You got your marriage certificate and then abandoned me? I'll feed the richest woman in the wor

The suffocating smell of cigars in the VIP box.

At that moment, it seemed to solidify into reality.

It pressed down hard on Chen Hai's chest, squeezing out the last bit of oxygen, still carrying the smell of alcohol, from his lungs.

On the green velvet gambling table, his chip area was completely empty.

Not even a single plastic card of the smallest denomination was left.

A principal of ten million, plus a high-interest loan of twenty million.

In just one hour, it was reduced to a few cold, lifeless sheets of paper on the table.

"No...it's impossible..."

Chen Hai collapsed to the ground, his hands bracing against the carpet covered in cigarette ash.

His eyeballs bulged out due to excessive blood flow, and were covered with hideous red blood vessels.

His lips trembled violently, and he couldn't even string together a complete sentence.

"I clearly saw their cards just now... You cheated! You bunch of liars!"

He roared hysterically like a mad gambler.

He struggled to get up and grab the croupier's collar.

The two burly thugs standing behind him didn't give him the chance at all.

One of the bald, burly men stepped forward and lifted his foot, which was clad in hard-soled leather shoes.

He kicked Chen Hai hard in the back of the knee.

A snap.

Chen Hai let out a piercing scream as his knees slammed heavily to the ground.

Another thug grabbed his greasy hair and pressed his face hard against the edge of the coffee table.

"Deqian?"

The door to the private room was pushed open.

The casino owner walked in, a cigar dangling from his lips and a beer belly sticking out.

The leather shoes made a dull clattering sound as they stepped on the carpet.

He walked up to Chen Hai and blew a puff of smoke onto Chen Hai's face, which was covered in cold sweat.

"You think you can't play your game on my turf and then try to renege on your debt?"

"The IOU is in black and white, and it even has your bloody fingerprint on it!"

The boss waved his hand.

The thug immediately grabbed Chen Hai's right hand and forcefully pressed it onto the flat table.

A gleaming boning knife was slammed down beside him.

The blade sank into the solid wood tabletop with a dull thud.

"Thirty million, how are you going to pay it back?"

The boss squatted down and patted Chen Hai's pale face.

"Today you either pay me the money, or you leave your hands behind to pay off your debt."

The cold back of the knife slid across Chen Hai's fingers.

It raised a fine layer of goosebumps.

Chen Hai was so frightened that he wet his pants, and a foul odor filled the private room.

He struggled desperately, but under the restraint of the two strong men, he couldn't move an inch.

"I have money! My son has money!"

At this critical juncture, the only lifeline he could grasp was his son, whom he had abandoned.

"Chen Yuan! Chen Yuan, the big boss of Xingchen Venture Capital, is my biological son!"

"If you dare touch me, he'll make sure your entire place is wiped out!"

He shouted at the top of his lungs, a glimmer of desperate hope burning in his eyes.

Just give this name.

In Jianghai City, who in the underworld or the legitimate world would dare not give them some face?

Surprisingly, the casino owner wasn't afraid at all when he heard the name.

Instead, he let out a contemptuous laugh.

He laughed so hard that the cigar in his mouth trembled up and down.

"Chen Yuan? You really think you're something special."

The boss straightened up and took a black, encrypted phone out of his suit pocket.

The screen lights up.

A pre-recorded audio file was clicked to play.

Although the sound from the external speaker was distorted, the deep, cold voice was still present.

It exudes an absolute chill that makes one feel as if they have fallen into an ice cave.

It rang clearly in the smoky private room.

"This person has nothing to do with me."

"How much does he owe you? Is it an arm or a leg?"

"Or they might be sent to some illegal coal mine to dig coal for the rest of their lives."

"Life and death are up to you, but even if you die, don't defile the territory of Jianghai City."

In just a few words, there was no extra emotional fluctuation.

It's like sentencing a fly that has mistakenly wandered into the house to death.

Clean, efficient, and revealing a deep-seated cruelty and indifference.

After the recording finished playing, the boss put away his phone.

Chen Hai seemed to have been drained of his soul.

