All grew quiet.

Xia Lei lay tiredly on the bed with a smile on his face. He was cosy, comfortable, and looked like he’d enjoyed it. He seemed to be either recalling something good, or admiring the crystal light fixture on the ceiling.

Hattori Mei looked at Xia Lei out of the corner of her eye, then struggled to climb out of bed. She was exhausted, and had no strength.

Xia Lei looked over at her. “Where are you going?”

Hattori Mei glared at him and said in annoyance, “What, I can’t go to the bathroom? Do I need to report that to you too?”

Xia Lei smiled. “What are you saying? Go on, go on, and come back quickly. I prepared a present for you. I’ll give it to you when you get back.”

“What present do you have for me?” Hattori Mei got out of bed, naked. She did not care about Xia Lei’s greedy gaze.

“Perfume. The best perfume in France. The type that money can’t buy.”

“What sort of perfume can’t be bought with money? You’re exaggerating. I know Paris perfumes, and I’ve used all of the expensive ones, no matter what they cost. Tell me, what brand is this perfume you’re talking about?” Hattori Mei stepped into slippers as she talked and headed towards the bathroom.

“Never mind, I was planning on giving you a surprise but you won’t believe me at all. I’m going to take it out and show you right now.” Xia Lei got his suit jacket from the bedside table and took out two bottles of perfume from the inside pocket.

Hattori Mei did not even turn around.

“Don’t you want to see, darling?” Xia Lei touched the glass bottle. “Marie’s Desire. The most mysterious perfume in the world.”

Hattori Mei turned her head around at that to glance at Xia Lei. “Even if it’s the best perfume, you still have to wait for me to relieve myself before I take a look at it.”

“Okay, I’ll just open it first. You’ll be able to smell it when you come out of the bathroom later.” Xia Lei unplugged the cork of the bottle and a thick fragrance filled the room.

“Dumbass.” Hattori Mei went into the bathroom. She was not one bit interested in Xia Lei’s perfume.

Hattori Mei did not sit on the toilet bowl after she went into the bathroom, but she went to the sink and turned on the tap.

*

Xia Lei’s voice c

ame from outside the door. “Darling, did you drink too much water?”

In the bathroom, Hattori Mei looked at herself in the mirror, her eyes terrifyingly cold. Then she sniffed. That strange perfume had made its way into the bathroom.

“Mei, how long more are you going to take?” said Xia Lei. “How about I come in too. Let’s be together.”

“Go die!” Hattori Mei suddenly grabbed the tap, which was still running, and yanked upwards.

A soft click came from the wall under the sink.

THUNK! A loud sound suddenly came from outside the bathroom. It sounded like a lot of steel hitting the floor.

Hattori Mei pulled the bathroom door open and rushed out.

The thing which had made the loud noise was a big metal cage which had fallen from the ceiling and landed, just nice, on the bed. The bars of the metal cage were as thick as the arm of a small child. It looked like it would be strong enough to hold a buffalo, not to mention a single man.

But…

There was no one on the bed.

Hattori Mei had an excited smile on her face when she’d charged out of the bathroom but this smile disappeared in the next second.

“Mei, is this some sort of prop? There’s no need for you to get such a big cage, though. You scared me.” Xia Lei’s voice came softly from behind her.

Hattori Mei turned her head around quickly and saw Xia Lei.

Xia Lei had not a stitch of clothing on him when she’d left the bed, but he was wearing a pair of red briefs now. He looked like a swimmer. There was a smile on his face, sunny and charming. He held two bottles of perfume in his hands but the bottles were empty. He had splashed the perfume in the corners of this room.

Hattori Mei’s jaw dropped. “You…”

Xia Lei suddenly reached out and covered her mouth, then roared, “Bastard! What are you doing? Don’t hurt her! Let her go, or I’ll kill you!”

Hattori Mei understood right away. She struggled with all her might, trying to get Xia Lei’s hand off her mouth. However, her strength could not compare to Xia Lei’s. What was worse was that her head was getting foggy due to a lack of oxygen.

Xia Lei released his hold two seconds later.

Hattori Mei flopped limply onto the soft carpet. The carpet was black, and she was white. The stark contrast made for a strong aesthetic look.

Xia Lei strode over to the metal cage and threw himself to the floor next to it.

The door was kicked open right after he “collapsed”.

Hattori Masao charged in. He had a Japanese-made M57A handgun in one hand, and the ancient samurai sword in the other.

A large group of guards armed with live rounds cam right in after Hattori Masao.

The scene in the room made all of them stare.

Three minutes earlier, in the study.

