Lan Shuo stared at the black phone screen, deeply conflicted.
The next second, Meng Xiyao's voice came from outside, "Young Master Lan, I have something urgent to discuss with you. Is it convenient for me to come in?"
The phone was on speaker, and Kang Wei was also a bit startled by what the man had said.
Upon hearing this, he immediately looked at Lan Shuo, "What should we do?"
Killing to silence her would be the best solution, of course.
But the Lan and Kang families were in legitimate businesses, unlike the Han family's industries that had been washed clean from the underworld.
They had toyed with many people and mistreated many more throughout their lives.
But murder was truly... something they had never done.
Especially this time, it involved the Han family, and they could easily get themselves caught.
"What else can we do?" Lan Shuo clenched his phone with a gloomy expression. "Of course, we have to go all out!"
Meng Xiyao's life was not worth much.
The Lan family's interests were the most important. Once the Lan family was gone, what was he, Lan Shuo?
It's easy to go from frugality to luxury, but difficult to go from luxury to frugality.
Having enjoyed the taste of being admired, how could Lan Shuo let go so easily!
After Kang Wei was stunned, he nodded in agreement, "This is the only way."
Although the Kang family had no enmity with the Han family, his father had said that Lin Wanqing was always looking for opportunities to deal with their family.
Therefore, like Lan Shuo, he could not afford to make a single mistake!
Without receiving a response from inside, Meng Xiyao asked again anxiously.
Her voice already had a clear hint of tears.
Inside, the two exchanged a glance and tacitly adjusted their expressions.
"Come in," Lan Shuo said casually, holding his wine glass.
The door was quickly pushed open, and Meng Xiyao entered, shrugging her shoulders. She sat down cautiously next to him and asked,
"Young Master Lan, why didn't you reply to my message yesterday?"
Unable to fathom Lan Shuo's exact feelings towards her, Meng Xiyao could only probe first.
"Oh, you're talking about this," Lan Shuo smiled nonchalantly. "There were too many girls yesterday, I didn't pay attention to you. What do you need me for?"
Meng Xiyao thought it would take some coaxing to get to the point.
Unexpectedly, he brought it up himself, so she leaned into it and said coquettishly, "There is indeed something that requires Young Master Lan's help."
"Oh?" Lan Shuo raised an eyebrow. "Tell me, and I'll definitely handle it for you."
He affectionately touched Meng Xiyao's face, as if treating her as his most beloved lover, his eyes full of indulgence.
Meng Xiyao felt more confident. Her face turned red as she said, "Actually, it's not a difficult matter. It's just on our school's forum..."
After elaborating on the situation with embellishments, Meng Xiyao cried prettily.
"If I had no other choice, I wouldn't bother you. Young Master Lan, you have wide connections, you'll surely help me, right?"
The maiden looked at him with teary eyes, her well-timed vulnerability enough to stir pity.
Yet, Lan Shuo simply stroked her head without a word, showing no intention of helping.
Meng Xiyao called out anxiously, "Young Master Lan?"
Kang Wei also looked at Lan Shuo's somber expression, not understanding what he was thinking.
If he wanted to silence her, why waste so much time talking to her?
Could he have softened?
As he was thinking, he saw Lan Shuo withdraw his hand and say, "Darling, I can't help you with this matter."
His tone was deep, and Meng Xiyao's heart sank halfway, but she still asked stubbornly, "Why?"
"You are the young master of the Lan family! How can there be anything you can't solve?" Meng Xiyao lost her composure and tugged at his sleeve, crying desperately.
"Lan Shuo, I beg you! I really don't want to be expelled from school. My parents used their life savings and worked hard for a long time to send me to study in the capital.
"I can't go back like this! Lan Shuo, Young Master Lan, as long as you help me, I'll do anything! Please..."
Meng Xiyao cried and knelt by Lan Shuo's leg, weakly and pitifully tugging at his trouser leg.
Her appearance was gentle, easily giving her a pitiable aura.
Not to mention her current tearful and fragile state, any man would find it hard to resist.
Unfortunately, the man sitting in front of her was Lan Shuo, who had seen all sorts of women since he was a child.
Her kind of beauty was not really anything special.
"If you want me to help you, that's fine," Lan Shuo said slowly, lifting her chin with one hand. "Just jump off the top floor.
I'll take care of your reputation and your parents' retirement funds. How about it? It should be a good deal, right?"
A deal?
A human life, and in his eyes, it was just a deal?!
Meng Xiyao's hair stood on end as she looked at him, her voice trembling as she reminded him, "The top floor... that will be fatal..."
"Yes," Lan Shuo nodded, his words shattering Meng Xiyao's worldview. "I want you to die."
