Chapter 237: A Calm Before The Final Act!

Chapter 237: A Calm Before The Final Act!

The last few days back in Star City have really been an absolute, chaotic mess. Between balancing the constant friction with the Fire Birds, managing the demands of my extensive harem, and keeping our legitimate business empire running smoothly, I have been moving at an incredibly active pace. I leaned back into the comfortable seat, deeply thankful that I only require a mere two hours of sleep a day to function perfectly. Without this unique physiology, keeping up with such an insanely busy schedule would be completely impossible.

At least our family expansion is progressing flawlessly, proving that my hard work behind closed doors is paying off. A massive wave of comprehensive checkups over at Star General Hospital recently confirmed a historic lineup of pregnancies. I went down the list in my head, feeling a profound wave of satisfaction knowing that Lucy Shen, Ning Tang, Jill Feng, Ling Ling, Mei Xia, Gretta Yang, Kate Tang, and Mary Lee are all officially expecting my children.

Meanwhile, my ongoing issues with the Fire Birds are not really a lethal threat, but rather a persistent, grating annoyance. The stubborn old men of the Lee Traditionalists are aggressively trying to force much stricter regulations on all four major Syndicates. Their clear strategy is to systematically bleed our localized influence dry before their highly anticipated, supposed Golden Child finally steps out of the shadows to take over the entire direction of Eurasian prosperity. We fully anticipated this political retaliation the exact moment the China Empire launched its military move against our forward base back in Africa. It really does not take a true genius to look at the global board and realize this entire strategy is specifically aimed at weakening my personal influence.

Greg and Melody have managed to trap themselves in a rather pathetic pickle. Greg has completely exhausted his value to his handlers, turning into an entirely useless pawn on the grand chessboard. To make matters worse for their side, Melody went ahead and let the Lee family know that the baby growing inside her actually belongs to him. The absolute moment that secret slipped out, the high-and-mighty Lee family instantly abandoned her like a piece of worthless garbage.

The only one left scrambling in the dark is her brother, Raymond, who is currently hiding deep in the shadows and actively avoiding my presence. He completely lost his primary foothold in the city, leaving him with nothing but the remaining SDF support scattered throughout Star City, making him a coiled viper I must watch closely. He is still running his operations out of that highly illegal brothel situated right near my expansive Country Club Resort. Raymond has absolutely no idea that I already know his exact location, playing right into my hands.

But out of everything on my plate, the most troublesome event I am dealing with immediately is the explosive sex scandal surrounding Sam Sun. The complete idiot managed to totally tank his reputation at his brand-new company, 21st Century Lang Entertainment, over in Black State.

Right now, I am appearing live on the set of Entertainment Tonight, positioned right between the two gorgeous hosts, Ana Zi and Kate Tang. I am here to personally manage the massive public fallout and deliver the official response from the Star Entertainment Group. Pam was forced into an incredibly toxic, absolute shit position because of her completely idiotic son again, forcing her to make a definitive choice regarding the company's future.

I adjusted my posture under the intense studio lights, feeling the slight hum of the broadcast cameras focusing directly on us. Both women were rapidly reviewing their final cue cards, smoothing out their wardrobe, and letting the makeup crew apply the last-minute touches to their faces. Ana, acting the part of the ever-eager, playful mistress, slid her high heel across the floorboards to play footsies with me completely out of the camera's line of sight under the counter. This marked the second live show both women have hosted since our return to the city, and Ana was already shifting right back into her mischievous game-show persona.

Kate turned her head slightly toward me, maintaining her flawless professional posture while asking her question. "Rick, so what is going on with SEG now?"

"Well, I have officially shuffled around some of our top-tier executives following Pam's personal decision to step down from her role," I replied, offering a calm, reassuring smile directly into her line of sight. "Ling Ling has already filed the paperwork and successfully obtained her absolute divorce from Sam while he sits in a cell awaiting sentencing for his crimes. Her executive position within the company will remain entirely unchanged. Meanwhile, Gretta, who is sitting right over there in the production wings, will be taking over Pam's previous position. Finally, James is going to take over the operations at Harem-Chat based entirely on Gretta's strong recommendation. That is the simple version of the restructuring."

