Crime in Progress

The lighting in the booth area seemed to flicker with the rhythm of the music, while the noise from the dance floor below acted like a thick sound wall, separating each booth into a relatively independent little world.

The booths occupied by Lü Yi and Kong Xiang were separated from Jenny's booths by several seats, some lively and some quiet, but their view of each other was unobstructed.

The two were like spectators watching a silent play, their eyes fixed on the unpleasant scene unfolding opposite them.

The atmosphere in Jenny's booth became even more viscous and subtle after Brandon and Alex joined them.

Brandon was practically slumped into the sofa, his arm tightly wrapped around Jenny's waist, his other hand roaming restlessly under the table and over Jenny body, eliciting exaggerated giggles from Jenny. Her body writhed like a snake, responding to his movements, and she even offered Brandon a glass of wine to drink. The two were like conjoined twins, their actions becoming increasingly indecent.

Alex, on the other hand, seemed much more "patient." He didn't try to force his way closer to Xiaoyu anymore; instead, he held his wine glass, leaned against the sofa armrest, and casually tried to make conversation.

His gaze, like a hook, would occasionally sweep over Xiaoyu's nervous face, her clasped hands trembling with unease, and her slender figure, accentuated by her sitting posture and wrapped in a plain dress.

He asked nothing more than ordinary questions about schools, majors, and how long he had been in the United States, and his tone was even quite mild, but the way he scrutinized his prey made Xiaoyu feel uneasy.

Xiaoyu's responses became increasingly brief, almost consisting only of nods and shakes of the head. She lowered her head, taking small sips of the brightly colored cocktail in her glass—the one Jenny had just insisted on giving her, saying it was "their signature drink, every girl loves it."

The sweetness of the liquor masked the strong alcohol, but after a few sips, her cheeks still felt hot and her head was spinning. She had only one thought in her mind: to get out of there.

But every time she showed the slightest sign that she wanted to leave, Jenny would immediately peek out from Brandon's arms and say in a tone that was almost reproachful yet coaxing:

"Hey Xiaoyu, what's the rush? Play a little longer! Look how enthusiastic Alex is, he wants to chat with you some more!"

Brandon would also cast an impatient glance at her. Alex, on the other hand, would always raise his glass at the opportune moment, smiling and urging her to "have another drink."

She felt like a flying insect caught in a spider's web; the more she struggled, the tighter it wrapped around her.

Time flowed slowly amidst the deafening music and suffocating atmosphere. Lü Yi and Kong Xiang had already downed more than half a bottle of wine.

Lü Yi's initial interest in watching the excitement gradually gave way to an increasingly strong sense of impatience and a vague anger.

Looking at Xiaoyu's restless, almost tearful state, then at Jenny and Brandon's dissolute behavior, and Alex's hypocritical "gentlemanly" act, he couldn't help but mutter under his breath, "Damn, this is so frustrating. Look at those cowards, why don't they just run away!"

Kong Xiang didn't speak, but gently swirled the ice in his glass, his eyes sharp as an eagle's. He noticed that Xiaoyu's face was getting redder and redder, her eyes were starting to lose focus, and her hand holding the glass was trembling slightly.

She seemed to try to stand up, but swayed and sat back down weakly, shaking her head vigorously as if trying to stay awake.

"It'll be soon," Kong Xiang suddenly said in a low voice.

"What's fast?" Lü Yi asked, puzzled.

Kong Xiang didn't explain, but gestured with his eyes. Xiaoyu struggled, holding onto the edge of the sofa, and barely managed to stand up. Her steps were unsteady, and she lowered her head, leaning close to Jenny's ear and whispering something in a very low voice, her expression pained. She then pointed towards the bathroom.

Jenny was giggling at Brandon's antics when she heard this. A fleeting, almost imperceptible gleam of triumph crossed her face, but it was quickly replaced by concern.

She patted Xiaoyu's hand, raising her voice slightly to make sure Alex could hear her too. "Go on, go on, come back soon, we're waiting for you!" Her tone was as intimate as a true best friend's.

