"Get out of the Lu family!" Lu Zhenhua roared at the top of his lungs.
Lu Xinyi trembled at the sound of his shout, the hesitation on her face vanishing instantly, replaced by pure anger. Her eyes reddened, her chest heaving as she shouted back, "Dad! You've gone too far!" With that, she grabbed Shen Yi's arm and stormed out, her steps quick and determined.
Damn it, Lu Zhenhua, you're such an idiot! I really want to crack open your skull and see what's inside! Can't you see your daughter was about to give in? And you still had to push her like this? Are you really determined to drive her out?! Your need for control is way out of hand! Shen Yi, being dragged along by Lu Xinyi, couldn't help but rant in his mind, his face overflowing with helplessness.
As he was pulled along, he began to calculate in his head: Well, I guess we'll just go our separate ways. With Lu Xinyi's skills, she can find any high-paying job she wants. But me? I don't have much money, and it's hard enough to support myself. Now with Lu Xinyi tagging along, how are we going to survive?
Hearing Shen Yi's thoughts, Lu Xinyi didn't slow down. Instead, her steps became even more resolute. She clenched her teeth and quickened her pace as they headed out.
"You ungrateful girl! Let's see how you manage once I freeze your cards!" Lu Zhenhua, seeing that Lu Xinyi showed no intention of turning back, tried to threaten her with financial control, hoping to force her to return. But Lu Xinyi only paused for a brief moment before continuing to walk away, which only fueled his rage. He felt his authority was being severely challenged.
"Get out! I don't have a daughter like you! This is infuriating!" Watching the two figures disappear through the front gate, Lu Zhenhua felt a surge of anger rising to his head, his heart aching faintly. He clutched his chest, his face a clear display of fury and resentment.
"Dad, are you okay?" Lu Jiang, seeing this, quickly ran to Lu Zhenhua's side, gently patting his back to help him calm down, his face filled with concern. But inwardly, he was overjoyed. He couldn't believe today's crisis had been resolved so easily, and now he was about to take over Huanyu Group. It felt like a stroke of incredible luck.
"Xiao Jiang, you're the good one! I didn't spoil you for nothing! Unlike those two ingrates, who didn't even look back as they left!" Lu Zhenhua spat out bitterly, but after saying this, a strange feeling of discomfort washed over him. A thought flashed through his mind: Did I go too far? But he quickly dismissed it, convincing himself: They're the ones who defied me! Shen Yi is an outsider—it doesn't matter if I hit him or scold him. I can just kick him out. But Lu Xinyi, she sided with Shen Yi from start to finish. That's something I can't accept. Even if I made a mistake, so what? As my daughter, couldn't she just lower her head and apologize?
"Hmph! I'll have the finance department freeze Lu Xinyi and Shen Yi's cards right now! Let's see how they survive! They'll come crawling back to me soon enough!" Lu Zhenhua snorted, growing angrier as he thought about it. He immediately dialed the finance manager, Zhao Zhiqiang.
"Hello? Lao Zhao, freeze Lu Xinyi and Shen Yi's cards immediately!" Lu Zhenhua's voice still carried the lingering heat of his anger.
"Mr. Lu, you want to freeze Vice President Lu and Shen Yi's cards?" Zhao Zhiqiang, holding the phone, frowned deeply, unable to believe what he was hearing. He couldn't help but confirm again.
"...That's right! Those two are no longer part of the Lu family, so they don't get to use the Lu family's money!" Lu Zhenhua hesitated for a moment but then spoke firmly. In his mind, Lu Xinyi was gone, and that was that. He still had Lu Jiang to groom.
Zhao Zhiqiang was filled with confusion. How are Lu Xinyi and Shen Yi no longer part of the Lu family? What happened? Did they have a fight and get kicked out? He couldn't help but advise, "Mr. Lu, maybe you should reconsider? Without money, Vice President Lu and Shen Yi won't be able to get far."
