Chapter 43: Choice (7)

Lu Yuan’s cheeks twitched slightly, her eyes shimmering with complex emotions under the bar’s ambient lights. Her fingertips, tapping nervously on the smooth rim of her glass, curled tensely. She said, “Cousin, I’ll take your words at face value. But if Sister Xirou said she likes you, would you try being with her?”

She turned her head to stare directly at Lu Zhiyu’s profile, enunciating each word: “Do you really have no feelings for Sister Xirou at all?”

Some shocking images flashed through her mind, and the accelerated heartbeat seemed to linger palpitating in her chest.

Lu Zhiyu’s pupils contracted slightly. Her soft lashes trembled as her eyelids drooped, and she turned her face away. She picked up her glass and took a sip of the choking fruit wine, her tone instantly turning cold. “I would reject her because I feel nothing. We’re just friends who appreciate each other. I don’t know how you jizai see the boundary between love and friendship—maybe I’m too straightforward, and some normal behavior between friends gets misinterpreted by you.”

The guitarist on stage was strumming and singing an English love song.

She hummed it in her heart, but her tongue felt sour instead of refreshed by the sweet wine. The alcohol hit her brain like a wake-up call.

After being here so long, she’d almost been assimilated into forgetting—this was a game world, and the people around her were all illusions, mirages.

Completing the mission and returning to reality was what mattered most. She shouldn’t invest too many emotions, or else if a task involved entanglement with the target character’s fate, her feminine sentimentality and so-called friendship would make her hesitate, unable to act decisively.

As Lu Zhiyu thought this, the wine glass suddenly slipped from her soft, limp hand, shattering on the floor. A heavy blow-like sensation severed nerves at the back of her head, blurring her vision instantly.

The burning in her throat felt like thousands of ants gnawing and crawling, a numb, painful, itchy sensation. She reached to clutch her neck with one hand, but her legs buckled, and she collapsed into the arms of the person behind her.

In her wavering vision—now clear, now blurry—Lu Yuan steadied her from behind, facing her directly. She slapped Lu Zhiyu’s face hard, forcing her head to the side, her eyes watering slightly.

Tears streamed from Lu Yuan’s hate-filled eyes, dripping onto Lu Zhiyu’s flushed, consciousness-fading cheeks like rosy clouds. Her nails dug viciously into Lu Zhiyu’s gasping lips, pressing them together as she stared into her misty eyes, her voice venomous: “Lu Zhiyu, I hate you to death. Why is it so easy for you to win Bai Xirou’s affection? I was the one who entered her world first, the one who poured out my heart for her without reservation—but why do all those efforts end up credited to you?”

Lu Zhiyu’s eyes could barely stay open. She realized Lu Yuan was interrogating her and tried to speak, but her body’s unnatural heat made her nerves jump wildly in her brain. The surging heat in her veins demanded an outlet, and Lu Yuan’s body felt like an ice block—she wanted to wrap her legs around it, hug it, and rub against it for relief.

She bit her tongue to endure, her last shred of reason making her stagger away from Lu Yuan. Her lower back hit the curved table, juice splashing onto her fair, heated long legs. The coolness drew an involuntary moan from her throat.

Lu Zhiyu frowned in disgust, clutching her chest and retching violently, trying to expel the liquid from her stomach. Her blurred vision sought help, but before she could grab her phone, Lu Yuan snatched it.

“Sis, even with such a strong drug, you can still stay somewhat clear-headed. Your self-control is impressive.”

Lu Yuan picked up Lu Zhiyu’s phone and sent a text to Bai Xirou. As if struck by a thought, she released Lu Zhiyu’s lips, staring jealously at her outstanding beauty. Her face darkened with sorrow, tears streaming as she laughed neurotically, saying self-deprecatingly: “My status, my filthy body—if I were with her, I’d only tarnish her. Only you, Cousin, are truly suitable for her. Today is Sister Xirou’s birthday. I don’t want to make her sad, or let her know that the person she likes has always been one-sided wishful thinking on her part.”

“Sister Xirou is my last ray of light. Without her, the Lu Yuan squeezed dry by her original family back then would have lost all hope and died long ago. I’m sorry—let me be selfish just this once. Lu Zhiyu, whether you hate me or fire me when you sober up, I won’t regret this choice.”

