Chapter 431 - Don't Need to Introduce Us Anymore
100 billion euros could get a lot of things done. If it was given to a war hungry man, more than two thousand of the most technologically advanced fighter aircraft F-22, or hundreds of nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, while stuff like missiles and submarines were simply too cheap.
The most powerful country, America, only had less than 200 F-22 aircrafts. That was basically due to a lack of funding, although they had the technology to do so.
It wasn't an overstatement to say that this amount of money could be used to purchase half of Africa! This amount of money was also enough to start a world war!
Most importantly, this figure didn't consist of invisible, illiquid assets. All of it was cold, hard cash!
Lin Ruoxi suddenly felt that her business-like mind wasn't big enough to process the situation. Although she wasn't an extravagant woman, she was well aware that her net worth of tens of billions made her extremely wealthy. It was common knowledge that the most passionate shopaholics would require several generations to spend all her wealth completely.
However, all of her assets combined only amounted to less than five percent of 100 billion euros!
Regarding cash, she had less than one percent of that!
She looked at the unremarkable, ink-colored ring in her hand and felt that she was dreaming.
As long as one had this ring, 100 billion euros was within their reach?!
What about the wealthiest people on earth with net worths of merely tens of billions US dollars? Were they just jokes who had peanuts then?
Silence remained for a while before Lin Ruoxi finally calmed herself down. She recovered her usual appearance. "There's no need for so much money. I only need 50 billion Chinese yuan."
Stephen obviously found it unbelievable. "50 billion... Chinese yuan?" He felt the need to make a confirmation.
"Correct, you're right," Lin Ruoxi said.
Although Stephen found it ridiculous to believe that she was only asking for so little, he couldn't force Lin Ruoxi to take more money than she asked for. That just wouldn't make any sense. Thus, he immediately made a call to the bank's finance department to make a transaction.
50 billion Chinese yuan wasn't too large of an amount for Union Bank of Switzerland. Stephen didn't need anyone else's authority to move this sum of money. He just had to make a report to the headquarters after that.
Within ten minutes, Stephen returned to Lin Ruoxi smilingly. "Madam, 50 billion in cash will be credited to your account within the next ten minutes. Oh yeah, your account has been upgraded from VIP level to diamond level. Due to the cards of diamond account holders requiring special processes, your card will be sent to you by someone in charge within the month. The new overdraft limit will be one billion euros. Of course, based on your much respected identity, money is nothing more than numbers to you. Treat this as a form of respect to you and the other being."
Although Lin Ruoxi was still incredibly confused, she knew that she wasn't dreaming.
She had spent hours preparing a script to voice her trouble, but as it turns out, it wasn't needed at all. She spent a mere half an hour using the small, ordinary ring she was holding to effortlessly obtain 50 billion in cash, an amount she could never have gotten no matter how hard she tried to brainstorm.
Lin Ruoxi was then grandly sent out of the bank by Stephen and a few other highly ranked individuals in the bank. She felt exhausted when she returned to her car and sat on the real-leather seat of the Bentley.
Looking at the busy city roads through the windshield, Lin Ruoxi felt an unprecedented exhaustion and confusion.
Her mind currently only contained one thing—the lazy figure who had treated everything lightly all the time.
He relied on her for food, shelter, clothing, and even used her car... His living expense was almost entirely paid by Lin Ruoxi, as if he was being babysat the whole time.
She then thought of his past. He used to sell mutton skewers and live in a little, broken, rented apartment, and smoke poor-quality cigarettes...
She had always been annoyed for his unambitious personality, and had hoped he could succeed on his own.
However... he would come up with absurd excuses, mess with other women outside, and disappoint her all day...
Recently, she gradually found out that he had an extraordinary past. He had unimaginable fighting skills. However, when she thought she had understood who he was, she quickly realized she knew nothing about him!
This man was not unlike a black hole of mystery, but would tempt people to explore his truth...
Lin Ruoxi was glad that she made the request at the resort to know more about his past. Otherwise she felt that she wouldn't dare to pass her everything to him at all.
All of these combine to form a worrying mystery, which should be slowly solved in the future I guess... Lin Ruoxi thought as she rubbed the ring which was faintly shining a black light.
At the same time, Yang Chen arrived at the old house they had moved into with the intention of taking care of his family members.
"Achoo!" Yang Chen rubbed his runny nose. He murmured, "I wonder which Little Obedient is missing me again."
Raising his head, he glanced at the house from left to right. There was a spacious courtyard in front of the three-storey, old-fashioned bungalow. It was indeed much bigger than the previous villa in Dragon Garden. The environment also made it feel more like a home.
When Yang Chen was on the way here, he made a phone call to Molin from Sea Eagles. He quickly exuded cold sweat when he was informed that no one from Sea Eagles was sent to this new spot.
After Sea Eagles was assaulted by Ares last time, they had suffered a serious loss. Quite a number of their members were injured. Thus, the mission of protecting Yang Chen's family was passed to Rose's Red Thorns Society.
So far, there hadn't been any bad news from the people of Red Thorns Society, so Yang Chen wasn't too worried.
Yang Chen couldn't enter the house normally since he had no keys. He looked around to make sure no one was passing by, before jumping over the fence to land on the courtyard and walking to the front door.
Unexpectedly, before he could reach the door, it got pushed open before a familiar female voice resounded. "Who is it?!"
When the elegant figure saw Yang Chen, she instantly stopped moving. "Hubby?!"
This lady was the same Rose whom Guo Xuehua had gotten to know this morning. Guo Xuehua had developed a liking to this beautiful and generous girl after having been saved by her earlier. She invited Rose over to have breakfast together, and talked about certain interesting matters in the past.
No matter the time, place or circumstance, women would never run out of things to talk about. Now that Rose had delegated most of her tasks to her people in Red Thorns Society, and started letting Chen Rong take over a portion of the association in preparation for her inheritance, she had a lot of spare time.
Coincidentally, her 'roommate' Mo Qianni was busy because of the disaster in Yu Lei International, and didn't have time to go home at all. Thus, Rose who had not many friends felt really bored.
Rose was naturally elated to find out that she had a new neighbor. Guo Xuehua, Wang Ma, and Zhenxiu all treated her really nicely, so she was more than happy to stay at Yang Chen's house.
When she cried out, "Hubby," the people inside the house including Guo Xuehua, Wang Ma, and Zhenxiu came out curiously. They were surprised to find out Rose had a husband, so they wanted to take a look at her husband.
Both Yang Chen and Rose were incredibly confused at the fact that they were staring at each other face to face.
The three who had come out from the house looked weird when they noticed Rose was facing Yang Chen.
Guo Xuehua was first frowning, before she quickly noticed something while her expression turned terrible. Wang Ma and Zhenxiu were both shocked, but didn't manage to think of too many other things.
Rose was completely unaware that Yang Chen was the man of this house. She thought he came to visit her, and felt overjoyed. She rushed into Yang Chen's arms. "Hubby, you're finally here. You haven't come to visit me and Qianni before since moving here. But you're at the wrong house. We're staying at the house beside this one. This is someone else's house."
As she spoke, Rose smilingly introduced the few people to Yang Chen. "Hubby, this is Aunt Guo, Aunt Wang, and Sister Zhenxiu. They're my new neighbors who just moved i—"
Before she finished speaking, she finally realized Yang Chen's strange expression. He looked like he wanted to cry and laugh at the same time.
On the other hand, Guo Xuehua had gotten an answer to her guess. She glanced at the charming Rose before her son Yang Chen who was looking at her helplessly. Sighing, Guo Xuehua said, "Rose, you don't need to introduce us anymore."
"Eh?" Rose felt a premonition. "Aunt Guo... you guys are..."
"Do you remember I told you my son and daughter-in-law were trying to work their relationship out at the moment? I wanted to introduce them to you when they come back... The man you're leaning against now is my son Yang Chen," Guo Xuehua said with a bitter smile.
"Ah!"
Rose immediately reacted to that information, much like someone who was being stabbed by a needle . She withdrew her arm which was hugging Yang Chen, while her cheeks had reddened so much that they looked like juice would be discharged when pinched upon. She bit her lips as she panicked. She had the urge to bang her head into the wall and end her life!
However, at this moment, a strong arm pulled her body backward!
All Rose felt was she collided on a familiar chest. She widened her eyes in shock while her face paled. She raised her head, only to discover Yang Chen's gentle and loving smile.
"Mom, the one I'm now hugging is another woman I love—Situ Qiangwei."
[TL note: Qiangwei is her name in Mandarin which shouldn't have been translated to Rose.]
Yang Chen put it very lightly, but every single word he spoke acted like landmines, greatly shocking their souls and hearts!
Chapter 432 - The Room
The three ladies standing by the door each revealed different expression on their faces. Wang Ma looked astonished. Evidently, she found it surprising that the usually well-behaved Yang Chen had another woman outside.
Zhenxiu was still a nineteen-year-old girl after all. Key words like marriage, betrayal, and lover were still new things to her. What she was currently witnessing was exactly the same as what she had seen in her TV serieses. She subconsciously covered her mouth to prevent herself from crying out.
Guo Xuehua's expression cycled through a million emotions. At last, she raised her head to give Rose a complicated gaze, before looking at Yang Chen who appeared to be calm. Smiling, she said, "Really? I'm not too surprised at this actually. It was just shocking to hear."
Rose who was in Yang Chen's arm shivered lightly. She had never expected the senior she was happily chatting with earlier to suddenly become someone whom she now could not bear to look at.
Her mind was currently filled with various thoughts. She had wondered if she would one day meet Yang Chen's family or not, but she never thought it would be under such an awkward circumstances, being totally unprepared for it.
However, Rose felt warm inside. She wasn't disappointed at all, since Yang Chen had accepted her in front of his family.
What was better and more worthy of getting overjoyed for, than being unconditionally accepted by one's lover?
Regarding whether or not Guo Xuehua and the others were willing to accept her, or how they would see her were secondary to her at that point.
Yang Chen smiled casually. "I was shocked as well. But I hate to lying to people, more so to my own family. Rose and I have had feelings for each other before I even met Ruoxi. I don't want to be a deserter, so all I can do is put on a brave face and face the problem."
"Young Master... you... when you're doing this, how do you think Miss feels? Sigh..." Wang Ma was the first one to think on Lin Ruoxi's behalf. Even if she found out that Rose was Lin Ruoxi's love rival, she still didn't develop hatred for Rose. Being soft-hearted, Wang Ma was just worried about the peace inside her family.
Yang Chen didn't give an answer immediately, but patted Rose on her firm and springy backside. Gently, he said, "Babe Rose, you return first. I have some unfinished business to handle before I come look for you."
"Hu—" Rose wanted to call him, but noticed it was inappropriate. Blushing, she said, "Yang Chen, don't get into an argument because of me."
"Do I need you to teach me that?" Yang Chen said before smacking her butt once again.
Rose hurriedly escaped. She was annoyed and shy when she was spanked in front of Guo Xuehua and the others, and at the same time felt a strange excitement.
This was similar to a relationship being found out in middle school, while the couple still behaved intimately in front of their parents. The kind of psychological stimulation was enough to excite a person.
Turning around, Rose had her eyes shut as she bowed to Guo Xuehua to imply a goodbye, before quickly running back to her house.
Rose came to the steel railing as she planned to leap over it. This was how she came over this morning to rescue Guo Xuehua. However, she thought she'd appear masculine by doing so. She had to care about how Guo Xuehua and the others thought of her due recent events. Blushing, Rose turned around yet another time to leave the house from the main entrance.
Guo Xuehua had witnessed this scene. She let out a bitter, helpless yet regretful smile before saying, "Such a foolish kid."
"Why else would she fall for a terrible man like me otherwise?"
"Does Ruoxi know about this?" Guo Xuehua asked.
Yang Chen nodded. "I bumped into her when I brought Rose to shopping, but we haven't spoken of it since then."
This time, Wang Ma and Zhenxiu seemed particularly shocked. Lin Ruoxi was aware that Yang Chen had someone else outside? Why didn't she behave any unusually?!
"What do you plan to do?" Guo Xuehua asked. She wasn't sure what she was supposed to say. Being a woman, she was naturally against Yang Chen's unfaithfulness. But being a mother, she hoped that her son could live a truly joyous life.
From the interaction between Yang Chen and Rose earlier, Guo Xuehua could easily tell that they were truly in love. Both of them would only get hurt when forced to separate.
