CHAPTER 228: 207: HOW MUCH MONEY WOULD IT TAKE FOR YOU TO BREAK UP WITH HIM?

The room suddenly fell silent, and the man and woman holding the microphone, ready to sing, awkwardly froze in place.

Everyone turned to the direction of the voice with expressions that were hard to describe, their faces filled with vivid astonishment.

Only Shi Yin, his heartbeat pounded uncontrollably.

His messy hair shaded his eyebrows and eyes, and under the dim light, a pale shadow shrouded the trace of shyness in his gaze.

"Miss Ruan, you really know how to joke." Jian Xitong curled her fingertips under her nose and covered her lips with a soft laugh.

Yet, her eyes were full of disdain, though hidden beneath her cute exterior, it went unnoticed by most.

"I’m not joking." Ruan Yuan’s gaze swept faintly over her, a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

She turned off her phone screen, wrapped her arms around the man’s neck, and gradually closed the distance between them. "Boss, am I right?"

’Boss...’

Jian Xitong’s pupils constricted. She glanced toward the man who nodded helplessly, his eyes filled with indulgence.

Finally unable to suppress the irritation in her heart, she abruptly stood up. "Excuse me, I’m going to the washroom."

The noise around her quieted down, and the air seemed much easier to breathe.

Ruan Yuan idly caressed the man’s lips, her cool fingertips tracing gently, now and then.

She kissed the corner of his lips, and as another wave of singing resumed behind them, her lips traveled teasingly to his now burning red earlobe.

Her breath, faint and sugary, spilled over him. "Boss, I’ve never heard you sing before."

"What do you want to hear?"

"A love song."

"..." How did I end up entangled with such an enchantress?

Shi Yin reached behind her waist for the song selector on the table and picked a song that matched her request.

When the monitor’s screen changed and the prelude flowed from the speakers, he instinctively infused the song with feeling.

’Entranced by your eyes,

The galaxies have their paths.

In an instant, the light is vibrant,

The closest of distances.

Following the contours of your skin,

Brushing against the curves of your arms.

...’

The man’s warm voice carried a depth of love and restrained passion for her. Every pause, every breath, spoke volumes through his gaze of unwavering loyalty.

In the private room, all eyes were on him. The women felt envious; the men felt a poignant admiration.

They envied her, for she possessed his love.

They admired him, for the way he expressed his love.

As the song ended, Shi Yin received a lingering, tender kiss. The woman used that intimate gesture to respond to the emotions he conveyed earlier.

Someone whistled at them; someone else cried "Wow" continuously. And yet another... clenched their palm so tightly their nails cut into the skin.

Jian Xitong found an inconspicuous corner, hiding in the dim light like a voyeur, secretly watching their sweetness.

She tilted her head back and gulped a full glass of wine, the crimson liquid slipping from the corner of her lips, silently dripping onto the back of her hand with a faint sound.

Jian Xitong wiped away the vivid color, tears welling in her eyes, dampening her curled lashes.

She didn’t want to lose so entirely; she endured with all her might.

Endured it... so it wouldn’t become her emotional undoing.

In the room, colorful light beams revolved relentlessly, casting fleeting shadows across every person.

When they swept past Jian Xitong’s location, her flushed cheeks and hazy eyes became unmistakably clear.

After downing a few glasses of red wine, the woman across the room finally made a move.

Watching her get up to leave the room, Jian Xitong quickly set down her wine glass, taking fast strides to follow her unnoticed.

The sound of rushing water, mixed with the faint noise of liquid soap being dispensed, echoed faintly in the girl’s ears.

She climbed the steps, closed the bathroom door behind her, and looked into the mirror at Ruan Yuan’s delicate, alluring face. "Miss Ruan, do you even know Shi Yin?"

Ruan Yuan slowly wiped her fingertips with a towel, her head remaining lowered as she murmured softly, "The man I share the same bed with every day, what do you think?"

Jian Xitong was choked by her words, her face alternating between pale and flushed. The earlier guise of innocence had long vanished.

She turned, leaning against the sink. "Then do you know Shi Yin has loved someone for two years?"

"I don’t care to know."

"..." The woman’s refusal to follow the script left Jian Xitong momentarily at a loss, a fleeting sense of defeat washing over her.

She crossed her arms over her chest, speaking to herself as though in a monologue. "Two years of love—do you really think you could replace her in Shi Yin’s heart?"

Ruan Yuan suddenly laughed. "Why would I need to replace anyone?"

Whether or not there was space for someone else in that man’s heart—did she not already know?

She was the only one. Why bother replacing herself?

It seemed Jian Xitong understood something as she unlocked her phone screen and opened a money transfer app.

"Since you’re only after money, I won’t beat around the bush. Name your price. How much to leave him?"

"You have that much money?"

"I should... be wealthier than you."

Jian Xitong looked her over, as though evaluating an object displayed in a shop window.

That appraising expression was simply begging to be hit.

Ruan Yuan’s gaze turned icy, like snowflakes drifting through wintry air—before they could touch, their chill had already soaked to the bone.

She smiled faintly, her voice tinged with menace: "How much can you offer?"

"Twenty million. Is that enough?"

"Only twenty million?"

The moment she heard this, Jian Xitong looked down on Ruan Yuan even more.

A woman like this, unscrupulous and relentlessly pursuing money at any cost—Jian Xitong once wouldn’t have spared even a glance her way.

Still, if she was the type to be easily bought with money, it would at least save her a headache.

"However much you want, just say it."

With the wealth of the Jian Family, spending tens of millions was hardly anything worth mentioning.

Ruan Yuan flexed her wrists slightly, stepping closer. Her dark eyes were unreadable. "I want your life. Will you give it to me?"

"You—"

"Ah!!!"

A sharp, ear-piercing scream shattered the air. Ruan Yuan, frowning in annoyance, yanked Jian Xitong’s hair back with force.

She turned on the faucet and slammed Jian Xitong’s head into the sink with brutal determination. The whole process was both swift and ruthlessly efficient.

"Let me—go..."

Choking on a mouthful of water, Jian Xitong couldn’t even form a coherent sentence.

The steady stream gripped her throat, her face and neck turning crimson, as though she’d suffocate the next second.

Just as she was about to faint, Ruan Yuan let go, granting her a brief reprieve to catch her breath before shoving her back under the water once more.

"Stay away from Shi Yin, or... you’ll die."

The woman’s soft, measured voice sounded to Jian Xitong like the whispers of a demon. Fear seized her mind, rendering her body limp with terror.

When Ruan Yuan had enough of toying with her, she grabbed Jian Xitong by the collar, flinging her against the wall like discarded trash. She cast a disdainful glance at her waterlogged, hair-matted hands.

After thoroughly washing them once more, she strutted out in high heels and slammed the door behind her.

All that remained was a drenched, disheveled Jian Xitong, her expression blank as she stared at the ceiling, unable to recover from the scene that had just unfolded.