Chapter 23: Ruthless and Quiet

Yan Qiao looked at Li Xiao with a questioning gaze. Master Xiao shrugged, his expression clearly saying, “I didn’t tie him to my belt.”

“I’ll give him a call.” Though he said that, Li Xiao obviously didn’t want anything to happen to his friend either.

He’s already had enough bad luck as it is.

Before he could even dial, Li Xiao received a message from Mu Yunzhe on his phone.

The message read: “Something came up suddenly, I left first. Don’t worry about me.”

Li Xiao furrowed his brows subtly and showed the message to Yan Qiao.

“Ah Qiao, don’t you think something’s off?”

“From what I know about him, if he had to leave, he wouldn’t just not tell me. After all, it only takes a second to say something,” Li Xiao shared his thoughts.

Yan Qiao’s expression was cold. She did a quick calculation with her fingers. It had been several minutes since they left the mansion.

…

…

When Li Xiao made that statement to Su Sheng earlier, all the wealthy elites of Jiangcheng knew where he stood.

Now, they were all leaving the Su family one after another.

Everyone who passed by him greeted him with the utmost respect, cautiously and nervously. They were terrified of ending up on Master Xiao’s blacklist. If that happened, there’d be no way for them to thrive in this circle.

Anyone who’d made it in business to a certain level would know how dominant the Li family was in this sphere.

“Go inside and search,” Yan Qiao decided immediately.

A lot can happen in just a few minutes.

“Ah Qiao, you mean Young Master Mu is still inside their house?” Yan Hao was shocked.

“Yes.”

“If you’re afraid, you can wait outside. I’ll go in alone,” Yan Qiao said coldly.

Su Min immediately objected. “Ah Qiao, how can we let you go in alone and take the risk? I’m not afraid—I’ll go in with you.”

Yan Hao and Yan Chen chimed in too. “Of course we’re going in with you. We’re not scared at all! I want to see what shady things they’ve been doing in that house!”

Instead of being afraid, Third Young Master Yan was practically itching to go in and investigate.

Yan Chen also looked excited, clearly enjoying the drama. “How could I miss such a major scene? Ah Qiao, let’s hurry and go in already,” he even started urging her.

“In that case, let’s go together. Make sure you all carry your protective charms.”

There was no time to waste—Yan Qiao immediately led the way inside.

Inside the living room, all the guests were already gone. Only Su Sheng and Old Madam Su remained, both fuming with anger. The servants didn’t even dare approach.

For the past year or two, Su Sheng had been sailing smoothly, never encountering any major troubles.

He hadn’t expected to suffer such a humiliating defeat on his fiftieth birthday.

He couldn’t be more regretful now—he should never have invited the Yan family.

Turns out, there was a reason why they were so hated.

“Dare to ruin my plans—Yan Zhengtian, Su Min, I will never forgive your entire family!” Su Sheng’s eyes were filled with venom.

Just as he turned to go upstairs and handle more “serious” matters—

Unexpectedly, the Yan family walked right back in.

Leading them was Yan Qiao, with Li Xiao standing beside her like her unwavering support. On the other side were Su Min and Yan Zhengtian. Her two older brothers stood behind her.

Aside from Yan Qiao and Su Min, the rest were all over 1.8 meters tall and full of aggressive energy.

Especially Li Xiao—his aura was overpowering, carrying an intense pressure.

Su Sheng thought to himself that he also had his own backers. Since they’d already torn the mask off, there was no need to play nice!

Besides, it was that one sentence from Li Xiao earlier that had driven all his friends away—he was now filled with resentment toward him!

“What are you doing back here again?”

“Get out! You’re not welcome here! Don’t blame me for being harsh if you don’t leave!” Perhaps because of how much hatred he harbored, Su Sheng’s expression twisted into something grotesque and terrifying.

“You think we wanted to come back? Hand over Young Master Mu now. The Su family’s got guts, daring to kidnap him!” Yan Hao shouted fiercely. He’d been holding in his anger for a long time.

“Don’t you slander us! Who saw Young Master Mu kidnapped here?”

At that moment, Old Madam Su trembled as she stood up. “Who gave you the courage to act so wildly in here? Get out this instant!”

Though she sounded angry, her voice lacked conviction.

Su Min stared at her mother, who now looked even more horrifying than before.

Yan Qiao pulled out two talismans. One flew straight at the old lady and stuck to her forehead. It was as if something scalding had touched her—there was a sizzling sound, followed by a painful scream.

She collapsed to the floor.

The other talisman hit Su Sheng. He instantly froze, unable to move, his face contorted in pain.

“Handsome Dad, keep an eye on Pretty Mom. Don’t let her touch those two—they’ll be attacked by the black energy. As long as you wear the protective charms, they won’t dare to harm you. But don’t make contact.”

With that, Yan Qiao gave a low, commanding order: “Upstairs. Search.”

Her expression was cold and powerful—she had the aura of a queen.

At this moment, Yan Hao and Yan Chen looked at their sister with eyes full of admiration.

Their little sister was simply too cool—ruthless and quiet.

“Okay, got it.” Yan Zhengtian responded immediately and wrapped an arm around his wife.

“Minmin, let’s go upstairs too and check on Ah Qiao,” he said softly.

He was worried that his wife might get soft-hearted or feel hurt.

The only way was to redirect her attention to their daughter. Sure enough, Su Min’s concern shifted entirely to her precious daughter.

Over the years, she’d already seen her birth family for who they truly were.

She wasn’t about to be a saint, blurring the lines of right and wrong.

On the second floor, they immediately felt it was colder than the first floor. Yan Hao rubbed his arms and said he had goosebumps.

“It really feels even creepier up here than downstairs!”

Li Xiao felt it even more intensely. He was extremely uncomfortable. If not for the protective charms on him from Yan Qiao, he might not even have had the strength to stand anymore.

“There’s a heavy concentration of black energy. Everyone, be careful,” Yan Qiao reminded them.

“Ah Qiao, what are we looking for now?” Yan Hao asked curiously.

Surely they wouldn’t be stupid enough to actually hide Young Master Mu in the house, right?

“We’re going to find the evil entity in their home.”

Yan Qiao walked up to a room door and tried the handle. It was locked.

Without a word, she raised her leg and kicked the door open.

The three men beside her were stunned.

Who would’ve thought that an eighteen-year-old girl could have that kind of strength?

After their shock passed, Yan Hao was filled with pride. His sister was amazing!

The room was very dark. The curtains were drawn, and the moment the door opened, a foul, rotten stench rushed out.

Yan Hao immediately covered his nose, nearly gagging.

“It smells horrible—did someone die in here?”

Li Xiao also furrowed his brows. His expression had never looked worse.

At this point, he could feel the charms on his body heating up slightly.

He had a bad feeling—this place was dangerous.

In the darkness, a figure suddenly stood up. Her voice was sharp and chilling—

“Who let you in here?”