Free Web NovelChapter 267: Chapter 267: Here to Declare Sovereignty
Inside the hospital room, the TV host paused their gossip about a popular celebrity and made an excited announcement:
[We interrupt this program with breaking news! The legendary so-called "wicked female," Ms. Jiang Qingli, just achieved a new Superpower Level half an hour ago! It’s SSS Level! SSS Level! The last time this level was seen was three hundred years ago!]
[This news has been confirmed by the Healing Association, so there’s absolutely no chance it’s fake!]
[Our station’s exclusive informant claims that His Majesty the Emperor also participated in this level assessment! He even plans to grant Jiang Qingli an audience next week! Now, let’s interview this informant...]
"You heard that, didn’t you?" Xie Guanqi stared at Bai Yiyi. "Jiang Qingli is not on the same level as you now. Oh, Yiyi, what are you going to do? There aren’t many people who can help you anymore..."
The mockery and instigation in her words were obvious.
But since Xie Guanqi hadn’t exposed her location, Bai Yiyi believed she wanted to team up.
Bai Yiyi was confused. Xie Guanqi had always looked down on her, so why would she want to offend Jiang Qingli alongside her now?
As if seeing through Bai Yiyi’s confusion, Xie Guanqi smiled slowly. "She and I have some bad blood. I know you want to make a move on Jiang Youchen, and that you’ve also taken a liking to my Secretary-General. I can help you."
Xie Guanqi had come to the hospital this time to investigate if Jiang Youchen had anything to do with Jiang Qingli’s previous hospitalization, but the hospital’s surveillance footage had been altered, leaving no information.
When she saw Bai Yiyi on the surveillance monitor, she suddenly came up with a plan.
Xie Guanqi had already investigated and found that Bai Yiyi and Jiang Youchen’s Match Value was as high as ninety-nine percent.
With such a high Match Value, it was highly likely they could successfully complete the marking in one go!
Jiang Youchen was, after all, just a male. No matter how powerful a male was, once marked, his body and mind would be controlled by his female master.
’If I have Bai Yiyi secure Jiang Youchen, and then I control Bai Yiyi, the Xie Family’s assets will still be in the palm of my hand, and Jiang Youchen will become a useful tool.’
Xie Guanqi smiled at the wary Bai Yiyi. "Contact me if you change your mind."
The door to the hospital room closed again. Bai Yiyi blankly asked her system, [System, do you think she’s really that kind? She never even gave me the time of day before!]
[She has a conflict with Jiang Qingli, so it’s normal for her to want to mess with her,] the system said. [Besides, you not only have protagonist-level stats, but you also have a Charming Fruit. What are you afraid of?]
The system urged, [Stop wasting time! Get this done and get out of here!]
Ever since she signed that loan contract last time, the system’s attitude toward Bai Yiyi had gotten worse and worse.
Bai Yiyi grunted impatiently, walked quickly to the bedside, and took out Chi Yun’s terminal. She entered the password to unlock it, navigated to his bank account, and transferred all of this month’s money to her own card.
’I can’t show my face right now, but I still need to spend money. Using Chi Yun’s is the most convenient.’
After the money was transferred, Bai Yiyi slammed the door and left. Before she went, afraid of being noticed by a nurse, she turned up the volume on the TV.
The host had changed their previously critical tone and was now showering Jiang Qingli with praise, even replaying the speech she gave at the Moon Festival a while back.
As the young woman’s voice rang out, the medical instruments in the hospital room began to vibrate wildly, and alarms blared, filling the entire room.
The frantic footsteps of medical staff rushed into the room.
Amid the chaos, Chi Yun, lying on the hospital bed, suddenly opened his eyes. A pair of red eyes stared intently at the young woman with a sweet smile on the screen.
"Young... Young Master Chi!"
The nurse who was checking on him jumped in fright, then rushed out of the room, spreading the good news of Chi Yun’s awakening throughout the hospital.
"Chi Yun is awake!"
「That night, in a booth at a bar.」
Ai Li was scrolling on her terminal when she suddenly blurted something out.
