Self-inflicted Misfortune...

While Luo Shiya, Luo Muqi, and Liu Yiyi were together, Luo Tian pulled Mo Xuan aside.

“Brother-in-law, I need to talk to you about something…”

Seeing Luo Tian’s serious expression, Mo Xuan was momentarily surprised but then asked, “What’s the matter, President Luo?”

“Come on, we’re family. No need to be so formal,” Luo Tian said with a bitter smile, waving his hand dismissively. He took out a cigar and offered it to Mo Xuan. “Want one?”

When Mo Xuan declined, Luo Tian lit it for himself, took a puff, and then spoke slowly, “My uncle told you about what happened back then, didn’t he?”

Mo Xuan didn’t respond, only nodded silently. Luo Tian continued, “As someone who benefited from it, I don’t have the right to say much. I genuinely didn’t know about it at the time, and my father didn’t agree with it either, but I was the one who profited.”

“Over the years, Shiya and Muqi have always been hands-off with the family business, but they’ve never blamed me for that incident.”

Luo Tian paused here, not continuing further. After learning about the incident, he had confronted his grandmother, whom he had always respected, for the first time. But his words were too harsh, and his father, Luo Quan, had broken a cane over him.

Luo Tian was not an ambitious man, nor was he someone who would trade his cousins’ well-being for his own survival.

Countless times, he had thought about handing over the family business to his two sisters. First, because he genuinely didn’t want to inherit it, and second, because he saw it as a form of compensation.

But Luo Shiya and Luo Muqi had refused. He still remembered Luo Shiya’s words: “If you really want to make amends, then manage the Luo Corporation well. Let us enjoy the leisurely life you’ve been dreaming of first…”

With a sigh, Luo Tian said to Mo Xuan, “All these years, no matter how much my sisters have clashed with the elders, they’ve never truly taken it out on me. So, I’ve always gone along with their wishes, trying to make up for the harm I caused them and you back then.”

“It’s not your fault…” Mo Xuan also smiled helplessly. “I believe if you had been in charge at the time, you would never have allowed it to happen.”

“I’m afraid I’ll have nightmares for the rest of my life…” A flicker of pain crossed Luo Tian’s eyes. “Let’s not talk about it anymore. From now on, I’ll leave it to you to take care of them. I’ve been accommodating them out of guilt all these years, but now it’s your turn.”

“…Are you sure it’s just guilt?”

“Come on, I’m the president of Luo Corporation. I’ve seen it all,” Luo Tian said with a dismissive air. “Of course, it’s guilt. Don’t think I’m actually scared of them!”

“…And your wife? Is that guilt too?”

“…I love fishing, but I’m not surnamed He, am I?”

Meanwhile, in a shabby hotel in a slum of the Capital, Mo Jinpeng sat on a narrow bed, his face pale and his mind blank. He had always known this day might come, but he hadn’t expected it to arrive so quickly.

Su Yanran had reported Mo Jinpeng to the police and even provided information about his mother’s hospitalization. Of course, all of this had come from a USB drive sent by Luo Shiya’s people.

Su Yanran had been ruthless. She had deleted the image with red text to avoid implicating herself but handed over everything else to the authorities.

Mo Jinpeng had been lucky. While visiting Li Yuzhen at the hospital, he had seen the police arriving. Without a second thought for his mother, he had slipped away.

His phone was buzzing non-stop—calls from the Mo family, from Qin Ni, and a barrage of angry messages. Qin Ni was on the verge of losing her mind. The Mo family had been unaware of Mo Jinpeng’s actions, but now, with Mo Qingqing suddenly selling her shares, Mo Corporation was in chaos, and Mo Jinpeng had been reported.

If this news got out, the already unstable situation in the Mo and Qin families would only worsen.

The air in the slum hotel was damp. In the past, Mo Jinpeng wouldn’t have even considered staying in such a place—he wouldn’t have used it as a storage room.

But now, he had no other options. He couldn’t stay in a hotel, and he couldn’t go to any of his properties.

“Was it Mo Xuan or Mo Qingqing?” Mo Jinpeng muttered through gritted teeth. “Damn it, are they really trying to destroy me?”

He slammed his fist into the bed, cursing everyone in his mind—the Mo family, the late Mo patriarch, Mo Changshan, who was now in the ICU, and even his own mother.

The only person he didn’t blame was himself.

In truth, he hadn’t wanted to do any of this. The Mo family wasn’t among the Capital’s top elites, but he had never lacked for money.

The problem was that Mo Jinpeng had developed a gambling addiction. It had started during a trip to Macau in college, when he first stepped into a casino. From then on, he couldn’t stop.

But as the saying goes, nine out of ten gamblers lose. Mo Changshan and Qin Ni had indulged him, but they couldn’t let him gamble endlessly. His money vanished quickly with each bet.

It was around that time that his mother discovered his habit. Instead of stopping him, she introduced him to a virtual currency scam.

Li Yuzhen had been involved herself, always doubting Mo Changshan’s reliability. As a dancer, she didn’t know much about business or finance.

By chance, she had stumbled into the world of virtual currency and the scams disguised as “crypto trading.”

Under her encouragement, Mo Jinpeng, though not yet deep in debt, was penniless and too afraid to tell his family. He had always wanted to take over Mo Corporation, fearing that his father would find out. After all, even though Mo Xuan had cut ties, he was still a legitimate son of the Mo family.

Gradually, Mo Jinpeng's courage grew. He started dabbling in virtual gambling and illegal lending.

By the time he wanted to turn back, it was too late.

His phone buzzed again, this time with a system notification. Annoyed, he picked it up and saw an email notification.

At first, Mo Jinpeng ignored it, assuming it was spam, but then a text message came through.

“Check your email.”

Just three words, but they sent a chill down his spine. He tried calling the number, but it was disconnected.

Mo Jinpeng opened the email. Inside was an audio clip, a video, and a few photos.

The video showed Su Yanran leaving the police station, with the timestamp indicating it was from earlier that day. The photos were similar to the video.

The audio clip was a recording of Su Yanran.

“I’ve already reported Mo Jinpeng…”

“You gave me that evidence because you wanted me to do this, didn’t you?”

Just two sentences, but they made Mo Jinpeng’s temples throb.

Su Yanran had reported him? Was this recording real or fake?

But with the video, the photos, and the recording, it was hard for Mo Jinpeng not to believe it was Su Yanran.

Someone had given her the evidence, and she had turned him in. But who was it? Mo Xuan or his sister?

Mo Jinpeng grabbed his hair in frustration. At this point, it didn’t matter who it was. What mattered was that Su Yanran had betrayed him without hesitation.

Thinking back, Mo Jinpeng became even more convinced it was Su Yanran. Since returning to the country, she had avoided him, eventually blocking all contact.

He couldn’t tell whether the email was from Mo Xuan or Mo Qingqing. Both had reasons to do this, but now it didn’t matter.

He was finished, completely finished. The once-glamorous heir of the Mo family was now hiding in a tiny hotel room, filled with fear.

“Su Yanran…”

Mo Jinpeng clenched his teeth. He couldn’t figure out who was behind it, but Su Yanran had indeed reported him, and in his eyes, that was the undeniable truth.

“You bitch, did you sell me out just to get back with Mo Xuan?” Mo Jinpeng’s eyes were bloodshot. “Fine, fine. If you think you can atone for the past, dream on! Even if I end up in prison, I won’t let you or the Mo family live in peace!”