Leaving these words for the bodyguards at the door, Lu Chenzhou walked out without looking back.
That expensive silk shirt shimmered with a cold light in the dim illumination, just like his heart—cold, hard, and cruel.
Bang!
The iron door slammed shut, cutting off the last sliver of light.
All of Ye Nuannuan's strength seemed to be drained in an instant. She slumped onto the bed, gasping for air as cold sweat soaked through her thin white dress.
Despair surged like a tide, nearly drowning her.
Three days... She knew a madman like Lu Chenzhou meant what he said.
Without time to overthink, she once again called upon that life-saving straw in her mind.
[Abusive Novels Naive Flower]: "group owner... he's forcing me... he said if I don't submit in three days, he'll... he'll..."
Ye Nuannuan found the words too difficult to say, so they could only turn into a string of desperate ellipses.
The Chat Group exploded instantly.
[Soldier King Lone Wolf]: "Fuck, this beast really doesn't want to live. Little sister, don't be afraid. I'll send you a red envelope right now with a Glock 17 and a full magazine inside."
[Soldier King Lone Wolf]: "I can see that basement too; it's just those two bodyguards. Take the gun, and when that grandson comes in next time, put a hole right between his eyes. End it once and for all!"
Chu Feng had a fiery temper. Having spent years licking blood on the battlefield, his way of solving problems was simple and crude.
[Marvelous Doctor of Chinese Medicine]: "Calm down, Big Brother Lone Wolf, calm down first. Killing is illegal. Besides, if she really fires and kills Lu Chenzhou, how will she escape afterward? Even if she escapes, what then? Spend her whole life with a wanted warrant on her back?"
[Peking University]: "I think Brother Divine Doctor is right. While violent resistance is satisfying, the consequences are too severe. Nuannuan-jie definitely couldn't handle it."
[Peking University]: "Besides... since Brother Ming has already arrived in Yanjing, let's stick to the plan."
Gu Bai was just a child from an ordinary family and was more law-abiding than the other two.
In this society ruled by law, meeting violence with violence was absolutely the worst option unless there was no other choice, especially for the foundationless Ye Nuannuan.
At that moment, Fang Ming, who had been lurking, finally spoke up.
[Nameless Guide]: "@Soldier King Lone Wolf, take your gun back. This is Xia Country, not the Middle East."
[Nameless Guide]: "@Abusive Novels Naive Flower, don't panic. The police are arriving right now!!"
Police?
Ye Nuannuan was stunned, but before she could think further—
Wooo! Wooo! Wooo!!
The shrill, piercing sound of police sirens was like a sharp sword, instantly shattering the deathly silence of the West Mountain Mansion No. 1.
It wasn't just one car, but a whole fleet!
The sound approached from afar with an unstoppable momentum, even making the basement floor tremble slightly.
In the villa's living room, Lu Chenzhou had just poured a glass of whiskey. Before he could take a sip, his hand jerked from the sudden noise, spilling the liquor onto the expensive carpet.
"What's going on? Where are those sirens coming from?"
Lu Chenzhou frowned, looking at the butler with an expression of displeasure.
The butler was equally bewildered. He scrambled to the window to look outside, and his legs immediately went weak with fear.
"Young... Young Master, this is bad! It's all police—SWAT! They've surrounded the villa!"
Lu Chenzhou's expression changed as he strode to the floor-to-ceiling window.
On the lawn outside, alternating red and blue police lights flashed wildly, illuminating the night like day.
Over a dozen SWAT armored vehicles had smashed through the ornate iron gates. Fully armed SWAT officers, holding riot shields and submachine guns, poured in like a black tide.
"Lu Chenzhou, you are surrounded! Come out immediately with your hands behind your head!"
The voice from the megaphone was deafening.
Lu Chenzhou's fingers gripping the glass turned white, and the corners of his eyes twitched violently.
He never imagined that in this territory of Yanjing, someone would actually dare to lead SWAT to raid his home.
"Damn it, who gave them the nerve?!"
Lu Chenzhou slammed the glass onto the floor, straightened his collar, and a sinister sneer appeared on his face.
"Open the door. I want to see who is so blind!"
The main doors slowly opened. Lu Chenzhou stood on the steps, looking at the black muzzles of the guns. Far from being afraid, he looked arrogant.
"I am Lu Chenzhou. Who is in charge? Tell him to get his ass out here to see me!"
"I don't care who you are, and I don't care who your father is."
The crowd parted, and a middle-aged officer in a white shirt with two bars and three stars on his shoulders strode forward.
He had a square face, thick eyebrows, and large eyes, radiating an air of righteousness. In his hand, he held a freshly printed arrest warrant.
"I am the Captain of the Municipal Criminal Investigation Detachment, Iron Punishment."
Iron Punishment walked up to Lu Chenzhou, looking coldly at this insufferable second-generation heir.
"Lu Chenzhou, you are suspected of illegal detention, intentional injury, kidnapping, and multiple other crimes. You are now being placed under criminal detention according to the law. Take him away!"
At Iron Punishment's command, two SWAT officers lunged forward like wolves or tigers.
"How dare you... do you know who I am? I want to call my lawyer! I want to call my father!"
Lu Chenzhou struggled desperately, shouting madly, "Iron Punishment?? You're finished! Tomorrow I'll have that skin of yours stripped off!"
Iron Punishment remained expressionless. He pulled out handcuffs and with a 'click,' cuffed Lu Chenzhou's pampered hands behind his back.
"Save your words for the interrogation room."
"As for stripping my skin? You'd better think first about how to explain the girl you've kept locked in the basement for a month!"
Hearing this, Lu Chenzhou's arrogant aura instantly stalled, and his pupils shrank.
The basement? How did they know about the basement?
That place was extremely hidden. Aside from his personal bodyguards and the butler, absolutely no one knew about the entrance!
"Search! Turn the place upside down if you have to, but find that person for me!"
The SWAT officers quickly rushed into the villa. In less than five minutes, the iron door of the basement was forcibly breached.
When light once again shone into that dark and damp room, Ye Nuannuan cowered in the corner, shielding her eyes from the blinding light, her body trembling.
"Police! Don't be afraid, we are the police!"
A female SWAT officer stepped forward quickly, took off her jacket to drape it over Ye Nuannuan, and comforted her softly.
Seeing that familiar uniform and hearing the righteous word 'police'—
The nerves Ye Nuannuan had kept taut for a month finally snapped.
Waa!
She threw herself into the female officer's arms and wailed, crying heart-wrenchingly as if to vent all the grievances and fears of the past month... Not far from the manor villa's gate, Fang Ming, wearing a baseball cap and a mask, sat in the shade of a roadside tree. Looking at the flashing red and blue lights inside the villa, a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
[Ding!]
[Group member 'Abusive Novels Naive Flower's' commissioned task has been completed!]
[Task Name: Flower in a Cage]
[Reward: thousand illusions mask *1 (Stored in the Chat Group's exclusive item bar; the host can summon or retract it at any time through thought)]
[thousand illusions mask: An invisible mask as thin as a cicada's wing and cool to the touch. It is not a magical creation; its principles involve microscopic interference with light and perception. It is a convenient tool left behind by a high-level civilization. After wearing it, one can freely adjust the wearer's facial features. By simply imagining the settings in one's mind, the mask will automatically implement the corresponding changes.]
[Note 1: Cannot be detected by conventional optical or electronic means, but anomalies may be noticed by extremely high-precision biometric scans or close-range physical contact.]
[Note 2: Can only change facial features; cannot change body shape, fingerprints, voiceprints, irises, or other biological characteristics.]
"Good stuff..."