The Tycoon's Mysterious Darling Wife
Chapter 276. Intimidation Incident (Burst Update Notice)

Chapter 276: 276. Intimidation Incident (Burst Update Notice)

The next morning, Jin Enxi called Shen Qinglan.

The third day, "Hello, Enxi," Shen Qinglan’s voice still carried the grogginess of just having woken up.

Jin Enxi said, "Qinglan, guess what I found out this morning?"

"What?"

"Someone posted a hit contract online. Whoever kills King will get a reward of one hundred million. If they can cause him serious injury, fifty million is offered, and even BK members have different bounties on their heads. Who holds such a deep grudge against King to go to such lengths? If I find out who issued the contract, I will definitely thank them. They are practically doing a public service. I just saw that five people have already taken on the contract." Jin Enxi’s voice was tinged with delight.

Shen Qinglan spoke indifferently, "It was me."

"Oh, it was you... wait, Qinglan, did you just say the person who posted the contract was you?" Jin Enxi exclaimed in shock, nearly rolling off the sofa.

"Mhm, it was me," Shen Qinglan confirmed firmly, making sure Jin Enxi hadn’t misheard.

"Qinglan, did you... did you do this for Eden?" Jin Enxi thought for a moment, then suddenly understood.

"Not entirely." The previous scores with King hadn’t been settled yet, plus this time with Eden, she intended to settle both new and old debts together. This was still the lenient approach. If she hadn’t been physically inconvenienced at the moment, she would’ve personally finished off King.

"But Qinglan, doing this probably won’t resolve the issue with King, right?" Jin Enxi was skeptical, "People on the street don’t usually mess with King, and those who might for the money you’re offering probably don’t have the skills to tackle him. Isn’t this just wasting money?"

The corner of Shen Qinglan’s mouth curled upwards, forming a cold arc, "All I need is for them to make some trouble for King, keep him too busy to think about anything else. And while King might be difficult to handle, the others from BK aren’t quite so."

Jin Enxi immediately understood, slapping her forehead, "Qinglan, you’re the smart one. How come I never thought of this?"

"Now that you know, help me keep an eye on it. If there’s any news, let me know." Shen Qinglan instructed; starting today, she would move back to the compound. Whether at the Shen Family or the Fu Family, handling matters wouldn’t be as convenient as it was now, so she would have to rely on Jin Enxi for updates on this matter.

"No problem, leave it to me. If I don’t skin King this time, I’ll take his last name," Jin Enxi said, grinding her teeth. She had suffered at King’s hands in the past as well.

After hanging up with Jin Enxi, Shen Qinglan no longer felt sleepy and simply got out of bed, casually cooked herself a bowl of noodles, and after breakfast, she returned to the Fu Family’s home.

It was Shen Junyu who came to pick her up, "Other people bring clothes when they go home, but you, on the other hand, bring art supplies." Shen Junyu placed the items in the trunk, teasing her.

Shen Qinglan sat in the passenger seat, eyes closed, and hearing her brother’s teasing brought no reaction from her. Shen Junyu glanced over, "Didn’t sleep well last night?"

Shen Qinglan nodded, "Mhm, a bit uncomfortable."

Shen Junyu mocked his sister, "Fu Hengyi just left and you’re already uncomfortable. Indeed, a married daughter is like water thrown out."

Shen Qinglan opened her eyes and gave her brother a look, speaking faintly, "There’s a saying, ’marry a wife and forget one’s mother’. When Sister Xiyao enters the family, I wonder if you’ll still be the same," she said.

Shen Junyu immediately fell silent.

Old Sir Fu had been waiting for her since early morning, and when he saw she had returned, he immediately instructed someone to take her luggage upstairs.

Qinglan didn’t bring back many clothes, the bulk of it was her familiar painting equipment. Ever since her identity as Leng Qingqiu had been revealed, Old Sir Fu had specially set aside a studio for her at home, but Qinglan had hardly ever painted at the Fu Family’s place, so the studio had always been empty. This time, it seemed it would finally be used.

Shen Junyu helped to put away her stuff, before declining Old Sir Fu’s invitation to stay longer and went home—he had to go back today because Wen Xiyao was coming over for dinner at his house.

