Jiang Xun walked back to campus in a daze. The cold wind swept over him, chilling his skin, bones, and blood.
[Old Six, what happens if I don't complete the punishment?]
Six-Six-Six: [The punishment will be multiplied tenfold. If you still fail to complete it, the system will enforce it.]
In other words, he would have to spin the wheel ten more times and face ten unknown, morally bankrupt punishments.
Jiang Xun's face went blank. He might as well die.
Zhongyu Group.
It was working hours. In a large conference room, company executives in formal attire filled the seats around a long table. The atmosphere was solemn.
None other than Fu Yanli occupied the seat at its head.
The man sat casually with his long legs crossed, his slender fingers interlaced over his abdomen. He watched the document projected ahead of him, his profile impassive but his gaze attentive.
The conference room was quiet enough to hear a pin drop, save for a subordinate presenting a project proposal.
Then the screen of the personal phone on the table lit up with an incoming WeChat voice call.
Caller: AAA Schemer Wholesale Jiang Bro.
Profile picture: a vacant-looking Patrick Star wildly flapping his tongue.
The secretary standing nearby inadvertently glanced at his boss's phone screen. His eyes instantly filled with shock and horror, his expression turning indescribably strange without a sound.
President Fu actually had someone this outrageous on his WeChat contact list.
Fu Yanli glanced over, picked up his phone, and called a halt to the meeting.
This was a rare occurrence.
Naturally, no one present objected. Their young leader was exceptionally capable and commanded immense respect within the company.
Phone in hand, Fu Yanli left the conference room. He stopped by the window at the end of the corridor before answering.
The young man's clear voice came through the phone, slightly distorted. "Uncle, am I interrupting your work?"
Fu Yanli looked out at the towering buildings. "It's fine."
He said nothing more, waiting for the other person to continue.
His nephew's young fiancé stammered as though he had something difficult to say, but after all that hesitation, he still hadn't managed a complete sentence.
Fu Yanli waited a moment. "If there's nothing else, I'll hang up."
It was impossible to tell whether that flat tone was serious or teasing.
The person on the other end immediately panicked. "Wait!"
Classes were in session, so few students were walking around campus. Jiang Xun crouched in a corner by a wall, curled into a ball and tugging frantically at his hair.
Why did the fourth person on his WeChat contact list have to be Fu Yanli? Even Jiang Huaijin, Jiang Shiyuan, or Jiang Zixing wouldn't have left him this distraught.
The man was married, for crying out loud.
Fuck this sleazy system.
Jiang Xun cursed inwardly, but faltered aloud, "Um... there's a slightly inappropriate question I'd like to ask you."
"Mm." Fu Yanli held his phone to his ear and slipped his free hand into his pocket. Leaning casually against the wall, he watched a plane sweep across the blue sky outside.
"The... the underwear you're wearing today..." Jiang Xun squeezed his eyes shut and steeled himself. "What color is your underwear today?"
The moment the words left his mouth, even the air seemed to freeze. Dead silence descended.
It was so quiet they could hear each other breathing.
The plane had flown far away, leaving only a streak cutting through the white clouds.
Fu Yanli withdrew his gaze and fell silent.
That certainly is an inappropriate question.
Jiang Xun's desire to die reached its peak, but he still ventured shakily, "Black?"
After a brief silence, a very soft response came from the other end. "Mm."
That single syllable traveled through the phone into Jiang Xun's right ear. For some reason, his whole body tingled, and his ears burned fiercely.
He spoke in a rapid, incoherent rush. "Oh, okay, got it. I won't interrupt your work anymore, then. I'll hang up now..."
"Nothing else to say?" Fu Yanli asked abruptly.
The man's voice remained level, but there was something inscrutable in it.
Jiang Xun made a startled sound. "I lost a game of truth or dare with my classmates, so I had no choice but to ask you something inappropriate, Uncle." He laughed sheepishly. "Please forgive me."
Fu Yanli repeated his words, his tone unreadable. "Mm... truth or dare."
Jiang Xun's heart trembled. Even over the phone, he felt as though someone had seen straight through him.
He didn't dare say anything more. After a hurried goodbye, he hung up.
Fucking shameless system. Jiang Xun slumped onto the grass.
He had only asked two questions, yet he felt completely drained.
Fu Yanli must think he was a pervert.
Clutching his phone, Jiang Xun huddled in the corner and contemplated his life for a while. Then he braced himself against the wall, shakily got to his feet, and headed toward the classroom building.
His face was ashen, as though all his vitality had been sucked out.
Meanwhile, Fu Yanli looked at the ended voice call, his lowered, thick lashes concealing the emotions stirring in his dark eyes.