“What, I can’t go to the bathroom? Do I need to report that to you too?” His daughter’s voice came from over the earphones. Hattori Masao let out a long sigh, then he reached under the tea table and tapped the red button hidden there.

His daughter going to the bathroom was the pre-arranged signal to make their move.

Hattori Masai was pressing the button to send the signal to gather his men.

Ten guards gathered before Hattori Masao in under ten seconds.

“Remember, you are not to fire without my command. I want him alive! Move!” Hattoru Masao walked towards his daughter’s room.

He was still being cautious about a man who would be trapped in a metal cafe, because Gu Kewen had described that Chinese punk as someone who was very good at countering. He had killed people in the higher three-digits and the people he’d killed here CIA special agents, marines, and assassins. Hattori Masao dared not be careless when up against an opponent like this.

His initial plan had been very simple — have his daughter bring Xia Lei here, complete the technology exchange, and immediately have Xia Lei surrounded by guards and captured. He had given up on this plan in the end after much deliberation. With Xia Lei’s skills, his daughter’s life would be in danger if Xia Lei chose to fight back. Even if the guards shot Xia Lei in time, Hattori Masao would not be able to find out what Plan X was if Xia Lei died. Another thing which made him give up the plan was that CIA. The CIA was insisting on capturing him alive. Based on the relationship he had with his American allies, he had no choice but to consider the interests of the CIA in this operation.

And so, the second plan for his daughter to sleep with Xia Lei, then trap him in a cage was hatched…

THUNK! A loud noise came to their ears and the floors shook.

A smile appeared on Hattori Masao’s face at this sound. The plan was a success!

The ten guards formed two teams. One team went to the left of the door and the other went to the right.

Hattori Masao reached out his hand and grabbed at the door handle.

“Bastard! What are you doing? Don’t hurt her! Let her go, or I’ll kill you!” Xia Lei’s voice came suddenly from the room, full of terror.

Hattori Masao paused, then kicked the door open and charged in.

There was no third person in the room.

His daughter lay naked on the carpet. Her tender flesh drew the eyes of the guards.

Xia Lei was lying on the floor too, unconscious. He should have been in the cage, but he was lying on the floor next to it. It looked like he had jumped away from the cage when it had come falling down, then fainted on the floor.

Why hadn’t Xia Lei been caught in the cage , and why was Xia Lei and his daughter unconscious on the floor? Who was the target of the angry shouts of Xia Lei’s from earlier? These questions popped up in Hattori Masao’s brain but he could not find answers. However, his military training was not just for show and he quickly calmed down. He shouted, “What are you looking at? Two of you, go check the doors and windows. Two more, get that punk down to the basement! Now!”

The guards carried out Hattori Masao’s commands immediately.

Hattori Masao went to his daughter. He took off his jacket and covered her with it.

Thump! A guard collapsed to the floor, for no apparent reason.

Hattori Masao was about to sound the alarm, but he opened his mouth and discovered that he could not control his tongue anymore. Darkness covered his vision and he collapsed to the floor.

Thump, thump…

Hattori Masao’s guards fell to the floor like domino tiles.

Xia Lei opened his eyes suddenly, just as the last guard fell. He got to his feet and walked over to Hattori Masao. He patted his face, and laughed. “Hey, didn’t you want to find out what Plan X was? This is Plan X. I want not just your AI technology but I’m going to use you as bait too, to reel in that big fish Gu Kewen.”

Too bad Hattori Masao couldn’t hear him anymore.

Xia Lei reached his hand into Hattori Masao’s suit and took the USB flash drive. “You had no intention of giving me your AI technology from the beginning. Sorry, but I was thinking the same too.”

Same thoughts, but different results. He had already got the AI technology of the Hattori family, but Hattori Masao had only had a look at what he had. He did not manage to get a thing.

The smell of the perfume was still strong in the room, but Xia Lei was the only one unaffected by it. He had stolen Jacqueline Eva’s Marie’s Desire, and stolen her antidote too. Right at that moment, Jacqueline Eva was probably searching the streets of Paris for him but he couldn’t be bothered about her feelings now.

Xia Lei was dressed a few minutes later. He left Hattori Mei’s room with Hattori Masao in his arms, and went back to the study.

There was still an hour and a half to go before the time Hattori Masao had arranged with Gu Kewen.

An hour and a half was enough for him to make all his preparations.

He also knew that Gu Kewen would not be too far off. She was definitely somewhere close by. Perhaps she was looking at her watch, waiting anxiously to go over at the last minute.

Would the grudge between Gu Kewen and himself end in an hour and a half?

He was not sure, but he was sure of what he wanted to do.

He wanted to…

KILL HER!