Qi Baotan walked out of the office, sowhat dazed.
Assistant Lin led her away.
A fashionably dressed, extraordinary woman approached them. Behind her, an assistant clutching a handbag had to jog to keep up with her long legs.
When the woman reached Qi Baotan, she stopped and casually removed her sunglasses.
"Miss Ru..." Assistant Lin’s excited voice brought Qi Baotan’s wandering thoughts back.
Qi Baotan looked up at the face before her and couldn’t help but suck in a cold breath.
The woman raised an eyebrow and smiled, "A new talent signed by the company? You’ve got good potential."
With that, she walked past Qi Baotan and entered Zhao Heng’s office.
Qi Baotan stood frozen in place, regaining her voice only after a long mont.
"Was that... Ru Caiying?"
Ru Caiying, the Grand Slam Best Actress, was a legend in the entertainnt industry. Hailed as the most gifted actress ever, she had retired at the height of her success to marry, leaving countless regrets behind.
Qi Baotan never expected to see her here.
More than a decade had passed, yet ti seed to have been especially kind to her. She looked almost identical to how Qi rembered her.
Assistant Lin excitedly said, "Miss Ru is planning a coback. Things are about to get lively in the entertainnt world."
Qi Baotan pressed her lips together, a surge of indescribable excitent welling up in her heart.
This obscure entertainnt company clearly hid trendous potential.
Her confidence in severing ties with Star Entertainnt grew further.
The elevator doors opened, and Qi Baotan was about to step in when soone walked out of the elevator.
He was dressed in an army-green casual jacket, black cargo pants, and deep black combat boots. His tall figure exuded an air of rugged nonchalance.
As they passed each other, Qi Baotan caught a glimpse of his thin jawline and the blue-gray stubble that adorned it.
As Assistant Lin saw Qi Baotan out, she politely addressed the newcor, "May I ask whom you’re here to see?"
As the elevator doors slowly closed, Qi Baotan heard the man’s voice.
"I’m Jiang Han."
Deep as an abyss, cold as frost.
It was such a unique and captivating voice.
Qi Baotan left the building and took the bus ho.
From the bus stop to her apartnt complex was about a kiloter. When she reached a corner, she hesitated briefly before taking a shortcut.
This secluded alley rarely saw any foot traffic, but it cut her route in half.
Mrs. Qi was about to finish work, and Qi Baotan needed to hurry ho to prepare lunch.
President Zhao had promised to resolve her contract issues with Star Entertainnt within a week. He had also agreed to let her complete her studies, covering her tuition and living expenses as part of a long-term investnt in her potential.
Even now, Qi Baotan felt as if she were dreaming. She had been utterly despairing of the world, which had driven her to that desperate leap.
In that pitch-black world, she had allowed herself to sink deeper and deeper.
She had thought she would be swallowed into an eternal darkness—until a beam of light pierced through and pulled her out of the abyss.
A sigh had echoed in her ears, filled with infinite pity.
"Good luck to you."
Since waking up, that voice had lingered in her mind.
That man... he wasn’t Zhao Heng.
Furrowing her brows in thought, Qi Baotan found her steps growing lighter.
Just then, a van suddenly stopped ahead at the intersection. The door slid open, and a hand darted out, seizing her and pulling her inside.
Qi Baotan didn’t even have ti to scream before a large hand clamped down over her mouth and nose.
She struggled, her eyes wide with indignation, but soon sank into unconsciousness.
The van sped off, vanishing into the alleyway within monts.
Li Liu arrived monts too late. Swearing under his breath, he took out his phone and made a call.
"Sir, sothing’s wrong. Miss Qi has just been kidnapped."
~
Qi Baotan felt sothing crawling across her face and instinctively opened her eyes.
She was t with the lecherous gaze of a man.
Letting out a startled cry, she reflexively kicked at him, but the man easily caught her small foot in his hand.
"I can’t believe you survived a fall like that and woke up. Still feisty as usual—I like that," the man said, his greasy fingers caressing her fair, delicate foot.
Nauseated, Qi Baotan spat out, "Cai Xiang, what will it take for you to let go?"
The man’s expression darkened. He flung her onto the large bed, towering over her.
"You want to terminate your contract? Keep dreaming. Let warn you—no one can save you. You’d better behave, or else..." His sinister laughter echoed as he cut himself off. "I hear your mom works as a cleaner at the Blue Sky Hotel. That job must be tough."
Qi Baotan’s pupils constricted as she ground out through clenched teeth, "Cai Xiang, if you lay a hand on my mom, I will kill you."
"Go ahead. I’m standing right here. Try and kill ," he taunted, spreading his arms wide, a smug grin on his face.
Qi Baotan’s mind raced. She couldn’t fall for the sa trap twice.
Last ti, she’d been lucky. This ti, she might not be so fortunate.
As Cai Xiang unbuckled his belt and leapt toward her, Qi Baotan rolled off the bed with agility, scrambling to the door.
She yanked the doorknob frantically, but the door wouldn’t budge.
Quaking with fear, she forced herself to stay calm.
She scanned the windows. This ti, Cai Xiang had learned his lesson. Every window was sealed shut.
Grinding her teeth, Qi Baotan resolved to fight to the death.
Rather be shattered jade than intact tile.
"Run, why don’t you? What’s the matter? Out of steam?" Cai Xiang taunted, stalking closer with a sneer.
"Stay back!" Qi Baotan’s trembling voice betrayed her inner terror as her back pressed against the door.
In that mont, she abhorred this filthy world with every fiber of her being.
She had no power, no influence, and so she could be trampled on without consequence. If she refused to live in humiliation, the only thing left to defend her dignity was her life.
Qi Baotan bit down on her tongue, the taste of blood filling her mouth.
Her clear eyes burned with a ferocious hatred.
Cai Xiang flinched at the intensity of her gaze.
For just a second, that hesitation was all Qi Baotan needed. She charged at him, her frail body embodying defiance.
Even if it ant plunging into an abyss, she refused to yield.
Her delicate beauty was overshadowed by her fierce, unrelenting resolve.
"Courting death, are we?" Cai Xiang, who’d had so self-defense training, easily subdued her. As she struggled violently, his hand cracked across her face.
"Bang!" At that mont, the heavily locked door burst open with a forceful impact.
Cai Xiang jumped in fright, instinctively turning his head.
The next mont, his body flew across the room, accompanied by a blood-curdling scream, as he landed on the floor in a disheveled heap.
"Are you alright?" A gentle, icy voice reached her ears.
Qi Baotan, who had never shed a tear even when pushed to desperate limits by her captors, found her eyes welling up the mont she heard that voice.
The voice that had haunted her dreams...
It was him!
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