from hurting herself. He found himself strangely wrong-footed.


    Bi Yu shrugged out of his hold. Okay. She wasn''t hallucinating. So that meant that this man was an imbecile!


    Either that, or he suffered some permanent head injury. She touched his head and he froze like a deer in the headlights at the sudden touch of her hands on him. He could feel the calluses on her fingertips, most likely from her time in the garden.


    "What¡­ are you doing?" He choked out hesitantly.


    "Checking for brain damage," Bi Yu said, looking him over for suspicious bumps.


    "I''m not - what - "


    "Why else would you be acting so strangely?" Bi Yu questioned. "You never liked me, and now I''m setting you free. We. Are. Getting. A. Divorce." She spoke slowly to him, enunciating every word crisply as though he was a particrly dim-witted chicken that wandered into a chicken rice store, begging to be served up for dinner.


    "So I''m not cooking for you anymore. Sign this form, and eat your cup noodles. I''ll pack up and leave within the week."


    "You''re not serious."


    "I am." Bi Yu said, and then turned away to leave. "Have a good day. Let me know when you''ve signed it."


    "You can''t just - " Sun Haowei grabbed at her hand instinctively, enveloping his muchrger hand over hers.


    Both of them paused at that unfamiliar sensation. Bi Yu''s heart raced, hoping it was a time for change, but her mind remembered the dismal truth.


    This was sadly the first time their hands touched after the wedding. Bi Yu remembers him jabbing the wedding ring on her finger as though it was an absolute chore, and there was certainly no sweet hand-holding customary of happy unions after.


    Another reason they should get divorced. She had never heard of a couple so estranged they never held hands. He most likely grabbed her by instinct. Men like Sun Haowei never liked losing what they believed was theirs, even if they didn''t care for it.<sub> </sub>


    She tugged her hand away harshly, as though he burnt her, and he flinched as though she burnt him.


    "Sign the form. I''m tired of this farce of a marriage. Mywyer will be in contact. I bid you good day."


    Bi Yu then whirled around and left the room, her heart jack-rabbiting in her chest.


    She didn''t want to think about how at that very moment, Sun Haowei had looked at her with something other than disdain.


    This was the right decision.


    =======


    "What''s this I hear about you abandoning your wife and duties?"


    "Father, it''s not like that - my wife wants to divorce me," Sun Haowei began, and a shot ss came flying towards his head. He fought his instincts to duck - because a real man never shied away from danger. In the end the ss smashed into his head, causing ss shards to litter the floor.


    He could only blink away the whiskey that burned in his eyes, causing tears to form. When his vision finally cleared, he was greeted by his father''s furious face.


    "You colossal idiot!" Sun Long roared at his son, his face a ruddy red. It didn''t take a genius to know that he had been drinking too much again. If the smell of whiskey in the air wasn''t a big enough indicator, his bleary, bloodshot eyes were a dead giveaway.


    Sun Haowei flinched minutely at the anger in his father''s eyes. Another shot ss flew in his direction, but his father''s rage made his aim more erratic, and it narrowly missed hitting him.


    "Father - " He tried to plead his case, but his father steamrolled over his words.


    "A whole year! What have you been doing?! How hard can it be to fuck your wife?!" He yelled. "You don''t need to love her, you just need to produce an heir! I thought you were delivering good news, so I let you visit - but now you dare to tell me your wife wants a divorce?"


    Sun Haowei could only stare at the floor, helpless before his father''s rage. In the past, he at least had Tai Cheng watching his back. But now he was depressingly alone.


    His father continued to rant.


    "Are you still so hung up on Nangong Yue Niang that you can''t move on? What kind of man are you, to cave in the absence of one woman? I didn''t raise such a weakling!"


    "..."


    "Do you know what the others are saying about us? They''re calling us weak. Pathetic. Because you couldn''t even hold onto your fiancee and she ran off with our own man. We invited a cuckold into our household!"


    "I - Tai Cheng isn''t - " Sun Haowei wanted to defend Tai Cheng, if not Yue Niang. Even when he hated them for stabbing him in the back, he could not bear for them to be ndered by anyone else. He rationalised to himself that they were his to destroy.


    It was better than facing the alternative - that he missed them. That he wanted to see them again.


    His father didn''t give a shit about his objections. He continued to rant and rave like a lunatic.


    "We narrowly avoided being made a biggerughing stock, because that girl Bi Yu was willing to be ast minute stand-in bride. A nice girl from a good family. She looked fertile."


    "Instead of doing your goddamn duty and getting her with a child, you spend all your time trying to chase down a woman that ditched you! What nonsense! Where is your pride?"


    "Nangong Yue Niang is long gone with your supposed best friend! They will nevere back! Even a blind man knows this, but you''re still trying to hang onto them like a child without a nket. Foolish. Idiotic. Moronic. I sometimes wonder if you''re indeed my son."


    Sun Haowei could only stand there silently as his father rained insults on him.


    "And now your wife wants a divorce? Ridiculous. Chain her down to your bed and fuck a baby into her repeatedly. Hit her if she doesn''t obey you. See if she dares to leave you then!"


