"No way, you can’t leave!" Qin Mengyao immediately protested.

Ye Fan was puzzled. "Why not?" he asked.

"You just can’t! Take us home!" Qin Mengyao insisted, though her confidence was failing her. Especially after the film, she and Chen Zihan felt like every shadow in the silent surroundings was moving. It was a classic case of post-horror-movie paranoia.

"Okay, I’ll take you back," Ye Fan sighed. He drove Chen Zihan’s car and dropped the two women off at their residence.

As they walked down the corridor, the lights suddenly went out.

"AAH!" they shrieked, clinging tightly to Ye Fan.

Ye Fan clamped his hands over his ears. These screams are enough to make anyone despair! Do they really have to be this scared? Fortunately, the neighbors were still awake. Otherwise, the two women would have certainly angered everyone. It was just a sound-activated light, so it was perfectly normal for it to suddenly go out.

He finally got them home. Ye Fan thought he was free at last, having delivered them safely. "Alright, you’re home," he said. "Get some rest. I’m really leaving now."

"No! You have to stay with us tonight!" Qin Mengyao declared.

"Why?"

Ye Fan was frustrated. He wasn’t the type to spend the night out, no matter how well he knew the other party. One was his sister-in-law, the other his sister’s teacher. Theoretically, he shouldn’t get inappropriately involved with either of them. Ye Fan was so frustrated he felt like walking out on them.

However, Chen Zihan piped up, "We’re scared. It feels so eerie around here. You can’t leave."

"Yeah, are you even a man?" Qin Mengyao added, delivering the finishing blow.

So I’m not a man if I don’t stay the night? Ye Fan had no recourse. This was an impossible situation. If he left now, Qin Mengyao would definitely tattle on him. If he didn’t leave, it would be incredibly awkward. As a man, he felt this was a painful choice.

Finally, he relented, "Fine, fine, fine! I won’t leave, happy? Now go get some rest!" He had no choice. What else could he do when faced with these two? He could only endure.

At this, Chen Zihan and Qin Mengyao walked into a room. Once inside, however, their expressions suddenly changed.

"Mengyao, are we really doing this?" Chen Zihan asked. They had already coordinated via WeChat at the movie theater, so their objective was the same.

"That’s right," Qin Mengyao said. "He’s a scumbag. He got together with my sister and just completely tossed me aside. You saw how ruthless he was." She seethed through clenched teeth, "He ignored me! I hate him, and I’m going to get my revenge!"

The ever-innocent Chen Zihan believed Qin Mengyao without a shred of doubt. She nodded. "Okay, I’ll help you!"

"Mhm! You’re the best, sis. Thank you! I’m going to make that scumbag know the meaning of despair!" Qin Mengyao declared. At that moment, she and Chen Zihan began to put their plan into action.

About half an hour later, Ye Fan was bored out of his mind and preparing to sneak out. If he didn’t get back soon, it would be hard to explain himself to Su Qingxue. However, just then, he heard a scream from the room.

"What’s wrong?"

Ye Fan rushed toward the women’s room. The moment he pushed the door open, a rope inside tripped him, sending him falling headfirst onto the bed. It had to be said, he had really capsized in calm waters this time. The mighty King of Heaven, taken down by a simple rope. He had to admit, even he could have such a day.

Just then, the two women threw the contents of some prepared cups at him. Before Ye Fan could even process what was happening, he felt them start to tie him up with shocking speed. What a shock! Are they... actually going to have their way with me? If that’s what’s happening, I want it on record that I resisted!

Ye Fan was speechless. "What are you two doing?" he finally managed to ask.

"What are *we* doing? Hmph! You scumbag!" Chen Zihan spat. She despised scumbags, especially one like Ye Fan—a man who would hook up with the older sister only to dump the younger one.

Ye Fan was at a loss for words. He wasn’t a scumbag! He might be a bit wild at times, but that was completely different from being a scumbag. "Wait, how am I a scumbag?" he said. Even if I’m going to die, I deserve to know why!

"You fell in love with Mengyao’s sister and then abandoned her! And you still say you’re not a scumbag!" Chen Zihan scolded angrily.

