I arrived outside my house and got out to open the gate because I forgot the remote when I left. I was about to get back into my car when someone tried to cover me with a cloth soaked with chloroform. I held his hand before he could cover my face, drove my elbow backward, slamming into the attacker behind me.
"AARGH!" A loud groan escaped from his throat as the blow landed on him.
I grabbed his right hand and drove my left elbow into his face, then pivoted, loaded his weight onto my shoulder, and sent him crashing down in a brutal shoulder throw. The moment he hit the ground, I crushed my foot against his chest, drew my gun, cocked it, and leveled it at his face. I was about to pull the trigger when I was knocked out by a blow to the back of my head. As my consciousness began to fade, I tried to turn and see who had attacked me—but darkness swallowed everything before I could. I tried by every means to keep myself awake, but the weight of the blow crushed all my resistance, leaving me helpless. Just when I thought all hope was lost, Xiao Fang finally appeared, dragging me back from the edge of unconsciousness.
"F**k! Yucheng, why the hell didn't you tell me my soon-to-be sǎozi is a fighter? Now I've embarrassed myself in front of her—and even got beaten by her," he said, running a hand through his hair in frustration.
"Hahaha! I didn't think she was that strong. And besides, you're still alive, aren't you?" he said, dangling the cigarette between his fingers while barely holding back his laughter.
"Alive my ass. My body is sore as hell," he scoffed weakly.
"It's a miracle I survived that blow. For a moment, I thought she was trying to punch my insides out." he scoffed, more annoyed at the force of her attack than the pain itself.
"By the way, Haoran, aren't you worried that she might have someone big backing her? I mean, she dared to stay and wait for us to come last time, even though she knew we were mafia. Don't you think that's a little bit susp—" Before he could finish speaking, a loud bang erupted from the back of the car.
"BANG!" The boot flew open violently and tore loose, skidding several meters behind the speeding car.
They both froze, then immediately twisted to look behind them and saw me jump out of the moving car. They looked at each other, confused and shocked by what just happened.
"Hit the brake you fool! Didn't you see her jump?" he said, snapped. The moment the car stopped, he rushed out to check on me—but found no trace.
He scanned the area, only to catch a fleeting figure disappearing into the forest.
"There goes my bride. Damn, she sure runs fast," he said, scratching his head in confusion as he tried to figure out why she was running from him so quickly.
"Zhao Xinyu, tell me—am I really that ugly that a girl would run away from me instantly?" he asked, brows furrowed and eyes squinting as he tilted his head, staring toward the dark forest where my figure disappeared.
"Guess so. Otherwise, why else would she run?" he sneered, rubbing salt into the wound with a smirk.
"This is the first time I've seen the almighty Lin Haoran get rejected. Honestly, I've been waiting for this moment," he said, pacing slowly, flaunting like a king finally tasting defeat.
"And damn, it's satisfying as hell." Xinyu was busy flaunting, not even noticing that Haoran had already climbed into the car and was fiddling with the keys.
"Chk… chk-chk… vroom?" The engine sputtered awkwardly, like it wasn't quite sure if it wanted to start.
Xinyu snapped out of his daydream and looked around—no sign of Haoran. Then he glanced inside and saw Haoran behind the wheel, looking a little too pleased with himself.
Shit, that crazy bastard's actually about to drive off, he thought, eyes wide as the engine finally caught and revved up unevenly.
"VROOM!" The car jerked forward, shaking a bit as it took off.
"Wei, stop the car! I haven't even gotten in yet! Haoran! Haoran, you idiot!" Xinyu shouted, running after the car like a madman.