“Lou Tingwen!”
Every word in those reports praised the Lou Family for their “foresight” and “concern for disadvantaged women.”
But they had no idea that the true architect of this plan was long gone from this world.
Lou Qiyun clutched her phone so tightly her knuckles turned white.
Her fingers trembled, her entire body shaking faintly.
Lou Tingwen actually used her brother’s proposal to whitewash the Lou Family’s reputation!
Using her brother’s life’s work as a tool to cover up their misdeeds!
This was a desecration of her brother’s memory, a trampling of her final bottom line!
Without a second thought, she turned and stormed toward the study.
At that moment, Lou Tingwen was leaning against the expansive floor-to-ceiling window, holding a cup of hot tea.
The curling tea fragrance wafted around his fingertips.
Sunlight streamed through the glass, illuminating his sharply defined profile.
His phone was pressed tightly to his ear as his secretary respectfully reported from the other end.
She suddenly lifted her foot and viciously kicked the door.
The wooden door slammed with a loud “bang,” causing the picture frame in the corner to tremble slightly.
A sarcastic, cold smile curled at the corner of her lips.
“Is your brain filled with nothing but lowly schemes, that you’d steal someone else’s life’s work? That was my father’s lifelong effort – what right do you have to touch it?”
The secretary on the phone immediately fell silent upon hearing the crash and accusation.
Lou Tingwen’s face instantly darkened, his gaze turning cold.
With a sharp “smack,” he slammed the teacup back onto the marble desktop, creating a jarring sound.
The reverberation from the impact seemed to explode in the air.
He narrowed his eyes, his tone laced with suppressed anger.
“Looking for trouble, are you? Came specifically to get cursed at?”
Though his words were fierce, his actions were faster than his speech.
With a swipe of his finger, he decisively ended the call.
Lou Qiyun stared coldly at him.
“When he was alive, you never inquired, never cared, couldn’t even be bothered to see him once. The moment he’s gone, you become so proactive – his research, his life’s work, his inheritance became stepping stones for your comeback.”
She paused, the corner of her lips lifting without any warmth.
“If he knew you’re now relying on his death, on his achievements to bask in glory before others, enjoying applause and fame, he’d probably visit you in your dreams every night to personally collect his debt!”
Lou Tingwen’s eyes suddenly darkened, his pupils contracting as rage surged within.
He abruptly grabbed the teacup from the table, flicking his wrist.
The scalding tea traced an arc through the air, directly aimed at Lou Qiyun’s face.
However, the tea missed her face entirely, instead splashing all over her chest.
She was wearing thin silk pajamas.
Once wet, the fabric immediately clung tightly to her body, becoming nearly transparent.
The scent of tea instantly filled the air.
Lou Tingwen’s expression shifted in that moment.
“If you’d just obediently attended the engagement banquet and behaved properly, wouldn’t you have avoided all this trouble? Why put yourself through this?”
He curled his lips into a smile full of malice.
“Isn’t this just you not knowing what’s good for you, deliberately seeking humiliation?”
Lou Qiyun clenched her fists.
She suddenly raised her arm and swept it across the desk, violently knocking all the documents to the floor.
Papers rustled loudly, scattering across the floor like falling snowflakes.
The room fell silent except for the soft sound of falling papers.
“After wearing human skin for so many years, putting on such a proper appearance, how come you can’t wash away the stench of your base nature from your bones?”
She stared fixedly at him.
“I’ll make him watch, watch with his own eyes how you repay the debts you owe—one life at a time!”
The air in the room seemed to freeze solid at that moment.
Lou Tingwen abruptly stood up from his chair, his movements so violent he nearly overturned the table.
He gripped Lou Qiyun’s chin.
“Such a sharp tongue—who are you trying to bite?”
Lou Qiyun’s eyes narrowed sharply, her pupils contracting.
“This mouth wasn’t born for cursing… It’s more suited to pleasing others.”
Lou Qiyun let out two cold laughs.
In the very instant he let his guard down, she suddenly bit down.
Lou Tingwen reacted immediately.
She spat viciously.
“If you dare try anything again, next time it won’t just be a finger I bite off.”
Lou Tingwen’s smile instantly froze.
“You’re nothing but a dog raised by the Lou Family—how dare you challenge me?”
Changing the subject abruptly, he spoke again.
“The day before Lou Yixu’s accident, he was still preparing a birthday gift for you.”
“That gift, along with the shares under his name, is locked away in a bank safety deposit box.”
After saying this, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.
It was both bait and a trap, waiting to see if she would take it.
Lou Qiyun’s breath hitched.
She couldn’t deny that his words had struck a vulnerable spot.
On the day of Lou Yixu’s accident, Cheng Yunying took complete control of all funeral arrangements.
As the matriarch of the family, she forcefully intervened in every detail.
Frantically sealing away all his belongings.
Diaries, letters, personal items—even his study was sealed shut.
Everything was either buried or hidden away, as if trying to erase Lou Yixu completely from the world.
Not a single trace of him remained in the entire Lou Family.
Except for those locked-away memories.
The only thing she had left was that photograph.
A faded, yellowed old photo, its edges worn.
But the gentle smile in it remained as clear as yesterday.
It was the only warmth she could touch in countless lonely nights.
Seeing her cease resistance, a glint of triumph flashed in Lou Tingwen’s eyes.
“Three chances.”
He slowly raised his hand, counting them off one finger at a time.
“This time, it’s submitting the proposal. Next time, it’s delivering the gift…”
He paused, his gaze suddenly turning sinister.
“And after that, he will no longer exist in this world!”
Lou Qiyun bit her lip hard, her lips turning pale and nearly bleeding.
Her nails dug deeply into her palms, the pain keeping her awake.
She gave him one last deep look before turning to leave.
The dim yellow light at the end of the hallway stretched her solitary shadow.
As she turned, a crystal-like light streaked across the sky.
She stared blankly upward, her gaze empty.
Lou Qiyun returned to her room in a daze, her steps unsteady as if walking on cotton.
She headed straight for the photo frame, almost lunging toward it.
Her eyes grew slightly sore, her vision beginning to blur.
But she held back fiercely, refusing to let the tears fall.
“What should I do?”
She whispered to herself.
She had no doubt that Lou Tingwen would truly erase all traces of her brother’s existence.
Her brother’s death was already a disgrace to the Lou Family.
In the eyes of the family, he was a failure—a wayward son who neglected his duties and defied family rules.
His death was treated as a scandal, his name not even mentioned at the memorial service.
Let alone the fact that he brought no benefits to the family.
No business strategies, no political marriages—not even his will was recognized, dismissed by Cheng Yunying on grounds of “mental instability.”
After his death, everything about him was seen as a burden, mercilessly discarded.
Wait…
Benefits?
Lou Qiyun’s mind was suddenly struck by a flash of lightning.
She jolted abruptly, her footsteps involuntarily halting.
Standing in place, her breath hitched slightly as she stared fixedly ahead.