She tried to clean the dress with her trembling hands, but the stain only kept spreading.
Part 2: Zain's Feigned Anger
Zain Yan stepped out from the crowd. His eyes fixed on Anya's dress. Mr. Wang, executing his scheme, said loudly,
"Sir, look at this girl! Such an expensive dress, which you specially had made for her, and she ruined it in a moment. Just look at her carelessness!"
Zain, who was already angry because of Anya's uncle, wanted to use this opportunity to break her even more. He stepped closer to Anya, his voice icy cold.
"Do you even have any idea how much this dress cost, Anya? You were never worthy of it, and you have proved that today. You can't even handle something expensive—forget that, you can't even protect your own dignity."
Tears welled up in Anya's eyes. She couldn't endure the hatred in Zain's gaze anymore.
"I'm sorry, sir… I didn't mean to… my foot slipped…"
"Shut up!" Zain said harshly. "A sorry won't erase this stain."
Mr. Wang felt that Zain was completely on his side now. So he decided to attack Anya's character next.
Part 3: Public Humiliation
Mr. Wang spoke loudly so the entire hall could hear him.
"Actually, sir, I had my doubts from the beginning. A mere intern suddenly becomes a project head, starts receiving such expensive gifts… what's really going on? Did Anya choose the path of 'pleasing' our boss to get this position?"
Whispers spread through the hall. People began looking at Anya with contempt and disgust.
"She looks so innocent, but turns out to be this kind of girl."
"This is the shortcut girls take these days."
Anya's heart shattered from within. It felt like thousands of needles were piercing her chest. She just wanted to run away from there.
Part 4: The Knight Returns
Zain was watching Anya's face—her pale expression, her flowing tears, her trembling body. Suddenly, the protective instinct inside him awakened, the same instinct that had awakened five years ago on the night of the kidnapping. He remembered—this was the same girl who had risked her life to save his sister.
Zain's anger abruptly turned toward Mr. Wang. He took off his coat and placed it over Anya's shoulders in front of everyone, hiding the stain.
"Mr. Wang," Zain's voice was so heavy that the entire hall seemed to tremble.
"Do you dare to repeat what you just said?"
Mr. Wang began stuttering.
"S-Sir… I was only thinking about your well-being…"
Zain stepped closer to him.
"Anya earned this position because of her capability. And the clothes I gave her were my choice. If anyone thinks she got them by 'pleasing' me, then they are directly challenging my taste."
He looked at the entire crowd.
"From today onward, if anyone dares to point a finger at Anya Lu's character, their next day won't be in Z.Y Empire—it will be behind prison bars."
Part 5: Broken Hope
Zain grabbed Anya's wrist and dragged her out of the party. As soon as they reached the parking lot, Anya pulled her hand free.
"Why did you do this?" Anya shouted.
"First you humiliated me, then you saved me… What do you want? Do you hate me, or do you like me?"
Zain pushed her against the wall. There was a strange pain in his eyes.
"I don't like you, Anya. I just can't tolerate my possessions being ruined. And you…"
He touched her wet cheeks.
"You are mine right now. Until I destroy you myself, no one else is allowed to even touch you."
Anya looked into his eyes. She finally understood—Zain was not going to be her guardian angel, but the one who would become both her greatest sinner and her lover.
Far away from the noise of the party and poisonous taunts, the cold night wind hissed through the parking lot. Zain's heavy, fragrant coat was still draped over Anya's shoulders, shielding her from the world's gaze. The tear marks on her cheeks had dried, but the wound inside her heart was still fresh.
Zain unlocked his black Lamborghini. Anya silently moved toward the back door, as she had always seen rich people treat their "possessions" or employees.
"Not the back," Zain's voice echoed in the silence of the night.
Anya stopped and looked at him in confusion. Zain was already seated in the driver's seat. He leaned over and opened the front passenger door from inside.
"Sit here," Zain ordered without looking at her.
For a moment, Anya's heart forgot to beat. She remembered Fengning's words—that Zain never let anyone sit beside him, not even his beloved sister. That seat symbolized his personal authority and solitude.
Hesitantly, Anya stepped onto that "forbidden" seat. The scent of leather and luxury surrounded her. As soon as she closed the door, a heavy silence filled the cabin.
