"You saw it too!" Saeki turned to Tristan with pleading eyes, nose bleeding and expression full of betrayal. "I gave it to Yeri! How else would that Venice girl get it?"
Another kick from Shin, this one less dramatic but just as effective.
"Yeri doesn’t have a female cousin around her age," Shin growled. "That girl is Venice Ryung. She’s not a Zhi, and as far as I know, she and Yeri don’t get along."
"Exactly—eh?!" Saeki blinked rapidly, suddenly shooting up as if he hadn’t just been stomped like a cockroach.
His hair was a mess, face bruised, and tissue shoved up both nostrils as he scrambled for dignity. "Impossible! She told me she was Venice Zhi! How else could she be at the debut party?"
Tristan raised an eyebrow. "So if someone came up to you and said they were Shin Keir, you’d believe them too?"
Shin sneered. "Although she’s not a Zhi, the Zhi couple have been kind to her and her mother. They let them stay at the main house sometimes. With Yeri usually at school dorms, it wouldn’t be hard for Venice to steal that business card and spin a lie."
He leaned forward, voice low. "Did you really think I didn’t investigate Yeri Zhi when we first met?"
Saeki opened his mouth, closed it, and then slumped back to the floor with a long, defeated groan.
For a moment, Saeki’s mind went completely blank, then it hit him. He got beaten for nothing.
"Then, dear older brother, what did you hit me for? It was just a misunderstanding!"
Shin sneered. "You can still talk?"
Saeki flinched, dodging another kick and scrambling toward Tristan, only to get smacked in the face.
"Don’t drag me into this," Tristan said flatly. "You run a company and act like you know women inside out, but you easily jump to conclusions like a clown. What happened to logic?"
"Wait—! Not the face! I have a gala tomorrow night!" Saeki yelped, shielding his face. "I get it, I get it! I’ll apologize to sister-in-law, alright?!"
Tristan clicked his tongue. "If you have a girlfriend and it’s this easy to turn you against your girlfriend, then I already feel sorry for your future wife."
Saeki threw himself onto the sofa, dramatically clutching his chest. "I... I think I need an ambulance. But seriously, I only made a mistake because no one told me they weren’t cousins," he argued, turning to Shin, who had already returned to his CEO chair. "But dear brother, having options isn’t a crime! You’ll never know who’s truly compatible unless you compare. Just once, go on a blind date with another wom—"
"Ow! My head! My head!" Saeki cried out, clutching his forehead.
A pen had struck him directly like a bullet. His forehead began to bleed. Anyone else might have tossed it harmlessly, but in Shin Keir’s hand, even a pen was a weapon.
"If I hear you badmouth Yeri again," Shin said coldly, "I’ll pull all my investments from your company."
That shut Saeki up fast. He rushed over and dropped to his knees in front of Shin.
"Dear older brother, I’ll listen to you from now on! When I was young and clueless, you were the one who picked me up, showed me how cruel the world could be, trained me, and helped me stand on my own. As the youngest son of the Jie clan, I know I’ll never inherit anything. My other siblings just see me as competition, but you, you treated me like your real brother. How could you throw all that away over one small mistake? I’m the younger brother you love most—"
"Saeki Jie," Shin said through gritted teeth, "have you had enough?"
One look at Saeki’s bruised, bloody face made it hard to feel pity. In fact, Shin seriously considered punching the other side just to even it out.
"No, no! I’m fine now," Saeki said quickly, jumping to his feet. "I was wrong. I’ll reflect and become a better person. Also... you’re not really pulling your investment, right?"
Shin shot him a glare that said if he stayed one second longer, he might just toss him through the massive glass window.
Taking the hint, Saeki didn’t linger and darted out, nearly bumping into Secretary Yun outside.
"Young Master Jie, would you like to see the company doctor?" Secretary Yun asked politely.
Thinking it’d be a bad idea to walk out looking , Saeki nodded quickly. "Yes. Good idea."
Once he was gone, Tristan casually turned to Shin. "I heard about the assassination attempt. How’s Yeri doing?"
Shin paused in his work, then gave a small, proud smile. "She handled it well. Didn’t panic, even afterward and she went to school the next day like nothing happened."
Tristan nodded, not surprised at all. Somehow, it felt expected, after all, Yeri was once that formidable...
"Did you find out who was behind it this time?" Tristan asked. Hexion had been working non-stop to investigate, so it shouldn’t take long.
"Not yet... there’s no rush," Shin said, but his tone betrayed his words. His eyes darkened with malice.
Whoever dared to cross him better be ready for his retaliation.
Then Tristan stood up to return to work, but not before giving Shin Keir a long, meaningful glance.
