Enticing Fancy: Genius CEO's Bride

It was almost six o'clock in the evening. Kelley Zhuo walked out of the school gate, intending to head off to her part-time job. After getting past the bustling gate of the school, Kelley Zhuo walked to an intersection. When she was about to turn, an elegant and expensive-looking sports car came to a sudden halt right in front of her.

The window slowly rolled down, revealing an extremely beautiful and cynical man's handsome face. A faint and evil smile appeared on his thin lips. "Do you think you can avoid me?"

The man's cold and magnetic voice was like a knife piercing her heart deeply. Kelley Zhuo took a step back and looked at his domineering face. "Ever since you got engaged with her, I have nothing to do with you anymore, remember?" she replied bitterly.

With a scoff, the man opened the car door in one swift movement and pulled Kelley Zhuo into the car. Before she could figure out what was happening, the man closed the door and quickly drove away, the car buzzing into life. There was no time for Kelley Zhuo to react as it all happened so quickly.

Meanwhile, the man drove, his hands holding tightly around the steering wheel as he stared at the road ahead.

The relationship between these two people was truly unusual. The man was the young master of the Leng Family, Henry Leng. His family was one of the most powerful names in all of J City. Kelley Zhuo, on the other hand, was supposedly his bride-to-be. Even without the influence of his family, Henry Leng himself was very powerful.

It was difficult to ascertain just how huge his business was now. Apart from his massive industries in various countries outside H Country, he had monopolized a number of other industries in H Country in the past half a year. As others would put it, he was a wolf in business. The economy of H Country was practically at the palm of his hand. Many foreign traders from all over the world had dubbed him as the ultimate genius in business.

Being a genius not only meant that he was talented in what he did. When the occasion arose, Henry could be as ruthless as he needed to be. At times it was as if he was a god -- untouchable and worshiped by many.

Kelly Zhuo tried her best to sit up straight. Just when she was about to say something to him, Henry Leng suddenly made a sharp turn at a corner, flinging her against the car door. With her hands gripping the seat, she tried to cling on to dear life. It went without saying that this man was dangerous when he was driving!

They were now driving at a secluded and uncongested road. Taking a deep breath, Kelley Zhuo tried to sit up again. "So... Why aren't you with her today?" she said, coughing awkwardly.

Henry Leng slightly turned his head back to cast a glance at Kelley Zhuo. "I'll be with whomever I want to be with, and who I meet with is my business."

Throwing her hands up in exasperation, she was rendered speechless. How was it even possible to be around a man like him? How could he have feelings for her? For Henry Leng, everything in this world was nothing more than just a game. At the thought of this, Kelley Zhuo had nothing more to say to him. With her head against the window, she looked out onto the road. It was getting really dark outside as the shadows of the trees and buildings blurred past them. It would be a bad idea if she tried to escape right at this moment. In the meantime, all she could do was waiting for the perfect opportunity to get away. The most important thing she needed to do now was to stay calm.

About ten minutes later, they soon arrived at a large manor. The iron gates automatically opened as soon as the car drove up the driveway. Then, Henry slowly drove the car up the garage. This was a place Kelley was quite familiar with. It was a massive piece of land that nested this absurdly expensive house which was better known as the 'Dragon Manor'.

Things slowly started to settle down. In the living room, Kelly sat uneasily on the soft and wide sofa. Meanwhile, Henry slid down his suit jacket from his shoulders and carelessly flung it on one of the arm chairs. Afterwards, he loosened his tie and undid the first two buttons of his white shirt.

Taking a quick glance at Kelley, he grabbed a bottle of red wine and two glasses before sitting down with her.

His tall and tone physique was undeniably attractive. Everything about him was so perfect. Henry was blessed with charms, good looks, and an astonishingly high IQ. It was as if he was handcrafted by God Himself. At some point in Henry's career, he was able to single-handedly turn the economic market of H Country upside down.

With a playful smile on his face, he place the wine and two glasses onto the crystal coffee table. "I thought that we should have a drink," he said in a low voice.

However, Kelley wasn't in the mood to drink. She still had her part-time jobs to do so that she could pay for all of her living expenses. "Why did you bring me here?" she asked. "Just tell me. I don't have time to play games with you."

