"Ye Huan said playfully, and with that, he scooped Xiang Yingxin up in a bridal style and carried her over to the sofa. After sitting down, he settled Xiang Yingxin onto his lap and leaned in as if about to kiss her.
"Ye Huan, Ye Huan, don't be impulsive! Um, well, I just remembered, my period is here..."
Xiang Yingxin was practically scared out of her wits and hurriedly scrambled for an excuse.
"Your period? Where is she? Tell her to come over and join us!" Ye Huan said with a lecherous grin.
Xiang Yingxin: "???"
Does this butcher seriously have some kind of misunderstanding about what a period is?
Still, come to think of it, this butcher really isn't picky at all. And he's a total pervert—he won't even spare someone on their period.
"Um, I feel like the vibe is a bit off. I, um, I'll sing a song to liven things up."
Xiang Yingxin said, fighting back her panic.
"Can you sing and dance at the same time?" Ye Huan asked.
"Yes, yes!"
Xiang Yingxin was almost moved to tears. She scrambled off Ye Huan's lap and made a bee-line for the karaoke console.
Ye Huan lit a cigarette, leaned back in his chair, and watched with amusement as Xiang Yingxin frantically fumbled with the song selection.
He had seen right through Xiang Yingxin's thoughts from the very beginning, which was why he had deliberately scared the girl and played with her a bit.
In truth, he never had any intention of actually doing anything with Xiang Yingxin. Although her looks and figure were decent, she simply wasn't to his taste.
The Underworld King had very high standards when it came to picking up women!
"Um, I, I'm starting!"
Xiang Yingxin finally selected a song and looked timidly at Ye Huan.
At that moment, she was filled with absolute terror toward this butcher.
"Get started. Sing well, and dance seductively—otherwise, don't even think about walking out of this private room before dawn tomorrow."
Smoking his cigarette like a hardened hoodlum, Ye Huan let his eyes roamed lewdly over Xiang Yingxin's body with utter shamelessness.
"Oh, oh..."
Xiang Yingxin trembled in fright, her face turning pale. She couldn't even bear to imagine what kind of torture she would endure if she spent the entire night in the private room with this butcher. By tomorrow morning, she'd probably have to crawl out leaning against the wall.
The musical intro began!
Xiang Yingxin started to sway her hips!
Ye Huan watched with enthusiastic appreciation. Xiang Yingxin was wearing a tight-fitting slip dress, cut very short, which paired with her daringly seductive dance moves made his mouth water.
Xiang Yingxin was practically frightened to tears by Ye Huan's gaze. She felt that if she kept dancing, there was a very high chance Ye Huan would be driven wild by the stimulation and pounce on her, yet she didn't dare stop...
***
After Lin Xi and the others entered the bar, they didn't immediately start the birthday party, nor did they get hyped up.
Instead, everyone gathered around Lin Xi, chiming in one after another to try and persuade her.
"That butcher really went upstairs with Xiang Yingxin, Lin Xi. Are you just going to sit back and watch him blatantly cuckold you?"
"Lin Xi, even if you don't have feelings for that butcher, you should go up there right now and put a stop to it. The moment they cross that line, you're officially wearing the green hat. Once word gets out, you'll become the laughingstock of the business world."
"Even if the two of you were forced together by Grandfather Lin, that butcher shouldn't completely disregard the consequences. He gets to have his fun, but it's going to push you right into the spotlight."
"Lin Xi, you need to get a divorce from that butcher as soon as possible. The sooner the better—tomorrow morning at the latest. Otherwise, you'll be ruined by him."
"That butcher knows you don't like him, and he knows you won't interfere with his private life, so he's using the Lin Family's money to shamelessly indulge himself. Trash like that will completely ruin your reputation."
Faced with everyone's persuasion, Lin Xi remained utterly calm and unmoving, though her peripheral vision occasionally flickered toward the stairs leading to the second floor.
