145 Extinct Animals and Dead People

"I heard that the Tang family's compound was raided last night. Was it you?" Lily asked while eating the Caesar salad that Zhuo Jingren made for her.

It was already Monday, exactly a week after women groups started filing cases against the Tang father and son.

Within the week, various criminal cases were filed against the Tang family, prompting the government to perform a thorough investigation on them. As the matter with the Tang family was huge, the government couldn't be seen to be indifferent or else the masses would revolt against them.

Last night, a group of people from Interpol cracked down on the Tang family. Though it was not impossible for Interpol to get ahold of incriminating evidence on the Tang family, Lily thought that it all happened too quickly. Lily suspected that someone might have handed over crucial evidence to Interpol to speed things up.

"Hmmm… It was supposed to be a surprise." Zhuo Jingren grinned. "You are surprised, right?"

Lily scoffed and shook her head in response. It was a surprise indeed. She was originally planning to take it slow and let the people and government do their job before giving George the go-ahead to attack the Tang family. However, this works well too.

"George will be flying in soon. Perhaps next week or maybe in the next few days to take over the Tang family's underworld network. I want you to meet him."

"Alright." He nodded while looking at her intently.

"What's wrong? Do I have something on my face?" she asked as she subconsciously reached her hand for a napkin to wipe her mouth.

"You know… I just realized that you are the most brilliant person that I know. First you made the Arisons suffer and now you are using George Arison to attack the Tangs. No one would suspect that you two are working together. Such a smart move. How did you become so smart? Is there something planted in your brain?" he teased. Zhuo Jingren remembered how the playful little Hua'er would struggle with her homework.

"I am not brilliant." She frowned. "And stop calling me dumb already."

"I said you were brilliant, when did I call you dumb?" he laughed, only to receive a glare from Lily.

"Do you know why I didn't like you when we were children? That's because you were boring. You were always talking about dinosaurs and going on and on about Aristotle. Why do you always have to talk about extinct animals and dead people huh? What's so interesting about them?"

Zhuo Jingren let out another hearty laugh that echoed in the dining room, sending ripples in Lily's heart. For some reason, his laughter reminded her of spring; fresh and vibrant.

"But look at you now? Aren't you now my wife? In the end…you still like me and married me!" He gave her a smug smile before laughing once again.

"Hmp! Who likes you? I married you because you are rich!" she retorted before avoiding his gaze. She was partly sure that she married him for his wealth.

"Then... Did you have someone you liked before?" he asked, with a big smile on his face.

"Of course! Do you think I am abnormal? I really liked your friend back then… Ah… What was his name? Wei Tian? Li Yan? Tian Tian?"

"You mean Bei Tian?" Zhuo Jingren frowned. Bei Tian was his best friend who helped him ask Qin Jinghua to give Zhuo Jingren a chance in the future.

"Ah! Yes! I liked that guy! Bei Tian… He was a simple guy, unlike someone who is smart but...faints in front of the girl he likes." Lily smirked at him. When she saw how red Zhuo Jingren's face had become, she couldn't help but laugh out loud. It was fun teasing her husband ah.

While Lily continued to laugh, Zhuo Jingren slowly put down his fork and looked intently at her. His eyes looked sharp, akin to that of an eagle.

'Uh-oh. Could he be angry for real this time?'

In one swift motion, she rose from her seat and ran out of the dining room, laughing, with Zhuo Jingren hot on her heels.

Laughter and screams continued to echo inside the luxurious penthouse in Sky City that was overlooking the brightly lit cityscape against the cloudless dark night sky…

…

Qin Estate.

Tang Lingyun was sitting on her bed, hugging her legs and crying her heart out. Just last night, a group of men raided the Tang compound and seized a lot of illegal firearms from her brother's villa. When Old Man Tang heard the news, he was so shocked that he suffered a heart attack. At the hospital, Tang Lingyun was informed that her father's heart attack was a fatal one and Old Man Tang had fallen into a coma and was currently in a vegetative state.

As the head of the Tang family, Old Man Tang held a huge amount of influence in Hong Kong. He had many powerful friends and acquaintances in different sectors which practically made him untouchable. Old Man Tang being hospitalized at this crucial moment was devastating news for Tang Lingyun.

Somehow, news of the raid and even Old Man Tang's heart attack spread. Together with the media's attention on this, the entire Hong Kong also came to know about this.

Disgruntled people instantly gathered outside the hospital and created a ruckus. 'How could a prestigious hospital provide care for a murderer and abuser?' This was what everyone thought. Even victims of the Tang family's illegal money lending business joined the crowd of protestors outside the hospital. It was very chaotic.

Given all that was happening, Tang Lingyun knew that the Tang family was done for.

"Mo… What am I going to do now? I can't even go and see my father, not when there are protesters outside the hospital. I'm afraid people might recognise me and harass me. I can't see my father, my brother or my nephew. Why do I feel like I am so useless, Mo?" She continued to cry in her husband's arms.

Tang Lingyun knew that once her Tang family perishes, everything will change. She wouldn't be able to hold her head up as everyone else will start to judge her. It wouldn't even matter that she is still Qin Mo's wife. She was used to being respected and even feared in the socialite circle that she couldn't imagine how life would be like when all these were suddenly taken away from her.

If people were to see how pitifully Tang Lingyun was crying right now, they would think that she was devastated by what happened to her father, brother and nephew. But the reality was, she was more concerned about a bleak future without the Tang family's support.

"It is not safe for you to go out right now. Just stay at home and call Qin Fei. Assure her that everything is going to be alright. People might start to find out the connection between you and the Tang family soon. I will need to make preparations for this." Qin Mo stroked his wife's back one last time before he released her from his embrace and stood up.

He then walked towards their bedroom window and looked out with a pensive look on his face. Shoving his hands in his pants pockets, he said, "I remember you said before that you wanted to become an actress again. This is actually a good time for you to return to the film industry."

"H-How?" she asked a little confused. How could she become an actress again? She was sure that people would criticize her because of her family background.

…

Editor: Swaning