Yu Tang's body trembled with fear, yet her eyes held a strange...

The driver frantically tried to kick him off, but Yu Chaoxian pulled him back sharply! The driver lost his balance and screamed, pulling the trigger in a panic, but the bullet went off course and pierced the dashboard!

Sparks flew, alarms blared, and the entire helicopter began to spin and plummet out of control!

"Yu Chaoxian, are you fucking crazy? You're a lunatic!" Gideon roared in despair, gripping the chair tightly, his face drained of color.

Despite the helicopter shaking violently, Yu Tang didn't show much fear. She glanced down; the fuselage was only four or five meters away from the rooftop. The time she met Howard before, the altitude was much greater.

Yu Chaoxian looked at Yu Tang beside him. Yu Tang raised her eyes and met the man's gaze. Time seemed to freeze for a moment.

With just a barely perceptible nod, she understood his intention.

"Tangtang".

Without the slightest hesitation or doubt, the instant Yu Chaoxian reached out his hand, Yu Tang threw herself into his arms without reservation, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist and entrusting him with all her trust.

Yu Chaoxian pulled her tightly into his arms and leaped out of the cockpit. Sparks suddenly erupted from the helicopter's instrument panel behind them. All the needles vibrated wildly, and the entire helicopter plummeted as if dragged by an invisible giant hand.

Yu Chao pressed Yu Tang tightly against his chest, their backs to the direction of the explosion, the scorching blast grazing their backs. The next second, he carried her as they crashed through the glass skylight below.

With a sharp "crash," the glass finally shattered under the strain, shards of glass scattering everywhere, and Yu Chaoxian withstood all the impact with his own flesh and blood.

Yu Tang was held in his arms and quickly turned around.

Yu Chaoxian's muscular arms, braced against the ground, completely enveloped her beneath his body, shielding her from the shattered glass.

A shard of glass injured his forehead, and warm blood trickled down his brow bone, blurring his vision in his right eye. The only thing he could be sure of was that Yu Tang, whom he could see, was safe.

The violent impact of the fall caused Yu Chaoxian to fall into a brief state of dizziness. All he could hear was his own heavy breathing and a sharp buzzing sound. And that one or two seconds of dizziness was enough to be fatal.

Gideon, covered in blood, jumped from the helicopter. He picked up the gun that had fallen to the ground, staggered closer, raised his hand and aimed at Yu Chaoxian, who was temporarily incapacitated on the ground, his voice filled with twisted pleasure.

"It's over, Yu Chaoxian." Just as the trigger was about to be pulled— "Bang! Bang!"

Two gunshots rang out in his ears.

Gideon's body jolted as a bullet grazed his ear. He looked down in shock to see a slender figure cradled in Yu Chaoxian's arms.

Yu Tang's body trembled with fear, yet her eyes remained unusually resolute. She gripped Yu Chaoxian's pistol tightly in her hand; she knew where he kept it. Now was her time to protect him.

"No, don't come any closer!" She pointed her gun at Gideon, her voice trembling but unusually clear, "No one can hurt the Yu family."

A flicker of surprise crossed Gideon's eyes, which quickly turned into cold mockery: "Another one sent to his death. The Yu family is down to just the two of you, isn't it? What a pity, the Yu family will be wiped out today."

He turned his gun and aimed it at Yu Tang—"Bang!"

Gideon screamed as a bullet from the other side pierced his wrist with pinpoint accuracy, and the gun fell to the ground.

Yu Tang's hand holding the gun was firmly grasped by a large hand, and a bullet was fired accurately.

Her tense back suddenly touched something warm; a man's firm chest pressed against her, enveloping her entirely in his presence.

Yu Chaoxian's arm wrapped around her from behind, his long fingers resting on her hand holding the gun, with a reassuring strength.

Gideon cursed, and seeing that Yu Chaoxian was awake, he panicked and even tried to jump to the fourth-floor balcony.

Yu Chaoxian picked up the ropes scattered from the helicopter wreckage and said gently to Yu Tang, "Turn your back."

Yu Tang immediately understood that Yu Chaoxian didn't want her to see what he was about to do. Then she heard several suppressed cries of pain and pleas behind her.

Gideon's neck was tightly bound by ropes by Yu Chaoxian, leaving him suspended on the edge of the railing in mid-air. If Yu Chaoxian loosened his grip even slightly, Gideon would immediately suffocate from the ropes.

Yu Chao tightened the ropes slightly, his voice icy: "When did you and McCarthy start colluding together?"

Just now, Gideon blurted out Yu Tang's identity, knowing that Yu Tang was his aunt, which shows that someone had told Gideon this. The only people in England who knew about his relationship with Yu Tang were the McCarthy family.

