Chapter 166 : Chapter 166
Chapter 166: Both Sides Take Action
“Still no signal.”
Miss Qiu Yu sat alone in the Hero Association, frowning at the long list of failed calls on her phone.
It was already 6 p.m. By now, Lu Zheng would typically have returned to the association, and the two of them would be enjoying a rare moment of peace and quiet together.
But now—not only had Lu Zheng not come back, his phone couldn’t even be reached.
Miss Qiu Yu didn’t know how many times she had scrolled through her call history.
Including Yi Ning.
Any call to either of them went straight to “out of service area.”
What was going on?
How could she be unable to reach both of them?
Qiu Yu couldn’t help but recall the moment she had seen Lu Zheng and Yi Ning together in front of that love hotel.
Could it be that the two of them had secretly gone off to…
“Mmm—”
Qiu Yu shook her head vigorously, trying to chase the thought out of her mind.
No way…
There was no way Lu Zheng would go open a room with someone he had only known for a few weeks.
Besides, that person had originally been a guy.
And even if they had planned to do something like that, Lu Zheng would definitely finish his assigned mission first before going anywhere. That’s just the kind of person he was!
Qiu Yu’s rational mind quickly gathered every reason to disprove her earlier theory.
But for some reason, even though logic told her the chance of such a thing happening was less than 0.1%, she couldn’t stop replaying the image of Lu Zheng and Yi Ning standing outside that hotel. Or the words Yi Ning had once said to her:
“In the end, you’re just an outsider…”
Her heart felt like a knocked-over spice rack—bittersweet, salty, sour, all mixed together.
“Aaaahhhh!”
“Bang!”
Qiu Yu clutched her head and wailed, slamming the table to shake off the thoughts and jumping to her feet.
She needed to do something.
She couldn’t just sit around waiting!
All these years, Lu Zheng had never vanished without a word like this. Something was definitely off.
Qiu Yu straightened her clothes, took a large stride from her desk, determined to look for clues herself.
As she passed by Lu Zheng’s desk, she couldn’t help but stop and run her fingers over the surface.
Her thoughts drifted once again to Ye Qin’s early advice.
If only she’d taken Ye Qin’s suggestion at the start… pushed Lu Zheng down directly and turned things physical—would that have been better?
“…Sigh.”
She let out a quiet sigh.
If she were truly capable of such a bold move, she wouldn’t be here now—imagining her beloved entering a hotel with another woman and wallowing in self-pity.
Qiu Yu shook her head.
After double-checking that the Hero Association’s internal defenses were activated, ensuring basic safety in her absence, she threw on a jacket and temporarily left the building.
…
Elsewhere.
At almost the same time—The headquarters of the I Love Savory Tofu Pudding Association.
Xia An and Ji Ping, both fully recovered thanks to the Evil Organization’s world-class medical care, sat in front of the large transmission screen Yi Ning usually used. They scrolled through their phones, bored.
Not far away, seated exactly ten meters from Xia An, was their boss—Gu Ke, enjoying the meticulous service of her attendants.
Having been turned into a girl by Yi Ning, Gu Ke had discovered an entirely new world of luxury and indulgence.
She was waited on hand and foot by adorable girls. She had all the food and clothes she could want. Money flowed without limits.
In short: Life was good. Who cares about that brat anymore?
“Hey, Boss Lady!”
Xia An lifted her head from the table and turned toward Gu Ke, pointing at the time on her phone.
“What?” Gu Ke lazily opened her eyes from her pampered state.
“Ack—!”
Before she could fully sit up, Gu Ke felt herself wobble—nearly falling from her chair. She grabbed the armrest for support.
Because Xia An had moved, she and Gu Ke were now less than ten meters apart.
Immediately, one of Gu Ke’s attendants lifted the chair she was sitting on and scooted it back to reestablish a proper distance between them.
“This ridiculous rule is way overboard! She just shifted a bit—what’s with the whole operation?”
Gu Ke glared at her attendant.
The sudden movement had nearly knocked her over, and her skirt had briefly revealed her teddy bear patterned panties.
“My apologies. Madam’s orders,” the attendant said softly, quickly moving to block any unwanted view and shooting Xia An a fierce glare.
“Tch!”
Busted, Xia An clicked her tongue.
Like she cared about seeing those childish things?
“Look at you. I was just laughing at our mighty boss’s immaturity.”
As she spoke, Xia An lifted her own skirt, revealing her lace panties.
“See? This is what I’m into. Sexy stuff only—kidswear doesn’t interest me.”
She hooked a finger under one side and flicked it teasingly.
The elastic snapped back with a crisp “snap.”
Ji Ping, seated beside her, stared at the floor and meditated—visibly trembling. He dared not look. He felt like he didn’t belong.
Should I not have dodged that Girlification Gun back then?
The thought crept into Ji Ping’s mind.
“Cut it out! Keep going and I’m docking your pay!”
Gu Ke accepted a candy from her attendant, pinching it like a cigarette and popping it into her mouth.
“Like it was my choice, anyway. My dear mother picked these for me!”
She slumped in her chair, expression melancholic.
Indeed—Just like the flower language of a certain steel-wool ball: beneath luxury lies quiet suffering.
“Sigh…”
Gu Ke sighed deeply.
“Let’s get back to business.”
Xia An's tone turned serious.
“Boss Lady, it’s already 6 p.m. Yi Ning still hasn’t reported in. And I can’t get through on the phone either. In my opinion, something’s definitely off.”
Gu Ke thought for a moment.
That was indeed suspicious.
Yi Ning had never gone this long without contact before.
Then again…
“Couldn’t she have gone off to open a hotel room with that hero she’s been messing with lately? Maybe they’re having so much fun they’re ignoring your calls.”
“Boss, we’re talking about Yi Ning, not Xia An.”
After hours of feeling out of place, Ji Ping finally spoke up.
“…You’ve got a point.”
Gu Ke admitted after two seconds.
They had known Yi Ning for years. They understood what kind of person she was.
Sure, she was a bastard deep to the bone, but with her natural evil flair and decent looks, she had always been quite popular at school. People confessed to her all the time—juniors, seniors—you name it.
None of them had ever succeeded.
“Alright then, here’s the plan. Wait for now.”
“If there’s still no message from Yi Ning by tomorrow…”
She scanned her available henchmen, then settled her gaze on Xia An.
“…you’ll go to D-City and check things out. See if anything’s gone wrong.”
“Remember—bring her back alive, or bring her back dead!”
Xia An made an “OK” gesture with a smirk.
“Roger that.”