The drive toward the Kingsley estate took them through a secluded forest road, far from the prying eyes of the city. Liao Ping watched the dark trees blur past until she spotted something ahead.
"Are those your people too? Waiting by the road?" she asked, pointing. Kaisen's expression shifted instantly. He hadn't ordered a roadside greeting.
"Boss, get down! Assassins!" Raymond shouted from the front seat, drawing his weapon.
Bullets shattered the silence. The car swerved violently as Kaisen's security detail returned fire. In the chaos, the vehicles came to a grinding halt. Kaisen leapt out to join the fray, the air thick with the smell of gunpowder and iron. Liao Ping huddled on the floorboards, hands over her ears, paralyzed as she watched men fall.
"Liao Ping, stay in the car!" Kaisen roared, but the tide was turning. The attackers were numerous and well-prepared. Kaisen took a bullet to the shoulder, grunting as he stumbled.
"Boss, go! Get to the woods! I'll hold them off!" Raymond yelled, frantically calling for reinforcements. Kaisen didn't hesitate; he grabbed Liao Ping's hand and dragged her into the dense forest.
"My feet! They hurt!" she cried, thorns pricking her skin.
"Would you rather have a bullet in your head?" Kaisen hissed. Suddenly, another shot rang out. Kaisen collapsed as a bullet grazed his leg. Three assassins closed in, their shadows long and terrifying. Liao Ping kept running for a moment, but then she stopped. She looked at the gun dropped by a fallen guard near the treeline.
"Smile for the camera! The 'Great Kaisen' dying in the dirt—the boss will love this," one assassin mocked, pinning Kaisen down with a boot. Kaisen glared, his pride wounded more than his body. He was ready for the end.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Three shots echoed. The three assassins dropped like stones. Kaisen looked up, stunned, to see Liao Ping standing a few yards away. Her hands were shaking violently, clutching a heavy pistol. She had never killed before, but her aim—honed from years of high-end virtual simulations—was perfect.
She dropped the gun and ran to him. Kaisen actually smiled through the pain. "I thought you'd be halfway to the border by now. Where did you learn to shoot like that?"
"I wanted to run!" she sobbed, trembling from the adrenaline and the sight of the bodies. "But I'd just get lost in the woods and die alone. It's better to have you alive!"
With her help, Kaisen limped toward a clearing where Raymond finally found them. Back at the Kingsley mansion, Kaisen was treated by private doctors. Liao Ping was bathed, fed, and her wounds tended to. She ate like a person possessed, her fear replaced by a ravenous hunger.
Later, Kaisen entered the dining hall, bandaged but still commanding. He pulled her onto his lap and kissed her deeply, right in front of his stunned staff.
"That's for saving my life," he murmured.
"If you're grateful, give me money and let me go!" she demanded, holding out her hand.
"How about a million dollars?" Kaisen countered. He handed her a black card. Liao Ping's eyes turned into dollar signs. She was so busy hugging the card she didn't hear Raymond's announcement.
"Boss, your grandfather called. He's coming tomorrow to introduce you to some 'suitable' brides."
Kaisen's eyes drifted to Liao Ping, who was currently kissing the credit card. A devilish smirk crossed his face. "Tell him not to bother. Tell him I've already found a wife."
Liao Ping froze, the card slipping from her fingers. "You... you said what?"
"You heard me," Kaisen leaned in, his voice a dangerous purr. "For another million, you play the part of the Mafia Queen. Do we have a deal, little fox?"