The pressure didn't come from just one place anymore.
It came from everywhere.
Slowly.
Quietly.
Relentlessly.
At the flower shop—
Things hadn't returned to normal.
Customers came—
But fewer.
Supplies arrived—
But later than usual.
Everything still worked.
But barely.
Like something was constantly pushing against it.
"You see it now," Chen Kai said.
Lian Hua nodded.
"…yeah."
She didn't need to ask anymore.
This wasn't coincidence.
This was control.
Her phone buzzed again.
Another unknown number.
She stared at it—
Then answered.
"Hello?"
A calm voice responded.
"You've made things difficult."
Her grip tightened slightly.
"…who is this?"
"You already know."
Silence.
Because she did.
"You still have time to step away," the voice continued.
"I'm not going to."
A pause.
"Then understand this—"
The tone didn't change.
"But the situation will."
The line went dead.
Lian Hua slowly lowered her phone.
Chen Kai watched her closely.
"…his family?" he asked.
She nodded.
"They're not hiding it anymore."
"No," he said quietly.
"They're not."
Across the city—
Zhen Wei stood alone in his office again.
But this time—
He wasn't working.
He was thinking.
"Sir," his assistant said carefully,
"we've lost another partner."
Zhen Wei didn't react immediately.
Then—
"Replace them."
"…it's not that simple."
A pause.
Zhen Wei finally looked up.
"Then make it simple."
Silence.
Because this wasn't just business anymore.
This was resistance.
Later—
His father entered without warning.
"You're still continuing," he said.
Zhen Wei didn't stand.
"Yes."
A pause.
"Even now?"
"Yes."
Silence.
Then—
His father stepped closer.
"You're forcing my hand."
Zhen Wei's gaze didn't shift.
"You already made your move."
A faint smile.
"That was only the beginning."
Back at the shop—
The day ended slowly.
Lian Hua locked the door.
Her hands lingering on the handle.
Because stepping away from the shop—
Didn't feel like relief anymore.
It felt like uncertainty.
"You okay?" Chen Kai asked.
She nodded slightly.
"I think so."
A pause.
"…but I don't think this is going to stop."
"No," he said.
"It's not."
She looked up at the sky.
Dark.
Heavy.
Like something was building again.
"…he's losing things because of me," she said quietly.
Chen Kai didn't respond immediately.
Because there was no easy answer.
"…and I don't know how much more it'll cost him."
Silence.
Because that—
That was the real fear.
Across the city—
Zhen Wei stood by his window.
Looking out.
The same view.
But now—
It felt like a battlefield.
And somewhere in the distance—
The storm was still coming.