As if granted a pardon, Xiaoyu disregarded etiquette, turned around, and almost leaned on the low railing of the booth and the pillar next to it, staggered toward the restroom, her Back View appearing particularly thin and helpless.

Just as Xiaoyu's figure disappeared around the corner of the dimly lit corridor leading to the restroom—

Jenny's drunkenness and seductive demeanor vanished almost instantly. She quickly sat up straight and glanced around rapidly. The crowd on the dance floor was in a frenzy, and no one noticed the commotion in the corner of the booth area.

The nearby booths were either empty or occupied by guests engrossed in their drinks and conversations. Lü Yi and Kong Xiang's booths were a bit far apart, and due to the lighting and angle, they couldn't see the details very clearly.

Jenny moved with astonishing speed. Almost instinctively and without hesitation, she grabbed her small, delicate chain handbag from the sofa, quickly unzipped it, and precisely reached into the inner compartment to pull out a tiny, colorful pill, barely larger than a grain of rice, carefully wrapped in silver foil.

Her fingers were steady, without the slightest tremor, as she skillfully peeled back the foil, revealing a small, brightly colored, irregularly shaped pill inside.

Then, she leaned forward slightly, blocking any possible view from Brandon's other side (though Brandon was drinking with his head tilted back and wasn't looking this way at all), and with her other hand, she very naturally picked up the brightly colored cocktail that Xiaoyu had left on the table, which was still half full. With a flick of her wrist, the pill silently fell into the glass. She didn't use a stirring stick—it would be too conspicuous.

Instead, he extended his right index finger and, without hesitation, plunged it into the cold liquor, stirring it quickly and forcefully a few times. His fingertip brushed against the glass, making an extremely slight "rustling" sound, which was instantly swallowed up by the deafening music. The pill dissolved rapidly in the liquor, leaving only a tiny, barely perceptible bubble, which quickly dissipated as well.

The entire process, from taking out the medicine to finishing the mixing, took no more than five seconds. Calm and skilled, as if it had been rehearsed countless times.

After doing all this, Jenny quickly wiped her fingers on her skirt under the table, then sat back down next to Brandon, her face once again displaying that ingratiating and fawning smile as she looked up at Brandon.

Brandon just put down his glass and looked down to meet her gaze. Jenny winked at him, a smug "it's done" smile playing on her lips, her eyes full of self-satisfaction and a "praise me" tone.

A knowing, wicked, and lustful grin spread across Brandon's face. He pinched Jenny's cheek hard, then leaned in and gave her a loud "pop" kiss on the cheek.

Then, he turned his head, raised an eyebrow at Alex sitting opposite him, tilted his head, pointed with his chin at the tampered glass of wine on the table, and gave a knowing, sleazy smile that men often share.

Alex had been watching the commotion closely, and upon seeing this, a look of greed and anticipation appeared on his face. He licked his lips, leaned forward unconsciously, and turned his gaze back towards the restroom, as if he could already see his prey about to walk right into his trap.

All of this was observed by Kong Xiang, who had excellent eyesight and was intently watching from a booth some distance away. Although he couldn't see Jenny's exact movements of drugging her because of the angle and lighting, the brief body obstruction, the unnatural way she held the glass, and the disgustingly coordinated expressions on Brandon and Alex afterwards were enough to explain everything.

"Damn it..." Kong Xiang squeezed out a single word through gritted teeth, his face darkening. Although he had expected it, seeing such dirty tricks happening right before his eyes still made him feel nauseous and angry.

"What's wrong?" Lü Yi noticed that his tone was off and hurriedly asked.

Kong Xiang didn't speak, but gestured with his eyes to the glass of wine that had been tampered with in Xiaoyu's glass. He then pointed to Xiaoyu, who had just returned from the direction of the restroom, her face even paler and her steps even more unsteady, and whispered, "Something's been put in the wine. That woman's finished."

