Yang Lina narrowed her eyes at Lily. How could she miss Lily’s tone that was full of mockery? “Very funny,” she sarcastically said. “However, I am raising my son the way I want to. As a mother, protecting him is my job. This is something that you don’t understand. After all, you are not a mother yourself,” she said calmly.
“You are right.” Lily nodded in response. “You can raise him the way you want to. But, let me ask you this. Right now, right here, at this moment, I can kill you and walk out of Hong Kong in my private jet like a Queen. Without you, your son will be useless. I can attack your son’s company and destroyed his marriage in say… a day or two after your death. What do you think will happen to your son then?”
“Can you protect him from your grave?” she added as she tilted her head and gave Yang Lina a smirk. This action reminded the latter of the thing that snakes do before attacking their prey. They lower their head, look at you in their binocular vision, and examine how far you are before suddenly lifting their heads to strike. This unknowingly made Yang Lina shiver inwardly.
And right then and there, she realized… this was not the Qin Jinghua she remembered. This person was someone else. However, just who did she think was, Yang Lina? This blatant threat was not something that would work on her. Though Lily’s words made her heart jump, Yang Lina had also grown up in an environment full of hard-hearted people. These words were not enough to make her cower in fear.
“If I don’t know any better, I would believe that you are threatening me. I am not very good with threats, Miss Qin. I take things seriously. I will protect my family, no matter what. However, If you kill me now, I am sure you will not walk out of this establishment alive.”
“True. But what If… I kill your son now while you are here having coffee with me,” Lily said. Seeing the smile on Yang Lina’s face disappear immediately made Lily laugh. “Ah…. I am just kidding. Miss Yang, I am not planning to kill your son. Wouldn’t that be too kind?”
“Lily Qin… this is my last warning…”
“No, Miss Yang… This is my last warning. Stay away from me, or watch your family crumble.” With this, Lily suddenly passed her phone to Yang Lina. The latter immediately raised an eyebrow at her. “Take a look.”
Yang Lina then picked up Lily’s phone and immediately furrowed her brow. “Where did you get this?”
“I told you. I can attack the Xuan Family anytime I want to. I have been away for seven years. Did you think I would just sit there and watch everyone from my throne? That would be boring, won’t it?”
“How dare you do this to my husband and me? Do you think you can manipulate me into destroying my own family? You are wrong, Qin Jinghua! I already know what you love to do to your enemies! I know you and the way you deal with the people who offend you!” Yang Lina said in one go. It was apparent that whatever Lily showed her made her irritated.
“Hmmm… Alright. This makes me wonder… what will happen to your husband if this information is released to the media? I mean… I heard Mr. Xuan wanted to enter into politics.” Lily dramatically shook her head. “I mean… as a protective wife, you should already know the possible effects of this scandal. Right?”
“This is not true!”
“But will anyone believe that?” Lily rebutted before she covered her mouth and let out a giggle. “No one will. I know you don’t care about what the truth was seven years ago. So it should not be a big deal if you get a taste of your own medicine, right?”
“Do you think these threats will affect me? Do you not know who I am?” Yang Lina hissed. Her husband, Xuan Zeng came from a family of politicians. However, unlike his father and two brothers, Xuan Zeng pursued business instead of politics. Though Xuan Zeng excelled in business, the Xuan Family still showed their dislike for his career. But this all changed when Old Man Xuan died years ago.
Yang Lina did not know what Old Man Xuan had told Xuan Zeng in his deathbed. She also did not know if these words were the reason why his husband suddenly wanted to become a politician to replace his father. In the past year, Xuan Zeng had built his career as a civil servant, making a name of his own outside of his business.
“Miss Yang… you breached my privacy and threatened me with your name. Did you expect me to cower in fear? Did you not expect me to threaten you too?” Lily asked. “If something happened to me, my subordinates in Europe will release every bit of dirt that I have on the Xuan Family. And I swear… it will be more than enough to ruin you and everyone you love.” Lily said, her face devoid of any expression. “Now, Miss Yang… that is how you make a threat.”
“You are so bold doing this on my turf,” Yang Lina said. In response, Lily gave her a knowing smile.
“How stupid,” Lily uttered.
“What did you just call me?”
“I said you are STUPID.”
“You-“
“What? Yang Lina, seven years have passed, and you still assumed that I was the little girl that you could bully. Isn’t that the most stupid assumption ever?” Lily then leaned on the chair and shook her head. “You were supposed to be a woman of value and dignity, someone who held her head high in society. To say that I am disappointed in you would really be an understatement.” Lily then made a deliberate pause as she watched the woman across her. Yang Lina still looked young for her age. Her hair was in a sleek updo, making her look stern and domineering.
“To be honest… I did not expect to have a confrontation with you this early. But this… this is an eye-opener for me,” Lily said.
Yang Lina continued her silence after hearing Lily’s words. She just stared at the woman who was confidently shaking her head, as if she was truly looking at a disappointment. Though she wanted to deny it, Yang Lina was actually starting to praise this hateful woman in front of her. From Lily’s demeanor to her words, it was obvious that not a sliver of her past self had remained. It was as if she was talking to a different person.
And no matter how much she looked at it, Lily reminded her so much of her young self that she couldn’t seem to stop staring at her, and scrutinize every detail of her movement and analyze her words. To Yang Lina, Lily was undeniably a strong opponent.
“You know…” Yang Lina started. “If you were not Qin Jinghua, I’m sure we would be good friends.” She said, smiling at Lily before her face turned serious. “I can see that we are somewhat alike. So I’m sure that you will understand my desire to protect my family. And I-I will do this even if that means crossing someone as formidable as you.”
