Delicate Beauty in the Palm : Chapter 7 - Police Station
Chapter 7: Police Station
Wen Liang bit down on his cigarette, exuding an innate air of roguish defiance. Just standing there outside the elevator doors, he radiated hostility.
If not for the delicate, snake-faced woman clinging to his side, looking fragile and weak, he would’ve seemed like he was about to throw a punch at any second.
Unfortunately for him, Fang Jiamao was also a full-fledged young master. Amused by Wen Liang’s words, he laughed, “Who the hell are you?!”
“Oh, come on, President Wen.” The woman clinging to Wen Liang's arm cooed as she pressed herself against him. “Why bother getting worked up over someone like this?”
Hearing her voice, Chen Die felt like her bones were about to turn to mush.
Now that was a true fox spirit—thousands of years in the making. Compared to her, Chen Die still had a long way to go.
She silently gave the woman a thumbs-up in her mind.
Wen Liang turned his head slightly, glancing at the woman with an expression devoid of warmth. He removed the cigarette from his mouth and said, “Let go.”
With just those two words, the ‘fox spirit’ instantly released his arm, her face turning pale as she meekly stepped aside.
Wen Liang turned his gaze to Chen Die. “Come out.”
Fang Jiamao grabbed her wrist and, with a heroic air, declared, “If you’ve got a problem, take it up with me!”
Wen Liang’s gaze landed on their hands. He tapped the ash off his cigarette, paused for a second, and then, without warning, erupted in fury. He grabbed Fang Jiamao by the collar and slammed him against the elevator wall with a loud bang.
His anger was always sudden and unpredictable. The impact made the elevator tremble, startling Chen Die into a scream. “Wen Liang!”
Fang Jiamao, stunned by her reaction, looked at her in surprise.
Wen Liang smirked, loosening his grip on Fang Jiamao’s throat before shoving him aside. He then grabbed Chen Die and pulled her out of the elevator.
“Got some nerve, lying to me now,” he said, looking down at her.
“I was going home, but I ran into an old classmate.” Chen Die gestured toward Fang Jiamao with a nod. “A high school friend. You probably don’t remember him.”
Wen Liang wasn’t interested in an introduction. “Go home.”
“No,” Chen Die replied immediately.
Wen Liang’s tongue grazed his molars, and a storm brewed in his eyes. “Say that again.”
“I said no.” Chen Die glanced at the poor, pitiful woman behind him and smirked. “Looks like President Wen still has company. I wouldn’t want to interrupt.”
Wen Liang yanked her into his arms, his hand cupping her cheek. “Jealous?”
Just as she was about to deny it, he pinched her earlobe, his touch unbearably teasing. He lowered his head, so close that his breath brushed against her skin.
“She’s got nothing on you—face, body, or personality,” he murmured with a husky chuckle. “Jealous of what?”
With two spectators still watching, Chen Die tried to push him away.
Wen Liang clicked his tongue in annoyance, grabbing her wrist with one hand and tilting her chin up with the other before kissing her lips.
He did it on purpose.
Only after a moment did he finally pull away, grinning with satisfaction at the smudged lipstick on her lips.
He wiped his own lips with the back of his hand, leaving a streak of bold red, then casually reached into the small bag slung across her chest, pulled out her lipstick, and tucked it into his pocket.
“I’ll give it back to you tonight,” he said suggestively.
Then he turned and walked away.
His female companion quickly followed but paused to shoot Chen Die a resentful glare.
What a mad dog!
Chen Die let out a long breath, ran her fingers through her hair, and turned to Fang Jiamao, who was still in shock. She shrugged and smiled.
“…Who was that just now?” Fang Jiamao asked.
“Wen Liang. President of Wenyuan Group,” Chen Die replied. “My boyfriend.”
Fang Jiamao looked even more stunned. He stammered for a while before finally managing to say, “No wonder he looked so familiar… but I’ve never met any Wenyuan president before.”
“He’s the one who put Chen Shuyuan in her place back in high school.”
Fang Jiamao had a moment of realization, leaning back slightly. “So you and him were—”
“No, not in high school. After graduation.”
Fang Jiamao nodded, then immediately pulled out a cigarette, took a deep drag, and exhaled heavily.
Chen Die watched his reaction and couldn’t help but laugh. “Just say it. No need to hold back.”
Fang Jiamao didn’t hesitate. “That guy’s a f***ing psycho.”
Chen Die nodded. “You’re too polite. He’s a full-blown lunatic.”
