novel-bin Chapter 21: The Talkative Girl Meets the Real Guy, and Despite Her Best Efforts, She Can't Win.
Chapter 21: The Talkative Girl Meets the Real Guy, and Despite Her Best Efforts, She Can't Win.
Inside the presidential suite, the gilded clock had just passed two in the afternoon when clear sunlight streamed in through the large floor-to-ceiling windows, like a thin, honey-colored veil slowly spreading across every corner of the room. A corner of the white sheer curtains on the balcony was gently lifted by the breeze, allowing sunlight to slip through the gaps and cast dappled shadows on the dark brown solid wood floor. These shadows swayed gently with the movement of the curtains, like a group of leaping golden sprites.
Lu Mingfei sank into the large velvet sofa in the center of the room, the soft fabric enveloping him like a fluffy cloud. He clutched an iced cola in his hand, the straw twisted from biting it, taking small sips every now and then with a soft "slurp." His gaze was unfocused, yet precisely fixed on Nuonuo at the other end of the sofa, clearly waiting for her to break the silence first.
Nono's posture was even more exaggerated than his; she was practically sprawled on the sofa, her long legs casually draped over the armrests. The cup in her hand was exactly the same as Lu Mingfei's—a glass of cola with ice. She sipped it slowly, her gaze drifting towards the crystal chandelier on the ceiling. She seemed nonchalant, but didn't intend to speak first.
"What exactly do you want?" Lu Mingfei broke the silence first. This girl had followed him all the way from downstairs back to the presidential suite. When asked what was wrong, she remained silent. She was completely different from the sharp-tongued girl she was arguing with downstairs. Lu Mingfei was starting to wonder if she had multiple personalities. The girl who was arguing with him just now was a fiery little firecracker, but now she had switched to a silent and melancholic type.
Nono remained sprawled on the sofa, her long, white legs draped over the armrests, her entire body sinking into the deep blue velvet, like a crumpled red rose. She suddenly looked up, her gaze fixed directly on Lu Mingfei's face, yet seemingly looking through him to a distant horizon, her voice as soft as clouds scattered by the afternoon wind: "Tell me, what is the purpose of life?"
There was no questioning in his tone, only a blank emptiness, making it unclear whether he was asking Lu Mingfei or talking to himself.
Since last night, Nono's emotions have been like a rollercoaster, constantly being pulled in and out of extreme pleasure and shock.
First, when she learned of the Chen family's annihilation last night, she almost cheered for this gratifying outcome; the weight that had been pressing on her heart for years finally lifted. Then, today, she was shocked by Lu Mingfei's words. So, the entire Chen family was wiped out by one person all by himself?
But then, Lu Mingfei's casual remark, "Whose family creates babies?" silenced her completely. She stared at her hands for a long time; they were warm, yet she suddenly felt a chill run through her body. Nuonuo was a very smart girl; she could tell that Lu Mingfei wasn't lying, but that was precisely what made her most uneasy.
In just two days, she experienced exhilaration, shock, and astonishment; each emotion struck her heart like a heavy hammer. The impact of this external information was more intense than all her experiences in the previous ten years of her life combined.
She began to doubt whether everything she had experienced was real. Could her life have been a meticulously planned deception from the very beginning? Who was she? Was she Chen Motong, or a manufactured "product"? These questions flooded her like a tidal wave, leaving her breathless and causing her to question her life for the first time.
Lu Mingfei frowned. Based on his experience, anyone who asks a question like "What is the purpose of life?" has definitely gone into a philosophical dead end and is caught in a typical "existential crisis." At this point, talking to her about the meaning of life or ideals is like casting pearls before swine, and you might even get dragged into an emotional vortex along with her.
The best way to solve this problem is not to try to comfort her, but to find her something to do, preferably a factory assembly line, and put her in there to screw in screws all day. Let her exhaust all her energy in repetitive mechanical movements, so that when she gets off work she is too tired to even speak and just wants to collapse on the bed and sleep.
At that time, she will definitely have an epiphany: what profound meaning does living need? Being able to lie on a soft sofa like this, idly thinking about whatever comes to mind, without having to stay up all night to meet deadlines or being pressured by her team leader, is simply a blessing from her past life.
