Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Lotus Root and Seafood Porridge, Mosto Buns, and Golden Thread Noodles.

In mere seconds, Bai Luming’s mind replayed the breakfast menu this gentleman had proposed, along with his earlier, rather charitable, assessment of Bai Luming’s cozy home as a "warehouse."

Bai Luming managed a smile that could only be described as amiable: "Are you easy to care for?"

He used the most polite form of address and acted with utmost courtesy, yet it was enough to convey the unspoken message: *Do you really think I’d believe that?*

"Yes, easy to care for," He Yilan replied with a polite, measured smile. "I just need a place to stay, so I won’t end up on the streets."

Bai Luming reminded him, "There’s only plain fare here, like what you had this morning."

He Yilan: "Yes, I’ve tried it. The taste is acceptable."

Bai Luming: "And there aren’t many fancy clothes for you to change into."

He Yilan: "That’s fine. I can borrow your clothes. I quite like this style of dressing."

Bai Luming pointed behind He Yilan, getting to the crucial point: "Also—I only have one bed at home."

He Yilan replied: "I know. I tried it last night. It felt quite comfortable to sleep in."

Three replies in a row, just as before, demonstrated He Yilan’s exceptional composure.

Bai Luming raised an eyebrow slightly: "Actually, I like men. With just the two of us alone in one room, and with a face like yours, I can’t guarantee I won't..."

"Put it on my tab. At most six months, I’ll pay you back tenfold."

He Yilan spoke slowly, cutting in at just the right moment. Calmly meeting his gaze, he added, "During my stay, I’ll adapt to the living habits here, not disrupt your routine, and comply with any reasonable requests you have."

Putting aside the other conditions, Bai Luming clearly registered the phrase "tenfold repayment."

He fell into a brief hesitation.

Bai Luming was painfully aware of his current financial situation. Moreover, He Yilan had a complicated background and unclear motives for hiding his identity—too many variables.

But then again, Bai Luming had always been known as an opportunist. Missing out on a tenfold return on investment would be a once-in-a-lifetime regret.

Bai Luming’s eyes scanned He Yilan up and down several times, various thoughts flashing through his mind. Suddenly, he had a new idea about how to handle the person in front of him.

He broke into a sunny, welcoming smile: "Are you sure you can comply with all my requests?"

He Yilan emphasized the key point: "Within reasonable limits."

"Reasonable, absolutely reasonable." Bai Luming crossed his arms, leaning lazily against the wall behind him. Instead of answering directly, he pushed the decision back to him: "Let me be blunt. I definitely can’t afford to support a man without compensation. But I own a repair shop at home. If you’re willing to work there, staying might be something I can reluctantly consider."

He Yilan heard this term for the first time: "Work? Me?"

"Your wages can offset part of the expenses. The rest, as you said, will be settled within six months."

As he spoke, Bai Luming thoughtfully offered another option: "Of course, if you don’t like working at the repair shop, you could also work at the bar downstairs. From what Brother Charlie said, his customers seem quite interested in you. If you’re interested, he’d be very welcoming."

He Yilan recalled the conversation he’d overheard that morning and smiled ambiguously: "The bar? Entertaining customers?"

Bai Luming glanced at his face and confirmed: "You’d be quite a hit."

He Yilan asked sincerely: "What if I choose neither?"

Bai Luming shrugged, his tone regretful: "Then I’m sorry. This place is too small—I can’t even afford to keep a stray cat or dog. If that’s unacceptable, you’ll probably have to pack up and find another way."

He appeared to be leaving the choice entirely up to He Yilan, but He Yilan saw through it clearly: this person had blatantly set a trap and placed it right in front of him, waiting for him to jump in.

It seemed like the choice was his, but if he refused, he’d likely face troubles many times worse than his current situation.

In reality, he never had a better option from the start.

He had intended to take advantage of someone, but now it seemed he was the one being taken advantage of.

He Yilan hadn’t been openly manipulated like this in a long time. He stared fixedly at Bai Luming, his eyebrow twitching slightly: "Is this what you meant by being responsible for me?"

Facing the question, Bai Luming answered without a hint of shame: "As long as the payment is settled, I’ll take full responsibility."

The two locked eyes.

After a brief silence, He Yilan gave his answer: "I’ll choose the repair shop."

