Chapter 285: Chapter 285: Worse than Death

Translator: 549690339

But that was only when she was unwell.

Whenever she feigned not wanting to eat, Shen Chi never showed any mercy, pressing her to eat even if she didn’t want to.

Several times, they argued fiercely over meals, almost coming to blows.

Such arguments always ended with Shen Chi emerging victorious.

Even fights, when they occurred, ended with Shen Chi winning.

Xu Chaomu despised him more than once, “You’re a grown man arguing with a young girl like me, how can you be shameless? Shame on you.”

“Don’t you know the saying, hmm?”

“What?”

“Fighting is intimacy, scolding is love.”

“Tch, Shen Chi, your skin is even thicker than walls.”

Counting grains of rice, Xu Chaomu recalled those sweet memories, feeling like honey melting slowly in her heart.

But no matter how sweet the honey was, in the end, he grew tired of her.

He grew so tired of everything about her, accusing her of gold-digging and loving money; he grew so tired he made her board at school, preventing her from appearing before him; he grew so tired he personally went to the civil affairs office to end their adoption relationship.

From that point on, his surname was Shen, hers was Xu. They had no further connection.

Those sweet memories, in the end, led to a pitiful outcome…

While Xu Chaomu was in a daze, the door to the warehouse opened again.

A cool breeze came in, along with the “squeak” of the door.

Zhou Peitian, seeing her bowl of plain congee half-finished, spoke indifferently, “Finally came to your senses? Your own life is valuable, isn’t it?”

“You’re going to meddle again?” Xu Chaomu didn’t look up, continuing to poke at the rice grains in her bowl.

Zhou Peitian snorted coldly, walked over to her, and extended his hand.

Opening his palm, there lay two white pills, resting quietly.

“Eat them.”

“What kind of medicine? If it’s poison, I’ll take it,” Xu Chaomu said scornfully.

“Sleeping pills.”

“I sleep very well every day; I don’t need such things.”

“Eat them,” Zhou Peitian’s tone left no room for refusal.

“Two is too few, give me a few more, then I’ll eat them,” Xu Chaomu lifted her head, calmly looking at Zhou Peitian.

“Stop dawdling!”

Zhou Peitian, not wanting to waste words, grabbed her chin with his right hand, and shoved the pills into her mouth with his left.

“Cough cough…” Xu Chaomu coughed painfully.

The pills got stuck in her throat; she quickly grabbed the water on the table and gulped it down, finally swallowing the lodged pills.

The bitterness spread in her throat, spreading…

“What are you going to do?” Xu Chaomu stared at him.

“Take you to a nice place,” Zhou Peitian said flatly.

Indeed, the potency of the sleeping pills was strong; soon after, Xu Chaomu became drowsy…

Zhou Peitian didn’t leave; instead, he sat by the table, watching Xu Chaomu.

The girl was filthy, her hair a mess, still wearing the clothes she had on when he captured her days ago.

The bloodstains on her clothes were stark and harrowing.

Beneath the messy hair, her young face looked even more tender and naive, with an innocence characteristic of her age, something that could not be hidden no matter what.

He thought of Bai Man, who was in sharp contrast to this girl.

Bai Man was always adorned with jewels, even when abducted by him, presenting an attitude of pride.

“Sleepy…” Just a few minutes later, Xu Chaomu supported her head, her eyelids too heavy to keep open.

With a “thud,” Xu Chaomu slumped over the table.

“Having you give up could be good, how could Shen Chi ever like someone like you,” Zhou Peitian muttered to himself.

He blindfolded Xu Chaomu and led her out of the warehouse.

With several men, Zhou Peitian escorted Xu Chaomu and Bai Man aboard a small vessel leaving C City.

The sea was misty, with translucent moisture drifting everywhere. Seagulls flapped their white wings, crying “aah-aah” as they circled and swooped.

The sun came out, the water shimmering like fish scales, sparkling brightly. Fish occasionally leapt, arching out of the water.

Some fish even hit the hull, making a “thud.”

The boat sailed through the wind and waves, pressing forward.

The spray rose in thousands, with remarkable force.

Zhou Peitian kept calling Shen Shihan and people in South Africa, and by the afternoon, he had finally tracked Shen Chi’s itinerary.

The sleeping pills were quite powerful, and Xu Chaomu didn’t wake up until evening.

Her eyes were blindfolded, and her hands tied.

“Help!” she cried out.

No response came, only the sound of the waves!

Waves? Was this at sea?

She calmed herself and realized indeed, this was a ship. Perhaps because of the strong wind at sea, the ship was a bit rocky.

She didn’t know if it was day or night; she could only hear the howling wind beside her.

The wind sobbed, the waves roared mightily!

Just then, she heard footsteps and voices outside.

“Heard Shen Chi sent extra hands over?”

“Yes, that’s what I heard.”

“He’s really vigilant, we have to be prepared too.”

“Boss Zhou, can’t we just get there before his people and be fine?”

“In theory, yes, but we still need to be fully prepared. Are the guns and bullets ready?”

“Of course, you can count on us.”

“Good. And keep an eye on those two women, don’t let them escape,” Zhou Peitian said.

“They can’t run away; we’re surrounded by the sea. Unless they don’t want to live.”

“Don’t reveal them unless absolutely necessary. Let’s see if Shen Chi knows what’s good for him.”

“Boss Zhou, stealing meat from Shen Chi’s mouth isn’t going to be easy.”

“That’s why these two women are our trump cards. Unless it’s absolutely necessary, don’t show our hand prematurely or the other side will know our intentions.”

“They’re probably awake by now. Boss Zhou, Bai Man has quite the temper, later…”

“Don’t accommodate her, when it’s time to feed sleeping pills, don’t be soft. We can’t let her ruin the plan.”

“Understood.”

The two talked as they walked, their voices becoming fainter and eventually inaudible.

Xu Chaomu’s heart shivered; Bai Man was here too.

Indeed, they were Zhou Peitian’s bargaining chips. And chips are just pawns.

Her and Bai Man…

How could she compare with Bai Man, the white lotus cherished in Shen Chi’s hands, the woman Shen Chi loved most?

Then she thought of that text message, where he told Bai Man “I love you.”

Moreover, they now had a child together, Bai Man’s life was worth more than her own, double.

Xu Chaomu despaired, she was truly afraid of that scene coming to pass.

She feared Shen Chi standing before her, looking towards her with a mocking sneer, saying, “Xu Chaomu, what are you worth? In my heart, you can’t even compare to a single hair on Manman.”

That would be more painful than death.

Her mind went blank, tears flowing down her cheeks…

The ship kept moving forward, and before long, Xu Chaomu heard the sound of rain beating against the windows, wave after wave, from gentle to strong.