Seeing that she didn’t mind, Fang Jiamao went on a rant. Their private room was at the end of the hallway, with a restroom in between. Chen Die went inside to clean off the lipstick that had smudged past her lips.
When she came out, Fang Jiamao was still leaning against the wall, looking utterly disillusioned.
It seemed he had reached enlightenment. When he saw her, he asked, “You actually like that kind of lunatic?”
Chen Die paused, then finally admitted, “Yeah. I actually like that kind of lunatic.”
The private room was just as Fang Jiamao had said—only a few good friends from high school. None of Chen Shuyuan’s crowd was there.
As soon as she pushed the door open, the room erupted in cheers.
"Yo! Our school flower finally graces us with her presence! You’re really hard to book these days!"
"Of course, it takes none other than grandpa Mao himself to personally pick her up."
Chen Die smiled and took her seat.
The group chatted about everything under the sun, but Chen Die wasn’t particularly engaged, only speaking when someone directed a question her way.
“Oh, right, Hudie, what are your plans after graduation? Are you going into the entertainment industry?”
“Mm, if I get the chance, I’ll probably take on some acting roles.”
The group laughed. “Then I better get your autograph early! Once you become a big star, you won’t have time for us anymore.”
Chen Die joked back, “I’ll sign ten for you right now.”
After chatting for a bit, they started playing cards. Chen Die didn’t know how to play, so she continued talking with a few other girls. By the time evening rolled around, no one felt like leaving, so they ordered food and ate in the private room.
At around 8 PM, Chen Die got up to leave and made a quick stop at the restroom.
Thanks to Wen Liang’s earlier antics, she hadn’t been able to touch up her lipstick since he took it.
After washing her hands, she passed by another private room and suddenly heard some muffled noises.
After being with Wen Liang for so long, she was thoroughly corrupted. Just hearing those sounds, she could already guess what was happening inside. But she still instinctively glanced over.
What she saw was obscene.
Several people were tangled together.
Chen Die froze.
Just as she was about to walk away, Fang Jiamao and three other guys strolled up, arms draped over each other's shoulders. One of them whistled playfully. “What’s our Hudie looking at?”
One of them followed her gaze into the room and let out a loud “Whoa! That’s some hardcore stuff!”
Fang Jiamao rolled his eyes. “Boring.”
“Why leave? Let’s take a good look!”
Before Fang Jiamao could refuse, they yanked him back—and in the process, he locked an arm around Chen Die’s neck, pulling her along.
The people inside hadn’t even locked the door while doing their thing. With four people stumbling forward, someone accidentally hit the door handle.
Boom! All four of them tumbled inside.
Chen Die nearly blacked out from the chokehold. Then she fell to the floor, dizzy and disoriented, barely getting her bearings when a loud shout came from behind.
“POLICE! HANDS ON YOUR HEAD! GET AGAINST THE WALL!”
Chen Die: “……”
Everything that had happened today had been downright bizarre.
Half an hour later.
“Name?”
“Chen Die.”
“Gender?”
“…Female.”
“What were you doing there?”
“Passing by.”
The officer raised an eyebrow. “Passing by and still managed to fall in?”
Without hesitation, Chen Die pointed at Fang Jiamao, who was also being questioned. “He had me in a chokehold and dragged me in.”
Fang Jiamao cursed and immediately pointed at the fat guy next to him. “He pulled me!”
The officer: “……”
They had witnessed the whole thing unfold, so they didn’t suspect them of being involved with the half-dressed people in the room. Still, the situation was serious.
“So, those people you saw earlier were in the middle of withdrawal. We suspect this case is connected to an ongoing drug trafficking investigation,” the officer explained. “You guys are still students, right? Hand over your IDs. I’ll contact your guardians.”
Chen Die’s fingers paused before she pulled out her ID.
The officer took it, then looked up. “Not a local, huh?”
“Mm. I came here to study when I was sixteen.”
The Chen family had brought her to Yan City back then, but Wen Liang had interrupted midway. Her registered residence remained unchanged.
“Are your parents here?”
“No.”
“Any friends who can vouch for you? Give me a contact number.”
Chen Die pulled out her phone and found Xia Ying’s number for him. Just as the officer was about to write it down, the police station’s landline rang.
He set his pen down and picked up the call. “Hello, Yan City Police Station.”
Whatever was said on the other end made him shoot up from his seat. “Oh—oh! Chen Die—‘Die’ with the ‘口’ radical, right? Yes, she’s here, at our station.”
Chen Die tilted her head up.
The police station’s phone was old, with poor soundproofing.
