Cao Cheng stared at the surveillance screen, completely dumbfounded…
He was utterly stunned.
He could hardly believe his eyes.
Was this really Xu Qingrou?
…
Cao Cheng looked at Xu Qingrou, who had already closed her eyes.
He smacked his lips softly…
In an instant, countless ideas on how to deal with Xu Qingrou surfaced in his mind.
After organizing those thoughts, he withdrew his gaze and began seriously reading the full plotline of “The Mercenary King Who Returned from Overseas.”
Half an hour later, after finishing the entire story, Cao Cheng let out a breath of relief.
Because this novel wasn’t about cultivation. It was merely a modern urban martial arts wish-fulfillment story. It told the tale of the protagonist, Ye Tian, who had gone missing for ten years. After returning from overseas, he had already become a legendary Grandmaster, equivalent to the peak of the Foundation Establishment Realm.
However…
After becoming a Grandmaster, Ye Tian discovered that his wife, Liu Ruyan, was critically ill and couldn’t afford treatment, lying on her hospital bed on the verge of death. Meanwhile, his two daughters were being bullied in all sorts of ways.
Enraged, he summoned 3,000 elite subordinates…
And Ye Yao, whom Cao Cheng had met at Honglangman, was his eldest daughter!
As for Ye Xin, a third-grade elementary school girl, she had been bullied terribly by her classmates…
However, both sisters appeared strong on the outside. No matter what difficulties they faced, they never told their mother, Liu Ruyan.
But in truth, their hearts were soft…
Having lacked a father’s love since childhood, deep down, they longed to be protected.
Between the two, although Ye Yao was older and seemed more composed, she was actually far more fragile deep inside than Ye Xin.
Seeing this, Cao Cheng already formed a plan… no, a method to increase her favorability.
Knock knock knock…
“Acheng, I’m ready.”
A knock sounded at the door, accompanied by Su Jinhe’s shy voice.
Cao Cheng snapped out of his thoughts, preparing to face his next “challenge.”
“Come in.”
Creak…
The door opened, and Su Jinhe stood at the entrance, blushing as she walked toward Cao Cheng.
The moment Cao Cheng saw her outfit, his eyes widened.
Her pink shoulder-length hair framed her face, with two small black horns perched on her head. Behind them, twin ponytails peeked out, and her ears had become slightly pointed.
Her arms were covered with black sleeves trimmed with white lace, while a black-and-white short skirt paired with black knee-high boots accentuated her figure.
Her originally black eyes had turned red, but instead of the cold or seductive gaze expected from her vampire cosplay, they were filled only with shy embarrassment.
Under her timid gaze, Cao Cheng reached out and pinched her cheek.
When he noticed the two sharp little fangs, a satisfied smile appeared on his face.
“Not bad. So you’re cosplaying a vampire, but those two teeth are a bit too sharp.”
Su Jinhe blinked in confusion, clearly not understanding what he meant, and simply looked at him with innocent, watery eyes.
“You told me to take it seriously when I dressed up…”
“Go ask the aunt to bring me some red wine.”
“Oh… what do you want to eat? Steak?”
“No need.”
Su Jinhe looked puzzled.
Cao Cheng smiled, “Just stand there and dance for me…” Follow the newest chapters on g.com.
Su Jinhe froze.
Su Jinhe…
…
Time passed quickly, and soon it was the next night.
After spending the entire day looking for a house, Xu Qingrou returned home and turned on the lights.
Looking at the empty house, she couldn’t help but sigh.
Even though she was alone, life had to go on.
She first placed the groceries she bought into the kitchen, then busied herself cooking.
After finishing her meal and cleaning up, she returned to the bedroom to rest. As usual, she planned to scroll through videos for a while before sleeping.
But after only a short time, she came across a missing person notice offering a large reward.
And the person being searched for…
Was her son, Chu Fan!
Because at the very beginning of the video, there was a photo of her son.
Xu Qingrou froze, then hurriedly checked the details.
“Chu Fan, male, 23 years old. Your mother misses you at home… Anyone who can provide information or confirm his whereabouts will be rewarded with 10 million.”
However, she didn’t recognize the contact information listed below.
Looking at the video, which already had over a million likes, Xu Qingrou carefully read through the description. She quickly realized that Cao Cheng was helping her.
But Chu Fan was her son. She didn’t dare take any chances, so she immediately called the number provided.
The line was busy.
