After Being Betrayed I Married the Glamorous CEO-Chapter 268 - 266: This Woman, So Vicious?!
To target me, Wen Ruyue, have they invested too much? Is this a plan to take me out in one fell swoop? Wen Ruyue even wondered what merits she possessed to make Shen Fanyun go to such lengths against her. Isn't he taking a celebrity like her a bit too seriously?
HISS! HISS!
Wen Ruyue took a deep breath, her face twitching involuntarily again.
She hadn't dared to tell Long Qingwen about Qin Lie. She suspected that the moment she mentioned him, Long Qingwen would lose his composure. Besides, if she accidentally scared Long Qingwen away, causing him to wash his hands of her and ignore her completely, who else would stand up for her?
The die was cast. Wen Ruyue had no choice but to bite the bullet and drag Long Qingwen down this dark path with her to the very end. Perhaps Shen Fanyun wasn't as frightening as she imagined? In any case, they had both come this far. Admitting defeat would only lead to a worse outcome. It would mean personally destroying her own prospects and future. Not only would she vanish from the entertainment industry, but she might not even be able to keep her life.
"Boss Long, you're a man of the world, an influential figure. That kid, no matter how mysterious he seems, won't stand a single round against you."
"I believe... I'm certain Boss Long will protect me."
"Boss Long, I was out of line just now," she continued, subtly flattering him. "My mind wandered, but I truly didn't mean to doubt your strength!"
As expected, Long Qingwen's expression softened. His hand brushed over the back of Wen Ruyue's, and he gave a lecherous smile. "Don't worry. With me here, not even the emperor himself could bully you!"
"Do you really think I, Long Qingwen, am a pushover?"
Wen Ruyue feigned immense surprise, but only she knew what she was truly thinking.
After their discussion, Long Qingwen decided to formally set up a meeting. He would take the initiative and host, inviting Shen Fanyun to talk things over.
He refused to believe it. How could he, an illustrious figure from Capital City, be no match for Shen Fanyun? Be suppressed by a minor character from Hangcheng City? That would be utterly preposterous! If Shen Fanyun were really that formidable, why wasn't he making a name for himself in Capital City? Why wasn't he trying to dominate there instead of hiding away in a small place like Hangcheng City?
"Alright, if there's nothing else, you two can head back," Long Qingwen said with a wave of his hand, dismissing Yuan Zhao and Hu Meng.
The two nodded obsequiously. After bidding farewell to Long Qingwen and Wen Ruyue, they promptly left.
「In the first-floor lobby.」
The pair had been silent the entire way down. They exchanged a glance, each seeing the panic and unease in the other's eyes.
"B-Boss, what do we do now?" Hu Meng spoke first, her voice hoarse and on the verge of tears. It wasn't that she couldn't handle pressure. But tonight's casual chat, far from easing her mind, had left her utterly terrified. "Did we... did we make the wrong choice? One misstep, and the consequences will be unimaginable."
Hu Meng's nerves were shot. This battle between gods was pure torture for two insignificant people like them. She even started to think they should just bite the bullet and accept Shen Fanyun's proposal. After all, this whole storm started because we took money to unscrupulously and shamelessly slander, defame, and attack Lu Feiyan. Isn't it perfectly reasonable to apologize and make amends? Admitting your mistakes and apologizing is simply the right thing to do!
"No," Yuan Zhao said, shaking his head. He had carefully weighed the options. "Apologizing is the easy part. I'm afraid of completely and irreversibly offending Wen Ruyue.
"Besides, she has Long Qingwen backing her now. If we apologize, and it turns out that Shen guy is no match for Long Qingwen, he'll definitely come after us to settle the score."
Yuan Zhao clutched his head, a headache brewing. This whole affair was getting more and more complicated.
The key was that Shen Fanyun's methods were not to be underestimated. He beat them up, then let them go, forcing them to make their own choice. He'd thought they had escaped a disaster, but now it was clear Shen Fanyun was using a top-tier form of torture. He was boiling the frog slowly, bleeding them out bit by bit. His goal was to destroy them psychologically, to shatter their mental state.
Hu Meng mused, "But what if even Long Qingwen isn't a match for that Shen guy? Then won't we be crushed all the same? It seems like we're dead either way, doesn't it?"
Hu Meng was terrified. When she first took the money, she had been overjoyed, thinking she was making some easy extra cash without any responsibility or risk. It was even a huge boost to her career advancement. A deal that good, like killing three birds with one stone, might not come along once in several years. How could she not have been smug about it? Now, it felt like a complete suicide mission! This feeling of being targeted, of enduring constant psychological torment, was more than any person could bear.
"Boss," Hu Meng said, looking at Yuan Zhao with a pleading gaze. "You have to make a decision. We can't just wait around to die.
"Either we confess and admit our mistake, or we follow Wen Ruyue down this dark path to the end. We have to make a final choice. This indecisiveness... this wavering... I really can't take it anymore."
Yuan Zhao sighed helplessly. How was he supposed to make a choice in a situation like this? They weren't prominent, famous figures like Long Qingwen. Their words carried no weight. They were just driftwood, swept along by the current.
"Go home and get some rest. We'll see what the situation is tomorrow," Yuan Zhao said, spreading his hands, his face a mask of utter despair.
If it weren't for this mess, my life as the big boss of a media company would be so comfortable. But now? Why did I have to get involved in such sordid business? Being targeted like this... it's entirely my own fault. I deserve it!
"Rest?" Hu Meng gave a self-deprecating laugh. Ever since Shen Fanyun had found them, she hadn't had a single peaceful night's sleep. She was constantly worried she'd wake up with a knife at her throat. The worst part was that she had no idea how long this unbearable torment would last. Over the past couple of days, she felt she was on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
「...」
At this moment, Shen Fanyun was still at the Cloud Hotel, enjoying a sweet moment with Li Huanhuan, when he received a call from Zhan Feng. A moment later, a file was placed on his desk.
It was a dossier on Wen Ruyue's activities over the past few years. The information was incredibly detailed, the kind of thing an ordinary person could never uncover. Only a person like Shen Fanyun could so easily obtain whatever he wanted.
He flipped it open. Shen Fanyun had only skimmed a few lines before the contents caused a surging killing intent to rise within him.
"This woman... she's done so many evil things. Truly unforgivable," Shen Fanyun muttered, lighting a cigarette with a sharp flick. His expression was dark and grim.
"This is..." Li Huanhuan murmured, leaning over to look. Her expression was one of bewilderment. She's so vicious?
