Ning Yunhuan couldn't help but laugh when she saw Gu Shaotao's ashen face on the floor-to-ceiling screen in the living room. Gu Shaotao’s face was captured with stark clarity on the massive display; not only his expression but the terror in his eyes was fully visible.

“Feeling better now?” Down in the lobby of the first basement floor, Lan Lingyan, having personally retrieved milk from the refrigerator and warmed it on a small electric stove, handed a glass over to Ning Yunhuan. She poured herself a glass of juice, clinked it against the milk, and then settled onto the sofa beside her companion, watching the screen as if it were a movie, tracking Gu Shaotao’s descent from initial high-spirits to utter despair.

“How is this satisfying? He was planning on bullying me, wasn't he?” Ning Yunhuan paused to take a sip of milk, her laughter growing louder. “I’m about to go on break soon; this will be a good way to pass the time.”

Seeing her charming smile, Lan Lingyan couldn't resist reaching out to gently wipe a trace of milk from her lips, leaning in to lick it away herself. Watching Ning Yunhuan’s cheeks instantly flush a faint red, she chuckled softly. “When the break comes, don’t you want to go to Italy? The capital is plagued with wind and snow in winter. We could stay somewhere abroad for a couple of months.” However, Ning Yunhuan was reluctant to leave Father Ning and Mother Ning at this time. Moreover, what she was planning involved Ning Yuncheng; if anything happened to him, and she wasn't by their parents' side, she couldn't bear to think how frantic they would become.

The thought made Ning Yunhuan shake her head. “There will be plenty of time later. Let’s skip it this time, alright?”

Her rare display of coaxing affection, coupled with the phrase that they would have plenty of time later, inexplicably lifted Lan Lingyan’s spirits. She naturally nodded, hooked her chin, leaned down, and pressed a brief kiss to her lips. Just as she was about to deepen the kiss, Ning Yunhuan’s peripheral vision caught the sight of Gu Shaotao and Ning Yuncheng being aggressively seized and held in the screen. She suddenly shoved Lan Lingyan away, pointing fiercely at the display. “Look.”

Lan Lingyan’s expression stiffened. The more she looked at Gu Shaotao and Ning Yuncheng now, the more repulsive they became.

“By the way, this gambling money—the amount Lan Ke lent them—do they have to pay it back?” Ning Yunhuan suddenly recalled the tens of thousands Lan Ke had given Gu Shaotao and asked quickly. Lan Lingyan naturally pulled her into an embrace before shaking her head. “It’s just putting the left hand into the right hand.” Once this money circulated, it would return to Lan Ke and his associates. It was precisely because of this mechanism that they had generously lent Gu Shaotao the initial sum. Now, with Ning Yuncheng and his cohort indebted, judging by the stack of chips on the table, the total loss must be well over tens of millions.

Sure enough, Lan Lingyan’s phone rang. The casino manager on the line had already relayed the evening’s events. In addition to playing some Pai Gow, Ning Yuncheng had dabbled in several other small games. Under the calculated pressure of the casino staff, he had lost nearly ten million. This was despite Ning Yuncheng maintaining some semblance of reason. Gu Shaotao, on the other hand, had lost far more!

“Those green chips are each worth one hundred thousand, and the blue ones represent a million.” Mixed in were several red chips, the lowest denomination of which was at least five million. This confirmed that Gu Shaotao had lost a staggering amount; he was now completely a fish waiting to be slaughtered, with no chance of escape.

This entire trap had been intentionally set for these two. Setting aside Ning Yuncheng for a moment, Gu Shaotao knew perfectly well that the bait offered was too rich to be legitimate, yet he had let greed consume him and taken the hook.

Hearing Lan Lingyan’s detailed explanation, Ning Yunhuan finally couldn't contain her laughter.

At that moment, Gu Shaotao was completely stunned, and Ning Yuncheng’s face was terribly pale. While ten million wasn't an impossible sum for the Ning family to produce, paying it would certainly cause him considerable pain. The car he previously drove was only worth around a million, and that had taken ages of begging Father Ning to acquire. Now that he had just gravely offended his father, he dared not return to ask for ten million. Ning Yuncheng was anxious, but not yet desperate; in stark contrast, Gu Shaotao felt as if he had been plunged into an ice cellar.

The casino staff had just finished tallying his losses: they amounted to over seventy million! Seventy million, not seventy thousand! Forget about producing seventy million now; he probably couldn’t even scrounge up seven hundred yuan!

“Either you repay the debt, or we start by cutting off a hand, and then we sell you overseas as a gigolo to cover the rest!” The croupier, who moments before had worn a genial smile, now spoke with a chilling lack of emotion. The words caused Gu Shaotao’s expression to contort instantly. Even through the screen, Ning Yunhuan could sense the wave of fear and panic washing over him.

Recalling the vicious schemes this boy had plotted before, a look of mocking amusement settled on Ning Yunhuan’s face.