A moment later, he tapped the Patrick Star profile picture and opened the contact information page.
Then he tapped the upper-right corner to set a contact name.
Contact name...
The man's slender fingers tapped the screen for a moment.
-Little Coal Ball
He looked at those words. His handsome brows relaxed, and the corners of his lips rose into a barely perceptible curve of pleasure.
It was time to return to the meeting.
That afternoon, the last class ended.
Lin Jian packed up his textbooks and densely filled notes.
Beside him, Jiang Xun lay sprawled over his desk, utterly listless. His open textbook sat in front of him, its pages pristine.
"Jiang Xun, you're going to fail your finals if you keep this up. You don't even take notes."
Jiang Xun half closed his eyes wearily and blew at the book, making its pages rustle. "It's so clean. I can't bear to sully it."
Lin Jian said, "...Are you feeling sick? Does your head still hurt?"
"No." Jiang Xun rolled over like a beached fish and slumped in a different position. "Don't worry about me. Just leave me alone for a bit."
"Oh, and don't take that shortcut anymore. That alley's out of the way. It isn't safe."
"Okay. Are you sure you're all right?"
"I'm sure."
Lin Jian was in a hurry to get to his part-time job. Once he confirmed that Jiang Xun was fine, he hurried off with his books.
The lecture hall was almost empty. Apart from Jiang Xun, there was only a young couple in the farthest corner, cuddling together and chewing on each other's lips as though no one else existed.
Jiang Xun lay on his desk playing dead, watching them out of boredom for ages.
They've been at it for almost half an hour. Don't they get tired?
Jiang Xun curled his lip, thoroughly bored, then grabbed his books and left the classroom.
Like a ghost, he wandered around campus for hours, encountering no fewer than ten couples getting intimate in the greenery by the lake.
By ten that night, he was still on campus.
He couldn't face going back.
Of all times, Fu Yanli called him then. Jiang Xun's hand shook, and he nearly dropped his phone.
"Hello... Uncle?"
"Why aren't you back yet?"
Fu Yanli sounded no different than usual, as though nothing had happened.
Jiang Xun immediately relaxed. Of course. Someone that important had countless things to deal with every day. Why would he have time to dwell on something so trivial? He had probably forgotten it the moment he turned around.
"Something held me up. I'm coming back now!"
"Mm."
After hanging up, Jiang Xun scanned the code on a rental bike. About ten minutes later, he reached the apartment building.
He unlocked the door with his fingerprint and went inside. Chu Xingye was curled up on the living room sofa, gaming on a tablet.
At the sound, he shot Jiang Xun an icy glance and said sarcastically, "Oh, back from fooling around?"
Jiang Xun pressed his lips into a bashful smile and sat beside Chu Xingye, bumping their shoulders together. "Brother Xingye, were you worried about me?"
Chu Xingye's expression immediately soured. He tossed down the tablet and cursed, "Who the fuck was worried about you? Don't flatter yourself."
He sounded angry, but there was also a hint of embarrassment at having his feelings exposed.
After cursing him out, Chu Xingye picked up his tablet again and jabbed at the screen, though his attention wasn't on the game at all.
"Jiang Xun, could you show a little restraint?"
"What decent person acts like you..." He hesitated. "Your eyes are practically glued to me."
Jiang Xun stared at Chu Xingye without blinking, a troubled look on his face. "But I can't help it. You're so good-looking, Brother Xingye."
Chu Xingye thought that made sense. "True..."
Fu Yanli had just emerged from the study when he saw this scene.
His nephew and his young fiancé sat on the sofa with their shoulders almost touching. From behind, they looked exceedingly intimate, whispering to each other.
Fu Yanli paused for an instant, then walked toward them.
Like a child caught dating by a parent, Chu Xingye immediately pushed Jiang Xun away at the sight of his uncle and shifted farther to the side.
"Uncle, are you done working?"
"Mm."
Jiang Xun sat primly with his hands on his thighs and, as usual, gave Fu Yanli a sweet, closed-lipped smile.
He was just about to speak when his phone rang. It was Jiang Huaijin.
"I'll take this call first."
Fu Yanli nodded.
Jiang Xun moved aside to answer.
Fu Yanli leaned against the sofa and took a magazine from the nearby shelf to browse.
His gaze happened to brush over the slender figure standing before the floor-to-ceiling window. Whatever the person on the other end had said, the young man's expression looked unpleasant.
"Jiang Xun, that puppy you brought back somehow got out of the room and ran over to Zixing."
"You know Zixing is allergic to animal fur. Liu Ma panicked and kicked the puppy... and accidentally killed it."