CHAPTER 19: SOMEONE IS AFTER YOUR LIFE
"So what brings you here in China?"
"Can't I just visit my daughter?"
"I find that hard to believe." She said as she pressed a button on top of her office desk.
In less than a minute, her secretary entered the office.
"Madam, you called?"
"Yes, bring us some hot camomile sweet tea."
"Yes, ma'am." The secretary answered before leaving to fulfill the order.
"There is a reason why you are in China. What is it?"
Chang Haoyu looked at his daughter and sighed. 'Was he that easy to read?'
"Someone is after your life, Xia."
"Many people are after my life."
"Yes, but this time the one who wants your life is as powerful as we are. Though you have the upper hand in this situation because you have Haoran by your side, we can't let our guard down yet."
Zhao Xia remained silent for some time as she contemplated about the sudden news.
"And who is he or she?"
"Have you ever heard of a man called H.K?"
"Huan Kai? The man taking the Mafia world by storm?"
"Yes, that's him. I have an Intel on his side and right now, every gang in Japan has your photo. You are to be taken to him alive. "
"But he wants me dead."She replied nonchalantly.
"He wants to be the one to take your life."
"Geez, what did I do to him?"
"That's why am here to ask you the same question. What did you do to provoke him?"
"I have harmed many people so....."
"And why are you so relaxed despite this news? Am sure once your husband hears this, he will mobilize the thousands of people in the underworld to protect you."
"And that's why I am not in distress because I have a mother chicken that is willing to protect me."
"Mother chicken? Seriously?" He laughed as he looked at her. The door opened and the secretary came in with a tray of two ceramic cups and a tea pot. She placed it on the table before leaving.
Zhao Xia poured the tea elegantly into the two tea cups before passing one to her father.
"Yes, he told me he doesn't mind being a mother chicken for me as long as he can protect me under his wing."
"And where was he when you were kidnapped?"
Zhao Xia fell silent at the sudden question. "You are blaming him." She said deadpan.
"Yes."
"Why? It's not his fault. He came to rescue me with a sea of men, dad. It was like an action movie."
"If something happens to you again, I won't forgive him."
"You should be telling him, not me." She shrugged her shoulders as she took a sip of her tea.
"By the way, did you find the person who mobilized the gang rebel?" She asked her father.
"Oh.... I had also come here to inform you of the results. It's the same Huan Kai. He knew you would be there."
"But I wasn't harmed."
"There were two snipers in two buildings some distance from where you were. Fortunately, your husband had already mobilized some of his men to search the nearest buildings and they captured the two, before they could do any damage."
"By the way, does he know me as Zhao Xia or as Katana?"
"He knows you as Katana and not as Zhao Xia. If he knew you as Zhao Xia, you could have been six feet under right now with the way your face has been plastered on every magazine since the banquet."
"So he planned the gang rebel in a bid to lure me out and then would he kill me?"
"Yes."
"Just what the hell did I do to earn the ire of this man?"She soliloquized.
Suddenly, they heard a commotion outside.
"Where is your boss? I knew working with a mere girl would result to this shenanigans she is trying to pull."
"Right, she is late to the meeting knowing well that her company is nothing without us."
"Wait, the secretary said she has a visitor in her office. Which visitor is more important than us right now?"
Chang Haoyu pressed the button he had seen his daughter press earlier. In less than a minute the same secretary got in the office.
"What is going on outside?"
"Ummm... Some investors who were to have a meeting with my boss at 9:00 are outside the office in rage because she hasn't attended the meeting as scheduled. They are claiming that she is wasting their time and resources."
He looked at his watch and sure enough it was twenty minutes past nine.
"Tell them to enter the office." Chang Haoyu said as he looked at his daughter who was sipping her tea comfortably as if nothing in this world fazed her even a bit.
"Yes, sir." The secretary went on and opened the door ushering the grumbling investors inside the office. They were angered to see that the woman in question was just sipping tea leisurely. However when they looked at the man seated across from her, they were stunned to silence and their anger vanished into air.
"Master Chang, what brings you to China?" One of the men asked as he flashed him a smile.
"I am here to visit my daughter." He replied.
"Your daughter? Miss Xia is your daughter?"
"Yes and am sorry for delaying your meeting. Perhaps you can schedule it in the afternoon."
"Ye... yes. We will come later in the afternoon." One of them said before adding. "That is if Miss Xia is comfortable with this new arrangement of course."
"I will see you in the afternoon." She replied.
"Okay. We will be leaving now." They all left with their tails tucked between their legs.
"These are the type of people you deal with yet you have a husband by your side who is willing to throw money into your hotels once you ask?"
"If I rely too much on someone, I will end up becoming a slave of my own life choices and trust me, I don't want that."
"If you say so." Chang Haoyu shrugged as he took a sip of his tea.
"And so what are you going to do about your situation?"
"I will just wait and see what the great Huan Kai has in store for me."