"Bro! Sisi has been taken by someone!"
Although Lu Sen had driven her away, Ren Siyi still hid by the garage corridor, waiting.
About half an hour later, Chen Yuanzhi from Shenghang Group walked out of the villa's main gate.
The courtyard ground lights illuminated his ashen face. He was slightly hunched, his right hand tightly gripping his left wrist.
It seemed to be wrapped in gauze, with a faint dark red seeping through.
But Chen Yuanzhi's expression wasn't one of pain. Instead, he looked as if a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders, letting out a long breath as he stood on the steps, a hint of a smile on his face.
Clearly, he had found another way to get Shen Shen to help him.
Seeing that even a big boss like the president of Shenghang Group had to grovel so humbly to ask Shen Shen for help, Ren Siyi knew that the "master" of this household was no ordinary person.
She thought of her father, who had been missing for years without a trace.
If Shen Shen were willing to help—just help her make some inquiries—maybe there was hope?
But then Ren Siyi reconsidered. Chen Yuanzhi had gifted him a golden crow statue weighing several kilograms, and he hadn't even given it a second glance.
Who knew how high the price would be to ask for his help.
She had nothing. Why would he help her?
Forget it.
She'd take things one step at a time. First, she'd do her job well.
…
She dutifully served as Shen Shen's housekeeper.
Most of the chores—like preparing dinner, dusting the antiques, and cleaning the house—were handled by the butler, Lu Sen.
Sometimes Ren Siyi truly felt that the butler Lu Sen was a jack-of-all-trades. A villa that large, managed single-handedly by him, kept in perfect order.
No one who stayed by Shen Shen's side was simple.
So the only job left for Ren Siyi was just one thing: keeping the young master entertained.
Shen Du, due to his leg injury, had been confined at home to recover for nearly a month.
He was naturally someone who loved to play and cause trouble. Staring at the ceiling and TV screen all day, he was so bored he was practically growing mold.
Late that night, he received a call from one of his rowdy friends. The raucous music blaring through the receiver made him itch with restlessness.
But he couldn't go alone—he needed someone to help him.
No one could help him except Ren Siyi.
His brother had grounded him, forbidding him from going out to mess around. The butler Lu Sen would absolutely never let him leave. But fortunately, Lu Sen wasn't a 24/7 superhuman. In the dead of night, after his brother went to work, Lu Sen would have a period of rest and sleep. That was the time to have Ren Siyi push him out.
The plan was perfect—as long as Ren Siyi was willing to cooperate.
Ren Siyi didn't know his brother had grounded him. Having slept plenty during the day, she wasn't sleepy at night and could keep him company playing until sunrise.
So that night, Shen Du kept his ears pricked, listening for sounds from upstairs. Only when it went quiet up there, confirming Lu Sen had gone to sleep, did he casually manipulate the game controller and speak in an ultra-nonchalant tone: "Hey, Sisi, some friends of mine are asking me to go out and have fun. Come on, come with me."
Ren Siyi put down the controller and yawned. "Where to?"
"A bar."
"Can you… even go right now?" She glanced at the brace fixed on his leg.
"Isn't that why I have you?"
"I mean, does your brother let you go?"
Shen Du snorted dismissively. "Why wouldn't he? My leg's hurt, I'm not crippled. I can't just stay home rotting forever."
Ren Siyi thought about it—he was an adult, and his brother had never explicitly said he couldn't go out.
"Fine." Ren Siyi walked around behind him, grabbed the wheelchair handles, and pushed him quietly out of the villa's main gate.
The summer night breeze was muggy and hot.
Once outside the gate, Shen Du said to her, "Call me a ride-hailing car. Set the destination to Blood Bar."
"Doesn't the young master have a driver when going out?"
Of course he had a driver, but how could he dare call one? The moment he called the driver, his brother would find out.
In a flippant tone, he said, "Why wake someone up this late? I'm not some capitalist like my brother. I treat the servants well. They're people too—they need their sleep."
Ren Siyi: …
So I'm not a person then?
Whatever.
For the sake of the 2,500 a day.
