Chapter 538

Chapter 538 A Deal Between Men!

Lin Aoxue was right. The person sitting in the room at that moment was none other than the eldest young master of the Ouyang family, Ouyang Xinghai!

But no matter how hard she racked her brain, she couldn’t figure out why Ouyang Xinghai would be here, and why he seemed so familiar with Su Rui!

Hadn’t he already fallen apart completely?

Hadn’t he been shut up at home, a broken man, ever since his bride was taken?

So why did he look merely a little serious right now, nothing like the rumors going around?

After all, between Ouyang Xinghai and Su Rui, there was the deep hatred of a stolen wife!

Could he really let go of even that kind of grudge?

Still in shock, Lin Aoxue felt a faint chill run through her.

She seemed to have sensed something, but wasn’t entirely sure about the thoughts forming in her mind.

Ouyang Xinghai didn’t look particularly devastated right now. Hearing what Lin Aoxue said, he gave a faint smile and said, “That’s right, it’s me.”

Before the engagement banquet with Qin Yueran, he had been the true golden bachelor, the most promising figure among the third generation in the capital. Someone like Li Yongheng, who rode his brother’s coattails, and a top-tier eldest son like Ouyang Xinghai were two completely different things.

Still, his smile carried a trace of bitterness.

Ouyang Xinghai was a bit thinner than before, with short stubble on his face, and his expression no longer carried that former air of high spirits.

Having gone through this great ordeal in his life, he had become far more reserved and grounded, as though he had matured by a decade overnight.

“Aren’t you a little surprised that the two of us are working together?” Su Rui pulled Lin Aoxue down to sit.

“A little.”

Lin Aoxue said softly. She was already beginning to process this shocking news. These two men were actually really working together? The world of men was so complicated. Was there anything impossible between them?

“A little brother is always a little brother. No matter what, he can’t escape from his older brother’s grasp.” Su Rui said with a cold laugh, “I’ve seen too many self-righteous people. They all ended up dying very, very badly.”

“If not for this, how could he ever give up?”

Ouyang Xinghai stood up and poured a glass of red wine for both Su Rui and Lin Aoxue.

It seemed he knew his younger brother very well.

Lin Aoxue listened carefully from the side. It was just a brief exchange, yet it revealed an enormous amount of information!

Her expression grew heavy. It was obvious that Ouyang Xinghai was setting a trap for his younger brother, Ouyang Bingyuan!

Given the latter’s arrogant nature, he never would have imagined that his older brother, who had supposedly been a broken wreck at home drowning his sorrows in alcohol ever since losing his bride, would choose this moment to scheme against him!

If this was true, it only showed how terrifying this man really was!

Not only did he not seek revenge for the stolen wife, he used it as leverage and seized the opportunity to set a trap. A man like this was beyond what “deep scheming” could even describe!

Looking at his sharp brows and bright eyes, Lin Aoxue felt a slight chill.

Could it be that from the very beginning, all that broken devastation of his had been an act? Even at Qin Yueran’s engagement banquet, when he had completely thrown away his dignity and lost all face, had that been fake too?

Though Lin Aoxue thought this in her heart, she didn’t say it out loud.

Having a brother like this, one had to say, was Ouyang Bingyuan’s misfortune.

“Zhang Yu Jiebaina. I can’t believe you’d drink red wine that costs a few dozen yuan a bottle.” Su Rui seemed somewhat surprised.

He had heard about Ouyang Xinghai’s habits before. He loved red wine and was very particular about it, yet now he had opened a bottle worth a few dozen yuan to drink.

Being able to do something like this naturally showed that a drastic change had come over him.

“Whether it’s a few dozen yuan a bottle or a few hundred thousand, it’s all just red wine. The taste is a bit worse, but you get used to it after a while.” Ouyang Xinghai said calmly, “I only now realize that the true value of such things isn’t all that different. The real difference is people’s mindset.”

“The real difference is mindset.” Su Rui nodded. “The fact that you understand this makes me feel like I’ve gained another formidable rival.”

“You and I are not rivals.” Ouyang Xinghai drained his glass in one go, then refilled it, as casually as if he were drinking water.

“Don’t speak too soon.” Su Rui fixed his gaze on Ouyang Xinghai’s movements and said with a slight edge in his eyes, “It looks like you’ve become even more of a drinker than before.”

“Pretending to be a broken wreck at home is exhausting too. Sometimes, without even realizing it, the act starts to become real.”

Ouyang Xinghai drained his glass again.

“I feel like there’s a lot more to what you’re saying.” Su Rui said lightly.

“You’re overthinking it.” Ouyang Xinghai shook his head and refilled the goblet again.

The way he looked made it hard to believe he had recovered from the blow of having his bride taken.

“I hope I am overthinking it.” Su Rui felt this kind of conversation was getting nowhere. When Ouyang Xinghai had first approached him to express his willingness to cooperate, it had also given him quite a shock.

Even if it were Su Rui himself, it would be very hard to move past the humiliation of having his bride stolen, let alone proactively choose to cooperate with the enemy.

After all, that time the entire capital had been laughing at Ouyang Xinghai!

Su Rui’s act of storming the Qin family estate with twelve helicopters wasn’t just a hard slap to Ouyang Xinghai’s face. It had torn his face clean off, thrown it to the ground, and stomped on it mercilessly!

