Long Xiao loosened her clenched teeth and glared at him with her moist eyes. “I don’t need your help. Get lost.”

“You don’t need help? Are you willing to give up on him, then?” Yang Jin sneered. “If you were willing to give up on him, you wouldn’t be in this position or allow me to do whatever I wanted with you.”

“Yang Jin, you’re a beast parading as a man! Are you a man or not? You’re bluffing…!”

Before Long Xiao could finish her words, Yang Jin ruthlessly pulled her chin up, forcing her unsaid words to die in her throat. She could only glare at him angrily.

Yang Jin leaned closer to her, deliberately hitting the tender portions of her body, a mocking sneer etched on his face. His hot breath washed over her bare skin, worsening the horrid flush tainting her cheeks. Long Xiao wanted to hide but could not. There was little she could do while the drug’s effects lingered in her system. Clenching her teeth so tightly that her jaw seemed to lock in place, Long Xiao tried but could not make so much as a sound.

Seeing how she wanted to resist but could not resist, Yang Jin laughed again. “You should know better than anyone else whether I’m a man or not. Why would I need to resort to tricks to get what I want? Besides, you’re not any nobler than I am. Would you not have ensorceled him with your lies and half-truths if you weren’t interested in him? Do you truly believe a woman like you could ever hope to keep a man like him by your side?”

Yang Jin whispered in her ears, “You have to take what you want for yourself. You’re in too deep to back out now…”

–

The room was quiet, almost painfully so.

Long Xiao stared blankly at the ceiling. She could hear the sound of running water in the background, yet it seemed so far away in her hazy state. Long Xiao was vaguely aware that Yang Jin was in the shower, cleaning himself up, but she could not care less.

Everything ached, and she could not muster any strength in her limbs. It was not just the after-effects of the drug Yang Jin had slipped into her tea; his evil deed was also blameworthy.

It took her an excruciating amount of time to put on her clothes. While Yang Jin was still in the shower, Long Xiao slipped out. She would leave this place that brought her pain and disgust as she had never felt before.

She tidied her clothes as best as possible and picked up her handbag, preparing to leave. It was at this moment she caught sight of her phone. It was hers; there could be no doubt. Long Xiao remembered putting it away in her bag, so why was it lying around?

A trace of doubt flashed in her eyes. When she heard the sound of water in the bathroom stop, she grabbed her phone and rushed out. She nearly tripped on her way out, still weak from all she had suffered.

Long Xiao steadied herself using the door frame and then the wall, continuing on her way.

She met the butler and the maid as she descended the stairs. She was greeted with smiles and kind words when they saw her, almost as if she were one of their own. They were no different from the… Beast! Not one of them was innocent of the crime committed against her person. Thinking of them as accomplices merely added to her disgust.

Long Xiao’s status was much higher than theirs. It was simply an insult for them to smile and treat her kindly as if they were her equals. It was plain mockery!

She hobbled out of the villa, seething. Her car was parked where she had left it. Quickening her pace, she stumbled toward the car, awkwardly limping as she did so.

Long Xiao heaved a sigh of relief once she was safe inside. She stepped on the accelerator and drove away.

Qin Shu casually stepped out of the shadows cast by the trees. She watched Long Xiao depart, her curiosity piqued. The messy state of her hair, her unkempt appearance, and her distinct limp painted a picture in her mind. Though, it was only speculation at this point.

It was a strange sight seeing Long Xiao trembling from head to toe, with her legs looking like jello. She was familiar with these signs since she was no stranger to ‘that’ form of exercise.

Qin Shu allowed her gaze to wander to the villa’s second-floor window. Long Xiao and Yang Jin’s relationship was more complicated than she had expected.

She looked away and left.

When Yang Jin stepped out of the bathroom, he noticed Long Xiao’s conspicuous absence from the messy bed he had left her. He was not in a hurry to look for her because he knew she would take the initiative to deliver herself to him.

–

The car drove at a constant speed for an unknown amount of time, but it did not seem to have any intention of stopping.

Xiao Jiu lay on Fu Tingyu’s lap and closed his eyes to sleep, regardless of whether the other party was willing to let him lie on his lap or not.

