"She didn’t know, but that didn’t matter."
Zhou Wang shook his head, smirking, "Stop pretending, you’re not that angry, are you?"
"I..."
Chen He’s face contorted with struggle, but ultimately, faced with a promising bright future within reach, he sat down dejectedly, lowering his head.
"Alright, Mr. Zhou, I understand, I’ll find an excuse to break up with Xiaoxi soon."
"No, no, you misunderstood, I never said you two had to break up, my demand is just... you can’t touch her anymore."
Zhou Wang shook his head.
"?"
Unable to comprehend, Chen He stared blankly at Zhou Wang.
Could this be some kind of peculiar quirk of Zhou Wang?
Damn, playing the game even better than me...
"You don’t need to worry about what I’m thinking, I’ve already stated, there’s no need for you to break up with her, keep things as they were before, maintain the status quo until... the day she leaves you voluntarily, our agreement will be voided."
Zhou Wang knew his request might cause Chen He to overthink, but there was no other way, since he had already made the choice, he could only continue down this path.
He hadn’t closely examined the round’s reward mechanism yet, but the "Demon" had already made its demand—
Ji Xiaoxi must awaken voluntarily, realize her true self, and offer everything of hers to Zhou Wang.
Although it wasn’t explicitly stated, Zhou Wang obviously couldn’t actively shatter the girl’s remaining beautiful fantasies of love; those were her highlights and would also be her "shackles."
Ahem, this was partly why Zhou Wang hadn’t gone overboard in the maternity room.
He was always greedy.
Whether it was with the senior from before or with Xiaomei now.
He wanted the person, he wanted the soul... and he certainly couldn’t miss out on the rewards.
"Well then, okay, Mr. Zhou, I understand, I will keep things as they are with Xiaoxi, but I won’t touch her even with a finger, and I’ll try to avoid being alone with her."
Having already bent, Chen He became forthright, readily agreeing.
In fact, after moving past the initial anger caused by humiliation, Chen He reconsidered and thought it wasn’t a big deal...
After all, he’d been pursuing Ji Xiaoxi for two years and had been together for less than half a year, he hadn’t gained much from her either, given Ji Xiaoxi’s conservative and difficult nature, he didn’t know how much effort it would take to overcome the obstacles.
Of course, he was reluctant, since he couldn’t say he didn’t like his girlfriend, but for a broader future and a wider forest, he had to let go...
At this moment, Chen He even thought, though he couldn’t touch Ji Xiaoxi anymore, he had to treat her even better.
Why?
Because Mr. Zhou said the transaction between them would last until Ji Xiaoxi voluntarily broke up with him.
So he had to make this time as long as possible, that way, he could continuously get benefits from Zhou Wang...
Zhou Wang didn’t know Chen He’s thoughts, even if he knew he wouldn’t care, he wasn’t worried Ji Xiaoxi would be utterly devoted to Chen He, once the "Hidden Round" was triggered, Ji Xiaoxi was destined to be unable to escape, the only difference was just the manner in which she would succumb to Zhou Wang...
As if to validate his words, Zhou Wang immediately took out his phone and called Zhang Shihao.
"Hello, Second Brother, not resting yet... Haha, here’s the thing, has the cast of ’Chu Tianyao’ Season 2 been decided... Mm-hmm, the third male role will do... Alright, OK."
After hanging up, amidst Chen He’s hopeful expression, Zhou Wang promptly called Mr. Ma of Daxia Film and Television.
As one of the investors, Wuyou Media naturally had a say in casting a supporting role, so Zhou Wang only needed to mention it to Zhang Shihao, calling Mr. Ma was purely out of human courtesy.
After finishing the call with the warmly amicable Mr. Ma, Zhou Wang put down his phone and said blandly, "It’s settled, the casting director from the crew should contact you tomorrow."
Actually, the casts for "Chu Tianyao" had been finalized, initially, an up-and-coming actor from the entertainment industry was set to play the third male role, someone had sought Zhang Shihao’s help through personal connections.
But since Zhou Wang brought it up, Zhang Shihao gave the role to Zhou Wang, as for personal favors, Zhang Shihao would naturally make other arrangements to appease them.
