In the dimly lit prison cell, suppressed gasps carried a forbidden thrill, punctuated by the man's malicious teasing.
"Crying out so loudly? Do you want people to discover that the Best Actress can't stand the loneliness in prison and has to find a man?"
The man's voice was distorted—hoarse and unpleasant.
Fu Bing bit her lower lip shyly, preventing any more sounds from escaping.
Her eyes were blindfolded with a black cloth, rendering her sightless. In the shadowy cell, her snow-white skin starkly contrasted with the man's tanned, healthy complexion, creating a jarring visual.
The violent thrusts made Fu Bing's body tense and arch backward, her form bending like a sensual bow. This incited even more brutal treatment from the man, and the ravaging in the cell continued all night.
By the end, Fu Bing had lost consciousness, left to tumble and sink in a sea of desire with the man, unable to find an escape.
「Three years later.」
Jiangcheng First Women's Prison.
"Inmate 4032, once you're out, live a good life. Don't come back."
Fu Bing nodded fearfully, taking her belongings from the prison guard.
The huge, heavy gate rumbled open.
The light of freedom spilled into the gloomy, oppressive prison.
A flicker of light appeared in Fu Bing's numb eyes.
Three years ago, she was a Best Actress at the peak of her popularity, unrivaled by any. Qin Jinhai's close female confidante, Li Qing, suffered a miscarriage while filming a scene with her. Overnight, Fu Bing became a convict.
Nobody listened to her explanation; instead, they fabricated false accounts for tax evasion at a shockingly fast pace. It destroyed her stardom and ruined her life.
She had lived here for three years, filled with despair and tormented endlessly.
Fu Bing slowly walked towards the gate.
Suddenly, her steps halted as she saw a figure she could never mistake.
She wanted to run. Her movements were sluggish as she turned, but the door behind her had already closed.
Qin Jinhai got out of the car. He strode up to Fu Bing.
"Regretting getting out of prison?"
Fu Bing stared blankly at the shadow on the ground drawing ever closer, trembling incessantly. By the time the shadow neared, Fu Bing had already curled into a ball on the ground, helplessly clutching her head.
She was murmuring to herself. Qin Jinhai couldn't hear what she was saying and condescended to squat down.
"Don't hit me... please don't hit me..."
Qin Jinhai's heart felt as if a cruel hand had clenched it tightly. He suppressed the pang in his heart, his eyes filled with a chilling intent. The words he uttered were even colder, "And you think you're worthy of me dirtying my own hands on you?"
Fu Bing fixated on the shadow on the ground, mumbling mechanically, "President Qin, I was wrong. I shouldn't have pushed Li Qing; I shouldn't have killed your child. I know I was wrong."
"You really know?" Qin Jinhai sneered coldly. "If you had truly recognized your mistake, you wouldn't still be alive..."
Fu Bing remained silent, and Qin Jinhai pulled her up from the ground with disgust.
"If you're going to confess your mistake, you must do it in front of that person!"
Having said that, Qin Jinhai stuffed Fu Bing into the car as if she were trash.
Before Fu Bing could even settle, the car shot forward. Her head slammed against the seatback, and she clutched it, not daring to cry out in pain.
Qin Jinhai gripped the steering wheel, his expression grim.
She's so thin...
The thought had barely surfaced before he ruthlessly suppressed it, refusing to let it take hold.
This woman caused the death of his unborn child; any suffering she endured was deserved. Because of her, Li Qing lost the chance to become a mother. Even death wouldn't be enough for her to atone!
「The car drove from the suburbs into Jiangcheng's downtown area.」
What little emotional turbulence Fu Bing had felt had completely vanished. She sat in the back seat like a broken ragdoll.
Three years. It felt like a very long time. So long that the city she had lived in for over twenty years now seemed completely unfamiliar.
After a sharp BRAKE, Fu Bing was dragged out of the car and into a place she knew well: The Exquisite Bar, a place she and Qin Jinhai used to frequent.
Her heart sank bit by bit. As she had expected, Qin Jinhai entered Private Room 8888.
Behind a heavy door, raucous music blared. Then, the door was pushed open.
The clamor inside instantly quieted. The dim, hazy lights were switched off, replaced by bright fluorescent ones.