And yet, even so, Ouyang Xinghai had been able to proactively choose to work with Su Rui, and to seize the chance to bring down his younger brother Ouyang Bingyuan while the latter was completely off guard!

There were only two reasons someone could do that.

One was that Ouyang Xinghai had always been an extremely cold-blooded person with exceptional acting skills. At the Qin family estate, he had used those skills to fool everyone, and even now, the onlookers in the capital still believed he had been completely knocked out of the game and had fully withdrawn from the fight for the family inheritance!

Two was that he had never had any real feelings for Qin Yueran to begin with. From start to finish, everything had been in service of his ultimate goal. All that tender devotion had been nothing but an act!

Still, looking at Ouyang Xinghai drowning his sorrows in wine right now, it was hard to believe he was a completely cold-blooded person.

Just as Su Rui was about to say something more, Lin Aoxue suddenly spoke up.

“Don’t you hate him?”

The “him” Lin Aoxue referred to was naturally not Ouyang Bingyuan, but Su Rui.

Hearing this, Su Rui also held his breath and waited for Ouyang Xinghai’s answer. He had asked the same question before, and the other man had only smiled without saying a word.

But this time, Ouyang Xinghai smiled, and his answer was simple: “I do.”

Su Rui’s brow furrowed slightly.

Lin Aoxue said coldly, “And yet you still want to work with him?”

“Because an opportunity like this is hard to come by.”

Ouyang Xinghai said, “My younger brother is treacherous by nature and has always had his eye on me. To be precise, he has his eye on the position of heir to the Ouyang family. If I don’t strike first, sooner or later I’ll die at his hands.”

“So you chose to make your move using this opportunity?”

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime chance. Compared to this, my hatred for Su Rui means nothing at all.”

Su Rui let out a long breath. “Hearing you say that actually puts me at ease.”

That was indeed the case. If Ouyang Xinghai had said he felt absolutely no hatred toward Su Rui, that would have been the truly frightening thing.

“To be able to stay rational at a time like this and maximize the value of an opportunity, honestly, I feel like I’m no match for you.”

Su Rui shook his head. It was hard to tell whether those words were a compliment or a slight.

“You’re far stronger than I am.” Ouyang Xinghai shook his head.

“I have one more question.” Lin Aoxue spoke up again.

“Go ahead. Since Miss Lin is here, it means both Su Rui and I trust you completely. There are some things you have the right to know.” Ouyang Xinghai drained his glass once more.

“Why did Su Rui openly go up against Ouyang Bingyuan? I think this is drawing fire onto Su Rui and putting him in danger.”

Lin Aoxue said coolly, her brow furrowed slightly, as though this course of action made her somewhat uneasy.

The young Miss Lin had started being protective again.

She hadn’t even noticed it herself, but the way she was thinking about things now had completely shifted to Su Rui’s perspective.

In her view, since Ouyang Xinghai wanted to scheme against Ouyang Bingyuan, he could have done it quietly. Why openly bring Su Rui in to help? It seemed completely unnecessary!

Su Rui had beaten Ouyang Bingyuan half to death today, and the latter would surely hate him to the bone. Once he went on a rampage for revenge, Su Rui’s danger level would skyrocket!

“Because Su Rui and I discussed it carefully, and he’s the only one who fits.” Ouyang Xinghai looked toward Su Rui.

“Let me explain.”

Su Rui said, “Do you know about the throat-slitting gesture I made at Ouyang Bingyuan today?”

“I know a little.”

Lin Aoxue had caught a glimpse of Su Rui’s gesture out of the corner of her eye and had been slightly puzzled at the time, since she hadn’t known who he was directing it at.

“I genuinely wanted to slit his throat.” As Su Rui said this, a flash of cold light appeared in his eyes.

Watching the coldness gather in Su Rui’s eyes, Lin Aoxue guessed half the answer.

“Every single listening device in your office was installed by people he hired.” A trace of cold color passed through Su Rui’s eyes as he said, “It was an unsolved case at the time. Now it’s all come to light.”

Hearing this, Lin Aoxue felt somewhat surprised.

“How could it be him?”

“There’s only one answer. He’s had a secret infatuation with you for a long time.”

Su Rui paused, then said, “Or rather, he’s been coveting your looks.”

Lin Aoxue fell silent. She could already feel Su Rui’s concern.

“If I were still the way I used to be, there’s no way I’d let him off this easily.” Su Rui said coldly, “Daring to spy on you. He must be tired of living.”

Though Lin Aoxue felt a little worried, she couldn’t help but feel a faint sweetness drift through her heart.

“Whether it draws fire or not, I was going to beat him up badly regardless.” Su Rui shrugged indifferently. “Besides, his hatred toward me doesn’t do anything to me.”

“Try to minimize the danger.” Lin Aoxue urged.

“Worst case, I just kill him.” Su Rui said carelessly.

Lin Aoxue was at a loss for words. She knew Su Rui surely had it all figured out, but she was still very worried.

“He can’t die.” Ouyang Xinghai suddenly spoke up.

“Whether he dies or not isn’t something either of us can decide. It depends on how hard he pushes his own luck.” Su Rui looked at Ouyang Xinghai’s sharp features and said, “The terms we agreed on beforehand, can they be honored now?”