Chapter 737: Jiaojiao 17

"As long as it saves my life, it’s a legitimate method!" Chen Jiao had hardened her heart. Before meeting Ye Rong and Yuan Sheng, she had thought the waters of the entertainment industry ran deep.

But after meeting Ye Rong, Chen Jiao realized that what she’d seen was just the tip of the iceberg, and even that small part was exceptionally filthy. Protecting herself in this mire had now become exceptionally difficult.

But no matter what, she had to survive. If she was gone, her dad would be truly gone forever.

After stashing away all her life-saving items, Chen Jiao finally felt safe enough to fall asleep on the large bed. No one contacted her the entire time, so she was able to get a good night’s rest.

Until she was woken up by Tan You.

Tan You: "Ye Rong and Yuan Sheng are on their way here with their men. They’re not being subtle this time; they’re making a big show of it."

Chen Jiao quickly came to her senses and rubbed her eyes. "Alright, let them come. Do you think they’ll fall for it?"

Tan You: "I’d say it’s highly unlikely. They already fell for it once. How could they be careless enough to step into the same trap again?"

Chen Jiao thought for a moment, her gaze finally landing on the elevator. "They won’t have any protective measures on at that point. What do you think about me putting a container in the elevator?"

"This batch of balm is pretty much odorless. They shouldn’t be able to detect it."

Tan You snapped her fingers. "You could give it a try."

Chen Jiao leaped out of bed. After setting her trap in the elevator, she waited in the fire escape stairwell for Ye Rong and his men to walk right into it. It was late at night and most people were already asleep, so Chen Jiao wasn’t worried about accidentally harming anyone else.

After waiting for about ten minutes, Chen Jiao saw two elevators begin their descent. Looking again, she saw Ye Rong, Yuan Sheng, and the others standing by the elevator bank on the first floor. This time, however, Zhanng Ping wasn’t with them. It seemed the previous incident had thoroughly scared him off.

Chen Jiao watched the elevators slowly descend from behind the fire escape door, while also observing Ye Rong and the others’ movements on the light screen.

Such a large, menacing group was clearly from the underworld. The front desk clerk handling check-ins was so terrified they were trembling, not daring to say an extra word.

Ye Rong clenched his jaw. "Are you sure she’s in the hotel?"

A goon behind him immediately replied, "Positive. Old Scar has been watching outside the whole time and didn’t see her leave."

Ye Rong’s knuckles went CRACK, CRACK as he clenched his fists. "Good. Let’s go up."

Watching Ye Rong and his goons file into the elevator, Chen Jiao twitched her fingers. "Teacher, do you think that short amount of time in the elevator is enough to take them down?"

Tan You: "Don’t worry. I made an extra-strength version this time. Twenty seconds is enough to knock out an elephant."

Chen Jiao felt relieved. She believed whatever Tan You said. "That’s for the best. These people won’t listen to reason. I have to beat them into submission tonight."

Tan You smiled. "You seem much fiercer now. That’s good. When you’re strong, people won’t dare to bully you."

Chen Jiao nodded in agreement, calculating the time it would take for Ye Rong and the others to come up. Because she had used the unscented version of the balm this time, the men didn’t notice anything unusual even after entering the elevator.

Inside the elevator, Yuan Sheng didn’t forget to give a reminder. "If you smell any fragrance, hold your breath immediately. You all brought your masks, right?"

For the past few days, Yuan Sheng and Ye Rong had been reviewing what happened. They’d been ambushed but hadn’t seen Chen Jiao do anything, yet they were suddenly unable to move. Eventually, Yuan Sheng recalled the faint, strange fragrance he had smelled. As incredible as it sounded, he had to admit that must have been the cause.

’If I can humiliate Chen Jiao and get my hands on that stuff, won’t I be able to do whatever I want in the underworld from now on?’

"We brought ’em, Brother Sheng, don’t you worry," one of the goons said in a grim voice. Being taken down by a delicate-looking girl like Chen Jiao, and suffering such heavy losses, had left these goons simmering with frustration.

On top of that, Chen Jiao had demanded so much money. How much could low-level guys like them possibly save up? Now that they were both injured and broke, they were itching to teach Chen Jiao a lesson.

In the end, it was a classic case of the minions being more trouble than the master. These low-level thugs, in particular, were endlessly greedy.

"Good that you brought them. Stay alert," Yuan Sheng said. Just as the elevator arrived and he was about to step out, he suddenly felt his limbs go weak and sore.

Yuan Sheng’s eyes flew open. He looked up at Ye Rong. "Brother Rong, do your arms and legs feel weak?"

"Weak? What weak? I feel great!" Ye Rong boomed. The elevator doors opened, and he strode out first. Watching his back, and the other goons, Yuan Sheng couldn’t help but wonder if he was just overthinking things.

’Could it be that the previous losses have left me with some psychological trauma?’ With this thought, Yuan Sheng followed after Ye Rong.

Chen Jiao just stood behind the fire door, watching as the men got out of the elevator and made a beeline for her room. When she saw one of the goons use a key card to open her door so easily, her eyes narrowed.

"After this is over, you can’t stay in this hotel anymore. It’s too unsafe," Tan You said softly, standing beside Chen Jiao. "Even if the front desk clerk only gave them the key card because they were intimidated by the goons’ Evil Qi, the hotel is still at fault."

When a guest stays at a hotel, the hotel has a responsibility to protect their personal and property safety. Simply handing over a key card to someone else like that is certainly not reassuring.

Chen Jiao nodded. "I know. After I deal with this group tonight, I’ll check out and leave."

Tan You: "If you ask me, you’d be better off buying a house. It’s safer and more private."

Chen Jiao: "I know. I’ll consider it after this show wraps up."

Tan You chuckled. "Whether this show can even continue filming is hard to say."

Chen Jiao froze, then her eyes widened. "You mean I could work my butt off for months and not get a single cent in the end?"

Tan You spread her hands. "It’s obvious, isn’t it? Zhanng Ping was the one who pulled in Ye Rong and Yuan Sheng’s investment for this show. And now, you’ve scared Zhanng Ping out of his wits. If Ye Rong and Yuan Sheng had gotten what they wanted tonight, perhaps Zhanng Ping would have continued filming."

"But if Ye Rong and Yuan Sheng stumble and fall at your hands again, the production is bound to be shut down."

Chen Jiao refused. "No way. I’m not working for free. Even if the show gets canceled, I have to get my salary. That’s my legal income for my labor. I can’t let it go."

Tan You loved this meticulous, calculating side of Chen Jiao. "Good. If the show is canceled, you’ll definitely get your salary back. We can’t let you work for nothing."

Chen Jiao smiled. "Exactly. I don’t want Ye Rong’s and Yuan Sheng’s money because it’s dirty. But my salary is different. I’ve put so much effort into this, how could I not take it?"

"Teacher, what was their reaction when they went inside and saw no one in the room?"