Chapter 74 Chapter 74 My brother is going to a social event with me tonight, I guess...

Su Luyao was curled up in the room, wearing headphones and immersed in the world of a fantasy novel, her fingertips running across the yellowed pages. This was a treasure she had bought at a second-hand book market at a high price.

Suddenly, a new friend request popped up at the top of her phone screen. She instinctively wanted to ignore it, but when she caught sight of the verification message, "I'm Xueying~," her fingertips paused.

What does she add her for?

Su Luyao had always found it strange that this female college student was living in the Yu family's house. How could her uncle and aunt agree to such a thing? If something like this happened, they should have kicked Yu Ziche out as well!

But due to the current situation where she can be seen everywhere, Su Luyao passed the verification.

The message arrived almost instantly.

Xueying: [Hello, Senior Sister Luyao! Sorry to bother you! I'm Xueying. I've always admired your carefree and unconcerned demeanor. I usually don't dare to talk to you at home, but today I finally mustered up the courage to add you! [Cute expression]]

Su Luyao was not interested in this kind of social etiquette. She tapped "Hello" with her fingertips and wanted to return to the world of the novel.

Xueying seemed to be unaffected by her indifference and continued to send messages, her tone filled with just the right amount of envy:

I really envy my senior sister for being able to immerse herself in this peaceful spiritual world. Unlike me, who spends all day worrying about my studies and the endlessly unfilled financial and troublesome issues at home...

Su Luyao frowned slightly. She was not interested in this kind of complaint. Just as she was about to make an excuse to leave, Xue Ying's next message made her fingertips freeze.

[Senior Sister, I heard you're collecting He Feng's handwritten books? Especially the one called "Stardust Antiquity."]

Su Luyao's heart skipped a beat.

He Feng is her most admired master of fantasy literature, and Stardust Antiquity is his masterpiece.

But there are only about fifty copies of this book, each one is made by He Feng himself, and each one is different!

Although the auction price was only about 10,000 yuan per copy, it was a sacred object coveted by countless book collectors. She had been searching for it for years but had never even seen it.

Xueying's words were like a precisely woven silk net, quietly entangling Su Luyao's deepest desire:

I have a friend who happens to have a perfectly good copy of "Stardust Antiquities." If you're truly interested, I can convince him to part with it. Consider it a meeting gift, and I hope we can become friends.

This temptation is too deadly.

She stared at the screen, her breathing becoming heavier involuntarily.

However, before she could recover from the huge shock, Xueying's next message instantly tore apart the beautiful dream, revealing the cold trap underneath:

[Actually... I have a small matter that I'd like to ask Senior Sister for help with.]

[I know that Senior Sister Xitong trusts you the most.]

[Could you...help me keep an eye on who Senior Sister Xitong usually hangs out with? Especially...people of the opposite sex other than Mr. Yu.]

The text remains "polite" and even carries a hint of "concern":

Senior Sister Xitong's memory is patchy, and I'm really worried she'll be deceived and exploited by someone with ulterior motives. Senior Sister, just tell me about her social media updates occasionally, and I won't put you in any difficult situations.

The cold light of the phone screen reflected Su Luyao's suddenly tense face.

The novel spread out on my knees seemed to have lost all warmth, and the words became blurred.

Xueying didn't urge her any further.

The last message lay quietly, with a deadly and fragrant bait in front that was enough to drive any Crane Wind fan crazy, and an obvious and malicious request for spying in the back.

Su Luyao's fingertips hovered over the cold screen, and the coveted handmade book set lingered in her mind like a siren's song.

She looked at Xueying's profile picture of herself in the snow, which she had used for a long time, and for the first time she smelled so clearly the icy and biting breath of ambition and calculation emanating from beneath that beautiful halo.

Su Luyao didn't reply for a long time.

The dialog box was silent, like a carefully laid out deep hole waiting for its prey to fall.

…

Yu Ziche has been a little upset recently.

Xueying subtly teased his little thoughts. He enjoyed the stimulation, but was also worried that he could not find an opportunity to get closer to Xitong.

That day, Xueying mentioned it again on WeChat "accidentally":

[I heard that Senior Sister Xitong will be back from her business trip the day after tomorrow. President Yu must be very happy, right? He might even cook a feast himself.]

Yu Ziche curled his lips and replied, "My brother? He's such a workaholic, it's good enough that he can get home on time."

Xueying sent a cute emoticon, and then suggested something as if she had a sudden inspiration:

"Speaking of which, brother, haven't you always wanted to connect with Dingsheng Technology? I heard their CEO Liu is having a private dinner the night after tomorrow. It's a rare opportunity. If CEO Yu could introduce you, things would definitely be much easier."

Yu Ziche's eyes lit up!

This was indeed a good opportunity. Dingsheng Technology was the project he had been trying to curry favor with, but he had no connections. If his brother was willing to step in, it would definitely be twice as effective with half the effort. Besides…his brother was out socializing, so wouldn't it be tonight…

Mr. Liu would definitely keep his brother for the next round, and no one would care if an insignificant person like him took the opportunity to slip away.

He immediately understood, knowing that Xueying was helping him create opportunities. He felt elated and quickly patted his chest to assure, "Understood! Don't worry, Yingying, I will definitely make every arrangement for my brother clear!"

So, on the morning of the day Xitong was scheduled to return, Yu Ziche dressed up carefully and slipped into Yu Sixie's study with a prudent plan in mind.

"Brother! Help!" He looked sad.

