Chapter 288 Velvet Soft Girl (End)
After returning to New York, the mission concluded smoothly. Velvet returned to her building to become the last emperor, while Chu Hengkong returned to the pizza shop to continue running errands. The two people, who had nothing to do with each other, once again returned to their parallel lives, and their paths would never intersect again.
But the mission still had some unfinished business, as Chu Hengkong hadn't yet decided on a remuneration package. Initially, he'd considered paying him an hourly rate for his errands, but then he felt he was being shortchanged. But the two boxes of gold from last time were still gathering dust in the closet, so he wasn't really short of money.
If he couldn't figure it out right now, he'd talk about it later. So Young Master Chu put the matter behind him. Velvet texted him several times to remind him, but he just brushed it off. Two weeks later, the girl's patience finally reached its limit. She called him and told him she'd been dragging it down from her tenth to her eleventh year. If he couldn't figure it out again, she'd fill someone's room with cash.
The cold tone, like an ultimatum, made Young Master Chu hold his phone farther away. He glanced at the rather messy room with a cigarette butt in his mouth, and suddenly an idea came to his mind, a reward that he really needed.
"Then help me clean the room," he said.
Half an hour later, Miss Velvet Velus stood at the door, dressed in simple black clothes, her soft black hair tied tightly behind her head with a white headscarf.
Chu Hengkong laughed out loud when he opened the door.
"What are you doing, Miss?" He held onto the door sill and laughed non-stop. "I was saying you could just find someone to help me clean up. Why did you come here by yourself?"
“I don’t think you’d be happy to let a stranger into your room,” Velvet said, “and you’re protecting me, not one of Velus’ servants.”
Chu Hengkong laughed for a long time and started to close the door: "Okay, okay, thank you very much, but please replace it with a Filipino maid or a British housekeeper. I will never ask an eleven-year-old girl to do the cleaning..."
“Get out of my way, twelve-year-old boy,” Velvet said coldly. “Even though you haven’t received your payment yet, the commission is not over yet. I am still your boss.”
"I'm just unlucky. I'll just follow the rules. Whatever you say is fine~"
Chu Hengkong shrugged and stepped aside from the door. Even though she had prepared herself mentally, the faint smell of badness still startled Velvet.
Visibility inside the room was extremely low, and the air was filled with thick smoke from hundreds of burned cigarettes, carrying the pungent aroma of fermenting alcohol and the stench of spoiled food. The dampness from the leaking water added a musty odor to the already deplorable environment, and the timely backflow of moisture from the sewer added a sense of heaviness to the room.
Velvet took a brave step forward, then let out a groan that threatened to collapse. She had never imagined it would take such courage to enter someone's home.
"How can you live in a place like this... a place like this..." She tried to find the right adjective for a long time, but finally gave up completely. "A pigsty?"
Chu Hengkong was not very happy: "Language, Miss. Although my roof is a little small, it is still quite comfortable to live in."
The apartment, considered luxurious in New York City, was about 20 square meters, with a kitchen and bathroom. After shoving down the desk and single bed, there was still a little space left over for a large, unfolded suitcase. However, someone's unbelievable lifestyle had pushed the utilization of these 20 square meters to the limit: the kitchen was used as storage, filled with unopened bags, the desk was piled high with beer bottles besides a laptop, and the ashtray was filled with cigarette butts like a peacock's feathers. Due to someone's heavy smoking habit, the room was covered in grayish-white ash.
Even Chu Hengkong himself realized this, so he bought two more ashtrays and placed them at the bedside and by the window, so that he would have more places to store cigarette butts.
Velvet remained silent, shaking her head. After a long moment, she reached out and said, "Please give me a broom and a mop."
Chu Hengkong smiled awkwardly: "No."
Velvet’s eyes were cold: “What, scream, no?”
"Well, you just lack life experience. When you rent a house, the landlord doesn't arrange furniture for you. You even have to buy the toilet seat yourself." Chu Hengkong tried to use his experience to make up for the disadvantage in momentum. "But I didn't have much money in my pocket at the time, so I only bought the necessary things, so the broom and other things..."
Velvet's eyes were filled with sinister energy, and that terrifying aura made Chu Hengkong shut up. She pulled out her phone and ordered, "Give me a complete set of cleaning supplies, trash bags, a desk, and a chair."
"Hey my desk is still okay! It's just a little dirty!"