Lu Zhenhua's temper flared again at this. How dare even the finance manager question me? "What's wrong with you?! Just do as I say!"
Zhao Zhiqiang sighed helplessly and said, "Alright, Mr. Lu, I'll take care of it right away. Oh, by the way, Mr. Lu, Shen Yi doesn't seem to have a card registered under our group."
"Huh? What do you mean? He doesn't have a card?" Lu Zhenhua frowned, his face filled with confusion. "If he doesn't have a card, how has he been living?"
Lu Jiang, standing nearby, timidly reminded him, "Dad, didn't Shen Yi say earlier that he's been working part-time to pay for his tuition and living expenses?"
Lu Zhenhua was stunned for a moment, then his face turned red with anger. "That ungrateful brat! Why didn't he ask the family for money?! Why did he have to go out and work?! Does he think the Lu family can't support him?! He's making a fool out of me! I bet he's been planning to leave the Lu family all along! Working part-time was just preparation for this day!"
Seeing Lu Zhenhua's rage flare up again, Lu Jiang quickly shut his mouth, not daring to say another word.
"Mr. Lu, Vice President Lu's card has been frozen. Any other instructions?" Zhao Zhiqiang asked respectfully, though inwardly he was filled with disdain. What kind of person are you? You don't even know if your own son has money? Stop pretending! Hypocrite!
Lu Zhenhua, too angry to continue, hung up the phone abruptly.
Lu Xinyi, still furious, dragged Shen Yi out of the villa area. But as soon as they stepped outside, her anger seemed to drain away, leaving her listless. She wandered aimlessly down the street, her eyes empty, her steps unsteady, as if she had lost her soul.
"Hey, Lu Xinyi, where are you taking me?" Shen Yi, having been dragged along for quite a while, couldn't hold back any longer. He asked with a helpless expression.
Lu Xinyi didn't seem to hear him. She just shook her head and continued walking mechanically, not saying a word.
"Look, Vice President Lu, maybe you should stop following me. Or just go home and apologize to your dad. Wouldn't that solve everything? Do you really want to suffer with me?" Shen Yi grabbed Lu Xinyi's arm, trying to make her stop and think things through.
Lu Xinyi looked up blankly, her eyes scanning the bustling street filled with cars and people. Yet, she felt as if she were in a completely foreign world. She stared at Shen Yi, her eyes filled with confusion.
At that moment, her thoughts uncontrollably drifted back to her childhood, to Lu Zhenhua's domineering ways. She had never had any real hobbies growing up. Her life had been filled with nothing but studying. Lu Zhenhua had forced her to learn everything about business, finance, and corporate management from a young age. But deep down, she had wanted to learn music, to express her emotions through beautiful melodies. She had wanted to write novels, to create her own world. She had wanted to practice calligraphy, to feel the flow of ink on paper. She had longed to play with friends and enjoy a carefree childhood. But every time she mustered the courage to bring up these desires, Lu Zhenhua would scold her harshly, always using the excuse that she was the eldest daughter and would one day take over the group. He forced her to focus all her energy on studying. For a long time, she had no common topics with her younger sisters because her life was filled with studies and classes, leaving no time to understand their worlds.
She hated this feeling—her time always dictated by Lu Zhenhua, her life like a wind-up machine that could only operate according to his commands. After graduating and joining the group, she quickly achieved great success through her own efforts. Whenever someone praised her, Lu Zhenhua would proudly boast about how he had raised her. Every time this happened, Lu Xinyi would feel a wave of frustration, as if she were a trained pet being paraded around for show. Even though others admired her, she felt nothing but disgust, as if they were mocking her for having no freedom, no life of her own.
"Hey, Lu Xinyi, what are you spacing out for? Don't think you can just ignore everything by zoning out! Fine, if you're not going to talk, I'm leaving." Shen Yi, seeing her remain silent and lost in thought, sighed helplessly and turned to leave.