Taking out the handkerchief he had secretly taken from Xiao Zhan, Bai Rui deeply breathed it in. His expression remained calm, but inside, he was intoxicated—the scent of his beloved was simply irresistible.

Lao Hei shuddered violently in Bai Rui’s consciousness. Xiao Rui wasn’t just a yandere anymore—this was straight-up deranged! 

As for why Bai Rui insisted on returning to the Feng family today, he hadn’t forgotten—the one-week deadline had arrived since Liu Xue borrowed the land contract from him.

In a great mood, Bai Rui stepped into the Feng family’s gates, only to hear Feng Yan’s furious roar from inside. Amidst the shouting, a woman’s sobs could be heard.

Bai Rui raised an eyebrow and walked into the hall. Sure enough, he saw Liu Xue collapsed on the ground, being shielded by Feng Yuzheng. Feng Yan, enraged beyond reason, had a savage expression as he swung his cane viciously at Liu Xue, only for Feng Yuzheng to take the blows on her behalf.

Liu Xue’s eyes were red and brimming with tears. She didn’t dare resist in the slightest. The moment she saw Bai Rui enter, her eyes lit up, and she quickly signaled him with her gaze, hoping he would persuade Feng Yan to stop.

“Dad, what’s going on? Why are you making Big Brother and your wife kneel like this?” 

Bai Rui put on a bewildered expression, watching the couple act out their scene in front of him.

“Making her kneel is already letting her off easy! I should beat her to death!” 

As Feng Yan spoke, he raised his cane again and swung it down forcefully toward Liu Xue. Bai Rui hurriedly acted as if he was about to intervene but deliberately slowed his steps by two beats. 

The cane was still blocked by Feng Yuzheng, whose forehead was now covered in large bruises, the blood pooling under his skin looking particularly gruesome.

Only then did Bai Rui step forward and grab Feng Yan’s hand, attempting to persuade him.

“Dad, there has to be a reason! What exactly happened?” 

“You’re still asking why?” 

Feng Yan took a deep, angry breath and slumped onto the sofa. He glanced at the blood on Feng Yuzheng’s forehead, frowned, and turned his face away in frustration.

“This woman actually went gambling! Not only did she lose all of her private assets, but she even gambled away the land contract you lent her!” 

“What?” 

Hearing that Liu Xue had lost the land contract he had lent her, Bai Rui finally put on a completely shocked and dazed expression.

“How could this be? Didn’t you say it was collateral for Big Brother’s investment project? How could you use it for gambling? Is this true, big brother?” 

Feng Yuzheng looked at Bai Rui’s expression and felt a surge of resentment toward Liu Xue. But no matter what, she was still his mother. In this situation, he had no choice but to protect her.

Kneeling on the ground, Liu Xue immediately put on a pitiful, tearful expression when she heard Bai Rui’s words and pleaded with him.

“Ruiran, I lied to you. I know I was wrong! I truly know my mistake! Please, even if it’s just for your big brother’s sake, forgive me.”

Bai Rui’s face showed hesitation, but before he could respond, Feng Yan, still furious, spoke up again.

“Ruiran, what’s done is done. First, retrieve the shares of Shengheng Group and the Yan family’s assets that were pledged to you. After all, we’re family. I’ll speed up other projects and do my best to fill the gap in real estate. I’ll make sure to give Xiao Zhan a proper explanation.” 

Bai Rui remained silent, but inside, he sneered coldly. So this whole act was just a setup to get me to return the pledged shares and assets? How shameless could they be?

Why should he be the one to clean up Liu Xue’s mess? And besides, if he had lost something at the gambling table, Bai Rui seriously doubted Feng Yan would be so accommodating.

“That’s right, Ruiran! We’re family. It would be much safer to return those assets and shares to your father!” 

Liu Xue quickly chimed in. If she hadn’t tried to turn the tables by borrowing from loan sharks and gambling a few more rounds, she wouldn’t have been chased home by the debt collectors today, which exposed everything to Feng Yan. She had no intention of making such a scene.

But now that Feng Yan knew, Liu Xue figured it was best to let the head of the family order Bai Rui around. Even though she had caused a huge mess, there was still the matter of Xiao Ling—they were all in this together. Someone had to take responsibility for the consequences of her gambling.

Bai Rui watched as Liu Xue put on the perfect act of a peacemaker, as if she weren’t the one at fault—as if he were the one who had made a mistake. If he refused to agree, it would seem like he was the one disregarding family ties. The absurdity of it almost made him laugh out loud. He took a moment to steady his tone before speaking.

“But the Feng family’s assets and shares aren’t with me anymore. Xiao Zhan already took them.” 

“What?!” 

Feng Yan shot up from the sofa in shock, but a wave of dizziness hit him, and he collapsed back down.

Bai Rui ignored his reaction and continued,

“A few days ago, Xiao Zhan asked me for the land contract. Since I didn’t have it, I had to tell him the truth. So, he took all the assets and shares that big brother had pledged to me—and he gave me a severe lesson while he was at it. He told me that if I got the land contract back, he’d return the assets. I never expected it had actually been gambled away!” 

Inside Bai Rui’s consciousness, Lao Hei turned his head away in disgust and muttered, 

“Kid, you’re getting way too good at lying with a straight face. Since when did Xiao Zhan dare to ‘teach you a lesson’?” 

