A Qiang and his men chased Guan Baocheng leisurely, like a cat playing with a mouse. When Guan accidentally tumbled down a high slope, they stopped the chase. Instead, they pretended to be puzzled and paced around, saying:
"How come there's no sound all of a sudden? Did we go the wrong way?"
"Maybe. Let's check over there."
The sound of their footsteps gradually faded away until it was completely silent. Only then did Guan Baocheng, who had fallen to the bottom of the slope, get up and run towards the south of the forest. He had just seen the flash of car lights there, which meant there was a road!
It was pitch - black in the forest. Guan Baocheng stumbled countless times before finally making it out of the forest and onto the road. He walked along the road towards the city, constantly looking back warily. After walking a long way, he tried to hitchhike on numerous cars, but no one was willing to stop for him.
Finally, he found a driver who was willing to take him back to Fengcheng. However, it was a pig - transporting truck. The driver disliked his stench and made him sit in the cargo compartment. Squatting in the cargo compartment, breathing in the pungent smell of pigs, Guan Baocheng felt as if he had truly turned into a big "fat pig". This made his already greasy and ugly face look even more hideous.
He endured the stench and chatted with the truck driver off and on.
The truck driver loved to gossip and was very interested in all the rumors in Fengcheng. From the conversation, Guan Baocheng learned that the foundation he had painstakingly built over the years had crumbled during his one - month imprisonment. In other words, he had gone bankrupt, just like the Ji family.
The Ji family was even worse off. They were not only billions in debt, but the whole family had died in a car accident. However, contrary to what was said by those in the cage, Ji Xinyue had survived by a narrow margin. But her legs had been amputated, and she was bedridden in the hospital. It seemed that being alive was worse than being dead. In this regard, he considered himself luckier.
It was the middle of the night when Guan Baocheng returned to Fengcheng. Afraid of being discovered that he had escaped, he didn't even dare to turn on the lights when he got home. He groped his way into the bathroom and found that there was no electricity because he hadn't paid the bill for so long. There wasn't even a drop of hot water.
Shivering, he took a quick cold - water shower to wash off the dirt on his body. Finally, he managed to regain a bit of his human appearance.
Putting on clean clothes, Guan Baocheng made his way to the living room in the dark. He found that the house was empty, and many valuable pieces of furniture were gone. Presumably, they had been taken away during his "disappearance". Grumbling, he sat on the floor and lit a cigarette.
After smoking a cigarette, his body began to warm up. He crushed out the cigarette butt and started to analyze what he had heard in the cage.
Guan Baocheng was no saint. He had done his fair share of dirty deeds. So when Xiong Han approached him four years ago, he knew there must be some kind of feud among the wealthy families behind it.
For the sake of a 50 - million - yuan profit, he had chosen to turn a blind eye and cooperate with them. Never did he expect that he would end up shooting himself in the foot and almost losing his life.
Thinking about his time in the cage, every time he was taken for a blood draw and heard the agonizing cries of other experimental subjects in Alex's laboratory, goosebumps would rise on his body.
He really hadn't expected that the Yan family had such a ruthless character as Yan San. Even if he had escaped this time, Yan San probably wouldn't let him go. The fate of the Ji family was a warning, and he couldn't afford to be careless.
It seemed that he couldn't stay in Fengcheng any longer. He had to figure out a way to save his own skin.
[It's obvious that this wasn't a plan that Ji Xinyue could have come up with alone. There must be someone else pulling the strings behind her.]
Indeed, there was clearly someone behind Xiong Han. Who was that person? Four years ago, he had tried to find out and even followed Xiong Han, but he had found nothing.
Thinking of the other girl with the surname Yuan mentioned by those two people, he frowned.
Yuan Ya'er? The real daughter of the Yuan family?
Suddenly, he remembered that four years ago, one morning, he had been shocked to find Yuan Xi, who had disappeared for a night, suddenly beside him. He had fled in a hurry. Later, he had learned from the news that the grandson of the Yan family had caught someone in the act of adultery in that room with a girl. After that, he had agreed to marry Yuan Xi at Xiong Han's request. When the Yuan family brought Yuan Xi to meet him, that girl had come along and told him to take good care of her sister. Presumably, that girl was Yuan Ya'er.
He had always said that it wasn't him who had slept with Yuan Xi. The reporters had only photographed Yuan Xi that morning. So why was he being forced to take responsibility? It turned out that someone had wanted to push Yuan Xi into his pit so that they could smoothly snatch the engagement with the Yan family!
Did Yan Zhen know all this? Did he know that his former fiancée had been set up?
Guan Baocheng let out a laugh.
Those two people were right. Yuan Ya'er was now related to Yan San by marriage. Out of consideration for their relationship, Yan San wouldn't do anything to her. But it was different for Yan Zhen. Yuan Ya'er must be worried about losing this hard - won marriage, right?
Actually, his demands were not excessive. All he needed was a sum of money, help with the overseas emigration procedures, and then he could hide abroad and recuperate for a few years. Sooner or later, he could make a comeback.
Such a simple request, he thought Yuan Ya'er shouldn't refuse, right?
Getting up from the floor, Guan Baocheng grabbed his car keys and slipped out of the door under the cover of night.
...
After seeing off the last batch of guests, the wedding was finally over. Yan Zhen and Yuan Ya'er returned to their new - marital home together.
Their new home was a gift from Yan Haikun. It was located in a newly - built high - end villa area in Fengcheng. Since it was a wedding, the house was decorated very festively, with a big red double - happiness character pasted on the door.
As they stepped over the door hung with red silk, "bang", colorful sequins fluttered down from above. Two servants who had accompanied Yan Zhen since childhood stepped forward happily and said, "Congratulations, Young Master and Young Mistress, on your happy union! From now on, you're a family! You should live happily in the future!"
"You must be tired after a long day. Are you hungry? Aunt Cui has prepared some midnight snacks for you. Why don't you sit down and have some?"
Yan Zhen had been in a state of unease because his plan had failed and he had been caught by Yan Haikun flirting with a woman of loose morals. The loud voices of the two servants only added to his annoyance. He waved his hand impatiently and said:
"No, I'm not hungry."
Seeing this, Yuan Ya'er stepped forward with a sweet smile and comforted the two servants, acting every bit the mistress of the house: "It's getting late. Aunt Cui, Aunt Meng, you've been busy all day. You should go and rest early. Brother Yan Zhen and I can handle things on our own."
The two servants exchanged a knowing look and didn't stay any longer, leaving the space for the newly - wedded couple.
Yan Zhen was holding the gift that Xu Zixi had given at the wedding. After the two servants left, he walked towards the sofa, intending to open the gift right away.
Yuan Ya'er had been secretly observing his actions. Seeing this, she couldn't help but feel anxious. An idea flashed through her mind. She threw herself into Yan Zhen's arms, pouting and saying pitifully:
"Brother Yan Zhen, from today on, I'm your wife. But why do you seem so unhappy?"
Yan Zhen lowered his head and saw Yuan Ya'er's tear - filled and pitiful face in his arms. Only then did he realize that he hadn't paid much attention to her since the toast. His mind had been preoccupied with his failed plan. Feeling a bit guilty and ashamed, he was about to comfort his wife when Yuan Ya'er's expression suddenly changed.
She leaned close to his tie and sniffed hard. Her voice was shrill: "Brother Yan Zhen, why do you smell like such a strong and unpleasant perfume?"