Chapter 277: Assassin?
After finishing his call with Lu Ming, Wang Haoran’s thoughts shifted to Ye Qiu.
Ye Qiu, tangled in lawsuits, had initially refused to bow his head. In defiance, he hired a legal team of his own to go toe-to-toe with Wang Haoran’s. With both sides locked in a costly battle, the case could have dragged on indefinitely. Top-tier lawyers didn’t come cheap, and both men had been bleeding money.
But in the end, Ye Qiu compromised.
Wang Haoran could guess why. Time, money, and frustration—none of it seemed worth it. So Ye Qiu decided to settle and apologize.
With that resolved, his main story arc could now continue. Predictably, Ye Qiu would go back to recruiting beautiful tenants again.
Naturally, Wang Haoran couldn’t allow the plot to progress that easily. For an “assassin-landlord” protagonist like Ye Qiu, his apartment was the centerpiece of the entire story. If the house itself became a problem… how could the plot advance?
While mulling it over, Tang Bingyun re-entered the hall, her voice cutting through his thoughts. “Still sitting here? Go shower.”
Wang Haoran didn’t move from the sofa. Instead, he looked up and asked, “Do you happen to know anyone from a building-inspection agency?”
“I do. Why the sudden question?” Tang Bingyun frowned slightly.
Wang Haoran improvised smoothly. “It’s nothing major. I was passing by an old residential block near the Qingling campus today and almost got hit by a chunk of falling wall tile. When I went to talk to the owner, he didn’t even apologize—he accused me of throwing a rock at his wall.” Tang Bingyun’s chest rose and fell sharply; anger flashed across her face. “Outrageous! Tell me where that man lives. I’ll make sure he ends up in jail!”
Wang Haoran waved it off. “No need. Bickering with such common folk only lowers my class. I’m just worried those buildings are too old and unsafe. They’re right next to the campus—students walk past there every day. I think a full safety inspection should be done. If they’re hazardous, have them torn down.”
Hearing that, Tang Bingyun’s opinion of him deepened.
When they first met, his courage and quick action had already made her think he was a kind, upright young man. Now, she added a new label in her heart: selfless compassion.
He’d almost been hit by falling debris, yet instead of seeking revenge, he thought about preventing future harm to others. Wasn’t that… true benevolence?
Tang Bingyun stepped closer, her fingers brushing lightly across his cheek, eyes soft with emotion.
Wang Haoran returned her gaze with a gentle smile. “So… about that inspection?”
“Leave it to me,” she said at once. “I’ll have the agency check the whole block.”
Wang Haoran nodded, then added casually, “I’ll send you the specific building that dropped the tiles later. That one looked the worst—make sure they inspect it thoroughly. Be as strict as possible.”
“You don’t even have to tell me.” Tang Bingyun gave a resolute nod. “Now go bathe. I’m still not at ease—I want to make sure you’re not hurt anywhere.”
“…?” Wang Haoran blinked at her.
A faint blush rose to Tang Bingyun’s composed face. “Go on,” she urged softly.
“Oh.” Wang Haoran gave a small nod and left her sight, heading toward the shower.
Halfway through his bath, his keen hearing picked up a faint, irregular sound.
Extending his perception, he scanned the villa with his X-ray vision—and saw someone slipping through the garden.
An assassin? Ye Qiu?
The thought came instantly. Ye Qiu was a trained killer; it wouldn’t be strange for him to seek revenge after being humiliated.
Wang Haoran could only pity him. Against his current strength, Ye Qiu would be nothing more than easy prey.
He hadn’t killed Ye Qiu yet, only because milking him for Villain Points and rewards was more profitable. A quick kill brought little benefit.
Take Lin Feng, for example—one strike, and all he’d gained was a mere thousand points and fifty Halo. Not worth it.
Still, if Ye Qiu insisted on throwing himself into the meat grinder, Wang Haoran wouldn’t hesitate to oblige.
Wait—
That figure was… a woman?
As the intruder crept closer, Wang Haoran’s expression changed. It wasn’t Ye Qiu at all.
It was Bu Feiyan.
Wrapping a towel around his waist, Wang Haoran slipped quietly out of the bathroom. Just as Bu Feiyan climbed through the open window on the second floor, he caught her by the shoulder.
Startled, she instinctively reached for the dagger at her waist, but a strange force pressed down through his grip, sapping her strength.
“Creeping around at night—what exactly are you doing here?”
In the midst of her alarm, a familiar voice reached her ears.
She turned her head, saw Wang Haoran’s face, and let out a breath of relief mixed with delight. “I knew it. Who else but you, Senior, could move like that?”
Although she knew Wang Haoran was younger than her, the world of martial cultivation respected ability over age. Out of habit and reverence, she still addressed him as Senior.
“You still haven’t answered my question,” Wang Haoran said coolly.
Bu Feiyan hesitated for a moment, then confessed honestly, “Little Chen contacted me in tears, saying you bullied him and asking me to beat you up to avenge him. But I’m no match for you, Senior, so to keep him from being upset, I just pretended to come check on you.”
She lowered her gaze slightly, a hint of shyness coloring her words. “I only meant to sneak a peek and leave quietly… I didn’t expect to get caught.”
As she spoke, her eyes flicked over him—and widened slightly.
Under the villa’s warm lighting, Wang Haoran’s bare torso glistened, the lines of his eight-pack abs casting sculpted shadows across his skin.
She froze.
Senior’s physique… is incredible.
【Ding! Host has stirred Bu Feiyan’s heart. Gained 600 Villain Points!】
【Ding! Host has stirred Bu Feiyan’s heart. Gained 600 Villain Points!】
The system chimes rang in his head, but outwardly, Wang Haoran remained composed, maintaining his aloof “Senior” demeanor.
Judging from her tone and her fifty-point favorability, she clearly meant no harm. Her words seemed genuine.
Wang Haoran let the matter slide—but he still had questions.
“Your second and eldest sisters… what are their identities?”
Earlier, Bu Feiyan had mentioned that Lin Chen asked her to fight Wang Haoran. That was fine; she posed no threat.
But what if next time, Lin Chen sent her eldest or second sister instead?
Those two heroines had yet to appear, and their power level worried him. From the seventh heroine, Qiu Qianwei, upward, each one grew stronger than the last. The third sister, Bian Suwen, and the fourth, Bu Feiyan, were already formidable martial artists.
The unseen first and second sisters had to be even stronger—especially the eldest.
Bu Feiyan blinked at him. “Senior, you’ve heard of the Hidden Dragon and Rising Phoenix Ranking, haven’t you?”