Chapter 30: The Tycoon Family, a Ruthless Ordeal Ten Years Ago

Hearing Wen Wan bring up the events of ten years ago, all the romantic thoughts in Chen Luo's mind vanished completely. Feeling the slight tremble in Wen Wan’s body, Chen Luo held her hand tightly and spoke softly to comfort her.

“It’s alright. Just tell me. I’m here. Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid.”

With Chen Luo’s reassurance, Wen Wan’s breath gradually steadied. Though she truly did not wish to recall that terrifying memory, she still wanted Chen Luo to know how the two of them had first met.

Holding Chen Luo so closely, the courage and sense of safety that welled up inside her gave her peace, and she began to recount the events of that year, including her own origins.

The Wen family of the capital—one of the nation’s top financial dynasties—was a formidable presence, even in the imperial city itself. For centuries, the Wen family had been a wealthy, influential clan, and now their protégés and former aides were spread throughout the realms of politics, the military, and business, wielding a decisive influence over the country’s economy.

A family that could thrive and grow for hundreds of years must possess extraordinary qualities, and the Wen family’s greatest reliance was their ruthless training of their direct descendants. Every generation, at the age of thirteen, the legitimate heirs were sent out by the family for a trial in the outside world.

This was no simple business apprenticeship, but a test of life and death. Each generation’s patriarch had the right to devise his own method, and though their approaches varied, the goal was always the same: to temper the minds and wills of the heirs to the utmost degree.

The current family head, Wen Tao—Wen Wan’s father—was even more ruthless than his predecessors. His chosen trial was to have his own children pretend to be kidnapped and then abandoned on the outskirts of an unfamiliar small city, while the family’s men, disguised as criminals, hunted them. The children not only had to evade their pursuers, but also had to find their own way home within a month, or they would lose their right of inheritance.

Of course, the Wen children undergoing this brutal ordeal were entirely unaware of the truth. They were simply struggling to survive.

During this process, the risk of injury or death among the Wen family’s heirs was high, but that was precisely Wen Tao’s intention. Survival of the fittest—only the most exceptional could become the Wen family’s successor, and from a young age, they must possess a tenacity and resilience far beyond ordinary people.

At thirteen, Wen Wan herself was kidnapped on her way home from school. When she awoke, she found herself deep in the mountains, lying in a small wooden hut, with only a rusty dagger by her side.

Until then, she had always attended an elite academy, learning the art of being a lady, living a life of luxury under the Wen family’s wealth.

But now, she was kidnapped to a place utterly foreign to her. The events that followed became the greatest catalyst for her later ruthless and obsessive nature—and, by chance, led her to encounter the person she would yearn for over the next ten years.

…

Ten years ago, two hundred kilometers south of Hang City.

Huaxian County, Gold Town, Great Dragon Mountain.

“Where did she go? You useless fools actually lost her!”

“Don’t worry, she’s just a child—she won’t get far! She doesn’t know these mountain paths.”

Several deep male voices echoed through the forest. Wen Wan, hiding under the roots of a giant tree not far away, pressed her left hand tightly over her mouth, her right hand gripping the rusty dagger.

These men had been chasing her for three days. All wore fierce leather masks, moved with swift skill, and were likely former soldiers. These criminals must have kidnapped her for ransom from her family, but such men were ruthless; even if they got their money, they might still kill their hostage.

This was the first conclusion Wen Wan reached after calming down—a remarkable feat for a thirteen-year-old. For three days, she had used her small build to hide in the forest, eating wild fruits when hungry, drinking from mountain springs when thirsty, and persevering through hardship.

Her character changed drastically through these trials. Once fearful of dirt and pain, she now endured wounds from branches and slept in the mud, breathing in the scent of decay as she lay concealed.

Bit by bit, she ceased to be the pampered princess of the greenhouse and became a survivor, ruthless toward herself, desperate to live.

But, after all, she was still a child—her strength and wilderness skills were limited, and her pursuers seemed well acquainted with the terrain. In the end, they caught up to her.

Left with no choice, she hid here, hoping they would move on so she could search for an escape. She had already seen from the mountain that the village was only a few hundred meters away in a straight line; if she wasn’t found this time, she could dash downhill and reach the safety of people.

The footsteps gradually faded into the distance. Wen Wan let out a sigh of relief and slowly crawled out from under the tree roots.

By now, the sun had set, and dusk had fallen; the deep mountains were silent.

She quickly oriented herself toward the foot of the mountain, took a step, and prepared to sprint downward.

Bang!

It was as if she’d run headlong into a stone wall. Wen Wan was thrown backward, crashing to the ground.

“Found you, Sixth Miss of the Wen family. You really can hide. But your little tricks can’t fool everyone. Come with me.”

A burly man in a leather mask reached out to grab Wen Wan.

The man’s massive frame and the hint of menace radiating from him told Wen Wan that even with a dagger, she was no match for him in a frontal confrontation.

And in the hands of a killer like this, there was only one outcome for her—death.

Thinking this, Wen Wan bowed her head, her entire body trembling, tears streaming down to the ground.

The burly man, thinking she was paralyzed with fear, stepped forward to seize her hand, stooping as if to sling her over his shoulder.

Suddenly, the dagger in Wen Wan’s hand plunged into the man’s neck. Blood spurted from the wound, splattering across Wen Wan’s face and soaking into her tattered white dress, which quickly turned crimson.

The man let out a wretched scream, clutching his neck as he fell.

Did I just kill someone?

No—I have to get to safety first!

Shocked to her core, Wen Wan did not hesitate for a second. She scrambled to her feet and raced down the mountain, heedless of her shredded clothes or the wounds from branches and stones, desperate to reach the village.

For more than ten minutes, she staggered and stumbled until she reached the outskirts of the village. At last, her strength gave out. Her legs buckled, and she collapsed in a vegetable patch.

Her breath came in ragged gasps. Her consciousness began to fade. Blood still oozed from her wounds, and her body was losing heat.

Was this the end?

In the darkness, Wen Wan had no strength left. She lay on the cold ground, quietly awaiting death.

As the endless dark was about to swallow her consciousness, a beam of light shone into her eyes.

“Hey, miss, are you alright?”

That beam of light, that gentle address—she would remember them for the next ten years.