Choice and Regret

Li Yao did remember. She clearly remembered how she met Yang Jian and what happened during the time Yang Jian afterwards.

The only thing she couldn't remember was what happened between meeting Yang Jian and waking up at the Ping An Hotel.

Although her memories told her that she had slept with Yang Jian for one night.

However, Li Yao knew that the memory was false; nothing had happened between her and Yang Jian. That night, Yang Jian had used the power of a certain ghost to tamper with her memory.

A ghost that alters memories?

When did Yang Jian acquire such an ability? This is not recorded in Yang Jian's file at all.

Didn't he only control three ghosts?

Or perhaps one of the ghosts possessed this ability but simply didn't reveal it.

But none of that matters now.

Li Yao is currently suffering from extreme mental distress and is on the verge of a breakdown. This is because she has been helping an enemy turn against her circle of friends, and what's worse, she has been completely devoted to this person she despises, without even the slightest thought of resisting.

Screams, pain, a humiliation of being manipulated both physically and mentally.

These emotions shattered her long-held pride and confidence. The Li Yao of today was no longer the haughty and superior woman she had been when they first met. She was like a vulnerable, helpless, and hurt ordinary woman.

At that moment, Li Yao collapsed to the ground and burst into tears. The coldness of the ground was far greater than the blow she was experiencing.

Her cries revealed despair and collapse; nothing in her heart could support her anymore. Everything had been crushed to pieces by Yang Jian, leaving her with nothing but a fig leaf.

Faced with Li Yao's cries, Yang Jian remained unmoved, his expression unchanged, still indifferent.

He had already died once, and he didn't even know how much emotion he had left. Let alone Li Yao's condition, he might not even be saddened if a loved one died in front of him.

This is a curse from an evil spirit.

Those who control vengeful spirits will inevitably be corrupted and assimilated by them, and may even eventually transform into vengeful spirits themselves.

"Yang Jian, you beast! How dare you treat me like this! I will never let you get away with this! I will use every means to get revenge on you! You will die a horrible death!"

"You will absolutely die at the hands of our circle of friends. You've messed with the wrong people. Not only will you die, your whole family will die."

"You've only killed two of us. Your operation has failed. Tomorrow morning you'll face our fierce counterattack."

As Li Yao broke down emotionally, she cried and cursed at Yang Jian, seemingly trying to vent all her anger.

Yang Jian ignored her hysterical rant and simply took out a gold pistol that looked like a work of art.

Its bright metallic luster was striking even at night.

He hadn't used this thing in a long time because most of the time it was just a piece of scrap metal, useless except for carrying it around to scare people. But he still chose to carry it with him, since it was still a deadly weapon for ordinary people.

The cold metal pressed against Li Yao's forehead.

This moment.

Li Yao's angry shouts stopped abruptly. She raised her head sharply, and when she saw the pistol, a sense of impending death seemed to overshadow her other emotions, instantly calming her down. Only her trembling eyes revealed deep fear.

Only then did Li Yao regain some of her composure.

It's useless to vent your anger by cursing in front of Yang Jian.

Because no matter what, it doesn't change the fact that the gun is already pointed at his forehead.

Is Yang Jian going to kill me?

At this moment, Li Yao felt as if the blood in her body had frozen, and an indescribable chill ran through her. Her life seemed to be in Yang Jian's hands once again, and even without altering her memories, she had no choice but to resist.

Yang Jian stared at her coldly. Li Yao froze, her pupils dilated, her whole body trembled slightly, and tears streamed down her face.

The scene seemed to freeze for a few seconds at that moment.

It seemed that Yang Jian was considering whether to kill her or not, or perhaps to give her a few more seconds to experience fear.

"No, please don't kill me," Li Yao pleaded, her lips trembling.

She was genuinely scared.

She knew she was no match for Yang Jian. Her identity, status, and education were all useless; none of them could save her life at this moment. There was only one way for her to survive.

Beg for mercy.

Waiting for the pity and charity of the person in front of them.

But does Yang Jian truly still possess compassion and almsgiving?

That cold, emotionless gaze sent a chill down her spine.

It was as if the person she was begging for mercy wasn't even a person.

"I'm giving you a choice: die with the truth, or live a false life with unfamiliar memories?" Yang Jian finished speaking and added, "Consider it your salary for the past few days."

"You have nine seconds to think it over, or I'll choose for you."

Upon hearing this, Li Yao was stunned once again.

This was a terrifying choice for her, because she knew that if she chose to live, she would be willing to do anything for Yang Jian again the next day, just like before. Would she still be herself then?

