"No problem." Huang Qingshan snapped his fingers twice, and the two bodyguards who had followed him into the room immediately stepped forward.
Pang Zizhu watched the two bodyguards walking quickly toward him, and his first instinct was to run.
But how could he possibly escape the grasp of two bodyguards? Besides, having drunk a good deal of alcohol, he was unsteady on his feet; the moment he stood up, the two bodyguards forced him back down.
"Master Ye, save me, Master Ye!" Pang Zizhu shrieked hysterically. He would rather die than strip naked and crawl out of the hotel.
Ye Shaocheng's expression turned gloomy. "Young Master Huang, do me a favor. How about it?"
Huang Qingshan shrugged. "You shouldn't be asking me. You should ask my Big Big Boss. If he says forget it, then I'll forget it."
Ye Shaocheng shot a malicious glance at Xiao Yang. Ask him to humble himself before a love rival? Impossible!
With Ye Shaocheng's silence, Pang Zizhu was condemned to carry out the bet by force.
The bodyguards showed no mercy. The sound of *rip, rip* echoed continuously through the private room as clothes and trousers were violently torn apart, leaving him bare in no time at all.
Pang Zizhu desperately tried to protect his underwear—it was the last shred of dignity he had left.
One of the bodyguards gave a wicked smile, grabbed the waistband of the underwear, and yanked hard.
*Rip!*
His last remaining sliver of dignity shattered along with the torn underwear.
The girls present covered their faces shyly one by one and turned away, yet driven by curiosity, they still couldn't resist parting their fingers just a tiny bit, peeking out with flushed faces.
Xi Qiuying was even more exaggerated; she was merely putting on an act, spreading her fingers wide apart while her seductive, peach-blossom eyes constantly sized up Pang Zizhu, her gaze carrying a hint of disgust and contempt.
"You two keep an eye on him. If he won't crawl, leash him with a rope," Huang Qingshan said casually, waving a hand. "If he doesn't honor the bet, give him a little punishment."
"Yes, Young Master," the two bodyguards replied.
Hearing that they were going to leash him with a rope and drag him along, Pang Zizhu's expression instantly turned terrified.
Stripping naked and crawling out was already humiliating enough; if they tied a rope around him and led him like that, wouldn't they be treating him like a dog?
"I—I'll crawl..." Pang Zizhu closed his eyes, two streams of aggrieved tears falling as he slowly began to crawl out of the private room step by step.
Huang Qingshan instructed the two bodyguards again, "Remember to record a video. I want to take it back to show the other brothers the full version."
Pang Zizhu shuddered all over, completely helpless.
Ye Shaocheng felt a burning pain on his face. Pang Zizhu was the man he had intended to protect, yet Huang Qingshan hadn't given him an ounce of respect.
Yet, on second thought, he couldn't possibly offend Huang Qingshan over Pang Zizhu—the classic hypocrite who wanted to maintain his reputation while refusing to take risks. He could have saved him, but chose not to, fearing that completely offending Huang Qingshan would bring him no benefit.
"Humph!" Ye Shaocheng let out a cold snort and got up to leave.
He couldn't bear to stay in this place for even another second.
The moment he left, the others hurriedly followed suit, leaving only Xiao Yang, Huang Qingshan, Lin Yufei, and Xi Qiuying behind.
Huang Qingshan asked the waiter to serve a fresh round of dishes and ordered two more bottles of wine, pouring a glass for Xiao Yang. "Big Big Boss, I won't say any more nonsense. Let's bottoms up first!"
Xiao Yang drank a glass with him.
Huang Qingshan asked, "When did you get back? You didn't even let the brothers know."
"Just came down the mountain today."
"Do my boss and the others know?"
"Not yet." Xiao Yang shook his head. "Don't tell them yet, either. If they find out, that scene..."
Xiao Yang paused mid-sentence. Just imagining the scene made the corners of his mouth twitch. "Anyway, I have my own things to do and need to keep a low profile. Once I'm done, I'll go back."
"Alright. You're the Big Big Boss, so I'll do whatever you say." Huang Qingshan grinned, then looked over at Lin Yufei, caught sight of their intertwined hands, and said, "Big Big Boss, is this lady the Big Big Sister-in-law?"
"Hello, Young Master Huang." Before Xiao Yang could speak, Lin Yufei extended a fair hand.
"Don't call me Young Master Huang; I can't possibly bear that. Big Big Sister-in-law can just call me Little Huang." Huang Qingshan gave her hand a symbolic tap before letting go.
Gazing at Lin Yufei's breathtaking, world-class beauty, he couldn't help marveling inwardly: as expected of the Big Big Boss, he truly has skills.
With the dinner concluded, the group parted ways with farewells.
"Yufei, you still owe me a wedding banquet. Don't forget!" Xi Qiuying smiled.
Lin Yufei smiled and nodded. "Okay."
On the way back, Lin Yufei looked curiously at Xiao Yang's profile and couldn't help asking, "Xiao Yang, what's your relationship with Young Master Huang?"
" Childhood friends who grew up playing together," Xiao Yang replied.
"Oh." Lin Yufei nodded and didn't probe any further.
***
The next day.
After washing up and stepping out of his room, Xiao Yang found that Lin Zhengrong had just finished setting the breakfast on the table.
Hearing the movement, Lin Zhengrong looked up and smiled, "Why are you up so early? Come on down, breakfast is ready."
The two of them had slept in separate rooms last night. For now, it was still an act. Only by staying close to Lin Yufei could he find a glimmer of survival from the fatal doom awaiting him at age twenty-five, as well as unearth the whereabouts of his mother.
Just as Daoist Jiu had written in his parting letter, what he lacked most right now was time.
Before long, Lin Yufei also came downstairs, stifling a yawn. She had no objections to sleeping in separate rooms last night; the two of them had merely obtained their marriage certificate and hadn't dated yet. Her thought process was that they could get the certificate first, date afterward, and finally reap the fruits of love.
The family of three, together with Xiao Yang, shared a harmonious and joyful atmosphere, giving Xiao Yang a long-lost sense of domestic warmth.
His mother had gone missing, and his father had set out to search for her, never to return once he left.
Xiao Yang had grown up with his grandparents since childhood, lacking the affection of parents, which was why the troublemaker Xiao Yang had emerged.
From this moment on, he truly experienced what it felt like to have parents by one's side.
Qing Xiuxin couldn't finish her milk after drinking only half of it, and pushed the remaining half-cup toward Lin Zhengrong. "I can't finish this."
Without a word, Lin Zhengrong downed the remaining half-cup of milk in one go.
Lin Yufei bit her chopsticks, glanced at Xiao Yang beside her, and followed suit, pushing her own unfinished half-cup of milk across the table. "I can't finish mine either. Don't waste it."
Xiao Yang glanced up at her, well aware of her little trick, but didn't refuse.
After breakfast, the four of them sat in the living room.
Lin Zhengrong asked Xiao Yang, "Xiao Xiao, what are your plans for the future?"
Plans?
Xiao Yang glanced at Lin Yufei. He only knew that his lifeline of survival lay with Lin Yufei, but he had no idea how to grasp that lifeline, so he shook his head. "I haven't planned yet."
Lin Zhengrong nodded slightly. "Whether you want to come work at my company or start your own business, let me know when you've decided. Don't worry about money."
Xiao Yang merely nodded. As for money, he had plenty—enough to spend for ten lifetimes—but those were things he wouldn't speak of aloud.