Chapter 137: Brave Little Deer, Fearless of Hardship, Charge Forward!

Huo Yanfang’s stoic expression could only fool outsiders. At first glance, he appeared to be a cold, humorless beauty. In reality, he was quite expressive, and those familiar with him could easily guess what was on his mind.

Seeing Huo’s tightened lips and the slight flick of his eyelids, Tang Xing panicked. He hurriedly winked at Second Master Yin, signaling him to stop talking. Could he not see that Mr. Huo was already extremely displeased? Yes, Mr. Huo was fiercely protective and indulgent toward those close to him, often delivering harsh words that were nothing more than empty threats. However, at his core, Mr. Huo was not a man of gentle temperament. If he were, would he have decimated the Huo family to the point of near extinction?

Yet, Second Master Yin ignored Tang Xing completely and continued, "You probably don't know this—no, you definitely don't. Tang Xing was afraid you’d be upset, so he specifically instructed Auntie Li to keep it from you." Fearing that Assistant Tang’s fate wouldn’t be miserable enough, the Second Master looked up and asked, "Isn't that right, Assistant Tang?"

Tang Xing: *I choose death.*

Second Master Yin continued, "Before we moved in, Bai Lu came to 888 every single day to get meals from Auntie Li. She never missed a day, and once she got the food, she’d run straight to 886 to see Lu Yiting. The two of them would eat together and then exercise—boxing, hugging, and cuddling."

"..." Huo Yanfang turned and walked toward the bedroom.

Second Master Yin shouted at his retreating back, "If you don't hurry up, the little girl is really going to end up with Lu Yiting—"

*Bang!* The bedroom door slammed shut.

Tang Xing’s face crumpled. "Second Master, why must you do this? If Mr. Huo is unhappy, our lives will be miserable."

Second Master Yin went back to watching his variety show with relish. "Your life will be miserable, not mine. No matter how annoyed Asui gets, he won't take it out on me."

*So my life doesn't matter?! My well-being is irrelevant?!* Assistant Tang was on the verge of fainting. After much contemplation, he took out his phone, intending to ask Assistant Xu to switch shifts. Dying from exhaustion in the office was better than staying by Mr. Huo’s side.

"Thinking of asking Xu Yi to come over again?" Second Master Yin said languidly. "What are you afraid of? If you, a sharp-eyed little orphan, hadn't memorized the tattoo on the kidnapper's hand back then, the Boss and I wouldn't have identified the target so quickly. You were one of the people who saved Asui's life."

Tang Xing replied, "…I regret it. I truly regret it. When Mr. Huo offered me money and a chance to study abroad, I should have accepted it immediately. Why did I have to say, 'I am an orphan picked up by Mr. Huo; I belong to the Huo family in life, and I shall be a ghost of the Huo family in death'?"

He was then assigned as a bodyguard to Mr. Huo’s son, Huo Yanfang. He had been doing this for over a decade, serving as both a nanny and a henchman.

Second Master Yin reached out and could only pat Tang Xing’s waist. "There are only the four of us left by Asui's side. If we don't help him, who will? You know his personality. If I don't provoke him, he’ll never take the initiative in his life. His heart has never skipped a beat before. Now that he’s finally taken a liking to someone, if he doesn't seize the chance, she’ll really be snatched away by Lu Yiting."

"For God's sake, can I just go to 886 and kill Lu Yiting right now?!"

"Sure, but you’ll have to be quick about it. You’ll need to take out Lu Cheng and Lu Yiting’s three brothers as well, otherwise, there will be endless trouble."

Tang Xing: "............"

He pondered for a moment. "How about we lock Mr. Huo and Bai Lu in the bedroom and slip Mr. Huo a drug? We’ll make it a done deal. Bai Lu doesn't dislike Mr. Huo, and they can cultivate feelings later. That’s how it’s written in romance novels."

Second Master Yin: "...I had no idea you had a hobby of reading romance novels."

Tang Xing: "It’s not me, it’s Auntie Li. Her eyesight is poor, so she listens to them. She plays them on speaker while she cooks."

Second Master Yin: "...Find them for me later; I'll listen too."

Tang Xing: "............Oh."

As they spoke, Bai Lu and the others had finished dinner, and the live stream had ended.

Second Master Yin said, "Is 'Pistachio' returning to the country tomorrow? I don't know what happened that day, but Bai Lu hasn't come over for meals since. Tell you what—invite her over for dinner in the name of the richest man. She won't dare refuse."

Tang Xing’s eyelid twitched. "Are we actually going to use drugs?"

Second Master Yin: "............"

***

As soon as the camera was off, Bai Lu retrieved her phone from the production crew. She called her father as usual... Fine, her father was the most devious of them all; he had blocked her.

Thousands of messages popped up on WeChat. She deleted the group chats without reading them, leaving only a few messages behind. Since they were staying in a bathhouse this time and surrounded by people, she couldn't constantly slip away to make calls. She reported that she was safe in the family group chat for her grandparents and then sent a separate message to her uncle.

Her father hadn't said a word in the "Loving Family" group. It seemed her grandfather had truly scolded him into silence. *Hmph, petty Film Emperor Lu.*

She had to catch a flight early tomorrow morning. After a brief chat, her grandparents told her to get some sleep so she could recover from her cold, promising to cook delicious food for her when she got home. Her uncle’s reply was concise: *Come home as soon as you land. Don't run around; I'll be checking the surveillance.*

...So her uncle still didn't trust her. He was worried she would sneak over to 888 to find the "Immortal Man," right? Right?! That must be it!

Just then, another message popped up.

—Assistant Tang: Is Little Lu free tomorrow evening? Mr. Huo would like to invite you to dinner. I assume he wants to thank you for the hand warmer you gave him.

—Assistant Tang: Don't worry, Young Master Asui will be there too.

Seeing that the "Immortal Man" would be there, Bai Lu felt guilty, as if she were a thief caught in the act. Her heart skipped a beat, and she nearly dropped her phone onto Shen Xinluo’s face, who was sleeping next to her.

Setting aside whether her uncle would allow her to go to 888, the real issue was that she hadn't gotten over her own internal struggle yet!!!

Tang Xing, not receiving a reply, sent another message: *If you're busy, we can change it to another day. You set the time. Give me an answer as soon as possible; Mr. Huo is waiting.*

The hint of a threat was quite heavy.

Since it was the wish of the richest man, Bai Lu didn't dare pretend she hadn't seen it. It was just dinner, right? What was there to be afraid of! The Immortal Man didn't know she was blinded by his beauty, right? She was a reliable adult now! She could face any sudden situation with a mature attitude! As long as she didn't say anything, no one would know about her lewd thoughts!

*Brave little deer, fear no difficulties! Charge!!!*

She messaged her grandparents first, telling them she had to discuss her plans for the next six months with her agent at 444 during lunch and wouldn't be able to eat with them, promising to have dinner with her uncle after he got off work. Only then did she use trembling fingers to reply to Tang Xing, telling him she had plans that evening and asking if they could move it to lunch.

Tang Xing replied instantly: *Mr. Huo says that is acceptable.*

Bai Lu: "............"

Did Assistant Tang guess her little trick? By invoking the name of the richest man, it was clearly a warning: the richest man would be waiting for her at lunch tomorrow, and she couldn't make excuses to avoid it or change the time again. If she did, the richest man would be displeased. And if the richest man was displeased, she would meet a miserable end.

Assistant Tang was one ruthless man. He had completely blocked her path to backing out. She had actually thought about finding an excuse tomorrow—like a sudden work conflict—to stand the richest man up...