Bai Luming instantly broke into a radiant smile: "I knew you'd make the smart choice."

That’s more like it!

Mr. He Tenfold came from Zhong Sheng Machinery, which exclusively served the Qingke Corps—what a rare find as an employee!

In Bai Luming’s dictionary, there was no such thing as letting someone walk in and out unscathed. Since he was here, he ought to pay a small price in return.

Having gotten what he wanted, Bai Luming smoothly switched his tone: "Although I like men, and with just the two of us alone in one room, and with a face like yours, I can’t guarantee I won’t cross the line—but I’ll do my best to control myself. From today on, we’ll have a strictly professional work relationship. I’m sure we’ll become the most compatible roommates."

As he spoke, Bai Luming straightened up from the wall, adapting quickly to his new role: "Happy living together. You probably haven’t eaten all day, right? Let me take a shower, and then I’ll take you out for a late-night snack. Remember, no peeking, new roommate."

He Yilan glanced at him: "Don’t worry, I won’t."

As the worn door closed, the sound of shower water soon echoed from the poorly soundproofed bathroom.

Faintly, the melody of a cheerful whistling could be heard.

He Yilan’s gaze lingered on the closed door for a long moment before he finally looked away, gently rubbing his still-throbbing wound.

Unfamiliar with his surroundings, he didn’t dare wander around and had stayed in the attic all day. Because of that, aside from breakfast, he hadn’t eaten anything. For someone injured, this was not ideal at all. Fortunately, the owner of the attic hadn’t returned too late.

It was a decent outcome.

From now on, "repair shop worker" would be his new identity.

A short while later, Bai Luming finished his shower.

A loose T-shirt draped over his upper body obscured his toned musculature. Water droplets trailed from his silver-white hair, trickling down his neck and into his collar.

As he walked, Bai Luming dried his damp hair with a towel. Glancing at He Yilan’s noticeably paler complexion, he shook his head mentally.

Mr. He Tenfold was refined and fragile, after all.

He abandoned the idea of going downstairs to eat together, pulled out his communicator, opened a food delivery app, carefully selected a meal, and placed an order.

Soon, the small attic’s square table was graced with a sumptuous meal that could easily be considered nutritious and luxurious in the lower district.

A roommate needed to be properly provided for—onefold investment, tenfold return.

Besides, the guy was currently injured. He needed extra nutrition to recover faster.

Bai Luming glanced at his nearly depleted account balance, made a note in the ledger, and quietly patted himself on the back for a job well done.

He Yilan watched Bai Luming’s mercenary look, smirked to himself, and unapologetically enjoyed the lavish dinner.

As night deepened, two tall figures stood side by side, facing the bed.

Although they had already shared the same bed the previous night, as a courtesy, Bai Luming considerately asked his roommate for his opinion: “How do you plan to sleep today?”

He Yilan: “How do you want to sleep?”

Bai Luming found the reply amusing: “If you’re going to put it that way, does it mean I can sleep however I want?”

He Yilan was very accommodating: “Anything is fine.”

Bai Luming blurted out: “Even if I want to sleep with you? Uh…”

Bai Luming had a habit of speaking without a filter, and only after speaking did he realize how inappropriate it sounded, almost like harassment.

He cleared his throat, about to backtrack, when he heard He Yilan reply calmly: “Sure, as long as… you can bring yourself to take advantage of a severely injured patient who’s still running a fever.”

“…” Bai Luming stared at He Yilan for a moment, then solemnly patted his shoulder, giving him the highest praise: “I like you. You have even less shame than I do.”

Not just shameless, but also a real piece of work.

He tossed the quilt onto the bed, and drew a symbolic line down the middle with his finger: “Same as yesterday. I’ll sleep on the inside, you sleep on the outside.”

He Yilan: “Okay.”

Bai Luming had thought someone like He Yilan wouldn’t be used to such shabby conditions, but surprisingly, He Yilan adapted even better than he did. Whether due to his low fever or other reasons, his breathing evened out as he fell asleep.

The small bed was already a tight fit for two lanky men. Bai Luming lay there, feeling the warmth radiating from He Yilan’s body pressed against his. He adjusted his position and turned over, his peripheral vision caught the profile beside him.

