The Favored Heiress
Chapter 325: Master Yan Takes Action

Chapter 325: Chapter 325: Master Yan Takes Action

That night, the moon was full and bright.

In front of the three side-by-side seaside villas on the island, Li Qiao and several others were seated around the poolside viewing platform, chatting idly.

Shen Qingye was scrolling through his phone, opened an electronic document, placed the phone on the table, and tapped it, "Take a look at this."

Li Qiao was eating an avocado and glanced casually, "Is she the investor behind the vacation resort?"

Shang Qiongying.

Shen Qingye ’hmmed’ and looked across at Shang Yu with a somewhat pleased lift of an eyebrow, "Didn’t expect that, did you?"

Shang Qiongying, as a mysterious investor, had gotten shares in the vacation resort on the island, and had it not been for the timely intelligence from the Sixth Bureau, they certainly would not have guessed.

However, Shang Yu looked at the information on the screen, his lips lazily curling without confirming or denying.

Seeing his expression, Shen Qingye inexplicably felt as if Shang Yu had known all along.

Li Qiao swallowed the fruit in her mouth and turned to gaze at the man beside her.

"The resort was short of funds mid-construction, and she just stepped in with an investment," Shang Yu looked back at Li Qiao, his voice deep as he provided the answer.

At that, Shen Qingye slumped in his chair, looking up at the night sky, visibly annoyed.

This information had just been dug up by the Sixth Bureau, which meant that Shang Shaoyan had known for quite a while, and not through the Sixth Bureau’s channels.

Resting against the chair back as if boneless, he looked towards Li Qiao with a look that said it all.

Xiao Qi Zai had called him here to help gather intelligence.

So why did he feel completely useless now that he was in Parma?

Before long, the resort’s exclusive butler arrived with a tray carrying booze and ice cubes, a bottle of Louis XIII, and three cocktails.

Shen Qingye, with a stiff face, took a cocktail without thinking and took a sip.

After the butler left, Shang Yu added ice cubes to his glass, poured half a glass of brandy, and its aroma immediately wafted into the moist seaside air.

The man swirled his glass before bringing it to his lips, but abruptly stopped mid-sip.

He sniffed the aroma, his cold eyes narrowing as he turned his gaze toward Li Qiao, only to find she was also holding a cocktail, smelling it in the same manner.

Three seconds later, the two holding their glasses locked eyes, each gaze brimming with intriguing light.

Unaware of the meaning, Shen Qingye clicked his tongue and holding his cocktail, he questioned, "What’s with those looks on your faces?"

"Stop drinking," Li Qiao put down her glass and nodded toward the cocktail in Shen Qingye’s hand.

Shen Qingye, puzzled, still obediently put down his glass, his palm dampened by the condensation from the glass, he wiped it with a napkin and his expression grew more solemn, "Is there something in it?"

Li Qiao looked down at the dark green cocktail and explained in a low tone, "LSD, a hallucinogen."

There was a hallucinogen in the cocktail.

As soon as the words fell, Shen Qingye felt his throat roll, his face turning extremely ugly because he had just consumed the cocktail.

Lacing a drink with a hallucinogen was quite insidious.

Li Qiao looked at the glass in front of Shen Qingye and then towards the brandy in Shang Yu’s hand, "Is that the same for yours?"

Shang Yu passed his glass to her, his tone still lazy, "Sleeping pills."

Li Qiao took the glass and sniffed, the dark glow in her eyes flickering.

The scent of the brandy was almost unchanged, a very slight alteration, but Shang Yu had detected it.

Alcohol, no matter what is added, will inevitably disturb the aroma.

Raising her eyes to meet Shang Yu’s, she called out a second later, "Bai Luhui."

Bai Luhui arrived at her call, "Miss Li."

Li Qiao briefly explained the situation and gestured with her lips at Shen Qingye, "He drank the cocktail, LSD reacts faster with alcohol, but the dosage is small, so there’s no danger for now, take him back to his room and no matter what happens, don’t come out."

Bai Luhui’s expression shifted slightly and he was about to support Shen Qingye back to the villa.

Seeing this, Shen Qingye brushed off his hand and smirked at Li Qiao, "Little guy, are you underestimating me?"

Li Qiao leaned back in her chair and looked him in the eye, raising an eyebrow as she countered, "If you can guarantee you won’t lose your head under the influence of the hallucinogen, then stay."

Hearing this, Shen Qingye didn’t say another word and got up to leave.

Anyone who hangs around in the underworld knows the side effects of hallucinogens.

As for such a despicable act of drugging, he wanted to see who was asking for trouble.

Shen Qingye, together with Bai Luhui, entered his own seaside villa, closed the sliding door, pulled the curtains, and took out his phone, his voice stern as he ordered, "Notify everyone from the Sixth Bureau, I want the movements of everyone on this island within the hour."

Bai Luhui bowed, "Yes."

...

At the viewing platform, Li Qiao crossed her long legs and her gaze lightly fell on Shang Yu’s face, "I guess it wasn’t Shang Qiongying."

Their visit to the resort, encountering Shang Qiongying in the morning, then the drinks laced at night.

And she was the resort’s secret investor.

Common thinking would likely suspect Shang Qiongying’s involvement.

But Li Qiao, on the contrary, felt that the least likely suspect was Shang Qiongying.

Because she wasn’t foolish.

At that moment, Shang Yu slowly raised his arm, unbuttoning two buttons from his shirt collar.

His gaze was mischievous, his eyes tinged with a deep, indifferent coldness, "Yeah, it’s not her."