Fu Jingtong had gone to the hospital to take care of Gu Bowen, leaving only Qinglan and Old Sir Fu at home, plus the maid hired by Fu Hengyi and Aunt Zhao.

After Qinglan finished her lunch and was thinking about going upstairs to rest, Yu Xiaoxuan called her to invite her out for afternoon tea.

Looking at the address, she noted it wasn’t far from the compound, and she agreed to go.

When she arrived, Yu Xiaoxuan hadn’t yet made it, so Qinglan chose a corner spot to quietly wait for her, with a cup of boiled water in front of her.

The moment Yu Xiaoxuan walked in, Qinglan noticed something off about her complexion, and once Yu Xiaoxuan sat down, Qinglan could see she was quite pale.

"What’s wrong?" Qinglan asked with concern.

Yu Xiaoxuan didn’t speak but picked up the cup of water in front of Qinglan and drank the whole cup down, patted her chest, and then started to speak, "Qinglan, you have no idea, I was nearly scared to death just now."

Yu Xiaoxuan recounted the frightening incident she had just experienced.

It turned out that when Yu Xiaoxuan arrived, she found no parking near the spot, so she had to drive a bit further and park in a nearby underground garage and walked over.

Just as she was approaching the nearby street, a flower pot fell from above and smashed to the ground right in front of her. If she had walked just one second faster, the flower pot would have hit her on the head, and she would’ve been either dead or turned into an idiot.

"I don’t know who did it, leaving a flower pot on the balcony without securing it properly, not knowing their house is close to the street. What would they do if someone was killed? Today was just my lucky day; I got a phone call right in time. I took a call, and if it wasn’t for that phone call, I’d probably be in the hospital right now." Yu Xiaoxuan spoke with lingering fear.

A glimmer of light flickered through Qinglan’s eyes, "You just mentioned you were at the curb when a flower pot fell from above?"

Yu Xiaoxuan nodded, "Yeah, there’s a row of houses nearby in a residential area close to the street, right? The first floor is rented out for stores. I was just walking over when a flower pot fell down. It really scared me to death. I even looked up to see if someone accidentally knocked it down, but I didn’t see anyone on the balconies. So, I guess, it must’ve been the wind that knocked over someone’s poorly secured pot."

Yu Xiaoxuan asked the waiter to bring another cup of water and drank most of it before stopping, "I guess I’m just lucky today, my life was not meant to end. I think I should go buy a lottery ticket later, haha."

After getting the story out, Yu Xiaoxuan returned to her usual relaxed demeanor, seemingly unaffected by the incident, but Qinglan made a mental note of it.

"Oh right, Qinglan, did you know Fang Tong and Li Bomming are together?" Yu Xiaoxuan, eating the dessert the waiter had just brought, mentioned casually between bites.

Qinglan looked at her, "When did this happen?"

Yu Xiaoxuan thought for a moment, "Seems like it’s been a few days. I only found out last night when I called her. They sure moved fast, nothing seemed to be happening when you got married."

Qinglan wasn’t surprised by the news. From the first time she met Li Bomming, she had anticipated this scenario. Li Bomming liked Fang Tong and was willing to wait for her; given Fang Tong’s personality, it was only a matter of time before she was moved and thus, affected.

"In my opinion, Li Bomming is much better than Ding Minghui. With Ding Minghui being the scumbag he is, he’s only fit to be with some old lady. Qinglan, you probably don’t know, but Ding Minghui is getting a divorce now."

Shen Qinglan lifted her gaze to look at her, "What’s going on now?"

"I heard it’s because of Ding Minghui’s wife, Liu something or other, anyway, it’s that old lady. She bought a house in the city for Ding Minghui’s parents, and moved them and his sister in as well. Originally, this should have been a good thing, right? But Ding Minghui’s parents are overbearing; they wanted to live with their son and also disapproved of his wife being so much older than him, so they naturally found fault with Liu something at every turn."

"I’m guessing Ding Minghui’s parents either did something or said something, and that old lady couldn’t take it anymore, wanted to send her parents back. Ding Minghui, of course, wouldn’t agree, and so they started arguing."

"This wouldn’t really be a problem, but someone cursed to hell went and told Ding Minghui that Fang Tong is Fang Chengzhi’s daughter, and Ding Minghui made a big fuss about wanting a divorce."

