That night was a long night.
An Luowei coaxed Lu Tian'en to sleep in her arms. The boy seemed to sense her uneasiness, even in her dreams he still held her finger tightly and wouldn't let go.
She couldn't sleep.
She sat in the luxurious, cold room, looking out at the night sky of S City. She cried, she was desperate, but after that, only emptiness remained.
Lu Beichen was right. She had no way back.
Jiang Suru, after being publicly humiliated, would definitely not leave her alone. Now, the identity of "Lu's wife" was her only talisman, but also the tightest shackles.
Divorce? He wouldn't agree.
Escape? Where could she hide when the whole world knew her face?
Beside the pillow, the laptop was still on, the screen lit up with the unfinished presentation of the Tinh Nguyet project.
Board of Directors. Tomorrow afternoon, 2 o'clock.
She laughed bitterly. Lu Beichen... he was truly cruel. He had just torn her life apart, and pushed her to the most fierce battlefield. Did he want to see her collapse, or did he want to see her torn to pieces by those "old foxes"?
Resentment rose. But along with that, a familiar flame of competitiveness also smoldered.
'Okay, Lu Beichen. You want me to take on the responsibility of 'Lu's wife'?'
'You want me to go to war?'
'Okay. I'll show you. Even if I am a forced 'flower vase', I will still be the most thorny vase!'
She removed Lu Tian'an's hand, gently placed the pillow beside the boy. She sat at the table, reopening the design file. Her red eyes once again focused on her work, shining with a terrifying stubbornness.
Breakfast the next morning.
The atmosphere at the dining table could be cut with a knife.
Lu Beichen sat in the main seat, calmly reading the financial newspaper (the front page was his news).
An Luowei sat opposite, silently drinking milk.
Lu Tian'en sat next to An Luowei. The boy did not even look at Lu Beichen, not even a glance.
"Young master, would you like some eggs?" Mrs. Li tried to break the atmosphere.
Lu Tian'en shook his head. The boy picked up a piece of bread himself and gave it to An Luowei. "Mom... eat."
The boy was clearly on "Mom's" side.
Lu Beichen flipped the newspaper, the rustling sound of paper was dry. He did not say anything, but his jaw was slightly clenched.
The first "cold war" of the family of three.
The car arrived at the company. It was still the Rolls-Royce, still the same deadly silence. An Luowei hugged the laptop tightly, treating Lu Beichen like air.
But when the car stopped at the main lobby of the Emperor God, everything changed.
No more curious eyes, no more whispers.
As soon as An Luo Wei stepped out, all the lobby staff, from the security to the receptionist, bowed 90 degrees.
"Mrs. Lu, good morning!"
The shouts were chorused, full of respect and fear.
An Luo Wei was stunned. She instinctively took a step back. This was the power of the name "Mrs. Lu" that he had "given" her. It made her suffocated.
Lu Bei Shen walked to her side, calmly putting his arm around her waist.
"Hey!" She was startled, trying to remove his hand.
"Acting." He whispered into her ear, his breath cold as ice. "The board of directors is watching the lobby camera. Do you want them to see Mrs. Lu and the CEO having a disagreement right before the meeting?"
An Luo Wei froze. She realized that from now on, every step she took was an act.
She gritted her teeth and let him "carry" her into the private elevator.
1:50 PM. 99th floor.
The corridor outside the Board of Directors' meeting room.
An Luo Wei stood alone, holding her cold laptop. Inside the giant wooden door, she could hear loud laughter. Those were the "uncles", the big shareholders, the old foxes who had fought together with Luc Bac Than in the business world.
They were waiting to see the "fun". They were waiting to see what kind of fox spirit this "parachuting" Mrs. Luc was that she could charm Luc Bac Than. They were ready to tear her to pieces.
Fear rose. Her palms were drenched in sweat. Could she do it?
Exactly 1:58 PM.
Clack, clack, clack.
The sound of expensive leather shoes rang out. Luc Bac Than strode forward. Assistant Zhang followed, his face equally tense.
He walked past her. He didn't stop.
An Luowei thought he would say something, "Do your best", or at least "Don't worry".
But no.
When he passed by, he only stopped for a second, not even looking at her, his cold voice piercing through.
"There are 2 more minutes. Don't embarrass the Lu family."
Not "Don't embarrass me", but "Don't embarrass the Lu family".
He was reminding her, her failure was not a personal failure, but a humiliation for the entire family.
This cruelty...
Ironically, it was those cruel words that completely extinguished An Luowei's fear. It ignited the flame of stubbornness in her.
Embarrass?
Lu Beichen, just you wait.
I won't give you the chance to laugh at me.
She raised her head, her eyes, swollen from crying last night, now sharp as knives.
The clock struck 2 o'clock.
An Lac Vi took a deep breath and pushed open the conference room door.
BAM.
The heavy door opened. All the noise inside immediately stopped.
More than twenty gazes, all of them big shots, simultaneously turned towards the small girl standing against the light at the entrance.