Chapter 456: You Want to Protect Her?

Pop—, the wire snapped inside the lock hole.

Xi Ren Sheng lowered his head, glanced at the half‑wire left in his hand, then at the half inside the lock hole, fell silent for a moment, and as if nothing had happened, tossed the wire in his hand into an inconspicuous corner.

He turned his head and saw Luo Jinyou looking at him with a straight, hooked stare.

Their gazes met, and Luo Jinyou instinctively glanced at the spot where Xi Ren Sheng had discarded the wire.

Silence is golden.

"It's okay," Xi Ren Sheng pretended to be nonchalant, waved his hand, and he would never lose face in front of anyone, especially not in front of this Little Ghost who was trying to steal a partner, "I have another way."

He walked toward the narrow alley beside him that could fit only one person, reached a broken window, and gave it a push.

With a creak, the whole window swung inward, and shattered glass splattered across the floor.

Xi Ren Sheng pretended not to see, leapt over the windowsill and jumped inside.

He steadied himself, then waved toward the outside, "Come in, there's no lock here."

Luo Jinyou stood outside the window, watching the floor littered with broken glass, and fell into silence.

This isn't what you'd call "no lock"; it's practically an open gateway.

He instinctively looked at Ying Duo, who merely gave him a slight gesture, probably indicating that he should go first.

Luo Jinyou's human form—actually, that's not right—he had never done such things as a human, but following Ying Duo he did everything.

This place is normally used for washing cups; Luo Jinyou steadied himself and saw Ying Duo transform into Data Stream and teleport in place, looking much more presentable than they had just been.

Xi Ren Sheng turned on the light and saw the interior of the bar, empty of people.

"Wait a moment, you two," Xi Ren Sheng headed toward the private room inside, moving quickly, while the bells kept jingling, "Hua Jian Lei is definitely sleeping in there."

Luo Jinyou, following Ying Duo, found a chair in front of the bar and sat down; in this huge abandoned bar, only the few chairs at the bar were still usable.

Ying Duo's fingers started tapping the keyboard again, looking very busy.

A huge clamor erupted from the private room, a mix of drums and gongs, mingling with Xi Ren Sheng's shout, "It's up, it's up."

Until a hoarse male voice, sounding like someone half‑asleep cursing, rang out, and Xi Ren Sheng's voice suddenly fell silent.

After a while, the private room's door was pushed open from inside, and Hua Jian Lei stepped out.

His hair was a mess, resembling a bird's nest; his silver‑powdered long hair had several knots, his coat was carelessly draped over him, the buttons were misaligned, and the white shirt underneath was wrinkled.

Completely different from his usual refined appearance, Hua Jian Lei yawned as he walked to the back of the bar, took a bottle of liquor from the cabinet, poured himself half a glass, and downed it in one gulp.

Because he drank hastily, the liquor spilled from his mouth corner, dripped down his chin onto the shirt, leaving a small dark stain.

He set the cup down, wiped his mouth corner with the back of his hand, and looked up at Ying Duo.

Under his eyes were two deep dark circles, the kind that the pixel model of Hua Jian Lei rendered.

"What happened?"

Hua Jian Lei's voice still carried a morning‑groggy tone, completely lacking his usual gentlemanly politeness.

"Did you sneak off last night?" Yang Yixie asked earnestly, noting the heavy dark circles that the model had specially added.

Hua Jian Lei rolled his eyes; with both hands braced behind him on the bar, he seemed ready to fall asleep as soon as he closed his eyes.

"I was already negotiating with the officials in reality before; as soon as I came in, I went back to negotiating with the officials."

"I'd barely just lain down, and you all showed up."

He turned his head to look at Xi Ren Sheng, whose head bore several large bumps, "I even specifically had Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Laobaozou. So Laobaozou. So Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Laobaozou. So Laobaozou. So Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Laobaozou. So Laobaozou. So Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Laobaozou. So Laobaozou. So Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Laobaozou. So Laobaozou. So Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Laobaozou. So Laobaozou. So Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Laobaozou. So Laobaozou. So Pinyin: Lǎo bàozǒu -> Laobaozou. So Laobaozou lock the door when I was running, yet it still couldn't stop the one who loves to dig dog holes."

Hua Jian Lei's gaze lingered briefly on Luo Jinyou, "Speak, what is it?"

"How much do you know about Mei Weisi?"

Ying Duo showed no concealment of his yearning for experience with Mei Weisi.

Hua Jian Lei was about to get a cigarette, but Xi Ren Sheng's quick eyes and hands immediately handed him a cigarette that he had brought from reality, the kind Hua Jian Lei smoked most often.

He didn't just bring a phone inside; he also brought a cigarette for Hua Jian Lei!

Hua Jian Lei seemed in a better mood, took out a cigarette, held it in his mouth, and a flash of white light instantly ignited it.

He took a drag and exhaled a puff of white smoke.

Well, that really…

…asked the right person.

"She likes tea, black tea, without sugar, without milk."

"Moreover, she is very picky about tea quality, only drinking tea from specific regions and specific years. She has a one‑hour break between 3 and 4 p. m. each day, during which no one may see her, not even her most trusted steward."

"She always likes wearing purple long dresses, with embellishments leaning toward yellow lace and gems; she is also very particular about outfit coordination. Did you see her dance at the banquet hall last time? Her dancing is a marvel among the aristocracy."

"Tell me something useful to me." Ying Duo said again expressionlessly, emphasizing the words "to me."

These pieces of information counted as intel in Hua Jian Lei's eyes, but they were of no use to him.

Luo Jinyou was stunned by what he heard; does this person's extensive knowledge of Mei Weisi mean he admires her?

"Mei Weisi is undoubtedly the actual power behind the Windsor family."

Hua Jian Lei merely shrugged helplessly, then got to the point.

"Moreover, her network in aristocratic circles is extensive. Although she mostly stays in her manor drinking tea, reading, and writing, she never misses gatherings of certain ladies. Using the pretext of writing detective novels, she can even legitimately enter some Dome field sites."

He paused briefly, still slipping in a personal remark.

"If you often play those character‑grooming games, she's the type whose affection is extremely hard to raise, but once you do, she unlocks a wealth of hidden storylines and rare items."

Ying Duo looked at Hua Jian Lei expressionlessly, "Do you have any leverage over her?"

"Mei Weisi isn't human; you should already know that."

Hua Jian Lei indeed spent a lot of time trying to 'court' Mei Weisi, largely because the connections she possessed also made him somewhat enamored.

"She's a very resourceful woman; the entire Windsor family is firmly in her grip, top to bottom, and no one dares to defy her wishes."

He paused, the corner of his mouth curving slightly, "But she herself is a master of slacking off."

"You have a good relationship with her?"

Ying Duo turned and asked, and although Hua Jian Lei did not state it explicitly, she constantly hinted at one meaning:

Mei Weisi can bring us benefits, and I have spent a lot of effort to win her over.