Everyone was startled to see Lang Man entering the room. The people from the Commitment Domain hurriedly knelt to their domain lord. The guests from the Devotion Domain quickly reacted and gave a respectful bow.

"Sit, everyone. No need to be so formal on my behalf," Lang Man uttered. "Continue doing what you are doing. Do not let my presence bother you."

The aide beside Lan Mei hastily left his seat when he saw Lang Man approaching. Lang Man took that seat like it was meant for him. The others slowly sat back down.

Hai Lao cleared his throat before saying, "As I was saying, we need to decide the settlement for the unfortunate battle that happened between our two domains in Free Incarcerated City several years ago. The losses from that conflict amounted to..."

"How are your days here, my love? Is it boring?" Lang Man asked Lan Mei. His sudden question interrupted Hai Lao’s speech.

Hai Lao was vexed but didn’t dare to show it. Everyone in his team had the same frustration. It was Lang Man who told them to continue, yet he rudely interrupted the summit.

Lan Mei replied to Lang Man’s question with a polite response, "My work here has been progressing smoothly, my lord. I can hardly call it boring."

"You are still calling me My Lord. Didn’t I already tell you to address me the way a wife should?" Lang Man said while shaking his head disapprovingly. "Never mind, you must be embarrassed to show our intimacy in public. You shouldn’t be. Our love is a beautiful and sacred thing. Everyone will feel inspired after witnessing it. You should be proud of it."

"Of course, my... love," Lan Mei replied. "Nevertheless, we are in the middle of discussing an important..."

"Don’t mind that." Lang Man pushed away the documents before Lan Mei. He also moved closer to her and put an arm around her. "I know you are just being polite to the fine folks here for saying you are not bored. How can you not be bored when I am not around? Well, you should be glad to know I feel the same way. It is not the same when you are not in our palace, and you are rarely there. You are always busying yourself with these meaningless matters. We can still be considered newlyweds. You should spend more time in our love nest."

"There are plenty of other sisters there to accompany you, my love. It hardly matters whether I am there or not."

"Nonsense! Each of my wives is different. One cannot replace the other. Just because they are there for me doesn’t mean I don’t yearn for you. You are always in my mind and heart. Come! Let us take a day off to properly enjoy today. What do you say?"

Lan Mei was struggling to hide her frustration. She did her best to keep her tone down as he replied, "My love, this summit should only last two more days. How about my lord wait a couple more days? I will be yours completely once it is over."

"What are you talking about?" Lang Man asked.

His tone had always been cheery ever since he showed up, but his voice just now had a kind of edge to it. His face was also no longer smiling. The temperature in the room remained the same, but everyone felt a slight chill.

"You have always been mine completely," Lang Man added. "There is no point in time when it is not the case. Now, stop this farce and follow me. We are going to catch up on a lot of love."

When Lang Man stood and grabbed Lan Mei’s hand, Hai Xuang almost stood up. The only reason was that Xin Lie, who sat beside him, placed a hand on his shoulder. She was warning him not to do anything rash.

Hai Xuang reined himself in, but Hai Lao gathered the courage to say, "My Lord, can you please be patient until this summit is over? Many important issues still need to be discussed. Now that My Lord is here, perhaps it can be finished earlier since My Lord can decide on the matters immediately."

Lang Man turned to Hai Lao. His gaze was sharp, but his previous smile returned.

"Hai Lao! It has been so long since I last saw you. I think you are still a whelp when Hai Di brought you and your deceased brother to visit my palace eons ago. Can’t imagine you are a bigshot who deals with important matters now, eh?"

"Lord Lang Man, it is a pleasure meeting you. I..."

"Are those the documents for the issues not yet discussed?" Lang Man pointed at the stack of papers in front of Hai Lao.

"Yes, these contain the data about..."

"Give them to me. I’m a quick reader. I will see the data myself." Lang Man interrupted Hai Lao again before he finished his speech.

Hai Lao signaled to the aide beside him. This aide gathered the papers before moving to the other side of the table to hand them to Lang Man.

Lang Man took the papers and looked at them.

"Mm... All the issues here do seem important," he muttered.

"I’m glad that Lord Lang Man agrees with the urgency. The most pressing matter is..."

Hai Lao stopped speaking as a ripping sound was heard. It was the sound of Lang Man tearing the papers in his hands.

"There. See? Problem solved," Lang Man uttered with a laugh. "There is no problem that cannot be solved with love. Talking about love. Shall we, my love?"

Lang Man’s mouth might appear to be asking a question, but his action was nothing of the sort. His two arms went around Lan Mei and lifted her up. Before anyone could say anything, he flew out of the room with Lan Mei in his arms. His loud laughter echoed throughout the room.

"Hahaha! Everyone, enjoy your day off today! I’m sure I’m going to enjoy it. Hahaha!"

After Lang Man was out of the room, Hai Lao slammed his hand on the table. He didn’t say anything, but anyone could see that he was furious.

Another person in the room was also enraged by the turn of events. His fury was even more so than Hai Lao’s. Hai Xuang remained seated in his chair, but his two arms were gripping the armrests tightly to the point of trembling. The armrests cracked from the force. Xin Lie’s hand remained on his shoulder. She was weaker, so she was powerless to stop him if he tried anything, but she hoped her hand was enough to keep his emotions from overpowering his rational thoughts.

*

The meeting was practically over once Lang Man whisked Lan Mei away. The question was whether the summit was over. Hai Lao told everyone to wait until tomorrow and see the situation. If neither Lan Mei nor Lang Man were around to resume the summit, then he would tell everyone to pack up and leave. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

He had been cursing nonstop after the incident. He believed this incident would significantly set back the cooperation between the two domains. Furthermore, he had seen how the domain lord of the other side showed no regard for this summit. Most likely, all the progress achieved in previous summits was the result of Lan Mei persuading Lang Man. Lang Man himself had no desire to mend the rift between the two domains.

This placed a bleak outlook on the peace between their domains. He was afraid that all the hard work he had strived for these past few months had been for naught.

While Hai Lao was moping over his potential wasted efforts, Hai Xuang was sulking over a different reason. After the unceremonious end of today’s meeting, he left everyone and went to the pavilion by the lakeside to brood alone.

Hai Xuang had been there for hours. He stared at the lake, hoping that by looking at the calm water, it could somehow calm the turmoil in his heart. It didn’t work, though. His mind kept returning to the thoughts of his secret lover. He couldn’t help but think about what Lang Man was currently doing to her. It didn’t need a genius to guess. He wished he could go to her room and stop them, but he knew that would mean certain death.

His hands were balled into fists, and they were trembling. Blood was dripping from them because he clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug into his palms.

He was so focused on his own thoughts that he didn’t hear the approaching footsteps or sense the presence that entered the pavilion.

"Young lord, why are you alone in this place? Do you need me to bring you tea?" A kind voice interrupted his thoughts.

He turned and saw that it was the middle-aged maid who often helped him when he visited this estate.