When he reappeared, Lin Ran was intercepted by the three members of the Liu family.
The reason was that Liu's mother had informed Liu's father and Liu Ritian that Lin Ran had arrived. The trio's eyes immediately lit up, seeing this as their chance to turn their fortunes around.
After all, Lin Ran had once been utterly infatuated with Liu Ruxue.
Now, with Lin Ran holding vast wealth and being the boss of Suran Group, their hopes were finally within reach.
"Little Ran, I'm your uncle—remember me?" Liu Ritian shamelessly approached.
Lin Ran frowned in disgust.
As Liu Ritian lunged forward, Lin Ran barked, "Little Tong!"
Little Tong immediately rushed out.
It was time to teach them the meaning of cruelty.
Only when the three of them finally stopped their clamoring did Lin Ran speak."Well, well, long time no see. What are you all up to? Working hard to support the family?"
Liu Ritian, bruised and battered, still wore a sycophantic grin.
"L-Lin… Young Master Lin, what brings you here?"
Lin Ran replied lazily, "Just here for fun. Got a problem with that?"
At that moment, a bodyguard brought over a large bag of chips worth several million.
The Liu family nearly drooled at the sight, but they didn’t dare snatch it—this was Brother Dao’s territory.
"Young Master Lin, there’s something I’d like to discuss," Liu Ritian said, oozing flattery.
"What is it?"
"We’ve talked it over, and since you and Ruxue grew up together, we’ve decided to… let you have her."
Lin Ran picked at his ear. "I’m already married."
Liu's mother chimed in, "So what? Divorce exists for a reason. You and Ruxue are a match made in heaven. Just clear our debts here and give us a hundred million as a betrothal gift, and she’s yours."
Lin Ran, no stranger to absurdity, was still stunned by Liu's mother’s audacity.
Her sheer nerve was terrifying.
"So, what you're saying is… you want to sell Liu Ruxue to me for a hundred million?"
Liu's mother frowned—his phrasing was crude.
But she didn’t dare argue. "Y-yes, exactly."
Lin Ran feigned reluctance.
"Fine, then. Hand over the money."
The Liu family: ???
Brother Dao: ???
"What? What money?"
Lin Ran blinked innocently. "Didn’t you just say you’d give me a hundred million and hand over Liu Ruxue?"
"That’s… not what we meant!"
Lin Ran scoffed. "Oh, come on. Don’t tell me you don’t even have a hundred million? And you still want to pawn Liu Ruxue off on me?"
What kind of delusional nonsense was this?
"Lin Ran, as the man, you should be the one paying!"
Lin Ran smirked. "Well, Luo Yao gave me ten billion when she married me."
The Liu family’s eyes nearly popped out of their skulls.
"You’re full of crap."
Lin Ran waved a black card in front of them.
"Know what this is? A World Bank Black Card. Luo Yao gave it to me. I can casually spend ten billion—it’s just pocket money for me."
Ten billion? What a load of nonsense.
But Liu Ritian’s breathing grew heavy, his mind completely consumed by the fantasy of "ten billion."
Ten billion… ten billion!
Regret gnawed at him. Why hadn’t he treated Lin Ran better back then?
Even just one billion was more than an ordinary family could earn in a lifetime.
What do people do when faced with something they can’t accept?
They choose not to believe it.
"Young Master Lin, stop joking. If you were that rich, why wouldn’t you spend a measly hundred million to take my daughter?"
Lin Ran sneered. "Is your daughter made of diamonds? I wouldn’t take her even if you paid me. Besides, Liu Ruxue doesn’t even have that chance anymore."
"What do you mean?" The Liu family looked bewildered.
Lin Ran gazed down at them, amusement dancing in his eyes.
"Oh, right. You don’t know yet, do you? Liu Ruxue committed intentional homicide at school. She’s currently under investigation and won’t see daylight for at least a decade or two."
The Liu family collectively froze. "What did you say?!"
"Impossible! My daughter is kind-hearted! She’d never do such a thing!"
Lin Ran feigned shock. "Seriously? You’re her family, and you didn’t even know?"
The Liu family had already lost everything—even their phones were gone.
Lin Ran had someone fetch the news on a phone and handed it to them. Their faces twisted in horror as they read.
Shock. Dread. Despair.
"That ungrateful brat! What has she done? Is she trying to kill me?!"
"My granddaughter must have been framed!"
Watching their meltdown, Lin Ran smiled in satisfaction.
Consider this payback for the torment they’d put him through in his past life.
Suddenly, Liu Ritian lunged forward. Lin Ran pointed at the ground, and Liu Ritian dropped to his knees.
"Young Master Lin, please save Ruxue! Just get her out, and we’ll only ask for fifty million as a betrothal gift! She’ll be yours! We’ll never bother you again—you can even beat her, and we won’t say a word!"
Lin Ran couldn’t help but laugh. "Hah! You’re ugly, but your dreams are beautiful."
"Y-yes, we’re dreaming big, but Ruxue is gorgeous! Fifty million is a steal!"
Lin Ran narrowed his eyes. Suddenly, it all made sense—why the Lin family and Liu Ruxue were so unhinged.
It was all because of these people.
Liu Yuemei came from this family, which was why her son, Lin Jian, was such a piece of work.
And why Lin Tianba turned out the same way.
Of course, Lin Tianba was no saint either—otherwise, he wouldn’t have kept a mistress for years.
At the end of the day, it was true: birds of a feather flock together.
"Did you see my wife on TV? What makes you think Liu Ruxue could even stand in the same room as her and claim to be beautiful?"
"And even if Liu Ruxue were a goddess, I wouldn’t spare her a glance."
The Liu family had seen Lin Ran and Luo Yao’s appearances on the big screen. No one in the world could deny Luo Yao’s beauty.
"But… you and Ruxue grew up together! How can you just abandon her like this?"
"Grew up together? You’ve got it wrong. Liu Ruxue, just like you, is nothing more than a dog at my mercy."
Lin Ran glanced at Wei Xiang, who understood immediately.
"AH—AH—AH—"
After dealing with the three of them, Lin Ran issued his verdict.
"Disgusting. Send these three mutts back to scrubbing toilets."
"Yes, Young Master Lin."
Lin Ran wasn’t in a hurry to leave. Instead, he strolled over to the gambling table, placed a few casual bets, and watched the game unfold.