Of course, Guo Xuehua didn't think Yang Chen would listen to her. She had held a strong guilt for Yang Chen. All she could do was showing her concern.
Yang Chen scratched the back of his head. "I don't have the perfect solution to this matter. But I just discussed about this with Ruoxi recently. So I think there shouldn't be a problem for now."
As he spoke, Yang Chen walked toward Wang Ma. Apologetically, he said, "Wang Ma, you must be really disappointed in me, since I've betrayed your trust."
Wang Ma smiled bitterly. "Young Master, this is the matter does not concern the old like me. I... I've watched Miss grow up, so I'm naturally on her side. I just hope that Young Master won't let Miss get too upset."
"I understand. There's nothing that will make me forget that Ruoxi is my wife." Yang Chen nodded before asking, "I still don't know why Rose came over just now. Didn't you guys just move in yesterday?"
Guo Xuehua wasn't willing to continue talking about Yang Chen's relationships. Sometimes certain things were best left ignored. Thus, she talked about how Rose saved her in the morning.
Born in a wealthy and powerful clan, Guo Xuehua didn't panic too much for the attack she had suffered this morning. She calmly explained the occurence to Yang Chen from beginning to end.
Yang Chen felt lucky to have moved over. With Rose living right beside his house, this meant a lot of the elites from Red Thorns Society protecting Rose could grant his family protection at the same time. This could decrease his worry by a ton.
"Oh yeah, why isn't Hui Lin here?" Yang Chen asked. Hui Lin and An Xin should've come back early in the morning. He found Hui Lin's absence strange.
Guo Xuehua replied, "Hui Lin made a call to us earlier. She said Star of Yu Lei is coming soon, and she has to make use of her time to practise more, so she went to the company instead."
While Yu Lei was facing a major challenge, its subsidiary company Yu Lei Entertainment was still operating as usual. Yang Chen could understand why Hui Lin chose to do so. Instead of feeling anxious at home, it was better for her to delve into her music and forget about the troubles instead.
Yang Chen looked around at the new, spacious environment. Smiling, he said, "Now that we've moved here, I'll have to visit the place," before entering the house.
Since it was a bungalow of the past generation, the internal design held a western design. Upon stepping into the house, Yang Chen felt that he had entered a western museum. The furniture in the living hall was produced in the last century. Since the material used was really high in quality, they looked as if brand new.
Yang Chen was used to staying in a house like this. He had a lot of experience living in such a place when he was abroad. However, when Wang Ma brought him to the second floor, he felt gloomy again...
"Wang Ma, why am I in a different room from Ruoxi again?" Yang Chen couldn't help but ask. Wang Ma is so damn petty. Can't she arrange me to be in the same room with Ruoxi? Also, staying in the same room doesn't mean I have to do something. At least give me a chance to get lucky one day.
An unexpected voice then echoed from the door. "I believe it's more appropriate for you to sleep at the sofa downstairs."
Yang Chen was stopped from talking. Lin Ruoxi could be seen entering from the door after returning from the bank.
"So early? I believe the problem is dealt with now," Yang Chen said with a smile while pressing against the railing on the second floor.
Lin Ruoxi kept quiet. Nostalgic, she looked at the surrounding tables, chairs, walls, and drawings.
When she saw the huge oil painting of a person's portrait, her eyes became red and watery. Slowly walking toward the painting, she murmured, "Grandma, I'm back."
The few people felt sorrowful to see Lin Ruoxi this way. At last, Wang Ma wiped her eyes before approaching Lin Ruoxi. Smiling, she said, "Miss, we've finally come back after so many years. Miss, let's get upstairs to look at your room."
"Is it the same room as before?" Lin Ruoxi asked.
"Nope." Wang Ma's eyes were filled with love when she gazed upon Lin Ruoxi with a smile. "Miss, you're not 'little miss' anymore. The room back then is a little too small. It won't be able to contain all your stuff, so I let the kid Zhenxiu stay there. Miss, you'll be staying at Madam's room back then."
"My mother's?" Lin Ruoxi was stunned. In her memory, her mother had always held a faint smile on her face while remaining quiet. She was left with nothing but fleeting memories of her mother.
Her mother felt like a lazy-looking sunflower in the sunlight, and a lonely flowering quince in the winter.
However, she must admit that a huge part of her appearance and behavior were inherited from the woman whom she had minimal memory of.
When Lin Ruoxi was young, she didn't dare to enter her mother, Xue Zijing's room. She had always felt that there was a gap between her and her mother. She was afraid of getting shunned upon if she entered the room. Thus, the room stayed a mystery to her.
Lin Ruoxi didn't expect that she would be staying in the room the second she had moved back.
Nodding, Lin Ruoxi held her handbag and walked to the second floor. Squeaking sound could be heard from the wooden staircase. The handrail made of sandalwood released a vague fragrance, causing her to feel a lot more relaxed.
She came upstairs and saw Yang Chen who was standing in front of her. She took out the ink-colored Ring of Pluto from her handbag and passed it to Yang Chen. "Take it back."
"Since this is so useful, why not keep it for now?" Yang Chen asked with a smile. He was sure Lin Ruoxi had found out the use of the ring.
Lin Ruoxi shook her head. "I won't accept something that isn't mine."
"What are you talking about? What's mine is yours just like what's yours is mine." Yang Chen shrugged his shoulders, but still received the ring.
Lin Ruoxi ignored Yang Chen's chuckling face. She still had a bunch of questions in mind, but she didn't feel like opening her mouth to ask anymore once she met the man. It might be better for him to tell me himself, Lin Ruoxi thought, before walking to her mother's room.
Taking a deep breath, Lin Ruoxi pushed the door open. The door that she would shrink back from all the time, which had contained too many mysteries. The big, heavy door that belonged to her mother.
Chapter 433 - Dry Rose Petals
There lay before them a room roughly 50 metres in square feet.
At the other end of the room was a balcony for anyone who wished to enjoy the view in which the house overlooked. There were some black metal chairs and a table on the balcony, with a few potted plants which swayed in the wind.
The chiffon curtains danced around, while the warm sunlight shone upon the spotless wood flooring.
Lin Ruoxi walked into the room and stretched her arm out to touch the relatively old TV frame. On her left lay a huge, two-meter-wide bed.
Wang Ma had changed the bedsheet for her that morning. The three white wardrobes were all filled with Lin Ruoxi's expensive clothing.
The left corner of the room had a walkway to the changing room and the washroom. There were other things present like the numerous luggage bags that Lin Ruoxi had owned. Wang Ma didn't dare to touch her stuff without permission, so she left them there.
A landscape western-style painting hung on the wall, right on top of the bed. It was decorated with yellow flowers and mountains, as if exuding an aura of fragrance. In fact, the room was indeed filled with a vague fragrance.
Yang Chen could tell that the scent wasn't the same as the one found in Lin Ruoxi's previous room, so it must be left from the original owner.
Of course, although describing it this way was rather strange, a lot of of things that belonged to Xue Zijing, Lin Ruoxi's mother, were still in this room. For example, some craftwork, certain books she liked when she was still alive, and certain stationeries.
The dressing table was also kept from that era. The mirror had been cleaned, appearing clear and new.
The frame on the bedside table contained an old picture.
Lin Ruoxi walked over there and picked up the frame before sitting down on the soft, huge bed. She touched the three people in the picture while getting absent-minded.
Yang Chen approached her and had a look at the picture. He could recognize the two women inside. One of them was the old CEO while the other was Xue Zijing, the latter of whom was carrying a female baby wrapped in white blanket in her arms. It should've been Lin Ruoxi all those years ago.
Xue Zijing at that time looked identical to the Lin Ruoxi now, but she appeared more gentle than Lin Ruoxi, especially because of her faint smile.
Lin Ruoxi muttered something to herself. No one could tell what she had said. She then put down the frame before pulling the drawer open.
Wang Ma hadn't arranged the stuff inside the drawers as of late. They only moved in yesterday after all, so she hadn't had the time to clean every nook and cranny of the room. Thus, clouds of dust were sent up when she pulled the drawer.
Lin Ruoxi swept the dust away to have a clearer look at the stuff inside. There was a thick album and a few rose petals which, naturally, had dried up.
My mother-in-law was really a sad lady from a wealthy family. Why did she put rose petals here so randomly? It couldn't have been decoration for the drawer, could it? Yang Chen thought.
Lin Ruoxi's attention had been fixed on the album. She was reminded of too many memories upon seeing the picture on the bedside table, so she impatiently took out the album to have a look see.
Lin Ruoxi frowned as she suddenly realized Yang Chen was beside her. She carefully wondered if any embarrassing pictures of her young self were taken. When she couldn't think of one, she decided to flip open the album.
Yang Chen was also interested in seeing the stuff inside the old album. Thus, he sat on the bed as well and stuffed his butt nearer to Lin Ruoxi.
Lin Ruoxi felt that the bed creak under the extra load. Frowning, she said, "Be more gentle. What if the bed breaks?"
"Will it? We're not fatties. Moving slightly won't break this bed," Yang Chen answered.
"How rough," Lin Ruoxi said. "Go further away, this is too close. You're causing me discomfort."
Yang Chen laughed before saying, "Going further away will decrease the sensation. I'm more comfortable this way." He felt that their conversation could mean something entirely different. As a result, he burst into laughter once again.
Lin Ruoxi wanted to look at the album, but the fellow beside her started laughing like a maniac. Out of curiosity, she asked, "What happened to you?"
Yang Chen jokingly leaned forward to Lin Ruoxi and whispered to her ear, "What do you think people would imagine if they heard our conversation just now?"
Lin Ruoxi seriously considered the question. When she thought of Yang Chen's thought process, she instantly understood what he was suggesting. Blushing, she gave Yang Chen an angry stare before deciding to ignore him and flipping the album she was holding open.
The first page of the album surprised the two. It wasn't a family picture as imagined, but Xue Zijing's personal portrait instead.
Xue Zijing was dressed in a white and blue school uniform, which looked like one which someone wore while in the navy. She stood outside the gate of a secondary school, with a sweet and faint smile on her face. The picture had yellowed, but one could clearly tell the school was some secondary school from Beijing.
"Your mom is from Beijing?" Yang Chen asked.
Lin Ruoxi thought for a while before shaking her head. "I don't know. Mom's family had all migrated abroad. I wasn't told too much when I was a child, while Grandma and Mom hadn't bothered to mention it before. But I guess she is."
As she flipped, most of the pictures were Xue Zijing's growth process. Although the album wasn't what the two originally imagined, Lin Ruoxi evidently was interested in her mom's lifestyle.
This could well be considered a kind of grief. After her mother had died, only did her daughter have the opportunity to witness these memories from the past.
Having flipped through more than ten pages, a few group pictures started showing up.
They found the other lady in the group picture familiar. They then looked at her more carefully. Wasn't this Guo Xuehua?!
Lin Ruoxi and Yang Chen glanced at each other. The two had heard from Guo Xuehua about her friendship with Xue Zijing before. They were extraordinarily close friends, and this was the confirmation that they had.
The two particularly charming ladies had left numerous memories in each of these pictures. It was their university period. The two still appeared in pictures together, and they were already adults at that time.
"Your mom certainly looks a lot like you," Yang Chen couldn't help but praise.
Lin Ruoxi looked at him in dissatisfaction. "What kind of a comparison are you making? It is me who looks similar to her."
Lin Ruoxi felt joyous when he said this. Deep down her heart, she was proud for having such a beautiful mother. It might be due to this pride that she had seen her mother with so much respect. When Xue Zijing was still alive, she hadn't had the courage to get close to her often.
Yang Chen smiled awkwardly. No wonder I find the sentence rather weird, he thought.
As Lin Ruoxi flipped the album, there were finally a few changes to the theme of the pictures which had almost instantly stunned both her and Yang Chen.
In one of the pictures, Xue Zijing and Guo Xuehua were standing beside a tall and handsome guy by the lakeside. He looked really mature, possibly considerably older than the two ladies.
This wasn't something to be surprised about. The main reason was Yang Chen and Lin Ruoxi could recognize the man—Ning Guangyao! Premier Ning?!
Although Ning Guangyao looked better and stronger than he was now, one could clearly tell that his appearance hadn't changed much.
At that instant, too many thoughts surfaced in Yang Chen's mind...
