Fu Yihan sat in the wheelchair with a cold, arrogant demeanor, followed by more than a dozen burly bodyguards in black suits, their bloodthirsty aura suffocating.
Yet even so, it couldn't suppress Fu Yihan's sharp presence; instead, it only accentuated him further, like an emperor on a high pedestal surrounded by admirers—just one glance, and no one could look away.
Amid the silence of the room, he didn't even spare a glance at the grim-faced Shen Lin'an nor at Su Yuerou whose eyes were filled with astonishment.
Instead, he casually lifted his chin at Su Qingnuan. "Come here."
"Me?" Su Qingnuan instinctively pointed at herself.
"If not you, then who else?"
Su Qingnuan suppressed her shock and hurried over to him.
"You—you… why are you here?"
"Why? You don't want me here?" Fu Yihan raised a brow and countered.
Su Qingnuan shook her head. She couldn't quite decipher her own emotions at the moment, but being surrounded by malicious intent so suffocating she could hardly breathe—his appearance was like a deity descending from the heavens to rescue her.
At the end of the day, it was joy…
Shen Lin'an watched helplessly as she ran over and nestled herself beside another man. Rage burned quietly within him.
But before he could speak, Jiang Liyun, noticing the sudden change in situation, signaled to the servants. Immediately, the maids gathered to escort Shen Lin'an out to the living room.
As his figure disappeared around the corner, Su Yuerou snapped out of her amazement, walked forward in quick strides, and asked, her eyes alight with curiosity, pointing at Fu Yihan.
"Sis… who is he? Won't you introduce us?"
In her excitement, she accidentally bumped into Fu Yihan's wheelchair, hitting it.
Before she could get up, Fu Yihan's bodyguards grabbed her and pinned her down.
"Let go of me! What do you think you're doing?"
Her shouting had just begun when she met with Fu Yihan's cold, lifeless gaze. "Shout one more time, and I'll have someone rip your mouth off."
Receiving his disgusted, disdainful glance, Su Yuerou froze entirely, her body stiffening, although she still struggled indignantly.
She had never suffered such humiliation before, her cheeks turning red with rage.
"I'm Su Qingnuan, Yuerou's sister. And who are you? Ordering your bodyguards to act without any justification—isn't that a bit rude?"
Su Qingnuan?
Fu Yihan's heart stirred at hearing that name, though he did not notice the subtle tremor in the fingers of the woman beside him.
Su Qingnuan uncharacteristically remained silent, her hands tightening into fists under Su Yuerou's semi-threatening, semi-pleading gaze.
"I need to use the restroom."
She said hurriedly, her departing figure slightly flustered.
Who would have thought that just as she reached the door, a large hand suddenly extended from inside, forcefully pulling Su Qingnuan in.
"Ah…"
She instinctively exclaimed, only to be slammed against the wall. What followed was the gritted interrogation of a man in a low, furious voice.
"Su Qingnuan, do you love power so much? So much that you're willing to sell yourself for it?"
"It hurts... Let go of me."
Su Qingnuan struggled to retreat, desperately trying to free herself from the man's grip, only to be held even tighter.
Did he really think being drugged and sent to the Fu family had been her choice?
Or was it that her wonderful sister had whispered something misleading in his ear, turning the once refined Shen Lin'an into this madman?
Seeing her stay silent, gazing at him with doubtful eyes, Shen Lin'an's fury intensified. He grabbed her shoulders and shook her violently.
"Speak!"
Su Qingnuan closed her eyes briefly, only feeling drained to the core.
"There's nothing left for us to talk about."
She was now Fu Yihan's wife and would only ever be his wife.
"What do you mean there's nothing left to talk about?" Her resignation and cold indifference pierced through Shen Lin'an like a dagger.
"Is your love so cheap? Was everything in the past just an act? Was it?"
In the cramped space, the two were already close, their thin garments now rumpled beyond recognition.
If someone were to see her like this, she'd be ruined.
In desperation, Su Qingnuan was about to scream out loud when she heard the sound of a wheelchair rolling down the hallway outside.
Su Qingnuan instantly realized who had arrived. "Fu—"
"Shut up. Don't say his name." Shen Lin'an snarled hideously, lowering his head as if intending to silence her cries with his lips.
As his breath approached her closer and closer, Su Qingnuan's pupils constricted, instinctively struggling against him.
Just then, the bathroom door was shattered open violently. A tall, muscular man dragged Shen Lin'an away as though lifting a chicken, throwing him heavily to the ground.
Accompanied by his painful groans, the man proceeded to land a series of punching and kicking blows.
Fu Yihan issued commands from his wheelchair, coldly observing the scene without a shred of emotion.
In the cramped bathroom, the only sounds were the thuds of fists hitting flesh and Shen Lin'an's harrowing cries of pain. Before long, bruises covered him entirely.
From the moment the door burst open, Su Qingnuan had darted behind Fu Yihan. She didn't dare get too close to him but nervously tugged at her clothes to cover herself.
"Um…" Su Qingnuan swallowed hard and carefully glanced at Fu Yihan. "Maybe we should just leave it at that?"
Although she had decided to let Shen Lin'an go, watching him so pitiful still triggered an ounce of empathy within her from their shared past.
Fu Yihan turned his piercing gaze on her, sharp enough to penetrate her soul. "What? You feel sorry for him?" His lips curled into a faint smile that contained no warmth whatsoever.
Under such a gaze, Su Qingnuan's timid plea vanished almost instantly.
Her head shook fervently like a rattle drum, her hands obediently clasped behind her back, signaling pure submission.
A cold snort escaped Fu Yihan's nose before he redirected his gaze to Shen Lin'an, who lay on the ground resembling a battered dog.
"A scumbag who dares harass a married woman deserves nothing less than death." Then he tilted his head slightly, his inscrutable eyes locking onto her. "Wouldn't you agree, my wife?"
The intimate title, paired with a tone unusually soft, sent chills down Su Qingnuan's spine rather than comfort.
She nodded frantically in agreement.
You're right—everything you say is right.
Fu Yihan finally seemed satisfied and lazily ordered his bodyguards. "Why did you stop? Keep going."
The bodyguards had paused momentarily, distracted by the commotion between Fu Yihan and Su Qingnuan. Now, at his command, they resumed their assault.
Their sandbag-sized fists rained down on Shen Lin'an like a storm, making him break out into cold sweat from the pain. "You can't treat me like this! I'm a son of the Shen family. If anything happens to me, they won't let you off!"
Fu Yihan showed no interest in his threats, letting out a derisive chuckle instead.
"The Shen family? Just a broken household patching together scraps of fabric."
The merciless sarcasm made Shen Lin'an's face contort in fury.