The Cinnabar Mole of a Beijing Circle Tycoon

Zhou Yanqiu's temples throbbed, the dull pain from the hangover mixed with the softness of the unfamiliar bed, and he frowned as he propped himself up.

A soft hum came from beside him. He turned his head and met a pair of deep blue eyes. His blond hair was curled and spread out on the pillow.

The unfamiliar foreign woman saw him and immediately screamed in terror.

"ah--!"

A sharp sound shattered the silence of the room, and Zhou Yanqiu, now mostly awake, kicked Xu Mingxuan beside her.

Xu Mingxuan, still buried in the blanket, was startled awake by the scream and sat bolt upright, her hair disheveled: "What happened? Who's yelling?"

The next second, the apartment door was kicked open violently.

A dozen or so foreigners with high noses and deep-set eyes rushed in, each with a fierce expression and tattoos on their muscular arms. The man in the lead, speaking broken Chinese, pointed at the two people on the bed, spitting as he shouted, "You! Rape! Call the police!"

The blonde woman quickly dressed, then threw herself into the arms of the leading man, crying as she made her accusations in fits and starts.

The two immediately realized that they had been given too much alcohol at the bar last night and had probably fallen into a trap set by someone.

They initially intended to settle the matter with money, but the more they thought about it, the more aggrieved they felt. When had the two of them ever suffered such injustice?

Zhou Yanqiu tentatively asked, "Are you trying to blatantly extort me?"

The leader sneered, pulled out his phone, and said, "So what if it is? The evidence is right here. Let's see how you try to deny it!"

A wise man avoids dangerous situations, so the two immediately feigned weakness and called for backup, asking, "How much will it cost to settle this?"

"One million Swiss francs," the leader demanded, making an exorbitant demand.

This amount of money was nothing to the two of them. "OK, I'll send someone to deliver the money!"

Xu Mingxuan spoke up, "Give me your phone, otherwise how am I supposed to contact anyone!"

The man in the lead tossed his phone to the two men, who quickly put on their clothes.

Xu Mingxuan caught the phone, his fingertips touching the cold body, and exchanged a glance with Zhou Yanqiu without making a sound.

The man in the lead stood with his arms crossed, looking impatient: "Stop talking nonsense and hurry up!"

Xu Mingxuan called Meng Jiangyu, "Fifth Brother, Yanqiu and I are at the Oyster Bar. Bring 100 million Swiss francs to ransom us!"

"Okay!" The two understood each other perfectly, and Meng Jiangyu realized that they had been set up.

Meng Jiangyu was helping Shen Qingyao build a snowman when he received the call and immediately went with Shen Qingyao to find Lu Linchuan.

On the way, Meng Jiangyu asked Jason to contact their assistants and bodyguards, but they couldn't get in touch.

Lu Linchuan received the message and led Su Wan and Meng Jiangyu to meet in the hall.

Jason investigated and found out that Zhou Yanqiu and Xu Mingxuan had been set up and tricked.

The person who set up the scheme was a henchman of William, a local tyrant, who frequently extorted money from wealthy people who came to the area.

Previously, Meng Jiangyu had acted as a go-between for William on the Pacific route project.

Meng Jiangyu had Jason contact the lawyer and William, demanding that William give him an explanation within an hour.

William received a call from Jason and learned of the foolish thing his men had done. He quickly apologized and immediately took his men to deal with it.

A gilded chandelier hangs beneath the high dome, its warm yellow light flowing across the marble floor of the hotel lobby, casting a soft golden rim on the Steinway grand piano in the corner.

The refracted light from the crystal chandelier fell on the black and white piano keys, like a handful of tiny stars scattered on the ground.

Meng Jiangyu stood behind Shen Qingyao, his chest pressed against her back, his warm breath brushing against her ear.

His left hand covered the back of her hand, his fingertips calloused, and he gently guided her to press the piano keys, from which deep notes flowed out.

"Relax your wrists," he said in a low, magnetic voice, "use your fingertips, not your arms."

She tried to do as he said, and as her fingertips touched the strings, a smooth melody floated out intermittently.

Meng Jiangyu gently supported her wrist with his right hand, adjusting her posture.

"Why haven't they come back yet?" Shen Qingyao asked worriedly.

"What's the panic? It's not time yet!" He lowered his head, his lips almost brushing against the top of her hair, his smile deep. "Don't worry, nothing will happen."

In the nearby rest area, Lu Linchuan was leaning back on the sofa with a glass of whiskey in his hand.

Su Wan sat beside him, holding a hot latte, and gently blew on the rising steam: "Half an hour has passed!"

