Gabriel growled, wiping blood from his lip without listening. "You think you are above consequence because your mother fights your battles? You are nothing but a spoiled brat, I will discipline you today!"
That hit deeper than the punches.
Lu Zi Zhen's expression didn't change—but his eyes turned sharp, lethal, and cold; he hated anyone trying to intimidate or insult his mother. Who did he think he was to discipline him? Did he think his mommy didn't know how to bring him up?
He advanced in cold silence, each step tighter, more dangerous, and murderous Aura reeking all over the room.
Gabriel charged again, this time catching Zi Zhen around the middle, tackling him hard into the opposite wall. They crashed into the hand dryers, sparks flying as metal dented.
But Lu Zi Zhen's training showed, and it was time to maximize it; he shifted his weight, twisted out from Gabriel's grip, and slammed a palm into Gabriel's throat, halting his charge mid-motion.
"Your fiancée raised a hand to my mother, she insulted her...." Zi Zhen said, voice flat. "You should be begging for mercy, not throwing fists around as if you are above the law. The only thing that was required from the two of you was an apology."
Gabriel gasped, grasping at his throat.
Zi Zhen released him with a shove that sent Gabriel sprawling to the bloodied tiles beside Yaya.
"What a perfect couple!" They lay side to side; Lu Wan Ruyi giggled heavily at her son's antics.
Then suddenly there was silence.
Only broken breathing could be heard, the sounds of cracked tiles falling into place and a stench of copper and rage.
Ruyi finally stepped forward, her heels clicking like sad music. She looked down at the two lovers—bruised, broken, humiliated. They needed to up their game.
"Next time," she said coolly, "I will let my son finish the job completely. You should know by now that our hands aren't clean, already tainted by blood." Was she afraid? No way, she has killed and is capable of doing that again and again.
They didn't dare question them, everything they were saying could become true.
Lu Zi Zhen adjusted his cuffs and offered his arm again to his mother holding her protectively.
They walked out together, mother and son, without looking back even once. Their fate was left to them; if need be, they could crawl out and save themselves.
"Momma, are you okay? Is the baby okay? You need to be careful mother." He was worried that she would exhaust herself and hurt the baby. This was her first baby after trying for five years.
"I'm not such a weakling! Everything is just okay...." They had gotten over to the corridor, gazing into each other with affirmation, when suddenly the lights went out.
Every bulb in the corridor, the powder room, and the surrounding wings of the ballroom snapped off in synchronized silence, and suddenly, it was pitch dark.
The surrounding sounds were eerie—unnatural. Even the emergency lights didn't blink on with a backup generator, as usual; it remained dark.
Darkness swallowed them whole and they couldn't see each other.
For half a breath, there was only stunned stillness. They couldn't move forward or backward.
Then chaos erupted.
Down!" Lu Zi Zhen barked, instinctively pulling his mother down to the ground carefully just as a blade sliced through the air where her throat had been moments before.
He shielded her on the floor as whispers of steel were followed by the sickening thud of a throwing knife embedding itself into the wall.
Two shadows dropped from the ceiling vents like specters, Assassins, silent and masked, dressed in matte black.