Chapter Seventeen: This Was Directed at An Lan!

"You useless fool, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Sun Chuanzi couldn't help but curse, watching helplessly as Ye Wushang pulled down tablecloth after tablecloth, wiping out all the food and wine from over a dozen tables in the blink of an eye. His heart bled at the sight!

Tonight, he'd spared no expense, hiring renowned chefs and serving the finest dishes and wine—all to foster good relations with his guests. At the same time, he hoped to win the good graces of the An family, so they might consider Lan Ruoxue as their representative.

And now, this useless wretch had ruined everything!

"You bastard, are you looking for trouble?" Xu Wei trembled with rage, pointing at Ye Wushang, about to unleash a tirade. But his fierce gaze startled her into silence.

"President Lan, you have to do something about this fool. He's gone too far," she pleaded, grabbing Lan Ruoxue's arm.

Lan Ruoxue stared at the chaos in disbelief. "Ye Wushang, I never thought you could be so outrageous! Just because you can't eat the food, you overturn the tables, leaving everyone else with nothing?"

"You can't stand a few words of criticism, so you lash out and smash things? How did you become like this?"

"If you want to sink into depravity, that's your business, but to do something like this—I've truly misjudged you!"

Amid the cold ridicule, Ye Wushang remained unmoved, acting as he pleased. The other guests, both baffled and furious, pointed at him and cursed. Some, growing agitated, looked ready to lay hands on him—when the bald man and his group hurried over.

"Mr. Ye, what's going on here?" The bald man frowned. He'd known this guy was trouble—never doing anything right, always ruining things. The moment the real threat hadn't even acted, he was already stirring up chaos!

"There's poison in the food and wine," Ye Wushang said coldly. "Quick! Rip off all the tablecloths, then go to the kitchen and bring out basins—everyone needs to induce vomiting!"

Hearing this, the bald man's frown deepened. "Are you serious, Mr. Ye—"

"Do it now!" Ye Wushang raised his voice, his icy eyes chilling to the bone, as if he might devour a man whole. Though displeased, remembering An Lan's instructions, they dared not disobey and hurried to carry out his orders.

"Is he actually in charge of security?" Xu Wei's face changed. All the bald men were in suits, earpieces in their ears, security badges pinned to their chests—clearly the security detail for tonight's event. Yet now, they were all taking orders from Ye Wushang, addressing him as 'Mr. Ye.' What was going on?

"Could it be that woman really is his friend? And someone with enough clout to command the security team?" Lan Ruoxue stood frozen, breathing rapidly. Had she misunderstood him yet again? But even so, he shouldn't have acted so recklessly, smashing up the food and wine.

Was he truly so enraged simply because he couldn't get a bidding qualification and had been upstaged by Sun Chuanzi? If he cared so much, why hadn't he done something sooner?

In no time at all, the tablecloths from dozens of tables were heaped on the floor. The bald men each held two basins, placing them before the guests, urging them to vomit up what they'd just eaten.

"Nobody vomit!" Sun Chuanzi shouted gruffly. "He's trying to fool you—he's just a useless loser! He couldn't get a taste of such fine food and wine, so he's venting his anger by ruining it for all of us."

"Poison? I personally chose every dish, hired every chef and waiter. How could there possibly be a problem?"

The guests nodded in agreement. Though the Sun family was only second-rate and Sun Chuanzi's reputation wasn't stellar, tonight's guests were all wealthy and influential figures. If anyone truly tried to poison them, he'd have to have a death wish.

Everyone could see the feud between them—it was obvious Ye Wushang was just lashing out in petty revenge.

"Boy, get lost! Stop causing trouble here! Tonight is the An family's charity gala, not a place for your petty squabbles."

"If you keep this up, I'll make sure you disappear from Jinghan City—believe it or not!"

The guests were indignant, pulling out their phones and threatening to call for backup. The entire hall became a chaotic uproar.

