“Shut up! Shut the hell up!”
Lin Qiong’s thoughts were in disarray when a harsh female voice pierced through his mind, resonating like a screaming rooster.
He was utterly bewildered by his current situation, his mind seemingly blank. Though he didn’t want to admit it, Lin Qiong vividly remembered starving to death on the streets after failing to snatch the steamed bun from a dog.
Confusion filled his mind as he surveyed his surroundings. The décor was opulent and immaculately white, from the intricately designed stone pillars to the elegant patterns gracing the room.
Lin Qiong had never experienced such luxury before, but this was most certainly not heaven.
In this lavish room, a few people were present.
Although their numbers were small, the expressions etched across their faces resembled the dregs stuck to the bottom of an unwashed pot for days, as if they were on the verge of lunging at him.
His shock was palpable, and his body acted involuntarily.
Lin Qiong exclaimed, “What’s happening?!”
“What? Did I say something to offend you? Did it hit a nerve?” Lin Qiong’s words were uncontrollable, tumbling out without rhyme or reason.
The people in the room exchanged incredulous glances. A particularly delicate-looking individual stood out among them.
Although his first impression might not have been breathtaking, his appearance grew more appealing the longer one gazed upon them, particularly when his eyes carried a touch of wistfulness.
This seemingly harmless figure, however, was the one responsible for uttering harsh and embarrassing statements.
Lin Qiong observed the faces of those present, save for one lady, as they stood before him like a human wall.
Though Lin Qiong displayed bravery on the surface, his legs quivered. If one of them decided to strike him, a single blow might be enough to end him.
Lin Qiong desperately tried to remain silent, but his body was entirely beyond his control.
An invisible force constrained his movements, turning his body into a puppet manipulated by others.
Just as he attempted to regain control of his body, an avalanche of incomprehensible memories rushed into his mind. Absurd speculation coursed through his psyche.
Lin Qiong, who had previously yearned to snatch food from a dog’s mouth, suddenly felt a chill.
He had transmigrated into a book he had read before, one filled with speculative notions and wild conjecture.
The realization sent a shiver down Lin Qiong’s spine.
He felt as though he were dreaming.
His gaze settled upon the sinister man occupying a wheelchair beside him, Fu Xingyun, the great villain of the novel, a treacherous, ruthless, and deranged figure who showed no mercy, even toward his own father. Let alone his wife, who had been scheming from the very beginning.
Fu Xingyun was the most ruthless character in the book, outshining even the male protagonist in the latter parts of the story.
If not for his descent into madness at the end, the protagonist of the book might not have succeeded.
Lin Qiong couldn’t help but shudder at the thought of being consigned to the depths of the ocean.
The villain was insane, and he sought the lives of others.
Fu Xingyun was untouchable by anyone.
However, in the next instant, Lin Qiong watched himself raise a hand and point disdainfully at Fu Xingyun, seated nonchalantly in his wheelchair.
Lin Qiong:…
Ahhhhh!!!
The slender white fingertips of the young man leisurely pointed at the man in the wheelchair beside him. His fingertips drooped slightly, projecting an air of superiority.
He began his rebuke with a touch of sarcasm, “You keep calling me a man who climbed the ranks by clinging to a dragon and a phoenix, but you should look at his current state. He’s neither human nor ghost. Rather than me clinging to a dragon and a phoenix, it’s more accurate to say I’m looking down on them.”
Before the young man could finish speaking, his collar was seized by the man who had been standing next to Fu Xingyun. “Lin Qiong, don’t go too far. Remember, your family bowed down and groveled when accepting this marriage.”
Lin Qiong shook his head frantically, rejecting the notion. He didn’t want it!
“Do you think I care?”
Lin Qiong turned and left defiantly.
The young man’s eyebrows raised, forming a wicked smile on his otherwise innocent and lovely face. This sinister expression contrasted sharply with his harmless visage.
He cast a glance at the man in the wheelchair and continued to provoke him, “Old and crazy, with his lower half paralyzed. I guess his manhood has withered from disuse.”
“What the hell…” The man holding Lin Qiong’s collar clenched his fists in frustration, momentarily struck speechless.
The moment those words left the young man’s lips, the room grew unnaturally cold.
Such viciousness!
Lin Qiong’s eyes widened, and he couldn’t help but cringe at the horrifying words that had left his mouth.
Fu Xingyun’s dark pupils fixed on Lin Qiong, who stood there arrogantly spouting words devoid of any emotion. It was as though he regarded Lin Qiong as a lifeless object, and his eyes appeared still like an abyssal black lake.
The insolent young man shot a sidelong glance at him, his eyes filled with provocation.
“You think I’ll despise you for this? No! I’ll only love you more.”
Fu Xingyun: ?
Everyone in the room: ?
As if afraid that someone might not have heard, Lin Qiong repeated, loudly addressing Fu Xingyun once more, “I love you.”
