1988.
Inside an old Western-style house in one of the most prosperous areas of the capital, the plaster on the walls had been scraped away in patches, rosewood furniture smashed to pieces, and the oil paintings torn down roughly only a corner of one frame still hung on the wall, swaying precariously.
The moment Qiao Zhiwei pushed the door open, she saw her younger sister trembling in the corner. She hurried over, squatted down, and asked, “Did those people come again to move things and smash the place?”
Hearing the familiar voice, Qiao Zhilian finally snapped out of her terror. She clenched her teeth stubbornly and nodded.
“Mm.”
Qiao Zhiwei’s eyes instantly reddened. She took the watch off her wrist, lifted Qiao Zhilian’s hand, and pressed it into her palm.
“You should pack up and leave this place too.”
At her sister’s words, Qiao Zhilian grabbed her arm excitedly. “The Huo family agreed to move your wedding up, didn’t they?”
Qiao Zhiwei nodded lightly.
Seven days earlier, a group of creditors had suddenly flooded their home. Only then did she learn that the Qiao family had gone bankrupt.
At some point, her father had secretly sold their once-profitable daily-chemicals factory and used the money to open a television factory. That newly opened factory ended up owing a huge debt and went under.
From the moment she learned the truth, her parents had disappeared without a trace.
Relatives who used to be warm and attentive now avoided them entirely.
As for her fiancé, Huo Jingchen, not only did he fail to help he hastily got engaged to someone else. The wedding was scheduled for the first day of the next month.
For someone who had transmigrated into this era with memories of the twenty-first century, this was the first time she truly experienced the coldness of human nature.
“That’s great then. With the Huo family protecting you, no matter how fiercely those people come demanding money, there’s nothing to fear,” Qiao Zhilian said, wiping away her tears as she stood up.
“Weiwei, at a time like this, you’re still lying to Zhilian? Want me to tell her that Huo Jingchen’s fiancée is my cousin and that they’re getting married on the first of next month?”
A slick, drawling male voice approached from outside.
The sisters turned to see He Gang swaggering in with five or six lackeys.
Qiao Zhilian immediately stepped in front of her sister, alert. “Brother Gang, don’t talk nonsense. The money we owe your family we sisters will definitely pay it back.”
Huo Jingchen had been personally nurtured by her sister, sent abroad to study, and upon returning had become highly sought after by top universities.
Back then, when Old Master Huo had been injured, it was the Qiao family who spent a fortune importing medicine from overseas to save him. This marriage had been personally promised by him.
Now the Huo family was one of the most prominent “red third-generation” families in the capital. There was no way they would break their word at such a critical moment.
He Gang’s gaze roamed brazenly over Qiao Zhiwei. He clicked his tongue and sneered. “You owe our family twenty thousand. How are you going to pay back that kind of money? How about this, Weiwei I feel sorry for you. Let’s just get married on the same day as my cousin. After the wedding, if you serve me well, you won’t need to repay the debt.”
Qiao Zhiwei felt sick just looking at his greasy face. Her voice turned cold.
“A debt is a debt. Don’t mix it with dating or marriage. I will never marry you.”
Her outright refusal made He Gang explode.
“You still think you’re the high-and-mighty Qiao family heiress? Wake up! You’re a phoenix with plucked feathers worse than a chicken now! If I’m willing to take you, that’s your blessing! Just the two of you little girls do you think you can keep this house? If I hadn’t set the rules in front of those creditors, do you think you’d still be standing here clean and intact? Once they find out the Huo family’s future daughter-in-law has already been replaced, do you think you sisters would still be standing here like this?”
Qiao Zhiwei understood. Both the house and she herself had already been marked as He Gang’s possessions. He was trying to seize everything while the Qiao family was down utterly shameless.
“Old Master Huo hasn’t even returned yet. How can you be so sure your cousin’s engagement will definitely go through?”
At that, He Gang stepped forward and grabbed her arm, smiling sinisterly.
“Then let’s cook the rice first and make it done so the old man can’t come back and ruin things.”
Seeing his face close in, Qiao Zhiwei felt utterly disgusted. Panic rose to her throat. She shoved him hard. “He Gang, don’t do this. We can talk things through. In times like this, hooliganism is punishable by death.”
Instead of letting go, his grip tightened like iron as he dragged her into his arms.
“Come talk in big brother’s arms.”
Qiao Zhilian rushed forward screaming,
“Let go of my sister!”
Annoyed, He Gang shoved her away with his free hand. She was thrown several feet back, slammed into the wall, and collapsed in pain.
“Zhilian!” Qiao Zhiwei cried out. She turned back to He Gang, her voice vicious. “He Gang, if you force Zhilian and me to our deaths, you’ll get nothing not even this house.”
“I don’t care whether Zhilian lives or dies,” He Gang said coldly. “But I won’t let you die.”
With that, he dragged Qiao Zhiwei down toward the sofa.
Just then, someone came running in frantically from outside. “Brother Gang! I think I saw the Huo family’s car. Could it be Huo Jingchen?”
Qiao Zhilian rushed over at once. “Did you hear that, He Gang? Jingchen is here! If he sees what you’re doing to my sister, he won’t let you off!”
He Gang paused, then laughed. “My cousin’s husband? We’re practically family now nothing to be afraid of. Me pursuing Weiwei was personally approved by him.”
That last shred of hope in Qiao Zhiwei’s heart completely shattered. No wonder He Gang dared to be so bold.
How could he do this? Absolute scum.
He Gang looked at her pale face and laughed.
“Well? Isn’t Huo Jingchen generous?”
“You’re lying! Brother Jingchen would never do this to my sister!” Qiao Zhilian trembled with rage.
Qiao Zhiwei straightened up with effort and spoke calmly, “Let Zhilian go. Send her safely out of the capital and I’ll marry you.”
He Gang laughed. “If you’d done this earlier, things would’ve been much easier.”
“Elder sister!” Qiao Zhilian cried shakily. “He’s lying to you!”
He Gang ignored her and leaned close to Qiao Zhiwei. “Then show a little sincerity first.”
When she instinctively tried to avoid him, his temper flared. He raised his arm.
“Have I been too gentle with you?”
Before his hand could come down, a scream rang out. Two thugs who had been keeping watch outside were kicked through the door.
They crawled toward He Gang in panic. “Brother Gang, run! The Huo family people are vicious!”
He Gang stared blankly. “Which member of the Huo family?”
“We don’t know.”
“It can’t be Huo Jingchen,” He Gang said immediately. “He doesn’t have that kind of skill.”
Seeing this, Qiao Zhilian burst into tears.
“It must be Brother Jingchen. I knew he wasn’t that kind of person.”
A tall figure appeared at the doorway and slowly walked in. His military uniform was immaculate, his boots thudding heavily against the floor. His brows were sharp and resolute.
Before he even spoke, He Gang’s face went white.
It was Huo Jingnian, Huo Jingchen’s older brother.
“J–Jingnian… Brother Jingnian? Why is it you?”