"Just now, was it a dream?"
Qin Chuan gasped for breath, his entire body drenched in sweat.
He felt the scenes in his dream were incredibly familiar, as if they were memories etched deep within his mind.
Thinking of his sister still in the hospital, he quickly dismissed the absurd thoughts in his mind.
"This apartment has already been transferred to that bitch's brother, now I can only think of other ways to raise the treatment fees."
Qin Chuan wiped away his tears and got up to leave.
"Uncle Wang, can you lend me some money? Qin Nian's condition is really bad, if I can't gather enough for the treatment, the hospital will stop..."
Qin Chuan dialed the first number, but before he could finish speaking, the call was abruptly hung up. By the time he called back, he had already been blocked.
He dialed another number, and this time the response was even more ruthless. As soon as he mentioned borrowing money, he was immediately cursed out, "Why should I care if your sister is seriously ill? If she can't afford the hospital, then just wait for death!"
With trembling hands, Qin Chuan dialed number after number until he had gone through the last contact in his phonebook. Without exception, they all refused him.
"Ah!"
His emotions collapsed completely, and he slumped onto the cold ground, clutching his head in agony.
As he lowered his head, he saw a business card, and the content on it deeply attracted him.
"Need money urgently? Contact us, no collateral needed, high loan limits, same day disbursement!"
Driven to desperation, Qin Chuan hesitated no further and immediately called the number on the business card.
Twenty minutes later, at the Night Color Tavern.
Qin Chuan sat at the bar, looking around at the flamboyantly dressed crowd, feeling completely out of place.
This was the place the other party had agreed to meet. If it weren't for the loan, he feared he would never come here in his lifetime.
At that moment, a middle-aged man with a flashy dress sense appeared. He was wearing a beige shirt, a leather wristband watch, and had a flame tattoo on his neck.
Qin Chuan's heart leaped with joy—wasn't this Hei Hu, the person he was looking for?
After he dialed the loan number, the other side had described Hei Hu's attire and the meeting place to him.
"Beauty, are you alone? Can I buy you a drink?"
Just as Qin Chuan was about to step forward, he saw Hei Hu holding a crystal glass filled with alcohol, smilingly offering it to a young woman at the opposite side of the bar.
In the dim light, the woman's long black hair cascaded over her shoulders, a few strands covering her bright eyes. She looked up to disengage from the stranger flirting with her, brushing away the loose strands to reveal a face so stunning it took one's breath away.
The woman furrowed her brows, rejecting him without a hint of courtesy, "Get lost!"
"If the beauty drinks this glass with me, I'll leave. How about it?"
Hei Hu was not deterred by the rejection but instead became more insistent, sitting next to the woman.
Qin Chuan, who was observing them, suddenly had his pupils contract. Hei Hu, taking advantage of the woman's inattention, slid a pill hidden between his fingers into her glass.
Even though it was Qin Chuan's first time in such a place, he understood that once the woman drank from that glass, she would become Hei Hu's prey.
Her long eyelashes were slightly damp, clearly having just cried, and her pale cheeks were faintly flushed, indicating that she was somewhat intoxicated.
Apparently not wanting to be entangled any further, she gave Hei Hu a cold look, picked up the glass, and was about to down it in one gulp.
"Wait a minute!"
Finally, Qin Chuan stood up.
Hei Hu's vicious eyes shot towards Qin Chuan as he said coldly, "If you don't want to die, then get the hell out of here!"
Qin Chuan quickly stepped forward, under the surprised gaze of the woman, and snatched the glass from her hand, gulping it down.
"Sorry, she's my friend. I'll drink this glass for her."
Putting down the glass, Qin Chuan's gaze dodged, not daring to meet Hei Hu's eyes.
"You're seeking death!"
Hei Hu paused for a moment before he reacted, and with a "bang", slammed the crystal glass forcefully onto the ground.
All at once, the clamorous bar fell silent as everyone turned to look in their direction.
"Brother Hu, what happened?"
Several flashy-dressed thugs gathered around, each one looking menacingly at Qin Chuan.
Qin Chuan was dumbfounded, having thought he'd only need to face Hei Hu alone, not expecting that there would be so many of his brothers.
Against so many, he feared he wouldn't be able to beat them even if he fought with his life.
But at that moment, his mind was suddenly filled with the image of his sister lying in the hospital bed, and his fiancée who had betrayed him.
The unfairness of his fate twisted his expression gradually.
"Bang!"
To everyone's surprise, Qin Chuan fiercely picked up a bar stool and slammed it against the bar.
"Whoever dares come over, I'll kill you!"
Qin Chuan roared angrily, as if venting all the grievances in his heart.
