"What the fuck!" Da Han yelled, then threw the phone as Chen instinctively dodged it, but Jun De caught it, which was a testament to both of their reflexes.
"Sir, what is wrong?" Chen asked as Da Han came around his desk, stalking toward him. He tensed and prepared himself for the blow that struck his jaw. "Hold him!"
Jun De and the other two men in the office obeyed. They grabbed Chen's arms and held him still as Da Han delivered another punch, then another and another. Chen didn't try to fight back; he was too loyal to betray the triad that had been his family since childhood.
"Boss, what's wrong?" Zhang asked, as he hated seeing his best friend get beaten but knew better than to interfere.
Da Han reared his fist back to deal out another blow, but stopped. "Fuck!" he yelled and took a few steps back to lean against his desk. He took several deep breaths to calm himself down because he didn't like being out of control like this. A leader being ruled by his emotions lowered the morale of his people. That wasn't his style. "Leave us."
"Are you sure, boss?" one of the men asked.
Da Han didn't answer him with words, but the look he gave the man let him know that he was going to repeat himself. Everyone left, and Chen repositioned himself on his knees before Da Han, head bowed. His face burned and bled from various wounds, but it wasn't the first time he had taken such blows; it was, however, the first time he had been assaulted by Da Han so viciously. Chen knew why, too. After everything that went down—the attack on Da Han earlier, his wife being wounded, Yìchén going missing, and then losing his strike team and Stephen, who was vital to the family—whatever Da Han saw on his phone was the catalyst that tipped him over. Chen did wonder why he was the outlet for Da Han's rage.
"When you went to bring Yìchén home... what did you do?" Da Han asked because he wanted to see if Chen would be honest.
Chen wondered why his boss asked the question, but he also knew he had to be honest. Whatever message was on Da Han's phone might have something to do with him and Yìchén. But he also knew to play it smart. "I don't understand, boss. He was at that hotel, and I brought him home."
Da Han's jaw tightened as he exhaled, his glare fixed solidly on Chen. "What did you do at that hotel?"
Oh shit... he knows, Chen thought, and he took a deep swallow. "I can explain, sir."
"I'm waiting to hear your explanation," Da Han said as he drummed his fingers on the top of his desk.
"I didn't mean for it to happen. Training Yìchén has been a challenge as he's very flirtatious—"
"So, it's my son's fault that you put your dick inside him?"
Chen bowed deeply, pressing his hands and forehead to the floor. "Forgive me, sir. That's not what I meant."
"Explain yourself better then," Da Han snapped.
Chen sat up but remained kneeling and cleared his throat. "I was attracted to your son, sir. I tried to ignore those feelings, butthe first time he ran away and I found him at the nightclub..." he trailed off.
Da Han cocked a brow. "I'm waiting."
Chen sighed, then continued. "I fucked him then before I brought him home. Since then, I'd been trying to avoid Yìchén, and he's been coming on strong. He ran away today to lure me to the hotel because he knew you'd send me to get him. When I got there, I tried to avoid fucking him again, but... I fucked up."
Da Han took a deep breath to calm himself, then looked away. The room filled with uncomfortable silence before he spoke again. "What's going on between you two? Is this experimental or something serious?"
"I honestly don't know, sir," Chen said.
"What do you mean? You've been fucking him."
"I've slipped up twice, but I told Yìchén we can't be together."
"Why?" Da Han asked because he wanted to know Chen's reasons behind his rejection of his son.
"Because he's your son."
Though it was true, none of the people who ever worked for him were in relationships with his children, Da Han wasn't necessarily against it if the love was there. He wanted his children happy, which was why he gave Ren the marriage that he wanted with Montgomery William-Price. It just so happened that he had managed to wrangle himself a deal out of their union too. With Yìchén and Chen, it was more difficult as Chen was his right-hand man. The age gap wasn't anything that concerned him. He was older than his wife too, and both of them were older than Jun De. As long as both parties were consenting adults, all was fair.
"Is that your only reason for why you don't think I would approve?" Da Han asked him.
Chen frowned. "I was under the impression that your children were off-limits."
Da Han scoffed. "And if they were, you would have violated that rule twice, Chen."
Chen winced at that because it was true... if that was the case. "I know... I'm sorry."
