Wen Ruyu did not end the livestream to anger Jiang Shengxu.
He had heard knocking.
Someone was knocking on the door of his rented apartment.
The problem was that he had not ordered any delivery this time.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
It was not a polite knock.
It was someone smashing their fist against the security door with brute force, each impact producing a harsh metallic crash that seemed to strike directly against the heart.
Wen Ruyu had been startled the moment he heard it.
His heart suddenly tightened. Panic flashed through his beautiful eyes as he turned toward the door.
The knocking continued.
In the silent night, the sound was especially sharp and jarring.
"Open the door!"
Bang. Bang. Bang.
The knocking was accompanied by an impatient male voice.
The voice was rough and overbearing, instantly provoking instinctive fear and resistance.
"Open up!"
Wen Ruyu's long eyelashes trembled uneasily.
His memory was excellent.
But the voice sounded completely unfamiliar.
He was certain he had never heard it before.
He instinctively lightened his footsteps and moved quietly toward the door. Then he carefully looked through the peephole in the security door.
Two tall figures stood outside.
Both were wearing cheap hoodies and slippers. One of them was holding a liquor bottle, his entire body radiating the smell of alcohol and violent hostility.
It was them.
The two men who had been squatting in the alley that day.
Wen Ruyu's heart tightened instantly. His fingertips pressed against the door, turning pale from the force.
How had they found his address?
When he returned earlier he had deliberately checked his surroundings.
The two men were making a huge amount of noise.
The kicking and shouting echoed through the hallway. In the quiet night it could even be considered disturbing the entire building.
Yet no one came out to say anything.
Wen Ruyu was not the only person living on this floor. But after hearing the banging, the other residents remained completely silent.
As if they had heard nothing at all.
But they had heard it.
They simply did not care.
Security in this residential complex was nonexistent. Break ins, robberies, and theft happened frequently. Several people had even died here before.
Everyone had long since grown accustomed to turning a blind eye.
Even if the two men broke down the door and killed someone, no one would interfere.
Much less help him.
The two men outside seemed drunk.
Their patience was extremely thin.
After knocking for so long without a response, they began kicking the door.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
"Open the door!"
"If you don't open it I'll kick this broken door down!"
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Although the building was old, the door itself was a security door. It could not easily be kicked open.
But the force of their kicks was enormous.
The door shook violently with each impact, as if it might burst open at any moment.
Wen Ruyu's beautiful eyes were filled with unease.
His slender body looked fragile and helpless.
He immediately pulled out his phone and opened the dial screen with trembling fingers.
He had to save himself.
Just as he was about to press 110 to call the police, another voice sounded outside.
This one belonged to a different man.
It sounded even rougher, filled with impatience and brutality.
"What the hell are you knocking for? Don't you know it's the middle of the night?"
A neighbor?
The voice was unbelievably close.
So close it sounded like it was right outside his door.
But Wen Ruyu had not heard anyone open a door.
His finger hovering over 110 paused.
He looked through the peephole again.
The two figures outside had somehow become four.
Four men now stood outside his door.
The two newcomers were even larger and more imposing than the drunken men.
Both wore tight black shirts.
One of them had a grotesque tattoo stretching from his neck all the way down to his wrist.
The other had no tattoos, but a long scar ran across his face. His eyes were cold and dangerous as he stared at the two thugs blocking the doorway.
Even standing behind them, their presence was overwhelming.
"Move."
The tattooed man reached out and grabbed the collar of the man who had been kicking the door.
Like throwing away a chicken, he lifted him effortlessly and hurled him aside.
The motion was brutal and merciless.
As if he were discarding trash.
The man slammed heavily against the wall. Pain twisted his face, and the shock sobered him almost instantly. Clutching his waist, he struggled to his feet and roared furiously at the tattooed man.
"Who the hell are you!?"
"How dare you touch me!"
"So noisy."
The tattooed man frowned, clearly irritated by the raised voice.
He glanced at the shouting man impatiently, then gave a look to the scarred man beside him.
"Kill them."
The scarred man raised an eyebrow.
He studied the two drunks for a moment, clearly not agreeing with the idea.
"Killing them would be a waste."
"They're still fresh. Why don't I call someone to drag them away and see if anything can be sold."
"Fine."
The tattooed man nodded calmly.
Between the two of them, they casually decided the fate of the two men.
As if they were not discussing human lives at all.
Only merchandise that might sell for a good price.
The two drunken men still looked confused.
They clearly had no idea what the two newcomers were talking about.
But they never got the chance to understand.
Because the next second they collapsed.
Due to the blind angle of the peephole, Wen Ruyu only heard two short muffled sounds.
Then the sound of bodies hitting the ground.
He had not seen how the two men were taken down.
Nor could he tell whether they were still alive.
Even if they were alive now, they probably would not remain alive for long.
Wen Ruyu stared at the two unmoving bodies outside his door.
His blood seemed to freeze.
These two men were just like that murderer.
To them, the only value of human life seemed to be how much it could be sold for.
He bit down hard on his lower lip.
Even his breathing became shallow as he tried to make no sound at all.
He was afraid that even the slightest noise would make him their next target.
He silently prayed they would leave.
But the prayer seemed to fail.
The two men outside did not leave.
Instead they stepped closer.
The next moment, someone knocked on the door again.
This time the knock was polite.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
"Hello. Is anyone home?"
The voice outside sounded courteous.
Even polite.
But to Wen Ruyu it made his scalp crawl and his entire body break out in goosebumps.
Why were they knocking on his door?
Wen Ruyu stood frozen in place.
He stared at the security door without daring to make a sound.
He did not know these men.
The original host's memories contained no trace of them either.
He could not be sure whether they were simply checking if someone was inside.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
The steady knocking sounded again.
This time the person outside spoke his name.
"Hello. Is Wen Ruyu here?"
They were here for him?
Wen Ruyu's eyes widened.
His heart climbed into his throat.
He clutched the phone tightly, his fingers turning white.
Who were these people?
Why did they know his name?
And why were they looking for him?
At that moment of suffocating silence, the phone in his hand suddenly rang.
Ring. Ring. Ring.
Ring. Ring. Ring.
Ring. Ring. Ring.
The sharp ringtone echoed through the apartment.
In the quiet night it sounded painfully loud.
The caller ID read:
Brother Feng Loan Shark.
The voices outside stopped.
Clearly the people outside had heard the ringtone.
The tattooed man ended the call in his hand and looked up at the closed door in front of him.
His slightly hoarse voice echoed in the hallway.
"So..."
"You're home."