Chapter 9

Yuan Ying repeatedly refused Feng Juan’s request to return to Jin Yuanbao. Feng Zhuangzhuang had initially intended to threaten her, but then a strange silver-haired individual suddenly appeared and immediately expressed admiration for his exceptionally handsome face.

When faced with something utterly absurd, one tends to forget about picking fights. Feng Zhuangzhuang left with the words, I hope you won’t regret this, Boss Yuan,leaving her alone to deal with the peculiar newcomer.

In the tea room, the two silently stared at each other.

When Yuan Ying noticed Zhu Feng’s lips twitch slightly, she immediately became alert, ready to retort if he made any sarcastic remarks like If you knew this would happen, you shouldn’t have hired Feng Juan in the first place.

Zhu Feng: I’m hungry.

Yuan Ying: What do you… Huh?

Didn’t you say the guesthouse provides breakfast, Boss Yuan?Zhu Feng casually picked up a snack from the tea table, his tone relaxed as if he hadn’t been the one who silently turned away yesterday.

Yuan Ying could only feel exasperated by him.

Half an hour later, the remaining guests at Jin Yuanbao had all woken up, and Fang Qiqi arrived with today’s breakfast.

I checked the recent orders before coming. Business has been really good at Jin Yuanbao lately, with such large quantities of food needed every day,Fang Qiqi remarked curiously.

Yuan Ying told her the truth: Business is just average, but the guests have big appetites.

Fang Qiqi didn’t believe her: Come on, my breakfast portions are generous and filling. Even someone with a big appetite would only eat one or two servings, but you’ve been ordering enough for ten people recently.

Yuan Ying chuckled helplessly: It’s true.

The breakfast for ten people filled a large box. Just as she was about to carry it inside with Fang Qiqi, Shu Lin and Xiao Yu came running out.

We’ll handle it.

Just rest, Boss.

Yuan Ying initially wanted to refuse, but Fang Qiqi cheerfully pulled her back: You should give young people a chance to help.

Exactly, give us a chance,Shu Lin quickly added.

Yuan Ying smiled wryly and thanked him.

As the two carried the breakfast box toward the living room, Yuan Ying and Fang Qiqi stayed in the courtyard to chat.

Fang Qiqi: Have you talked yet?

Though her question was vague, Yuan Ying understood immediately and instinctively glanced toward the living room.

Zhu Feng was slouched on the sofa with poor posture, his long legs cramped uncomfortably, waiting for breakfast like a privileged guest.

He still hasn’t accepted my friend request,Yuan Ying whispered in explanation.

Fang Qiqi sighed in frustration: Why is it so hard to get you two to connect? I’ll remind him when I have time.

Never mind, let it happen naturally,Yuan Ying advised.

Fang Qiqi: How can that be? I went through so much trouble to pick someone suitable for you. I definitely need to—

Mid-sentence, she received a call from another guesthouse urging breakfast delivery and had to cut the conversation short, leaving on her tricycle.

What suitable person did she pick for you?

Zhu Feng’s voice sounded beside her ear, startling Yuan Ying: When did you come out?

Why so guilty?Zhu Feng wondered thoughtfully.

Yuan Ying forced herself to appear calm: Who’s guilty?

Zhu Feng narrowed his eyes and stared at her without a word.

Back when they were dating, whenever another man appeared around her, he would stare at her like this, then proceed to make a fuss.

Even though they were now broken up and he had no right to control her, being stared at by him still made Yuan Ying’s calves ache with a reflexive, cramp-like soreness.

After a long, silent stare-down, Zhu Feng reached out, pinched her cheek, and stretched it like pulling dough.

Yuan Ying was momentarily stunned by the tug, but by the time she gathered herself to retaliate, the person had already entered the house, leaving her alone to stew in frustration.

Feng Zhuangzhuang wasn’t one to let things go easily. He was bound to pull something else to pressure her into hiring Feng Juan. If Qiqi found out, she’d rush over to help without hesitation.

Not wanting to drag her friend into this, Yuan Ying was pondering how to keep it from her when Qiqi suddenly messaged, saying her father had started vomiting and having diarrhea after returning home, and she needed to go check on him.

