“Brother, Big Sister Xia Mei, get up and eat.” Xia Xue’s voice came from beyond the door.
The two tired people beneath the blankets awoke then and started to look for their clothing in a panic. Xia Lei was more or less normal and he had his clothes but Annina could only walk out in pyjamas which looked like they were child-sized on her.
Xia Xue stood with her arms crossed, watching Annina come out of her brother’s room in a panic. She had to try very very hard to hold back her laughter when she saw Annina in the too-small pyjamas.
Annina smiled awkwardly at Xia Xue. “I… I was not in there for long. Uh, I went to talk with your brother about my plans.” Annina showed her the book after she spoke, as if to say ‘Look, the plans. It really is the plans - I’m not lying’.
Xia Xue acted like nothing was wrong and nodded. “Nn, I know. What I’m trying to say is that it’s already ten in the morning and I woke up at five.”
Annina blinked her large blue eyes, then covered part of her exposed b.u.t.tocks as she crept back into Xia Lei’s room.
Xia Lei walked out all properly dressed in a suit and dress shoes. He did not look like someone who had just gotten up at all, but like someone who was going to attend an important formal event.
“Isn’t it time for breakfast? What are you still standing here for? Why are you looking at me like that?” Xia Lei put on the act of a stern big brother.
Xia Xue let out a puffing laugh. “You’re so hardworking, Brother. You even talk about work in bed. Oh, right, what did you say again? Just friends?”
Xia Lei’s face turned red immediately. “Shoo, shoo, go do what you’re supposed to be doing. Kids should mind their own business and not poke their noses in adult matters.”
Xia Xue pouted. “I’m an adult too, okay? You keep treating me like a kid. I’m not going to care anymore.”
Xia Lei smiled wryly and shook his head, thinking that he really should buy a bigger home; a villa two or three stories high. His younger sister was considered an adult now but situations like these were still embarra.s.sing.
Breakfast proceeded in awkwardness and ended in awkwardness. Even the carefree Annina was rather sombre.
After breakfast, Xia Xue said, “Brother, I’m going to hang out with my best friend. No need to wait for me for lunch in the afternoon.”
“Go, go. Be careful out there,” said Xia Lei.
Xia Xue then said to Annina, “Bye, Big Sister Xia Mei.”
“Bye, Xue.” Annina let out an internal sigh of relief. She couldn’t wait for Xia Xue to leave.
Xia Lei remembered something when she walked to the door and called her. “Wait, I’ll get Lu Sheng to follow you. He’s on duty at the company. Hold on for fifteen minutes and he’ll be here.”
Xia Xue looked surprised. “You’re getting me a bodyguard, Brother? I’m not some princess; I don’t need a bodyguard. My friend will call me ostentatious. I don’t want to lose friends.”
Xia Lei wrinkled his brows. “Listen to me. Have you forgotten what happened last time? The Gu clan is rotten and they will do anything. I discovered a suspicious person yesterday - what if he harms you?”
“Really?” Xia Xue was frightened.
Xia Lei softened his tone. “I’ll get Lu Sheng to follow you. He’s very professional. Your friend won’t notice him.”
“Okay then. Let Big Brother Sheng come with me.” Xia Xue gave in.
Xia Lei gave Lu Sheng a call and he arrived in under twenty minutes. Xia Lei told him of the situation and he gladly consented to help. He left with Xia Xue.
Xia Lei had thought that Lu Sheng would leave too after Liang Si-Yao left since the main reason he had left Zhang Sen’s employment to come to him was Liang Si-Yao. It now looked like Lu Sheng was not the type to be swayed by emotions. Xia Lei also paid him way more than Zhang Sen did, and Lu Sheng was on better terms with him after coming back from Mount Emei.
“Do you think that suspicious person could be from America? CIA?” Annina was nervous too but she did not dare speak of it in front of Xia Xue and Lu Sheng.
The young man’s face appeared again in Xia Lei’s head. He thought for a bit and said, “Doesn’t seem likely but I have no way to confirm. Just be careful. Don’t show yourself in front of windows and don’t go out.”
Annina shrugged. “I didn’t step outside the whole day yesterday. I have people guarding me too but you don’t. You’re the one who should be more careful.”
“Nn, let’s talk about your plans. Last night…” Xia Lei did not continue. He had experienced the wildness of a Germanic woman last night and the experience was one he would remember his whole life.
Annina seemed a little shy too. “Why talk about it? Last night… You’ve broken me.”
Her shyness, coy eyes and this gentle, s.e.xy voice made a certain part of Xia Lei’s body wake up. He then felt an ache in his waist and complicated feelings arose. He said awkwardly, “Um, let’s just talk about those plans.”
Annina winked at him. “Let’s discuss it in the bedroom.”
Xia Lei was speechless.
Annina took Xia Lei’s arm and guided him to the bedroom.
Xia Lei’s waist and legs grew inexplicably achey.
The difficulty of servicing a German woman 185 cm tall was a higher level than normal…
Xia Lei only managed to finish reading the five pages of the plans Annina wrote by two in the afternoon. He had to admit that Annina was an expert in this field. She had only written five pages but there were detailed lists for the equipment, manpower and capital needed. He could understand everything in one reading and had a rough idea of what had to be done.