During the first time meeting, Ning Guangyao had his gaze fixed on Lin Ruoxi, but that definitely wasn't the same gaze a man gives to a woman he's interested in...
After that when Ning Guangyao met Yang Pojun in the military camp, he insisted against the idea of confining Guo Xuehua...
Soon, when Yang Chen followed Lin Ruoxi to visit the tombstones of her grandmother and mother, he noticed the same black Audi under the mountain. Lin Ruoxi also mentioned that redbud flowers were always seen on her mother's grave...
Yang Chen started with a guess, but he felt that his head had numbed from the realizations. Looking serious, he gazed upon Lin Ruoxi who appeared to be shocked and confused.
Lin Ruoxi failed to notice the change in Yang Chen's emotions. She was just surprised that her mother used to know Ning Guangyao.
"Wife, don't look at it anymore. Let's head downstairs for lunch," Yang Chen said smilingly as he pressed onto the picture Lin Ruoxi was looking at.
Lin Ruoxi regained awareness as she fronwed. "All you know is eat. What are you rushing for? Wang Ma will call us when lunch is ready."
"I want to eat your dish," Yang Chen said seriously.
Lin Ruoxi rolled her eyes. "Stop fooling around. Wang Ma and Mom are both in the kitchen, even Zhenxiu is there to help. I won't be able to step in. Move your hand away, I'm not done looking at it yet."
Damn it! Something might really happen if you still look at it! Yang Chen thought.
However, he couldn't just tear the picture apart or make Lin Ruoxi unconscious. Based on her intelligence, she would definitely find out something abnormal, and investigate the things that he was trying to hide.
Feeling helpless, Yang Chen withdrew his hand, and hoped that nothing shocking would appear next.
However, unfortunate things would always happen at the worst moment...
Lin Ruoxi only flipped one page, before a picture that would cause Yang Chen have the urge to smash the bed appeared...
It was a relatively large picture. This time, Guo Xuehua didn't appear. Only Xue Zijing and Ning Guangyao were inside!
More shockingly, Xue Zijing was leaning against Ning Guangyao's chest slightly, while Ning Guangyao was obviously in love from the look in his eyes.
This picture must've been taken in a photo studio. In that era, except couples, who else would take such a marriage-like picture in a studio?!
On the blank part of the picture, a beautifully written note by a pen could be found.
"I live upstream and you downstream by Yangtze Blue.
"Day after day of you I think,but you are not in my view,
"Although as one we drink
"The water clear of River Blue.
"When will the water no longer flow?
"When will my grief no longer grow?
"I wish your heart be but like mine,
"Then not in vain for you I pine...."
When Lin Ruoxi finished speaking these lines of the poem her originally pinkish cheeks had turned pale. Her lips shivered a little as she held the album with both of her hands. Her fingers were bent slightly while her entire body had stiffened.
The room was so silent that calling it pin drop silence was a gross understatement.
Yang Chen could hear Lin Ruoxi's heartbeat. He knew how hesitant, astonished, and disturbed she was.
"Erm... Babe Ruoxi, what does this poem mean?" Yang Chen tried to distract her attention so that she could relax.
After a long while, Lin Ruoxi still hadn't given Yang Chen an answer, but flipped to the next page instead...
This time, there were a few small pictures, with all of them showing Xue Zijing and Ning Guangyao happily interacting with each other. A few of them were even taken by their own. It was clear that they were no strangers to affection.
At last, there was finally a different picture. It was an incomplete one...
The picture was torn in half, leaving Xue Zijing alone in the picture. She was wearing a white floral skirt which matched her aura, while her smile was just like a blooming flower.
There was someone beside her, but was torn away.
This picture was stuffed in the middle of the album, and wasn't properly clipiped, which allowed Lin Ruoxi to notice the messy handwritten poem written behind. "Though I have a thousand amorous feelings to confide, whom can I tell them to?"
[TL note: This poem is cut in half. The other half is probably in the part that was torn away. Original: In the parting year, even fine moments and beautiful scenes mean nothing to me. Though I have a thousand amorous feelings to confide, whom can I tell them to?]
Chapter 434 - Old Dog
Lin Ruoxi murmured the poem as if she was talking to herself before closing the album calmly. However, her tightly sealed lips and terrible expression proved otherwise.
Yang Chen realized her reaction, and got an involuntary, slight twitch.
Lin Ruoxi indeed wasn't the best person in terms of dealing with emotions, but it didn't mean she was so clueless that she would fail to notice such obvious signs.
On the contrary, having been at a high position for years, she was able to grasp even obscure signs and perform analysis on a lot of things. Thus, when she saw these pictures and read the lines of poem, her imagination brought her much further than she could have been told.
However, people would sometimes choose to ignore certain things, or even deceive themselves from believing them.
Lin Ruoxi put the album back into the drawer. She remained quiet for a while, before turning her head to stare at Yang Chen with her ice-cold eyes. "Are you aware... aware of something that I am not?"
Yang Chen knew that Lin Ruoxi would ask him this question, as he had tried to stop Lin Ruoxi from flipping the album.
"What would I know? I don't even understand the poems. Your question is so weird and random," Yang Chen said with a smile. But deep down his heart, he was sighing, Even if I do know something, I very well can't reveal it to you, not until it has been completely unraveled anyway.
Nothing good would happen should certain things be exposed. Regardless if one had to lie or not, they were best left unmentioned forever.
Ripples appear in Lin Ruoxi's eyes, but she didn't plan on asking more questions. She wasn't one who would pester another person all day. Yang Chen wasn't willing to confess the truth, so she wouldn't force him into doing otherwise.
Guo Xuehua asked the two down for lunch from downstairs. Upon moving into this house, a lot of Wang Ma's 'missions' had been taken over by her.
"Let's go down." Lin Ruoxi stood up first before leaving the room.
Yang Chen gazed upon the picture on the bedside table as he sighed, before following her downstairs.
The lunch was abundant as usual. Lin Ruoxi behaved as usual while she ate quietly, while the others chatted happily away. She was chewing her food slowly and calmly, and her anger wasn't displayed for the slightest.
"Ruoxi, has something happened these days? Are you troubled by anything?" Guo Xuehua asked. Actually, she noticed that Yang Chen and Lin Ruoxi had kept something hidden from them. Although Rose rescued her this morning, while the assailant had been passed to the police, Guo Xuehua didn't think he was just an ordinary robber. It also wasn't possible that the person came for Guo Xuehua specifically, as no one was daring enough to provoke the Yang clan, while the ones who were wouldn't resort to such amature means to do so.
As a result, it was most possible that Lin Ruoxi or Yang Chen were faced with enemies who intended to abduct her as their hostage. Guo Xuehua was clearly aware that the 'postman' tried to make her unconscious.
Both Wang Ma and Zhenxiu stopped eating. They had been discussing in the kitchen for a long time as they were worried about Lin Ruoxi and Yang Chen outside.
Lin Ruoxi wasn't surprised by the question. "The company was faced with some difficulties, but they've been solved for now. The problems will come to an end within a few days. I have hired a security company, don't worry about me Mom."
"Sigh, so it's the company again." Wang Ma felt a heartache as she looked at Lin Ruoxi. "Miss, it must be so tough for you. Once Old Madam passed away and the company was passed down to your hands, I have never seen you live relaxedly. Problems have been popping out here and there. Now that the company is finally stable and established, so many troublemakers have surfaced to cause trouble. It is so hard to live nicely. No matter one is good or bad, someone will surely go against them."
"Please be careful no matter what you do..." Guo Xuehua said as she felt sympathy. "You're a girl who has just crosse her twenty mark not too long ago. You mustn't feel good sitting at such a position."
Lin Ruoxi held a complicated expression. Forcing a smile, she said, "It's fine, I got used to it."
"How can you be used to something like this? This is no different from a suffering," Zhenxiu said as she pouted, although she had looked up to Lin Ruoxi all the while. "Sister Ruoxi, I think it's better for you to pass the company to Brother Yang. You guys are married after all. Isn't a man supposed to deal with stuff like this? You always wake up early and sleep late, you must be more tired than me preparing for the college entrance exams. This position of CEO doesn't seem all that worth the title."
"Little Kid, what do you know?" Yang Chen stared at Zhenxiu as he listened to her suggestion. While munching in the food he had in his mouth, he said loudly, "The CEO position of a multinational company isn't one that can be passed on anytime. Are you trying to shut down Yu Lei or cause misfortune to me?"
"Brother Yang is so petty." Zhenxiu pouted before saying, "You don't even know how to console someone. Also, I'm not a little kid!"
"The suggestion of yours is painful to me. I feel an ache in my stomach, liver, and gum after listening to it," Yang Chen said. However, he noticed that Lin Ruoxi was giving him a bone-penetrating, freezing-cold gaze. Thus, he smiled awkwardly before continuing his meal.
Expressionlessly, Lin Ruoxi said, "Don't worry. Even if you want to become the CEO, I shall see to it that you won't. So spare yourself the pain."
This time, even Guo Xuehua wasn't bothered to step in and help Yang Chen. He was dumb enough to think that Lin Ruoxi would actually pass the position of CEO to him. He didn't even know how to say something nice to cheer his wife up. Dissatisfied, Guo Xuehua said, "Ruoxi works so hard every day, while you're almost always free. Is there any point of arguing with Zhenxiu?"
Yang Chen felt gloomy. Ruoxi has indeed mentioned about passing the company to me, he thought. This made him develop an involuntary fear towards the idea.
After eating for a while, Yang Chen planned to refill his bowl with rice, but the old-fashioned bell of the house rang.
"Someone's here?" Wang Ma looked nervous. "Could it be another bad person in disguise?"
"Wang Ma, no one would use the same trick twice regardless of how dumb they are," Yang Chen said with a smile.
"Still, be careful," Guo Xuehua said as she gazed upon Yang Chen.
Yang Chen understood what Guo Xuehua meant. All the other people in the house were women, so it was most appropriate for him to go have a look. Moreover, Guo Xuehua also knew that he had extraordinary fighting skills.
Yang Chen put down his bowl and chopsticks before walking out of the house.
A black, extra-long Cadillac was parked quietly by the entrance, attracting quite a lot of attention from passersby, while the people who came weren't any strangers, but his 'close relatives'.
Dressed in rather formal clothing, Yuan Hewei and his wife Yang Jieyu were standing outside the steel door, smilingly waiting for Yang Chen to open it.
Ever since the incident at the Cai's residence, Yang Chen hadn't met Yang Jieyu again. Now that their sister-in-law Guo Xuehua moved to Zhonghai, the two should certainly pay her a visit more often. However, they were really cautious people. They were aware that visiting Guo Xuehua often was no different from going against Yang Pojun's will.
Thus, they had never come here before. Yang Chen heard from Guo Xuehua that they had kept in touch on the phone, but didn't expect them to come over today.
"Judging from your expression, you don't look like you're ready to welcome your aunt and uncle." Yuan Hewei asked with a smile.
"Yang Chen isn't unhappy about it. He probably didn't expect us to come," Yang Jieyu complained.
Yang Chen opened the door and made a gesture to welcome them inside as he said, "This house belongs to Ruoxi. The seniors helped us move over here. Actually, since I'm living in a female dorm, it makes no difference what I say."
As they chatted, Guo Xuehua who realized the arrival of Yuan Hewei and Yang Jieyu quickly came out to welcome them. Smiling, she said, "Wei, Jieyu, why are you guys free to visit at this hour?"
Yang Jieyu hugged Guo Xuehua lightly. The two were obviously really close. Smiling bitterly, she said, "Sister-In-Law, aren't you asking the obvious this way? Yu Lei is facing such a major challenge. We wouldn't want to sit idly by as our niece's company falls into ruins. We're here to discuss something with Ruoxi."
Guo Xuehua and Wang Ma paled after listening to her, before looking at the expressionless Lin Ruoxi strangely.
They heard that Lin Ruoxi was facing an issue, but they didn't expect it to be so serious that Yu Lei was on the brink of collapse!
Yuen Hewei and Yang Jieyu finally realized that Guo Xuehua was unaware about it after looking at her reaction. Thus, they looked at Lin Ruoxi apologetically.
Lin Ruoxi shook her head to imply it was fine. "Let's come inside and have a seat. We're still having lunch now. Have you two eaten yet?"
The two looked at each other as they felt confused. Now that the shocking news of Yu Lei had spread all over the world, they didn't understand why Lin Ruoxi was still calmly having lunch at home, being the CEO of this company.
