After Zhang Lexuan was publicly announced by Mu En as the next successor to the Sea God Pavilion and began to gradually take over the academy's affairs,
Han Ruoruo and Wu Ming, who were originally Zhang Lexuan's close friends, naturally became her most capable left and right arms.
Han Ruoruo, being meticulous and thorough in her dealings, naturally took on a role similar to a "secretary-general," assisting Zhang Lexuan in handling complex paperwork and coordination.
Wu Ming, despite her fiery personality, possessed strong execution skills and formidable spirit power cultivation, so she was primarily responsible for the concrete implementation and supervision of various directives.
Previously, the cooperation project with the Mingmeng Chamber of Commerce regarding the "renovation of new student dormitory facilities" was spearheaded by Han Ruoruo in terms of negotiation and planning, while Wu Ming was responsible for leading the construction team and coordination.
Working together, the two managed to resolve the new student dormitory issues before the start of the semester, ensuring that the new students wouldn't have hundreds of people fighting over a single toilet or shared bathhouse.
With their impressive abilities and absolute loyalty to Zhang Lexuan, they quickly adapted to their roles, becoming an indispensable core team in Zhang Lexuan's new power structure at Shrek.
At this moment, Wu Ming looked at the tightly closed door and couldn't help but whisper to Han Ruoruo beside her:
"Is Sister Lexuan not here? Why has there been no response after knocking for so long?"
Han Ruoruo's face showed a thoughtful expression as she gently shook her head: "Perhaps she's resting. Lexuan has been too tired lately."
"She just took over so many affairs, a thousand loose ends, and whenever she gets busy, she goes without sleep for one or two consecutive weeks."
"I remember her last real rest was two weeks ago and a month ago. Both times she only rested for a few hours before continuing to work."
Upon hearing this, Wu Ming's face immediately showed a hint of heartache and reluctance.
As Zhang Lexuan's friend and assistant, they both knew how heavy the burden on Zhang Lexuan's shoulders was. Unless there was an urgent matter that absolutely required her decision, they would never wish to disturb her.
Just as Wu Ming was hesitating whether to knock again, the next moment,
"Thump."
A faint thud suddenly came from inside the room, as if something had accidentally hit the door.
Immediately after, Zhang Lexuan's voice, clearly tired and as if she had been forcibly awakened from a deep sleep, came through the door. Her voice also contained a hint of undetectable hoarseness:
"...Wu Ming, and... Ruoruo?"
Hearing Zhang Lexuan's response from inside the door, Wu Ming immediately breathed a sigh of relief, perked up, and asked with concern through the door crack:
"Sister Lexuan, are you alright? Did we disturb your rest?"
From inside the door, Zhang Lexuan's voice carried a slightly heavy breathing sound:
"I'm fine, I was just... resting, and lost track of time." Her sentences had noticeable pauses, and her voice was weak, showing clear fatigue. "Has... something happened?"
Wu Ming blinked, her beautiful face full of confusion.
Sister Lexuan is speaking so strangely today, her tone is halting. Is it because she's been too tired from handling affairs lately?
She couldn't help but press: "Sister Lexuan, why don't you open the door to talk?"
"...The room is a bit messy." Zhang Lexuan spoke a complete sentence, and after a pause, she spoke decisively with a hint of urgency, "Never mind, just tell me, what is it?"
Wu Ming blinked, puzzled, but still obeyed Zhang Lexuan's words and quickly explained the reason for their visit:
"It's the Mingmeng Chamber of Commerce. Their Vice President, Young Miss Juzi, suddenly decided to visit to make detailed arrangements for future cooperation."
"They notified us that she will arrive in three hours. The matter is quite sudden and requires your personal presence."
Zhang Lexuan inside the door fell silent for a moment, then her voice came through. Although it still carried a hint of lazy hoarseness, her voice was calm and had returned to normal:
"...Understood. I will be there on time."
Wu Ming paused, wanting to ask something else.
Zhang Lexuan inside the door seemed to guess her thoughts and spoke first, her tone carrying an undeniable decisiveness: "I'll take a shower and change clothes, then I'll come."
Hearing this, Wu Ming could only suppress the strange feeling in her heart, acknowledged it, exchanged a glance with Han Ruoruo, who had been silent beside her, and then the two said their goodbyes before turning to leave.
Han Ruoruo followed behind Wu Ming, but her steps were slightly slower.
As she was about to turn the corner of the corridor, she couldn't help but look back again, gazing deeply at the tightly closed door. A difficult-to-catch hint of suspicion flashed in her eyes.
Whether it was her imagination or not, during the pauses in Zhang Lexuan's speech, she seemed to hear a faint, forcibly suppressed breathing sound, as if the speaker had suddenly been attacked.
In short, it felt very strange.
And she could be sure that she heard some kind of faint rustling sound from the room, similar to metal chains lightly clashing and dragging.
Although the sound was very subtle, she was all too familiar with it.
A few years ago, the blood-red chains used by that young man made a very similar sound when dragged.
Although it sounded strange, she didn't think she had misheard, given her psychological trauma.
Looking at the closed door, Han Ruoruo pursed her lips, and in the end, could only forcibly suppress the surging doubts, burying them deep in her heart. She then turned and quickly caught up with Wu Ming.
Since Lexuan said she was fine, then there shouldn't be any problems. She shouldn't meddle so much.
Silence returned outside the door.
Inside the door, Zhang Lexuan's hands were wrapped around Kong Mingan's neck like water snakes, her smooth back pressed against the cool wall, her feet not touching the ground.
She tilted her head slightly, her eyes shimmering with undisguised, pathological dependence, gazing at the handsome face so close to her, she exhaled like an orchid:
"I think I understand what you like."
Kong Mingan raised a hand to smooth her sweat-dampened hair, denying it with a hint of helplessness: "Illusion."
Somehow, perhaps as the number of times increased, he felt himself gradually being led astray by Zhang Lexuan. This was too strange.
Zhang Lexuan narrowed her hazy eyes, and a captivating smile curved her red lips.
"But it's more honest than you are."
Kong Mingan's body stiffened slightly, and he silently lowered his gaze to look at her, complex emotions churning in his eyes.
A moment later, his tone became slightly serious, carrying a hint of admonition:
"Sister Lexuan, I think this is wrong."
"The boundaries of our relationship need to be clear. I cannot simultaneously be your master, dominator, user, and also fulfill the roles of husband, partner, and lover. This is too chaotic."
Zhang Lexuan tilted her head, not only showing no remorse on her face, but a more pure, even somewhat innocent, pathological radiance bloomed in her beautiful eyes.
With a gentle gaze, she retorted: "Why not?"
Kong Mingan: "..."
So, reasoning with her doesn't work?
By the way, how do you all think the original work divided Wang Donger, Wang Qiuer, and Tang Wutong? Was the initial "Xiao Qi" evenly split between two or three?
(End of Chapter)
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