Liu Yutong extended her hand without hesitation, and someone behind her promptly handed her a bulging kraft paper bag filled with ten stacks of crisp hundred-yuan bills.
She then casually held the money out to the group in front of her.
Lai Pihou and his gang were already trembling in fear, their legs weak—how could they dare reach out to take it?
"Take it!"
With a collective thud, Lai Pihou and the others dropped to their knees, kowtowing and begging for mercy: "We were wrong! Please spare us!"
"We don’t want the money, really, we don’t!"
"Yeah, yeah, we don’t want it anymore!"
"..."
Liu Yutong looked down at them coldly and began counting down: "I’ll count to three."
"Two."
"One..."
"We’ll take it! We’ll take it!" Lai Pihou hastily stretched out both hands to grab the bag.
Once they had accepted the money, Liu Yutong raised a finger and pointed toward the bar.
"You’ve taken the money—now let’s go inside and have a chat."
Accepting the cash was tantamount to admitting to extortion, but she still needed them to confess the full details of their scheme, including any past crimes.
Inside the bar.
Liu Debao was still puzzling over Ma Da’s earlier remark about there being "no seats" when he noticed the group that had scammed him slowly backing away, their faces twisted in terror as if they’d seen some ferocious beast.
Then a familiar figure came into view, and Liu Debao froze.
Wasn’t that his cousin?
Seeing her, he immediately jogged over, puffing out his chest. "Sis, don’t worry! These are all my buddies from the streets—they even called me ‘bro’ earlier. These guys won’t dare mess with us now."
But as soon as he finished speaking, his eyes landed on the kraft paper bag in Lai Pihou’s hands, the red bills peeking out. Panic flared. "Sis, why did you give them money?!"
"Give it back to her! Now!"
With Ma Da and his crew of black-suited men backing him, Liu Debao felt invincible—even if he wasn’t entirely sure what his actual standing was in this "organization." As long as they were on his side, that was enough.
So he delivered the demand with absolute confidence.
Lai Pihou glanced between him and the girl, inwardly groaning.
I didn’t even want this money! Your sister forced it on me!
But hearing Liu Debao’s address, realization struck.
This girl was probably the real mastermind behind the Wanlong Hui’s sudden involvement.
"I swear to god, if you don’t hand it over—" Liu Debao had just rolled up his sleeves, ready to demand the money back, when—
Ma Da and the others from the bar all gathered in formation, bowing deeply to Liu Yutong in unison.
"Young Mistress!"
"Young Mistress!"
"Young Mistress!"
"..."
Liu Debao’s jaw dropped.
Wait… who are they calling ‘Young Mistress’?
His head turned mechanically toward his cousin as a voice in his mind whispered:
No way… that can’t be for her, right?
Honestly, if he hadn’t seen it himself, he’d never believe these underworld types had any connection to his gentle, well-mannered cousin—let alone address her as "Young Mistress."
In his memory, Liu Yutong had always been soft-spoken and refined. How could she possibly be tied to people like this?
But then… how else could this be explained?
Had some transmigrator from a novel possessed her?
Reborn in a new body, the underworld heiress returns to reclaim her empire?
…It wasn’t impossible.
Liu Yutong stepped closer, checking his arms for injuries. "Did they hit you?"
Liu Debao nodded. "Yeah, but I’m tough. I handled it."
Then he couldn’t resist asking, "Sis… is this gang really yours? And—are you possessed by some reincarnated soul or something?"
Liu Yutong: "..."
Ironically, despite his wild imagination, Liu Debao was the only one who’d come close to the truth.
"Don’t talk nonsense," Liu Yutong said flatly. "What gang? They’re just regular employees at my company."
Ma Da nodded emphatically. "Exactly! We’re just the Young Mistress’s employees!"
The others echoed, "Just employees!"
Liu Debao: "???"
He scanned the sea of black suits around him—some even had telescopic batons peeking from their sleeves.
You expect me to believe that?
Before he could voice his skepticism, his cousin reached out expressionlessly. Ma Da immediately handed her a gleaming baton.
With a sharp snap, the weapon extended.
Liu Debao dropped to his knees, clutching her legs as tears streamed down his face. "Sis! Sis! I believe you! I really do!!"
But internally, he was screaming: With this kind of intimidation, you’re telling me you’re not a mafia princess? Who just casually threatens people like this?!
God, he missed the old Liu Yutong—sweet, kind, normal.
This version? Terrifying.
"Find a spot and bend over," Liu Yutong ordered.
Ma Da and the others were quick on the uptake, immediately dragging over a bench. "Here you go, bro. Now you’ve got a seat."
Liu Debao: "..."
He shot Ma Da a betrayed look. First you call me ‘bro,’ now you’re helping them pin me down? Men really are fickle.
But he didn’t dare disobey. His cousin’s aura was downright chilling—not her appearance, but the sheer pressure radiating off her.
So he obediently draped himself over the bench, still pleading, "J-just go easy, okay? My butt’s all bone—hurts like hell if you—"
WHACK!
The baton cracked against his backside, his eyes bulging in shock.
"AAAAHHH—!!"
His scream was identical to the one Wang Erma’s pigs made during slaughter back in the village.
The spectacle left Lai Pihou and his gang pale with horror.
If she hits her own brother that hard… what’s she gonna do to us?
Liu Yutong’s lesson was deliberate. If Liu Debao hadn’t ignored her warnings, he wouldn’t have been scammed.
If she were just an ordinary student without money or connections, wouldn’t they have been doomed today?
Or worse—dragged her down with him.
After a thorough thrashing, she had the "unconscious" Liu Debao carried out.
Once in the car, he frantically rubbed his aching rear.
"Hiss—…No one’s hit me like that since my dad when I was a kid."
"My sister’s seriously blac—"
He cut himself off, finally noticing the black-suited driver watching him through the rearview mirror.
Terror flashed across his face as he hastily corrected, "I mean—good hit! As the ancients said, ‘Jade must be carved to shine’! I totally deserved it!"
The driver: "..."
Liu Debao forced a grin. "You, uh… won’t tell her, right?"
The man gave him a slow, knowing look.
Liu Debao’s heart sank. Suddenly, all he wanted was to go home—this place was way too dangerous.
However, as he recalled the scenes he had just witnessed and gazed through the car window at the luxurious black fleet, everything felt surreal, as if the world had lost all sense of reality.
His cousin had changed far too quickly.