The thick, dark mist that always clung to Shin had grown heavier, more restless, more defiant. It wasn’t just the pressure from outside but the one lurking in the dark.
Meanwhile, at Zhi Corporation—
Klaus Zhi had just stepped out of a long meeting when his secretary approached him.
"Sir, there’s a guest waiting in your office."
Klaus frowned. "At this hour?"
He headed to his office, not expecting anyone unannounced. But the moment he opened the door, his eyes narrowed.
Sitting comfortably in his chair, sipping tea like he owned the place, was Leonardo Nafplion.
"Master Nafplion," Klaus greeted stiffly. "What brings you here this late?"
Leonardo gave a slight nod, his smile polite but his tone soaked in arrogance. "Master Zhi is quite the busy man these days. I had no choice but to come find you here. I hope you don’t mind."
Klaus didn’t respond to the fake courtesy. He took a seat across from him, his expression cold. "What’s the matter?"
Leonardo chuckled lightly. "Ah, it seems we know each other too well to beat around the bush. Let’s speak openly. I heard you held a grand debut banquet for your daughter."
A flicker of discomfort flashed through Klaus’s eyes but only for a second. He quickly composed himself. "Just a formality. We initially disagreed with the idea because of her health, but she insisted. Eighteen only comes once."
"Of course, of course," Leonardo nodded with that same smug smile. "You only have one daughter. Naturally, she should be pampered. I’ve heard she’s been doing better these days?"
Klaus sighed. "Better? She caught a fever right after the banquet. Her health hasn’t changed. She’ll always be fragile."
"Then... I assume you’ve already decided not to name her as your successor?"
Klaus let out a short, bitter laugh. "Everyone knows she won’t inherit the company. She’ll get some shares. That’s all."
Silence settled between them for a moment. Leonardo’s gaze sharpened, watching Klaus closely like a sly hunter. It was as if he was waiting for Klaus to reveal a crack, a weakness.
But Klaus Zhi wasn’t someone easily shaken. He sat there like a lion on alert, calm, proud, dangerous.
Finally, Leonardo leaned forward and broke the silence. "My son’s returned from abroad. And now that Yeri is officially an adult, I think it’s time we discuss their engagement."
Klaus’s eyes turned colder, his voice sharp with contempt. "Still clinging to an old agreement made by the elders? My daughter may spend her whole life depending on medication. As her father, I’m prepared to care for her forever. But if she’s married to your family, she becomes your family’s responsibility. Your son’s responsibility."
Leonardo’s mouth twitched, but he forced a laugh to keep things light. "Oh, come now, Old Zhi. Don’t speak so seriously. It’s just a few prescriptions, it’s not a big deal."
But Klaus sneered inwardly.
He remembered everything.
Back then, the Zhi and Nafplion families were close but only because it served their interests.
Loyalty among the powerful was often shallow.
And the Nafplions? Rotten to the core. Their bloodline had soured with every generation.
The engagement had been arranged when Yeri was still a child. His daughter and the Nafplion’s second son, three years older than Yeri, Leo Nafplion.
Klaus had never liked it. But going against his father’s will hadn’t been an option. Agreements between elite families weren’t easily broken.
Perhaps it was the curse many children of the rich bore: being treated as bargaining chips for alliances disguised as marriages.
Even so, he’ll make sure Yeri will marry to a good family, a good man.
Anyway, the moment it was revealed that Yeri had a weak constitution and might never bear children, the Nafplions were quick to step back. Especially Leo.
That good-for-nothing boy had no class, no shame. He publicly denied the engagement, made cruel remarks, and humiliated Yeri at every chance. He called her useless. Sickly. A burden.
Now they wanted to bring up the engagement again?
Did they think he’d forgotten?
Indeed, shameless and greedy people knows no bounds.
Five years ago, Leo was sent to rehab. Before that, he was notorious for his immoral, perverted behavior. Once it became public, no family wanted their daughter near him. No woman in her right mind would marry such a disgrace.
And now they came crawling back?
Klaus’s hands tightened into fists beneath the table. His face remained composed, but rage simmered just below the surface.
No. He couldn’t afford to insult the Nafplion’s, not openly.
It wasn’t because they outranked the Zhis, but because of the ones backing them. The ones in the shadows.
Those were the ones Klaus had to be wary of.
Still, Klaus Zhi was not a man to bow easily.
He looked Leonardo in the eye and said slowly, "This so-called engagement, let’s not rush it. The world is changing, and the children should have a say. Don’t you think?"
Leonardo’s smile tightened. He stirred his tea, but the mood had cooled. The conversation was far from over.
Klaus knew: this was only the beginning.