Inside the car, Reuben and Mathew sat in the backseat and his driver accelerated as they exited the hotel premises.

"Boss, the manager just notified me that he has completed the task that was given to him." Mathew spoke after he checked his phone.

Reuben just nodded and looked out of the window.

"I want you to keep your mouth shut about Lina. That includes your wife as well." He spoke up when they were out on the open road.

He then turned to face his assistant and looked him straight in the eye.

"I know that you are my mother's little spy but if she gets to know anything about last night, then forget about that paid vacation you had applied for as a 'paternity leave'." He sweetly smiled at his assistant.

Mathew wanted to help his wife out when the baby was born so he applied for a Paternity leave, the first such application in the company, and the approval needed to come from his boss. So there was no way he could reject this command.

Therefore his plan of video calling Mrs. Ming went down the drain with this single sentence.

"I understand why I cannot tell Madam Ming but why not my wife? How am I going to introduce them to each other if I don't tell her about it!" He sulked.

"Just tell her that Lina caught your interest and you want to be friends with her." Reuben chuckled when he saw how terrified Mathew looked after he heard this.

'No way! Olli-bear will maul me to death if I tell her that!' He shivered when he thought of his wife's wrath.

As he was sulking about not being able to introduce them to each other, he remembered a crucial detail.

"But Boss, won't that woman just go and open her mouth before Madam Ming?" Mathew expressed his doubts about Talia opening her big mouth before their families.

When Reuben heard this, he pondered for a few seconds and then calmly replied.

"Doesn't mother always mock me for being an old virgin? Now, this can keep her off my back for some time." He was happy to strike two birds with one stone.

Lina, the stone would be used to shield him from Talia's continuous pestering and from his mother's ridicule.

Though nothing intimate happened between them, he could still use this opportunity to get back his quiet life.

'Sorry, kitten. I will be causing you some trouble for the time being.' He smiled when he looked at the contact saved on his phone.

"Talia doesn't know who Lina is. She just introduced herself as my girlfriend so you just have to make sure that they do not find out anything about her identity." He ordered after a long pause.

'Now that's a joke.' Mathew chortled out loud which made Reuben turn to face him.

"Did I say something funny just now, Asst Kim?" He raised his brows in question.

Asst Kim stifled his laugh and anxiously shook his head.

"Boss, what exactly do we know about her anyway?" Mathew rubbed his chin with a profound expression on his face.

Reuben was talking about her identity as 'LY' because one was a LY lover while the other loathed the very existence of LY and Obsidia.

But when he heard Mathew's words, he too fell into deep thought about this matter.

"I know she works at Obsidia Designs, that is why she was Wade's date for the auction." He disclosed.

Mathew's jaw dropped and he gawked at Reuben.

"She was the lady in the mask with Master Wade at the auction?" Mathew was shocked at his sudden revelation.

'If she was with Master Wade but spent the night with the Emperor, then does that mean Master Wade is now wearing a big green hat?' He bit his nails in nervousness.

He was worried about their friendship and brotherhood after this incident gets revealed but his boss was in his own sweet world.

'Wade was willing to attend the auction with so many people because his company's famed designer had come to witness it incognito. He was just there to escort her safely.' This gave Reuben a valid explanation as to why they had come together.

"I can guarantee that she's rich based on the fact that she could book a room at such a big hotel." Mathew mentioned the other information he had on her.

'She just earned more than a hundred million in a single hour. I think she is more than rich.' Reuben mocked his ignorant assistant.

"She arrived in the country with us and we have never heard about any socialite named Lina. So maybe she's new to the city or she's just visiting for some time and will leave soon." Mathew spitballed his opinion without noticing the changes in Reuben's face.

'Just visiting?' Reuben did not like the sound of those words and his mood soured.

'I finally found someone that I can vibe with but now there's a chance that she will be leaving soon?' He grimaced at this thought.

'Reuben, don't overthink it! You aren't even that close to her anyway.' Though he comforted himself with those words he still decided to wait for her call and when she does contact him, he'll try to find out more about her.

"Boss, do you want me to investigate more about Lina?" Mathew offered but he saw Reuben shaking his head in refusal.

'It will be fun to get to know more about her on my own rather than reading about it from a file.' He liked this idea very much.

"Did you find out how Talia was aware of my room number?" He got back to the thing that was troubling him.

"Her sister had accidentally discovered your name when she was searching for someone else's name in the system." He explained about how Valeria had secretly bribed the concierge.

"Who was she searching for?" Reuben's curiosity had piqued.

"Mr. Huo." Mathew read the name and immediately understood what was happening.

While the older sister was aiming for the King of the eligible bachelor list. The younger sister had set her sights on Louis Huo, the uncrowned King of the same list.

'Isn't he out of the country right now?' Reuben wondered because he was sure that Louis wasn't in the country due to business purposes.

'So I wasn't the original target, just an unfortunate passerby who got pulled into their plans because that man was unavailable?' He frowned when the thought of this new man.

Louis Huo was Moira and Ralph Huo's son. The biggest competition for Reuben but that was back when he was still in this city.

A couple of years ago, the Huos had shifted their headquarters to a neighboring city and their clashes in the business world reduced as well.

But that rivalry never really ended despite the distance between them.

They soon reached the Ming Enterprise HQ and Reuben placed all his attention on the forthcoming meeting.

--

While Lina was having a relaxing massage, things in Yang Manor weren't all that relaxing.

Mandy was crying bitterly on her mother's shoulder while Lucille was trying hard not to push her away.

'She's been spoiling the entire atmosphere from last night!' Lucille just patted on her back to comfort her.

From the kitchen, Butler and Mrs. Ping accompanied by Chef Greene watched this melodramatic scene that did not look like it would end anytime soon.

Their attention shifted from the sobbing woman towards the door when they heard footsteps.

Patrick Yang had just entered when he saw the two women on the couch.

'What now?' He quietly turned towards the stairs and was tiptoeing away when Lucille spotted him.

"Master, you have come back!" She shoved Mandy aside and adjusted her dress in a hurry after she got up.

'Master? Why is she always so weird?' Pat felt creeped out when he saw her enthusiastic face coming closer to him.