The music in the ACE club was sting at full volume, but the luxurious private room was so quiet that


    everyone could hear their own heartbeat.


    Ryan was wearing a ck suit and a dark-patterned silk shirt with a wide cor. A silver ne


    dipped between his solid chest muscles. He held a ss of red wine, sipping on it leisurely with his


    long legs crossed.


    A drop of bright red blood oozed from the corner of his lips, which he had wiped away with his thumb.


    His expression wasnguid and frivolous, but his charming eyes held a hint of coldness that deterred


    people from approaching him.”


    His gaze was so icy, like a cold abyss.


    Ryan’s bodyguards stood in a row in the private room.


    Ryan raised his head and drank the red wine in his ss before snapping his fingers.


    Then his bodyguards dispersed. A tied-up man kneeled on the ground in front of Ryan. His face was


    bruised and swollen, and his facial features were distorted.


    “Mr. Hoffman… I was wrong… Please have mercy…” Some of the man’s teeth were broken. He leaked


    saliva and blood when he spoke.


    “Tsk, your blood is flowing to the floor.”


    Ryan nced at him with disgust and raised an eyebrow nonchntly. “Do you know how expensive


    the carpet in my private room is? You won’t be able to afford it even if I sell your organs on the ck


    market.”


    “Mr. Hoffman…”


    The man rolled onto his stomach in front of Ryan, but Ryan raised his long legs and kicked him away.


    “Mr. Hoffman… I have been with you for many years and have always been loyal to you. This time, I


    was coerced by Mr. Liam Hoffman! He threatened to kill me. He didn’t ask me to do much, only to


    report your whereabouts…”


    Liam Hoffman was Ryan’s second uncle and his father’s only younger brother.


    When Ryan was seven years old, his father died in a ne ident, leaving Ryan and his sister


    orphaned and his mother widowed. Fortunately, Ryan’s father had transferred all his shares and assets


    to


    Ryan’s mother and Ryan early on. Thus, their family fortune was not left at the mercy of others.


    Logan Hoffman, Ryan’s grandfather, was in charge of the Hoffman family. Although Ryan was Logan’s


    eldest grandson, the position of CEO that originally belonged to Ryan’s father fell into the hands of his


    second uncle.


    Ryan had seen through Liam’s intentions. His second uncle, who cried the most at Ryan’s father’s


    grave, was, in fact, sinister and cunning. On the surface, Liam took care of Ryan’s family, but he was


    secretly plotting and guarding against Ryan.


    All this was something that the weak Mrs. Hoffman and the inexperienced Zoe had no idea about.


    N?vel(D)rama.Org''s content.


    As the backbone of the family, Ryan shouldered all the responsibility and pressure. Even his best


    friend, Justin, was unaware of the hardships Ryan went through.


    “You’re quite good at pleading for yourself. You know that you’ve been working for me for the longest


    time, so you want to please both sides and save more money for yourself, right? Hah! You ought to


    know that you might be able to earn more, but you might not have the life to enjoy all that money.”


    Ryan let go of his hand. The wine ss he was holding shattered. The cold light in his charming eyes


    was terrifying.


    The man kept kowtowing to Ryan, so much so that the floor covered with luxurious velvet rugs made a


    clunking sound.


    “I don’t care that you lied to me. It’s expected for the boss of a big conglomerate to have one or two


    traitors around them. That’s a show of sess, isn’t it?”


    Ryan leaned forward slightly. His broad shoulders cast a beautiful shadow on the floor.


    The moment Ryan lowered his long eyshes and smirked slowly, the miserable man in front of him


    looked so afraid, as if Ryan were the grim reaper.


    “What you did wrong was to expose yourself. Since you’ve deceived me, you should’ve continued lying


    to me. This way, you won’t ruin my mood, and you can even live longer.”


    “Mr. Hoffman… Please…” The man’s body was shaking, and he almost peed his pants.


    Ryan narrowed his eyes and drawled, “It’s been a long time since I visited my second uncle. I should’ve


    been more courteous. Yasmin.”


    A charming woman wearing a deep V backless slit dress came out of a dark corner. She was Ryan’s


    secretary.


    “Mr. Hoffman,” Yasmin said respectfully.


    Ryan’s smile suddenly disappeared. “Cut off his treacherous tongue!”


    “Yes, sir.”


    “No, no, no! No… Ah! Mm!”


    Yasmin’s face was expressionless as she raised a knife and cut out the man’s tongue with more skill


    than a butcher.


    Ryan stood up slowly, put his left hand in his pants pocket, and smoothed back his hair.


    “Wrap it up and send it to my second uncle. He can eat it as an appetizer for his next meal.”


    ….


    In the private room on the other side of the club, Zoe ordered the staff to broadcast the hundreds of


    surveince cameras in the entire club on therge screen. That way, they could watch Carrie from


    various angles.


    Carrie was like a deer lost in the forest-flustered, frightened, and helpless.


    Zoe and her friends watched it with interest.