At that moment, seeing that the timing was just right, Su Lei spoke up:
"Lin Xi, I know you're bound by Grandfather's orders and can't just get a divorce, and that butcher won't initiate a divorce because of the Lin Family's money. Look, just say the word, and I'll have my bodyguard give him a thrashing—beat him until he agrees to divorce you tomorrow."
Lin Xi glanced sideways at Su Lei and almost burst out laughing. Su Lei was a classic example of a rat tucking a pistol into its belt—he was dreaming of bagging a cat, and courting death!
She checked her watch, then glanced back at the stairs. *It's already been half a minute,* she thought, *how come the scumbag Ye and that cheap Xiang still haven't come down?*
"Young Master Jin, Ms. Shen has booked the entire bar for tonight. Young Master Jin, please, don't be like this..."
Right at that moment, the sycophantic voice of a waiter trying to block someone echoed through the room.
Hearing the commotion, Lin Xi and the others turned to look.
They saw a massive, swarming crowd storming into the bar—easily several dozen people, all armed with weapons and looking fierce and menacing.
And leading them all was none other than Jin Feiyu's younger brother, Jin Peng!
Something's wrong!
Seeing Jin Peng, Lin Xi's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly pulled out her phone to call Ye Huan.
Once the call connected, the sound of thumping, high-energy beats and vocals blasted from the earpiece!
That left Lin Xi momentarily stunned. *Since when does clapping hands require music this intense?*
Ye Huan: "What?"
"Jin Peng is here! Get down here right now!" Lin Xi whispered.
Ye Huan: "What did you say?"
"I said Jin Peng is here."
Ye Huan: "What the hell? Speak up."
"I'll text you!"
Lin Xi didn't dare speak too loudly; the moment she did, it would be equivalent to telling Jin Peng she was right here.
So she hung up the phone and texted Ye Huan:
"Jin Feiyu's brother Jin Peng is here with dozens of men. Get down here fast!"
After sending the message, she put her phone away and calmly watched Jin Peng approach.
"So it's the Second Young Master. For you to grace my birthday party with your presence is truly giving me the utmost face."
Shen Huamei, the birthday girl, greeted Jin Peng with a smile.
Slap!
Jin Peng struck Shen Huamei across the face, sending her crashing to the floor. He spat on the ground and said coldly:
"Bah! Why don't you take a piss and look at your own reflection? A cheap bitch like you is worthy of me coming to celebrate your birthday? Get lost!"
With that, he viciously kicked Shen Huamei, eliciting a miserable scream as she curled up and convulsed on the ground.
Seeing this, everyone in the bar fell into a terrified silence. No one dared to utter a word; they simply couldn't afford to cross Jin Peng.
Putting aside the Jin Family's underworld connections, just looking at their financial power, background, network, and political clout—among everyone present, only the Lin Family and the Su Family behind Lin Xi and Su Lei could compare.
Yet they couldn't fathom why Jin Peng had suddenly brought so many men here with such overwhelming momentum.
"Jin Peng, the person you're looking for is me. Why drag innocent people into this?"
Lin Xi pushed through the crowd and stepped forward, speaking coldly.
She had never been the type to hide behind others and let them suffer in her place.
It was only then that Su Lei and the others realized that Jin Peng was actually here for Lin Xi.
"So what if I drag innocents into it?"
Jin Peng's attitude was arrogant beyond belief. He swept a wild, defiant gaze across the crowd and hollered:
"Listen up and listen good, you bastards! There's only one person I'm here for tonight, and that's Lin Xi. This has nothing to do with any of you. If any busybody has too much time on their hands and dares to stick their nose into this, I don't mind beating a few extra people."
With that, he viciously delivered two kicks to Shen Huamei's stomach.
"You..."
Watching Shen Huamei curl up in agony, screaming as her entire body went into spasms, Lin Xi felt an urge to rush over and beat Jin Peng to death with her bare hands.
Yet she didn't dare, because she couldn't beat Jin Peng—not to mention the dozens of thugs standing behind him.
She could only anxiously pray for Ye Huan to hurry down from the second floor. The moment Ye Huan returned to her side, she would have the backbone to stand up to Jin Peng.
