Translated by newbienoona

Edited by anks

He may look calm and cool on the surface, but he's definitely faking it. In fact, his heart is so bothered by the kidnapping, he knows he'll regret the decision sooner than later.

The only reason he resorted to something this low is because he gambled and lost a lot of money. Now he owes everyone and their brothers.

The thought made Marco look up and take another drink. Alcohol often makes anyone forget, but he's currently proving the statement wrong.

He looks across the room and realizes it's spinning.

With the exception of the rooms An Chuxia and Meng Xiaonan are locked in, there's not much difference between the rooms in the warehouse. It's just treated as a place to sleep.

Without money to pay rent, they found the abandoned warehouse and started treating it as their temporary residence.

He attempts to kick the door open, but it doesn't budge.

“F**k!” Marco curses. He takes a step back and throws his body against the door. He hears a groan as the door opens, and frowns. He realizes why he can't just kick in the door. This isn't his room, but An Chuxia's.

She shrinks in the corner after being surprised by the door being forced in. Her weary eyes lay on his.

“An Chuxia… .” Marco belches as he walks in. “Sorry. Wrong door.”

An Chuxia shoots him a look of disdain and points toward the door with her head. “The door's there. See yourself out.”

Upon hearing her instructions, he laughs. He takes three steps toward her before stopping. “You still haven't changed. Regardless of whom you're talking to, you're still arrogant.”

“What the h.e.l.l are you implying?” An Chuxia asks as he breathes on her. Her brow creases as she can smell the alcohol emanating from him.

Inside the room, the flame on the half-burned candle flickers, like in a haunted house.

“What do I mean?” Marco takes another step, his grin widening. “I just want to say I've not forgotten you… .”

She can tell he's saying it with affection, but why is she feeling panicky? A flicker of emotion flashes on his face before he reaches out to stroke her face. His hand is thick with calluses, and it makes An Chuxia feel uncomfortable.

“Get your filthy hands off me!” She gnashes her teeth in frustration. She wants to break off the ropes, but the rope is tied too firmly. No matter how much she tries to wriggle her wrists, she's still tied in place.

"Don't waste any more of your efforts. All you have left is your strength and your voice to cry out for help.” Marco starts to unb.u.t.ton his s.h.i.+rt. The white b.u.t.tons contrast against the black s.h.i.+rt. One by one, they come undone, exposing his chest.

“What are you doing?!” Her voice raises. “If you dare do anything to me, the Hans are going to hack you to pieces!”

"If they chop me to pieces, they'll have to bear criminal responsibility. Do you think the Hans will go to jail in order to save you?” He takes off the black s.h.i.+rt and tosses it close to the candle on the table.

Right… if Han Qilu has a say in it… An Chuxia nibbles on her lower lip as she vowed to herself that she'll get out. But now… .

Marco takes another step forward, his eyes glowing with greed. “Anyway, how does it matter who sleeps with whom? What's the difference if it's me sleeping with you or Han Qilu? Let me take a fresh bite and benefit since you've been around the block.”

“Are you insane? F**k! I don't want to die here. Let me go!” An Chuxia says through gritted teeth. She's survived this long, and she can't have him ruin her tonight. She must get out alive!

“Mother, if you're watching out for me, help me!” The words flashed in her mind.

* * *

Outside, Han Qilu and Xiao Mingluo have since returned to the warehouse and let themselves in from the back, using the dark to cover their trail. Much to their chagrin, the once open entrance is now being guarded.

Mingluo turns around and looks at Han Qilu, waiting for him to make a decision. They both are distracting themselves. Otherwise, they'd secretly kill them.

Han Qilu looks up and points to the roof, motioning Mingluo to follow him. They climb up a crooked tree over the warehouse. As he cranes his neck, he sees the east side roof full of holes. They can enter the building through it.

Overjoyed, Han Qilu quickly leaps on to the roof. Although he tried his best to land lightly, a light thud is still audible.

They wait with bated breath as they a.s.sess their situation. Xiao Mingluo whispers loud enough to be heard. Fortunately, no one checked up on them. However, if they're not careful, the two men on patrol close to the back door might catch up with them. They both know that if they stay by that tree, they won't succeed either.

Xiao Mingluo finally jumps off from the crook of the tree, and lands firmly on the warehouse rooftop. He lets out a sigh of relief as the tile cracks but doesn't slide to the ground.

But their luck doesn't last. The piece eventually falls, and when he reaches out, it's too late. One by one, the tiles fall and break as they hit the concrete floor.

“What's that sound? Let's go look!”

They hear footsteps, and Mingluo and Qilu agree to lay flat so they can't be detected. Xiao Mingluo closes his eyes and buries his head when he hears, “The sound came from here.”

The flashlight beam doesn't reach them, but it luminates the edge of the roof.

“Aren't we too far from our post?” the other person asks. “Go on. Talk about that chick.”

As the guards' steps start sounding distant, Xiao Mingluo is about to lift his head when Han Qilu reaches over and presses Mingluo's head back against the roof. The footsteps stop, and they try to hear for a sound again, “I told you, there's nothing suspicious. Let's go back.”

The guards just pretended to leave but once they were convinced there wasn't anything, they finally left for real.

“Whew… .” Mingluo sighs a breath of relief. He didn't know he was holding his breath back for so long.

“Don't wait. Let's go.” Han Qilu has already gotten up, watching where to step.

They both creep towards one of the large roof holes and peek. At the bottom, they see a man leaning against wooden crates, smoking a cigarette. He looks rather intoxicated.

“What's your plan?” Mingluo asks Qilu.

Han Qilu pauses to think before spitting out, “Jump.”

Is he insane?

Xiao Mingluo is about to scoff when he sees Han Qilu leap in, landing on the man smoking below.

He's crazy! Why is he provoking them?

Xiao Mingluo calls on the other two men to help Han Qilu.

Han Qilu startles the man who suddenly brandishes a knife. But why is the guy not reacting?

Xiao Mingluo jumps down and follows Qilu. He realizes that the man wasn't smoking regular cigarettes. He is high from the drugs, and it explains the slow reaction to Qilu's appearance. Once Qilu disarms him, the man faints.

“Shove him over there,” Han Qilu points toward the crates and orders the men to make him inconspicuous in the dark.

Moving the unconscious man took more effort than expected. With the summer heat, the warehouse is so stuffy, they're sweating.

"Go!" Han Qilu whispers as he walks away. Dilapidated boxes line the path.

-In another room-

“I'm your man. You can't get away from me… ,” Marco says as he rubs his hands together. He reaches out for An Chuxia and starts unb.u.t.toning her s.h.i.+rt.