Xiao Zai’s father fell ill and was hospitalized, a situation that could be seen both as an accident and a result of human error.

His father had a busy work schedule and sometimes forgot to take his medication, which led to his illness.

If you wanted to assign blame, it would have to fall on him.

Liu Mei, though her heart was no longer with Xiao Zai’s father, still didn’t have the nerve to joke around with his health.

After all, her child was still young, and no matter how she looked at it, she wasn’t a Xiao by birth, nor was she the legal wife.

She was at a disadvantage when it came to fighting for the family’s inheritance.

The evidence Xiao Zai had was not truly evidence.

Rather than calling it evidence, it was more of a tool that could support a certain narrative.

Usually, Liu Mei would visit the company to bring Xiao Zai’s father lunch and such.

There were cameras outside of his office, but none inside the room.

One day, when Liu Mei went to deliver the meal, she carried a small bag without a zipper. Inside, she only had her phone, lipstick, and the bag was mostly empty.

But when she left, she had a bottle of medicine.

This bottle, after being zoomed in and analyzed, was confirmed to be her father-in-law’s prescription medicine.

From the hospital’s examination results, it was concluded that Xiao Zai’s father had fallen ill because he hadn’t been taking his medication regularly and as prescribed, which led to a sudden and severe deterioration of his health.

It didn’t matter why Liu Mei took the medicine bottle or for what reason—because the evidence now made her look guilty.

If this were submitted, it was highly likely that she would be directly responsible for her father-in-law’s death.

Moreover, just before Xiao Zai’s father fell ill, he had signed an extremely unequal will under the influence of Liu Mei’s whispers in his ear.

This made Liu Mei’s act of taking the medicine bottle take on a different meaning.

And on top of her greed for wealth, there was another motive—an affair.

Piecing everything together, it seemed to send a clear signal to everyone: Liu Mei, for her lover, had manipulated her father-in-law into signing a will that favored her and then deliberately caused his death.

Even though Liu Mei knew in her heart that she was completely wronged, what did it matter now?

With Xiao Zai’s father dead, the situation had shifted from a dispute over inheritance to one of intentional murder.

Even if she managed to secure the inheritance for her young son, she would end up in prison and would never get to enjoy this newfound wealth.

Liu Mei sat beside Xiao Zai’s late father’s hospital bed, feeling a suffocating pain in her chest—unable to breathe properly, unable to release the frustration. It hurt more than anything.

Xiao Zai stood nearby, dressed in all black, looking handsome but cold, with a shallow curve on his lips that couldn’t disguise the complete lack of warmth in his eyes.

His gaze was filled with emptiness.

Liu Mei was furious, and at this moment, she finally understood that Xiao Zai wasn’t interested in her affair with his father.

That was just one part of the story he had fabricated. She had only seen that part and hastily dug up Xiao Zai’s own scandal, the one where he had been a male escort for Huanlong Corporation. But what she didn’t realize was that the scandal was deliberately planted for her to discover.

The huge iceberg had only shown a small tip above the surface; the real danger lay hidden beneath the turbulent waters, and only when a ship crashed into it would it be clear just how terrifying it truly was.

Liu Mei felt like she was already on a sinking ship, with no hope of turning things around.

Xiao Zai had his hands in his pockets, casually leaning against the wall. “You have twenty-four hours to think about it, Aunt Liu. Once you’ve made your decision, have someone bring me the signed documents.”

With that, he turned to leave the hospital room, indifferent to the outcome, as if he had already predicted it.

Liu Mei took a deep breath. “No need. I’ll sign right now.”

She shakily signed her name on the documents in front of her.

Someone from Xiao Zai’s side took the documents without a word.

Xiao Zai didn’t even glance at the papers as he left the room, even though he had obtained the majority of the wealth. However, he didn’t feel any happiness at that moment.

He had waited for this day for so long, yet his heart was completely unaffected.

Xiao Zai found it strange.

At that moment, Liu Mei cursed loudly, “You’re heartless, Xiao Zai! You will never have a good end!”

Xiao Zai didn’t even bother to look back.

Her curses didn’t faze him in the slightest.

He calmly responded, “By your standards, if I’m going to have a bad end, then so will you. And besides, when one has wealth and power, does it really matter what happens after death? Look at the man on the hospital bed—did he die peacefully?”

“You beast!!”

As Liu Mei’s curses filled the air, Xiao Zai stepped out of the room.

…

Soon, Xiao Zai’s father’s funeral was held.

Various people connected to the Xiao family attended, including Shang Xingyu and Shang Xinglu.

Xiao Zai, dressed in plain clothes, stood quietly on one side of the memorial hall. On the other side, were Xiao Zai’s younger brother and his stepmother, Liu Mei.

When Shang Xinglu went up to offer incense, she noticed that Xiao Zai wasn’t crying; he had a solemn expression on his face, pale but composed.

Liu Mei, however, was holding her younger son, her eyes red as she cried heartbrokenly.

Shang Xinglu gently squeezed Xiao Zai’s hand and said, “I’m sorry for your loss.”

Xiao Zai nodded, saying, “Thank you for coming.”

There were too many people around, so Shang Xinglu didn’t have a chance to speak with Xiao Zai for long before leaving with Shang Xingyu.

Just as they were about to leave, a man in his thirties suddenly barged in, not even offering incense but immediately pointing at Xiao Zai, cursing loudly.

“You Xiao Zai, pulling these dirty tricks—what kind of man picks on women and children? I know you and Liu Mei don’t get along, but I didn’t expect you to be this heartless and vicious. Are you even human?!”

