Chapter 141: Valentine's Day

Yang Fan and Lin Ruo stood to one side. The group of men knelt on the ground, terrified and motionless. Beside them lay two corpses; one was still bleeding, while the other sprawled lifelessly on the earth. How Jiang Huai chose to handle his driver and secretary was his own family business.

"Was I not good to you? Why did you betray me?"

"Mr. Jiang, we..."

Jiang Huai waved his hand, unwilling to hear any more excuses. Truly, when the person you trust most betrays you, you don't even have the energy to be angry. It was a profound sense of disillusionment.

"Wasn't your goal to see me dead? I am not as ruthless as you. I will give you one chance: let fate decide whether you live or die."

"Mr. Jiang, please forgive me! You know I have always loved you!" the female secretary pleaded directly.

As for the driver, he was utterly shattered. The gravity of the situation was too great; were he in Jiang Huai's shoes, he wouldn't forgive either.

"There is a cliff ahead. Jump. Whether you live or die after you jump is entirely up to you!" Jiang Huai remained unmoved, even as the secretary clutched his legs. This was unforgivable—they had sought his life.

"Mr. Jiang, please spare me! Really, I have always loved..."

Jiang Huai’s expression darkened. He kicked her away and snapped, "Is your 'love' meant to kill me?"

"Mr. Jiang, I beg you!"

"Throw them over!" Yang Fan commanded, pointing at the kneeling men. It was obvious what had transpired between the secretary and Jiang Huai. Yet, this very "love" had been the catalyst for his murder.

The men dared not disobey. They dragged the pair toward the cliff.

"Mr. Jiang! Mr. Jiang, please spare me!"

"Mr. Jiang..."

Their screams were cut short as they were tossed over the edge.

Lin Ruo shot a sharp, meaningful look at Yang Fan, as if to say, "See? Can you really rely on a lover? Look where your philandering leads." It was a living lesson.

Yang Fan felt a chill run down his spine. He walked over and patted Jiang Huai on the shoulder; they were both men suffering through the complications of life.

"Boss, can we go now?" one of the remaining men asked.

"Do you really think you can just leave?" Yang Fan delivered a swift kick. "Are you trying to be funny? You were the ones trying to take our lives!"

"Boss, please spare us! We were just following orders! This really has nothing to do with us!"

"Do you take me for a fool? Enough, I'm done talking."

Lin Ruo produced a vial of poison and made each of them take a pill. "Swallow this, then serve as Mr. Jiang’s bodyguards. If you dare to betray him, this poison will claim your lives. Decide now: die here, or take the poison."

"We'll take it!" The eight men didn't hesitate. As long as there was a shred of hope for survival, they would cling to it—that was human nature.

"Now, call your leader and tell him you are defecting to Mr. Jiang. Tell him to stay out of our business!"

"Yes, yes, we'll call!"

Yang Fan made them put the call on speaker. On the other end, Feng Li was furious, and Jiang Bo’s curses could be heard clearly. Jiang Huai was on the verge of shouting back, but he held his tongue after seeing Yang Fan’s warning gesture.

After the call, the fear of these men was deeply etched into their hearts, especially when they met Lin Ruo’s cold, piercing gaze. Yang Fan signaled them to step aside, then used a specialized powder to dissolve the two corpses completely. After scrubbing away the bloodstains, the three vehicles began their descent down the mountain.

"Yang Fan, sister-in-law, thank you both, truly," Jiang Huai said.

"Don't talk nonsense. We're brothers; there's no need for such formalities," Yang Fan replied. In truth, he felt it was a fair trade—Jiang Huai had gifted him two beautiful wives, so saving his life was only right.

At the foot of the mountain, they sent one car back to retrieve Jiang Huai’s original vehicle, and Lin Ruo continued the journey.

"Let's leave Jiang Bo for now," Yang Fan noted. "Killing him is easy, but I want to use him to lure out the person behind him. That is the real threat."

Jiang Huai nodded. The snake hidden in the shadows was the most terrifying. If they disposed of Jiang Bo now, the mastermind might retreat into deeper hiding, only to strike a fatal blow later. You must pull weeds out by the roots.

Meanwhile, Zhang Chen and his group had left the main road. Too lazy to even borrow a car, they took a public bus. The highway made travel fast, and they would reach Tianhai in an hour. Ah Jiu and Scarface were already waiting at the bus station; as soon as Liu Haoyu and the others arrived, they would be whisked away to the resort.

"Hey, Yun'er!" Yang Fan was on a video call with Wang Yun. Jiang Huai was rendered speechless—the man had the audacity to video chat with his lover right in front of his wife. He had learned by now that when Lin Ruo got ruthless, she was truly merciless, yet Yang Fan dared to court trouble so openly. *Aren't you afraid of Lin Ruo's wrath tonight?*

"Who am I with? I'm with Lin Ruo! Oh, and that's my brother in the back." Jiang Huai offered a stiff smile and a wave to Wang Yun in greeting.

"When I get to Tianhai, shall I buy you a gift?" Yang Fan asked.

"Do you even have money?"

"I do! Lin Ruo is right here; she’s holding the purse strings."

Jiang Huai curled his lip. *Asking your wife to buy a gift for your lover? Have you lost your mind?*

Yang Fan chatted enthusiastically for a full half-hour before hanging up.

"Lin Ruo, can I discuss something with you?" Yang Fan asked.

"Speak."

"When we get to the resort, give me some money. I want to buy a gift for Wang Yun," Yang Fan said.

"Do you think I will?"

"You will. You're the first wife, and she's the youngest. Shouldn't you be nice to her?"

"Why should I be nice to her? That's the mess you created yourself!"

"Then let's discuss it properly tonight!"

"No discussion!"

Yang Fan felt wretched. Ever since Lin Ruo took control of their finances, he was finished. He used to be able to get Liu Haoyu to transfer funds, but since Lin Ruo installed a financial management interface, not a cent could be moved. As for cash, with a single thought, Lin Ruo could siphon everything on his person into her own ring. She monitored all his linked accounts; he was under constant surveillance. If Lin Ruo didn't budge, he couldn't borrow a thing.

"Really, I don't need much. Just a villa for Yun'er, maybe a car, and..."

"Why don't you just give her all the property?" Lin Ruo retorted.

"I’d love to, but you won't let me," Yang Fan muttered under his breath.

"What did you say? Do you want me to throw you out of this car?"

Yang Fan immediately shut his mouth. He realized he truly couldn't discuss these things with Lin Ruo while in the car; she was absolutely capable of dumping him right there!

In the back, Jiang Huai closed his eyes to rest, refusing to involve himself in Yang Fan’s chaotic domestic affairs. *This circle is truly a mess!*

They arrived at the resort at one in the afternoon. Zhang Chen and the others had already arrived. Seeing Bai Tiantian safe and sound, Jiang Huai felt a genuine wave of gratitude toward Yang Fan. If it weren't for Yang Fan and Lin Ruo, who knows what would have happened to him and Bai Tiantian today.