Zhao Lifei looked for Yang Ruqin again and was shocked to see she was nowhere to be found.

"Yang Feng, did you see where Qinqin walked off to?" Zhao Lifei worriedly asked, her eyes scanning the room in hopes of spotting a young woman in a jade green qipao.

"No, but I'll have my men look for her."

"I'll search for her myself. Maybe she went to the bathroom." Zhao Lifei tried to break away from him, but with his hand gripping on her hip, she could not.

He pulled her closer and said, "If you do not find her within five minutes, hurry back. I'll deal with it."

Zhao Lifei nodded.

"I need to talk to your grandfather about something. You'll be able to find me by the balcony, okay?" He did not know her relationship with her eldest uncle yet and did not want to hurt her with the truth about him. He had his men trail her eldest uncle, Zhao Junkai, for quite some time. Though there were a few shady meetings in clubs, the man was mainly entertaining himself with escorts.

There were not nearly enough leads to point him out as the culprit. Since he was the eldest son of Zhao Moyao, Yang Feng knew he could not instantly bring him to the underworld. He planned on brutally beating, tormenting, and torturing him the man for even fathoming the idea of harming Zhao Lifei.

Yang Feng needed to inform Zhao Moyao of the news before any actions were made.

She nodded again. "Okay." And without another word, she hurried off to search for her best friend.

Yang Feng watched her disappear into the distance. He made a hidden gesture for his people to follow after her. They did not need to be told twice as they silently trailed after her, easily blending into the crowd.

After ensuring she was being monitored, Yang Feng made his way to Zhao Moyao.

"Mr. Zhao, in regards to your proposal with Yang Enterprise, it was quite outstanding! It has only been a few months since the construction has been completed, but I heard the revenue was sky-high!" One man complimented, another quickly joining in.

"I must praise you, President Zhao, you've performed miraculously, yet again!"

Zhao Moyao barely listened to their empty compliments, his mood souring. 'Ignorant bastards,' he thought. If only they knew the true mastermind behind the success was his granddaughter, whom he consulted with.

Zhao Moyao remained quiet. He absentmindedly opened his ears to them while his eyes did a full sweep of the banquet in search of Zhao Lifei. She was nowhere to be seen.

"Do not fret." Yang Feng's icy voice silenced the babbling businessmen. They all stepped back to make more room for him, watching as the suave man strolled towards them.

"She is safe." Yang Feng added on, a glass of champagne in his hand.

Zhao Moyao eyed the glass with disdain. He never liked alcohol, it caused too many problems.

He turned to the bootlicking people, nodded his head and excused himself with Yang Feng to a more secluded area.

"The balcony should suffice." Zhao Moyao said. He had a suspicion about the topic of discussion…

Yang Feng wordlessly walked with him until the two were on the balcony overlooking the city of Shenbei.

He set the curtains in place and closed the door. No one at the banquet would be able to see or hear them.

"What is it?" Zhao Moyao impatiently asked when Yang Feng took a sip of the champagne, the moon adding a ghostly pale glow to his honey-tanned skin. "It's cold tonight, so hurry up and spit it out."

"Your eldest son hired the kidnappers." Yang Feng deadpanned.

Zhao Moyao's suspicion was proven correct. He turned to look at the view before him as the celebration hall was on the outskirts of the city. "How do you know this?"

"It's not entirely confirmed yet. My men tortured the information out of a scum."

Zhao Moyao glanced up at the sky. It was colorless and empty except for a crescent moon. There was never a time where he regretted the way he behaved around his children and grandchildren.

He always believed one should earn their position. If one of his children wanted shares in the company, a chair in the executive board, and so on, they would need to slave away for it. They were not so blessed to simply be born into a position. It was a cruel way of thinking befitting of the dog-eat-dog business world.

He had personally witnessed, on many accounts, just how scheming his offspring, their wives and children were. No one in the family would hesitate to pull their own blood-relative down if it meant they could be used as a stepping stool to climb higher. Between the Zhaos, water ran thicker than blood.

His eldest son's behavior was expected. He found it strange when his eldest son wanted to have a get together at a restaurant and even asked for the invitation to be extended to Zhao Lifei. Now, Zhao Moyao saw his eldest son's true motives. He was a wild card.

"And what do you plan to do with this information?" Zhao Moyao curiously asked.

"You know," Yang Feng began, his fingers subconsciously touching the red diamond of his cufflinks. "If it was not for the fact that he's her uncle, I would've made him feel hell was a better place than Earth."

Zhao Moyao understood Yang Feng's message. He was only being lenient because he was worried about Zhao Lifei's emotions. She was a sensitive child, but not one to pardon backstabbing relatives.

Zhao Moyao briefly spared Yang Feng a glance before looking back towards the city. "You've changed."

"Have I?"

"You were never like this in the past. Before killing someone, you would never consult with others." Zhao Moyao muttered. "I remember a little boy, no more than the age of ten, so stoic and heartless; his eyes the most pitiful shade of black I've ever seen."

"That little boy did not behave his age. He never smiled, never laughed, never did things a boy should do. He wielded a gun better than he wielded a toy, he killed faster than trained assassins."

"He grew up to become a fearsome man whose very name was enough to instill terror upon a person. Destroying a legacy was child's play to him, bankrupting a company was as easy as flicking his fingers, and just one stomp of his boot was enough to make people shake in theirs."

Yang Feng did not reply. He intently listened to Zhao Moyao, for he had always respected the man for his military accomplishments.

"Even now, his behavior remained the same. I have never witnessed a pleasant and genuine smile never to be found on his face. The only emotion he showed was the terrifying curve of his lips when he wanted to torment a person. People said staring into his eyes was like staring at death's door."

Zhao Moyao fondly turned towards the young man, a tender expression on his face. He sympathized with Yang Feng, for both his granddaughter and this man were products of their grandparent's teachings which eventually dimmed the light within them.

"But nowadays, he's able to freely smile, given, never in public, but in the comfort of a woman."

Yang Feng had long known Zhao Moyao was referring to him, but still, he did not comment.

"I have never seen you fathom the idea of mercy, the word so foreign, your dictionary does not contain it." Zhao Moyao chuckled to himself, the sound ripe with age.

He was getting old and in just a few years, he planned to retire. There were already three potential and highly suitable candidates for his position so he did not need to fret anymore. Those people could continue his legacy and bring the company to a higher level.

"It's something she has taught me without trying." Yang Feng muttered, his rigid eyes softening at the thought of Zhao Lifei whose face plagued his mind like a sweet nightmare. The thought of losing her was always at the back of his mind, grasping at his heart, but even so, he was not willing to spare Zhao Junkai.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.