She slammed the table, completely shocked. "Didn’t they say he was in a vegetative state? That Bai Yiyi’s healing was useless? How did he wake up? It’s a medical miracle!"
After she said that, Lin Xiyue jabbed her in the arm with an elbow and shot her a warning glare. "Can you not bring up unpleasant topics?"
Ai Li immediately covered her mouth, cautiously watching Jiang Qingli’s expression.
In truth, it took Jiang Qingli two seconds to even remember who Chi Yun was.
Seeing her friend’s guilty expression, Jiang Qingli waved her hand magnanimously. "It’s fine. I know you didn’t mean it. I don’t have feelings for him anymore, so it doesn’t matter to me whether he’s awake or asleep. Feel free to gossip."
’030 had told her before that Bai Yiyi used items on her ex-husbands to "conquer" them. Now that the "conquest items" used on Chi Yun and Ling Qing should have disappeared, they would revert to their original settings and develop feelings for her again.’
’But the slander and targeting Jiang Qingli had endured were also real, so she had no intention of forgiving them or rekindling anything.’
’They had used dirty tricks before, and Jiang Qingli had retaliated on the spot. Chi Yun, in particular, had been disfigured, paralyzed, and had hovered at death’s door a few times, which barely evened the score.’
’Jiang Qingli was too busy now. As long as those guys didn’t come looking for trouble, she could just treat them like air.’
Seeing this, Ai Li slapped her thigh and raised her glass. "That’s us females for you—so magnanimous! What more is there to say? Here’s to you!"
Jiang Qingli raised her fruit juice and clinked glasses with her.
’She hadn’t forgotten what happened the last time she drank, so now she didn’t dare touch strong alcohol. Just having a soft drink to soak in the atmosphere was enough.’
Ai Li and Lin Xiyue understood.
After finishing her drink, Ai Li glanced toward the first floor and complained, "Where’s the star of the show? Why isn’t he performing yet? Is he acting like a diva?"
Lin Xiyue glanced at her watch. "Just wait a little longer. He’s only a few minutes late."
As she spoke, she suddenly saw several familiar classmates from their academy walking over with glasses in hand. In the middle stood a handsome young male with blond hair and green eyes—the very rising star from the entertainment industry Ai Li wanted to see, Zheng Meng.
As they approached, Ai Li stood up excitedly and flicked her hair.
But unexpectedly, the group ignored her and swarmed toward Jiang Qingli.
The classmates smiled warmly:
"Qingli, we all heard the news about you leveling up! Congratulations!"
"Why didn’t you message us when you came here? It would have been so much more lively with all of us together!"
One of the classmates pulled Zheng Meng over and enthusiastically introduced him to Jiang Qingli. "This is my cousin, Zheng Meng. You’ve probably heard of him, right? He was recently in that... that one TV show. It’s super popular!"
Zheng Meng stepped forward and smiled at Jiang Qingli. "Miss Jiang, hello."
He had expressive eyes with upturned corners, and his gaze was full of tenderness, brimming with charm.
Jiang Qingli didn’t know how to deal with this type of person, so she just smiled politely. "Hello."
She was just about to introduce Ai Li to him when several classmates gathered around, insisting the two of them have a drink together.
"Qingli, Zheng Meng came here especially for you! He begged us for ages! Have a drink!"
A glass of wine was shoved into Jiang Qingli’s hand.
She disliked this kind of pressure and furrowed her brow. Just as she was about to end the social interaction, the glass was suddenly taken from her hand by a set of slender, well-defined fingers.
Someone had sat down beside her, his tall shadow enveloping her.
A low whisper brushed past her ear. "I’ll drink it."
Jiang Qingli’s heart skipped a beat.
The bar switched to a slow, lyrical song. She held her breath unconsciously and slowly turned her head.
Under the mesmerizing lights, the young man’s profile was sternly handsome. As he drank, his Adam’s apple bobbed—a simple movement, yet one that was impossible to look away from.
He tilted his head back, finished the drink, and then spoke coolly,
"Hello, everyone. I’m Jiang Youchen."