Like Yuan Ying, Qiqi had also traveled from another city to do business in Jinlin Town. Her trip would take at least a week.

Yuan Ying went straight to see her, carefully inquired about her father’s condition, and after confirming it wasn’t serious, drove her to the bus station.

Ugh, just got back and now I have to leave again,Fang Qiqi sighed.

Yuan Ying said, Be safe on the road, and message me when you arrive.

You too. If anything happens, just send me a message,Fang Qiqi urged.

Yuan Ying smiled, What could possibly happen to me? Hurry along now.

Fang Qiqi nodded, picked up her suitcase, and left Jinlin Town once more.

After seeing Qiqi off, Yuan Ying went to Everything You Need and told Qiqi’s cousin about her run-in with Feng Zhuangzhuang.

The cousin, named Da Wu, had just graduated from vocational college this year and was rather indecisive. He panicked upon hearing the news: Wh-what should we do now?

Don’t worry, I can handle it. For now, stop delivering meals to us, and don’t tell Qiqi about this. She needs to focus on taking care of her dad and shouldn’t be worried about things here,Yuan Ying instructed.

Feng Zhuangzhuang was used to throwing his weight around. If he decided to retaliate against someone, he’d make sure everyone in the vicinity knew about it. Rather than letting Da Wu hear about it later and tell Qiqi, it was better to give him clear instructions upfront.

Da Wu frowned at her words, But…

No buts. Just do as I say,Yuan Ying said with a light smile.

Seeing her insistence, Da Wu had no choice but to nod in agreement.

After talking with Da Wu, Yuan Ying drove off.

She had only gone a few hundred meters when she spotted seven or eight men gathered outside Jin Yuanbao’s entrance, smoking. The previously clean street was now littered with cigarette butts.

Yuan Ying had anticipated this kind of situation. Calmly, she parked her car and walked toward the building, ignoring the leering, mocking stares from the men.

Someone whistled, and the group burst into raucous laughter. A bald-headed man, seeing her alone, made a move as if to sling an arm over her shoulder.

Yuan Ying immediately tried to dodge, but the next second, her back collided with a solid chest. Before she could react, the man’s fingers were caught in a tight grip.

Zhu Feng, who had appeared out of nowhere, let out a soft scoff. With one hand holding her arm steadily, he applied slight pressure to the other man’s fingers with his other hand, making him scream and drop to his knees.

The others immediately closed in menacingly. Zhu Feng glanced at them coolly and said leisurely, Don’t move recklessly. It wouldn’t be fun if someone’s fingers got broken.

You dare!one of them roared. Believe it or not, we’ll make you regret this!

Zhu Feng didn’t waste words on them and simply signaled to Yuan Ying, Call the police.

Yuan Ying immediately pulled out her phone and dialed the police.

Seeing she was serious, the others didn’t dare make a move. Zhu Feng released the man he was holding.

The police station was nearby, and officers arrived quickly.

Officer, is smoking a crime now? We weren’t even smoking on her property! Meanwhile, they assaulted us! You’ve got to stand up for us, Officer!

Yes, officer, look at my finger, it almost fractured.

These people were all sly old-timers pretending to be crazy or foolish. Simply smoking on the main road wasn’t enough to warrant punishment, so the police could only issue a warning before leaving.

Yuan Ying had anticipated this outcome. Under the provocative stares of the crowd, she calmly entered with Zhu Feng.

Bang, the door shut.

A Ye, Shu Lin, and Xiao Yu were all inside. A Ye was eating potato chips, while Shu Lin and Xiao Yu wore stern expressions, clearly having heard everything.

Yuan Ying turned to look at Zhu Feng.

Zhu Feng remained perfectly calm. I told them not to go out.

Not knowing what else to say, Yuan Ying simply nodded. Thank you.

The trash outside continued to howl and shout. Yuan Ying glanced at Xiao Yu.

Don’t look at me. Starting today, I’m staying here,Xiao Yu immediately declared her stance.

