Qin Yan sneered, released his grip, and Liu Xinyao collapsed to the ground again.
He then turned to Xiao Fan and said, "It's been a long time. Where are Xiao Fan's father and sister? Why haven't they arrived yet?"
Xiao Fan snapped back to himself, eyes wild as he stared at Qin Yan and begged without stop, "Qin Yan, whatever I've done, it's all my fault. Kill me, do whatever you want—just please spare my father."
Hearing Xiao Fan's pleas, Qin Yan laughed in contempt. "Now you want to beg? Where were you earlier?"
"Wait and see. When your family arrives, I'll make sure they see exactly what their good son has done."
At those words, despair washed over Xiao Fan. He gritted his teeth and snarled like a beast, "Qin Yan, you've gone too far."
Qin Yan didn't want to waste time listening to him—this guy was a textbook hypocrite. Kidnapping someone's fiancée at an engagement banquet? Even among noble clans like the Qin family, that was unforgivable. In any ordinary household, that would be grounds for lifelong enmity. Yet this pompous so-called protagonist acted as if it were some great deed—laughable.
About ten minutes later, the two martial artists who had been sent to fetch Xiao Fan's family returned.
Behind them walked a seemingly ordinary middle-aged couple, faces fraught with anxiety, and a seventeen- or eighteen-year-old girl whose delicate, refined features made her seem almost otherworldly.
This was Xiao Fan's family.
The moment Xiao Fan saw them, his eyes reddened and he glared at Qin Yan. "Qin Yan, you beast."
Qin Yan only smiled faintly and said nothing, his gaze fixed on the three people before him.
When the family entered the courtyard and saw the scattered corpses, they were instantly terrified. Xiao Qi and Xiao Fan's sister, Xiao Ruyi, screamed and dove into their father's arms.
Their father trembled all over—he looked like he might faint—but he forced himself to hold the two women close and cover their eyes with his hands.
Qin Yan observed the man's reaction and nodded slightly—now that was what a man should look like. No wonder Xiao Fan always boasted, "If you've got the guts, come at me." He must have learned that from his father.
Despite a grudging respect for the father's posture, Qin Yan felt no sympathy. He asked coldly, "You are Xiao Fan's family, right?"
Mr. Xiao glanced at his son, then at the battered, miserable Xiao Fan on the ground. He had no idea what his son had gotten himself into—how he had become embroiled in such a grave matter and offended a young man who clearly carried a lofty status. Still, he knew Xiao Fan was his son and had to speak up. "Yes. I'm Xiao Fan's father. I don't know what he's done to anger you."
At Mr. Xiao's words, Xiao Qi and Xiao Ruyi forced themselves to lift their heads from their father's chest. Xiao Qi tremulously asked, "Sir… what exactly did our son do?"
Qin Yan turned his head to Xiao Fan. "Do you want to tell them, or shall I?"
Xiao Fan shot Qin Yan a venomous look, then lied to his family, "I didn't do anything. He—this rich scion—forced me into it."
Hearing that, the three XIAO family members all stared at Qin Yan with disbelief. None dared to voice the doubt, but their eyes were filled with suspicion.
Seeing Xiao Fan still denying things, Qin Yan lost patience. He rose, walked over to the muttering Liu Xinyao, and said, "You tell them. Tell the truth—one lie and I'll cut you to pieces."
Liu Xinyao trembled all over. She first glared at Xiao Fan with hatred blazing in her eyes, then looked at his family and shouted hoarsely, "Xiao Fan tricked me."
Mr. Xiao felt a twinge of pity at Liu Xinyao's crazed demeanor, but when the matter involved his son that pity vanished. He frowned. "Miss, I know my son. He's not one to lie. What did he lie to you about?"
"Hahaha!" Liu Xinyao's laugh turned manic. "Lie? He stole my body."
The three XIAO family members froze. They all looked at Xiao Fan, stunned beyond belief—how could their son do such a thing?
Liu Xinyao continued with a chilling cackle, "A while back I came to your city on business. Your son took advantage of me when I was vulnerable and deceived me into giving him my body."
"You're lying!" Xiao Fan snapped, panic flooding his voice—he would not allow his parents' good image of him to be destroyed. "I only—what happened, happened because I was trying to save you. If I hadn't acted, who knows how many men would have assaulted you."
"You're spouting nonsense," Liu Xinyao spat through gritted teeth. "I gave you my contact information back then—if you could have sent me back to the Liu family, don't you think they could have saved me?"
"Even if the Liu family couldn't help, the Qin family has influence. Don't you think they could have?"
Xiao Fan opened his mouth to retort but found nothing to say.
Liu Xinyao pressed on, "I didn't blame you for what happened at that time—later we talked, and I said there was no future for us. But after you came to the capital, you kept pestering me."
"You knew I was Qin Yan's girlfriend and still tried to be with me."
"You lied to me—and you even lied about Qin Yan, saying he would give me resources. Xiao Fan, can you deny any of this?"
Xiao Fan's face flushed crimson with rage. "Those things were given to me willingly."
The three XIAO family members were completely shell-shocked. They never imagined Xiao Fan had done so much in the capital: interfering in other people's relationships, taking what wasn't his.
A sharp pain stabbed Mr. Xiao's heart—how had his son come to this?
"Shut up."
Qin Yan interjected, then facing the family he said, "Now do you understand what your son has done?"
He added, "There's one more thing. Today was supposed to be the day of my engagement to my fiancée, but your son stormed the scene and abducted her."
"You are parents," Qin Yan continued. "If this happened at a wedding—if at the ceremony the bride is taken away by another man—what would you feel?"
Mr. Xiao hesitated, then bowed his head and shook it—just hearing that was infuriating; if it actually happened, he would want to strangle the other man. But under the current circumstances, he couldn't say that outright—after all, his son was the one who'd committed the deed.
He could only plead, voice trembling, "Young master, I know my son did wrong. Please—I'll kowtow to you. I beg you, spare him."