With an evil smile on his face, Henry chuckled. "Kelley, isn't it obvious yet? It's late at night... I took you home, and asked you to drink with me. Not to mention the fact that you are my bride. What do you think I brought you here for?"

Gritting her teeth, Kelley stood up and headed towards the door. There was no way she could bear to stay there a second longer! Just before her hand touched the doorknob, his cold voice rang behind her. "Go on and try to leave. Just know that you will not be able to afford the consequences of your disobedience!"

These words were enough to make Kelley stop dead on her tracks. Feeling defeated, she lowered her hand back to her side, clenching it into a fist. She knew well enough that she would no longer see the light of day as long as Henry wished for it to happen. With a sneer, she quickly turned back to face him, meeting his sharp and cold eyes. "Why can't you just let me go?" she asked, her voice trembling in fear and in frustration.

With an evil smile, Henry picked up the glass of red wine on the tea table, swirling it gently in his hand. "I'm not really the type to make things difficult for women," he said in a lazy voice. "How about this? I'll let you go if you drink a glass of wine with me."

Biting her lip, she hesitantly went back to the couch and took the glass. It was just one glass after all. "Fine," she said, "I'll drink with you. But after this, I don't ever want to see you again!" Chuckling, Henry sipped at his wine.

"That's not what I offered you. That glass of wine is only for your freedom tonight. If you don't want to drink it, you'll have to stay and serve me," he said.

With a slight frown, Kelley thought it would be better to drink a glass of wine in exchange for a quiet night. Taking a deep breath in, she quickly gulped down the wine. For some reason, it tasted unusually sweet. After some time, her body was getting hotter and hotter. At this point, Kelley was starting to get weak. The wine glass slipped from her fingers, shattering into a million pieces on the ground.

With an evil smile, Henry raised Kelley's chin. "A glass of wine for a night of freedom. Was it worth it?"

Kelley tried to raise her hand so she could hit him and push him away. However, Henry was much quicker and stronger than she was. "Bastard!" she cried out. "You're a monster!"

Ever since Kelley decided to leave him, Henry was even more obsessed with her than before. He was like a shadow that was impossible to get rid of. It was hard for Kelley to figure out what she meant for him -- whether or not she was just one of his many playthings.

Their story started on a cold and snowy day last winter...

It all began in a magnificent villa. The roof was covered with a thin layer of snow, and the gently floating snowflakes made it look all the more charming and beautiful. This was the main house of the Leng Family.

The Leng Group had been prosperous for over twenty years now. However, ever since they had lost two of their family members in a row, they weren't as successful as they used to be. Management became hard, and for some time they were only making enough to make sure that the company didn't die out. Despite this, the Leng Family still remained to be one of the most powerful households in J City.

On that snowy day, Kelley was inside the grand villa, kneeling on the ground as she wiped the marble floors. There was no way she could use a vacuum cleaner or even a mop to clean the rooms in the villa. The only thing she could use was this small piece of cloth. This was a task she had to do every single week.

Almost mechanically, Kelley would rinse off the rag in a bucket of water, lift it up, wring it out, and wipe the floor. Since it was wintertime, the water in the bucket was almost as cold as the snow outside. During times like this, her hands grew incredibly numb. It was a lot more difficult to do tasks like this as she could barely move her fingers from how cold they were. The only thing that was warming her up was how much she moved her arms across the floor as she tirelessly tried to clean it.

As Kelley did this, she couldn't help but count how many rooms there were left for her to clean up. The house was much too big and had way too many rooms. It was her intention to finish this task as soon as possible so that she could still work part-time at a store downtown. Since it was almost Christmas, most people were doing a lot of shopping. The more items she sold, the more money she would have for her expenses.

An hour before noon, Kelley walked out of the villa and let out a tired sigh. Just when she was about to walk to the nearby bus stop, a woman gingerly approached her. She was wearing a fluffy hat on her head and had a digital camera in her hand. "Excuse me. Is this the villa of the Leng Family?" she asked as she stood on her toes, trying to get a better look in between the grills of the gate.

