10: Mark

At the Gilded Moon Club, the night was filled with revelry. Countless gold and silver flakes were carelessly thrown into champagne towers, and the guests danced, their suits and red dresses intertwining, as the Baroque-style fountain sprayed cold water, drenching their shoulders, lips, and faces, leaving them disoriented.

But the top S-VIP private room was completely silent.

The usually unrestrained heirs didn’t dare to speak a word. Cold sweat dripped from their foreheads, and in the dim light of the chandeliers, they gazed at Shen Cizhu, who was leisurely shuffling the cards at the gambling table.

“You know… about the aphrodisiac. So why did you come?” Someone, unafraid to question it, asked.

Was Shen Cizhu a prostitute? He clearly knew their intentions and still came here to meet them. If not for the fact that the drugs had been switched by someone unknown, Shen Cizhu would have been in deep trouble by now.

“Are these kinds of things scarce in your circle? You’re not the first ones to drug me or send me explicit videos,” Shen Cizhu’s tone was very gentle. “It doesn’t work on me. Don’t worry too much about it. You see, I didn’t hold you accountable, did I?”

If he wanted to hold them accountable, they would be completely finished.

They clenched their fists.

They knew that Shen Cizhu was using this to threaten them.

“This is not important. What matters is, whom will you choose to follow? My dear little brother, or me? Make your decision and let me know.” Shen Cizhu didn’t even give them a glance and just looked down, a smile on his face with an ambiguous meaning.

His long, snow-white palms were dripping with blood, staining the deck of cards he held.

This blood came from the slap that had been given to Xu San, who was currently lying unconscious on the couch.

None of them thought Shen Cizhu’s temper would become so fierce when he was drunk. It was like he was a completely different person. Usually gentle and poised, when he was drunk, he became incredibly ruthless, striking with all his might, without a trace of hesitation. On the contrary, he seemed excited, tears covering his pupils.

The way he warned them about whether to follow him or Wen He earlier was more oppressive than the family head.

Shen Cizhu had perfectly inherited the blood and genes from his father. He was much more suited than the illegitimate son Wen He to navigate the convoluted waters of the business world. Naturally, these young heirs had to follow Shen Cizhu.

Not only because of Shen Cizhu’s threat earlier but also to secure their future. Once they inherited their families, they would inevitably cooperate with the Shen Corporation. However, with Wen He taking over, the Shen Corporation wouldn’t continue to be as prosperous as it is now. Wen He was just a pawn, and the board of directors stood behind him. By then, the Shen Corporation would be stripped of its shares and eventually closed down. This would bring about a major shift in power and status in the business world, affecting their own families. Only with Shen Cizhu inheriting could they avoid this risk.

Though they were playboys, they were still the cream of society’s elite. The Shen family board of directors couldn’t bring down a century-old conglomerate, and in this battle of heirs, Shen Cizhu would undoubtedly win.

Their cooperation with Shen Cizhu was naturally advantageous. Apart from their family’s future development, it was more because of Shen Cizhu’s beauty.

Shen Cizhu seemed unbothered about using his charm to manipulate them.

His tolerance for alcohol had never been good. Yet tonight, for some reason, he chose to drink in such a perilous place. The playing cards were scattered on the table as he stood up and slowly walked towards them.

“Have you made up your minds?” Shen Cizhu asked, his tone quite gentle. “Whom do you want to follow?”

“There’s no need to think about it,” replied the young heir from the Zhou family, Zhou Ping. “We grew up together, and our relationship is naturally strong. We wouldn’t betray you to follow Wen He. He betrayed your kindness, but we won’t.”

The men behind Zhou Ping also expressed their willingness to follow Shen Cizhu.

“We’re not ungrateful,” Zhou Ping continued. “But we can’t guarantee that others won’t be.”

Zhou Ping passed Shen Cizhu, looking behind him and seeing Xie Hou, who was busy tidying up the glasses and the gambling table.

