“I am not working for him,” Mr. B said. “If that is what you want to know.” He smiled before adding, “Zhuo Jingren and I are completely different entities. We know each other, yes. But… I follow my own rules.”
“How do I know that you are telling the truth?” she asked.
“You don’t… but you don’t have a choice. Do you?” he quipped.
In response, Mu Qingling stared at him. She had no other options at the moment. If she wanted revenge, Mr. B could be her only weapon to use against her sister. “As long as you are not working for Zhuo Jingren then I will help you.”
“You seem to hate him very much, eh?”
“I don’t hate him,” Mu Qingling countered. “I am afraid of him. There is a difference.” Mu Qingling would never forget Zhuo Jingren’s sinister smile as he talked about what she did to Lily. Even now, remembering those things still made her shiver.
“Hmmm… he is indeed a very scary man,” Mr. B nodded in agreement as he rose from his seat. “I will contact you and give you the details of the plan. You are a Mu… fight for what is rightfully yours,” he advised before walking out of Mu Qingling’s small room.
After checking to make sure that he was really gone, Mu Qingling clutched her chest and lay on the bed. For some reason, she felt that the man who called himself Mr. B was not as angelic or benevolent as he made himself out to be. She felt that he was even more dangerous than Zhuo Jingren.
….
After Mr. B left the motel, he instantly entered his car and dialed a number. “Jingren? Hmmm… Yes. The fish took the bait. Your wife must be very devious to come up with this plan. No! Of course, not. I am a professional! Alright… I will see you later.” He ended the call with a devilish grin on his face as he shook his head and tousled his slicked back hair.
“Where to boss?”
“To the Facci Group Tower. I want to see the big boss’ wife,” he said with a smile. Right now, Lily is the most dangerous person that Bei Tian has to deal with, and he wanted to make sure that they are absolutely on the same page.
Bei Tian gazed out of the car window as he thought about Lily’s capabilities. A woman capable of reading your facial expression is nothing as every woman is hyper-sensitive to nuances. However, Lily was different. Bei Tian had been observing Lily’s actions and plans since they met, and he was surprised to learn that such a woman exists.
Lily was not that strong physically, or at least according to what he had gathered. She might not even know how to use a gun properly or how to kill a person with her bare hands, but she is far more lethal than most of the men that Bei Tian knows. Lily is capable of creating scenarios in her mind. She could create countermeasures for twenty different potential reactions of her enemies. She could do this in a matter of hours and then just sit back and relax while watching her enemy run around like a headless chicken.
As a single entity, Lily is actually not that scary. However, when combined with Zhuo Jingren’s influence and crazy connections in the underground, Lily could be… unstoppable. And this is what he was worried about. Bei Tian knew that Zhuo Jingren was head over heels in love with Lily. He knows that his friend would not hesitate to cut his heart from his chest if Lily hinted that she might want it. Of all the people that Zhuo Jingren had met in his lifetime, only Bei Tian knows how much he has treasured Lily since he was a teenager.
All of this… everything that he has built was created for this woman and this woman alone, and Lily could easily use this to take advantage of Zhuo Jingren. While Bei Tian was very supportive of their relationship, he still wanted to speak with Lily man to man.
After a few minutes, Bei Tian arrived at Lily’s office. After giving his name to the receptionist, someone – or rather, one of Lily’s secretaries – immediately came down to reception to escort him to Lily’s office.
“I can’t say that I predicted this happening,” Lily’s voice echoed the moment Bei Tian entered her office. “What brings you here, Master Bei?” she asked as she gestured for him to take a seat across her. In response, Bei Tian made himself comfortable without saying a thing. This power play instantly made Lily peel her eyes from her laptop. She stared at the man, who was also seriously staring at her.
“What you said about Mu Qingling… was true,” he admitted. “There is a reason why she stays in Germany and i is not because of Jingren. It’s something else entirely. Something that is related to her sister. Your guess was right. Mu Lihua must have threatened her with something.”
“And?” she raised an eyebrow at him. “That is not the reason why you are here,” she said as her lips slowly curved upwards.
“A woman capable of this level of strategizing is one of a kind,” he stated, his jaw clenched, his dark eyes staring straight into Lily’s light brown ones. “You were not like this when we were growing up. You even fell victim to someone’s petty scheme seven years ago.”
“So?”
“I want to ask you… Lily… why did you agree to marry Jingren?” he asked directly, earning another raised eyebrow from Lily.
His question was immediately followed by an uncomfortable silence as Lily just stared at him, her eyes staring straight into his as a small smile was plastered into her face. “I was not expecting that you would ask me this question,” she said, amusement apparent in her eyes. Zhuo Jingren was lucky to have a friend like Bei Tian.
“I married him because our marriage would only give me advantages.” Seeing the look of surprise in Bei Tian’s eyes, Lily continued, “Does that answer your question?”
“You- “
“Please spare me the bullshit,” Lily interrupted him. “Zhuo Jingren is the most influential individual in Hong Kong, that is one of the reasons why I married him. I won’t lie and say it was love at first sight, or that it was because I was head over heels in love with him. I married him because I saw an opportunity and I am a very greedy person.”
Bei Tian stared at Lily, his eyes wide, mouth agape. How could she be this direct? He was expecting her to at least say that she wanted to give Zhuo Jingren a chance and that she was willing to prove that she is not using him. A normal woman would say these things! This…This woman is making him speechless!
“You asked the wrong question, Master Bei. You should not ask me about why I married him. You should’ve asked me what I think of him now,” Lily smiled gently before she leaned back in her chair. “Caminante, no hay camino, se hace camino al andar,”[1] she quoted.
“Wayfarer, there is no way. Make your way by going farther,” she translated as her gaze turned towards the painting that was given by Zhuo Jingren.
“I always believe that there is no other road than the one that we create as we keep on walking, Master Bei. Months ago, my marriage to Jingren was merely a partnership. Now… however…” she paused deliberately as she shifted her gaze back to Bei Tian, “…I believe that our marriage is more about teamwork with mutual respect, a good dose of admiration, and endless love, grace… and sex.”
[1] From the poem Caminante, No Hay Camino / Traveler, There Is No Road by Antonio Machado
