Chapter 169: I'm so anxious! The Villain's Next Move
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Xu Ping'an slapped himself more than a dozen times, his originally handsome face now swollen like a pig's liver. The sound of flesh striking flesh echoed in the quiet living room, a rhythmic penance for sins he barely understood.
He still felt it wasn't enough to atone!
Xu Ping'an knelt straight on the ground, the cold hardness of the floor seeping into his knees, gritting his teeth and saying loud enough for the person inside to hear:
"Mom, please trust me one more time."
"Your son, Xu Ping'an, promises that he will become better, not make you worry, and be worthy of your painstaking efforts! I will prove that I am not trash!"
After a long, long time, Xu Ping'an still didn't hear a reply. The silence from the bedroom was deafening. He assumed she was crying, too disappointed to speak. So, he got up in disappointment, wiping the corner of his mouth where a trickle of blood had formed, secretly vowing in his heart:
'Mom, don't worry, I, Xu Ping'an, will definitely make something of myself. I will show Shen Anyu, Su Hongmian, and those arrogant guys, and the Shanghai Xu Family, that I am stronger than all of them! I will make them regret looking down on us!'
...
[Location: Wang Qin's Bedroom - Inside]
The atmosphere inside the bedroom was heavy, thick with the scent of pheromones and the lingering tension of a taboo crossed.
Wang Qin leaned against the door, her legs trembling so violently she could barely stand. Her chest heaved, her floral dress slightly disheveled, and her face was flushed with a complex mixture of shame, fear, and lingering arousal. She listened to her son's footsteps retreating into the living room, the sound of him dragging his feet heavy with dejection.
She looked at Shen Anyu, who stood in the center of the small room, adjusting his cufflinks with the calmness of a predator who had just finished a meal. He looked pristine, untouched by the chaos he had orchestrated.
She looked outside the door with a complex expression—guilt eating her alive—then turned her gaze to Shen Anyu, pleading with wet, red-rimmed eyes:
"Young Master Shen... please leave. I beg you. If Ping'an sees you here... like this... I won't be able to live. I will die of shame."
Her voice was a hoarse whisper, cracked with desperation. She was terrified. If Xu Ping'an opened that door now, her world would end.
Shen Anyu looked at her. He saw the terror, the vulnerability, and the submission. It was a beautiful look on her. He stepped closer, and she flinched, but he only reached out to gently smooth a stray lock of hair behind her ear.
"No problem, I can be understanding."
Shen Anyu said something that made Wang Qin relieved, a joyful, almost worshipful expression appearing on her face. She felt as if she had been granted a pardon by the Emperor.
However, this wasn't because Shen Anyu was kind-hearted. A Villain does not have mercy; he only has priorities.
It was because his phone had buzzed silently in his pocket a moment ago. A message from Su Hongmian.
[Hongmian: An'yu... come quickly. I... I feel strange. Help me.]
Through the [Nanometer Monitoring Robot] he had secretly deployed around his key heroines, Shen Anyu also sensed that Su Hongmian on the other side was indeed anxious. Her vitals were fluctuating—heart rate elevated, body temperature rising. It was a matter of utmost urgency that couldn't be delayed.
Compared to the conquered Wang Qin, the proud and tsundere fiancée Su Hongmian was currently the higher-value target.
As for letting Xu Ping'an know about his and Wang Qin's affair? There was no rush for now. Revealing it now would only cause a chaotic explosion. Shen Anyu preferred a controlled demolition.
He opened the window effortlessly. With his cultivation at the peak of the Innate Realm, jumping from this height was as easy as stepping off a curb.
Before he left, he turned back and gave Wang Qin a final, meaningful look. A look that said, 'You are mine. Remember that.'
Then, he vanished into the night like a ghost.
Wang Qin slumped to the floor, covering her face and weeping silently, her body racking with sobs of relief and self-loathing.
...
[Location: Shen Anyu's Car - Driving through Shanghai]
The night wind rushed past the sleek black sedan as Shen Anyu navigated the neon-lit streets of Shanghai. The city was alive, but inside the car, the atmosphere was cold and calculating.
A playful arc curved at the corner of Shen Anyu's mouth as he tapped the steering wheel rhythmically.
"The fatal blow must be saved for last, after I've taken down Xu Ruoshui and Xu Ruoxue!"
His mind was already weaving the next web. Wang Qin was the root, but the branches—the sisters—were equally important for destroying the protagonist's support system completely.
Tomorrow, Shen Anyu decided to go find Xu Ruoshui.
