It’s over.

Liu Tianlei’s breathing became rapid as he fiercely closed his eyes.

This young master of the Tao family rarely appeared in public, and on the few occasions when he did, Liu Tianlei had no chance of interacting with him. But when he saw Tao Fengche more than a week ago, he was clearly just a worthless, reckless young master. How could he possibly know about this?!

Could it be that before Tao Zhixing died, he specifically explained all these matters?

What a miscalculation.

He cursed silently, rapidly devising a counter-strategy. When he opened his eyes again, the fake flattery was completely gone. In an instant, his vicious nature was revealed, his face twisted into a menacing expression like a demon reborn. “Young Master Tao, if I’m not mistaken, you’re still underage, right?”

Liu Tianlei didn’t expect Tao Fengche to answer. He lowered his voice and continued speaking to himself, his tone full of threat: “This matter is beyond your capability. Continuing to investigate it will benefit no one. Even Master Tao, with all his talents, couldn’t eradicate it. Do you think you can pull it off? Young Master Tao, take my advice—you’re still young. You can’t stop its circulation.”

“I may not be well-read, but I’ve heard this saying—‘When the profit reaches 100%, they trample on all human laws; when it reaches 300%, they risk the gallows.’” He slowed his speech, sneering as if mocking Tao Fengche’s overconfidence. “Do you know how much profit this thing brings?”

“300%? Hell, that’s nothing compared to this!”

Liu Tianlei no longer bothered to control his volume. His voice was loud and his words vulgar, echoing through the empty room like a mad declaration, as if just holding the formula for artificial pheromones put him at the top of the world.

Tao Fengche didn’t interrupt. After Liu Tianlei finished speaking, he showed no reaction. He simply put the safety back on the gun in his hand, the barrel, which had been aimed directly at Liu Tianlei’s heart, lowering slightly.

Seeing this, Liu Tianlei secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Tao Fengche was wavering, or rather, his resolve was weakening.

Since that was the case, everything else should be easy.

Liu Tianlei immediately seized the opportunity and asked, “Young Master Tao, after Master Tao passed away, it hasn’t been easy for you to make a living under someone else’s thumb, has it? Clearly an alpha, yet you had to watch helplessly as your inheritance was lost to outsiders. Master Zhao indulges in pleasures, ignoring you, forcing you into a situation where you’re controlled by a beta, having to follow his every order… Moreover, that beta isn’t even related to you by blood.”

“Your life hasn’t been great, has it?”

Tao Fengche’s brows suddenly furrowed, and he stared intently into Liu Tianlei’s eyes, his gaze filled with cold malice.

He was displeased with Liu Tianlei’s disdainful remarks about Sui Yuesheng and the attempt to drive a wedge between them. Liu Tianlei, however, took this as a sign that the young man, with his strong sense of pride, was enraged after being poked in a sore spot by an outsider.

Still just a child. Liu Tianlei sneered, his voice dripping with temptation, “How about this, Young Master Tao? Why don’t you partner with me? Just pretend nothing happened today, and from now on, I’ll give you 20% of the profits from the artificial pheromones.. You know how much money that is.”

Tao Fengche remained silent, his thoughts unreadable.

“If you think that’s not enough, we can do 30-70?” Liu Tianlei tried to increase the offer.

But Tao Fengche still didn’t respond.

This little bastard, greedy like a snake trying to swallow an elephant, will sooner or later be stuffed to death! Liu Tianlei cursed harshly in his heart. Normally, he would have already turned against such a greedy business partner, but now he was cornered by the other party, with his life at stake at any moment… He gritted his teeth and quickly reviewed all the data in his mind.

Liu Tianlei had practically single-handedly established the production line in the Chinese medicine factory. He had a clear account of all the income and expenses in his mind.

Although it had only been operating for less than half a year, and they could only conduct business secretly, the profits were already immeasurable. If he could successfully bring Tao Fengche into the partnership, leveraging Tao Zhixing’s status as the only son and next-generation heir of the Tao family… there would be plenty of business opportunities.

At that time, he might even find a chance to rise up, overthrow that illegitimate beta, and support this young master as a puppet… Liu Tianlei calculated in his mind, reviewing the expenses again. After excluding the share he had to give to that person, he closed his eyes, hardened his heart, and forced himself to ignore the bleeding sound in his heart: “Sixty-forty, Young Master Tao, I really can’t give any more. If I give more, on my side…”

He wanted to play the pity card, but Tao Fengche didn’t give him the chance.

Before he could finish speaking, Tao Fengche glanced at him indifferently. He didn’t even bother to re-engage the safety on his gun, just waved his hand casually, and the two bodyguards standing on either side of Liu Tianlei like door gods immediately lifted him up. The other bodyguards in the room simultaneously clicked off their safeties, waiting for Tao Fengche’s next command.

“Fifty-fifty! I’ll split it fifty-fifty with you! Young Master Tao! Young Master Tao!”

With so many guns pointed at him, Liu Tianlei finally panicked. He no longer dared to put on airs, and shouted desperately, disregarding his dignity.

But Tao Fengche remained silent.

He said nothing, just watched Liu Tianlei with interest, observing the cold sweat constantly breaking out on his face and watching it roll down as if suddenly intrigued by this physical phenomenon.

Liu Tianlei, however, didn’t have the same mental fortitude. Struggling desperately in the grip of the bodyguards, after a moment, the towel wrapped around his waist began to slip, but at this moment, he had no time to worry about that—

Tao Fengche quickly averted his gaze, pinched his brow with annoyance, and waved his hand again.

He just wanted to teach Liu Tianlei a lesson, not to sacrifice his own eyes by looking at his genitalia… It was simply too painful to watch.

The bodyguards holding Liu Tianlei immediately released him, and after confirming he could stand on his own, they returned to their positions, albeit stepping back slightly. Not much, just a meter or two, but it gave Liu Tianlei some breathing room. The other bodyguards also lowered their weapons, standing silently like statues, with only the sniper’s sight remaining locked on Liu Tianlei, tracking his every move.

Even for Liu Tianlei, the near-fall of his bath towel was somewhat embarrassing. His face turned red, and he quickly tightened the towel, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and forced a flattering smile at Tao Fengche.

Tao Fengche, however, ignored his flattery.

He put away his Glock and began playing with the military knife he had just wiped down—a thin blade, sharp as a razor, capable of cutting through iron as if it were mud, a true weapon. Yet, in his hands, this cold weapon was as obedient as a well-trained pet.

Liu Tianlei’s gaze sharpened as he realized this was another subtle intimidation from Tao Fengche—this young master was not the pampered, spoiled young master relying on the family bodyguards to flaunt his power as he had imagined. His combat abilities were also formidable.

He dared not speak lightly anymore, silently trying to gauge Tao Fengche’s intentions. Before he could figure it out, he suddenly heard Tao Fengche ask, “Artificial pheromones are a drug the Tao family developed years ago. After so many years, there’s essentially no more research cost; it’s just a matter of following the process to produce it.”

Although Liu Tianlei didn’t quite understand what he meant, he still nodded.

Tao Fengche continued slowly, “So what do we do if someone tries to steal our business?”