Part 2: The Loneliness of 7:30
The streets of Shenzhen were bathed in neon lights. Zain was driving, his long, well-kept fingers firmly gripping the steering wheel. Anya stared at the city rushing past the window.
The scene kept replaying in her mind—Mr. Wang's filthy accusation and the hateful looks of the people.
"Whatever happened there…" Zain suddenly broke the silence, his eyes fixed on the road,
"…it won't happen again."
Anya slowly turned her head.
"Why did you save me? You hate me. You yourself said I wasn't worthy of that dress."
Zain increased the speed slightly.
"I didn't save you because I care about you. I saved you because you are my employee. And no one in this world has the status to insult me."
Anya gave a faint smile.
"Always the same answer… 'my employee,' 'my possession.' Will you ever be able to see me as a human being, Mr. Zain?"
Zain didn't reply, but his grip on the steering wheel tightened even more. He didn't want to admit to himself that when he saw tears in Anya's eyes, it felt like his entire existence was burning.
It was 7:30 in the evening when the car stopped in Anya's narrow lane. There was no movement outside the house. Lu Wei was at the café, Fengning was also there, and Anya's mother had gone to a neighboring city for some work. The entire house was submerged in darkness.
Zain's eyes suddenly shifted from the road to the dark balcony beside Anya's house—Fengning's room. There was no movement. The curtains were drawn, and everything inside was pitch dark.
Zain's brows furrowed. He checked the time—it was almost 8 p.m. Fengning should have been home by now.
"Where is Fengning? Why is her room light off?" Zain asked, his voice carrying the concern and authority of an elder brother.
Anya, who was about to step out of the car, stopped and spoke softly.
"She… she's not home. She started a part-time job at Lu Wei's café. There's an event there today, so both Fengning and Lu Wei will be late."
"At a café?" Zain's voice was no longer cold—it was filled with real anger.
"A daughter of the Yan family working as a waitress at that Lu Wei's insignificant café? And you didn't stop her?"
Anya gathered her courage and looked into his eyes.
"Sir, she just wants to build her own identity. And even if Lu Wei doesn't like her, he will take care of her. She's safe."
The moment he heard the name "Lu Wei," Zain's jaw tightened. He remembered—Lu Wei, Anya's brother, whom Zain deeply disliked.
He looked at Anya, realizing what she herself had gone through, yet she hadn't lost her composure. His gaze moved to the empty windows of her small house.
"Is no one at your house either?" Zain asked.
"No… Lu Wei will come late, and mom will return tomorrow," Anya said, adjusting her bag. She reached toward Zain's coat to take it off.
"Keep it," Zain stopped her.
"It's cold outside. And I don't think you'd want to go inside wearing that torn and dirty dress."
Anya looked into his eyes. For the first time, she didn't see the hatred she was used to. There was something else—a kind of sympathy that Zain had hidden from the world for years.
"Thank you… for dropping me home," Anya said softly and stepped out of the car.
Zain didn't step out. He just sat there, watching her. He watched as she carefully handled her dirty yet expensive gown, wrapped in Zain's large coat, walking toward her house.
As soon as Anya turned the key, went inside, and turned on the light, Zain let out a cold breath of relief. He could have gone inside, scared her, or questioned her about her uncle—but tonight, he didn't want to.
He slammed his hand on the dashboard.
"What am I doing? She is Lu Kang's niece! She carries the blood of the man who took everything from me!"
Then he remembered Fengning's words. He dialed a number from the screen on his dashboard—it belonged to his most trusted head guard.
"Listen," Zain's commanding authority returned to his voice.
"There's a café called 'Lu Wei' on Blue Moon Street. My sister Fengning and Anya's brother Jian will be there. Until they finish work and reach home safely, I want one of your teams stationed there in plain clothes."
The guard agreed from the other side, but Zain wasn't done.
"And listen… keep a special watch on that boy, Jian Lu. Every move of his—who he meets and what he's doing in the police department—I want an hourly report. I want to reach the roots of every member of the Lu family."
Zain ended the call and glanced at the passenger seat where Anya had been sitting. He could still feel her warmth.
Zain reversed the car and drove away at high speed. He wasn't running away from Anya—he was running from the emotions growing inside him, emotions that were weakening his 17-year-old revenge.