As for the reason, it was simple. He had the perfect excuse now.
He rehearsed the lines in his mind, his expression shifting into a mask of concern and righteousness:
"General Manager Xu, I apologize for disturbing you. But there is something regarding your younger brother, Xu Ping'an, that I think you should know. He was arrested and detained for fighting and injuring someone. The situation was grave... but don't worry, I helped get him out..."
Shen Anyu's lips curved upwards. This strategy was a double-edged sword, perfect for a villain.
On one hand, it would suppress Xu Ping'an's standing in Xu Ruoshui's heart. Xu Ruoshui valued stability and decency. Knowing her brother was acting like a violent thug would disappoint her deeply.
On the other hand, it would gain Xu Ruoshui's favor. Shen Anyu, the "outsider," went out of his way to save her disgraceful brother without asking for anything. This would paint him as a magnanimous, reliable, and caring man.
Although Xu Ping'an had been expelled by the Shanghai Xu Family after his identity as a fake young master was exposed—coupled with the true young master Xu River's fall off a cliff and presumed death—even Xu Ruoshui hadn't said anything at the time to stop the expulsion.
But Shen Anyu knew the human heart. He knew that the kind-hearted and gentle Xu Ruoshui still cared about Xu Ping'an, her former brother whom she had raised for twenty years. Emotions don't vanish overnight.
If Xu Ruoshui knew that Xu Ping'an was arrested and imprisoned for fighting and injuring someone, she would undoubtedly be disappointed, heartbroken, and anxious. And in that vulnerability, she would feel grateful and fond of Shen Anyu for being the savior.
Of course, blood is thicker than water, so Shen Anyu wouldn't say anything bad directly. He wouldn't badmouth Xu Ping'an. Everything would be subtle. He would act like a concerned friend, sighing about how "lost" Xu Ping'an seemed, forcing Xu Ruoshui to draw her own negative conclusions.
Strategy: Kill with a borrowed knife. Destroy the relationship while appearing to try and mend it.
Xu Ping'an originally thought that with the [Damage Reflection Aura], he could rise by fighting in underground boxing. He dreamed of achieving financial freedom, becoming a king of the underworld, and even turning the tables on Shen Anyu, making Su Hongmian and Jiang Linlin look at him with new eyes.
But Shen Anyu simply reported him to the police, sending him to jail before his career even started.
And he even used this incident to win over Xu Ping'an's birth mother, Wang Qin (body and soul), and was about to win over his eldest sister, Xu Ruoshui (gratitude and trust).
If Xu Ping'an were to know all this in the future, how much regret would he feel? How much despair? How much [Destiny Value] would be plundered from him when he realizes his "savior" was actually stealing his entire world?
A playful smile curved at the corner of Shen Anyu's mouth, filled with anticipation. The harvest was just beginning.
...
[Location: Wang Qin's Apartment - Living Room]
Meanwhile, oblivious to the schemes targeting his entire existence, Xu Ping'an sat on the worn-out sofa.
He was clutching a zitan wood Guanyin pendant in his hand, a look of deep complexity in his eyes. The wood was smooth, warm from his grip, darkened by years of handling.
He had been preparing to tidy up the mess in the living room and go to sleep.
But then, while emptying his pockets, he found this zitan wood Guanyin pendant. It was a coming-of-age gift from his eldest sister, Xu Ruoshui, given to him on his 18th birthday.
He remembered that day vividly. The grand party, the lights, the cheers. Xu Ruoshui had smiled gently, placing this around his neck, telling him it would protect him from harm.
Xu Ping'an had always cherished it and kept it with him, even when everything else was taken.
"Heh heh... I didn't expect that after being kicked out of the Xu Family, with nothing left, and even my bank cards and credit cards frozen, I actually brought this out…"
Xu Ping'an clutching the zitan wood Guanyin pendant tightly, his knuckles turning white. His eyes were filled with a chaotic storm of emotions: anger, resentment, hurt, confusion, and unwillingness.
He didn't understand. Was blood relation really that important? Was twenty years of memories worth less than a DNA test?
His eldest sister, Xu Ruoshui, who had always been gentle as water and kind, the woman he admired most, had not pleaded for him at all when he was ruthlessly driven out of the Xu Family. She stood by their parents, silent as a statue.
This made Xu Ping'an feel deeply hurt. The betrayal cut deeper than any knife.
And now, looking at this pendant, he didn't feel warmth. He felt mockery.
"She probably forgot she even gave this to me," he muttered bitterly. "They probably erased me from their family photos already."