"How did you find out about this?" Shen Qinglan asked her. Yu Xiaoxuan had been busy filming a new TV drama lately, so busy, according to Han Yi, that she hardly had time to sleep, yet she somehow still found time to follow the gossip about Ding Minghui.

Yu Xiaoxuan looked embarrassed, "It just so happened, you know. Someone in our crew lives right next to Ding Minghui’s place, and they know everything that goes on in that family. During lunch, they told us all about it as gossip. When I heard it, I thought it sounded a lot like Ding Minghui. Sure enough, upon asking, it was him. What are the odds?"

What a coincidence indeed, Shen Qinglan thought.

"Since Ding Minghui is no longer involved with Fang Tong, don’t bother with him anymore. Last time, I heard from Han Yi that you were planning to get engaged first. Have you picked a date?"

Speaking of this, Yu Xiaoxuan’s face darkened, "What engagement, it’s called off, my sister doesn’t want to get married anymore."

"What’s happened now?" Shen Qinglan was speechless.

Yu Xiaoxuan’s face soured, "It’s his dad’s doing. He came to talk to me specially last time, kept calling me an actress, said I was an orphan, came from a poor background, not a good match for Han Yi, forbid me from entering the Han Family door, and chewed me out in front of the whole crew."

Shen Qinglan did not expect this twist, and asked, "What’s Han Yi’s stance on this?"

"I didn’t tell him, but someone from the company did. Once he knew, he went home that same night. I don’t know what they talked about, but the next day, he was dragging me to go register our marriage. I have no clue what set him off."

Clearly, Han Yi was on Yu Xiaoxuan’s side, "So why did you refuse? After you get married, it’s unlikely that you and Han Yi would live with his father anyway, so it shouldn’t affect you much."

Yu Xiaoxuan showed a pained expression, "Qinglan, it’s not that I don’t want to be with Han Yi, I dream of marrying him, but what I want is a marriage blessed by the elders. My parents are no longer here, and my Second Uncle is the way he is, so I can’t count on him; my only relative is Han Yi. Han Yi is the most important person in my life; I want to have a complete, warm home. But with his father’s current attitude and the social status of their family, if I marry into it, what would people say about Han Yi? Even if he doesn’t care himself, I have to care."

Hearing this, Shen Qinglan understood what was in her heart, but...

"Xiao Xuan, have you sought Han Yi’s opinion on this, do you know what he thinks? A marriage with elder’s blessings is certainly good, but you can’t give up your own happiness for an elder who’s being difficult. If Han Yi’s father never agrees, could you really go without marrying your whole life?"

"How is that possible." Yu Xiaoxuan said subconsciously, "I’m just thinking since there’s still time, I want to try to mend the relationship with his father, at least not to be mutually disgusted as we are now."

Shen Qinglan’s lips curved slightly, "Admitting that you don’t like Han Yi’s father?"

Yu Xiaoxuan spread her hands, "What can I do, I’ve never met such an unlikable old man, utterly unreasonable and so full of himself. He’s also quite stubborn and doesn’t listen to anyone else’s opinions, very domineering."

Shen Qinglan had never met Han Yi’s father, but she heard about the Han Family matters from Shen Junyu. Responding to this, she said, "My advice is to listen to Han Yi. If he says to get engaged, he must have his reasons. If it’s not because of Han Yi, then don’t hesitate."

Yu Xiaoxuan nodded, "Okay, I got it Qinglan. I feel much better after talking to you. I can’t seem to stay away from you, Qinglan."

Shen Qinglan looked at her with a smile. If it had been before Yu Xiaoxuan’s parents had passed away, Shen Qinglan would naturally not have talked this much with Yu Xiaoxuan. But now, just as Han Yi’s father had said, she’s an orphan. There are things she wouldn’t discuss with Han Yi, and if she couldn’t talk to friends about them, keeping it all bottled up might do more harm than good.

"If you ever have any troubles, come to me, and don’t just keep it all bottled up inside,"

Yu Xiaoxuan nodded emphatically, "Yeah, I know. Ah, it’s such a pity you’re not a guy. If you were a guy, I’d marry you." Her tone carried a hint of regret.