Was she confident, or had she accepted her fate?
After they got themselves seated on the redwood buckskin sofa, Wang Ma made some tea in the kitchen and served each of them, with the atmosphere still being slightly tense.
Yuan Hewei looked at the porcelain tea cup he was holding before looking at Lin Ruoxi. "May I call you Ruoxi?" he asked.
Lin Ruoxi nodded her head slightly.
Yuan Hewei was aware of Lin Ruoxi's well-known cold personality, so he didn't mind the discourteous reply. He said, "Ruoxi, do you know who made Yu Lei fail to obtain loans from the banks?"
"I don't know yet," Lin Ruoxi answered honestly.
Yang Jieyu looked at Lin Ruoxi's elegant and charming face. Worried, she said, "This child is still so calm at this moment. Why is it that the person who is involved is less nervous than the people who are not?"
Lin Ruoxi kept quiet as she took a sip of red tea.
"Do you still remember Zeng Xinlin who had died in front of your house?" Yuan Hewei asked before looking at Yang Chen.
"I do." She seemed to have noticed something while a light flashed in her eyes.
Yang Chen who was sitting on another sofa asked, "IHas the old dog been lured here after the puppy has been killed?"
Yang Jieyu said, "Zeng Mao is the former clan master of the Zeng clan after all, and the leader of the country's state council. Why did he suddenly become an ol—old something... It sounds so terrible."
Guo Xuehua who was listening to the conversation felt shocked. "What? Are you really referring to Zeng Mao from the Zeng clan? His grandson was... was..."
"That's right, Sister-In-Law. He was killed by your baby son Yang Chen in front of his house door," Yuan Hewei said with a helpless smile.
Guo Xuehua had her eyes widened in shock as contemplation surfaced in her eyes.
Yang Chen wasn't bothered about it, and didn't care about how Yuan Hewei found out about this. The Yuan clan was the number-one clan in Zhonghai after all, they certainly had abnormal influence and power. He was just wondering if he should take care of the root of the problem. Thus, he asked, "Erm... where is he? Where is Zeng Mao right now?"
Chapter 435 - Strategy
Yuan Hewei felt strange for Yang Chen's question. "Why would you need to know"
"Since I know the root cause of all this trouble, won't everything be over once I deal with him?" Yang Chen said.
Frowning, Yang Jieyu said, "Yang Chen, please don't act recklessly. Even if you're really good in fighting, you must know that Zeng Mao had given up his position as the clan master of the Zeng clan just to take revenge on you guys by his own hand and not the hand of another. This means he is prepared to go all out. Having served in the government for so many years, he naturally has protection from experts. Also, every powerful person has armed bodyguards around. How are you going to defeat him this way?"
In Yang Jieyu's heart, even if she knew Yang Chen practised unusual martial arts, she didn't think anyone in this world could face bullets head on.
"Yeah, Yang Chen, Mom knows that you're pissed. I'm really pissed as well." Guo Xuehua sighed, "I didn't think an old senior like Zeng Mao would suddenly come to Zhonghai to take revenge on two juniors such as yourselves. I have read about Zeng Xinlin in the newspaper before. Didn't he commit suicide after Changlin Media lost to Yu Lei International? Even if he was really killed by you, it was him who courted his own death. Why is Zeng Mao so shameless?"
"Sister-In-Law," Yang Jieyu called as she looked at Guo Xuehua with a complicated gaze. "It's the love of a family. Zeng Xinlin died before Zeng Mao did, while he was his most highly regarded grandson. It's only natural that he has chosen to give up hi reputation. Sister-In-Law, think about it. If someone... kills one of your sons, will you still care about your fame?"
Guo Xuehua's body shivered slightly before glancing at Yang Chen. She then lowered her head with her brows furrowed. She obviously agreed with Yang Jieyu's words.
In this world, blood relations were the strongest, and also the most terrifying!
Contemplation filled Yang Chen's eyes. He turned his head to look at Lin Ruoxi, and realized she was looking at him quietly as well.
The gazes of the two met. Smiling, Yang Chen asked, "Dear, what do you think I should do?"
Lin Ruoxi rolled her eyes. She was impressed that he had never failed to hold a smile on his face no matter the situation. "Would you even have listened to me if I had told you that I don't want you to kill ?"
"Who said I was going to kill?" Yang Chen said with an innocent face.
"Then what do you want to do?" Lin Ruoxi asked in doubt.
Yuan Hewei, Yang Jieyu, and Guo Xuehua were all curiously waiting for Yang Chen's answer as well.
Yang Chen waved his hand. "I'm just going to have a talk with him, ask him if he's willing to stop his scheme, and only kill if he isn't. Even I don't enjoy doing things that spoil my mood anyways."
"This is the same as a murder, since he most definitely wouldn't give up after going this far. He wouldn't have started otherwise." Lin Ruoxi gave him a furious stare.
"This is called a negotiation, not murder. You make it sound so terrible." Yang Chen waved his hand.
"Yang Chen, you can't go. You won't be able to return if you do!"
"Then tell me what we should do," Yang Chen said to Yuan Hewei and Yang Jieyu. To him, the most straightforward method to solve a problem was to kill, but it wouldn't remove the root cause this way. Although Zeng Mao claimed to have left the Zeng clan so that his clan members wouldn't be affected. However, only the heavens knew if his loyal clan members were still serving him or not.
Yang Chen wasn't afraid of killing him, but the consequences he had to face in the future would be most annoying for him.
Yuan Hewei said, "I came today to discuss with you guys. We'll provide funds to Yu Lei and borrow loans on behalf of the Yuan clan. Everything can be done within a day, or two at most. With enough finance, I believe you and Athena Team under your lead will be able to defeat the international associations."
The ice on her face had surprisingly defrosted. She smiled faintly and said, "Thank you. I didn't think that there was anyone that would so willingly land us a hand."
The finance needed by Yu Lei was tremendous. Even if the Yuan clan was able to provide assistance, their business chains would be affected if they did so. A lot of business operations required significant cash flows after all. However, Yuan Hewei still came over with his wife. This was enough to prove their sincerity.
"Of course, we're a family after all," Yang Jieyu said with a smile.
"Actually... we don't lack funds," Lin Ruoxi said as she glanced at Yang Chen.
Yuan Hewei and Yang Jieyu were stunned. Don't lack funds? They then noticed Lin Ruoxi peeping at Yang Chen, and were able to make certain assumptions.
"If that's the case, I guess we've overreacted." Although Yuan Hewei was astonished by Yang Chen's ability to provide so much cash, he still smilingly answered, "Then I guess Yu Lei isn't in trouble anymore. However, if Zeng Mao fails this time, he might strike a second time. His influence is still major. He will still gather forces for an attack like this time."
"I'm not afraid of him," Lin Ruoxi said coldly. She then suddenly said, "The Zeng clan must ahve back up. They have so much finance from overseas. There must be someone else trying to harm me."
"It's Gao Guoxiong," Yuan Hewei answered. "But this is all we know. There are still certain things that even we would have trouble finding out."
Lin Ruoxi was surprised. "I thought he was still in jail."
"Gao Guoxiong is a wealthy businessman from Singapore. Each country has their own security policies. With Zeng Mao's help, it wasn't actually to difficult for him to have gotten out," Yuan Hewei said with a smile. "Unfortunately, they seem like they're going to lose this time."
Yang Chen rubbed his chin. He pondered for a while before saying, "If that's the case, tell me Gao Guoxiong's location as well."
"Do you really want to go?" Yuan Hewei asked impatiently.
Yang Chen nodded. "I'm not a brainless man. You need not worry to tell me his coordinates. Of course, if you don't plan to tell me, I can do find out myself."
Yuan Hewei and Yang Jieyu smiled bitterly as they looked at each other, while Lin Ruoxi and Guo Xuehua remained quiet while looking solemn. They were aware that no one in this house could stop Yang Chen from doing anything, once he had made a decision.
After obtaining the coordinates, Yang Chen stood up lazily as he planned to leave the house.
Lin Ruoxi hesitated for a while before asking, "When will you come back?"
"Erm..." Yang Chen turned his head around with a smile. "Very quick."
"We'll wait for you at home for dinner," Lin Ruoxi said gently.
Joy filled Yang Chen's eyes while he hurriedly turned around to leave.
After Yang Chen left, Lin Ruoxi said, "If you're both free later, you may stay for dinner."
Guo Xuehua looked at Lin Ruoxi as she felt satisfied. Although her daughter-in-law was always cold, her heart was rather warm while she was quite thoughtful. Unfortunately, she couldn't seem to amend her talking habit.
"We almost always have things to do, but since my niece has invited us to stay, we can't reject your offer during our first time here, can we? We can also talk about Yang Chen with you. We're still wondering how you two got married, being completely different people from different worlds."
Lin Ruoxi instantly blushed after listening to her. Getting married? It's all because of the irreversible night, but I can't just tell this story to them, she thought as she felt a headache.
"Look, my daughter-in-law is shy already. Sister-In-Law, let's not tease this child anymore. What if she follows Yang Chen out later just to avoid seeing us?" Guo Xuehua said happily. This time, the atmosphere had gotten a lot better, but Lin Ruoxi's cheeks flushed, while her jaw was lowered so much that it almost touched her chest.
In the west of Zhonghai, there was an area with newly built villas, while most of them were still empty. A lot of the houses were bought as investments, so only a few janitors could be occasionally seen.
A white BMW slowly drove into a boulevard.
Yang Chen came to this place following his navigation system according to the location given by Yuan Hewei. He felt rather gloomy when he drove here. Why the heck did this Zeng Mao buy a villa here? Is he thinking of settling down in Zhonghai after all this?
Yang Chen was even wondering if the information given by Yuan Hewei was accurate or not, but the cautious Yuan Hewei wasn't one to make such fundamental mistakes. He must have someone monitoring the situation for him, otherwise he wouldn't dare to provide the specific address.
The bungalow had a house number of 288 in this area. When Yang Chen parked outside the house, he noticed there this place was nearby a manmade river.
Tens of bodyguards dressed in black were patrolling the villa, appearing particularly eye-catching at this quiet place.
Yang Chen got off the car and walked toward the villa. He wasn't stopped by any of the guards, as if they had expected his arrival.
On the contrary, one of the guards opened the door and made a gesture to invite him inside.
A smile was revealed on the corners of Yang Chen's lips. It looks like Zeng Mao had mapped out his strategy. I wonder how much he knows about me. How is he this confident? he thought.
Back then, Zeng Xinlin partnered up with Xu Zhihong to hire international merceneries to go after Yang Chen, but have gotten killed themselves instead. Zeng Mao must be aware about this. Thus, Yang Chen couldn't help but get curious when he was this magnanimous.
He walked into the house decorated with black and brown flooring. The chandelier was made of crystals caused the environment to look elegant and peaceful.
There was a fifty-inch LED television which currently playing political news. There sat an old man with grey hair in front. He leisurely raised his glass of Lafite before taking a small sip.
Zeng Mao looked behind when he heard that the door opened. He examined Yang Chen as if he was looking at something interesting. At last, he let out a relaxed smile, looking like a kind, ordinary old man.
"Care for a drink?" Zeng Mao raised her crystal glass containing red liquid.
Yang Chen slowly walked toward the sofa before getting himself seated. He then took the bottle of Lafite which was just opened and gulped the wine.
"Ah..." Yang Chen exhaled in satisfaction. He swallowed the red wine worth tens of thousands of yuan like it was a fifty-cent soda drink.
"Young Man, how would you be able to appreciate the taste of the wine this way?" Zeng Mao said, dissatisfied.
Yang Chen grinned, revealing his teeth which were stained with the red wine. Smiling, he answered, "This wine is poisoned anyway. There's no one crazy enough to drink this except me, is there not?"
Chapter 436 - I Just Want to Do This
Zeng Mao neither confirmed nor denied that statement. His silence could have been said be acceptance.
Zeng Mao put down his wine glass before lifting the TV remote control and pressing the mute button. He then said to Yang Chen, "So why did you drink it even after having known that it was poison?"
"It's the same reason as me coming here when you thought that I wouldn't have."
"How do you know that? I don't think you should come here, but my doors were wide open to welcome you inside," Zeng Mao said as he disagreed.