He desperately wanted to retaliate. He wanted to make them lose face. He wanted to tear down their high-and-mighty facade.
"Hmph, I will prove myself! Xu Ruoshui, Xu Family... I will prove myself! I will be even more successful and richer than you. I have the System! I am the Chosen One!"
"By then, you will have to bow down to me, apologize, and admit your mistakes! You will beg me to return to the family registry, and I will spit in your faces!"
"And Shen Anyu, Su Hongmian, Jiang Linlin… all of you who looked down on me and hurt me, I will slap each and every one of you back, and let you know how formidable I am!"
He gripped the pendant so hard it almost cracked, his eyes burning with a delusional, self-righteous fire.
...
[Location: Su Family Villa - Modu District]
Soon, Shen Anyu drove his car into the exclusive district where Su Hongmian's family resided. The transition from the slums where Wang Qin lived to this area was stark. Here, the air smelled of manicured lawns and money.
It was already past ten in the evening, but the lights in the Su Villa were still brightly lit, casting long shadows across the immaculate garden.
Shen Anyu parked the car and walked to the entrance. The door opened before he could even ring the bell.
"An'yu, you're finally here, I was so worried…"
A woman's voice, thick with anxiety, greeted him.
Su Wanqing, Su Hongmian's nominal widowed mother and actual adoptive mother, was still awake and fully dressed. Seeing Shen Anyu arrive, she quickly walked towards him, clearly relieved.
Shen Anyu looked up and saw Su Wanqing.
She was a woman of breathtaking maturity. Even in her distress, she maintained an air of elegance. She wore a silk home dress that draped over her full, curvaceous figure, hinting at the mature, ripe body beneath. She was still wearing her signature gold-rimmed glasses, which added a touch of intellectual sharpness to her beauty.
Between her delicate brows and eyes, there was the domineering aura of a businesswoman who ran an empire, as well as the myriad charms of a mature woman who had seen the world.
But at this moment, that domineering aura was cracked. Su Wanqing had an urgent matter on her mind, and her delicate brows and eyes showed a hint of fatigue and anxiety that made her look vulnerable—a look that would trigger a man's protective (and predatory) instincts.
"Auntie, what's wrong?"
Shen Anyu asked, feigning ignorance, his voice calm and steady—a pillar of strength for the frantic woman.
Su Wanqing didn't stand on ceremony. She reached out and pulled Shen Anyu's arm, her soft hands gripping his bicep tightly, pressing slightly against him in her haste. She walked him towards Su Hongmian's room, saying anxiously:
"Hongmian is in trouble... something is wrong with her body. Quickly come and see, she wouldn't let anyone else in, she said you can help her."
"She kept calling your name... An'yu, please."
"Mm, don't worry, Auntie. Now that I'm here, Mianmian will be fine."
Shen Anyu smiled and patted her hand on his arm, comforting Su Wanqing with a gentle, reassuring tone. His confidence seemed to infect her, and her shoulders relaxed slightly.
Then, he stepped past her into the corridor leading to Su Hongmian's room.
Su Wanqing watched his broad back, feeling a sudden surge of gratitude. 'Thank goodness for An'yu,' she thought. 'He is so reliable.'
She clasped her hands over her heart, feeling its rapid beat, and silently prayed:
"Mianmian, you must be alright…"
"If I had known this, I should have told you those things earlier… about your condition, about our family's secret…"
Su Wanqing's heart was filled with self-reproach and guilt. She bit her lip, her eyes misty behind the gold-rimmed glasses.
...
[Location: Su Hongmian's Bedroom]
Shen Anyu stepped into Su Hongmian's room.
The room was usually filled with the scent of expensive perfume and the aura of a proud queen. But tonight, the air was hot and stifling.
He gazed intently at the bed.
At this moment, Su Hongmian, this arrogant young lady, the CEO who usually looked down on everyone with her chin held high, no longer had her usual lively and domineering demeanor.
She lay curled up on the large bed, tangled in the sheets. Her delicate and beautiful face was pale, covered in a sheen of cold sweat. Her breath was faint, coming in short, shallow gasps, and her breathing was weak. Her brows were furrowed in pain, and her hands were clutching the sheets tightly, her knuckles white.
She looked fragile. Like a porcelain doll that had fallen and cracked.
Shen Anyu took one look. His eyes narrowed slightly as he activated his medical knowledge.
With his [Divine Medical Skill], inherited from the fallen protagonist Xia Liu, he knew instantly what was happening…
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