Set against hair so dark it almost blended into the night, He Yilan’s face, which usually seemed amiable when he spoke, now appeared cold and distant with his eyes lightly closed.

Undoubtedly, a master of disguise.

And the kind of hunter who lulls others into letting their guard down before striking a fatal blow.

Bai Luming recalled his first impression of this man years ago—not a good person.

Meeting again, the impression remained the same.

But it didn’t matter. After all, he wasn’t exactly a saint either.

*

Early the next morning, Bai Luming glanced at the still-sleeping He Yilan, went downstairs to buy breakfast, left it on the table, made a note in the ledger, then grabbed his backpack and headed out.

This breakfast had cleaned out his last savings.

He was supposed to stay at the shop repairing mechas today, but after last night, plans had changed. Now that he had someone to care for, the top priority was solving their immediate food and shelter issues.

Bai Luming stayed at the repair shop for a few hours before closing up and heading straight to the black market—the parts store owned by the shopkeeper he’d contacted yesterday was there.

Following the faded, worn-out address markers, Bai Luming quickly found the parts store.

He had occasionally picked up goods for Lu Wuchen before and was somewhat familiar with the parts store owners. Without much small talk, he set the package he’d brought on the counter: “Here, boss, take a look?”

The shopkeeper stared blankly at the package: “What’s this?”

“We agreed on the call yesterday—if I had the goods, I’d bring them for you to buy back.” Bai Luming patted the backpack lightly. “So, here’s one for inspection.”

The shopkeeper was still confused: “Buy back what?”

“The substitute for the JI-087 thruster!” Bai Luming was concerned about the shopkeeper’s memory. “As for the price… I’m about to run out of food and need money urgently. I’m not even asking for 60% off. Since it’s our first deal, just offer what you think is fair! If it goes well, we can discuss other orders in the future.”

Even then, the shopkeeper couldn’t believe it: “A substitute for the JI-087? You actually assembled it?!”

Under Bai Luming’s encouraging gaze, he hesitantly unzipped the backpack. When he saw what was inside, his eyes nearly popped out of his head: “Th-this… you assembled this?”

“Yes, yes, I really assembled it. It’s my work.” Bai Luming patiently answered each question, then glanced at the time. “How about we test its performance first? If there are no issues, I’ll need payment on the spot. I’m not kidding, Uncle—I really am about to run out of food.”

“Sure, sure, right away! I’ll test it right now!” The shopkeeper, having operated here for years, knew his stuff. At first glance, he could tell the thruster was genuine and immediately took it into the back for performance testing.

Bai Luming waited idly, hearing a commotion from the other end of the market. A crowd had gathered, though he couldn’t tell what was happening.

Soon, the shopkeeper returned with the thruster, looking at Bai Luming with entirely new respect: “It’s been tested—performance is flawless. Not just a substitute—some data points are even more stable than the JI-087 thruster! Lu Ming, you’re something else! Did Lao Lu teach you? With skills like this, you’ll never have to worry about making a living again!”

Bai Luming went with the flow: “Ah, yes, Lao Lu taught me. He left me plenty of blueprints. I’ll try others when I get the chance.”

The shopkeeper was moved: “A father’s foresight is indeed profound…”

“Yes, profound indeed!” Bai Luming nodded in agreement, then asked, “So, about the price—how are you planning to buy it back?”

“Ah? Price?” The shopkeeper snapped out of his reverie. “Oh, right. Since I agreed, I’ll take it at 60% of the market price as discussed. You need money urgently, right? I’ll transfer it to you now.”

“Great!” Bai Luming beamed. “Just deduct the advance you gave me for the parts and transfer the rest to my account. Thanks, Uncle! Let’s work together again soon!”

The shopkeeper smiled: “Definitely! We must work together again!”

“Ding—!”

Hearing the notification of the transfer, Bai Luming smiled with satisfaction. Only then did he think to ask: “By the way, Uncle, what’s been going on around here lately? The black market seems pretty lively.”

“You don’t know?” The shopkeeper glanced toward the noisy crowd and lowered his voice. “The Pei family up top has been making moves lately. Rumor has it they’ve already taken over all the repair shops in the upper city. Their people have been patrolling our market these past few days, buying up a lot of stuff. Who knows what those rich folks are up to? Speaking of which, you should be careful too. Your family runs a repair shop—don’t let them target you.”