Xie Hou was dressed in a waiter’s uniform, and his cheap and ordinary clothing couldn’t hide his excellence. Yet he paid no attention to the onlookers and simply completed his work. He left the private room after arranging the bottles and food.

Throughout this, he didn’t look at any of them.

Xie Hou was a misfit in this private room. There was a stark divide between him and them. Their luxury and extravagance didn’t interest him. Instead, he remained cold and aloof, like an indifferent deity. However, even deities with no desires to be fulfilled owed 140 million by the time they turned eighteen and had to work in a club to pay off their debt.

Xie Hou was clearly a pauper. Without power or influence, they shouldn’t have been afraid of him. But for some reason, Xie Hou’s outstanding intelligence, emotionless self-control, and that face made them feel threatened. It was an insecurity and gap sensed by their bloodlines.

After Xie Hou left, Zhou Ping and the others decided to leave as well.

Before leaving, Zhou Ping said to Shen Cizhu, “We’re not ungrateful because we’ve known each other for twenty years. I won’t forget the friendship we’ve built during these two decades. But there’s something I’d like to remind you.”

Zhou Ping’s words had a slightly sour undertone, and he hinted at something.

“If it were me, I’d choose to trust brothers I’ve known for twenty years rather than a brat I just met tonight, whose balls haven’t even dropped, especially since he’s the younger brother of your ex-boyfriend.”

Zhou Ping said to Shen Cizhu, “Don’t bring him into our circle. Xie Hou has already disgusted us enough.”

Tensions brewed in the private room.

“Understood. Be safe on your way home, and I’ll sleep here for a while before leaving,” Shen Cizhu said with a mild exhaustion in his gaze.

“Goodbye,” Shen Cizhu said to them one last time. “Safe travels.”

——

On his way back to the staff break room, Xie Hou encountered a group of playboys led by Zhou Ping. Their faces were stern, and they were headed in the opposite direction from Xie Hou. However, as they passed by, one of them deliberately elbowed Xie Hou.

Xie Hou seemed unaware of what was happening, but for some reason, the person who wanted to strike him suddenly slammed his elbow into the wall, turning his face the color of a pig’s liver and letting out a wretched scream.

When Xie Hou returned to the staff break room, it was already 11:00 PM. He was going home; he hadn’t finished his work for the night.

Tomorrow he had to go to school during the day and come back to work at the club at night. He shouldn’t have been working here anymore, but because of Shen Cizhu, he was continuing.

He had assaulted someone tonight, and the man he had beaten should have been fired and compensated for medical expenses. However, Shen Cizhu had helped him, and so he was let off the hook.

“Xie Hou, you’re quite lucky,” someone in the break room remarked. “You beat someone up and won’t face any punishment. Tsk, tsk, tsk… you’ve found a benefactor. They say that Mr. Shen is exceptionally kind. I didn’t believe it before, thinking that rich people couldn’t possibly be kind. Who would’ve thought?”

He continued, “It must be because you’re good-looking. Otherwise, why would a wealthy person help you out…”

Xie Hou didn’t respond.

Xie Hou took out clothes and a backpack from the wardrobe and began unbuttoning his shirt.

The uninteresting employee, knowing it was time for him to leave, had to close the door on his way out. When he looked up, he saw Xie Hou’s silhouette in the mirror on the wall.

Xie Hou removed his suit shirt, leaving his upper body bare. He was in the process of putting on a black T-shirt. His pants were simple knee-length athletic shorts, but the young man exuded an air of elegance that made it look like he was wearing luxury.

He had a tall and slender figure, with long arms and legs, broad shoulders, and a narrow waist. He had an exquisite physique, like someone who practiced boxing or something else. Otherwise, how could someone be born with such a perfect body?

Top models might not even have such a physique. People would be jealous of how good he looked, and he seemed more than human.