"What? Seeing me beat your good friend makes you angry? Seeing your good friend lying on the ground in excruciating pain makes your heart ache?"
Jin Peng's face bore a perversely ferocious grin as he suddenly roared:
"If you don't want to implicate anyone else, you'd better fucking come with me obediently."
*Why hasn't that damned scumbag come down yet...* Lin Xi grew so anxious her palms were slick with sweat.
"Looks like you don't plan to come with me willingly. In that case, I'll just have to do it myself!"
Seeing Lin Xi standing frozen in place, Jin Peng gave a grand wave of his hand:
"Take her!"
Immediately, two thugs strode toward Lin Xi.
Panic flared in Lin Xi's chest. If Jin Peng dragged her away, Jin Jiu—seeking revenge for Jin Feiyu—might not kill her, but he would certainly skin her alive.
"Has the Second Young Master failed to notice me?"
At that moment, Su Lei stepped in front of Lin Xi, looking at Jin Peng as he said:
"Second Young Master, I don't know how Lin Xi has offended you, but considering my relationship with her, do me a favor and let Lin Xi off this once. How about it?"
As he spoke those words, Su Lei felt like he was the coolest, most dashing man alive. He had never felt this handsome in his entire life.
Stepping up to play the hero saving the damsel in distress at the crucial moment—Lin Xi would definitely be moved to tears, and her heart might even flutter with romantic feelings for him.
"What kind of piece of shit are you, thinking you've got enough face to throw around here? When the fuck have you ever had any face in front of me?"
Jin Peng launched into a scathing, unreserved verbal assault, barking:
"What the hell are you still standing there for? Go get Lin Xi!"
Su Lei flew into a rage. Jin Peng hadn't given him an ounce of face, and had even publicly humiliated him and left him stranded with no way to step down.
He glared angrily at the bodyguard he had brought along and commanded:
"Listen up! If anyone dares to touch Lin Xi tonight, you beat them to a pulp."
The bodyguard nearly cursed out loud. Sure, he was a retired special forces soldier who could take on ten men at once, but the problem was that Jin Peng had brought dozens of thugs, and every single one of them was armed with weapons. How on earth was he supposed to win against that?
Nevertheless, driven by a bodyguard's duty and professional ethics, he still stepped in front of Su Lei.
"Oh ho, no wonder you're acting so tough—turns out you brought a bodyguard!"
Jin Peng sneered with utter disdain, then waved his hand and ordered:
"Break Su Lei's bodyguard's legs first."
*Whoosh!*
Dozens of thugs let out battle cries and charged toward the bodyguard.
Seeing this, the bodyguard felt a cold jolt of apprehension, but he still grabbed a nearby chair and braced himself for the fight!
"Stop right there!"
Right at that moment, an explosive roar echoed through the room!
Not knowing what was going on, the thugs all froze in their tracks.
Lin Xi and the others turned their heads in unison toward the staircase.
They saw Ye Huan walking down at a leisurely pace—though Xiang Yingxin was nowhere to be seen!
Seeing this, the boulder crushing Lin Xi's chest finally lifted. With Ye Huan around, she wasn't afraid of Jin Peng anymore. Even if Ye Huan couldn't handle dozens of street thugs by himself, a tag-team between Ye Huan and Su Lei's bodyguard would definitely do the trick.
"Punk, are you planning to stick your nose into this too?"
Jin Peng glared coldly at Ye Huan and said:
"Let me remind you, the Jin Family is not someone you can afford to cross!"
Ye Huan walked over and helped Shen Huamei, who was curled up and convulsing on the floor, to her feet. He pressed his right hand against her lower back, and instantly, Shen Huamei felt a wave of warmth flow from his palm into her body. In the blink of an eye, the pain in her face and stomach vanished completely.
"Does it still hurt?"
Ye Huan guided Shen Huamei over to Lin Xi's side and asked.
"It doesn't hurt anymore. Thank you!"
Shen Huamei cast a deep, lingering look at Ye Huan, her pretty eyes filled with shock.
