The wind and snow howled.
Dark clouds rolled in seamlessly, pressing down heavily, making the dimming sky look increasingly gloomy.
In the main hall of the Li family.
Yang Ning poured a cup of hot tea and nervously handed it to Wang Gou'er. "Lord Gou, please don't laugh at our meager offerings; we only have plain water at home."
"Madam is truly too polite."
Beneath the black dog-head felt hat, Wang Gou'er bared his teeth in a grin.
When he smiled, his scarred face looked even more vicious. As he took the teacup, he deliberately tried to touch Yang Ning's hand.
Terrified, Yang Ning hurriedly dodged and took two steps back.
Wang Gou'er burst into loud laughter.
The fierce-looking thugs standing on both sides of the hall joined in the raucous laughter.
Amidst the arrogant and unbridled laughter, Yang Ning's face grew paler, her fingers tightly clutching the hem of her coarse cloth clothes.
Wang Gou'er was originally just a ruthless street thug in Yunzhou City who loved to fight. Once, simply over a minor verbal altercation.
He murdered a family of five, young and old, and was thrown into the Yunzhou prison.
He was scheduled to be executed.
But somehow, he managed to suck up to a nobleman.
He was released, and from then on, relying on his vicious methods, he rose to power. With a sudden transformation, he was now the boss of the Wang Family Moneyhouse, the largest moneyhouse in Yunzhou City.
He was the villain the commoners of Yunzhou City dreaded offending the most.
If Li Yan hadn't been injured.
And if the Yang siblings hadn't been driven into an absolute dead end, they would never have borrowed money from him.
Facing this god of plague, Yang Ning feigned composure and said, "Lord Gou, the contract we signed stated that the money was to be repaid in two and a half months. There are still two months left..."
"There's no need for Madam Li to remind me. I, Wang Gou'er, run a moneyhouse business and am most strict about following the rules. Repaying in two and a half months means two and a half months; I won't come demanding it early!"
Hearing Wang Gou'er say this.
Yang Ning felt slightly reassured, but then grew puzzled. If he wasn't here to collect the debt, then why had he come?
Just as she was wondering.
Wang Gou'er clapped his hands. Soon, two large men carried a wooden plank acting as a stretcher through the door.
They placed the wooden board on the ground.
Yang Ning saw a person lying on it.
It was none other than the thug Chen San, who had come to make trouble that morning and was knocked out cold by Yang An's single punch.
At this moment, Chen San's eyes were squeezed shut, his face deathly pale.
His entire body was wrapped in white bandages like a rice dumpling. By the looks of it, he was taking in less air than he was letting out.
Feeling uneasy, Yang Ning asked, "Lord Gou, what is the meaning of this?"
Wang Gou'er clenched his fist and knocked his knuckles on the table, his tone unfriendly, "Madam Li, this subordinate of mine was beaten by your Yang Erlang, wasn't he?"
Yang Ning hurriedly explained.
"It is true that Erlang hit him... but there was a reason, this man was the first to..."
"Enough!" Wang Gou'er sneered coldly, interrupting her. "As long as it was Yang An who hit him, that's all that matters! This subordinate of mine suffered multiple bone fractures all over his body, and his internal organs are damaged. I spent a full three hundred taels of silver at Huichun Hall just to save his life."
As he spoke, Wang Gou'er pulled a receipt from his sleeve and slammed it heavily onto the table in front of Yang Ning with a loud Smack!
"This is the receipt from Huichun Hall."
"Take a close look, Madam Li. If there are no issues, then pay these three hundred taels of silver."
"Don't say I'm bullying a woman."
"I'm in a good mood today. As long as you pay the three hundred taels of silver, I won't pursue the matter of the assault. But if you refuse..."
Wang Gou'er pulled his black dog-head felt hat down slightly and gave a chilling smile, "Then I'll have no choice but to take this matter to the government office. And invite your Erlang to go inside and sit for a while."
Yang Ning wasn't stupid.
How could she not see that the other party was purely here to extort them?
She argued, "My brother only punched him once! How could his entire body be fractured?!"
"Is Madam Li doubting that my subordinate's injuries are real?" Wang Gou'er snorted coldly, gesturing to the thugs beside him. "Pull it open and show her."
Hearing this, the two thugs stepped forward.
They ripped open the bandages on Chen San's arm, revealing an arm covered in bruises and bloody welts!
Yang Ning's pupils contracted, and she cried out in disbelief, claiming injustice.
"How can this be!"
"How is this possible, my brother never even hit his arm!"
Smack!
Wang Gou'er slammed the wooden table so hard it shook. He stood up and said angrily, "What? Is Madam Li implying that I am extorting you? Since Madam Yang thinks so, then I won't waste any more words. We will see each other at the government office!"
