Chapter 38 Blackening Level Decreased, Level 8, Level 7

Chapter 38: Corruption Value Drop, Level Eight, Level Seven

"Ding—The male lead's corruption level has dropped. Current corruption level: Level Eight. Keep it up, host, complete the task, and get your reward!"

Luo Yunchen's fingers gripping Su Zheng's wrist involuntarily tightened, slowly clenching, his voice hoarse as he confirmed, "Brother, are you for real? You're not messing with me?"

Su Zheng smirked: "Of course! I mean it, no lies!"

He'd do it—no power grabs, just a puppet, to get you on that throne.

Then he'd slip away, disappear clean, never appear before you again, no loose ends for you!

"Ding—The male lead's corruption level has dropped. Current corruption level: Level Seven. Keep it up, host, complete the task, and get your reward!"

Su Zheng's smile widened.

Luo Yunchen's eyes smiled too, his gaze both firm and gentle, his gaze hiding a deep, crazy obsession.

Luo Yunchen said, "I'll help you."

Help you get that throne.

Help you take the kingdom.

Help you do what you want.

But you're mine.

You're mine and mine only!

Su Zheng paused, then got it—Luo Yunchen meant those scumbags from the Shen and Lin families—so he said, "No rush on this, Chen Di. We can't go head-to-head with the Shen and Lin families yet. Can't make a move on those scumbags in the open; we gotta hit 'em in the dark. Like, hire some guys to pretend to be martial arts masters, give 'em a badass name, off those scumbags and make a big deal out of it. Let everyone know what they did and cheer when they die. Then vanish without a trace, make the Shen and Lin families lose face and wreck their rep in court."

Luo Yunchen nodded: "Brother's smart. Great plan."

Su Zheng waved his hand: "Just spitballing. Do what you want. But keep yourself safe, don't get into trouble."

"Don't worry, bro, I'll be careful."

"Good. It's noon. Let's walk a bit and grab a bite at some restaurant."

"Sure, whatever you say, bro."

The system pointed the way—Fubei Restaurant, one of Luo Yunchen's cash cows, was up ahead.

That was Su Zheng's main stop today.

Lately, Fubei had been getting hassled by Fifth Prince Su Cheng's guys, business was tanking.

Bringing Luo Yunchen here, with his skills, he'd definitely sniff out the problems.

And then he'd catch on to issues with his other guys outside the palace and the hidden dangers around him.

Xu Mu was off doing some errand for Luo Yunchen, Su Zheng didn't care, and the two of them entered Fubei Restaurant together.

Just like the system said.

Downstairs, only a few tables had customers, barely a third of the big tables were full.

The shopkeeper looked old and tired, frowning while clicking his abacus.

The waiters were bored, messing around with trays in a corner.

The server, used to no customers, leaned on the doorframe, arms crossed, zoning out.

Only when Su Zheng and Luo Yunchen walked in did the server notice them and hurried over: "Hey! Two guests! Come on in! Private room or big table? What'll it be?"

Luo Yunchen said, "Get your boss."

The server's excitement dropped fast, not sure if they were customers or troublemakers.

Just as he hesitated, the shopkeeper heard the call and looked up to see Luo Yunchen at the front. He immediately put down his abacus and came over.

But with Su Zheng there, the shopkeeper didn't know who he was or how he knew the young master, so he kept it professional: "Two guests, private room or big table?"

Luo Yunchen said to the shopkeeper, "Open my private room, brew my tea, make all the house specialties, and slaughter a fat sheep for some fresh roasted lamb. Go prepare it."

Su Zheng's mouth twitched. Luo Yunchen was practically asking to be outed!

Sure enough, Su Zheng cast a slightly puzzled look at Luo Yunchen, who smiled back and said, "Brother A Zheng, what a coincidence. This restaurant was started by my grandfather, and he left it to me."

Su Zheng chuckled: "Is that so? What a coincidence!"

After glancing around, Su Zheng asked the shopkeeper, "Shopkeeper, business not going well? Why only this many guests during lunch rush?"

The shopkeeper, seeing from Luo Yunchen's attitude that Su Zheng was no ordinary person, replied respectfully, "To be honest, sir, we've had some trouble lately that's affected business. But rest assured, our dishes are clean and delicious. Please go upstairs and wait a moment; food will be ready soon!"

Su Zheng walked over to a large table and sat down, saying, "No need. This is fine. Let's eat here. What do you think, Chen Di?"

"If Brother A Zheng likes it, then here it is."

With that, Luo Yunchen sat down beside him.

The shopkeeper was bewildered. Why had the young master agreed to sit at a big table?

Didn't he dislike noisy environments and having people around?

On the few times he came in person, he always used his private room.

He'd eat while listening to a concise report, then dismiss the shopkeeper and stay alone.

Seeing both seated and waiting, the shopkeeper dared not delay. He had the server attend to them while he hurried to the kitchen to order and expedite the dishes.

Su Zheng called the server over and quietly gave him a few instructions. The server nodded and went out on an errand.

Luo Yunchen caught a few words but, seeing Su Zheng had no intention of explaining, acted as if nothing had happened.

Soon, plates of colorful and fragrant dishes were brought to the table.

Su Zheng didn't stand on ceremony; he started eating as each dish arrived.

Luo Yunchen, however, wasn't in a hurry to eat. He focused on wiping Su Zheng's mouth and serving him food, his movements gentle and his gaze affectionate.

Once all the dishes were served, the shopkeeper stood to the side, considering whether to report the store's situation.

Luo Yunchen simply waved him away: "You may withdraw. We'll discuss it after the meal."

The shopkeeper had no choice but to comply and step back.

When the server returned, he handed something to Su Zheng, who took it directly and tucked it into his sleeve.

Just as Su Zheng and his group were about to finish their meal, chaos suddenly broke out at two nearby tables, one after the other.

First, a young woman suddenly collapsed to the ground clutching her stomach. The young fellow at her table was presumably her husband.

Startled by the woman, the husband hurriedly helped her up from the floor, shouting anxiously, "Honey, honey, what's wrong?"

The woman, writhing in pain as she held her stomach, wailed, "Hon, it hurts so bad... my stomach hurts..."

The commotion caught the attention of people at nearby tables, and they all turned to look at the couple.

Just then, another young guy at a different table also suddenly fell to the ground, clutching his stomach and rolling around in agony, crying out, "It hurts! So painful! Bro, Ma, it hurts so bad..."