Ever since he could remember, Fu Tingyu rarely hugged him, much less coaxed him. What he heard the most was that boys needed to be independent. Otherwise, how would they be able to support the entire Fu family in the future?

So Xiao Jiu had no qualms about taking advantage of his father’s memory loss to satisfy the wish he had always nursed in his heart. If his father dared to push him away, he would report his father’s misdemeanour to his mother. She would obtain justice for him.

Xiao Jiu knew his father well. There was no one he feared more than his mother; therefore, he never went back on his word. If his mother told his father to head east, he would not dare gainsay her by going west instead.

His father would drop everything important and immediately return home if his mother had something to do.

In other words, his mother wore the pants in their household.

Fu Tingyu felt his leg sink. The brat was snuggling on his lap like some cat! He frowned and picked the boy up by the scruff, intending to toss him aside.

Xiao Jiu snorted in protest, “Daddy.”

For a reason he could not place when the boy called out ‘Daddy’, it struck a chord in Fu Tingyu, causing him to pause and look at the brat’s chubby face. The annoying child was pouting as if he had suffered some great grievance.

President Ba sat on his haunches by the side and observed the duo’s interaction, a proactive glint shining in his dark green eyes.

Fu Tingyu glanced at the black cat. The look in its eyes was like the cold winter of the twelfth lunar month. It was bone-chilling.

Yet, no sooner had that look flashed in its eyes than it vanished. President Ba blinked, feigning innocence.

President Ba looked calm on the surface, but it was an elaborate ruse. He was afraid that the despicable man would suddenly decide to throw it out of the car in a fit of rage.

Fu Tingyu could not be bothered with the cat. Instead, his attention returned to the brat trying to cuddle his way back onto his lap. He grabbed the boy by his arm and lifted the child off of him and onto the adjacent seat. Xiao Jiu narrowed his eyes, smacking his lips as he cried, “Daddy, Mommy!” Whether he was awake or asleep was hard to say.

When the man with a mole, who was sitting in front, heard that the child was calling his Mommy and Daddy while asleep, he advised, “Hold him and let him sleep for a while. Otherwise, he’ll ask me for his phone to play games.”

The brat would not stop crying, begging for his phone so that he could play a game or two. Every time the man with a mole denied the young boy, the boy would burst into tears, and it took forever to calm him.

Fu Tingyu stopped what he was doing. He stared at the brat, who was pouting and looking wronged. He allowed the boy to reclaim his position on his lap, and he settled down almost immediately.

The man with the mole turned around and looked at Ah Yu and the brat. They were almost there. He could not help but say, “The boy hasn’t even told us where his home is. How are we supposed to send him back?”

The man with the buzz cut snorted. “He’s just a pampered kid. What do they know other than eating, sleeping, or fooling around? He probably doesn’t even know where his home is.”

“Then what should we do?”

As soon as the man with the mole finished speaking, the car rolled to a stop.

“We’ll bring him into the house first. The boy belongs to a rich family. Someone will come looking for him even if it means they need to use all the resources at their disposal. Who knows? He might be important enough for a missing person’s notice to show on television. We’ll get a handsome reward when we send him back safe and sound.”

“Then let’s bring him into the house together.” The man with the mole turned around and said to Ah Yu, “Carry the brat inside.”

He opened the door and got out of the car as he instructed Fu Tingyu.

Fy Tingyu looked at the brat, still sleeping on his lap. He frowned but carried Xiao Jiu as instructed. The door swung open from the outside, and he stepped got out with Xiao Jiu in his arms.

Seeing this, President Ba, whose butt was originally facing him, immediately stood up. He turned around and ran to the car door. Then, he jumped down and followed the horrible man’s footsteps.

The man with a mole grew annoyed when he saw the black cat following them. “Should I throw this cat away? What if it makes a mess?”

“All pets raised by the rich people tend to clean up after themselves quite well. If you throw the black cat away, what if the kid wakes up and doesn’t see his pet? He’ll cry and make a scene. Are you going to cheer him up?”