Still unwilling to give up, she kept trying. Finally, after half an hour, the call went through.
“Hello, are you calling to provide information about Chu Fan?”
“H-hello, I’m Chu Fan’s mother. I’d like to ask… who is helping me find my son?”
Xu Qingrou’s voice trembled with excitement.
There was a brief silence on the other end.
“Hello, may I ask your name?”
“My name is Xu Qingrou.”
“Understood. It is our Young Master Cao Cheng who is helping you. May I also ask where you saw this information?”
“I saw it on a video app. Has your Young Master posted it elsewhere as well?”
“Yes. Our Young Master didn’t just post it on short video platforms, but also on television and various other channels… Not only that, he has hired hundreds of customer service staff to answer incoming calls. Please rest assured, if there is any news about your son, we will definitely…”
Listening to the explanation, Xu Qingrou felt overwhelming gratitude toward Cao Cheng.
She didn’t even know how she could repay him.
[Ding! Xu Qingrou’s favorability toward the host +20, current favorability: 59 (Close).]
[Ding! Due to important female supporting character Xu Qingrou developing excessive favorability toward the host, it has been detected that the host has influenced the original plotline. Reward: 100 Villain Points, suppress protagonist Chu Fan’s Luck Value by 10. Total suppression: 110.]
Hearing the notification, Cao Cheng paused slightly, then waved at Su Jinhe.
Su Jinhe, who was dancing, looked confused. Before she could react, she saw him gesture for her to leave.
With no choice, she stood up, adjusted her clothes, and walked out shyly.
Once she left, Cao Cheng finally couldn’t hold back his laughter.
All that money had been worth it.
The returns were truly impressive. Xu Qingrou’s favorability was skyrocketing like a rocket.
Without even checking, he knew it was Xu Qingrou.
He had sent Su Jinhe away precisely to answer this call conveniently.
“Cao Cheng?” Xu Qingrou’s cautious voice came through the phone.
Cao Cheng smiled and turned off the audio from the surveillance feed.
“Hello, Miss Xu.”
On the screen, Xu Qingrou, sitting cross-legged on the bed, visibly relaxed upon hearing his voice.
“Did I disturb you so late?”
“Not really. But may I ask what you need at this hour?”
“It’s nothing… I just wanted to thank you.”
“Is it about your son, Chu Fan?”
“Yes, I saw it while scrolling through videos today.”
“There’s no need to thank me, Miss Xu. It’s something I promised you, so I naturally had to do it. However, I should tell you in advance, I can’t guarantee this will definitely find your son.”
Hearing this, Xu Qingrou felt a slight disappointment, but at the same time, she respected Cao Cheng even more.
In her eyes, what he had already done was an enormous help.
Even if they couldn’t find Chu Fan, she would still be grateful to him for the rest of her life.
[Ding! Xu Qingrou’s favorability toward the host +2, current favorability: 61 (Heart Moved).]
“It’s okay, Mr. Cao… I’m already very grateful that you’ve done this.”
Cao Cheng saw the increase in favorability and the “Heart Moved” status, and the corners of his lips lifted slightly.
Grateful?
Heh…
“It’s nothing, Miss Xu. By the way, do you have anything else? If not, I’ll be going to rest.”
Xu Qingrou hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back.
But when she thought about everything Cao Cheng had done for her… she gritted her teeth and said, “Mr. Cao, I would like to treat you to a meal. When would you be available?”
Looking at her nervous expression on the screen, Cao Cheng’s smile deepened.
“How about tomorrow night?”
Hearing this, Xu Qingrou let out a long breath of relief, “Alright, Mr. Cao. See you tomorrow night.”
“See you tomorrow.”
Cao Cheng was about to hang up.
“W-wait, Mr. Cao.”
He paused, “Is there anything else, Miss Xu?”
“N-no… I just wanted to ask about your preferences, so I can arrange the place for tomorrow’s meal.”
“…”
After chatting a bit longer, they finally decided to have the meal at her home.
The night grew deeper.
After ending the call, Xu Qingrou revealed a long-lost relaxed smile.
Because she believed that with Cao Cheng’s help, as long as Chu Fan was still alive, he would definitely see the message…
And come home to reunite with her.
Stretching lazily while sitting on the bed, Xu Qingrou got up, turned off the lights, and lay down to sleep.
But just like the previous night, she tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.
Just as she was about to drift off, a sudden noise from upstairs startled her awake.