"Five."
"Four."
"Three."
"Two."
"One."
As Shen Fanyun counted down, Hong Danggui’s expression grew more and more strained. Her face looked as if she had just swallowed a dead mouse.
She struggled internally, uneasy and filled with indignation and resentnt. Why? Why could a re Shen Fanyun exert such unimaginable pressure on her? She was the esteed young lady of the Hong Family, always held high and mighty. In the past, everyone she t had bowed and scraped before her without exception. But now... have tis changed so much that she’s lost her intimidating presence? From their very first encounter to this, their second, Shen Fanyun had made her feel an imnse, frustrating gap between her status and her reality. It was agonizing! She was so unwilling to accept this!
She clenched her fists, trying to hold on, to show so backbone. But unfortunately, just as Shen Fanyun called out the last number, Hong Danggui finally broke. "I, I..."
But it was too late. Shen Fanyun’s eyes narrowed, and an invisible force swept Hong Danggui away, sending her crashing hard onto the floor in a cloud of dust.
Afterward, Shen Fanyun looked aningfully at Hong Tianzhao. With a grasping motion of his fingers from afar, an invisible force lifted the half-dead Hong Danggui from the ground.
In the blink of an eye, Hong Danggui appeared in Shen Fanyun’s grasp. He lifted her effortlessly, holding the prestigious young lady of the Hong Family suspended in mid-air.
"COUGH, COUGH." Hong Danggui’s mind was a complete ss as waves of overwhelming pain washed over her, whitening her face and causing blood to trickle from the corners of her mouth.
"Picking Flowers Pavilion," Shen Fanyun muttered. "Quite a poetic na."
"Over the years, you must have abducted quite a few innocent girls, Hong Danggui. Forced them to entertain strange n they didn’t even know?"
"I am rather curious," Shen Fanyun continued. "You’re a girl yourself. Why are you so heartless?"
"Did you really think Hangcheng City was so lawless land where you could do as you pleased, with no one to hold you accountable?"
Faced with Shen Fanyun’s questioning and accusations, Hong Danggui still refused to admit anything, even though she was already in his clutches.
"You... you are slandering the Hong Family, and you are slandering ! The Hong Family has always conducted itself with integrity, strictly abiding by the law and never engaging in illegal activities."
"Those... those girls, they were all completely willing!" Hong Danggui argued desperately, gasping for breath.
"Oh? Willing?" Shen Fanyun raised an eyebrow.
Hong Danggui gritted her teeth. "That’s right!"
"Willing?" Shen Fanyun repeated, his voice dangerously soft.
Hong Danggui’s confidence instantly deflated.
Hong Tianzhao watched his favorite niece, whom he normally doted on, being subjected to such treatnt. Moreover, it was obvious Shen Fanyun harbored killing intent. This had beco a fight to the death!
Hong Tianzhao could no longer restrain himself. He roared, his voice filled with fury and indignation, "You’ve gone too far!"
"You wanted the person, and I gave her to you. But now you’re preparing to wreak havoc on my Hong Family? What is the aning of this?"
"There are consequences for wrongdoing," Shen Fanyun replied. "It’s not as simple as you think, where returning the person settles the score!"
Hong Tianzhao knew he was in the wrong but had no energy to debate the point. "You greatly underestimate the Hong Family. I advise you to be rciful when you can."
"Besides, I have been active in the Capital City for years. The connections and networks I’ve built are not to be underestimated."
"I know I am no match for you at this stage... but if anything were to happen to , Hong Tianzhao, or to the Hong Family, my friends..."
This was his attempt to use his connections to make Shen Fanyun back down. Seeing what he perceived as a flicker of hesitation in Shen Fanyun’s expression, he was inwardly ecstatic. He imdiately played his trump card—a connection he considered a true titan.
"The Nine-patterned Dragon! You must have heard of him!" Hong Tianzhao stared intently at Shen Fanyun.
Shen Fanyun smirked. He had finally heard a familiar na.
The surrounding dignitaries and officials, however, paled at the na. A wave of shocked whispers spread through the crowd.
"Nine-patterned Dragon? Could he an that legendary figure from the Capital City, the one and only Shen Junhuan?"
"Mr. Hong actually knows the Nine-patterned Dragon?" soone gasped.
"Back in the day, he single-handedly crushed the ten great families! His power is so terrifying that the re ntion of his surna makes people’s faces drain of color!"
This was a legendary figure known throughout the nation, soone people frequently spoke of with reverence. His na alone, without him even being present, was enough to strike fear into people’s hearts.
"That’s right. We are on good terms with the Nine-patterned Dragon," Hong Tianzhao boasted. "We often drink and chat together. Our relationship is so good that if we ever found ourselves in trouble, he would step in for us with just a single word."
"Kid, you should stop while you’re ahead!" Xu Tai and Chen Lie chid in. "If this continues and we’re forced to ask the Nine-patterned Dragon to intervene, ten heads wouldn’t be enough for you to lose!"
They puffed out their chests with pride as they ntioned the Nine-patterned Dragon’s na, basking in the reflected glory. They spoke as if the Nine-patterned Dragon was their sworn brother, as if his worldwide fa ant that they, too, were renowned, their influence shaking the world.
"So, you know the Nine-patterned Dragon," Shen Fanyun remarked thoughtfully.
"He is the backer of our Hong Family," Hong Tianzhao declared, his head held high in arrogance. "Now you should understand just how unwise it is to provoke us!"
Shen Fanyun just said, "Oh," and nonchalantly pulled out his phone. He opened his contact list and held it out for Hong Tianzhao to see.
"This person?" Shen Fanyun asked, playing dumb.
"What is this?" Hong Tianzhao was confused. When his eyes focused on the screen, he froze completely. Regardless of whether it was real or fake, Shen Fanyun’s phone showed a contact for Shen Junhuan.
Hong Tianzhao, Xu Tai, and Chen Lie were utterly dumbfounded.
"Should we say hello?" Shen Fanyun offered with a aningful smile, which made the three of them freeze on the spot.
They were stunned. Could it be that Shen Fanyun also knew Shen Junhuan? The coincidence seed too great to be real.
"You need to understand sothing," Hong Tianzhao warned with a solemn expression. "Falsely claiming a connection to soone of his stature will bring you a fatal disaster. Don’t try to associate with such towering figures so casually. It will get you killed!"
In his heart, he refused to believe Shen Fanyun could possibly know the Nine-patterned Dragon. He conveniently forgot that a minor figure like himself would likely never even get the chance to et Shen Junhuan in his entire life.
"How troubleso," Shen Fanyun muttered. Then, right in front of Hong Tianzhao, he dialed Shen Junhuan’s number.
As the dial tone began to ring, it felt as though everyone’s heart had leaped into their throat. Hong Tianzhao’s eyes widened in disbelief, and his entire body began to tremble uncontrollably.
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