She could hear Wen Liang’s voice.
Half an hour earlier.
Wen Liang stepped into the office. Qu Huan, who was sitting on the couch, turned his head upon hearing him and immediately exploded with rage. “Wen Liang! What the hell is this?!”
He slammed a letter onto the desk. A document slipped out—a personnel reassignment notice.
Qu Huan was one of the founding members of Wenyuan Group, holding 15% of its shares and serving as a branch manager. And now, this little punk had the audacity to inform him that he, a shareholder, was being dismissed.
An assistant followed in, placing two cups of tea on the coffee table.
Wen Liang lounged on the sofa, looking indifferent. “Director Qu, have some tea first.”
“Wen Liang, I haven’t said a word while you’ve been reshuffling the company, but do you really think I’m easy to push around?” Qu Huan’s face flushed red with anger. “At the very least, you should still call me Uncle!”
“Of course, Uncle Qu,” Wen Liang said obediently. “What I’m doing now is actually helping you.”
Qu Huan was about to explode when Wen Liang’s assistant placed a file in front of him. A quick glance was enough to send chills down his spine.
“Embezzlement, misappropriation of funds—this amount is enough for criminal charges. I looked into it, and you’ve invested all that money in stocks. You can’t pay it back. If I report this, you’ll probably be eating dinner at the police station tonight, Uncle Qu.”
Wen Liang pulled out another document—a stock transfer agreement. “If you sign this, no one else will know about it, and I’ll cover the missing funds for you.”
……
Over the years, the Wen family had expanded Wenyuan Group through several major acquisitions, extending its reach overseas and becoming one of the top corporations in the country.
Wen Huaiyuan had two sons. Wen Liang was the eldest, born to his late wife. Later, he remarried and had a younger son, Wen Qian.
In a family like theirs, having a mother or not determined one’s fate. Under the influence of his new wife, Wen Huaiyuan undoubtedly favored his younger son.
Wen Liang, for his part, lived up to his reputation—wild and unruly, with a volatile temper. Like a beast raised in the wilderness, he believed in solving everything with his fists, stirring up endless trouble in his youth.
Eventually, Wen Huaiyuan lost all patience and threw him into the military for training.
He had expected him to mature after two years, but the very night Wen Liang was discharged, his assistant reported: “The young master picked up a random girl off the street and took her home.”
What kind of reckless nonsense was this?!
Wen Huaiyuan couldn’t have been more disappointed in his eldest son.
But fate had other plans. When he suddenly fell ill, Wen Qian was still in middle school, and the company’s shareholders were circling like vultures, eager to seize power. With no other choice, he temporarily handed control to Wen Liang.
To his surprise, Wen Liang was ruthless, decisive, and had an impeccable eye for investment, stabilizing the company within a few strategic moves.
Over the past two years, he systematically overhauled the corporation, replacing old personnel with his own trusted people. Before Wen Huaiyuan knew it, his son had executed a full-scale coup.
Soon, word spread that Wen Liang had taken Qu Huan’s 15% shareholding.
People murmured among themselves:
“Looks like President Wen is making a move for the throne.”
“I can smell blood in the air.”
“But honestly, if he just formed a marriage alliance, wouldn’t the company be his anyway?”
“Doesn’t President Wen already have a girlfriend? Rumor has it they’ve been together for years.”
“Huh? That rumor is real?”
“A-Li saw it. About half a year ago, he came back to grab something late at night and caught President Wen pinning a woman onto his office desk while talking to her. Tsk, wild.”
Zhu Qicong silenced the gossiping employees before nervously stepping into Wen Liang’s office.
“President Wen.”
Wen Liang looked up.
“Miss Chen—” Zhu Qicong took a deep breath. “She’s been taken to the police station.”
The officer in front of Chen Die hung up the phone and said, “Your boyfriend will be coming to get you later.”
Chen Die raised an eyebrow. “Later?”
The officer hesitated. “He said he’s busy right now and will come by later.”
Chen Die let out a soft laugh. This officer was truly serving the people—being so considerate of her feelings.
She had heard Wen Liang’s words crystal clear: “—Let her stay there for now.”
The night deepened, and the city was coming alive with its nighttime bustle.
The other parents arrived quickly, cursing as they signed the paperwork to take their kids home.
Chen Die hadn’t been locked up; she simply sat in a chair nearby. Her phone had died, leaving her bored as she lay slumped over.
Her long, jet-black hair cascaded down one side of her neck, her fair skin glowing under the dim station lights.
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