Xiaoyu staggered back to the booth, seemingly exhausting herself before finally sitting down. She looked very unwell, one hand pressed to her forehead, her eyes unfocused, and her breathing somewhat rapid.

Jenny immediately leaned over with "concern," took her arm, and said in a sickeningly sweet voice, "Xiaoyu, are you alright? Did you drink too fast? Here, have some water to calm down." As she spoke, she very naturally put the tampered cocktail back into Xiaoyu's hand, and even considerately supported the bottom of the glass for her.

Xiaoyu was already somewhat delirious, feeling only a dry mouth, fever, and nausea. She dazedly took the cup, not even realizing it was her original one, and instinctively brought it to her lips, gulping down a large mouthful.

The cool liquid slid down my throat, bringing a brief stimulation, but what followed was a more intense dizziness and weakness, and even a strange, terrifying heat rose deep within my body.

"No... no..." Her last vestiges of reason screamed. She slammed the glass down, spilling some more wine. Struggling, she used her last strength to stand, "I... I want to go back... no, I don't feel well..."

"Hey, don't rush off!" Brandon immediately placed his large hand on her shoulder, quite firmly. His face wore a feigned concern, but the desire and domineering nature in his eyes were undisguised. "Are you drunk? You'll be fine after a rest. Come, sit for a while, I'll get you some hangover medicine."

Alex stood up as well, blocking the exit of the booth, a fake smile on his face, "Yeah, it's not safe for you to go back alone. Let us take you."

Jenny hugged Xiaoyu's arm tightly, her voice trembling with tears and worry. "Xiaoyu, don't scare me! How can you leave like this? Be good, stay a little longer, and we'll leave together when you feel better, okay?"

The three formed a circle, trapping Xiaoyu tightly in the corner of the booth. Xiaoyu stared wide-eyed in terror at the increasingly blurry and distorted faces in front of her, an overwhelming fear washing over her like icy seawater.

She could feel the hands pressing on her shoulders like iron clamps, hear Jenny's insincere voice, and smell the strong scent of cologne and alcohol on Brandon... She wanted to scream, but her throat tightened, and her voice was weak. She wanted to push them away, but her limbs were too weak to move, and the heat and dizziness grew stronger and stronger, almost threatening to devour her last shred of sanity.

Despair, like the deepest night, enveloped her.

Suddenly, her gaze swept over Brandon's shoulder and landed on the edge of the coffee table, where a half-full, heavy glass beer bottle stood.

Driven almost by the instinct for survival, when Brandon leaned close to her face again, breathing on her with the smell of alcohol and saying, "Don't be afraid, baby," Xiaoyu suddenly mustered her last bit of strength, broke free from Jenny's embrace, lunged forward, and grabbed the beer bottle!

"Get out of here!!!"

With all her might, she let out a hoarse scream, gripped the beer bottle in both hands, and smashed it fiercely and resolutely against Brandon's repulsive face, which was right in front of her!

"Bang-- Crash!!!"

A muffled thud, followed by the ear-piercing sound of glass shattering!

Beer mixed with foam and blood exploded instantly on Brandon's head and face!

Brandon let out a bloodcurdling scream, his body thrown backward as he slammed against the back of the sofa before bouncing back. He clutched his forehead, which was now a bloody mess, with blood gushing from between his fingers and smearing his face.

He was in so much pain that his whole body convulsed, and for a moment he couldn't make a complete sound, only painful groans remained.

A moment of deathly silence fell over the booth. Jenny and Alex were stunned, staring incredulously at Brandon, who was covered in blood and screaming in agony, and then at Xiaoyu, who was still clutching a broken bottle, swaying precariously, but with a fierce Xiaoyu in her eyes, as if she were about to fight back in the face of death.

Xiaoyu herself was stunned for a moment by the enormous recoil and the bloody scene before her, but the will to survive overwhelmed everything.

She abruptly threw away the blood-stained half-bottle, and with the last vestiges of her sobriety, pushed aside the frozen Jenny, staggered out of the booth, and stumbled towards the edge of the dance floor, where the crowd was relatively thin.

