Volume One, Chapter Seventeen: Su Yu’s Breakdown

“Hmph.”

The man let out a low, cold laugh tinged with mockery as he bent down and lifted Su Yu horizontally from the ground.

“My little darling, your little brain is quite clever,” he said, glancing down at the pale-faced woman in his arms. His tone was light, but thick with malice. “What a pity, your Han Yan brother is already locked up by me.”

He deliberately paused, savoring the moment as Su Yu’s face instantly drained of color, and spoke each word deliberately: “It seems your hope has been shattered once more.”

“My little darling, stay by my side! You won’t escape the palm of my hand.”

With that, Si Yan hoisted Su Yu in his arms and strode toward the stairs leading down to the dungeon.

The further down they went, the damper and colder the air became, mixed with a rusty, metallic stench.

Just as they reached the dungeon entrance, fierce sounds of fighting burst forth—

The dull thuds of fists and feet colliding, the sharp clatter of overturned tables and chairs, all blending into a jarring cacophony.

Su Yu peeked inside to see Li Han Yan engaged in a desperate battle against five of Si Yan’s mercenaries.

His body bore multiple fresh wounds, his clothes soaked in blood, yet his movements remained swift and fierce.

One against five.

Despite the odds, the mercenaries could not gain even a shred of advantage. Both sides were battered and disheveled.

But in the end, Li Han Yan was overwhelmed; under the relentless assault of five opponents, his strength waned, and his movements slowed.

A heavy punch slammed into his abdomen. He groaned and staggered, collapsing to the ground.

“No!”

“Stop hitting him!”

Seeing this, Su Yu went wild, struggling violently to break free from Si Yan’s grasp. Barefoot, she charged into the prison.

She threw herself against the cold iron bars, clutching them tightly, her voice hoarse as she cried out, “Stop! Don’t hit him anymore!”

Tears streamed down her cheeks like broken pearls, falling onto the dust-covered floor.

Li Han Yan knelt on the ground, forehead pressed against the cold stone bricks, barely able to lift his head.

But the mercenaries paid no heed. The leader waved dismissively, and the others advanced again.

Whoever paid their wages, they obeyed.

“Si Yan, make them stop!”

Su Yu slumped against the iron bars, their coldness biting into her hands.

She couldn’t get inside; all she could do was watch helplessly as Li Han Yan was beaten, despair flooding her like ice water.

Si Yan stood nearby, expressionless as he observed the one-sided onslaught, as if the scene before him were nothing more than a meaningless farce.

---

This man was trying to steal his wife; a beating was the least he deserved!

Su Yu grabbed his trouser leg fiercely, her knuckles whitening from the grip. Her voice trembled with tears as she pleaded desperately, “Stop hitting him! He’ll die!”

“Si Yan, I beg you, please make them stop.”

She repeated this over and over, tears blurring her vision, nearly collapsing to the floor.

“Xiao Yu, don’t beg him…”

Li Han Yan was pinned to the ground, blood and dust mixing at the corner of his mouth.

He painfully lifted his head, managing a few words before coughing up a mouthful of fresh blood that splattered onto the cold stone floor—an alarming sight.

“Brother Han Yan!”

Su Yu’s heart was wrenched violently; tears fell harder as she looked at him with overwhelming worry, her voice choking, “You shouldn’t have come… Si Yan did this on purpose, he deliberately lured you here to die!”

“Hmph, forget it…” Li Han Yan sighed softly, his voice faint as a dying candle in the wind.

The next moment, his head drooped completely and he lost consciousness, collapsing limply to the ground.

From the very start, he knew it would be nearly impossible to sneak Su Yu out from under Si Yan’s watchful eyes.

But he was not afraid—for after all, his status was clear. No matter how mad Si Yan was, he wouldn't want to start a war...

“Li Han Yan, wake up… wake up!”

Su Yu’s voice trembled with tears as she stared at the unconscious man, clutching the cold iron bars until her knuckles whitened.

She suddenly turned to Si Yan, tears blurring her eyes, lowering herself once more to plead, “Please save him, Si Yan. Please let him go.”

“I beg you…”

Si Yan’s face was ashen, as cold as ice.

He coldly watched this “life and death farewell,” which to him was unbearably irritating.

Then, looking down at Su Yu with disdain and suppressed fury, he sneered, “Save him?”

“You care about him that much?”

“Darling, have you forgotten? I am your husband!”

Si Yan’s voice rose sharply, filled with outraged fury at the offense, “He’s nothing!”

With that, he gripped Su Yu’s neck fiercely, his eyes sharp as blades. “Is he really that important to you?”

“No, you’re not! You’re not!”

Su Yu shook her head desperately, tears mingling with hopelessness as they slipped down her face.

She pushed him away with all her strength, punching his chest wildly, filled with endless resistance and anger. “You don’t deserve it!”

Her blows were weak, barely a tickle to Si Yan, but they ignited the fire of rage burning within him.

---

The man hoisted Su Yu onto his shoulder, ignoring her struggles, and strode out of the cold dungeon.

“Si Yan, you devil!”

Bouncing uncomfortably, Su Yu beat his back with hands and feet, her voice filled with hatred, “Let me go! Don’t touch me!”

Her resistance grew fiercer, tears and fury burning her throat as she shouted, “The biggest sin of my life was meeting you on that street!”

Si Yan ignored her, his steps steady and unyielding, broad shoulders like a cold mountain.

He held her tightly in his arms, refusing to loosen his grip no matter how much she cursed.

Inside the mirrored chamber, Su Yu was thrown onto the large bed.

Before she could rise, her hands and feet were bound.

Surrounded by mirrors reflecting her terrified face from every angle, she broke down completely.

The last time she was thrown in here was when she first tried to escape.

She had been locked up for a whole month, tortured daily.

Only after falling seriously ill was she released!

As expected, her silk nightgown was roughly torn open.

The man’s large hands roamed over her body, oppressive and possessive, invading every inch.

“Si Yan, please spare him,” Su Yu surrendered, utterly defeated.

As long as he didn’t relent, Li Han Yan would never escape.

Si Yan said nothing, relentlessly taking her again and again.

Condoms were discarded one after another.

Su Yu closed her eyes, refusing to look at her reflection in the ceiling mirror.

It wasn’t until she choked out pleas for mercy that Si Yan finally stopped—and by then, it was already the next evening.

He never let her lose consciousness; if she was about to pass out, he would slow down—or deliberately rouse her.

Only when possessing Su Yu in this way did he feel she truly belonged to him; at all other times, he was plagued by intense insecurity.