Marriage Seduction Addiction

As he spoke, Yan Fengqi grabbed half of her face with one hand, while the blade in his other hand slowly pressed against her face.

He had been playing with the blade in his hand for a long time, and it should have been warmed by his body heat, but when it touched him, it was still chillingly cold.

When the blade was placed on a sheep, Qiao Ling trembled with fear and felt suffocated.

But at this moment, she miraculously calmed down.

Simply because I knew what I would face if I came back.

Before actually experiencing it, you might feel apprehensive, but once the moment actually arrives, there's nothing to be afraid of.

She raised her eyes, meeting Yan Fengqi's unreadable gaze, and said softly, "I lied to you, so it's fair that you killed me."

Upon hearing her say that, Yan Fengqi suddenly increased the force of the hand that was pinching her face, almost crushing her in his hand, forcing her to raise her face high and be controlled by him in an extremely uncomfortable position.

Seeing the fleeting pain in her eyes, Yan Fengqi laughed again, repeatedly rubbing the blade in his hand against Qiao Ling's face. "You're not even afraid of death. What conditions did Yan Shiyu offer you that made you so resolute? Or did someone else offer you some conditions, or are they trying to find out something about me?"

Upon hearing his words, Qiao Ling froze for a moment.

In that moment of distraction, Yan Fengqi tightened his grip, forcing her to look at him again.

"Isn't it a bit late to come up with an answer now?" he said in a hoarse voice. "Didn't the person who sent you here have already thought of an answer for you beforehand?"

After a long while, Qiao Ling finally replied: "No one sent me."

"Oh?" Yan Fengqi's eyes lit up with a smile again. "Then what do you want from me?"

Qiao Ling's eyes flickered for a moment before she slowly said, "Didn't you want to kill me? I've come back to let you get your revenge."

Yan Fengqi's eyes flickered, his smile appearing and disappearing intermittently. He stared at the face he hadn't seen for two years for a long time before speaking in a low voice: "Don't worry, I definitely will. Tell me, how do you want to die?"

"However you feel best, let me die the way you want," Qiao Ling said.

"It seems you're really eager to die... Do you think I'll give in to your wishes so easily?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Yan Fengqi suddenly released his grip, threw her aside, and then stood up and called out, "Yan Ming!"

Soon, Yan Ming hurriedly entered the room. When he arrived at the bathroom door, he frowned and glanced at the scene inside. He didn't dare to step in without permission. "Mr. Yan."

"Take her away and lock her up." Yan Fengqi looked down at the woman who was still sitting on the ground holding a sheep.

Yan Ming lowered his eyes slightly: "Miss Qiao, please."

Qiao Ling's chin was already marked with red marks from Yan Fengqi's pinching, showing how much force Yan Fengqi had used. However, she seemed not to feel anything and calmly got up from the ground, preparing to leave with Yan Ming.

"The cat stays."

As they brushed past each other, Yan Fengqi spoke again.

Qiao Ling turned around abruptly and met his gaze, only to see a cold smile in Yan Fengqi's eyes. "You don't think I would let it stay with you, do you?"

Qiao Ling did not struggle, looked away, and put a sheep on the ground.

However, as soon as his limbs touched the ground, a sheep immediately came to Yan Fengqi's feet and gently grabbed his trouser leg as if being affectionate.

Yan Fengqi ignored him.

It wasn't until Qiao Ling followed Yan Ming out that he finally looked down at a sheep at his feet, then bent down and reached out his hand.

A sheep immediately and skillfully jumped onto his arm.

When Yan Fengqi stood up straight again, a sheep was already nestled peacefully in his arms.

Yan Fengqi gently stroked its nape, his gaze fixed on the ethereal void, listening to the fading footsteps, while a strange, almost morbid flush slowly spread across the corners of his eyes—

He looked down at a sheep, his gaze lingering on the spot where its beard had just been shaved. His pale, bony fingers gently traced the area, and when he spoke again, his voice was low, hoarse, and trembling, as if brimming with barely concealed excitement—

"Finally, this is going to be fun, isn't it?"