"If Han Yi heard that, you’d get a lecture," Shen Qinglan teased her.

Yu Xiaoxuan’s eyes widened, "If he dares lecture me, I’ll make him kneel on durian shells, hmph."

Shen Qinglan heard this and simply smiled without a word.

Yu Xiaoxuan walked over and sat beside Shen Qinglan, staring at her belly, "I haven’t seen my godson for more than half a month now; is he being good?"

Shen Qinglan raised an eyebrow, "How do you know for sure it’s a son? It might be a daughter, you know?"

"No, it’s definitely a son," Yu Xiaoxuan said with certainty, "Qinglan, you have to trust my intuition." Her eyes rolled playfully as she continued, "But if it’s a daughter, that wouldn’t be bad either. Like you, mixed with Mr. Fu’s genes, she’d grow up to be a stunning beauty that would cause upheaval throughout the nation. Just thinking about it gets me excited."

"If you love children so much, why not have one with Han Yi? With his looks, your child would surely match all the fantasies in your heart."

Yu Xiaoxuan giggled, "Qinglan, kidding aside, I’ve actually thought about it. If it weren’t for the fact that I’m in the prime of my career right now, I might really go for it."

Shen Qinglan had just made an offhand comment, and she knew the decision maker in this was Han Yi. He had once told her that he wanted to help Yu Xiaoxuan achieve her dreams, so of course, he wouldn’t want to tie her down with such matters.

"But I’m in no rush right now," Yu Xiaoxuan said.

The two of them chatted leisurely, and time flew by unnoticed. Shen Qinglan had originally planned to have dinner with Yu Xiaoxuan outside, but after receiving a call from Old Sir Fu, she took Yu Xiaoxuan back home with her instead.

"Grandpa Fu, you seem to get younger every time I see you," Yu Xiaoxuan greeted the old man with a beaming smile.

Old Sir Fu’s face broke into a wide grin as he heard this, "Haha, this girl has such a sweet tongue. Your name is Xiaoxuan, right?"

Yu Xiaoxuan smiled and nodded, "Grandpa Fu, your memory is really good."

Old Sir Fu loved a lively atmosphere, and with Yu Xiaoxuan’s vivacious nature, the two got along quite well.

"Xiaoxuan, if I remember correctly, you’re Han Yi’s wife, right?" Old Sir Fu asked.

Yu Xiaoxuan felt somewhat embarrassed. Although she and Han Yi had been together for so long and their relationship was public knowledge, being asked by an elder still made her lower her head, "Grandpa Fu, Han Yi and I aren’t married yet."

Old Sir Fu chuckled, "Getting married is just a matter of time, right? Girl, you have good taste. Han Yi grew up with our Hengyi from childhood; I’ve watched him grow up too. He’s a good man, and you won’t regret marrying him."

Yu Xiaoxuan blushed at the elder’s words.

"Grandpa, Xiaoxuan is shy. If you keep this up, she’ll want to crawl into a hole and hide," Shen Qinglan intervened to save her friend.

Old Sir Fu laughed heartily, clearly enjoying the moment.

"Sure, Grandpa Fu, what’s so funny? I could hear your laughter from a mile away." Han Yi’s voice came from the doorway, and everyone looked over.

Old Sir Fu laughed even harder, "We were just talking about you, and here you are."

Han Yi raised an eyebrow, "Grandpa Fu, were you talking smack about me?"

Old Sir Fu nodded in mock seriousness, "Yes, yes, I was just telling Xiao Xuan about all the embarrassing things you did as a child."

"Grandpa Fu, my girlfriend is right here. You can’t be exposing people’s flaws like that," he joked. "If you scare my girlfriend away, will you compensate me with another one?"

"It’s precisely because Xiao Xuan is here that I mentioned it."

Han Yi sat down next to Yu Xiaoxuan, chatted with the old man for a while, and then left when it was time.

Yu Xiaoxuan’s car was still parked in the original underground garage and had not been driven back. But the next day, when Yu Xiaoxuan went to retrieve it, she found that someone had splashed red paint all over her car. There was even a large "die" written on the window, making Yu Xiaoxuan’s heart thump wildly.

