Joking aside, Lin Qingmo quickly put away that playful expression.
He stroked his chin, pondering for a mont.
The candlelight flickered in his eyes, reflecting traces of thought.
"Alright, let's talk business."
He spoke, his tone turning serious.
"I can teach you how to beco stronger, but as I said earlier, this isn't a free public lesson. I have conditions, and that will be the price you have to pay."
Zhu Zhuqing imdiately lifted her head. The blush on her face had yet to fully fade, but her gaze had already regained its clarity and focus.
Her body leaned forward slightly, like a cat poised to pounce.
"Please say it."
She said, her voice carrying anticipation, along with a hint of barely noticeable tension.
"As long as it's sothing I can do, I won't refuse."
Lin Qingmo looked at her, the corner of his lips curving into a faint arc.
There wasn't much warmth in that smile. Instead, it carried a sense of control belonging to soone in a superior position.
"The condition is simple."
He said, enunciating each word clearly.
"Join my faction, or in other words, follow my orders from now on. Of course, I won't make you do anything evil."
Zhu Zhuqing's pupils shrank slightly.
Clearly, this answer was beyond her expectations.
She stood there, montarily stunned, as if unable to fully process the aning of those words.
Follow his orders?
Join his faction?
But soon, those questions were overshadowed by sothing more practical.
Lin Qingmo's master was a Titled Douluo, and he himself was a mysterious transmigrator.
Wouldn't that an she was attaching herself to soone powerful who was also willing to give her a chance to grow stronger?
Once that thought erged, it wrapped around her mind like vines.
Compared to becoming a puppet manipulated by others or becoming a piece with choice and power, which was more worthwhile?
The answer was obvious.
She pursed her slightly dry lips, her throat moving.
"Alright."
When she spoke again, her voice had returned to steadiness, even carrying a sense of resolution and decisiveness after everything had settled.
Without any hesitation, she said, "I agree."
Lin Qingmo didn't seem surprised by this answer.
He nodded, his expression unchanged.
He simply raised a hand to rub his brow, looking a bit tired.
Glancing at the thick, inky night outside the window, he waved his hand and said, "Go back and rest first. I'll find another ti to talk about the details with you."
"Rember what you said tonight, and rember my condition. Once you step onto this path, it won't be easy to turn back."
"..."
Zhu Zhuqing looked at him deeply, then glanced at Xiao Wu, who had been quietly listening nearby.
Her gaze lingered on Xiao Wu for a mont, as if sothing extra had appeared within it.
She didn't say anything more, only giving a light nod before turning and walking toward the door.
The door closed, separating the two spaces.
The cold emptiness of the corridor instantly enveloped her.
…
Almost at the sa mont, Zhu Zhuqing left Lin Qingmo's room—
At the corner of the corridor on the other end, the door of the public restroom creaked open.
Ma Hongjun, holding up his loose pants, shuffling in slippers, and rubbing his sleepy eyes, staggered out.
"Drank too much water at night… getting up to pee is such a hassle."
He thought groggily, letting out a huge yawn.
Just as he was about to turn back toward the boys' dormitory—
The corner of his eye caught sight of the door not far away that had just closed, and the slender figure in a dark outfit about to leave.
"?"
Ma Hongjun's yawn froze halfway.
He blinked hard, then rubbed his eyes again. His drowsiness instantly vanished.
"That's… Zhu Zhuqing?!"
He recognized that outfit and that cold temperant.
There was no way he was mistaken!
Then he looked at that door again…
"Hiss… isn't that Lin Qingmo's room?"
"This late at night, why would Zhu Zhuqing co out of there? And her hair looks a bit damp… like she just took a shower?"
In an instant, an extrely explosive and ridiculously dramatic thought slamd into Ma Hongjun's mind.
A lone man! A lone woman! Late at night! Alone in a room! The woman had just bathed!
Th-this… this script was familiar to him. The storytellers in brothels talked about this every day!
"Oh my goodness,"
Ma Hongjun sucked in a cold breath, subconsciously covering his mouth tightly.
His chubby body shrank behind the corner wall with surprising agility, only daring to peek with half an eye.
He watched as Zhu Zhuqing's figure silently disappeared at the other end of the corridor, only then letting out a long breath.
His back was already covered in cold sweat.
"This is bad, this is bad! Sothing big is going to happen!"
"If Boss Dai finds out, he'll explode for sure!"
Dai Mubai's interest in Zhu Zhuqing had always been obvious. Everyone knew it.
His mind was in chaos. Not even bothering to pull up his pants properly, he hurriedly tied his belt and ran toward the dormitory, nearly losing his slippers.
He picked them up but didn't even bother putting them on, running barefoot on one foot like a at cannon toward the boys' dormitory.
Only one thought filled his mind: Hurry and tell Boss Dai, sothing huge has happened!
Panting heavily, Ma Hongjun slamd open the dormitory door.
With the moonlight leaking in from outside the window, he imdiately saw Dai Mubai already asleep.
As for Tang San, he wasn't there, and no one knew where he had gone in the middle of the night.
Ma Hongjun didn't care about any of that and hurriedly shouted, "Da—Boss Dai, sothing's wrong; sothing big has happened!"
Not even catching his breath, he rushed to Dai Mubai's bedside in one stride.
Then he slapped the bedboard, his voice urgent and panicked.
"Wake up, Boss Dai, sothing really big has happened!"
Dai Mubai hadn't actually fallen into deep sleep.
Ever since he had been knocked down with a single punch by Lin Qingmo—
That unprecedented humiliation had been clinging to him.
His mind kept replaying the hateful faces of Lin Qingmo and Tang San, faces that made his killing intent surge uncontrollably, along with Zhu Zhuqing's cold and disappointed expression.
Anger and resentnt gnawed at his heart like venomous snakes.
Startled by Ma Hongjun, he suddenly opened his eyes.
"What are you yelling for in the middle of the night!" he growled.
His eyes were bloodshot, filled with irritation and suppressed fury from being disturbed.
"!!!"
Ma Hongjun was startled by his murderous aura.
Swallowing hard, he still lowered his voice and said, "No, Boss Dai, sothing really happened!"
His tone was exaggerated. "When I went to pee just now, I saw Zhu Zhuqing co out of Lin Qingmo's room with my own eyes."
He deliberately emphasized the nas "Zhu Zhuqing" and "Lin Qingmo."
"You didn't see it, but Zhu Zhuqing looked like that… her hair was even a bit wet!"
"In the middle of the night, what good thing could two people be doing in a room? It must be that brat Lin Qingmo; he—he's stealing your girl, Boss Dai!"
Ma Hongjun spoke rapidly, almost spitting as he talked, looking as if the sky had fallen.
End of Chapter
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