Hong Kong variety show: The mastermind behind the scenes is emerging.

In the last few days of 1986, Hong Kong Island experienced its first decent cold rain of the winter.

The sky above Victoria Harbour was low and hazy, pressed down by dark clouds, and the heavy gantry cranes at the distant docks were only a few blurry silhouettes in the misty rain.

Amidst the towering office buildings of Central, neatly dressed white-collar workers, bundled up in thick woolen coats, hunched their shoulders as they waited for the bus at a slippery street corner. A vendor selling curry fish balls from a cart had his charcoal fire burning several times brighter than usual; the leaping orange flames illuminated the muddy, puddle-filled path, reflecting warm yellow halos of light.

Lu Chen didn't want to get caught in the rain on Hong Kong Island, and Sofia had urged him several times, so he decided to spend New Year's Day in Italy this year.

……

Rome, December 27th.

Winters on the Apennine Peninsula are quite different from those on Hong Kong Island.

December in Hong Kong is damp; the sea breeze, carrying moisture, seeps into your collar, and the cold clings to your skin. The cold in Rome is dry; the wind blows down from the dome of the Catholic Basilica, sweeps across the plane trees along the Tiber River, and carries the scent of stone bricks that have been thoroughly baked by the sun and then cooled.

At 10 a.m., a Gulfstream IV private jet landed on the private runway at Fiumicino Airport, with the Lu family logo painted on the side of the fuselage.

The cabin door opened, and Lu Chen, holding Ruan Mei's hand, slowly walked down the gangway.

He wore a well-tailored dark gray cashmere coat, the collar slightly open, giving him a casual yet composed look. Ruan Mei was wrapped in a beige windproof coat, her long hair slightly disheveled by the wind on the track. She smoothed her hair down and turned back to look helplessly at Xiao Luqian, who was struggling with the tow rope halfway up the gangway.

"Qianzai, don't tighten the Coke too much, it will be uncomfortable."

"But Mom, last time at the mountaintop park, I loosened its harness, and Cola immediately broke free and escaped!"

"But you can't squeeze it too hard, look, Coke's tongue is sticking out."

Xiao Luqian was wearing a bulky down jacket, the down on the hood was blown off by the wind and tilted to one side, making him look like a small cotton ball with its antenna blown askew.

Cola was tied up rather tightly, and its tongue involuntarily dangled out of its mouth, but its tail was wagging vigorously, clearly accustomed to its little owner's "pampering".

Sprite followed at the very back, slowly descending the gangway, much more composed than Coke, only brushing Lu Qian's ankle with its tail as it passed by.

Not far away, standing beside the door of the Maserati was an elderly man in a dark woolen coat. His full head of silver hair was neatly combed, his back was ramrod straight, his right hand wore a pair of dark brown sheepskin gloves, and his left hand rested on an ebony cane with a silver tip—it was none other than the butler Giovanni.

As Lu Chen and his entourage descended the gangway, Giovanni removed his gloves and gave a slight bow: "Buongiorno, Signor Lu. Benvenuto a Roma. (Good day, Mr. Lu. Welcome to Rome.)"

"Long time no see, Giovanni," Lu Chen shook hands with him, "I'll be bothering you all again this Chinese New Year."

"It is my honor." Giovanni bowed slightly to the women behind him, then bent down, looking at little Lu Qian with a kind expression. "My dear little prince, welcome back to Italy. Madame Sofia knew you were coming and specially prepared a small fountain with goldfish for you. I hope you will like it."

Xiao Luqian looked up from the hood of his down jacket, his eyes lighting up: "Goldfish? How many?"

"Seven, young master. One of them is gold; you may name it."

"Then I'll call it—Hercules!" Xiao Luqian held up the excavator model in his hand, as if he were awarding an honorary title to a goldfish.

"I guarantee it will live up to the title." Giovanni was charmed by Lu Qian's cute appearance, and a fine smile line appeared at the corner of his eyes.

