As the hustle and bustle of the Su family's dinner party faded into the distance, Yu Jiuyuan stood in the shadows of the second-floor terrace.
The evening breeze, carrying snowflakes, brushed against her cheeks. She pulled her shawl tighter around herself, her gaze passing through the glass doors and landing on the composed figure raising a glass in the corner of the banquet hall.
Rong Shenghan was chatting and laughing with several senior business figures. His dark gray suit gleamed softly under the crystal chandelier, and he still maintained his harmless and gentle demeanor.
But only Yu Jiuyuan knew what kind of sharpness was hidden in those smiling eyes.
Just like now, he casually turned to avoid the champagne offered by a lady, his fingertips lightly tapping the rim of the glass. The movement was so subtle that almost no one noticed, yet it precisely avoided the faint pink medicine stain that was hard to spot on the inside of the glass.
The system panel quietly lit up in his mind, and a red warning suddenly popped up in Rong Shenghan's status section: [Abnormal substance reaction detected, suspected to be a mixture of potent hallucinogenic sedatives, incubation period approximately 30 minutes.]
Yu Jiuyuan's gaze instantly darkened.
She turned around without making a sound and walked along the corridor toward the lounge, her high heels clicking silently on the carpet.
The lady who toasted Rong Shenghan just now was a distant relative of the Su family. Her husband died in a bizarre car accident three years ago, and that car accident happened to be inextricably linked to the "accident" that happened to the Yu family back then.
It seems that the people behind the Su family have finally decided to take action against Rong Shenghan.
As you push open the door to the lounge, a strong aroma of ebony wafts out.
Rong Shenghan stood by the window with his back to the door, his fingertips pressed against his brow, his shoulders slightly tense, and his usually gentle voice tinged with a suppressed hoarseness: "Here you are."
Yu Jiuyuan locked the door behind her and walked up to him, only to find that his face was flushed with an abnormal redness, his eyes were tinged with crimson, and his usually clear pupils were now covered with a layer of moisture, like the surface of a lake shrouded in thick fog.
"When did you find out?" She reached out and touched his forehead, the burning heat coming through her fingertips, almost scorching his skin.
Rong Shenghan grasped her wrist, his palm burning hot, yet his strength was perfectly controlled, without the slightest loss of composure.
He smiled, but the smile didn't reach his eyes; instead, it revealed a hint of vulnerability: "The champagne tasted off during the third glass in the banquet hall."
He paused, then lowered his voice, "It was the maid who works for the old lady of the Su family who changed the cup; she did it very cleanly."
He gave a slight smirk: "You said you'd stay by my side every step of the way to prevent others from drugging you, but then you turned around and didn't drug yourself."
To be able to do something under Rong Shenghan's nose, the other party must have made ample preparations.
Yu Jiuyuan frowned, her fingertips resting on his pulse for a moment. It was beating incredibly fast and with a disordered rhythm.
This drug not only has hallucinogenic effects, but also severely stimulates the central nervous system. If it is forcibly suppressed, it may cause irreversible damage, just as the system warned.
"Is there an antidote?" she asked.
Rong Shenghan shook his head, his Adam's apple bobbed, and his breathing gradually became heavy: "The Su family's medicine is specially made, and there is no antidote."
He looked at her, the mist in his eyes clearing slightly, revealing a clear undercurrent of complex emotions—restraint, worry, but no panic. "Jiuyuan, you..."
"Shut up." Yu Jiuyuan interrupted him, her tone unusually cold and hard.
She glanced around the lounge, her gaze settling on the large velvet sofa, before pulling a small silver box from her handbag.
Inside were several sealed syringes and a transparent medicine, which were her emergency medications, originally intended to deal with various emergencies, but she never expected to use them in this situation.
"This is a powerful sedative that can temporarily suppress nerve excitation, but it has strong side effects."
She gripped the syringe, her voice as calm as if she were analyzing experimental data, "Either use this now, which might damage the nervous system, or..."
The rest didn't need to be said aloud; both of them understood perfectly well.
The effects of the drug were spreading like wildfire through Rong Shenghan's blood. The veins on his forehead were already slightly bulging, and the grip on her wrist was getting tighter and tighter, with his fingertips almost digging into her flesh.
“It can’t be used.” Rong Shenghan’s voice was breathless, yet unusually firm. “My nervous system can’t malfunction in any way, otherwise…”
Otherwise, how can I protect you? He didn't say the second half of the sentence, but just looked into her eyes, those eyes that were always smiling, now seemed to be filled with boiling magma. "Jiuyuan, I believe you."
Yu Jiuyuan's fingertips paused for a moment.
She looked at the man before her, who was usually unfathomable, but now laid bare all his vulnerability and trust before her.
On the system panel, Rong Shenghan's favorability rating was still 100, but the fluctuations in his positive emotions were like a raging storm. Those densely packed, jumping numbers were no longer cold strategy data, but living, burning temperatures.
She suddenly smiled, but the usual innocent and harmless demeanor vanished, revealing a resolute determination beneath a cold exterior.
She put the syringe back in the box, raised her hand to untie the sash of her shawl, and the off-white cashmere fell onto the carpet like a cloud that blooms and fades.
"Since you're one of my people, I can't let anything happen to you." Her voice was soft, yet carried an undeniable air of control. "Lie down."
Rong Shenghan's breath hitched.
He watched her approach, watched her reach out and unbutton his suit jacket, her fingertips brushing against his burning skin, sending a shiver down his spine.
He wanted to say something, but she pressed her fingertips to his lips.
"Don't speak," Yu Jiuyuan's eyes were calm, like a frozen lake. "Now, listen to me."
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