Fortunately, Han Yi was with Yu Xiaoxuan. Seeing the situation, he quickly hugged her and then reported to the police. The police arrived quickly, but after checking the parking lot’s surveillance, they could not find any footage because Yu Xiaoxuan’s car was parked just out of camera range. In the end, they couldn’t figure out who did it, and the incident was chalked up to bad luck.

"Maybe it was some psychologically deranged person who envies the rich," Yu Xiaoxuan comforted herself, not believing that anyone was targeting her specifically.

Han Yi didn’t see it that way. After all, there were so many cars in the parking lot, yet only Yu Xiaoxuan’s car was vandalized. It didn’t add up. The event that followed seemed to confirm Han Yi’s suspicions.

After handing her car over to the towing service, Yu Xiaoxuan put the incident out of her mind and returned to her company. Just as she was about to change clothes in the break room, her assistant came in with a package.

"Sister Xuan, your delivery." Yu Xiaoxuan was puzzled, "Mine? I didn’t order anything."

The assistant grinned, "Maybe it’s a gift from a fan."

Yu Xiaoxuan thought about it and agreed since she sometimes did receive gifts from fans. Upon opening the box, the sight made her scream involuntarily.

Because of her reaction, the box fell to the floor, and its horrifying content rolled out, prompting a scream from the assistant as well, "Ah!"

Linda was on the side selecting clothes for Yu Xiaoxuan when she heard the screams. The dresses fell from her hands in shock, and her complexion turned grave when she saw what was on the floor.

Inside the box had been a skinned, blood-soaked cat, its limbs severed and separated from the body, scattered across the floor.

Yu Xiaoxuan’s face turned pale, her whole body trembling gently. Linda hugged her, whispering comforting words, "Xiao Xuan, it’s okay, don’t be scared. It’s over now."

How could Yu Xiaoxuan not be scared? Looking at the bloody scene before her, she suddenly remembered her vandalized car from that morning.

Han Yi was at the company when he heard about the incident. He rushed down from the upper floor and his face turned even grimmer than Linda’s at the sight.

"Linda, have you called the police?" Han Yi asked in a stern voice.

Linda nodded, "We’ve already called the police, they’ll be here any minute."

Han Yi led Yu Xiaoxuan to one side, keeping her from seeing the things on the ground. The police arrived quickly and, seeing the scene, it wasn’t hard for them to understand that Yu Xiaoxuan was being harassed.

"Miss Yu, have you recently offended anyone?" the police asked.

Yu Xiaoxuan shook her head. She had been busy filming lately and rarely even returned to the office. Who could she have offended?

The police asked a few other questions but didn’t get any useful information. "Miss Yu, could it have been the work of your anti-fans?"

Some anti-fans were irrational in their actions. It wasn’t surprising for celebrities to receive threatening messages from anti-fans, and Yu Xiaoxuan wasn’t the only one.

Yu Xiaoxuan’s heart was still pounding erratically, and she appeared to be in a daze.

Han Yi immediately became angry, "I called you here to investigate, not to have us make guesses, did I?

The policeman looked embarrassed, "Mr. Han, please don’t be in a hurry. We also need to clearly understand the situation first so that we can determine the direction of the investigation."

Han Yi’s face was stern, "Right now, my girlfriend is being threatened, and all you do is ask the same few questions. With this time, why aren’t you checking who sent the package?"

"One thing at a time, Mr. Han," said one of the younger, less experienced policemen. "We have our procedures, what’s the rush? Panicking won’t help. It’s important that you cooperate with our investigation so we can quickly get to the bottom of this."

Another policeman, aware of Han Yi’s status, facepalmed, wanting to knock on his colleague’s head, thinking, Are you an idiot?

He could already imagine Han Yi’s reaction. Sure enough, Han Yi’s expression grew colder, "If I were willing to cooperate, I wouldn’t be wasting so much time here with you. If you aren’t capable of handling this, get someone else who is and stop wasting everyone’s time."

The young policeman looked displeased and tried to speak, but was stopped by his colleague who smiled and said, "Mr. Han, please don’t get angry. We’ve dealt with cases like Miss Yu’s before, and usually, it’s the work of anti-fans, so that’s why we’re making such a guess."

"Lately, Xiaoxuan hasn’t done anything that would attract hate," Linda interjected. "If it was anti-fans, they probably wouldn’t wait until now to do something like this."