Ignored Shen Huamei's gaze, Ye Huan let go of her, turned to face Jin Peng, and said:
"I didn't want to get involved in other people's business either, but you're trying to kidnap my wife. I have to get involved whether I like it or not!"
Jin Peng blinked in surprise, then burst out laughing, snorting:
"So you're Lin Xi's legendary butcher husband? I thought you were some bigshot. You're killing me..."
*I work in meat processing, so how did it morph into butchering along the way? This is a severe distortion and desecration of the great profession of meat processing...* Ye Huan grumbled inwardly with displeasure, speaking up aloud:
"Go ahead and laugh. Once you're done laughing, let's get the fight started. Tonight is Shen Huamei's birthday party; I can't let trash like you ruin her mood and waste any more of the party time."
As soon as those words dropped, everyone except Lin Xi froze in place!
"Are you saying you want to fight us?" Jin Peng asked.
"Are you out of your damn mind, butcher?"
Su Lei looked at Ye Huan as if he were looking at an absolute idiot, sneering:
"Just because you've spent years chopping up meat and have some brute strength, do you actually think you can take on dozens of ruthless thugs who lick blood off their knife blades?"
The rest of the crowd fixed Ye Huan with that exact same look.
***
Jin Peng, Su Lei, and the others were momentarily stunned, failing to understand what Lin Xi meant by those words. They instinctively turned and looked in the direction she was pointing.
Even the fifty thugs who had been in the middle of beating up the bodyguard stopped what they were doing and looked over.
They saw Ye Huan walking unhurriedly down the stairs, step by step.
And trailing right behind him was Xiang Yingxin.
"Hiss..."
At the sight of Xiang Yingxin's current appearance and gait, everyone drew a sharp intake of breath.
Xiang Yingxin's hair was a complete mess, and she was panting heavily. Her face was pale, and beads of sweat were rolling down her cheeks to drip off her chin.
Clinging to the handrail, she was awkwardly and cautiously picking her way down the stairs with her lower body. With every single step she took, an expression of agony twisted across her face, as if she were enduring some indescribable torment.
Everyone present was an adult!
Everyone had experience!
It didn't take a genius to guess the reason behind Xiang Yingxin's agonizing state!
Yet!
Ye Huan and Xiang Yingxin had only been up in that second-floor private room for barely half an hour! Just how intensely vigorous must that workout have been to reduce Xiang Yingxin to this state in such a short amount of time?
In an instant, every single man attending the birthday party wore an expression of profound self-deprecation.
When it came to this particular arena, they were no match for Ye Huan!
Meanwhile, many of the young women at the party looked at Ye Huan with strange expressions in their eyes; some even had a scorching light dancing in their depths, as if they desperately wanted to experience Xiang Yingxin's agony for themselves.
"Lin Xi, are you saying he's going to stop me from taking you away?"
Jin Peng shifted his gaze away from Ye Huan, locked his eyes back onto Lin Xi's face, and demanded.
"That's right!" Lin Xi nodded.
"Hahahaha..."
Jin Peng suddenly burst into booming laughter, rocking back and forth as he wheezed:
"Lin Xi, are you trying to kill me with laughter? You actually think some pretty boy can take on fifty of my brothers? Hahahaha..."
It wasn't just Jin Peng; virtually everyone in the bar thought Lin Xi was joking.
"Lin Xi, even my bodyguard wasn't a match for the men Jin Peng brought. Ye Huan is just a butcher—do you really think he's stronger than my bodyguard?" Su Lei couldn't help but chime in with a warning.
Lin Xi smiled without a word. When it came to brute force, she had absolute faith in Ye Huan.
"A butcher?"
Jin Peng blinked, sudden realization dawning on him:
"Word was that you registered a marriage with some butcher. Turns out it was this guy."
With that, he broke into another fit of roaring laughter:
"This is hilarious! Lin Xi, you actually thought a butcher could protect you? Hahahaha..."
At that moment, Ye Huan walked right up to Jin Peng and asked:
"Is it funny?"