On the other side, Yan Ming led Qiao Ling out of the suite and to the door of the adjacent room. He opened the door, turned to her, and said, "Miss Qiao, please."

Before her was an ordinary hotel room. Qiao Ling walked in slowly, but couldn't help turning back to look at him again.

Yan Ming seemed to know what she wanted to ask and said, "Don't worry, Mr. Yan wouldn't hurt a sheep, otherwise he wouldn't have kept it by his side for two years."

Qiao Ling nodded slightly after hearing this, but then asked, "Is he... still unable to sleep?"

Yan Ming paused for a moment before saying, "Not only can I not sleep, but I can't even eat."

Qiao Ling paused upon hearing this, "You can't even eat?"

Yan Ming said, "When I was out, I had to see other people, so I relied on nutritional injections to get by, and that was considered a good situation. When we were in Jinshi, it was a complete mess..."

Qiao Ling recalled the pills and injections she had just seen in that room, and her heart seemed to tighten suddenly. She didn't answer for a moment.

Seeing this, Yan Ming said again, "Miss Qiao, please help him. Over the years, things have only been good for a short period when you were here. After you left, things have become terrible."

After a long while, Qiao Ling spoke again, saying only, "I understand," before gently closing the door.

……

Although Tang Xu was curious about the relationship between Yan Fengqi and Qiao Ling, what was more important to her right now was what Yan Shiyu was busy with and his safety.

She also deeply remembered every promise Yan Shiyu made.

"Do you remember what you told me two days ago? You said we'd only stay for three more days and then go back, so we can go back tomorrow, right? Have you booked your plane tickets? Is everything arranged here?"

Faced with Tang Xu's body temperature, Yan Shiyu hesitated for a moment before reaching out and taking her hand.

The moment he made that expression and gesture, Tang Xu knew his answer instantly and subconsciously frowned.

Meeting her suspicious gaze, Yan Shiyu slowly said, "Things here have been mostly taken care of, and you can leave tomorrow."

This was an unexpected answer, but Tang Xu's brows furrowed even more. "No buts?"

“Yes,” Yan Shiyu said.

Tang Xu's expression changed immediately, and she waited for him to continue with a cold face.

"There are still some issues to resolve in Southeast Asia, and I'm planning to make a trip there—"

"no!"

Before Yan Shiyu could finish speaking, Tang Xu interrupted him decisively, saying, "The situation in Southeast Asia is definitely more dangerous than here. How can you go?"

“There will be no danger,” Yan Shiyu said. “I have already contacted the authorities there, and there are also some remaining forces of the Shao family. I assure you, there will be no danger.”

Despite his words, Tang Xu remained frowning, showing no sign of relaxation.

Yan Shiyu gently kneaded her hand and said, "I know you don't want to go there, so you go back to China first tomorrow, which will be a good time to go back and be with Yan Yan. I'll only stay in Nanyang for one day, so I'll only get home one day later than you, okay?"

Tang Xu remained silent for a moment.

The reason he guessed she wouldn't want to go was because Tang Lan had already returned to Southeast Asia, and he would inevitably run into her on this trip.

He knew she wouldn't want to see Tang Lan.

It was because of Tang Lan that she probably never wanted to set foot in Southeast Asia again.

That's why he brought up Ji Yan and asked her to return to China first.

From all perspectives, this is indeed the best option.

But Tang Xu just wouldn't answer.

"Yaoyao." Yan Shiyu reached out and hugged her. "You'll really be fine. Don't worry, go back home."

Tang Xu looked at him and said, "You say you're at ease, but can I really be at ease? You know it's impossible. You know that if you go, I'll definitely go too."

Yan Shiyu had indeed considered this, but when she said it like that, he paused for a moment, then stroked her face and gently shook his head.

"The Shao family's territory is the Shao family's territory. Tang Lan is here, so be it." Tang Xu looked at him. "Compared to you, what are they? How could I possibly separate from you because of them? Don't you know what's more important?"

In the end, Yan Shiyu could only sigh helplessly, then reached out and embraced her once again.

……

The next day, after finishing his last meeting with people in New York, Yan Shiyu prepared to head to Southeast Asia.

