The conversation turned towards a positive light. It was because the lady refused to give up so easily. If her husband would be so willing to fight for their love and marriage together with all their might, she would definitely reconsider.

Because her love for him and the family they are creating is her bottom line.

"Is that what you want, darling?" Chen Linyun squeezed his way to get closer to the wife and sneaked a peck on her flushed pinkish cheek.

She giggled indulgingly and shamelessly. "This is what I want."

 "The cookies? You should have requested for it sooner! No problem~"

"No, no, no! You got it all wrong."

"No? Not the cookies?"

"No. Try again." There was a certain glimmer in her eyes.

"Then, pampering you? The cuc.u.mber facemasks?"

"No and no. Mhmm… I'll give you half a point." She traced his lower lip with her thumb teasingly. "You listening to me, Mister. And you giving me enough attention. Asking me what I want rather than a.s.suming and deciding for me. Making me feel that I'm important too."

She rested her head on the nook of his shoulder. "But it's only half of it. You have to supply the other end. You have to know that you can tell me anything as well, Chen Linyun." She mumbled imploringly. Her deepest hope was for her well-intended message to come across. 

"Don't keep everything to yourself and make me just an accessory in your house. Don't ignore me. Ask me what I want but tell me what you want too, and what's bothering you if there's any. If I ask you, don't just answer that you're okay when you're clearly not. Don't make a fool of me, and of yourself for thinking that you can do it alone. You might have done it alone before and still be fine, but you don't have to, you know? You have me. I'll help you generously along the way. I'm here."

Chen Linyun exhaled sharply. "I'm sorry for making you feel so terrible around and about my issues. I'm sorry for treating you so badly. I didn't mean to."

"You are important. You're the most important person for me. So important that I was so scared to lose you if I did something wrong."

"It's okay as long as you stop doing it." She snuggled with him tightly like a kitten that was once forsaken by its master.

"I don't care about anything else, Chen Linyun. I just want to keep you for myself. But you keep on shutting me out. It's hurting me."

"You don't have any idea how scary you can get. I think I'm traumatized." The cunning Chen Linyun acted weakly. Sometimes, in weakness, there is strength.

Xue Jinxu saw through his plan but played along. "Alright, alright! I won't do it, too." She patted his cheek and ruffled his hair. "My Chen Linyun! I guess our fear of losing each is what impedes us from understanding the other. Let's work harder! I promise I won't terrorize you ever, dear."

Xue Jinxu flirtatiously kissed his cheek.

Chen Linyun's face shouted incredulity. "You can't do it." He judged.

"See? It hasn't been an hour and you've a.s.sumed already. Or you're challenging me?" She narrowed her eyes. "I'll do it."

She grinned confidently.

His lips curled up.

"I miss our sweet nothings."

Eye-to-eye, their perspective met. They both tilted their heads, and inch by inch, they closed their gap and sealed it with a kiss, full of love and understanding.

That night, the Chen couple went back to being lovey-dovey. The dream house's dim energy once again burst into high spirits. 

With all smiles, Chen Linyun informed his wife of his short visit to the convenience store. He's going to pamper the wife tonight.

Everything that he mentioned at the veranda – the cookies, the face mask, the manicure, and all the pampering – would come to life that night.

While waiting at the Chen dreamhouse, Xue Jinxu took a relaxing bath in the tub and submerged herself in the warm, relaxing water. Electric scented candles were operated to further calm her nerves as she took the plunge into the tub and closed her eyes. Cla.s.sical music played in the background. 

Her huge generous smiles remained plastered on her face while she patiently waited for her husband's return from his impromptu grocery shopping.

As Chen Linyun arrived at the nearby convenience store just a few blocks away, few men dressed poorly like peasants were effectively hidden and seemed to be observing him from afar. They slowly reduced their distance from him, walking inconspicuously as if they weren't in the same group, and as if they were strangers with each other.

When they were just a few meters away from the convenience store, another tall man stood in the middle of the deserted street and faced them.

He stood brazenly and firmly, and said forebodingly yet calmly, "Not him."

"But Bai An!"

"If you still respect me, you will listen to me. Not that man."

"But he's that old man's child, too. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Don't forget the deaths our village encountered because of the oil spill, both humans and animals alike."

Another man chimed in, "I lost my parents."

"Me too!"

"Our livelihood went dead! Our poultry and livestock, dead!"

They protested.

Xue Minhe raised his hands to pacify the rowdy crowd. "I know what you've been fighting for, and believe me, I am with you in your fight. The old man is behind bars now, paying for all his wrongdoings. Evidence pointing to him as the sole responsible of the oil spill has resurfaced. He could never get away with it anymore. Let the old man pay. Spare this man and their sister."

"For one, Chen Linyun is the person behind the company who helped the island develop alternative livelihood. If his father perpetuated the sin, that man unconsciously paid for it through his kindness. Just think that he's already paid his dues."

"What about the girl then?"

"The girl isn't even raised by that man. She's been detached from the old man for years. How can you drag that innocent girl into this huge mess? We're not monsters. We're just here for vengeance. And even so, let's not forget to be reasonable."

"We are not bad people. We're only here to reap what we had sown, no more no less. The eldest child should suffice. He's the most abominable among those three, and a promising one to follow his evil father's footsteps. We should stop the growth of evil and the chain of events from continuing." Xue Minhe trailed on.

"He should be enough as our retribution." He added.

"The problem is…" The man standing from his left spoke abruptly.

Xue Minhe sensed the agitation among the men he considers as his comrades for several years regardless of their gap in stature.

"What's wrong?" Instantly, he s.h.i.+fted to vigilance. He studied the men in front of him. 

Suddenly, the confident men's gazes all darted elsewhere, evidently avoiding Xue Minhe's eyes. "That man – Han Fengyu… Bai An." 

"What is it?!" He commanded with such a powerful voice. "Just spit it out! Tell me so that we can address it as soon as possible!"

"That man, Han Fengyu… We lost him."