Hearing Lu Jiaoyue's name from Ji Yunhuai genuinely surprised Lu Xiaoxiao.
The vague sense of foreboding that had lingered since she ran into him had now come true.
Lu Xiaoxiao really couldn't understand why this man caught her every time she tried to do something bad.
It had happened today, and it had happened last time when she tried to cut the power. What kind of cursed connection was this?
As for Ji Yunhuai's question... was she afraid Lu Jiaoyue would get thrown out?
What a joke. Any other woman might well have been, but who was Lu Jiaoyue? She was the heroine of the Original Novel, Gu Sipei's favorite, his exception, the love of his life!
She would count herself lucky if sparks didn't fly the moment those two met. How could Gu Sipei possibly throw Lu Jiaoyue out?
But she obviously couldn't explain any of that to Ji Yunhuai. She couldn't exactly tell him this world was a novel, and Gu Sipei and Lu Jiaoyue were its male and female leads, could she?
He would probably drag her off to a psychiatric hospital before she finished half a sentence.
So Lu Xiaoxiao continued playing dumb, putting on a surprised expression.
"What? That was actually Gu Sipei's private lounge? I had no idea."
Ji Yunhuai gave her a cool look. He casually picked up a bottle of medicine and toyed with it between his fingers, the amusement in his eyes taking on a dangerous edge.
"Did you know I own this club?"
"Didn't you specifically ask a staff member for directions? Do I have to put the security footage in front of you before you'll admit it?"
Lu Xiaoxiao's scalp prickled at those words.
What? Ji Yunhuai owned Phantom?
Why hadn't the system told her something this important beforehand?!
Hearing her inward complaints, the system replied plaintively, "You never asked..."
Lu Xiaoxiao couldn't be bothered to berate it. Her thoughts were a tangled mess.
In that case, hadn't her little performance as an employee been embarrassingly unconvincing?
More importantly, now that Ji Yunhuai had found a chance to get her alone and suddenly laid his cards on the table, was he planning to settle the score over last time too?
But that was fine. Even if he knew she was pretending, he might not know who she really was.
Lu Xiaoxiao reassured herself with that thought and regained her composure.
Taking her silence as an admission, Ji Yunhuai continued, "Last time, you said you cleaned toilets at a restaurant. Today, you said you worked part-time at Phantom. What, are you that short on money?"
"Uh..."
Looking uneasy, Lu Xiaoxiao thought of the unlimited black card Lu Yuan had given her, then nodded against her conscience.
"Don't be nervous." Ji Yunhuai bent down, hooked a strand of hair beside her ear, and tucked it behind her ear. "We're just chatting. Why have you gone so pale?"
After a pause, he asked softly, "But as far as I know, you shouldn't be short on money. That young lady from the Lu Family is actually your younger sister, isn't she?"
"You're a daughter of the Lu Family, right?" Ji Yunhuai straightened up again. Although it was a question, his tone made it a statement. "Or rather... you're their adopted daughter, Lu Xiaoxiao. Am I right?"
Lu Xiaoxiao didn't answer immediately, but her expression darkened.
She really shouldn't have counted on getting lucky.
Ji Yunhuai really did know who she was. Not only did he know she was a daughter of the Lu Family, he even knew she was adopted.
The Lu Family had never revealed the truth about Lu Xiaoxiao's identity to outsiders. This man had definitely investigated her in private.
Although she had known from her very first lie that she would eventually be exposed, Lu Xiaoxiao had never expected to run into Ji Yunhuai again so soon, much less have her cover blown this quickly.
But things had already come to this. There was no point saying anything more.
Lu Xiaoxiao simply stopped applying the medicine, leaned back against the sofa, and closed her eyes as though bravely awaiting her execution.
"All right. I admit I'm Lu Xiaoxiao, the Lu Family's adopted daughter."
"Since you've found me out, kill me, carve me up-do whatever you want."
From Ji Yunhuai's perspective, the girl's long eyelashes kept trembling, her rosy lips pressed lightly together. Her upturned neck was pale and slender, with faint blue-green veins visible beneath the skin.
That neck looked extremely fragile, as though he could snap it with a casual reach of his hand. Her features were gentle and delicate, yet she insisted on wearing such a stubborn expression, creating a striking contrast.
The girl seemed unaware of how easily her current appearance could stir wicked thoughts in others. Nor did she realize that the more stubborn and unyielding she appeared, the more it made someone want to conquer her, to see her look startled... or utterly panicked.
For a moment, Ji Yunhuai almost wanted to lay his hand over her neck and give her a scare, but he quickly restrained the impulse.
He pressed his tongue against the roof of his mouth, a darker, more inscrutable look entering his eyes.
Prey frightened out of its wits too early wouldn't be any fun.
Ji Yunhuai disliked rushing for immediate gains more than anything. When it came to interesting people and things, he usually had plenty of patience.
Although Lu Xiaoxiao was currently putting on an air of surrendering to his whims, she hadn't truly conceded in her heart.
She had already decided that if Ji Yunhuai actually laid hands on her, she would bite him when his guard was down, no matter what.
Yet even after she waited for ages, Ji Yunhuai didn't so much as touch her.
Lu Xiaoxiao sneakily cracked her right eye open and saw Ji Yunhuai watching her with an amused expression.
The tense, confrontational atmosphere in the room had quietly dissipated at some point.
"All right, open your eyes. Apply the medicine first." As he spoke, Ji Yunhuai sat down on the sofa opposite Lu Xiaoxiao. "Nobody wants to kill you or carve you up. I never said I was your enemy."
"I'll keep what you did a secret, and you don't need to tell me why you did any of it."
"But in exchange, whenever I need your help, you have to come when I call."
Glancing at Lu Xiaoxiao's surprised expression, Ji Yunhuai cheerfully added, "With pay."
At the mention of payment, Lu Xiaoxiao remembered the coin he had just given her, and the corner of her mouth twitched uncontrollably.
If that was what he meant by payment... he really needn't bother.
Men were all like this, always making empty promises.
She couldn't help reminding him, "You just said yourself that you know I'm a daughter of the Lu Family. I shouldn't be short on money."
"So what? I'm not negotiating with you." Ji Yunhuai yawned, his right hand absently turning the plain silver band on his left index finger. "You can refuse, of course, but then I can't guarantee the Lu Family won't find out about everything you've done."
A threat! A blatant threat!
Lu Xiaoxiao glared at him indignantly for a long moment before asking through gritted teeth, "What do you need my help with?"
"Well... maybe coming out with me for some fun now and then? Or being my date when I attend some event? I can't say exactly. We'll see when the time comes."
Not one of his examples involved anything serious. Lu Xiaoxiao was so speechless she wanted to roll her eyes.
"You shouldn't be short on women, Young Master Ji. One wave of your hand, and a whole crowd would come running. Why insist on having me help?"
"Because I happen to enjoy being entertained, of course." Ji Yunhuai lifted his eyelids to look at her, his tone utterly matter-of-fact. "And you happen to be particularly entertaining."
Lu Xiaoxiao: "..."
Entertaining, my ass! To hell with you and your whole damn family!
For all her careful calculations, she had never accounted for this: being too funny was what had landed her in trouble.
This world was far too hostile to girls with an absurd sense of humor.
Before you continue