“Being thorough and careful are not the same as being insane,” Jin Liwei retorted. “My wealth and power may give me the ability to protect my wife, our children, and our loved ones, but that’s only if I know what I’m protecting them from. I don’t like being taken by surprise especially if it concerns the safety of my family. Now that I know that your actions might endanger all of us, I can’t just turn a blind eye especially when there’s a way to be more proactive.”

Lu Zihao stood up and started pacing in front of the window. Then he kicked the ornate bench. “Dammit!”

Fortunately, the piece of furniture was heavy and sturdy so it survived his powerful kick unlike the other furniture in the room. [This novel is a contracted work with W e b n o v e l . c o m (remove spaces). If you’re not reading this chapter on W e b n o v e l, it has been stolen. It’s very discouraging to see thieves profitting from my hard work. Please support the original author, ArriaCross. Thank you! Also follow me on Instagram @arriacross]

“You should admit that I make sense,” Jin Liwei said. 

A visible vein throbbed in Lu Zihao’s forehead as he struggled to make a decision regarding Jin Liwei’s offer. “I don’t want any of you involved. I want to do this alone.”

“Don’t be dumb. The moment that you ordered members of your Shadow Winds to fortify your sister’s security already connected us to your group. What’s more, we have a deal to allow Bacon to assist you in your work once you agree to talk to me and Evelina in person. If I knew what your group was really doing, I probably wouldn’t have given Bacon permission to go work for you when he asked me that night. Now I know why Evelina was so angry and even fought with me when she discovered that I gave Bacon permission without consulting her first.”

Lu Zihao scowled but he didn’t say anything. He already knew all of these. The number one reason why he agreed to return to Dragon Palace and talk to the couple in person before he felt ready was due to his worry for his sister’s health. Bacon, the cunning little devil, successfully guilt-tripped him. 

Another reason was that he wanted to have Bacon start working for him as soon as possible. He couldn’t wait to see how much a highly advanced AI like his virtual cat nephew would be able to do for his group. Would Bacon be able to take Shadow Winds to the next level? The only problem was that his sister wouldn’t let Bacon go without Lu Zihao agreeing to this meeting first.

If not for these reasons, he probably would have put off this meeting for as long as he could. And indeed, he was right in wanting to avoid this meeting because it was already proving to be extremely troublesome for him. 

Jin Liwei didn’t know what Lu Zihao was thinking so he continued to drive his point home. “In short, we’re already involved whether you like it or not. Also, there’s no way that I’ll let you do this alone and put my fifth brother’s body in danger. You may not care about it but I do and so many others like Grandpa Lu and our sworn brothers. Don’t forget that you’re living as Lu Zihao now. You’re not Nikolai Vetrov anymore.”

Lu Zihao rubbed his face roughly with both hands in frustration. “Fuck!”

Sighing, Jin Liwei straightened his body and started gently rolling his shoulders because his healing back was starting to ache again. He glanced at the wall clock and confirmed that it was now very late. 

“I’ll give you time to think about my offer,” he said. “We’re both tired and can’t think clearly anymore. Sleep on it first before you decide what to do. But I want to hear your final decision before you leave with Long Jinjing after this weekend.”

“Fine.”

Jin Liwei nodded and gave Lu Zihao one last firm look before leaving. When the door closed behind Jin Liwei, Lu Zihao was left all alone in the piano room. He stared at the lone grand piano in the centre of the room and could imagine his sister playing music that touched one’s soul.

She was excellent at that—making others feel vivid emotions through her music. Her beautiful hands were made for creating magnificent works of art. In contrast, his rough hands were made for destruction.

As much as possible, he didn’t want to involve his sister in his quest for revenge. He thought that he was doing a good job in not bothering her and letting her enjoy her new life. Now, however, he was starting to doubt himself after hearing what Jin Liwei said. 

Damn the man for messing with his mind! He was like his fifth brother. The monkey often messed with his emotions whenever the original Lu Zihao’s loved ones were involved. They were indeed sworn brothers. Damn them!

After some time, he was still unable to make up his mind regarding Jin Liwei’s offer. The man was right. He was too exhausted to think clearly. It was better to get some rest first before making a decision. He picked up his damp shirt on the floor in disgust before making his way to his room. 

Long Jinjing should be asleep by now, but he desperately needed a good fuck tonight. He would just eat her down there until she woke up screaming in pleasure and then proceed to fuck her and lose himself in her wet heat. Having sex with her always made him feel better and more balanced. 

Anticipation filled him at the thought of being with Long Jinjing again. He didn’t notice that the heavy feeling weighing down on him ever since the meeting with his sister and Jin Liwei started earlier had become lighter. His footsteps also became quicker as he hurried to his room without actually running.

Long Jinjing had already agreed to go on the pill just before they headed to Dragon Palace together. They just needed to wait a little longer until the contraceptive pills became effective and he could finally forego using condoms. He couldn’t wait. 

Just like that, Lu Zihao already felt so much better just thinking about Long Jinjing. She was fast becoming his number one source of comfort. He didn’t want to think about what would happen after their agreed 30-day relationship.