Yan Fengqi did not appear at this last meeting.

Because of what had happened in the past, Tang Xu was still somewhat worried about him and couldn't help but ask, "Is this the end of things here? We're leaving, but Yan Fengqi is still here. Aren't you afraid he'll use some tricks to sabotage us?"

Upon hearing this, Yan Shiyu simply said, "Right now, he probably doesn't have time to cause any trouble."

"Is it because of Qiao Ling?" Tang Xu recalled yesterday's events. "I haven't seen them yesterday or today. I used to run into Yan Fengqi at the restaurant, but I haven't seen him at any of these meals—"

"Their plane left New York early this morning," Yan Shiyu said.

"Where did you go?" Tang Xu asked hurriedly.

Tianjin.

That's Yan Fengqi's territory.

Indeed, he had waited and searched for so long, and finally saw Qiao Ling again. How could he not hold her firmly in his grasp?

Returning to his original place as soon as possible seemed to be the best option for him, to avoid any unforeseen complications or uncontrollable events.

I just wonder what it feels like for Qiao Ling?
Tang Xu originally wanted to take the opportunity to find out her thoughts, but he didn't expect that he would be unable to see her so soon, so he had to put it aside for the time being.

Of course, compared to this regret, the fact that Yan Fengqi has left is something that makes Tang Xu feel more at ease.

In this way, she could finally feel a little more at ease and fly to Southeast Asia with Yan Shiyu.

We landed in Southeast Asia in the evening, local time.

Upon arrival at the airport, someone was immediately there to meet them, but thankfully Tang Lan didn't show up. Tang Xu didn't dwell on it too much and quickly followed Yan Shiyu to a luxurious manor in the city center.

Upon entering the manor hall and seeing Duan Siwei sitting there, Tang Xu couldn't help but ask in surprise, "What are you doing here?"

Duan Siwei glanced at her. "You think I wanted to come?"

After saying that, he looked at Yan Shiyu again, "Are you injured? Where are you injured? How serious is it?"

"It's just a scratch, nothing serious," Yan Shiyu said. "It's almost healed."

Upon hearing this, Duan Siwei immediately looked at Gao Yan, "He's almost recovered and you didn't tell me?"

Upon hearing this, Gao Yan immediately spoke up innocently, "Mr. Yan's injuries are almost healed, but that doesn't mean the crisis is over. Shao Qingyun is in trouble here in Nanyang, and we are unfamiliar with the area, so we can only rely on you, Mr. Duan."

Duan Siwei looked very unhappy and walked away muttering curses.

Tang Xu was a little confused about the current situation. "What's going on? Aren't you two always on good terms? Why is he so unwilling to help out?"

Upon hearing this, Gao Yan explained, "I don't know why either. When I suggested inviting him to Nanyang, Mr. Duan seemed very resistant, saying he didn't want to come here. But the Duan family has always been quite influential in Nanyang, and even this manor belongs to the Duan family. I don't know why he was so averse to it. However, when I mentioned that Mr. Yan was injured, he didn't say anything more and came over. I checked, and it seems that Mr. Duan hasn't been to Nanyang for quite some time... Could it be that something unpleasant happened here, which is why he doesn't want to come?"

Tang Xu thought about Duan Siwei's expression just now and could only guess: "Probably."

She didn't have time to think about anything else right now, and just looked at Yan Shiyu, "We're only staying here for one night, and we'll go back tomorrow, right?"

“Yes.” Yan Shiyu nodded, then added, “But I’m going to the Shao family to see some people later. You don’t need to come with me. Just stay here and rest, okay?”

"No." Tang Xu answered without hesitation, "You know my answer."

Yan Shiyu sighed softly and said, "Yes, I know that."

Tang Xu sensed something hidden in his sigh, reached out and hugged him, saying, "It wasn't you who took me to see those people, it was me who insisted on coming with you, do you understand?"

Yan Shiyu glanced down at him, and could only smile helplessly in the end.

After a short rest, the group went out again.

Yan Shiyu sat in the car looking through some documents, while Gao Yan occasionally answered his questions, almost all of which were related to the local forces.

