You White-Eyed Wolf1
She Can’t Be Allowed to Stay by Luo Ke’s Side
A helpless smile touched Luo Ke’s lips as she stroked her head.
“First Aunt, this is my girlfriend. The person I’m going to marry.”
Lin Sifei’s lips curved into a smile as she picked up her phone again. “That’s right. I’m your granddaughter-in-law, you know. So, I’m just genuinely concerned about the matriarch’s health.”
“There’s nothing wrong with Mom,” Luo Bihua said, taking a deep breath. “We’ll be there right away.”
Hearing this, Lin Sifei hung up briskly and squeezed in next to Luo Ke. “They said they’ll be here in a little while.”
Luo Ke smiled and brushed her hair aside, leaning close to her ear. “Will this mess up your schedule? Do you have enough time for filming tomorrow?”
Lin Sifei whispered back, “Tomorrow’s scenes are probably with the male lead. His acting is decent, so we should get through it quickly. No problem.”
Her reassurance put Luo Ke more at ease, and she settled in to wait with her.
Another half hour passed before Luo Bihua arrived in a hurry with Old Mrs. Luo. Right on their heels, Second Uncle Luo Shengping also showed up.
Lin Sifei glanced at them, scoffing inwardly. What a coincidence. Luo Ke must have called, and fearing she was genuinely angry, they all coordinated their arrival.
Sure enough, the moment they entered, Old Mrs. Luo let go of Luo Bihua’s hand and rushed to take Luo Ke’s. “Oh, Xiao Ke, Grandma got the time wrong. I was so busy getting ready. It’s my fault. You must be starving.”
“I’m not, Grandma.” Luo Ke looked up at her and helped her to a seat.
Luo Bihua shot a look at Luo Chunhai and let out a cold snort before sitting down far away from her. Seeing this, Luo Shengping, afraid the two would make things unpleasant, smiled and sat between them, blocking their line of sight.
Luo Ke signaled the waiter to bring the food. The dishes had all been chosen by Lin Sifei. Since both she and Luo Ke loved seafood, she had ordered a lot of it, along with plenty of other dishes like pork ribs. She had also specially ordered a rack of lamb, extra spicy.
“Luo Ke, I wonder how this restaurant’s lamb compares to Auntie Wu’s. If it’s good, let’s get a portion to go for her so she can try to figure it out.”
Seeing her eagerness to steal their secret recipe, Luo Ke couldn’t help but pat the back of her hand. “You have Auntie Wu trying new dishes every day. She’s so fed up she’s asked me for a raise.”
“Then give her one! I’m about to get my paycheck from the film, so I’ll cover her salary,” Lin Sifei said, puffing out her chest with pride, ready to offer her first earnings to their long-term meal ticket.2
Luo Ke grunted and gave her waist a squeeze. “Have you forgotten who’s paying your salary?”
Lin Sifei looked at Luo ‘The Investor’ Ke and giggled. “But when it’s released and makes money, won’t it all be yours anyway? That doesn’t count.”
Their shameless flirting made the others at the table look rather grim.
Old Mrs. Luo set down her chopsticks. “And who is this?”
Lin Sifei’s eyes lit up instantly, and she looked at Luo Ke.
Luo Ke shot her a helpless glance. “Grandma, this is my girlfriend.”
“Girlfriend?!” Old Mrs. Luo feigned a look of shock. “How can you have a girlfriend? Isn’t it supposed to be a man?”
“It’s a woman. I like her, not men.”
Old Mrs. Luo stared at Luo Ke’s face. Seeing the expression there wasn’t faked, the old woman gave a small laugh. “Well then, this must be our family’s new bride. Come, come, let Grandma have a look. My, my, you’re so beautiful. What do you do for a living?”
Lin Sifei watched her cheerful act. If she hadn’t read the book, she might have actually been fooled.
She smiled and leaned against Luo Ke. “I’m an actress.”
The moment the words left her mouth, Luo Shengping couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
Lin Sifei glared at him. “What’s so funny, Second Uncle?”
