The man nodded, "Come... come with me." The man swallowed, his heart pounding.
Seeing their menacing demeanor, he sensed trouble.
The two followed the billiard hall staff to Li Heizi's office.
As they walked past, they heard cursing and the sound of objects being smashed from inside.
Hearing the noise, Tang Si's heart tightened. He immediately sprinted to the office and kicked the door open.
Inside the office, two groups were already fighting. On the nearby sofa, Shi Ran's clothes and hair were disheveled, the zipper on her down jacket was torn, her sweater was deformed, and her face bore several clear slap marks.
Shi Ran's gaze remained fixed on Li Heizi, her eyes filled with rage, so much so that she didn't even notice Qing Muyu and Tang Si appearing at the office doorway.
Then, she bent down, snatched a thick, square ashtray from the desk, and walked towards the beaten Li Heizi. With a swift motion, she brought it down, and with a dull thud, the ashtray landed squarely on Li Heizi's head, knocking him unconscious.
He fell to the ground, right at Shi Ran's feet. Shi Ran, trembling with anger, looked down at the unconscious man, gritting her teeth.
Since returning from the Hidden Clan, Shi Ran had endured immense pressure. Li Heizi's humiliation today was the final straw that broke her. She was crazed, wanting to vent her emotions.
Seeing him unconscious, Shi Ran had no intention of letting him off the hook. Holding the ashtray, she bent down and swung it towards Li Heizi's head again…
"Stop!"
As quick as lightning, Tang Si lunged forward, grabbed Shi Ran's hand, and snatched the ashtray from her other hand, slamming it onto the ground. "Are you crazy? You'll go to jail if you kill him, do you know that!"
Tang Si could never have imagined that his presence in the underground billiard room would lead to such a perilous scene.
He couldn't imagine what would have happened if he had arrived a moment later.
"Ah, don't touch me!!"
Perhaps an instinctual reaction, Shi Ran shrieked when her wrist was grabbed, flinging her hand violently, trying to break free from the 'restraint'. As she struggled, she turned her head and realized the person standing behind her was Tang Si.
She froze when she saw Tang Si, then a flicker of relief washed over her despairing face. Tears welled up in her eyes, a mix of shock and joy.
His sudden appearance provided a safe harbor for Shi Ran, who was adrift and battered by the storm she had just endured.
"Si…"
Shi Ran choked out his name, instinctively calling to him. Like a drowning person grasping at a straw, she clutched his sleeve. Just as she was about to throw herself into Tang Si's arms, the face of Zhao Wuyan, whom she hated with every fiber of her being, suddenly flashed through her mind.
And wasn't the person in front of her the husband of the woman she despised?
She forcefully suppressed the urge to rush into his embrace, lowered her gaze, and looked at her hand gripping his sleeve. Perhaps it was the force, but her hand was still trembling.
Shi Ran took a deep breath and slowly released her grip. As she let go, her fingers seemed stiff, each movement appearing awkward and difficult.
She took a step back, creating distance between herself and Tang Si. When she looked up at him again, her eyes were clear, with a hint of coldness and detachment, and a newfound strength.
"Ran…" Tang Si began, but before he could utter "Bao'er," Shi Ran interrupted him, "Thank you, Young Master Tang."
Tang Si saw her, trembling like a startled fawn, her face etched with fear and pain, and his heart ached.