Based on what the other party said, Li Qianqian immediately guessed that the newcomer was Qi Zechuan—one of her ex-husband’s brothers, the Young Master Qi who had no interest in the Qi Corporation and had gone off to become a doctor instead.
“This isn’t a snatch. The male models at Imperial Palace have always gone to the highest bidder.”
“If the manager hadn’t thought Zechuan-ge wasn’t coming tonight, you think the little bit of money you offered would’ve been enough to book him?”
The man beside Qi Zechuan—dressed in a flashy red outfit with several earrings adorning his ears—sneered sarcastically.
Then he shifted his gaze to the person behind Li Qianqian and said viciously:
“Bastard, what are you standing there frozen for? Get the hell over here. It’s only been two days, and you’ve already forgotten who it is you’re supposed to be pleasing?”
“The manager told me to accompany Qianqian-jie.” Gu Shinian’s fingertips twitched, but his feet didn’t move an inch.
“Heh~” Qi Zechuan let out a laugh of ambiguous meaning, curling his lips with interest as he looked at Li Qianqian. He strode over, each step seeming to land on people’s hearts, making them tremble inside.
He finally stopped just one meter away from Li Qianqian. “Sister-in-law, what do you think? Are you going to protect him?”
“He’s an artist under my management. If there was any misunderstanding between you two before, I’ll apologize to you on his behalf.”
Li Qianqian calmly shielded Gu Shinian behind her, her clear black-and-white eyes showing not the slightest intention of backing down.
She said “misunderstanding” rather than “offense”—every word she spoke was biased toward trusting that bastard.
A flicker of coldness passed through Qi Zechuan’s eyes, and the curve of his lips widened even more.
“Li Qianqian, you want to protect him? Do you even know who he is? As Yun Li’s wife, you can make plenty of mistakes, and I’ll cover for you every time. But you shouldn’t be standing together with a bastard.”
As if.
Li Qianqian didn’t believe for a second that Qi Zechuan was that kind-hearted. More likely, the moment she made a mistake, he’d embellish it and report it straight to the old madam.
Her back was ramrod straight, her bright little face unwavering. At this moment, the warm yellow lights fell upon her as her voice rang clearly in everyone’s ears.
“He had no right to decide his birth. As long as he hasn’t violated morality or the law, it’s only natural for me, as his manager, to protect him.”
A faint itch stirred in Gu Shinian’s chest. He instinctively looked up at Li Qianqian, but could only see the back of her head. He couldn’t describe how he felt at this moment.
“Good, very ambitious.” Qi Zechuan raised an eyebrow and clapped his hands twice, lightly and mockingly.
He thought about how just last week, Li Qianqian’s eyes had still been all over him, sending him flirtatious glances—and now, in the blink of an eye, she was picking a fight with him over some bastard. Truly fickle-hearted.
He bent down, lowering his voice to a breath only the two of them could hear. “Don’t forget, you still have something of yours at my place.”
“Underwear.”
Li Qianqian felt like she’d been struck by lightning. She’d thought only the one piece had been returned last time. The original novel only mentioned that the original owner, in her haste to quickly find her next pillar of support, had cast a wide net—hiding her elder brother’s shirt at home while harassing her ex-husband’s three brothers on the outside.
She’d sent Qi Zechuan intimate apparel, Qin Muyang revealing photos, and Jiang Liubai rambling nonsense messages.
But the novel never specified the quantity. Fortunately, the original owner hadn’t burned all her bridges—what she sent was brand new, and the account she messaged from was also new. She could deny it.
Li Qianqian: “Does it have my name on it? Don’t go pinning it on me.”
“You can deny it—” Qi Zechuan laughed out loud, stubbing out the cigarette that had burned down to the filter. His words were dripping with menace as he deliberately dragged out his final syllable, then continued:
“But, sister-in-law, it’s dark and windy out here. It’s perfectly normal for the surveillance cameras to be broken. And if something were to happen, no one would ever know.”
Hearing this, Gu Shinian’s heart sank. He knew better than anyone how unhinged Qi Zechuan could be. The Qi family would shield him, and even though Li Qianqian had treated him badly in the past—
She was still a fragile woman. And besides, today she had changed so much.
Gu Shinian stopped hiding. He stepped out from behind Li Qianqian. “I’ll go with you. Whatever’s between us has nothing to do with her. Let her go.”
“I wasn’t going to touch her. But the more you say that, the less I’ll do what you want. I hate it when people try to tell me what to do—especially you. So, she’s not leaving here easily tonight.”
Qi Zechuan let out a cold laugh, disgustedly brushing the ash off his clothes before casually tossing the dead cigarette butt onto the ground.
“Sister-in-law, I’ll give you a choice. Of your hands and his hands, only one pair gets to stay.”
The moment those words left his mouth, the underlings present didn’t dare make a sound. But the flashy-dressed man couldn’t hold it in anymore, frantically signaling Qi Zechuan with his eyes—this was illegal, criminal activity!
Even as his brother, he couldn’t cover for this!
If Zechuan-ge got himself in trouble with the family over some bastard, that would be a huge loss.
Qin Muyang grabbed Qi Zechuan’s shoulder tightly, trying to stop his rampage. “Zechuan-ge, calm down!”
“I know exactly what I’m doing.” Qi Zechuan slapped the hand off his shoulder.
Li Qianqian lifted her eyelids slightly and spoke: “I’m not choosing. Neither my hands nor Gu Shinian’s hands are yours to put up for selection.”
“You’re too naive. You think just because you refuse to choose, the two of you get to walk away unscathed?” Qi Zechuan sneered, his thin, cold lips spitting out icy words.
Gu Shinian had been listening nearby for a long time. He knew well that this was something he couldn’t avoid. His hands slowly clenched, and his dry lips parted slightly.
“Let her go. I’ll agree to your terms. Her staying here will only hold things up.”
“Oh, the bastard’s playing hero to save the damsel. Do you even know who she is? You think she’d ever fancy someone like you?”
Qin Muyang was furious listening to him defend Li Qianqian at every turn. Even if he himself didn’t think much of Li Qianqian, it wasn’t a lowly bastard’s place to step in.
Thinking of the photos saved on his phone, he couldn’t help but feel his mouth go dry.
Gu Shinian hung his head in silence. What heroics was this? He just didn’t want to drag her down any further.
“Get on with it. I know you always carry a blade.” Qi Zechuan urged impatiently.
Gu Shinian gripped the blade tightly. The pain in his palm awakened his resentment. The evening breeze that blew against him no longer carried any lightness—only a bone-piercing cold.
He stiffly pulled his hand out of his pocket.
Li Qianqian’s voice came from the side. “Hello, is this 911? Someone’s threatening and intimidating me. Yes, it’s at 306 Houli Street, right next to Huangchao.”
Qin Muyang turned his head and saw Li Qianqian holding her phone to her ear: “?”
He said in a barely audible breath, “Damn, you actually called the cops? Are you insane? Hang up!”
“Yes, the ringleaders are named Qi Zechuan and Qin Muyang. They’re also threatening my friend to hurt his own hands. Please come as soon as possible. There’s no surveillance here, and we’re really scared.”
Li Qianqian ignored him completely. After hanging up, she typed a message on her phone. Once she finished all that, she gripped Gu Shinian’s arm tightly.
She looked up and met Qi Zechuan’s pitch-black eyes. “I also sent a message to Big Brother. If anything happens to me here today, do you think you can explain that to the Fu family?”
“Li Qianqian, you really are full of surprises.” Qi Zechuan let out a sinister laugh, his whole demeanor like a venomous snake coiled and ready to strike in the dark.