With each step she took, she felt dizzy, as if she were walking on cotton. A wave of heat and weakness washed over her, almost threatening to engulf her.

"Fucking bitch! I'll kill you!!"

Behind him came Brandon's roar, a mixture of pain and rage, like that of a wounded beast.

He struggled, grabbing a towel from who-knows-where and pressing it tightly against his bleeding forehead. He pushed away Jenny, who tried to help him, his face covered in blood, his expression twisted like a demon. He staggered to his feet and stumbled after Xiaoyu in the direction she had fled. Alex also realized what was happening, cursed, and quickly followed.

Xiaoyu heard the roars and footsteps behind her, her heart pounding in her chest. Fear gave her her last bit of strength; she dared not turn around, desperately and aimlessly weaving through the gaps in the dim lights and the crowded, twisting masses.

Her vision blurred, and the music seemed to come from a distant underwater world, distorted and eerie. She felt herself suffocating, about to collapse.

Run! She had to run! Get out of here! Find the police? No, they might be in cahoots... Find someone to help her? All around her were unfamiliar faces lost in the revelry, no one paying any attention to her panic. Despair, like cold vines, coiled around her throat.

Just then, at the edge of her blurry vision, she caught a glimpse of a relatively quiet booth high up in the VIP area. There were a few people sitting there, a few... Eastern faces! Amidst the swaying, unfamiliar Western faces, these few faces, with their similar yellow skin and black hair, were like a lighthouse on a dark sea, suddenly igniting her almost extinguished hope!

She didn't know who they were, whether they were good or bad, but they were the only possible connections she could grasp within her field of vision! The instinct for survival overwhelmed all reason and hesitation.

With her last ounce of strength, she changed direction, pushed aside several people blocking her way, and rushed towards the booth like a moth drawn to a flame. She could feel Brandon's roar and footsteps growing closer behind her, and the stench of blood and fury seemed to be already on the back of her neck.

Finally, she rushed to the low railing of the booth, her body giving way beneath her, and she almost collapsed onto the cold railing.

She raised her head, her unfocused gaze struggling to focus, and looked at the young man in the booth who was vaguely surrounded by people, with a calm demeanor and seemed out of place with the surrounding noise.

That face was expressionless, devoid of curiosity, pity, or disgust; it held only the calm of a deep pool.

But Xiaoyu couldn't care less about anything else. With the last breath she had left, she uttered a weak, hoarse cry in Chinese, a cry that held all her despair and pleading:

"Help... help me!"

As soon as she finished speaking, she exhausted her last bit of strength. Her body slid down the low railing and collapsed onto the carpet at the entrance of the booth. She curled up, trembling uncontrollably, her face flushed an unnatural red, her eyes unfocused, and her mind on the verge of collapse under the influence of the drug and extreme stimulation.

The booth fell silent instantly after her sudden intrusion and her piercing cry for help. Only the raging music from the dance floor below continued its relentless roar.

Lü Yi, Kong Xiang, and K all looked at Lin Feng, who was sitting at the very back.

Lin Feng remained in that position, his hand holding the wine glass not even trembling.

He lowered his eyelids, his gaze calmly falling on Xiaoyu, who was lying on the ground Xiaoyu. Then he slowly raised his eyes, looking past her at Brandon, who was not far behind her, his face covered in blood, looking like a mad tiger, and charging towards them.

His face was expressionless. He neither nodded nor shook his head.

She merely brought her glass to her lips and took a tiny sip. Then, her gaze returned to the changing lights and shadows of the dance floor below, as if the desperate cry for help and the horrific scene before her were nothing more than an insignificant interlude in the background noise.

However, K and Kong Xiang seemed to instantly understand his silence.

A "Blood Spear" mercenary guarding the entrance to the booth glanced at KK and gave a barely perceptible nod.

The mercenary immediately stepped aside, clearing a path.