"You—"
Meng Xiyao fell to the ground in terror, her face draining of all color. Then, she scrambled backward on her hands and feet.
She didn't want anything now.
Wealth, status, reputation, she cared about none of it!
She just wanted to live!
She didn't want to die!
Just as Meng Xiyao was about to escape Lan Shuo's grasp, Lan Shuo leaned down and grabbed her ankle.
With force.
He dragged her back as if she were a dead dog!
"Want to run?" Lan Shuo grabbed her hair, pulling so hard that her face contorted and she screamed before he let go.
"If you were good, you wouldn't suffer, would you?" He lightly slapped her face with the back of his hand.
The look in his eyes was no different from looking at a dead object.
"You..."
Meng Xiyao trembled, her eyes filled with fear. "You're breaking the law... You can't do this..."
She shook her head desperately and struggled, but she couldn't escape his grasp.
"Breaking the law? What nonsense are you talking about?" Lan Shuo met her gaze with exaggerated expressions. "Jumping off the top floor was your own choice. What does it have to do with me?"
"You! You're talking nonsense!" Meng Xiyao shouted in exasperation. " I never thought of dying! And I would never jump from the top floor! It was all your idea! You forced me! It wasn't voluntary!"
"Who can prove it?" Lan Shuo pressed down on her, laughing mockingly. "It's the current situation, and I'm not afraid to tell you, from the very beginning, I never intended for you to escape unscathed.
"The posts on the forum were all arranged by me, with the sole purpose of ruining your reputation."
"You..." Meng Xiyao looked at him in disbelief, forgetting to even struggle.
"Why?" she asked, almost in despair. "Why are you doing this to me?"
Lan Shuo smiled and said, "Because I need a scapegoat, and you are the best choice."
Whether the plan succeeded or not, Yu Wenli would investigate.
But he lacked influence in the capital, meaning the police were his only recourse.
The police needed evidence, and Meng Xiyao's words would be the best evidence.
Therefore, to prevent Meng Xiyao from 'talking carelessly,' he had to set a trap beforehand and put her in a difficult situation.
The message to Lu Youran was sent by someone he hired, and the posts on the forum were also arranged by him.
Meng Xiyao, with no way out, would definitely seek him out.
At that point, everything would be negotiable.
Unfortunately, plans couldn't keep up with changes. The sudden intervention of the Han family caught him off guard.
It would have been better if Meng Xiyao had fallen into the hands of the police. As long as she kept her mouth shut, the police wouldn't be able to find anything.
Because he hadn't interfered in any of the steps, and those thugs weren't arranged by him.
He only knew their activity patterns and deliberately led people to lure them out, while at the same time having Meng Xiyao drug them at the designed time.
No matter how the police investigated, this would be an accidental incident.
As for Meng Xiyao's reason for drugging them, she could have simply said 'I didn't like it' or 'I just wanted to.'
After all, her 'record' was quite glorious, and she was capable of such despicable acts.
But if Meng Xiyao fell into the hands of the Han family, things would become tricky.
The Han family was involved in organized crime. Even the toughest men couldn't withstand their methods, let alone Meng Xiyao?
As long as a crack was made, Fourth Master Han could use his name of Lan Shuo drugging someone to deeply investigate the Lan family's internal affairs. At that time, the Lan family would be at his mercy!
Therefore, to avoid any mistakes, Meng Xiyao had to die!
"Because I need a scapegoat, and you are the best choice."
These words fell on Meng Xiyao's ears like a thunderclap.
She never imagined that the man she gave her first night to had been plotting her death from the very beginning!
"No!"
Meng Xiyao cried out in despair, "I won't let you have your way! I will expose your affairs to everyone!
"I will let everyone in the capital see how the high and mighty Young Master Lan schemed..."
The moment her fingertips touched the doorknob, Lan Shuo turned her around and stabbed her fiercely.
Deeply.
Meng Xiyao looked down and could only see the hilt of the knife in her abdomen.
And the blood that flowed out instantly.
A blinding red.
Lan Shuo jolted back to his senses, retreating two steps in fear.
He didn't know what had happened.
Seeing her flip over and escape from the ground, shouting about going to talk nonsense, he...
He didn't intend to kill her. He just wanted her to commit suicide. How could this have happened...
While he was stunned, a short but clear gasp came from the doorway.
It sounded like a man's voice. Lan Shuo immediately became vigilant, "Who?!"
However, when he opened the door, there was no one outside.
Kang Wei rushed to the door, his face grim. "Someone must have seen it. Let's split up and search! We absolutely cannot let him spread this story!"
The two ran out quickly.
The door closed before her eyes. Meng Xiyao desperately clutched her abdomen, blood quickly filling her hands.