Yang Chen moved his butt to a more comfortable position on the sofa. "If you think that I would've come, you should've prepared more than tens of guns to take me out, and riddle me with bullets the moment I exited my car. This way, you won't have to disappoint your dead, foolish grandson, am I right?"
Zeng Mao squinted, but didn't seem to be enraged after Yang Chen insulted Zeng Xinlin. "Xinglin was indeed a bit dumb. But you need to be reminded that young men do foolish things. He was just unlucky this time as I wasn't quick enough to be there to wipe his ass for him."
"Haha," Yang Chen laughed. "My wife always complains about how rude I talk. I heard that you were a powerful politician. Why do you then talk this rude as well?"
"Don't all politicians act differently underground?" Zeng Mao asked, contented.
Yang Chen smiled faintly as he looked around.
"What are you looking for?"
"Someone," Yang Chen said honestly.
He was looking for Gao Guoxiong. It was that fellow who helped Zeng Mao gather such a huge sum of finance. Since Yang Chen had come all the way here, he was expecting to kill two birds with one stone. However, Yang Chen was surprised to feel the presence of no one else in this room other than Zeng Mao, while Yuan Hewei said Gao Guoxiong was here as well.
"You're looking for Gao Guoxiong, aren't you? He left right before you came," Zeng Mao answered in all honesty.
Yang Chen appeared to have think of something. Frowning, he said, "The trap you set up is so simple. The poisoned wine is obviously for me, and you opened the door for me to enter the place you're hiding in. This means you willingly let your location be known to Yuan Hewei, didn't you?"
Yang Chen had found it weird since the start. If Zeng Mao really was so influential that all banks in Zhonghai had to listen to his command, how would Yuan Hewei and Yang Jieyu figure out his location so easily?
It was said that even a powerful dragon couldn't crush a snake in its haunt. But in this case, why didn't the snake hide in its haunt when the dragon wasn't trying to crush it?
It was slowly becoming obvious that Zeng Mao was merely a distraction for Yang Chen.
"You're right." Zeng Mao nodded. "I knew you weren't an ordinary person, so I didn't think I could defeat you right from the start. Of course, I would still be glad to see you fall if it's possible. However, it isn't very likely to happen judging by the situation. So making a move on the people around you is probably the wiser choice."
Yang Chen's eyes turned cold while his smile dissipated. "Do you know that I find it more despicable when people try to harm my family instead of coming straight at me?"
"I know how it feels, since I instantly fainted when I was notified of my grandson's death in Beijing, while the reason was you." Zeng Mao held a bitter smile. "So I don't ask that you die, I only wish for your family to be annihilated... Partnering up with Gao Guoxiong to strike Yu Lei International is only my second objective."
"You look very rational. But why choose to do something so foolish?" Yang Chen asked.
"In this world, not everything should be looked at with a rational mind ." Zeng Mao slowly shut his eyes, and appeared to be in contemplation.
Yang Chen took the bottle of red wine and gulped a mouthful again. "Are you prepared to die now?"
Zeng Mao opened his eyes and looked at the wine bottle in Yang Chen's hand. "I really want to know. This poison is a newly developed bacteria. Is it really... ineffective toward you?"
"Even a 40-million-dollar toxin does no harm to me. What more this weak poison?" Yang Chen wasn't willing to waste anymore. Although Rose and her people were nearby his house, he still couldn't be at ease. If Gao Guoxiong brought mercenary-level armies over there, Rose wouldn't be able to hold them off.
Yang Chen sent a message to Molin from Sea Eagles using his phone. Even if many of the members were recovering from injuries, sending one or two elites there would be a huge help.
Yang Chen planned to end the fellow's life right away, but suddenly felt the presence of a familiar figure.
Dressed in a black trench coat with a belt tied to her waist, Cai Ning appeared to have walked out from the wind. When she approached Yang Chen, her hair was still swaying about.
Yang Chen hadn't met her in a while. Her was sunk in, but the resolution and coldness in her eyes were still the same.
"You can't kill him," Cai Ning said.
Yang Chen smiled. "You used hidden weapons to obliterate the bodyguards outside before coming in, but you're telling me not to take action now. Don't you find it ironic?"
It wasn't hard for Yang Chen to guess why she was here. He had always been tightly observed, while such a huge commotion happened in Yu Lei International. Yellow Flame Iron Brigade must've paid attention to his actions, so Cai Ning's emergence was totally logical. He was just curious why Cai Ning came to stop him, knowing that her efforts would end up futile.
Zeng Mao didn't expect such an event to take place. "Who are you..."
Even if he was most likely to die, he had been wondering where his bodyguards had gone. So they were all killed by this woman!
Cai Ning ignored Zeng Mao. "The Zeng clan won't stop hunting you down after his death, and his students will not sit aside. They might not do anything to you, but have you considered that your family and the other people close to you will all be affected due to your repeated murders? You may be able to kill one or two clans, but are you going to end the lives of everyone who wants to go against you? Every single one of those people are influential government officials. You'll only give rise to a public outrage at last!"
Yang Chen remained quiet. He was aware that he couldn't kill every single of his and Lin Ruoxi's enemies. However, no arrows would turn back after being shot out from the bow. He only had one path that would lead him to the end.
"Girl, which clan are you from? Didn't your seniors tell you how they would be affected if you stepped in?" Zeng Mao said seriously.
He was willing to be killed by Yang Chen, since his death would cause terror to the highly ranked individuals, especially those from the top clans in Beijing.
Yang Chen's name had been spread all around. He had wiped out the Xu and Lie clans, and was rumored to have a conflict with Ning Guodong from the Ning clan. Although Zeng Mao didn't completely understand the internal affairs, he was able to tell that the awareness of various parties for Yang Chen had been raised.
He only needed to ignite the fire, and a lot more people would naturally head for Yang Chen, or do harm to the people around him.
However, Cai Ning seemed to have the intention to mess up his plan currently.
Cai Ning stared at Yang Chen with her cold eyes. At last, Yang Chen still shook his head.
"You're still unwilling to stop, aren't you?" Cai Ning smiled sorrowfully. "I should've guessed it from the start."
"I don't know if I have to face more troubles in the future, but I definitely have a lot of problems if I don't kill him now."
As soon as Yang Chen finished speaking, he wanted to end Zeng Mao's life immediately. "Stop!" Cai Ning yelled.
Yang Chen doubtfully looked at the woman who was behaving strangely. He could identify certain things from her cold face.
It wasn't known when Cai Ning started holding a Soul-mourning Needle. The skull on the needle made of silver slowly turned black, while its body glowed in a white glare.
This hidden weapon would deal incredibly high damage together with its terrifying poison. It wasn't used often as it was rare, unless it was for deep hatred.
"What do you mean?" Yang Chen looked at this complex woman as he was wondering what he should do if Cai Ning struck an attack at him.
Zeng Mao frowned as he was confused by the situation, but he hoped that Yang Chen and Cai Ning would start fighting, so that he would have a chance to live.
"I don't mean anything else," Cai Ning said slowly. "I just want to... do this."
As soon as she finished speaking, in the blink of an eye, a hole appeared in Zeng Mao's throat, causing black-colored blood to flow out from there...
Zeng Mao revealed a dumbfounded look before falling on the ground.
Yang Chen felt that his heart contract violently. His astonished gaze fell upon Cai Ning...
Cai Ning withdrew her hand which had fired a Soul-mourning Needle, before letting out an unprecedented, brilliant smile, which was not unlike the sun that dispersed the cold, but made Yang Chen feel desolate.
So... her smile looks this good...
... ...
At the same time, Guo Xuehua and Lin Ruoxi sat together with Yuan Hewei and Yang Jieyu as they chatted happily in the living hall of the old villa.
Wang Ma and Zhenxiu were busy preparing dinner, as there were two more guests who could be considered their relatives. Wang Ma was really excited. Her face had said it all.
Zhenxiu had moved into this family for quite a while now. She more or less understood the past of Yang Chen and Lin Ruoxi, and slowly felt that she was a true member of the family. She turned from being a rebellious girl to a serious one. She even looked like a polite lady when she cooked.
Bang! Bang! Bang! The door of the house was suddenly knocked loudly.
"Who is it? Why haven't they used the doorbell instead?" Wang Ma complained.
"I'll go open the door." Zhenxiu wiped her hands on her apron and jogged to the door. She saw that Guo Xuehua and the others were talking, so she decided to do the job.
However, before Zhenxiu opened the door, a huge force was applied to the door...
Bam!
A loud thud echoed. The huge wooden door collapsed under the force of the person that slammed into it from the outside!
Chapter 437 - Monstrous Beast
The sudden force made Zhenxiu freeze in her tracks. She widened her eyes in shock as she refused to believe that the door had been knocked down.
Outside stood a brutish and huge figure. He filled the door frame with just his body, blocking out all sunlight.
He had dark skin, large eyes and thick brows, while his moustache was slightly gray. There were a bunch of unknown characters tattooed on his left cheek in a line, which looked like Sanskrit. He wore a short-sleeved leather coat and a pair of boxing gloves modified with steel nails. There were also two chains of machine-gun bullets hung in front of his chest.
More terrifyingly, a portion of the front of the gatling gun he was carrying on his back could be seen!
This type of heavy gatling gun, could deliver up to 6 thousand bullets rounds a minute. This is several times more than a regular machine gun!
When this gun is fully reloaded, it carried a weight of over 30 kilograms. Due to its overwhelming recoil and power, it was often equipped on helicopters for a large-scale, ground-level sweep!
When an area was targeted by these guns, there are no living organisms in that area who would be able to survive this rain of bullets.
The man in front of Zhenxiu was carrying both the gun and the bullets himself, as if he was trying to say 'I am the armed helicopter'!
Machine aiming devices were always used for similar guns to this, since the recoil was more than anyone can bear. If this guy could operate this gun without external help, the strength in his arms could be compared to those of the gods.
Pushing the large door down was a piece of cake to this huge guy.
The man only took a glance at Zhenxiu before turning around and walking to the courtyard, leaving her in her wake.
At this moment, Guo Xuehua, Yuan Hewei, and Yang Jieyu had already fled from the scene. They appeared incredibly nervous after witnessing this disturbance.
Lin Ruoxi was the only one who looked calm. She frowned slightly when she realized what had happened, before walking toward the petrified Zhenxiu and pulling her up, and asking her to hide inside the house.
Although Zhenxiu had always been involved in fights with thugs, she hadn't experienced anything of this sort. She was just a nineteen-year-old girl after all. Shivering, she hid behind Lin Ruoxi, but her curiosity caused her to fail to avoid looking outside.
There stood more than ten people, each dressed in a different manner, at the courtyard, as if they had fallen from the sky. All of them were armed, massive guys. All of them had guns in their hands, while some had additional knives around their waist. They all looked unwavering, while their gazes were extremely sharp.
Gao Guoxiong who looked the same as usual stood in the middle of the courtyard, with a cigar in his mouth and a pair of sunglasses on his head. When the huge guy walked back, he said smilingly, "Leader Delon is indeed stronger than all the others."
The guy called Delon held no expressions on his face. "Boss Gao, as you promised, one million for one kill count."
The man had a strong accent. It was obvious that he wasn't a Chinese.
"Of course, of course." Gao Guoxiong took out his cheque book from his pocket and removed his cigar with another hand. Smiling, he said, "You'll get the money once you finish the job."
"We don't takee cheques," Delon said.
"Oh, you're right. I almost forgot. Don't worry, Leader Delon. Do you possibly think we'll lie to you guys? We've already paid for the deposit," Gao Guoxiong said.
Delon nodded. Evidently, he was confident that this cowardly Singaporean businessman didn't dare to provoke them. Thus, he raised his hand and made a bunch of orders to the two closest men.
"They sound like Vietnamese," Yuan Hewei said solemnly.
"They don't look like people we can negotiate with. Based on my experience, these people must've come from the military. They scream army from their auras," Yang Jieyu said.
Currently, Gao Guoxiong made Delon wait for a while. He walked toward Yuan Hewei and the others with a cunning smile. "You two from the Yuan clan, I haven't seen you in a while. I didn't expect you're still here."
Yuan Hewei instantly understood something after listening to what he said. "Gao Guoxiong... Zeng Mao intentionally exposed his location, didn't he?!"
"It's too late that you only found out now." Gao Guoxiong wasn't bothered to deny his claim. To him, the person in front of him was just a dead man walking. "I'll tell you this. I won't give you special treatments today just because you're from the Yuan clan. Originally, all I wanted to do was kill the bitch Lin Ruoxi, but... since the heavens has fated your deaths as well, I'll have to listen to the heavens' orders then."