The police, hearing this, seemed to think Linda had a point since the celebrities who had been threatened before were usually at the center of scandals when their bad news came to light.

"Miss Yu, please think carefully. Are you sure you haven’t offended anyone recently? Or what about the past? Have you had any conflicts with anyone?" the policeman continued gently.

Han Yi kept a cold face but didn’t speak. Yu Xiaoxuan’s complexion was still somewhat pale, but her emotions were slowly stabilizing. She thought for a moment then lightly shook her head, "I can’t think of anyone, but..." She paused briefly, hesitated, and then said, "But there was some conflict with a fellow artist in our company, though that was quite some time ago."

"What’s the person’s name?"

"Su Ling." Yu Xiaoxuan uttered a name. In the past, because of Han Yi, she had had a fight with Su Ling. After that, Su Ling was put on ice by the company, then left after paying a hefty breach of contract penalty to join a rival company. Reportedly, Su Ling was now doing quite well.

The police knew who Su Ling was, as she was currently a rising star being promoted by an entertainment company.

Closing the notebook, the police said, "Alright, Miss Yu, thank you for your cooperation. We’ll go and check with Miss Su Ling and clarify the situation as soon as possible. If you remember anything else, you can call us at any time."

Yu Xiaoxuan nodded, and the police took their young colleague and left.

"Brother Zhang, this Han Yi is speaking way too arrogantly, isn’t he just some rich guy? What’s there to be proud of?" The greenhorn was still discontent with Han Yi’s recent behavior.

The policeman known as Brother Zhang smiled, "Actually, Mr. Han’s temperament is quite good. It’s just that today’s incident occurred so unexpectedly that he’s probably feeling irritated."

"That’s nothing good. I think he’s just looking down on us," the greenhorn said.

Brother Zhang chuckled, "Do you think Han Yi is an ordinary businessman? Not to mention that the Han Family itself is one of Beijing’s noble families, his own relationship with both the Shen Family and the eldest grandson of the Fu Family is very good. You’ve just joined us, there are still many things you don’t understand, and there’s a lot more for you to learn."

The greenhorn mumbled something under his breath but didn’t say anything more.

Shen Qinglan found out about the threat against Yu Xiaoxuan from the news the next day. Although the photos in the news were pixelated, she recognized Yu Xiaoxuan’s car. Considering the flowerpot that fell out of the sky the day before, Shen Qinglan felt that the situation was not as simple as the news reported.

"Enxi, it’s me, help me look into something."

*********

In a café near the compound.

Shen Qinglan listened to Jin Enxi’s words, her expression grave, "Are you saying that you can’t even trace who was behind this?"

Jin Enxi nodded, "Yes, although Yu Xiaoxuan’s car was parked in a surveillance blind spot, there are other cars in the garage. Coincidentally, there was a car with a dash cam facing Yu Xiaoxuan’s car. I contacted the owner and was allowed to watch the footage. Judging by the figure, it was a man, but he was wrapped up so tightly that I couldn’t see his face."

"The footage?"

"I brought it for you." Jin Enxi handed a USB drive to Shen Qinglan, "It also contains footage from the street near where you met Yu Xiaoxuan that day. The flowerpot aimed at Yu Xiaoxuan was indeed deliberately thrown from above, not an accident. However, based on the figure, the person looks like a woman, again covered so that their face is not visible."

"As for the express delivery, I checked the address. It was shipped from a local courier point in the city, but that particular courier point doesn’t have surveillance installed, and they were too busy that day to remember who sent it."

Shen Qinglan wore an unfathomable expression. Each incident seemed like it was done by different people, but for some reason, she had a gut feeling that it was all done by the same person.

"An, I agree with the police’s theory. Maybe it was one of Yu Xiaoxuan’s anti-fans. Some fans now are particularly irrational and are capable of doing anything."

Shen Qinglan did not express agreement or disagreement but merely said, "Let’s leave it at that for now. Thank you for your hard work, Enxi."

Jin Enxi smiled amiably, "An, there’s no need for such formalities between us. But I’ll continue to pay attention to this matter. If the anti-fan tries anything again, I’m sure I’ll catch them."

