“You're a demon.” Bai Tao said. 

 

This time Bai Li was sure he could hear the pride in his father’s voice. There was a happy smile on his face. 

 

This was the first smile Bai Li ever saw that look directed at him. It made his skin crawl and something close to anticipation blossom in his chest. 

 

Bai Li already changed the past. He stopped his father from leaving or at least changed the reason he left. Going forward his actions would also change the future. 

 

What more could he really do for his sister? For his mother? For himself? What exactly had he done?

 

“It was you who poisoned my mother. How does that make me a demon.” Using information he gained from the future to affect the here and now was all he could do. 

 

In this new reality, both Wei Wei and Ping An would have to make their own way, just as he would.

 

“Aren't you afraid I will silence you?” Bai Tao asked. Not issuing a threat, his tone was more curious than anything else.

 

“Father has no reason to. Isn't that so? When the deed is already done why bring it up now. Since you are acting more distant, it is about time for my mother to try and have another child. As in the past, she will use it to hold onto father.” Bai Li was not sure if this would have any repressions. “She will find out that she cannot have any more children soon enough, even without me bringing it up.” 

 

A deep rumbling laugh came out of Bai Tao. He picked up the document and leaned back in his chair. “Have a seat. It feels like I’ve never really talked to you before.”

 

“That’s probably because you haven’t.” Bai Li sat directly opposite his father. How things changed. In his last life, he chose to side with his mother and sister. In this life, he would choose himself. His father wasn’t an ally but he wasn’t an enemy either.

 

“This,” Bai Tao said tapping the document. “Can I ask about some of the things inside?”

“Sure. I might not answer but you can ask.” Bai Li knew there would be questions. He prepared several answers, still undecided about how much he would share. 

 

“Is the lump sum to start a company?” Bai Tao asked. 

 

Bai Li’s eyes widened for a moment before he wiped his face of all expressions. 

 

This was why Ping An was married to Bai Tao. He was an exceptional businessman. Bai Tao could smell an opportunity. 

 

Ping An was a girl without a business mind, as the only heir to Wen Shi industries, his grandfather would have had no other choice than to find a suitable son-in-law.

 

“Yes,” he answered, seeing no reason to lie.

 

Bai Tao wasn’t the sort of person to let an opportunity slip by. “What kind?”

 

Should he lie? Bai Li didn’t need his father’s involvement. He knew all the major market moves for the next twenty years. All he needed was capital. 

 

Even if the butterfly effect changed things locally, the global market wouldn’t be affected much. if it did change. So what? All he needed were one or two good trades with enough capital to make it so he would never have to actively work.

 

“A gaming company.” This was a partial truth. He had several ideas in mind, but taking advantage of the gaming market that was about to explode was one of them. It was a plus that the gaining industry had no direct correlation to the markets that Wen Shi industries dealt with. 

 

There was a flash of disappointment in Bai Tao’s eyes. “The console market is dominated by giants.” His fingers tapped an irregular pattern. “Even if you develop a good product it will be hard to establish and grow in the present market.”

 

Bai Li stared at his father. How much should he give away? He didn’t want excessive attention but he didn’t want to be underestimated.

 

He leaned forward and tapped on the computer that occupied a decent portion of his dad's desk. It was slow and clunky. Faster models and laptops were already available but still weren’t mainstream. Still, even those would be inefficient compared to what he was used to.

 

Computers now were used primarily for work. They were not at the point where gamers, kids, and leisure users accounted for a sizable portion of the target demographic. He was planning for an MMORPG and a few apps. 

“Can you imagine a computer that is light and portable? That has 10X the speed and processing power you are used to? Can you imagine a phone that is completely portable, lightweight, and can rival the capabilities of that computer?” Bai Li let that information sink in.

 

“No? Well, would father like me to design one for you? Because I can see it and given time I could build it. I can make it and if I can, someone else has figured out how to as well. I don't want to start a tech company. I just want to make use of the opportunities that open up before anyone else does.” The technology already existed. 

There was no need to start a company to make the hardware. He didn’t want to have to compete with foreign tech companies to get new generations of products out. 

 

Too stressful. 

 

Bai Tao was considering his words. That is what was special about his father. He never discounted anyone’s words without investigating them first. 

 

“Instead of trying to figure out what I know, how about I give father some advice. Buy stocks in Dapple. The cost of this information will be to buy an equivalent amount in Bai Wei’s name.” Bai Li said. 

 

Of course, he planned to invest in all the companies that would do well for the next twenty years. He was especially targeting the start-ups and those that hadn’t quite started to gain traction. He would be a fool if he didn’t invest in AceBook, Omazon, Insteram, and all the others. 

