Qi Xiaolin ignored Yan Qingming’s struggle and asked in a deep voice, “How did you get out? Even with your skills, it is impossible for you to disappear into thin air right under the noses of so many people. Is it that your methods are simply too good, or is there a problem with the people I have under my command?”
The answer was already self-evident. Yan Qingming’s gaze shifted, and he said coldly, “Let go of me.”
Qi Xiaolin remained unmoved. He gave a twisted smile and said, “I truly should not have underestimated you. Many people were once devoted to you; in the end, just to stay alive, they only betrayed their own hearts to follow me. Who exactly were those people? Let me think.”
His tone was low and dangerous, each syllable hitting like a hammer against one’s heart. Jiang Ling had instinctively moved to step forward when he saw Yan Qingming being pinned down, but hearing those words, he froze, forced to retract his foot. It was not yet the time.
Seeing Qi Xiaolin lost in thought, Yan Qingming’s heart tightened, but he feigned indifference and mocked him: “How pathetic. Since you lack the ability to keep me under control, you have to vent your anger on others? It is no wonder no one is willing to be loyal to someone with the temperament of a child like you.”
Qi Xiaolin stiffened, his face growing increasingly ferocious. “You had better stop provoking me, or I will beat you until you are disabled and chain you here forever!”
Yan Qingming laughed. “And what if I am disabled? Even if I were dead, I would not want to stay by your side!”
That single sentence struck the exact chord of Qi Xiaolin’s greatest trigger.
“Yan Qingming!”
Those three words were laden with explosive rage. Qi Xiaolin forced Yan Qingming, who had been pinned against the table, to turn around. A large, searing hand clamped down on his fragile neck, and killing intent radiated from Qi Xiaolin’s crimson eyes.
Yan Qingming continued to watch him with a faint smile, showing not a shred of fear. The hand pressing against his neck was so tense that the veins on the back of it were bulging, yet Qi Xiaolin did not exert the slightest bit of actual pressure.
Qi Xiaolin’s entire arm was trembling. A shred of remaining sanity forced him to suppress his violent nature, stopping him from tightening his grip. A voice in his head kept screaming at him: This is Yan Qingming. This is the Yan Qingming you cannot hurt.
He was completely helpless when it came to Yan Qingming; he could not win in an argument, and he could not bring himself to actually strike him.
Gritting his teeth until they creaked, Qi Xiaolin stared at Yan Qingming for a long time before offering a chilling, mocking smile. “Are you not curious about what I did to the driver you sent to follow me?”
Yan Qingming looked at him steadily. “What else could you have done? You must have just beaten him and let him go. You are under too much scrutiny lately; you cannot afford to cause trouble right now.”
Qi Xiaolin’s threats and intimidation were having zero effect on him. Qi Xiaolin laughed. “Sometimes, I hate this calmness of yours more than anything.”
Shifting the conversation, he added, “But are you not curious about how badly I beat him?”
Yan Qingming replied, “He took the money, so he had to be prepared to take the risk. Besides, if he is dead or crippled, I will never let you go.”
That flicker of hatred made Qi Xiaolin’s scalp tingle. A brief moment of fear was instantly buried by a wave of rage.
He grabbed Yan Qingming by the collar and sneered, “Never let me go? What kind of never letting go is that? You send people to monitor me, and I am supposed to treat you with fine food and wine? Why am I always so submissive to you, Yan Qingming!”
“I have only been starting out for these past two years, and I have to run around every three days. The moment I leave, you vanish without a trace. Those people you hired with money, how much money do you actually have? Is it just the pocket change you scraped together from your part-time jobs!”
Yan Qingming raised his wrist, flashing the diamond-encrusted watch on his fair skin. “Of course it is more than that. I also have the money from reselling the luxury items you give me.”
“Qi Xiaolin, you had better be on guard against me every single second. Once I gain the upper hand, every bit of humiliation I have suffered at your hands these past two years will be returned to you in full!”