Chapter Twenty-Seven: The Wretched Su Daqiang!

Ye Wushang’s expression darkened. He hadn’t expected there to be an undercover agent among them—one of those twenty or so people qualified to bid. Earlier, there had been an attempt to poison An Lan, and now they meant to abduct her and use her as leverage against the An family.

Thinking back to Master An’s behavior at the time, it seemed he must have known the mastermind was the Pei family, but was unwilling to make it public.

“Brother, I’ve told you everything I know,” Wang Jiaolong pleaded, desperation in his voice. “Please, let me go…”

As Ye Wushang hesitated, Wang Jiaolong begged for his life once more. At the same time, his right hand fumbled across the ground and found another dagger. Taking advantage of the moment, he lunged forward with the blade.

But Ye Wushang had anticipated this. With his skills, Wang Jiaolong moved no faster than a snail in his eyes. Instantly, Ye Wushang seized his wrist, twisted it sharply, and with a pained scream, the dagger clattered to the floor. Swiftly, Ye Wushang snatched up the blade, pressed it to Wang Jiaolong’s throat, and ended his life in a single, decisive stroke.

Blood sprayed out, and Wang Jiaolong collapsed, lying rigid on the ground, eyes staring wide in disbelief. Even in death, he could not have imagined he would die by Ye Wushang’s hand.

Just then, the burly security guard who had been knocked unconscious by a wineglass began to stir and wake. Seeing Wang Jiaolong lying dead, he gaped in shock. “You—you actually killed President Wang?”

Without hesitation, Ye Wushang darted over and dragged the man back inside. He pulled a pill from his pocket and, disregarding the guard’s protests, forced it into his mouth. Pressing on the man’s throat, he made him swallow.

Moments later, the man doubled over in agony, clutching his stomach and writhing on the floor. Soon, blood began to seep from his mouth and nose, thick and dark, with a foul stench.

“What did you make me take?” the guard gasped.

“Softbone pellets,” Ye Wushang replied coolly, his expression calm and detached. “My own concoction. Once ingested, every bone in your body will soften. It causes all sorts of complications in the internal organs. Without the antidote, in half a month at best, a month at most, all your bones will dissolve. You’ll be nothing but a sack of skin, your bones, sinews, even your blood, all turned to liquid—until you dry up completely.”

Hearing this, the guard was terrified. He grabbed Ye Wushang’s leg, sobbing, “Please, brother, I was wrong. I’m sorry! You killed Wang Jiaolong, fine, but I bear no grudge against you. Don’t do this to me! Please, give me the antidote! I’ll do anything you ask, anything at all!”

Ye Wushang sneered, mocking him, “Anything?”

“Yes, anything! I’ll do whatever you want, even eat shit if I have to…”

“That won’t be necessary.” Ye Wushang shook his head. “Just one thing: take the fruit knife, cover it with your fingerprints. Destroy all the surveillance records, especially the ones showing me coming and going. As for who killed Wang Jiaolong, say whatever you like. Just make absolutely certain none of this can be traced back to me—understand?”

The guard’s eyes widened. He was being made to cover up the evidence—a murder that would surely cause an uproar. He would be the prime suspect. But the thought of the softbone pellet and its effects made his skin crawl.

“Fine. I’ll clean up your mess,” he agreed, thinking survival was paramount—even if it meant a vicious beating later.

He nodded gravely, then stood up and asked respectfully, “Brother, about the antidote…”

“You’ll be fine for now. Once I finish my business, I’ll see how you perform and give you the antidote then.”

With that, Ye Wushang moved like lightning, snatching the man’s work badge and glancing at it. “Su Daqiang? Good. I’ll remember you. If word of this ever gets out, not only you, but your whole family will taste the softbone pellet.” He turned to leave. “I’m going now.”

Carrying Lan Ruoxue in his arms, Ye Wushang headed for the door. Su Daqiang watched him go, a look of utter despair on his face. He hated Ye Wushang, but there was nothing he could do; the man had drugged him, knew his name, and could easily find out about his family. He had just come to work for a paycheck—never expecting to be dragged into something like this. Now, there was no turning back; he could only grit his teeth and charge ahead.

“Wait, brother!” he suddenly called, hurrying after Ye Wushang.

“What? Changed your mind?”

“No, no, I know how to take care of the things you asked. But my men and the other bodyguards all saw you. You’d better use the back door.”

Ye Wushang couldn’t help but laugh, satisfied. “You’re pretty quick on the uptake. Fine, I’ll use the back door. But let me ask you—if all those people saw me, what if they talk?”

Su Daqiang patted his chest in assurance, “Don’t worry, they’re all just colleagues—no one wants to lose their life over this. Worst case, I’ll use all my savings to keep them quiet. We’re all in the same boat; if anyone betrays me, they’ll be dead too.”

“After all, with Wang Jiaolong dead, when blame comes down, it won’t matter if they were involved or not—no one will get off easy!”

Leaving by the back door, Ye Wushang hailed a taxi and brought Lan Ruoxue home to the Lan family. He found someone to help her inside, then quickly slipped away and returned to the orphanage.

With a soft moan, Lan Ruoxue finally regained consciousness after her long faint. She hurried to check herself over, relieved to find no signs of violation.

Lan Ruoxue’s younger sister rushed to her side, embracing her anxiously. “Sis, are you alright? How do you feel?”

“I’m fine, just a bit of a headache,” Lan Ruoxue replied, massaging her temples with a sigh.

“President Lan, what happened? Didn’t you go negotiate with Wang Jiaolong at Jiaolong Group? How did you end up being carried home by a stranger? Did Wang Jiaolong… did he hurt you?” Xu Wei asked nervously.

Lan Ruoxue was momentarily stunned as the memory returned. She had been prepared to sacrifice herself for her family and Ye Wushang, but suddenly the door had been kicked in, and before she could see who it was, Wang Jiaolong had knocked her out. When she woke, she was already home.

After checking herself for any harm and finding none, she recounted the events at Jiaolong Group.

Xu Wei pondered this, then murmured, “It must have been the person who burst in that saved you. Otherwise, Wang Jiaolong would have ruined you. But who could it be? Earlier, I called that useless husband of yours and scolded him—could it have been him?”

“How could it be!” Lan Ruoxue’s expression turned cold at once. “That good-for-nothing knows a bit of kung fu, but what else? Jiaolong Group is full of skilled bodyguards. Even if he’s tough, he can’t compare to them. And didn’t you say you called Sun Chuanzhi?”

Xu Wei brightened. “That’s right! I called Young Master Sun. When he found out Wang Jiaolong was planning to harm you, he was furious and said he’d have his father talk to the Wang family. So it must have been Young Master Sun who taught Wang Jiaolong a lesson—otherwise, you wouldn’t have come back unscathed.”

Lan Ruoxue agreed, nodding. “Yes, that must be it. Where is he now? Did you contact him after he left the police station?”

Xu Wei shook her head. “No, he just said he’d handle Wang Jiaolong and hasn’t been in touch since.”

Lan Ruoxue glanced at the clock—2 p.m., just one hour before the agency rights auction. She hurriedly stood up. “Quick, call Chuanzhi. Tell him to meet me at Panlong Court. There’s only one hour until the An family’s agency rights auction begins. If he could handle Wang Jiaolong, the An family will surely give him some respect. With him there, we stand a good chance at the auction!”

…