Expressionless, she called a car. Soon, a white ride-hailing vehicle pulled up.
She put in some effort to get Shen Du, wheelchair and all, into the car, shut the door, and the vehicle drove off into the depths of the night.
Blood Bar was located on the outskirts, not in the lively entertainment district downtown.
It seemed to be in an art district converted from an old factory. From the outside, it was low-key—didn't look like a bar at all.
No illuminated sign, no storefront logo. Ren Siyi pushed Shen Du inside, passed through a dim, deep corridor, and entered the main hall.
Cold air hit her in the face. Ren Siyi shivered, goosebumps rising all over.
Damn, it's freezing!
The interior was decorated in black and white, with a very high ceiling from which hung several sharp-edged metal light fixtures.
In the dance floor, people were dancing wildly, lost in abandon. Whether it was the lighting or not, everyone's face looked extremely pale.
Ren Siyi only felt cold—so cold it was like walking into an ice cellar.
The air conditioning was running like electricity was free.
The private room was at the end of the hallway. When the door pushed open, seven or eight young men sat sprawled across a wide circular sofa.
They all looked young—early twenties, some handsome, some average. Most of the guys had girls sitting beside them.
The moment the door opened, everyone's gaze turned toward them at once.
"Brother Shen! You finally made it!"
"We've been waiting for you, Brother Shen. Come on, come on, sit here, sit here."
Someone immediately stood up to give up the center seat, and the guy beside him eagerly handed over a glass: "Brother Shen, haven't seen you in ages. Down one as a penalty."
"Sure." Shen Du raised the glass and drank it straight down.
Ren Siyi noticed that the way people swarmed around Shen Du wasn't like how you'd treat a friend—it was more like how you'd treat an honored guest.
Ren Siyi sat down next to Shen Du.
The moment she settled in, a tall, skinny guy on her other side tilted his head over and stared at her directly.
It made her deeply uncomfortable.
What's worse, the guy actually leaned in, his nostrils flaring slightly as he sniffed at her neck.
Damn!
Does he have no sense of personal boundaries at all?!
Ren Siyi's body instinctively leaned toward Shen Du, putting distance between them.
Shen Du's arm came over, draping loosely across the back of the sofa behind her, an easy embrace.
He lifted his eyelids and looked at the tall, skinny guy—casual but with a hint of warning: "She's my girlfriend. Everyone behave."
The guys exchanged glances and quickly nodded in acknowledgment.
In the wee hours, Shen Du played finger-guessing drinking games with them. Ren Siyi sang a few songs, got a bit bored, and after she finished, curled back into the corner of the sofa, chin resting on her hand, watching them mess around. It was dull.
But she had to stay—it was her job.
She noticed a couple kissing in the corner, kissing fiercely, like they were gnawing at each other.
A trickle of bright red blood seeped from the girl's lips, winding its way down her chin.
The man extended his tongue and licked the trail of blood clean.
The girl with the bitten lip didn't push him away at all—instead, she was smiling, as if she felt no pain whatsoever.
Ren Siyi got goosebumps watching them.
She was from a small town—she'd never seen tricks like this!
The guy licked the remaining blood from the corner of his mouth, then lifted his eyelids and stared straight at Ren Siyi.
That look made her stomach churn.
She couldn't stay in that room any longer. She tugged at Shen Du's sleeve and whispered in his ear: "It's four o'clock, Brother Shen Du. Let's head back."
Shen Du was already tipsy, cheeks flushed red, mumbling that they should play a little longer.
Ren Siyi waited a few more minutes. Seeing he had no intention of leaving at all, she couldn't take it anymore and said, "Then I'll go out for some air and wait for you outside. Call me when you're ready to go."
Shen Du tilted his head back and gulped down a drink, continuing to play dice with his friends, answering her with a distracted grunt.
Ren Siyi got up and left the private room.
It was freezing outside. She hugged her arms, head down, walking toward the entrance. As she crossed the dance floor, she felt people watching her.
So many people—every single person she passed, whether it was a man holding a glass at the bar or a heavily made-up woman in high heels at the edge of the dance floor, all turned their heads to look at her.