"Mr. Ye, let's just leave," the bald man sighed. He'd known this guy lacked the ability to do anything but make a scene. This was the An family's banquet; as An Lan's bodyguard, the last thing he wanted was for things to get out of hand. While instructing his men to calm the guests, he tried to pull Ye Wushang away to de-escalate the situation.

"Bah, filthy dog—don't let me see you again!" Xu Wei sneered.

Sun Chuanzi chuckled, mocking, "If you're useless, at least have the decency to own it. Try too hard to show off, and you'll just make a fool of yourself."

"Ye Wushang, leave. I don't want to see you again!" Lan Ruoxue's disappointment was complete. She didn't even feel the need to discuss things with him any longer. She'd explain everything to her grandfather herself, even if it meant losing her position—she never wanted Ye Wushang to set foot in the Lan family again.

This man was not only petty but had a rotten character. Did he really have the strength to strike back at Sun Chuanzi this way?

Suddenly, a guest who'd been cursing clutched his chest in pain and vomited blood violently.

"Lao Tu!" cried the man beside him, rushing to help. But before he could ask what was wrong, he too collapsed with a scream.

One after another, guests who had eaten or drunk began either coughing up blood or pounding their chests in agony. In a wave, they all collapsed to the floor. At first, there were cries and moans, but soon even their breathing became labored.

"What is happening?!" the bald man exclaimed in horror.

The other bodyguards stared at each other in disbelief. Could it be—he was right? There really was poison in the food and wine, and everything he'd just done was for everyone's safety!

"What are you all standing around for? Bring the basins—induce vomiting! And here, follow this prescription—go to the kitchen for the ingredients: seventy percent cold water, thirty percent hot. Mix it and have them drink!"

Ye Wushang tossed the handwritten prescription to the bald man. Lives were at stake; he dared not delay and immediately sent people in all directions.

Ye Wushang then picked up the clue he'd noticed earlier, his expression darkening to the extreme.

This was bad—the food and wine at this table were the most heavily poisoned. And this was the table reserved for guests with bidding privileges. By custom, An Lan would have sat here for a few minutes as well. In other words, the true target was An Lan!

"How could this be? How did that wretch know the food was poisoned?" Xu Wei was terrified, bewildered. "But why am I all right?"

"You think you're worthy to eat what I can't?" Ye Wushang sneered.

Xu Wei rolled her eyes, unable to retort before Lan Ruoxue cried out, "Wushang, how did you know the food and wine were poisoned?"

"If Xu Wei didn't eat, of course there's nothing wrong, but I just drank with Chuanzi and I feel fine. Does he really know medicine?"

That woman earlier had claimed that Ye Wushang was a master of both medicine and martial arts. She'd thought it a joke—but now...

"The deeper the poisoning, the later the symptoms appear," Ye Wushang said in a lowered voice, his mind racing for solutions.

But Sun Chuanzi burst out laughing. "That's the funniest thing I've ever heard. Can you make your story any more ridiculous? If this were really poison, the symptoms would all be the same. We're fine, so there's nothing wrong with the food and wine. Those people probably just upset their stomachs—who'd believe otherwise?"

He wasn't worried at all. First, he didn't believe there was any poisoning. Second, even if there was, he'd be fine—when toasting with Lan Ruoxue, he'd only pretended to drink, pouring the wine out instead. Not out of disrespect, but because lately he'd been suffering from kidney problems and couldn't drink alcohol. Otherwise, he'd lose all interest in women—and that would be a terrible waste.

Suddenly, Lan Ruoxue, who was about to ask more questions, felt a searing pain in her chest and collapsed, her face turning deathly pale as sweat poured down in heavy drops.

"President Lan!" Xu Wei shrieked, rushing to help, but Ye Wushang shouted, "Don't touch her!"

"She's been poisoned too deeply—any external force could cause the toxin to spread. If that happens, even I won't be able to save her!"

...