"The superiors have prepared the investiture ceremony. When are you planning to return?" Yang Hu asked.
Chen Yang ignored him and pushed open the kitchen window, taking in the full sweep of the early autumn scenery. He slowly lit a cigarette, the small flame flickering unsteadily.
"Eight years ago, if Qin Gang hadn't taken that bullet for me, would I even be here today?" he mused. "Now, the Qin Family is in decline, and Qin Gang's old wound has relapsed, leaving his life hanging by a thread. How could I possibly stand by and do nothing?"
It is said that a kindness of a single drop of water should be repaid with a gushing spring. What, then, of the debt for saving one's life?
"One year!" Chen Yang's eyes hardened, his voice final. "I will use one year to put the Qin Family at the head of Lingjin City's great houses. Then, I will report back to the Elders' Court immediately."
"Understood! I will convey your message!" Yang Hu nodded. "I've been investigating that cowardly shot from the shadows all these years, but the perpetrator hid their tracks too well. For eight years, there hasn't been a single clue."
"Keep investigating! Nothing that has happened can be erased without a trace." Chen Yang's gaze was ice-cold, surging with killing intent. He would not be able to sleep soundly until this hidden viper was eliminated.
"As you command!"
Chen Yang snuffed out his cigarette, and the formidable aura around him receded. He said nonchalantly, "They say Jin Zongquan's consultation fees are exorbitant. Tell him to charge less. Ten or twenty thousand should be plenty."
"Yes, sir!" Yang Hu smiled sheepishly. For a house call from someone of his stature, the fee is at least six figures. Ten or twenty thousand… to be blunt, it's an insult. But since the Zhennan Prince had spoken, what else was there to say?
Chen Yang's eyebrow twitched.
Yang Hu quickly stepped forward, took the black fish from Chen Yang's hands, and began scaling it while fawning, "Commander, some suicidal fool has designs on your wife. Should I go and take him out?"
"Who?!"
***
「An hour later.」
Drenched in sweat, Jin Zongquan came downstairs. He handed Luo Sulan a prescription his assistant had just written. "Simmer three bowls of water down to one. Have her take it for half a month, and your daughter will make a full recovery."
The normally arrogant Jin Zongquan was exceptionally polite today. He had spared no effort, even employing his ancestral Taixuan Thirteen Needles to the point of near-exhaustion.
With trepidation and gratitude, Luo Sulan accepted the prescription with both hands, thanking him profusely. She then respectfully offered a bank card containing six hundred thousand yuan.
However, Jin Zongquan seemed even more alarmed than she was. He waved his hands repeatedly, refusing to take a single cent. "I must take my leave. If you need anything in the future, do not hesitate to ask."
Luo Sulan and Qin Qiu exchanged a look of sheer astonishment. What was wrong with the old master of the Jin Family today?
"I'll see you out!" the mother and daughter pair exclaimed, rushing to follow him.
Inside the Land Rover, Jin Zongquan's assistant hesitated for a long time before finally asking, "Master, even if that Mr. Yang is from the Martial Department, we don't have to be so subservient, do we? The Qin Family is nothing special."
"Shut up!" Jin Zongquan snapped, his gaze turning to the window. A flicker of profound dread crossed his eyes. "This is the single greatest opportunity the Jin Family has ever encountered. If anyone dares to ruin this, I will personally bury them!"
The Qin Family itself may not be much, and while Yang Hu is from the Martial Department, his status is only so-so. But the man behind Yang Hu…! Jin Zongquan sucked in a sharp breath. At eight o'clock tonight, the news should be made public, right?
"I-I understand," the young assistant stammered, breaking out in a cold sweat that he didn't dare wipe away. He just nodded hastily.
For Qin Qiu and Luo Sulan, the entire experience had felt like a dream.
"Mom, stay here and take care of my sister. I have something urgent to deal with at the company," Qin Qiu said, too preoccupied to think further. She gave a quick instruction and bolted out the door.
"Honey, it's almost dinnertime. Won't you eat before you go?" Chen Yang called out, leaning out of the kitchen doorway wearing a floral apron and holding a spatula.
Already on edge, Qin Qiu's face darkened instantly. Without turning back, she snapped, "Screw you!"
"Is that an offer?"
Qin Qiu stumbled, nearly falling flat on her face. She yanked her car door open and scrambled inside as if fleeing for her life. Her hands clenched the steering wheel, the veins on their backs bulging. A mist veiled her beautiful, limpid eyes as tears began to silently trace paths down her cheeks.
After her grandfather, Qin Gang, had fallen ill, the Qin Corporation had gone into a steep decline. Luo Sulan's capabilities were limited, so the entire burden had naturally fallen upon Qin Qiu's shoulders. But in the end, she was still just one woman.
If only I had someone to help me, how wonderful would that be? Qin Qiu murmured as if in a dream, before gritting her teeth in frustration. "But no, I'm stuck with that piece of trash!"
"Grandpa, oh, Grandpa, why did you do this to me?!"
With a long sigh, she wiped the tears from her eyes, started the car, and sped toward the office.
「Meanwhile.」
At the Yunxuan Racecourse rest area, Su Ding moved between groups of friends, a glass of red wine in one hand and a cigar in the other. He let out a loud laugh. "You all might not believe it, but I don't even need to call that woman, Qin Qiu. She'll come crawling to me on her own."
Glancing at the large gold watch on his wrist, he added, "Within the hour, tops."
"Of course we believe you! We all know what Mr. Su is capable of!" a tall young man in a white suit named Chen Shu chimed in obsequiously. "Mr. Su has been buying up Qin Corporation stock on the secondary market like crazy. If she doesn't show up soon, the whole corporation will be changing its name to Su."
"That pathetic company? It's not even worth my time. The only thing I'm interested in is the woman, Qin Qiu! That face, that figure... tsk, tsk." Su Ding squinted, a lecherous fantasy playing out in his mind.
"Hehe, in that case, do you think you could let us brothers have a taste when you're done?" Chen Shu asked, rubbing his hands together with a fawning look. To sleep with the most beautiful female CEO in Lingjin City was the kind of thing a man could brag about for the rest of his life. What an incredible boost to one's reputation.
"Of course!" Su Ding declared with a grand wave of his hand. "When I'm done with her, I'll toss her to you guys! Aren't you going to thank me for my generosity?"
"Thank you, Mr. Su!"
"Mr. Su is truly magnanimous!"
The chorus of bootlicking echoed around him.
"Hahaha!" Su Ding crowed, planting a foot on the table in his arrogance. "There isn't a woman I, Su Ding, set my sights on that I can't conquer!"
"Oh? Is that so?" a voice suddenly cut in, laced with amusement.
It was followed by the sound of footsteps, growing steadily closer.
Su Ding's eyebrows shot up. He instinctively turned his head to look at the unfamiliar figure approaching.
The newcomer was, of course, Chen Yang, with Yang Hu right behind him.
Su Ding's eyebrow quirked, and he let out a chuckle. "And who are you? Do you think this is a place you can just waltz into?"
Chen Yang glanced around the area, his gaze finally settling on Su Ding. "I don't care about other women, but anyone who has designs on Qin Qiu is courting death."