Chapter 17

The yacht docked.

The guests from the engagement party disembarked one by one.

The ballroom quickly emptied, leaving only Jiang Yao, Fu Liuchuan, and a few of his friends.

Jiang Yao had had a lot to drink, and her cheeks were flushed. “Liuchuan, are we going home?”

“Not yet.” Fu Liuchuan smiled. “This is our engagement party. I have a surprise for you.”

Jiang Yao’s eyes lit up with anticipation. She said sweetly, “Ah Chuan, you’re so good to me.”

The yacht glided silently across the sea when a sudden wave hit.

Jiang Yao, in her high heels, lost her balance and fell onto the deck.

“Ah!” she cried out as her elbow hit the sharp corner of a railing, breaking the skin.

The tight fishtail gown restricted her movements, making it impossible for her to get up on her own. She looked up at Fu Liuchuan with a pitiful expression. “Ah Chuan, I can’t get up.”

“Can you help me up-ah!”

She screamed, her face instantly turning pale.

Fu Liuchuan had taken a step forward and stepped on her fingers, grinding them into the deck.

He showed no mercy. Jiang Yao’s knuckles were crushed, soon becoming a bloody mess.

Jiang Yao screamed and cried, first cursing him, then begging.

Finally, she was in so much pain that her body convulsed, cold sweat pouring down her forehead, and she could no longer make a sound.

“Does it hurt?”

“You thought you could get away with it, even alter my memories. But you seem to have made a mistake.” Fu Liuchuan looked down at her, his eyes cold. “I’ve always remembered what happened that night.”

“I thought she was still alive, so I let you live.”

“How dare you… kill her.”

As he said the last word, he broke Jiang Yao’s fingers.

The skin tore, revealing the stark white of bone and the sharp shards of the break.

Jiang Yao’s voice was shrill with pain and terror. “It wasn’t me…”

“I didn’t kill her! I didn’t kill her!”

Fu Liuchuan acted as if he hadn’t heard. His eyes were dead, but a bleak smile played on his lips. “She had a bit of a temper, but at least she genuinely considered you a friend.”

“How many times did she help you when you were in trouble?”

“If you wanted something, you could have talked to me.”

“Why did you have to kill her?”

She screamed in her mind, begging the System to block the pain.

But the only response was a cold, mechanical voice.

“Host’s points have been depleted.”

“Upon re-evaluation, progress in winning him over is now 0%.”

“Communication channel closing. Good luck, Host.”