He skillfully turned to the side and opened the luxurious car door, carefully covering the top edge of the metal door frame with his gloved hand. After Lu Chen and the other two were all safely seated, he silently closed the door and got into the passenger seat.

The convoy departed from Fiumicino Airport, drove north along the Tiber River for nearly an hour, passed through the cobblestone streets of Rome's old town, and then turned onto a private driveway lined with Italian lilies on both sides.

The cypress trees were already very tall, their crowns becoming a row of straight, dark green silhouettes in the backlight of the winter twilight. At the end of the driveway, the outline of Lubbers Castle slowly emerged from the horizon.

Passing through the wrought iron gate, we arrived at the main building of the castle. On the stone steps, three graceful figures had been standing for some time.

Sofia stood at the front, holding Gemma in her arms. She was wearing a burgundy cashmere dress today, with a small silver badge pinned to the neckline.

Paloma stood half a step behind her in a concealed position, wearing a dark blue turtleneck sweater and a pair of neat black trousers. Her long black hair was casually tied into a low ponytail with a very thin silver thread, and she looked more capable than she had six months ago.

As for little Gemma—this six-month-old baby was warmly wrapped in a creamy white handmade wool sweater, with a playful pom-pom dangling from the top of her knitted hat.

Compared to six months ago, little Gemma has fully grown up. She inherited her mother's excellent genes, with soft, curly dark brown hair, cheeks puffed up like tempting cream puffs, and a pair of big gray-blue eyes that darted around in the Roman twilight.

The car stopped, and Cola and Sprite jumped out first. Cola slipped on the cobblestone floor of the castle, scratching its way around several times before regaining its balance. Then, it tilted its head back and sneezed loudly at the familiar, massive ancient building. Sprite, on the other hand, calmly walked around it and sat by the car door waiting for its little owner to get out.

Lu Qian struggled to squeeze out of the gap in the car door. As soon as he stood up, he looked up and saw the little person in Sophia's arms on the stone steps. His eyes lit up and he ran up the stone steps.

Coke and Sprite followed closely behind, their two front paws scraping stones all over the gravel driveway as they frantically rushed up the castle steps.

When he was three steps away from Sophia, Lu Qian stopped, then carefully walked forward and held up two fingers to Gemma, shaking them: "Gemma! It's me—my brother!"

Strangely enough, even after not seeing each other for half a year, Gemma still had a natural attachment to Xiao Luqian. Upon hearing Xiao Luqian's clear, sweet voice, Gemma immediately turned her rosy little face, which was buried in her mother's arms, towards him.

Those grey-blue eyes flickered a few times, then she flashed a bright smile at Xiao Luqian, revealing two rows of delicate, toothless pink gums, her eyes curving into exquisite crescent moons.

She waved her two small, lotus-root-like arms, her fingers opening and closing, while making indistinct gurgling sounds.

Little Lu Qian tiptoed closer and pressed his little nose against Jima's cool nose, affectionately rubbing it against hers. Then, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small pink dinosaur doll, about the size of his palm.

"This is a gift for you. Its name is Pinky." Little Lu Qian squatted down and put the slightly deformed, soft and cute dinosaur into Jima's tender palm.

Gemma grabbed the dinosaur's tail and, without hesitation, shoved it into her mouth and started gnawing on it, startling Sophia who quickly covered her mouth. Gemma, however, wasn't annoyed; instead, she looked up and giggled at Xiao Luqian.

Coke and Sprite circled around the two children. Coke even put its nose close to Gemma's toes and smelled them, but Sofia smiled and gently pushed it away.

Lu Qian placed his hand on Gemma's knitted hat and gently pressed the ball of yarn inside: "Little sister, you've gained weight again."

Gemma didn't answer; she just grabbed the tail of the pink dinosaur and poked it at Lu Qian's face, hitting his nose.