Laughing so hard he had to clutch his stomach, Jin Peng gasped: "Funny! Hilariously funny!"
Slap!
Ye Huan lashed out, backhanding Jin Peng across the face, and asked:
"Do you still think it's funny?"
Lin Xi broke into a smile. Although she loathed Ye Huan to the core and harbored a deep hatred for him, she had to admit—the way Ye Huan beat people up was drop-dead gorgeous!
As for Su Lei and the others, their jaws hit the floor!
They couldn't believe their eyes. This butcher actually dared to slap Jin Peng across the face twice? Had he grown tired of living?
"You..."
Staring at Ye Huan in shock, Jin Peng raged:
"You—you dare hit me? Punk, do you have a death wish?"
Slap!
Ye Huan struck Jin Peng across the face a second time. This blow carried far more force than the previous one, sending Jin Peng spinning in place before he crashed headfirst onto the floor.
Planting his foot squarely on Jin Peng's head, Ye Huan asked:
"Do you still think it's funny now?"
*So cool...* Lin Xi's pretty face flushed red with excitement. Clenching her fists, she felt the blood surging through her entire body.
In stark contrast, Su Lei and the others looked at Ye Huan as though they were looking at a dead man. In their eyes, for Ye Huan to slap Jin Peng twice *and* step on his head meant that the moment Jin Peng gave the order, those fifty thugs would beat Ye Huan to death on the spot.
*Sigh, a butcher will always be a butcher—far too reckless!*
"You fucking bastard..."
Jin Peng's ears were ringing relentlessly, and his head was buzzing. When he tried to scramble back up after recovering his senses, his head was pinned firmly beneath Ye Huan's foot; no matter how hard he strained, he couldn't shake free.
The frustration pushed him to the absolute brink of explosion. He bellowed at the top of his lungs:
"What the fuck are you all standing around for?! Forget about me—kill this bastard! Kill him!"
The fifty thugs had already been rioting with righteous indignation. Receiving Jin Peng's command, they immediately surged toward Ye Huan with furious snarls.
"I'd like to see who dares take another step!"
With an air of supreme dominance, Ye Huan slammed his foot down hard onto Jin Peng's left arm. Accompanied by a scalp-tingling sound of snapping bone, Jin Peng's left arm was brutally crushed right beneath Ye Huan's heel.
"Aaaaaah..."
Jin Peng let out a blood-curdling shriek of agony—a sound so wretched it sounded sub-human!
"This..."
All fifty thugs froze in absolute terror, staring in horror at Jin Peng's violently twisted and deformed left arm before casting fearful glances at Ye Huan.
They had seen ruthless people before—hell, they considered themselves ruthless people—but they had never encountered anyone as vicious as Ye Huan.
Mid-conversation, without missing a beat, he had simply crushed Jin Peng's arm with a single stomp.
That was sheer brutality!
The expressions on Su Lei and the others were even more exaggerated than those of the thugs, and their psychological turbulence far outstripped the mob's.
They were pampered young masters and heiresses from wealthy households; when had they ever witnessed such a bloody and savage scene?
*He really is a butcher!*
*Too bloody!*
*Too brutal!*
Recalling how they had previously hurled abuse, humiliation, and mockery at Ye Huan, Su Lei and the rest were hit by a wave of lingering terror, and a few even broke out in cold sweat.
Lin Xi's expression, however, remained unchanged, a faint smile still playing on her lips. Watching Ye Huan crush Jin Peng's arm, she felt an overwhelming sense of vindictive catharsis.
"Screaming that loud—must hurt quite a bit, huh?"
Dropping his foot back down onto Jin Peng's head, Ye Huan said coldly.
"You..."
Gritting his teeth through the blinding agony, Jin Peng choked back his screams and roared:
"What are you useless pieces of shit just standing there for?! Never mind me—kill this bastard, kill him!"
Hearing that, the fifty thugs cast aside all remaining hesitation and charged at Ye Huan with renewed fury!
"You've got grit!"
Ye Huan offered Jin Peng an approving commentary before launching a powerful kick that sent Jin Peng flying across the room."