╔═══ Author's note ════╗

Edited by Dymens

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After two and a half years — Bing Shi twenty-four and Xuan Mu twenty-two years old.

Within a famous tea house, behind the private room's glass windows thrived a colorful garden; the flowers grew wild and free, matching the scent of a fragrant tea with a sweet serenity.

Guan Lin, a man in his early fifties, with a strong air of aristocracy, had many mistresses, but none of them could give him what he desired — a son. 

Guan Lin ended up with one legitimate and five illegitimate daughters. Then, he met him at one of the gatherings. Xuan Mu was exactly what he wanted from his son. With this youth's combined strength, he became a prime minister, "Investing in third world countries? They are rich in resources, but those resources are occupied by other leaders. Overall those countries are so poor that they even need help from other countries..."

Xuan Mu tapped his finger on the table, "Did those charities, schools, and hospitals change something? No. Donating to the poor often makes them poorer. People need a constant flow of money. For us it's cheap labor but for them? They'll worship us because instead of colonizing them, we are allowing them to become rich..."

'Taking over the government, hm? How fun.' Could billionaires solve world hunger? If money could solve everything, there would have been no problems in the world. It was not about a lack of money but a lack of a system. Using donations was what the corrupt government of those countries wanted, so they could cut out the health budget, and steal everything from the citizens. To solve the problem, people would need to go against the government, and going against those 'leaders' was like going into a civil war.

Discussing work with Bing Shi would help him to relieve stress; most often, she understood nothing. The same went for him whenever she started to speak about her occupation, but with time they would catch a few things from each other.

"How?" Guan Lin asked.

"Under our names, we'll build new roads, companies, factories, tourist attractions..." Xuan Mu revealed a part of his plans, 'My Bing Shi is going to make it big.'

"I see the potential. I'll contact some of my friends…" Guan Lin eyed the man before him with a determined look, "Now, call me father."

"Father? I am not interested in such kinks." Xuan Mu raised an eyebrow, holding back not shooting the other man with fed-up eye rolls, "I have no father."

"What about a father-in-law? I'll give you one of my daughters." If somebody saw Guan Lin, the prime minister of the country, begging a young man to call him father, they would cough up blood from disbelief!

"I'd rather marry a crocodile than your daughters," chuckled Xuan Mu, remembering his Bing Shi in her crocodile pajamas.

"They are useless but still my blood! What are your criteria for a woman?" asked Guan Lin. Xuan Mu said he was straight, which meant he had to be into women. 

Guan Lin introduced him to a few, but even though Xuan Mu acted like he was interested in all of the introduced females, that brat never made a move on any of them!

Xuan Mu took a look outside of the windows, at the lush garden, while describing a few of his girlfriend's features, "The most beautiful woman in the world; around twenty-four years old with a master's degree from at least one of the top hundred universities in the world. A reputation without a speck of dust, and a virgin." 

Guan Li frowned at Xuan Mu's answer, "Does a woman like that even exist?" 

Xuan Mu shrugged his shoulders in a 'who knows' manner; he happened to develop one.

"Mr. Xuan, you have a meeting with Mr. Nao in one of his nightclubs," informed a beautiful secretary who stood next to Xuan Mu this whole time. Inside her eyes, a trace of jealousy was hidden, deep.

Drinking the last tea drop from his cup, Xuan Mu stood up with a subtle smile, "See you next time. I'll consider calling you father if you give me more than fifty percent of your MyMart shares."

Guan Li expressed fake anger at the audacity of that boy, "Why don't you just ask for the position of a CEO?" 

"You have the title of a CEO, and I have more shares, who has more power?" Xuan Mu turned to his secretary, giving her the order to get him the same tea he just finished drinking.

"You!" yelled out, Guan Lin pointed his finger at Xuan Mu, stopping abruptly.

"Yes. Me." Xuan Mu walked towards Guan Lin, "Thanks for everything, pops," patting the old man's shoulder with playful mockery, he then left the door casually.

Xuan Mu's secretary nodded politely at Guan Lin and quickly followed after her boss.

"..." The left-out Guan Lin was too speechless to chase after Xuan Mu, and could only laugh at that boy's course of actions. Xuan Mu's growth rate was too fast and too formidable.

Guan Lin gave Xuan Mu MyMart shares because he knew, in Xuan Mu's hands, the company would grow to an extreme length.

· · ────────── · ⊱❈⊰· ────────── · ·

At the age of seventeen, Xuan Mu gained his uncle's shares and connections. He became a millionaire. He invested them all. Not a cent was spent on himself, or Bing Shi.

No matter how good his investments were, without anything innovative and revolutionary, it would take him too much time to gain power.

To gain power, he had to become a billionaire.

But how hard it was to become a billionaire? No matter how much of a genius he was, it was hard, too hard. Because he couldn't fight time.

He found a solution by gaining the trust of another billionaire, Guan Lin. Thanks to him, he had access to billions of dollars.

Instead of creating his own company, he started to buy and support other companies, becoming an investor. As a shareholder, he didn't manage a firm's operations. Xuan Mu chose his board director to represent him as a shareholder. Collaborating with the CEOs, he put his vision and goals into them. Those CEOs became the public faces of the company. With that title, they had status, money, and power.

Public eyes and regular company employees knew nothing about him; they only knew about their CEOs and board directors.

Xuan Mu was known only by the people at the top of the food chain.

Now, at twenty-two, with billions at his disposal, he could dictate the course of an entire industry. He could make the rules and force the entire industry to follow his lead.

If he wanted.

Xuan Mu wasn't a spendthrift.

He didn't wear expensive clothes and watches. Neither did he indulge in lavish activities.

He owned one car, a jet, and a yacht, which of course were gifts from Guan Lin.

All of his gifts and properties were rented out, for extra money.

The only thing he wasn't frugal about was Bing Shi's safety.

With power came danger.

In the case of an emergency, there was a team of people prepared, at all times. 

· · ────────── · ⊱❈⊰· ────────── · ·

Xuan Mu looked at his right hand with disgust as he walked with his beautiful secretary toward the exit, "Mia, I'll be able to touch her in two days. No. What if I dirty her with my hands?"

"I'm a virgin too," Mia said with hope when she heard his requirements for a girlfriend; she very much fit everything he mentioned, 'I want to give it to you, touch me, push me down, ravage me.'

"Good, save it for a person who will love you," Xuan Mu's gaze was still on his hand, checking it with a daze, he couldn't believe that it was about to touch his Bing Shi soon.

"..." Mia kept her silence, his words pricking her heart like a needle.