50,000 Words Omitted Here...
The door?
Lu Ping paused in surprise as he read the text.
In his first simulation, he had lain low in the kitchen for eighteen years and never even entered the gang leader's main hall, much less learned who would dare kick down the gang leader's door at a time like this.
[A giant figure blocked the doorway. More precisely, she filled it.]
[A broad, fat woman weighing at least three hundred jin wore a purple brocade robe embroidered with gold-thread peonies, a short knife tucked into her belt. The jeweled ornaments covering her head jingled as she moved.]
[Her round face took up eighty percent of her head, but her eyes were surprisingly small, nearly swallowed up by the mounds of flesh on her cheeks.]
[The Black Tiger Gang's third-in-command, Qian Cuihua.]
Lu Ping turned the name over in his mind.
Qian Cuihua had appeared as background information in the first simulation.
She was the Black Tiger Gang's third-in-command and the gang leader's sworn younger sister.
Everyone in the gang called her "Third Sister," but no one dared call her by her real name to her face.
Rumor had it that she had killed people when she was young, and quite a few at that.
["Big Brother! What's all this racket so late at night? I was putting on a face mask..."]
[Qian Cuihua's booming voice sent ripples through the wine remaining on the table.]
[She cursed as she walked in, her footsteps heavy and muffled, the floor trembling slightly.]
[Then she saw Lu Ping pinned to the table by the gang leader.]
[She stopped.]
[Friend of Women took effect.]
Lu Ping stared at those words as an exceedingly strange premonition rose from the bottom of his heart.
When he had equipped the trait, he had thought, The big sisters and sisters-in-law at work will like me more. Maybe they'll be able to help when it counts.
But he had forgotten one thing.
The scope of "Friend of Women" had never made any distinction based on what a person looked like.
[Qian Cuihua's tiny eyes suddenly widened.]
[She sized you up and down for three breaths.]
[A young man, pinned to a table with the back of his head soaking in wine, his face pale and the gang leader's handprint on his neck.]
[No matter how one looked at it, he was in an utterly sorry state.]
[But Qian Cuihua's gaze slowly slid down from your face. Your shoulders, arms, waist.]
[Finally, it settled on your forearm, slightly taut from struggling.]
[She swallowed.]
Lu Ping stared at those last words, his whole body going rigid.
Hey! Hey! Hey! Wait.
Wait, wait, wait.
The description of the Friend of Women trait was "increased favorability," not "romantic feelings develop."
But what was the last line of the description again?
"Of course, whether those feelings are romantic is another matter."
Another matter.
An—oth—er mat—ter.
Lu Ping's premonition grew stronger and stronger.
[Qian Cuihua's gaze was still fixed on your forearm.]
[Qian Cuihua spoke.]
["Big Brother, who's this boy?"]
[Her voice was a full three parts softer than before.]
[The gang leader's face darkened, but he did not flare up.]
[Qian Cuihua was the Black Tiger Gang's third-in-command. She had more than forty thugs under her and oversaw all the gang's finances and logistics.]
[More importantly, her cultivation was not much lower than the gang leader's.]
[Her three-hundred-jin frame was not merely fat; it was closely tied to the cultivation method she practiced. Her actual power within the gang was second only to the gang leader's.]
[The gang leader held the power of life and death over any gang member.]
[But with Qian Cuihua, he had to give her face.]
[The gang leader's fingers stopped.]
[Qian Cuihua spoke.]
["Since you don't want the young gentleman to drink with you, Big Brother, let him come have tea with me."]
[Options appeared.]
[A: Go with the third-in-command to her courtyard for "tea."]
[B: Refuse. Die rather than submit.]
[C: Cling to the gang leader's thigh and ask him to take you in.]
Lu Ping stared at the three options.
Option B: Die rather than submit.
And what happened after he refused to submit?
Qian Cuihua had more than forty thugs under her, and her power within the gang was second only to the gang leader's.
He couldn't beat the gang leader, so could he possibly beat Qian Cuihua?
He ruled out option C immediately.
Lu Ping chose A.
[You chose A.]
[You stood up and bowed to the gang leader. "Please forgive me, Gang Leader. I'll take my leave now."]
[The gang leader did not look at you. He was drinking tea.]
[The corners of Qian Cuihua's mouth rose even higher. She turned sideways to clear the doorway and gestured outward with her hand.]
["Come along, young gentleman."]
[You followed the third-in-command through three courtyard gates.]
[At each gate, the gang members on guard looked at you differently.]
[The gang member at the first gate looked bewildered, the one at the second looked sympathetic, and the one at the third turned his face straight toward the wall, his shoulders shaking. It was impossible to tell whether he was holding back laughter or trembling.]
[You arrived at the largest side room in the Black Tiger Gang's rear courtyard.]
[Incense burned in the room, red silk was spread out, and four plates of pastries and a pot of wine sat on the table.]
[Qian Cuihua beckoned to you.]
["Come, sit."]
[The Friend of Women trait continued operating. The Flattery trait continued operating.]
[You sat down.]
[Qian Cuihua's hand reached over and touched you...]
The text paused there for three seconds.
The white background was completely blank, with nothing on it.
Then a line of text slowly emerged,
[The next 50,000 words describing what happened have been omitted...]
Lu Ping no longer knew whether he wanted to see those omitted 50,000 words.
Or whether he didn't want to see them...
[You survived.]
[The price was your dignity, shattered all over the floor.]
[But the Salty Fish trait gathered up every fragment, and your Dao heart remained utterly unmoved.]
Lu Ping discovered a whole new use for the Salty Fish trait on an occasion like this: immunity to mental trauma.
No matter what he went through, his state of mind stayed as steady as an old dog.
If he had possessed this trait in his previous life, he wouldn't even have needed the courage to quit his job.
When the client called his proposal trash and his boss called his performance lousy, he could have taken it all with a smile.
As long as his Dao heart didn't break, they could curse him all they liked.
[Afterward.]
[Qian Cuihua reclined on a soft couch, her face flushed, her favorability toward you soaring to a ridiculous height.]
[The Friend of Women trait stacked with the Flattery trait, both buffs in full effect.]
[Everything you said sounded pleasing to her. Every move you made struck her as considerate.]
[Qian Cuihua started chatting with you.]
["Young gentleman, you were at the mine before? It must have been so hard there. It breaks this big sister's heart..."]
["Don't go down into the mine anymore. Stay with me. Who would dare bully you?"]
[At just the right moment, you put on an expression of tearful gratitude. The Flattery trait made the expression so precise it was flawless.]
[Qian Cuihua slapped her thigh.]
[More precisely, the waves of flesh on her thigh rolled three times.]
["What are you afraid of? With your big sister here, who would dare touch a hair on your head?"]
[She made the decision on the spot, assigning you to the logistics team under her command and removing you from the gang leader's direct supervision.]
As for the Friend of Women trait,
Lu Ping silently raised his rating of it from "trash" to "usable."
Although the way it was used was utterly ridiculous, the results were real.
[Before daybreak, you came out of the third-in-command's courtyard.]
[The morning breeze blew against your face, cool and chilly.]
[Your steps were steady, your clothes neat.]
[The gang member at the third gate opened his mouth when he saw you come out, then closed it again.]
[Then he turned his head away, pretending not to see anyone pass by.]
[You returned to the woodshed.]
[You pushed open the door. The faint light of dawn slipped through a crack in the window, drawing a narrow line of brightness across the floor.]
[There was an extra cloth bundle beneath your pillow.]