Luo Xiaoran’s pale little face was now like an eggplant struck by autumn frost, wilted and dispirited, completely devoid of the arrogance and “grievance” she had shown just moments before.
She trembled, her eyes darting away, not daring to meet Lu Xuan’s gaze, which seemed to penetrate everything.
“Lu… Lu Xuan, I… I was wrong, I really was wrong. Look, the misunderstanding has been cleared up, and Guo Meimei has left. How about… I just go back now?”
Her voice was as thin as a mosquito’s hum, thick with a nasal tone, and her feet were already taking tiny steps backward, looking ready to bolt at any moment.
“Go back?” Lu Xuan’s lips curved into a half-smile, a smile that, in Luo Xiaoran’s eyes, was three times more terrifying than a devil’s sneer.
“Luo Da Xi Hua, your speed at turning hostile and disowning people is truly faster than flipping a book. Where’s that zeal you had just now about sending me to the police station and ruining my reputation?”
He unhurriedly took a step forward, and Luo Xiaoran flinched back like a startled rabbit.
“You… what do you want to do?”
Luo Xiaoran’s voice was tearful, and tears began to well up in her eyes again. “I… I’m warning you, don’t mess around! My… my father is Luo Zhenxiong!”
“Oh? Luo Zhenxiong?”
Lu Xuan raised an eyebrow, a hint of playfulness in his tone. “Deputy Provincial Governor and Director of the Public Security Department, quite the official authority.”
“You say, if Deputy Provincial Governor Luo knew that his precious daughter, at Yanjing University, is not only a habitual scammer but also a ‘business genius’ who could write a book about her ‘wool-gathering’ exploits, what kind of expression would he have?”
“No! Don’t!” Luo Xiaoran shrieked, clamping her hands over her ears as if that could stop Lu Xuan from saying those terrifying words.
She trembled all over, her face ashen. “Please, Lu Xuan, I’m begging you! Don’t tell anyone, please don’t tell anyone! I’ll do anything you want, as long as you don’t… don’t expose those things!”
“Do anything?” Lu Xuan’s smile deepened, but there was no warmth in his eyes; instead, it held a chilling coldness that made one’s heart shiver.
He glanced around. It was lunchtime, and this tree-lined path was already secluded. After the crowd of onlookers dispersed, it became even more empty and quiet.
“This place is quite peaceful.”
Lu Xuan chuckled softly, approaching step by step, while Luo Xiaoran retreated step by step until her back hit the thick trunk of a sycamore tree, with nowhere left to go.
“Lu Xuan… what… what exactly do you want?”
Luo Xiaoran’s voice was already laced with a desperate tremor. She could clearly feel the undeniable pressure emanating from Lu Xuan, the gaze of a hunter fixed on his prey, which made her tremble from the bottom of her heart.
“What do I want?” Lu Xuan reached out and gently lifted Luo Xiaoran’s chin, forcing her to meet his gaze. His deep eyes now gleamed with a cold light.
“Student Luo, weren’t you acting very invested just now? Crying, tearing your clothes, shouting about being molested.”
“You say, if I really did something to you now, and then posted these ‘criminal evidences’ online, along with the video of your ‘brilliant performance’ just now, who would people believe?”
Luo Xiaoran’s pupils suddenly constricted, and fear engulfed her like a tide.
She wanted to scream, to call for help, but her throat felt as if an invisible hand was firmly gripping it, preventing any sound from escaping.
She had no doubt that if she really cried out, Lu Xuan would absolutely follow through!
By then, not only would her reputation be ruined, but her family, her parents, would all be dragged into this abyss of eternal damnation!
“No… don’t… I was wrong… I really know I was wrong…”
Tears rolled down her face like broken pearls. She pleaded incoherently, “Lu Xuan, no, Brother Xuan! I beg you, please let me go this one time! I’ll never dare again! I’ll do anything for you, even if it means being your servant!”