“Oh, so you’re in the entertainment circle. The Luo family has money, you’ve got a good eye,” he said, looking at Luo Ke. “But Xiao Ke, you’re still too naive. This world is full of people who will cheat you out of your money and your heart.”
“Second Uncle seems to know a lot about it,” Lin Sifei said with a smile, crossing her arms. “Speaking of which, you’re a director on the board, aren’t you? I’m sure you’ve sponsored your fair share of starlets.”
Luo Shengping’s eyes shot toward her, as if he had been deeply insulted.
But Lin Sifei didn’t buy it for a second. With his character, it would be strange if he didn’t use his position at the Luo Corporation to throw his weight around.
“ENOUGH!” Old Mrs. Luo slammed her chopsticks down. “We are all family. Must we bicker over a simple meal? Today, Xiao Ke brought her partner for us to inspect3. Everyone just eat quietly.”
Her words sounded reasonable, but all she did was dismiss the filth Luo Shengping had slung as a childish spat, while demoting a confirmed fiancée to a partner for the elders’ approval.
Lin Sifei couldn’t be bothered to argue further. It was better to wait until they let their guard down, then let Luo Ke drop the real bomb.
An awkward atmosphere settled over the table, filled only with the clinking of bowls and chopsticks. Lin Sifei was the only lively one, occasionally placing food on Luo Ke’s plate.
When the meal was nearly finished, Luo Ke drank the last sip of her soup and wiped her mouth clean. “Actually, there’s something else I need to tell you all today.”
Lin Sifei grabbed her purse, ready to smack anyone who got out of line.
Luo Ke took a deep breath. “Thank you for the grace of your years in raising me4, but it’s time we drew a clear line. Grandma is my father’s mother, so I will continue to fulfill his filial duties. I will give you whatever you need for your living expenses, as always. But as for First Aunt, Second Aunt, and Second Uncle, I can no longer give you money.”
“What?!” At this, they all sat bolt upright in shock.
Luo Chunhai pointed a finger directly at Lin Sifei. “DID YOU LISTEN TO THIS LITTLE BITCH?!5 YOU’VE BARELY BEEN TOGETHER AND SHE’S ALREADY TURNING YOU AGAINST US!”
Lin Sifei’s grip on her purse tightened, and she secretly glanced at Luo Ke. This was what she had feared—that Luo Ke would also think she was sowing discord. After all, she had no hard evidence; it all relied on Luo Ke’s own intuition.
Fortunately, Luo Ke immediately moved to shield her.
Luo Ke’s face darkened. “Whether you’ve treated me well or not, I’ve known for years, and you know it too. I don’t want to make things ugly, so I won’t ask for the money I’ve already given you back. If you want to start a business, I can lend you the money, but you’ll have to sign an IOU. For all these years, I’ve treated you as my closest relatives, so I’ve tolerated everything, pretending it was all unintentional. But today, we need to settle our accounts.”
“Second Uncle, as for your shares in the Luo Corporation, if you’re willing, I can buy them from you at market price.”
Luo Bihua slammed her hand on the table, shot to her feet, and pointed at Luo Ke. “YOU WHITE-EYED WOLF! WE WORKED SO HARD TO RAISE YOU, AND YOU DON’T REMEMBER THE GRACE OF IT AT ALL! ALL YOU THINK ABOUT IS MONEY!”
Ahem! Lin Sifei stood up and stared her down. “Who’s the one who only thinks about money? To be owed for the grace of raising someone, you actually have to have been kind. You know perfectly well what your intentions were, so don’t act like no one knows just because you hid it from Luo Ke. The Luo Corporation was a sizeable company when it fell into your hands, but by the time Luo Ke took over, it was drowning in debt, and many of its subsidiary companies had been sold off. Where did all that money go? Did it really cost that much to raise one child?”
The faces of the Luo family members changed in an instant. Old Mrs. Luo slapped the table. “That’s enough! How can a family fall apart over money? Is money really that important? If you get it, you might as well throw it in the sea! How did any of you raise Xiao Ke? She spent most of her time with me! You have all wronged her!”
“Grandma,” Luo Ke said, taking an involuntary step forward.
Lin Sifei immediately grabbed her wrist, her lips pressed together as she stared into her eyes.
