A Mei returned to the house and went to Lu Yuanhong's study.
Lu Yuanhong, having seen everything on the monitor, smiled and asked, "Is he clueless about romance, or does he disdain it?"
A Mei shook her head. "I don't know. I wasn't successful anyway."
"Only those with a truly tranquil heart can abstain from the seven emotions and six desires," Lu Yuanhong mused.
"Then he is one of them," A Mei said. "Perhaps it's because his appearance is so frightening that he knows no one will truly like him?"
Lu Yuanhong looked at her and said, "Come here."
The moment A Mei saw that look in his eyes, she knew what he wanted.
Ever since she was sixteen, whenever he looked at her like that, it meant he wanted something from her.
The first time, she hadn't understood what this man, who had adopted her and given her a life of privilege, wanted. She had only felt instinctive fear.
She still remembered the pain, so intense that she had curled into a ball. She had cried and begged.
But he had not spared her. He had held her tightly, opened her, and pressed against her… From then on, she knew she could never escape him.
She obediently walked to him and sat on his lap. Even though she had borne him two children, she still felt fear, but now she could conceal it well.
He stroked her skin, as if playing with a kitten or puppy, and asked in a particularly calm voice by her ear, "Have you fallen for him?"
A Mei, as if startled awake, immediately denied it. "I belong to you in life and death! I would never fall for someone so ugly."
He gripped her chin and kissed her lips.
She closed her eyes, held her breath, and her mind inexplicably went blank.
But Lu Yuanhong merely brushed his lips against hers, then released her and commanded, "You do it."
"Yes." She rose and knelt. Despite her reluctance and her loathing for his flabby, unappealing flesh, she had to do her best to make him happy and satisfied.
...
That night, Qin Tianyi was fast asleep when he was woken by another bodyguard.
Still groggy, he asked, "What is it?"
The other bodyguard said, "Get dressed quickly. Mr. Lu wants us to go out with him on some business."
"Business?" Qin Tianyi looked at his phone, finding it rather sudden. "It's the middle of the night."
"Don't ask too many questions. Just come with me," the other bodyguard said, leaving his room first to prepare.
Qin Tianyi rolled out of bed and grabbed his clothes, thinking that Lu Yuanhong's request to accompany him at this hour certainly wouldn't be for anything good.
It had been a week since he had been sent back without being allowed to act.
Lu Yuanhong had said nothing, and he had returned to his life as a bodyguard, still on duty at the old residence according to the previous schedule.
Except for A Mei visiting him once, nothing special had happened. He was worried that he hadn't yet gained Lu Yuanhong's trust and wondered how long this would last.
Rumors outside said Su Su had been burned to death, leaving the Aoxiang Group leaderless. Su Kangxi was doing his best to suppress the truth of the hospital fire, while Xiao Anjing supported and appeased Aoxiang's senior management and shareholders, claiming Su Su was recuperating from a difficult childbirth and was unable to appear at the company or in public.
He knew they couldn't hold on for long, perhaps a few months at most. If he couldn't gather evidence of Lu Yuanhong's criminal activities in the coming months, Aoxiang would fall into chaos, Su Kangxi would have no explanation for his superiors, and Su Su and the children would be in danger again.
Tonight, tonight might be his chance to uncover Lu Yuanhong's illegal dealings. He became fully alert and immediately left the basement with the other bodyguard.
As soon as they reached the upper level, he noticed a strong wind blowing outside. He pulled up his collar and saw someone waving them over to an off-road jeep.
Besides the two of them, Lu Yuanhong's driver was at the wheel, and another man sat in the back with them whom he didn't recognize and had never seen before.
This man was not tall, with a slightly round face and a kindly appearance.
The man said to them, "When we get there, don't ask or say anything. Just do as you're told."
Both of them nodded cautiously. Lu Yuanhong sat in the front passenger seat without a word.
Qin Tianyi gazed out the car window at the patches of darkness flashing by. Streetlights were rare, and any light visible was a faint glow from a great distance.
He was certain the car wasn't heading into the city, but directly from the scenic area where the Lu family's old residence was located towards the connected small mountains in the suburbs.
There were no very high mountains around Lan City. Luoxia Mountain, where the Lu family's old residence was situated, was considered the highest point. It was connected to several unnamed small mountains. Because they were not fully developed, the area behind Luoxia Mountain was desolate and uninhabited.
His heart was filled with unease as he couldn't guess what Lu Yuanhong intended for them to do.
As the car drove into a desolate mountain, it stopped when the road ended. The driver got out first and opened the car door for Lu Yuanhong.
Lu Yuanhong instructed the driver to wait in the car and keep a close watch on the surroundings, notifying them of any abnormalities.
The unfamiliar man from the back also asked Qin Tianyi and the other bodyguard to get out, then stood respectfully beside Lu Yuanhong and asked, "Is it enough for Mr. Lu to bring just these two? What if A Rong is prepared? If it's just us, aren't we too few? Should we call for more reliable people?"
"No need," Lu Yuanhong said with full confidence. "These two are enough. A Rong won't expect me to come in the middle of the night. You lead the way."
The man Qin Tianyi didn't know turned on his phone's flashlight and walked ahead, entering an entrance that looked like a cave.
Lu Yuanhong then turned to look at them both and said, "When I clap my hands later, you two will take care of a traitor named A Rong. Be sharp."
"Yes," Qin Tianyi and the other bodyguard replied simultaneously.
Lu Yuanhong walked in the middle, with Qin Tianyi and the other bodyguard following behind. Since the path inside the cave entrance was extremely dark, Qin Tianyi and the other bodyguard also turned on their phone's flashlights, illuminating the way for Lu Yuanhong from behind.
After walking for about ten minutes, Qin Tianyi heard voices and the sound of machinery from within. He could also faintly see the light of incandescent bulbs.
They saw the man in front turn off his phone's flashlight, and they did the same.
From not far away, someone exclaimed alertly, "Not good, someone's here!"
"It's me and Mr. Lu. You don't need to panic," the man in front shouted.
Qin Tianyi saw clearly that the cave was a hidden world within, containing a well-constructed house built of reinforced concrete. Bright lights emanated from inside, like daylight.
He guessed it was probably a clandestine factory, but what would be produced so secretly?
Two words suddenly flashed in his mind: drugs!