“…Light bulb, tissue paper.” Velvet walked to the bed, picked up someone’s quilt, and put it down in despair. “Pillow, quilt… No, just change the bed.”
"Did my bed offend you?" Chu Hengkong was stunned. "I just asked you to clean up. Please don't use this as an excuse to tear my house apart!"
“I will never allow you to live in a place like this,” Velvet said firmly.
·
Despite Chu Hengkong's resolute opposition, he finally managed to keep his bed and desk. However, all the bedding had been replaced with new ones, and after constant scrubbing, the desk had actually revealed its original appearance—it was originally a white desk, but when Velvet entered the room, it was dark yellow.
Velvet had piled countless piles of trash and expired bottles and cans in the hallway, forcing him to go downstairs three times to take out the trash. Only then could she finally start cleaning properly, bustling up and down like a Victorian maid, making Chu Hengkong very uncomfortable.
"I really didn't expect that a young lady like you could actually clean."
“My father believed that the most important skill a person should master was how to take care of themselves.” Velvet’s anger was evident in her mopping movements. “So I know how to tidy up a room.”
"Good tutoring."
Chu Hengkong was becoming increasingly uncomfortable. He couldn't bear to let a girl younger than him face this horrible mess. He tried to dissuade her, "Just listen to me. I think the room is already clean. It's fine as long as we've done this."
Velvet pestled the mop like a sword, forcing him to shut up again with her stern gaze.
“Your room is still far from tidy. You say this only because your pride and empathy can’t tolerate me continuing to work hard for you.” Velvet said, “But after I stop and leave, will you continue cleaning?”
"If I had the time—"
“You won’t. You’ll continue as you are until it becomes unbearable for you once again.” Velvet turned around. “Then I’d better continue. At least this will allow you to maintain a decent life for a few more days.”
Chu Heng was at a loss for words and simply lay down on the bed: "Then you do your best."
"I will. After all, I am different from you."
"You'd be cute if you spoke nicer..." she heard the boy mutter.
Velvet should have taken advantage of the situation to insult Chu Hengkong again. But for some reason, she leaned on the mop and tilted her head to ask, "Am I not adorable now?"
Chu Hengkong turned over and chuckled, "No, not at all. You should be careful, Velvet. You are only 11 years old and you are already a complete housekeeper."
Velvet accidentally kicked the bucket, and the dirty water splashed onto Chu Hengkong's trouser legs.
·
After three and a half hours of cleaning, the pigsty finally looked habitable. Velvet took his chair, wiping the sweat off her face while resting sullenly.
Chu Hengkong could see that the girl was in a bad mood. Although he didn't understand why she was unhappy for no reason - she was the one who cleaned the house and got angry while doing it - he still decided to do his best to make up for it.
"Thank you so much for your hard work. I'll treat you to a meal." He took out his phone and prepared to dial, "There's a Chinese restaurant nearby that makes pretty good food."
Velvet was about to agree, but when she saw his skillful movements, she frowned: "Do you eat takeout every day?"
"If not takeout, what should I eat?" Chu Hengkong laughed, "I'm not some wealthy young master, no one cooks for me."
As expected, she should have expected this. Before entering this room, she still had many fantasies about Chu Hengkong, guessing that he might be from another ancient organization, the heir of some alien species, the ace cultivated by the members of the Blood Alliance...
But in reality, he lived in a squalid rented house and made a living delivering packages. In battle, he was inhumanly powerful, but behind closed doors, he was still a boy wandering alone. He had neither the patience nor the interest, and had learned few self-care skills, so he inevitably relied on fast food and junk food for three meals a day. He saw nothing wrong with this; it was all as it should be.
She couldn't let Chu Hengkong continue to live like this.
"Let's get some pasta, eggs, black pepper, and..." Velvet shook her head. He definitely couldn't figure it out. "Never mind. I'll go down with you."
"Huh?" Chu Hengkong was puzzled.
"Go buy some food and I'll make lunch."
They bought black pepper, eggs, various cheeses with different names but similar appearances, bacon made from pig cheek, and thick pasta called spaghettoni. Velvet cleaned the utensils she had bought and never used, and with a magical trick, she transformed the mess into two delicious-smelling portions of pasta.
“This is Carbonara, pasta with carbonara sauce,” Velvet told him. “It’s high in calories and a bit greasy, but you should like it.”
