After four men’s desperate efforts, the room no one could even enter before had at last been made new. The dust was cleared away spotlessly, expensive wallpaper had been freshly hung on the walls and ceiling, and a pale yellow carpet was laid across the floor. This carpet had originally been in Su Feifei’s own room; at her strenuous insistence, it had been brought here — and by an odd coincidence, it matched this room remarkably well, without a single note of discord once laid down. This discovery set Su Feifei’s eyes sparkling, and she exclaimed over and over about how fated she and this room were, which set the four bodyguards’ hearts trembling.

Bed, cabinet, writing desk, vanity, mirror… all installed. The four bodyguards, once immaculate in suits and leather shoes, were now blackened head to toe, as if they’d crawled out of an ash heap. But looking at the room’s transformation, they finally let out a small breath of relief. Su Feifei had grown up in genuine silk and jade, and had she been made to live in a room as filthy as the one before — forget the young mistress, none of the four of them could have accepted it either.

It was all arranged… which meant she really was going to live here from now on.

“Miss, it’s all done.”

Rustle… Su Feifei promptly produced from her bag a list written not long ago and thrust it in the bodyguard’s face. “These are the things I want bought. Get all of them back here within the hour!”

Looking at that list, well over a meter long, the four bodyguards nearly wept.

And Ye Tianxie, who had been playing dead in front of the television all this while, finally shifted his gaze — not toward Su Feifei, but toward the door.

Several hurried footsteps drew faintly nearer, then came a sound, and the half-shut front door was shoved open. A man in a neat suit strode in at the head. His gaze swept the room swiftly, and the brows already knitted furrowed deeper still. He was middle-aged, around forty, of medium build and unremarkable appearance, with a squarish face — but his gaze was piercing enough to give one a start, and the air about him could unsettle the mind, leaving one with the vague sense that though he stood right there before you, he was somehow looking down at you from a great height. Behind him followed two men of similar age, each exactly one step behind him, likewise unremarkable in appearance — yet to be swept by their gaze, or to come near them, was to feel an inexplicable pressure that made breathing difficult.

His gaze passed over the room like lightning and came to rest at last on Su Feifei, who had turned in astonishment. In an instant, Ye Tianxie knew who this man was.

Su Feifei and the four bodyguards all stared at the suddenly-arrived man in shock. Su Feifei took two steps forward, then stopped, and said gingerly, “Dad… why are you back?”

“Hmph!” The middle-aged man snorted heavily, his brows still locked tight. “Nonsense! What utter nonsense! If I hadn’t come back, you’d really have moved in here… moved into a young man’s home!” With that, he glanced at Ye Tianxie from the corner of his eye — and as their gazes met, something stirred in him. Here was a man of flawless looks, with a charm that could tear through a young girl’s defenses with ease… But what struck him most were the man’s eyes and expression. He showed no surprise, no tension, and certainly no fear; within that calm face was a faint, barely-there trace of amusement, and the look he turned on him was more like the probing gaze of someone who found him interesting.

Su Luo… Su Feifei’s father… the world-renowned richest man in Huaxia, and the richest in Asia besides, his assets truly enough to rival a nation’s. He had striven and struggled half a lifetime, had met figures great and small of every description, had weathered storms of every size… and Ye Tianxie’s bearing right now left him rarely at a loss.

“Boss.” The four bodyguards at Su Feifei’s side stepped forward together in greeting, heads lowered, wearing the expressions of men who had committed some monumental error. Su Luo’s gaze swept across the four of them and he snapped, “How could you let her run wild with something like this? Why didn’t you notify me sooner? This is outrageous!”

None of the four dared speak, standing in a neat row in the posture of men resigned to punishment. It wasn’t that the thought of reporting to Su Luo had never crossed their minds… but when the young mistress lost her temper, she was far more terrifying than their boss.

“Dad!” Su Feifei bit her lip lightly, her gaze stubborn as she looked at her father. “Don’t interfere in this — I’ve already decided! Until I want to leave here, I’m going to keep living here!”

“No! Absolutely not! Feifei, you’re not a child anymore. Do you know what you’re doing?!” Su Luo said, frowning. But Su Feifei’s eyes made his brow twitch. Once again she wore that stubborn look, the one that would not turn back even if she were in the wrong — and what’s more, her room at home was now empty. Everything of hers, including the things she treasured most and could never bear to part with, was gone… all of it moved here. Which meant she was, with genuine, obstinate seriousness, determined to move into the home of a man who could only be called a stranger.

Just what was drawing her, pulling her, insisting she come here?

“Yes! I’m not a child anymore, so I know exactly what I’m doing! I’m going to live here!” Su Feifei shook her head obstinately, her gaze darting to Ye Tianxie in the hope, however extravagant, that he might say something to help her.

Ye Tianxie switched off the television and half-turned, watching them with the expression of a man enjoying a play. That look nearly gave the two men behind Su Luo — still as stone statues — the urge to punch him under the sofa.

Su Luo was silent for a moment, plainly astonished by his daughter’s seemingly reasonless obstinacy. He was her father; there should have been no one in the world who understood his daughter better… and yet at this moment he couldn’t fathom what she was after at all. Could it be nothing but a passing impulse, a moment’s madness?

His expression eased, and he made his voice as gentle as he could, speaking with earnest weight. “Feifei, I know what you’re thinking. But do you truly understand him?” He indicated Ye Tianxie with his eyes. “Do you know his background? His temperament? His character, his disposition? You’ve never spent any time with him at all, let alone come to understand him. Just because he once saved you, you’d… And besides, this place is filthy — how could you possibly bear it! Ah, Feifei, you really aren’t a child anymore. You ought to understand what should and shouldn’t be done.”

Su Feifei went on biting her lip. Her father’s persuasion hadn’t shaken her resolve in the slightest. She shook her head again. “Dad, I’ve already decided. I’m going to live here. No matter who tries to talk me out of it… I won’t listen!”

Su Luo let out a heavy breath, his brows sinking, and strode forward with heavy steps until he stood directly before her. Su Feifei didn’t retreat, lifting her head to meet his gaze, stubborn and resolute.

“Come home with me. Whatever you have to say, we’ll say it back home.” Su Luo reached for Su Feifei’s arm. Su Feifei stepped back to avoid him and shook her head hard. “I’m not going home. I’m going to live here. Dad, I’m not playing around — I seriously want to stay here. Just leave it alone, all right?”

Su Luo’s brows drew tighter and tighter. He stepped forward. “Come home with me!”

“I’m not going home!!!!”

That near-roar of a shout froze Su Luo’s expression where he stood — and left Ye Tianxie and the six bodyguards stunned as well.

(End of Chapter 72)