"Do you think you'll end up fine after going against us?" Yang Jieyu asked coldly.
Gao Guoxiong snorted in contempt. "I wouldn't end up fine anyway if I didn't kill you guys. I was left with only this path to choose after the bitch left me for dead. When you're in the journey of becoming a ghost, you may give the slut a few slaps as she's the reason you'll die. I still want to enjoy a few more years of my life in this world."
As Gao Guoxiong spoke, he glanced at Lin Ruoxi who was standing inside the house occasionally, while greed filled his eyes. "How unfortunate... It would've been perfect if you had obeyed me back then. You're such a beautiful woman, but you will be turning a red skeleton today..."
Lin Ruoxi remained silent. She showed no fear.
To her, Gao Guoxiong looked pathetic, just like an insane dog who had come to a dead end. She was just regretful that she had gotten Yuan Hewei and Yang Jieyu involved in addition to Zhenxiu and Wang Ma...
If she could, she hoped to walk forward and surrender her life to Gao Guoxiong in exchange for the lives of the others.
However, Lin Ruoxi knew it was impossible. Gao Guoxiong had spent so much effort into tricking the Yuan clan, so he naturally wanted to finish this entirely, leaving nothing at all behind.
Only annihilating everyone was worthy of them doing so.
"I'm sorry. Although I don't think I've done anything wrong, I've certainly gotten you involved..."
Lin Ruoxi ignored Gao Guoxiong, and spoke to Guo Xuehua and the others softly instead.
Wang Ma who was cooking in the kitchen had come out to the living hall. Afraid and nervous, she tightly held one of Lin Ruoxi's hand with both her hands as she felt panicked. She looked left and right repeatedly, hoping that someone would come to their rescue.
At this moment, Gao Guoxiong stepped backward after he finished speaking what he had in mind. Delon knew that it was his time to take action. Thus, he raised his head and signalled two of his men to equip their guns.
The two cruel-looking men removed their AK hanging on their back and armed themselves. They felt nothing at all toward the people inside the house whom they were going to kill, like butchers in a slaughterhouse.
"Let's run inside. Withing here to die would do us no good. We need to think of a way to escape from behind!" Yuan Hewei said to these women.
However, as soon as they finished speaking, gunshots echoed in the courtyard!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The repeated gunshots didn't come from the AK the two men were holding, but some pistols instead!
The turf, tree leaves and branches were penetrated by a few bullets, causing smoke to appear from the friction. Some of the bullets even hit on the walls, directly leaving scars behind!
"We have enemies! Retreat and strike back!"
Following Delon's calm order, the few unprepared Vietnamese armies who had almost been hit by the bullets swiftly and calmly armed took their weapons before launching a counter attack by shooting back!
They were still completely fearless even when milimetres from death.
Delon carried the frightened Gao Guoxiong away with one arm before putting him behind a bush.
Lin Ruoxi and the others were shocked once again to see this turn of events.
More than ten ordinary-looking guys and ladies had entered the courtyard, while each of them was armed with a handgun, rapidly firing at these Vietnamese soldiers!
"Eleven from the north," one of the Vietnamese soldiers said in Burmene.
"Six from the west," another soldier yelled.
"More than ten from the east..."
While these soldiers communicated with each other, the highly agile individuals surrounded them in the courtyard. Most of them were armed with guns, while some of them were holding daggers.
These people were naturally Rose's elites from Red Thorns Society, but they didn't usually have this many people guarding the place. Rose had strengthened the security as the situation was unique today. She didn't expect that the extra manpower was actually going to be used.
However, although these guards could be considered elites in Red Thorns Society, they appeared a lot more unorganized compared to these exceptional Vietnamese soldiers. Their aiming was much inferior.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
As the guns were fired, a deafening sound which could break the clouds echoed in the entire courtyard!
A few of the Red Thorns Society members were quickly shot to death, while screams and shouts could be heard!
However, since the courtyard was indeed too small, around thirty guards had rushed nearer to the Vietnamese armies.
The scene was soon filled with forty to fifty people, causing a huge mess!
Under such a situation, guns seemed to only be a burden. Using army knives against daggers was more straightforward. Punches and kicks could also be used in the battle occasionally!
The combat skills of these army bred men were just too much for the Red Thorn Society to bear. The people from Red Thorns Society launched attack after attack, in an attempt to tire the soldiers out. They had much difficulty in knocking them out, let alone killing them!
Delon expressionlessly took out his army knife from his boot and violently stabbed a few people from behind. He then said something to his nearest subordinate.
The army received his order and instantly turned around before dashing toward Lin Ruoxi and the others inside the house!
Delon was evidently trying to eliminate his targets before going on full offense. If they stayed there for too long, the likelihood of a success retreat would be a lot less.
"Run!"
Yuan Hewei was the first one who reacted, and hurriedly asked the few women to escape!
However, the bloodshot Vietnamese soldier was so quick that he had raised his AK and aimed at the living hall. He was going to pull the trigger!
Slash!
The sound of broken metal could be heard while a white light glared. The AK held by the soldier was cut apart!
A black and red figure had appeared behind the soldier out of nowhere. When the soldier finally came to, the cold and slim blade had swept across his face!
A scarlet-red line gushed out from the soldier's face. Soon, blood shot out from his throat, causing the person holding the blade to be splashed with some of the steaming-hot blood.
"Rose?!"
Guo Xuehua was the first one to recognize the person who came to their rescue. Holding a long blade, Rose was currently dressed in a black and red tight-fitting clothing.
Rose's face was currently ice-cold, while a frightening killing aura filled her eyes. When the blood of the dead Vietnamese soldier splashed on her charming and fair cheeks, she seemed just like a thorny rose, looking immensely terrifying.
Her gaze swept across the people inside the house. There was a change in her expression when her glance reached Lin Ruoxi.
At the same time, Lin Ruoxi looked at Rose with complex emotions.
Lin Ruoxi remembered who Rose was, but had never asked Yang Chen for her identity. It was impossible for Lin Ruoxi to forget a woman whom Yang Chen was willing to put on shoes for in front of Lin Ruoxi.
When their gazes met, too much feeling unable to be explained by words was passed. They currently felt separated from the outside bloody scene, so indistinguishable like illusion and reality.
Yuan Hewei and Yang Jieyu naturally recognized Rose. They were the ones who had helped Red Thorns Society destroy Dongxing. Thus, they both felt relieved when Rose appear.
"Be careful!" Zhenxiu shouted nervously.
Rose tipped her toe and swiftly dodged the attack. She was a few millimeters away from being slashed by Delon!
"Die, Woman!"
Delon was infuriated. Each and everyone of his subordinates was a specially chosen veteran from the Vietnamese military. Any one of their deaths would be a huge loss, not to mention the situation wasn't in his control. He initially thought this was an easy mission, so he had lost his mind after realizing the predicament he was in.
Delon wasn't willing to waste his time on Rose who was nimble. He took the gatling gun from his back domineeringly. The massive gun looked like a toy in his hands!
"President Situ, be careful! The gun has a large firepower!" Yang Jieyu's brother was a commander, so she had knowledge in various guns. She tensed up instantly when she saw the gun.
"All of you shall die!!!"
Delon wasn't bothered to aim. The firing speed of 6 thousand rounds per minute allowed him to finish the task with an easy sweep!
As soon as he yelled, Delon had pulled the trigger on this monstrous beast!
Chapter 438 - Covering the Sunlight
Silence ensued in the villa for some time. Yang Chen looked at Zeng Mao who had lost his breath and asked, "Why?"
Cai Ning withdrew her right arm which had fired the hidden weapon while the smile on her face slowly dispersed. Gently, she said, "If you were the one to have killed him, the consequences you would have faced would have been severe. I'll do the job for you, so that larger troubles can be avoided."
"You're not a murderer. What reason do you have by killing him?" Yang Chen asked.
Cai Ning thought for a while before saying in an orderly manner, "He abused his power to free a prisoner, employed killers to commit a crime, and partnered up with foreign financial associations to attack a domestic corporate in addition to disturbing the stock market. All his doings are criminal acts."
"You're from Yellow Flame Iron Brigade, not the police force. You're not even considered one from the security bureau. You can arrest him, but killing him will mean you're taking things personally. Now you may only rely on the Cai clan to back you up. You should be aware that doing so will get you into a huge trouble," Yang Chen said. With his heart filled with doubts, he couldn't understand what the woman wanted to do anymore.
He had known Cai Ning for quite a long while. This woman was usually quiet and cool, while her coldness was only inferior to Lin Ruoxi. She wouldn't talk when she was getting things done, so no one could tell what she had in mind.
Cai Ning smiled and said, "Just treat it as me returning your favor."
"Favor?"
"Earlier at the hill behind the Liu residence, you saved me from the vampire's Massacre Blade. When Brahma came, it was you who had rescued us as well. You saved me twice, and I saved you from these troubles. I'm still benefited this way."
Yang Chen wasn't in the mood to joke around. "I don't want others to suffer because of me."
Cai Ning turned her head away as she sighed. Her cheek looked like a crystal-clear jade. "Realize now that you are no longer alone. A lot of the people around you need your protection. Just because you're not afraid doesn't mean they aren't as well. It was first the Xu clan, then the Liu clan, and now it's the Zeng clan. There are still a whole host of clans that you have not yet met, which you may in the future.
"If you continue killing like this, most of these people you kill will be highly ranked officials in the Chinese government. Take this time as an example. Once Zeng Mao dies, a lot of his students and friends will hold hatred toward you. When they slowly accumulate, you'll end up lots of enemies everywhere in the world. This way, do you still think living in this country is meaningful?"
Yang Chen remained quiet. He knew that Cai Ning had a point. He couldn't just leave everything behind, as he had too many strings in this country, so he had no choice but to face them.
"There's one more thing you should keep in mind. Once the high-ranked officials get anxious, which means when the country gets into a crisis, you'll certainly become a target Hongmeng wants to eradicate," Cai Ning said seriously. "You've seen their senior before. Are you confident you can defeat the people from Hongmeng?"
Yang Chen recalled the day where Ling Xuzi revealed some of his skills by the sea together with the aura he exuded. Shaking his head, Yang Chen said honestly, "For now... maybe not."
Before meeting Ling Xuzi, Yang Chen had indeed thought he was number-one in the world, or one of the best at least. However, upon meeting Ling Xuzi, he realized someone had broken through the level which he previously thought was the limit!
Also, it was an organization full of people like that, not just a single person!
However, Yang Chen wasn't so obsessed with martial arts that he wanted to be the best in the world, but his encounter with Ling Xuzi had brought him more space for exploration and desire. It was no different from a kid who had just discovered a new toy, Yang Chen finally had a new target.
"As a result, I am the best candidate to kill him," Cai Ning said seriously.
Yang Chen still wanted to say something, but was stopped by Cai Ning.
"You don't need to say anything, don't overthink it as well. Although i'm not fond of you, at least my stupid younger sister likes you a lot. I don't want her to get depressed. Just treat me as an interfering busybody who has ended a problem for you." Cai Ning looked annoyed. Frowning, she said, "If you're still not satisfied with my answer, look at me as Ruoxi's close friend. I can't stand aside doing nothing."
Yang Chen sighed deeply. He actually had more things to ask, but he definitely had to rush home now.
"You should go. I'll take care of this aftermath," Cai Ning said generously as she understood his intention.
Yang Chen looked at her and felt thankful, before rushing out of the entrance.
After the car engine sound distanced away, Cai Ning silently sat on the sofa in the living room, feeling incredibly empty, watching the muted news absent-mindedly...
... ...
Bang! Bang!
The metal shells of bullets fell like it was raining. Clunk! Clunk! Thuds could be heard when they landed on the stone floor.
Delon looked brutal, as if he was a Bengal tiger craving for human flesh. Thicks veins appeared on his arms, exuding an immense, breathtaking aura.
The gatling gun became a beast on berzerk in his hands. As sparks ignited, the dense bullets instantly formed a row of holes on the wall!
"Hide inside, now!"
When Rose shouted, Yuan Hewei and Yang Jieyu pulled Guo Xuehua into the inner part of the house, while Lin Ruoxi and the others followed behind.
