The hostess cooks
Hearing the word "Patriarch" and the respectful tone, Chu Cheng knew the person on the other end of the line was Lin Haoyang.
However, he didn't know the content of the call. He glanced at Lin Yi, who had just hung up the phone, with a hint of doubt in his eyes but didn't feel it appropriate to ask.
Lin Yi met Chu Cheng's questioning gaze but didn't treat him like air.
The ability to find the exact location so quickly made Lin Yi have a better impression of Chu Cheng.
"The Patriarch just said that the Bai family's only son, Bai Ze, went missing last night while enjoying the view at home.
They received a ransom call yesterday — the situation is quite similar to Miss Lin's. The kidnappers threatened to kill him if they called the police, so Bai Jingkuo came to ask the Patriarch for help."
Chu Cheng nodded. "I see, Lin Yi-ge."
He wasn't surprised that Bai Jingkuo sought Lin Haoyang's help.
The Bai family had a massive business empire with many celebrities under their name and frequent large-scale events.
As the saying goes, the bigger the target, the greater the risk. To ensure safety, the Bai family had a long-standing partnership with the Lin family, employing Lin family's security personnel for years.
In the past, Bai Jingkuo intended to assign a few bodyguards to accompany Bai Ze at all times.
But Bai Ze's personality — rumored to be aloof, cold, and antisocial — made him prefer solitude. Bai Jingkuo eventually dropped the matter.
As Lin Yi spoke, he opened his message app, saved a photo sent from the other end, and forwarded it to another contact with a line of text.
Chu Cheng glanced at the young man in the photo, faintly feeling a sense of familiarity, as if he had seen him somewhere before.
Those eyes were particularly striking — deep and beautiful.
Yet, his chiseled features were far from feminine.
He looked about the same age as Chu Cheng.
Chu Cheng knew this man was Bai Ze — the Bai family's only heir, holding sway over half of Longguo's entertainment industry.
With such looks and background, Chu Cheng couldn't help but feel a twinge of hostility toward this man he'd never met.
He was kidnapped too?
And in a situation similar to Xier's?
"Ahem." Lin Yi cleared his throat, patting Chu Cheng's shoulder. "Don't space out. Let's go."
Chu Cheng snapped out of it, opened the car door, and got out.
Lin Yi opened the trunk, revealing an array of weapons — knives, baseball bats, various firearms — all neatly arranged.
"Chu Cheng, pick something handy."
As he spoke, Lin Yi tucked a pistol into his waistband.
Lin Er directly slung an AK over his small frame, looking comical yet exuding a chilling coldness.
His eyes glinted with ferocity, making anyone who met his gaze shiver.
While Chu Cheng picked his weapon, Lin Yi waved at the three black Mercedes parked behind them.
Within three seconds, the cars' doors opened, and well-trained men swiftly lined up in formation.
"Lin Yi-ge, Lin Er-ge!"
Lin Yi pointed at the square-faced man standing in the middle.
"Bring grappling hooks and bolt cutters."
"Yes!"
The man turned to leave when Lin Yi added, "Did you bring the folding ladder?"
"Yes, Lin Yi-ge!"
"Bring that too."
After a brief pause, he instructed, "Ropes — the thickest hemp ropes. Each of you, carry a coil!"
Loyalty and shared hardships were what earned Lin Yi and Lin Er their positions as Lin Haoyang's trusted aides.
These damned kidnappers — how dare they touch the Lin family?
The dragon would return the favor tenfold.
First, they'd tie the kidnappers up and torment them before handing them over to the authorities!
With such a large group in black, Chu Cheng worried they might alert lookouts and ruin the element of surprise.
After discussing with Lin Yi and Lin Er, they decided to proceed first with a smaller group, while the others would follow five minutes later.
With military-grade tools and brute strength, Lin Yi twisted off the iron bars within moments.
He climbed the ladder and slipped inside with a light landing, scanning the room cautiously.
It was empty.
Without making a sound, he half-rose and mouthed toward the window, signaling the others to enter.
The remaining three — all well-trained — followed suit.
Of course...
As the tense, sharp-eyed Chu Cheng crept forward...
He still had no idea —
His earlier theory that "Xi'er could never willingly stay in this house"...
Was happening right now on the first floor.
---
Bai Ze only went downstairs after Lin Yuxi had been in the kitchen for a while.
A full performance required the whole act.
His weakness was genuine, but not to the point of fainting — he'd been faking the worst of it.
Standing on the staircase, Bai Ze watched Lin Yuxi's delicate figure as she worked.
He knew she could cook — the book mentioned it — but she only learned after marrying Chu Cheng, not in the Golden Three Chapters.
Her movements were clumsy but earnest, those slender hands fumbling as they prepared the ingredients.
Bai Ze smiled in satisfaction.
He wasn't hungry — he'd eaten before transmigrating.
He'd deliberately instructed his men to leave ingredients in the kitchen, just to have Lin Yuxi cook for him.
Not only to prevent her from giving her first time cooking to Chu Cheng...
But because in the Golden Three Chapters, there was a pivotal scene —
A devoted Bai Ze, afraid his cold-hearted beloved would go hungry, cooked a whole table of dishes himself.
He even cooled each bite before carefully feeding her — his hands trembling all the while.
His love was the very definition of cherishing her like a fragile treasure.
Yet she spat every bite back into his face.
Bai Ze's soul and memories were fully under his own control — he didn't share the original villain's feelings.
But he was more than happy to rewrite this humiliation and take back the pride and sincerity the villain had lost.
Because he found it amusing.
He enjoyed anything that brought him pleasure.
Including taming this difficult heroine.
Not to mention — he'd earn rewards for altering the plot.
The voice he'd been waiting for echoed in his mind:
[Ding! Host successfully altered a key plot trajectory — Villain Points +300.]
[Ding! Host successfully altered a key plot trajectory — Villain Luck +300.]
He curled his lips into a slow, satisfied smile.