Su Hua sat on the chair dressed in a striking red qipao, her demeanor icy and aloof, the very image of a cold beauty.
Jiang Shuqin, bound hand and foot with ropes, crawled toward Su Hua.
"President Su," Jiang Shuqin said, "do you remember me? I'm Lin Li's mother, the wife of the chairman of Starlight Group. We met at Li'er's birthday banquet the other day."
"Oh." Su Hua nodded. "We did meet then."
A relieved smile spread across Jiang Shuqin’s face.
Good. President Su remembered her.
"Untie the ropes on her hands and feet," Su Hua commanded.
Jiang Shuqin let out a sigh of relief.
Just as she thought—it had all been a mistake.
"President Su," Jiang Shuqin continued, "these are all your people, right?"
"Yes, they are mine," Su Hua confirmed.
Jiang Shuqin smiled. "President Su, don’t you think your people made a mistake? They must have confused me with someone else they were supposed to capture."
Su Hua arched an eyebrow.
Jiang Shuqin was certain Su Hua had the wrong person.
Then, pointing at the bodyguards, she added, "President Su, they dared to capture the wrong person. You should punish them severely."
Jiang Shuqin smirked at the surrounding guards and shadow operatives.
Heh. These people had the audacity to treat her like this? They’d pay for it.
She refused to believe Su Hua would tolerate subordinates who disobeyed orders and arrested people indiscriminately.
The bodyguards and operatives stood motionless, staring at Jiang Shuqin as if she were a fool.
They had never seen such an idiot in their lives.
Jiang Shuqin noticed their gazes.
Rage surged in her heart.
How dare they look at her like that?
"You’d better kneel and beg President Su for forgiveness now. Maybe she’ll spare you," Jiang Shuqin sneered.
Su Hua let out a cold laugh. "Jiang Shuqin, what gives you the right to order me—or my people—around?"
"President Su," Jiang Shuqin said matter-of-factly, "I’m just suggesting you clean house of these fools."
"They didn’t capture the wrong person."
Su Hua’s red lips parted slightly.
Under Jiang Shuqin’s stunned gaze, Su Hua rose from her chair and approached her with graceful steps.
She bent her slender waist, her delicate fingers lifting Jiang Shuqin’s chin.
"The person I wanted captured was you, Jiang Shuqin."
Jiang Shuqin trembled.
Her mouth fell open in shock.
"President Su, you really meant to capture me?" Jiang Shuqin’s lips quivered. "We’ve barely interacted, and I’ve never offended you. Why would you do this?"
Jiang Shuqin couldn’t comprehend Su Hua’s actions.
She had long memorized Su Hua’s status. Even if she lacked brains, she knew better than to provoke someone like Su Hua.
"President Su!"
Jiang Shuqin fell to her knees with a thud.
"If I’ve wronged you in any way, tell me, and I’ll change. Please, let me go."
She pleaded desperately.
Only if Su Hua told her what she had done could she explain herself.
"Wronged me?" Su Hua’s voice was frost-laden. "You’ve wronged me in more ways than you can count."
"For instance, the stunt you pulled a few days ago."
"Jiang Shuqin, I’d love to carve you into a thousand pieces."
If not for the fact that Jiang Shuqin was Lin Xuan’s birth mother—if not for the fact that Su Hua wanted to leave her as a plaything for Lin Xuan—
she would have killed her already.
"The stunt I pulled a few days ago?"
Jiang Shuqin frowned.
She hadn’t done anything major recently—just made a scene at Starlight Group, bribed the media to blow things up, and cursed a few people online.
Lin Xuan couldn’t possibly have any connection to Su Hua, and Su Hua certainly wasn’t one of those anonymous accounts bashing Starlight Group online.
So—
what exactly was Su Hua referring to?
"President Su, could you clarify what I did? That way, I can make amends," Jiang Shuqin said with forced sweetness.
"Then let me recount your offenses one by one."
Su Hua’s smile was icy. "After you took Lin Xuan back to the Lin family, you ignored him, abused him, and insulted him."
"Even after he left the Lin family, you still wouldn’t let him go. A few days ago, you tried to ruin his reputation and send him to prison."
"Jiang Shuqin, any one of these is enough to make me want to kill you."
Su Hua’s voice was glacial.
Jiang Shuqin froze.
"President Su, Lin Xuan is my son. These are matters between him and me. What does any of this have to do with you?"
"Because," Su Hua’s crimson lips curled, "he’s the man I love."
A man she would give everything for—even her life.
"What?!"
Jiang Shuqin’s eyes widened.
Shock was written all over her face.
Lin Xuan… was the man Su Hua loved?
So Su Hua had come after her today to avenge Lin Xuan.
How could this be?
Su Hua was the president of Su Corporation, arguably the most powerful woman in the country. How could a woman of her status ever take an interest in Lin Xuan?
When Su Hua attended Li'er’s birthday banquet, Jiang Shuqin hadn’t even dared to imagine Su Hua might have feelings for Lin Li—she assumed Su Hua was just impressed by his talent.
Because she knew—even Lin Li wasn’t good enough for Su Hua.
If even Lin Li couldn’t measure up, how could Lin Xuan?
How had Lin Xuan managed to win Su Hua’s affection?
"President Su, you must be mistaken. The man you love can’t possibly be Lin Xuan."
Jiang Shuqin refused to accept this reality.
The bodyguards and operatives in the basement looked at Jiang Shuqin with disdain.
Their boss would mistake the person she loved?
What kind of international joke was this?
"Ms. Jiang, do you really think I could be wrong?" Su Hua’s delicate brows lifted.
Jiang Shuqin saw the certainty in Su Hua’s expression and knew she was telling the truth.
Her heart sank deeper and deeper.
Lin Xuan had some nerve—winning over someone like Su Hua.
With Su Hua backing him, crushing Starlight Group would be child’s play for Lin Xuan.
No!
She couldn’t let Lin Xuan hitch himself to Su Hua’s power!
"President Su," Jiang Shuqin took a deep breath, "you might not know this, but Lin Xuan is already being kept by another woman. That day he married Qin Ruoyao, that woman showed up and took him away. Since then, he’s been living with her."
"President Su, every word I’m saying is true. You can verify it."
Su Hua’s lips curved. "What you’re saying… is mostly true."
Jiang Shuqin’s heart leaped with joy.
From the sound of it, Su Hua believed her.
Lin Xuan was in for a world of trouble now.
A woman like Su Hua would never tolerate deception—especially not when it came to matters of the heart.
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