Wang Gou'er snorted coldly and turned to leave.
Yang Ning panicked.
Wang Gou'er was incredibly wealthy and had powerful backing.
If this really went to the government office, even a fake matter would become real, and her brother's life would be ruined. In her desperation, she grabbed Wang Gou'er's sleeve: "Lord Gou! This slave is just a woman who doesn't know how to speak! Please wait!"
"What's this? Has Madam Li thought it through and is willing to pay the three hundred taels of silver?"
Wang Gou'er stopped in his tracks, turning his head with a smile.
Currently, even the house was mortgaged to Wang Gou'er; how could they possibly produce three hundred taels of silver? Left with no options, Yang Ning put on a bitter face and begged, "Lord Gou, I truly cannot produce the money right now... I beg you, could you grant us a grace period?"
"What kind of talk is this, Madam Li?!"
Wang Gou'er pulled a long face and said sternly, "I said it just now. I, Wang Gou'er, run a moneyhouse, and I follow the rules strictly! You hit someone, you pay compensation; it's perfectly justified. There is no such thing as a grace period! Either pay the money, or let your Yang An go live in prison for a few years. Anyway, he's young. He'll only be forty or fifty when he gets out, still capable of marrying and having children!"
Get out at forty or fifty?
Then my brother's life is completely ruined!
Valuing Yang An more than her own life, Yang Ning was so anxious she was on the verge of tears. Gripping Wang Gou'er's arm, she pleaded, "Lord Gou! My brother was ignorant, please give him one chance! I beg you to grant us some time, I will definitely compensate you with the money!"
Having been in the debt collection business for half his life.
Wang Gou'er knew exactly how to squeeze the marrow from people's bones. Seeing Yang Ning's reaction, he figured the heat was just about right.
He glanced at Yang Ning's gentle and alluring figure.
Dropping his vicious demeanor from a moment ago, he smiled and said, "If Madam wants me to spare Yang An, it's actually not that difficult. In truth, I have a matter I need Madam Li's help with. If this matter is handled well, not only will this three-hundred-tael issue be resolved, but perhaps even the money the Li family owes me can be wiped clean."
"I just don't know if Madam Li is willing?"
As if grasping at a lifesaver, Yang Ning hurriedly asked, "Lord Gou, what is the matter?"
"It's nothing major. There is a nobleman who has admired Madam Li for a long time, but unfortunately has never had the chance to meet you. All Madam Li needs to do is come with me. You don't need to do anything else, just help me keep that nobleman happy."
Yang Ning's face instantly turned deathly pale.
How could she not hear Wang Gou'er's true intention? He was trying to force her into prostitution!
Violently pushing Wang Gou'er's hand away.
Yang Ning stumbled back a few steps and said angrily, "I won't go! I absolutely will not go!"
"You won't go? Then you can wait to see your brother in prison!"
Wang Gou'er brought up Yang An again.
As if her fatal weakness had been pressed, Yang Ning froze in place.
Seeing her pitiful, tearful appearance.
Wang Gou'er advised, "Madam Li shouldn't be so resistant. Put bluntly, it's just earning money. As long as you get past that mental hurdle, it's all the same."
Yang Ning kept shaking her head.
"Is Madam Li really going to watch her brother go to prison helplessly? Yunzhou Prison isn't like other places. No one who goes in ever comes out with all their limbs intact. Yang An has such fair, tender skin; spending decades in there, tsk, tsk, tsk..."
Tears burst from her eyes.
Yang Ning, who had never begged anyone in her life, knelt crying beside Wang Gou'er, kowtowing as she said, "Lord Gou, I beg you, have mercy, let my brother go! Please let my Erlang go! It's all my fault, I'll bring him to kowtow to you!"
Seeing that she was still so stubborn.
Wang Gou'er's face darkened, and he said coldly, "You're begging me? Who am I supposed to beg? Besides, serving that nobleman is a great thing, something countless women couldn't get even if they begged. What are you crying for?!"
Yang Ning kept kowtowing.
Her forehead turned red, on the verge of bleeding.
Having wasted his breath for so long, Wang Gou'er also lost his patience.
If the soft approach doesn't work, we'll use the hard way!
He signaled with a cold glance. Two large men immediately stepped forward from the sides, grabbed Yang Ning's arms, yanked her up from the ground, and prepared to carry her away by force.
"Don't touch me!"
Her face covered in tears, Yang Ning struggled violently.
She wildly swung the rolling pin she had pulled from God knows where. Smack! Smack! The hands of the two large men were hit a few times, instantly swelling red, and they flinched back in pain.
Breaking free from the thugs' grasp.
