n

n

n

nXiu Mei returned to the bedroom after putting Lu Qiang to sleep. She dialed her mother's and brother's phones again just like what she did yesterday but she only hears that female voice repeatedly telling her that they are unavailable at this moment.

nDisappointed, she put down her phone and let out a deep sigh before going to the bathroom to start prepping herself to bed.

nLu Chen wouldn't be coming home again tonight, which was strangely happening quite often lately but Xiu Mei knew that it was definitely related to what he was investigating right now so she doesn't ask him about what he's doing anymore. After all, she was already moved when he kept his word that he will tell her his findings of Albert and Wan Wan.

nFor other people, it might seem that she's relying too much on Lu Chen and leaving him to do everything regarding that topic. But in Xiu Mei's opinion, she thought it will be more helpful for her to stay on the sidelines at the moment rather than facing it head-on like Lu Chen.

nShe's not a soldier, nor does she have any physical capability to defend herself if something happens. Who knows when she will suddenly get panic attacks because of her PTSD nor does she feel confident that she will do better in finding answers than her husband and brother.

nRather, if she pushes herself to join them, she's worried that she'll just do worse than good. Xiu Mei isn't a coward, but her decision to stay put and not be a busybody is a result of her long consideration and the best decision she could make.

nSince fighting people like Albert and Wan Wan isn't her ground, then she'll help Lu Chen in a different way than she's good at. That is doing a better job as his secretary and making sure that everything in the company is going well even without Lu Chen's direct presence.

nShe was just about to lie down on the bed when her phone beeped. She saw it was a message from her husband telling her to sleep early and don't forget to drink warm milk before sleeping. He even reminded her to say goodnight to the little bean inside her tummy on his behalf since he wasn't here.

nShe laughed at his silly message and replied back to him. She went downstairs and warmed a cup of milk just like he said. While she was pouring the warm milk into a cup from the pan, she was surprised to see Lucia appear behind her almost giving her a heart attack.

n

"My god!

" She put a hand on her c.h.e.s.t to calm her racing heart.

"What are you doing here?

"

nShe only turned on the small wall light in the kitchen hence the room wasn't bright. Lucia, the tigress' presence combined with the dimly lit room made her a bit scarier than usual, and her amber eyes glowed so brightly in the darkness. Her eyes looking at Xiu Mei were a bit intimidating giving off an illusion that Lucia will jump and take a bite off her if she moves as much as a muscle.

nThe tiger stared at her for a couple of seconds before its eyes moved to look at the cup in her hand. Instantly, she understood.

n

"Did you smell the milk?

"

nLucia roared softly to answer her. She knew that Lucia was trained and understood quite a lot of human words so she continued talking to her as if she was a person.

nShe stretched out her hand in front of her mouth and asked,

"Do you want to have some milk?

"

nThe tiger's tongue stretched out and licked her hand before she looked at the cup of milk again. Xiu Mei giggled and walked over to the fridge to grab the bottle of milk that they stored for their pets.

nShe also warmed it in the pan for a bit so that it won't be too cold and transferred it to Lucia's food bowl.

nOne human sat on the sofa and one tiger beside her foot bowed down its head to drink the milk from the bowl. Xiu Mei brushed Lucia's hair and talked to her while drinking her own cup of milk. King was quietly resting at the corner of the room unbothered by their small noise.

nAfter finishing her cup of milk, she turned her head and saw that Lucia was already done with hers. She stood up and bent her body to pick up her bowl to wash it when Lucia suddenly growled.

n

"grrrrrrrr.....

"

nShe thought that she was angry because she was trying to take away her bowl so she immediately apologized.

n

"S-Sorr-

"

n

"grrrrrrr....

"

nShe subconsciously took a step back when Lucia continued to growl. When the tiger suddenly lifted her head, their eyes met, and instantly, a shiver ran down her back. She didn't even get to finish her words. But her fear immediately switched to confusion when Lucia turned her head to look all over the place and her body surrounded Xiu Mei as if she was trying to protect her.

n.....?

nIs there something?

nShe finally understood Lucia's body language and knew that she turned like this because something's wrong around them. It was only when she raised her head that she noticed that King was also in the same stance as Lucia.

nThe lion ignored the pain on its feet as he did a walk around every corner of the house while looking so fierce.

nSeconds passed and Xiu Mei grew even more anxious.

nShe tried to grab her phone from her pocket but she instantly realized that she was wearing a nightdress. Her nightdress doesn't have any pockets.

nShe even left her phone in her room thinking that she would drink the milk in her room before sleeping instead of staying down here with Lucia and waited for her to finish drinking.

nNow, how is she gonna call for help?

nThen she raised her head and immediately panicked,

nLu Qiang was alone and he's still sleeping! What if something happens to him?!

nShe cursed in her mind while worrying. She lowered her voice and spoke to Lucia,

"Go to Lu Qiang's room.

"

nLucia's head turned to her. She repeated her words,

"Go to Lu Qiang's room first, and wake him up.

"

nLucia turned her head away ignoring her words but Xiu Mei immediately patted her head and made the tiger look at her again.

n

"Go.

" She mouthed.

"King's going to be here with me. I'll be fine.

"

nThe tiger's eyes stayed on her for a few more seconds before it moved forward and swiftly disappeared upstairs. She raised her head and saw the tiger ran towards her son's door then it stood in two feet while her front paws touched the doorknob and turned it with ease before entering the room.

nXiu Mei was stunned momentarily by what she witnessed,

"......

"

nIt seems like she discovered the answer to how Lucia slipped inside the mansion in the morning.

nKing who was roaming around the room sniffing and roaring interchangeably suddenly stopped. In a split second, King ran back towards her and stood in front of her but his eyes stayed still on the door behind the mansion.

nHe suddenly lowered his body while staring in the direction of the back door. Xiu Mei found his stance quite familiar because she'd seen it in the animal doc.u.mentaries she watched before. It was an attacking stance a predator makes before attacking.

nXiu Mei was on full alert. She was so nervous that her heart was pounding so loud she could almost hear it and her palms started sweating. She grabbed whatever she could reach that she could use as a weapon and like the lion, she closely glued her eyes on the door.

nBLAG!

nEverything happened so fast.

nThe door swung open and King's body suddenly pounced forward with a speed she hadn't seen before. Everything was dim in front of her but her eyes could make out that it was a silhouette of a person outside the door.

nIt stood still, unfazed with the big lion speeding towards him. Xiu Mei then watched that person dodge the lion's attack but King didn't stop there. It made sure to block the door entrance to stop the person from entering while it kept attacking forward to make the person step away and move backward.

nThe man chuckled after realizing the lion's intention. The lion was about to sink its teeth on the person's skin when it pulled its arm swiftly while the other hand grabbed it by the neck. The lion took the bait and who knows what the person pressed on the lion's body when King suddenly fell on the ground and became immobilized.

nKing roared louder as it continued to threaten the person despite its current appearance.

nThe man glanced at the lion and the woman inside the mansion.

nHe chuckled and mumbled with a casual tone,

"That brat really got married huh. He did not even tell me.

"

n

n