Ye Fan was speechless, especially with Qin Mengyao sobbing beside them, which made him look for all the world like a textbook scumbag. "Wait, I’m not a scumbag!" Ye Fan tried again. "And my relationship with Mengyao is not at all what you think!"

"Don’t deny it! It’s useless! I’ll beat you to death, you scumbag!" Chen Zihan shrieked, swinging a baseball bat down at him. She struck with surprising viciousness. Don’t be fooled by a woman’s normally gentle demeanor; when they truly lose their temper, even men get scared.

Just then, Ye Fan flexed his muscles, and the ropes snapped instantly.

The two women gasped in shock, never expecting Ye Fan to possess such strength.

He didn’t bother explaining after that. Fine, call me a scumbag. Being surrounded by beauties is a pain anyway, so I can’t be bothered to clear this up. He turned and walked out.

Watching Ye Fan’s retreating back, Chen Zihan had the sinking feeling she had just done something very foolish. But for Qin Mengyao’s sake, she would accept the consequences, even if it was a mistake.

For Qin Mengyao, however, the plan was a success. Her goal was to reduce the number of her rivals. Wasn’t Ye Fan surrounded by women, after all? She had to eliminate these competitors. For now, she seemed to have successfully eliminated Chen Zihan. Clearly, Ye Fan’s image in Chen Zihan’s mind had taken a nosedive.

Meanwhile, back at the villa, Ye Fan was fuming. Great. Now he’d been officially branded a scumbag *and* gotten beaten up for it. He was annoyed, but there was nothing he could do.

Su Qingxue’s company was doing very well. With the support of her many allies, it looked poised to become the top enterprise in Jiangning. The journey hadn’t been easy. Seeing the company’s success, Su Qingxue breathed a sigh of relief. Thinking back, she realized just how much Ye Fan had contributed. If it weren’t for him, her company might have already gone bankrupt. Ye Fan had helped her time and time again, which filled her heart with joy. As she thought about it, she realized she kind of missed him.

Just then, he walked in. "Where have you been? You’re back so late," she asked.

Ye Fan smiled. "Nowhere special. Just had a little business to take care of, but it’s all handled." He certainly wasn’t going to tell Su Qingxue he’d just been roughed up by two women. Losing face is a minor issue; getting an earful from her would be a major disaster.

"Honey," Su Qingxue said, "do you think I’m cold and unreasonable?"

Ye Fan wanted to scream ’yes’ but didn’t have the courage. Instead, he gave an awkward smile. "How could I? In my heart, you’re the gentlest person there is!" If lightning struck right now, it would definitely fry a liar like me. But that was just Su Qingxue’s personality; there was nothing he could do about it.

"Honey, I’ll definitely try to change my temper in the future," she said softly.

"Don’t! Really, don’t," Ye Fan said quickly. "If you changed, I wouldn’t be used to it!"

"Oh, you’re so sweet!" Su Qingxue snuggled into his arms. This was, without a doubt, the most tender she had ever been with Ye Fan since they first met. Normally, with her fiery temper, she would have already exploded.

As Ye Fan held her, a thought popped into his head: it was time to conquer Su Qingxue. After all, she’s my ultimate goal! He’d never succeeded before, but now the opportunity was perfect, and he wasn’t about to let it slip by.

"Honey, how about we...?" he said, his meaning made obvious by the lecherous grin that completely shattered his suave image.

Su Qingxue gave a small nod. "Mhm."

Clearly, she wasn’t going to refuse today.

Ye Fan was overjoyed. He swept Su Qingxue up into his arms and carried her into her bedroom.

Su Qingxue squeezed her eyes shut, not daring to open them. This time, she was going to become Ye Fan’s woman. Her heart was in turmoil. She knew that rivals like Fang Nan and even her own subordinate, Tang Yurou, had already become his women. If she waited any longer, she wouldn’t even rank as a mistress—her place in line would be pushed way back. In fact, she probably didn’t even rank that high anymore. That’s why Su Qingxue had made up her mind. Even if she had a phobia about this, she had to overcome it.

Just then, Ye Fan kissed her deeply. At first, Su Qingxue was unused to the sensation, but soon, she started to love it. As their emotions deepened, she became completely lost in the moment, unable to pull away.