"Boss, you answer me first. Did you stay outside my room the entire night?"

"Where are you going?" He asked as his gaze swirled in mixed emotions that felt extremely uncomfortable.

Lihua stared at him for a while. This time, she didn't want to lie to him. "I have to meet Mo Huojin."

The nerves on the back of his hand became clearly visible as he clenched his knuckles. His gaze turned cold at the mention of Mo Huojin. The patience that he was holding onto all this time was beginning to snap every time he would see him or hear his name.

"Why do you want to meet him?" There was a hint of anger and impatience bubbling in his voice. He wasn't irritated at Lihua. But his resentment was growing for Mo Huojin who was always taking Lihua away from him.

Lihua lowered her head. "I am sorry, Boss. I cannot tell you that."

It wasn't always the case where Lihua didn't want to tell him about Song Jia. At first, she didn't because Mo Huojin said to keep it a secret. But she thought later on that Wei would definitely help her with his connections. He was the CEO of Jiang Industries, so of course, he would have more resources to find out about the Mafia King. It was times like these when having loads of money was really useful.

After the night at the bar, when Wei caught her lie, she had decided to tell him all the truth. If she loved him, then it wasn't right to lie to him again and again. The guilt weighed heavily on her heart and last night, she decided to tell him everything. Mo Huojin would get furious for sure, but she thought she would handle it.

But then…

Wei declared his feelings for Shi Ruomei. It was so clear, crisp and determined that it shook her down to every cell of her body. She was dreaming in her own world until now that they were getting closer to each other. The time wasn't far when she would confess her feelings to Wei.

But after his resounding conviction for Shi Ruomei, her confidence dwindled. That dream shattered into pieces. Lihua was a ditzy and confident woman. She didn't care about their status difference as long as they honestly loved each other. But she wasn't stupid to understand the seriousness of his words and the sincerity in his gaze he held for that woman.

Lihua wasn't upset when she got to know about his engagement from Fu Renshu and Jiang Weizhe. But it made all the difference to her when Wei personally said it.

And she wasn't selfish to interfere between them if Wei truly loved her.

So this entire incident made her take a step back. She wanted to tell him about Song Jia. But if he was going to leave her anyway and that too very soon, she didn't find any point to involve him in Song Jia's investigation. She didn't want to give him unnecessary trouble. It was better to steer clear from each other.

"Cannot tell me?" Wei tilted his head. "Why?"

Lihua pursed her lips. "Because it has got nothing to do with you."

He stared at her unblinkingly.

My woman is meeting another man and you say that it has got nothing to do with me?

Wei wanted to question her, but in front of her tired eyes that looked as if she cried really bad, he wasn't able to say anything. It felt as if she thought of him as a stranger that pricked his heart.

Lihua took a step aside and walked past him. Then she paused in her steps. "Boss. Next week...it's an important day for you, right?"

Wei froze.

The coming Friday was going to be their one-month anniversary when Wei and Lihua met for the first time. Wei had already begun preparing for their special day. The gleam in his eyes slowly returned and his heart felt lighter.

Lihua remembers it too…

Like a little child, he jerked his head towards her in excitement and nodded hard. "En! It's a very important day."

Lihua bit the corner of her lip.

Boss wouldn't remember that it will be a month since we met, right?

Why would he? After all, it's his engagement night…

She felt her heart twist in pain and her eyes slightly turned blurry. The tiny hope disappeared even before it lit her heart.

Wei eagerly said, "Lihua. You will be free this Friday right? I want to take you somewhere special."

Lihua froze. She slowly raised her head, feeling stunned.

Take me somewhere this Friday? Your engagement? Boss wants me to attend his engagement ceremony? He wants me to see him put a ring on another woman's finger?

Here I love him so much and he wants me to see him belong to someone else?

Her tears unreservedly spilled out. Wei looked at her dumbstruck.

"W-Why are you crying?" He held her face in panic and wiped her tears. Lihua felt too tired to shake his hand away.

A sense of anxiety and distress marred Wei's face. This was the second time she was crying now and all because of what he said. But the tragedy was that he couldn't understand where he went wrong.

"Boss... D-Don't you think it's time for you to leave this place?"

Wei froze. He rapidly blinked his eyes at her. "What?"

She slowly withdrew his hand from her cheeks. "Yes. You don't have any reason to stay here anymore. I think it is better for you to focus on your future…" With Shi Ruomei.

She wanted to say it, but her lips quivered so much that her name remained choked in her throat.

Silence.

"You want me to leave…?" There was no change in his voice or any crack in his expression, but his heart felt terribly empty just like before he met her.

Did she grow so closer to that man that she wants me to leave now?

Lihua said nothing. She didn't answer. She turned and started to leave. As she held the knob of her door, her shoulders trembled. Tears plopped out as she said, "I…really enjoyed t-this time with you, Boss…"

She opened the door and quickly ran away, leaving Wei standing frozen on his spot for a long time. The temperature then rapidly dipped as the fury within him rose.

Mo Huojin. Mo Huojin. Mo Huojin…

Everywhere, every time it's only your name. This is enough now. I cannot let you interfere any more than this.

With a deadpan expression, he picked his phone. "Bring Mo Huojin to me."

---

The day quickly got over but Lihua and Mo Huojin got no answers about the Mafia King from the remaining suspicious companies. They had a few Underworld connections for sure, but they had nothing to do with the Mafia King or Song Jia.

Lihua sat on the bench, feeling dead tired. "Now, what? Are there any more companies left that start with J?"

Mo Huojin silently stared at her. "The company that you refused to let me investigate. Jiang Industries."

Lihua froze. Wei's handsome face flashed past her mind and his engagement's truth that she had forgotten until now because of the investigation resurfaced.

"I told you. Jiang Industries cannot be a Mafia family at all."

"And I don't understand why you are so sure. Maybe you are in love with the CEO?" He raised his brow.

Lihua stiffened.

"Aha! Bingo!"

Lihua glared at him. "It's got nothing to do with my feelings. I have met Boss and have talked to him a lot of times. He cannot be the Mafia King!"

He snorted. "You are totally being biased. Nobody will write it on their foreheads if they are the Mafia King or not. You cannot be blinded by your feelings. Even if you have talked to him a few times, he isn't obligated to tell you the truth. Your guarantee doesn't work here. Plus, I always feel that something is off with that company. It's too clean for its own good."

She righteously said, "Because Boss is an honest man."

Mo Huojin chuckled. "I wonder how you survived the world until now. No company is pure white. Everybody does shady dealings. Especially CEOs of such large corporations always have some Underworld connections."

Lihua fumed. "Fine! If you are so hell-bent on proving my Boss guilty, then try it. You will get nothing! Hmph. You will only waste time and if anything happens to sis Jia, then I will kill you!"

"I have already started my investigation. Our best bet is Jiang Industries now, and I am sure this won't be a gamble."

She gritted her teeth and got up. "It's useless talking to you. Call me when you will be done finding any hypothetical clues about Boss."

As she left, Mo Huojin sighed and shook his head.

Really a dumb woman…

As he walked back towards his home, he stopped midway and narrowed his eyes. He immediately felt the change in the atmosphere. The air blew differently.

Somebody's watching me.