Ana caught the cue perfectly, flashing a dazzling smile and waving cheerfully over toward the director's chairs where Gretta sat watching the stage as the newly appointed CEO of SEG. Ana turned back to me, her eyes twinkling with a deeply playful, adult humor as she spoke. "So, I hear she is pregnant, you work fast Rick, fufu. Well, with all of our children growing up, your massive business empire will have many capable children to carry on your work, so we will definitely have more time to play, right?"

Kate let out a soft, melodramatic sigh, adjusting her posture in fake irritation as she cut in. "With me around, what does he need to find you for?"I could only watch with an amused smirk as the two beautiful women seamlessly dove into their classic, competitive banter right on stage.

[We will roll in five, four, three...!]

The producer's sharp voice cut through the studio speakers, instantly breaking the playful tension. Hearing the final countdown, we all immediately shed our casual expressions, getting completely serious while the overhead lighting adjusted to its optimal broadcast levels.

"...And so I reluctantly accepted Pam Sun's official resignation," I stated smoothly, looking directly into the primary camera lens with an expression of grave sincerity. "She was the foundational reason SEG managed to come as far as it has. Sadly, she genuinely felt the absolute best path forward for SEG's future was to pass the torch to the next generation, and I personally thank her for her incredible work."

Ana smoothly picked up the conversation, leaning forward slightly to maintain the show's engaging rhythm. "Mr Tang, so who is now in-charge of SEG?"

"My absolute best troubleshooter and proven CEO, Gretta Yang," I answered without a shred of hesitation, projecting absolute confidence to the audience. "She previously headed the highly successful Velvet Groups cosmetic line, went on to launch Harem-Chat and turn it into an absolute household name, and now she will easily bring SEG out of this temporary period of unease with her trademark calm and steady leadership."

Kate turned her gaze back to the script, asking her next calculated line with perfect timing. "And what of Pam Sun's daughter-in-law, the one who is second in command at SEG?"

"Well, I personally ordered a dedicated team of independent investigators to thoroughly clear her of any potential suspicion regarding her now ex-husbands crimes," I explained, projecting a tone of absolute transparency to satisfy the viewers. "The deep investigation explicitly revealed that Miss Ling had absolutely zero knowledge or involvement in any of his illegal activities. It was fully proven that she had never even stepped foot in Black State a single time during this entire duration. With her formal divorce finalized, a completely clean record, and a peerless work ethic, we are proud to let her stay in her executive position under the direct leadership of Miss Yang. So be completely assured that we at SEG always operate under the best ethical conditions for all our actors."

The red tally light on our unit blinked out as the technical director switched the feed over to Ana's close-up camera, allowing her to transition seamlessly into the next standard portion of the broadcast.

"And now for the funniest moments in entertainment this week..." Ana announced, her voice dripping with upbeat energy for the audience.

A short while later, we moved back into the private dressing-room area to unwind from the broadcast. While I was using a damp towel to thoroughly scrub the heavy stage makeup off my face, Gretta walked up quietly from bending over the counter, wrapping her arms tightly around my shoulders in a warm hug.

"Rick, are you sure about me being the CEO, and my daughters and I moving into the mansion?" Gretta murmured, her voice carrying a trace of genuine vulnerability as she looked at my reflection in the mirror.

"Most of the family explicitly asked me to invite you into the main household," I said, turning around in the chair so she could slide directly onto my lap. I wrapped my arms securely around her waist, patting her thigh gently. "You seem to constantly forget that Victoria, Kim, Lucy, Linda, and Hana are all extra fond of your company. Plus, your daughters are absolutely great with all my kids. Moving into the estate means they can take full advantage of our top-tier security grid, and it will make the household a lot more lively. Besides, I just personally like having you around me more. As for SEG, you are genuinely my lucky trouble shooter, and James is finally ready to take on a leading role in life."

She tightened her embrace, burying her face into the crook of my neck as she held me close against her chest. "I will run any business you want, just let me stay useful forever, thanks dear. Especially for accepting my daughters so openly..."

I tightened my grip on her, letting our tender, intimate moment extend for quite a while in the quiet room.

The very next day, I was lounging comfortably in my private office suite atop Phoenix Tower. Tina was curled up happily in my lap, resting her head against my chest while I absentmindedly stroked her bare leg. Right across from us, Jenifer was flipping through a thick folder, reading aloud the latest bureaucratic hassles and legal headaches being pushed by the government.