"Yes," Kelley replied in a trembling voice as she rubbed her hands together to warm them. "Who are you looking for?" A slight breeze blew, but it was enough to send a chill right down to her bone. The thin, velvet jacket she was wearing was not enough in this kind of weather.

The woman smiled politely. "Oh, I'm a reporter from the Daily Newspaper of J City. I've heard that Mr. Henry of the Leng Group just got engaged today. I'm here to interview him for a special segment." Then, she paused to cast another glance inside. "Why is it so quiet in there? Isn't the engagement ceremony being held here?"

'Mr. Henry is getting engaged today?' Kelley thought in surprise. All of a sudden, she burst into laughter. She couldn't help but feel how silly she was for thinking that she would have a chance with a man like him. Henry was like a god high up in the sky, whereas she was a nobody, a mundane girl who was struggling to survive. It was impossible to think that she would ever end up with a guy like him.

It was four years ago when she had first seen and fallen in love with Henry. She had just turned eighteen at that time. It was really nothing more than a strong infatuation as she knew in her heart that it would never be meant to be.

Just when the reporter was about to ask why Kelley was laughing, her phone suddenly rang. After answering the call, she started to apologize profusely, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment. When the call ended, the reporter sighed heavily. "What bad luck! I thought that the engagement ceremony was going to be held here. Turns out it's happening right now at the Imperial Hotel. I don't know if I'll still be able to make it on time."

Hearing this, Kelley came back to her senses. "Well, you need to get there even if it's already a bit late. Besides, you have a report to do! I'll even come with you if you like."

The reporter took a look at Kelley, and thought for a while. "Okay, my car is over there. Let's go!"

The Imperial Hotel was one of the most prestigious places in J City. Only the highest ranking officials or rich businessmen could afford to stay a night there, let alone hold an event.

Kelley, however, wasn't in the mood to appreciate the magnificent hotel. All she wanted to do was catch a glimpse of Henry.

He was the only eligible heir to the Leng Group. When he was only two years old, he had been completely shut off from the public eye. There had been no news of him for nearly 20 years. And now, he had suddenly reappeared, and was engaged to the daughter of the Shen Family. All of the major media outlets came to cover his story.

After a few minutes of aimlessly wandering around, Kelley managed to find a less crowded corner. With her back to the wall, she stood on her toes and tried to spot where Henry was. It was easy enough as there was a crowd of people surrounding him. On top of that, it was easy enough for Kelley to recognize his handsome face.

As usual, Henry was wearing a dark, silk suit. Even though this was a formal event, he wore his clothes casually -- there wasn't a tie around his neck and the top two buttons of his shirt were opened, slightly revealing his strong chest.

A faint, dismissive smile constantly played across his lips as he faced the wave of reporters, their cameras' flashes shining brightly on his face.

Kelley was much too far away to hear a word of what he was saying. After some time, her eyes wandered to Henry's side. There, she saw the woman who was standing closely beside him. The woman was wearing a red dress, a flock of birds beautifully embroidered at the hem. It was Anne Shen, the famous actress. Seeing her, Kelley couldn't help but think how beautiful she was in person.

The two of them were a perfect match. With all the guests talking nothing but praise about the engaged couple, Kelley couldn't bear to stay any longer. She turned around angrily, intending to leave. However, she unfortunately toppled over the potted plant beside her, and crashed down with a loud bang. Her inconspicuous corner suddenly became the focus of the whole party.

Looking over, Henry managed to catch a glimpse of the embarrassed woman leaving in a hurry. The faint smile on his lips slowly faded away, and a sharp coldness surfaced in his eyes.

As soon as she managed to step out of the hotel, Kelley panted hard, trying to catch her breath. Her heart ached at the sight of Henry and Anne Shen together, but at least she got to see him again. That day, instead of showing up for her part-time job, Kelley decided to come back to school. Even though the school wasn't that special, it still meant a lot if she could graduate. Besides, she was already a senior, and would graduate from the university in June next year.

After returning to the dormitory, Kelley fell on the bed tiredly. She pulled the thin blanket over her to warm up her shivering body. There was nothing she could use to warm up her cold heart, however. Out of nowhere, Kelley started laughing to herself bitterly. 'Is there anyone else in this world who's more ridiculous than I am right now?' she thought to herself. Tears started to roll down her eyes as she relentlessly bit on her lower lip.

