Chapter 22 — Threat
Meanwhile, Hua Mian quietly circled around the crowd and slipped forward.
The battle was chaotic; no one noticed that she had left her original position.
“Ah!”
Sophia’s shrill scream pierced the night.
The fighting beastmen instinctively froze and looked toward the source of the sound—only to see Sophia standing rigidly, Hua Mian behind her, a dagger pressed against her.
“Let go of me! Bitch! I’ll kill you!”
Sophia’s body trembled, but her mouth remained as vile as ever.
Hua Mian’s expression didn’t change. She simply pressed the dagger down a little more.
Sophia felt a sharp sting on her neck. Her legs suddenly weakened, like a duck with its throat seized—she almost collapsed on the spot.
“Have you learned to speak properly?”
Sophia trembled violently, terror twisting her face.
“You—you can’t kill me! I’m a Soother! Killing me is illegal!”
Hua Mian’s voice was gentle. “Don’t worry. Before I die, I’ll make sure to kill you first.”
Hearing the killing intent in Hua Mian’s tone, Sophia’s face drained of all color.
She knew Hua Mian was serious—truly serious about wanting her dead.
“Have you learned to speak properly?”
Sophia said nothing.
“Let her go.”
Zuo Liangchen’s face was dark. He hadn’t expected this female to have such outrageous courage.
“Give us the spaceship and let us leave. Otherwise, I’ll kill her.”
Hua Mian’s voice was calm, but her hand was steady as steel. She even pressed the dagger harder into Sophia’s neck.
Sophia screamed hysterically at the silent Zuo Liangchen, voice breaking into sobs:
“Give it to them! Do you want me to die?!”
Pampered since birth, Sophia was already terrified out of her mind.
Hua Mian looked at Zuo Liangchen with a mocking half-smile.
Who would’ve thought—this guy was gay, and the one he liked was his own blood brother. So the “beastman” Sophia had been desperately collecting Firelin flowers to save was actually Zuo Liangyu, his older brother.
She remembered all of this because in the original novel, after their female died suddenly, Zuo Liangchen had manipulated everything to force his brother into a relationship with him. The explicit scenes afterward were extremely intense.
But if this were real life? Hua Mian thought Zuo Liangchen was downright disgusting.
Zuo Liangchen’s face darkened further as he ordered his men to disembark from the spaceship.
Hua Mian leaned in close to Sophia’s ear and whispered:
“Did you think no one knew you were the one who killed Dorothy?”
At that name, Sophia’s face turned ghost-white.
Her lips shook. “You…”
“Don’t let your dogs bother us again. Any trouble we run into—we’ll trace it back to you. And if anything happens to any one of us, your murder evidence will be spread across the entire star-net. Of course, as long as you behave, no third person will ever learn about it.”
Sophia’s mind went blank. Fear spread uncontrollably across her face.
“Do you hear me?”
Hua Mian pressed the dagger again, using pain to force a response.
“I—I hear you…”
Sophia collapsed to the ground once Hua Mian released her.
Walking past Zuo Liangchen leisurely, Hua Mian said maliciously:
“Does Zuo Liangyu know about your filthy little thoughts?”
Zuo Liangchen jerked his head up, eyes sharp as blades as he glared at her.
“What do you know?”
He grabbed Hua Mian’s arm.
This was his deepest secret. How did she know? Where had she sensed something?
“Let go.”
Hua Mian didn’t hesitate—she kicked him hard. Watching him stumble made her lips curl with satisfaction.
“Don’t do pointless things. And don’t provoke me. Or you will regret it. If you don’t believe me… try it.”
Zuo Liangchen’s face flushed blue and white with humiliation. The kick wasn’t painful—but deeply insulting.
He could only watch as Hua Mian boarded the spaceship.
Inside the ship, Hua Mian had barely taken a seat when Yan An bounded toward her like an excited puppy.
“Madam! Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” She shook her head.
“You kicked that petty man. Will he hold a grudge and get back at you?”
Yan An’s voice was full of worry. Chi Rui had said Zuo Liangchen never forgot a slight.
“He is petty,” Hua Mian said, patting Yan An’s soft black hair. “Don’t worry. He won’t dare touch me.”
Yan An relaxed, looking at her with admiration.
Yu Jin hesitated. “Madam… Sophia is a Soother. You hurt her. She won’t—”
Hua Mian pressed a finger to his lips.
“Relax. I have leverage over her. She won’t dare retaliate, and she won’t touch any of you.”
“What leverage?”
Chi Rui limped over.
“Don’t be so curious. If everyone knew about it, it wouldn’t be leverage anymore,” Hua Mian replied dismissively.
Yan An blinked. “Then… Madam, do you also have leverage over that petty man?”
Hua Mian lit up. “Ah! Our Yan An is so smart! Hand.”
Yan An confusedly extended his hand—and Hua Mian placed a small, unopened piece of dried meat in his palm.
“This is your reward.”
Though it was originally a snack Yan An had prepared for her, being given it like a gift still made his cheeks flush pink. His little round ears even popped out in excitement.
He stared at the dried meat in his palm, eyes sparkling.
Chi Rui watched Hua Mian effortlessly coax Yan An into a flustered, happy mess. He found it amusing… and secretly a bit envious.
His gaze drifted—then paused when he noticed Yu Jin staring absentmindedly at Hua Mian.
Realizing something, Chi Rui looked at Yu Jin a few more times. When Yu Jin noticed his gaze, Chi Rui looked away guiltily.
Only after Yu Jin left did he realize—
He had nothing to feel guilty about!
Hua Mian recalled how, in the book, Zuo Liangchen had gone mad for his sickly brother after their shared female died. But she didn’t know that female was Sophia. She hadn’t known Chen Yan’s name either—otherwise they wouldn’t have been caught off guard earlier.
A few days later, they finally returned home.
Seeing the roses blooming wildly outside the villa, they all felt as if ages had passed.
After returning, Hua Mian showered first. When she came out, she found a round fluffy panda poking around her bed.
The cuteness hit her hard. She leaned down and kissed the panda on its short snout.
Yan An froze completely, stunned. After a long moment, he covered his face with his paws in a fluster.
“Silly thing,” Hua Mian said, tugging his ears with a smile.
“Madam…”
Yan An leaned forward and kissed her neck—then transformed back into his human form.
The young man’s slim, lightly muscled body looked especially enticing under the warm light.
Hua Mian ran cool fingertips down the line of his shoulder blades, making him tremble.
“Sister…”
Whenever Yan An sought intimacy, he called her “sister”—soft, obedient, tinged with shy seduction.
Hua Mian wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his Adam’s apple.
He tilted his head back, eyes fluttering closed.
…
A night of indulgence passed, and morning arrived.
Hua Mian went downstairs and saw Chu Fufeng looking uneasy at the dining table.
“Good morning, Madam.”
“Mm.”
Hua Mian glanced at Yan An. Seeing his shy yet happy expression, she couldn’t help lowering her head with a small smile.
Now he knew how to act shy—yet last night he had dared to say all sorts of shameless things.
The others at the table noticed too.
Chen Xueji’s expression worsened, a storm of frustration and conflict in his eyes.
Yu Jin’s knife paused mid-slice, then he ate even more slowly than usual.
Chi Rui failed to hide his curiosity and envy.
And Chu Fufeng…
His eyes were tinged red as he silently gripped his fork, unable to taste anything at all.