Rose, on the other hand, didn't retreat. Although she couldn't negate bullets like Yang Chen, through years of combat experience and training in addition to the unique practice methods taught by Yang Chen, she could rival a martial arts expert, while her agility and close combat abilities were formidable as well.
Before the gatling gun started sweeping the place, Rose tipped her toe and leaped into the air, swooping behind Delon. A silver Desert Eagle revealed itself. Her elegant and charming eyes were currently filled with a killing aura as sharp as a knife!
"Humph!"
Delon wasn't going to go down so easily, otherwise he wouldn't have led a bunch of Vietnamese military veterans all the way to Zhonghai for a mission.
Before Rose could take aim, Delon's gatling gun acted just like a short-range stick. He turned around instantly before swaying the gun right at Rose's head!
At this critical moment, Rose's figure once again slipped toward the front left of Delon, barely dodging the attack!
Delon didn't give Rose a chance to breathe. Once again, he pulled the trigger, firing bullets from left to right!
Shouts could be heard. A few unfortunate members of Red Thorns Society had been shot, causing them to die there and then.
Rose didn't expect such a huge body to be this agile and quick. Moreover, he had full control over his gatling gun. He was able to only shoot at the people from Red Thorns Society, while his teammates in combat were completely unharmed!
"Ignore the bitch! Kill Lin Ruoxi! I want her dead!!!" Gao Guoxiong shouted. Being protected by a Vietnamese army, he finally had a chance to speak. Even if this day was irreversible, he didn't hope to give Lin Ruoxi a chance to witness tomorrow's sunlight!
"Keep your mouth shut," Delon said in contempt. Seeing that all Rose did was dodge around, he decided to ignore her. Turning around, he fired tens of rounds at the wall behind!
It was an aged home after all. Having fired so many rounds, pieces of concrete and wood flew all over the place.
Delon swiftly came to the wall and used his boulder-like body to crush it!
Bam!
A loud shock resounded, sending dust up into the air!
Astonishingly, part of the wall collapsed, forming a huge hole at the center!
Lin Ruoxi and the others who were hiding in the room panicked. They didn't expect Delon to appear before them in such a way!
Rose paled while considering how she could deal a fatal blow to Delon. She couldn't imagine how she would face Yang Chen if the people in this room were killed by the gatling gun.
They're right in front of me, but I didn't manage to protect his family?!
Will he think that I have intentionally allowed Lin Ruoxi to die?!
As she thought, Rose rushed toward Lin Ruoxi and the others without hesitation. When Delon turned around, she was facing him head-on!
"Run, now!"
After Rose shouted, they quickly regained awareness. At the same time, she raised her Desert Eagle before aiming it at Delon!
She was fighting a fearless mercenary. Even if she pointed a gun at him from behind, he might give up his own life to end the life of his target.
Rose couldn't take the risk. Thus, she chose to block Delon from approaching Lin Ruoxi and the others!
At this moment, Lin Ruoxi and the others didn't move at all. None of them believed that Rose had used her slender figure to block Delon. She looked like she was prepared to sacrifice her life.
What kind of faith made this young woman who had almost nothing to do with them make such a decision?!
Guo Xuehua's eyes turned red. When she thought of how Rose left in a cowardly manner this morning, she couldn't stop her tears from flowing down her face...
Lin Ruoxi was dumbstruck. She stared at the proud lady holding a silver gun amidst the ruins, and felt something violently stabbing her heart, causing her to almost fall unconscious.
"Woman, you're a respectable opponent." Delon grinned. "Unfortunately, It is still not my time."
Rose held her Desert Eagle tightly and wanted to pull the trigger. Unexpectedly, Delon stepped sideways!
This is bad!
Rose quickly realized she still had underestimated Delon's speed!
When Delon stood still again, he was standing on their left. The gatling gun he was holding pointed at Rose first. A cruel smile surfaced on her face before he said, "You shall all die..."
The sparks of the gun signified the lights of death!
Rose painfully shut her eyes. She knew that she had lost the battle. Without the man's help, she was still far from being good enough.
Lin Ruoxi, Guo Xuehua and the others didn't have time to react to this at all. They were still panicked and had yet to regain awareness.
However, when Rose was prepared to welcome the coldness of death, she realized nothing had happened although gunshots echoed.
Astonished, Rose opened her eyes and looked toward where Delon previously stood, while the others had looked over there as well.
As everyone was in doubt, a movie-like scene had emerged...
Dressed in an overwashed t-shirt and a pair of light-colored ripped jeans, a blonde Caucasian lady with a flawless figure stood there as calm as the summer breeze. Her hair which looked like golden threads was tied up in a bun, while she wore a huge pair of sunglasses.
Even if she was dressed in such a simple manner, it only took them a glance to feel her an overwhelming, luxury beauty. It was the kind of innate aura that made everyone unable to feel envious of her at all.
The scene had a significant mismatch. On top of this lady, she was holding up the enormous gatling gun with one of her arms!
The gun with a weight of at least 30 kilograms, appeared weightless when held by her slender arm, as if it was a childs toy.
If that wasn't odd enough, under her leather boots, she wasn't stepping on the floor, but Delon's corpse!!! His eyes were still open and his face held the expression of astonishment.
The Caucasian lady seemed to have failed to notice everyone's surprised look. She also ignored the battle outside which was slowly coming to an end due to her sudden emergence and Delon's death. Elegantly, she removed her sunglasses, revealing a pair of alluring sapphire-blue eyes.
"Hi, I'm Christen. Nice to meet you all."
Being shone by the daylight from above, Christen's smile looked incredibly splendid, as if she had covered the sunlight.
Chapter 439 - Straightforward
In fact, if Christen didn't introduce herself, the people present would have no doubt questioned their sanity. Why would the world's hottest singer, artist, and model suddenly appear here, while being dressed in this manner. She was even holding a gatling gun as she greeted them, while stepping on a mercenary she killed.
However, once Christen confirmed her identity, everyone there was bewildered, since such an occurrence was not one which happened outside of movies!
Who would expect an international superstar to come to their house to rescue them from gangsters?
It was even difficult to dream about it!
"You guys seem to be in some kind of trouble," Christen spoke in Mandarin fluently. No one would think that she had grown up in America. Moreover, she didn't mind the gazes she received at all, but looked around at the messy situation and felt interested. She was completely indifferent toward the bloody scene. "Oh, I believe someone is coming to help you guys eh."
As soon as she finished speaking, two silhouettes leaped over the wall of the courtyard like lightning, and landed behind two dumbfounded Vietnamese soldiers. In the blink of an eye, their throats started spilling blood!
The two silhouettes weren't anyone else, but the leader of Sea Eagles Molin and an uninjured female member Fanny who had rushed over as fast as they could after receiving Yang Chen's message. Unfortunately, they were still too late.
Having stabbed two mercenaries with his army knife, Molin nervously looked inside the house. If Pluto's family was harmed, the consequences he would face would be dire.
When he saw that Lin Ruoxi and the others were safe, he heaved a sigh of relief.
However, Molin was dumbstruck when he saw the smiling Christen who was holding a gatling gun.
Ignoring the remaining seven to eight Vietnamese soldiers, Molin kneeled down to Christen's direction before sincerely lowering his head as he bowed.
When Fanny noticed her leader's strange action, she couldn't help but look at the same direction. At the moment she noticed Christen, she revealed a similar astonished look on her face before immediately kneeling down as well.
"It's my honor to see you here, Your Majesty," Molin said solemnly.
Christen didn't take him seriously. Pouting her alluring lips, she said, "There are still people here. Are you not going to deal with them before we continue?"
Molin's expression turned serious as he answered, "Yes!" before looking at Fanny. Just like two rapidly shuttling whirlwinds, they shot through these armies one by one. They tried to resist, but their bodies couldn't keep up to speed at all.
In the blink of an eye, these people were wiped out.
Even if these mercenaries were relatively competent in South Asia, they were just like fresh graduates to the Sea Eagles. They couldn't even be considered the same level as the special forces, let alone the Sea Eagles which wholly consisted of top-notch mercenaries. Since the beginning, they were even too lazy to use their guns.
Gao Guoxiong was drenched in sweat as he felt that he had lost his soul. When Molin lifted him up by grabbing his collar and threw him to the center of everyone, he was so terrified that he peed himself. An unbearable smell filled his body. He pitifully looked at everyone in silence while his body trembled in fear.
He had been determined to succeed this time, and would commit suicide heroically should he fail. However, as confident as he seemed before, he was still frightened at this bloody massacre.
"Your Majesty, should I kill this guy as well?" Molin asked Christen. To be honest, he felt that killing Gao Guoxiong was a disgusting task.
Christen smilingly looked at Lin Ruoxi and the others. "This fellow should be the one who has hired the bunch of mercenaries, isn't he? Do you guys think he should be killed?"
Everyone including Rose, Guo Xuehua, Yuan Hewei and the others were still perplexed. They didn't manage to react to this turn of events in a short time.
Lin Ruoxi had always been the calm one. After thinking for a while, she said to Christen, "I think we should pass him to the police. Killing him is meaningless."
Admiration and playfulness surfaced in Christen's sapphire-blue eyes. As she waved at Molin, she asked, "Are you... Yang Chen's wife?"
When Christen examined her, Lin Ruoxi looked at her naturally as well. She more or less knew why Christen was here. The competition called Star of Yu Lei was coming soon. Being the final judge, Christen certainly had to be in China around this time.
However, she didn't expect this woman to appear in such a magical way.
Being a superstar well-known around the globe, Christen's beauty was more vivid and apparent now than in the movies. Although Lin Ruoxi didn't mind, she hadn't felt that any women could rival her appearance before, but today, she realized if she ignored the difference between the western and eastern aesthetics, Christen who was standing in front of her was the epitome of perfection.
"I'm Lin Ruoxi. I honestly didn't expect this would be how we meet for the first time, Miss Christen," Lin Ruoxi said as she approached Christen in a friendly manner before offering her slender arm. However, she didn't appear very gentle on the outside, since she seemed as cold as ever.
Christen, however, smiled really sweetly. Shaking Lin Ruoxi's hand, she asked, "Why don't you smile a little? Miss Lin and your family have survived the disaster."
"There is nothing to smile about here," Lin Ruoxi spoke as she gazed upon Rose who was panting. Although she only fought for a short time, she was still rather tired.
Christen suddenly thought of another thing. Giggling, she said, "Miss Lin, is it possible that you think I am one of your husbands lovers? I'm totally innocent. I'm not the discourteous fellow's woman. Although he has a lot of women, I'm not one of them, so you can totally be rest assured if you were holding a unpleasant doubt."
Except 'straightforward', there were no other adjectives to describe this superstar. After Christen said it happily, she realized the atmosphere had become incredibly awkward.
This was especially the case for Rose. She managed to calm herself down a little earlier, but went back to being red from all the blushing she was doing.
Guo Xuehua looked at Yuan Hewei and Yang Jieyu and smiled as she felt embarrassed. Even a superstar was aware of her son's terrible demeanor. Regarding Wang Ma and Zhenxiu, they hadn't recovered from the shock yet, so there wasn't much that one could glean from their expressions.
"I... I'll leave now." Rose felt that she couldn't stand still anymore. She instantly rushed outside and signalled her people from Red Thorns Society to clean up the aftermath before dashing home.
Guo Xuehua and Lin Ruoxi looked curious. They didn't expect the bunch of people who had rushed inside to help were all Rose's people. When they recalled that Yang Jieyu called Rose 'President Situ' earlier, they planned to ask her about Rose's identity.
Gao Guoxiong was brought away by the Red Thorns Society as well, while the corpses at the courtyard were pulled away one by one as well, and a few people started cleaning up the combat traces.
After a while, a white BMW rushed over at high speed before the emergency brake was pressed, parking outside the entrance and sending up some smoke.
Yang Chen got out of the car and stepped into the messy courtyard. When he noticed that Lin Ruoxi and the others who were inside the house with a collapsed wall was fine, he finally felt relieved. However, he seemed to have developed a headache when he noticed Christen staring at him. Smiling bitterly, he approached her and asked, "Why have you come over so suddenly? You should've at least told me about it."
"If I hadn't come earlier, your beautiful wife would've ended up in pieces" Christen stepped on Delon's corpse a few times with her leather boots.
Seeing that Yang Chen didn't understand, Guo Xuehua walked over and explained what had happened to Yang Chen.