Of course, the actual time spent on the plans was just an hour.
“How much time do you need to finish it all?” Xia Lei put down the plans and looked at Annina.
A messy-haired Annina thought for a bit and replied, “I don’t have an a.s.sistant. I’ll need roughly a fortnight to complete the whole plan. I’d like to stay with you for this fortnight. Can you talk with Long Bing?”
Xia Lei subconsciously rubbed his very achey waist, his expression odd. “Uh, she’s not an easy person to talk to. I may not be able to convince her.”
Just a day and a half was already so intense - won’t he end up in the hospital if she were to stay for a fortnight?
“Mm, then forget it. I’ll come work at your company sooner or later anyway,” said Annina.
Xia Lei let out an internal sigh of relief. “Give me the plans in a fortnight. I’ll talk to Long Bing and Boss s.h.i.+. You should be able to come to my company after we conclude our talks.”
“Really? That’s great! I’ll finish these plans up as soon as I can.” Annina hugged Xia Lei in excitement.
Xia Lei grew nervous but fortunately, his phone rang.
It was Xia Xue. He accepted the call and her voice full of anxiety and nervousness immediately came from the phone. “Brother! Lu Sheng, he… He…”
Xia Lei’s heart sank. “What happened to Lu Sheng? Calm down, speak slowly.”
Xia Xue cried over the line, “He, he’s been stabbed. Come, quick. I, I’m so scared!”
“Where are you?”
“We are at the Couples’ Road, near the entrance of the Dahua Market. We planned to go to Fox Island but someone suddenly attacked me and tried to drag me to a car… Lu Sheng rushed over to fight him but he was stabbed in an instant. Brother, I’m scared… Wuuuh…” Xia Xue sobbed and could not continue.
“Don’t be scared. Call for the ambulance, then the police. I’ll be right there.” He hung up and got up to walk out the door as he said, “Annina, something’s happened. Stay inside, don’t go out. Call me if anything happens.”
“What happened?” asked Annina worriedly.
“I’ll tell you when I’m back. Stay inside. I’m off.” Xia Lei went out.
The black BMW M6 galloped on the road at up to 150 km/hr, but Xia Lei felt it was not enough - he wanted to sprout wings and fly to Xia Xue.
He did not see who had tried to kidnap Xia Xue but the young man’s face appeared in his mind again.
Lu Sheng was a Special Forces retiree, knew grappling and even did three years of Wing Chun. A man like him could not be defeated by anyone but he had been stabbed instantly. How strong had his opponent been?
Xia Lei felt an invisible pressure and his anger billowed fiercely. "How dare you make a move on my sister! I have only one sister - she’s my life! I don’t care if you’re from the Gu clan or the CIA. You harm my sister and I’ll have your life!"
If the perpetrator was that mysterious young man, was he from the Gu clan or the CIA? Xia Lei’s guess was the Gu clan. The CIA’s target was him, so they wouldn’t bother touching Xia Xue. This was not the best guess but he was roughly 80% sure. If he took the CIA out of the picture, then it could only be the Gu clan.
Gu Ke-Wu and Gu Ke-Wen’s face appeared in his head. He gritted his teeth and his expression grew savage. He wanted to kill!
Xia Xue called again before he got to Couples’ Road, telling him not to go there. She had already gotten into the ambulance with Lu Sheng and they were at the hospital in the area.
Xia Lei got to that hospital in twenty minutes and saw Xia Xue waiting for him as soon as he opened the door and walked into the lobby.
Xia Xue rushed into his arms when she saw him, crying loudly, “Brother… Whuuuh…”
“Hush, don’t be scared, Brother’s here. No one can harm you,” consoled Xia Lei.
Some of the fear in Xia Xue went away after she cried and she calmed.
“Tell Brother what that person looked like,” said Xia Lei.
“He covered his face. I did not see his face but his body is like yours. He’s very strong. He, he’s scary,” said Xia Xue.
This short description was enough for Xia Lei to confirm that that person was the young man he had seen in the park taking pictures of him and Shentu Tian-Yin, because that young man’s body was very similar to his.
A police officer walked over. “Miss, I have a few questions for you. Please a.s.sist in our investigation.”
Xia Xue looked at Xia Lei.
“Go on. I’ll go see Lu Sheng,” said Xia Lei.
Xia Xue went with the police officer and Xia Lei went to the doors of the operating room. Two police officers stood on guard by the doors. The doors were closed and there was no way to see Lu Sheng, who was undergoing emergency operations to save his life.
Xia Lei’s left eye twitched and the scene in the operating room entered his eye.
Two surgeons were operating on Lu Sheng and several nurses were close by, a.s.sisting. Lu Sheng lay on the operating table with his eyes closed and a respirator over his nose and mouth. He had three stab wounds on his body - one in his lower abdomen, one on his arm and one below his heart.
The stab wound below his heart was obviously the most serious. Lu Sheng would be dead if it had been just one centimetre higher.
‘Rest a.s.sured, Lu Sheng. I will avenge you!’ Xia Lei inner voice was as cold as ice.