Chapter 474 - Drained

Some of Jin Liwei and Lu Zihao's subordinates stood by the door and in other strategic points of the library office. They stood like statues in their positions and made sure that nobody disturbed their employers.

Dom and Clover weren't in the library office. The siblings accompanied Little Jun in Clover's bedroom. The poor child was already asleep. However, it was a very fretful sleep. Droplets of tears escaped from the corner of his closed eyes. He also whimpered now and then.

As for Wei Lan, Iris didn't allow her to join them at the library office. Iris felt annoyed by her nonstop complaining and scolding of Jiang Ying Yue. Wei Lan didn't mind because she found an audience for her rants from the younger maids.

At the moment, Iris also felt very annoyed at Jiang Ying Yue. She agreed with Wei Lan calling Jiang Ying Yue a "stupid girl". Actually, Iris knew that Jiang Ying Yue let Long Hui go. Ketchup reported everything that was happening in the unit to her and Jin Liwei in real time while they were on their way to the condo building.

If Iris instructed Ketchup to do so, the virtual white cat would have locked Long Hui inside the building, not allowing him to escape even when Jiang Ying Yue and Jin Liwei's subordinates had already let him go. However, Iris didn't do it.

Why?

First, it was because she respected her friend's decision.

Second, she wanted Jiang Ying Yue to realize that Long Hui wouldn't appreciate her kindness and compassion tonight. Iris was sure that Long Hui would retaliate soon. Jiang Ying Yue needed to experience the full brunt of Long Hui's true colours, so that she could finally toss away any of her remaining tender feelings for him.

Third, it wasn't smart to detain Long Hui. He might start accusing them of unlawful detention and use it against them in public.

And fourth, they needed Long Hui to be foolish enough to retaliate on his own, so that they could gather more evidence against him to aid Jiang Ying Yue.

Lu Zihao also followed them on a separate car. He already knew about Ketchup and was very impressed. He was so impressed that he requested for Iris to make a separate version for his own personal use. Iris hadn't agreed yet, though. She had to think about it very carefully first. After all, Ketchup wasn't some simple software that she could give to her big brother like candy. The cat AI was basically a virtual baby hacker that was growing at an incredible rate. It was like having another Drakonless experienced and not as skilled for now, but had the potential to become extremely formidable in the future.

By this time, Iris was already aware that Ketchup was evolving into something even more amazing than what she first expected. That was why she was being very careful in nurturing the virtual white cat. She didn't want her baby to be used for nefarious means (except by her and her darling, of course).

Back to the present, the heavy atmosphere was interrupted by Lu Zihao's smooth, devilish voice.

"Little sister, my subordinates are tailing that son of a bitch right now. Why don't I order them toteach him a lesson? Nothing too serious, don't worry. We'll leave a limb or two intact," he said in light tone that sounded like he was joking but also serious at the same time.

Jiang Ying Yue shivered, including some of the Jin Liwei's newly hired subordinates who hadn't experienced enough tempering yet.

"N-no, please" Jiang Ying Yue said in a small voice.

Lu Zihao looked at her, raised an eyebrow and chuckled. Everyone would have believed that he was just joking, if his eyes didn't look cold and emotionless. It made his charismatic laughter sound utterly demonic.

Jin Liwei observed his Fifth Brother with a barely discernible frown on his face. However, he didn't say anything.

"Big Brother, leave it," Iris told him.

Iris wasn't the least bit bothered by the dangerous aura he was emitting so strongly at the moment. In fact, she oddly felt comforted by it. It reminded her of her Big Brother Nikolai in their past lives.

Jin Liwei, however, felt a little disturbed by it. This Lu Zihao didn't feel like his Fifth Brother. Nevertheless, he was trying to accept this new Lu Zihao. The two had a long talk a few nights ago. It was then that Jin Liwei learned that his Fifth Brother had changed so much. It wasn't just his appearance. His personality and lifestyle had also drastically changed. Despite this, Jin Liwei still cared for him as one of his best friends and brothers, and also because he was extremely important to his baby girl.

Putting aside Lu Zihao's potent and dangerous aura for now, Iris focused on Jiang Ying Yue. Her friend looked emotionally exhausted and weary. Iris' heart softened. There was no use scolding Jiang Ying Yue at this time. Besides, it wasn't her fault that Long Hui had become such a stupid asshole.

Iris sighed and said in a much gentler voice, "Let's call it a night. We're all tired. Let's talk tomorrow instead. And hurry up. Go pack a bag. You and Little Jun will be temporarily living at Dragon Palace until the issue with your ex-fianc is resolved. You'll be safer there."

"Ialright. I'll just commute back here every morning for work," Jiang Ying Yue replied.

"No, you won't. I'm officially giving you an earlier and extended vacation starting tomorrow. Just use this time to comfort Little Jun. My godson needs you especially after what happened tonight. And also, the two of you need to complete your preparations. We'll be going abroad very soon," Iris told her.

Jiang Ying Yue opened her mouth. Iris knew that she was about to change her mind about it, so she interrupted Jiang Ying Yue before she could do so.

"You and Little Jun are coming with us," Iris said in a firm tone. "It's also safer if the two of you are always with us. It will make it harder for your ex-fianc to bother you."

Iris had already stopped calling Long Hui as "Elder Brother". She now referred to him as Jiang Ying Yue's "ex-fianc". Besides, she never felt truly close to him, only tolerating him because of Little Jun and Jiang Ying Yue.

Jiang Ying Yue sat in the backseat of one of the vehicles while carefully cradling her sleeping son. She felt emotionally drained, gazing outside the window with empty eyes. She thought that this was the worst night of her life.

She was wrong.

Because a few days later, she would experience an even worse pain.