He really liked it. The egg and cheese sauce coated the pasta, giving it an attractive golden color. Paired with the fried pork cheek diced meat, it tasted quite like Western lard noodles. He wolfed down a large plate, finishing off the portion that Velvet left behind.
“You know, Velvet,” he said with a smile, “if one day you don’t want to be in the underworld, you can still be a very good cook.”
“What about you?” Velvet asked, “If one day you stopped being a courier, what would you do?”
"There's so much potential in this vast world. I have the skills to do anything." Chu Hengkong was optimistic. "Maybe I can move boxes at the docks, or maybe I can do some underworld boxing."
Velvet lost her appetite for a moment.
"Is this what you want to do?" She was incredulous. "You have such strength and skills, but you are willing to live in a house like this and rely on labor to make a living?!"
Chu Hengkong looked back at her calmly, without any abnormality.
"As for you, you've lived in a large family for too long. You always feel that everyone must be used to their full potential, and that talented people must sit high up in the hierarchy. But what can I do with my skills in the 21st century?"
"you can--"
Velvet abruptly cut off the conversation. Chu Hengkong smiled and said, "What can you do? You can beat people up, kill people, get paid by an ABCD family, and become a powerful thug? Or you can spend a few years in the military camp and become a military leader? Or you can become an athlete and perform?
I'd probably make a lot of money in that kind of life, but it wouldn't be satisfying for me. So forget it! Ultimately, a person's circumstances are shackled to their circumstances. Living in the 21st century, no matter how good a fighter you are, it's still the same."
His analysis was so objective and logical that it was enough to convince any girl who had fantasies, but Velvet just shook her head.
"That's what you told me, you wouldn't tell yourself."
"And what would I say to myself?"
The girl lowered her eyes and did not answer the question. She put down her knife and fork.
"You won't live like this forever." She told Chu Hengkong, "You are willing to pretend to be satisfied with the status quo now, but you won't be in the future. I will change you, change your personality, your ideas, and your lifestyle. I mean what I say."
Chu Hengkong was lighting a new cigarette for himself when he heard this and slammed the table and laughed: "Are you kidding me, little girl? You still want to change? I live a carefree and happy life. Why should I change myself just because of your thoughts? What can you change about me?"
Velvet stared at the cigarette butt: "I will make you quit smoking."
Chu Hengkong flicked the ash off his cigarette, treating it as a complete joke.
"No way," he said scornfully. "Don't even think about it."
·
"I quit smoking later," Chu Hengkong said. "Although it was several years later, she did it."
He took a sip of water, moistening his dry lips. Memories flowed back like a floodgate, hard to stop once started. He started with his encounter with Velvet and ended with the topic of quitting smoking, skipping over the details of her life along the way—her crying, her tantrums in the bathroom, her fear of thunderstorms.
He didn't want anyone to know this, as it was a memory that belonged only to him and Velvet.
So, as he recounted the story, he only captured the best aspects of the girl he remembered: her strength, her intelligence, and the caring she'd been reluctant to express since childhood. When he finished, the bookstore fell silent, everyone staring at him. He wanted to say something, to ask if this information was enough.
"I miss her very much." Chu Hengkong said.
But what came out of his mouth was this.
"Don't worry, buddy," Vander told him, "We'll definitely find it. You guys have such a good relationship... everyone will help you."
"We will definitely help." said Dudu Otter.
Srail paused his scribbles and said, "I'll finish the music first. I might ask you to fill in the details later. But I'll do my best, Inspector Chu. Don't worry, this is my promise."
Everyone expressed their support and hoped that he would succeed, and Chu Hengkong felt much better. The haze that came with the memories faded away in the kindness of everyone.
Ji Huaisu encouraged him for a while, then sneaked out of the bookstore with Fan De, feeling a little depressed.
"Vander, I don't mean to cause trouble, but..." She sighed, "Maybe you won't be able to be his best buddy after all. You know, Velvet came too early, and he influenced Akong too much."
Vander stared back at her in astonishment: "Oh my God."
"Yeah, I was shocked too. It's obvious..." Ji Huaisu hesitated several times, "His boss might have feelings for him beyond friendship, not just a simple brotherly relationship, but... well, they have such a good relationship, I don't know how to explain it to Kong."
"Honestly, I don't know how to tell you." Vander said in shock.
"There will always be a way to solve it when he realizes it, right?"
"When you realize it," Vander nodded vigorously, "I think there should be a way."
(End of this chapter)
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