Volume One, Chapter 30: I’ll Even Call You Dad

"Beautiful, yes, that pose, perfect! Don't move, hold it—one more."

"Miss, lean in closer. Yes, that's it, even closer! Wonderful!"

Inside the bedroom, Assistant Li moved with his phone, crouching and sprawling as he tirelessly sought the best angles to photograph Chen Fan and Shen Ruyi.

Yes, it was just a simple photo shoot.

Chen Fan felt like he was falling apart inside, but he had to maintain a smile and cooperate. As a grown man, he was actually wearing a pink cartoon outfit; if these photos ever leaked, he would be the laughingstock of everyone he knew.

Shen Ruyi was also wearing a matching pink cartoon outfit—they were a couple's set. She held Chen Fan affectionately, her face...

If it hadn't been for the medicine provided by Zhui Feng, Liu Qingfu likely would not have awakened, and even if she had, she wouldn't have had the strength to make it to the gate of this courtyard.

She also felt immense admiration for Cheng Gui’s strategic brilliance. How could someone with such extraordinary talent be buried in this Fourth Realm? Once this matter was settled, he should be brought back to the Nine Realms headquarters to be carefully cultivated.

Having just arrived, she didn't want to stand out too much. If she were to attract the attention of the Heavenly Dao, it would invite unnecessary trouble.

Luo Yuan frowned, but after searching again, he still could not locate the Shadow Valley.

On the bustling street, Bai Xiao led his people in drafting several plans that looked sophisticated but remained incomplete.

Lou Yan tapped his phone screen, wanting to check the call duration. To his surprise, he saw the phone was still on the call page; the line hadn't been disconnected.

Wang Ye turned and walked away in high spirits. As he passed the bonfire, he tossed all the clothes he had changed out of into the flames.

The Xia family could easily wipe out that man named Qin; even here in Mianzhou, the Xia family possessed such power.

***

Over two hundred experts at the Primordial Realm arrived on the scene. With over four hundred eyes darting around, they searched everywhere for their targets.

The brothers had previously managed to maintain a facade of friendly smiles, but ever since Qi Yuzan struck him last time, the pretense had been completely shattered.

To others, the two had simply vanished into a blood-red veil, but Xia Lulu, who was caught within it, saw herself surrounded by an ocean of blood, yet she had no control over it.

No wonder that in his past life, when he was unjustly imprisoned, both Xu Hanshen and Huang Guozheng had been so bold.

No matter how one looked at it, the relationship between them didn't seem that simple... Could it be that she had done something wrong to him in the past and was afraid he would settle the score, so she pretended not to know him after discovering he had lost his memory?

Kawashima Ezaki’s consciousness cleared, his mind filled with the pain in the back of his neck. He furrowed his brows, raised a hand to press against his injury, and his raven-colored lashes trembled.

Kawashima Ezaki refused to admit he had misjudged the situation, but when he received no response for a long time, he couldn't help but feel anxious, carefully observing Gin’s expression.

Ning Ruyan raised a hand to touch her face. "I was just disgusted," she said, actually dry-heaving a couple of times.

The wedding banquets of Li Aiguo’s family and Liu Haizhong’s family had unknowingly entered into a state of competition.

This time, Jiang Bonian had learned to be smart. After getting his hands on fifty taels of silver, he first hired a carriage and bought supplies, then divided the remaining silver into many portions, hiding them in different places with Lian Susu so that even if some were lost, not everything would be gone.

Eunuch Han nodded hurriedly. He usually trembled in the presence of this "Living Yama," and even more so now. Even though she was a person of the Empress, he didn't want to die.

In the parking lot, dozens of meters away, Gin was browsing through photos leaked from the memorial service. He had originally only wanted to see if the reporters had captured the moment of the crime, but not only were there no photos of the crime, an unexpected person had appeared instead.

In fact, the oddity Yu Zhen discovered was quite simple: the dark red liquid was naturally dried blood, but the bright red liquid was paint. If the two were mixed together on a wall, they could easily form a horrifying image under the interference of the lights.

Never having expected this, Nan He was stunned for a moment. She looked at Di He, not knowing what to say. After a long while, once she had recovered, Di He’s voice sounded once more.

As if receiving an order, Luo Jingya leaned against a large tree and began to vomit. He had held it in for too long.

"There is no need to say anything else. You are you, I am I. There is no longer any friendship between us." She Lan Hua didn't even look at Beiming Ye, turning and leaving the villa without looking back. Seeing this, Beiming Ye said nothing, simply sitting on the living room sofa.

***

Perhaps he had offended someone, or perhaps he had failed them. Thinking of this, Lu Yan felt that there might be a way to resolve this matter.

I took it from them quite unceremoniously. It’s hard to imagine that we are now married just like that. Although we have shared an intimate relationship, the distance between our hearts is not yet closed; perhaps it will take some time for us to become truly inseparable.

I turned a deaf ear, and He Fenfang began chatting with Guan Jian about his work. Fenfang worked in foreign trade, and her ability to get acquainted with people was stronger than anyone else's. Li Li and Xiaowen arrived one after another, and what surprised me even more was that Li Yu was also here. When he walked up to me and called my name, I was still somewhat dazed.

She hurriedly raised her hand and rubbed her ears a few times. Once she had recovered, she slowly let go.

Hearing Ye Tianyi say this, Wen Shuang merely frowned but didn't say much, nor did she stop him. She seemed even more curious about who would come up next. After speaking, Ye Tianyi thought of this problem and began to quietly retreat, just in case.

"Did I say something wrong?" Realizing the atmosphere had shifted, Zhuo Yue scratched the back of his head in unease.

The surroundings became perfectly quiet in an instant. Countless pairs of eyes darted back and forth between them, and no one dared to utter a word.

Only Yang Mei, accustomed to being cautious, was somewhat timid. She would retreat whenever a place seemed even slightly dangerous, fearing that if she got hurt, her Brother Mu would blame her.

To put it simply: serving a monarch is like serving a tiger. If you lack the guile for it, you might as well go out and fight; whatever you kill is yours.

If she couldn't act wild, then she couldn't. She used to complain that he was too wild, so now that he couldn't be, she didn't have the heart to complain.

Even if misunderstood, her heart was still incredibly soft. She just thought, "Why is my Brother Xiao so good, comforting me at a time like this?"

She hadn't been in contact with him for a while, so she had only just remembered to check the news, though she hadn't seen anything of value.

Looking at his short hair, his calm expression in the moonlight, and his indifferent eyes, something quite wild began to grow in her mind.