“I’ll tell you everything! Please let me go first…” Gideon gasped for breath, hurriedly confessing, “It was McCarthy’s idea! After losing the drone bid, he contacted me, saying he had a way to make you submit… which was to kidnap that girl next to you, your aunt. McCarthy even had his daughter invite her to one of my restaurants to make it easier for us to carry out the kidnapping… It was all his plan! He just wanted to force you to fund his campaign! I… I just went along with it… Yu, I’m telling the truth! If you want to settle scores, go after McCarthy! He also colluded with the CIA and leaked your information!”

Yu Tang overheard the gist of it: Vivian's sudden departure during the meal was to create an opportunity for Gideon. But judging from Vivian's anxious expression earlier, she probably didn't know she was being used by her father.

The pleas for mercy behind him gradually faded, eventually fading into silence. A figure now hung suspended on the balcony.

Gideon's neck was tightly bound with rope, veins bulging on his forehead, his face flushed purple, and his eyes wide open. He struggled a few times, but finally stopped breathing.

Footsteps came from behind Yu Tang, but her legs were too weak to stand up. Overwhelmed with fear, she kept sobbing and hiccuping, curling up on the ground.

Just then, Yu Chaoxian pulled her into his arms and gently kissed her forehead.

At that moment, all of Yu Tang's fear receded like the tide. She loosened her lower lip, which she had bitten until it turned white, and her body unconsciously relaxed and leaned back, completely sinking into his embrace.

Yu Chaoxian held Yu Tang tightly, feeling the warmth and heartbeat of the person in his arms. His own heartbeat gradually returned to normal. He felt no relief, only lingering fear. "Who gave you permission to use yourself to distract him? What if I..."

What if he doesn't regain consciousness in time...

Yu Tang had just turned around when he grabbed her face hard. It hurt a little, but Yu Chaoxian's eyes didn't seem to be about to punish her. She looked up at him, her eyes red and swollen, her voice choked but firm: "I am also a member of the Yu family. You can protect me with your life, and I can do the same for you."

Yu Tang's words undoubtedly struck a chord with Yu Chaoxian.

Yu Chaoxian stared at her silently. He had never seen her cry like this before; her eyes were brimming with tears that she couldn't stop.

He remembered that she had shed tears for Yu Yanting, felt sad for that boy surnamed Liang, and even shed tears for Guan Zhongpeng.

Now it's only for him.

It was rare for Yu Tang to hold him so tightly, her delicate face pressed against his neck, tears streaming down her face. Yu Chaoxian pulled her into a full embrace and soothingly kissed away the tear tracks at the corners of her eyes.

Chen Diao's spoilsport voice came from behind: "Wait, everyone stop coming up. The boss is carrying someone. Don't look, there's nothing to see! I haven't even looked."

He said he wasn't looking, but his eyes never left his face.

Mickey was speechless. Only Chen Diao was watching intently with his head tilted to the side! Oh, and I almost forgot about Mingming, who was trying to lie on the ground to watch.

Hearing the sound, Yu Tang indeed left his arms. Yu Chaoxian glared impatiently at the group, thinking, "Can't you read the room before you gouge your eyes out?"

Fortunately, Mickey had eyes and quickly pulled the two away, wisely going to prepare for the New Year's Eve barbecue.

The rain had stopped, and the night sky of the foggy city was suddenly illuminated by New Year's Eve fireworks, with a dazzling golden rain of light blooming over the Thames. Yu Tang looked up, the brilliant light flowing in her clear pupils, reflecting countless stars.

The moment she looked up, Yu Chaoxian lowered his head and kissed her. Their silhouettes froze in that instant, with fireworks bursting in the sky behind them.

The neon lights of the foggy city cast shimmering reflections on the water, while the distant chimes of Big Ben echoed gently.

"Tangtang," Yu Chaoxian released her lips, their breaths mingling close. He cupped her face, gazing intently at her, "This is our second year together, and from now on..."

The last huge firework exploded in the sky, just enough to drown out Yu Chaoxian's voice.

On the way back, Yu Tang was too exhausted and fell into a deep sleep.

Chen Diao glanced at Yu Chaoxian in the rearview mirror and asked in a low voice, "How are we handling McCarthy's side?"

McCarthy's leak of the boss's information makes him the culprit who harmed Yu Tang, and the boss will definitely not let him off easily.

Yu Chaoxian scoffed coldly, a ruthless glint in his eyes: "Of course, we should settle scores and avenge our grievances."

It was nearly 1 a.m. when Yu Tang returned to the villa. Looking around, she saw only Mickey and couldn't help but ask softly, "Where are they?" Mickey had been assigned by Yu Chaoxian to stay and watch over Yu Tang. As for the boss and the others… the boss wouldn't hold grudges overnight, especially not for the one that had hurt Yu Tang.