Yuan Ying, who had hoped to give her a few days off, had no choice but to abandon persuasion and retreated to the living room with her head down.

As soon as she left, Zhu Feng and Xiao Yu followed, leaving only the still-fuming Shu Lin and A Ye, who was focused on his potato chips.

Hey, aren’t you angry?Shu Lin glared at him.

Why should I be?A Ye glanced at him. Once it gets dark, we can just kill them all.

Shu Lin retorted, You can’t kill people randomly here! If you’re caught, the authorities have the right to judge you without the Dragon Realm’s permission. You could be sentenced to death.

That’s why I said we’d do it after dark, so we won’t be discovered,A Ye said dismissively.

Shu Lin was momentarily speechless, then found himself following the logic. What about the bodies after you kill them?

A Ye hadn’t considered that. After a moment’s thought, he asked, What if I transform back to my original form and eat the bodies?

There seemed to be quite a few people outside, and they smelled foul. He wasn’t keen on eating them, but with some effort, he could probably finish them in two meals.

Shu Lin: …

Well, now Shu Lin was too busy being horrified to stay angry, and he launched into a frantic attempt to educate A Ye on the law.

A Ye listened half-heartedly, clearly not taking any of it seriously. Shu Lin had no choice but to play his trump card: If you dare eat them, the King will definitely lock you back in the dungeon!

Hearing this, A Ye finally dropped the idea.

Seeing this, Shu Lin quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

The men outside never left. By evening, they suddenly started drinking and partying, howling and shouting so loudly that Jin Yuanbao couldn’t rest.

Yuan Ying ignored them, Xiao Yu didn’t dare intervene, and Shu Lin and A Ye were forbidden by Zhu Feng from getting involved. So the troublemakers grew even wilder, as if by prior agreement: one group was responsible for the first half of the night, another for the second half, and by daybreak, they all gathered at the door smoking again.

Everything You Need wasn’t delivering breakfast anymore, so Yuan Ying had to cook herself. With insufficient ingredients in the guesthouse, she prepared to go out and buy some, but Zhu Feng blocked her path.

What?Yuan Ying took a step back, wary of him suddenly hugging her.

Zhu Feng braced one foot against the doorframe, preventing her from leaving. Write a list for Shu Lin. He and A Ye will go.

No need, I’ll go myself,Yuan Ying refused.

But Zhu Feng didn’t budge. Either they go, or I’ll go out first and eliminate all those idiots outside.

Yuan Ying: …

You don’t believe me?Zhu Feng chuckled lightly.

Of course, Yuan Ying believed him.

To her, Zhu Feng’s two most defining traits were being omnipotent and being an outlaw.

Yes, officer, look at my finger, it almost fractured.

These people were all sly old-timers pretending to be crazy or foolish. Simply smoking on the main road wasn’t enough to warrant punishment, so the police could only issue a warning before leaving.

Yuan Ying had anticipated this outcome. Under the provocative stares of the crowd, she calmly entered with Zhu Feng.

Bang, the door shut.

A Ye, Shu Lin, and Xiao Yu were all inside. A Ye was eating potato chips, while Shu Lin and Xiao Yu wore stern expressions, clearly having heard everything.

Yuan Ying turned to look at Zhu Feng.

Zhu Feng remained perfectly calm. I told them not to go out.

Not knowing what else to say, Yuan Ying simply nodded. Thank you.

The trash outside continued to howl and shout. Yuan Ying glanced at Xiao Yu.

Don’t look at me. Starting today, I’m staying here,Xiao Yu immediately declared her stance.

Yuan Ying, who had hoped to give her a few days off, had no choice but to abandon persuasion and retreated to the living room with her head down.

As soon as she left, Zhu Feng and Xiao Yu followed, leaving only the still-fuming Shu Lin and A Ye, who was focused on his potato chips.

Hey, aren’t you angry?Shu Lin glared at him.

Why should I be?A Ye glanced at him. Once it gets dark, we can just kill them all.

Shu Lin retorted, You can’t kill people randomly here! If you’re caught, the authorities have the right to judge you without the Dragon Realm’s permission. You could be sentenced to death.

