Chapter 156 : Chapter 156
156. Win-Win
What?
Hearing Lu Zheng’s reply, Yi Ning froze.
Her brain went blank.
“You’re refusing me… because of something like this?”
“What else?”
Lu Zheng’s answer was utterly matter-of-fact.
As a hero, for the sake of the people he protected, what were a few sacrifices?
He sighed inwardly.
Light and darkness, after all, were opposites.
As a member of an evil organization, Yi Ning probably could never understand his noble character.
And indeed, that was the truth.
Yi Ning really couldn’t understand why Lu Zheng would accept social-death training for a bunch of irrelevant people. But that didn’t matter much, because…
“Why didn’t you say so earlier!”
It wasn’t as though she had no way of solving the problem.
Yi Ning instinctively wanted to roll off his leg.
But then she thought again—if she let go, Lu Zheng might run straight off. So she tightened her grip again and smacked his thigh hard to vent her frustration.
Yi Ning lifted her head. “How about we make a deal?”
“No deal.”
Lu Zheng was like a cold boss, not even willing to hear her out, rejecting her outright.
Why? Because Yi Ning was too crafty.
His attitude made Yi Ning bristle. She pinched his thigh with her fingers like pliers.
Damn!
Solid as a rock, she couldn’t pinch at all.
Furious, Yi Ning copied Jack Hanma, biting down to give Lu Zheng a “deep” strike.
Unfortunately, her skill was lacking—she only managed to send the faintest ripple across his flesh.
Still, even that tiny ripple was enough to ease her mood.
She tried again to negotiate.
“Don’t be so distant~ It’s just that I didn’t understand why you refused before. Now that we both know the truth, I can give you an offer you can’t refuse.”
“Better than us dragging each other down, isn’t it? Wouldn’t a win-win be nicer?”
Lu Zheng fell silent at her coaxing.
She wasn’t entirely wrong.
Out of duty as a hero, he could face social death for the people.
But he wasn’t a masochist—if there was a better option, why avoid it?
He nodded. “All right. Let’s hear your proposal.”
Yi Ning let out a relieved breath at his answer.
“Don’t move. I’ll let go and get something for you.”
Still, as an evil scientist, she judged others by herself. Worried Lu Zheng wouldn’t keep his word, she added a threat.
“If I come back and don’t see you here, I’ll record a loving pregnancy vlog rubbing my belly, tag you online, and accuse you of knocking me up and running off like a beast!”
Hearing this familiar threat, Lu Zheng felt a headache coming on.
“You’re a girl, can’t you stop using pregnancy as your go-to threat?”
Did Yi Ning have no sense of shame?
No doubt about it—none!
Yi Ning tugged at her cheek, her tone dripping with disdain: “Under this skin was originally a man—why would I care about that sort of thing? And besides…”
She deliberately kept him hanging. Only when Lu Zheng grew impatient and was about to ask did she smile faintly, using the gentlest voice to say the vilest line.
“This trick works so well on you—it’d be a waste not to use it more.”
Hooking her lips maliciously, Yi Ning bolted out of the room. Lu Zheng could only watch helplessly as she ran off.
It wasn’t long before Yi Ning returned, holding a laptop.
“What’s that…”
Before Lu Zheng could even finish asking, Yi Ning raised her right hand, fingers together, signaling him to hush.
Then, raising the laptop high with both hands as if it were one of her evil inventions, she accompanied it with a strange chant of music as she presented it to him.
“Dun dun dun dun! An ordinary laptop!”
Ordinary?
Lu Zheng stared at the laptop, eyes doubtful.
“This…”
He pointed at it, wanting an explanation. But just like before, Yi Ning cut him off mid-sentence.
“As you can see—it’s just a regular old laptop.”
“And then?”
Lu Zheng figured she wouldn’t be joking at a time like this.
“Tch!”
Unhappy that she wasn’t getting the reaction she wanted, Yi Ning set the laptop on the coffee table, slid closer to Lu Zheng, nudged it toward him, then opened it. She pulled up a program called D-City Hero Association Monitoring Network.
Wait.
D-City Hero Association Monitoring Network?
Lu Zheng’s eyes went wide. He glanced at the taskbar at the bottom, trying to confirm whether he was seeing things.
Regrettably, no matter how many times he blinked, rubbed his eyes, or even tried a backflip before looking again, the words still read D-City Hero Association Monitoring Network.
He pointed a trembling finger at the screen. “This is…”
“Exactly. While it’s just an ordinary laptop, it has software installed that connects to your Hero Association’s monitoring network for the entire D-City.”
As if anticipating his question, Yi Ning answered before he could finish.
Lu Zheng: “?”
“Otherwise, what do you think lets me call you over right on time every day to uphold justice?”
Lu Zheng felt he ought to file a report—urge the Association to upgrade their systems regularly.
The current monitoring net was practically a public bus—any evil organization could hop on.
“Let me show you.”
Yi Ning ignored his mood. Clicking the mouse, she triggered a sharp alarm from the computer.
At the same time, a city model of D-City appeared onscreen, just like in the Hero Association branch.
A red dot marking the location of crime popped up right on Dr. Alien’s evil research base.
The very next second, Lu Zheng’s phone rang like a bell.
It was Miss Qiu Yu.
“Hello! Lu Zheng! What’s going on over there? Why did another superpower crime appear at Yi Ning’s place? Ugh—anyway, whether you’re still there or not, hurry and check it out! Ye Qin is on her way over!”
The moment he picked up, Miss Qiu Yu rattled off like a machine gun, not giving him a chance to speak.
Only when she had finished her barrage did Lu Zheng finally explain.
“…So you’re saying Yi Ning hacked our Hero Association monitoring system, then set off our alarm?”
“This thing was just upgraded yesterday!”
“It wasn’t me. I only dabble in little evil inventions. Computers—I mostly just use them for games.”
Yi Ning answered for him.
“It was Ji Ping. I only used the software he sent me.”
Even so, it was outrageous.
This monitoring system had been in place for years without a single breach, and now suddenly some nobody cracked it?
Miss Qiu Yu was already drafting a report for higher-ups.
“Relax, relax~ This software is only used internally in our I Love Savory Tofu Pudding Association. No other evil groups know about it.”
Sensing how agitated Miss Qiu Yu must be, Yi Ning tried to reassure her.
But she didn’t bother explaining further. After saying that, she hung up and turned her gaze to Lu Zheng.
After all, her top priority right now was finishing today’s evil quota.
“So, how about it? I can keep the portal to that planet open while linking into the Hero Association monitoring net. Whenever a signal comes through, I can pull you back instantly and drop you at the crime scene.”
Yi Ning gave Lu Zheng a big thumbs-up.