“Miss Yu, the boss said you should take a nap first, and you'll see him when you wake up,” Mickey relayed.

After the doctor finished examining Yu Tang and prescribed some ointment, Mickey reported to the boss that Miss Yu was fine, but the marks on her wrists needed to be treated with ointment on time.

Yu Tang lay on the soft bed, unable to fall asleep for a long time, thinking about everything that had happened that night, remembering Gideon, Vivian, and... Yu Chaoxian.

During the New Year, every household is immersed in the joyful atmosphere of the New Year celebrations.

The McCarthy family enjoyed a delicious meal and wine in their backyard, happily celebrating the New Year together at the table.

Roast lamb sizzled under the palm trees, its oil dripping, while McCarthy leisurely sipped his red wine, awaiting good news from Gideon. Mrs. McCarthy's jeweled necklace shimmered under the lights, reflecting her smug smile.

As for Vivian, she already knew that her father had instructed her to deliberately lure Yu Tang to the restaurant. This was Mrs. MacArthur's idea, who said that since Yu Chaoxian refused to back down, the only option was to kidnap his aunt to force him to do so.

Vivian's resentment towards Yu Tang had long been deeply rooted. How could Yu Tang not know Yu Chaoxian's whereabouts? She was deliberately hiding it from her. And what she couldn't accept the most was that Yu Tang was actually wearing that necklace.

That necklace was a keepsake left by Yu Chaoxian's mother. As for the bullet that was hanging there, it had pierced through Yu's brother's body. It was like a life-saving charm and was given to Yu Tang.

She was unwilling and resentful. She couldn't have it, so why should Yu Tang get it?

Mrs. McCarthy's words were like a wake-up call: "The way Yu Chaoxian looks at Yu Tang doesn't seem like the way he looks at a relative. They don't seem like aunt and niece either."

Vivian remembered the ambiguous figures she'd glimpsed at the corner of the stairs at home that day; she thought she'd seen the two embracing. So she pulled up the video from that day, and in a fit of jealousy, smashed the screen—the aunt and niece were kissing!

Vivian felt she had been tricked by Yu Tang, who was deliberately humiliating her. So, on her mother's advice, she spread rumors at school about Yu Tang having an affair with a family member. Of course, she dared not release the video, otherwise Yu Chaoxian would definitely know she was behind it, and it would inevitably lead to retaliation.

As long as she can make Yu Tang's life difficult at school, she will have achieved her goal.

Meanwhile, McCarthy had a backup plan. He leaked Yu Chaoxian's information to the CIA. If the plan failed, he would use the CIA to eliminate Yu Chaoxian, this major threat.

The New Year's fireworks burst brilliantly in the night sky above the McCarthy family's backyard, but they couldn't illuminate the bloodshed unfolding in the corner. The body of the third bodyguard was silently dragged into the shadows.

Chen Diao, hidden in the shadows, flicked the blood off his gun; the monitor screen in the control room flickered with static, indicating that the monitoring personnel had been dealt with—Mingming had taken over the entire security system of the McCarthy family.

"Boss, there are two around the corner." Mingming had barely finished speaking when he heard two silenced HK-USP pistol shots through the communication headset. Tsk tsk, the boss is definitely in a bad mood tonight…

At the garden table, McCarthy was raising a toast with his wife when Vivian suddenly froze. The knife and fork in her hand, still pierced with bloody beef, fell directly onto the plate with a jarring sound.

She stared intently at the tall man who had suddenly appeared opposite her, dressed in combat gear, handsome and charming, just like he had worn when he saved her that day.

Yu Chaoxian sat down directly opposite McCarthy, his posture languid and casual. "General McCarthy, is it fun to kidnap innocent girls? My aunt is kind-hearted and easily fooled, so you can bully her as much as you want."

“Yu, we don’t know what you’re talking about,” McCarthy feigned surprise, pretending to be completely unaware. “Your aunt? What happened to her? Who kidnapped your aunt?”

"Fine, playing dumb, huh?" Yu Chaoxian sneered, his gaze sweeping over Mrs. McCarthy and Vivian. "You two were the ones who provoked her the other day, weren't you? Those rumors at school. You had a cardiac arrest at school, and it was my aunt who saved you. And you repay kindness with ingratitude, bullying her with gossip?"

Mrs. McCarthy trembled with fear at Yu Chaoxian's menacing aura; Vivian also lowered her head guiltily.

McCarthy remained calm. "Yu, there must be some misunderstanding here."

Yu Chaoxian fiddled with the gun in his hand and looked at McCarthy. "Misunderstanding? You don't know that Gideon died from this gun, do you? But then again, I saved your life, so it's not a problem for you to give it back to me, right? Also, your daughter was saved by my aunt, so it's only natural for me, as her nephew, to take her back."