The year Henry was born, his father and only brother had died. Feeling helpless, the matron of the Leng Family went to a fortune teller to seek for any sort of help. The fortune teller then said that the child's life was much too hard, and so his brother and father had to be implicated. If they did not want any of the other family members to suffer, he needed to be married to a girl who had a hard life as well.

More than a year later, an earthquake occurred in a small village in a hidden mountain area of H Country. All the people in the village died except for a newborn baby girl. The fortune teller found out about this, and predicated that this girl was the one Henry was supposed to marry. As it went, their marriages had been arranged.

It was so ridiculous and out of this world that it was hard to believe that it didn't come out of a movie. Ever since Kelley was a child, she was taken into the Leng Family. Not long after her arrival, Henry had been sent away, and they never saw each other again until she turned eighteen.

That year, the matron of the Leng Family approached Kelley. "He had an examination," she explained to Kelley, not bothering to mention Henry's name. "If he passed, he just might come back alive. But if he failed, he will be nothing but a box of ashes. Please. Go see him for me."

Of course, Kelley knew who she was talking about and went to see him willingly. That same night, Kelley was sent to an isolated island in the middle of the sea. Just when she was about to hop on a boat to get closer to the island, her chaperone coughed awkwardly. "This is a restricted area," he said. "Anyone who comes here without permission will die. Go by yourself if you will."

There was nothing else Kelley wanted more than to see what kind of person her husband-to-be was. And so, she went. Kelley steadily rowed the boat alone. As soon as she landed on the island, numerous guns were shooting right at her. In a moment of desperation, she tried to run away. Yet, the people shooting at her were all strong and adept foreign men. There was no chance for her to escape. At a crucial moment of life and death, she couldn't help shouting, "Henry, help me! Henry!"

Coincidentally, a woman in a black uniform heard her cries for help. Holding her hand up, she ordered the men to stop shooting. Then, she walked over to Kelley, her brows raising in interest. "So you're here for Henry," the woman barked coldly. "And who exactly are you?"

"I'm his wife," Kelley stammered, still feeling rattled from all the gunfire directed towards her. After which, she looked closely at the blonde woman in front of her. "What is this place? Who are you?"

"I am the instructor in this training base. This is where we hone people who have the most advanced and promising talents in the new millennia. Since you're already here, let's go see Henry's final examination. Hopefully you'll still be able to see him alive."

Before Kelley could react or fully process what the woman had said, she was immediately whisked away to a building and into an observation room. The walls of the room were made of special and tough material that was about a meter thick. Each side was lined with a one-way mirror, revealing the secret room. There was no way anyone in the secret room could see the people in the observation room.

It wasn't until later that Kelley finally understood that this was the final test the female instructor was talking about. The test was nothing more but a fight to the death. All of the prospective candidates had the same clothes on. Before entering the room, their opponents were randomly assigned to them. They were all carrying different weapons with them, but they were all similarly sharp and deadly, the kind that could take someone's life in one blow.

Kelley glanced timidly at the instructor who was in the observation room with her. Perhaps the reason why the instructor had brought her here wasn't because she was looking after her best interests. It was highly possible that the instructor wanted Kelley to see her husband die a brutal death.

Before she could think about it some more, the assessment began. Two people entered the room, both of them looked like they were from different parts of the world. One had an iron rod in his hand while the other held a long knife. Without warning, the two charged at each other and attacked. From the looks of it, they seemed to be well-matched. This was life or death, after all, and the slightest signs of weakness could mean the end for one of them.

After some time of exchanging blows, both of them appeared to be out of breath. Meanwhile, Kelley's eyes were wide open in shock and fear. Never in her life had she witnessed something as brutal as this. There was no way she could stomach such a thing. Just when she thought it couldn't get worse, the knife in the man's hand went right though his opponent. Blood sputtered out into the air, staining the walls and the floor. With her hands covering her face, Kelley couldn't help but scream out in shock.

