1 Unknown Number

[One new text message:

Unknown Number:

This is Xi Lei Shun. We need to talk. At noon, come outside your apartment. I will send a driver to you.]

Reading this, Wang Yun Lan scoffed aloud. Xi Lei Shun? Imperial emperor of entertainment business Xi Lei Shun? CEO of Luna Entertainment Xi Lei Shun?

Well, sure. If this number is Xi Lei Shun, then she's Mother Te**sa. Yun Lan quickly deleted the message and blocked the number without a second thought. She couldn't believe scammers these days would be so bold! And to use the name of Xi Lei Shun, at that. How ridiculous!

Yun Lan almost felt insulted. Is the name 'Xi Lei Shun' really that powerful? Or do scammers think people are that stupid?

In case these crooks intended to lure her out of her apartment or stalk her till she came, she elected to spend the day out of her house. Her father had taught her to be a cautious person. Even if they broke into her apartment and stole her things, she wouldn't be bothered. Material things were replaceable, but her life wasn't.

Yun Lan gathered the things she needed for today, and perhaps even a blanket for the night, and made her way to her studio.

Her studio was a humble, discreet artist's studio. It was her most private place. When she first purchased it, she carefully took time into gradually investing in it. She scoped the place clean, added a mirror with a bar on one wall, wood floors, and sound-proofing to the walls, windows, and door. Everything about her approach made one thing clear: she didn't want to disturb nor be disturbed by others.

Yun Lan's studio was her safest, most cherished place. Here she stored all her instruments, paints, canvases, brushes, what remains of her childhood photos...everything that mattered to her was in this room.

Her parents have always been greedy. Yun Lan was their only child and they committed her to learn nearly every humanly possible endeavor up until her adulthood. Ballet, ice-skating, horseback-riding, english, latin, calligraphy, martial arts, piano, violin, flute, cello, the arts—

Yun Lan was woefully in love with the arts. As a child, her parents rejoiced in her talent as she became a beacon of their sophistication. That is, until...Yun Lan made it clear she was interested in nothing but the arts.

Dismayed, her parents gradually began to restrict her creativity till it became artistic suppression under their reign. They threw away her drawings, irrevocably destroyed her favorite instruments, and replaced the time she spent on those things with a private tutor in what "really mattered": math, science, english, and business.

Her father told her to major in Advertising if she liked art so much, and that was the end of that. But not for Yun Lan.

You could never remove her heart from being an artist. No matter how much resistance she faced, she would never give it up. If she did, she'd shrivel up into nothing. Yun Lan would become an empty vessel. There would be nothing left inside of her.

But to her disdain, she was forced to follow her father's hand. He never gave her much of a choice, nor a chance, to fight back.

Except there was no way Yun Lan would ever play exactly into his expectations.

If she majored in Advertising, she knew exactly what her father would make her do.

Wang Yun Lan hated lying. When she lied to others her gut twisted with striking shame and disgust. When she was lied to, a crack formed in a trusting bond digs deep and splinters into her art. Naive as her bottom line is, this was it.

At this point she was mature enough to understand that lying can't always be avoided in life. Just as things in this world are not black and white, not all sins are evil. She settled for avoiding lying at all costs, and was wary of worlds that would chip away at her character bit by bit.

Of course, Advertising was not all lies. But if she became a professional marketer, her father would make her do more than just what's "right." Her father lusted for power. Both of her parents were, but her father especially would do anything for his own advantage, or for the sake of the company. She never understood the void he must have in his heart that could only be filled with power. The selfish greed within him would only grow deeper, she knew that.

So, Yun Lan chose to follow the money. After all, money never lies.

Yun Lan majored in Finance and graduated in the upper 10 of her class from one of Country C's top universities. She was a woman of natural diligence who gave her entire heart to all her plans. Being a little too earnest definitely caused a downward spiral from time to time though.

Back in primary school, she was the perfect student. Well rounded in all her studies, she was proficient with anything she tried her hand at. However, Yun Lan preferred to attribute this to her wealth of common sense as opposed to prodigality.