Nichole was lounging gracefully in the plush armchair situated right next to Jenifer, keeping a sharp ear on the details. Over by the main entrance, Hinata was relaxing on her usual leather couch, holding her smartphone up to her ear as she quietly chatted with our child, Ryu.

"...So with this new directive, we are only allowed a strict, set number of official members within our ranks," Jenifer explained, pausing to point at a specific clause in the paperwork. "The remaining members must be completely let go or immediately transferred over to the new Military building recruitment drives. In plain terms, this means the regulations are forcing us to give the Lee family one-fourth of our active members."

My first woman, Nichole, shifted slightly in her seat, her eyes narrowing as she instantly offered her strategic opinion. "We have until the end of the year to comply with this ridiculous order, so let us simply recruit that exact number using completely unofficial, useless bodies from the streets. When the deadline arrives, they will be the sacrificial one-fourth we send over to their lines, ensuring that not a single one of our actual people are harmed or sacrificed. I will personally call Ashley after this and tell the Hidden Dragons, as well as our extended family in the Crouching Tigers, to adopt this exact loophole. As for Brenda Sho, she is a woman I absolutely do not care for, so her taking a direct loss is highly beneficial for us."

I smiled slightly, fully aware that Nichole has deeply detested Brenda for a long time. My brilliantly villainous wife was perfectly content to sit back and let her find her own way through the dirt. I had absolutely no intention of forcing Nichole to change her mind on this tactical move, because I love and trust her instincts implicitly. She almost certainly knows a specific piece of leverage from her deep legal network that I haven't uncovered yet, and she clearly wants the rival Black Snake Syndicate to suffer a massive hit.

I looked down at the beautiful woman resting against me, patting her leg softly to draw her attention. "Is this something you want to do dear? You are the one completely in-charge of our personnel, after all."

Even though the two of us were holding each other in an incredibly close, intimate embrace, her gentle expression vanished in an instant. The chilling, hyper-focused aura of the Blood Demon took over her beautiful features as her brilliant mind rapidly calculated her next tactical moves.

"I want to insert a highly trained group of our elite assassins right into the midst of that dummy recruit transfer," Tina stated coldly, her eyes flashing with lethal intent. "It is the perfect opportunity to get our people incredibly close to the inner circle of the Lee family. From there, they can easily locate their exact weak points for us to take advantage of later. Rick, is that fine with you?"

"It is perfectly fine with me," I replied instantly, giving her a supportive nod. "Use whatever resources or funding you need from the treasury. Now, what do we do about Raymond's illegal brothel base? Do we move on it immediately or wait out the storm?"

Jenifer looked up from her documents, a surprisingly dark, brilliant smile spreading across her lips as she made a suggestion. "We already have active spies embedded deep inside that establishment, so why not simply spread the lethal Chinese poison directly to their high-profile guests? The Lee family will automatically be targeted and blamed as the primary distributors of the toxic substance. Once all of their elite political clients suddenly become completely and permanently impotent, not only will their entire illegal business model fail overnight, but we can easily gain massive influence over the politicians the Lee family are currently bribing through blackmail and sex."

The moment the words left her mouth, Jenifer suddenly looked a bit self-conscious and uncomfortable. The entire room had gone completely silent, and everyone, including Hinata all the way back on the couch, was staring at her in absolute amazement.

Nichole let out a sudden, melodic burst of laughter, thoroughly amused by the brutal plan. "Ufufu, Rick, all the wives always agree that I am the most cutthroat person in this family, but Jenifer here is just absolutely brutal, I love it."

I stared at her for a moment, highly enlightened by the sudden revelation. I had always naturally assumed my Jenifer was just the quiet, mousy, and deeply loyal follower of the group, but today proved that every single member of my harem possesses a beautifully sinister, dark side when pushed.

I nodded in firm approval of the plan. "Then it is settled. I will get on the Dark-Web tonight and personally secure the exact supply we need."

And when I say the words, 'get on the Dark-Web for my supply', I mean I will be spending some incredibly intense, passionate hours on top of Ning'er tonight to get the job done.