“Crazy… Lu Yuan, what the hell are you doing? You like Bai Xirou—go confess to her yourself, damn it?”

Lu Zhiyu struggled to open her eyes wide and look at Lu Yuan, her throat producing only slurred curses.

Her back scraped against the floor. In the few minutes she passed out, Lu Yuan dragged her into a room.

Lu Yuan pinched Lu Zhiyu’s cheeks and poured a cup of white liquid down her throat, making a soft shushing sound. “Cousin, stay quiet and behave for now. Sister Xirou will be here soon. She won’t like such a rowdy gift.”

Her face shook in Lu Zhiyu’s pixelated, blurry vision. Half her face buried in the shadows of the half-open door was utterly unlike her usual cute playfulness—it was eerie and terrifying, like a different person.

Lu Yuan’s emotions were abnormal; she seemed mentally unhinged, her long-suppressed side erupting from stimulation, her twisted, dark inner personality fully activated.

Lu Zhiyu panicked inwardly as she was forced to swallow the colorless, tasteless liquid. She wanted to refuse, but her long hair was yanked hard, compelling her to drink it all.

Lu Yuan patted her cheek, confirming she’d fully ingested the central nervous system paralytic.

She surveyed the room she’d meticulously prepared, kicked the unicorn plush in the corner, and walked out, closing the door.

Sitting on a street in the red-light district, Lu Yuan wore a sailor outfit, her legs sexily crossed under the ultra-short skirt. She held a cigarette in one hand, puffing as her gaze aimlessly scanned the crowd for prey. But the ones hitting on her were either sleazy old men or tacky women she couldn’t stomach.

“You look underage. What are you doing in the red-light district?”

A refined short-haired woman in business attire, carrying a ladies’ shoulder bag, sat on the European-style bench next to Lu Yuan. She held a paper cup of coffee, apparently just off work.

“Who says I’m underage? Mind your own business.”

Lu Yuan rolled her eyes, pinching the cigarette between thumb and forefinger for a drag. She dangled her legs sloppily, flashing her spring light, the picture of a delinquent girl.

The short-haired office lady smiled good-naturedly. “Miss Lu, I mean no harm. I just think at your age, you should focus on studying. It’s a shame.”

Lu Yuan glanced at her—not her type—and hummed disinterestedly, ignoring her.

The short-haired woman glanced into the distance, smiling. “Miss Lu, here’s the thing: my boss is waiting for you in the car. I’m her secretary—she asked me to approach you. She sympathizes with your situation and wants to know if you’d like to be a star, if you have dreams of stardom. She might be able to help.”

“Are you filming an idol drama? Or pulling the domineering CEO trope?”

Lu Yuan thought the woman was scamming her and chuckled. Following her gaze, she saw a luxury stretch limo parked by the road. Through the half-open window, a mixed-race beauty wore earphones while reading a fashion magazine. Her slightly long light blonde hair was tied into a neat ponytail at the back of her head. As she flipped pages, her silver-blue eyes held depth, her angular features exuding aggressively sharp beauty.

It was Gu Yinsu.

The secretary handed Lu Yuan a transparent zip-lock file bag full of photos.

Lu Yuan stubbed out her cigarette on the ground and took the bag, pulling out a photo of Lu Zhiyu’s face—which now annoyed her somewhat. Flipping further, they were all shots of Lu Zhiyu’s daily life and private contacts.

“You’re investigating my cousin?”

Lu Yuan finished looking through the photos. At the sight of Bai Xirou’s, her expression changed. She shoved them back into the secretary’s hands, irritated. “I don’t know what you want from me, but sorry—you’ve got the wrong girl. I’m not doing your bidding.”

The secretary slipped a postcard into Lu Yuan’s hand with a professional smile. “Miss Lu, if you’re ever in trouble or at the end of your rope, contact me. Remember to call.”

Lu Yuan stared at the postcard, about to toss it in the trash, but hesitated at the last second and clutched it in her palm.

