Why Did You Deliberately Send Me That Kind of Photo?

This person actually had such an intimate contact name in Xinbao's list, where everyone else was listed under their real names—and he was even fucking pinned to the top!

Fuck, fuck, fuck! Who the hell was this?!

Wu Xi felt that his position was facing its greatest challenge yet.

After all, Chi Ming could hardly be called his rival right now. They were on equal footing.

"Xinbao..."

Xin Lan still ignored him, as if she hadn't heard him at all. Instead, she deliberately waited a little longer, then got up and went straight back to her bedroom after receiving Xuan Jia's video call request.

What? She was even going to talk to Xuan Jia in private!

Could it be that she had changed her mind and suddenly wanted to leave K9 District for District K1 again?

Wu Xi was startled by his own suspicion, but before he could follow her and ask a few questions, Cang Leng and Chi Ming blocked his path together.

"What are you doing? This is serious! Stop blocking me. I need to ask Xinbao something."

He was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, but the two men were unmoved.

Cang Leng even looked at him with an expression of profound disappointment, as if saying, You actually betrayed your brother.

"Wu Xi, what could be more important right now than you secretly making your move and even calling Miss Guide Xinbao? My whole world has collapsed, you know that? We agreed to fight Chi Ming together, so how could you sneak into Miss Guide's bed while I was away?"

Wu Xi was utterly baffled. "When did I ever say I'd fight Chi Ming with you? Wait, no, that's not the point right now. Let me through first."

He shoved them, only for the two of them to push him back together.

Chi Ming looked at him coldly. "Since Lanlan went back to her room alone, that means she doesn't want us to know what she's doing. You've already shared a bed with her, and you still don't know what she hates most?"

Xin Lan liked people who were obedient and considerate, so naturally she hated those who were disobedient and didn't know their boundaries.

Even after Chi Ming's reminder, Wu Xi was still too restless to sit still.

"Then what do we do? I just saw Xuan Jia video-calling her with my own eyes, and there's someone called Baby Yilai on her contact list. She even pinned him to the top!"

Chi Ming's expression froze, and a cold glint flashed in his eyes.

"Baby Yilai? Who's that?"

"I don't know. Wasn't I just about to go ask? You're the ones who stopped me."

Wu Xi spread his hands helplessly.

Cang Leng immediately stepped aside and gestured for him to go. "Please, go ahead."

Chi Ming thought for a moment, then shook his head. "No, we can't ask. If she doesn't bring something like this up herself, we absolutely can't ask. Otherwise, if she has to choose between the two sides, she'll definitely choose the one she likes more."

Everyone on one side was listed under their real names, while the other was pinned to the top and had a special contact name.

It was obvious at a glance which mattered more.

Wu Xi's face fell, and he felt as though his world had collapsed.

"If we can't ask about that, what about Xuan Jia? She must be on a video call with him right now. They might be discussing when she'll go to District K1."

"We can't ask about that either. In any case, I won't."

Chi Ming had already decided what path he would take.

He would always respect her choices and be considerate, never asking about things he shouldn't.

As for whether Wu Xi chose to court death, or what would happen if he did, Chi Ming didn't want to interfere.

"Then how about we ask the administrator?"

Cang Leng ventured timidly.

Although he hadn't managed to get Miss Guide to take him to bed, the administrator should know whether she was going to District K1.

The men exchanged a glance, then immediately found Mo Xiao and explained the situation.

But after hearing them out, Mo Xiao said he didn't know either.

He was calmer about it, though.

"Actually, you don't need to worry about that. If she wanted to leave, she would say so openly. She wouldn't deliberately hide it. Since she hasn't said anything, that means she doesn't plan to leave for now."

Xin Lan seemed like someone who didn't care about anything, but Mo Xiao felt there was more to her than that.

He thought she probably had goals and plans of her own, and had already begun acting on them.

He just didn't know whether he could become part of her goals or plans as well.

In the room.

Xin Lan and Xuan Jia were having a pleasant conversation.

They hadn't actually discussed anything particularly special. Xuan Jia had sent her a message asking how she had been lately, and the two had simply started chatting.

Later, Xuan Jia mentioned that another guide had gone missing in District K1, and the two decided to talk about it in detail over a video call.

"So, are you still going to take part in the Joint Combat Exercise this time?"

On the light screen floating in midair, Xuan Jia's face was full of concern.

"I'm not doubting the abilities of your sentinel guards, but the way these people operate is far too underhanded. When the guides gather together, they'll definitely seize the chance to strike."

"Every guide currently has their own exclusive sentinels. Even the one with the fewest has bonded with six or seven. You're the only one who doesn't have any, and you're a new face with no backing. They'll definitely target you first."

Xin Lan nodded. "Isn't that perfect, then? I can take this opportunity to find out who they really are."

"Who else could they be? It must be the Free Alliance. Not long ago, they captured an S-rank guide and tried to take the guide back for experiments. This time must be no different."

Xin Lan: ...

Wait, how was he so sure?

She was the Free Alliance's actual leader, and even she hadn't said anything about capturing more guides. She had already stopped the experiment targeting guides, so why would they capture any more? To bring them back and treat them like honored guests?

"I don't think it's necessarily the Free Alliance," she commented.

"Then they can only be spies sent by other planets."

With that thought, Xuan Jia was even more opposed to her participation.

Spies from other planets could only have two purposes: either capture guides and take them back to their own planets, or give up on restraint and kill the guides, weakening Planet M19 and strengthening their own planets.

Either way, it would be a devastating disaster for her.

But Xin Lan couldn't be bothered to listen to his talk about the risks anymore.

She dug in her ear and flopped back on the sofa, asking outright, "Cut the crap. Forget whether I'm entering the competition or not. Just tell me whether you want to be my exclusive sentinel. Give me an answer."

Xuan Jia clearly hadn't expected her to change the subject so quickly.

His body went rigid, and a vivid pink blush quickly spread to the corners of his alluring peach-blossom eyes.

After a long silence, he blinked his long, pale-gold lashes and answered earnestly, his face red.

"Yes."

Xin Lan stared at his face and said nothing more.

Actually, Xuan Jia had been the one to bring up this subject.

Although she didn't know his real purpose, she thought this was a good opportunity to get inside the Federation.

Mo Xiao was an administrator too, but he was too hostile toward the Federation and put on too much of an act.

Never mind getting any useful information out of him—he wasn't even willing to go to District K1 at all.

She wouldn't stay in K9 District for long. Since she would have to go to District K1 sooner or later, she naturally had to make use of the most valuable person.

Xuan Jia was the administrator of District K1, which made him a very good choice.

She liked him, too.

"So do you know what you'll have to give up to become my exclusive sentinel?"

Xin Lan looked at the man on the other side of the light screen with leisurely composure.

His pale-gold hair was so beautiful. Even his irises and eyelashes were pale gold, and his lips were red and his teeth white. The more she looked at him, the more he resembled Cupid, the god of beauty.

He must look good shooting a bow, too.

"I... don't know yet."

Xuan Jia was clearly stumped by the question. He looked a little lost, his full, pale-peach lips slightly parted like peach blossom petals in full bloom.

"I'm sorry, Xin Lan. I don't know you very well yet. Perhaps you could give me a little more time?"

Xin Lan stared at his lips for two seconds and scoffed.

"If you don't know me, why do you want to be my exclusive sentinel so badly? And why did you deliberately send me that kind of photo?"