My capital is quite large.

The following night, at 8:00 PM.

The doorbell of the top-floor penthouse in Shenzhen Bay No. 1 rang precisely on time.

The door opened, and Zhang Xinyu, dressed in a black silk nightgown, exuded a languid yet sophisticated air.

Standing outside the door was Yang Mi, who was wrapped in a large trench coat.

Just one day later, this rising starlet was as pale as a sheet of paper, and her usually shrewd and proud fox-like eyes were now filled with broken blood vessels and undisguised trembling.

Zhang Xinyu stepped aside to make way, her gaze lingering on Yang Mi for a few more seconds.

As a woman herself, Zhang Xinyu knew exactly what kind of despair was hidden in Yang Mi's tense body at that moment.

But in this dog-eat-dog world, what rose in her heart was not sympathy, but a secret pleasure as an observer.

"The boss is waiting for you in the living room," Zhang Xinyu said casually, and closed the door.

In the spacious and luxurious living room, only a few dim floor lamps were turned on.

Li Feng, wearing a dark bathrobe and holding a glass of whiskey with ice, casually leaned back on the large leather sofa.

His gaze was calm as still water, without the slightest hint of haste or even a trace of lust.

That look in his eyes was like that of an executioner sitting on a high judgment platform, quietly waiting for the condemned prisoner to walk to the guillotine.

Yang Mi walked to the sofa, her legs feeling as heavy as if they were filled with lead.

"Boss..." Her voice trembled so badly that she couldn't even utter a complete sentence.

Li Feng gently swirled the wine glass in his hand, the ice cubes clinking together with a crisp sound.

He didn't even look at Yang Mi's face, but simply uttered two words in a condescending and indifferent tone: "Inspect the goods."

These two words instantly shattered the last shred of self-respect in Yang Mi's heart.

Her hand trembled as she placed it on the belt of her trench coat, her fingertips icy cold.

Just as she was about to make a move, she caught a glimpse out of the corner of her eye that Zhang Xinyu had not left, but had quietly retreated into the shadows behind Li Feng, arms crossed, watching coldly from the sidelines.

"Boss..." Yang Mi looked at Li Feng pleadingly, her voice trembling with tears, "Could you... let her go out first?"

Having to display her most humiliating mark in front of another woman, the feeling of having her soul publicly stripped bare and executed, nearly drove her to the brink of collapse.

Li Feng took a sip of whiskey, a cruel smile playing on his lips. "Do you have the right to bargain with me? Take it off."

Yang Mi froze, as if she had fallen into an ice cave.

A bone-chilling cold shot from the soles of her feet to the top of her head. She finally understood that the man in front of her not only wanted her body, but also wanted to crush all her pride and self-respect into the ground!

The trench coat slipped off.

Next came pieces of cloth to cover their private parts.

When the last obstacle was removed, Yang Mi closed her eyes, and tears of humiliation streamed down her face.

In that place, a striking patch of new tattoos appeared.

It was a clear "锋" (feng) character.

It was so glaring, like an indelible brand of slavery, deeply etched into her flesh and blood, and into her soul.

Li Feng stared quietly at the swollen, red handwriting, his expression remaining largely unchanged, as if he were simply admiring an expensive product that had finally been branded with his own label.

Zhang Xinyu, who had been standing at the back the whole time, couldn't help but breathe more heavily as she watched the shocking scene.

Looking at Yang Mi trembling like a lamb to the slaughter in front of Li Feng, her awe of Li Feng rose to its peak once again.

The next few hours were a long and numbing nightmare for Yang Mi.

There was no pity, no tenderness.

Li Feng, with an absolute air of control, completed a one-sided conquest.

In this process, which was a mixture of physical pain and psychological humiliation, Yang Mi felt as if her soul had been torn in two.

Yang Mi, who once fantasized about pure love in the dead of night and challenged others for dignity and power, is now completely dead on this cold night.

Instead, a brand new soul emerged from the bottomless abyss, covered in mud.

Since my dignity has been completely trampled, and since I have become a branded plaything, I will make the most of this body!

As long as she can climb higher, as long as she can get back everything she lost today tenfold or a hundredfold, she can be more ruthless than anyone else!

After an unknown amount of time, the nightmare finally ended.

Yang Mi lay sprawled on the luxurious carpet, her empty eyes gradually hardening with a chilling ambition.

Li Feng put on a bathrobe, took a document from the coffee table drawer, and threw it in front of Yang Mi like trash.