After listening to her, Yang Chen turned gloomy. He looked at the corpses around the courtyard and could briefly tell what just happened. He then felt a little fear. He didn't expect Gao Guoxiong to hire such a huge group to come over, which Rose definitely couldn't hold off.
He then noticed he was too careless. The time he spent talking to Cai Ning at the villa earlier almost turned into an irreversible tragedy!
Not only would his family be harmed, even Rose might have lost her life...
Luckily, the heavens still looked after him, and didn't make him regret for the rest of his life. This matter could be considered to have ended now.
When Yang Chen looked at Christen again, he suddenly felt rather thankful.
"Don't thank me, or I'll feel flattered," Christen said seriously.
Yang Chen shook his head. He felt helpless toward the woman who had a mismatched personality and appearance. He then turned to Guo Xuehua to ask, "Where's Rose?" He was worried if Rose was injured or not.
"She ran home just now. I don't know if she's fine or not. Do you want to check her out?" Guo Xuehua asked out of concern. She didn't mind Rose's identity anymore.
Yang Chen hesitated for a bit before looking at Lin Ruoxi.
Lin Ruoxi avoided Yang Chen's gaze. Indifferent, she said to Wang Ma, "Wang Ma, I still have stuff to deal with. Send someone over to clean the house and fix the damaged parts. Don't wait for me for dinner. I think I'll only be able to return much later in the evening."
After she finished speaking, she bade farewell to Guo Xuehua before leaving directly.
Everyone present wasn't a piece of thoughtless log. They could easily feel that Lin Ruoxi was trying to avoid something, while Guo Xuehua sighed as she felt that she was at a difficult position. She was originally standing on Lin Ruoxi's side, since she wanted the family to be peaceful. However, having experienced the scene earlier, she didn't know what she was supposed to do.
"Oh, so that woman is your lover as well? Aye, doesn't that mean the lover tried to protect your wife? How touching," Christen said joyfully while her eyes were filled with the gaze of a busybody.
"How about you keep quiet for a sec?" Yang Chen evidently had a deep understanding of this woman's straightforward behavior.
Christen walked outside the house slowly as she acted like she heard nothing. Throwing the gatling gun on the side, she said, "Alright, alright. Like what the Chinese say, there are problems in every family. I just didn't expect a man who used to treat women as nothing would feel headache for women one day, so I found it really interesting..."
"I told you to keep your mouth shut for a bit." Yang Chen sounded more serious. He had the urge to rush forward and pick a fight with that woman.
Contented, Christen chuckled and said to Molin and Fanny who were speechless, "Look. Your idol can't do anything to me."
After Christen finished speaking, she disappeared into thin air. Except Yang Chen, no one knew how she left.
Chapter 440 - Orange Juice
The raging war that threatened to swallow a city quickly came to an end.
To most people, the main side being attacked, Yu Lei International, was still in a miserable state, and would reach its lowest stock price ever once Nasdaq Stock Market in America reopened. This would cause the company to be taken over by outside parties, to the point where even their bones wouldn't remain.
However, the people who had truly understood the situation like Yang Chen, Lin Ruoxi, Yuan Hewei, Yang Jieyu, and Athena Team stopped taking this matter seriously.
If Athena Team had still managed to fail with 50 billion cash in hand, then what Lin Ruoxi had said would be accurate, "I hired you to work, not to state the obvious."
The only real loss to all this would be that Lin Ruoxi's old house had been damaged. Fixing the place would only require a few days, and it would be as good as new.
Of course, having been through this experience, the people at home had a completely new understanding for Yang Chen. Lin Ruoxi chose to avoid talking to him, so she returned to Yu Lei International to continue her work.
Silence is worse than the anger.
Yang Chen didn't feel that Lin Ruoxi was looking down on him, but she was certainly mad at him. He was aware of the problem, but had not thought of a way to resolve it at the moment.
Being the lover, not only did Rose not hold any malice toward Lin Ruoxi, she also risked her life to protect her entire family. This was no different from giving a violent slap on Lin Ruoxi's face filled with pride!
Furthermore, Lin Ruoxi had to suffer in silence. She had to be thankful for Rose, even if the talkative Christen was the one who had truly saved them, Rose still managed to buy time to save everyone's lives.
There was no reason for Lin Ruoxi to hate her savior. Thus, all she could do was express her resentment, anger, hatred, and pain to the giant carrot Yang Chen.
Babe Rose, you're making it hard for me to face both sides... Yang Chen thought with a bitter smile.
Fortunately, Yang Chen had a shameless personality. Even when he knew he was no different from a target board for archery which everyone shot their 'arrows' at, he still put on an act to intimately ask Guo Xuehua and the others if they were fine. He then informed Sea Eagles to take care of them before smilingly going out of the house and taking a left turn as he headed to Rose's home.
It was his first time coming to Rose's and Mo Qianni's new place. The door wasn't closed. Rose may have forgotten to close it, or not
The style and design of this villa was similar to the Lin clan's old house, but the interior looked darker and more spacious. These decorations must have been the works of Situ Mingze and were left by him in his passing.
A few copybooks were inserted in the western paintings. Wood and stone were mainly used for the decorative crafts. Should a timid person enter this time, he might not dare to leave the house, as there were weirdly shaped 'ghosts and monsters' all over the place.
Yang Chen came to the kitchen and discovered Rose who appeared to have calmed down. She took a carton of orange juice out from the fridge with the intent of drinking from it. Her face held a carefree expression, not one which showed a life or death situation.
Rose wasn't very surprised to see Yang Chen suddenly appear in her house. Smiling, she asked, "Do you want a glass of juice?"
"It looks like my worry was unfounded. You should be fine." Yang Chen examined Rose who had changed into a loose cotton pyjamas. It couldn't be seen from her actions that she was injured, which allowed Yang Chen to stop being anxious.
"The big guy had not planned to battle me since the start, so I hadn't had many chances to fight him. Luckily the lady Christen came afterward..." Out of curiosity, Rose asked, "Oh yeah, Hubby, isn't Christen the singer and actress superstar? Why is she so good in martial arts? I don't even know how she killed the big guy."
Rose wasn't Christen's fan, and only knew a thing or two about her, so she wasn't too shocked regarding what had taken place earlier. She just treated Christen as a low-profile woman. Regarding combat abilities, Rose still thought Yang Chen was stronger than Christen without hesitation.
"Ignore that woman. Stay as far away from her as possible, or you'll find yourself caught up in a whole heap of trouble," Yang Chen said as he frowned. "She doesn't know martial arts at all. That's just her inborn ability."
"Inborn ability?" Rose took a sip of her orange juice and looked confused, but decided not to ask Yang Chen as he wasn't very willing to explain.
Yang Chen walked forward and hugged her slim waist, gazing upon the elegant face right in front of him. "I once said that I'd face dangers for you. But I seem to always fail to fulfill my promises. I'll feel better if you can cry in my arms or scold me. What should I do if you act like everything's normal after almost losing your life, and keep quiet when you're suffering? Rose... don't always keep everything to yourself. Let me know what you truly think, can you?"
Rose bit her lower lip and raised her glass before drinking the orange juice again. However, she didn't swallow the liquid, but raised her head instead to kiss Yang Chen on his lips.
Yang Chen blurrily kissed Rose, and felt that Rose used her tongue to aggressively entangle with his. Soon, the orange juice from Rose's mouth slowly flowed into his mouth...
Rose appeared deeply immersed. She put down the glass and hugged Yang Chen tightly with her jade-like arms, as if she melted into his body.
Yang Chen's nose was filled with the woman's familiar, rosy scent. Rose's soft and curvy body was in his arms, while the pair of flesh mounds made him feel incredibly content with the situation.
When their lips separated, Rose panted as she opened her watery eyes to stare at Yang Chen. "How does it taste?"
"Hmm?"
"The orange juice."
Yang Chen licked his lips. Smiling, he said, "It's sweet, sour, and a little rough."
Rose smiled and said, "That's exactly what I'm feeling inside... Do you understand now?"
Yang Chen remained silent as he exhaled warm air, feeling extremely emotional. He stopped speaking, but hugged this woman tightly in his arms again.
After a long time, Rose quietly opened her eyes and blinked a few times. Gently, she said, "I'm actually fine. I have long gotten used to waiting for you... But Hubby, do you know that Qianni always complains to me how irresponsible you are?"
Yang Chen felt rather awkward. He asked, "What did Little Qianqian say about me?"
Yang Chen didn't expect Mo Qianni to make reports about him to Rose. She should just tell me if she's dissatisfied. Why is she always acting like she's busy every day? How am I supposed to notice every subtle detail? The woman indeed deserves a spank on her butt, Yang Chen thought.
"Qianni said you refused to visit us after we moved here for so long, and both of us combined have less attraction to you compared to Lin Ruoxi alone. Other men always find the women outside more alluring than the one they have at home, but it's not the case for you. Since you're this biased, we feel that we should just get married to another man," Rose said seriously.
Yang Chen didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Not only was Lin Ruoxi already having a cold war with him, his two other women were feeling resentful as well. Although Rose claimed that it was what Mo Qianni had said, but it was obviously what Rose felt as well.
"Don't joke with me like that. I'll visit you guys more often. Qianni always acts like an independent woman. She wouldn't call me if she had nothing to tell me, while I was always afraid of disturbing her work," Yang Chen said.
"How about me... I lost my job now..." Rose pouted her mouth.
Lost your job?! Yang Chen joked, "Since my Babe Rose is so bored, why don't you expand Red Thorns Society to other cities, and soon take over all the underground syndicates in China?"
"Really?!" Light glared out from Rose's eyes. Excited, she said, "Since Hubby supports me so much, I'll do just that!"
Yang Chen felt a chill on the back of his head. Why do I feel like I've fallen into a trap?
Frowning, he said, "Babe Rose, what do you mean? Have you really been thinking of expanding the Red Thorns Society?"
Cowardly, Rose said, "Actually, a rather powerful syndicate leader scouted for me recently. He hoped to team up with our Red Thorns Society to expand our power to the south. I... I'm rather tempted by the offer... but I'm afraid that you may not allow me to continue doing this, so... so i decided to ask you."
Yang Chen took a deep breath. I've indeed fallen into a trap! he thought. He felt that Rose had long had a plan in her mind.
"Why do you suddenly want to get involved in that field again? Didn't you say you were tired of it, and haven't you passed a lot of tasks to Rongrong already?" Yang Chen asked gloomily.
Rose seemed to be feeling rather embarrassed. Lowing her head, she said, "Although I've invested in your company, I noticed that I don't possess the business-like mindset needed. There's nothing much I can help, and I've basically been staying home these days, while I don't have many friends outside... A lot of my gang members have started losing the spirit, and the organization is getting more and more scattered... So, I feel that expanding our power isn't the worst option at this point..."
Yang Chen noticed he had still underestimated the desire for combats in Rose's blood. She might be good in enduring in a relationship, but it didn't mean she could stay put for the rest for her life at other aspects.
Having been influenced by her father Situ Mingze since young, Rose loved to occupy places and expand her power although she wasn't a huge fan of killing and bloody scenes.
At the night of taking over Dongxing, Yang Chen noticed the strongly burning blaze in that woman's eyes. Currently, the same flame seemed to have returned.
"It is said that one should support the people he loves. I didn't expect my support would be for my woman to expand her underground power..." Yang Chen sighed as he shook his head.
Rose excitedly kissed Yang Chen on his cheek. "I knew that you wouldn't stop me from doing something like this. As long as I have your approval, there's nothing I need to fear!"
Yang Chen naturally understood what she meant. Since he had promised to allow her into doing so, he naturally had to lend his hand when she was in a difficult situation.
In fact, this wasn't something impressive to Yang Chen. Ignoring the fact that Red Thorns Society had become one of the most powerful syndicates, it wasn't too difficult for them to expand. Moreover, the underground syndicates in China were only messing around, unlike the ones from America or Europe. The largest 'gang' in China contained more than 2 million soldiers.
Yang Chen didn't mind giving his woman a little fun in her life. He was also too lazy to ask her about the specifics regarding the actual excecution. Rose was more experienced than him in the underground world. Today, he was reminded that he hadn't accompaied Mo Qianni in a while."
The independent woman proudly wagging her tail would always speak in an indifferent manner, but in fact she had scolded him for at least thousands of times in her mind.
Yang Chen thought silently before bidding farewell to Rose and driving to Yu Lei International. Mo Qianni should still be at work now.