Li Qiao shifted slightly, looking at the man half-illuminated by moonlight, half his face in clarity, half in shadow.

She looked around, supporting her cheek with her elbow propped on the chair back, "Tonight, have Zuo Xuan and the others not arrived?"

After arriving on the island, the entire resort was temporarily closed.

The land and the island were not connected; one must arrive here by yacht or helicopter.

But she hadn’t seen anyone from the Secret Hall, which led Li Qiao to this speculation.

Shang Yu lifted his thin lips, and after unbuttoning his shirt, his fingertips climbed Li Qiao’s brow, speaking with profound meaning, "They haven’t come yet."

"Then..." Li Qiao’s eyes brightened a bit, leaning towards the man with great interest, she teased, "Could it be that tonight we’ll see the South Sea Master Yan take action personally?"

Such a scene was rare to witness.

Having known him for so long, she had never seen Shang Yu tackle trouble with his own hands.

Shang Yu gazed at her mischievously smiling face, his eyes also brimming with interest, as he pinched her cheek on impulse, "You really want to see me in action?"

Li Qiao pulled down his wrist, her smile deepening, "Whether you take action or not isn’t important; mainly, I want to see what my boyfriend is capable of."

A faint chuckle escaped the man, as he leaned toward Li Qiao, his voice huskily teasing, "If you want to see my skills, this isn’t the right place."

Li Qiao didn’t react at first, not until their gazes collided; only then did she loosely interpret a hint of intimacy.

She cleared her throat and remained silent.

A few steps away, Liuyun, Luoyu, and Wang Yue exchanged covert glances, all resigned.

The number of enemies was still unknown, and choosing to strike on this remote island clearly showed they were well-prepared.

Then you look at these two, in such a critical moment, still flirting?

...

About ten minutes later, the surroundings of the island became increasingly silent and tranquil.

Apart from the sound of waves crashing against the beach, no other noise could be heard.

Li Qiao lowered her head slightly, leaning against the backrest and idly twiddling her fingers.

Shang Yu crossed his legs, comfortably puffing on a cigarette.

Soon, a rustling noise came from behind the seaside villa.

Li Qiao’s ears perked up, a slight smile appearing at the edge of her mouth.

Meanwhile, Shang Yu, with a cigarette clenched in his mouth, began rolling up his sleeves while giving a stern reminder, "If we’re going to fight, you’re not allowed to get hurt."

Li Qiao glanced at him sidelong, her brows lifting arrogantly, "Same goes for you."

As soon as the words fell, a large group of thugs suddenly emerged around the seaside villa.

The adversaries, dressed in black training outfits and armed with various bladed weapons, closed in on Shang Yu and Li Qiao as soon as they appeared.

The moment they drew close, the group didn’t hesitate to attack.

But Li Qiao and Shang Yu made no move; instead, it was the three assistants who charged out first.

The skills of Liuyun and the others were formidable, easily taking on ten opponents each.

Yet, the thugs they faced tonight were not ordinary lackeys.

Each one seemed to clash recklessly, but their footwork and melee tactics were obviously well-practiced.

The entire villa front quickly descended into turmoil, with the three assistants hard-pressed to distinguish themselves from their foes.

With more than thirty people surrounding them, they leveraged their numbers to gain an advantage.

So much so that the completely tied-up assistants had no time to protect Shang Yu and Li Qiao.

In contrast, the two of them were nonchalant, one leisurely smoking and the other casually swinging a leg, apparently unfazed by the intense fight playing out before them.

In less than three minutes, seven or eight thugs lay on the ground, unable to get up.

While Liuyun, Wang Yue, and Luoyu were still struggling valiantly against their opponents.

Li Qiao, with her legs crossed, tapped her foot on the ground to shift her chair backwards, analytically stating, "It seems like, Liuyun and the rest won’t be able to break free anytime soon."

After taking a final drag, Shang Yu leisurely stubbed the cigarette out in the ashtray, his eyes twinkling with mirth as he looked at Li Qiao, "Want to go in?"

"We could give it a try. These people...have decent skills."

The moment the words fell, Li Qiao and Shang Yu both stood up.

She stretched her wrists and ankles, her gaze sweeping over the man’s shirt, "Is that the shirt I bought for you?"

Shang Yu, with one hand in his pocket, raised an eyebrow, "That’s right."

Seeing this, Li Qiao pouted, looking over his shoulder and boasting, "Don’t get it dirty; you’ve got company coming from behind."

As she spoke, a long knife sliced through the night’s chill towards Shang Yu’s back, cutting through the space behind him.

However, at three inches above Shang Yu’s head, the knife was intercepted, and with a shift of his form, he dodged the blade’s edge.

Shang Yu locked eyes with Li Qiao, a wicked smile curling the edges of his mouth, "Alright, I’ll listen to you."

While speaking, he clutched the knife wielder’s wrist with his palm and, under Li Qiao’s amused gaze, thrust his elbow into their joint.

With a crack, the assailant’s entire arm twisted outward at a bizarre angle, severing cleanly at the joint.

A scream erupted, and Shang Yu flung the man aside, stepping forward to wrap his arms around Li Qiao’s waist, and hungrily kissed her lips, "Stay put," he ordered.

Li Qiao smiled without a word, but as Shang Yu turned, she grabbed a wine bottle from the table and without hesitation, smashed it over the head of a black-clad figure approaching from the left.

A bottle of Louis XIII, its fragrance spilled all over the ground.

She swiftly snatched the long knife from the man’s hand, fondled the blade, and chuckled lightly, "It seems someone doesn’t want me to stay put."