Yu Sixie raised his head from the documents, frowning slightly: "What's wrong?"

"Mr. Liu from Dingsheng Technology! The one holding the core new energy project! He's organizing a party tonight, and I heard several bigwigs will be there. Bro, you know that small company I used to run, I was counting on this project to turn it around... But at my level, I can't even reach the threshold..."

Yu Ziche said with a sad face, "Brother, please help me and go with me tonight. Just show up and introduce me to someone, okay? If you don't show up, this deal of mine will definitely be cancelled!"

He appealed to their emotions, appealed to their interests, and even quoted his late grandfather's words about his wish for harmony among his descendants.

Yu Sixie pinched his brows.

Although he was troubled by his incompetent cousin, he had heard about Dingsheng Technology's project, which was indeed a good opportunity.

Considering that Yu Ziche was rarely willing to do something serious, and considering their brotherly love, he pondered for a moment and finally nodded:

"Time and place."

"7pm, Lantingxu Club!" Yu Ziche was ecstatic, but he tried to maintain a sincere expression on his face, "Thank you, brother!"

After leaving the study, Yu Ziche immediately sent a message to Xue Ying with a proud look on his face: [Done! My brother and I are going out for a social event tonight, so he probably won't be back until very late.]

Xueying looked at her phone, a cold smile slowly forming on the corner of her mouth.

Great, the obstacles are cleared and the stage is set.

Next, it’s the heroine’s turn to appear.

…

On the last day of the trip to the United States, the originally relaxing finishing work became extremely tight.

Liu Lianzi, who was in the accompanying team, received a clear instruction from Xueying from China: [Find a way to keep Xitong busy on her last day, especially at night, and try not to let her rest well.]

Liu Lianzi looked at the message and felt a little nervous.

She has always been accustomed to treating Xueying as her "god". She is smart and beautiful. Although she may be a little too paranoid sometimes, it does not affect her overall "beauty".

Everyone has some problems.

She came from an ordinary family, had worked very hard to get into Peking University, and wasn't particularly good-looking. She envied people like Xueying and wanted to be like her. She hated herself for having to work so hard to achieve even a little happiness. She hated mediocrity, and her faint conscience was suppressed again.

So, on the last day, Liu Lianzi "actively" undertook a lot of communication and coordination work, and then frequently asked for instructions and bothered Xitong on the grounds of "encountering difficulties" and "needing confirmation".

"Senior Sister, the other party suddenly asked to recheck the format of this data. It's urgent!"

"Senior Sister, the hotel said that the shuttle bus schedule for tomorrow has changed and needs to be reconfirmed. There's a time difference there, so we can only contact you now..."

"Senior Sister, the instructor just said that the supplementary materials need to be sorted out and sent to him immediately..."

Xitong was already exhausted from days of running around and intensive meetings, and now she was almost unable to rest because of Liu Lianzi's endless "emergencies".

She forced herself to stay awake and deal with various trivial matters until late at night before she was able to return to her hotel room. She fell into a deep sleep almost as soon as her head touched the pillow.

On the long-distance flight back home the next day, Xitong was still exhausted. He leaned against the window with his eyes closed, and there was a slight dark circle under his eyes.

Liu Lianzi sat not far away, secretly observing Xitong's tired face. She felt a little guilty, but also a little relaxed after completing the task.

The plane finally landed at Beijing Airport.

Walking out of the gate, Xitong felt his steps were weak, the fatigue accumulated over the past few days surged up like a tide, and his temples were throbbing with pain.

She declined her mentor's offer to give her a ride, as she just wanted to get home as soon as possible.

The driver sent by Yu Sixie was already waiting outside.

The car drove smoothly towards Yu Mansion. Xitong leaned back in the comfortable back seat and almost fell asleep again.

When we arrived at Yu Mansion, the lights were already on.

The mansion was very quiet, with only a few corridor lights emitting a dim glow.

Xitong dragged her heavy suitcase and felt like she didn't have the energy to say another word. She just wanted to take a hot bath and then sink into the soft bed.

She struggled to walk up the stairs. The hallway was dimly lit, and she groped her way to the bedroom door.

Just as she stretched out her hand to push open the bedroom door, a slightly low and deliberately suppressed voice suddenly came from the shadow of the guest room porch next to her:

"Are you back?"

Xitong turned her head tiredly and looked in the direction of the sound.

A tall figure leaned against the wall near the guest room door, wearing dark home clothes similar to Yu Sixie's. On his face... he was wearing a black mask that covered most of his face. In the dim light, his figure and exposed eyebrows and eyes, at first glance, bore a striking resemblance to Yu Sixie!

Yu Ziche and Yu Sixie are somewhat similar. Xi Tong had this feeling when she first met him in W City.

Due to extreme fatigue, Xitong's alertness and judgment were at their lowest point.

Her mind was in a mess, and based on her blurry vision and the deliberately imitated voice, she subconsciously recognized the person in front of her as Yu Sixie.

She was so tired that she didn't have the energy to think about why he was standing at the door of the guest room wearing a mask instead of waiting for her in the bedroom.

"Hmm..." She responded vaguely, her voice full of weariness, "I'm so tired. I'm going back to my room first."

She didn't look at the "Yu Sixie wearing a mask" again, nor did she notice the glint of triumph that flashed across his eyes. She just pushed open the door of her bedroom and walked in dragging her suitcase.

Outside the door, Yu Ziche, who was wearing a mask, slowly pulled it down, revealing a smile that was a mixture of nervousness, excitement, and some twisted pleasure on his face.