Luo Ke took a deep breath and turned her head away.
“I was the one who suggested calling you here today.” Lin Sifei’s gaze swept across the room. “Let me tell you something. Luo Ke is soft-hearted. She values her family. But me? I’m much sharper. Second Uncle was right; the entertainment industry is a dirty place, and I’ve seen plenty. The fact that I managed to claw my way to the top means I’m no easy fool. I’m standing here today to tell you all to stop thinking you can leech off Luo Ke like you used to.”
She reached out, took Luo Ke’s arm, and hugged it to her chest. “Luo Ke and I are getting married soon. And I’ll be watching every one of you very closely.”
She glanced at Old Mrs. Luo, gave her a bright smile, then turned and linked her arm through Luo Ke’s, her voice softening. “Darling, let’s go.”
Once they were in the car, Luo Ke looked at her, her brow slightly furrowed. “Why did you say all that? They’re all petty people. By taking the blame, you’ve made them resent you.”
“So what if they resent me? It’s not like I’ll lose a piece of flesh over it.” Lin Sifei fastened her seatbelt. “But you, on the other hand… if I didn’t draw their hatred, you’d probably have a very hard time at the company. For now, they’ll just play pitiful with you. But if they truly came to hate you, it would become a ticking time bomb.”
Luo Ke rested her head on the steering wheel, turning slightly to look at Lin Sifei. “Am I doing the right thing?”
“No!” Lin Sifei pouted. “If I were you, I’d find a way to get rid of them for good!”
She made a vicious slicing motion across her neck with her hand, then looked at Luo Ke and smiled. “But you were amazing. You took a huge step forward.” And, to a large extent, mitigated future harm.
“Thank you,” Luo Ke said, squeezing her hand.
A blush crept onto Lin Sifei’s face. “You’re thanking me?” she said in a small voice. “I was so worried you’d think I was being too aggressive or trying to cause trouble.”
“So that’s why you kept dropping hints instead of just saying it outright.”
Lin Sifei nodded emphatically.
A wave of tenderness washed over Luo Ke. She reached over and pulled her into an embrace. “Never. I’ll believe anything you say. Even if I find it completely unreasonable, I’ll do my best to investigate it.”
A smile bloomed on Lin Sifei’s lips. She hugged her back and planted a loud kiss on her cheek. “Then let’s go home now!”
Luo Ke laughed and started the car. Lin Sifei sat in the passenger seat, chatting happily with her.
“Are you going to visit the set tomorrow during filming? The location is here in town. It’s so close, you could even bring me lunch.”
“I think you’re just in it for the lunch.”
“No, I’m not! You’re so mean, accusing me like that.”
Back in the restaurant, Old Mrs. Luo sat at the table, her face cold as she looked at her useless bunch of children. “I told you long ago to be nicer to Luo Ke, to be a little nicer! But all any of you could see was what was right in front of you. Are you happy now?!”
“Mom, who knew Luo Ke would suddenly turn on us? I bet it’s that woman she’s with who’s causing all this trouble,” Luo Bihua seethed, grinding her teeth.
Luo Shengping chimed in with his agreement.
Old Mrs. Luo glared at them, furious. “Is that all you can see? Can’t you use your brains? How would that woman know we sold off the Luo family’s companies? The official story was that they were used to pay off debts. If I hadn’t stopped you back then, would you all have blabbed the truth?!”
Her words finally made it sink in for the others. If Luo Ke ever found out that they had dismantled and sold off her father’s life’s work, she would probably end up hating them for good.
“If you ask me, the problem is that woman, Lin. It seems she isn’t aware that Luo Ke doesn’t know about this yet. But regardless of how she found out, she absolutely cannot be allowed to stay by Luo Ke’s side,” Luo Chunhai said, his eyes narrowing.
Old Mrs. Luo closed her eyes, her breathing gradually evening out as she regained her usual calm demeanor. “Shengping, isn’t she an actress? Go investigate her. See if there’s a way to get rid of her.”
“I understand, Mom.”
Old Mrs. Luo stared at the dishes before her and closed her eyes again, her heart filled with resentment. Her children weren’t inadequate, not at all.
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