Lu Chen looked at the two children with a smile on his lips. Then he walked up to Sophia, reached out and pulled her close, gently touching her lips to his. Sophia returned the kiss gracefully, the fine down of her camel hair coat brushing against Lu Chen's chin, before transferring Gemma from her arms to his.

Lu Chen held his daughter in one arm and turned to look at Paloma, who was standing to the right and behind Sofia.

Paloma wasn't quite used to being affectionate in front of everyone, and her cheeks flushed slightly, which was especially noticeable in the cold wind of the Abruzzo Hills in December.

However, Lu Chen didn't give her a chance to back away. He reached out his other arm, wrapped it around her shoulder, and pulled her closer, placing a very light kiss on her forehead. Paloma's eyelashes drooped, her breath hitched, and then she uttered a very soft, indistinct sound, letting out a barely audible, coquettish complaint.

"Hehe, Paloma, why are you blushing?" Qiu Di chuckled mischievously from the side. "Last time everyone was 'completely naked,' why aren't you used to it yet~"

It would have been better if this hadn't been mentioned, because as soon as Paloma brought up her bizarre experience from last time, her face turned bright red, and steam even seemed to rise from her head.

"Alright, alright, do you think everyone is as shameless as you? Stop teasing her." Lu Chen chuckled and pinched Qiu Di's earlobe, then, carrying Gemma and holding Lu Qian's hand, led the women into the castle.

……

The fireplace in the castle hall was burning brightly, and the pine resin sparked tiny embers in the fire, filling the air with the unique spicy aroma of burning wood.

Dinner was full of Mediterranean flair. It included cherry tomatoes marinated in olive oil, Parma ham with melon, thinly sliced ​​Italian eggplant roasted until the edges were slightly charred, a cold octopus platter marinated in rosemary and lemon, and a dish of goat cheese made by the local mountain people.

Then Giovanni directed several waiters in white shirts to move between the tables, bringing different dishes to the table—a large shallow plate piled with Italian seafood risotto sprinkled with sage, its color golden; an oval silver bowl held thick slices of beef stewed in red wine, the sauce as thick as melted dark chocolate.

The laughter and chatter at the dinner table were warm and fragmented. Ruan Mei chatted with Sophia about which brand of formula Gemma drank after weaning, and recommended a few that Lu Qian used to like.

Paloma and the "Overlord Flower" chatted about the differences in traffic between Rome and Hong Kong Island. Paloma said that drivers in Rome never slow down when they see traffic lights, while the "Overlord Flower" said that drivers in Hong Kong Island will stop and yield to pedestrians at zebra crossings, but they will honk their horns like crazy.

Lu Chen leaned back in his chair, listening to their conversation, holding his wine glass without saying much. Giovanni stood not far behind him, silently coming over every now and then to refill his glass.

Little Lu Qian sat next to Sofia, using his fork to roll up a huge, black lump of squid ink pasta and stuff it into his mouth, staining his teeth and lips completely black. After finishing, he grinned at Gemma, startling her so much that she leaned back slightly, then burst into laughter, waving his pink dinosaur at his brother's forehead.

As dinner ended, Ruan Mei covered her face and yawned lazily: "Ugh, the long flight was too tiring, I'm going to wash up and go to bed..."

As she spoke, she led Lu Qian upstairs to take a shower. The domineering flower stood up and helped her pick up Jima, who was already dozing off in the baby chair. The other girls also understood and said goodnight to each other.

Coke and Sprite had long since fallen asleep in front of the fireplace, and Coke's snoring was so loud that it couldn't even drown out the crackling of the firewood inside.

Paloma watched as Bawanghua carried her upstairs, and subconsciously thought of saying, "I'll go and put her to sleep," but before she could speak, Sofia gently touched her knee under the table.

Paloma paused for a moment, then seemed to realize something, quickly turning her gaze away from the stairwell, her legs together, her hands nervously twisting together, her little face as red as a ripe tomato.

……

The master bedroom is on the third floor of the east tower.

The room was large, with a four-poster oak bed in the center. The headboard was carved with intricate iris patterns, and a deep red velvet canopy hung from the four posts, casting heavy shadows on the hand-woven carpet.

