Chapter 19: The Liu Family's Intentions

The two men who had just stepped down from the truck immediately sprinted toward the car where Shen Yuxuan sat upon hearing the words. They had seen Yang Qi’s skills before—he took down three burly men armed with weapons in an instant. They were clearly trained fighters, not opponents they could handle.

“Looking for death!” Yang Qi’s expression darkened. The leading strongman clearly understood the situation perfectly: as long as they captured Shen Yuxuan, he dared not make any further moves.

Though the robbers reacted with displeasure, Yang Qi was even quicker. Pushing off with his feet, he dashed toward Shen Yuxuan in an instant.

Swish—

Yang Qi’s full-powered sprint was incomparable to ordinary men; even a hundred-meter sprint champion would find it hard to match his speed.

“So fast!”

Witnessing this, the two burly men racing toward Shen Yuxuan’s car paled. Yang Qi hadn’t moved far from the vehicle; just a few breaths later, he was already in front of the car.

“Die!” The two men’s faces darkened as they swung their machetes from different angles, aiming at Yang Qi’s head and chest.

Facing the two incoming strikes, Yang Qi shifted his body, then slammed his fists out fiercely. The two men were blasted away by the terrifying force.

“Yang Qi, be careful!” Inside the car, Shen Yuxuan cried out in terror.

At the same time, Yang Qi sensed a slicing wind approaching the back of his head. It was the lead strongman, taking advantage of his two men’s attacks to catch up and launch a sneak attack from behind.

“Die!” The strongman roared fiercely, his face twisted with rage.

Everything had been going smoothly—this jade was worth millions, and they were close to an easy score. Yet unexpectedly, a thorn had appeared in their side. Before they could seize anything, five out of the six had been injured.

Feeling the blade strike from behind, Yang Qi planted his foot, flipped in midair, and delivered a whip-like kick to the strongman’s head.

Smack—

The strongman’s body flew backward and collapsed unconscious to the ground.

“Yang Qi, you…” Shen Yuxuan stared in shock. When Yang Qi had mentioned he was still a college student, she had worried somewhat. But seeing his skills now, she understood he was no ordinary person. Her confidence in Yang Qi’s expertise in jade appraisal grew even stronger.

“I trained for a few years with the monks at the old family temple when I was young,” Yang Qi said with a smile.

In truth, this was a pre-prepared explanation. Back in Yang Qi’s hometown, the village’s elementary school was converted from a temple, and he had played there as a child, meeting the old monks. Otherwise, it would be hard to explain how an ordinary rural boy suddenly knew martial arts.

Shen Yuxuan nodded slightly and quickly asked, “How are A Long and A Biao?”

A Long and A Biao were Shen Yuxuan’s two bodyguards, sitting in the car that collided with the truck.

Looking at the mangled vehicle not far away, Yang Qi sighed inwardly. A Long and A Biao were likely in grave danger. Even he wouldn’t dare claim to be unharmed after such a collision, let alone two mere veterans.

The car was a wreck. A Biao, who had been in the driver’s seat, was already lifeless. A Long, seated in the back, leaned half his body against the opposite side of the impact. Evidently, at the moment of the crash, A Long had reacted, attempting to evade the point of impact. Unfortunately, it all happened too fast. He only managed to turn his body aside, which resulted in severe injuries and unconsciousness.

After checking A Long’s condition and finding no immediate danger to his life, Yang Qi returned to Shen Yuxuan’s side.

“How is it?” Shen Yuxuan asked anxiously upon seeing him.

“A Biao is gone. A Long was lucky—his vital organs weren’t hit, but he’s badly injured and unconscious from the impact,” Yang Qi said gravely.

Though A Biao and A Long were not men of many words, Yang Qi had a good impression of them. They were ordinary, yet their professional protection of Shen Yuxuan along the way had been evident. It was a shock that A Biao, who was alive moments ago, was now just a corpse.

Upon hearing this, a trace of sorrow appeared on Shen Yuxuan’s face. A Biao and A Long had accompanied her for some time; losing A Biao was a heavy blow to her heart.

“Shen, this robbery isn’t just a simple mugging. Have you offended someone?” Yang Qi looked at her seriously.

“You mean this robbery was targeted at me?” Shen Yuxuan, now calm and intelligent, immediately understood that this was a premeditated attack when she took over Shen Jewelry.

“If I’m not mistaken, it should be the Liu family,” Shen Yuxuan said after a moment of contemplation.

“The Liu family? Isn’t it just business competition? No need to go that far,” Yang Qi frowned. If it were merely business rivalry, there was no reason for such deadly measures. Besides, this wasn’t a business tactic. If the Liu family dared to attack Shen Yuxuan this way, wouldn’t they fear retaliation?

“It’s not just simple business competition,” Shen Yuxuan said with a bitter smile, continuing, “The head of the Liu family has a son, Liu Xiangnan. Actually, the reason Liu Jewelry suddenly targeted Shen Jewelry is because of him returning to Qingzhou. The Liu family doesn’t just want to be the top jeweler in Qingchuan; they want to completely swallow up Shen Jewelry.”

“Swallow up Shen Jewelry? Wouldn’t they choke on that?” Yang Qi exclaimed.

From his basic understanding, Yang Qi knew that Liu Jewelry and Shen Jewelry were quite evenly matched. Though Shen Jewelry was currently at a disadvantage, their foundation remained strong. It wouldn’t be so easy to devour them.

“Liu Xiangnan wants to marry me,” Shen Yuxuan suddenly said.

Yang Qi drew a sharp breath. This wasn’t just about swallowing Shen Jewelry—it was about swallowing Shen Yuxuan herself!

“After we realized Liu Jewelry was attacking us and our supply was being stifled, we started sending people to buy jade from elsewhere. But several incidents occurred. At first, I thought it was coincidence, but later I sensed something wrong. Combined with this latest attack, I now understand it’s the Liu family’s covert scheming,” Shen Yuxuan said with a wry smile.

“Doesn’t he fear being discovered?” Yang Qi frowned. This was the modern era, not ancient times. Even if the Liu family had a deputy mayor among them, Shen Jewelry was no pushover. If exposed, the Liu family would suffer greatly.

“Discovered? Nowadays, everything requires evidence. Besides, do you think the Liu family cares about a few million worth of jade? They just need to leak the information to some interested parties; many would risk everything for a few million!” Shen Yuxuan said calmly.

“Then what will you do next...” Yang Qi was about to speak when suddenly, sirens wailed in the distance. Two police cars, flashing their lights, sped toward them.

“Didn’t expect the police to arrive so quickly,” Yang Qi sneered. The chairman of Shen Jewelry being attacked by robbers was a major case shaking Qingzhou. No wonder the police came so fast.