Xia Mengxi saw the defeat within Zheng Tianyi's eyes and frowned. He looked like a Commander deserted by his soldiers, a lone man standing on a sandy battlefield whose armor was cracked, sword was destroyed, and the sole standing thing was a pathetic white flag.
She refused to see him like this. She refused to acknowledge he had truly fallen to the bottom. He was a Zheng for christ's sake! Why was his ego this easily destroyed? So what if he was insulted by Yang Feng, so many people in this world also suffered the same thing!
An indistinguishable emotion flashed before her eyes, a thunderous expression overtaking her fair face. This was not the end of the Zheng Empire.
Once a King has fallen, they can still stand back up. Her fingers curled into a fist. She grabbed Zheng Tianyi's hand to lead him away from the taunting crowd. She was planning on consulting everyone she knew. It was time to stop pretending to be a useless damsel-in-distress. It was time she put her title as the female lead to use.
She ignored all of the insults thrown at them and instead, used it as fuel.
"Haha, look at them fleeing into the night!"
"I feel so sorry for the Zheng family. Their long-built legacy was destroyed by a single person. Imagine building an Empire for five generations only for it to come crumbling down like this…"
"Tsk, if I was him, I would kowtow before my family and ancestors until my knees bled!"
"Zheng Corporation will suffer for sure in his leadership."
"Oh, didn't you hear, Young Master Hong, ever since Zheng Tianyi succeeded the chairman seat and tossed Zhao Lifei to the curb, he had not drawn a successful proposal with major corporations?"
"I heard those rumors as well. He was rejected from Yang Enterprise and on top of that, even tried to beg and grovel his way into a second chance!"
"Wow, he actually begged Yang Feng?" Laughter erupted throughout the room, the sound traveling through the ears of Xia Mengxi and Zheng Tianyi, who, despite walking so far, was still paranoid enough to hear the mocking sounds.
"I know right! It was a pathetic sight to witness. He did it in front of his personal assistants and bodyguards!"
"Wow, imagine embarrassing yourself like that in front of your subordinates."
"Pft, I feel bad for the employees. They had to see their boss in such a sorry state. If the leader is weak, imagine the condition of the staffs!"
Many people joined the insulting spree. When he was still in control, prancing around as if he was the true ringleader, everyone was simply too terrified to speak up against him. But now that Yang Feng had entered the scene and showed who the real ruler was, the people suddenly gained the courage to trash-talk.
- - - - -
In the hallways of the banquet.
Zhao Lifei stumbled over her footing and nearly fell if it wasn't for Yang Feng's hand. She felt dizzy for some reason and in her attempt to stabilize herself, the champagne glass slipped from her fingers.
CRASH!
The sound of glass shattering rang throughout the corridor.
"You were drinking?" Yang Feng's gruff voice filled with displeasure made her shrink back a bit.
She didn't like it when someone sounded so disappointed in her. She already had a fair share of her parents shunning her for her failure, she didn't need someone else to join the line.
"It was barely a glass." She snapped back, defensive because of his words.
Yang Feng paused to look at her face and saw how gloomy she looked. He took her into the closest room he saw and locked the door behind him. He flickered on the lights and saw it was a guest room of some sort.
"Relax, I'm not going against it." He said, cupping her face like she was the only thing that mattered in this world. He wanted to check her temperature to ensure a fever did not occur.
He leaned his forehead onto hers, forcing her eyes to flutter shut, as if waiting for something. He smirked at her automatic reflex before pulling back his face to see her slightly puckered lips.
He resisted the urge to laugh at the sight and instead, settled by wrapping his arms around her lower back. "You can open your eyes now."
Zhao Lifei's face twisted into a rough glower, her cheeks slightly flushed. How embarrassing!
He pinched her fluffy cheeks. "Aw, was the little kitty waiting for a kiss?" He cooed, earning a rough stomp on his toes. He let out a smooth laughter at her feisty reaction. The sound only prompted more smacking from her, but he was too busy laughing to care.
"It's not funny!" She crossed her arms and turned her face away from him, her eyes slightly watery from all of his teasing. His laughter was always music to her ears, but now it was like hearing the cackle of a demon!
She growled when his laughter still didn't die down. She pushed him off of her and was about to storm out of the door when he suddenly grabbed her waist, pushed her into the door, and enveloped her in a backward hug.
"Don't...get mad so easily." His loud laughter subdued to tiny chuckles that rumbled his chest. She felt every vibration and when he shifted his body closer to her, she could feel each of his perfect muscles clearly.
"I'm not mad."
"Sure, you're not." He readily agreed with her, a tiny smile on his face when he saw her face was still scrunched into a scowl. Like an angry little kitten who thought she was a tiger, her eyes were boring a hole through the wall.
"I was checking to see if you had a fever, my love. I was not trying to kiss you—"
"Shut up!" Zhao Lifei whined, her childish tendencies coming out the more he poked and probed at her.
She scolded herself for being so easy and allowing him to touch her as he pleased, but an enormous part of her loved it when he instigated physical contact. The warmth he provided, his strong and muscular arms, made her feel a sense of security. She felt safe when she was settled in his tight embrace. It was the only time she was truly relaxed and comfortable...
"It's good to see you're back to normal." For a second there, he thought someone might've drugged her drink again.
Yang Feng leaned his head on her shoulders, one arm wrapped around her waist, the other coiling over her collarbone.
She had nowhere to run.
With how thoroughly he was hugging her, he was ensured she had no way of leaving him. He loved how soft she was. Hugging her was like hugging a pillow and with her heavenly sweet scent, he felt as if he was in paradise whenever he was around her.
"I'm always normal." She argued, to which he eagerly nodded his head in agreement.
He did everything to pacify her, his tail wagging so high in the air, Zhao Lifei could practically hear the swoosh of the wind. He nuzzled his face into her neck, his soft hair tickling her skin causing a tiny giggle to erupt.
"That tickles." She laughed, the sound driving him insane.
She gasped when he suddenly turned her around, sealing his lips over hers, hungrily devouring her. He was instantly aroused when he saw her beautiful body in the dress that perfectly enhanced her curves in all of the right places, starting from her tiny waist to her ample backside. He knew she was self-conscious of her breasts, but he never minded them. All of the things she thought were flaws, he saw it as utter perfection.
She moaned when he pressed her harder into the door, closing all of the distance between them. One hand crept up her spine, his fingers spread out as he pressed her upper body to him. He kissed her so hard, her body was slightly bent for him, her breast pushed against his chest, while she felt her intimate area pressed against something incredibly stiff. Her body tingled and became heated when he licked her bottom lips before taking it into his mouth, sucking on it, and then thrusting his slick tongue into the sweet heaven known as her mouth, savoring the lovely taste of champagne.
"Y-Yang Feng…" She mumbled against his lips when she felt the thing touching her growing harder by the second. Her hand traveled down his body in a torturing pace. "C-can you move the gun—"
"It's not a gun, my dear." He hoarsely replied, his jaw clenching when her fingers were just a short distance away from brushing against his hardening friend. There was a heavy tent down there and he knew if he didn't stop her wandering hands, he might shred her clothes and take her right then and there, until she was completely filled with him.