Chapter 1 Being Set Up

On a summer night, as dusk fell and the lights began to shine.

In the open booth on the first floor of the “Midi” club, Jiang Wansheng held a glass of fruit wine in her hand, sitting aside watching the members of the reading club joking and drinking enthusiastically.

The reading club is a student-initiated organization at Fuhua University for exchanging reading interests. She joined it as soon as she entered the university until her junior year.

Today was a routine celebration after a successful on-campus reading salon event. Originally planned at a nearby private restaurant, it was moved to this exclusive members-only high-end club because of a wealthy young man in the club, Zheng Wen.

She was not good at socializing and usually did not participate in these drinking games. If it weren’t for the club president pulling her along, she wouldn’t have come to this gathering.

After watching for a while and finding it uninteresting, she bid farewell to everyone and walked towards the bar.

The rest of the group was playing the King’s Game, lively and especially with Zheng Wen being very open-minded, saying and doing whatever he wanted.

Seeing Jiang Wansheng leave, a few bold members teased, “Senior, Senior Sister has gone over, it’s a great opportunity, you should seize it.”

Everyone knew that Zheng Wen liked Jiang Wansheng, and the purpose of setting up this scene today was to confess to her.

With these words, everyone started to cheer.

Amidst the teasing voices, Zheng Wen took a sip of wine before speaking, “You guys are all here, Senior Sister is not easy to pursue, she might not necessarily agree to me.”

Although he said so, there was a hint of arrogance in his eyes.

The president of the reading club, Wen Qing, nudged his arm, “You’ve brought her here, don’t hesitate, go for it.”

Zheng Wen smiled and got up, walking towards the bar.

Jiang Wansheng was wearing a light green floral dress with a narrow collar and bubble sleeves, her black hair cascading down like a waterfall. She sat quietly at the bar, the light shining down on her, her fair skin seeming to glow.

Amidst the colorful lights and revelry, she remained pure and elegant, a beauty that could captivate anyone.

Zheng Wen’s throat tightened, and he sat down next to her, glancing at the wine in her hand, “Do you like fruit wine? I know a few good ones, would you like to try them?”

Jiang Wansheng was lost in thought and only returned to reality when someone sat beside her. She replied calmly, “No, this glass is enough for me.”

Zheng Wen, feeling a bit rebuffed, didn’t give up, “Is this glass really good? I haven’t tried it yet.” He looked interested, leaning towards her, “Let me have a look, I’ll order it for you next time.”

Jiang Wansheng retreated defensively, “I just randomly picked this.”

Zheng Wen froze, his smile faltering a bit, then he straightened up, “Jiang Wansheng, we’re all part of the same club, there’s no need to be so cold.”

She furrowed her brows slightly, not understanding why this response was considered cold, “I did just pick randomly, I don’t know much about wines.”

“You know I’m not asking about the wine.” Zheng Wen raised his voice, reaching out to grab her wrist with a strong grip.

Taking a deep breath, he continued, “Can’t you see that I like you? I joined this reading club to pursue you, spent so much money organizing reading salons, and brought everyone to ‘Midi’ just to make you happy, can’t you see that?”

Jiang Wansheng’s right hand was held firmly, and after a few attempts to shake it off, her tone turned cold, “Let go of me.”

“If I let go, won’t you run away?” Feeling the smoothness of her skin, Zheng Wen didn’t want to let go. Having drunk quite a bit, he was now emboldened, “Jiang Wansheng, why are you so hard to pursue? Why act so aloof when faced with something good? I’ve investigated you, your family background isn’t good, your parents don’t care for you, why not agree to me? I don’t believe you can’t feel my kindness towards you.”

Jiang Wansheng looked at him sharply, a chill in her beautiful eyes, “You investigated me?”

Caught off guard, Zheng Wen cleared his throat, “What’s wrong with that? I need to check out my future girlfriend, right?”

She repeated in a cold voice, “Zheng Wen, let go of my hand. I don’t like you, I won’t agree to you, and I ask you to learn to respect others!”

After Jiang Wansheng finished speaking, her other hand went to break the big hand on her right wrist.

In an instant, a dizziness swept over her, and her head gradually felt heavy.

A chill ran through her heart as she looked at the glass of fruit wine, then at Wen Qing, the only one besides her who had touched the glass.

Wen Qing had been paying attention to the situation here and, seeing Jiang Wansheng’s gaze sweep over, she averted her eyes guiltily.

Seeing this, Jiang Wansheng knew she had been set up today. She couldn’t continue to entangle with Zheng Wen; if she didn’t leave now, she might not be able to leave later.

But the force on her hand was not light but heavy, and there was a tendency to pull her over.

She looked at the growing greed in Zheng Wen’s eyes, a flash of determination passing through her eyes. She picked up the wine glass and splashed it towards Zheng Wen, taking advantage of the moment he closed his eyes, then forcefully smashed the empty glass on his wrist.

Zheng Wen winced in pain and subconsciously let go. Jiang Wansheng seized the moment, turned around, and ran.

Her head grew heavier, her vision gradually blurred, and she pinched her thigh hard to bring a moment of clarity.

Without further delay, she ran out of the club directly.

The panic in her heart gradually spread and intensified as she couldn’t catch a taxi.

Her head was getting heavier, a kind of unstoppable drowsiness making her limbs weak.

In her confusion, a tall figure broke into her sight under the streetlight—

The man was tall, standing under the light, noble and casual. Holding a cigarette in his left hand, the smoke blurred the man’s stern profile, carrying an indescribable charm in her unfocused gaze.

Even a faint sense of familiarity mixed in.

She subconsciously walked towards him, her steps faltering.

“Jiang Wansheng!” An angry voice suddenly sounded from behind, and Jiang Wansheng gritted her teeth and quickened her pace.

The man standing quietly under the streetlight turned his head at the sound, his deep black eyes freezing her figure.

As the man’s figure drew closer, her strength rapidly drained away.

“Help…”

She only managed to utter a syllable before completely losing strength.

…It’s over.

Suddenly, a strong force came from her waist, the warm touch seeping through the thin fabric, and she instantly lost weight, then landed steadily in a broad embrace.

In the last moment of losing consciousness, she only smelled a faint scent of cold sandalwood lingering.

Qin Mo frowned at the woman he had just held in his arms with one hand, his cold gaze sweeping over the wet man looking around.

The assistant drove the car over, and when he came around to open the door, he saw Third Master holding the woman in his arms, his pupils shrinking slightly, and quickly opened the door.

Qin Mo bent down to place the person on the seat, closed the door, and as he walked to the other side, he took the cigarette out of his mouth, his cold, slender fingers holding it, glanced at the man who had just been there, his dark eyes devoid of emotion, raised his hand slowly and pointed towards the man in the empty air.

In an instant, several figures swiftly appeared in the previously quiet dark corner, deftly restraining Zheng Wen, then quickly disappeared into the darkness. Except for the gentle night breeze, no one noticed what had happened.