Wang Han held the steering wheel with one hand, his other arm resting on the window frame.
"Regret what?"
"Registering our marriage. You've seen the situation with the Su Family. Your background, your social standing—trying to fit into our family is as hard as ascending to heaven. With no money and no power, you'd barely be welcome at the dinner table." Su Qi felt a sudden spike of regret, wondering if she had been too impulsive in marrying a delivery driver.
After all, the two of them belonged to completely different social strata.
Wang Han picked up his phone and took a quick glance.
A message from Eldest Sister Rao Rushuang.
"I've arrived."
With a wry, suffering expression, Wang Han shoved his phone back into his pocket. "Your family is passable enough, I suppose. As long as someone has a bit of money, your whole family is ready to grovel. It's nothing special. My family is different. Our rules are far stricter than yours. No matter how wealthy you are, everything must be done by the book. I just hope you can handle it."
"You're just small-potatoes commoners, what kind of rules could you possibly have? Do you forbid women from sitting at the dinner table, or do you still practice foot-binding?" Su Qi honestly couldn't imagine what kind of archaic rules Wang Han's family could possibly have.
Wang Han warned her, "When my eldest sister gets here, don't say anything foolish. I'll take the heat. We have too many broken rules in this family, and my eldest sister has a bit of a fiery temper."
Su Qi let out a cold snort. "How fiery could she possibly be?"
"You'll find out soon enough."
Outside the front door.
Wang Han nervously fumbled with the keys, scratching his head.
Seeing him like this, Su Qi's face twisted with disdain. *Is this really necessary?* she thought.
Snatching the keys right out of his hand, Su Qi unlocked the door herself.
The moment they stepped inside.
They saw a woman sitting by the living room coffee table. She looked to be in her early thirties, with dewy skin, an exquisite figure, and her hair coiled up into a bun, giving her an effortless, natural elegance.
Wearing no makeup at all, she still eclipsed everything around her.
Her looks were only a fraction shy of Su Qi's, but she possessed an imposing aura that Su Qi simply couldn't match.
She was dressed in a patterned floral linen lounge shirt and trousers.
It looked precisely like the kind of outfit worn by middle-aged women dancing in a public square in the countryside.
A cigarette dangled lazily from her lips.
Her demeanor was utterly languid.
While Su Qi stood there in a daze, Wang Han broke into a wide, beaming smile. "My dear sister, you've finally arrived! I've missed you to death!"
Wang Han rushed forward with breathless enthusiasm.
To his surprise, before he could even reach her side, the woman lifted a foot and planted it squarely against his chest.
Her tone was frigid.
"Save the charm. Kneel!"
With a ingratiating smile, Wang Han fawned, "Sis, you must be starving after the trip. Let me order a spread right now to welcome you."
All he got in response was a two-word command: "Kneel!"
Looking thoroughly miserable, Wang Han dropped to his knees.
Then, sniffing pitifully like a beaten dog, he whimpered, "Sis..."
Rao Rushuang shifted her gaze to Su Qi. "You kneel too."
Su Qi froze, her delicate brow furrowing in irritation. *What kind of backward, rotting mountain-village rules are these?*
Taking a drag from her cigarette, Rao Rushuang's eyes turned icy.
Sensing she was about to blow her top, Wang Han hurriedly intervened, "Sis, she's pregnant."
Rao Rushuang's eyebrows arched. Raising a hand, she beckoned to Su Qi. "Come here!"
Wang Han frantically shot Su Qi a look. Hesitantly, Su Qi stepped closer.
Rao Rushuang immediately seized Su Qi's wrist and began taking her pulse.
A few seconds later.
Rao Rushuang suddenly lashed out with a kick straight to Wang Han's chest.
Wang Han's body, weighing over a hundred pounds, was sent skidding four or five meters across the floor, crashing heavily into the shoe cabinet with a loud *thud*.
Su Qi jumped in fright.
*What on earth is going on here?* she thought. *Are these really just some pedantic village customs handed down from a remote mountain backwater?*
Rao Rushuang stubbed out her cigarette.
She pushed the window open to clear the smoke.
"Spending a few years abroad, and you've picked up plenty of bad habits."
Returning to the coffee table, Rao Rushuang picked up a glass teacup and gently squeezed it with her slender fingers.