As he was silently criticizing in his mind, when he was about to leave, he saw something unusual. There appeared to be a tattoo-like mark on Xie Hou’s back, around the shoulder blade area, black and oozing a crimson liquid, curving down in a serpentine manner.

It clung to the flawless and icy-cold back of the young man, like the head of some kind of animal, with menacing fangs and a strong air of danger.

The employee’s heart pounded in fear, and he quickly tried to close the door. The force he used was very light. Yet, just as the door was about to shut completely, Xie Hou still sensed it.

Xie Hou turned his head when he heard the sound. He had already put on the black T-shirt. He loosened the slightly pale collar and showed a hint of the veins on his lean and cold forearm. There were faint scars on it, as if it had been cut and wounded, leaving behind a persistent mark.

It looked like a scar from a live attack, like a murderer’s signature…

Xie Hou tilted his head, and his black hair cast a shadow over his eyes. He looked at the person peeping into the room.

His amber-colored, icy-cold eyes showed a hint of disdain, and at that moment, the light in the break room flickered, casting his face in shadows. For some unknown reason, he suddenly tugged at the corner of his lips, his expression almost like a smile but not quite. His eyes moved mechanically, and his white neck seemed almost transparent, with the bones making a faint creaking sound.

Xie Hou locked his gaze on the man outside the door.

What are you looking at?

The man hastily fled.

The room’s lights hadn’t returned, and Xie Hou raised his eyes, staring impatiently at the erratic lighting, which alternated between brightness and extreme dimness.

Idiot.

Xie Hou stood expressionless under the flickering light. The play of light and shadow was a test of one’s bone structure. If a person’s bone structure had any flaws, they might appear slow and clumsy.

These two words were like a world away from Xie Hou.

After exiting the room, he walked to the lobby and encountered the receptionist. She was on the phone, speaking politely. After she hung up, she appeared a bit anxious. When she saw Xie Hou, her eyes sparkled.

“Xie Hou, don’t leave yet!”

Xie Hou stopped and looked at her.

“The Shen family called, asking us to take Mr. Shen back, but Mr. Shen won’t let us in…” The receptionist ran over and spoke sweetly. “I think Mr. Shen quite likes you. Can you check what’s going on? Leaving such a big figure here makes me really nervous.”

She was afraid Xie Hou wouldn’t agree, but she had no other choice. Only Xie Hou could accompany Mr. Shen back. If they offended the Shen family, she felt she was done for.

Fortunately, Xie Hou agreed. She expressed her thanks repeatedly and watched Xie Hou head to the private room. Afterwards, she felt a bit cold and thought of getting her coat from the break room.

The break rooms for male and female employees were separated by a single wall. When she reached the door of the female employees’ break room, she caught a strange smell – familiar yet foreign, quite pungent.

“It couldn’t be some kind of supernatural thing… Ah ah ah ah, no, don’t think nonsense.” The corridor was empty, and the silence was stifling. She felt uneasy and started trembling in her lower legs, making it hard to stand.

Then, she felt her high heels slide slightly on the floor.

Glancing down, she discovered a large expanse of red liquid, somewhat viscous, now covering the entire corridor. At the end of the corridor, it resembled a dark, unblinking eye fixed on her.

Could it be… blood?

Her eyes widened suddenly, and she collapsed at the entrance, her palms covered in fresh blood. The thick, lifelike fluid invaded the pores of her skin, starting to numb her nerves.

The blood had seeped out from under the door of the men’s employee break room.

Clang!

Clang!

There were sounds of objects hitting the door, as if a body was continuously slamming against the door, relentless and violent.

She was so terrified that she couldn’t utter a word, her teeth chattering as she slowly backed away.

At this moment, the door was forcefully pushed open.

Creak.

A male corpse was thrown out from the men’s employee break room.

It was the bald man who had clashed with Xie Hou in the lobby just two hours ago.

The corpse’s neck hit the wall with a sharp sound, then hung limply.

TN:
Well that took an extremely dark turn!