Face after face looked bloodless under the cold white lights—pale, deathly pale, like they were all wearing masks.
Ren Siyi's heart suddenly raced, her scalp tingling.
This place… was too eerie!
She felt like a little white rabbit that had wandered into a den of predators.
Ren Siyi didn't dare look again. She lowered her head and quickened her pace. The way out was a narrow underground corridor.
A tall man came toward her from the opposite direction, dressed all in black, very thin. Just as they brushed past each other, he suddenly stopped, his nostrils flaring as if catching a scent.
Then his ice-cold hand gripped her wrist.
Ren Siyi was scared out of her wits. Before she could react, she was shoved backward by an immense force, her spine slamming hard against the wall.
The tall, thin man pressed forward, pinning her firmly against the wall. He lowered his head, his gaunt face moving to her neck, the tip of his nose nearly touching her skin as he took a deep breath.
In that instant, all the blood in Ren Siyi's body froze.
"What are you doing?!" she screamed.
The man raised his head, his eyes fixed directly on her.
Those eyes were very dark, but the pupils were small, contracting constantly, like black holes sucking her in.
Ren Siyi wanted to struggle, wanted to push him away, but it was as if all her strength had been drained. Her consciousness was rapidly swallowed by an overwhelming drowsiness.
The world spun before her eyes, blurred, and went black.
Her body went limp, and she knew nothing more.
…
Back in the private room, Shen Du had drunk himself past knowing heaven from earth. He was slumped on the sofa, still holding a glass in his hand.
A buddy beside him reminded him: "Brother Shen, it's almost dawn. You need to get going."
Shen Du opened his hazy, drunken eyes and glanced at the time on his phone screen.
Five in the morning.
"Shit."
Half his drunkenness instantly scared away.
Damn it, he had to get back before his brother got off work.
He fumbled for his phone and dialed Ren Siyi's number.
Beep, beep, beep—no answer. He hung up and called again, three times in a row, not a single one connecting.
"Go, go find my girlfriend." He pushed himself upright using the sofa armrest, growing anxious. "Hurry, bring her back."
A few friends got up and left the private booth. Shen Du sat on the sofa, calling her nonstop, feeling deeply uneasy.
A few minutes later, one friend rushed in: "Bad news, Brother Shen. Someone saw your girlfriend being taken away."
"Fuck!!"
Shen Du's drunkenness completely evaporated, leaving only overwhelming panic and fear.
This was utterly fucked.
…
Shen Shen walked out of the hospital. Dawn was approaching, and a faint line of gray light appeared on the horizon.
Shen Du's call came through, his voice trembling and frantic: "Brother! Sisi was taken by someone, brother! Think of something!"
"Where was she taken from?" Shen Shen didn't stop walking.
"Blood, it's… the Blood Clan bar. Brother, she was taken by her own kind." Shen Du's voice seemed to carry a sob: "What do we do, brother! If… if someone ends up dead, it's all over!"
Shen Shen rubbed his brow.
Fifteen minutes later, the car stopped in front of the Blood bar.
A few people had been gathered in twos and threes at the entrance. Seeing him, they froze for a moment, then humbly lowered their heads, stiff and afraid to move.
Shen Shen walked through them, eyes straight ahead.
Passing through the deep corridor, he entered the bar's main hall. Many people were still there, but the music had stopped. Everyone was gathered in the hall, not daring to leave, whispering about something.
Shen Du's wheelchair was parked by the bar counter, with the bar owner standing beside it, frantically pulling up surveillance footage, sweat beading on his forehead.
The moment Shen Shen stepped into the hall, everyone stopped talking and looked over at once.
But as he drew closer, the reverence in their eyes turned to awe. They averted their gazes and lowered their heads.
Not a single person dared to look up. Not a single person dared to meet his eyes.
Shen Shen strode toward Shen Du with long, quick steps.
Before Shen Du could even get out a "Brother," Shen Shen raised his hand.
Shen Du was lifted straight off his wheelchair, his body flying in a straight line through the air before slamming heavily into the wall behind him.
Boom.
The wall caved in around Shen Du, forming a massive crater with him at the center!