Her consciousness also began to blur. She slid down the wall, collapsing onto the cold floor.
She could feel her life draining away. She could even see her parents.
Unfortunately, she didn't even have the strength to reach out and touch them...
In the last moments of her life, Meng Xiyao suddenly regretted it.
If she had known things would turn out this way, she definitely wouldn't have provoked Jing Xiao, let alone gotten involved with Lan Shuo.
Yu Mei'er was right, the wealthy circles in the capital were not something girls like her with no background could get involved with.
It was possible to lose one's life.
The private room door was pushed open. Yu Jie cautiously peeked inside and met Meng Xiyao's wide-open eyes.
"!"
Yu Jie's breath hitched.
Is this... death?
Yu Jie carefully slipped in and tentatively placed her finger under Meng Xiyao's nose to check...
No breath!
Suppressing the urge to scream, Yu Jie carefully skirted the blood on the floor and quickly went to the corner.
After leaving the private room, Yu Jie's mind was still filled with Meng Xiyao's unresigned face, and she walked distractedly.
Han Yan made way for her, but she still bumped straight into him.
"Sorry!"
Yu Jie came to her senses and apologized, bowing ninety degrees.
Han Yan wanted to reprimand her, but seeing her pale face and dazed expression, he didn't say much more.
Fine Arts College.
Wen Tingxue, afraid that Jiao Yutong would keep thinking about the coffee shop incident, went shopping with Lu Youran, pulling her along.
After all, they had fewer classes in the afternoon and they ended late.
It was enough time for them to go shopping.
Jiao Yutong, unable to resist their persistence, followed them out.
As soon as they reached the school gate, Bian Wei stumbled towards them. The three couldn't dodge in time and bumped into him.
Lu Youran rubbed her sore arm and said angrily, "Bian Wei, are you crazy! If you want trouble, go find Meng Xiyao, okay?!"
"Meng Xiyao..."
Hearing the name again, Bian Wei paused for a moment, then looked up and said, "She, she's dead..."
Wen Tingxue, who was adjusting her clothes, paused and looked at him in surprise. "What did you say?"
Bian Wei suddenly broke down and said, "She was stabbed to death! She was stabbed to death by Lan Shuo!"
His voice was very loud, and the people around them immediately looked at him.
Lu Youran took a step back in fear. "Is he crazy?"
Wen Tingxue looked at his almost deathly pale face and shook her head. "He doesn't look like it."
"Then..."
Lu Youran and Jiao Yutong's expressions changed simultaneously.
If Bian Wei wasn't crazy, then what he said was true?!
Wen Tingxue didn't dare to delay and called Yu Wenli. After Yu Wenli heard the news, he was silent for a few seconds and said, "Don't get involved in this matter anymore. I'll handle it."
At the same time, at the KTV, in room 888.
Lan Shuo, who had searched everywhere for her and couldn't find her, angrily kicked open the door.
Kang Wei cautiously observed their surroundings, and after confirming that no one was paying attention, he closed the door.
"What should we do?" he asked.
After the drugging incident, the police had come to investigate. To avoid any mistakes, Lan Shuo had directly destroyed the cameras in the area.
Therefore, it was impossible to investigate now.
Lan Shuo said irritably, "How the hell should I know?! Why don't we just call the manager over and ask one by one? Someone must have seen that person!"
This was a stupid move, but there was no other way.
Kang Wei stood up. "I'll go arrange it."
As he finished speaking, Lan Shuo's phone rang again.
Lan Shuo was now terrified of the sound of his phone ringing. He swiped to answer, and as expected, it was more bad news.
"Yu Mei'er had a micro-camera in room 888. Did you know about this?" Fu Yuchuan asked calmly.
Lan Shuo froze. "What? What camera?"
Fu Yuchuan said, "The Yu sisters know about your plan. I don't need to say the rest, do I?"
After the call ended, Lan Shuo frantically searched the private room but found nothing.
One problem after another, Lan Shuo was overwhelmed and could only call for help.
After listening to all the information, the man said casually, "Just find a murderer, wouldn't that solve it?"
Evening, dormitory.
Lu Youran was doing her skincare routine while gossiping. "I heard the counselor called Meng Xiyao over a dozen times, and no one answered. What do you think, was she really...?"
She turned and leaned on the back of her chair, making a throat-slitting gesture.
Wen Tingxue flipped through her book and shook her head. "I'm not sure."
The afternoon had been very quiet, and she hadn't heard any police investigations, but Bian Wei didn't seem like he was lying.
While her mind was wandering, her phone on the side rang.
The caller ID showed Meng Xiyao.
There's one more chapter, it will be available in the morning.