Chapter 46 : Villain 1
Chapter 46: Villain 1
The bar was a carefully crafted cocoon.
The air was filled with the complex mix of tobacco, alcohol, perfume, and the ambiguous warmth of human body heat.
Low-saturation warm lighting cast down from all angles.
It cleverly blurred the subtle flaws and traces of time on people’s faces.
Every face was coated with an unreal sense of beauty.
Everything appeared so refined, so decent.
In stark contrast to the world outside.
This place was more like a never-ending paradise of indulgence.
Easily ensnaring the souls who longed to escape or sought excitement.
Lin Zheng.
Without a doubt, he was the one most deeply immersed among them.
A few gulps of strong liquor later, the initial awkwardness was gradually replaced by the heat and swelling sensation brought on by alcohol.
He leaned back against the soft velvet sofa, narrowing his eyes as he surveyed everything around him.
He felt that bartender earlier had not been entirely unmoved by him.
It was merely her personality, perhaps inside she had already been won over by his humor and generosity.
His gaze once again drifted uncontrollably toward Xiao Ran at the bar counter.
In the hazy light, the lines of her side profile appeared even more perfect, and that faint, almost imperceptible smile at the corner of her lips seemed even more alluring.
Alcohol amplified his desire and blurred his judgment.
He began to feel that his failure earlier had not been due to his own inadequacy, but because the timing had not yet come—or perhaps the test had not been enough.
For a beauty of this caliber, wasn’t it natural for her to have a temper, to set up obstacles?
That was the mark of something truly superior.
He even began to imagine: as long as he persisted a little longer, showed a little more sincerity—
For example, ordering a few more expensive drinks—perhaps he could break the ice and win the beauty’s favor.
At that time, walking out of the bar with such a peerless woman in his arms, how much face would that bring him?
That little streamer who only knew how to act cute and ask for gifts could not even compare!
He was captivated by the illusion he wove for himself, completely ignoring the undisguised playfulness in Xiao Ran’s eyes.
And selectively forgetting how wretchedly he had just failed minutes ago.
The alcohol, the environment, and his own swelling desire together built him a dreamy and intoxicating illusion.
“Tsk, got burned?”
Beside him, Gu Yun leaned closer, a gloating smile on his face as he nudged him with his elbow.
Gu Yun was one of the dissolute friends Lin Zheng hung around with after returning to the country.
His family had some money, and he played even harder and more recklessly than Lin Zheng.
Lin Zheng snapped out of his dream world, pushing him away irritably.
“Get lost! That chick… doesn’t budge!”
“Which chick? The top-grade beauty soloing over at the bar counter?”
Gu Yun’s eyes lit up instantly.
“I saw you two whispering back and forth for ages just now. What, couldn’t seal the deal?”
Lin Zheng ruffled his hair in frustration.
“Seal what deal, she takes neither hard nor soft, even told me to go make that bartender laugh… in the end, I stood there like an idiot telling lame jokes!”
Gu Yun, hearing this, not only didn’t sympathize, but snorted with laughter.
“Pfft! You actually told jokes? Young Master Lin, your girl-chasing skills have gone downhill! Weren’t your years in England wasted?”
Lin Zheng took another gulp of liquor.
“Stop mocking me! If you’ve got the guts, go try yourself?”
Gu Yun slapped his thigh, getting excited.
“Me? Sure I’ll go! A beauty of this level, just looking at her gets the blood pumping! But…”
His tone shifted, lowering his voice with a trace of malicious scheming.
“Just chatting her up, where’s the fun in that? Look at her, does she seem like the type you can fool with a few sweet words?”
Lin Zheng frowned.
“Then what do you suggest? She seems to handle her drinks, and she’s pretty cautious too.”
He recalled last time when Xiao Ran hadn’t touched a drop, yet still played him in circles.
Gu Yun chuckled slyly, leaning even closer, his voice so low it was almost a whisper.
“Good with alcohol? Cautious? That’s nothing. Brother, want to… add a little tech and spice?”
Lin Zheng instantly understood what Gu Yun meant.
He subconsciously glanced around, heart beating faster.
“You… you mean that kind of drug? Does it even work?”
“Of course!”
Gu Yun wore an expression that screamed you’re too naive.
“Colorless, tasteless, dissolves quick, hits hard. Drop it in her glass, and within ten minutes she’ll be dizzy, docile as a kitten. After that, you can do whatever you want. The next day? She’ll wake up blank, like a blackout—remembering nothing at all!”
He spoke with great enthusiasm.
Lin Zheng’s throat went dry.
“You… used it before?”
Gu Yun’s grin stiffened for a moment, then turned lewd and evasive.
“Heh, why’re you asking that? Just say the word, want it or not? One sentence, and I can get it sent right away. I know this bar inside out, plenty of ways to slip it into her glass.”
Lin Zheng said nothing, only feeling his heart pound wildly, blood rushing to his head with a dizzying thrill.
He suddenly stood up, using the bathroom as an excuse, stumbling almost drunkenly through the noisy crowd.
Gu Yun followed with a grin.
The restroom was dimly lit, filled with a mix of disinfectant and cheap perfume.
Lin Zheng walked to the sink, bracing both hands against the marble counter.
He stared at his flushed face in the mirror.
The reflection seemed to waver, and in a daze, he was back to that rainy night in England.
Back then, he had also stared at his own pale face in the rearview mirror.
It was his brother-in-law who had cleaned up everything for him, smuggling him back home like some shameful trash.
In the airport restroom, staring at his battered reflection, he had sworn never to touch alcohol again—at least… never to drink and drive again.
That feeling, he thought he would never forget in his lifetime.
Yet the remorse had lasted less than three months.
The neon lights of home quickly numbed his nerves.
Only this time, he had learned to hire a driver.
But now… Gu Yun’s proposal…
This was even more despicable than drunk driving, and even more… irreversible.
In the mirror, his eyes began to change.
Xiao Ran’s radiant face, her graceful figure, that playful smile when she watched him make a fool of himself…
Why?
Why was she allowed to toy with him from on high?
Why was he forced to grovel like a lapdog, only to be ignored?
Just a little bit of drug… Gu Yun was right, nobody would ever know.
She wouldn’t remember a thing the next day.
A surge of wicked fire shot up from his belly, burning his body feverish, his mouth dry.
The terror of that night on the run seemed smothered by an even greater rush of excitement.
This was different—this time was different!
This wasn’t a reckless accident, but a situation under his full control!
He would take her! He must take her! This was destiny’s compensation for him!
He suddenly turned on the faucet, splashing his face with cold water.
Trying to smother the overwhelming heat, yet his heartbeat only quickened.
Gu Yun leaned against the doorway, smoking, watching him with a filthy grin.
“Well, Young Master Lin? Are you in or not? Say the word.”
“I’m in!”
“Good! I’ll get it right away! Tonight… she must be ours!”