Beauty's Slaughter

[Print edition signed; follow publication updates on Weibo @Ling Qi] [Please leave a five-star rating in the bottom right corner. Please check out my other works, "Submerged in Jinggang" and "Addicted to You" too, mwah~] 1. Five years ago, Las Vegas. A night of partying that lasted until dawn. Xie Qingman stumbled into the scene of a criminal deal. Just as she was discovered, a gun barrel pressed coldly against her forehead. "Don't move." At the brink of disaster, with life and death hanging in the balance, a young man, smelling faintly of alcohol, grabbed her slender neck and lifted her up. His expression was cold. "Didn't I tell you to wait for me in the car? You're so disobedient." The young man had neat short hair and a tall, straight figure. Half his face was hidden in shadow. "She's with me. No need for you gentlemen to worry. I'm taking her with me." Thanks to fate's mercy, the criminal gang was caught in its entirety, and Xie Qingman made it out safely. She locked away that memory from her youth. Five years later, amid dazzling lights and extravagant indulgence. The world said that the Ye family's man could turn the clouds with one hand and the rain with the other, controlling the fates of countless people. He was the untouchable "godfather" of the capital. Unfortunately, he was cold and aloof, and kept his distance from women. All the women who threw themselves at him ended up disappointed, ruining their own futures for nothing. The truth was, Xie Qingman had been living with him day and night for two years. At a banquet, she accidentally spilled wine all over him. Everyone watched Ye Yansheng's face darken, thinking she had gone too far with her shameless pursuit of him, and waited for the show to begin. Only Xie Qingman saw the familiar face of the man beside her in bed begin to overlap with the figure from her memories. Sobered up in an instant, she was filled with dread. Her [half-restored memories began to get jumbled] Oh my god, isn't this the criminal from back then? 2. The next time Xie Qingman saw Ye Yansheng was at Tanzhe Temple in western Beijing. Incense smoke drifted around them outside the Guanyin Hall, Buddhist chants echoed, and the first snow began to fall. For once, the two of them shared a rare moment of peace. It was a world away from that night in Hong Kong. Ye Yansheng gazed at her with dark eyes. His voice was husky, making her tremble all over. "A Yin, be good. Get on." A gun pressed against her in the passenger seat of a Koenigsegg, a stranger who moved with lightning speed outside a cemetery, a burner of fragrant medicine in a courtyard house on Fuyou Street, a passionate night in a villa on Barker Road... From the very first time they met, Xie Qingman knew she shouldn't have gotten involved with him at all He was a dangerous, unpredictable factor. But people want too much from life. Power is a cage, fame and fortune a net. Even without anyone laying a trap, she would have walked right into it, hoping to lure him into her own cage. ◆ A volatile, powerful man from the capital × a calculating beauty from Hong Kong. [Family Feud | Adversaries | Unconventional Sugar Daddy | Feigned Feelings and True Love | Takes Her by Force After Their Falling-Out | Gunfight Abroad] The events from five years ago are recalled as a misunderstanding, an accident. Brother Sheng was assisting with a mission, and now he's inherited the family business. The heroine is a temporarily down-on-her-luck heiress from Hong Kong who will reclaim everything later. [Bonus Scenes] 1. At the annual banquet, Xie Qingman wore a long dress that accentuated her slender waist and graceful figure. Drunk, she mistook Ye Yansheng for someone bothering her. "Get lost. Leave me alone." Later, one day, Ye Yansheng gripped her chin and pinned her in front of a mirror. His low voice held an unintentional huskiness and sensuality. "Stand steady. Hold on." 2. One day, an anonymous post broke the news, rocketing to the top of the trending list: Xie Qingman was seen accompanying two big shots from Zhonghai and T&C late at night. Did she find herself a sugar daddy, or are they cousins? Her rivals fanned the flames, and rumors spread all over the internet. As everyone fought over the story, before Xie Qingman could respond, Zhonghai and T&C spoke up in turn [Zhonghai International V]: Taking our young lady home. Don't tag us. [T&C Group V]: Taking our future Mrs. Boss home. The boss is trying to win her back. Gossip accounts, please watch what you say and show some mercy. Don't make things harder for our boss, or we'll see you in court. The whole internet erupted. ◎ Of all the ambitions in the world, you are the greatest., Ye Yansheng [Weibo @Ling Qi] [Saved October 21, 2018] Next book: "Summer in Beijing Is Not Over" [Gathering place for the capital's powerful families | Ensemble Cast | Unconventional Top Student and School Bully | Enemies Should Sleep Together] 1. A late-summer downpour. Yu Yuan ran into Jiang Huaiyan at a convenience store. The boy had neat short hair and sharply defined features. She was sheltering under the eaves from the rain. He leaned against the glass door, waiting for someone, looking a little impatient. The moment their eyes met, the boy raised an eyebrow, braced one hand on the counter, and leaned toward her. His dark, sharp eyes fixed on her. "Hey, have we met somewhere before?" Yu Yuan's heart skipped a beat, but she immediately looked away, expressionless. "No." This really wasn't the first time they'd met. By romance-novel logic, a summer night, a sudden downpour, and an accidental glance were all the perfect ingredients for youthful romance. But half a month earlier, at Xiangshan Park, she had accidentally thrown him over her shoulder. Now she suspected he was looking for revenge. Even worse, for a long time to come, not only would she be in the same class as him, she would have to live with him too. 2. At the eight-school league sports meet, Jiang Huaiyan made it through the 100-meter military obstacle course in 17 seconds, instantly becoming a legend. The midsummer sun blazed, cicadas chirped without pause, and the reckless, carefree young man brought the whole crowd to its feet. While cheers and congratulations surrounded him, he dodged the school newspaper's camera crew. Holding the drone he'd won as first prize, he nodded toward the third-place winner and asked lazily, "Want to trade?" The third-place winner looked down at the enormous octopus plushie in his hands, as if a pie had just fallen from the sky. "Trade, trade, absolutely!" That night, a bolded post went viral on the Jingfu forum: [Shocking! The big shot gave up his drone. He actually likes fluffy octopus plushies, and it's pink!!!] From then on, the story that the Jingfu school bully liked pink plushies was passed around for years. Until many years later, someone found that very pink plushie, with its name printed on it, in the home of Jiang Huaiyan's archenemy, Yu Yuan. And just then, a lazy voice came from the upstairs bedroom: "Baby, you stood me up after we agreed on a time, and only came back now. Tell me, how should I punish you tonight?" The villa fell silent. Oh my god, do you two enemies have to risk everything, sacrifice yourselves, and sleep together whenever you want to get back at each other? Theme: At first sight, you took my breath away. To have met you is a blessing for three lifetimes.