"Haha..." He laughed awkwardly while trying to maintain his composure. "Sister Ling is really beautiful. Were you perhaps some famous celebrity in the secular world?"

"Me?" Ye Chen laughed softly. "Not at all. I was just an ordinary person."

Meanwhile, Zhu Shan stood silently nearby, watching the entire interaction with a strange expression.

Especially Wu Lao’s gaze.

The young lord’s eyes practically never left Ye Ling for more than a few seconds.

That obvious interest did not escape Zhu Shan at all.

’Young Lord... are you serious?’

His expression became increasingly complicated.

Then his gaze slowly shifted toward the still-unconscious Shen Xing resting quietly beside the campfire.

A trace of pity appeared in his eyes.

’Miss Shen...’

Zhu Shan sighed inwardly.

’If you don’t wake up soon... it might be too late.’

***

Back in Jiangnan City.

After returning to the villa the previous night, Su Mo had gone straight to his room to rest. The sudden upgrade of Devil’s Eyes had consumed far more mental energy than he expected.

As expected, only direct system ability upgrades came without side effects.

Too bad he did not have more upgrade cards.

Before sleeping, Yang Qingxi had informed him that her system had sent another notification.

Ye Chen had once again lost luck by fifty.

First, she lost the criminals who were supposed to become her capital for influence in Jiangnan city. Then she is also on the verge of losing the King’s Palace organisation. One blow after another had continuously shattered her opportunities.

Now only one hundred and eighty Luck has remained.

Once the King’s Palace matter fully collapsed, Ye Chen’s luck would probably be emptied dry.

Thinking about this, Su Mo slept quite peacefully.

Although...

In the middle of the night, he vaguely heard two voices thanking him.

The voices sounded distant and blurry, almost dreamlike.

He tried to see who they were.

But just as he was about to approach them, his eyes suddenly opened.

Morning had already arrived. Sunlight quietly filtered through the curtains.

"What was that supposed to be...?"

Su Mo rubbed his forehead slightly while sitting on the bed.

After thinking for a moment and finding no answer, he simply gave up.

Dreams were dreams. No need to think so much.

Soon after washing up and changing clothes, he headed downstairs toward the living hall.

The atmosphere inside the villa was calm and warm.

Several maids quietly moved around preparing breakfast while soft morning light illuminated the luxurious hall.

The moment Su Mo entered, he sensed Gao Xufan’s aura leaving the estate.

Meanwhile, Yang Qingxi sat elegantly on the sofa nearby, slowly drinking coffee while reading through several documents.

Her long legs were crossed gracefully, and the calm morning sunlight made her cold beauty appear softer than usual.

Su Mo naturally walked over and sat down beside her as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

Yang Qingxi raised one brow slightly at his shameless familiarity but ultimately said nothing.

"Morning, Miss Yang."

"Mm. Morning."

Her voice remained calm as usual.

Su Mo lazily leaned back against the sofa.

"Where’s Mayor Gao going so early in the morning?"

"...Cemetery."

The atmosphere instantly became slightly awkward.

"..."

Su Mo quietly sighed.

[Goodness. Great. Wonderful topic to start the morning.]

He decisively changed subjects before things became depressing.

While Yang Qingxi wasn’t paying attention, he casually reached over, took her coffee cup from her hand, and drank directly from it.

Yang Qingxi paused slightly.

"...That’s mine."

"Mm, I know."

Su Mo nodded naturally while taking another sip.

[Hmm~ This coffee has Miss Yang’s flavour. Sweet.]

The corner of Yang Qingxi’s lips twitched faintly.

A slight blush quietly appeared on her fair face, though her expression remained composed and indifferent on the surface.

Unfortunately for her, the surrounding maids noticed everything.

Their expressions immediately became strange.

Young Miss... Mr. Su...

Can you two stop showing affection this early in the morning?!

It was sweet, for sure. But also extremely annoying to us single people.

One maid silently looked away while another secretly exchanged gossiping glances with her companion.

Meanwhile, Su Mo comfortably placed the cup back into Yang Qingxi’s hands like nothing had happened. However, she didn’t take it because she was holding the papers.

"What are you reading?"

"Recruitment documents."

Yang Qingxi lightly tapped the papers in her hand.

Su Mo looked puzzled.

"Can’t you just leave that stuff to Secretary Lin?" he shrugged lazily. "Why bother checking it personally?"

He genuinely didn’t understand.

At this point, he had already developed the habit of dumping nearly all company matters onto Leng Shuang.

One had to admit—

That woman was terrifyingly competent.

A complete workaholic.

As for rewards and bonuses? Simple.

Beat her half to death during training every day, then heal her afterwards.

Perfect arrangement.

Have your work done smoothly and get a stronger subordinate. What a win-win situation!

At least for him.

Yang Qingxi calmly glanced at him, seemingly able to guess exactly what kind of nonsense was going through his head.

"Normally, yes," she replied. "But this situation is special."

After saying that, she handed him the document.

Su Mo casually took it while leaning against the sofa.

However, the moment he read the contents—

"Pffft—!"

Coffee sprayed directly out of his mouth.

*Cough! Cough! Cough!*

Su Mo nearly choked to death.

His eyes widened in complete disbelief.

"Lin Fan applied to become Secretary Lin’s assistant?!"

His expression instantly turned absurd.

No. Forget absurd.

This was outright ridiculous.

Yang Qingxi calmly took back her coffee cup before it suffered further innocent casualties.

"I had the same reaction."

Su Mo stared at the application form again as if trying to confirm he wasn’t hallucinating.

Lin Fan. The Ex-Son of Destiny. The arrogant protagonist-type existence.

Applying... to become Secretary Lin’s assistant? 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Su Mo’s expression became increasingly strange.

"...Doesn’t he know what company he is applying to?"

"Maybe he took your advice to heart. To observe his enemies closely and judge them himself."

Yang Qingxi spoke calmly, though the faint amusement in her eyes was impossible to hide.