    Sun Haowei couldn''t help the look of disgust that crossed his face. His father saw, and scoffed. His son was weak. He clearly didn''t beat him enough as a child.


    "I will not tolerate such nonsense in my family. You are the man of the house now, pathetic as you are. Be a man and make her submit to your will, or I''ll disown you as my son!"

 Chapter 338 Bi Yu And Haowei Pt 3

    "What?!" Sun Haowei demanded. "You can''t do that!"


    "Why not?" A drunk eyebrow was raised.


    "I''m your only son!" Sun Haowei protested, willing his father to see sense. "If I''m gone, who is going to perform your funeral rites?"


    "A goddamn priest." Sun Long took another mighty swig of whiskey from another shot ss. He wanted to throw it at his son, but he realised that was thest one.


    He paused, thinking over it briefly. He flung it anyway. He could always chug whiskey from the bottle, but he needed his son to see sense.


    "Listen here, you insolent whelp. I''m not so old that I can''t make another son. You better get me a grandson within the year or I''ll write you out of the will. In fact, if you can''t impregnate your wife, get out of the way and I''ll do it!" Sun Long roared, but there was a lecherous glint in his eyes as he thought about it.


    His son''s wife had a youthful face and a buxom figure, even in his drunken haze he could recall his daughter-inw had bountiful breasts, even better than those among his staff. Sun Haowei couldn''t stop the disgust from forming in him; how could his father think of stealing his wife?


    "I understand Father," Sun Haowei said, his mind racing frantically as he thought of ways to get his wife to sleep with him. "I''ll do as you say."


    "You''d better, or I''ll take your wife and your life!" Sun Long mmed a hand on his table. "Servant, where''s the whiskey refill?"


    "Yes Sir, here it is." A maid meekly replied, quickly uncorking a new bottle of premium whiskey with shaky hands. It wasn''t a difficult task, but Sun Long made it exponentially harder by drunkenly squeezing her ass, his hands tantly fondling her in front of his disgusted son. "Ah¡­ Sir¡­ please¡­stop¡­ I need¡­"


    "Who are you to tell me to stop?" Sun Long asked warningly, and the maid fell silent, enduring a rough p on her ass with only a whimper. "Continue pouring. Spill a drop and I''ll dock your pay!"


    "Yes Sir." The maid said weakly, nearly bursting into sobs at her humiliation. She cast a hopeful look at Sun Haowei as though he could save her from the mess, but he only gave her a helpless look in response, whiskey still in his hair.


    He couldn''t even save himself. His Father was right; he really was useless when it came down to it. If he had Tai Cheng and Yue Niang by his side, perhaps things would be different¡­ but then he mped down on that train of thought.


    There was no point in thinking about the impossible. Now, he had to save himself from being disinherited, and his wife from the odious attention of his father!


    =========


    "What happened to you?" Bi Yu''s mouth fell open in shock as she saw her soon-to-be-ex- husband stalk towards her, a bouquet of red roses in hand.


    "Go on a date with me."


    "Are you drunk?" Bi Yu took an experimental sniff, and recoiled at the smell of whiskey. That man was practically drowning in it! Figures, he had to be drunk to do something so uncharacteristic for her. "Oh my goodness, you stink. Go take a bath!"


    Beside her, Ming Yan looked at her boss as though he was a pile of dog poo that she identally stepped on. Luckily for her, Sun Haowei was too distracted to fire her for this sign of disrespect.


    "I''m not drunk!" Sun Haowei rified, thrusting the flowers in her direction. "You cannot divorce me!"


    Bi Yu rolled her eyes. "Funnily enough, I can. In fact, the multiplewyers I''ve consulted seem to all agree that it''s feasible."


    "Who are thesewyers? Give me their names?"


    "So that you can threaten them? Do you think I was born yesterday?"


    "This is for your own good! Your family will ruin you if you divorce me! Your reputation in society will be destroyed!"<sub> </sub>


    ''My father will try to fuck a baby in you!'' He did not say, but she must have sensed some desperation behind his eyes. Bi Yu paused and looked over at him carefully.


    "I''ll live," Bi Yu replied. "Staying with you will also ruin me. I want my life back."


    If her old friends could live like fugitives on the run, she could jolly well live in a cottage far away in the countryside where she would be free to garden to her life''s content. Maybe she''ll get a few cats so they can prance between the bushes.


    "And what happened to you?" Bi Yu asked as she noticed the new cuts on his forehead. His hair was damp, and his shirt was also stained wet. "Did you get into a bar fight?"


    "... You can say that." Sun Haowei said. He took an experimental whiff at himself and winced - he did smell like a bar, sans vomit. And there was a fight, only he ended up unable to evennd a single blow.


    "Tsk." Bi Yu gave him a judgemental look and shoved his flowers back at him, disgusted at his behaviour. "And you think this is the right way to ask me out? I see yourck of sincerity. You must think I''m an easy woman, so desperate for you to change your mind if you just throw me a bone? I can no longer stand the sight of you. Get lost."


    "This is my mansion," Sun Haowei retorted instinctively. "I''m not leaving."


    "This is my garden. You''re standing on my soil." Bi Yu argued.