"Sign it."

Yang Mi struggled to sit up. Without needing to look closely, she knew it was a ten-year full-term indenture contract.

Without any hesitation, she picked up the pen and signed her name heavily on the last page.

Seeing her so decisive, Li Feng smiled with satisfaction.

In front of Yang Mi, he picked up the phone on the table and dialed the number of Cai Yinong, the head of Tangren Media.

"Hello, Mr. Cai. It's me, Li Feng."

As soon as the call connected, Li Feng's tone instantly returned to its usual business-like gentleness and composure. "There was a misunderstanding in Hengdian a couple of days ago. Yang Mi has already come to Shenzhen to report to me in person. The young lady was very sincere, and the misunderstanding has been cleared up."

"Yes, let her continue filming as the 'Chinese Paladin 3' crew. Tangren Media can withdraw their lawsuit."

After hanging up the phone, Li Feng walked up to Yang Mi, looked down at her, and casually tossed a bank card in front of her.

"There's two million in this card, and the PIN is six zeros. Consider it compensation for the lost work time you spent in Shenzhen these past two days reporting to your superiors."

"Take this and buy some supplements. Clean yourself up tomorrow and head back to Hengdian to film properly."

A slap followed by a sweet treat.

Li Feng was well-versed in the art of managing subordinates, especially those who had been completely tamed.

Yang Mi's hands trembled as she tightly gripped the bank card containing a huge sum of money in her palm.

She lowered her head, her gaze inevitably sweeping over the brand on her body.

A persistent stinging sensation constantly reminded her that this tyrant not only controlled her current fate, but also placed her in a shackle she could never escape in this lifetime.

"Thank you... Boss." Yang Mi lowered her head, gritted her teeth, and swallowed the humiliation and ambition deep inside.

……

A few days later, in Xiamen, Fujian, the crew of the TV series "Meteor Shower" arrived.

Having just finished filming a group scene on campus, the crew took a short break.

Yang Yang took two bottles of mineral water to a corner and handed one of them to Li Xin, who was sitting in a folding chair reading a script.

"Xin Xin, have you heard?"

Yang Yang lowered his voice, looked around, and leaned closer to say, "Mi Jie is alright! Someone in the crew group chat sent a message yesterday saying that Mi Jie has returned to the 'Chinese Paladin 3' crew to resume work, and Tangren has also withdrawn its lawsuit. The official statement is that the previous work stoppage was just a small misunderstanding about scheduling, and now the misunderstanding has been completely cleared up."

Li Xin's grip on the mineral water bottle tightened slightly, a complex expression flashing across her innocent face: "The misunderstanding is cleared up? How could it be that simple..."

"There's nothing simple about it."

Yang Yang sighed, his eyes revealing a knowing and clear-headed look typical of someone in the industry. "I heard from a friend of mine in Shenzhen that a couple of days ago, someone saw Sister Mi go to see the boss in the lobby of our Haofeng Network headquarters. I guess she went to apologize to the boss in person and humble herself."

"Think about it, she offended the boss so badly, facing tens of millions in compensation and a complete industry blacklist. What other options did she have besides humbling herself and begging for his forgiveness?"

Upon hearing this, Li Xin's heart skipped a beat.

To make the furious boss retract his order...

What terrible price did Yang Mi pay in the process?

Li Xin dared not think too deeply, or rather, she was unwilling to think too deeply.

Because she knew that her management contract with Yang Yang was also firmly in that man's hands.

If that young tyrant, who can destroy a popular actress with capital at will and drag her out of hell at will, were to set his sights on her one day, would she be able to resist?

The answer is a despairing no.

"Forget it, we can't interfere in other people's business."

Li Xin took a deep breath, forced a somewhat pale smile, unscrewed the bottle of mineral water and took a sip, "Let's just focus on filming. As long as we honestly make money for the company and don't cross the boss's bottom line, he shouldn't make things difficult for us."

Yang Yang nodded: "Yes, let's just stay put and do our best to make this movie a success."

Watching Yang Yang turn and leave, Li Xin picked up the script again, but she couldn't concentrate on reading a single line.

She knew she was deceiving herself.

But what can she do besides burying her head in the sand like an ostrich pretending to be deaf and dumb in this gilded cage completely shrouded in capital?

As long as that day hasn't come, and as long as the boss doesn't mention it, she'll pretend she knows nothing.

That's it.