The last bit of strength to struggle completely disappeared.

His eyes were blankly fixed on the cleaver on the table, his mind buzzing.

He finally understood.

That ten million was not some hush money to buy out blood ties.

That was a packet of poison that Chen Yuan had personally handed to him.

It was a bait that had accurately grasped his gambler's greedy nature and lured him to willingly jump into the deepest abyss!

"No...son...you can't do this to me..."

He muttered to himself in despair, tears and snot streaming down his face.

"Drag it down."

The boss waved his hand dismissively.

"Now that Mr. Chen has spoken, this old man can forget about ever seeing the light of day again in his lifetime."

"Load it onto a ship overnight and send it to illegal mines in Southeast Asia."

"They only give you one rotten meal a day, and you'll work until you die."

Two thugs dragged Chen Hai, who was limp as a log, up like a dead pig.

Amidst his heart-wrenching pleas for mercy, they dragged him out through the hidden door of the private room.

On the carpet, only a puddle of pale yellow water with a foul odor remained.

There was also a crushed, worthless IOU.

The fully enclosed study on the second basement floor of Yunding Manor.

The air conditioner was running quietly in the corner.

Four enormous curved screens emitted a deep blue light.

Chen Yuan sat in a large gaming chair.

His gaze was indifferent as he watched the last surveillance video on the screen go black.

The data stream representing Chen Hai's account was completely cut off and destroyed.

His long, slender fingers rested on the keyboard.

The "Delete" key was pressed.

On the screen is an electronic file containing Chen Hai's personal information.

It was transformed into a meaningless string of code and permanently erased from the databases of major systems.

Clean and efficient.

Without any hesitation or delay.

This is the kind of beast who gambles away his wife's life-saving money and throws his two-year-old son into the snow.

Punishing someone with the most cruel social death and physical enslavement is not enough to vent one's anger.

What blood relation? What forgiveness?

In Chen Yuan's world, such things only exist in those boring, hypocritical moral dramas.

The only true way to deal with scum is to fight fire with fire, a physical counterattack.

The heavy, soundproof door to the study was gently pushed open from the outside.

Chen Yuan didn't turn around, but the tense lines of his shoulders and back softened the moment he heard the faint footsteps.

A faint scent of peach-scented shower gel.

It dispelled the slightly cold, metallic smell of the electronic devices in the study.

Shen Wanzhou walked barefoot on the soft wool carpet.

She was wearing a loose-fitting cotton nightgown with the neckline slightly open.

Her fair and slender neck and prominent collarbone were exposed.

She had just finished showering, her long, black hair still slightly damp, casually draped over her shoulders.

She walked behind Chen Yuan.

Without any hesitation, two slender arms passed through his sides.

She wrapped her arms around his lean waist with both gentleness and firmness.

Her cheek gently pressed against Chen Yuan's broad back.

Through the thin fabric of his shirt, she could clearly hear the man's steady and powerful heartbeat.

Hey, hey, hey.

That voice was her only safe haven in the world.

She had no idea what bloody past Chen Yuan had just dealt with on the computer.

I don't want to ask.

All she knew was that this man, with his coldness and strength, shielded her from all the storms outside.

Now, she wanted to use her body heat to warm the old frost that occasionally rose in his heart.

"Are you done with your work?"

Shen Wanzhou's soft, sweet voice rang out in the quiet study.

With a hint of languor from having just taken a shower.

She gently rubbed her chin against his back.

Chen Yuan loosened his grip on the mouse.

In the depths of his eyes, there was the ferocity and killing intent of a dark web demon.

In this soft embrace, everything completely vanished.

Only a pool of warm spring water remained.

He turned his swivel chair around.

He casually put his arm around Shen Wanzhou's slender waist and pulled her into his arms.

He had her straddle his lap.

His large, well-defined hands gently stroked her slightly damp long hair.

He brushed his fingertips across her warm cheek.

Chen Yuan closed his computer screen, turned around and hugged the girl behind him, his voice as soft as a sigh: "It's okay now. From now on, wherever you are will be my only home."