Chapter 22 Helmet Kiss "Sweetie, your husband is taking you home."...

Lu Yan panicked and instinctively looked at President Liao with pleading eyes.

Seeing General Manager Liu slam his fist on the table and stand up, General Manager Liao's face darkened considerably.

He glared at Lu Yan first, then turned to look at President Liu, a fawning smile plastered on his face.

"Mr. Liu, this young lady is new here, timid and immature, please don't take it to heart." As he spoke, Mr. Liao turned and gave Lu Yan a fierce look. "Lu Yan, look at you, Mr. Liu only invited you for drinks because he thinks highly of you, why are you putting on airs? Hmm? Why can't you have a few drinks with Mr. Liu?"

"I...I can't hold my liquor, I don't drink..." Lu Yan's voice was very soft, she was so scared that she didn't dare to breathe.

"So what if you can't hold your liquor? It just shows how much you value President Liu, doesn't it?" President Liao picked up the wine glass on the table, filled it with wine without looking at her, and forcefully shoved the glass into Lu Yan's hand, his tone firm and brooking no refusal.

"Stop dawdling, have a few drinks and let Mr. Liu see our sincerity."

Mr. Liu's expression softened slightly upon hearing Mr. Liao's flattery.

He snorted coldly, sat back down, and stared at Lu Yan with half-closed eyes.

Lu Yan hesitated for a few seconds, then closed her eyes, tilted her head back, and drank the entire glass of white wine that was almost overflowing.

She really has a low alcohol tolerance; after drinking a whole bottle, her face turned red, and she covered her mouth, coughing uncontrollably.

Seeing her unbearable expression, President Liu laughed instead, clapping his hands and praising, "Hahaha, admitting your mistakes and correcting them, that's what a good girl is like!"

Lu Yan was quite drunk. After she finally sat down, swaying from side to side, President Liu offered her several more drinks.

While he repeatedly poured new wine into her glass, he secretly reached his hand under the table and, through the ornate tablecloth, began to caress her thigh.

Lu Yan was already quite drunk and didn't notice Mr. Liu's actions, nor did she have the strength to push him away or resist.

The men at the table chatted about meaningless trivialities, and apart from occasionally glancing in their direction, they didn't react at all.

Because of this, Mr. Liu's actions gradually became bolder, his thick palms slowly reaching upwards, and his smile deepened on his face, which resembled a toad.

Just as he was about to succeed, he suddenly felt someone push his arm hard, and his bald head slammed down, almost burying itself in the scalding hot ginseng chicken soup on the table.

He cried out in pain, clutching his injured forehead, and looked up, cursing. He saw a tall, slender man standing behind him, holding a wine glass, his expression calm.

"Excuse me, Mr. Liu," Xing Lan said indifferently, glancing at him. "I've come to offer you a toast."

"You... how can you toast like that? Can't you see my head is about to be smashed open by your toasting?!"

Mr. Liu rubbed his bald head in pain, then shakily raised a finger and pointed at Xing Lan, unleashing a torrent of profanities.

Xing Lan's expression remained unchanged; she simply moved slightly to the side to avoid his excited saliva splashing onto her face.

Just then, a waitress came in to clear the plates. She had just witnessed the customers arguing and was about to quietly leave with her empty plates when Xing Lan called her back.

"Hello." Xing Lan glanced at Lu Yan, who was passed out drunk in her seat, and politely said to the waiter, "This lady is drunk. Could you please take her to her room upstairs to rest? Thank you."

"Ah... okay."

From Xing Lan's meaningful look, the waitress vaguely understood what had happened. She immediately put down her plate, went over to help up Lu Yan, who was completely drunk, and carefully led her out.

After Lu Yan left, President Liu was so angry that he was practically spitting fire and about to overturn the table.

"They're all grown men, what's the point of eating like this!"

Mr. Liao had no choice but to apologize sheepishly, "I'm sorry, Mr. Liu, we're all just young and inexperienced..."