Gu Shaotao was instantly crushed under the weight of mountainous debt, a burden that pressed down so hard he couldn't breathe. He began to panic, caught between the casino’s threat of mutilation and the horrifying possibility of being sold abroad as a male escort. Over the next few days, Gu Shaotao exhausted every solution he could conceive, but nothing surfaced in time.

Meanwhile, Gu Xian’s illness had worsened considerably, progressing from hematuria to agonizing abdominal cramps. She was desperate but didn't know whom to turn to for salvation. Of the two men linked to Gu Yingxi, Xie Zhuoyin had already been recalled by the Xie family; securing even a brief meeting with him, let alone contacting him, had become nearly impossible. Gu Xian certainly didn't wish to die; a miserable life was preferable to ceasing to exist. With no other recourse, she finally approached the Ning family.

When Ning Yunhuan arrived to see Father Ning, Gu Xian had already been kneeling outside the Ning family’s villa complex for nearly an hour.

The passing traffic inevitably slowed down, and many residents entering or leaving the complex gathered outside to watch. Most people residing here possessed considerable wealth. Generally, the men were busy with business, and the women, much like Madam Ning, usually spent their days playing mahjong or meeting friends for outings. To witness such a public spectacle was a rare diversion, and they clustered three or four deep, causing significant inconvenience for other residents trying to drive in or out.

When Ning Yunhuan arrived by car, she saw the road ahead completely blocked. This was a private residential zone, where blockages were unheard of. After sitting in the car for five minutes, Ning Yunhuan’s patience frayed, and she called out to the person sitting in the front seat, “Is there an accident up ahead? Have the traffic police arrived yet?”

The cars behind them had already accumulated, making a swift retreat difficult. This was a single-direction entry road; turning around required driving halfway around the entire complex. Since the wide road ahead was completely jammed, Ning Yunhuan felt compelled to learn the situation and summoned one of her bodyguards to investigate.

The large man acknowledged her request, opened the door, and stepped out. The remaining bodyguard in the car followed suit, standing guard watchfully by the vehicle.

Soon, the scout returned with news. “Madam, the road is blocked by people, not an accident.” Not only traffic police were present, but a police car had also arrived.

Hearing this, Ning Yunhuan sighed faintly and prepared to exit her vehicle. After walking for about two minutes, upon reaching the complex entrance, she saw a large crowd completely surrounding the gate. Traffic police and a squad car were already on site. Outside, the road was clogged with various cars, but the interior of the complex remained eerily quiet, not gridlocked at all—only vehicles attempting to enter the garages were stuck outside.

Having arrived this far, Ning Yunhuan decided it was easier to walk in than sit in traffic. As she approached, she heard the women gathered outside murmuring with what sounded like pity. “Ah, how tragic.”

For some reason, a bad premonition tightened in Ning Yunhuan’s chest. She walked toward the crowd. Upon seeing her approach, someone helpfully provided an update: “There’s a woman inside here with a terminal illness. They say her daughter was killed by a family living in this complex.” Most residents here were wealthy, and many were discreetly aware that their fortunes weren't entirely clean—it wasn't uncommon for one or two families to be hiding something. However, no matter what private disputes occurred, public scenes like this were rare, drawing a large audience.

Ning Yunhuan’s negative feeling intensified. Suppressing her rising anger, she motioned for a bodyguard to clear a path through the onlookers. There, surrounded by the crowd, knelt Gu Xian with her two daughters. Before them lay a piece of white cloth displaying medical receipts and slips, alongside a thick wad of cash, mostly high-denomination bills, appearing to total perhaps no more than ten thousand yuan.

Gu Xian was weeping breathlessly, the three of them dressed in white, looking utterly pathetic. As onlookers began pulling out their wallets, Gu Xian wiped her tears.

“Thank you all for your kindness, but what I need is not money, but justice!” As soon as she finished speaking, Gu Yingnuo, standing beside her, burst into tears and shrieked, “The Ning family abuses their power! May they meet a terrible end!”

The nearby police officer, who had been trying to reason with them for a while, shook his hand as a fan with exasperation. “If they have wronged you, then come back to the station with me.”

“Who doesn't know you’re in cahoots with them? We aren’t going!” The youngest, Gu Yingyu, lifted her tear-streaked little face, shook her head, her expression marked by resentment.

An unnameable fire raged within Ning Yunhuan. Seeing the Gu family kneeling there, accepting money while staging this performance, she let out a cold sneer. “If you don’t want the money, everyone, please take your donations back!”

The moment she spoke, the three Gu women snapped their heads up, their eyes wide and fixed solely on her. Gu Yingnuo was the first to recover, letting out a piercing scream as she lunged towards Ning Yunhuan. “Give me back my sister’s life!”

The large man standing next to Ning Yunhuan was tasked with her personal security. Seeing Gu Yingnuo’s charge, he showed no inclination towards chivalry, sweeping a hard kick toward her lower body. Gu Yingnuo was instantly knocked off balance and sprawled onto the ground, landing directly onto the white cloth spread before her, scattering several bills outward.