She was merely a puppet controlled by a vengeful ghost beside Yang Jian; even her memories could be altered at any time, and her personality could not be guaranteed.

Moreover, the feeling of submitting to this enemy was worse than being killed.

But if he didn't agree, Yang Jian would definitely kill him immediately and wouldn't let him live past tonight, because he knew some of Yang Jian's secrets and everything Yang Jian had done recently.

Li Yao's lips moved, but she could no longer speak.

Her pride and dignity had previously prevented her from yielding, especially to the person she least wanted to yield to. But the threat to her life told her that if she didn't agree, she would be killed immediately.

This answer doesn't imply a temporary agreement with the possibility of future retaliation from the driver.

Li Yao's memories had been altered, and she deeply understood the terrifying nature of this ghostly ability. Once memories were tampered with, one's personality was completely changed.

Yang Jian still held the gun to her forehead, his eyes slightly narrowed as he stared at her.

According to his plan, if Li Yao chose to have her memories altered without hesitation, he would erase all her memories after the age of twenty, leaving her with only the memories of her school days, completely disconnected from her social circle, and unable to recognize him or remember anything that happened afterward. That period of her memory should have been the time when Li Yao was most confident and radiant.

She will survive.

Yang Jian viewed this approach as an act of kindness.

Although he didn't know what kindness was.

"Holding your tongue?" Yang Jian's eyes flickered slightly.

Li Yao did not immediately agree to the condition of living; her fearful and struggling appearance seemed to be trying to make a choice.

"Hey bro, you guys can argue all you want, but is it really appropriate to let such a beautiful woman sit on the ground in this freezing weather? If it's not too bad, just break up. It's not a big deal."

At this moment, two young men passing by saw this scene from afar and, seemingly unable to bear it any longer, immediately walked over and patted Yang Jian on the shoulder.

Yang Jian glanced coldly at the two men, then at the several strangers who were watching, and without saying a word, he put away the gun he had been pressing against Li Yao's forehead and immediately turned and left.

Since you can't make up your mind, then I'll make the choice for you.

He left those words behind and never looked back.

Li Yao panicked at that moment. She wanted to chase after him, but her body was cold and stiff, and she stumbled and almost fell to the ground.

"Hey beautiful, are you alright? Try to think positively. It's not worth it for a man like that." The young man who was trying to break up the fight quickly helped her up.

But another companion whispered, "Brother, something seems off. Did you see that guy holding a gun? He put it away when he saw us coming."

"Yang Jian, don't go! I promise you, I promise you I'll live!" Li Yao cried out.

Faced with the challenge of survival, her inner pride and perseverance were not as strong as one might imagine.

However, Yang Jian gave her a choice, but not a chance to hesitate.

Yang Jian had already walked far away, and he could no longer be seen around.

"Beautiful lady, are you alright? Do you want me to take you home?" the stranger supporting Li Yao asked with feigned concern.

Seeing that Yang Jian had disappeared, Li Yao was utterly desperate.

She knew that her hesitation had cost her her only chance to survive.

"I'm about to die, please make a phone call for me."

Li Yao spoke somewhat erratically to the unfamiliar man beside her, but her voice abruptly stopped halfway through her sentence.

She felt a cold hand choke her throat, silencing her voice.

The ghost is here!

Li Yao froze.

"Make a call? No problem, tell me the number, and I'll make a call for you right away." The man next to him hurriedly took out his phone.

But in the few seconds it took to pull out her phone, Li Yao's neck involuntarily twisted to the side. The movement was somewhat sluggish, as if she was desperately resisting, her eyes filled with despair and helplessness.

"Miss, what's your phone number?" the man asked, preparing to dial.

His companion, however, remarked, "Brother, something seems off about this beautiful woman."

But before he could finish speaking, his companion was startled.

With a series of cracking sounds, Li Yao's head was turned 180 degrees on its own, and before it stopped, it turned back.

In addition, her arms and long legs were twisted in an abnormal way, and her eyes were already unfocused and lifeless.

What's going on?

The man next to him, who was about to make a phone call, was so startled by what he saw that he almost jumped up, but he lost his balance and fell backward to the ground.

But what horrified him even more was that he saw half a hand strangely protruding from the beautiful woman's mouth.

Five stiff, bluish fingers were pressed against her face, leaving several deep bruises.

"A ghost!" He trembled all over, scrambled to his feet like a madman, and then tumbled and crawled away.

Happy New Year everyone.

I can't guarantee updates for the next couple of days; I don't even know if I'll have time to write. Please understand. I'm starting to resume normal updates soon, but the Chinese New Year holiday made things difficult.