Such matters were significant yet not too significant, they were just supporting roles in a web drama, neither Zhang Shihao nor Mr. Ma would take it to heart, nor would they find Zhou Wang’s impromptu request abrupt, after all, in Zhang Shihao’s original plan, he even wanted Zhou Wang to appoint a "second leading female"...
To Chen He, even though he watched Zhou Wang make the calls, he still felt somewhat surreal.
The role he had struggled to land for several months was confirmed in mere minutes over two phone calls from Zhou Wang, casually done in jovial conversation.
In that moment, aspirations emerged within Chen He’s heart once again...
The kind of influence Zhou Wang wielded with just a wave of his hand was truly the life he aspired to pursue!
He needed to tightly cling to Mr. Zhou’s support, not necessarily to reach Zhou’s level, but at the very least, he couldn’t remain a small figure easily manipulated by others.
"Mr. Zhou, a toast to you!"
Regaining his senses, Chen He continuously expressed his gratitude while raising a glass from the table.
After their toast, the private room door opened, and Ji Xiaoxi finally returned.
On the surface, she seemed fairly normal, although her makeup had faded quite a bit, and there was a slight awkwardness to her walking, but it wasn’t overtly noticeable.
Ji Xiaoxi stopped at the door, looking at the two who were toasting and talking, as if unable to comprehend.
Chen He, do you know what I just went through, and here you are, toasting Zhou Wang...
"Xiaoxi, you’re finally back, sit down, haha, Mr. Zhou just shared some interesting stories from the Wuyou Night, are you interested?"
"I’m tired, Chen He, I want to go home."
Ji Xiaoxi shook her head, staying by the door, eyelids low, unwilling to approach them.
"Ah, why so sudden, Xiaoxi, didn’t you say you just needed to be home before eleven..."
"I don’t feel well, I want to leave now!"
Suddenly agitated, Ji Xiaoxi raised her voice a bit.
"Uh, Xiaoxi, let me take you home then..."
"No need, you enjoy your drinks."
With that, Ji Xiaoxi turned and left, bag in hand.
For a moment, Chen He stood there awkwardly, glancing back and forth between the private room’s door and Zhou Wang, looking somewhat embarrassed.
"Go see her off, make sure she gets home safely, you don’t need to worry about the bill, I’ll cover it."
Zhou Wang took a sip of his wine calmly and said.
"Alright, Mr. Zhou, I’ll be off then!"
Chen He didn’t pretend any longer, replied, and quickly left.
...
The total bill came to 6276 yuan, including a 20% service charge and a 200 yuan tip, Zhou Wang settled it, and under Manager Dan’s escort, he leisurely left Po Restaurant.
Miao Ying had already driven the Rolls-Royce Phantom to the entrance, dressed in a professional outfit, she stood beside the car elegantly and energetically under the night sky.
"Seems I forgot to look after you, Ying Tao, have you eaten?"
When Miao Ying helped him open the car door, Zhou Wang remembered something, tapping his forehead, he asked Miao Ying.
"Eaten, the restaurant manager sent me a simple meal..."
Miao Ying nodded.
Zhou Wang paused, then felt relieved, some people could be a Michelin restaurant manager after all...
After sending a WeChat message to Manager Dan to thank him again, Zhou Wang settled into the extremely comfortable and enveloping rear seat of the Rolls-Royce, and the vehicle gradually set off, turning into the street under the brilliant lights of Hang City, heading towards Taoyuan.
Zhou Wang leaned into the back seat, gazing somewhat vacantly at the starlit ceiling... he had immersed his consciousness into the system interface.
He hadn’t had the chance to check earlier, but now he had the time to investigate what exactly was the reward mechanism for the second hidden round.
[Ji Xiaoxi’s Desire Roulette: Each time the bound individual loses themselves in desire, the Host receives a chance to spin the roulette, any reward from the roulette will take effect on the bound individual]
[Current number of draws: 1]
To take effect on the reward subject?
With some curiosity, Zhou Wang directly used the one and only draw opportunity.
Ding!
[Host’s luck is extraordinary, triggering Golden Legend (1% probability)]
[Ji Xiaoxi receives: "Gulfstream G650 Series Business Jet" 1-yuan purchase privilege]
[Note: This privilege activates only in Ji Xiaoxi’s presence]