Chapter 70: Now the time has come to speak of it!
Lin Mu was unaware of the events that had unfolded at the Four Seas Hotel. At that moment, he was sitting with Qin Luoli in a Western-style restaurant, enjoying a rare dinner together.
"Why aren’t you eating?" Lin Mu asked, seeing that Qin Luoli hadn’t touched her fork.
Setting down her knife and fork, Qin Luoli said, "Lin Mu, aren’t you worried the Chen Family will cause trouble for you?"
Just a short while ago, Lin Mu had thoroughly enraged Chen Ruoping, calling him an old coot who wouldn’t die and cursing him to have a short life. As the head of a family, Chen Ruoping would definitely not let the matter rest. She was starting to get worried.
"Trouble?" Lin Mu set down his fork, wiped his hands with a napkin, and said, "I’ve never been afraid of trouble. Besides, Chen Ruoping wouldn’t dare to come after me."
His tone was filled with immense confidence.
"You’re that confident?" Qin Luoli was astonished. This guy really does fear nothing.
Lin Mu said, "Don’t worry. The one who should be worried right now is Chen Ruoping. He’d better pray I don’t go looking for him. Otherwise, this won’t end well."
"Oh, I’m sure," Qin Luoli said, rolling her eyes at him. This guy is addicted to boasting.
As if struck by a thought, Qin Luoli suddenly asked, "Hey, there’s something I’ve been really curious about. Can I ask you?"
"No!" Lin Mu said. "Hurry up and eat, or there won’t be anything left."
"Stingy!" Qin Luoli pouted, picked up her knife and fork, and began fiercely attacking the steak in front of her as if it were Lin Mu himself.
After they finished dinner, Qin Luoli had the waiter pack up another serving to go.
"You’re still not full?" Lin Mu asked curiously.
Qin Luoli rolled her eyes at him again. "The steak at this restaurant is pretty good. I’m taking a portion back for my mother-in-law to try."
Watching Qin Luoli carry the takeout container, Lin Mu was slightly taken aback. This woman is quite thoughtful.
However, just as they were leaving the restaurant, Qin Luoli received a phone call.
"Okay, I’ll be right back." After hanging up, she glanced at Lin Mu, her expression turning grim.
"Let’s go." Lin Mu opened the car door and got in.
"What are you doing?" Qin Luoli’s expression changed.
Lin Mu replied indifferently, "Since they’re looking for me, of course I have to go."
He had overheard the call. Although it was for Qin Luoli, they were asking for him.
Her pretty face fell. "Lin Mu, don’t go. They’re definitely looking for you because of the Chen Family. I’ll go alone."
Lin Mu sneered, "This is men’s business. What can a woman like you do? Drive!"
"You..." Qin Luoli glared at him, then got into the car. "We’ll see how you handle this!"
By the time they arrived back at the ancestral house, half an hour had passed.
Lin Mu had been to the Qin Family Ancestral House a few times before. Located in the suburbs, it was a traditional courtyard house with three main halls and three entryways, an architectural style quite common in River City.
But this particular ancestral house of the Qin Family was several hundred years old. It was here that the Qin Family had gotten their start, and it had witnessed the family’s rise and fall.
When Qin Luoli and Lin Mu arrived, several cars were already parked at the entrance.
"Those are Uncle’s cars, and the others... it seems everyone is here." Noticing a few cars that didn’t belong to the Qin Family, Qin Luoli guessed what was happening, and her expression turned grim.
"Why isn’t that little bastard Lin Mu here yet? Call and hurry him up!" a sharp voice screeched from inside before they even stepped through the gate.
"How audacious! Lin Mu is just a junior, yet he dared to insult my father. I won’t let him off this time!" a man’s voice, thick with anger, rang out.
Qin Luoli stopped in her tracks, pulling on Lin Mu’s arm. "Lin Mu, maybe you shouldn’t go in yet. Just wait for me in the car."
But Lin Mu only chuckled softly. "So, the Chen Family has come knocking?"
Qin Luoli nodded, her heart filled with worry. She knew it. After Lin Mu had humiliated Chen Ruoping, the Chen Family would never let him go.
"To think they’d dare show up at my door. Well then, I’d like to see what the Chen Family can do to me." Lin Mu smiled nonchalantly and began walking inside.
Worried something would happen to him, Qin Luoli rushed in after him.
In the main hall of the ancestral house, seven or eight people were seated. They were all members of the Qin Family’s second generation, like Qin Hongbo and Qin Hongshu. The few unfamiliar faces, then, must be from the Chen Family. Behind them stood a group of large men in black suits, their expressions cold as ice.
Just then, Lin Mu stepped into the hall.
"You were looking for me?"
At the sound of his voice, all eyes snapped toward him.
"You little bastard, you’ve finally shown up!" Chen Xinlan glared at Lin Mu, her eyes filled with venomous hatred.
Her injuries hadn’t fully healed; one hand was still wrapped in bandages, and numerous scars marked her face. As she clenched her teeth, her once well-maintained face twisted into a ferocious scowl.
She had been beaten up by Lin Mu. Then, at the hospital, he had humiliated her again, nearly driving her insane. Today, her father had also been sent to the hospital and was in the room right next to hers. It was a morbidly perfect family reunion. Upon learning that her father had been hospitalized after vomiting blood from the anger Lin Mu had caused him, her fury became uncontrollable. She called the Chen Family and stormed straight to the ancestral house. She wanted Lin Mu to pay a terrible price to soothe the hatred in her heart.
"It seems you’ve forgotten the pain the moment the wound has healed. Your mouth is as foul as ever," Lin Mu said, glancing coolly at Chen Xinlan. This wicked woman truly has a short memory.
At the sight of his eyes, Chen Xinlan seemed to recall something terrifying. She instinctively covered her mouth, her body beginning to tremble violently.
Lin Mu gave a disdainful laugh, walked directly to the seat of honor at the head of the hall, and sat down.
That was the seat of the Head of the Qin Family. Even with Elder Master Qin gravely ill in the hospital, no one had dared to sit there. To think that Lin Mu would claim it the moment he arrived.
"Lin Mu, you’re being insolent!"
"Junior, get down from there!"
The expressions of the Qin Family members turned sour. The ones present were the same people Lin Mu had met once before.
"Lin Mu, what are you doing? Get down from there, quick!" Qin Luoli’s face turned pale with fright. The Qin Family’s rules were extremely strict. An act like this was a grave disrespect to his elders, punishable by the family’s laws.
Qin Hongbo was even more furious. He stood, about to pull Lin Mu down himself.
"If you don’t want to die, sit back down!" Lin Mu shot him an indifferent, cold look.
Qin Hongbo’s face changed. With a look of terror and internal conflict, he struggled for a moment before sitting back down. Was he really frightened by a single sentence from Lin Mu?
Seeing Qin Hongbo’s reaction, the other members of the Qin Family were momentarily stunned, unsure of what to do. Even Qin Luoli was dazed for a moment. What is happening? It’s as if everyone has been cowed by Lin Mu.
"That’s more like it." Lin Mu smiled faintly, picking at his nails. "Alright, whatever you came to say, you can say it now."
His actions and his words left everyone with a single, bizarre thought.
Who was truly running the show at the Qin Family?