"Why bastard? Wherefore base? When my dimensions are as well compact,My mind as generous, and my shape as trueAs honest madam's issue? Why brand they usWith base? With baseness? Bastardy?" — King Lear
…
To make Lin Hai, who had spent the first twenty years of his life growing up in the slums of a garbage planet, understand and accept what it meant to live as a modern aristocrat — this was, without a doubt, an enormous and arduous task.
There's a saying in the Empire: "Even if you haven't eaten pork, you've at least seen a pig run." But for Lin Hai, even that didn't really apply. Growing up with only a cracked crystal-screen TV for company, Lin Hai used to think that nobility simply meant owning a luxurious ground-hover car, enjoying gourmet meals, affording mechas, living in a mansion, and finding a curvy woman to have children with — all while staying far away from those damned natural storms that ravaged his trash-ridden planet.
Now, he understood things weren't nearly so simple.
A few days after arriving at the Lin family estate, Lin Hai finally pieced together his situation — and his true lineage.
He really was the son of Lin Wei, a titled lord on Riverside Star and head of the Wayne Industrial Group. He was, in fact, a descendant of the famed Lily Flower noble lineage of the Great Eagle Empire.
His mother had told him this many times in the past, but he'd always dismissed it as a fairytale she invented to comfort them both. In the flickering lamplight of the slums, that once-elegant woman would talk and he would listen, falling asleep with a smile. She knew he never truly believed her, and she never argued the point.
Now he knew it was all true.
A child from a garbage planet with a noble lineage — a fantasy come true for most slum dwellers. Naturally, Lin Hai couldn't say he didn't care.
But what had happened on his first day at the estate left a bitter taste in his mouth, tainting the excitement he'd originally felt.
To be honest, he didn't have a great impression of this noble family. Although they shared blood, he had never once interacted with them before. The word "father" felt unfamiliar to him — and with unfamiliarity came detachment, not hatred. What he couldn't understand was: if this father of his had no intention of accepting him, why go through the trouble of bringing him here from that hellhole?
Was it just some leftover guilt after his mother passed?
Then there was Lin Hao, the legitimate son born to Lord Lin Wei and his aristocratic wife, Ning Qing, after he abandoned Lin Hai's mother. Lin Hao was everything Lin Hai was not: wealthy, well-dressed, and full of pride — a perfect example of a privileged noble son.
Lin Hao was seventeen years old, but already showed signs of his father's arrogance. The contempt in his eyes when he looked at Lin Hai was unmistakable — as if Lin Hai were a blotch of ink on pristine paper.
News of Lin Hai's arrival at the Lin estate spread like wildfire through the upper circles of Riverside Star. Naturally, Lin Hao couldn't stand being gossiped about because of his newly-arrived illegitimate brother. That's why he tried to humiliate Lin Hai on day one — and ended up getting humiliated instead.
Now, the gossip outside was even worse. People were practically salivating for more drama from the Lin family.
In the days that followed, perhaps out of respect for Lord Lin Wei's authority — or more likely, because of a private warning — Lin Hao didn't approach Lin Hai again.
Maybe it was because Lin Hai's actions had been so shocking that even the estate's stewards and servants were treating him respectfully now. No one shunned him, and he could feel everyone secretly observing, trying to figure out who he really was.
Still, Lin Hai noticed something strange in their expressions — a kind of unease or hesitation that gave him a vague sense of foreboding.
Li An was the steward who'd led him into the estate that first day, the one who accompanied him from the garbage planet all the way to Riverside Star. Naturally, he was also responsible for managing Lin Hai's daily affairs.
For someone raised in the slums, Lin Hai had long since mastered the art of talking to all kinds of people — from street thugs to beggars. It didn't take long for him and Li An to become fast friends.
…
Through Li An, Lin Hai learned a great deal about the Lin family.
His father, Lord Lin Wei, was head of the Wayne Industrial Group, a company that had supplied reactive armor to the Imperial military for many years. At its peak, the Wayne Group was well-known in military manufacturing circles, especially among top-tier arms suppliers.
But its glory days were behind it. In the past five years, technological advancements had outpaced the group's research capabilities. Other powerful noble families had begun entering the mecha and armor industries, pushing Wayne Industrial out of its former dominance.
This decline in external influence had also bred internal unrest. Lin Wei's brothers — all nobles themselves — began eyeing the family leadership and the control of the company.
Family infighting was on the rise.
It wasn't hard to guess that Lin Hai's sudden retrieval from the garbage planet had something to do with this power struggle.
That was the first bit of bad news.
The second was even worse: Lin Hai's ominous premonition proved accurate.
Lord Lin Wei had an adopted daughter named Lin Wei — a woman renowned across all of Riverside Star.
She was privately referred to as the "Daughter of the Devil."
On paper, she was perfect: a graduate of the Empire's prestigious Qingyuan Academy, a mecha design prodigy with endless innovation, and blessed with staggering beauty. So much so that people couldn't help but envy the heavens for favoring her so openly.
In recent years, as Lin Wei's health declined, it was Lin Wei (the daughter) who held up half the sky for Wayne Industrial. Without her, the Lin family's fall from grace would've come even faster.
Had she been a man — had she been Lin Wei's legitimate child — there would be no doubt that she'd inherit the title and the company. But as an adopted daughter, those doors were forever closed.
Still, her authority within the group and family was unquestionable.
Li An explained that her fearsome nickname came from her ruthless efficiency and cold-blooded decisions. But judging from the way his eyes glowed when he spoke of her, it was clear she had plenty of admirers — not just because of her power.
Beautiful women are like scorpions in the dust: dangerously alluring.
Worst of all, this "sister" had a disturbingly close relationship with Lin Hao — bordering on doting indulgence.
Lin Hai had slapped her "true" little brother across the face.
And now, this dangerous woman was returning from a trade visit to the capital.
She was on her way.
Coming straight for him.