After a minute or so, Kelley calmed down a little and opened her eyes. The instructor was looking at her with disgust in her eyes. It was obvious that she was irritated at how she had screamed just now. Pressing her lips together, Kelley tried to ease her nerves and went back to look at the room. Besides, she had come this far. Even though she was afraid, she couldn't bail out now before she saw Henry.

The man stood over the dying man's growing pool of blood, panting heavily. Without much time to rest, another man came up inside the room. Seeing this, Kelley's heart started to beat quickly in her chest. The new man had tan skin and black hair.

'Could...that be him?' she thought to herself. The man was very handsome. However, she still wasn't sure whether or not he was her husband.

The handsome man had a sly smile on his lips. Moving quickly, he grabbed the iron bar the now lifeless man had used earlier. As he circled around the room, Kelley was able to have a good look at him. He was probably almost six feet tall. The muscles in his body were nice and toned. Even though this was a battle to the death, there was not a hint of fear in his eyes. In fact, he appeared to look quite cynical.

With the iron bar in his hands, he swung at the man several times. From the looks of it, he even looked like he was enjoying himself. Just when Kelley was starting to get used to the scene in front of her, the man quickened his pace. His opponent was now having trouble keeping up.

At a crucial moment, the man swiftly jumped behind his opponent and finally delivered a fatal blow.

It was the same weapon the first vanquished man used, and yet the results were so different in the hand of the right person. A couple of uniformed personnel went inside and dragged the two bodies away. Shortly after, another new opponent came in and charged at him. Kelley was starting to feel distressed, because it was also a tanned, Asian male. Which one of these people could possibly be her husband? As the fight got longer, it became more and more intense, leaving no room for Kelley to compose herself at all. Soon, the newest opponent was not able to match the skills of the other, and had hopelessly lost his life.

One after another, other fighters came and went. After watching so much violence in front of her, Kelley was starting to get used to it. There wasn't a second that she hadn't had her eyes glued to the handsome man smiling coyly. Although she still couldn't be sure if he was the person she was looking for, something about him spoke to her. It was twisted and wrong, but there was something mesmerizing about the way he moved and taunted his opponents.

An hour into the fight, it looked like all the other participants who had not come up yet were growing restless and impatient. All at once, they charged into the room. The one-on-one competition quickly and suddenly turned into a chaotic battle. They fought with all their might, swinging their weapons around almost mindlessly. From time to time, severed limbs flew out, sending out a gush of blood everywhere. It was an absolute bloodbath, like the pits of hell had suddenly opened.

Kelley's heart raced in her chest. It was too much for her to take in, but she just couldn't look away right now. Although her body trembled with fear, she scanned the room to look for the man she had been subconsciously rooting for.

The fight lasted for such a long time. When it finally came down to four people, the door on the other side had suddenly opened. A harsh ring tone came from the hall, signaling that the examination was over.

A tall man in a dark suit and black sunglasses came inside. Dropping their weapons, the four survivors gathered in front of the man.

Looking at the survivors, Kelley saw that the man she had been secretly rooting for was alive and unharmed. His clothes were a bit tattered and there were some light scratches on his arms and legs. Other than that, he looked better than she had expected. On the other hand, the other three survivors were not as lucky. One of them lost an arm, and was trying his best to stop the bleeding. The other two were heaving bleeding as well, large gashes strewn all over their bodies.

The fight was officially over. It wasn't until then that Kelley felt that her body was tense throughout the fight. Her entire body was covered in cold sweat and her heart was beating loudly in her ears, as if she herself was there in the battle arena. Now that it was finished, she couldn't help but feel incredibly tired. As she wiped the sweat off her forehead, she casually looked around the room. To her surprise, the instructor who was with her was nowhere in sight.

Meanwhile, the dead bodies were all carried out one by one. Through the observation room, Kelley saw several instructors talking to the four survivors. They all had a serious look on their face. Was it possible that the test wasn't over yet? The man in the black glasses eyed the survivors carefully before finally patting the handsome, tanned man on the shoulder. A proud smile was on his face.

At this time, the instructor Kelley encountered approached the man with the black glasses and whispered something in his ear. Afterwards, the man smiled and raised his eyebrows. After she said a few other things to everyone in the room, they all coldly left the blood-stained room.