“He dared!” 

Bai Rui declared righteously.

“He taught me a very harsh lesson in bed! My waist still hurts!”

Looking at Bai Rui, who was clearly enjoying himself yet still playing the victim, Lao Hei felt that ever since Bai Rui got together with Xiao Zhan, some dangerous attributes had been unlocked. 

Bai Rui maintained an innocent expression, while Feng Yan’s hands trembled in rage. 

Liu Xue was also in shock. After all, Xiao Zhan was no fool like Feng Ruiran, who could be scared into obedience with just a few harsh words from Feng Yan. Xiao Zhan was a tiger—if they wanted to take back the assets from him for free, he would make sure to take a chunk of their flesh in return.

Liu Xue held 30% of Shengheng Group’s shares, and although the Yan family’s assets in their hands weren’t a large proportion, they were still undeniably Feng Yan’s property.

For the first time, Feng Yan regretted putting most of his assets under Liu Xue’s name. Over the years, although he was called the family head, the real power had never truly been handed over to him by the elders. 

Originally, if he endured for another two years, he would have been able to fully take control. But if word got out that the Yan family’s assets entrusted to him had been completely wiped out due to gambling, then his position as the head of the family would be as good as lost.

Feng Yan took several deep breaths before looking at Bai Rui. Normally, he had little regard for his youngest son. But thinking of how much Xiao Zhan valued him, he could only pin his hopes on Bai Rui now.

“Ruiran, you need to go see Xiao Zhan. No—I’ll go with you. We have to discuss this properly. These assets aren’t a small matter. Ruiran, you don’t want our family to fall apart, do you?” 

“This…” 

Bai Rui appeared hesitant but eventually nodded in agreement. 

Although it was already nighttime, Feng Yan couldn’t wait any longer. He immediately urged Bai Rui to leave with him. Liu Xue, standing off to the side, wanted to say something, but Feng Yan shot her a fierce glare, forcing her to shrink back timidly.

On the way, Feng Yan kept instructing Bai Rui, telling him to beg Xiao Zhan by any means necessary. No matter the cost, even if he had to kneel, he had to make Xiao Zhan return the assets first.

Bai Rui appeared obedient, nodding along, but in his mind, he secretly had Lao Hei send a message to Xiao Zhan. It wasn’t that he doubted Xiao Zhan’s ability to read his cues—rather, it was because Xiao Zhan was obsessed with ensuring Bai Rui left traces of himself all over their home. He insisted that everything had to be in pairs, so he was afraid that someone like Feng Yan might notice something amiss.

Before long, Xiao Zhan replied, instructing Bai Rui to bring Feng Yan to another apartment—one he occasionally stayed in while working. This saved Bai Rui a lot of trouble.

In Bai Rui’s mind, their home was his and Xiao Zhan’s alone. The thought of an outsider intruding made him uncomfortable. In some ways, Bai Rui and Xiao Zhan truly thought alike. 

Not long after, Bai Rui led Feng Yan to the apartment door. Feng Yan knocked a few times before someone finally opened it. 

The man at the door was Wang Sheng, dressed impeccably in a suit. Even though it was already late, his composed demeanor—and the sight of Xiao Zhan sitting in the living room with documents in hand—made it clear they were still working.

“President Xiao,” Feng Yan greeted politely. 

Bai Rui followed behind him, secretly winking at Xiao Zhan. 

A glimmer of amusement flashed through Xiao Zhan’s eyes, but he quickly masked it. Holding his documents, he turned his head slightly, giving Feng Yan an indifferent glance. He didn’t offer them seats, merely nodding casually before speaking.

“What business do you have with me?”

Feng Yan clenched his fists but had no choice but to lower his head since he was the one seeking a favor. He spoke politely to Xiao Zhan.

“President Xiao, I came here today with a rather presumptuous request. You’re aware of the matter regarding Ruiran taking the land contract.”

Taking the land contract? Xiao Zhan’s expression darkened at Feng Yan’s words. That was Liu Xue’s mistake, yet now they were trying to shift the blame onto Bai Rui. He frowned in displeasure and said coldly,

“I know about it. What of it?”

“It’s like this—I wanted to ask if it would be possible to retrieve the Feng family’s shares and assets first. Please rest assured, although the land contract cannot be delivered immediately, I, Feng Yan, give you my word of honor that we will recover it soon. The Xiao family will also be compensated.”

“Word of honor?”

Xiao Zhan let out a mocking chuckle.

“Do you even have such a thing?”

His blunt words immediately made Feng Yan’s expression darken.

At just the right moment, Bai Rui spoke up from behind him.

“Xiao Zhan…”

But before Bai Rui could say another word, Xiao Zhan shot him a deep, piercing glance.

Bai Rui immediately looked embarrassed, falling completely silent. Yet, within his consciousness, he excitedly shouted at Lao Hei,

“Lao Hei! My darling is so imposing—I think I’m falling even more in love with him!”

Lao Hei wanted to wipe away nonexistent sweat and thought to himself, as long as you’re happy…

Xiao Zhan turned back to Feng Yan, a cold smile on his lips.

“Master Feng, it seems your position as head of the family isn’t as stable as you’d like it to be.”

Feng Yan’s pupils shrank sharply at the words. How did Xiao Zhan know such a secret? On the surface, his authority as the Feng family head was unquestionable.