This was Tang Xu's first time in Southeast Asia. Although he had mixed feelings, he couldn't help but be curious and kept observing the scenery outside through the car window.

When she had seen enough and turned around, she found that Duan Siwei, who was sitting in the car with her, was like an invisible person, not saying a word. He should be someone who knows a lot about Southeast Asia, but there was a low atmosphere around him.

Yan Shiyu ignored him, but Tang Xu couldn't help but become curious, "What's wrong with you?"

After all, this person is usually very energetic and talkative, so his sudden silence is quite frightening.

Duan Siwei didn't look at her, staring blankly ahead. Hearing this, he only replied with two words: "Tired."

Upon hearing those two words, Yan Shiyu and Gao Yan both glanced at him.

Such a gaze instantly triggered Duan Siwei's anger. "What are you looking at? I'm mentally exhausted, you know? You guys bother me every day, either helping me investigate this or that, or helping me deal with this or that. Anyone would get tired, you know?"

After he finished speaking, for some reason, no one responded to him.

"Damn it!" Duan Siwei roared in fury. "I'm telling the truth!"

Still, no one responded to him.

Duan Siwei sat there with a dark expression, propping his forehead up with his hand. After a long silence, he suddenly said calmly, "Can you all get off the bus?"

Upon hearing this, Tang Xu finally couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Duan Siwei rolled her eyes at her and turned to look in the other direction.

"It must be because it's so humid and hot here, it's so uncomfortable, that's why you've become like a firecracker, ready to explode at any moment," Tang Xu said. "I knew we shouldn't have gone out together, you should have stayed at the manor and rested."

"Then I really appreciate your thoughtfulness," Duan Siwei said.

Tang Xu seemed oblivious to his sarcastic remarks. Since she wasn't in a good mood anyway, she decided to continue trying to get Duan Siwei to talk, "I really care about you. You're acting so different than before. What's going on? Everyone in the car is family. Why don't you tell me? Maybe you'll feel better if you do?"

"I'll feel better if you shut up." Duan Siwei closed his eyes, looking like he was about to rest.

"If you're so depressed, surely you haven't been scammed out of money or sexually assaulted here?" Tang Xu couldn't help but mutter to himself.

At those words, Duan Siwei instantly exploded, "What did you say? Who told you anything?"

His outburst once again drew everyone's attention to him.

Tang Xu stared in disbelief, speechless for a moment, then gently covered her mouth with her hand, looking at him with sincere eyes, and said through her hand, "I was just saying it casually, I didn't expect it to actually come true..."

"Tang Xu—"

In an instant, Duan Siwei's roar echoed throughout the entire carriage.

In this way, Tang Xu's restless and vexed thoughts suddenly found a purpose.

The car slowly drove into the Shao family manor. Tang Lan was already standing at the entrance of the main building, waiting. Beside her was a teenage girl with a slender figure, clear and bright eyes, and a pair of eyes like autumn water that were clearly inherited from Tang Lan, but with a pure and innocent quality that was untouched by the world.

This is probably because they were well protected from a young age.

It is the appearance and demeanor of a child who is cherished and pampered by their parents.

Tang Xu glanced at him through the windshield before looking away, returning her gaze to Duan Siwei. She said softly, "Tell us what you think, don't keep it bottled up inside, it'll make you sick. Don't worry, I promise I won't tell anyone. As for the other two, you should be even more at ease, right?"

Duan Siwei, as if he could no longer bear it, opened the car door and jumped out before the car had come to a complete stop.

“This person—” Tang Xu frowned slightly and turned to look at Yan Shiyu, “I was just trying to be kind to him, why did he act like this?”

Yan Shiyu did not answer her question, but instead took her hand and kissed it.

Tang Xu sensed the meaning behind his kiss, looked up at him with a bright smile, and then he led her out of the car.

Tang Lan had already informed Duan Siwei, and as soon as she saw Yan Shiyu and Tang Xu get out of the car, she immediately came forward to greet them, "Mr. Yan, Yao Yao—"

Before she could finish speaking, Tang Xu suddenly let go of Yan Shiyu's hand and went straight for Duan Siwei.

