The Surveillance Room

Amid the chaos, with the crowd shoving and jostling, Shen Yu made his way to the stairwell under cover of Lu Xianchang and Jiang Qianyu. Two bodyguards took their places, leaving similar figures for the cameras to capture.

And a clear view of Lu Xianchang's face.

Lu Changfeng had not left either. He remained seated like an anchor, watching the farce unfold before him. When He Wen realized begging was useless, the torment and pain in his body and mind became unbearable, and he began hurling curses at Yuanxiao.

How much it resembled the time he had knelt and begged He Wen to spare his family...

Smiling, Yuanxiao swapped the next person's dinner knife for a fork, demanding that he draw blood and drive it all the way in.

Compared with a sharp blade, the blunt-tipped fork was clearly more difficult, and it took longer.

How could that do?

So someone covered He Wen's mouth and patted him on the head as if to comfort him.

"Bear with it. We'll be done soon."

So said the well-dressed beast.

They harmed other people's interests to achieve their own goals, whether the other person accepted it or not. They were always like this.

Yuanxiao watched it all coldly.

He had taken his revenge.

Did you see?

Yuanxiao touched the scar on his face. Much of the malice that had plagued his heart for so long dissipated, and happy moments with his family flashed through his mind: his mother stroking his hair and smiling as she said they were going out to have fun today; his father carrying the camping tableware they would need and saying he was going down to get the car; his little sister raising both arms and asking him to pick her up... Then came a cool, holy face, pale blue eyes filled with his image, soft pink lips parting to ask whether he wanted to pursue him.

Of course I do.

Although he was young, he had received a proper nine-year compulsory education and knew that this kind of relationship was abnormal and twisted. There were men in his organization who liked men too. He had once scoffed at them, thinking it was merely a distorted view of love.

But after meeting Shen Yu, he felt only a warm current slowly flowing through the cold heart in his chest that had long been dead and still. It traveled through his body, leaving all four limbs feeling comfortable—he wanted him.

He wanted him to become his... wife.

Yuanxiao looked toward the central area, only to find that Shen Yu was long gone. Only Lu Changfeng remained, sitting upright, his pitch-black eyes fixed on Yuanxiao darkly, as if seeing straight through him.

He did not care in the slightest.

But where was Shen Yu?

...Hadn't he promised to give him a chance to pursue him? Was he going to ignore him now that he had tricked the killer's name out of him?

It was all right. A good husband had to indulge an unreasonable wife.

But first, he had to be by his side.

A fierce possessiveness flashed in Yuanxiao's eyes.

"Achoo—"

Shen Yu rubbed his nose, and Jiang Qianyu hurriedly took off his coat and draped it over him.

"Did you catch a chill?" he asked with great concern.

"I'm fine." Shen Yu refused to wear a coat over his coat. It would get in the way of what he was doing.

According to the information Lu Changfeng had provided, the surveillance room was at the very back of the third-floor entertainment area. After all, the first and second floors were both part of the banquet hall, while the floors above were for lodging, making the third floor the ideal location.

There was a lot of foot traffic on the third floor, and anything discovered could be dealt with promptly.

The two went up the stairs and pushed open the door at the landing. A round table covered with a blank sheet of paper came into view, along with some scattered chips and props. Silver masks were piled beside the elevator, not yet put away.

It was very quiet.

Shen Yu put a hand at his waist and started forward, but Jiang Qianyu reached out to stop him. He had gotten hold of a stun baton from somewhere and flicked its switch, making an electric current crackle. His face was pale and frightened, and his voice trembled, but he still forced himself to stand in front of Shen Yu. "D-don't be afraid. I'll stand in front of you. If he comes out, I'll zap him! I won't give him a chance to hurt you!"

Shen Yu looked at his fingers, which were very close to the body of the stun baton. "...Just don't electrocute yourself unconscious."

Jiang Qianyu said, "I can't. Brother Changfeng told me to protect you properly."

Click—

The sound of a door unlocking rang out clearly on the floor.

Both fell silent, staring at the door at the very back that had suddenly opened. Three characters were written on it: "Surveillance Room."

A silent warning, or perhaps more like an invitation with all the cards on the table.

I know you're here. Do you want to come into my territory?

The atmosphere abruptly fell silent. Jiang Qianyu even slowed his breathing, his eyes growing more panicked as he leaned close to whisper in Shen Yu's ear. "He's discovered us!"

His family had protected him well ever since he was little. Apart from being led into a gambling addiction, what other dark things had he ever seen? Let alone a lunatic like this, who treated other people's lives as nothing and manipulated and toyed with them just for a fun game.

The only reason he could stand in front of Shen Yu now without his legs giving out and dropping him to his knees was his pride, which would not let him lose face. He was already at the end of his strength.

Shen Yu looked at the door and suddenly smiled, though the smile did not reach his eyes. "Provoking me?"

He wanted to see just who this person was, the one who had played Lu Changfeng, the Lu Family's heir, for a fool.

Shen Yu approached step by step.

He walked slowly, watching for anything suspicious around him. If he fell for this person's underhanded tricks, he would cry at his own stupidity.

Jiang Qianyu gritted his teeth and followed, though he wobbled as he walked.

But to Shen Yu's surprise, there really was nothing along the way, as if the person had been expecting him all along... Could it be another simp whose favorability shot through the roof the moment he saw him?

[No...]

"Isn't it?"

Shen Yu was already standing at the door. One more step and he would be able to see everything inside.

[Don't insult dogs.]

Shen Yu: "..."

[Dogs are so cute. Don't compare them to this bunch of scum.]

Shen Yu: Fine.

"Do I know the person inside?"

[You've met.]

He could tamper with the surveillance system and seemed very skilled at it. Shen Yu had only met one person like that.

Shen Yu pulled the door all the way open.

In front of the large screens in the surveillance room sat a white-haired, golden-eyed youth. He was leaning back in his chair with his legs crossed, tapping his toe against the floor as if passing the time out of boredom. His ear stud was gone, replaced by a piece of metal connected to the surveillance room's computer.

Two unconscious staff members were lying in a corner.

His eyes lit up when he saw Shen Yu, and he raised an eyebrow. "It's been a few days. Did you miss me?"

"No."

Shen Yu's unsurprised expression caught Yuan Qingshan's attention.

He asked curiously, "You knew it was me all along?"

Shen Yu did not want to stand, so he sat down casually on a nearby sofa, looking relaxed. He raised his eyes and glanced at him. "Something like that."

Jiang Qianyu was a little dumbfounded by how familiar the two seemed, but mindful of his duty to protect Shen Yu, he still planted himself between them, blocking their view of each other.

Holding the stun baton, he threatened Yuan Qingshan like a hissing kitten. "Take the iron mesh down, now! Let us out, or... or I'll have to take extreme measures! I don't think you'll want to see that happen."

Yuan Qingshan finally looked at him. Seeing how he was bluffing and full of openings, he turned to Shen Yu. "Brother Luo sent a useless thing like this to protect you? Looks like he doesn't care that much about you after all."

Shen Yu: "...Brother Luo? Luo Ningsang?"

Yuan Qingshan spoke almost from the back of his throat. "Mm-hmm."

Shen Yu: *...*

Oh, it was a debt Luo Ningsang owed, and he'd come for revenge.