"I fucking..."
Xu Ruoying was so angry she almost jumped up, saying to herself, this woman is a jerk.
"It's okay, I'm okay."
Lan Rou took off her glasses, pulled out a white handkerchief from her jacket, wiped her tears, and put them back on.
"Apologize to Miss Lan!"
Feng Lin, carrying two bags of steamed buns and two cups of soy milk, walked in and said.
"Feng Lin! She's faking it! She was just cursing at me!" Xu Ruoying tried to explain.
"Can't you come up with a better lie? Miss Lan Rou is a university professor and also a vice-dean. Why would she curse at you?"
Feng Lin threw the steamed buns onto the table, "Apologize now!"
"It's really nothing, Feng Lin."
Lan Rou forced a smile, came over, and shook her head, "We used to be classmates, there might be some misunderstandings."
Despite her explanation, her tears kept flowing, the picture of misery.
Feng Lin quickly comforted her, "Don't cry Miss Lan, she's of low quality, don't stoop to her level."
"You're the one with low quality!"
Xu Ruoying was about to explode with anger; this awful woman was just too hateful.
"Feng Lin, why is she living here with you?" Lan Rou asked in a low voice.
"She's my relative..."
"I'm his wife! We're already married; show her our marriage certificate. My copy is with Yingying," Xu Ruoying interrupted Feng Lin.
"Are you delirious? Stop talking nonsense or get the fuck out!"
With one hand holding the steamed buns and soy milk, Feng Lin effortlessly hoisted Xu Ruoying onto his shoulder and walked out.
"Lan Rou! You shameless bitch!" Xu Ruoying struggled on Feng Lin's shoulder.
"Shut the fuck up!"
Feng Lin set Xu Ruoying down in the courtyard, stuffed the soy milk and buns into her arms, then went back inside the house and locked the door.
"Feng Lin, I really don't know why she got so angry," Lan Rou said, looking pitiful with her head bowed.
"She's got issues."
Feng Lin opened his portion of the buns and smilingly offered, "Want some?"
"I won't be polite then," Lan Rou nodded.
"Feng Lin! You big idiot! You've been duped and you don't even realize it!"
Xu Ruoying was still outside, shouting at the window, occasionally taking a bite of a steamed bun or a sip of soy milk.
"Feng Lin, I... actually care quite a bit."
After eating a bun, Lan Rou asked softly, "What exactly is your relationship with her? I've told you before, I am very traditional."
"Well, I'll just tell you the truth then. We've known each other since we were kids, her parents wanted her to marry Song Keming, and she asked me to pretend to be her boyfriend for the time being," Feng Lin seriously explained.
"Oh! So you've known each other since you were kids," Lan Rou nodded with a smile, realizing they were childhood sweethearts, but judging from Xu Ruoying's demeanor, she probably liked Feng Lin.
After they had eaten, Feng Lin finally opened the door.
Xu Ruoying instantly rushed in.
"Stop! I am going out with Miss Lan; you stay home," Feng Lin cut Xu Ruoying off and left with Lan Rou.
Lan Rou grabbed Feng Lin's hand, looked back, and winked at Xu Ruoying.
That was a wordless taunt.
"You!!"
Xu Ruoying's hands were trembling with rage.
It was still Lan Rou's domestic car; Feng Lin sat in the passenger seat as Lan Rou drove away.
The corners of her mouth occasionally curved up, amused at having witnessed Xu Ruoying's impotent fury.
There was no denying it was a lovely sight.
It seemed they would need to communicate more in the future.
The Lan Family's residence wasn't in the wealthy eastern district, but in the old city area.
They had an estate there and had lived there long before the eastern district of Jiang City was even developed.
Lan Rou parked the car in the parking space outside the estate and got out with Feng Lin.
She led Feng Lin inside.
The security guards standing watch around the area were all as straight as swords and did not greet Lan Rou.
Feng Lin nodded to himself, noting that the security here was several levels above that of the Xu Family.
In a nearby lawn, an elderly man with white hair was lying on a rocking chair.
