Chapter 6: Shall I Stand Up for Yaoyao?

If he had known that Jiang Yaoyao, whom Yan Leyao claimed had upset her, looked like this, he would never have agreed to set up this gathering today.

None of the men at this table were decent people—each one more depraved than the last.

A sweet and pure beauty like this, falling into their hands… Who knew what would become of her?

Seeing Jiang Yaoyao remain motionless, Gu Zhang spoke again, this time with a much heavier tone, full of displeasure:

“Yaoyao, everyone in this room holds connections you wouldn’t reach in years of struggling in the entertainment industry. You should know better than to be ungrateful!”

“This is Mr. Chen. Sit beside him and offer him a toast!”

The man Gu Zhang pointed to looked to be in his forties, but the excesses of alcohol and women had hollowed him out, his frailty visible to the naked eye.

He leered at Jiang Yaoyao, his face plastered with a greasy smile.

“Yaoyao, I’ve heard your director mention you for a long time now. But I never imagined you’d be this stunning! A fine horse like you needs a talent scout like me…”

The delicate beauty standing at the door pressed her lips together, the soft red of her lips deepening as she did. Her clear, luminous eyes held a stubborn glint.

“I don’t drink. Find someone else,” she said.

She turned to leave, reaching for the door.

Yet no matter how she twisted the handle—left or right—the door wouldn’t open.

Footsteps sounded behind her, and a repulsive hand landed on her waist, its mere touch enough to make her stomach churn.

Jiang Yaoyao quickly pushed at the man’s hand, but he was much taller and stronger than her. With hardly any effort, he seized her wrists, holding them in a vice grip.

His breath, reeking of alcohol and cigarettes, fanned against her face. The little beauty pursed her lips, yanking at her reddened wrists.

“Let go! I won’t drink. Don’t touch me!”

The entire room burst into laughter, as if she had just told the funniest joke in the world.

“Won’t drink? What, are you some kind of virtuous girl?”

“Virtuous girls are the most fun to break!”

“Lucky bastard, Lu Jin! You get to break her in and teach her how to behave!”

The cacophony of crude voices filled the room.

The hands on her waist grew more brazen, fingers spreading wide as they measured the circumference of her slim figure.

Lu Jin finished his little assessment, then lifted his hand to show the others with a boastful smirk.

“Fuck, she’s tiny!”

“And built just right!”

The delicate little beauty, her wrists now locked together, was dragged forward. The golden liquor in a champagne glass sloshed as it was lifted high.

“Come on, open up, sweetheart. Let big brother feed you…”

Lu Jin grinned wickedly, holding the drink aloft. The golden liquid shimmered in the light, reflecting in the terrified eyes of the small beauty.

A hand suddenly clamped onto her chin with vice-like force, squeezing her cheeks so hard that tears welled in her eyes.

Trapped in the chair, Jiang Yaoyao couldn’t move. Forced to tilt her head back, she watched helplessly as the golden alcohol cascaded down from above, pouring straight into her throat.

The excess dribbled down her delicate chin, soaking into her clothes.

The sting of the alcohol burned her throat and eyes. Never having drunk before, Jiang Yaoyao broke into a violent coughing fit, her petite face flushing a deep red.

As if fearing she might vomit, the hand on her face finally loosened.

Lu Jin triumphantly displayed his now-empty glass to the others at the table.

“See? And she said she doesn’t drink. She downed it in one go!”

Nestled against a man’s side, Yan Leyao laughed the loudest, her meticulously lined eyes flashing with malice.

She giggled as she echoed, “Yaoyao, you drank so happily! Lu-ge, you should pour her another!”

Lu Jin, still grinning, refilled another glass and held it up in front of the still-coughing Jiang Yaoyao.

“Be smart, drink it yourself. Look at you, coughing so hard—brother here would feel bad forcing you.”

The little beauty finally lifted her face. Her cheeks were flushed, her watery eyes glistening, even her eyelashes damp with tears.

Her delicate and helpless appearance—so soft, so beautiful—had every man at the table staring, transfixed.

Under their expectant gazes, she finally extended her slender fingers. As if resigned, her trembling hand reached for the glass.

Lu Jin’s smirk widened.

In the next instant, the champagne glass sliced through the air—

And with a loud splash, the golden liquor was flung straight into Lu Jin’s face.

The raucous laughter in the room came to an abrupt halt. One by one, their expressions turned cold.

The man whom Yan Leyao had been clinging to licked his teeth, his gaze fixed intently on the petite figure standing there.

His interest only deepened.

To be this breathtaking, looking so soft and delicate on the outside, yet hiding such fire within—she was something special.

He shoved Yan Leyao aside and was just about to stand when—

Gu Zhang’s voice thundered across the room, filled with rage:

“Jiang Yaoyao, what the fuck do you think you’re doing?!”

“Little bitch!”

Lu Jin’s face, dripping with alcohol, twisted with fury. His flabby flesh trembled with barely contained rage.

Women in their circle usually threw themselves at them. And yet, this little whore dared act so high and mighty?

Lu Jin yanked his belt free in a flash. “Bitch, do you know who I am? You need a fucking lesson!”

BANG!

A powerful kick slammed into the door, shattering the tense atmosphere in the room.

All heads snapped toward the entrance.

A man in a deep gray suit strode in, his razor-sharp features carrying an air of danger, his expression dark as night.

Like a god of death descending.

His gaze, as chilling as a blade’s edge, swept across every face in the room, lingering the longest on Lu Jin—the man gripping Jiang Yaoyao’s wrist, belt in hand.

