“Auntie, don’t trouble yourself with this anymore. I absolutely won’t marry a man twenty years my senior just to get an urban household registration. Mr. Fan, I apologize, but I left something out earlier – not only do I find your position too low-ranking, but I also find you too old.”

When an old bull eats tender grass, the grass must be willing – only then can the bull be called a “mature gentleman.” Otherwise, he’s just a shameless old lecher.

Xia Xiao Lan herself wanted to date younger men – to have a romance with fresh young faces that would make her feel young again. At least Zhou Cheng was willing! But now Xiao Lan herself was unwilling to face Fan Zhen Chuan, that old bull – which naturally made him a creepy old lecher.

She criticized him from head to toe, thoroughly insulting Fan Zhen Chuan. In He Dong County, no one dared speak to Fan Zhen Chuan this way. If they weren’t at the Municipal Party Committee Guesthouse today, Fan Zhen Chuan would have made Xiao Lan test whether he was too old with poor stamina.

The more Xiao Lan insulted him, the more Fan Zhen Chuan wanted to possess her. Taming a wild horse was always interesting – if Xiao Lan had been completely obedient, Fan Zhen Chuan might have quickly grown bored. But while Xiao Lan appeared delicate, she had a fierce temperament, which sparked Fan Zhen Chuan’s desire to conquer.

“Xiao Lan, a sharp tongue can sometimes be endearing in a woman, but once it goes too far, it has the opposite effect.”

Li Dong Liang stepped forward. “When Miss Xia speaks, you should just listen quietly.”

When Li Dong Liang reached for Fan Zhen Chuan’s collar, Fan’s driver made a move, but Ge Jian had already advanced on him. The martial brothers coordinated perfectly, forcing Fan’s driver into a corner. When Fan Zhen Chuan tried to grab Xiao Lan, Ge Jian quickly turned and delivered a punch to Fan’s waist.

That punch could shatter meat through leather – Fan Zhen Chuan felt intense pain in his lower back.

Ge Jian had already returned to Xiao Lan’s side.

“Zhen Chuan!”

“Leader!”

“Fan…”

Everyone in the room was terrified.

While Fan Zhen Chuan had been cautious at the Municipal Party Committee Guesthouse, he hadn’t expected Xiao Lan’s people to dare strike someone there – let alone Fan Zhen Chuan himself.

Fan Zhen Chuan clutched his waist. The earlier blow had caused severe internal pain, but after a moment, the sensation gradually disappeared as if it had been his imagination.

The driver’s face was full of shame. “Leader…”

He was no match for these two men – he could handle one, but Xiao Lan had brought two.

Fan Zhen Chuan finally lost his patience and sneered: “Can you afford their protection forever? Sure, they’re skilled fighters! Their fists may be like iron, but their bodies are still flesh and blood. They might beat my driver, but can they beat more men? Can they stop bullets? You’ve assaulted a government official – even if my position is low, I’m not someone you can beat without consequences!”

Ge Jian smiled foolishly: “I only care about money. Miss Xia pays me, so I’ll beat whoever bullies her. If Miss Xia pays enough, I’ll even sell my life to her. I’m not afraid of paying with my life for murder, let alone beating someone up.”

Whether carrying heavy loads or working as a bodyguard – it was all about making money. In this line of work, one was mentally prepared for danger. Ge Jian wasn’t lying – if Xiao Lan paid enough, he’d kill Fan Zhen Chuan on the spot.

That’s why the old saying goes ‘warriors often break the law’ – those who know martial arts tend to disregard rules.

Fan Zhen Chuan realized Ge Jian wasn’t joking. His driver nervously stood in front of his leader, wary that Ge Jian might suddenly turn violent. The Liang Bing A family of three was so frightened they barely dared to breathe.

Surely it was fake?

Like that day when he pulled a knife on Liang Huan – it was just intimidation.

But Ge Jian spoke Mandarin with an out-of-town accent, was tall and thin, with particularly dark skin – not a local from Shang Du. Why would Xiao Lan hire two outsiders? Was it because outsiders wouldn’t fear Fan Zhen Chuan’s threats, or because it would be easier to flee after killing him?

Such violent threats were hardly the tactics of a young girl.

Liang Bing An clenched his fist under the table.

How could he make such a mistake? How could he think of marrying Xiao Lan to the Fan family without her consent? Or rather, why did he let Liu Fang interact with Xiao Lan? If he had handled it personally, perhaps he would have discovered her unusualness earlier – a country girl? Xiao Lan was more than just a country girl. With such composure, she must have seen major situations before!

Marrying Fan Zhen Chuan would be a loss.

With such courage and clarity, plus heaven-blessed looks, Xiao Lan could find a better man.

Why did she arrange the meeting at the Municipal Party Committee Guesthouse? Why was she so calm? Had she already found a target she approved of, or even successfully made contact with… Liang Bing An felt restless, Liang Huan’s face turned pale as she recalled how Xiao Lan had treated her!

Aunt Li held her son’s hand, having lost all elegance and composure.

This woman absolutely couldn’t be allowed into their family.

After driving away Xiao Yu, welcoming an even fiercer tigress would be a complete loss. Aunt Li felt they couldn’t let Xiao Lan go – and Fan Zhen Chuan felt the same way. She maintained that cool indifference, truly not taking anyone in the room seriously. While Fan Zhen Chuan was impressed, by Ge Jian speaking so readily of murder, he feared he wouldn’t be able to sleep in the same bed as Xiao Lan.

Beautiful women were important, but his life was more important.

When it came to matters of life and death, he’d rather make do with an ordinary woman.

“Forget it, the marriage is off. There’s no point in forcing an unwilling match. Let’s pretend the Fan family never proposed.”

Fan Zhen Chuan gave up on the marriage – not because Xiao Lan was disfigured, nor because she had found some powerful figure to intervene, but purely because of her ruthlessness.

Liang Bing An’s feelings were extremely complicated.

The face Fan Zhen Chuan lost today would certainly be recovered by stepping on Liang Bing An – the subsequent reckoning was truly anxiety-inducing.

Xiao Lan smiled slightly: “Mr. Fan, you’re thinking of leaving quickly now and dealing with me slowly afterward, aren’t you? Following Mr. Fan’s usual methods, I won’t be the only one to suffer – you’ll vent your anger on anyone close to me.”

This was exactly how Fan Zhen Chuan threatened others.

Having his habitual tactics exposed by Xiao Lan, his expression turned ugly.

“This is the Municipal Party Committee Guesthouse – could you successfully escape after killing someone?”

Xiao Lan glanced at the clock on the wall – she had deliberately booked a private room where she could see the time. The hands were just five minutes from overlapping at one o’clock. Zhou Cheng had said to just delay until one o’clock.

Xiao Lan explained unhurriedly, “No, I wouldn’t kill anyone here. But since Mr. Fan is here, wouldn’t you like to meet my partner? I thought you’d be curious about what kind of man defeated you.”

Fan Zhen Chuan looked wary. Before coming, he had planned to toy with and humiliate them.

Now, Xiao Lan had exceeded his expectations – was her partner really as he imagined?

Before Fan Zhen Chuan could speak, the door creaked open:

“Sorry to keep you waiting! Why haven’t you started eating – is the food not to your taste? If you don’t eat now, you won’t have another chance to enjoy such a feast.”

As soon as Zhou Cheng entered, he pulled Xiao Lan to sit down, hypocritically greeting the others while truly only caring about his woman:

“Are you hungry?”