“Can’t you drop this habit of talking in riddles?” Lu Mingfei was annoyed by his mysterious tone.
“You were happy just now; I could feel it,” Lu Mingze said.
“Alright, you’re the worm in my gut, I won’t argue. Next time, I’ll try to pull you out with full force…” Lu Mingfei said fiercely.
“You were happy because you used to look up to Chen Wenwen. When you were on duty with her and she smiled at you, that felt like a precious memory. But now it’s different. Now you’re sitting at the main seat of Aspasia, drinking eight-thousand-per-bottle wine, eating dishes that the head chef prepared all afternoon just for you. There’s a luxury car outside waiting to take you to the airport, and a waiter in the corner waiting for your command—like a snap of your fingers!” Lu Mingze snapped his fingers crisply. “I’ll have a hot Earl Grey tea.”
The waiter walked to the table silently, pouring amber tea into a glass as if unaware that the guest had changed.
Lu Mingze didn’t even look at him, dismissively waving his hand. The waiter bowed and vanished into the shadows.
“This is power—albeit a small kind of power—but still intoxicating nonetheless.” Lu Mingze sniffed his fingers, glancing at Lu Mingfei. “You’ve smelled it already, haven’t you? Right now, Chen Wenwen is like prey at your fingertips. You have the power; no longer do you need to look up to her. In fact, you even compare her to Nono—she’s no match for Nono. She’s just an ordinary girl. But Nono is out of reach, unattainable. The power you hold now isn’t enough to reach Nono; you still need to look up to her. But Chen Wenwen? You could even bow down…” Lu Mingze paused. A piece of tissue on the table floated into the air and landed gently on the floor.
Lu Mingze bent down slowly, picked up the tissue, and placed it in front of Lu Mingfei. “Pick her up and forgive her for everything she did to you.”
Lu Mingfei’s eyes landed on the tissue, and his heart tightened. The tissue was stained with dripping red blood—a vivid heart shape, so red it seemed about to spill onto the table.
“Do you… still want it?” Lu Mingze asked softly.
“Get that creepy thing out of here!” Lu Mingfei shouted in anger.
“It’s ketchup… I spilled it accidentally earlier.” Lu Mingze shrugged. “A joke… just a joke.”
“Damn it!” Lu Mingfei clutched his chest, breathing heavily.
“Without power, anyone will feel inferior, like a stag without antlers, having no place in the herd.” Lu Mingze played with the silver knife, watching the light reflect on its blade. “Conversely, with power, that once unattainable girl becomes nothing more than a clay doll in the dust; your once high and mighty enemies kneel and beg before you. That’s power and authority. You may call it demonic, but everyone rejoices when they gain it. Once someone gets a taste, they fall in love with it, wanting to hold more and more of it. Have you ever thought that one day, just like now with Chen Wenwen, you’ll consider whether to bend down to pick up Nono, because to you then, she will also just be a clay doll in the dust? She won’t be able to toy with you anymore, never again wear that proud expression. Even if she cried and begged, you wouldn’t be moved. That kind of power and authority… it’s within your grasp, if only you want it.”
Lu Mingfei shivered uncontrollably, like a cold snake had slithered over his chest. Though Lu Mingze often played pranks, most of the time, Lu Mingfei still considered him to be on his side. Even regarding that life-and-death contract, he was half-believing and half-doubting. But when Lu Mingze spoke these words, there was an eerie golden light flickering in his deep eyes—a faint sneer hidden in his gentle voice.
Mockery—of the entire world, of all humanity.
Could there really be such a day? Even if Nono cried and begged, would he really not be moved? Impossible, right? Given her stubborn nature, if Nono ever cried, it would be like the sun rising in the west, like the Happy Prince shedding tears, like a monk abandoning his vows. And he could keep a steady heart without wavering? Ridiculous. Even if he practiced some ultimate, heartless martial art, could he be that cool? No, impossible. Absolutely impossible!
“Bah, bah!” Lu Mingfei spat twice into his hand, then stretched it towards Lu Mingze. “Alright! I’ve spat, bring me power and authority.”
Lu Mingze was taken aback, then smiled. “Sure, if you beg me.”
“Please, little brother, give me power and authority. I really want to see what Nono looks like when she begs me,” Lu Mingfei said with a shameless grin.
Lu Mingze finally gave up, shaking his head with a bitter smile. “Brother, you’re not sincere.”
“Talk big when you can’t back it up—acting all high and mighty. You enjoy pretending to be an adult, huh?” Lu Mingfei instantly regained his composure. “Tsk!”
He didn’t want to take Lu Mingze seriously, but as he thought more about what Lu Mingze had said, he felt increasingly uneasy. The only way to feel better was to treat Lu Mingze like a child and ignore him.
“But one day, you will sincerely beg me, and then I will give you everything I promised… I’ll take my leave for now. Brother, you’re nineteen now, do patronize my business as much as you can. It’s a pleasure doing business with you.” Lu Mingze hopped off the chair. He was only the height of an eight or nine-year-old, his feet not even touching the ground while seated.
“Hey, let me ask you something. Who do you think is better—Chen Wenwen or Nono?” Lu Mingfei pulled him back.
“Nono.” Lu Mingze answered without hesitation.
“Why?”
“I prefer good figures over the literary type.” Lu Mingze said, deadpan.
Lu Mingfei felt darkness overtaking his vision.
“Damn!” A chill ran through Lu Mingfei’s heart.
In the moment his vision went dark, the person across from him had turned back into Chen Wenwen. And there he was, mouth wide open, in a pose like he was about to lean in for a deep French kiss. Chen Wenwen didn’t seem to be avoiding it; she was looking seriously into his eyes.
Damn it, what kind of ability did that little devil Lu Mingze use? Was it Jotaro Kujo’s time-stopping “Star Platinum”? Each time he paused, it was at such a tricky moment.
This time, time resumed just after Lu Mingfei had said, “Actually, I like…”
The next words were stuck in Lu Mingfei’s throat, unable to come out. Lu Mingze’s words echoed in his mind, buzzing endlessly. All his muscles tensed, and his face went stiff, as if he was about to launch a missile but found it aimed at the wrong target, desperately trying to swallow it back down. But it was too late—“Actually, I like” had already been said, and Chen Wenwen had heard it. There was already a damn blush spreading across her face!
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