That’s why I said we’d do it after dark, so we won’t be discovered,A Ye said dismissively.

Shu Lin was momentarily speechless, then found himself following the logic. What about the bodies after you kill them?

A Ye hadn’t considered that. After a moment’s thought, he asked, What if I transform back to my original form and eat the bodies?

There seemed to be quite a few people outside, and they smelled foul. He wasn’t keen on eating them, but with some effort, he could probably finish them in two meals.

Shu Lin: …

Well, now Shu Lin was too busy being horrified to stay angry, and he launched into a frantic attempt to educate A Ye on the law.

A Ye listened half-heartedly, clearly not taking any of it seriously. Shu Lin had no choice but to play his trump card: If you dare eat them, the King will definitely lock you back in the dungeon!

Hearing this, A Ye finally dropped the idea.

Seeing this, Shu Lin quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

The men outside never left. By evening, they suddenly started drinking and partying, howling and shouting so loudly that Jin Yuanbao couldn’t rest.

Yuan Ying ignored them, Xiao Yu didn’t dare intervene, and Shu Lin and A Ye were forbidden by Zhu Feng from getting involved. So the troublemakers grew even wilder, as if by prior agreement: one group was responsible for the first half of the night, another for the second half, and by daybreak, they all gathered at the door smoking again.

Everything You Need wasn’t delivering breakfast anymore, so Yuan Ying had to cook herself. With insufficient ingredients in the guesthouse, she prepared to go out and buy some, but Zhu Feng blocked her path.

What?Yuan Ying took a step back, wary of him suddenly hugging her.

Zhu Feng braced one foot against the doorframe, preventing her from leaving. Write a list for Shu Lin. He and A Ye will go.

No need, I’ll go myself,Yuan Ying refused.

But Zhu Feng didn’t budge. Either they go, or I’ll go out first and eliminate all those idiots outside.

Yuan Ying: …

You don’t believe me?Zhu Feng chuckled lightly.

Of course, Yuan Ying believed him.

To her, Zhu Feng’s two most defining traits were being omnipotent and being an outlaw.

I remember not long after they first met, when her boss was forcing her to drink, he pushed the door open and walked in, pressed the man’s face into a beer barrel, nearly drowning him on the spot.

If that boss hadn’t wanted anyone to know about the incident, he’d probably still be sitting in jail right now.

Who knows how he developed such a lawless personality in a society governed by law.

Afraid he might cause trouble, Yuan Ying had to make a shopping list for Shu Lin and A Ye. Fortunately, one was clever and the other strong, so they managed to buy all the groceries without any issues.

The hooligans squatting at the entrance, who had been waiting to cause trouble when Jin Yuanbao’s people came out, immediately stood up and then squatted back down upon seeing the two-meter-tall, fierce-looking A Ye.

With ample supplies, Yuan Ying settled into life at Jin Yuanbao with three tenants and one employee.

Those people outside continued to make a racket, occasionally revving motorcycle engines loudly in the middle of the night, creating tremendous noise.

Yuan Ying called the police twice more. Each time the police arrived, the troublemakers would drop their arrogant act, just sitting on the curb smoking, only to resume their disturbances after the police left.

After several consecutive days of this, Feng Zhuangzhuang called.

Yuan Ying waved to Xiao Yu, who was mopping the floor and didn’t see her. Instead, Zhu Feng came over and directly handed her the phone with recording enabled.

Yuan Ying glanced at him and silently took it.

Boss Yuan, are you alright?Feng Zhuangzhuang’s hypocritical voice came through the receiver. I’ve heard about what’s been happening at Jin Yuanbao recently. I deeply sympathize.

Yuan Ying: The bald guy leading the disturbances looks quite similar to you. He wouldn’t happen to be Aunt Feng’s son, would he?

That’s my cousin. He heard my aunt lost her job and insisted on making trouble. Nothing I say gets through to him,Feng Zhuangzhuang sighed. He’s very filial, so who knows how long this will last? If I may suggest, Boss Yuan, if it becomes too much, why not just let my aunt return? I’m sure she’ll work hard for you.

