Haimir's words caused Old Carpensa to turn his head. He looked at his son, remaining silent, but the murderous intent in his gaze was unmistakable.
Haimir immediately felt as if his body had been plunged into an ice cave.
One had to know that Old Carpensa, a seasoned politician who had become as cunning as a fox, usually kept his emotions well hidden. Yet now, his anger was barely contained, and he no longer bothered to conceal it!
Haimir had never seen his father display such an emotion. He instinctively took two steps back.
"Haimir, come here. I have something to tell you..."
Hearing his father's summons, Haimir mustered his courage and stepped forward.
"Father..."
"Slap!"
Old Carpensa's corpulent body suddenly leaped from the sickbed. With his uninjured hand, he delivered a vicious slap to Haimir's face.
The force of the blow was immense, sending Haimir sprawling to the ground.
In that instant, Haimir was utterly stunned. He had never been hit by Old Carpensa since childhood.
But now, the power contained within that single slap had left him bewildered. Haimir was sent flying more than a meter away, spinning 360 degrees in mid-air before crashing face-first onto the ground.
His face, still bearing the injuries from being beaten by Ling Tian a few days prior, met the cement floor with a heavy impact. The pain caused him to cry out incessantly.
The bodyguards stationed at the door rushed in, only to be met with Old Carpensa's bloodshot eyes.
"Get out! Get out! Who let you in!"
The bodyguards, terrified, quickly closed the door and fled.
Following this, Old Carpensa stood up and began kicking Haimir, who was writhing on the ground in pain.
"Stop hitting me, Father, stop! You're going to kill me... Why are you hitting me?"
"Why am I hitting you? You ask why I'm hitting you? Did you take my words for granted! I told you not to provoke that guy named Ling Tian for now, but you wouldn't listen!"
"Father, I didn't provoke Ling Tian..." Haimir denied it outright, but his shifty eyes betrayed him.
"You dare to lie to me again? Ling Tian was assassinated a few days ago. Wasn't that your doing?" Old Carpensa said, kicking even harder.
"Father, don't hit me, don't hit me... But even if I did it, what of it? Ling Tian has no proof that it was me..." Haimir continued to argue from the ground. Old Carpensa felt like killing him.
"Are you an idiot? Do things like this require proof? In our Darusalan Kingdom, you were the only one who had conflicts with him. Coupled with your usual behavior, how could anyone *not* suspect you? Do they need any proof for such a thing? I told you long ago that Ling Tian is no ordinary person, and warned you not to provoke him. But look at what you've done!"
Haimir was struck with sudden enlightenment. He had been blinded by hatred, his mind solely focused on revenge. He had believed that as long as Ling Tian and his associates had no proof, they couldn't retaliate. Now, he realized how utterly foolish that was.
Just then, there was a knock on the door. A man entered, Old Carpensa's secretary and his absolute confidant. This confidant had been dispatched by Old Carpensa to investigate the assassination after the incident. Judging by his demeanor, he had found something.
"Master, I've found some information..."
"Did you find out who did it?"
"Not exactly. However, we discovered that someone posted bounty missions on a dark web assassin website. You and young master Haimir are both listed, with a bounty of 30 million US dollars each. Additionally, eight other members of the family have prices set on their heads..."
Upon hearing this, Old Carpensa slumped back onto the sickbed, completely dumbfounded.
A bounty of 30 million US dollars was enough to attract top-tier assassins. At this price, Old Carpensa even had to be wary of whether those around him might take the risk for money! He realized that for a long time to come, the Carpensa family would live in fear!
With this thought, Old Carpensa grabbed the vase from the bedside table and hurled it at Haimir, who was still lying on the ground. He didn't even care that his wound was reopening.
"Crash!" The vase shattered, and a large gash opened on Haimir's head, causing him to wail immediately.
"You scoundrel! Look at what you've done! You've opened Pandora's Box; you've unleashed the devil! You thought you were the only one who could hire assassins, but they can too! Did you not investigate the person you provoked? Do you know how wealthy that doctor is? His wealth is comparable to ours! Just you wait, you'll see our family members picked off one by one by those assassins claiming their bounties!"
"I... I... Father, we can seek refuge with His Majesty the King... If His Majesty orders it, perhaps they will show leniency..."
"Are you out of your mind? Even if the King pleads for us, will they admit it? You have no proof!"
Haimir was completely bewildered. The word "proof" now made his head ache. When you don't need proof, it's useless; but when you do, there's none to be found...
Old Carpensa turned and called for his confidant.
"Go, contact Abubakar. Tell him to kill that Ling Tian! Upon completion, I will give him 1 billion US dollars! Additionally, offer another 200 million US dollars on the assassin website as a bounty for Ling Tian's death!"
"Yes, Master. I'll go now!"
After the confidant left, Haimir, covered in blood from the beatings, shakily got to his feet and cowered in a corner, trembling.
"Haimir, you have disappointed me immensely. I always thought you were a very intelligent person, but now I see you are just a stubborn fool! I wasn't saying you shouldn't deal with Ling Tian, but that you needed to wait for the right moment. For example, now. We are in a situation of no return. So, if you're going to strike, strike decisively; strike to kill!"
Old Carpensa was now resolute. He knew that besides eliminating Ling Tian, they had no other choice! This was because on many assassin websites, if the employer died, the posted missions would naturally be canceled, and the advance payment would be pocketed by the assassin websites.