Xu Kai nodded politely, acknowledging Lin Tianba's attitude.
Lin Tianba was so happy he acted like a child on the spot, immediately informing his wife and son.
Liu Yuemei let out a sigh of relief.
"I told you Ran wouldn’t really abandon us. This time, let him take advantage and pay 1.5 billion for the shares."
Lin Jian frowned as he typed: [But I don’t think Brother can come up with that much money.]
Lin Tianba snorted coldly.
"If he can’t pay, I won’t sell him the shares. Isn’t he being kept by Luo Yao? Let him go ask his sugar mommy for the money."
At the mention of Luo Yao, Lin Jian’s eyes filled with melancholy.
Once Lin Ran acquired the shares, he, Lin Jian, would once again be the young master of a wealthy family. Maybe then Luo Yao would spare him a second glance.
Another day passed. At noon, Lin Ran, dressed impeccably, went to pick up Luo Yao.
They had agreed to meet the Chen family at Pangu Hotel.
Lin Ran brought Luo Yao for two reasons: first, as his legitimate wife, it was only natural to introduce her to his family.
Second, he wanted to show the Chens how much he adored Luo Yao—that no one mattered more to him than his wife. This would also reassure her that he would never neglect her, even with newfound family ties.
If the Chens turned out to be good people, it would be a joyous reunion.
If they were anything like the Lin family, Lin Ran would disown them on the spot.
And if they dared try to take him by force—well, their family might just meet an unfortunate end.
Accompanying Lin Ran and Luo Yao was Wu Zhishang, though not at Lin Ran’s invitation. Chen Qingtian had asked him to come, as he had played a key role in confirming Lin Ran’s identity so quickly.
At Pangu Hotel, the Chen family had gathered in full force: Patriarch Chen Xiao, his eldest son Chen Nianshi, second son Chen Nianlun, youngest daughter Chen Zhima, and several of their children.
Also present was an elderly woman in a wheelchair. Despite her frail appearance, her expression was stern and authoritative—Su Jianguo, Chen Xiao’s wife.
Yes, a woman named Su Jianguo.
She was born the year the People’s Republic was founded.
Underestimating her would be a grave mistake.
Su Jianguo was one of the few female generals of her era, having dedicated her life to serving the nation.
Ye Lingling approached the group.
"Everyone, Mr. Lin will arrive shortly. Perhaps you should wait inside?"
Chen Xiao immediately waved his hand.
"No need, no need! This child—he should’ve let his grandfather handle the arrangements. Such a waste! We’ll wait right here."
Then Chen Qingtian spoke up.
"Grandpa, there’s something I didn’t tell you. Cousin owns this hotel."
Chen Xiao: "What?"
He was stunned. Though the Chens were a prestigious "red" family, their actual wealth was modest at best.
"Now that you mention it, I just remembered—Ran’s wife is…"
Before he could finish, a fleet of luxury cars pulled up at the entrance. Lin Ran stepped out first, then offered his hand to assist Luo Yao. Wu Zhishang emerged from another vehicle.
The entire Chen family rushed forward, even Su Jianguo—usually unshakable—wore a tender, grandmotherly smile.
"Ran…" Chen Xiao’s voice cracked the moment he spoke, and the old man dissolved into tears.
Su Jianguo patted her husband’s back.
"Stop crying. You’ll scare the boy."
Chen Nianshi, the eldest uncle, stepped forward to scrutinize Lin Ran.
He recognized him instantly—despite the years, certain features from the old photos remained unmistakable.
There was no doubt in his mind: this was his nephew.
Why? Because they looked nearly identical.
Lin Ran was taller, slimmer, more refined, with better skin, younger age, and brighter eyes.
But otherwise? A spitting image.
"Hah! So this is Ran! I’m your eldest uncle. Qingtian was right—we really do look alike!"
Chen Xiao, still sniffling, lamented,
"It’s all my fault! Last time, I felt drawn to Ran but didn’t realize… Shame on me!" He then glared at Chen Nianshi.
"And you! I’ve seen your face so much it’s made me blind—how could I miss the resemblance?"
Chen Nianshi scratched his head. "Dad, how is this my fault?"
Chen Nianlun and Chen Zhima introduced themselves next.
"Ran, I’m your second uncle."
Lin Ran: "First uncle, second uncle—both uncles."
The younger Chens greeted Lin Ran politely, though inwardly, they were pleasantly surprised.
Who knew their newfound brother/cousin would be this handsome?
Chen Zhima: "Ran, I’m your aunt. And this must be your wife? So beautiful! You two make a perfect match. Though… she looks familiar?"
All eyes turned to Luo Yao. They’d noticed her earlier—how could anyone not?
Her beauty was striking, her aura icy and impossible to ignore.
Suddenly, Chen Xiao stiffened, bolting upright as joy gave way to realization.
In his excitement, he’d forgotten one crucial detail: Lin Ran’s wife was Luo Yao, CEO of Luo Corporation!
Lin Ran had mentioned it during their encounter at the Education Bureau.
Yet he, the grandfather, had failed to recognize his own grandson. What a disgrace!
Lin Ran smiled and made formal introductions.
"Grandfather, Grandmother, Eldest Uncle, Second Uncle, Aunt, Cousin, everyone—let me introduce myself properly. I’m Lin Ran. This is my wife, Luo Yao."
"What? Who did he say his wife is?"
Chen Qingtian was floored. She knew Lin Ran was married but had no idea to whom.
No wonder he’d joked at the auction that Pangu Hotel was a gift from his wife.
Back then, she’d assumed he was being modest. Now she realized how naive she’d been.
Luo Yao? Giving her husband a hotel was pocket change for her.
Screams internally I need to make money! I want to be a woman like Luo Yao!
"Luo Yao."
"Which Luo Yao?"
"The one from Luo Corporation?"
The room erupted in shock.
Chen Xiao quickly nodded at Luo Yao.
"CEO Luo, what an honor! Who’d have thought our Ran would marry someone like you? What incredible karma he must’ve accumulated!"
Lin Ran was pleased with the Chen family’s reaction. Only now did he feel a glimmer of familial warmth.
Though Luo Yao’s expression remained frosty, she spoke plainly.
"Ran and I are husband and wife. You are his family, so you are mine. But if anyone tries to take him from me—then you are no family of mine."
Her words were blunt, leaving no room for ambiguity.
Everyone: ???
What did she just say?
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
e school belle recognized by the whole school, a genius girl from the kendo club. She also has a hidden identity, the youngest legendary demon hunter. Chen Shuo just transmigrated and found himself turned into a weak, helpless little vampire. He was caught by Su Xiyen and taken home at the very beginning. Since then, Chen Shuo's life creed only had two items. "First, classmate Su Xiyen is always right." "Second, if classmate Su Xiyen is wrong, please refer back to item one." Many years later, Chen Shuo, who had turned back into a human, led a pair of twins to appear in front of all the vampires to share the secret of how he turned back into a human. "It's simple, I tricked a female demon hunter into becoming my wife!"
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