Yuan Ying: Feng Zhuangzhuang.

Hmm?

Yuan Ying said calmly: Fuck your entire family.

Feng Zhuangzhuang on the other end was stunned, but before he could react, Yuan Ying directly hung up.

She stopped the recording and returned the phone to Zhu Feng.

Please send it to me,she said.

Zhu Feng: Sure, add me on WeChat first.

Yuan Ying paused, about to say something, when Zhu Feng added: Other methods aren’t acceptable.

Yuan Ying rolled her eyes at him but eventually added him on WeChat.

Zhu Feng looked at the new contact in his phone, smiled, pinned the chat to the top, and sent her the edited recording.

Well, mainly he’d removed her fuck your entire familycomment.

This time, you’ve thoroughly offended him,Zhu Feng said.

Yuan Ying looked toward the closed door: That’s exactly what needed to happen.

Next time, curse using different words,Zhu Feng lounged leisurely on the sofa, his chest muscles faintly visible through his partially unbuttoned shirt. Although I know you didn’t mean it that way, I’d prefer such… rewards to be reserved for me alone.

Yuan Ying rolled her eyes at him.

That night, the group outside began shouting obscenities and banging on the door. Xiao Yu, feeling scared, went up to the third floor to sleep with Yuan Ying, who smiled and patted her head.

Just endure a little longer. Everything will be over soon,she comforted.

Xiao Yu widened her eyes: Really?

Yes, really.Yuan Ying nodded.

The banging on the door was deafening. Zhu Feng sat leaning against the bay window, idly playing with a fruit knife. A Ye was sleeping soundly and deeply, while Shu Lin tossed and turned irritably before finally pulling the blanket over his head.

Two hours later, Yuan Ying went outside.

The rest of the Jin Yuanbao group followed her, even the sleeping A Ye was awakened by Shu Lin.

The people outside saw them and provocatively flipped them off.

Yuan Ying inspected the door, then turned to look at them: You broke my door.

The ringleader, Bald Head, sneered: Just because you say we broke it doesn’t mean we did. I could say you broke it yourselves to frame us.

Yeah, yeah, what evidence do you have?the others immediately chimed in.

Yuan Ying smiled gently: There’s a camera on the door that should have recorded everything.

The troublemakers hadn’t expected her to have this backup plan, and their faces immediately turned ugly. Bald Head stared grimly at Yuan Ying, seemingly weighing whether she was telling the truth.

Yuan Ying pressed a hidden switch on the door, exposing the camera to everyone’s view. Bald Head immediately tried to rush forward to destroy it.

Yuan Ying saw through his intention and reminded him: It’s an internet-connected surveillance system. Destroying the camera won’t help – the evidence is already saved online.

Bald Head arrogantly shouted: Go ahead and call the police if you dare! At most I’ll get ten days detention. Just wait until I get out, we’ll see what happens then.

Yuan Ying gently reminded him: If I call the police, you probably won’t be getting out. My door is a high-end custom product from a major brand, worth over thirty thousand yuan. Under criminal law, that counts as a large amount. The surveillance footage from this period, plus the recorded phone calls from your cousin Feng Zhuangzhuang and previous police reports, can prove you maliciously destroyed others’ property. You’ll likely be sentenced to three to ten years. If you have prior convictions, or if this case is classified as organized crime, you could get even longer. You can consult a lawyer if you don’t believe me.

She patiently educated them about the law in her soft voice. Bald Head gradually realized the seriousness of the situation, while the other troublemakers grew increasingly anxious.

…What do you want?Bald Head asked, trying to maintain composure.

Yuan Ying felt she had been quite clear, but he still seemed not to understand, so she spoke even more patiently and gently: I want you to go to prison. I want you to stay in prison until you die.

Bald Head: …

Shu Lin quietly moved closer to Zhu Feng: The Queen… is kind of impressive. I used to think she had a very gentle temperament.

She’s not gentle-tempered, she just dislikes trouble, so she lets things slide when possible. But if trouble insists on finding her, she won’t let others bully her,Zhu Feng crossed his arms, leaning casually against the wall. I told you before not to underestimate her.