Tang Lan paused, her gaze involuntarily following Tang Xu.

“Mrs. Shao.” Yan Shiyu quickly brought her back to her attention, then said calmly, “Mr. Shao’s matter is of utmost importance.”

Tang Lan knew what this meant, but she couldn't help but look up at Tang Xu again before saying to Yan Shiyu, "Everyone has arrived, please come in."

Shao Chenxi looked in the direction of Tang Xu again and again, but in the end, Tang Lan pulled her inside and took her back to her room.

Inside the vast conference hall of the Shao family manor, various factions gathered, each with their own thoughts and schemes.

When Tang Lan led Yan Shiyu in and they sat down, everyone's eyes turned to them.

Even though most of the people present were meeting Yan Shiyu for the first time, everyone involved in this incident knew why he had come, what he had done in New York, and that this negotiation might have a final outcome, so everyone was very vigilant.

When Duan Siwei finally walked in, this vigilance was even greater—

Most of the people present had only heard about Yan Shiyu's identity and methods, and had never actually interacted with him. However, everyone was aware of the identity and status of this young master of the Duan family.

Right now, both of them are sitting next to Madam Shao, Tang Lan.

……

The Shao family manor was very large. After Duan Siwei entered the building, Tang Xu sat down alone in the garden pavilion.

She wasn't suited for that kind of negotiation setting. Her purpose in coming here was to be with Yan Shiyu, so no one else or anything else mattered to her.

Duan Siwei arranged for someone to follow her. As soon as Tang Xu sat down, the people behind her brought her iced drinks, snacks, and things to pass the time.

Tang Xu didn't touch it, but just sat there almost in a daze.

Suddenly, someone beside her called out softly, "Miss Tang."

Tang Xu snapped out of her daze, followed the person's gaze, and saw Shao Chenxi standing outside the pavilion.

Shao Chenxi was still young and had grown up spoiled by her parents. Now that such a big thing had happened, even though she was in her own home, she was still a little timid. She just stood there and tried to call out, "Sister?"

Tang Xu couldn't help but sigh softly.

That's true. Since we're here, we know we can't escape it in the end.

Tang Xu nodded to her.

Having witnessed Tang Xu ignoring Tang Lan, Shao Chenxi was initially hesitant to approach Tang Xu. However, upon seeing Tang Xu's response, she quickly stepped inside and grasped Tang Xu's hand, saying, "Sister, thank you for being willing to save my father! Thank you so much!"

Tang Xu lowered his eyes slightly, looking at the girl's hand that was tightly holding his. After a moment of silence, he said, "You misunderstood. I didn't do anything about your father's matter, so you don't need to thank me."

“How could that be?” Shao Chenxi said, “Mom said that it was because of you that Dad was able to be saved! It was because of you that Mr. Yan was willing to help my dad.”

“Yes, it was because of me that he took the initiative to help,” Tang Xu said. “But it was his decision. As for me, I had no intention of saving your father.”

Shao Chenxi was suddenly stunned, and the hand that was holding Tang Xu's involuntarily loosened.

Tang Xu smiled and continued, "I didn't come here to save your father or to see you. I just was worried about him traveling alone, so I came to accompany him. That's all."

Shao Chenxi's eyes were filled with confusion; she couldn't understand the relationship at all. However, she was very clear about one thing—

"You... are blaming your mother, aren't you?"

"Do you think I shouldn't blame her?" Tang Xu asked calmly.

"Mom... even though we've been separated for a long time, she's always felt guilty. She keeps saying she's sorry to you, but she loves you! Don't misunderstand Mom, what parent wouldn't love their child?"

Tang Xu looked at the girl's eager eyes and smiled gently.

“Yes, your parents love you very much, so you are very happy, so happy that it makes people jealous,” Tang Xu said. “As for her and me, no matter who owes whom, after this incident, we will be even. Tell her that from now on, she should not remember that I am her daughter. This is the best ending for me, for her, and for all of you.”

“You already have complete families... and so do I. We don’t need each other, and there’s no need to force ourselves to be bound by so-called blood ties.”

"So, that's settled then." (End of Chapter)