Wang Xiaodong lay back on the large bed and stared at the ceiling as the long-buried memories in his mind gradually became clearer.
At 8:00 tonight, Su Qingyue would bring that penniless brat, Lin Chen, crashing into Old Master Su’s birthday banquet. In front of all the guests, she would publicly announce that she was breaking off the engagement, then elope with Lin Chen overnight to the neighboring city of Yancheng.
In the original plot, this was precisely what drove Wang Xiaodong into such a rage that he foolishly tried to run Lin Chen over with his car, ultimately leading to his own miserable death.
“Elope?” Wang Xiaodong sneered, lightly tapping his fingers against his knee.
In his memories, Su Qingyue had once gazed lovingly at Lin Chen and declared, “Even if I have to sleep under a bridge with you, I’ll gladly do it!”
Ridiculous!
Those words were easy enough to say, but if she really had to sleep under a bridge, she would probably come running back the very next day, crying and begging Wang Xiaodong to forgive her.
He’s Just Like a Brother to Me.
I Don’t Know What Happened Either. It Was Already Like This When I Woke Up.
He Was Wearing Protection, So It Doesn’t Count.
I Only See You as a Brother.
I Already Apologized. Can’t You Just Forgive Me?
Just thinking about those ridiculous excuses made Wang Xiaodong feel sick.
Two and a half hours later, Wang Xiaodong took a cold shower and changed into a bespoke suit.
The charcoal-gray fabric accentuated his broad shoulders, making their lines appear sharp and clean. The Patek Philippe on his wrist gleamed beneath the lights, dazzling enough to blind anyone who looked directly at it.
Standing before the mirror, he leisurely adjusted his tie. The man reflected in the glass was strikingly handsome, and his eyes carried the natural arrogance of someone accustomed to standing above others. The gloomy, obsessive air of a pathetic simp had completely vanished.
At exactly 8:00 p.m., at Old Master Su’s birthday banquet, Wang Xiaodong entered the banquet hall just as the clock chimed. The starry pattern on his Patek Philippe shimmered with every step he took.
A waiter was about to approach and guide him, but Wang Xiaodong casually raised a hand to stop him and walked straight toward the main table.
As he passed the champagne tower, he casually picked up a glass of red wine. The crimson liquid swirled inside the glass, reflecting the faint, cold smile at the corner of his lips.
The entire banquet hall fell silent for three seconds.
The guests’ gazes swept toward him like searchlights, and whispers quickly spread through the crowd.
“Holy crap! Why isn’t Young Master Wang pestering Su Qingyue today?”
“Something’s wrong! Why does he look so handsome today? It’s like he became a completely different person!”
Old Master Su’s fingers paused over his prayer beads. His gaze swept across Wang Xiaodong before he suddenly chuckled, “Xiaodong, you’re here?”
Wang Xiaodong gave a faint nod, his gaze casually drifting toward the entrance.
Sure enough, Su Qingyue was dragging Lin Chen into the banquet hall. The two of them looked exactly like some tragic couple who had stepped straight out of a melodramatic short-form drama.
Old Master Su cleared his throat, and the noisy banquet hall instantly fell silent.
He slowly rose to his feet. Beneath his silvery-white longevity brows, his weathered eyes swept across the entire hall before finally settling on the empty seat at the main table.
That seat had been reserved for his married daughter, yet it remained empty, almost as though it were silently foreshadowing something.
“Today, while everyone is gathered here for this old man’s birthday banquet, I have a joyous matter to announce.”
Old Master Su’s voice was hoarse yet powerful, every word clear and distinct. “The marriage between my granddaughter Qingyue and Xiaodong of the Wang family has already been settled by both families. The auspicious date has been chosen for the third day of next month…”
“Grandpa! I don’t agree!”
Before he could finish, the crisp sound of porcelain shattering rang out from the entrance.
Su Qingyue pulled her hand free from Lin Chen’s grasp and rushed forward, her face deathly pale. Fruit juice from an overturned glass still stained the hem of her dress.
Lin Chen followed closely behind her. His faded jeans stood out glaringly among the hall full of impeccably dressed guests.
As expected of the protagonist. He truly knew how to stand out from the crowd.
Lin Chen straightened his back with a righteous expression and declared, “Grandpa Su, Qingyue loves me. This marriage cannot be recognized!”
Wang Xiaodong’s fingers tightened slightly around his wineglass. Condensation slid down the glass and between his fingers.
As he watched this pair of “star-crossed lovers” put on their little performance, he suddenly found the whole thing laughable.
In the original plot, the person who should have flown into a rage, overturned the table, and started cursing at this moment was Wang Xiaodong.
But now?
He chuckled softly and raised his hand.
Splash!
The entire glass of red wine struck Su Qingyue directly in the face!
The entire hall fell deathly silent.
Wang Xiaodong leisurely loosened his tie, his gaze icy as he said, “Su Qingyue, you don’t agree? Heh… don’t act as though I’m desperate to marry you.”
“Why is a two-faced woman like you pretending to be so pure and aloof?”
He stepped across the mess on the floor and approached her. The tip of his leather shoe almost touched her trembling toes. His voice was low, yet every person in the banquet hall could hear him clearly.
“Using that pitiful little act of yours, how many benefits have you gotten for the Su family?”
“Answer me.”
“Look into my eyes!”
