Mr. Jin raised his Shaoxing wine cup: "Let's drink, eat crabs, admire chrysanthemums, and talk about romance."
Jin Xiaofeng glanced at Dandan, indicating:
"Shaodiao wine is good for warming you up, want a sip?" Then he laughed, "It's strong, I'm worried about safety, don't get drunk."
The whole room burst into laughter.
Dandan looked at the strong, fragrant liquid, and she saw his reflection in it. —That night, Dandan, with a cricket, teased Zhigao, who was still single after his mother's marriage. Huaiyu advised him, "You can't be without any fighting spirit."... She remembered every word he said. In that barren night, there were only crabs, no wine, but she had people. Very much.
Suddenly, she saw a snake in the cup, her heart skipped a beat, her hand trembled, and the wine spilled: her fighting spirit.
Dandan stood up, snatched the wine jug from the maid, and poured herself a full glass. Then, she downed it in one gulp.
The strong liquor, like ten claws, pounded against her throat. She barely choked, and felt quite happy, finally downing it all in one gulp.
Mr. Yang, as usual, started to make a fuss:
"You 'mosquito thief,' getting the young lady drunk is like a weasel offering birthday wishes to a chicken."
"What?" Dandan asked, still half-asleep.
"—He didn't have good intentions," Shi Zhongming said.
"The moon hasn't risen yet—?" Dandan didn't know what she was saying. She looked up through the window screen and, indeed, couldn't see a trace of the pale moonlight. She just felt burning hot all over. After they had almost finished eating, they saw Mr. Huang awkwardly write a check on the spot. He hesitated for a moment before filling in the amount and handing it to Mr. Jin.
Upon seeing this, Mr. Jin smiled and said:
"It's just a casual chat, nothing more. Why are you taking it so seriously, brother? You're being too formal."
"No, no," said Mr. Huang.
"You have to accept the consequences of your bet."
Mr. Jin picked up the check and looked at it:
"Don't bother adjusting positions, it's too much trouble."
As he lit a cigarette, he burned the check. Only the following was added:
"Just between you and me, you'll give me 51 percent of your film company's shares."
Unintentionally, she casually added, "And what about those actor contracts, like those with Duan Pingting and Tang Huaiyu? I'll take them all and make a movie out of it. That's settled." — Dandan's heart pounded.
Dandan, intoxicated, stumbled and fell into a magical, intoxicating world. All around her was a dazzling golden light, and beside her were a pair of eyes gleaming with intense emotion—no matter when she glanced at them unintentionally, they were always fixed on her.
There is a point of irreconcilable conflict in between, and she is willing to take that step.
A little dazed, she was led by the maid to the bathroom to wash her face. The steam from the tap water made the large round mirror in front of her seem a bit blurry. Dandan pointed a finger at her reflection and said:
Be careful!
My heart was pounding, my cheeks were twitching slightly, and a tear rolled down my cheek. A bittersweet feeling and a surge of emotion welled up inside me.
He bought everything and put it to rest!
He did it for her.
Dandan stumbled and didn't go to the banquet again; the servants reported that she was drunk.
When Jin Xiaofeng arrived at his room, he couldn't find Dandan for a moment and wondered where she had gone off to wander off to again.
Looking around, she saw Dandan curled up in a corner, facing the open iron cages. She must have been terrified. A lizard, a rattlesnake, and a spider were hidden in a human dwelling. She had released them by mistake. Her face was pale, she trembled, and she seemed delirious, almost possessed. She trembled at the sight of Jin Xiaofeng.
"Mr. Jin—"
"what would you like?"
"Kill them! Kill them!"
"Don't be afraid!" Jin Xiaofeng walked to his bedside and pulled out a pistol from under the bed. "Bang!" He killed the snake first.
Dandan rushed over, snatched the gun, and fired at the lizard, missing. She tried again, but it was a bloody mess, unrecognizable. Only the large spider, which she had smashed into a green mess with a heavy object, had countless tiny spiders scurrying out of its belly. They scattered and fled in all directions, a horrifying sight.
"Don't be afraid!" he said, holding her close.
Dandan was no longer afraid. All the death and injury was commonplace to her. What hadn't she seen and experienced?
Suddenly a wave of weariness arose, a weariness of all death and injury, of chasing and fleeing. This thought came abruptly, spreading throughout my entire body, yes, my heart and soul, ultimately ending in bloodshed.
Only emptiness and desolation remained, boundless and aimless. When she embraced this mountain-like man, she stopped and looked around; he was still the most reliable. Who would want to struggle any longer? Life became meaningless; she only wanted to rely on him, until the next life.
“Xiao Dan,” he murmured from the outpost, “I didn’t realize you were so murderous.”
The earth seemed about to sink and the sky about to fall. She was also surprised:
"Yes, I didn't know it would turn out like this."
"Give you a little wine and you'll show your true colors?"
She was tired of chasing and running away.
The thrill of flying blood made her easily agitated and also unleashed his animalistic instincts.
He explored and pressed against her with a frenzied and desperate intensity. He turned her face towards him, his fierce expression adding to her boundless fear.
His pets all died, and she is his only pet now.
Moreover, didn't he know that she was still a virgin?