    "Your garden is on my grounds."


    "Then sign the divorce agreement and I''ll be out of your grounds." Bi Yu said,nding the final blow.


    "No. We are not divorcing. You must change your mind! You''re making a huge mistake!" Sun Haowei demanded, now beginning to feel stirrings of faint panic crawling up his gut.


    He could see his inheritance slipping through his hands, and his father''s grubby fingers grabbing the woman in front of him. He didn''t love his wife, but he didn''t want her to end up with such a fate!


    He didn''t want to force her, but he might have to do it as ast resort!


    "Oh, I must, must I?" Bi Yu said warningly. Her temper, normally cid and serene, was quickly dwindling rapidly thanks to this entitled man in front of her.


    "I must endure a loveless marriage where I am treated like decorative furniture, or a particrly bothersome curtain? Sun Haowei, you think too highly of yourself. What reason have you given me to change my mind?"


    "I - " Sun Haowei could only shove the flowers back at her, as though they could fix matters. Several rose petals fell to the floor due to the rough treatment.


    "So far, you have ignored me, wasted my food, and showed up in front of me smelling like you bathed in whiskey. You im that my actions, a direct result of your actions, might I add, are a mistake? And you try to bribe me with¡­ only 17 roses? What on earth?"


    After all she endured in the past year, she deserved an entire ind of roses! This was just too cheap and insincere of her husband, who was a literal billionaire!


    "The florist said this number means ''you are my wife''." Sun Haowei exined, with a frown on his face. "Did he lie? I''ll have his shop destroyed."


    Admittedly, he didn''t want to tell the florist about his entire marriage fuckup. He didn''t think there would be flowers to say ''I''m sorry for my behaviour - please don''t divorce me - my inheritance is at stake and my father wants to have sex with you''.


    Bi Yu took a deep breath, wishing for patience, and for that tiny flutter in her belly to die. This was insanity, and she had to put a stop to it.


    "No. Don''t destroy his shop, for goodness sake. Can''t believe this is your first reaction¡­ after how you treated me, you think 17 measly roses can salvage our marriage? Dream on!"

 Chapter 339 Battlefield Of Roses

    After this harsh pronouncement, Bi Yu took the bouquet and flung it back at Sun Haowei''s face. She stormed off back to the mansion, her heart racing between anger and surprise. The nerve of this man! She reminded herself that she was appalled at his audacious actions.


    She wasn''t going to be swayed into remaining married to him - he clearly had other motives; there was no way he suddenly fell in love with her in the course of her screaming at him for divorce.


    Bi Yu heard footsteps behind her and snarled. It must be that stupid man running after her to stop her!


    "GO AWAY! CAN''T YOU TAKE A HINT YOU MOTHER- oh sorry Ming Yan, I didn''t mean to snap at you." Bi Yu said, startling when she realised that it was Ming Yan hurrying after her.


    "It''s okay!" Ming Yan said, her face equally flushed. "I don''t me you for being angry, the nerve of that man! How could he presume that a simple bouquet could make up for the humiliation you endured?"


    Bi Yu took a deep breath, willing herself to calm down. It was easier to do it now that she was further away from the source of her anger, and Ming Yan was here to be angry on her behalf.


    "This man clearly expected me to roll over and ept his slipshod apology." Bi Yu scoffed. "Even if I was a divorcee spurned by polite society, I would take that over being his wife!"


    "If you leave, I''m leaving." Ming Yan said determinedly. "Young Miss, you can''t leave me behind!"


    "I won''t, I won''t," Bi Yu promised, knowing Ming Yan was just as hurt over Yue Niang leaving them for good. "We''ll buy a cottage and nt some vegetables, what do you think?"


    "Anywhere is good with you!" Ming Yan agreed, nodding fervently. She looked around furtively and whispered. "Can I poison Young Master Sun now? Once he dies, we can go!"


    Bi Yu shook her head. "Definitely not. He is deplorable, but I don''t want him¡­ dead."


    "If you say so," Ming Yan said, slightly disappointed. "But what if he decides to reject the divorce? You won''t be able to leave him!"


    "Then I''ll make him ept it." Bi Yu narrowed her eyes. "I''ll be the world''s worst wife. I''ll make his life hell."


    =======


    Back at the garden, Sun Haowei let out a harsh sneeze. And another. And another.


    "Sir? Are you alright?" One of his guards asked. They had kept a wary distance from him as he approached his wife with a bouquet, and all of them witnessed the embarrassing sight of him getting rejected multiple times!


    If Sun Haowei had asked them for their opinions, they would have told him to change out of his whiskey-drenched shirt and wash his hair, but he didn''t. He never did - he only gave orders, and he expected them to be followed.


    "I''m fine," Sun Haowei said as he rubbed his nose with his sleeve, the smell of whiskey burning his nostrils. Perhaps his wife had a point; he was going about this all wrong! He was so rattled after visiting his father he forgot to make a n.


    The supreme art of war is to subdue an enemy without fighting. If it worked for Sun Tzi in military campaigns, he saw no reason this advice would fail when it came to his marriage.


    And more importantly - 17 roses were too little for her. He made a mental note to increase the number by 10000 times.