She didn't particularly like math, science, history, or any of her core subjects. She found languages to be the most useful. Regardless, Yun Lan couldn't deny that many of these came easy for her. Since her only woe was ever her dislike or disinterest in the subject, she felt ashamed in front of those who struggled while giving their most genuine effort. She resented herself for her own proficiency. She thought often about how it was unfair for her to have these aptitudes and couldn't cherish them to the fullest.

When she was young, she confessed her true feelings about her work. A classmate called her ungrateful, an utter waste. They said she had everything handed to her and she should never even think about being friends, because they could never relate. That classmate...was her best friend. In their childish ways that children do, her former best friend convinced the entire class not to speak to her. It was the first day Yun Lan ever ditched class, because she hid herself away in a remote corner of the school and couldn't stop crying.

Her father eventually heard she shirked her classes. He scolded her severely, and deemed the school was not well enough equipped to handle his daughter. Thus, Yun Lan transferred schools.

She had a sensitive and kind heart. That kind of treatment...

It broke her. Because of what she was capable of and the family name that preceded her own, others made assumptions about her thoughts and feelings. She never wanted to be misunderstood that way again. It was at this time she realized that her gifts caused many others great shame. She felt pain for them in her own heart, and began to despise herself in the same way her classmates did in their own frustration.

And so was the beginning of her self-suppression. In order to lay low, not offend anyone, and avoid causing others pain, she made the truth of her mind a well-protected secret. She made sure to only do as well as the majority of others did. Even if she received scoldings or beatings from her mother and father for mediocre performance, she never broke out into either extreme on the grading scale. Most importantly, never ever did she dare say something was easy. Ever.

As for defying her father's expectations....

Compared to the artistic dreamer the Wang family knew her to be, suddenly becoming a finance major and throwing herself into a pit of numbers was a surprised.

So when she graduated early with high marks in her class, at one of the best universities (and a finance major at that) completing undergraduate and receiving her masters degree in just four years, her father was shocked.

He didn't know his daughter was capable of something like this! Moreover, where did this finely honed skill come from? Like father like daughter, Wang Jian was not ignorant. He knew his daughter was planning something, he just didn't know what. Being able to hide this from him for so many years...what else was she hiding? He knew exactly what he did as a father and was afraid he'd see the consequences of it soon. He prepared and protected himself from the face slap he thought would come.

However, that was never Yun Lan's intention. Indeed, it was the boldest thing she had ever done in her life, and one of her greatest acts of defiance against her father. (Little did Yun Lan know that marriage was about to be the next.)

The only thought in her mind back then was how badly she wanted to get out and set herself free. She couldn't fight head on with her father. Maybe twenty years from now it would be possible, but alone and at this point in time she couldn't. Her plan was to only gain enough leverage to pressure him into allowing her to retreat. To do that, she needed power and knowledge. Her desire for freedom to be released as an artist took over her ambition.

In the year after she graduated from college, she was hired at a prominent entertainment company (which appeared unavoidable, considering who she was related to and the familiarity she already had with its inner workings) called Way Ting Entertainment. Their name was intentional. The company's concept was "illuminating the way to the artists you have been waiting for" and developed it well during their growth.

Yun Lan was hired as an junior financial advisor. In just two short years, she went from being a junior member of the staff to being Way Ting's Director of Finance and Acquisitions. This title meant every contract Way Ting made, every new talent they signed, where they decided to spend their money, what departments, how they would spend it—all of this was overseen by Yun Lan or was her personal decision. And with her in the hot seat, Way Ting's worth quickly climbed.

Money was easy. You could look it in the eyes and tell it to leave or stay. For someone who's always held too much empathy inside her heart, money was easier for her to manage than people.

Yun Lan was proud to have climbed their with her own abilities without the influence of the Wang family. Though it wasn't what she loved doing, she was proud of her own determination and will for getting her to this point.

Naturally, the only person who couldn't bear to watch this was her father.

It's not that she wanted money, she just wanted something more behind her name than Wang Jian. Her father never understood that. He took her success as a blatant declaration of her wanting to claim her rightful seat at the family table.

He wasn't going to allow that. Wang Jian would not compete with a child.

For the short time it took her to build her self up, her ward work was torn down in less than a week. A series of false scandals were published with her name attached. She was broken apart faster than she ever expected.

Powerless. After all these years, she was still powerless against him.

