No reconciliation, no forgiveness! Mr. Pei leaves with nothing.

The entire hillside villa was brightly lit, with lights on in the upstairs rooms, and the girl's violent resistance and pitiful screams could be heard from time to time.

Huo Ling was forced onto the bed, desperately resisting his touch. "Even if I die, I won't let you touch me! Xu Zhoulan, you disgust me!"

"Let go! No...don't..."

"Let me go!"

She slapped Xu Zhoulan across the face, leaving a five-finger mark quickly. It was clear that Huo Ling had used a lot of force. In addition to the injury on his face, Xu Zhoulan's neck was covered in scratches from her fingernails during the struggle, and several buttons on his floral shirt had fallen off.

Xu Zhoulan reached out and grabbed Huo Ling's neck, his eyes flashing with a bloodthirsty glint. "Little Ling'er, why did you reject me?"

"Be good, won't it be better to listen?"

Xu Zhoulan kissed the girl's alluring lips...

No one noticed that steady yet rapid footsteps were quickly approaching.

The next second, the door to the room was kicked open with a loud bang.

Xu Zhoulan was stunned for a moment. Before he could react, he was dragged up by a strong force.

Pei Zhan punched him in the face, and Xu Zhoulan staggered a few steps, losing his balance. Pei Zhan took off his suit jacket and draped it over Huo Ling, who was disheveled and trembling. "Big...Big Brother."

When Kagel led his men upstairs and saw this scene, he was unexpectedly calm. He had followed Huo Tingshan for so many years, and such a scene was not surprising to him. He just did not expect that Miss Huo Ling would be poisoned by him.

"Take care of it yourself first."

Huo Ling nodded, her eyes still wet with tears, "Mmm."

When Xu Zhoulan was dragged downstairs by the bodyguards, he was already half-crippled. He was beaten so badly that he had no chance to fight back. He knelt in front of Pei Zhan, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. The dull pain in his chest made him cough a few times, and the blood in his mouth became even thicker.

"Cough cough cough... As expected, he still chose to help you!"

"Otherwise, I wouldn't have been exposed so quickly."

Despite the defeat, Xu Zhoulan showed no resentment. He simply clutched his chest, a mocking smile playing on his lips.

Pei Zhan kicked Xu Zhoulan in the chest, grinding his foot into his chest several times. The man lowered his eyes, his contemptuous gaze falling upon him. He used a bit of force, and Xu Zhoulan frowned slightly, pain appearing in his eyes…

"Even without the Huo family, do you think I wouldn't be able to find you!"

"I'm not interested in your relationship with Huo Tingshan..."

Xu Zhoulan laughed and said, "Besides Huo Tingshan, I don't know who else could make you guess it was me so quickly."

"You found it faster than I expected."

"It's a pity that you're late."

"Pei Zhan, your sister tastes really good."

"I've hidden a lot of your sister's good things here. Do you want to look for it... where is it?"

"You're courting death!" Pei Zhan used even more force, his deep eyes fixed on Xu Zhoulan, who was struggling in his death throes, deliberately trying to provoke him.

The sound of a rib breaking was clearly heard. The terrifying aura emanating from Pei Zhan was as cold as an abyss. "If I were you, I would stay where I belong."

"Is what the Jiang family is giving you now not enough to satisfy you?"

"It was still given to you by Tingshan, and it didn't satisfy you?"

His ribs pierced his internal organs, causing pain beyond what ordinary people could feel, rendering him unable to utter a single word. He coughed up another mouthful of blood, yet even in this state, Xu Zhoulan still smiled, feeling the pain gradually numb and... gradually waking him from his slumber.

"What I...want..."

"It is everything that you possess..."

The low laughter was like a demon in the dark night.

"By you?"

Pei Zhan still left him a breath. When he put his foot down, Kagel arrived late, "Young Master, Master already knows everything."

"The master said you can do whatever you want with it."

Pei Zhan: "Take him to the hospital." He uttered those few cold words and then went upstairs. When he got to the room, he found Huo Ling unconscious. Pei Zhan noticed the collar around the girl's neck. He was familiar with this kind of device; it was usually used to discipline and control wild animals, and it was electrified.

Pei Zhan had his bodyguards force Xu Zhoulan to reveal the key to unlock Huo Ling's neck. After unlocking it, Pei Zhan carried the unconscious girl downstairs. He then tossed the electric device collar next to Xu Zhoulan, and the bodyguards immediately understood Pei Zhan's intention. The device was quickly put around Xu Zhoulan's neck.

The controller was also in Kagel's hands.

The thing Xu Zhoulan used to threaten Pei Zhan with Huo Ling was hidden somewhere in the villa, so he simply had it burned down.

Flames erupted behind them, quickly spreading to engulf the entire villa…

inside the car.

Kagel: "Miss Huo Ling has suffered a lot of mental trauma during this period, and she won't be able to wake up for a while."

"But... how did you know that Miss Huo Ling was in his hands, young master?"

Huo Ling leaned on Pei Zhan's shoulder, motionless, showing no sign of waking up. "Young Master, when did you first learn about his relationship with the master?"

"That's not something you should be asking."

Investigating Xu Zhoulan's affairs was not difficult for Pei Zhan. From the moment he became suspicious of Xu Zhoulan, Pei Zhan had people investigate all the properties under his name, including those purchased in his name. With this information in front of him, he could sift through several clues to find the answer.

Over the years, Xu Zhoulan has indeed hidden himself very well, preventing Pei Zhan from ever suspecting him, until... that day in the First City Under Heaven...

His gaze, as he looked at Jiang Hua, held a subtle hint.

Only men understand what such a look means.

He saw Jiang Hua as his prey, whether it was to seize or to spy on her.

When Xu Zhoulan said he wanted to replace everything he had, Pei Zhan realized that he was probably just one of Huo Tingshan's illegitimate sons.

Pei Zhan had access to information on everyone in the Huo family, including their family history records… but there was no information about Xu Zhoulan.

Nothing about him is recorded in the Huo family genealogy; his existence remains a mystery.

Xu Zhoulan had been keeping an eye on him ever since he left Wuchuan.

Or... it had already begun in Wuchuan...

After taking Huo Ling to the hospital, Pei Zhan glanced at his watch. He realized that he had been gone for too long, and his beautiful wife was about to become suspicious.

When Pei Zhan returned to Royal Dragon Bay, Jiang Hua was getting up in the middle of the night, wearing a black silk slip dress. She came downstairs and, hearing the noise coming from the kitchen, couldn't help but walk over curiously. "What are you doing?"