Zhao Moyao's eyes flickered with surprise. He finally saw her as a grown woman. In his eyes, she had always been that stubby child reaching her arms up for his hugs. Even when she became an adult, he still viewed her as a kid. He thought he would forever see her like that, but today, she proved him wrong.
She was not that weak little girl anymore, crying herself to sleep, letting the words of her peers affect her. She was finally strong now, strong enough for her to fight her own battles.
Zhao Lifei spoke up, "Old Master Yang has a fondness towards Su Meixiu because he believes her family's lineage will help train the men of the Underworld, but our lineage can keep them out of trouble shall they ever have a run-in with the government or police. He likes her because she's not a weak woman, she can defend herself."
Zhao Moyao was shocked to see she had thought about the situation to this extent.
Zhao Lifei added, "Yes, the Yangs are powerful enough to hold them off for a while, but they cannot do so forever."
Zhao Lifei was lying when she told Yang Yulong and Yang Ruqin that she did not have ample connections in the military.
She was there for two years and had spent the entire time surrounded by fellow soldiers, who had turned into good friends. Training alongside each other, facing the same hardships, crying together in frustration, practicing and celebrating when they finally grasped the concepts. These things made those two years of friendship feel like two decades.
Zhao Moyao chuckled at her words. Indeed, she was right. The Zhao's could bring more to the table than the Su's could.
"Of course, Xiao Fei. How could I forget?" Zhao Moyao revealed a proud smile.
Su Meixiu was not the only one who could fight. This little granddaughter of his could do much more than that. She just never had the opportunity to properly shine and show off her capabilities.
"Elder Yang's birthday is coming up very soon." He began, thinking back to the invite he received a couple of days ago. "Every year, he arranges for his people to send out invitations, but every year, he also personally selects a few he hands a special invite to."
Zhao Moyao had known the man since they were in middle school. The two might have not grown up together like Yang Ruqin and Zhao Lifei had, but their friendship went back decades before any of their grandchildren were even born.
"This year, you will attend with me. Yang Feng will ask you to be his partner, but I want you to reject him and inform him of the change of plans." Zhao Moyao laid out what he had in mind.
"It would be beneficial to attend with him and be formally introduced as his girlfriend, but I know Elder Yang. He behaves the same way I do. He does not value family enough to care who is being introduced if she is not Su Meixiu."
"If you accompany me, it will be easier for me to introduce you as my granddaughter. If he sees I have acknowledged you enough to personally bring you with me, his impression towards you will be better." Zhao Moyao himself would ensure the night would go as planned. Not a single flaw would occur. "Only after you have been introduced will Yang Feng and Yang Ruqin be allowed to get close to you."
Su Meixiu might've been an ideal candidate, but Elder Yang also valued the importance of family — as surprising as it sounds, for he was a man known to be strict and ruthless to his own kin, especially his grandchildren. He believed the useless ones who are good-for-nothings leeching off of the Yang family name should not be acknowledged, nor should they have a place in his will.
He had disregarded many of his grandchildren and even went as far as disowning a select few. They would beg, grovel, and kowtow for his mercy, but he would not care. All of them could be rotting off somewhere and if they were not one he deemed valuable, he would turn a blind eye to them as he would to a homeless person on the street.
"To have two of his favorite grandchildren surround you will be very ideal. Seeing as Yang Ruqin will cling onto you as well as that stubborn brute, Old Man Yang will surely notice you."
Zhao Lifei was not stunned to see her grandfather had already planned this far in advance. Even with his age, his brain was as sharp as it was in his youthful years.
She hated the idea of relying on her grandfather again, but knew it would be best if she listened to him this time. She could try to enter the banquet by herself, but that would only make a mess if she did not have anyone backing her up as Su Meixiu did.
"I understand." She obediently said, listening as he continued on.
"Good, now go and rest. The banquet is a week from now, be sure to have a dress ready." He ushered her off to her room before sending the maids to arrange her bed and give her a warm cup of milk with honey — something that helped her to sleep as she often had nightmares…
He knew he would need to do something for the nights filled with her screams. On many occasions, he would be shaken awake by the sound of her desperate and heartbreaking wails...
- - - - -
The next day, Zhao Lifei barely finished her breakfast when one of the maids rushed into the breakfast room. Luckily, Zhao Moyao had left earlier than usual this morning, or else he would've fired the woman on the spot.
Zhao Lifei was more compassionate towards her, for she was the daughter of one of the older and retired maids that used to take care of her.
"Y-young Miss, there's this incredibly handsome hunk—n-no, wait, I mean—"
Zhao Lifei chuckled at how flustered the maid was. Her face was flushed and her innocent eyes were bouncing around the room, obviously distraught by the suave man she had seen so early in the morning.
Zhao Lifei had a suspicion she was not the only maid who was baffled by who they saw. Without a doubt, she already knew who was waiting for her.
"Invite him into this room. Tell him I have not finished my breakfast yet." She mused, taking a sip of the freshly-squeezed orange juice.
The maid bobbed her head so fast, Zhao Lifei worried for her poor neck.
A few minutes later, the grand door was pushed open and in strolled Yang Feng in all his glory. His raven hair was naturally swept back, his eyes as soul-piercing as always, his tall stature made it hard to miss him. Dressed in all black, except for his white button-up, both of his hands tucked into the front pockets of his well-fitted dress pants, he looked like a mafia boss turned businessman.
"You're drooling." He smirked when he saw her staring for so long. He shouldn't have said that, for he too was studying her appearance. He never had a favorite color until he saw her dressed in a light pink top. The color resembled her skin after their kisses as that very shade of pink would spread across her chest, up her neck, and towards her cheeks. He felt his heart stir. From now on, it would be his favorite color.
"Here's a napkin." She passed it to him.
"What for?"
"You're also drooling." She teased back, regretting it when he stopped in front of her, placing one arm towards the back of her chair and bent so their faces were on the same level. Using one finger, he hooked it under her chin, leaning closer to her, sending her heart off.
She gulped at the stare he was giving her, filled with passion and a subtle hint of desire. She shivered, closing her eyes when he acted as if he was going to kiss her, but went for the corner of her lips instead. She let out an indistinguishable sound when his lips teasingly skimmed her jawline, traveling down towards her neck, towards his favorite spot.
She could feel her body begin to hum with pleasure when he kissed the area only to bite it after, sending a gasp out of her lips before he soothed the pain by licking it and then sucking, before kissing it again. He continued to lavish her neck with pleasurable bites and kisses that went everywhere but her lips.
Zhao Lifei felt her brain turn to mush. She could not think properly with his traveling lips, igniting a warm path of heat wherever he touched or kissed.
"You owe me." He mumbled against her skin, his hand skimming the area where her neck met her chest before going back to her chin.
"H-huh?" She was so clouded by his pleasurable lips to even realize what he had said.
"The two kisses. I want them from you now."