In the bridal room, Li Banfeng had Light Bulb sit on the bed first.
Light Bulb was very nervous. He wanted to lift the red bridal veil, but Li Banfeng refused.
As expected, after they sat silently for a moment, and before Li Banfeng could ask anything, Light Bulb took the initiative to speak.
"Are you Li Qi? If you are, please respond."
Li Banfeng didn’t speak.
Light Bulb sobbed and said, "Seventh Master, I was foolish. I didn’t understand the seriousness of things, didn’t know my limits. I went to Xiaoyao Lodge without even greeting you. I just wanted to watch Jiang Mengting’s concert. I didn’t have a ticket, so I could only stand at the door. I definitely didn’t mean anything else."
Li Banfeng smiled. "You like listening to songs so much? I’ll find you a job at Xiaoyao Lodge. You can listen to songs every night without needing a ticket."
Light Bulb cried, "You’re too kind, Seventh Master. Xiaoyao Lodge has no use for someone like me. Whatever mistakes I made before, they’re all my fault. I’ve suffered so much; consider it my punishment.
"Seventh Master, if you’re still not appeased, just hit me a couple more times. If that’s not enough, keep hitting me until you are. Please, just spare my life!"
Li Banfeng was somewhat surprised. When he first saw Light Bulb in school, he remembered the kid wasn’t very articulate and got nervous when speaking, giving Li Banfeng the chance to attack. Later, when he encountered Light Bulb at Xiaoyao Lodge, he felt he had matured a bit but still wasn’t very good at speaking. Having not seen him for a while, Light Bulb had changed quite a bit. His words were smooth, and Li Banfeng enjoyed listening to them.
He had to be smooth. At Hunter Camp, even though Shen Xueyong looked out for him, he had to speak clearly to others; otherwise, it could cause unnecessary misunderstandings. These were lessons learned through blood and tears.
Li Banfeng said, "Letting you go to Xiaoyao Lodge is for your own good. You’re fair-skinned and your eyes are captivating. Practice for a few days, and who knows, you might become a star singer."
"I’m not cut out for that, Seventh Master!"
"How do you know if you don’t try? Being a star singer pays much more than the Dark Star Bureau."
Even if Li Qi had mentioned the Defense Agency, Light Bulb could have argued for a while longer. But Li Qi had mentioned the Dark Star Bureau, so there was no point in arguing further.
After a moment of silence, Light Bulb sighed. "You know everything about me, so it’s no use hiding anything.
"I’m from the Dark Star Bureau. The higher-ups dispatched me to Puluo State for further training. I don’t know anything. They ordered me to monitor you at Xiaoyao Lodge, so I went. But I ended up in your hands.
"I’m just a flunky at the Dark Star Bureau and still a flunky at the Defense Agency. Whatever others tell me to do, I do. Seventh Master, please spare my life."
Li Banfeng lit a cigarette. "I can spare you. I invited you to work at Xiaoyao Lodge. Do you accept or not?"
"Seventh Master, don’t joke. I really can’t be a star singer!"
"It’s okay if you don’t become a singer. In the future, you can be my insider informant."
"Uh..." Light Bulb was stunned for a long time.
"What do you mean by insider informant?"
"What else could it mean? Whether you’re with the Dark Star Bureau or the Defense Agency, if you learn anything about me, you need to inform me ahead of time. Can you do that?"
Light Bulb shook his head repeatedly. "Seventh Master, you’re asking me to be a spy. I don’t have the guts for that. If you really push me this far, you might as well kill me."
"Killing you won’t do. There are a lot of people outside waiting to spend the wedding night with you," Li Banfeng said, getting up to leave.
Light Bulb shouted, "Seventh Master, don’t go! I agree, isn’t that enough?"
Li Banfeng stopped. "What did you agree to? I didn’t hear you clearly."
"Whatever you say, I agree to!"
"Everyone outside is my brothers. I want you to spend the wedding night with them. Do you agree to that?"
"I can’t agree to that. What I agreed to is being an insider informant."
Li Banfeng asked with a smile, "Say it more clearly. What exactly about being an insider informant?"
Light Bulb enunciated carefully, "I’ll be your insider informant. Whether it’s the Dark Star Bureau or the Defense Agency, if there’s news about you, I’ll inform you right away."
Li Banfeng brought out a piece of Contract Paper and wrote a Contract Book, having Light Bulb press his fingerprint.
Light Bulb said, "I’ve already pressed my fingerprint. At least let me see what’s written on the Contract Book."
"No rush, you’ll have plenty of time to look later," Li Banfeng said as he lifted Light Bulb’s red bridal veil. "From today on, you are my man."
Light Bulb shivered. "Seventh Master, what are you going to do?"
Li Banfeng said, "I’m going to teach you some words. You must remember them well. One mistake, and you’re dead."
「...」
In the Defense Agency, Xia Shumin, holding a document, went to Liao Zihui’s office. "Chief Envoy, some things can’t be concealed anymore. The Dark Star Bureau knows Light Bulb is missing and is demanding an explanation from us."
Liao Zihui didn’t even lift his head. "I’m aware of the situation. Just leave the document here."
Xia Shumin felt something was off.
"Chief Envoy, the Dark Star Bureau is pressing hard. We have to at least give them some response. My phone is about to explode with calls."
"Phone?" Liao Zihui looked startled. "You can still make phone calls?"
Xia Shumin had let it slip. In Puluo State, phones were inoperable. One had to use special communication devices to contact the Outside Provinces.
He quickly tried to cover up. "They contacted me through communication devices."
"Using our Agency’s devices or your own?" Liao Zihui watched Xia Shumin. "If it’s our Agency’s devices, I should be aware of it. If it’s your own device, that would be a problem. Using private communication devices violates our Agency’s rules."