The affable smile on Wei Hantao wavered the slightest bit, the enthusiasm in his eyes dying out. It was replaced with subtle irritation.

  His eyes flickered to the arm wrapped around Zhao Lifei’s waist. With speed swift as light, he grabbed Zhao Lifei and tugged her in his direction, but Yang Feng’s grip on her was tighter than it appeared to be. She didn’t move an inch.

  Zhao Lifei looked back and forth, her brows knitted in confusion. She could practically feel the crackle of electricity in the air as the two alphas had a stare down. Despite standing on a public sidewalk, the air around them was suffocating her. It turned stuffy and the more they glared at each other, the more annoyed she got.

  "Let go of her." Wei Hantao seethed, his heart filled with animosity for the man that was holding her as if she belonged to him.

  In the blink of an eye, Yang Feng grabbed the hand that dared to attempt to snatch his woman away. He pressed enough pressure that would break the man’s wrist, but didn’t actually do so. He knew Zhao Lifei would not let him off for harming her friend.

  Wei Hantao’s face remained as blank as ever, but his eyes flashed with pain. Damn this man! His strength was incredible and with no other choice, he reluctantly let go of her wrist.

  Wei Hantao silently cursed inside his head, trying his best not to wince or cry out in pain. He would need to get his wrist checked at the hospital tomorrow.

  Instead of directing his attention onto the man, Wei Hantao shifted his eyes to Zhao Lifei. "Xiao Li, is he hurting you?" He took a step forward, worried for her. He knew how tightly this man was holding her. He feared the brute was digging his fingers into her precious skin.

  Zhao Lifei softly shook her head, her hand clasping over Yang Feng’s hand that was placing immense pressure upon Wei Hantao’s wrist. "Let go." She whispered to him and he immediately did so. He took that hand and entwined their fingers, holding it close to him.

  She didn’t know why they were so hostile to each other, but figured it was best to pacify her man first. "No, it doesn’t hurt." She squeezed Yang Feng’s hand. "Don’t worry Hantao, Yang Feng wouldn’t harm me."

  Seeing her so close with the man, enough to allow him to touch her and even for her to do the same, Wei Hantao knew he had finally met his match. But who would’ve known, his rival was none other than the infamous magnate that ruled over businesses with an iron fist.

  "Still, it was quite rude of him to grab you. I know you’re—" He cleared his throat, his face changing into one filled with sympathy. He nearly allowed himself to slip.

  Zhao Lifei gave him a warning glare and he returned it with a reassuring wink.

  "You’re prone to getting bruises." He finished, a tiny smile on his face upon seeing her attention was directed back to him, like how it should’ve been from the start.

  When she felt her waist being squeezed, she looked up to see Yang Feng was still intently glowering at Wei Hantao. "Oh right, I should introduce you guys." She nodded her head, her low EQ completely misunderstanding what he was implying.

  "Wei Hantao, this is Yang Feng, and Yang Feng, this is Wei Hantao." She expected them to shake hands or at least acknowledge each other, but neither of them made a move. Her smile twitched when the tension grew worse.

  She prayed for something distracting to come up, and the gods above must’ve heard her, because in the next moment, her phone rang. She hurriedly fetched it out of her purse. Upon seeing it was her grandfather, she heaved a sigh of relief upon seeing her escape route.

  "Xiao Fei, it’s getting dark out. Are you coming home for dinner? The chef has prepared your favorite dishes tonight." Zhao Moyao had gotten off work earlier than usual just to accompany her for dinner.

  When Li Xuan reported back to him that she had visited Lu Minhong two days before, he was initially displeased, but seeing as there was no transaction made on her bank accounts, he brushed past that detail.

  "Yes, I’m heading home for dinner right now." She said, thanking the gods above for the amazing opportunity to escape this awkward scenario.

  "Alright, I expect you to come home within thirty minutes." Zhao Moyao left little room for her to object. "Oh, and tell Yang Heng it’s time to head home. I hope you do not bring him over."