Lu Linchuan swirled the ice cubes in his glass, making a crisp clinking sound. "They should be back soon!"

Their voices gradually faded, blending into the soothing background music in the lobby.

Beside the piano, Meng Jiangyu held Shen Qingyao's hand, their fingertips touching as the melody flowed, and the warm yellow light cast long shadows of the two of them.

Less than 45 minutes later, William personally escorted Zhou Yanqiu and Xu Mingxuan back to the hotel.

Behind him followed a group of people with bruised and swollen faces, including both foreigners and Chinese.

Zhou Yanqiu and Xu Mingxuan sat down on the sofa. Lu Linchuan teased, "You two are interesting! Do you find foreign girls fun?"

"Don't even mention it!" Zhou Yanqiu said angrily. "This is the first time I've encountered something like this!"

"Men, have some self-respect!" Xu Mingxuan glared at his personal assistant and bodyguards standing beside him. "Get the hell out of here!"

"How novel!" Zhou Yanqiu took a sip of whiskey. "When have men ever suffered such humiliation!"

William stood aside with the group of people who had set up the scheme, sweating profusely and not daring to breathe.

Seeing the situation, Shen Qingyao gestured to Meng Jiangyu, "Ayu, Yanqiu and Mingxuan are back!"

"Hmm!" Meng Jiangyu continued teaching piano techniques, "Imagine there's an egg in your palm."

"I've seen William standing there for a long time, about an hour!"

"You want to plead for them?" Meng Jiangyu put down the piano keys.

"Hmm... I think it's best to be forgiving when possible!" Shen Qingyao said with a smile. "As the saying goes, even a powerful dragon can't suppress a local snake. Let's just consider this a good deed!"

"Besides, I think everyone's hungry; there's no need to disrupt our schedule for unimportant people!"

This is inconsistent with Meng Jiangyu's usual style of handling things; he has always been fair in rewarding and punishing, and never shows leniency.

However, looking at Shen Qingyao's hopeful eyes, he wavered. He wanted to create a good connection for Shen Qingyao, so he said, "Okay, I'll do as you say!"

Meng Jiangyu led Shen Qingyao to sit on the sofa, his long, slender fingers casually resting on his knees. He looked up at the sweat-drenched William, his tone devoid of emotion yet carrying an undeniable air of authority: "William, long time no see."

William bowed deeply, cold sweat streaming down his face. "Mr. Meng is so magnanimous. I failed to discipline him properly; this will never happen again!"

Meng Jiangyu ignored his flattery, his gaze sweeping over the group of bruised and battered men. He parted his thin lips slightly and said, "Take them away. Don't let them get in our way."

"In addition, Mr. Zhou and Mr. Xu will receive ten times the compensation for their losses, which will be delivered to them by tomorrow."

"Yes, yes, yes!" William hurriedly agreed, waving his hand to signal his men to get lost, while he himself hunched over and backed away, afraid of angering the man again.

William and his group completely disappeared at the lobby entrance. Zhou Yanqiu said, "Damn it, I've never felt so humiliated in my life."

Xu Mingxuan rubbed her aching temples and glared at him irritably: "It's all your fault! You dragged me to drink so much last night!"

"It's clearly your own fault for having a low alcohol tolerance, why are you blaming me?" Zhou Yanqiu immediately retorted.

The two bantered back and forth, instantly lightening the atmosphere considerably.

"Well, you've got a soft spot after all." Lu Linchuan leaned back on the sofa, looking at Meng Jiangyu with interest, raising an eyebrow and saying, "Just letting him go like that?"

"Let's consider this a good deed!" Meng Jiangyu turned his head to look at Shen Qingyao beside him. The coldness in his eyes had long since faded, leaving only a gentle smile.

He reached out and gently pinched her cheek. "Someone told me, 'Be forgiving when you can!'"

Shen Qingyao's cheeks flushed from his pinching. She glanced at the two still bickering beside her and couldn't help but laugh, "I think everyone's hungry. How about we go get something to eat?"

"Okay." Meng Jiangyu readily agreed, and as he stood up, he took her hand in his, their fingers intertwined.

Upon hearing the word "eat," Zhou Yanqiu and Xu Mingxuan immediately stopped bickering and said in unison, "We haven't eaten all day, we're starving!"

Looking at the scene before him, Lu Linchuan shook his head helplessly and took Su Wan's hand: "Let's go eat."

Lu Linchuan agreed with Meng Jiangyu. Since the two were going to have a marriage alliance, they should be given due respect.