His hawk-like eyes narrowed, the storm within them growing ever more violent.

Someone gasped in horror.

“Mr. Pei!”

Gu Zhang’s face lit up with an ingratiating excitement as he quickly rose from his seat, trotting forward with a bowed posture to curry favor.

“Mr. Pei, I never expected to see you here—”

Pei Heng didn’t even spare him a glance. He walked forward, removing his coat as he did.

His Yaoyao’s cheeks were flushed, her watery eyes shimmering even more intensely.

She seemed to have been forced to drink too much alcohol, her dazed gaze landing blankly on herself. Her rosy lips were pressed together.

She looked utterly pitiful.

Like an underdeveloped kitten abandoned by the roadside.

The front of her clothing was soaked with alcohol, clinging to her delicate, flawless skin. The white fabric had turned nearly translucent.

Pei Heng’s eyes lingered on her for a second before he quickly looked away.

A violent rage surged through him, nearly breaking his self-control. He wanted to slaughter every single one of these bastards on the spot.

But faced with those timid, frightened eyes, he forced himself to suppress his fury—afraid of scaring his precious girl.

His suit, infused with a crisp woody scent, wrapped around Jiang Yaoyao. The alcohol in her system left her lightheaded, making the little beauty uncharacteristically docile.

And so, she obediently let Pei Heng pull her into his embrace.

Under the stunned gazes of everyone in the room, the man—renowned for his cold heart, cruelty, and unrestrained violence—gently held the fragile young woman in his arms. His large hand pressed her head to his chest.

His voice, deliberately softened, caressed her ear with an overwhelming sense of security, patiently soothing the trembling girl in his embrace.

“It’s alright. Don’t be afraid.”

“I’m here…”

The tall man lowered his head slightly, his thin lips landing on the top of her hair.

“My Yaoyao is safe now.”

“Shall I make them pay for you?”

Dark, ruthless emotions surged in Pei Heng’s abyss-like eyes. Countless sinister, bloodthirsty thoughts quietly festered in his heart.

He lifted his gaze, sweeping a cold, lifeless glance at the utterly stunned Lu Jin, his lips curving faintly.

But his eyes were deathly cold, devoid of any amusement.

Lu Jin, frozen in place, clenched his belt tightly, his voice stuttering.

“P-Pei… Mr. Pei…”

Technically, they were all around the same age.

But given Pei Heng’s power and family background, a mere flick of his fingers could stir up a storm. His status in the industry was so untouchable that everyone had to address him with the utmost respect—“Mr. Pei.”

The sheer pressure of his presence made Lu Jin break out in cold sweat.

Everyone knew one thing in this circle—

You could offend anyone.

Anyone but Pei Heng.

Offending others meant making amends through intermediaries, offering apologies, gifts, or money, maybe even compromising on business deals.

But offending Pei Heng?

You paid with your life.

The whole table sat in stunned silence.

Especially Gu Zhang, who was still bent at the waist before Pei Heng. His face turned pale, then green, then white again—he wanted nothing more than to slap himself.

Jiang Yaoyao’s man was Pei Heng?

Jiang Yaoyao’s man was actually Pei Heng?!

If he had known, why the hell would he have tried to ingratiate himself with anyone else?

Countless eyes fell on the delicate beauty in Pei Heng’s arms.

That was a posture that combined both possession and protection. Pei Heng held the girl—whom they had just toyed with—securely in his embrace, shielding her completely.

But the more Pei Heng cared about Jiang Yaoyao, the more terrified they became.

Sure enough, moments later, the man—his face dark, his beauty laced with a dangerous edge—lightly patted the small figure in his arms before setting her down on the couch beside him.

The drunken girl remained obediently still, unmoving even after being placed down.

When Pei Heng straightened up again, all the tenderness he had shown to Jiang Yaoyao vanished.

Only an icy, bone-chilling coldness remained.

His slender fingers tugged at his collar, loosening his tie. As he slowly rolled his neck, the cracking sounds of his joints echoed in the room.

A nervous Lu Jin swallowed hard, hastily trying to explain.

“Mr. Pei, I didn’t know she was yours! It was Gu Zhang, that old bastard, who said there were pretty actresses in the crew and suggested she drink with us—”

A fist smashed into his face.

The blow left Lu Jin dizzy.

He tried to keep talking, but before he could say another word, a sharp sound of fabric cutting through the air came.

Pain shot through his lower body.

Like a kite with its string cut, like a punching bag launched across the room, he crashed into the back wall with a loud thud.

A searing pain tore through his internal organs, making him curse in agony, tears welling in his eyes.

As he struggled to get up, his gaze landed on a pair of pristine, custom-made leather shoes.

“Mr. Pei, our families know each other! Please have mercy—”

Lu Jin, now cowering with his shoulders hunched, pressed his hands together in prayer, frantically pleading.

Gone was the arrogance and aggression he had displayed when forcing Jiang Yaoyao to drink.

Overhead, a quiet chuckle sounded.

The sound made his scalp tingle.

The next moment, his pleas were cut off—

Pei Heng, that lunatic, didn’t care about their family ties.

He didn’t care whether Lu Jin had admitted his wrongdoing.

A sharp pain spread from his scalp.

Pei Heng’s ice-cold, demonic face loomed over him, his grip tightening around Lu Jin’s hair—

And then, he slammed Lu Jin’s head into the wall.

Lu Jin’s screams of pain and desperate cries for mercy filled the room.

But no one dared to intervene.

No one dared to speak.

The only sounds in the room were the dull thuds of bone colliding with the wall—

And Lu Jin’s howls of agony.