Hei Hu roared with fury and, with a command, shouted, "Damn! Daring to start trouble on my turf, kill him for me!"
Looking at the dozen or so burly men charging at him, Qin Chuan's mind suddenly filled with countless ways to kill these people, which startled him for a moment.
These memories...
At that moment, the leading thug had already raised his stick high, bringing it crashing down viciously towards Qin Chuan's head.
"Watch out!"
Seeing that Qin Chuan was still dazed, the long-haired beauty he had saved cried out in alarm.
"Crack!"
The sound of a joint breaking resonated.
Qin Chuan's right hand was tightly gripping the thug's wrist, and a cold glint flickered in his eyes as he suddenly lifted his leg, ramming his knee brutally into the thug's abdomen.
"Boom!"
To the amazement of all those present, the thug was sent flying through the air, knocking over several others behind him.
At this moment, the room fell into a dead silence!
A man weighing about eighty or ninety kilograms had been sent flying by a single knee strike, even knocking out three other robust men. Was this guy even human?
"Let's go!"
Qin Chuan swept a cold glance over Hei Hu and the others and, taking the still-stunned long-haired beauty by the hand, strode away.
It wasn't until Qin Chuan had left the bar with the long-haired beauty that everyone came back to their senses. One of the minions said to Hei Hu, "Brother Hu, are we really just going to let them walk away like that?"
Hei Hu's profound gaze locked onto the bar's exit, and after a moment of silence, he said in a deep voice, "This young man is no simple matter. All of us combined are no match for him."
"Brother Hu, that's impossible, right? There are so many of us, just him alone, and he even has a burden with him..."
Before the lackey could finish, Hei Hu coldly interjected, "Shut up! If you see this young man again, treat him with the utmost respect! This is the kind of person that we should befriend, not make an enemy out of!"
Meanwhile, outside the Night Color Bar.
"Hi, I'm Xiao Mengyi!"
The long-haired beauty looked at Qin Chuan, her face full of gratitude, "Thank you for back there!"
A gust of wind blew and Xiao Mengyi was completely sobered up. Thinking back on the events that had just transpired, she felt a wave of fright.
Qin Chuan hadn't actually heard Xiao Mengyi's words. At this moment, it was as if a strong, evil flame were burning inside of him, giving him an urge to press this breathtaking woman against him and ravish her.
"What's wrong with you?"
At this point, Xiao Mengyi also realized something was off about Qin Chuan, and her delicate face was filled with worry.
"That drink, it was spiked! Don't worry about me! You get out of here!"
After speaking, Qin Chuan stumbled away. He felt terribly uncomfortable and just wanted to get away as quickly as possible.
"How could I just leave you like this when you became like this because of me?"
Seeing Qin Chuan walking away, Xiao Mengyi quickly chased after him.
At this time, Qin Chuan, holding onto the last shred of his consciousness, knew he had to stay away from this woman, or else she would be in danger!
However, the drug was strong, and he was so weak that he simply couldn't push Xiao Mengyi away.
Five minutes later, Xiao Mengyi took Qin Chuan to a nearby hotel.
As soon as they entered, Qin Chuan rushed into the bathroom allowing the cold water to drench his body.
At that moment, Xiao Mengyi's phone rang. Seeing the caller ID, her face turned pale.
"Xiao Yi, you've been away from the provincial city for some time. It's time to come home!"
"Today, Chen Kun has been officially named as the heir. Marry him, and you'll be the future Family Head's wife of the Chen Family!"
"At that time, the status of our Xiao Family will also rise. Daughter, the future of the Xiao Family depends on you."
As the phone connected, a middle-aged woman's voice came through.
Xiao Mengyi spoke with red eyes, "No matter when, all you think about are the family's interests. When will you consider what I want?"
The middle-aged woman sighed, "Xiao Yi, mom knows you don't want to be a sacrificial pawn in a family alliance, but since you were born into the Xiao Family, you can only accept all this. This is your fate!"
"Besides, today your father has finalized the discussions with the Chen Family. Next month, we will hold the engagement ceremony for you!"
...
After hanging up, Xiao Mengyi's face was already covered with tears.
Suddenly, she looked towards the bathroom with a determined gaze.
"Rather than marry a man I detest, I might as well give my most precious thing to a man I don't dislike."
Her eyes were red with resentment, and then she gave herself a reasonable excuse, "Consider it a way of repaying him for saving me!"
With that, she slowly raised her hands, undoing the buttons at her neckline, her clothes slipping off piece by piece—her bare back, slender waist, perky bottom, long legs...
Barefoot with long hair flowing, she looked like a perfect work of art developed by a world-class sculptor, as she gracefully walked towards the bathroom.