Chapter 2: Are You Playing Tricks on Me?

“I didn’t fill it in at random—this is the number I want!”
“Mr. Lin, I’m not sure if you truly grasp the concept of money. Twelve digits is an astronomical sum, enough to turn an ordinary person into a world-class billionaire overnight. Do you really think a piece of paper is worth that much?” Xu Qingcheng’s expression was frosty.

“Absolutely worth it! Having a beauty like you as my wife is worth every penny in my eyes!” Lin Yu replied earnestly.

For a moment, Xu Qingcheng couldn’t tell if Lin Yu was truly serious or simply mocking her.

“Mr. Lin, you should know that forced marriages never end well. And what you hold is merely a childhood promise made by elders. It carries no legal weight. If my family chooses not to acknowledge it, it’s nothing but a worthless scrap of paper.”

Lin Yu smiled. “Miss Xu, you’re right, it is just a piece of paper. But I believe your family values this promise—or you wouldn’t have come looking for me, would you?”

Lin Yu’s words rang true. Given her current status in the Xu family, if her grandfather hadn’t emphasized the importance of this engagement, she would never have come here today.

“So, there’s really no room for negotiation?” Xu Qingcheng tried one last time.

Lin Yu shook his head. “Of course not. The price I want is one you’re unwilling to pay. Isn’t every deal about mutual consent?”

“I hope you don’t regret your refusal today!” Xu Qingcheng spat her words with reluctance.

“After you, Miss Xu. I need to tend to the villagers’ ailments, so I won’t see you off.”

Xu Qingcheng barely contained her anger as she turned and left, slamming the car door with force to vent her frustration.

As she shut the door, a group of burly men—seven or eight of them, armed with sticks and knives—suddenly emerged from hiding and quickly surrounded her car.

The leader, a burly man with a face full of scars and a thick gold chain around his neck, sneered mockingly. “Miss Xu, you’ve really made our wait worthwhile. We finally caught you without your bodyguards.”

“Who are you people? How dare you stand in my way?” Xu Qingcheng’s gaze was icy. Despite being outnumbered, not a trace of panic appeared in her eyes.

“Miss Xu, I suggest you get out and come with us quietly. Otherwise, my brothers might get rough, and it’d be a shame if your delicate beauty were harmed,” the gold-chained man threatened, hefting the stick in his hand.

“I don’t know who sent you, but you should consider whether you can bear the consequences of your actions,” Xu Qingcheng replied with composure.

“We’re used to living on the edge, Miss Xu. Someone paid, so we do the job! Enough with the talk—get out, or don’t blame us for being ruthless!” was the final threat from the gold-chained leader.

Xu Qingcheng knew that escape was unlikely today.

Most people might try to lock the doors, call for help, or stall for time, but she knew there was no time to delay. She judged that these men were after money and wouldn’t dare harm her seriously.

She opened the door and stepped out, her brows furrowed, her gaze as cold as ice.

“Well, Miss Xu, you’re quite the clever one. You know when to yield,” the gold-chained man remarked with a mocking smile.

“Three seconds. Get out of my sight.”

A voice rang out!

Lin Yu, who had witnessed everything, spoke up.

The gold-chained man and his men turned toward Lin Yu, drawn by his voice.

“Boy, have you sold so much fake medicine that you’ve lost your mind? Heroic rescue? Take a good look at yourself!” The gold-chained man sneered, prompting a chorus of laughter from his lackeys.

“One!”

The gold-chained man hadn’t expected anyone to be so reckless. His face twisted with malice. “Kid, don’t meddle in things that don’t concern you. Go back to selling your fake medicine. This isn’t your business.”

“Two!”

“Damn it, you must be tired of living. You have no idea—”

Smack!

The gold-chained man was sent flying like a broken kite, crashing heavily to the ground.

“Take him out!”

His henchmen raised their blades and charged at Lin Yu.

Before they could reach him, Lin Yu dashed forward with the speed of an arrow.

He kicked out, sending the first few attackers flying.

With a flurry of crisp slaps, several more were sent sprawling.

In a swift motion, Lin Yu snatched a stick from one of the men.

In less than half a minute, every single thug who had charged at him was knocked to the ground—some clutching their swollen, twisted faces, others groaning in agony as they held their injured legs.

The gold-chained man, witnessing the miserable state of his men, lost all his former arrogance. Fear swept over him, sweat beading on his forehead as his body trembled uncontrollably.

He’d spent years living dangerously, but never had he encountered someone this formidable.

“You’re finished, kid. You’ve made a big mistake…” he tried to bluster.

“Worthless men always talk too much.”

“Ah!”

A scream rang out.

Without anyone noticing, Lin Yu had already closed in, seizing the gold-chained man’s wrist.

Crack!

A crisp snap, and the weapon clattered to the ground.

But Lin Yu wasn’t finished—he yanked the gold-chained man forward, slamming his fist into the man’s face.

Thud.

Blood spurted from his nose.

Xu Qingcheng, always calm in the face of danger, could not keep her composure at the sight.

She could scarcely believe what had just unfolded before her eyes. Even the international bodyguards her family had hired at great expense likely couldn’t match this man’s ferocity. Her gaze toward Lin Yu shifted from anger to a glimmer of admiration.

Lin Yu, oblivious to Xu Qingcheng’s changed demeanor, dragged the gold-chained man and tossed him at her feet.

“He’s all yours,” Lin Yu said, dusting off his hands.

Xu Qingcheng’s expression turned even colder as she stared at the man, now bleeding from every orifice. “Speak. Who sent you?”

The gold-chained man, terrified and incoherent, knelt and banged his head on the ground, unable to utter a clear word.

Lin Yu produced a silver needle and jabbed it into the man’s neck.

“Spare me, Miss Xu! Please, have mercy!” the gold-chained man pleaded, finally able to speak.

“Name!”

“It was Manager Li… He sent us to track and kidnap you, Miss Xu!” Blood streaming from his head, the man no longer cared about betraying his employer as he begged for his life.

At the mention of Manager Li, Xu Qingcheng’s face grew even colder.

“Miss Xu, we were just following orders. We had nothing to do with this!” the gold-chained man stammered.

“Go back and tell Li Xiaobao that I, Xu Qingcheng, will personally destroy his family. Instead of plotting these despicable schemes, he’d be better off thinking about how to save them. Now get lost!”

The gold-chained man, terrified out of his wits, scrambled away, not even daring to help his men up as they all fled for their lives.