The glass teacup shattered instantly into a pile of fine powder.
Yet her slender, porcelain-white palm remained completely unharmed.
Su Qi was dumbfounded, her jaw practically hitting the floor.
This kind of scene, which she had only ever seen in movies, was actually happening right in front of her eyes.
Brushing the glass shards onto the floor, Rao Rushuang looked at Wang Han and repeated those same two words: "Kneel!"
Chapter 22: Delivering Clothes
Wang Han obediently knelt right on top of the pile of broken glass.
Pointing to the broom in the corner of the room, Rao Rushuang looked at Su Qi. "Bring that over here."
Su Qi stood frozen in place, while Wang Han frantically shot her more warning glances.
The moment the broom was in Rao Rushuang's hand, she brought it down on Wang Han without hesitation.
*Crack!*
The broom cut through the air with a vicious whistle.
The sight made Su Qi jump again.
Seeing that Rao Rushuang was about to strike him again, Su Qi threw her arms out and stepped directly in front of Wang Han. "I don't know what kind of family rules these are! But making people kneel the second they walk through the door is completely absurd! This isn't the feudal era anymore, and I see no reason to keep practicing these backward traditions of yours. Besides, you didn't even bother to ask what Wang Han did wrong before making him kneel and beating him—isn't that completely unreasonable?"
"In our family, we operate by rules."
Su Qi said coldly, "Then pray tell, what exactly are these rules of yours?"
"It's very simple: benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, trust; gentleness, kindness, respectfulness, frugality, yielding; loyalty, filial duty, integrity, shame, and courage," Rao Rushuang said, twirling the broom in her hand.
"Then let me ask you, which one of those did he break?" Su Qi demanded.
For the first time, Rao Rushuang let out a dry laugh. "There are three reasons for his punishment.
First, marrying without notifying his elders is unfilial.
Second, conceiving a child out of wedlock is unvirtuous.
Third, finding a woman who isn't good enough for him is unwise."
Su Qi's cold, striking face instantly darkened.
The Su Family was a prominent wealthy household, after all.
As a high-class heiress, to be told she wasn't good enough for a mere delivery driver was a blow she struggled to stomach.
Moreover, Su Qi's mood today was already terribly frayed.
"Then I dare ask, what kind of person *would* be worthy of your younger brother?" Su Qi asked, refusing to back down.
Rao Rushuang crossed her legs. "Before you came along, the family arranged four fiancées for him, all of whom he rejected: Chu Zhiqiu, the heiress of the Capital's Chu Family; Ye Huang, the granddaughter of the Military's Grand Marshal Ye Qianqiu; the granddaughter of the Gu poison crone of Miaojiang; and the new-generation Miaojiang Saintess, Nangong..."
Wang Han quickly interrupted, "Sis, that's enough, don't wind her up. She's pregnant."
Unexpectedly, Su Qi let out a cold laugh, looking down at Wang Han. "I finally see it now, Wang Han. You really are quite childish, aren't you?"
Wang Han was completely baffled. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"I let it slide when you were just blowing hot air and bragging to me before, but I never expected you to pull out a whole theatrical production today. Do you really feel so insecure about being a delivery driver that you had to stage this whole elaborate performance just to feel better about yourself? Capital tycoons? Military grand marshals? Miaojiang saintesses? What's next, are you going to invent aliens from outer space?"
Su Qi's tone was icy.
Speechless, Wang Han replied, "I'm not putting on a show for you! This really is my sister. Why would I ever pull something like this?"
Su Qi sneered, "Wang Han, I know—I can tell—that deep down, you're a rather ambitious person. But there's no need to use such pathetic tactics to prop up your status. It just makes you look ridiculous. If you actually wanted me to respect you, you should have been grounded in reality. Being a delivery driver isn't disgraceful—as you yourself said, making an honest living with your own two hands is fine, and it doesn't matter if you earn a little less.
I just don't want our child to be born and see that their father wears such a hypocritical mask. It's utterly sickening."
"Is that really the kind of person you think I am?" Wang Han asked back.
Su Qi looked at him, her gaze filled with utter disdain and a hint of profound disappointment.
The actions of her own family had already pushed her to the brink of despair.
