Volume 1, Chapter 32: Si Yan’s Way of Hosting Guests

Zhang Yue, Chen Jing, and Li Hanyan were bound to the pillars in the front courtyard of the ancient manor with coarse hemp ropes, surrounded by mercenaries holding guns.

Si Yan’s car slowly pulled into the manor gates. Once it came to a steady stop, he stepped out first, then bent down to lift Su Yu out. Before he could let her go, Su Yu jumped down and turned to run toward Li Hanyan and the others.

“Su Yu!”

Si Yan’s voice turned icy in an instant. He reached out and gripped her wrist tightly, his tone filled with threats and his eyes brimming with dangerous, freezing cold, “If you dare to run over there, don’t even think about any of those three leaving here alive today!”

“You know I mean what I say.”

The man’s fingers tightened, his tone leaving no room for negotiation, cold as ice.

“Please, let them go.”

Su Yu’s eyes welled with moisture, tears trembling on her lashes. She reached out to grab Si Yan’s arm, her voice laced with pleading, “Si Yan, let them go… I beg you.”

“Impossible!”

Si Yan refused coldly without a second thought, quickly turning his face away, not daring to look at her tear-filled eyes, which were so full of grievance they were about to overflow. He was afraid that if he looked for even a second longer, he would lose his resolve and compromise.

“They haven’t done anything wrong!”

Su Yu’s voice rose sharply, filled with uncontrollable breakdown, “Why did you capture them? Just because they wanted to take me away?”

“Si Yan!”

She finally could not help but scream, hot tears rolling down her cheeks, hitting the ground with a soft “plop” as they shattered into tiny splashes.

“What are you crying for!”

“Can’t I keep them here to drink at our wedding?”

Si Yan’s face was gloomy. He hooked a finger under Su Yu’s tear-stained chin and wiped away her tears.

Damn it! He clearly hadn’t been looking at her, so why had his heart softened?

Si Yan’s gaze swept over the three people tied to the pillars, his brows furrowed slightly as he spoke coldly: “Where is the other one?”

Huang Yu understood immediately and signaled with his hand. Before long, two mercenaries brought Zhou Wenwen over, his hands bound behind his back. Zhou Wenwen had abrasions on his face and his clothes were crumpled; clearly, he had been beaten when he resisted during his capture.

“Brother Zhou…” When Su Yu saw who it was, her heart sank, and her feet moved forward involuntarily.

Si Yan suddenly scooped her up horizontally and strode toward them, his tone filled with mockery: “Do you think I wouldn’t know there were a few rats sneaking around outside my house?”

He looked down at the struggling Su Yu in his arms, then raised his eyes to look at the captured Zhou Wenwen, his gaze as cold as tempered ice.

***

Chen Jing, tied to the pillar, watched Su Yu in Si Yan’s arms. Recalling Li Hanyan’s sacrifices, he felt a surge of indignation for his friend and shouted at the top of his lungs, “Little sister-in-law, the promise you made to Brother Hanyan still stands…”

“Bang!”

Before he could finish, Si Yan suddenly released one of the hands holding Su Yu, clenched his fist, and slammed it hard into Chen Jing’s face.

His eyes were filled with violence as he roared, “Damn it! She is my wife, Si Yan’s wife! Not some 'little sister-in-law' of yours!”

Chen Jing’s head whipped to the side from the force of the blow, blood instantly spilling from the corner of his mouth. The strike was powerful; had they not been soldiers with a solid foundation, they likely would have passed out on the spot.

“Si Yan!”

Terrified, Su Yu hurriedly grabbed his arm, her fingertips turning white from the pressure, her voice filled with entreaty, “I beg you, stop hitting them, please let them go!”

“I already said, I’m keeping them for the wedding.”

Si Yan shook off her hand, his tone devoid of warmth, though his eyes remained locked on the bloodied Chen Jing with a warning, murderous glare. He wrapped his arms around Su Yu’s waist again, locking her firmly against him, and leaned down to whisper cruelly in her ear where only she could hear: “Once you obediently marry me and become my legitimate wife, I will ‘send’ them back—as for whether they return in one piece, that depends on how well-behaved you are.”

The man whispered into her ear, “If you aren’t obedient, darling, I’ll turn them all into human-skin lanterns and hang them in the room so they can watch us make love!”

Su Yu trembled from head to toe at the cruelty in his words. She knew Si Yan’s nature all too well; if he said it, he would absolutely do it. She loosened her grip on his lapels, her voice sounding choked with tears as she neared compromise: “Fine, I’ll be obedient…”

“I promise to marry you, but I have conditions…”

“Speak!”

Su Yu sniffled and hurriedly added, her eyes filled with entreaty: “You cannot hit them.”

“Don’t worry.” Si Yan raised a hand to wipe the tears from her cheeks, his tone carrying a trace of coaxing tenderness, “Your husband never hits people.”

Liar! Su Yu thought to herself—she had seen clearly just now the brutality with which he had hit Chen Jing.

Liar! How did she end up provoking someone like this?

She dared not call him out, so she bit her lip and added, “And you can’t let anyone else hit them either!”

Si Yan stared at her red-rimmed eyes for a few seconds, gently pinched her chin, and gave a faint “Hmm,” effectively agreeing.

“You can’t let them go hungry.” Su Yu feared he might go back on his word, so she added quickly, her eyes fixed intently on him.

***

“Hmm.” Si Yan gave the same faint response, though his fingertips were unconsciously stroking the side of her waist.

“And you can’t let them sleep in the dungeon! It’s cold and damp, and they’re already injured…”

Su Yu grew more anxious as she spoke, terrified of forgetting something.

“Hmm.” The man responded with forced patience, though his brows had already begun to knit together.

“Also, you can’t…” Su Yu was still counting off her list on her fingers.

“Enough!”

Si Yan suddenly gripped her cheeks, his tone laced with suppressed jealousy as his eyes darkened, “Darling, what else do you want me to do to serve them? You’ve never been this attentive toward me.”

Ungrateful thing!

He was only “inviting” them for a short stay, yet she acted as if he were going to abuse them. She was fussing like a wet nurse, insisting on clarifying every little detail. And she didn’t want them in the dungeon—where else were they supposed to go? To their own beds?

Su Yu was startled by his sudden shout, but she quickly gathered her courage and looked up with tear-reddened eyes to retort: “You’re the one who said you were inviting them to drink at the wedding!”

“What kind of wedding invitation involves tying people up and throwing them in a dungeon?”

She tightened her grip on the hem of his clothes, her voice full of defiant stubbornness: “Where is your hospitality?”

“Even for guests, this isn't how you treat people!”

After saying this, she lowered her eyes, feeling a lack of conviction—the man before her was a rogue who didn’t care for logic. No matter how much she argued, she could never fight his decisions; she could only pin her hopes on this shred of “hospitality” to make him treat Zhang Yue and the others a little better.

“Pah! We don’t want to drink any of your wedding wine!”

Chen Jing spat, the blood at the corner of his mouth still wet. His eyes were filled with disdain as he glared at the two figures embracing before him.

“Hanyan was blind. Coming to save you was a mistake!”

His heart burned with injustice for Li Hanyan. Hanyan had risked his life for Su Yu, even ending up covered in wounds. This sense of grievance and anger welled up in his chest, making him unable to stop himself from roaring at Si Yan: “Kill us or butcher us as you please, don’t disgust us with this wedding wine nonsense.”

“We aren’t giving you a gift!”