The fireplace had just been filled with fresh firewood, and the flames danced on the walls, making the whole room warm and cozy, unlike a late December night.

After the rain, the air lingered with the faint scent of olive oil lotion and the pine wood from the fireplace. Sophia leaned against Lu Chen's left shoulder, one leg casually draped over his knee, her wine-red nails gleaming dimly in the firelight.

Paloma nestled in Lu Chen's right arm, half her face buried in his chest. Her turtleneck sweater and trousers were long gone, tossed onto some chair. She had changed into a new silk nightgown, dark blue, which made the small, still-fading hickey on her collarbone stand out even more.

Lu Chen placed one hand on Sophia's waist, while the other hand slowly ran down Paloma's loose hair. He watched as the candles on the row of brass candlesticks above the fireplace burned quietly, their wax dripping down the edges of the candlesticks and condensing into a ring of milky white solid ripples on the brass base.

"Speaking of which, how's your sister doing? Has the school taken care of what you asked me to do last time?" Lu Chen tucked the stray hairs that had fallen in front of Paloma behind her ear, and his thumb brushed across her brow bone.

Paloma was clearly not fully recovered from what she had just experienced, blinking twice before she pulled the topic out of her memory.

"It's all done. Mr. Giovanni helped me create a complete fake identity—a birth certificate, vaccination records, and elementary school report cards, all registered under a small town in Rome. Oh, by the way, she's not called Maria anymore, she's called Elena. Elena Rossi."

"Rossi," Lu Chen murmured, uttering the surname, which was as common in Italy as Zhang Wei and Li Qiang, a slight smile playing on his lips, "giovini named her?"

"Yes, he said the more ordinary the better. Maria is currently studying at an ordinary Spanish school in Rome, about a forty-minute drive from the castle. Sofia originally wanted to send her to Santo Dominica—" She glanced at Sofia.

Sofia snorted and lightly pinched Paloma's thigh: "That's the best girls' school in Rome. I even got her a recommendation letter for admission. But this girl absolutely refuses to go, saying she's afraid Maria won't be used to it."

Paloma was pulled closer to Lu Chen's embrace, and she argued in a barely audible voice, "No, it's not—"

"That's because I'm afraid she'll be bullied!" Sophia finished the sentence for her, raising an eyebrow. "Although I didn't go to a prestigious school, I learned a bit about this after I got pregnant with Gemma. Those kids seem witty and refined on the surface, spending their days learning Latin, playing the piano, and riding thoroughbreds, but they're actually more mean-spirited than kids from the slums... But you're worrying unnecessarily. Coming from the Lupus family, how could she be bullied by those bitches?"

"Alright, alright, a regular school is fine too," Lu Chen continued to comb her hair down the back of her head. "After all, Maria just transferred from Argentina and still needs time to adjust."

"Yes, that's what I thought too," Paloma nodded her little head quickly. "The school Giovanni chose later is not very big, with only two classes per grade. The principal is a retired Jesuit priest, so the discipline is very strict, but it's much more inclusive than elite schools. More importantly, it's taught entirely in Spanish, and Maria adapted very quickly."

"That's good... Sophia, what about you?" Lu Chen turned to look at Sophia.

Sophia was drawing circles on her knee with her fingers, her wine-red nails gleaming in the firelight: "Nothing much at home—Geema seems to be teething, she cries in the middle of the night, and even the three nannies taking turns trying to soothe her couldn't, so I ended up getting up myself and spinning her around. As for the Mafia, a few old guys died, and a few new ones came in, but they're all under Paul's control, nothing worth mentioning."

She paused, her finger circling a beat slower: "But... there's been some trouble at the High Table Group lately."

Lu Chen narrowed his eyes slightly, and his fingers, which were resting on the back of Paloma's head, stopped.

"Is it still about the Fiat family?"

Sofia hesitated for a moment, then nodded.