She never expected that this man would let her down just as much.
If not for Rao Rushuang's outlandish talk about Capital tycoons and the like, Su Qi might have actually believed what happened today. But once those claims came out, she became entirely convinced that this was all a stage play orchestrated by Wang Han.
In her eyes, Wang Han was nothing more than an impractical, boastful little man.
A shameful, laughable, pathetic little man.
Whatever lingering shred of affection she had left for him vanished completely.
"Then tell me, if I'm really just acting, what on earth do I stand to gain from you?" Wang Han's expression darkened.
Su Qi picked up her handbag, cast one last disappointed look at Wang Han, and said, "Let's stick to what I said before—I hope you can start living in the real world. That's all. I'll contact you after the baby is born."
With that, she turned on her heel and walked out without once looking back.
Wang Han stood up to chase after her, but Rao Rushuang's voice rang out from behind.
"You are not allowed to chase her!"
"Sis, she's carrying my child, after all."
"A marriage built without a foundation of genuine affection is better off taking a few days to cool down so you can both think things through," Rao Rushuang said, tossing the broom aside and heading toward the bedroom.
Stopping at the doorway, Rao Rushuang let out a yawn. "Coming from a small-potatoes background, her vision simply isn't broad enough. She falls far short of clearing our family's threshold. You are the old man's designated successor, not to mention one of the next generation's Ten Elders—I don't need to spell out your other identities. Even if I hadn't shown up today, what happened was bound to happen eventually. At the end of the day, your romantic life is your own business; I merely offered a reminder. You'd better think carefully."
As if suddenly remembering something, Rao Rushuang flicked her wrist, tossing a pitch-black bead through the air.
Wang Han reached out and caught it. It was a small, completely black bead, with the faint, shimmering shadow of a golden dragon coiled inside it.
"Before I came here, the old man told me that your parents and the master of Zhaofeng Valley once arranged a marriage for you both before birth, using this bead as a token. Back then, the master of Zhaofeng Valley lost their child in Jiangning City, and the child was carrying a matching bead—yours is a dragon, hers is a phoenix. Go find her. The old man also said: if you truly want to stay with this Su Qi, you can find the daughter of the Zhaofeng Valley master and become sworn siblings instead. But if you don't wish to stay with Su Qi, you are to marry that young woman."
Wang Han pocketed the bead.
He turned and walked out the door.
Just as he stepped downstairs, he saw Su Qi's car pulling away, her eyes red and swollen.
Wang Han dialed her number, but Su Qi hung up on him immediately.
"What the hell is this bullshit!" Wang Han kicked a brick near his foot into pieces, sending dust flying.
With reddened eyes, sitting in the sprawling expanse of Jiangning City, Su Qi suddenly felt there was no place left in the world that could hold her.
Seeing another incoming call from Wang Han, she swiped her thumb and rejected it straight away.
Su Qi despised hypocrisy.
In fact, she loathed it.
The two-faced, hypocritical monsters in her own family had already given her more than enough agony.
After drifting aimlessly through the streets for a long time, Su Qi finally called Lin Xuefu. "Where are you? I want to come over and spend the night at your place."
Longwan Grand Villa.
Lin Xuefu held Su Qi tightly in her embrace. "It's fine, you can stay here with me from now on. Stay as long as you want. But Nannan... do you think there's any possibility that Wang Han wasn't hiring actors, and that everything you heard was actually true?"
Lying in Lin Xuefu's arms, Su Qi rejected yet another call from Wang Han's number. "Do you honestly think that's possible?"
Thinking back to how Wang Han had casually wiped out three international assassins the other day, Lin Xuefu muttered, "You can't judge a book by its cover, you know? Haven't you ever heard the saying that delivery drivers are often hidden bigshots?" Mindful of Wang Han's prior warnings, however, Lin Xuefu couldn't speak plainly and could only fret anxiously to herself.
Looking up at Lin Xuefu with red, tear-rimmed eyes, Su Qi asked, "Why do you keep taking his side these days?"
"Huh? Do I?" Lin Xuefu felt a brief flutter of guilt.
Su Qi narrowed her eyes at her. "Is there something you're keeping from me?"