    "We''re going."


    "Back to the mansion, Sir?"


    "No. We need to visit more florists! My wife will see the error of her ways."


    The bodyguards nodded in agreement, but they shot each other dubious looks when their boss wasn''t looking.


    Clearly Sun Haowei didn''t learn much from his earlier encounter!


    ======


    The next day, Bi Yu woke up to a field of roses by her bedside.


    "Ming Yan!" She called out in a panic, springing awake immediately. "Come quick!"


    Her room was supposed to be her refuge from nonsense, and she didn''t even let other staff members inside it. Ming Yan was allowed, but Bi Yu didn''t even let her tidy up the room. This was her space, and she needed Ming Yan more as a friend than a servant.


    "Yes?" Ming Yan hurried over, worried at the uncharacteristic panic in herdy''s voice. She burst into the room without knocking and gasped. "How can I - oh my! What happened?"


    "That''s what I hope you could tell me," Bi Yu said.


    Ming Yan''s eyebrow furrowed. "Could this be¡­ from that man?"<sub> </sub>


    "What?"


    "You did tell him that 17 roses were too little to make up for his mistakes," Ming Yan borated. "So he got you¡­ " Ming Yan tried to count the number of blooms, but there were simply too many and they were even of varying colours!


    "A lot. There are even blue ones!" Ming Yanmented in surprise. "Lady Bi Yu? Lady Bi Yu? Where are you going?"


    "To skin Sun Haowei!" Bi Yu called out, storming off in a rage. She didn''t care that she was barefoot and wearing a nightgown, she had to put a stop to that man''s tactics. He was trying to unsettle her by invading her privacy.


    She stalked through the corridors, looking for her husband. Unfortunately, she didn''t find him, instead she found vases and vases of new roses lining the walkway, outside every room. Her eyebrow twitched at the an unspoken taunt.


    "Young Madame! You''re awake! Do you want breakfast?" One of the servants asked hesitantly as she stumbled upon their youngdy looking particrly upset. Hunger did have a way of making people unhappy.


    "No. What I want is my husband. Where is that cursed man?" Bi Yu asked, nearly yelling at the poor servant before she reminded herself to behave. It wasn''t this maid''s fault she married a terrible man.


    "He''s in the dining hall!" The maid squeaked out. "He''s waiting there to eat breakfast with you!"


    "What? You must be joking," Bi Yu said disbelievingly. Every meal they shared since their marriage was one forced by circumstance. For instance, family dinners where they ignored each other as they ate in silence, or society parties where they pretended they were a supportive loving couple.


    Wedding dinners were the worst of all - they were forced to y the part of a couple in happily wedded bliss, and answer invasive questions about the state of their marriage! And Bi Yu found it a new torture to sit and watch a new couple achieve marital bliss with every toast - something that so dearly eluded her.


    "I wouldn''t dare, Madame," the maid insisted. "Please, follow me to the dining hall!"


    So Bi Yu did, and true enough, there was a man sitting at the head of the table with a bowl of congee in front of him, and yet another bouquet of roses to his left.


    Clearly he was mocking her!


    "Sun Haowei, what''s the meaning of this!" Bi Yu demanded.


    "Oh you''re awake. Good morning, wife. Let''s have breakfast together," Sun Haowei blinked and smiled, getting up to pull out a chair for her.


    More than one maid blushed at his handsomeness and gentlemanly attitude, but Bi Yu only nched. The sight of her husband actually pulling out her chair was such an uncharacteristic sight that it broke her brain.


    "Don''t give me that attitude, it''s strangeing from you," she said with narrowed eyes, pointing at him with a shaky finger. "More importantly, what are all these roses for?"


    "They are for you, of course," Sun Haowei said. "You said 17 was too little a number, and you were right. That was my mistake, hence I am rectifying it immediately. Is there a problem?"


    "Is there a problem - oh, there are so many problems!" Bi Yu began. "For a start, why did you fill my room with roses? No one is supposed to enter my room, not even you!"


    "But I didn''t enter your room, it was the servants," Sun Haowei replied glibly. "But if you don''t like them, then I''ll have them reced with another type of flower. Cost is no question."


    Bi Yu breathed deeply, praying to any higher power for patience.


    "Save your money on these paltry attempts and sign the divorce form, or you''ll suffer the consequences!"


    "No. We will remain married. Do you want congee for breakfast or buns?"


    "I want a divorce."


    "That''s not on the menu."


    Bi Yu gnashed her teeth. Not on the menu? She was going to make sure it was put on every course, she was going to buy termites and let them loose on the house, she was going to -


    Her stomach growled.


    "So, congee or buns?" Her husband asked, amused.


    "Buns," Bi Yu growled out, even if she wanted the congee. She didn''t want to have anything inmon with him!


    They ate in silence. Bi Yu stuffed the buns in her mouth and plotted revenge, while Sun Haowei perused the morning paper. He thought about engaging his wife in conversation, but the death re she gave him made him think twice.


    Maybe his wife just wasn''t a morning person!

 Chapter 340 Tiny Additions

    Servants in the Sun family mansion soon found their lives bing more interesting. The young madame ordered them to dispose of the roses, but the young master insisted they remain.


