After becoming a widow, I became the apple of a rough man's eye.

"I'm going to pick up your sister-in-law." Li Dongye turned and walked out.

"Hey, Second Brother! What's the rush!" Mu Hongying's expression changed, and she quickly reached out to stop him. "Girls take their time in haunted houses. It's only been a few minutes; they're probably still screaming inside. Let's play a couple more rounds..."

Li Dongye stopped and turned to look at Mu Hongying.

That gaze was so cold, like shards of ice from the dead of winter, piercing straight into Mu Hongying's flesh.

"Get out of the way."

Mu Hongying was so frightened by that look that she took half a step back, her hand frozen in mid-air.

Without another word, Li Dongye strode out of the shooting range. The sunlight outside was a bit dazzling, so he squinted and looked at the haunted house across the street.

The large door painted with a skull was dark and gaping, like a gaping mouth.

The girls who used to guard the entrance are gone.

Li Dongye's heart sank.

He rushed over in three strides and grabbed the old man checking tickets at the entrance: "Where are those women who went in earlier?"

The old man was startled, spilling his teacup: "Which...which group? There are so many people coming and going..."

"The one in the pink shirt, the really pretty one!" Li Dongye roared, veins bulging on his forehead.

"Oh...that..." the old man thought for a moment, "It seems like they didn't come out. This haunted house only has one exit; everyone who goes in has to come out from here."

They didn't come out.

Li Dongye released the old man and barged inside.

"Hey! You didn't buy a ticket! You can't come in!" the old man shouted from behind.

Li Dongye turned a deaf ear.

The haunted house was pitch black, with only a few dim green lights shining in the corners. The air was filled with a musty smell and the cheap smell of rubber.

"My love!"

Li Dongye shouted.

The sound echoed in the narrow passage, but no one responded.

Li Dongye took out a lighter and lit it with a "click." The faint light illuminated the path ahead. He moved with lightning speed, rushing in against the tour route.

A group of people were screaming in front of them, but Li Dongye shoved them aside roughly.

"Have you seen a girl in pink?" he asked, grabbing a boy by the collar.

"I...I didn't see it...Big brother, let go..." The boy was so scared that his face turned pale.

Li Dongye shoved him aside and continued searching inside.

The further he went in, the stronger the unease became. The haunted house wasn't large; the path led to the end without any forks. If Lin Qingqing was still inside, he couldn't possibly have missed the noise.

unless……

Li Dongye suddenly stopped in his tracks.

He stopped at a corner. It was a blind spot, with a coffin prop on the ground.

There was an inconspicuous crack in the wall, which looked like a decoration, but there were signs of wear on the edges.

Hidden door.

Li Dongye kicked it.

"Bang!"

The wooden door was flimsy and cracked open after being kicked.

Behind the door is a narrow maintenance passage that leads directly to the back door.

The pungent smell of ether had not yet dissipated.

Li Dongye's mind went blank, as if he had been hit hard on the head with a club.

We've been outmaneuvered.

He turned and ran back. When he rushed out of the haunted house, Mu Hongying was standing at the entrance of the shooting range, a cigarette between his fingers, chatting and laughing with his group of cronies.

Seeing Li Dongye rush out, Mu Hongying's smile deepened. He threw his cigarette butt on the ground and stomped it out, then pretended to be surprised as he approached.

"Second brother, how come it's so fast..."

Before he could finish speaking, Li Dongye was already in front of him.

No nonsense, no questions.

Taking advantage of his momentum, Li Dongye punched Mu Hongying in the face.

"Bang!"

This punch landed squarely, without holding back at all.

Mu Hongying didn't even utter a sound before flying sideways and crashing heavily into the balloon stall behind her.

With a loud crash, half of the stall collapsed, and a bunch of balloons burst.

The surrounding crowd screamed and scattered in all directions.

The thugs were stunned for a moment, then reacted and shouted as they rushed forward, yelling, "Damn it! He dared to hit Young Master Mu! Kill him!"

Li Dongye didn't even look at them.

He took two steps to Mu Hongying, grabbed him by the collar, and lifted him out of the rubble.

Mu Hongying's face was covered in blood, and her nose was probably broken, lying crooked to one side, with blood and foam dripping down from the corner of her mouth.

But he was smiling.

His smile was extremely ugly and extremely arrogant.

"Where is she?" Li Dongye's voice was terribly hoarse, as if he were holding a mouthful of blood.

"Cough...cough cough..." Mu Hongying spat out a mouthful of bloody phlegm, which landed on Li Dongye's face. "Who? That...that slut?"

"Bang!"

Li Dongye punched him again, this time in the stomach.

Mu Hongying suddenly arched her body like a shrimp, gagged, and vomited up bile.

"I'll ask you one more time, where is she?" Li Dongye's fingers tightened, making Mu Hongying's face turn purple.

"Second Brother...you...what are you doing..." Mu Hongying was still pretending, but the vengeful pleasure in his eyes was impossible to hide. "Sister-in-law...isn't sister-in-law in the haunted house...I'm looking for her too..."

"Find your mother!"

Li Dongye grabbed his hair and slammed him hard to the ground.

The back of his head hit the cement floor with a dull thud that made your teeth ache.

Mu Hongying let out a scream, finally unable to keep up the act any longer.

"Li Dongye! How dare you hit me! I am the third young master of the Mu family! Who do you think you are!" Mu Hongying lay on the ground, kicking his legs and roaring, "You bastard! You think you can ride roughshod over me just because you're back in the Mu family?"

The few henchmen around him tried to break up the fight, but Li Dongye suddenly turned around, his bloodshot eyes sweeping over them.

Several pampered rich kids froze on the spot, none of them daring to move.

Li Dongye looked at Mu Hongying again, knelt on one knee on his chest, and pressed down on him so hard that his ribs cracked.

He pulled a wrench from behind his waist.

He had casually slipped it into his pocket before going to the Mu family's house; it was a habit of car mechanics to always have their tools with them.

The cold wrench was pressed against Mu Hongying's swollen face and gently patted it.

"Third brother," Li Dongye's voice was very soft, so soft it sent chills down one's spine, "Do you know what I've been doing all these years?"

Looking at the wrench, Mu Hongying's arrogance finally turned into fear.

"What...what do you want to do...my brother will kill you..."

"I don't know if my brother will kill me," Li Dongye waited for him, "but if something happens to Lin Qingqing, I will kill you."

……

If any readers feel that Li Dongye lacks vigilance, please be gentle with your criticism.

First, he grew up in an environment where there weren't so many scheming and treacherous people; he never imagined that his blood relatives could do such a despicable thing.

Secondly, this is also the second step in Lin Qingqing's growth: facing difficulties and various perspectives on her own.

Third, this is also a rather realistic relationship: the spoiled youngest son and the second son, whom he has been searching for for many years but with whom he doesn't have much affection. The younger son is bound to suffer.