On the other side, on the east of LiLong Country, in Li Industrial City stood a mansion as large and wide as the Li Mansion in Long Capital City.
The Long Mansion was similarly built out of bullet-proof, one-way glass. But where the Li Mansion was grey, the Long Mansion was black and was surrounded by black pillars that released flashes of security lights every few seconds.
Armored guards in black suits and black shades patrolled the grounds, their actions robotic and professional as they screened every visitor.
"Sire, please spread out your hands. We need to scan you before you can enter." One of the gate guards expressionlessly commanded.
"Hey, I come to see Commander Long every weekend. Is it necessary to do this every time?" A balding man with a potbelly questioned dissatisfiedly as he spread out his arms.
"Unfortunately, that's the procedure."
The guard stepped up and snapped a pair of white-steel ScannerGets on his wrists and pow
Blood. Blood was everywhere. Red, sticky, warm, wet blood. A sea of blood. It was everywhere. She could not tell where it ended and where it began. All she knew was that nothing was ever going to be the same again. She could not think straight, her head was pounding as if a thousand nails were being hammered into her skull. Her chest felt like it was going to burst any moment, but tears would not fall. Breathing became an arduous task as she scrambled through the pool of blood in search of a familiar face. "Anyone there? Anyone!" she cried. But no answer came. "Dad! Aunt Li! Yei Yi!" She screamed, blood splashing onto her face. "Princess, get out of here…" Came from the dark hall. Qing Yue froze, stunned to hear a voice, and scurried towards the sound, hope the only force fueling her, moving her forward. Everything's okay. Everything will be fine. Nothing bad will happen. I am only overth
No! No! NO! This can't be! Where are the people? Where is everyone!? Qing Yue looked at the black body of water and dazedly drifted towards it, her blank mind unable to process anything further. Then her nostrils flared as the scent of blood and sweat overwhelmed her senses. "Blood...? Is it mine?" She looked at her hands, but no... The scent was coming from the body of black water... "Why would a nice, clean sea of water smell like blood?" She moved closer and stared into the black water, her mind jolting at what her eyes perceived. she blinked and saw... It was nothing more than a sea of black water...then what had she seen awhile ago? Qing Yue could've sworn she saw an eye! It was a giant eye smeared with various vein-like throbbing bloodlines. But the disturbing part wasn't the veins. It was how the intersecting veins resembled the waterlines of the New World Formation? What's
"No, Tian Tian! I'll meet you within the hour! Kay? Love you!" Blowing the man a kiss, Lu Jin disconnected the call. As she looked at the black bracket on her wrist, a lost look appeared in the woman's eyes. "Was that Long Tian?" A deep, gruff, male voice sounded from the other side of the room, causing her to startle out of her thoughts. Forcing a stiff smile on her face, Lu Jin turned and looked at the naked man lying on her bed. "Hmm. It was Long Tian. He wants me to meet him at the Disco Club." Walking into the walk-in closet, she opened her wardrobe and withdrew a change of clothes. "What does he want? It can't be...?" "Can't be what?" "It can't be he wants to take you home, right?" When Lu Jin heard these words, her heart thumped in her chest. Long Tian was going to take her to the Long Mansion? He was going to introduce her to his parents? Her eyes brightened and a sweet smile spread across her lips that
A man like Long Tian was one in a million. And in the New World Formation where the cost of living was sky-high, having a relationship with the son of the Great Commander was tantamount to securing a cash cow. There were many instances where Lu Jin felt tempted to dump Gu Yan and cling onto the money-bags Long Tian. But she stomped on the impulse before it could take control of her mind. If she ditched Gu Yan to chase after Long Tian, then Gu Yan wouldn't spare her. He would ruin her career and ruin her image in Long Tian's eyes. Not only would he expose how she'd only approached him for his money. He would also embellish their love affair while she dated him. By then, let alone Long Tian, even the luxurious life and status she enjoyed as Long Tian's girlfriend would be gone. No...I can't lose this status...but I also want the man, Long Tian. Gu Yan, you can only blame yourself for sending me to Long Tian's side... A malicious
"I'll try. But Lu Jin, don't have too much hope. My father is a Commander in and out. His words and his decisions never change. If he promised his friend to accept his daughter as a daughter-in-law, then there's no way he'd change his mind." "It's fine, Tian Tian. I want to at least try convincing him to accept us. It's better than the family falling apart." She nodded tearfully. "Okay. I'll try to convince him. If he doesn't accept, we'll get married in court, okay? Now, stop crying." "Hmm! Tian Tian, I trust you. It's a little late and I'm a bit tired. If that's all you wanted to say, then can we leave now?" "If you're tired, then we'll leave. Come, I'll drop you home." Pushing out of his seat, Long Tian pulled Lu Jin to her feet and handed her her purse. "Thank you, Tian Tian." "Hmm! Let's go." Walking side by side, the two exited the Disco Club and entered the Open-Air Parking Lot. Riiiiiiinng! Right at this
"Long Tian, I...I was forced! He forced me!" Lu Jin never expected one careless action on her part would reveal her truth to Long Tian. Not only that, but he also heard how she and Gu Yan were playing him! Was she going to lose Long Tian and the status of Madam Long? No! She wouldn't allow herself to fall from grace so easily! Her eyes gleamed with a fierce light and she shot a glance at Gu Yan. Then steeling herself, she covered her eyes and began bawling like it was the end of the world. "Waaahhh! Tian Tian, Tian Tian! Listen to me! Please, just listen to me! He forced me! He really forced me!" She could only throw the dirty water on Gu Yan and hope the man understood her intention. Otherwise, there wouldn't be any way to salvage the situation... Unfortunately, Gu Yan wasn't on the same wavelength as her. He turned to the bubbling woman with an astonished expression on his face and when he heard her words, he broke into a tow
Qing Yue woke at first light and entered the washroom. "Light." The lights came on at the sound of her voice. She undressed and walked towards the automatic showers. On sensing her figure, the shower immediately came on and the temperature of the water adjusted to her body heat. "Brush." A toothbrush floated towards her and Qing Yue opened her mouth, allowing the machine to clean her teeth as she showered. Her long hair was difficult to wash, the thick, sleek strands sticking to her body as the showerhead squirted shampoo and conditioner. But Qing Yue had enough practice. She gathered them together and rubbed thoroughly before she wrung them out and rinsed. The automatic brush cleaned every corner of her teeth, bending and stretching as it scrubbed the back teeth and the top ones. Once it was done, a flush replaced it and dispersed lavender mouthwash. Qing Yue closed her mouth and gurgled before spitting the mouthwash and setting out o
"Hello, Aunt Hong." Qing Yue embarrassedly greeted, baffled at the unexpected warmth of the other. She hadn't even seen the woman once in the past five years, so where did the deep love and affection come from? Was she going through a phase? "Little Qing Qing, you met your Aunt Hong. Aren't you going to meet your Aunt Si?" "Why just Aunt Si? Aunt Mei is here as well." "Your Aunt Gu..." "Let Aunt Rui see..." What's going on? Why are these Aunts more enthusiastic today than my previous birthdays? Is the 18th birthday really that special? Suddenly surrounded by a flock of fawning and over-affectionate aunts, Qing Yue felt her head spin from the mixture of perfumes and noisy chatter. "Alright, alright. Stop crowding the kid, will you? Qing Qing, come to Uncle Wei. Otherwise, your Aunts will suffocate you to death." At this time, the gruff voice of a laughing middle-aged man resounded from the far end of the hall.