He stiffly turned his head to look at Kuang Daqiang, suddenly grabbing him by the collar with a fury in his eyes. He spoke sharply, “What did you say? Who did you sell?”

Kuang Daqiang looked at the suddenly enraged Kuang Ye, not taking him seriously.

“Back then, I lost 100,000 in gambling, so I sold you to the casino to pay off the debt. You escaped, and the casino came looking for me. What could I do? I didn’t have money.”

“It’s all your fault. If you hadn’t run away, she wouldn’t have been sold to the mountain village to be someone’s wife.”

“You animal!” Kuang Ye’s eyes turned bloodshot, and a violent rage filled his mind. One thought consumed him: Kill him! Kill this person who ruined his life and also ruined his foster mother’s life.

He slammed his head into Kuang Daqiang’s, then grabbed a brick from the ground and struck him hard on the head. Once, twice, three times.

Kill him. Kill him. Then he would never have to see that disgusting face again. Prison wouldn’t matter. His life would be ruined, but it wouldn’t matter.

At this moment, Kuang Ye was no longer in control of his reasoning. His rage had consumed all his emotions and actions.

“Kuang Daqiang, you scum, you don’t deserve to live in this world. Go to hell!”

Kuang Ye raised the bloodied brick, ready to strike down.

Suddenly, a cautious female voice came from outside.

“Stop bullying him inside.”

“I’ve called the police.”

“Beating people means you’ll go to prison.”

It was a voice Kuang Ye knew all too well.

He looked at the unconscious Kuang Daqiang, his hatred still burning in his eyes, but with a twinge of struggle.

Beating someone would lead to jail. Killing someone, of course, would be worse. If he killed Kuang Daqiang and became a murderer, his life would be over.

He would never have the right to be friends with Mu Wan again.

He knew that Mu Wan was studying at this school, which was why he had taken a job at the nearby black internet cafe. Mu Wan, who had saved him in his darkest moments, was like a warm light.

He didn’t wish to hold onto it. He only wanted to get closer to it.

Tears silently slid down his face.

Kuang Ye looked at the unconscious Kuang Daqiang on the ground, snatched the bloody money from his hand, and placed it back into his pocket.

He couldn’t kill him. If he became too tainted, he would no longer be able to draw warmth from the light.

“Ah ye, Ah ye!”

Mu Wan rushed to embrace the angry Kuang Ye from behind. “Stop hitting him, the police are already here.”

Kuang Ye’s bloodshot eyes cleared a little as he looked at the hand around his waist, which belonged to Mu Wan. A trace of panic flashed across his face. Wan Wan had seen it—she had seen the dark, beast-like side of him that he had been concealing all this time.

“Wan wan, are you alright?”

After Kuang Daqiang was taken away by the police, Mu Jianhua immediately rushed in. He carefully examined Mu Wan from head to toe, and only after confirming she was unharmed did he let out a sigh of relief. Then, he turned his gaze to Kuang Ye, who was hanging his head, his bandaged hand soaked with blood.

“Xiao Ye, you did well this time. Thank you for protecting Wan wan.”

However, Kuang Ye felt deeply ashamed. Everything had started because of him. If it weren’t for him, Wan Wan would never have been kidnapped.

“Uncle, I’m sorry, it’s all my fault.”

Mu Jianhua patted his shoulder and didn’t offer the usual comforting words of “It’s not your fault,” but instead spoke seriously to both of them.

“Starting tomorrow, both of you will come to my place and take some lessons on how to protect yourselves.”

“If someone knocks on your hotel door, you don’t just open it. If a robber tells you to come, you don’t follow.”

“Luckily, Kuang Daqiang is just a small-time thug and didn’t have a gun. Otherwise, you two might not have escaped so easily today.”

Mu Wan knew that this time it was her carelessness, thinking that the high-end hotel inside an amusement park would be safe.

“I understand, Dad!”

Mu Jianhua then looked at Kuang Ye. At first, Kuang Ye was still lost in self-blame, but when he met Mu Jianhua’s gaze, he instinctively straightened up.

“I understand, Uncle.”

Mu Jianhua nodded and then noticed the bandaged hand, which was slightly bleeding, and turned to say,

“There’s an ambulance downstairs. Let the medical staff dress the wound.”

Inside the snake-skin bag were not just money, but also police wiretaps. Mu Jianhua had heard everything Kuang Daqiang had said earlier.

In his heart, he wasn’t pretending not to blame Kuang Ye for involving Wan Wan, but he also saw that he was a pitiful kid. Given that he had been sincere to Wan Wan and that she hadn’t been harmed, this time he decided to let it go. However, as for Kuang Daqiang…

A cold glint flashed in Mu Jianhua’s eyes. As Kuang Ye had said, such a beast didn’t deserve to live. Extorting 10 million, which was enough for a death sentence.

—

Soon, Wang Lan and Mu Yan Ci received the news and hurried to the hospital, showering the two with concerns. Once they confirmed everything was fine, the tension in their hearts eased.

“Thank goodness you’re okay.”

“I’ll go to the temple tomorrow and pray for your safety.”

“Acid splashes and kidnappings, it’s just too unlucky.”

Mu Jianhua replied, “Military families shouldn’t engage in superstitions.”

Wang Lan: “…” She couldn’t be bothered to respond to him.

Not long after, Kuang Xingran arrived, looking frantic.

“Wan wan, are you okay? Gege, are you alright?”

Seeing her pale face, both of them shook their heads. Then they saw Kuang Xingran roll up her sleeves.

“Where’s that kidnapper? How dare he kidnap my brother and best friend, let me beat him to death.”

Heaven knows how worried she was when she received the news.

“The kidnapper is getting treatment. Your brother beat him up pretty badly.”

Mu Wan quickly stopped her. She had heard her father say that Kuang Daqiang had a concussion and wouldn’t be able to run away. His ribs were probably broken too, but they would only know the full extent after the X-rays.

Kuang Xingran turned around to look at Kuang Ye and praised him, “Gege, well done.”