 

Of course, he wouldn't give all this information to Bai Tao. Some things are best kept to oneself. 

 

“As a bonus, I will tell father a good secret. Grandfather already knows about Bai Fang and Lee Shan.” Bai Tao’s eyes widened and panic flashed across his face. If Ping Zen wanted he could take Wen Shi back. 

 

Now he was sure he was digging a pit but for who. “Father does not have to worry. Grandfather loves Ping An but he loves Wen Shi more. He also knows how Bai Fang was conceived. Naturally so do I. Bai Fang is a rightful heir. That is all grandfather cares about. He won't stand in the way of him inheriting.”

 

Bai Li had mixed feelings about his grandfather. Ping Zen was kind to them. As a child, that kindness was so great that it colored his entire worldview. It wasn’t until later that he came to resent his grandfather. He could have sheltered them as children but was more concerned about raising capable heirs.

 

“If your grandfather read this document. He wouldn’t even spare a glance at Bai Fang before he started grooming you.” Bai Tao didn’t sound angry about that, just contemplative. 

Bai Li was lost in his memory and didn’t pay attention to his father’s tone of voice. He remembered when Bai Tao came forward in his last life. The DNA results for Bai Fang were shocking. He had been so sure of the results, after all, how could Bai Fang be his biological brother. 

 

Full brother at that not half. He had underestimated Bai Tao. Especially the feelings Bai Tao had for Lee Shan. Or was it the feelings Lee Shan had for Bai Tao? That stupid couple. 

 

Lee Shan was unable to conceive. Bai Tao had used Ping An’s eggs and his sperm. One would think that for the very reason that it was Ping An’s child that Bai Tao would loath it, but that wasn’t the case. 

 

The fact that Bai Fang was carried by Lee Shen was enough for him to get all of the love and attention. 

 

He could still see the insanity in his mother’s eyes when she found out that the eggs she had hidden away as a means of holding onto Bai Tao had been used to grow his other family.

 

With these two as examples, he would be a fool if he got married. How could two people guard against each other this much? They were constantly looking for ways to undermine the other person. 

 

How could they live like this? It was too tiring.

 

“How long have you known?” Bai Tao closed his eyes, a pained look on his face. “Better question, how did you find out?” 

 

Bai Li couldn't answer either of these questions without sounding like a lunatic. “I wonder. Father should know the steps to take to keep a secret buried. From one person finds out you can guarantee that at least two more people know.”

 

“You could have used this information differently, more effectively.” Bai Tao sounded tired. A relieved look made his face look younger.

 

He was shocked. Was Bai Tao actually trying to teach him a life lesson? Was his father’s hatred not directed at him but the him who sided with Ping An. 

 

Why had he spent his last life in so much pain? 

 

“En, that is true, but do I really need to?” Bai Li said, shrugging his shoulders. “Father won’t deny my requests and I do not need leverage over father. I’m setting up a chessboard only to see how the pieces move. The outcome matters little to me.”

 

His fathers looked shocked. Bai Li had said the words without thinking, but once they came out of his mouth he realized he actually meant them. 

 

The contract stated that once his father left, Bai Wei would go to live with Ping Zen. When she became an adult she would have stocks from Wen Shi, plus the shares in other companies he and his father would buy for her. 

 

His mother was wealthy in her own right. Now that her husband and both her children were leaving, what move would she make? 

 

Not to mention all the interested parties that watched their family affairs like a hawk. When he moved into boarding school wouldn’t he look like an abandoned heir? 

 

Ping Zen would try to find out what had changed and groom Bai Wei that was now living with him.

 

This was all a big gamble. With the way he set up the board, it appeared he had developed dangerous tastes without realizing it. 

 

“That is not a smile a child should have on their face.” Bai Tao stood up and walked around his desk until their faces were a hair's breadth apart. “Why didn’t I see that my son was such a delightful child?” 

 

This was getting creepy. The look on his father’s face used to be reserved solely for Bai Feng. “You are creeping me out. You almost look fatherly.”  

 

“Hehehe, I am your father.” Bai Tao leaned against the edge of the desk. “Instead of boarding school why don’t you come live with me.”

 

Despite years of training, he couldn’t keep his jaw from dropping open. 

 

How much of his last life was true. He thought his father hated him. Something didn’t feel right. He would have to carefully examine his memories. 

 

This shouldn’t have been an offer his father would ever extend to him. “I politely decline.” 

 

Bai Tao did not seem surprised by his answer. “What are you going to do when your school is on holiday? Going to your grandfather's place would be dangerous since you don’t seem to want him to know how smart you are.”