After Jiang Cheng had brought Lan Jinyao to his manor, she'd immediately called the police that same day. The police officers had rushed to the manor and surrounded Jiang Cheng.
Lan Jinyao pointed at Jiang Cheng with a cold expression, and said to the armed police officers, "This man has illegally detained me here and won't let me leave."
At this moment, Lan Jinyao was sitting on the sofa while Jiang Cheng was wearing a childish apron and cooked in the kitchen, giving off the image of a virtuous man. Right when the police officers barged into the main hall, Jiang Cheng walked out of the kitchen with a spatula in his hand. When he saw them, he froze for a moment before putting on an aggrieved expression as he said, "If you don't want to live here, we can move to another estate. There was no need for you to make such a big fuss over it. The police are very busy, so there was really no need to call them over and make them waste their time on this kind of trivial matter."
Jiang Cheng's expression was faultless, and Lan Jinyao had been severely hammered by the police officers instead.
"Madam, if you call the police over for this kind of trivial matter again, then we'll have the right to invite you back to the station. As for your family issues, please solve them yourself and don't waste our precious time!"
When the group of police officers had left, Lan Jinyao had also vaguely heard them say, "These common folks sure have been idle lately." Afterwards, she'd glared daggers at Jiang Cheng.
Jiang Cheng's expression was a little complacent as he said, "Meimei, don't stare at me like that. I was telling the truth. If you want to leave, you can leave at any time. I didn't restrain you with a rope, and the main door isn't locked, so you can go in and out of the manor as you please; you can go anywhere you like."
Hearing this, Lan Jinyao could only clench her teeth and remain silent.
Jiang Cheng had indeed not restained her nor locked her up, and she was free to enter and leave the manor as she wished. However, she was afraid that as soon as she left this place, a gun would once again be aimed at Fu Bainian!
He hadn't restricted her freedom, but he'd gotten ahold of her weakness. How would she dare to act blindly without thinking?
At this moment, her only wish was for Fu Bainian to notice the danger lurking around him soon, so that he could swiftly destroy this man!
Soon after, Jiang Cheng had finished preparing dinner. The exquisite dishes were exactly the same as the ones that Lan Jinyao had eaten on the yacht that day. When she saw those dishes, she tightly clenched her hands into fists. The rims of her eyes gradually reddened, and tears started uncontrollably pouring down her cheeks, leaving behind a salty and bitter aftertaste.
She'd lost her baby all because of these dishes!
"Jiang Cheng, are you planning to send me off to accompany my baby?" Lan Jinyao abruptly asked before she stood up and ran outside.
The dark sky looked like it had been dyed by black ink; there were no stars, and the moon was invisible. Under that cover of darkness, Lan Jinyao kept running forward until she'd reached the gate in the courtyard. That silver wrought iron gate was like an invisible shackle, imprisoning her inside.
If she ran away, she'd regain her freedom…but, Fu Bainian's life would be in danger again.
If she stayed here, Fu Bainian would remain safe, but she'd continue to suffer endlessly, both physically and mentally.
Should she run away or stay?
She was only one step away from regaining her freedom, and as long as she took that step, she'd be free. But, she was unable to take another step forward; she felt as if there was a huge boulder glued to the soles of her feet, making her unable to move.
Then, she heard the sound of Jiang Cheng's footsteps unhurriedly approaching her from behind, as if he was taking a stroll around the courtyard. This was the kind of person he was; he'd always had those involved with him in the palm of his hand.
"You only need to take another step forward, and you'll be free. But, Lan Jinyao, will you dare to take this step?"
Jiang Cheng stood not far behind her and spoke those words in an indifferent tone, which slowly echoed in her ears. At this moment, she just silently stood there; her entire body was trembling as tears continuously rolled down her cheeks.
Jiang Cheng then added, "I don't want you to die; I want you to live a healthy life. I swear that I'll never do anything foolish again."
Under the dark and heavy clouds in the sky, a raindrop suddenly landed on Lan Jinyao's face. She looked up and thought: Even the sky was sympathetically crying for her.
The rain started pouring down faster and heavier on her body, to the point that no one could tell whether she was crying or not anymore.
Afterwards, Lan Jinyao turned around and shuffled towards the manor once again. As she passed by Jiang Cheng, she saw the disgusting smile plastered on his face. There was a sneer tugging at her lips as she softly stated, "Smile as much as you want while you still can. One day, I'll make sure to send you off to accompany my child."
The hatred eating away at her bones could be felt from her cold words, slowly numbing the smile on Jiang Cheng's face.
After speaking, Lan Jinyao moved forward without another glance at him.
Behind her, Jiang Cheng's voice was very low as he said, "I'm waiting for you; waiting for you to finish me off with your own hands. However, before then, you'll have to stay with me."
That night, Lan Jinyao slept with the quilt wrapped around her body, yet she still felt cold. It was a kind of coldness that was sent from her heart and had spread along her veins to her limbs.
She hadn't closed the curtains before laying down, so the moment she opened her eyes, she could see a distorted image of world outside from the window.
The manor was silent except for the ticking of the wall clock. Meanwhile, Lan Jinyao was staring at her view of the courtyard in a daze. After a long while had passed, she finally snapped out of her daze and turned around, her gaze landing on the clock. It was already past 1 AM in the morning.
Lan Jinyao then stood up and cautiously opened a drawer beside the bed, taking out a fruit knife she'd previously hidden.
"Jiang Cheng, I won't let you live for long."
With her hair down, Lan Jinyao walked barefoot on the cold floor. She held the fruit knife in her hand and had a terrifying look on her face as she moved forward.
Jiang Cheng's room was beside hers, and he hadn't locked his door today. He must've assumed that she wouldn't act so rashly.
At this moment, Lan Jinyao's heart ached.
Lan Jinyao turned the doorknob and slowly walked into his room. Just like the previous night, she proceeded noiselessly.
The man lying on the bed was sleeping soundly and breathing evenly. Who would've thought that such evil and wickedness could be concealed behind that handsome face of his?
Lan Jinyao then raised the fruit knife in her hand and suddenly started to feel nervous. However, compared to her nervousness, she felt all the more excited because she was finally able to avenge her baby with her own hands. Yet, just as the tip of the knife was about to land on his neck, she abruptly stopped one centimetre away.
Kill him! Quickly do it!
However, she was frozen on the spot; her hand couldn't move at all.
After what felt like an eternity, Lan Jinyao finally regained her senses and quietly walked out of the room, pretending as if nothing had happened.
In the quiet room, not long after she'd left, Jiang Cheng slowly opened his eyes with a complacent smile tugging at his lips.