He was shaded by a large umbrella, with a small wooden table by his side.
```
A cup of goji berry water sat on the table.
"Grandpa! I've brought Feng Lin."
Lan Rou walked over with a smile.
The elder rose from his rocking chair, sizing up Feng Lin with a nod, "Xiao Rou, you're not needed here."
"Grandpa! What do you want to talk about that's so mysterious?"
Lan Rou pouted as she wrapped her arms around Lan He's arm.
"We'll discuss matters between men," Lan He said softly, patting Lan Rou's shoulder, "be obedient."
Lan Rou nodded and walked toward the interior of the estate, not forgetting to look back at Feng Lin.
...
"Feng Lin, code-named Si Ye, belonged to a special department of the Secret Corps of the state, Boundless, and was the youngest in Boundless."
"He once established his own organization called Si Ye, with the number 1."
After Lan Rou left, Lan He picked up the goji berry water and muttered to himself as he drank.
Feng Lin's pupils contracted, and he asked flatly, "Did my old man tell you that?"
"No, I have three sons, and the eldest once served in the third department of the Secret Corps," Lan He explained with a smile.
"The third department? The one that was eliminated?" Feng Lin asked.
"Correct! Fortunately, the third son likes business, and Lan Rou is his only daughter."
Lan He put down the cup and continued, "I used to be a part of the first department of the Secret Corps, the Intelligence Agency, but I'm retired now."
"That's quite a coincidence, so am I. I dissolved Si Ye, and now I'm also retired," said Feng Lin as he sat on the garden fence nearby, spreading his hands with a smile.
"You're still young," Lan He remarked blandly.
"I know, but the missions I've completed are equivalent to what a hundred Secret Corps elites would do in a hundred years," Feng Lin stated without any exaggeration.
Typical top-level missions involved years of deep undercover.
Some agents might complete only three or four top-level missions in their lifetimes.
But for those missions facing Feng Lin's Si Ye, the slowest would take one to two months, and the fastest, three days to conclude.
"Ha, let's not talk about that. How do you find my granddaughter?" Lan He changed the subject with a smile.
"She seems pretty good."
Feng Lin finally understood why Lan Rou had known early on that she had a fiancé.
It was because her family knew of his former identity.
"That's good to hear, I also think you two suit each other," Lan He nodded, "Xiao Rou has been lively since she was young. She once applied to join the Secret Corps."
"Did you... do that on purpose?" Feng Lin asked, frowning.
"No, at first I wanted to decline, but considering your marriage arrangement, I thought it was a good idea. With you protecting her, she will definitely be safe," Lan He said and lay back in the rocking chair, gently swaying.
"You didn't coerce her?" Feng Lin inquired.
"No, rest assured, she's with the first department, mainly gathering intelligence, relatively safe," Lan He explained.
Feng Lin breathed a sigh of relief but felt like he had been played.
He stood up, hands in his pockets, "First, I need a favor."
"Say it," Lan He said with a smile.
"Put pressure on the Xu Family, make their business suffer for a bit."
Feng Lin felt that for now, it was best to deal with Xu Ruoying's issues first.
"Simple," Lan He nodded in agreement.
...
At six in the evening, Xu Chuan and Wang Qin sat opposite each other in front of a laptop, studying a three billion contract.
Wang Qin was overjoyed, not only was the Zhou Family's three billion order secured, but they were also cozying up to the Zhou family's influence.
If Xu Ruoying were to marry Song Keming and secure another three billion order,
with the support of the two major families, the Xu Family might become a new powerhouse.
Just then, Xu Chuan's phone suddenly rang.
He looked at it and calmly asked, "What's the matter?"
"Director Xu, the Ministry of Commerce has suddenly stopped approving our documents. If we can't deliver on time, we'll owe a substantial penalty fee," the voice on the phone conveyed.
"What? What's going on?" Xu Chuan asked anxiously.
"I don't know yet, I'm trying to find out," came the response.
"Hurry and check it out! Let me know as soon as you've got something!" Xu Chuan demanded before hanging up the phone.
```