"Of course not! Would I ever keep secrets from you? You little brat, how dare you doubt me!" Acting like a playful rogue, Lin Xuefu reached out to tickle Su Qi's soft waist.
That immediately drew a flurry of embarrassed giggles from Su Qi.
After playing and wrestling for a moment, Su Qi pinned down Lin Xuefu's mischievous hands. "Oh right, that bigshot I asked you to help me arrange a meeting with—how is that coming along?"
"My grandfather has been keeping a very close eye on my phone these days. But don't worry, within three days max, I'll definitely get you that bigshot's contact info!"
Suddenly, a disturbance came from outside the door.
"Who's there?"
Pulling the door open, Lin Xuefu found Lin Jingpeng lurking sneakily in the hallway.
"What are you doing here?" Lin Xuefu's expression turned instantly disgusted.
Lin Jingpeng's gaze darted through the crack in the door, landing on Su Qi sitting on the bed inside, a flash of lustful greed crossing his eyes.
"Xuefu, that bigshot you and Nannan were talking about... I actually know him. If Nannan wants to meet him, I can help introduce them."
"You know the bigshot who just dropped a billion to acquire the new district project?"
Patting his chest, Lin Jingpeng guaranteed, "Grandfather took me to meet him. If Nannan wants to see him, I can take her."
...
Wang Han's phone vibrated in his pocket. He assumed it was Su Qi finally replying.
Instead, it was a message from an unfamiliar number.
Opening the notification:
"Hello, Big Brother Wang Han. I'm Xia Wanying, the one you rescued. I've washed your clothes—where is your home? I'll bring them over to you."
Chapter 23: Mistaken Identity
Wang Han tossed his phone from hand to hand, having zero interest in entangling himself further with Xia Wanying.
After all, he hadn't saved her with any ulterior motives in mind.
"Forget it, just throw the clothes away," he replied casually.
Then he tried calling Su Qi again.
He was instantly met with a busy tone—she had hung up on him yet again.
When it came to Su Qi, Wang Han didn't feel anything profoundly heart-wrenching—their relationship lacked that kind of deep foundation. His concern was mostly driven by the fact that she was carrying his child.
And a tiny bit of lingering sympathy.
"Damn it! That stubborn old woman is unbelievable!" Cursing under his breath, Wang Han lit a cigarette and squatted down on the garden steps of the apartment complex.
His phone vibrated again. Another text from Xia Wanying.
"Big Brother Wang, you saved my life. Such a massive debt of gratitude—I want to thank you properly in person."
Annoyed, Wang Han muttered, "No need."
He shoved the phone back into his pocket, sucking gloomily on his cigarette.
Fishing the little black bead out of his pocket, he held it up to the light, where the faint outline of the tiny character *Han* could be seen swimming within the stone.
Wang Han flicked his cigarette butt away just as his phone vibrated once more.
Pulling it out, he saw to his surprise that the call was from Lei Xiaohua.
"What's up?"
"Boss, Tietou is dead." Lei Xiaohua's tone was heavy.
Wang Han froze. "How did he die?"
"Trying to save some people who fell into the river. He ran out of stamina and drowned."
Wang Han's brow knitted into a hard knot. "With swimming skills as good as his, how could he just die like that?"
Lei Xiaohua spoke in a grim voice, "The current was extremely fast at the time, and there were too many people to pull out. But the real reason was that the last piece of trash he saved kicked Tietou away just to scramble ashore himself, dragging Tietou straight into the undercurrent. After that bastard was rescued, he didn't even say a single word of thanks. Tomorrow, he's actually holding a birthday banquet to celebrate his 'rebirth.' And the worst fucking part is, that bastard even went on camera and told the media that nobody begged Tietou to save him—that Tietou was just being a meddling idiot who went out of his way to get himself killed."
With a sudden kick, Wang Han shattered the brick edging of the flowerbed, a murderous aura surging around him. "Damn it!"
Lei Xiaohua's murderous intent was equally explosive on the other end of the line. "Boss, I'm heading over tomorrow to settle accounts with this scum. Blindie, Agui, and Maitreya are all coming too. Big Princess's family has some issues to deal with these days so she can't slip away just yet, but she said she'll head over as soon as she's finished."
