Chapter 147: Hongyuan
Xiao Ye said nothing, simply listening.
'They were just a bunch of third-rate rich kids. In his eyes, they didn't even qualify as proper opponents.'
Seeing Xiao Ye remain silent, the men's expressions darkened.
One of them strode up to him and slammed a glass on the bar. "What, you got nothing to say?"
"Are you blind? Or deaf?"
"You really think you're the great young master of the Xiao Family? A country bumpkin like you isn't even fit to walk through the doors of our Xiao Family!"
The others sneered and chimed in.
"That's right! Why don't you take a good look at yourself and see what a pathetic piece of trash you are!"
"Drink this whole bottle today, and we'll let this slide. Otherwise, your life in the Xiao Family is going to be hell!"
"These days, it's not uncommon for people to just drop dead."
This was a blatant threat!
Xiao Ye's expression remained unchanged as he glanced at the bottle on the bar.
It was a bottle of foreign liquor from Country E. The proof was extremely high; people usually mixed it with soft drinks or other lower-proof alcohol.
Chugging the whole bottle in one go... getting drunk would be getting off easy.
If you were unlucky, you could drink yourself to death.
Xiao Ye said nothing. He simply stood up and opened the bottle.
The men's faces immediately lit up with smug satisfaction.
'So what if he has the title of young master?'
'He still has to do what we say!'
A corner of Xiao Ye's mouth curled up. Then, without a shred of mercy, he poured the liquor all over the head of the man who had been speaking.
Feeling the cold liquor run down his head, the young master was practically apoplectic. "You... How dare you do this to me!"
"I'm going to teach you a lesson today!"
"Oh my, what do we have here?"
Before the man could make a move, a sweet, coquettish voice cut in.
Everyone immediately turned to see a scantily clad woman approaching, her high heels clicking with each step.
She wore a crop top that exposed her navel and her smooth, fair shoulders.
Below, she wore a short skirt and black stockings, her long, straight legs mesmerizing.
Not only was her figure incredible, but her face was also devastatingly beautiful. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call her a total vixen.
She was especially tempting under the bar's dim lighting.
The young masters stared, their eyes wide. "Shishi!"
"Shishi, what are you doing here?"
The men scrambled over each other, each eager to impress her.
Everyone knew Shishi was one of the most famous beauties in the entire Imperial City. But unlike women from prominent families, she was just a bar dancer.
However, her past lovers and patrons were all powerful figures.
Even when they broke up with her, it was only because their statuses were incompatible, forcing them to part ways.
That was why those powerful scions and family heirs still frequented the bar to see her.
Over time, Shishi's fame grew.
Being able to date her, even for a short while, or just score a few private dates, was considered proof of a man's charisma!
Shishi smiled faintly and tossed her wavy hair back. She then sat beside Xiao Ye, crossing her legs—a breathtaking sight.
"I'm here to see someone, of course. What are you all doing crowded around here?"
Though she was just a dancer, her powerful presence was undeniable.
And it wasn't just one rich and powerful man backing her, but a whole group of them!
Strangely enough, not only did these men not fight over her, but sometimes they would even come to see her together.
It just went to show that when it came to wrapping men around her finger, no one was better than Shishi!
The young masters from the Xiao Family were instantly deflated.
They wouldn't dare admit to bullying someone in front of Shishi; that would be far too beneath them.
"Shishi, how do you know this country bumpkin? He may be the young master of my Xiao Family, but he was lost as a child. He's not a real member of the Xiao Family!"
"Shishi, he's just a pretty boy! We did a background check on him. All he knows is how to leech off women. Don't let him fool you!"
Shishi looked at them with amusement. "Xiao Ye and I are old acquaintances. We'd like to talk for a bit. Could you please give us some space?"
The men fell silent.
But Shishi had spoken, so they had no choice but to leave.
Back at their table, they continued to stare indignantly in Xiao Ye's direction.
"Damn it! A country bumpkin, and he knows Shishi? What kind of bullshit luck is that!"
"He must have tricked her somehow!"
"Just as I thought, a pretty boy who can only rely on women!"
From their perspective, Shishi was smiling sweetly, but the words she was actually speaking were deadly serious.
"Master Xiao, I've already looked into it. There's very little information on that reclusive Xiao Family. They guard their privacy very carefully, and few of their members ever venture out."
"In my opinion, it's highly likely that whenever members of this family do appear in public, they use aliases. Otherwise, it's impossible that we can't find anything."
Xiao Ye had considered this as well. "In that case, hold off on that investigation for now. Start by looking into the Xiao Family I'm with at the moment."
"Specifically, who the members of this family have been in contact with recently—the more detailed, the better. And one more thing: find out if the Xiao Family Patriarch actually went abroad or not!"
Shishi answered respectfully, "Yes. Rest assured, Master Xiao, I will investigate it thoroughly."
On the surface, she was merely a dancer, but in reality, she was a key member of a certain organization.
This organization was called Hongyuan, and it was composed entirely of women.
They were specially trained in the art of handling men, using their beauty as a weapon to conquer their targets.
Shishi's main responsibility was intelligence, which was why she hadn't married.
Otherwise, if she truly wanted to, she could have easily married into a wealthy family and become a rich man's wife.
Quite a few members of Hongyuan had married into powerful families; they served as important sources of intelligence.
In return, the organization guaranteed that they would never be trapped by any man and could live the rest of their lives in luxury.
And the current master of Hongyuan was none other than Xiao Ye himself!
Xiao Ye nodded. "Alright, you can go."
"Master Xiao," Shishi said with a charming smile, "this is a bar, after all. If you just sit here, not drinking or having any fun, observant people are bound to notice something is off."
"Why don't we dance?"
Xiao Ye was unmoving. "No. I'll stay a little longer, then I'm leaving."
'He really didn't want to attract too much attention, so he planned to sit for a while longer.'
'But he truly hated the atmosphere here; it was so loud his ears were starting to hurt.'
Meanwhile, across the room, the men from the Xiao Family nearly jumped out of their seats in fury when they saw Shishi actually tugging on Xiao Ye's sleeve.
'How dare a country bumpkin try to steal a woman from them? And what was worse, he was succeeding!'
"I'm calling Young Master Yang! I'll get him to come over here!"
Young Master Yang was one of Shishi's most aggressive pursuers at the moment.
He came from a second-rate prominent family and was a hedonist who wouldn't be inheriting the family business.
Therefore, the Yang Family wouldn't raise too much of a fuss even if he married a bar dancer.
Ten minutes after the call, Young Master Yang rushed in with his entourage.
The Xiao Family members immediately pointed across the room. "That's the guy! He was getting handsy with Shishi, claiming to be some old friend."
"I bet they knew each other before Shishi came to the Imperial City."
"It's Xiao Ye's first day in the Imperial City, and he's already come looking for Shishi. He's definitely up to no good!"