Drops of red wine still clung to Su Qingyue’s eyelashes, making her look even more pitiful. Her fingers unconsciously twisted the pearl necklace around her neck as she said, “Brother Xiaodong… didn’t you do all those things willingly? I never asked you to do any of that…”
Her voice choked with tears. “I’ve always seen you as a brother… The person I love is Lin Chen. You’ve always known that…”
“I’m only pursuing my own love. Is that wrong too?” As she spoke, she reached out to grab the corner of Wang Xiaodong’s jacket.
Wang Xiaodong abruptly stepped backward as though he were avoiding something filthy.
Thud!
Su Qingyue lost her balance and fell directly to the floor.
“Brother Xiaodong! How could you treat me like this…” She raised her face, her eyes shimmering with tears.
“What the hell are you barking about?”
Wang Xiaodong looked down at her from above, his gaze colder than ice. “Wrong? No, you’re not wrong.”
“I was the one who was wrong all along.”
“Are you finished acting?”
He raised his foot and ruthlessly crushed the pearl necklace that had fallen from her neck.
Crack!
The pearls shattered and scattered across the floor.
“Willingly? Heh… I was blind before. That’s the only reason a two-faced woman like you managed to play me for a fool!”
Su Qingyue cried out and reached for his trouser leg, but Wang Xiaodong slapped her hand away.
Slap!
The crisp sound of the slap echoed throughout the banquet hall.
Su Qingyue covered her face and stared at him in disbelief. “You… you actually dared to hit me?!”
“So what if I hit you?”
Wang Xiaodong sneered and immediately delivered several more slaps.
Slap! Slap! Slap!
“I gave you everything I had, and you treated me like an ATM? Like a stepping stone?”
“Today, I’m going to collect every debt you owe the old me!”
He grabbed her by the arm and roughly dragged her into the center of the banquet hall.
Su Qingyue’s cries sounded especially piercing amid the deathly silence.
Wang Xiaodong raised his hand.
“This slap is for your ingratitude!”
Slap!
“This slap is for playing with my feelings!”
Slap!
“This slap is for cheating on me and seducing another man!”
Slap!
“As for this one…”
He paused before suddenly breaking into a grin.
“I just feel like hitting you!”
Slap! Slap! Slap!
Su Qingyue’s face was already swollen beyond recognition, and her makeup had become a complete mess. Not a trace remained of the dignity and elegance expected of the young lady of the Su family.
Only then did Lin Chen finally charge forward like an enraged wild dog.
“Wang Xiaodong! Try touching Qingyue one more time!”
His massive fist tore through the air toward the side of Wang Xiaodong’s face.
‘You didn’t step in earlier or later. You waited until she had already been beaten before jumping out to play the hero?’
‘The protagonist’s routine really is laughable every single time.’
Without even turning his head, Wang Xiaodong gathered the inner force of his Early-stage Mystic Realm cultivation into his palm.
Crack!
When Lin Chen’s fist was only 1.27 centimeters from Wang Xiaodong’s cheek, Wang Xiaodong suddenly reached back and seized his wrist. His fingers tightened, instantly crushing the bones in Lin Chen’s wrist.
“With such insignificant tricks, you dare show off in front of me?”
“Argh!” Lin Chen screamed.
Wang Xiaodong casually swung his arm.
Boom!
Lin Chen was sent flying like a kite with its string cut.
He smashed through the champagne tower. Crimson liquid sprayed through the air like rain before his body slammed heavily into the ornately carved wooden doors.
“Pfft!”
Lin Chen spat out a mouthful of blood, staining his faded T-shirt red.
Wang Xiaodong strode forward and kicked Lin Chen directly in the stomach.
“Argh!” Lin Chen curled up like a shrimp from the pain, cold sweat pouring down his body.
“Who gave you the courage to keep glaring at me? Liang Jingru?” Wang Xiaodong sneered before kicking him in the arm again.
“What freaking league are you even in? You think you’re qualified to fight me over a woman?”
Crack!
The sound of breaking bone was clearly audible.
Lin Chen sucked in a sharp breath from the pain, yet he stubbornly gritted his teeth. His eyes remained filled with venomous hatred.
Wang Xiaodong narrowed his eyes and planted the sole of his shoe against Lin Chen’s chest.
“Pfft!”
Lin Chen coughed up another mouthful of blood.
[Ding! The host has severely injured the protagonist, Lin Chen. Lin Chen’s Destiny -20. Host’s Destiny +20!]
The system notification rang out in Wang Xiaodong’s mind, and the corner of his lips curled slightly upward.
He withdrew his foot and casually brushed nonexistent dust from his hands. His gaze swept across the devastated banquet hall before finally settling on Su Qingyue.
“With this pathetic level of ability, he thinks he’s qualified to steal my fiancée?”
“Even if I don’t want her anymore, I’d rather throw her away than give her to you!”
He sneered as his leather shoes crushed the porcelain fragments scattered across the floor, producing a harsh scraping sound.
“Su Qingyue, the man you chose really is a useless piece of trash who only looks impressive on the surface.”
At the main table, the faces of the Su family elders had turned livid.
Clang!
The silver spoons held by the Su family’s older female relatives dropped onto their bone-china plates.
“What a disaster…” Someone hurriedly stepped forward to support Old Master Su, who nearly fainted.
In the corner, the socialites who had once mocked Wang Xiaodong as “Su Qingyue’s obedient lapdog” were now utterly silent, too frightened to utter a word.
The Su family’s distant relatives collectively sucked in a sharp breath.
“Holy freaking crap!”
“Is… is this really the same Xiaodong who used to argue with Old Master Su for Su Qingyue’s sake?”