"I have two ways to solve your current predicament," Lu Mingfei said slowly, holding up two fingers and waving them in front of Nuonuo.
"What method?" Nono asked, her eyes still fixed on the ceiling.
"First, I'll send you to the factory to tighten screws. You'll naturally find enlightenment there and understand the true meaning of life." Lu Mingfei said this with great seriousness, and then paused, seemingly waiting for Nuonuo's reaction.
"No need, no need," Nono quickly waved her hand, putting her legs down from the armrest and rubbing them. Her calves were a little numb from being pressed down for too long. "What's the second option?"
"Secondly, I will take you on an in-depth exploration and research into the process of newborn life, which will surely help you get out of this depressed state immediately." Lu Mingfei remained expressionless, his tone as serious as if he were announcing hope Yao's academic topic.
Nono stared at his serious face, almost laughing in exasperation. She rolled her eyes and said, "Come on, you're so serious. You just want to sleep with me, don't you? All this fancy stuff, like you're giving an academic presentation. You're something else."
"Then there's nothing I can do. You'll have to deal with it yourself." Lu Mingfei shrugged, stopped talking, and lowered his head again, focusing on sipping the cola in his glass, the ice cubes making a crisp sound as they hit the glass.
After a while, Lu Mingfei was drinking cola and browsing the internet on his phone when he suddenly felt a cool sensation on his leg, and something soft touched him.
Lu Mingfei paused for a moment, slowly shifting his gaze from the phone screen and looking down—Nuonuo had somehow adjusted her posture, placing her long, smooth legs on his lap, a faint warmth emanating from where their skin touched.
He subconsciously looked up along her calves, down to her smooth thighs, her slender waist, and her delicate collarbones, before finally fixing his gaze on Nuonuo's face. The confusion in her eyes was gone, replaced by a familiar mischievousness, as she looked at him with a half-smile.
"What do you want to do?" Lu Mingfei asked, puzzled.
"If you're willing to tell me the truth, I don't mind rewarding you with a little something." Nono revealed a foxy smile, and as she spoke, her smooth little leg gently rubbed against Lu Mingfei's lower abdomen.
"Heh, you don't think I'm some kind of repressed star, do you? You think you can get information out of your mouth with such a small trick? You're too green. Go back and cultivate for a few hundred years before you come back." Lu Mingfei sneered, then suddenly uttered a single word: "One."
"One? What do you mean?" Nuonuo didn't quite understand the word, but she grasped his sarcasm. She immediately raised an eyebrow and challenged him: "You can remain unmoved even with a beauty by your side? Lu Mingfei, are you perhaps impotent?"
"Two." Lu Mingfei didn't respond to her words, and simply uttered another word.
Nuonuo became increasingly suspicious, assuming he was just faking it, so she became bolder and rubbed her calves against him, about to touch a sensitive spot—the next second, a strong and powerful hand suddenly grabbed her ankle, accompanied by Lu Mingfei's voice: "Three."
Seeing Nuonuo's blank expression, he finally explained, "As the saying goes, 'Once is enough, twice is bad, but three times is not.' Yet you've provoked me time and time again. Just because I haven't shown my teeth doesn't mean I'm a pushover! Now I'm going to execute you right here and now!"
Before he could finish speaking, he grabbed Nuonuo's ankle and gently pulled her in front of him. Nuonuo was startled by this, and seeing that his eyes weren't joking, she panicked and hurriedly reached out to push him away.
"Hey, wait, I was just kidding... Don't pull my clothes off... Wait... I have a boyfriend... Waaah..." Nono's mouth was covered halfway through her sentence, and she could only make whimpering sounds.
"Begging for mercy now? Too late! I'll show you that provoking a god comes at a price! You wretched brat, Nono, take this!" The red-haired little witch had completely ignited Master Lu's anger; there was no way he would let her go this time! So what if she has a boyfriend? Master Lu likes her even more!
The sounds in the room gradually changed, from the initial panicked pleas for mercy to the low moans with a trembling tone, and finally to lingering panting, which, along with the warmth of the afternoon sun, filled the entire space.