From Apocalypse To Entertainment Circle (BL)-Chapter 61: I’ll Protect You This Time

The auction began, and the host opened various items such as paintings, antiques, gems, and jade stones. The auction list had lots of things, and some of the guests preferred some and purchased them.

Halfway through the reception, when Sian was still eating his meal—why on earth the kitchen had to serve all the portions so tiny?—he was still not satisfied with five minuscule cakes.

A woman approached Lan Qisheng and Sian’s table. The moment Sian caught sight of her face, his movements came to a halt.

The woman approaching them was none other than Madam Xia—the spitting image of Sian’s mother.

With a flash of instant silence, Sian returned the cake in his hand to the plate, washed his fingers, and rose to his feet.

"Evening, madam. I’m Sian. Delighted to meet you. I’d also like to apologize for the way I behaved the last time we met."

Sian was always to the point; he didn’t beat about the bush.

Madam Xia was not upset, however. She actually appreciated his attitude of displaying some maturity and a good state of mind.

With the same polite smile, she also extended her hand for a handshake and replied, "It’s all right. Neither of us was in the best condition that day. How have you been? Has your health improved?"

And so the two had a casual conversation, and Madam Xia eventually sat with them at their table. The two were nice to each other as if they had forgotten all that happened the day before.

It was Sian’s belief that certain things needed to be unravelled slowly, and sometimes it was best to leave things to flow. That is why he did not want to look back on what had happened in the past or analyze it with Madam Xia. She seemed to agree—after getting over the initial shock, all she wanted now was for her "son" to stand before her. For the rest, she let time take care of it.

Lan Qisheng, gazing at the peaceful scene before him, let out a gentle sigh. Seeing that Sian was not having a nervous breakdown or anything of the sort, the tension in his heart eased. Then he glanced at Madam Xia and asked her if she was alone.

Madam Xia shook her head. "No, I came with my three children."

These three were probably in the hall somewhere, probably with their friends. The only one who worked in the family business was the eldest, Weilian, so he would have been discussing business with other important guests.

Having stuffed his face, Sian leaned back in his chair with a contented air. Madam Xia chuckled at his ease before turning again to the host and antiques. Even Lan Qisheng was looking in the same direction—on account of his grandfather, he had to buy something, but nothing had struck his fancy as yet. What he wanted was to get something for Sian.

While Sian was observing the room in every direction. His brain computed every motion, every aspect of the guests’ conduct surrounding him. Even the wind touching the leaves in the garden didn’t go unnoticed by his keen eyes.

Don’t ask him why.

After being with Lan Qisheng for about a month or so, Sian had grown accustomed to his typical hypersensitivity to the world around him weakening. Now, however, he realized that he had just taken things easy in Lan Qisheng’s house, which was his haven. Automatically, he knew that the environment did not pose any threat to his existence.

Here, however, it was different.

Right now, Sian couldn’t help but feel this ominous feeling mounting in his chest with every heartbeat. He had always enjoyed despising his instincts—because whenever he felt this, it could only be one thing...

Suddenly he sat up, jolting Lan Qisheng and Madam Xia awake.

The seriousness in his eyes and the suffocating air around him caused Lan Qisheng to stiffen. Something was going to happen—he was sure of it.

His doubts were confirmed when Sian replied, his tone low but serious.

"Did you bring your gun?"

Madam Xia blinked in confusion at Sian’s strange question. But more surprising to her was that Lan Qisheng spoke up.

"No, I did not. Do you think I’m a secret police officer? I’m not allowed to carry guns around, or I’d be the one getting arrested," he teased.

His expression turned grave after that. "Did you sense anything?"

"There are assassins in waiter attire roaming around us. They just showed up—I didn’t sense them earlier."

"Shit. Wait, I’ll text my grandfather," Lan Qisheng growled, not able to stop his brows from wrinkling.

"What’s going on? Is this really—" Madam Xia began, but Sian hushed her with a firm hand gesture. His following words were dangerously grave.

"Madam, henceforth, do not ever leave my side at all costs. Do you understand?"

Something in Sian’s icy glare and the claustrophobic mood that hung about him deterred Madam Xia from protesting. She simply nodded.

But then she remembered her children. Just as she was about to tell him she needed to search for them, she spotted the three of them coming towards the table and let out a sigh of relief.

"Mom, where are you. We were looking for you. What are you doing with... that thing?"

The sharp tone and sheer disdain in the voice made it clear who had spoken first.

Ziming shot Sian a glare filled with hatred before trying to pull his mother away so they could sit at another table.

But just as Madam Xia moved, Sian suddenly grabbed her wrist, preventing her from leaving. His sharp gaze locked onto Ziming and even a hint of killing intent leaked into his voice.

"Sit down."

One word. Just one.

Yet the air instantly went silent.

When none of the three siblings moved, Sian repeated himself, his voice carrying an undeniable weight.

"I won’t say it again. Sit. Now."

Perhaps it was the heaviness of his tone, or maybe it was their mother’s pleading eyes, but in the end, the twins hesitated before sitting down. Left with no choice, Bai Yushi followed suit.

"There’s no signal," Lan Qisheng suddenly announced.

The five people at the table turned to look at him.

Only Madam Xia and Sian immediately understood the implications, and their faces darkened.

The others quickly pulled out their phones, trying to make calls, only to confirm Lan Qisheng’s words.

Two minutes of tense silence passed before Sian finally spoke. His voice was low and calm, but everyone at the table could hear him.

And when they did, their faces shifted between shock and disbelief.

Because Sian turned to Lan Qisheng and asked: "If I kill everyone, can you cover for me?"

Of course, Sian was referring to cleaning up the aftermath, but Lan Qisheng immediately rejected the idea.

"Sian, you can’t just kill people, even if they’re criminals. Not this time. Not even my grandfather could protect you if you did."

Sian’s brows knitted together, and his amber eyes narrowed in frustration.

"What the hell are you two talking about?"

This time, it wasn’t Ziming who spoke but Weilian—the one who had always been against violence.

Hearing Sian talk about killing so casually had stunned him.

But before anyone could respond, chaos erupted.

Gunfire rang through the garden.

Waiters pulled out firearms—some carrying pistols, others with heavy machine guns. There were at least ten armed attackers, and judging by Sian’s calculations, more were likely hidden among the guests.

Bullets were fired into the air, and a man who had resisted was shot dead on the spot.

The sheer terror of the moment silenced the crowd. No one dared to move.

Madam Xia turned pale, horrified at the sight of blood, especially since the dead man had been right beside her.

Then, she felt cold hands gently cup her face.

Sian turned her head to face him and spoke softly.

"Don’t be afraid. I’m here. I won’t let anything happen to you. I’ll protect you."

His words came straight from his heart.

The mother he had once been too weak to protect...

But this time...

Sian refused to be too weak to protect her again.

This time...

He swore to spill the blood of anyone who dared to lay a finger on her.