"Your company has too many clueless employees!" General Manager Liu slammed his fist on the table in anger and shouted, "General Manager Liao, I came here sincerely to make friends with you, but is this how you do business? You're treating me like a monkey!"

"I think we shouldn't even talk about this business anymore, it's beyond our reach!" he said, then stood up as if to leave.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..." General Manager Liao was sweating profusely. He quickly stood up and stopped General Manager Liu, raising his glass and saying, "How about this, General Manager Liu, Brother Liu! I'll have a few more drinks as an apology! I'll drink this first!"

"I don't want you to drink!" President Liu waved his hand to interrupt him, his two shrewd little eyes darting around before suddenly landing on Xing Lan.

As if he had just thought of something, he pointed at Xing Lan and roared, "Let him drink! He's ruined the whole good atmosphere today, I want him to drink!"

"Alright, alright, he'll drink it! Mr. Liu, please don't be angry, getting angry is bad for your health."

While kindly persuading President Liu, President Liao hurriedly filled Xing Lan's glass with wine and urged, "Xiao Xing, drink up, apologize to President Liu after you finish, and this matter will be over."

Seeing that Xing Lan remained unmoved, he leaned down slightly, deliberately lowered his voice in his ear, and said through gritted teeth, "Xing Lan, Xing Lan... you're really something! You've pulled this stunt on me."

"President Liu is no ordinary person. Anyone who offends him will suffer... Doing good deeds comes at a price, so don't fucking get me into trouble."

Under the watchful eyes of everyone at the table, Xing Lan pursed her lips, finally raised her hand, and silently finished the wine in her glass.

Mr. Liu sat lazily with his legs crossed, watching him with an air of amusement. He nodded imperiously and commanded, "You put it down after just one cup? Keep drinking."

He stared intently at Xing Lan, his tone sinister: "We'll sit down and talk when he's finished all these bottles of wine on the table."

Xing Lan remained expressionless, drinking one glass after another, with the people around him refilling his glass again and again, as if the drinking was endless and would never end.

There was a pile of expensive, high-proof liquor on the table. He had only drunk less than half a bottle when he felt like someone had put a fireball in his stomach. His throat was burning and spicy, and every swallow was an extremely painful ordeal.

The baijiu was too strong. He couldn't help but close his eyes uncomfortably, lowering his head to suppress the urge to gag, and the veins on his hands bulged instantly.

"Hey, keep an eye on him, don't let him vomit on my shoes." General Manager Liu glanced at him and stood up from his seat indifferently. "Alright, let's stop here for today's meal. I'm already full just looking at him."

General Manager Liao hurriedly chased after him: "Then our business..."

"We'll see," Mr. Liu waved his hand impatiently. "It depends on my mood."

Although he didn't say it was a sure thing, judging from his tone, it was probably hopeless.

The business deal fell through, and he even treated people to a meal for nothing. A nameless rage rose in Mr. Liao's heart, and he kicked over the trash can at the entrance of the private room.

He glared at Xing Lan with resentment, then ignored him and strode away quickly.

The empty private room was left with only Xing Lan, who was lying on the table in distress. His eyes were unfocused, and he was coughing violently, as if he wanted to cough up his lungs.

His mind went completely blank from drinking, his face was flushed, and his forehead was soaked with cold sweat.

The world before him was upside down; everything appeared both blurry and distant to him.

With his last shred of sanity, he struggled to find his phone on the table and tapped it a couple of times randomly.

Before I could even see the name on it, I fainted from excruciating stomach pain.

-

"boom--"

In the pitch-black, silent night, the sound of a motorcycle engine suddenly pierced the sky.

As soon as Li Baidong arrived at the hotel entrance on his motorcycle, he saw Xing Lan being secretly led away by a strange man with his arm around her waist.

Xing Lan's head drooped low, and she seemed to be unconscious. Her clean and crisp white shirt was crumpled from the man's embrace.

He took off his helmet and walked towards the man with a cold expression.

The man heard footsteps, and before he could even raise his eyes and say a word, Li Baidong punched him hard in the face without hesitation.