Fu Bing stood there, wearing clothes that were three years old. In the luxurious private room, surrounded by people dressed to the nines, every eye was on her, as if watching a monkey. And she was that monkey.
A sharp pain shot through Fu Bing's knee, and with a THUD, she fell to the hard floor. Liang Shaoqi grinned as he withdrew the foot that had kicked her.
"Hasn't the Best Actress learned how to kneel after three years in prison?"
Lu Shaochen, seeing no objection from Qin Jinhai, eagerly suggested, "Simply kneeling is so boring; we need to add some spice."
With that, he casually picked up a bottle of wine worth a million from the table and smashed it against the corner.
Wine splashed everywhere, dousing Fu Bing's face. As the alcohol stung her eyes, tears flowed uncontrollably.
Shards of glass grazed Fu Bing's gaunt cheeks. Beads of blood welled up instantly from the cuts.
Lu Shaochen threw the sharp glass shards in front of Fu Bing. "I hear you knelt on a bed of nails in prison. This little bit of physical pain should be nothing to you."
The bed of nails... Fu Bing's body instinctively recoiled, fear deeply embedded in her soul.
Pain. Excruciating pain. She had lost her child then too.
Fu Bing looked up at Qin Jinhai, who had settled into the center of the sofa upon entering the private room.
Qin Jinhai was engrossed in his phone. Perhaps the content on his phone was highly amusing. The usually expressionless man's lips curved slightly upward, forming what could almost be called a smile.
Lu Shaochen pinched Fu Bing's chin, a wicked smirk on his face.
"Think Second Brother will plead for you? The one who wants you dead the most is Second Brother."
The crowd snickered. Fu Bing clenched her teeth, spitting out his name, "Qin! Jinhai!"
Qin Jinhai coldly posed a question, "Do you want your knees shattered or your face ruined?"
Upon hearing this, Liang Shaoqi and Lu Shaochen hauled Fu Bing up from the ground and, without allowing any protest, shoved her onto the glass shards.
Sharp glass cut through skin and flesh.
"AH!" Fu Bing screamed.
Qin Jinhai didn't even glance at Fu Bing's body, curled up painfully like a shrimp. He simply stood up and walked out. "For the next two hours, do whatever you want with her. I'm going to the film studio to pick up Li Qing."
"No problem, we're experts at this."
As Qin Jinhai reached the doorway of the private room, he seemed to remember something and added, "Don't kill her. Her sins aren't fully atoned for yet; she doesn't deserve to die!"
With that, the door to the private room SLAMMED shut.
Fu Bing pressed her forehead against the ground, trying to alleviate the throbbing pain, but her scalp suddenly tightened.
Lu Shaochen grabbed Fu Bing's hair, yanking her head up. Fu Bing's eyes stung fiercely from the alcohol, making it impossible to open them.
Lu Shaochen looked at the gaunt woman before him: her skin ashen, her lips dry and chapped. Gone was the peerless beauty of the former Best Actress. A degree of vengeful satisfaction eased Lu Shaochen's heart.
"Still thinking Second Brother will save you? He'll never save you; he only has eyes for Li Qing. After you went to prison, Li Qing took all your resources and replaced you as Best Actress. Everything that was once yours now belongs to Li Qing."
"Why do you think you suffered so miserably in prison? Second Brother personally ordered people to torment you there. He watched every moment of your suffering. He will never forgive you!"
Fu Bing didn't open her eyes. She had been hurt too much. This amount of pain was truly nothing.
Fu Bing endured the discomfort and opened her eyes, looking at Lu Shaochen. "This time... do you want to cripple my left hand, my right hand, or perhaps both my legs?"
Lu Shaochen felt a chill run down his spine under her pitch-black gaze.
Fu Bing's most captivating features were her eyes. They were pitch-black and bright, capable of reflecting all her thoughts while also embracing every emotion. He had once been madly infatuated with her, had even pursued her. But her eyes held only Qin Jinhai; there was no room for anyone else.
She had made him the laughingstock of their circle, everyone mocking him as a toad lusting after swan flesh. Tormenting her eased his heart, if only a little.
"Since you're asking for it, I won't be polite." Lu Shaochen ordered to someone behind him, "The dagger."
An attendant handed a dagger, gleaming with a cold light, to Lu Shaochen. Fu Bing watched in terror as the dagger drew ever closer.