"Mhmm, how’s Eden doing?"

"I just contacted Eden yesterday. He’s fine, except his right hand was seriously injured. He won’t be able to have surgery in the near future, but it shouldn’t affect his recovery later on."

That was a piece of relatively good news among the misfortune. Eden was a medical maniac; being unable to hold a scalpel would be more painful for him than death.

"An, let me tell you some good news." Jin Enxi looked around and lowered her voice, "One of King’s main henchmen was chopped."

Hearing this, a hint of a smile finally appeared in Shen Qinglan’s eyes, "That is indeed good news."

"These past few days, BK’s people have been continuously attacked by others, and several people have been injured. King is furious, he’s currently investigating the person who issued the tasks, but don’t worry, he definitely won’t be able to trace it back to you."

Shen Qinglan wasn’t worried about this at all since the website itself protected the privacy of both those who posted tasks and those who accepted them. Even King wouldn’t be able to easily obtain that information, especially with Jin Enxi involved.

"King wasn’t injured?"

Jin Enxi spoke with regret, "No, he’s still leaping around, alive and well."

Shen Qinglan wasn’t surprised at all, "Keep an eye on it, and if necessary, continue to increase the reward." A hefty reward brings out the brave.

Jin Enxi nodded, chatted with Shen Qinglan a little longer, and then left. Shen Qinglan slowly walked home, but when she was still a distance away from the courtyard, a car suddenly sped towards her. Shen Qinglan quickly dodged to the side, avoiding being hit. She watched the departing car intently, and after making out the license plate number, she immediately called Jin Enxi.

Hearing the news, Jin Enxi cursed, "An, are you okay?"

"I’m fine. Can you help me check who owns that car?"

Jin Enxi agreed, and after Shen Qinglan returned home, she didn’t mention the incident.

She sat on the balcony, her mind preoccupied with the recent events around her. Apart from Eden’s case which King was behind, from her uncle to Yu Xiaoxuan, to herself, these events seemed unconnected, yet they were like a net surrounding her. As for who exactly was the target behind this net, Shen Qinglan was still unclear.

**********

In a high-end apartment in Beijing, a man was on the phone again, but this time, he was visibly irate, "It was you who said you would teach Shen Qinglan a lesson. But look at the situation now. Has Shen Qinglan suffered any harm? Her family and friends are still jumping around happily, while I, on the other hand, am like a homeless dog, forced to hide in this dark place without daring to show my face."

The person on the other end of the phone said something, and the man grew even more agitated, "Don’t talk to me about patience; I have none. Shen Qinglan destroyed me and my family. I want Shen Qinglan dead... I’ll give you three more days. If someone close to Shen Qinglan isn’t dead by then, it’ll be your turn to die."

The man smashed his phone and grabbed a bottle of alcohol from the table, guzzling it down. Staring at the photograph on the wall, a hideous expression crossed his face, he suddenly threw the bottle against the wall, "Shen Qinglan, Yu Xiaoxuan, Han Yi, Shen Junyu, you all go to hell, to hell!"

His hand held a fruit knife, which he plunged repeatedly into Shen Qinglan’s photo until it was completely shredded.

***********

Wen Xiyao visited the Fu Family to see Shen Qinglan and found her lying on a lounge chair on the balcony, sunbathing with closed eyes, "Ah, you really live a comfortable life."

Shen Qinglan opened her eyes, met Wen Xiyao’s envious gaze, and smiled slightly, "You can have this kind of life at any time; it’s not my fault if you don’t want it."

Wen Xiyao laughed. She had said it in passing and now sat down beside Shen Qinglan, "I actually came to ask you for a favor today."

Shen Qinglan looked up at her, "Sister Xiyao, just tell me if there’s anything you need."

Wen Xiyao began, "It’s like this, my father really appreciates Mr. Zhang Haifeng’s paintings, and his birthday is coming up soon. I’d like to purchase one of Mr. Haifeng’s pieces for him, but the artist rarely paints these days, and I don’t know him personally. I heard that Daniel is quite familiar with him, so I was hoping maybe Daniel could help procure a painting from Mr. Haifeng."

Shen Qinglan sat up from the lounge chair, "I’ll call Daniel right now." With that, she took out her phone and called Daniel.