Chapter 37: Betrayal

The effects of the drug were set to begin in three hours. Zhao Yan’er waited in silence—once Lin Fei’er lost consciousness that night, she would take her away.

At that moment, Zhou Chengwang came looking for her, unwilling to give up. Seeing him, Zhao Yan’er’s anger flared. This turncoat—her brother had treated him well, yet he dared betray him.

“Miss Yan’er, I only ask for one promise from you. If you agree to leave with me, I’ll help you deal with those people.”

Zhao Yan’er had never met someone so despicable. She regarded him with utter contempt.

“Why should I go with you? Who do you think you are?”

Zhou Chengwang couldn’t believe his ears. After suffering humiliation and mustering all his courage to come to her, she said such words.

“Just seeing you is an insult to my eyes. Let me warn you: if you don’t leave the Zhao family and get as far away as possible, I’ll have someone destroy you.”

Zhou Chengwang’s mind went blank, as if struck a heavy blow.

“What… what did you say?”

“Didn’t you hear me? I said get out! You’d better leave Jinghong County and never let me see you again.”

Crash—Zhou Chengwang smashed the vase beside him. Zhao Yan’er, undaunted, stared him down.

“So… you really like Zhao Kai that much, do you?”

Zhao Yan’er admitted it openly. “Yes, I love my brother.”

Suppressing his raging fury, Zhou Chengwang wanted to seize her, to make her regret crossing him, but his anger only left him feeling weaker.

“What’s going on here?”

Zhao Kai’s sudden appearance broke the tension, forcing Zhou Chengwang to compose himself.

Zhao Yan’er quickly adjusted her expression. “Brother, why are you here? What’s this?”

Zhao Kai, seated in a wheelchair, spun once before them. “Just finished it—what do you think?”

Neither had seen such a strange contraption before and remained silent.

“This wheelchair is made for those who can’t walk. See? Isn’t it convenient for me to get around this way?”

Zhao Kai looked cheerful, but neither could bring themselves to smile.

“Brother Zhao, why are you so happy?” Zhou Chengwang asked.

“Isn’t it good to be happy?”

No, Zhou Chengwang wished nothing more than for him to be miserable.

“If I were you, I couldn’t smile.”

“But I learned it from you.”

Zhou Chengwang was left speechless.

Zhao Kai went on, “I remember when we first met, you’d been beaten black and blue, terribly pitiful, yet you dared to own up and admit your mistake to me without hesitation. I thought then, this young master must be well protected by his family—optimistic and cheerful. You said you wanted to temper yourself so your family would see you were responsible and reliable. But when you admitted your mistake, you already showed you were just that. Many people can’t face their own faults, let alone admit them.”

“Chengwang, a person can’t fully know himself and life at the same time, don’t you think?”

Zhao Kai’s gaze was clear as water. Zhou Chengwang stared, lost, at a loss for how to respond.

“These days, you’ve taken care of Yan’er. Thank you for your efforts.”

Zhou Chengwang felt a complex mix of emotions. He hadn’t looked after Zhao Yan’er at all; it was his jealousy that had brought Zhao Kai to this state.

“Brother, you don’t need to thank him—he’s done nothing for me.”

Zhao Yan’er thought Zhao Kai’s gratitude was wasted on him.

“It’s not up to me to say whether it was hard or not. Chengwang knows in his heart.”

Zhou Chengwang sensed hidden meaning in Zhao Kai’s words, but his expression betrayed nothing.

He didn’t know what came over him. Every time he faced Zhao Kai, he felt like a child caught in mischief.

Back at Erxian Manor, his father and uncle had always sighed at his lack of progress.

But after meeting Zhao Kai, he’d received recognition—even for the smallest things, Zhao Kai would look at him with approval.

Yes, Zhao Kai had always looked at him that way.

He had long thought himself a person of responsibility.

“I… I’ll be going now.”

He dared not meet Zhao Kai’s eyes and hurried away.

Zhao Yan’er called after him, “Don’t forget what I told you!”

Zhao Kai chuckled. In some ways, Zhao Yan’er and Zhou Chengwang were quite alike—unafraid to love or hate.

Meanwhile, Lin Zhengtian waited quietly for nightfall. Once darkness fell, everything would be his. But first, he needed the other half of the contract.

Before he could ask Zhou Chengwang for it, Zhou Chengwang spoke up.

“Give me the shares contract.”

“What’s wrong? Have you been found out?”

“No…”

But he felt worse than if he had been. Whenever he lost his temper, seeing Zhao Kai’s forgiving gaze made him uncomfortable all over.

He didn’t want to do this anymore. He had no interest in the Zhao family—he’d only wanted Zhao Yan’er’s affection. But now she despised him utterly. Helping further would be pointless. He wanted to give up.

Lin Zhengtian tried to persuade him, “We’re only a step away from success. Zhao Yan’er will surely come to love you—think about it.”

He shook his head. “She’ll never love me. Doing this makes me a villain! I can’t even respect myself! Give me the contract—I want to return it to Zhao Kai.”

Lin Zhengtian smiled coldly. “Too late.”

“What?”

“You should’ve thought of that earlier. Now you want it back? You think I’ll just hand it over?”

“If you refuse, do you know who I am?”

“Of course. The nephew of the head of Erxian Manor, right?”

“You—”

Lin Zhengtian patted his shoulder. “I asked your guards; they told me everything.”

He produced a token. “This is a fine thing—it’s helped me a lot.”

“Give it back!”

Zhou Chengwang lunged for it, but his legs gave way beneath him. He collapsed, utterly powerless.

Lin Zhengtian laughed. Zhou Chengwang understood immediately, glaring at him with fury. “Despicable!”

“Yes, I’m despicable. Yet you trusted me—handed everything over so eagerly. I’d never have had a chance to defeat Zhao Kai without you. I owe it all to you.”

Zhou Chengwang regretted it bitterly. He never imagined things would turn out like this.

“Zhou Chengwang, you’re truly naive. You believed me after a few words. You’re the first to walk into my trap so willingly.”

“If you dare harm me, Erxian Manor will never let you go!”

“Who said I’ll harm you? It’s Zhao Kai who will.”

“What?”

“You arranged for Zhao Kai’s legs to be broken. When he finds out, he’ll send someone to assassinate you. That’s how you’ll die. That’s the truth.”

In an instant, Zhou Chengwang understood—Lin Zhengtian had planned from the start to kill him with another’s hand, frame Zhao Kai, and incite Erxian Manor’s wrath.

How vile. How had he fallen for Lin Zhengtian’s scheme? Now he would pay with his life.