Her voice chocked as she spoke of it. Her explanation was plausible except, she said that Katy brought it out to play with.

However, he checked later and only Katy's faint fingerprints were on the gun. Since they both touched it, shouldn't both their fingerprints be present?

Or was she trying to claim that she didn't have fingerprints at all?

It was obvious that her own fingerprints had been wiped off before Katy's appeared which went to say, Ruoxi had altered it then placed it in Katy's hands.

He still wouldn't be so sure if he didn't see the handkerchief next to Katy's head when he carried her.

The thought of it made his heart tremble. Ruoxi was young but dangerous.

At this age, he wondered what exactly she was capable of doing.

However, his Lihua just wouldn't believe him.

"Lihua, I'm leaving. But can I say something?"

Lin Lihua remained silent, neither agreeing nor refusing.

So he went ahead. "Your parents adopted you, and you were kind hearted and loving. However, not everyone is like you. Some people are not grateful for your kindness and will turn against you and stab you right in the back."

"Ruoxi is not that type of person. I have been staying close to her for nineteen years."

"That's because she had always put a cute act in front of you."

Seeing that unlike other days, Lin Lihua did not explode when he brought up the topic of Ruoxi, he dared to go on. "My wife, could you watch her carefully for a while? Just a few days and you will see through her act."

Lin Lihua did not answer this either. She was busy thinking about his words.

Years ago, he had said; "I am only not suing Ruoxi because you love her too much and because nothing actually happened to Katy. However, if she ever tries to do anything that would hurt Katy again, I will strangle her with my own hands."

Lin Lihua no longer spoke to him. She didn't know who to believe anymore. Henry looked like what he was saying was true. Although it didn't make any sense, she knew deep down that she should trust him because he was an honest man with nothing fishy to hide.

On the other hand, Ruoxi was quite a good girl. Aside from being a little jealous of Katy when she was younger, she wouldn't even hurt a fly.

While Katy... it was even hard to say. That little girl had disliked her for years. How, then, would she trust her?

How was she expected to believe that her Ruoxi deliberately hurt Katy?

___

___

When he was done speaking to Xu Tang, Lu Aotian exchanged a few words with other businessmen before going to find his daughter.

But the scene he witnessed made him remain at a distance and watch leisurely.

Some people had their eyes glued onto a certain young man.

The young man was on one knee, with a bouquet of roses in his hands. He was probably proposing.

There was nothing strange about that, except the fact that the woman being proposed to was his Lu Meili.

"Meili, can we be friends?"

Lu Meili: "..."

Lu Aotian, who was watching from a distance: "..."

The onlookers: "..."

Was there anyone who bought a huge bouquet of roses so big that his face was hidden behind it, just to propose friendship?

However, those who had put the pieces together and understood Lu Meili's identity could understand how he felt.

Lu Meili was the nation's best actress. Her fame was beyond what any other person in the entertainment industy could dream of. Her fans were fond of joking about starting a huge continent of people with one thing in common- their love for their little beauty Li.

Aside from her position and all her fame in the entertainment industry, another identity of hers had been revealed tonight. She was the eldest miss of the nation's top family, as well as the heiress of Lu Enterprises. Could it get any better?

Of course, there was no man on earth who wouldn't want to be the husband of such a woman. She was basically the young woman every young man wanted to marry.

The man before her right now was just one head among the bunch.

To have the courage to go before such a woman as Lu Meili, he must have undergone remarkable training to boost his bravery. Heaven knew that if Lu Meili was displeased by this gutsy action of his, he might lose his head.

Lu Meili used her good eyesight to her advantage and skimmed through the crowd speedily. When she was done, she flashed a smile at the young man before her. The man was so nervous that he was almost wetting his pants.

She gracefully picked a small package that she had noticed among the roses.

It was a box of chocolates, her favorite brand at that. She wondered how it was possible that he knew.

If this man was not a stalker of sorts, then this was a rare coïncidence that was worth mentioning again.

The roses were also just the type she loved- red. That was a common preference so it wasn't as significant as the chocolates.

When the young man saw that she took the chocolates without exploding, his heart was slightly at ease.

Under the gaze of everyone, Lu Meili scrutinized the chocolates and beamed. "Just the type of chocolate I love. Why do you want to be my friend?"

She lowered her voice and mumbled, "It's such a waste."

Althiugh her voice was lowered, her words were still audible thanks to the silence.

She pulled her hair away from her face and continued, "Since you want to be friends, that's alright. I'll be your little friend¹."

Somewhere in the room, a pair of eyes narrowed as soon as those words left Lu Meili's lips.

Little friend?

___

¹: Word play. The other party thought Lu Meili meant 'girlfriend'