Yang Ning gripped the rolling pin, looking at Wang Gou'er.
Looking at the thugs filling the room.
A faint, imperceptible glint of gold flashed in the depths of her eyes as tears of despair slid down her cheeks. Wang Gou'er came for me. It's all because of me. It's all because of me. As long as I die, everything will be fine. Erlang will be fine, Husband will be fine.
She spun around and threw herself toward the corner of the wooden table behind her!
This scene took everyone completely by surprise! None of the scoundrels in the room had expected Yang Ning to be so fiercely unyielding!
Wang Gou'er was horrified, screaming internally, It's over!
But right at that moment.
Chen San, whose body was wrapped entirely in white bandages, opened his beady eyes and suddenly leapt up from the wooden plank.
He blocked Yang Ning's path.
And delivered a vicious kick to her stomach, sending her crashing to the floor!
Although Chen San had only practiced martial arts for a few years and only knew the basics, his physical strength was not something a weak woman like Yang Ning could withstand.
Taking that heavy kick.
Yang Ning felt as if her body had shattered in that instant. Her beautiful features scrunched up in agony as she lay pale on the floor.
Looking at the standing Chen San.
A Chen San who was clearly perfectly fine.
Clutching her stomach, she said in agony, "You were faking it! You were faking it! My Erlang didn't break the law! He doesn't need to go to prison!!"
"Stupid woman, it's too late to realize that now."
Chen San sneered and glanced at Yang Ning.
Like a loyal lapdog, he sidled up to Wang Gou'er to claim credit. "Lord Gou, this little one told you long ago. Dealing with a hard bone like this, simply using your fists works better than anything else. You shouldn't have wasted so much breath on her."
Yang Ning wasn't dead.
Wang Gou'er breathed a sigh of relief.
That really gave him a fright just now. This woman had been specifically requested by the nobleman, with strict instructions to deliver her completely unharmed. If she had actually died, his own dog skin might have been stripped from him.
Wang Gou'er patted Chen San's shoulder.
"Beautifully done. When we get back, you won't be short of silver."
"Thank you, Lord Gou!" Chen San was overjoyed.
Wang Gou'er wiped the sweat from under his dog-head felt hat and cursed the two thugs who were still clutching their hands. "You two useless pieces of trash, you can't even hold down a woman! If you fail to grab her again this time, I'll tear both your arms off!"
The two thugs shuddered.
They quickly agreed. By this time, Yang Ning no longer had the strength to struggle, and was simply hoisted up by the arms by the two men.
With the person secured.
Wang Gou'er turned to leave with his thugs, feeling satisfied.
They had barely stepped out of the main hall.
When they heard a furious roar, "A'ning! You animals, let her go!!!"
Turning toward the curse.
Wang Gou'er and the others saw Li Yan lying outside the bedroom door.
Li Yan, who had been bedridden, heard Yang Ning's screams and actually struggled and fell out of bed!
Using his hands, he dragged himself out of the bedroom.
Seeing Wang Gou'er's men about to carry Yang Ning away, his eyes turned bloodshot. Veins of pure rage bulged on his forehead as he growled, "Wang Gou'er! Let her go!!"
Wang Gou'er was amused.
He slowly walked toward Li Yan.
The black dog felt hat on his head merged with his shadow, casting a dark veil over Li Yan. "I was wondering who it was. If it isn't Buliangshuai Li. You're still alive, huh?"
"Wang Gou'er, get the hell out! Get out!"
Li Yan cursed furiously.
"Haha, why so fierce?" Wang Gou'er chuckled dryly and crouched in front of Li Yan. "Since Buliangshuai Li is still alive, that's perfect. I can put this to use."
He pulled a pre-drafted letter of divorce from his sleeve.
And handed it, along with a brush, to Li Yan.
"Your esteemed wife has encountered a massive stroke of luck and is about to soar to great heights. Buliangshuai Li shouldn't hold her back. Sign your name on this. As long as you sign it, I guarantee you'll be able to stand up again."
"Future wealth and glory won't just be a dream."
Li Yan stared dead at Wang Gou'er, his eyes densely webbed with bloodshot veins, his ten fingers digging deeply into the freezing snow!
Wang Gou'er patted his face, urging him.
"What are you looking at! I thought Buliangshuai Li only broke his legs? Could it be your hands are broken too? Stop playing dumb and sign it!"
"I'll sign your fucking grandmother!"
With a violent Riiiiip!, Li Yan tore the divorce letter to shreds!
Both his hands shot out, grabbing the arm Wang Gou'er had extended.
And bit down on it with savage ferocity.
Biting right through the padded cotton clothes, he tore a bloody chunk of flesh clean off his arm!