    So they did. And their madame retaliated by unleashing a litter of rambunctious puppies in her husband''s room, letting them pee and poo and shred his curtains to their heart''s desire.


    "Is this a sign that she wants dogs?" Sun Haowei wondered to himself as he stared at a puppy eagerly chewing his leather shoe. They''ve never talked about it. On second thought, this was most likely his wife''s method of revenge - to employ tiny terrors to destroy his belongings and disrupt his rest.


    He had woken up with multiple tongues licking his face wetly, smelling of dried kibble. It was not something he ever wanted to experience!


    He red at the puppy chewing his shoe. It (the shoe, not the dog) was worth a year''s worth of wages for an average worker. Sun Haowei tilted his headmandingly and the butler hurriedly pulled the whining puppy away.


    "Sir, what are your orders?" The butler asked, frazzled. "Do we contact the shelters?"


    Sun Haowei frowned, and the puppies continued to roll around the floor. They were kind of cute. And more importantly, he had to show his wife that he wasn''t going to give in to her tactics!


    "We''ll keep all of the puppies. Get¡­puppy things. Put them in a kennel."


    "Sir. Are you sure about it?" The butler asked. "Getting a pet isn''t something that should be done on impulse." Let alone a whole litter of untrained puppies.


    Someone had to tell his boss that pets were a hassle! He was internally despairing at the mess they would cause.


    "Yes. Why would I hire you otherwise?" Sun Haowei stared at him as though he was stupid. "Besides, you''re telling me you can''t handle these animals? Look at how harmless they are!"


    Together they turned to look at a puppy chasing its tail. It stumbled and rolled on the floor, and the other puppies pounced on him.


    "See? Harmless." Sun Haowei dered, but then another puppy decided to barrel towards him, letting out tiny squeaky yips.


    ''I see this one knows his master,'' Sun Haowei thought, feeling smug. This one would be his favourite.


    Then the puppy lifted its tinier leg up. Both master and servant watched in increasing horror as the puppy let out a steady stream of pee, right onto Sun Haowei''s bare feet. The smell of urine filled the air, and their noses twitched.


    Sun Haowei fought the urge to scream and kick the puppy away. Oblivious to how close it came to death, the puppy strolled on merrily, trying to pull down his nket. Sun Haowei was too shell-shocked to stop it.


    "Sir! Are you alright?" The butler asked, panicking. "Do you want to get a shower?"


    "No - I want to walk around with literal dog piss on my feet - of course I want to go shower!" Sun Haowei shrieked, loud enough for the mansion to hear, and the puppies barked louder, sensing his foul mood and further panicking.


    In the next room, Bi Yu''s mouth curled into a beautiful smile as she took a sip of her tea.


    Perfect. She could proceed to the next part of the n.


    ========


    After Sun Haowei took a long, intense shower and scrubbed his feet clean of any impurities, he ordered the puppies to be taken away, far from his room. Whether they were to be donated to a shelter or tossed into the soup pot for dinner, he wasn''t too picky.


    (His staff onlyughed awkwardly when he mentioned cooking them. Spineless. If they were starving, they would have eaten the dogs.)


    He kept that one puppy that dared to pee on him, and it stared up at him trustingly, not knowing that it escaped the frying pan only to end up in the fire.


    "What am I going to do with you? Should I punt you to the ceiling?"


    The puppy barked obliviously and tried to jump on the bed, but its legs were too short. He red at it. It ignored him.


    "Oi, pay attention to me when I''m talking to you. I could turn you into a fur coat you know!"


    He swore the puppy rolled its eyes at him! The nerve! Nevermind that he wouldn''t have done it, because the dog was too small to make anythingrger than a glove.<sub> </sub>


    Also, he wasn''t aplete monster.


    The dog proceeded to tug at his bedsheet with its tiny teeth.


    "You''re a menace," Sun Haowei scolded and tugged it away from his bedsheet. The puppy whined and squirmed in his arms. He had a diabolical thought - perhaps¡­


    He tucked the puppy in his arm as though it was a briefcase. It let out a startled yip as Sun Haowei strode to the outdoors, where his wife''s crops were sitting beautifully, even without her presence.


    He put down the puppy. It stared up at him, confused.


    "Well, time to return to your base instincts." He pointed to the crops and flowers, as though he was a generalmanding an army of thousands. "Go forth and dig to your heart''s content!"


    =====


    Back at the house, Bi Yu looked up from where she was oiling the bannisters with narrowed eyes. She wasn''t a particrly religious woman, but she sensed a disruption in the state of the universe.


    "Madame, is anything wrong?" A maid asked cautiously, her hand still holding a rag soaked in shiny polish as she scrubbed it all over the railings.


    Herdy had already been acting strangely since this morning. First, she smuggled puppies by the handful in the wee hours of the morning, depositing it in her husband''s room and taking her morning tea in her room.


    After causing havoc in her husband''s room, she handed the maids a tub of shiny wood polish she pulled out from her own cupboards, asking them to help her polish the railings of the multiple staircases in their mansion.


    ? That was still¡­ rtively normal. Perhaps theirdy wanted to indulge in home renovation.


