The Manipulated Villainess

It was almost 7 in the night and Peter Jung was sitting in a private room of a restaurant, waiting for someone. He repeatedly glanced at his wristwatch, starting to become impatient.

After what seemed to be forever, the door was finally opened and two persons walked inside - a woman and a man. When the Prime Minister saw them, he slowly rose from his seat to greet them. "It\'s been a while, Miss Lim." He said with the seemingly innocent smile which he always wore.

Cassandra Lim simply smiled in response. "Mr. Prime Minister." She nodded and asked, "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Have a seat first." Peter Jung said and Cassandra took a seat opposite him while her right-hand man, Jaxon sat beside her.

"It\'s been a year, right? I haven\'t seen you since your father\'s death." Peter Jung said, observing the young Moyan Boss with his keen eyes. She had changed a lot since he last saw her.

"That\'s true. I should have come and greeted you but I\'m busy with work after taking over my father\'s position. I hope that you understand." Cassandra Lim responded, maintaining a formal demeanor.

"It\'s fine. Young people nowadays are too workaholic." Peter Jung said and laughed. "I heard that the Moyan Gang has become stronger ever since you take it over. It seems like your father taught you well."

Cassandra Lim smiled. "You flatter me. You are the one who built the Moyan Gang today. Without your support, we won\'t be where we are now." She wondered why the Prime Minister asked to meet. Did he had some problems?!

To be honest, Cassandra wasn\'t that pleased to meet this man. Though he had a good relationship with her late father, she didn\'t feel the same about him. However, she couldn\'t just ignore him because of her late father. No matter how her adoptive father raised her, she was still grateful to him. If he didn\'t take her in, she won\'t live to see this day and might already die due to starvation!

"I have an important task and unfortunately, I don\'t have anyone capable enough to carry out the task. So, I hope that the Moyan Gang could help me out like the past." Peter Jung finally said his purpose to the young Boss.

"A task? What kind of task?" Cassandra asked.

"One of my skilled subordinates is locked up by some organization. It\'s been a few days and I really wanted her back. I want someone to rescue her." Peter Jung explained.

Cassandra was quite flustered. When her father was alive, she used to assist him in all his work and whenever this man had a task, it was always about hurting others. She expected that kind of request but... rescuing someone? She didn\'t saw it coming at all!

"Who is the one you\'re talking about? Seems like you treasure her a lot."

"I raised her, so it would be a miracle if I\'m just okay with letting her stuck in the hands of the enemies, right?" Peter Jung said, avoiding Cassandra\'s question.

"I understand how you feel but... I think you also know that a rescuing mission is more challenging than the opposite. If anything goes wrong, my men will be the ones who suffer." The Moyan Boss stated. Though the Prime Minister\'s gaze was quite penetrating, she met it bravely without even batting an eye.

"I\'m well aware of that. That\'s why I\'m willing to pay you handsomely if you do this task for me. You won\'t be disappointed." Peter Jung said, slyly glancing at the Moyan Boss.

Much to his bewilderment, Cassandra Lim chuckled. "I think you don\'t know me well, Mr. Prime Minister. I\'m not like my father. Whenever I accept a task, money is the last thing I cared about."

"Then what matters to you?" The Prime Minister asked.

Cassandra didn\'t even have to think before she said, "I always rely on my conscience and instincts." She smiled and continued by saying, "You know what, Mr. Prime Minister, if someone is too obsessed with useless things, they tend to die a pitiful death. I don\'t want that to happen to me."

The Prime Minister laughed at her words. "You\'re smart, Miss Lim. I give you that."

Cassandra smiled again but it never reached her eyes.

"Then should I at least brief you about the task before your conscience and instincts get to work?" Peter Jung said and Cassandra nodded.

The Prime Minister take out a file and placed it on the table. "That\'s the place where she is kept. However, I don\'t know the exact room. It\'s guarded well and it\'s not easy for outsiders to enter without anyone noticing."

Cassandra took the file and glanced at the photos which also included Shara\'s photo and some information about her while reading some of the contents. Then she handed the file to Jaxon. "Is she captured by some gang or... organization? If I were to make a move, I should at least know the one I would fight."

Peter Jung thought about it for a while, feeling a bit hesitant to speak up. However, he finally responded by saying, "It\'s the Blackhood. That\'s their base."

Blackhood. The enemy of the gangs. Hearing their name which she thought only existed in rumours and stories put Cassandra in a daze! They really existed?! She didn\'t even know if she should believe it or not!

"Are you sure about this?" She finally asked after what seemed to be forever.

Peter Jung nodded. "I can guarantee it."

Cassandra briefly glanced at Jaxon who was also turning his head to her. She noticed that he was equally surprised as her. Then she turned back to the Prime Minister. "I don\'t understand. Why would the Blackhood catch the one who works for you?"

"You also know that Lester Yun worked for me, right? He was once caught by the Blackhood and Shara was the one who rescued him in my order. That\'s why she was caught by them. They also caught Lester Yun again." Peter Jung refused to say about his son being the leader of Blackhood and the latter relationship with Shara. He didn\'t want this perfectionist Boss to doubt him.

"What do you say, Miss Lim?" He asked. "Will you do the task for me?"

Cassandra Lim thought about it for a while before she said, "I will talk with some of my members and get back to you. It won\'t take long."

Peter Jung was a bit disappointed but at least she didn\'t turn him down. He had no other choice apart from her, so he reluctantly nodded. "Alright. I will be waiting for your response."

With that said, Cassandra Lim and Jaxon left the restaurant.

"Do you think he\'s telling the truth? I mean, the Blackhood." Jaxon asked Cassandra the moment they walked out of the restaurant.

"It\'s possible. Besides, it seems like he is quite desperate. In the past, he was never that patient." Cassandra said. She thought that Peter Jung was quite different from the one she used to know.

Jaxon opened the car door for her and she gets inside. However, she was still distracted by what Peter Jung said.

"Will you go home right away?" Jaxon asked before he started driving the car.

Cassandra gave a quick thought and said, "No. I have to go somewhere."

Almost an hour passed and Cassandra finds herself before an apartment building. "Wait here. I will go alone," she said to Jaxon and gets off the car. Walking inside the apartment building, she rides the elevator. After a few minutes, she was standing in front of a door.

Her hand reached for the doorbell but... she hesitated and put it down again. However, she finally pressed it on the third try and waited for a few seconds. The door was opened and Aston appeared. He glanced at her with a flustered face. "Cassandra, what brings you here?"

"Do you have some time? I want to talk with you about something." Cassandra promptly said.

Aston briefly looked back before he turned back to Cassandra. "I\'m free but... " He paused and the Moyan Boss looked at him with a confused face. "Come in." He finally said and closed the door after she landed her feet inside.

Cassandra took a few steps towards the living room but... she instantly halted. Nathan? He was here?

Nathan Woo who was sitting on a couch lifted his head and saw Cassandra standing a few steps away. His eyes grew wide and he looked at her as if he was seeing a ghost!

Aston finally came to them and awkwardly scratched his head. "This is what I was hesitating to say. Nathan is here." He glanced back and forth between them, wondering what other things would he say.

Standing still in her place, Cassandra glanced at Nathan while the latter rose from his seat and returned her gaze. The things they said in their last encounter crossed their minds at the same time.....