Shen Yelan stared at the messages flooding the group chat, and the corner of her lips twitched slightly. She quietly exited the group, put her phone on silent, and tossed it aside. Then she looked downstairs just as the auction was finally beginning.
An old man walked onto the stage. He greeted the guests and began giving a long introduction about tonight's auction. Ten whole minutes later, the first item was finally brought out.
It was a sapphire necklace with a massive blue gemstone in the center. The guests downstairs immediately began to bid for it.
Shen Yelan glanced at it for one second before losing interest completely. Instead, her attention drifted toward the colorful pastries on the table beside her. She picked one up and took a small bite. The next second, her eyes lit up slightly.
"Mmm." She hummed in satisfaction and took another bite.
The chefs here were really getting better at their craft. She made a mental note to give Qing Rouxi a reminder later to increase the chef's salary.
"Is it really that good?" Mo Shiyu asked, watching her expression. He didn't usually like sweets, but seeing how happy she looked, he couldn't help wanting to try one.
"Of course it is." Shen Yelan held out her plate toward him. "Here, give it a try."
Mo Shiyu's eyes lit up. He reached for a spoon to dig in, but a hand blocked his path.
Huo Ziyan stared at him coldly. "How old are you? Stealing food from a kid?"
Kid?
Shen Yelan blinked.
Who was he calling a kid?
"It's not stealing. She clearly offered-" The rest of his words died in his throat when he saw the look on Huo Ziyan's face. He quickly forced a smile. "You're right. We shouldn't steal from kids."
Shen Yelan immediately turned toward them with disbelief written all over her face.
"Who are you two calling a child? I'm seventeen!"
"Still not an adult," Huo Ziyan reached over and patted her on the head. "Don't talk while you're eating."
Shen Yelan just sat there, stunned. She stared at him blankly. Her mouth opened slightly, then closed again. For the first time in a long while, she genuinely did not know what to say.
Huo Ziyan stared at her, amused, finding her expression too cute.
A few seconds later, Shen Yelan finally huffed angrily and turned away from him. Of course, she did not forget to take the dessert plate with her.
That action immediately made Huo Ziyan let out a low chuckle.
The sound made Shen Yelan stiffen slightly. She turned back and narrowed her eyes at him before facing away again.
Next to them, Mo Shiyu was absolutely terrified. The spoon was frozen halfway to his mouth, his hand trembling slightly.
What did he just hear?
Did the devil just laugh?
He actually knew how to laugh?
Mo Shiyu suddenly started questioning reality itself.
Was he dreaming?
Or had someone secretly drugged him tonight?
.
.
The auction continued. At some point, Shen Yelan pulled out her phone and started playing a game.
Mo Shiyu, who was bored out of his mind, leaned over curiously.
"You also play this game?"
He looked at her level and was disappointed to see it was just a level 4 beginner's account.
Then he proudly took out his own phone.
"Oh, you are just a beginner. It's okay, let's play a match together. Let your big brother here will carry you to victory."
Shen Yelan quirked an eyebrow when she saw his account name was 'Ferocious Tiger'. Suddenly, countless memories of Sun Lili cursing at a certain useless brain-dead tiger while gaming flashed through her mind.
What a coincidence.
"What? Why are you looking at me like that?" Mo Shiyu asked.
Shen Yelan shook her head. "Nothing. Just thinking your username suits you really well."
"You think so too? I knew it! I always thought this name was perfect for me."
The corner of Shen Yelan's lips twitched.
Soon, the two entered a match together. Coincidentally, Little Cutie, who happened to be Sun Lili, was online. When she saw Shen Yelan online, she immediately requested to join her in the match.
Shen Yelan honestly wondered if Sun Lili actually worked at the estate or if she just hid in the pantry all day playing games.
"Oh, it's that Lolita!" Mo Shiyu exclaimed, pointing at Sun Lili's character. It was a little girl in a cute dress holding an umbrella.
"You know her?" Shen Yelan asked casually.
"Of course. She is my soulmate in the game. Whenever the two of us team up, we always win."
Shen Yelan shot him a sideways glance and wondered if Sun Lili was aware of her soulmate's existence.
The match started.
"You just stay in the back. Let your brother and sister-in-law do the heavy lifting." Mo Shiyu told Shen Yelan.
Shen Yelan's thumb stopped moving on her screen as she processed the sentence. After a moment, she decided that she had not heard it, and went back to the game.
The game continued.
"Boss, why aren't you moving?" a private message from Sun Lili popped up on the screen.
"Your husband told me not to." Shen Yelan texted back.
"What husband? Where did he come from? Why did I know about him?"
Shen Yelan looked at the messages and decided not to reply.
"Boss. BOSS. Are you there? Why aren't you responding? Don't tell me you sold me off to someone!"
Nearby, Huo Ziyan quietly watched the two playing together. His gaze shifted toward Mo Shiyu and narrowed.
Mo Shiyu suddenly felt a cold shiver run down his spine. He frowned and looked around in confusion.
"Strange, why does it suddenly feel so cold in here?"
At that moment, the auctioneer's voice echoed through the hall below.
"Next, we have fifty percent equity shares of PandaX. For those unfamiliar with the company, PandaX is a subsidiary under Kiaros and became famous for developing the hit game Battle of Three Realms. The starting bid is fifty million," the auctioneer's voice came from the stage.
Shen Yelan looked up from her phone.
Mo Shiyu had also straightened slightly and was now paying attention to the stage downstairs.
"It's time to end the…" Before he could even finish saying 'game', the character draped in a black cloak that had been standing still since the beginning finally moved.
Mo Shiyu rubbed his eyes hard and realized that he really wasn't blind.
The character on the screen killed the boss in just three steps. Its movements were so skillful that it left Mo Shiyu speechless for a long moment.
Mo Shiyu stared at the screen in stunned silence. Then he slowly turned toward Shen Yelan.
No, wasn't Shen Yelan only level 4? She's obviously a newbie.
Or was she secretly an expert using a smurf account?
"What?" Shen Yelan asked innocently. "You were the one who said it was time to end the game."