Tina's lips curved into a vicious, predatory smile as she finalized the details. "We will slip it to every single one of their high-end clients, and we will make sure to give Raymond a massive double dose as a personal bonus, because I truly hate his guts. So, we will officially call this counter-operation, Operation: Limp Dick."

Nichole playfully points the tip of her pen directly at Tina, a small, amused smirk dancing on her lips as she speaks. "Sister Tina, it is honestly creepy how you can say something so incredibly funny with that cold, detached look on your face. I swear, I never quite know if I should laugh out loud or shudder in fear... I think I will just do both, right?"

Tina blinks, suddenly realizing that she completely forgot to mask her inner heart and suppress the terrifying presence of the Blood Demon. She immediately shifts her posture, letting her features soften as she puts on a remarkably warm, charming smile for the room. "Sorry about that, when the kids are not running around the house, I sometimes completely forget to keep a smile on my face. Now, Jenifer, what is the next topic on our agenda?"

With the tension broken, the four of us rapidly finished up our complex strategy session to systematically dismantle the Fire Birds schemes.

When the weekend finally arrived, I left the busy streets of Star City behind and traveled up to the serene heights of the Fairy Mountain Temple to spend some quality time with my lover and children. Lan, Zoe, Han, and I are currently sitting around a simple, rustic wooden table, enjoying a fresh beef stir-fry that I personally prepared for the family. My energetic son, Han, is sitting happily on my lap, while my beautiful daughter, Zoe, is seated right next to Lan.

I look down at my son, then glance across at my daughter, intentionally putting on a stern, authoritative parental tone. "Zoe and Han, your mother explicitly told me that you two have not been listening to her instructions lately. If you two keep being naughty and acting up, I am simply not going to take you along on next year's family trip to America."

"We are really sorry, Daddy," Zoe murmurs, quickly lowering her blue eyes toward her plate.

"We will be perfectly good from now on!" Han promises loudly, looking up at me with wide, pleading eyes while gripping my sleeve.

Lan gives me an incredibly soft, loving look, silently thanking me for playing the role of the bad cop to help discipline our kids. She leans across the wooden table, pressing her lips against mine in a brief, tender kiss while our two children giggle, thoroughly amused to see their usually strict mother acting so completely soft and womanly.

Lan draws back slightly, her blue eyes locking onto mine as she asks a serious question. "Husband, when exactly will Fairy Mountain make its move?"

"It will be just over a year or so from now, and only our elite Gun-Fu Masters are skilled enough to survive that level of combat," I explain, reaching over to gently squeeze her hand. "I am definitely going to bring you along for the final encounter, Lan. Unless, of course, you think it is honestly best for you to stay behind at the temple?"

"Rick, you already know that I will live and die right alongside you," Lan states without a single shred of hesitation, before turning her gaze toward our children with a playful glint in her eyes. "Children, if Daddy has to go somewhere incredibly dangerous, should Mother follow along to protect him?"

Both kids nod their heads in rapid, enthusiastic agreement. Han taps his little hand against my thigh, looking up at me with an incredibly serious expression as he gives his input. "Daddy, don't worry at all! Mother is very strong, super scary, and she will definitely protect you from the bad guys, so you have to take Mother with you."

I let out a soft smirk, reaching down to affectionately ruffle his thick black hair. Lan tries her absolute best to keep a stern, angry expression painted on her face, but she is clearly struggling because her own son publicly views her as a terrifying force. It is incredibly cute to see the proud Sect Master Lan Chow acting like a flustered mother in this domestic setting.

Sect Master Lan Chow quickly puts her strict, motherly face back on, looking toward the kids as she stands up from the table. "Alright children, your Father now has to go out to the courtyard to teach the advanced students, and he will come back home to us later tonight. Mother is going to walk out with Father, so do not even think about leaving the house while we are gone, or you will both get hit with extra chores, do you hear me?"

My two cute kids immediately form a perfectly unified front, speaking in a highly practiced, identical unison. ""Yes, Mother~!""

With the children safely behaving inside, my three full days on Fairy Mountain were spent creating beautiful memories with my kids, personally training my dedicated sect students in the absolute most lethal martial arts found in all of Pangaea, Gun-Fu, and passionately making love to my exceptional, breathtaking Mountain Fairy from the legendary Snow Temple.