The people around, initially confused, quickly started whispering to each other.

Shang Xinglu overheard part of the conversation. The unjust distribution of the inheritance had now taken a complete turn, with the focus shifting from Xiao Zai to Liu Mei.

Shang Xinglu immediately understood.

To be honest, she didn’t know Xiao Zai that well.

But he and her brother, Shang Xingyu, were the same age.

She had always known Xiao Zai to be more mature than Shang Xingyu, but she didn’t expect him to have such sharp tactics.

After all, vulnerable groups always tend to receive more sympathy, and the things people around them say gradually became more hurtful.

“Xiao Zai is cold-blooded, all he cares about is money, no sense of empathy, no manners…” Shang Xinglu couldn’t stand hearing these things. Just as she was about to speak up, her arm was pulled back.

It was Shang Xingyu who stopped her.

Shang Xingyu, usually calm, now had a rare serious expression. He shook his head.

Though Shang Xinglu didn’t understand why Shang Xingyu stopped her, she didn’t act impulsively.

Shang Xingyu leaned in and whispered to her, “The more you help him now, the worse their words will get. Sister, stay calm. Xiao Zai isn’t a fool. Right now, those in power have the right to speak. What does their opinion matter? Xiao Zai will handle it.”

Sure enough, after listening to the insults in silence for a while, Xiao Zai raised his voice and said, “Cousin, I’m calling you cousin now to show you some respect. Everyone knows what you and Aunt Liu did. If you want to stand up for Aunt Liu, and if you don’t mind losing face, I have no problem with that. But you need to show my father some respect. He hasn’t even been buried yet, and you’re here causing trouble at his memorial. I can tolerate it, but my father can’t.”

As he spoke, he glanced lightly at Liu Mei, “Aunt Liu, was it you who started this, or should I call someone to deal with it?”

Liu Mei was embarrassed. She hugged her son, lowered her head, and pretended not to recognize the people around.

Xiao Zai coldly ordered, “Someone, throw him out.”

Several bodyguards appeared, dragging the man out without considering whether he struggled or not.

The memorial hall became quiet again.

Xiao Zai’s expression was unreadable.

---

A few days later, Xiao Zai’s father was buried.

Only close family and friends of the Xiao family attended. Shang Xingyu, though not particularly close, was considered one of Xiao Zai’s friends, so he went along.

Shang Xinglu… followed Shang Xingyu.

Both of them wore black and remained silent throughout the ceremony.

It rained lightly during the funeral, a gentle drizzle. The sky was filled with dark, oppressive clouds, and the air was thick with mist, which made the mood even more somber.

After the ceremony, people slowly began to leave.

Xiao Zai said he wanted to stay for a little longer. Shang Xingyu, who was quite protective, asked Shang Xinglu to wait for him at a distance.

The black umbrellas gathered around the gravestone one by one, and soon, all had left, leaving only Xiao Zai behind.

It had already entered autumn, and without sunlight, it was indeed a bit cold.

The day before, the weather had felt like summer, so Shang Xinglu had only worn a sleeveless black dress. But today, the temperature dropped, and with all the plants in the cemetery, it felt even colder.

She waited for a while but was starting to feel uncomfortable.

Shang Xingyu glanced at her, “You should go wait in the car.”

Shang Xinglu: “Why don’t you just take off your jacket and give it to me?”

Shang Xingyu: “I’m only wearing a shirt under it! If I take it off, I’ll be cold too!”

Shang Xinglu: “……”

Shang Xinglu thought for a moment and sincerely asked, “With your personality, how did you ever get a girlfriend?”

Shang Xingyu, who had been single for a long time after becoming a “three-no” person (no job, no money, no girlfriend), could only respond with silence.

It was too much.

The siblings almost got into a fight, but in the end, Shang Xinglu took off Shang Xingyu’s suit jacket.

She sniffed and looked at him with disdain.

Shang Xingyu, feeling wronged, ran toward the car while saying, “If you’re not going to get in the car, I’ll get in first, hmph!”

Just as he ran off, Xiao Zai appeared, holding an umbrella.

He only saw Shang Xinglu and not Shang Xingyu, which made him raise an eyebrow in surprise. When he noticed the suit jacket on Shang Xinglu, he asked, “Did you take off Shang Xingyu’s jacket?”

Shang Xinglu: “……”

“Take off” sounded a bit harsh.

She explained, “I just borrowed it for a while. He wasn’t exactly thrilled about it.”

Xiao Zai smiled and said, “Sister, you could have borrowed mine. I would have been happy to lend it to you.”

At that moment, Shang Xinglu studied Xiao Zai’s face and suddenly said, “If you don’t want to smile, don’t force it. No one’s making you.”

Xiao Zai was taken aback.

He didn’t say anything.

Shang Xinglu held the umbrella, and Xiao Zai did the same. They stood in silence on the roadside.

Though Xiao Zai didn’t say a word, Shang Xinglu could still sense a faint gloominess, like the misty drizzle that couldn’t dissipate.

No matter how Xiao Zai’s father was when alive, he was still Xiao Zai’s father.

Looking at Xiao Zai now, it was clear that his father wasn’t entirely an unqualified father.

Shang Xinglu sighed quietly.

She had never lost someone important to her, and she couldn’t easily say things like “I understand how you feel.” She looked at Xiao Zai and simply said, “My condolences.”

Xiao Zai’s eyes suddenly turned red.

He looked like an innocent rabbit…

Xiao Zai said, “Sister, you mentioned before that when someone is anxious, physical comfort from another person can help relieve depressive emotions.”

“……”

“Can I hug you?”