The boy's cold gaze was partially obscured by his drooping bangs, making him appear as sinister and eerie as a venomous snake in the deep night.

Li Baidong stared at the man's hand that had been on Xing Lan's waist, and kicked him to the ground. The man didn't even have time to react before his lower back slammed into the tall stone railing behind him, and the sound of ribs breaking seemed to echo in the air.

"Holy crap—!"

He screamed in pain, his face contorting in agony, and dust billowed up all around him.

Xing Lan could no longer stand on his own; he stumbled and swayed from side to side. Li Baidong quickly went over to support him, pulling him into his arms and holding his shoulders, his eyes anxiously scanning him up and down: "Brother, are you alright? Why did you drink so much?"

Before Xing Lan could answer, the strange man's voice rang out first.

"Damn it, who do you think you are? How dare you just show up halfway and try to steal someone away?" The man, clutching his bloodied nose, staggered to his feet, glaring at Li Baidong with obvious displeasure. "Do you even know what 'first come, first served' means?"

This man had recently passed by a private room and happened to see this drunken beauty. He was excited and wanted to take her home and take advantage of her, but unexpectedly, this guy suddenly appeared and beat him up without asking any questions.

That guy was so strong, he was like a professional boxer. One punch from him left half of the man's face paralyzed and numb, covered in bruises.

Li Baidong sneered, holding Xing Lan tightly, and looked down at the man opposite him, saying, "Me? Of course I'm her husband. I'm here to pick up my baby and take her home. Do you have a problem with that?"

"Damn, two grown men calling each other 'husband' and 'baby,' how disgusting—"

Before he could finish muttering, Li Baidong delivered another precise and powerful kick to his groin.

This was a truly desperate strike; the man's eyes widened in disbelief, and he clutched his groin, letting out a blood-curdling scream.

When Li Baidong coldly cast his gaze at him again, the man was already lying on the ground, completely in pain and unable to speak. He could only gasp for breath, his face contorted in pain, his hands clasped together as he begged for mercy.

"Big brother...big brother, I was wrong! I'm sorry! Please forgive me!"

Although Xing Lan is usually cold and unsmiling, making people subconsciously feel that he is unapproachable, Li Baidong's temperament is even colder than his when he doesn't smile. He also carries a strong sense of oppression that comes from nowhere, which is gloomy and sullen, making people feel cold.

The man trembled, realizing he had really messed with someone he shouldn't have.

"Get out of here now." Li Baidong curled his lips contemptuously, his voice as cold as ice. "If you don't want to get punched on the other side of your face, remember to say something nice before you leave."

May my dear brother and sister-in-law have a long and happy marriage! May they be forever united in heart and soul! May they have many children!

The man recited every idiom he knew in his life, then scrambled away in a panic.

The fight between the two of them, or rather, the commotion caused by Li Baidong's unilateral beating, was so great that it jolted Xing Lan out of her drunken stupor.

He frowned, staring blankly at Li Baidong, unable to recognize him even after a long while. He simply bent over, clutching his stomach, and murmured helplessly, "My stomach... my stomach hurts so much..."

“Brother…” In the darkness of the night, Li Baidong’s eyes changed slightly, as if something bright flashed by.

Hearing Xing Lan's voice, his heart almost broke.

He held back his tears, sniffed, and gently raised his hand to put his helmet on Xing Lan's head.

Xing Lan was completely drunk and offered no resistance, letting Li Baidong carefully put the helmet on for him.

Through the transparent lens at the front of his helmet, he looked dizzily at Li Baidong standing in front of him. His narrow, almond-shaped eyes appeared especially bright in the moonlight. His face was white and small, with delicate and beautiful features that made people not want to look away.

Li Baidong carefully held the sides of the heavy helmet with both hands, slowly lowered his eyes, and quickly kissed the beautiful, moist eyes of the person opposite him through the cool, transparent glass.

"Good boy/girl."

"Husband will take you home."

A note from the author:

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