The young man’s demeanor suddenly did a 180, catching everyone off guard and plunging the room into silence.
Surprise, suspicion, incredulity…
For a moment, no one in the room could fathom what further antics Lin Qiong might pull.
Lin Qiong watched the man before her, his fists clenched tightly, and a chill ran down his spine. He had already prepared his final words, but he hadn’t expected his body to respond.
Li Hanyang seized Lin Qiong by the collar and hoisted him up, his voice laced with anger. “What kind of stunt are you trying to pull now?”
Lin Qiong was not short by any means, but compared to Li Hanyang, who was as sturdy as a black bear, standing at 1.95 meters, he still came up short by a mere ten centimeters.
He was lifted off the ground, for a moment seemingly performing a waltz on the spot, defying gravity. Hhe gracefully tiptoed through thin air…
Lin Qiong looked at the gargantuan figure before him, as if he could strike him down at any moment. He swallowed hard and asked, “What stunt could I possibly pull? I simply love him.”
As he spoke, he cast a furtive glance at Fu Xingyun, then bashfully lowered his head.
Li Hanyang:…
No one could change their tune quite like Lin Qiong.
Seeing the distraction, Lin Qiong swiftly raised his hand to free his crumpled collar.
He could waltz on tiptoes.
Li Hanyang drew in a deep breath, obviously repulsed by Lin Qiong’s words.
However, Lin Qiong just stood there, unruffled.
His face did not flushed, his heart wasn’t racing, and he felt no remorse. In fact, he went so far as to say, “Despite all his flaws, I love him, and these imperfections only make me feel more compassion for him.”
Lin Qiong gazed at Fu Xingyun, seated in his wheelchair, his expression inscrutable, as if trying to turn the tide and avoid being pummeled.
His family just raised a mountain of a son.
“Nonsense! Whom do you think you’re disgusting when you say such things? I’m starting to doubt whether you want to get married at all!”
“If I didn’t want to get married, I wouldn’t have shown up.”
“…”
Apparently, that was the case.
Although Lin Qiong had spoken, no one in the room took his words seriously.
They couldn’t erase the repugnant image of Lin Qiong from their minds, and they couldn’t fathom why his attitude had shifted so dramatically. Nevertheless, no one suspected his motives.
Lin Qiong was bathed in the collective gaze of the room. Suddenly, he felt that it was preferable to starve on the streets than to be here.
Just as they stood there in a tense standoff, several loud “clanks” reverberated through the air.
“Xingyun, have you finished speaking with Xiaoqiong? The wedding is about to commence, and Auntie wishes to have a word with Xiaoqiong once more.”
The voice beyond the door felt like divine intervention. Lin Qiong instinctively grasped this lifeline and declared, “I have other matters to attend to.”
With that, he darted toward the door, leaving the bridal party and throwing a bashful smile in Fu Xingyun’s direction.
Fu Xingyun:…
Lin Qiong swung open the door.
Waiting on the other side was his stepmother, just as Lin Qiong had predicted.
Although she said that she wanted a word with him, as someone who shared the same name as the unfortunate Lin Qiong and had read the novel, he knew that his stepmother’s arrival was meant to deliver a warning.
Lin Qiong exited, and as soon as the door closed behind, his stepmother’s placid countenance turned icy.
Lin Qiong:…
The two of them made their way to the bridal suite, where Lin Qiong was supposed to get ready. Chen Han gave Lin Qiong a pointed look and delivered a stern warning, her tone brimming with caution. “Marrying into the Fu family holds tremendous significance for your father’s company and is a blessing you secured from a past life. Shelf all your sly thoughts, you must get married today.”
Marry a murderous villain. Was this the kind of blessing Lin Qiong wanted?
Chen Han scrutinized Lin Qiong, disdain clear in her eyes.
Ever since she’d married into the Lin family, Chen Han had always harbored a distaste for Lin Qiong. Their relationship was strained, but at least Lin Qiong was utterly devoid of schemes and not worth her time.
Lin Qiong had been coerced into the marriage with the Fu family.
A week ago, however, he suddenly changed his mind and declared he no longer wished to marry Fu Xingyun. Unfortunately, the wedding had been scheduled and could not be canceled.
Once she’d spoken her piece, Chen Han left, returning her attention to her high heels. She opened the door and was on the verge of leaving when she halted.
In the past, when she’d spoken in that tone, Lin Qiong would have become angry and entered into a heated argument with her. But now, it seemed different.
“You’re not thinking of running away, are you?”
Lin Qiong, who hastily revisited the escape route detailed in the book:…
“No, of course not.”
Chen Han departed after that, and the once-silent hallway was adorned with pristine white roses, their elaborate ribbons forming intricate patterns. It was luxurious and romantic.
Suddenly, a door creaked open, then swiftly closed.
A moment later, a blur of white dashed down the corridor like a wild boar fleeing from the woods.
Only fools wouldn’t run!