Inside the car, Gu Yinsu watched her secretary open the door and sit in the passenger seat. Without looking up from her video, she asked, “How’d it go? What did the girl say?”

The secretary replied respectfully, “President Gu, the girl took the postcard.”

Gu Yinsu closed her magazine. “Good. She didn’t refuse—that means she’ll come around.”

The Bluetooth-connected surveillance video on the rear seat monitor stirred in a private club’s corridor. Bai Xirou, bag in hand, opened a door. As she reached for the light, arms wrapped around her neck, pulling her inside. The figure was slim and slender—female.

Gu Yinsu raised an eyebrow in surprise, a hint of interest flickering on her frosty face, her tone neutral. “Didn’t expect it—Du Yueze’s little lover is fooling around with one of his female artists. She looks so innocent, but turns out she’s quite the vixen in bed. No wonder she has that man wrapped around her finger.”

The secretary turned from the passenger seat. “President Gu, you’re so focused on this artist Lu Zhiyu—why not just take her from President Du directly? Why go to all this trouble investigating those around her?”

Gu Yinsu turned off the monitor, arching a brow displeased. Coldly, she said, “Saizerlyaaa, I’m interested in the value this woman can provide me. Right now, she’s a ticking time bomb to me. Better to plant an eye around her to serve me than try to control her directly.”

The secretary smiled respectfully, adjusting her glasses on her nose bridge, but her eyes dismissively turned to the window.

She’d followed Gu Yinsu from starting their business in Italy to expanding into Country C, weathering countless hardships. She’d seen all sorts of situations, but never Gu Yinsu fixate on anyone—not even rivals her equal. Yet this Lu Zhiyu was indeed an alluring time bomb. At least to Saizerlyaaa, Gu Yinsu’s caution and focus on her exceeded the norm.

The room was festooned with colorful balloons, bouquets spelling out the birthday date. At the center, a custom half-person-tall cake sat on a serving cart, topped with chocolate replicas of her favorite gun models.

Bai Xirou’s gaze swept briefly over the decorations before landing on the woman trapped by the door.

Bai Xirou supported Lu Zhiyu’s hips and waist with one hand, preventing the chain—dangling from a deer-antler ornament high on the door—from tightening around her neck. The beauty in her arms panted weakly, hands clinging tightly to her neck, afraid of suffocating again. Red marks from ropes bit into her wrists maliciously. Her eyes were misty, and her ankles were shackled to the door handle, restricting her range.

Bai Xirou recalled the gift box from Lu Yuan—it contained a key that fit perfectly into Lu Zhiyu’s locks.

Once the metal weight was removed, Lu Zhiyu went limp as boneless in her arms, like a puddle of water awaiting soothing.

Bai Xirou couldn’t figure out the situation, but the lightweight body rubbed against her, legs wrapping around her waist seductively.

Her gaze swept over those rounded hip curves, igniting her inner flames higher.

“Is this a gift too, Lu Zhiyu?”

Tenderness filled Bai Xirou’s face. She kissed those flushed, parted dry lips, stripped away the clothes hiding the exquisite figure, and touched the long-coveted curves. She caressed her waist passionately, everything spiraling into uncontrollable territory.

The two tumbled onto the soft big bed together.

The beauty on the bed had her long hair splayed like seaweed, her bright eyes watery as she shook her head in dazed refusal. Her body instinctively recoiled, but under the other’s fierce assault, a pillow was stuffed under her waist, reopening her body.

Lu Zhiyu gazed hazily at the woman coiled around her body like a snake. She tilted her head, trying to see clearly, but her thoughts came to an abrupt halt amid the stinging pain. “Get out, get out.”

Bai Xirou obsessively rested her chin on Lu Zhiyu’s shoulder, repeatedly pecking at her lips. She gazed at Lu Zhiyu’s tear-filled eyes, pained from the touch, and her inexperienced bodily reactions, staring at her in stunned silence. “Is this your first time? You haven’t done it with Du Yueze?”

“Bai Xirou…”

Lu Zhiyu vaguely made out who the person on top of her was. Unable to hear the other’s words clearly, she instinctively struggled against the danger. But she was pressed down again by the woman above her, her entire body going numb as she was dragged into a scorching sea of fire.