  Yang Feng, standing so close to her, felt amused by his words. So this was where she got her behavior from. "Tell grandfather not to worry. I already have plans to visit my family tonight."

  Zhao Moyao heard his words crystal clear. He scowled. "And tell Yang Heng, if he calls me grandfather one more time, I will serve his tongue on a silver platter—"

  "I’ll see you at home, grandfather!" She quickly interjected, hanging up the call and placing the phone into her purse.

  Yang Feng stared at her, his eyes a mixture of emotions. He didn’t want her to go so soon, he’d barely seen her today and here she was, so eager to escape off into the night.

  A slight frown made its way to the spoiled brat’s face while he continued to look like a moping dog.

  Stay.

  She understood his silent message and gave him a reassuring pat on his chest. She leaned in so that only he could hear her words. "I said I’ll cook for you, didn’t I?"

  Yang Feng gazed deep within her eyes, his intense stare made her feel as if he was looking into her soul, searching for something, perhaps reassurance. "Cook me dinner." He finally said after a short pause.

  He knew she always woke up in the afternoon, so breakfast was ruled out and by the time she woke up, lunch would be her first meal of the day. He didn’t want her to do tasks on an empty stomach, even if it was just cooking. Dinner was his best option. He even had plans on coercing her into staying the night. For her, he was willing to oversleep and bear the wrath of Zhao Moyao.

  "Okay, but it can’t be tonight. Perhaps another day." She quietly said, knowing she could not avoid her grandfather’s request to dine with him.

  Yang Feng wanted to move her into Cerulean Water Pavillion as soon as possible. He would replace Zhao Moyao’s security with his own, so there wouldn’t be so many unnecessary eyes following her movements.

  His bodyguards were more experienced than the ones Zhao Moyao hired.

  Yang Feng’s men were from his triad. They were people who have experienced slaughtering hundreds without blinking an eye. They weren’t like the ones Zhao Moyao hired.

  Yang Feng knew he should’ve assigned his men to her the second he realized she took public taxis to travel, but the risk of being discovered was too high and there was a possibility she might resent him for placing such tight security around her without reason.

  Now that she was his woman and even experienced a recent kidnapping, he had all the reasons he needed to place heavy security around her. If he could have it his way, he would lock her in his mansion, never allowing her to roam further than the high walls around his land. But this approach would only cause more resentment. He could not afford for her to hate him.

  Zhao Lifei turned to Wei Hantao and offered him a polite smile. "I’ll see you in the office soon."

  Her words made a major impact on Wei Hantao whose eyes widened in surprise. Ever since she had appointed him as the stand-in CEO of Feili, she had only stepped foot in that office building once and it was only to finalize everything.

  He took a second glance at the woman he had only talked to, but never seen in the last two months. She had changed. The depressing air of melancholy was no longer surrounding her. Her eyes had the light she once possessed before Zheng Tianyi left her, perhaps it was even shining brighter than before. She seemed more confident, her back more straight than ever, and she was practically glowing with the same glory as the day she was crowned the Queen.

  Upon seeing such drastic improvements, Wei Hantao was highly suspicious of the reason, but kept his mouth shut. He decided to consult her about this matter in private. "Alright, I will see you then." He grinned, revealing his pearly white teeth.

  Yang Feng didn’t bother sparing Wei Hantao another glance as he turned to guide Zhao Lifei away, but she placed a hand on his chest.

  "It’s alright, I can get home myself."

  He opened his mouth, ready to reject her, but just then, a sleek and well-tinted Bentley pulled up to the pavement. A lean man in his late-forties stepped out, bowed his head, and opened the door for Zhao Lifei. She recognized him as her grandfather’s chauffeur. She chuckled, her grandfather was really bent on having her arrive home safely and alone.

  "Have a good night, Yang Feng." She wanted to do more than say goodbye, but with so many eyes on her, she didn’t dare to do something else.

  Yang Feng watch her car drive off into the distance, and he continued to do so, even after the car was long gone. The more she hurriedly tried to leave him, the more he wanted to chase after her……