“Oh? Be my servant?” Lu Xuan snorted softly, his finger gently stroking her smooth chin. The cold touch made Luo Xiaoran’s body tremble even more. “With your delicate skin and tender flesh, what kind of servant can you be?”
He paused, his gaze suddenly turning sharp: “Luo Xiaoran, don’t you like acting? Don’t you like taking advantage of others? Don’t you think faking accidents is fun?”
With each sentence he spoke, Luo Xiaoran’s heart sank further.
“Now, I’ll let you have your fill of fun!” Lu Xuan’s tone was icy cold.
He grabbed Luo Xiaoran’s arm, ignoring her tear-streaked face and her stumbling, and pulled her directly deeper into the woods.
...
About half an hour later, sparse pedestrians gradually began to walk along the forest path again.
In his mind, the system’s prompt sounded at the opportune moment.
“Ding! Detected that the target’s psychological defense has completely collapsed, and her self-esteem has been utterly shattered. Control value has significantly increased.”
“Current Control Value: 80/100.”
“Reward: Black Material APP Upgrade Fragment × 1.”
“Random Drop: One miniature nano high-tech drone, with built-in 4K quality camera, featuring intercom, video recording, and photo functions.”
Lu Xuan’s heart stirred. He opened his palm, and an exquisite small box appeared out of thin air in his hand.
Opening the box, a pair of glasses lay quietly inside, appearing no different from ordinary black-rimmed glasses.
He put on the glasses, and a light blue operating interface immediately appeared in his field of vision. At the same time, an inconspicuous corner marked a red box, showing the drone’s location—it was in the interlayer of the glasses case.
Following the system’s prompts, Lu Xuan simply operated it with his mind, and a prompt for the drone to connect to a mobile APP appeared on the glasses’ lenses.
He took out his phone and indeed found a new, unfamiliar APP icon.
With the professional-level drone piloting skills he had previously acquired, controlling this small device was effortless, like moving an extension of his own arm.
This miniature drone was only as large as a grain of rice and flew silently. If not observed carefully, it was extremely difficult to detect.
The 4K quality camera was incredibly clear, and the intercom function was also very practical. Lu Xuan tested each function one by one, nodding in satisfaction, and then carefully placed the drone back into the interlayer of the glasses case.
“Good stuff…” Lu Xuan’s lips curved into a smile. This thing would be very useful in the future.
He turned around and looked at Luo Xiaoran, who was leaning against a tree trunk not far away, her eyes swollen and her expression blank.
At this moment, she had lost all her charm as a campus beauty. Her hair was disheveled, her clothes wrinkled, and there were still un-dried tear stains on her face.
Hearing Lu Xuan’s footsteps, Luo Xiaoran’s body trembled violently. She looked up like a startled deer, her eyes filled with fear…
She frantically wiped the tears from her face, her voice hoarse and thick with a nasal tone, but now with a few more hints of cautious obedience than before: “Lu… Brother Xuan, if there’s nothing else… I’ll go back first. I have… I have a specialized class this afternoon.”
Lu Xuan looked at her in this state, and the irritation he felt from being schemed against dissipated considerably, replaced by a sense of satisfaction from having everything under control. He smiled faintly, his tone, however, brooking no argument: “Alright, from now on, being as obedient and sensible as you are now is what a good Student should be like.”
He changed the subject, his gaze sharpening: “There’s one more thing for you to do. After you go back, find a way to lure out the mastermind who made you act out this scene. Just tell him that the video has been shot, and ask him when he wants to make the exchange. You set the location.”
Upon hearing this, Luo Xiaoran’s body stiffened again, but this time, she didn’t hesitate at all. She just nodded vigorously, her voice carrying a subtle tremor: “I… I understand, Brother Xuan. I will… I will handle it properly.”
Watching her meek and submissive demeanor, Lu Xuan hummed in satisfaction.
He wanted to see who this rat hiding in the shadows truly was!