“Is that so? I’ll be careful.” Bai Luming thought to himself that they’d probably already been targeted back when Lao Lu was around, but he didn’t say it out loud.

What did the Pei family or any other family matter to him? Eating and sleeping were his top priorities now.

After signing the transaction slip with the shopkeeper, Bai Luming left satisfied.

Seeing Bai Luming off, the shopkeeper also contentedly placed the newly acquired thruster in the most prominent spot in his store.

Looking up, he saw two people in military uniforms entering and immediately smiled warmly as he greeted them: “Colonel, long time no see. Here to purchase parts?”

“Yes, here’s the list. Take a look.”

The visitor was Liang Deng, a colonel from the garrison’s Mecha Department. He handed the order to the shopkeeper for checking, pulled up a chair, and sat down, grumbling under his breath. “Recruitment, recruitment, recruitment—another year of recruitment. Our district is always cannon fodder in the preliminary rounds, and every year we have to put on a show for those guys to laugh at. It’s downright frustrating.”

The adjutant accompanying him tried to comfort him: “Don’t be so pessimistic. There’s been talk lately that this year’s recruits are actually pretty good.”

“Good? Good my ass!” Liang Deng cursed angrily. “It’s just a few more rich kids playing around. Let me tell you, those families might strut around here, but up there, they’re nothing. If those spoiled brats were any use, would headquarters have assigned me to scout for talent behind the scenes?”

The thought of the recruitment quota made Liang Deng’s head spin. “Our planet’s been in decline since the insect swarm invasion. Rebuilding to this extent is already an achievement. Anyone with means left long ago. Based on past recruitment levels, forget about infantry—even our Mecha Department has been begging for transfers from other star systems. How long has it been since we’ve seen any promising newcomers? This time, I’m not expecting any technical talent. Just someone with a bit of innovation…”

He suddenly stopped mid-sentence.

The adjutant asked: “What’s wrong?”

Liang Deng stood up, walked straight to the shelf at the side of the store, and picked up the thruster that had just been placed there. A faint light slowly brightened in his eyes: “Take a look. Have you ever seen this kind of assembly method before?”

The adjutant leaned in for a closer look and was also surprised: "Huh? I really haven't seen this before."

Liang Deng's tone was now fully excited: "Look at this part, and then here... a genius! How did he think to handle it this way? And it can even be adjusted like this?!"

The adjutant agreed repeatedly: "It's truly the first time I've seen this! Absolutely amazing! Colonel, look at this spot, and this one..."

Liang Deng: "Yes, yes, yes, here too!"

When the shop owner came back from the warehouse carrying parts, he spotted at once the two figures gathered in the corner and walked over curiously: "What's going on, Colonel?"

Liang Deng pointed at the thruster: "Where did you get this?"

"Just got it from a partner." The owner recognized the item in his hand and immediately started promoting it, "Colonel, you really know your stuff. This thing scores high on every metric—I guarantee most brand thrusters out there can't beat this one! Look, here's the performance test results fresh from the detector! It's definitely a great product—affordable, high-quality, and worth every penny. If you like it, you can take it with you right away!"

Liang Deng took the report and glanced at it, quickly caught the key point in the other's words: "You said you got this through recycling? And it's privately assembled? How old is that person? Young? Has he served in the military?"

The rapid-fire questions left the shop owner slightly dizzy: "Pretty young... he's in his twenties. Military service? Probably not... I think?"

Young, in his twenties, no military service!

The key details made Liang Deng's eyes light up: "Who is this person? Where does he work? Is he a technician at some company?"

Anyone who could assemble such a precise thruster using a model even he hadn't seen before was undoubtedly a talent!

This was exactly the kind of recruitment target they needed!

"His name is Lu Ming. He's not a technician—just from a family that runs a repair shop. This thruster was assembled based on his family's blueprints."

Under Liang Deng's intensely expectant gaze, the shop owner recalled Bai Luming's struggles to make ends meet and answered honestly and objectively, "As for his identity... I'd say he's just an ordinary moocher who's been forced to stand on his own two feet."

Liang Deng was stunned.

A self-reliant ordinary moocher?

What a unique character.