The muscles in Wang Han's jaws worked furiously, unable to suppress the razor-sharp coldness in his eyes. He took a violent drag on a fresh cigarette; in a single inhalation, he drew the fire all the way to the filter, the embers flaring fiercely until the entire butt caught fire. Breathing out, Wang Han spat a dense, venomous arrow of smoke into the air. "Good."
...
Xia Wanying had just stepped out of the bathroom, completely naked. Her milky-white skin looked even softer and fairer under the lights, her curves smooth and proud, with a gorgeous waist-to-hip ratio and a perky, rounded, flawless bottom. A pair of slender, straight legs met without a single gap.
With her hair still damp, Xia Wanying wiped it with a towel while staring fixedly at her phone.
The phone vibrated.
She practically lunged across the bed, snatching it up to check the message.
When she saw the words "No need," Xia Wanying pouted, her lips pushing out.
A flash of disappointment flickered in her eyes.
Glancing sideways at the clothes hanger where Wang Han's outfit hung by itself, she murmured to herself, "Are we really never going to see each other again?"
A knock sounded softly at the door.
"Who is it?"
"Wanying, it's Dad." Xia Tianxiong's voice came from the corridor.
Xia Wanying instantly dove under the covers. "I'm already in bed, Dad! What is it?"
"Tomorrow is the birthday of the young master of the Zhou Family. I want you to go in my place."
Xia Wanying blinked in surprise. "Didn't he already celebrate his birthday two months ago? Why is he doing it again?"
"Didn't you hear? A few days ago, he fell into the water. After barely escaping with his life, he decided to throw a whole new birthday bash to celebrate his rebirth."
Xia Wanying wrinkled her small nose in disgust. "Somebody saved his life, and instead of even saying thank you, he went around saying the person who saved him was an idiot looking for trouble! I am not going to something like that! You go yourself, Dad."
Xia Tianxiong let out an awkward laugh. "I look down on that kind of person too, but the Zhou Family is one of Jiangning City's prominent wealthy clans, second only to the Qin Family in financial power. On top of that, their family is heavily rooted in the Jianghu underworld. There are certain appearances we simply have to keep up, which is why I need you to go."
Xia Wanying pouted. "Are you trying to throw your own daughter under the bus?"
Xia Tianxiong chuckled awkwardly. "How can you call it throwing you under the bus? Just show your face tomorrow for a few minutes so people know our family made an appearance."
Xia Wanying pushed her lips out so far she could have hung a oil jug from them.
"Wanying, if you don't say anything, Dad will take that as a yes. I've already prepared the gift for you. Tomorrow morning at nine o'clock, ninth floor of Taishun Hotel."
Xia Wanying let out a huff.
Standing outside the door, Xia Tianxiong gave an awkward chuckle and turned to leave, but as if remembering something, he paused.
"Oh, Wanying, did you get in touch with that delivery guy today?"
Xia Wanying gave a soft hum. "I contacted him."
"What did he say?"
"He said there was no need."
Xia Tianxiong sighed softly. "Looks like it just wasn't meant to be. All right, get some rest early."
Morning.
Wang Han stood right by the arrival gate of the airport.
In the distance, a small group of people was walking toward him.
Each of them carried a strange, distinctive aura, drawing involuntary glances from everyone passing by.
At the head of the group was a young man wearing a floral shirt and sunglasses, chewing gum, with sharp, chiseled facial features.
Lei Xiaohua, the crown prince of the South China Lei Clan.
The Lei Enterprise's businesses flourished all across the country with wealth rivaling a nation, and young master Lei Xiaohua was a prominent name within China's top-tier circle of rich heirs.
Walking to his right was Agui, whose face was half-covered in tattoos. He was strikingly handsome, with a wild, manic energy about him, sporting several eyebrow piercings, lip rings, and a nose ring.
He was of mixed heritage; his father was the head of a domestic criminal syndicate, his mother was Russian, and his maternal grandfather was an oligarch.
To Lei Xiaohua's left was Blindie, who had an utterly ordinary appearance, stern features, and a steady, measured gait. His eyes were wide open, the glass eyes appearing somewhat dull yet deeply eerie. He was a child of a military compound, his grandfather being a heavyweight figure in the East China military region who could make the entire region tremble with a single stamp of his foot.