    What wasn''t normal was how she ordered the old carpet to be torn up and reced with a geometric spiral that threatened to buckle the knees of even the most intelligent and rational of men!


    The carpet, paired with the stairs, made one look like they were dropping through a wormhole in space. All the servants gave the stairs a wide berth - no one really dared to go up and down the steps, even though they had walked this path a thousand times.


    Why was she installing an optical illusion in her own home? The maids wanted to demand an answer, but it was beyond their pay grade, and Ming Yan, Madame''s head servant, refused to enlighten them.


    "Have you seen my husband? I think he''s up to something." Bi Yu said.


    "He went outside just now," The maid said.


    Ming Yan snorted as she overheard. "When is he not up to something?" She wondered.


    "Good point. So let''s hurry and finish this before hees back," Bi Yu said, slightly disappointed. She had hoped he''d be held up in his room after such an ordeal, but sadly she underestimated her husband.


    Next time, she''d lock him in his own room so he can''t escape - she wanted to leave him stranded on the second floor, but now she''ll have to settle for trapping him on the first.


    They worked together quickly and soon all the staircases were revamped, giving servants shaky knees and sweaty palms as they gazed at the finished product with trepidation.


    How were they supposed to carry on their chores if just using the staircases scared them?


    Meanwhile, Bi Yu looked at the end result proudly, feeling incredibly self-satisfied. Art museum curators would be on their knees, figuratively and literally, when they looked at her masterpiece.


    "Mydy! Mydy!" A maid eximed running into the room only to stumble and stop at the staircase, gawking at the design. It made her head spin.


    "Yes? What''s the problem?" Bi Yu asked, still admiring her work. Her husband was going to stumble and fall and that''ll make him divorce her.


    "Your flower beds! They''re all damaged!" The poor maid replied, distressed to the point of tears.

 Chapter 341 Wreckage And Guilt

    "What? Who''s responsible for this?" Bi Yu immediately whirled around, upset, but she didn''t wait for a reply before running down the stairs, taking multiple steps at a time. Her staff made horrified gasps as they watched her clear the optical illusion like it was nothing.


    Bi Yu sprinted for her gardens, while Ming Yan and the rest of her servants tried to keep up.


    She wasn''t the fittest woman (that honour went to her best friend Yue Niang), and her blood cirction was so poor that she needed to wear sweaters for three seasons, but her body did its best to obey her mind. Her heart raced to keep up, but it nearly stuttered to a stop as she gazed upon her beloved garden.


    Or more urately, the wreckage of her beloved garden.


    "Oh my god!" Bi Yu let out an unholy scream, before choking in shock at the sight of torn cabbages and half-bitten carrots. Everyone in earshot flinched.


    "Madame! Please calm down!" Her staff panicked, frantically handing her handkerchiefs for her to cough in. Ming Yan even rubbed her back, but it did nothing.


    "How can I calm down?" Bi Yu wailed, nearly crying at the sight of her hard work going down the metaphorical drain. "Who is responsible for this mess?!"


    A tiny woof answered her. Everyone nced down and saw the sight of a tiny puppy peeping through the stalks of the roses. Sensing eyes on it, it blinked and proceeded to scamper off, stomping over even more of Bi Yu''s nt children.


    "Get that puppy!" Bi Yu demanded, realisation dawning on her.


    This was clearly caused by her husband, as a form of revenge! She cursed him in her heart, vowing to sew dog poo into his bedsheets. Meanwhile, the servants spread out, trying to catch the little critter. The puppy barked and darted between them, thinking it was a fun game.


    The more they chased, the more they destroyed!


    "Stop it, stop it!" Bi Yu waved at them. "At this rate, I might as well raze my garden to the ground." She said sadly. The puppy, finally recognizing her from the morning, cheerfully wagged its tail and deposited a chewed up rose in front of her.


    "Woof!" It whirled around, tail wagging excitedly as it nudged the flower towards her. "Woof!"


    "Thank you," Bi Yu said, sighing in resignation as she picked up the puppy. It nestled in her arms and yawned, tired after its rampage of her gardens. This was her own fault. She hadn''t calcted for her husband''s callous cruelty.


    "Young Madame, we can salvage this, please go and rest," the maids cajoled, feeling very sorry for their mistress. She had so little she loved in this ce, and now another thing was gone! Even if her husband was upset, it was still too much.


    "No, it''s fine. They are my nts, I''ll clean up. Take the puppy away," Bi Yu said, steel in her spine. She rolled up her pants, stepping into the mud and dirt, clearing the stalks by hand. She winced as thorns pricked her, but she still continued. Her heart ached more than her fingers.


    "Your fingers! You forgot to wear gloves," Ming Yanmented, aghast. She grabbed Bi Yu''s hands before she could continue. "Someone get gloves for Madame! The rest of you, spread out and clean!"


    "Yes!" The maids proceeded to do as she ordered. Bi Yu sighed tiredly, half-amused.


    "You''re really in charge of them all now."


    "Nonsense," Ming Yan said, scolding her. "You are the one in charge. You should be ordering us around, not getting your hands dirty!"


