THE VILLAIN'S WIFE

1-5

Chapter 1: Shrewd Woman

"I suppose there is a reason why you barged in without an appointment." Lily Qin smiled. She stared intently at the man in front of her.

"I heard you backed out from the engagement," the man gritted his teeth in annoyance. He hated Lily Qin's smile. It wasn't the way her beautiful thin lips lifted upwards, nor was it the crinkling of her left dimple. Her smile didn't quite reach her amber eyes and sometimes you could catch a flash of cunningness that would cross her face.

In those few moments as he stared at her, memories of his parents urging him to marry her started to fill his mind. It was a constant reminder of how he needed this marriage to save their family business.

"Why?" he asked.

Lily Qin instantly raised a brow at the question. "Why not?" she challenged.

"I deserve an explanation! Our families have been planning this engagement for months! You cannot back out now! This will ruin the reputation—"

"And that is my problem... because?"

"You-you tell me the reason for your preposterous actions or else—"

The man's words were interrupted when Lily Qin tossed an envelope in front of him. "See for yourself."

Liam instantly tore open the envelope. His eyes widened at the various documents and photographs he saw inside. "You... You sent someone to spy on me?"

Lily Qin instantly scoffed at his words. "Don't flatter yourself, Liam Arison. It was a business decision," she said as she pulled out another envelope and gave it to him.

"What do you mean? How could you ask someone to investigate me like this?" he asked before slowly opening the second envelope, assuming he would find more pictures of him being intimate with his childhood sweetheart. His face darkened as he recognized the contents.

"Acquisition. I want to acquire your properties in the Far East. To be specific, I want the retail companies you have in China, Hong Kong, and Singapore," she said, ignoring the dark look the man was giving her.

"Is this the reason why you initially agreed to the engagement?" Liam Arison's voice was venomous. He wanted to gobble up the beautiful woman in front of him. The smile on Lily Qin's perfect face made fury rise from the depths of his heart.

He remembered how his father had wanted this engagement to save their subsidiaries abroad. His father thought that by marrying his son into the prominent Facci family, he could save their business.

"Didn't you also want the same thing from me?" Lily Qin smirked at him, making his temper flare.

"How dare you! Do you think our Arison family is one you can bully like this? You just wait..."

"Tsk... Tsk... Liam. Have you forgotten about the photos that I gave you just now?" she asked, propping her head on her palm with the same smile plastered on her face. "Think about how your board of directors would react once they find out that the great Liam Ariston cheated on his fiancée with a mere starlet. With your halfbrother's impeccable performance lately, do you think the board will even hesitate before replacing their current CEO?"

"You—" Liam exploded; his eyes red, the veins in his head started to bulge. "You agreed to be my fiancée because of this? Didn't you?" Liam clenched his jaw as the realization hit him. He fell into the great Lily Qin's scheme!

"Alright... you are making it sound like I am a bad person." Lily waved her hand. "Liam, this is nothing but business. Your family wanted to take advantage of my dying grandmother and proposed a marriage to save your business. Think about it..."