Lu Mengjie was in a tight spot even if the question wasn't aimed at her. She sat back in her seat, beside Yong Liwei and held his hand. "Dad, we love each other."

She was hoping that maybe her father could let this go and take her reply as an answer but Lu Xian Yu was not going to allow it. "Mengjie, the person I am asking right now is Yong Liwei. I want to hear the answer from him."

"I love her." It was a lie. He had lied to many people so it wasn't hard for him to do it again without blinking an eye. He even dared to look straight into Lu Xian Yu's eyes.

The temperature in the room dropped as both men stared into each other's eyes.

Lu Xian Yu could see his old self in Yong Liwei. More reason to hesitate in allowing his daughter to be with him. He was afraid that she would end up being hurt. He could not see any warmth in his eyes when the other man gave his answer. Aside from that, he knew whose son he really was. Han Qinshan's firstborn son. The rightful heir to the throne. If Yong Liwei decided to come back, he would have to inherit all his father's business. Lu Xian Yu was kind of hoping that his daughter would end up marrying a 'normal' man. He didn't have to be rich. He only wanted his daughter to be happy, away from all the things that were connected in his past. Killings, women, cheating, lying, betraying. All of those he did.

Now the man in front of him, Yong Liwei, was someone similar to his old self. This man would surely hurt his only, and precious daughter. He wanted to avoid that but… Lu Mengjie inherited her parent's stubbornness. He knew that it would be hard to convince her.

Lu Xian Yu was snapped out of his thoughts when he felt a warm touch on his hand. He turned and looked at his wife.

"They'll learn." These were the only words she said but it was more than enough for him.

That was right. Even if it was hard for him, he knew that he had to let his daughter go and learn. He hated to admit it but she was no longer a child. He knew that she needed to learn how to be independent, how to stand up again after a fall. He knew that and yet, just like any other parent that loved their children, it was difficult for him to let go. He ended up heaving out a long sigh. "Very well. I will allow you to take my daughter."

Lu Mengjie's tensed body finally relaxed. She was about to open her mouth and thank her father but he continued, "But if you hurt her. I'll make sure to make you live in hell."

"I already am," Yong Liwei retorted.

Lu Xian Yu narrowed his eyes. He wanted to change his mind but was held back when he felt his wife's caress on his arm.

"But dad, I'm sure that Jiejie only married him because of his looks." Lu Jinnian pouted.

Xia Liqin nodded and gave his younger brother a thumbs up. "You have to give them a test!"

Lu Mengjie rolled his eyes at her childish brothers. "We're not students anymore. We don't need to take a test."

"Life has its own way of testing a couple," Lu Xian Yu said meaningfully. "If they are meant to be then they'll be able to overcome whatever comes their way. If they are not then… this house is always open for you, Mengjie. This will always be your home."

"Dad…" She was touched by her father's words. She has always been his princess and now, it was probably tough for him to see his daughter leave just as soon as she came back.

Ever since she arrived at her home, the memories of her past kept knocking at her mind's door, entering and flashing before her eyes. Once again, she recollected another one and this time, it was her father's birthday.

…

(Flashback)

A creak from the door was heard. Mengmeng's head popped from the side of the door. She looked at her father and asked, "Daddy, are you busy?"

Lu Xian Yu placed a certain card he was holding back in the drawer before he turned to Mengmeng and smiled. "No, I'm not, why do you ask?"

"Mama is calling for you. She's waiting in the dining room," she replied with a wide grin. Her eyes were sparkling in excitement.

He blinked a few times upon seeing his daughter this way. He had been ignoring Li Bingbing for a while now. He had already forgiven her for taking advantage of him and for eating his tofu a week ago. This time, he was mad at her for being careless with her words, and because of that, he became really strict with her. He may love her but that didn't mean that he was going to be easy on her especially when he wanted her to be a good example for their children since there were times that her sharp words would accidentally slip while they were in the presence of the children. He had already set a rule that whenever the children would say a bad word, he would have to keep their toys as a punishment for it. As for Li Bingbing's case, he would scold her then ignore her for a while. So she was trying to use their daughter this time eh? Well, he has been ignoring her for half a day already, should he go to her and forgive her?

"Daddy?"

Lu Xian Yu sighed heavily. "Alright, alright, I'll follow you in a minute."

After giving some files to Shen Juan, his right-hand man, he went out of his study.

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AN:

(For those who are skipping Author's Thought section lol)

I know that most of my readers have already read the flashbacks from TYL but do consider the new readers too. This book can be a standalone without reading the prequel so I hope my old readers won't mind reading a few scenes again. Don't worry, I did not just copy-paste it. There are changes I made that you won't be able to read in TYL. You can consider this as the edited part since TYL is not yet edited.