    Bi Yu only shook her head. "No, this is my fault. I''m cleaning it up." She pulled her hands away from Ming Yan''s hold and shrugged out of her sweater, still panting slightly. The earlier run had warmed her up, causing her pale skin to flush.<sub> </sub>


    "What are you doing?" Ming Yan asked, confused.


    Bi Yu wrapped it around her hands with the sweater, walking straight into the dirt pile, and bending over, cradling the fallen stalks protectively in her hands. "I''m picking up stalks."


    The servants looked on sadly, but in a hidden alcove slightly further away, there was one pair of eyes that eyed her contemtively.


    Sun Haowei had been lying in wait, wanting to see his wife''s reaction to his revenge. She didn''t disappoint, but what was disappointing were his own emotions!


    He was supposed to be cackling, delighted that his scheme was pulled off so wlessly. Instead he was tucked in a hidden alcove as though he was a criminal and his heart continued to beat in double-time for multiple reasons.


    He hadn''t seen his wife expose so much skin, and she almost radiated light from the sun as she worked. Her flushed skin and sweat. More than one servant was stunned agog at her beauty and it made him feel... weird.


    "Sir, are you not going to help her?" The butler asked.


    "Why should I?" Sun Haowei replied, even as his heart strangely twinged with guilt at the sight of his wife''s bowed despondent figure. "It was the dog''s fault. And she brought the dog into the house and it peed on my shoes."


    The butler shot him an incredulous look. "I... How..."


    "You have something to ask, don''t you? Speak," Sun Haoweimented, sensing his butler''s aborted question.


    "Sir, forgive me for asking, but do you want to stay married to Madame?" The butler asked confusedly. "I could have sworn you rejected Madame''s divorce offer."


    "I do want to stay married. What''s your point?"


    "Then why are you treating her like this? You should be trying to get her to stay, but instead you destroyed the one thing that she would stay for." The butler asked, shaking his head. "Poor Madame, she worked hard on those gardens. It''s a real pity her hard work didn''te to fruition."


    Sun Haowei froze. He hadn''t thought about that. The butler brought up such a good point that he wasn''t going to punish him for lecturing him.


    "Well, there''s nothing I can do about it now, the produce and flowers are all dead," Sun Haowei said curtly.


    The butler looked at him in disappointment, but he didn''t know that Sun Haowei''s guilt was now growing stronger, and it was joined by an increasing fear that he would wake up with his wife standing over him with a knife in her hand.


    "Are you sure Sir?"


    "Yes. I''m going back to the mansion."


    And if he took the long winding path to avoid attracting the attention of his wife, the butler certainly didn''t call him out on it.

 Chapter 342 Injury!

    Whatever niggling guilt Sun Haowei felt for destroying his wife''s precious garden had evaporated immediately when he entered his mansion.


    If he was a lesser man, he would have walked out again, just to check if he had got the correct house. But since this was the only mansion for miles, and he wasn''t stupid enough to end up walking to another estate, he was absolutely sure that this was his house!


    No matter how much it didn''t look like it!


    "Are my eyes ying tricks on me? What is the meaning of this?" Sun Haowei asked rhetorically. The meaning was clear, it was another one of his wife''s petty tricks to get him to divorce her.


    His butler didn''t reply; he was too busy gawking at the stairs.


    "Young Master!" The maids chorused. Noticeably, they all remained on the second floor, refusing to take even a step downwards to greet him. They were on higher ground, but he supposed he could be lenient enough to forgive thispse in protocol.


    His wife was inconveniencing everyone, but he''ll prove that this was just a stupid tactic in the face of his resilience and intelligent.


    (Besides, the handrail was still there. He could always grab it if necessary.)


    He slowly walked up the stairs, so that he could seem more imposing and unbothered, and definitely not because the patterns were forming illusions in his mind. With every step, the gnawing pit in his stomach grew. It felt like he was walking up a skyscraper without any support.


    ''Don''t look down'', he chastised himself. If he kept his eyes up and ahead, and remained focused, there was no way he could fall.


    "Sun Haowei! You better exin yourself!" A woman screamed, storming into the hall.


    Sun Haowei paused - that sounded a lot like his wife, even though he had never heard her scream his name before. He whirled around and that tiny moment of distraction was all that was needed for him to lose his bnce.


    He grabbed onto the railing for dear life, only for his hand to slide down - how the fuck was it so slippery?! His feet tangled together as he tried to right himself, and he instinctively looked down and experienced a sense of vertigo so strong it sent him stumbling down the stairs.


    This, along with the slipping of the handrail, was just enough to send him off bnce. Sun Haowei felt his body tilt forward, and shrieked.


    "Fuck! Someone help me!"


    "Sir!"


    "Oh no!"


    "Someone grab him!"


    But it was toote. The maids stretched out their hands, but he was facing the wrong way and too far away from them to reach. His arms spun like windmill des, and he screamed. His butler''s mouth had fallen open in shock, but he noticeably didn''t reach forward to save him.


    He fell.


    And that was how a houseful of servants were treated with the incredible, awe-inspiring, once in a lifetime view of Sun Haowei tumbling down the stairs. Sun Haowei felt paince through his right ankle and cursed even as his head knocked against every step on the way down.


