The Details of Their Mutual Betrayal – Part 2
Tuesday, continued…
Anna was shocked to discover that the man sitting beside her was also targeted by Lu Jinhu and Yang Lin.
Hou Yi took a deep breath before sharing his story. “I run the family business. My father and grandfather have been pressuring me for some time to get married, even though I’m only 29. In their time, marriages were often arranged, but they both married for love.”
“My grandfather walked into a shop one day and saw my shop-assistant grandmother. They fell in love at first sight. My grandfather took her away from her life and surrounded her with luxury that he could provide.”
Hou Yi paused before continuing, “My mother was the daughter of the Lu family’s former housekeeper. They met when my father attended a business meeting at the Lu home and witnessed my mother being bullied. He fell in love with her at first sight and took her away, along with my grandmother.”
“They both knew that I wanted the same opportunity—to find the love of my life, marry, and start a family. However, they reached a point where they decided to force my hand because they believed I had enough time to do so. By my age, they were both married and had children.”
“To make me comply, they set a deadline for me to be married by today and present my bride to them by tonight. The catch was that if I failed, they would sell the family business to the Lu family for almost nothing. However, if I succeeded, they agreed to let me run the company without interference.”
“The threat of failure was how they knew I would comply with their demand. Given how the Lu family treated my mother, there was no way I would let them get their hands on the family company. I didn’t want to force them out of the family business, but I knew that unless I did something drastic, the next time they wanted to pressure me, they’d use the same threat.”
“Yang Lin and her parents are family friends. Yang Lin confided in me that she was unable to marry the person she truly loved. As the deadline approached and I had not complied, she suggested we marry for mutual convenience. It was a way for us to help each other out—me to help her cope with her broken heart, and she to help me meet the deadline. We agreed that if things didn’t work out in the future, we would simply divorce.”
“If I found the person I wanted to marry before today, she would walk away. And if the love of her life became free to marry her, I would let her go, and she would help me find one of her friends willing to step in for a marriage of convenience.”
“Even this morning, Yang Lin reassured me on the phone that she wanted to marry me. But it appears she never intended to go through with it. She was just stringing me along, much like Lu Jinhu did to you. For me, it’s too late to prevent the Lu family from taking control of Hou Enterprises given the deadline.”
“What!” Anna exclaimed, her voice rising in shock.
“I’m guessing this plan has been in place for a long time,” Hou Yi continued, sounding defeated. “Yang Lin and Lu Jinhu must have worked together to ruin both of us today. I think they always intended to achieve certain goals by today.”
Anna was struggling to believe what she was hearing. She thought she was the only target today, but it turned out she wasn’t. It seemed there was a much larger plan in place by Lu Jinhu, Yang Lin, and their families—to take what they could and ruin as many lives as possible.
Anna realized she wasn’t the only one targeted—Hou Yi and his family were too. It was all about money, and it made her wonder if there were others impacted by today’s actions. All she wanted was to find a way to get her revenge. She wished there was something she could do to help Hou Yi, but the only help she could offer—marrying him—was impossible. The paperwork from the Australian Embassy was for a specific individual, so she couldn’t step in and marry him.
“At this point, I don’t care about control of the company,” Hou Yi admitted. “My concern is for the company employees. I know Lu Jinhu and his family will fire them as a way to take additional revenge against my family. They know it will break my parents’ hearts, especially since they treat all the company staff like extended family.”
Hou Yi continued, “There’s little time left, and the deadline is tonight. I have no options, and I need to think.” With that, he stood up, turning slightly away from Anna but not leaving.