Upon hearing that Gideon was dead, McCarthy's expression changed drastically. He shouted for his bodyguards, but instead, Chen Diao and Mingming appeared.

McCarthy knew Yu Chaoxian's methods. In a panic, he took out his phone to call for help, but his family was in England and his people were in America. There was no way anyone could come to him in a short time.

The moment McCarthy's finger touched the phone, Mingming beside him pulled the trigger without hesitation. The bullet pierced his wrist precisely, and the phone shattered on the floor. The flying bullet also shattered a wine glass on the table, spilling crimson liquid that spread across the surface like diluted blood.

“Yu, at least…” McCarthy gasped, his voice trembling, “Don’t lay a hand on me in front of my wife and daughter.” He knew better than anyone that he was doomed. Over the years, he had dealt with far too many political enemies using similar methods, his hands stained with blood, never imagining that the cycle of cause and effect would come so quickly.

Mrs. McCarthy and Vivian were terrified. Staring at the bodyguard's corpse lying on the ground, they trembled and couldn't utter a complete sentence.

Faced with McCarthy's request, Yu Chaoxian smiled in the darkness, a smile so beautiful it was hard to look away, yet so terrifying it made one want to run away.

“Okay,” he said.

With two sharp "whoosh" sounds, McCarthy's heart skipped a beat. His gaze followed the muzzle of Yu Chaoxian's gun, and he watched as his wife and daughter fell to the ground, blood gushing from the hole between their eyebrows.

McCarthy's pupils contracted sharply as he looked up from the epicenter, his eyes fixed on the direction of Yu Chaoxian's gun barrel.

"You didn't want your family to be hurt, but you went and harmed my aunt. Is there such a good thing in the world?" Yu Chaoxian's lips still held that chilling smile as he pointed his gun at McCarthy again. "Now they can't see it."

With the final shot fired.

McCarthy, his eyes wide open in death, crashed to the ground, reuniting with his wife and daughters in the eternal night.

In the courtyard after the carnage, cheerful holiday music still played tirelessly.

"God rest ye merry, gentlemen, Let nothing you dismay..."

The blood-red sunrise rose from the horizon, freezing Yu Chaoxian's silhouette in the blood-red morning light. The light gilded his straight shoulders with a dark red hue, and his high, straight nose cast a faint shadow, obscuring the emotions in his eyes. Backlit, no one could see his expression clearly; only the occasional cold glint reflected from the gun barrel seemed to be proof that this man was alive.

This is Yu Chaoxian, whom Chen Diao and Ming Ming are very familiar with: cold-blooded, silent, and ruthless.

Yu Chaoxian turned to Chen Diao and instructed, "Bring in Gideon's body, and put the evidence of McCarthy's embezzlement into Gideon's briefcase."

"Oh, right." Yu Chaoxian suddenly called out to Mingming, who was going to help, "Go find a video recording."

He had no idea what kind of video it was that made the boss so concerned. He quickly went to the monitoring room and retrieved the video.

Yu Chao lit a cigarette but didn't smoke it. As the ash piled up, he finished watching the video of him and Yu Tang at the stairwell. The corners of the man's lips slowly curved into a smile, which appeared particularly bright in the dim light.

Back then, he asked Yu Tang if she liked him, and if she didn't want to answer, he told her to kiss him. To get a response from Yu Tang, he closed his eyes, so he wasn't aware of her subtle movements at that time and didn't know her exact reaction. Now, after watching carefully, Yu Tang stood on tiptoe, slowly loosened her clenched hands, and was about to hug his neck and kiss him.

The answer is quite obvious. This is probably why Yu Tang didn't take it out on him even though she was wronged at school.

When Chen returned after fabricating the scene, he saw his boss smiling, a stark contrast to his cold and resolute demeanor just moments before.

Only Mingming knew why the boss was laughing—because Yu Tang was in the video he was asked to find. The only person who could make the boss, and Yu Chaoxian, detach himself from his ruthless decisiveness and return to his human side was probably Yu Tang.

"Let's go home." Yu Chaoxian tossed the cigarette pack to Chen Diao, took the video recording, and got into the car.

-----------------------

Author's Note: In Chapter 37, Yu Tang knew exactly where Yu Chaoxian usually kept his gun: "Yu Chaoxian could feel Yu Tang moving closer to him. The sweet scent of sugar wafted over her raised hand, and she even tried to rummage through his pocket?"

After pulling out a black pistol, Yu Tang became obedient, and she casually put the dangerous object back into his pocket.

Yu Chaoxian chuckled and reached out to ruffle her hair.

Chapter 73 shows that Tangtang has gotten used to touching the gun in Yu Chaoxian's pocket.

Therefore, Yu Chaoxian was sometimes surprised that Yu Tang knew some of his daily little details, and he thought that Tang Tang did not care about these things.