Her reputation deteriorated fast. Trust matters a lot when dealing with money. Yun Lan soon lost her job. She lost her good name. She lost everything she built. Worst of all, though she wasn't blacklisted, nobody was interested in hiring her. It was if hiring her was signing up for bad press, or they were too afraid of everything hidden in their past.

Never, absolutely never, did she hate bearing the surname 'Wang' more than she did now.

With the recent developments of her life, she suspected she'd have to give up her apartment. It was fine. She could live out of the studio for awhile. Yun Lan could pick up enough part time jobs here and there to keep this space afloat.

She wasn't a high-maintenance girl. She didn't need much a part from a room of her own.

When she approached the door, Yun Lan released a heavy sigh. Soon she would be able to relax. However...

There was an officer standing at her doorway. Two others were seen shuffling bins of her belongings out of the apartment. A brief glance down the hall told her that other spaces were already violated in a similar fashion.

She immediately broke out in a sprint to her doorway.

"Excuse Me! What is the meaning of this?" she exclaimed.

"The owner of this building has been indicted for money laundering and illegal business conduct. This building has now become property of the government."

Yun Lan's jaw nearly dropped to the floor. Money laundering?! Were they serious? This was unbelievable!

Yun Lan knew the owner. Liu Guang was a kindhearted elder who always minded his own business. He allowed Yun Lan to live quietly in her space and never pried with his questions. He was generous enough with his time to come check on her when he knows she's there and hasn't moved for awhile. Yun Lan also trusts him enough to have him check on the space when she couldn't visit in awhile. Yun Lan had a harmonious relationship with Mr. Liu and thought highly of him.

Moreover, she's a finance expert! Of course she checked the state of Mr. Liu's finances before renting this space! Out of her care for him, she continued to check up on him. After all he's done for her, how could she not? When she knew times were hard for him, she helped out as much as she could.

In other words, Mr. Liu's finances were as clean as a whistle! She made sure of that.

The incredulous look on her face remained as she continued to question the officers.

"What does any of this have to do with the tenants? We are not at fault. Please explain clearly!"

"Several of the tenants have been implicated as accessories to the aforementioned breaches of the law..." the investigator's voice trailed off as he evaluated the space. From the hallway outside, all of the rental spaces looked the same. However, this one...while it had an unassuming front, the interior was on an entirely different level than the others. The flooring was well installed and all of the walls, windows, and doors were properly insulated with sophisticated architectural work. The investigator saw various instruments hanging on the wall, a grand piano in the corner, and brushes, paints, and other miscellaneous art supplies scattered about.

All the work done to the apartment, including the objects inside of it, cost a lot of money. Someone paid a pretty penny to get this place into shape. Surely, someone with that much free money to spend would not be renting a humble space like this in a inconspicuous, rather run-down neighborhood. They could easily afford better—or even the best—services elsewhere. He looked back to the woman who so boldly confronted him earlier.

Yun Lan gave the investigator a cold, sparkling stare. She was not going to allow them to trample over all her belongings as they please. She would hold her ground here.

"Take her down to the station. I have some questions for her." As he said this, another officer approached her.

"What? I have nothing to do with this!" Yun Lan's brows furrowed deeply into her forehead. She curled her toes in her shoes, preparing her body to fight back. The investigator frowned.

"How did you get the money to turn this place into a studio? I think I have a good idea as to where all Mr. Liu's extra funds went..."

Yun Lan crossed her arms, "Everything in this room and its improvements were paid for by my own salary." The officer who approached her attempted to grab her arm. She pulled her body away from him, immediately sending him a look of contempt. "Please refrain from touching me, officer."

The investigator scoffed at the woman's remaining dignity. Just by looking at her, she was clearly intelligent. It was a shame. The harsh expressions on her face really didn't suit her features. Despite that, the whole money laundering business didn't make sense to him before, but now, he was confident. Behind the old man, this lotus was doing all the scheming.

"Miss, please save us the second rate performance. We already received information in an anonymous tip explicitly saying on of the tenants was helping orchestrate Mr. Liu's illegal pass-times."

An anonymous tip?

The big man upstairs may curse her for being an unfilial child, but...damn him. He's as greedy and prideful as the devil's d*ck.

Damn Wang Jian.