    "Sir! Someone call a doctor!" The servants panicked. If Sun Haowei could catch his breath, he''d tell them to save it. What''s the point of worrying about him now when they couldn''t even be arsed to help him?


    But thankfully, before he could brain his skull on the cold marble floor onest time, there was a warm hand supporting the back of his head.


    "My ankle hurts. My butt hurts," He grumbled woozily to the blurry stranger, much like a child trying to stay awake, or him after a rough night.


    "I know, I know, so sorry," a voice said gently to him, petting his head. He closed his eyes, but they were forcefully opened by the stranger. He blinked again, and the blurry image focused - to form his wife!


    "Are you alright? How many fingers am I holding?" Bi Yu asked worriedly, holding up two fingers with her other hand.


    Sun Haowei snarled and wanted to get out of her hold, but his body felt strangely heavy and reluctant to move from its spot on the floor. His wife then pulled his head up so he was pillowed on her thigh, and Sun Haowei blinked, wondering if he was hallucinating her tenderness.


    "You." He growled out, staring woozily at his wife, torn between disgust and admiration. He thought this wife of his was a soft, tender-hearted woman. But instead she cooked up such a scheme to cause him brain injury!


    She stared back down at him, looking incredibly apologetic. "You tried to kill me!"<sub> </sub>


    "I did not!" Bi Yu protested hotly, even as a guilty flush crawled up her cheeks. She was angry at him, but now she was also angry at herself. This was what she had in mind, but it didn''t feel as good as she imagined. He could have died!


    "I only wanted to injure you a bit! And answer my question, how many fingers am I holding?"


    "How is that any better?" Sun Haoweiined.


    "How many fingers am I holding?" Bi Yu repeated, ignoring his question.


    "Two! I think," Sun Haowei said, frowning. "And I can''t believe you tried to have me murdered. That''s cold-hearted of you."


    Bi Yu sighed. "I''m just going to assume you have brain damage since you keep assuming things that aren''t there." She looked up and asked, "has anyone called a doctor?"


    "Yes we have, he''ll be here shortly." The butler said, his face pale with worry. "For now, we should get the Young Master to his room¡­"


    His voice trailed off as he gazed at the staircase again. If they were to carry their young master, they might identally drop him!


    "Okay, I''ll carry him. Ming Yan, help me." Bi Yu said, and all the servants spluttered.


    "Like hell you will! Butler Zhang, stop her" Sun Haowei choked out. Not only was it unseemly for his wife to be doingbour like this, she was the one that injured him! What if she took offence to something he said and tossed him back down again like a sack of garbage down the chute?


    "Madame, surely you shouldn''t¡­" Butler Zhang tried to protest, but he quietened when she shot him a steely re.


    "If you''re worried I''ll kick him down, then you and the other maids can follow behind me to catch his fallen body!"


    "Yes Madame!"


    "No," Sun Haowei protested, but it was futile, he found one of his arms draped around his wife''s shoulder, the other over her maid, and they dragged him up the stairs despite his best efforts to escape.


    Admittedly, his best efforts were pretty lousy. He couldn''t even put his weight on his right ankle, his head and shoulders ached, and he was realising that his wife smelled very nice, even when he knew she was just outside working in the garden.


    Bi Yu paused with rm, feeling Sun Haowei shift in her hold. "Are you feeling alright? Do you want to vomit?"


    "No," Sun Haowei said as he continued to breathe deeply through his nose. Her scent continued to entice him.


    Bi Yu frowned; he must be in more pain than she realised! Once again, Bi Yu mentally scolded herself for her actions. She wanted a divorce, but she didn''t want to hurt him. She wasn''t Yue Niang.


    Meanwhile Ming Yan turned to stare at Sun Haowei, an incredulous expression on her face.


    "Are you sniffing mydy?" Ming Yan demanded, too bothered to be polite.


    "No, that''s preposterous." Sun Haowei said primly, and proceeded to take a long drawn out sniff again, nearly burying his nose in her hair. Ming Yan caught Bi Yu''s eyes; herdy shook her head minutely, so Ming Yan decided to drop the issue.


    Maybe Sun Haowei had a concussion.


    They managed to get him tucked into his bed, and the doctor looked him over. The verdict?


    A sprained ankle that was now in a cast, and a possible concussion. He gave strict instructions for his care that left Sun Haowei reeling - he wasn''t allowed to drink until he recovered fully, and he couldn''t even sleep for the first 24 hours! No one wanted him to pass her away in his sleep.


    Well, he''s sure someone wanted him to die. His eyes darted to his wife listening attentively to the physician. He''s sure she''s going to do the exact opposite of his instructions.


    "Do look after him carefully, Madame," the physician said, peering at Bi Yu over his wire-rim sses, as though he could guess why a man of Sun Haowei''s status could have ended up t on his back. The skin around his eyes was wrinkled, but his gaze was piercing. "He is your husband and needs your care."


    "Yes Doctor," Bi Yu said, nodding politely. "I''ll do as you say."


    A disbelieving snort escaped Sun Haowei''s mouth before he could stop it.


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